Quickstart Demo

Writing & Design Nick Jones Additional Writing & Design Eric Moreau Cover Art Gong Studios Layout Design Eric Moreau Maps Eric Moreau

www.daydreamerinteractive.com www.infinem-rpg.com

Copyright 2012 Day Dreamer Interactive and Nick Jones

All rights reserved under the Universal Copyright Convention, World Wide, No part of this book may be reproduced in part or whole, in any form or by any means, without permission from the publisher. All incidents, institutions,governments and people are fictional and any similarity, without satiric intent, of characters or persons living or dead, is strictly coincidental.

Combat

How Combat Works

Combat is broken down into turns. Turns are about 3 to 5 seconds long. In a turn you can do several things, but there is an order in which it is done. Before combat starts everyone should roll initiative at the same time to see who goes first. This initiative will be used for the whole combat. Now there are two phases: Phase 1 which is the Movement Phase, during this phase you may elect to flee (See below for further details on moving and fleeing) Then comes the Attack Phase. See below for further details on attacking. If you choose to do none of these actions you may do what is called Defend. When you defend you take no action unless attacked and gain a 10% bonus to dodge, if you are attacked you attempt to dodge the attack. You may also take more than one dodge while defending. You receive a 10% penalty for every dodge after your first when you defend. See below for further rules on dodging. Each player goes on their turn (determined by their Initiative roll see below) meaning you dont all go at the exact same time. Turns are set up to keep combat in some sort of order.

Movement & Fleeing

During your turn you may take a full move action and move up to 30 ft, if you do take a full move action, you may not do anything else. If you only take a partial movement (which is the norm in combat) you may move 15 ft. If a player decides he's had enough or the battle isn't going his/her way, they may engage in the act of fleeing. While fleeing they may move up to 50 ft for 5 rounds. After the player has used their flee action for the maximum amount of time, they may then only move 10 ft per round for 10 rounds. While fleeing you cannot defend and hitting you in ranged combat is much easier. Attackers receive a 20% bonus to hit anyone fleeing

How To Hit In Combat

Hitting in combat whether it is physical or mental is done the same way. You roll to hit, you need a 60% or higher to hit. Roll 1d100 and add your Skill Modifier and any other modifiers. Each rank in a skill grants a 5% bonus. If the sum of your roll exceeds 60, then youve hit. If the sum of your roll exceeds 100, then you penetrate 1 armor and an additional 1 armor for every 10 points over 100. Unarmed and Melee attacks have a limited range, you can strike at targets up to 10 feet from your position with these attacks. A defender gets 1 free dodge every turn. You may take more dodges by Defending during your turn. More on defending below. Players may also take cover. When you take cover behind an object it gets increasingly harder to hit you. Cover is broken down into two categories, Full cover and partial cover. If youre in full cover you are

Initiative
Initiatives in Infinem are done by rolling 1 d10 and add your dexterity bonus (see Dexterity below for bonuses). Whoever has the highest outcome goes first, then everyone else in descending order. You elect to hold your action and go last during this combat. You may not decide later to take your action in the order you originally rolled if you elect to hold your action.

Combat Example

unable to see your target and cannot attack them, but you cannot be hit either (in some cases grenades will be able to arc and defeat some full cover). If youre in partial cover (meaning part of your body is covered by something that can stop substantial damage like a wall) then you become 30% harder to hit, meaning your opponent has a 30% penalty to hit you. Players may find themselves shooting into combat and friendly players might be mixed in the melee. If you are shooting into a melee and there is a friendly ally in the way you receive a 10% penalty to hit your target. In the event that a friendly ally is engaged in a grapple with your target you receive a 30% penalty to hit your target. Magic Combat is similar to physical, but you use the Mental attribute for attacking. Magic combat is not possible to dodge; there are some spells which will allow you to absorb some of the damage. Damage is done in the order that it was applied in combat, so: if Sean applies damage that continues into the next round, it will do damage at the start of his turn. Armor reduces the damage taken, magic and firearms ignore armor.

All 3 of these initiatives will be used for the remainder of the combat. The players Sean and Amber are up against a Soldier. Amber goes first with an 11. She moves 10 feet away from the soldier and then attacks the Soldier with her Short Bow, she rolls to attack and gets a total of 68% (after adjustments). The GM elects to have the Soldier dodge; the GM gets a 61% (after adjustments). Unfortunately for the GM the 61% is lower than the 68% so Amber hits and does 2 damage (after adjustments) since the Soldier has 1 armor. The GM goes next since he rolled a 9. The GM attacks Seans character and rolls a 31%, which is a miss. Its Seans turn since he rolled a 6. Sean attacks the Soldier with his Mace; Sean rolls a (natural) 95% which is a critical success. Sean does double damage for a total of 5 (after adjustments) since the Soldier has 1 armor the damage is reduced to 4. It is now Amber's turn again. She decides shes far enough away still so she does not move. Amber attacks the Soldier and rolls a 15% which is a miss and because it was below a 25% she must restring her bow which is the reload function for bows. Next its the GM; he decides the soldier will close with Amber who is 10 feet away. The soldier then attacks Amber and rolls a 63%. Amber hasnt dodged yet this round so she decides to attempt to dodge, she rolls a 74% and beats the Soldiers roll so she dodges. Now its Seans turn again, he decides to move into range of the Soldier which is 10 feet away and attacks. He rolls an 88% and hits. The GM has the soldier dodge, but rolls 63%, which is lower than the 88% so he does not dodge. Sean does 3 damage, but the Soldier has 1 armor so Sean does 2 damage. Its the top of the round again so its Amber's turn. Amber moves back 10 feet

Drawing Your Weapon

Drawing your weapon is done for free, it takes little or no time to draw your weapon (unless its concealed, if your weapon is concealed it takes your movement action). Combat Example: There are 2 players Sean and Amber. The GM, Sean and Amber all roll initiative at the same time. The GM gets a total (after adjustments) of 9, Sean gets a total (after adjustments) of 6 and Amber gets a total of (after adjustments) 11.

Combat/Magic

to stay out of reach of the Soldier, then attacks. She rolls a 94% (which makes her adjusted roll a 104%) this isnt a critical success, however it is a hit. She does 3 damage against the Soldier, which is reduced to 2 damage. The soldier isnt looking so good. Its the GMs turn again; he attacks Seans character and rolls an 89%. Sean attempts to dodge, but rolls a 44%, Sean isnt wearing armor so he takes the full 3 damage. Its now Seans turn again. He attacks the Soldier again and rolls a 61%, which is a hit. The soldier attempts to dodge, but rolls a 52% so Sean does 2 damage (after adjustments). Its the top of the round once again so its Amber's turn. She attacks the Soldier and rolls a natural 95% (110%) so she gets a critical success and ignores 1 armor because she effectively rolled a 110%. Amber does 6 damage (after adjustments) and takes the Soldier out.

Critical Successes are a way of saying you did something really well, even if it was a fluke, you did better than you typically would. Its like making that lucky shot in billiards that you didnt mean to do. It always looks better when you do it too, in the case of guns its like shooting the rest of your clip into your target. If you arent trained in a skill you cannot get a critical success.

Ammunition and Reloading

Ammunition: Its not fun to count and keep track of ammo, so with that in mind ammo in Infinem is done like so: When you roll a natural 25% or lower on an attack youll need to reload the next round. Some guns such as different types of machine guns will need to be reloaded on Critical Successes. If you are using a bow and roll a natural 25% or lower on an attack roll, you must spend the next round setting up a new bundle of arrows for use.

Rolling Over
Rolling well in a game like Infinem is important. You get perks for rolling higher such as for every 10% you roll (total with skills) over 100% you ignore 1 armor. This will help in combat against enemies with armor.

Using Magic
In order to use the Magic spells you simply need to be conscious and see your target (unless otherwise noted). You do not need to have to be able to use your hands, or be able to speak as the user interface for the spells is done via thought. Magic in Infinem is conducted just like everything else. In order to successfully cast your spell you must roll at least a 60% to hit. Hit does not always mean to hit in combat, but to hit your target difficulty. Some spells will have a higher difficulty setting, simply do to the nature of the spell and your environment versus other obstacles. The Spell Execution skill helps a caster pass the difficulty of a spell, like all other combat skills 5% every Rank. Users are immediately aware if their spell worked, unless there is something hampering them from knowing. The player may pick spells to simply know,

Critical Success
What is a Critical Success? A critical success is when a natural roll of 95% or better is rolled. When you roll a natural critical success a few things happen, one being you do double damage (if damage is done), if its a non-combat roll, you learn more information than you typically would, or gain access to more resources than you would previously and in some cases you run out of ammunition.

Races

the number of spells known is always: Intelligence plus Spell Execution skill plus Academia skill (So Rank 3 in Academia would add 3 spells). If you wish to swap spells, you must spend 4 hours per spell swapped (limited by your academics per day). Spells are difficult to master and your brain can only hold so much information. A predetermined number will set difficulty or on the fly by the GM. Base difficulty is always 60% or better, (Unless otherwise noted) and may be added to or subtracted to depending on the setting and what youre trying to do. Feel free to be creative both players and GMs, these things work both ways. The amount of Magic you can execute in a single combat encounter varies depending on your Essence. A character's starting Essence is equal to the character's SPIRIT. When you execute a spell, your Essence is lowered by 1. When you have 0 Essence, you can no longer execute spells. During combat you regain 1 Essence for every round that you do not execute a spell, out of combat your Essence will regenerate at a rate of 1 every 5 seconds unless you have an active Utility spell. A spell caster who has taken damage in the current round cannot cast a spell on his/her turn. This is due to the distraction the pain from the damage will have caused making it harder for the caster to focus. A caster with 5 ranks in the Spell Execution skill has a 50% chance of not being distracted by an attack.

twisted into half Ancient Ones and became Twisted Ones. They didnt make the complete change; the ZoG recovered them before the change was complete. Physical changes may have started already as well as the ability to cast magic. These changes could be anything like an extra eye, loss of hair, wings, tentacles etc. You act strange and have forgotten most human mannerism and customs. You have to consciously act Human to not weird people.

Metis

are still human, but with body parts from Ancient One. People look at you funny because you look like something out of an old horror movie, stitched together by a crazy scientist. Your implants give you the ability to be stronger faster; however your muscular system still has limitations.

The Corrupted

are what happens when a human consumes Ancient One DNA? Well if they consume too much they become no longer human...they are now Corrupted. Corrupted can cast magic like Recovered Ones and suffer genetic oddities like them as well. The difference is that The Corrupted have unstable genetic code and they will continue to mutate into grotesque perversions of the human body. Corrupted may seek out the ZoG to be saved and turned into a Recovered One if they so desire.

The Races
While this demo does not include character creation; see the end of this demo for character sheets for some pre-generated characters. However here is some information about the Races which should give you an idea what each one is about.

Recovered Ones were once Humans that were

World of Infinem

The World of Infinem is similar to Earth, in fact; its an alternate future. Ancient beings called Ancient Ones who are part demon, part squid faced monsters, part Minotaur beings who have been locked away for a very long time. The Angelic, who are a very old race at war with the Ancient Ones; saves part of Humanity. The Angelic uplifted man in order to keep the Ancient Ones imprisoned on Earth. The world is a darker place than what we see today. The Sun is darker, having been turned this way by an Ancient One device when the Angelic dampening field was destroyed. This device had been created millions of years prior and was blocked from affecting the sun when the dampening fields were put in place. The dampening field network spanned the globe and kept the Ancient Ones imprisoned below and prevented their magic from affecting anything outside their prison. The world lives in a very gloomy environment, day light being much dimmer and lasting around 11 hours in the summer months and around 8 in winter. The days are always gloomy as if the sky is constantly overcast, only regions on the equator ever get what you would call a bright sunny day and 12 hours of daylight all year round. As you might imagine the Earth is much colder as a result of the drop in sunlight. The average temperature is 18 degrees cooler than what we would typically see today. As a result, places that were already cold are near uninhabitable and most surviving humans of sane mind have migrated further south. Most of the Earths vegetation changed as a result of a darker sun as well, there was massive plant die-off and those that survived had to quickly adapt. Plant growth was seriously slowed down and many adapted by either growing more leaves or larger versions. To top it all off

The World of Infinem

the plant life also had to deal with radiation and acidic rains due to the weapons of man being unleashed. While plants and trees still exist they are far fewer and more scattered, the only areas that have lush vegetation is along the equator and up to 600 miles north and south of the equator. ~ The Last Testament of Simmonds, on how the Beacons came to be ~ When the world went dark, it happened quickly. It was as if the Ancient Ones knew where to strike and what to destroy for maximum effect. It was a Blitzkrieg unlike anything the world had never known. Many militaries attempted to stop the Ancient Ones, but were unsuccessful. When the Ancient Ones broke free, all form of radio and wireless communication ceased to function. All one could hear on these devices was static...and if one listened long enough one could almost perceive voices speaking in the static. The modern world plunged in a communication void, how could they be expected to hold off an invading army with this major disadvantage? They couldn't...by the time those in charge had any idea of what was going on, it was too late to do anything but die. Mass panic flooded every street in every city and in every country across the globe. News of monsters attacking spread from mouth to mouth but everyone was unsure if it was a hoax or some kind of terrorist activity. A few of the Super Powers managed to launch Nuclear Weapons, thinking the chaos in their streets as some kind of diversionary tactic by old rivals to pull attention away from their massive invasion forces. Thankfully somewhere close to 30% of the missiles were destroyed due to various malfunctions never having struck their target. Some never even left their silos, about 25% of them were shot down by various

World of Infinem

methods (mostly the Guardian Defense Towers). Thus nuclear winter effects were minimized. The only saving grace of this act was that the Ancient Ones were caught off-guard. They had no concept of what a nuclear weapon was and when the missiles hit they lost large numbers of their forces. Some countries that didnt have access to nuclear devices used whatever they had, weapons such as Mustard Gas or Cyanide to fight against the masses of Ancient Ones. They killed whole towns and in some cases large provinces in hopes that it would save them, but it didnt. It only quickened their ends. It also made the areas uninhabitable even to the Ancient Ones, killing those who went into the areas. Huge areas of the Earth are uninhabitable and all the Angelic could do were watch from distant galaxies. There were those religious groups that suddenly realized that they were wrong. There was a sudden realization that every aspect of their theologies came crashing down around them when they were forced with Heaven. There were mass suicides, murders, and torching of holy buildings. Along with this there was the mass hysteria that accompanied the unknown of this colossal size. Not all of the worlds governments fell. There are still some countries that still exist, even if they are ghosts of their former status. Most of these were in the far North, or on islands. Some survived simply because of the sheer amount of castles. Countries without natural defenses, castles etc. didnt fare so well. In Europe the United Kingdom fared rather well due to having both castles and being mostly an island. The large amount of swords and armor helped as well, unlike in America where most of the weapons and armor were not made to withstand battle conditions. The Scottish were said to have been the most vicious against the Ancient Ones, pipes blazing along the whole time in proper Scottish fashion. The Welsh were there in force, but alas; couldnt be

understood. The English were the bulk of the resistance, his Royal Highness King William led several attacks until he was fatally wounded attempting to save several of his soldiers stuck in a rampart. Long live the King! The republic of Ireland, with its few people were unable to hold the Ancient Ones back for long, but it was widely rumored they took down nearly every single Ancient One that came at their walls. The Irish were finally free, but not a soul to rejoice was left. Most of the European continent proper was wiped out, with a few holdouts in the Alps and the Pyrenees. Switzerland held out the longest of those on the mainland, due in part to all the entrances into Switzerland being armed with the ability to collapse the tunnels. The natural defenses of Switzerland helped as well, but were ultimately not enough to stop the Ancient Ones. Vatican City also survived with the help of Angelic technology that shielded the city and it's residents from all damage. It is said that they also took in some refuges from Rome, the ones that were lucky enough to make it to the borders of the city. The entire area of Vatican City is protected by a force field of some kind and prevents passage into the city. It is said that the residents may leave, and some have been observed doing so, but for the most part they keep to themselves. It is unknown what they are doing in there and what their plans may be. France had the wisdom to launch most of its nuclear weapons at old rivals and at the largest areas of territory lost within its borders, if France was going down, it wouldnt go down alone. France took out most of Europe and parts of Russia with its arsenal of nuclear missiles. Germany took the brunt of the nuclear barrage; it would seem that old rivalries lasted until the very end. Most of Africa was wiped out completely, South Africa used its nuclear devices on

World of Infinem

its own land and the surrounding area, in hopes that the few left in control would hang on, but with all the radiation and the strong winds, no one was left alive. There are some small holdouts in the mountains of Africa; these governments returning to their tribal roots have been very successful in keeping the Ancient Ones away. The desert dwelling people in the Sahara fared very well too, the Ancient Ones for one reason or another avoid the desert areas. Most of the fate of Asia is unknown. There was a large-scale exchange of nuclear devices. North and South Korea finally ended the war between their two in a last ditch effort to consolidate their resources to drive out the Ancient Ones. It is unknown if they succeeded. No communication has been received by anyone from any country in Asia. The last reports from Australia were good. Most of the coastal cities were obliterated, but all those to the west in the desert were doing very well. It is assumed that the Australian government is still fully intact, as it was able to move west quickly. Most of the South American countries did very well too. Brazil was able to repel most of its attacks. There was something about the rainforest that the Ancient Ones did not like. The leading rumor being an ancient Angelic city was once there and remnants of its defenses are still active. The Brazilian government was dissolved once most of the main fighting was done and over with. A fascist dictator took power, their top General being the new leader. It proved to be a good move for the Brazilians as they were able to respond faster and re-allocate their resources quick enough to repel most invasions of Ancient Ones. The other South American countries did well for some of the same reasons that the Brazilians did so well, a mixture of terrain and the Ancient Ones not going very far inland. There has been no information as to whether or not anything of Angelic origin has ever been found there.

In North America food depots and supplies were emptied quickly. Those that werent were either destroyed or forgotten. Large cache of arms that can only be found in places like Canada and the United States were lost as well. Those who prepared the most for something like this were the first to die. Hordes of travelers would descend on these areas like locusts or in many cases the hordes of Ancient Ones. No one could have prepared for this kind of disaster. There were a few hold out places. Some of these became the Beacons we have today. Others were abandoned or lost to the hordes of Ancient Ones. Those that were abandoned were left behind in favor of those safe havens that had walls and larger supply of Tech. Machines that made a gruel type of food and combined atoms of hydrogen and oxygen to make water. Using these machines came at a cost though. It left the user emaciated and feeling weak. Often times users hair would change to a grey and in some cases fall out completely. Inside the Beacons life isnt a utopia. There is no federal authority, instead groups of gangs, corporations, banks and medical facilities rule. Its their way or the Wastes. The gangs evolved from simple street gangs, government offices and drug dealers. The corporations came from places like the Power Company, Water Company and department stores. The strongest of all of these are the medical facilities. They control the machines that feed us; these are the machines that we use instead of farming. From the ashes of the old government of America rose a new power with the potential to rule the continent in the coming decades. The Republic of Texas is the last vestige of the old American empire and is considered to be the Promise Land to all those who aren't citizens of the Republic. Texas has survived the nuclear missile onslaught through luck, some would even go so far as say fate. Texas was home to AndTek Industries which had just

Welcome to Tiptonia

been given a contract to develop missile defense towers 2 years prior to the coming of the apocalypse. AndTek created the Guardian Defense Tower which used state-of-the-art energy weaponry to shoot lasers at incoming missiles. The United States government had just signed a multi-billion dollar contract with the company to build 150 Guardian Mark II towers across the country. The project was 2 years into a 10 year contract so unfortunately many of the towers were in various states of construction with only a handful of them being fully operational. These operational towers were instrumental in mitigating the nuclear onslaught directed at the North American continent. Texas was fortunate that not only where there two operational Guardian Mark II Towers in the State but the Guardian Prototype Tower at the AndTek R&D Center was still in working condition. AndTek was also in the process of installing Guardian Mark I systems onto 2 US Navy Frigates and had just finished the installation of a Mark I system on a 3rd Frigate. Therefore when nuclear hell broke out all missiles targeting Texas were destroyed before they could reach their targets. However while the State was saved from nuclear destruction they would not be spared from the Ancient Ones. Like most everywhere these ancient monsters rose up from the ground and the State's military assets after hard fought battles were able to take control of this new threat. That is until nuclear explosions from the rest of the country herded extremely large numbers of Ancient Ones into Texas. The fight was on for the people of Texas and they were forced to do a fighting retreat to the southern part of the State. They would later reclaim the entire state years later and have even conquered new territories. The Republic of Texas stands as the most powerful military force on the North American continent and have an estimated population of around 3 million souls. ~ The Simmonds, Knower of the Beacons

* Welcome to Tiptonia *
Demo Adventure
Players are currently residing in Tiptonia, a great walled city known as a Beacon. One of the last bastions of humanity left on Earth. Life is not paradise inside this Beacon, however; as the players are about to find out. The players are a rag tag crew of tech hunters who regularly leave the relative safety of the Beacon and venture out into the wastelands to scavenge for lost technology, slay the Ancient Ones, and to make a living. The players are currently in the trade district of Tiptonia for one reason or another. The merchants know the players as they regularly trade items and pick up jobs in this area. While conducting their business in the trade district the players become aware of the events unfolding around them.

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Flavor Text

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Text in these boxes is meant to be read to the players as a way to convey the players surroundings or important information as well as relating narrative elements of the adventure.

Into the Breach

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Into the Breach

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The air is cold and full of stench and acrid smoke from campfires that no longer use wood to burn. The sun is just clearing the wall as noon approaches the district as a stiff, cold wind blows the players belongings around them. Piles of garbage and refuse cover the hard packed dirt ground that seems to be everywhere. As the players conclude their business in the area a scream tears through the air. A blood curdling scream and several screams from frightened children alarm the players. As the players turn towards the screams they see a burrow appear, opening the ground and displacing the trash and hard packed dirt. As the ground gives way to a hole, several Ancient One Laborers climb through and begin grabbing women and children. Much to everyones horror there are no guards in the area and will not be able to respond quickly enough to make a difference. As quickly as the Laborers exit through the tunnel, they disappear back into its darkness. Many pleading people beg the players to descend into the unknown and rescue the women and children. The screams from the kidnapped women and children soon fade as the Ancient Ones begin to collapse the tunnel behind them. Not thinking for their own safety, the Heros jump into the hole before its collapsed and locking the women and children below forever. The players jumping down into hole makes the Ancient One Laborers abandon their efforts to collapse the tunnel and they recede deeper into the darkness of the tunnel. The tunnel is large enough for a full grown man to walk easily standing upright. As you descend following the tunnel which twists and turns several times and after a couple minutes of progress through the tunnel a pair of red eyes appears in the darkness up ahead, the eyes focus on you for a split second before receding into the darkness. The tunnel opens up into a small circular room where the owner of the eyes is revealed to be a short stumpy figure with glowing red eyes and tentacles hanging from its face. Four of the Ancient One Laborers are standing around the red eyed creature.

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Room #1

Combat Encounter #1
1 x Spellslinger 4 x Laborers When all the workers are killed 1 Elite Heavy will appear to protect the spellslinger. If the spellslinger is already dead no more opponents will arrive.
After combat is concluded the following skill checks can be made: Untrained skills are at a 15% PENALTY to rolls.

Ancient One Lore: This skill can be rolled to

allow a character to recall information about this structure. On a successful pass read the following: The walls and ceiling of this tunnel are of normal Ancient One construction technique, these tunnels are dug by Laborers who use some kind of resin that expels from their Bio-Staff to coat the walls and ceiling. Once this resin hardens it gives the surfaces covered in it the strength of steel, the more resin is applied to the surface the stronger it becomes.

The tunnel continues past this small room for a few feet before coming to the Ancient One outpost. Label A at the bottom of the map. (See Map) In front of them the way is barred with a hard, clear membrane material. (Label B on the map) The players can see through the membrane, but cannot pass through it. A path lies to their left (Room 1).

Awareness: The players may use this skill to try to

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Room #1

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hear any noises that might be coming from deeper down the tunnel. If the result of the roll is 90% or higher then that character picks up a slight humming sound coming from somewhere down the tunnel.

Investigation: Can be used if a character inspects

the walls and ceilings on a successful pass read the following:

In the room in front of you is decorated with strange objects on a sort of pedestal. Above the pedestal a light shines on each of these strange objects. There are ten of these objects. The room seems to be constructed in a similar fashion to the rest of the tunnel so far.

The walls and ceiling of the tunnel are uneven, jagged and rough however they appear to not be natural cave walls. The surface has a slight sheen and has a glassy feel to it.

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Room #1

Skill checks can be done to know more about the objects in this room.

If the players attempt to use the Bio-Staff on blocked area, the membrane will recede and allow the players forward.

Science Tech: These are Symbiotes. Weapons used

by the Ancient Ones. They are a living weapon of sorts and will not last long when not in use or in their current storage. Perhaps these items will open the path forward.

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Membrane

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Ancient One Lore: These are Symbiotes.

Weapons used by the Ancient Ones. They are a living weapon of sorts and will not last long when not in use or in their current storage. Perhaps these items will open the path forward.

As the membrane falls away the players immediately become aware of room two. They can see in it clearly as the room is lit well enough to make out several figures in the room. There appears to be several figures with vines or some sort of plant tubes coming from them. These vine like tendrils descend from the ceiling and seem to be attached to the stationary figures in the room. A lone worker seems to be tending to the figures. It is unclear what exactly the worker is doing at first glance. The worker does not seem to be interested in the players.

Bio-Sword
A sword made of a weird bone-like structure, this material can be either black, brown or dark red in color. It is about the length of a longsword but the blade is thicker and heavier. This sword does 5 points of damage and excretes an acidic substance upon striking. When it strikes there is a 30% chance the target will suffer an additional 2 points of damage from the acid, the target's armor will also take 1 point of Resistance damage.

Bio-Staff
This is not only a weapon but an all-purpose tool that is mainly used by Ancient One laborers, the staff is made of the same bone-like structure that the Bio-Sword is made of. The end of the staff has an oblong shaped tip made of skin-like substance that is soft and squishy by default. The staff links itself with the wielder via small hooks that extend out from the main shaft when the wielder's hands touch the shaft. With a thought the wielder can make the tip as hard as stone for use as a clubbing weapon, the tip can also be morphed into various shapes by the wielder's thought. Applications include making the tip into the shape of a shovel or grabbing prongs.

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Room #2, #3, #4

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Room #2

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Awareness: You are not alone in the room. Medicine: Not all of these creatures are dead. Some are in various states of life. You lack the technology or the methods to save them. In this room are two Assassins and two Heavy. They will attack the players as they leave the room or upon a player finding them via the skill checks (Awareness or Subterfuge).

The two Laborer in this room will ignore the players as long as they do not hamper him in his duties, attending to the figures in this room.

Awareness: Player(s) notice there are several

switches in the room numbering (one per player).

Ancient One Lore: The worker will leave the

players alone if they leave it alone.

Engineering: The switches have two positions.

The switches seem to adjust the flow of whatever is running through the vines into these people. One direction seems to add to the flow and the other seems to decrease the flow. Perhaps adding to the flow will harm these people somehow. If the players activate all the switches (add to flow) these people will die, conversely if they decrease the flow the people will detach and live. If they players decide to leave the switches alone, nothing happens. These are the missing adults from the market. The children are not in this room it would appear.

Combat Encounter #2
2 x Elite Assassins 2 x Elite Heavy

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Room #4

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Room #3

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This room seems to be empty at first glance. There are several carcasses on the floor of many different types of beings. These poor creatures are in various forms of change, some of them have been mangled, and others simply look as if they had lost the will to exist.

This room isnt actually a room. Its part of a parking garage from before the fall/end of Humanity. Those from before will recognize it right away; those from after will see it as the rest of this tunnel system. The garage has long since been collapsed and looks unstable to dig out. There is even a car left intact. If investigated, there are keys in the sun visor and the car even has some gas in it still somehow. The car will not fit out the exit to this area however.

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Room #5

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Room #5

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This room contains all the missing children. They are huddled near the back of the room. A lone figure stands among them, draped in something that covers its whole body. The children seem to be in some sort of haze or lull. As you enter the figure speaks. I see we have company children. Let uncle deal with the nice people and then well get back to story time. Be still while I invade their minds, I wouldnt want to hit you instead, children. Four Laborers and two heavily armored Ancient One soldiers emerges from the shadows at the back of the room.

Combat Encounter #3
4 x Laborers 2 x Elite Heavy 1 x Champion Dominator

children run screaming from the players. When the players return to the Beacon, they are hailed as champions for saving the innocent mothers and their children. If the players did not save the creatures from Room 2: The children soon wake from their haze and realize they are alone with strangers. They look at the non-human players and scream in terror flee down the tunnel towards the entrance to the surface. Upon returning to the Beacon, the players are accused of conspiring with the Ancient Ones. Several people begin to throw trash or whatever is near them at the players and call them bad names.

Aftermath
If the players saved the creatures in Room 2, the creatures will stumble into the room towards the children. The children wake from their haze and run towards the creatures several of them yell Mommy! as they do this. If players attack the creatures at this time they kill them with little effort and the

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Laborer

* Laborer *
The Laborer is the base unit of the Ancient Ones. They have no eyes and instead rely on vibrations, sound and smell to sense the world around them. Laborers are as their name suggests the workhorses of the Ancient Ones; all are formerly of other species. Laborers will largely ignore Heroes unless they prevent the Laborers from doing their tasks or if the Heroes get too close and the Laborer becomes aware of the Heroes. Laborers are also the basic combat units of the Ancient Ones. They are generally used as shock troops and sent in massive waves. Laborers have smooth bodies and are dark brown. Their heads disturb most non-Ancient Ones as they have no eye sockets, nose or external ears. Their heads are smooth except when their mouths are open, which forms a large gaping hole. They are otherwise similar to human form. Elite and Champion Laborers never have armor more than 1. Immune to: Blind, Hinder Confidence HP: 7 STR: 4 DEX: 3 INT: 2 Spirit: 2 Initiative: +3 Size: Medium Melee To Hit: +10% Non-Combat Skill Rolls: -5%

Bio-Tech: (Max 2)

25% chance of having Health Booster 20% chance of having a Bio-Grenade

Bonuses/Penalty:

Attacks:

Fists: +10% to Hit, Damage 1. Bio-Staff: +10% to Hit, Damage 2, 75% chance a Laborer will have this.

Skills:

No skills

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Spellslinger Spells:

* Spellslinger (Ancient One) *

The Spellslingers are the magic users at the base of the Ancient One army. They are usually seen with Ancient Ones (Soldier) to guard them. They are never seen alone, always traveling with other Ancient Ones. The Spellslingers are the leaders of each squad of Ancient Ones. They are the lowest level of leadership, giving orders to those who are of lesser rank. Spellslingers are one of the smaller Ancient Ones in size. Their heads resemble squids, but less of a protrusion in the back of the head. They have short stubby legs that make it difficult to run and prefer to use their longer arms to help in getting around (similar to a gorilla). They are hairless and are lighter in color (green, purple, blue yellow) Immune to: Hinder Confidence, Berserker's Plight HP: 15 STR: 2 DEX: 3 INT: 3 Spirit: 5 Essence: 8 Initiative: + 5 Size: Small

Berserker's Plight Blind Cloak Essence Drain Flame Darts Foe Seeker Fountain of Flame From Below Dodge: 20% Spell Execution: 25% Stealth: 25%

Skills:

Hamper Movement Hinder Confidence Magic Armor Magic Bolt Magic Shield Remove Curse Sense Life Whirlwind

Bio-Tech: (Max 5)
80% chance of 40% chance of 30% chance of 30% chance of 20% chance of 20% chance of 10% chance of

having a Spell Storage Pod having Bio-Grenade having a Health Booster having Energy Dart having Sticky Glob having Acid Spitter having EMP Pod

Magic To Hit: +10% Magic Damage: +1

Bonuses/Penalty:

Attacks:

- Spellslinger will never use physical attacks. They will only cast spell and give orders to lower ranking Ancient Ones - Spellslinger will only order a retreat if they are severely injured (below 5 HP) and have lost half of their numbers.

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Heavy

* Elite Heavy *
These Ancient Ones are plated in a heavy type of armor. They look like soldiers mainly, except they have an obvious thick exoskeleton covering their entire bodies, except at the joints, where there is a weak point in the armor. Immune to: Hinder Confidence HP: 21 STR: 5 DEX: 3 INT: 2 Spirit: 3 Initiative: + 9 Size: Medium Armor: 4

50% chance of 40% chance of 40% chance of 20% chance of 20% chance of 10% chance of

Bio-Tech: (Max 3)

having a Health Booster having a Bio-Grenade having Energy Dart having a Stunner having Web Harpoon having Sticky Glob

Bonuses/Penalty:

Melee To Hit: +10% Melee Damage: +1 Non-Combat Skill Rolls: -5%

Attacks:

Claw Attack: +20% to Hit, Damage 6 Tail Slash: +30% to Hit, Damage 6, reaches up to 15 feet Bio-Sword: +30% to Hit, Damage 5

Skills:

Awareness: +30% Dodge: +25% Investigation: +15% Stealth: +10%

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Assassin

* Elite Assassin *
These Ancient Ones are stealth fighters used as a type of Special Forces. They move and attack in small numbers and always from the shadows. Assassins will abort a mission if they think the target knows they are about to strike. Assassins decorate their bodies with strange designs meant to scare their targets. They look more human than other Ancient Ones as well. They have a Human like head, with a receding hairline. It is rumored that the Assassins were picked from the best Twisted Ones, which is why they look so much like Humans. Immune to: Hinder Confidence HP: 22 STR: 3 DEX: 5 INT: 4 Spirit: 3 Initiative: + 10 Size: Medium Armor: 2 Non-Combat Skill Rolls: +5%

Skills:

Awareness: 35% Dodge: 25% Investigation: 25% Spell Execution: 15% Stealth: 35% Subterfuge: 25%

Bio-Tech:

Bio-Grenade Stunner Essence Pod

Bonuses/Penalty:

Attacks:

Claw Attack: +20% to Hit, Damage 5 Bio-Sword: +30% to Hit, Damage 5

Spells:

Cloak Sense Life Magic Armor Hide From Sight Choking Specter Flame Darts Magic Bolt Foe Seeker

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Dominator

* Champion Dominator *
Dominators are some of the most insidious Ancient Ones. They lure their captives into a false sense of reality and make the dominated captives into near mindless thralls. The Dominators begin controlling the minds of their captives while those under this domination see an alternate reality of bliss and carelessness. The Dominators are Magic users; their spell effects are similar to the effects of opiates and hallucinogenic drugs. Once the victim is in this state the Dominator then leads them to the nearest Ancient One city for conversion. He is essentially the Pied Piper of the Ancient Ones, they operate alone or with a small amount of Thralls inside human settlements and Beacons as they closely resemble humans. Only someone examining the Dominator closely can determine that it is not in fact Human. HP: 23 STR: 4 DEX: 3 INT: 4 Spirit: 3 Initiative: +5 Size: Medium Armor: 3

no longer attempt to break out. Dominators can have as many Thralls as they want. While seduced or Enthralled the target will act in the Dominators best interest, the GM dictates what that is, but the player always does the rolling for their character. When the Dominator is killed all it's Thralls will suffer 5 points of Damage and have their mind returned to them. Bio-Sword: +15% to Hit, Damage 5

Skills:

Awareness: 35% Dodge: 20% Investigation: 20% Stealth: 15%

Bio-Tech:

50% chance of EMP Pod 30% chance of Web Harpoon 20% chance of Bio-Grenade

Bonuses/Penalty:

Melee To Hit: +20% Non-Combat Skill Rolls: +15% Dominators will attempt to seduce a target + 20% to hit. They may seduce one target at a time. Seduce lasts until broken or enthralled. Defender makes an opposed roll is every round with the player character using either Spell Execution, Subterfuge or Intimidation skills to defend and ties always favor the defender. If the Dominator maintains it's seduction for 3 consecutive rounds the target is Enthralled and can

Attacks:

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Spellslinger Spells

magic energy shoots out from the caster's hand and speeds towards a target. The caster must be able to see the target when casting the spell, once the dart is launched it will chase the target even if the target disappears from the sight of the caster. The dart will hunt it's target relentlessly, it can turn corners and adjusts it's path accordingly. The dart will move 30 feet every round towards it's target until it hits, the caster can only maintain one dart at a time and the caster may cancel a dart at any time. While the dart is out the caster will not regenerate Essence. Once the dart hits the target it does 5 points of damage. From Below: You summon the essence of the Ancient Ones from below. A force of energy strikes from the ground at a group of up to 5 enemy targets. Does 1 damage to each target. Magic Shield: This spell surrounds the user in a Magic bubble that will absorb 3 points of damage before crumbling away. The bubble is not air tight nor will it protect against Magic attacks, the bubble remains active until one of three things have happened; it has taken 3 pts. of damage, it is brought down by the user or 3 rounds have gone by.Ultimate Retreat: This spell can be used to make a very effective retreat, as the user turns to run half a dozen images of the user split off and take off running in separate directions. Anyone attempting to catch the fleeing user must roll an Investigation skill with a 40% penalty to determine which one is the real user. Whirlwind: This spell whips up winds around the target creating a whirlwind that picks up bits of wood, sand and other small materials that pelt the target. The target takes 2 points of damage every round, the target may attempt to leave the whirlwind on their turn. To do this they must roll 1D10 and if the result is 1 or 2 then they cannot leave the whirlwind that turn. The

Foe Seeker: A javelin shaped dart of

caster can cancel the whirlwind at any time and while this spell is active the caster will not regenerate Essence.

Berserker's Plight: Your target flys into a rage.

They are no longer themselves. The target attacks the person closest to them on their turn for the next 2 rounds.(Curse)

Essence Drain: If your target is a spell caster his

Essence will be drained by 2 points.

Hamper Movement: You hamper the targets

ability to get around. The targets feet are stuck to the ground by an unseen force. Lasts 3 rounds.

Hinder Confidence: You remove all confidence in the target making them flee in terror. Lasts 2 rounds. While under this effect the target can only flee away from the user. If a path is not available the target will roll into a ball and take no action.

Magic Armor: This spell aids the recipient in

defending against spells of a harmful nature. It prevents 2 damage from Magic sources. There is no difficulty for this spell unless the recipient is cursed. This spell lasts for one scene.

Remove Curse: Removes 1 Curse from target.

Difficulty is 70%.

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Ancient One Outpost