It’s hot (90 degrees fahrenheit and up), and it rains frequently in the swamp. Even the roads are considered Difficult Ground as you move into the swamp (each inch of Difficult Ground counts as 2 for movement, Driving rolls are made at -2, unless you have a vehicle special feature to offset), as the muck is constant and pervasive. Bugs travel in swarms (seriously; I once had a swarm of mosquitos get at me in such numbers that I had blood in my clothes at the end of the day from all the tiny holes and anticoagulants their creepy little mouths left behind) and are a constant source of harassment. Dehydration is as much your enemy here as the wildlife and whatever waits for you at your ultimate destination, so I hope you remembered your canteens…
Traversing The Swamp
With your gear upgraded and an uproar in Avanzada Seca at your back, the team heads out on an arduous trek through the dinosaur swamp towards the Jungle Castle. Feel free to work in conversations about what just happened with Deezy's trial, the attempted destruction of the town, etc. into your posts.
From your consultations with Ma’arlys, you know the way is perilous, but you also have an idea of what awaits you and where you should travel. Lucky you!
Be Dramatic
This will be handled as a three-round dramatic task. Each round will work as follows:
- I will draw Initiative and everyone will be given Action Cards as normal. You do not need to act in the order of your cards. We are doing Action Cards just in case one of you pulls a Joker or a Club (see the next bullet point).
- If your Action Card is a Club, you have drawn a Complication and must make your roll at -2. Fun!
- If you pull a Joker, you get to make your rolls at +2. Neat!
- You may choose to roll one of the designated Skills (keep reading, and you’ll see what they are!) or you may Support one of your teammates by using any Skill that makes narrative sense. Support rolls add +1 to your teammate’s roll for each success and raise, up to a maximum of +4.
- Your goal is to earn success tokens; get enough tokens, and you’ll have a pleasant enough stroll through the swamp. Don’t get enough, and there could be some nasty surprises waiting along the way!
- You do not need to complete the tasks in any particular order.
- Your character may roll only one Skill per round, either in an active or a support roll. If you roll Notice to help spot treacherous spots in the road in order to Support one of your teammates’ Driving rolls, for example, you cannot also roll a combat skill in the same round (though you are, of course, free to roll a combat skill the next round).
- You can accumulate up to the following number of tokens: Driving: 10 success tokens; Survival: 10 success tokens; Combat (Fighting, Shooting or Arcane Skill): 10 success tokens.
- The rounds last amorphous amounts of time, but generally should cover tasks that take minutes to hours to complete (though they could take longer, if you choose). For example, you could spend several hours Repairing one of the vehicles at the end of the day in order to Support a Driving roll. Or you could roll Shooting to represent your time manning one of the vehicles’ gun turrets against hostile fauna (or flora; it’s a weird swamp) while you drive. Be creative.
- In addition to your main Skill roll, everyone must make a Vigor check each round to represent how your character is dealing with the travails of the swamp. If you have full-environmental protection armor, a resistance to heat, or some other way to handle the environment, be sure to narrate it and you may add +1 to your roll. Failure adds a level of Fatigue as your character struggles with the environmental challenges of a hot, wet, disease-ridden magical landscape.
- Finally, Jareb should roll for his Habit each round, as he helps Gift cope with the discomfort of a trip through the swamp. If anyone else wants to jump in and help Jareb with the baby, you can work it out with Jon, put it in your narrative, and add an extra Vigor roll to your post to Support Jareb (up to a maximum of +4). If the overall roll fails, though, your character will take a level of Fatigue, too.
That’s it! Ask any questions you’ve got, and have fun!
Initiative (in no particular order):
- Conrad: 7H
- Norona: 10C
- Deezy: 8H
- Kuikku (Quick): 9S
- Toshiro: (Quick): JS
- Castle: 10D
- Sierra: AD
- Jareb (Quick): 4D, 7D