Ropecon 2013 game

[Dolmot]

Hello

Ropecon XX/2013 (home, Wikipedia) took place last weekend, that is, end of July. I was there again running a few sessions of that strange homebrew multiplayer adventure game. This time the setting had changed to a small coastal village, and instead of earlier 100% chaotic splatterfest, there was some kind of plot. I'll write a report of my favourite session over the next few posts. Don't worry. The photos are all processed so there shouldn't be a three-month (or infinite) delay like in previous years. Just a moment, lads. Let's start with a bit of sightseeing...

[Dolmot]

Part 1

The story: Traveller Michael Pierce visited the village a few months ago. However, he hasn't been seen since. The locals told that he had gone to Illinois without leaving an address. Last week Jenny Crawford went for a short visit but also disappeared. The police's effort hasn't been too convincing or effective so the relatives have announced a reward for the whereabouts of the missing people. Meanwhile, strange rumours circulate in the neighbouring regions. What's going on there?

In game terms, there were two ways to win:
1) Find the lost persons.
2) Collect enough evidence of local secrets, represented elegantly with a bingo card.

Secrets were revealed by searching buildings and other locations. You could also chat with the locals for tips, which gave useful directions and often helped in research dice rolls for finding stuff and avoiding dangers.

We played three sessions, one each day over the weekend. I think my favourite was on Sunday, which was a lucky round because first it seemed that everyone had already left and we would pack our stuff after just two games. However, two avid fans, one returning player and others turned up so eventually we played a nice final game with rapidly developing action.

Everyone controls a three-character team. This time they were:
- A group of gangsters
- Cops
- Miskatonic university
- Eccentric urban dwellers
- Err...maybe a fifth one who left early? Sorry, I can't remember everything as I was running the game full time, shouting instructions in a notoriously loud hall and taking photos whenever I had a few free seconds. I'd really need a dedicated reporter...

Early turns were just basic searching, but soon...
- The posh fellows discovered a hidden sacrificial dagger at the farm.
- The gangsters visited Lawson's mansion/inn and found out that there hadn't been any lodging but there was a meeting taking place upstairs.
- The cops found large, blue robes from the locked tool shed of Monroe's old mansion (which is also blue).

Snooping around isn't appreciated in these parts so all findings quickly led into attacks of hooded characters.








Protip: firefights are dangerous. All teams eventually lost a member in these clashes. Especially one cultist with a Tommy gun was a better shot than any of the gangsters and simply refused to die in spite of several hits.



Various hints suggested that unusual sightings and items could be found at the church and its cemetery. All teams seemed to send at least someone in. After all, it's everyone's favourite idea to investigate old graveyards of ill repute late at night. There were curious characters to interview as well.



To be continued...

[Dolmot]

Part 2

You may not believe this, but in nocturnal activities described above, there's a very real chance of running into ghouls.







Fortunately, the investigators had sufficient firepower (and luck) to handle the ambush. The ghouls were quickly eliminated.



A recently buried coffin revealed all sorts of nasty content but especially a skeleton with very unusual proportions. Furthermore, a marine scene depicted in the church seemed to highlight a sea monster more than any saints. Finally, holy golden jewellery was spotted with a poor fit to any human beings. All this evidence was enough for the cops who decided to leave the village and file a report. After all, it's bad enough if an officer gets killed in action. The rest moved on, hoping to find something even more conclusive. The gangsters, already in pretty bad shape, went for more clandestine a route around the Lawson mansion.

Was it the shootout? Did someone rush to report? Did these outsiders know too much? Whichever it was, suddenly shady guys started to appear from the direction of the coastal storage buildings.







The investigators' firepower was superior against their foes mostly armed with clubs, lengths of pipe and other improvised weapons. However, something more disturbing started to appear in the distance.

The gangster boss sneaked into a shed, finding locked chests and belongings of several people, most notably Michael Pierce. Unluckily all the noise caught the attention of fish-people so he had to escape back to his pal. The other two (remaining) teams agreed that the time of discreetness was over and more drastic action would be in order. Hence, an automobile was "borrowed" for a ride towards the coast where the evils definitely seemed to lurk.



Next: the finale?

[Dolmot]

Part 3

Bumping into uglies wasn't considered a reason to stop or even slow down. The chemist happened to carry a couple of explosive mixtures, which were lobbed behind to demotivate any followers.



It's a bit alarming when fish-like creatures roll over your bonnet and start clawing towards the passengers...



Parking fine.



"Err...we're here. What next? Please make up your mind quickly."



With a bit of supporting fire and other distraction...



...the ladies reach the lighthouse. An excellent conversation roll convinces the lighthouse keeper, who tells the whole story (albeit very briefly and incoherently) in exchange for political asylum. He even borrows his keys as the door is heavily locked and something sinister seems to be happening inside.



Catching the residents by surprise, the investigators storm in and find Jenny Crawford, being prepared for some unspeakable ritual. The surprise doesn't last long, though.



OK, splitting once more as the forum software seems to choke on image preprocessing...

[Dolmot]

(Final) Part 4

A route is cleared through the crowd as a chase begins.



Investigators, the captive and the lighthouse keeper rush to an auto and a bulldozer parked nearby. (I totally didn't plan this, by the way. This game always manages to provide strange coincidences.)







The professor manages to escape to a smugglers' cave.



But wait! Did the warlock just cast something or did someone simply get angry for missing a meal?



Ideas? How about "step on it!"





The locals watch a bizarre scene in disbelief.



The professor finds his way but also company.





Investigators leave the place smoothly...





...and drive to the sunset in a cloud of dust.




Mission accomplished with only a few (own) casualties. Well done!

[marianas_gamer]

WOW    Great looking game!  Wish I could have played.
LB

[EndTransmission]

Now that's a great looking table!

[Driscoles]

I love this and this forum. Two great inspiring finds in one day. Wonderful.
Björn

[Wirelizard]

That table is awesome, and it sounds like the game went well too - like all the best convention games, add random elements and some guidance, add players, stand well back!

I especially like the garden next to the farmhouse, and the other little details sprinkled around, they add great character to the table.

[blackstone]

Epic table! Fantastic pics and report 

[Colonel Tubby]

Great looking table, some excellent buildings and miniatures. Thanks for the posting.

[Elk101]

Fantastic table. I see a few things I recognise, such as the church, but any chance of a rundown on some of the other buildings please? 

[Dolmot]

OK, thank you on this side of the forum as well. That week/weekend was quite hectic. In brief, my schedule was like this:

Monday: Return from travels, start working on the coastline pieces and other new items.
Tuesday: Add layers of everything. They're slow to dry. Meanwhile, write events for the scenario.
Wednesday: Continue with all of it. Go shopping for paints and accessories. As very lucky finds, I got a perfect piece of cloth and a ripple sheet for the ocean. The actual rules sheet for this year's variant was finished late at night.
Thursday: Print the rules and cards. Build and paint the last shore pieces, finishing after midnight.
Friday: Pack the stuff (plenty of it) to a car, travel to Espoo. While we were still deploying the terrain, reporters from the country's largest newspaper appeared and wanted to interview everyone running obscure games. They wanted us to stage an example scenario immediately, while the minis were still in the car. Well, eventually assorted stuff was deployed and an amusing article appeared in Sunday's paper. (This game only formed a small part in it.) Meanwhile, there was a line of people asking when the game would begin. We hadn't cut the new cards or tested the scenario yet so I told them that main rounds would be played on Saturday. Everyone promised to return then. The first test session was played late at night.
Saturday: Regardless of announcing the start time, no players appeared. We were a bit puzzled. Well, eventually they started to gather. A neat but longish session was played. After a late dinner break it was too late to start another one. Of course, we went drinking with other organisers...
Sunday: As told in the original post, we were prepared to leave the place, but surprisingly it turned into the best session of the whole weekend. Returned home utterly exhausted but happy nevertheless.

I have extra material and stories of those other sessions but maybe I'll leave them for another post and just answer this one:

Fantastic table. I see a few things I recognise, such as the church, but any chance of a rundown on some of the other buildings please? 

I can try...

- Beige mansion: JR Miniatures (AWI Cliveden or "Chew House")
- Blue mansion: Rusus New England house (See What I painted for this and others.
- Green farm house, church, ramshackle barn: Renedra
- Red and brown largish barns: Total Scenic System
- Low shed: Stronghold (also in "What I painted")
- Cabin in the woods: Rusty Rail
- Outbuildings: Rusty Rail, Ainsty, JR (probably)
- Factory and the fancy cemetery: Tabletop World (sadly OOP)

...and smaller bits from everywhere. Please ask if you're looking for something.

The most glaring omission is that I was planning to make a textured "transition cloth" over the old mat's edge and the new coastline pieces. Well, I didn't have enough time for that so the border is quite obvious here. The extreme shorelines need work as well. Also, I chopped away the original railings of the lighthouse because it's a cheaply made house ornament and the railings really didn't work for this scale. Ultimately there was no time to replace them. I'll try to fix those before the next session, whenever it is.

It's a strange feeling when I have a moment to actually talk/write about this instead of working on three things in parallel...

[War In 15MM]

The table is absolutely wonderful!  I love the pumpkin patch.  I not sure why I'm attracted to pumpkins, but I am.  I make mine out of Milliput and wire, but I've never made their vines and leaves.  Your patch is great.  Please tell me about the pumpkin patch.  Thanks.  Richard

[Elk101]

Thanks for the rundown Dolmot, much appreciated. I might have to check out those JR buildings.