Dakota Smith's Oriental Adventures, Part 1: Brother Virigi, wherefore art thou?

[mikedemana]

Briefing sheet for the American archeological faction led by Dakota Smith:

Macau, 1930

   Dakota Smith had been corresponding with Brother Virigi, a Portuguese monk for years (thought the two had never met). The monk was a fan of magazine stories about Dakota’s discoveries, being fascinated by the relics of lost civilizations. It even inspired the monk to accept an assignment on the southeast Asian island of Macau, where he wrote Dakota about local temples he’d visited on the island and on mission trips to the mainland. Several months ago, Brother Virigi’s latest letter was breathless and urgent. From a mountain overlooking a deep jungle valley, the monk had spotted what appeared to be the ruins of an entire city, never mentioned on any European maps. He invited Dakota out to his monastery on Macau, where he promised to lead the American archeologist to the ruins.
   On the tramp steamer to Macau, Dakota was irked to find the meddlesome socialite Dolly Flanders and reporter Eric Bylan, had somehow gotten wind of his trip. He groused to his partner, Harold Fortwine -- also his dean at Portland State University -- that once again they would have to babysit the tagalongs and keep them out of trouble. Old flames, Dakota knew Flanders packed a pistol in her purse, and could take care of herself. He’d never admit it to the dame, though!
   After disembarking on Macau, Dakota heard even worse news. His nemesis, the Nazi archeologist Von Jaeger, was also on the island. Did he know about Brother Virigi’s discovery? There was no time to lose, so the four set off for the monastery. They approached it as the tropical evening fell, and the intense heat and humidity was cooled by offshore breezes. It was then that Dakota remembered the calendar, and exactly what evening it was. He gathered his companions together and warned them, “Be on your toes, knuckleheads, and be careful of the Chinese peasants. It is All Hallows Eve, tonight. Chinese peasants are already superstitious of foreigners. Toss in the church teaching them that the souls of the dead wanter tonight, and well, we’re liable to be attacked on sight. So, don’t do anything stupid. Let’s get to the monastery and find Brother Virigi pronto...!”

More to come...

Mike Demana

[mikedemana]

German archeological party briefing:

Macau, 1930

   Von Jaeger cursed as waves of heat and humidity seemed to wash down on him. These stupid sailors had led them astray again. The archeologist guessed that the experience they claimed to have on Macau must have been limited to brothels. The party was still miles away from the monastery and it was late afternoon. He chuckled, though, when he imagined Dakota Smith’s surprise would be like when he found out Von Jaeger had beaten him to the Portuguese monk, Brother Virigi. As good an archeologist his nemesis was, he was naive beyond belief. He never suspected his own secretary was actually Von Jaeger’s spy.
   Ahead of him, Fraulein Blucher slipped on the damp jungle trail. His superiors had insisted she accompany Von Jaeger and his lieutenant, Otto Tulmann. She was an odd duck, claiming her knowledge of ancient religions would be a weapon Germany could use to throw off France and Britain’s yoke. She knew her stuff, though, and could speak and read Chinese fluently. “Religion,” Von Jaeger, thought: “What am I forgetting about religion...right now?” It came to him, then, and he slapped his hand in anger against the stock of his rifle.
   The others froze at the sound of the sharp crack. Von Jaeger motioned them to him. “Mein comrades,” he growled. “There is danger ahead.” The others looked around at the jungle trees. “Nein! Tonight is All Hallow’s Eve. The damned Chinese believe all foreigners are demons, anyway. Now the church has taught them that the souls of the dead wander the earth this evening. Shoot them if they even look threatening. Let’s get to the monastery, seize this Brother Virigi, and get out quickly!”


British archeological party briefing:

Macau, 1930

   “My good major,” portly archeologist Harris McLeod puffed, “how much further to this Popish monastery?” The two were walking alongside a handcart full of their belongings being pulled by a Chinese peasant. McLeod sweated in his tweed pants and smoking jacket, while Maj. Speke-Eastman (retired), looked cool and unruffled in his khakis. The two stopped, and shaded their eyes, looking ahead.
   “Well, sir, I think my Sikh Kaur may have misunderstood that Chinese merchant’s reply about the most direct route to the monastery. By my reckonings, we’re still several hours away. And night will be falling just as we get there. Who is this Brother Virigi we are looking for, anyway?”
   McLeod mopped his brow and sighed. “Truth is, my good sir, I don’t rightly know. But Lord Dalwhimple at the British museum says it has discovered that is who the Yank Dakota Smith is coming to visit. And Dakota has a scent for discoveries like my best foxhounds! So, I decided we should sail over from Hong Kong and snatch him up from under the Yank’s nose. We’ll find out more, then.”
   Speke-Eastman frowned and slowly raised his rifle, checking over it slowly by touch, without looking. “Lord Dalwhimple? His spot at the museum is a cover. He works in Intelligence -- in the decoding Nazi messages branch.”
   “Good God, sir!” Harris blurted. “That means we need to keep an eye out for....”
   “Von Jager,” Speke-Eastman growled. “Blood will be shed this evening, if what I know of Von Jager’s methods are right...”


French archeological party briefing:

Macau, 1930

   Pierre Fournereau stomped in frustration. “Zee Portuguese are zee lackeys of the British! We will be the last to the monastery when we should have been the first!” The four men all paused as they crested the hill and saw the gray stone buildings in the distance, looking so much like Europe and home that the three white men among them sighed.
   Dr. Auguste Lambert adjusted his spectacles and said, “Ah, but we are the only ones who know about the other three. And knowledge is power.” Pierre nodded and allowed himself some satisfaction at the way he’d uncovered the machinations of the other European archeological groups. It started with the uncouth American, Dakota Smith. He’d received a letter from a Brother Virigi in the monastery, claiming knowledge of the lost city Pierre had been struggling to find for more than a decade. Von Jaeger, through spies, heard about Dakota’s travel plans and objective, and commandeered a German submarine to Macau. Harris McLeod, the thieving employee of the British Museum, found out about the German plans -- doubtless, the British had cracked the Nazi code. He was only a short packet steamer away in Hong Kong, and his sources in the French Indochinese government said he was here already.
   Dr. Lambert coughed and broke Pierre’s train of thought. “Monsieur, there is one thing you should know about what may happen tonight.” The other three turned and focused on the soft-spoken archeologist, who had worked at the famous Angkor Wat. “The Chinese are very superstitious folk. They believe Europeans like us to be foreign devils -- my apologies to your man Feng, there.” The wide face of Pierre’s manservant showed no reaction. “And tonight, is All Hallows Eve. The church teaches those of Feng’s people that accept Christianity that the souls of the dead wander the earth tonight. The Chinese may attack us on sight, once evening falls.”
   Pierre cursed, and then growled, “Then let us redouble our pace, gentlemen. To the monastery, and quickly!”

More to come as I prepare for Sunday's game...!

Mike Demana

[mikedemana]

And the last two briefings are completed:

The Order of the Fire Coral briefing

Macau, 1930

   The smell of incense filled the air as Opay bowed before the master. “I am here, honored one.” The master opened his eyes and sat upright from his meditation position. His black eyes bore into Opay’s soul, and the huge man caught himself quailing before their stare. He lowered his eyes quickly.
   “You know the Portuguese monk, who we are watching, even now?” Opay nodded. “We now know he sent out a letter before he left the monastery. This has drawn more foreign devils to Macau. The kind that loot temples, and defile the holy places.”
   Opay’s eyes rose and locked onto the master’s. “Shall I kill them?”
   The master’s eyes narrowed. “Only if it can be done without suspicion. Frustrate their plans, at the very least. Discover what they are looking for and see they do not get what they want.”
   Opay bowed, “It will be done, master.” He turned in and mentally began recruiting his team. All must be masters of stealth, but also of combat. The agents of the Order of the Fire Coral trained initiates in both, as well as gathering information and blending into society. All must be done to secure the holy places and prevent their defilement by the foreign devils. That had been the order’s mission for generations. They must be secretive, though. The foreign devils were strong, now. Many ruled in the lands of Asia. If the Order’s existence was suspected they may try to root them out.
   “Frustrate” the master had ordered. But he had not prohibited killing. Opay looked forward to once more seeing the blood of foreign devils on his hands...


Bandit Briefing

Macau, 1930

   Whispering and furtive glances followed the foreigners as they threaded their way along the trails and roads of Macau towards the Portuguese monastery. Who were these foreign devils in their outlandish costumes? Were they men or demons? Men gathered and argued about what should be done. Heads wagged or nodded as some suggested grabbing their families and hiding indoors. Others suggested taking a bolder course.
   Those that had been taught the rudiments of Christianity by the Portuguese monks were among the latter group. They remembered that tonight was to be a time of fear and danger. The monks said the souls of the dead would be abroad this evening. It appeared to have begun already. Men collected together and their numbers gave them courage. They grabbed hunting rifles or swords or spears. “Death to the foreign devils!” they shouted.
   These bold ones began to stalk the foreigners, creeping along in their path. They would wait for the time to be right, for them to be separated from their demon brothers. Their eyes widened when they saw the modern weapons the foreigners carried. What a prize! If they could seize one of these, it would be worth much money -- or kept as a powerful means of protection. Personal gain, as much as protecting their community, gave them courage...

Next update should be a battle report..

Mike Demana

[Wolf Girl]

That's really cool! Cool backgrounds.

[d phipps]

Those are great briefings, Mike! 

Feels like you're getting set-up for a big convention game. 



HAVE FUN

[Mad Lord Snapcase]

Great stuff! really looking forward to seeing more of this.

[mikedemana]

Feels like you're getting set-up for a big convention game. 

Nope...just the normal Sunday evening gaming session. Car is all packed, and I leave here in about a half hour. Reread the rules today, and all of the threads on the Pulp Alley Forum for Q & A's.

Looks like I'll have 5 players at this point. I'll let everyone know how it went!

Mike Demana

[mikedemana]

The game table with the monastery church in the center

As mentioned above, I had 5 players for my first Pulp Alley game. I'd asked the host to set up the table with a 6'x4' area, but found out after all the terrain was laid out that it was nearly 5 feet wide. So, I had the four archeological teams start within one foot of each of the corners. The Order of the Fire Coral was disguised as Chinese peasants scattered throughout the board (roughly 1 in 3 would be agents, the rest actual peasants). The player controlling them secretly marked the bottoms of the figures representing agents with tape. To move, he had to "cast off the peasant garb" and be revealed. The four minor plot points were just over a foot away from each starting location, with the major plot point being hidden inside the church's Chancery in the center of the board. They discovered the location of the major plot point only by taking control of one of the minor ones (4 monks on table).


Fraulein Blucher is escorted by two German sailors, while Von Jaeger and Ottom Tulmann interrogate Brother Malachi by the pig pen

My first worry was that I wouldn't have enough Fortune Cards if the players decided to hold onto them. I have just the starting deck of 25. Should I have more? Does Perilous Island contain more cards? Eventually, the players got into the hang of using them to frustrate the opponents -- especially the weaker characters who may have trouble passing the challenges. My second worry was there would be no way the characters could accomplish everything. The board was simply too big. I think that worry was borne out by the events. Only one character entered the church. Of course, the two parleys played over the course of the first six turns really slowed things down, too. I almost feel like making that a one-shot card, and not letting it be played a second time. To not be able to attack or run for 1/3 of the game turns seemed a bit extreme.


Reporter Eric Bylan and socialite Dolly Flanders, tagging along uninvited on Dakota Smith's expedition, approach the monastery graveyard

The rules explanation at the beginning went fairly well. My gamer friends were more off-task than my 7th grade students are, on average. I expected that, though. It is part of the fun -- the random comments, the digressions in conversation, and so on. The players picked up the rules fairly quickly, it seemed. The one fairly consistent mistake was the wounded characters rolling dice higher than their current health level. I'd predicted we'd miss that one and we did a few times. It took a turn or two to wrap our heads around the Challenges, when to play them, and how that is different than passing a plot point. We did it right, but had a couple players question the proceedings. I have to say I was fairly happy with how we caught changes in Initiative, although I would not be surprised if we missed one or two.


Harold Fortwine guards the rear of the American column, unaware of the agent from the Order of the Fire Coral hiding in the shadows behind him

The only real complaints were by the German archeological team when the French sidekick Jacques Nero got into a covered firing position and started gunning down their league as they passed in front of him. The player was upset that Hardened Veteran meant he could keep shooting with no "Multiple Combats." That, and his Deductive league member snagged an extra Fortune card nearly every turn. The same player regularly complains when things don't go his way, though. So, I showed him how he had a character with the exact same stats. He had just rolled worse when Jacques Nero and Otto Tulmann had their gun battle. One extra Fortune card in a 5-player game should not have been an insurmountable advantage, too.


The British party is shadowed and harassed by the Order of the Fire Coral all along its advance towards the church

So, what happened? All four archeological teams moved fairly steadily towards the closest Minor Plot point (monk nearest them) and took control of it. The Order of the Fire Coral focused its attacks on the British and German teams, harassing them with attempted attacks on weaker characters. They did less to the French and American leagues. The players tried to zap each other with Challenges as characters entered perilous areas. None of the sidekicks or leaders went down and out, but the German Otto Tulmann was knocked out momentarily. The Order of the Fire Coral lost the most agents, but its characters were weaker (9 total characters).


The French league nabs a plot point, discovering that Brother Virigi has left for the mainland mission station. His journal with maps and drawings was left behind in the church Chancery, though (major plot point)!

That brings me to the next issue with a five player game. I think we had too many characters on the board. A few of the players commented that it moved a little slowly, although part of that is probably due to the too-large board. Has anyone experimented with smaller leagues (with less than 10 slots) in games with 5+ players? I can't imagine what it would have been like if I'd had my 6th players show up and the Bandits would have joined in with their 11 character leauge. Perhaps I'll trim down the two most excessively-sized leagues (Fire Coral at 9 & Bandits, 11), giving them tougher characters, which may make play go quicker. A smaller board would help, too.


Brother Malachi points Von Jaeger towards the major plot point, Brother Virigi's journal inside the church Chancery...

The players said the rules were "interesting" and seemed willing to give them another go. They understood it was our first time playing the game. Everyone except the German player seemed to have fun, and even he was having a good time until his league got pinned down. There are a lot of subtleties -- especially in the use of Challenges -- that we need to wrap our head around. The French player did the best, and he seemed most attuned and goal-oriented of the archeologists. Pierre Fournereau was the only European to enter the church, though he never made it to the Chancery.


And all five leagues come together in the middle! The French had an advantage, and were able to elude the concentrated attacks of the others.

So, the game ended up with a massive-sized scrum and logjam at the entrance to the church. The French got their leader inside at the end of the turn 6, but would not have made it to the Chancery by turn 7. So, the last turn was called on account of it being 11:20 pm and most of us having to work the next day. We played the six turns in about 3 hours (once rules explanation was done). That is not bad for a 5-player game that no one had played before. As I said, everyone seemed willing to give it another go and learn the system better.

Sorry this is more of an analysis than straight-up, after action report. I did not take notes on the nitty gritty. I did snap some close up shots of the action, so I hope you enjoy those. Next game will see them follow the trail of Brother Virigi to the mainland and the Portuguese mission station in the Ta-bo Hills. Feel free to comment on my thoughts in this post about larger games, or make suggestions.

Thanks for all the kind words and inspiration!

Mike Demana

[Prof. Dinglebat. Phd.]

Really enjoyed reading your After Game report. I'm sure Dave will reply soon and give some helpful comments for your future adventures.  

[d phipps]

Amazing Mike! Learning a brand new game can always be a bit daunting, but running a 5-player scenario for everyones very first time using the rules takes a very brave man. 

Your terrain and figures look awesome!

My first worry was that I wouldn't have enough Fortune Cards if the players decided to hold onto them. I have just the starting deck of 25. Should I have more? Does Perilous Island contain more cards?

25 cards? I am hoping that was a typo and you meant "45"? Without Perilous Island, your deck should have 45 cards. With Perilous Island you could have 50 cards.

If you made you own deck, cards #01 through #20 should be in the deck twice. The cards numbered #41 - #45 only appear once in the deck. The card numbers appear near the bottom right corner of each card.

If you had a 25 card deck, I can see why Parley popped up a little more often than it should.

My second worry was there would be no way the characters could accomplish everything. The board was simply too big. I think that worry was borne out by the events. Only one character entered the church.

No worries, Mike. I've designed plenty of scenarios that didn't quite work the way I had hoped the first time through. That's why we playtest the scenarios, re-write them, and try again. 

I think I've mentioned this before, but it is not unusual for first-time players to not complete the plot points. They are still learning the rules and they frequently get distracted by combat rather than pushing towards the objectives.

I think you had an ambition project and it should really just be treated as a "learning game". It looks like your players learned the rules and had a great time, so it's a success!

The one fairly consistent mistake was the wounded characters rolling dice higher than their current health level.

Considering it was everyone's first time playing, it sounds like you did quite well!

The only real complaints were by the German archeological team when the French sidekick Jacques Nero got into a covered firing position and started gunning down their league as they passed in front of him.

"Hardened Veteran" is certainly an ability that can catch new players off-guard. After you've seen it work, it is not difficult to adjust appropriately.

"Deductive" is popular, but you are basically giving up your Sidekick's activation just to draw a card. And just how often is that card going to be as useful as getting your Sidekick involved in the fight?

The players tried to zap each other with Challenges as characters entered perilous areas. None of the sidekicks or leaders went down and out, but the German Otto Tulmann was knocked out momentarily.

Players really enjoy that part of the game. The fact that you actually have some say over how dangerous things are going to be for your opponent can be great fun! 

Even as players get more experienced, it is not unusual for Leaders to still be standing at the end of a scenario. Sidekicks are tough too, but Leaders usually have a little more room to recover even if they get a couple bad rolls.

Has anyone experimented with smaller leagues (with less than 10 slots) in games with 5+ players? I can't imagine what it would have been like if I'd had my 6th player show up

Remembering that this was everyone's first time playing Pulp Alley, your next game will move much quicker. For Mila's Halloween game, she decided to give each league to Leader, Sidekick and 1 Ally each, but she had lots of special rules and other stuff going on.

There's nothing wrong with reducing the size of the leagues for your first few game. When I'm just running a quick demo-game, we don't use 10-slot leagues either.

We played the six turns in about 3 hours

WOW! You guys did good. 6 first-time players (including you) getting through 6 turns in 3 hours is doing quite well.

In general, the first three turns can take twice as long as the last three turns - just due to all the lower level characters getting ko'd along the way.

In my opinion, I think the first couple games should really be focused on just learning the mechanics of play. So you're over the hard part now, Mike. And you did one helluva job! 



Please let us know if there are any rules questions that you still want clarified.





THANKS

[aggro84]

Beautiful games and a lovely collection of miniatures.
I love the idea as well.

[mikedemana]

25 cards? I am hoping that was a typo and you meant "45"? Without Perilous Island, your deck should have 45 cards. With Perilous Island you could have 50 cards.

Double d'oh!! Okay...guess I have some more cards to print out...haha! Well, I feel a lot better after reading that. I'm also glad to hear that you guys often go with smaller leagues. I will definitely pare it down a bit for the next game -- especially if I get my sixth player.

Thanks for all the encouragement, Dave!

Mike Demana

[Wolf Girl]

You guys have some cool terrain. Did you make all that?

Loved the battle report! 

[Traveler Man]

Great terrain, figures and AAR.  It's always useful to see how other fellows manage a new game, too.

[mikedemana]

You guys have some cool terrain. Did you make all that?

The monastery church, graveyard, and wattle pigpen are all scratch-built by me. The huts are from my Dark Ages stuff, and are from Acheson Creations. The two Asian-style buildings belong to my friend Keith. I saw them on his shelf and snagged them for the board immediately. I think the pagoda is a commercial building, while the shrine gate is a flea market purchase of his.

Thanks for the kind comments! I appreciate everyone's encouragement...

Mike Demana