Chasing the Sunset is a West Marches-style exploration game using Fellowship 2nd Edition‘s Horizon rules.
The fellowship: Boris the Remnant/Witch, Pierre Jardiner the Harbinger, Yonne the Rain.
Last time, the Fellowship pressed through the confusion in Hullift to reach their ship: The Trilobite.
This time, they head out to find Pierre, who has been missing for too long.
Citrina, the ship’s officer, wants to leave immediately. First, because this voyage has gone on much longer than planned, and second, because the ship’s gunner is using the ship’s arms to hold the warehouse doors, lest the crowd outside commandeer the ship. Yonne wants to find Pierre, but Boris checks on Indira first. She lost her fight with the Geologists and is happy to leave the city.
Yonne examines the friendship bracelet that Pierre uses as a target when he opens Infinite Windows to travel between parties. It seems to pull slightly to the east. That is the Trilobite’s course, if it can get out of the city. Yonne wants to follow the railroad out of the city, since railroads always lead somewhere. Surely they won’t get lost in the desert if they follow the railroad.
Someone must be appointed captain in Pierre’s absence. Boris’ role as The Muscle is important to repel boarders, like the people right outside. They can do without a cook, but the cook is Ssillian, an 8-year-old Snakefolk. He can’t even see over the railing. Wat-wat has a lot of skills, and he has a bond with Pierre, so Boris and Yonne promote him to captain.
Wat-wat leaves the gunner’s station. The ship’s arms retract and the doors start to open. They need to act fast.
Yonne spends Afterburners: make the ship move in a way it shouldn’t.
Yonne Engines Primed (+hope from afterburners) 10+ avoid harm
As the crowd pulls the doors open, the Trilobite takes a few steps forward and jumps to the roof of the building across the street. The crowd looks on amazed. They can’t pursue.
The Trilobite runs over the roofs to the railroad. There’s a strong magnetic field on the railroad that interferes with the ship’s systems. Yonne tilts the ship to run alongside the “tracks” (maglev trains don’t technically have tracks) with one set of legs on the ground and one set on the embankment.
Thilde Hull Holding 6-
Trilobite damages Hull
The magnetic field is strong enough to twist the hull! Around the corner comes a train! The trains are working again!
Yonne spends Afterburners: make the ship move in a way it shouldn’t.
Yonne Engines Primed (+hope from afterburners) 7-9 avoid harm
The Trilobite leaps into the air. The train hurtles under it, then it lands on the opposite embankment. An amazing feat of agility!
The Fellowship begins a Long Journey to follow the friendship bracelet to Pierre.
The friendship bracelet seems to lead them along the southern coast of the continent. The crew of the Trilobite was not able to re-supply fully because of the unrest, so they need to stop along the way.
Rhinopolis Steampunk forested village
This is where Rhinoceroses are trained for Imperial Cavalry. They are kept in large pastures. Unicorns are vital to the training. They are intelligent, magical, good, and peaceful creatures. They impart their peace to make the ornery Rhinos tranable, and impart their goodness to tell the Rhinos that they will fight for justice.
The Trilobite walks up to the train station in Rhinopolis, and the rail workers are surprised.
Von he/him Elf rail worker
Von: Is this the new model? It has legs. Did the researchers put this together because the tracks went out last week?
Yonne: Yeah, this is a prototype. We’re with–no, this is my ship. It’s not by the Empire at all. It’s a prototype, but it’s not your prototype.
Von: That’s interesting. Why are you at my train station?
Yonne: We’re following the tracks to go east without getting lost. What’s the nearest city?
Von: Rhinopolis!
Yonne: Can you tell us if you’ve seen wizard guy? He’s this tall. He has a book that just goes on forever. It’s a scroll actually.
Boris: He’s a very handsome man. Just like yourself.
Yonne Speak Softly 7-9 ask 3 questions, 1 unhelpful answer
- Have they seen Pierre?
- Never heard of him.
- What should I be wary of when dealing with this city?
- They have a way of doing things and disturbances are bad. Partially because rhinos get angry for almost no reason, and partially because Unicorns and Elves are very set in their ways. The Fellowship is already on thin ice for showing up in a walking boat.
- What do they want from us?
- Money for supplies.
Yonne has a collection of gems. One of them is worth something. Yonne offers most of them, but she keeps back a few: clear blue gems and pearls that remind her of water. Von looks through and picks out a garnet. That’s enough for the supplies the Trilobite needs.
Yonne spends a precious item
Trilobite regains Hull, Ammo, Afterburners, and Crew
Indira is amazed. She pre-dates the entire rail system. The communication towers are larger and more powerful now. When a message clangs into the nearest tower, she realizes she can’t see any repeater towers, which were required in her time.
The Trilobite has to stay overnight to straighten the frame. Indira is shocked when the Moon rises.
Indira: Is that new Imperial technology?
Boris: It is Kobold technology. Dragon technology? It’s a very cold rock.
Indira: How far away is it? It came up behind those hills. They have to be five miles off.
Boris: The size of the planet. Multiple times.
Indira: What? How could it be that far away? It’s right there!
Boris: I have tried to grab it. It does not work.
Boris really tried when the Moon first appeared.
Boris: Wait until you get on water. I don’t understand why it’s different, but it’s been different ever since that thing showed up. It’s going to blow your mind!
Indira: I fear that will happen a lot.
When Boris & Yonne were briefly military contractors for the Empire, they met Mr. Snicket, who saw a tiny dark spot on the Moon. Now that dark spot is visible to their naked eyes.
Yonne: What are they building up there. I’m concerned?
But there’s nothing they can do about it from here, and Von really wants them out, so the Trilobite sets out in the morning.
The border of the Empire and the eastern half of the continent is a deep, narrow canyon, with the Empire side rising hundreds of feet in steep cliffs. Very easy to defend. In a certain area on the Trilobite’s path, magma has burst out of the cliffs and flowed onto the other side. The land is trying a lot of new things these days, and this extrusion is one of them. It’s also a gentle slope leading from the Empire to the other side of the continent. Wat-Wat is glad that the Trilobite doesn’t have to jump into the sea, or go through an Imperial border crossing. Hullift was a border town, and it was a mess.
The top surface of the extrusion dissolved into fertile volcanic soil, and very old types of plants, like ferns, have sprung up. The land also produced animals from the past. Boris is quite old. He has seen the mammals before, but the Mega Mantis is new to him.
- Megatherium: A giant ground sloth.
- Smilodon: a more precise name for “saber-toothed tiger”
- Mega Mantis: A giant insectoid predator that is always on the hunt for new prey.
- Hopper: The Mega Mantis can jump to any surface it can see. When it jumps on top of someone smaller than the Mantis, they are pinned.
- Scythes: The Mega Mantis has the tags Melee, Giant, and Piercing. When the Mantis pins someone, they take damage.
GM note: at the writer level, I asked “What is the purpose of this scene?” That’s a good way to avoid a scene just meandering along.
Four Mega Mantises attack a Megatherium. Both Yonne and Boris think this is just a part of nature and don’t intervene.
Yonne: Atlas, what are those things?
Atlas: I could tell you what these creatures are like, but I haven’t seen these particular species. If we wait long enough, perhaps I could get the skeleton of that sloth-like creature.
Yonne: Cool, something even Atlas hasn’t seen before. I’m OK for staying here for a bit so Atlas can study.
The Trilobite stops. These are plants and animals that Yonne has never seen before. She wants to know how the fruit tastes. She doesn’t eat like most creatures, but as she dissolves them in her acidic body, she gets a sense .
Yonne Look Closely 10+ ask 3 questions
- What will happen if I eat the fruit here?
- The fruits are nutritionally dense, but not very interesting flavor-wise. It’s still better than Imperial bean paste.
- What is going on here?
- The land is able to produce copies of things. It didn’t create soil and hope for seeds to blow in. It created the plants and animals in this region from its memories. Megatheriums are clear-cutting large areas of grass trying to survive. Predators don’t have any easy prey. All the herbivores here are huge. The land has not made a balanced ecosystem.
- Is something hidden or out of place?
- Six halfling smugglers wearing ghillie suits sneak through the area. They look like moving bushes. They are going uphill, into the Empire. There’s a leader, two pairs holding large trunks between them, and one in the rear. They turn from their route to go around the fight.
Yonne: Hello! Are you trying to hide? Do you need a ride out? We can help you.
The bushes freeze. The bush in the rear stands up and takes off its mask, revealing a Halfling man.
- Leon he/him Halfling Smuggler
- Thief: They just want to get paid. When a Smuggler would deal damage to you, they instead steal something from you. Once a Smuggler has stolen something sufficiently valuable, they make a run for it.
- Camouflage: Smugglers are very hard to see in natural environments
Leon: They’ve seen us already. Yes! We’d be happy to discuss transportation on board!
The six Halflings stand up and head for the Trilobite. Yonne tells Citrina to prepare for visitors. One Mega Mantis notices the Halflings, who seem much easier to eat than the Megatherium.
Mega Mantis Hopper: The Mega Mantis can jump to any surface it can see. When it jumps on top of someone smaller than the Mantis, they are pinned.
- Mega Mantis Scythes: When the Mantis pins someone, they take damage.
Halfling Smuggler damages Camouflage
The Mega Mantis leaps onto one of the Smugglers and tears her ghillie suit with its scythes. Boris spits fire at the Mantis.
Boris Overcome 10+
The Mega Mantis leaps away. allowing the Smuggler ot scramble away unharmed. The Mega Mantis leaps at Boris. Boris hasn’t seen this particular species before, but he knows that most bugs have exoskeletons with joints. As the Mega Mantis comes down on him, he reaches up and blasts shadowy magic into the joints connecting its scythes to its body.
Boris Keep Them Busy 10+
The Mega Mantis stops short and hops back a little. It skitters around, looking for an opportunity to slash Boris (and two people standing nearby) without being counter-attacked.
Yonne forms a limb in the shape of the Mega Mantis’s scythe and concentrates her acid in it.
Yonne: See how you like it!
Yonne Acidic Enzymes (melee, piercing)
Yonne Finish Them (+Blood, kill) 7-9
Yonne damages Mega Mantis’s Scythes
Yonne aims for its thorax, but it flinches away, and one of its scythes falls to the deck, severed.
Yonne: I tried, sorry, Boris!
The Mega Mantis leaps onto Yonne and its legs go right through her.
Yonne Wobbles You cannot be harmed by most physical weaponry, only delayed and distracted.
Boris runs in circles around the Mega Mantis, then grabs it remaining arm and uses his momentum to spin it around and fling it off the ship.
Boris Open Ground. You are very fast, and can
travel across an entire room in an instant.
Boris Finish Them (+Courage, force retreat) 7-9
Boris damages Mega Mantis’ Hopper
Mega Mantis TAKEN OUT
The Mega Mantis lands hard and the ground and scrambles away. It doesn’t even go back to fighting the Megatherium with the others.
Leon and his smuggler crew board the Trilobite. They are very grateful.
Boris: I appreciate your gratefulness. Appreciate what we have done, and do not steal from us. I appreciate what you do, sticking it to the man. Just don’t stick it to this man.
Leon: A plain speaker. I respect that. As you can see, we have these valuable packages that we wish to get into the Empire with a minimum of notice and fuss.
Yonne: Into the Empire? I thought we were already in the Empire.
Leon: Yes, we have found this new route, which we think will be quite lucrative. If you can carry us safely and discreetly past the Imperial frontier, we will give you one Precious item per package. If you can take us to our final destination (Vox Omni) I offer three Precious items per package.
Boris: They don’t want to be surrounded by giant Mantises. We just take them up the hill, drop them off. I think the quicker option is better for both us and Jardiner. Also, I don’t want to bring known criminals past a checkpoint. No offense.
Leon: We’re trying not to be known.
Yonne: Yeah, we’re gonna drop you off near, and you’ll give us the thing, and then we’re going to keep going east and good luck going west.
Boris: As we are going, I’m sure Atlas can help repair your ghilie suit.
Yonne: Those things are cool. You look like little plants moving around. Can I have one?
Boris: I think it would dissolve.
Yonne: What if I made the middle of me acid, and the outside like normal water.
Leon: These are a trade secret. I consider each one precious. You can take one as partial payment.
Yonne: No, I already have that other suit. It’s fine.
Boris: You don’t need camouflage. Maybe Jardiner. For one of them, we’ll take that. For the other one, we’ll take money.
It’s easy to take the smugglers several miles inland because the Empire thought the cliffs would keep people out. The smugglers make a new ghillie suit and present it to the Fellowship. The other precious item is a stack of hexagonal platinum coins from Hamiss. They are small but quite heavy.
The Framework sets a scene to make the journey more difficult
There’s a big city on the route that the friendship bracelet indicates. Hamiss is a tall, beautiful Elven city. Lots of hexagons in the architecture. Hexagons in the wall around the city. As long as anyone can remember, Hamiss has been at war with Milbar, just to the north. The area between them has been blasted to a magical wasteland called “The Gulch Of Enmity”. Magical projectiles spiral in from the north and hexagons of force spring up to block them. These attacksmostly target the north side of the city, so it might be possible to go through safely. The alternative is a long route around the city via sea. Yonne wants to see what’s going on. She has never seen a war.
As the Trilobite approaches the city, a flying truncated dodecahedron (the shape of a soccer ball) flies out from the city to intercept them. It floats in front of the ship and the hexagon on the bottom detaches and lowers from the craft, becoming a plaform holding an armored Elf.
Guard: Halt! We have to check everyone because of the war. You wouldn’t have any links to Milbar, would you?
Boris: Who?
Guard: That sort of playing dumb is exactly what Milbar spies would do!
The ship scans the Trilobite with a beam to detect magic.
Guard: I don’t see anything spiral-shaped. I got a little signature from your left pocket.
Boris reaches into his pockets and pulls out the hexagonal coins.
Guard: Those are Hamiss coins. Good. What’s your business in Hamiss and how long will you stay?
Yonne: We were just going through, but I was wondering what’s happening. What’s happening here?
Guard: You haven’t heard how we’ve been attacked by the dastardly and dispicable people of Milbar? Here in Hamiss, we have embraced the power of the hexagon. We love stability. We want to live in harmony with nature. Milbar has gotten carried away with their education. They’re trying to reach perfection and get separated from nature.
Boris: What makes takes them far from nature?
Guard: They’re trying to spiral up and up into perfection.
Boris: Not to throw a wrench in, but I think both shapes are found in nature.
Guard: They deny the power and beauty of nature, even though everything they have comes from it. That’s how perverted they are.
Boris: I do like nature. Respectable position, Hamiss.
Boris thinks that Hamiss is the name of the guard, not the city. He shakes the guard’s hand, and the guard grants them access to the city.
The guard’s floating craft flies ahead of the Trilobite. As they approach the city, a wall of force made of hexagons beomces visible. The floating craft flies ahead and fits into one of the hexagons. The hexagons around it move aside, allowing the Trilobite to walk through.
There’s an Academy branch in Hamiss. Once inside an Academy building, one can walk to any other Academy building. They are connected by portals. The friendship bracelet points east to Vieport. The Fellowship doesn’t go into the Academy because the Trilobite won’t fit. Yonne considers spending the hexagonal coins to get something for Pierre, but Boris reminds her that the ghillie suit is for Pierre. They move through Hamiss and on towards Vieport.
Indira: I didn’t think it was polite to say this around them, but I’m glad to see something that hasn’t changed. They were at war as long as I could remember.
Boris: That’s crazy! How many resources are they burning through?
Indira: Elves. They have long memories and serious grudges.
Boris: That seems exhausting. ve been around for that long and I haven’t started any–hold on. Maybe I did. I was made for an eternal war.
Yonne: Aren’t you one of the weapons, actually?
Boris: Yeah, but I stopped. So should they.
Yonne: I don’t think we could stop them if it’s been going on for so long.
Boris: Sure we could, She could turn the whole place inside out.
Indira: There’s a limit on the size, and also, that place is crawling with mages, who have been practicing for all the time I’ve been stuck.
Boris: I’m just not in on choosing one side in an eternal war. At that point, both sides are at fault.
Yonne: Wait, that place that’s all sparkly, that’s from them fighting each other? Gross. I don’t like that. Let’s go find Pierre.
The Trilobite has to take to the water to reach Vieport, which is surrounded by the Deathlands. Hungry ghosts are kept at bay by huge electrical fences.
END-OF-SESSION MOVE
- Did we thoroughly explore a new location?
- NO, we’ve been running through locations
- Did anyone find what they were seeking?
- NO, they are seeking Jardiner
- Did we learn something new about the world or its peoples?
- YES, there’s an eternal war. There’s a species older than Boris. Vieport is surrounded by ghosts. Yonne didn’t know they were real.
1 boon: level up Yonne and Boris
Yonne takes Hot Shot Destiny