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jordangreywolf
Earlier this year, Goober_Chris provided table space while I ran some playtest scenarios for the upcoming Fallout: Wasteland Warfare RPG expansion. (It was under non-disclosure at the time, so I couldn't share anything about it, but the word's out now. The plan is for an RPG expansion to be released for the Fallout: Wasteland Warfare miniatures game this summer, and for a 2d20 full RPG book to be released next year.) A few of the gamers I normally only see over at Necronomicon helped out with the playtest sessions, and did a great job (IMHO) of providing extensive feedback. I can't really be more detailed than THAT, since that would still fall under NDA at this point, until the game's actually out in print.
Anyway, I've been converting a bunch of minis and terrain pieces for Fallout-type settings, and I figure that unless something changes, I'm going to run some Fallout-themed scenarios at Necronomicon this year. If the F:WW RPG expansion comes out as scheduled, I'll use that system. If NOT, I'll fall back on Savage Worlds.
So, what to run? Well, the trouble is, when I'm coming up with stuff like this, I'm very backwards about it. It's not necessarily a matter of, "I've got a great idea for a story/adventure. Now how do I represent it on the table?" No, rather, it's a matter of, "I've got this cool piece of junk that would make a great piece of scenery on the table and maybe draw some attention from potential players. How can I build an adventure scenario around it?"
So, I've got this idea: Have an adventure that takes place at a post-apocalyptic (but still at least somewhat functioning) retro-futuristic drive-in theater! My tentative adventure scenario title is "Creature Feature."
I have an older flat-screen monitor (not widescreen) that I've been pondering taking to the thrift store, since it has a big clunky base. However, I got a strange idea: I could actually use the monitor as a prop! Or, rather, I had the strange idea that it would be cool to have some sort of a drive-in theater projection screen, and paint some sort of image on it to represent something being projected, but wouldn't it be cool if it could change? And then I got the idea that I could have illustration cards that I could swap out periodically (some sort of title card, an "intermission" ad, a "coming attractions" ad, etc.) to give the impression of something playing out in the background of the action. And THEN I got the idea that it'd be even cooler if it were a screen of some sort. And voila! I've got a spare screen.
I don't even know if this will work, but my notion is to try to build up a structure around the screen and stretch some fabric over the front of the screen -- I think I could paint some details on the fabric to suggest "weathering" of the projection screen, and if the image is a bit ghostly and unfocused coming through the fabric, that's probably okay for the intended purpose anyway. I could perhaps edit together something in Adobe Premiere so I can have a looping video and run it from my laptop ... or else I could just make a "slideshow" presentation in PowerPoint and use various fade and swipe effects for transitions, then put it on continuous loop. There's no need to have a complete actual MOVIE or anything like that. After all, this is going to be something going on in the background while we're playing out turns in an RPG that might be in pseudo-real-time (roleplay dialogue) or in anything BUT real time (the extreme stretching out of time that happens in combat) -- so what is ACTUALLY on the screen at any given time is a bit of an abstraction. (Just as, if I make a model of a car wreck and stick a license plate on it, I'd be a little annoyed at a "clever" player who observes that every wrecked car they encounter in the course of the campaign has the same license plate number.)
I don't plan on adding audio. That would be CUTE, but at a game convention, that's bound to be a distraction (and given the noise in the gaming room, it likely wouldn't be clearly audible anyway -- and just add to the noise).
I imagine that the "projection screen" (the monitor) would basically act as my "GM screen" -- that is, it's over on my side of the table, so it's a backdrop for all the action, rather than an objective. The "action" would likely take place within the theater lot. Features I'll want to add would include:
- Junked cars. I've got plenty of those, and I can paint up more. Technically, it doesn't make much sense to have TOO many cars in the lot, since the bombs dropped during the daytime.
- Drive-in speaker units. Not essential -- in Fallout 4, they didn't even bother to include them -- but I could get by with just a few little poles on stands (and a few fallen over), and I could make some sort of simple "speaker unit" out of scrap to put on each side, and it would give the idea. I wouldn't cover the entire lot with them -- some have presumably been lost to the elements over time -- but just a few to give the idea.
- Snack bar. Got to have somewhere to go during intermission! Worst case scenario, I could use the "Frosty Bar" from up above.
- Projector booth. Likely incorporated into the same building as the snack bar.
- Ticket booth. Curiously, I don't recall actually seeing one in the Fallout 4 setup. (How did the theater operate? Where did people pay to get in? An oversight on the designers' part, I suppose, or they just didn't care.)
- Marquee Sign/Letter Board. It's got to be something big and loud. Bonus points if I can theme the drive-in in some sort of Fallout way. E.g., "The AFTERGLO Drive-In Theater."
- Restrooms. Fallout 4 forgot those, too. (But then, Fallout 4 often has entire houses that lack a bathroom or a kitchen or those other basics, so that's not surprising.) Again, this could be incorporated into the same building that houses the snack bar and projector booth.
- Play Area. I could put a few playground features in the area right in front of the projector screen. I remember a few old drive-in theaters being like that: There's a certain "dead zone" right in front of the screen where you wouldn't want to park your car, because it's TOO CLOSE to be able to see the screen out your windshield (and even if you were in a convertible, the angle would be terrible), so that area was often just a grassy patch, sometimes with a few bits of playground equipment. I've got a "playground" piece I put together, that I could fit there.
I can "Fallout-ize" the layout by printing, cutting, and pasting a few movie posters with imagery from the Fallout series of games, some Nuka-Cola ads, etc., and of course by having retro-futuristic car wrecks.
One thing I try to think about would be: What sorts of "resources" would the players have in such an environment? (I.e., what about the surroundings can they use to their advantage, rather than just doing a brainless, simple, toe-to-toe fight with any enemies?)
- Cars. The distinctive thing about cars in the Fallout universe is that most of them are fusion-powered, and after 200 years of sitting around without proper maintenance, the shielding has degraded. In Fallout physics, that means that if you shoot or otherwise abuse a car enough times (a single bullet won't do), it'll catch fire, and then a short while later it'll explode in a radioactive mushroom cloud blast. It's a very bad idea to have a firefight in a clogged parking lot or the site of a traffic jam, since this can cause a chain reaction.
- Elevation. If the enemy consists of a feral ghoul (AKA "radioactive zombie") horde, a natural advantage can be gained by climbing atop a roof, or even atop the projector screen, and then snipe away with ranged weapons. Since someone MIGHT try that, I should probably construct the projector screen "shell" with a wide enough top that figures could be placed there.
- The Projector. I imagine that it's going to be stuck in a loop of intermission and "coming attraction" segments. However, what if someone snuck up into the projector booth and swapped out holo-reels, to project something ELSE? Maybe a distraction could be arranged in the form of projecting a scene from a movie where Go-Zero the GIANT REPTILE CITY SMASHER appears and goes "RAWWWWWR!" ... or a scene where a big nuclear explosion goes off? It wouldn't instantly cause all enemies to scatter, but it could at least throw them off for a critical round or two, or grant the PCs a chance to sneak over to whatever their objective is (or a better vantage point).
- Workshop. There could be a little workshop/maintenance shed or work area in the main building, that -- in addition to spare speakers -- has assorted tools and some energy packs that could be utilized by a "McGyver" or "Mr. Fix-It" type in the party to jury-rig some sort of gizmo.
- Car Contents. Maybe there's an interesting vehicle parked in the lot. Perhaps a cop car over to one side?
Now, the big thing: How to turn this into an adventure (or at least an encounter)?
The simplest way would just be to make it one big brawl. The PCs are either at the drive-in theater to loot/scavenge (and there happen to be some hostile inhabitants that provide an obstacle to this goal), OR the PCs have specifically been sent to the theater to clear out whatever critters have taken up residence there.
Some possible adversaries -- to tie in with the "Creature Feature" theme:- Deathclaws. Big lizard-thingies. Unless you've got power armor, you really don't want to go toe-to-toe with one of these guys.
- Mega-Deathclaw. Even bigger lizard thingie. This sort of adversary isn't the sort that PCs are going to be able to take down with concentrated gun fire. Some sort of STRATEGY would be in order. (And just "lure it into the parking lot and blow up the cars" would be too obvious. This is the sort of thing that might be stunned by that, but not killed.)
- Giant Hermit Crab. It'd be funny to have one of these pop out of a hollowed-out van (which it uses as its shell). This would be appropriate if the adventure were based in Far Harbor. (But then, since this is something that happens in the game, it might not necessarily be a surprise for players.)
Probably best combined with some other fishy foes. - Bloat Flies. These are low-level nuisances in the games. They'd likely only be a mild distraction and an opportunity for players to "warm up" by blasting something into smithereens before they engage the "main event." I suppose I could have a "mega bloat fly," or have some scenario that revolves around a mad scientist who decides that "the lowly bloat fly holds the key to IMMORTALITY!" and then the big reveal is that he pops out and he's his half-bug monstrosity who wants to defeat the heroes and turn THEM into bugs as well -- or else just serve as hosts/food for his larvae. (Ewwww.)
- Feral Ghouls. This could be a high-radiation area, and the ghouls are hanging out here on account of it. Of course, that would give the players a distinct DIS-incentive to hang around for very long, because they'd be soaking up rads the whole time. Anyway, mindless feral ghouls could give the whole encounter a "Night of the Living Dead" vibe, but if the PCs get too cocky and suppose they'll be safe so long as they just climb up onto the roof, a "Glowing One" leader could still reach them with radioactive blasts. And, of course, it could even be a Glowing One who has retained its intellect to some degree, and is controlling the horde of ghouls -- perhaps gathering up its "army" by getting the drive-in projector back into working order, and then playing a movie that for some reason is serving as a beacon to all ghouls in the area to converge upon this spot. (Maybe a side effect of this is that ghouls keep adding to the number, so an objective of the PCs is to shut down the projector so their numbers don't keep massing. Or, of course, they might actually want the thing to keep playing, so more ghouls will be in one place before they launch their master plan. Again, blowing up all the cars is only going to go so far, since ghouls are immune to radiation, and actually sometimes can be HEALED by it.)
- Super Mutants. They're practically a mainstay of Fallout adversaries. Even though in the original game they had a very specific point of origin, every time a major new Fallout game comes out, they come up with an excuse for super mutants to come into being in whatever part of the country the adventure takes place in, never mind precedent. However, they're also SO prevalent that they probably wouldn't make that exciting of a main adversary.
- Creepy Robot Toys. Okay, these aren't normally a Fallout adversary, per se. Pictured is the Monkey with Cymbals, which is just a noise-making motion-sensitive toy. In-game, it's a hazard simply because if the PC is trying to be sneaky (say, to avoid a horde of feral ghouls), walking too near to this thing might set it off and it raises a ruckus, which brings all the ghouls to investigate. Or, sometimes nasty people will rig one of these things up to an improvised explosive device, so it becomes a motion-sensitive mine. However, this is also a universe that makes extensive use of robots, even as toys (e.g., Giddyup Buttercup), so I could imagine some setup with robo-toys GONE BAD.
Not really a "Creature Feature," though. - Wormlings. These are a nasty from "Deadlands: Hell on Earth," but I could see them fitting into Fallout as well. They could be the precursor to some big burrowing "worm boss" that's the main event of the scenario.
Other ideas that come to mind: Maybe this isn't a monster-infested area, per se, but it's a settlement, or perhaps a raider camp, so it's fortified. The PCs might be on a rescue mission to help a stranded or captured caravan, or they're there to fend off an attack by critters of some sort.
It could also be that the ultimate adversary isn't quite obvious. Maybe the PCs know that "Go-Jiro the Alpha Deathclaw" has a lair here, and they see a huge Deathclaw and assume that's "Go-Jiro," but it's only upon defeating it that they find out that the real Go-Jiro (the Mega-Deathclaw) was out hunting, and it returns, enraged, upon hearing the death-noises of its "child."
Now, what about the pre-gen heroes? One crazy idea I had was to have the "Unstoppables" as pre-gen heroes. The thing is, I was thinking about running some superheroic games that take place in the "Unstoppables" universe (Hubris Comics) -- essentially a fictitious universe within a fictitious universe, as "Hubris Comics" is made up for the Fallout universe. However, I could blur the lines and have them as protagonists for a post-apocalyptic scenario. Why are "fictitious" characters in the Fallout universe? Well, there's a plotline in Fallout 4, where the PC can take on the role of the "Silver Shroud" (i.e., put on a costume, carry a silver machinegun, and talk like a radio show hero, while tracking down bad guys), so maybe this is just a radical extension of that: Nobody in the group has super powers per se (unless perhaps one has modest "psychic" abilities, or a really interesting mutation), but they're playing the parts while "fighting crime."
Of course, for THIS scenario, I could just use a group of standard scavenger heroes. If I go with Savage Worlds, I could just recycle some protagonists from previous scenarios.
...
That's all I have for right now. I might add some more to this later, once I've had a chance to think on it some more. - Deathclaws. Big lizard-thingies. Unless you've got power armor, you really don't want to go toe-to-toe with one of these guys.
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Date: 2019-04-15 10:02 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2019-04-15 11:07 pm (UTC)(I side with the robots. Sorry, but those scavengers are trying to loot government property, and don't terribly mind shooting ME by "accident" if I simply happen to be in their way during the raid. Well, that, and there's a strong indication that they're not merely *scavengers* but that they've thrown in their lot with raiders.)
Anyway, having the PCs be a bunch of robot animatronics would be an interesting scenario, but that sounds more like something to do at a "pizza-parlor-arcade" (i.e., a "Chuck E. Cheese" or "Five Nights at Freddy's" type setup) rather than a drive-in theater. It's certainly something I could work with at some point -- I can imagine it'd be neat to construct a bunch of Fallout-style arcade games as furnishings, and make some weird "animatronic-robot" minis, and the arcade games might double as resources that inventive players could convert into traps and barricades to help fortify against the net scavenger attack -- but that might be a bit further down the line, as another scenario.
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Date: 2019-05-12 07:02 pm (UTC)https://io9.gizmodo.com/weve-been-to-star-wars-galaxys-edge-and-life-will-never-1832878349