Now what do I do?

[Doc Shocker]

Through no fault of My own I managed to capture two of the four PCs currently playing in My campaign. OK VIPER captured them but I swear it wan't My fault!

I captured the Flying Brick and the Darkness Manipulator. Leaving the Stealth/Gadget Girl and the Mage to somehow locate the new VIPER base and rescue their compatriots.

So far all I have is how VIPER is keeping their guests on ice. Both are being held in END Drain fields and 0G fields. The Darkness Manipulator is completely lit from all sides and the Brick has an additional TK Field on him to keep him in place and rob him of any type of leverage.

But that's ALL I have.... I need help from My fellow GMS.

[C--]

Well, assuming you want the PCs to actually escape...

The Viper base probably wasn't completely prepared for this. Sure, the talk and talk about capturing heroes and conquering the Quik Stop, but how often does it actually happen? So, they probably don't have the manpower to really hold the heroes securely. It'll take a few days before they can get some more grunts from Viper HQ or some other nest. Until that time, they'd probably be pretty short-handed.

The fact that they captured some heroes might make them more aggressive also. "Yeah, we rule! Nobody can stop us now! Crime spree!" They might become a little more ambitious now that they've tasted success, and this could lead the remaining PCs right back to the Viper base.

Of course, they might be really bold and try to blackmail the city or something. "We have defeated your heroes. Now you will give us... one MILLION dollars!"

What you're really looking at (as far as I can tell, anyway) is two seperate things. 1) How do I get my PCs to find the Viper base? and 2) How do I get the PCs to free the others?

[Doc Shocker]

Actually I think I like the idea of VIPER not being quite prepared for capturing the heroes AND being a bit overconfident.....


hmmmmmm


*goes off to plot*

thanks

[Vondy]

Maybe VIPER is in the middle of a major operation so most of their seasoned agents and leaders are out in the field with any supers they have (if any). And maybe they weren't expecting to have guests, so they don't know what to do. They've got a couple of goons watching the heroes who are on ice, but they're conflicted and don't know what to do. They've got a call in to a more experienced or larger base (I don't know how big your base is), but to watch the heroes properly in the meantime means postponing the op. You could help the players by having them over hearing the guards mutterings about the situation, and mess with them with little comments like: "why don't we just ice 'em?" If VIPER decides to post-pone their op, then it becomes an escape from alcatraz situation, but with help coming from the outside. If it they go ahead with it, escape becomes easy (and their base may be compromised), but the heroes on the outside have the classic dillema: help their friends or stop VIPER?

[AlHazred]

The problem is what to do with the PCs whose characters are in VIPER hoosgow. You don't want them to sit on their hands. So, now might be the right time to introduce four new NPCs in the campaign. Two of them are other prisoners that VIPER has captured previously and who have undergone experimentation. The other two are independent superheroes that also inhabit the campaign city.

This way you can do cut scenes, and no one is left out of the loop. Everybody always has something to do. It also makes them closer to these NPCs who they've played previously. That way, when one of them betrays them later, it'll be that much more surprising; much higher impact that way.

[Iuz the Evil]

Of course, they might be really bold and try to blackmail the city or something. "We have defeated your heroes. Now you will give us... one MILLION dollars!"

Dude that is hilarious... I'm so gonna use that sometime! With the Dr. Evil pinky move too (and other VIPER agents cracking up in the background). Why wouldn't the VIPER agents have seen the Austin Powers movies?

[TheRealVector]

You must show the PCs the price of failure: KILL THEM!!

Oh, wait...just joking.

[Dr. Anomaly]

The problem is what to do with the PCs whose characters are in VIPER hoosgow. You don't want them to sit on their hands. So, now might be the right time to introduce four new NPCs in the campaign. Two of them are other prisoners that VIPER has captured previously and who have undergone experimentation. The other two are independent superheroes that also inhabit the campaign city.

This way you can do cut scenes, and no one is left out of the loop. Everybody always has something to do. It also makes them closer to these NPCs who they've played previously. That way, when one of them betrays them later, it'll be that much more surprising; much higher impact that way.

I think that is great advice. Perhaps the NPCs have even gleaned some info about the prison set-up they can't use, but perhaps the PCs can. Then the PCs get to be the ones who do the breakout and also rescue the NPCs, making them the "stars" -- which is as it should be.

The non-captive characters shouldn't have too much trouble finding the Viper base where their pals are being held; after all, the level of power consumption necessary to keep a brick off line oughta be spiking some power grid lines... (hint, hint)

By the way, I feel for ya! I did the same thing one, except I managed to knock out all the PCs, and it wasn't Viper, it was Genocide.

I had a heck of a time thinking my way out of that one! Of course I decided they'd be taken captive and not killed, but what to do then?

I had the players wake up in their civilian IDs...and find out they were college students who'd been participating in a VR experiment that had gotten a little too intense. They didn't really believe that, but they had no powers, so they were begining to have their doubts...until one of them twigged on the fact that a nobody was calling them by their names, and every "official" type person they ran into kept hasseling them to show their ID. They eventually realized this was the VR set-up, and their captors were trying to use it to worm their secret IDs out of them. With that realization (and a few EGO checks) they manifested their powers inside the simulation and broke out back into the real world. From there it was a hard fight getting out, but it was at least possible because right at first they were facing lab techs and two guards. (In other words, they weren't inside cells and there weren't hoards of bad guys waiting to blast them the moment they twitched wrong.)

What started out as a major malfunction of my plot ended up being one of the more memorable adventures of the campaign.

And also cemented a long-lasting hatred between the PCs and Genocide.

[Vanguard00]

If you're looking for a quick fix, consider introducing a sort of one-off adventure wherein VIPER has some serious bad plans for...um...something bad.

For example: VIPER has it's eye on a nuclear missile silo somewhere outside the city proper. In order to get the missile(s) contained therein they must ensure that the heroes are suitably occupied. Thus, they plan to blow up a building/dam/small town somewhere else in order to lure the heroes (and probably some militarly) away from their true target.

Unfortunately one of their very own agents has family in the location set for destruction. He only just found out about it. If the heroes promise to save his family first he'll help them escape.

Hey, it worked for Miss Tessmacher ("Miss Tess-macher!") in the original "Superman".

But Dr. A's idea is a good one, too.

[Vanguard00]

Ooh...what if it's not the PCs that find the VIPER base, but Genocide (or other suitable VIPER foe that is also villainous)? Or The Ultimates! Or...or...or...Telios! Or something.

The baddies attack the baddies, and the PCs have to get their friends free in the ensuing chaotic melee. Or better yet, the captured PCs use the opportunity to break out, but find themselves teaming up with VIPER in a battle for their very lives!

Wow, I had dramatic orchestral music in my head just then...

[Lightray]

It's quite possible to use cut scenes between two groups of characters and have the action go smoothly with no one feeling left out. The only trick is, once combat begins, that everyone acts on the same SPD chart, in the same DEX order.

Scene One: heroes-at-large track down clues to the VIPER base's location, while their captive comrades are interrogated and gloated over in the VIPER Nest (possibly dropping clues for upcoming adventures).

Scene Two: captive comrades are allowed some time to investigate their holding cells and see if they can find a way out, while heroes-at-large try to find a way into the base.

Scene Three: heroes-at-large bust into the VIPER Nest causing disruption and mayhem, at the same time that their captive comrades stage their escape attempt. To the SPD Chart!

Closing Page Shot:

Heroes-at-large battle their way through VIPER goons to find their captive comrades already in the middle of an escape attempt.

Captive Comrades: "What kept you?"

Heroes-at-Large: "Oh. You look busy. We'll just come back later, then?"

Narrative Bubble: Join us next issue, for Viperia's Revenge!

[assault]

The word you are looking for is "deathtrap".

Strapping them to a missile is good, if you can't think of anything else.

Failing that, mind control one of them, and make them execute the other. This works best if the characters are romantically connected, of course.

If you find having the PCs separated a problem, capture the other PCs as well. You can do that - you're the GM.

The players probably aren't going to be able to think of a way to escape without a certain amount of prompting, unfortunately.

[Kirby]

A death trap can always be fun (especially if you use the One MILLION Dollars line). Well almost always.

If you are looking for a quick fix, I have two suggestions: 1) The PCs wake up in a boat at 0 END 0 STUN, after one phase of recoveries, they're tossed overboard into the brink, with cement boots and cuffs on. 2) A VIPER member (scientist?) likes his job & money as long as he/she doesn't have to think about the actual consequences of the "outside world." Now that a legitimate hero is captured (as opposed to the nameless people hurt before), the guilty conscience kicks in and the VIPER guy/gal helps. If the PCs play it right, they now have a CONTACT in VIPER.

However, a quick fix may get the players feeling that VIPER really isn't that big of a villain if they escape right away. Perhaps let the captured two sweat it out (maybe some role playing with their captors) until the free ones actually find them.

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! Perhaps you can introduce a duo NPC team which the players of the captured PC's can play until the supers are rescued. OR you can just tell the players to create a new PC "you know guys, just in case" and don't fudge the game to "make" VIPER be found, without the right work. (Such as trailing VIPER after a crime, NOT asking a street contact "hey, where does VIPER live?")

Just my opinions.

[Evil102]

Failing that, mind control one of them, and make them execute the other. This works best if the characters are romantically connected, of course.

Or you could combine the mind-control idea, with the big-plan-in-the-works idea...

"Have you managed to uncover their secrets yet, Synapse?"
"No, Great Serpent. Their conscious minds are mine to play with, but their memories...will take time"
"Time we do not have. Our plans come to fruition tonight, and we cannot chance their team-mates foiling our grand design!"
"Perhaps there is another way, Great Serpent. If I were to implant memories that they were trusted Viper agents? The neural graft would not last long, but perhaps long enough to ensure our victory..."

[Kirby]

Hey, I just noticed you live in Fort Worth, my old neighborhood. How many people are in your group? (I'm guessing four + GM.) How often do you game and what games?

I'm in a group of 3 + 1 (potentially) + Me that games every other Sunday. We do Champions & 2E D&D. I'm in sort of another group (same people as above, minus 2 people) that try to game once a month on Saturdays (Fantasy Hero).

I'm just curious; you don't have to respond if you don't wish to.
You want to respond. You want to respond. You want to respond.