Jump to content

Looking for help with a plotline...Fallout


Glupii

Recommended Posts

Reposting this from another thread so it does not get lost in there...


 


OK So I am in need of a different sort of help. I need a plot idea for our weekly game. One of our players will be missing so I am only running for the other two. Hense I am still running an extension of last week (our first dry run of the game). Let me explain and maybe some of you folks can help me with some sort of plot idea.


 


I am starting them out in a vault that did not have one of the social experiments in. It was just what it appeared to be, a survival vault. Last week the three characters were told that over the last 200 years, the dirt in the vault gardens (not all food is grown in Hydroponics tubs) was basically worn out. No matter how many times they compost it, the dirt just could not be fully reconstituted. This was backed up by the one character's mother (One of the chief medical personnel in the vault) who pointed to the growing deficiency in the vault dwellers for a number of key vitamins. The argument was made to open the shielding wall in one of the labs (down on the 4th level so pretty deep) and test the dirt for radiation. Despite the tyrannical Overseer's objections, it was finally tried and discovered that the dirt was actually less radioactive than the environment inside the vault (It IS powered by a reactor on the same level after all). So a cavern was dug and the dirt "harvested" was used to reconstitute the soil in the garden beds.


 


The three juveniles (they were all 16 at this point) and their friend were hanging out in the cavern as it had a distinct earthy smell they had never experienced before and it quickly became a good spot to hang out. There was also a vent pipe going through the cavern that was “discovered” when it dug out as one of the exhaust pipes for overflow cooling steam form the reactor.


 


So they were attacked by a Giant Ant which they dealt with (close call given the lack of any weaponry they had at this point). But one of the characters realized more were on their way so they burst the pipe and evacuated the cavern. The heated steam killed the ants that were coming and collapsed the tunnel for now. The entire cavern was later filled in with rubble and debris and closed off.


 


Now they are all a year older and preparing for their GOAT. I am trying to come up with a plot for this week that might feed into our next adventure where they are all going to be forced out of the vault.


 


My plan for this (to be run in two weeks) is that a band of Tribals, Raiders, or Fiends, hunting down and killing off the Anthill will find their way into the vault via this “Backdoor. And having access to explosives, can easily clear the debris and patch on the wall rather than trying to get in through the vault door. So the entire vault is going to be overrun by these fiends (or whoever) and everyone will be killed or captured to be sold to Ceaser’s Legion. The PC’s will escape from them and therefore start their adventure on the outside without any support of a vault to go back to.


 


So I need something that will allow me to deepen the flavor of the campaign for them while keeping it minor enough to be run in one night for two PC’s. Any thoughts or ideas would be very much appreciated as I am drawing a blank at the moment.


Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd say a character-focussed piece would be the way to go. Set up some fellow vault-dwellers to interact with - the teacher giving the GOAT, a fellow student one of the PCs can care about, maybe an adult who (for whatever reason) dislikes a PC and is seriously peeved when the GOAT assigns him that youth as an apprentice. Plus family ties, parents, younger siblings.

This'll all pay off in a few episodes when the Raiders break in. Then the PCs will have people they care about to defend... and fail. And people to resue later, or avenge.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When a player is missing for a session, it might be a good time to do a "meta-arc" session where the characters find--or have to fight to obtain--some kind of archival record that hints at a previously unknown agenda by the builders of the vault, with possible plans for leaving it...kind of ala "City of Ember" style.

 

Just a thought, doing that could introduce the thought of leaving the vault in a "contingency plan" manner, setting up your future crisis that makes it an immediate imperative.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Good ideas so far. I think I would continue with the failing resources of the vault and have the two attending characters go scouting to see what sort of resources are available, what sort of dangers are on the surface, what is the status of society, etc.  Of course the first place they run across is a raider encampment. Not large too large. Maybe a lookout. What the characters don't know is that there is a cowardly raider that was out to relieve him/herself or sneak a hit off some chem while his friends weren't looking. When the shots ring out, the cowardly raider hides until the interlopers (read characters) are finished. The cowardly raider then sneaks off to tell the raider boss.

 

Have them interact with a merchant "caravan" (couple of brahmin, two or three guards, and the peddler in charge). Maybe introduce them to ghouls, but I would hold off on that one for a bit. Just a couple of encounters to get them through the session and have story fodder for the third character when the player can return. If you need to fill in for spare time, a radscorpion (not giant) or two might be be just enough of a battle to convince the characters of how dangerous the Wasteland is. Maybe even a couple more raiders.

 

This sets up several things. The first is that the peddler and company are a friendly sort of contact on the surface. The second is that the peddler can point then to the nearest Megaton/Goodsprings/starter town of choice.  The final reason is that the eventual raider attack on the vault is not random. You will have established an enmity between the raider clan and the vault dwellers. There will be a tangible reason for the raid. One that the players can instantly connect to.

 

Just my suggestions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OK So here is how it broke down. There was a longtime rumor in the Vault of a section that for some reason no longer existed. And the focus of this legend is a hallway down on the bottom level of the vault (which only houses the hydroponics and farming areas, and the reactor and air/water purification systems) that just ends for no reason and apparently goes nowhere. All sorts of stories linger about what happened there. But there is no official record that anyone knows of to explain it.

 

Some rebellious youth (Yes I used the Tunnel Rats) decided to see what was beyond the rumors. They used a shy and geeky youth working an apprenticeship in the Maintenance dept. to steal the only working laser torch to cut through the wall and see what was behind it. Our heroes heard about this from two sources. One of the  characters has a sort of relationship going on with the Overseer's daughter and when she caught wind of the Rats doing something in "The Well" (What the dead-end hallway began to be called for no real reason other than it sounded cool to me at the time) she did some investigation of her own. Breaking into her father's computer she was just successful enough to find out that there was in fact, truth to there being something behind that wall though what, she could not find.

 

So she rushed to her friend, the strong guy who's dad was head of security and who had always been sot of the protector of the weak especially where the Tunnel Rats were involved, and ran headlong into him, telling him everything she had discovered. She could not tell her father for fear of the trouble she would get in for hacking his computer. So the two were considering it when they ran into another PC who also worked in the Maint's Dept as an apprentice who was on his way to report his discovery of the missing Laser Cutter.

 

The three equip themselves with the only things they could. Braiden, the mech, carried his ever present large wrench wich we decided could be used as a small mace, and his leather apron. Travis, the son of the Security chief, picked up his tonfa/police club that he practiced his Martial Arts with when his father taught him and his BB Pistol. Crissy, the Overseer's daughter (an NPC) had secretly stashed her mother's ancient 22 pistol in her coat. The trio headed toward the Well.

 

They found the wall at the well cut open and the laser cutter laying nearby. Through the hole they indeed saw hallways that were very obviously long abandon. The lights had mostly stopped functioning but a few bulbs still worked and shed just enough light to see by. They discovered a few labs and one overgrown hydroponics lab. They investigated this and discovered a humanoid sporeman living in there who attacked them. (Giving them their first real experience with things not being normal outside the vault safety zone. :) ). After dealing with him in a quick but brutal battle, they discovered a lab where they found some stims and chems, and a 357 revolver with three rounds still in the chambers. They also discovered a handful of environmental suits which, after discovering from an old computer terminal the cause of the sealing up of the vault was some sort of outbreak of spores that caused respiratory problems, they decided it was wise to don. These also provided 2pd fully covering them which was important.

 

Further in they heard what sounded like gunshots and hurried in that direction. They found a large electric door that showed by the controls had been unlocked. They opened it and found that it lead into a natural cavern (originally used by the researchers as a lab environment for insects and vermin they kept living for experimental reasons). The door was very well camouflaged from the other side to become part of the natural wall when closed. Fearing they would not be able to find their way back once it closed, especially if in a hurry, they locked it open.

 

Further in, the cavern opened into what looked like a fissure that tectonic activity likely opened at some point and could see more cavern beyond with very bright light coming from above like large powerful spot lights. (Holes in the ceiling were admitting some indirect sunlight, but they had no reference for this yet) In this outer chamber they could see what was left of the Tunnel Rats fighting some other humans that were filthy and dressed in harsh looking leather and chains. Two of the 5 were already dead and the last three were looking in poor strategic shape. Being heroic, they rushed in. End result, two of the raiders ran away, two ended up dead, and one captured. Of the Tunnel Snakes, one took serious wounds (which they used the stimpacks on to stabilize) and the other two were hurt but it was mostly stun. Crissy, had also suffered a major hit to the vitals and was in very poor shape. Given where she was hit, she refused to let the "boys" help her with it. They stripped the bodies and made their way back to the portal, stashing the bodies and the equipment where even the tunnels snakes would not find them. A story was concocted for Travis to give his father where the two dead tunnel snakes had done this plan on their own and everyone else went in to try and stop them. They were supposedly already dead when they were discovered. Doing this, Travis and Braiden covered for the remaining Tunnel Rats, (buying down their disads of the rivalry with them in the process) and became honorary members of the gang.

 

BUT in keeping with the story, they did NOT inform anyone of the fight or the door to the cavern. Hence the raiders who escaped will return with force and the next stage of the game has been set up. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

Last week I introduced my players to the "Cut Scene" :) I gave them a narrative that basically the Raiders were back. Given that the characters hid many of the important details from the others in the Vault, no precautions were made. So when the Raiders who escaped came back with the rest of their gang they looked for and could not find the hidden entrance. So they did what any self respecting raider would do. Pump up on Jet and use explosives on the back wall where they assumed the hidden entrance to be.

 

Long story short, the Vault was raided. Everyone was either captured or killed. The PC's found each other in the chaos and after things had settled down a bit and the raiders began to relax, figuring they had everything under control, they found a way to the back entrance, taking out a few raiders in the process. They escaped only just ahead of a party of raiders investigating the sounds of the fighting and chasing them. They got out of the cavern and found the entrance to be on the side of a large steep hill. In the predawn darkness, they could see a small encampment of more raiders below with a slave wagon and could hear more of them coming up from behind. So they did the only thing they could...climb. They were some 30 feet up the mountain when the door burst open and more raiders poured out looking for them. They all hid but one (who failed his concealment roll) but at the last second a strange hand reached out and pulled him down, deeper into cover. A raspy voice whispered for him to be quiet which he did. After that, the raiders went back inside and the PC's continued their way up the hillside with the help of their new friend.

 

Once on the other side of the ridge line, the PC's met their new "friend" who they were alarmed looked like a walking corpse. He was at first gruff and offended at their reactions until he finally understood that they were vault dwellers seeing a ghoul for the very first time. It did not soften his demeanor much, but he became a little more accepting of their ignorance. After a description to the PC's as to exactly what was likely to happen to their "loved ones" still in the vault, the PC's heroically and with more than a bit of naiveté declared their intent to storm the raiders and free their people. It was at this point the Ghoul (Who Id'ed himself as Scar for obvious reasons and NOT because I watched the Nuka Break videos!) considered and decided to help them because as much as he is not fond of smooth skins, especially stupid vault dwellers, he hates slavers even more. Moreover this particular batch of slavers had a Legion representative with them and if there was anyone Scar hated more than slavers, it was the Legion.

 

The band made their way along the opposite side of the ridge line after determining which way the slave cart was heading. They hurried and got ahead of the caravan and setup an ambush. The heroes were hopelessly outnumbered 2-1 but they had a secret weapon; Scar high above them with his sniper rifle.

 

The battle was quick and bloody and the 10 slaves in the cart were released. But now what? The slaves, mostly the pretty young girls and a few of the young men that would fetch a fair price at Ceasar's camp, were nearly naked and had no weapons or provisions. Moreover, none of them had knowledge or skill to live outside the vault yet. After removing the slave collars and putting one on the only remaining raider left, they settled in to interrogate him for information while Scar made his way down the mountainside to join them...

 

That is where this week's episode will pick up.

 

As always, ideas and or comments are always welcome...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...