Introductory Adventure

[Guest TheAuthority]

I'm about to start GMing my first Champions campaign and am looking for a little brainstorming for my first adventure.

 

Here are some quick background details for the campaign:

1. There will be 4 PC's and (maybe) 1 NPC at 350 pts to start.

2. The campaign will be set in the Champions Universe out of Millennium City.

3. I will be running Battlegrounds, Shades of Black, and Return of the Destroyer at some point.

4. I can alter anything in the CU to fit my needs.

 

So here's my idea for the introductory adventure where the PCs, who have only been in the biz for 6-12 months, meet and, hopefully, decide to team-up for the rest of the campaign:

 

One morning our five heroes awake to discover that they have been killed, or rather, five individuals each dressed exactly like one of them were all found dead together in some warehouse. Turns out the individuals are all thugs or hired lackeys that the heroes had managed to bust recently, one of them reported to still be in jail the night before!

 

So what happens next? Why were these men killed? Who did they work for?

[Hermit]

Re: Introductory Adventure

 

Originally posted by TheAuthority

So here's my idea for the introductory adventure where the PCs, who have only been in the biz for 6-12 months, meet and, hopefully, decide to team-up for the rest of the campaign:

 

One morning our five heroes awake to discover that they have been killed, or rather, five individuals each dressed exactly like one of them were all found dead together in some warehouse. Turns out the individuals are all thugs or hired lackeys that the heroes had managed to bust recently, one of them reported to still be in jail the night before!

 

So what happens next? Why were these men killed? Who did they work for?

 

Sounds to me like someone is leaving the heroes a message. I'd say an 'old enemy' except, well, if they're that new, they may not have time to have old enemies. Perhaps, it's simply a supervillain wanna be who has fixated on them with a stalker like mentality?

[pinecone]

Sounds like a prank by the black harliquin to me and sets up the rematch in battle grounds later.....

[Monolith]

Yes, I was going to suggest Black Harlequinn too. BH has decided to go after the Champions, but he wants to test his metal against the new boys in town first.

 

You could also use Talisman to help set up SoB later as well too. Talisman has killed these people in the costumes of the heroes because she is attempting a spell to leech some of the character's powers away from them, and empower the dead men as zombie villains for herself. Three days after being buried the zombie villains will rise to do Talisman's bidding, with all the powers of the player's characters. If you do not want to use Talisman, use DEMON.

 

Perhaps Utility or Mechassassin in Lazer or Steel Commando have come to town. These poor goons were hired as nothing more target practice (their bodies were found with a few gadgets simulating some of the hero's powers) as one of the hired killers has decided to make a mark in MC.

[Guest TheAuthority]

Re: Re: Introductory Adventure

 

Originally posted by Hermit

Sounds to me like someone is leaving the heroes a message. I'd say an 'old enemy' except, well, if they're that new, they may not have time to have old enemies. Perhaps, it's simply a supervillain wanna be who has fixated on them with a stalker like mentality?

 

This was one of my original ideas. The PC's have inadvertently prevented some supervillain from getting his goods from these thugs while they were on jobs for him. Now he's trying to lure the PC's to him. But what was he looking for? What were these thugs stealing, carrying, or doing for him? Why does he needs thugs to do the dirty work?

[Blue]

On a side-note, scenario 1 from "Champions Battlegrounds" makes for a nice fight. It's simple and in a big outdoor location. Its what I used for my players (some had never played and others hadn't played in many years).

[Guest TheAuthority]

Originally posted by Monolith

You could also use Talisman to help set up SoB later as well too. Talisman has killed these people in the costumes of the heroes because she is attempting a spell to leech some of the character's powers away from them, and empower the dead men as zombie villains for herself. Three days after being buried the zombie villains will rise to do Talisman's bidding, with all the powers of the player's characters.

 

I like this idea too. After reading SoB I was thinking of Talisman showing up before I ran it. So were these thugs working for her and now she is after revenge? What were the thugs doing for Talisman when they were caught? If they weren't working for Talisman then what is she after with the PC's?

[Guest TheAuthority]

Originally posted by Blue

On a side-note, scenario 1 from "Champions Battlegrounds" makes for a nice fight. It's simple and in a big outdoor location. Its what I used for my players (some had never played and others hadn't played in many years).

 

I'll need to read the adventure again. We are experienced Champions players but this is our first array into FrED and my first as GM. If I can't flesh out this adventure by Tuesday night, I'm sure I'll run this or Return of the Destroyer.

 

Thanks for the input!

[Monolith]

Originally posted by TheAuthority

I like this idea too. After reading SoB I was thinking of Talisman showing up before I ran it. So were these thugs working for her and now she is after revenge? What were the thugs doing for Talisman when they were caught? If they weren't working for Talisman then what is she after with the PC's?

I would think that since all the thugs were once caught or captured by the heroes, Talisman brought them together (including breaking the one out the night before) and "hired" them to work for her. Talisman wanted them in order to use whatever aura resonance the heroes' contact with the thugs had left on them. The thugs are really nothing more than pawns to her, and just happen to be unfortunate enough to be the ones who had recent contact with the various heroes.

 

The thugs were killed when the spell was unleashed. The energy takes five days to transform the dead thugs into super villain zombies with the heroes powers. You might even have them retaining some of the PC's knowledge, so the first thing the zombies do is seek out DNPC and loved ones of the characters. This could make for some interesting encounters.

 

Talisman's true purpose is to use the zombies against the Champions, she would have preferred to use the Champions' auras themselves, but she knew Witchcraft would have been able to detect the use of such a spell and thus alerted the team to the threat.

 

If the heroes manage to defeat their zombie dopplegangers then Talisman adds them to her hate list. If not, possibly the Champions managed to capture Talisman while the PCs are fighting the zombies. This breeds some trust between the two hero groups and also sets up SoB as Talisman is betting put into the police van.

[Ghost who Walks]

The 5 bodies found are actually physical duplicates pf the characters themselves!

 

5 thugs were surgically altered to resemble the heroes, by parties unknown. They were meeting at the warehouse to get equipment to duplicate the heroes powers, provided by their anonymous benefactor.

 

Unbeknownst to all, one of the thugs is actually an undercover agent (UNITL, VIPER, FBI, PRIMUS ~pick one).

So when Dr. Destroyer (or one of minions) showed up and started passing out high tech goodies, he naturally got clever.

 

Undercover cop (thought baloon): Why...I think if I can capture this supervillain, I will get a promotoion! Lets see if this high tech goodie can zap him!

 

About 30 seconds later, all 4 thugs (and the copr), are dead, and the villain is retreating from the scene, wondering what went wrong.

 

The heroes read about their untimely demise in the paper the next day, the catch being everyone thinks the bodies are theirs! The undercover cop also has a partner, who knows the truth (was listening in on the concealed microphone). He/She will attempt to contact the heroes, to get them involved.

 

Why was the villain so anxious to have some people impersonate the heroes? He has bribed someone in the government to give them official powers. Once they have them, it will be arranged that they (the thugs) would protect something valuable. Of course, that plan is all mush know, so far as the villain is concerned.