Bath Imaginable

Adventure Design, Storytelling, Reflections

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  • Vibes? Vibes.

    This month, I’m reading Dead Astronauts by Jeff VanderMeer. It’s the sequel to Borne—a novel I absolutely adore for its refusal to hold the reader’s hand. VanderMeer respects the reader; he drops a disturbing piece of worldbuilding, moves on, and trusts you to sit with the implications. But Dead Astronauts feels less like a traditional narrative and more like a fever dream. The prose is heady, the plot moves with a surreal, hallucinatory cadence, and while I love every second of it, I’m frequently left wondering if I’m too high or not high enough to really get it.

    In a novel, that kind of beautiful disorientation is part of the joy. If I lose my footing, I can slow down, re-read a passage, or parse the text at my own pace. But a ttrpg is a different beast entirely. A tabletop plot is a living, ephemeral thing; it happens in real-time, exists only in the moment, and can’t be flipped back a few pages when a player loses the thread.

    This leaves designers with a fascinating challenge: how do we build surreal, vibe-heavy worlds while keeping our players grounded enough to actually navigate the fiction? It’s a precarious tightrope walk, but it’s a balancing act that In a Petal Unlimited absolutely nails.

    Initial Thoughts

    Art by Apollo (@poliaths)

    In a Petal Unlimited is a 23 page adventure for Cairn (although designed for Wyrm, which I have not played). Words and interior art are by giant robot tackler. The cover illustration is by Apollo (@poliaths).

    “At the sea’s center, a blocky spire lunges upward, tall as a lighthouse and twice as thick. Fresh vines form a lattice on its surface. Large birds flit to and fro – a vertical ecosystem… Every hour, on the hour, a single wave pulses from the spire.”

    The Surreal, Grounded

    Among the adventure’s cited inspirations is VanderMeer’s Annihilation. In that novel, Ghost Bird/the Biologist is driven into a hallucinatory, deeply personal nightmare of ecological terror. In a Petal Unlimited riffs on those same visual themes while deftly avoiding the trap of becoming an unplayable, avant-garde slog. It stays grounded by giving the Warden concrete tools. The NPCs are sharply sculpted, allowing you to easily convey the vague sense of *intimacy* the locals feel toward their strange environment. The adventure offers a brilliant structural hook: the players are following the trail of a missing expedition. This is exactly how I opted to run the Iron Coral; *rescue* the missing explorers is a much better verb than *experience* the weirdness.

    From the Tavern to the Spire

    The adventure comes out swinging with one of the best ~meet in a tavern~ setups I have ever seen in a one-shot. The tavern here is the Last Vespers, a rudderless barge guided gently along by swarming minnows. I immediately wanted to run this adventure based on the concept of the Ship alone. The Ship acts as a launchpad for fantastic hooks–most notably Bill Billions and his experimental flying machine. I deeply appreciate that the flying machine offers a fun, open-ended escalation that can completely upend how the party approaches the Spire. I would have so much fun embodying Mr. Billions.

    Once the players begin their ascent, the module introduces a falling mechanic that made me incredibly jealous as a designer. I can instantly picture the spongy, gentle fall into the black grass, and the elegant way momentum actually makes the landing worse for the player. It’s the exact kind of physics-based hazard that is effortless to make a ruling on because you can vividly see it in your mind’s eye.

    The Spire encounters themselves all feel like they organically belong to the vertical ecosystem, presenting highly believable hazards for climbers. The believability is reinforced as the ecosystem dynamically shifts across Morning, Noon, and Evening watches.

    My personal favourite is Noon: the oppressive heat drives desperate squirrels to frantically tear into the characters’ waterskins. Perfect.

    The Delve

    When the party transitions into the dungeon encounters, the writing remains sharp, pointed, and clearly remembers to have fun with the language. The environmental events are the absolute standout here. As I was reading, I found myself wondering: what happens when the tower pulses while the PCs are inside? I wasn’t disappointed by the answer.

    A personal favourite of mine is Room 6, the Phase Error encounter. It features an NPC whose age flickers every time you blink, sitting over a chest that duplicates into unfocused images. It is exactly my kind of encounter–deeply weird, interactive visuals. The environmental *weirdness* adds a literal justification for a combat encounter with multiple phases, as the NPC splits into copies of herself on Critical Damage. It’s the kind of out-of-the-frying-pan action writing that I prefer over a traditional slugfest.

    Shape-Shifting Conclusions

    The dungeon’s surrealism reaches its peak in Area 12 where the players encounter a massive, tumorous heart, forcing out a single, torturous beat each hour. I won’t spoil the adventure, but the designer beautifully gamifies the climax by providing concrete mutation tables based on the party’s moral choices.

    Ultimately, the conclusions offered at the end of the adventure maintain the exact same grounded approach: the consequences of the players’ actions are beautifully and heavily described, but refreshingly, they are not over-explained. It leaves the mystery intact, trusting the Warden and the players to sit with the implications–much like VanderMeer would do.

  • Mausritter Gothic

    Ever since I ran my Ravenloft campaign using Shadowdark RPG, I’ve been fantasizing about adapting the module for Mausritter, replacing the eponymous Count with a similarly tragic vampire bat. I don’t know if I’ll ever get a chance to run that campaign, but if I do this is the map I would use:

    1. Old Windmill. Village of 100 mice on the flagstone floor of a long-abandoned windmill. They fear the reclusive, immortal Count who lives in the rafters above the millstone. None are welcome upstairs an invitation.

    The Count HP 12
    STR 14, DEX 12, WIL 16, Armour 1
    Bite (d10), target is drained of all blood on Critical Damage and rises as an undead thrall of the Count.
    *Knows the following spells: Fireball, Darkness, Fear (Mausritter page 13)
    *Can fly 2x normal speed.
    *The Count regenerates 6 HP each time he bites a target with blood.
    *If he is killed, he becomes a cloud of mist that retreats to his roost in the rafters to regenerate. He can only be truly killed if his roost is destroyed.

    2. Flowerbed. An overgrown, mist-addled path cuts through the weeds and flowers to the graveyard north of the Windmill.

    3. Handcart. Tipped over and overgrown; sodden human debris sinks into the mud. Among the cloth, glass, and metal are dozens of human teeth.

    4. Overgrown Path. Deep gouges in the mud, gnarled roots, grasping, claw-like branches.

    5. Fence Posts. Overgrown and rotted. A twisting path through the mud rises to the windmill on the hill.

    6. Standing Stones. Ancient stark-white stone carved with arcane symbols.

    7. Ravine. Where the forest meets the hills, a narrow ravine is home to a ghastly order of vengeful, knightly lizards.

    8. Cemetery. Crooked obelisks and a shattered mausoleum. Inside, a stone sarcophagus is shattered. The human remains within are fanged and steaked with cursed wood (here lies the source of the Count’s curse).

    9. Gallows. At the crossroads, a human structure collapses into the brush.

    10. Signpost/Ditch. Overgrown wood engraved with human symbols. A ditch beneath the trail is home to frightened badger (unable to escape the mists).

    11. Lakeshore. Misty and still. An immortal, amber catfish offers Dark Boons for those who vow to slay the Count.

    12. Fallen Tree. Two dozen colourfully-dressed squirrels camp here. They are the only creatures permitted to freely leave the Count’s domain, but they prefer to stay where they know they are protected.

    13. Reed Forest/Lily Pads. The ruins of a frog village who’s burgomaster tried to defy the Count.

    14. Marshes. Bobbing witch lights and faeries can be seen here at night, where the river meets the lake.

    15. Covered Bridge. Roost of the Count’s vampire bat spawn.

    16. Evergreens. In these twin towers, an owl sorcery nurses the wounds from his near-fatal encounter with the Count. His defeat has turned him to madness.

    17. Waterfalls. Cascading waterfalls, a treacherous climb. Home of a territorial mountain goat.

    18. Wolf Cave. The Count’s most powerful ally is a mangey wolf who worships him as a God.

    19. Old Raven’s Tree. A hollowed tree and the home of an insane raven matriarch. She believes herself the mother of the Count, despite all evidence of the contrary. She infuses mousetraps with the souls of murderous rodents to make an army of wicked constructs.

  • A Brief, Lazy Rant About the Brindlewood Bay Mystery Mechanics

    Art by Gauntlet

    Last year, a friend introduced our group to Brindlewood Bay. I was immediately struck by its near-perfect mystery system. Over six sessions, we told a largely player-driven, truly resonant story about facing loss. Now, I’m running Public Access for some of the same group. Three sessions into a planned year of play, having seen the mechanics from both sides of the screen, I have thoughts.

    Art by the Gauntlet

    As a player, it took a moment to grasp the game’s open use of modular clues. The designer makes no attempt to retroactively make the clues “real”—that’s the players’ job. They solve the mystery by being good storytellers with the provided prompts.

    For example, if my character finds “a series of numbers,” asking “What are the numbers?” is the wrong approach. The numbers mean nothing on their own; they need context.

    As a Game Master, this wasn’t a novel concept. I’ve been a fan of Sly Flourish’s The Eight Steps of the Lazy DM since I started the hobby. It boils down to keeping prep modular so you can be flexible and responsive. The eight steps are the raw ingredients you bring to cook with, but the cooking happens at the table.

    One essential ingredient I always use is secrets and clues: modular facts about the situation, plot, characters, or setting. I don’t plan how the players will discover them, but I’m ready to dish out information when they investigate.

    The major difference between running D&D with secrets and clues versus running Public Access is that, with the latter, even I don’t know what’s going on—I’m just dishing out the clues.

    I have finally found a game so well-designed I can barely prep for it.

    Art by the Gauntlet

    I was surprised yesterday to hear Sly Flourish on the Lazy RPG Talk Show critique the Daggerheart adventure, The Wish Thief, and get tripped up on this mystery mechanic.

    “I don’t know what clues to reveal if I don’t know who it is,” he said. “The secret and clue is still a specific thing that leads a specific way.”

    I’ve never used secrets and clues that way; I’ve always improvised to align with the players’ interpretations. I thought that was how they worked!

    While Daggerheart isn’t for me, I was impressed the new adventure used this mechanic, though I agree it fumbles the outcome. In the Wish Thief, whether the players solve the mystery or not, the villain escapes to trigger a chase scene. Mike rightly criticizes this railroading, but culminating a mystery in a tense scene dependent on the players’ success is a great concept.

    In Brindlewood Bay, players roll to test their theory. Depending on the roll and the depth of their investigation, they may have a chance to stop the villain. If they didn’t find many clues and roll a mid-tier result, the villain slipping away makes sense. Cue the chase. This feels much better, ensuring the players’ choices and efforts actually matter.

  • The Vacant Lot

    I’m working on a new urban adventure location for Mausritter called the Vacant Lot.

    1. Greenhaus
    Flimsy wood, ceramic pots, the blue glow of humming, human grow-lights.
    An insular village of 500 mice, powered by scavenged tech and wary of outsiders. Open only on weekly Market Days (the Broken Pot Tavern serves a great fish-steak). Mayor Sorrel tithes vegetables weekly to the Plateau (2) for the Vixen Queen’s protection. Guarded by 2d6 Knights of Goldenfire.

    Knight of Goldenfire HP 4
    Wants to protect Greenhaus and the mice of the Vacant Lot in the name of the Vixen Queen.
    Armour 1 (Crest Shield), STR 9, DEX 9, WIL 9
    Sword (d6)

    2. Plateau
    Cracked asphalt, grasping weeds, bone-white stone monoliths.
    A wilderness of sodden human debris. Harmless foragers graze by day; Goldenfire hunts at dawn and dusk. By night, cultist bats leave floral offerings for their Vixen Queen.

    3. Horse Skeleton
    Overgrown ribs, brittle grass, sweet incense.
    A neutral Coven of Crows honors the dead here. These avian scholars and mages trade lore and songs for shiny trinkets, but they despise pushy rodents and will eat those who test their patience.

    4. Litterwood
    Calcified trees choked by weeds and toxic human refuse.
    Lair of three raccoon enforcers. They act as Goldenfire’s spies and muscle, keeping dissenting rodents in line.

    Raccoon Brothers, Django, Tuco, and Dexter HP 10 Warband Scale ⚐
    Wants to eat a steady supply of highly processed foods.
    STR 15, DEX 11, WIL 10
    Bite (d6)

    5. Din Borimm
    A festering maze of wet cloth, rusted metal, and rot.
    The Roach Kingdom. Industrious insects mine the trash for weapon-grade minerals. Protective of their hoard and wary of outsiders, but respectful rodents may pass if they honor the Roach King.

    6. Lily Pond
    Dizzying reeds, buzzing cicadas, still, lifeless waters.
    A dwindling frog population hides here, denied sanctuary in Greenhaus. At dawn, raccoons dredge them from the lilies and drag them to the Big Rock (17) for Goldenfire’s meals.

    7. Fig Trees
    Twisting roots burst from splintered, weed-choked garden boxes.
    Bound by an ancient truce: mice claim one tree, the Union of Feathers claims the other. Goldenfire bitterly resents this compromise and plots the avian tree’s destruction.

    8. Shattered Lands
    Cold asphalt, screeching metal, dripping water.
    An open manhole descends into the flooded dark of the parking garage below (Dungeon #1).

    9. Trail
    Rough gravel and sprouting weeds.
    A long, perilous journey toward the road. Roll 1d6 on the Outsider Encounter table.

    10. Old Hollow
    A great tree with claw-like limbs.
    Roost to a zealous family of bats who worship Goldenfire as the Queen of the Night.

    11. Waterfall
    Foaming water and floating rubbish.
    Conceals a hidden bat-cult temple. A secret tunnel connects this sanctuary directly to Old Hollow (10).

    12. Stream
    Shallow rapids rushing over shiny pebbles.
    Teeming with trout. Greenhaus mice fish the banks safely by day; Goldenfire laps the water and hunts freely by night.

    13. Stonewall
    A breathtaking expanse of stone carved with arcane symbols.
    Scholarly mice study the ancient runes here, heavily guarded by Goldenfire’s Knights.

    14. Sinking Mud
    Bubbling sludge, putrid stench, dissolving debris.
    A half-submerged human megastructure sinks slowly into the muck, hiding a valuable treasure deep within (Dungeon #2).

    15. Foxhole
    An earthen maw littered with tiny bones.
    Lair of the Vixen Queen, Goldenfire. She sleeps through the daylight hours, protected by 2d6 of her Knights.

    Goldenfire, the Vixen Queen HP 15 Warband Scale ⚐
    Wants to be the only ruler of the Vacant Lot and hunt whatever is in her territory.
    Armour 1, STR 16, DEX 15, WIL 12
    Bite (d8), target is decapitated on Critical Damage

    16. Billboard
    Stained wood groaning in the wind.
    Roost of the Union of Feathers. Pigeons, gulls, doves, and finches massing to seize the Vacant Lot from Goldenfire.

    17. Big Rock
    A massive, sun-baked slab.
    Raccoon enforcers pin captured frogs to the rock to bake in the heat—Goldenfire prefers her favorite meal crispy.

    18. Stonewoods
    A petrified forest of calcified wood.
    A violently divided territory: the canopy belongs entirely to the birds, while the roots belong to rogue, unaligned snakes.

    19. Drainpipe/Warehouse
    A looming, abandoned human structure.
    Domain of Fatcat and her subservient rat horde. Deep within the shadows, they forge weapons of war, plotting to take the Vacant Lot by force.

    Fatcat HP 12 Warband Scale ⚐
    Wants to expand her empire and rule the Vacant Lot.
    Armour 1, STR 12, DEX 12, WIL 12
    Claw (d6) or Bite (d8), target is decapitated on Critical Damage

  • Dredging Sites

    There may be times when you want to zoom in on Dredging and make it a full scene. You can use the site generation rules from Mythic Bastionland to create a unique location tied to a specific treasure. In the example below, the dredging site is the shipwreck of the Belmont—a sailboat that crashed into the glass skerries in this remote island cluster. The Belmont was carrying a Bird Memorial statue which is rumoured to conjure birds.

    The Belmont

    Entrances: 1 & 2

    1. Rival Dredgers. A crew of desperate fishers looking for an easy score. So far no luck. They fire long guns hoping to scare away other would-be treasure hunters (but they lack the drive to really fight).
    2. Barrier Isles. Sandy isles (home to many nests of gulls). Littered with tiny debris from the Belmont.
    3. Glass Skerries. Jagged rocks of pure, translucent glass. Difficult to see and maneuver through (without a clever solution, d6 damage to the ship).
    4. Hazard Buoy. Floating buoy covered in gull waste (flashing amber light). “CAUTION: GLASS SKERRIES AHEAD”
    5. Shimmer Corals. Diverse, colourful life swirls around a shimmering, jagged coral reef (those who linger see a school of glowing fish navigating safely through the skerries to the Belmont where they feed upon her crew).
    6. The Belmont. Sunken sailboat. Spend a Phase to Dredge. Those who anchor here overnight are likely to be visited by the Belmont’s ghost (a lost machine).
      Roll d6: 4-6 = Bird Memorial, 2-3 = Junk, 1 = Sea Monster!

    Bird Memorial. Bulky. Once per day, summon a squall of biting gulls that lasts for d6 turns and bites a target of your choice (d6 per turn).

    Dredger HP 12
    Armour 1 (Iron Hull)
    Locker Space 8

    Lost Machine HP 12
    Driven to scare other machines away from the Deep.
    Armour 2 (Incorporeal)
    Spirit foghorn (-d6 CHA, at 0 CHA black out and wake up in a random location, d6 Phases later, with d6 Ship HP loss).

    SEA MONSTER
    FORM Roll d6

    1. Clam Crawler HP 12, Armour 2 (Speckled Shell)
    2. Flying Manta HP 10, Armour 2 (Leathery Hide)
    3. Serpent HP 8, Armour 1 (Metal Scales)
    4. Giant Fishman HP 6
    5. Fire Jelly HP 4
    6. Flying Eel HP 3

    FUNCTION Roll d6

    1. Tentacles (d8), pulled overboard on Critical Damage
    2. Gorey Bite (d10), eviscerated on Critical Damage
    3. Bloody Spray (d6, Blast), DEPRIVED on Critical Damage
    4. Huge Claws (d6, Blast)
    5. Screech (d6, Blast)
    6. Ropey Limbs (d4, Blast)

  • Released!

    My newest adventure, Beyond the Fading Coast, is now available on itch.io! You can check it out here.

  • Adventure Locations

    Three factions. Three adventure locations. Five brand new isometric maps.

    Factions

    The Booth Fuel Refinery Company. Guv’nor Booth has ruled the islands surrounding the Surge for nearly four centuries, though few living souls have actually seen his face. With his vast wealth and deep connections, he could achieve almost anything, yet he remains consumed by two obsessions: absolute dominion over others and finding a way to break his own curse.

    Resources. Control of fuel production and immeasurable wealth, influence over the Merchants’ Guild in Brighton, spies, thralls, hired mercenaries, and mock sharks, a powerful doomsday weapon.

    Goals
    ❐ Steal the space-bending powers of the pirates.
    ❐ Find and destroy the Watchers of the Deep.
    ❐ Find the Lauzon and undo the curse of Deep Vampirism (Guv’nor Booth).

    Pirates. Banished from his home star following a failed coup, King Uptza has brought his maths sorcerers to the Surge. He seeks a power great enough to annihilate his enemies back on Angor, intending to return and secure his legacy as a true, eternal King.

    Resources. Space-bending musical powers, advanced ship engineering and kidnapped crabmen, a growing collection stolen of oddities.

    Goals
    ❐ Find the source of Guv’nor Booth’s immortality.
    ❐ Steal oddities from around the Surge.
    ❐ Sacrifice his pirates to the Deep and return to Angor glorious and immortal (King Uptza).

    The Watchers of the Deep. An unlikely alliance between the lycanthropic ecoterrorists of the Public House and the preachers of long-dead traditions at the Church of the Deep. Led by Angel and Mercado, their collective mission is to dismantle the Booth Company and kill Guv’nor Booth—though they remain uncertain if the latter is even possible.

    Resources. Network of evangelical sailors, werepuffin spies, limited source of raw chaos.

    Goals
    ❐ Indiscriminately bomb Booth Company fuel dredgers—keep up the heat.
    ❐ Find a way to kill Guv’nor Booth for good.
    ❐ Steal the werepuffin’s lycanthropy (Mercado).

    Church of the Deep

    1. Beach. Frozen silt (sloughing into the sea). Dozens of huddled puffins (a pair among them are werepuffin spies). A well-trodden path rises to a three-storey church leaning forward on the hillside.
    2. Abandoned Ship. An anchored dredger. Locked. Inside, machinists’ tools (covered in dust). Expired food and untouched rations (subtle signs of a struggle: blood drops on the counter, an open drawer, a tipped-over chair).
    3. Temple Hall. Stained-glass windows (dust sparkles in narrow shafts of sunlight). Speckled stone statue of a great nautilus (its teal paint is peeling).
    4. Lecture Hall. 2d6 evangelical sailors listen keenly while Mercado waxes philosophical about the Deep (he greets newcomers with warmth).
    5. Dining Hall. Mesmerizing pendant-light centrepiece (made of mosaic beach glass). Glenn waits for his “friend” Drew to come down from the lounge upstairs (he claims to be a recent convert of the church).
    6. Stairs and Under. Weathered photographs in cracked, salt-stained frames depict the church’s construction from varied, dredged-up parts. In a locked closet beneath the stairs is a backpack with a flare gun (d6) and the keys to a dredger (2).
    7. Monks’ Quarters. A dormitory of the church’s most devoted, monastic caretakers (smells like fresh fish waste and wet cotton). 2d6 evangelicals live and rest in crowded sleeping arrangements.
    8. Lounge. Locked. Drew has trapped himself in here; he’s seen the ice caves below the church and he knows about the werepuffins, but he refuses to go to war against the Booth Company (he knows he won’t be allowed to leave).
    9. Father Mercado’s Office. Arched, stained glass window depicts the church being swallowed by a great wave. On the shelves, textbooks on Deep Water ecology and cosmic predictions (behind which is a secret staircase that rises to a glowing altar).
    10. Secret Altar. Glowing, crystalline raw chaos (with swaying tendrils of glowing vapour). Dozens of books about longevity, immortality, the occult—lycanthropy (all of them dog-eared and well-used). In a leatherbound journal, grandiose claims about worthiness for a holy crusade.

    Raw Chaos. Powerful source of kinetic energy. With chemical manipulation, can be burned for fuel. In its current form, exposure to direct heat might cause a massive explosion (d20, Blast).

    Ice Caves

    1. Wine Cellar. Tessellated floor (rust-red tiles). Dust-covered bottles of wine crowd the shelves (watched by two members of the church—secretly Watchers of the Deep).
    2. Secret War Room. Behind the wine shelves. A werepuffin and d6 watchers discuss their next attack on a fuel dredger tonight (they need another ship and crew for their plan).
    3. Frozen Temple. Light from candelabras mounted on stone pillars (carved with grasping tentacles). Opaque, icy floor and rows of pews facing a detailed tapestry (it depicts men going into a dark, greenish cave and rising as angelic warriors). 2d6 Watchers rest and ready themselves for war.
    4. Vault. Locked. Guarded by a cave crawler at all times, the vault contains three Bulky Barrels of Raw Chaos and the church’s collections in five Bulky satchels (totaling £2,500).
    5. The Mouth of the Deep. An icy hole in the floor of the cave (cold, dark fall to 10). The walls are lined with the frozen remains of deep sea life (some look vaguely human—lycanthropes in mid-transformation).
    6. Sacrificial Altar. Bloodstained permafrost juts over the Mouth of the Deep. A blind cave crawler beckons newcomers to jump (“fear not, those who are worthy rise anew… better”).
    7. Abandoned Mine. Hollowed out ice caves. 2d6 cave crawlers slither in the dark (cursing Guv’nor Booth for drinking up the Deep!). They lash sticks of dynamite together into makeshift demolition charges (d12, Blast).
    8. Prisoners. 2d6 rig workers (thralls) from the Booth Fuel Refinery Company are held prisoner behind sturdy wooden doors, guarded by three cave crawlers at all times.
    9. Chaos Mine. Shackled rig workers (2d6 thralls) chip away at the icy walls and grasp their blackened fingers at the glowing green crystals within (tiny slivers of raw chaos).
    10. The Deep. Under shattered, crystal ice, a swirling pattern of glowing raw chaos fills the chamber with sickly green light (the few who survive the fall rise as a cave crawler).

    Barrel of Raw Chaos. Steel—hazardous contents. Raw chaos in a cooling, jelly-like medium. Safe for transport, but capable of mass destruction if it is detonated.

    The Fall. A fall from 5 to 10 causes d20 damage and activates the inert mutagenic properties of the raw chaos beneath the ice. Survivors must make a CHA save or turn into a cave crawler driven to save the Deep. On a success, a survivor gains innate Armour 1 (Inhuman Reflexes).

    Pirate Cove

    1. Collapsed Lighthouse. Barnacle-crusted rubble. Agitated, biting gulls.
    2. Floating Structures. Iso-trigon structures vibrate just above the ice. Homes of the Rhythm Masters (although two of them are always at sea). Near-constant buzzing from the tower (nauseating, agitates the birds, but helps the pirates acclimate).
    3. Salty Geyser. Freezing, salty water shoots up from below (the floating tower causes violent shifts in the current). 2d6 aggregates catch falling fish in nets after the blasts (calculating the trajectory).
    4. Druidic Burial Site. Tiny grove of wildflowers among carved, lichen-crusted standing stones. A small nest of puffins guards their eggs at the base (a werepuffin spy is among them, watching the pirates’ movements).
    5. Scrap Heap. A pile of barnacle crusted steel and beach wood (left over from the kidnapped crabmen’s work). 2d6 junk, a flock of biting gulls. Next to the scrap heap is a makeshift grave: (HERMES).
    6. Crabmen Caves. The 9 surviving crabmen and Motley sleep in the frigid, wet caves during the day and work under threat of death at night (they have learned how the pirate ships work).
    7. Mixers’ Camp. A dozen mixers—kidnapped villagers from Brighton who forget their lives (their only drive is to serve their new King). They’re supervised by d6 aggregates (to make sure their false memories go unquestioned).
    8. Loot Cave. Three Bulky treasure chests of cash (£2,000 each) and three unique oddities.
    9. Throne Room. Locked. Non-Euclidean stairs rise to a dizzying hall overlooking the entire pirate camp (only transparent from within). King Uptza sits on his throne and holds court with his trusted advisors, including a Rhythm Master. A map made of light shows the position of the other two pirate ships in his fleet (they move constantly around the Surge).
    10. Observation Deck. A stage overlooking the pirate camp where the Downbeat Commander is always at their station (prepared to depart, as soon as the Rhythm Master joins them).

    Booth Refinery

    1. Rig Platform. Concrete and steel, d6 rig workers (thralls) connect the fuel dredgers’ lines with the control room. They report suspicious activity to their supervisors.
    2. Fuel Dredger. Anchored. Pumps tons of salty water through the control room (where raw chaos is filtered and separated for chemical processing). In the frigid water, d6 mock sharks are always circling.
    3. Control Room. A supervisor oversees two thralls controlling the flow of water through the station (if the lines stall for too long, there could be a catastrophic explosion aboard the fuel dredger—d20, Blast).
    4. Raw Chaos Tanks. Diverted raw chaos is stored in a cooling jelly for chemical treatment. A supervisor and d6 thralls carefully measure the pressure (if the tanks are sabotaged, the entire refinery could be ruined).
    5. Chemical Processing. An outdoor lab with a supervisor and d6 thralls. Raw chaos is filtered through humming machinery and vibrating pipes (some of it burned off in putrid smoke) until it can be reduced to an oily distillation and pumped back into barrels.
    6. Office Reception. Locked. Abandoned filing cabinet (documents connecting some of Bastion’s greatest industries with the Booth Company).
    7. Boardroom. Overlooks the entire refinery. Roll d6, 1 = Guv’nor Booth is here waiting for one of his most trusted spies.
    8. Back Offices. Cluttered, muddy. Collapsed thralls litter the floor, two supervisors vent about their growing burnout.
    9. Loading Dock. 2d6 thralls stack barrels of fuel (if ignited, d12, Blast). Above, the refinery tower looms (a massive cannon is pointed toward Brighton).
    10. Guv’nor’s Office. Locked. The sounds of organ music from above (stairs rise toward a colossal tower of steel built atop the refinery). Guarded by a supervisor at all times.

    Refinery Tower

    1. Gallery. A statue of a handsome dignitary (Guv’nor Booth, as a man). Paintings and documents from the region’s ancient past line the walls (a painting of an expedition ship—the Lauzon).
    2. Lift/Junction. A steel box, chain, and pulley form a heavy, industrial lift that rises to the top of the tower. A vaulted junction is guarded by d6 remade sirenheads.
    3. Chamberlain’s Workshop. Littered with machine parts. The tower Chamberlain—a crabman named Alvin—crafts machine parts for remaking thralls and other deadly machines.
    4. Artillery. 2d6 castle guards load chaos-powered artillery into a massive cannon. The control panel currently aims the weapon at Brighton (the weapon is capable of levelling entire neighbourhoods with each shot).
    5. Recovery Room. 2d6 thralls recover from repairs in the remaking lab (they will soon return to the refinery).
    6. Remaking Lab. The Guv’nor’s closest living ally, Lorenzo, uses strange chemicals and biothaumaturgic techniques to remake the living (and undead) in terrible ways.
    7. Spiral Stairs. Guarded by d6 sirenheads.
    8. Furnace/Railing. An outdoor railing overlooking the sea (hundred of feet below). On the other side, putrid smoke rises from the furnace (powering the tower’s machinery).
    9. Trophy Room. Bodies in tanks of yellow, milky liquid (the Guv’nor keeps his enemies preserved). A recently constructed empty tank has an unlabeled placard.
    10. Guv’nor’s Chamber Vat. Locked. Filled with ocean water (where the Guv’nor must rest in order to recover his immortal body).

  • Boat Travel

    Travel. Travel between adjacent locations is measured in Phases. Each day has 3 Phases: Morning (from dawn until midday), Afternoon (from midday until dusk), and Night (from dusk until dawn).

    Sail. 3 Phases.
    Motor. 2 Phases.
    Full Throttle. 1 Phase, -d6 HP

    Example Ship: Tugboat

    Tugboat HP 10
    Armour 1 (Steel Hull)
    Locker Space 6

    Locker Space refers to the number of Bulky items a ship can hold.

    At HP 0, a ship is Broken Down, and requires Major Repairs by a Specialist. There is always a cost.

    A ship that is reduced to HP 0 from physical damage sinks in a number of turns equal to its available locker space and is lost to the Deep.

    Instead of travelling, Players can spend a Phase to perform Minor Repairs to their ship (by consuming Junk) and restore d6 HP.

    Weather. Roll d6 at the start of each day.
    1—Tempest. Hurling debris, -d6 HP per Phase while travelling.
    2-3—Wind and rain. Poor visibility.
    4-6—Clear skies or scattered showers. Adjacent locations are visible on approach.

    CURRENTS
    The Deep (Red). Encircles the Surge. Treacherous, unpredictable weather patterns.

    Coastal Islands (Green). Well-travelled by fishers and merchant sailors from Brighton.

    Direct (Green Dotted). The fastest routes, encounters are always pirates.

    Bony (Mauve). Hazardous; dotted with obstacles. Impossible to travel at a Full Throttle.

    Closed (Pale Red). Private routes, patrolled by d6 +1 mock sharks on behalf of the Booth Fuel Refinery Company.

    *** Check for an Encounter each time the Players set sail. Roll d6, 1 = Encounter.

    ENCOUNTERS Roll d6

    1. An inexplicably fast pirate ship carrying a powerful storm in its wake. It has a crew of 2d6 aggregates, a Rhythm Master, a Downbeat Commander, and a mixer (for negotiations). The pirates demand oddities, and will destroy ships who refuse to pay their “toll.”
    2. A Sea Monster. An aberrant horror of the Deep driven to feed. Roll 2d6 to combine Form and Function.
    3. Rescue. Someone (or something) lost at sea, in need of rescue. Roll d6.
    4. Strange visions on the horizon. Static in the air. It’s a ghost ship, the haunted remnants of a lost machine filled with regret.
    5. A sailboat with 2d6 evangelicals dispensing literature about the Church of the Deep. They ask for donations to protect the sea from ruin: “The Booth Company is destroying our Maker!”
    6. A fuel dredger on its way from the Refinery to the Fading Coast (or beyond to the City). Guarded by d6 +1 mock sharks for hire.

    SEA MONSTER
    FORM Roll d6

    1. Clam Crawler HP 12, Armour 2 (Speckled Shell)
    2. Flying Manta HP 10, Armour 2 (Leathery Hide)
    3. Serpent HP 8, Armour 1 (Metal Scales)
    4. Giant Fishman HP 6
    5. Fire Jelly HP 4
    6. Flying Eel HP 3

    FUNCTION Roll d6

    1. Tentacles (d8), pulled overboard on Critical Damage
    2. Gorey Bite (d10), eviscerated on Critical Damage
    3. Bloody Spray (d6, Blast), DEPRIVED on Critical Damage
    4. Huge Claws (d6, Blast)
    5. Screech (d6, Blast)
    6. Ropey Limbs (d4, Blast)

    RESCUE Roll d6

    1. No clothing. Secretly a werepuffin and the sole survivor of a recent attack on a fuel dredger (d6 mock sharks are in close pursuit).
    2. Facedown, cold, somehow still “alive.” Secretly an undead thrall who fell overboard from a fuel dredger. It’s driven to get back to the refinery and keep its true nature secret.
    3. A pirate (Aggregate) thrown overboard for plotting a mutiny against their superior. They don’t speak the Players’ language, but they are driven to blend in an get to Bastion.
    4. An unconscious diver thrown from their submersible during an implosion. They now know that Captain Mooney has been lying to them, and they are driven to get revenge.
    5. A drowning fisher who fled the Church of the Deep. They had bought into the church’s talk of ecological preservation, but when they learned that the church was preparing to go to war with the Booth Company they fled (d6 werepuffins are in pursuit, intent on silencing them).
    6. A disoriented ranger thrown from their watercraft while pursuing a wayward school of buffalo shrimp. They’re driven to find the school and get back to the Farm.

  • Deep Water Locations Part 3

    Sanctuary. A colossal wall of opaque, salt-stained glass and a constant patrol of mounted guards separate one wealthy Bastionite’s passion project from the rest of the Surge: an aquatic-equine haven and the home of a retired, prize-winning race-seahorse called Nightheart.

    Mounted Guard HP 3
    Driven to protect the Sanctuary for money.
    Armour 1 (Life Preserver)
    Rifle (d10, Bulky)

    Sea Horse HP 5
    Driven to graze on ocean plants.
    STR 11, DEX 12, CHA 6
    Bite (d6)

    Fort. Cracked, rime-covered stone in which a dozen arcane artists diligently hone their skills. These apprentices learn from an electric tattoo machine and are very exclusive, only take clients willing to get the tattoo they need to practice. £500 each.

    ARCANE TATTOOS Roll d6

    1. Swallows. Hands. Push a powerful gust of wind capable of knocking back people close to you.
    2. Anchor. Legs. You cannot be moved by force.
    3. Eightball. Scalp. Once per day, force the Conductor to re-roll any roll and take the new result.
    4. Snake. Stomach. Immune to poison and other harmful effects from consumption.
    5. Rose. Neck. Once per day, touch a target and influence their mind. They can make a CHA save to resist the hypnotism.
    6. Lighthouse. Back. See perfectly through fog and other volumes (smoke, mist, etc.)

    Apprentice HP 9
    Driven to master their craft.
    CHA 14
    Tattoo Gun (d6), marked on Critical Damage
    Marked. Permanent d6 CHA loss (minimum of 1) until the mark is removed by a Specialist.
    Tattoos. Each apprentice has two tattoos (2d6).

    Tattoo Machine HP 15
    Driven to remake reality with its art.
    Armour 1 (Stickered-up chassis), STR 12, DEX 4, CHA 16
    Tattoo Guns (d8), marked on Critical Damage
    Marked. Permanent d8 CHA loss (minimum of 1) until the mark is removed by a Specialist.
    Tattoo Master. Capable of bestowing Master Tattoos.
    Ropey Limbs. Can attack up to three targets at a time.

    MASTER TATTOOS Roll d6

    1. Demon. Back. Attackers gain +d8 when attacking the same target as you.
    2. Dragon. Neck. Breathe fire (d6, Blast).
    3. Ship. Stomach. Carry one extra Bulky item.
    4. Angel of the Battlefield. Scalp. Advantage on saves against Critical Damage.
    5. Shield. Legs. +1 Armour when standing perfectly still.
    6. Reaper. Hands. Once per day, touch a target. If they fail a STR save, they lose d12 STR. If they succeed, you each lose d6 STR.

    Signal Tower. A floating tower of rusted steel, dangling copper, and flashing red. The site of a defunct, conspiratorial broadcast called Truth 87.9. The sleepless, twenty-four hour host Smokey Joe claims to have a magic hourglass that alters the passage of time.

    Church of the Deep. A frozen driftwood sanctuary where Father Mercado leads 30 evangelical sailors. They’ve allied with Angel (Public House) against the Booth Company; these “Watchers of the Deep” craft explosives from the raw chaos mined in the ice caves below the church.

    The Fogburner. An expedition ship trapped in ice for over 150 years, now the fortified home of famed explorer Ellis Hudson. Hudson has lived well beyond his natural lifespan—a feat that can be attributed to the arcane artefacts still frozen with the ship’s submerged cargo hold.

    Pirates. Operating out of a hidden cove, criminal maths sorcerers from a distant star called Angor use rhythm machines to fold spacetime and travel instantly across the Surge. King Uptza scours the Deep for a hidden prize—and the Downbeat Commanders piloting his three advanced pirate ships know better than to ask what it is…

  • Deep Water Locations Part 2

    Chimp’s Sea Bar. Familiar arched letters in the salty mist. A floating, neon rig surrounded by a dozen moorings. At Chimp’s every sailor is a member of the crew.

    2d20 Spark Table of Sailors

    SAILORS
    What’s On Their Mind? Roll d20What Drives Them? Roll d20
    1. Vastness of the Deep.1. Fear of being lost at sea.
    2. Island of giant horrors.2. Equal construct rights.
    3. Miserable weather. 3. The search for awe.
    4. Rising costs of food.4. Curiosity about birds.
    5. Live music in Brighton.5. Thrill of caving.
    6. Company contract.6. An easy day of work.
    7. Tobacco flavours.7. Seeing the sunrise.
    8. Next comic issue.8. Being alone.
    9. Landscape illustrations.9. Bigger boat.
    10. Chaos theory.10. Next fix of slug.
    11. Undead labour.11. Paying their debt.
    12. Rust-prevention.12. Being with their dog.
    13. A man-sized puffin.13. Sailors’ respect.
    14. Alien encounters.14. Hoarding Junk.
    15. Sailing to the City.15. Sketching Aberrations.
    16. Tattoo apprenticeship.16. Documenting Oddities.
    17. Tattoo apprenticeship.17. Cosmic truths.
    18. Sinister rig-workers.18. Undiscovered islands.
    19. Playful dolphins.19. Martyrdom.
    20. Jumper Juice recipe.20. Their nightly Eely-dog.

    RUMOURS Roll d6

    1. “Guv’nor Booth has owned all this for centuries. They say a long time ago, his ship went down into the Deep. Whatever came back isn’t human.”
    2. “Don’t listen to those Church of the Deep wackos. They’re turning people into monsters! They’re astral cultists!”
    3. “Blame the rising prices on the pirates. No one even heard of them, and now they’re robbing everybody! They don’t speak our language, so they kidnapped some people from Brighton and made them work as interpreters. Mixers, they call them.”
    4. “I heard there’s a group taking credit for the recent fuel dredger bombings: the Watchers of the Deep. Just be careful who you ask about it, you see.”
    5. “I didn’t think anyone would be bold enough to go after those remade crabmen at The Bucket, but someone hit them hard. Their drawbridge has been closed since then, they’re not taking any business.”
    6. “You can get some really good tattoos at the Fort from the apprentices there. Some of them give you magical powers, but who can afford that, you know?”

    MENU Roll d6

    1. £2 Jumper Juice. Wakes you up!
    2. £5 Eely-dog and Baby Seahorse Nibbles.
    3. £6 Oyster Box with a Soft-Boiled Puffin Egg.
    4. £8 Shark-sub with Kelpy Fries.
    5. £10 Tuna Bowl with a Kelpy Salad.
    6. £12 Surf-and-Bird Sampler with Ink Dippers.

    High Risk Fishing. Dozens of fishing boats anchored around a cluster of barrier islands, all of them here for the most valuable catch. Spend 1 Phase to fish and roll d6 for the results.

    1-3—Sea Monster
    4-5—Tuna, sturgeon, or grouper (Bulky worth £25 each)
    6—High Risk Trophy (Bulky)

    HIGH RISK TROPHIES Roll d6

    1. Three-headed grouper worth £100
    2. One-hundred-foot trumpetfish worth £150
    3. Translucent sturgeon worth £250
    4. Jumbo rainbow-goby (hypnotic) worth £350
    5. Steel-headed barracuda worth £425
    6. Gigantic batteryfish (charged) worth £500

    Mock Sharks. Gnawed debris and slick, oily water mark the edge of the mock shark territory. These constructs have lived in the Deep Water since their construction by Guv’nor Booth over a century ago. They will do anything for enough money—debt collection, union busting, racketeering—but these days they are busy protecting Booth Company fuel dredgers from pirates and eco-terrorism.

    Farm. Flashing buoys dot the perimeter of the Booth Company Sea Farm where schools of buffalo shrimp are herded by mock seals and rangers on sputtering watercrafts.

    Buffalo Shrimp HP 9
    Driven to graze on biofilm.
    Armour 1 (Leathery Shell), STR 14, DEX 12, CHA 6
    Bite (d10)

    Mock Seals HP 3
    Driven to be praised.
    STR 8, DEX 14, CHA 8
    Bite (d6)

    Ranger HP 4
    Driven to protect the farm.
    STR 11, DEX 11, CHA 9
    Rifle (d10, Bulky)

    Sputtering Watercraft HP 6
    Armour 1 (Rusted Chassis)
    Locker Space 1

    Submersible. A dozen divers and their submersible are anchored here, led by Captain Mooney. They make daily dives into the Deep, looking for treasure. Only Mooney knows what the Booth Company is really paying them for: to find the wreckage of the Lauzon, the four-century-old ship on which Guv’nor Booth lost his humanity and where his beloved is still frozen, trapped in darkness.

    Divers HP 4
    Driven to find a thrill and get rich.
    Armour 2 (Diving Suit), STR 12, DEX 11, CHA 11
    Harpoon (d8, Bulky)

    Submersible HP 10
    Armour 2 (Pressurized Chamber)
    Locker Space 4
    Dive. Submerge for 2 Phases, -d6 HP each Phase after until the vessel resurfaces for at least 1 Phase.

    Captain Mooney HP 8
    Driven to serve Guv’nor Booth and be rewarded with supreme undeath.
    Armour 1 (Life Preserver), STR 12, DEX 8, CHA 11
    Arm Cannon (d8, Blast), target loses a limb on Critical Damage

    Booth Refinery. A colossal, rusting vessel lit by sterile floodlights and neon letters, the refinery is the heart of the Booth Fuel Refinery Company operations and home to the reclusive Guv’nor Booth. Booth owns everything surrounding the Surge and holds the proprietary right to dredge and refine fuel from the raw chaos formed in its heart. For centuries, his wealth, his countless spies, and his gang of the mock shark thugs made it easy for him to rule the region, but today his grip is slipping. With pirates appearing in the north and a secretive group of eco-terrorists boldly attacking his fuel dredgers, the Guv’nor is now more desperate—and more dangerous—than ever before.

    Guv’nor Booth HP 12
    Driven to feed on the Land, the Living, and the Surge.
    Armour 1 (Wreathed in Shadow), STR 14, DEX 12, CHA 16
    Bite (d10), target is drained of all their moisture on Critical Damage and rises as a thrall of the Guv’nor
    Regeneration. The Guv’nor regains d6 HP when he bites a living target. If he is killed, he becomes a cloud of salty mist that retreats to his chamber deep within the Refinery. He can only be truly killed if his chamber is destroyed.

    Thrall HP 8
    Driven to work tirelessly on the rig.
    STR 11, DEX 7, CHA 7
    Hand Tools (d6)
    Undead. Must be utterly destroyed (reduced to STR 0) to be killed.

    *

    The Surge. In the open water, where the weather is unpredictable, where the clouds are green and the rain glows with luminescence, strange objects drift through the spray. They swirl in currents orbiting the Surge—the crushing heart of the Deep. It radiates a localized magnetism, warping both the matter and the life it touches. While its true origins remain unknown, there are many theories circulating among sailors in the region.

    THEORIES Roll d6

    1. “The Church of the Deep is right: raw chaos is the lifeblood of the sea. The Booth Company is killing the ocean by taking it and burning it so carelessly.”
    2. “Raw chaos is the light of a fallen star—its effects must first be understood to be alien.”
    3. “Raw chaos is the essence of the dead. When we die, we return to the Deep. Booth is burning up all our collective unconscious to fuel his machines.”
    4. “Raw chaos is from another dimension. There’s a portal down there, way down in the Deep, that’s where the pirates come from, too. They want us to stop taking all their energy, I bet.”
    5. “There’s nothing cryptonatural about it: raw chaos is merely the kinetic energy of so much pressure baring down on organic matter.”
    6. “Raw chaos is the brains of something ancient that died down there a long, long time ago. We’re just picking through the brain matter, you know?”

    Fuel. The intense pressure of the Deep warps chaos fields in strange ways; at its heart—where the pressure is the greatest—globs of raw chaos can be dredged from the depths. Raw chaos holds nearly unlimited kinetic potential; the Booth Fuel Refinery Company transforms these shimmering, energetic pearls into fuel for combustion engines and other Deep Country machinery. Booth Company Fuel can even be burned to generate electricity, delivering the modernity of the City to the even the deepest of Deep Water regions.