New Orleans -In With the Family, OOC - comparing notes Options

[OneTrikPony]

If someone explanes all of the above to Rock He votes for getting a paycheck.

If I can't break Pickaxe out of Prison maybe I can buy him out.

besides that We can always come back ourselves and take out the queen. It's no choice work for bugs or work for bugs that work for Ares.

Sorry I missed the last game. Hope I didn't screw things up too bad. I really wouldn't have minded if you had played Rock as an NPC or given his sheet to another character for a session. :D I'd love the chance to play Sin or Lucky for a session. :D

We could call the adventure "Dude; Where's my Bra?"

[SinN]

That's be cool to get Pickaxe out. Maybe one of us can find him work. You know...work. ;) Maybe I or someone else could make him as an active charactor, instead of an NPC?

I think im gonna switch my awnser to gettin the paycheck. Ill jump on the Bandwagon. Lets just finish the job we're paid to do. Maybe a little extra if we must ;) .

Oh and as for playing Sin, Id love to see you Roleplay that some time. Should be very interesting.

:nuyen:

[fistandantilus4....]

Maybe for one of our games, everyone should swap characters. 'Course, without an even number of players, someone would have to swap with me and run the game. :D

Jess, I wouldn't have taken Rock from ya' or left you out of the game. You play Rock just to perfect.

As for Pickaxe, there's still things I'd like to do with him, and Pick's Ex as well. ltos of NPC's I'd like to bring in from the wings. Might have to wait for after the hiatus though. ergh.

[Wraith235]

so I finally made it onto Dumpshock and found the thread YAY

[Wraith235]

if and when OTP shows back up I figured I'd give him the Rundown on the conclusion

We came up with an awesome plan 2 Vans Rigged with Drop down ramps for bikes .... Loaded the bikes in front Wheel Facing out ... hired a Go Gang to cause a freeway Disturbance and create Gridlock.... 2 Vans are positioned on oppisite ends ... one in front of the Escort Car ... and 1 behind the targets Car .... hacked comlinks of everyone in the convoy to stop outgoing calls for help

Sinn / and the demolitions expert in the front Van
Streak / Gumbo in the rear Van
Jules (Troll mage hired by Sinn for extra magical support) following the rear Van

Lucky Walked from the Run BTW

once Grid lock started the Demolitions expert used a 4 kilo C12 charge ... threw it out of the back of the van ... landed on the hood of the escort Car ... one car down

the Explosion sent the Escort car Airborn onto the hood of the Targets Car Resulting in the rigger driving that car to Die

then a Fire fight insues between the Elf Sam ... Strak / Sin / Gumbo / and the Other Orc that got hired by Sin

that Fight ended with a Concussion Grenade fired by streak to Kill the elf ... then Streak was taken out by a powerbolt ... Sin and Jules then engaged Dober in a spell battle eventually Winning (force 20 Lightning bolt from Jules) in the panic ... noone saw that Dober had dropped the Target off in another Car cast invisability on him + Tranq patches to keep him out of the way .... Runners bugged out Jules hauled off Streak and the Vans were Detonated

[OneTrikPony]

Sorry I flaked every one. I'm having some family problems and might be moving back to central utah after I get some things cleared up here in salt lake. I miss the game and I miss you all. I need some time to get my life back together. Hopefully we'll play again.

Thanks,
Jesse
onetrikpony33@yahoo.com

[Lady Door]

Wow... you boys are in depth. Anyway, Jesse; we missed you but we totally understand. Just wish we could have said goodbye 'fore we ditched the froxen tundras of Orem. Anyway, hope it all works out well.

PS: Lucky KICKS SO MUCH ASS IT'S SCARY!!! ;)

[fistandantilus4....]

OK, give me some time here and i'll get you all the updates needed.

Where we left off, the group was just figuring out what was going on and attempting to get back on track. In game, Ozz called Rock off the ruunn oncec he was foudn to be working on it, rationalizing an in game reason since Jess had thigns going on and couldn't make it. So HardRock aws off the run.

To compensate for a lack of muscle/firepower, Lucky called in one of her contacts, an ork weapon's specialist named Reefer (yes that kind). HE was hired to be an extra gun, and provide some explosives.

Gumbo, doing hacking work all this time, finally managed to fulfill Rock's plabn and get to\hrough the GUlfstar systems to find out which car Joseph Lindon (aka the "Target") was taking, and placeed the agent, as requested.

Lucky came up with an additional plan to get a couple of vans, load them with bikes, so that they could grab the target and make a quick escape. She decided to clinch it by hiring a go-gang to help cause some traffic on the free way, by shooting at a bunch of cars and causing accidents.

Everything was set to go, then Sin called in some more magical help, in the form of Jules the troll from the Voodoo posse. Sin figured he would need more help with Dober. Lucky didn't like the idea of doing it with voodoo. Factor in the encounter she'd had earlier in the day...

Lucky was down at the Pink Elephant when the same bike cop from before came in, sat at the bar two seats from her, and ordered a drink. Reefer came in and joined Lucky next. After a few minutes of bartgianing , the cop/manits told Lucky to finish the run. Reefer told her to fuck off, so the cop grabber Reefer by the head, then planted his head about two feet down in to the bar, then walked out. REefer has titanium bone lacing, so he "walked" away with 8 boxes of damage.

Lucky decided she was off the run, and walked away.

Sin hired another razor boy through Jules to keep the team full of bodies. They set up the go gang attack, and set the cars in place perfectly. Here's where everything went wrong.

Reefer was told he needed to blow up the first escort car. he wasn't told how., He said that he would use 4 kilos of CXII to destroy it so that there wasa no chance it would survive. No one argued.

Come time of the run, everything is in placee, and they manage to manuever the van w/ Reefer and Sin in front of the escort car, with only one car between. Reefer tosses the CXII onto the escort car, and blows it. He destorys the first car, but the blast is so big it hits the second car with Lindon in it. That car sustains 13 boxes of damage, enough to destory it. A second rol ldetermines that the car will no longer work, but doesn't simply blow up., Instead it is flipped over on to the car behind it. The runners weren't really expecting that.

Recovering quickly, they get their bikes out, and start to head for the car, looking for surviviors.As they come out, the first bodyguard, Mr Druag, s\comes up firing his Ares Crusader and takes out gumbo in the first burst, nearly killing him. The second one nearly puts down streak as well. He then turns and ifres on sin as Sin fires on his. Sin is hit, Druag isn't. Streak fires again, Druag dodges agasin, then shoots streak again. Streak is almost down. Gum,bo uses his OH SHIT card to save his life, applying a trauma patch, then a med kit.

Finally, Streak fires a mini concussion grenade at Draug. He can't dodge it being between the cars and goes down. As he fires, Streak is taken out by a power bolt, going in to damage over flow. Sin looks astrally, and sees Dober levitating over the freeway invisibly. The two of them, along with Jules the troll (combat mage, follows Shango) get in to a spell duel. Spells go off, and finally Jules finishes off the dog shaman body guard with a Force 20 Lightning bolt that almost kills him with the drain (8 boxes damage).

Sin and the now moving Gumbo run to the car to get Lindon and see that he isn't there. Panincing, they decide to bail, and run for it. they get on their bikes and take off. Jules, being the cooler head apparently, noticecs the downed Streak and grabs him and takes off as well.

Lindon is never grabbed. Dober moved him invisibly out of the car as soon as he recovered, during the guun battle with Mr Draug. No one thought to look around for him. The run was a bust, and Sin, Gumbo, and Streak gained a point of notiety for the fantastically failed runn. Lucky did not recieve a point for bailing, because the run ended so badly. Same for Rock.

[fistandantilus4....]

At the safe house, Lucky gets a call, which she answeres. It's the blond human woman with the dread locks that's after Sin, possessed by a loa of Erzuile according to SIn.

She demands to talk to Sin, so Lucky gives her his number. As she's leaving, Lucky calls her a bitch. She uses the compulsion power, and forces lucky to shoot her self in the head, then leaves.


Sin gets a phone call, it's the blond woman:

"Who is this bitch?" she asks. The camera view pans to a shot of Serene walking in to their house, carrying Gabriel, Dante following just behind.

"If I can't have you, no one will."

Sin hears an explosion and a flash of red light acorss the womans face, ,then she hangs up.

Sin gets to his home to find i desdtroyed, his wife dead, one of his sons dead, and the other very badly burned and in a coma.

[SinN]

Remember how I said theres not gonna be much of New Orleans left after Sin's done?

To give an even further follow up:
Sin takes Gabrielle to Buorban. Bourban cant help him because she doenst know the heal spell. As Ben puts it, "The most true to charactor thing ever." Bourban proves just how much she cares for Gabrielle by swallowing her pride and calling Natasha Winters, A.K.A Gemini. Gemini is the only mage strong enough to heal the wounds on Gabrielle. After she heals him, Sin relises that theres no where that he can take him where he'll be safe. He asked Gemini where he could take his son. Gemini and Bourban call on the help of the Great Dragon Bahamut. Bahamut appears in human form and takes Gabrielle and Angelique(Bourbans Daughter) to his school. Very well protected. Before he leaves, Bahamut lectures Sin that if he continues the path he's on that his other son is as good as dead. Sin considers this seriously. Advice from a Great Dragon is NOT easily ignored. He begins to consider following Legba as his Loa, instead of Baron Simeti.
For the next week Sin begins to hunt for the Blonde spirit chica that killed his family and nearly killed his team mate, Lucky. Most of this time is spent drunk. And often ignored com calls from Gumbo, and Rock. Sin has completley taken on a new attitude. Hes quiet, frighteningly professional, and all around just looks plain miserable. After the confrontation speaking to Rock about lucky's condition the spirit chica contacts Sin, he tells her to meet him at "The Roxanne" in the French District. After moments of argueing, Bourban convinces him not to go, and to wait for her.
A week later she contacts Sin telling her to come to her house in the bayou, and to bring his crew. Sin sends out a message asking for everyones help. He also adds that he'll understand if they dont. Sin arrives at Bourbans to find that everyone showed up, including Lucky, much to his suprise. They proceed to follow this ritual where basicly Bourban/Gheed kills them and sends them to the underworld to look for the Spirit chica and kill her. Alysha? Ben? Any one of you wanna finish this?

[fistandantilus4....]

DaNTE! DANTE LIVED! JESUS CAN'T YOU EVEN TELL A DEAD KID FROM A LIVE, HEAVILY BURNED ONE!? That's a whole new pile of issues to tlak to your shrink about .

Hell your shrink probably needs his own shrink after your sessions.

I'll write up the death quest in a bit.

[Lady Door]

He's a voudoun... maybe the line between life and death for the poor guy is a little too blurred.

Just a thought...

[SinN]

You know what the funny thing is? Last night while i was writing this up, i actually though, "Man, i wish it would have been Dante that lived, his name is easier to spell." Haha.

[fistandantilus4....]

:rotfl:

[Lady Door]

That is THE worst thing I have ever heard.

- and you know the kinds of things I hear on a daily basis.

HANG YOUR HEAD IN SHAME!!

[SinN]

(shame)

[fistandantilus4....]

that's right, back in your cage you

[Lady Door]

Ya know, SinN, I think the power may have gone to Ben's head.


.....yea, I know... back in my cage.

... *kicks dirt* ... I hate the cage.

[fistandantilus4....]

[SinN]

Hey! Id take the cage over shackles any day!.....fuckin chains....and i got this itch..

[Lady Door]

You are SO scratchin that on your own.


.....it's hard to type with a stick through the cage bars.

[fistandantilus4....]

Bourbon calls the crew together to her place out in the swamps, saying she has a way to help deal the spirit, and she needs everyone there.

Streak, Rock, Lucky, Gumbo, and Sin all show. Gumbo brings about :nuyen: 1,000 worth of rum as a present. Rock brings his chicken bones.

Bourbon/Remy is out back, in the cemetary. SHe has a circle of candles arranged, and an altar set up. There is a massive (30+ feet long) anaconda wrapped/draped around her. she has a bottle of rum and six shot glasses set out, as well a lot of other hoodoo paraphenlia set out.

She asks everyone to approach the alter. Bourbon explains that the only way to destroy the Grande Zombie permanently is to destroy her on her own plane, the Lands Beneath the Sea, Guniea, the Land of the Dead. She says that she has an ancient text the Mauvis Manual.

[ Spoiler ]

Michelle Mauvais, the noted French Alchemist and Hermetic scholar, first rose to prominence in the Twenty-thirties with the release of her popular Le Petit Grimoire, which contained thirty low-force, limited use and novel spells that cost next to nothing for the average magician to learn and use. Such "cantrips," as Mauvais styled them, are still very much in vogue and Le Petit Grimoire remains a popular textbook and student manual in thaumaturgical programmes throughout Europe. The fame and royalties from sale of the textbook guaranteed her

An avid writer who contributed a number of articles to various Dutch, French, English, and Italian journals dedicated to the spread of Alchemical knowledge, Mauvais' second published work, Magi, placed her as first runner-up for the 2056 Nobel Prize. Magi was a grammar that laid the basics of a universal magical language, artifically derived from a combination of ancient heiroglyphical and pictograph languages, as well as alchemical and astronomical symbolism. Ideally, the language rode midway between the artistic and symbolic Shamanic formulae and the the language-intense Hermetic formulae, facilitating an easier translation between the two. Unfortunately, while lauded loudly by many, especially the burgeoning movement that would become the Unified Magic Theorists, the language was never put to practice in any large degree and became ignored.

The following alchemical techniques, pioneered by Mauvais in her early years, are available for use by any magician with a minimum of research and practice.

Alchemical Alloys and Metalworking
Mauvais' published articles on alchemical metalworking, describe the proper means of using the Clean Air, Alter Pressure and Alter Temperature spells to create stronger alloys or better purify metal arcana. She presents formulae for slight variations on the Control Fire spell so as to create a blow-torch quality suitable for welding, and Clean Earth suitable to rid metal ore of gross impurities (alternately, it may be used to reclaim a specific metal or mineral from a quantity of dross or slag.) Enchanters using the techniques Mauvais has specified in her works have reported higher-quality blades and weapon foci. Her works likewise contain the spell and methods required to magically electroplate metals onto objects, even orichalcum, which must normally be worked into an alloy.


-o-


Shortly before her death in 2062, Mauvais, at the ripe age 120, promised to bring forth her "triptych," a completed work in three volumes that would broach new (or ancient, as the rumors went) ground in Alchemical theory. Mauvais' death was unnatural, but not unexpected. Possessed of both a legendary constitution and legendary appetites, Mauvais was a sadomasochist who frequented a little-known club in London, where she allowed herself to become subject to multiple possession by a variety of spirits. Her last sojourn, mere hours after completing her work and submitting it to her publisher, lasted three days and proved the death of her.

The publisher carefully edited the original editions, expurgating part of the material and presented a much thinner and less impressive work to the market at large. He then printed a small number of "complete" edition sets on a private press he himself owned, no more than thirty sets, and auctioned the lot off to a daring collection of occult figures he had somehow managed to contact. None of these sets included the fourth book, which the editor kept for himself.

At least one of these purchasers scanned their set onto the Matrix, were it resides in a forgotten Magicknet database. Yet another pirated their copy, and published a butchered but thick Cantonese translation in mainland China. The original set is still at large, as it was discovered stolen at the same time as the publisher was discovered murdered...his ears, eyes, and mouth having been filled with molten gold, the charred fragments of an unidentified but apparently annotated copy of the fourth book in his blistered hands.

Below is presented the full text of the Mauvais Manuals, penned in French:

Book One: Artificial Stone
Here, Mauvais details her researches into the creation of artificial gemstones by alchemical means, citing as historical examples certain obscure asiatic religious societies said to incorporate such gems into their weapons. The expurgated editions have removed Mauvais' further notes, which hint that such weapons may possess a sort of bloodlust. Also removed where her researches on the use of bezoars in enchanting.

Book Two: True Homonunculi
An ancient goal of classical alchemists, Mauvais has recreated and refined the methods of crafting a true homonunculus. Unlike the physical constructs created and enchanted by magicians the world over to hold their ally or familiar spirits, True Homonunculi are small, mindless humanoids grown in jars from a variety of chemicals and magical substances by a sufficiently skillful and wise alchemists who make use of Mauvais’ formulae. Those few alchemists who have a copy of the work with the full formulae (which do not appear in the edited editions) and have expressed their opinions deride Mauvais for making use of Sorcery in the Enchanting process.

Rumors concerning this book abound, including that Mauvais left further, unpublished notes which chronicle her discovery and revival of an ancient homonunculus, and the formulae necessary to create a true homonunculus similar to a metahumans in size and capabilities.

Book Three: The Alchemical Rites of Mummification
Following the mystical aspects of mummification rituals worldwide, in this chapter Mauvais has condensed them to their basic components. Then, using the model of the Egyptian mummification ceremony, Mauvais details the formulae and methods by which a modern metahuman or animal corpus may be properly prepared, using alchemical reagents, to prevent reanimation.

Mauvais herself allowed, in her will, for her body to be preserved using a similar formula. Her body rests in a tank of alchemical fluids within the Black Museum of the London Occult Society.

In the unedited copies of the book circulating about is a regrettably brief section wherein Mauvais detailed a means for initiated magicians and adepts to approach “The Lands of the West,” a metaplane corresponding to the ancient Egyptian afterlife by means of self-induced near-death experience. Metaplanar mappers speculate this may in fact be similar to Guinee, the Isle Beneath the Sea in Voudoun tradition, but populated by more familiar representations.

Despite many ardent attempts, Michelle Mauvais avows she never successfully swindled, seduced, researched, or wrested the secret of brewing magical compounds, which she saw as the alchemical potions of old. However, she did discover that adepts without normal access to the metaplanes could, by overindulging in various drugs, place themselves in such a mental state that they could go on a “Vision Quest,” and thus perform Astral Quests as normal magicians.

Book 4: Potions and Elixirs
The virtually unknown fourth book of her ill-named 'triptych' contains what might be Mauvais’ greatest secret, for the tome describes her researches into the Elixir Vitae, or Elixir of Life. Mauvais spent fifty years researching the Elixir, the last ten of those as a vampire pawn to a decadent and paranoid nosferatu.

This Golden Elixir, as she calls it, may be drafted from various ingredients, some common and others incredibly rare, following an exacting formulae. The arcane text describing the proper metamagical technique to craft the Elixir Vitae itself is nearly incomprehensible save to the highest initiates.

Game Information

Alchemical Alloys and Metalworking
A magician who possesses the Alter Pressure. Alter Temperature, Clean Air, Clean Earth and Control Fire spells at a Force equal to the Force of the focus and utilizes them according to Mauvais’ techniques may, with a successful Edged Weapons (B/R) test equal to the Force of the focus, create knives equivalent to Cougar fineblade knives or a sword equivalent to an Ares monosword. Because this bonus does not stem from a technological refinement such as a monofilament or Dikote™, the blade crafted retains its bonus against spirits (such blades must still be made into weapon foci to affect critters with the Immunity to Normal Weapons power.)


To electroplate a magical metal, the magician must first possess a specialized expansion for her enchanting kit, which costs twice as a much as a normal enchanting kit. With the proper knowledge and equipment, the magician must prepare the solution that the object to be electroplated must rest in (on average, fifty nuyen per fifty square centimeters of surface area or part thereof.) For every fifity square centimeters of surface area or part thereof, the magician must craft particulate solutions of one unit worth of refined metals, metal radicals, or orichalcum (natural orichalcum must be refined before use.) Then, the magician simply submerges the part of the object to be coated and cast the Electroplate spell (formula for a Force 6 spell is presented in the book.)

Electroplate
Transformation Manipulation
Range: Touch
Duration: Permanent (10 turns)
Target Number: Varies, see below.
Drain: (Force)M

This spell creates a small electrical jolt, combined with magical binding energy, which causes particulate metal within a solution touched by the magician to bond with an object within the solution. The target number depends upon the metal being bonded:
Mundane metal (TN 4)
Raw metal (TN 5)
Refined metal (TN 6)
Synthetic orichalcum (TN 7)
Refined natural orichalcum (TN
Other magical metals (TN 6)
Unique alloys or ores (TN 8 or higher)

The caster or an artisan may prepare the object ahead of time in such a way that the metal electroplates in a particular pattern.

The Mauvais Manuals
Book One: Artificial Stone
Anyone who follows the instructions and formulae presented in the text may use their Enchanting (Alchemy) skill to create an artificial gemstone, suitable for use as an exotic material in a weapon focus. Crafting the gemstone requires an enchanting shop, one alchemical mineral radical for each point of force of the desired focus, and the magician must succeed at an Enchanting (Alchemy) test with a target number equal to the Force of the desired focus. The base time is 28 days, and extra successes may reduce the time. During this period, the alchemist must work for 8 hours a day, during which the magician may not do more than light reading and sleeping while tending the crucibles where the gem is being crafted. The crafted gems are usually clear, like glass, and immediately discernable to jewelers and appraisers as of an unknown type, though they may not be immediately taken for artificial.

Artificial Gems incorporated into bladed weapon foci may, at the game master's discretion, develop a "quirk" in the enchantment that prevent the user from sheathing, hiding, throwing away, or refrain from using the weapon once drawn until it is blooded...either by being drawn along the palm or thumb of the user (causing a light wound that cannot be resisted), or by causing a light wound to a living creature that possesses blood with the weapon. Magicians who try to sheathe the blade without bloodying it must undergo a Willpower test with a target number equal to the Force of the weapon focus, or go berserk and attack the nearest metahuman with the blade...or themself if they are alone.

Bezoars are artifical balls or stones created from hair or vegetable fiber, found in the stomachs of humans and animals and historically purported to have healing properties. A bezoar may be incorporated into any spell category (Health) focus or spefic spell focus of a Health spell, and reduces the target number to enchant the focus by 1. Only one bezoar may be incorporated into a given focus.

Book Two: True Homonunculi
Crafting a true homonunculus requires an enchanting shop, and one unit each of radical herbal, mineral, and metal arcana. The magician must make an Enchanting test against a target number of 6, additional successes reduce the base time of 10 days. At the end of this time, the true homonunculus, a squat and often misshaped humanoid approximately thirty five centimeters high is fully formed within its jar. To instill motive power to their creation, the magician (or another magician) must remove the true homonunculus from the jar and successfully cast the Spell of Life upon the immobile form. While a true homonunculus may last for centuries unperturbed in a sealed birthing-jar, once the jar has been cracked or open the homonuculus must be animated within 24 hours or it will rapidly decay into its basic elements, a pool of alchemical dross (which may be identified by an Enchanting test with target number 6.)

The text also contains a rite which, when performed over a true homonunculus, permits it to be possessed or inhabited by spirits. In this way, magicians bind allies or other spirits into their homonunculi to bolster them. Performing the rite costs the magician who created the homonnculus 10 good karma.

Spell of Life
Transformation Manipulation
Range: Touch
Duration: Permanent (20 turns)
Drain: (Force)D
Target Number: 8

When cast on a properly crafted true homonunculus, the inanimate form is given motive power and the semblance of life. The caster of the spell may give the homonunculus short commands (20 words or less) which it will attempt to carry out to the best of it’s abilities.

True Homonunculus
B Q S C I W E F
1 1x2 1 1 1 6 0 Force of Spell
Initiative: 1 + 1d6

Book Three: The Alchemical Rites of Mummification
This process requires an Enchanting test, target number 4, with a base time of 10 days, and an enchanting shop. The basic materials required for the ritual are minimal--2 cc’s of blood and two small fragments of wood are sufficient. However, many choose to elaborate on the burial ceremony, which can run into the thousands of nuyen. The basic process preserves the corpse indefinitely, but prevents shedim or spirits with similar powers from entering the corpse for a year and a day. Rumors persist, however, that a mambo or houngan may still animate the body as a Corps Cadavre.

Mauvais includes the formulae for a number of scrolls and amulets which may be placed within the shroud or wrappings of the corpse. If crafted and applied (costing 600 nuyen in materials and six points of karma), treat as a quickened Force 6 Spirit Barrier spell. Removing the amulets and wrapping destroys the spell.

The procedure to journey to the Westlands, though risky, does work. An initiate (even an adept without access to astral space), must be intimately familiar with the procedure for the rite. The initiate takes a deadly physical wound--either from combat or some other source (Mauvais drank an self-brewed alchemical poison from an old family recipe-it was slow acting and quite painful, as she liked it).

If successful, the subject immediately stabilizes. Whereupon, the subject attempts the journey to the Westlands (resisting Deadly stun damage.) If at any point the subject takes both Deadly stun and Deadly physical damage, remove one box from their physical overflow permanently for each further point of damage taken. If physical overflow reaches 0 and the subject still suffers from Deadly Physical and Stun damage, they are dead, and their spirit trapped in the Westlands.

Once within the Westlands, the traveler performs a standard metaplanar quest, the purpose of which is fulfilled by finding and bargaining with one of the mythical beings that inhabit the metaplane. After they have finished (either successful or failed), they must stand before Anubis, the Judge of the Dead, who determines whether or not they may return. The subject should make either a Charisma test (Quest Rating), or tactfully bribe Anubis (Quest rating in good karma.) Failure indicates that the subject is jolted roughly back into their material body (they are no longer stabilized) or, if they can astrally project and a dead body is near enough, find themselves inhabiting a corpse and unable to leave it for one hour (one minute in the case of adepts with the Limited Astral Projection edge.) If successful, the subject is returned to their body unharmed, and is stabilized until they are treated or revive on their own.

Adepts who decide to use this dangerous and unorthodox technique must procure a quantity of recreational drugs. They then spend at least 24 hours purifying themselves by fasting, purging (vomiting, sometimes also enemas), and dwelling within a sweat lodge or the equivalent. The adept must be alone during this process, though multiple adepts may share a lodge without interference. Then, the adept partakes of the drugs, sufficient for an overdose, and immediately suffers their effects and engages in their Vision Quest. During the quest, the adept possesses the advantages and disadvantages of being under the effects of the drug for the entire duration. Once the quest is over (successful or not), the adept must test for addiction and the effects if the drug end.

Book 4: Potions and Elixirs
The Elixir Vitae is a magical compound which grants the imbiber the Immunity (Age) critter power for ten years once consumed. Thereafter, the subject ages normally, unless they ingest another dose of the Elixir Vitae. Alternatively, one dose of the Elixir Vitae may transform a Vampire Pawn back to a normal metahuman with the normal essence they would possess.

Mauvais’ potion requires an in-depth and personal understanding of the processes of life and death, combined with certain ancient recipes. The ingredients for the potion alone are many, including quantities of vampire or nosferatu blood (given willingly, as to a vampire pawn, and charged with Essence), ginseng, dragon venom, ground dinosaur bones, the sap of certain ancient trees, and the yolk of a phoenix egg; each of which must be properly refined or prepared using Enchanting. Even if prepared exactly according to the formula, the Elixir vitae is worthless unless the creator possesses both the required metamagical technique, which Mauvais called “The Golden Way,” and succeeds on an Enchanting (Alchemy) test against a target number of 20. Failure in either the prerequisites or the final test immediately inflicts the imbiber with a Deadly Stun wound, a Deadly Physical wound, and the loss of one point of Essence…no test may be made to resist this. Characters who lose a magic point due to Essence loss also gain a 1-point Mental flaw. A critical failure (all 1's) infects the recipient with HMHVV, although they retain their intellect and magical ability no matter their metatype.

To gain “The Golden Way,” a magician must have participated in ritual cannibalism with a Wendigo, shella or ghoul, been willingly possessed by a spirit, and served for at least one year as a Vampire Pawn. After this, they must research the method at a Hermetic Library with a rating equal to their initiate grade, and succeed at a Magic Background, Enchanting, or Talismongering Test (20) and base time of one year. If a being taught the way by an initiate that already knows it, the research period may be waved, but the magician must study under the teacher for at least 8 hours a day for one year.
While not physically addicting, the Elixir Vitae has been known to be psychologically addictive.

She states that she can send you there, and then bring you back, with the aid of Ghede, the Graveyard king. She instructs everyone to take a shot of Rum, Ghede's favored drink. She takes a shot her self, eventuallyfollowed by everyone else. Lucky is hesitant, but does. Rock almost chokes on his chicken bones.

She next leads everyone over to a large old oak, with what appears to be 6 shallow graves dug around it. She instructs everyone to remove their shirts. As they do, she paints skulls on everyone's faces, paints red lines along their arm and rib bones, and ritual symbols on chests.

Soon the crews starts to feel stinging pains and serious cramping. People start to panic as they realize that they also can't move or resist. Bourbon calmly tells them that the arsenic is doing it's work, and the zombie powder she gave them is taking effect. She then holds a beetle up, after tking it from a mason jar. She explains that it is a death watch beetle. She holds it in front of each person, with the beetle facing towards them , inches from their faces. She blows on it's back, so that it's wings come up and buzz. The skull like markings are clearly visible.

As the pain becomes to much and the crew feels their lives eeking out, a ghoul placeces a noose around each person's neck, and fills the graves 2/3rds full, and pushes them in to the watery graves. As they fall, they hear Bourbon say "Remember to hold your breath." The ghouls begin to fill the graves with dirt, and the crew feels their lives slip away, drowning, choking, suffocating, and and posoined. Slowly and painfully, they all die.

[Lady Door]

Oh, hey now... get the story straight. Lucky was NOT pushed into the grave. Lucky put her own ass in the grave. That's right... no, forced death march for her. Nope.

[fistandantilus4....]

They are on a boat, just a small skiff, the type you'd see on the Nile thousands of years ago. They are in a cave, stalactites low over their heads. Streak appears as a large human man, bare chested and muscled, carrying a sword on his back. Gumbo is in a white suit, his body much more trimmed. Sin is attired as usual, top hat and cane , along with a tailed coat. Rock is tatooed with lightning bolts, and carrying a double barreled shot gun. Sin explains that Streak is representing Ogoun, the Loa of Iron and war, Gumbo is Obatala, the Eager youunger brother and a protector. Rock is Shango, the Loa of Thunder and Lightning and wielding his "Thunderstick" Sin is Ghede/Baron Samedi, his Patron Loa.

Lucky on the other hand is in the form of Isis, in ancient egyptian regalia, holding a staff capped with a sapphire.

[ Spoiler ]

this is because Lucky has the Latent Awakening quality, and will soon become magically active. She identifies more with Hermeticism and it's egyptian/greek roots (as in Hermes/hermeticism, ,and the Book of Thoth). the Mauvis Manual's ritual is based on the Egyptian after life, which the Voodoon religion describes as The Lands Beneath the Sea as opposed to the Lands of the West. Since the caster of the riual is a Voodoun Priestess follwing Dambhalla, it's taken a bit more Voodoo bent. So Lucky shows as more Egyptian, and her form on the Astral Quest/being dead lines up with that.

The underground river continues, with mist at it's borders. Through these mists they can see forms approaching in the river. The forms can soon be made out, taking the form of each perosn the PC's have killed. there are huundreds of bodies, some of the children. A pair of them are also the runners from the run with the smuggling ship. Many questions are raised, none are answered.

The boat lands on hard ground still in the tunnel. They move forward after some small discussion, but stop aftre about 30 meters, when a pyrmaid forms out of thin air, a sphinx a top it.

The Sphinx asks three riddles, each PC allowed as many guesses as they like. Each correct guess grants them one point of edge. Each wrong one takes a point of edge.Gumbo and Lukcy get the correct guesses. Rock, having .45 essence or so, does not guess at all. he's a smart ork.

SINCE I DON'T HAVE THE RIDDLES IN FRONT OF ME ATM, I'LL FILL THAT IN LATER.

As the last riddle is answered, the pyrmaid dissapears, leaving only a small blackened chunk of meat. Lucky correctly identifies it as a chamber of a heart.

They move on, but are soon accosted by some of hte zombies they saw earlier., They are the souls of the vioulent poeple they have killed. As the fight erupts, each PC finds that they havve differnet and unique abilities, that they discover vby trial and error.

[ Spoiler ]

Streak, the street sam, has been changed to an adept. Being the Loa of Iron and War, ,his adept powers are arrayed around that. His Fire arms (G) becomes his Close Clombat (G). His strength doubles to 10 in adep powers. He also gains 2 extra to blades, replacing his smartlink.
He also finds that he can "war shout', rolling charisma, for a complex action, adding his successes to melee attacks for that round to the group.

Lucky has become a mage, with a magic rating of 6, Spellcasting replacing Pistols skill. She cats Fireball (nearly killing a nubmer of the PC's), acid stream ,and heal.

HardRock , still representing shango, essentially shoots his shotgun. Except that the shot is electrical damage, having secondary effects, and looks like he's shooting lightning.

Sin is essentially the same, except that his cane inflcits extra damage to undead, counting as Vulenrability. He can only cast Manipulation spells. He tries Mobmidning the zombies, which doesn't work very well sincee the yeffectively do not have minds.

Gumbo assists everyone. He makes influncec (g) tests (which are just charisma tests since he's defaulting) and adds dice eto one other persons actions as an assisted test. That's all he discovers how to do, doing that every round.
[/spolier]

the last enemy to emerge is the Grnade Zombie of the dragon Geyswain

[ Spoiler ]

Bourbon and Sin fought Geyswain in the adventure Bottled Demon. Sin landed the killing blow.

The fight is long and hard, but they eventually manage to kill it. The dragon focuses his attacks on Sin, attempting to devour him. When the dragon dies, it's body turns to ash, leaving behind a second heart chamber.

Almost immediately, everything goes balck. Each of the runners is faced with a personal representative of them selves, but corrupted (essentially a Red Eye take on them selves. Since everyone in the gorup is on DS, w/ the exception of Gumbo, I'll let each person post their own.

Gumbo was faced with an extremely slothful version of him self with red eyes. He has been trying to buy off the inform flaw, played out as being extremely lazy as opposed to infirm. It essentailly asks why he's even bothering helpign these people, and not jsut sitting at home eating, looking up matirx porn sites, and doing small time hacks. He's been saving karma t obuy off the flaw, and so is very upset. He basically tells the mirror version to go fuck it's self, these are his firends ,and he's going to help them.

He makes a will test, thresh hold 3, ,and fails it. He can proceed, but he is not allowed to buy off the infirm negative quality (not told how long the ban is in effect).
When the self cnofrontations finsh, there is a third chamber left.


They move on down the tunnel, and are soon convronted by a massive think dragon sized) cobra. It soon takes the form of Set, the Egyptiuan god of Darkness, evil, yadda yadda yadda. Essentially it tells them that this is his domaion,m and if they wish to poass unmolested (sicko) they must sacrifice one of their own. Without missing a beat, Gumbo steps forward "take me". Set acepts before Lucky can volunteer (which she does). Blackneess flows of\ver Gumbo, and he is gone, leaving only the fourth chamber of the heart. Set dissapears as well.

They are now in a chamber, with no way in or out. Sin puts the four chambers of the heart together, forming the spirit formula for the Grande Zombie that's been hunting him. He sets it on the ground. Everyone raises their weapons as one, and strike together. The formula is destroyed. A great wailing and rush of air fills the chamber. Ears bleed at the shriek that seems to last forever, and darkness fills the chamber. It stops suddenly and completely, the spirit destroyed. They've just destroyed a force 15 free spirit/Grande Zombie.

[fistandantilus4....]

sorry, my posts have been doing that weird spoiler thing lately