A Stolen Child

Written By: Brittney Perry

Reviewed By: Mary Courtney

Brief: A child is taken from in front of his parents. The father chases the group to a cave out of town. He has returned to try to find help in retrieving his child.

Requirements:

  • Run on Saturday Early Afternoon

    • Synopsis:

    A distraught father, Varyn Gilchek comes running into town. He can be heard calling for help from a far distance [ex. “Please! You have to help me! Someone! They took him!” After he recovers from his run, he tells whoever will listen that, “Some people. They just snatched little Charlie right out from in front of our home!” He produces a smudged paper with a shepherd’s crook [Tarrasch] symbol that was left in the wake of the kidnapping. If questioned thoroughly, and if pressed for a reason, the father will admit that he couldn’t pay his tithe to the Bloody Fist, due to poverty, and assumes his son was taken in payment.

    He followed the kidnappers into the wilderness surrounding Stonewood and to a cave with a small entrance. After pausing for breath, he realized that he ran into a fight with no weapons and no backup. Reluctantly, he doubled back to town with the hope of gathering a party to help rescue his son. While the father sought help, the child was killed. When the PCs enter the cave, they are set upon by the Tarrasch Pawns, then the Bishop. The Bishop will flee when there is a chance of being defeated. Each Black Pawn will give a silver, each White Pawn a gold, the bishop multiple gold. If the Tarrasch win the fight, someone is marked by the Tarrasch in blood and the rest are left for dead/ or are stabilized/robbed/etc. The Bishop will rob the PCs of their magic items and keep them on his person.

    Outcomes:

    1. The PCs go to the cave and lose to the Tarrasch Pawns and Bishop, they are left for dead or stabilized, robbed, and left in the cave.
    2. The PCs go to the cave and kill all the Tarrasch Pawns and find the child dead. They were able to protect the father and can help the father bury his child.
    3. The PCs beat the Tarrasch at the cave, but the father dies.
    4. If the PCs are able to eliminate the Tarrasch in the cave, they still have lost the child. The child's father, if he survives, will be understandably upset and heartbroken. He removes the child's body from the cave and want to bury him.

    Number of Cast Members: [1 plus 4 or more - 1-Varyn 1+ Bishop 1+ Leviathan 1+ Fighter 1+ Chaos Caster]

    Props: Dead Child Body, Sheet to Cover Dead Body, Two Door Stops, Tarp to Cover Door, Staple Gun and Staples, smudged paper with Shepard's crook Tarrasch Symbol

    Costuming: Unassuming Townsperson, Hulking Rotting Corpse, Poor townsperson clothes

    Hook: Father comes into town, gets help to rescue his son

    Scenes:

      In Game: A cave one hour away from the city by foot, 25 minutes by horse. 6.4 miles. Out of Game: Cabin or cave like area. The cave has a narrow entrance [two door stoppers to hold the door steady]. If possible, a low entrance should be created using a black plastic tarp covering the doorway, forcing the PCs to duck as low as a crouch. The child's body is placed at the back of the cave, sitting on the floor, covered with a sheet. The body is of a toddler sized child with the Tarrasch symbol painted on their forehead. Flee Point: Out of sight of the door of the cabin

    Running Notes: - Scene Discription: The enterence to the cave is narrow [door stop used to hold door]. Once inside, the cave opens up to a chamber the size of a cabin. The cave has the look of being used, there is blood smeared on the walls and bones littering the floor. - Order of importance in filling NPCs: Varyn Gilchek, Tarrasch Bishop, Tarrasch White Pawn-Leviathan, Tarrasch Black Pawn- Chaos Caster, Tarrasch Black Pawn- Fighter - Varyn should be driven in finding his son, even to his own detriment - Varyn is a widower with a child from his deceased wife. - The Pawn's goal is to beat down the PCs. - The Bishop robs the PCs of magic items, which go into the Tarrasch cashe.