[Games] Fallout Scenarios for Necronomicon 2017
The sensible thing for me to do would be to fill up my game slots at Necronomicon 2017 with Iron Kingdoms RPG scenarios, ripped from things I've already run in my ongoing Iron Kingdoms campaign. I mean, I've got the minis painted, I've got the scenery, and I've essentially playtested the scenarios.
However ... no. Iron Kingdoms is a fascinating setting, but I hate the rules. I'll try to keep it short by just saying that it's the sort of game where you have to dig through the entire rules set to find out what your character CANNOT do by finding out what special abilities exist. (If there is an Ability that Lets You Do The Thing, then if you do not have this Ability, You Cannot Do It.)
So I'm sticking with Savage Worlds. In my opinion, it's more intuitive. The weak point is just how it handles damage. I've already ranted at length about that.
I'm also sticking with Fallout. It's a fun setting. Thanks to Fallout 4, it's well-known enough right now that I can get a wide range of players who can jump on in -- even if they haven't played the game. It doesn't take too long to paint a picture for newcomers, and pretty often I get at least one player at the table in a mixed group of strangers who can turn a pre-gen character into something spectacular and memorable.
No, I don't have the adventures all written out, and they're certainly not playtested. I need to get those slots reserved. But I at least had to commit to a rough concept. Within each concept I've got some wiggle room. Here's what we have so far.
Fallout: The Nuclear Family
Prior to the Great War, at least 120 massive underground vaults were built by Vault-Tec, ostensibly to shield Americans in the event of nuclear annihilation -- and to help rebuild America with the aid of the experimental "Garden of Eden Creation Kit" Secretly, many of these vaults were used in twisted experiments meant to benefit the "Best and Brightest" involved in the true vault program.
Two centuries later, a newly-discovered vault presents an opportunity for desperate wastelanders seeking Old-World tech (and preserved foodstuffs) to salvage. Most are just tombs for the original inhabitants, haunted by berserk robots and automated defense systems to contend with. But when Vault-Tec is involved, sometimes there are worse surprises waiting in store.
Fallout: All You Can Eat
Sure, the bombs dropped, and the city ruins glow green at night, but the spirit of capitalism is still alive and well in the Wasteland! The family-run Wok-a-Doodle Buffet is a popular stop for caravans traveling the Long-15 between the New California Republic and New Vegas.
The proprietor is running short on critical finger-lickin'-good ingredients for his famed stir-fry. Therein lies a work opportunity for a group of wastelanders on their way to New Vegas: Help him procure some more poultry, and he can provide supplies for their journey.
Time to go hunting! (Just be mindful that mutant post-apocalyptic chickens are a bit more challenging than their domestic pre-War counterparts.)
Fallout: Please Stand By
While traveling the ruined highways, a group of wastelanders intercepts an active Pre-War-era television station signal. It seems at first to be an automated station still broadcasting Old World programs and PSAs from over 200 years ago. Still, there are numerous anachronisms, and something about the tone of the shows is a bit /off/. (For instance, that episode of "Tranquility Lane" with the "wood-chipper incident" was rather dark for a sitcom.) No matter: Where there's active tech, that means prime SCAVENGING, so the gang is heading for the broadcasting tower to check it out.
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Information on the convention can be found here:
This post is intended to be spoiler-free, in the off chance someone might actually read this who'd actually have a chance of playing in one of my games. (Hey, it COULD happen, right?) I'll make a separate post about what the specific breakdown might be for each adventure.