Deadlands Reloaded - Road to Walla Walla
This is the log of our 16th Deadlands Reloaded session (on November 1st, 2013).
The trek along the Walla Walla river valley started out uneventful, but the posse soon felt watched from the surrounding hills and woods. The howling of wolves began as evening approached and Hunter secured a campsite that was a defensible as possible. That proved to be wise when the Wolfling Alpha who had trailed Matt (the huckster) ever since the Klickitat village and two of her packmates attacked in the early morning hours. They were clearly after Matt and the female went all-out for his throat before he could get a spell off. She very nearly tore off his throat out (3 wounds), but one of the hired gunmen from Portland - Pete LaCroix - saved his life with a well-placed short between the wolfling's eyes. Her two packmates were quickly taking care of before they could escape into the night. Matt's nemesis was finally defeated. [Matt's player played the "Enemy" adventure card four sessions ago. The wolfling attacked him twice, both times resulting in a near-death experience for him. A great use of the card.]
The next day the posse ran into the first signs of the siege of Walla Walla. Hunter and Toni (the muckraker) were scouting ahead when they noticed a suspicious tree - it was prepped to fall across the road and block the wagon's path. Closer observation revealed a couple large figures behind some boulders on the slope above - Sasquatch. The group left the wagon safely back and made signs of peace, but as they approached the Sasquatch rolled a boulder down the slope toppling the tree. Undeterred, Tyler (the ex-Agent) figured out a way to use the mules, their harness and a convenient tree [great use of the Repair skill] to move the fallen tree. Toni tried to parley with the Sasquatch while he was working but got nowhere, the two big fellas only growling and throwing threatening stones from up top. Hunter fired a few shots to intimidate the Sasquatch and they retreated for the moment. But as the mules began to pull away the tree, they appeared back near the wagon, and ran at it, intent on pushing it down the slope off the other side of the road.
The stretch of road with the fallen tree. Click the image to download an A1 pdf of the map.
The posse scrambled to save their precious supplies while trying to avoid killing the sasquatch, as they still hoped to find a peaceful solution. Tyler produced the perfect weapon: the slumber gas he had appropriated from the Agency lab in Seattle. He threw a vial and it promptly put both Sasquatch soundly asleep [great Throw roll and two failed Vigor rolls]. When the two awoke they found themselves securely bound - or so the posse thought. In fact the first Sasquatch to awake managed to break the rope holding him with an impressive effort of strength. But Gus (the preacher) had cast the "Tongues" miracle on Toni, and she managed to talk the Sasquatch down. They learned that the Sasquatch were trying to destroy Walla Walla because it was the "root of the evil" and their "Big Chief" was not going to be friendly to the humans. But Toni convinced these two at least to let the wagon through and tell the Big Chief they wanted to talk with him.The two did not look hopeful this would amount to anything, but let the posse pass and vanished into the hills.
[The adventure in the Trail guide has the Speak Language power not working on the Sasquatch on the pretext of their language being too primitive - but that's something I don't like, especially as an NPC turns up who then DOES have a special power that works. Much better to have the PCs' own abilities actually make a difference.]
A little later the posse was met by a cavalry patrol from Walla Walla, only the patrol was riding a steam wagon instead of horses. Captain Danby and his troopers escorted them to town, where the supplies - few as they were for a whole settlement - where welcomed with cheers and renewed hope. Mayor Ivonne Hart invited them into her office, where she asked them to find a way to contact the Sasquatch so a peace or at least a truce could be arranged. All her own attempts to communicate with the besiegers had failed in the past. Tyler asked her about instances of cannibalism in Walla Walla - theorizing that this was what worried the Sasquatch so much - and learned that one soldier had indeed been imprisoned for partaking of human flesh. Colonel Jones, the commander of the Union troops, declined Tyler's request to speak to the convict, claiming this was army business and the army would handle it.
Someone else was waiting for the posse in Walla Walla: Chris (or Gazes in Wonder as she is known to the Klickitat) and Racing Cloud. The reunion was happy, but overshadowed by the worrying news of Sasquatch attacks on Walla Walla and native villages in the mountains. Chris plan was still to go to Hell's Canyon to the Sasquatchs' holy place and there find a way to locate the "Old Glade", the ancestral home of the "Elder Siblings" as the Klickitat call the Sasquatch. The others agreed with this, but Tyler was keen on locating the threats of cannibalism and humans turning itno Wendigo here in Walla Walla. In return, an unknown enemy seemed to be unhappy about his arrival in town: As he left the tent where they had spoken with Chris, a shot rang out from a sniper somewhere near or in the Union first. The bullet was aimed at his head, but luckily only grazed his shoulder. A quick but careful checked for tracks in the area revealed that the shot must have come from inside the fort.
The trek along the Walla Walla river valley started out uneventful, but the posse soon felt watched from the surrounding hills and woods. The howling of wolves began as evening approached and Hunter secured a campsite that was a defensible as possible. That proved to be wise when the Wolfling Alpha who had trailed Matt (the huckster) ever since the Klickitat village and two of her packmates attacked in the early morning hours. They were clearly after Matt and the female went all-out for his throat before he could get a spell off. She very nearly tore off his throat out (3 wounds), but one of the hired gunmen from Portland - Pete LaCroix - saved his life with a well-placed short between the wolfling's eyes. Her two packmates were quickly taking care of before they could escape into the night. Matt's nemesis was finally defeated. [Matt's player played the "Enemy" adventure card four sessions ago. The wolfling attacked him twice, both times resulting in a near-death experience for him. A great use of the card.]
The next day the posse ran into the first signs of the siege of Walla Walla. Hunter and Toni (the muckraker) were scouting ahead when they noticed a suspicious tree - it was prepped to fall across the road and block the wagon's path. Closer observation revealed a couple large figures behind some boulders on the slope above - Sasquatch. The group left the wagon safely back and made signs of peace, but as they approached the Sasquatch rolled a boulder down the slope toppling the tree. Undeterred, Tyler (the ex-Agent) figured out a way to use the mules, their harness and a convenient tree [great use of the Repair skill] to move the fallen tree. Toni tried to parley with the Sasquatch while he was working but got nowhere, the two big fellas only growling and throwing threatening stones from up top. Hunter fired a few shots to intimidate the Sasquatch and they retreated for the moment. But as the mules began to pull away the tree, they appeared back near the wagon, and ran at it, intent on pushing it down the slope off the other side of the road.
The stretch of road with the fallen tree. Click the image to download an A1 pdf of the map.
The posse scrambled to save their precious supplies while trying to avoid killing the sasquatch, as they still hoped to find a peaceful solution. Tyler produced the perfect weapon: the slumber gas he had appropriated from the Agency lab in Seattle. He threw a vial and it promptly put both Sasquatch soundly asleep [great Throw roll and two failed Vigor rolls]. When the two awoke they found themselves securely bound - or so the posse thought. In fact the first Sasquatch to awake managed to break the rope holding him with an impressive effort of strength. But Gus (the preacher) had cast the "Tongues" miracle on Toni, and she managed to talk the Sasquatch down. They learned that the Sasquatch were trying to destroy Walla Walla because it was the "root of the evil" and their "Big Chief" was not going to be friendly to the humans. But Toni convinced these two at least to let the wagon through and tell the Big Chief they wanted to talk with him.The two did not look hopeful this would amount to anything, but let the posse pass and vanished into the hills.
[The adventure in the Trail guide has the Speak Language power not working on the Sasquatch on the pretext of their language being too primitive - but that's something I don't like, especially as an NPC turns up who then DOES have a special power that works. Much better to have the PCs' own abilities actually make a difference.]
A little later the posse was met by a cavalry patrol from Walla Walla, only the patrol was riding a steam wagon instead of horses. Captain Danby and his troopers escorted them to town, where the supplies - few as they were for a whole settlement - where welcomed with cheers and renewed hope. Mayor Ivonne Hart invited them into her office, where she asked them to find a way to contact the Sasquatch so a peace or at least a truce could be arranged. All her own attempts to communicate with the besiegers had failed in the past. Tyler asked her about instances of cannibalism in Walla Walla - theorizing that this was what worried the Sasquatch so much - and learned that one soldier had indeed been imprisoned for partaking of human flesh. Colonel Jones, the commander of the Union troops, declined Tyler's request to speak to the convict, claiming this was army business and the army would handle it.
Someone else was waiting for the posse in Walla Walla: Chris (or Gazes in Wonder as she is known to the Klickitat) and Racing Cloud. The reunion was happy, but overshadowed by the worrying news of Sasquatch attacks on Walla Walla and native villages in the mountains. Chris plan was still to go to Hell's Canyon to the Sasquatchs' holy place and there find a way to locate the "Old Glade", the ancestral home of the "Elder Siblings" as the Klickitat call the Sasquatch. The others agreed with this, but Tyler was keen on locating the threats of cannibalism and humans turning itno Wendigo here in Walla Walla. In return, an unknown enemy seemed to be unhappy about his arrival in town: As he left the tent where they had spoken with Chris, a shot rang out from a sniper somewhere near or in the Union first. The bullet was aimed at his head, but luckily only grazed his shoulder. A quick but careful checked for tracks in the area revealed that the shot must have come from inside the fort.