3 Skulls of White
Last week I got to run an Oracle Society adventure. As it was the beginning of May one of my players requested a Cinco de Mayo theme. Which is all well and good except the that I've already done Chupacabras, the most iconic Mexican monster.
So instead I decided to use cursed sugar skulls (Day of the Dead, but who's counting), were-jaguars, La Llorana and the Incan Goddess of Suicides.
All this, in the Oracle Society adventure: "3 Skulls of White"
The society was called down to Mexico (much to the cheering of the players, which is always a bad sign) to help out a local singer in Merida, Mexico. After a performance his band (himself, his brother and his sister) they were given three sugar skulls by a woman professing to be a fan. The fan wanted to "give them what they deserved".
The singer was diabetic so couldn't eat his. His siblings consumed them...and promptly dissapeared the next morning. The singer woke up with a cursed hand: withered and looking more like a crow's foot than human. And soon enough the hand started moving on its own, scratching names into nearby walls. Those names belonging to someone who would die in the very near future.
The Oracle Society arrived, discovering that all of the victims were dying in one of two ways: drowning or attacks from a predatory animal.
As they investigated the hand scratched out the first name. Our heros went off to save young diver, as her guest was the sister: now a version of La Llorana (a ghost that drowns women she encounters, constantly seeking her lost children).
They succeeded, however, and got a name: Ixtab.
Yes, the group had sung a song about the Incan goddess Ixtab, referring to her as the 'death bitch of suicides". And they had done this on a very old holy site to her. Whoops.
Especially since Ixtab was the god of heroic suicides (martyrs and voluntary religious sacrifices and such).
The Oracle then found out the next victim was a Sergeant in the police, and he was about to lead a raid into a drug stronghold. (oddly the players were less than enthused about charging into a raging gun battle). But with a decent plan they stopped him in time and could face the cursed brother: who was now a were-jaguar. A pitched battle erupted with the PCs using old arrowheads as weapons. (in this game Obsidian is to Were-Jaguars as Silver is to Werewolves)
Having saved the last two victims the Society headed off to the holy ground, planning that if the singer sang a song requesting forgiveness the curse could be lifted.
One slight problem, as they were driging the evil hand scratched out one last name. The groups Mechanic.
So on the ancient holy ground the society had to fight off a revived La Llorana, a were-jaguar and keep one of the PCs alive long enough for the singer to appease the Incan suicide goddess. Simple!
Despite my best efforts the PCs did manage to stay alive and appease the goddess. And they got to go home with only a teeny tiny chance that one or more of them was infected with lycanthropy (of the jaguar subtype).
So instead I decided to use cursed sugar skulls (Day of the Dead, but who's counting), were-jaguars, La Llorana and the Incan Goddess of Suicides.
All this, in the Oracle Society adventure: "3 Skulls of White"
The society was called down to Mexico (much to the cheering of the players, which is always a bad sign) to help out a local singer in Merida, Mexico. After a performance his band (himself, his brother and his sister) they were given three sugar skulls by a woman professing to be a fan. The fan wanted to "give them what they deserved".
The singer was diabetic so couldn't eat his. His siblings consumed them...and promptly dissapeared the next morning. The singer woke up with a cursed hand: withered and looking more like a crow's foot than human. And soon enough the hand started moving on its own, scratching names into nearby walls. Those names belonging to someone who would die in the very near future.
The Oracle Society arrived, discovering that all of the victims were dying in one of two ways: drowning or attacks from a predatory animal.
As they investigated the hand scratched out the first name. Our heros went off to save young diver, as her guest was the sister: now a version of La Llorana (a ghost that drowns women she encounters, constantly seeking her lost children).
They succeeded, however, and got a name: Ixtab.
Yes, the group had sung a song about the Incan goddess Ixtab, referring to her as the 'death bitch of suicides". And they had done this on a very old holy site to her. Whoops.
Especially since Ixtab was the god of heroic suicides (martyrs and voluntary religious sacrifices and such).
The Oracle then found out the next victim was a Sergeant in the police, and he was about to lead a raid into a drug stronghold. (oddly the players were less than enthused about charging into a raging gun battle). But with a decent plan they stopped him in time and could face the cursed brother: who was now a were-jaguar. A pitched battle erupted with the PCs using old arrowheads as weapons. (in this game Obsidian is to Were-Jaguars as Silver is to Werewolves)
Having saved the last two victims the Society headed off to the holy ground, planning that if the singer sang a song requesting forgiveness the curse could be lifted.
One slight problem, as they were driging the evil hand scratched out one last name. The groups Mechanic.
So on the ancient holy ground the society had to fight off a revived La Llorana, a were-jaguar and keep one of the PCs alive long enough for the singer to appease the Incan suicide goddess. Simple!
Despite my best efforts the PCs did manage to stay alive and appease the goddess. And they got to go home with only a teeny tiny chance that one or more of them was infected with lycanthropy (of the jaguar subtype).