As stated in a previous post, I’m into the planning phase for this coming Friday’s game. The two OSBI agents (PCs) and the ATF gal (NPC run by a player whose regular character is not available) have emerged victorious in their firefight with a bunch of hostage takers, with one alive and free, and a second having been wrestled to the ground by the ATF guys. As we ended, the guy who is free had just thrown a backpack at the ATF agent who (logically) presumed it was an explosive.
The plan I’d floated previously was to have that backpack contain … something that effectively tears open a portal and unleashes a monster (using the Sphere of Madness from DF:Monsters 1.) A flashbang is also involved. Now, several days after I considered that option, I’m seriously rethinking it because I realized that the Sphere could legitimately wipe these guys out and, far more important to me, my internal logic meter is going “Uh … dude? That guy was a mook. Tearing open a portal to the Nevernever is not something a mook should be able to do.”
So right now, what I’m thinking is that yes, the backpack that Mook 1 threw at ATF Agent Moretti is packed with explosives, but Mook 1 does not have the Explosives skill so in his hurry, he failed to properly arm them, which gives him a good “D’oh!” moment as they hit the floor in front of Moretti, then do nothing … and he realizes that he forget to jam a detonator into the C4 so he sprays wildly at her with his M4 as he retreats.
Meanwhile, the guy that the two OSBI agents are wrestling with (they’re intending on handcuffing him) suddenly starts to get really, really hot. His clothes begin smoking, steam boils off his exposed skin and touching his skin burns (not significantly at first; thinking it’s something simple like HT-3 check or take 1 HP of burn damage to whatever – likely a hand – that’s touching exposed skin. This damage (and HT check) gets progressively worse.) The two PCs may realize (depending on PER checks?) that this guy is frothing at the mouth and his froth … is blood. See, what happened here is that this poor, stupid bastard has the magical equivalent of a suicide tooth but rather than it simply kill him, it instead transforms him (for a set period of time) into a Wraith (see Magic p160, which includes the applicable template I’ll apply to this guy although I’ll probably make some minor tweaks to it.) This will (of course) trigger a Fright Check from the two PCs.
The intent with the wraith is to have him throw off his two opponents and then tear into them with great fury and anger (along with copious amounts of throwing people around), all the while absorbing massive amounts of damage inflicted upon him due to his Supernatural Durability. Eventually, of course, he will “burn out” and just turn into ash that blows away, but hopefully not before tossing the two (maybe three?) characters around a bit.
As to the resolution of the other guy, I figure that Moretti may pursue him and end up getting into another gunfight with him. I still need to point them to the Sweet Tooth manufacturing plant (aka the recently purchased and refurbed Compass Manufacturing plant) so I’m thinking that there should be one more bad guy present – the “boss” – who orders Mook 1 to protect him and it is this guy who tears open the portal so he can abscond with Audrey Petersen, the wife of the professor who owned this penthouse and the quite willing “inside woman” for the Cult of Janus. Even though she’s on their side, Audrey will see something that creeps her out and causes her to scream.
Of course, all of the rest of the hostages are dead though and Jack is going to get reamed out over this so very hard…