XAXA RIVER VALLEY 6: EARTH-EATER

Welcome to the final nights of Xaxa River Valley.

Last time, we ended as the party fought the Roc-Breeder King. GMs, if you start a session in the middle of a continuing fight, take a minute to lay out all the pieces of the situation. I’ll do that for you here:

• The corpulent bulk of the Roc-Breeder King hung from iron chains grafted into his mutant wings; he affected his will through psionic mind-blasts & telekinses.
• From a cavity in his chest, great wires snaked into cerulean pools, in which floated many redundant organs. These supplied unlife to the Roc-Breeder. Two of the five pools remained in-tact.
• His court wizard, Gargathus, skittered to and fro, repairing damaged pools & perpetuating the king’s life
• A great machine on the west wall also ran the perimeter of the room; conveyor belts, vat-tubes, reassembly chambers, all pumped biological material into humanoid-bird hybrids
• These creatures stumbled forth from the eastern cave, dripping and wet.
• A black screen beside the conveyor-machine led to Gargathus’ private chambers

And so, we finished the Roc-Breeder fight. They had the upper hand, though there was one point where Altair was in massive danger & narrowly avoided a mind blast that shredded the machinery inches above his head. Conveyor parts tore, glass vats shattered as the king’s rage rent visible waves of psionic energy through the air.

Murazir hit Gargathus with a charm spell & stopped him from repairing the organ pool; this all but won them the fight. Endri smashed a vat-bird apart with his brass mace, blind as he was (we gave him a -2 to hit). Altair sprang forward to sever the last vital chords after dodging death. Kobek leapt forward & cleaved the Roc-Breeder’s wing from the great dangling chain, toppling the mutant & causing his corpulent bulk to swing. The depraved king died, impaled upon his own crown.

Altair asked Gargathus if there were any more golden orbs around, showing his own for reference. The electric wizard’s eyes lit up as he hobbled over to his telekinesis rod, which was connected by a snaking cable to the conveyor in the west wall. At the base, the device was powered by one of the orbs; this Gargathus removed & happily presented to Altair.

Murazir instructed Gargathus as his “friend & thrall” to gather his things; it didn’t take much to convince him to board the war-machine. The man-thing was no fool, and knew that the sun flickered out - - the titan was his best chance. “The King was a wicked master to shackle me so & keep us from sunlight. 897 years have I preserved his wretched corpse! You have done me a great service in freedom, O’ Scions of Radiant Fire! Beneath are more catacombs abundant with old magics.. electric silver to bear upon your vessel. Come. Come!”

To access the lower catacombs, Gargathus needed his VR goggles, the very same headset Altair snipped from his console. The thief & the alchemist were busy sawing off the Roc-Breeder King’s silvered crown. Altair looked up from his bloody work as Gargathus poked his head out of the screen-wall, inquiring after his machine eyes. With reluctance, Altair gave forth the goggles & followed the strange wizard into his lair.

Manipulating unseen keys, Gargathus’ gestures split a slit in the floor, revealing carven sandstone stairs leading into deeper caves. Down they went, twisting & winding their way into the depths of the bluff. Tunnels gave way to caverns abundant with gargantuan machines, ancient magics from a dead age. Two such devices, they hauled to the surface & installed on their war-machine:

• ARTIFACT: Regeneration Vat, re-print a dead PC in 1d4 rounds. Takes 1 day to install.
  • Efficacy — Roll 1d10; on a 1, the vat no longer functions as the nanites turn inert
  • Mutation — Roll 1d10; on a 1, the PC comes out altered.
  • For each day the Sun Collector runs, they have a pool of T-HP any of them can expend for an ACTION in the control center (6 days~ remain ‘til the Earth Eater comes.. if they collected this artifact early on, they could charge up a huge HP pool before the end).
• ARTIFACT: Sun collector, regenesis for the titan. Takes 1 day to install.
  • For each day the Sun Collector runs, they have a pool of T-HP any of them can expend for an ACTION in the control center (6 days~ remain ‘til the Earth Eater comes.. if they collected this artifact early on, they could charge up a huge HP pool before the end).

They spent the 4th day installing the Sun Collector, so as to benefit from it’s full efficacy. 5 days of sunlight remained, thus they’d enter the Earth-Eater with five extra T-HP. One could imagine on future phases, a party could plunder the Roc-Breeder’s lair & gain a massive pool of T-HP. If they could defeat the hellspawn, of course.

With six days remaining, the party was desperate to secure a fourth orb, but couldn’t make it to Torance in time; Altair proposed the idea of shoving the night angel core inside the war-machine with hopes to teleport it. I loved this idea, but of course had to make it a bargain. If he attempted this, he’d roll a d6; 4-6 they’d instantly jump through space and land in Torance with 5 days to spare… 1-3 & Altair would vanish forever. They seriously weighed the option, then decided to head to Pern instead. The thief recalled his conversation with Jethro, in that the time-traveling cabal composing his old guild had agents in the throng this far north. They reasoned they may find another orb on his person, or at least gain some direction.

A 3 day march to Pern, and they were greeted by the a drunken multitude. Revelers averted their eyes, pressing their noses into the dust at the foot of the war-machine in fervent praise. Sounds of beating drums & piping horns were a mix of frantic jubilee & longing melancholy for what would soon be lost.

Altair made a display with his boots of levitation, hovering forth from the gaping head-cave. He rose above the masses as he delivered an order: bring forth any marked with an hourglass tattoo at their throat. This was the distinguishing mark of the Torance guild-cabal. They found such a man, an old wizard in gray mouseskin robes & white wispy hair, an otherwise unassuming garb. This was Juud, one from the cabal they’d heard so much about. He goaded Altair in a back-and-forth, taunting him that he’d come this far many times before.

After a series of cryptic bouts, Altair’s patience ran thin & he held forth his own golden orb for all to see. “This man stands against the Scions of Radiant Fire, and would plunge us all into darkness! We seek another such artifact on his person, so we might deliver you into light!

“Search him!” cried Altair, and so they did. Wrenching his garments, the feverish multitude jostled Juud around before the golden orb came spilling forth.

“It always ends the same, Altair. You cannot change fate.” The old wizard spat at the ground & said no more.

The crowd eagerly awaited Altair’s go-ahead. “Do with him what you will,” said the thief as he turned away. Juud was wrenched back into the throng by many hands, vanishing from sight and life.

After this exhibit, the revelry kicked back up. Kobek joined merrily in the drinking / dancing / fighting, partaking in the last party. Before participating himself, Murazir searched the streets for the most well-adorned nobles, rolling the Roc-Breeder’s crown as he went. A group of jeweler princes from Torance gathered ‘round a tent, comparing stones in vain tones & passive aggressive conversation. At the Alchemist’s arrival, all were taken with the artifact he brought. An immediate bidding war kicked off, and we rolled 1d4 x 1,000 to see how much he’d get — 3,000sp in total, which between XP rewards from the Roc-Breeder fight & this boon, would allow everyone a level up. A banger end-of-the-world party raged into the night, much silver was spent as the Scions reveled with the people.

So much of this scene (and indeed, the whole campaign!) relied on a binary d6 Oracle. Many times, players would ask situational questions about the world; for example, while desperately strategizing the acquisition of the 4th golden orb, Altair’s player asked me if he could rouse the throng in Pern to bring him one of these wizards. Rather than saying “he’s not here” because I hadn’t prepared this scene, we instead roll the d6 & consulted the Oracle.. 1-3 = NO, 4-6 = YES. In a way, this puts the GM on the same side as the players. We discover the unfolding narrative together, and it’s incredibly exciting. If circumstances dictate a situation more likely, we’ll slide the range to 3-6 or even 2-6 = YES. This whole mini-game also gives you time to think about player questions without blanking on the spot.

On the same subject, if your imagination is faltering, ask the players to describe things to you! I did this all the time in XRV. Altair asked me, “are there any distinguishing features that mark one as from the guild in Torance?” & I said, “I don’t know, it’s your guild — you tell me!” to which the hourglass throat tattoos came into being. When you’re engaging in this hobby, a circuit of electricity is formed between you & the players. If you have a good group, everyone is engaged & feeds off each other. You should encourage this behavior as a GM, asking for player input at any moment. If you’ve done a good job explaining your setting through reinforced tone, your players will surprise you with incredibly evocative nuggets that spark fire in the mind. Just give them the chance!

With 2 days of dying sunlight left, they set laborers from Pern to installing the regeneration vat inside the war-machine. When it was done, someone suggested Endri grow his eyes back. He removed the silken wrap hiding his wounds, then dunked his head in the vat. Living fluid swam to fill his disfigured eye sockets; they set to work & we rolled to see if the vat became inert (a 1 on a d10 — it did not). Next, we were supposed to roll a d10 on a mutation table. This I had not prepared, so after some chin scratching, declared Endri’s eyes now shone like a pair of bullseye lanterns, visible beams of light. He opted to put his eyewrap back on, which hid the glare. Endri’s -2 was lifted as his vision was restored!

At this point, I asked them where they wanted to fight the Earth Eater. The party had 1 more day to prepare for arrival; there were talks of fighting the beast in the midst of Pern, but they eventually agreed to go back to where this all started.. the foothills just northwest. It was on this night where Quintessa and her Capricosian banner-men rode to meet them for whatever darkness came. They exchanged words of honor as the last day came to pass. All eyes turned toward the sun and the greater shadow that lurked behind. The pale orb flickered with massive dark spots before going out cold. Winter winds blew flurries of snow across the land; Xaxa River froze over as the valley entered eternal ice age.

Then they could see the Earth-Eater. It was as though a great blanket of shadows were pulled across the sky. The jaws of the black hole monster opened wide, and Earth was a marble, swallowed up into the void.In the valley below, everything was topsy-turvy chaos. Glimpses of Quintessa’s camel-riders being sundered by unreality, the terraces of Torance slipping into roiling shadows, a pinprick of light, and there was the war-machine being pulled into the very veins of the beast.

As darkness settled, the party awoke in-tact, protected by a machine designed for this very moment. We revealed the Titan-scale map and began the final crawl. Owlbear Studio ended up being really awesome for this session. I was able to put the point crawl & war-machine maps side by side; Endri controlled the war-machine token with his Movements each turn from the pilot’s throne.

He projected his senses outward from the hull to see where they had landed. The walls were a tangled maze of pulsating arteries, slick with dark blood. They shifted around the war-machine in a close press. Still, a living hall formed ahead of them and Endri could see the way forward. Gripping tendrils pulled & tugged at the titan’s feet, straining their progress. At the far end of this cyclopean hall, bony terraces led into a pool of black blood that filled the tunnels beyond.

Just when they were getting their bearings, a glint at the edges of a control screen caught Kobek’s eye. He watched as a pair of flickering, inky hands gripped the edges of the panel as a humanoid spirit pulled itself through and onto the deck. Two more of the static ghosts spilled forth & we dropped into initiative as their hands morphed to blades & they charged the party.

Kobek swung his halberd in a great arc at one spirit as Rosh leapt for the throat of another; both attacks passed through incorporeal forms, causing no damage. Murazir charged a torch & plunged it toward the third to great effect. These were things of shadow & static, abhorrent of any light. It winked out averted by the flame.

Through the fight, Endri willed the war-machine forward, meeting heavy resistance from ebon tentacles. He was making Save V. Paralysis to cross the tunnel & move to the next area. These static spirits would continue to harass the party so long as they were inside the Earth-Eater; it was a race to the heart before they were overrun (in theory.. more on that soon).

Back to the combat. Altair uncorked his flash & flung water at the spirit nearest him. We consulted the d6 Oracle to see if this had any effect.. Some chemical reaction in the being’s contact with water caused the flickering spirit to freeze over solid & thud to the ground. In this form, the frozen ghosts were easy to push into the escape pit at the center of the control room. Down they fell, crashing into a million shards below. Kobek finished the other spirit in this same manner on his next turn.

Now, we stayed in turn order for the entire crawl, and every round we’d check if more static spirits came crawling through their screens. We did this by rolling a d6; on a 1, 1d4 spirits would crawl through. This proved to be a non-issue for them, as I didn’t roll a single 1 throughout the entire crawl! Endri made enough saves and they pushed into the next room.

The blood-flooded tunnel eventually broke into a vast chamber, forming a dark lake. The war-machine was waist-deep in the ichor. Ahead, they could see crackling lightning illuminating the room; a trio of meaty flesh-bags floated like giant cells above the blood lake. Bolts of electricity arced between them to dangerous effect, forming a geometrical barrier.

Murazir channeled a Mirror Image spell through their hull, creating four illusory copies of the war-machine. These provided invaluable in keeping attention away from them.

Beyond lie two paths — the lake continued to a fully submerged tunnel eastward, yet southward they could see another war-machine, ancient & submerged! They surmised this must be one of their past attempts, or at least some other Scions who didn’t make it quite as far. Before they moved on, they wanted to loot the sunken titan for supplies, so opted to charge the blast ray & fire at the floating blood cells. The cannon was used to great, and indeed, dangerous, effect as crackling explosions wracked the hull. Each time they blew one of these things up, everything in the room took 1d6 T-HP. They blasted two of them, which carved a path to the second titan. They pulled up alongside the wreck so the thief could board.

Altair climbed down inside to discover the orange jelly of the airlock was all but gone. Meanwhile, the third cell was drawn by close proximity to the glowing war-machine. Luckily it moved into one of Murazir’s illusion copies, so they were safe as the cell discharged a massive energy blast. Endri fell back & blasted apart the last meat-sack. The resulting explosion impacted with so much force (Endri rolled 6 on the T-DMG they took) that they opted to spend a Hero Token; at the start of each XRV session, I gave each player a single re-roll of inspiration they could use on any die roll. Their second result was much better, and the party joined Altair inside the ancient hulk.

Most of it had fallen to decay, torn apart by the chaotic energies inside the Earth-Eater. Still, they were able to scavenge three batteries for the Boarding Axe — a fine boon, as they only came in with one swing remaining. They quickly transferred the cargo back to their war-machine and pushed on. The lake grew deeper and deeper until they were fully submerged in black blood.

Coral-like outcroppings covered the meaty walls as they peered around with floodlights. Ponderous steps took the war-machine to a junction; downward, the passage continued onward to unknown lengths. On the far wall, flesh broke away to reveal a gargantuan rib or some other such bone. They could cut this route open with the Boarding Axe. After just filling their battery capacity, they opted to give it a swing and see what lay beyond. Cutting away the bone revealed an illuminated underpass, carven with strange effigies.

They followed the pass at a gradual incline, til it opened into a greater chamber. The blood drained into two channels that ran the perimeter of the room. Three pillars supported the vaulted ceiling, placed randomly in non-euclidean fashion. Dead ahead, elevated on a huge, five-tiered landing, sat an ungodly abomination. I hit the bloodborne soundtrack & proceeded to describe a classic kaiju-sized Elder Thing from Lovecraftian lore. It’s body was like a bulbous pitcherplant, topped with a cluster of stalked eyes. Six horse-like limbs with too many joints supported the main bulk in a weird circumference. Sickly leathery wings unfurled as the monstrosity beckoned Endri forward in a horrible embrace.

His mind reeled at the sight, and they stumbled out of the Bone Chapel to regroup. After a quick discussion, they decided to go in guns blazing. the first blast ray shot went wide & this kicked the Elder Thing into motion. It surged forward, releasing a terrible shriek that threatened all aboard the war-machine. Everyone saved, and it came back to Endri’s turn. He unleashed a full volley from the horn lasers, and rolled catastrophic damage against the Elder Thing… but one of the attacks was a natural 1.

A huge explosion tore through the entire war-machine. Everyone aboard took a huge amount of damage, but none were killed this way; unfortunately, the damage also extended to the titan in the form of T-DMG. This brought them to 0 and initiated the final protocol as the hull was breached & unreality surged in from every seam.

The aperture at the base of the pilot’s throne slide open as the first golden orb powering the machine popped out. This new cavity was ready for use — each man who deposited a golden orb would activate the time-hopping spell housed within & be sent back to Pern, session 1, before their initial discovery.

At the same moment, the screens flooded with spirits as reality was torn asunder. Lights inside the control bridge began to fail and hissing static filled everyone’s ears. Murazir was the first through, vanishing from this reality. Endri Mortas was next, shocked as his senses were from the dying machine. He stumbled over the edge of the pilot’s throne & slammed his own orb home, winking out.

Meanwhile, Kobek held back spirits as he could, and knelt down before Rosh, placing his orb in the dog’s mouth. “Now you be a good boy and get out of here,” he said. The faithful hound moved out of danger and time. At this point, Altair was in the head of the Boarding Axe, anticipating a fight inside the Elder Thing. He had to sprint through the halls back to the control center as spirits threatened to overrun him. He tore past Kobek & survived many bladed arms. Diving forth, the thief slipped his golden orb into the aperture & was the final one to depart this phase. Kobek said a prayer to his jackal-god as he was overtaken and succumbed to unearthly wounds.

We fade to black.

Murazir, Endri, Altair. These three would keep their levels, items, and memories going into the second phase. We have nothing planned as to when that will be. For now, we’re taking a break from Xaxa River Valley; Murazir’s player took up the GM’s mantle and is running us some Arden Vull megadungeon. I do want to re-approach XRV in the future, as the ultimate “win state” is if they can make it to the Earth-Eater’s heart & destroy the beast from within.

Nonetheless, Xaxa River Valley has been an abundant wealth of inspiration & a huge learning opportunity for me as a GM. What began as a simple concept blossomed into an amazing story, emergent for both me and the players. Bring half-cooked ideas to the table. Trust your players to fill in the cracks. Together, you’ll create something spectacular that you couldn’t have imagined on your own.

Until next time, happy gaming!