I finally did a summary of the event at this year's GuardianCon (in June), which I didn't play in. My son and another friend were co-GMs, and it was a massive, sprawling tale with an extremely intricate plot (even with the details of this write-up, there's lots that was not found out by the players). They are considering doing a sequel, to explore more of it.
[Editor's Note: Delta is the name of my son's 'universe', for his V&V campaign. So this was a "crossover" even with PCs from both games/universes, the Vindicators and the Guardians]
#43 – Excavated Evil – Prologue: In Delta, twin brothers battle each other for centuries, Aelmar eventually taking the form of a paladin and Belarious that of a large dragon. A magical curse causes them to switch bodies; the paladin calls himself Valgar and the dragon Pendragon. In the present, Ryoma Okita (Kensai) fights off strange ninjas at his work office, but drops after being poisoned. Galahad dispatches a number of street punks, and a mysterious man claiming to be a servant of Merlin asks for his help. In Delta, heroes Archon, Ad-versus, the Damned, Anomalous, and Nox are assembled to confront a great evil: Archon takes out a purse thief, but the victim knocks him out with a weapon. Ad-versus is summoned to the dean’s office at his community college; he declines a robed man’s request for help and in turn is rendered unconscious. At a laundromat, a man appears and gives Ricky Wilson (the Damned) an airline ticket to a fantastic resort island. A woman convinces Anomalous to leave a bar, but before he can depart he passes out from his poisoned drink. Nox investigates the kidnappings of various paranormals, and soon finds himself alongside the missing four, Kensai, and Galahad on a plane headed to an unknown destination overseas. A disturbance jars the aircraft as it passes between dimensions (back into Delta), and many of the adventurers suddenly observe different people sitting next to them. As the craft is rocked by more turbulence, the bewildered vigilantes unsuccessfully struggle to repair the vessel, but cannot keep it from crash landing on an island! The heroes aid the injured, but most of the passengers are found to be dead. As the others set up a camp and gather survivors while tending to the wounded, Anomalous and Archon explore an apparently empty compound to the north. The camp is attacked by zombies, who prove to be much stronger and faster than expected. The champions fight off wave after wave of the undead, allowing the innocent civilians to flee into a cave. Just as they are about to be overwhelmed, the zombies stop, becoming completely motionless! Unnerved, the party moves north to the encampment, resting on the roof of one building and sharing with each other how they each came to be on the plane. Ad-versus explores, and in an excavation tent encounters Pendragon. The reptile admits to controlling the undead, and commands Ad-versus to break an ancient obelisk to the north. The hero attempts to comply, but is stopped by the others. The group continues to explore, discovering state-of-the-art equipment and facilities. Notes from head researcher Dr. William Huxley hint at a recently unearthed dragon that controls zombies. In the most extravagant room of the compound they meet Valgar, who tells them the evil dragon must be destroyed, not the obelisk. Pendragon communicates through Ad-versus, but the team refuses to listen to him. They search more, and in a cave find the obelisk, as well as stone tablets that tell of a battle between a paladin and a dragon millennia ago. Pendragon (Aelmar) tells the explorers that the paladin Valgar (Belarious) is not to be trusted. The Damned confirms with the cosmos that they can believe both, but Galahad senses evil in each of them. The superheroes discuss their options in depth, and then break the obelisk (against Belarious’ wishes, freeing Aelmar). Galahad offered Aelmar freedom, but, overcome with rage, instead of leaving, he attempts to kill his captor instead, and the pair continues their ancient fight.
|