September Short Adventure 2: Gomphrey's Still

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 2

Title: Gomphrey's Still

Rules: Mutant Future

Ready

The Player Characters are travelingthrough a region of dense forest that is incredibly rich in game andedible plants. Then they find a strange house covered in elegant vinesout in the middle of nowhere, with a peculiar shed out back thatisn't an outhouse.

Set

No sooner have the PCs discovered oldman Gomphrey's house, than they will find themselves surrounded by dozensof Zap Vines, Ventrilovines and other mutant plants that have beentrained to lay dormant and do other simple tricks by the half-madhermit who raises them like some weird combination of livestock andcompanions. Serious resistance or extensive damage to the dozens ofvines will attract the attention of the Skinner Tree and OldMan Gomphrey. Randomly determine which one shows up first.

Go!

Gomphrey will waddle out of his shed inthe back to attend to any ruckus, such as his menagerie of mutatedplants subduing any would-be intruders or juicy wild game. Thevarious mutated plants, including the Skinner Tree, have been trainedto attempt to subdue, not kill anyone they can capture.

Old Man Gomphrey will command his plantminions to release the PCs once they give their word not to start anyfurther trouble. He's a bit demented and awfully proprietary abouthis shed out back (the one that contains his make-shift still, notthe outhouse), but he can be negotiated with by anyone not too quickto resort to violence.

Killing Gomphrey will drive everymutated plant in a 100 mile radius into a berserk frenzy as they seekto avenge the murder of their old friend.

Making friends with the lonely oldcodger will give the PCs access to a wide variety of medicinal andrecreational alcoholic distillations that can heal damage, act asantidotes to various poisons, cure illness, or just make someone losetheir mind for a little while.

If Gomphrey really takes a shine to thePCs, he might consider engaging them as his distributors back amongsome of the more civilized villages.

Notes / NPCs

Gomphrey [Mutant Human, AL N, MV90' (30'), AC 5, HD 14, #ATK 1, DG 1d6, SV L6, ML 11, Mutations: Aberrant Form (Xenomorphism/internalized plant structures and externalized pollen emitting pores), Epidermal Photosynthesis, Increased Taste, Drawback: Frailty/bruises easily] Note: Gomphrey has a way with plants akin to a form of Empathy oriented only towards plants, whether this is a formal power/ability or not is left to GM discretion.

Skinner Tree [AL C, MV 60'(20'), AC 4, HD 15, #ATK 1, DG 2d8, SV L5, ML 10] (MFp. 95)

Screech Bush [AL N, MV none, AC9, HD 2, #ATK 1, DG 2d6, SV L2, ML none] (MFp. 93)

Ventrilovines [AL N, MV none, AC9, HD 1, #ATK none, DG none, SV L1, ML none] (MFp. 100)

Zap Vines [AL N, MV none, AC 8,HD 2, #ATK 1, DG 1d6, SV L1, ML none] (MFp.103)