September Short Adventure 3: Gathering Mold

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 3

Title: Gathering Mold

Rules: Mutant Future

Ready

The Player Characters have arrived in asqualid little village of mostly minor mutants and their hybridoffspring that teeters dangerously on the edge of starvation. Theyonly have one industry in this place and they desperately need helpgetting things moving again, before they lose their contract with theWarlord's Quartermaster and have no money for the coming winter.

Set

This village is a tightly heldstrategic secret that the Warlord's forces would rather no one elseknew about. Their one industry is the production of specially treated'leather' that repels acid, resists decay and is used extensively inthe manufacture of armor for the Warlord's infantry and other forces.

The village only remains free due to anunderstanding between the Meister and the Warlord. The village'sMeister was once one of the Warlord's most trusted henchmen, butafter a particularly bad encounter with a band of Mants he was lefthere to recover from his terrible wounds. In the course of hisrecovery he discovered the secret of this place and attempted tobargain with the Warlord in order to regain his former status only tobe relegated to overseeing this dismal collection of hovels clusteredaround some caves and a sinkhole.

Go!

Mants have broken into the cavernsbeneath the village and the burrowing insectoid raiders have cut-offall access to the mold-caves. The 'leather' produced in this villageis harvested from the older patches of mutated violet-speckled moldthat have been cultivated and maintained in secret for generations inthe cool caves below this place.

The village has a contractualobligation to deliver 100 suits of 'leather' armor to the Warlord'sQuartermaster at every Equinox. The current harvest was only half-waycompleted before the Mants invaded. If the Mants can be cleared soon,and production resumes immediately, there is still a chance that thevillage can deliver on the contract and not forfeit their freedom andbecome a military reservation where all those who know the secret ofthis place are enslaved and imprisoned for life.

The Meister is desperately in need ofsome good fighters. His small group of guards are mostly up in themountains hunting big game and won't be back for at least two moreweeks. He has just enough guards on-hand to hold off the Mants, butnone to spare for clearing them out of the caves and cellars. He isin a mood to strike a deal with the PCs, and should they succeed, hewill be very grateful indeed, as he will be executed for incompetenceif he survives and fails to protect the village from the Mants ormisses the deadline. The Warlord's Quartermaster is an unforgivingsort of person...

The Mants have to be wiped out beforethey can destroy the mold-colonies, or worse take the secret of themold-leather out into the world at large. Thankfully, this group ofMants are only an advance scouting-group. But if even only one Mantescapes it will spell doom for the village as it will lead back anarmy of the things in under three days time.

Notes / NPCs

Meister [Mutant Human, AL L, MV90' (30'), AC 4, HD 16, #ATK 1, DG 1d8, SV L 7, ML 8]

Mant Scout (1d4) [AL C, MV 160'(60'), AC 8, HD 4, #ATK 2 (2 claws or 1 bite/1 claw or 2 weapons), DG1d6/2d6 or by weapon, SV L5, ML 9, Mutations: 1d2 Mental Mutations](See link)

Mant Warrior (2d4) [AL C, MV120' (40'), AC 5, HD 7, #ATK 3 (2 claws, bite or weapon), DG1d8/1d8/2d8 or by weapon, SV L9, ML 11, Mutations: 1d4 MentalMutations] (MF p. 82)

Mant Freak (1) [AL C, MV 120'(40'), AC 5, HD 7, #ATK 3 (2 claws, bite or weapon), DG 1d8/1d8/2d8or by weapon, SV L9, ML 11, Mutations: 1d4 Physical Mutations] (Seelink)

Mant Esper (1) [AL C, MV 90', AC9, HD 4, #ATK 1 (bite or Mindblast/other psychic attack), DG2d4/special, SV L3, ML 7, Mutations: 1d6 Mental Mutations] (SeeLink)

Note: Feel free to increase thenumber of Warriors, Freaks or Espers if the PC-party is moreadvanced/powerful...