STALKER7

It’s been quiet on the S7 blog but lots of things are happening in the nerd shack.

Expeditions to Davokar

Both the CCWC regulars and the Sturgis crew are putting Free League’s Symbaroum RPG through its paces.

The Cape Cod Wargamers continued their escort duty to Yndaros, stopping at the Red Strand way station. There, they dealt with the ongoing trials of oppressed refugees, fended off elusive bandits, sorted a wyrd woman’s problems with a dire boar, and learned yet another person was missing from a river boat crew. The road to the capital grows increasingly difficult as the grit of deep secrets and personal issues finds its way into the workings. Whether it forms pearls or clogs the gears remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, the Sturgis crew is playing Symbaroum for the first time. (huzzah!) They decided a ‘dangerous, odd job’ sort of mercenary outfit would be their raison d’être. Their first task was to intercept/interrupt the sale of an unidentified Symbar relic from an unknown seller at a seedy tavern in a sketchy part of Yndaros. Turned out the seller was a corrupt mystic backed up by a pair of rather nasty bodyguards.

The party prevailed and acquired a rune covered stone key, but that tutorial encounter taught a few quick, sharp lessons about magic and corruption, the lethality of combat, and the need for planning and cooperation. Symbaroum is a different kind of game that requires a different approach from the usual ‘wade in and brawl.’ There are a lot of mixed opinions about the game online, but IMO many of the complaints have to do more with the player’s expectations and experiences than the actual mechanics. Sort of like complaining that Darkest Dungeon is not like Baldur’s Gate is not like Doom is not like Fortnite. Correct.

Adventurers and a Gribbly Horde

Speaking of new games/new players, preparation continues for the upcoming Ruins of Harrowgate adventure. A friend will be leading his sons and several of their friends on an afternoon of pizza and toy-soldiering.

I’ve been taking the opportunity to get color on a pile of Reaper Bones minis. A few more to go, but this is the current pool of potential characters. Casters, Clerics, Fighters of various types… plenty to choose from.

Facing them on a full ruined city table will be the minions of the foul wizard, Ekran Fel. I found a very nice assortment of gribblies while pawing through the nerd shack closet, but I suspect I’ll default to ghosts and skellies. Because kids.

On the Radar

Working on two narrative campaign supplements: Termination Clause for Exploit Zero, and The Runscrable Incident for When Nightmares Come. Current plan is to release them as PDFs at Wargame Vault before Thanksgiving.

That’s it for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Good hunting.