STAR-CROSSED BLADES OF THE GREEN PEONY SESSION XVIII

This is the eighteenth session of our Star-Crossed Blades of the Green Peony campaign for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (session I can be found HERE, session II can be found HERE, session III can be found HERE, session IV can be found HERE, Session V can be found HERE, session VI can be found HERE, Session VII can be found HERE, Session VIII can be found HERE, Session IX can be found HERE, Session X can be found HERE, Session XI can be found HERE). Session XII can be found HERE. Session XIII can be found HERE. It is set in Zhang Chang prefecture (which I hope to release a blog entry for). Session XIV can be found HERE. You can find session XV HERE. You can see session XVI HERE. You can see session XVII HERE. In this campaign, every player rolled randomly to determine who their family are, how many siblings they have and whether individual family members are still alive. The players also gave very rough sketches of their background (no more than a few sentences) and I secretly added a "20-year" backstory to each one. I have implemented a special rule in this campaign that every encounter has a 3 in 10 chance of being connected to their secret backstory in some way. Note in this session I was play testing a specific scenario and the players were made aware prior to play.

CHARACTERS

QI YUN (MASTER POET QI YUN): A roaming martial expert who has secretly learned his martial arts from two different masters (and the masters have no knowledge of one another). 

XING GE: A traveling pipa player and the son of Lu Guiying the Iron Flower. His father died when he was five, and his mother married Gongsun Yuan, the chief of Black Parrot Society. Gongsun Yuan despises Xing Ge. 

TU JIN SHI (THUNDER LEGS): A wandering fighter seeking to be the strongest and most upright hero in the region. His father, Tu Haitao sent his mother away when he was young, after being consumed by grief over the passing of Jin Shi's brother, Tian. Shortly after his father died consuming a lethal concoction in a misguided effort to become immortal. 

LU LI (THE UNFILIAL ARCHER): A traveling physician who comes from a family of successful fishermen.

LU LIN: This is Lu Li's younger brother. 

THE RISE OF KING LEOPARD 

The party fled through maze of woods surrounding Black Leopard Villa, but lost their way and ran into the path of a group of the villa's disciples and ladies being led by Tu Jin Shi. 

"What are you doing in my territory!" Tu Jin Shi bellowed. 

A little unsure of what was occurring, the Xing Ge laughed this off as an attempt at humor. Lu Li tried addressing him as Tu Jin Shi, and this made him furious. 

"How dare you speak my enemy's name," Tu Jin Shi screamed. "I am King Leopard and despise Tu Jin Shi!". 

Understanding now that he had been possessed by a Qi Spirit, they looked to the company of disciples surrounding him and saw some were uneasy. There were two Ladies of the sect, easy to distinguish for their white robes and leopard capes. One seemed kept eyeing the escaping slaves, who King Leopard appeared unconcerned with, the other eyed King Leopard and the party*. King Leopard also was not at all interested in the disciples of Black Leopard Villa the players had taken prisoner. When the party looked towards the junior disciples standing near Black Leopard, they saw fear in their eyes. 

"Since you are here anyways," Said King Leopard, "You are welcome to join our growing cause for glory, but if not, you must leave. 

"Our apologies King Leopard," Said Xing Ge. "We did not mean to trespass, but respect your offer, and would like time to think about it. May we return here in a few days?"

"Yes, I will post disciples here to meet with you when that time arrives."

The party bid farewell and departed from the woods. 

Here it must be noted because Tu Jin Shi was possessed by a Qi Spirit, his player was making a Meditation roll each day to determine who was in control of the body. Further, for the first week, they would have no shared knowledge, but as the possession took hold, it would slowly join them into one entity until the Qi Spirit had complete power over him. Another note will be made when Tu Jin Shi successfully gains control of his body (due to a very low Meditation rank, this does not occur for some time). 

The party went to the nearest Imperial Postal Station/Inn, where they used their connections to imprison the sect members they had taken prisoner. Then they had one of their men take the slaves and escort them back to their hometowns. Lu Li and Lu Lin's mother, Hua Mei, was given quarters to rest and recover.

The party then ventured back to Black Leopard Villa with the intent of rescuing Lu Li's father, arriving at the appointed meeting place on the fifth day. They were met there by one of the two Black Leopard Ladies and two junior disciples. Xing Ge and Qi Yun both sensed the same familiar appearance to their master in the Lady, they had seen in Golden Leopard. 

Xing Ge told the lady they wanted to have a duel with King Leopard. This was part of their plan for rescuing Lu Li's father. 

"I am afraid he is meeting with important sect leaders," She said. "I can take you to the gates of the villa and make a request. 

As they walked towards Black Leopard Villa, Xing Ge took the woman aside and spoke with her. She said her title was Eighth Lady of Black Leopard Villa. He mentioned the similarity to Golden Leopard he had seen in her. She was cautious but he earned her trust in the conversation and she revealed that Master Tu Yu, he and Qi Yun's master, was her son. Xing Ge pleaded with her to help them restore Tu Jin Shi. 

"He is too important right now," She said. "I need him. This will benefit your Master. I will place him in charge of our sect."

Xing Ge expressed concern that the longer the possession held, the more risk there was of Tu Jin Shi succumbing permanently to it. She agreed and told him she only needed him for another 8 days or so, after that, she would help them restore him. Xing Ge was still quite concerned about the matter but she assured him she had King Leopard under her control and was laying down a foundation for her son that would benefit them all. She also agreed to release Lu Li's father. In the conversation he also learned that Golden Leopard was Eight Lady's mother, and not a living being anymore. 

When they arrived at the gates, she had the disciples retrieve the father, and told them loudly "These men have agreed to an alliance. We will give them this slave as a show of good faith." 

Lu Li and Lu Lin reunited with their father and the party headed back to the imperial inn. On the way they encountered a swordswoman from Red Claw Gang who asked for directions to Black Leopard Villa, but they directed her towards Thirteen Star Sect instead. 

When they reached the Imperial Inn, Lu Li gave her father and mother two golden taels and said they should no longer resort to banditry. Hua Mei objected, saying it wasn't enough for a life. But Lu Li pointed out this was nonsense. Their father, Jikang, agreed it was plenty and they both left to go back and care for the rest of Lu Li's siblings. 

The party then took a boat to the Town of Laoshi, and from there walked back to the camp of Jade Moon Sabre Sect. When Master Tu Yu saw their Black Leopard Villa prisoners he laughed and mocked them, then kicked the back of the legs and mocked them further before having them sent off to a prison tent. 

Xing Ge told Master Tu Yu about his mother. He was skeptical at first because he did not know for sure she was still alive, but eventually was persuaded. Xing Ge told him about their plan and said they should go back to Black Leopard Villa so he can take over the sect. 

"I always felt I was fated to dominate the martial world!" Master Tu Yu said. He then said taking them as his disciples was a good decision. He looked at the party and screamed "Where is my other new disciples". 

It was quite clear he didn't recognize either of his new disciples by sight, so Qi Yun stepped forward. 

"You you will be my left vanguard!" He said to Qi Yun. "And you will be my right vanguard!" he said to Xing Ge. He then addressed the rest of his disciples and said their new home would be in the Yaoguai Forest.  

They traveled back to Black Leopard Villa, and on the way, they heard word that Hopping Ghost Temple and River Spirit Sect had allied with King Leopard. 

THUNDER LEGS AWAKES 

Ten days after his possession, Tu Jin Shi came to his senses (this was the product of a successful Mediation roll). He awakened inside a pavilion, in a cage, arms and legs shackled. A disciple of Black Leopard Villa gazed at him. He asked how he had got there and look of recognition appeared in the disciples' eyes. In the distance, The Armillary of the Thirteen Stars was burning (this is the headquarters of Thirteen Star Sect). 

"I am sorry for killing Jade Leopard," He said. 

"No need," said the disciple. "She was holding us back. King Leopard has restored our sect to glory and placed us atop the martial world**.

The disciple showed great contempt for Tu Jin Shi and grew angry when he insulted King Leopard. 

"He has made our sect powerful!" She told him. "Do not speak of him in this way or you will have no food today!"

Tu Jin Shi put on his wooden mask, which angered the disciple, who demanded he remove it. But when she went to the Eighth Lady to have her insist it come off, she was told he could wear it as it was a harmless piece of wood. 

Tu Jin Shi learned that the Black Leopard Alliance had destroyed Thirteen Star Sect in a surprise attack, but Blue Star Empress, their leader, had in fact escaped. King Leopard had then inserted himself into the position once held by Blue Star Empress in the prefecture. 

THE RISE AND FALL OF KING LEOPARD 

The party, led by Master Tu Yu and his full retinue, arrived at Black Leopard Villa and met The Eighth Lady at the gates, who then bought them in for an audience. 

When they arrived, King Leopard greeted them amid his disciples. Master Tu Yu bowed respectfully. Eighth Lady nodded to Xing Ge. 

"You all can now pledge your loyalty to me." Said King Leopard. 

"We refuse," Said Xing Ge. "You have been deceived and you are as stupid as the man you have possessed. 

A look of fury crossed over King Leopard's face. "Yes, Tu Jin Shi's idiocy plagues me. But it will pass when I gain full control!"

"Surrender to us now!" Demanded Xing Ge.

"Why should I surrender?" He then pointed to all his disciples who clearly outnumbered them. 

"Because your sect does not support you," Xing Ge said. 

King Leopard charged at Xing Ge. The place filled with a plume of smoke as Xing Ge's Palm of the Dragon attack was unleashed upon the chamber. Within the opaque haze, a blue glow formed into a ball. King Leopard unleashed the orb, striking Eight Lady. She screamed but remained standing. 

In a blink, the room was upon him and he was subdued by a throng of Jade Moon Sabres and Black Leopards. King Leopard had been betrayed by the women of Black Leopard Villa. 

This is where the session ended 

*This information was gained through an Empathy roll. 

**It was clear she didn't mean the whole martial world, just the immediate sphere of influence in the prefecture. 

CLASSIC WEREWOLVES

This is a small variant for the werewolf entry in Strange Tales of New England, meant to capture the feel of classic werewolves from movies like Curse of the Werewolf (1961) and The Wolf Man (1941). The best werewolf movies in my opinion are the original Wolf Man, and the Howling. But most werewolf movies tend to follow the template laid down in films like the latter rather than the former. In the original Wolf Man, Larry Talbot played by Lon Chaney Jr. (the son of the great Lon Chaney), is tormented by his condition. The character appears in a number of Universal films, with Chaney reprising the role, and it seems he is perennially searching for an end to his existence. One major difference between him and more modern werewolves, is while he can bite, he tends to simply strange people to death with brute strength. Some of this was due to production codes at the time. There is a similar tendency in Curse of the Werewolf. It creates a much different style of werewolf, something much more human-like. 

CURSED WEREWOLVES

These are werewolves cursed through a bite, the nature of their birth or conception or through some great evil act of their own, to transform during the light of the full moon. During the full moon, they transform into a human-wolf hybrid (their 'werewolf' form). In werewolf form, they possess enormous strength and stealth. They turn bestial, with sharp canine teeth, and claws at the ends of their fingers, but are human-like enough to be mistaken for men at a distance. When they transform they are completely overcome by a desire to kill, and always target those they care for the most. Note that this stat block is for a creature's werewolf form. In human form they would have normal Wits and all their regular skills and defenses. 

Defenses: Hardiness 7, Evade 8, Wits 2

Key Skills: Bite: 2d10 (4d10 Damage plus infection), Arm Strike:  1d10 (2d10 Damage with claws), Speed: 4d10, Muscle: 4d10 (see Strangulation), Detect: 6d10

Max Wounds: 7

POWERS

Regeneration: In human form they heal all injuries in one day. In werewolf form, they heel 1 wound a round. 

Strangulation: Each round they succeed in making a Muscle roll against Evade, they strangle the target. Targets pass out after two rounds and die in a number of rounds equal to their Hardiness if the werewolf continues strangling. 

Super Strength: They can easily lift heavy objects (up to 600 pounds without rolling Muscle), can break open doors or bend iron bars on a Muscle Roll TN 7, and can roll their Muscle to Strangle or Grapple with foes. 

Contagion: Anyone bitten (not scratched) by a cursed werewolf, becomes a werewolf on the next full moon. 

Stealth: Werewolves blend with the night and it requires two consecutive Detect TN 7 rolls to see them before they attack. 

Immunities: They can only be permanently harmed by silver weapons. Other weapons harm him but are subject to his regeneration ability. In his human form However even if killed, this is not necessarily a permanent state, as they are cursed to rise if full moonlight touches their grave.

Variations: Some cursed werewolves can suppress their transformation in the presence of a true love. Some are also only harmed by silver forged into a weapon from a melted crucifix. Others transform into werewolf form during intense emotional states in addition to transforming during the full moon. 

STRANGE TALES INSPIRATION: WIDOW'S BAY

Widow's Bay is a wonderful new show set in a small New England island. It is unclear in the series whether this is in Maine or Massachusetts, but it is a bit of a throw back to classic horror and classic shows. It is rare I come upon a new show I enjoy so I was skeptical going into this one. Created by Kate Dippold, Widow's Bay is a seamless blend of comedy and horror, with pitch perfect atmosphere for a small New England town. It is also a perfect fit for Strange Tales of New England. 

After my first viewing of the show, I posted by initial thoughts on the podcast (HERE).  I was very impressed, but had fallen asleep in sections because I watched it late at night. Since then I have finished the series and rewatched most of the episodes where I missed things. Going back and rewatching just strengthens my impression of the writing and direction, as well as the performances. I also have to amend my criticism of the accents. When I first watched it, I was a little disappointed at the lack of New England accents in the show. I understand one of the reasons they gave for not including them as much (that the Boston accent is so associated with humor and parody it would affect the tone), but the other explanation (that the accent is basically going away) didn't seem justified (it is a fading accent but still quite prevalent, especially in old isolated towns like this one). But I n
oticed that there are more accents than I caught at first, primarily among the local townies (the show refers to them as hicks, but townies is more the word you would hear in this region I think). 

I decided to do a Widow's Bay inspired one-shot for Strange Tales of New England. I know the basic background, and that the adventure will be a mystery with ticking stakes. I am going to employ an approach to mysteries I have been calling the sediment layer model. This is just an easier way for me to wrap my head around the backstory and clues, where instead of doing a trail of clues chart, I am going to draw a diagram that is a cross-section of sediment layers with the bedrock at the foundation (this is where the backstory and history go). Each layer builds on further history and clues. For example if the bedrock backstory is the spirit of a woman who drowned at sea, perhaps in one of the layer layers, a local writer penned a poem about her (this would serve as a potential clue). This will help me track clues over time as well. It is basically just a visual guide I intend to use for the timeline of strangeness in town over the years. If that doesn't work, I may just use a literal timeline, but this seems like it will give me more space to provide a sense of geography to things. 

Something else I want to incorporate, which was directly inspired by the show, is rumors about the PCs themselves. The adventure is a mystery and so investigation and finding rumors in town are key. The players will be able to go to a local pub and gather gossip. But people will also gossip about them, because this is a provincial Massachusetts town (I am going to use Marblehead as my location). This is what I have so far for handling rumors about the party: 

RUMORS ABOUT THE PCS

Not much has changed since the witch trials in the region. Rumors are silent forces that can bring harm, even death, to the characters. The more they interact with the community, the more they displease locals, the greater the chance people whisper about them. You should use your judgement in deciding what rumors spread and their effects, but you can roll on the following table, sliding results up the more positive an interaction is (so a very positive interaction might be +5). Below are descriptions of different levels of rumor, with an example of what it might mean 

1               Terrible Rumor: The players have committed crimes while in town, perhaps even murder 

2

3               Very Bad rumor: The players are outsiders come to cause problems or dig up dirt to sew discontent 

4

5               Bad rumor: Players are untrustworthy outsiders 

6               Good rumor: The players are reputable and not here to cause problems  

7

8               Very Good rumor: The players are here to help the town

9

10            Great rumor: The players have been making life better for the town since their arrival 

I decided to have my central evil be based on real events. This has opened up a number of interesting possibility for handouts. For example there is a history book about Marblehead written in 1880 that directly mentions the events, and so I will use a portion of this as a handout, but the players can also have access to the book and inspect it for themselves because it is available online. And there was a poem written about the events in the 20th century, which can also serve as a clue that helps create atmosphere. I am going to be playing around with history here, leaning into darker readings of the events to make them more fitting for a horror adventure. 

After the session I should be able to post the adventure itself here. 

STAR-CROSSED BLADES OF THE GREEN PEONY SESSION XVII

This is the seventeenth session of our Star-Crossed Blades of the Green Peony campaign for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (session I can be found HERE, session II can be found HERE, session III can be found HERE, session IV can be found HERE, Session V can be found HERE, session VI can be found HERE, Session VII can be found HERE, Session VIII can be found HERE, Session IX can be found HERE, Session X can be found HERE, Session XI can be found HERE). Session XII can be found HERE. Session XIII can be found HERE. It is set in Zhang Chang prefecture (which I hope to release a blog entry for). Session XIV can be found HERE. You can find session XV HERE. You can see session XVI HERE. In this campaign, every player rolled randomly to determine who their family are, how many siblings they have and whether individual family members are still alive. The players also gave very rough sketches of their background (no more than a few sentences) and I secretly added a "20-year" backstory to each one. I have implemented a special rule in this campaign that every encounter has a 3 in 10 chance of being connected to their secret backstory in some way. Note in this session I was play testing a specific scenario and the players were made aware prior to play.

CHARACTERS

QI YUN (MASTER POET QI YUN): A roaming martial expert who has secretly learned his martial arts from two different masters (and the masters have no knowledge of one another). 

XING GE: A traveling pipa player and the son of Lu Guiying the Iron Flower. His father died when he was five, and his mother married Gongsun Yuan, the chief of Black Parrot Society. Gongsun Yuan despises Xing Ge. 

TU JIN SHI (THUNDER LEGS): A wandering fighter seeking to be the strongest and most upright hero in the region. His father, Tu Haitao sent his mother away when he was young, after being consumed by grief over the passing of Jin Shi's brother, Tian. Shortly after his father died consuming a lethal concoction in a misguided effort to become immortal. 

LU LI (THE UNFILIAL ARCHER): A traveling physician who comes from a family of successful fishermen. 

A DUEL AND A RESCUE 

The party traveled by boat to the Yaoguai Forest to make their way to Black Leopard Villa. When they were about five miles from their destination, the trees and foliage turned dense and maze like, making it a two hour trek through the perimeter of the villa. In the first hour, they were attacked by two leopards. Lu Lin, Lu Li's younger brother, killed one with a hail of arrows. The other Xing Ge dazed with a potent fist technique as it leapt in to attack. Tu Jin Shi took the creature and tied it to a post so they could bring it to Black Leopard Villa.

The next hour was also no uneventful. As they made their way, a strange lady appeared before them, leaping into view from the surrounding woods. Her robes were a scintillating golden hue, but her features looked wretched and rotting. With hair flaring like lightning and a bizarre blue glow about her, she hissed. 

Xing Ge noticed something familiar about her features, which reminded me of his Jade Master Tu Yu, he and Qi Yun's new sifu. 

Approaching with a bow he said "My apologies Ma'am. I am Xing Ge. We are from Jade Moon Sabre sect and simply seeking passage here."

"I won't harm anyone from there," She said a strange expression on her face. 

"Who are you Ma'am?"

"My name is Golden Leopard," She said, then leapt like an animal into the dense forest and disappeared. 

Soon a rising hill with a small stream and waterfall revealed itself. Upon the hill was a sprawling courtyard villa, terraced wheat and millet  fields and a mine at the base of the hill's cliffs. Near the mine were stairs leading up the steep hillside. They saw men working the mines under threat of a whip, as the clan of amazons forced them to extract some kind of black substance. The fields were worked by women, but they too were working under the threat of whip.

Qi Yun, XIng Ge, Lu Li and Lu Lin, along with their servants, went towards the fields to stage a plan, while Tu Jin Shi approached the gates to create a distraction. 

*

"I am here to put an end to this wickedness!" Said Tu Jin Shi as he approached the villa gates, throwing down the leopard he had bound to a post. 

The female guard looked at him strangely. "You should not be here!"

"I have come to return your leopard and demand you free these enslaved people, for it is not righteous that you make them toil against their will!"

"I must detain you," Said the guard.

"I demand a challenge, a duel!"

The woman laughed heartily. Then whistled and called to someone at the stairs. A woman in white robes and a leopard skin cape walked down. 

"I challenge you!" Said Tu Jin Shi. "This whole place is unrighteous. You must free these people! One person for every one of you I beat!"

The woman bowed and struck at him with her palm, but he slipped to the side and used his Guiding the Crashing Wave technique* to hurl her to the ground with a thud. The woman seemed confused and concerned. 

"No further need," She stood and put her hand up. "I will take you to our master."

"Oh, you will? Good then, take me to your Master now."

The woman gestured for him to go up the stairs. As soon as he did she struck him in the back with both of her palms. Tu Jin Shi could sense a lethal and unusual energy emanating from her hands as she did so, however, while the attack struck, it didn't do him any harm**. 

*

Back at the hillside, the party launched a series of arrow volleys at the guards in the fields, bringing down three of them and injuring four others. Xing Ge then launched a Harmonizing Strike by playing his pipa that enervated their bodies. 

*

As this was going on, the Tu Jin Shi was lead into the rear courtyard and brought before a woman wearing black robes and a black leopard cape. 

This was Jade Leopard. 

"You dare enter Black Leopard Villa and ask me for a duel?" Tu Jin Shi could see her eyes held no mercy, and her body radiated a power he had never seen before***. "It is forbidden for you to be here. We should send you to the mines!"

"I challenge you to a fair fight!"

"I will not show restraint!"

"Very well, I shall show you restraint, should I win, but you will free all your slaves if I defeat you."

There was a murmur in the chamber and she scoffed. "Agreed! But you will only die!"

*

In the fields, Xing Ge sent sent ribbons of blue energy with his cascading phoenix attack at the fleeing guards. Qi Yun ushered the workers from the fields, guiding them to their retinue stationed at the bottom of the hill. 

Lu Li and Lu Lin spotted their mother int he fields and went to her to ask where their father was. 

"Son," she said. "We must flee at once, forget your father. They are too powerful!"

*

In the hall of Jade Leopard, Tu Jin Shi received one of her lethal palm attacks, but was able to redirect it as he had her senior disciple, with his guiding the crashing wave technique. She kept attacking with her palms, at one point using a furious attack that felt like it contained the power of the heavens, but he relied steadily upon this tactic, always redirecting her towards the ground. These counters were only enough to harm her slightly, but over time they wore her down. 

However, with every counter against the more powerful master, Tu Jin Shi's meridians became less and less stable. The flow of Qi was taxing his body and mind, and he felt a spirit intruding upon him. 

Tu Jin Shi taunted her to spark her rage, and with each failed attack, the women in the courtyard shifted uneasily. 

"I am Tu Jin Shi!" He screamed. "I will not stop, I will not yield." 

This continued for several exchanges until he threw her on the ground one last time, but was engulfed in a terrifying power from outside his body. 

*

The party waited at the base of the hill, in the distant woods where the sect could not see them. They saw a flash of blue light from the villa, then everything stilled with a dreadful silence. 

*This will become pivotal through this exchange

**The attack landed on the attack roll but not the damage roll, and he made an Endurance roll for a 10 result that warded off any other ill-effects.

***She was Qi Rank 8

THE TOURNAMENT REVIEW

I have a review of The Tournament, a 1974 Golden Harvest film starring Angela Mao. It was directed by Huang Feng, who worked with Mao alongside Sammo Hung and Carter Wong in other films like Hapkido (1972). I think it is an interesting film, that sometimes has a lower reputation than it deserves because of how the story is told. At times it may seem like it meanders a bit, but I enjoy spending time with these characters, and the whole film is built on a very powerful introduction in my opinion. The plot is fairly straight forward, after her father is disgraced because on of his Kung Fu students loses and died in a Muay Thai match in Thailand, Angela Mao and her brother compete in Thai Boxing to restore dignity to their family. Along the way we get plenty of martial arts club politics, and even a karate master who tries to take over her gym. It has a nice blend of fighting styles, with fight choreography from Sammo Hung. A great martial arts flick, staring two of the best physical performers from the 70s era. You can see my full review at easternKicks HERE. 

STAR-CROSSED BLADES OF THE GREEN PEONY SESSION XVI

This is the sixteenth session of our Star-Crossed Blades of the Green Peony campaign for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (session I can be found HERE, session II can be found HERE, session III can be found HERE, session IV can be found HERE, Session V can be found HERE, session VI can be found HERE, Session VII can be found HERE, Session VIII can be found HERE, Session IX can be found HERE, Session X can be found HERE, Session XI can be found HERE). Session XII can be found HERE. Session XIII can be found HERE. It is set in Zhang Chang prefecture (which I hope to release a blog entry for). Session XIV can be found HERE. You can find session XV HERE. In this campaign, every player rolled randomly to determine who their family are, how many siblings they have and whether individual family members are still alive. The players also gave very rough sketches of their background (no more than a few sentences) and I secretly added a "20-year" backstory to each one. I have implemented a special rule in this campaign that every encounter has a 3 in 10 chance of being connected to their secret backstory in some way. Note in this session I was play testing a specific scenario and the players were made aware prior to play.

CHARACTERS

QI YUN (MASTER POET QI YUN): A roaming martial expert who has secretly learned his martial arts from two different masters (and the masters have no knowledge of one another). 

XING GE: A traveling pipa player and the son of Lu Guiying the Iron Flower. His father died when he was five, and his mother married Gongsun Yuan, the chief of Black Parrot Society. Gongsun Yuan despises Xing Ge. 

TU JIN SHI (THUNDER LEGS): A wandering fighter seeking to be the strongest and most upright hero in the region. His father, Tu Haitao sent his mother away when he was young, after being consumed by grief over the passing of Jin Shi's brother, Tian. Shortly after his father died consuming a lethal concoction in a misguided effort to become immortal. 

LU LI (THE UNFILIAL ARCHER): A traveling physician who comes from a family of successful fishermen. 

A CACOPHONY OF PARROTS 

Xing Ge met with Han Changsi at Black Parrot lake to receive word on his messages. He gave the steward a tea brick gift. Steward Han told him that the whereabouts of the Black Leopard Villa may be known to Master Tu Yu of the Jade Moon Sabre sect. 

Then Xing Ge went to his mother and presented her with the evidence against Gongsun Yuan given to him by the magistrate.

".....'killed Dao Zheng and took his wife'....". A puzzled look crossed her face as she recited the words on the page. "What do you intend to do?"

Xing Ge explained his plan to take over Black Parrot Society then get revenge against Gongsun Yuan. He also said he intended to break the curse of Black Parrot Lake. His mother paced back and forth, seemingly very concerned, then a sudden look of resolve settled on her face."

"Very well, proceed," She thought for a moment. "I will keep your Stepfather distracted and take appropriate measures so he doesn't suspect anything in the meantime."

After, he left with the party to find Master Tu Yu in Henxian District. 

THE BEAUTY AND DEATH OF JADE MOON PALM 

The party traveled by boat to th Town of Laoshi, where they departed into the foothills and searched for Jade Moon Sabre sect*. Soon they happened upon a beggar cooking in a small camp on a hill. 

They approached and greeted him, and his response was enthusiastic. He informed them his name was Chan.  "We are seeking Master Tu Yu of Jade Moon Sabre Sect. Do you know where we can find them."

"Yes, yes," he said. "I know where The Jade Moon Sabre people are." He began pointed wildly o the south west and announced "They are that way!"

Something in his demeanor raised their suspicions. 

"Are you telling us the truth?" Tu Jin Shi asked. 

"Well not exactly," He paused and thought. "They are that way!" and he pointed to the south. Lu Li thanked him for his troubles, gave him a persimmon and partook of his mysterious meat soup**

Chan thanked them and then said "It is no trouble, but do not tell Master Tu Yu I was here. In fact, don't mention me at all when you see him."

"Well I can't lie," Said Tu Jin Shi. "That wouldn't be righteous."

"Tell you what," Said Chan. "If you keep quiet about me, I will take you to the Blind Bat."

"Is this your leader?" Asked Lu Li.

"Yes, the Chief of Immortal Bat cavern."

They agreed, and Tu Jin Shi promised to simply say nothing in order to avoid lying but also avoid revealing anything about Chan. 

They continued to travel in the hills, and on the second day failed to find Jade Moon Sabre Sect, but they did happen upon a group of Yen-Li Nuns led by an abbess. They were dressed in black robes and their faces appeared white and painted like death. 

Speaking with the Abbess they learned that Master Tu Yu was regarded as a strange man and that she was the leader of Hopping Ghost Temple. She also encouraged them to buy their paper talismans "lest they suffer the fate of others in the forest who failed to do so". They agreed and each bought one. As they were leaving the party recalled that the Sword of the Parrot King, the object needed to end the curse, was housed by Hopping Ghost Temple.***

Another day of travel and the party once again failed to find Master Tu Yu or his disciples.**** However they met a blind monk named Nansheng who seemed lost and hungry. When they found out he had been heading to Town of Laoshi, they decided to take a detour and guide him there. When the town was in sight he walked away from them and said "There is an inventor in the prefecture who devised a method of breathing underwater."

Then he disappeared as did the town itself. The party realized he had led them into Jade Moon Sabre's encampment. All the women of the sect were exceptionally beautiful and some of them carried Guqins, which attracted the attention of Xing Ge. It was explained the regular disciples were called Jade Moon Sabres while the ones with musical instruments were called Jade Harmonies. They were led to Master Tu Yu for an audience. 

After introductions and a recounting of their journey, Master Tu Yu said "You surely had a fortuitous encounter with a Bat Demon!" Expressing concern, he reassured them that Bat Demons were benevolent creatures. 

They then explained their purpose was to find Black Leopard Villa to rescue Lu Li's parents. Master Tu Tu asked for more information about the party which they volunteered. He expressed his utter hatred for the sect and told them he would agree. When Xing Ge and Qi Yun said they had interest in learning his martial arts, he said he would take male disciples, something he normally would not allow, on the condition that they brought back members of Black Leopard Villa for him to torture information out of. 

Master Tu Yu then performed a demonstration of his Jade Moon Sabre technique by slicing through three bound tree trunks with his hand. The party was impressed and asked for more information about the beggars living in Immortal Bat Cavern, if they were good people. 

"They are mostly alright," He said. "But that stupid beggar Chan, so perverted, always trying to catch a glimpse of my beautiful disciples. It makes my heart fume with rage!" And he chopped the air. 

"I must tell you then," Said Xing Ge, "We saw him the other day on a nearby hill."

"What?!" Master Tu Yu pointed at four of his disciples "You come with me!"

He then turned to Xing Ge "Show me the way so I can smash his skull with my Jade Moon Palm!"

Tu Jin Shu refused to participate and would only go halfway with them (he offered to stay behind in the camp but Master Tu Yu did not trust him to remain among his disciples). They continued on and found Chan resting in his camp. 

"You two!" Master Tu Yu pointed at Qi Yun and Xing Ge. "Restrain him for me!" They leapt forward to attack, and Lu Li joined in. 

*

Waiting for the party, Tu Jin Shi spoke to the Bat Demon, not knowing if it could hear his word. He explained what happened and asked it to intervene if Chan is deserving. The ground began to shift and from the earth, emerged a wooden mask, similar to an opera mask, with stylized bat features painted on it. Tu Jin Shi thanked the Bat Demon and promised to protect the mask. 

*

Xing Ge blasted Chan with a flow of blue phoenix energy, then Lu Li slammed his head with a bow. Rushing forward, Master Tu Yu struck Chan with both palms, obliterating a portion of his skull. Chan collapsed in a bloody pile. 

Master Tu Yu laughed and pointed at the remains. "Your first lesson: This is how you use Jade Moon Palm!". He then kicked the body and instructed his disciples to bury it. 

"Excellent!" He said to Xing Ge and Qi Yun. "Your information was good. I will make you full disciples when you return!". 

He then told them where to find Black Leopard Villa. The session ended after the party regrouped. 

*This was a series of Inverted Encounter Rolls

**The meat was quail

***This was a fated encounter

****They were searched a small, four hex area of the map 

STAR-CROSSED BLADES OF THE GREEN PEONY SESSION XV

This is the fifteenth session of our Star-Crossed Blades of the Green Peony campaign for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (session I can be found HERE, session II can be found HERE, session III can be found HERE, session IV can be found HERE, Session V can be found HERE, session VI can be found HERE, Session VII can be found HERE, Session VIII can be found HERE, Session IX can be found HERE, Session X can be found HERE, Session XI can be found HERE). Session XII can be found HERE. Session XIII can be found HERE. It is set in Zhang Chang prefecture (which I hope to release a blog entry for). Session XIV can be found HERE. In this campaign, every player rolled randomly to determine who their family are, how many siblings they have and whether individual family members are still alive. The players also gave very rough sketches of their background (no more than a few sentences) and I secretly added a "20-year" backstory to each one. I have implemented a special rule in this campaign that every encounter has a 3 in 10 chance of being connected to their secret backstory in some way. Note in this session I was play testing a specific scenario and the players were made aware prior to play.

CHARACTERS

QI YUN (MASTER POET QI YUN): A roaming martial expert who has secretly learned his martial arts from two different masters (and the masters have no knowledge of one another). 

XING GE: A traveling pipa player and the son of Lu Guiying the Iron Flower. His father died when he was five, and his mother married Gongsun Yuan, the chief of Black Parrot Society. Gongsun Yuan despises Xing Ge. 

TU JIN SHI (THUNDER LEGS): A wandering fighter seeking to be the strongest and most upright hero in the region. His father, Tu Haitao sent his mother away when he was young, after being consumed by grief over the passing of Jin Shi's brother, Tian. Shortly after his father died consuming a lethal concoction in a misguided effort to become immortal. 

LU LI (THE UNFILIAL ARCHER): A traveling physician who comes from a family of successful fishermen. 

PAINTED DEATHS AND DEMON EMPERORS 

Making their way to Lanyin, the party stayed at the Tu Association Headquarters and discovered that Wan Lu, the man that had sold them steamed buns along the roadside, had in fact come to them to hire escorts to transport goods to the Green Raksha Inn. Tu Jin Shi's brother said he believed it was a black inn*.

Xing Ge, after getting word from The Black Parrot Society, explained that Guo Chiang, before he was killed at the River Spirit Inn, had been planning to level a formal accusation of Tea Theft at the Prefect. Such an accusation was serious with a penalty of strangulation. The Black Parrot Society also confirmed rumors that the prefect's wife was a demon or spirit. He had asked about Lady Yi Huang as well, and the message included a note from his mother saying Lady Yi Huang was a terrible person who must be killed. 

Qi Yun went with Xing Ge to find Jade Priestess in the wilderness. When they found her, they explained that it was their belief that Lady Sun Niao was instigating the conflict between Lively Luan Sect and the Demon Moon Cult. 

"Perhaps she suspects my motives for encouraging you to befriend her husband," Jade Priestess mused. "We will have to address that, but in the meantime, I have wonderful news. Lively Luan is wiped out, only Lady Luan survives. She is hiding somewhere in the prefecture, so if you find her, kill her and bring me her head in a box."

"May I ask," Said Qi Yun. "What is our motivation for befriending the prefect?"

"To align ourselves with the empire," Said Jade Priestess. "We venerate the demon emperor, and it is our belief the Glorious Emperor is staging his return. Some even believe he is Yao-Feng himself. And of course, the prefect is known to deal with exotic supernatural things, we may be able to learn powerful rituals if we are connected to him personally."

Xing Ge excused himself from their presence and she then instructed Qi Yun in Illuminating Ice Claw, as well as a ritual of offering to the Demon Emperor that required a human sacrifice. She explained it was a powerful ritual that allowed the caster to receive a gift from the Demon Emperor. 

THE WORD OF RED JADE MANSION 

The party returned to River Village, so Lu Li could join with his brother and take him with them to find their parents who had been abducted by Black Leopard Sect. When they arrived, he was using a firelance and bow, and thanked Tu Jin Shi for the give. 

"I gave you no such thing," Said Tu Jin Shi.

"It was left with a note from 'Your martial uncle' so I assumed it was you Uncle Tu Jin Shi."

They speculated on who could have sent it, concluding there were a number of possibilities. The firelance was of high quality metal, something that could be passed down for generations. 

Xing Ge sent another pigeon to Black Parrot Society asking if the location of Black Leopard Sect were known, and where he could learn the Fists of Yanshi techniques. Before going to Black Parrot Society to get a response to the queries and address some other concerns, they made a detour to Senzhou. Once there they made their daily appearance before the Prefect in his curio hall, where he asked to speak to Qi Yun alone. 

"My wife has recommended a master that aligns well with your natural aptitudes. Do what you want with this information, but she recommends you seek out Master Tu Yu of Jade Moon Sabre Sect."

"Sabre doesn't sound like it would be suitable for my style," Qi Yun said. 

"My understanding is once you meet him, you will understand that his style is a perfect fit."

Qi Yun thanked him and Xing Ge asked for a private audience before they left. After he greeted the prefect Xing Ge asked if any evidence had been obtained regarding Gongsun Yuan. 

"You were right to come to me about this matter as it seems your stepfather is indeed guilty of terrible things. I have in possession this sworn testimony from the Master of Red Jade Mansion. In his words, he witnessed Gongsun Yuan boast the following: "I killed Dao Zheng and took his wife....HA. HA. HA." 

Xing Ge thanked him and took a copy of the testimony. "I must also report something unsavory I am afraid. While conducting our investigation into the killing of Guo Chiang, we found people spreading rumors about your wife."

The prefect quaked visibly and clenched his fists in rage. "Thank you for bringing this to my attention. Cut out the tongues of anyone spreading these vile rumors, let all know we will not tolerate rumor-mongering in this prefecture!"

"I am afraid some of the people spreading these falsehoods were members of high society," Said Xing Ge. 

"In that case, anyone who doesn't matter, remove their tongue, anyone who does matter, submit their name to me." 

The party left and arrived at The Black Parrot Headquarters on the 2nd of the Dog Moon. This is where the session ended. 

*Black inns serve human meat 

REMEMBERING BILL

 

STAR-CROSSED BLADES OF THE GREEN PEONY SESSION XIV

This is the fourteenth session of our Star-Crossed Blades of the Green Peony campaign for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (session I can be found HERE, session II can be found HERE, session III can be found HERE, session IV can be found HERE, Session V can be found HERE, session VI can be found HERE, Session VII can be found HERE, Session VIII can be found HERE, Session IX can be found HERE, Session X can be found HERE, Session XI can be found HERE). Session XII can be found HERE. Session XIII can be found HERE. It is set in Zhang Chang prefecture (which I hope to release a blog entry for). In this campaign, every player rolled randomly to determine who their family are, how many siblings they have and whether individual family members are still alive. The players also gave very rough sketches of their background (no more than a few sentences) and I secretly added a "20-year" backstory to each one. I have implemented a special rule in this campaign that every encounter has a 3 in 10 chance of being connected to their secret backstory in some way. Note in this session I was play testing a specific scenario and the players were made aware prior to play.

CHARACTERS

QI YUN (MASTER POET QI YUN): A roaming martial expert who has secretly learned his martial arts from two different masters (and the masters have no knowledge of one another). 

XING GE: A traveling pipa player and the son of Lu Guiying the Iron Flower. His father died when he was five, and his mother married Gongsun Yuan, the chief of Black Parrot Society. Gongsun Yuan despises Xing Ge. 

TU JIN SHI (THUNDER LEGS): A wandering fighter seeking to be the strongest and most upright hero in the region. His father, Tu Haitao sent his mother away when he was young, after being consumed by grief over the passing of Jin Shi's brother, Tian. Shortly after his father died consuming a lethal concoction in a misguided effort to become immortal. 

LU LI (THE UNFILIAL ARCHER): A traveling physician who comes from a family of successful fishermen. 

THE PAINTED MAIDEN 

Reflecting on their experience hearing a Black Parrot utter the words about the lifting the Curse at Black Parrot Lake, Xing Ge asked his men about the Tomb of the Parrot King and how it came to be cursed. They told him that when his sword was stolen ages ago, it sank and was flooded until the area became a lake. One of his men, A-Fu, said "I know where the sword is kept." And explained it was known to be an artifact of Hopping Ghost Temple. 

Believing the murders of Qi Yun's co-disciples were the most pressing matter, he then asked his men if any knew about recent rumors about Painted Maiden sightings*. They informed him, they had heard of sightings happening along the river, of bodies being found by members of Chi Song River Gang. They also said a body was found in the town of Jiaoshi. 

Xing Ge left two of his men behind to watch their new abode. They took passage on an imperial tea vessel. On the ship, Tu Jin Shi was looking for anyone who might be a painted maiden and happened to notice a famed courtesan named Gentle Moon Qin. Asking about her, he learned she was a favorite of General Lu, a minor commander in the area**. Tu Jin Shi began to follow the courtesan, but when she turned her nose up at him and walked away, he decided this was a sign she was just a normal person. 

The players knew that there was a famous inn in Jiaoshi run by a woman rumored to be a Fox Spirit, Lady Xuan Chi. They also understood, even though the city was governed by City Lord Shuang Yi, the true power in the region was the Fox Spirit and that her organization, River Spirit Sect, was quite powerful. 

They decided to go to the River Spirit Inn to speak with her. There they found a large inn upon an island in the river, shrouded in a dense mist, its multiple stories rising high into the sky, with each one offering a greater pleasure than the one below. 

They met with her on a balcony of the second story, but Tu Jin Shi's gruff ways were off-putting to her. She did explain that about a week prior, someone was found dead in one of the inn rooms, a merchant named Guo Chiang. People had said it looked like a painted maiden killed him. 

"And what would a Painted Maiden look like?" Tu Jin Shi asked. 

"Like a normal person of course," Said Lady Xuan Chi. "They can assume human form and use this to live among us and devour victims. This is just a rumor of course, the constables handled the matter."

Though she was growing more and more irritated by Tu Jin Shi's unrefined manners, when it came to her attention that Master Poet Qi Yun was among his group, she took more interest in them. 

"Did anyone interact with the merchant here before his death?" Tu Jin Shi asked. 

"Yes, a number of people did."

"Well I believe I have learned everything we can, thank you for your help."

"Do you want to know their identities?" Asked Lady Xuan Chi (at this point she was fully contemptuous of him). 

Tu Jin Shi indicated he woud very much like to know this information. 

"If Master Poet Qi Yun would honor us with an exclusive Huaben, only to be performed at my establishment, I would be willing to provide you these details." 

Qi Yun wrote a story about a beggar dreaming of ascending the 18 levels of pleasure at The River Spirit Inn***, set to music composed by Xing Ge****. 

She explained that merchant Guo Chiang had interacted with Magistrate Lao of Yue Town, who had been staying at the inn and on friendly terms with him. He also spoke with the Prefect's wife, Sun Niao. Red Cicada, a courtesan at the River Spirit Inn, had spent a night with him. And Lady Yi Huang of Huo Long Cavern Sect had spoken to Guo Chiang. 

"Why were so many influential people speaking with him?" Asked Lu Li. 

"Because he is obscenely wealthy." Said Lady Xuan Chi. 

They also found out that the body was already buried then secured a dinner audience with Red Cicada, which cost them five hundred spades. 

During the meal, they asked about what she discussed with Guo Chiang but refused to disclose that saying it was private. She did say Sun Niao had concerns about Guo Chiang's activities, and agreed that he was likely killed by a Painted Maiden. 

They pressed her further about Sun Niao and she said there were rumors she was such a creature. Explaining that people knew she was the one the prefect sent to deal with his enemies. She also confirmed that Sun Niao was the last person seen with Guo Chiang. However after telling them her suspicions about Sun Niao, Red Cicada became visibly fearful and as they were leaving she clutched Xing Ge by the hand saying and gazing at him intently "I cannot rest easy after speaking so openly about the Prefect's wife. As long as she lives I will be fearful."

Xing Ge sent a messenger pigeon to Black Parrot society asking about the Prefect's wife and all the other suspects, with instructions for the response to be sent to their nearest outpost in Lanyin. Before leaving they went to the constable and spoke with the coroner. 

The coroner confirmed that the body appeared eaten by a large mouth, and one that could be mistaken for alligator bites. He told them as well that no noise was mentioned by anyone at the inn during the time of the murder, but emphasized it was a pleasure house where such sounds could easily be misinterpreted or ignored. He also expected more papers and other items in the room, so suspected things were taken. 

When they asked if any evidence was found he handed Xing Ge a jade hairpin and said it was clutched in the dead man's hand. He also noted there were signs Guo Chiang fought back. 

Xing Ge remembered seeing the hairpin before when they first met Sun Niao on the boat. 

Before leaving the constable told them the case was effectively closed. 

This is where the session ended. 

*I had assigned an "Information Network" rating of 0d10 to his men, for occasions like this. I rolled 2d10 to take the lowest and got an 8. 

**This was intentional disinformation by her true client: Chief Patrolling Inspector Luo Sha (who was traveling in secret on the ship). 

***There are not literally 18 levels at the inn, but he chose the number for poetic reasons. 

****They both got 9s on their rolls, so the story and music were of very high quality and acceptable to Lady Xuan Chi. 

REVIEW OF STRANGE TALES OF NEW ENGLAND

Art by Jackie Musto 

I wanted to mention a great review of Strange Tales of New England over at RPG Overviews. People should check out this channel as I found his review to be very thorough. He has a massive number of reviews, including some things like reviews of the 2E Complete books (which I am a big fan of). The channel covers OSR and other types of RPGs too. The review goes into considerable detail on Strange Tales of New England so I think people will find it helpful for seeing what is inside the book. You can check out the review HERE  

If you want to check out Strange Tales of New England itself, the PDF is available at DrivethruRPG (HERE) and the print version is available at Studio 2 (HERE). 

I believe the print is currently out of stock, but that should just be a temporary issue. 

LUST FOR LOVE FOR A CHINESE COURTESAN

I recently reviewed Lust ror Love for a Chinese Courtesan (1984) at easternKicks (which you can read HERE). It is a remake by the great Shaw Brother's director Chor Yuen, of his seminal film Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan. I have talked a lot about the latter here, and it is one of my favorite movies, but this was my first time seeing Lust for Love, and watching it dispelled a lot of misconceptions I had about the movie. While I had always heard it was much more graphic than the first in terms of sexual content, and it is to a large degree, it is still a real movie and not simply an excuse to string together nude scenes. There is genuine drama behind it all.  It also tells us a very different story than the first one, and some of the most intriguing changes, like having the two female leads no longer be martial artists, take the story to unexpected places. While it certainly doesn't rival the first movie, and it shows signs of strain as a mid-80s Shaw Brothers outing, it had some good ideas. Unfortunately those ideas still mostly make it amount to mid-level entertainment for me, and some of the sex sequences veer into the unintentionally amusing (though I could be wrong and the amusement might be intentional). I am glad I saw it though as one thing it delivers is more of Lady Chun's perspective. Check out my review to see my full thoughts on Lust for Love of a Chinese Courtesan. This review was part of a two part series on the Imprint Asia boxed set that includes both Lust for Love and Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan. I highly recommend the boxed set. It has great commentary and the original film is a masterpiece. 

STAR-CROSSED BLADES OF THE GREEN PEONY SESSION XIII

This is the thirteenth session of our Star-Crossed Blades of the Green Peony campaign for Wandering Heroes of Ogre Gate (session I can be found HERE, session II can be found HERE, session III can be found HERE, session IV can be found HERE, Session V can be found HERE, session VI can be found HERE, Session VII can be found HERE, Session VIII can be found HERE, Session IX can be found HERE, Session X can be found HERE, Session XI can be found HERE). It is set in Zhang Chang prefecture (which I hope to release a blog entry for). In this campaign, every player rolled randomly to determine who their family are, how many siblings they have and whether individual family members are still alive. The players also gave very rough sketches of their background (no more than a few sentences) and I secretly added a "20-year" backstory to each one. I have implemented a special rule in this campaign that every encounter has a 3 in 10 chance of being connected to their secret backstory in some way. Note in this session I was play testing a specific scenario and the players were made aware prior to play.

CHARACTERS

QI YUN (MASTER POET QIN YUN): A roaming martial expert who has secretly learned his martial arts from two different masters (and the masters have no knowledge of one another). 

XING GE: A traveling pipa player and the son of Lu Guiying the Iron Flower. His father died when he was five, and his mother married Gongsun Yuan, the chief of Black Parrot Society. Gongsun Yuan despises Xing Ge. 

TU JIN SHI (THUNDER LEGS): A wandering fighter seeking to be the strongest and most upright hero in the region. His father, Tu Haitao sent his mother away when he was young, after being consumed by grief over the passing of Jin Shi's brother, Tian. Shortly after his father died consuming a lethal concoction in a misguided effort to become immortal. 

LU LI (THE UNFILIAL ARCHER): A traveling physician who comes from a family of successful fishermen. 

THE CURIOSITIES OF PREFECT DIAO YUE 

The party arrived in Shenzhou, and went immediately to the Chi Song River Gambling Hall. Tu Jin Shi played a game of "Three Dice Wagering". Not understanding how the game was played, and believing the most righteous won, he annoyed the gamblers with questions about betting. He placed a bet on number eight and won a silver tael, then gave it to another player at the table before joining the rest of the party to get rooms. 

That night, Qi Yun wrote another huaben story based on Tu Jin Shi's experience gambling, called Fortune Favors the Bold, the point of which was 'you don't need to be the luckiest person, you just need to be luckier than the unluckiest." This was in part preparation for his audience with the prefect, as he had given the only copy of his other masterpiece to a man in Naiojing to copy. When the new work was done, he knew it was almost on par with his other great work*. 

The next day they presented the Red Talisman from the Prefect's wife at the city gates and were brought to a private audience with the Prefect in his Hall of Curiosities (where he kept a collection of unusual artifacts). 

Qi Yun presented the story to the Prefect, who called in a woman to read it out loud. When she was done, he was visibly moved and impressed**. 

"My wife spoke highly of you, and you are clearly a storyteller of considerable genius! I will have a plaque commissioned in your honor to pace above the entrance to your home."

The party explained they didn't have regular living quarters and the prefect promised to have a house ready for Qi Yun by the end of the day. He also spoke with the rest of the party, saying he had heard they were all men of great capabilities. 

He then explained that he wanted their help securing a special object: the Huo Long Pearl. It was the prized relic of Huo Long Cavern Sect and people believed it enabled safe travel through bitter cold. 

Tu Jin Shi expressed some reservation and the prefect said "Their leader, Lady Yi Huang, is a bitter, vicious old woman, removing the pearl from her possession would be a service to the world."

He also clarified that he wasn't seeking to harm Lady Yi Huang, he simply wanted her pearl, and needed men who could take it without her knowing it had been stolen. 

Tu Jin Shi was still concerned if stealing the pearl was righteous. And the prefect kindly told him one of the chief virtues of the world is loyalty. "Is there anything under heaven as prized as loyalty? He asked, and this woman has broken the bonds of loyalty many times over. Whereas I, a loyal to my servants and they loyal to me. He guided Tu Jin Shi through the curiosity collection with a friendly arm extolling the virtues of loyalty and reciprocity. 

By the end of the conversation he had taken the party into his circle as 'advisers' with a 3,000 spade per month stipend. They were told to visit his manor once a day to see if he needed anything, unless they were out on another assignment. And he cheerfully told them, he would only require daily help on rare occasions. 

They retired to Qi Yun's new home, and the next day a plaque arrived that read "The Master Storyteller of Zhang Chang. whose wit and insight is unrivaled". 

The party then recalled that Tu Jin Shi possessed a butterfly sword from the son of Lady Yi Huang, that denoted him as a friend of the sect. When the issue was brought to everyone's attention, they thought to use this without Tu Jin Shi's knowledge to steal the pearl. But after Qi Yun spoke again in private with the prefect, the prefect said:

"Your companion, Xing Ge, he has a quarrel with Black Parrot society, true?"

Qi Yun confirmed this was the case. 

"I am fond of Tu Jin Shi, and would not ask him to violate a friendship. There is another pearl I covet, this one possessed by Gongsun Yuan of Black Parrot Society: The Shui Long Pearl, said to enable breathing under water. If you procure this for me instead, I think that would be just as ideal as the Huo Long Pearl."

This is where we ended the session. 

*The player rolled a 10 on his Talent Skill roll. 

**The woman also rolled 10