Post by sevateem on Jan 4, 2010 1:25:27 GMT
Background: An Aeschylus class space freighter, The Epsilon III, has crashed landed on a dwarf planet located in the Djordokian Cluster of the outer rim galaxies. Space pirates attacked the Epsilon III while she was on route to Halifax Station. She was able to scare off the space pirates but took damage in return. The Epsilon III tumbled through space and was able to crash land on an uncharted dwarf planet. The lower hull of the ship took considerable damage and some areas were rendered off limits due to decompression. The crew took stock of the situation and began repairs. The ship's captain encourages his crew while secretly wondering what is attacking his ship. It is a hunch that he doesn't share with his crew until it is too late. An ancient alien intelligence has taken interest in the crash site and begins to prey on the crew one at a time.
The Threat: A giant fungus colony that has gained sentience over the passing of several millennia. It is known as Pengali Utoru (an ancient name meaning 'the Hive of the Dark'). It lives in the centre of the dwarf planet. It senses the crew of the cashed freighter and has sent fungi polyps of itself through caverns towards the surface. By its nature, Pengali Utoru prefers the dark. Intense light will hurt it and causes damage to the fungi that makes up its body. It will stick to shadows and the cover of the night as it targets the crew.
Unlucky crew members will be exposed to these spores and become hosts for Pengali Utoru. It wishes to spread its spores to new hosts so it can grow and escape the confines of the small dwarf planet. When it infects living creatures, it can learn what they know. It can infect dead bodies and animate them but cannot learn from them. The dead are just a food source. The living are a food and information source.
The Character Hook: Perhaps the TARDIS has picked up the freighter's distress beacon and the crew have arrived to see if they can help. The infestation of the freighter crew has only just begun so a few of the members will begin to behave strangely before the signs of obvious infection appear (strange yellow-green fungus covers the skin). Full infection means the body rips and tears open as fungus spores erupt from the poor victim.
Other Ideas: The game master can add to the seriousness of the situation by playing up the character conflicts among the Aeschylus crew and that of the PCs. Perhaps there are ancient ruins on the dwarf planet that tell of Pengali Utoru and the threat is represents to animal life in the universe. There could even be another spaceship on the dwarf planet that is space worthy but the crew died on impact (without the crew to infect, Pengali Utoru could not learn how to fly the ship).
The Threat: A giant fungus colony that has gained sentience over the passing of several millennia. It is known as Pengali Utoru (an ancient name meaning 'the Hive of the Dark'). It lives in the centre of the dwarf planet. It senses the crew of the cashed freighter and has sent fungi polyps of itself through caverns towards the surface. By its nature, Pengali Utoru prefers the dark. Intense light will hurt it and causes damage to the fungi that makes up its body. It will stick to shadows and the cover of the night as it targets the crew.
Unlucky crew members will be exposed to these spores and become hosts for Pengali Utoru. It wishes to spread its spores to new hosts so it can grow and escape the confines of the small dwarf planet. When it infects living creatures, it can learn what they know. It can infect dead bodies and animate them but cannot learn from them. The dead are just a food source. The living are a food and information source.
The Character Hook: Perhaps the TARDIS has picked up the freighter's distress beacon and the crew have arrived to see if they can help. The infestation of the freighter crew has only just begun so a few of the members will begin to behave strangely before the signs of obvious infection appear (strange yellow-green fungus covers the skin). Full infection means the body rips and tears open as fungus spores erupt from the poor victim.
Other Ideas: The game master can add to the seriousness of the situation by playing up the character conflicts among the Aeschylus crew and that of the PCs. Perhaps there are ancient ruins on the dwarf planet that tell of Pengali Utoru and the threat is represents to animal life in the universe. There could even be another spaceship on the dwarf planet that is space worthy but the crew died on impact (without the crew to infect, Pengali Utoru could not learn how to fly the ship).
