[Scenario Seed] The Mysterious Pocket Watch

[Catsmate]

The Mysterious Pocket Watch

In between fox-watching (they’re bringing the cubs to eat in our garden now, vulpine family feast time ) I’ve been joining a couple of my house-mates in a Twilight Zone binge (the original B&W incarnation). And of course culling the episodes for gaming ideas.
This led me to the Twilight Zone Wiki and the comic stories, one of which, was Journey into Jeopardy about a pocket watch that allowed an old man to travel back in time.
Hmmmm...

Pop Dunphy was an elderly man who liked to spend his time sharing stories from his eventful past to a young boy named Danny Carlin loved to listen to them. One day Pop was telling the boy about the time he had spent in the nearby Black Hills, as a scout for George Custer, and stumbled upon a lost goldmine. Danny's parents were not sure the old man was a positive influence on their son, filling him with ideas of adventure that could lead him into trouble and away from his school work.
Despite this, Danny's father could not bring himself to chase the frequent visitor away. Pop Dunphy was a fixture in the community, dating back to his grandfather's time. He had heard quite a few Dunphy stories himself, over the years. He urged his son not to believe every detail of what the elderly man said, knowing Pop was a great storyteller. Danny's curiousity had already been ignited.

He promised to some day find the old lost mine.

Now the first thing that struck me was the dates don't fit¹. The story was published, and presumably set, in 1963 while Custer (and >300 others) died in 1876 so either the story is set significantly earlier, ‘Pop’ was very young when he scouted for Custer or he lived over a century.
But then maybe he did.....

To summarise. After an accident, which his parents blame Pop for, young Danny is injured and needs expensive treatment. Pop is guilt ridden and transported back in time while holding the pocket watch given to him by Custer. He appears in an abandoned gold mine in the Sierra Mountains, grabs some gold nuggets, and evades some hostile ‘Indians’, before returning to the present. The gold he retrieved is valuable (about five hundred dollars, so he grabbed at least a half-kilo) but not enough to pay for the treatment Danny needs. So Pop plans another trip but was overheard selling the gold by a local ne’er-do-well named Mike Durand.
Naturally Mike grabs the watch, ends up enslaved by the Natives (who smash the watch) but Pop gets the gold.
Presumable Danny recovers.

Interesting.
I was reminded of the audio The Haunting of Malkin Place which also featured a time travelling watch.
Now the pocket (or fob) watch is associated in the Whoniverse with the biodata module, part of the Chameleon Arch system, which contained 'essences' of a disguised Time Lord. But many incarnations of the Doctor carried one² and other time travellers too. Adler³ used one to escape the nineteenth century, and the short-lived series Voyagers! also had a fob watch time machine. And a fob watch that could stop time appeared in MacDonald's The Girl The Gold Watch And Everything.


So here's my idea: what if the watch can take a suitable user (Psychic or Vortex traits for example, or just under a lot of stress) to whenever it has been, or will be? It's origins can be kept fuzzy, maybe it was part of the gear of a New Ultonian warrior-historian and lost sometime? Or improvised from a Gallifreyan Time Ring by a desperate deserter from the Last Time War.
Passed down in a family perhaps? Or picked up in a junk shop. Or gifted from a prior holder.

• The "pocket" watch dates from the early sixteenth century (usually credited to Peter Henlein in 1510) but wasn't actually carried in a pocket and was rather bulky. The true pocket model was developed in the seventeenth century with the waistcoat popularised by Charles II.
  

Of course to avoid creating a paradox the watch should avoid the exact location of it's prior iteration (and holder); they may be seen, or even casually interacted with, but there shouldn't be directly confronted. There might be a perception filtration effect at work or the watches repel each other, slightly altering probability to avoid contact (the Blinovitch Limitation Effect in play).

This could be a one-off scenario, perhaps the party detect some traveller passing through the Vortex, or find anachronistic objects in the past or future, or even meet someone in the past (or future) using the watch. Alternatively the watch may be the cause of a Mysterious Disappearance that needs to be investigated in the present day (or elsewhen).

The Misfit Mob might have a case dumped on them.
A woman has vanished from a house on the day of her great-uncle's funeral. Normally this would be a police matter but there are odd circumstances. Ms. Veronika Gilmore was in her great-aunt's house, with a number of friends of the deceased, when the coffin was being collected. Going upstairs for a moment she has not been seen again. There were people in the next-door garden, the undertakers were outside the front and she seems to have disappeared into thin air in the manner of Mr. James Phillimore.....


Ideas? Comments? Suggestions?








1. I have an obsessive mindset.

2. One, Two, Three, Four, Six, Seven, Eight, War, Eleven. At least.

3. In the webcomic Adler's watch.

[grinch]

Oh man, you’re going to find some great examples of scenarios when it comes to The Twilight Zone.

Personally, I’d keep the origin behind the watch a complete mystery myself. In true GM fashion, offer a few potential possibilities but never confirm any of them. Hell, with the amount of changes to history in the Whoniverse all these origins might be true! Albeit at some point or another.

I rather like the idea of it being an artefact that’s been handed down throughout the generations. Which in itself might cause some problems with the chronology of a single family. Reckless use of such a device might create paradoxes which would result in some family members being erased from existence yet not from the memories of the family.

You could even do something along the lines of a distant descendant from the far flung future is the one responsible for the watch being in their family’s possession in the first place. Travelling back in time to have it placed in an antique shop to be discovered by their ancient ancestor who first stumbled across it, thus creating a closed loop.

[Catsmate]

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

Oh man, you’re going to find some great examples of scenarios when it comes to The Twilight Zone.

Absolutely I think I'll go through the series more methodically and start dumping ideas into my notes files.
The eclectic mix of sci-fi/horror/sci-fan and just weird happenings is really perfect for Who.

Even the titles are an excellent source of inspirations.

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

Personally, I’d keep the origin behind the watch a complete mystery myself. In true GM fashion, offer a few potential possibilities but never confirm any of them. Hell, with the amount of changes to history in the Whoniverse all these origins might be true! Albeit at some point or another.

That seems like the best approach; the watch is here, it does strange stuff (the extent and limits of which the players and PCs don't know) and let them theorise, with occasional hints of dubious accuracy.

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

I rather like the idea of it being an artefact that’s been handed down throughout the generations. Which in itself might cause some problems with the chronology of a single family. Reckless use of such a device might create paradoxes which would result in some family members being erased from existence yet not from the memories of the family.

Or perhaps they are erased from history, but the watch protects their existence....

The family might have 'cousins' who altered the past and prevented their births, but who still exist. They might be integrated into the family, or exiled outsiders who plot on the sidelines.
Quite likely such a family would have rules about using the watch, and members who disagree with them.

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

You could even do something along the lines of a distant descendant from the far flung future is the one responsible for the watch being in their family’s possession in the first place. Travelling back in time to have it placed in an antique shop to be discovered by their ancient ancestor who first stumbled across it, thus creating a closed loop.

Ah yes, a closed time-loop, one of my favourite devices (some of my players dislike them). It;s a good backstory; maybe a descendant was a New Ultonian warrior-historian, or was swept up into the Last Time War.

The watch, as a MacGuffin, is rather like the 'Matrix' of the of Timelords RPG. It's origins are mysterious (at least at first) but it's usable.

[grinch]

Jul 21, 2021 10:44:43 GMT Catsmate said:

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

Oh man, you’re going to find some great examples of scenarios when it comes to The Twilight Zone.

Absolutely I think I'll go through the series more methodically and start dumping ideas into my notes files.
The eclectic mix of sci-fi/horror/sci-fan and just weird happenings is really perfect for Who.

Even the titles are an excellent source of inspirations.

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

Personally, I’d keep the origin behind the watch a complete mystery myself. In true GM fashion, offer a few potential possibilities but never confirm any of them. Hell, with the amount of changes to history in the Whoniverse all these origins might be true! Albeit at some point or another.

That seems like the best approach; the watch is here, it does strange stuff (the extent and limits of which the players and PCs don't know) and let them theorise, with occasional hints of dubious accuracy.

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

I rather like the idea of it being an artefact that’s been handed down throughout the generations. Which in itself might cause some problems with the chronology of a single family. Reckless use of such a device might create paradoxes which would result in some family members being erased from existence yet not from the memories of the family.

Or perhaps they are erased from history, but the watch protects their existence....

The family might have 'cousins' who altered the past and prevented their births, but who still exist. They might be integrated into the family, or exiled outsiders who plot on the sidelines.
Quite likely such a family would have rules about using the watch, and members who disagree with them.

Jul 20, 2021 12:29:24 GMT grinch said:

You could even do something along the lines of a distant descendant from the far flung future is the one responsible for the watch being in their family’s possession in the first place. Travelling back in time to have it placed in an antique shop to be discovered by their ancient ancestor who first stumbled across it, thus creating a closed loop.

Ah yes, a closed time-loop, one of my favourite devices (some of my players dislike them). It;s a good backstory; maybe a descendant was a New Ultonian warrior-historian, or was swept up into the Last Time War.

The watch, as a MacGuffin, is rather like the 'Matrix' of the of Timelords RPG. It's origins are mysterious (at least at first) but it's usable.

Would make for a good origin story for a set of story arcs/series of a campaign villains.

A family who through using the watch have changed their own personal chronology to become rich and powerful akin to aristocracy to the point where a great many of their personal history has been altered or erased completely. And a few who have been so warped by the temporal distortions that they’re kept locked away out of sight.

Yet as you suggest, still kept alive by the watch. Many of these family members who have evolved into their own factions and are prone to infighting and plotting against one another.

Many of whom could make for potential allies for your PCs and many of whom desire nothing more than to satisfy their own selfish desires and obtain more power.

In many ways, the watch would be their most prized possession. Their greatest weapon but also perhaps their greatest weakness. For all they know, destroying the watch could lead to them all vanishing forever.

[Catsmate]

Jul 21, 2021 17:54:44 GMT grinch said:

Jul 21, 2021 10:44:43 GMT Catsmate said:

Absolutely I think I'll go through the series more methodically and start dumping ideas into my notes files.
The eclectic mix of sci-fi/horror/sci-fan and just weird happenings is really perfect for Who.

Even the titles are an excellent source of inspirations.
That seems like the best approach; the watch is here, it does strange stuff (the extent and limits of which the players and PCs don't know) and let them theorise, with occasional hints of dubious accuracy.
Or perhaps they are erased from history, but the watch protects their existence....

The family might have 'cousins' who altered the past and prevented their births, but who still exist. They might be integrated into the family, or exiled outsiders who plot on the sidelines.
Quite likely such a family would have rules about using the watch, and members who disagree with them.

Ah yes, a closed time-loop, one of my favourite devices (some of my players dislike them). It;s a good backstory; maybe a descendant was a New Ultonian warrior-historian, or was swept up into the Last Time War.

The watch, as a MacGuffin, is rather like the 'Matrix' of the of Timelords RPG. It's origins are mysterious (at least at first) but it's usable.

Would make for a good origin story for a set of story arcs/series of a campaign villains.

A family who through using the watch have changed their own personal chronology to become rich and powerful akin to aristocracy to the point where a great many of their personal history has been altered or erased completely. And a few who have been so warped by the temporal distortions that they’re kept locked away out of sight.

Yet as you suggest, still kept alive by the watch. Many of these family members who have evolved into their own factions and are prone to infighting and plotting against one another.

Many of whom could make for potential allies for your PCs and many of whom desire nothing more than to satisfy their own selfish desires and obtain more power.

In many ways, the watch would be their most prized possession. Their greatest weapon but also perhaps their greatest weakness. For all they know, destroying the watch could lead to them all vanishing forever.

I like this, it's departing from my original idea but into an interesting direction. Shades of Rittenhouse and the Chrestomanci with touches of Faction Paradox. A long term antagonist perhaps, intertwined with governments and corporations, puling strings behind the scenes, manipulating events over centuries and millennia, but utterly terrified by other time travellers.

[grinch]

Jul 22, 2021 11:27:54 GMT Catsmate said:

Jul 21, 2021 17:54:44 GMT grinch said:

Would make for a good origin story for a set of story arcs/series of a campaign villains.

A family who through using the watch have changed their own personal chronology to become rich and powerful akin to aristocracy to the point where a great many of their personal history has been altered or erased completely. And a few who have been so warped by the temporal distortions that they’re kept locked away out of sight.

Yet as you suggest, still kept alive by the watch. Many of these family members who have evolved into their own factions and are prone to infighting and plotting against one another.

Many of whom could make for potential allies for your PCs and many of whom desire nothing more than to satisfy their own selfish desires and obtain more power.

In many ways, the watch would be their most prized possession. Their greatest weapon but also perhaps their greatest weakness. For all they know, destroying the watch could lead to them all vanishing forever.

I like this, it's departing from my original idea but into an interesting direction. Shades of Rittenhouse and the Chrestomanci with touches of Faction Paradox. A long term antagonist perhaps, intertwined with governments and corporations, puling strings behind the scenes, manipulating events over centuries and millennia, but utterly terrified by other time travellers.

Yeah, reading over it, it’s very different to the original idea.

I suppose you could always do an adventure with it and then have your PCs leave it with a trusted NPC to look after. Only for the NPC or their family to become corrupted by the potential power of the mysterious watch and end up altering their own past to create the extremely powerful and highly influential ‘The Family.’ With the NPC (if he is still alive) possibly expressing regret at what he has done.

I actually think such a family would treat the watch akin to a holy relic. With a certain amount of religious fervour. You could even hint at it by having it appear on their family crest or as the logo of many of the corporations they own. 

Oh most definitely. They’d be terrified of any person they think could undo all their hard work. I’d probably nick an idea from an admittedly quite bad Star Trek comic and have the revelation that they’re not the first time travellers The Family have met. Mainly by ending the session with the revelation that they have a room containing all the time machines they have taken from unwary and now slain guests.

Everything from a few Vortex Manipulators, Iris’s’ bus, The Drifter (Poor Doctor Meyer....) and many more.

Naturally, your PCs would have to find a way to stop The Family. 

[Catsmate]

Jul 22, 2021 18:50:53 GMT grinch said:

Jul 22, 2021 11:27:54 GMT Catsmate said:

I like this, it's departing from my original idea but into an interesting direction. Shades of Rittenhouse and the Chrestomanci with touches of Faction Paradox. A long term antagonist perhaps, intertwined with governments and corporations, puling strings behind the scenes, manipulating events over centuries and millennia, but utterly terrified by other time travellers.

Yeah, reading over it, it’s very different to the original idea.

I suppose you could always do an adventure with it and then have your PCs leave it with a trusted NPC to look after. Only for the NPC or their family to become corrupted by the potential power of the mysterious watch and end up altering their own past to create the extremely powerful and highly influential ‘The Family.’ With the NPC (if he is still alive) possibly expressing regret at what he has done.

I actually think such a family would treat the watch akin to a holy relic. With a certain amount of religious fervour. You could even hint at it by having it appear on their family crest or as the logo of many of the corporations they own. 

Oh most definitely. They’d be terrified of any person they think could undo all their hard work. I’d probably nick an idea from an admittedly quite bad Star Trek comic and have the revelation that they’re not the first time travellers The Family have met. Mainly by ending the session with the revelation that they have a room containing all the time machines they have taken from unwary and now slain guests.

Everything from a few Vortex Manipulators, Iris’s’ bus, The Drifter (Poor Doctor Meyer....) and many more.

Naturally, your PCs would have to find a way to stop The Family. 

I do like the idea of an artefact corrupting an NPC and leading to a chain of consequences that come back to haunt them. (What happened to the Time Controller? Safely stored in the Black Archive? Snaffled by Torchwood? Or souvenired by a squaddie for his gran's mantelpiece?)

If I was doing it that way it's include a few 'deus ex machina' incidents in the original scenario that turned out to be The Family manipulating events.

The corruption could have started slowly; some money to cover an emergency, maybe futuristic medicine for a sick child or some harmless academic research, and spread from there, taking hold gradually. You could do a PC campaign with this premise; they're junior members of The Family, recently initiated into the Great Secret. Now they have to deal with more senior members (amoral and with special abilities or tech and somewhat senile), curious and ambitious underlings, outsiders prying and other time travellers. Oh and a couple of special problems, Family members who've gone rogue. One has built/stolen/acquire his own time-machine and is out to conquer a kingdom for himself in the past, and the other is infected with an alien parasite giving her super-powers, and an appetite for pain and death....
Dear Rassilon, it's Vampire the Masquerade with time travel and less blood-sucking.
Maybe excess use of the artefact causes problems that need psychic energy or infusions of bodily fluids...

Which Trek comic are you referring to?

[grinch]

Jul 23, 2021 13:05:03 GMT Catsmate said:

Jul 22, 2021 18:50:53 GMT grinch said:

Yeah, reading over it, it’s very different to the original idea.

I suppose you could always do an adventure with it and then have your PCs leave it with a trusted NPC to look after. Only for the NPC or their family to become corrupted by the potential power of the mysterious watch and end up altering their own past to create the extremely powerful and highly influential ‘The Family.’ With the NPC (if he is still alive) possibly expressing regret at what he has done.

I actually think such a family would treat the watch akin to a holy relic. With a certain amount of religious fervour. You could even hint at it by having it appear on their family crest or as the logo of many of the corporations they own. 

Oh most definitely. They’d be terrified of any person they think could undo all their hard work. I’d probably nick an idea from an admittedly quite bad Star Trek comic and have the revelation that they’re not the first time travellers The Family have met. Mainly by ending the session with the revelation that they have a room containing all the time machines they have taken from unwary and now slain guests.

Everything from a few Vortex Manipulators, Iris’s’ bus, The Drifter (Poor Doctor Meyer....) and many more.

Naturally, your PCs would have to find a way to stop The Family. 

I do like the idea of an artefact corrupting an NPC and leading to a chain of consequences that come back to haunt them. (What happened to the Time Controller? Safely stored in the Black Archive? Snaffled by Torchwood? Or souvenired by a squaddie for his gran's mantelpiece?)

If I was doing it that way it's include a few 'deus ex machina' incidents in the original scenario that turned out to be The Family manipulating events.

The corruption could have started slowly; some money to cover an emergency, maybe futuristic medicine for a sick child or some harmless academic research, and spread from there, taking hold gradually. You could do a PC campaign with this premise; they're junior members of The Family, recently initiated into the Great Secret. Now they have to deal with more senior members (amoral and with special abilities or tech and somewhat senile), curious and ambitious underlings, outsiders prying and other time travellers. Oh and a couple of special problems, Family members who've gone rogue. One has built/stolen/acquire his own time-machine and is out to conquer a kingdom for himself in the past, and the other is infected with an alien parasite giving her super-powers, and an appetite for pain and death....
Dear Rassilon, it's Vampire the Masquerade with time travel and less blood-sucking.
Maybe excess use of the artefact causes problems that need psychic energy or infusions of bodily fluids...

Which Trek comic are you referring to?

Oh yeah, any opportunity to retcon any mistakes you might have made as a GM with the excuse that The Family organised it is a plus.

Would make for a fascinating campaign. Especially if the PCs are a particularly moral sort and come to the conclusion that what their Family has done to achieve wealth and power is reprehensible and needs to be stopped. If not erased completely.

I like that idea a lot. The Watch may preserve their existence but they do occasionally feel the effects of the various paradoxes they have created. Many of the more extreme examples would probably be locked away as undesirables in order to keep up appearances. Say a cousin of there’s who frequently experiences visions of the future (or potential futures) which causes painful muscle spasms. Spasms which only increase in frequency as the years drag on. But he’s easily one of more likeable Family members who the PCs could use as an ally.

It’s from a recent crossover they did with the Legion of Superheroes. In that story, the main antagonist showcases his collection of time machines he has taken from those travellers who tried to stop him. They’re basically just all cameos from various other properties such Doctor Who, The Time Tunnel, etc. All blatant fan service but I think it could make for an effective end to a session especially if some of the time machines belong to various characters/friends they’re familiar with. 

[Catsmate]

Jul 23, 2021 17:18:45 GMT grinch said:

Jul 23, 2021 13:05:03 GMT Catsmate said:

I do like the idea of an artefact corrupting an NPC and leading to a chain of consequences that come back to haunt them. (What happened to the Time Controller? Safely stored in the Black Archive? Snaffled by Torchwood? Or souvenired by a squaddie for his gran's mantelpiece?)

If I was doing it that way it's include a few 'deus ex machina' incidents in the original scenario that turned out to be The Family manipulating events.

The corruption could have started slowly; some money to cover an emergency, maybe futuristic medicine for a sick child or some harmless academic research, and spread from there, taking hold gradually. You could do a PC campaign with this premise; they're junior members of The Family, recently initiated into the Great Secret. Now they have to deal with more senior members (amoral and with special abilities or tech and somewhat senile), curious and ambitious underlings, outsiders prying and other time travellers. Oh and a couple of special problems, Family members who've gone rogue. One has built/stolen/acquire his own time-machine and is out to conquer a kingdom for himself in the past, and the other is infected with an alien parasite giving her super-powers, and an appetite for pain and death....
Dear Rassilon, it's Vampire the Masquerade with time travel and less blood-sucking.
Maybe excess use of the artefact causes problems that need psychic energy or infusions of bodily fluids...

Which Trek comic are you referring to?

Oh yeah, any opportunity to retcon any mistakes you might have made as a GM with the excuse that The Family organised it is a plus.

Always useful, plus it engages the players in the idea of the manipulation of time.

Jul 23, 2021 17:18:45 GMT grinch said:

Would make for a fascinating campaign. Especially if the PCs are a particularly moral sort and come to the conclusion that what their Family has done to achieve wealth and power is reprehensible and needs to be stopped. If not erased completely.

Yes, it has definite possibilities. Oh well, one more for the Ideas file.....

Jul 23, 2021 17:18:45 GMT grinch said:

I like that idea a lot. The Watch may preserve their existence but they do occasionally feel the effects of the various paradoxes they have created. Many of the more extreme examples would probably be locked away as undesirables in order to keep up appearances. Say a cousin of there’s who frequently experiences visions of the future (or potential futures) which causes painful muscle spasms. Spasms which only increase in frequency as the years drag on. But he’s easily one of more likeable Family members who the PCs could use as an ally.

Excellent.
Maybe one of the cousins experienced an erased timeline where she had lost an arm, and continues with one arm and Gil Hamilton style telekinesis? Or suffers from a mutagenic disease.

Jul 23, 2021 17:18:45 GMT grinch said:

It’s from a recent crossover they did with the Legion of Superheroes. In that story, the main antagonist showcases his collection of time machines he has taken from those travellers who tried to stop him. They’re basically just all cameos from various other properties such Doctor Who, The Time Tunnel, etc. All blatant fan service but I think it could make for an effective end to a session especially if some of the time machines belong to various characters/friends they’re familiar with. 

I might give it a look, thanks.