The Face of Bo was correct. The Doctor was not alone. Another Timelord is traveling quietly. Burdened with a name he never wanted. Yet he wasn't sure what he wanted for himself as a lot of things seemed locked away in his mind. He wasn't entirely sure he could even regenerate and wasn't about to find out. Yet he craved to be who used to be. Who was that?
Vagabond 'Vaga' will be played by the DM, and their personality will twist around the players. Should they try to get away with more nefarious escapades he too will change to mirror them. Vaga will always in the end agree and support his companions. He is a Neutral agent usually but will lean towards good. He can have 4 new names by the end of this Campaign and they are the following Traveler (Good Neutral), Historian (catalogs things true neutral and runs a museum like Tardis by the end), Iniquitous (evil), Defender (Good)
Should there not be an ending provided he may just stay as the Vagabond until there is a moment when he changes.
I wish I knew who the other players would be so I could make whole arcs because that would be fundamentally the point of growing companions as well as Vagabond. Hopefully, there is enough in here where that's still possible. If you're running Unit players Vaga likely finds them as civilians first or may be introduced as a captor in session 0. If they are alien then they will have a way to disguise themselves as human as well as a bio-dampener to stay extra hidden.
The companions here will all know one another. The town is small. Even if they are Unit or torchwood they'll be friendly with one another. Maybe they're the fixits of the group and stay friends with the civi characters to feel more normal and human. Everyone be it human or alien isn't an island and somehow this group exists together. Take this time to ask the players how they know each other. Unit members obviously wouldn't talk about their jobs but might take on a side job of working at the library or being seen at the pub on their days off and just claim to have work out of town when they are not at the pub and hiding in their basement face-timing work or something.
The companions have finished up a New Years party at The Garage Nightclub and are returning. There was an incident where one of them swore they saw another companion in another place at the party but lost sight of them. Likely just a look-alike but it does seem to mess with them a bit. Find out which character this is, and which companion they saw. The DM can either decide at random with dice or have the players choose themselves.
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Vaga (image was AI-generated. Don't like it? No problem make your own Vaga :3)
TARDIS TYPE 60 Modified
Water and Space travel = looks like a 16/17th-century sailing vessel similar to the Queen Ann's Revenge
Terrine Travel: Mode A: Blue School bus, Mode B: Blue Bentley Mode C: Blue motorbike, Mode D: Blue Vespa, Mode E: Blue Bicycle
The TARDIS is damaged and presently can only be in Sailing vessel mode or TT Mode E until Vaga meets his new companions.
Session 0 is treated to introduce characters to each other and to show what the Vagabond is capable of, and what limitations he has. If you want to change Vaga's mannerisms or anything be my guest. This is just a template to get the ball rolling. The companions can be anybody. UNIT, Torchwood, Alien, Stray Timelord, civi, ect.
Theme Song For Season One: Imagen Dragons Birds
Session 0/Pilot Episode of Vagabond: Let Zygons be Zygons
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Vaga had known stories of The Doctor. Even the Master. Who would he be in this era of rising Time Lords? How many others have escaped? How many were escaping? He saw how the two lived their lives. So different. One manipulated and finally trying to recreate his own vision of an empire while the other protected the Earth as best they could while looking at the world through new eyes with his companions. Out of the two it was clear the Doctor was the more sane one. So. Maybe that's were he'd start. So he could find his place in this new Era. January 2023.
It was New Years. The clock struck midnight as a shooting star tore off from the sky and no one was the wiser as a 17th century Frigate crashed landed into the sea. Vaga emerged from the water pulling a blue bicycle with him.
"Poor ol' girl. I'm sorry I didn't see that commit. Oh dear me you'll have to rest a bit."
He pulled out the TARDIS which was now in the shape of a blue bicycle. "Oh, that's not great...I can't even get inside like this. How am I suppose to help locals on a bike? Can't remember the last time I've even rode rode bike. Must have been oh...Eighty some years ago? Are you sure you don't have enough huon energy for a hover car? No? Right, well then hang tight. Lets just hope these peddles move."
Vaga gets on the bike and tries to propel himself forwards but crashes into the pavement.
Companion Checks:
Medical Check (ingenuity or awareness + medicine) Roll difficulty 4 to 10 (superficial scrap on his hand that can be fixed up if you'd like or just point it out up to you. If they roll a 10 or higher they have the means to also fix the wound from their pockets, purse or suitcase. Maybe off duty medical staff? Medical Student? Concerned mom? Military background? Animal Vet?)
Someone might say nice bike to which Vaga will dance around what kind of bike it is and land on a beta model called The Blue Bike. Which does not exist at all.
Awareness + conflict/subterfuge/convince 16 they know Vaga is hiding something about the bike and might even distrust him. On a failed roll they still notice that the bike is missing a chain. (I am of the adage that even if you fail something will open it's doors to you, no one likes failing a roll and feeling they are skipped. Knowing it's missing a chain they could get a chain the next day for Vaga)
Introduce yourselves!
"Thanks for all the fuss. Really, it's nice to get a reception like this on my first day here. I'm from out of town, and I suppose I've had a bit of spill in the ocean just now. I was passing through but I might stay here for a few weeks. I just travel from place to place. Haven't any money on me at the moment. And you are?"
This is when the group introduces themselves to Vaga. Vaga will need to convince them he needs a place to stay and hopefully one of the companions will offer up room and board for him. Vaga will not leave his bike outside claiming it's all he has left and if disallowed to bring the bike inside he will sleep outside with the bike. If no one offers him a place to stay he can ask for a place for the night to dry his clothes or he'll sleep outside in the cold.
If he goes with a companion there is a strange occurrence that happens after he gets settled in. It's likely clothes don't fit properly and he'll likely raid the fridge after given food for the first time. He's never really had Earth food before, and it's better than rations.
Please read the following out loud after everyone has turned in for the night.
The companion whom Vaga is with dreams they are looking at themselves. Their doppelganger is holding a knife. The power in the house goes off and turns back on, flickering the television on and off, as well as the lights.
use a ingenuity/resolve/strength and conflict/survival/intuition difficulty 10 roll to wake up and not be attacked. On a failed roll they will be screaming to get Vaga's attention to wake them up.
If the companion wishes to talk down the assailant first they can by rolling Presence/resolve and convince difficulty 12 trying to talk them down. If they fail the doppelganger will use their turn to tell them to die and they can roll to wake up at this point. If they succeed they will get this instead.
"We both can't be alive! You go away! You go away right now! I want to live! Leave the port or die!" the doppelganger will shove them and they will fall out of bed waking up instead.
Meanwhile the other character who had a doppelganger at the party will roll for the same occurrence. If the party tries to contact each other home phones are down but cell phones work. It is at this point Vaga knows the threat is either a Zygon or the Ruton. He can not use a radio as the power is out. This is when the TV and lights also go out so he's unable to use them as a noise source to uncover a Ruton. The cell phone would not be loud enough to work. He could use his sonic to try and dispel a Ruton from the companion or to test it.
"Listen to me." he places his hands on either side of the companion's head not covering their ears. "I know this is going to sound crazy, but there is an alien called the Ruton that can shapshift. Are you one? That's fine. It's truly fine, but I need to know if there's something wrong with you, or if something else is happening. Can you tell me? Are you a Ruton?"
If the player IS a Ruton they might lie or not. If they lie the doctor will check eventually with his sonic screwdriver waving it around them to see if they are either unaware of what they are or lying to him and might preserve them a danger to the town. If they are any other alien the are obscured by a bio-dampener and other tech that he isn't looking for. If they tell him the truth he will pause.
"You are? Do you know if there are other Ruton? Are you in danger? Are you at war with the Zygon? Sorry to many questions. But if you're a Ruton what did you dream about?"
They are not a Ruton
"All right, hold still. I have a frequency set that will reveal a Ruton." he'll wave the Soniclance over them and nothing happens. He'll wave it around the room frantically just in case and find nothing. "Zygon it is then." he puts away the screwdriver. "The town is in danger. I think. I'm going to look around but I'll need your help. Tell me. What did you dream about?"
Some roleplay will be happening here. Information swapping. Checking in on the other companions. Everyone gathering together is likely the outcome here. Here Vaga reveals who he is. That his name is Vagabond. That he's 97 years old from another planet. If a character calls him mental he'll say he can prove it. If allowed to prove it he'll touch their temples and you can read the following.
You're looking at a TARDIS conceal and fall to the floor. You see unfamiliar hands trying to spin something, and pull levers only to see yourself fall away from the console. Falling from the sky you see a large 17th century sea vessel, with a gapping hole in the hull where you fell from. It spins and turns into a blue bicycle. You turn your body and see the town, fireworks blinding you until the water becomes visible and the vision ends.
"That's how I got here. Please I'm begging you. I'm out of my element. I don't know anything about this place, but I can help. If you help me we can solve the issues of the town. My Tardis told me there were many disturbances here. I suspect everything here is a bit strange and I came to help. I swear. Please. If it's the Zygon they might take over the entire town, and no one will be human here. Will you help me investigate?"
(posting to edit when I return from an outing please be patient)
