THE TOY BOX Adventure
Note: This is an easy to moderate adventure suitable for any sized group, but a minimum of three is the recommended number. It is suggested that if one of the Player Characters is not an Exorcist or an Adept that has followed the Path of the Dead, that the Game Master provides an appropriate NPC to round out the group.
Introduction
The parent and children of Augusta, Michigan, are terrified. Over the course of the last six months, children ranging in ages from four to twelve have been disappearing from a twenty-mile radius around the small city. So far, seventeen kids have gone missing without any substantial clues as to who may be perpetuating this awful crime.
The local Chief of Police, a retired FBI Agent, named James McCoy, has had a loose working relationship with API in the past, and something about this situation has his hackles up. Last week, after the discovery of the body of the first child, abducted six months ago, he contacted the Detroit Field Office of API and requested help with the situation. His friendship with Dr. Rudy Tessmer, they attended the same High School and the fact that James even dated Rudy’s sister briefly got his request kicked up the chain in a fairly fast amount of time. It was decided that a group of agents be dispatched to Augusta to investigate and rend assistance if needed.
Josh Sanford, the Spectral Head of Maintenance at the API Detroit Field Office, has also decided to accompany the Agents of the mission. Josh was born and raised in Augusta, and the idea of this sort of thing happening in his hometown has spurred him into action.
Josh Sanford
Race: Spectral
Passion: Community & Creation
Age: Born August 31, 1896 – Died April 3, 1944
Background: Josh was born the first child of nine to a prosperous farming family in Augusta, Michigan, in 1896. By the standards of the day, Josh was raised with a very liberal and enlightened view toward the world in general and the United States in particular. His mother was one of the driving members of the suffrage movement in the Midwest, speaking at rallies in Detroit, Chicago, and St. Louis. Josh was raised to truly judge a person by their actions and not by their appearance.
At the age of 17, Josh enlisted in the United States Army and fought his way across Western Europe during the dark years of World War 1. Following the war, Josh was discharged from the Army and decided to return to the family farm, his plans never came to fruition. As he was waiting to board the train in Boston to take him home, he was approached by his former Regimental Sgt. Major, the man, asked Josh if he was interested in perhaps doing something different with his life. Intrigued, Josh said yes, and instead of boarding a train for the Heartland, he was lead to the API Boston field office.
Josh became a member of API, not one of the flashy agents or one of the famous leaders of the organization. Josh was one of the thousands of irreplaceable support personnel that made it possible for API to do what it does. Over the intervening, Josh was assigned to the many different API offices across the world, and during the heart of World War 2, he found himself I London, working directly for the Circle of 10. When agents of Heinrich Himmler’s SS attempted to assassinate several Circle members at a meeting in London, Josh was killed, helping to repel the assault, a service his Spectral self would replicate in 1987.
Josh decided not to enter the Bright Lights, feeling that he had too much still to do in this life. He returned to the United States and took up the role of Head Maintenance Engineer at the Detroit Filed office, where several of his best friends were stationed.
Personality: Josh seems to be just one of the guys. He always has time to listen to the problems of the members of the Field Office and supply a joke or two to make people chuckle. He is everyone’s favorite uncle and the person they all seem to come to when they are having personal problems. But people are always surprised when he quotes from the works of Shakespeare and Dante at odd moments.
Appearance: Josh had been working to repair a length of electrical conduit in the API London Facility when the SS assassins attacked. He actually managed to kill one of them with a claw hammer before he was shot in the chest. He is a short, thin man with tight curly brown hair and a “Charles DeGaul” style mustache. He is dressed in antiquated API coveralls with a small bloody hole in the chest. Josh walks with a slight limp, courtesy of some German Shrapnel he took in his leg in 1917.
Secrets: To his friends, Josh is simply Josh. If you need to have your fiber optic cable run or your plumbing fix, call Josh, and he will make sure it gets done. Josh has always been there, and people are comforted to know that he will always be there. But in his secret heart, Josh is an artistic soul, the section of the API Detroit Field office that is his and his alone is filled with hundreds of painted canvases, thousands of sketches, reams of poetry and short stories, 26 completed novels, and more than five hundred musical compositions. He tells no one about his passion, not because he is ashamed of it, but because when he was alive, no one took him seriously as an artist. If anyone were to come across his works and have them evaluated, Josh would learn that he would be considered a master artist of many disciplines.
Statistics: Health 19, Stamina 24, Initiative +14, Movement 7
Combat: Josh was a soldier when he was young but prefers not to fight unless his friends are in trouble. Bonuses: Strike +1, Parry +1, Dodge +1, Roll +1
Special Abilities: Inspire – Teamwork/loyalty
Implementation: With the exception of his death in London, and the incident in 1987, Josh is not really much of a fighter or an adventurer. But when it comes to API lore and flat out gossip, Josh is one of the pools of knowledge that player characters should seek out. Very little happens at API, or in the global preternatural community, that is unknown to the support staff. And Josh is the best connected of all of the support staff. He has contacts at every field office and HQ, as well as strong ties to the Spectral Community. Marcus Livias himself once said that if he needs to know something, he simply asks Josh. The mission to his hometown has galvanized Josh’s long-dormant heroic side. He is determined to defend his hometown. When and if he realizes just who Delores Miller and Petey the Panda are, it will set Tom on a new course and begin to a warrior/defend aspect to his passions.
Part One: Arrival
Augusta, Michigan, is a city of 16,000 located near the top of the glove (25 miles southwest of the Mackinac Bridge). The city is an oversized farming community, helping to service and support the hundreds of farms in the area. Augusta also serves as a stopping point on I-75 and is a minor Rail Road Spur (3 tracks intersect in the city). Augusta has always been a small city of residents that are, for the most part, all interrelated (out to six degrees). It seems that everyone is someone’s cousin or in-law. Augusta has always had a very tiny rate of crime, and the current crop of disappearances and murder has put everyone on edge.
It is late October, almost All Hallows Eve when Chief McCoy calls in the request for support from API. It was the discovery of the body of the first child, six-year-old Beverly March, which spurred the chief’s decision to bring in outside experts. The local law enforcement officers, other than the chief, and city officials believe that the API agents are actually FBI Agents dispatched from Detroit to aid in the investigation.
The reception that the API Agents receive is an almost hysterical hopefulness that they might be able to bring the children home. The Agents will be set up in a conference room in the Municipal Building. Anything that the agent might have need of will be provided by the locals as long as it is within reason. The Police are genuinely eager to help the agents in any way that they can, but the Players need to keep in mind that with the exception of Police Chief McCoy, none of the other seven deputies in Augusta have any real experience with major crimes or the preternatural.
James McCoy
Race: Human
Passion: Community & Warrior
Age: 42
Background: James McCoy is a native of Livonia, Michigan, and was a school friend of Dr. Rudy Tessmer. He was valedictorian of his graduating class and got his Law Degree from the University of Michigan. Following graduation, he was accepted to the FBI Academy at Quantico and became a very successful agent. He was assigned to the Special Investigations Division and worked with API Agents on several occasions, allowing him to cultivate contacts within API. During a joint operation with API to apprehend a Burner Terrorist was severely injured and took medical retirement from the FBI. James was offered the job as Chief of Police in Augusta, Michigan, and took it to keep from going crazy from boredom. James was as surprised as anyone when he realized that he loves small town peacekeeping. James was one of the first to believe that the current crisis was supernatural in origin, and he used his contacts within API to enlist help from the organization.
Personality: James is a straight arrow. He is as close to incorruptible as a man can be. But James also has a reputation as a bit of a ladies’ man. He never cheats on his current love interest, but when he is single, he never lacks for a date. James has the best interests of his community at heart and would sacrifice his life to rescue the missing children.
Appearance: A slight thin man in his thirties, James keeps his appearance as close to FBI standards as possible without alienating the people of Augusta. James will always walk with a slight limp due to the injuries that forced him to leave the FBI.
Secrets: James has a 12-year-old daughter who lives with her mother in Chicago. James only learned of her seven months ago and is trying to decide the best way to become part of her life.
Statistics: Skills – Stealth 7, Athletics 4, Acrobatics 4, Computers 4, Knowledge 4, Perception 4, WS Firearms 6, FS Martial Arts (Hard) 7, WS Knife 2 Specialties – Concealment, Hiding in Shadows, Climbing, Balance, Research, Street Smarts, Resist Deception
Combat: Actions 5, Strike +10, Parry +8, Dodge +6, Roll +8, Initiative +20, HP 29, Stamina 29, Grapple +6, Damage +3, Magic Resistant +1 Weapon Bonuses: W/Firearms – Strike +5, Dodge +3, Reload Speed -2, Damage +1, Aim Action +5 W/Knife – Strike +1, Stamina Cost -1
Special Abilities: (Perks) Combat Training (increased Initiative +2), Sharp Vision, Wealth 2, Data Chip (Stealth)
Drawbacks: Compulsion (Weapons Maintenance), Phobia (Drowning), Magic Restriction
Implementation: James is the moral core of Augusta. People love and trust him. Even with the current crisis, the citizens have complete confidence in his ability to resolve the situation and bring the perpetrators to justice. Even at the funeral for Beverly March, her parents did not blame James. In fact, her mother hugged him and thanked him for doing the best he could. The hug almost broke James. He is determined to stop this even if he dies in the process. James can hold his own with any API Agent and will assert controls if he senses the Agents are unable to handle the task. Following the successful resolution of the crisis, James will be nominated to be mayor of Augusta. He will accept and serve as mayor until he decides to step down and retire.
Part Two: The Investigation
The agents need to approach this investigation as if they were really FBI agents. This means that they should question the locals for information, check the history of the town and surrounding areas, speak with the families of the missing children, and examine the body of the first victim (Beverly March). Depending on the size of the group, everyone can accomplish these tasks together, they can break up into smaller teams, or they can utilize the local police officers to do some of the leg work and report back to them. (I highly recommend that Player Characters examine the victim’s body personally)
Rumors
The first thing that the Players might notice about the community of Augusta is that what was once a tight-knit and friendly place to live has degenerated into a place where everyone seems to be suspicious of everyone else. The initial questioning of the locals will reveal the following rumors;
The Satan Angle - The children have been abducted by some Satanic Cult that lives near the old Shady Vale cemetery and has been responsible for many pet disappearances in the past. Following up on this rumor will reveal that the “Cult” in question is nothing more than a pack of Goth teenagers that like to hang out at the cemetery. The Goths that hang out at the cemetery will be able to shed some light on the disappearances. They have heard rumors that something seriously “messed up” is happening at the Toy Store in the heart of Downtown Augusta. It will take a lot of effort on the part of the Agents to coax even this amount of information from the kids. If the Agents do manage to gain the trust of the Goth Kids and learn the rumor of the happenings at the toy store within 24 hours of arrival, they may have a chance at saving the remaining children (16) before any more are killed. The leader of the Goths is a 24 year old Adept named Jeff Rowland. Jeff is actually a good-hearted if a bit naïve, young man. He tends to stick around the Goth kids to make sure that they stay out of trouble more than anything else. He is pretty attuned to the world of magic and demons. He knows that there is something wrong with Delores Miller and can point the Agents in her direction. Jeff wants to help, and it would take very little prodding from the Agents to get him to guide them around town. The fact that Jeff’s cousin is among the missing is not known to the Agents.
Dr. Jeffery “Jeff” Rowland
Race: Human Adept
Passion:
Age: 24
Background: Jeffery Rowland was born the third of four children into a middle-class family in Augusta, Michigan. His father is a senior civil engineer with the county government, and his mother is a third-grade teacher at Augusta Consolidated Elementary School. Jeff graduated from Augusta Consolidated High, he carried a 4.0 GPA, but he tended to keep this from his friends by pretending that he was “barely getting by.” Jeff attended the University of Chicago for undergraduate studies and Medical school. He has just recently returned to Augusta as an Intern (first-year resident) at the Augusta Community Medical Center.
When Jeff was 11 years old, he began having strange dreams that lead him to believe that he was special. When he was 15, he cast his first spell on accident, and when he was 16, he cast his first spell on purpose. Jeff has spent the last couple of years researching mystical phenomenon and now has a solid theoretical grounding in the Magical Discipline. Although he is still a neophyte adept, Jeff is gaining experience quickly and will soon be a powerful young spell caster.
Jeff will be quick to offer his help to the Agents once he realizes that they are far more than they appear to be. Jeff is also on good terms with “Dirty Billy” Jeff is one of the few people that Billy has revealed his status as a Changeling to. Jeff was tormented by Delores Miller as a child and still has nightmares from the experience that he can’t quite grab hold of upon awakening. It is possible that it was in reaction to these experiences that his mystical abilities manifested.
Personality: Jeff likes to talk a good game, but in reality, he is a decent guy. He might talk up the dark pleasure of death with his friends, but if Jeff saw a person or an animal in pain, he would do whatever he could to help. Jeff is the master of the cheesy one-liner and the goofy joke. When it comes to his job, Jeff puts all the childishness away and concentrates on his work, he is already a skilled physician, and he seems to have a bright future ahead of him.
Appearance: Jeffery is a mid-twenties Caucasian male. He is slightly overweight and stands at just less than six feet tall. Like all “Goths,” Jeff tends to dress in a lot of heavy black layered clothing. Some have commented on the fact that he prefers the puffy “Pirate” style shirts.
Secrets: Jeff is actually a brilliant writer of mystery stories. Although he never shows the stories to his friends, he has won several writing contests and has four stories published under the pen name “David Cross.” The agents are unaware that one of the kids that have been taken, nine-year-old Sarah Reynolds, is Jeff’s first cousin, and he is frantic with concern for her.
Statistics: Skills – Medicine 10, Computers 4, Discipline 4, Legerdemain 10, WS Knife 4, FS Basic Specialties – Diagnosis x2, Surgery, Research, Concentration, Surgery x2, Juggling
Combat: Actions 3, Initiative +20, Strike +4, Parry +4, Dodge +5, Roll +5, Health 21, Stamina 35, Movement 10, Grapple +1, Damage -2, Magic Resistance +3 Bonuses W/Knife – Strike +3, Dodge +1, Stamina Cost -1, Speed Cost -1, Concealment +1
Special Abilities: Open 1st Circle, Light Sleeper
Drawbacks: Lecherous, Weak Attribute (POW), Skill Deficient (Intimidation)
Spells: Elemental Shield (Metal), Effect Bonus (Bulletproof), Cleanse
Implementation: Jeff is a good character to put into danger. If the Agents come to care for him and his plight, they might be willing to risk everything in order to ensure his well being. Jeff knows a lot of the people who make up Augusta’s “Underground” scene. It would be very easy for him to put the Agents into contact with some of Augusta’s shadier elements. If Jeff survives the adventure, he may have impressed the Agents enough for them to offer him a spot at the Marquette Institute to hone his skills as an adept after he finishes his residency, with an eye toward him joining API. This would be the greatest thing that could ever happen to Jeff.
Dirty Billy – One very popular theory amongst the locals is that a local homeless man, William “Dirty Billy” Shaffer, is responsible for the disappearances. Billy has lived out near the old switching yard, a new yard was built in the early 1990s, for as long as anyone can remember. Several residents have said that they have seen Billy hanging out around the Augusta Elementary School recently. The police have questioned Billy several times and have not been able to link him to the disappearances. All that Billy will say is that the “The dead have been restless this year.” If the API Agents chose to question Billy, they will learn that he is actually a Changeling that has become a severe alcoholic. Once he realizes that these people are API Agents and not the Feds, he will become much more helpful. He will be able to tell the Agents that the local Demon Community (there are approximately 22 Demons in the Augusta area) has been in a panic. Several of their numbers have disappeared along with the children in the last few months. They fear that a Necromancer or a Spirit Eater has established a hunting territory in the area. Billy is very knowledgeable about the area and its history. If the group treats Billy with a modicum of respect, he may volunteer his services. Billy is really a decent guy who has had a hard life. If things go well and he is part of saving the children, it could turn his life around.
William “Dirty Billy” Shaffer
Race: Changeling
Passion: Approval (this has changed since his downfall from a yearning to be the best to desire to just not be hated)
Age: 53
Background: William Shaffer has had an interesting life, to say the least. Raised by his maternal grandmother in the city of Ypsilanti, Michigan, Bill was taught to fit in with human society and never reveal his true nature. Educated at the University of Michigan in Dearborn, Bill pursued a career as a financial manager for several Midwest corporations. Bill seemed to have the perfect American life until the market crash of 1989. Bill lost everything on Black Monday. He could have recovered from this if the resulting IRS scrutiny hadn’t revealed that several of the companies he had been working for had been cooking their books behind his back. When the focus of the federal government was placed firmly upon them, they blamed Bill for the illegal activities. Caught like a rabbit in the headlights, Bill’s entire life dissolved. Destitute, Bill spent the next couple of years wandering from town to town in the Midwest doing day labor work and sliding deeper and deeper into alcoholism. Eventually, Bill ended up in Augusta, Michigan, and settled comfortably into the life of a homeless drunk.
Personality: Bill is a really decent guy who has failed to recover from a few admittedly bad breaks in his life. Bill wouldn’t hurt anybody if he can avoid it, but if someone were to threaten a child in his presence, he would immediately go on the offensive.
Appearance: Like all Changelings, Bill can alter his physical appearance at will. His default appearance these days is that of a white male in his middle fifties with long gray hair and a bushy beard. Bill always dresses in a baggy pair of dirty jeans, engineer’s boots, and a long green flannel shirt.
Secrets: Nobody knows that Bill is a changeling.
Statistics: Skills – Knowledge 7, Performance 7, Deception 7, Stealth 7, Legerdemain 7, Persuasion 7 Specialties - Street Smarts +2, Local History +2, Acting x2, Exaggeration, Misdirection, concealment, Hiding in Crowds, Pick Pockets x2, Oratory x2
Combat: Health 25, Stamina 24, Actions 2, Initiative +6, Movement 8, Magic Resistance +1
Special Abilities: (Gifts) Object Shape-Shifting, 2D Shape-Shifting, Home Turf
Drawbacks: Alcohol Addiction -2 Stamina, Indebted, Illegal (unlicensed), Combat Fear -4 Initiative
Implementation: Bill is a very intelligent man despite all of his problems. When it comes to formulating a strategy for rescuing the children from the Toy Box, he could be a lot of help. Bill has a limited amount of contact with the tiny Demon Community in Augusta and can act as a facilitator for the API Agents. Bill wants to help and will jump at any offer the Agents make in that direction. If the children are rescued, and Bill plays a role in it, his life will be fundamentally changed. The community will hail him as a bona fide hero and support him in the long and difficult process of combating in depression and alcoholism. If the Agents visit Augusta a year after the adventure, they will find a clean and sober William Shaffer teaching Economics at Augusta Consolidated High School.
The Lunch Lady Did It – Several parents are convinced that the Lunch Lady at the local elementary school is behind the disappearance of the children. Delores Miller is a 71-year-old widow who has lived her entire life in Augusta, Michigan. She has been the Augusta Elementary School Dietitian (Lunch Lady) for 47 years. To most people, Delores seems like the kindest and gentlest human being on the face of the Earth, but it is a façade. Delores is an extremely evil Necromancer by trade and a torturer of children by choice. During her reign of terror at the school, she has permanently scarred the minds and souls of hundreds of children yet left them unable to remember any of the details. But the nightmares of her actions still haunt their dreams to this very day. If confronted by API Agents, she will use every trick at her disposal to throw them off her scent, even revealing that she is an adept and offering to help them in their investigation. If the API Agents manage to ferret out the truth, Delores will fight to get away and link up with her partner Petey the Panda (see: The Truth below).
Delores Miller
Race: Human Adept (Necromancer)
Passion: Death & Greed
Age: 71
Background: Delores Miller was the firstborn child of Sandra and Michael Sanford and is the niece of API Spectral Josh Sanford. Delores was the only one of the four Sanford children to live past the age of five. The deaths of her three siblings were attributed to natural causes, but in actuality, young Delores murdered every one of her brothers and sisters. If Delores were a child born in the last twenty years, she would have been quickly diagnosed as a sociopath, but when she was a child, she was simply considered odd. When she was 18, Delores's parents died in a car accident that was attributed to brake failure, Delores burned holes in the brake cables before they left, and Delores inherited the family homestead, Karysa Acres. Delores got a job at the local school. At that time, Augusta still used a single school for all grades as a Dietitian. For the last thirty-plus years, Delores has used her powers and position to torment the children of the region. When Delores was 22, she decided she wanted a child and sought out a man to marry. She chose 31-year-old mechanic Tim Miller and married him within a year of meeting him. Two years later, Delores gave birth to a son, Carl Miller, and a year after that, Tim was dead of a heart attack. Delores raised her son to be a serial killer. She used her powers and dark will to break the child and mold him in her image. When Carl died, Delores used her powers as a Necromancer to bind Carl’s Spectral Self to her will and authority. These days Delores is nearing the end of her life, she was diagnosed with cancer a year ago, and she has decided to go out in a torrent of blood and death. She has used her Spirit Eater son to kidnap all of the missing children to torture and eventually kill. The authorities have yet to make the connection of 7 other deaths over that last year that they have committed.
Personality: To the outside world, Delores is a jolly and good-hearted grandmotherly woman who never has an unkind word to say about anyone. In truth, Delores is an icy black-hearted killer, the only joy she derives from life in the shedding of innocent blood. She considers herself an artist that works in human flesh and blood.
Appearance: Delores is a plump woman in her early seventies. She is always dressed in a very austere manner. Her hair is bright silver, and her eyes appear to shine with good cheer.
Secrets: Delores is a Necromancer and a sociopathic serial killer. She is the architect and puppet master of the current crisis. Delores is also a Charter Member of the Brotherhood of the Iron Skull (one of only two women ever granted the honor of even Charter Membership)
Statistics: Skills – Knowledge 10, Linguistics 7, Legerdemain 7, Deception 4, Discipline 7, FS Basic Specialties – Occult x2, Demonology, Deciphering x2, Misdirection x3, Concentration x2
Combat: Actions 3, Health 21, Stamina 35, Strike +1, Parry +1, Dodge +2, Roll +2, Movement 5, Damage -1, Magic Resistance +4, Initiative +15, Grapple +2
Special Abilities: (Perks) Open 3rd Inner Circle, Born Into Magic 2 Mana/INS, Order Membership: Brotherhood of the Iron Skull, Wealth 5
Spells: Summon Spectral (Range Bonus 500 Feet), Anchor Spirit, Protection, Command Dead (Effect Bonuses -2 Stamina, +1 Ghost), Ghost Strike (+2 Damage), Raise the Dead
Drawbacks: Poor Senses (Requires Glasses), Slow Healer, Enemy
Implementation: Delores is THE villain of the piece. She is the only person that has all the information. She will do whatever she can to mess with the Agents. Delores wants to have some fun before she dies, and to her, nothing is more fun than death and chaos. Although Petey the Panda is the spirit of her son, she feels nothing for him. He is a tool that she has enslaved and will use until one or both of them are destroyed. Delores will fight to the death. She will never allow herself to be taken into custody.
Panda’s Only Come Out at Night – From 1932 till 1993, Petey the Panda was the mascot of the Toy Box, a regional chain of toy stores in the Mid West. During the economic upheaval of the Eighties, the Toy Box was run out of business by larger and more affluent competitors. Children loved Petey the Panda during the heyday of the company, he was at one time more popular than a certain giraffe, but that has changed. The children of Augusta are terrified of the very image of Petey the Panda. If the API Agents questioning the children mention the Toy Box building or Petey the Panda, they will be met with near-hysterical reactions. Every child under the age of 13 is convinced that the Panda has eaten the missing kids. If the parents are questioned about this mass phobia, they will attempt to laugh it off, but any observant agent will notice the furtive glances between the parents and their children. Everyone seems to have a background fear of Petey the Panda.
Petey the Panda
Real Name: Carl Jefferson Miller
Race: Spectral (Spirit Eater)
Passion: To feed!
Age: Irrelevant
Background: Petey the Panda was born Carl Jefferson Miller to Delores and Tim Miller. Carl never had a chance to be a normal kid. From an early age, he was tormented and broken down by his mother to the point where he was not much more than a broken shell that acted as a conduit for her will. As a child, Carl killed and tortured small animals. As a young adult, Carl traveled all around the state in order to kill indiscriminately without getting caught. Before he died at the age of 27, Carl had killed in excess of fifty people and was never caught. When he was 27, he attempted to murder his mother but was woefully unprepared for her level of power. In the ensuing fight, Delores killed Carl and enslaved the Spirit Eater that was born from his corpse. Carl has spent the years since his death killing humans and consuming helpless Spectrals. At the beginning of his existence as a Spirit Eater, his mother had him assume the form of Petey the Panda in order to give the terror he was to inspire in children that extra little kick. It almost entirely because of Carl assuming Petey's shape that the people of Augusta have feared him for decad. Of course, Petey was creepy even before Carl stole the identity for himself.
Personality: In life, he was a bizarre little man with a hair-trigger temper. Now he only wants to feed.
Appearance: Carl has assumed the visage of Petey the Panda. He appears to be a demonic Panda Bear with blood dripping from his claws and fangs.
Secrets: He has been killing for decades, and he has kidnapped all of the missing children. Only the control his mother has over him due to enslavement has restrained him from consuming all of them.
Statistics: Skills - Fortitude, Athletics, FS Basic, FS Brawler, Manifest, Stir, Devour, Possess Object (Panda Suits x2) Specialties - Resist Shock x2, Climbing, Stomp, Body Slam, Wielding Weapons x2
Combat: Health 69, Stamina 46, Actions 5, Damage +5, Initiative +15 (+2 to Grapple), Magic Resistance +2, Movement 16, Strike +10, Parry +10, Dodge +9, Roll +8, Grapple +13
Special Abilities: (Gifts) Giant, Wrestler, Tough +9 HP, Combat Training
Drawbacks: Weak Attribute (IQ Restriction), Magic Restriction, Phobia (Kittens)
Implementation: Petey is the Panda is nothing more than the sharp sword of his mother, Delores. He will not act without orders from his mother, but if she is killed or her control is broken, he will fly into a rage and attempt to kill anyone and everyone he can see.
The City of Augusta Michigan: Highlights
The Toy Box - The Augusta Michigan store was the last to close, it remained operating as the last existing franchise for two years after the parent corporation was disbanded, but in 1995 the building was shuttered and has been vacant ever since. The building has sat boarded upright in the middle of downtown Augusta ever since, and it has become an object place of fear for the children of the community. As any child that is questioned will tell you, it is reported to be haunted and dangerous. There have been several attempts to rehab the building, but all have been dropped for one reason or another. In the most recent, the owner of the company looking to purchase the location died under mysterious circumstances. There are rumors of disembodied voices, full form apparitions, and even strange lights and movements inside the building. Ironically the building is on the shortlist of sites for investigation by API in the near future.
The Municipal Building – Built in the 1920s, the Augusta City Municipal Building, is a Greek revival structure composed of broad staircases, grand halls, and fluted columns. The building serves as the seat of government, police headquarters, disaster response center (Fire Department & Civil Defense/Homeland Security), Michigan Secretary of State, and Federal Satellite Offices. The agents will be based out of a first-floor conference room that has been outfitted for their use (secure communications, mystical protections, and all the bad coffee that they can drink. The City and County Archives are also located here.
Augusta Consolidated Elementary School – The Elementary School serves all the residents of Augusta and the entire population of Sanford County (population 41,523). There are also Consolidated Junior and Senior High buildings within the city limits, but none of the students from these institutions have been abducted as of yet. The Goth kids from Shady Vale Cemetery all attend the Senior High. Delores Miller is the head Dietitian here, and she seems to almost run the entire school. Teachers and administration defer to her whenever they are questioned in her presence.
Shady Vale Cemetery – Located on the outskirts of Augusta, Shady Vale is the oldest Cemetery in the region, with graves dating back to the Eighteenth Century. The first thing that the investigators will notice about the Cemetery is the total absence of Spectrals. Although most Spectrals like to stay away from the local boneyard, invariably, there is always one or two in every cemetery. There are NONE in the vicinity of Shady Vale Cemetery. Questioning of the city's local Spectral population will reveal that many of their numbers have disappeared near the cemetery. They fear the presence of a Necromancer or a Spirit Eater.
Karya Acres (The Sanford Family Farm) – If time permits, and perhaps even if it does not, Josh will want to head out to the family farm he was raised on, Karysa Acres. Karysa Acres is named for the matriarchal founder of the Sanford family’s American arm and Josh’s Great Grandmother, Karysa Elizabeth Sanford. Josh will be happy to find the Family Farm still operational and well cared for until he realizes who owns the farm. Delores Miller was actually born Delores Sanford. She is the daughter of Michael Sanford, Josh’s youngest brother. A thorough search of the farm will eventually reveal the secret loft in the barn where Delores conducts her dark rituals. (See: Delores Miller for more details)
Part Three: The Truth
The truth of the situation is that Delores Miller is a vile Necromancer who is using the Spectral form of her dead son, Carl, to sew chaos, death, and terror in Augusta. Delores is dying and has decided to go out with a bang, she has used the enslaved Spirit Eater, who was her son, to kidnap all of the missing children, and she is spending her off-hours mentally and physically torturing them before she kills them and allows Petey the Panda, Carl, to devour their essences. She has had Carl store the children in the old Toy Box building downtown because it is a quiet place where she can “work” uninterrupted, and because they fear that the children already feel toward Petey the Panda is amplified here.
Part Four: Resolution
Regardless of how the agents make the determination, they will eventually have to breach the old Toy Box building downtown. The surviving 16 children are all being held prisoner within the building. The hard part will be saving all of them before Delores can kill them.
If the agents have detained or killed Delores Miller, then the mission in the Toy Box is pretty straight forward. Petey’s final orders from his mother were to not allow anybody but her to enter the building. Petey will attempt to kill anyone but his mother that sets a foot inside the Toy Box. If the Agents can defeat Petey, then they will be able to rescue the children and save the day.
If Delores makes it to the Toy Box ahead of them or arrives before the defeat Petey, things will get more difficult. She will, at first, attempt to help Petey kill the agents and anyone assisting them. But if it appears that they, Delores and Petey, are going to lose, she will retreat to the mezzanine and begin to kill the children. For every two minutes that Petey can keep the agents at bay, Delores will eliminate one of the children. Spread randomly around the building is 6 Zombies that Delores has tasked to kill anyone but herself who enters the building.
Zombies (reprinted from page 168 of the API Core Book)
Description: The walking dead are ghosts or spirits that have possessed corpses (usually by force). They are shambling, decaying monsters, already dead, and without pain or exhaustion. This particular type of zombie is wonderful for running a group of humans through a survival game.
Motivations: A zombie’s motivation is that of its creator. They simply perform as commanded and then return to their afterlife after the fact. Ghosts that bring themselves back stereotypically crave to feast on brains.
Statistics of Note: Health 40, Stamina 30, Initiative +2, Movement 4, Actions per Round 2, Magic Resistance +0, Does not suffer from Pain penalties and any magic from the Path of Neutralization
Combat: Zombie Actions work differently than normal. They can only perform a Full attack, Grapple (then Bite), or Parry. No other combat maneuvers and no ranged combat. Bonuses: Strike +3, Parry +3, Grapple +10, Damage +5, No Dodge
Powers: If a zombie Bites their victim, their curse is transferred. The victim makes a Moderate (20) VIG + Fortitude check each minute for four minutes. If any of them fail, their skin turns black and decayed, and they will wake up after their next sleep like a zombie themselves. Bite victims have been known to fight to stay awake for as long as they can. Some beg their squad to kill them in their sleep. Taylor and Burners are immune to this effect.
Weaknesses: They take double damage from fire. Shots to the head deal triple damage.
The layout of the Toy Box is pretty straight forward. The main area that was the old sales floor is a maze of stacked junk (old fixtures, gondolas, and debris of various types). The back quarter of the store is the old stock room. It is basically clear with a single loading dock door and an emergency exit (both doors are chained and locked from the inside) that leads to the alley behind the store. Running along the top right side of the store is the mezzanine area where the old manager’s office, break room, cash room, and electrical rooms are located. The children are all bound and gagged in the old break room. The roof access hatch and ladder are located in the old electrical room (the hatch is padlocked on the inside).
Addendum: Experience
Characters can receive additional XP based on survival rates and antagonists defeated/captured.
+1 XP For the defeat of Petey the Panda
+1 XP Delores Miller is defeated and killed
+1 XP James McCoy Survives
+1 XP Dirty Bill Survives
+1 XP Jeff Rowland Survives
+1 XP For each child saved
+2 XP Delores Miller is Defeated and captured alive
+5 XP if all children are saved