GM: Gene Lancaster
Players: Michael M Kelly, Rodger Bright, David Hansen, Bryan Duffel, Sean Nittner
System: Conan: The Hyborian Age
Gene went all out in the presentation of this game, starting with scripts for us to read to get in the mood.
Gene’s advice: Magic comes at a cost, simple plans are the best plans, leave your 10′ pole behind, make an adventure worth of a sequel!
We created mighty heroes Arjunesh (Sean), Vladamir (Michael), Adara (Roger), Sekhem (David), and Rothgus the Islander (Bryan)
In the land of Shem there was a rumor told long ago of a burial mound with a false king and his powerful ring. Our band of adventurerers had been on the run for hours, chased by wild dogs from the labor camp we escaped from, until we made our way up to the top of the fabled mound that we learned about in the camp. We stood upon the fabled mound and declared “May our courage shine brighter than the sun” as they entered!
Inside we found a large chamber with the skeletons of six men, all posed as though they died during a time of merriment, drinking, and cavorting. From their bodies we took what weapons and armor we could scavenge.
Ahead a passage led to a room with broken glass scattered about the floor, and the corpse of a man grasping his throat. Arjunesh pulled his hand away to find no wound. “Killed by poison!” Just then we were a clinking sound above as a glass ball was released through a track and dropped from the ceiling above. Adara caught it before it could land and shatter…poisoning us all!
The door ahead was stone and heavy, but no match for the mighty thews of Vladamir and Arjunesh, who pushed it open to reveal the the true burial mound below.
The False King
Ahead we saw a line of 20 skeletons facing a throne with a great king astride it. As we entered the Skeletons came to life and we thrashed them with blade and hammer, spear and arrow. “By Dagon’s Depths” Ajrunesh roared as he smashed one, just as Rothgus beheaded another.
Seeing this, the king rose from his throne and bellowed out “Stop this needless violence. You have proven yourselves.”
For a moment all stood still in silence but Sekhem wanted not for peace, but glory, and fired an arrow into the king. Once again, we set ourselves to violence.
Adara pelted the king with yet more arrows, and Vladamir broke the line of skeletons standing before him. Arjunesh spun in a whirlwind smashing skeletons with his great hammer and then bounded to the king “This day is not a day for peace.” Rothgus spied that the king wore not one but 10 rings. One on each finger.
But the king bid us stay our hands once more. “Are you not done with this debauchery? Can we not make a bargain?” As he raised his hands we saw our blows had not harmed him and that his skeletal guard was once again reforming.
We decided to let the king speak and he told us that below his crypt, and through a portal there was an avatar that was trapping him here. Should the creature be slain, he would be free, and he would shower us with riches.
“Today we carve our legend in stone” we proclaimed as we accepted his offer. He handed Arjunesh five rings and the warrior tossed four of them in the air, all deftly caught by his companions.
The Temple Below
As we stepped down into the mist beneath his tomb wearing these rings of the false king we were transported through the mist into a room full of sand and the whispering sounds of an ancient language. On the far side was a dark portal with an inscription we could not read. It had a broken seal where several gems that had been part of the seal fell to the ground…and were quickly gathered by Adara!
The air was frigid inside this place, we could see our breath fog in front of us. Vladimir cheered “Ahh, like summers in Betrovia!”
Above and along the walls strange shadows danced, but as we approached they fled our torches, so we proceeded further into the temple.
The next room was a long chamber with six skeletons standing in alcoves on the left wall and a battered bas relief, long worn away by sand and time dominated the right. The skeletons were those of people we had never seen. Two legs, two arms, upright, but also a long tail. As we approached the serpent men leapt from their alcoves and attacked.
We charged into the fray and shouted “Our tale grows longer with every swing of steel!” We were triumphant, shattering skulls with arrows, ribs with swords, and who frames with might a mighty hammer.
In the next chamber stairs down were flanked by a ledge featuring more guardians, though these had the sense to watch and not interfere! High above in the ceiling a large serpent idol with a single giant emerald eye. Arjunesh grunted “that serpent has one too many eyes!” and worked with Adara to fling her in the air and up to the idol itself. She pried the great gem free, tossed it back to Arjunesh, and deftly dropped to the floor below.
There was another sealed door below that Vladamir and Rothgos forced open with naught but their might!
Mysterious Chambers
Beyond we found a long chamber with several doors, one that glowed purple beneath. We saw skeletons trying to escape the bas reliefs on the walls and footprints of lesser heroes who died trying to explore these halls. We would not join them, at least not this day.
Arjunesh shattered the door that emanated a purple glow and saw a giant sphere hovering in the air. Inside it was a man who was reaching towards the top, trying to escape but trapped within. On a pillar beside him was a plinth that had a much smaller purple spear floating above it. Arjunesh grabbed hold of it and he was transported inside the larger sphere, the man previously inside freed!
As the heroes of the Hyborian Age pondered how to release their ally a woman appeared in the doorway. “Ah you’ve saved my beloved.” She ran in, grabbed hold of his hand before he had even regained his senses and dragged him out, leaving gifts behind: a red cap with flames embroidered on the side, a drawstring back of black teeth, a second bag of find dust, a smoldering pipe, and an amulet hanging from a chain.
Adara tried to free Arjunesh by striking the giant sphere with her blade, but it proved impenetrable. “Wrong Sphere” Sekhem said as he smashed the smaller one and both of them shattered freeing Ajrunesh in a puddle of purple liquid and broken glass.
Trinkets found
Sekham took the pouch full of dust and when dug through it with his sword, the blade disappeared.
Adara took the bag of black teeth and threw one to the ground, it grew from a single tooth into a full skeleton of black bone…which then attacked us. We dispatched the foe, but these teeth would serve as a distraction to our enemies in the future. Adara distributed them among her companions.
Arjunesh put on the red cap and felt a pleasant cool breeze on his face. He passed his hand over Sekham’s torch and felt nothing. Fire could no longer touch him.
Vladamir took a puff from the smoldering pipe and found it absolutely noxious, but realized that if he exhaled instead, the smoke would affect all around him.
Rothgos donned the amulet and felt protected from sorcerers energies.
Chamber of Serpents and Demons
In the other adjoining rooms we witnessed:
- Six statues depicting snakelike beasts.
- A sacrificial alter with three (unlit) black candles).
- An urn, which one opened, released a vapor that formed into a bat-winged demon!
We tossed the black teeth to the floor and ran outside the room. When it sounded as though the demon had defeated the skeletons (and hopefully be damaged in the process) we re-opened the door and began our own assault. Arrows and blades cut its leathery skin and when it was defeated we claimed trophies. A black horn for Arjunesh, and it’s ichor blood for Adara.
Naught but sand and lies
In the next room we saw only the sand on the floor, but Adara wanted to leave a “gift” for any who would follow and sketched an arcane symbol on the floor to make them belief powerful sorcery was done here.
Treasure Hoard
In the last room the air was stale as though it has not moved in years. Below the dust was a hoard of treasures. Coins of every realm, gemstones, a serpentine idol, tapestries, and sturdy chests.
Sekhem a follower of set claimed the idol.
Adara, who was a seamstress in the labor camps, recounted how the first time a man put a needle in her hand, he lost an eye, but now she would put those skills she learned to good use and turned the large tapestries into sacks that we stuffed full of gems, gold, and other treasures including one of the urns that contained a demon.
Arjunesh opened the chests and when he found them empty, remedied them of their hollow nature by pouring a king’s wealth of treasure into them.
We left the chamber laden head to toe in gleaming gold.
A Serpent Guariand
We shamed through the final door and found the air inside bitterly cold. Cold enough to make even the stout Vladamir shiver. Our torches would not penetrate the darkness but as we advanced a giant swarm of stinging insects flew towards us
Vladamir blew on his smoldering pipe and the noxious gases that came from it killed and dispersed the swarm. Just as we were about to rejoins, another foe appeared.
A thirty foot long stake that ended in torso of woman wrapped in layer upon layer of linen, as one would intern the dead. She whispered in the ancient language and we all felt wracked with cold once more. We waited no longer to see what other sorcery she would perform. We charged and shouted
“By Crom’s bones, I will not falter!”
When the beast was slain, Arjunesh claimed a scale, while Sekham took her venomous fangs.
The Avatar
Beyond was a massive quarry with tiers of stone 20′ high each. On each tier their were holding cells but they were long abandoned. At the base was a cave and once we descended a massive serpent crawled forth to devour us. It would have consumed Adara as well, had not Arjunesh stepped in the way [Defender trait] and it devourned him instead.
As the heroes sent steel against it, Arjunesh fought form the inside, even as he was being devoured, and cut his way out of the beast [Destroyer trait].
The avatar was slain and our task complete.
A false king indeed
When we returned through the mists into the king’s chambers he congratulated us on our success, told us to keep all the treasure we found, and promised, nay condemned one of us to have the greatest reward of all…his throne in the mound.
We all felt compelled by the rings we wore to not only take the throne but to fight for it. To battle against this false king for some of us. To freedom for others.
Adara cut off her finger, threw the urn and black teeth behind her, and fled the mound, laden in gold.
Rothgus hurled his great axe at the king but was deflected by an invisible barrier he had errected.
Arjunesh, man of Set, who once was throne into the labor camps for attracting the eye of the queen, decided he would take the throne, but not as a punishment or gift, but spoil of war. He battered his blade against the barrier and under his might it shattered. He cut the kings hand (which still bore five rings) from his arm and plunged the blade into his chest.
As the old king died, choking on his own blood, Rothgus and Sekham followed Adara’s lead and cut off their fingers to escape with the loot they had purloined.
But Arjunesh of Shem did not flee. He sat upon his throne and summoned each of the ten rings to hold in one hand while he held the giant emerald eye of the serpent in the other “By Dagon’s Depths, I am the Mound King!”
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Thoughts on this game
An entirely fun romp. We took bold action, dispatched our foes, and encountered wonders along the way. Our characters “leveled up” by finding better weapons and armor as we went, but most of that was window dressing as our might, edge, and grid made us glorious.
I liked the Stamina (currency) and Edge (random chance at greatness) mechanics for giving us some punchy moments. There were a few times when we got a 10 on our edge die when we would have otherwise failed and it saved us from defeat. One or twice it meant we did massive damage, which was a delight.
Gene was so full of energy, ready with bombastic declarations of deadly foes and eager curiosity about how we dispatched them.
Conan doesn’t have a lot of fail states. You can take damage. Maybe you can suffer a consequence like falling into a pit or being surrounded. Most of the time though, a failed roll just meant failing a task, which was never very fun. I think the system would be better served if you spent resources based on your degree of failure (life points, stamina, etc). That way we’d always see the heroes prevailing, but at different costs, and avoid the situation of “just don’t roll a 1”.
The combination of armor and ranged attacks not adding a stat modifier to damage meant that the game strongly encouraged people to get in the fray. I think that is overall a good thing, but I was concerned that our archers weren’t getting to do as many cool tricks. I think the fact that they never needed to move (so cold always spend both actions attacking) helped, but I think it might help if their weapons had just a bit more oomph to keep up.
For me, having a character that did +6 damage on every melee attack (5 Might + Destroyer trait) meant I felt truly deadly (when you roll a d6+6 you’re never rolling poorly!). Being able to spend a Stamina to get an extra move action meant I could almost always get in two attacks as well. Often I did this by running into large groups of foes, letting them attack me, and then thrashing everyone around me. It meant I took a lot of damage, but there was no ticking clock on the adventure and resting was easy enough (which I liked) that health wasn’t a big concern.
