Lt. Regina Nuncio (9/4/2026)

GM: Sean Nittner
Players: Ryan Fox Squire, Howard Buzick, Avery Krieger, James Lawton
System: Blades in the Dark: Dagger Isles

Holy shit, this game was fire. I mean, I don’t think I’ve run a better game in years. The starting situation, the players, the characters, the NPCs, the actions, everything was just SO. DAMN. GOOD.

I’m going to try and capture everything that happened, but I’m sure there are parts I’ve missed. I barely took notes during the game because I was so focused on the action. Here’s the bits that were burned into my brain like a laser etched into stone.

The Pitch

Here’s the blurb I gave when I submitted the game. At the time I didn’t have the starting situation, the empire sheet, or the claims map, but I was confident I would!

The Dagger Isles, an archipelago the Empire once colonized and now seeks to consume. As the leviathans recede from our world, desperation for power from Imperial City has amplified the attacks on your home, but they have also exposed a weakness. Now is the time to strike. Now is the time to restore the Dagger Isles to the children of Sky Mother and Sky Father!

Pretty good I thought. It’s short and exciting, but by the time of the game John and I were able to do even better.

The Situation

A year ago, an Imperial spectrologist discovered that electroplasm could be mined from the ground, from the very God Beast that formed the isles when they fell from the stars a millennia ago.

The Ministry of Preservation—granted governance over all supplies deemed critical to the empire—displaced many homes and sacred sites to build an excavation site. They constructed a massive drill, larger than anything used before, and bored into the land itself to extract the blood and bones of the Gods Beasts, which they refined into their coveted electroplasm.

The drilling stirred the God Beast in its slumber and it Dreamed a storm off the coast Biranagan, Capitol of the Dagger Isles. As the first spark-powered train carrying electroplasm entered the void gate, it was struck by lightning and the volatile cargo exploded, causing damage all the way through the void gate and into the heart of Akoros, the Imperial continent.

The next day when the gate open a train emerged that was battered by the torrents of time. Everyone onboard was dead, and the train itself was pocked and rusted as though it had traveled for a century in the void sea.
Since then shipments have halted as spectrologists examine the damage, but the drilling and the harm to your homeland continues. Several of your companions, identified as insurrectionists, have been imprisoned under suspicion of causing the explosion, and the storehouses of electroplasm continue to grow.

This is your opportunity. For now, all reinforcements are being sent by ships, which are slower than the trains, and risk the possibility of attack from other rivals. Before the void gates are restored you can make your move.

Scoundrels of Biringan

I gave the pitch for all of the playbooks and after some back and forth we got the following currently or soon-to-be criminals who bucked the yoke of the empire.

• Bun Ma, the Inkfist. Owner of the Song of Succor, a restaurant that served by Daggerite and Imperial patrons, but he had one table reserved only for the locals. He wore traditional dress, He had a falling out with his cousin Rest-Among-Jasmine. She was a devout acolyte in the Church of Ecstasy and they could never see eye to eye over matters of faith. (James)
• Bin Tang, the Vidyad. A Blooded, the landed aristocracy allowed to keep their holdings so long as they did the empire’s bidding. Though accustomed to code switching, his interactions with Daggerites were often filled with hostility and those with the empire filled with veiled disdain. To hide his connection to the old ways Bin Tang kept his gardens hidden, only his trusted gardener Eren knew where it was. (Howard)
• Sam Sam Song, the Sargog. A wandering storyteller who made a circuit between the banyans, but was now trapped in Biringan because the borders were closed. The place that once felt like a home, now a prison. He had one ally at Lighting Tree station, Lady Giselle Berlitz, a socialite who was enamored with his stories and offered him aid when she could. (Ryan)
• Yaseen Lambati, the Bonewalker. Indentured servant of Sgt Major Keel. He was accustomed to carrying her burdens and staying at her side, even though he was invisible to her. He died in her service and she never even noticed. Now connected to the ghost, the storied he heard in life were truths in death. (Avery)

Fire. I loved these scoundrels already. After they were done, I filled out the Empire Sheet. Technically the starting situation is for the Ministry, but we’ve only made the Military sheet so far, and it would suffice for a one shot.

I picked Charismatic Leaders because I already knew Keel was going to be an intimate threat based on what Avery had told me about her. Increased Bluecoat presence seemed appropriate after the explosion. And I just liked the idea of dangerous rifle scouts.

For the damage done I picked the Mangroves being cut down because that feels like a precursor to the drilling, and since the situation said that people had been locked up already, I added prisons built. Finally, we had been taking about the harm to the diwata (spirits of the land) and so it just made sense to add Corrupted Ancestors. I liked that these all felt intuitive based on what we had said already rather than something I had to stretch for.

Song of Succor

Bin Tang was summoned to meet Sgt Major Keel to meet her at the Song of Succor. Inside, before they entered, the restaurant was full of boisterous patrons. They would not say it out loud, but they were all celebrating the recent explosion and the sting in the empire’s side. Bun Ma was busy serving up orders and Sam Sam Song was playing his lute to entertain the patrons.

Outside, however, the storm was brewing. Keel, with her manservant Yaseen, and twelve elite rifle scouts. All armed, all looking for an excuse to use the tools the empire had provided them, blades and bullets. Sgt Major Keel met Bin Tang and nodded for him to open the door for her. When the 15 of them entered (Keep, Bin Tang, Yaseen, and 12 rifle scouts) the restaurant went from crowded to cramped, the mood suddenly sedate.

Bun Ma had only one table open, the one reserved for Daggerites of course. Even that couldn’t seat everyone in this new party. Everyone stood still for a moment and the tension brewed. When Bun Ma did not start making an effort to find her a table, Keel sent her servant Yaseen to handle it.

Yaseen approached one table that looked like it was done eating asked if they wouldn’t mind wrapping up. There was a horrible screech as the chair scraped the floor and one Daggerite, feeling stronger than he really was stood up in defiance [1-3 result on a Risky/Standard Consort].

Just as he was about to say something however, Sam Sam Song changed his tune to an old song from when the empire first arrived and slaughtered Daggerites who stood against it. The defiant man took a new appraisal of the room. Yes, the rifle scouts were outnumbered four to one, but they had guns, and knives. And there was probably another dozen imperials who were just enjoying their lunch, but who still might come to their aid if a fight broke out. He mumbled something under his breath and then said he was done already, the Song of Succor had become too crowded for his tastes [6 result on a Desperate/Standard Sway]

Another table was cleared by Bun Ma. We flashed back to Bin Tang arriving earlier and telling him that when the Sgt Major arrived, she had best been able to get a seat without trouble. Bin Tang provided him gayuma, a pink liquid that is sweet as nectar and warms the belly. Imbibers open their minds—setting aside preconceptions and prejudices—becoming more receptive to novel ideas. Bun Ma had been serving the drink and he told the table adjacent to the one who just cleared that their meal was free, they could take their drinks with them, and that they were invited to a festival dinner next week…at no charge. He’d lost earnings on this, but Bun Ma was able to maintain the appearance of gracious host as the drunk on gayuma patrons stumbled out. [1 stress Flashback, no action roll required but in a campaign game, I might have said pay a coin to cover all these costs]

Answers

Bin Tang was seated between Stg Major Keel and an a thick necked man he would later learn was Corporal Longst. The the two miliary members were able to look straight at Bin Tang, where as he had to keep turning his head from side to side to face them.

Keel had no time for pleasantries. “We’ve locked up half a dozen of your people already Bin Tang, but they aren’t who we want. Tell me…who sabotaged the train?”

Whatever he expected this meeting to be about, Bin Tang did not have a satisfying answer for the Sgt Major. “No one, as far as I know. It was just struck by lightning. It was the storm.”

Keel didn’t by it, but when she saw Bin Tang was not going to change his story she nodded in the direction of a random patron and offered “Maybe he knows.” [1-3 result, Risky/Standard Sway]

Longst stood up, grabbed the man by the back of his head and was going to slam his face into the table, but Bun Ma was there just in time. “Please sirs, no violence in my establishment. Please take this outside.” [Resist the consequence down to a lesser one].

Longst looked to Keel, who nodded, and then he grabbed the man by the collar and began dragging him outside. Inside or outside didn’t matter much to Longst, he was going to kick the shit out of this man and have fun doing it.

Sizing up our foes

As he was singing, Sam Sam Song was also sizing up the twelve rifle scouts under Keel’s command. Clearly Longst loved his jobs. The others seemed indifferent. But one of them, a Daggerite, Lt. Regina Nuncio was playing close attention. She didn’t seem upset at the display of violence, more that she was wary of how it could cascade. Sam Sam signaled to his companions that she was a potential target through song, but what he didn’t realize is that Regina knew his songs as well, and she knew he had marked her [4/5 result on a Risky/Standard Survey, Consequence was Regina not trusting Sam Sam Song],

Yaseen took the queue and spent the remainder of the conversation studying the young officer. He could see she was analytical and thoughtful. There was also something else. She was dedicated to this cause. She didn’t have sympathy for the man who was about to be brutalized, she was wary his death might foment more resistance. She was zealous! [6 result on Risky/Standard Study. Allowing Avery to ask follow up questions]. Yaseen wanted to know if she had lost anyone in her life recently. This was something he might sense from the presence of the ghost field, but on a more practical level he would know because attending to the dead was his professional responsibility. People talk and he recalled that her mother had recently died of an illness. Here body was being sent back to the imperium for ectoplasmic incineration. Was her body sent on the same train that exploded? He wasn’t sure. Possibly. Probably.

I feel your pain

Bun Ma escorted officer Longst and the would-be victim outside. As he held the door for them both, he put his hand on the terrified man’s shoulder and told him “I feel your pain.” As he did so the tattoos on his body swirled down his arm, over his hard fingers, and onto the man’s shoulder, imbuing him with Bun Ma’s martial prowess. [Temporary Ink special ability]. The man looked at him with surprise. Suddenly he felt the the possibility of surviving this encounter.

Remember when Neo faces Agent Smith in the subway. That’s a bit how this fight went down. Longst swung with a heavy fist and blow after blow was blocked. That only drove him to fight harder…and more reckless. Bones-at-their-Feet, a Daggerite who had previously been a humble pomelo farmer, now how the training and prowess of an Inkfist! When he got close, he slammed his elbow into Longst solar plexus and send him staggering back, gasping for breath. Lognst spit, drew his knife, and prepared to enjoy the upcoming brutality. But to his surprise the prior patron did not run and did not yield. He fought back, knocking out the brute, but taking a lethal stab wound to the stomach in the process. Longst fell, Bones-at-their-Feet at their feet staggered away, and would have died from beading out if not for Bin Tang’s Healing Salve [Special ability], that made the blow a grievous, but not mortal one. [So how did this work. I had James make the Skirmish roll for Bones-at-their-Feet. He was unarmed against an elite rifle scout, but his surge of fear anger were funneled through the tattoos of the Inkfist, so I set the position as Desperate/Standard. James rolled a 4/5 result, which meant Level 3 harm, enough to kill a normal person. We flashed forward to Bin Tang using the protect action to find the man and tend to his wounds. These two men would be remembered by Bones-at-their-Feet even on his deathbed.

Inside, Marine Sgt. Major Keel heard the body of Longst fall hard and turned he ire back to Bin Tang. “We’re going to have this conversation again, and when we do, you’re going to have better answers. If you don’t, our next conversation will be far less pleasant.” She stood and her rifle scouts followed her out, picking up Longst along the way.

Engagement Roll

Wait, now? Yes, normally a score starts with the scoundrels having already planned a move and starting with the action, but for this game I wanted lead up, and I wanted to put them all on a back foot. That encounter didn’t go as poorly as it could have, but everyone knew that Keel was a problem that had to deal with soon.

We looked over the claims map and they picked “Sympathizer”. Technically it wasn’t available at first but a) it made sense, and b) it should have been. I’ve made a note of that below.

So, what’s the approach. Take her at knife point with assault? Contact her through her dead mother with occult? No, they would try a social score, a better way to make allies. Social scores require a connection, and Yaseen had one in mind, his close friend Dew-Shrouded-Petals, a professional mourner. She would pave the way for a conversation, if an uncomfortable one.

We assembled some bones for an engagement roll. 1D for luck, 1D for a bold plan, 1D because the target was weak against this approach, 1D for ally who could help, -1D for an enemy getting in the way (Bun Ma’s cousin Rests-Amongst-Jasmin, an acolyte of the Church of Ecstasy) -1D for going against a higher tier target: 3d6 roll and they got a 6, a controlled position.

Church of Ecstasy

Yaseen and his companions entered the Church of Ecstasy. The main hall filled with depictions of the Immortal Emperor holding the sun aloft in the sky, battling and binding demons from below, and protecting the people of the shattered isles. Propaganda through and through.

Dew-Shrouded-Petals greeted Yaseen and Sam Sam Song and told them that Regina was downstairs in a chamber waiting for them. The descended as Bun Ma and Bin Tang took in the “sights”.

Going downstairs into the basement was a testament to the empires persistence and the lands hatred of them. Basements were not meant to be made in the Dagger Isle. Stone had cracked and been mortared and cracked and mortared again. Roots grew through crevasses, were cut back, and grew again.

As the approached the room indicated they moans from down the hall. Pleasure or pain, they could not be sure. When they opened the door they saw Lt. Nuncio sitting on a stool with her shirt off, biting hard on a wooden bit. Behind her, Bun Ma’s cousin Rests-Among-Jasmines was caning her, beating way the weakness of the spirit, strengthening the flesh through trial.

Nuncio raised her hand in a fist, a military gesture to halt the caning. The acolyte had one more strike ready, but she held off as the lieutenants’ command. She set the cane on a rack and departed “I’ll be just upstairs if you need me.”

Regina, unconcerned with modesty, gave Sam Sam Song a hard look, but turned her attention to Yassen. “I was told you were coming to visit me.”

Yaseen asked if she knew the fate of her mother and learned that yes, she had been scheduled to be on the train that exploded, but beyond that Regina did not know more.

Regina held herself stiff, resistant to any compelling words, but a Sargon is a master of bitter truths and sweet lies. Sam Sam Song told her that they knew ways to purify the spirit. He was referring to the Serpentine Path, but did not name it for fear of the notion being rejected as ancient superstition. Regina was listening now, but was not ready to help these Daggerites who clearly had not sworn allegiance to the great empire.

In this Holy House

Bun Ma was staring in disgust at the frescos on the wall when his cousin entered the great hall. “Are you considering finally joining the church, my cousin?”

Bun Ma scoffed and pointed to the images “Do you see what these images are? Those pictures of demons being battled…those are pictures of us. Of our god-beasts. These are not images of salvation, the are glorifications of the Empire’s crushing grip on our land and our people.”

“I see. You vision is still clouded by the old ways.” The two cousins were replaying a old conversation, had dozens of times before, and surely to happen dozens of times again.

—

Meanwhile Bin Tang, the landed Daggerite was making a show of making observances to the Church. Lighting candles and holding your hand over them until you flinch away. His boon companions, gardener and apothecary Eren appeared beside him. Welcome company, but not usually found in such places. Eren spoke softly. “Bin Tang, soldiers appeared our our gates this morning. They let themselves onto our land. They have not seen your gardens, but they did ask me questions. Questions that made me very uncomfortable. I fear next time, they will take more than just my answers. What should I do?”

Bin Tang questioned his friend as well to find out what the Imperials were after, and they began hatching a plan.

Faces in the Roots

Below, Yaseen could tell that Regina would not be moved by words alone. He donned his death mask and opened his mind to the ghost field. There he saw a tortured violet miasma, spirits that has been corrupted and conjoined, many headed, covered in knots like those from trees. Was Regina’s mother among them. He though so, but without calling for her directly could not be sure. [6 Result on a Controlled/Limited Attune. It was limited effect because of the Violet Haze].

—

Above, Bin Tang asked Eren if there was someone who could take the fall for this calamity. Keel wasn’t going to stop until she found someone to blame. Picking one of their own was unthinkable, but Eren did have a candidate. Lady Giselle, an imperial who was know to show pro-Daggerite sentiments. She has the resources to pull something like this off, but wasn’t so powerful that she’d be protected for the repercussions. Eren would start putting pieces into place [A future score to get the Empire off their backs? Perhaps, but the mark would be Sam Sam Songs close friend!]

—

Below, Yaseen did not flinch. He called on the spirit of Regina’s mother, and she heeded the call. Her spirit shot from the violet haze like a both, penetrating the eye sockets of Yaseen’s mask, and pouring herself into his body. In the ghost field she had three heads, and inside Yaseen, she tried to cut through his fragile flesh to birth those heads as well. Slits in his neck opened as the spectral manifestations began to form. He used all his training and will to contain them [1-3 Result on a Desperate/Standard attune, consequences were possession and harm]

Sam Sam Song saw what was happening and though it was horrific, it was also an opportunity. “You see you’re mother’s spirit is still here. We can take her to the—” he would have said Serpentine Path Yaseen, possessed by an angry spirt grabbed him by the throat and slammed him into the wall, cracking his skull and the stone in turn. Sam Sam collapsed to the ground, all that he could do, even with treatment Bin Tang’s salve, was not enough to hold onto consciousness [1-3 Result on Desperate/Standard sway, Level 3 harm Cracked Skull, Resisted down to Level 2 Concussion, the stress taken causing trauma: Haunted]

—

Above Rests-Among-Jasmines, suddenly fell a pull on her sense, a rise of the hairs on her arms, a chill down her spine. She looked suspciciously as Bun Ma for a moment and then bolted downstairs. Bun Ma and Bin Tang following just behind.

When they entered the saw Regina standing with her back to the wall. Yaseen, possessed by her mother speaking words in the First Tongue, and Sam Sam Song in a bloody pile on the groud.

Rests-Among-Jasmines drew a baton, flicked it out to full length and ignited it with crackling lighting. She was going to beat back the ghost and it’s host, but her cousin interposed. They were both feeling a powerful fear, and Bun Ma was able to use that predict her moments [Ink fist gain potency against targets with the same emotional state due to their fine fighting wraps]. He caught her wrist, disarmed her, and struck her across the chest with terrible tool of the empire. The diagonal scar of burned flesh on her chest would remain with her as long as her hate for her cousin did, but in this moment she did not have the strength to do more than curse him before collapsing unconscious.

Bin Tang pulled Starlight’s Web, a luminant creation that looked like a hairball, lifted up Yaseen’s mask, and shoved it into his mouth. As the star-forged strands exploded in his mouth, the ghost of Regina’s mother was immobilized and Yaseen regained control of his body…so long as he did not open his mouth.

Regina was ready to fight Bun Ma, she grabbed the cane off the wall and held it ready to strike, but groggily Sam Sam Song returned to consciousness and called out to stop her. “Wait, we can help you. This is just what you feared would happen to your mother, that she would become a monster. This is what you fear will happen to you. We can take her to the Serpentine Path and have her spirit pass on. We can take you there as well, and perhaps help you let go of those fears. But in return, we will ask something of you.” [6 on a Risky/Great Sway!]

Regina nodded and lowered the cane. Bin Tang tended to Sam Sam Song’s wounds, and they departed the church, leaving Regina where they found her, a changed person.

Thoughts on the Game

HELL FUCKING YEAH. That did everything I hoped for and more. Some of my very favorite moments:

• When Avery said “Are we going to play this again?” as we reviewed the claims sheet. Hell yes Avery, I would love to!
• “You very good at this” Ryan said quietly as I put crosshairs on his close contact. I appreciate the kind words, but also, it was the game that gave me the tools to do it!
• “I both hated and was afraid of Keel.” That was all I could hope for. She is a fucking monster.

I also had a great time playing up the gothic creepiness of the Church. I definitely want to expand more on things like scripture, practices, etc. They ride the gossamer-thin line between pleasure and pain (a line from Ross Bryant).

With the exception of a few notes below, this felt strong enough to build out our other starting situations for the Military and Church, as well as claims maps and empire sheets. For years I’ve felt like Dagger Isles was moving along but I couldn’t see the end in sight. Now I can!

Thank you to Ryan, Howard, Avery, and James for this amazing game. It filled me with delight at what we’ve done, and drive to finish it!

.

Playtest notes

• Remember to ask people about their backgrounds, heritage, vice, and contact as a way to find their place in the situation and to make it personal for them.
• Charismatic Leaders should probably be revised from “Soldiers cannot be turned against their cause” to something that make it difficult to turn them. In this very game we had a solider turned to a sympathizer and it all made sense. It was rough, she certainly didn’t like the scoundrels, but she was willing to work with them to help her mother.
• The starting situation offers a lot of possible scores, but then when presented with the claims sheet, different opportunities appear. Since taking a claim is a good way to start off a game, I’ll revise those to match up.
• As written the starting situation makes it obvious that the explosion was caused by the storm, but I think more ambiguity is needed. Maybe the Daggerites know, but to the ministry and military, it looks like sabotage. I’ll adjust accordingly.
• We used Salving Grace wrong, it offered +2d to all physical resistance rolls instead of offering a pool of dice. I think we could split the difference and say it offers +1d across the board.
• I misread Marine STG MJR Keep as thought MJR was her first name (instead of being short for Major). It was something we didn’t catch till the end, but I kept it. I thought it was kind of hilarious that she might have been named MJR.
• Add gather information question to the Bone Walker “Who do they care about that died most recently?” This is not only something they would know on a supernatural level from attuning to the ghost fields, but it’s also their professional duty to tend to the dead and the bereaved.
• Initial options for the claims map should include more choices, likely Sympathizer and Sabotage to start, as that’s a common first move.