Another Bug Hunt - Session 1 - After Action Report

31 Aug, 2024

This past weekend I ran my first session of Mothership: Scenario 1 from Another Bug Hunt, which I adapted to be a one-shot based on the module's suggestions. Two out of the four players had never played TTRPGs before and were eager to try. Instead of using pregens -- which would speed things up and perhaps make the one-shot as a whole more streamlined --, I opted to guide them through the character generation so they could familiarize themselves with their sheets and what's on them. This worked quite well and only took about 20 minutes.

After that, I handed each of them the .TXT briefing dossier that is passed around here on Discord; I was a bit unsure if this would work well ("why do I have to read three pages?? just let me play already!!"), but they weren't troubled by it, and indeed found it quite funny. I told them to read it silently and it took 2 minutes at most. After that, we began play.

Characters

• Amanda - "Marine A"
• Ringle - "Marine B"
• Andrew - "The Android"
• Lilian - "The Engineer"

Report

• Players arrive at the landing zone in front of Greta Base. Their shuttle leaves them there and goes back to orbit as the tropical rain gets heavier.
• They notice the two sets of mud tracks and decided in favor of checking the front door first. However, after realizing that the door was locked and that a keycard was necessary, they decided to go left towards the garage door.
• In the area in front of the garage, they debated for a bit whether to try to open the garage door ("avoiding the main entrance is always a good idea..." "avoiding the main entrance is always a BAD idea!"), until one of the players decided to check the mud pile in front of the door
• They found the bisected corpse at the bottom of the mud pile and rolled their first Fear Save, introducing them to the game's mechanics.
• One of the players asked: "I pat the body. can I feel any traces of a keycard in the pockets?". I pondered...
  • On one hand, the module doesn't explicitly tell that there is a keycard on the body, so there shouldn't be one.
  • On the other hand, this was a new player, and they were making the right question. Why not reward them for doing that? It's not like there's a strong reason for the corpse to not have a keycard either. So I ended up answering "yeah, you find one."
• The players debate some more, and decide to try to open the front door with the keycard.
• Entering the airlock, they get intrigued by the fact that there was already mud on the floor. They also inspect the lockers, and one player pockets the rosary.
• They try to open the inner door, but I tell them (as per the module) that they need to close the outer door first. With a sense of uneasiness setting in, they close it.
  • While reading the module during prep, I came across this detail but didn't quite get it -- it seemed odd and bureaucratic. However, at the table I understood the point: it's a wonderful moment where the players have enough information to know something is not right, and to carry onwards they need to put themselves at a great disadvantage (cutting off any escape paths), which generates a lot of apprehension. So cool!
• At the commissary, they get unnerved by the signs of fighting, and most don't want to get too far from the door. The only exception is the android, who promptly goes to check out the birthday banner.
  • He notices the head and points it out for everyone to see, producing a Fear Save (at Disadvantage) all around.
  • Everybody groans (in a light-hearted manner), like "f***ing androids!!!".
  • He asks me if it's Dr. Edem or Kaplan, I tell him it isn't.
  • The player pauses for a moment, and then starts to laugh. I ask him what's wrong. He tells me, in broken laughter: "I pick up the head and turn it towards everybody. I say: 'Team, It's not one of the Persons we are Looking for!!'".
  • I immediately say: "Fear Save all around."
  • Everybody bursts into laughter and curses the android.
• The android then decides to check around for the rest of the body, finding the arm and the decapitated corpse behind the table.
• The other players simply refuse to look and tell the android to pat the body and see if he can find anything.
• Feeling dejected at having been relegated to the position of second-hand coroner, the android notices that the chest is hollowed out and everybody freaks out.
• They move around the commissary, and sound a bit stuck on how to proceed. I decide to pressure them, and tell them that they start hearing the faint thud coming from the northern door.
• Seeing the air of indecision all around, the engineer decides to move into the pantry to see if it's safe.
• The engineer gets very confused regarding the pile of MREs on the floor, and pokes the marine corpse at the corner with their SMG muzzle.
• They notice that the marine corpse is full of paper cuts, just like the decapitated one at the commissary. They ask if this pantry marine corpse also has an empty chest. When I tell them that it doesn't, they freak out and exit the room, without even trying to open the Freezer.
• They push some furniture around to also barricade the pantry.
• They move onto the northern door towards the Command Center, with the utmost caution.
  • Here I notice that there was a slight miscommunication (sort of). They were convinced that the thud was coming from someone knocking on the northern door, while in reality it comes from the Garage. In retrospect, what I said was simply that "the sound comes from the other side of the door". So that one's on them, I think.
• On the corridor, they ask if they can see anything. I tell them that they don't, but that the thud seems to come from the left, where the garage door is located. They bolt for the Command Center as quickly as they can.
• They see the body and groan as they discover that it's the marine they were supposed to rendezvous with. The android ("corpses are your thing, you touch it") takes the org chart.
  • In this moment I hand to him the "no-spoilers" org chart that I saw here on Discord, which I printed during prep. Gosh I love handing papers to my players!!
• The android asks if he can fix the computers in the room, since they want to ask for evac since the situation seems much more dangerous than what they imagined.
  • At this point, I make a mistake: I look in the module, see that the computers can be fixed in 1d10 rounds, and tell him: "yes you can, and you surmise it will take about an hour to do so." Spotted the problem?
  • The problem is: the base is WITHOUT POWER!! How can he fix the computers if he can't even turn them on? I only noticed this much later. At that moment, I came clean to them about my mistake and retconned that he is fixing the hardware: to turn the computer and use the machines, they will need to turn the power back on again. They are understanding and adjust their plans accordingly.
• The party splits up: the android starts to fix the computers and one of the marines (Ringle) stays with him to offer protection; the engineer goes with the other marine towards the science lab, in order to search for their samples.
• I notice that they are getting too cozy, and that the garage is going to be the last place they enter because the thud comes from there. So I start looking for ways to apply pressure.
• The Engineer and Marine A investigate the lab. They read Dr. Edem's log and get unnerved about it, as they should.
• The Engineer uses their flashlight to peer in the other part of the science lab, which is locked and which, they correctly guess, needs Dr. Edem's keycard.
• The Engineer realizes that the samples they need are probably on the other side of the glass wall. The player controlling this character is new to TTRPGs, so it was great for me to hear the cogs turning inside her head:
  • Her: "it's a glass wall?"
  • I say: "yes it is!"
  • Her: "can I use my shovel... to like... break the door?"
  • I smile. "of course! you can try to do anything, and this makes a lot of sense. I will ask for a strength check, since the glass in the wall is not exactly weak, and shovels are not exactly puncturing instruments."
  • Her: "okay. I lift my shovel and hit the glass wall with it!"
  • She rolls a d100.
  • The Dice Gods smile upon me. She rolls a 99.
• The Engineer applied too much strength and the glass wall shattered to pieces, cutting and scaring her, and making a high-pitched screech that could be heard throughout the entire silent base. She fails the Fear Save but succeeds the Panic Check.
• Engineer and Marine A investigate the now-unlocked part of the lab. They don't have the necessary knowledge to figure out what the medical machinery are for, but they do find the samples and get freaked out the tiny little larvae.
• They decide to only take one of the samples: "I think one sample is enough, and if this thing decides to attack us... it's best if it's 4v1 and not 4v4."
• Marine A takes the acid container and decides to check behind the operating table.
• She finds the carc leg, and the air vent. She asks me: "is the air vent open?" I say: "yes."
• They freak out, and tell the Command Center team about their findings. Marine B decides to check the room for air vents, while the android works. I tell him that he doesn't find any vents, but while investigating, he notices something: the thuds stopped.
  • I decided that Sgt. Abara was going to die of old age before someone touched him and unleashed the kraken, so it was time to simply let this beautiful creature free on the base and up the stakes.
• I tell the android that he feels close to finishing, but isn't there quite yet.
• The party decides that Marine A will stand guard for the android, while Marine B and the Engineer investigate the Garage to see why the noise stopped, and look for the circuit breaker or something of the sorts.
• In the garage, they see the generator and bolt after it.
• Marine A hears something in the corridor.
• The Engineer starts to fill the generator with fuel.
• Marine A looks in the corridor, but finds nothing.
• The Engineer calls over Marine B, and they decide to turn the generator on.
• Marine A goes back inside and nervously looks at the door. She sees two keratinous appendices inching behind the door, as the carc slowly reveals itself from behind the door.
• The generator is turned on.
• Music starts blasting from the commissary, and I swap Cryo Chamber's "Lost Among Stars [ ボイド ]" playlist for "Focus - Hocus Pocus" on loop.
• Chaos ensues.
  • Marine A is perforated by the carc, Android passes a Speed Check and simply bolts for the door, Garage team hears it over radio and Marine B goes to the corridor, while the Engineer takes one of the fuel barrels and moves towards the corridor as well.
  • Marine A tries to run for the corridor but fails and reach the corridor but with the carc immediately behind them. Marine B aims for the carc and shoots it, but fails the Fear Save and the Combat Save and end up shooting Marine A. Engineer abandons plan to burn entire facility and bolts for the Armory, in hopes of finding big guns. Android goes to garage and decides that burning carc is good plan. Carc grabs Marine A's body as they reach the garage door.
  • Marine B exploits the proximity and empties his magazine shooting at the carc in close-range. As they realize that none of the bullets did anything whatsoever, both marines Panic Check. Android picks a barrel of fuel. Engineer sees entire armory empty and a mass of molten iron in the center, and Panic Checks. Carc perforates Marine A again and bring them, unbelievably, to 1 health and 2/3 wounds.
  • Marine A succeeds at Strength Check at disadvantage and manages to free itself of the carc, throwing it onto the garage. Android begins dousing it in fuel. Engineer bolts for the garage again. Marine B reloads. Carc jumps at the android and pins him to the ground next to the hole, dousing them both in the fuel.
  • Marine A uses a stimpak as a pick-me-up. Engineer enters garage and runs to the vehicle, in hopes of hiding. Android tries to lift carc, fails, Panic Checks and succeeds. Carc eats away at the android, mixing milky-blood and flammable fuel.
  • Hocus Pocus is still playing.
  • Marine A asks me if the computer has been fixed, I tell her it hasn't. She tells the Engineer to go finish the job so they can beg for evac, I clarify that not only it would be take a while for the Engineer to pick up where the Android left off, the Engineer is specialized in engines, not in computers. Marine A's PC stares at me in horror, and I tell them to run a Fear Save since their character also just realized this.
  • Marine A realizes that it's all or nothing, and charges at the carc using the acid tank as a battering ram, in hopes of throwing it into the hole. They succeed, and I adjudicate that the carc falls by itself on the hole. Marine B opens the acid tank and starts to douse the carc with it. Engineer finds the mechanic inside the car and tries to take the grenade out of their hands. Android picks himself up and flees from the garage. Carc screams in agony and Fear Saves all around.
  • Marines empty out the acid can over the carc and I adjudicate that the creature is completely whacked, confused and twitching frantically. Engineer takes the active grenade out of the mechanic's hands and tells everybody to move away. Both marines enter the vehicle and the android goes to the command center to finish fixing the computer.
  • Engineer succeeds a combat check and throws the grenade inside the hole, closing the garage door immediately afterwards. Unbeknownst to the players, the grenade sets off all other 5 grenades hanging in Sgt. Abara's belt, also exploding the fuel barrel near the hole and setting the area around the hole on fire. The smell of smoke and scorched meat makes everybody stomach turn (come to think of it, maybe I should have asked for a Body Save here).
  • The hole just doubled in size, and one of the vehicle's back wheels is inside the hole.
• Android finishes fixing the computer. First order of business: stopping the commissary music, which I gladly do since I'm getting sick of Hocus Pocus as well.
• Marines and Engineer are at the vehicle. Engineer tries to figure out the comms as the Marines try to talk some sense out of the mechanic. She keeps babbling so Marine A tries to slap her. I ask for a Strength check at Advantage, which they fail, so I tell them that they accidentally slapped with too much force and knocked out the mechanic.
• Android starts up the comms and asks for evac.
• Engineer manages to fire up the comms, and they all hear the Shriek. Engineer passes and both Marines fail.
• They exit the vehicle, get together with the Android and exchange information.
• Some amount of time passes. Shuttle arrives. A medic on the shuttle realizes that Marine A is almost dead and goes over to bandage them. As this is done, they notice that Marine A is full of paper cuts. Marine B looks at his arms and covers them, as he notices that his arms are full of cuts as well. Mission finished. Thoughts:

What worked:

• Handing players the map
• The music blasting from the commissary
• Fear Saves
  • "Hand them out like they're candy"
  • Players
• Clear motivation

What didn't work:

• A few mistakes

#session-report