Campaign: Drachend
A small, cozy state on the the west coast of the United States, sometime in the 1930s-1970s. The land itself is sprawling, full of pine trees, hills and well-known for its gorgeous autumn colorings. The cities in Washoregon are newly established, small suburbs that have broken off from the hubub of the city life. Most of the state remains shattered in terms of geography, with long stretches of road inbetween most of the small towns. Due to the land, a great deal of the cities in Washoregon are not only hard to reach, but also remain fairly isolated from the others, developing their own cultures and myths. The dense woods engulfing most of the state cover up its secrets.
Small City Bar - The reception of the funeral was held in a small restaurant in the bar, where most of the drifters ordered hot chocolates and coffee to stave off the cold from the rain outside. Warm and hospitable, with good food and good rates. One of the few taverns we’ve visited that hasn’t been awful.
Cemetary - An old but still well-maintained cemetary just outside the city limits, on the part of Mt.Hood Village on the border with the large mountains to the north.
Mount Hood - A small cresting mountain, rounded into a sort of hill. Dense forest lines the entirety of the mountain, making travel on foot difficult, but travel via car just as bad. A large observatory used by the Baxter family stands at its peak. Supposedly a large asteriod landed on the mountain nearly 200 years ago. 3 years ago, rumors of alien activity started in the area, and a few fires were seen burning in the woods.
Ranger’s Outpost - A small two-story building a bit east of Mount Hood, about halfway up its side. Empty, but stocked with ammunition and supplies. Briefly made famous when the Orangufoot was claimed to have been killed in the building. The floorboards are still stained with blood, but no evidence of the beast was ever found.
The Baxter Observatory - A small observatory built at the top of Mount Hood for Prof.Baxter, an avid astronomer who died a few weeks before the drifters arrived. The observatory was taken over by an alien lifeforce, both curious about life on the planet and malicious towards it. The alien, still trapped in its cage, slowly built its base around the observatory, manipulating people’s minds to have them do its bidding from the outside, and creating composite creatures such as the Orangufoot to aid it in collecting volunteers.
Pelly Trace was shot in the head, but reanimated and made into the alien’s obedient servant. Both Elli Bang and Reed Allen were confronted by Lucielle Johnson during the final encounter as well. Reed Allen attempted to escape the Observatory, but walked back into the building from the porch after being spooked by Lucielle Johnson. Elli Bang refused the alien’s offer and was told “I gave you a choice. You didn’t take it. Maybe next time.” by Lucielle Johnson before being killed. (These endings reinforced the trend of Noah’s characters always being forced into obedience by Lucielle Johnson, and Savvy’s characters always defying Lucielle Johnson)
The drifters were called together to hear the will of Professor Baxter after his untimely death. Unfortunately, as it would turn out the entire funeral was a ruse to bring these strange people together, a fact that they discovered immediately upon entering the small city bar and asking each other how they knew the deceased. Already on-edge, the drifters spent most of their time trying to dig up clues surrounding a “Brass Tree”.
After defiling a grave, scouting out the area , and taming a squirrel, the drifters made their way up the mountain where they split into groups, being chased by the Orangufoot. Those that made it to the top of the observatory found a homicidal alien with the ability to mentally paralyze and reanimate human beings without ever leaving its abode. The alien claimed to have brought them all together to use their respective skills. After a brief standoff where none of the drifters were able to fight back, all the drifters at the observatory were tortured and killed.
The few drifters that had not gone to the observatory either followed through on killing the Orangufoot, or fled the city altogether. A few months later, a funeral was held for the drifters killed atop the observatory. This funeral was attended by both Sunny and Mr.Smith, who both expressed regrets for the fallen drifters.
Character bios were written in advance by the DM: “Elli Bang, Husband of philanthropist and CEO Joe Bang, made a name for herself long before marrying into the famed family. Graduating from Harvard Law at the age of 19, Elli forged a career as a Business Attorney for a variety of pharmaceutical companies. Her reputation grew after winning a number of key victories on the federal level for her now husband, Joe Bang. Her success launched Bang Care as front runner in the health industry, cementing its name nationally.
Joe Bang was born into a wealthy family, living a gilded life for much of his childhood. When Joe was 26 his parents died under mysterious circumstances, and the young man was named majority shareholder of Bang Care. His charm, quick thinking, and powerful demeanor lead the company into a golden age. While much of the success of the company can be attributed to the savvy businessman, his expertise lies in public relations while his wife truly runs the company behind the scenes.
Lisa Beal was born in a small oil town on the border of Alaska and Canada. She spent the early part of her life learning to live off the land from her father and quickly became a key part of the community. When the facilities that ran the company closed, Lisa moved inward and became a park ranger. She now spends her days touring the State Parks, keeping overzealous tourists and illegal poachers from the dangers of the Wintery north.
Pete Dary grew up in southern Florida with his grandparents. Growing up in poverty, Pete spent the majority of his time playing with stray animals. His nurturing demeanor made him a magnet for the local animal population and he was soon a pseudo caretaker for the area. After his guardians death, Pete moved North Maryland where he went to Vet school. Pete now works at Maryland state zoo, where he cares for a variety of animals from across the world.
Little is known about the man named George. His words are like honey, his walk as smooth as the ocean waves, and his eyes beg the weary eye to draw closer. Who is this man?
Pelly Trace grew up in London. A lonely child, Pelly found comfort in the rapidly advancing technology of the Cold War. She spent much of her time wandering between different appliance stores, tearing apart old machines just to learn how they worked. During college, Pelly became enthralled by the growing Software space, and pursued a degree in the field. After graduating, Pelly moved to America where she started a consultant company for what would later become Silicon Valley.
Alex Blaze grew up with one goal, to fly. Watching from the Kansas fields, Alex would spend hours looking up at the sky, tracing the vapor trails left by the local Air Force jets. Dropping out of highschool, Alex joined the Air Force at the age of 18, and was soon considered one of the best pilots in the force. Stationed just 20 miles from where he once watched the sky as a child, Alex is now a renown Colonel in the midwest.
Reed Allen was born in Ohio, and his lived much of his life under the radar. Friendly but shy, Reed navigated his way through lower education carefully, making a few close friends but never straying too far out of his comfort zone. Following High School Reed took a two years off to travel the country by himself. Though he learned much on his journey, the young man eventually settled down in Madison where he now attends College as an underclassmen.
There’s a saying in Portland that if you ever see Bill Hanover without oil on his hands, to find cover cause the world is about to end. Of course, that’s a bit of an exaggeration but the truth is that if you ever have automobile problems Bill is your guy. A masterclass in his field, anything that runs on gas, steam or oil can and most likely has been dismantled and reassembled by Bill. Despite his age, the man has never stopped learning and he is considered the guru for young mechanics across the west coast.
Sally Nep is nothing short of a dreamer. She spent her childhood looking up at the stars dreaming of they day should would float amongst them. Sadly, this dream died when Sally was diagnosed with Astigmatism. But that didn’t stop Sally from looking up. Instead, the young women began to dedicate herself to Astronomy, and by the age of 25 she was a welcome part of the Astro field. She now resides in Texas as the head of Astronomy department at AU.
Edd’s first memory is watching a Nuclear test reel in elementary school. The raw power sent shivers down the young boys bones, and since that day Edd dedicated his life to nuclear power. After graduating from Berkeley with high honors, Edd took a job at a Nuclear Power plant in southern Utah. He quickly made a name for himself as his methods increased the factories power output by 2% while reducing cost by 5. After 5 years he was promoted to senior advisor to the board where he oversees the day to day workings of the plant.”