SESSION 47: THE FIST OF ANDY
General Summary
Previous Session: SESSION 46: AN ATOM A DAY
Next Session: SESSION 48: MORAL MATRIX MOVIE MAGIC
Players: Current Adventuring Party, Andy, Arminius, Linda, Morag
*August 27, 2317*
(Adventure Day 125)
The group finished setting up a temporary clinic at Willow Home, a halfway house run by the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel to accept those fleeing from Caesar's Legion or The Capitol. But Arminius and Patch were upset by the quality of the conditions. The refugees were being fed and housed, but were receiving no medical care or education. And the facility's administrator was an uncaring bureaucrat. But, after a few hours of work, they had set up a little medical facility which could service patients. Dr. Patch Radam set to work, telling the party that he would catch up with them after he was finished here.
The group decided to continue exploring the village of Homeland, on the Midwest side of the Ohio River. On that waterfront, the Brotherhood had set up a large customs facility. Though the great rivers of America were still poisoned with radiation, crews of ghouls and super mutants braved the waters to ship cargo up and down the Mississippi. This facility processed cargo moving into the Midwest, dozens of workers checking the items for contraband. The party stopped a worker and asked about their unclaimed cargo sales. The worker explained that usually the facility had a lot of rare gear, including weapons and armor. But a unit of New California Republic peacekeepers had traveled up from Kentucky Dam on their time off and purchased all the best stuff. There were a few rare items left, but the party weren't interested.
Heading to the market, the group sold off some of the valuables they picked up during their travels. Andy asked for a gun which wouldn't drain his main batteries, so the group bought him a laser gun and Arminius helped the robot upgrade it.
The party was curious about the Kayode House and what might lie within. What they found was a large library. Every wall was adorned with shelves of books and holotapes. The collection's manager, an elegant woman named Kechindé, explained that the Kayode House was a preservation society. While the Followers of the Apocalypse dedicate themselves to pre-war medicine, and the Brotherhood of Steel dedicate themselves to pre-war military technology, the Kayode House preserves pre-war literature. Linda noted that she had her own hand-written pamphlet, explaining the principals of the Lindavist interpretation of the Children of Atom religion. Kechindé enthusiastically entered Linda's pamphlet into the Kayode House archives.
As the pamphlet was scanned, Kechindé asked if Linda was headed toward Kentucky Dam. And when Linda said she was, the archivist asked if Linda could make a delivery for her. There was a military officer from The Capitol, one Colonel Braxton, who had ordered three books. These volumes were banned within The Capitol, so he would have to be handed the books on the Dixie side of the border. If Linda could hand "Das Glasperlenspiel", "The Social Contract" and "When the Sleeper Awakes" to the colonel, there would be a sizable courier fee. Kechindé explained that Colonel Braxton had recently traveled to Paducah to speak with a Dixie general there. The rest of the group also had magazines which they had salvaged in the wasteland. The Kayode House paid them to digitize the volumes and they were allowed to keep the originals.
Andy was interested in finding books on the Son of Schlockett. There were no volumes about the Son of Schlockett, but Kechindé did find that Arthur Schlockett, the billionaire industrialist who designed all of the SchlockettBots, wrote an autobiography. The book, titled "Everyone Will Be Living In My Dream," had been salvaged by the Followers of the Apocalypse, but the only copy was held in Shady Sands, within the New California Republic.
The party decided to move on, heading back into Dixie territory. That meant going back through the Brotherhood checkpoint and crossing the solitary bridge across the Ohio River.
As they went Arminius asked a Brotherhood knight, "Hey, can you not blow the bridge while I'm on it?"
And the knight answered, "I don't wanna. But if I get the order, I pull the switch. You know what I mean?"
Arminius swore under his breath and the group traveled across the bridge... quickly. They were eager to travel to Kentucky Dam, but Linda wanted to make her delivery in Paducah, so they went there first. Morag led them via the best roads in the region. Paducah was the largest community in the region, home to some 600 residents. The party easily found the local military fort and after some talk with the guards, gained entry. They found Colonel Braxton in the courtyard, speaking to one General Botwright, one of Dixie's top military commanders. The two officer's conversation was polite, but there was obvious tension. Linda delivered the banned books and Colonel Braxton accepted them. There was a long discussion about payment, but eventually Braxton paid up.
Colonel Braxton tried to convince them that there was no reason for any quarrel between The Capitol, Dixie and the Midwest. He claimed everyone's true enemy was The Enclave, that they should be working together to stop that conspiracy. Even General Botwright became impatient with Braxton, noting that the Great Leader of The Capitol didn't even let them read certain books. The situation was uncomfortable, but everyone separated in peace.
They still wanted to get to Kentucky Dam quickly and they were a four hour hike away. Arminius was interested in the Paducah Retraining Center, curious if they could help them upgrade their weapons and armour. They found a Dixie reformatory, where convicted criminals were retrained so that they could enter society. This exchange of crafts training had increased through the years, so that even free citizens would visit the prison in order to learn carpentry, farming or other trades. Arminius muttered that the people of Dixie were too soft to stand up to their enemies.
A prison guard noticed the party talking and asked if they were from the Midwest. The party were a bit guarded, except for Andy who told him immediately that he was from the Midwest. The guard explained that the local sheriff had found a very troubled man mumbling on the road to Kentucky Dam. This wretch was lost and confused, starving and ranting about nonsense. The locals had locked him up here in the retraining center, in a padded cell. The guards wanted someone to talk to the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel, hopefully to take this person home. They didn't have a name for him, but they had taken to calling him Startlebones.
Startlebones was a pathetic figure, sickly and shaking, huddled in a dark corner of his padded cell. He claimed to be a one-time servant of the one the Enclave called The Puppetmaster. "She" could somehow tell him what would happen before it had occurred. She gave him missions. Most of them were to help people, but some made no sense. Startlebones had wanted to serve better. He had gone to a place called Prathersville Lodge in Missouri. There, two people named Booch and Tameka had put an "electric crown" on him, and it had scrambled his brains. All Startlebones could remember is that Kentucky Dam was important. He said that The Puppetmaster was more in "the Lattice" than in a physical body, and all the threads of the Lattice came together at Kentucky Dam.
Arminius was disturbed. Tameka had taken special care to escort him to safety, treating him better than the other members of their caravan. If Tameka was an agent of The Puppetmaster, who was served by many Gen 2 Synths, Arminius started to worry that he was a Synth, that Startlebones was a Synth, that everyone was a secret Puppetmaster assassin. But speaking to the guards, it was clear that Startlebones had put on weight. It was said that Synths didn't really need to eat and couldn't lose or gain weight. But who knew?
Kentucky Dam seemed even more important than it did before. The party set out right away. Morag guided the group to the old highway. Arminius, now more paranoid than ever paid close attention to their surroundings. And it paid off. The party noticed that there were three women approaching a building in a precise line of fire. Arminius recognized the squad-level tactics as pre-war US military. Morag hadn't been up in this region often, but had heard that some sort of guru lived here. Pilgrims came to gain direction from the wise man.
The party confronted the three women. They were wearing civilian clothes, but were armed with rare and expensive handguns. The squad explained that Salvatore, the local wise man, was once an agent of The Enclave. He had spent years luring innocent people into The Enclave's secret human experiments.
Arminius and Morag attempted to talk things out with the three women, but Andy and Linda, not possessing their judgment, marched right over and talked with Salvatore. Andy asked about the Son of Schlockett, oblivious to the unfolding drama. But Linda was genuinely curious, asking Salvatore if he ever sent people to Harding at the Bad Place. Salvatore replied that he had never heard of Doctor Harding. Even Linda noticed the slip-up.
Salvatore panicked, drawing a sawed-off shotgun and shooting Andy in the face. Andy responded by punching Salvatore in his gun arm, shattering with hydraulic force. Injured, Salvatore made a dash to jump out of his cabin window. The jump went terribly, and Salvatore was deeply cut with broken glass. Morag and Arminius kept guns up watching the three would-be assassins. That situation remained fairly calm, but Linda was provoked into her Atomic Storm. In an ecstasy of religious judgment, Linda plowed right through Salvatore's cabin, and into the back yard. With her Heated Super Sledge, she knocked Salvatore to the ground.
Salvatore looked up in dread at the fuming, raging super mutant...
Next Session: SESSION 48: MORAL MATRIX MOVIE MAGIC
Next Session: SESSION 48: MORAL MATRIX MOVIE MAGIC
Players: Current Adventuring Party, Andy, Arminius, Linda, Morag
*August 27, 2317*
(Adventure Day 125)
The group finished setting up a temporary clinic at Willow Home, a halfway house run by the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel to accept those fleeing from Caesar's Legion or The Capitol. But Arminius and Patch were upset by the quality of the conditions. The refugees were being fed and housed, but were receiving no medical care or education. And the facility's administrator was an uncaring bureaucrat. But, after a few hours of work, they had set up a little medical facility which could service patients. Dr. Patch Radam set to work, telling the party that he would catch up with them after he was finished here.
The group decided to continue exploring the village of Homeland, on the Midwest side of the Ohio River. On that waterfront, the Brotherhood had set up a large customs facility. Though the great rivers of America were still poisoned with radiation, crews of ghouls and super mutants braved the waters to ship cargo up and down the Mississippi. This facility processed cargo moving into the Midwest, dozens of workers checking the items for contraband. The party stopped a worker and asked about their unclaimed cargo sales. The worker explained that usually the facility had a lot of rare gear, including weapons and armor. But a unit of New California Republic peacekeepers had traveled up from Kentucky Dam on their time off and purchased all the best stuff. There were a few rare items left, but the party weren't interested.
Heading to the market, the group sold off some of the valuables they picked up during their travels. Andy asked for a gun which wouldn't drain his main batteries, so the group bought him a laser gun and Arminius helped the robot upgrade it.
The party was curious about the Kayode House and what might lie within. What they found was a large library. Every wall was adorned with shelves of books and holotapes. The collection's manager, an elegant woman named Kechindé, explained that the Kayode House was a preservation society. While the Followers of the Apocalypse dedicate themselves to pre-war medicine, and the Brotherhood of Steel dedicate themselves to pre-war military technology, the Kayode House preserves pre-war literature. Linda noted that she had her own hand-written pamphlet, explaining the principals of the Lindavist interpretation of the Children of Atom religion. Kechindé enthusiastically entered Linda's pamphlet into the Kayode House archives.
As the pamphlet was scanned, Kechindé asked if Linda was headed toward Kentucky Dam. And when Linda said she was, the archivist asked if Linda could make a delivery for her. There was a military officer from The Capitol, one Colonel Braxton, who had ordered three books. These volumes were banned within The Capitol, so he would have to be handed the books on the Dixie side of the border. If Linda could hand "Das Glasperlenspiel", "The Social Contract" and "When the Sleeper Awakes" to the colonel, there would be a sizable courier fee. Kechindé explained that Colonel Braxton had recently traveled to Paducah to speak with a Dixie general there. The rest of the group also had magazines which they had salvaged in the wasteland. The Kayode House paid them to digitize the volumes and they were allowed to keep the originals.
Andy was interested in finding books on the Son of Schlockett. There were no volumes about the Son of Schlockett, but Kechindé did find that Arthur Schlockett, the billionaire industrialist who designed all of the SchlockettBots, wrote an autobiography. The book, titled "Everyone Will Be Living In My Dream," had been salvaged by the Followers of the Apocalypse, but the only copy was held in Shady Sands, within the New California Republic.
The party decided to move on, heading back into Dixie territory. That meant going back through the Brotherhood checkpoint and crossing the solitary bridge across the Ohio River.
As they went Arminius asked a Brotherhood knight, "Hey, can you not blow the bridge while I'm on it?"
And the knight answered, "I don't wanna. But if I get the order, I pull the switch. You know what I mean?"
Arminius swore under his breath and the group traveled across the bridge... quickly. They were eager to travel to Kentucky Dam, but Linda wanted to make her delivery in Paducah, so they went there first. Morag led them via the best roads in the region. Paducah was the largest community in the region, home to some 600 residents. The party easily found the local military fort and after some talk with the guards, gained entry. They found Colonel Braxton in the courtyard, speaking to one General Botwright, one of Dixie's top military commanders. The two officer's conversation was polite, but there was obvious tension. Linda delivered the banned books and Colonel Braxton accepted them. There was a long discussion about payment, but eventually Braxton paid up.
Colonel Braxton tried to convince them that there was no reason for any quarrel between The Capitol, Dixie and the Midwest. He claimed everyone's true enemy was The Enclave, that they should be working together to stop that conspiracy. Even General Botwright became impatient with Braxton, noting that the Great Leader of The Capitol didn't even let them read certain books. The situation was uncomfortable, but everyone separated in peace.
They still wanted to get to Kentucky Dam quickly and they were a four hour hike away. Arminius was interested in the Paducah Retraining Center, curious if they could help them upgrade their weapons and armour. They found a Dixie reformatory, where convicted criminals were retrained so that they could enter society. This exchange of crafts training had increased through the years, so that even free citizens would visit the prison in order to learn carpentry, farming or other trades. Arminius muttered that the people of Dixie were too soft to stand up to their enemies.
A prison guard noticed the party talking and asked if they were from the Midwest. The party were a bit guarded, except for Andy who told him immediately that he was from the Midwest. The guard explained that the local sheriff had found a very troubled man mumbling on the road to Kentucky Dam. This wretch was lost and confused, starving and ranting about nonsense. The locals had locked him up here in the retraining center, in a padded cell. The guards wanted someone to talk to the Midwest Brotherhood of Steel, hopefully to take this person home. They didn't have a name for him, but they had taken to calling him Startlebones.
Startlebones was a pathetic figure, sickly and shaking, huddled in a dark corner of his padded cell. He claimed to be a one-time servant of the one the Enclave called The Puppetmaster. "She" could somehow tell him what would happen before it had occurred. She gave him missions. Most of them were to help people, but some made no sense. Startlebones had wanted to serve better. He had gone to a place called Prathersville Lodge in Missouri. There, two people named Booch and Tameka had put an "electric crown" on him, and it had scrambled his brains. All Startlebones could remember is that Kentucky Dam was important. He said that The Puppetmaster was more in "the Lattice" than in a physical body, and all the threads of the Lattice came together at Kentucky Dam.
Arminius was disturbed. Tameka had taken special care to escort him to safety, treating him better than the other members of their caravan. If Tameka was an agent of The Puppetmaster, who was served by many Gen 2 Synths, Arminius started to worry that he was a Synth, that Startlebones was a Synth, that everyone was a secret Puppetmaster assassin. But speaking to the guards, it was clear that Startlebones had put on weight. It was said that Synths didn't really need to eat and couldn't lose or gain weight. But who knew?
Kentucky Dam seemed even more important than it did before. The party set out right away. Morag guided the group to the old highway. Arminius, now more paranoid than ever paid close attention to their surroundings. And it paid off. The party noticed that there were three women approaching a building in a precise line of fire. Arminius recognized the squad-level tactics as pre-war US military. Morag hadn't been up in this region often, but had heard that some sort of guru lived here. Pilgrims came to gain direction from the wise man.
The party confronted the three women. They were wearing civilian clothes, but were armed with rare and expensive handguns. The squad explained that Salvatore, the local wise man, was once an agent of The Enclave. He had spent years luring innocent people into The Enclave's secret human experiments.
Arminius and Morag attempted to talk things out with the three women, but Andy and Linda, not possessing their judgment, marched right over and talked with Salvatore. Andy asked about the Son of Schlockett, oblivious to the unfolding drama. But Linda was genuinely curious, asking Salvatore if he ever sent people to Harding at the Bad Place. Salvatore replied that he had never heard of Doctor Harding. Even Linda noticed the slip-up.
Salvatore panicked, drawing a sawed-off shotgun and shooting Andy in the face. Andy responded by punching Salvatore in his gun arm, shattering with hydraulic force. Injured, Salvatore made a dash to jump out of his cabin window. The jump went terribly, and Salvatore was deeply cut with broken glass. Morag and Arminius kept guns up watching the three would-be assassins. That situation remained fairly calm, but Linda was provoked into her Atomic Storm. In an ecstasy of religious judgment, Linda plowed right through Salvatore's cabin, and into the back yard. With her Heated Super Sledge, she knocked Salvatore to the ground.
Salvatore looked up in dread at the fuming, raging super mutant...
Next Session: SESSION 48: MORAL MATRIX MOVIE MAGIC
Missions/Quests Completed
Character(s) interacted with
Report Date
27 Aug 2022
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