Rotten Apples a PGH campaign
All players (including the DM) will specify two standard teams of the same allegiance (God). Together these will represent a whole class of trainees who have just been initiated into the Hellish training programme after Initial Basic Training. Allegiance to TERRIK or ZAKEL should not be specified (overtly at least), as this would be inconsistent with an intended sub-plot.
As the teams are intended to represent the highest graduating class from IBT, players may take the best of three rolled for each character. The characters not taken should not be discarded, but should be kept for use as NPC members of other classes (see also 7 below). They may not be used as other members of the same class (i.e. you cannot roll 12 characters and take the best 4 for your team).
Once allegiance has been specified, the DM will provide background for the particular school, to include local maps and politics. Membership of factions, brotherhoods, cults, secret societies etc. should then be specified for all trainees. Players may specify their own factions etc., subject to DM's approval, but such factions will not be major players in the local politics.
The DM will then specify one or more continuing sub-plots. Further sub-plots may emerge during play. (The main plot is of course the class's progress through / survival of the training programme.)
Cash may be rolled per trainee as d100GP, less the value of any possessions specified. Possessions which are illegal under PGH rules may be specified, including standard potions, but may not legally be carried during training sessions unless the instructors advise otherwise. Each trainee is assumed to have a locker in the dormitory with a DL1 lock. There are severe punishments for being caught stealing from lockers. Other classes will have access to the locker room.
Trainees may specify debt of such extra amounts as they may agree with the DM, and receive the extra cash for spending. However, Hellish moneylenders are notoriously extortionate in their interest charges and unpleasant in their collection methods. It would be a mistake to think you can escape them by death. They may also decide to collect from your fellow trainees. This may produce further sub-plots. Loans between trainees in the class may be freely agreed.
A series of PGH sessions will then be run for the class. These need not all be DMd by the same person. Not all teams in the class will necessarily take part in each session or on the same side, and DM's teams may be run NPC. Members of other classes may well be encountered as opponents.
Other DMs may introduce new sub-plots and run new ones as they see fit, provided this is consistent with what has been run so far and what is known to the class. DMs should not inform others of matters they may have secretly designed or run and which are not known to the class. Such matters will have to be changed if inconsistent with what is subsequently run and known to the class. However, what is known to the class may later be discovered to be untrue. The correct approach should be one of making joint contributions to storytelling, rather than a contest between DMs
If the class takes significant casualties, new teams may be introduced. In practice this will mean that if you lose one whole team, you may design a new one (of the same allegiance), though the DM for the next session will have discretion here. All new teams should be standard PGH teams. The DM will normally require that your discarded characters from 1 above are used before you roll up new characters, or may restrict the number of characters that can be rolled per new team member. This is because replacements will either be transfers from other classes, or will be lower quality candidates who failed the original entrance test. Since there is a lot of cheating, new characters may in fact turn out to be better quality people who did not cheat as much, or who got caught!
Victory conditions will be to complete the training programme with minimum casualties and maximum experience and wealth, and to achieve any objectives specified in sub-plots.
The background and sub-plots are intended to introduce an element of character play, as has emerged in recent 1-off PGH sessions, but the basic concept is still a focus on tactical combat.
P.R. Wild, 7 March 1995
Anarea The Proving Grounds of Hell Rotten Apples
Cults at the ALTIS Proving Ground
Dark Warriors
Ft Cult
+ improved Ft training, access to improved weapons & armour
- cost of such items, increased probability of being volunteered or conscripted
Rippers of Entrails
Ft Cult
+ access to improved disembowelling weapons
- cost of such weapons, & must use them
Brothers of Dark Path
Th Brotherhood
+1 LoM & improved training on HIDE & OBS
-12.5% earnings to B'hd (student rate)
Black Hand
Th Brotherhood
+1 LoM & improved training on MtoM, access to venoms
-12.5% earnings to B'hd (student rate)
Sewer Rats
Th Brotherhood
+ access to rat magic, knowledge of sewers
-10% earnings to B'hd, enemies of Black Scorpions & Hooded Cobras
Evil Ones
Cl Cult
+ political contacts in Temple: help with joint requests & access to items for credit
- political enemies in Temple, extreme behaviour required
Thrice Damned
Cl Cult
+ political contacts in Temple: help with joint requests & access to items for credit
- political enemies in Temple, extreme behaviour required
Keepers of Eternal Flame
El Cult
+1 on Fire Spells
-1 on other El Spells, -3 on Cold Spells
Black Scorpions
Scorpion Cult
+ access to scorpion magic, poisons, venoms and antidotes, political contacts in SKARZ establishment
- Ft in SKARZ required, enemies in ALTIS establishment, enemies of Sewer Rats & Hooded Cobras
Hooded Cobras
Snake Cult
+1 on Charm Spells, access to snake magic, poisons, venoms and antidotes
- rumoured to implant hypnotic commands in members, enemies of Sewer Rats & Black Scorpions
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