A plague in Appleloft: help with my first MG story?

Mouse Guard Missions
1

Hey guys, I’ve only posted on this forum a few times and I’m still very new to Mouse Guard. I tossed up my first character, Angus, for critique a few weeks ago, and I received a lot of great support from the community. I was wondering if I could get some similar critique on this first story I’m writing up. I feel like I’ve got a good handle on the story itself, but I’m unsure exactly how to turn it into a Mouse Guard session: what might be some good obstacles, twists, etc?

The story begins in Lockhaven, in the first few rainy weeks of spring. Gwendolyn still hasn’t received word from the mice of Appleloft, in the south, and she’s beginning to worry. Early reports indicate that a caravan of merchant-mice out of Copperwood are stranded outside the town because the gates of Appleloft remain shut tight. Gwendolyn is also worried about these mice, as the weather watchers of Lockhaven report that powerful spring storms may be on the way, and flash flooding in the south could be extremely dangerous to any caravans out in the territories.

She asks the PCs to travel to Appleloft and resolve the situation, and gives them each a pack full of supplies to help the stranded caravan (jars of honey, loaves of gabcroon, etc). I could use some help setting up some obstacles for the trip down to Appleloft, I think; I’m not sure how to set up travel obstacles yet. I know the difficulties have something to do with the current weather, but I’m not sure how to fit it all together. I was thinking a decent twist for a failed test could be that the scent from the foods in their packs have attracted a hungry skunk, or something?

Once the PCs arrive at Appleloft, they find the stranded caravan, and the merchant-mice (who are hungry, tired, and maybe sick?) inform them that the mice of Appleloft refuse to open their gates; they’ve had no word from inside since they arrived, and until the Guard arrived, they didn’t have supplies enough to make it home to Copperwood. They fear they may be too sick and tired to make it home before the coming storms now, however.

Not long after the PCs arrive, a representative of Appleloft, a tired and visibly sick guard with a white bandage over one eye, opens the gates of the town to the Guard only, and he makes sure they keep their distance from him once inside. He doesn’t allow them into the town proper, and explains that the mice of Appleloft are extremely sick; a disease of somekind ripped through the tree during the winter, and it has festered there for months; many mice have died. The town guard, understanding the danger this sickness represents to the territories, has maintained a crude quarantine, using force when necessary. The guard informs the PCs that there are several families who, thanks to the quarantine, show no signs of illness, but he believes they simply haven’t shown the signs yet. He informs the PCs that he hasn’t long to live, and that his burden must fall now to the Mouse Guard – maintain the quarantine at all costs; the sickness must not be allowed to leave Appleloft.

What would be a good challenge here on the GMs turn? I suppose it’s up to the PCs to see how they handle the situation? Like, if they decide to maintain the quarantine, they’ll have a mice challenge where they have to keep the “healthy” mice trapped inside the tree? Or a weather obstacle, where they must protect the stranded caravan outside while the spring storm hits? Or do they bring the caravan within the gates and try to use their skills to heal the sickness? Or do they take their chances and try to get the mice who aren’t sick yet out of Appleloft? I don’t know, that sounds to me like Player’s Turn stuff, am I right? That’s what they decide to do on their turn, right?

Also, I figure I could play up the fact that the merchant-mice of the caravan are sick, as well. They’re really just suffering from a cold because they’ve been stranded out in the rain for a while, but are the players willing to take the chance that it’s just a cold? Maybe they’ll try to trap them inside the tree with the rest of the people of Appleloft. I don’t know; it’s really their decision.

In any case, I need more obstacles or challenges for my DM’s turn, I think.

Anyways, I’d love some help / critique on this. Hopefully, we’ll start playing our first game next weekend, and I’d love for this to go smoothly. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks guys.

2

I’m no expert. I still have difficulties figuring out how to show the river is rising, but I’ll say a few things based on my experiences.

Sometimes, with something sketched out so much, you get an impenetrable mass that the players have difficult interacting with.

I would dial it back first, figure out a few situations with several player BIG & relationship contingencies, no more than a sentence or bullet point each. You have several things crammed into your story without player movement, but there’s good ideas in it. Figure out what you can mine, and always be ready to bin the rest if it’s not working.

Stranded caravan. Plague in Appleloft. Each of those can easily engage several BIGs or relationships… but they can also whiff totally. Keep player engagement in mind when you nail down the final pieces of your world.

Travel obstacles. Finding your way somewhere after the Spring thaw is no easy feat. Trails get washed out & mice get turned around. What was a forest last Autumn might have turned into a massive bog after the thaw. Obstacles can also emerge from player input (via BIGs, relationships, etc).

Hope that helps. The Honey-Do list ain’t getting done with me jawing on the internet.

3

I could cut out the stranded merchant-mice completely, if you think that might tighten up the story a bit. I kind of wanted to put the PCs in a “no win” situation, where whatever course of action they choose is likely to produce a somewhat negative outcome. I wanted to do that because I want to show them that life in the territories is hard, and that being in the Mouse Guard isn’t just D&D with mice; sometimes there’s a distinctly grey side to heroism, you know what I mean? These mice shoulder great responsibilities out in the territories, and they need to be able to cope with losses. In this situation, if they stay and maintain the quarantine, they’ll also have their hands full keeping the merchant-mice outside safe from the coming storms, and some healthy mice trapped inside Appleloft may have to die. If they try to cure the sickness (one of the PCs is a science-mouse from Sprucetuck, so this is a possibility), they run the risk of becoming infected themselves, and they’re putting the caravan at risk if they allow them inside the gates.

Basically, it’s going to be messy no matter what they do. And I kind of like that.

But like I said, I’m probably fine with taking the stranded caravan out all together; I suppose maintaining a quarantine (with force, if necessary) against mice who may or may not even be sick, is a grim enough first adventure all on its own.

4

The caravan is fine. It can be where it is. It could be a complication. It’s a good idea, at its heart.

Just take one or two steps back from your story so far. The underlying stuff is good. Just make sure you maintain a softer, more pliable approach to the situation & the story (unless player character BIGs drive it precisely to the points you’re expecting).

What if player relationships or BIGs mean the Guard is trying to break the quarantine (“Rescue my Mom from the disease”)? What if there’s no disease at all, and it’s some crazy poisoner who’s messed with the water supply? Don’t rule out stuff that can emerge in the process of playing the game.

Your creativity is good, but don’t get too much of it out of your system before the dice start rolling.

5

Milk ducks,

Yiou have the basis of a good initial, story or two here, I would not be fixed on the location or the exact composition, until I have seen the players characters backgrounds and BIG’s. Use the location with the biggest bang, ie pulls in the most players into the plot.

Should Lockhaven and possibly Sprucetuck be excempted due to their overall importance?
Make sure that peoples family and friends are not in Lockhaven unless they lived their for all, or most of, their lives.

But I do like the setup, that the playters have difficult choices to make.

Simon Burling

PS Have a great game.

6

Okay, so taking what you have and stealing wholesale from the Deliver the Mail mission in the book…

The GM’s Turn

I could use some help setting up some obstacles for the trip down to Appleloft, I think; I’m not sure how to set up travel obstacles yet. I know the difficulties have something to do with the current weather,
but I’m not sure how to fit it all together.
Wilderness Obstacle
A Pathfinder test must be made to get to Appleloft. The Obstacle is 6, because Spring.

I was thinking a decent twist for a failed test could be that the scent from the foods in their packs have attracted a hungry skunk, or something?
Animal Twist
If the Pathfinding test fails, the patrol’s supplies attract the attention of a passing skunk, who tries to ransack their camp and make off with their packs. The skunk initiates a fight animal conflict against the patrol. Its goal is: Steal the pack and run off.

Mice Obstacle

Once the PCs arrive at Appleloft, they find the stranded caravan, and the merchant-mice (who are hungry, tired, and maybe sick?) inform them that the mice of Appleloft refuse to open their gates; they’ve had no word from inside since they arrived, and until the Guard arrived, they didn’t have supplies enough to make it home to Copperwood. They fear they may be too sick and tired to make it home before the coming storms now, however.
Okay, so I would probably rework the part about the Appleloft representative so that he simply won’t open the gates to anyone…The Captain of the town guard will not open the gates and explains that a disease of somekind ripped through Appleloft during the winter festered there for months. The crisis has passed but they will not let the caravan in to renew the plague. This could lead to an Argument Conflict, or the Guard can sneak in and incapacitate the guards, which sounds like a complex hazard. The argument conflict allows for compromises like he only allows in the Guard, or he’ll send out supplies to the sickest mice, or the like.

Weather Twist
Flash flood! This triggers a conflict against the Flood. Its goal is to wash the caravan away and drown all the mice! If the Guard wins but has to offer a compromise, it opens the door for Mice swept downstream that need rescuing right before you say…

Players Turn.

Note: It’s important that you weave in mice who have relationships with your PCs. Someone could have family in appleloft. Someone could have friends and family in the caravan. Someone should be a friend or a foe of the Appleloft representative. That kind of thing.

Also, you should definitely look at the characters’ BIGs and tweak the game accordingly. Point out when their Beliefs, Instincts and Goals are in play. Set up moments that challenge their BIGs and demand choices.

7

MD, I wanted to chime in and say that I agree with James wholeheartedly–he beat me to the kind of post I was going to write. That’s all the information you need for a mission. Don’t get ahead of yourself or your players by coming up with more than that: Everything interesting will happen in play. Let me echo James and remind you to look at the characters’ BIGs before writing out your obstacles and twists, as well as to be sure to incorporate their hometowns (Assigning characters to missions in the hometowns is always a money move.) and relationship characters.

Good luck–be sure to let us know how the session goes.

8

Thanks a lot, guys. I’ll take all this on board and see what I can do with it. The player characters are mostly finished; I’m hoping to wrap all that up this week sometime, so I’m totally prepared for our first session this weekend. I know generally what their BIGs are, and I’ve sort of planned around that, although, I could always do better. Thanks again, guys. I’ll certainly let you know how it went. And I’ll hop back on here if I’ve got any questions.