Well, I haven’t been on the BW forums in far too long. But I wrote this adventure last night, ran it today, and will run it again on Sunday. It went really well today, and I think it’s a very solid example of how to plan a mission.
“Defend the Scent Border”
by Matt Weber
It’s summer, 1153. You are in Barkstone, having just completed a mission there, in which you fought off some local predators more vicious than the local guard could handle. You are enjoying the warm weather and the town’s hospitality when a young mouse, panting with exhaustion, dashes into the center of the town square. “Oh, thank goodness! Mouse Guard!” she exclaims upon seeing your cloaks. “My name is Halit, and I’m from Pebblebrook. We need you to come at once!”
She goes on to explain that there was a small breach in the scent border near Pebblebrook, which is the furthest west of the Mouse Territories towns. Some flaw in the original laying during the spring, or maybe it was the recent rainshower… anyway, a few weasels spotted the breach before any mice did. They attempted to drag off a local farm family. There was a fight, and some local guards and huntsmen killed all but one of the weasels. Unfortunately, one of the weasels got away, and the town elders assume more are on the way.
Pebblebrook is a small struggling settlement, ruled by the stony paw of Lorkin, head of the Stonemasons Guild. Due to its position near the border, the Guild always keeps extra packets of scent on hand, and during the summer pays for a scientist to stay on hand. The scientist, Leeta, is already working on repairing the scent border, but the work will take a little while to complete.
Halit and her companion Beltran came here as quickly as they could. Beltran was eaten by an owl. You notice that one of Halit’s arms is covered in a bloody, ragged bandage. She is too beaten up to help the patrol travel to Pebblebrook. “Just watch out for the Takkis River,” she tells you.
The Takkis, you see, has flooded. And the Patrol has to cross it. It’s the only major geographical obstacle between Barkstone and Pebblebrook. There’s a network of stones that travelers use, but the tops of the stones are now mostly below water. Pathfinder 5 to find a way to cross, or Nature 5 to climb the tall nearby trees and and cross over on their branches. Failure on the Pathfinder option: sploosh: the Patrol goes for a swim and ends up Tired (primary roller) and Angry (assistants). Failure on the Nature option: they wake up the owl as they blunder through the branches — yes, the same owl who ate Beltran, and he’s looking for a midday snack.
When the PCs arrive at Pebblebrook, there are already sounds of fighting! The weasels have come back! By the time they arrive, the town’s defenders have all been either killed or driven back. Leeta has sustained an injury to the leg and can’t walk, and there are five remaining Weasels (4 soldiers + 1 captain, p. 203-4). They break into two teams, with the conflict goals 1) Capture Leeta (Captain and two soldiers) and 2) Raze the nearby cropfields (the other two soldiers).
End of GM’s turn.
And Nature help the Territories if the Weasels get ahold of a live scientist!
Matt