DoughGuy
I no longer dream
Kendall, Night of the Hunt
In the sky above Kendall the full moon rises, and the scent of fear is a pungent odour in the air. Every sensible man woman and child is locked behind a heavy door, barred and bolted from the inside. Each window is covered by an iron plate locked onto the frame. Inside each house no room is spared the same treatment, the occupants of the building separated from each other to ensure the greatest chance of survival. A lit lamp hangs above the entrance to every house, secured by a rope which runs through a small hole in the doorframe. If the door is broken open the rope will snap and the lamp will smash onto the ground below. Its survival is linked to the lives of those who live within.
The lights of the city are dark, never lit by the caretakers of the street this day. The gutters are choked with rubbish untouched by the cleaners. Beggars and cripples do their best to hide in the nooks and crannies of the city, the more limber ones reaching rooftops and pressing themselves down flat on the tiles. In the upper estates carriages are haphazardly parked on the road, some blocking the way, others even overturned by the panic of the horses who drove them. The animals have lived through enough moons to know what the fear of their owners’ means. Now barricaded in their stables and covered by thick blankets they are calmed and may live.
It starts slowly. With every house turned into a fortress the sounds are muffled by metal and brick. Wood crunches as fists pound into it over and over again. Claws scrape on an iron handle as the locks finally give way and the beast emerges from its room. The smell of fear inside the house is strong, but the urge to be free is greater. Ignoring the sounds of weeping the beast lumbers through the house until it finds the door. Chains snap as they are torn open and the heavy wooden bar thumps to the floor. A smash sounds outside as the lamp falls to the ground. The doors swing open and allow the cursed one onto the streets. Anyone who hears the sounds of escape gives thanks it was not coming from within their own home.
From around a corner a pair emerge. Both wear thick grey cloaks to protect against the cold night air. One holds a long rifle which contains a glass sphere filled with crackling blue energy. The other holds a short snub nosed gun whose tip burns with a weak flame, connected to a tank on their back by a long tube. The cursed one turns towards them, annoyed by the lack of fear it smells. Then it recognises the weapons they hold and the clothes they were, it knows what they are out here for. Their confidence no longer annoys it, the beast is scared. It turns and runs. The hunters give chase. But the beast knows they are weak and blind in the dark. They will not last long on the streets of Kendall this night.
Hunters
The Hunters are a primarily volunteer organisation who choose to brave the outdoors during each night of the full moon. There is a mandatory physical exam to ensure the volunteer is capable of the physical exertion required on the hunt. Their job is to cleanse the streets of any cursed ones before daybreak, so that the survivors can return to their normal lives without danger. On the night of the curse every hunter is given a thick, grey cloak to help protect them from the cold, but also make them easily identifiable to their fellows. Wearing it is purely optional. They are also issued weapons of their choice by the city from the armoury. Hunters can bring their own weapons if they wish, though only merchant families can afford this.
Kendal is an English city in the late 1800s and most of the technology in the city is from this timeline. The one exception is the weaponry used by hunters. Great advances have been made in this field due to the importance of the Hunter’s job. For an idea of the type of weapons that are around take a look at the armaments in the Order 1886 game. Despite these advances there are no fully automatic weapons, the fastest firing guns are semi-automatic (the only exception to this the gatling gun which can’t be used by hunters). Players can design their own weapons, but they will need to be included in the CS to be approved. When designing your weapons keep them in the realm of plausibility e.g. no gravity or darkness based weapons.
Each hunter has three weapon slots they can fill with armaments to take on the hunt. Larger weapons use more slots. If you’re unsure what category a weapon fits into just ask me.
Heavy Weapons – 3 slots
Rifle Class Weapons – 2 slots
Pistols – 1 slot
Melee Weapons – 1 slot
The Map
This RP has a heavy focus on the map of Kendall. All PCs, monsters and bosses are (almost) always located on the map. As the players move around the city, so too will the enemies. It’s possible the first encounter anyone has will be with a boss if they make an unfortunate turn. While all PCs will normally be located on the map in the overview, it’s also possible to get lost. In such a case your icon will be removed until you can find a landmark and figure out where you are. Make sure you’re always checking the map with each post you make, and remember that even if you clear out an area new cursed ones can always move in.
A major exception to this is some bosses that will be present in the RP. Some enemies will require specific conditions to be met before they emerge from hiding, such as clearing the area around their lair, or providing specific bait.
Waystations
Throughout the city there are various waystations set up for the hunters to use as they move about the city. Within each waystation is a single volunteer who is in charge of keeping track of the number of hunters in their area. It is standard practice for a squad to make their way to a waystation upon entering its area and checking in. If there are too many hunters in the area currently the volunteer will suggest they move to a different area. If there aren’t the squad will be listed as in the area and given a flare to signal when they are leaving. Every waystation has a mounted gatling gun on the roof to provide the building with a defence against any cursed ones who attack.
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