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| Dark even during the day. |
These streets are made dark by more than just a lack of light. Here,
shadows ride on the back of loss, and despair follows with them.
Loss is easy, anyone can do it, even without conscious
intention or thought. The trick is in the finding, a retracing of steps back to
that liminal point where the possessed became lost, back to a certain time and
place. What can be lost, can be found, or at least, one can hope for such a
thing. What if loss can’t be overturned? Where does one go if all options have
been exhausted, all avenues traveled, all clues examined?
I was lost, but now am found. – J. Newton
For some, they arrive without fanfare, or without specific
reason beyond the loss itself. For others, they are sought out, found standing
in wet alleys or holding court in hidden cafes with names worn away by rain and
time. Finders by name and trade, they travel through the city clad in three-piece
suits over garb like a deep-sea diver’s suit. Commonly seen wearing round
helmets in garish colors, usually battered, with matching gloves; these being the
only oddities worn with their fine clothing. Under the finery and utility
garments are bodies that resemble jellyfish that’s taken to walking on land
with two legs, their jelly and gristle bodies prone to drying out without the
protection of their suits and helmets.
For there is nothing lost, that may be found, if sought. – E. Spenser
If it can be lost, it can be had again: a treasured pendant,
a squandered fortune, the ardor of a lover, the life of a loved one, anything
and everything. While it may seem mad for a man to ask for his sense of wonder
to be returned, or a woman to request that her ambition be restored, when
brought to a Finder such requests move from the realm of fancy to one of
reality. When returning a life the Finders require that a strong relationship
exist between the one making the request and the one whose life is being
restored, be it one forged by love or hate. The life of a random stranger is
never on offer by the Finders.
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| Every girl crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man. Art By: Me |
The
cost of a thing is the amount of what I call life which is required to be
exchanged for it, immediately or in the long run. – H.D. Thoreau
What
would you pay to get something, or someone, back after a loss? How far would
you go? What price would be too high for you to pay? In the presence of these
Finders, such questions move from rhetorical musing to matters of immediate
utility. Given a situation when answers matter to the questions of the cost,
the wicked and just alike find themselves surprised at their own replies. The
price asked for will differ between Finders, the yoked cost being easier to
bear with some and much more difficult with others. While certain Finders can
be sought out to make a deal, most often it is by pure chance which Finder one
encounters. No matter how the price is paid, it must be paid in full before the
lost becomes the returned. How the Finders know the price has been paid when
they are not present is a mystery even to the Finders themselves. They just
“know”.
What kinds of offers does this Finder
make? – 1D6
1) Easy but of equal value.
2 to 5) Something of exactly equal value.
6) Something that is worth more than what is being asked for, or something
that will be hard for buyer to part with.
GM Note: For the first option, be nice. For the second option, be fair but also
exact. For the third option, be as mean as you possibly can be. I have included
some general examples to help determine what should be paid for what.
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| CRYSTAL PISTOL!!!! Art By: Me |
Easy
but of equal value: While the
cost asked for is equal, it need not be paid with a single “object” but with
multiple whose combined value equals that of what was lost. To return a life
they may ask for the life of someone already close to death, or the life of a
murderer. To get back the ardor of a lover, the Finder may ask the individual
to be rude to many other individuals the person may normally be attracted to,
thus ensuring that they never gain the love of these others. A treasured locket
might be returned simply for the cost of the materials used to make it.
Something
of exactly equal value: Whatever that is asked for must be paid for in
kind. To return a life, another life must be ended, this life must be as close
to the one that was lost as possible: age, sex, social status, as near as
possible. To get the love of one back, one must ensure the loss of love from
another. The return of a treasured locket might require the destruction of
another equally cherished item.
Worth
more or hard for the buyer to part with: Here the prices are steep, and whatever returned may in the end be worth
less than the cost that was paid. The life of a loved one may cost the life of
another who is just as dear to the buyer as the one lost, or perhaps the lives
of a truly innocent person (maybe more than one). A returned love will cost the
love of someone, and in the process, turning them into a mortal enemy.
Treasured lockets might require the destruction of another treasured item,
though not the buyer’s, rather that of someone dear to the buyer; the other
person will know that it was they, and not the buyer, that paid the cost.
Promise less, deliver more. – S. Yard
How does one receive these impossible products? For some,
they just find that what had been lost is back again: a man suddenly finding
himself staring up at the stars in wonder. For others, they see a glimmer in
the gutter to find the locket they had lost, or a familiar face in a crowd with
a once occupied grave now bare of coffin and headstone. Those returned people,
back from the great beyond, say little of their time in death’s kingdom: a few
comments about light, a mention of timelessness, or perhaps no memories of the
experience at all.
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| Silk suit, Red tie, It don't need a reason why. Art By: Me |
DnD 5e CR 5
LN (Majority) LG and LE (Equal Minority)
Medium Aberration
Senses: Darkvision 60 ft.
Passive Perception: 18
AC: 17 (Natural and Suit) or 13 (Natural when outside
of suit)
HP: 65 (10d10+10)
Weakness: Fire
Resistances: Bludgeoning,
Piercing, Cold, Lightning
Offense
Speed: 30 ft. (In Protective Suit) OR 40 ft. (Out of
Protective Suit)
Melee: Unarmed +5 (1D4 w/ Poison), Crystal Pistol +7
(1D6 Electricity + Stun)
Unarmed – Dmg: 1D4, Poison: Must make Constitution save DC 13
or become poisoned for 10 minutes. The poisoned creature takes a -3 penalty to:
to-hit, Dex and Str saves, Dex bonus to AC (if any), and skills. A successful
save renders the target immune to this poison for 24 hours.
Crystal Pistol – Dmg: 1D6, Range: 30 / 120, Light, Stun: DC 13
Con save, fail results in stun condition for 5 rounds. A successful save
renders the target immune to the stun effect from this gun for 5 rounds.
Space: 5 ft.; Reach 5 ft.
Statistics
Str 11 (+0)
Dex 14 (+2)
Con 13 (+1)
Int 18 (+4)
Wis 15 (+2)
Cha 19 (+4)
Skills
Deception: +10
Insight: +8
Investigation: +10
Perception: +8
Persuasion: ++10
Stealth: +8
Languages
Common, Their Own Language (You can't Pronounce it), Draconic,
Elvish, Dwarven, Telepathy 60 ft.
Ecology
Environment: Any urban area
Organization: Solitary or Pair
Treasure: Standard
Special Abilities (CL 10)
At Will: Telepathy 60 ft., Tongues, Comprehend Languages, Mind
Strike
5/Day: Dimension Door
Mind Strike – 1D6 Non-Lethal, 50 ft. Range, requires a Strength
save (DC 15) or be knocked prone. Only works on creatures who possess minds.
