Ran the adventure last night for my regular group, and all of us had a total blast! Thank you for providing this module, and for free at that. It's a great resource for getting into CAIN, as well as a good template for becoming a DM!
Having fun so far, but one point of confusion leaps out: This apparently a town of 68 people, with no tourists. Why does the Mayor have any bodyguards whatsoever, let alone two? Why is either shop open after midnight?
Actually, I also want to know why the Mayor, if she's the monster's primary target, gets killed second instead of first or last. It's probably more satisfying if she can explain her motives, which is presumably why she isn't the backstory murder, but the monster choosing to kill her daughter first suggests a crueler axis of vengeance - murdering everyone she relies on, and leaving her to die alone.
Edit: Also, I might suggest that the highway going through Brandon's property was an attempt at rerouting after the original path proved non-viable. Dunno if that's more realistic? I definitely feel like a highway is a really expensive project for connecting a town of less than a hundred people, though. Maybe the population count was a typo?
Further edit: If the Mayor's office is right next to the sawmill, why did they have their argument in the sawmill? I'd presumed it was just, like, a halfway point, but unlike her office it probably doesn't have chairs and almost definitely doesn't have power. Was Brandon planning to murder her? A rusty old saw might kill someone if they fall on it, especially from a balcony or something, but probably wouldn't decapitate them fully.
Also, if Lana was cut in half from the crotch up, the Saw Hound's saw is both vertical (undefined in its description) and probably centered on its crotch or navel, which is, y'know, different symbolism from the center of the ribcage, which I think is the default for torso iconography.
Even further edit: I remembered a nitpick about the Pressure table - I do think that approximately every citizen in a rural American town would be clutching their guns as of the first gruesome murder, let alone the third.
...And I'm done! This was cool, overall; I enjoyed this peripheral look at an RPG I don't have the spare funds for at the moment.
Hi! Thanks for taking the time to read it, I wanted to respond to some of the questions!
Rowbury has some tourism, it is currently a stop point on the way to The Big City for a few folks, it isn't really enough to make both of those shops live comfortably but it does push them both to stay open late since they are essentially owned by the only people who work there, having lived in a small town that is an unfortunately common practice just in case there's one or two people showing up to buy something.
The Mayor gets killed second because the SIN doesn't think that far ahead, the first kill was to make the mayor hurt, the second kill is the mayor herself as a sort of "finale" for the HOUND, but Sins being creatures of emotions, it isn't enough, and eventually the grudge extends past that.
The Highway is actually passing nearby to the town, rather than directly to it, it just happens to be linked to it if it ever gets completed.
The Mayor had the argument outside of her office because she needed to work things out quietly and unofficially, and word gets around
The Hound is massive, and tall, the saw being in the middle of its torso as well as its long arms means it can easily swing and lift people.
For the pressure table, I call out the point where people actively look for their guns, carry them around and might feel twitchy enough to actually shoot someone if things feel off.
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Ran the adventure last night for my regular group, and all of us had a total blast! Thank you for providing this module, and for free at that. It's a great resource for getting into CAIN, as well as a good template for becoming a DM!
*MAJOR SPOILERS*
Having fun so far, but one point of confusion leaps out: This apparently a town of 68 people, with no tourists. Why does the Mayor have any bodyguards whatsoever, let alone two? Why is either shop open after midnight?
Actually, I also want to know why the Mayor, if she's the monster's primary target, gets killed second instead of first or last. It's probably more satisfying if she can explain her motives, which is presumably why she isn't the backstory murder, but the monster choosing to kill her daughter first suggests a crueler axis of vengeance - murdering everyone she relies on, and leaving her to die alone.
Edit: Also, I might suggest that the highway going through Brandon's property was an attempt at rerouting after the original path proved non-viable. Dunno if that's more realistic? I definitely feel like a highway is a really expensive project for connecting a town of less than a hundred people, though. Maybe the population count was a typo?
Further edit: If the Mayor's office is right next to the sawmill, why did they have their argument in the sawmill? I'd presumed it was just, like, a halfway point, but unlike her office it probably doesn't have chairs and almost definitely doesn't have power. Was Brandon planning to murder her? A rusty old saw might kill someone if they fall on it, especially from a balcony or something, but probably wouldn't decapitate them fully.
Also, if Lana was cut in half from the crotch up, the Saw Hound's saw is both vertical (undefined in its description) and probably centered on its crotch or navel, which is, y'know, different symbolism from the center of the ribcage, which I think is the default for torso iconography.
Even further edit: I remembered a nitpick about the Pressure table - I do think that approximately every citizen in a rural American town would be clutching their guns as of the first gruesome murder, let alone the third.
...And I'm done! This was cool, overall; I enjoyed this peripheral look at an RPG I don't have the spare funds for at the moment.
Hi! Thanks for taking the time to read it, I wanted to respond to some of the questions!
Rowbury has some tourism, it is currently a stop point on the way to The Big City for a few folks, it isn't really enough to make both of those shops live comfortably but it does push them both to stay open late since they are essentially owned by the only people who work there, having lived in a small town that is an unfortunately common practice just in case there's one or two people showing up to buy something.
The Mayor gets killed second because the SIN doesn't think that far ahead, the first kill was to make the mayor hurt, the second kill is the mayor herself as a sort of "finale" for the HOUND, but Sins being creatures of emotions, it isn't enough, and eventually the grudge extends past that.
The Highway is actually passing nearby to the town, rather than directly to it, it just happens to be linked to it if it ever gets completed.
The Mayor had the argument outside of her office because she needed to work things out quietly and unofficially, and word gets around
The Hound is massive, and tall, the saw being in the middle of its torso as well as its long arms means it can easily swing and lift people.
For the pressure table, I call out the point where people actively look for their guns, carry them around and might feel twitchy enough to actually shoot someone if things feel off.
Thank you for the impressions!
A great straight-to-the-point intro investigation and a helpful reference for making my own! Love the suggestions for ways to mix it up at the end.