Campfire Tales

#1: Beggars night Sample file LFNE: Campfi re Tales #1 - Beggars Night Written by Jason L Blair Illustrated by Veronica V. Jones Published by FunSizedGames

Text copyright 2010 Jason L Blair Artwork copyright 2010 Veronica V. Jones

See more of Veronica’s work at: www.vvjones.com and www.moonshines.com

Also visit: www.littlefears.com www.jasonlblair.com

For use with LITTLE FEARS NIGHTMARE EDITION available at better game stores worldwide and online at LittleFears.com.

Dedicated to ghosts and goblins everywhere. CONTENTS introduction...... pageSample file 3 beggars night...... page 5 gmcs...... page 16 monsters...... page 18

Little Fears and Little Fears Nightmare Edition are trademarks of Jason L Blair dba FunSizedGames. introduction

The tradition of the campfire tale is timeless. From the stories of gods and the great hunt whispered around fires in prehistoric caves to the gory renditions of hook-handed serial killers at sleepaway camp, these tales embed themselves in our conscious and live on well past that night “just like tonight.” These Campfire Tales are a little younger than that. First promised just over a year ago as a triad of horror stories for use with Little Fears Nightmare Edition, Campfire Tales are finally seeing release as a series of standalone episodes released monthly and themed to the appropriate season or holiday. The next one, The Fall Harvest, is schedule for release in mid- to late November. What’s In Here This episode, “Beggars Night,” is written as a standalone collection of eleven scenes, ready for use in an existing season of play or to set off a new group of young adventurers on the dark path of monster hunting. It takes place at Halloween but, as you have probably already assumed, on a night that will prove to be anything but typical. Each scene covers one major action and usually includes a revelation that advances the plot and bridges to the next scene. As the GM, you may need to drop or add scenes based on the characters’ actions but as long as you can stick the big reveals and keep things relatively on track, you’ll do fine. Sample file Characters Players need to provide their own characters but all monsters and major GMCs are included with each scenario. As the game moderator, all you need to do is read over the scenario until you’re comfortable with the basics and then you’re good to go. Monsters and GMCs The monsters used in this episode are included in the back along with a handful of useful GMCs. And So Then Without further ado, let’s gather ‘round the kindling and settle in for a tale. Gather close now, you’ll need the warmth. It looks to be a cold night and this is sure to send a shiver down your spine. Hey There, Players The following episodes are written specifically for the game moderator and are not intended to be read by potential players. So if you want to retain any level of surprise, don’t read any further. 3 Trick or treat, smell my feet Give me something good to eat If you don’t, I don’t care You’ll never make it out of here

Sample file Beggars NIGHT

Sample file campfire tales Some monsters want more than just candy. BEGGARS Night Halloween is finally here and the street brims with the spirit of the season. Cottony webs criss-cross porch posts. Eerie music lilts out of the house and onto the streets. Jack- o-lanterns glow on stoops, beckoning children with their flickering lights. As the sky darkens and the streets fill with eager children, decked out in all manner of creepy mask and dazzling costume, other things are running alongside them. A certain band of mischievous monsters is using the cover of costumed kiddies to commit perilous pranks and set dangerous traps. At first it’s fun and games—egged houses, toilet papered trees—but then it gets worse with flaming poo bombs and broken glass across the street. But all this chaos isn’t just for sport. It’s to distract everyone from what’s really going on. Who the Characters Are Whatever the kids’ origins, they’re all trick-or-treating in the same neighborhood. Chances are most of the kids live in that area with maybe one or two driven in from less generous home turf. Inciting Incident What begins as a normal night of spooking younger kids and begging for sugar gets deadly serious when some friends of the player characters vanish in plain sight. Whatcha Goin’ As? Have each player character describe what he or she is dressing up for trick-or- treating.

GMCs Sample file There are lots of kids out tonight but these four will come into play in the story. One or more of the player characters may know at least one of these kids from school (adjust the age if necessary). The two Parker kids live in the same neighborhood as one of the player characters which means Angeliah does too. If this doesn’t fit the fiction your group has already established, adjust as necessary. Really, you just need reasons for these four kids to be trick-or-treating with each other and for the player characters to become invested in them once things go weird. Davin Rourke, 10, Mummy Davin’s not a mean kid but he’s not especially sympathetic either. He’s a tough kid and assumes everyone else is too. He doesn’t go for crying or tattling and never lets anyone call him chicken. If you know Davin, you know he doesn’t take crap from nobody. Davin and Marissa have been friends since he was in preschool and go trick-or-treating together every year. Some of his friends give him guff about “being in love” with Marissa but he shakes it off. She’s a cool girl, that’s all, so you better just shut up about it.

6 Beggars Night Angeliah Harrison, 8, Fairy Princess Angeliah is Marissa’s neighbor. The older girl volunteered to walk her around so Ange’s dad could stay home and hand out candy. Ange likes Marissa well enough, though Marissa talks a bit too much for the younger girl’s liking. Angeliah doesn’t like confrontation and will go to great lengths to avoid it. She also doesn’t like fairies or princesses very much but her dad’s really busy and it was one of the few costumes left by the time he got around to getting one and, hey, it’s better than dressing up as a cheerleader (again). Kai Parker, 9, Dinosaur Kai doesn’t like Halloween much. And he likes his stupid dinosaur costume even less. But his mom is so proud of it (even though it’s store-bought) and little Kai’s going to be like all the other boys, goshdarnit, so he has no choice but to tail his big sister on this stupid holiday instead of staying inside and reading like he originally planned. Despite being neighbors and fairly close in age, Kai and Angeliah don’t hang out and rarely talk. They just don’t have much in common. Perhaps they can commiserate over having to wear their respective costumes though. Marissa Parker, 12, Witch Marissa loves Halloween. She’ll probably dress up for it her entire life. While some of her friends look down on the traditions now, eschewing pumpkin carving and trick-or- treating for more mature pursuits, Marissa is younger than ever this time of year. The fact her brother doesn’t like the day completely confounds her. How could anyone not like Halloween? Marissa is the oldest and the one in charge. Despite her overflowing excitement, she takes being in charge very seriously and makes sure the kids go to the door as a group, no one leaves the others, and everyone holds hands when crossing the street. The Scenes The following scenes form the Samplebasic story of Beggars file Night. This is just a framework though, a backbone, and a good group will go off-script numerous times. The best advice is to roll with it, react to their decisions, and try to aid them back on the path if they lose the thread or hit a dramatic dead end. Scene #1 Everything starts out fine, your typical Halloween night. The player characters have converged at one of their houses to prepare for the night’s festivities. The whole neighborhood is decked out for the season, porchlights are on and the sidewalks are already filling with ghouls of all shades, signs it’ll be a busy night. This is a Dramatic Scene. The kids are getting into character, finalizing their make-up, talking over maximum candy-acquiring strategies, grousing about school the past week, the test on Monday, recounting their favorite monster movie moments, and otherwise getting ready for the best night of their lives. The mood is light, fun, and anticipatory. By the end of the scene, they should be on street, socializing with other kids and maybe hitting up a few houses. The kids should see Davin, Marissa, and crew heading out from the Parker household. Have someone from that group (whoever is similar in age to a cast member) engage with 7 campfire tales the player characters, catch up on things, maybe drop some gossip about who’s handing out the full-sized bars and which houses are trying to pass off apples as candy. Be sure to point out Angeliah, at least so her name is known to the players. Marissa and company will say their goodbyes before heading off in their own direction. The player characters are now free to move about the neighborhood. Scene #2 As stated earlier, lots of houses are giving out candy this year. And lots of kids are on the sidewalks. Long-time residents may remark how this is the busiest they’ve ever seen the place. Cars line the street as folks from outside the neighborhood bring their kids to where the getting’s good. Build an almost claustrophobic sense of how dense the crowd can get at times. During this scene, the kids walk by the Lawrence residence. Well, it was the Lawrence residence before they moved away about a year or so ago. Nothing foul, nothing strange— Mrs. Lawrence took a job at big university on the coast and her family is following after. The place has been for sale ever since. Some grown-ups talk about “the market” being responsible for the house not moving. It’s a nice place, two big stories and a basement. When Rainie Lawrence used to live there, her dad built the downstairs into a game room with a pool table, an old pinball machine, and a big television with a GameStation 3 and tons of games. It was a popular hangout for Rainie’s friends. If anyone checks out the house, they won’t find anything remarkable about it. The lights are off, the doors are locked, and nothing has been disturbed. No reason to waste time with it when there’s candy to be had elsewhere. Coming up on one of the other houses, the player characters will find a bag sticking out of the hedgerows that split that house’s yard from its neighbor’s. The bag is thick black plastic with a white drawstring and has a big purple bat in the middle. The words “I Go Batty for Candy!” circle the image in glow-in-the-dark orange letters. Whoever looks inside will find some pretty Sampledecent candy and file a name written in permanent marker: Angeliah. This is a Spotlight Scene. They need to find Angeliah and give back her bag. Marissa, Davin, and Kai are close by but they’re not trick-or-treating. Instead, they’re huddled in a group near the corner of the street. Marissa looks worried as does Davin; both are talking quickly and looking around, trying to see over the tops of the cars and bigger kids. Kai seems less concerned. His body language makes it apparent he doesn’t want to be doing any of this. If the player characters don’t look for Angeliah then Marissa, Davin, and Kai will find them. Marissa will spot them, come over, and ask if they’ve seen Angeliah. When the characters talk with Marissa and the others (no matter who initiates the conversation), they’ll learn that Angeliah is missing. Marissa claims she just saw the girl not two minutes before. “I had my eye on her the whole time. I’m very responsible,” she’ll say. “She must have run off.” “Or got kidnapped,” Davin will joke. Marissa will ask (and, if they refuse, beg) the player characters to help her find Angeliah. The player characters can accept or deny the request—or break up into a group 8