#30 The Oracle

Hey all! We're once again playing through cirion's Antumbra Saga campaign as 1nv4d3r, a fool-punching ork shadowrunner.

Previously, on Before the Shadow:

We started out the campaign with 1nv4d3r saving the people and holdings of Antumbra, a Seattle nightclub run by music artist and producer Kali on behalf of megacorp Mitsuhama.

Mitsuhama then hired him to investigate the Aztechnology corporation in San Francisco. While we were there, an assassin stole the data we wanted.

Our search led us to the devotees of Norton IX, the (disputed) absolute ruler of California. Norton became our ally and we uncovered the assassin - a troll extremist named Shavarus, who teamed up with the elves of Tir Tairngire to strike back against the city's oppressive ruler, Saito. We stopped him but spared his life so that he could reverse his original plan to destroy the city's water supply.

This module started with our shadowrunner on the run from unwanted publicity. Kali recruited him to gather allies and supplies and protect Northern California from an impending invasion by Tir Tairngire and their megacorp allies.

In our last mission, we returned from San Francisco after re-recruiting Hailey and saving some corp suits. While in our base, we hired some mercenaries, contacted the People's University and filmed an action trid. We also finally got those cyberware upgrades we'd been waiting for since the very beginning - a new pair of eyes and arms.

Off we go to get our last recruit.

The Native Californians have really ripped the place up.

Our music is the first 55 seconds of this on loop, which is the same theme from the Dragonfall intro mission.

We barely get anywhere, when we encounter a nervous guard in front of the bridge.

I CAN'T LOSE YOU -

...well..

This is the opposite of how I thought I'd use this meme.

Silly me, thinking that by "check it out" Dorbi meant that she was going to lob a fireball at the area. But nope.

We watch haplessly as she just runs out there.

I use a medkit to patch her up.and continue along this bridge. The dam itself is a nicely detailed and well-built area. The cries of seagulls, the creaking of the dam, the occasional ship horn - the atmosphere is built up pretty well.

Shavarus' original dam-dependent plan comes to mind.

At the end of the bridge, NC thugs threaten a helpless elf.

One of them looks rather familiar -

You tell him Dorbi!

...keebs? As in Keebler elf?

That is the lamest slur I have ever heard.

Had we picked the top option we would've gotten this -

- but on with the show.

Yes, Elorn. Yes he is.

Son, you aren't even better than the rats.

We actually see four guys run away, across the bridge.

I do not like the sound of that.

Or that.

Claude also runs the way we came, and there's a loud explosion that makes the bridge shake.

With Claude's other men gone, we actually outnumber our attackers three and a half to two.

They both go down before the round is over.

And Hailey rescues our new friend.

Just as more cannon fodder shows up.

Elorn manages to shotgun three guys to death at once, which is a new record for non-magical carnage in this campaign.

I send Dorbi down south to scout and then these mooks appear right on top of her.

She gets out unharmed (though our fool-puncher gets winged). Once in position, she, Elorn and the well-placed explosive barrel bring some real hurt.

It ends pretty quickly.

Claude just keeps finding new ways to be insufferable.

As Dorbi discovered earlier, the bridge is blocked. A mysterious figure waits by the rubble, staring out over the water.

We get the first forty seconds or so of this track on loop.

I assume Elorn's going to have a rougher story to tell.

Dorbi did grow up in a really poor community where everyone had limited options. Elorn would've seen more prejudice up close. As for us, that second option was tempting but our guy isn't going to deny a real problem that exists.

You're welcome. Now it's our turn.

Got that right.

Strong words, lady, but it fits our vibe.

Not sure why we'd think she could help us with that -

...but there's no other option. We're stuck on the bridge, and our way is still blocked.

That's a little suspicious.

With a wave of her hand, the burning debris is cleared - and she disintegrates into a swarm of birds which fly off in opposite directions.

Um.

But we aren't done with this area it seems.

I get how this could be a sore point given where we just found him.

Pretty sure that came up earlier. Whoops.

Nice worldbuilding too.

I suppose that's it then - we just get to the area-transition and -

They even killed the guard! Those bastards!

Once again, everyone is dead in one round. None of our people got as much as a scratch.

With our enemies cleared, we head back to our base, ready to reclaim it.

Next time, readers!