The Bullock Bros

"The Bullock Bros" is episode 10 of SuperQuest Saga. Strange psionic blossoms are being found all over Sableside and with them, mysterious happenings. The plot thickens as Carter, Persephone, and Sebastian draw the attention of the infamous Dreadstar Gang.

Introduction

 * Will Stark will be your luminary dungeon master for this evening.
 * Josh Freeland is playing Sebastian Crenshaw, half-orc paladin.
 * Your Special Guest Jake is playing Persephone Goldpetal the firbolg druid.
 * Brian will be playing Carter Huttenburg today.

Recap
The party was sent into Sableside, the slums of Outlaw’s Horizon, to investigate some missing persons report. They learned that people have been disappearing, a weird flower has appeared in a few locations with a few weird phenomena, The Dreadstars were roaming around town, and they ended the session outside a kobold den that has been taken over by the weird plant.

The Easy Way, or the Hard Way
Carter excuses himself from the group to investigate the plant on his own and take photos. He reaches out telepathically to talk to the plant but does not get much response. He learns there is something there but it is not exactly a mind, and that all the vines are part of one entity. He returns to the surface and the rest of the group asks what happened. Carter tells them he tried to say hello but nothing happened. He goes off to call his criminal contact, Fred Luo. Fred answers the phone and Carter hears the heavy bass of dance music in the background. Carter looks around to make sure it’s safe and sees four Dreadstars heading towards them. He hangs up on Fred.

The same four gang members Persephone followed approach. A human male, a tiefling male, a tiefling female, and leading them is a well-groomed hobgoblin with slicked back hair. They all wear sunglasses, three-piece suits, and carry a katana and a pistol. The hobgoblin speaks, they have questions and want some answers; starting with why the Singer was tailing them in lizard-chicken form. Carter sizes them up to see if they mean to do the party harm. They clearly don’t like the fact that they were tailed and are trying to be intimidating to get answers. The hobgoblin asks again why Persephone was tailing them and what brings such strangers to this side of town.

Persephone says there are a lot of lizard-chickens around; how do they know it was her? Sebastian asks why they care and why the party should answer their questions. Carter agrees. The hobgoblin asks if the party knows who they are. Carter immediately responds they’re The Dreadstars. Persephone guesses some sort of gang. The hobgoblin asks if he knows what that means. Carter doesn’t care. Persephone guesses it means they are presumably scary. The hobgoblin says he just has a few questions and they can do this the easy way, or the hard way. Carter laughs and warns that they do not want to do this the hard way. The hobgoblin says, “Alright boys, light ‘em up” and The Dreadstars all pull out aether-blade katanas and pistols.

The Hard Way
Carter puts a Hex on the hobgoblin and moves forward towards The Dreadstars. He snaps as he casts Arms of Hadar and tentacles emerge around him and start smacking everything in range; one Dreadstar manages to dodge some of the blows but they all take damage. Carter smiles and skips behind Sebastian and Persephone. Dreadstar Minion 3 is upset and opens fire with his pistol on Carter. Carter successfully dodges some of the damage as a ball of fire heads his direction. Persephone grabs a volt spear from her back and approaches the hobgoblin to hit him, but misses. She conjures a scimitar with Flame Blade and slashes him across the chest before backing away. The hobgoblin yells at The Dreadstars to turn on their shields and they all touch the pentagram on their suits; they begin to glow and a red aura surrounds each one, granting them advantage on spell saving throws. The hobgoblin then moves up to take two swings at Persephone, hitting once. Persephone manages to maintain Concentration despite getting hit. Sebastian activates his Conquering Presence and his eyes begin to glow and steam as he yells “I told you to leave us alone, and why were you bothering us?!” All but Dreadstar Minion 1 become frightened of Sebastian. The two tieflings, Minion 1 and Minion 2, move back and shoot at Sebastian with their pistols, he is unable to dodge as fireballs rain down on him as they attack in fear.

Carter hits the hobgoblin with an Eldritch Blast and bloodies him. Minion 3 is frightened but opens fire on Sebastian. Sebastian manages to avoid some of the damage. Persephone moves forward to hit the hobgoblin with the volt spear, dealing some damage, following it up with a slash from the Flame Blade that misses. The hobgoblin disengages and runs back behind the other Dreadstars. Sebastian charges on Minion 1, the human, and attempts to hit with his axe but Minion 1 blocks. Minion 2 is still afraid and fires on Sebastian from afar. Sebastian is unable to dodge and takes the full force of the fire damage. Minion 1 swings twice at Sebastian with his katana and hits once.

Carter casts Eldritch Blast at the hexed hobgoblin and does critical damage, knocking him out, and moves his Hex to another enemy. Minions 2 and 3 see Sebastian is suffering and keep their fire on him. Sebastian is unable to dodge their fire and gets knocked down, but immediately pops back up with his Relentless Endurance and yells at the terrified Dreadstars. Minions 1 and 2, who were so happy to see Sebastian go down, are incredibly upset when he pops back up and they turn tail, grab their boss, and run away screaming.

Carter casts Phantasmal Force on Minion 3, who did not run away with the others, but the spell fails as the Minion yells “I ain’t falling for your tricks!” Minion 3 decides to run away, following his companions, but he warns the party that The Dreadstars will be back in greater numbers.

Hackum Sackums
As soon as the enemies are out of sight Sebastian starts wobbling to the ground and Persephone rushes over to cast Cure Wounds. Carter calls Fred. Primina runs over to Sebastian and asks if he is okay, there were so many fireballs and they all hit him. Persephone heals Sebastian and as his wounds and burns heal she apologizes for leaving him to tank on his own since she couldn’t Wild Shape. Sebastian wants to sit for a little bit and Primina sits next to him and promises that she’ll help out next time. Carter, Persephone, and Sebastian tell her that their priority is keeping her safe.

Fred picks up the call and asks why Carter hung up on him. Carter explains a bunch of Dreadstars patrolling the area attacked them and asks if Fred knows anything about that. Fred moves to a quieter spot in the club and asks for clarification. Carter tells him that they are in Sableside doing some investigative work and noticed some Dreadstars being nosy. Fred doesn’t know anything but offers to ask around and promises to get back to Carter in an hour. Carter knows Fred is good for the information and promises to get him that shoulder rub, and he ends the call.

Carter notes that Sebastian doesn’t look too good and asks if he is all right. Sebastian admits that the fight was a bit rough. Carter did fairly well, and Persephone comments that he usually does well from way in the back hiding behind everyone. Carter suggests they take a rest and the party hangs out for a while. Persephone heard they all got ice cream without her, and Carter clarifies that they didn’t eat the ice cream since he thinks it may be poisoned. Vander interrupts to ask if they’re going back to talk to the ice cream guy to ask about his daughter. Carter suggests they catch the ice cream man at the end of his shift because he doesn’t want to make the ice cream line mad again. Vander is mad at Carter but agrees to go later, and tells the group he is impressed that they fought off The Dreadstars.

Carter tries to start a game of hacky sack and even though Vander is upset he joins in. Primina sits with Sebastian and they decide they’ll go get ice cream after they rest. Persephone is curious about the hacky sack and wants to play. Carter explains the rules and tells her not to kick it on a roof. Persephone gets over-excited and kicks it as hard as she can but Carter manages to catch it with Mage Hand before the sack goes too far. After about an hour Carter’s bracer jack rings.

Carter puts Fred on speakerphone so the others can hear the info. Fred did some question asking and some Dreadstar members went missing in Sableside so they’ve been sending in search parties. Apparently the five that disappeared were on a job for a couple of guys called the Bullock Brothers; all Fred knows is that five Dreadstars went to Sableside to find something for the Bullock Brothers and while they were there they disappeared. Carter has a hard time understanding Fred and makes some insulting remarks about his accent, Fred brushes it off. Carter tells Fred to call back if he hears anything more.

Persephone suggests they should go back to the ice cream vendor since he had one of the flowers and she didn’t get to see it earlier. Sebastian uses his Divine Sense ability to check the roots underground. He doesn’t sense anything from the plants, but he senses Celestial and Fiend energy from Primina, and some evil from Carter.

Carter suggests that if The Dreadstars show up again they should try to talk to them since it seems that they’re all after the same thing. Sebastian tries looking around the kobold den to see if there are any tracks or additional clues but does not find anything. Carter asks Persephone what she thinks about collecting a sample of this plant that they keep seeing. Sebastian reminds him that they need to stop by the ice cream vendor for Vander so they head there first.

Give Me a Cone, Dammit
After a twenty-ish minute walk back to Ice Cream Street they find the line as long as ever, if not a little longer. Carter asks if they want to be kind or if they want to be upfront about getting what they need. Persephone asks how long the line is and Carter tells her it is so damn long. He is worried about inciting rage if he tries to cut to the front of the line again. Prim speaks up and says they don’t have any other leads so they can wait the hour. Persephone agrees that they don’t need to bully people to get their information. Primina goes to stand in line and Carter and Persephone join her.

Sebastian looks for the other ice cream vendor they met in line and he spies him at the front of the line, looking extremely happy and going to town on a triple scoop of each flavor. Sebastian catches up with him as he leaves the stall and asks how the ice cream is. The man tells Sebastian it is the best ice cream he has had in his life. He doesn’t know what is in it but he wants in because the product is amazing. Sebastian asks if the ice cream is making him feel good and the man tells him that this is the best he has felt all day. Sebastian was hoping to buy some ice cream from his stall but the man informs him that he is closed for the day and has to rethink his life. Sebastian wishes him luck as he walks away.

Carter searches the local intranet for information on plants while he stands in line. Sebastian wanders around the street looking for any additional flowers or anything out of place. The only flower is with the ice cream man, but Sebastian swears it looks a little bigger than it did before. He also notices another pair of Dreadstars patrolling an area a couple streets away.

Persephone texts Dag and Yuma to follow up on the pictures she sent them earlier. Dag reports they haven’t found anything on the flower in Watt’s libraries. Yuma finds it curious that she can’t find anything in the encyclopedias she usually uses. She is intrigued and will do a deeper dig. Persephone asks if this could be a new species or genus that they might get to name and Yuma hopes it is something natural and not synthesized. Persephone tells Yuma that the plant did attack her with psychic energy when she pecked it. Persephone sees Yuma typing then stop, and after a long pause Yuma finally responds with “That’s not good.” She will continue looking into it.

After an hour they make it to the front of the line and the ice cream guy recognizes Carter. Carter asks when he’ll close and the man informs him that he’ll close in another four hours. Carter asks if he has some time for questions now, and Vander pulls out a picture of his daughter to ask the man if he has seen her. The ice cream man thinks she is the girl who gave him the flower. Vander asks which way she went and the man looks around and says he thinks she ran up the street, but he doesn’t know where she was going. Vander immediately takes off.

Carter knew this would happen and exasperatedly asks for a cone with a scoop of each flavor for Primina. Carter asks the ice cream man’s name and where he lives. The ice cream man introduces himself as Garret Hawkins from the Stallern Quarter. Carter asks if Garret has social media but Garret does not, he’s been doing pretty well without it with a line down the block.

Carter snaps another picture of the flower. Persephone tries to talk to the flower and gets a sense of curiosity from it. It is not used to being talked to. Persephone tells it that it is nicer than its brother and notes that it seems to be giving good luck to the merchant. Garret asks Carter if she is talking to his plant. Persephone feels a sense of smugness from the plant. Carter tries to reach out to it and feels mental energy that is similar, but smaller, to the large plant. Persephone asks the plant what would happen if she tried to take it from its pot at the same time that Carter sends it an intimidating message. Persephone suddenly feels wrathful anger from the plant. A couple people in the crowd turn to glare at Carter and he notices them shake their heads like they aren’t sure what they’re doing before they go back to their business.

Carter tries to notice if he is being swayed or manipulated by the plant and does not sense anything. Primina asks if they can go and points in the direction Vander ran off. Persephone says goodbye to the plant and Carter tells Garret they’ll see him in a few hours. As they leave Primina tries her ice cream and finds it tastes horrible. Persephone is surprised and when she tries some she thinks it is amazing. Persephone asks Prim if this is like the flower all over again, Primina thinks something is nasty when it’s not. Primina definitely does not like this ice cream. Carter drops his cone on the floor as Prim looks for a dumpster.

Help Me Help You
Sebastian ses that Vander ran around a corner up ahead, and the party manages to catch up to him pretty quickly. Vander is upset and has no clue which way Zoey went. Carter reminds him that they have to keep cool and think things through. Vander paid them to help, so let them help. They need to establish some trust. Vander points out that to have trust they need open communication, so Carter should have told him the information about Zoey sooner. Carter concedes that point and promises to tell Vander right away if any additional information about his daughter comes up, as long as Vander does not just run off again. Vander takes that deal and they shake hands. Carter suggests their next move should be to go back to the Walker’s to get a sample of the plant.

They get back to the Walker’s and Carter asks her if they can take the plant. She is hesitant to let them since it’s the last thing she left alive in her husband’s garden. Carter asks if she is familiar with the newly popular ice cream vendor up the street because he has a similar plant to the one in her yard. They’ve been seeing them pop up around the city near suspicious activity. Mrs. Walker states that if her husband was growing the plant it is likely he was selling them around the town. Carter insists that they need the flower. Mrs. Walker looks at Vander to see what he thinks, and he sides with the party. Vander doesn’t think her husband planted the flower, they have learned some disturbing evidence. Carter states there is strong evidence the plant is evil. Persephone asks what else Mr. Walker was growing in his garden and learns it was mostly fruits and vegetables that he would sell around town to give good nutrition to the poor folks. Carter comments they might need it if all they want to eat these days is ice cream. Mrs. Walker agrees, it has been hard to keep her kids away from the stall. Persephone urges her to keep the kids away and Carter adds that for the safety of her family Mrs. Walker should let them take the flower. She gives them permission.

They move into the garden to face the flower. Sebastian refuses to use the tiny shovel again and Carter tells him to use something more heavy duty. Persephone casts Enhance Ability to give Sebastian a boost in case this plant psychically attacks him. Sebastian starts digging around the plant to see where the roots are and discovers that instead of roots there is one large stalk. Carter tells him to just chop through the stalk so they can take the top part as a sample. Sebastian is hesitant to attack the plant that attacks your brain, but with Carter and Persephene’s encouragement he prepares to hit it with his aether-blade. He steels his mind as he makes the cut, and immediately feels the sensation Persephone described as the plant lashes out with its death throes. Sebastian takes some damage and has a headache as Carter scoops up the plant with his Mage Hand.

At this point they look up and see some Dreadstar members staring at them from either end of the alley. Carter calls one of them to come closer; they ignore him and continue staring from afar. Carter approaches one of the Dreadstars and says he recognizes them as part of the local gang. They tell him that The Dreadstars put the word out to keep an eye out for the party. Carter apologizes for the fight earlier and explains that the party is investigating the same disappearances. He proposes that they work together. The Dreadstar tells him that their location has already been pinged to the higher ups and asks if they have even spoken to the Bullocks. Carter tells them that the party has been trying and shares their theory that the plant is to blame as he waves it around with his Mage Hand.

The Dreadstar demands an explanation. Carter believes the plant has some sort of mental capabilities that can entrance people, citing the popular ice cream vendor as an example. The Dreadstar takes a closer look and takes a minute to confer with his colleague. After a few moments he comes back and says that the higher ups are on their way already but, because Carter shared some valuable information, he suggests the party talk to the Bullocks. The Dreadstars that have gone missing were looking for some sort of creatures and this plant matches a description of what they were after. He pulls up a map and informs them that the Bullocks can be found in the shipyard, Warehouse XGP15A. The Dreadstar advises that the party leave before the higher ups arrive since they are very upset. He will relay the information they shared and Carter asks him to tell them that he means no ill will.

You Ain't the Pizza Guy
The party takes the C-Train to the shipyards and Sebastian pays for Vander’s ticket. Carter keeps an eye on Persephone and Primina since they ate the ice cream. They arrive in the shipyard sector and see a sea of warehouses. Most of the people are workers, this is not a heavy foot traffic area.

Carter tries to get close to the area The Dreadstar pointed out on the map and starts asking questions of a nearby worker. The worker gives them directions to the XGP warehouses. Three blocks down and two buildings over they find unit 15A. Carter tries to open the door with Mage Hand and when that doesn’t work he knocks. The door opens a crack and a human peeks through. He says “Oh shit, you ain’t the pizza guy” and slams the door in their face.

Carter shouts through the door asking if he’s a Bullock. The man asks who he is and Carter introduces himself and explains they’re investigating disappearances. The man doesn’t know nothing about nothing. Persephone asks if he can get his boss because they might know. The man says he is self employed, a self-made man. Persephone asks if he is Sandy Bullock and the man tells them he is Matthew Bullock. Carter says they have heard that the Bullock’s were in the market for some creatures. Matthew admits some of his cargo has gone missing. Carter tells him The Dreadstars he hired went missing too but Matthew doesn’t care. He asks what they want and Carter tells him they are after information. Persephone tells him they have a flower that might be one of the things he’s looking for, and he opens the door immediately.

Matthew looks at the flower and asks if the party works for The Dreadstars. Carter says they are operating separately. Matthew checks the hall and has them come inside. They find themselves in a little office area connected to a large warehouse. Carter helps himself to some bad coffee. Matthew, a large man in his 40’s wearing a tank top and jeans, calls for someone named Fishner to come out and as a skinny young man with long dark hair enters the room Matthew tells the party that they are the Bullock Brothers.

Carter tells the Bullock Bros that they have heard about the business issues they’re having and proposes they might work together to solve the problem. The party has been running a parallel investigation and the missing cargo seems to be connected. Matthew explains that a couple months back they were hired by a goblinoid scientific research facility to procure a biological specimen, the Jiankoto Scarab, from a planet called Nocratus-4. The problem was that the Nocratus system is deep in the heart of elven territory and is a known wildlife conservation area, no one is allowed to land planetside and the area is highly protected by the elves. The Bullocks got the Jiankoto but took some additional specimens while they were there, a beautiful flower they could sell for a high price on the black market. One of their partners, Harry, decides they should try to unload the flower at Outlaw’s Horizon before delivering the scarab to their client. One night Matthew returns to find Fishner knocked out and Harry gone with all their product, both the scarab and the flower. A tracker was on the scarab but they lost it somewhere in Sableside, the last known location is where they sent The Dreadstars but they didn’t hear anything back.

Sebastian asks how many flowers they brought back and Matthew tells him just one. It looks like the sample they have but much bigger, the bloom was about a foot in diameter. Carter asks if the goblins have been asking questions and Matthew admits they’ve been hiding until they can find the scarab. Primina suggests the scarab is the thing that messed up the garden. Carter asks how big it was and Matthew confirms it is a big specimen. He shows them some pictures of the 5-ft tall bipedal monster with a helmet shaped head and heavily armored body with spines down its back. Its two arms are like serrated blades. Persephone agrees that this creature could be responsible for the garden damage. Carter asks what its function was and Matthew thinks it was an alpha predator in its environment. It is one of a kind. Sebastian asks for a description of Harry and Matthew pulls up a photo.

"Oh God."
With all this information the party returns to Sableside. Primina asks what the plan is. Carter suggests they check out the last location of the scarab. They make their way to the middle of one of the northern neighborhoods about fifteen minutes from the Walker house. They find themselves in the middle of a four way intersection with a manhole in the center. Carter looks around for tracks but this is a well travelled area so there isn’t much to see. He tries to lift the manhole cover but it is heavy. Sebastian pulls out his crowbar to give it a go and pops it right open. Immediately they are assaulted by the heavy, sickly sweet scent of flowers, Primina gags. They see that there are a bunch of vines growing in the sewer.

Persephone gets a text from Yuma that identifies the flower sample as the Nymphae Collossus, an illegal plant with powerful psionics and high intelligence. Contraband level 4 out of 4. It requires a lot of water to survive. Persephone replies that they had a run in with the smugglers who took the plant from Nocratus-4 along with the Jiankoto Scarab. The scarab is loose in the city and someone got away with the flower but it is now spreading throughout the city. Yuma’s response is “Oh god.”

The Party

 * Sebastian Crenshaw: A half-orc paladin. Tanked so good this episode.
 * Persephone Goldpetal: A firbolg druid. Hackum Sackums enthusiast.
 * Carter Huttenburg: A human warlock. He definitely didn't start that fight.

NPCS

 * Primina: A young woman of mysterious origins. The MacGuffin. Does not like this ice cream.
 * Fred Luo: A criminal contact. Living that club life.
 * The Dreadstars: A hobgoblin mid-boss and some henches.
 * Vander: A halfling male. A worried dad looking for his daughter.
 * Disgruntled Ice Cream Vendor: A man who now has to rethink his life.
 * Yuma: A female wilden. Shop owner and Persephone's new mentor.
 * Dag: A male tiefling. Supervising this investigation.
 * Garret Hawkins: Previously named Bray. Runs a very popular ice cream stall.
 * Mrs. Walker: A human woman. Hoping her husband comes home in time for their anniversary.
 * Matthew Bullock: A human male. A smuggler. Definitely not Sandy Bullock.
 * Fishner Bullock: A human male. A smuggler. Also not Sandy Bullock.

Music

 * SuperQuest Saga Theme - by Brian

World Building

 * XGP15A is a reference to the ship code for The Outlaw Star, a big inspiration for Will.

Nat 20's (2 total)

 * Brian (Initiative)
 * Brian (Eldritch Blast)