Nighthaven Session 4 Report
Sympathy for the Devil
The fourth session of Nighthaven featured the smallest group so far. This session consisted only of three players, Bracca the Ranger, Flinder the Illusionist and Renialianth the Druid. This was an interesting turn of events as this session was set to be a different type of session. I had set October 21st as the date of Nighthaven’s Harvest Festival which turned the city into a more active and crowded place. With time being 1-to-1 in my campaign though, we couldn’t put off the festival and we charged ahead. The result was a largely uneventful session, but one where the players got further involved in the faction games that are afoot in Nighthaven. This was a combat-free session based on the way the encounter tables played out and I think the lack of dungeon crawling so far has been a detriment to the game. I need to place a few in the world and drop some hints that they are around.
The session began with the players being awakened early in the morning by two hulking Orcs and a gangster named Jensen. They were there at the behest of Mandrake Hawke, a gentleman gangster cut from the same cloth as “Gentleman” Johnny Marcone from The Dresden Files. The players have been primarily antagonistic toward a gang called The Headless, who are rivals of Hawke and his gang (Hawke’s Talons), so Hawke has made a move to ingratiate himself to the players. His play was an invitation to one of the High Tables, tables reserved for the nobility of Nighthaven, during the evening feast. This invitation also came with a free suit of custom-made formal wear for each of them. The players took full advantage, visiting the tailor shop of Proprietor Sname (P. Sname & Sons).
The time between their visit to the tailor and the meeting with Mandrake Hawke was spent exploring the city on the High Fest Day. They encountered a pickpocket named Tommy who Flinder quickly flipped into a sort of agent for the party. He concocted a hair-brained scheme where Tommy would feign stealing from one of the gangsters so that the party could thwart the attempt. The party also got a close-up look at how the Scarlet Order, the syndicate that handles prostitution in the city, handles discipline within their organization. They also encountered their first hint that there’s some kind of sinister conspiracy afoot in Nighthaven that goes back to the dominion of the dragons from 30 years ago. With three random encounter rolls, I thought we would turn up some combat but that never happened. I’m not sure whether or not I should adjust that particular dial.
As the end of the session drew near, the party arrived at Mandrake Hawke’s table where they met Nighthaven’s one and only open criminal lord. Some of the players were quite taken with Hawke’s lordly graces and they seem to find him a ready ally. Hawke’s proposal to the players was a simple one; keep being a thorn in the side of the Headless and he will consider it a personal favor. The implication being that he may return that favor for them. Whether or not the players actually trust Hawke, I don’t know. I’m sure they don’t know. They know exactly who he is and have a contact in their business associate Kieron Devitt who can tell them more about him, but they seem to be on board in the meantime. Flinder’s plan to thwart a fake purse snatching with Tommy also went sideways when Tommy botched his stealth check. Instead of having him killed though, Hawke did something far worse. He told Tommy to stick close to the party and do whatever they say.
The party is beginning to really involve themselves in the faction play. Still though, things are moving slowly and I’m having to resist direct intervention to speed things up. That’s not my job though. That’s their job. This is their campaign and it’s up to them to make things happen. I don’t doubt that they’ll make a move soon though, especially with all the leads they’ve uncovered over the past few sessions. Time will tell how they proceed though.