The Forest of Darkening Glass (RPG)

The Forest of Darkening Glass (RPG)
Type	RPG
Associations	Brandon Lachmann

The Forest of Darkening Glass was a tabletop roleplaying game created by Brandon Lachmann that was inspired by a book by Fletcher Dawson.

Locations

• INTRO: SLUDGE BANK

After escaping Shardtower, Beyell washes up at the FILTRATION LAB. Marrick’s Floating Bubble bursts as he steps onto the pebble shore. The bank is muddy and full of broken stones and debris. Across the water to the West are the Smoglands. Nothing exists there. Adventurers crossing the river will be forced back, the rolling grey smog too polluted to breathe. To the north is a large suction pipe running from under the surface of the river into the lower level of the lab. A large iron grate lays across its mouth, preventing access from the river, held in place by the force of the water suction. A small metal staircase by the pipe leads up to (1a) THE TERRACE. If an adventure removes the grate, there is a 75% chance they will be sucked into the pipe, drowned, crushed, and then filtered! A sweep of the bank (magical or physical) reveals two golden quarters in the mud, as well as small pieces of trash with no value.

On the desk are some scientific books on Filtration systems and a stack of reports in folders waiting to be signed. There is also a SQUEEZY STRESS-TOY in the shape of a smiley Mazeball (can be taken). The two grey filing cabinets on the South wall are locked. On the other side of the door is a small table with a large lamp. Above the lamp is a poster for FLEAGREEN’S CIRCUS. The blind are partially shuttered on the windowed East wall. If Beyell looks through the blinds he can see Tent City Square. When Beyell takes his seat Professor Green introduces himself as the Supervisor and gives out the following information regarding Beyell’s quest to escape Junktown. The professor speaks in a soft, kind voice and tells of how he and his brother FLEAGREEN help outcast children adjust to life outside the Shard. Fleagreen provides food, water, and shelter for the new arrivals. Professor Green siphons the city’s power and water to help Fleagreen’s operation running.

“Junktown used to be a proud and prosperous district of Shard City, but years of neglect has turned it into a wasteland. Our home is now just a power station for the city. The recycling plant turns rubbish from the junkyards into fuel that feeds the giant turbines generating energy for the tower. Most folk end up working there, shoveling salvage for Recyclops in exchange for meager food rations. You don’t want to work in Junktown, do you? You want to escape all this. Well, I know some kids have escaped. No one deserves this life. They blew up the roads around us, they think we’re blocked in. But there’s another way, if you’re not afraid of a little adventure?”

Professor Green explains that the ‘Travellers Disc’ has been unearthed in Junktown. With it Beyell can teleport to wherever he needs to go. The location is hidden but its position can be located by activating four Neogic tracking beacons. “Blessed with a gift-game of The Riddling Infinite.” He explains. “Her followers believe that no prize is worth winning without challenge.” Professor Green reaches into his desk and offers Beyell a leather wrist strap embedded with a coin shaped clear crystal. “Take this. If you want to beat the game don’t take it off.” This is a NEOGIC RESONATOR – they crystal glows in the vicinity of Neomagic, its light grows stronger the closer the wearer gets to the source. Professor Green offers some advice. “Be wary, this won’t be easy. Many have failed to activate even the first beacon and now work in the junkyards, their spirits broken.” Suddenly the badge on Professor Green’s lab coat flashes red, and he gets up to leave, grabbing a file from the pile on his desk.

Before he leaves Professor Green reaches into the filing cabinet and pulls out a package. He asks Beyell to deliver a battery pack to Fleagreen. He wishes Beyell good luck, and asks that he waits a moment before leaving. They shouldn’t be seen together. If Beyell tries to leave now he’ll find the door is locked. Fortunately there is a visitors magikey in the desk drawer. The filing cabinet is now empty, the other is full of reports.

• FILTRATION LAB

The Filtration Lab is a wedge shaped building of glass and steel, the west side is covered in the grim of the Smoglands. Beyell is looking at the back of the building, the long diagonal following the flow of the river north from Shardtower’s exit pipe. The lab filters water from Sludge River, purifies it, and pumps water into the reservoir most that surrounds the Shardtower. The Lab is on the ground floor reached via the steps, and the pumps are in the basement, under the lab, inaccessible from the outside. The walls of the building vibrate to the touch, and there is a constant humming in the air.

Beyell washes up on the riverbank by the filtration lab and meets Professor Green. B is told there’s a way out of Junktown by activating four beacons that will reveal a teleport device called The Traveller’s Disc. Green gives him a Neogic Resonator to find the beacon and also a package to deliver to Green’s brother. B is surprised to find the first beacon is in the lab building.

• 1a – THE TERRACE

The terrace is a wedge-shaped, 20ft at its longest width and 50ft long. Along the edge is a metal railing. There is a glass door in the center of the wall with a keypad next to it. Above the door is a security camera (not working). As Beyell climbs the steps the door opens and PROFESSOR GREEN motions for Beyell to come through into (1b) – THE MAIN CORRIDOR.

• 1b – MAIN CORRIDOR

They enter a long (50ft) corridor running north to south. At the north end, there is a magi-locked door. The door is labelled FILTRATION AREA – NO UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY. This room cannot be opened without the right magikey. Professor Green silently leads Beyell to a door in the east wall near the south end of the corridor that leads to (1c) – THE WAITING ROOM. There are broken security cameras at both ends of the corridor. The south end of the corridor leads to 1e – RECEPTION AREA.

• 1c – WAITING ROOM

Beyell is taken through the waiting room into Prof Green’s office. The room is large and well lit. There is a yellow sofa, a small table and some magazines. Bookshelves on the north and south walls are full of science textbooks. The East wall is glass from floor to ceiling, so grimy the imposing Terminus Building is barely visible. The door in the north wall leads to (1d) – GREEN’S OFFICE

• 1d – GREEN’S OFFICE

Beyell is led into a room similar to the waiting room. Professor Green immediately takes a seat by his big oak desk by the North wall. He will gesture for Beyell to sit in the chair on the other side.

• THE OUTCAST PROCESSING BUILDING – Children are lowered from a platform into the courtyard and then process in bathes to be turned onto the streets. Rejected shard tower children are transported to the courtyard and then processed in batches to be turned onto the streets.

• TENT CITY SQUARE – The outcasts of terminus live here in tents

B crosses the Terminus outcasts of Tent City Square. He finds Fleagreen giving out food in his circus tent and gives him the batteries from his brother. Fleagreen tells B that he’s never found a beacon but the Ratticans know everything in this town.

• RATTICAN CAMP – This is the home of the street rat gang. They terrorize the rich inhabitants of the towers. They communicate using their own individual sign language.

B goes to see Maw & Paw. When B offers Little Beady a toy, Maw lets B run an errand for her in return for information. B escorts Little Beady through Slumblock to the Hotspring so that Little Beady can have her bath. When they return to camp, B is told he needs to break into the compound and look for a hidden trapdoor.

• SLUMBLOCK - People live in the shell of a warehouse.

• HOTSPRING - A hotspring. The water is heated by the generators from the filtration lab. The water is slightly irradiated and has regenerative properties.

• UNDER THE TOWERS

B explores the under-passages of the Tower with Little Beady and finds the next beacon. When he exits the passages he can see the junkyard compound ahead.

• THE COMPOUND - Fenced off from the rest of junktown, the citizens of the compound have created their own community.

B faces The Growmancer, but is shown mercy as he’s clean and healthy. B is allowed to stay the night. Finding the trapdoor he enters the passages under the Towers. Little Beady is there and offers help as a thank you for the toy.

• THE LAST IRONHORSE IN THE JUNKYARD COMPOUND - A couple of old ironhorses have been left to ruin.

In the compound, B finds a barely functioning Ironhorse. Realizing that it may have useful information, B goes to find a power source that allows him to talk to the Last Ironhorse about the junkyard.

• ABANDONED CAMP - An adventurers camp, now deserted. The adventurers were consumed by the circuit trees. Some small supplies will be left.

• THE MINER CAMP - There is a group of seven miners who call themselves the junkyard dogs. They live here.

B finds Taytuz, Mardeh, Kroggeh, Ehrode, Midduk, Annorl, and Towdya, the Junkyar Dogs. They tell B that an offering to Recyclops will open the door to the Delves. They also tell him where to find a suitable offering.

• GATEROOM - There is a gate that bars creatures from entering the recyclops area. It’s guarded by yardians: animated junk versions of shardians. Stronger, slow, low intelligence, also very aggressive.

B finds the portcullis that leads into the Junkyard Delve. Inside, he finds his way to another shaft, encountering several monsters and traps. B has first encounter with the Junk Troll.

• RUBBLEFISH LAKE - This used to be the city aquarium. The roof collapsed in and now the pool is full of rubblefish.

• CIRCUIT TREES - This is a trap area – there is a ‘neo-logram’ projecting a marble plinth with ‘the traellers disk’ on it.

• LAIR OF THE JUNKWORM - A giant junkworm that lives under the bridge.

• RECYCLOPS - This is a 25ft hole in the ground. If you look into the pit a giant eye looks back. If anyone was to fall into the eye of the recyclos the body will be returned to the surface but any items deemed recyclable are lost.

At Recyclops, B makes his offering and is rewarded, but it’s not what he expected.

• SECRET CONTROL ROOM Just south of the gate is a secret room. Access is via a hidden panel. Turning off the generator here will open the north portcullis blocking the way to a prison.

• SECRET CONTROL ROOM 2 - This is hidden in the lower southwest section of the junkyard. The lever to activate the portcullis is guarded by a giant yardian.

• THE PRISON - Two portcullises prevent access to a second life shaft. That has been turned into a tower. There are five levels to the tower. The lower levels are store rooms. Level three is guarded preventing access to the cells on level four.

• LADY BARLEYWADE’S PRISON

B finds Lady Barleywade captive in Junk Troll’s prison. He rescues her and finds out she has the final beacon. Using all four beacons to locate the Traveller’s Disc, he realizes the Troll has it, so he sets off to find him using the Neogic Resonator as a radar tracker.

• JUNKTROLL’S LAIR

B confronts the Junk Troll in his lair. After a showdown, the Junk Troll teleports the disc away, but it doesn’t go far. B is triumphant, and uses it to reunite Lady Barleywade with her love. As a reward, Lady Barleywade tells B where the next part of the quest begins! B teleports out of Junktown, but where will the next adventure take him?

Characters

Lady Barleywade

Lady Barleywade owns and manages the towers, a housing complex for the wealthier families of Shardtown. Now that Junktown has become a run-down area, no one leaves the tower. Lady Barleywade is the chair of the housing committee and maintains tight social controls on the block. But secretly Lady Barleywade hates this set up and will often sneak out at night on her own adventures. On one of these adventures she met and fell in love with a Junktown patrol guard called Bonavarde. No one has seen lady Barleywade for several weeks, and Bonavarde is very concerned.

The Junk Troll

The Junk Troll grew up in the junkyards and knows them better than anyone. He would forage for unusual items that turned up in the yard. Has found secret rooms and treasure hidden in the yards that no one knows about. His hidden lair is full of interesting and rare items and this have become his obsession. One night he came across Lady Barleywade and added her to his collection. He keeps her locked away and hopes that one day she will come to love him, as he is infatuated with her. He tries to win her love with trinkets. She refuses everything so the troll has started mining the forbidden places and this is how he uncovered the traveller’s disc. Not realizing the true potential of the disc (because he’s not very smart) together with a scrying ball he uses the teleporter to find and steal rare an magic items that others unearth, in the hope that one of these will win over Lady Barleywade.

Bonavarde

Bonavarde is one of the old patrol guards that oversees the junkyard lift. The life shaft down to the junkyard broke a while ago and he and the gang haven’t had much to do in months. Security is now lax at the lift. Bonavarde loves old adventure movies, which he watches through his magi-vision wall (basically a big tv!) And he has modelled himself on Errol Flynn, but with a bear. One night he met Lady Barleywade on one of her midnight adventures and they fell in love. When she disappeared Bonavarde assumed she was list in the maze of the junkyards below. He went on a scouting missions but found nothing. Now he keeps a fire lit on top of the lift shaft for her return.

Rattican Clan

The Ratticans are a family of Murrids (rat-humans) that have thrived on the streets of Junktown. They know the town very well and have secret passageways an tricks that can get them into almost anywhere. Their favorite marks are the rich families of Barleywade, however, with the lockdown, there are slim pickings there. Maw and Paw Rattican are the head of the family, with the kids tails, Barry the Bite, Elsie Gnaw, and Little Beady. Maw has a big mouth, and if you need something from the Ratticans she is the one you speak to. Paw is the muscle and says little. If you need equipment, spells, or weapons you visit the Ratticans. If you have the money or something they need that is.

Professor Green

Professor Green is a tall nerdy scientist who works at the filtration lab, he’s very smart. He grew up with his twin brother, Flea, in Shardtower. When it came time for the first grade test he passed easily but flea did not and was cast out into Junktown. As soon as he could, Green requested a work assignment in the filtration lab outside so he could track down his brother. During this time Green became a follower of the riddling incarnate. Eventually Green found his brother and now they work together to help the outcast children on the streets of Junktown.

Fleagreen

Fleagreen and his twin brother called Shardtower their original home. Flea was cast out after the first grade test, soon calling Junktown home. The small circus hired him to be a clown. Seeing smiling faces was a welcome change to all the downturned faces of the hard working citizens. He climbed the circus ranks and was soon in charge and changed the name to Fleagreen’s Circus. He even found an old top hat to make him look like an official ringmaster. He never expected his twin brother, Professor Green to get a job at the filtration plant. The two were no sooner reunited when they knew what to do. Provide food, water, sand shelter for the new arrivals, the outcast children.

Encounters

Encounter 2/A

“ ENCOUNTER 2/a Beyell swings through the darkness and lands on a concrete floor. Looking back he can see Little Beady illuminated by the light of her torch on the other side of the chasm. She smiles and waves before melting back into the darkness of the underpassages, her debt repaid. Beyell has landed in a passageway 10ft wide, 5ft from the edge of the chasm. The walls are rough and uneven and appear to be made of a mix of concrete and sandstone. With Little Beady gone, there is only the light that Beyell can cast to guide his way. If he steps back (moves West) there is a 1-2 chance of falling into the chasm. If this happens the adventurer must roll 12 or above on agility to grab the ledge and pull themselves up. If the adventurer fails the agility roll, roll for luck. A successful roll reduces their luck stat by 50% the next time luck is used. Casting Neonglo, Neonviz, or other spells that cast light will show that after 10ft the passage widens into a small chamber approx 15x15ft. Luck roll for heat damage if Neonflare is used (1-6 sparks, 1pt heat damage per spark that hits). However the neogic resonator will cast a soft glow illuminating an area 1ft to the front and sides of Beyell. As he steps into the chamber the resonator begins to glow brightly enough to illuminate the chamber. ”

Encounter 2/B

“ ENCOUNTER 2/b There are no visible exits in the room. In the center of the east wall there is a large graffiti drawing of an archway, made to look like it's 3D. At the top of the arch is a tag by Barry the Bite. On the North Wall is a small black box with a sliding device on it. There are three sliders held in place by a metal cleat. Each slider has eight one inch square panels, each with a different symbol. If the adventurer has been observant on their travels they should notice that they have seen these some of these symbols before. If Beyell uncovered Barry the Bite's hideout they will recognize these as Rattican marker symbols. There are three holes in the cleat that are the same size and shape as the panels. Beyell can slide the panels left and right. At the start of the puzzle the panel looks like this: There are two parts to this puzzle. One slider pattern will activate the beacon, the other opens the gateway in the towers that leads to the junkyard zone. Beyell will know the beacon is activated when the neogic resonator glows brightly then goes out. If Beyell activates the beacon before he opens the gate, then the room is plunged into darkness and he will need some other way to illuminate the panel. ”

Encounter 2/C

“ ENCOUNTER 2/c When Beyell steps out through the activated gate he turns around and sees that he's looking at the entrance to the Towers and there's a surprised looking guardian staring at him. There's no way back to the room. (Note: if the adventurer hasn't activated the beacon, keep the gateway open until it’s activated. When Beyell returns to the chamber a random monster of your own choosing will have wandered in). ”

Encounter 3/A

“ ENCOUNTER 3/a Beyell is left to stare through the portcullis of the Keep as Bonavarde returns to tend the fires that burn on the viewing platform. As he walks away Beyell can hear Bonavarde muttering the Deadbolt spell that will prevent the portcullis from being opened again. After the spell is cast he turns briefly to Beyell and says "I'm not going to send you to your doom, but if you want to work out the way yourself look for the spot on my lawn." He then disappears, leaving Beyell alone. The courtyard area extends around the Keep, opening out to a larger area on the East side. The courtyard is walled except for the Southern edge where the ground drops away into the junkyard 75ft below. If Beyell tries to jump into the junkyard he will fall 10ft and stop in mid-air, losing 1-6 health points (Roll for agility). There is a mag-field that extends way out over the yard preventing anything from falling in. Note: Any form of levitation spell (e.g. Jetpack, Atmos-walk, Aeroboost) used to gain access to the junkyard will incur an attack by a flock of scavenging DREGGERS who will drive Beyell back to the courtyard. DREGGERS (insert fight stats here) The only way into the junkyard is to use the elevator platform which is in the southeast corner of the eastern courtyard. The Neogic Resonator glows brighter and brighter as he approaches the elevator platform. ”

Encounter 3/B

“ ENCOUNTER 3/b There are no controls on the elevator platform. It's just a thick metal sheet. There is a small grey rectangular box mounted on a stand by the wall next to the platform. When the switch is turned on, it projects a green holographic chessboard on its surface. There is a spot in one of the squares on the top row. There are no other markings or switches on the box. In the center of the eastern courtyard is a large black rectangular box resting on stone podium. To the left and right of the podium, are chests laid out like benches arranged in 3 rows of 5 chests. The chests can be searched, and Beyell will find the following chessboard pieces: A White King with a barbed tail. A Black Queen holding a doll. A Bishop carved from green marble. A White Knight holding up a crown A Rook carved from garnet A pawn made from half a white and half a black piece The box has a switch that when pressed projects a video onto the North wall. The film is the classic "The Sword of Zauza-Ruhr". The box has a small button on the front panel that when pressed ejects a film cartridge. If Beyell checks the podium he will find a secret panel. Inside the podium are other videos "Walker in the Dark" ,"Barbarian's Code", "Love in a time of Sorrow" and "The Devil's Operatives". There is also an unmarked cartridge. When played the video projects the garden riddle on to the wall: (show riddle here) ”

Encounter 3/C

“ ENCOUNTER 3/c If Beyell has the map of Bonavarde's Imaginary Garden then all the player needs to do is position the chess pieces correctly on the chessboard starting from the spot marked on the Great Lawn and the platform will activate, rising up like a magic carpet. Beyell activates the third beacon by placing the Red Rook on the correct square, and the resonator will glow brightly and fade. When Beyell steps onto the platform it gently floats over to the edge of the courtyard and descends through the mag-field to the junkyard below. ”

Encounter 4/A

“ ENCOUNTER 4/a Beyell climbs steps made from blocks of compacted junk into the converted elevator shaft. The outside is covered with multi colored metallic panels of different shapes and sizes, and it looks like a high fort running the full length of the junkyard wall. GROUND LEVEL The ground floor a large open empty room with rusted metal panel walls to the North, South and West. The room is bare except for junk that has blown in. The room is bathed in red light from the junkyard fires outside. There is a small (5%) chance that a handful of goldquarters may be found among the rubbish. There is a rusted spiral staircase in the far Southwest corner. There is a control box on the North Wall which activates and deactivates the electrogates. Leaving the electrogates deactivated will mean there's a chance of a wandering encounter. FIRST LEVEL The staircase leads to a dusty room. There is another spiral staircase in the Northwest corner of the room. The room seems to be empty and covered in dust. No one has been here for a long time. The North, South and West walls are the same rusty panels as the room below. It's darker here, the only light coming from cracks in the paneled exterior wall give everything a blood red glow. ”

Encounter 4/B

“ ENCOUNTER 4/b If Beyell investigates the room, he will trigger a dormant Proto-Yardian, an early model which is a bare metal skeleton with small panels for its head, hands and feet. They lie flat like traps and pop up when triggered. Its main attack is punch, with a secondary speedburst attack that will try to squash its opponent against the walls for slam damage. (PROTO-YARDIAN - add in fight scats) This Proto-Yardian is quite slow, because it hasn't been activated in some time and the dust has eroded its joints. SECOND LEVEL The next room is the same as the one below. This room is empty, although the A-M may choose to add a second Proto-Yardian here. The spiral staircase is Northeast corner of the room leads to the Upper Level. The Neogic Resonator begins to glow as Beyell enters this room, getting stronger as he approaches the staircase. The staircase leads to the main room on the upper level. ”

Encounter 4/C

“ ENCOUNTER 4/c UPPER LEVEL The Main Room is much larger than the other floors and also appears to be empty, although there is a strange ozone smell in the air. Part of the wall in the Southeast corner seems to flicker occasionally if not looked at directly. There is a square tiled area in the center of the room. As soon as Beyell steps into the tiled area he will be attacked by the GHOST YARDIAN. The Yardian cannot be seen by conventional methods or by standard neomagic. The only time you are aware of its presence is the slight buzz just before a hit lands. This is because Ghost Yardians are shifted out of reality slightly. The buzz is the realignment into the physical world. B must roll for agility on each attack, and then block. A successful block allows Beyell to Counterstrike (roll for luck, a successful hit does half normal damage, a perfect roll does full damage, a fatal roll is a complete miss). GHOST YARDIAN (insert stats here) When Beyell defeats the Ghost Yardian, its body phases into the real world. Ghost Yardians are extremely high-tech and look like art manikins made of shiny white plastic. They are featureless except for their mask-plates which vary in design. ”

Encounter 4/D

“ ENCOUNTER 4/d The mask plate for this Ghost Yardian looks like this: (insert mask here) Beyell can remove the maskplate, exposing the intricate wiring of the Ghost Yardian. Putting on the maskplate allows Beyell to see into the shifted reality. Everything looks like green wireframe graphics. Beyell can now see that the southeast corner wall has disappeared providing access to a small hidden room. LADY BARLEYWADE'S PRISON: When Beyell enters the room he can see nothing, but removing the mask reverts everything to reality again. Suddenly he finds himself in a room with a high ornate roof made of wrought iron. There is no way to exit to the room other than the mask. LADY BARLEYWADE is sitting on a small bed gazing at the carvings in the roof beams. NPC: LADY BARLEYWADE. She is rather shocked to see him, and seems relieved, almost as if she was expecting someone else. She will not speak. Beyell will not realize at first, but any questions he asks cannot be heard while in the room. ”

Encounter 4/E

“ ENCOUNTER 4/e Lady Barleywade will gesture to Beyell to give her the mask. When he does so she disappears. There is nothing Beyell can do to escape without the mask, but he can do any physical action such as replenishing his health. Searching the room reveals nothing, but there is a chance Beyell noticed that the Neogic Resonator dimmed slightly when Lady Barleywade left the cell. After a long wait, a voice is heard behind the North Wall. "I say, young man? I want to thank you for your help. I'm sorry, I needed water. It's been so long since I was able to talk. You've probably realized that you can't speak while in my room. That's because it's a Silence Cell. I've been trapped in there for a very long time. I see you took care of Herron, my hunter and jailor. I was actually quite fond of him. I might have to take him home and turn him into a butler or something. He got the jump on me during one of my secret adventures. Brought me kicking and screaming to the Junk Troll who, in his limited wisdom which frankly amazes me considering his...unusual circumstances, locked me up here. Treblehead calls me his living treasure. He thinks I'll fall in love with him if he showers me with pretty baubles.” ”

Encounter 4/F

“ ENCOUNTER 4/f "Oh my poor Bonavarde must be going out of his mind. I must go to him as soon as I can! But that wouldn't be fair to you, would it? By very virtue of you giving up the key to my confines you have proven yourself to be a good person. Not deserving such a miserable fate. The intricate design of my roof can only entertain you for so long. So here's the rub. You cannot leave the cell without the mask. Also, whoever is in the silent cell cannot speak, so well have to move in and out the room to talk to each other. So let's keep this short and sweet before we both go honkers with shift-sickness. I'm coming back in. Have your questions ready." Lady Barleywade will answer questions regarding the Junk Troll and also about activating the beacon. If Beyell asks why the Troll is called Treblehead she will explain that before he learned to control the disc he accidentally jumped into two other trolls. Now they are part of him and he has three heads. Lady Barleywade will tell Beyell that Treblehead wears The Travelers Disc and can come and go without needing to use the mask. He wears the Disc around his neck and uses it to jump around the junkyard, finding items and trinkets that he thinks will win her love. But she is in love with Bonavarde and so is locked away until she relents. She will also say that Treblehead has found many powerful items in the Junkyard and it won't be easy to defeat him. ”

Encounter 4/G

“ ENCOUNTER 4/g The last beacon is inside Herron's Mask. After their conversation, Lady Barleywade activates it for Beyell so that he can find Treblehead and defeat him. With all the four beacons now activated, Beyell's Resonator will triangulate the position and will flash when pointing in the right direction. Beyell's final task is to defeat the Junk Troll and obtain The Travelers Disc. He can then teleport into the cell and give Lady Barleywade the mask so they can both escape. ”

Trial One

The story in Brandon's RPG told of Beyell’s journey to escape Junk Town. This was a parallel to Brandon's own journey to escape the mundane world, and New York City in particular. Beyell had to find and solve 4 beacons in order to find the way out. The devoted believed Brandon had to do several things in the weeks leading up to his escape. Parallel to the story, Brandon believed he had to find 4 beacons, in New York City, before he could find the way out.

A variety of documents were provided to the Mountaineers by the Devoted to replicate Brandon's journey. The files included typewritten RPG documents, audio, and photographs.

First Beacon

The first beacon was described a statue of a bearded gentleman surrounded by four jets of water running over 4 smaller statues surrounding it. Each of the smaller statues had a plaque, which was represented by the 4 plaques found in the Devoted's documents.

One of the plaques had a number - 20587, which mapped to the date February 5th, 1887. Combined with audio of an unknown individual saying lines from Othello, the Mountaineers soon realized that Giuseppe Verdi and librettist Arrigo Boito adapted Shakespeare’s play to Otello. It was first performed at the Teatro alla Scala, Milan on 5 February 1887. Based on the clue, the first beacon was located at the Giuseppe Verdi monument.

Second Beacon

The second beacon was described as a combination to a lock. There were three sliders held in place by a metal cleat. Each slider had eight one inch square panels, each with a different symbol. There were three holes in the cleat that were the same size and shape as the panels. Beyell could slide the panels left and right, until he found the one slider pattern that would activate the beacon. The different symbols related to areas within Junktown. A short story included in the documents served as the key to understanding the tiles, which called for a list of places, a list of emotions/reactions and a list of things. Mountaineers circled each mention of a place, emotion, or object in the story.

The devoted had included a combination within the documents, which mapped to:
Move the first list to the left 7 times
Move the first list to the left 4 times
Move the first list to the right 5 times

Move the second list to the right 6 times
Move the second list to the right 3 times
Move the second list to the left 4 times.

Move the last list to the left once
Move the last list to the right 2 times
Move the last list to the right 5 times

According to the story, the starting tiles were found to be:
Lake, powerplant, junkyard, terminus, circus, lab, compound, spare
Anger, happy, danger, safety, quiet, careful, help, unknown
Beacon, woman, monster, man, side, reward, trap, door

The starting combo was found to be lab, quiet, and woman. The ending combo is spare, happy, and door. The combination successfully activated the second beacon.

The Short Story

“ It knew I had to go back to all the places we'd been together. We had so many emotions and reactions along the way. We just knew we needed things to change. The day at the lake had began wonderfully. All the anger I'd felt left me. Mary felt like a beacon of light that was guiding me. Even with the power-plant behind me I was happy. That woman always made me feel glad to be alive. The sound of the junkyard workers calling to each other over the ridge of the hill woke me from my daydream. I scrambled up to see what all the fuss was about. Immediately I could see what the danger was. An enormous trash monster was trampling all over the yard heading toward the railway terminus. The men were running for safety as fast as they could. Suddenly the yard fell quiet and the circus of activity stopped. As the creature stomped out of the yard the workers began to look at each other. They were unsure whether to emerge from their hiding places and careful not to draw its attention back to the yard. A man in a yellow hard hat, a clip board and what looked like a lab coat was on his communicator calling for help. He looked to one side to signal to the men to stay in their hiding places. His radio crackled and a voice said "secure the compound." But the creature continued on, searching for its ultimate reward. Then the voice said, "keep him moving, we've set the trap." The man with the walkie-talkie didn't know what to do next. He felt like a spare art staring into the unknown. He turned and walked to the nearest door and promptly disappeared behind it... ”

Third Beacon

The third beacon was part of some kind of chessboard puzzle. The beacon was related to a series of polaroids which contained a poem:
Walking twixt rise and fall from the spot on the lawn
I passed flaming hearts and strung stories.
A six legged king, pointed arms crossed defiantly, snapped at me.
I decided to pause. The wyvern laughed at my seeming error of judgment
But I had realized my destination was not the roundabout after all.

The poem referred to areas within central park, which mapped to:
The Great Lawn
The Delacorte Theater was the rising and falling platform
The Romeo and Juliet attraction was the flaming hearts
The Marionette Theatre was the strung stories
The six legged king was the sea crabs at the base of the obelisk
The Belvedere Castle Wyvern was the wyvern.
The Ramble was the roundabout

Because the individual stopped at the wyvern after realizing their error in judgement, the Belvedere Castle was the key to activating the third beacon.

Fourth Beacon

The fourth beacon was related to a short story on the Mask of Ojorad. Within the story was an illustration of the mask, and in the illustration was ornamentation that mapped to a real world location. The location was Hernshead - the Ladies Pavilion.

The Short Story

“ ...taken her to the quiet field. Melantha thought it was beautiful. The crisp autumn wind swirled around her red hair. Dora pulled out a small box with a satin pouch inside. She slid something out, into her upturned hand. The figurine was a person with a potbelly, his lips pursed as if to kiss anyone that got close enough. "It's smaller than I thought it would be," Melantha said. Dora chuckled as she crumpled the satin bag and slid it into her pocket. "But how do L.." asked Melantha. 'What if it doesn't..?" Melantha went in for a hug, so that she could feel her sister next to her just one last time. As she did this, Dora began to fade. Melantha shed tears as she felt Dora being swept away, into the breeze. Lost to the wind. In a blink she was gone. Melantha stood at the edge of the field, peering into her hand now, the figurine fitting comfortably in her palm. "The Wind Idol," she whispered... ”

Fourth Element and Fifth Entity

The fourth element, air, was developed by the Mountaineers. They were required to write a short story, which was then altered by the Devoted. The fifth entity was a character portrait of Fleagreen, which Mountaineers drew and wrote up a profile for.

Using all four beacons, the Mountaineers were able to triangulate the location of the Traveler's Disk, which was located at the Triplet's Bridge. The Traveler's Disk had two numbers on it, both of which led to new materials from The Devoted.

Trial Two

Within the files was an audio file that listed off the name of television shows. Several of the episodes linked to the same television show. The mountaineers soon realize that the audio file was combined with a set of three different maze maps. Each episode, sorted by air date, would connect to a left or right direction based on the maze, with the first and last episodes simply being the start and end areas. Within the audio was also morse code, and the tones used for the morse code lined up with the letters on the map.

Within the files were also mentions of the animals from The Minnying of Ojorad:
The Cat and the Saint
The Mouse and the Sorcerer
The Owl and the Lady
The Toad and the Angel

The animals each led to significant statues in New York which, when used as a starting points for the mazes, could be overlaid with maps of New York City. Following the maze led to new significant points in the mundane world.

The locations were:
Lady - somewhere between E68th and E64th Street, east of the park
Saint - Between Gold Street and FRD Drive south of Brooklyn Bridge
Angel - between 37th and 33rd St - East of FDR
Sorcerer - around 33rd and Broadway

And the starting animals were:
Owl - Lady - Alice in Wonderland statue (the nesting ‘hat’ trees of the Dor)
Cat - Minerva at Columbia Uni ( Athena’s Copse)
Toad - Frick House (the clay houses of Harrynick)
Mouse - Sorcerer Fortitude at Central Park Library (Fortitude’s Peak)

The pairings were found on an additional document from the Devoted - “Traveller’s Guide to the Isles of Brin.” The pairs, triangulated, led to The Cloisters. Going over the unused materials, Mountaineers realized that the Seven Tributes of Rochefoucauld mapped to the Unicorn Tapestries, which were held in the Cloisters. The materials included a new poem with the words "2pm, 7pm, and 10pm" handwritten at the bottom. Each two-line stanza between them was a coded instruction for how to find each clock, and hints on a phone number that Mountaineers were meant to call.

The Poem

“ I went to town to find The Crafter, he who knows what lies thereafter. He thought he'd buried himself so well, a treasured pearl within his shell. But subtle hints lay round about from those who call themselves devout. Crack this riddle and then you'll find the number's up, his plan unwinds. Penguin, Hippo, Bear, The 'Roo, and Goat play songs from thirty-two. The first's at eight, a morn delight. But when's the last that falls at night? Nath'l Fisher, chemist by trade, a clumsy man who offers aid he dropped a cent between his feet, and left this number on his street A woman with an opal face, under stars (which are misplaced) told the pianist he'd be late, if the keys don't make it to the gate. Runaway Leinster turned the pages in science fiction's early stages. Inside there's more than single stories, but how tall are its shining glories? Above the L's a sanctuary, a copper shrine to industry How many workers upon the face, plus all the ways into this place? The harbinger at quarter to, calls out for eight and sometimes two for curtain rises and closed doors its vital that you count the floors. It matters not where they may stand, their names are not part of the plan. They simply push you to a corner. The numbers' key, you're getting warmer. With these digits properly placed, its time to find the jeweller's face where fifty thousand shadows fall, now find a way to make your call. ”

6 - The last chiming of the clock at central park zoo
46 - The street where the Nathaniel Fisher clock is located with the “cent” dropped
88 - 8 for 8 meters, at the MetLife clocktower
10 - Clock at 14th and 8th av. Number of Bees on the two faces plus the number of entrances (8 + 2)
33 - Paramount Theater has 33 floors

The numbers combined made 646-883-1033 and, when called at 2pm, 7pm, or 10pm led to a new clue: A ring, a buzz, a tick, a hum.
It matters where you’re calling from.
You have them all but what comes after?
Time to look down on the Crafter.

From the clue, Mountaineers considered Brandon being The Crafter, he buried himself in a shell (the subway station). They realized there was a clock on City Hall. The subway has glass panels, so it was possible to see them from above. The Mountaineers believed they needed to call the phone number outside the William Barthman store at 178 Canyon of Heroes. There was a pay phone just outside the store. Calling from te payphone at the designated time, the Mountaineers received a message from the adult Brandon, who told them to find the Glass Report. In addition, Brandon told Mountaineers to 'mind the times,' giving them their next clue. Calling the phone number at 2pm granted a new message from Brandon. He told them to continue on the path and more information would be available at the next time - 7pm on the next day. The next message contained more information on Brandon's plan and a warning to pay careful attention to the final time. Brandon told recruits that "when the gate that separates patience and fortitude unlocks you will be at the end of the trail I made," which led recruits to the New York Public Library, where the two lion statues were named Patience and Fortitude.

At 10pm, the final clue was released, which was a robotic voice listing authors and library sections: Cavendish-North
Peters-South
Norgen-North
Trubetskoy-South
Unexplained 434
Classical Myths 498
Chronolgy 177
Bookmans 561

The lines with the authors matched up to the other lines, which included hints on book titles: Principles of Phonology - Trubetzkoy - 177
The Encyclopedia of the Unexplained: Magic, Occultism, and Parapsychology - Cavendish - 434
Classical Myths in English Literature - Norton - 498
The Bookman’s Glossary - Jean Peters - 561

All four the the books were found to be in the same area, General Research - Room 315 (aka The Rose Main Reading Room). The numbers were table numbers, hints to help find the books more easily. Within each of the books was a page of the Glass Report, and a handwritten message from Sacha. The password on Sacha's note led to a new page on the Forest of Darkening Glass website, which in turn led to another page on the Book of Briars site. The Book of Briars page was a quiz on the Glass Report and succesfully answering all the answers led to the discovery of Fragment Four, Siren's Lace. The second trial had been completed.

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