It’s time for another entry in the adventures of Redcoat Smasher, a game I run for my 5-year-old and wife using my Game for Kids rules.
After helping the fire princess, and promising to keep the crown of flames safe, Redcoat, Opal Moonstone, and Cheep Cheep (now a blackbird named Cheep Cheep, instead of some sort of flying squirrel) set out to make their way. The volcano vault was deep in the desert, far from other cities, and the trek through the desert was long and hard. On the horizon, Opal spots a small town, but Redcoat thinks it may be a mirage. Even with Cheep Cheep on his head, spreading wings to provide shade, Redcoat and Opal decide its hot enough they should risk it.
Luckily for them, the small town was there, a little building outpost on hard packed earth bordering the desert. In describing the town, Redcoat immediately wanted to visit the cantina to get some water. I have no idea how he knew what a cantina was, but I could not interest him in any other shops. Inside, there was a piano man, and collection of patrons dancing and having fun. Redcoat went to the bench and got a sarsaparilla, which he quite enjoyed. While talking to the tender, the music suddenly stopped, and patrons got uneasy, with some hiding. Redcoat spun to look at the doors to look for monsters. What he sees is a Neogi saunter in and take in the room backed by two robots. One humanoid with buzz saws for hands, and the other squid-like on tendrils. Redcoat ducks behind a table, but Opal meets his gaze. He saunters over to the bar, his 6 spurs clacking on the floor as he goes. There, he encourages Opal and Redcoat to keep moving through town and explains that his group are here for the town’s protection and they don’t like outsiders causing trouble. He then turned and collected a hefty sac of gold from the tender, and before slowly sauntering back out.
Asking around, Redcoat puts together that this was Ricotta, and his gang of Neogi have worked an arrangement with the mayor. They protect the town, and make sure nothing bad happens, and he pays them money. When they first arrived, he and his companion battled them, and lost, and so he knows they are good. They arrange a clandestine meeting with the mayor, and he fills them in on some more. Ricotta’s gang is somewhere outside town, beyond where one could walk in a reasonable time. They also take any horses they find and keep the townsfolk from leaving. If the party could find them and drive them out, he would be greatly appreciated. They also stop by the general store to buy “lots of good strong rope”.
Redcoat decides to hide out and stalk Ricotta back to their lair, and it works surprisingly well. The gang does a patrol through the streets each night and can be seen dragging cannons behind their robots. Redcoat and Opal hide on rooftops behind signage and are able track them across the plains by the deep ruts left from the cannon wheels. They had set up shop on a small building with a slapdash fenced pasture for the horses. The Neogi leave the cannons out front with the robots and head inside. Opal suggests scouting around, looking for a safe way in, and they count 13 horses in pasture, a bunch of small windows, and a sliding barn door style hatch on the roof. Redcoat also points out that the building is actually 13 stories tall (he was insistant and I guess thought one horse per floor, my planned subterranean hanger was pulled out to a skyscraper). Redcoat suggests they use the rope they just bought (good planning) and they climb to the roof to break in.
Sliding the door a bit, Redcoat is surprised to see, chained in the top floor is a dragon, whose silver scales glisten in the moonlight. At first, they hide, but then realize its bound and can’t seem to move. Redcoat and Opal climb down and calm the creature, and scout the area. What they see surprises them. Through the wooden slats in the floor, they can make out the Neogi down below, and it appears there are just two floors. This rooftop storage, and a massive hanger, in which the Neogi are crafting a gigantic robotic man. The party frees the dragon who tells them if they wish to free the town, they must stop Ricotta, and that the robot is almost complete.
They pull the door all the way to let the dragon out, but in doing so seem to have alerted the Neogi below. One comes up to investigate while the others scurry up the side and crawl into the helm. The party leaps back down the ropes in time to see the robot smash through the walls, bend down, and mount the cannons to its fists, and stand upright. Redcoat launches some fireballs, and Opal some arrows, but it’s clear they will need help after the first volley of cannon fire.
Their draconic friend lands, and they hop on his back while it circles the construct dodging cannon’s. From there, Redcoat rechanneled the dragons fire breath into more fireballs (he had run out of per encounter fireballs) and Opal discovered she could shoot through the visor. While Redcoat burned the construct down, Opal disabled the pilot controlling each of its arms, reducing incoming fire.
Our session ends with a defeated robot, scattered Neogi, and Redcoat Smasher leading a trail of horses back to town. When he arrives, the piano man kicks music into high gear, and the Mayor orders a round of sarsaparilla’s for the town.
The TTRPG Factory 