Page 271 - Hunter - The Vigil

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C CHAPTER FIVE: STORYTELLING
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Monster of the Week Every underdog gets outclassed, outnumbered and out-
“They’re birds,” Azif said, “but they have beaks like a pickax and gunned sometimes. Hunters are the underdogs from the mo-
all-too-human eyes. They seem to be awfully present at car accidents. ment they start the Vigil, and they face an uphill struggle
where the enemy holds the high ground. Hunters will often
I don’t like them, so mobilize the others. I want a feather sample.” need help, no matter how well funded or capable they are,
The beast-men rolled into town in a red conversion van with
window art of a black dragon on the back. They came in howling, and sometimes that help just doesn’t come.
At least not from conventional directions.
killed a bunch of folk and left howling even louder. Are their names Most cells will never admit to this, but there’s a divide in
important? Only for the headstones. each group of hunters where they will tolerate allying with the
The cell stopped to get a bite on the road and heard two truck-
ers talking over a couple of steak-and-egg plates. They said off Exit enemies of the Vigil. For some cells, the divide pulls up sharp
early on: these are the hunters who will listen to a monster’s
53 was a mine. Haunted by ghosts or something worse. The hunt- screams for help as long as it keeps babbling useful informa-
ers were curious. They took that exit. tion. The moment its wails become useless, the hunters open
Well-planned recurring villains might be the spine of a

chronicle, but not every creature the hunters encounter is fire. For other cells, well, they could work with a vampire, or
a cultist coven, or a werewolf pack, as long as they are united
worth showing up every session. Sometimes it can be fun, against a greater threat to both groups.
thematic and perfectly in step with the chronicle arc for a These alliances are tense and temporary at best, and
new threat to roll into town and need some fast investigation fraught with potential misunderstandings and betrayals no
and/or an immediate takedown. matter how calm everyone’s trigger fingers might be. The mo-

Introducing side-antagonists like this is a great way for
Storytellers to keep things fresh and keep increasingly experi- ment the hunters learn something about their new allies that
doesn’t sit right in their minds, the agreement can be broken
enced characters aware that they don’t know as much as they with a sudden eruption of violence or a meticulously planned
think they do. From a Storyteller’s perspective, these encoun- double cross. Many alliances end in hospital visits or funeral
ters can be considered one-hit wonders, where the storyline services.
takes a break and some pure action comes into play. More But what about real, genuine friendship? That can hap-
than that, though, it’s a cool way of gauging the kinds of en- pen, depending on the Storyteller’s presentation of various
counters and antagonists to which a troupe’s players and char- monsters in the chronicle. Creatures with a human (or hu-
acters respond. And particularly memorable encounters could mane) streak can become fi rm allies, perhaps even with play-
spawn continuing storylines. ers portraying the monsters.
One-shot threats like these can still offer some fun and
It’s not impossible. It’s difficult, sure, and the themes of

new lines of investigation. A cell’s standard routines for un- the respective game lines can become diluted to make room for
covering the truth about its regular types of targets might concepts and struggles that some characters aren’t designed to
avail it nothing, necessitating new research methods. In cases handle, but the similarities can rock for some troupes. Take a
like this, a new line of pursuit might even shed fresh light cell that includes a vampire who’s secretly turned on his own
on older targets that the cell still struggles with, allowing the kind: that group has the ethical minefield of the vampire’s de-

Storyteller to add to the main plot arc and the established scent into degeneration and inhumanity, coupled closely with
antagonists even while focusing on this new threat. the humans’ acquisition of various derangements as they, too,
They can also offer some fast and deadly encounters
where a lot can be on the line in a short time. They go up af- commit sins against their own Moralities. A chronicle that
deals with these twin themes and does them justice probably
ter a rabid pack of bloodsuckers and one of them is put in the isn’t cheapening or diluting anything.
hospital, which messes with their original mission of trying to Remember always to keep alliances and friendships with the
cut out the heart of that giant spider living in the sewers for darkness tense and uncertain. They may stay true to the alliance,
their Cheiron bosses. One-off encounters are fast, mysterious but one side always has a tiny seed of nagging doubt. Tension and
and not without the potential for loss and sacrifi ce.
suspense keep such relationships vivid and interesting. The vam-
Allies in the Darkness pire fails to show for his Wednesday-at-midnight meeting? The

He shook the witch’s hand, waiting for it to burn or leave a cell finds a strange list in the witch’s belongings and their names
mark. It didn’t, at least not on the outside. Still. The enemy of his are on it? The demon they deal with so frequently now has eyes
enemy and all that garbage… of a different color? Suspicion mounts.
The hunters knew the street and knew not to cross it. It didn’t Redemption
look any different over there, but it was different. Fucking with The “thing” wailed and gnashed its teeth, pulling clumps of
the Mercy Street lupines was in nobody’s best interest. And they its stringy hair out in brutal hunks. It bemoaned its crimes. The
didn’t fuck with the Washington Avenue cell in return. That was hunter lowered his rifl e. For now.
the deal, and had been for going on 10 years now. “The witch will repent,” Hanrahan said, prodding the bruised
She wept, wondering at what she’d unleashed. The angel with
fire for hands offered to “wipe the slate clean” of her enemies if only face of the sinner woman. She said something behind her electrical-

tape gag. Hanrahan gestured to Riley to pull it off, see if she was
she’d but ask, and oh, she asked. And in the distance she saw the ready to commit to the holy life.
smoke from too many fi res.
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