Page 235 - Chronicles of Darkness

history to assure nothing upsets the destiny of the moment in got to be a reason for all of this. Roll Intelligence + Politics
time. For example, if the characters attempt to end a conflict to puzzle through possible unifying political motivations
early, the Blind Serpents emerge to stop them. behind these conflicts.
The characters have two methods to escape from their Survival: The locals, the real combatants in this conflict,
predicament. If they can find and take control of the Flag seem at home or at least equipped for the jungle’s sweltering
of Elam, they can direct the flow of time, and thus return to heat. You and your team are not so fortunate. Roll Stamina
their true point in history. Once they have the flag, directing + Survival to endure the assault nature itself seems to be
time isn’t especially hard (a Resolve + Academics roll, 10 suc- waging against you.
cesses required, each roll equals one turn, teamwork rules are Weaponry: You’ve been trained in hand-to-hand combat,
allowed and recommended). Obtaining the flag, though, is sure, but really you’re used to firefights. Here, you don’t have
a Herculean task. It is always located in enemy territory (no access to guns, and your enemies are much better trained
matter which side of the conflict the characters come down with swords than you. Roll Wits + Weaponry to analyze
on, the other side has the flag), it is always well guarded, and how your enemies fight and try and offset the penalty you’d
it is always hidden. Plus, the Blind Serpents may well work otherwise suffer.
to keep the characters away. Animal Ken: Mounted combat. Well, that’s unexpected.
The other method is to convince Triage to help them. You’ve got a rough idea of how a horse works, anyway, and
This requires use of the Social Maneuvering system (p. 81). that’s probably enough to be able to ride with the rest of the
The characters need to open six Doors to get Triage to act on cavalry, right? Roll Presence + Animal Ken to keep the horse
their behalf, and he cannot be forced. The characters need on your side during combat.
to convince him that it’s more trouble for the God-Machine Intimidation: The captured soldier from the other side of
to let them slide through time than to speed up the process. the lines knows where the flag is…but he’s only going to talk
Methods if you convince him it’s worth his while, or that you’ll kill him
(or worse) if he doesn’t. Roll Strength + Intimidation to scare
him into talking painfully, or Manipulation + Intimidation
Academics: You become aware again right in the middle to do it by intimation. Torture, by the way, is almost always
of a soggy, sloppy, mud-covered combat zone. It seems like a breaking point.
everyone is just shooting at everyone. Total chaos. Roll Wits + Marksmanship (p. 63): Sometimes the best, fastest way
Academics to remember enough from history class to identify to end a war is to find the right warmonger and put a bullet
whose side you’re on. in his forehead from a nice, safe distance. Harsh but true.
Politics: There’s got to be a pattern, right? To the conflicts, Language (p. 45): The root of most conflict is misunder-
the wars, the battles you’ve been forced to experience? There’s standing, so knowing how to communicate is a plus. Since
234
Tales of the God machine