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Table of Contents
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Background
April 15th, 2022 - At least 12 people have gone missing over the past 4 months by the Missouri river in North Dakota. The nearest towns are Washburn and Hensler, towns with a population of 1,500 combined and roughly 4.2 miles separating them. Disappearances are highly unusual for the area. There is seemingly no pattern between the victims other than most of them are from the surrounding area. Local authorities are stumped, having no major leads and unable to rule out or suspect foul play. No bodies have been recovered, severely hampering investigation. Delta Green has sent out a team to investigate the happenings in the area, believing the unnatural to be involved. The team poses as turkey hunters taking advantage of the newly opened spring season.
Location:
The mission takes place in an extremely rural area at a time when the spring thaw has been stopped dead in its tracks by a freak refreeze caused by plummeting temperatures and freezing rain. The ground is a mixture of half melted snow, ice, and plenty of muck. The river still has a layer of thin ice over it, though it is quickly turning into a slush which can barely hold a single person’s weight, making group crossings precarious. Bringing a car or truck over would be suicidal. Visibility is infrequently hindered by spurts of rain that can come with little warning and leave just as abruptly. Slicing gusts of wind also make it difficult to keep warm on the flat plains, exacerbated even more by the lack of trees or structures to serve as windbreaks. Only scattered farmhouses and tree rows can serve as a form of shelter. Both of which run the risk of being on posted land owned by a disagreeable farmer, though the odds of anyone diligently patrolling their land in this kind of weather are slim to none. It is an awful time to go turkey hunting…It is also the perfect time to go hunting for an unnatural entity without fear of being disturbed by any living soul. Unless the Agents intentionally make their way towards civilization, they should not see any other human beings. A stray gunshot here and there is not enough to draw attention, given it’s a rural area during hunting season. Besides, no one wants to go out in this kind of weather. In the event they draw attention by causing some sort of massive disturbance (a prolonged gunfight, explosion, or something else out of the ordinary), it will take at least 10 minutes for someone to come looking and much longer for the authorities to arrive on scene. Isolation is the key factor for this investigation. Play up the freedoms and dangers that come along with it.
The Truth:
A Miniwashitu stalks the land. A creature from Plains Indian legend, it is a cyclopean, bipedal, horned buffalo monstrosity. One might think of it as a sort of minotaur though there is nothing human about it. It has awoken from its two-century long slumber underneath the Missouri River in a very different world. Hungry and confused, it has aggressively stalked and killed in the local area, with great success. It is deadly on land and in the water. One of its preferred hunting methods is to swim underneath the ice of the river and thrust upwards with its horn, shattering the ice its prey stands on. This leaves it almost perfectly concealed from detection until it strikes, by which point retaliation is near impossible. Victims are taken to its lair underneath the riverbed, a mucky and dark area where the creature is safe from outside disruptions. It is incredibly weary of technology of any kind and prefers to ambush prey in groups no larger than 5 if possible. It recognizes bait, considering it a challenge that it will not hesitate to accept, quickly devouring the bait then searching for the would-be hunter. It also knows what guns are, though it has not had time to fully grasp the advancements in firearms the past two centuries have brought. This may lead it to being quite surprised when a hunting rifle is able to fire much faster than the muskets it had grown accustomed to.
The Mission:
Have the Agents start on a backroad near the bank of the Missouri river, the further away from civilization the better. The Agents all have the proper clothing: Coats, hats, gloves, boots, etc. all in some form of camouflage, along with blaze orange vests. All Agents have legal hunting licenses in each of their names, allowing each to shoot one turkey if the opportunity presents itself. Light snow is coming down on the floodplains, mixing with the moist dirt and lingering ice to form a muddy frost crust when temperatures are low, then thawing into a sludge that grips onto boots when they rise. Play up how awful the terrain is to navigate; the Agents can make little progress on foot or in a vehicle without the proper patience. They have free reign over the area.
Agents have a map marking the outline of the area where the disappearances have occurred (marked in red below), a roughly 6-mile expanse which hugs the Missouri river and stays just outside of the two nearby towns. Since no bodies have been found, there is no way to plot where people disappeared from exactly.
Agents will have to rely on any clues they can find in the area, along with their own senses. On the other side, the Miniwashitu is keenly aware of anyone in its territory. It is hunting the Agents just as much as they are hunting it, lean into this. Scatter obvious signs of a large predator across the area (large and unidentifiable scratch marks on trees, reddish brown hair caught in a bush that is thick like a buffalo’s but too stringy, footprints, anything you can think of that would be fitting works). Have Agents occasionally see odd shapes or flashes out of the corner of their eye while they search. The more paranoid, alone, and watched they feel, the more likely they are to make deadly mistakes. Anyone who finds themselves alone is a prime target for a sudden attack. Hunters who remain calm will be able to set a trap, track, or spot the Miniwashitu before it gets the drop on them. Reckless hunters will fall victim to surprise attacks and their own paranoia. The Miniwashitu always takes the first good opportunity it sees, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fooled or make reckless mistakes of its own. When killed, the Miniwashitu’s taxidermied corpse makes a fine addition to a Green Box’s trophy collection!
Clues:
Ruined Campsite – A campsite put in a clearly illogical place, on the open, sandy bank of the river in a snowstorm. No personal effects or useful items can be found here, but there is a trail of relatively fresh human shoeprints walking towards the river, which abruptly end just before they get to the edge of the ice. Keen-eyed Agents can spot small bloodstains where the trail ends with Perception 40.
Tree stand – A lone tree stand sits on the side of an old oak tree within a thick tree row near the river. The stand has been ruined, with many of the steps ripped off, though it is still possible to climb with a DEX or Athletics check. The stand is comfortable and about 18 ft high, providing a good view of the surrounding area looking south.
Seeing the Beast – After a few false reveals and assuming the players haven’t gotten themselves ambushed, the Miniwashitu will slowly become more aggressive as its hunger builds. Give the players some sort of trail to follow and make the movements of the creature more obvious. If they play smart and plan carefully, they should be able to lure it out. If they rush headfirst at the first giant silhouette they see, they’re running right into the gaping jaws of a hungry predator. It’s a hunt after all, run it as such.
A lone turkey wandering by – This is a very useful risk versus reward situation that can either heighten or lighten tension. Tempt Agents with an easy shot, after all a prize turkey makes for good eating and a great story, who wouldn’t take such a chance? Clever agents may even plan to use the turkey for bait once it has been killed, nothing invigorates a predator like the scent of fresh blood. Becoming distracted by the turkey presents the perfect opportunity for the Miniwashitu to attack. On the other hand, smart hunters can earn themselves a potentially useful form of bait, plus the physical evidence of a fresh kill to explain away a bit of gunfire. A hunter is always rewarded by their diligence, observe how the Agents are playing during this situation. Punish or reward them in accordance with their actions.
Successfully killing the Miniwashitu gives 1D10 SAN back. Happy hunting!
Miniwashitu Stats
STR 30 CON 30 DEX 13 INT 12 POW 16
HP 30 WP 20 ARMOR 5
Attacks – Claws 60%, damage 1D6
Horn 35%, 1D12. 80% chance to hit if Agent is attacked from underneath ice.
Trample 50%, 1D8 Damage
Bite 65%, 1D6 damage plus paralyzation of body part bitten
Red Eyed Gaze – The creature’s one eye strangely reacts with sunlight. If gazed at during the day, the eye shoots out a strange red colored mental beam which can cause insanity in whomever sees it. 1D6/2D6 SAN loss. On a failed check the eye never leaves the Agents dreams, which will result in more SAN loss down the road as it haunts them. If seen at night the eye pierces through the darkness, but the effect is dulled, causing only 1/1D6 SAN loss.
Unnatural Swimmer – The creature can swim faster than anything alive and break ice from underneath with its horn. While in the water, the creature appears as only a dull, glowing red streak which can be seen through ice and snow covering the river, though it’s faster than any watercraft could be.
Freezing Blood – Despite the pale red glow of the creature’s blood, it is an icy cold, biting and bitter. Agents who are covered in it take 1 HP damage. If not cleaned off exposed skin in 30 minutes it causes a minor frostbite.
Newly Awakened – Having just come out of hibernation, the Miniwashitu is nowhere near full strength. All its active abilities need WP to function, listed below. If the creature hits 0 WP, it falls dormant for 1D10 hours. It regains 1D6 WP for every human it feasts on. Normal attacks listed at the top of the stat block do not use WP, unless the Handler deems otherwise.
Blazing Speed – 3 WP cost. Despite its massive size, the Miniwashitu can move at incredible speeds, up to 200 m in 1 turn. It can still use an action while using this ability.
Agonizing Roar – 5 WP cost. A blood freezing roar which echoes throughout the plains, anyone who hears it must pass a POW test otherwise they are frozen in place for 1 or 2 turns determined by a coinflip.
Paralyzing Bite – 1 WP cost. A crushing bite which injects some of the Miniwashitu’s blood into the victim. This causes paralysis in the bitten area in 1D4 turns along with SAN loss of 1D4/1D10 and another SAN loss of 1D4/1D8 after paralysis sets in.
Credits
Mystic Hunter was written by Mr. Lockheart for the 2022 Shotgun Scenario contest.
Source: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1La_RoLYdqksVH40-CFuouavC3vf5MbL_9oUFkf_c2So/edit.