Who Killed the Ballerina?

World famous ballerina Diana Ashton has been found dead on the very day her latest performance was to premiere. It's up the the player characters to sort through the suspects and find those guilty of ending her life.

We present another randomly generated mystery adventure seed to spur your imagination and set you on the path to an exciting game with your players!

WHO KILLED THE BALLERINA?

WHERE WAS SHE FOUND?
1. On the stage.
2. Above the stage, hanging from the light riggings.
3. Below the stage in a storage area.
4. In her dressing room.
5. In the theatre manager’s office.
6. At home, in her bedroom.
7. At home, in her shower.
8. In the rehearsal studio.
9. In the alley behind the theatre.
10. In the cemetery
11. In the park.
12. In a VIP longue at a nightclub.

HOW WAS SHE KILLED?
1. Drug Overdose.
2. Stabbed.
3. Hanged
4. Garrotted.
5. Suffocated.
6. Strangled.
7. Multiple blows to the head.
8. One blow to the head.
9. Wrists slit, bled to death.
10. Shot once through the back of the head.
11. Shot once in the chest.
12. Shot 1d4+1 times.

WHO KILLED HER? (This is also a list of suspects, .)
1. The Choreographer.
2. The Understudy.
3. Her Husband.
4. Her Male Lover. (Roll an additional 1d12. 1-6 it’s her ex-lover.)
5. Her Female Lover. (Roll an additional 1d12. 1-6 it’s her ex-lover.)
6. Her Twin Sister.
7. Her Father.
8. Her Dance Partner.
9. The Older Ballerina She Replaced.
10. The Drug Dealer to the Rich and Famous.
11. The State Senator.
12. Roll again on this table. The first result is being framed for the murder by the killer; the second result is the actual killer. Ignore repeated numbers, except for #4 or #5. In such cases, it’s either a current or former lover, whatever is the opposite of what was indicated before.

WHY WAS SHE KILLED?
1. So she couldn’t reveal a dark secret to the world. (Roll on WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET table.)
2. To protect the killer’s dark secret. (Roll on WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET table.)
3. To protect a secret organization.
4. To protect a government cover-up.
5. Jealousy.
6. Revenge.
7. Hatred.
8. To destroy the show she was starring in.
9. Because she dared to perform the Dance of the Lost Souls.
10. As a sacrifice to an Elder God.
11. It was a mistake. The murderer was trying to kill 1-4 the Understudy; 5-8 her Female Lover; 9-12 her Twin Sister. Roll on WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET table to determine why the intended victim was a targeted.
12. Roll again on this table. Both reasons apply for why she was killed. Ignore repeated results.


WHAT IS THE DARK SECRET?
1. A child sex trafficking ring is being run out of the theater. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved in the ring, but the leader might not know who the murderer is.
2. A Satanic cult is operating out the theatre, and the show currently being performed is secretly one big ritual. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved in the ring, but the leader might not know who the murderer is.
3. A terrorist and kidnapping-for-ransom cell is operating out the theatre. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved in the ring, but the leader might not know who the murderer is.
4. The theatre is being prepared as the point where an extra-dimensional gate will open and allow aliens to arrive and begin their conquest of Earth. Roll on WHO KILLED HER to determine who is in charge of this evil enterprise. If it’s a different person than the killer, both characters are involved in the ring, but the leader might not know who the murderer is.
5. The State Senator raped and killed a staffer.
6. The main dances in the current performance were stolen… and the original creator has already been murdered to cover it up.
7. She was the heiress to a massive fortune, but was abducted as a young child. Her identity had been traced, and she was killed by those who have been benefitting from what should have been hers.
8. She was a master of black magic, and whenever she danced, she was being paid to cast deadly curses.
10. She was working on a tell-all book that would reveal many, MANY dark secrets gathered by herself and her sister.
11. Her 1-4 Husband, 5-8 Male Lover, 9-12 Female Lover is a Russian assassin, and his or her secret had to be protected.
12. Roll again on this table. The two results are intertwined in one monstrous conspiracy. Ignore repeated results.

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Pho fo' yo'!

There's a Vietnamese eatery not far from NUELOW HQ. It served as the inspiration for these magic soups!

Pic 'borrowed' from GoodyFoodies.

Go Pho
Spend at least 1d6+1 minutes consuming this tasty soup. For the next hour, gain a +1 bonus to all initiative rolls and a 10 percent increase to your base movement rate....

Mo Pho
Spend at least 1d6+1 minutes consuming this bowl of tasty soup. For the next hour, add an additional 1d4 points of damage to any damage-dealing attack.
 
No Pho
Spend at least 1d6+1 minutes consuming this bowl of tasty soup. For the next hour, gain a +1 bonus to all saving throws and skill checks made to avoid damage from attacks.

So Pho
Spend at least 1d6+1 minutes consuming this bowl of mediocre soup. For the next hour, you wish you'd spent the extra money for a better-quality bowl of soup and are distracted, taking a -1 penalty to Initiative rolls, but gaining +1 to damage dealt as the frustration consumes you over your lackluster meal.

(The text is this post is presented under the Open Game License. Copyright Steve Miller 2018.)

Who's Haunting the Old House?

Here's another random adventure idea generator. We hope you enjoy!

THE HAUNTING OF THE OLD HOUSE

Although saddened by the passing of Aunt Millie, the Pleasantons (mother, father, high-school age daughter, grade-school age son, infant son) were thrilled to move into the isolated old house she left them in her will. At least they were until it turned out to be haunted.

Roll 1d8 on the tables to randomly generate a Dark Old House ghostbusting adventure seed and set the PCs about getting to the bottom of it all!

Art by Lee Elias

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE HOUSE? (Roll 1d8)
1. Strange lights and sounds are waking the family up at night.
2. Items are being moved around and drawers are being emptied and the contents scattered.
3. Food in the fridge is spoiling and all liquids in opened containers (such as milk and juice) are evaporating overnight.
4. The baby keeps disappearing from her room, but is always found safely in some bizarre part of the house.
5. The plumbing keeps going haywire with strong blasts of scalding or ice cold water, sinks and tubs backing up and causing flooding, or small fires keep erupting in the living room and bedroom.

6. The daughter keeps feeling a presence near her and she has even caught sight of a dark figure following her home from school. Someone has even torn up her clothes in her closet.

7. All electrical devices suddenly start turning on and off at random and eventually the circuit breakers trip.
8. Roll twice on the table, re-rolling any Eights or repeated numbers.


WHY ARE THE SPIRITS RESTLESS? (Roll 1d8)
1. They aren’t. A greedy real estate developer (and supposed family friend) is trying to scare the family from their home.
2. They aren’t. A crooked antique dealer (and supposed family friend) is sneaking into the house and searching for treasure that, according to old records he found, is hidden in the walls.
3. They aren’t. The angry lover of the husband (1-4)/wife (5-8) has used a magic ritual to bind a minor demon to the house to harass the family.

4. They aren't. A kid from school has become obsessed with the daughter and is stalking her.
5. The daughter and a friend played with a Quija Board and 1d8 poltergeists now inhabit the house.
6. When the old well at the bottom of the backyard was unsealed, elemental and nature spirits were awakened and released.
7. Children playing in the back yard awakened the cursed souls of cultists sacrificed by their leader to appease their dark god (and to prevent his discovery by the authorities).

8. Roll twice on the table, re-rolling any Eights or repeated numbers.

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Why does Donald Trump want a Space Force?

Donald Trump is the presidential gift that keeps on giving as far as we here at NUELOW Games is concerned: We've gotten more mileage out of him than we've gotten out of Bill Clinton and Barak Obama combined, and his presidency isn't anywhere near to being over yet!

This time up, we have a random table for you. Admittedly, we're not sure how useful it is, but maybe it can serve as an inspiration for ROLF! battle scenarios that pit Donald Trump against the Commies and/or Girl Scouts from Jupiter.

WHY IS DONALD TRUMP PUSHING FOR A SPACE FORCE? (Roll 1d12)
   1. He's too ill-formed to know that the United States Air Force Space Command already exists.
   2. The alien symbiote that passes for his hair wants to go home, but there are hostile forces between here and there.
   3. The alien symbiote that passes for his hair wants to go to war against the Martians
   4. The alien symbiote that passes for his hair wants to prepare the world for an attack by the Girl Scouts from Jupiter.
   5. He wants his face carved on the moon.
   6. He wants his buttcheeks carved on the moon.
   7. He wants to be a real Space Cadet.
   8. The Decepticons must be stopped!
   9. He knows the truth about the aliens and the Visitors are not our friends!
   10. Flash Gordon has retired and he wants to be the new Savior of the Universe.
   11. He wants to build a moon base to impress his pals Putin, Kim, and Ming the Merciless.
   12. Roll two more times on the table, ignoring other rolls of 12 and repeated numbers. Both results are true.

Who Killed the Father of the Bride?

Here's another randomly generated murder mystery adventure plot!

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It was a gorgeous summer day and it was the perfect backdrop for a wedding, but then the father of the bride turned up dead. Who killed Major Payne?

HOW WAS HE KILLED? (Roll 1d12)
1. Drowned.
2. Poisoned.
3. Stabbed with an antique sword.
4. Garotted.
5. Strangled.
6. Suffocated with pillow.
7. Run over by a car/delivery van.
8. Thrown from a roof top.
9. Electrocuted in his bath.
10. Bludgeoned with a candlestick taken from among the wedding gifts.
11. Stabbed through the eye with a chopstick.
12. Roll twice on the table; he died from a combination of the two.


WHERE WAS HE KILLED? (Roll 1d12)
(If the location doesn't match the method of murder, the body was discovered at the location indicated, and you can pick a logical actual
1. His hotel room.
2. The hotel terrace.
3. The hotel parking garage.
4. In the bridal suite.
5. In a hotel elevator.
6. In the hedge maze behind the hotel.
7. In the hotel pool/spa/gym.
8. In the coat check room.
9. In the bride's home.
10. In the groom's home.
11. In his home.
12. Roll twice on the table. He was killed at the first location, but the body was found at the second.

WHY WAS HE KILLED? (Roll 1d12)
1. Revenge.
2. To protect a government coverup.
3. Jealousy.
4. To protect a spy ring.
5. For the inheritance.
6. To protect the bride's dark secret.
7. To protect the groom's dark secret.
8. To protect a Satanic cult.
9. To keep him from stopping the wedding.
10. To keep him from revealing who are shapeshifting aliens at the top level of government.
11. Hatred.
12. Roll twice on the table. He was killed for both reasons.


WHO DID IT? (Roll 1d12)
1. The bride.
2. The groom.
3. The father of the bride.
4. The mother of the bride.
5. The best man.
6. The maid of honor.
7. The priest.
8. The wedding photographer.
9. The major's gay lover.
10. The bride's lesbian lover.
11. The hotel's owner.
12. Roll twice on the table. The first result is the murderer, and the second result is who he or she is framing for the murder.

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Suddenly... Jazz Hands!

Here's a new feat for your  all d20 System games! (The following text is presented under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright 2018 Steve Miller.)

JAZZ HANDS! [General]

When your foe least expects it... jazz hands!

   Prerequisite: Perform (dance) 1 rank, Charisma 12

   Benefit: On a round where you are first in the initiative order, as full round action, your character can strike a pose, hold out his or her hands with the palms facing front and fingers splayed, and start to shake them while saying something like "razzamataaz" or "yeeeaaah".

   Foes who are in the character's forward arc, and who witness the display, must roll a successful Will save (DC18+the character's Charisma bonus), or be so startled that they lose all actions for that round. If affected foes who are not attacked during the round, they suffer an initiative penalty equal to the character's Charisma bonus on the following round.
   Special: Jazz Hands can only be used every other round.

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Gun Blessing Day! (An OGL Modern Game Aid)

There's a local pastor (or witch doctor or sorcerer, or druid--whatever fits the setting) who is offering to bless the party's firearms. Roll 1d12 against the chart below to see what benefit is gained, aside from each one blessed becoming an enchanted weapon.

1. +1 bonus to hit.

2. +1 bonus to damage.

3. +1 bonus to hit and damage.

4. Maximum damage against vampires.

5. Maximum damage against werewolves.

6. Maximum damage against dragons.

7. Maximum damage against mummies.

8. Damage dealt is converted to fire damage.

9. Person carrying or wielding the firemarm has a +2 bonus to Hide and Move Silently skill checks.

10. Person weilding the firearm has a -6 penalty to hit unarmed or non-threatening targets.

11. Person wielding the firearm bursts into flames (1d12+2 points of damage per round for 3 rounds) if it used against unarmed or non-threatening targets.

12. +4 to hit and damage against hostile creatures.

OPTIONAL COMPLICATION (Contributed by Craig Dixon)

There is one little problem with these blessed weapons...
   If a person one is reduced to zero or fewer hit points while carrying or firing one of these blessed weapons, they must make an immediate Fort save (DC12) [save versus death in OSR versions of D&D].
   If the saving throw succeeds, proceed with the normal stabalization rules to see if the character lives or dies.
   If the saving throw fails, the character's soul is prevented from moving onto the afterlife. Instead, it is torn from te body and drawn to where the weapon was blessed, together with the magic placed on it, to feed the sponsoring deity. The character's soul is lost forever within 13 hours.

   The weapon reverts to normal at this time and must be returned to the temple to be re-blessed.

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The text in this post is released under the Open Game License and may be reproduced in accordance with it. Copyright Steve Miller 2018.

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