THE RUN-DOWN

Corpses, corpses, corpses.

The bodies of the scientists are lined tip here with their hands tied over their heads and their throats Cut.

Lots of chemicals and other really explosive stuff.

THE SETUP

You open the door and discover the source of the smell you've been given hints of. The room is a laboratory, and a gruesome one at that. Lined up along the length of the lab, with their hands tied tip above their heads are seventeen bodies. Blood and gore are all over their bodies and their eyes are empty of any life. Their empty eyes stare at you from across the room, and you suddenly notice just how silent it is in this room, save for the sound of your suits inhaling and exhaling the cold, cold atmosphere and the hum of the purifier on your back.

THE ACTION

The bodies are the remains of the researchers. Each of their throats have been cut and their blood is thick on the floor. Their flesh is pale and livid, but not yet putrid. The cold of the atmosphere has preserved them very well. They've all been dead for just under nine hours.

(For a very detailed and educational description of what has happened to the corpses, see Matt Staroscik's article "Dead Men Do Tell Tales" in SHADIS #19.)

If the mercs have the guts to check the rest of the room, they can find a great many of things that may be of help to them, including:

Mass spectrometer: a kind of tricorder about the size of a printer that biologists put samples in and it outputs data as to its molecular structure.

Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR): Another printer sized device that probes atomic structures. This device is powered by a magnetic superconductor so powerful that you can feel it tug oh so slightly on metal weapons, helmets and zippers from the other side of the room.

Sinks, eyewashes, safety showers and a washing machine for tools and dishes, etc.

Scales, small hotplates, cell culturing equipment (petri dishes, culture bottles, etc.)

There are warning stickers everywhere warning the mercs about radiation, poison and biohazards.

The chemicals the mercs will find will not be very useful when it comes to making explosives. Some of the more common chemicals will be casamino acids, acrylamide (very toxic, but not extremely deadly), and phenolchloroform (highly toxic). If the mercs want to make these into chemical weapons, let them. They will be carrying around big bulky fragile bottles instead of their lasers. It's a free universe, man!

FOLLOW UP

There is nothing to learn here other than the fact that the scientists are all dead - killed by execution. Let this really sink in. Then, mention the fact that they haven't seen any spiders lately. Let them chew on that for a while.

BattleLords of the 23rd Century An Old-Fashioned Bug Hunt (Part 2)

Introduction
Scene One: The Frying Pan No Good Enough?
Scene Two: The Control Center
Scene Three: A Letter to Home
Scene Four: From the Belly of the Beast
Scene Five and Six: Who's in the Kitchen with Dinah and The Elevator Shaft
Scene Seven: The One You Warned Me Of
Scene Eight: Mommy Won't Wake Up
Scene Nine: Sending Our an SOS and Afterward
Map of Driscoll VII Research Labs (slow: 102K)

BattleLords of the 23rd Century An Old-Fashioned Bug Hunt by John Wick, et. al. (Part 1)

GM Information
Scene One: Spiders, Spiders, Everywhere
Scene Two: Jane Fonda's Nightmare
Scene Three: The Living Quarters
Scene Four: Lost Little Alice
Scene Five: Waking Up Hatter
Scene Six: Goodies
Scene Seven: Putting The Hatter To Sleep
Scene Eight: Getting Some Wheels
Map of Starship Gamera (slow: 103K)

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