Arioniad

An experimental solitaire campaign which laughs in the face of series continuity. The characters are constant, but the rules and setting change around them whenever I am inspired to try out something new. The in-game reason for this is explained here.

At various points over the years I’ve changed the numbering system several times, and I’m fairly sure some episodes were lost in the Great Blog Purge of 2013. So, episode numbers in the list below often don’t match the ones in the actual episodes.

  1. Scene 1. The campaign begins, using a mixture of Mythic, Savage Worlds, and Traveller. And when in doubt, have a thug come through the door with a gun in his hand…
  2. Scene 2. In which Dmitri shows a disturbing familiarity with Arion’s ship, and his mysterious nemesis sends thugs after them.
  3. Scene 3. The campaign now shifts to the Larger Than Life rules, and Dmitri and Arion move to an exotic locale.
  4. Scene 4. Dmitri’s contact Timon provides some useful information.
  5. Scene 5. An interlude in which Arion explains the next stop to Dmitri, and theorises why Schrodinger might be interested in it – an ancient ruin called the Cyrene Pyramid.
  6. Scene 6. Dmitri and Arion acquire a native guide who will lead them to the Cyrene Pyramid.
  7. Scene 7. A travel montage. You get a lot of those in Larger Than Life.
  8. Scene 8. Another travel montage.
  9. Scenes 9-11. Yet another travel montage, leading to the discovery of some sort of transdimensional portal.
  10. Scene 12. Through the portal, a jungle awaits.
  11. Scenes 13-16. The obligatory capture – the equally obligatory escape – meeting Coriander.
  12. Scenes 17-18. Coriander takes Arion and Dmitri to her home, where they are then attacked.
  13. Scenes 19-20. Local villagers mistake the crew for psions (well, one of them is, to be fair) and try to kill them.
  14. Scenes 21-22. The crew find a shipwreck in the jungle, get it working, and head off in pursuit of Schrodinger.
  15. Scenes 23-24. Schrodinger’s dinobastis eats a number of Arion’s allies, and nearly him as well. Schrodinger gets away, unfortunately; Arion is too badly injured to stop him.
  16. Arion, 067-3011 to 080-3011. A misjump takes the crew to a new subsector, and back to Classic Traveller and Savage Worlds.
  17. Arion, 087-3011 to 093-3011. An uneventful period of trading. Unless you count carrying secret messages for a planetary governor.
  18. Arion’s Log, 101-3011 to 114-3011. The Dolphin is overhauled, and has some guns fitted.
  19. Arion’s Log, 115-3011 to 121-3011. While Arion is up to his elbows in star charts, the rest of the crew is out on the town.
  20. Arion’s Log, 128-3011 to 131-3011. Muggers in powered armour? Well, they are mugging Player Characters, to be fair.
  21. Arion’s Log, 132-3011 to 134-3011. In which the Dolphin’s AI gets the meatbags out of trouble. Again.
  22. Arion’s Log, 135-3011 to 176-3011. In which the crew of the Dolphin make their way home to Corinth.
  23. No Estimated Time of Return. Arion is recalled to active service, and gets new orders.
  24. Novawatch and After. In which Arion and Coriander become a couple, Dmitri gets new orders, and the crew moves to New Hope City and the 5150: New Beginnings rules.
  25. Singin’ in the Rain. In which our would-be spies fail to meet a contact.
  26. The Heist, Part 1 – Planning. When you want a bunch of gangsters to help you out, you need to do something for them first.
  27. The Heist, Part 2 – Execution. What could be safer than breaking into a police station to steal evidence? Quite a lot, it turns out.
  28. Gunfight at the OK Gentlemens’ Club. No, officer, we weren’t going in. We were just using the ATM when the shooting started.
  29. Getting the Lead Out. Arion and company are hired by a local smuggler as bodyguards.
  30. Dances With Xeogs. The kind where they shoot at your feet to make you dance. And kill your employer.
  31. Witness Protection. Arion and crew are hired by a legal firm to protect a witness.
  32. Self Defence. Someone tries to mug Arion. They don’t know him very well, do they?
  33. See You In Court. The last episode using 5150 as the rules engine. Arion explains his crew’s violent acts to the local magistrate.
  34. Tainaron Patrol. In which an attempt to rescue Dmitri’s friend Berenike goes horribly wrong. Here we switch to using Chain Reaction: Final Version as the rules.
  35. Jailbreak. Berenike, whom the crew had hoped to rescue before their capture, are rescued by her.
  36. When the Ship Lifts. Now I’m using Chain Reaction rules as a GM emulator for Savage Worlds. Arion and company make good their escape, having rescued Berenike. Alright, having been rescued by Berenike, if you must.
  37. Turtles All the Way Down. In which the mysterious Gordon explains why the rules keep changing.
  38. Downtown. (AKA ‘Episode 1’.) After a three year hiatus, the campaign reboots, and Arion gets a new commission from an old patron.
  39. Clueless. (AKA ‘Episode 2’.) Arion engages the Big Bad in fisticuffs.
  40. Walk Don’t Run. (AKA ‘Episode 3’.) Arion makes good his escape from the scene of the crime.
  41. Breaking and Entering. (AKA ‘Episode 4’.) Arion searches his contact’s home for clues.
  42. Person of Interest. (AKA ‘Episode 5’.) Arion tools up.
  43. Too Quiet. (AKA ‘Episode 6’.) In which things are going just a little too easily.
  44. The Two Man Rule. (AKA ‘Episode 7’.) In which Arion finds another clue.
  45. The Preserver of Life. (AKA ‘Episode 8’.) In which Arion finds out just what is going on here.
  46. Huff Leaves in a Huff. (AKA ‘Episode 9’.) In which the investigation is derailed.
  47. Er Ist Mein Mann. (AKA ‘Episode 10’.) In which everything comes together for the current adventure.
  48. A Man in a Mansion. (AKA ‘Episode 11’.) The explosive (literally) finale to the current scenario.
  49. Sixteen Tons. (AKA ‘Episode 12’.) In which Arion realises the good die young, and he needs to move on.
  50. When the Ship Lifts. (AKA ‘Episode 13’.) In this episode we transition from Larger Than Life to Fringe Space as the rules engine, and Arion makes a new enemy.
  51. Chillin’. (AKA ‘Episode 14’.) In which Arion makes a new friend.
  52. Godown. (AKA ‘Episode 15’.) In which Arion stands guard over cargo. Naturally, somebody always wants the crate…
  53. Damsel in Distress. (AKA ‘Episode 16’.) In which McDonald’s daughter is kidnapped.
  54. Face-Off. (AKA ‘Episode 17’.) In which McDonald seeks a permanent solution to her problems.
  55. Recruiting. (AKA ‘Episode 18’.) In which Arion recruits Osheen as his First Mate.
  56. The Searchers. (AKA ‘Episode 19’.) In which Arion and Osheen head off into the black in search of victims kidnapped by slavers.
  57. Dogfight. (AKA ‘Episode 20’.) A trial run for the Fringe Space ship combat rules.
  58. Boarding Action. (AKA ‘Episode 21.) A trial run of the Fringe Space boarding rules.