Here's a recap of the latest session of my Sentinels RPG campaign "The Alternates"! As per usual, there's a narrative recap (written as if it was in-metaverse) and then I go over the actual running of the game, and any lessons I learned as the GM.
If you're lost, you can catch up with the previous Game Recaps! You can find links to the first "Season" (the first 12 episodes) in the Recap for Game12, and here is the Recap for Episode 13.
Brief Description of the Game: In the meta-verse (where Sentinel comics is a published comic book multimedia empire), there is a premium cable computer-animated (in a style similar to “Into the Spider-Verse”) television series (which itself is based on a comic series called "The Alternates"). This RPG campaign represents that show, with each game session (ideally) representing one hour-long Episode of the show. The recap below is written in-metaverse as if it was an article on a popular website that posts recaps of episodes.
Player Characters:
- Cytoblast: Dr. Douglas Hemlocke can control plants, including transforming himself into a plant form, all thanks to his mystical knowledge and his ancient magical staff.
- Dr. Comet: Possessed by a demon that travelled to earth inside a comet, Dr. Diana Aster can magically control fire and ice, though her powers often go often out of control when her emotions flare up.
- Jersey Devil: A barely human cryptid of mysterious origins, "Mr. Leeds" is both man and monster, able to teleport by way of a parallel dimension.
- Kid Radical: A highly skilled autodidact with a strict code of behavior, Kid Radical has a superhuman ability for following trends and learning new skills, although it often seems like he can't quite connect with modern society.
- Quasar Kid: A superhero teen from the far future, Quasar Kid has a cosmic metabolism, super strength, and the power of flight, but he hasn't yet adjusted to being in "the past."
Recurring allied NPCs:
- Starshadow: A retired intergalactic adventurer, Starshadow wields mighty cosmic powers, but he is now reluctant to use them.
- Bouncer: An invulnerable action movie star, Bouncer is also super-strong and capable of mighty leaps (hence the name "Bouncer"), but he hasn't been the same since the Oblivaeon Crisis.
A Very Quick Story Synopsis: In an alternate timeline where Baron Blade was killed decades earlier (causing countless changes to the world of Sentinel Comics), the heroes of the Multiverse are almost all killed in the "Oblivaeon Crisis." The few remaining heroes, especially the Alternates, are left to deal with the villains and interstellar threats that still endanger the Earth!
And now, an imaginary recap of an imaginary episode of an imaginary television show about an imaginary superhero team!
=================
The Alternates Episode #14 Recap:
“Digital Machinations”
By Eddie Jaczerkowski
This week, The Alternates take on the most dangerous villain of all - household appliances! But let’s not get ahead of ourselves - as always, the following recap contains all the spoilers for Episode #14 of The Alternates!
Episode Recap
The episode opens with a scene happening far from the Alternates. First we see The Scholar, his flesh turning to iron, as he stands in defense of the Dreamer. She is catatonic, her eyes glowing with green light. An illusory demon made of sharp shadows attacks him, but he blocks the attacks with his metal forearms. Finally, the demon lunges forward, and the Scholar whacks her on the nose with his Philosopher’s Stone. The shadow demon recoils, and retreats from the fight. We see it slink off into the shadows and hide, and in the distance, we can hear a little girl ask, “Wha… what’s happening?” The Scholar’s voice tells her, “You had a bit of a nightmare, but not to worry. It’s all over now.” The shadow demon’s eyes glow red.
We cut to another scene, seemingly at a later date, set in a well-appointed bedroom. An older man sits on the bed in his pajamas, sweating and clutching a pillow. His eyes stare off into the middle distance. The shadow demon comes into frame. “Yes, your nightmares are delightful,” she says. “Delicious.”
A voice cuts into the room with an electronic echo, as if coming from a speaker. “Very nice. Very nice indeed!”
“Who interrupts the Night Terror when she is feeding?” the shadow demon says.
“It is I, Baron Blade! I have been watching you, and I believe I can reward you with the most delicious fears imaginable… if you will work for me.”
“Night Terror works for no one!” She replies. “For interrupting me, I shall taste your fears, Baron! You will be next on my list!”
“I’m afraid you won’t find much fear in me to feed you,” the voice continues. Suddenly, the room fills with bright light. Night Terror screams in pain.
“I hate to do this, Night Terror,” Baron Blade says. “But I don’t want you disappearing on me. All I ask is for a short meeting. I’m sure I can convince you that we can work together.”
Then the episode switches over to the Alternates.
The door to the new Alternates’ office opens up, and Quasar Kid steps into the office, his eyes darting back and forth. The other Alternates enter the office warily. The office is in shambles, with things laying all over the floor. The big screen televisions are on the floor, all the office’s laptops and electronics are strewn about, and papers lie everywhere. The team spreads out and investigates.
“What in the world happened here?” Dr. Comet says.
“It looks like we were robbed… and no one took anything,” says Kid Radical.
The crew spend a few minutes looking around, picking up pieces of debris and investigating them for clues. Kid Radical attempts to scan for any signals that might connect to previous electronic-related events, and he finds a strange background signal in the office. But all the searching seems to come up empty.
Kid Radical looks around the room and says, “We know you’re here. Just come on out.” He seems to expect someone to answer, but no one does.
“Any sign of Bouncer?” asks Quasar Kid.
With a poof, Jersey Devil quickly teleports around the office, looking for Bouncer. As he goes from room to room, we can see some of the other rooms are also a mess. Finally, he finds Bouncer hiding in a supply closet. “The machines have all come to life!” he shouts at Jersey Devil.
Upstairs, we see Quasar Kid investigating the mess, and behind him, the refrigerator comes to life and moves toward him. Slowly, but surely, the fridge gets closer, then opens its doors and slams them on Quasar Kid!
Jersey Devil poofs Bouncer to the middle of a Morebucks Coffee shop on the ground floor of their building, then disappears back upstairs. Moments later, Jersey Devil reappears and says, “No, let me take you to the good Morebucks - the one across the street.” They disappear again.
The show cuts back to the kitchen, where Quasar Kid is being assaulted by a fridge. He punches the fridge, but is attacked from behind by the dishwasher! The battle is joined, as electrical devices throughout the office come to life and attack the heroes!
Kid Radical shouts to Quasar Kid, “I don’t know what machines in the future are like, but they’re not supposed to do this!”
What ensues is a very comedic fight between the Alternates and a variety of electronics and appliances - televisions, laptops, a toaster, and a waffle iron included. There’s even a few goofy sound effects to accentuate the mood.
Meanwhile, in the Morebucks Coffee Shop, the barista is calling, “Bounder! Bounder!” Our friend Bouncer approaches the counter and says, “Uhm… it’s Bouncer.”
Back at the office, Dr. Comet is coating the office in ice (once again, catching Kid Radical in an accidental bit of rime). Quasar Kid punches through the dishwasher, destroying it. “The dishes are done!” he quips.
In the coffee shop, Bouncer is talking to the barista. “Bouncer. You’ve never heard of ‘The Bouncer’? I was in the ‘Fleet and the Ferocious 3’ a few years ago? It was the biggest blockbuster of the year! What about Revenge of Ghost Cop? The Revengeful Seven?” The barista is shaking his head, unimpressed.
Back in the office, Kid Radical is fighting the toaster. He pulls two Toasty-Tarts from his pouches, throws them directly into the slots of the toaster, which sparks and explodes as the toaster pastries hit it.
Jersey Devil fights a laptop and siphons the “life” from it. The laptop falls to the floor, dead, and Jersey Devil’s inscrutable, shifting form suddenly takes on digital errors, like a bad television signal.
Finally, the appliances are subdued, and the Alternates are victorious. Jersey Devil pulls open the fridge door and pigs out on the food inside. “I have to eat all of this before it goes bad!” he says.
Quasar Kid surveys the damage and says, “It’s a shame your housecleaning robots are so primitive.” Dr. Comet picks up the robotic floor cleaner, which is encased in ice, and shrugs.
Suddenly, a loud electronic hum erupts from the center of the room. A visible energy field appears, and pieces of the electronics fly towards the energy field. As each piece reaches the field, it is reshaped and reformed. A humanoid body soon forms from the reshaped pieces of metal and electronics. The final form is vaguely feminine.
An electronic voice, made up of overlapping voices, speaks out from the newly formed body. “We apologize. We are having a difficult time communicating with you.”
“We are Unity-X,” the voice says. “We were not destroyed entirely by Oblivaeon. We survived. In the wires. In the network. We have been trying to help you. To warn you. You must get to the bottom of Operation Pipeclamp.”
The voice cuts out and the form of Unity-X clatters to the ground.
The Alternates watch as the form breaks into pieces on the ground.
The credits roll with the song “Digital Witness” by Saint Vincent playing over them.
Final Thoughts
This episode is full of slapstick comedy, but ends on a more somber note with the (re)appearance of Unity-X.
In this timeline, Unity had already become mostly robotic. The backstory of this hasn’t been told in the television show, although it’s revealed in the comics. Thus, this is potentially a spoiler, but… Unity tried to save Omnitron-X in a deadly battle, and put herself in harm’s way. There was an explosion that seemed to claim both of their lives, but Unity survived, emerging with a body not unlike those of her mechanical golems. From that point forward, she could no longer create golems, although she could reconfigure and repair her own body. Personality-wise, she was entirely Unity. Unity-X doesn’t seem to be the same (alternate) Unity.
And now, some nerdy notes:
- I could listen to Bouncer name fictional movies in which he starred all day long.
- This episode might feel like it didn’t have much in the way of plot advancement, but it does reveal Unity-X as the source of the messages about Operation Pipeclamp, DJ Doctor Dancefloor, and the robots. Unity-X also sent untraceable messages to Starshadow in orbit of Jupiter, so I’m curious what her powers might be.
That's all for now! Join us next week for a recap of Episode #15 of the Alternates!
Eddie Jaczerkowski is a staff writer who loves comic books and writes about television.
Running the Game
Well, I am certainly feeling the drain of "pandemic brain" at this point. It's getting harder to recharge every week and write the next episode. If you're out there running a game right now and you're struggling, I feel your pain.
This game was very short (so short I am not sure it really constitutes an hour of television! But that's an imaginary TV produer's problem, not really mine). But it still told the story I needed and gave my players a chance to unwind (and fight appliances). Like I said, it's getting harder to write these episodes.
So my advice to game masters out there is just this - don't be afraid to take a break! I'm probably going to need one in the next few weeks, for certain. Under normal circumstances, with everyone's busy schedules, my games end up getting cancelled about once every five or six weeks, so that gives me occasional breaks. But under the current circumstances, I'm just going to have to figure out when I need a week off.
Thanks for reading! See you next week!
[EDIT: This post was updated with the opening vignette featuring Night Terror, which I had failed to include originally! Oh no!]