```col-mdflexGrow=2.5===# Outline**Players Information** Players crossing [[settlement/trade-island|Trade Island]] will encounter a number of individuals in bright jester costumes, handing out leaflets to the crowd. The leaflets contain the following proclamation:![[pinocchio-gambit.jpg]]If the players go to the South Loop and inquire about the contest, they will be directed over to see a burly, mustachioed man with long, curly black hair. [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]] will show the players Mondo, a 5' tall marionette, armed with a wooden broadsword and covered with a painted wooden suit of chain mail that is hanging limply from a set of strings in the small dressing room tent behind the stage. He will also outline the specific rules of the contest:> **Contest Rules** 1. Contestants may choose their weapon from any of the padded, blunt, and edged weapons laid out on a long wooden counter (and may carry a wooden shield, as well.2. To give the contestants a reduction in freedom of movement similar to that suffered by Mondo, the players must hook a similar set of strings (several sets of varying lengths lie in another pile in the corner of the room) to his elbows, knees, and waist - the contestant may choose any friend or a stranger from the audience to stand atop the stage and hold this set-up.3. The battle is won by the contestant who first lands five blows to the other.4. Use of magical enchantments during the contest - by the contestant or his confederates is absolutely prohibited and results in immediate forfeit (Stromboli will show the players the Detect Magic ring he possesses to guarantee this final condition).If the players find the rules satisfactory and have not gotten cold feet (a condition [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]] will try to goad out of them with sarcasm), they need only wait until the next performance and try their hand.## GM's Notes [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]], like many of his compatriots on [[settlement/trade-island|Trade Island]], is a non-malevolent scam artist of the highest order. The puppeteer has been running this "One Day Only" challenge three or four times a week for the past several months, and it has proved to be a most lucrative crowd-pleaser. By the way, the "Society of Puppeteers" mentioned in the flier, to add a tone of legitimacy to this operation, is a very select group of individuals, comprised entirely of [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]] and his current employees.The astute GM reading the player's notes above may have noticed that the rules of the challenge prevent the use of magic by the player or his confederates - but not by [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]]. This explains the reason for [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]]'s confidence in his ability to emerge victorious in this combat. All of the string sets in the dressing room (including those already on Mondo) are embedded with the same enchantment. The effect of this set of spells is to <u>reduce the wearer's effective STR and DEX by 50%.</u> He can either move himself at this reduced level of ability or allow himself to be guided by the man holding his strings (which is of course what [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]] does). If the latter course is chosen, the <u>holder uses his own STR and DEX ratings</u> to make necessary ability rolls (see below). If he is not an experienced puppeteer (and how likely is that), subtract 2 from his base ratings, and subtract an additional 2 if he is not trained in the weapon being used by his comrade.> **To simulate the mock combat:** >1. Each of the combatants secretly selects one of the four maneuvers each melee round: Thrust (Smash, if blunt weapon), Lunge (Bash), Parry (Block), or Dodge.2. Declare their intentions and make Ability Check rolls using 2d12 vs. STR (for Thrust and Lunge) or DEX (for Parry and Dodge) to determine whether they were succeeding or fail in executing the maneuver.3. After the Ability Rolls are made, the combatants cross-reference their maneuvers on the table below using the Success/Failure columns based on the Ability Check outcome. The first number represents the player's percentage chance of scoring with a blow. The second number represents Mondo's percentage chance of doing the same.4. Each player rolls percentile to determine if they score a blow.As noted in the rules, the winner of the combat will be the first fighter to land five blows. Each successful blow will do 1d3 points of damage to the player (thus it should be almost impossible for this battle to be fatal to anyone of average size).![[pinocchio-gambit-table.jpg]]A player involved in the fight battling under his own power will likely notice that he seems to be moving sluggishly and may suspect skullduggery. If the group acts upon this suspicion by declaiming the show as a fraud, they are likely to be asking for trouble, for the [[organization/free-traders|Free Traders]] of the Island stick closely together. A physical assault on [[person/stromboli|Stromboli]] or his troupe is likely to evoke a similar response, plus the additional risks the players take in fighting [[landmark/the-master-puppeteer|The Master Puppeteer]] who is quite an adept swordsman in his own right.``````col-md**Start / Locations** - **Key Participants** - ---### World Anvil Metadata**Id:** 1347200d-2b9d-4644-9ae8-01402fe1bfdf<br>**Entity Type:** Article / plot<br>**Category:** Haven Encounters and Scenarios<br>**Tags:** FCoH-plot```