Catch of the Day
Credits
Writing & layout by Peter Eijk (@JimmyShelter). Check out
jimmyshelter.itch.io for more games.
Editing by Tyler Crumrine
Cover art by Evlyn Moreau. Chapter opening art by Emiel Boven & Evlyn
Moreau.
For the progress clocks the timeToPlay font `by SpeakTheSky is used.
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CONTENTS
∵
Catch of the day..................................................................................................... 4
In which something smells fishy at the Aquarium ................................ 4
Main Objective: Break Out...................................................................4
The Pine Shallows Aquarium ......................................................................5
Setting up the adventure ..................................................................................... 6
Investigation ...........................................................................................................7
Clues in the Aquarium ..................................................................................7
Clues in town .................................................................................................8
Breaking & Entering............................................................................................ 11
The Alarm...................................................................................................... 12
The Layout ..................................................................................................... 13
Escape Artists ...............................................................................................14
Wrapping up the adventure ..............................................................................15
3
CATCH OF THE DAY
∵
In which something smells fishy at the Aquarium
T
he kids are at the local aquarium on a school trip… again.
They've been to the aquarium on school field trips more often than
they can remember. A few days before this visit, however, the local
fishermen caught something strange—a kind of fish-person hybrid. The
creature was brought to the Pine Shallows Aquarium where it is currently on
display.
This weird fish folk creature tries to catch the attention of the kids on their
visit. What does it want?
Main Objective: Break Out
Everything provided here is only to help you create a cool
story. If your story is different, or if your players decide on
another plan, just go with it! Not following this summary
doesn't mean the adventure failed.
With that in mind, the players' main objective is to free the
creature from the Pine Shallows Aquarium. In this module
you'll find a number of clues and incentives you can give
them to encourage them to do this.
4
The Pine Shallows Aquarium
L
ike a lot of landmarks in Pine Shallows the Pine Shallows Aquarium
has seen better days. Since the new aquarium in Warmouth-on-Sea
opened, the number of visitors has dropped. Still, the glass tunnel
beneath the sharks and manta rays will never not be cool.
5
SETTING UP THE ADVENTURE
∵
A
t some point the characters get separated from the rest of
their class and wind up in one of the bigger exhibit halls. This room is
dimly lit, with a big window into the part of the Pine Shallows
Aquarium holding the creature.
Start the adventure by describing the room. Then ask the players how they
got separated from the tour and how they wound up together in this room.
If not all characters are connected yet, this is a great way to
introduce them to each other. Most characters have been
here multiple times, although it might be a new experience
for character backgrounds like New Kid in Town or Escaped
from the Facility.
When the scene is set, one of the characters spots a weird creature in the
aquarium. Previously hidden behind some rocks, it comes forward to the
glass. The creature seems to be some kind of humanoid fish. While it has
arms and legs, it also has gills & scales. The creature is gesturing to catch the
attention of the characters. It's hard to tell because of its inhuman features,
but it does not look happy to be stuck in the Aquarium. When the characters
are looking, it will draw some symbols on the glass. The thick glass is covered
in a thin layer of algae, so while the runes or letters are hard to parse, the
characters might be able to take a picture of them or write them down.
The players won't have much time to respond as another group of kids enters
the room and the creature quickly hides again.
6
INVESTIGATION
∵
Clues in the Aquarium
G
ive the players some time to discover more clues and start
making plans. Before they can act on their first idea, however, the
school trip ends. Everyone is expected at the front of the aquarium
where a bus will take them back to school. There is some time left before the
kids need to be home for their dinner, though.
This could lead to different paths. In one playtest the group
took the bus back to school and gathered more clues at
school and in town. In another, the players decided
immediately that the creature needed to be freed, hid, and
let themselves be locked in the Aquarium after closing
hours.
♦ Guide Gertrude 'Big G' Willington (she/her) can be found a few rooms
further lecturing a group of disinterested class mates about the mating
rituals of a specific species of seahorses. She knows the Aquarium and
all its inhabitants by heart. But, if the players describe the creature they
saw, she has no idea which exhibit they are talking about. Gertrude
knows that a creature looking like a foot long tadpole was brought in a
few days back. If she joins the group to look at the creature, it will not be
in sight.
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♦ If the group wants to go in the water of the aquarium, they have seen
divers enter tanks, but where the divers enter from is unknown.
♦ If the people of the Aquarium find out what they have captured is
sentient, they will not set it free, but will want to use it to regain their old
visitor numbers. Tease this to encourage a sense of secrecy and urgency.
Clues in town
I
f the players want to investigate the creature and its origins
more, there are a number of locations they could go to apart from the
Aquarium. In Pine Shallows it's more important that the story moves
forward than that the players solve a mystery the 'correct' way. This section
contains a number of clues and where they could be found.
If the players already decided the creature needs to be
freed, you might spend less time in town, or even skip the
clue collecting, and let the players go straight to planning
their heist.
When the players visit a location, give some hints about locations where
other clues might be found. Don't be stingy with clues, but don't infodump by
giving them all the clues in the first location they visit. If they are indecisive
or don't know where to start, you could point them towards the library or
bookstore. You might say something like:
The Vandermeer Bookstore is well known for its collection of cryptozoology books, while
the library has a section about legends of Pine Shallows.
♦ A supporting character will describe spotting a similar creature on the
beach on a clear moon-lit night years ago when they were younger.
When they tried to tell people about it nobody believed them, except for
Captain John Pollock of the Museum of Maritime Mysteries.
Where to find this clue: Talking to a Connection of one of the
characters. An old, wizened fisherman in the harbor. A yellowed
newspaper clipping.
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♦ The history of Pine Shallows is filled with legends, there might even be
some truth to some of them:
◊ Pine Shallows once laid beneath the waves and the city is built on the
foundations of a fish folk settlement.
◊ In the early days of Pine Shallows a big flood destroyed big parts of
the town. The flood was triggered as revenge against the
townspeople for capturing a mermaid.
Where to find this clue: In a book in the the Public Library or the
Vandermeer Bookstore. A tall tale from Captain Pollock.
♦ A diagram shows the progression of a fish folk creature. It looks like the
lifecycle of frogs or toads, starting with a tadpole. One of the stages in
the middle looks exactly like the creature from the Pine Shallows
Aquarium. After that there are a few steps in which the creature grows
bigger and more fearsome. The last stage is twice as big with spikes
running along its spine and big fangs and claws.
Where to find this clue: In a cryptozoology book in the Vandermeer
Bookstore or the Public Library.
♦ Carved runes found in the foundations of the oldest buildings in town
look very similar to the letters the creature was writing on the glass of
the aquarium. If the players manage to decipher the runes, they learn
that the creature wrote ‘Help me, get me out!’.
Where to find this clue: In a history book in the Vandermeer Bookstore or
the Public Library, in which the origin of the writing is described as an
unsolved mystery. On a photo in the archive room in the Public Library.
Carved in the ancient stone walls of the basement in one of the older
houses in the town center, for example the Museum of Maritime Mysteries.
9
If the players have a hard time deciding where to start their
investigations, you could suggest these locations:
♦ The Museum of Maritime Mysteries
Captain Pollock knows all about the maritime history of
Pine Shallows and loves to tell tall tales of its past.
♦ The Public Library
Gretel can pull some books in the archive of the library
which show pictures of the runes and describe
sightings of the creatures.
♦ The Vandermeer Bookstore
Agnes Whittermark is happy to show you the natural
history section, especially the collection of
cryptozoology books. The history section also contains
books regarding local legends, mostly aimed at tourists
or kids.
♦ The harbor
The creature was captured by the local fisherfolk, and
they certainly have interesting stories to tell.
10
BREAKING & ENTERING
∵
S
hortly after the school trip leaves the Pine Shallows
Aquarium it closes for the day. The front entrance is locked, but the
building’s rooms will be very well lit throughout the night. If one or
more of the characters have been to the Aquarium often they will know
about a back entrance. At the back of the building a small parking lot can be
found. Two entries into the building can be found here: a simple windowless
door and a big garage door. Both are locked.
If the players come to the Aquarium in the late afternoon or early evening
they will see some lights burning. Gertrude’s car, an old brown station wagon
filled with trash, is still parked at the parking lot at the back. One by one the
lights will go out, as Gertrude closes up the Aquarium. She will leave one
window slightly ajar. As the last lights go out, she will come out the back
door and leave.
If the players come at night, they will find the Aquarium completely dark,
except for the well lit front entrance. They still might find the window
Gertrude forgot to close.
Breaking and entering might trigger an alarm. The front door is better
guarded than the back door. Unless the players come up with a good plan,
any method to open the front door will be at a Disadvantage.
11
The Alarm
T
he Pine Shallows Aquarium has an outdated alarm system. To
track if/when the alarm goes off, use a progress clock with 6 segments.
From the moment the players try to enter the Aquarium the clock
starts ticking. Each Action Roll might have consequences—every
complication fills one segment of the clock and each failure fills two. When
the clock is full, the alarm will sound and a loud siren will be blaring
throughout the Aquarium.
The rickety alarm system has a tendency to go off on its own, so the staff of
the Aquarium will respond first (and without much urgency) before law
enforcement is called.
When the alarm goes off, a second progress clock will start. This clock, with 4
segments, will track Gertrude and her colleagues coming to the Aquarium to
check out what's going on. This clock is more time sensitive. Fill a segment
whenever the players make actions that take time, or whenever they seem to
talk too long before doing something, to increase the tension. When this
clock is full, Gertrude will enter through the backdoor with one or more of
her colleagues just minutes behind her.
0/6 0/8
12
The Layout
I
f the players enter through the front door, they will have to
tackle a second hurdle: getting through the locked door to the non-public
area.
When they enter through the back door they'll find a small corridor with a
few doors leading towards the following rooms & exits:
♦ A locked door leads to the public area of the Aquarium.
♦ A big garage, currently empty except for tools and a big garbage can on
wheels. A control panel requiring a key controls the garage door opening
to the personnel parking lot.
♦ A small kitchenette. Dirty dishes still in the sink. A stained coffee
machine. A kitchen trolley filled with dirty cups can be found in a corner.
♦ A storage room mostly filled with fish food and cleaning supplies.
♦ A cluttered office with two desks. An outdated computer fills one, stacks
of paperwork the other.
♦ The control room of the actual aquariums. A large, high room, a metal
ladder leads to walkways giving access to the major basin. Two diving
suits hang on a rack. In the corner an old computer is set up on top of the
trolley, the CRT monitor showing all kinds of sensor readings:
temperature, oxygen levels, etc.
13
Escape Artists
T
he easiest way to reach the creature is in the room with the
metal ladder. If the group climbs out onto the walkway over the
creature’s tank, it won't take long to appear. If they communicate in
some way they want to rescue it, the creature will cooperate as much as
possible. The creature can't breathe when out of the water, however, so it will
need to be transported creatively. To reach the sea the characters need to
cross the boulevard where the Pine Shallows Aquarium is located as well as
about 200 meters of beach.
Lean into any wild schemes the players come up with!
During playtesting one group let the creature put on a
diving suit and filled it with water. Another group filled the
garbage can from the garage with water and dropped the
creature into it from the top of the ladder.
Use the progress clocks to manage the tension during this
scene. There is no perfect scenario as long as the players
feel they have to move quickly.
14
WRAPPING UP THE ADVENTURE
∵
A
n end for this scenario is when the creature is set free into the
ocean. The creature will swim away, turning around one final time to
wave to the characters before disappearing beneath the waves.
Of course things might not have been a smooth ride. If the players are still
being pursued, depending on the time and energy of the table, you might
play out a final chase scene. Otherwise just ask the players how they
managed to escape.
If they fail in freeing the creature or even get caught, there won't be many
consequences for the characters. They will get sent home after a stern
sermon. In the papers in the following week they will see adverts for the new
exhibit in the Pine Shallows Aquarium. The accompanying, blurry photo will
show the creature already getting significantly bigger...
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