The Machine of Death (last minute Halloween Session idea.)

[erradin]

(Credit for this idea goes to the Machine of Death anthologies. Great short stories. I recommend specifically the second anthology: This Is How You Die: stories of the inscrutable, infallible, inescapable, Machine of Death.)

I had a thought about including a Machine of Death in the a DnD campaign and wanted to see what you guys think. This idea came to me as a way to add some mystery and spookiness to a campaign by introducing an item that doesn't really have to effect the plot much or even change any mechanics. It can be as influential as you like or even inconsequential. Feedback or ideas/discussion on actual implementation are not only welcome, but encouraged. :)

The Artifice Of Prophecy (Machine of Death):

It is a small, enigmatic box covered in indecipherable runes. There is a single hole in one side, large enough for a finger to be slipped into. If someone does slip a finger into the box they feel a sharp pricking sensation. Investigation reveals their finger is bleeding slightly as if poked with a needle.

The runes on the box briefly become legible, revealing an extremely vague word or phrase with zero explanation. For example:

Cuts

Drowning

Not Quite Good Enough

Heat

Etc.

The theme is, naturally, causes of death-but don't tell the players this. All they get is the word. The machine is never wrong. Make sure you give them something vague enough that, if a character ever dies, you can slip it in as part of their death. Drowning, for example, could mean drowning in their own blood from a crushed lung. Not Quite Good Enough could be a nearly missed roll, a phrase the enemy says just before the coup d'grace, or what you tell the healer when they fail to save the character. Etc. You may want to plan these in advance. Once someone has a reading from the Machine, they always get the same result whenever they try the Machine again.

[jqavins]

All of my fellow players and I would look at that, look at the finger sized hole, and say "What, you want me to stick my finger into a mysterious, incomprehensible object? Hell no!" I think it takes characters directed by an author to fall for that.

[erradin]

All of my fellow players and I would look at that, look at the finger sized hole, and say "What, you want me to stick my finger into a mysterious, incomprehensible object? Hell no!" I think it takes characters directed by an author to fall for that.

You think so? An unidentifiable object with a strong aura of divination and you wouldn't be tempted? That's fair enough. It does seem a little risky. The people I play with have such curiosity that it would compel them to test it eventually because not knowing what it does would kill them.

[Landis963]

You think so? An unidentifiable object with a strong aura of divination and you wouldn't be tempted? That's fair enough. It does seem a little risky. The people I play with have such curiosity that it would compel them to test it eventually because not knowing what it does would kill them.

Make it a button. If they push it, make sure to note that the button depresses, but doesn't seem to click. If they push it all the way, then do the pinprick thing, and have the button reset after they (understandably) yank their finger out of the hole.