Campaign/Character Intro: The Orphic Uprising and Amazonomachy, feat. Nina Grayson
Status: Completed
System: Cypher
About: These were two continuous arcs that together formed the first campaign with my university TTRPG group. It was a homebrew story set in the world of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, following a small group of simultaneously inept and hyper-competent demigods from Camp Half-Blood on their various (mis)adventures. Out of character, we called ourselves the Confusion Crew due to the sheer absurdity of some of the shenanigans we got up to. It was delightful.
Genres: Urban fantasy, YA
Rating: Teen
General content warnings: strong language, mature humor, immature humor, fantasy violence, teenage protagonists, second-hand embarrassment. Posts may not be tagged due to the generally mild nature of most of this campaign's content.
Tags: #confusion crew, #nina grayson
story and character details under the cut
The Story
The first arc, The Orphic Uprising, was a short and sweet 10 session wonder. Our story began with a simple game of Capture the Flag gone horribly wrong as Camp Half-Blood was invaded by a skeletal army and a beloved NPC was killed. In the aftermath, we received a prophecy:
Children of Night and lords of the deep
Conspire together in the midnight keep.
When the twice born God is lured and bound beneath,
The impossible is tasked to the daughter of the laurel wreath;
The islander shall face the Cyprian boar,
And beauty's blood shall open the door;
The forgotten son of Spring shall be returned.
Through faith and song life can then be earned.
Once the party is determined, we're given the keys to an old model of the Sun Chariot and immediately set course for California and the Underworld.
The second arc, The Amazonomachy, ran almost three times as long, a whole 27 sessions over the course of about 9 months. It's set roughly a year after the last arc, and began with a simple game of Capture the Flag against some visiting Amazons that went horribly wrong when the Amazons turned it into a full-blown raid on Camp Half-Blood. Apparently, the new queen of the Amazons somehow got it into her head that, just as the Olympians overthrew their parents, the Titans, it was high time that we, the demigods, overthrew the Olympians, and she didn't want Camp Half-Blood getting in the way of her mission. Our intrepid heroes from last summer, together with two new unlucky campers who happened to be in the wrong right place at the wrong right time, sneak out of camp and set about sabotaging the Amazons' efforts.
And if they fail to do that, well, they can still stop the queen from becoming a new god and killing the old ones . . . right?
The Blorbos
I played Nina Grayson (depicted above), who was an incredibly skilled gymnast, modern dancer, and rock climber—and why wouldn't she be? She's a daughter of Nike, literal embodiment of victory. How could she be anything but the best? Failure was simply not an option for Nina, and while she preferred to avoid failure honestly, the fear of it was so strong that she had no qualms about fighting dirty or playing tricks if that's what it took to win. She was impulsive, headstrong, extremely determined, and nigh-unkillable, with a mean right hook and a poor sense of self. She wasn't very good at making friends, but lucky for her, the rest of the party didn't leave her much of a choice there, and by the epilogue, she had more emotional support than she knew what to do with!
Nina was a menace both in and out of combat because she put all her points into strength, speed, durability, and dirty tricks, and nothing into charisma or smarts. Truly, a himbo lesbian queen (literally, in fact, because I think she ended up canonically becoming the queen of the Amazons in the epilogue). Iconic himbo acts of hers included solving a hidden object puzzle by punching a horse statue in the face, getting set on fire and putting it out by drenching herself in monster blood, solving a locked door problem by punching the lock in the face, splitting the party to play double agent without telling her friends she was only fake-betraying them, and solving a vengeful goddess issue by punching her in the face so hard it temporarily killed said goddess. At some point she also acquired the nickname Larry?
Her two best friends were Chuck Hickey, an appropriately chaotic son of Dionsysus who grew up on his grandparents' vineyard, played by my lovely husband @somethingclevermahogony, and Beatrice Starveling, an incredibly musically talented and equally exhausted daughter of Apollo who made Orpheus look like a chump, played by the incredibly artistically talented @hamletphase (who I think has commissions open rn!). These three were part of both arcs, and I love this trio dearly.
For the second arc, we were also joined by the iconic bromance duo of surfer dude Cameron "Murph" Murphy, a son of Epimethius ("god" of hindsight) who got himself into a lot of chaos but somehow always had the right tool for the job, played by the fantastic @ostrich-runner, and wannabe fuckboi Bryce, a totally not bisexual disaster son of Eros.
And last but not least, there was our team pet Hops, a funky little alcohol grain demon who looked like if a cabbage patch doll was an actual baby-shaped root vegetable. We fed him illegally acquired beer and Chuck carried him around in a baby björn, or occasionally threw him like a football at our enemies and used him like an Entangle spell. Only the best food and enrichment activities for our darling grain demon!
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Fictional characters based on whether I think they'd like vegemite or not
None of these characters have come anywhere near vegemite because they're not australian but I think whether or not you like vegemite says a lot about you so here we go
Aziraphale: he would not like it as a spread, it's a bit too strong for him, but he would LOVE vegemite scrolls (is this because he likes delicious cheesy pastry? yes. are vegemite scrolls delicious? also yes)
Crowley: Absolutely not. It's way too salty for him, and because he eats stuff very rarely, he would not choose to eat ThAT
Muriel: is still getting used to the idea of eating food and would straight up just refuse to try it
Maggie: Would try it. Would be polite and finish a sandwich made for it, but it's not something she would choose
Nina: Thinks it's fine but prefers Marmite (she's wrong but she's also british so it's fine)
Jon Sims: would love vegemite, he's that salty. He would also tell no one he loves vegemite and would stash a massive jar of it behind other 'normal' british foods in his cupboard.
Martin Blackwood: Would not like vegemite. He would try it at Jon's insistence and say, 'why on earth would you eat this?' and never eat it again
Gertrude: Likes vegemite but would only eat it when she's in australia. She is the most likely to have actually eaten vegemite out of anyone else on this post.
Gerry Keay: Would hate it. He'd take one bite of it and go 'bleARagh' and then go off and do Gerry Keay stuff
Tim Stoker: Is fairly neutral about vegemite. He would eat it if he was given a sandwich or a vegemite scroll but he would not actively choose to eat vegemite
Sasha James: Would not like vegemite. She tried it once while on a trip and despises it. Would not be at all surprised to learn that Jon likes vegemite
Not!Sasha: Loves vegemite so much it's disgusting.
Helen: Doesn't eat human food
Elias/Jonah: Elias's tastebuds do not like vegemite at all, but that doesn't matter because Jonah tried it once in a previous body and now eats it straight from the jar
Bruce: does not mind vegemite. He has had it a couple of times on various trips/various events and didn't like it but didn't dislike it either
Alfred: refuses to go anywhere near vegemite, as '[it] is an abomination.' Occasionally eats Marmite on toast.
Dick: also does not mind vegemite. Would not volunteer to eat it, but if forced to also wouldn't hate it
Jason: Hates vegemite. Too salty, tastes weird, why would anyone eat it. He only thinks this because he has only eaten it directly off the spoon
Cass: Would not like vegemite at all. Hasn't tried it, and will go out of her way not to try it, ever.
Tim: Likes vegemite. A good vegemite sandwich pairs well with black coffee. The salt and preservatives help keep his body functioning
Steph: Has eaten a vegemite sandwich once and was not impressed. Would probably like vegemite scrolls but doesn't know they exist.
Babs: If you presented her with a vegemite sandwich, she'd look at it and then look at you, and then you would leave.
Duke: Has never tried vegemite. Doesn't know what vegemite is. Probably won't unless one of his siblings decides to use it in a prank.
Damian: Likes vegemite insofar as it is associated with kangaroos and other australian creatures. Has never actually eaten it, and if he did he would hate it.
(there are a lot more batfam members and characters I could do here but the list is so long so I'm sticking to the faves)
Jude Duarte: Has not tried vegemite. Would love vegemite. (It's salty and therefore a very safe food in faerieland.) Someone get this queen some vegemite.
Cardan: Would not like vegemite at all, but understands why Jude does
Oak: Would despise vegemite. Too salty. Too...taste. As a kid he would throw it away, now he would politely but forcefully decline.
Heather: likes vegemite.
Vivi: Was introduced to vegemite through heather and now adores it.
Grima mog: tried it and loves it. Uses it everywhere. Like hot sauce.
Suren: hasn't heard of vegemite. If you showed it to her, she would be displeased. If she ate it, she would banish you from her court.
Taryn: only eats vegemite scrolls, has never tried the actual spread
I will add more by request
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THE TOURNAMENT IS OVER! Eartha Kitt lounges in her deck chair in the sun, dipping her toes in the pool with Toshiro Mifune and sipping a brightly colored fruity something with an umbrella in it.
Far below in the shadow realm, however, the fallen hotties dance in the dark—let's take a minute to look back at them under the cut.
PRELIM PRETTIES:
Claude Gensac, Silvia Pinal, Ewa Aulin, Rita Tushingham, Annette Funicello, Norma Bengell, Catherine Spaak, Brigitte Auber, Micheline Presle, Nanette Fabray, Libertad Lamarque, Vera Miles, Martha Raye, Catherine McLeod, Virginia Mayo, Elizabeth Allan, Belle Bennet, Virginia Cherill, Mary Brian, Ruth Chatterton, Agnes Ayres, Merna Kennedy, Marie Prevost, Corinne Griffith, May Allison, Virginia Brown Faire, Alice Brady, and Jetta Goudal
ROUND ONE WONDERS:
Angie Dickinson, Thelma Ritter, Geraldine Chaplin, Evelyn Preer, Vanessa Brown, Betty Blythe, Susan Hayward, Mae Clarke, Sally Ann Howes, Ossi Oswalda, Adrienne La Russa, Hermione Gingold, Barbara Bouchet, Melina Mercouri, Anna Karina, Edwige Fenech, Charmian Carr, Pina Pellicer, Marlène Jobert, Tsuru Aoki, Alice Roberts, Leila Hyams, Lady Tsen Mei, Geneviève Bujold, Dolores Hart, Anita Berber, Bonita Granville, Vonetta McGee, Claire Windsor, Zizi Jeanmaire, Tuesday Weld, Grace Darmond, Carol Channing, Deanna Durbin, Laraine Day, Mariette Hartey, Wendy Hiller, Candy Darling, Hermione Baddely, Valeria Creti, Ella Raines, Ann Miller, Dana Wynter, Dalida, Martine Beswick, Gale Storm, Simone Signoret, Cristina Gaioni, Mabel Normand, Stéphane Audran, Ruth Weyher, Anna Wiazemsky, Ann Sheridan, Sandhya Shantaram, Alice White, Anne Francis, Gena Rowlands, Lyda Borelli, May Whitty, Cathleen Nesbitt, Jessica Walter, Virna Lisi, Barbara Shelley, Iris Hall, Heather Angel, Anne Shirley, Joanna Pettet, Virginia O'Brien, Joan Collins, Greer Garson, Gracie Allen, Peggy Ryan, Frances Dee, Shirley Maclaine, Geraldine Farrar, Kathleen Byron, Margaret Hamilton, Eva Gabor, Francesca Bertini, Julie Adams, Olga Baclanova, Misa Uehara, Yvette Vickers, Milena Dravić, Jenny Jugo, Madeleine Carroll, Benita Hume, Olive Borden, Shirley Jones, Miyoshi Umeki, Dorothy Lamour, Gale Sondergaard, Mary Anderson, Charlotte Greenwood, Sybil Seely, Mona Barrie, Kathryn Grayson, Katharine Ross, Madge Bellamy, Rhonda Fleming, Sally Gray, Jana Brejchová, Debra Paget, Madame Sul-Te-Wan, Evelyn Brent, Zelma O'Neal, Marie Laforêt, Türkan Şoray, Beatriz Costa, Irene Zazians, Eleanor Powell, Susan Luckey, Patsy Kelly, Lil Dagover, Norma Talmadge, Dorothy Mackaill, Madge Evans, Virginia McKenna, Amália Rodrigues, Mamie Van Doren, Valerie Hobson, Isabel Jeans, Beata Tyszkiewicz, Claire Luce, Aleksandra Khokhlova, Nieves Navarro Garcia, Janet Leigh, Carmen Miranda, Jean Harlow, Aud Egedge-Nissen, Nina Foch, Jean Simmons, Piper Laurie, Katy Jurado, Jayne Mansfield, Anita Garvin, Frances Farmer, Lizabeth Scott, Joan Greenwood, Una Merkel, Arlene Francis, Ethel Merman, Doris Day, Suzanne Pleshette, Ruta Lee, Carolyn Jones, June Richmond, Eva Nil, Diana Dors, Anna Chang, Colleen Moore, Alexis Smith, Yvette Mimieux, Ruby Keeler, Viola Dana, Dolores Grey, Marie Windsor, Danielle Darieux, Jean Parker, Julie Christie, Acquanetta, Leatrice Joy, Ghita Nørby, Julie Newmar, Joanne Woodward, Sandra Dee, Eva Marie Saint, Simone Simon, Katherine Dunham, Birgitte Price, Lee Grant, Anita Page, Flora Robson, Martha Sleeper, Elsie Ames, Isabel "Coca" Sarli, Glenda Farrell, Kathleen Burke, Linden Travers, Diane Baker, Joan Davis, Joan Leslie, Sylvia Sidney, Marie Dressler, June Lockhart, Emmanuelle Riva, Libertad Leblanc, Susannah Foster, Susan Fleming, Dolores Costello, Ann Smyrner, Luise Rainer, Anna Massey, Evelyn Ankers, Ruth Gordon, Eva Dahlbeck, Ansa Ikonen, Diana Wynyard, Patricia Neal, Etta Lee, Gloria Stuart, Arletty, Dorothy McGuire, Mitzi Gaynor, Gwen Verdon, Maria Schell, Lili Damita, Ethel Moses, Gloria Holden, Kay Thompson, Jeanne Crain, Edna May Oliver, Lili Liliana, Ruth Chatterton, Giulietta Masina, Claire Bloom, Dinah Sheridan, Carroll Baker, Brenda de Banzie, Milú, Hertha Thiele, Hanka Ordonówna, Lillian Roth, Jane Powell, Carol Ohmart, Betty Garrett, Kalina Jędrusik, Edana Romney, Geraldine Fitzgerald, Kay Kendall, Ruth Hussey, Véra Clouzot, Jadwiga Smosarska, Marge Champion, Mary Astor, Ann Harding, María Casares, Maureen O'Sullivan, Mildred Natwick, Michèle Morgan, Romy Schneider, Elisabeth Bergner, Celeste Holm, Betty Hutton, Susan Peters, Mehtab, Leslie Caron, Anna Sten, Janet Munro, Nataša Gollová, Eve Arden, Ida Lupino, Regina Linnanheimo, Sonja Henie, and Terry (what a good girl)
ROUND TWO BEAUTIES:
Evelyn Nesbit, Thelma Todd, Tura Satana, Helen Gibson, Maureen O'Hara, Rocío Dúrcal, Mary Nolan, Lois Maxwell, Maggie Smith, Zulma Faiad, Ursula Andress, Musidora, Delphine Seyrig, Marian Marsh, Leatrice Joy, Sharon Tate, Pina Menichelli, Teresa Wright, Shelley Winters, Lee Remick, Jane Wyman, Martita Hunt, Barbara Bates, Susan Strasberg, Marie Bryant, Diana Rigg, Jane Birkin, Rosalind Russell, Vanessa Redgrave, Brigitte Helm, Gloria Grahame, Rosemary Clooney, Bebe Daniels, Constance Bennett, Lilian Bond, Ann Dvorak, Jeanette Macdonald, Pouri Banayi, Raquel Welch, Vilma Bánky, Dorothy Malone, Olive Thomas, Celia Johnson, Moira Shearer, Priscilla Lane, Dolores del Río, Ann Sothern, Françoise Rosay, June Allyson, Carole Lombard, Jeni Le Gon, Takako Irie, Barbara Steele, Claudette Colbert, Lalita Pawar, Asta Nielsen, Sandra Milo, Maria Montez, Mae West, Alma Rose Aguirre, Bibi Andersson, Joan Blondell, Anne Bancroft, Elsa Lanchester, Nita Naldi, Suchitra Sen, Dorothy Van Engle, Elisabeth Welch, Esther Williams, Loretta Young, Margueritte De La Motte, Ita Rina, Constance Talmadge, Margaret Lockwood, Barbara Bedford, Josette Day, Stefania Sandrelli, Jane Russell, Doris Dowling, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Donna Reed, Ruby Dee, Diana Sands, Billie Burke, Kyōko Kagawa, Françoise Dorléac, Hend Rostom, Monica Vitti, Lilian Harvey, Marjorie Main, Jeanne Moreau, Lola Flores, Ann Blyth, Janet Gaynor, Jennifer Jones, Margaret Sullavan, Sadhana, Ruby Myers, Lotus Long, Honor Blackman, Marsha Hunt, Debbie Reynolds, Michèle Mercier, Irene Dunne, Jean Arthur, Judy Holliday, Tippi Hedren, Susse Wold, Vera-Ellen, Carmelita González, Nargis Dutt, Purnima, Harriet Andersson, Yvonne De Carlo, Miroslava Stern, Sheila Guyse, Helen, Margaret Dumont, Betty Grable, Joan Bennett, Jane Greer, Judith Anderson, Liv Ullman, Vera Zorina, Joan Fontaine, Silvana Mangano, and Lee Ya-Ching
ROUND THREE ELECTRIFIERS:
Jean Hagen, Sumiko Mizukubo, Mary Philbin, Ann-Margret, Margaret Rutherford, Claudia Cardinale, Eleanor Parker, Jessie Matthews, Theresa Harris, Brigitte Bardot, Alla Nazimova, Faye Dunaway, Marion Davies, Anna Magnani, Theda Bara, Myrna Loy, Kay Francis, Fay Wray, Barbra Streisand, Bette Davis, Hideko Takamine, France Nuyen, Claudine Auger, Miriam Hopkins, Maylia Fong, Samia Gamal, Maude Fealy, Machiko Kyō, Sharmila Tagore, Lucille Ball, Ginger Rogers, Juanita Moore, Anna Fougez, Waheeda Rehman, Ruan Lingyu, Nina Mae McKinney, Ethel Waters, Nadira, Olivia de Havilland, Abbey Lincoln, Louise Beavers, Agnes Moorehead, Lana Turner, Norma Shearer, Maria Falconetti, Reiko Sato, Marie Doro, Clara Bow, Margaret Lindsay, Catherine Denueve, Madhabi Mukherjee, Rosaura Revueltas, Hu Die, Mary Pickford, Fredi Washington, Louise Brooks, Leonor Maia, Merle Oberon, Paulette Goddard, Vivien Leigh, Francine Everett, Savitri, Tita Merello, and Meena Kumari
ROUND FOUR STUNNERS:
Judy Garland, Dorothy Dandridge, Yoshiko Yamaguchi, Marilyn Monroe, Irene Papas, Lupe Vélez, Pola Negri, Gene Tierney, Barbara Stanwyck, Gina Lollobrigida, Lena Horne, Nutan, Jean Seberg, Kim Novak, Gladys Cooper, Tallulah Bankhead, Linda Darnell, Julie Andrews, Carmen Sevilla, Gloria Swanson, Glynis Johns, Anne Baxter, Angela Lansbury, Anita Ekberg, Toshia Mori, Deborah Kerr, Hazel Scott, Chelo Alonso, Cyd Charisse, Nancy Kwan, Devika Rani, Shima Iwashita, and Anouk Aimée
ROUND FIVE SMOKESHOWS:
Setsuko Hara, Pearl Bailey, Joan Crawford, Madhubala, Marpessa Dawn, Keiko Awaji, Rita Hayworth, Veronica Lake, Ava Gardner, Greta Garbo, Grace Kelly, Xia Meng, Suraiya, Natalie Wood, María Félix, and Mbissine Thérèse Diop
ROUND SIX SEXY LADIES:
Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Loren, Vyjyanthimala, Jane Fonda, Katharine Hepburn, Josephine Baker, Elizabeth Taylor, and Ingrid Bergman
QUARTER FINALIST GLAMAZONS:
Audrey Hepburn, Marlene Dietrich, Anna May Wong, and Lauren Bacall
SEMIFINALIST ICONS:
Rita Moreno, Diahann Carroll
FINALIST FABULOSITY:
Hedy Lamarr
ULTIMATE CHAMPION OF THE HOT & VINTAGE MOVIE WOMAN TOURNAMENT:
Eartha Kitt
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