From the shadows of night, the silhouettes dart across the Livingroom floor and descend upon the doorway to the master bedroom where a tall chest of drawers stands. The human of the house left a drawer lazily half open with a pair of socks hanging out... this is precisely what they came for, especially the left sock.
Written and Illustrated by Lux.
(WIP) Posted 2-27-2021
Every settlement needs Acquisitionist Mice to brave dangerous places and gather supplies, sometimes on demand. These brave, unsung heroes risk life and limb, infuriating and negotiating their way into cat infested human towns.
Unlike their friendly rivals, the Packrats, Acquisitionist Mice rely on speed rather than strength and prefer to rush toward their objective, gather what they need and get out with as little distractions as possible. These mice are fast and acrobatic, utilizing grappling hooks and doormouse kits to unlock doors and locked drawers and jewelry boxes.
Acquisitionist Mice usually organize around a knowledgeable leader and work in small 3 to 8 mouse teams when on a mission. Most leaders have a code that they expect their crew to follow.
No destination too far, no item unobtainable.
Never sacrifice speed for weight.
Take only what you need, do not over take.
Be fast, be silent, be focused.
Small sewing scissors
Spool of string & Hook
Tube of Superglue
Doormouse Kit
A collection of various tools that is needed for picking locks.
Requires Dex of 11
Mark usage after each lock picking use.
Cost: 100p
Bag of d4 thumbtacks
Spool of string & Hook
Tube of grease
Antique door key
Scavenger Mice are fast and opportunistic, grabbing anything valuable they can carry and running off with no regard for repercussions. When things become too dangerous, they simply run away and raid some other location. While relying on speed, they are not as organized as Acquisition Mice and regularly become separated from their group during a raid.
These mice are not above stealing from or attacking Acquisition Mice they meet in the field and will sometimes go out of their way to sabotage and generally cause grief for their hated rivals.
Wants to hunt challenging prey.
Whiskers is a powerful and large Main coon owned by the humans that dwell in the residence. She prowls the yard and surrounding woodlands but cannot get inside the house. Whiskers has varying moods, but usually finds mice too trivial a prey to attack.
Whiskers also wants to impress her humans to get catnip ball, so she regularly leaves kills upon the front steps of the house as an offering.
d6
A rare bird with its colorful feathers removed and laid beside the kill.
A large owl with its talons removed and laid beside the kill.
A large squirrel with its heart missing.
A large poisonous snake with a rattle tail.
Several dead woodland rats laid out in a neat row.
The neighbors chihuahua.
The residence within Whisker's territory has long been the site for Acquisition mice raids. The cat lord Whiskers has agreed not to interfere with mice so long as they bring her a catnip ball from within the property as a form of tribute.
Recently Whisker's owners have put a bell on her collar which has significantly reduced her ability to hunt. She will be very grateful if the bell is removed somehow.
Every venture into a human residence is full of valuable treasures and also unique dangers. If a human is alerted to the presence of a mouse, they will begin placing deadly traps and poisons and introducing more cat lords, depending on how noticeable the mouse presence is. Acquisition mice must make sure to keep evidence of their presence to a minimum, or they will get a Reaction for that site.
Reaction points mean that next time they visit that site, something would have changed to target the mice's presence. Only the Mouse master will know what that is at first and the mice must discover it. This can be a new mouse trap, or the sealing of a regularly used entrance.
For example: The settlement has sent the acquisition party to gather elastic that is in demand for making bow strings. The usual site is a human property where the human leaves their sock drawer open regularly before leaving for work. Mice steal a sock or two and cut the elastic string from the clothing before venturing back with the goods. Unfortunately the last party to do this cut apart several pairs of socks and left obvious signs that mice have been inside the residence. The next party arrives and finds that a new young indoor cat now naps in the bedroom. This mission just got way more dangerous.
Background: Cage Dweller
Birthsign: Mother
Disposition: Nurturing / Worrying
Coat: White, solid
Physical detail: Beautiful face
STR: 6
DEX: 9
WIL: 8
HP: 6
As the acquisition mice work beneath the glow of a glass cage upon a table nearby, the group notices that they are being watched by a very curious white mouse. She squeaks excitedly and wants to follow them, it is much more exciting than running in her wheel all day. In any case if she is released from her cage, she will loyally follow the party but has absolutely nothing and will need to be looked after as she is naïve of the outside world.
The white mousette has no name, but will answer to any name given to her.
She only speaks in squeaks, the old language. Perhaps another ex-cage dweller might know how to communicate with her. Otherwise it will take several in game weeks to teach her to speak normal words.
She has unusually bright, snow white fur and is very easy to spot by predators in the wild.
The cage is easy enough to break into in order to free the white mousette, but will cause 1 reaction from the humans of this site the next time the party visits.
d6 (Roll twice, re roll a doubled result.)
Curious about everything - Will open bags to examine their content and run to look around every corner.
Frightened and shy - Is afraid of everything and will cling to a member of the party but refuse to return to their cage and slow to socialize with other mice and animals beyond those that freed her.
Picky Eater - After living in a cage all her life, she will find it difficult to eat anything that does not resemble feed pellets and nuts and clean water.
Nudist - She does not understand clothes and finds them uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time. She will disrobe at the first opportunity.
No stranger danger - Is very friendly and quick to walk up to unknown mice and animals to greet them.
Sensitive to outdoors - Having spent her whole life in a cage, she is easily overwhelmed and stunned by cold temperatures, bright sunlight, strong smells and loud sounds of the outside world.
