The Vanishing of the Conductor!

A Shot (single-session adventure) for Outtagged. Recommended for a Crew of 3-5 Heroes. Works best early in a Campaign before the Turning Point.

Hook

The Crew is chilling at HQ, half-listening to the Underground Radio between trick debates and snack runs. Then a voice cuts through the static, raw and shaking:

"Please, someone help me! My husband never came home. He's a conductor on the Red Line and he just... vanished. I can't say his name on the air - it's too dangerous. Please, find him. Bring him home. I'm begging you..."

Even through the garbage radio quality, the fear in her voice is unmistakable. This isn't a prank. Something is very wrong.

Setup

The Crew could have a Cohort.

This Shot works well with Heroes who have the Tagger Role or the Street Phantom / Grindmaster Tropes, but any combination can handle it. A Hero with Tag and Bag or Signal Hijack will find those Feats especially useful in the underground sections.

What Really Happened

The conductor, a middle-aged man named Minoas Takamuri, walked into something he shouldn't have. During a routine ticket check, he stumbled into a private compartment where the Talos were running an illegal drug deal. They grabbed him on the spot.

He's now locked away deep in the underground tunnels beneath the Neo Mall, where the Talos run operations that never see daylight.

Investigating the Train

First stop: the Red Line. The train where Minoas was last seen is a battered relic of old Athens, now hauling 200 million people's worth of commuters. Faded red paint, cracked seats, and the faint smell of engine grease and street food. This thing has seen better decades.

4-segment challenge (Focus+Detect, Critical difficulty) vs 4-segment challenge (Suspicion - the Talos are watching)

Heroes with Grind Anywhere or Rooftop Royalty can use the outside of the train to investigate without being seen inside, rolling Nerves+Stunt instead.

After the challenge, the Crew finds traces of a mysterious yellow dust in one of the compartments. It shimmers with an almost metallic sheen and glows faintly under certain light. Whatever this stuff is, they'll need an expert to figure it out.

Train Encounters

Pick 2-3 of these. The Director should choose encounters that play to the Crew's strengths (or exploit their weaknesses). Each is a self-contained Scene.

The Mystery Balloon

A lone red balloon bobs near the cafeteria, weirdly out of place on a grimy commuter train. As the Crew moves through the cars, the balloon follows them. Not drifting. Following.

It's a Talos surveillance drone disguised as party decor. Hidden cameras, tracking gear, the works. A Hero with Tag and Bag can spray it to trace its signal back to the Neo Mall Underground. Otherwise, Crime+Detect (Critical) or Focus+Fix (Critical) to crack it open and read the data.

Failure: If the Crew pops the balloon or fumbles the investigation, it triggers a silent alarm. Talos operatives (Goons, Template 2) start tailing the Crew, and other passengers clock them as troublemakers. The Crew gains the Scared Condition as Talos presence ramps up.

The Ghost Train

One car is dead silent. No passengers, no hum, nothing. The Crew steps inside and the noise from the rest of the train just... stops. This is a Talos staging area rigged with sound-dampening tech. Fresh boot prints, empty equipment cases, the lingering smell of ozone.

Heroes with Ghost Grind feel right at home here and get +1 to all rolls in this car. Anyone else rolls Nerves+Cool (Critical) just to keep their nerve in the eerie silence.

Failure: Too much noise or a wrong move trips hidden alarms (Dangerous roll, Critical). The sound dampener could also malfunction, sealing the Crew inside with no signal and no way to call for help. Worse, Talos lockdown protocols could freeze the entire train. The Crew loses 3 Grit each on a failed Dangerous roll.

The Sleeping Passenger

A passenger slumped in their seat looks like they're napping, but something's off. They're not sleeping - they've been drugged. The Crew can try to help (Focus+Heal, Critical) and maybe gain an ally who saw something, or leave them alone to avoid drawing Talos attention.

Failure: Wrong treatment makes things worse. The passenger wakes up violent (Brawn+Fight Reaction, Critical Dangerous) or incoherent, causing a scene that brings Talos attention down on everyone. Heat rises by 1.

The Passenger Manifest

The Crew gets their hands on a passenger manifest listing everyone on board. Buried in the data there might be coded messages or hidden patterns (Focus+Detect, Critical) pointing to who else was involved in the conductor's disappearance.

Failure: Misreading the codes sends the Crew after the wrong people, or worse, tips off Talos informants that someone is snooping. The manifest could also be a deliberate trap, packed with false leads. Heat rises by 1.

The Mysterious Package

A small, unmarked package sits abandoned on a seat, ticking softly. Open it? Ignore it? Call for help? Turns out it's just a harmless clock - but the act of poking around draws eyeballs from passengers who might be Talos informants.

Focus+Detect (Basic) to figure out it's harmless. Crime+Awareness (Critical) to notice who's watching the Crew's reaction.

Failure: Overreacting causes a full-blown panic on the train. Ignoring it completely means missing a potential clue. Either way, Talos might have planted it specifically to smoke out investigators. All Heroes gain the Nervous Condition.

The Broken Window

One window is completely shattered, wind howling through the gap. The broken glass is dusted with traces of yellow powder, and the edges look like something - or someone - was forced through at speed.

Focus+Detect (Critical) to analyse the scene. A Hero with Wall Rider can lean out and check the exterior of the train with a Nerves+Stunt roll instead.

Failure: A botched repair (Dangerous, Critical) blows out at high speed, sending glass everywhere (all Heroes lose 1 Grit). The Crew might also destroy key evidence while trying to patch things up.

The Food Vendor

A vendor wheels a cart through the aisle selling food that looks... questionable. Suspiciously cheap, weirdly generous portions. The vendor knows things, but are they a Talos informant fishing for intel, or just someone trying to make a living who happened to see something?

Smooth+Speech or Smooth+Flirt (Critical) to get them talking. Crime+Streetwise (Critical) to read whether they're legit.

Failure: Eating the food without caution could knock the Crew out for hours (Brawn+Endure, Critical Dangerous, or gain Tired Condition). Getting too aggressive tips off Talos, or the vendor causes a scene that brings security running.

The Underground Market

An entire car has been converted into an impromptu bazaar - passengers hawking electronics, bootleg software, street food, and gear of dubious origin. Useful supplies and information are buried in the chaos, but so are Talos plants watching for anyone asking the wrong questions.

Crime+Streetwise (Critical) to navigate the market safely. Heroes can spend Cash here to pick up extra spray cans or paint charges (1$ each) that they'll need underground.

Failure: Getting hustled wastes time and money (lose 1 Cash). Buying the wrong thing could backfire spectacularly later. And some "vendors" are Talos operatives cataloguing every face that shows too much curiosity.

The Emergency Protocol

Red lights flash, automated announcements blare, and the train locks into emergency protocol mode. Doors seal, speed drops, and the AI takes over. Is it Talos interference? A genuine emergency? Either way, the Crew needs to work around the automated systems (Focus+Fix, Critical) or figure out what triggered them (Focus+Detect, Critical).

Failure: Tripping additional security measures (Dangerous, Critical) could lock the Crew in a sealed car or shut the whole train down. Sudden stops (Nerves+Cool Reaction, Critical Dangerous), electrical surges, and panicking passengers make everything worse.

The Lost Baby

A woman's frantic scream echoes through the car: "My baby! My precious baby is GONE! Somebody HELP ME!"

The "baby" has somehow ended up outside the train, dangling from the far end. From inside, all the Crew can see is a small bag gripping the exterior. Whatever is out there, it needs rescuing. Fast.

How do you get out there?

Approach Roll Risk
Rail Grinding Nerves+Stunt (Extreme) - Gamble One wobble and you're under the wheels
Rooftop Run Brawn+Stunt (Critical) A Talos guard might already be up there
Side Climbing Brawn+Endure (Critical) Wind, speed, and a very long drop

Heroes with The Floor is Lava can chain the exterior surfaces and skip the hardest part of the roll. Heroes with Wall Rider can ride the side of the train directly (Nerves+Stunt, Critical instead of Extreme).

The big reveal? The "baby" is a digital pet rock - a smooth stone with painted eyes and a wobbly smile. The woman cradles it, coos at it, and is 100% serious about the whole thing.

Absurd? Absolutely. But she's genuinely grateful, and word of the Crew's heroics spreads through the West suburbs like wildfire. The Crew gains reputation in the West sector.

Failure: Drop the rock and the woman goes ballistic, screaming accusations. Other passengers - including Talos informants - start paying very close attention to the Crew. Heat rises by 1.

The Lost Memory

A passenger sits staring at nothing, looking completely lost. They don't know their name, where they are, or how they got on this train. Their memory is just... gone. Is it Talos tech? A medical episode? Or something even weirder? Helping them recover (Focus+Heal, Critical or Smooth+Speech, Critical) could unlock crucial information about what's really happening on the Red Line.

Failure: A wrong approach triggers a violent episode (Brawn+Fight Reaction, Critical Dangerous) or a panic attack. There's also the chance this "amnesiac" is a Talos plant, faking it to study the Crew's methods up close. The Hero gains the Distracted Condition.

Tracing the Yellow Dust

One of the passengers the Crew met on the train knows something about the Yellow Dust. The moment they see it, their face goes white. They refuse to talk on the train - too many ears - and drag the Crew outside at the next stop, glancing over their shoulder the whole time.

The dust is a rare compound found almost exclusively in the underground tunnels beneath the Neo Mall. It has some nasty properties: Talos officers who consume it become stronger, faster, and significantly harder to take down. In game terms, Talos with the Yellow Dust Enhanced enemy feat get +1 to Attack and Defense.

Visiting Neo Mall

The Neo Mall is twelve floors of blinding chrome and artificial sunlight, a consumer paradise that makes the grimy streets outside feel like a different planet. Every sector feeds into it. Everyone passes through eventually.

After some digging, the Crew finds that the way down to the tunnels is through an employee-only door tucked behind the restrooms. It's locked behind serious security, but the bigger problem is who's guarding it: Yo Mama Jama.

6-segment challenge (Crime+Awareness or Focus+Detect, Critical difficulty)

The confrontation with Yo Mama Jama isn't just about getting through a door. It's a turf thing. They want to see what the Crew is made of before they let anyone pass. Expect tricks, trash talk, and a full-blown race through the mall.

6-segment Chase (Need: 12). Heroes use their Gear as Rides. Yo Mama Jama rides Rollerblades (Speed 3, Armor 1). All chase rolls use Stunt instead of Drive.

Heroes with Momentum shine here - the mall's long corridors let them build up speed. The Floor is Lava lets a Hero chain escalators, railings, and store displays without ever touching the floor, which Yo Mama Jama will respect.

Neo Mall Encounters

Pick 2-3 of these to fill out the Neo Mall section. These Scenes happen while the Crew searches for the underground entrance.

The Food Court Informant

A food court vendor is slinging meals at prices that make no economic sense. Turns out they're a Talos informant who's been camped here for weeks, watching the mall. Play it right (Smooth+Speech or Crime+Streetwise, Critical) and they might let slip details about "special deliveries" heading underground.

Failure: Too obvious? The informant makes a call, and suddenly there are Talos eyes on the Crew from every food stall in the court. Heat rises by 1.

The Security Guard

A dead-eyed security guard slouches near the restrooms, clearly counting down the minutes to his break. He's seen things. He might share info about "unofficial access points" if the Crew offers something worth his time (Smooth+Flirt, Critical or just spend 1 Cash). Crime+Streetwise (Basic) to read him first.

Failure: Push too hard (Dangerous, Critical) and he gets suspicious. Or worse, he's already on Talos payroll and sells the Crew out to the highest bidder. Heat rises by 1.

The Lost Shopper

An elderly woman approaches the Crew clutching a shopping list written in a script nobody recognises. She's been wandering for hours, muttering about "the old entrance." Help her out (Smooth+Speech, Basic) and she reveals she's a former mall employee who knows every back corridor and service tunnel. She might even have an old access card buried in her handbag.

Supporting Character: The Lost Shopper. Help: +1 to any roll navigating the mall's back corridors. Flaw: Moves painfully slowly and talks loudly about "secret doors" in public.

Failure: Brush her off and the Crew loses a genuinely useful ally with access codes they can't get anywhere else.

The Maintenance Worker

A worker in a faded uniform is wrestling with a massive toolbox near the restrooms, clearly running on zero sleep. Help him carry it (Brawn+Force, Basic) and he'll mention he's headed to "the lower levels." Keep him talking (Smooth+Speech, Critical) and details about the underground tunnels start spilling out.

Failure: Drop the toolbox (Dangerous, Basic) and it makes a sound that echoes across the entire floor. Security looks over. Everyone looks over. All Heroes gain the Scared Condition.

The Lost Child

A young boy is sobbing near the restrooms, saying he can't find his mum. If the Crew helps (Smooth+Speech, Basic), they'll discover his mother is a Talos operative who uses the underground tunnels regularly. The kid doesn't know what mum does for work, but he knows all about "the secret door" she disappears through.

Failure: Handle it badly and the kid's crying brings mall security. Even worse, if mum finds out strangers were talking to her son, the Talos will hear about it fast. Heat rises by 1.

The Delivery Person

Someone in a courier uniform struggles with a comically large package near the restrooms. Help them and the Crew quickly notices the box is empty. This "delivery" is a cover - the courier is Talos (Goon, Template 1), and they might let slip details about access codes if the Crew plays dumb convincingly enough (Smooth+Flirt or Crime+Streetwise, Critical).

Failure: Being too helpful looks suspicious. The courier reports "weird behaviour" to mall security, and now there are cameras pointed the Crew's way.

The Ice Cream Thief

A kid's wail cuts through the mall noise: "Someone stole my Ice Cream! PLEASE help me find it!"

Plot twist: "Ice Cream" is the kid's cat - a sleek, dark-furred feline named after its chocolate colouring. The cat has bolted into the mall and the kid is absolutely losing it.

Catching the cat is a mini-chase: Need 6, the cat has Speed 2. Heroes use Nerves+Stunt or Crime+Dexterity. A Hero with The Floor is Lava can chase it across store displays and shelving without losing ground.

Failure: No cat, inconsolable child, mall security on the scene. The cat might also have wandered somewhere dangerous, and charging in after it could trip alarms.

The Tourist

A "confused tourist" keeps asking about "historical exhibits" that don't exist. Dig deeper (Focus+Know, Critical) and it turns out they're a historian researching the old subway tunnels that the mall was built on top of. They have maps, documents, and way too much enthusiasm for underground architecture.

Supporting Character: The Tourist. Help: +1 to any roll navigating the underground tunnels. Flaw: Gets dangerously excited about "historically significant" things and will stop to examine them regardless of danger.

Failure: Dismiss them and the Crew misses out on detailed layout info they can't get anywhere else. Or the historian sends them on a wild goose chase through ancient Athens trivia.

Neo Mall Underground

Below the mall, the world flips inside out. The tunnels are a neon-lit labyrinth - pulsing LED strips throwing wild shadows across graffiti-bombed walls, massive industrial fans spinning overhead with their fins catching the light like strobes. The air buzzes with static from the machinery crammed into every corridor.

Talos enforcers patrol in chrome-plated exosuits that whir and click with every step. Glowing visors sweep the corridors in slow arcs. Their movements are unnervingly smooth - part human, part machine. Some glide through on hoverboards that hum at a frequency you feel in your chest. Others operate massive robotic arms that reach from the walls like mechanical tentacles.

Some Talos down here have been eating the Yellow Dust. You can tell - they're bigger, faster, and way harder to put down. Yellow Dust Enhanced Talos have +1 to Attack and Defense.

The machinery never stops. Conveyor belts snake through the complex like metal serpents, carrying sealed cargo in transparent tubes. Steam vents hiss in rhythm. Massive gears grind in the shadows, their teeth catching neon light in hypnotic patterns. The whole place feels alive and hostile.

The Talos Garrison

The underground is crawling with Talos. Use this mix for encounters:

Deep in this nightmare, the Crew finally finds Minoas. He's locked in a makeshift cell, surrounded by Talos guards. The conductor looks haggard, hollow-eyed, and barely aware of his surroundings.

The Talos won't hand him over quietly. The Crew will have to fight through them.

8-segment challenge (Combat). Talos Men (Bad Guys, Template 3) guarding the cell. At least one is Yellow Dust Enhanced.

Worse still, Minoas is hooked up to a memory-erase machine. Strange equipment pulses on his head, flickering with an eerie light. If the Crew doesn't act fast, Minoas loses everything - his home, his family, his own name. Gone.

This isn't just a rescue anymore. It's a race against a machine that's eating someone's entire life.

Underground Encounters

The Director should pick 3-4 of these. The underground section should feel relentless - no Time-Out down here. Every Flow point counts.

The Energy Field

A crackling energy field blocks the way to Minoas's cell, pulsing blue and throwing sparks off the walls. The Crew needs to find the power source (Focus+Detect, Critical), hack a workaround (Focus+Fix, Extreme), or find another way around (Crime+Awareness, Critical). Problem: the field might be wired directly into the memory-erase machine.

Failure: Touch it and get fried (Dangerous, Extreme - 9 Grit on failure). Tamper with it wrong and it could accelerate the memory wipe, doing permanent damage to Minoas before the Crew even reaches him. Heat rises by 1.

The Memory Machine

The machine itself is a nightmare of cables, blinking lights, and a low hum that sets your teeth on edge. The air around it warps and shimmers. The Crew can try to shut it down (Focus+Fix, Extreme), reverse the process (Focus+Know, Extreme), or rip Minoas free (Brawn+Force, Critical but Gamble) - but none of those options are safe.

A Hero with Signal Hijack can spend 2 Flow to interface with the machine directly, downgrading the difficulty by one level.

Failure: A wrong move could accelerate Minoas's memory loss or fry his brain entirely (Dangerous, Extreme). Backup systems might kick in, and some of them could start targeting the Crew's own memories - all Heroes roll Nerves+Cool (Critical Dangerous) or gain the Distracted Condition.

The Talos Command Center

The Crew stumbles into a full Talos command center - holographic displays, banks of computers, and stacks of documents about Yellow Dust experiments. This is the nerve centre. Hack it (Focus+Fix, Extreme or Crime+Dexterity, Critical), steal what you can (Crime+Stealth, Critical), or blow the whole thing (Graffiti Explosive, no roll needed but very loud).

Failure: Trip the security (Dangerous, Critical) and the entire underground complex goes into lockdown. The computers might also have a dead-man switch that wipes all data if someone unauthorised touches them.

If things go really sideways, the command center could detonate, triggering a massive underground explosion that splits the Neo Mall clean in half. Heat maxes out at 12.

The Surveillance Network

Cameras and sensors blanket the tunnels. The Crew needs to disable the network (Focus+Fix, Critical), find blind spots (Crime+Awareness, Critical), or just move fast enough to stay ahead of the sweeps (Nerves+Stunt, Critical every turn).

Heroes with Ghost Grind bypass the sensors entirely. Living Mural can be used to create a decoy that draws the cameras' attention away from the real Crew.

Failure: Laser grids (Nerves+Stunt Reaction, Critical Dangerous), gas traps (Brawn+Endure, Critical Dangerous - Tired Condition on failure), robotic sentries (Talos Dogs, Goons Template 2). Getting flagged on camera brings overwhelming Talos reinforcements.

The Hoverboard Chase

A Talos enforcer on a sleek hoverboard spots the Crew and guns it. Neon trails streak behind the board as it weaves between machinery and support beams at ridiculous speed.

Chase: Need 8. Talos Hoverboard Unit (Speed 3, Armor 1). Heroes use their Gear. All rolls use Stunt instead of Drive.

A Hero with Momentum can build up a terrifying +3 in the tunnel straightaways. Grind Anywhere lets Heroes use the machinery and pipes as grind rails for shortcuts.

Failure: Crash into machinery (Dangerous, Critical) or get cornered in a dead end. The enforcer calls for backup, and suddenly there are three more boards screaming down the tunnel.

The Mechanical Arms

Massive robotic arms burst from the walls, hydraulic joints hissing as they grab at anything that moves. Somewhere nearby, a Talos operator is at the controls, watching through a camera feed. The Crew can try to dodge through the gauntlet (Nerves+Stunt, Critical every turn), find the control room (Crime+Awareness, Critical), or disable the arms one by one (Focus+Fix, Critical per arm).

Rail Slide Escape is perfect here - slide under the arms on any pipe or rail to auto-disengage.

Failure: Those hydraulics can crush steel. Getting grabbed (Brawn+Force Reaction, Extreme Dangerous) is bad. The arms can also trigger lockdown protocols, sealing off entire tunnel sections.

The Conveyor Maze

A massive chamber criss-crossed with conveyor belts carrying sealed cargo in transparent tubes. The Crew has to cross while dodging Talos patrols and the cargo itself (Nerves+Stunt or Crime+Stealth, Critical). Some tubes contain chemicals, others surveillance gear, and a few are best left unopened.

The Floor is Lava turns this from a nightmare into a playground - chain the conveyor belts without ever touching the ground.

Failure: Step wrong and the belts drag you off to who-knows-where (Brawn+Force, Critical to escape). Break a cargo tube (Dangerous, Critical) and you might release something nasty, or trigger every alarm in the complex.

The Neon Grid

The floor lights up. Every step triggers a glowing neon panel, turning the Crew into a walking beacon. They need to cross without lighting up too many panels (Crime+Stealth or Nerves+Cool, Critical), because that glow is visible from every corridor.

Neon Trail flips this encounter on its head - the Hero deliberately lights up a false path, leading Talos patrols away while the rest of the Crew sneaks through the dark.

Failure: Light up the grid and every Talos patrol in the area knows exactly where you are. Some panels deliver electrical shocks (Dangerous, Basic) or release knockout gas (Brawn+Endure, Critical Dangerous - Tired Condition).

The Steam Vents

Steam blasts through the tunnels at random intervals - great for cover, terrible for exposed skin. The Crew can ride the steam clouds to hide from patrols (Crime+Stealth, Critical with Help from the steam), but they need to time it perfectly (Nerves+Cool, Critical) or get scalded.

Chromatic Overload combined with steam creates an impenetrable wall of colour and fog. Total Cover for 1 turn.

Failure: Burns. Bad ones (Dangerous, Critical - Hurt Condition). The steam can also blind the Crew at the worst possible moment, sending them stumbling into Talos patrols or live machinery.

The Holographic Decoys

Holographic Talos enforcers flicker in the corridors - perfect copies that patrol, turn corners, and even react to noise. Somewhere in the mix are the real ones. The Crew has to figure out which is which (Focus+Detect, Critical or Crime+Awareness, Critical) before wasting their paint or walking into an ambush.

Tag and Bag is the ultimate counter here. Spray a tracking tag on a suspect - if the paint passes through, it's a hologram. If it sticks, that's a real Talos.

Failure: Waste all your paint (lose 2 mags) on holograms while the real enforcers close in from behind. The decoys are designed to drain resources and herd intruders into kill zones.

Exiting the Underground

The Crew bursts out of the tunnels and back into the mall - and immediately wishes they hadn't. Four massive helicopters thunder overhead, cables straining under the weight of something enormous. They're carrying a full-blown Talos war mecha - arms, legs, and a cannon the size of a bus where its head should be.

The helicopters drop it. The mall's ceiling shatters. Glass, steel, and plaster rain down as the mecha lands with a ground-shaking impact, its cannon already charging. Time to fight the biggest, loudest, most absurd thing the Talos have ever thrown at anyone.

Talos War Mecha (Boss, Template 5): 18 Grit, Extreme Attack, Extreme Defense. Feats: Paint-Proof Plating, Armored, Explosive Weapons, Titan, Sensor Grid.

6-segment challenge (Combat) vs the Talos War Mecha. All Heroes attack first (they burst out with momentum). The mecha's Weak Spot can be found with Focus+Detect (Extreme difficulty).

This is the time for Plan B: Tag. A massive, pre-planned piece of street art deployed at the perfect moment - a mural so bright it overloads the mecha's sensors, a coordinated paint bombing from every angle, or a signal-hijacked broadcast that rallies every Crew in Athens to converge on the Neo Mall.

If the Crew rescues Minoas and escapes, word spreads fast. The Crew gains reputation in every sector, and the Underground Radio tells their story for weeks. Minoas's wife broadcasts her thanks on the same frequency that started it all.