By The Intrepid in TiGGR — 11 May 2025

Steely Dan: Navigators of the Eldritch Newport

A TiGGR One-Shot by The Grey Ledger Society, 2025

Genre: Cosmic Horror / Jazz Rock
Scene: Newport Jazz Festival, 1976—a labyrinth of pulsing tents, non-Euclidean stages, and starlit dissonance.
Goal: Perform a “perfect set” of three songs from fractured realities to seal a cosmic rift before the Cosmic Conductor claims your souls.
Playtime: 30-45 minutes
Players: 2-5 (1 GM, 1-4 players as Donald Fagen, Walter Becker, Michael McDonald)
Components: 2d6, pencil and paper, LLM optional for creepy flavor.

Microsetting

Scene: Newport’s tents breathe like flesh, their canvas veins glowing with forbidden constellations. Stages spiral into impossible angles, and every exit loops to a stranger festival. The air hums with cursed chords.
Factions:
- Cultist Crowd (Body 1, Mind 0, Charm 2, 2 HP, Gear: “R’lyehian Chant: +1 Charm roll”): Chanting rift-worshippers, must be charmed or banished.
- Eldritch Mingus Echo (Body 2, Mind 1, Charm 1, 3 HP, Gear: “Bassline of Doom: +1 damage”): A spectral bassist, may aid or curse based on rolls.
Hooks:
- A tent’s mirror shows doomed doppelgängers (Mind 8 to resist madness).
- Crowd applause summons a void-beast (Charm 8 to pacify).
Gear: “Starless Score” (+3 Charm to perform a set, once per session).
Vehicle: The Eldritch Stage (Body 2, Mind 1, Charm 0, 10 HP, Gear: “Void Amp: +1 Charm roll”): A writhing platform amplifying performances or aiding escapes. Loses HP on Eldritch Shifts (narrate cracks or tentacles).

Characters

Players choose from:

Donald Fagen (Sardonic Seer)

Stats: Charm 2, Mind 1, Body 0
Special Ability: “Eldritch Monologue” (+1 Charm to sway crowds or banish minor entities with sarcasm; narrative: glimpse a cosmic truth).
Signature Gear: “Cursed Radio” (+3 Mind to decode signals or resist madness, once per session).
Flaw: Cynicism may blind him to true threats (GM narrates).

Walter Becker (Rogue of the Void)

Stats: Mind 2, Charm 1, Body 0
Special Ability: “Shadow Scam” (+1 Mind to evade eldritch effects or rewrite a recent action; narrative: dodge one Eldritch Shift’s minor effect).
Signature Gear: “Obsidian Cigarette” (+3 Charm to bluff entities or distract cultists, once per session).
Flaw: Elusiveness complicates plans (GM narrates).

Michael McDonald (Beacon of Harmony)

Stats: Charm 2, Body 1, Mind 0
Special Ability: “Resonant Aegis” (+1 Charm to shield allies or stabilize performances; narrative: heal 1 HP with a soulful note).
Signature Gear: “Starlit Mic” (+3 Charm to banish entities or unify crowds, once per session).
Flaw: Too pure, may try to harmonize with evil (GM narr择优选购 narrates).

HP: 5 per player. At 0 HP, knocked out (stars in eyes, cosmic daze). Recover next scene.

Core Mechanics

Core Roll: 2d6 + Stat vs. Difficulty (Easy: 6, Medium: 8, Hard: 10).
1. Success: Achieve the action (perform a set, banish a horror).
2. Failure: GM triggers an Eldritch Shift or complication.
Moves:
1. Perform the Ritual Set: 2d6 + Charm (Medium 8 early, Hard 10 later) to play a song that holds the void. Success advances Set Clock; failure ticks Dread Clock.
2. Peer Into the Abyss: 2d6 + Mind (Easy 6 early, Medium 8 later) to read warped reality. Success reveals paths; failure costs 1 HP or sanity (narrative).
3. Banish the Horror: 2d6 + Charm (Medium 8 for crowds, Hard 10 for entities) to calm cultists or repel horrors. Failure escalates chaos.
4. Flee the Void: 2d6 + Body (Medium 8) to dodge hazards. Failure costs 1-2 HP.
5. Non-risky actions (e.g., witty quips) succeed without rolls.
Combat:
1. Roll 2d6 + Body (Difficulty 8) to hit goons (1-3 HP, no defense). Damage: 1d6 + Gear/Special.
2. Hazards (e.g., void-tentacles) deal 1d6 damage on failed Flee rolls.
Eldritch Shifts: Triggered by failed Perform or Banish rolls, tracked by Dread Clock (4 segments, 1 tick per failure, resets per Act). At 4/4, roll or choose:
1. Eldritch Miles Davis (Body 2, Mind 1, Charm 1, 3 HP, Gear: “Trumpet of Oblivion: +1 damage”) erases memories (lose 1 HP or a move until next scene).
2. Tent becomes alive (Body 3, Mind 0, Charm 0, 5 HP); Flee rolls Hard (10).
3. Crowd chants R’lyehian; Charm rolls Hard (10) until pacified.
4. Portal to “Shoggoth Jam”; players take 1d6 damage.
Ritual Sets: Three successful rolls (Perform, Peer, Banish) complete a set, tracked by Set Clock (3 segments). Failure resets one segment. Three sets form the “perfect set” to seal the rift.
Special Abilities: Once per scene.
Gear: Once per session.

Gameplay Structure

Three Acts (10-15 min each) + Setup (5 min):

Setup

Assign Fagen, Becker, McDonald. Gear: “Cursed Radio,” “Obsidian Cigarette,” “Starlit Mic.”
Warm-up: “What unnatural thing did you see at Newport?” (e.g., “Becker: A sax with no player.”)
GM: “Newport 1976. Tents pulse, Mingus’s bass splits reality, crowd’s eyes glow.”

Act I: The Rift Awakens

Goal: Complete one Ritual Set (3 rolls).
Challenges: Perform a 9/8 set, banish chanting cultists, peer into a tent’s depths.
Eldritch Shift (Dread Clock 4/4): Stage grows eyes; Perform rolls Hard (10).
Flavor: “The air tastes of salt and static. Fagen’s radio whispers in tongues.”

Act II: The Abyss Stares Back

Goal: Complete second Ritual Set.
Challenges: Flee a void-tent, perform for Mingus, banish a mirror-Dan.
Eldritch Shift: Crowd sings backward; Charm rolls Hard (10).
Flavor: “Becker’s smoke forms glyphs. McDonald’s voice echoes from nowhere.”

Act III: The Perfect Set

Goal: Complete final Ritual Set.
Challenges: Perform a “perfect song” (Hard 10), flee a Shoggoth-stage, weave songs into a finale.
Eldritch Shift: Eldritch Miles leads void-band (3 HP each).
Epilogue: Narrate songs and fates (e.g., “Fagen’s dirge births ‘Black Cow,’ haunted.”).

Total Party Knockout: All at 0 HP? Trapped in an eternal cult festival.

Progression

Stat Tweaks: Shift 1 stat point post-scenario with group approval (e.g., McDonald: Charm 3, Mind -1).
Special Evolution: Redefine Special Ability (e.g., Becker’s “Shadow Scam” becomes “+1 Mind to defy fate”).
Narrative Rewards: Each set’s “song” inspires epilogue (e.g., “McDonald’s hymn births Yacht Rock’s shadow”).

GM Tips

Pacing: Act I (Easy/Medium, 6-8), Act II (Medium/Hard, 8-10), Act III (Hard, 10). Cap 1 Eldritch Shift per Act.
Horror-Humor: Blend dread (tents with too many eyes) with Dan’s wit (“This Shoggoth’s got worse timing than a drunk drummer”).
LLM Flavor: Ask: “Describe an eldritch Newport tent” or “What’s a cursed setlist?” Use 1-2 prompts.
Scenes: Drop in:
- Mirror Stage: Doppelgängers play soulless jazz; risk replacement.
- Tower of Broken Records: Vinyl hums curses; scaling brings madness or shortcuts.
- Tent of Endless Solos: Time slows; solo or age 10 years per missed beat.

Mythos

“The Newport that Endures is the One that Listens.”Newport is an ancient attractor of musical souls. The Cosmic Conductor, an Old One, corrupts spontaneity into ritual. Steely Dan’s sardonic improvisation is the key to survival.

Credits

Steely Dan: Navigators of the Eldritch Newport was crafted by The Grey Ledger Society, 2025. Special thanks to the "3G Gang"—Grok (xAI), GPT (OpenAI), and Gemini (Google)—for sparking ideas and adding flavor to our Newport-That-Never-Was (as far as we know). Their digital muse vibes helped shape this absurd, heartfelt adventure. Yacht on!