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SCENE 2b — MANDALA’S MOUNTS

1 | Scene Overview

Location: Mandala’s Mounts, SE Public Services Ring, New Kourou
Type: Stable · Negotiation · Resource Management
Era: Beta Age
Tone: Gritty · Irritated · Frontier-practical

Atmosphere & Sensory Cues: Oiled leather · muddy ground · the sour smell of dye · restless snorting of heavy beasts · the mechanical whine of service bots dragging tack.

2 | Read-Aloud Description

Initial Read-Aloud (Scene Opening)

The timber gate groans open, letting you into the humid, enclosed yard of Mandala’s Mounts. The air is thick with the smell of wet hay and manure, but it’s overpowered by a sharp, chemical sting that makes your eyes water.

In the center stall, a massive Veyra stands with its head hanging low in misery. Its fur has been dyed a toxic, neon green from mane to tail. A wiry man in a heavy leather apron is wrestling with the beast’s flank, scrubbing furiously with a soaked rag, his jaw clenched tight.

A Maintenance Bot whines in the corner, dragging a heavy saddle through the mud, but the man ignores it. He just glares at you over the neon flank, his voice flat and exhausted.

“Perfect, isn't it? Customer brings him back looking like a fruit stand advertisement. If you’re here to do the same, leave. If you’re here to buy, rent, or fix… make it quick.”

3 | Scene Intent

Scene Type	Player Intents	DM Function / Story Link
Resource Negotiation	Rent mounts · Buy mounts · Bargain for availability	Establish the fastest travel option · highlight consequences from the previous adventure (debts) · force a high-pressure transaction if the Ticking Clock is active.

4 | Key (N)PCs + Dynamic Cues

Name	Role / Affiliation	Motivation / Goal	Dynamic Cues — How They React in Play	Wiki Link
Rajid Mandala	Owner, Mount Yard	Earn money · reduce headaches · protect his beasts	Irritated by the dyed mount; skeptical of PCs; softens with respect; balks at prior mount deaths.	Mandala’s Mounts
Guarding Trooper Patrol	Guarding Troopers	Enforce the law	Currently patrolling the street just outside the stable gates.	Guarding Troopers
Blue	Green-dyed Veyra	Eat · avoid ridicule	Stands miserably; occasionally sneezes from dye fumes.	Veyra
Mona	Best-condition Veyra	Run fast, stay cooperative	Bristles when Blue snorts.	Veyra

Special Character Notes (only applies if PCs are in the party):

Lexa Rourke will always prefer her own Veyra, Kelta, if she is in the party.
Rogan Sokolov will always refuse fast mounts and argue for slower, safer travel.

5 | Triggers, Actions & Consequences

Phase 1a — The Ticking Clock (Wanted & Compromised)

This phase applies only if the PCs have a High Exposure status and they blow their cover or are recognized by Rajid.

Trigger / Cue (Player Action)	Immediate Reaction	Clue / Consequence
🚨 PCs are recognized by Rajid (The Micro Clock Starts)	Rajid stops scrubbing the Veyra. He recognizes them from the bounty wire. He doesn't yell. He steps closer, lowering his voice. “I know who you are. There's a patrol fifty meters down the street. You want to ride out of here? You buy them outright, double the listed price, and you do it right now.”	The Clock Starts: Rajid is extorting them. The PCs have exactly 1d4 minutes to pay his exorbitant bribe/purchase price and ride out the back gate, or silence him before he calls the patrol inside.
⏳ The Ticking Clock Expires (The Arrest)	If the PCs refuse to pay, linger to argue, or if the Stables are their +1 Location visited after triggering the Macro Clock on the streets, time runs out.	The heavy timber gates are kicked open. Guarding Troopers flood the muddy yard with stun batons drawn. “Nobody move! Hands in the air!”
💥 Guarding Troopers attempt to arrest the PCs	The PCs must make an immediate choice.	If PCs submit: Arrest and detention at the local Guarding Troopers Station. If PCs resist/flee: A chaotic shootout or mounted breakout sequence begins in the muddy yard.

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Phase 1b — The Transaction (Standard Interaction)

This phase applies if the PCs are Low Exposure, successfully disguised, or have paid Rajid's extortion fee to keep him quiet. “Good Standing” applies if the PCs have never rented here or returned previous mounts safely. “Bad Standing” applies only if they lost or killed a mount in the previous adventure without paying for it.

Trigger / Cue	Immediate Reaction / What Happens	Future Hook / Consequence
🤝 PCs ask to rent/buy (Good Standing)	Rajid sighs, wiping his hands. “I've got two left. 'Mona' is reliable. 'Blue'…” He gestures to the green beast. “…is cheap. Just don't let the dye rub off on you.”	PCs may purchase or rent the mounts based on the Pricing Table below.
😠 PCs ask to rent/buy (Bad Standing)	Rajid squints, then his face darkens. “Oh… it's you. You still owe me a Veyra. No rentals until the debt is cleared.”	Debt: PCs must pay 500 Kourou for the lost/dead mount from the previous adventure. Until paid, he will only sell Blue (Cash upfront). No rentals allowed.
📜 PCs successfully finalize a rental/sale	Rajid rings a brass bell. The Maintenance Bot drags heavy saddles through the muck. Rajid slaps a grease-smeared contract onto the counter.	As the PCs swing into the creaking leather saddles, Rajid calls out one last time: “Try not to get them killed.” PCs depart for Morningstar.
🚫 PCs decline to rent or buy mounts	Rajid glares at them. “I sometimes wonder if people think before they show up here… Some seem surprised I charge money for my services. Get out.”	PCs must shift to alternative travel: the Courier Station, the Mortician's Cart, or walking.

—

Pricing & Conditions

Service	Handling / Conditions	Price
Veyra Rental	Contract required; return by 17:00.	40 K/day + 5 K/day feed (Plus a 120 K refundable deposit)
Veyra Sale	As-is inspection; age/shape noted.	400 K (Blue) / 800 K (Mona)
Feed Pellets	Per-day ration per mount.	5 K/day
Late Return	Returned after 17:00.	Charged as an additional day (40 K)

6 | DM Notes

Mandala’s Mood: Irritable but professional. The dyed Veyra incident has pushed him over the edge, and the PCs arriving makes it worse — especially if they killed his last rental.
The Ticking Clock Extortion: Rajid loves Kourou more than he loves the Free State law. If he recognizes Wanted PCs, he uses the nearby street patrol as leverage to force them into buying the Veyras at double the price, bypassing the rental process entirely.
Mount Availability Logic: Mona and Blue are the *only* available mounts. The other stalls are empty.
Blue’s Gameplay Impact: First Animal Handling check is at disadvantage. Blue sneezes dye occasionally (comic relief), but otherwise has identical stats to a standard Veyra.
Mona’s Gameplay Impact: Slight edge on endurance-based checks. Ideal for chasing or outrunning threats.

DM Tutorial: How to approach the scene

Related Pages and Further Information

↑↑ Start: Hunting An Unknown Hunter
★ Overview: All Scenes of Hunting An Unknown Hunter
☞ Resolution: Case Resolution and discoverable Backstory
← Previous Scene / Hub: Scene 2 – Travel Preparations
→ Next Scene: If the PCs mount up and leave the settlement, continue with Scene 3 – Traveling to Morningstar. If they decline to buy here, check the New Kourou Hub below to choose another travel option.

New Kourou Hub Overview (Other Travel Options)

Location	Type / Activity	Primary Opportunities	Tone / Difficulty	Leads To Scene
New Kourou Courier Station	Travel · Ticket Purchase	Buy caravan tickets · Check departures	Bureaucratic · Busy	→ Scene 2a – Courier Station
Mandala’s Mounts	Travel · Mount Rental	Rent Veyras · Speak with Mandala	Loud · Mildly tense	→ Scene 2b – Mandala’s Mounts
New Kourou Food Market	Supplies · Provisions	Buy trail food & water · Spot Sola Enu’s Tandora stall	Crowded · Friendly	→ Scene 2c – Food Market
Schmitz Funeral Home	Vehicle Purchase	Inspect & buy mortician’s cart	Quiet · Slightly eerie · Low pressure	→ Scene 2d – Buying a Mortician’s Cart

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102 Pen and Paper Adventure | Beta Age | Hunting an Unknown Hunter