Scene 2: The Subterranean Gauntlet – The Resonance Run (Development)

Scene Overview

Scene 2 — The Subterranean Gauntlet

The visible collar rings broke in the vault, but their subdermal anchors survived. As the crew enters the coolant network, those anchors begin reconnecting to CUSTOS-9. The party must keep moving, hold back cyber-hounds, and neutralize the restraint system before it shocks the twins into collapse.

Start	Planned End	Current Development
The crew lands in a flooded maintenance manifold.	The crew reaches Junction Black and chooses a route toward the exhaust gate.	50%: core encounter, subsystem, enemy statistics, and route concept are playable; final map, branch consequences, and treasure are still drafts.

Route Draft

Subterranean Route Draft

Area	Purpose	Status
M1. Flooded Manifold	Catch breath, assess the twins, recover Rook’s route key.	Playable narrative; final environmental checks pending.
M2. Narrow Conduit	Cyber-hound wave and collar-neutralization objective.	Playable encounter draft.
M3. Pump Gallery	Moving pistons, temporary high ground, optional supply cache.	Concept only.
M4. Junction Black	Choose the quiet filtration route or the faster hot-duct route.	Branch consequences outlined but not fully keyed.

Scene 2 — Remaining Development

Needed for 100%	Current Direction
Final tactical map	A 10-foot-wide conduit with two side alcoves, an overhead pipe route, and a central valve island.
Pump Gallery hazard	Moving pistons should create alternating safe lanes rather than simple damage rolls.
Junction Black branch rules	Quiet route lowers Network Heat but adds an environmental obstacle; hot route is faster but alerts Scene 3.
Treasure and evidence	One maintenance cache and one optional prison-record fragment.
Full tactics and dialogue	Include Rook’s condition, the twins’ disagreement, and CUSTOS-9 taunts.