MONTH OF DARKNESS: ANTAGONIST

Hunter: The Reckoning Quarry

Zhi The Mixologist “I call this one The Hunter’s
Lament. Here’s the recipe:
The Mixologist is a suitable ally
or quarry for any Cell of Hunters. 1 oz. Blood from a terrified old man
Inexperienced Hunters could eliminate
them in one session of play if they had Any masc really, butch lesbian
the right mentor or tools available to
them early in the investigation. worked twice for me
1 oz. Gasoline from a Molotov cockta
It’s one of those decaying urban neighborhoods where il that
a lack of options balances out with a strong sense of
failed to ignite
community. When nobody else cares whether you
live or die, you come together and support each other.
Everyone knows everybody else, and strangers get
¼ oz. Tears  sad, needs to be sad
noticed immediately.
Zhi doesn’t have to come across as an antagonist 3 or more Ice cubes
at first. They provide a high (licit or otherwise) to
the down and out: they’re a local character whose Stir with ice in a cocktail shaker while
listening
eccentricities are excused because they provide to sad songs. Serve in a Martini glas
s.
something people want. They can be a source of
information or even someone who can make unusual The sadder the better
bodies disappear and pay for the privilege.
Unfortunately, there are few good things in the world Any stemware works
of a Hunter that don’t come tinged with darkness. Zhi is
a vampire, even if they’re clearly able to walk around in
sunlight. They hunt and kill for blood. This may not be General Difficulty: 3/3
immediately apparent, but the truth comes out eventually.
It’s true that all vampires are monsters, some just Standard Dice Pools: Physical 5, Social 4, Mental 6
resist that fate as long as they can. Zhi had ambitions Secondary Attributes: Health 7, Willpower 5
of understanding their condition, perhaps even curing
it. Is there such a difference between the skills needed Exceptional Dice Pools: Academics 7, Medicine 7,
for concocting cocktails, designer drugs and blood Occult 7
alchemy? They believed they already had the instinct
Special: The Mixologist has the standard traits of a
for it and the night proved them right. Vampire including Resilient but doesn’t suffer damage
Zhi believes that they can be cured: become mortal from sunlight like other vampires. The Mixologist can
again if they just figure out the right formula. Is it so also prepare a variety of ritually prepared concoctions.
bad if they only take from the wicked and the vile? Each such brew grants them (or perhaps a Hunter) a
There are so many mortals out there who don’t deserve supernatural ability such as one of the vampiric abilities
to live, who only hurt the communities around them. presented in Hunter: The Reckoning or an Edge
It’s not a sin to harvest ingredients from them, is it? themed in supernatural terms.
 MONTH OF DARKNESS: ANTAGONIST
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES They work best if the Cell gets a chance to talk
• Zhi needs fresh, human blood: blood sustains with them and understand their position. It’s a good
idea to orchestrate a scene with Zhi in public, among
them and is the subject of their research into a cure.
a crowd that makes violence inadvisable. They make
• To continue their work, Zhi also requires research
no secret of their quest if it feels like they’re talking
equipment and materials. This includes biomedical
to people who understand the secrets of the night.
devices (both simple things like pipettes and
They just want to be good people again, instead of the
more complex equipment); books on medicine,
monster they’ve become.
blood, alchemy, and the occult; and chemical
or alchemical ingredients for experimentation
(household chemicals, commercial drugs, and less
tangible things like the essence of sorrow).

• Likewise, the Mixologist refuses to use just any

human blood. They might be willing to accept
some freely given but require a lot for sustenance
and even more for experimentation. They are
constantly looking for bullies, the corrupt, and
unrepentant criminals to feed on.

Appearance: The Mixologist looks young, barely

an adult, but always makes you feel like they
know the order of things and you don’t.
They’re scruffy, of indeterminate gender, with
a nervous eye always hunting for that one last
ingredient they need for their next concoction.
They’re getting overconfident and have begun
to accessorize with cheap jewelry featuring
alchemical symbols from various online stores.

Notes / Other Traits: Zhi provides

concoctions of all sorts and the only thing
they require is ingredients that always seem to
involve a moral hazard. For Hunters, they can
be a supply of crucial drugs making the hunt
less of a challenge. Can the Cell really ignore a
possible source of chemical help, given that the
monsters they’re really after are so much more
dangerous than a lone cocktail wizard?

In Stories
The Mixologist is difficult to hunt because they
have embedded themselves in the community.
They’re young but they’ve already evaded a Cell or
two because of their community support. People
living near them know who they are and may
even depend on them.
 MONTH OF DARKNESS: ANTAGONIST
Zhi doesn’t mind the idea of allying with the Cell at
all. They share the same goal: To fight against all the
evils in this world. The Mixologist numbers themself
in this category as well and with some help from the
Hunters, could even find a non-violent solution! What’s
better than that?
Before becoming a vampire, the Zhi was something of
a prodigy, a multitalented whiz kid of chemicals ranging
from cocktails to drugs. They still sometimes do a shift or
two at local bars just to make sure their friends remember
who they are. For many, they’re also a source of exotic
designer drugs and even medical supplies otherwise
unavailable in—or too expensive for—the community.
Community is Zhi’s strength but also their weakness.
A clever Cell can turn their community against them if
they manage to publicize the Mixologist’s crimes and
atrocities sufficiently well.
The Mixologist has taken over a rundown drug lab,
with the bones of small-time drug runners still lying in
a corroded bathtub. They’re very particular about the
cleanliness of their work environment but otherwise...
who cares about a mess?
Encountering the Mixologist
• If the Mixologist has caught onto the fact that the
Cell is hunting them, they can make a surprise
appearance in a cocktail bar, serving the hunters a
signature drink as a warning.
• The Mixologist is in constant need of supplies for
their experiments so they can be found raiding
hospitals, commercial biology labs, university
biomedical labs or anywhere you can buy unusual
types of liquors.
• The Cell is hunting a malefactor, tracing them to
the lair only to discover that the Mixologist got
there first. They have a constant need for the blood
of the wicked and this means they might have the
same targets in mind as the hunters do.
• The Mixologist maintains a rundown drug lab
as their lair. They can be found working, making
experiments, holding court as local community
members visit. There are always people around at
the lair, making it difficult to have a proper firefight
without risking hurting the innocent. Or at least
semi-innocent.
• The Mixologist is fueled by knowledge. They need
access to books, whether in bookstores, libraries, or
private collections.
Additional Dangers and Victims
• Joining forces with the Mixologist is an option,
though they may prove to be more trouble than
they’re worth. Their bloody concoctions may give
a Cell of Hunters enough power to get in over
their heads. And that power comes at the expense
of human life. The Cell may find they are in over
their heads, choosing victims for the Mixologist or
even attempting to deal with the Mixologist’s thirst
themselves. At the Storyteller’s discretion, being
woozy from lack of blood might impose a 1-die
penalty (or worse) on all rolls for a day or three, and
reduced rate or recovery from injury or disease for
the next month or three.
• If left unchecked, Zhi will almost certainly get
themself into trouble: overuse of a willing victim,
a precarious scheme to gain access to stable
blood supply, or simply overreaching in terms of
acquiring medical devices or biomedical and occult
research materials.
• The role of the Mixologist in their own community
starts to fester soon enough, tipping over the
delicate balance they’ve achieved. They make a
mistake and kill someone they shouldn’t have
or rely once too often on the silence of their
neighbors. Or perhaps the drugs they supply
poison the community on their own, causing
resentment and anger. This can become a problem
for Hunter allied with Zhi, or an opportunity for
those seeking to destroy them.
Credits:
Text: Juhana Pettersson and Kevin Schluter
Art: Maichol Quinto
Graphic Design: Sarah Robinson
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are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Paradox Interactive AB in Europe, the U.S.,
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