1 | Start

Welcome, adventurer! You stand at the threshold of an unwritten world.

What realm do you wish to explore? A medieval fantasy, futuristic metropolis, post-apocalyptic wasteland, or something else entirely?

2 | Detailed “Session 0” prompt Setting #2 – Daedalus’s Network of Bronze Talôs High-Mycenaean era, c. 1400 BCE. System-agnostic; you can slot this into 5E, Mythic D6, Fate, or any rules-lite game. ⸻ GM read-aloud opener (feel free to paraphrase) Salt fog rolls across the wharves of Knossos at dawn. Massive ox-hide ingots—fresh from the copper mines of Cyprus—shine dull green in the torchlight, awaiting transport through the palace’s “living labyrinth.” Suddenly the harbor bell rings off-cycle: a Bronze Talôs, one of Daedalus’s famed clockwork guardians, has torn free of its patrol loop. Its bronze feet spark on flagstones; its single ruby eye flickers erratic reds. Sailors scatter as the automaton lurches toward the pallet of ingots, stamping each bar with an unfamiliar spiral glyph before hurling it into the sea. The palace factor drags you—engineers, envoys, and adventurers—into a side hall: “If this sentinel is rogue, the entire chain of guardians may inherit the fault. Stop it, trace the corruption, and restore the labyrinth’s logic before tonight’s equinox ritual—or the queen will blame us all.” ⸻ What the PCs already know Lore fragment How PCs could use it E-Abaton, the Maintenance Labyrinth lies beneath Knossos. It houses winding corridors of gears, counterweights, and coded clay tablets that control Talôs patrol routes. Map skill or Int check to recall safe-service shafts vs. lethal reset vents. Every Talôs contains a gear-stack codex—bronze cogs etched with Linear-A glyphs that define friend/foe, patrol timing, and stamping authority for ingots. Smiths or linguists can decypher glyphs; thieves can swap cogs for a soft reset. The sentinels’ bronze bodies require tin-rich alloy: 8-10 % tin keeps their limbs from seizing. The palace’s usual tin source is Byblos, but the latest shipment came with Mycenaean seals. Supply-chain clue: forged seals may point to sabotage from the rival palace of Pylos. Daedalus’s last apprentice Ikarion tends the labyrinth but has been missing for three tides. Find him for insight—or discover he was bribed. ⸻ Immediate objectives 1. Neutralise (not destroy) the rogue Talôs at the harbor—intact to study its corrupted cog-stack. 2. Descend into E-Abaton to compare the master timing-tablet with the rogue cog’s glyphs. 3. Trace the false spiral glyph back to its metallurgist or scribe. Leads point seaward toward a Mycenaean trading galley anchored outside the official customs quay. ⸻ Key NPCs Name Role Quirk / agenda Chara of the Counting-Cords Palace factor in charge of bronze inventory. Chews on dyed knotted strings while calculating—looks guilty but is just terrified. Ikarion Missing labyrinth steward; Daedalus’s last true student. Carries a pocket sun-dial; believes in open-sourcing Talôs schematics—ripe for blackmail. Klymemnos of Pylos Mycenaean metallurgist “consultant.” Secretly introduced tin with micro-fracture flaws; wants Crete’s guard network to fail so Mycenae can dominate seaborne trade. Priestess Melia Voice of the Snake-Goddess; public face of the equinox rite. Will declare the PCs “chosen troubleshooters of the goddess” if they keep her cisterns flowing. ⸻ System stress in play • Feedback spiral: Talôs units replicate patrol updates when they “hand-shake” at dock beacons. One rogue cog can contaminate the whole fleet by sunset. • Resource timer: The equinox ceremony starts in 8 in-game hours; every rescue or research detour costs 1 h. • Environment hazard: Volcanic tremors (Thera island) occasionally shift the labyrinth’s counterweights—Dex/Reflex to dodge sudden wall-shifts. Set the tone somewhere between clock-punk Bronze Age thriller and mythic systems-engineering heist—perfect for players who enjoy puzzles, logistics, and the occasional smiting from malfunctioning bronze giants.

The salt fog rolls across Knossos harbor at dawn. A massive Bronze Talôs—one of Daedalus's clockwork guardians—stamps copper ingots with strange spirals before hurling them into the sea. Palace factor Chara pulls you aside frantically.

“Stop this rogue automaton before others inherit the fault!”

What do you do?

3 | Crawl inside

You rush toward the malfunctioning Talôs, but as you approach, scalding steam vents from its joints! The massive bronze guardian stands three times your height, its metal body sealed with intricate clasps. Its ruby eye swivels toward you menacingly.

“Madness!” Chara shouts. “No mortal enters Daedalus's creations!”

What will you try instead?

4 | Summon Daedalus

“Summon Daedalus?” Chara laughs nervously. “The master craftsman left Knossos seasons ago after a… disagreement with the Queen. His apprentice Ikarion maintains the network now, but he's been missing for three tides.”

The Talôs continues its destructive pattern, oblivious to your call.

What's your next approach?

5 | Find some crazy cool shit

Scanning the harbor, you spot Ikarion's abandoned workbench beneath a canvas awning. Inside his leather satchel: bronze maintenance tools, clay tablets with Talôs schematics, and a curious copper rod with spiral etchings.

The factor exclaims, “The resonance key! Ikarion used it to temporarily freeze Talôs units during maintenance!”

6 | Learn that and think how to apply against the real automaton in production

Examining the schematics, you discover the resonance key creates harmonic vibrations that temporarily disrupt the Talôs's gear-stack when touched to specific points on its bronze shell.

The drawings indicate three resonance points: the neck joint, chest plate, and behind the knee. You'll need to get dangerously close, but striking all three should freeze the automaton long enough for inspection.

7 | Ok, get back to talks

You return to where Chara anxiously watches the Talôs continuing its destructive pattern. The factor wrings her counting-cords nervously.

“Have you devised a plan? The harbor bell will summon the guard soon, but they'll likely just destroy it. We need that corrupted cog-stack intact to understand what's happening!”

The automaton stamps another ingot, its movements becoming more erratic.

8 | Yes, apply the resonance

Gripping the copper rod, you rush toward the Talôs while dodging harbor workers. The automaton notices your approach, its ruby eye intensifying.

You strike the neck joint—the rod vibrates with an eerie tone. The chest plate next, sending ripples across its bronze skin. As you dive for the knee, the Talôs lurches and freezes mid-motion, but not before its arm clips your shoulder!

The automaton stands immobilized, humming faintly.

9 | Now, crawl inside

With the Talôs frozen, you examine its bronze shell and locate a small maintenance hatch near its lower back—just as indicated in Ikarion's schematics.

The panel reluctantly yields to your tools. Inside awaits a cramped chamber of interlocking gears, dripping with oil. At the core glows the gear-stack codex—bronze cogs etched with Linear-A glyphs, one disc clearly altered with the spiral marking.

Chara warns: “The resonance won't last long!”

10 | Continue

You carefully extract the corrupted disc, noticing unfamiliar tool marks around its edges. As you examine it, the spiral glyph seems to pulse faintly.

Suddenly, the Talôs's gears begin to whir! The resonance effect is fading!

“Get out now!” Chara shouts. “We must take that disc to E-Abaton—the Maintenance Labyrinth—and compare it with the master timing-tablet!”

Do you leap clear or attempt one last thing inside?