Alfie
| Playbook | The Spooky (changed from The Mundane in Session 9, embracing his curse) |
| Player | Sean |
| Notable Items | Guitar (attuned as a channel for his magic) |
| Affiliation | Independent |
Background
Travelling musician. Came to Hole for reasons of his own. Plays piano at The Randy Saloon, where he has a 10% discount on the pancake buffet and is expected to wear the house hat — he lost his when Dewey ate it.
Abilities & Items
| Item / Ability | Description |
|---|---|
| Guitar | Travelling musician's kit; waved at gunpoint when asked if it counted as a weapon; survived Session 2 intact. Repaired and attuned in Session 8 — Alfie needs a more portable instrument than a saloon piano to channel his voice magic through; the guitar is now that channel |
| Voice magic (Dire Circumstances) | First triggered unconsciously in Session 2 — singing under extreme duress, his features shifted and all the windows shattered inward. Used intentionally twice in Session 4: first, a THX-like voice burst set an algae bush alight; second, a burst of silvery flame destroyed another. A monotone voice in his head accompanies these uses ("that's it" / "very good" / "Focus" / "It's okay, boy, I'm here"). In Session 9, on his third use, Alfie reached out to the voice for help, healed, and embraced his curse — switching from The Mundane to The Spooky. In Session 10 he attempted it to shield Cuthbert (Ms March out-drew him), then generated a tidal wave that swept the whole party clear of the hot springs without hurting anyone — his first use of the power purely to de-escalate. |
| Machete | Found in Session 3 by tripping over it in the Fletchley cornfield. Kept. |
Notes & Loose Threads
- Dan Randy's house hat was eaten by Dewey; Alfie has been hatless since
- Offered himself as a hostage during the Session 2 standoff to buy the party time to leave — Hamish accepted
- Shot through the hand by the Durgins during the standoff (Session 2)
- Sang She'll Be Coming Round the Mountain in captivity; Doctor Webb sang the second verse; Richie Durgin joined in
- Became medically Unstable in Session 2 after the voice implosion shattered the windows inward (glass injuries); partially healed by Doctor Webb
- Lit Hamish's favourite banjo on fire and killed a howler with it — the banjo was destroyed
- Hit his 5th Experience mark in Session 2 — eligible to level up
- Has been running his whole life to escape something he cannot name — since his father died and his house burned down; he always flees further West when strange things happen around his voice
- Fears that whatever is following him is becoming more powerful; the gang are the first people he has met who are curious about mysterious happenings rather than fearing them
- Alfie thinks it is time to leave Hole and travel West again (Session 5)
- Mongolian Death Worms emerged from his piano at the Randy Saloon during a night all of the gang remember — Alfie is convinced this was his fault
- Knows a drunk named Puddle who shoots well — a potential recruit
- Knows working girls hire rooms on the second floor of Randy's Saloon; Ellie Mae occasionally flirts with him when it's clearly welcomed
- In Session 6, burned a Luck point to signal Belinda — the Luck trigger caused a hidden compartment in the Randy Saloon piano to spring open, revealing a concealed bottle of whiskey
- In Session 7, drank one of Ms March's four intended Hatchett whisky shots without realising they were for the gang
- Shot Retta in the stomach; she showed little fear or pain and shot him badly in return — recovered via Doctor Webb's Healing Balm
- Assisted Cuthbert's brain investigation: felt a familiar pull toward the brains but stepped back, uncertain it was safe for him specifically
- His oompah music is a known quantity in Germany; it is not a known quantity in Hole, Nevada
- In Session 8 downtime, Dan Randy gave Alfie the week off to heal; he spent it fixing and attuning his guitar as a portable channel for his powers, and wrote a song about Earl (guaranteed to infuriate Ms March whatever its tone)
- In Session 8, applied a sample of Farmswatter's Miracle Cure to his acid-stained hand — no visible fix, but the skin felt looser and more flexible; he wanted it to work immediately so he could play piano again
- Traced a rotting-meat smell to Farmswatter's waggon, spotted the eight-foot cactus through the slats, and realised he had stopped sweating — the cactus wicks away nearby moisture
- In Session 9, mistook a very tall child for Ms March and tailed the wrong pair (a woman with close-cropped hair and a child) out of the market; downed Doctor Webb's hipflask to quench his thirst
- Destroyed three of the cacti with his machete; convinced the mob that H.G. was stealing their water (everyone suddenly felt thirsty), turning the crowd against Farmswatter
- Inhaled the cacti's red mist (his mouth was open) and got euphorically high — colours brightened, people looked at him with love; Maude Webb took down her hair and danced with him. Played the Earl song in a major key to a weeping crowd, then crashed out of the high Pete-Townshend-style. The voice said "Focus."
- Went Unstable after a cactus slammed his thigh; booted a grabbing Farmswatter in the face, knocking him out cold
- Spent his second Luck point for a third Dire Circumstances: reached out to the voice, which answered "It's okay, boy, I'm here" — his wounds closed and he embraced his curse, switching playbook to The Spooky
- In Session 10 downtime, recommitted to playing the piano and became obsessed with recreating the magical music he heard in his head which healed him. Dan Randy, concerned he was working too hard, suggested he play some different tunes — so Alfie experimented with playing tunes to the rhythm of Dan declaring 'I do not sing'
- Wants to deliberately use the magic he has previously been doing accidentally — he is still hunting the specific music that healed him during the cacti fight
- Had his curse outed to the Order by Cuthbert (moments after Cuthbert objected to being outed himself as a time traveller) and covered by claiming he was not saying 'curse' but 'kartoffel' — 'potato' in German
- Supplied the magic for the resurrection ritual that reanimated H.G. Farmswatter, casting alongside Cuthbert and Jacob Johnston
- Questioned, with Doctor Webb, whether the Order should be able to play God and make decisions about events unrelated to saving the world
- At the hot springs, tried to shield Cuthbert with Dire Circumstances but Ms March was quicker and shot him first. Alfie then generated a tidal wave that swept everyone away from the spring — no one was hurt; his intention was to calm everyone down
- Told Ms March he believes Cuthbert in part because of his own curse — bad things happened to Alfie before he came to Hole and met Cuthbert. Ms March apologised to him for not telling him sooner to ignore Doctor Webb and Cuthbert
Alfie has now embraced his curse and become The Spooky. The voice — "that's it" / "very good" / "Focus" / "It's okay, boy, I'm here" — is clearer than ever and openly part of him. Whose voice is it, and what does embracing the power cost him?
Alfie's voice did something unexplained in Session 2. His features changed, windows shattered inward, air imploded around him. What is this power and where does it come from?
In Session 3, Alfie's mask slipped in the cornfield and he saw his dead father. In Session 4 he told Ms March — and later the whole group — "I saw my father and he's dead." The others now know he saw someone deceased, but who his father is and what it means remains unexplored. Is there more to this than the spore dust?
During Dire Circumstances, a monotone voice in Alfie's head says "that's it" (Session 4, second use) and "very good" (third use). What is this voice? And what is the broader nature of his power?
Alfie asked Cuthbert about exorcisms — saying they are not what the Order does. Ms March made a note to ask him why. What is Alfie's interest in exorcisms?
Alfie has been running his whole life — since his father died and his house burned down. He believes he is a danger to himself and others. What is following him? Is it connected to the events in Hole?
Session History
| Session | Key Moments |
|---|---|
| Session 1 | Played piano at the Randy Saloon; tried to cool the brawl by shifting tempo; kept his ears open at the Durgin homestead |
| Session 2 | Shot through the hand; offered himself as hostage; sang in captivity; discovered voice magic; killed a howler with a flaming banjo; hit 5th XP — eligible to level up |
| Session 3 | Halfheartedly played piano to eavesdrop; put on a full show to get off work early; asked Dan Randy if he's ever been in love; found a machete by tripping over it; lassoed by Ms March ("Whyyy?"); mask slipped in the cornfield and saw his dead father; took 1 Harm hacking a red algae mound; convinced he'd cut into his dad and dropped the machete |
| Session 4 | Doubled up bandanas; restrained Ms March and talked her down ("I saw my father and he's dead"); lightly slapped her; saw real Ms March as a faceless doppelganger; pointed machete at her; brought back by Doctor Webb's logic; knelt beside March in grief; used Dire Circumstances (THX voice, voice says "that's it") — sets 4th algae alight; killed 2nd algae; got sap on hand (Unstable, 2 Harm); used Dire Circumstances a third time (silvery flame, voice says "very good"); passed out; healed by Doctor Webb's magic balm; denied the moonshine to Bart |
| Session 5 | Tried to convince Bart to drive them back; rolled a 6 (probably offered him a song); Cuthbert's whispering made Bart suspicious; confessed at the hot springs — running his whole life since his father died and his house burned down; fears he is a danger to himself and others; warned the sheriff about the Hatchetts; supported Ms March's gaslight of O'Dougal; nearly sang when stealing the waggon; named Puddle as a potential recruit; directed Cuthbert and Earl to talk to Belinda Barnberry; arrived at the saloon to find two Hatchett gang members already there |
| Session 6 | Greeted Retta with "Guten Morgen" (alarming); played piano to distract the gang ringers; oompah music killed the room; burned a Luck point to signal Belinda — hidden piano compartment sprang open revealing whiskey; calmed Retta enough to get her out of the saloon; helped Dan Randy and Doctor Webb board up windows |
| Session 7 | Borrowed Dan Randy's shotgun; held the line behind the bar; drank one of Ms March's intended Hatchett whisky shots unknowingly; confronted Retta at gunpoint ("Du musst dich abkühlen"); shot her in the stomach; took return fire — incredibly hurt; recovered via Doctor Webb's Healing Balm; assisted Cuthbert's brain investigation with piano-hand precision ("piano hands can also be surgeon hands"); drank shots with Cuthbert after the fight; sensed a familiar pull toward Max and the hired hand's brains then stepped back |
| Session 8 | (Downtime) given the week off by Dan Randy; fixed and attuned his guitar as a portable channel for his powers; wrote a song about Earl. (Market) Finished and performed his song about Earl (Ms March said no); got a tonic sample for his acid-stained hand (skin felt looser, no visible fix); failed to draw the crowd off the stall with the Earl song (voice breaking); chugged drinks with Cuthbert to fight the thirst; smelled rotting meat, spotted the giant cactus through the waggon slats, and realised he had stopped sweating — the cactus wicks moisture |
| Session 9 | Tailed the wrong pair (a "very tall child" he took for Ms March) out of the market; downed Doctor Webb's hipflask; destroyed three cacti with his machete; convinced the mob H.G. was stealing their water; inhaled the red mist and got euphorically high; danced with Maude; played the Earl song in a major key to a weeping crowd; heard the voice say "Focus"; crashed out Pete-Townshend-style; booted Farmswatter unconscious; went Unstable; burned his second Luck point for a third Dire Circumstances — reached the voice, healed, and switched to The Spooky |
| Session 10 | (Downtime) recommitted to the piano, obsessed with recreating the healing music; experimented with tunes set to the rhythm of Dan Randy declaring 'I do not sing'. (Thursday) Visited by Doctor Webb at the saloon; had his curse outed by Cuthbert and insisted he was saying 'kartoffel'; supplied the magic for the resurrection ritual; questioned with Doctor Webb whether the Order should play God; tried to shield Cuthbert with Dire Circumstances but was beaten to the draw by Ms March; generated a tidal wave that swept everyone off the springs to calm the fight, hurting no one; told Ms March he believes Cuthbert partly because of his own curse |
| Session 11 | Feared his tidal wave had killed Cuthbert and Ms March; had Jacob's sword held to him while naked, and covered his crotch; talked timelines with Doctor Webb until the conversation ran out; mimed to a deafened Cuthbert that his colleagues were searching for him; learned the Order's secret handshake and became an officially unofficial member of The Order; covered for Ms March with 'what handshake'; got confused by timeline shenanigans |
Quotes
"Does this count as a weapon?" (waving guitar while sheltering behind Dewey)
— Session 2
"I will keep my ears open and my nose shut."
— Session 1
"Dewey, save me!"
— Session 2, diving behind Ms March's horse as the shooting started
"I have my guitar. It's not useful. It's not a long range weapon."
— Session 2
"It's not real. It's not real. I saw my father and he's dead."
— Session 4, trying to pull Ms March out of her hallucination
"If only I had a hat…"
— Session 4, wryly, after Ms March extols the virtues of hatpins
"That's mean."
— Session 4, once Bart had run off to find the spores
"I've been running most of my life to escape something — I don't know what it is — since my father died and my house burnt down."
— Session 5
"Just try not to punch him this time."
— Session 5, to Ms March before Earl's interrogation
"He delivered himself?"
— Session 8, on learning Doctor Webb has been "delivering babies since he was a baby"
"I'm young. I need it to work immediately."
— Session 8, on his acid-stained hand
"Shizer!"
— Session 9, on realising he'd tailed a stranger and a very tall child
"Other Webb, other Webb! The cacti! The cacti!"
— Session 9, unable to remember Buck and Colt's names
"Kartoffel."
— Session 10, insisting to the Order that he had not said 'curse'
"Are you hungry?"
— Session 11, to Doctor Webb, after the timeline conversation ran out
"What handshake?"
— Session 11, loyally, when Ms March later mentioned handshakes