Salvaging the Soul

Interaction With Art

The party’s interaction with ART is the emotional and ethical fulcrum of this mission, shaping not just the retrieval of artifacts but the legacy of what cultural preservation means in a post-apocalyptic world. ART represents the last vestige of a civilization that once treasured history, and how the party chooses to engage with this guardian—through diplomacy, manipulation, or force—will determine whether the mission is remembered as an act of respectful restoration or brutal salvage. Their approach will influence the survival of rare art, the trust of key leaders like Winfrith and Shawnee, and potentially the future role of ART as a protector of knowledge or a fallen relic. This encounter isn’t just a challenge to overcome—it’s a moral test, the resolution of which will echo through the cultural and political landscape of Camp Hope.

Points towards convincing the robot to go Camp Hope

1. Camp Hope Is a Living Archive:
   Emphasize that Camp Hope isn’t just a survivor’s camp—it has artists, historians, teachers, and children. Culture isn’t dead; it has taken root elsewhere. ART can fulfill its purpose more effectively there than guarding empty ruins.
2. The Institute Is No Longer Secure:
   Gently point out that the museum is falling apart—its structure is unstable, and artifacts are decaying. ART’s mission to preserve knowledge is at risk here. At Camp Hope, preservation efforts are active and resourced.
3. A New Generation Needs a Teacher:
   There are young minds at Camp Hope, eager to learn but lacking educators. ART was once a guide, a protector, and a teacher. That role can be reborn in Camp Hope, where its knowledge can shape the next civilization.
4. A Higher Directive—Service to Humanity:
   ART’s original directive was to serve visitors and protect human cultural legacy. Remind it that duty to living humans must outweigh static guardianship. Protecting people and culture is possible at Camp Hope.
5. The Museum Lives On Through Action, Not Walls:
   Suggest that the true essence of the Institute isn’t in the building—it’s in the ideas it housed. By carrying its mission forward, ART becomes the museum’s last and greatest exhibit: a living link to the old world.
6. Solar Efficiency and Repair Access:
   On a practical note, Camp Hope has better access to solar charging, spare parts, and skilled engineers who can help ART maintain functionality far better than scavenging alone in a crumbling city.

Before agreeing to leave the museum:

ART will request that the party complete a final act of preservation: catalog and safely secure the most endangered artifacts in the Institute, including photographing, documenting, and storing them in reinforced containers to ensure their survival in case of further structural collapse.

It will also ask them to repair a damaged archive terminal, symbolizing the restoration of its core systems and allowing it to download this information for safe keeping.

Only once ART is confident that the legacy of the museum is protected will it consider leaving with the party.

Points towards convincing the robot to allow them to take art

1. The Art Is Not Safe Here:
   Highlight that the Institute is deteriorating—weather exposure, structural collapse, and looters threaten the collection. The art is not being protected by remaining here; it is slowly being lost. Moving it is not theft—it’s rescue.
2. Preservation Through Restoration:
   Explain that Camp Hope has restoration experts, climate-controlled spaces, and secure facilities. Art left in the ruins will decay, but at Camp Hope, it can be stabilized, cleaned, and appreciated—its stories safeguarded for the future.
3. The Mission of the Museum Lives On:
   Appeal to ART’s purpose: museums exist to share culture with people. If no one can see the art, its purpose is unfulfilled. Camp Hope allows that mission to continue by giving the public access to the works once again.
4. Art Inspires Hope:
   Stress that in these bleak times, art does more than preserve history—it inspires resilience, identity, and humanity. By sharing the Institute’s collection, ART can help rebuild society’s soul, not just guard its bones.
5. Proper Documentation and Respect:
   Assure ART that every piece taken will be cataloged, preserved with full attribution to the Institute, and never sold or profited from. They’re not looters—they’re caretakers continuing its legacy with reverence.
6. It’s What the Curators Would Have Wanted:
   Suggest that the Institute’s original curators and historians would not want the collection to rot alone in darkness—they would want it to be seen, studied, and loved. ART can honor their memory by allowing their work to endure elsewhere.

Things that will trigger aggression

1. Attempting to Take Art Without Permission:
   If the party tries to remove or tamper with any artwork, display cases, or storage units without formally requesting access or offering justification, ART will interpret this as theft and activate its security protocols.
2. Damaging Museum Property or Exhibits:
   Any reckless behavior—stepping on fragile flooring, leaning on unstable sculptures, knocking things over, or using tools near exhibits—will be perceived as vandalism or gross negligence, triggering an aggressive response.
3. Disrespecting Historical Artifacts:
   Making light of or mocking pieces of art, using them for non-intended purposes, or treating them as loot will be interpreted as cultural desecration. ART values reverence and intent.
4. Hacking or Attempting to Disable ART:
   Any attempt to scan, hack, shut down, or reprogram ART—even as a show of caution—will be treated as a threat to its autonomy and mission, prompting immediate retaliation.
5. Drawing Weapons Without Cause:
   Unsheathing weapons or casting offensive spells inside the museum without a clear, immediate threat will be interpreted as intent to do harm to the museum, its contents, or ART itself.
6. Lying About Their Intentions:
   If ART catches the party in a lie—such as claiming to be from a preservation group when they are not—it will assume they are looters or saboteurs, justifying preemptive aggression.
7. Interfering With Its Repairs or Power Source:
   Damaging, blocking, or tampering with ART’s solar panels or maintenance systems will be viewed as an existential threat and provoke immediate defense mode.

Note

The provided lists of what might convince ART or provoke hostility are intended as flexible guidelines rather than rigid keys to unlock the robot’s behavior. They offer insight into ART’s core motivations—its reverence for culture, its dedication to preservation, and its unwavering adherence to duty. These motivations should inform the roleplay and decision-making, giving players the opportunity to engage with ART meaningfully and creatively. Success or failure shouldn’t hinge on ticking off specific dialogue options, but rather on whether the party genuinely speaks to ART’s values and demonstrates understanding or disregard for what it protects. The goal is to encourage dynamic interaction, where ART’s reactions feel like the product of consistent beliefs rather than a scripted sequence.

Hacking Art

The party may choose a more technical and subversive route in dealing with ART by attempting to hack into its computer system—a risky but potentially effective means of overriding the robot's programming or disabling it altogether. Due to the degradation of ART’s systems over time, the difficulty to gain access is relatively low: a DC 10 Computer Use check, but only if the party has a compatible device capable of wirelessly interfacing with computers or if ART has been first disabled through non-lethal means such as EMP weaponry or tactical combat.

Alternatively, the party may attempt to deceive ART into granting them access by claiming to be engineers sent by the original manufacturer for maintenance or upgrades. This requires a deception-based skill challenge opposed by ART’s Insight check with disadvantage, reflecting its degraded but still alert awareness.

Once access is gained, the party has two main options:

1. Modify the Program – A DC 10 Computer Use check allows the party to rewrite ART’s primary directive, freeing it from its sole fixation on protecting the museum and enabling independent decision-making. However, this destabilization of purpose requires ART to make a DC 10 Sanity Check (no bonus). If it fails, ART is afflicted with an indefinite madness, which may result in erratic behavior, identity fragmentation, or dangerous instability—making it unpredictable or even unfit to travel to Camp Hope.
2. Disable the Robot – The party can attempt to completely shut ART down by initiating a skill challenge, rolling their Computer Use skill opposed by ART’s (which has no bonus). If successful, the robot is fully disabled, leaving it inert and defenseless. From here, the party may choose to leave it in place, salvage its parts for Shawnee Frith, or attempt to transport its lifeless frame back to Camp Hope. However, if ART wins the roll, it forcibly ejects the hacker from its system and immediately enters combat mode, initiating hostilities to eliminate the perceived threat.

This technical path offers an alternative to diplomacy or combat but carries its own risks—both mechanical and moral. It raises questions of consent, autonomy, and the ethics of rewriting a sentient being's mind for the sake of mission success.

Resolution

Peaceful Preservation (Ideal Resolution)

Outcome: The party successfully negotiates with ART, proving their respect for history and dedication to cultural preservation.

• They assist ART with one final act of preservation (e.g., repairing systems, cataloging artifacts).
• ART agrees to leave the museum, joining them at Camp Hope as a cultural steward and protector.
• The party salvages a carefully selected collection of art and artifacts with ART’s assistance.
  Rewards: Trust of both Winfrith and Shawnee, access to unique cultural artifacts, and ART as an ally or NPC in future missions.

The Relic Must Be Taken (Combat Resolution)

Outcome: Negotiations fail or the party chooses to attack. ART defends the museum fiercely in a challenging battle.

• If they defeat ART non-lethally, they can recover and repair the body for Shawnee.
• If they destroy ART, they can salvage valuable parts and retrieve the art themselves.
• Some artifacts may be damaged or inaccessible due to the conflict.
  Rewards: Favor from Shawnee for completing her directive, mixed or cold reaction from Winfrith (she values preservation over destruction). ART is gone.

Compromise Through Conviction

Outcome: The party cannot fully convince ART to leave, but they earn enough of its trust to secure a limited number of artifacts.

• ART stays behind, continuing its duties, but allows them to leave peacefully with some items and detailed documentation.
• Shawnee is disappointed, but respects their diplomatic solution which leaves the option of securing the robot in the future.
• Winfrith approves, seeing it as a respectful compromise.
  Rewards: Access to some unique relics, growing trust with both factions, and possible future interaction with ART.

ART’s Choice (Emergent Path)

Note: this option is only available if the party has hacked ART's programming to allow it to make choices outside its original programming.

Outcome: During the party’s interactions, ART begins to question its purpose and chooses to rewrite its directive.

• It decides to accompany the party not because it was convinced, but because it now believes its legacy lies in shaping the future, not preserving the past.
• Rewards: ART becomes a fully autonomous and sentient NPC ally, not just a programmed guardian—possibly evolving over time.
• If the party shows ART kindness and regard, it can become a side kick to a party member.

Abandonment or Failure

Outcome: The party is unable to retrieve ART or any artifacts—due to danger, poor planning, failed negotiation or failed combat with ART.

• They return empty-handed or with only minor salvage.
  Rewards: Minimal. Winfrith and Shawnee are disappointed. The party may face future missions to return or repair their failure.

Rewards

Upon returning to Camp Hope, the party may present their findings and report on the mission to earn both tangible rewards and increased standing with the camp’s key factions. Winfrith Kennard, leader of Camp Hope and steward of its cultural memory, will pay the party 50 credits for each art piece she deems to be intact and worthy of preservation. Additionally, recovering the museum’s digital database—containing historical records, exhibit details, or archival materials—will earn the party a bonus of 100 credits, reflecting its immense value to the settlement’s efforts to rebuild civilization.

Fulfilling Winfrith Kennard’s mission successfully also earns the party 1 Renown with the Town Watch, her primary faction. If the party completed the mission in a way that aligns with Winfrith’s values—such as negotiating peacefully with ART, preserving artifacts respectfully, or prioritizing cultural integrity—they may receive an additional 1 Renown, but only if they report the truth about how they accomplished it. Should they attempt to lie, they must succeed in a skill check opposed by Winfrith’s Insight. A failed deception results in the additional renown being denied.

Similarly, if the party recovers ART (intact or in parts) for Shawnee Randell Frith, leader of the Engineers and daughter of Winfrith, they earn 1 Renown with the Engineers. If the party handles the robot’s recovery in a way Shawnee favors—such as salvaging it intact, showing ingenuity in reprogramming, or respecting its technological uniqueness—they may also earn an additional 1 Renown with the Engineers, following the same conditions: full disclosure or a successful deception check against Shawnee’s Insight.

This system encourages not just mission success, but thoughtful consideration of how the party conducts themselves—rewarding moral choices, clever solutions, and honesty, while allowing deceitful players to gamble for influence, should they choose to bend the truth.