A Perfect Wife afterward

There’ll be the usual January newsletter soon (though likely sparser), but this week I ran my last session of Zedeck Siew’s A Perfect Wife. It was one of the best TTRPG experiences I’ve had, period! I think the book is written and laid out in a way that makes prep minimal and the narrative rich. I would suggest reading the zine several times over to piece everything together ahead of time, but I can’t say enough good things about the simple system and connected adventure inside the book.

The players were given characters from the book, and allowed to roll stats, choose a name, and develop the character based on the short bit of info given. The characters in the zine have the following:

• How they know Sara (the main character)

• Their role (e.g. journalist, security consultant)

• Their skills (things like “locks” and “bargaining,” skills which also inform their inventory)

I found this plenty to work with, as did my players. There’s enough room to make the character your own, while being able to easily jump in with someone who fits into the world. I haven’t touched on the artwork, which blew me away (the banner image here is by Scrap Princess). All in all, this release is well worth the price of admission, in my opinion.

Below, you’ll find recaps from the 2 sessions we spent playing through the scenario.

A PERFECT WIFE
Session #1
Date: 12/15/2025
Location: Desa Damai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Pre-Game Jam: Ella - Ulek Mayang

THE GROUP:
Whitney Layman (she/her), Journalist [Tammar]
Canopy (she/her), Social Worker [Elle]
Axel Grindstone (he/him), Security Consultant [Jamie]
July Johnson (he/him), Faith Healer [Robert]

The scene opens at the Peaceful Heart Community Center, where a group of tourists and expats have been called to meet a woman named Sara. They all know her through different means, and only Whitney and Canopy have a slight connection, having met at Canopy's fundraiser a month or so back. July arrives first [rolled a 1d4 to determine who] and is greeted by a child named YinYin, who asks if they want to do a singalong. She's happy to, but is soon interrupted by Sara.

As they greet one another, the others trickle in, the group eyeing one another and wondering what it could all be about. Sara tells them YinYin's father, Tet, has gone missing. The authorities don't care, but Sara does. She's offering double your month's normal wages to help her. July in particular is confused as to why they've been called, but Sara assures him that his spiritual expertise may be needed.

The group gather as much info as they can from Sara before briefly talking to YinYin, and getting a description of her father. They promise her that they'll find him [:'''''''(]. Whitney asks to take both their photos on her polaroid, and they agree [the player does this for most NPCs which has been a cool way to provide the real world handouts I made of the NPCs].

They decide heading to the last place he was spotted, Zaya Trading, is their best place to start. On their way over, they're stopped and hassled by some black-bands, but after Axel casually reveals their holstered pistol, they're left alone to pass. They make it to Zaya and strike up a conversation with Uncle Yat, being straightforward about their reasons for showing up.

Uncle Yat jokes with them a bit, letting loose his past as a rebel. He also reveals that Tet was in the shop around 2 Saturdays ago (like YinYin said), but he left with a pretty woman who he thinks worked at the Goddess of Fortune Club. They buy some cigarettes, a bottle of rum, and when Uncle Yat finds out who Canopy is, insists on them taking some sunflower seeds "on the house." With snacks and a new lead, the group get back in Axel's car to head to the club.

Upon arriving, they're told by a guard that not only is the club not open, but they're not gonna be able to talk to Uncle Day -- he doesn't talk to just anyone. The group press him though, and after mentioning Tet's daughter, he agrees to go at least pass along their message. He comes back up shortly after and tells them the boss will give them a brief audience... but not until 6pm, an hour before sunsets and the club opens. With a couple of hours to burn, the group split up. Whitney and Canopy make the walk over to the Thieves Bazaar, while Axel and July grab food across the street to see if anyone interesting happens to enter the club.

It's not long until they spot someone with an odd beard and slicked over hair conversing with the guard. He heads in briefly then leaves again, and to their surprise comes into the restaurant. Apparently, he's a regular and as he gets comfortable and takes out a notebook, July saunters over to play the "drunk and crazy" card. During the distraction, Axel heads over to "handle his friend" and notices the number for Dr. Azman on the detective's phone [having worked for Dr. Azman before per their character background]. He also sees mention of Sara in the notebook. They apologize profusely and then leave to talk things through with July outside, unsure why this PI is looking into Sara for her husband.

In the meantime, Whitney and Canopy make their way to the Thieves Bazaar. On the walk, they find a strange crumpled flyer that catches their eye. It simply says "BROTHER PHA" and has a cartoon monk pouring oil on a ghost. They decide to put that in their back pocket (figuratively and literally) and continue on. At the bazaar, they quickly find Auntie Rose. The folks here are just getting set up, but she's happy to make some early sales to what she thinks are tourists.

There's a good deal of haggling once Auntie Rose realizes they're more interested in information. She ends up selling the dagger, water gun AND panda pendant, as well as revealing where she found it. This clues them into the fact he must live in the Mighty Tower [this may have been on me for not delivering this info initially]. The duo travel back to the club for the meeting with their new goods.

At the club, they're led to a backroom with velvet furniture and Uncle Day, the Boss. July notices the chicken bone in his mouth and the plate on the table, realizing it's purpose and determining Day must be superstitious. Bonding over their shared role in the rebellion, and his light friendship with Tet/sympathy for YinYin, he tells them a bit more than they expect. They rule out the woman being someone who worked at the club, and are told they can talk to "the one who takes care of the girls, Hla." They do, and Hla confirms much the same story, and provides Tet's apartment number, 1405.

They depart the club, and start walking back to Axel's car through a shortcut alley, when they hear a cry from behind a pile of boxes. Everyone says "hell no" and starts booking it, Whitney taking a photo as she runs past the boxes. By the time they all reach the end of the alley the crying has picked up in a nearby trashcan, but all of them resist stopping or investigating. As they stumble into the main thoroughfare again, the crying stops abruptly and the din of the city picks back up with a whoosh. Whitney looks down at the photo and sees a baby with a clawed hand coming out of their stomach: what. the. fuck.

At the Mighty Tower, the group see only one elevator is working, and notice a brown stain on the ceiling, taking note of both, but cautiously heading up to the 14th floor. There, they do a little light breaking and entering to search Tet's apartment. Frustratingly, there's not much new info gleaned from the search. While Canopy keeps watch by the hallway, a nosy old woman ambles up and starts asking them questions. She tells them Tet was always up to no good, drinking and hanging out with women, before moving into a list of various petty grievances. However, in her rambling she mentions a friend of Tet's lives just one floor down in apartment 1303.

They go down and knock a few times before hearing a voice tell them to go away from inside. After playing the sympathy card around YinYin, the door is cracked (the chain lock still on), and a face appears. She's Khin, a friend of Tet's, who tells them of the last time she saw him. He was on his way over to "borrow" her apartment for a date. She begrudgingly obliged, and began to head out to stay the night elsewhere. As the elevator opened to the lobby she saw a demon, kneading his guts. The demon winked at her as the elevator doors closed.

She says the police must have come and taken the body, but it was likely unidentifiable from what she saw. Khin refuses to come out, and claims she hasn't left the apartment since the incident. Despite the group's encouragement, they can't change her mind. However, they feel they've done the job Sara asked them to do. Conveying this will be another matter.

The group make their way back to their various lodgings for the night, agreeing to meet in the morning and make a plan to move forward. As Axel dozes off [I told the player this was happening to their character, only telling them it was a dream when they woke up], he dreams. A beautiful woman broken down on the side of the road beckons him. Against his better judgement, he follows her into an alley. The urge to grab her takes him, and as he holds her arm, her head twists around behind her back and smiles. A clawed hand bursts into his chest before he wakes up in a cold sweat, back in his hotel.

How will the group tell Sara what happened to Tet? And why was Dr. Azman having Sara followed?

[END OF PART 1]

A PERFECT WIFE
Session #2
Date: 1/5/2025
Location: Desa Damai, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Pre-Game Jam: Peggy Lee - "Me and My Shadow"

THE GROUP:
Whitney Layman (she/her), Journalist [Tammar]
Canopy (she/her), Social Worker [Elle]
Axel Grindstone (he/him), Security Consultant [Jamie]
July Johnson (he/him), Faith Healer [Robert]
Magnum Sardine (he/him), Private Investigator [Travis]

The group awake early the next morning as the sweltering sun begins to bake their motel rooms. They've seemingly "solved" the case: Tet was killed by some sort of demon. So, how will they tell Sara? What will they do about the nightmare stalking the streets of Desa Damai? And what to make of the PI following Sara?

As they group together in the lobby, they find a small man with appropriately tiny glasses waiting for them. He introduces himself as a private detective by the name of Magnum Sardine, and tells them he was ALSO hired by Sara; just in case the crew isn't up to the task. While he hasn't gathered much more information yet, he does reveal the other PI is named Syazalee.

They all agree it's time to go talk to Sara. Since it's a Friday, they know she's not at the community center, but rather at her home in one of the city's oldest suburbs. After snaking through a road, winding between gated communities and golf courses, they arrive finally at Sara's place. There's a large wall around the home, and two guards armed with SMGs wait outside the gate.

Axel tells the guard who approaches that they're here to see Sara, and Magnum pipes up to say HE is here to see Dr. Azman, Sara's husband. The guard steps away to confer with someone over a walkie talkie before letting them through. As they drive up to the house, the gate is closed behind them and one of the guards follows to escort them.

Stepping from the house they see Dr. Azman with a bodyguard at his side. He is suspicious, having no idea who any of them are. When they say they're here to see Sara, he becomes condescending, and when Sara stumbles up behind him, he agrees that they can all talk over tea.

They're ushered through the house, full of expensive artwork and fine furniture, into a back courtyard inside a lush garden. The thing that catches most of their eyes is a single banana stem inside a human sized urn, it's trunk wrapped in black thread. They also take note of the vial around Dr. Azman's neck. It's only moments before Sara steps out to join them at the courtyard table.

She seems a bit disoriented, but some recollection creeps through as they explain to Dr. Azman they were hired to track down the father of one of the children at the community center. At this, Dr. Azman rolls his eyes. "Another one of Sara's pet projects, great!" Magnum chimes in that his reason for coming was to meet Dr. Azman and learn about his garden. The flattery works, and Magnum directs them away from the group to discuss the banana plant.

During this brief window, the group dumps everything they've learned to Sara, including that she is being followed by her husband. Surprisingly, she doesn't seem especially phased or interested. They also take note of the fact she seems to keep touching her neck, covered by a headscarf. Before they can press her, Dr. Azman and Magnum return to the table. The Doctor says he'll pay them whatever Sara promised, and leaves to go get his checkbook. The crew spring into action.

Whitney fakes a bathroom emergency to pull in Sara and "accidentally" yanks her headscarf off, revealing a nail driven into their neck. During the commotion, Magnum slips off to unlock a window in the study so they can return later. Dr. Azman has had plenty of their shit, and seems to disbelieve that Whitney is actually ill. Fortunately for her, a successful check allows her to vomit all over his shoes, confirming her story. They're all escorted out by the guards after being paid. On the way out, Axel gathers that the guards are given the weekend off... once every fortnight.

With the knowledge that the demon will likely kill again this weekend, and all they've learned at Sara's house, they decide they need to act. Canopy, Whitney and July go to Lady Nymee's statute, where they chat with a woman (through a translator) who offers a deal to ONE of them. July takes it: all of his money for a blessing allowing him to make a deal with one creature, granted the deal does not directly benefit him. Magnum and Axel head off to track down "Nong" / Syazalee.

Eventually, the duo find him at a local bar by himself. They saunter up and try to strongarm him, but when Axel flashes his gun, Syazalee freaks, pulling his OWN gun and making a run for it. They pursue and are able to corner him. He explains that YES he was hired by Dr. Azman to track Sara. He's distrusting and wants to make sure she's "staying modest."

After they all regroup, they make a plan to return to the house. By now, the sun has begun to set as they make their way back to the house. As expected, there are no guards, so they scale the wall and cautiously approach the house. July slips in the window he left open, hearing the sound of a record player in the den. He sneaks to the front door and lets the rest of the group in. Whitney makes sure to take photos and video as they move in.

Dr. Azman hears them, and is furious. July uses this chance to make his deal: "We won't kill you if you stop your control of this woman." He's obliged to go along with it, but his smirk suggests there's something the crew have missed. Sara comes up, Dr. Azman removes the nail, and all hell breaks loose as she begins to turn into the Pontianak and lashes out at the men of the group, Axel, July and Magnum. One of the crew snatch Azman's necklace and stomp on it, destroying the protective charm.

Shots ring out as they try to fend the Pontianak off, but it's not enough yet. She leaps onto Magnum and begins tearing his chest open. The last thing Magnum sees is her smile as her hand plunges into his stomach. Dr. Azman, thrown to the side, is her next target and she makes quick work of his unconscious body before turning back to the remaining dudes. Axel is slashed open (taking 6 dmg over his HP), but the blessing he received means the wounds stay closed (while the chicken bone remains in his mouth). Before she can kill another of them, they're able to take her down. They watch as her spirit rises from the body and begins floating back into the banana plant.

Whitney, leaving nothing to chance, runs to the backyard and sets the garden alight. As the flames grow, the Pontianak's screams ring out, and more than one of the group question whether killing her was the right thing to do. Still, the group flee from the house and decide they need to get Axel to a hospital ASAP, flooring it to the nearest ER.

We flash forward to July, Whitney and Canopy in a waiting room, being interrogated by the police, but refusing to leave until they hear how Axel did with the surgery. A successful roll meant Axel was able to be saved, though barely, and with a long recovery. In the long term, the police are unable to pin any of the deaths or fire on the group. The supernatural killings in the streets of Desa Demai have ended, and for that they have the respect of a few locals. We end with Whitney and Canopy wondering if they ultimately helped "Sara," and if killing the Pontianak was the right thing to do.