Hiding in Plain Sight (A Zoo Mafia TTRPG adventure)
A Daylight Zoo Mafia Adventure About Not Getting Seen
Most jobs in Zoo Mafia, our indie animal mafia tabletop RPG, happen at night—when the gates are locked, the humans are gone, and the zoo belongs to its real owners.
This one doesn’t.
“Hiding in Plain Sight” is a Zoo Mafia adventure built entirely around the most important rule every animal knows instinctively:
If the humans realize something’s wrong, it’s already over.
This is a daylight heist where the greatest danger isn’t violence, failure, or even getting caught.
It’s being noticed.
The Job
Mickey the Mole needs a favor—and it can’t wait until sunset.
A shipment of black-market peanut rum is hidden inside a crate marked “Paper Products” in a zoo service area. At the end of the day, the crate will be logged, inventoried, and removed. If it’s still there, the rum is gone for good.
The crew has one option:
Move the crate during visiting hours.
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No shootouts
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No shouting
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No clever speeches
Just animals doing what animals do…
while committing a crime.
The Stakes
If the crew succeeds:
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Mickey stays solvent
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A valuable supply line remains intact
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The crew earns serious underworld trust
If they fail:
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The booze is lost
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Keepers start asking questions
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Rumors spread about “odd animal behavior”
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The zoo becomes tighter, quieter, and far more dangerous
The worst possible outcome isn’t arrest.
It’s attention.
Running the Adventure
This scenario works best as a slow-burn tension piece. Every second the crew is visible is a risk. Every clever plan risks looking too clever.
Act I: The Zoo Is Awake
The zoo opens. Families pour in. Cameras click. Docents talk too loudly.
The crate sits in a service corridor near public walkways—close enough to be seen, not close enough to touch. Yet.
Mickey’s instructions are simple:
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Move the crate
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Make it disappear
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Leave nothing strange behind
The crew’s first challenge is figuring out how to exist in daylight without breaking character.
Act II: Acting Natural Is Hard
This job isn’t about speed.
It’s about timing.
Players must:
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Wait for crowds to thin
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Exploit feeding schedules
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Move only when humans expect movement
Frame every action around one question:
“Would a normal animal do this?”
This is where Zoo Mafia shines.
A raccoon rummaging where raccoons rummage.
A bird fluttering loudly to draw attention elsewhere.
A reptile basking motionless while watching everything.
The more the crew leans into believable animal behavior, the safer they are.
Act III: The Crate Problem
Eventually, someone has to touch the crate.
This is the danger point.
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Moving it too directly looks wrong
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Moving it too slowly invites scrutiny
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Leaving marks, noise, or a trail raises questions
Encourage:
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Indirect movement
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“Accidental” messes
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Environmental chaos as cover
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Other animals acting as unwitting distractions
Let players feel the pressure of waiting…
and waiting…
until the exact right moment.
Act IV: Humans Close In
As the day wears on:
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A keeper double-checks inventory
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A visitor leans on the wrong railing
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A supervisor decides to “tidy up early”
Now the crew must decide:
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Make a bold move?
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Abandon part of the cargo?
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Frame the disappearance as human error?
No roll is about success alone.
Every roll answers:
“How noticeable was that?”
Act V: End of Day
The zoo closes. The gates lock.
If the crate is gone and nothing feels off, the job is a clean success.
If something feels wrong—even without proof—the zoo changes:
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More patrols
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Less freedom
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A creeping sense of being watched
Mickey pays either way…
but his tone tells the real story.
Why This Adventure Works
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Reinforces Zoo Mafia’s day/night duality
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Makes humans the primary threat
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Rewards restraint over violence
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Forces players to trust the fiction
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Teaches the game through tension, not rules
This job doesn’t ask:
“Can you pull off the heist?”
It asks:
“Can you do it without anyone realizing it happened?”
That’s real Zoo Mafia.
The Quietest Crimes Are the Ones That Last
If you are a fan of Zoo Mafia and want to be notified when we go live on Kickstarter make sure you head over to the follow page to get notified. If you want to be on the newsletter to get all the details as we release them you can sign up here.
Because in Zoo Mafia, the loud jobs get remembered.
The quiet ones reshape the zoo.
Thanks for reading.
Until next time — Stay Nerdy!!
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