Planitronics Penetration, OOC thread Options

[Thomas]

[Ol' Scratch]

Game Format: So far it's been working just fine for me. All of it has been pretty standard in online games in my experience. My only grief is the choice of colors you used for various actions; they burn! Burn!!! I understand your preference for wanting to use them to help avoid missing anything important, but I've always preferred just regular text and having players mention if something was overlooked. Minor gaffes are far superior to bleeding eyeballs. (Something to consider for future games, perhaps!)

GM Railroading: As long as we get to derail you on a regular basis, I'm cool with you making safe assumptions when necessary. Now if said assumptions are things like "Bel voluntarily jumps into the gaping maw of Lowfyr because he always wondered if he was, in fact, crunchy and tasty with ketchup," I might have a slight problem with that. Otherwise I'm totally kosher.

Signal-to-Noise: If the IC thread stays on tract, I'm obviously cool with the OOC one being a place to shoot the breeze as well as discuss the rules and other information as it comes up. Part of the fun of RPGs is that they're a means of interacting with other players; sort of defeats the point when it's all "business only." :D

Post Detail: Everything seems fine here, too. Get the main point across and have fun with all the little stuff, I say!

Flirting with Scope: Back off my Kool-Aid, bish! I called dibs! <quietly hides from Saqqara>

[Scope_47]

[Ol' Scratch]

[Thomas]

[Scope_47]

[Ol' Scratch]

[Tarantula]

OOC part for Gyre's arrival.

Appearance: Gyre will be wearing his best suit. This means its worth about 500Â¥, and while not the best in the world, is a might bit better than having no suit at all. Its dark navy blue, cut in a fashionable style, with nothing fancy about it. Black dress shoes, black socks, black belt... Gyre knows enough about fashion to match those to the same color.

Gear: Hes got his biomonitor wristband on, connected to his mighty MetaLink commlink. The commlink resides on his belt, and he uses it much like a PDA. He has a stim patch(6) in his inner left breast pocket, and is otherwise unencumbered.
He brings his lined coat (nonconductive 6, shock frills, helmet), survival kit, goggles (LL, FC, IL, SL), gas mask, flashlight, and medkit in his mercury comet. The coat is in the trunk, and the goggles are in the glove compartment. His remaining 3 stim patches(all 6 also) are kept within his medkit. The rest of his gear is remaining at his doss.

Commlink: MetaLink running Vector Xim OS. (Res1, Sig2, Fire6, Sys1). Running Fake Sin (4) Anthony Jones. Passive mode. His profile, is the default one, something like.
UserName: User
Sex: Please select
Personal: Please write 1-2 paragraphs about yourself so other people can learn a little bit about you when they view your profile.

Park the car at the nearest available parking (that doesn't cost too much) and walk to the restaurant with expecting to arrive at 10:50.

[Scope_47]

[Saqqara]

@Scope_47: I honestly don't know.

Just wanted to let everyone know I've resigned Garrett from the game as I've had a major turn of events in my life right now and don't know that I can dedicate that much time to being as creative with him as I would have hoped. Was nice meeting you all, if even for a brief period of time.

Enjoy your game.

[Scope_47]

[Thomas]

@Saqqara – Sorry to see you go – Real Life can be a heartless master. (but there are such wonderful rewards…) Drop by and say hi when/if you get the chance.

As for Garrett, Otis tells him that their mutual aquantince has a rat problem in Portland that really, urgently, needs to be taken care of – or else the family will need to get another exterminator.

[Thomas]

@Scope_47 –

[Ol' Scratch]

Here's the final stats for my bound spirit, Brown Tom.

[ Spoiler ]

Brown Tom
Bound Great-Form Guardian Spirit: Leprechaun (Force 5)

B A R S C I L W E E M I/IP
7 8 9 8 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 11/2
Astral INIT/IP: 12/3
Reach: 2 (his shillelagh fights nearby with a mind of its own, extending his Reach)
Movement: 15/40
Skills: Assensing, Astral Combat, Blades, Clubs, Counterspelling, Dodge, Exotic Ranged, Perception, Unarmed Combat
Powers [LOS(A)]: Astral Form, Fear, Guard, Magical Guard, Materialization, Movement, Sapience
Optional Powers: Concealment, Elemental Attack: Light (rainbow power!), Endowment
Special: Weilds a shillelagh (no stats), +6 dice to resist Banishing attempts
Remaining Services: 6

[Scope_47]

[Vegas]

Sorry this took so much longer than expected... too much "real life" getting in the way and being messy by demanding time I wanted to spend on gaming :D

Appearance: Willow is dressed as if she could assume the hostess duties at an upscale Chinese restaurant should the meet go south. Long, thick jet black hair is upswept into a formal yet slightly “messy� topknot, secured firmly in place by a pair of ornate black lacquer chopsticks with silver accents. Her skin is pale and smooth like porcelain, a soft blush is apparent on her cheeks and pale green eyes are framed with long black lashes. Full lips are stained a subtle and glossy berry colour. A glint of silver around her neck shows a thin silver snake chain and suspended from it is a silver charm, the Mandarin character for “mystery.� A traditionally cut Thai silk jacket fits close to her body and the pale cream fabric is embroidered with an Asian floral pattern in subtle gold threads that catch the light as she moves. Beneath the coat is pair of wide-legged black pants complete with an open flare at mid-calf that are accented with black silk buttons. A pair of sensible, chunky-heeled black shoes complete the outfit. She carries an averaged sized cream silk purse that both matches the outfit as well as comfortably holds all her personal items and gear.

Gear: Green contacts loaded with image link, flare comp and vision magnification. Earbuds with audio enhancement 3, spatial recognizer and select sound filter 3. In her purse along side a face powder compact, eyeliner and a berry pink lipgloss is a rating 6 white noise generator. All other gear will be left at home as per Jean’s request and the near proximity of the restaurant to her apartment.

Commlink Hardware/Software: Transys Avalon (4/4) with a modified Novatech Navi OS (5/5). Software loaded: Agent (R4, a.k.a. Sakura on watch for intrusions with the instruction to alert Willow of the intruder’s presence as well as attempt to isolate the attack and if that fails, secure or reboot the commlink), Analyze R4, Browse R4, Encrypt R4 and Reality Filter R4. Only Reality Filter, Agent and Encrypt are actively running when she enters the restaurant. Also accessible via storage memory are a couple of the latest Asian-Fusion cuisine cookbooks as well as a new book on the art of Fung Shui.

Commlink SIN/Mode: Passive Mode, Fake SIN loaded lists her identity as “An Mei-zhen�. The identity lists her as a student at the University of Seattle studying electronics.
User Name: Ch3rryBl0ss0m

She’ll stay up in the safety and security of her apartment with her eyes watching the immediate area around the neighborhood (as well as the Five Kings if it is visible from her windows) until about 15 minutes before the meet. She’ll then head down and take a brisk walk over to the restaurant itself, arriving just a few minutes before the scheduled meet time.

[Redjack]

This game seems to have hit a big slowdown.. :(
I'm ready to start the meet if we'd like.. or if you are expecting more from me before it starts let me know.

[Ol' Scratch]

Aye, I'm looking forward to continuing myself. :)

[Redjack]

[Thomas]

Act I, Scene II(b)
GM note to players: I’m railroading a bit here, but there’s really only two ways for this to go down – one way moves the story ahead, down the other path lays madness.

As you approach the entrance of the Five Kings the doorwoman smiles at you. “Welcome to Five Kings. Name?� she asks.

Option A: You manage to blurt out something about Thompson. After she says; “Of course, and your name is…?� you wisely give the only name Jean Benson knows you by.

Option B: You give her the name your comm. is sending. After she says “I’m sorry, we don’t have a reservation in that name, are you someone’s guest?� you figure out what is expected of you. See Option A.

Option Z: Frustrated by her question and answer routine, you pull your pistol and shoot her in the face!

A and B results:

[ Spoiler ]

The words barely have time to exit your mouth as you hear the muted “thunk� of locking bolts, and the large, brown wood-grained door begins to open. The doorwoman smiles at you again, and wishes you a pleasant meal.

Z results:

[ Spoiler ]

You barely have time to appreciate the artistic spray of blood and gore across the white stucco wall as the cleverly concealed nozzles in the framework supporting the canopy begin squirting a mixture of gamma-scoplamine, DSMO and FreezeFoam into the area…
When you wake up you find yourself in a bare holding cell. The only other occupant is a Troll named Bubba.

Continuing:
It takes a moment for your eyes to adjust to the lighting as the massive wood-grained plasteel door closes behind you. The WiFi and AR ‘noise’ from the outside mutes to a classical string quartet, an unobtrusive AR control pops open to allow you to adjust the audio settings to your liking. You realize you are in a high-ceilinged sitting room, about 4 and a half meters by 6 meters. The room is furnished with high-quality replicas of antique furniture, and looks like something out of some educational history trid.

GM Notes: A rating 3 SIN will get you in if you have a reservation. Weapons can be carried, up to Light Pistol – however you’ll need a rating 4 SIN and licenses. The entrance is warded and equipped with a fibre-linked rating 4 scanner and a mage on duty will astrally assence anyone entering through an endoscope. As long as everything checks out use scenario A. Problems? Use scenario B. < -- Late note: I see no problems here, so just use A.

Scenario A:

[ Spoiler ]

A human male enters the room opposite the door you just entered. This man is wearing an outfit similar to the one the doorwoman was. As he approaches he says, “Good morning, my name is Michael. Please come with me.� He leads the way to the door he just entered from.
Michael opens the door that separates the entry hall from the restaurant to allow you to enter. The smell of clean air tinted with a spicy smell (think herb garden) washes over you – this smell is NOT simed. Michael leads you south through this dining area to a door on the wall opposite the large windows. Michael knocks on the door, pauses, then opens it. He blocks the opening with his body, and announces your name with the appropriate honorific (Mr., Ms., Dr., whatever) “…is here.� A brief reply comes from inside the room.
Michael leads the way around the short jog that is a privacy wall and into the King Francis room. As your eyes take in the assemblage of metahumanity and the luxuriously appointed room Michael begins listing <uncomfortable?> points of interest about you, i.e.; what the entryway scanner and assenceing revealed about your weapons, augmentations, and magical traits. He turns and leaves.
<If you are the first to arrive you only see Mr. Thompson, described below – otherwise you see him and whoever arrived before you. After all are assembled you may proceed to Act II, Scene I.>
Mr. Thompson:
A very thin, old orc. Bald with age spots on his skin, eyes alive despite the effects age has had on his body, wearing a dark blue, pinstriped suit over matching pants. His jacket is unbuttoned, revealing a canary-yellow shirt with a bright red ‘power’ tie that completes his ensemble. The suit looks old, and, while it may have been tailored, it doesn’t seem to perfectly fit.
He sits at one end of the table; the chairs nearest him on either side have been removed leaving a meter and a half of open space between his end of the table and the first available seat. Obviously a power position, but the unassuming man sitting there seems incongruous.
After each person is announced, he tells the staff member to “Enter.� After listening to the ‘threat assessment’ he greets each person with “Hello, I’m Mr. Thompson; let’s wait for the others to arrive before we get down to business.� He will converse on any number of topics that anyone cares to bring up (save ‘business’) but otherwise seems content to sit quietly, apparently enjoying the scenery.

<End Act I>

If each of the players will give a ‘go’ here in the OOC thread we may all proceed to the IC thread and the next act. If anyone has game mechanics business give a ‘no-go’ while we determine results – for example, problems with the warding or attempts to infiltrate the network inside the entry hall or restaurant.

[Scope_47]

A couple of questions:

Does the scanner pick up Bioware (so I know how Michael introduces me)?

Also, should we assume that the mage gets the full Assensing chart (5+ hits)?

Other than those two questions, I'm a GO :D

As an aside - Scope will start to head in at 10:50 - since she assumes it will take ten minutes to talk to the door-woman and get through her preconceptions of security.

- Scope_47

[Thomas]

@Scope_47 – The scanner is R4 millimeter wave system. The one you need to worry about is the mage:

[ Spoiler ]

Assensing + Intuition = 9 dice

Roll:
[4,1,2,6,6,5,6,3,5] = (38) 5 hits
Link

But Michael would just hit the high points “…carrying licensed firearm, augmented vision, medically necessary bioware…�, it’s his job, but there’s no need to be rude about it – he’s just repeating what the folks in the security room reported.

@All - You will be announced by the name you gave to get in. It is the name that Ms. Benson and Mr/Ms Thompson identifies you with.

[Ol' Scratch]

Should we assume the mage's Assensing Test above is for everyone? I believe I'll be getting an Opposed Test for my Masking, but just wanted to know if you were going to be rolling just once for everyone or if I needed to consult for another one. :) To save a touch of time either way, here's the Opposed Test:

[ Spoiler ]

Masking Test
Opposed Test (Intuition 4 + Magic 5 + Grade 2): [2 6 4 6 2 2 4 3 2 1 4] = 2 hits (link)

EDIT: Got clarification in PMs about all that, and my IC post for the intro scene is up and ready. I'm a "go" for the next scene when everyone else is. :)

EDIT Part Deux - The Sequel: I've received a request as to what Belfast looks like beyond what I've already described. Since I'm lazy as all get-out, here's a photo that's pretty damn close. Snarky persona and all: Snark Fu.

[Thomas]

...And the crowd begins chanting, "Geek the Mage, Geek the Mage..."

Snarky. Indeed!

[Ol' Scratch]

And I left my Form Fitting Armored Underoos at home. Dammit.