Dumpshock Forums > Let's Get Gritty (OoC/Discussion. Always Rectuiting!)

Belvidere

Mar 22 2011, 11:57 PM

Wasteland. That's what they call it now. Chicago that is. They say that nothing is worth a damn thing anymore. They say that the if the bugs don't frag ya, then the radiation will. They say the only people left there are the crazies and those lookin' to no be found. But what most don't know. They're right. Containment Zone, Wasteland, Drekhole, Abyss. Oh I've heard all the names. My favorite name of all, Home.
Believe it or not, there are some of us who love this place. It's the only thing we know, and it's ours. No corp is going to try and claim this place and only the crazies go into the truly dangerous places. So I ask you, are you up for it? Cause you know what they say chummer. Only roaches and twinkies can make it in a place like this. Care to prove'em wrong?

Welcome on and all to the Let's Get Gritty OoC thread. This is where OoC concerns and comments shall be voiced, as well as dice rolled when needed, though I'd like to keep those to a minimum. I'd like to keep the game fun and fast paced though gritty and grimy just like our favorite hell hole of a city.

Character creation rules are as follows:
-600 Karma character creation
-Standard restrictions on gear, but I'm going to trust my players to get gear that makes sense for their characters. I reserve the right to say "no"
-Your characters can either be born and raised in Chicago, or recently in the Zone. If you're new to the Zone, I need a damn good reason for you to be there.
-I'm going to be using the advanced medtech rules for massive damage, and glitches and critical glitches.
-I am hoping for at least two posts a week from everyone, though I know things come up. If you're unable to get time to sit down and post, just shoot me a quick PM to let me know.

Approved Players/Characters
-Tanegar/Glass-Walker: City Purifying Shaman
-Notsoevildm/Blanks: Ex-Docwagon Medic
-Seth/Umbra: Big Scared Rat Shaman
-Edana/Mel: Genetic experiment gone wrong... or right?

Reserve List:
-Fyndhal/Bullseye: Throwing adept
-Mister__Joshua/Jim: Chicago Survivalist

Please, repost your characters in this thread if you would! Thank you!

For the in character thread...
"Orange shall be dialog."
Green shall be for commlinks. Both text and subvocal, if used. Though please note the difference.
Purple shall be used for thoughts and internal monologues.
And classical white, shall be used for actions and narrative.

Tanegar

Mar 23 2011, 12:11 AM

Glass-Walker character sheet

How is posting dice rolls in a separate thread from the action going to work? Cross-referencing post numbers? If I may make a recommendation, the following format works well in the PbP Rogue Trader game:

Glass-Walker casts a spell.¹

Rolls:

[ Spoiler ]

It's simple, convenient to read, and unobtrusive.

Edana

Mar 23 2011, 01:59 AM

Melanie (Mel)

How long had she been here? The days stretched out into time she could barely comprehend. But she didn't need to comprehend, she only needed to survive. That's what the old woman had taught her. Be the hunter or the hunted, the predator or the prey, these were the choices that mattered in this place. And so she honed the instincts that brought her to this place, an experiment gone horribly wrong, or horribly right depending on who you asked.

Her mind wandered back to the stark white, glimpses of her past. They had poked and prodded, laughed at the little girl she was, taken pleasure in her reactions to the pain. But they had learned fear. Stabbed her one too many times. Her world went from white to red in an instant. The air was filled with screams, their terror only fueled her lust for vengeance.

Movement out of the corner of her eye snaps her mind back from its reverie. It was bigger than normal. They would eat well tonight. Her muscles tense in anticipation. As it passes by she drops from her hiding place and the battle is over before it's even begun. No need to needlessly waste energy. She backs off, knowing she need only follow her prey until the venom works its grim magic.

--

Melanie is or rather, was, a genetic experiment. Eventually the testing and teasing caused something to snap and she wounded or killed most of the staff, allowing her to escape out into the Chicago CZ. There she's been living with an older woman, who took her in despite the girl's anti-social, nearly feral, nature. As she's grown, Mel has made a few friends, people she's grown to trust, and who she looks after in her own way.

Basic skills: Infiltration/Close Combat/Survival

[ Spoiler ]

As far as rolls go, I'm indifferent. PbP usually moves slow enough that even without explicit references you can usually figure out which OOC post goes with the IC post. Superscript links are pretty unobtrusive too though, so that could work as well.

Seth

Mar 23 2011, 08:31 AM

"I'm so happy...I'm so happy..." hums Umbra.

Thanks for inviting me along. I have a busy day at work today, so I will post my character sheet here tonight, and keep this page as a status summary.

Looking forwards to seeing you all in the game

Umbra link to spreadsheet

[ Spoiler ]

Notsoevildm

Mar 23 2011, 08:49 AM

Glad you liked my character concept. Will post full build later today. I'd prefer to keep OOC to this thread, including dice rolls. I assume we will use Invisible Castle?

Belvidere

Mar 23 2011, 02:00 PM

Yes, invisible castle for rolls. And we'll keep OoC here. And just say what you're doing in the OoC post to go along with the in IC post of you actually doing it.

Seth

Mar 23 2011, 08:15 PM

I just bought Feral Cities (in real paper format). I like the book, and about half of it seems to be devoted to Chicago.

Chicago is quite different from the Chicago I remember in Bug City and I think a very interesting place for a campaign: It's not quite as forsaken as I thought it would be.

Notsoevildm

Mar 23 2011, 08:34 PM

Blanks
The fan on the desk reminds him of how he ended up here. He stands frozen remembering his fall from the DocWagon HTR helicopter as the bug spirit tore into it. He hit the roof hard and watched the chopper tumble past him dragging him towards the edge of the roof. Only his fast reactions and the quick release on the rapelling harness prevented him from following it 20 stories to the ground.

He snaps back to reality, pushing the memory from five years ago into the back of his mind. The ganger is talking to him. One of his buddies is hurt and he has some gel rounds and medical supplies to trade if he can fix him up. His cyebereyes blink behind the protective covers that go with his name. He reaches for his medkit. There is a patient to treat.

[ Spoiler ]

I might tweak gear if I remember anything I forgot, but will keep it within reason.
EDIT: Seems I forget to include his armor. Sheet updated.

Edana

Mar 23 2011, 09:26 PM

Edited in my basic sheet. I'll clean it up a bit when I finish typing up background tonight. For now, work calls

.

Belvidere

Mar 24 2011, 02:36 AM

Glad to see you guys are all so responsive.

I do believe we're only waiting on glass walker and we'll be good to get this game a rollin'. But what are you guys expecting out of this game? Chicago can be a few different things. Are you guys wanting a brutal, survival experience, a gritty in the dirty shadows game, or an escape game?

I rely more on my players for story than on me to railroad you. So I guess the better question is, what do your characters really want to do? Also, if you wanted to work out any way your characters have previously met/worked together/fought, I'd like to know before the game.

Edana

Mar 24 2011, 02:59 AM

For my part, I'm leaning more towards survival first, moving up to the dirty shadows. Mel really has no reason to seek to leave the CZ, and wouldn't be too likely to fit in anywhere else anyway. I'm definitely open to whatever though.

As far as having met beforehand, I could definitely see Umbra and Mel having met before, especially if they were based in the same general community of survivors. The same could be said for Blanks if he fell in with people in the area, since no one will turn down having a medic around

. Mel's not really the social type, but if any of the others want to work out some sort of history, let me know, it might even give her a reason to be more trusting towards them.

Seth

Mar 24 2011, 05:49 AM

For me an ideal campaign would be a few scene setting moments in which we get to feel the difference between Chicago and <Insert name of big city here>, then perhaps the unraveling of some hideous magical threat. I like Edana's observation that most of us have no reason to leave Chicago. I personally wouldn't want to spend much time in the CZ (the whole place is a mana ebb) I view that mostly as a "dive in when you absolutely have to in order to accomplish some mission" sort of place.

Feral Cities had a load of hints in it, I noted the following but there were many more

I particularly liked the hints about the group called Technospace...something really wierd is going on there
The Spire is about to move into level 100. Guards are going missing, send in the disposable runners to investigate
Some Insect Shaman decides to cast an Alarm Clock spell, and wake the spirits: either we have the ~~Zombie~~ Insect Apocalypse all over again, or we try and stop it
We get a clue about the Foul one...there is a 2 million nuyen bounty in her.
A full on war between the Ghouls and Humanis: the Pork Wars
Some wierd stuff around Elemental Hall
A new FAB IV epidemic caused by mutation of FABIII

As far as being together: Edana's answer looked good.

How about putting us in a community, and we are part of that communities "militia". We have to get our food / water from somewhere, and defending the community isn't a bad option. Unlike most Shadowrun games that would link us to the community that we are living in.
Perhaps we have been hired by the Ghouls to guard the pigs, and are getting paid in Hams (I'd want Blanks to make really sure its a pig Ham mind you...)
The tried and trusted "Mr Johnson invites you to the Chicago's Own pizzeria" gets us all together

@Edana: Did you spot Freaktown in Feral Cities? There appear to be a load of changelings that live over there...

Tanegar

Mar 24 2011, 08:54 AM

QUOTE (Belvidere @ Mar 23 2011, 10:36 PM)

I do believe we're only waiting on glass walker and we'll be good to get this game a rollin'.

Waiting for what? I posted a link to my character sheet in the first reply. Seth's idea of making us part of a community militia group sounds good.

Notsoevildm

Mar 24 2011, 03:59 PM

I was definitely thinking of the survival theme, small runs to find food, water, etc., gradually working up to deal with an emerging metaplot threat.

I also like the community idea. Not necessarily one that we are an integral part of, but perhaps the sort of safe place where people come together to trade. Kind of a post apocalyptic wild west frontier town like the one in the Book of Eli film.

I was thinking that Blanks would be a sort of medic for hire and that his skills would likely be in high demand in the Chicago. I will see if I can get my hands on a copy of Feral Cities to get a feel for what Chicago is like in the 2070s.

As for how he would know any of the other PCs - he could have patched them up at some point in their past.

Belvidere

Mar 24 2011, 04:06 PM

QUOTE (Tanegar @ Mar 24 2011, 04:54 AM)

Waiting for what? I posted a link to my character sheet in the first reply. Seth's idea of making us part of a community militia group sounds good.

Whoops, I didn't see that. My apologies.

Well then, I shall get started on the intro post at lunch. As for a community militia, I think it could work out very well. Were you guys thinking it would have structure (Like the American Militia) with ranks and an attempted leadership. Or more along the lines of, "He can fight and they're coming! Go fight!" type of deal?

Edana

Mar 24 2011, 04:18 PM

I don't imagine we'd be part of a formalized militia. Probably more of an "I know/like these people, and they need my help" sort of deal. The community might have a more formalized group, but I doubt we'd be a direct part of it.

Mel at least could be considered an apex predator in her own right, and would likely be one of the people getting food for others. (And getting paid in other necessities in return, though she'd be unlikely to directly deal with most people.)

Seth

Mar 24 2011, 04:22 PM

Anarchy rules!

Notsoevildm

Mar 24 2011, 04:51 PM

QUOTE (Edana @ Mar 24 2011, 05:18 PM)

I don't imagine we'd be part of a formalized militia. Probably more of an "I know/like these people, and they need my help" sort of deal. The community might have a more formalized group, but I doubt we'd be a direct part of it.

This is more along the lines of what I was thinking than an organized militia.

Tanegar

Mar 24 2011, 07:33 PM

Yeah, when I said "militia" I wasn't thinking ranks and uniforms; more like a group of people within the community who are willing and able to fight, and understand that if there's a threat they're the ones who go out to meet it. There's probably a leader, and the group probably breaks down into teams, but the teams are most likely cliques of friends and/or people who find they work well together rather than squads that people get assigned to. The PCs could be one such team.

Belvidere

Mar 24 2011, 08:54 PM

Alright. So, welcome to C.I.G. The Chicago Incident Group. The rallied citizens within the walls who stand against the grim and terrifying things that seek to exterminate the remainder of Chicagoland.

Feel free to name your sqad if you wish, and if it makes sense for the group of you, assign a "leader". The only person you are considered "subordinates" to is self proclaimed Lt. Foxx. And though he comes off as an asshole, you've seen his soft side more than once. He cares for what's left of Chicagoland, to the point where he'd die for it. And he leads it well.

Seth

Mar 24 2011, 09:27 PM

Here are some ideas:

The Rat Pack
Foxes Few
Foxes Four
The Squalid Squad
Chicago's Finest

Of course I think that the Rat Pack is clearly the best name possible

Belvidere

Mar 24 2011, 10:29 PM

I don't know why but when I hear Rat Pack, I get this image of a bunch of Disney style rats looking out over Chicago with determined looks on their faces as the sun rises once more, and they charge headlong into a battle far to big for them.

Tanegar

Mar 24 2011, 10:46 PM

Do we have a designated area of responsibility (geographic or otherwise), or are we troubleshooters-at-large? That might inform our choice of names.

Reading "Foxes Few" and "Foxes Four" gave me an idea: FOXHOUND. Now all we need is an antagonist named Snake...

Belvidere

Mar 24 2011, 11:11 PM

When it comes down the the CIG, territory is only something you claim. The group is few enough in numbers, nobody is really going to dispute if you want to watch over a certain town, or if you want to wander between them where you're needed/wanting to go.

Belvidere

Mar 27 2011, 10:44 PM

I am now working on the intro post. My apologies for taking so long, things got hectic around the house over the weekend. But it should be up tonight.

Seth

Mar 28 2011, 06:52 PM

Looking forward to it!

Notsoevildm

Mar 30 2011, 08:55 PM

Apologies for taking so long to get the first post up. Enjoy.

Realised I still need to work out what Blanks looks like beyond being a human male with protective eye covers:

He's friendly and gets on well with most people, but otherwise is just another white male, if a bit tanned and grubby from living rough. His brown hair is cropped short, mainly for convenience, and he is usually clean shaven or sporting no more than a day or two's bristle. He is about average height and like most people in Fort Hope has a survivor's lean physique. Nobody knows what colour his eyes are. He possibly does not even remember himself.

From the way he carries himself, he has obviously had some form of military / professional training and keeps a wary watch on his surroundings even when 'off-duty'.

Seth

Mar 30 2011, 09:23 PM

Some nice roleplay in there. I can see I will have to try harder !

Seth

Apr 1 2011, 09:19 PM

I'm heading out to see if I can find any of the bad guys scouts. I am intending on circling the encampment and also looking for any sniper spots.

I've done a small number of stealth rolls so you can judge how well that goes
4. 7 and 8 on the stealth rolls

I will obviously be trying to find the scouts
5, 1 2 on the visual perception

Can I request that we all go back and remove our signatures from the IC posts? it will read much better that way

Tanegar

Apr 5 2011, 08:54 AM

What's the prevailing background count in Chicago? I've got a copy of Bug City lying around somewhere; did SR2 even have the background count mechanic, and if so, has the number changed between editions?

Edana

Apr 5 2011, 06:46 PM

Mel's following Umbra around, same set of rolls as he did just to cover possibilities. (Though, my perception is the same regardless of vision/hearing/etc, so can use those rolls for anything.)

Perception: 2, 1, 3
Infiltration: 5, 6, 4

Notsoevildm

Apr 6 2011, 09:11 AM

Perception:
Intuition 3 + Perception 3 = 6d6.hits(5)=2
Oops, forgot various enhancements: vision 1d6.hits(5)=1, audio 3d6.hits(5)=0 - let me know if you want me to reroll rather than just posting the extra dice rolls.

Stealth:
Agility 5 + Infiltration 3 = 8d6.hits(5)=2

Tanegar

Apr 6 2011, 02:01 PM

Re: IC post

Multiple rolls
Summoning a Watcher: 2 hits
Resisting Drain: 1 hit
Infiltration: 0 hits
Perception: 2 hits

Took 1S damage from Drain

Multiple rolls
Tracking (looking for signs of an intruder's passage): 5 hits
Assensing (looking for out-of-place auras): 2 hits

Tanegar

Apr 12 2011, 09:53 AM

Not to seem pushy or anything, but when can we expect the next GM post? By my count, all the PCs have acted.

Belvidere

Apr 12 2011, 04:04 PM

QUOTE (Tanegar @ Apr 12 2011, 05:53 AM)

Not to seem pushy or anything, but when can we expect the next GM post? By my count, all the PCs have acted.

My apologies guys. Real life jumped up and fagged me for the last week. I'm patched back up and in working order. Sorry for the delay

Tanegar

Apr 12 2011, 09:13 PM

NP, I just wanted to make sure the game hadn't died.

Seth

Apr 12 2011, 11:53 PM

Welcome back

OK can I check the situation. I think that I am sneaking around and Mel is with me. We are a little way in front of the others, as they are being less sneaky.

Who do I think the sniper scope is being pointed at? (if I can see it's a tube, then it's not pointed at me I think).

Belvidere

Apr 13 2011, 12:28 AM

As of the moment it appears to be scanning your general area, but hasn't spotted you yet.

And you know that at least Glass Walker is following you, as the crunching of gravel has given him away behind you. But the man looking your way seems too far away to hear you.

Tanegar

Apr 15 2011, 11:57 PM

So, uh, is Mel going to tell Blanks and Glass-Walker what Umbra is up to, or are we left standing around asking each other where the hell Ratboy got off to?

To put it another way, is it time to pick somebody off the reserve list?

Seth

Apr 16 2011, 12:58 AM

Sorry I would have told you myself, but I haven't worked out how to use a commlink...

Tanegar

Apr 16 2011, 01:12 AM

No, no, this isn't an IC issue; well, it kinda is, since Glass-Walker needs to know what you're doing in order to support you, but the PC tasked with delivering that information hasn't done so. The real issue is that Mel's player hasn't posted in either thread in ten days. I understand that sometimes RL stuff gets in the way, but how long are we going to wait?

Tanegar

Apr 19 2011, 05:37 PM

In the interest of keeping the game moving, I am going to make my next IC post assuming that Mel did, in fact, convey Umbra's plan to Blanks and Glass-Walker.

Survival (identifying a vantage point for countersniper fire): 3 hits
Con (fooling the sniper into thinking he's not important enough to shoot at): 3 hits

Edana

Apr 19 2011, 06:29 PM

Yeah, sorry about that, assuming Mel told you is fine. Based on what Umbra said though, she wouldn't have any info on the actual location of the sniper to convey, as Umbra was the only one that actually spotted the barrel and he didn't point it out. I'll get a post up shortly.

Tanegar

Apr 19 2011, 06:55 PM

Well, I got 2 hits on a Perception roll and 5 hits on a Tracking roll, so I'm going on the assumption that I have a pretty good idea where the sniper is.

Edana

Apr 19 2011, 07:15 PM

Yeah, Mel had 2 hits on perception as well, but Umbra had 5, and was the only one specifically mentioned as having seen the sniper, so that's why I'm assuming not knowing until there's evidence otherwise.

WearzManySkins

Apr 20 2011, 01:51 AM

Reserve List Character
Do you allow the optional rule of Mystical Healing? Augmentation page 123
Concept/Idea Alchemist
Dwarf(Cajun)
Mystic Adept
Expert Aspected Magician SM page 31
Traditional Medicine: Alchemy

Seth

Apr 20 2011, 05:24 AM

QUOTE (Edana @ Apr 20 2011, 06:29 AM)

Yeah, sorry about that, assuming Mel told you is fine. Based on what Umbra said though, she wouldn't have any info on the actual location of the sniper to convey, as Umbra was the only one that actually spotted the barrel and he didn't point it out. I'll get a post up shortly.

I'd assumed that as I was with Mel, I could point out to her where the sniper was. If there is a problem with doing that, then I'll ask her to relay "4th floor, 3rd window from the left" kindof information. If thats not working I'll sneak back, tell the others, then go for the sniper.

Notsoevildm

Apr 20 2011, 08:22 AM

I have assumed that Mel pointed out / told us where the sniper was.

Actively looking for sniper based on Mel's info: Intuition 3 + Perception 3 + Vision enh. 1 + Active looking 3 = 10d6.hits(5)=6 - I can see through walls!

Taking a sneaky route towards sniper: Agility 5 + Infiltration 3 = 8d6.hits(5)=2

Taking a hit of Cram:
Duration: (12 – Body) hours, minimum 1 hour so 8 hours for Blanks.
Effect: +1 Reaction, +1 Initiative Pass
Crash: 6 Stun damage (unresisted)

I also updated his character sheet as I seemed to have forgotten to include his armor!

Edana

Apr 20 2011, 09:49 PM

QUOTE (Seth @ Apr 19 2011, 11:24 PM)

I'd assumed that as I was with Mel, I could point out to her where the sniper was. If there is a problem with doing that, then I'll ask her to relay "4th floor, 3rd window from the left" kindof information. If thats not working I'll sneak back, tell the others, then go for the sniper.

That's fine, I was just going off the IC post's information

. I edited my post to clarify that she'll point out the location before heading back around to attempt to come at the location from a different angle. (If I need to roll another infiltration or something, just let me know.)

Seth

Apr 21 2011, 04:25 AM

How am I doing sneaking up on Mr Sniper? Can I post about getting close?