GM ruling on how enhanced scent works: can our adept track like a bloodhound?

Can she tell Ork from Elf from Troll by scent alone? Or gender, for that matter?

-Siege

Ghost has the 'Magic Sense' adept ability, the fact may have gotten lost in the shuffle...

I've been treating that a bit like being caught in a beam of bright light - a bit difficult to tell nuances until she's able to step outside it. But yes: there's definitely an overall flavour of magic here. (Like that's something you didn't know )

Aight, I put on my robe and wizard's hat ... (looks left then right to see if anyone got the joke) unless someone suggests otherwise, I'd like to start cautiously down the right hand crossing hallway. Does our kit of runner's gear include a heartbeat sensor or any sort of listening device?

You mean an artificial, external audio-enhancement system? I'm gonna go out on a limb and say..."Probably not."

As to the direction and movement, it's as good as any idea I've managed to scrape together.

-Siege

Actually, it's perfectly believable for an external device, similar to a hearing aid with more perks would be in a thief's kit of toys.

As for the rest, I dunno -- do we have a list of gear on Ghost at the moment?

-Siege

You forgot the matches, you never know when a book of matches might come in handy.

And in best Han Solo imitation: "I don't have it with me..."

And a multi-tool, roll of jesus tape and 50 meters of 550-line.

Here's the more extensive equipment list from earlier in the thread:

I'd go for:

Black armored suit (5/3) with chemical seals
(suit semi-smart and has casualty carry handles and 'instant stretcher mode')
Helmet (+1/1)
Climbing Harness + spider silk w/ small grapnel
Gas mask that clips on to form fully sealed suit
Gas detector hooked into the radio (so the rest of the team can get the 'gas!' warning too)
Medical condition monitor (heart rate, bp, temp, etc)
Handless radio, with capability for video and external audio (hey team, look/listen at this...)
'radio' also will also do recordings if 'asked' to. (so you can either so a voice log, or record the conversation that you are watching)

plastic restraints + gag (set of 4)
Narcojet pistol (+ 2 spare magazines)
Manriki-Gusari
Flash-Bang Grenades (1)
Thermal Smoke Grenades (2)
Neuro-Stun Grenades (1)
Anti-pursuit Device (1) (self deploying claymore mine)
Breeching Charge (1) (will blow a man-sized hold in doors and interior walls)
satchel Charge (1) (5kg C-4 + detonators)
Medkit
Counteragents for Narcojet and Neurostun
Book of matches (for luck)

Maglock Passkey
Electronics toolkit
Small supply of Thermite (for burning out locks)
(any other B&E gear needed?)

The total load should be in the 15-18 Kg range, the satchel charge is obviously the heaviest item, and is mostly there to blow a hold in the exterior wall of the building, if Ghost needs to get out really fast.

Ye gods, she's loaded for bear -- everything but the kitchen sink.

Lockpick gun and a small thermite lance for melting locks and pinpoint zapping.

-Siege

I still think you should get the multitool, jesus tape and 550-line.

Not important, but: Don't they have synthetic materials with better tensile strengths and lower densities than actual spider silk?

The Anti-pursuit Device is actually the size of a Claymore? That might be overdoing it a bit. A few smaller ones, alike the "Pursuit Deterrant Munitions" used by the US military IRL (self-deploying bounding landmines the size of a hand grenade), might be more useful -- the bits that I've read lead me to believe the security in the place isn't enough of a threat to warrant the use of a 2.5kg directed mine charge against them.

A thermite stick-thingie is always useful...

Was going to suggest the Sequencer, but then I noticed an earlier post about how it's not very useful so I re-read the rules... And a Sequencer sucks ass. You're indeed far better off with just Electronics.

Because I couldn't find any significant to complain about, I think this counts as an "agreed"...

I was assuming something like an HE demolition grenade + fragments, mabe 2 kg in total (plus whatever sensor system is used) I was assuming the need to deter pursuit by a short platoon or similar, a hand grenade just dosen't have the oomph for that, plus the ability to deter drones like the steel lynx (even more oomph needed).

I was using spider silk in the generic, not specific sense.

Life, sweet life. how we cling to thee. If even but for a moment.

Let's go out on a limb along with Siege and say that upscale existing-sense magnification sensors wouldn't have been taken - unlike, for example, the radiation detector and chemical sampler, since these are not existing metahuman senses. The stethoscope I can definitely see, however, for exactly the reasons you two have given.

Add the previously retro-mentioned radiation detector and chemical analyser to the more extensive gear list, as well as Siege's lockpick gun and small thermite lance.

Doof that's Shanshu's quote, not mine.

I hate to rush Ghost, but I think she(?) needs to get a move on and get a quick reconnoiter of the area for anyone present.

If the area is clear and we don't hear any noise indicating visitors incoming, we can take more time to puzzle out what's going on.

-Siege

I vote for checking out one of side corridors immediately, Shanshu suggested the right hand one.

I don't think that anything good will come of messing with the globe, especially given the constraints of the mission.

If we get her out, hopefully Julianna will know more about what's going on here (we could always mind probe her if she's not cooperative ).

Arghh!

I am going to stop making predictions on updates. They seem to guarantee that events to delay that next post will proliferate completely out of proportion. (One reason why I eventually lost my taste for hot liquids which are supposed to be drunk hot: something inevitably came up such that they became tepid liquids before I could get back to them.)

Corrected the quote attribution, Crusher Bob. Sorry.

For now, a relatively short corridor - now that Ghost is into it, she can see where it (and the other arm of this cross-corridor) ends - barely. (It's dim: phosphorescent-type track lighting [blue-green white] in a long strip running along the tops of the doors.)

Lined with what looks like very solid (unrusted) metal doors roughly every 3 or so metres and a similar door at the end, large hinges on the outside, very solid, otherwise the same type of roughed-out walls as the central chamber, and also similarly rounded (lengthwise). Some of the doors are padlocked, large, old-fashioned key locks, others aren't. Stale smell, like the air in here doesn't move all that often. Definite adrenaline pheromones as well. Naturally it's too faint to track.

If she wasn't before, Ghost is definitely starting to get angry - furious! - and just a little afraid. (Although I think the anger is mostly drowning out the fear.)

Better have Slotaire shut down al the garbage mashers on the detention level...

Ghost's getting angry? Fascinating...any chance we have a biomonitor rigged in her suit, feeding data to CC?

I vote (shadowrun by committee) Ghost checks each door for heat signatures and sounds behind them.

-Siege

Trogdor is there, right? Can we have him check Ghost's aura for...magical nasties? (Possibly eminating from the globe or the overall background of violence...)

I also second Siege's motion.

It might be a pheremone based effect, masing up might solve the problem.

To be fair, it might be the normal paranoia associated with this kind of situation.

However, I'm inclined to think a professional like Ghost wouldn't be prone to flashes of emotion to the point it would interfere with her job.

With that in mind, it might be something artificially induced by the environment -- although I can't imagine exactly what it could be.

-Siege

Since Trogdor isn't getting angry too, it seems likely that it is some physical effect, rather than a magical one.

There is a 'gross' biomonitor in the suit to track thingsl ike heart rate, bp, etc. Since it's not the cyber version it probably won't get things like 'anger'.

My assumption is that it would be a 'combat' biomonitor that wouldn't bother with things not directly related to big gaping holes in the skin.

Ok, I've been keeping track and peering now and then - and there's something that I can't believe was missed - maybe I'm wrong but...

The troll snake shaman who you called up and asked to be 'ready just in case' - when you decided to check on your 'extraction target' - the same name and specification popped up as part of the team from the botch job a while back. Yes? Curious isn't it - Talia actually dropped one in your lap and it was overlooked.

If I'm in error here I apologise - I will now retire to my dark corner and continue to await developments with fascination. Wish I'd gotten in on the start.

There's no set team here. I jumped in well after the project began....

I find the Edit: Find (on This Page) function to be very useful Within this thread, the reference is back about 4 or so pages.

Welcome to the thread, Mace. Nice catch (Lurkers 2, and counting.) Like kevyn668 said, it's very much a jump in anytime thing.

The biomonitor issue has already been talked out, I think. Heartbeat, breathing, sweat - your basic lie detector + wound detector. Trauma patch yes as standard, defibrilator no. You'd be picking up a steadily rising curve of standard flight/fight responses.

I think we should check whats behind one if the unlocked doors, if they lead to cells then hopefully our target is behind one of them.

*smiles and bows* - Sorry for not quoting the relevant sections - I read through twice and simply wrote.

I'm REALLY interested in what said shaman would have to say about the extraction target. If Talia's willing to allow for 'backdate' on our rush for information as setting up, that would be high on the list and then some.

As for Ghost's immediate actions - while Trogdors trying to keep from getting sucked away and watching her ass - approach each door and take a good whiff. If she can smell 'woman' from one of them in greater strength than the others...

Sure, I'll allow for backdate (as quick or slow as everyone wants). That's part of the point of this thread and the later post mortem thread: how to go about doing a specific type of run, what would have been done differently with (partial or complete) hindsight.

How would you have asked said shaman? Who would have done the asking? And what would have been asked? (Summaries and paraphrasing okay for this - I'm just trying to get a sense of the approach, here.)

One more note re doors (before I forget):

Some of the padlocks aren't closed (ie. click-locked). Others are. And some doors are not padlocked at all.

I think we should check an unlocked door first, if all the doors appear the same, then we'll be able to confirm what to expect behind the locked door.

It seems likely that these are cells, but these could be where the 'night watch' are kept. Maybe the reinforcements are kept behind lock and key till they're needed!