Main Menu

News:

If you are having problems registering, please e-mail theconclaveforum at gmail.com

Dark Heresy VOIP Campaign

Started by precinctomega, April 26, 2010, 10:17:53 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

Heroka Vendile

I'm afraid the grilling of Wexman will have to wait a week as I just found out I have a meeting I have to attend on Monday evening.
It's all fun and games until someone shoots their own guy with a Graviton gun instead of the MASSIVE SPIDER.
The Order of Krubal
Rewards Of The Enemy

MarcoSkoll

I think Alyx is hoping that it won't be another grilling. In fact, Zarkov probably won't even be allowed in the same building this time.
S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

MarcoSkoll

Two things:

Firstly, don't expect me on Monday the 9th, as that's the day of the funeral. It's not impossible I may show up (although late), but not probable.
Secondly, another one of Alyx's log entries (which despite falling strongly into re-cap territory, often rather help me to spot potentially important details):

~~~~~


> User: Leveque, Astraea
> Passcode: ********
+++ PASSCODE ACCEPTED +++
> Command: Commence new text log
+++ STARTING ENTRY 7732.kd/4 +++

Levongard, day two, entry two.

This will primarily be interrogation notes from those we actually managed to interrogate.

Petra Novalon was our first subject, as I suspected she would probably be most cooperative, and we started with a civil, although firm, questioning. She needed some convincing that we could be trusted, but she put up relatively little resistance to our questioning after that point.

If she can be believed, she has been Eli Black's intimate partner for the last year. Unfortunately, this did not translate into knowledge of his location, or at least not a willingness to tell us.

She has taken a few jobs from Bloodfist's operation over the last two months, a number of deliveries and contract killings. The two deaths she could name with certainty were: Gambis Morrison, a bookkeeper, now buried under Fort Heldrake and the skipper of a tradeship from Tevlis, now at the bottom of the harbour.

Three weeks ago, Black started his investigation into Bloodfist and put together the pieces of the puzzle. She claims to have been acting as a mole in Bloodfist's operation since that revelation, observing and disrupting where possible.

The bombing at the Drunken Skyjack was indirectly her responsibility, a fuse deliberately set short to ensure that the package didn't reach its intended destination, a location within Helgan Park. A fair plan, rather flawed by the courier being in a packed location when the explosives went off.

She also killed six of the large Cookson family, allegedly traitors within Hoffman's trading operation slipping.
I am prepared to believe their guilt, given the facial similarities they had to the clerk in the grand bazaar who handed over the artefact.

She apparently does not know too much more of the structure of Bloodfist's organisation, but did identify a number of warehouses in Portshead. This would seem to say that the organisational structure is cellular, individual units all working relatively independently of each other.
This is both fair and ill news. The scale of his operation remains obscured to us, but an organisation so mired in a lack of communication will be sluggish and slow to react.

She also made mention of Brix as our ally; while she sees him as the natural choice to assist in finding Black, she noted that neither Black or herself were certain of his loyalties.
The deeper connotation of this is that she has to ask. She may know that Bloodfist has planted moles. Evidently, any information on this case must be kept particularly clandestine.

We have presently agreed that Petra will be released. Her story is consistent enough with the facts that she is either telling the truth or lying brilliantly; and if it's the former, she seems to be more trusted by Black than Brix is, so I believe she is of more use to us if Black can contact her.
She is also still in Barbarigo's favour, so far as we can tell. (For the sake of future record, Petra explained this situation as having saved Evangeline on a mission many years ago).

She is being guarded by Verner until we are convinced we have no further questions for her, although that may well be tomorrow.

Our interrogation of the live Farcamper, Lee Rivers was considerably shorter. We got only credal quotations from him (crude references to "Father of the Rock" and "Glory to the Saviour, the Rock shall flourish again") before Zarkov proved himself to be as much of a loose cannon as Novus ever was, incinerating him in a pretence at an interrogation. Actually, at least Tristar had talents for the cryptaesthetic.

He seemed somewhat amused by it, but the only thing I can be grateful for was that I believe Rivers was the least useful of our captives and we may yet get something from his quotations alone. Either the grand Librarium or members of the Wardens may have clues to what the Father of the Rock might be, although his death has turned a half hour interrogation into a several hour endeavour.

It reminds me somewhat of the doomsday predictions from Aurvol, although I can see considerably less credence in these. Unless Bayev has been extensively lying to us, Bloodfist is not suspected of warp heresies.
Nonetheless, it could be of worth to have a wych study the artefact in depth for warp taint, if I can find one I trust.

Zarkov was not permitted entry to our interrogation of Wexman, something I am glad someone agreed with me on. He was instead kept busy with assisting with compound security, in order to replace the Wardens sent to deal with gang violence that had escalated into riots in Portshead, Westwall and Monger's Bay.

Wary that these riots might be a ploy on Bloodfist's part to weaken compound security, we commenced with the interrogation as soon as possible.
He was not particularly talkative, even after Bayev and Turlough hitched the high voltage portions of an oxygen processor to his spinal interface. A four hour interrogation told us relatively little that wasn't insults or information we already knew or could guess.

He has told us little of the grand scale of the operation, the purpose or nature of the heretical technologies he is transporting or of Bloodfist's exact whereabouts.
I am not sure I believe that he is ignorant of these things if he is as important as he claims to be, even with his only relatively recent arrival on the planet, although intentional ignorance is possible. It does fit with Petra's claims that the organisation is broken up into cells, and is odd only truly in that it is he who is ignorant.

All that he has confirmed is that they are keeping to the planet's technology level in transporting items, primarily the railways, and named a number of side ventures in the form of public houses, arenas and bookkeepers. (The last should lead us to investigate Gambis Morrison further).

It was not until after we had closed the first stage of interrogation and our discussion with Warden Brix, in charge of co-ordinating the riot control, that the possibility that these riots were a cover to destroy evidence in Portshead came to me; a revelation almost certainly too late to do any good.

Despite my desire to retire to sleep, the pacification of the city has been deemed of an extremely high priority. Overseer Fairfield has dispatched most of the combat ready agents that could be spared, despite the risk to the overall operation.

Turlough believes Khan is also suitable for such duty, although Emperor knows why, and he is being dispatched to the north-east part of the city.
But I refuse to allow that lunatic to run loose with his witchcraft, not less than five hours after he cremated one of our leads. He will not be going unwatched.

Ave Imperator.

+++ ENTRY 7732.kd/4 ENDS+++
> Command: Encrypt
+++ ENCRYPTING ENTRY 7732.kd/4+++
+++ PROCESSING+++
+++ COMPLETE+++
> Command: Log off
+++ COMMAND ACCEPTED +++
+++ THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: THE ROAD TO PURITY IS DRENCHED IN THE BLOOD OF THE MARTYRED +++
+++ SYSTEM LOG-OFF +++

S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

Quickdraw McGraw

Just a heads up I'll be missing in action tomorrow as well.   :( 
Every time I see a math word problem in the warp it looks like this: 

If I have 10 ice cubes and you have 11 apples. How many pancakes will fit on the roof?

Answer:  Purple because Tyranids don't wear hats.   :P

MarcoSkoll

Actually, on that note, it looks like the timing might work for me to arrive about our normal start time of 8 o'clock - it's a bit up in the air dependent on who's around, how much traffic there is though and changing back into less formal attire.

However, I'll still be sending through that character sheet anyway.

S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

Koval

So, looks like we're reconvening on January 13th.

Which gives us four weeks to think about how we're going to get ourselves out of this little mess.

Pelagius' current thoughts involve getting someone to punch him in the face a few times so that he looks like he's been in a bit of a fight, and then, while everyone else hides in what was the station master's office, pretending to "shoot" Zarkov with a flintlock so that he can pose as Warden Boone "executing" the "traitors". (Coincidentally this is roughly when the Wall of Fire would come down, thus serving the purposes of his deception.)

He'd then approach the King's Guard -- whether he's got Warden Torrance with him at this point is up to Euan -- and "politely ask"* them to stand down and move along.

*For certain values of "ask" and "politely" that include a forceful demand to sod off.

Worst case scenario, Pelagius gets shot, the rest of you have time to make yourselves scarce.

MarcoSkoll

#606
Hmm.

While Alyx is presently peeved enough with Pelagius after his recent behaviour that she wouldn't object to a plan on the basis of saving him from being punched in the face, she's not sure the Guard are shooting at us because Boone told them to. Making an assumption of at least marginal intelligence on his part, he knew where we were going to be for (or at least "in") a few hours.

Trying to attack six well-equipped Inquisition operatives (and a Warden) with twelve musketeers is pretty stupid.
Doing it when you know you'll have a hundred more musketeers in two minutes... that's very stupid.

So her best guess is that the other soldiers aren't acting on Boone's orders, they're shooting at the crazy off-worlders who just incinerated their squad mates with witchcraft - and either don't believe or don't care that we're Wardens.

Also, if they are working for Boone, there is always the possibility that they know what he looks like.

~~~~~

Alyx's current thoughts are to disarm all of the King's Guard simultaneously, then formally request that they go home with their tails between their legs.

Step one of her plan depends on a few assumptions about the layout of the terrain, but it's at least feasible. Particularly if we play either the A-Team or the Eleventh Doctor's theme in the background when we do it.
S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

Heroka Vendile

I'll fudge make a map of the station layout during the holidays, as well as a transport map of Farungo.
It's all fun and games until someone shoots their own guy with a Graviton gun instead of the MASSIVE SPIDER.
The Order of Krubal
Rewards Of The Enemy

Koval

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on December 17, 2013, 06:03:48 PM
she's not sure the Guard are shooting at us because Boone told them to
I'm also less than sure about the infantry company that Zarkov is delaying, but I'm fairly sure the first squad were operating under Boone's orders.

QuoteMaking an assumption of at least marginal intelligence on his part, he knew where we were going to be for (or at least "in") a few hours.

Trying to attack six well-equipped Inquisition operatives (and a Warden) with twelve musketeers is pretty stupid.
Doing it when you know you'll have a hundred more musketeers in two minutes... that's very stupid.
This is what makes me wonder whether Boone and the infantry company knew about one another, seeing as how Boone was quite happy to go up against us with just those twelve guys. And given how stupid it is not to wait for that company given that we weren't going anywhere for several hours, I'm guessing Boone was either very impatient or unaware that the Guard would get their act together and assemble a company that quickly.

QuoteSo her best guess is that the other soldiers aren't acting on Boone's orders, they're shooting at the crazy off-worlders who just incinerated their squad mates with witchcraft - and either don't believe or don't care that we're Wardens.
That's exactly what Pelagius is thinking, minus the bit about the Wardens -- even assuming that Farungo doesn't recognise the Wardens' authority per se, the soldiers (or officers) might at least know that they're Messiger law enforcement. So if Pelagius-as-Fake-Warden-Boone comes up to them and tells them that the "witch" has been terminated, that's got to mean more than some random civilian saying so.

QuoteAlso, if they are working for Boone, there is always the possibility that they know what he looks like.
I wasn't assuming the infantry company were working for Boone. On the contrary, if he's made himself known to the entire company-and-a-bit, and still gone ahead with just twelve only to receive an explosion to the face, then as you said, that would be a truly stupid move -- and I'm currently working on the assumption that Boone was only mostly stupid.

The other option is that Pelagius poses as himself and approaches the Guard as Warden Turlough, thus getting around the Boone thing. As another alternative, get Torrance to do it, as she's the only genuine Warden around here and probably knows more about Farungoan codes of conduct than we do.


QuoteAlyx's current thoughts are to disarm all of the King's Guard simultaneously, then formally request that they go home with their tails between their legs.

Step one of her plan depends on a few assumptions about the layout of the terrain, but it's at least feasible. Particularly if we play either the A-Team or the Eleventh Doctor's theme in the background when we do it.
Would this involve Zarkov or not?

MarcoSkoll

Quote from: Koval on December 18, 2013, 08:38:12 AMI'm also less than sure about the infantry company that Zarkov is delaying, but I'm fairly sure the first squad were operating under Boone's orders.
Seeing as he specifically ordered them to shoot us and we hadn't yet done anything except talk to the station master, I'm going to say that "fairly sure" is a bit of an understatement.

Quoteeven assuming that Farungo doesn't recognise the Wardens' authority per se, the soldiers (or officers) might at least know that they're Messiger law enforcement.
Wardens are "the ultimate lawmen on Levongard, each is a representative of the Governor and by extension the Administratum".
So, technically, Wardens have authority anywhere the planetary governor does.

But "however they receive no protection from their master if they overstep the bounds of reason. The inexperienced Warden can end up being publicly lynched".  And I think that's rather what's in the process of happening here.

QuoteWould this involve Zarkov or not?
Somewhat to Alyx's regret, it'd be a lot better if it did.

Quote from: Heroka Vendile on December 18, 2013, 12:56:06 AM
I'll fudge make a map of the station layout during the holidays, as well as a transport map of Farungo.
Then I will PM you a question regarding the particularly vital details sometime later on.
S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

Quickdraw McGraw

In game speech...*

"That wall of fire won't hold them for very long.  They can simply walk around it." -Zarkoff said to the group.

Doyle, listened to the others shouting out ideas. He thought as quickly as he could, to add input into discussion before Zarkoff set off another firestorm potentially making things a lot worst!

I've got it! I've got it! -yelled Doyle.

A few eyes averted towards him. 

"We are goin' ta STEAL that train!!!  I've always want'd ta pull off a train hist an' now I've got me chance!"  -Doyle said pointing at their train, jumping up and down excitedly.

A few of his companions stood staring at the rattling with mouths unhinged.

"Have you lost your mind, Doyle!" -yelled Pelagius.

Aye, an' it's all Zarkoff's fault tooo!  Go big or go home, I always say. -grinned Doyle.

"At this rate, we'll be going home in a "Pine Box". -Pelagius said cynically.

"This could work, Pelagius!  We need a train intact an' we can'ta 'fford ta fool around with these guard-clowns fer the next 3 hours!  Who's ta say the other train will even stop when they see the destruction at the station? 

I'll sneak back aboard the train.  That's after all what I'm best at!  If the conductor can'ta be convinced ta operate the train, I will!  We have Zarkoff then torch the station.  It'll be the distraction wee need!  The bigger the better, Lad!  The Rail-Switch shouldn'ta be tooo hard ta operate.  It's either right here at the station or back down the track a wee bit." - explained Doyle.


*Sorry for the terrible spelling but Doyle has a very high pitched and thick accent.

josh

Every time I see a math word problem in the warp it looks like this: 

If I have 10 ice cubes and you have 11 apples. How many pancakes will fit on the roof?

Answer:  Purple because Tyranids don't wear hats.   :P

MarcoSkoll

Two bits of waffle from me, waiting for our return next week. I don't yet know if Euan's vetoing my crazy plan though, so it may be that little comes of the second passage:

~~~~~

Earl Penfield's carriage, previous day:

> User: Leveque, Astraea
> Passcode: ********
+++ PASSCODE ACCEPTED +++
> Command: Commence new text log
+++ STARTING ENTRY 7738.si/7 +++

Levongard, three days after landing.

Last night was an ill one. Verner, Novalon and Black are all dead at the hands of Wexman and the traitorous Brix. 
Menza and Bayev avoided the same fate by only the grace of the saints.

I did at first apportion blame to Grizbain, wandering from his post, but I realise may only have joined the list of the dead or wounded had he been there.
It is Bayev who holds the responsibility for this tragedy; she has been deceiving us since the first night, withholding that she has known exactly where Black has been all along. All in the name of a mole hunt that has cost our mission dearly.

Our being unprepared has allowed the traitors to escape and sent several loyal servants to the Emperor before their time. And while Bayev has some of the core leads from Black's investigations, his greater understanding of the case could have been invaluable.

If nothing else, it might have quieted Turlough, who repeatedly insisted that Wexman and Brix could have taken to an alternative destination.
It is a possibility, but one I do not see fit to entertain while faced by stronger leads. It seems to escape him that investigating every last village and estate is time we do not have when the rain season may be only days from flooding the plains around Farcamp.
Sense was eventually knocked into our adept and the decision made to head for Basin, a small settlement around ten kilometres on the other side of the plains from Farcamp.

Barbarigo has pulled in a favour, borrowing Earl Penfield's rail carriage for our journey. This seems unexpectedly altruistic compared to the mood I would expect her to be in today, but I am not complaining. Aside from the smell my companions brought with them, these are the most tolerable living conditions I have seen since we left the Maedan High Spire.

We are accompanied by Warden Torrance, who has been explaining what she can of Farcamp as she recalls it.
They are comparatively unrefined even by the standards of this world, living in housing carved into rock faces and notoriously hostile to off-worlders. Charming.

May the Throne watch over us.

+++ ENTRY 7738.si/7 ENDS+++
> Command: Encrypt
+++ ENCRYPTING ENTRY 7738.si/7+++
+++ PROCESSING+++
+++ COMPLETE+++
> Command: Log off
+++ COMMAND ACCEPTED +++
+++ THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WEAKENS THE WILL TO ACT +++
+++ SYSTEM LOG-OFF +++


~~~~~

Brugal Station, Present:

"The plan would be better if we can leave here as something other than wanted fugitives." Alyx interjected.

Doyle's grin stayed just as wide.
"They 'aven't seen us properly. We'll be fine - they won't know who ta look fer!"

"But Bloodfist's men do, Doyle.", Pelagius responded, "Boone convinced a dozen men at this station that we had something to do with the rioting in Port Hope. There'll only be more willing guards at the next station if they think we started the fight here too".
"Also, Rhodes will have my entrails if I let you take out major rail infrastructure.", Bayev added, "We're supposed to be here to help the planet's development."

Alyx nodded:
"And, on a personal level, I'd sleep a little more soundly if the plan had fewer murders."
"You are an assassin, aren't you?", Zarkov asked.
"Aye, but we ain't paying her!", smirked Doyle, "She hasta be paid ta kill people."

The remark earned him a rather angry scowl from the assassin.

"Emperor's teeth.", Torrance visibly flinched as a musket ball took a chunk out of the wall near her, "I'm going to die while the Inquisition have a domestic argument."
"It seems normal for this cell, Warden.", Pelagius said, his cynicism still undented.

The ratling was somewhat more put out by this point, and returned Alyx's glare.
"Well, maybe you've got a better idea then? Huh?".

"Possibly. We might be able to disarm them. It depends on the station layout...", she risked a glance out of her cover, trying to take in the angles, "... how much manoeuvring we can do and what munitions we've got. And... throne dammit, I think I've left my grenades in my trunk."

She got a few looks from the others.
"Oh, come on... I'm not a big person. I can't carry everything everywhere."

Shrugging in response, Guilliman unhitched a grenade from his webbing: "What do you need?"
"In short, 'what have you got'."
"Perhaps my talents could be of use?", Zarkov offered.
"Regrettably, I'm counting on it."
S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

Heroka Vendile

Apologies one and all but I shan't be appearing tomorrow night due to an emergency committee meeting. Hopefully we can finally get rings going again on the 20th!

Dave, the plan you pm'ed me sounds workable, I'll have a map of the station (and the Farungo rail network) for you all next week.
It's all fun and games until someone shoots their own guy with a Graviton gun instead of the MASSIVE SPIDER.
The Order of Krubal
Rewards Of The Enemy

MarcoSkoll

Quote from: Heroka Vendile on January 12, 2014, 09:43:52 PMApologies one and all but I shan't be appearing tomorrow night due to an emergency committee meeting.
Well, darn.

QuoteDave, the plan you pm'ed me sounds workable
<mrburns> Excellent. </mrburns>

I guess it's only really the first half of Alyx's plan, but the second half doesn't have to worry about Schrodinger's map and is fairly interchangeable.
S.Sgt Silva Birgen: "Good evening, we're here from the Adeptus Defenestratus."
Captain L. Rollin: "Nonsense. Never heard of it."
Birgen: "Pick a window. I'll demonstrate".

GW's =I= articles

Heroka Vendile

https://www.dropbox.com/s/bjwzssu2mei74kf/Levongard%20pack%20v2.pdf

updated campaign pack with Port Hope & Globe maps updated/altered, as well as adding Farungo rail network and station map
It's all fun and games until someone shoots their own guy with a Graviton gun instead of the MASSIVE SPIDER.
The Order of Krubal
Rewards Of The Enemy