[ic=Briefing]You and the rest of the Demoiselle d'Ys (a decommissioned Squamous Class frigate which saw action during the War of the Unfathomables) are bounty hunters, roaming the fringes of known space and tracking down outlaws, brigands, and other miscreants. Your current contract has brought you to the Grey Gulf, a favoured refuge for criminals on the run: reality-fissures and Dislocation storms wrack this region of space, impeding search efforts.
Your target is a mad devotee of Nyarlathotep, a dangerous man called James N'gai whose reverence for the Crawling Chaos knows no bounds. This crazed occultist has stolen a data disc containing one of the Pnakotic Fragments from the New Salem Library of Forbidden and Blasphemous Works on Dunwich, fleeing the Miskatonic System in a one-man Effulgent Class ship, Tsathoggua's Daughter.
Apparently operating alone, N'Gai has traveled to the edges of the Betelgeuse System. You have tracked him to the Mooncalf: a calcified cosmic being adrift in space, one of the many casualties of the primordial war between the Elder Gods and the Great Old Ones. Resembling a very large, malformed asteroid, the Mooncalf has long been the preferred hiding spot for Byakhee-rustlers, smugglers, poachers, bandits, heretics, and all manner of other ne'er-do-wells. These villains shelter in the Dhole-infested bowels of the slaughtered Old One, shoring up the meandering, non-Euclidean tunnels with stolen building supplies and scavenged space debris. Their ramshackle additions have made the twisted insides of the Mooncalf semi-habitable.
N'Gai is wanted dead or alive; you'll be paid so long as the data is recovered.[/ic]
[ic=The Crew]Captain Gideon Carter
A grizzled veteran of the War of the Unfathomables, Captain Gideon Carter is haunted by memories of uncanny battlefields where demoniac monstrosities summoned by the Xothic League's military obescenemancers gnawed half his platoon from the inside-out and phlegethon grenades consumed the rest with living fire. His left arm – lost to the scything tendril of a Many-Angled One during a boarding action at the edge of the Anthropophagous Vortex – has been replaced with a fungal prosthetic grown by Mi-Go chirurgeons: a flexible, polymorphous thing which responds to his thoughts, twisting into virtually any shape he can think of. Apart from this appendage Gideon is rather ordinary in appearance: a scarred, grim man in his early middle years, customarily clad in a purple duster, with a wide-brimmed hat shadowing his pocked, perpetually stubbled features. His weapon of choice is a Headsman Model 7, a metaplasma-coil six-shooter – puissant cartridges being too bulky for a single firing cylinder, modern weapons technology (reverse engineered from Yithian weaponry) has reverted to a revolving chamber design.
Gideon is a dour, humourless fellow. A staunch libertarian, he generally maintains a "live and let live" philosophy with regards to the various species and creeds of the galaxy – "I don't care if it walks, crawls, slithers, or scuttles, so long as it isn't trying to lay its eggs in my brain" – but he reserves a special hatred for the Polypous race after seeing the aftermath of their hideous specicide of a Mi-Go colony during the early days of the War. In his words, "The Tch-Tcho, Voormis, Deep Ones, Ghouls – they may not look pretty, but they think like men, got a sense of right an' wrong, even if it's strange to you an' me. They got a soul, if you believe in that sorta thing. Li'hee syha'h n'ghft, the Polyps got no souls to speak of – no guilt, no remorse, no reason. There's no dealing with things like that save with a loaded gun."
After the War, Gideon dug the Demoiselle d'Ys out of a scrap heap and refurbished her by selling spoils he gleaned from the sack of Thuggon. For awhile he attempted to find work as a trader, but gradually he drifted back into mercenary work, then into thief-taking. Despite his bloody profession Gideon has a strict code of ethics to which he inflexibly adheres. In essence, he refuses to kill innocents but shows no mercy against lawbreakers; he believes that all beings (with the exception of the Flying Polyps) are entitled to their own place in the galaxy; and he believes unflinchingly in the importance of freedom, provided it is not abused.
Gideon's preferred drink is terrestrial whiskey (a flask of which he always keeps on his person). He has a phobia of cats, and subsequently finds Ulthari rather unsettling. Though not a religious man he occasionally mouths a prayer or two to Nodens, Lord of the Great Abyss.
Ramsay Olmstead
One-quarter Deep One, Ramsay Olmstead is a mercenary employed by Captain Gideon Carter. A hulking brute in appearance, Ramsay is something of a gentle giant: when not pursuing criminals he is partial to chess (playing countless games of it with Father Blake) and cooking – especially shellfish. Ramsay is well over six feet and has a belly to match his height; though at first glance he looks human enough, closer inspection reveals that he possesses fully functional gills, slightly webbed digits, and rather protuberant eyes with large pupils, as well as a slightly greenish-grey skin tone. A proficient brawler, Ramsay prefers pugilism and wrestling to ranged combat, though he is quite skilled with the Enoch & Curwen Combat Shotgun he typically carries – a rather antiquated weapon which fires solid shot rather than metaplasmic projectiles.
Unlike many "half-breed" Deep Ones, Ramsay is extremely proud of his aquatic heritage. Openly worshipping Father Dagon, Mother Hydra, and Great Cthulhu (even going so far as to keep a small shrine to the these deities in his quarters, complete with clay figurines), Ramsay bears a tattoo of the Sleeping God's mantra – Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn – round his right bicep and a symbol of the Esoteric Order of Dagon on his chest. Often he can be heard croaking ritual prayers in his cabin, imitating the burbling intonation of purebred Deep Ones. He goes swimming at every chance; during the long voyages through space, when swimming is impossible, he spends hours in the bath, using up much of The Demoiselle's hot water in the process (to Gideon's perpetual annoyance). During these marathon dips he incessantly blares Deep One heavy metal, which he claims to find soothing. His favourite band is called Idh-Yaa: posters of the all-female Deep One punk-metal thrashers, ironically clad in shredded retro swimwear, cover his walls.
Born in a Deep One reservation on Whatley's World, Ramsay left to make his fortune many years ago, but he still keeps in regular contact with his grandmother, sending frequent hyperspace messages to her. He met Gideon in a saloon: a pair of xenophobic humans, members of the Unsullied Brotherhood, had been tormenting him, mocking his drink of vodka and brine, threatening him, and taunting him with racial slurs. Ramsay broke the nose of the first Antidegenerationist and was about to deal with the second when the sneering man pulled a Harlequin Metaplasma Derringer on him, insisting that he leave immediately. Gideon – who'd observed the entire affair from a shadowy corner of the bar – simply shot the bigoted man in the foot. While Ramsay retrieved the Derringer the scarred ethership captain proceeded to stride across the bar and stick his gun down the wounded man's throat, warning him that if he ever hassled any "subbies" (subhumans, as the Antidegenerationists term Ghouls, Deep Ones, and the like) in his hearing again, he'd blow the man's brains out. Since the incident Gideon and Ramsay became fast friends – even if Gideon can't stand Ramsay's taste in food or music.
Ramsay has a definite crush on Sthena, the ship's Yith-possessed mechanic and tech specialist, though she is totally oblivious to his interest.
Father Blake
Perpetually clad in yellow robes and a pallid mask and bearing a silver flute, Father Blake is a lama of a beneficent aspect of Hastur. The priest pays his own way on Captain Gideon's ship; though he claims that his funds are derived entirely from alms, he seems to possess unusual wealth and has, in certain emergencies when the crew's funds were especially short, paid for repairs to the ship or covered medical expenses for other crewmen. He follows the bounty hunters of the Demoiselle in order to scrawl the Yellow Sign on the foreheads of criminals killed by the group, consigning their souls to the care of the King in Yellow with a tune from his flute. He often converses with captured criminals being brought by the bounty hunters for trial, apparently in an attempt to reform them. These sessions are intensely private, held in the Demoiselle's holding cell: Father Blake calls them "confessions."
Despite worshipping what many regard as a deity of madness and unspeakable horror – an interpretation Blake obviously regards as extremely skewed – the good Father seems to be a kind, reasonable man. He is partial to the occasional game of chess, a taste he shares with Ramsay; the two often have intense spiritual debates over these games. He gets along passably well with Sthena but is mercilessly teased by the sardonic pilot of the Demoiselle d'Ys, Richard Xu, and he is distrusted by the ship's sawbones, Doc Tenebrous, who finds his manner disingenuous, and (of course) by Ashley Crow, who thinks that "religious worship is just an apocalypse waiting to happen." He spends most of his time in his own quarters studying from the small library of theological texts and grimoires he keeps with him. At times strange lights emanate beneath the cracks of his door, and he seems to be speaking with someone. When pressed about this he claims to simply be recording messages for his fellow lamas at St. Haita's Monastery on the third moon of Haddath, or listening to their messages.
Though Father Blake prefers not to kill unnecessarily he is a decent enough shot, wielding a pair of Strigoi M13 Micropistols. He always carries with him a copy of the New Carcosan Bible (which includes the controversial play The King in Yellow as one of its scriptural books), whose eldritch formulae he sometimes invokes when witchcraft is required, though he is reluctant to fill the role of "miracle-worker," Captain Gideon's wishes aside.
Sthena "Naughty Angel" Murdoch
Six years ago, Sthena "Naughty Angel" Murdoch was an exotic dancer on Cythera, living paycheque to paycheque and making her living in the fleshpots. While giving a client – a wealthy sulphur-refinery owner, in fact – a private dance, Sthena collapsed into unconsciousness, her eyes rolling into the back of her head. The owner was alerted and, believing Sthena to be suffering from an overdose of the highly illegal pleasure-drug known as Ishtar's Tears, conducted her into a backroom, where she shortly revived. Upon awaking from her stupor, however, Sthena was oddly changed: her voice, mannerisms, body language, and facial expressions were all subtly but distinctly altered, and she seemed to have no memory of her own past. Looking down at her risqué outfit and raising an eyebrow, she informed the club owner that she would no longer be requiring employment at his establishment and briskly walked out, still unclothed, into the street. Shortly after, she departed Venus to explore the rest of civilized space.
Sthena is, of course, no longer Sthena: she has been possessed by one of the Great Race of Yith, a being projecting its consciousness forward through time in order to record future history and make certain observations regarding the shape of events and the development of culture. While this phenomenon is now well-documented, Yith-possessed individuals are often rounded up by many of the galaxy's governments and research centers, locked in phase-cells to prevent their consciousness' return to its own time, and then interrogated (sometimes forcibly) in order to extract valuable technological and occult knowledge – knowledge the Yith are reluctant to surrender, given their time travel protocols (what they refer to as "Chronological Etiquette"). Wishing to avoid this fate, Sthena has fallen in with Captain Gideon Carter and his crew – what better way to experience galactic society than with a crew of vagabonds? While Gideon and the rest of the crew know her true nature, they conceal this secret from others. Since Sthena possesses incredibly extensive knowledge of Yithian technology (the very technology on which modern hyperspace drives are modeled) she makes a perfect mechanic and engineer. The engines of the Demoiselle d'Ys run with perfect smoothness, and in fact Sthena has made a few small but significant alterations to the vessel to improve efficiency.
Physically, Sthena appears as an extremely attractive human woman in her early twenties. She cut her host's long red hair and keeps it very short. Erotic tattoos cover most of her body, including a pair of prominent black angel wing tattoos on her back, quotes from the Song of Solomon along her right inner thigh, and a R'lyehian "tramp stamp." She has swapped the contacts her host used for a pair of very large horn-rimmed glasses. Intellectually, Sthena is a genius by human standards, fully versant in over fifty languages and adept with almost all forms of reverse engineered Yithian tech, which seem as childish playthings to her. Insatiably curious and wry of wit, Sthena sometimes makes embarrassing faux pas, as she is still not fully versed in the niceties of modern etiquette. Though the Yith have an extensive knowledge of history, their accounts are incomplete, and so Sthena frequently makes anachronistic references.
Sthena is also a capable martial artist. Her weapon of choice is a "lightning gun" which she built herself out of miscellaneous bits and pieces; though it takes several seconds to charge up, its effect is devastating, though it is not capable of pinpoint accuracy. Aboard the ship her closest associate is Doc Tenebrous, whose stories she finds fascinating: often she can be found in the medical bay, pestering him for tales of the past. She also gets along decently with Ashley Crow, often seeking out the former Sherrif when some detail of human gender constructs has eluded her.
Richard Xu
The curmudgeonly pilot of the Demoiselle d'Ys, Richard Xu is an old friend of Captain Gideon Carter. During the War of the Unfathomables Richard worked principally as a drop-ship pilot, ferrying troops into battle, including Gideon's platoon. During a disastrous engagement on Shohni Richard heroically remained behind after other pilots had retreated, waiting to pick up Gideon's squad. Gideon and half a dozen men appeared out of the miasmic mists, slavering monstrosities in hot pursuit. Richard managed to collect the remnants of Gideon's squad but was hit in the abdomen by a festershell, an infectious bullet which releases necrotizing bacteria into the wound it creates. Richard stoically returned the ship and the wounded soldiers within back to the Righteous Leviathan in orbit over Shonhi – without informing Gideon or anyone else that flesh-eating bacteria were rapidly putrefying his body. By the time they arrived at the medical bay it was too late: Richard's internal organs were on the verge of disintegration.
Fortunately for Richard, the Righteous Leviathan had a Mi-Go medic aboard. The chirurgeon scooped the pilot's brain from his skull moments before the gangrenous infection could reach it. While the emergency surgery permanently damaged Richard's brainstem in such a way that his brain could never be transplanted into a new organic body, it did save the pilot's life. Richard Xu's brain was placed in a Mi-Go canister fitted with the requisite mechanical accoutrements necessary for speech and sensory input. Because of his sacrifice Richard was decorated with almost every medal of bravery the Sovereigntist military could award and given an honourable discharge. When the War ended Gideon sought Richard out and found the former pilot testing simulators for a major software company, having been rejected for employment as an actual pilot due to disembodiment prejudice, an unfortunately common perception that the bodiless are irreparably handicapped. Offering his old war buddy the chance at actually flying again, Gideon brought Richard aboard the Demoiselle d'Ys. His brain canister was wired directly into the ship's circuitry, allowing Richard to pilot it by thought.
When the crew of the Demoiselle are out on a mission, Richard "accompanies" the group using a remotely controlled automaton while his brain canister remains on the ship. The heavily customized automaton, dubbed "Mr. Rusty" by Richard, vaguely resembles a mechanical spider and is fully equipped with audio/video receptors and even basic weapons (a taser and a small metaplasma-coil pistol). It also contains a selection of tools, allowing Richard to jack into any computer systems the group encounters, sometimes enabling him to disable security systems or unlock doors.
Temperamentally, Richard is an extremely grumpy individual. He possesses a snarky, caustic sense of humour and an incredibly foul mouth, and can swear fluently in three languages. Only Gideon gets along well with Richard: the other crewmen tend to find him exasperating in the extreme.
Doc Tenebrous
The sawbones now known only as Doc Tenebrous was born on Rhode Island in 1882; born into a prosperous middle-class family, he following in his father's footsteps to become a skilled physician, eventually serving as a volunteer combat medic during the First World War. After being critically injured by a stray German bullet and left for dead in the middle of a storm, he crawled into a cave (its walls scrawled with strange cave paintings) somewhere in eastern France and fell into unconsciousness. When he awoke he found himself deep underground, surrounded by bizarre, vaguely humanoid creatures with horrible dog-like faces and pallid skin. Though these beings – Ghouls – nursed him back to health, they refused to let him leave the caverns: he might alert the upper world to their presence. The Ghoul warren was deep beneath the surface: there was no way the he could find his own path through the labyrinth of lightless tunnels. Though at first he longed for his old life, eventually the man who would become Doc Tenebrous resigned himself to a subterranean existence.
As he recovered from his wounds, he realized that a curious change was overcoming him. His nails were hardening and elongating rapidly; his skin was becoming pale and rubbery, almost cadaverous; his ears were becoming pointed, his teeth sharp, his eyes bloodshot. When he pressed his healers about this alarming transformation they confessed the truth: his wounds had been so severe that he required a blood transfusion. With no human blood available, the Ghouls had substituted their own. Fed on a diet of Ghoul food, with Ghoul blood now flowing through his veins, he was slowly becoming a Ghoul himself.
Centuries later, when the greater human population became aware of their troglodytic cousins, Doc Tenebrous emerged from the dark corners of the earth with his Ghoul brethren. The assimilation process was slow and fraught with violence – as it continues to be. Doc Tenebrous sought solace in the depths of space, serving as a medic on a variety of ships. Eventually he was hired on by Captain Gideon Carter after the veteran saw him operate on a shooting victim in the aftermath of a duel on Mars. Suitably impressed with the Ghoul's skills, Gideon offered him a position aboard the Demoiselle d'Ys on the spot, and Doc Tenebrous has served with him ever since.
In appearance, Doc Tenebrous resembles a typical Ghoul: a hybrid of slouching proto-human and hairless dog. He has immaculate dress sense, usually wearing a waistcoat and trousers (cut to accommodate his hoofed, bowed legs) and a bowler hat. A superb shot, second only to Captain Gideon himself, his preferred weapon is a Lloigor Mk IX metaplasmic revolver, which he claims reminds him of the old Webley service pistols employed at the turn of the nineteenth-century. Cerebral and rather stiff in manner, the Doc keeps to his small medical bay when not out in the field with the rest of the crew. His reserved demeanour is balanced by his intense courteousness and chivalry. He is, of course, well over four hundred years old, and so has extremely extensive firsthand knowledge of history. His favourite poet is Alfred Lord Tennyson, whom he is fond of quoting.
Ashley Crow
Once a well-respected, even legendary lawwoman with the New Arkham police force, former Sheriff Ashley Crow was dismissed from service after shooting an undercover Delta Viridian agent. At the time she believed Agent Aleistor Crucian to be a Shan-possessed fanatic attempting to open a multidimensional gateway to summon Xada-Hgla, an avatar of Azathoth, when in fact he was on the verge of exposing a major witch-cult. To this day she suspects that she was set up, that someone wanted her off the force for good. Whether or not some conspiratorial faction engineered her downfall, the incident cost Ashley her badge; she turned to bounty hunting since catching criminals is all she knows. Some on the Anti-Aberrance Squad (Crow's old squad, which deals with occult crimes) have suggested that Crow saw too much, that the job drove her mad: they claim that the entire Delta Viridian incident was the result of Crow's paranoia getting the better of her.
Originally a rival of Captain Gideon Carter's, Ashley Crow fell in with the seasoned thief-taker after temporarily pooling resources with him to apprehend the notorious serial killer Gilbert Martense III, the "Cannibal of Kingsport": the two realized that they made an effective team, and Ashley has been a member of the Demoiselle's crew ever since. A tall, statuesque woman in her mid-thirties with prematurely silver hair and hard, slate-grey eyes, Ashley Crow is striking, but she carries herself as if unaware of her appearance. She frequently fidgets with the Anathema M-23 eight-shot pistol at her waist, though her weapon of choice is a Bugbear Model 5 metaplasma carbine.
Stern and rather curt, Ashley has had a huge chip on her shoulder ever since her dismissal. A naturally suspicious woman, Ashley is a staunch maltheist and considers any form of religious worship foolish and potentially dangerous. For this reason she frequently quarrels with Father Blake and Ramsay, insisting to Gideon that their reverence will one day "get everyone onboard mind-raped, mutilated, and killed – possibly not in that order." Richard Xu constantly makes obscene sexual comments regarding Ashley as well. She does, however, get along passably with Doc Tenebrous and Sthena, and she seems to share some kind of largely unspoken bond with Captain Gideon.
Apart from being an excellent gunfighter, Ashley Crow is a skilled criminologist and has contacts throughout the occult underground. Her police intuition is superb, her observation skills excellent, and she is highly resourceful in dire situations. Her sole hobby is jigsaw puzzles, one of which is almost always half-completed in her quarters.
Sonam "Sonya" Choden
Though she does not look it, Sonam Choden – or "Sonya" as she prefers to call herself – is of pure tcho-tcho origin, able to trace her ancestry back to the original terrestrial tribes of Central Asia and, ultimately, to the primordial Miri-Nigri themselves. Raised in a traditional tcho-tcho household, Sonya became disillusioned with her culture after her twin older brothers were killed in a turf-war between two rival Tongs in the Chauchatown of Moloch City. She ran away from home, stowing away on a hyperfreighter heading to the frontier and becoming a pickpocket, burglar, and con artist, wandering from town to town, planet to planet, system to system. She cut her nails and kept them well-pruned; she let her hair grow out of its original bowl cut and dyed it blonde; when she could afford to she had a chirurgeon replace her filed teeth with regular ones; she renounced worship of Chaugnar Faugn, Atlach-Nacha, the Twin Obscenities, and the other Great Old Ones revered by many of her people. She ate synthetic human flesh coded with double alleles in the HMGA2 gene and suffered excruciating growing pains as her tcho-tcho metabolism assimilated the DNA and pushed her height from 4'3" to 5'1". With agonizing slowness she transformed herself from a fanged pygmy into a still-petite but unremarkable young woman. When a con required her to change herself further she would consume the appropriate genetic material, adopting a temporary visage to alter her genetic makeup.
Some years ago Captain Gideon was bringing Sonya in after the skilled thief stole an extremely valuable electromagnetic pulsed microwave weapon from a private collector. On the way back to the ship the Captain was ambushed by a group of Ghoul thugs in the warrens of Nova Stygia. Having disarmed Gideon, the Ghouls prepared to divest him of his valuable possessions: his weapons, clothes, money, skin, and vital organs. Ignoring the handcuffed Sonya for the time being two of the slavering creatures approached while the third kept watch. Though Gideon had handcuffed her with her hands behind her back, Sonya's tcho-tcho flexibility allowed her to easily reposition her arms round the front. She crept up to the Ghoul standing guard, strangled him quietly using her chains as an improvised garrotte, picked up his weapon, and shot the remaining two Ghouls through the backs of their heads. During this time Gideon reclaimed his own weapon; the two now faced a Mexican standoff. Complimenting Sonya on her skills and thanking her for saving his life Gideon offered to tell the authorities she'd been killed during apprehension – if she joined his crew. After a brief moment's hesitation Sonya accepted Gideon's proposal.
Since that day Sonya has been an on-again-off-again crewmember of the Demoiselle d'Ys. She has her own hyperspace-capable ship, the Cacodaemon Class vessel Dream of Hyperborea, which she typically docks in one of the Demoiselle's spare shuttle bays while she is aboard. Often she will come aboard the ship and work a few jobs while on the run from lawmen in another system (usually unbeknownst to Gideon), then leave once she grows bored. Stealthy, nimble, and well-versed in the dynamics of the underworld, Sonya can be a valuable addition to the team. She has an extensive array of criminal contacts and is a decent shot with the Morella Model 4 Pocket Pistol she always carries, though she prefers to dispatch foes quietly using knives and garrottes when she has to kill anyone, and further prefers to sneak past, trick, or otherwise disable enemies rather than killing them.
Hadrian Saxon-Sorne - played by The Meanest Guest
An ex-corporate marine formerly in the employ of the Thiessen-Suwei Corporation, Hadrian has extensive combat experience. He has participated in excess of two dozen boarding actions, been dropped in five orbital landings, and served aboard ship in two fleet-scale engagements during the Inner Lane War. Hadrian is rarely separated from his black plasteel suit of Thiessen Advanced Encounter Armour, being accustomed to its wear during long space voyages. His eyes are slate grey, and he keeps his blond hair cropped short in a military style. His complexion is unmarred by scar or burn in spite of all the battle he has seen, thanks in large part to the excellent aesthetic surgery package offered under Thiessen-Suwei's corporate health plan. Hadrian has been regarded as an exceptional marksman throughout his career, often serving as the designated sharpshooter in the various units he has been assigned to. He downplays his own contribution to his unerring shot, instead lauding his 5S MPR: a battle rifle from Suwei's back catalogue, it's design over two centuries old, and so archaic that it relies on magnetically accelerated solid ammunition. Apart from his rifle, Hadrian only carries an 8" Henrick V-Edge vibroknife, and a single NCORE fusion grenade that he refers to as his 'party favour'. In addition to his skill with weapons Hadrian is an accomplished operator of terrestrial vehicles, having driven assorted tanks, APCs, and a myriad list of other military and civilian vehicles both under fire and in all kinds of inclement weather conditions.
Born in Providence City in the Betelgeuse system, the third of three children. Hadrian's parents divorced soon after he was born. He never knew his father, and he grew up largely ignored by his mother, Anne-Elizabeth. The task of raising him fell to his two older sisters: Theodora and Valentine. Hadrian loves his sisters dearly, and to this day maintains near-constant contact with them. The once-great cities of Yarnak were already mostly deserted by the time he was born, and only continued to empty and decay as he grew up. At the conclusion of his second year studying politics at the Royal College of Providence, his education was cut short. The university was forced to close its doors due to insufficient enrollment. His family's ancient fortune now dwindled to near-nothingness, finishing his studies off-world was not an option, and so, Hadrian stumbled into gainful employment in the ranks of the Thiessen-Suwei Marines.
Relaxed and generally cheerful, Hadrian gets along well with most people. The horrors he has seen do not seem to bother him, or he at least hides it well behind his easy smile. He has a passion for classical music, and can often be found with a guitar on his lap strumming out the songs of old Earth. He's surprisingly well read for an ex-corporate merc, and if he isn't playing guitar you can bet there will be a book in his right hand, and a glass of Martian bourbon in his left.
Since the expiration of his six year contract with Thiessen-Suwei, Hadrian has found himself sporadically employed by Ptolem AG, one of the few private security firms still based out of Yarnak. Most recently he was assigned to provide shipboard security for the notoriously draconian Tasty Fruit company aboard the Wallowing Rex: a hauler carrying over three million tonnes of sweet plantains. Surrounded by an eery crew of Ghouls that didn't seem to speak a word of English, and enjoying the oh-so-pleasant conversation of the two obsolete SparTech Warhawk combat drones that Ptolem had sent with him, it was probably the only time in his life that he really wanted to kill himself. He almost found it relieving when the crew mutinied, tied him up in his sleep, killed and ate the ship's officers in front of him, and dumped him wide-eyed and bewildered in the middle of the back-end of nowhere: some rancher's field on Mandra-fucking-gora. But really, the fun was just getting started.[/ic][ooc]Feel free to invent your own character - if you want to check setting details with me etc you can do so here. I'm making the setting up as I go but it's pretty closely based on the Cthulhu Mythos "canon", just in space and with a western flavour.
I'll post up some R'lyehian slang shortly.[/ooc]
I meant to ask, would players prefer a low-stats/no-stats game? I'm contemplating statting the characters up using D20 Modern.
THIS. IS. AWESOME!!!!!!
I definitely want to be in this now.
Most interested in the Capn, but I like Richard too. Playing a brain in a jar with a rusty mechanical spider sounds pretty cool.
I'd be inclined to vote for low stats rather than no stats, but I am flexible.
Doc Tenebrous.
Me want.
I could conceivably devise a character of my own (which I have a devious idea for), but the doctor seems far too entertaining to pass up. If someone else really wants the doctor, I could certainly fall back on my own idea with little worry, I think. Hell, given this setting, I'm a little surprised Steerpike didn't make something like it already.
Stats, I don't really care about. I'm more about the fluff than the mechanics in this kind of game.
Ooh what's your alternate character idea?!
Interesting choices; looking forward to it. The selection of characters reminds me of a mix between Serenity and a WH:Rogue Trader Game I once played in.
Here are my preferences:
1.Richard (Although he's a lot like Lini+Wispy so if someone really wants him then I'll go to my #2 choice.)
2.Blake
3.Doc Tenebrous
As far as stats go: I like the Low-Stats approach (like with Tempter), but if D20Modern is what you prefer, that's fine.
Richard also reminds me of a character from That Hideous Strength, which is a CS Lewis book that I loved :)
PM sent.
So, technically, as it stands, for official matters, I would say that my list is:
1. My idea.
2. Tenebrous
3. Ramsay
What is the current day/time frame for this game?
Quote from: Superfluous Crow
What is the current day/time frame for this game?
I am also interested in knowing this. If it works out with my schedule, I might try to run something a day or two after.
Steerpike Mentioned Monday- on Halloween; as for the times, he may have adjusted them based on the previous thread's feedback.
It's on Halloween. I was initially planning on running 2 sessions - 1 of this and maybe 1 of something else. My plan was to run this in the morning PST (so roughly at the usual CE play-time, or maybe starting a little earlier). This would allow people in far-flung time zones to play.
My plan was also to run a session of something in the afternoon/evening after my class - maybe of this, maybe of something else horror themed. If another GM (such as Seraphine or sparkletwist) wants to scoop one of those spots, though, I'd be fine giving up my second session (which would start at about 4 PST, i.e. at 7 EST) or even the first session. The time between sessions might work better for them though anyway. I may have overestimated my ability to prepare for two sessions, as well.
The entire thing would have a drop-ins welcome vibe. Nothing super serious. This can easily be explained by the nature of the scenario - the party will probably break off into groups, and the tunnels are non-Euclidean, so it's very easy to explain new group members showing up and the like. I'll probably also play plenty of the main characters as NPCs, and then once someone drops in they can take over after a brief summary of what's going on.
I'm in. Absolutely in. Of the pre-gens, I like the look of Doc Tenebrous the best I think, but given a few days I might start tinkering with some ideas of my own :)
Added a new character: disgraced former lawwoman Ashley Crow, who may or may not have been driven mad by her work.
Oh, if this is for the morning session rather than the evening one, then I won't be able to make it. I'll only be available after 5:30PM EST at the earliest.
OK, here's my new plan.
The party is going to split up to find N'Gai. Half of them go right, the other half go left, that kinda thing. The morning session will deal with one group, the evening with another. You can play in both sessions, but you'll have to play a different character.
I will sign on for the morning session at 12PM EDT (9 PDT) and the afternoon/evening session begins at 7PM EDT (4 PDT). Once I have 3-4 players in a session, the session will start, and drop-ins will get new/leftover characters.
I am going to use low stats to avoid the possibility of hour long combats. Action resolution will be a d6+your stat. The stats will be something along the lines of Brawn (melee attack/strength), Viscera (stamina/hp), Nerves (dexterity/ranged attack), and Sanity. Nothing complicated.
This way everyone who wants to play will get a chance, and people like Coyote might get to play multiple characters they like, if they show up for both sessions.
No worries if Seraphine or sparkle (or anyone else) want to run sessions of their own. There'll be a big gap in the middle of the day, and we can always overlap, trade players when someone dies, etc.
Can I call dibs on Ashley Crow?
Sure! I think everyone should be able to get their first choices, looking over the lists of preferences so far. We'll deal with any conflicts as they arise.
EDIT: Can anyone guess who her name is a reference to?
Quote from: Steerpike
EDIT: Can anyone guess who her name is a reference to?
Shot in the dark, but Ashley Williams from Mass Effect 1?
Ha nope! Though she does perhaps have a bit of that Ashley in her.
Quote from: SteerpikeEDIT: Can anyone guess who her name is a reference to?
Crow, Niska's right-hand man from
Firefly Episode 2: The Train Job?
Or alternately, judging by the mention of one "Aleister Crucian" in her bio, perhaps it is a reference to Aleister Crowley?
Nice tries both... but no. She's actually meant to be the distant descendant of Lovecraftian sleuth Titus Crow (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titus_Crow). In Crow's adventures, humanity slowly fights back against the illimitable forces of chaos and cosmic malignancy instead of meekly curling up in a corner to quietly go mad.
[ooc]Credit to Xathan's Terra Macabre for several of the slang terms![/ooc][ic=Slang]Most people in the civilized universe know English and at least a healthy smattering of Rl'yehian. The names of the Great Old Ones and the Elder Gods are often used as oaths in the same way that historically Christians swore by God or the Devil.
It is also very common for religious or superstitious individuals to gesticulate to draw the Elder Sign in the air to ward off evil or misfortune, much as a Catholic might make the sign of the cross.
bug: any insectoid or crustacean alien i.e. Mi-Go, Yakubians, etcetera
Cthulhu take the hindmost: devil take the hindmost
ebumna-n'ghft: hellhole, shithole, bad place, pit, dark place
fm'latggh-'bthnk: "starshit"; crap, stuff
ftaghu'ebumna: whore or loose women; with an additional 'a' (pluralization), refers to a brothel; literally, "skin pit."
ftaghu'fhalma: madame, procuress, brothel-keeper
hlirgh: heretic, blasphemer
hupadgh'Shub-Niggurath: spawn of the Black Goat in the Woods with a Thousand Young; a colloquialism for a low-born person, trash
G.O.O.: Great Old One
grah'n: worm; pejorative
iä!: similar to the Cantonese "aiya!" or the English "shucks" – showing disappointment, dismay, or mild annoyance
ilyaa'hrii - arrogant, proud, hubristic, cocky
lamprey: parasite, lazy individual, slippery or dishonest person
li'hee-syha'h-n'ghft: on pain of death and eternal damnation; "believe me when I say..."
li'hee-sll'ha-n'gha: a threat to kill someone
lw'nafh-shogg: hyperspatial turbulence; come to generally mean "chaos" or "disturbance"
mnahn'-gof'n: fool, idiot, naïve individual, ignorant person; literally, "worthless child"
mnahn'nw: derogatory word for simpleton i.e. the mentally handicapped
nafl-hupadgh : bastard, illegitimate, base-born
Nodens' beard!: oath; exclamation of surprise or amazement
n'gha h'geb: exclamation of anguish; "we're doomed"; literally "death is here"
Nyarlathotetp's own luck: the devil's own luck
nyth-shogg: ne'er-do-well, blackguard, servant of evil
or'luhnyth: liar
right-as-R'lyeh: right-as-rain
sll'ha-nglui: loose woman, trollop, slut
sgn'wahl: shack up, get friendly
subby: pejorative meaning subhuman, i.e. a Ghoul, Deep One, mutant, etcetera
throd: fuck; also throdding, throdded, etcetera
vulgtlagln-syha'h: pray to the gods; "we're in deep shit"
wagh'nyth: slave; servile person
ygotha'ai n'gha gof'nn: emphatic curse, a great way to start a fight; literally "I wish the call of death for your children"
y'hah: amen; thank the gods; verily
ysll'ha ephai c'ai: I hope to speak to you again, a common goodbye; literally "I invite after this we speak"
ytharanak c'ai: the proper response to the above; literally "I promise we will speak"[/ic]
Bad News: I'm working on Monday :(
Let me know how it goes though, it would have been very fun.
OK, will do.
In the event that there aren't enough people to run it in the morning, I'll pop in during the evening and see who's on. Possibly we could run both sparkle's and mine on the same day or partially at the same time; we'll just play it by ear, and I think it'll work out.
I like your new slang database... in theory. :?:
But, the thing about slang is that it kind of rolls off the tongue. These, uh... don't. :)
Yeah, they're essentially unpronounceable. That's the beauty of IRC - no one needs to pronounce them to use them.
The obvious reference, for those who've seen Firefly/Serenity (which I'm taking huge cues from), is to the Chinese profanities the otherwise English-speaking characters use. They hardly rolled off the tongue either (as the outtakes show!) - and most viewers (including Chinese-speaking viewers, probably!) didn't even know what they were saying, but it worked beautifully.
Their pronunciation, if they were attempting to pronounce Mandarin rather than Cantonese, was pretty poor, but the attempts were appreciated.
Quote from: Steerpike
Yeah, they're essentially unpronounceable. That's the beauty of IRC - no one needs to pronounce them to use them.
The obvious reference, for those who've seen Firefly/Serenity (which I'm taking huge cues from), is to the Chinese profanities the otherwise English-speaking characters use. They hardly rolled off the tongue either (as the outtakes show!) - and most viewers (including Chinese-speaking viewers, probably!) didn't even know what they were saying, but it worked beautifully.
When I ran my Firefly one-shot, I did much the same thing, only I looked up and used curses and expressions that they actually used on the show.
So, we got about 75% through the scenario. When would be a good time to finish it off? I may beef up the latter portion so that the session is a bit longer.
Also, for the second group I was originally going to GM for yesterday afternoon, a) who would like to participate? and b) what times are you available?
The remaining characters are Ramsay Olmstead, Doc Tenebrous, Ashley Crow, and Father Blake.
Sakhar's write-up is great and hilarious.
---
If it's at a time I can make it, then I would be glad to play Father Blake. I can make it most days after 6:45 EST (except Wednesdays), though I get held late sometimes.
I'll take pains to ensure you can be there LD.
EDIT: I should note that Sixguns players who played characters from the first group are welcome to play different characters in the second group. The timing may be a little late for some, of course.
I'm free tomorrow before 3pm CST, Saturday after 4CST, Sunday after 7 CST, and monday after 11am CST. And I'm loving playing Gideon, so want to keep playing him if I can join.
Tomorrow I have my Cadaverous Earth game I'm afraid. Weekends are usually pretty busy for me but we could see. Otherwise looks like next week is a likelihood. I might be able to swing Monday at a bit later than the time we started last time... though a Tuesday, a Friday, or possibly even a Thursday would give us more potential play-time.
Next weekend or monday I should be available for part II.
Just an update on tonight - there's a 50/50 chance I'll be free tonight, depending on how well the friend I originally had plans with feels this afternoon since she's been sick.
BTW, Steerpike, have you considered turning this into an actual fully fleshed out setting? There's a ton of awesome things here and even more potential that hasn't been explored - I'd love to see it developed.
I started it once but didn't get super far beyond a summary of a few major systems. The great thing about it is that the setting sort of writes itself once the elements are slotted into place - the Mythos provides rich source material, and the other aspects are easily blended. If I run more one-shots, though, I think I'd flesh it out a little more.
A couple of questions about future "episodes" for players:
1) Should I keep a low-stats approach or adopt a system? Seraphine provided a really cool system called Nemesis that would work well, though the low-stats approach also seemed fine to me.
2) Assuming there isn't a TPK should I keep the same characters or create new ones in different roles?
3) Any requests for specific types of scenarios or settings?
My answers:
1) I liked the "low-stats" approach, personally. If you wanted to try to make it work with a system, that could work too, but I'd hope it was a system that supported the kind of narrative flexibility that players seemed to enjoy in the current very light incarnation. Of course, FATE and various similar systems (including, if I may blatantly plug it, my own FATE-inspired Asura system) are things I'd also recommend looking into.
2) I rather like playing Sthena. However, I'd also look at new characters as I'm sure they'll also be interesting!
3) Not really. There's a lot that can be done with this kind of thing and I'd like to try most of it. :D
1) I'll second Sparkletwist's like of the low-stat's approach or, if you want a more statty system, going with FATE or a variant thereof, since that would allow much of the freedom we've had so far. (I'm working on a FATE variant for Terra Macabre that'd likely be easily adapted to this world since it's geared towards "Lovecraftian Overtones but not Horror", but that's very much a WIP)
2) I love Gideon. I'd look at new characters and might find something I enjoy, but I'd prefer to play him. :P
3) Again, to second sparkletwist, nothing off the top of my head, though I really like the Firefly overtones you've been using and would like to see that continue.
1) I wouldn't be quick to try and fix something that's working so well, although I wouldn't be adverse to giving a reasonable system a try.
2) Switching characters might be fun and keep the games feeling fresh. If the scenarios will be about the exploits of the same group of mercenaries, then I may wish to continue playing Richard.
3) Nothing specific, although it'd be good to go for some variation rather than sticking to one form.
So I thought we might try to finish off group 1's adventure on Monday starting at around 2 pm EST, if that works for everyone...
I will certainly try to be there. :D
I should be on then.
Awesome! It may not be a long session but hopefully it'll be fun, and then we can think about playing another one somewhere down the line, after I run through group 2's section.
I will almost definitely be here for that, woo hoo!
Update: if power doesn't come back or bookstore wifi still fails to cooperate, I might have to miss this session. :(
Part II was a big success. I'd still like to run a scenario with the other half of the crew - Father Blake (who Light Dragon has expressed an interest in), Doc Tenebrous, Ashley Crow, and Ramsay Olmstead. Woul anyone else be up for playing that half of the scenario through (including the players from the first half)?
EDIT: I will have the logs up soon.
P.P.S. Was talking with the players and some problems with running a second half came up with regards to player motivation and certain inevitable conclusions - the first group apprehended N'Gai, so the second group wouldn't have a proper chance to. They'd have their own adventure, but it would all feel a little foregone. So instead of doing a second half, maybe we can just run a different, new scenario:
A Fistful of Tentacles
[ic=Briefing]After completing a small contract in the system of Zhuque on the edge of the Homunculus Nebula – the very fringes of settled space – you received a proposition from a man named Samuel Crofton, mayor of the nascent colony of Menhir on the rugged, recently settled planet Mandragora. The settlement's cattle have been going missing and Crofton believes that rustlers are making off with them. The local sheriff, Phillip Burke, took a party of armed men into the nearby wilderness, hoping to find the stolen cattle and capture the rustlers. Only Burke returned, raving insensibly, slipping in and out of catatonia; the other men never emerged from the shadowy depths of the forest.
Crofton has contacted off-world law enforcement agencies requesting further investigation, but the response has been unenthusiastic, and by the time the interplanetary police send someone to look into things the town will have been bled dry. Private security agencies are far too expensive for the town to afford. In desperation Crofton has asked the crew of the Demoiselle d'Ys to look into the matter, promising to pay them as much as he can scrape together. With the money from James N'Gai's capture and other recent jobs beginning to dwindle, you have agreed to help the citizens of Menhir if you can.
You will receive your pay either upon return of the stolen cattle or if you arrest, kill, or otherwise dispatch the rustlers. In addition, the families of the men who joined Sheriff Burke will pay a bonus for the return of their relatives – or, if they are dead, of their loved ones' bodies.[/ic]
So...when we doing this next? >.>
It might be awhile, actually - lots of school stuff and other things keeping me busy. But I'll let everyone know.
Scenario is complete, or near to! I have disturbed myself with some aspects of this one. But it should be fun, I think, and still a rollicking, crazy adventure, not just a trip through the viler parts of my imagination.
After Dec. 2 my schedule is WIDE open, so pretty much anytime works for me except for weekends and Wednesdays from 12:30-3:30 (Cadaverous Earth game). If next week is all-around better I could possibly work around that too.
If you'd like to play, sign up here with your character preference (returning players get first dibs on their characters) and your availability (if you don't mind, please convert to EST so that I don't go crazy trying to figure out a ton of timezones).
A list of characters is available on the first page of this thread. Light Dragon has expressed an interest in Father Blake. The other previously claimed characters are Captain Gideon, Sthena "Naughty Angel" Murdoch, Richard Xu, and Sakhr.
Quote from: Steerpike
Scenario is complete, or near to! I have disturbed myself with some aspects of this one. But it should be fun, I think, and still a rollicking, crazy adventure, not just a trip through the viler parts of my imagination.
This still sounds like a good time, btw.
I'm interested in playing again, but I don't feel any need to call dibs on Richard yet. I could certainly continue playing him, but I'm tempted to try some other character - Ramsay maybe, or perhaps even submit a novel PC.
Feel free to submit new PCs!
Ramsay might be more useful than Richard in this one if you feel you'd like a change - the scenario's basically a rural adventure, so there won't be as much technology to interact with.
I'm interested in playing in this upcoming game. However, I don't want to lock off a character for others or say "I'm in" until there's a better idea of what day/time the game will be held on as I might be working on the day/night that works best for everyone else.
Sorry that's not too helpful, just wanted to let my interest be known.
I will certainly make every effort to come back as Sthena!
Nearly any time not Tuesday nights or Wednesday morning/afternoon can be made to work. I just need to know about it with a few days notice to clear up my schedule if there is a conflict.
I suppose it should go without saying I want to play Gideon again. After Dec 5th is during my exam time, so my schedule become very erratic - I might not know when I'm free until I get closer to it. But will do everything I can to get myself back in, because last time was a blast and I want to do it again. :)
How would Thursday the 1st actually work for people? Round 12 EST, or some other time that day?
Should be good for me.
Two announcements:
1) I'm looking at 1:30-2 PM EST for this Thursday as being a possible play-time.
2) An additional character (I'm thinking of Saffron/Yolanda/Bridgette from Firefly and Faye Valentine from Cowboy Bebop for her):
[ic]Sonam "Sonya" Choden
Though she does not look it, Sonam Choden – or "Sonya" as she prefers to call herself – is of pure tcho-tcho origin, able to trace her ancestry back to the original terrestrial tribes of Central Asia and, ultimately, to the primordial Miri-Nigri themselves. Raised in a traditional tcho-tcho household, Sonya became disillusioned with her culture after her twin older brothers were killed in a turf-war between two rival Tongs in the Chauchatown of Moloch City. She ran away from home, stowing away on a hyperfreighter heading to the frontier and becoming a pickpocket, burglar, and con artist, wandering from town to town, planet to planet, system to system. She cut her nails and kept them well-pruned; she let her hair grow out of its original bowl cut and dyed it blonde; when she could afford to she had a chirurgeon replace her filed teeth with regular ones; she renounced worship of Chaugnar Faugn, Atlach-Nacha, the Twin Obscenities, and the other Great Old Ones revered by many of her people. She ate synthetic human flesh coded with double alleles in the HMGA2 gene and suffered excruciating growing pains as her tcho-tcho metabolism assimilated the DNA and pushed her height from 4'3" to 5'1". With agonizing slowness she transformed herself from a fanged pygmy into a still-petite but unremarkable young woman. When a con required her to change herself further she would consume the appropriate genetic material, adopting a temporary visage to alter her genetic makeup.
Some years ago Captain Gideon was bringing Sonya in after the skilled thief stole an extremely valuable electromagnetic pulsed microwave weapon from a private collector. On the way back to the ship the Captain was ambushed by a group of Ghoul thugs in the warrens of Nova Stygia. Having disarmed Gideon, the Ghouls prepared to divest him of his valuable possessions: his weapons, clothes, money, skin, and vital organs. Ignoring the handcuffed Sonya for the time being two of the slavering creatures approached while the third kept watch. Though Gideon had handcuffed her with her hands behind her back, Sonya's tcho-tcho flexibility allowed her to easily reposition her arms round the front. She crept up to the Ghoul standing guard, strangled him quietly using her chains as an improvised garrotte, picked up his weapon, and shot the remaining two Ghouls through the backs of their heads. During this time Gideon reclaimed his own weapon; the two now faced a Mexican standoff. Complimenting Sonya on her skills and thanking her for saving his life Gideon offered to tell the authorities she'd been killed during apprehension – if she joined his crew. After a brief moment's hesitation Sonya accepted Gideon's proposal.
Since that day Sonya has been an on-again-off-again crewmember of the Demoiselle d'Ys. She has her own hyperspace-capable ship, the Cacodaemon Class vessel Dream of Hyperborea, which she typically docks in one of the Demoiselle's spare shuttle bays while she is aboard. Often she will come aboard the ship and work a few jobs while on the run from lawmen in another system (usually unbeknownst to Gideon), then leave once she grows bored. Stealthy, nimble, and well-versed in the dynamics of the underworld, Sonya can be a valuable addition to the team. She has an extensive array of criminal contacts and is a decent shot with the Morella Model 4 Pocket Pistol she always carries, though she prefers to dispatch foes quietly using knives and garrottes when she has to kill anyone, and further prefers to sneak past, trick, or otherwise disable enemies rather than killing them.[/ic]
EDIT: For players in the GMTish timezone, would 5pm EST (11 pm GMT) be too late to play?
Quote from: Steerpike
Two announcements:
1) I'm looking at 1:30-2 PM EST for this Thursday as being a possible play-time.
EDIT: For players in the GMTish timezone, would 5pm EST (11 pm GMT) be too late to play?
Thursday that time I'm in class - I get out at 3 EST, and will be free till roughly 5:30 EST. I could join in later if everyone wants to start at that time.
Having talked to more people on IRC I'm now potentially looking at Friday afternoon, although my own schedule might make that trickier - I'm not available till about 6:30 EST that day, unless we did it much earlier in the day. Would that be too late for the likes of Ghostman and Kindling?
Earlier Friday (up till 5 EST) also works for me, although that would mean Light Dragon couldn't play :(.
EDIT: Looks like the later time would be too late for most.
I'm thinking a 12-12:30 EST start time would work, if we're going to play earlier.
Have fun! Sorry that I was too difficult to schedule (only avail after 5PM EST). I look forward to reading the logs :)
I've got lots more planned!
Ack, just got schedule. I work until 4 EST Friday. :( Sorry I'm going to have to sit this session out - hope I can join in a later session!
Well, we'll see how many people show up. I'd like at least 4. If we can't manage that I'll reschedule!
I've got 2 more scenarios brewing, so for those that miss games, there WILL be more chances. This setting is fun to write and comes pretty naturally and quickly, since the adventures are fairly short/episodic. Much easier than writing up huge cities and regions for the CE game!
EDIT: Thinking ahead, what might be a good time for next week? What about Monday before the Gloria game?
I am free Monday after 11AM EST - and honestly will likely be free closer to 10:30EST, because lab rarely takes the full 2 hours - and I never work Mondays.
So Monday is perfect for me.
To clarify for all players, I'm going to be online on Friday at 12 EST to play the next scenario. If 4 people or more show up, we'll play. If not enough make it, we'll reschedule, possibly to Monday.
Due to some unplanned downtime yesterday, I'll probably be pretty busy on Friday and not able to make it. Sorry. :(
Monday should work pretty well for me though!
Unfortunate news on my end as well. My boss just asked me to go in to work tomorrow from noon to 4. So I will be unable to make it to the game on Friday. I'm also working on Monday so it looks like I won't be able to make it to the (potential) rescheduled day either.
Oh well. Better luck next time I guess.
Ah well! We'll try again some other time.
Thoughts on a possible day? Does Monday sometime before Gloria (which starts at 7 EST) work for many people other than sparkle and Xathan? My next week is almost 100% clear.
Next Monday would be just fine for me.
I'm not really gonna have any free time for the next fortnight, I'm afraid.
Ah well! BTW I love that you used the word "fortnight." No one in North America uses the term, so it has a certain Old World archaism :).
Really? Ha, nice. It's pretty commonly used over here.
Alright we'll try Monday at around 2 pm EST.
Sounds good to me. :D
Sorry I did/am missing this - school has me completely swamped right now. :( Hopefully can pick up at a later session, or Gideon will rejoin next adventure. Have fun everyone!
No worries! I totally understand. For now Gideon is in the ship, nursing an injury to his shooting arm. But he might get radioed in for backup if necessary, which could get really interesting.
The next session will be Monday the 12th at the same time as before (2pm EST).
Unclaimed characters include Father Blake, Doc Tenebrous (Sabr Wolf has dibs), Ashley Crow, Richard Xu, and Gideon Carter (Xathan has dibs). Gideon is recovering from a wound and so would suffer -1 Brawn, Viscera, and Senses since his shooting arm is stiff and he's still a little weak; right now he and Richard are in the Demoiselle d'Ys, but they can be called in if necessary.
I will get the rest of the log posted soon so that anyone who wanted to jump in can be all caught up.
<= is very frustrated by work schedule.
Unfortunately my work schedule has conspired to keep me from this game (yet again) in the coming week. Unless I somehow get out of work, I'm afraid I'll have to miss next weeks game as well. The good Doctor will have to sit it out (unless someone else decides to give him a try that is) in the coming portion of the adventure, yet again.
No worries SabrWolf. For now I'm running Tenebrous as an NPC. Hopefully you can make it to a session in the future.
Speaking of which, here's a preview of the next scenario (I will probably run it early in the New Year):
[ic=Briefing]Once again strapped for credits you and the other crew of the Demoiselle d'Ys have been forced to take a contract bringing you to the inhospitable world of Algor, a wretched ball of ice, rock, and snow in the far-flung backwater system of Khione. The planet enjoyed a brief influx of settlers during the Great Iridium Rush, after it was discovered that Algor had vast stores of the rare element beneath its surface. Mining colonies and thriving boomtowns sprung up across the frigid world as a veritable stampede of prospectors flocked to the desolate planet in hopes of striking it rich. Now, however, the high-yield iridium deposits have been mined out and most of the prospectors have departed, leaving Algor strewn with a series of ghost towns slowly filling with snow; only a few isolated settlements remain populated.
The bounty you are pursuing is on the head of a fugitive named Joanna North, a war criminal who engineered biological weapons for use in the virus-bombings of Deep One successionist colonies during the G'll-lahai Insurrection. She is wanted alive – she is to be tried and publically executed according to standard protocols, so if she is killed the bounty is forfeit. Thanks to Richard Xu's efforts you've discovered that she boarded the cargo vessel World Serpent using the alias "Joan Cassidy"; this craft recently stopped in Algor, and the passenger manifest Richard obtained shows that "Ms. Cassidy" deboarded in the town of Ull. Whether North has a specific reason for fleeing to Algor or whether it just happens to be a suitable hiding spot, you do not know.[/ic]
So I totally forgot that I actually have to invigilate a final exam on Monday during our scheduled session time. D'oh.
How would tomorrow (Thursday) or Friday at the same time as Monday's session would have been (2 EST) work for Monday's players? Or some other time during those days?
EDIT: Friday might be a better bet, as Ghostman probably won't see this message in time to be there for tomorrow.
I am confused. You said Thursday or Friday "at the same time," and then said 12 EST, when the "same time" (at least the same time as the last game) would be 2 EST.
I'm free after 3EST tomorrow (until 6PM EST) and after 4PM EST friday.
Sorry sparkle, I got mixed up with my CE game, my bad. 2 EST is what I meant. Corrected the time.
Either should work for me.
If we were to do it tomorrow I should be able to be there, as my exam is at 11, and I really doubt it will take me the full 3 hours. Could be a bit late, though.
Well seeing as Xathan can make it a little later we might try for a little later, if we do play tomorrow. I'll see if I can get in touch with Ghostman earlier tomorrow, maybe... we'll figure something out, one way or another, and if not we can reschedule for some later date.
If you guys do end up playing on Friday, I'll be able to make that session. Here's hoping! *crosses fingers*
Looks like Friday makes more sense, probably round 4pm EST.
Any objections?
Once again, sorry for the screw-up.
None here! :D
I'd be happy to attend that game time!
I could make it either day :)
I'm 99% sure that I can make it this Friday, barring work screwing me over. Hopefully that does not happen - I really look forward to playing a slightly wounded Gideon. :D
On the topic of finishing up the scenario (will probably take 1/2 an hour), how would Monday at 6 EST work for people? I should be free by then. Alternatively, way earlier that day, at like 12 EST, would work, we just couldn't take too long.
I can make Monday. Either time, probably.
I'm free all day monday, so that's good for me.
Cool!
Going back and checking the log and talking the sparkletwist post-game has made me realize I made the wrong call when Gideon got electrocuted for 1d10 - it should have been lower (1d8 or 1d6) and I should have given Gideon a Nerves check to avoid damage. This is totally my bad - Sthena rolled high and made it clear she was aiming far away from Gideon. To rectify this, Gideon can regain an extra point of Viscera to put him at full. Apologies to sparkle and Xathan.
I could do early, but not 6PM. I'm unavailable from ~5:30PM-6:45PM EST on Mondays. If its necessary, I can cancel lessons, but I'd rather not.
Early it is.
Aaaand I can't make it to the early time (although I could make it to the later time). Looks like the good Doc Tenebrous will need to be taken over as an NPC once more. :(
As mentioned, I could make the later time-- I would just need to know sometime tonight or by early morning to make it work for Sabr.
How about the rest of the week?
I don't want to make you have to change your schedule for the tag-end of a game, Coyote!
EDIT: I will be around at 12 EST tomorrow if people want to show up... if not, we will reschedule.
Thanks again for an awesome game!
I'm quite happy with how it went. I think some of the later parts of this one bordered on being a bit too linear. I'm going to try and avoid that in the future - I don't want to railroad (I also promise future scenarios won't all end with a showdown with a Great Old One avatar/progeny/aspect). There was still a lot of creative roleplaying, though!
I've also decided that the sap sample Sabrwolf had Doc Tenebrous take, under close analysis, contains some of Shub-Niggurath's essence. He can use the sap to synthesize a combat drug. Under the current rules I'd treat this as giving characters +2 Brawn and Nerves for one encounter, but would require a Sanity check (DC 8) to avoid losing 1 point of Sanity afterwards. While using the drug, the affected individual's eyes go yellow, and the pupils become goat-like. (http://thingsthatarerectangles.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/goat-eye2.jpg?w=490&h=451)
EDIT: I realized I'm assuming there's interest in more of these. Everyone seemed to have fun... would some of you guys be up for more? Is this fun enough to merit more scenarios? I'm having a blast, personally...
I would absolutely love to visit beautiful al gore.
Edit: Or anywhere else within the sixgunsverse, really.
Good stuff!
A small handful of images that vaguely match up with my feel of the setting...:
Hovercycle (http://images.wikia.com/starcraft/images/4/42/Vulture_Heaven%27sDevils_Art1.jpg)
Dusty Spaceport (http://www.cthulhutech.com/media/art/p17.jpg)
Mechanic (http://asset.soup.io/asset/0625/9743_a6b1_500.jpeg)
Anti-Abberance Squad Raid (http://www.cthulhutech.com/media/art/p19.jpg)
Deep One Citizen (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_T9n9y1_Lkfs/TLW-TVFzbYI/AAAAAAAAF8E/7wcDBBKJqF0/s1600/Will-Martinez.jpg)
Spacer Bar (http://images.wikia.com/starcraft/images/2/20/JoeyraysBar_SC2_Cncpt1.jpg)
Fancy Lady (http://www.brigidashwood.com/picture/weirdwest-print.jpg?pictureId=8569136)
Dapper Ghoul (http://images.ados.fr/divers/photo/hd/4505309450/lovecraft/ghoul-jarling-art-2719122ec0.jpg)
I like the pictures. :D
I am totally in yet again, which should not be surprising. :P
Also, would you be willing to post/pm all the pics you've used so far? I need some TM inspiration. :)
Some more images:
Mi-go (http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs42/f/2009/064/3/1/Mi_Go_concept_04_by_NathanRosario.jpg)
Alternate Mi-go (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MYHwEV61XDE/TgCzryiSYzI/AAAAAAAAAao/mbxhM1DShCk/s1600/Mi-Go-04.jpg) (could be subspecies :))
Mi-go brain surgery (http://davidjrodger.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/reasons-to-like-h-p-lovecraft-mi-go-image-by-skullbeast.jpg)
Dhole (http://th01.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/f/2010/284/8/2/h_p__lovecraft__s_dhole_by_darksabata-d30jf8w.jpg)
Ghast (http://th01.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2010/273/2/d/artorder__lovecraft__s_ghast_by_ariokh-d2zry1c.jpg)
Shantak Bird (http://images.ados.fr/divers/photo/4505309450/lovecraft/shantak-faxtar-d30df66-2706293798.jpg)
Dark Young (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-s0yZGJ9JbYo/TgrN0w9f-1I/AAAAAAAAAa4/o-6kLldlONQ/s640/DarkYoung.jpg)
Dark Young 2 (http://www.creaturespot.com/storage/thumbnails/3573334-9884533-thumbnail.jpg?__SQUARESPACE_CACHEVERSION=1292740216308) (personally my favorite version - reminds me of Hunter synths in HL2, which is how I wanted the Dark Young to kinda feel in Fistful of Tentacles)
Dark Young 3 (http://www.medbherenn.com/images/dark-young.jpg)
Shub-Niggurath (http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs11/i/2006/246/a/2/Shub_Niggurath_by_higherdepths.jpg)
Thanks for those! One more: do you have the picture of that nightmare Satyr you used?
I want a Shantak bird. Those things are awesome.
SHANTAK BIRDS FOR EVERYONE! THE CAPTAIN DEMANDS WE PURCHASE SHANTAKS! (we can't throdding afford Shantaks, or fit them on the ship, can we?)
You might be able to squeeze a Shantak into the cargo hold. It wouldn't be having a lot of fun though, and you'd have to ditch Hadrian's hoverwagon (the one he stole from the bank-robbers). It'd be expensive, but if you sold the hovercycle you could buy one. Important question though: who is mucking out the cargo hold afterwards?
Satyr. (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_oDZwk6r5oBk/TSmfW5O-U2I/AAAAAAAAAHs/kffZGMAbhfA/s1600/rawwad_hands_collector_950_copy.jpg)
Quote from: Steerpike
You might be able to squeeze a Shantak into the cargo hold. It wouldn't be having a lot of fun though, and you'd have to ditch Hadrian's hoverwagon (the one he stole from the bank-robbers). It'd be expensive, but if you sold the hovercycle you could buy one. Important question though: who is mucking out the cargo hold afterwards?
The padre. Bout time he started pulling his throdding weight opposed to lecturing the good word. :P
Kidding. Not worth the hassle.
Btw, speaking of mechanical stuff of hardian's, do we still have 02?
Not sure, I'll have to talk to TMG about it.