Manic Typist Posted August 29, 2009 Report Share Posted August 29, 2009 Secret Wars Act 1: Fire behind the Facades “The path to heaven crosses the devil's territory, and error is the prodrome of truth.” -Orestes A. Brownson We didn’t start the fire It was always burning, since the world’s been turning We didn’t start the fire No we didn’t light it But we tried to fight it -“We Didn’t Start the Fire” by Billy Joel The city shimmers under the night sky, as if its light promised to make up for the stars hidden by the city’s nighttime radiance. The wind picks up, heated and lifted by the warmth given off by asphalt scorched during the day. It carries the scents and sounds of the Pearl City: ozone and exhaust, the occasional horn or siren sounding in the streets below, food and garbage, a faint hint of the ocean, and money. Hudson City is filled with humanity and all of her signs and symptoms: hope, desperation, greed, power, helplessness, defiance, and always motion. The view turns from the city to reveal the face of a clean-shaven, debonair man with the a gentle touch of gray emerging at the temples amid all the dark luster, leaning with one hand resting on the railing of a skyscraper rooftop overlooking it all. There is a hint of a predator in his eyes and smile, and the posture of a king surveying his domain in a business suit that costs thousands of dollars. As the view continues to rotate around, classical music and high-pitched laughter suddenly interrupt the night’s sighs and over the man’s shoulder we can see glass doors swinging shut, cutting off the noise of the party and reducing the glow through the doorway from a golden glow to a dull yellow once more. Another man is walking towards the first, tenseness obvious in his gait and through his shoulders. He pauses a few feet behind the man, off to the side. He would look well-dressed if he weren’t in such close proximity to this man whose suit appears to be a natural extension of his very person rather than something he simply wore. After a few moments, he coughs gently. “Yes?” the man replies, without taking his eyes away from the vista. “We’re thinking New York, or here. D.C. is another possibility, but I doubt it. Our holdings there are superficial, and there’s so many feds around that it would be near suicide.” “You sound concerned.” “We have a billion dollar weapon system that’s off the reservation, with no idea of its current status, objectives, or even its full capabilities, not to mention the all of the data that’s wrapped up in it. If we’re ever going to succeed in-” “Silence,” the man interrupts him. “Not here.” He turns to the worried man, and approaches him. There is a slight tilt in his gait, and a distinctive report of polished wood connecting with cement. “Don’t worry,” he continues. “These things have a certain way to them. It would be impossible to resist returning to us. There are too many unanswered questions, and that ultimately is our greatest weapon.” He turns to face the city skyline once more, tracking the distant light of a jetliner moving through the night, descending to the airport. If the scream of its engines reach this far, it is hidden beneath the other murmurs of the city. The two men are silhouettes against the underlit sky, and their black images merge with the foreground as if they were curiously shaped roof installations. “We’ll see him again. His training will hide him at first, but his heart, his need, will expose him to us, and then we will have what we want.” The man smiles and walks back towards the party. After a moment, the other follows. The view stays the same as each man walks out of the frame, and eventually the image narrows and focuses in on the distant light of the plane. *** The man looks out the airplane window with a half-hidden smile, the lights of the cityscape below merging with the interior reflections of the cabin in a patchwork of light and images. He is an Asian man in his late twenties, with a shaven head and a friendly if slightly soft face. He reaches into the top left pocket of his navy Zhongshan suit and pulls out a small notebook, and after consulting it briefly he closes it smartly and returns it to its original position. He rests with his eyes shut as the plane finishes its approach and lands and all the way through the taxiing to the gate. When the seatbelt light turns off, he opens his eyes, unbuckles himself, collects a small leather bag, and stands in line with the other passengers. As he disembarks, he thanks the flight attendant in Mandarin. He passes through customs quickly, all polite answers and white toothed smiles. He walks in a confident, unwavering clip past baggage claim and towards the exit of the airport. As he passes through the sliding doors, his face goes out of focus and over his shoulder two white men walking several paces behind him become clear. Whereas he had passed through the crowd in an unassuming, inoffensive walk, they cut through the crowd like sharks, dark suits and darker gazes. They turn left out of the doors as the Chinaman goes right, where he is met by a chauffeur waiting next to a black Mercedes. The men pause on the curb, and one steps forward and raises his hand to signal a taxi. Tattoos crawl from under his cuff up onto his hand and to several of his fingers, a confusing collection of lines, dots, crosses, and images partly seen. The other man turns his head to look around him, and reveals the edges of more tattoos threatening to escape from his collar. They get into a cab and the first speaks a single word in a clipped, cold tone. The cab pulls out into traffic and is quickly lost amid the stream of white and red stars flowing into the city. *** A voice in the darkness: “Things are coming to a head.” “Yes, and essentially when I predicted.” A distorted, warbling synthetic reply. It would almost sound sophisticated if it wasn’t so obviously artificial, born of speakers and voice modulation. “We aren’t ready.” “No, but we will be shortly. My agent will make contact with the players shortly, and then we shall have our own forces to counteract theirs.” “I’m not so sure they’ll be enough.” “Statistically, you are right. They should not be. However, each one of them is exceptional, unusual. Where they should fail, must fail, they will succeed, because they do not fit within the normal paradigm of the world. They are…aberrations, outliers that defy probability. I must confess, although I do love the reliability numbers offer, I am somewhat comforted to find that such individuals exist.” “You can’t promise me success, and you can’t be sure they are fit for the task. They may be deadly or capable of the impossible, but that means nothing if they’re monsters. What then?” “You are right. I say they will succeed because I must, because I believe in the task we have set ourselves to. Do you?” “Of course I do! I’m just... I worry. I worry whether or not I am making a mistake, if we’ve miscalculated, if…more people will suffer because of my mistakes.” “You are improving. Your sins then were due to your blind belief, your acceptance without questioning. You sacrificed your autonomy to others and did terrible things because of it. Now you are self-questioning, striving to make sure you are on the right track. If you were not, I would worry. As it is, you are now being guided by your own moral compass. So long as you do not grow complacent, you should be able to avoid the mistakes of the past. But you still must have the will to walk the path and face whatever lies along the way.” “And what if they walk a different path? What if they are no better than those whom we oppose?” “Then we will take action. They are people, not machines,” an electronic chuckle. “They, like you and everyone else, must choose. It is a burden we all bear.” Silence, and then “Very well. Keep me updated.” Footsteps receding in the darkness, a metal door opening, and then the mechanical voice echoing through the darkness “Auf wiedersehen!” A pause, and then the heavy clang of the door shutting. *** An empty street corner at night, hesitantly lit by a flickering streetlight. A figure in a trench coat and fedora steps out of the shadows, unwrapping a brown paper envelope. He finds two pictures inside: one the headshot of an intense young man in a military uniform, the other a surveillance photo of a man in a busy coffee shop, reading. His reaction is hidden behind a ghostly mask. There’s an address on the back of each photo. A city bus screams past, bouncing across the frame and obscuring the man for just a moment, and when the bus is gone there is only the discarded wrapping paper swirling in the exhaust and stirred air created by the bus’s passing. *** Overhead shot facing down towards a athletic man lying fully clothed in a motel bed. His hair is short trimmed and precise. He is handsome enough, but with a hawk-like intensity in his face even while just lying there staring at the ceiling. His intensity is augmented by the scrolling tattoos that weave up from under his shirt, up his neck, and over the entirety of his face, framing his gently glowing eyes like a jeweler’s setting for two rubies. Lying next to him in the bed is a black assault rifle that would make a Hollywood props manager giddy with the sheer lethality of its look. It’s almost as intimidating as the man and it shares with him the trait of looking it was made with a very specific purpose in mind, and that it was made to fulfill that purpose exceedingly well. Something in the man’s eyes, however, suggests that he’s no longer sure he knows his purpose, and that discomforts him more than any of the brutal hardships he has endured in his almost three decades of life. His watch alarm goes off, and he squeezes it silent on his wrist without looking away from the ceiling. He can only stay here another day or two. *** An apartment, lit only by a single lamp shining brilliantly onto table covered with papers. Large sheets of schematics struggle for supremacy with pencils, rulers, and notebook paper covered in precise handwriting. A man is pouring over the papers, dark hair and two days of stubble surrounding his otherwise illuminated face with shadow. An extensive setup of computers glows and chirps behind him. He glances over his shoulder at the computer screens, and then turns back to the table while rubbing his eyes. He glances up, forward, towards the window in front of him that reveals a few brick buildings as he hears loud music, pumping bass, and oversized mufflers as a few cars joyride past on the streets just below. He shakes his head and returns to making annotations and lines on the papers before him. *** Three cars tear through the city streets. They swerve through traffic, accelerate around curves, ignore traffic lights and stop signs, and generally make a menace of themselves to the few cars and pedestrians out at this late hour. They are classic cars, though any purist would be horrified to see the modifications to these otherwise vintage vehicles: neon underglow lights, roaring mufflers, hydraulics, and flashy paintjobs. They cut through LeMastre Park, swerving into the oncoming lanes so they can race all three abreast, and fishtail around a corner to turn north once out of the park, heading towards Blackbridge. The cars are filled with young Vietnamese punks, all spiked hair, leather jackets, and flashy accessories. One leans out of a passenger window and plows through mailboxes with a baseball bat, sunglasses still on. He nearly loses his head when the driver swerves closer to the curb and he almost doesn’t see it due to his tinted vision. He narrowly slips back inside the car, and begins to berate and punch at the driver while everyone laughs uproariously. Babe Ruth sulks while the others tease him. Eventually one of them starts yelling and pointing, slapping the driver’s shoulder and communicating in a universally understood manner: pull over here! He does, and the car behind follows suit while the frontrunner performs a squealing U to investigate why its compatriots had stopped. A rapid fire conversation takes place, with lots of gesticulation and slapping of headrests. Eventually they all pile out, and the ringleader signals everyone to follow him up to the door of one of the brownstones on the street. Everyone is giggles and grins as they rush up to the door, and with a few kicks they knock it open and rush inside whooping like savages. Sounds of things crashing and glass breaking escape through the open door, followed by a panicked scream. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba smith Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log good work manic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted August 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Thank you. I'm hoping to post the notes from the first session soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba smith Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log please do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok Posted August 30, 2009 Report Share Posted August 30, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log What you have to look forward to: Covert meetings, high tech espionage, brutal interrogations, fast-paced firefights, last minute getaways and more! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Makiaveli Posted September 2, 2009 Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Excellent writing....look forward to more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted September 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Thank you. I obviously can't write up everything like that, but I do intend to keep adding little extra "cutscenes" along the way, so here's hoping... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted September 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2009 Session 1: That Which Is Most Precious Session 1 8/29/09 Players present: Jack, Cypher, Darius Cypher, trenchoat and mask, walks into the apartment building lobby and walks straight to the security door without bothering to check the names listed next to the call buttons along one wall. He easily bypasses the locked door and takes the elevator to the second floor. As the elevators door trundle open as a bell emits a clear chime, an elderly woman looks at the mysterious figure in surprise, and after he gets off she enters the elevator. She nearly catches her neck between the doors, leaning out to stare at the figure walking down the hall. He knocks on the door, interrupting Darius’s work. Checking the video feed coming from the minicamera installed in the place of the peephole, he sees Cypher. “Yes? It’s a little late for visitors!” Cypher introduces himself as Cypher, and says that he has something (a piece of paper) that might be of interest to Darius. Darius asks him to slip it under the door, takes a look at it, and sees that it’s a rather complicated set coding that looks like it might be immensely helpful in getting past an impasse he reached in one of his projects. Asking where Cypher got it, he receives the reply of “I don’t know.” Darius immediately proceeds back into his work area and promptly ignores the man waiting outside his door (I told him that it would take several hours to actually check the work of the coding, and thus he immediately sets out to do just that. Deliberate snub or distracted genius? If the latter, it wasn’t really conveyed properly). Muttering, Cypher decides to visit his NEXT contact and hopes things go more smoothly… A midlevel hotel waits patiently in the night. Not so nice as to pay undue attention to its customers, but not so shady that it attracts typically dangerous clientele or is an obvious hiding spot. Just the right level of obscurity, perfect for someone laying low. Once more he knocks on the door, and Jack instantly has his assault rifle in hand trained on the door. After a bit of chat through the door (and a description of the item Cypher has brought as an incentive), Jack lets him in while keeping the rifle trained on his visitor. Cypher hands over a metal tube about a foot long containing a glowing blue liquid that is visible through glass slits in the sides. Cypher asks what’s in the vial. “Well, that’s none of your business now, is it?” Jack replies in a distinctive British accent. They decide to discuss the details at a nearby diner, so Cypher goes first and Jack comes along later after he’s cleared out his few possessions in the room. Cypher picks a booth in the corner and sits with a line of sight on the door (and gets a strange look from the proprieter, but he figures this weirdo’s gotta be harmless after he orders a meal). Jack comes in, sees that the seat across the table puts his back to the door, and thus sits next to Cypher in the booth. The long and short of it is that Cypher has a job coming up, and his superior suggested he’d need a team for it and put him in touch with Jack and one other. The last man, Darius, had proven…problematic. Seems to be a bit of a shut-in. They decide to set out to try to recruit him once more. Keep in mind, all of this started around 11 A.M… so it’s 5 A.M. when our would be heroes return to Darius’s apartment. Darius is fast asleep after spending several hours confirming that yes, the coding appears to be legit if somewhat incomplete. Cypher chooses to knock softly… which obviously doesn’t wake Darius up in his bedroom, so Cypher picks the lock to the door and enters. A sensor triggers an alarm in Darius’s room which DOES wake him up. Meanwhile, Jack covers the hall with all of his possessions in a duffle bag slung next to his hip, including the HK416 assault rifle lying on top. He hand disappears through the partly opened bag and rests gently on the trigger of the weapon. Cypher briefly surveys the small apartment before discerning that the last recruit must be in his bedroom. Darius can see nothing on the video feeds for his security cameras, and is covering his door with a pistol from his bedside table. (Both players try to play it like they’ll both wait forever until something happens… and I quickly explain how ridiculous that is, and how no, they won’t, but I’m willing to say both can last 10 minutes [one’s a trained pro, the other is a guy who’s had his apartment broken into at 5 A.M.]). Eventually Cypher opens the bedroom door but doesn’t reveal himself, and Darius calls out “Who’s there?” All he hears is a soft chuckle in response. “Cypher? Is that you? Oh, jeez, you should have told me so! Scared me,” says Darius as he lowers his pistol. “I thought you had left.” Everyone feels much more comfortable now, and Jack closes the door behind him as he enters the apartment. While Cypher and Darius discuss the details (Cypher has a job coming up, he’ll need some extra help), Jack plays quietly on his Spanish guitar. They agree to work together, and begin to plan for the meet with their contact. One quick look at the contact’s meeting point reveals that he has watched too many spy movies: it’s a well intentioned attempt at neutrality and secrecy, but it’s really quite exposed. Darius slaps together a couple of short range headsets, and the next night head to LeMastre Park. Darius waits in his car, Jack on a nearby bench playing his guitar, and Cypher sneaking between various statues of Tolkien characters. Their contact, William Sizemore (an HCU professor) shows up. He is obviously distraught, and after Cypher pulls a nice “appearing out of thin air” behind him bit, the professor explains that last night his daughter, Sara, had been kidnapped. A nomadic Vietnamese known as the Shadow Tigers, led by “Fast Louie,” broke into his home and took his daughter in addition to trashing his house and stealing a few other prized antiques (3 vases centuries old, and a pristine katana that predates the Tokugawa shogunate). In return for retrieving his daughter (and the items if possible) before the Shadow Tigers are able to leave the city (and therefore Fast Louie can turn his attention to the girl), Sizemore will pay them $10,000. Cypher agrees, and says he’ll be in touch. Using information supplied by the professor, the group begins its hunt. Darius finds Fast Louie’s Twitter account and begins tracking the gang’s movements, eventually discerning that they seem to have temporarily headquartered themselves in Little Saigon. Sweeping through the security feeds from various businesses in the area, Darius manages to spot three of the punks (he’d already pulled most of their files from backdoor access in various police databases) frequenting a local arcade. The group decides to plant a tracking device on their car, and assault/interrogate this group at the arcade. Some discussion (at my prompting) was made at scaring the punks and following them back to their hideout, but that’s not how things played out. Darius slaps together a transmitter which Cypher easily plants on the gang car while Jack takes position on the roof of the arcade building. Darius manages to remotely hack into the game the gangers are playing (I was feeling generous, see GM notes) and send messages to the young men (things to the effect of: pretty girls out back!) After some repeated instances of the Shadow Tiger playing blinking and shock, insisting his friends look at the screen, only for the message to be gone… he decides to head out back (more to investigate what the hell is going on rather than believing there were women). Cypher trails them through the arcade, moving unnoticed through the relatively crowded gaming area, and tosses a concussion grenade between the three gangers as soon as they step out back. He slams the heavy metal backdoor shut, which rattles as the grenade detonates, sending dust sprinkling off the interior wall. By the time he’d open the door again, Jack had already jumped the 60+ feet from the roof and secured one of the downed men and was busily frisking the other two. Darius, although in his car, is monitoring everything via Robosquirrel, which causes Jack to do a doubletake when he sees a squirrel watching him but he dismisses it. Cypher covers two of the thugs with his P90 while Jack interrogates one poor sod. It goes something like (and please imagine all of Jack’s dialogue in a strong, aggressive British accent) this: -“Alright you little sh*t! I know you speak English, so where are the others?” -A babble of angry Vietnamese, silenced by a kidney punch. -“Where are your friends hiding? Where’s the girl?” -“*Cough, moan* This is police brutality!” -Jack lowers his sunglasses, revealing his glowing red eyes and emphasizing the whorls of his extensive facial tattoos. He presses his boot knife against the gang member’s throat. “Do I look like a cop to you? Where are they, and how many?” -“15-20!” -A “really, are you trying to sell me that line” look from Jack, and the knife pressed harder against the throat. Jack starts getting the truth (or at least what seems to line up with the info that Darius had and the professor supplied), including an address (a chop shop), gist of the armament, where the girl was kept plus the other goods. -“Alright you punk, you’re going to run home to Mum and Dad now, and if you try to warn your little buddies I’ll find you, skin you, and drop you off a building. Would you like a demonstration?” Even though the Vietnamese ganger was empathetically saying he would NOT like a demonstration, Jack suddenly hauls him up and begins to climb the wall. One handed. With no climbing gear. Exorcist style. When they reach the top, the ganger is just begging to be put back down and please God don’t kill him. They knock him back out (the others never woke up. Cypher rolled 6 BODY, 20 STUN on that concussion grenade. The guys had 3 PD, so 17 STUN goes through… oh, and yeah, they were out of combat so x2! 34 STUN later and they are out COLD. They had to wake up the guy they interrogated). They try to make it look like the kids had gotten in a fight and beaten each other up, and leave the scene (after smartly taking all their cell phones) and head pretty much straight to the chop shop. En route Darius confirms the address but can’t pull up any blueprints on it. They arrive, survey the structure (using Robosquirrel as a scout), and decide on a plan of action. It’s a simple concrete lot surrounded by a chainlink fence, with a 2 garage door 2 story building in the middle. Loud music can faintly be heard pumping through the corrugated metal walls. Darius sets up along one outside wall next to the circuit breaker, ready to cut the power when given the signal. Cypher ensconces himself some cover at the rear and covers the backdoor with his P90. Jack stations himself at the front corner nearest Darius. Darius sends a text message to two of the gangers inside using one of the cells captured from the arcade group (He skimmed through the texts and determined that they seemed to use Vietnamese and English pretty equally. This was a smart bit, especially since none of them spoke Vietnamese and the player really can’t text on his phone. Someone remind me to give him an extra XP later), indicating that the arcade group had returned with a few lovely young companions. Two gang members come out the front door, look around in confusion, but then go to investigate the whistle they hear from just around the corner of the building… where Jack takes them down before they even know what’s going on. He hands off a .38 special to Darius and tells him to do it again. Darius sends two more texts (they brought friends!) but this time THREE guys pop outside. Two of them go to investigate the whistle (alright, these are the group’s first opponents, and it was cool, so yes they are this stupid), but the third drags behind. Jack takes these two down just as readily, but the third is too far away… of course, he is too surprised/freaked out to do anything more than start running back towards the door and yelling…too bad about that loud music though. Darius gets the order to cut the power, which instantly plunges the interior into darkness and silence. Jack freakishly covers the distance between him in the door, but the punk lets off a panicked shot as he falls before the onslaught. The bullet doesn’t strike the fierce warrior, but it does change the atmosphere inside the building from confusion to action. The last thing the panicked young man sees are two glowing red eyes in the darkness, staring down at him, before a booted foot expertly snaps into his temple and sends him to la-la land. Jack tosses the unconscious ganger over twenty feet to land beside Darius, who’s in reserve (and currently covering five unconscious men with a gun that only holds six bullets), and turns to the open front door… only to be sent scurrying by a blast of buckshot sparking off the cement floor of the doorway. Someone inside is covering the entrance with a shotgun. Meanwhile, Cypher’s moved up to prep for entry on the rear door when he hears a few people moving up to it from the inside. Playing the odds, he fires a burst through the wall and door, and manages to wing the two men in each arm. Darius sends his squirrel in and begins to relay information (he needed reminding on this part) to his teammates while he uses a captured cell to call Fast Louie. Darius receives a number of creative threats from Fast Louie, and manages to keep the gang leader somewhat distracted…although he does reveal that they are after the girl, and thus the gang leader begins moving towards where she’s imprisoned (thus ratcheting up the tension and slapping a deadline on the impasse). Jack uses his previous glimpse inside, natural talent, skill, info relayed via Darius, and luck to guess the location of Shotgun Eddie and puts a round through the sheet metal wall… right into the gunner’s hand, which is followed by the distinctive clatter of a shotgun hitting the floor. Cypher opens the back door, only to have to dive for cover as the two wounded gangers open up on him (he uses a White Chip to reroll his failed Dive for Cover roll). Robosquirrel bounces up to Fast Louie and tasers him completely by surprise. Jack rushes through the door, neatly shooting the wounded ganger drawing a pistol in the forehead (called Headshot), while Cypher tosses a concussion grenade through his door and takes out the two men covering the back. Louie sprays a half clip at the squirrel, but can’t draw a bead in the darkness and chaos. Jack shoots at Louie through a glass window in a door separating the office from the main garage, and hits Louie in the non-Uzi wielding arm. He drops to the floor, but as Cypher blasts the padlock off the door of the shed that’s supposed to be holding the girl Louie fires another burst, eliciting a storm of sparks off the shed walls and a panicked scream from inside. Jack (on his next Phase) rushes the door, crashes his rifle and upper arms through the already fractured glass of the window, and shoots Louie in his temple, ending the conflict (second called Headshot). Cypher and Jack deal with the interior while Darius runs to get the car. They secured the downed gangers, loot the bodies, open the shed containing the girl (who is somewhat hysterical, reasonable considering how her room took a strafing at some point. Don’t remember exactly how, I think it was Louie…) as well as a number of expensive car parts, likely stolen, and the vases…. A search of the vintage cars reveals the katana plus two bricks of cocaine in the trunk. Jack climbs onto the roof of the building while Cypher tucks the girl and the vases into the backseat of the getaway car. They take the girl and artifacts, leave the drugs, and burn rubber as they begin to hear sirens approaching. Jack (who has the katana) waits while the police arrive, deal with the crime scene, take away the 7 breathing gangers, and leave. He scouts the the location, but the police seem to have addressed everything, and he leaves. In the meantime, Darius pulls up in front of the professor’s house and waits while Cypher takes the girl inside and collects the money. The professor is almost embarrassingly grateful, but his sincerity and relief is heartwarming. Cypher tells Darius that he’ll meet him with the money later. Later, Jack stops by the professor’s house and rings the doorbell. The professor opens his front door to see the prized katana sitting on the doormat, and nothing else. He steps out, looks around in bewilderment, and picks up the sword. A voice rasps above his head. “You’re welcome.” Startled, Willmore looks up…to see no one there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted September 6, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 6, 2009 GM's Thoughts A few thoughts, about the session. The Good 1) Everyone seemed to have a good time. I was worried that it might have been a bit too easy, but no one's indicated to me that they feel cheated of a good fight, and every character was able to show off at least a little bit their various specialties (Cypher's stealth, Jack's combat prowess, Darius's significant computer prowess). 2) The players did a good job of getting together and working together, rather than excessively playing up the paranoia and making it hard to work together. There was a near miss when Darius immediately went to work on the programming after I told him it would take several hours... but later he got with the program. It might have been an attempt to roleplay how intense the character is when it comes to things like this, that he can immediately lose track of his surroundings and situation (sort of a distracted genius type, in short), which is fine...but if so, he'll need to communicate that more clearly out of character so we can understand as players even if we don't immediately understand as characters. 3) The PCs showed restraint. This is a completely unexpected surprise, but rather promising. I'd anticipated all of the Shadow Tigers being killed/executed, which would have been fine... I had no intentions for them beyond this session, so they were very expendable. Instead, the PCs were deliberately using a slight measure of restraint, and not killing unconscious gang members because they'd reviewed their criminal records and didn't think executing a bunch of young punks was appropriate. This is immensely promising, since it indicates that it I might be able to deliberately introduce other adversaries/enemies that are morally complex, honorable, likable, or even have legitimate reasons to stand in opposition to the PCs and not "deserve death." I think the verisimilitude, and the plot diversity, is enhanced when the group doesn't operate with the mindset "Not on our side? Kill 'em all." It also means the PCs are more likely to recognize a situation where violence is not the best solution, or even a solution at all. 4) The players were were creative and clever in tackling various issues, and I think I did a good job rolling with them. The Bad 1) I was uncertain on some rules, but I quickly made rulings in the interest of keeping the game going which I think was the right call. The issues were minor, and easily corrected. I've gone back over the Autofire rules (and the player has as well for his specific abilities using those rules), will go back over some STR and throwing rules, as well as various modifiers for shooting under various conditions/through cover etc. The In-between 1) I significantly glossed over the specifics of how Darius gets things done in the interest of speeding play for the first session and ensuring that the player could see what he COULD do. In the future, I'm going to require him to actually make some rolls, put forward more of his own thoughts on how he goes about accomplishing what he seeks to accomplish, etc. The information was very handy, but it could become overpowering if I just hand it to the players every time. I want them to work for it, and when the dice aren't in their favor, make do without... just gives them something else to improve. 2) Teamwork/communication needed some work, in the planning and execution stages, but well within norms for a new genre, new batch of characters, etc. 3) I significantly handwaived how easily Jack took down the various thugs coming around the corner. I knew he could take them down quick and hard, so I just let him use a Martial Throw (which technically wouldn't have knocked them out. Heck, I need to review this maneuver to see how much STUN it actually does...) and a Strike Sweep for each pair. It worked fine for the first session, but future opponents aren't always going to be so easy and thus in the interest of fun and the player's understanding of the system I have to make sure that I actually run those parts of the fight. Additionally, the one thing the character is really "missing" is a stronger suite of martial maneuvers. In the interest of getting more core to the character concept abilities, I just gave him a few moves and left the later to be purchased with XP. Session 2 is this weekend, unless something comes up... I'm going to try to make the next set of notes more brief in terms of a play by play, which will hopefully leave me with more energy for writing up something more descriptive/narrative/cinematic. Hope you guys enjoyed what you've seen so far, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
薔薇語 Posted September 6, 2009 Report Share Posted September 6, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Sounds interesting. Keep us posted. La Rose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted September 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 13, 2009 Cutscene Overhead crane shot: Three bodies lay crumpled next to a dumpster, one tucked upon another. The middle one suddenly starts awake, looking around in confusion. A few labored breaths and disbelieving recollection: a bolt of thunder, a grinning visage with glowing eyes, a coated figure towering nearby, an impossible ascent up the wall. He shoves at his companions while reaching for his cell phone, only to discover it missing. The other two wake up, completely disoriented and confused by his babbled questions. They have no idea how long they’ve been out, since their cell phones are missing and the first one’s cheap Rolex appears broken. They are also missing their cell phones and all of their cash. Reaching a decision, the first one storms around the dumpster and towards the mouth of the alley, the others chasing after him shooting rapid fire questions that are ignored. They head to their car, and screech out into the road. The frame follows the car from the perspective of the driver’s side mirror, showing lights and buildings reflect off the window, and visible in between the driver’s slightly frantic face. A few jump shots reveal time passing, and various stages of an argument held in Vietnamese. Eventually the car takes a turn, and reveals the garage surrounded by police tape. *** Street level shot, panning to follow a grey car pulling up the curb, red and blue lights sliding over reflective paint. The car pulls up right underneath the camera, leaving only the top part of the door and the roof visible. The door opens, and a face stands up into sight, filling the shot. White male, late 30s with dark buzzed hair and a trimmed goatee. His face gives away nothing as he professionally takes in what’s in front of him with his professional gaze. “Detective Shrike!” The shot switches around to face forward, revealing a plainclothes officer walking towards the detective. “Give me what you’ve got.” “Looks like a bit of gang war. A group of a Vietnamese nomad gang, the Shadow Tigers, based out of Philadelphia showed up a few days ago. Typical M.O.: home invasions, robberies, drug dealing, nothing out of the usual for them. Then tonight they get hit hard.” Detective Shrike watches as several Vietnamese gangsters are led away in handcuffs to be tucked into squad cars. “How many bodies?” “Well, there’s an odd thing about that… we only have two stiffs. The rest are banged up pretty well, but we found five alive unconscious outside with their hands secured by plastic ties and two more roughed up pretty badly inside.” “Show me where they were tied up.” The officer leads him around the corner to the side of the building, and indicates the section of wall where the men had been found. Detective Shrike walks the length of the wall, looking around until he comes to the circuit breaker. Using one gloved finger, he eases it open, surveys the interior, and shuts it once more. “There a back door?” Seeing the officer nod, Shrike continues back around the building and stops to look at the bullet holes in the door and exterior wall. He steps through, entering the warehouse proper for the first time. He squats down to examine two bloodstains on either side of a small scorch on the cement floor and turns his head slowly, elbows on his knees. From a short distance away, the officer offers “This is where we found the two severely wounded guys. They should be ok, just looks like they were too close to some fireworks, plus a bullet in each arm. Based on that burn there, and the lack of shredded bodies, we’re guessing some sort of stun grenade.” Shrike nods and pushes off his knees as he stands. He walks over to Fast Louie’s corpse and tilts his head to the side as he looks it over. A blood spatter shaped like a comet leads away from the man’s head towards the back, away from the entry wound on the other side of his temple. He glances over to the office doorway, hanging open with its glass scattered over the floor. He crunches through the aperture and examines the other body as well as the front entrance while the officer continues to brief him. “Based on how neatly these two have had their heads cored out, plus the wounds on their limbs, and four shell cases…5.56. Someone brought firepower to the party.” Shrike returns to the main garage area and spends the next thirty minutes walking around. He examines the interior shed, noting the blankets and thousands of dollars worth of hot car parts. He collects a long piece of golden blonde hair. As he walks over to the cars on the far side, he asks “Where’s the girl?” “No idea. We’re going to squeeze these guys fierce though to find out though.” Shrike finishes up next to the two cars, which sit together in mute solidarity disrupted by the fact that only one has its car door and trunk open. “What was inside?” “Two brick of coke, looks like. Already been taken to the evidence locker. We’ll run the usual tests but it looked like blow to the first responders.” Shrike walks back next to the gang leader’s body. “This is weird.” The officer looks at him in surprise. “Whaddya mean?” “This isn’t gang fighting, it’s not even a robbery. Look at all the car parts in there. There’s probably ten or twenty cool worth of gear in there.” “Well, we did have units respond really quickly. There were some tourists a block over who heard the ruckus. If it hadn’t been for them, the locals might not have called us for a week... they didn’t have time to grab anything before the sirens would have scared them off. Bad luck to them.” “That makes sense, but that doesn’t explain the drugs left lying in the open trunk. They had time to grab that, and it would have been hard to walk away from. All the details tell me this wasn’t just another night in the life of Hudson City’s gangs. We’re looking for something…different. My guess is three or four somethings.” “Care to explain?” “Sure. First, that clock over there has reset,” Shrike gestures to the digital clock on the wall blinking 12:00 urgently. “That means the power was cut, probably at the circuit breaker. Most gang bangers don’t have night vision equipment, so why would they do that? So we have someone who feels like they have an advantage in the dark, performing a pretty simultaneous breach on both entrances. Based on that, and where the kids were tied up… at least one on the front, one on the back, and one at the breaker to kill the lights and guard the prisoners. They breach, take out the resistance very quickly and cleanly. Most of the messy fire came from that loser,” Shrike says as he indicates not-so-Fast Louie, “and based on the shell casings and the two spray patterns we have it looks like his submachine gun is missing. An Uzi or an autopistol would be my guess.” Shrike continues “So they breach. The guy in the front office gets off a blast or two with his shotgun, and then is shot through the wall and then finished off with a headshot. Similar story for the leader. They shoot off the padlock of the shed, but only the girl is missing. One car is searched, but the drugs are left behind, and the other car doesn’t look disturbed.” Shrike shakes his head. “If this was a bunch of hoods, or a rivalry being settled, then all of the guys outside would have bullets in their heads and the girl would be missing. If this was a professional hit on Louie and the Tigers, then all of the guys would be dead and the girl would have gotten the exact same treatment. These guys were looking for something. This was either about the girl, or about something else and they decided to take the girl.” “Do you think she’s alive?” “I don’t know. The fact that they didn’t execute everyone gives me some hope… but there are a lot of wackos out there, so who knows for sure if they have a conscious or just a really specific set of neuroses?” Shrike walks out of the building towards his car. “Do we have anything promising?” “Yeah, sure. Lab reports and autopsies are coming, but the one thing that’s making me happy so far is the nice set of tire tracks out front. Looks like they burned rubber when leaving. Soon as the tech heads are done, we’ll let you know what we learned.” Shrikes opens his car door and takes one last look at the building, before getting inside and driving off. An hour later, the police are done with the scene and leave…and two red glowing dots appear on the rooftop in the darkness. Note: A bit shorter than I intended (not a whole lot, but I probably would have added another 3 paragraphs), but I had to finish this up before I could get any schoolwork done before the session later today. I've decided not to use the italics for every cutscene, etc. because that might be hard on the eyes. Please let me know if you spot any typos or things that makes this hard to read, I haven't had a chance to look it over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted September 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 25, 2009 Session 2: Fighting Fire *Camera shot: A generic apartment style door. We hear a knock, and then Darius walks into the shot from somewhere behind the perspective of the lens, and opens the door.* The building manager chats briefly with Darius about mundane building utility issues, and then hands him a package that was in his mailbox. After the manager leaves, Darius closes the door and walks back into the apartment, tearing open the brown paper parcel. Inside he finds three plain, functional prepaid cell phones, each preprogrammed with four numbers. Darius hands a phone to Jack, and they pass the time planning to search for potential hideouts or bases (although it’s still unclear who knows what. Are they telling each other? Never did get a clear answer). Eventually Cypher calls, and Jack picks up. “We need to talk,” the tattooed man states in his pleasant British accent. Cypher comes over and they discuss some of the details about how they all came into contact. Cypher reveals that he works for an individual known only as the Broker, who according to the urban legends some of them have heard is sort of the Keyser Söze of the information underworld. Most people don’t believe he exists, or at least that his resources and abilities are vastly exaggerated. Cypher agrees to try to set up some sort of meeting. Jack asks Darius for help doing some research on HCU professor (let’s say he saw his name in a newspaper article), one Adolph Gottlieb. Darius waves at the computer from across the room, and search programs begin popping up on the screen revealing various facts about the professor. Jack then contacts Dr. Sizemore about arranging a meeting with Dr. Gottlieb about a “unique research opportunity.” He also consults with Darius about the crime world of Hudson City, and decides to abandon Chinatown for now (since it is so highly insular) and turn his attention to Freetown (which is extremely balkanized) for the purposes of building a fearful reputation among the criminal underworld. Jack takes the time to go out to a military surplus store and buy a variety of changes of clothes, mostly focusing on utility (simple, easy to use or replace, lots of pockets) and darker colors (black mostly). He makes a point of buying some high quality climbing rope. Meanwhile, Darius’s computer system comes under a fierce attack from an outside line, and he engages in a several hour struggle to fight off the mysterious hacker until he eventually beats his opponent back but loses his trace on him. He has yet to have time to look over his system to see what the hacker was looking for, whether or not anything was accessed or copied, and whether or not anything has been planted in his system. A day or two later, Cypher gets word back from the Broker that the meeting will be the next night, at exactly 11:13 in train car 3 of a certain metro station. They board the empty train car, and see sitting in one of the seats facing the isle is a nondescript laptop. Darius reaches for the keys when a synthetic voice interrupts him, “Don’t touch that.” Colored lines and shapes dance across the screen in synch with the words. Based upon the computer’s “behavior,” it seems as if the Broker is somehow observing them even though no camera is obvious on the computer. A slightly surreal conversation ensues, with three armed men (one of them wearing a mask and another wearing sunglasses to hide his glowing eyes) in a subway car, lights and shadows flickering across them as the subway undulates its way through various stations, talking to a laptop. The Broker explains that he contacted the various characters because they all possessed highly developed, distinct skill sets and that each one seemed to be a “tool without a purpose.” Also, none of them seem to be sociopaths, so the Broker believes a mutually beneficial relationship could be developed. He feeds them odd jobs and the occasional bit of info that he thinks will be useful to them, and they perform certain services for him as well as act as additional eyes and ears for what’s going on. During the exchange, the Broker reveals that he considers the PCs to not be under any sort of exclusive obligation but rather that they are on retainer. As an example of the mutually beneficial relationship envisioned, the Broker informs them that just about thirty minutes ago one of the Dragon Heads of Chinatown appeared to have been killed in a rather spectacular explosion. While it isn’t confirmed, the Broker’s information reveals the suspiciously timed appearance of someone that Jack should be highly interested in: Saltpeter Mary, former IRA extremist and presently a terrorist bomber for hire. Jack is visibly upset, and very eager to put things to rights with her on behalf of some “comrades.” The Broker highlights that, should she be captured, she could prove to be a source of information. Soon afterwards they arrive at the “final” subway station, and the laptop begins to make a rather loud and ominous whirring noise, and as everyone moves to give it space it eventually melts down into a pile of slag. A partially melted webcam falls from the ceiling, nearly burning Darius. Darius heads back to his apartment to get some sleep and begin his research tomorrow, Cypher heads over to Chinatown to see the blast site for himself, and Jack heads to Freetown… Jack tracks down a lone corner dealer, grabs him from a shadowed recess, and proceeds to interrogate him as to where he can find a more substantial criminal activity. After taking in the babbled details of a “bigger fish,” he warns the drug dealer: “If I see you selling drugs again, I’ll pour them down your slit throat.” The scene: a poorly lit street corner thumping with bass emitted from a parked car, from which a flashy punk deals to various customers while six of his boyz guard him. He sits in the shotgun seat with his legs out the open door, comfortable as a king on his throne. As two recent customers are starting to leave the car, shots ring out and interrupt the conversations between the gangers. The barking thunder of the shots merges into the explosive decompressions two tires blowing out, and it takes a second for anyone to even notice that one man’s brains are currently decorating the sidewalk. By the time anyone can really start to act, the rooftop immediately above the car lights up once more with muzzle discharges. Glass turns into a porous sheet as the man sitting in the driver’s seat is hit, the bullet entering his collarbone and ricocheting around in his body. As he slumps onto the steering wheel, the car’s horn begins to sound in one long, steady call that almost covers the noise of the ensuing (and fairly one-sided) battle. Two men rush inside the building to race for the roof as another man rushes the car door, unceremoniously dumps the body of his comrade amid a shower of glass, and starts the engine. The car hood bursts with a series of sparks as a volley of bullets rips into the engine block, and the engine dies with a small coughing explosion. Another shot snakes in through the now cleared window and takes the new driver in the chest, and he slumps back against the seat. The dealer by now is sheltering on the far side of the car, peeking up at the rooftop trying to pinpoint the shooter. Unfortunately for him, he’s a bit too predictable in this and is rewarded for his efforts with a rifle round high in his forehead (the player originally missed this called shot to the head, and used a black chit to turn it into a hit). The rooftop door slams open as one thug scrambles onto the rooftop, catches sight of Jack, and smartly takes a knee to brace as he lets off a shot which slams into the vigilante’s chest, emitting an arc of blood (5 BODY). Normally when the thug shoots people like this, they fall down dead. Jack just turns, eyes flaring a deeper shade of red with anger. Before he can act on his indignation, he is sent scrambling away from the roof edge by a chattering salvo of assault rifle fire from an enterprising thug who has borrowed the deceased dealer’s Kalashnikov. The distinctive zipping sound of the weapon brings backs memories for Jack that he doesn’t have time to deal with as he takes cover behind some roof fixtures and is temporarily pinned by the arrival of the second thug. Bullets chip at the concrete fixture, but Jack quickly pops around the corner and dispatches the first gunman with a round to his chest and incapacitates the second with another shot that takes him high in the shoulder, spinning him around before he slumps to fill the bottom of the doorway. Glancing back over the edge of the roof, Jack catches sight of the AK thug appearing and disappearing in patches of street light a block away, hightailing it for Anywhere But Here. Snarling, Jack leaps from the rooftop, crunches onto the edge of the car roof and rolls into a run in one smooth motion, running impossibly fast directly over the cowering spectators who dove for cover as soon as the shooting started. Right as the thug starts to think he got away; a bullet catches up with his head. Jack jogs through the circles of brightness cast by the streetlights, his eyes marking his passage where the light fails to reach. He quickly rolls the corpse, and with a dismissive kick returns to the roof to confront the only confirmed survivor, on the rooftop (the bystanders have run by the time he gets back). He crouches over the moaning form of the thug, pulling him up by his collar so that their faces are inches apart. “Don’t do drugs,” Jack growls before knocking him unconscious. Jack quickly collects the weapons, money, and cell phones from the downed gang members. He discovers a decent quantity of crack-cocaine in various bags in the trunk, which he destroys by grinding up and scattering over the asphalt. He ensconces himself in a new hiding place and observes some of the eventual police response, but is forced to retreat and tend his wounds by the coming of dawn. The Good 1) The players learned something about their mysterious benefactor. 2) They encountered a new plot seed. 3) They received more combat practice (the other PCs helped me run the thugs), and discovered more about the full limits of their abilities (theoretically). Jack can take on significantly superior numbers (7 thugs), at least if he uses some modicum of tactics, but even then he is still in danger. I like the fact that the PCs seem lethal but not invulnerable (they know they are squishy, and at the mercy of a lucky roll), and thus Jack at least seems very interested in acquiring some body armor as a force multiplier. Edit: To clarify, I'm glad because DC games tend to be very lethal, and this was a good "warning" or sorts of how much easier it is to get hurt in a DC game as opposed to a Fantasy game, and thus it might avoid a disastrous incident later with a bigger hit, against more deadly foes. By the same token, I hope it also shows the player that they can still accomplish a great deal and take daring actions because they know what it's like "in the suck." 4) Edit: Jack got to show off just how tough he is (shrugging off a 5 BODY, 11-12 STUN or somesuch hit to the chest). The Bad 1) Out of character knowledge usage. Jack specifically targeted one of the thugs (who had a shotgun hidden under his jacket, the other “heavy” in the gang) mostly based on the fact that he was marked with a nickel instead of the pennies the others were modeled by. I didn’t stop it that time because I did tell him that the thug was a bit different, and he wisely concluded why he was wearing somewhat bulkier clothing (to help conceal the weapon), but I do not doubt that his reason for asking for additional details about that specific thug was due to very metagame knowledge (It’s one thing to ask “What’s this nickel?” but another to then ask for details after the answer is “a thug,” when the same was not true for all of the other thugs) It’s a fine line, the use of metagame info, and this instance strayed across the line. Fortunately it’s not a big deal, but rather something I just have to keep a careful eye on and make sure I don’t make it too easy (by what I do and say) for the players to fall to the temptation to reducing combats to board games instead of cinematic swirls of chaos and confusion (and therefore of limited perspective) The Inbetween 1) I cut Jack some slack about knowing there was an AK pointed at him. Although it was unlikely that it would have hit him, it was dramatic how he had to leap away from it. Plus, I failed to be clear about where Jack’s attention was so for all I know he was looking right at the AK thug rather than the guy who just shot him in the back. Something for me to be better about. Overall, an acceptable if short session. I think the shortness played to my advantage, since I didn't have a lot prepared for anything immediate after what was covered. Now if only I could say the reverse was true for the game coming up Saturday.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok Posted September 25, 2009 Report Share Posted September 25, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Jack specifically targeted one of the thugs (who had a shotgun hidden under his jacket, the other “heavy” in the gang) mostly based on the fact that he was marked with a nickel instead of the pennies the others were modeled by. In my opinion, it all falls down to why exactly the nickel was used as a different marker. If it was solely for your benefit, to keep track of who is who, that's one thing. If it was to indicate to the other players which gangsters they were controlling, that's another thing. But if the intent behind the nickel was to indicate that this gangster is noticeably different than the rest, I feel it would only be natural to ask questions about him. If Jack could see that this guy was more of the enforcer type, I think it would be reasonable to act upon that, based upon his highly trained judgment of these kinds of things. Just like I specifically targeted the dealer (I assumed that the lighting was sufficient to see who was different from the rest.) SpecOps and counter-terrorist folks are trained to pick out inconsistencies from the crowd, and analyze those inconsistencies to pick their targets. If a guy in an airport is looking nervous and exhibiting erratic behavior, I'm going to watch him. Just like if I think a guy is hiding a large weapon under his jacket, I'm going to take him out. I promise I wasn't trying to use out of character knowledge. I had assumed that the different marker indicated that Jack saw these people as different, so I asked questions about what was different about these people, and made my decision based on that. If that was unreasonable, let me know and I'll modify that analysis based upon your guidelines. : ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted September 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 25, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log But if the intent behind the nickel was to indicate that this gangster is noticeably different than the rest' date=' I feel it would only be natural to ask questions about him.[/quote'] It was definitely for the first and second reason, not this. Which is fine, because this is something I need to work on. Nothing YOU did was inappropriate, and I certainly did not mean to imply any sort of criticism towards you. I intended for them to be different, but not noticeably so at first (except for the dealer, who was obvious), and they were meant to help the other players know who they were controlling. Of course, I also told them to wait until the fight had started and then to replace any penny of their choosing whenever they wanted... and instead they did it right at the start... which was mildly annoying, I'll confess, but not a big deal. In short, I accidentally conveyed more information than I intended to at that particular point. Nothing more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba smith Posted September 30, 2009 Report Share Posted September 30, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log any more news on this campaign? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok Posted October 1, 2009 Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log We had another session, and it was quite interesting for several reasons. Very dark. I'm not sure, because we've all been pretty busy this week, but Manic will probably have the notes posted by Saturday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted October 1, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 1, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log The notes are written up through the car chase, but alas, school keeps getting in the way of a perfectly good game... Apparently, I'll be running again this weekend, but with one PC absent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted October 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2009 Session 3: Predators in the Night A burning building dominates the scene, fire surging the gaping mouth of what used to be a towering doorway overlooking a street corner. Firefighters scramble up engine ladders to combat where the blaze is attempting to gain purchase at the edges where the bomb tore off most of the front corner of the building, and thereby consume the rest of ornate Tong hall. Paramedics rush a few injured people into ambulances, but the police are far busier keeping looking for witnesses among the gathered crowd and placing half a dozen or so fatalities in body bags. The two massive doors of the community building lie in smoldering pieces across the street. The camera pans back, passing over the shoulder and behind Cypher overlooking the scene. His trench coat flaps gently in the breeze. The shot cuts to a close up of his mask, angled from below. The emotionless mask gives an impression of a demon observing it all, bathed in the conflicting blue and red light emanating from below with two empty sockets absorbing the light and giving nothing back. Panicked shouts and movement erupt below as the camera shows us a piece of the upper floor giving way, dumping heavy masonry and fragile tables onto the streets below. The camera flashes back to where Cypher stands only to reveal an empty rooftop corner. *** Jack stands in Darius’s spare bathroom, shirtless and staring into the mirror as he digs at the wound in his chest with a knife and a pair of pliers. His face and movements are controlled, and only a slight tightening around the eyes indicates that he feels the pain. With a barely audible grunt, the bullet falls into the sink with a loud rattle as it bounces around in the porcelain bowl. Jack reaches down and grasps the sanguine bullet between his fingertips, holding it up for his inspection. He rinses the bullet off and pockets it, and proceeds to clean up. Using a first aid kit found under the sink, he cleans the wound wraps himself in bandages. Used gauze, discarded wrappers, and a ruined shirt fill the small trashcan. When Darius enters his kitchen in the morning, he stumbles upon a heavily bandaged Jack sitting at the kitchen table eating a massive sandwich and drinking a tall glass of milk. “Mormphing” Jack gets out around a bite. “What happened to you?” Jack pauses to consider and chew, and then replies after swallowing “I was careless.” After Jack finishes his breakfast (and a comment by Darius), he cleans up the mess in the bathroom and disposes of the garbage in a dumpster several blocks away (GM note: I find it interesting that Darius, who has expressed an interest in trying to identify his new companions, passed up this prime opportunity for a DNA sample by insisting that Jack take out the garbage. Huh). Jack does some research on Saltpeter Mary, but he doesn’t turn up a whole lot of information. From his backdoor access into the FBI database and various newspaper articles he is able to gather that Mary doesn’t really have a signature explosive, although she does have a tendency to go for bigger booms than the job strictly calls for. People suddenly realize Darius is sitting on the couch, and they have a brief powwow about what to do. Jack wants to offload some recently acquired items and buy some ammo, so Darius takes him to a minor arms dealer contact of his on the way to meet up with a street contact of his. The guy deals out of the back of an ice cream truck, and after some haggling and meeting up later (on the way to the Strip I believe, read below) Jack offloads a shotgun and some pistols in return for a bullet resistant vest and a couple of clips of 7.62mm ammo. Suitably provisioned, Darius and Jack head to North Elmview to find Darius’s contact: a pimp who works the Strip named Easy J. One can only imagine what the Brit’s thoughts are as Darius takes him to what is obviously the seediest part of town without any sort of explanation as to where they are going… Eventually they track down their man. “Yo, Hawk! How’s it hangin’ my man? Who’s this cat right here?” Darius introduces Jack and Easy J, and Jack explains that he’s looking for some info and that Darius said Easy J was the man to turn to… to which Easy J replies “Who the f*&@ is Darius?” Jack quickly recovers and explains that Darius is a friend of his from back across the pond that ran afoul of Saltpeter Mary and is looking for some payback. It’s a good try, but it’s unlikely that a character as savvy and perceptive as Easy J would be taken by something like that (GM’s note: It’s interesting actually to see how, for once, what the character paid for almost worked against him in way. Easy J is a good contact bought by Darius, and supposed to be a good source of rumors from all over Hudson City… so his usefulness in this case means he is not easily fooled). Easy J agrees to put his ears to the ground and his nose to the grind, and see what rumors his lovely ladies pull in (“Oh, and if you’re ever lookin’ for a tumble, my ladies be fine and clean, you can bet on that!”), but first he needs a favor, “Help me help you.” Seems that the Bankhurst Butcher (a.k.a. the Strip Slasher) has been particularly active again. The girls of the Strip are edgy and scared, and turning fewer tricks… which means less business for Easy J and less information for the vigilantes. The PCs agree to make sure the Slasher ceases to be a problem, and return to the apartment. They inform Cypher of the situation and Darius researches whatever information he can turn up on the Slasher, which is mostly a series of newspaper articles. Jack makes an excellent guess (that unfortunately never has a chance to really be developed as you’ll see) about how the Slasher began the killings once he hears about the one unusual, early killing (of Irishtown girl in her apartment rather than a prostitute in a cheap motel. Otherwise, all the killings are pretty weird for this sicko) which earns him +1 XP. Formulating a plan, they convince Easy J to put one of his girls out in area of the Strip the Slasher seems to prefer (he tends to hunt further east, where the girls are more desperate and worn out. They players may not have intended it, but essentially they put a somewhat nicer girl there so she was more likely to attract attention), and they will follow/ambush the serial killer if he makes a move. On the car ride to the Strip, Jack gives Darius a look as he maneuvers the car through the city streets… with his pet squirrel riding on his shoulder. :”Really man, don’t you think that attracts a bit of attention?” “Of course she does, Roslyn’s a beautiful creature.” Jack makes some sort of comment that causes Darius to insist the Brit apologize to Roslyn, but before he can the quiet, masked form of Cypher breaks in from the backseat. “You’re a disturbed man.” It’s the only thing he says the entire ride. (GM’s note: please make sure to read up about Cypher’s appearance and general demeanor as a spooky, mysterious, appearing/disappearing trench coat and mask wearing figure if you DON’T find this hilarious. Pretty sure that was a +1 XP right there). Jack sets up on a low rooftop overlooking the street corner where the hooker is waiting while Cypher guards her on foot, essentially invisible. Darius sits a block back in his own car, waiting… where it quickly becomes apparent his job will be a whole lot easier (and, incidentally a whole lot less obvious, though I didn’t mention this to the player) if he just pays a girl to sit in the car with him rather than constantly having to turn them away. At first they just sit, with the girl yakking on about her personal life to fill the empty silence. Darius tells her to talk dirty to him (which makes the girl a lot more comfortable, actually), which is evident to Jack when he calls to check in on Darius. A few hours pass and the girl works a few Johns, but then two events of interest occur: 1) A rental car drives by slowly, checking out the merchandise and moving on (this was the first rental car of the night). 2) The SAME rental car comes by again, from the same direction as before. It’s hard to make out the driver, but he looks like he has a spectacular 70s mustache. The girl gets in and the car begins to drive off… much to the consternation of our vigilantes (yes, this was a part of the plan, but it’s all happening so fast…). Jack calls Darius to tell him to move as he jumps from the roof and begins to pace the car from the next street down, and overhears this exchange: Darius pays the hooker and says, “You’re beautiful. You don’t need men to make you happy. Get a job. I’m not ready. Have a good night!” The girl is somewhat confused but takes the money, begins to collect her things, while telling him to be sure to come back and find just her because only she knows how to treat a REAL man… Jack, running at a near sprint, yelling into his cell phone “QUICKLY, please”!” Eventually she’s out of the car and Darius puts it in gear, picking up Cypher along the way. Unfortunately, the suspect spots that he’s being tailed and burns through a red light. Acting quickly, Jack manages to blow out two of the tires. Reaching Darius’s car, he calls out “Let me drive! I’ll handle this.” (or something to that effect) and takes the wheel. The heroes are led on a merry chase through North Elmview, and the suspect is obviously a skilled driver to be able to engage in this high speed pursuit with two blown out tires. Jack decides to parallel the lead car, hoping to convince him that he’d lost his pursuers. Jack follows from another street over for several minutes until he eventually passes through an intersection and sees that the other car is NOT passing through where it should be. Quickly circling back around, the group comes out onto the street just as the other car is peeling away from the prone form of the hooker. There’s a tense moment as they approach and try to decide what to do, and everyone seems to let out a sigh of relief as the girl gets up and throws her purse at the retreating vehicle, cursing the man driving it. Jack tosses a $20 out the window as he drives by, but then everyone notices that the girl is bleeding profusely from her forehead. Without a word, Cypher opens his door and smoothly rolls out, silently unfolding from his quiet acrobatics like some sort of embodiment of mystery rather than a flesh and blood man. He checks on the girl and puts up with her tirades while the car disappears around a corner, as Darius calls Easy J to come pick up the girl. Jack and Darius are one man down as they pursue the serial killer into the night… Fortunately, he’s not that hard to track. The sparks his now bare rims give off are visible from several blocks away, and it’s easy to follow the looks of confusion as the few people in the area stop and stare after where the car has passed. Trailing from a distance, the duo observes the suspect ditch his car, walk several blocks, hail a cab, and eventually get out so that he can climb into a very nice sports car. Jack immediately exclaims “Bugger it, he’s IRISH!” Things seem like they are going to be much more complicated as Jack considers having to deal with Irishtown security and police response times… but the BMW hops on the interstate out of town instead of retreating to the most privileged portion of the city. Darius manages to run the plates and turns up that it’s registered to Edgar Williamson, a thrill seeking Hudson socialite who’s traveled the world and mastered a number of dangerous recreational sports (hence the skill behind the wheel). As the vigilantes proceed further into the somewhat empty countryside that is crushed between Hudson City and the suburbs, they are forced to fall further and further back, and have to kill the lights when they pull onto an empty back road that winds through trees and past a few horse ranches kept by wealthy Hudsonites. They see the lights ahead of them turn and stop, then go off. Jack and Darius get out and close in on foot… Jack moving quietly through the night while Darius… puts in a good effort (Jack remembers to silence his cell phone on the way in. Smart man). Once close, they can make out a rather large pseudo-industrial building with a sign indicating that it used to be a slaughterhouse. Jack quickly scales the exterior wall and gains access through a skylight while Darius listens at the partially open door… “That stupid b**ch! How dare she try to fight me! How lucky that whore is…if she hadn’t had a pack of goons lying in wait, right now I’d be playing with her… I don’t know who they were, but they have no IDEA what they’ve brought on themselves… When I find them, I’ll…” there are several loud crashing sounds as Edgar moves through the building, opening and slamming doors and otherwise throwing a tantrum. Darius sends Roslyn in, and “she” eventually finds the room the serial killer is in. He texts Jack to cover his ears for thirty seconds. Jack hurriedly tears of a piece of his sleeve, and right as he finishes a terrible wailing, screeching noise fills the building. Edgar collapses to the floor grasping his ears, and Jack proceeds to scramble down into the building searching for his quarry. He clears the rooms efficiently and swiftly, finally coming upon the room right as Edgar is managing to get himself oriented. Jack moves in from behind, sweeping his feet out from underneath him and then slamming his fist into the man’s face like a piston. Edgar is out cold, and blissfully the terrible noise stops soon after. Darius rushes into the room to see Jack securing Edgar with zip ties in an expensive and well-equipped kitchen. Darius searches the kitchen while Jack explores the nearby rooms… starting with the walk in freezer. Jack is confronted with his own little house of horrors while Darius reads an incredibly disturbing gourmet chili recipe. Jack returns to the kitchen, severely disturbed, and each man tries to tell the other “You won’t believe what I just saw…” and then they trade. They also examine the opulent converted dining room, to discover a number of women’s personal articles (underwear, hair combs, etc) mounted in velvet lined glass display cases. Jack makes ready to execute the man, and surprisingly Darius speaks to stop him. Darius wants to let the system enact justice (GM’s note: I think, although he did offer to let Jack do to Edgar what Edgar had done to these women… which would have been fatal, obviously. I would love for the player to explain the character’s thought process). Jack felt that the man would skate free due to political connections and high priced lawyers (GM’s note: with THIS much evidence, plus what Edgar left at the scenes…. And for crimes this horrific… the best he could hope for was life imprisonment in a mental institute. NO ONE would touch this guy, no matter how much of an ally he used to be. But the characters couldn’t be sure of that, I suppose). Darius photographs all of the evidence and anonymously e-mails it (along with an address) to his police contact (I can just imagine him explaining it to his superiors). Jack tells Darius to pull the car around, and on the way Darius grabs eight rather nice bottles of wine. While Darius walks to the car, Jack wakes Edgar up. He lifts him up to above head height using just one hand, and with glowing eyes stares into the face of a true monster. “You know, there’s a special place in hell for people like you….I’VE BEEN WAITING!” With a swift motion, he slashes the man’s throat with a knife and carries the still twitching body into the freezer, where he implants him on a meat hook and uses the knife to pin a note to his chest which reads: “From the darkness comes the terror of evil men.” Darius comes back to find Jack showering in a side bathroom, bloody clothes discarded. He finds a spare dress shirt and slacks in a closet, which fit disturbingly well. They walk outside, Darius shaking his head as Jack eyes the BMW Z4 with a gleam in his eye and a car key in his hand. He gets in the car and takes stock. Realizing he’ll need a car cover, he searches for one… only to realize he has checked the trunk! With trepidation, he opens the rear compartment… to find a car cover and a small stack of spare license plates. He changes the plates out, buries the one last used and one that turns up as “hot” from a quick registry search by Darius, With that, the head back to home base…which is currently Darius’s apartment. Jack finds a parking garage to secure his new ride, while Darius uses the account information from Edgar’s wallet (see GM reflection notes), but realizes that in a rush job situation like this he probably couldn’t cover his trails well enough to hide where the money’s going… he considers sending it to a bunch of nefarious groups (GM’s note: Bwuh? I can see an attempt to create intimidating evidence… but wiring a half a million dollars to the Taliban seems like a bad idea. Plus if he thought the bank was hard to hack, blind attacking Grand Cayman accounts would be…brutal), but then wisely opts to send a LOT (250k) of money to various charities, including one with connections to one of Darius’s corporate contacts. The next twenty-four hours for the Hudson City police and news scene are going to be very interesting… While all hell is breaking loose in one portion of civil society, the group goes to meet up with Easy J a few days later to see what he’s turned up. The gist: 1. He mentions various killings and increased tensions in Freetown (Jack’s antics, to be read later) 2. Choy Sing Tong hit: seems like Saltpeter Mary, looks like the #2 of the Tong is dead along with a few members of the Emerald Doors (the Tong street gang) and Chinatown is on lockdown. If this was a hit by a rival tong, the lack of additional violence is surprising, so Easy J’s theory is something else. 3. No line on Saltpeter Mary, but she was seen in the city. Best bet is to check out the merc hangouts (Krazy Karl’s and Hannigan’s Waterfront Dive are two suggestions). 4. There’s been an unusually high number of mercs moving through the city lately… seems like there’s blood in the water. Whew. I would have posted these last night, but a friend called me and we had to have a long talk... GM's reflections notes later today likely. Certainly tomorrow before the next session. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ragnarok Posted October 2, 2009 Report Share Posted October 2, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Just to make it clear to everyone, Jack did make sure to give the injured hooker the $300 he found on the Stripslasher, as recognition of the risk and recompense for the large gash on her forehead. Jack isn't completely insensitive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted October 2, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 2, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Just to make it clear to everyone' date=' Jack did make sure to give the injured hooker the $300 he found on the Stripslasher, as recognition of the risk and recompense for the large gash on her forehead. Jack isn't completely insensitive.[/quote'] Or was it to stay in Easy J's good graces and to make up for the damage to his property, hm? KIDDING! I certainly hope I didn't misrepresent Jack. I tried to make it clear that you tossed the money (which was insensitive, but HILARIOUS) BEFORE you saw she was injured. To our faithful readers (Who I think we have, even if they never comment...): I am trying to make these entries a bit more concise and to the point, and focus more on dramatic details if you will. So, I do cut things out since it takes a while to type this up, and all those little things add up... the $300 Ragnarok mentions, his taking a very nice Rolex from Edgar's wrist, meeting with Easy J in the morning as he and the girl leave the ER, or Cypher taking the car to get it "cleaned" (VIN numbers changed, etc). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted October 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2009 GM's Thoughts The Good 1) The group took out a real scumbag, and positive feelings of self-congratulation abound. 2) Darius was able to utilize his newly redesigned contact network and put it to very effective use, and thus have some solid “spotlight time” contributing to the group’s needs. 3) Jack was able to show off his driving skills. The Bad 1) Darius hacking the bank. Boy, did I not expect that, yet I should have predicted something like this would have happened. I think I did a good job handling it in that, logically there would be sufficient security/attention at these major financial institutions, especially on an account like this, that it was more or less impossible to just “rush” hack it on a whim. Yet I wasn’t prepared with thoughts on the stats of the security, beyond “high.” I need to try to prepare some thoughts on what Darius might end up hacking, what some likely defenses and repercussions are. See the In-between notes below. 2) No one’s notes has the hooker’s name, or the “Something and Son” or somesuch slaughterhouse name. Inconsequential here, but it could be bad later for when details really do matter. I made it up on the spot, and need to make sure I get these down, 3) Interplayer disconnect. A bit of out of game conflict/breakdown because of in game events. Very frustrating, but seems to be dealt with. The In-between 1) Cypher getting left out. Cypher made a noble call (as a player) by diving out to deal with the prostitute, which essentially cut him out of the final third of the adventure. He received bonus XP for it, but I still feel bad for the guy. I am concerned that there might have been accidental snubbing earlier in the session, as the other two characters were up to a great deal of activity but upon examination didn’t do too much to try to involve Cypher’s character, and Cypher might have felt there wasn’t anything that he could do at that particular juncture to contribute on his own initiative (mostly when Darius was running around with Jack consulting with contacts, etc). I just need to monitor this to help ensure that people don’t get so caught up in what they’re doing that they forget they’re underutilizing their teammates. 2) Cayman Islands hack- This was a silly series of events in which Darius’s player suddenly decided he was going to hack a random Cayman Islands account, which is ridiculous on too many levels to enumerate. I didn’t punish the player, but I did make it clear that this was officially a Bad Idea/ not going to work. What’s important is that it’s probably more than a little unclear “how hacking works” to the player… which is sort of true to the GM as well. Sure, simple things I handle easily, but the bigger he thinks the less prepared I am, and this is something I need to work on so I can bring the same logic and consistency to that aspect of gameplay as I strive for in other areas. 3) Really shouldn’t have had the account information in the first place. I mean, the guy just had a couple of credit cards. My bad. 4) Missed opportunity with the car chase scene- this was the first car chase of the campaign, for these players, and for me as a GM or a player… and I really didn’t describe it all that much. I really missed an opportunity to give some vivid descriptions and have a cool, cinematic sequence. Instead it was a bit dry (if interesting, but it lacked sizzle IMO). I think this was largely due to the fact that I had not anticipated a car chase, and thus had not looked up the relevant rules, and didn’t want to bog things down by grabbing the look to read up something I wasn’t familiar with. It was the right call in that situation, but I look forward to the next set of vehicular hijinks so I can really give the players something fun. Fortunately, I can think of at least three plot threads that are brewing right now that could all feasibly entail such a scenario. 5) Continuity detail- Jack put his cell phone on silent before he infiltrated the slaughterhouse, yet somehow he was able to notice the text message sent by Darius. It’s a minor detail, but I feel like I let it slip through the cracks, and worry I might do it with something more important later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casper Posted October 3, 2009 Report Share Posted October 3, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log “You’re a disturbed man.” It’s the only thing he says the entire ride. (GM’s note: please make sure to read up about Cypher’s appearance and general demeanor as a spooky, mysterious, appearing/disappearing trench coat and mask wearing figure if you DON’T find this hilarious. Pretty sure that was a +1 XP right there). I could post it if people would like or need a reminder. Then again, I'm adding to it currently so I could post it after i'm done editing the additions... The Bad 2) No one’s notes has the hooker’s name, or the “Something and Son” or somesuch slaughterhouse name. Inconsequential here, but it could be bad later for when details really do matter. I made it up on the spot, and need to make sure I get these down, I remember it began with an A...Abby or something. I'll have to do better with recording names. The In-between 1) Cypher getting left out. Cypher made a noble call (as a player) by diving out to deal with the prostitute, which essentially cut him out of the final third of the adventure. He received bonus XP for it, but I still feel bad for the guy. I am concerned that there might have been accidental snubbing earlier in the session, as the other two characters were up to a great deal of activity but upon examination didn’t do too much to try to involve Cypher’s character, and Cypher might have felt there wasn’t anything that he could do at that particular juncture to contribute on his own initiative (mostly when Darius was running around with Jack consulting with contacts, etc). I just need to monitor this to help ensure that people don’t get so caught up in what they’re doing that they forget they’re underutilizing their teammates. I figured that Darius didn't want me along because of a trust issue. Snub or not, I think it will work out - I did read through some of his plans....It will only be an issue for me if it constantly happens. As to being left out, I was ok with it, as I really didn't have any leads to follow after i got out of the car...now I have two bars I can check out constantly for people/things/information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted October 3, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2009 Cut Scene # 2 (between Session 3 and 4) An empty office centers around a corkboard display board, sunlight filtering through the blinds in golden slashes. Filing cabinets and bookshelves line the walls, and a cluttered desk sits at an angle facing the large bay windows that reveal a bull’s den of desks and figures moving around at a brisk pace. Muted voices and the thrilling of phones filters through the glass. The door opens and two men walk in, pistols holstered under their arms and coffee cups in their hands. “Alright, give me what you’ve got.” Detective Shrike leans against his desk, eyes gliding over the full display board as he sips his coffee. “Not much. We have a partial description on the car, but nothing solid about the people inside. We’re sure there was more than one… but beyond that… what’s the connection to your case though?” “Mhm. God that’s awful.” Shrike grimaces as he lowers the coffee and strides over to indicate the various items posted on the board. “The bullets and the car, and… a feeling. This fits the pattern.” “Pattern?” Shrike points to various photos and reports. “It’s a circle, really. Williamson’s fingerprints are all over the slaughterhouse, the trophies, the crime scenes. He was the Strip Slasher. His fingerprints are also in the shot up car west of North Elmview, so the little derby last night was someone interfering with Edgar’s playtime. The shell casings and slugs put the weapon in the H&K family, one of the newer rifles, and they along with the tire tracks connect Chinatown and the first Freetown attack, plus the description of the perp.” “You’re serious? The eyes?” Shrike sighs. “Yes. Look, it might be ridiculous, but none of the Shadow Tigers would talk except for one, and he just kept ranting about red glowing eyes. The two witnesses in Freetown, plus the injured guy from the roof give the same details.” “And the monster bit?” Shrike snorts “A terrified, superstitious street punk and a couple of panicked junkies. My guess is some sort of night vision gear, which fits the style of the attacks.” He continues, “Anyway, we know there was an AK in play at the Freetown hit and the bullets pulled from Edgar’s tires are a probably match for that weapon. So I’m pretty confident that we’ve got a straight line from the Shadow Tigers to the Butcher’s kitchen.” “But you said a circle…” Shrikes nods. “Altruism. Meddling. Vigilantes. The drugs were destroyed in Freetown, and someone e-mailed Detective O’Rourke those photos and the address… and sent hundreds of thousands of dollars to a bunch of noble causes.” Shrike chuckles, “I’m glad I’m not the one that has to sort that mess out… our Mayor will have his hands full explaining why the government is trying to take money away from cancer research and children’s shelters.” “Plus,” Shrike pulls out a piece of paper and walks over to the board and pins it up, stepping away to look at it. “We pulled fingerprints from the wine case… and they weren’t all Edgar’s. Now, the question is do they belong to same person who left some blood on the roof in Freetown” A close up shot of a thumbprint lies near another photograph, revealing a concrete roof with an arc of blood cutting across its surface like Warhol. The phone on his desk rings, and he tosses the empty coffee cup in the trash as he crosses the room to answer it. He listens for a minute, thanks the person, hangs up, and looks at the other officer. “Let’s go.” The two men grab their jackets from a coat rack and stride out of the room. The camera turns from the door to examine the board up close, and slowly tracks in on its upper right corner. There is an up close photo of a car roof with a large dent pressing it down so that the door could obviously no longer close. A post-it note stuck to the edge of the photo bears a large question mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kristopher Posted October 4, 2009 Report Share Posted October 4, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log Hat's off to you guys. Sounds like a good campaign so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manic Typist Posted October 4, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2009 Re: Secret Wars Campaign Log ....17 bodies. There are now 17 bodies lying in or near a burning warehouse in Bayside, with several hundred thousand dollars tucked in the spare tires in two cars parked in front (with a deaf Mafia associate in the driver's seat). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.