Adventurers' Club Update

[st barbara]

Just thought i'd come on here and give everybody a quick rundown of what my players have been up to lately.

 

They have, for several sessions now, been in China, sent there to rescue some archaeologists. After many adventures going up river, a trip into the Himalayas (which featured a guide that spent most of his time drunk and a flatulant, spitting yak !) and sundry mysterious happenings, our intrepid adventurers have finally reached their goal, only to encounter a Nazi expedition who, upon capturing them, have treated them amazingly well (they have mistaken the P C's for the missing archaeologists). Finally having reached the dig players and nazis have found the REAL arcaheologists ( think the bickering ones from "Stargate" ), along with the tomb of the Dragon Emporer and the terracota army ! Things have gone from bad to worse, the Dragon Emporer and the army are coming to life and it is up to the P C's (aided by the nazis and the archaeologists, if they can stop bickering !) to save the world. As Dr Hawke, one of my P C's said "We have to save the world again ? It must be wednesday " It has been a long adventure, over several sessions at a rate of one a month but it has generally been lots of fun ! The climaz (next month) should also be "fun". The team should know what they have to do to defeat the revived Emporer, but can they get it done ? Tune in for more thrilling adventures !

[drunkonduty]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Cool. Look forward to seeing how it turns out.

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Ayup. Can't wait to get back to warmer (and flatter) climes - and far away from that @#$%^ yak!

[st barbara]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Ian how could you say that about that yak ! It certainly seemed to like you (and the rest of the party)

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

If f##ting is its way of expressing "like", it must LOVE our party.

[st barbara]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Well our intrepid heros have braved the tomb of the emporer, defeated him and his terracotta army, rescued the archaeologists and gone back down the river. But their troubles aren't over yet because an old enemy of Captain Ferguson has turned up and, backed by the local government, is out to rob the P Cs and the arcaheologsts of their prizes !

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Captain Ferguson has got his number, st barbara. And I've got yours.

[st barbara]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Well the arcaheologists were rescued an the heros have escaped down river. Only to be confronted, upon reaching Shanghai, by an old enemy of Capt, Fergusons, out to rob them of the treasure that the archaeologists gor from the tomb. However, by dint of some clever role playing, the PC's have managed to escape with the majority of their finds intact AND turn the tables on Capt Freguson's old enemy ! Now they have discoverd that Japanese businessmen are responsible for much of this trouble (and they thought it was just nazis !) and are off to Japan with information that will (possibly) bring ONE of their Japanes enemies down a peg or two. Plenty more action to be had, but it will have to wait until next year as we only play once a month. Yesterdays game was more role playing than action and dice rolling and I must say I (and I think my co-referee) am pleased with the way things have gone !

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

As was I. A couple of my more inspired moves, I think.

 

On the off-chance that people are interested in more detail, I'll post a description Real Soon Now.

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Ah, well. An outline of my character, Captain Ferguson, can be found here:

 

http://www.herogames.com/forums/showthread.php/66484-league-of-extraordinary-PULP-HEROs/page4

 

The party had been hired by the US government to evacuate a small group of archaeologists and their findings from an isolated corner of China. Much of the trip involved navigating China's vast river system on Ferguson's ship, the 'Antares', followed by a long hike / climb into the mountains. Lots and lots of profoundly weird stuff, needless to say - plus bad crazy people with guns, bad crazy people with magic, bad crazy people with guns AND magic, you get the idea.

 

We combined a 'Wiley Coyote' style boobytrap, lots of firepower, and Father O'Malley's 'Holy Smite' power to kill off a Chinese Vampire. And that was not necessarily the oddest thing we had to do.

 

One NPC our two co-Refs introduced early on in the scenario was 'Mister Belloq' (you know, the French villain in 'Raiders Of The Lost Ark') as a long-standing foe / rival of Captain Ferguson's. His early activities were very indirect and mostly peripheral - several attempts to interfere with our passage upriver and so on. No face-to-face meetings at all.

 

Anyhow, after going through some serious s##t, we finally got back to Shanghai with the archaeologists and a bunch of artifacts (for which we had advance permission from the Chinese government, such as it was, to export). A couple of gunboats "escorted" 'Antares' to a berth, where we were told that a meeting with the local harbour master was required. We could see, more or less, where this might go - official corruption was China's national sport at that time. Fortunately, our contract had included a discretionery fund for such occurrances, plus we had fairly heavy-duty paperwork from the US State Department, plus 'Antares' was a British-flagged ship with lots of guns (and people who knew how to use them) moored in a VERY public spot. Certainly not untouchable, but in a better position than average.

 

Ferguson and the scientists went to the harbourmaster's office (the rest of the party being otherwise occupied). First thing we saw there was Mr Belloq leaving as he smugly told the Harbourmaster something like "...The Fuhrer will be most grateful for your aid..." as he turned in our direction.

 

That was the cliffhanger for that session's end.

 

[To Be Continued]

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

OK, continuing. Note that I use "I" a lot here, mainly because, a lot of the time, it was one PC in a roomful of NPCs (the rest of the PCs were running various high-priority errands).

 

Anyhow, our group has several games mostly running on a monthly rotation, so I had a few weeks to consider the cliffhanger.

 

As I saw it, two main possibilities:

(a) Belloq patronizes the heck out of Ferguson on his way out - "Oh, so unfortunate. You seem to be in some difficulties, my friend, yadda, yadda, yadda.". Then out the door he goes after some witticism, leaving Ferguson fuming.

( Ferguson gives in to temptation - and immediately kicks Belloq in the maraccas. Short term satisfaction certain. But, all this is happening in the office of a corrupt offical who has been set against Ferguson anyhow, and both he and his flunkies are watching. That sort of behaviour, at best, marks Ferguson as both disrespectful of authority and dangerously violent, not necessarily good things here.

 

Neither possibility had much appeal. So I looked for Door Number Three. Ferguson both looks and plays the part of the big brawny seadog; but he is also a shrewd tactician who knows the city, the culture and the local languages (appropriate skills in all those things). Plus, he already knows what Belloq is like and how he usually operates (no skill, but the GMs said that he was a long-standing adversary of Captain Ferguson).

 

When the game resumed four weeks later, heheheh, I had worked something out.

 

So, Big Confrontation With Belloq, in the harbourmaster's office in Shanghai. Ferguson's immediate action is to bellow (in fluent Cantonese, so EVERYBODY there can understand him), "BELLOQ! MY DEAR FRIEND!" and throw his arms around Belloq. Huge smile, big bearhug and a big sloppy kiss on Belloq (Player aside: "Oh, I am SO going to hell for this ...").

 

Think stereotypical drunken affectionate greeting as delivered by a stereotypically large and especially macho Russian (as portrayed by Brian Blessed). That was kind of what I was trying for though, retrospectively, something was also probably owed to Eddie Murphy (that great airport scene in 'The Golden Child').

 

The GMs were surprised by this, I like to think, but had Belloq retain enough balance to not actually freak out. He was put in a "friendly" wrestling hold and then 'introduced' to the three archaeologists accompanying Ferguson (still loud and still in fluent Cantonese) "THIS IS MY GOOD FRIEND, MR BELLOQ. HE IS A VERY VERY RICH MAN HERE IN CHINA. HE RUNS MANY DIFFERENT BUSINESSES - NAME IT AND HE MAKES MONEY FROM IT!" Quick aside "DON'T WORRY, MY FRIEND. THAT SPECIAL THING HAS BEEN TAKEN CARE OF. NO WORRIES, MATEY!".

 

You get the idea.

First, this performance threw Belloq totally off balance. He left hurriedly, without getting the last word (in itself, well worth the price of admission ). Icing on the cake - a glimpse of him just outside the office door, hurriedly patting himself down to see if anything had been taken from or added to his person.

Second, the official with whom he had just made a deal against Ferguson was now thinking stuff like "Huh??? What have I missed here? What is Belloq NOT telling me?". He might still take every artifact on 'Antares', but we could be sure that Belloq would NOT be getting them without extensive (and expensive) renegotiations. A more level playing field for our side, anyhow.

 

So, into the harbourmaster's office, for Phase II.

 

[To Be Continued]

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

OK, the conclusion. Not a lot, really, but there are a few comments as well.

 

Went into the Harbourmaster's office with the archaeologists in tow. Big politeness contest with the dude behind the big desk

 

Ferguson apologized for the noisy display outside ("It has just been SO LONG since I last saw my very good friend, Mr. Belloq..."). The harbourmaster, not to be outdone, apologized for calling us down there but, after all, he had certain responsibilities. Ferguson expressed deep sympathy, as he was obviously a very very busy man, and so the insincerity contest rolled on.

 

Upshot, the harbourmaster wanted to "inspect" our cargo (of ancient Chinese artifacts) to make sure all was in order.

 

Pretty much anticipated this, and I expected that he and his crew would inevitably "cherrypick" a few items. If suitable levels of courtesy (and bribery) could be maintained, hopefully, this pilferage could be kept to a minimum. Hopefully. So, since we were trying to be as honest as possible (no immediate dirty tricks in the offing), I took the path of full cooperation. Just started organizing the when of the inspection and were about to present our papers when the Young Assistant Archaeologist started looking very nervous and trying to surreptitiously get Ferguson's attention.

 

Quick conference to one side. Yep, you guessed it - he had been "holding back" some valuable items from the paperwork to prevent their theft (he really wasn't skimming, just using his own initiative). Nice timing, could have said something during the car trip over, but n-o-o-o, he has to wait until Ferguson has pretty much finished negotiating a deal.

 

Ohhh-kay. A bit more discussion and to-and-fro with the harbourmaster. Another deal on the verge of achievment. Then the Very Senior Scientist is trying to surreptitiously get Ferguson's attention.

 

Oh, great, what now?

 

Turns out that despite all those months onsite AND the two week cruise downriver, their listing / cataloguing of artifacts found is STILL grossly incomplete. Therefore, if the harbourmaster gets to make direct comparisons, there is going to be nothing but trouble.

 

Once again, couldn't say something when we arrived in Shanghai, or when summoned to the harbourmaster's office, or even during the !@#$%^&*()_+{}:"<>? twenty-minute car trip to said office.

 

Nice one, guys - and I am not talking about the NPCs.

 

Ferguson is NOT pleased at finding out at this stage, and says so. Very Senior Scientist says very snarkily, "OK, in future I will go straight to you with all of my problems the instant they arise, night or day....".

 

Aside to the GMs. Sorry guys, but the first complication (from Young Assistant Archaeologist) was plausible. Repeating the IDENTICAL stunt within ten minutes of play time only via a different NPC was, with all respect, too much like outright GM dickery. Really. Also, IDing and cataloguing is an integral part of archaeological excavation- they do not just dig up craploads of crap, crate up everything, and sort it all out later. Not at all. So I still have difficulty accepting that they could be THAT behind with paperwork that they knew dang well would be required when the goods departed China, but we'll let that one pass now, I guess.

Finally, didn't say so at the time, but Very Senior Scientist's response REALLY ticked me off. Anything pertaining to the welfare of the ship and everything / everybody on it IS the Captain's responsibility. So, if Very Senior Scientist pushes his luck (eg. endangering the ship - again, or ANYTHING that p###es off his kindly Captain - again); then Ferguson WILL put a bullet in the idiot's head, dump the body overboard, and take his chances. I am totally not kidding.

 

Back on track ....

 

Anyhow, it occurred to me. This was all a business negotiation, and how are such things commonly resolved?

 

Yup, food and grog, in large quantities. Ferguson invited the harbourmaster to a friendly () meal onboard Antares that night, singing the praises of his cook. Said meal was to be sort of concurrent with the inspection (the harbourmaster sort of anticipated inspection first, then meal, but we had other ideas).

 

Flurry of activity on Antares for the shindig. We had a couple of crates of Scotch down in the hold that were intended, more or less, for this kind of eventuality, so up they came. It also occurred to us that ..... feminine company would be advisable, so steps were taken to hire some expert .... entertainers. Note that this matter was handled with minimal sniggering and whilst maintaining a predominantly 'PG' rating. The redoubtable Father O'Malley could hardly be expected to actively participate in the party, so it was understood that he would dine in his own cabin with, presumably, a night of quiet reading to follow.

 

As it happened, he was busier than expected, The entertainers' "manager", a formidable lady in her own right, heard that the Antares had a Catholic priest onboard, and immediately decided that he was needed to hear her Confession. A very very long, extremely detailed and almost educational Confession at that (apparently, she did one confession every ten years, without fail).

 

The party itself was a huge success. The sizable bribe offered to the Entertainers to make sure the harbourmaster had "a very very very good time" might have helped. It basically ended with said official rubber-stamping our papers (plus a few blanks, just in case), before his flunkies wheelbarrowed him off the ship to a waiting car. As it turned out, one of the ... Entertainers was actually a high-powered (female) agent of British Intelligence, there to check us out and get an early report about our mission. She and Ferguson got along quite well, and that is all I am going to say about that ....

 

Between that improvised greeting of Belloq in the harbourmaster's office and the shindig, we by-passed or otherwise short-circuited quite a lot of what the GMs had planned. They had anticipated an actual inspection, with Belloq there to "assist" the harbourmaster. Heh, heh.

 

So, things went well. Better than well, actually - no major losses from the cargo at all.

 

I also have to pronounce deep satisfaction on another level. Belloq's move (The Old 'Bribe-The-Local-Official-To-Take-Your-Stuff-And-Give-Most-Of-It-To-Him' Trick) is probably a favorite dirty ploy of his. But, we didn't merely shoot this ploy down, we made it blow up while still counting down on the launch pad. Belloq undoubtedly has a lot of dirty tricks up his sleeve, but he will have to think twice before trying that particular one again on us.

 

The PCs, the ship and the artifacts are all now in Tokyo Bay, trying to prevent some nasty plot in Japan. Gee, here we are on a shipload of valuables in a country that could, at the time of this campaign, give "scary" lessons to Nazi Germany. Nothing to worry about, nosirree.

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Ohhhh-kay. The plot mentioned above targets a Japanese .... faction (read: Yakuza Clan Plus) friendly towards (OK, tolerant of) the USA and the British Commonwealth. The other guys (the plotters) are, naturally enough, bosum buddies with the Nazis - and that is their good point.

 

Our redoubtable Doctor Hawke manages to figure out how the "friendly" Yakuza boss is being poisoned, and then cure him - so naturally said boss is rather grateful. The Number One uncomfortable aspect of our new friends is that they are "into" demonology in A Very Big Way - 'bound' demons disguised as humans being some of their grunts and bodyguards, for example. Plus, there is a room in the boss's villa that all of us simply know without question that We Do Not Want To Look Inside. That is even before Father O'Malley uses his arcane abilities and then tells us so.

 

If this was early-edition 'Call Of Cthulhu', rest assured we'd probably have been losing Sanity Points by the barrowload. These guys play for keeps, and things like seppuku or slicing off one's own finger as an apology to The Boss are both strictly kiddie stuff.

 

Anyhow, we and our Yakuza "allies" (including their pet demons) are now getting ready to assault the secret island base of the "Bad " Yakuza (who, the way things are going, may turn out to be Southern Baptists for all I know). This attack should hopefully deal that bunch a major setback, and also delay Japan's arming up for the War That Is Soon To Come.

 

What could possibly go wrong?

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Plenty, as it turned out, but we made quite a mess of that island. Even managed a few minor derailments - stuff that the GMs had not expected, so it was all good.

 

Sneaked onto the island then ...

 

Subdivided their telegraph cable - they weren't getting any messages out without first doing a LOT of splicing. Mr Atkins acquired a katana and got just a little over-enthusiastic for that part.

Trashed their Radio Room, and generally scared the bejesus out of ttheir radioman.

Faced off against the Bad Guys' pet demons - that was nasty. Father O'Malley got messed up pretty bad. Ferguson and Doctor Hawke had to do some EXTREMELY fast surgery to extract a ... little gift the Padre got from one of the demons.

Sent a cable car (primed with several drums of gasoline ) hurtling down its cable into the lower station, right next door to the fuel refinery.

Took advantage of the ensuing confusion to seize control of a coastal defense battery overlooking the harbour. Used that to blow up everything that the refinery fire didn't get.

Stole a plane (piloted by Mr Atkins) and left with alacrity.

 

We are now homeward bound on the 'Antares' (Captain Ferguson's ship). Been a week or so since leaving Japan, long enough for most of us to make some degree of recovery, though Father O'Malley is still not the best. NOW, one of those scientists we rescued and are getting back to the USA has discovered a scroll amongst the Ancient Chinese artifacts onboard. Apparently, that Dragon Emperor dude isn't dead yet - or if he was, he got better. He should be coming to visit us VERY soon - like in mid-ocean.

 

Great. Just frackin' great. We get to fight him again. My enthusiasm knows no bounds.

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

OK, subsequently ...

 

Good News: Dragon Emperor not actually on his way right now, or in immediate future.

 

Bad News: Whenever he does arise ( / resurrect?), the first thing he must do is head for and acquire this scroll.

 

Really Bad News: The scroll is indestructible. At least, as regards anything we have on the 'Antares' - won't burn or tear or puncture or break or bend or anything like that. We don't have a nuke, so it is hard to test the upper limits of this item's toughness. So, its indestructibility is assumed.

 

Round table session follows. Remember we are in mid-Pacific about now. Taking this scroll back to the USA (and, presumably, entombing it in a vault at the Adventurers' Club) is seen as a bad BAD idea. Think about it. If Mr Dragon Emperor makes his comeback anytime soon, he is going to be making a beeline for this item, wherever it may be. Bad enough this will involve his crossing a swathe of China just to get to the Pacific, but add in his stomping across the USA to get to New York and, well .... Not good.

 

Comes to that, we cannot even be sure His Majesty isn't going to "get" us at sea anyhow. Yup, no way Captain Ferguson will let this thing stay on his ship. No frickin' way.

 

Can't launch the scroll into the Sun, no active volcanoes or extra-dimensional gateways nearby, no other holes deep enough (and we don't have the concrete to fill in said hole afterwards). No place that we can reach or think of is sufficiently safe, hidden, tough or isolated enough. So, burial at sea seems the only option. We're in the mid-Pacific (as was said) and it is relatively deep. Mr Dragon Emperor should have to WORK to get his scroll back - probably a helluva lot more than if the dern thing stayed on 'Antares' or in the USA.

 

Make notes of where we dropped the scroll (Navigation roll from the Captain), and if weird stuff ever starts happening in China and then goes there, we at least get some warning. Before dropping it overboard, we take a few other precautions. Partymembers come up with several ideas, and Captain Ferguson offers a Gold Sovereign to whomever of his crew comes up with the best containment idea.

 

Most of what we come up with are basically 'Chicken Soup' ideas (ie. they may not help, but they sure can't hurt). Immerse the scroll in tar, so all its writings should be at least temporarily obscured. Wrap it up tight in some steel plate. Wrap that in lead. Molten lead over that. Father O'Malley blesses the whole thing and affixes some seals of a Holy nature on the outside. Various other precautions. Trust me, no effort is spared. Over the side it goes. Splash. Exact location a strict secret.

 

I speculated as to whether we inadvertently dropped the item on top of the Secret Underwater Base of the morally-deficient and sanity-challenged Doctor Aquaticus. Or maybe it is the Lost City of Ry'leh - I'm sure the Dragon Emperor and Cthulhu would find LOTS to talk about. Several weeks pass, and nothing further happens on that front. Yet.

 

*****

 

Anyhow, 'Antares' gets passengers and cargo back to the USA. She is then laid up for repair and refit. Currently, the PCs have been split up, with each in what can best be described as a "mini-scenario". Basically, our fame means that various people have called on us for help.

 

Father O'Malley is in a very quiet (and especially damp) corner of Florida, Somebody claiming to be in need of an exorcist, only our Padre is now investigating murder and general skullduggery.

 

Tommy Atkins is doing some test-piloting. An old wartime buddy was killed test-flying a highly advanced aircraft, and Tommy is trying to finish what he started. Trouble is that everything about the aircraft seems to be all about trying to kill the pilot.

 

Doctor Hawke is on an Indian reservation in Colorado, helping to deal with an epidemic. Naturally, there is a lot more at stake than just a bunch of sick people in need of his skills.

 

Captain Ferguson (plus some of his crew) is assisting the US Navy in finding and salvaging a lost submarine. As regards the crew of the sub, it does not look at all hopeful, but the Captain is improvising a fairly quick way of raising the vessel.

[st barbara]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Plenty, as it turned out, but we made quite a mess of that island. Even managed a few minor derailments - stuff that the GMs had not expected, so it was all good.

 

Sneaked onto the island then ...

 

Subdivided their telegraph cable - they weren't getting any messages out without first doing a LOT of splicing. Mr Atkins acquired a katana and got just a little over-enthusiastic for that part.

Trashed their Radio Room, and generally scared the bejesus out of ttheir radioman.

Faced off against the Bad Guys' pet demons - that was nasty. Father O'Malley got messed up pretty bad. Ferguson and Doctor Hawke had to do some EXTREMELY fast surgery to extract a ... little gift the Padre got from one of the demons.

Sent a cable car (primed with several drums of gasoline ) hurtling down its cable into the lower station, right next door to the fuel refinery.

Took advantage of the ensuing confusion to seize control of a coastal defense battery overlooking the harbour. Used that to blow up everything that the refinery fire didn't get.

Stole a plane (piloted by Mr Atkins) and left with alacrity.

 

We are now homeward bound on the 'Antares' (Captain Ferguson's ship). Been a week or so since leaving Japan, long enough for most of us to make some degree of recovery, though Father O'Malley is still not the best. NOW, one of those scientists we rescued and are getting back to the USA has discovered a scroll amongst the Ancient Chinese artifacts onboard. Apparently, that Dragon Emperor dude isn't dead yet - or if he was, he got better. He should be coming to visit us VERY soon - like in mid-ocean.

 

Great. Just frackin' great. We get to fight him again. My enthusiasm knows no bounds.

 

Now you don't think that a good villain like him would stay down for long do you ?

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

"Good" as in scary-unstoppable, certainly. Good as in somebody to actually interact with and possibly outwit, not so much.

 

Would be nice if he could at least stay down long enough for us to recover and possibly get a false sense of security. "Double-tapping" the party with him (or making it look like that is about to happen) is arguably a bit much.

[drunkonduty]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Still reading. Sounds like a fun game.

 

On a related note I've just kicked off my own Pulp campaign. Starting in Paris 1930. Only one session so far. Have introduced the characters to one another and have set them on the trail of some white slavers, who will turn out to be a bit more than they seem...

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

When things are exactly what they seem, the PCs KNOW they are in deep doo-doo. Good luck.

 

You're also a Sydney-ite? We're based at 'Good Games' in Burwood (PULP Hero is the first Sat of the month). Where does your group play?

[drunkonduty]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Ah, you're over in Burwood. I've been meaning for ages to get over and check out what goes on there. Most of my group have been over to Good Games and played at least a few times (although none recently I think.)

 

We play at my place in Newtown. The idea is we do a few weeks on one game; then someone else runs a few weeks of another game. Trying for one session a week but having trouble with schedules and all the rest. Bloody real life.

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Anyhow, not much to report this month. The four primary Player-Characters each continue doing their respective things in different parts of the USA.

 

Can't do justice to what the other PCs are currently going through, so I'll concentrate on what my character, Captain Ferguson, is contending with. As was mentioned, he and several of his crew were asked to assist the US Navy, which had lost a submarine off San Diego. Ferguson was given commend of a salvage vessel and soon found the sub, which had apparently sustained damage and sunk in about 200 feet of water. Sent divers down, finding that some sections of the sub had been sealed off, but no signs of life.

 

[As an aside, I want to mention a book that gave me, as a Player, lots of insight into this situation. 'The Terrible Hours' by Peter Maas. The story of US Naval officer Charles 'Swede' Momsen ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Momsen ), who led the rescue of the crew trapped on the USS Squalus ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Squalus ), and who almost single-handedly made submarine rescues possible. Before his efforts, if you were in a sub that sank, you were dead, end of story.]

 

Began efforts to raise the sub as quickly as was reasonable - on the slim chance that there were still survivors. Had a few hassles, needless to say. The most significant was an abortive attempt at piracy by some criminal-types based on a nearby island. As a Player, I admittedly had harsh criticisms about how the Referees handled this part, but I said all that was needed to be said at the time. Anyhow, the criminal-types soon left - except for the leader, who was clapped in irons and locked away for later. Ferguson has special plans for his disposition, which I won't mention just yet because I want to surprise the Referees with it. Let's just say it is totally in keeping with both the genre and the era.

 

Problems with the radio - the USN base in San Diego was supposedly acknowledging our signals, but the USN cruiser that arrived a little while later had no knowldge of this (and , yes, I made sure it really was a USN ship). So may be something funny going on.

 

Anyhow, we have gotten the sub up to the surface and onto a nearby beach. Aft harch opened, and venting lots of Hydrogen (from the flooded Battery Room). Conning Tower Hatch and Forward Hatch both jammed, and the possibility has been raised that survivors could have taken refuge inside the torpedo tubes. So, as the session ends, we're getting ready to crack the outside doors - noting that each tube COULD be holding either survivors (in dire need of decompression and medical attention) or a torpedo (possibly live).

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

Sadly, no update this month - one of our GMs was hit with the flu, hence session cancelled.

[Ian Mackinder]

Re: Adventurers' Club Update

 

OK, back in action. All four partymembers are still trying to resolve problems in their respective fields of expertise.

 

Father O'Malley had, at the request of a friend, gone to investigate a murder / disappearance in a remote hamlet. Specifically, "remote" as in located in the middle of an all-but-impassable swamp, with the only access being by small boat. Since arrival, he has found that the hamlet in question is actually the locale for some .... questionable biological research and a bunch of other goings on. The sudden attacks from "swamp people" are bad enough, and then there is the bunch of (remaining) researchers who panicked and made off with the last boat (fate unknown). But, the most immediate problem seems to have come from the improper disposal of wastes from their labs.

 

Yep, you guessed it - those smegheads dumped some really really weird stuff into the swamp and (of course) now there is a giant alligator (fifty-plus feet long!) out there that just will NOT go away. If there is any good news, it is that this monster is W-A-Y past being able to disguise itself as a floating log. The padre has become the leader of those still remaining on the island and (despite a lack of explosives, oxygen cylinders and/or a big enough harpoon gun) is busily improvising ways to take out Super-Gator. Stuff involving guns, a trench full of diesel fuel and a few other odds and ends.

 

Tommy Atkins is still test-piloting, and has now uncovered evidence that at least one person is trying to sabotage the project (Gasp! Shock! Horror!). Now all he has to do is juggle a few things - figure out who are the saboteur(s), stay alive, and successfully complete the test flights. Good luck, Tommy.

 

Doctor Hawke got fire-bombed. More to the point, the clinic he was working in at that Indian Reservation got fire-bombed. The good Doctor heroically saved his patients from the fire, during which he eventually had to remove his shirt. Which led to comments from the rest of us that, since this is a Pulp Game, then surely being shirtless should significantly boost his strength and physical toughness. The Refs were much amused.

 

The Doctor has now worked out that the root cause of the epidemic has been a range of "vitamin tablets" that a pharmaceutical company "gave" to the tribe fairly recently. He is not pleased, and I anticipate him wanting to borrow Captain Ferguson's deck gun before visiting said company.

 

Captain Ferguson has continued with the salvage of that US submarine. Only two survivors rescued, who had taken refuge in one of the torpedo tubes when things went sideways. The rest of the sub has been cleared of explosive gases, and Ferguson has made some preliminary assessments as to the causes of the tragedy. Special note to one of "his" NPC crewmen - Cohen, a skinny young apprentice (trainee officer) who squeezed down the torpedo tube to bring out one of the survivors. Ferguson has been particularly impressed with his conduct in this mission, and is now considering appropriate ways of acknowledging this.

 

Pretty much it for now.