# Forum > Play-by-Post Games > Finding Players (Recruitment) > Out-of-Character >  Sea of Stars - OOC III

## Destro_Yersul

Sea of Stars - OOC

_I intend to go not only farther than any man has been before me, but as far as I think it possible for man to go._
- Captain James Cook
And on to thread three. We do seem to go through these a bit, don't we?

IC thread I
IC thread II
IC thread III

*Spoiler: Episode List*
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Episode 1: 'Dust and Echoes'
Episode 2: 'Conquistador'
Episode 3: 'A Wrench in the Cogs' 
Episode 4: 'Hollowed Ground'
Episode 5: 'Guns, Gas, Gods'
Episode 6: 'Calligos Winterscale, I Presume'
Episode 7: 'Coup de Grace'
Episode 8: 'Rites of Passage'


*Activity:*
Expected rate of posting is at least once per day.If you dont post in 48 hours, I will autopilot your character.If you dont post in a week, I reserve the right to kill off your character.
Going on hiatus *with prior warning* is absolutely fine: the above rules apply to unexpected disappearances. Drop me a notification before youre going away/losing your internet access/what have you, and Ill happily play your character as an NPC until you can return.

*Rolls:*
Make all rolls using the forum dice roller, either in a spoiler-box in the relevant IC post, or in a separate post in this thread.Some rolls (mainly ones at which you should not know whether you have succeeded or failed, and Perils of the Warp/Psychic Phenomena) I will make in secret.As a time-saving device, I will roll all initiatives at the start of an encounter, allowing you to get straight to your actions rather than waiting about for each other.

*Combat:*
When in combat, do not wait to post in sequence of initiative: *post whenever you are free to post*. If your actions depend on someone ahead of you in the initiative order, you can leave conditional instructions OOC. I will conduct my rolling for each combat round in this thread, and post an IC summary that signifies the end of the current round & the start of the next.

*Assorted Notes:*
*Spoiler*
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- All-out Attacks and Guarded Attacks can be made in conjunction with a Swift Attack or Lightning Attack, each remaining a Full Action and allowing the attacker to use their full number of attacks. The +20% from an AOA only applies to the first attack made; the -10% from a Guarded Attack applies to both attacks.
- Psychic Powers which require some sort of roll to hit can be dodged. If they don't need a roll, they cannot be dodged.
- XP spent on background packages and whatnot counts towards ranking up. It's not supposed to, I know, but I've never bothered and it's always worked fine.
- Extended Repairs: Every week, make a Tech-Use test. On a successful test, regain 1d5 Hull Integrity. This cannot regain more than 50% of the ship's total hull integrity, or 25% for any ship of Light Cruiser class or larger. Once the maximum value has been restored, the ship must put in to a suitable world for proper repairs and resupply before it can enact extended repairs again. 
- Crew Improvements: The +5 to Crew Rating from Best Craftsmanship crew improvements stacks. This represents additional training, etc. and is how you raise your crew rating post ship creation.
- Hiring bodyguards/small-scale NPCs (Not Crew): Normal scale rules apply. Base stats are 30. For every +10 in stats, -10 on the Acquisition test. Max -30 for 60 stat guys. NPCs come with some basic equipment based on where you hired them from.

Master Ship Component List
Space Station Rules
Crew Training Rules


*Spoilers*
A spoiler titled 'X Only' is intended only for the eyes of the player playing the character X. Please don't read 'em if they're not intended for you - you could spoil some surprises.

*Please put your character sheet in your first post in this thread*  either formatted into the post itself, or via a link. It helps me to find them if theyre all in one place.

*Spoiler: Warrant Path*
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In case I need it, the group's warrant path is: Age of Apostasy > Struggling > Administratum > Angevin Crusade > Missionaria > Unknown

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## Destro_Yersul

*Ships and Profit:*

The Terminus Endeavour: 2625/5000AP

*Profit Factor:* 53

*Spoiler: Sources Affecting PF*
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Group Wealth: 47
Port Davis: 4
Davis Warp Charts: +1 next time port develops
Viatrames: 2


*Dynasty Ships*

*Spoiler: The Manticore's Sting, Meritech Shrike-class Raider*
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*Name:*Manticore's Sting
*Speed:* 11
*Manoeuvrability:* +25
*Detection:* +20
*Turret Rating:* 2
*Space:* 31/35
*Power:* 44/45
*Hull Integrity:* 30/30, 16 armour
*Crew:* 91/102 (Rating 30+5)
*Morale:* 99/99

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
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Archeotech Jovian Pattern class 2 Drive
Miloslav G-616.b warp drive
Emergency Gellar Field
Repulsor Shield (1 void shield)
Combat Bridge
GC Vitae Pattern Life Sustainer
Pressed-Crew quarters
W-240 Passive Detection Arrays


*Spoiler: Weapons*
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GC Sunsear Laser Battery
Jovian Missile Battery


*Spoiler: Supplemental Components*
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GC Arboretum
Cogitator Interlink
Observation Dome
Medicae Deck
Tenebro-Maze
Variable Figurehead
Empyrean Mantle


*Reaver of the Unbeholden Reaches:*
Long term repairs fix 1d10+5 Hull Integrity
+10 on Silent Running
-10 on Social Interaction tests with anyone who knows what ship you're from

*Special:* 
+5 BS to all attacks with Ship's weapons
Gellar Field activates automatically on 3+ if ship enters warp unexpectedly.
No penalty for going through celestial phenomena comprised of small particles.
+10 on Tech-Use tests to repair as long as the Bridge is undamaged
No penalty on Detection actions while Silent Running
All tests to detect this vessel while Silent Running are two degrees more difficult
Warp travel in half the time! Honestly this won't matter.
+10 to Command when defending v Boarding Actions, Hit and Run
You choose what gets critical hits, not the DM
Double time at void without crew/morale loss
+20 to medicae, treat 3xIB without penalty

*Achievement Point Bonuses:*
Exploration: +50
Criminal: +50


*Spoiler: The Talon, Iconoclast-class Destroyer*
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*Name:*Talon
*Speed:* 10
*Manoeuvrability:* +30
*Detection:* +20
*Turret Rating:* 1
*Space:* 32/32
*Power:* 45/49
*Hull Integrity:* 28/28, 14 armour
*Crew:* 100/100 (Rating 30)
*Morale:* 96/96

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
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Jovian Pattern Class 2 Drive
Strelov 1 Warp Engine
Belecane-pattern 90.r Gellar Field
Voss Pattern "Glimmer" Void Shields
Exploration Bridge
Vitae Pattern Life Sustainer
Pressed-crew Quarters
M-201.b Auger Array


*Spoiler: Weapons*
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Mars Pattern Macrocannons x2


*Spoiler: Supplemental Components*
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Laboratorium
Librarium Vault
Broadband Hymn-Casters
Augmented Retro-Thrusters
Biocoral Energy Relays



*Complications:*
Curious - The ship likes to poke its nose into dark corners. It's good at finding those dark corners, but never quite wants to leave well enough alone. (+5 detection, -10 on tests to Disengage or otherwise run away)
Shrouded Past - Nobody is quite sure where this vessel came from. It's changed hands many times, and anything that might indicate where it was built is either missing or intentionally removed. The ship's logs, however, have a lot of... interesting information in them, for those who know how to look. (-2 max Morale. Characters aboard the ship gain +10 on Forbidden Lore tests)

*Special:* 
+2 Hull integrity regained following successful long-term repairs
+10 on warp navigation, but -20 on warp travel encounters
+5 on Active Augury
+20 on artifact identification/repair and single-item crafting tests
+10 on Investigation skill tests
Hymn-Casters (+10 intimidate, enemy ships must make -10 Tech Use test to use vox. Both apply within 30VU and only when system is active)
Void shields must roll every time they cancel a hit; on 3 or less, the hit is not cancelled.
Biocoral: Coral relays add +4 power, but if the component is ever damaged, another randomly chosen component that is not the Bridge/Drives becomes Unpowered. 

*Achievement Point Bonuses:*
Exploration: +50


*Spoiler: The Fury Incandescent, Turbulent-class Frigate*
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*Name:*Fury Incandescent
*Speed:* 8
*Manoeuvrability:* +21
*Detection:* +25
*Turret Rating:* 1
*Space:* 38/42
*Power:* 39/49
*Hull Integrity:* 5/40, 20 armour 
*Crew:* 100/100 (Rating 40)
*Morale:* 99/99

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
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Lathe Class 2b drive
Strelov 1 warp drive
Single Shield array
Gellar Field
Armoured Command Bridge
Vitae pattern life sustainer
Pressed crew quarters
Deep void augurs

*Spoiler: Weapons*
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Stygies Macrocannons
Pyros Melta-cannons +++ERROR: COMPONENT DAMAGED+++

*Spoiler: Supplemental Components*
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Brig


*Complications:*
Martial Hubris - +5 to BS tests with the ship's weapons, -15 on Pilot tests to escape combat
Turbulent Past - -20 on social skills with Underworld, +20 with Adeptus Arbites

*Special:* 
-5 on Command tests made aboard
+5 to Intimidate Extended Action
Bridge ignores critical hits, damaged/unpowered on 4+

*Achievement Point Bonuses:*
Anything involving transporting prisoners +25


*Spoiler: The Fifth Disputation, Sword-class Frigate*
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Class: Frigate
*Hull:* Sword-class
*Maneuverability:* +25
*Speed:* 9
*Detection:* +15
*Turret Rating:* 2
*Shields:* 1
*Armor:* 18
*Hull Integrity:* 29/35
*Morale:* 97/97
*Crew:* 45/100, Rating 40

Space Available: 40
Space Used: 40
Power Available: 45
Power Used: 42

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
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 Jovian pattern class-2 drive
Strelov 1 warp drive
Single shield array
Belecane 90.r Gellar Field
Command Bridge
Vitae pattern life sustainers
Bilge-rat quarters
BG-15 Assault Array


*Spoiler: Supplemental Components*
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Barracks
Augmented Retro-Thrusters
GC Drop Pod Bay


*Spoiler: Weapons*
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Dorsal Mezoa Macrocannons
Dorsal Mezoa Macrocannons


Complications/Other:
+10 Navigation (Warp), but -20 to warp encounter rolls
+5 Command, +5BS, Bridge becomes unpowered on 3+ if it takes a critical hit
-3 max morale, reduce crew losses due to depressurisation by 2
+5BS vs Planets
+20 Boarding
+200AP Military

Adventurous: +10 detection while on Endeavour, -10 Detection when not
Scion of Damocles: The ship has been constructed by skilled hands to subtly evoke a sense of power and authority. It stands as a testament to the strength of the Imperium, and encourages ambition within its officers but it is also a reminder that with power comes danger. Most of the ships captains have met an unfortunate end, grasping too greedily and neglecting to consider the many enemies they made along the way. +5 Command, +5 Intimidate while aboard ship. Whenever a Command test is failed, the ship loses 1d5+1 morale. In addition, Command tests to suppress Mutiny are at -10 instead of +5, and any Mutineers gain a bonus degree of success on their opposed tests. 


*Spoiler: The Cordial Scrutiny, Viper-class Scout Sloop*
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*Hull:* Viper Scout Sloop
*Speed:* 11
*Manoeuvrability:* +30
*Detection:* +35
*Turret Rating:* 1
*Space:* 28/29
*Power:* 37/45
*Hull Integrity:* 0/25
*Crew:* 66/100
*Morale:* 99/99

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
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Jovian Pattern Class 2 Drive
Strelov 1 Warp Drive
Single Shield Array
Gellar Field
Exploration Bridge
M-1.r Life Sustainer
Pressed Crew Quarters
Deep Void Augurs


*Spoiler: Weapons*
Show


Dorsal Mars Macrocannons


*Spoiler: Supplemental Components*
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Observation Dome 



*Complications:*
Skittish: Reduce speed by 1 while in combat. Reduce long-distance travel time by 1d5 weeks. 
Wolf in Sheep's Clothing: -2 power to maintain additional cloaking systems. The ship is packed with hidden compartments and other secrets. Additionally, when scanned, the Macrocannons, Bridge, and Crew Quarters do not register on the scans. 

*Special:*
+5 Active Augury
+1 Morale Loss

*Achievement Point Bonuses:*
+100 Exploration



*Spoiler: The Terminus Omni Agraphum, Jupiter-class Light Battlecruiser*
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*Name:* Terminus Omni Agraphum
*Speed:* 7
*Manoeuvrability:* +15
*Detection:* +21
*Turret Rating:* 2
*Space:* 71/75
*Power:* 96/90
*Hull Integrity:* 8/66, 19 armour
*Crew:* 0/98
*Morale:* 0/91

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
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Saturnine Class 4A "Ultra" Drive
Miloslav H-616.b warp engine 
Warpsbane Hull
Repulsor Shield Array (2 void shields) 
Fleet Flag Bridge
Clemency-pattern Life Sustainer
Clan-kin Quarters
Auto-stabilised Logis-targeter


*Spoiler: Weapons*
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Port 1: Hecutor-Pattern Plasma Broadside
Port 2: Hecutor-Pattern Plasma Battery
Starboard 1: Hecutor-Pattern Plasma Broadside
Starboard 2: Hecutor-Pattern Plasma Battery
Prow: BC Godsbane Lance (-1 space, +1 strength)


*Spoiler: Supplemental Components*
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Field Bracing 
Flak Turrets
Manufactorum
Munitorium 
Teleportarium 
Tenebro-Maze


*Complications:*
Unknown

*Special:*
-The Jupiter-class Light Battlecruiser may equip Battlecruiser components, but if equipped with battlecruiser Lances in its prow slot, it may not fire the weapon outside the Fore arc. Smaller lances work as normal.
-May not equip armoured prow or armour plating components
-More frequent warp travel encounters (but roll twice and group picks)
+10 on Warp navigation
+5 BS to fire ship weapons
-May hit and run without piloting test. +20 on Command rolls using Teleportarium to attack thusly.
+10 to all Maneuver actions
+10 to command for anyone on bridge, +5 on navigation/pilot for this ship and allies near it
-5 to enemy boarding actions/hit and run vs this vessel
No penalty to Maneuvre when travelling through celestial phenomena
Reduce Crew/Morale loss via Depressurization by 4.
+1 turret rating and -10 detection while the flak turrets are active
+10 on all tests involving repairs

Note: If something hit by Plasma guns gets 1 or 2 on crit chart, two components are effected instead of just one.

*Achievement Point Bonuses:*
Exploration: +25
Trade: +10



*Spoiler: Name Pending Squadron, Cobra-class Destroyers*
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There are three of these ships, all using the profile from Battlefleet Koronus. Each has Crew Rating 40. Currently, one is at 0 hull integrity. 


*Dynasty Holdings*

*Spoiler: Port Davis Space Station*
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*Name:* Port Davis
*Class:* Wayfarer Station
*Detection:* +20
*Turret Rating:* 2
*Space:* 78/80
*Power:* 44/50
*Hull Integrity:* 60/60, 18 armour
*Crew:* 100/100
*Morale:* 100/100

*Spoiler: Essential Components*
Show

Station Generatorium
Vitae-pattern Life Sustainer
Combat Bridge
Multiple Shield Array (2 shields)

*Spoiler: Weapons*
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2 Keel Mars-Pattern Macrocannons
1 Keel Starbreaker Lance Weapon

*Spoiler: Supplemental Components and Decks*
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Spacedock Piers
Astropathic Choir Chambers

3x Civitas Decks
Hydroponics Deck


*Special:* 
Docks up to 4 ships at a time. Docked ships gain +10 bonus on tests involving repairs
+10 on tests to repair station while Bridge is powered
+10 to Focus Astro-Telepathy, +5VU range Astropath powers
+15 on Acquisition tests to hire crew (Crew are Common: Total modifier, +35)
No penalties for spending time without resupply

*Achievement Point Bonuses:*
+100AP Trade

NOTES: Port Davis system contains two mineral-rich asteroid belts. One near the star, and bathed in radiation. The system's first planet is here as well, but is very hot with no known resources or life.
The second belt is further out, and also contains diamond asteroids as well as many fine clouds of particulate matter difficult for void shields to disperse.  


*Dramatis Personae:*

*Spoiler*
Show

*Crew*
Master Williams: Macharius' personal valet.
The Praetorians: Macharius' bodyguards, the best men the dynasty has to offer.
 - Almagor
 - Murphy
 - Flannery
 - Barak
 - O'Connor
Theresa Moshkevic: Anika's assistant. A young woman from Landunder, trained as an archivist. Small, mousey, large spectacles. Good with a knife. 

(The Manticore's Sting)
Commodore Gilead: Commander of the armed forces, including the contingent of marines used for boarding actions.
Father Demetrius: A pious man, known for carrying around a massive leatherbound copy of the Litanies of Faith. Often leads shipboard sermons.
Father Ornstein: The ship's surly confessor. A talented linguist and scholar of dead languages. Helped translate the map found on Jonell's planet.
Jensen: Head Gaoler. Generally unflappable.

(The Talon)
Scipia: Navigator Secundus. A blunt, straightforward sort of woman. Doesn't seem bothered by the recent change in ownership of the _Talon._ 

(The Fury Incandescent)
Elena Dassel: Gunnery officer, formerly of the Righteous Crusader under Wrath Umboldt. Friend of Hannabel.
Hector: An old sourpuss, the grizzled former commander of the ship's marines. Short white beard, grim demeanour. Enjoys telling old war stories. 
Montus: A minor tech-heretic, who fixes little problems around the ship. 

*Allies*
Lord Captain Kade Jonell: An old soldier of a Rogue Trader with an enormous mustache. Originally from Cantus. Very focused on colonising the expanse. An installation with at least one piece of archeotech inside was recently unearthed on one of his colony worlds. Strongly dislikes Captain Quinn, who has been targetting his colonies. Captains the _Mailed Fist._
 - Ms. Devereaux: A thin, severe woman who serves as Jonell's seneschal. 
 - Ambrose: Jonell's bodyguard. Taciturn and untalkative unless you get him onto a military tactic. Wears matte black stormtrooper carapace and carries a ripper pistol. Also from Cantus.
 - Remalia Brabazon: Jonell's Navigator. A recluse, who almost never leaves her Navigator's tower. Suffers from allodoxophobia, as well as a fear of other Navis.
 - lieutenant Colburn: The stocky, bearded military leader of Jonell's colony. 

Morwenna Theophilus: One of Macharius' marriage prospects, an attractive woman with a preference for stable investments and a (more or less) friendly feud with Anika.

Jerot Penthon: A rogue trader and old friend of Macharius
 - Jasmine Fenoff: Jerot's fiance

Madame Charlabelle Armelan: A young and intelligent socialite, the last scion of the Armelan dynasty. She's a long way from home, having come to the Expanse in an effort to save her family's fortunes. Captain of the _Grace of Sopha_. Thanks to Macharius' help, Madam Charlabelle has now acquired a Tempest frigate and a Claymore Corvette for her fleet. 

*Unaligned*
Admiral Josephus Beckenmatt: Imperial Navy Officer, in the Calixis Sector command. Old friend of Macharius from the Navy academy.
Dr. Elias Reichert: An old colleague of Anika's from the Hetaireia Lexica. Known to do consulting work with the Holy Ordos.
Rickard Torgan: Captain of _Torgan's Pride_, the salvage ship rescued by the party. Made good on his favour to Macharius by assisting with the Processional salvage operation.

Magos Zurin: A somewhat absent-minded Magos Biologis, specialising in xenology and xenobotany. His research lab was attacked by pirates, and most of his expeditionary force wiped out. 
 - Genetor Sigmund Venture: Second in command to Zurin. Studied under Magos Vogel.
 - Genetor Tarvek Ska: A traditionalist and researcher
 - Engineseer Virgil: Font of practical knowledge. Aspires to be a transmechanic.
 - Lex-Adept Indris: Zurin's personal assistant. Collates data, mostly. 

The Monk: A Rogue Trader of dubious reputation. Cheerful and friendly, but rumoured to have his fingers in the COld Trade, amongst other things. 
 - Lorenzo Mercator: The Monk's navigator, a man with an unsettling sharp-toothed smile and a love of secrets. Knows the value of what he knows. 

Lady Sun Lee: A severe woman who heads the Ma'Kao rogue trader dynasty. Has offered assistance against the Saynay clan in future, and accepted a copy of Katarina Nostromo's memoirs from Anika as the price of a favour. 

Aoife Armengarde: A bit of a wild card. 
 - Igraine Armengarde: Aoife's daughter. One of Macharius' marriage prospects, but only if she likes him - Aoife won't have it any other way. Interest in pirates, and a romantic outlook in general. 

Trade-Admiral Jonquin Saul: Hit it off with Macharius at Winterscale's party. Searching for the _Exchequer_, the class-naming ship for a line of vessels of which he is especially fond, and has purchased all the others. Also looking for Pre-Imperial/Early-Imperial historical documents, as part of a personal interest in the Imperium's past. 

Grig, of Clan Ch'tep: A kroot shaper, leader of a small kindred. Currently hired by an unknown party, after Macharius refused to have Kroot on his ships.

Tobias Hawke: Information broker, rather cavalier. Hired by Macharius to help them find a drive for the Terminus. Hit it off with Hannabel, and is now searching for an improved Drive for the Sting.

Alvinus Kenworth: Self-described explorer and cartographer. Pistol duellist. Interest in Eldar. Enormous mustache. 

*Enemies*
Tristan Quinn: A Rogue Trader of piratical nature. Claims-jumping, smuggling, dirty deeds done dirt cheap. Not especially popular, has a feud with Captain Jonell. Himself captain of the _Refuge in Depravity_
 - The _Aggressor_: One of Quinn's frigates. Was in charge of the blockade broken by Ravia's Rak'gol deception.
 - Erik Tarsus (deceased): First Officer aboard the _Talon_, before it was captured by Macharius. Executed for piracy, amongst other crimes.

Captain Misson: A famous pirate captain, who maintains a hidden colony somewhere in the Expanse. Macharius raided one of his subordinate Captain's base of operations and stole a space station.


*Spoiler: Misc NPC stat things*
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All Marines of the _Manticore's Sting_ are armed with Merovech assault lasguns (Basic, 50m, 1/-/5, 1d10+3E, Pen 0, Clip 120, Rld 2 Full, Reliable, Variable Settings. Monospear in Close Combat)
with Voss 'Nightfire' Flamers as their special weapons. (Basic, 20m, S/-/-, 1d10+5E, Pen 2, Clip 3, Rld 2 Full, Flame, Toxic)

Other weapon assets: Many Naval Shotcannons
Two man-portable multilasers on tripods
One Retobi-pattern missile launcher (Clip 5)

The Absalom Praetorians: 50's in all stats and Power Armour. Bolters/Meltaguns. Powerswords for melee. 5 of these guys. 
Murphy has terrible luck
Almagor is a god among men
Almagor and Flannery have Touched by the Fates (1), for 1 fate point each. They can benefit from Righteous Fury.

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## Leon

Ravia Del'Karro
*Spoiler*
Show


https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...iUTXfpkog/edit

Stats pending need:
The Cohort
Moswyn
Skul

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## PotatoGolem

Macharius Absalom: speak loudly and carry a big hammer.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1...uf2ZcEvVg/edit


*Spoiler: Useful at-a-glance reactive info for the GM*
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Initiative +5
TB 4
WP vs 44
Wounds 11
Dodge vs 43
Parry vs 66 (and an extra Parry per round)
Force Field 45, overload 1-5
Armor 10 all, Body armor can't be reduced below 7
+20% to resist psychic powers

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## Haval

*Spoiler: Doctor Anika Vanhal*
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Name: Doctor Anika Fazira Vanhal
Age: Early 40s
Career: Seneschal (Purser) (Rank 3)

WS: 32
BS: 31 (Advance +5) 36
S: 30
T: 31 (New Horizons -3) (Advance +5) 33
Ag: 34 (Advance +5) 39
Int: 37 (Savant & New Horizons +6) (Advances +10) 53
Per: 33 (Advance +10) 43
Wp: 34 (Nobleborn -5) (Advance +5) 34
Fel: 32 (Nobleborn +5) (Advances +10) 47

Wounds: 11 (Sound Constitution 2)
4/13 (at the Footfall meeting) + healed 8 before the Alia meet up = 12
Fate:0/3 (1 spent on buerarcracy in scintilla, lying to the police, 1 on the propercy device)

Insanity: 30 (2 + 5 for Yu'vath gribblies + 1 for the Ark + 3 for going outside in the Processional + 19 for Processional salvaging)
Corruption: 18 corruption after the processional

*Spoiler: Origin Path*
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Homeworld: Nobleborn
Birthright: Savant
Lure of the Void: New Horizons (Seeker of Truth) (100xp)
Trials and Travails: Lost Worlds (Beyond the Pale) (100xp)
Motivation: Renown
Career: Seneschal
Lineage: A Long and Glorious History (Prominent Ancestry) (200xp)



*Spoiler: Skills*
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Trained
Awareness +10 (Per) 
Barter (Fel) 
Charm (Fel)
Commerce +20 (Fel)
Common Lore (Koronus, Underworld) (Int)
Deceive (Fel)
Dodge (Ag)
Evaluate (Int)
Forbidden Lore (Archeotech, Heresy, Pirates, Xenos) (Int)
Gamble (Int)
Inquiry (Fel)
Literacy (Int)
Performer (Musician)
Scholastic Lore (Archaic, Legend) (Int)
Scrutiny (Per)
Secret Tongue (Rogue Trader) (Int)
Security (Ag)
Silent Move (Ag)
Speak Language (Eldar, Low Gothic, Traders Cant, Fllurlokr) (Int)
Tech-Use (Int)
Trade (Archaeologist) (Int)

Basic
Carouse (T)
Climb (S)
Command (Fel)
Concealment (Ag)
Contortionist (Ag)
Disguise (Fel)
Intimidate (S)
Logic (Int) 
Search (Per)
Speak Language (High Gothic) (Int)
Swim (S)



*Spoiler: Talents*
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*Basic Weapon Training* (Universal)

*Enemy (Pirates)*

*Melee Weapon* (Primitive)

*Peer* (Academics, Nobility, Military, Underworld)

*Quick Draw*

*Resistance (Fear)*

*Pistol Weapon Training* (Universal)

*Talented (FL Xenos)*



*Spoiler: Traits*
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*Etiquette:* Nobles are schooled in how to comport themselves in all manner of formal situations. They gain a
+10 bonus on Interaction Skill Tests when dealing with high authority and in formal situations.

*Legacy of Wealth:* To be born an Imperial noble is to inherit a legacy of staggering wealth. Even a scorned scion enjoys access to resources beyond the wildest dreams of the toiling masses. This adds +1 to the groups starting Profit Factor.

*Seeker of Lore:* The Seneschal may spend a Fate Point to automatically succeed at any Ciphers, Lore, or Logic Test. Doing so means that the Test is resolved in the minimum time required. In addition, the Seneschal adds one bonus Degree of Success to any successful Commerce, Inquiry, or Evaluate Test.

*Supremely Connected:* Nobles have extensive connections, and they know that dropping the right names into a conversation can open more doors than a fistful of Thrones. A starting noble born character begins play with the Peer (Nobility) Talent. Also, to reflect his familys power base, he also gains one additional Peer from the following list: Academics, Adeptus Mechanicus, Administratum, Astropaths, Ecclesiarchy,
Government, Mercantile, Military, or Underworld.

*Vendetta:* Every noble house has its sworn enemies and rivals who would do it and its members harm. Even the protection of a Rogue Traders mission merely forces those who wish you harm to be a bit more cautious and subtle in exacting their vengeance. As a result, starting noble born characters have powerful enemies, perhaps in the shape of a rival noble house or some other powerful group. The details of these enemies are left to the player and the Game Master to define, working together to create a formidable threat. Whilst they do not
dog the characters steps at every turn, these enemies aim to inconvenience, harm, or kill him whenever he crosses their path. The noble character, of course, is free to return the favour when its expedient to do so.

*Immune to Fear (1)* Due to all the Insanity gained from the Processional

*Purser:* When replenishing Morale by spending Achievement Points (ROGUE TRADER page 226), the Purser only has to spend 25 Achievement Points, and may always make a Routine (+20) Barter Test instead of a Charm Test. (This test is always Routine, no matter how many times Morale is replenished in this manner.)




*Spoiler: Wargear*
Show


Best Craftsmanship hellpistol, Common Craftsmanship boltgun. Xeno mesh armour. Autoquill, dataslate, micro-bead, multikey, two sets of robes, synskin, chrono, cameleoline cloak.

Acquisitions
Preysense Googles
Lingua Vox-Servitor (Into the Storm 136) (Servo-Skull) (Treat all Speak Languages as basic skills) - Jacob
Mono Sword (Common + Scarce, Good Craftsmanship)
Amasec (Scarce)
Pict Recorder (Common)
Travel Survival Kit (Rare- Into the Storm 138) (Good Craft) (+20 to Survival tests)
Auspex
Wideawake (Trivial supply)
Survival Suit
Twist Pistol (Faith and Coin)

Flechette Blaster (See beginning of Hollowed Ground - xenos merchant)

Possibles
New gun
Sight for the bolter
Inferno shells for the bolter (rare)
Clip harness for climbing (Common)
Survival Suit (Plentiful)
Auspex (Scarce)
Concealed Holster (Scarce Storm)
Emergency Hab (Scarce Strm)
Long Range Auspex (Very Rare)





*Spoiler: Advances*
Show


Total XP: 12, 550 total (after the ork hulk) / 100 to spend (check the maths)

Character Creation
First 400xp spent on origin path
Performer (Musician) (100)

Rank 1
Awareness (100)
Charm (100)
Sound Constitution (200)
Dodge (100)
Secret Tongue (Rogue Traders) (100)
Security (100)
Silent Move (100)

+5 WS (250)
+5 BS (250)
+5 T (250)
+5 Ag (250)
+5 Int (100) +5 Int (250)
+5 Per (100) +5 Per (250)
+5 Wp (500)
+5 Fel (100) +5 Fel (250)


Rank 2
Commerce +10 (200)
Melee Weapon (Prim) (100)
Scrutiny (200)
Trade (Archaeologist) (200)
Gamble (200)
Tech-Use (200)
Common Lore (Koronus) (200)
-1300

Rank 3
Awareness +10 (200)
Commerce +20 (200)
Speak Language (Eldar) (200)
Exotic (Scorpion Chainsword) (500)
Exotic (Fllurlokr gun) (500)
Common Lore (Imperium) (200)

Sound Con (200)
Quick Draw (200)


Special
Forbidden Lore (Heresy) (200)
Talented (FL Xenos) (200)
Speak Language (Fllurlokr) (100)
Resistance (Fear) (100)
-600




*Spoiler: Background*
Show


Messy version until I can do a better job

Background
Anika is the daughter of a mid-ranking noble family from the spire of Hive Tarsus on Scintilla. The Vanhals have a prestigious ancestry dating back to one of the lesser companions of Saint Drusus, and have a long history of military service in the Scintillan Fusilliers. Both her parents have minor administrative positions in the Lucid Court. Some of her brothers and sisters are serving in the Margin Crusade and the Spinward Front. Most notably, her grandfather was a Lord General before his retirement. 

By the standards of this family Anika was something of a disappointment growing up. She could fight, but was only ever considered average with a sword. Matters of military history, tactics and memorising the Tacita Imperialis bored her and she wasn't afraid to show it when she even showed up for her lessons. While she read extensively on other subjects, few were considered suitable by her parents. There was a brief attempt to marry her off to try to bring some honour to her family, but she managed to get out of it and in doing so created a vendetta with the other family that continues until this day. Finally, her parents gave up trying to force her. She would be sent to be educated at the Lexis Maxima in Hive Sibellus in order to make something of herself on her own terms. A small allowance would be provided for her in exchange for the promise that she would try her best not to embarass her family name too much.

Anika's school operated under the umbrella of the Hetaireia Lexis, which was a nominally a body that operated independently from any oversight from the Sector government or the Adapta. This independence made it popular with some parts of the Calixian nobility, who saw a place like the Lexis Maxima as a finishing school for their children. The patronage of the nobility helped give the Hetaireia Lexis it's reputation for free-thinking and ocasionally being a breeding ground for dangerous ideas, and Anika fit right in, even eventually becoming a member of the faculty herself.   

She was officially a Doctor of History specialising in the time of the Angevain Crusade. The study of history attracted her in part because it undermined the pretensions of noble families like her own. Over a long enough time scale even the greatest families in the sector came from low origins, and the only difference between her famiy and the lowest of underhive scum was historical accident. Through research, she now strongly suspects that her own families claims to be descended from one of Saint Drusus' companions was made up by one of her ancestors a few centuries ago.

While she was still obliged to teach occasionally, Anika's work as a student and eventually as staff gave her an excuse to get away from Scintilla for the first time. She travelled the civilised parts of the Calixis Sector for academic conferences, and increasingly began travelling to the fringe to do fieldwork in archives and archaeological digs. Here, her work began to stray into trying to better understand everything that was here before the Crusade, including humans living outside the Imperium's borders and xenos races such as the Yu'vath. She firmly believed that it was better to uncover as much as possible about what was here before the Imperium. 

Not even the Hetaireia Lexis would condone such interests, at least officially, as encouraging it was understood to attract the attention of the Inquisition. The school's reputation had long gained it the Inquisition's notice, where it was seen alternatively as a source of potential acolytes or of potential heretics that they might one day have to hunt down. Anika is unaware of whether her work was ever noticed or how it might have been judged if it was. 

Eventually Anika had been travelling farther afield into the fringes of the Calixis Sector or beyond it into wilderness space, and this led to her expedition to the Kadath system on the edge of the Periphery. She had heard a second hand account with accompanying picts from a Rogue Trader acquaintence of hers. The picts detailed a site of immense carved stone ruins on one of the system's planets. Perhaps these were the bones of some city once inhabited by a long-lost xenos species, but there was no signs of life or technology to be found and it was not clear what else the ruins might have been intended for.

...(Insert Beyond the Pale here

The resulting expedition to study these ruins ended Anika's career and made her an outcast from her school. 


-expedition leads to recovering a load of alien writing from the main building at the centre of the city - Anika hopes to one day translate it 

-exploring a series of tunnels located below the city and waking up the creatures living down in the tunnels - who proceed to pick off many members of the expidition until they finally escape to the shuttles 

-Anika lost friends and colleages on the expedition and has ocasional nightmares about it to this day).... 

After returning from Kadath Anika lost her position at the Lexis Maxima, and was avoided by many of her old colleages out of a fear that the bad luck associated with the expedition would rub off on them. For her employers part, fear that news of what Anika and others had witnessed on Kadath would reach the Inquisition and it would reflect badly on those who had helped to fund it.

Joined a Rogue Trader ship as it is the only way she can travel. Grateful for anyway that she can continue her work. Wants to see what is out there and be known as the one to write about it. Whether she can publish it and be known throughout the sector, or merely to be known amongst her old colleages, including those that rejected her after Kadath.

Her previous life meant she has had alot of contact with people at alot of different levels of society, and so she is a natural Seneschal, even if she only considers the position a means to an end.    

Personality
Although a dislike for many nobles has led to Anika trying to move away fron her upbringing, being born into a life of wealth and privilage has still left a mark on her. She long ago learned to talk or lie her way out of trouble, as it at least could make things easier, yet if she has no reason to hide how she really feels, or even if she doesn't care enough to try, she ocasionally reverts to being one of the arrogant noble class that she grew up with.   

Appearance
Anika prefers not to dress formally for her role as a Seneschal to a Rogue Trader. Partly this is due to a lingering nobleborn ambivalence about working for someone else, which is particularly an ambivalence for working for someone like Macharius, who she has known for a long time and views as more or less an equal. Yet her attitude is also consistent with her previous career as an academic, where she viewed the obligations of her job as something to be avoided whenever they didn't interest her. Yet as a concession to her rank on the ship she does try to at least stay tidy, if only because it makes it easier to draw on the authority of her position when she has to deal with people in an official capacity.  

For most everyday business she dresses for practicality. Her black hair is cut short and she wears clothes that are worn for comfort first as it is never entirely predicatable what she might have to do aboard ship. Over the top of these is worn a grey and much-patched Imperial Guard greatcoat that shows no sign of rank or regiment. Inside the coat are many pockets including those that she has added to herself over the years. The pockets are full of such useful items as her dataslate, knives and hellpistol. Most of her more valuable gear including her robes of office are normally left in her quarters until she needs some underling to fetch them for her.

Lord General Konrad Vanhal



*Spoiler: Notes*
Show


Voinovich - died on Kadath
Yu'vath box souvenir?





*Spoiler: Auction Post*
Show

*Eldar weaponry* - Anika has already identified these. Here's the stats now that you own them. 
Scorpion Chainsword: (1d10+4, AP3, Tearing, Balanced) - uses Chain weapon proficiency. 
Shuriken Pistol: (30m, S/3/5, 1d10+2R, Ap4, Clip 40, Rld 2Full) - this was supplied with one clip. You can make an upkeep test to obtain more. Count the availability as Very Rare. Needs an Exotic weapon proficiency. 
Mandiblasters: (3m, S/-/-, 1d10+3E, AP2, Clip 30, Rld Full, Reliable) - these are fired once per round as a free action, and can be used in melee similar to a pistol. They are normally mounted to a helmet. Separate Exotic proficiency for these. 
You also get 2 plasma grenades and two demolition charges. These are identifiably alien, but function identically to Imperial versions. 

*Fingerbones relic* 
_The Fingerbones of Saint Asceline were a full set of the digits from the saint's right hand, as well as some of the hand bones, wired together with silver and set with the fore and middle fingers extended and the thumb across the palm, as though the Saint were granting a benediction in death. They were held in a small jeweled reliquary of dark wood and deep red silk, with a glass cover to allow the relics to be viewed. Strips of parchment covered in litanies were wound through the curled fingers, trailing downwards to gather in a pile at the base of the reliquary._

Asceline is a patron saint of explorers, and her touch is supposed to protect ships from the harmful influence of the warp. The presence of the Fingerbones aboard a vessel allows that vessel's navigator to re-roll their Navigation (Warp) test for Steering the Vessel. Additionally, whoever is carrying the relic gains the effects of the Resistance (Psychic Powers) talent. 

*Mixed firearms* 
These are predominantly SP guns, with a handful of Las mixed in. All of them are common craftsmanship, so it's more a matter of quantity. Lots of, as you put it, perfectly serviceable average guns. It'll let you get away without worrying about buying guns if you ever decide to outfit a small army. Count yourself as owning basically everything out of the SP section of the rules, as well as up to a squad's worth of lasguns/laspistols. 

*Navis memoirs* 
_Katarina's memoirs were brought out - an unassuming looking leather-bound folio in hardcover. "A first edition," the auctioneer said, holding up the book for everyone to see. It wasn't small, but neither was it so large that he required both hands to lift it. "Finely bound by Fenksworld Publishing, this copy is nevertheless superior to the edition held by the Library of Knowing, as it has been annotated by both Tinde Alois, the famed Imperial lexographer, and by Katarina herself, several years after the initial print run." He flipped open the cover to display the title page, pointing to a scrawled name across the lower portion of the parchment. "See here, the author's signature!"_

Initially, these are worth +10 on any Lore test to know something related to House Nostromo. 

*Pulse Carbine* 
Exotic weapon. Profile on p120, Into the Storm, reproduced here. 
(Basic, 60m, S/-/3, 2d10+2E, AP4, Clip 24, Rld Full, Gyro-Stabilised, 6kg). Gyro-stabilised means you always count targets as being no further than Long Range. You still can't shoot at anything outside max range, though. 

*Medicae Servitor*
_Ravia knew a great deal about this particular pattern of servitor - it was relatively common, as specialised medical servitors went, largely because of its reliability and precision. It could be issued instructions remotely through an internal micro-bead, and featured a pair of injector mechadendrites and a broad array of implanted surgical tools. It would be an ideal assistant, but was also capable of operating on its own, fulfilling many of the functions of proper medical staff.

This particular model appeared to have been designed as a custom piece, built to the highest standards and fitted with pure white laquered armour plates with gilded trim. It also looked as though many of its tools were designed to be easily swapped out if they became worn from overuse._

This is right out of Lathe Worlds, p67. The important things are that it tests Medicae vs. 100 base, and that you can give it directions so it can function as an assistant. This particular version is Best Craftsmanship, and has +5 to Int, +5 to Strength, and +2 armour over the normal version. Int bonus is already included in the 100 medicae. 

*Engineer's Pocket Ref.*
_this exceptionally rare book dates back to the early days of the Imperium. It holds a wealth of knowledge, information on a variety of materials and subjects. It may not look it, unassuming as it is, but within these pages is information any junior tech adept would fall over themselves backwards to have._

This book allows anyone to count as trained for the purposes of providing assistance on Tech-Use. It also provides +5 on tests made to Craft items. 

*Scintillan Locker Contents.*
None yet. You need to actually go look in the mystery box first. 

*Prognosticator Set*
_This took the form of a small brass device, formed of concentric rings, with a miniature cogitator at its core. The rings had slots for various circuit runes, and the device plugged in to a board of coloured lights. "This form of divination," the auctioneer assured the assembled crowd, "is based entirely on logical principles, and does not rely on occult ritual or esoteric knowledge. The more complete the information you provide, the better the device's predictions will be._

This device allows its user to employ the Logis-Prophesying Skill, counting as Trained. It doesn't give you the skill, just lets you use it. Logis-Prophesying is in Lathe Worlds, p56-57. Effectively, it allows you to make an Int test to make educated guesses about likely future events, based on patterns provided by past events. It goes a little further than that, of course. Harder checks let you make predictions using increasingly less actual information. 

*Gilded Orrery*
_Then the gilded orrery was brought out; it was large, about the size of a munitorum fuel drum if you included the polished wooden stand table it was set into. A pair of blue lumen globes in the center slowly rotated about each other, and around those were multiple planetoids, each represented by a tiny gold ball set with faceted gemstones. The whole thing was in constant motion, the planets on their rings spinning about the center, and a holographic starfield tracking the motion of constellations across the miniature sky. It was powered by a rechargeable power cell, and represented no known system - it being a binary star would narrow the field considerably, but the galaxy was large, and much of it remained unmapped.

"There is a maker's mark on the casing, which may be seen here." The auctioneer said, pointing to a small brass plaque inset on one of the legs of the supporting wooden table. "It was constructed by Magos Arcan Paratus, of the Adeptus Mechanicus, some hundreds of years ago. As to its acquisition..."

"It was part of the family collection when I took the warrant," Calligos said. It was the first he'd spoken since taking his seat at the side of the stage. "Archivists said Elbor picked it up, some time in 535. Bought it at auction, part of an estate sale. Fitting to send it on in the same way, don't you think?"_ 

As yet, this device has no known effect, beyond looking cool and being a conversation starter. Perhaps it will reveal more if you manage to find the system it depicts. 

*Laser Panthers*
Ok, so this one I'm not sure how much to give you. Do you want a full statblock for these? What do you intend to use them for?



*Spoiler: Malfi*
Show


The bar that Frost had directed her towards was called the _Seraphims Lament_. It was located in one of the more run down districts of the continent spanning hive on the western landmass of Malfi. 

Anika was supposed to be at an academic conference but had snuck out for this side trip. From what she had been told it was safe enough for her to be down here, but she had already heard the distant sounds of gunfire since she got off the tram. There were such places back home and she had visited them there without fear. Her family's influence was one thing, but the Hetaireia Lexis had clout with the right people in the lower hive and everyone seemed to know what might happen if anyone messed with the students or the faculty if they wanted somewhere out of the way to drink. Here she carried her bolter openly slung over one shoulder and tried to give the impression that she knew what she was doing.

At the door, the bouncer seemed to be augmented in some way that wasnt immediately clear. His back bulged under his suit in ways that reminded her of a Tech Priest, and he stood at almost twice her size besides that. Yet he will sniff dismissively at her and wave her through anyway. Apparently they did not care enough even to confiscate her weapons.

Inside most of the clientele looked to her like off duty factory workers who were here to drink, but she could see how most people were armed as she was. Everything seemed congenial enough though, perhaps due to the presence of the people she was here to see. At the back of the bar was a dangerous looking trio of a man and two women in green armoured bodygloves. All carried swords slung over their backs and pistols of an unfamiliar design. They were clearly more interested in watching the crowd then drinking. With them was a figure that managed to be larger than the bouncer outside. The Ogryn was tucking into a giant platter of meat and seemed to be their backup. The man they were all there to guard waves her over just as one of the women reaches out to stop her passing.  

She had been told that Strahne was an associate of the Malfian Kasballica and a go between with certain parties that liked to trade in the proscribed and the forbidden. You couldnt grow up in the spires of Hive Sibellus without hearing of such people. Go to the right parties and you even saw some of it, but Strahne was supposed to be one of the best at the trade, and he had been away a long time before she had hired him. At least he looked the part. White hair and an expensive dark suit and some signs of gene tailoring. Strahne himself didnt look armed but that was clearly what his hired muscle was for. 

Anika will shake his hand and sit down gingerly, So...do you have it? Best get it over with. She didnt like to think about what else the man dealt in but the offer was too good to pass up.

Strahne will grin and hand her a package that had been sitting on the seat beside him. Your money is good Doctor. Didnt I tell you Id even give you a discount if the rumour didnt pan out? He is more interested in watching her reaction. Go on unwrap it.   

He had a point. No point in leaving without checking her purchase was what he said it was. Inside the oil cloth was an iron bound chest about the size of her thesis. Inside was a book inscribed with the words _Travels with Erasmus Harlock_. The book looked singed around the edges but was basically intact. In the early days before things had gotten unpleasant, Joachim Kemmler had served as a priest on the famed Rogue Traders vessel and had written about his journeys out beyond the fringe. The man had been experienced enough a voidfarer to include maps. The book had long been declared heretical just from its association with Harlock. Anika had read the commentary on this book which declared most of Kemmlers account to be unusually fanciful. She couldnt say for that one way or the other but there was usually some truth to be gained from accounts like this. Plus, maps of the territory beyond the Calixis sector were few and far between. If she intended to go out there she needed to start somewhere.

Strahme leans back in his seat, still smiling, You know I asked around about you. Perhaps you're a well educated dillenate but you ask the right questions and you know how to be discreet. Thats useful to know.

Whats your point? Shell close the box and rewrap it as she prepares to leave.

Well I pick up things here and there that you might be interested in. Have you ever heard of an Eldar spirit stone? My contact told me theres a place where theres a whole lot of them just lying around. Theres all kinds of xenos and archaeotech out there if thats what youre into. I can put you in contact with the right people if youre interested and dont mind the commission? I can show you where its buried.

His grin widens as she cant quite keep her interest from showing on her face. And what is your fee Mr Strahne? It didnt have to mean anything, she could judge everything on its merits. Dealing with this man was a necessary evil.

Oh, Im sure Ill think of something.  



https://forums.giantitp.com/showsing...postcount=1236

----------


## PotatoGolem

> *Ships and Profit:*
> 
> 
> *Spoiler: Misc NPC stat things*
> Show
> 
> 
> 
> The Absalom Praetorians: 50's in all stats and Light Carapace Armour. Autoguns/Hellguns.
> ...


Thanks to recent purchases, the Praetorians wear Power Armor and carry Power Swords, Meltaguns, and Bolters. I don't think they can still carry their autoguns and hellguns, realistically speaking.

----------


## rax

*Void Master Hannabel Shanx*



*Spoiler: Personality*
Show

Hannabel is strong-willed and independent, driven in equal measure by a love of luxury and restless curiosity. She spends most of her earnings on fabulous clothing, exotic adornments, and exclusive entertainments. She loves art and literature, but it's the excitement of experiencing something new, rather than a desire for "quality" that fuels her love. Consequently, she is just as happy reading cheap penthrift dreadfuls as she is admiring the latest avant-garde art. This restlessness also manifests itself in a preference for staying on the move. When off duty, Hannabel endlessly prowls the halls and corridors of the _Manticore's Sting_, exploring every nook and cranny of her adopted home. On a larger scale, she glories in the succession of new worlds and cultures she gets to experience as part of Macharius Absalom's crew.

Outwardly sociable, Hannabel is adept at putting people at ease and making friends, but is in fact a very private individual. She finds it difficult to trust anyone, but is incredibly loyal to the few people she counts as her real friends. And though few would suspect it from her usually sunny demeanour, Hannabel is perfectly capable of reacting with deadly force when she's threatened. She has killed before to protect her life, her secrets, and her friends, and she will do so again without hesitation.

----------


## Blarghy

*Kennoch the Navigator*

*Spoiler: Fluff*
Show


*Background:*
Birthed on a star-ship and reared on a space station by void born, Kennoch Castermire may be young, but he's as true a Navigator as youre likely to find. Yes, his genetic lineage is more susceptible to Warp-twisting than the highest and proudest Magisterial House, but mutants are mutants anyway, and this mutant knows he belongs among the heavens, not with his feet on the dirt. By blood and experience, Kennoch is as fine a guide as any. If rumors are true, hes an honest servant of the Imperium too. He supposedly abandoned the security of the Calixis Sector, where his clan has roamed for millennia, to hunt less savory Navis and thereby clean up the Expanse just a bit.  A wayward branch of his clan has descended into heresy on these poorly-mapped fringes, the Renegade House Caster_mare_ (best to not get them confused); Kennoch pursues them as a matter of duty.

There are quieter, vaguer rumors that Kennoch was also on the losing end of some mysterious family conflict, and that his journey wasnt entirely by choice, but such things are all too common among the nobility. In any case, he refuses to address the matter when questioned.

*Personality:*
Driven yet resigned, optimistic yet bleak, Kennoch has a curious blend of ambition and fatalism. He certainly has goals; he dreams of a future filled with power and prestige, for himself, his House, and his friends alike. He knows that unlike the vast majority of humans, he might not die in obscurity, but could instead use his mighty name and talents to bend this unfeeling universe just slightly to his will. And if not that, then his existence is at least _comfortable_. Bound by station though he is, he has far more freedom than most people. This is all to be enjoyed, even celebrated.

On the other hand, his purpose in life is to stare into the Warp until it molds him like clay into something horrifying. If he lives long enough, his body will corrupt further and further. Hell probably become increasingly reliant on servants and cybernetics just to function, let alone savor his nobility. This is as inevitable as death. He has witnessed the elders of his House, and they fill him with a quiet dread.

Sooner or later, the Warp beats _everyone_.

*Appearance:*
Any Navigators defining features are their deformities, first and foremost the Warp-Eye, but often much more gruesome disfigurations. Kennoch surely has his share, and theyre likely obscene, but most people wont see this secret shame. Whenever possible, he covers himself entirely. His typical outfit is a unique, beautiful, Selenite-pattern void suit, even when in a safe atmosphere.  Kennoch apparently doesnt like or trust the air beyond that of a ship hes intimately familiar with; ideally, he brings along enough spare canisters to last at least a day, no matter where hes going. To be fair, his suit doubles as some pretty solid armor too. Its also quite stunning: platinum plates engraved with prayers and striking images, adorned with perfectly-cut sapphires. This heavenly beauty is balanced by the hellish sight of an excruciator clasped in the servo-manipulators that dot Kennoch's right arm. His helmet obscures his face except for a narrow triangle of plasteel through which he can see with any of his three eyes; not another inch of flesh is visible except in the event of a breach, and even then, he wears undergarments of mesh-weave. Kennochs ancient hellpistol matches his suitengraved platinum and sapphiresas does his eye-topped staff, though thats mostly a ceremonial item, and he often has a servant carry it for him.

Said servants include a squad of void born assassin-bodyguards, part of a larger guild from the Calixis Sector, the Rings of Castermire.  Even stranger than these star-children are Kennoch's familiars.  The eldest is the oddly-named Mr. Wah Dell: a _literal_ golden monkey.  It has a torso of shiny plates engraved with prayers to the Omnissiah and six mismatched limbs covered in wires and tubes; most likely, this poor beast retains only its original head.  During his travels, Echo has also acquired Ms. Rana, an angry lizard with powerfully acidic blood, and Ms. Roja, a fierce mammal with vicious teeth and bat-like wings.

Onlookers might not see much of the man beneath the armor, but theyll notice his unusual voice. It has bizarre, unsettling reverberations: each of his soft, youthful, even boyish words is accompanied by a choir. Tones of older men. Or women of all ages. Pitch, emotion, and accents vary well beyond his own. This is presumably a mutation of the throat, and it cant endear him to the Ecclesiarchy, but it doesnt seem genuinely harmful. Hence, his nickname, _Echo_.



*Spoiler: Crunch*
Show


*Name:* Kennoch Echo of House Castermire
*Career Path:* Navigator
*Rank:* 3
*Experience:* 13,050 Total / 0 Unspent
*Corruption:* 0
*Insanity:* 20
*Wounds:* 14 (9, Sound Constitution 5)
*Fate Points:* 3

*Characteristics:* 
*Weapon Skill:* 34
*Ballistic Skill:* 45 (35 +5 Origin Path +5 Advance)
*Strength:* 37 (42 -5 Origin Path)
*Toughness:* 43 (36 -3 Origin Path +10 Advance)
*Agility:* 30
*Intelligence:* 51 (41 +10 Advance)
*Perception:* 54 (44 +10 Advance)
*Willpower:* 53 (38 +5 Origin Path +10 Advance)
*Fellowship:* 34 (39 -5 Origin Path)

*Origin Path:*
*Home World:* Void Born
	-5S, +5WP; Starting Skills; Charmed; Ill-Omened; Shipwise; Void Accustomed*Birthright:* Stubjack
	+5BS, -5Fel; Intimidate; Quick Draw; 4 Insanity*Lure of the Void:* Duty Bound (Duty to Your Dynasty)
	-3T; +1PF; Rival (House Castermare)*Trials and Travails:* Dark Voyage
	Forbidden Lore (Navigators) +10; 4 Insanity*Motivation:* Fear (Tormented by the Unspeakable, 200xp)
	Light Sleeper, Jaded, Resistance (Fear); 12 Insanity*Lineage:*  Of Extensive Means (Far-Reaching Contacts, 300xp)
	Peer (Adeptus Mechanicus, Astropaths, Void Born)
*Special Abilities:* 
*The Boons of Lineage* (Nomadic House): Talented (Navigation [Warp]); A Taste for the Warp; Scorn of Dirt-Dwellers; Initial Mutation; The Lidless Stare (Adept)
*Warp Guide*: +5 Navigation (Warp)

*Skills:*
	Awareness +20 (Per)
	Ciphers (Noblite Family) (Int)
	Common Lore (Navis Noblite) +20 (Int)
	Dodge (Ag)
Forbidden Lore (Mutants) (Int)
	Forbidden Lore (Navigators, Warp) +20 (Int)
	Intimidate +20 (S/Int/Fel)
	Literacy (Int)
	Nagivation (Stellar, Warp [Talented, Warp Guide]) +10 (Int)
	Psyniscience +20 (Per)
	Scholastic Lore (Astromancy) +10 (Int) 
	Secret Tongue (Navigator) (Int)
	Speak Language (High Gothic, Low Gothic, Ship Dialect) (Int)
	Trade (Astrographer) (Ag)
Trade (Remembrancer) (Int)

*Talents:*
	Disturbing Voice
	Jaded
	Light Sleeper
	Meditation
	Navigator
	Navigator Power
	Peer (Adeptus Mechanicus, Astropaths, Navigators, Void Born)
	Pistol Weapon Training (Universal)
	Quick Draw
	Resistance (Fear)
	Rival (House Castermare)
	Sound Constitution 3
	Talented (Navigation [Warp])
Total Recall [Mind Impulse Unit]

*Traits:*
	Charmed
	Ill-Omened
	Scorn of Dirt-Dwellers
	Shipwise
	A Taste for the Warp
	Void Accustomed

*Navigator Powers:*
Gaze into the Abyss (Novice)
	The Eye Is Open
	The Lidless Stare (Master)

*Mutations:*
	Pale and Hairless Flesh

*Gear:*
	Charm
Excruciator (+30 Intimidate, +20 Interrogation, -20 Deceive for subject)
	Micro-Bead
	Noblite Robes
	Selenite-Pattern Void Suit (Best-Craftmanship) with Servo-Manipulators
	Silk Headscarf
	Tarot Deck

*Weapons:*
*Hellpistol* (Best-Craftmanship) (1d10+4E, 7 Pen, 40 Clip, 2 Rld) (Red-Dot Laser Sight)
*	Metal Staff* (Best-Craftmanship) (1d10+4I, 0 Pen)

*Armor:* 
*Selenite-Pattern Void Suit* (Best-Craftmanship) (5 Head, 4 Arms, Body, Legs; Servo-Manipulators cancel the -10 Ag)
*Xeno-Mesh* (Best-Craftmanship) (4 Arms, Body, Legs)

*Cybernetics:*
*Mind Impulse Unit* (Good-Craftmanship) (+10 BS, Drive, Inquiry, Logic, Pilot, Tech-Use; experience senses of familiars)
*MIU Weapon Interface* (Linked to Hellpistol; shoot as a Free Action) 
*Memorance Implant* (Total Recall; +10 to Trade [Remembrancer] and relevant social situations)

*Personnel:*
*The Rings of Castermire*, Void-Born Assassin-Bodyguards
_The Elite_: Squad, Characteristics 50; BC Footfall Pattern Voidsuit; Persecutor Shotgun, Las Pistol, BC Mono-Falchion; Shock Net, Howler Grenade, Stun Grenade, Web Grenade; Cameleoline Cloak, Preysense Goggles, Whisper Boots.
_The Officers_: Company, Characteristics 50; Standard Pattern Voidsuit, Flax Coat; Boarding Gun, Mono-Falchion; Strait-Capes.
_The Rank and File_: Regiment, Characteristics 40; Standard Pattern Voidsuit, Flax Coat; Shotgun _or_ Autogun _or_ Lasgun, Mono-Falchion; Smoke Grenade.

*Familiars:*
*Mr. Wah Dell* (Best-Craftmanship Walking Creature: Independent, Wanderer; Mechanical, Additional Limbs; Psy-Detector, Warded)
*Ms. Rana* (Best-Craftmanship Walking Creature: Independent, Aggressive; Toxic Blood, Unnatural Toughness; Warded, Lightning Rod)
*Ms. Roja* (Best-Craftmanship Walking Creature: Independent, Paranoid; Big Teeth, Wings; Warded, Psy-Detector)

*Advances:*
*	Rank 1:*
	Awareness (100)
	Ciphers (Noblite Family) (100)
	Secret Tongue (Navigator) (100)
	Trade (Astrographer) (100)
	Intelligence +5 (100)
	Perception +5 (100)
	Willpower +5 (100)
	Intelligence +10 (250)
	Perception +10 (250)
	Willpower +10 (250)
	Toughness +5 (250)
	Toughness +10 (500)

*	Rank 2:* 
	Awareness +10 (200)
	Common Lore (Navis Noblite) +10 (200)
	Dodge (200)
	Forbidden Lore (Warp) +10 (200)
	Intimidate +10 (200)
	Navigation (Stellar) +10 (200)
	Navigation (Warp) +10 (200)
	Psyniscience +10 (200)
	Disturbing Voice (200)
	Meditation (200)
	Sound Constitution 3 (600)
	Navigator Power (The Lidless Stare, Master) (200)

*Rank 3:*
Navigator Power (Gaze into the Abyss, Novice) (200)
Forbidden Lore (Navigators) +20 (200)
Forbidden Lore (Warp) +20 (200)
Awareness +20 (200)
Common Lore (Navis Noblite) +20 (200)
Intimidate +20 (200)
Psyniscience +20 (200)
Scholastic Lore (Astromancy) +10 (200)
Peer (Navigators) (300) [Elite Advance]
Trade (Remembrancer) (300) [Elite Advance]
Ballistic Skill +5 (250)
Forbidden Lore (Mutants) (200)
Sound Constitution 2 (400)



*Spoiler: Notes*
Show


*Factor Ignatius* is a Tech-Priest in Footfall, and Kennoch's go-to for cybernetics.  A weird guy, in that he seems mostly human.
*Remalia Brabazon* is a Nomadic Navigator under Captain Jonell, of the _Mailed Fist_.  She's a recluse who only communicates remotely, but she's still a useful contact.  Collaborating with Echo on mapping Warp routes to and from Port Davis.
*Lorenzo Mercator* is a Shrouded Navigator serving "The Monk."  His mutations include shark teeth.  A useful ally, but of questionable heritage and unknown personal motives.
*Sargon Typhon* is a heavily mutated tank-bound Navigator, former pirate turned prisoner.  Currently held in Kennoch's tower.
Three *Castermare* Navigators are posing as members of *House Visscher*.  One is a member of Winterscale's fleet, another the Explorator fleet under Magos-Commodore Gnothis Trannarch, and the third under Captain William Mayes, of the _Pyrel_, one of Captain Misson's pirates.



*Spoiler: Background Posts*
Show


First
Second
Third
Fourth
Fifth

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Thanks to recent purchases, the Praetorians wear Power Armor and carry Power Swords, Meltaguns, and Bolters. I don't think they can still carry their autoguns and hellguns, realistically speaking.


I went back and checked, because I was pretty sure you didn't get the power armour. Or the meltaguns, for that matter. You got bolters and powerswords, so I'll update those, but failed the acquisition test for the other stuff.

----------


## Haval

Travelling today. I'll try and get something up tonight.

----------


## PotatoGolem

> I went back and checked, because I was pretty sure you didn't get the power armour. Or the meltaguns, for that matter. You got bolters and powerswords, so I'll update those, but failed the acquisition test for the other stuff.


Not sure how to quote from other threads, so I just linked below.  He succeeded at the earlier roll in Port Davis to get enough for the 5 he currently has, but failed in the Lathes to get enough for those he will be trying to recruit. 

Port Davis: https://forums.giantitp.com/showthre...e#post25118802

Lathes: https://forums.giantitp.com/showthre...e#post25285975

----------


## Destro_Yersul

ok, ok. I misinterpreted then. Forgot you'd done those rolls earlier. fixed.

----------


## Haval

Rax - I'm going to assume the rescued from pirates part of Hannabel's origin path is probably widely known about and is most of why Anika hasn't asked her about her past. Anika would have joined the ship later in any case.

I can not know about that either though if you'd prefer.

----------


## rax

Yeah, that part would be public, though I haven't detailed exactly what happened there. It could be that Macharius(?) rescued her from a nameless pirate vessel and brought her aboard the _Sting_, or - and I'm not quite clear on that bit of the _Sting's_ background - that the _Sting_ was the pirate vessel but that she'd essentially managed to convince the captain not to turn her in by the time the _Sting_ was taken.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Ok, anyone who wants to have a look around the locker, feel free. There's a couple of distinct 'sections' to it - the front, with the bench and dead guy, the middle, with shelving and crates and things, and the back, which is gloomy and where the furniture and oddly-shaped things live. You can investigate any of those, or take a closer look at anything I've mentioned. Rolling Evaluate might tell you something about value, if you're so inclined.

----------


## Haval

Going to make some rolls and post IC tomorrow

Going for anything obviously weird or say radioactive
Awareness vs. Per 43 (+20 Auspex)
(1d100)[*11*]

Identify the clockwork device
Forbidden Lore (Aracheotech) or possibly Tech-Use
vs. Int 53
(1d100)[*46*]

Trade (Archaeologist) on the paintings
vs. Int 53
(1d100)[*21*]

----------


## Blarghy

...Not the time or place I'd especially pick for such a fantastic roll, but, alright!  I won't turn it down.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

So much to get through, here! I may have slightly overdone it. 

Anyways, Anika's assessment aligns with Echo's - the old documents are among the most valuable things in here because of what they represent. The broadsheets are uninteresting except as historical record, containing reference to various past events in their headlines. None of them is newer than 100 years. 

The clockwork device, it isn't anything Anika specifically recognises, though some of its construction reminds Anika of the Gilded Orrery that Echo purchased at the auction. It is obviously nonfunctional right now, but it does appear to have been designed to fit into something else, as part of some larger mechanism.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Going to roll my knowledge tests before I post, to see what Macharius knows about the helmet. Also, I have friends staying with me through Sunday, so my posting may be a bit spotty/delayed.

SL: Legends vs 43 (1d100)[*58*]
FL: Heresy (since OOC that sounds suspiciously like Heresy-era Alpha Legion) vs 43 (1d100)[*94*]

----------


## PotatoGolem

I will FP both of those, since this is one of the coolest things we've ever found.

Legends (1d100)[*8*]
Heresy (1d100)[*62*]

Edit: still a failure on Heresy, but 3 DoS on Legends.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Ok, Macharius' education on the Horus Heresy was apparently extensive. Here's what that roll gets you: He identifies the helmet as MkVII. It could still be quite old, since this was one of the final armour versions developed during the Horus Heresy itself, but it was developed on Mars, during the final stages of the Heresy, and shipped to Terra before Mars was temporarily captured by the Traitor legions. This armour marked the first time that any legion apart from the Emperor's Children bore the Imperial Aquila, and was also known as Imperator or Aquila armour as a result. Though the designs have changed little since the days of the Heresy, this particular item doesn't look that old - you've got a pretty good idea of the appearance of things from that era by now, for obvious reasons, and this one looks like a more contemporary example of the armour. It is unlikely it belonged to a member of a traitor legion. Unfortunately, Blue is a common colour for space marines given the Ultramarines and their many successors, so placing this helmet could be difficult. The main clue is the head crest, which suggests an aquatic or dragon-themed chapter, or one to whom those motifs are significant. A Salamanders successor would be an obvious pick, but there aren't many examples of those going well, and no known Salamanders successor uses blue as a primary colour. 

Unfortunately, this is where SL: Legends runs out. SL: Heraldry is your best bet if you want to know more, but CL: Imperium might get you something if you roll especially well. 

For Anika: The statue is likely of xenos manufacture, but it would be challenging to say exactly which one. The figure doesn't match any species Anika recognises.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Either he studied a lot about the Heresy, or "living" through part of it rubbed off on him. Hopefully the former.

CL Imperium: (1d100)[*36*]
FL Xenos for the other stuff (1d100)[*45*]

Both vs 43

----------


## Haval

Whose to say the Warp isn't educational  :Small Amused: 

I imagine there's a giant book listing all the chapters somewhere. I'll need to have Anika visit a library before we leave. 

Otherwise common Lore (Imperium)
Vs. Int 53
(1d100)[*31*]

----------


## Destro_Yersul

two degrees is pretty good. Ok. Anika's fairly certain there's a chapter based out of the Calixis Sector. It's a big enough sector, and moreover it's close enough to the Eye of Terror, to warrant its own chapter. She's not sure where they're based exactly, but if their colours involve blue then that might be a good place to start looking.

----------


## Blarghy

Booo.  Pretty sure I'm down to my last Fate Point for the current day, so...I guess I'll reroll the Psyniscience.  And hope that we don't get into a fight before bedtime.  

Psyniscience (74): (1d100)[*81*]

Booo, I say.  Booo.

----------


## Haval

There's still the dumping it outside the Inquisition palace and leaving option. Will leave that up to Macharius.

If possible, Anika will send some pictures of the contents of the locker to Hannabel while she's in orbit.

----------


## Haval

Do we have contact details for Mathias? I'll go back and look when I get out of here. But there's every chance he isn't on Scintilla.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

You'd likely have ways to contact him, but even if you did, odds are very high he'd take a long time to reply, unless he's already on Scintilla, which is unlikely.

----------


## Blarghy

What would Echo know about the Witch-Cursed World and its Installation?  Are any of his Lore skills appropriate?

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> What would Echo know about the Witch-Cursed World and its Installation?  Are any of his Lore skills appropriate?


Hm, not really. You might be able to get something with FL: Warp, but I don't think any of the others really apply.

----------


## Blarghy

I was mostly curious if he's heard of the place at all, or if it's a complete mystery.  Either way, he'll definitely take this deal.  And I hope we'll investigate; it's sure to be horribly dangerous lots of fun!

Forbidden Lore: Warp (71): (1d100)[*90*]

Yep, that seems about right.  I knew that Evaluate roll was too good for me.   :Small Tongue:

----------


## Destro_Yersul

All you'd know offhand is the really common stuff. It's one of the Stations of Passage in the Maw, it has an ominous name, people don't like to stay there for too long.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> How large is the statue and do we have any idea what the material is.


Roughly two meters. Some variety of stone.

----------


## Leon

Hilarious. I was the first to post in this thread as a player and forgot to sub to it and wondered why everyone was quiet...

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Yeah, I've done that. It's why I always keep the sub to the old threads for a while, just in case. 

Anyways, I believe I need a roll here. The Astropath is casting at Fettered strength, in order to avoid phenomena. 

(1d100)[*17*]

----------


## Blarghy

> The one painting, especially with Anika's mention of Landunder, did get Macharius thinking, though. He'd heard of some art gallery or other getting destroyed on that planet, shortly before it was supposed to open a new exhibit. Details had been scarce, of course, and a lot of the promotional materials had mysteriously disappeared. Actually that whole sector had been briefly locked down, come to think of it, and the signature looked right... this painting might have been by the same artist. Macharius couldn't recall his name at the moment, though, and if anybody really knew what had happened there they weren't saying.


Oooh, I forgot all about this, but Sun Lee told Anika and Kennoch about this way back at the banquet.  




> From there, the conversation turned away from business, and towards art. Apparently there had been some interesting developments on Landunder, recently - one of the major art galleries had been destroyed in some sort of incident. Nobody knew exactly what sort, and any attempts to gather more information had been stonewalled immediately. The lack of detail and shutdown of all inquiries probably meant the Inquisition was involved somehow, but of course that sort of thing was impossible to prove. The upshot for the traders was that a number of works by famous artists had been lost, and surviving works had thus greatly increased in value. The Monk looked pleased to hear this, saying he owned several. Lorenzo asked Echo if the Castermires had much interest in artwork.


Sounds like a plot hook to me!  Might be fun to look into it.  Or at least get a great price for this painting, since it's now rarer than before.  

Also, in that same banquet post, Morwenna had some investment advice that Macharius might want to think about, while we're on the right planet for it.




> "Sibellus is the prestigious spot," Morwenna said, "but Tarsus is where all the money is. I have a contact with House Krin. Open an account with them, and buy in as an investor on some of the trading houses. Then you make money no matter what's actually being sold."
> 
> She smiled. "I also have a short list of companies I personally feel are worth buying into. They're from across the sector, but all of them are traded on the Scintillan markets. Tesseract is an interesting one - they're out of Gunpoint, and have just acquired an agreement with the Mechanicus for the manufacture of high-end civilian vehicles. I've seen some of their aircars. Most luxurious."


Speaking of plot hooks in general, do we want to try doing anything about the Spire Stalker proactively, as opposed to just seeing if they attack us (which would be a hell of a coincidence) or Anika's family while we're here?  I suspect Destro might've just mentioned it as setting fluff, but I'm happy to help bring down a famous serial killer for fun and profit.  Investigating the issue could give us a cool reason to meet Hax.  Surely we'd be well-rewarded if we can manage it (well, assuming that the killer isn't his niece, in which case we might be in a real bit of trouble even if we succeed).

Whoops, misread--or misinterpreted--Destro's post a bit there.  I thought he meant that the Astropath was seeing God-machines busting up cities _on_ the half-planet, which seems like the sort of thing you might well find on a Chaos world, but on reflection I think that was meant to be what Zylane sees of Alessaunder and his ally's plan, yeah?  Sounds like they're ambitious indeed.  I edited to reflect that.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Good recall,  Blarghy! I'd forgotten about that. We should definitely look into the painting more. I'll edit my post to have Macharius not say to leave it- he's been far too reasonable lately. And yeah, I was thinking he should go invest once we finish up here.

As to the spire stalker, hunting him/her/it down would be good fun. It would also do wonders for our relationship with the nobility, and possibly garner us some favors.

Very coincidentally,  I was just reading through the Black Crusade books this week for ideas and thought that half-planet sounded really cool from its writeup.

----------


## Blarghy

Oh, the Hollows is great.  The whole Screaming Vortex is great, IMO.  Like I've said before, I'll be plenty satisfied to just fight Alessaunder anywhere; that was part of my thinking with my pitch to Destro, having him based aboard the _Bitter Truth_, so that he has flexibility in terms of the plot.  Could show up wherever is most convenient, if need be.  I definitely get why most of the command staff would prefer to not go poking around with Chaos.  But...I would be quite delighted if we grow very powerful, build up a huge fleet, amass an alliance of other Rogue Traders, Navy ships, Astartes, and the Inquisition, and lead our armada into the Vortex to raze the Gloaming Worlds, lay siege to the Hollows, shatter the Castermare fleet, capture or kill Alessaunder himself, and then run like hell.   :Small Big Grin:   I have no illusions that we could properly conquer and purge the Screaming Vortex, but I think that eventually we could deal a lot of damage to it, make Calixis and the Expanse a good bit safer as a result, and be known as Big Damn Heroes for our legendary efforts.  For the glory of the Emperor!  

But that's certainly years and years off, so until we're even ready to entertain the possibility, I'll just enjoy my daydreams.  Misson is a much more attainable matter for the foreseeable future, and Quinn, and Port Davis, let alone general exploration and our basket of side projects.  Tons and tons of things to do.  

The "shadow" that the Astropath spoke of is quite interesting to me, of course.  Kennoch hasn't mentioned this yet, because he himself doesn't know much about it, but Alessaunder was exiled for some forgotten matter about a half-millennium ago.  Similar to Kennoch himself, but we'll get to _that_ in time.  Around the same time, the Castermires had to abandon their home planet, downgrading from a Magisterial House to Nomadic, from which they've never recovered.  I left it up to Destro to decide what happened and how Alessaunder was involved, so this is a delightful mystery to me, one I look forward to digging into.  Among the Castermires, only the top elders would perhaps know anything about it, and only Alessaunder himself is old enough to remember personally; Kennoch's grandmother and Novator is probably just a third of his age, and all his other relatives would be even younger.  The "shadow" may or may not be related or central to this issue.  What could possibly scare a 600-year-old formerly-pure-genes-turned-Renegade Navis, Champion of Chaos, Novator of his House, allied to heretek archmagi and who-knows-what-else?  I can't wait to find out and help stick a metaphorical bolter in whatever passes for its face.  

But again, years and years off, I'm sure.

More immediately, if we have any success with the Spire Stalker, perhaps we could use that goodwill in part to turn Scintillian nobility against Quinn.  Even Hax himself, which seems like a serious blow to the whole Quinn dynasty.  Macharius could "casually mention" his concerns and troubles with the guy and seriously mess up his business in Calixis.  Speaking of, to remind you about something else when Macharius goes to make investments:




> *The Rumour Mill*
> 
> Anika's overtures to the Kasballica returned quickly. Malfi was relatively nearby, and her friends remembered her fondly enough. As it happened, Quinn's ship had passed through the system recently, and *he'd made some property purchases before continuing on. Unfortunately real-estate speculation wasn't exactly a smoking gun*, but his next destination had been Vaxanide. While that world did have legitimate industries, it was a little out of the way unless you were already heading Spinward, and its chequered past spoke of other, less savoury opportunities as well.


Could be worth asking about (and then attempting to sabotage), if Macharius gets the chance.  Anika tried to dig into the matter, but I don't think she got an answer, at least not that I can find.




> *Astropathic message to Morwenna*
> 
> 'I was wondering if I could prevail on you to give the name of whoever's handling your property investments. Your suggestion for Macharius to invest in something obvioisly have merit, but we would like to keep an eye on whatever business Tristan Quinn is currently involved in back in Calixis. Failing actually placing someone on his ship I'd say asking enough of the right people will have to suffice for now.The man has been spreading scurrilous rumours about Macharius and we are currently delayed as a result. I suspect it's only a matter of time until all this turns violent.'


Destro, did I miss that response, or has Morwenna's reply just not arrived?  That could be a possible cause for concern, by this time.  I wonder if Macharius's special lady could be in trouble.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Oooh, I forgot all about this, but Sun Lee told Anika and Kennoch about this way back at the banquet.  
> 
> Sounds like a plot hook to me!  Might be fun to look into it.  Or at least get a great price for this painting, since it's now rarer than before.


It's actually a slightly cheeky reference to another game that I ran. You guys are welcome to go look at Landunder if that's what you want to do, of course. 




> Very coincidentally,  I was just reading through the Black Crusade books this week for ideas and thought that half-planet sounded really cool from its writeup.


Abort! Abort! GM secrets discovered! <insert klaxons>




> Destro, did I miss that response, or has Morwenna's reply just not arrived?  That could be a possible cause for concern, by this time.  I wonder if Macharius's special lady could be in trouble.


Nothing more sinister than my memory, I'm afraid; I'd forgotten you had sent her a message. Her reply should be arriving shortly.

----------


## Leon

> Abort! Abort! GM secrets discovered! <insert klaxons>


Security Breech in Sector DM

----------


## PotatoGolem

> Oh, the Hollows is great.  The whole Screaming Vortex is great, IMO.  Like I've said before, I'll be plenty satisfied to just fight Alessaunder anywhere; that was part of my thinking with my pitch to Destro, having him based aboard the _Bitter Truth_, so that he has flexibility in terms of the plot.  Could show up wherever is most convenient, if need be.  I definitely get why most of the command staff would prefer to not go poking around with Chaos.  But...I would be quite delighted if we grow very powerful, build up a huge fleet, amass an alliance of other Rogue Traders, Navy ships, Astartes, and the Inquisition, and lead our armada into the Vortex to raze the Gloaming Worlds, lay siege to the Hollows, shatter the Castermare fleet, capture or kill Alessaunder himself, and then run like hell.    I have no illusions that we could properly conquer and purge the Screaming Vortex, but I think that eventually we could deal a lot of damage to it, make Calixis and the Expanse a good bit safer as a result, and be known as Big Damn Heroes for our legendary efforts.  For the glory of the Emperor!


Yeah, I really like the Screaming Vortex. It's weird and gonzo and a nice blend between real and unreal. Haha although entering areas like that tends to have... negative effects. How many people stay sane and loyal trying to fight in the Eye? That would be a bad-ass end to that storyline though.

In any case, I should buy some Sanctified weapons if we're going to be fighting Chaos. Can never have too much holy water/fire! Maybe take the Witch-Finder career path? Destro, did we capture any psykers on our pirate ships an/or do Navigators count for witch-finding?

----------


## Blarghy

> Yeah, I really like the Screaming Vortex. It's weird and gonzo and a nice blend between real and unreal. Haha although entering areas like that tends to have... negative effects. How many people stay sane and loyal trying to fight in the Eye?


That's why we try to enlist the Astartes, Inquisition, and Ecclesiarchy!  Get that professional help.  Although by the time it ever becomes relevant, I would hope we'd all have very high stats, resistances, bonuses from special items, and whatnot.  I don't see it happening _any_ time soon.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Yeah, I really like the Screaming Vortex. It's weird and gonzo and a nice blend between real and unreal. Haha although entering areas like that tends to have... negative effects. How many people stay sane and loyal trying to fight in the Eye? That would be a bad-ass end to that storyline though.
> 
> In any case, I should buy some Sanctified weapons if we're going to be fighting Chaos. Can never have too much holy water/fire! Maybe take the Witch-Finder career path? Destro, did we capture any psykers on our pirate ships an/or do Navigators count for witch-finding?


Hmm. I think for something like a career entry, and especially with the way Witch-Finder is worded, I'd prefer to have it play out more directly than as a result of something like boarding actions. I'd say Navigators would count, but you would need to fight and incapacitate one on a more personal level. If that's something you'd like to work towards, I can keep it in mind.

----------


## PotatoGolem

> That's why we try to enlist the Astartes, Inquisition, and Ecclesiarchy!  Get that professional help.  Although by the time it ever becomes relevant, I would hope we'd all have very high stats, resistances, bonuses from special items, and whatnot.  I don't see it happening _any_ time soon.


Yeah, that would be a sweet end-(or near-end-) campaign battle.




> Hmm. I think for something like a career entry, and especially with the way Witch-Finder is worded, I'd prefer to have it play out more directly than as a result of something like boarding actions. I'd say Navigators would count, but you would need to fight and incapacitate one on a more personal level. If that's something you'd like to work towards, I can keep it in mind.


Makes sense. I hadn't really thought about the ACR until now, but he will now look for some witches to subdue before we work our way up to slapping daemons. Luckily, Echo wants us to go to the Witch-Cursed World, which sounds like a good place to find a hostile psyker or two. _Non-lethally_ defeating a psyker is probably the bigger problem- Macharius will have to switch tactics a bit. A thunder hammer isn't great for taking people in alive.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Well, that's two 1s on my shopping trip, sadly neither for the Null Rod where I needed a 3 or less.

Summary of certain purchases: Blessed Edge on all melee weapons Macharius and the Praetorians have, Condemnor bolters for the Praetorians, at least a common-quality witch lance, an Eos Star Amulet, and Rosarii for the Praetorians. The Emperor felt extremely strongly about the bolters and Rosarii. Praetorian quipment is only enough for the 5-man team, not the eventual 100. They can live with regular bolters and no force fields.

Rolls where Opposed Commerce might matter: psyk-out grenades for both him and the team, better-quality witch lances

Definitely no: the Null Rod :(

----------


## Destro_Yersul

I rolled some dice. Macharius was able to buy one Psyk-Out grenade for himself. 

Also man, you guys have bought a ton of stuff recently. I'm going to say no more equipment acquisitions for a while, until your funds have had a chance to rebuild.

----------


## Haval

> Also man, you guys have bought a ton of stuff recently. I'm going to say no more equipment acquisitions for a while, until your funds have had a chance to rebuild.


Was waiting for that.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Yeah seems fair

----------


## Blarghy

> Makes sense. I hadn't really thought about the ACR until now, but he will now look for some witches to subdue before we work our way up to slapping daemons. Luckily, Echo wants us to go to the Witch-Cursed World, which sounds like a good place to find a hostile psyker or two. _Non-lethally_ defeating a psyker is probably the bigger problem- Macharius will have to switch tactics a bit. A thunder hammer isn't great for taking people in alive.


If Destro is willing to allow Navigators for the prerequisite, Echo would love the help catching a Castermare.  He's already got his eye on a few, based on Sargon's information.  I'm sure that battling a proper psyker, lethally or not, is a lot tougher though.  They seem pretty scary.  Not as scary as an average nameless ork, perhaps, as we've seen firsthand, but still quite deadly.

----------


## PotatoGolem

> If Destro is willing to allow Navigators for the prerequisite, Echo would love the help catching a Castermare.  He's already got his eye on a few, based on Sargon's information.  I'm sure that battling a proper psyker, lethally or not, is a lot tougher though.  They seem pretty scary.  Not as scary as an average nameless ork, perhaps, as we've seen firsthand, but still quite deadly.


Yeah orks are serious business, and are a key reason I've upgunned my bodyguards so much. They can now fight battle tanks or Troop-quality orks. Maybe we'll stick to punching out Navigators.

Also, sorry for the delay in posting- thought I'd posted, but apparently I just wrote the reply and never hit submit post.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Also, sorry for the delay in posting- thought I'd posted, but apparently I just wrote the reply and never hit submit post.


I've done that. All good.

----------


## Haval

https://forums.giantitp.com/showsing...&postcount=309

I was going to check where we were on the Visscher subplot and I found this. I think it predates Echo finding out about it from Sargon but still, Morwenna has a Visscher Navigator.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

You didn't capture Sargon until well after the party, but yes. Morwenna's Primus is from House Visscher.

----------


## Blarghy

_Ooooh_.  I missed that entirely; nice catch!  I'd agree to contacting Morwenna about it, but I still think we should track down the _Pyrel_ before we talk to her, or Winterscale or the Magos-Commodore.  I stand by my earlier prediction that the news will be better received if we have proof, in the form of an impersonator we've caught red-handed.  We have every right and reason to target Misson's pirates, so nobody can fault us for doing that much, and once we've confirmed Sargon's information (he may well be wrong or outright lying; can't dismiss those possibilities), we could think about who else to approach.  Furthermore, if we're lucky, Mayes might have another map fragment, and possibly a waystation we can add to our collection.  I assume/hope that it would be easier to find one of Misson's bases--and therefore the pirates who use it--than the ship itself, so we could approach it from that angle.

Also, looked back and found this bit of info, to add to our consideration: 




> Re: The _Pyrel_: Anika has heard of this ship. Sargon meant what he said quite literally. It's a Hellbringer-class light cruiser, under the command of another of Misson's subordinate captains.


I assume a light cruiser would be a nice addition to the fleet!

I wanted to add, though, that we don't have to rush to this next unless you all just want to.  I'm fine with asking for information in the background as we go about other business.  I was actually thinking that it could be fun and profitable to have a look at our colony when we get back to the Expanse.  See how it's developed since the last time we landed and spend a chapter doing some proper exploration of the planet.  Destro mentioned that he has a bunch of notes on the place, and we've hardly examined it at all.  Just something to consider, along with any other possible adventures the rest of you might want to suggest.  I definitely don't want to monopolize our endeavors (even if you've been chasing Misson's people since before I came to the game anyway).  I think pirate hunts are delightful, but so is everything else this crew gets up to, so I'm happy to do whatever, so long as we get back around to Echo's business eventually.  The Castermares _probably_ won't invade and devastate the Imperium while we amuse ourselves with other pursuits.   :Small Wink:

----------


## Haval

I should say in passing that a Hellbringer is a Chaos vessel. In game terms it might only count as a very old ship with some bad associations, but that also includes the _Sting_.

----------


## Leon

I'd put it at worse associations than the Sting has. A known and active Chaos class of vessel.

----------


## Haval

Yeah. I can see that going one of two ways depending on Destro. I don't think it's something that Anika has any reason to know though.

----------


## Blarghy

I guess all of our ships would have negative reputations, since we don't take them off of nice people.  I would hope there's _some_ means of "purifying" a bad vessel.  They take decades or centuries to build, so just sailing them into the nearest star seems like a waste.  Surely the Navy and other such organizations have protocols for redeeming them when they're captured.  If we're unable to do it ourselves, maybe we can sell those sorts of ships to the Navy or whoever.  In the worst case, we could probably break them down for materials, but that strikes me as a bit of a shame, if there's any way around it.

----------


## Leon

Mere pirate vessels can be just refit and have the Databanks purged if needed but an actual Enemy vessel would be destroyed and Any sensible person wouldn't crew it otherwise

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Ok, selling the statue to colleges is worth 50 Achievement points. They're not rich enough to afford you even one point of PF, but they are convenient and not illegal. Shall I put those towards the Terminus?

----------


## PotatoGolem

Sounds good!

----------


## PotatoGolem

Sorry for the delay, it's been a busy week (and more to come! yay...). Macharius is trying his best to look nice and murderable.

On a related note, is there any indication anywhere how the Imperial Creed/Imperium feel about same-sex relationships? Could have had Almagor pretend to be his lover and be in the bed as well rather than lurking underneath, but that might be scandalous. And Macharius would clearly rather risk a greater chance of stabbity death rather than bring shame to the House, naturally.

----------


## Blarghy

Should some/all of the rest of the command staff be nearby for this plan?  At least in the same building, so that we can run in if alerted.  That would be safer, and we could all participate too.

----------


## Leon

By the night cycle prob, but for the rest of the day people are out and about

----------


## PotatoGolem

Yeah, probably makes sense to be nearby at night- I'd assume we're renting a pretty large place, since the point is to be ostentatious. During the day it seems like things are pretty safe.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Sorry for the delay, it's been a busy week (and more to come! yay...). Macharius is trying his best to look nice and murderable.
> 
> On a related note, is there any indication anywhere how the Imperial Creed/Imperium feel about same-sex relationships? Could have had Almagor pretend to be his lover and be in the bed as well rather than lurking underneath, but that might be scandalous. And Macharius would clearly rather risk a greater chance of stabbity death rather than bring shame to the House, naturally.


I believe the general consensus is that the Imperium doesn't care. Do you venerate the Emperor? Hate the mutant, the alien, and the heretic? We good. That's how I run it, in any case.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

That one got away from me, thanks to a very busy weekend, but it's up now. I'll try not to write things so enormous in future.  :Small Tongue:

----------


## PotatoGolem

> That one got away from me, thanks to a very busy weekend, but it's up now. I'll try not to write things so enormous in future.


The timing for Morwenna responding on Valentine's Day works out perfectly though. Astropathic messages about investment opportunities is basically sexting for Rogue Traders, after all. And she's adding a referral to her really good financial advisor? That's about the sexiest thing she could do for Macharius.

----------


## Blarghy

When Macharius meets with the advisor from House Krin, remember to cash in those banking shares we found!




> He got a look at some of those while Anika was digging through them, and identified them as bank drafts and shares, issued by House Krin a century ago. The banking house was still in operation, and the shares would still be good if redeemed.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Is it the 21st already? An entire week? Heresy! Sorry about the continuing delays guys, life has been a bit crazy around here. Work is taking more out of me than expected, I think, and the last couple weekends have been packed.

----------


## rax

No worries. Slow and steady works for me.

----------


## Haval

Yeah, don't worry about it.

----------


## rax

I'm a tad busy at work and I'll be off on an overnight hotel stay tomorrow. It's likely I won't be able to post until Saturday afternoon or Sunday.

----------


## Leon

Coming up on IC3, so cool.

----------


## Haval

> Coming up on IC3, so cool.


I think we're past four years as well. I wonder if there's anything longer besides Bloody Crown.

*Spoiler: Destro and Rax*
Show


Just seen Rax's post and registered the name.  :Small Big Grin: 

I wasn't expecting it to matter but I think Anika's conversation with Hannabel needs to be before the party.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> I think we're past four years as well. I wonder if there's anything longer besides Bloody Crown.
> 
> *Spoiler: Destro and Rax*
> Show
> 
> 
> Just seen Rax's post and registered the name. 
> 
> I wasn't expecting it to matter but I think Anika's conversation with Hannabel needs to be before the party.


I'm not sure. Bloody Crown is setting records for sure, and I've been in other games with LCP that went for a while, but we've been chugging along quite well here. 

*Spoiler*
Show

Haha, at last the depths of my evil becomes clear!

Yeah, this conversation is probably pre-party.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Wow, has it really been four years? That's pretty incredible.

----------


## rax

> *Spoiler*
> Show
> 
> Haha, at last the depths of my evil becomes clear!
> 
> Yeah, this conversation is probably pre-party.


 *Spoiler: Destro and Haval*
Show

The conversation may be pre-party, but it's possible that it occurs after Macharius gets his invite to the Countess' shindig.

And just to be clear, whatever happens there is all on Destro. All I've done is provide some more details on Hannabel's background and my ideas for her nemesis. He's taking it from there.  :Small Amused:

----------


## Haval

*Spoiler: Rax and Destro*
Show


As long as Anika's parts sync up properly. I'll probably edit Anika's last post so Hannabel is aware of the invite.

----------


## Haval

*Spoiler: Destro and Rax*
Show

Edited the last post

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> *Spoiler: Rax and Destro*
> Show
> 
> 
> As long as Anika's parts sync up properly. I'll probably edit Anika's last post so Hannabel is aware of the invite.


*Spoiler*
Show

All good by me. Intended sequence is that the invite showed up in the morning. Anika went to see Hannabel afterwards, so this all tracks.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

So, it has now been six days, and the only person to respond to my last update is Haval. On one level, I know it's a bit hypocritical of me to complain about this when I myself have frequently been slow to update, but part of that is time spent waiting for responses, and it does mean this adventure has dropped to a crawl. I'm at least curious about why. What is it that seems to have bogged us all down so hard? 

Now, life is one thing. I've had a lot going on myself, things have been hard over here for reasons I won't go too deeply into, and sometimes I just forget to check, or lose track of time. That's fine, life happens. 

But, is it something else? This game has been running a long time now. Are you all still interested, and engaged? Is it just that this adventure is causing issues? It's not intended to be overly long, there are certainly ways I could speed it up, but it's been.. well, a little frustrating, to say the least. This is a big backstory tie in for Hannabel, but she's staying on the ship, and I'm having a hard time figuring out ways to include her in her own story. Echo's got very little to do, because his skillset doesn't apply so well to what's going on - I've sent Blarghy a PM and not yet heard back, so I don't know if he's still around. Ravia is always a little hard to engage with, and I'm trying, but there have very much been times when I try to give her something and the thread just gets missed. I know you all have lives outside of this, and I know things have been crazy. I respect that, I'm not trying to call anyone out in particular, I know I miss things as well.

So, I'm asking for some input once again. How do you feel is the best way to proceed? Where do you, the players, want to go from here? I think we've still got stories to tell, and I've still got ideas, but I'm just one of the people involved. Let's have a conversation.

----------


## rax

I'm perfectly happy with how things are progressing for Hannabel. The fact that I'm having her stay on the ship shouldn't be taken as a sign that I'm not engaged or that this story arc is in some way a failure. Hannabel's interaction with Anika and Galimina has been very rewarding for my part and I'm curious to see where it will lead them (or at least Anika) next. 

I'm keeping a close eye on the thread to see if an opportunity will pop up where it feels right for Hannabel to engage more directly, but I suspect that the party needs to play out first. If you have a particular sequence of events in mind that I've missed where you're envisioning Hannabel being front and centre, pop me a PM and we can work something out. Ultimately, it's not even necessary for this particular story arc to have a definitive "end" with regards to Hannabel's backstory. The fact that it's coming to light is a big step in and of itself.

From my ringside seat, I expected there to be more engagement from the group as a whole in tracking down the mystery killer. OOC, I'm certainly interested in what that's all about. It certainly seems like an excellent opportunity for House Absalom to become local heroes on Scintilla, with all the advantages that an enterprising crew could gain from that.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Sorry dude, it's just been a really hectic month or so. I've been super busy at work and working late, then pretty burned out when I get home, so it's hard to post other than on weekends. As an extra bit of fun, it's also given me nasty tendonitis in my wrists and thumbs, which makes typing more of an issue. I'm hoping things die down after next week (and I'm starting PT later this month), so I'll try to be better about posting.

----------


## Haval

Still engaged. Just tired. Admittedly I accidently made things harder for myself but it should be fine. 

I think I brought it up earlier but I don't have a better idea for a lead then investigating the possible tech heresy angle on the Stalker, which might need some more concrete evidence first if we try taking it to someone from the Mechanicus. If I get to that point I'll bring Ravia or possibly Macharius (can his Fel work on Tech Priests?). I agree with Ravia's point about how unlikely it is that the Mechanicus would want to talk to anyone about this though.

I suppose talking to criminals is the other alternative. If it's not a person who built the equipment they use to murder people then they might have brought it somewhere and someone knows something. Someone tell me if that seems worth trying because ideally I don't want to monopolise things. Otherwise I had a far fetched plan about flooding the area with as many servo skulls as we can find.

Oh, and Thracian Primaris getting mentioned is very interesting. _Penitent_ was going cheap on Amazon and I'm all caught up finally.

----------


## Blarghy

> Echo's got very little to do, because his skillset doesn't apply so well to what's going on - I've sent Blarghy a PM and not yet heard back, so I don't know if he's still around.


I usually don't bother signing in unless I'm going to post, but I check these threads pretty regularly.  Although, some policies have changed at work that have made it more difficult for me to post from there.  So that's a factor.  But mostly, as you say, this current scene doesn't play that well to Echo's strengths.  You suggested in your PM that he could still be at the party and just talk to people.  That is true, but it really does seem more like Macharius and Anika's show right now.  Between Echo's total lack of social Skills and the fluff concerning Navigators and their isolationist policies, I do think he'd logically skip the party and keep watch on our rented apartments.  I've thought about having him get the Rings to search the building and determine how _they_ would infiltrate it, if they were assigned to do so.  That's a possibility.  But it would mostly just be to keep busy, really.  

I'm perfectly fine with him being off-screen for the moment.  He's already done some fun stuff in Scintilla so far, and I assume he'll be back in the spotlight when we get to the Maw and check out that waystation for the Astropaths.  I'm content to just read along and enjoy Hannabel's stuff.  Her absence up on the ship strikes me as a bigger issue here, but if Rax is happy, then that's between the two of you.  




> I think I brought it up earlier but I don't have a better idea for a lead then investigating the possible tech heresy angle on the Stalker, which might need some more concrete evidence first if we try taking it to someone from the Mechanicus.


There's also this.  I'm at a bit of a loss as to how we can track down the Stalker, besides Anika's idea, and just waiting to see if the killer comes after her or Macharius.  There don't seem to be a lot of leads to follow.  Which makes sense; the case was clearly described as a mystery that baffled law enforcement, so if there _were_ leads, people would already be following them.  Maybe Etula can nudge us toward some new clues, once Macharius charms his way through her suspicion.  

So yeah, I'm still here and interested.  Just keeping an eye out for circumstances to evolve to the point that Echo has something to contribute.

----------


## Leon

Still here, still interested. Just this party/noble hijinks arc isn't very interesting for me and i cant really think of anything else to do while we are here that i haven't that wont possibly cause trouble. I can cause all sorts of trouble tho so i may have to :)

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> I'm perfectly happy with how things are progressing for Hannabel. The fact that I'm having her stay on the ship shouldn't be taken as a sign that I'm not engaged or that this story arc is in some way a failure. Hannabel's interaction with Anika and Galimina has been very rewarding for my part and I'm curious to see where it will lead them (or at least Anika) next. 
> 
> I'm keeping a close eye on the thread to see if an opportunity will pop up where it feels right for Hannabel to engage more directly, but I suspect that the party needs to play out first. If you have a particular sequence of events in mind that I've missed where you're envisioning Hannabel being front and centre, pop me a PM and we can work something out. Ultimately, it's not even necessary for this particular story arc to have a definitive "end" with regards to Hannabel's backstory. The fact that it's coming to light is a big step in and of itself.
> 
> From my ringside seat, I expected there to be more engagement from the group as a whole in tracking down the mystery killer. OOC, I'm certainly interested in what that's all about. It certainly seems like an excellent opportunity for House Absalom to become local heroes on Scintilla, with all the advantages that an enterprising crew could gain from that.


As long as you're happy, I'm good with that. I had a couple ideas, so I might send something else Hannabel's way shortly. In regards to endings.. well, all I'm going to say is that I'm not sure when you might ever get back to Scintilla after this. Pace of PbP being what it is, these things do take a very long time. 




> Sorry dude, it's just been a really hectic month or so. I've been super busy at work and working late, then pretty burned out when I get home, so it's hard to post other than on weekends. As an extra bit of fun, it's also given me nasty tendonitis in my wrists and thumbs, which makes typing more of an issue. I'm hoping things die down after next week (and I'm starting PT later this month), so I'll try to be better about posting.


I had the notion that work was being difficult for you in particular, which is a big part of the reason I mentioned it above. Unfortunately, Macharius is a big driving force behind current events, and I really don't want to leave you out if I can help it. Do take care of yourself first. 




> Still engaged. Just tired. Admittedly I accidently made things harder for myself but it should be fine. 
> 
> I think I brought it up earlier but I don't have a better idea for a lead then investigating the possible tech heresy angle on the Stalker, which might need some more concrete evidence first if we try taking it to someone from the Mechanicus. If I get to that point I'll bring Ravia or possibly Macharius (can his Fel work on Tech Priests?). I agree with Ravia's point about how unlikely it is that the Mechanicus would want to talk to anyone about this though.
> 
> I suppose talking to criminals is the other alternative. If it's not a person who built the equipment they use to murder people then they might have brought it somewhere and someone knows something. Someone tell me if that seems worth trying because ideally I don't want to monopolise things. Otherwise I had a far fetched plan about flooding the area with as many servo skulls as we can find.
> 
> Oh, and Thracian Primaris getting mentioned is very interesting. _Penitent_ was going cheap on Amazon and I'm all caught up finally.


Another of my cheeky references. 

In regards to leads, it's possible that's on me. I don't want this to be too easy to solve, obviously, but I've been on the other end of just not knowing what to do next in an investigation type adventure. This sort of thing also shifts a great deal of burden onto players to think of ideas, when their skillsets are not necessarily the same as that of their characters. There's a mechanic in Inquisitors Handbook that lets characters roll Logic at -30 to get a hint, and Lathe Worlds adds the Logis Prophesying skill, which I don't think Ravia has but is something she could theoretically take. Drone Surveillance using servo skulls is also an option. Monitoring during the night using those would allow a test using either Security or Awareness.




> I usually don't bother signing in unless I'm going to post, but I check these threads pretty regularly.  Although, some policies have changed at work that have made it more difficult for me to post from there.  So that's a factor.  But mostly, as you say, this current scene doesn't play that well to Echo's strengths.  You suggested in your PM that he could still be at the party and just talk to people.  That is true, but it really does seem more like Macharius and Anika's show right now.  Between Echo's total lack of social Skills and the fluff concerning Navigators and their isolationist policies, I do think he'd logically skip the party and keep watch on our rented apartments.  I've thought about having him get the Rings to search the building and determine how _they_ would infiltrate it, if they were assigned to do so.  That's a possibility.  But it would mostly just be to keep busy, really.  
> 
> I'm perfectly fine with him being off-screen for the moment.  He's already done some fun stuff in Scintilla so far, and I assume he'll be back in the spotlight when we get to the Maw and check out that waystation for the Astropaths.  I'm content to just read along and enjoy Hannabel's stuff.  Her absence up on the ship strikes me as a bigger issue here, but if Rax is happy, then that's between the two of you.  
> 
> There's also this.  I'm at a bit of a loss as to how we can track down the Stalker, besides Anika's idea, and just waiting to see if the killer comes after her or Macharius.  There don't seem to be a lot of leads to follow.  Which makes sense; the case was clearly described as a mystery that baffled law enforcement, so if there _were_ leads, people would already be following them.  Maybe Etula can nudge us toward some new clues, once Macharius charms his way through her suspicion.  
> 
> So yeah, I'm still here and interested.  Just keeping an eye out for circumstances to evolve to the point that Echo has something to contribute.


Fair. Mostly wanted to be sure we hadn't lost you somehow. 




> Still here, still interested. Just this party/noble hijinks arc isn't very interesting for me and i cant really think of anything else to do while we are here that i haven't that wont possibly cause trouble. I can cause all sorts of trouble tho so i may have to :)


*Spoiler: Leon Only*
Show

I'd intended for some of your time here to be able to go towards Ravia's projects. You've acquired numerous test subjects, and despite lacking a proper lab aboard the Sting, you DO have a fully equipped Medicae deck, if you wanted to roll a few tests and have a stab at making some sort of start. Give me a bit of direction, and I can describe your progress. Ravia still wants to build some supersoldiers, right?

----------


## Haval

I do have the prophecy device from the auction. I'll try and work out a specific question for it.

----------


## rax

It seems to me that the main difficulty in catching the Stalker is in working out what will actually draw him/her/it out. IIRC, there's been no obvious pattern to his targets other than their noble status, which isn't enough to either work out who his next target will be or to guarantee that the Stalker will have a go at Macharius. Therefore, it seems that the most important thing to try and work out is the Stalker's motive. If we can get a handle on that, there's a chance we can work out where he/she/it will strike next. 

Failing that, it seems the next best thing would be to try and get a closer look at the Stalker's methodology. How is it that the Stalker is able to bypass the security of all these nobles and kill with seeming impunity? Does he/she/it shut down their security measures - indicating a high level of skill and knowledge of the systems in use - or does he/she/it just bypass it, i.e. walk through walls or something?

If the Stalker is a normal human and just a really good planner, he/she obviously needs to gather information before attacking. Perhaps there's a connection to be drawn there? Have all the victims attended the same social gatherings or been meeting with the same people? Perhaps they've all recently hired some new help - servants or guards who've later disappeared?

*Edit:* Unless Destro insists on us constantly rolling Inquiry or Charm to get hold of this sort of information, I figure everyone that wants to could chip in on tracking down leads like this.

----------


## Haval

So let's roll Logis Prophesying for Anika's device from the auction. It would be something that she'd carry around with her

Given a time line of the Stalker murders and a list of noble residences in the Spire can we anticipate the next likely target.
vs. Int 53 (presumably there's a modifier here)
(1d100)[*65*]

Given enough time we'd know whether the device is correct or not.

Also, Anika comes back from her trip to orbit with as many camera carrying servo skulls as she can bring with her. They'll likely be set to patrol over a wide area to see if she could find something unusual.
Awareness (Awareness +10)
vs. Per 43
(1d100)[*86*]

And going to make some inquiries with the Kasballica to see if anyone has heard anything concrete about the Stalker.
Inquiry vs  Fel 47 (+10 Peer Underworld)
(1d100)[*74*]




> Failing that, it seems the next best thing would be to try and get a closer look at the Stalker's methodology. How is it that the Stalker is able to bypass the security of all these nobles and kill with seeming impunity? Does he/she/it shut down their security measures - indicating a high level of skill and knowledge of the systems in use - or does he/she/it just bypass it, i.e. walk through walls or something?
> 
> If the Stalker is a normal human and just a really good planner, he/she obviously needs to gather information before attacking. Perhaps there's a connection to be drawn there? Have all the victims attended the same social gatherings or been meeting with the same people? Perhaps they've all recently hired some new help - servants or guards who've later disappeared?


Presumably this is information that we have access to through the Commissariat. I keep thinking of this as a tech thing but it doesn't have to be. Ideally we'd be able to narrow things down.

----------


## Leon

*Spoiler: Destro*
Show


Medicae to assess general health of subjects and SL Chymistry to consider where to start with enhancements of subjects from the base line


Medicae Tn88 [roll0] 95

Scholastic Lore: Chymistry Th 63 [roll1] 44




*Spoiler: Destro*
Show



FP RR on the Medicae ~ [roll0] 16 Tn 88




posted in the old thread by mistake so copied and adjusted here

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> So let's roll Logis Prophesying for Anika's device from the auction. It would be something that she'd carry around with her
> 
> Given a time line of the Stalker murders and a list of noble residences in the Spire can we anticipate the next likely target.
> vs. Int 53 (presumably there's a modifier here)
> [roll0]
> 
> Given enough time we'd know whether the device is correct or not.
> 
> Also, Anika comes back from her trip to orbit with as many camera carrying servo skulls as she can bring with her. They'll likely be set to patrol over a wide area to see if she could find something unusual.
> ...


Hmm. You have enough information for a bonus, certainly, but I don't think it's enough for +30. The attacks haven't been especially regular in terms of pattern, but finding patterns is what this device is for, and you do have a lot of data to work with. 

The logis device spits out a list of possible residence targets, including the one Macharius has rented, which are all located within the same general area. It suggests that the targets for the next week will come from within this area, and that residences outside this area can be safely ignored as possibilities. 

Anika's skull network, we'll come to after the party. I want to do that bit IC. 

From the underworld, Anika gets a lot of rumours, but little that's credible. It's certainly possible the Stalker purchased some of their equipment on the black market, but nobody can say for sure. 

Oh, in other news, we hit page 50. go us! New IC thread here. Don't forget to update your subscriptions!

----------


## Blarghy

Woo, new leads!  And it's good to confirm that we rented in the right district.

----------


## Haval

Need to use that more often. Everyone feel free to make Anika ask it questions.

----------


## rax

About how the Stalker is getting around. It occurs to me that if they've got wings, then they could be using a glidewing (p. 136, Into the Storm). They're silent and the user gets the Flyer trait, but they still have to launch from at least 15 metres up. Perhaps there's no suitable launch point that will let them reach Lord Hax's palace?

----------


## Haval

> About how the Stalker is getting around. It occurs to me that if they've got wings, then they could be using a glidewing (p. 136, Into the Storm). They're silent and the user gets the Flyer trait, but they still have to launch from at least 15 metres up. Perhaps there's no suitable launch point that will let them reach Lord Hax's palace?


I didn't realise there was actual gear. I was thinking about swooping hawks and the like. Maybe we could keep an eye on the highest parts of the hive.

----------


## rax

Assuming an aerial entry using a glidewing, perhaps Anika could add that to narrow down the potential list of targets as well suggest as a possible starting point? Not that 15m is much when we're talking hive spires, but the known flight capabilities of a glidewing might help narrow things down.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Need a post from Ravia for her thing. But for the party, do you guys have anything more to say to Etula, or are you done with her?

----------


## Leon

*Spoiler: Destro*
Show



((OOC: Roll Trade (Chymist) to whip up a drug regimen, and Medicae to administer it without killing anybody))

Trade Chymistry Tn 63 (1d100)[*94*]

Medicae Tn 88 [roll]1d100[/roll]


Dialogue later

----------


## Leon

*Spoiler: Destro*
Show



RR on that Chymistry Check (1d100)[*78*]

Medicae Check Tn 88 (1d100)[*60*]

Still a fail on the Chymisrty check but not as bad

----------


## PotatoGolem

> Need a post from Ravia for her thing. But for the party, do you guys have anything more to say to Etula, or are you done with her?


I think we're pretty much done.

----------


## Haval

Yeah. It was as much to make connections as for the Stalker. If its not obviously to do with politics I don't think there's anything more to ask.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Update's going to be another day or two, sorry. Been working on a Star Wars video and it really needs to be finished before May 4th.

----------


## Haval

I will look for it.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

No need to look, for I bring you glorious links. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToIjmbgsA2c

Deadlines are now much further away for the most part, and your scheduled shenanigans may resume.

----------


## PotatoGolem

That was a cool video, even as someone who hasn't done any hobbyist stuff in a decade. 

Anyways, Scholastic Lore (Imperial Creed) to see if Macharius has any idea about the saint and shrine: (1d100)[*80*]. Maybe it'll give him a sense of her religious leanings.

EDIT: Forgot TN. It was 48, so he doesn't know much.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> She will also ask the guard for the name of whoever was in charge of Lady Kindjal's affairs on the basis that she should compare notes.


Which affairs do you mean, here? Just financial, or otherwise?

----------


## Haval

Ah, that wasn't very clear. Looking to see if she has a Seneschal so I can find out who is in charge of the pilgrims. Also to find out how well armed they are.

----------


## rax

Well, this is getting exciting. What's the old bat up to?  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Haval

> Well, this is getting exciting. What's the old bat up to?


Nothing illegal certainly.

----------


## rax

Clearly not. It's a totally above board pilgrimage featuring combat veterans. What could possibly go wrong?

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Well, this is getting exciting. What's the old bat up to?


Wouldn't you like to know?  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## rax

I suspect I'm going to find out shortly...

----------


## Haval

How well guarded are the areas of the Kindjal household that are set aside for the guests. I was wondering how easy it would be to get into the areas of the house that Anika isn't allowed in. I don't have anything specific that I can actually justify looking for though so maybe that's a bad idea.

Otherwise, Search vs. Per 43 /2 (1d100)[*29*] to investigate any library that she can find in the parts of the household that she is allowed in. Maybe there are decorative bookshelves.

Will roll Forbidden Lore (Heresy) vs. Int 53 while she's in the house
(1d100)[*52*]

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> How well guarded are the areas of the Kindjal household that are set aside for the guests. I was wondering how easy it would be to get into the areas of the house that Anika isn't allowed in. I don't have anything specific that I can actually justify looking for though so maybe that's a bad idea.
> 
> Otherwise, Search vs. Per 43 /2 [roll0] to investigate any library that she can find in the parts of the household that she is allowed in. Maybe there are decorative bookshelves.
> 
> Will roll Forbidden Lore (Heresy) vs. Int 53 while she's in the house
> [roll1]


Missed this when I was responding. There's a small library space that's guest accessible, but mostly unoccupied. The non-guest areas are roped off, and there's guards stationed around. It wouldn't be hard to slip past a rope, but avoiding guards would be more challenging. 

Anika can spend a bit of time poking around the library, but she doesn't find anything obviously heretical. She's pretty confident she'd recognise heresy if she saw it, but most of the titles in the library she can get to are pretty ordinary. Textbooks on a variety of approved subjects and works of fiction. Adventure stories, mostly. If there's heresy to be found here, it isn't simply lying about the place.

Any other plans for while you're here on Scintilla?

----------


## Haval

> Any other plans for while you're here on Scintilla?


Rereading some things. I do need to investigate the highpoints of the hive in line with Rax's glidewing theory. Even if it's a case of us finding out information that we can pass onto the comissariat rather then catching the Stalker ourselves.

----------


## Haval

And I've just seen this mentioned

https://www.eurogamer.net/warhammer-...-of-pathfinder

----------


## Haval

Trying to cover a lot of stuff and I obviously forgot to include something.

Given the locations of all the victims premises and the heights of all the major parts of the Spire, can we anticipate a location where the Stalker might be operating from?
Logis vs. Int 53
(1d100)[*89*]
Going to spend my last FP on this one just in case
(1d100)[*82*]

----------


## PotatoGolem

I think we've covered everything else Macharius wanted to do while we're here.

FYI, leaving on a vacation Friday through the 19th, so I may not respond much.

----------


## Blarghy

I'm all set, other than the Stalker business.  It'd be nice to solve the mystery if we're able.  Hopefully Anika can turn up a new lead or clue here; otherwise, I can't think of another option besides to keep hanging around in this noble district for a little while longer, in the hopes of getting lucky and the killer coming to us.  For a given value of "luck," anyway.  I'm assuming that we'll be able to defeat the Stalker, but if not, that's what Fate Points are for.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Trying to cover a lot of stuff and I obviously forgot to include something.
> 
> Given the locations of all the victims premises and the heights of all the major parts of the Spire, can we anticipate a location where the Stalker might be operating from?
> Logis vs. Int 53
> [roll0]
> Going to spend my last FP on this one just in case
> [roll1]


Too many options to make a good prediction. You did cover a lot of ground, though, wow. Might take me a bit to work through all of this. 




> I'm all set, other than the Stalker business.  It'd be nice to solve the mystery if we're able.  Hopefully Anika can turn up a new lead or clue here; otherwise, I can't think of another option besides to keep hanging around in this noble district for a little while longer, in the hopes of getting lucky and the killer coming to us.  For a given value of "luck," anyway.  I'm assuming that we'll be able to defeat the Stalker, but if not, that's what Fate Points are for.


I'm conflicted. I know who the Stalker is, of course, and you've been doing a lot of good investigative stuff... well, we'll see. I'm not entirely sure where all this is going to go. Truly it was said, "no plan survives contact with the players"

----------


## rax

I've sort of lost track of the group's plans concerning the Stalker, but wasn't part of the original plan also to sit around for a while in Macharius' swanky new digs to see if the Stalker would come after him? Or is the time frame for that already passed?

----------


## Blarghy

Yeah, that's been the backup plan.  Just hoping that the killer comes to us.  Echo and his Rings would still be hanging out at the rented apartments in case that happens.  If we don't have any hard deadlines coming up, I assume we could have another week or so of off-screen downtime or something, to see if that pans out.  

But if we're just not able to puzzle through this, then I suppose that does make our other victories more meaningful.  There's not much accomplishment without a risk of failure.  Maybe we can get the reports and rumors when NPCs solve it at some point in the future.  I won't be devastated if we can't manage it ourselves, but I'm pretty curious, and the gamer in me hates to abandon a good side-quest.   :Small Tongue:

----------


## Haval

I got distracted by (redacted). I need to post about that again when I have the energy.

Otherwise I've had ooc issues that I probably should have ignored. I wanted to wait until it was appropriate for Anika to be doing things again rather then timesplitting but it meant that a lot of potential leads fall by the wayside until I get round to rereading the thread. Admittedly I was also wondering if the party was going to develop a certain way so timesplitting seemed like a particularly bad idea while Anika was there.   

Destro - The last post was an attempt to cover absolutely everything that seemed important just so I don't leave it till later again. A lot of it is very much a long shot. Don't worry about answering but at least it's in the same post now.

I think the servo skull network might be the important bit.

----------


## Leon

> that's what Fate Points are for


First Dark heresy campaign i was in Ended with a TPK and everyone burning FPs to "survive" a Valkyrie crash

----------


## rax

Bah, we're Rogue Traders now. Dying in crashes is what redshirts are for.  :Small Amused:

----------


## Haval

Rogue Trader deaths are a lot more spectacular.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Ok, got to it. This is what you're getting for now.




> I've sort of lost track of the group's plans concerning the Stalker, but wasn't part of the original plan also to sit around for a while in Macharius' swanky new digs to see if the Stalker would come after him? Or is the time frame for that already passed?


It was, but based on Anika's research and the Prognosticator, the possibility of that working seems less likely.

----------


## Haval

I think the last post suggests that the Stalker is targeting specific nobles rather then nobles in general.

Unless I shouldn't be taking Destro literally, presumably the Stalker is either able to go into other machines and delete the data or can hack them to stop them collecting the data in the first place. Either way, I feel like if we can identify how it does that we might be able to work out how to stop the Stalker disapearing on camera. 

I don't know if this approach is too vague, but tech-use in 40k is in some sense magic so maybe I can get away with it on a good enough Tech roll.

And I'm going to have Anika call Etula about her alibi on the next post because I forgot to add it.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

I'd like to wait for Rax before I respond again. This isn't a conversation I want to get too far ahead of.

----------


## rax

Regarding the Stalker investigation, the head injuries seem significant to me, especially as some of the skull puncturing was done after death. Is it possible to dig up any more information on the injuries? For instance what sort of instrument was used and were the injuries all in the same place on the victims' skulls?

----------


## Haval

> Regarding the Stalker investigation, the head injuries seem significant to me, especially as some of the skull puncturing was done after death. Is it possible to dig up any more information on the injuries? For instance what sort of instrument was used and were the injuries all in the same place on the victims' skulls?


I assume Anika has access to all the autopsy reports. Would that be a Medicae test? Certain kinds of weapon would leave certain type of injuries.

Scrutiny just in case
vs. Per 43
(1d100)[*87*]

If they're being injured in the same place would that imply that the Stalker is taking something?

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> I assume Anika has access to all the autopsy reports. Would that be a Medicae test? Certain kinds of weapon would leave certain type of injuries.
> 
> Scrutiny just in case
> vs. Per 43
> [roll0]
> 
> If they're being injured in the same place would that imply that the Stalker is taking something?


Yes, you have access to all the autopsy reports. Theresa went through them, but you don't compile a report without attaching your source data as an appendix. Reading the reports, though, the most Anika can tell is that it wasn't a sword. The Stalker doesn't seem to have been picky about where on the skull they went for - just somewhere on the top. As for what it implies? Hard to say.

----------


## Haval

Will try and get a post up tonight. Anika will pass the autopsy records over to Ravia and get someone qualified to look for a pattern.

Just want to check that they aren't all missing the same part of their brain or something.

If the Stalker is looping the security cameras, do we know enough to close that loophole so the cogitator can't do that anymore? Ideally I'd want to spread the word if it's possible. Again, this is tech-use magic so I could see it going either way.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Will try and get a post up tonight. Anika will pass the autopsy records over to Ravia and get someone qualified to look for a pattern.
> 
> Just want to check that they aren't all missing the same part of their brain or something.
> 
> If the Stalker is looping the security cameras, do we know enough to close that loophole so the cogitator can't do that anymore? Ideally I'd want to spread the word if it's possible. Again, this is tech-use magic so I could see it going either way.


Ravia could hypothetically do some science magic to, if a loop command was detected, cancel it. It would need to be done to each system you wanted it to work for, though, and you'd need physical access to set it up. You can, of course, tell people about what's happening, but there's no guarantee they'll be able to fix it themselves. 

Technically there's no guarantee Ravia can do it, but you've got Fate points and her tech use is really high. Odds are good.

----------


## rax

If the Stalker has outsourced the tech work, then that's also another lead we could try to track down. Anika's friends in low places might know if there are any local hereteks with that capability.

----------


## Haval

> Ravia could hypothetically do some science magic to, if a loop command was detected, cancel it. It would need to be done to each system you wanted it to work for, though, and you'd need physical access to set it up. You can, of course, tell people about what's happening, but there's no guarantee they'll be able to fix it themselves. 
> 
> Technically there's no guarantee Ravia can do it, but you've got Fate points and her tech use is really high. Odds are good.


Spreading the word of how to stop the Stalker hacking people's security systems would be fine as a goal even if it doesn't lead to the Stalker showing up on camera anywhere.

That one I'll leave to Leon if he wants to roll for it.

----------


## PotatoGolem

I have returned! And thus so has Macharius, from whatever fugue he was in. It seems that we may be able to bait the stalker by throwing a party, which Macharius is obviously all for.

----------


## Leon

Medicae Tn 88 (1d100)[*78*]

----------


## rax

Forbidden Lore (Xenos) test (1d100)[*94*] vs. 50 (Skilled, Talented +10) plus any bonus from Galimina?

Pre-emptive re-roll (1d100)[*91*]

...nope!

----------


## Haval

Forgot to roll this.

Does Anika known anything else about Edmund Hamsha
Inquiry vs.  Fel 47 (+10 peer military)
(1d100)[*39*]

----------


## Blarghy

You're finding some intriguing clues here!  The mystery deepens.  I wish I had some new ideas or theories to offer; I agree that talking to some hereteks seems like the best next step, but Kennoch would _hate_ the idea unless Anika plans to kill or capture them afterward.  Kennoch would be down to help with that; he'd happily lend her as many Rings as she wanted.  But I assume that Anika's underworld contacts would be reluctant to talk to her in the future, if she uses their tips to bring down useful criminals.  Presumably she's just going to talk, and I don't think Echo would be much help with that anyway.  He's a one-trick-Intimidate-pony when it comes to social matters.  But the big issue is that (especially after the Galimina business) he would be fully opposed to locating any hereteks and then letting them walk away.

More power to you, though, and I think that while you're handling that strong lead, Kennoch will go speak with Sargon.  Mainly because it's been much too long since I last posted.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Forbidden Lore (Xenos) test [roll0] vs. 50 (Skilled, Talented +10) plus any bonus from Galimina?
> 
> Pre-emptive re-roll [roll1]
> 
> ...nope!


Galimina could probably Assist, but +10 isn't going to be good enough. Hannabel doesn't recognise the readings either. 




> Forgot to roll this.
> 
> Does Anika known anything else about Edmund Hamsha
> Inquiry vs.  Fel 47 (+10 peer military)
> [roll0]


Sure. His title, Master of Ordnance, means he was an officer in charge of an artillery regiment. That means he probably never saw much direct action, but did need to have very good communication and diplomatic skills, as he would have been frequently responsible for dealing with other regiments. He probably has a baseline level of competence himself, but he clearly made a lot of friends amongst said other regiments. Quite apart from many of his guests being retired Guard, many of his household are *also* retired Guard, including the majority of his security staff and his personal bodyguard. Her name is Lt. Millicent Svard, formerly of Valhalla, and it's a well known story that she was her regiment's duelling champion for most of her career.

----------


## Haval

> You're finding some intriguing clues here!  The mystery deepens.  I wish I had some new ideas or theories to offer; I agree that talking to some hereteks seems like the best next step, but Kennoch would _hate_ the idea unless Anika plans to kill or capture them afterward.  Kennoch would be down to help with that; he'd happily lend her as many Rings as she wanted.  But I assume that Anika's underworld contacts would be reluctant to talk to her in the future, if she uses their tips to bring down useful criminals.  Presumably she's just going to talk, and I don't think Echo would be much help with that anyway.  He's a one-trick-Intimidate-pony when it comes to social matters.  But the big issue is that (especially after the Galimina business) he would be fully opposed to locating any hereteks and then letting them walk away.
> 
> More power to you, though, and I think that while you're handling that strong lead, Kennoch will go speak with Sargon.  Mainly because it's been much too long since I last posted.


It's partially the not talking to her again, partially the chance that someone might try to kill her over handing over a useful contact to the Mechanicus or the Arbites. Not that worried about her personal safety during any meetings but she can always stand behind Macharius or Almagor. 

For the record there are likely to be two sorts of heretek. If it's basically someone with Tech-Use then Anika is already that sort of person and has no interest in punishing them. If it's the worst type we can always drop some names with the Inquisition at a later date. All Anika would prefer is deniability. If Macharius would prefer to deal with them there and then that wouldn't even be a problem.

Anyway, I am trying to bring other people with me on this. If no one has a preference I'll pick someone from Destro's list.

----------


## Blarghy

I assume that Hannabel won't be joining either, but Anika, Macharius, Ravia (I'm interested to see how she interacts with the hereteks; that should be fun to follow), plus some Praetorians, sounds like a solid team to me.  I agree that a lot of "hereteks" are just people who know the skills without the proper affiliation (like Anika herself, as you say), but as we saw on Viatrames, Kennoch isn't too forgiving of that sort either.  I don't think that having him along would be productive for this particular errand; better for me to just read along and save Anika the headache of managing the self-righteous Navigator.  He should get better about that as we go further down his character arc.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Hey everyone, just a heads up, I won't be around for a few days. Going on a small family vacation, expect to be back on Friday.

----------


## Haval

> Hey everyone, just a heads up, I won't be around for a few days. Going on a small family vacation, expect to be back on Friday.


Have fun

This message is too short

----------


## rax

> I assume that Hannabel won't be joining either, but Anika, Macharius, Ravia (I'm interested to see how she interacts with the hereteks; that should be fun to follow), plus some Praetorians, sounds like a solid team to me.  I agree that a lot of "hereteks" are just people who know the skills without the proper affiliation (like Anika herself, as you say), but as we saw on Viatrames, Kennoch isn't too forgiving of that sort either.  I don't think that having him along would be productive for this particular errand; better for me to just read along and save Anika the headache of managing the self-righteous Navigator.  He should get better about that as we go further down his character arc.


 Just wait till Kennoch works out that Hannabel has Tech Use trained as well!  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Blarghy

"I should've suspected should've!"

----------


## Leon

> Hey everyone, just a heads up, I won't be around for a few days. Going on a small family vacation, expect to be back on Friday.


Ive been offline for a week and a few days with technical trouble

----------


## rax

> Ive been offline for a week and a few days with technical trouble


 Obviously Ravia is more of heretek than we thought.  :Small Wink:

----------


## Blarghy

I'm having internet issues at home too (although I still do most of my posting from work anyway, when I can, like now).  And car trouble.  And some personal things weighing on my mind.  Fortunately Kennoch is off on his own at the moment, so that shouldn't slow the rest of you down, but I'll keep up as best I can until things smooth out.

----------


## PotatoGolem

The girlfriend and I have both had the 'rona over the past couple weeks, so that's slowing me a bit. Turns out, it's not super fun. Luckily, I think we're past the worst of it now.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> The girlfriend and I have both had the 'rona over the past couple weeks, so that's slowing me a bit. Turns out, it's not super fun. Luckily, I think we're past the worst of it now.


Everyone I've talked to who's had that has said it doth sucketh, so I'm glad to hear you're doing ok now. I've managed to dodge it entirely myself, somehow, and I hope to keep it that way. 

It probably helps that I never go anywhere or do anything.

----------


## Haval

> It probably helps that I never go anywhere or do anything.


Same for the most part. I'm probably due getting it.

Glad to hear you're improving Potato.

----------


## PotatoGolem

> Everyone I've talked to who's had that has said it doth sucketh, so I'm glad to hear you're doing ok now. I've managed to dodge it entirely myself, somehow, and I hope to keep it that way. 
> 
> It probably helps that I never go anywhere or do anything.





> Same for the most part. I'm probably due getting it.
> 
> Glad to hear you're improving Potato.


Thanks guys! I think we're mostly out of it now, although I still get bursts of intense fatigue for no real reason and we're sleeping more than usual (or more tired than usual).

Sadly, we're both back to in-office four days a week, which is probably where I picked it up. Lots of people at work have been getting it recently.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Ok, so Echo is looking for some stuff that's weird, and in some places outright proscribed, and the stretch on the Dynasty's funding right now means he can't just throw money around to dredge it up. Echo also, crucially, lacks skill at negotiations and finding things. You don't have Inquiry, Evaluate, Barter, Commerce, or anything similar. Worse, you're a Voidborn Navigator. Thanks to Ill-Omened mixed with Scorn of Dirt Dwellers, you've got -15 on Fellowship tests with the locals. Anything not Fellowship based, fortunately, is only -5. You can roll Inquiry as a basic skill, but you only have a 2% chance of success. Honestly, if you passed that check, I'd say you've been so astoundingly fortunate as to stumble upon exactly what you need, but it'll still take time to do, pass or fail.

Honestly, I'm not sure how to handle this, which is why this update took me so long, and I still don't have great ideas. You could ask the crew to roll against their rating on your behalf, but then they'd all know what you're doing. You could ask Anika for help, but she's busy with the investigations. I'm open to suggestions, but Echo's skillset is really not suited to this task. The only interaction skill he's great at is Intimidate. You don't really have appropriate trade or lore skills for it, either. 

Moreover, the main thing that I can think of as a downside to the search is time. You could just say you're going to every weird curio shop in the hive, but that'd take forever. Only, 'forever' is malleable because this is a game and I haven't set any sort of time limit on how long you guys can kick about Scintilla before you need to move on. You've been here I think about a week in-game, maybe two, but even that isn't super long in terms of the timescales Rogue Trader operates on. So... how do you want to go about this? 

*And for everyone else*, how do you want to go about the rest of the investigation? What do you want out of it, how deep are you willing to dig? I really do feel bad that Ravia and Hannabel don't have all that much to do just now. I'd like to move on, but I don't want to do that before I've given you a fair chance to solve the puzzle.

----------


## rax

I'm still enjoying reading along, but I do wish I could come up with a way to crack the leads we have in the investigation. Then at least Hannabel could be useful on that front. At the moment though, I haven't got any better ideas than to do what Anika and Macharius are already doing. 

Also, I find it hilarious that there's a good chance Kennoch is being lured into using sorcery... :Small Big Grin: 

I'll give the whole situation some thought and see if I can come up with some way to contribute more actively.

----------


## Leon

Im fine, Ive been considering some things but haven't settled on anythung

----------


## Haval

Echo obviously needs to employ someone with Charm. And it's ok if it's just a little sorcery  :Small Smile: 

I'm happy enough working through the heretek list if only because it doubles as Anika making contacts. On the other hand I do feel like I'm fishing here. Anika is more interested in finding out about the Stalker's motivations then morally outraged so she could easily just leave them to it.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Also, I find it hilarious that there's a good chance Kennoch is being lured into using sorcery...


Echo can have a little bit of sorcery, as a treat.  :Small Tongue: 

Though it depends how you classify 'sorcery.' There are mechanics for it, and this does not use them. This is totally daemonology, though, and if you got an Inquisitor with a big enough stick inserted into their posterior, they wouldn't be happy about it.

----------


## Blarghy

What a wonderful turn of events that I'm sure will work out perfectly fine for everyone.  

I wasn't expecting to get anything truly tangible from meeting with Sargon, so if Echo can't make this work, then I won't be upset.  It's interesting, though, and fits well into the character arc that I want, so I'm willing to try.  I'm on the fence about whether or not he'd ask for help when he inevitably fails on his own.  If Echo thinks that what he's attempting is morally questionable (more so than taking advice from Sargon is in the first place, just on its own grounds), then he wouldn't rush to inform the rest of the crew.  Then again, if he's worried about it, he probably wouldn't try at all.  But I was under the impression that these wards were as tame as such a thing can be.  Baby Heretic's first training wheels, that sort of thing.  Sargon would surely know that he needs to ease Kennoch in slowly and carefully, and you didn't mention his advice being horrifying to Kennoch, so, I'm going to operate under the assumption that he's learning things that're restricted rather than utterly forbidden.  It's for a good cause, after all, and he will certainly never dream of going any further, no matter how convenient that might be later down the line.   :Small Big Grin: 

I'll keep thinking about this and try to get a post up tomorrow night.  That'll give you time to clarify for me just how bad of a thing Echo is being talked into attempting, and if I'm right in thinking that he could reasonably squint hard enough and pretend that he isn't doing something terrible, not _really_.  If nothing else, the Ministorum blessed charms seem like a wholesome idea, so that's a nice backup.  

Inquiry (2): (1d100)[*57*]
Reroll (might as well try it, but if I'm lucky enough to get within a degree of success, I'll spend the Fate Point that way instead): (1d100)[*62*]

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> What a wonderful turn of events that I'm sure will work out perfectly fine for everyone.  
> 
> I wasn't expecting to get anything truly tangible from meeting with Sargon, so if Echo can't make this work, then I won't be upset.  It's interesting, though, and fits well into the character arc that I want, so I'm willing to try.  I'm on the fence about whether or not he'd ask for help when he inevitably fails on his own.  If Echo thinks that what he's attempting is morally questionable (more so than taking advice from Sargon is in the first place, just on its own grounds), then he wouldn't rush to inform the rest of the crew.  Then again, if he's worried about it, he probably wouldn't try at all.  But I was under the impression that these wards were as tame as such a thing can be.  Baby Heretic's first training wheels, that sort of thing.  Sargon would surely know that he needs to ease Kennoch in slowly and carefully, and you didn't mention his advice being horrifying to Kennoch, so, I'm going to operate under the assumption that he's learning things that're restricted rather than utterly forbidden.  It's for a good cause, after all, and he will certainly never dream of going any further, no matter how convenient that might be later down the line.  
> 
> I'll keep thinking about this and try to get a post up tomorrow night.  That'll give you time to clarify for me just how bad of a thing Echo is being talked into attempting, and if I'm right in thinking that he could reasonably squint hard enough and pretend that he isn't doing something terrible, not _really_.  If nothing else, the Ministorum blessed charms seem like a wholesome idea, so that's a nice backup.  
> 
> Inquiry (2): [roll0]
> Reroll (might as well try it, but if I'm lucky enough to get within a degree of success, I'll spend the Fate Point that way instead): [roll1]


They're 'forbidden' in that they fall under Forbidden Lore skills, but your assessment is correct. This is Intro to Daemonology 101, and involves ways to keep warp things out of places where you don't want warp things, in a similar sort of manner to what the Warpsbane Hull does. It's also being presented in as non-horrifying a way as Sargon can manage. You can of course draw your own conclusions as to his motivations for doing so, but he's on the ship too, he has a vested interest in keeping the gribblies out.

----------


## Leon

Its the top of the slippery slope that doesn't seem too bad but before it gets steep

----------


## Blarghy

Slippery slopes are the best kind of slopes.  You don't even have to walk; just lie down and take a nap until you wake up at the bottom!

Thanks for bringing up the Warpsbane Hull, there.  That's a good example of something perfectly fine that would comfort Kennoch in these efforts, and perhaps keep the Captain from worrying too.  

Anyway, Echo clearly won't be able to pull this off without some help, so, hopefully Anika will ride to the rescue like she usually does.   :Small Tongue:

----------


## Haval

There's probably a thin line between using daemonology to make warp enties go away and using it to actively control them. I think Ravia might be the only one with the appropriate Lore but I'd say Anika has no reason to know that.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> There's probably a thin line between using daemonology to make warp enties go away and using it to actively control them. I think Ravia might be the only one with the appropriate Lore but I'd say Anika has no reason to know that.


It's a very thin line. Eisenhorn says hi.

----------


## Haval

> It's a very thin line. Eisenhorn says hi.


Everything's allowed until Kennoch gets a pet Daemonhost. 

If Anika gets to be the puritan somehow I'm going to be amused.

----------


## Blarghy

If he does get a Daemonhost, I'm curious how anybody would convince or force him to give it up.   :Small Eek:   But yes, Eisenhorn has been an influence on my ideas, even if I knew the basic character arc I wanted long before I read those books.  40k is a great setting for exploring tragic heroes, hubris and hypocrisy, and cruel choices with no easy options.  Navigators also have the theme of degrading over time, as they collect mutations and the Warp grinds them down; I picked this career partly for that symbolism.  So I'm excited about where all this could lead.  

In the mean time, I'm not sure about Ravia either, but my impression is that Sargon is going to provide the Forbidden Lore here, and we just have to collect the stuff for it.  




> You don't have Inquiry, Evaluate, Barter, Commerce, or anything similar.


Those skills are all Anika's specialty, so that was my thinking.  I guess I could hire an NPC to do this sort of thing for Kennoch, but I'd kinda rather not; I like having minions in a game like this, but I don't want to start taking the jobs of other characters.  This is the work that Seneschals do.  However, if Anika's too busy to see to this herself, maybe she could loan Echo her assistant?  Whose name I can't remember and who doesn't seem to be marked on Anika's sheet, that I can see.  In return he could loan her some of his Rings to monitor the hereteks she's visiting.  He's got a whole bunch of them just hanging around the ship now, they're a bit better than the regular marines, and they specialize in stealth.  She just might want to be vague about the nature of these targets, or else Echo might order his guards to arrange some unfortunate accidents for them, in an attempt to ease his guilt over Galimina.

----------


## Leon

Depends which FL you need

----------


## Haval

> Depends which FL you need


Daemonology probably. Maybe Warp.

Theresa is Anika's assistant and I'll get around to adding her to the sheet.

Happy to have Anika roll whatever to get materials. Mostly looking for an opportunity to assess how unusual the materials are.

----------


## Leon

need to up Warp to trained at some point so not good on that but the rest i know, My Interrogator would be useful here, she is well versed on Daemonology

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Daemonology probably. Maybe Warp.
> 
> Theresa is Anika's assistant and I'll get around to adding her to the sheet.
> 
> Happy to have Anika roll whatever to get materials. Mostly looking for an opportunity to assess how unusual the materials are.


Daemonology is correct. The materials on Echo's list are fairly unusual, often highly specific, but not actually illegal. With the right contacts, and Anika's skillset, you have a much better chance of finding them than Echo does. Go ahead and roll.

----------


## Haval

Long as its not fresh blood or something similar  :Small Smile: 

Inquiry if needed
Vs. Fel 47 (+10 Peer Underworld) [+10 if Etiquette)
(1d100)[*49*]

Commerce vs. Fel 47 (Commerce +20) (Peer Academics or Underworld +10) (if Etiquette +10)
(1d100)[*96*]

Barter vs. Fel 47 (+10 if Peer) (+10 if Etiquette)
(1d100)[*38*]

----------


## Destro_Yersul

As if you'd need to buy that when the ship has so much of it readily available. 

I'll get an update up for you guys Soon(tm). I've picked up a bunch of overtime shifts over the next few weeks, and there's a lot of family birthdays in this part of the year, so the demands on my time are currently experiencing higher call volume than usual.

----------


## Leon

> As if you'd need to buy that when the ship has so much of it readily available.


unless it needs to be noble blood, which is getting around a lot on planet

----------


## Blarghy

Thule might be a red herring, or maybe not.  I'm leaning toward that being the name we'll need the most.  'Course, I'll also have fun seeing how the other hereteks are depicted, even if they aren't important to the mystery at hand.  But maybe we're narrowing the search, which is exciting!

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> An eight-pointed star like from an old-world compass, with four long arms running up/down and left/right, and four shorter diagonal arms, was tattooed on his chin.


Seems pretty sus. Does Echo know about this?  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Blarghy

Oh, did I accidentally stumble over a heretical symbol?   :Small Red Face:   I just made up a detail to give the NPC some personality.  I was thinking about sailing themes and a compass came to mind.  

This guy _can_ be shady, if that helps the story.  He's just one of the newcomers Echo hired at the Lathes outpost, then chosen at random to help Anika.  Echo very likely never saw the tattoo.  If Haval wants a new friend who's, ah, morally flexible, then we could lean into that and keep him around (assuming she doesn't send him on any suicide missions).  Or I can edit the tattoo to something else if it's too weird.

If it's not just suspicious, but _outright_ heretical, then I should change it at least a little bit, because only an idiot would reveal something like that to Anika without a reason to think she'd be ok with it.  I doubt he'd have survived at the Lathes with a genuine mark of Chaos stamped on his face.  How bad is it, do you think?

...Aha.  Could've saved myself some trouble if I'd spent a minute on Google, hm?  Yeah, that's rather embarrassing.  If it helps, I'm picturing something like THIS without the letters, so it's...not _identical_ to the usual Chaos Star that I'm seeing.  Would that matter?  Would the average Imperium citizen see a distinction?  

In any case, now I feel rather silly.   :Small Yuk:   Does anybody mind if I change it to something else?

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Just a joke. The chaos symbol is commonly described as an eight-pointed star, while what you're describing is a compass rose. It's completely different, it's just the choice of wording. Feel free to change it, though.

----------


## rax

Yeescompletely different. No resemblance at all, no siree.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Well, ok, there's resemblance. It's just unintenional resemblance. Now, will that matter to an overzealous Witch Hunter? Probably not. But I get what you were going for.

----------


## Haval

Didn't realise it was a Michael Moorcock thing first, but I suppose it makes sense

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbol_of_Chaos

----------


## rax

In the early days, Chaos and Law were co-equal forces and the entire setup pretty much a carbon copy of Moorcock's ideas.

----------


## Blarghy

I decided to change the tattoo to a scar; I figure that it's pretty unlikely someone in this setting would get that kind of mark, so.  If it was only a reference to some criminal or anarchy group within the Imperium, I'd roll with it, but even a vague resemblance to Chaos symbols is probably inappropriate.  On the other hand, I've learned that a compass rose is an actual _thing_.  Before, I just thought it was a nifty design, but nope, apparently there's history and philosophy buried in there.  Pretty cool.  

I'm also gonna reroll that Int check, which should drop me down to one Fate Point left this day.  

FP Intelligence: (1d100)[*11*]

----------


## Blarghy

Hm, quick thing, since this only now occurred to me.




> 'Fine' Anika assents to being guarded.


I'm not sure if Anika (or Haval) is annoyed here, but to clarify, I didn't mean to be pushy in the previous post.  I imagine that any security person would cringe at hearing their client say the phrase "I can normally look after myself," and the Rings are learning policies meant for protecting Navigators, who're rare and squishy.  Kennoch in particular is less independent than Anika.  I also don't want to get in the way of her doing cool and exciting things, in or out of combat.  These NPCs will act as she instructs, even if she wants them to stand aside while she does something they think is dangerously unwise.  

Maybe she could order them to only jump in front of her if somebody pulls out a flamethrower.   :Small Wink:

----------


## Leon

> Navigators, who're rare and squishy.


Sargon is ahead of the curve here, coming prepacked in a nice safe display tank

----------


## Haval

I'm fine with it. Anika objects to having her independence undermined and because having bodyguards makes her feel like an actual noble. Plus, she does not trust them  :Small Tongue:  Them being worried about her response would only be appropriate.

Out of character she is probably more squishy then most of the rest of the party so this isn't the worst idea. I don't think Destro would try to kill her on purpose, but we can let someone with better armour go first.

----------


## Blarghy

> Sargon is ahead of the curve here, coming prepacked in a nice safe display tank


It's part of his charm, and a good thing for him too, because Echo's other guestroom is a stasis cage.  




> Plus, she does not trust them


I'd be insulted otherwise.   :Small Big Grin:   That's cool for the time being; there's friction in the command staff itself too, so, it stands to reason.  But in the future, when Kennoch is better-integrated and stops being so salty about Galimina, I'm hoping things will settle down and the Rings can become more of a communal resource.  My plan is to eventually split them up into smaller guildhalls on our ships and waystations and use them for sneaky background endeavors, when they're not actively capturing Renegade Navis for Kennoch.  Anika doesn't seem all that interested in building a spy network for herself, but if she ever changes her mind, or needs to do that sort of thing temporarily, then I'd be happy to share.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> It's part of his charm, and a good thing for him too, because Echo's other guestroom is a stasis cage.


I'm not ashamed to admit that Sargon is in a tank at least partly _because_ you have stasis cages

----------


## Haval

Not in public anyway.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

mostly done with Echo's bit, for now. Still a lot of conversation to get through, though, I think.

----------


## rax

A Jokaero, eh? The prospect of meeting one of them might just be enough to draw Hannabel out from her safe place... :Small Smile:

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Anika doesn't know a ton about Jokaero, beyond the obvious. They're Xenos, so around the Imperium they're not common, but they're extremely useful and relatively harmless so the Imperium hasn't invested a ton into getting rid of them. On a planet like Scintilla they'd be very hard to come by. Maybe there's a few sequestered somewhere in the Tricorn palace, _maybe_ one hiding out in the underhive somewhere, but they'd be really hard to find. They're also really hard to keep contained, as they tend to invent their way out of cages. Examples of their work are easier to come by, for certain definitions of easier, but very expensive. The Kasballica would probably be able to scrounge it up for her, or someone else with an interest in the Cold Trade.

----------


## Haval

I'm assuming it might be more of a partnership. As in, 'stay here and build things and I'll feed and pay you.' Or if not, we have to find out if any of them speak Gothic or keep records of anyone they might have built for.

Does Anika know anyone that might have brought live xenos to Scintilla
Forbidden Lore vs. Int 53 (+10 Talented FL Xenos)
(1d100)[*66*]

Edit - maybe passed if Ravia is assisting 

I'm thinking that either the Stalker has a Jokaero somewhere in which case they may have got it through the Cold Trade or the Jokaero does work for people in the know and it's still worth looking at Cold Traders.

----------


## Leon

Sure will assist.
Would love to meet a Jokero

----------


## PotatoGolem

Maybas well see is Macharius knows anything about Jokaero. FL Xenos vs 48 (1d100)[*15*]

Edit: 3 degrees of success! I guess the dynasty had one, or someone he grew up with did?

----------


## Blarghy

Hmmm.




> *Party*
> 
> The signals weren't any sort of reading Anika recognised, which ruled out almost all of the more common exotic xenos pets, and a lot of the uncommon ones. *This was something else, something new or at least very rare, and it was... strange, to say the least.* There would have been trouble enough pinpointing it with thick walls and all manner of electrical wiring around, some of it very old, but on top of that there seemed to be something about the signal that Anika couldn't quite compensate for. Sometimes, the auspex would spit out an error message and just stop seeing it... whatever_ it_ was. Anika was out of time, though. Another guest had started knocking on the door insistently.


I'm just gonna leave this here.

----------


## Haval

Well that's awkward

----------


## rax

Clearly, Anika needs to stop by and ask to use the bathroom again.  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Maybas well see is Macharius knows anything about Jokaero. FL Xenos vs 48 [roll0]
> 
> Edit: 3 degrees of success! I guess the dynasty had one, or someone he grew up with did?


Possibly, as an extremely useful Xenos species for a Rogue Trader to know about, Jokaero were included in his education? Whatever the case, Macharius knows a lot about them. They're similar in appearance to orangutans, and possess an innate understanding of technology. They may have been created by the Old Ones, though arguments as to their origin dominate a lot of the discourse about them. Given that their capabilities with tech are instinctive, and the tendency to make strange or seemingly random modifications instead of what might be actually useful, there's also debate as to what level of intelligence they possess. That's all academic. 

Macharius also knows they can build spaceships, and that these spaceships work unlike most, altering their position in space by altering the physical shape of the polyhedral vessel. Despite this, and their genius for weaponry, they don't seem to have any goals beyond survival. They travel in large family groups, taking whatever they might need and then running away. They don't like combat, and if they have to fight, prefer ranged attacks. They can build their way out of nearly any situation, given a few supplies, and so capturing them is often a fool's errand - they'll build what they need to escape, rather than whatever you want. That said, they have been known to trade with the Imperium, and if you can keep one happy it will cheerfully stick around making all kinds of modifications to things you give it. The Inquisition has been known to keep Jokaero in this way.

----------


## Haval

> Clearly, Anika needs to stop by and ask to use the bathroom again.


Obviously she left her phone in there.

I suppose I could have a moment of realisation and ask to see the Jokaero just to see what happens. 

Otherwise what do I need to roll to talk to a Cold Trader? Can continue meeting with Hereteks anyway but the Jokaero must have got here somehow. I'd prefer to talk to someone about it who won't lie to Anika's face. Otherwise, I suppose there's using the Rings to break in and check but that's a last resort.

----------


## Leon

Away till the weekend

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> She? Macharius raises an eyebrow. Do you have an indication that the Stalker is a woman?


Everyone does. Unless I forgot to tell you that? In every picture, grainy and indistinct though they may be, the Stalker is a specifically feminine shape. It's why Etula Hax, a woman, was suspect numero uno in the opinions of many.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Ah, maybe I forgot then. I'll delete the response

----------


## Haval

Macharius has a jump pack doesn't he? 

I don't know if even using it here is a good idea. Maybe he's just crash into the walls.

----------


## rax

Would he have been wandering around the hive with the jump pack on? They're kinda monstrously bulky and conspicuous...

----------


## Haval

That's true. It might attract attention. Anika has a clip harness but I'd say it's not a fool proof solution if you don't have the climb skill.

Maybe this is something that can be operated by utility servo skull.

----------


## Leon

When you find the Jokero get it to make you a compact Jumppack

----------


## Destro_Yersul

All hail the quick drop harness. Anyone going to volunteer, or do you want a praetorian to do it?

----------


## Blarghy

> I don't know if we want to leave a rear guard but I'll leave that for others to decide.


I definitely recommend that Anika orders a team of Rings to stay behind.  My two theories here are either that A) Thule has set a trap for us, or B) Thule is dead because the Stalker knows we're onto her and killed her pet heretek to cover her tracks and is using him as bait for a trap for us.  Either way, somebody should cover the retreat, or at least make sure that an enemy can't come behind you and drop heavy things down on your heads while you're descending.

----------


## Haval

> I definitely recommend that Anika orders a team of Rings to stay behind.  My two theories here are either that A) Thule has set a trap for us, or B) Thule is dead because the Stalker knows we're onto her and killed her pet heretek to cover her tracks and is using him as bait for a trap for us.  Either way, somebody should cover the retreat, or at least make sure that an enemy can't come behind you and drop heavy things down on your heads while you're descending.


Let's do that. If they don't have a way of seeing in the dark Anika will lend one of them her preysense goggles.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Can I get some Awareness rolls from the lower level folks?

----------


## Blarghy

Yeah, this is a great sign already.   :Small Tongue:   I'm assuming you don't want me to roll five times for each of the individual nameless rank-and-file Rings, so I've done one roll for Granos and another for his subordinates, since they have different Characteristics.  Hopefully that's fine.

Granos Awareness (50): (1d100)[*44*]
Team Awareness (40): (1d100)[*88*]

----------


## rax

...Ze plot thickens!  :Small Cool:

----------


## Haval

Everyone feel free to make suggestions. Assuming the Stalker isn't actually still here.

If the Stalker killed Thule before we talked to him that does suggest that the Stalker knows about us.

----------


## Leon

[QUOTE=Haval;25605751](or Ravia for that matter), 'Do any of you happen to have medicae training? It would be nice to have a professional opinion on how long ago this happened.'

If you send her a nice high quality pic feed maybe or are willing to wait for however long it will take to come down

----------


## Haval

[QUOTE=Leon;25605760]


> (or Ravia for that matter), 'Do any of you happen to have medicae training? It would be nice to have a professional opinion on how long ago this happened.'
> 
> If you send her a nice high quality pic feed maybe or are willing to wait for however long it will take to come down


Might as well. That was a terrible Scrutiny roll. But it's not that important. Maybe we can borrow a Verispex Adept for that sort of thing.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Everyone feel free to make suggestions. Assuming the Stalker isn't actually still here.
> 
> If the Stalker killed Thule before we talked to him that does suggest that the Stalker knows about us.


You haven't exactly been subtle. You are, however, pretty sure the Stalker isn't still here. First of all, it would be kinda weird for them to kill the dude and then hang around waiting long past the point that all the blood dried. Second, and perhaps more importantly, your auspex didn't pick up any lifesigns.

----------


## Blarghy

Let's definitely get Ravia down here.  She's the best suited to study both Thule and his lab.  And then let's comb over this place as thoroughly as we possibly can.  Can you "take 20" in Rogue Trader?  I think it's safe to assume that Thule wasn't just one of the names on the Stalker's list, but rather, was helping her.  Which means we _are_ on the right track--and that she might not be able to keep fooling the hive's security measures.  So this could still be a good thing.  

Hopefully there's a clue in the lab.  I think that's our best bet.  If we can't find anything, then at that point, all I can think of is for Anika to go back to her Red String Board and keep talking to nobles.  Or we could revisit the Kindjal estate to find that mysterious xeno, and hope that it's the Jokaero.  Hell, I'm down for leveraging your goodwill with Etula to present our slim evidence to Hax and get permission to outright storm the manor with Praetorians and Rings.  I'm sure we'll find _something_ incriminating, even if it isn't the Stalker.  We might wanna hustle out of the sector afterward to avoid the fallout, but, I'm willing if the rest of you are.  If you're not, then we could finally be out of options to progress with the mystery.  *shrug*  At least we'll have given it our best try.

But giving the lab a very, very detailed search and pointing Ravia at it seems like the safest options to me at the moment.

----------


## Haval

Just being paranoid. Feel like something like this was always likely. Maybe a Rogue Trader is too big a target to go after just in case we know the Stalker's name.

I would like more then circumstantial evidence to get the KIndjal's raided but I'm ok to do that if we can't dig anything up here.

----------


## Leon

On the Scale of Like Rogue Traders ~ Our Inquisition Team who is pretending to be a Rogue Trader, have just flown down to a former imperial world and have crashed into a lake of what's been discovered to be blood. The heavy lander is upside down and leaking (its why we know its warp blood)

We had the option to order Extermintus on the world and are now thinking that was a smart suggestion by the Captain with Hindsight

----------


## PotatoGolem

Sorry about that, got unexpectedly busy and had issues with my email (not the gianitp notification system, for once!)

----------


## Haval

> On the Scale of Like Rogue Traders ~ Our Inquisition Team who is pretending to be a Rogue Trader, have just flown down to a former imperial world and have crashed into a lake of what's been discovered to be blood. The heavy lander is upside down and leaking (its why we know its warp blood)
> 
> We had the option to order Extermintus on the world and are now thinking that was a smart suggestion by the Captain with Hindsight


I'm sure it's fine  :Small Smile: 




> Sorry about that, got unexpectedly busy and had issues with my email (not the gianitp notification system, for once!)


I figured. Long as it's not just me making decisions.

----------


## Blarghy

Ok, so, just skimmed some bits of the Rogue Trader rulebook in a rush before work, and it looks like searching the lab could be an Investigation challenge?  Destro, how do you want to go about this?  I don't think Ravia has Search as a trained skill.  Do you think it makes sense for the Rings to have it?  Either way, I want them to leave no stone unturned until we either find a clue or run out of time.  Can't stay down here forever, I suppose, and eventually somebody else is bound to come poking around and word'll drift back to the Arbites.  But while we have control over this crime scene, I intend to make the most of it.  I'm willing to have the two teams of Rings rotate out so they can rest, if that's what it takes.  Hell, if necessary, Echo can send down a dozen more teams, although that might attract more attention from the hive.

What should I roll?  How many rolls will you let me make?

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Today's my birthday, so I am spending it with my family. I will have an update for you either later on, or tomorrow.

----------


## Haval

Happy Birthday.

----------


## Leon

Happy Birthday

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Took a look through the rulebook, and the way they've set this up (Search is actually an Exploration skill), I think an Exploration challenge would be more appropriate. So!

If you want to take a quick look around, grab anything that looks interesting or relevant, you can just roll a single Search check. The Rings could do that, I figure covert ops type training probably includes 'find hidden stuff.' 

If you want to go over the entire workshop with a fine-tooth comb, catalogue everything you collect, and haul it all back for analysis or what have you, that sounds like an Exploration Challenge might be more appropriate. In which case, I think the Rings shouldn't be able to help beyond assisting, or maybe a single search check, since.. well, they're sort of equipment, in terms of the game? They aren't full PCs, and they aren't aware of the fine details of the investigation and what you might be looking for.

----------


## rax

Happy Birthday! 

I have a suspicion that the Stalker may be trying to cover up more than Thule's assistance in her B&E endeavours. Doing a proper investigation might turn up something useful and Hannabel might even be persuaded to come down to check things out...

----------


## Haval

Does anyone have Search?

----------


## Destro_Yersul

It's basic, so you can all at least roll it. Other Exploration skills might also apply if you go for the 'tear the place apart' option

----------


## Blarghy

> Happy Birthday.





> Happy Birthday





> Happy Birthday!


What they said.




> If you want to go over the entire workshop with a fine-tooth comb, catalogue everything you collect, and haul it all back for analysis or what have you, that sounds like an Exploration Challenge might be more appropriate. In which case, I think the Rings shouldn't be able to help beyond assisting, or maybe a single search check, since.. well, they're sort of equipment, in terms of the game? They aren't full PCs, and they aren't aware of the fine details of the investigation and what you might be looking for.


Yep, this is what I want.  




> Does anyone have Search?


Just checked, and nope!   :Small Sigh:   Echo has the best Perception by a wide margin, so I guess he's coming back down to the planet with Ravia and Hannabel if she's willing as well.  If everyone will please Assist, along with the Rings and even the Praetorians, then hopefully we can brute-force our way through this.  

I'll start with five rolls and keep going if Destro allows and says that it's necessary.  

Search (27+hopefully a lot of Assist bonuses): (1d100)[*53*]
Search (27): (1d100)[*9*]
Search (27): (1d100)[*92*]
Search (27): (1d100)[*3*]
Search (27): (1d100)[*57*]

----------


## Blarghy

> Other Exploration skills might also apply if you go for the 'tear the place apart' option


Yes please, if anybody can think of options.  I feel like Ravia should be able to use her Tech-y skills _somehow_.  

I'll use all of Echo's Fate Points for this day to reroll the first, third, and last rolls, mostly to just try lowering the degrees of failure, in case that matters.  I'm hoping rolls two and four are good enough to get some progress if the others just don't counterbalance them.

Search 1 (27): (1d100)[*24*]
Search 3 (27): (1d100)[*74*]
Search 5 (27): (1d100)[*77*]

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Strictly speaking, with a Challenge like this you're only supposed to roll once each per skill. So I'll take that Fate point for Echo's first roll, but you can keep the others. 24 is a pass, with a degree for assistance from the Rings. Technically you're supposed to have training in a skill to assist, but for basic skills I think I can count it, so we'll give you one more assist from the Praetorians. Neither the Rings nor the Praetorians may assist with anyone else's checks, though. You have accrued 2 degrees of success towards the challenge.

For reference, Exploration skills are Awareness, Search, Security, Survival, Tech-Use, Tracking, and Trade - though that last one I'd need a pretty good reason how it's applicable. There's also Navigation, but that one wouldn't apply here. And before you go off rolling all of them you can, keep in mind that failures make the next test harder and reduce your overall chance of success.

----------


## Leon

> if you go for the 'tear the place apart' option


So finish what the stalker started eh

----------


## Haval

> It's basic, so you can all at least roll it. Other Exploration skills might also apply if you go for the 'tear the place apart' option


I keep rolling badly when it matters. Happy with going over the place really closely though.

Anika could roll Awareness and Tech Use with TN 53 but is outclassed by Echo and Ravia in each. I could roll security as well but she's less good at that so I'll leave it till later if it's needed.

Going to hold off rolling for a bit as the order seems to matter.

----------


## Blarghy

> So finish what the stalker started eh


But with finesse!

Echo is much better at Awareness, so I'll certainly roll that if it's allowed.

Awareness (74): (1d100)[*51*]

I'll boost that with a second Fate Point for an additional degree of success.  If Ravia will go for Tech-Use with Anika's assistance, maybe that'll finish the job.  If not, then let's see what else we can scrape together at that point.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Happy birthday! Macharius is not much use here, other than offering his 10% bonus through general pep and managerial oversight.

----------


## Haval

Awareness vs. Per 43 (Awareness +10)
(1d100)[*82*]

It was worth a try

----------


## Leon

Tech Use (1d100)[*64*] Tn 93

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Ok, so Echo got 2 degrees then 3 degrees, then Anika failed by 1 because success makes the next check easier, then Ravia passed by 2 with Anika's assist, because failure makes the next check harder. I'll toss Macharius' +10 on somewhere for an extra degree, meaning you now have 7. That's enough to pass the challenge. Write up in a bit.

----------


## rax

Ruh-roh, Raggy!  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Haval

I'm sure it's fine.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

There's no test to disconnect the datastacks - you turn them off and unplug them, it's easy for anyone remotely aware of how they work - but they're rather bulky. You can only carry one at a time, and you'll need a way to relay them up the ladder.

----------


## Blarghy

> You can only carry one at a time, and you'll need a way to relay them up the ladder.


Does it seem possible for Anika to wrap one in her long coat, tie that securely to the drop harness, and have it reeled up to the top of the ladder?  A Ring can grab the stack and start running, then the next in line can drop the coat back down and repeat the process (while Anika and Ravia are preparing the next stack in the mean time; if we can scrounge up a second coat or something similar to it, then that's even more efficient).  Get kind of an assembly line going.  Depending on how many datastacks there are, the Praetorians could be needed too.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> Does it seem possible for Anika to wrap one in her long coat, tie that securely to the drop harness, and have it reeled up to the top of the ladder?  A Ring can grab the stack and start running, then the next in line can drop the coat back down and repeat the process (while Anika and Ravia are preparing the next stack in the mean time; if we can scrounge up a second coat or something similar to it, then that's even more efficient).  Get kind of an assembly line going.  Depending on how many datastacks there are, the Praetorians could be needed too.


Sure, that seems reasonable. Make it a much easier check to avoid damaging them, and I'll put it as Agility rather than Strength.

----------


## Haval

Under the circumstances there wouldn't be a way to tell which of the data stacks might be useful so we'll have to take the closest first.

Anika doesn't have good Ag but will donate her coat.

----------


## Blarghy

I'd kinda rather that someone with Fate Points does this, but if Anika doesn't want to, then I suppose Granos will give it his best try.  

Agility (50): (1d100)[*36*]

----------


## Haval

> I'd kinda rather that someone with Fate Points does this, but if Anika doesn't want to, then I suppose Granos will give it his best try.  
> 
> Agility (50): [roll0]


I haven't had fate points for a while, but good roll.

----------


## PotatoGolem

I may have felt somewhat foolish carrying around two personal flying apparatuses this whole time, but now it works!

----------


## Destro_Yersul

This surely isn't important: (1d100)[*57*]

Alright, so you've got some things to put together. Feel free to roll a skill you think is relevant to analyze the data you've recovered.

----------


## Haval

Not a good roll. May need someone else to have a go.

----------


## Blarghy

Welp, I'll be using my last FP to reroll that.

Trade (Remembrancer) (51): (1d100)[*25*]

Also, I recommend that Ravia tries Tech-Use and Logic, and Anika takes all this data and shoves it into her Prognosticator and hopes for the best.  Beyond that, I'm not sure what else would be appropriate.   :Small Confused:

----------


## rax

Ahem! There's our friendly neighbourhood AI waltzing about the ship as well. With Anika's and Hannabel's guidance, she might be able to sort through the material in the datastacks in a jiffy.

----------


## Haval

> Ahem! There's our friendly neighbourhood AI waltzing about the ship as well. With Anika's and Hannabel's guidance, she might be able to sort through the material in the datastacks in a jiffy.


Let's go with that. Feel like it should be a matter of how long it'll take to assess everything.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Using Galimina will certainly speed the process up. She thinks a lot faster than most people.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

If uding Galimina is something you want to do, by the way, I need someone to suggest it in-character. I don't necessarily want to write updates based on ooc planning that has not yet been made concrete.

----------


## rax

You okay with Hannabel being well enough in the loop to be able to suggest it?

----------


## Haval

Meant to go back to this. I'll get something up today if Rax doesn't get there first.

----------


## rax

> Meant to go back to this. I'll get something up today if Rax doesn't get there first.


 Knock yourself out. It would feel less contrived if Anika calls Hannabel to let her know what's gone down and either tells her to get Galimina ready for some work or Hannabel comes up with the idea herself once she knows what you've been up to. Either is fine with me.

----------


## rax

Sorry for not replying IC yet. Hannabel is at a crossroads here, I think. Does she come clean to Anika or does she keep trying to find inventive ways to drop hints?  :Small Smile: 

At any rate, I've had a busy weekend, so I've only been able to write short IC posts in the games I'm in. This warrants something more, I think. Aiming to get an IC reply up tomorrow evening.

----------


## Haval

:Small Big Grin: 

I think the trouble is that the truth, at least as far as I understand it from from Hannabal's origin path, is a little unbelievable.

Although that reminds me that I should try to work out Aurica Kindjal family tree. I don't think the niece's name has come up yet.

Trying to build a seperate red string board on the Kindjals. Either by asking Theresa to help Anika research the matter, or by calling Anika's mum. Ideally looking for knowledge of any and all children that she's known to have had. Legitimate or not.

Scholastic Lore (Archaic) if it helps
vs. Int 53
(1d100)[*12*]

Or Inquiry for possible noble gossip
vs. Fel 47 (+10 Peer Nobility)
(1d100)[*21*]

----------


## Destro_Yersul

Couple things. First thing: I don't have much to add to the IC right now. I will however, give you a bunch of stuff for all those rolls. 

Which leads me to the second thing. I don't know if it's come up, but Rogue Trader canonically takes place in 816.M41, and Calixis/Koronus are on the far side of the Eye of Terror. Timey-wimeyness is of course possible, but all of the events concerning the Fall of Cadia haven't happened yet, and won't happen for almost two hundred years. Cawl, of course, has been around since the Heresy (which is a bit silly) so he's certainly around now, but Primaris Marines and whatnot are a long way off. Never mind that the 13th Black Crusade has technically happened twice, possibly more times, and that I can wave my hand at just about anything and go 'The Warp Though' and that explains it. 

All this is to say, if you get less than you were expecting concerning Cawl, that's why. Time has passed since the start of the game, I've not been tracking it especially diligently, but you're probably somewhere in 817 at most. Anyways. Things Anika knows:

*Spoiler: Cawl*
Show

Cawl was born on Mars, and frequently went against the dogma of the Mechanicum, which even then felt that maintaining was better than innovation. Cawl was a true scientist, and felt that the pursuit of invention was the true quest for knwoledge. Cawl was briefly captured during the Heresy by the forces of chaos, but managed to kill his captor and escape. He worked with quite a few big names from back then, including the Primarch Guilliman, and was entrusted with some of Guilliman's own relics in the event of the Primarch's death. He has appeared a few times since then, persisting in life somehow despite being far older than ordinary augmentation and juvenat treatments would ever allow, and nobody really knows how many projects and secret labs he's got, but it's a lot of them. He once ventured into the Eye of Terror itself, and has invented or rediscovered numerous technologies, but nobody has heard anything from him for quite a while, and there are those who suspect he may finally have died. 

If he is dead, it's a true loss of knowledge to humanity. Cawl was a genius, and knew more about genetic augmentation and biology than most would ever learn. Ravia might know more of his specific accomplishments, this being her particular field of study as well, but at present even Ravia couldn't claim to approach Cawl's level of experience and expertise.


*Spoiler: Kindjals*
Show

The family tree is old, and presumably quite large. It is a Matrilineal house, led by one lady or another for centuries now. Anika hasn't heard of any really important men from the line, at least not recently. Used to be there were more of them, but for the past several hundred years at least most of the House's accomplishments have been due to the current Matriarch of the family. Noble houses being what they were, there are scores upon scores of distant relations scattered all across the various sectors.. or, there should be, anyways. The more recent matriarchs seem to have kept a tighter lid on illegitimate children, and the family has been mostly daughters, fathered by a succession of consorts. It's difficult to say what the further flung branches of the family have been doing since then, but Lady Aurica's last husband has been dead for years, and she herself too advanced in age to bear children for a while now. Juvenat treatments only go so far. 

there have been few scandals, and all of them have been clamped down on pretty quickly, but the gossip circuit of course has a few interesting tidbits. Lady Aurica has been known to fund research initiatives, and one of her chosen researchers got busted by the Inquisition for illicit activity a few years ago. The Lady was cleared of any wrongdoing, but the whispers that she knew about the research had persisted, here and there, more as a topic of novelty than anything else. There were countless rumours of her involvement in all manner of unsavoury things, but nothing ever concrete. The most recent topic was, appropriately, the cold trade. Apparently she'd taken an interest in Xenos art objects, and discretely funded a few expeditions - again, nothing that could actually be traced to her, just the meeting of a few associated parties at opportune times. Enough to be intriguing, but not enough to be worth the Inquisition or anyone else bothering with, especially given a decided lack of any physical evidence. She's met with plenty enough Rogue Traders over the years, who knows where all they've been. All manner of interesting destinations have made the rounds: Rune, Vaporius, the Halo Stars, Silverhammer... even beyond the Rifts of Hecaton, which is clearly ludicrous.

----------


## rax

My mention of Cawl was to get the discussion on track to talk about his unnatural longevity. Primaris Space Marines don't exist and never will. Cadia doesn't fall and Dark Eldar are just a fancy name for Eldar pirates. So there!  :Small Big Grin:

----------


## Haval

Yeah, I suppose I could have given myself a large penalty for that roll. I figured knowing that he was a Tech Priest was reasonable.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> My mention of Cawl was to get the discussion on track to talk about his unnatural longevity. Primaris Space Marines don't exist and never will. Cadia doesn't fall and Dark Eldar are just a fancy name for Eldar pirates. So there!


It's 816. _technically_, you guys could kill Abaddon and make that true.

----------


## rax

> Yeah, I suppose I could have given myself a large penalty for that roll. I figured knowing that he was a Tech Priest was reasonable.


 You want Hannabel to reply IC, or do you want to get in some more questions first based on the info above?

----------


## PotatoGolem

> It's 816. _technically_, you guys could kill Abaddon and make that true.


I'm sure we can take him, right? We narrowly defeated 3 orks, how much tougher can Abbadon really be?

----------


## rax

Probably like...4 Orks?

----------


## Leon

Fix the ship to at least be mobile and significantly armoured at least on the prow, find Abaddon's ship ~ confirm he is on it and then ram it and unshackle the warpcore

----------


## Haval

> You want Hannabel to reply IC, or do you want to get in some more questions first based on the info above?


Expanded the post a bit

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> I'm sure we can take him, right? We narrowly defeated 3 orks, how much tougher can Abbadon really be?


Well I don't have stats for him, but it can't be that bad. The man has no arms. 




> Fix the ship to at least be mobile and significantly armoured at least on the prow, find Abaddon's ship ~ confirm he is on it and then ram it and unshackle the warpcore


That just punts him into the warp, and he's best bros with all four of the chaos gods, no guarantee that kills him.

----------


## Leon

Just the Plasma core then and have made sure to stock the ship with all the torperdos we can fit into it

----------


## PotatoGolem

> Well I don't have stats for him, but it can't be that bad. The man has no arms.


Crap, he's immune to being disarmed! And he doesn't have an off-hand! He may even be a 5 or 6 ork challenge

----------


## rax

On a business trip from today through Wednesday and just arrived at my hotel. Looking to post IC tomorrow so as not to hold things up too much, but no guarantees.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

I have come down with a cold, or something similar. Still here, just feeling very under the weather. Just waiting on you guys to come up with a plan forwards.

----------


## Haval

Hope you feel better. I have a dentist appointment to go to, but I'll get a post up after that.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Sorry, I'll try to post tomorrow as well
 Yesterday was busy with Thanksgiving, and our dog got super sick today, so it's been a bit hectic

----------


## Blarghy

I think it's pretty unlikely that the Stalker knows someone is closing in on her--to the point that she's covering her tracks at the expense of killing her own allies--but wouldn't also know that it's us.  So if she walks into a trap, I suspect it'll be because she thinks it's really a trap for _us_, and she's got a damn good chance of being right.  We're not really a party of warriors in this sense; pirate-killing masters of ship-to-ship combat, sure, but our track record of person-to-person brawling isn't so inspiring.  Macharius is our only frontline fighter.  Does Potato want to tank for us against this killing machine?  The fight would be him and Hannabel doing most of the work, while the rest of us pitch in as we can.  Unless our plan is to try to bury her under waves of Praetorians and Rings until she suffocates under the weight of their corpses.  

It's a fun plan--maybe horribly unsafe, but still fun--so I'm not voting against it.  Just pointing out that we might be permanently burning some Fate Points by the end.  

Option two, as I see it, is to turn over all of Thule's data to the authorities and let them pick through it to draw their own conclusions eventually.  This is less fun but a whole lot safer.  I don't like outsourcing plots to NPCs, especially a plot we've spent months on, but we _have_ sort of solved the mystery, which was mostly what I cared about.  I'm still curious about the "why," but based on all those spoiler boxes lately, it appears that this is a personal matter for Hannabel.  As such, I imagine that we'll get an answer sooner or later.  

I don't think Destro would decree that it's "too soon" for us to get to the end of this plot, if we remained determined and kept putting in the work, but if it's something bigger than it first appeared, then maybe we shouldn't rush to try wrapping it up here and now.  I defer to Rax on this, just as I would want to take the lead on issues regarding the Castermares.  If we give the local authorities all of Thule's stuff, head on our way, and keep an ear out for word of what comes of it, then that seems like a strong strike against our shadowy enemies here.  A setup for the next confrontation, whenever it reappears.  Is that satisfying enough?  Not for me to say, but I won't complain, for my part.

----------


## Haval

> I think it's pretty unlikely that the Stalker knows someone is closing in on her--to the point that she's covering her tracks at the expense of killing her own allies--but wouldn't also know that it's us.  So if she walks into a trap, I suspect it'll be because she thinks it's really a trap for _us_, and she's got a damn good chance of being right.  We're not really a party of warriors in this sense; pirate-killing masters of ship-to-ship combat, sure, but our track record of person-to-person brawling isn't so inspiring.  Macharius is our only frontline fighter.  Does Potato want to tank for us against this killing machine?  The fight would be him and Hannabel doing most of the work, while the rest of us pitch in as we can.  Unless our plan is to try to bury her under waves of Praetorians and Rings until she suffocates under the weight of their corpses.  
> 
> It's a fun plan--maybe horribly unsafe, but still fun--so I'm not voting against it.  Just pointing out that we might be permanently burning some Fate Points by the end.


You're probably right, and even if she does have suspicions I'm not sure if it changes much. When we found Thule dead I think Destro suggested we hadn't been subtle enough so I can see it going either way.

Not opposed to having to burn fate, but feel if we have to outfight her something's gone wrong. Otherwise I am really ok with whatever here.

----------


## PotatoGolem

She may or may not be willing to talk it out, as well. Clearly, she doesn't want to be exposed, or she wouldn't have been so secretive. At this point, if we contact her her best option is to talk to us. We could go to the Commissariat easily enough, so the fact that we're asking to talk implies that we're not necessarily going to kill her. And trying to turn it into an ambush against us doesn't really solve her problem- we would of course have told other people on the ship to tell the Commissariat her secret if we die, so killing us doesn't protect her identity anymore. In the circumstances, meet with us and hope there's a negotiated compromise available is probably her best bet.

Or she's gone totally nutso and will try to murder us all. Macharius can try to tank, I guess. And if we have enough marines in quick-entry positions then a mob can take her down- that's a threat to Space Marines, after all.

----------


## rax

I think either way, we're not going to get any further without speaking directly to Kindjal the younger. She's the one we've identified as the killer, and if we want to find out why she's been killing nobles, she's the one to tell us (plus we have direct leverage over her). 

If we don't care about the why, we can just turn over our evidence to the Comissariat and let them deal with it. Obviously we'll need to concoct a story as to how we we're able to determine the identity of the killer so quickly, and there's the slight problem that her identity isn't clearly shown in any of the camera footage, but we can probably work something out.  

For the OOC record, Hannabel cares more about the why than actually seeing Kindjal junior punished for her crimes. Lots of dead Scintillan nobles aren't a huge concern for her.

----------


## Haval

I like the dead man's switch approach. Between us we should be capable of talking her down from getting violent immediately.

I am also interested in the why question.

----------


## Blarghy

Alright, I'm down.  Do we want to offer any carrots along with this stick?  If Anika's right and the aunt is the real problem, are we willing to give the niece asylum?  Smuggle her out of the system with us when we leave?  Adopt her into the Absalom dynasty so she doesn't lose the lavish lifestyle she's used to?  Because Hax doesn't seem like the forgiving, understanding type.  

Kennoch will probably still continue to grumble about this, because it's what he does best.   :Small Tongue:

----------


## Destro_Yersul

I'm ready to go as soon as you decide how you want to approach Lady Kindjal the younger. Whose name I suppose you would know, to be honest. It's Alia.

----------


## rax

> I'm ready to go as soon as you decide how you want to approach Lady Kindjal the younger. Whose name I suppose you would know, to be honest. It's *Alia*.


 St. Alia of the Knife?  :Small Wink:  How fitting...

----------


## Haval

I have reservations but it would get her off Scintilla. The aunt being worst doesn't mean Alia is that much better. 

I have to travel on Wednesday to Friday but I'll try and get something up before that.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

> St. Alia of the Knife?  How fitting...


Got to be more subtle with my big nerd references, I see. 

Or not. It's no fun if _nobody_ gets the joke, after all.

----------


## Blarghy

Awww!  I liked Alia in the books!  ...Well, I had sympathy for her, anyway.  Dune, to me, was very much a story without heroes, but rather a spectrum of flaws and viewpoints.  Much like how I see 40k.  I'm more inclined to help our Alia somehow, if we're able.

I think we need to offer her _something_ positive, in exchange for her cooperation.  "Tell us everything you know, betray your House, and in return, we'll ask Hax to kill you quickly" is a very Warhammer negotiations tactic, but as we discovered from the last pirate captain we captured, it won't win us any loyalty.  

This presumes that nobody is suggesting we offer to actually _lie_ for her and hide her involvement in the murders, of course.  I doubt that Anika would agree to let her keep on killin' so long as she gives us the "why."  Kennoch would be pretty ticked.  Not more than he already is about Galimina, but there would probably be some squawking from the little Navis.

----------


## rax

Hannabel is fine with lying to her and then putting a bullet through the back of her head once the why is cleared up, but knowing the why may open up other options, so getting her to talk is the most important thing as far as Hannabel is concerned.

----------


## Blarghy

> Hannabel is fine with lying to her and then putting a bullet through the back of her head once the why is cleared up,


You're supposed to be the nice one!   :Small Eek:

----------


## PotatoGolem

Super busy through tomorrow,  will try to post tomorrow afternoon or maybe (not likely) tonight

Macharius is probably open to keeping her on as an assassin. It's always useful to have people like that, and we can always dress up another corpse as the Stalker and say Macharius heroically killed her. Or if she becomes a problem, we gas her in her sleep/vent her berth to space.

----------


## Haval

Radical isn't always nice  :Small Tongue: 

It depends on how she reacts. Aside from my reservation that Anika has no reason to know about, she did kill a lot of people. It might be down to family loyalty, or because the aunt has a hell of a hook in her. It might be because she's enough of a sociopath behind closed doors that she was a willing participant in the whole thing, which might make her deeply untrustworthy. Maybe we need to hire a crew psychiatrist to check.

Anika is more interested in (redacted) at the moment then whatever happens to Alia Kindjal. Effectively she will be deferring to others here.

----------


## Leon

If your going to damage the skull make sure to save the rest, no need to waste it all

----------


## rax

> You're supposed to be the nice one!


 Hannabel is nice unless there's a threat to herself or her friends. Then she has no problems with large or small scale violence.  :Small Wink:

----------


## Blarghy

First of all, why in the unholy Warp would we have an NPC do the sniping when we've got Hannabel?  By all means, give rifles to some of the officer Rings too, but I see no reason to keep our best shooter out of the fight.  If she's worried about being recognized while the rest of us are being murdered, then give her a mask, or a scarf and a wide-brimmed hat or something.  If she's unwilling to even be in the same room with the Stalker, then Kennoch definitely won't want to come along and stick out his own neck.  No one has said that Hannabel _wouldn't_ be doing this herself, but Anika has thus far only mentioned...




> we can post actual snipers, and armsmen who can shoot well enough to do the job honestly?'


...so I just want to be clear and urge that we put the professional on sniper duty.

Second, I vote the observation dome.  My biggest worry here is that Alia is going to run off and set up her own ambush, or regroup with her aunt and launch a proper war against us if we can't contain her, as per Destro's clear warning:




> but there were plenty of avenues of escape, including whatever shuttle she arrived on, and if the Stalker slipped into the maintenance areas, they would be hard pressed to catch her again.


I strongly suggest that we don't let her leave until we've either secured an agreement or chopped her up into tiny pieces.  Lack of ground-level cover in the dome is unfortunate, but I think we're all basically gonna be cowering behind Macharius anyway if this turns violent, and if he goes down, then I don't think it really matters after that.  By all our information so far, the Stalker is a melee fighter, and a speedy one to boot, so she's just gonna run at each of her enemies to slice us up one by one.  Hunching down behind a potted plant in the arboretum won't save us.

And finally, am I the only one concerned that Galimina seems to think there will be a day when she can act openly, in plain view of all humanity?  




> That information cannot leave the ship, not yet. I am not prepared.


Maybe somebody should follow up on this, and ask her what her long-term plan is.

----------


## Haval

Honestly, I didn't want to make any assumptions about Hannabel's part in this. I'm just looking for ways to get leverage if we can.

Probably agree with the observation dome. The cover of the arboretum might make things easier for Alia as much as for us. 

Is there anything we can to do to make it harder for her to get out once she's in there? Welding shut bulkheads and the like. Maybe the assumption is that she might be able to cut through anything like that anyway but we shouldn't make it easy for her.

In England till tomorrow night so might be delayed.

----------


## Destro_Yersul

it's a spaceship, it's got doors, especially around a point of weakness like a big glass dome. You can seal the access points you don't plan to use, even weld them shut if you want.

----------


## rax

Oh, Hannabel will certainly want to be present for this, though obviously she'll be wearing a _cunning disguise_...

----------


## Blarghy

> The cover of the arboretum might make things easier for Alia as much as for us.


This too.  Easier, even, since most of us are ranged fighters.  

I'm fine with blocking off all but one route into and out of the dome, and having a whole bunch of marines/Praetorians/Rings ready to come in via the single path we leave open.

----------


## PotatoGolem

Agreed, I think the observation dome makes the most sense. From what we've seen, the Stalker fights like an evil Macharius- melee combat assisted by a power suit and flight capabilities. Our best counter is zero cover and spread out ranged combatants with high-AP weapons. If we have our shooters spread around the observation ring above encircling her, she either has to slog through all of them over many rounds (as Macharius whales on her) or fight Macharius and ignore them (as they blast her).

----------


## Blarghy

Looks like a majority vote for the observation dome, unless Rax/Leon wants to make an argument for another location?

I also like the dome because it's an easy explanation for why Kennoch would be lurking there when Alia arrives.  The Voidborn Nomadic Navis just wants to see the stars, and he's grumpy and anti-social, so he isn't in the mood to answer any questions unless called upon by the Captain.  And perhaps our Honored Magos comes along to tend to his delicate custom void-suit or something.  Then Macharius and Anika escort our guest in, while Hannabel waits on the upper levels with a high-powered rifle.  

We could put some officer Rings on the balconies too, and then have the regular Praetorians ready to storm into the room via the one unsealed route upon command.  Macharius and Kennoch both have their standard bodyguards.  Anika also still has her two teams of Rings, to position as she chooses.  Kennoch is prepared to assist with Intimidate checks, but would otherwise just sit at the edge of the dome until the screaming starts, if negotiations fall through.  How's that sound?

Edit: Also, just for the record, I haven't discounted the possibility that Alia can press a button on her wristwatch and suit up like Iron Man or something.  Just because she doesn't arrive in her typical Stalker suit doesn't at all mean that she's any less deadly, to my mind.  Plus, the possibility of cybernetics and biological engineering or whatever.  Maybe the suit is a red herring anyway.  We won't know until Ravia dissects her corpse.

----------


## Leon

no objections to where you meet her

*Spoiler: Destro*
Show


Will be there for the meeting with the recruit who has proven to have the best aim and the experimental Lasgun off high up to observe and if need be do some a test firing

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## Blarghy

...I want fan art of Hannabel's new outfit.  Can we get a whole sharpshooter's corps decked out like this?  Because _damn._

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## rax

Hannabel appreciates your support for her sartorial tastes. Sadly, it seems unlikely we'll find a whole corps of professional shooters that could rock the outfit like she does.  :Small Big Grin:

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## PotatoGolem

> Looks like a majority vote for the observation dome, unless Rax/Leon wants to make an argument for another location?
> 
> I also like the dome because it's an easy explanation for why Kennoch would be lurking there when Alia arrives.  The Voidborn Nomadic Navis just wants to see the stars, and he's grumpy and anti-social, so he isn't in the mood to answer any questions unless called upon by the Captain.  And perhaps our Honored Magos comes along to tend to his delicate custom void-suit or something.  Then Macharius and Anika escort our guest in, while Hannabel waits on the upper levels with a high-powered rifle.  
> 
> We could put some officer Rings on the balconies too, and then have the regular Praetorians ready to storm into the room via the one unsealed route upon command.  Macharius and Kennoch both have their standard bodyguards.  Anika also still has her two teams of Rings, to position as she chooses.  Kennoch is prepared to assist with Intimidate checks, but would otherwise just sit at the edge of the dome until the screaming starts, if negotiations fall through.  How's that sound?
> 
> Edit: Also, just for the record, I haven't discounted the possibility that Alia can press a button on her wristwatch and suit up like Iron Man or something.  Just because she doesn't arrive in her typical Stalker suit doesn't at all mean that she's any less deadly, to my mind.  Plus, the possibility of cybernetics and biological engineering or whatever.  Maybe the suit is a red herring anyway.  We won't know until Ravia dissects her corpse.


Mostly makes sense, although I think having the Praetorians up on the ring with the snipers at the outset is more helpful. They're not the swiftest moving in power armor, and having them there may make her think twice about attacking (or overlook the less flashy shooters).

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## Blarghy

Important last-minute question, Destro: have we had time to rest in between the raid on Thule's lab, and our meeting with Alia?  Because Anika and Kennoch are out of Fate Points; not sure where everybody else stands.  It would be nice to recover that safety net if possible.

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## Destro_Yersul

That's up to you. You're the ones who get to decide when to send her the invitation. If you want to, you can certainly wait long enough to rest before you send it.

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## rax

And a question on weapons. Everyone's apparently taking this meeting in full battle gear. Hannabel would at least like to be there when Alia arrives on the ship, as part of the welcome delegation (she can always make her excuses and disappear later). Would it be reasonable for her to bring her pulse carbine as well as other weapons along, or should protocol demand limited weaponry only?

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## Haval

No fate and 4/13 wounds technically, although the wound score was from before Scintilla. Let me know if she's managed to heal up more.

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## Leon

> No fate and 4/13 wounds technically, although the wound score was from before Scintilla. Let me know if she's managed to heal up more.


Sure we would have patched you up some time ago but here is a check to see ~ 
Medicae test: TN 98 [roll]1d100[/roll]



And for a Mechcanicus full battle gear is casual or formal dress so :shrug:

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## Leon

Medicae TN 98 (1d100)[*69*] 6+DoS wounds healed

It may be more, i cant recall right now what Moswyns bonus is

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## Haval

Cheers. 8 wounds is most of it.

Think we can blame any gear on Ork related paranoia.

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## Blarghy

Kennoch's wearing what he always wears.  Hasn't publicly been out of his voidsuit since the Winterscale party, and his Hellpistol is literally attached to his body.  

I definitely want us to get some sleep and renew our Fate Points before the big day, unless anybody has an argument for pushing ahead without it.

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## Destro_Yersul

Surprise! You aren't the only people who can afford minions.

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## rax

As long as hers are short yellow goggle-wearers we should be fine.

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## Haval

I can see this going a bit Star Trek mirror universe  :Small Smile:

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## Blarghy

> As long as hers are short yellow goggle-wearers we should be fine.


Ratlings in HAZMAT suits?  That sounds horrifying.

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## PotatoGolem

How many people fit in a gun cutter? If she's just bringing a half dozen flunkies/guards that's not unreasonable. 50 troops is clearly a boarding party on the other hand. Even Macharius doesn't go to other people's ships and houses with more than a dozen retainers tops.

Also, no idea why someone else posted one of my old posts in the IC. Destro, are you able to delete it?

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## Leon

It was a spam bot, saw and reported it yesterday and then saw it had posted in at least 10 other threads around the same time

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## rax

> How many people fit in a gun cutter? If she's just bringing a half dozen flunkies/guards that's not unreasonable. 50 troops is clearly a boarding party on the other hand. Even Macharius doesn't go to other people's ships and houses with more than a dozen retainers tops.
> 
> Also, no idea why someone else posted one of my old posts in the IC. Destro, are you able to delete it?


 _Into the Storm_ says a gun-cutter has "quarters for 6 people", but can carry up to 30 passengers.

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## Destro_Yersul

> How many people fit in a gun cutter? If she's just bringing a half dozen flunkies/guards that's not unreasonable. 50 troops is clearly a boarding party on the other hand. Even Macharius doesn't go to other people's ships and houses with more than a dozen retainers tops.
> 
> Also, no idea why someone else posted one of my old posts in the IC. Destro, are you able to delete it?


I don't have any special powers of deletion, if you see a spam post in the thread, just do like Leon did and report to the mods.

Oh and yes, this is a fairly typical model of gun-cutter. It'll carry a good number of people, but nothing compared to the thousands you've got on your ship. If she was trying to invade you and take over, she'd have more than one gun-cutter.

Who all is meeting them in the shuttle bay?

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## rax

It's either Hannabel and whatever guards/staff Macharius was planning on from the beginning, _or_ Macharius, Hannabel and however many extra guards he's bringing. 

I await our glorious leader's response to Hannabel's suggestion in the IC thread...

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## Haval

Anika will be there.

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## Blarghy

If the plan is still to bring Alia to the observation dome, then Kennoch and his Rings will wait there.  If hostilities kick off sooner, then I guess they'll hustle through the ship as quick as they can; maybe I can at least help mop up.  But I figure that it would seem a bit odd for a Navigator to join this kind of meeting from the beginning, so I don't want to tip her off early--though I still imagine that she's already suspicious of us, and might be planning exactly what we're planning.  An attempt at negotiations, with quick and brutal violence as a backup.  Hopefully we're better at it.

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## Destro_Yersul

> It's either Hannabel and whatever guards/staff Macharius was planning on from the beginning, _or_ Macharius, Hannabel and however many extra guards he's bringing. 
> 
> I await our glorious leader's response to Hannabel's suggestion in the IC thread...


Hannabel is wearing her spooky sniper outfit, yeah?

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## PotatoGolem

Sure, we can try a show of how friendly we are. And just because we may be killing them soon is no reason not to be good hosts.

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## rax

> Hannabel is wearing her spooky sniper outfit, yeah?


 You bet. Full facial covering FTW!

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## Leon

Will be away from the 21th till sometime after christmas

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## rax

Hey all, just want to let you know that my wife and son have been hit with stomach flu. It seems to last about two days. Right now, I'm okay, but the odds of me not catching it are grim. If I'm unresponsive in the next few days, the flu will be the reason why.

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## Destro_Yersul

Being sick sucks, hope everyone feels better soon.

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## rax

I was the last man standing but it got me in the end. I was recovered enough to enjoy Christmas dinner but even though the nasty stuff was done in about 24 hours, I was surprised how physically and mentally exhausted I was. I ended up calling in sick at work for two days more...which took me right into the Christmas celebrations.

I'm catching up on all my games and will get IC and OOC posts up tomorrow if needed.

A belated Merry Christmas to you all.

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## PotatoGolem

Well, rather than being at the beach today, I'm unexpectedly flying out of the country for a family emergency. I may be very delayed in responding for the next week or so.

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## Destro_Yersul

*Spoiler: Hannabel/Rax Only*
Show




> OOC: Hmm, I'm not sure where to go with this. I seem to recall that when Hannabel dropped heavy hints to Anika to look for family resemblances at the Countess' mansion, she noted no striking similarities between Hannabel and Alia. Plus of course, one would expect the others to note Alia's similarity to Hannabel if there was a strong resemblance. And yet, Hannabel sees these similarities very clearly.
> 
> In your mind, what would it take for someone else to notice the similarity?


Checking back, Anika did look, and I did say that she found some similarities in appearance, but nothing concrete. In this case, Hannabel's greater surety is due to Hannabel's greater experience - and the fact that she knows what she looked like before adopting assorted disguises, AND knows what her various 'sisters' looked like. Anika has never seen Hannabel's original appearance, right? She and the rest of the crew are drawing from a more limited data set, so you got a bigger bonus on your Awareness check than they did. Remember when I mentioned I do secret rolls sometimes? This was one of those times.

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## PotatoGolem

Who all is down in the shuttle bay with Macharius? Echo is waiting in the observatory,  I believe anika and hannabelle are here, what about Ravia?

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## Leon

Observation as well

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## rax

> *Spoiler: Hannabel/Rax Only*
> Show
> 
> 
> 
> Checking back, Anika did look, and I did say that she found some similarities in appearance, but nothing concrete. In this case, Hannabel's greater surety is due to Hannabel's greater experience - and the fact that she knows what she looked like before adopting assorted disguises, AND knows what her various 'sisters' looked like. Anika has never seen Hannabel's original appearance, right? She and the rest of the crew are drawing from a more limited data set, so you got a bigger bonus on your Awareness check than they did. Remember when I mentioned I do secret rolls sometimes? This was one of those times.


*Spoiler: Destro Only*
Show

That's fair, but I think it's important to remember that while Hannabel disguises herself, the disguises aren't terribly elaborate and she's not had cosmetic surgery or the like. She's mostly relied on keeping her distance and the assumption that among literally billions of humans she won't be easily found even by those who know what she used to look like.

I suppose the real question here is what it would take for the others to begin noticing the similarities. If Hannabel and Alia stand next to each other, would the family resemblance be obvious?

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## Destro_Yersul

> *Spoiler: Destro Only*
> Show
> 
> That's fair, but I think it's important to remember that while Hannabel disguises herself, the disguises aren't terribly elaborate and she's not had cosmetic surgery or the like. She's mostly relied on keeping her distance and the assumption that among literally billions of humans she won't be easily found even by those who know what she used to look like.
> 
> I suppose the real question here is what it would take for the others to begin noticing the similarities. If Hannabel and Alia stand next to each other, would the family resemblance be obvious?


*Spoiler: Rax Only*
Show

It wouldn't be like identical twins or anything, but closer to sisters or cousins than someone completely unrelated would be. 

edit: it's also possible I underplayed a bit how much Anika noticed, given what you've mentioned. I kinda figured Hannabel had done more than just changing her clothes and manner of speaking. Nothing elaborate, sure, but maybe something in terms of makeup and the like. I think with Hannabel standing right next to Alia, the resemblance would be much easier to notice. Perhaps not immediately apparent, if the assorted homonculi had a spectrum of diversity in their makeup, which is also something I was assuming was the case. I figured they'd be more like extended family than direct clones.

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## rax

> *Spoiler: Rax Only*
> Show
> 
> It wouldn't be like identical twins or anything, but closer to sisters or cousins than someone completely unrelated would be. 
> 
> edit: it's also possible I underplayed a bit how much Anika noticed, given what you've mentioned. I kinda figured Hannabel had done more than just changing her clothes and manner of speaking. Nothing elaborate, sure, but maybe something in terms of makeup and the like. I think with Hannabel standing right next to Alia, the resemblance would be much easier to notice. Perhaps not immediately apparent, if the assorted homonculi had a spectrum of diversity in their makeup, which is also something I was assuming was the case. I figured they'd be more like extended family than direct clones.


 *Spoiler: Destro only*
Show

Your edit is pretty much how I envisioned it, yes. I'm only belabouring the point because I think Haval may have felt that there was nothing to see regarding a family resemblance. Hannabel obviously isn't going to point it out herself - at least not unless it's needed to resolve a crisis of some sort - so if someone is supposed to notice you'll probably need to drop a hint. But if you prefer to steer clear of bringing it up then I'm happy to let it slide as well.

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## Leon

> "Quite the maze in here."


It is an a Mazing ship

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