NeoTiamat

Tégla "There. Some of my finer work, I think," Nine-Fingers said. The old forger had lost the little finger on his left hand in a polite dispute with a previous iteration of the Broken Guild's management, but he remained one of the best in the business. With a few quick movements, he carefully blotted out the ink and passed the scribbled looking document to Tegla. "Your discharge papers, ma'am." Zef Finding information on the Mercy wasn't the easiest task in the world, but if you knew the right taverns and bought drinks for the right folks, you could learn quite a bit. And since Zef did know the right taverns and did buy drinks for the right folks, she learned a lot. Among them, that her tolerance for alcohol was not what it could be, sometimes. The St. Kelzsei's Mercy was about twenty years old, a veteran ship but hardly aged or battle-scarred. Like many Westerships, it followed a three-level body plan. The top level of the ship (below the balloon, that is), was for the crew. This was mostly organized around the three major chambers. At the very back was the harmonic engine, with its supplies of ichor and glass. This would pull the ship forward. Amidships, the single largest part chamber of the vessel was the mossery, where trays and trays of skymoss grew and produced the vital cloudblood gas that kept the ship flying. This was also easily the most dangerous part of the ship--a little cloudblood was disorienting, but in large concentrations it would push the safe air out of your own lungs, causing unconsciousness and death in very short order. It also, unlike ichor fumes, tended to get through most mask filters. And as if that was not enough, it could ignite. Only the lift crew went into the mossery, and they did so with scrupulous care. Finally, at the prow of the ship was the bridge, where the captain and her officers actually directed the vessel. Everything else on the crew level was shoved in wherever it fit. Dormitories, officer quarters, kitchens, supply closets... there was a perch at the very back for the two celray, just behind the harmonic engine. Interestingly, the Mercy was also armed, with eight cannons, four to a side. Below the crew chamber was the passenger deck. The front room, just below the bridge, was the observation deck, which also doubled as the lounge and dining room and basically was the only place for anyone to socialize. Immediately behind it were the two suites, then the private rooms, then the steerage compartments at the back. Finally, the lowest deck was for cargo. The Mercy could carry an enormous amount of cargo due to its vast lift capacity, and would be loaded to the brim on this trip. Mostly dried fruit from Dobrolchur, though chests of tea and spices were also there. As you got a Critical Success, if you have any questions about the configuration of the Mercy, you can simply ask. Gulichd Masza Ulgiphen had been duly grateful for Gulichd's help, and with any luck this'd help his disguise later on. Curiously, aside from Masza, none of the other assistant engineers had been too eager to help out with the engines. Slackers, the lot of them. Valivia In science, a negative result was still a result. By those standards, Liv had been vastly successful. By most other standards... The one thing that was proving clear was that the Soruliens had played this close to their chest. A few scholars had been asked to opine, in very theoretical ways, on sketches or designs or possible questions, but no seemed to have actually seen the object directly. Song "She's one of the survivors. Too young to get caught up in the purge back in '46, so they've been grooming her for bigger things since then. Probably going to end up running the Ilphalssem investment in the Six Colleges--she's been around there pretty regularly, especially Morainhall and Elderhall, and I think she studied at Elderhall. Well educated in science, philosophy, rhetoric, magic, the works. Pretty good musician too." "Also a regular on the social circuit. I think she's got a fiance in Hold Falchesse, but it's one of those Spiker things where it's more contract than marriage, and doesn't stop either one. Puts on some salons, goes to others. You'll know her if you spot her--she's tall, pale white-blue, got some expensive tattoowork, pretty like a knife's a pretty." "Personality's like a cat. She likes you, she's all fluff and cuddles, but she'll scratch you when she feels like it. Cat's sense of humor." "Nothing to do with the salvage business, though I don't think there's any Ilphalssem that doesn't know at least a little about it. Don't know why she's going to the Continent either, but it's not unusual. The Hold has a lot of business dealings there, they sell cannons to half the armies in the Iron War, and sometimes you want a Spiker handy to seal the deal. Makes the customer feel important, you know?"

"I'll deal with the tickets however you need them," llsejzan said. She rose then, gently ushering you out of her study and into the wider Hall. At the door, Ilse paused, glancing back at Goldfang. Something unspoken passed between them, Ilse's gaze intense, Goldfang's casual and guileless. Whatever Ilse was hoping for, she wasn't entirely thrilled with what she got, as her lips were pressed thin and her eyes narrowed as she left the room. "One last thing," Ilse said, as you walked. "Watch out for Chane Grethale. Grethale's a senior agent for Hold Ilphalssem, one of the people who 'makes things happen', if you know what I mean. He's a smart and dangerous man, and I suspect he'll be your greatest threat." "He's also an old..." A hesitation, just a brief one, but noticeable. "...friend of Goldfang. If Grethale gets hurt, Vee won't thank you for it. And if he gets killed..." Another pause, more deliberate this time. "Stay on the continent." "Good luck, and may the Angel smile on you." {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} Preparations! You have three days (the 12th, the 13th, and the 14th) in which to prepare for your departure in the early hours of 15 Hend Moon. We will treat this as three rounds of preparations. In each round, each player may take a single action (which will usually be a single roll). I will then inform you all of the results for that day (so you don't know what any other actions that day got until after all actions are done), and you may then plan and plot for the next one. What follows is a non-exhaustive list of possible things you can do, but I fully encourage you to think of other clever ideas. You can Research a Person. Roll a skill check, and on a success you will get a basic description of the person, and on a critical success you will get something Spicy (assuming there is any, but there often is). However, there is a complication. If the person is the sort to keep an eye on who is asking after them (such as Chane), then they will be able to respond to your investigation with a Perception roll against your Deception (or occasionally Stealth) DC. On a success, they know that someone is asking after them. On a crit success, they know that you, specifically, are asking after them. (This Perception roll is secret). You have the option of going Loud or Quiet. If you go Loud, you gain a benefit of +1 to +5 (your choice) on your Research roll, but anyone trying to Perception you gets an equal bonus. If you go Quiet, you take a penalty of -1 to -5 (your choice) to your Research roll, but the penalty likewise applies to any counter-investigation. DCs and applicable skills are: Public Figures (Velche hel Sorulien, Arish hel Ilphalssem, Capt. Alicha Chorishara): Diplomacy or Society, DC 15, but crit success requires hitting a 30, not a 25. Prominent Folks (Ship's officers or senior crew, doctor, navigator, etc, or anyone in a private room): Diplomacy, DC 18 Minor Folks (minor crew, people in steerage): Diplomacy, DC 21 Feel free to substitute a suitable Lore skill (Liv could use Ichor Lore to learn about the chief engineer, say). Also, do not assume that only Canon NPCs have interesting secrets. Research the Artifact. Same as above, including a likely counter-check from the Soruliens. Suitable skill at DC 20. Casing the Ship. Same as above, including a likely counter-check from the ship's crew. Stealth or Deception at DC 20. Acquire a Resource. You can roll Underworld Lore or Crafting to get an item that can help you (DC is equal to 10 + the item's level for consumables, or twice the item's level for permanent items). GM san check here since I can't think of every possible item out here. Smuggle a Crate Aboard. Put something into the cargo, DC is a Society or Mercantile Lore, you get an amount of Bulk equal to your roll -20. Your result is also the DC for anyone trying to find anything Suspicious. Preparing a Cover Identity: Procure documents or references that shore up your cover (Suitable skill at DC 20, just explain how the skill will help you). The first success will let you Take 10 on all Deception checks to pretend to be who you are. Second success lets you take 14, third lets you take 18. You can prepare a Cover Identity for a different character. Get a Weapon License. Become a bodyguard or mercenary who carries their weapons at all times. This is a DC 12 for a Simple, Light weapon, with the DC going up by +3 for each proficiency step (so DC 18 for an advanced weapon) and for each Bulk (so a Bulk 2 weapon is +6). For any roll, you can call upon the Broken Guild's resources to make the roll instead of you. The Guild has a wide range of informants and agents, and so rolls with a +20 modifier for all skill checks. However, the Guild is also a big, porous institution, so each time the Guild acts, it gives all attempts at counter-investigation, for that day and future days, a +1 circumstance bonus to their Perception (max of +5).

{}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} Pay a man enough and he'll walk barefoot into hell. --Thimesh Issfel, State Inquisitor {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} A place for various bookkeeping and tracking. Current Hero Points Gulichd = 1 Song = 1 Liv = 1 Zephyr = 2 Thezzeli = 1 Tegla = 1 Hero Points Beginning of Scene 1: Drowned Rat = +1 to All Skills Bookkeeping = +1 to Zephyr

"I'll get that taken care of then," Ilse said, making a small note. "I'll also see about getting you some funds." You have an initial budget of 100 gp to buy any special equipment or such that you need, or to pay bribes or what have you. Likewise, I think we've hit all the key points for the briefing, so make your final posts and then I'll move you forward to the Preparation Downtime.

"An old friend taught me that the best time to pick a pocket with your right hand is when the mark's watching your left," Goldfang said, sinking back in the cushion and half-closing his eyes. "Normally, I'd like to do a job like this with a lot more advance time, but we're in a rush. Getting an inside man would also be good, but no blighted time." "You'll want to plan some distractions, something to draw everyone's attention. Two at least, three would be best," Ilse continued. "During the first distraction, you case the suite, figure out the security, see how close you can get. During the second, later, you do the job. Third is just in case, or to cover an exit." "Best case, no one knows that you've stolen anything till you get to Ven Kalisz, and you can just disembark," Ilse said. "Failing that, figure out where you'll hide the thing, because they will look for it." "You also don't need to all go as a mob," Goldfang said. "Once on board, you don't know each other, you've never met, no sir no idea who that fellow is. Lets you work a few angles." "So figure out who's the distraction, who's the burglar, who's dealing with the guards, who's hiding the loot," Ilse said.

There was one. Dr. Javin Eszedurik-Korcz was a professor of Preboreal history at St. Belzsein's College. Never one of Liv's close colleagues, but she'd seen him a few times at one of the Six Colleges' events or another, though whether he'd paid any notice to Liv was a different question. She called up the memories--a pompous, bombastic sort of fellow, continental by birth, but popular with the students and good at the games of university politics. Competent enough, though there was some hint of scandal in the past... suggestions of plagiarism, perhaps? Or an affair? Liv didn't recall. None of the other names rang any bells. "Some twig of the family tree," Goldfang said with a shrug. "Don't know much about them." Anyone with Spikehold Lore will know that the fact that Ras Sorulien is listed without the honorific 'hel' means that they're not a legally acknowledged member of the family. Illegitimate, most likely, though disinherited is also a possibility. "That's your call," Goldfang said, then leaned forward. "Except for two names." Your boss leaned forward and tapped two peoples names on the list. The first, to no surprise, was Velche hel Sorulien. The second was more unexpected. Chane Grethale. "They live." It was a tone that brooked no disagreement. And at least for Velche, it made sense. If one of the ranking members of the most powerful Spikeholds in Ourichor got killed in your heist, the Senate would rip the city apart looking for the killers, and they wouldn't be happy till a score of corpses were swinging from the Rustwalk. No artifact you stole would be worth that kind of crackdown, even if by some stroke of luck you personally escaped. The other name, on the other hand... Ilse cast her eyes aside, and then mouthed I'll explain later. "It's almost entirely over ocean, so depends how you feel about swimming," Goldfang smirked. "We could charter a fisherman to go ahead and rendezvous with you," Ilse noted. "But you'd need to get off the Mercy at the exact time and place." No fishing ship could possibly match a Westership for speed, and even if they could, trying to shadow it would be obvious to any observer. But a rendezvous was possible--the trip from Ourichor to Ven Kalisz was about 72 hours, so you'd need to decide at what hour to make your getaway, and then be sure to do so.

"Nobody's seen it yet, but when they took it to the Pearl Market, it was in a wood chest about this big," Goldfang traced in the air a box about two by two by three feet. "Took two armsmen to carry it. So it's not bigger than that. Whether it just barely fit in the chest, or it's the size of a tooth and they just wanted to make it hard to run off with, no idea." The chest, in mechanical terms, is Bulk 6. The artifact is presumably smaller, though by how much is anyone's guess. "Artifact, not ship. The Senate gets overexcited when piracy comes up," Goldfang said. This was true. The punishment for larceny, even really, really grand larceny was flogging followed by exile. Pirates, however, were a whole separate legal category, subject to summary execution when captured. It was a whole different area of crime, and one sensible gangsters avoided. "If anything, we want to keep this quiet-like. Guild? What Guild." "We did manage to get some useful information," Ilse said, digging out a paper with her distinctive and improbably calligraphic words on it. "Copy of the passenger list. Also managed to get the last six tickets to the mainland." You now have access, IC, to the information in the Kelszei's Mercy thread.

"Burglary," Goldfang said, leaning back with both heavily muscled arms behind his head. "Piracy, actually," Ilse corrected. He wrinkled his nose at her, then waved for his consigliere to keep talking. "We're still piecing together the details, but here's what we know. About four months ago, just before the monsoon season hit, Hold Sorulien got their hands on something choice. Some kind of Preboreal artifact, probably dug up in the Relic Lands and brought in on one of the last cloudcutters before the winds changed." "No clue what the gewgaw does," Goldfang added. "No. But we do know is that whatever it is got the Soruliens excited," Ilse said. "They've been keeping it under wraps, but we know they consulted several experts in the Preboreal, and that messenger birds have been flying fast and furious between Hold Sorulien and the mainland. They must've been negotiating for a buyer, and they must've finally got one." "Tell them how we found out," Goldfang said. "And how much it's worth." "Getting there," Ilse said with a fanged smirk. "They're planning to ship this out on the morning of the 15th. And they waited till the last minute, but two days ago Velche hel Sorulien took the artifact down to the Pearl Market, along with a small army of guards. Talked to a dozen of the biggest brokers, and they raised a surety for the transfer. One of the brokers' agents owes us a favor or two, and passed along just how much the surety is for." "Four. Hundred. Thousand. Sthaler," Goldfang said, enunciating each word with care. There was a little pause as everyone did a spot of mental math. Even if you figure a massive loss on fencing and fees, the Broken Guild could collect a hundred thousand sthaler on the artifact. That wasn't enough to start your own spikehold, perhaps, but you could buy a good cloudcutter for that kind of money, and a full hold of cargo to go with it, or set yourself up as a Senator. Your shares, even subtracting Goldfang and Ilse's shares, would be several thousand sthaler, more than most people saw in a lifetime. And if Ilse could find a good buyer, or if the Soruliens had undersold the surety bond... the possibilities multiplied. "Right now, the trinket's back in Hold Sorulien and no one's getting near it without a cannon and a square of pike," Goldfang said. He sat up now, looking at all of you, a slow smile forming on his face. "But early morning on the 15th, it's going to Ven Kalisz on the St. Kelszei's Mercy. You're going to be on that cloudcutter." "And somewhere during the trip," Ilse said, her voice a purr. "You're going to steal it."

There we go! Alright, you are all set and may join the game!

{}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} Tell nothing to a friend that you wouldn't share with an enemy. --Ourian proverb {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} {}{}{} Breakneck Hall was located well in the interior of the Eaves Derrick, on the second lowest level. It existed in a state of perpetual twilight, illuminated by the ghostly, bioluminescent glow of the sea urchins in their aquariums, and by the malodorous fish oil candles. (According to Ilsejzan, the perpetual fishy smell was something of an advantage--no one, but no one, wanted to smell like thieves. She was probably joking.) It also existed, in the typical course of events, in a state of sublime indifference to questions of the weather. What did it matter if there was wind or rain? Who cared if the heavens had opened up outside? Inside, it was all the same. Usually. "Ilse, that's a waterfall I'm seeing?" Goldfang observed, regarding the sluice of water falling through a hole in the ceiling. In theory, Hold Bressephen kept these sorts of things from happening with regular maintenance of the thousand-year-old drainage system. In practice, Hold Bressephen kept these sorts of from happening to tax-paying citizens. Goldfang did not belong to this category. "Yes," Ilsejzan Dar said, hands folded primly behind her back. The grimy water was coming down in buckets, and a tub had been scrounged to minimize the spill, but Breakneck Hall, had definitely acquired a new water feature to complement the fine selection of nooses hanging from the rafters. "Right. Just checking," Goldfang said, his gaze distracted by something in the air. He stared for a while in a way that reminded you quite strongly of a cat fascinated by a mote of dust, then shrugged. "We'll do this in your study then. Come on you lot." ----------------------------------------------------------------- Ilsejzan's study deserved that name only in a relative sense. The studies of the rich and prosperous were places of silk tapestries and mother-of-pearl desks, with cubbies for scrolls and neatly laid inkstones and brushes. Ilse's study, on the other hand, had about a dozen wicker baskets full of paper scraps, and a wide range of chewed upon pencils. "Pull up a cushion, prop your feet on something what'll get you hanged," Goldfang said, setting himself down on a magnificent gold-and-scarlet cushion that was in no way legally acquired. It was a known fact in the Guild that Goldfang had qualms about keeping what amounted to scrupulous notes on a dozen criminal conspiracies. Ilse, who actually kept the books and thus made sure the Guild had actual money, ignored him. "We've got wind of an interesting job," Ilsejzan said, leaning against a wall behind Goldfang.

Man, y'all do not like Hold Ilphalssem. Song and Guli did major jobs against them, Tegla is a disgraced member... yeesh. Anyway, backstory looks good, although the Spiker will need a name. Let's go with Selzeth hel Ilphalssem, unless you've an alternative preference. Pathbuilder isn't letting me see your character sheet, however. Can you get a PDF or some such?

Looking good, looking good. As Chez has noted, you always do have a turn of phrase. I'd suggest toning down the 'killed all the heirs of a minor spikehold' to just 'killed all the heirs of a merchant family', since a Spikehold, even a small one, being entirely wiped out would be Big Historical News. Otherwise, good to go!

I like Thezzeli. Repentant gangster is a good hook. Needs a character sheet, and needs to decide on the Hold for Djador. My GMly recommendation is Grezzise, for reasons that will emerge in play.

Hm... So, checking in, how old are Zephyr and Song? Because it occurs to me that depending on their age they might have known Mouse + Quill (who are ~24), or Vademph + Chane (~36) growing up, or at least been aware of them. (Ourichor isn't that massive, there's only so many orphanages in the city). Otherwise, looking good, and you are All Set.

Character background looks fine, but for some reason the PDF just gets me a blank page. Once that's fixed you'll be good to go.