The Arundel Information Caper (OOC)

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Dec 14, 2024 9:29 pm
oopsylon says:
... It could complicate Benji’s relationship with Shelyna, but only if Shelyna found out ...
Which she definitely would if she is who you are being taken to.
oopsylon says:
... (and complications aren’t necessarily a bad thing story-wise, anyway)
No, but they are a complication, and we don't need another one of those. :)
Dec 14, 2024 9:34 pm
vagueGM says:
Which she definitely would if she is who you are being taken to.
Oh, I more meant that we would be being taken to whichever relative of hers owns the castle, but it was just an idea I had. I’m happy to go with something else if you don’t think it works!
Dec 15, 2024 1:22 pm
oopsylon says:
... Oh, I more meant that we would be being taken to whichever relative of hers owns the castle, ...
Could be. We can find out that whoever you meet is related somehow if it becomes relevant.
Dec 16, 2024 6:45 pm
Delirium says:
(in RP) ... The night was already a disaster. ...
It could have been worse. :)

What do you think? Is this costly, limited, or unstable?

You could also push your luck to decide between the first two, 'costly' might see you get caught, while 'limited' might see you not getting all that much because you hurried to be done before being interrupted. If you don't want to decide you could roll Keep Your Cool to avoid getting caught, but rolling comes with risks of bigger costs, a 7-9 would be much the same as above (caught or limited finding) while a 10+ would remove most of the limitedness as you, maybe, time it just right and get as much as you can just before they enter. A 6- would be worse, maybe you get almost nothing, or maybe you get limited info and get caught (cost)?

'Unstable' would seem like you got lucky but cost you later, maybe.
Delirium says:
(in RP) ... ticket to something valuable. Information, leverage, or perhaps something even more useful she could use to her advantage. ...
What do you think would be fun to have Emma find?

Is Emma 'technical' enough that she would have a USB memory stick in her bag? Instead of focusing on finding information, does she try to copy as much off as she can and look at it later?
Dec 17, 2024 6:01 am
Unstable could mean there is some interesting information, but she has to act on it immediately (like, within a day), or else she misses the opportunity? (this could clash with her commitment the next day). Costly - maybe if she uses the information, or shares it, the Administrator can trace it back to her? Getting caught right now at this very moment at his office doesn't appeal to me much, so if 'Costly' and 'Limited' are the only options, I'll go with Limited.

Since she's copying as much as she can right now, I'll think of something fun for her to find after we have the conversation with the Administrator, when she has some time to go through the information.
Dec 17, 2024 6:05 am
Delirium says:
... Getting caught right now at this very moment at his office doesn't appeal to me much ...
Quite fine. It was just a first-thought. It seems you got 'the information', so we will deal with these details when we get to look at it.

I will bring The Administrator in when I get back to a computer.
Dec 18, 2024 6:44 pm
gnomius says:
(in RP) ... starts looking for another exit. ...
What to you actually do? How do you find the back door? Or is it just a matter of whether you can do it in time?

If it is just about doing it in time then we should probably roll Keep Your Cool? But a description of your actions still helps inform the nature of the consequence if there are any.
Dec 19, 2024 11:41 am
Nothing complicated: try to look for any other exit: doors, traps, windows (don't think so down here)... so checking every inch of the walls, floor and ceiling, as quick as possible.
Dec 19, 2024 6:54 pm
gnomius says:
... checking every inch of the walls, floor and ceiling, as quick as possible.
Hmm...

I wonder if we want to just roll to Escape a Situation and assume there is an something you can take advantage of to allow you to do that. It is a little premature (we should first create the opening), but we could use it to short-circuit the rest.

If we want to do it right we should do something to create that opportunity to escape. Your quick search could be handled by a roll to Keep Your Cool.

But it might also work to Study a Place of Power to reveal a way out. This is probably slower, and failure would mean higher costs (offset by Marking the Circle and learning something about them and their schemes), but this could create and opening you could use to escape.

Which route do you think sound interesting?
Dec 20, 2024 7:53 pm
oopsylon says:
(in RP) ... er… what are they called? Those stone table things with the sleeping statues? ...
I have searched, but been unable to find what they are called! I am glad we all seem to know what we are talking about, and also glad that the answer was not obvious. :)
oopsylon says:
(in RP) ... I noticed one of them looked like it had been moved ...
OK, this should be enough for a Mislead, Distract, and Trick to get them chasing a false lead of someone else having broken in.

It might not last long, since there were Servitors there moments before, but, depending on how you handle it, you might be able to turn it into a 'your word against theirs'?
Dec 20, 2024 9:10 pm
That wasn’t actually the part that was supposed to be misleading hahah
Benji DID notice that it looked like the stone had been moved recently (floor was very clean around the base compared to the others). Everything he said is technically true, he’s just leaving out the part about the ‘treasure hunt’ to make it seem like they stumbled upon the secret tunnel completely by accident. Thats a lie of omission - would it qualify for In Our Blood?
Dec 20, 2024 9:24 pm
oopsylon says:
... Benji DID notice that it looked like the stone had been moved recently (floor was very clean around the base compared to the others). ...
vagueGM says:
(in RP) ... This might well indicate a need to move something aside without leaving scrape-marks. ...
Only your keen senses picked up on the clean floor that was meant to prevent people from noticing that the thing had been moved.

This is a weaker lie (that you happened to notice things that others would not have) rather than one that would really get you much misdirection (that someone else was down there first and it is their fault). But it will hold up for longer, since it is not as easily disproved. (In Blades parlance: You are trading Effect for Position.)
oopsylon says:
... he’s just leaving out the part about the ‘treasure hunt’ to make it seem like they stumbled upon the secret tunnel completely by accident. Thats a lie of omission - would it qualify for In Our Blood? ...
Sure. Go for it.

The outcome is that they treat you more like innocents than like people who planned a heist.
Dec 20, 2024 10:00 pm
I added the roll to my post… I think I might be cursed :P
Dec 20, 2024 10:24 pm
oopsylon says:
... I think I might be cursed :P
Curses are fun!

His lack of acknowledging the lie does not mean you won't pay for it later. But we will deal with that later.
Dec 21, 2024 7:07 am
Emma is clearly naive and ignorant of the faction politics, but what you, the player, hoping to achieve with your 'called bluff' [ref]?

Since the Commissioner was at the party they clearly know about vampires, and also understand and respect the sanctity of another faction and their secrets. You are Status 1, so not the lowest of the low, but close to it. The Commissioner is unlikely to jeopardise relations with this Faction for someone like yourself, without a reason.

If they do have cameras they will show you and your companions sending the Servitors away and then ripping open the crypt and breaking and entering into the Arundel Vault. The fact that you don't have anything from there in you possession does not exculpate you from the charge of breaking and entering... or espionage. So you had better have a better plan than 'hoping the Commissioner of the Police will be on your side because you are both Mortalis.' (Emma could wall expect that, but adding them to the scene might just complicate things?)

You have a Let It Out Ability to Convince an NPC to act on their kindness, role, or own best interest, but nothing you have done so far will make The Administrator feel 'kindness' towards you, and his 'role' is to enforce their secrets, and therefore his 'best interests' may be to make you disappear (and blame Elliot)?

Maybe we should wait and see what happens with Jacob? If he gets away or gets caught it might affect what we choose (OOC).
Dec 21, 2024 7:23 am
Delirium: When I say 'what are you hoping to achieve' [ref] I am not shutting you down. I want to try get the story to a point where you can achieve that.
Dec 21, 2024 7:30 am
Emma doesn’t know the commissioner was at the party. Even if she did, it wouldn’t have made a difference. He himself might know about vampires, what about the judge? The prosecutor? The jury? It looks like arresting Emma is going to have a higher chance of their secrets being spilled, and for negligible benefit, because she does believe they can find out who Jacob is by asking around a bit. They don’t really need her for it.

‘Making her disappear’ would also bring more attention to him and his castle. She told people where she was going.

So since he has more to lose by arresting her than not, and since she believes he is going to get his name one way or the other, I guess she’s calling HIS bluff.

Convincing him to act ‘in his own best interest’ does sound to fit this situation, but maybe I’m reading it totally wrong.
Dec 21, 2024 7:48 am
He did just tell you that the commissioner was here, at the party: 'The Commissioner of the Police may still be here'. But it is very in keeping with Emma's character so far for her to feel she has the upper hand. :)

But I am less asking about what Emma is thinking than about what you, the player, want to do with the scene. We, obviously, are not going to (successfully) 'disappear' your character, and jail-time is boring, but do you want to have Emma have a rude awakening about how the world works and possibly need to change her happy and naive character to one with troubles? It feels like a drastic move given that you were swept up in events you had no understanding of, but that is The Administrator's point, he is trying to help you, but you are (possibly for meta-reasons) acting to protect your fellow PCs, even though there is little reason for you to protect Jacob (as you say, they are bound to ID him eventually, even if just as 'he was Benji's driver'. All you have is a name, you don't know that he is a demon.

We could also arrange a reason for you two to be left alone, and you could try to Escape the Situation. Jacob has a car hidden nearby (between the church and the castle), but neither of you know that detail... and you might have a Servitor car of your own waiting for you?
Dec 21, 2024 12:21 pm
Jakob being a PC may have subconsciously influenced my judgment on whether or not Emma should turn him. Maybe. I'd like to think it didn't, considering that Benji, who is sitting right next to her, refused to name Jakob. Benji is her only connection to the supernatural world at the moment, and she’d likely want to follow his example (especially since the consequences of not answering don’t seem too severe, the Administrator hasn't proven himself to be particularly strong/influential/willing to offer her protection, etc.).

Anyways, as a player, here’s my thoughts on how to resolve it, by order of preference:

1. Rolling the dice and seeing what happens. If she fails to convince him, maybe it’s because he truly intends to kill her to avoid future problems. If that’s the case, Emma may reassess the situation and change her approach.

2. Letting Emma talk her way out of it. Having her face significant repercussions would likely make her more reserved and cautious in future encounters, which could lead her to avoid engaging with the creatures of the night altogether. Ultimately, I don’t think it would be good for the game. Not saying she should always avoid consequences, just not on her first foray, and not for something which feels a bit trivial.

3. Least preferable option – escape by owing a debt. This feels like a cheesy resolution for a dramatic scene. If we do go this route, I’d prefer Emma to owe the debt to another NPC who comes to her rescue, rather than the Administrator.

I don’t think Emma would choose to run away in the car. It’s not a decision she’s likely to make.
Dec 21, 2024 9:29 pm
Delirium says:
... Jakob being a PC may have subconsciously influenced my judgment ...
It is quite right that it should. What we do with other PCs can have far reaching consequences. The fact that Emma did not turn him in could form the basis of why the characters start to hang out together going forward, which eases gameplay.
Delirium says:
... especially since the consequences of not answering don’t seem too severe ...
They are probably more geopolitical and will complicate your life later, but that could be a good thing.
Delirium says:
... the Administrator hasn't proven himself to be particularly strong/ ...
He is a high ranking (Status 2 or 3) member of a Faction, so —even though Emma probably has no clue about this, he is 'strong', but he is an Administrator, not an enforcer, so his strength is not overt.
Delirium says:
... /influential/ ...
No, he just has the Commissioner of the Police at his party ... not influential at all. :)
Delirium says:
... /willing to offer her protection. ...
Why would he? You have rejected anything like that so far. Protection is not free, if he did place you under his protection and you then did something foolish (like violating the laws and sanctity of someone's home) it would reflect badly upon him. Elliot's name will be tarnished by your actions here, and he has no reason to want to risk what you do next, nor to antagonise Elliot by poaching his game.
Delirium says:
... 1. Rolling the dice and seeing what happens. ...
It has been feeling like that is our recourse.

I worry that it will be a roll to see how badly it goes. You have not done anything to help your cause —insulting the people in power, after breaking into their vault— so it is damage control.

What roll do you think could work here?

You are coming at this from a position of weakness, so you don't have any leverage for a Persuade. If we were not shackled by your PC status (plot armour:) the threat of making you disappear would be very real. Emma must know, on some deep level, that the vampires she is so fascinate with eat people and must have ways to dispose of the bodies and make the people disappear without too much fuss? Or is she completely in denial?

It does not look like you are trying to Figure Someone Out, nothing you have done would lead to understanding any of the answers it could bring.

Maybe you and/or @oopsylon could roll to Put a Face to a Name to see if your know anything about John Uskglass (Power). It did not feel like it, but now that you have a name it might trigger something which could be useful?

The most likely Move (in a situation where no others apply) is Keep Your Cool, and it feels like Emma is blustering towards that. We would need set the worst-case that you are trying to avoid, and it is not death or disappearance, it is probably social ramifications (which Emma would be unable to predict, so you may only find out about them later?).

Another option could be for you to cause a fuss, and '• Draw immediate mortal attention to a person or situation' (Let It Out), but that will definitely make a social mess and impact how welcome you are in supernatural society going forward, so be careful with this one.
Delirium says:
... 2. Letting Emma talk her way out of it. ...
That would be ideal. But I am worried it does not make sense with how Emma is ignoring the reality of the danger she is in and trying to 'call his bluff'. It is only the fact the he does not want to have you killed that is keeping you alive, this is a brutal world. Emma does not seem to realise that, yet?

At best you may be able to Persuade him that he will get nothing from you and is wasting his time. That still leaves the rest of the problems (social and political) after you are kicked out.
Delirium says:
... likely make her more reserved and cautious in future encounters, which could lead her to avoid engaging ...
That is a problem. We need to deal with that on a meta-level and decide how much we want to change the character (even to the extent of forcing her to change Playbooks if it comes to that), but I don't think we want to push this change too hard. There have been a string of Misses, and you are in a bad situation, mainly by association, but still, you have chosen to ally yourself with the ones in trouble, that will matter in the future.
Delirium says:
... just not on her first foray ...
True... but also, a 'first foray' is the ideal time for an 'eye opening experience'. It is interesting that it looks like this will end with your feeling the vampires and demons (... well... Benji and Jacob...) are the ones on your side and the Wizards are the ones arrayed against you. :) This could push to towards more 'bad decisions' and to engaging more with the 'creatures of the night' than with the 'more upright power structures'.

I can see some interesting ways to drive this forward if you want to send Emma more 'underground'.
Delirium says:
... escape by owing a debt. This feels like a cheesy resolution ...
I don't really see that as a 'resolution', just an inevitable consequence. Benji has admitted he caused harm, so he will definitely Owe The Administrator a Debt because he chose to Overlook a Harm. Emma is making herself appear complicit in that, so Debts will probably attached to her ledger, even if she feels otherwise. She will have to learn that the Debt system she scoffed at is real, and ignoring it has real consequence (soon, since it is a core mechanic and reneging on Debts will see the character cut out of the world (we should arrange a lesson that we can live with)).
Delirium says:
... I’d prefer Emma to owe the debt to another NPC who comes to her rescue, rather than the Administrator. ...
If someone comes to your rescue you would Owe them. I agree that having the Administrator let you off for a Debt is not a good way to resolve this... but, if he is generous, he may come to you later (once you understand) and ask a favour with the reminder that he 'helped you'... but this is already covered by his Overlooking the Harm you have done him tonight.
Delirium says:
... I don’t think Emma would choose to run away in the car. ...
Yes, running away does not seem a good solution, but is always an option. Going with Servitors seems uncomfortable... Which means it could be an interesting scene, but I also don't see Emma accepting that if there were any other options?

It is late, though, and the trains have stopped running. You could always get a taxi yourself, but that is expensive and will cause marital strife when David sees the credit card bill.

We can arrange a lift, though, but there will always be cost.

Best to try to leave with Jacob if he can get free.

Let's see how Jacob gets on.
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