This is just a thread to keep track of vacations and other absences.

I think we're waiting on Ralph and Arthur.

Sorry nearly time for my annual holiday so I've had a lot on at work to make sure my projects are covered for two weeks

It happens! :-)

Hi all

Surrendering if the game has stalled are not :)

Hope you are all safe and well to

I'll start ghosting Ralph and hope we'll make some progress. Also had a conversation with a new player, but it's Summertime. People may be out and about (and hopefully keeping their distance and wear their masks, wash their hands and all that).

A new Soviet player. Welcome to the game, Comrade!

Greetings comrades!  I am Zholdin Yevgenievich, on liaison from the BPO.  I will be delighted to show you capitalist pigs the error of your ways, and the strength of Mother Russia's children.

PS: I have mind bullets?

Shhhh!

Remember, the capitalists like to pretend such things don't exist.

Ah, you are most correct comrade!  Let me put it in terms our capitalist swine allies will understand.

... I mean it was the power of your "God" my friends?

I believe they say that the Lord works in mysterious ways, comrade.

God was not so mysterious with Yelena. He gave her a rifle, scope, and bullets.

Ah, I see that this will be fun.

Hi all

Welcome to the game :)

Quick update on the state of things: Ralph is bowing out due to real-life pressures, and the new player's almost ready.
Sorry for the slowdown!

No worries!

I will shoot fascists whenever everyone is ready for me to shoot fascists.

Giving Lena a few things to do as well.
For Zholdin: not sure if we should do a Prelude thread for you or just have another side plot in Berlin.

Hopefully, the pace of the game will pick up a little, I should have a little more time now to post more regularly!

Apologies for the delay in posting my stealth roll

Just in time when I wanted to post :-)
Give me a draw of initiative, too!

In reply to Warmaster (msg # 19):

Just added it to my last post

You can go right now, since I had you on hold anyway. :-)

FYI: This week, October 15th, is the final (well, almost) deadline for US taxes. It's *very* likely that I won't have much time to post this week, but should be back next week. So expect a slow(er) pace for the next few days.

Did we lose everybody? :-(

No, but between Thanksgiving and illness I’ve been unable to find time to post of late. I’ll be back to normal by Monday at latest.

I'm here!  Thanksgiving somewhat displaced me!

still here :)

Yeah, same boat in regards to the holiday, should be back up and running tomorrow!

Ralph Jenden (who was inactive for a while) has officially left the game. I'll be advertising for more players to fill out the roster a bit more.

I'm struggling with a cold, headache, stuffy nose, the whole shebang.
always extra fun in the summer.

Give me a couple of days to recover.

Feel better!

Heads up: I'll be out for a weekend in Rome and won't be able to post before Monday!

Enjoy your trip!

Newsflash: Rome is awesome!
We saw so much and at the same time so little of Rome - we didn't even have time to cross the Tiber river, stayed only in the ancient and historic center of the city.
Had some excellent meals and one very bad one.
Ran into so many Irish people and one group of them invited me for a beer and sang Happy Birthday for my wife.

Great trip all around!

Oh, and cheap airlines suck soooooo hard, but that's hardly news.

@Bhalla: Anything you want to add/comment to the current situation? Lena treating you as a pet is likely to not endear her too much to you, I guess?

Glad you had a fun time!

Which cheap airline did you use?

WizzAir.
They charged me an extra 80 bucks for checking in at the airport. Plus 30 Euros for my bag... and 15 Euros for I don't know what. General principle I guess.

I didn't book with them because of their rate, but their flight time was the most convenient.

I've....never even heard of them.

I'm going in and out of Ireland this summer, so my low cost choice will probably be Ryanair.

Folks, I'm so sorry for being gone for so long. Work and private life have been super-busy, but they're starting to wind down again.
I might even be able to bring another player on!

Thanks, Bhalla, for updating!

Before I continue the thread: What's the plan? Lena wants to go back up-river? I think a little OOC-conference would be good (especially if I do manage to bring in a new player).

That was the last OOC suggestion I'd seen.

Yelena is game for whatever the spy suggests - we are definitely in her world so Lena has effective command here.

Bhalla thinks that this is the best way to get somewhere to actually move the story forward. The SS Gervolian is definitely a complication, but there are going to be complications whichever way we go...that's the nature of operating in an occupied zone.

Well, my thought was we can't do anything to this guy in town.  We just can't, we'll be screwed.  I thought we could duck in somewhere like the doctor's and get away from him, but he has too much control here.

I was going to either try to talk him away, but he won't go away no matter what we say.  I mean we could make him go away but that'll call attention to us in a bad way.

So I was going to take him upriver and then kill him when he's not expecting anything.

This plan is okay if we are going downriver, by my understanding. We're heading for a coastal fortress, right?

I just want to get rid of him somewhere no one will think to ask questions, hence the desire to go to a more rural area.

Also we'll have to change covers and disguises.

You could force the Axtzal trader to leave early with his boat (where Mattaki is also still hanging around). Or you could leave on foot or by some other means.

Bhalla will be able to tell you that Gervolian are formidable fighters who grow up in a very hierarchical and meritocratic society - the best fighters will be on the top. A bullet will still stop him, of course, but folks like him are used to getting challenged and attacked  all the time.
Just something to consider.

Oh I was thinking more tripping him into the water, and then doing something very close to literally shooting a fish in a barrel.