In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 16):

I trust you.  Besides, you literally designed the system yourself.  If you can't fudge it, who can?  Just kidding.

I'm not too worried about you cheating on rolls.

The guard manages to click the flashlight on as you connect solidly to his cleft chin.

The blow is enough to send him backwards.  He lands on his butt, the flashlight rolling out of his grip and bouncing against the wall.  The beam illuminates you and your shadow, which is half on the wall, half off, leaning forward like something alive.  Wrapping itself around your shoulders, chest and legs like a fog.

The guard manages a "Wha'...", and then his eyes roll back in his head.  He flops down, knocked out by your haymaker.

Van gathers the flashlight (quickly turning it off if it's still on), and the man's body.

Van will want to move the man's body out of sight of the elevators and the stairwell door as soon as possible.

Van will REALLY want to hide the body in a room different from the one he's going to, but he probably doesn't really have time to futz around with the guard's keys, if they aren't labelled properly-- the most important thing is to get to the right office, and get what he's after...

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 18):

The keys are suprisingly easy to figure out.  He seems to have a master key for each floor.  You find the one labeled "5" and stuff him into the nearest office.

You slither down the hallway towards Wyman's chambers.  Opening the door, you step inside.

His chambers are divided into two rooms.  A smaller, front room with a tiny desk and lots of cabinets.  That is probably for his clerk.

The larger room in back has nicer furniture.  His desk complete with pictures of his family.  A pleasant looking, motherly looking wife.  Two sons, both of whom seem to be married.  Or at least there are women smiling in the photo frames with them.  One of them holds a baby.

There are cabinets in here as well.

So you will need to search.  I'll need you to tell me what order you search in.

Clerk's Desk
Clerk's Cabinets 1-5
Wyman's Desk
Wyman's Cabinets 1-3
Other

Tell me what order you want to search these places please.

Thanks

FIRST Wyman's Desk
SECOND Wyman's Cabinets 1, then 2, then 3

THIRD Clerk's Desk
FOURTH: Clerk's Cabinets 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

FIFTH: Other

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 20):

My apologies.  I don't know why I did not see your post when I updated Thursday.

Wyman's desk contains most of the usual stuff.  He's got a dog eared copy of She Sighs Longingly At The Moon in one drawer.  Apparently the Judge likes a little risque in his literature.

The cabinets take a little time to crack open.  The locks aren't cheap.  You skim through the various files inside.  No sign of the transcript.  You do see an interesting looking file labeled Mayor's Promise on it though.

You move into the clerk's space.  The clerk's desk takes no time at all.  There's nothing there other than pencils and clean steno pads.

You start on the cabinets.  That's when you hear voices.

They're down the hall, getting closer.

You can make out:

"Whaddya mean someone decked ya?"

"Shhh!  Jeez.  They might still be around."

(I wondered about it, too, but I figured maybe you got tired or sick before you got to mine. That happens to me a lot as a GM. I figured you'd get to it in the next go-round.)





...Without so much as glancing at Mayor's Promise?




1. Are the lights on in the office currently? Hope not.

2. Please tell me Van remembered to lock the door behind him again as he came into the office.

More after I find out the answers to 1 and 2.

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 22):

Don't ever hesitate to kick me if I'm late in responding.  I've been known to think I responded but didn't actually.  Thanks

Mayor's Promise looks like it's a set of documents related to a land deal of some kind.  Looks like several lots out in Surreyville, not far from where they've broken ground on the new stadium.  The details look convoluted.  It will take a while to sort through it all to make sense out of what's going on

Feel free to take the file if you wish.

You'll have to tell me the answers on both questions.  Does Van have a flashlight?  And did he lock the door?

Usually I will assume that if you didn't say it, you didn't do it.  But since this is a test run...and you would reasonably have enough time to tip toe over and lock it now...I'll let you mulligan if you like.  Do let me know about the flashlight.  Not sure what "standard" gear va will carry as Midnight.

If he's not carrying a flashlight...well.  He'd have to have some kind of light source so he could take that glance through Mayor's Promise.

Thanks

Oh, that sounds important. Van will take that and look it over later.





Van brought a flashlight.

The door is locked.

(Having established those things, I guess) Van had better head for the window, in case he needs to duck out onto the fire escape (hopefully just temporarily)...

Does the window seem to have an alarm wire running to it?

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 24):

Good news, bad news.  The good news is the window is not alarmed.  Bad news is the fire escape doesn't hook up to this office.  If you go out the window, you'll literally be on a narrow ledge.

You can hear the voices much more clearly now.

"Shit."  Sounds like they are just coming around the corner outside.  "Check Wyman's door."

The door knob shakes.  "Locked.  But did they take your keys?"

"Never mind that.  We gotta make sure that timer's still tickin'.  If things don't go down when the big guy wants 'em to go down-"

"Alright.  Alright.  It's in the supply closet."  You start to hear footsteps heading to the west, but one pair stops.  "Hey.  What about Harry?"

<yellow>"Screw Harry.  He always like ta be all high an' mighty.  Well he can be all high an' mighty on his way to the moon.  Now hurry up.  We gotta make sure it's good ta go and split outta here.  I don't wanna join in the rocket ride.  Capisce?"

Ohhhh dear. The Big Guy? The Timer? So Long Harry? The Rocket Ride? Not good.

There's a timer going to blow this place up. They're not worried now, but they're worried about SOON. Got to follow them so I can find out which supply closet we're talking about-- it might be the door I've seen, or there might be a supply closet on every floor for all I know-- or every other floor.

Step 1: Let them lead me to this timer.
Step 2: Probably let them clear out so I can--
Step 3: Stop the timer (or the bomb) somehow.

Although if I have to beat one or both of these guys up, fine, because then I could ask them questions...

As stealthily as possible, Van follows the men (keeping the mayor's plan with him), so they can lead him to the supply closet.


(By the way, I think What Have You Sworn? should work if the target is unconscious. (Dead, I'm not so sure about.) Just tossing that out here now.)

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 26):

They head down the hall to the south and stop outside the second door on the right.  One of them fumbles for some keys while the other one scans around and behind them with a flashlight.

Let's have you give me a stealth roll please.  And of course you get your +1

The one with the keys opens the door and steps into the room.  The other goon stays out in the hall, continuing to shine that flashlight around.

After about a minute, the first goon steps back out.

"We got problems."

"Whaddya mean we got problems?"

"The bomb...it's gone."

The two of them sort of stare at each other for a moment.

I would say What You Have Sworn would work on someone asleep or unconscious, yes.  Dead...only if it was an actual ghost.  Once the spirit has left the body, all pledges and commitments are null and void.

(11:41, Today: Van Caldwell rolled 4 using 2d4 with rolls of 1,3.  stealth.

Success, but with a possible small complication.)




Well, the next thing they're going to do is going to either be to run away and leave their posts, or go looking for Harry to see if he's found the bomb... If it's the first, that'll make my job easier-- if the second, I guess I'll follow them, because who in the world is in here besides me and these two and Harry...? A janitor...? If Harry's found it, then I might have to save him from these two...

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 28):

So I was thinking that when you rolled 2 die, you would get to keep the better result.  So I would assume that was a 1 or great success.  Am I misunderstanding the proposed system?

Bill and Tom, or Tom and Bill...you aren't sure which one is who...stop staring at each other and scurry down the hallway.

"You think maybe Harry took it?"

"Why would he?  But if he did..."  You see the speaker...let's say he's Tom...reaches into a pocket and pulls out a hunting knife.

"You serious?"

"Either Harry took it or someone else did.  You wanna be the one to tell The Big Guy "Uh...sorry.  We kinda lost the bomb you wanted us ta plant"?"

The one you're supposing is Bill sighs.  "Okay.  Harry was gonna buy it no matter what.  But we gotta find that bomb."

They start to move towards the stairwell.

They seem to give up all pretense of stealth as they hit the stairs, rushing down them.

"Harry's supposed ta be on 3 now, right?"

"Yeah. How long we got on that timer anyway?"

<goldendrod>"I think about thirty minutes."</goldenrod>

They are near the third floor landing...

I will pause there in case any of that changed your plans

(Yes, but only slightly. High number is GOOD. Low number is BAD. So I ignored the 1 and kept the 3.

Cross-reference with earlier when Van punched the guard out with a 3 and a 4, keeping the 4:

quote:

<Orange>(13:53, Today: Van Caldwell rolled 7 using 2d4.  Punching time..

OOPS. It was a 3 and a 4, but the dice roller needs to be set for the default of "record each die." I'll try to remember to do it manually until you set the default.

...Fortunately, with 2d4, there's really nothing else it COULD have been but a 3 and a 4, so you don't have to just take my word for it...

So anyway, a 4: big success.)

See also our rMails where I was first pitching this system to you:

quote:

If I want to do something that's at all challenging, difficult, or risky, I roll 1d4.

1: Pretty bad
2: little bad
3: mostly good
4: very good

Then you tell me what happens based on the roll.

If what I want to do involves one of my special things (jump to a really far rooftop, but I've got my special rocket-books on), I roll TWO 1d4s, and take the highest result.

)




Van will just keep following them...
This message was last edited by the player at 14:30, Sat 29 Oct 2022.

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 30):

Sorry.  Was flipping my results chart for your game.  That's what happens when I try to post too late at night.

Bill and Tom open the door to the third floor and head through.  This floor seems a carbon copy of the fifth in terms of layout.

"Harry!" Probably-Bill bellows out.

"Hey!" Probably-Tom hisses.

Bill shrugs.  "If he took it, he won't answer.  If he did-"

"If he took what?"

A third watchman steps out of an office, shining a flashlight on Bill and Tom.

"What's up?  Somethin' going on?"

There's a moment of silence.  Bill slowly nods.  "Yeah.  Someone jumped Tom."

"What?  Didja call tha cops yet?"

Tom and Bill look at each other than towards Harry.  "We should scope out the place first ourselves."

"That's not procedure!  I'll use the office phone in here."

Harry turns to head back into the office he came out of.

Bill nods at Tom.  Tom flips his flashlight around.  It's one of those long, heavy ones that must hurt like hell when they smack you.

He rushes forward towards Harry, raising the flashlight over his head like a club...

That's it, it's violence time.

(08:45, Today: Van Caldwell rolled 5 using 2d4 with rolls of 1,4.  Stop the bludgenoning of Harry.

Whew! 4! Big success.)

Judge Midnight figuratively flies out of the shadows, punching the heck out of Tom. "Nobody touches this innocent man," says Van, trying to do his Very Serious Judge Midnight voice. It'll help that they just saw my shadow wrapped around me...
This message was last edited by the player at 13:49, Mon 31 Oct 2022.

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 32):

Everyone seems surprised.  Except for Tom.  He's too busy falling to the floor to be surprised.

Your bonus here is Bill is surprised and stunned for the mo.  You may punch again Sir.

(11:16, Today: Van Caldwell rolled 5 using 2d4 with rolls of 1,4.  Punching second guy-- I hope..

4, YESssss! Big success.)


Judge Midnight successfully takes care of the second guard who knows about the bomb, POW! "These two guards were paid to plant a bomb-- in a custodial closet. They were about to attack you because they think you found it and moved it. Do you know anything about it? They think it's going to go off in less than 30 minutes... If you don't have it, then we've got to find out who does, fast!"

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 34):

Harry blinks and then seems to snap out of it.  "A bomb?  What?  No! Of course not! Who'd put a bomb in a courthouse?

"Wait!  There's a clerk working late on the second floor! I saw him when I was making rounds!"

Harry starts to dash for the stairwell and then stops, looking back at Bob and Tom.  "I can't leave them to die.  I'll get them outta here.  Can you tell that clerk?"

Craaaaap. I guess making sure lives get saved has to come before destruction of property... "Yes-- but what're you going to do, drag each of them to the elevator, and then drag each of them outside? What if they wake up? Wait--tell you what, if they wake up, tell them they've been out for more than twenty minutes, and that the bomb's about to go off-- they're sure to run for it and ask questions later."

Just to try to be sure that Harry is as honest as he seems, though, Van looks carefully at Harry. What Have You Sworn, Harry...?

(09:19, Today: Van Caldwell rolled 5 using 2d4.  What Have You Sworn?

UGH. It was a 1 and a 4, but the darn dice roller isn't yet set to the default being Record Each Die. (Only the GM can set Record Each Die as the default.) Willing to take my word for it, I hope?)

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 36):

I am certainly willing to take your word for it.  Experienced players, particularly ones who GM a lot all know half the fun of the game are the bad rolls.

Harry is a simple man.  He's sworn a vow of marriage to his wife and has never strayed.  He considers that he took a vow to perform his duties as a night watchman faithfully and has done so for several years.  The only oath he's ever broken was when he was eight years old and promised his dad he wouldn't play near the street but did.  A car hit him, and he spent months in a cast.

---

You come down to the second floor.  Once again, it's that rectangular hallway around the perimeter.  As you come around the corner, you see the lights in one office are on.  The door is wide open and someone has turned a radio on in the room.

Looking through, you are greeted with a gruesome sight.

A young man in his twenties is tied to a chair.  Someone removed his shirt and took a belt or whip or something similar to him.  They took off his shoes and stuffed his rolled up socks into his mouth to keep him quiet while they tortured him.  He still seems to be alive.  He's breathing in hoarse gasps through his nose.  Sitting on his lap is what has to be the bomb.  It looks like a box alarm with several sticks of dynamite attached to it.

On the far wall, someone has spray painted a poem by Frost:

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

Huh. Doesn't prove Harry's not mixed up in this bad business, but it sure seems that way to me. Moving on...



Damn. That's not good--

--FIRST: Van moves in, making sure no one else is still in the office in question.
--SECOND: Van checks the bomb-- how much time is there?
--THIRD: if there's more than 5 minutes, Van removes the socks so the guy can breathe and maybe talk.
--FOURTH: If there's more than 5 minutes, Van LOCKS THE DOOR BEHIND HIM and will try to stop the bomb safely unless Sock Victim warns something about it being rigged to go off if anyone tries that or something

IF turning off the bomb isn't obvious, Step Four will be a science-y wires-y electric-y roll-- but let's see how the above four steps go, first.

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 38):

You glance at Socks-In-Mouth.  He seems to be breathing, though his eyes are shut and twitching.

You move quickly to the bomb...

...Less than 90 seconds left on it.

Is there ever oodles of time still remaining?

The mechanism doesn't seem like it should be too complicated...

Let's see you make me that Science-y roll.  Of course you get the bonus.  Maybe you can see at a glance which wire to pull out

(09:13, Today: Van Caldwell rolled 5 using 2d4 with rolls of 1,4.  some days you can't get rid of a bomb.

WHEW!)

In reply to Van Caldwell (msg # 40):

With a quick, practiced eye, you can see that the mechanism is a rather nasty one.  But it's like someone took a page out of the Anarchist's Cookbook.  You snip off two wires.  The timer stops at 47 seconds to go.

You unstuff the vic's mouth.  He coughs weakly and mumbles something, still kind of in a daze.

"...Carlo...I don't know nothin'...'s not me man...someone else tipped 'em..."