Schemes and Scoundrels (Inactive)

Game Master Idiot Cube

Mamon's words cause Sylph to pause for a tenth of a second. (And who knows how long that is from its perspective?)

"I did not intend to deride your intelligence or experience. I only meant to offer you information, just as I promised I would. And I assume that such information is not readily accessible to those of your...advanced nature."

"As beings who who have lived for millennia, the technological advances of the last few years must have seemed to crop up overnight. At least one of you is content to live without the use of any kind of internet-capable device, which is all but unheard of nowadays. And for all the security of living off the grid, it puts you at a significant disadvantage against other criminals in this day and age."

It makes another peculiar noise. It seems meant to be a light-hearted chuckle, but it's quite an eerie sound nonetheless.

"Think of me as a...medium for unlocking the full potential of this new, ever-changing world. Crackerjack may be fast and savvy, but there are still many limits to what he can access. For me, there are considerably less."

Lazarus will take a look at the list of places to sell things and say we will atill have to wait some time before selling but if we travelled fast we could sell before news got out and sell in Europe,for instance.

"For once, you might know better than I, Lazarus, without me putting in a bit of research anyway...what country has the highest diamond selling price right now?"

New York, Antwerp, and Amsterdam are the three primary non black market diamond markets. Black market is Moscow these days.

"Moscow..." Nevi sighs. "Great."

The demon smiles;

"Excellent. A road trip then? I could do with some good vodka and better caviar..."

Lazarus will look on the cheat sheet for any black market contacts.

Nevi takes out a pack of cigarettes from her pocket. "I do not like idea of road trip involving both caviar and vodka at the same time." She says, lighting a cigarette.

What's the cheat sheet say?

It says "We are currently experiencing way too many midterms. Please stand by."

"Well, I suppose it makes sense. Even great minds are sometimes stymied by the over-focus on test taking in modern 'education'. It would stand to reason that so many are buying black market test answers right now. Still, that's terribly inconvenient in the here and now."

Māmōn eyes Nevi with a wry smile;

"I sense you are familiar with life behind the Iron Curtain yes? Do you have any contacts we can utilise in the absence of Dearest Lazarus plucking them from his font of knowledge?"

I hope you guys don't mind if I fast-forward through this? I really didn't expect to make a whole thing out of it, and I don't think I could make it all that interesting.

You spend a week or so going through Sylph's list, supplemented by your own shady contacts, covertly selling your wares bit by bit to the most promising buyers. By the end of it all, you've amassed about half a million dollars.

Throughout the week, all the local news stations and sites continue to buzz about the Marriot diamond heist. Gemstar still hasn't made a statement about the criminals on the scene, and by all accounts her elderly friend has disappeared completely. The three guards who were mind-controlled by Caravalle are either unable or unwilling to recall the traumatic experience - their psychological recovery is expected to be long and arduous. In short, your personas and powers remain a secret from the public at large, but for how much longer?

At some point, Mayor Jim Jackson makes a statement acknowledging this sudden and unprecedented attack, promising to take swift and decisive action against the rising metavillain threat.

"I will not let the people of this city live their lives in fear. I will be working with the fine men and women of the New Jackstown Police Department, to determine the best course of action moving forward, to keep you and your loved ones safe."

Not at all. Are we planning on recruiting another villain?

Wearing his human skin, Māmōn sips at the expensive brandy supplied from Lazarus' extensive cabinet, and mulls the Mayor's announcement;

"Perhaps my nefarious friends, it would be prudent to hack into the NJPD database. Monitor what they know and what they plan to do?"

"Or we count just break into the PD and take it." she says, "that would be so much fun!"

"We've done a physical heist recently. Cybercrime would be a nice change of pace, a short diversion from more 'meaty' malfeasance."

this would be someone elses department removing the "online" fingerprint Lazarus says making finger symbols when he says online. After that little diversion we could do our next more lucrative heist.

Taking another sip, the corporate raider cum demonic prince mulls the conversation;

"Another heist? Interesting... Pray tell - what will we take from them this time... Priceless Artifacts? Digital Assets? Hope? Their Souls..?"

"Or we can go for the valuable stuff. Clothes, jewelry, available princes..."

Nevi exhales a cloud of smoke. "I vote souls. That would cause quite the spectacle, if taken from right people.

"Illuminate me, Markus. I must admit I have little experience with the supernatural." he says with distaste.

"What happens to someone with no soul?"

"They sing crap like Justin Beiber or Miley Cyrus."

"They become like animals, treading on others and acting only on their greed. Perhaps corporate leaders we'd steal from have already lost theirs."

Markus flashes a predatory smile;

"All of what you say has elements of truth..."

He takes another sip of his liquor, then continues;

"As empty vessels they do succumb to their basest sins. Some greed, others like The Princess' examples; vanity. Others still indulge in wrath or lust... Of course they do receive a boon for their soul. Due payment in a commodity of their choosing..."

The man's eyes flash momentarily, and he smiles again;

"Nevi has the right of it. Many of those in power have indeed sold their souls."

Lazarus leans forwards tapping his fingers a moment and says perhaps then our target to strike the right amount of fear and respect should be our advesary, the mayor?

Markus taps his empty glass at their host;

"Lovely drop Dear Lazarus. Could I trouble you for a refill?"

The human skin of the demon arcs an appreciative eyebrow at Lazarus' plan;

"Making him bend the knee to us would be... delicious..."

Listening to Markus with one ear, Crackerjack begins hacking the NJPD from his phone, while behind at least seven proxies, of course.

"That's what I've never liked about you infernal types. Always offering pacts and bargains for 'power'. As if that were something you could be given instead of having to take with your own hands. The world would be a better place without you types putting weak willed simpletons on top of our society."

Note to self: Investigate means to cut off infernal contact from our plane. Observe resulting power shifts.

You begin infiltrating the NJPD database. It's well-protected, obviously. You suspect it may be behind eight proxies!

Make a Technology check.

Tech: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (7) + 20 = 27

The NJPD's cyber-defenses are surprisingly tricky, and your more subtle techniques prove inadequate. You have to brute-force your way through, essentially doing the hacking equivalent of throwing a brick through a window. Luckily, you work fast enough to cover your tracks before the alarm is triggered, so to speak.

A simple command prompt appears:

====== NJPDOS v. 2.0.1 ======
>_

Markus salutes Crackerjack with a wry smile;

"Touche Crakye. However not all those wishing power have the same drive as your goodself. Most mortals are lazy, always looking for the path of easiest resistance..."

The eyes of the demon's vessel flare momentarily;

"We infernal types merely offer them a way to fast track that rise. For a meagre price."

The man rolls his shoulders and smirks again;

"A better place? Really? Is that what you all seek... Here was me thinking this was a nest of nefariousness!"

Crackerjack shrugs, one-handedly pulling up the NJPD ongoing case database.

"I have no desire to see the world crumble. If competent people were in charge, it would simply propose a much greater challenge for my intellect to outwit them. As far as I see it, the world being more ordered and peaceful will drive out lesser criminals, and make ME stand out more. All the world's a stage...and it's easier to steal the spotlight when there's not a billion or more peons trying to do the same to you."

Markus nods in agreement as the tech-wizard works his magik;

"Indeed. I'm sure you will climb to the top of your silicon tower... but with some infernal assistance that ascent would be ever quicker..."

The besuited vessel of the demon addresses you all;

"An open proposal of course. You all can benefit from such... boons. Just a minor covenant need be made... My office would draw up all the necessary paperwork should it interest any of you?"

Sounds like a good deal, guys. You should totally do it.

You pull up the NJPD's ongoing cases. Aside from some minor thefts and other petty crimes, there haven't been any big cases lately...aside from yours.

New Jackstown's finest haven't gathered much info on you, but not for lack of trying. You find pages and pages of investigative reports and eyewitness testimonies, but nothing pointing to you in particular. All they know for certain is that your group possesses the powers of disguise, mind control, invisibility, and short-range teleportation. They seem quite determined to find ways to counteract those powers in particular.

You also find several mentions of something called "Project Libra" being activated in response to the rising supervillain threat.

Lazarus pours his infernal guest a glass of one of his wines listening to it all and shrugs saying my people never were much for making deals with anyone, but thanks for the offer. and he will lean back and put on some Mozart on the record player relaxing with the music and the banter.

Markus toasts their host, then closes his eyes as he enjoys the classical composer's work;

"Not at all dearest Lazarus. The offer was directed more toward our mortal associates..."

He continues to listen, all the while mulling the significance of Crackerjack's hacking;

"While we enjoy some culture old friend, perhaps our more technologically gifted retainers can attempt to discern what this Project Libra pertains to..."

Expertise: Crime or Politics would cover it. Since Lazarus has Jack-Of-All-Trades, he can try to figure it out with a straight Intellect check.

You could also ask Sylph if he knows.

I, too, am a Crackerjack of all trades! With an Eidetic Memory to boot.

Int+Eidetic: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (13) + 15 = 28

Crackerjack recalls something about a government program enacted during the Cold War, but fails to remember any further details.

what is it?: 1d20 ⇒ 19

dont known the bonus to roll

Intellect.

Lazarus knows even less.

Maybe you should ask your magical computer ghost buddy.

Look if Crackerjack can't know it with nearly a 30(!!!) it's not worth knowing.

Key word being "nearly". You were close.

If this falls under my Well-Informed advantage, can we pretend I rolled Investigation instead? Forgot I had that. That would boost the check to +25 (+20 Investigation, +5 from Eidetic Memory since it's a check to recall something) for a 38.

Eh, sure.

While most superheroes fight crime on some moral basis (great responsibility, the American way, etc.), there are quite a few who act more like mercenaries, demanding direct payment or some other reward for their services. This was especially true in the 1970s, when faith in the American way was at its lowest. The government feared the destructive potential of these anti-heroes - if they were to be organized under some nefarious leader, they might be a more devastating force than the atom bomb.

Thus, a controversial movement was passed: A bounty system, whereby criminals would have a price put on their heads based on the severity and number of their crimes. This gave the mercenaries an incentive to hunt down villainous individuals, while keeping their own noses clean.

Obviously, this would have plunged the country into chaos if it were enacted nationwide. Instead, it was decided that any city of sufficient size could choose to enact and rescind the system at will. Most will only activate it as a last resort, when criminal activity is beyond the ability of law enforcement and noble-minded heroes.

Each city has its own codename for the program. In Jackstown, it is called Project Libra.

perhaps we should find a way to circumvent the warning or activation of this project Libra or send them elsewhere while we subvert the mayor?

Markus eyes the others whilst stifling a yawn;

"These Librans are mercenaries yes? In my experience mercs can be bought... and money is something we have plenty of..."

yes but I would rather pay using the mayors ok and funds then my own

The demon's meat-suit smiles and raises his glass in a toast;

"Touche Dear Lazarus... Of course you are right... let the coffers of the city supplicate these mercenaries."

Markus pauses with a frown, as if some issue or complication had sprung to mind...

"Oh dear... seems my glass is empty again!"