Sorry for the continued hold up, guys, but I've got some unfortunate unforeseen RL stuff to deal with in the mean time. We'll be back in the swing of things soon.
Sorry for the continued hold up, guys, but I've got some unfortunate unforeseen RL stuff to deal with in the mean time. We'll be back in the swing of things soon.
No problem, James. My RL is crazy busy at the moment too.
No worries :)
Ninja'd by Martin! Egads!
I laughed at Lucian's thought about bringing the book into an asylum. No, we don't want to do that...
How'd you weather the storm, James? Any blizzard conditions in NYC?
We had one day of snowfall and then it was as if it never happened. I know people in Connecticut that lost power but we were fine in Brooklyn.
How are we doing? Busy? Not sure where to go from here? Sick of the game?
I'm doing good. Still thinking about where to go from here. It's funny because in character, I'm definitely of a mind to leave Alexander where he is. As a player, however, I really wanted to see what would happen if he were let out.
I'm inclined to try and do some more digging once in London to see if we can figure out who Quarrie is. That might require going back to old news regarding events prior to the murders, and I'm not sure if it'll actually lead anywhere. It'd be a good opportunity to use some Research skills though.
Do you guys want another Keeper listing of the current facts, since we've been playing for around nine months now?
I'll also note, just for future sanity and frustration, that occasionally an investigation may hit a wall. Things happen behind the scenes, opportunities are missed or don't always present themselves. If a lead dries up, consider other avenues or continue in your investigator's daily life.
That would actually be pretty helpful if you wouldn't mind.
Also, I totally get what you're saying about chasing red herrings. That isn't so bad if you're playing in a real life game, but wasting a week or so following a false lead would be pretty frustrating.
I'll also type up the transcript from the Roby interview as a handout for future reference.
Thanks for the warning, and for the continued excellent GMing! I, for one, consider this to be one of the games that I make an extra effort to keep despite a busy schedule. Wouldn't give it up for the world!
Also, definitely just started laughing out loud in the staff lounge at work when I read that aside, James. Where's that from?
It's from the Simpsons episode "Hurricane Neddy" when Flanders finally snaps. Appropriately enough, spoken by the asylum superintendent!
A summary and the facts of the case, as of 31 October, 1928
- On October 17th, each of you went to see an amateur theater group in West London ("The Group") perform a play by the novelist Talbot Estus. The play, entitled "The Queen and the Stranger"- a dreamlike play with surreal elements, concerning the city of Carcosa and the coming of a Stranger. At the arrival of the King in Yellow in the second act, after the Stranger reveals the Yellow Sign the audience riots.
- Upon further reflection- each of you saw a different version of Act One, Scene 3
- You met the eccentric Talbot Estus after the play- Estus reveals that he adapted the Queen and the Stranger from "The King in Yellow"- an older, even more notorious play.
- Some of the actors- Walter Paige, Jean Hewart and Hannah Keith remark that they have experienced alarming dreams since rehearsing the play.
- Under the light of Aldebaran, the red star in the constellation Tauros, Lucian and Victor begin to experience disturbing dreams that leave them restless- but inspired. While Victor resists the strange inspiration, Lucian embraces it and goes overnight from a competent dabbler to an incredible artist.
- The Scala's manager, Mr. Noble, has cancelled all future performances of "The Queen and the Stranger".
- Meanwhile, Spencer has begun to see the young Miss Hewart, going so far as to meet her father- a very highly placed judge in the King's court, and Martin began consulting with his Spiritualist friend Pamela Winthrop and the parapsychologist Grayson Snow.
- After a meeting with Mr. Estus and his roomate/friend/editor Mr. Michael Gillen, the four of you discuss the King in Yellow's powers of inspiration. Estus plans to adapt the piece into a novel- Lucian borrows Estus' copy.
- Occasionally Lucian, Victor and Spencer note graffiti referring to the King in Yellow both on the East End and on the docks near the Thames.
- The weather grows colder and colder as October continues.
- Martin receives a letter from Dr. Charles Highsmith on October 19th; the doctor would like to enlist the author's aid in a consultation
- Victor, Lucian, Walter, Martin and Spencer meet at Grayson Snow's apartment for an experiment- an attempt to measure the dreams' effects on their psyches. While attached to Mr. Snow's machine, Spencer experiences a dream- subsequent nights, however, are free of interference. Neither Grayson nor Martin experience a dream.
- Meeting with Dr. Highsmith, Martin and Spencer learn of "Patient W" and the circumstances of his commitment at St. Agnes' Asylum after the mysterious murder of his father and sister.
- "Patient W" (Alexander Roby) is set to have his commitment reviewed at the end of November; Doctor Highsmith enlists the investigators to unearth biographical details on Alexander while he was at liberty to fill in his case and discovering his brother and family doctor's resistance to his release.
- Lucian experiences a waking vision on the way to his friend's art studio.
Alexander Roby- the murder and the madness
- Dr. Highsmith believes Alexander's scotophobia relates to the murder of his father, Herbert and his sister, Georgina, on October 14th, 1926.
- Alexander confessed to the murder in a state of grief and despair.
- Interviews with Inspector John Stephens and his junior, Detective Inspector Lorimer at Scotland Yard determines that: Alexander's glass balcony had been broken from the outside, both Herbert and Georgina were discovered in the downstairs drawing room accessed by a hallway door which had been smashed down; Herbert's body showed a gaping stab wound above the left collar bone and was completely drained of blood, Georgina was slain with two slicing wounds- one to the front torso and one to the neck and head; one blow was left-handed, one was right handed, both made by heavy bladed instruments; both bodies suggest the attacker was extremely strong and forensics experts agree that two separate instruments were used on the victims; no murder weapons were found, nor were there foot or fingerprints.
- Alexander claims to have been home all night; he did not say how his window was broken, nor could he explain what had happened to his father and sister beyond confessing to his culpability.
- Detectives found it unlikely that Roby could have committed the murders: his frame is not nearly powerful enough to inflict such wounds, no murder weapon or blood was found on his person.
- Attempts to reach Alexander's brother Grahame were unsuccessful- by letter, he simply informed Martin and Spencer to call upon the police or the family doctor, Lionel Trollope.
- Victor runs into some difficulty interviewing the staff at the funeral home where the Robys were prepared.
- Lucian has some success in contacting Grahame Roby's cook, Mrs. Vetch.
- Mrs. Vetch relates that Alexander worked in the Foreign Office after dropping out of college but did not remain there; Alexander did not get along well with his father or brother, but dearly loved his sister; the artistic and sensitive Alex was seen as a layabout by his brother and father; on the night of the murder, Alexander quarreled with Herbert- this was not uncommon; the bodies were discovered by Mrs. Vetch, Mr. Lowell the butler, Mr. Dodd the valet and Ms. West, the housekeeper; all doors and windows were secured from the inside, as per Mr. Herbert Roby's instructions as he was paranoid about burglaries; about five minutes before the disturbance both Mr. Lowell and Ms. West heard a shrill whistle; a whistle was found in Alexander's room and when the detective blew the whistle, it sounded similar to the one heard before the murders.
- Interviewing Doctor Trollope: Martin and Spencer meet with Dr. Lionel Trollope before the trip to St. Agnes' Asylum; Dr. Trollope has been the Roby family doctor for over thirty years.
- Dr. Trollope was called to the house after the murders occurred; his observations of the scene are consistent with the police report; Alexander declared to Dr. Trollope that it was he who had killed Herbert and Georgina- he would not explain how; in Dr. Trollope's opinion Alexander was hysterical with grief over his sister's fate and was committed on Order of Petition by Dr. Trollope and Grahame Roby after a brief period in police custody
- Dr. Trollope visited Alexander twice, and felt he was unfit to leave as he was still disturbed by the incident; it is Dr. Trollope's opinion that asylums are for locking away the insane to protect "the rest of us". At this point, the doctor concluded the interview.
- At St. Agnes', Alexander Roby was uncommunicative- but he grew excited at the mention of the Yellow Sign. See the transcript of the interview for specifics.
- That night, Lucian experiences an odd dream- different from his previous ones- and a sickly sweet, rotting smell.
- While Dr. Highsmith is taken aback by your decision, he agrees not to recommend Alexander for release.
A Transcript of the Roby Interview:
Being locked in this room is inconvenient. It means I cannot finish my work and so I cannot go where I would like to go. You know, few writers have the ability to write honestly. Truths are used for entertainment only and this is a strange concept: it barely grazes what is of import. Such a writer is like a man whose only concern is to hide his ignorance. Willful misrepresentation, a shut mind, closed eyes, a tight mouth and balled fists. It's not enough to have the ability, bring your intellect to bear like a light in the darkness, like a sane man in a world of madmen.
Have you seen the pallid mask? Have you been down by the lake and seen the beauty and felt the rightness of it all? Edwards said to work only with him. Are you with Quarrie? Why are they not here? Is it this year, once in five thousand years? Has Quarrie brought the king in yellow? Is he already amongst us?
Have you seen the yellow sign?
What Edwards and I are doing now harms no one. But I have been worrying about Malcolm Quarrie and the conversations we had. I think that, despite what Edwards might think, Quarrie is right. The king in yellow has called himself the white acolyte. I don't think he will stay away. So here is a kindness I would like you to pass on to him for when he sees that the king does not offer him what he hopes. To divert the king's attentions away from our Earth and back upon the dream city he must think of Cassilda's song:
The stars that burn their charcoal death
Shrink back, they feel the hoary breath
Of he who ransoms great Carcosa.
He flees where queen and prophet met,
Where twin suns fall but never set,
Escapes the tomg of lost Carcosa.
Patient: A. Roby
Doctor: L. Trollope
Signed: C. Highsmith
Date: 30 October, 1928
- In Roby's room, you found notes written in the margin of a book of poetry.
Nice recap, I had missed a few of those points (or rather they had slipped my mind!)
Uh oh, are we going to have a repeat of the funeral parlor in incident?
I'll be traveling this week between Thursday and Monday. I've got my phone, so I can probably check in but if I'm not around that's why.
Have a safe/fun trip James! I'll try to think of some questions for Esme by the time you get back. ;-)
I've been trying to think of how exactly we should proceed from here and I can honestly say I'm not sure. We could try to find out if there's a guy who calls himself Quarrie around but London's a big place. I'm not sure if that'll do us any good or not.
I suppose we can ask a few more questions about Alexander based on our interview but I'm not sure what else there is to learn. I have a feeling we missed out on something at the Asylum at some point but I'm unsure what exactly that might be.
Anyone have any ideas about how we should proceed? What should we be researching?
I've been trying to think of how exactly we should proceed from here and I can honestly say I'm not sure. We could try to find out if there's a guy who calls himself Quarrie around but London's a big place. I'm not sure if that'll do us any good or not.
I suppose we can ask a few more questions about Alexander based on our interview but I'm not sure what else there is to learn. I have a feeling we missed out on something at the Asylum at some point but I'm unsure what exactly that might be.
Anyone have any ideas about how we should proceed? What should we be researching?
Well we at least know that Malcolm is Quarrie's first name. Not sure about Edwards.
There is also the star Aldebaran. Not sure what we will find on that, but it's worth a shot.
Not really sure about the murder at the asylum. It was almost a year ago. That may be a dead end for now.
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Lucian is definitely going to accept the urge to do some creation upon arriving back in London - see how deep the rabbit hole will go.
I think I disagree about the murders - I would almost want to investigate the first murder more, now that we have our suspicions as to Roby's innocence. What about getting our hands on the whistle that was found at the scene of the crime?
Finally, I think tracking down Malcolm Quarrie should be possible, and hopefully fruitful. Maybe he can lead us somewhere worth being.
I'm certainly interested in investigating Malcolm Quarrie. In fact, that may be Martin's first priority.
Seeing if we can find the whistle is potentially a good idea (though I'm a little afraid of what might happen to us if we find it).
The star and the murders also have some real potential for investigation, but they're lower on my (personal) interest.
Anything else we should think about?
Okay, Victor can go and research the star.
Someone may want to check on Estus.. I guess.
Okay, Victor can go and research the star.
Someone may want to check on Estus.. I guess.
Spencer can go check on Estus, of course that is after he calls on the delightful Jean... perhaps she might bring him up to speed as well if she has more current news.
Merry Christmas if you celebrate it! We'll get rolling again Monday, if Hastur wills it.
Merry Christmas, Joyous Yule, Happy Hanukah and an all around Happy Holidays!
Happy holidays fellas!
Yep a merry christmas and happy new year all!
Hope everyone had a great holiday! We'll be rolling again shortly- on the 15th it'll be a whole year!
Good times. I partied in NYC with some friends and drank entirely too much while listening to the crazy crowd a few blocks away in Times Square.
Happy New Year!
Yeah crazy new year, was great :)
Giving Victor a little more time to dive in and we'll keep on rolling.
I actually forgot to check if your checked skills increased- we're on sort of a new "chapter" so any skill you've "checked" may gain a few points.
Sorry about that, I'll get something up today.
I've updated the campaign info to include the summary as of the last game day, the facts of the Roby murders and the transcript of the interview with Alexander.
And we've been playing for more than a year! Yay! Thanks for sticking in there- must be a first to play CoC for a year without a single PC institutionalized but, well, this isn't a typical Call of Cthulhu campaign after all.
LOL
Thats pretty funny :)
On a side note, I will be away for 2 weeks from 27 Jan, no internet etc where I am going.... waaaaay out in the wilds.
Okay, thanks for the heads up Shifty.
One year! Hooray!! Thanks for keeping this awesome game running.
Congratulations to all for making it a full year! It's not that common for a whole group to stay around for that long.
Also, thanks for being so cool with the slower pace, James. That's one of the things I'm enjoying about this pbp. It's surprisingly relaxing.
I know, those faster-paced pbps... they can just drive you crazy!
...*chirp. chirp.*
Anyways, sorry about the unannounced absence - it's been a particularly wild week at work, and looks to get worse before it gets better. Trying to stay on top of everything!
Not a big deal. I've got a few irons in the fire, myself. I find that this campaign- in the beginning, at least, requires a slower pace since you've got all of London, your daily lives and these clues to sift through.
Just to check any possible frustration- don't feel like you have to beat your head against the wall to scare up leads. Sometimes you don't have all the information and things happen behind the scenes. I'm not saying you should twiddle your thumbs, either, but I'm not spoiling it if I say that you're still assembling the pieces of the puzzle before seeing the dread, vertigo-inducing strangeness of the assembled image that mocks human form with its debased visage.
I'm having fun with the investigations. It's nice to know though, that actual progress may be happening as Victor continues to hang out with psychics and sabotage toilets.
I'm still enjoying it as well. Unfortunately, I've caught a cold I can't seem to shake loose and it's been making it difficult to concentrate. I've had to save up the majority of my remaining higher thought for work.
We have a pretty relaxed pace on this one, but I thought I would let you know that I'm entering the busiest time at my job now- so absences may occur. Usually I can catch up on weekends, though.
The disguise skill has a base of 01%, just so you know. Also, as per Victor's remark, Dr. Highsmith the superintendent is quite familiar with all of you; you did after all recently spend a long train ride and a day at the asylum in his company.
Oh man. Somehow or other both the campaign and discussion thread dropped off of my dotted and focused campaign list. Then I went on vacation for a couple of weeks and now I come back to find that I've been totally missing out on stuff.
Sorry about that!
Anyway, I still don't understand exactly what the plan is: as James pointed out, it's not like we can hide our identities from Dr. Highsmith. Are we going to let him in on the loop? Why would he let us in again after we let him down the first time?