Welcome your personal Preparation Page!
For the next two or so weeks, you'll be playing a solo game with your GM. You'll be able to pursue your own goals during this time, as well try and get information or other help for the upcoming rescue.
Please keep to your own thread! Obviously this rule is going to come down to the honor system. Both the discussion and gameplay thread will be between you and the GMs. Everyone should feel free to discuss and explore their own secrets without the fear of other players learning them. You will have one GM running your game, but the other will dot in to keep up with everyone's story and to cover in case your regular GM is unavailable. We will use the same councilor profiles, but treat them as GM posts.
For OOC group questions, use the Alive in the Red Revolution Discussion, but avoid the Gameplay thread there while these threads are open. If your PC wishes to discuss anything with another PC, you must seek them out and roleplay the interaction.
Pacing The Chronometer at the top is going to track how close each player is to the next event. If you are able to post a lot, be prepared to post more detail, and move the hours more slowly. If you're posting less often, that's perfectly fine, but be prepared to move things along a little quicker.
Goals In addition to your participation with the Cerulean Council and their schemes, each PC has both personal goals to achieve. In addition to these goals, you all have everyday obligations to fulfill. The goal of our game is to play ALL these aspects; the full immersion of your PC's life. Keep all these things in mind, as well as the mundane needs of your PC. (food, sleep etc.)
Info bar We definitely want to see a block of info for each character, HP, AC, Saves, Init and Perception Modifiers. Please include anything specifically relevant.
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Moving ooc stuff to discussion since a few just-ooc posts in a row isn't a great way to start the play thread.
I think that post looks good. I just wanted to let you know because I have a team lunch today and a irl game I GM later tonight, so I won't be as active as usual today.
I'll start coming up with a guest list for your exhibit. What types of people has Nyx TRIED to get to come to the Melody? Of course, some other art aficionados will be there regardless, I just want to know what type of people Nyx is trying to attract. On top of that, is there are particular goal you have for some of the people you've tried to attract?
For example, if you tried to bring in a member of the Court of Bees, presumably Nyx only wants to learn about them. But perhaps for a member of the Caydogs you're interested in something more malicious. I want to make sure that if there are hooks Nyx wants to pursue that they're represented. Please provide at least two NPCs you're interested in having (you're welcome to more).
You'll get brief bios and perhaps a piece of gossip or intel that Nyx has managed to pick up on each attendee.
The goal of the exhibits is to attract as many influential people she can - but ideally movers and shakers. Its tough to articulate, but while a member of the Caydogs would be interesting, Nyx wouldn't directly invite. Its for the influential and/or wealthy, such as business owners or people with political ambitions. That's technically the target audience.
In terms of particular NPC's, definitely someone from the Court of Bees, and definitely someone (relatively senior) from the City Guard would be two she would go for. The former because she is interested in rising through the ranks, the latter someone senior from the guard because she probably wants to get onside with them - all the better to ask / do favors later on.
Ideally its for the rich and influential. I'll try and think of more specific NPC's as we go along.
I want to better understand how you see the relationship with the guard member.
For the City Guard member, what methods did Nyx try to use to persuade him? I art is not necessarily his passion, more of a mild interest. Until now he's favored the Bastion of Freedom for its preferential treatment of the uniformed citizens of Isarn. Of course, Nyx is persuasive, so I'm sure there are a few avenues she could pursue, I'm just wondering what his attitude and expectations will be for your event.
For the member of the Court of Bees, I imagine this is more of an invite given to a more senior member to visit your establishment under new management.
Oh right I forgot, I’m probably inviting (whether they come or not is a different matter) someone from the Calistrian Church out of respect.
Other people that might show up are people Nyx values in her orbit, perhaps the owner of her clothing shop, a politician that might favourably allow Nyx to sidestep the clothing decree or who did her business a favour, etc etc
RE the City Guard, Nyx could have persuaded him in a few ways, but I’ assuming a friendly or existing relationship rather than an out of the blue invite. Firstly, she did work in many brothels prior and could have met him previously. They could have had a business relationship instead, professionally trading updates, or if she saw this person as a target of interest, she might have observed, finding some vice the man had and assisted. If all else fails, she probably manufactures an awkward or embarrassing situation with her disguised self, and then bailed him out in her public persona.
I kinda like the latter option since it implies that this person is in her debt and she sweetens things by inviting him to parties with other influential people - but it’s akso the most risky - her last resort option.
I fully intend to return to the Unchained Melody, and I apologize for location switching so quickly but I don't envision the gallery opening / show starting until later in the evening so instead of having Nyx sit around waiting for that, I might as well be out and about.
Feel free to throw in a problem or loophole for Nyx to handle separate to the main plot but I'm going to keep Sunday pretty flexible for now - Monday + Tuesday will be her honing in on that information she is after.
I should point out, I have no expectations to get anything directly useful in relation to the mission from here.
I feel its totally in character though, for Nyx to seek advice from the Church (who has been such an important part of her life) when a group like the Cerulean Council comes along and invites her to join. Obviously she cannot speak openly, but she doesn't want to lie, hence this kinda awkward roundabout conversation. IC it made sense to do this sooner or later.
That sounds good to me. I'm sure your fellow Councilor will appreciate your discretion.
Now's a good opportunity to talk about your Affiliated Agent benefits!
We're using a modified influence system due to the nature of the game, we've added a few more influence levels. As a result, your affiliation with the Court of Bees will begin at Rank 2 (Known Ally).
This enables you to freely use goods or services up to 50 gp in value from the Court of Bess. And you may ask the Court of Bees to Gather Information for you.
Nyx is already skilled at gathering information, but Court of Bees agents may have different access than Nyx does. This will take more time than a regular attempt by Nyx.
Leaning too heavily on these favors without returning the same can result in slower influence gain, and eventually your allies may request more favors before continuing their services.
Rank 1 - Acquaintance / Inconvenience
Rank 2 - Known Ally / Known Opponent
Rank 3 - Friend / Enemy
Rank 4 - Respected / Disliked
Rank 5 - Protagonist / Antagonist
Rank 6 - Admired / Hated
Rank 7 - Beloved / Loathed
Rank 8 - Revered / Hunted
Upon more reflection, it occurs to me you may well have meant Sister Pauline. But making another speculative post seems pretty presumptive, so I'll just wait for you to post.
Triple post!
So not a specific person at all, but rather a guard that would know about the Monolith’s secret prisons? I’m working on the post in the background, but I want to make sure you’re telling Madame Lacroix that you’re trying to help someone in the Monolith’s secret prison, otherwise she’d likely assume a guard at The Annex. Not that there's anything wrong with telling her, but Nyx has been intentionally keeping details.
Yeah, I don’t mind making that clear it’s the secret prison. I’ll probably speak with the Cerulean Council about giving greater details in future - just playing it safe for now.
I'm still playing things close to my chest, but trying to be more helpful to Madame Lacroix. I'm definitely letting her know now that its someone with oversight or access of the Monolith.
All of this is really just playing around with the idea of figuring out who else would know of the person, and therefore be privy to information such as movements etc. Maybe its someone you can influence, maybe not, maybe its someone that will trade a favor for a favor and so on, I'm casually tugging on a thread and seeing where it takes me (if anywhere).
Just wondering though, how can I expect to gain influence etc in my organisation? Its definitely something Nyx would put some time towards irregardless of mechanical benefits as I earmarked it as an in character goal. I'm just a little stuck as to how to gain or increase influence within the organisation. If like, (for instance) there are favors that need doing I'm happy to work towards them, I'm just unsure if its something I ask for, maybe a quid pro thing? Is it something that just gradually happens passively over the game?
We've linked to the intrigue rules (link) in the Gazette.
At an organizational level, it typically comes down to doing things that will endear you to the organization. That can mean an explicit favor asked of you by the organization, or that Nyx asks for, but it can also mean sharing new and interesting information or finding your own ways to assist the organization without an explicit request.
Excellent, I'm keep an eye out for those opportunities as I explore the city.
What time is the evening really in Galt? Around 5PM - 6PM?
Seeing as this has kinda come up, how exactly do you want me to handle craft: painting.
Its kinda weird since I'm specifically not using it with the intention of making a profit out of it - its the very definition of a background skill and in this case no-one is even buying it - its a gift for the Court. Then again, I don't know base rates, how much it might cost, time invested etc etc. The actual Craft rules assume you are making like, an item to use. I'm really just trying to use the skill to create something pretty.
I don't want to make this a big thing or needlessly complicated or anything, just wondering how you might handle this, since its a little different than say (for example) using Craft Alchemy to make poisons.
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Also, how may people are there in Galt? Or in each district? I'm trying to get a solid feel, because I get the Renown ability.
Basically, If La Lumière Rouge is 5,000 people, then NPC's in that district treat me as if they have a starting attitude of one better. If La Lumière Rouge has like, 2,500 then I can probably treat a few more districts in Galt as having favorable NPC's. If La Lumière Rouge has like, 10,000 NPC's then maybe its only a very small part of La Lumière Rouge that are favorable.
I did some rough numbers to figure out the distribution of Isarn's population. La Lumiere Rouge is approximately 2500, but population swells during the day, and would effectively be higher. I think it can count as an area of Renown.
There will still need to a material cost associated with creating art. I believe the cost is going to be correlated with the work's quality.
Work of Art DC 20: 10 gp
Masterwork DC 35: 75 gp
Piece of History DC 50: 300 gp
We can pick the specifics of the piece of art later. I'm not sure how to mechanically determine what type of art someone would like, but I'll keep it in the back. She has many hours of crafting left before a suitable gift for the Court is ready.
Curfew is generally enforced when the guards want someone for something else (bribed to arrest someone, told to harass a rabble-rouser, etc.).
Curfew in LLR is enforced typically when the city guards have been tipped off by a brothel about a troublemaker, or perhaps if they are after someone specific, and a brothel to notify them. Nyx would know the Court of Bees pays off the city guards ignore curfew in LLR, except by request.
I explained poorly. Art is always subjective, so i’m not trying really to cheat a perfect artwork. What I was trying to determine was a preferred subject or topic for artwork, specifics being left up to Nyx. Of course, it’s entirely possible the Court just didn’t care what I painted so long it was decent quality.
I’ll head off to The Plunging Blade next most likely
Sure, just let me know what time you plan to head to the Plunging Blade.
As for specific topics, I think you're still relatively new to the court. I think you can choose between "safer" art that is likely to go in the common area, or something more specific.
You can try to focus the art based on Nyx's own passions and belief in Calistria. Following Nyx's passions is probably going to create the best piece of art you could make, but hard to know how it will play with individuals.
If you wanted to prioritize influence: You don't know much about Madame Lacroix's personal interests if you wanted to entice her in particular. But it's also likely if you painted something more risque or bold, but of good quality, you'll likely find a specific audience that likes it more.
It's a matter of whether you want more diffuse good will, or want to make something someone in particular is likely to love. Even if you don't know who.
I understand. I’ll stick with my original topic for now.
It’s 4PM so I’ll leave now because I kinda want to be back at Unchained Melody from around 6PM onwards.
This party requires a whole bunch of NPCs to be prepared at once, hence the last two posts being a little slower. I'll have something out later tonight or by (my) lunch tomorrow.
Just wanted to keep you up to date.
Its all fine, GM, I know detailed posts take a lot of work and prep to do, and fully expected a little slowdown. I'm not rushed :)
Paige made a grave face at the mention of the Delons. The shifted uncomfortably in her seat and half-started her thought a few times, then pausing again. “The Delons hadn’t been by in a good while, over a year. I’d hoped they’d become bored with the Melody. Perhaps they’d heard of the change in leadership and decided to make an appearance. They always seem to pay a good rate for the pieces, but they want you to know they’re in charge. I knew you planned to sell pieces off to highest bidder, which they always were. I’d hoped to spare you dealing with Delons, they are a particularly nasty breed.”
“I first met Michel at a gala one night. He made a significant bid on a painting. I decided to give it to a friend on mine who’d wanted the piece, but at a slightly lower price. When his men arrived to pick up the piece, I’d informed them that they hadn’t won the bid. The thugs left without a word. I assumed that was that.” Then Paige’s expression cracked, it was obvious she was holding back tears.
“It turns out their reputation, as terrible as it is, is not nearly as bad as the truth. Michel’s reaction was ruthless; swift, decisive, and heartless. Deep into the night, his thugs stormed the Melody and destroyed all the other pieces from the gala that night. He strode through the Melody like he owned the place; he already had the painting he bid on in hand, having taken it from my friend. He ordered all the artists brought out. They were dragged from their rooms, made to kneel on the floor. Once he had everyone gathered, he ordered his men to burn down the Melody. They brought in barrels of oil and had their torches drawn. During the whole process, he’d just stood there, not seeming to care at all, just looking over the painting he’d wanted in the first place. He must have noticed the fear in my eyes, and he ordered his men to stop. He smirked and told me he’d be lenient on us, since it seemed we’d ‘learned our place.’ His ‘mercy’ was that he set one of my artists on fire instead of the whole Melody. Those kind of screams aren’t easily forgotten. I later learned he’s also torched my friend’s house to the ground, with him locked inside, after taking the piece he had bid on.”
Paige was now obviously shaken, but tried to keep her calm as she told Nyx about the Delons. “I would not put up with such a disgrace, such an insult. I went to the Court immediately and arranged for one of our best operatives to spy on the Delons and hopefully infiltrate their operation. We knew they are relatively few in number, but they’re a tight-lipped and careful group, so there was little else we knew. A few weeks went by as our agent gathered information. One week, we didn’t get an update, and we never saw him alive again. Two weeks later, his body was dumped on the steps of the House of Joy. His skin slowly peeled off in some parts, flayed in others, knife wounds all over his body. He’d been tortured within an inch of his life several times, our healers told us he’d only died the evening before. A note attached to a knife through his sternum read ‘I stab thee with my blade.’ An insult to Calistria herself, not just the Court. We even tried to raise our agent, but those monsters has put quieting needles in him.”
These memories were terribly unpleasant for Paige, she was visibly shaking. “This kicked off a small war between the Delons and the Court, but the cost of it was just too high, dozens died on our side, and we’d made no noticeable impact. Eventually, the Vice, the Court and the Delons held a summit, and we reached our current situation. The war had ended, but the wounds and insults had made deep wounds that still fester today. It’s a great shame upon all of us. This was all eight years ago or so, and much of our strife was hidden by the revolution that brought Chairman Goss to power, and it was swept under the rug.” Paige took a deep breath and tried to calm herself, but it was largely ineffective.
“I really hoped you wouldn’t need to know this. But it seems the Delons have made an appearance again. Someday they’ll make a mistake, and then we will act. We never forgive, nor forget. But this is not your battle, and you need to stay away from it until the Court believes it is time to strike.”
I wanted to take a minute to have a chat about approaching challenges since I think we have a disconnect on expectations. I think addressing what's happening is the best way to help you get the results you want.
It seems to use that the disconnect is mostly between player knowledge and character knowledge. You create concrete plans and try to push forward, rather than giving insight into what Nyx is thinking and planning so that I can give more context that Nyx the character would have.
For example, Nyx would know that while there are jail cells within the Monolith, as it is also a hall of justice, the fact that there is a secret prison isn't common knowledge. There are certaint rumors, but they are unfounded and Nyx would be surprised to have heard confirmation that they actually exist.
I think talking a bit about how and what Nyx wants to achieve when she's going somewhere, especially early on, will let me communicate character knowledge that can help better evaluate your plan.
The plan to try and subtly interrogate some guards is still a great one, and you absolutely should pursue it. Before we move on, we can ret-con your question to Viera, beyond her being unlikely to act, she's not exactly an ally of Nyx's
Sure, no problem!
So, this is roughly where Nyx the character is at.
The overarching mission is a rescue mission for Pauline. Nyx the character, predicts that whoever gave the order may expect some form of rescue attempt when they move Pauline from place to place. Maybe she's wrong on that front, but that is what she would prepare for, if she was the one running the abduction.
Therefore, aware of her own strengths, and the Gardeners, Nyx wants to be useful (she is frankly honored that she was picked to be a part of this council) but she also dislikes physical combat - she thinks is the refuge of the desperate and proper planning would make it unnecessary. She also thinks this is the obvious option, the one most likely to be prepared for, and Nyx hates taking the obvious solution or option.
So in essence, Nyx is trying to gather / get as much useful information now, so that she can do what she does best, assist in planning the rescue attempt, because the physical labor of the task is something she would be less effective at. This brings us to the Bastion.
You are 100% correct in that I didn't entirely realize how secret the prison is. I guess I'm unsure when liaising with other information brokers in the city how much they know in comparison to what I know.
Nyx's ideal goal is figuring out who would make the actual plan to move Pauline, we know when it is, as well as that the Gardeners are running the rescue, but not for instance, the route, who Pauline will be transferred to (maybe we could take out the transfer team and pretend to be them). If its Goss making all of the decisions and planning, then quite frankly, Nyx doesn't have much of a hope, but she thinks that he (or someone) might have delegated some of the tasks and therefore someone out there might know more. Therefore, if she can learn more, then she can make disguises, plans, forged documents with better success, but without this knowledge none of the above will be effective and a head on attack would be the best bet.
If nothing else, even knowing who (from the Guards) would be on patrol in La Rue du Pain so that we could clear out an escape route.
This is why she went to the brothel most frequented by Law Enforcement in the hope she might learn something that she could follow up. Hey, she could be wrong on that front but she's not all knowing - some things wont pan out.
Basically, that is where Nyx is at, in this point of time.
I might retcon my question, but just wanted to let you know where she was at, and her thought process that led her here.
Did this help a little?
Yes, feel free to go ahead and change. I forgot about the retconning part when I posted, which was a mistake on my part. Just add an OOC note referencing the discussion for the ret-con.
Keeping in mind that the prison is secret and that some effort has been taken in keeping the transfer itself a secret and I think we'll find a happier path.