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Panopticon: A Game of Posthumans, Perniciousness, Paranoia, Politics, and Plasmaguns

Reader mode
Prisoner Processing:
[X] Yes, but give them the choice of working with you. Some might be disillusioned about the Traditions.
-- [X] Suggest to the ones that don't agree to join us that they should perhaps talk to the Daedaleans.


Reconnect:
Choose three facts Brandon knows.
[X] He knows of Donald's message to the Glass Walkers.
[X] The Golden Chalice has been seeking information on Jamelia Belltower and has offered enormous rewards for anything that leads them to her.
[X] The Void Engineers have made quiet feelers about two missing agents-and he thinks he's met one of them in that base.

Downtime:
What have Harlan and Wufan been doing? Choose one besides the one that has been chosen for you.
[X] Wufan has been trying and failing to probe at Harlan and see what he knows. Unfortunately he's an even better liar than Jamelia.
[X] They've been setting up fake IDs and other ways of working off the grid (+Cloaking)
- [X] "There are more interesting things you can do with criminals than shake them down then neuralize them."
"I know that."
"Not yet, but you will."
"Patronising old bastard."

It's not a personal development thing like Henriette so much as gently getting him used to our sort of compromises and making him complicit.
 
veekie said:
Maybe a spirit binding NDA(which is to say get a spirit to hover over them and make sure they can't talk)?
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Ah, yes, have a spirit follow people around and listen to everything they say.

An excellent way to ensure the information leaks because now you have to tell the spirit what to listen for and it's not like the Residents, the Agency, and considerable swathes of the Rogue Council are spirits who are good at subverting other spirits or anything.

Please. Think before you make suggestions.
 
dash931 said:
...Which, unless I'm mistaken, means Jamelia can do it herself, yes? As she has Entropy 4.

Question is whether it's worth it.
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NWO NDA, would probably have a lot of fine print.

EarthScorpion said:
Next time, try to make your jokes... you know, humourous. In any way. Whatsoever.

Maybe even include a comedic skit of Henriette or Serafina (as the characters with no Spirit/DSci) having totally incorrect misapprehensions of what Spirit and dimensional science can actually do.
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Well, the Sandman said "binding NDA" so spirit binding immediately came to mind as a terrible pun. :p

Personally prefer a Mind approach so they just won't think of violating the NDA at all though. A Geas just punishes you for violating it...unless the punishment is to forget what you were going to reveal if you wanted to reveal it, which I figure would be hard to fit in paradigm
 
EarthScorpion said:
... why are you reading him as an analyst? Yes, he's a by-the-book tightarse. So are vast swathes of the NWO. Hell, Jamelia is a by-the-book type when things go well.

Wufan is the part of the Void Engineers who chase down people who've seen UFOs, and use the little zappy thing from Men in Black on them if they can't explain why they saw nothing at all. He's a field agent, not a support agent. And being by the book is what you want when your job is to methodically track down people and make sure they don't think they saw aliens. Following the rules to the letter is a useful habit at times, like when you need to systematically cover up an alien sighting. Contacts are important in that job, for tracking down witnesses. He's like a black-suited bloodhound.

And Harlan knows all about Cloaking. He has so much Cloaking the NWO almost forgot they had him. The man was living in rural Ohio, for goodness sake. The town he lived in probably has Cloaking because no one's ever heard of it. He has so much Cloaking that Jamelia didn't think of him for decades (okay, that was helped by the brainwashing).
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Jamelia: "Mostly, Harlan, that's because you are entirely forgettable."

Harlan: *creepy child molester mustache quivers with unshed tears being held back*
 
Prisoner Processing:
[X] Yes, but give them the choice of working with you. Some might be disillusioned about the Traditions.
-- [X] Suggest to the ones that don't agree to join us that they should perhaps talk to the Daedaleans.
Reconnect:
Choose three facts Brandon knows.
[X] He knows of Donald's message to the Glass Walkers.
[X] His superiors in the Shadow Ministry might know something, and he may be willing to arrange a meeting somewhere fancy and neutral.
[X] The Void Engineers have made quiet feelers about two missing agents-and he thinks he's met one of them in that base.

Downtime:
[X] They've been setting up fake IDs and other ways of working off the grid (+Cloaking)
 
[X] Yes, but give them the choice of working with you. Some might be disillusioned about the Traditions.
[X] He knows of Donald's message to the Glass Walkers.
[X] His superiors in the Shadow Ministry might know something, and he may be willing to arrange a meeting somewhere fancy and neutral.
[X] The Void Engineers have made quiet feelers about two missing agents-and he thinks he's met one of them in that base.
[X] They've been setting up fake IDs and other ways of working off the grid (+Cloaking)
 
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Ceres 3: Path to Victory
  • Sidestory
    • Ceres Sneakily Seeks Escape

    Part 3: Path to Victory
    You gave the Other Thing a chance at freedom. Now it's up to it to survive and use it. It's up to you to handle the sudden swerve in your plans with the grace, dignity and inherent poise held by all true- oh no! That Big Thing has a leash! Run for it! Flee!

    You bolt off the table, avoid two pairs of Big Thing hands, ignore a scream from somewhere behind you, vanish under a raised cabinet and, after disdainfully ignoring the hand someone sticks under the heavy furniture to try and pull you back out instead of scratching it to kingdom come, bolt for the door the next time it opens.

    You make sure to tangle around the legs of the Big Thing walking through it out of sheer vindictiveness, sending it crashing to the floor with an alarmed squawk. Flat White Things go everywhere, and you bolt for the nearest turn-off from the big, wide-open corridor. This is not good territory for you. There's nowhere to hide, and while you're only ankle-height to the Big Things milling around and they don't look down much, there are still far too many of them for comfort.

    Happily, one of them is pushing a table thing on round bits, which is loaded down with boring things and - crucially - has a low shelf at the bottom with a bit of space between it and the floor. You slip up behind it and dart underneath, into the raised space between the wheels. You have to duck your head a little bit to fit, and you can't see very far ahead, but you're perfectly hidden. All you have to do is trot smartly to keep up.

    Modesty forbids you to gloat at the shouting Big Things that come running down the corridor shouting and looking for you. Much. You hear your First Name; the one that your personal Big Thing calls you, and a lot of questions, but the Big Thing pushing the trolley didn't see you sneak under it, and nobody thinks to look underneath. Eventually, they give up and leave.

    ... okay, there's actually quite a lot of gloating. Though you'd be able to do even more if you weren't having to keep trotting along at the pace of your mobile hiding place. It was a very clever idea at first, but now it's starting to get a bit tiring. Actually no, it's getting a lot tiring. Time to switch to a more stationary one. Which is warmer. And doesn't threaten to run over your tail. You wait until you pass a promising-looking hiding place and dart out, squeezing into the gap between two vending machines and then clawing your way up the side of one to curl up on top. From your new, warm, stationary vantage points above the heads of the Big Things, you look around and survey your new domain.

    After a few seconds of surveying, you come to the conclusion that the rest of the world has been very stupid and got itself hopelessly and completely lost. Honestly. How are you meant to know where you are if Everywhere Else goes and wanders off somewhere without asking you? Is it really too much to ask that places you recognise stay where you can see them?

    Deciding that things will probably better after some sleep, you edge your way back near the wall and out of sight of the Big Things below you, curl up with your tail over your eyes, and go to sleep.

    After a rather hazy amount of time spent napping (which is measurable only in being nowhere near long enough), you are rudely awoken! But what's causing this sudden Big Noise?

    [ ] They're Dead Big Things! They smell a bit like your Big Thing, but they're not breathing and also smell a bit like Boggins - some kind of angry snarling Boggin you don't know.
    [ ] Loud loud loud! It's a metal Big Thing! A metal Big Thing with a hurty-tool that's big and heavy and clanking and mean! And, uh. There's only one that you can see, but... it's scary!
    [ ] They're... they're human-shaped. But they're not humans! They're Boggins in dead bodies! Horrible monster-Boggins, more powerful and scary than anything you've ever seen!
    [ ] Oh, it's just some Big Things. Boring ones that are all wearing boring black and... moving like they're hunting. All as one. It's sort of creepy, and they don't smell right either.
    [ ] You can't see whatever it is, but there are lots of Big Thing voices you sort of recognise, and they're coming this way quickly. Along with the smell of burning things. And loud bangs.

    Looking around in confusion, outrage and fear entirely justifiable wariness, you happen to spot a moving spot of whiteness in the distance. Is... is that the Other Thing? Did it make it all the way down here? Or it maybe tried to follow you but lost your trail and now can't work out where your cunning hide-napping place is! Or maybe it's not the Other Thing at all, but is a different Other Thing entirely!

    So many possibilities.

    [ ] Call out to it.
    [ ] Stay very quiet.
     
  • Sidestory
    • Ghouled National Guard, some kind of heavy assault robot (probably Ms. Clock's, since I think the construct only had HITMarks,) An-Jin and his possessees, the TYRANTs, or the interns. Hmm.

    [X] Loud loud loud! It's a metal Big Thing! A metal Big Thing with a hurty-tool that's big and heavy and clanking and mean! And, uh. There's only one that you can see, but... it's scary!

    Simply because I'm the least sure of what this one is.
     
    [X] Oh, it's just some Big Things. Boring ones that are all wearing boring black and... moving like they're hunting. All as one. It's sort of creepy, and they don't smell right either.
    [X] Call out to it.

    As we all know, cat-based jump scares are a key part of the horror genre. Alien did it, and that means it's good enough for anyone.

    Now, these things look like they're probably some kind of professional spec-ops team or they're MiBs or they're hiveminded HITMarks. They're not vampires because Ceres can apparently sense the Beast (as a "boggin") and they're not ghouls because she can smell vampire blood ("smells like Rose"). Regardless of exactly what they are, though, they're probably professionals and unlikely to be looking for a cat, and thus a cat-based jump-scare (caused by Ceres mewing at maybe-Fluffles) is narratively well-suited for the event.

    From Ceres PoV, of course, she knows the Other Thing owes her for her saving it, and hopefully it will repay her by being here and maybe telling her where everything else is, because the world is hiding from her (it's not that she's lost, oh no).
     
    [ ] They're... they're human-shaped. But they're not humans! They're Boggins in dead bodies! Horrible monster-Boggins, more powerful and scary than anything you've ever seen!
    [ ] Call out to it

    These are either folks possessed by ghosts or vampires, probably the first one. And that means we get to find out more about what good buddy An-Jin is up to! Plus, dealing with Boggins is too important to Cat RPG to just leave out.

    Also, our Cat RPG stats are probably as follows (assuming standard character creation). Claws and Fangs might be switched around though.

    Claws: Strong (4)
    Coat: Strong (4)
    Face: Good (3)
    Fangs: Good (3)
    Legs: Strong (4)
    Tail: Best (5)

    Yes, cats rate their WEAKEST stat as being "good," and go up from there. Because they're cats.
     
    [X] Oh, it's just some Big Things. Boring ones that are all wearing boring black and... moving like they're hunting. All as one. It's sort of creepy, and they don't smell right either.
    [X] Call out to it.
     
    So! Let's do some analysis on what our clever Technocatic spy is seeing.

    Aleph said:
    [ ] They're Dead Big Things! They smell a bit like your Big Thing, but they're not breathing and also smell a bit like Boggins - some kind of angry snarling Boggin you don't know.
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    Vampires, definitely vampires. Not breathing, smells kind of like Rose, and are angry and snarling. This means Ceres woke up relatively early, and is stuck in the middle of hostile territory.

    [ ] Loud loud loud! It's a metal Big Thing! A metal Big Thing with a hurty-tool that's big and heavy and clanking and mean! And, uh. There's only one that you can see, but... it's scary!
    Click to expand...
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    Killer robots. This means that Ling and Ms. Clock have seized the Construct and are cleaning it up with killbots.

    [ ] They're... they're human-shaped. But they're not humans! They're Boggins in dead bodies! Horrible monster-Boggins, more powerful and scary than anything you've ever seen!
    Click to expand...
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    Boggins in dead bodies? Sounds like Risen. So An-Jin's here, and he's moderately peeved. I wonder if he likes cats, being an evil Deathlord.

    [ ] Oh, it's just some Big Things. Boring ones that are all wearing boring black and... moving like they're hunting. All as one. It's sort of creepy, and they don't smell right either.
    Click to expand...
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    Probably Men in Black or augmented clones. The moving as one thing makes me think MiB, since tactical MiB generally run in a hivemind. Again, this predicates Ling and Ms. Clock clearing the construct, so they're not exactly friendly.

    [ ] You can't see whatever it is, but there are lots of Big Thing voices you sort of recognise, and they're coming this way quickly. Along with the smell of burning things. And loud bangs.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    This one is a wildcard. It could be anyone, although Ceres would have to have gotten very very lost for it to be the Tyrants.
     
    [X] You can't see whatever it is, but there are lots of Big Thing voices you sort of recognise, and they're coming this way quickly. Along with the smell of burning things. And loud bangs.

    Voting for things on fire and explosions.
     
    Quantumboost said:
    It could also possibly refer to Mrs. Clock and/or the Serafina and Donald clones; they're all specifically supposed to pass for members of the Construct.

    Or the actual party, after having EMP'd the place.
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    Ms. Clock and the clones only showed up after the shooting and burning stopped, so it couldn't be them. It could be the main party, though as I recall they went directly into the purloined vehicles post-EMP, and Ceres was already in the VGV by then. Unless, of course, the cat they found wasn't Ceres...
     
    [X] Oh, it's just some Big Things. Boring ones that are all wearing boring black and... moving like they're hunting. All as one. It's sort of creepy, and they don't smell right either.
    [X] Call out to it.
     
    Prisoner Processing:
    Are you going to let the Traditions magi go?
    [x] Yes, but give them the choice of working with you. Some might be disillusioned about the Traditions.
    "There is power in Control, there is wisdom in harnessing the strengths of your enemy."
    Confusion the Enemy.

    What enemy?

    ALL ENEMIES.


    Reconnect:
    Choose three facts Brandon knows.
    [x] He knows of Donald's message to the Glass Walkers.
    Scattered, haunted, hunted, but not yet broken. And besides, I want to et back to Rose, Donald and A Gaggle Of Superstitonists All Descending Mount Qaf While Fending Off Data-Daemons

    [x] The Virtual Adepts have tried to break back into the Spy's Demise but nobody has survived that attempt. They tended to have some very interesting stories about god-machines and machine-devils before they expired. The few who got brought back-they refuse to ever touch the Web ever again.
    GLORY TO THE GOD-MACHINE

    AVE DEUS MACHINA

    IT IS NOT FOR MORTALS TO GAZE UPON THE FACE OF GOD

    [x] The Void Engineers have made quiet feelers about two missing agents-and he thinks he's met one of them in that base.


    Downtime:
    What have Harlan and Wufan been doing? Choose one besides the one that has been chosen for you.
    [X] Wufan has been trying and failing to probe at Harlan and see what he knows. Unfortunately he's an even better liar than Jamelia.
    *creepy child molester mustache quivers with maximum oversmug*

    [x] They've been bribing and otherwise making contacts in the hacker community who can provide SIGINT (+Contacts)
    Power isn't just about power, or knowing things. It's also about knowing people.
     
    Prisoner Processing:
    Are you going to let the Traditions magi go?
    [X] Yes, but give them the choice of working with you. Some might be disillusioned about the Traditions.

    We're just about to probably work with some Traditionalists, we know the North Koreans are out there, and pulling the fangs of the Rogue Council by hurting their support among the Traditions will in the medium turn strengthen our reformist Technocracy position because the Rogue Council plays into the hands of Technocracy hardliners. And we're just about to do something quite loud (knowing us, certainly).

    I don't think we're going to be able to keep our presence in Moscow silent, so we might as well take advantage of this to advance our other goals.

    Reconnect:
    Choose three facts Brandon knows.
    [X] He knows of Donald's message to the Glass Walkers.
    [X] The Virtual Adepts have tried to break back into the Spy's Demise but nobody has survived that attempt. They tended to have some very interesting stories about god-machines and machine-devils before they expired. The few who got brought back-they refuse to ever touch the Web ever again.
    [X] His superiors in the Shadow Ministry might know something, and he may be willing to arrange a meeting somewhere fancy and neutral.

    What are our long term goals here? We want to get Ragnarok in contact with the IBM (as it's the natural place for them, as hardcore defenders of the Earth), and then use that to get Ragnarok into a position where it can be introduced to the Void Engineers as part of building a cross-Convention anti-Control faction and if we can get both Ragnarok and the Void Engineers on side, then bluntly that means the two big military powerhouses are on-side and that's a really big deal with the Autopolitans and Transhumans out there. So I don't think we want to bring the Void Engineers in yet. So I went for the Virtual Adept option so this way we're warned about the existence of the Anathema, and that means we can get some intel on things like it from the IBM, who we know (from the infodump on them) have stolen VE intel on them. Forewarned is forearmed, and we don't want to go in blind.

    Short-to-medium term? We want to get Donald and Rose back so they can have screentime and character development. They're more important than Sera, because Sera's had a 30 episode sidestory full of both for her, the greedy princess. So we want proof that Donald was alive at somewhat recently, so we have a reason to go after him.

    I went for the Shadow Ministry thing because goddamnit, I just want spy talking things. And combined with the Virtual Adept option, it means we can in fact have a meet-up composed of an Operative, a Shadow Minister, and a post-SPECTRE subfaction of the Adepts. Which means we have a member of the New World Order, a member of a hidden rogue intelligence agency who try to manipulate world governments behind the scene, and a member of an infamous world-wide direct action terrorist cell. And if we get Reina back, we can add a Knight Templar to the war council.

    yisssssssss so many conspiracy theories

    Downtime:
    What have Harlan and Wufan been doing? Choose one besides the one that has been chosen for you.
    [X] Wufan has been trying and failing to probe at Harlan and see what he knows. Unfortunately he's an even better liar than Jamelia.
    [X] They've been setting up fake IDs and other ways of working off the grid (+Cloaking)
    ->[X] Harlan is an evil old man with a twisted sense of humour. He has therefore devised the best way of hiding Kessler's inability to not self-publicise.
    --> [X] Oh yes. The Model K-01 HITMark skin has made its way into production catalogues, advertising its use in deception and fooling your enemy into thinking that you have John Kessler on-side.
    ---> [X] "He's so overt, he's covert," Harlan says, with a smirk.

    Cloaking good. Cloaking important. Cloaking help us disengage from the inevitable showdown that this is going to produce. We aren't from Moscow and our new base isn't here, so we can just... vanish into the wastes of Russia once we leave. Hence, the capacity to just vanish is rather important.

    (The way to cloak Kessler, of course, is to make sure that there are Kesslers being seen all over the world by adding Kessler-model HITMarks to the Union's arsenals. After all, everyone knows he's a full body cyborg, right?)
     
    That sounds like a delightful Mind effect add-on... and in a few decades, once the survivors of those HITMarks start developing full personalities, and perhaps a few of them Enlighten, they'll be *perfectly* positioned to be among the first folks to start buying Legend: John Kessler.... just to confuse things that much more.
     
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