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Not Quite Lovecraft

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Seeking Ex-Cultists
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    • You decided to look for the cultists you'd already made contact with. Hopefully they would have experimented with what you'd taught them and would be willing to help you out. Unfortunately you didn't really have a way to contact them. You knew that they came from the docks, but finding them would require a lot of legwork.

    The docks were not a particularly welcoming area to be. It was a rough area. You stood out far too much among tanned and grizzled sailors and warehouse workers. You looked closer to a manager or a business worker than one of the people walking around. You could even see deals being made on corners that you knew would fall quiet if you drew close.

    [ ]Try to use Nemo's senses to track the cultists
    [ ]Ask around for them
    [ ]Look for businesses with registers to check
    [ ]Write-in
     
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    • [x]Ask around for them
    -[x]Say we owe them some money

    I found no indication that we were using Nemo's senses previously, so I doubt that it's an easy solution. Simply asking around seems like a sensible option. I also doubt that business registers would include a record of locations where they felt safe practicing their new studies.
     
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    If we say "we owe them money" most people are going to hear "They owe us money", and assume we are lying (badly) about it.
    Which isn't necessary a bad cover story. Especially if we grease some palms with a small amount of money. Worst case it may draw some attention.
     
    Back Deals
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    • Social Roll
    DC: 10
    Roll: 2(+4)=6

    You told the dock workers that you were looking for people you owed money to. You had recently came into some success with a patron, and you wanted to pay that back. For one reason or another, it didn't work. Perhaps it was the fact you didn't know any names, or groups. Perhaps it was your general unfamiliarity with the area. Maybe you just looked too clean to be digging around in the place. Either way, no one you spoke to was opening up.

    That was alright. It wasn't your preferred system, but sheer stubbornness in looking around had its own benefits. Day after day you looked around into various nooks and crannies. It took a good five days, but you finally caught up with one of the former cultists you had been dealing with. He looked badly off balanced by you seeking him out and crossed his arms sharply.

    "What are you here for?" he asked gruffly.

    "I'm not finished here yet," you told him. "I haven't met the leader of your little...group. I'm sure you know where they would choose to meet if the JuJu House was compromised."

    "It's one thing to look away, it's another to snitch," the guy said firmly. "I'm not a snitch."

    You took a deep breath. You needed a way to hook him, draw him in. He didn't have the morals you would like, he was far too comfortable with murder. You didn't think telling him you wanted to stop the killings would persuade him.

    [ ]Offer to teach him a spell
    [ ]Offer him money
    [ ]Offer a favor
    [ ]Write-in
     
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    • Hm. 5 days lost is not great, but such is how the rolls go.

    You know, that is actually a good sign. If they were willing to spill their secrets easily, we could hardly trust them right? "Don't snitch" is a moral value to them after all.
    So maybe we could convince them with bribes. But odds are it would be reluctant, or they would dig their feet in and refuse. People don't like having their morals challenged head on.

    Alternatively we could do a little creative re-framing. We aren't their enemy, we are their friend trying to help them. After all, would a murderous cult let them go easily? We have common cause, and that should give them more then enough motivation to rationalize a way to tell us. It is one thing to betray a group that hasn't done anything to you, but if the group may be coming for you then it's only sensible to strike back first.
    Any bribes we give are just sweetener on top.

    [X] Plan Social Flip
    -[X] Praise him for his integrity and loyalty. As someone who has shared secrets with him, it sets you at ease to know he can keep them.
    -[X] Get their contact information. You went through quite a bit of trouble to find him after all. You would like to keep up with their progress, and help them if needed. Maybe come and teach them some more if you get a chance.
    -[X] Why would they need help? Well. While you are very impressed by their integrity, are they sure their former organisation will see things the same way? What you have seen of them doesn't give you the impression of them being understanding or lenient.
    -[X] You wouldn't want to put them in a tight spot. But if they are already in one, it's only fair for you to help them.
     
    [X] Plan Social Flip

    This covers just about everything that came to my mind while reading the update. @JayTar, would you mind specifying giving them our contact information as well?
     
    Vote closed
  • Voting
    • Scheduled vote count started by Blacksheep on Sep 1, 2024 at 3:23 PM, finished with 3 posts and 3 votes.
    • [X] Plan Social Flip
      -[X] Praise him for his integrity and loyalty. As someone who has shared secrets with him, it sets you at ease to know he can keep them.
      -[X] Get their contact information. You went through quite a bit of trouble to find him after all. You would like to keep up with their progress, and help them if needed. Maybe come and teach them some more if you get a chance.
      -[X] Why would they need help? Well. While you are very impressed by their integrity, are they sure their former organisation will see things the same way? What you have seen of them doesn't give you the impression of them being understanding or lenient.
      -[X] You wouldn't want to put them in a tight spot. But if they are already in one, it's only fair for you to help them.
    Click to expand...
     
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    • Head of the Snake
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    • "It's good to know I've trusted a loyal man," you told him. "I wouldn't want what I share to escape easily. But your former...group, so to speak. They don't seem as lenient. You know more of what they would be willing to do than me of course, but I imagine if they decided to blame you for what happened, or saw you gaining in ways they know didn't come from them..."

    The man frowned gruffly. "Can't run from them."

    "But you know I'm working on the problem." You passed over a card with your mail address on it. "If you contact me, I'll come to help. And this is a way that can help both of us."

    The man looked heavily uncertain, but he had already cracked once under promises of power and steps away from the cult. He cracked again, giving you an address in the docks, before turning and walking away.

    [ ]Set up an ambush to try to catch the leaders
    [ ]Investigate the new location immediately
    [ ]Write-in
     
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    • So, do we have options other than Emily, if we catch the leaders? I don't think so.

    I'm leaning towards investigating.
    [X]Investigate the new location immediately
     
    Worm of the Cult
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    • You didn't waste any time heading down to the new location. There weren't guards at the front of the warehouse you ended up at, which surprised you - until you got inside at least. There were cultists there, naked save for the tied red bands around their heads meant to represent a bloody tongue. A great sense of unease filled you as you stared at the man leading the group. He did not wear cloth around his head, no. That was flesh banded around his head, stretched out and mutated beyond anything that should be. Even worse is their cheering as two humans are absorbed into...

    You don't want to look at it. It hurts to look at. Not for any occult reason. You almost wish that you were untouched enough by this world to be able to black out what you are seeing with the sheer horror of its existence. Instead the entirety of its fleshy existence is imprinted upon you, in every painful detail. A twisted fleshy worm, as wide as three men, twists and chokes down the human sacrifices. There's other human faces imprinted across the thing's body - forming its body. It is built from melted flesh melded and twisted into a singular undulating beast. The faces are still there though. The flesh melted over them, but still able to just open their mouths and attempt to cry and scream in pain. The opening of their mouths doesn't reveal tongues or teeth, or anything that could still be a mouth beyond what you know it must be in how it is placed in the faces, but instead open flesh wounds that reveal something rancid within. And the sacrifices are being pulled in to join as the cultists cheer.

    [ ]Write-in
     
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    • Oh dear.

    Uhhh... did we prepare anything magical beforehand? If not, we might have to retreat and return anyway.
     
    Alright, options include:

    Implant Fear
    Darkness
    Casting bullet (use the gun)


    Sure would be nice if we or the victims could see in the dark. Since we can't, darkness seems only like a delaying tactic that favors the worm thing. It already has a grip on the victims, and doesn't need to see in order to finish consuming them.

    Implant Fear might work on the worm. Even if it does, it might kill the victims in panicked thrashing.

    Casting bullet (shooting) likely won't on the worm (I don't recall bullets doing much to anything supernatural), but likely will on the cultists.

    I'm favoring
    [X] Grab bag
    -[x]Implant Fear on the cultists, starting with the lead one. When clear of them, shooting them as needed, start moving towards the worm. Shoot the worm, if a clear shot arises. Use Nemo's claws to cut the victims loose.
    -[x] If and only if the darkness spell won't hamper our own movements, cast it on cultists trying to regroup
    -[x] if any cultists are still around after saving the victim, pick the most intelligent looking one, grab them, and bring them with while escorting the victims to safety.


    I'm definitely open to ideas, because we are terribly suited to surprise-immediate combat issues.
     
    Well, this is worrying. I'm glad we decided to hurry over.

    We should have the element of surprise, but we are going to have to use it very well if we want this to turn out well.
    I'm hesitant to directly engage. While we have a fair bit of personal power, this is a major working with a bunch of sacrifices and a bunch of cultists.

    My initial inclination would be to "poison" the ritual somehow. Twist it against itself. But that would require time I'm not sure we have.
    If we are really desperate, we could use the cultists as sacrifices for some sort of counter ritual.

    Alternatively fire. But I'm not sure mundane would suffice, and magical would take too long. (We really should make some sort of re-usable fire painting or something. We had the option a long time ago)

    Hmm. We are on the docks. Maybe we could use the environment to our advantage somehow? Not sure, but there might be something.

    If we don't have any other ideas my final suggestion would be to use a horror to fight a horror.
    Blacksheep said:
    Portrait of a Horror: use this portrait to call an eldritch creature to you
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Call for something which will target the monster before us. Then while the two monsters fight we could deal with the cultists and undermine their magic.

    [X] Plan Godzilla threshold:
    -[X] Use your Portrait of a Horror. Try to summon something which will target the monstrosity.
    -[X] While they fight, target the cultists.
     
    JayTar said:
    Call for something which will target the monster before us. Then while the two monsters fight we could deal with the cultists and undermine their magic.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Are you marking down trying to save the two current victims as pointless? I'm not sure you're wrong, I'm just checking my understanding of your expectations.

    I would expect the victims to not survive while stuck to the worm as it flights another monster. Still, perhaps the worm would discard them.
     
    Tascion said:
    Are you marking down trying to save the two current victims as pointless? I'm not sure you're wrong, I'm just checking my understanding of your expectations.

    I would expect the victims to not survive while stuck to the worm as it flights another monster. Still, perhaps the worm would discard them.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I wasn't sure if they could be saved. But you are right to say we should try.

    [X] Plan Godzilla threshold v2:
    -[X] Use your Portrait of a Horror. Try to summon something which will target the monstrosity.
    -[X] While they fight, target the cultists.
    -[X] Save the sacrifices if you can
     
    I don't expect an eldritch being to make any attempts to save the sacrifices tbh

    [X] Grab bag
     
    Vote closed
  • Voting
    • Scheduled vote count started by Blacksheep on Sep 6, 2024 at 9:57 PM, finished with 6 posts and 3 votes.
    • [X] Grab bag
      -[x]Implant Fear on the cultists, starting with the lead one. When clear of them, shooting them as needed, start moving towards the worm. Shoot the worm, if a clear shot arises. Use Nemo's claws to cut the victims loose.
      -[x] If and only if the darkness spell won't hamper our own movements, cast it on cultists trying to regroup
      -[x] if any cultists are still around after saving the victim, pick the most intelligent looking one, grab them, and bring them with while escorting the victims to safety.
      [X] Plan Godzilla threshold v2:
      -[X] Use your Portrait of a Horror. Try to summon something which will target the monstrosity.
      -[X] While they fight, target the cultists.
      -[X] Save the sacrifices if you can
      [X] Grab bag
    Click to expand...
     
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