"Listen my good man, I heard this from a fellow I knew who spent thirty years in the Indian Civil Service; the best remedy for malarial fever is strong tonic water with a dash of gin, and ice and lemon if you have them! And if you don't have malaria, then it still makes a good remedy for a hot and boring afternoon doing paperwork! Ha ha!"
[X] Recruit Specialist (Recruit a Scholar to join the Main Roster. Charisma check to determine degree of skill) [Michael Bainsbridge]
[X] Manage Endowments (Management check to convert temporary Resource into permanent Resource, DC: Temp Res + 20) [Simon Ulysses]
[X] Acquire Assets (Influence and/or Resources check to acquire new assets) [Tyler Freeman]
-[X] Maxim Gun (the New Mexico militia may be willing to part with a few of these if a wealthy donor helps them with acquiring their own and they get excess) Inf DC: 50, Res DC: 60, [-1] Resources decay/turn
[X] Declare Expedition (OOC planned launch time, following year)
-[X] Isthmus Geographic Survey
[X] Library Research (Research check to consult maps and journals to seek advantages in launching an expedition) [Corbyn James]
[X] Research Strange Prism (Research and Science (physics, chemistry) checks required to have some understanding of this object and its properties) [Essex College]
[X] Support New Mexico Operations (Resources check to send down additional members and resources to launch Subterranean Pueblo Expedition without declaring it as the target expedition) [Henry Jackson]
Now that we have found some... interesting native ruins in the New Mexico Territory, we MUST find find some bright fellow with some aptitude for these things.
Perhaps someone from Essex College would be interested; might as well let them get a crack at the Artifact as well.
On a general note: we should make sure our future expeditions are well protected. We should aim to assist the local authorities remain stable and if they can help us, we benefit. If the New Mexico Militia can help us acquire some Maxim guns, the better for us.
[X] Recruit Specialist (Recruit a Scholar to join the Main Roster. Charisma check to determine degree of skill) [Michael Bainsbridge]
[X] Manage Endowments (Management check to convert temporary Resource into permanent Resource, DC: Temp Res + 20) [Simon Ulysses]
[X] Acquire Assets (Influence and/or Resources check to acquire new assets) [Tyler Freeman]
-[X] Maxim Gun (the New Mexico militia may be willing to part with a few of these if a wealthy donor helps them with acquiring their own and they get excess) Inf DC: 50, Res DC: 60, [-1] Resources decay/turn
[X] Declare Expedition (OOC planned launch time, following year)
-[X] Isthmus Geographic Survey
[X] Research Strange Prism (Research and Science (physics, chemistry) checks required to have some understanding of this object and its properties) [Essex College]
[X] Support New Mexico Operations (Resources check to send down additional members and resources to launch Subterranean Pueblo Expedition without declaring it as the target expedition) [Henry Jackson]
[X] Recruit Specialist (Recruit a Scholar to join the Main Roster. Charisma check to determine degree of skill) [Michael Bainsbridge]
[X] Manage Endowments (Management check to convert temporary Resource into permanent Resource, DC: Temp Res + 20) [Simon Ulysses]
[X] Acquire Assets (Influence and/or Resources check to acquire new assets) [Tyler Freeman]
-[X] Maxim Gun (the New Mexico militia may be willing to part with a few of these if a wealthy donor helps them with acquiring their own and they get excess) Inf DC: 50, Res DC: 60, [-1] Resources decay/turn
[X] Declare Expedition (OOC planned launch time, following year)
-[X] Isthmus Geographic Survey
[X] Research Strange Prism (Research and Science (physics, chemistry) checks required to have some understanding of this object and its properties) [Essex College]
[X] Support New Mexico Operations (Resources check to send down additional members and resources to launch Subterranean Pueblo Expedition without declaring it as the target expedition) [Henry Jackson]
[X] Recruit Specialist (Recruit a Scholar to join the Main Roster. Charisma check to determine degree of skill) [Michael Bainsbridge]
[X] Manage Endowments (Management check to convert temporary Resource into permanent Resource, DC: Temp Res + 20) [Simon Ulysses]
[X] Acquire Assets (Influence and/or Resources check to acquire new assets) [Tyler Freeman]
-[X] Maxim Gun (the New Mexico militia may be willing to part with a few of these if a wealthy donor helps them with acquiring their own and they get excess) Inf DC: 50, Res DC: 60, [-1] Resources decay/turn
[X] Declare Expedition (OOC planned launch time, following year)
-[X] Isthmus Geographic Survey
[X] Research Strange Prism (Research and Science (physics, chemistry) checks required to have some understanding of this object and its properties) [Essex College]
[X] Support New Mexico Operations (Resources check to send down additional members and resources to launch Subterranean Pueblo Expedition without declaring it as the target expedition) [Henry Jackson]
Research 21
Science (archaeology) 19
Science (geology) 20
Scholar III (+6 Research, +3 Science (any), +3 Management)
Arbitrary (-5 Management)
Passionate (+1 bonus dice when pursuing an interest)
Born: 1872
Ambition: Gain a professorship at a relatively prestigious university
A skilled if disorganized archaeologist and paleontologist, George is the sort of person who stalls midway through their career due to their own faults and is at least vaguely aware of it. While still useful to Essex College, he is simply unable to avoid screwing up the paperwork and people management to actually get his career to go anywhere. There is some hope by the faculty that more experienced and worldly types might knock off some of his problematic areas.
Essex Research
Keep it Quiet
Inf Rolled 98 + (4, 9, 8, 2) = 121
Mum's the word
You sit shotgun on the ox pulled wagon that was taking him, a few others, and the recently acquired - at great expense and considerable legal red tape from the various authorities involved - Maxim gun, fresh from being shipped over from the Transvaal and sitting in dock for a few months. Poor Corbyn, the man was constantly running around trying to solve legal messes for them without adequate support. Then again, you had known what that felt like back in his Army days.
You sigh as you look out over the landscapes that had been more familiar in your youth. You would have ridden a horse out here rather than on a wagon, but honestly you don't have the proper endurance for this sort of trip anymore. Like Clayton, you aren't sure how many more years your bones have left in them, and aren't looking forward to the possibility of a slow decline. No, out like a soldier for you. Even the messes on the surgeon's table went out cleaner than some of the old men you have seen your friends turn into. While you wouldn't exactly say that you relished the thought of battle, you figured that if some danger was to come, it should come for an old man with his best days behind him rather than for young boys in over their heads.
Reaching the camp - newly rebuilt with mostly new labourers - you have to marvel at the way the settlement they were examining was cut into the side of a sandstone cliff. The colour in particular was remarkable and hadn't been properly captured in the pictures. While you had some appreciation for what the south-west looked like, this was definitely something that you are glad to see with your own eyes before you died.
"Ah, Peter! I'm glad you've been making good use of the supplies we sent. Had a devil of a time getting this crate to where it needed to go and poor Corbyn wanted to make sure that someone competent babysat it all the way over here, just to make sure it couldn't get lost, just to complete our day," you call out as he neared the camp and the others came out to greet you.
Management
Rolled 53 + (4, 5, 6, 10, 10, 10) = 98 + 3 advantages
No problems with the new workers, new protocols in place, makes research easier
"Henry! Good to see you! We've been wondering when you would show up for a while now, we haven't wanted to go anywhere without an old warhorse like you at our backs and some more firepower to cover for us should things go south," Peter exclaims.
Smiling as you gets down off the wagon, workers coming forward to take over the supplies, you reply, "Well, I rather think old warhorses should be at the front of things. Now, how have things been holding up?"
"Surprisingly well, all things considered. I decided to implement a few changes to how things are done for the purposes of safety, and honestly I think we should do them anyway as general practice. We've been going slow and methodical and we don't really touch things if we think they might open up into other chambers until we are ready to do so. It's slow and doesn't bring us much in terms of artefacts, but... well, come into my tent and I will show you some more of what we have been looking into," Peter says, and you nod and follow him into the tent that has been set aside for his paperwork.
Entering into the little field command post gives you a wave of nostalgia, but you shake it off as you go to look at the maps that he has set out on a table at the centre of it all. Most of the notation is rather arcane for you, but the central thrust seems to be about the relationships between various sites.
"So we are fairly certain that there is, in fact, an underground river that is part of the water table in this region. It has, however, been moving about over the last few centuries. From a surface survey I would say that things shouldn't be this drastic, but it is possible that there are layers of rock we are missing and - you know what, not the main thrust here. So, anyway, the creature that attacked us last year came from a cavern within the mesa that this village is part of, that had to have been part of the whole water network. The cave went deeper in, and, well, we've been looking to see if anything else might show up. As a side note, the people who made these villages appear to have been moving them over the centuries with the changes in where the water is. Fascinating stuff. Anyway, Gary figured that maybe the Indians who used to live here might know something - old wives tales with a kernel of truth in them - that might be useful when we lift the seal stone we found. It took him a bit of effort to track down where they ended up and he still isn't back, but last we heard they hadn't eaten him at least," Peter detailed out, pointing to various features, making the colouring obvious as being part of the progression of when and where things were. You suppose in a place like this you would have to follow the water, so it makes some sense.
Looking over the maps, including a more localized one, you point to a spot and say, "This is where the seal stone is?"
Nodding, Peter says, "Yes, its at the bottom of a vertical shaft set with ladder points on top of the mesa. It may have in fact been the first well in the region, although we're not sure. It might have had an earlier ritual significance that is lost to a later significance. Anyway, we have tied ropes to it so we can lift and lower it as needed - haven't touched it otherwise - and we have dynamite prepared in case we need to collapse the whole thing. I figure that if we send men down there it would be you, Wilhelm, and Gary alongside some of our rougher sorts."
"I thought you said that Gary was out and about?" You ask.
Peter shrugs and says, "Well, I don't think he will be more than a week or two longer. Anyway, we should probably also determine where to site the Maxim. I'm hoping it will be completely unnecessary, but... yeah, last year made me think otherwise."
"Well, if we're going to go in there and figure out what is going on, we should probably not wait up too long, all things considered. Hmmm... this is the map, such as it is, of the interior cavern?" You ask, pointing to a crude sketch.
Peter nods. From looking at things, there are a few places you could mount the gun. The first is at the top of the shaft leading out. That is the point of maximum defence as it is a lethal funnel. Of course, any poor bastards venturing down to meet with any gribblies will also be in the line of fire, and they need to get back to the surface for any support. The second is that there appears to be a gallery platform of sorts down in the cavern near where the entrance is. It would place the firepower available a little further forward, but it would also be a bit more exposed. Finally, the team could lug the machine with them. It would slow them down considerably and be quite possibly useless in an ambush situation, but would give any explorers a tremendous amount of protection when they came to stop.
Head out...
[] Once preparations are complete
[] Once Gary returns back
Position the Maxim...
[] Outside the cavern
[] Near the entrance
[] Have the team take it with them
The risk of not seeing it at all before it jumps you(remember, we're putting it in a position where it needs to cover a nearly 360 degree field as opposed to 10 or 20) far outweighs any advantage putting the gun down there provides.
This way when they fail morale rolls and run like fuck they actually have a tangible goal to get to, it should help with an organised retreat.
Also lol taking a maxim gun into tight caves with corners, no it needs a wide field of view where no one can sneak up behind it, even one extra tunnel and it become useless in there.
Plus well our first contact procedures of the explorers should be:
1)See monster
2)Shoot monster
3)Did we do damage? If Y go to 4 if N go to 5
4)Keep shooting
5)Retreat to the maxim gun and lure it out.
Simplest consideration for the Maxim Gun.
Putting it outside means that you only have to shoot at a single point, even if the things that come out are fast as sound, you can still point in a specific direction, with lights set up everywhere, and pray as you spray.
Putting it inside means you have to shoot at any of a dozen different tunnels leading into the reservoir, in a nearly 360 degree circle, in an enclosed space with limited lighting. It's just not as safe, despite giving you a defensive position closer to your explorers.
Simplest consideration for the Maxim Gun.
Putting it outside means that you only have to shoot at a single point, even if the things that come out are fast as sound, you can still point in a specific direction, with lights set up everywhere, and pray as you spray.
Putting it inside means you have to shoot at any of a dozen different tunnels leading into the reservoir, in a nearly 360 degree circle, in an enclosed space with limited lighting. It's just not as safe, despite giving you a defensive position closer to your explorers.
Counterpoint: Leave it at the surface, and it will only come into play if everything goes to hell down there, and it has good odds of shredding our own survivors if they don't have a big enough lead on any pursuing monsters.
Taking it down there may significantly increase the odds of it being lost, but it also massively increases the odds of it being able to save the expedition, rather than just salvaging it. Who knows, maybe we'll come across one of those monsters sleeping or something?
Counterpoint: Leave it at the surface, and it will only come into play if everything goes to hell down there, and it has good odds of shredding our own survivors if they don't have a big enough lead on any pursuing monsters.
Taking it down there may significantly increase the odds of it being lost, but it also massively increases the odds of it being able to save the expedition, rather than just salvaging it. Who knows, maybe we'll come across one of those monsters sleeping or something?
The two options are questions of how close to the ground the safety net is on the highwire. It's your only safety net ever, and it's not exactly sturdy. You can either put it closer to the ground and risk more to the performer, or put it higher up and risk losing the net for the next practice session.
With some minor reservations, I'll vote for this option. Assuming all we have to face is more of the same creature, then our team shouldn't be totally doomed without the gun. What will we find...
