[ january ii ooc info post ]

[barrayarmods]

Quick links: Barrayar ⚔  Cetaganda ⚔  Missions

UPDATE: SIGNUPS ARE NOW CLOSED

Hey gang, I hope you are all ready for some PLOT to happen, because we are about to dive right into the game's plot proper when the new event log goes up on the 18th, which means mission signups! But before we get into that, here's a preview of what will be happening in the second half of the month:

The weather will continue as forecasted, with light flurries deepening into heavy snowfall. Not quite blizzard conditions, but both the mountains and the lowlands will see a considerable accumulation of snow and reduced visibility. It is also going to get a little bit colder, so you may want to bundle up even more.

barrayar
On the 18th, the General Count himself will finally make an appearance. Piotr Vorkosigan, leader of the resistance in his district and top of Zahal ghem-Zefyst's most wanted list, will come to the outsiders' area of the camp to speak to them personally. He will explain their situation in full from the Barrayaran perspective: that their planet was rediscovered a scant 30 years ago after 700 years of isolation. They were just beginning to reintegrate with galactic society when, 10 years ago, they were attacked without word or warning by the Cetagandan Empire, known for its aggressive expansionism. Komarr, the planet that controls the only wormhole route to Barrayar, was willing to accept a hefty bribe in order to turn a blind eye to the Cetagandan warships passing through. The Cetagandans demanded unconditional surrender on arrival – they didn't wish to harm the people of Barrayar, they claimed, merely incorporate them into their Empire and bring to them the light of civilization. But Barrayarans, Piotr will tell you, answer to only one Emperor, and their refusal to surrender under any conditions was met with warfare and occupation. Some districts have surrendered, their Counts traitorous collaborators with their invaders, but the resistance in Vorkosigan's District remains strong. Barrayar's diplomatic ties to Beta Colony are their only outside hope – Prince Xav Vorbarra, the Emperor's second son and Barrayar's ambassador to Beta Colony, has spent most of the war off-planet, trying to drum up galactic support for Barrayar and sneak supplies through the blockade.

That is why they are hidden up here in the mountains, their intimate knowledge of the terrain their only advantage. It also explains the lack of any modern technology in the camp – while they could steal from the enemy, they wouldn't be able to use so much as a plasma arc without detection by the Cetagandans' energy scanners. Their continued survival depends on their location remaining hidden – and it's been compromised before. A month before the outsiders' arrival, the location to their previous camp was discovered; how, they still don't know, but they were forced to split up and relocate. They have yet to rendezvous with the other half of their camp, so not only are they still settling and canvassing the area, their forces have been cut nearly in half. This, he explains, is why they have been so cautious with the outsiders: with their own situation so recently upset and their resources down, they could afford to take few risks. The Barrayarans have no idea how the outsiders came here; however, he does understand they had no chance in the matter. And after a couple of weeks' observation, he is now satisfied that the outsiders are no threat to his camp, and as such he is lifting the guards that have been posted around the outsiders' tent. The outsiders are now free to walk the camp, save for areas restricted for military access. But supplies, as mentioned, are tight, and the camp can afford no freeloaders, so the outsiders will need to earn their keep. Nothing is asked of them that isn't asked of his own men: cleaning, cooking, caring for the animals and assisting with mundane tasks where needed will be the outsiders' jobs. Their survival is tied to the Barrayarans', because if the Cetagandans find their camp, they won't be so discriminatory in who they kill.

He won't hold anyone in the camp against their will. If anyone wishes to leave, they may do so – knowing full well that there is no protection in a war zone, that all their cities are occupied by the enemy. To eliminate the risk of being traced back to their location, however, anyone who wishes to leave will by led away from the camp by a Barrayaran scout so that they would not be able to trace back their route – they can't let themselves be discovered by the Cetagandans. But if there are any those among the outsiders who are willing to do more than menial work, there are some things you could do to help the war effort. They can't turn down an extra pair of hands, and any aid to the Barrayaran cause would surely earn you some of Piotr's trust.

cetaganda
On the 18th, the ghem-General himself will finally present himself to the exotics. Zahal ghem-Zefyst, the leader of the occupation in Vorkosigan's District, will come to the exotics room to speak to them personally. He will explain their situation in full from the Cetagandan perspective: their empire, the Cetagandan Empire, has flourished for centuries, with some of the highest standards of living in the galaxy. In isolation and with no modern technology, the planet's civilization quickly eroded, giving way to centuries of war and violent conflict; indeed, their government had only just barely stabilized by the time they were rediscovered, and even now remains tenuous, constantly on the brink of more civil war. The Cetagandans didn't come here for conquest; they came for colonization. They have no wish to harm or exterminate the Barrayaran people. Their aim is to assimilate the Barrayaran people into Cetagandan society, to provide structure and stability and ease their transition into galactic society, to more efficiently bring the planet up to date in terms of standards of living and technology. The nominal Emperor has refused; however, some of his Counts have already agreed to surrender, which only goes to show further how tentative the Barrayaran Empire's union is. Districts which have conceded to the Cetagandan forces are not being attacked, of course; it is only in districts such as these, where the Barrayarans have gone to ground and refuse to discuss any terms, that the fighting happens.

But the cooperation of the exotics is a relief to the ghem-General. He apologizes for quarantining them, and any unpleasantries in the medbay that occurred out of confusion or poor communication; they were as clueless as their new guests about their arrival, but rest assured, they are investigating the phenomenon. Now that they are sure that the exotics and the base personnel pose no mutual threat to one another, the guards have been removed from the barracks area where the exotics' room is, and the exotics are free to move about the base as they please – barring, of course, any areas restricted for military access only. The ghem-General is well aware that the exotics didn't come here by choice, and they have the resources to support an extra ten people, so he is happy to let them reside as guests on the base, and so long as they act with courtesy and civility, so they will be treated. He encourages the exotics to enjoy Cetagandan culture as they please; if they should take interest in poetry, calligraphy, or some other, more inventive art form, someone on the base should certainly be able to pass that on.

The ghem-General will not force anyone to stay who does not wish to. If anyone decides they'd rather leave the base, he'll see that they are escorted out safely – leaving behind, of course, any Cetagandan equipment that might have been lent or borrowed. And it is, of course, a war zone out there, and the Barrayarans are fierce and not always so discriminatory in who they attack – but the decision is, of course, an individual's own.

missions
Each individual mission/plot opportunity is determined by signups and RNG, and most of them will net you some LP. If you haven't seen it yet, here's the post explaining the RNG system I use for the game. (Don't worry, all the dice-rolling is my work, you guys only need to sign up!) Scene-setting starters will be put up on the event log for each mission, and while we'll throw an NPC tag or two into each thread, they will be sparse and only to move things along or provide intelligence – think of this more along the lines of your DM narrating the scene rather than NPC interaction. For the PVP missions, a scene-setting starter will be put up for each, plus a scene-setting starter for the key event that brings the two parties together (i.e. these threads will start out separate and converge into one when the two sides meet).

Mission signups are in the comments below. Signing up for any of these missions (or any missions ever) is OPTIONAL. You can have your character hang back at the camp if you don't feel like participating in a plot mission, so don't feel obligated. Signups close January 16th at midnight PST (or until I wake up in the morning), assuming they don't fill up before then, so that I have a day to write up the results.

MISSIONS: BARRAYAR
Part of Piotr's long-term plan is to disrupt the power supply to the Cetagandan base, but in the time since their camp had to split up, the Cetagandans had changed their security protocol, so he needs reconnaissance on their perimeter security. Once they've decided on the best way in, Piotr will be sending squads to infiltrate the base and do reconnaissance on the base's power supply. Two of his intelligence officers, Captain Aaron Vorbataille and Captain Alexei Vorinnis, are in charge of coordinating these reconnaissance squads.

1) Perimeter scouting +1 LP
SKILLS: STEALTH, TECH
Before they can do reconnaissance on the base's power supply, they need to find a way in first. Cetagandan security has changed it up since the guerilla camp scattered, and the perimeter weakness they used to exploit isn't viable anymore. Outsiders will be paired up with Barrayaran squads for the stealth mission, two or three to a team.

The teams will disembark after sundown, working under the cover of night. The weather out there is rough – the heavy snowfall is a mixed blessing, because while it helps obscure them from sight, it's just as much a hindrance to their own visibility. They will take up to six outsiders.

1. Arthur Pendragon
2. Adrien Arbuckal
3. Beth Greene
4. Byerly Vorrutyer
5.
6.

2) Power supply scouting (PVP) +1 LP
SKILLS: STEALTH, TECH
Now that they have the intel in hand, it's time to put it to good use. Two Barrayaran scouting teams will take a couple of outsiders each and infiltrate the base at two different points. The objective is to locate the base's main and backup power generators and gather enough intel to work on a plan to disable or destroy them. This mission carries more risk, as it puts them directly in enemy territory. If you get caught...you might not all make it back to camp.

They will take up to up to four outsiders. This is also an opportunity to have your character get kidnapped to the other side! If you'd like to have your character kidnapped by the opposite side, please indicate so in your signup, OR if you'd like, you can let the RNG decide your fate.

1. Agent Maine
2. Lakshmi Bai
3. Miles Vorkosigan
4. Agent Carolina

MISSIONS: CETAGANDA
The ghem-General hasn't invited any of the exotics to join in any military ventures, and it's unclear if he plans to...but that doesn't mean you can't do a little recon of your own.

1) Eavesdropping +1 LP*
*as long as you don't get caught
SKILLS: STEALTH
Now that you're free to move around the non-restricted parts of the base as civilians, now might be a good opportunity to satisfy any burning curiosities you might have about this place – as long as you're careful. Although the perimeter is the most heavily guarded part of the base, there are still routine patrols around the base at night that will have to be avoided, and during the day the base is full of personnel moving all about. Plus there's the snow – it makes for good cover if you decide to go out at night, and while it's still falling, it'll probably cover up your footprints. There's always the risk you could get caught, of course – but what's a little risk compared to what you could learn?

Up to six exotics can participate. Though this mission doesn't guarantee an LP gain, it does carry the potential for some particularly rich information.

1. Kaidan Alenko
2. Darkstalker
3. Lapis Lazuli
4. Ratchet
5.
6.

2) Interception (PVP) +1 LP
SKILLS: STEALTH, PERSUASION
Either you've heard somehow about the incoming intruders or you just wanted to see if you could score a little more in the way of information, but tonight's heavy snowfall makes for good cover if you feel like taking your chances and investigating. There's still the risk of getting caught, of course, and if you've been caught before, then they might be just a little bit unhappy with you. Then again, you never know what you'll run into...

Up to four exotics can participate. This is also an opportunity to have your character get kidnapped to the other side! If you'd like to have your character kidnapped by the opposite side, please indicate so in your signup, OR if you'd like, you can let the RNG decide your fate.

1. Duv Galeni
2. Agent York
3. Agent Washington
4. Daryl Dixon


If you should have any questions about the event or the way this stuff works, feel free to ask!