[ february ii ooc info/signups ]

[barrayarmods]

Quick links: Barrayar ⚔  Cetaganda ⚔  Missions

SIGNUPS ARE NOW CLOSED

IT'S THAT TIME AGAAIIIIN

Before we run down the plot, I wanted to let you know that there are a few new loyalty perks up, so check 'em out:
Barrayar: The Countess's Guard*, The Princess's Guard, Training: Archery, Training: Swordplay, Officer's Commission
Cetaganda: Lab Assistant, Training: Advanced Tech, Training: Arts II, Villagers' Trust I
Poetry has been added as a Training: Arts I specialization.

*The Countess's Guard is a retroactively created perk for Countess Olivia's growing collection of lady bodyguards (stabby maids). Lakshmi and Beth already retroactively have this perk.

For the record, you guys can absolutely take perks before signing up for a mission (as long as you have the LP). If there happens to be a perk-related mission you want in on, you can slide right on under the wire there.

Also, I posted some excerpts of fast-penta interrogations for the canonblind looking for specifics, so check those out!

The first half of February was a hard one for the outsiders, given the extreme weather and sudden food shortage. Less so for the Cetagandans with their climate-controlled buildings, unless you consider Cetagandan art a form of torture, in which case the exotics arguably had an even worse time. Sorry about that migraine, Kaidan.

But not all hope was lost. The Barrayarans conducted a couple of successful food raids and a…moderately successful hunting party, and raised their food supply just barely above "we have resorted to eating our horses". Now they have mostly MREs and admittedly bland stew made from other, more appealing ingredients nonetheless, and food is still heavily rationed, but hey: at least you're not eating Li'l Sebastian anymore. And conveniently, they no longer have prisoners to not feed, seeing as ghem-Miko is dead and Duv is now on parole at Piotr's discretion: except for Lieutenant Dmitri Vorhalas, who was caught trying to destroy what little food they'd managed to gather. Piotr will gladly starve him. There is one other extra mouth to feed, though: Negri, the boy who suddenly turned up in camp at the start of the month, has been silently observing the camp.

Meanwhile, some of the exotics stumbled upon some information they clearly weren't meant to know: some data on the anomalous wormhole activity that brought them here, plans for a device meant to control it, and an apparent schism between the ghem-General and his lady wife on what to do with the exotics. During an unexpected but brief biocontainment hazard in the medbay, a few other exotics overhead a conversation revealing that Diya is violating some kind of genomic protocol.

barrayar
The Riverfall villagers have been in contact with Piotr and Olivia, and despite typical Barrayaran superstition, they've been convinced to allow the outsiders in, so Riverfall village is now open. Despite the freeze and the fact that the village's population is only half that of Piotr's army, they're stretching their resources to the limit to help the guerrillas, even coordinating with nearby hill villages to scrape together extra resources. It's a good half a day's hike from the camp to the village, so the Barrayarans would welcome any help from outsiders willing to brave the cold.

Of course, that doesn't mean you need to turn right back around for the camp. Any helpers would be rewarded for their efforts by some rest in one of the villagers' decidedly warmer homes or the trading post, perhaps an overnight stay. The villagers are wary of the outsiders at first, even more than the soldiers had been -- the rural Dendarii are as superstitious as they come -- but, slowly convinced of their good intentions, start to warm to them. They're a blunt, hardy people, largely uneducated and tending toward the most extreme of Barrayaran sensibilities, but they are undeniably fierce. The weather doesn't seem to be taking as much of a toll on the hillfolk as the rest of them -- partly because they are, at least, living in houses with wood-burning stoves, but they've lived winters like this before, and they've survived.

The discovery of Vorhalas's treachery is both triumphant and furtherly maddening, because he cannot possibly have acted alone. Vorhalas is interrogated, and the names of his co-conspirators are revealed: Lieutenant Boris Vortala, who killed himself in disgrace shortly after his fast-penta interrogation at ghem-General Zefyst's hand, and their commander Captain Aaron Vorbataille. Vorbataille has, of course, already started to make his escape -- but with the help out of the outsiders, he won't get very far. Once Piotr is satisfied with Vorbataille's interrogation as well, both men are put to execution, but not by beheading as Doctor ghem-Miko: the sentence for treason is death by public starvation and exposure, and in this weather, it doesn't take long. They are publicly and emphatically denounced as traitors with no honor to speak of, sending a very clear message.

Piotr finally calls Negri out as a spy sent by his aide-de-camp Captain Ezar Vorbarra, partly to deliver a message and partly to test Piotr, because Ezar loves coy bullshit. However, he does learn that both Ezar and Prince Xav Vorbarra, Olivia and Sonia's father, are en route to Vorkosigan's District with relief supplies from Beta Colony secured by Xav's ambassadorial connections and tireless lobbying.

The camp is badly in need of a morale boost, so once Piotr feels it's safe to disclose this news, he does -- along with appropriate celebrations. On the evening of the 21st, Riverfall village is throwing a party, and everyone is invited. What little they have to share, they scrape together as much of a feast as they can: not much, but by this month's standards, anything prepared with fresh ingredients seems absolutely decadent. And because this is Barrayar there is, of course, plenty of liquor, that Barrayaran moonshine maple mead not the least among them. The hillfolk light lanterns all around the village and raise large tarps to cover the open center of the village where they usually hold gatherings. Inside, protected from the wind and lit by the bonfire and braziers placed around the perimeter, it's actually almost warm. There's plenty of singing and dancing courtesy of the villagers, but anyone with musical talent to contribute would be welcome. Overall, it seems to have its intended effect: morale is just a little bit better after the party, and the people in camp have something real to look forward to.

On the 23rd, a small field science team from the Cetagandan base arrives in Riverfall village, along with a few exotics. They bring with them a load of equipment, much of which looks rather sensitive, apparently here to take some reading or measurement or another. The hillfolk are far from pleased to have their village disturbed like this, but considering the entire district is under occupation, there's not much they can do. The real risk comes to any Barrayaran soldiers or outsiders who happen to be in camp at the time -- they have to lay low, especially if there's a chance that any of the Cetagandans might recognize them by face alone, and connect for certain this village and their current camp location. But if you can get close enough to see what they're doing, it might lead to some valuable intel…

cetaganda
There are growing tensions among certain Cetagandans, if you know where to look, especially if you happened to witness either of these conversations. But Lady Diya and ghem-General Zahal are so infrequently in the same room together that it's only evident if you pay very close attention. Doctor Amai ghem-Soren, on the other hand, isn't quite as reserved and seems rather ruffled lately. Jasper, Daryl and York might recognize her by voice as the ghem lady who was arguing with Diya, and other exotics by her involvement in coordinating their outfits for the party. She primarily works in the gene labs, but has been seen with increasing frequency at the R&D labs as well. Despite only being in her thirties, still quite young by Cetagandans, she is as much a rising star as Gail: she is already one of the senior geneticists on Diya's team, purely by talent rather than tenure.

Although the Cetagandans have been fairly close-mouthed with the exotics, now they begin to turn to them seeking more direct knowledge. They're interested in interviewing anyone with a strong background in mechanical and aerospace engineering, neurology, astrophysics, and mathematics, and they would deeply appreciate any advisement. For those Symmetra and Kaidan, as well as those working in the R&D lab, it shouldn’t be hard to figure out that this is connected to their wormhole research. They may even bring you in on a project, and if you have any particular request, they may be able to grant it to you by way of compensation. Both Diya and Amai will be present at some of these interviews, although R&D largely falls into military territory.

Another ongoing effort in their wormhole research is to plot all the locations where exotics have appeared. Of course, the Cetagandans only have half the data – so they're sending out field science teams with equipment to try and detect any similar particle activity, and allowing some exotics to come along for the ride. One such team sets up shop in Riverfall village for a day on the 23rd. The villagers clearly don't like it, but the Cetagandans are armed, so they cooperate.

If anyone was worried about boredom after the fancy party, never fear: more Cetagandan cultural events are here! On the 24th some of the ghem officers assemble a moon-poetry party, a cultural event usually observed in autumn; while it's currently winter on Barrayar, back on Eta Ceta the season is just now upon them. Ghem men and women alike take turns reciting poetry in the Cetagandan style, the entire event usually lasting around three hours. Moon-poetry parties are the less sophisticated ghem version of haut poetry readings, which are so obscure in nuance as to be nearly inaccessible even to the ghem. Depending on your tastes, this might be culturally enlightening entertainment, or devastatingly boring.

loyalty gamble
Darkstalker, eager to prove himself, has accepted a special, if risky, mission: using his keen night vision, he is to perform aerial surveillance in the hopes of locating the guerrilla army's new camp. Darkstalker is lent the use of a wristcom for this mission so as to communicate with the Cetagandan ground party sent with him as an escort. Unfortunately, their party runs afoul of some outsiders scouting around the foothills, and a skirmish breaks out. The outsiders will get away alive, but what happens to the Cetagandan party and Darkstalker's mission is yet to be seen. This mission happens on the evening of the 20th.

breakout
On the evening of the 25th, all hell breaks loose when some of the exotics stage a breakout attempt. Wash, York and Ratchet conspire to spring Lakshmi and Daryl free from the hold. Meanwhile, Miles and Maine are attempting their own rescue plan. Things get chaotic, a fight breaks out, and ultimately everyone is able to get away except for York and Ratchet. More details here.

Lakshmi is returned to the Barrayaran camp.
Wash and Daryl both defect to Barrayar.

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 unless it's specifically an NPC-based thread, we'll only toss NPC tags into mission threads on request.

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 February 16th at midnight PST (read: until I wake up in the morning on the 17th), assuming they don't fill up before then, so that I have a day to write up the results. However, if you guys get those in early I will start rolling IMMEDIATELY.

0) Loyalty Gamble: Darkstalker (PVP) +2 LP
SKILLS: COMBAT, STEALTH, PHYSICAL
Darkstalker, along with a small party of Cetagandan soldiers, will be surveilling an area of the Dendarii mountains near the base – the same area currently being scouted by a small party of outsiders. There is room for two outsiders on this mission.
(Signups are for outsiders only. NOTE: You do not need to have taken the Loyalty Gamble perk for this mission; this is a plot opportunity for Darkstalker's Loyalty Gamble.)

1. William
2. Agent Maine

MISSIONS: BARRAYAR
The Barrayarans need help carting supplies back and forth between the village and the camp in addition to the ongoing food efforts. Additionally, Piotr has not only Vorhalas to interrogate, but also Vorbataille – once he's caught.

1) Supply train +1 LP
SKILLS: PHYSICAL
It's a half a day's hike between Riverfall and the guerrilla camp, and it's not a fun one in the cold. The Barrayarans are growing gradually less picky about the help they receive, slowly warming up to the outsiders, and hey, if you can pull your weight, you're good in their book. Signups are unlimited.
(Note: there won't be an event top-level for this and you aren't required to thread it out, but feel free to use this for CR fodder!)

1. William
2. Agent Carolina
3. Beth Greene
4. Duv Galeni

2) Interrogations +3 LP
SKILLS: PERSUASION, INTIMIDATION, PHYSICAL
Prerequisite: at least 1 LP
With or without outsider help, Piotr is going to be interrogating both Vorhalas and Vorbataille, and it won't be pretty. Piotr will allow up to a maximum of two outsiders to assist with interrogations. (This is ENTIRELY optional; if no one signs up for interrogations they will proceed without negative consequences.)

NOTE: Barrayaran-style interrogations do involve torture and these threads may contain graphic material.

1. Miles Vorkosigan
2.

3) Catch the traitor +2 LP
SKILLS: COMBAT, PHYSICAL
By the time the extent of Captain Vorbataille's treachery is exposed, he has already started to make his escape – but for the grace of a few outsiders, he might even have gotten away. There is room for up to three outsiders to help catch Vorbataille.

1. Agent Carolina
2. Duv Galeni
3. Zarya

4) On guard +2 LP
SKILLS: COMBAT
Prerequisite: Guard Duty
Just because the Cetagandans don't know where the Barrayaran camp is doesn't mean they aren't looking. They send scouting parties up into the mountains every so often, but the Cetagandans don't have the intimate knowledge of the terrain that the Barrayarans do, and the locals are often less than helpful. On an evening patrol of the camp's outer perimeter, which stretches about 2km out form the center of camp, some outsiders on guard duty will find themselves face-to-face with a Cetagandan scouting party. And if you kill anyone, make sure you bring back the body – the General's request.

Up to two outsiders can sign up for this mission.

1. Miles Vorkosigan
2.

5) Riverfall (PVP) +2 LP
SKILLS: STEALTH, TECH, SCIENCE
A Cetagandan field science team, accompanied by a few exotics, unexpectedly shows up in Riverfall when a group of Barrayarans and outsiders are in the village. Best to lie low; should the Cetagandan soldiers discover any guerillas or outsiders, it would not only spell disaster for the camp, but the village as well. But the Cetagandans are clearly here looking for something, and if you can figure out what, you're sure to earn some points with the General...

There is room for up to four outsiders on this mission.

1. William
2. Beth Greene
3. Zarya
4. Miles Vorkosigan

MISSIONS: CETAGANDA
All kinds of things are bubbling under the surface on the Cetagandan base, politics and science and society all tangled together. Some exotics are itching for more information, trying to put together all the disjointed pieces...and some just want to have a good time.

1) Moon-poetry party +1 LP
It's time for some good old-fashioned cultural enlightenment. If the exotics found the discernment garden obscure, welcome to a whole new realm of Cetagandan esoterism. Signups are unlimited.
(Note: there will be a top-level for this, but you aren't required to thread any of this out. Feel free to use it for CR fodder!)

1. Natasha Romanoff
2. Symmetra
3. Kaidan Alenko
4. Deanna Troi
5. Agent Washington
6. Darkstalker

2) Science advisory +2 LP
SKILLS: NEUROLOGY, ASTROPHYSICS, MATHEMATICS, MECHANICAL ENGINEERING, AEROSPACE ENGINEERING
The science teams on the base are clearly gearing up for something, and they'd love a little input from those scientifically-minded exotics. Just a taste of the exotics' different worlds has already proven the wide variety in technological advances among them. The Cetagandans would very much like to hear anything you have to offer – and perhaps even bring you in on a project.

There is room for up to six exotics on this mission.

1. Symmetra
2. Natasha Romanoff
3. Deanna Troi
4. Ratchet
5. Agent Washington
6. Kaidan Alenko

3) Riverfall (PVP) +2 LP
SKILLS: PERCEPTION, STEALTH, NEGOTIATION
Riverfall makes for a convenient place to set up shop to try and detect some wormhole activity. This is a rare opportunity to get out of the base and into the world, and maybe it's not in the greatest weather, but if you've longed to see any part of this planet besides the cold walls and lush imported gardens of the Cetagandan base, this is the scenic route. Besides, you never know who you might run into or what you might find.

There is room for up to four exotics on this mission.

1. Pearl
2. Lapis Lazuli
3. Jasper
4. Darkstalker

4) MYSTERY PLOT +3 LP
SKILLS: TECH, MEDICINE, STEALTH
This is an RNG-based grab-bag mission – you don't know exactly what it'll be or how it will wind up affecting your character, but it will be exciting and plot-important! Up to two three exotics can participate, but we'll need you to sign this waiver surrendering your fate to the RNG gods.

1. Kaidan Alenko
2. Natasha Romanoff
3. Agent York

As usual, if you have any questions, feel free to ask! Also, while everyone in the breakout plot is still eligible to sign up for other missions, as a courtesy I ask that you give other players a shot at the missions with fewer slots.

Timeline:
2/20 Loyalty Gamble: Darkstalker
2/21 Riverfall village party
2/23 Riverfall PVP event
2/24 Moon-poetry party
2/25 Breakout

Comments

QUESTIONS

[barrayarmods]

Put 'em here!

[natalia_vdova]

Probably a silly question, but I thought I'd ask anyway... for science advisory are we still just rating their highest skill, or is it worth noting any area they have knowledge with?

[barrayarmods]

List whichever are applicable, so it can be more than one!

MISSION: LOYALTY GAMBLE +2 LP

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to two outsiders. Please rate your character's proficiency in COMBAT, PHYSICAL or STEALTH, whichever is highest, from 1 to 4.

[omniavincit]

Okay let's do this.

...everything's a 2.

[barrayarmods]

THUMBS UP

[traitorous]

can i sign up yet if not just punt me to the moon where i belong

combat/physical both 4

[barrayarmods]

GO FIGHT THE DRAGON MAINE

MISSIONS: BARRAYAR

[barrayarmods]

SUPPLY TRAIN +1 LP

[barrayarmods]

Signups are unlimited. Please rate your character's proficiency in PHYSICAL from 1 to 4.

[omniavincit]

YOU MEAN THERE'S AN EASY WAY TO GO ABOUT THIS

I take it "physical" means general physical condition, so CHANGED MY MIND MAKE IT A 2 thanks to his previous hike.

[startpoint]

Physical proficiency is a 4!

[littlemissfutility]

physical: 3 for you, beth coco

these arms are my justification

[komarran]

Giving him a 3 for physical

INTERROGATIONS +3 LP (requires at least 1 LP)

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to two outsiders. Please rate your character's proficiency in PERSUASION or INTIMIDATION as well as PHYSICAL from 1 to 4.

[dendarii]

MILES WILL HELP GRANDA THIS TIME. and hate his life a little. Persuasion 4. Physical ... shit, I don't know. Normally I'd give Miles low points for physical but interrogation is probably the one physical task he'd be good at? LET'S GO WITH A 2 maybe.

CATCH THE TRAITOR +2 LP

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to three outsiders. Please rate your character's proficiency in COMBAT or PHYSICAL, whichever is higher, from 1 to 4.

[startpoint]

Physical and combat are both 4 so :')

ON GUARD +2 LP (requires Guard Duty perk)

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to two outsiders. Please rate your character's proficiency in COMBAT from 1 to 4.

RIVERFALL (PVP) +2 LP

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to four outsiders. Please rate your character's proficiency in STEALTH, TECH or SCIENCE, whichever is higher, from 1 to 4.

MISSIONS: CETAGANDA

[barrayarmods]

MOON-POETRY PARTY +1 LP

[barrayarmods]

Signups are unlimited.

SCIENCE ADVISORY +2 LP

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to six exotics. Please rate your character's proficiency in NEUROLOGY, ASTROPHYSICS, MATHEMATICS, MECHANICAL ENGINEERING, and AEROSPACE ENGINEERING, whichever apply, from 1 to 4.

RIVERFALL (PVP) +2 LP

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to four exotics. Please rate your character's proficiency in PERCEPTION, STEALTH, or NEGOTIATION, whichever is higher, from 1 to 4.

MYSTERY PLOT! +3 LP

[barrayarmods]

There is room for up to two exotics. Please rate your character's proficiency in TECH, MEDICINE, or STEALTH, whichever is higher, from 1 to 4.