Synopsis
Previous Page
Go to August through December 2004 Writeups
Go to October and November 2005 Writeups
Go to January 2006 Writeup
January 2005 Game
After much whinning and complaining over many months and many game sessions, the party finally had a chance to spend a few months training, healing and seeking some much needed psychotherapy. Don�t ask me what all they learned, bought, sold, wired-in, or stole. All I know is it took forever.
Through an amazing coincidence, right about the time they were finishing their boring self-improvement tapes, the job offers came rolling in. There were basically two: 1) help Jazmine find out what happened to a colleague at UCB, Prof. Leo Patterson who was apparently murdered in his office; and 2) take a job from a big corporate fixer to do some industrial espionage into some psychic work being developed by another corp. The second job came via the party�s hired, part-time hacker who knew they had a tendency towards the supernatural in their line of work. Being the greedy bastards they are, the party took both. Vince decided to sit this one out and entered a 12-step program for sock-lovers anonymous.
The investigation of Yasmeen�s colleague showed he was a biblical archeologist who just brought back something, apparently the head of the Dagon statute mentioned in 1 Samuel 5 of the old testament. Connections were made between his work and the corporation that hired him, Klugen Corp. An investigation into Patterson�s office showed an attack by non-human creatures that apparently took the statute head. Patterson had documents relating to �Deep Ones� that included pictures of half-man, half-fish creatures � similar to the description of Dagon from Babylonian mythos (and everyone said Frank�s inane knowledge of mythological trivia would be useless). Yasmeen later said that Alex Cross, a former Delta Green member was the foremost authority on Deep Ones but he was now a mercenary.
While checking his office, another group of investigators came by. Turns out they worked for the corp and were after the statute head. We couldn�t have that, so Greg promptly shot one threw the eye then proceeded to chase down another that tried to get away and murder him in his car. Frank and Ray jumped out the window and ran as Alex Cross fired away.
The party looked into the background of Klugen corp and its president Max Klugen. They discovered he bore a vague resemblance to the Dagon picture. He didn�t always look like that. But lately, he seemed to have developed some kind of strange obsession with the Deep Ones. They went to check out the corporate headquarters only to find that the security had been cracked like a walnut.
The party approach cautiously only to see a deep one come rushing towards them. A battle involving several deep ones broke out. Without Vince around it was a real struggle involving far too many grenades and high-explosive incendiary rounds than ever should be used in a close combat situation. Greg managed to add a few kills to his belt, unfortunately one of them was Frank. Someone, probably Ray, decided to throw a grenade into the lobby when the elevator opened and was able to add some unarmed lab techs trying to escape the carnage to his list of kills. A quick dose of death�s door and the party rushed Frank to the nearest ripper doc (across the street through an amazing bit of luck) for some quick resuscitation. They kept an eye on the exit of the corporation and saw the deep ones leaving with one of their own who appeared to have been tortured and possibly subject to nasty experiments (he was covered in batter and tartar sauce).
Vince finally showed up, but the party noticed he was still a bit off. Must make sure he keeps taking his medicine. Oh and maybe wire him with explosives just in case. And wouldn�t you know it, he got more cybered-up. Just what an insane guy needs.
Vince showed up at the corporate headquarters to meet the group. As they go to leave they see Cross and some goons show up to check out the carnage and begin the clean-up. Strangely, the police didn�t show up. Ray pulled up in the plumbers van and started talking crap to the goons about how they seem to have had just a tab bit of trouble and asking if there were any body parts that needed to be snaked out of the toilets. While talking, Cross must�ve seen the plumbers� van on the surveillance video because suddenly the goons took an incredible interest in getting to know Ray better. Well, no one gets to know Ray without a fight so the shootie-shoots began. The van got shot to hell but the goons got killed and the party got a kick-ass armored up Lincoln Towncar. Pretty sweet.
Anyway, something had to be done about the two jobs. The corp guy is expecting the party to get cracking and they are busy digging claws and teeth out of Greg and Frank�s backsides. Why not just cancel? Sounds like a good idea, except for the small print in the contract, �Substantial Penalty for termination prior to completion of job.� The definitions section defines �Substantial Penalty� as �bringing as much firepower down on your pathetic little lives as the corporation can afford.� Instead, the party decided to get a small extension � it cost them but at least it didn�t get them dead. They can do that on their own.
So, back to the fishies. The party got in touch with Yasmeen who revealed that she found the statute head in the safety deposit box of Prof. Paterson She is the executor of his will and found it when cleaning out his stuff. It didn�t take the party too long to realize she might be in just a little danger having that thing around. Rescue mission! That�s something new. Of course, they went about it the way they do everything � reckless driving at high speeds in their new Lincoln and shooting at fish.
During the battle with the deep ones they: 1) managed not to get their new car destroyed; 2) suffered serious san loss from a wizard fish; 2) had a desk thrown at them; 3) watched Ray almost die (saved by Frank�s healing hands); 4) saved Yasmeen (with some Death�s Door); 5) watched Vince eat some deep one (without even some lemon juice); and 6) learned not to get out of the car if you are Frank or Ray while there is a giant 8 foot deep one engaged in hand-to-hand combat with Vince. Eventually, the party fought off all the Deep Ones and made Berkeley safe for the liberals again.
(no game between Feb and June � what was wrong with us during that time?)
Alright, time for a straight up cyberpunk mission. Bust into a corp, steal some research secrets and bust out. What could be easier. Sure, Yasmeen is still in the hospital after her run in with the Deep Ones and sure there was some shopping and car fixing to be done, but who could turn down the offer of $70,000 and not being killed.
So, the serious investigation of the Blistac corp begins. They hire a hacker to investigate the corporation and learn the basic layout of the basement lab. They somehow convince the hacker to accompany them on their mission. He�s going to get 10% for shutting down the security and monitoring the guard station. Not a bad deal if he doesn�t get eaten.
So they go with the straightforward approach. They taser the guards in a well-orchestrated move that, to everyone�s surprise, neutralizes the guards, quickly and quietly and without any killing. Of course, this made them really paranoid. But that was just the beginning.
They jump in the elevator and head down � and then things get weird. Ray is convinced Vince is about to flip out and kill everyone. Vince is convinced he is about to flip out and kill everyone. No wait, he�s convinced someone is in the elevator that needs to be killed. Then there�s Greg and Frank who aren�t sure what�s going on but they know it�s not good.
The elevator door opens and the party starts shooting. Luckily, none of it was at each other. They take out the guards in the hall and manage to trust each other for a few more minutes.
They proceed down the hall and find the Emperor in his chamber. He is a shriveled man in a metal casing from the waist down. He floats apparently suspended over a tube running straight down into the earth. Wires run from his head to the heads of 10 naked or semi-naked people strapped to the walls. The psychic energies start flowing. So they start shooting. Well, the guys on the wall drop pretty easily. Then Frank, runs forward in a baffling display of bravery. Quick, someone shoot him, he�s obviously possessed. Actually, he has a flash of brilliance and tosses and EMP gernande which shorts out the Emperor�s suspensors and causes him to fall, pulling the wires and the 5� spikes at the end of them out of the heads of the wall flowers. Gore spurts into the air in a cascading fountain. The threat is eliminated and all that remains is to take the little end table/chest left behind.
Then someone (Frank?) looks down the hole, and �holy crap! what is that!� Looks like something coming up and coming fast. Time to go! They run for it and see what looks like a cute little miniature Cthuthlu. A Starspawn, even the name sounds like a baby. So little and cute. A mere 25-30 feet high, 20 feet wide and moving at ungodly speeds. The party decide to run for it rather than stay for the diaper changing. They make it to the elevator with small fragments of sanity in tact. Well, all except for Ray who needs to be mind wiped like a hairy ass after explosive diarrhea.
Up the elevator, out the door and, wouldn�t you know it, cops. Bang, bang, zoom, zoom, and they get away, still holding their end table.
