Let's Play VtM: Night Empire

[Storyfag]

solid stuff

Right you are. I'm a bit afraid we might be burning Horn out, using him so soon again after the alleged terrorist attack. The man will have a lot of explaining to do about that. But that's the fate of a ghoul.

I'm flopping to phone Horn. Editing previous posts: now.

 

[Gondolin]

I fear, gentlemen, that your fascination with the admittedly impressive esoteric arts of the kindred have caused you to forget the value of our traditional base of power. Yes, it's true we don't have contact with the Nosferatu and their intelligence networks, but one must consider from where they gain this intelligence. To a small extent it may be reconnaisance while obfuscated, but in large part they consult the CCTV networks, the telecommunications networks, and if they're very good perhaps even the reconaissance satellites. These things are all at our fingertips, both figuratively and literally a single call away. Given that this is the middle of the London Olympics, there will not be a single moment in which a satellite is not tasked over London - within minutes we can have a detailed 3D map of any building in Soho and the surrounding blocks, including the positions of everyone present and a rough idea of their stance and what they're carrying (assuming they aren't concealed from the EM spectrum range employed by the satellite e.g. obfuscated). Should it be noticed that at some point a large number of unwashed hooligans emerged from vans with the aim of reducing local property values, CCTV and satellite records can be consulted to track them back to their source. We may not have the magic of the kindred, but don't discount the magic of the kine - we are neither powerless nor blind here.

D - (P) Horn

We ought to have a small, easily dominated emergency intelligence task force established to process our signals intelligence - officially to pursue the terrorist threat from Oxford. Let's find out what surprises await us in Soho, and hopefully find an ideal position from which to employ marksman weapons with incediary ammo to provide fire support for the beleaguered Toreador. I don't favour Wistman in close quarters battle with kindred at night, but a white phosphorous round through the chest from 500+ metres is something Wistman is supremely qualified to supply.

.... holy shit. I'm fucking speechless.

 

[Gondolin]

Battle plan: Phone Horn. Establish sig-int center. Wistman members take overwatch positions. SWAT team moves to enter Pleasure N' Pain. Mission is a fucking go!

D. Phone Horn.

 

[Esquilax]

Great post, Random Word, I knew you'd come up with something awesome. Massive to you.

We should be able to see any Obfuscated Sabbat on cameras, IIRC Obfuscate is a mental illusion, so electronics are unaffected. The only thing we wouldn't see is Lasombra. It would be hilarious if it turns out Dubrik is there to kill off our whole squad... with his secret agent, the femme fatale Wilhelm Vogler beside him.

Speaking of Dubrik, I think he had a major role in this offensive, I see his fingerprints all over this thing. Extensive monitoring of Camarilla communications, knowing exactly where the Ventrue Barons were going to be tonight, organizing several Sabbat packs to cut off the heads of the Camarilla leadership in one swift motion - it all points to the work of that Lasombra spymaster.

Also, there's the matter Digby Deeds' betrayal. I seem to remember Dubrik also taking a certain vulnerable Tremere under his wing in hopes of infiltrating the Camarilla and reestablishing Sabbat power within the city. He's excellent at finding and manipulating the weakest member of the herd to further his goals. Hell, even Tony has made a deal with him in the past.

Sure, stuff like the Gadfly and the operations in the sewers were probably the work of Connaught. But the logistics of this operation, the intel-gathering portion, I think that was all Dubrik.

Flopped to (P) Horn, I've edited my original post.

ironyuri: If I were Bob, I would respond to your sales pitch by saying "What do I get in return for putting my people in danger for a scheming Ventrue fuck like you?" I would ask for concessions of turf, power-sharing, that sort of thing. I wouldn't mind seeing the Camarilla getting battered a little bit before I decided to offer my help. Besides, as Storyfag noted, a lot of Anarchs (not Griddle, but probably many under him) might just decide to defect to the Sabbat if they think that the Camarilla won't last. We can start working on alliances once we see how the ghoul squad performs, it's too early at this point.

 

[ironyuri]

Great post, Random Word, I knew you'd come up with something awesome. Massive to you.

We should be able to see any Obfuscated Sabbat on cameras, IIRC Obfuscate is a mental illusion, so electronics are unaffected. The only thing we wouldn't see is Lasombra. It would be hilarious if it turns out Dubrik is there to kill off our whole squad... with his secret agent, the femme fatale Wilhelm Vogler beside him.

Speaking of Dubrik, I think he had a major role in this offensive, I see his fingerprints all over this thing. Extensive monitoring of Camarilla communications, knowing exactly where the Ventrue Barons were going to be tonight, organizing several Sabbat packs to cut off the heads of the Camarilla leadership in one swift motion - it all points to the work of that Lasombra spymaster.

Also, there's the matter Digby Deeds' betrayal. I seem to remember Dubrik also taking a certain vulnerable Tremere under his wing in hopes of infiltrating the Camarilla and reestablishing Sabbat power within the city. He's excellent at finding and manipulating the weakest member of the herd to further his goals. Hell, even Tony has made a deal with him in the past.

Sure, stuff like the Gadfly and the operations in the sewers were probably the work of Connaught. But the logistics of this operation, the intel-gathering portion, I think that was all Dubrik.

Flopped to (P) Horn, I've edited my original post.

ironyuri: If I were Bob, I would respond to your sales pitch by saying "What do I get in return for putting my people in danger for a scheming Ventrue fuck like you?" I would ask for concessions of turf, power-sharing, that sort of thing. I wouldn't mind seeing the Camarilla getting battered a little bit before I decided to offer my help. Besides, as Storyfag noted, a lot of Anarchs (not Griddle, but probably many under him) might just decide to defect to the Sabbat if they think that the Camarilla won't last. We can start working on alliances once we see how the ghoul squad performs, it's too early at this point.

We can't have everything, there's nothing to say that Horn will be able to help us as he's still got to worry about the heat from the Oxford mission.

And as I said in my post, we could always just tell Griddle what the situation is, that we're raiding Pleasure and Pain and that if he is unconvinced, he should get over there and take a look at what we can do, then make up his mind.

THe Anarchs will be getting evicted just the same as the Camarilla, so watching us get battered will only be enjoyable as long as the Sabbat forget they're there, and I don't think that'll take long.

 

[Random Word]

We can't have everything, there's nothing to say that Horn will be able to help us as he's still got to worry about the heat from the Oxford mission.

What heat is this? He just set in motion the operation that put a stop to a major terrorist plot in Oxford during the Olympics. He's not taking any heat, he gained a massive amount of political capital. He made the politicians look good, and they love that. The PM has probably been having a field day, and he knows who to thank.

 

[ironyuri]

We can't have everything, there's nothing to say that Horn will be able to help us as he's still got to worry about the heat from the Oxford mission.

What heat is this? He just set in motion the operation that put a stop to a major terrorist plot in Oxford during the Olympics. He's not taking any heat, he gained a massive amount of political capital. He made the politicians look good, and they love that. The PM has probably been having a field day, and he knows who to thank.

So everything is good and always has a happy ending in this grimdark World of Darkness, I see.

‘-just days before the start of the London Olympics. We’re now hearing that the Bishop of Oxford, Kenneth Shaw, was successfully rescued from his own residence tonight after he was apparently taken hostage by armed men. Neighbours were evacuated from their homes as gunfire lit up the night sky.’
A baffled-looking obese woman, wrapped in a fluffy dressing-gown, gapes at the camera from behind perfectly circular glasses, and babbles,
‘-they just told us to get out, that we weren’t safe, that I wasn’t safe in my own home, didn’t tell us what was going on, I still don’t know what was going on, they were saying it was Al-Qaeda, what would Al-Qaeda be doing in Oxford?’
Turcov leans forward.
Standing behind the woman, loitering calmly with his back turned to the camera, is a familiar figure, tall and dark.
An unseen reporter asks her if tonight’s events give her confidence in the upcoming Olympics; as she responds, the figure glances around, notices the camera, and steps discreetly out of view.

This is modern day Britain where shooting terrorists will result in an inquiry into why they were allowed to kidnap the Bishop of Oxford and kill his wife in the first place, and questions will be asked about why Horn was the one to authorise the mission, about who his friends were, etc.

 

[Gondolin]

Only if the mission fails or too many civilians are killed. The next statement to the press will read: "Police stops terrorists bent on killing athletes!" Random Word is right when he says that politicians love this sort of thing. It makes them look like heroes and Horn can get some favors in return for all that prime-time glory. And if some nosy MPs launch an inquiry... so what? Tony will drop in on them to protect his ghoul. A bit of dominate should do the trick.

 

[ironyuri]

I don't know how many freebies grotsnik will give us.

 

[laclongquan]

/sigh

One more week before the next update.

 

[grotsnik]

Ah, come on, now, lac. You can't wait until I inevitably fail to meet the next deadline to bitch about my inevitable failure to meet the next deadline? Give a man a chance to attempt to atone.

 

[grotsnik]

Also, since it's likely that the layout of the sewer network will play a part even if Sommers never goes back into it, I've been ransacking a couple of urban-explorer sites and ended up collecting evocative night-time London photographs again (also, it turns out there's nothing urban explorers like more than photos of them standing looking brooding and vaguely menacing with their faces hidden). I actually went out onto the Thames on a ferry one night last week and took a few of my own with the vague intention of using them in the LP, but they came out like shit and I can't find my USB cable. Ah well.

Spoiler

Spoiler

^ From Tony's former residence at Primrose Hill.

^ The Olympics beach-volleyball court, which was set up in the very heart of Westminster, close to Whitehall itself.

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[ironyuri]

These are not the updates you're looking for.

 

[Esquilax]

This is modern day Britain where shooting terrorists will result in an inquiry into why they were allowed to kidnap the Bishop of Oxford and kill his wife in the first place, and questions will be asked about why Horn was the one to authorise the mission, about who his friends were, etc.

I don't think I'm quite as optimistic as Random Word is (our work with Horn is bound to draw some heat) but we need intel on the Soho situation. Horn is one of our best resources, but we've got this war to consider. I'm willing to lose him if it means we can come out of this thing intact. Out of all our contacts, he's the one most likely to give us help here. Griddle won't help us without concessions that we're not really in the position to provide, Iacomo is likely a dead-end, Vogler is MIA, and Costello is a complete unknown.

Posters who brofisted Random Word's post (Kayerts, Kz3r0) should probably vote for it formally so that Tony calls Horn instead of Iacomo. Calling the Archon is really metagamey: somehow I doubt that we'll be able to just call him up to send the cavalry into Soho. Besides, Tony has no clue where he is and he doesn't know that he's with Erika at the moment, so he has little actual reason to call. He does have plenty of reason to give Horn a call, though.

grotsnik: Since we're going to be sending reinforcements to the Toreador in Soho, where will Eddie and Tony be during this time? I assume Eddie will be leading the team and heading over there so that everyone knows the ghouls are on our side, while Tony will remain on the airfield alone because he is a dirty coward to direct things.

 

[grotsnik]

grotsnik: Since we're going to be sending reinforcements to the Toreador in Soho, where will Eddie and Tony be during this time? I assume Eddie will be leading the team and heading over there so that everyone knows the ghouls are on our side, while Tony will remain on the airfield alone because he is a dirty coward to direct things.

This was my assumption - speak now or forever hold your peace if you want Sommers in London! (it's okay, he can be cowering in the back of the van with the comms officer if you like.)

 

[laclongquan]

There's no need for Tony to lead the charge, but he should be in the second wave. During such attack, most dangerous spot for leader probably be from far away.

 

[oscar]

Don't see any reason we can't call both Horn and Iacomo (what my vote is if possible).

 

[Storyfag]

There's no need for Tony to lead the charge, but he should be in the second wave. During such attack, most dangerous spot for leader probably be from far away.

Behold the rare sensible thing said by laclongquan! I agree fully. That Dominate of a Sabbat thug by Iacomo... I want Tony to do that.

 

[Esquilax]

There's no need for Tony to lead the charge, but he should be in the second wave. During such attack, most dangerous spot for leader probably be from far away.

Behold the rare sensible thing said by laclongquan! I agree fully. That Dominate of a Sabbat thug by Iacomo... I want Tony to do that.

I don't quite understand, what do you mean by 'second wave'? We've got 5 ghouls and Eddie as team leader, I figured that was our 'wave'. Besides, I'm not so sure about getting involved personally in the fighting. They are used to working with one another and I'm worried that our presence might get in the way or fuck up unit cohesion.

Even if Anthony wasn't mediocre at best as a fighter, I still would be iffy about sending him in to fight. Reason being that Anthony can monitor CCTV cameras and communications and give Eddie warning in case the Sabbat throw some nasty surprises his way. I like the idea of Anthony becoming braver and becoming a Camarilla symbol by getting involved in the fighting personally, but he might do more good behind the scenes rather than in the thick of things.

 

[laclongquan]

Prudence is the name of the game. However beautiful the Domination Iacomo pulled at the ambush is, never forget that Tony being several generations behind him.

EDIT: it's depended on storyteller's design, of course. Generally, if you suspect ambush you send in a bait but follow with full force to roll over the enemies the minute they show their hands. IF you move in single file at once, well, Tony could stay at the rear, in front of the rearguard.

 

[Deleted Member 10432]

D, (P) Horn

There's no need for Tony to lead the charge, but he should be in the second wave. During such attack, most dangerous spot for leader probably be from far away.

Behold the rare sensible thing said by laclongquan! I agree fully. That Dominate of a Sabbat thug by Iacomo... I want Tony to do that.

I don't quite understand, what do you mean by 'second wave'? We've got 5 ghouls and Eddie as team leader, I figured that was our 'wave'. Besides, I'm not so sure about getting involved personally in the fighting. They are used to working with one another and I'm worried that our presence might get in the way or fuck up unit cohesion.

Even if Anthony wasn't mediocre at best as a fighter, I still would be iffy about sending him in to fight. Reason being that Anthony can monitor CCTV cameras and communications and give Eddie warning in case the Sabbat throw some nasty surprises his way. I like the idea of Anthony becoming braver and becoming a Camarilla symbol by getting involved in the fighting personally, but he might do more good behind the scenes rather than in the thick of things.

All true, but having Tony on hand to ensure the Toreador know they owe him, personally, would be useful. We shouldn't neglect the political advantage of having the Toreadors owe us.

 

[Gondolin]

I want Sommers in London. Also, I want an update!

 

[Gondolin]

Storyfag, my brofisting bro, don't think I've forgotten about your LP. Pitchforks and torches, Storyfag, pitchforks and torches. Angry cunts. Do you get my drift?

 

[Gondolin]

I want Sommers to enter the Pleasure N' Pain over the bodies of Sabbat shovelheads. Let all London know the Ventrue strike back.

 

[ironyuri]

artists impression of sommers if he stays in sussex