DiscoDude: ---BEGIN SESSION---
DiscoDude: Session logging commenced
Ryusui|GM: Okay, so, the story so far!
Ryusui|GM: Your motley little crew assembled, more or less, to avenge beloved philanthropist Hazel Halliday, aka famed Robin Hood figure Roberta Godwin, whose life was turned upside down and ruined - ultimately leading to her death - by one Edgar Hotchkiss, a petty and corrupt city official.
Ryusui|GM: The motive for the crime? The theft of a single owl statue, revealed to be a valuable Van Meer artwork, apparently for the man's collection.
Ryusui|GM: HOWEVER!
Ryusui|GM: The plot has thickened immensely!
Ryusui|GM: It seems Hotchkiss stole the Van Meer Owl not to keep it for himself, but to sell it to an unknown third party!
Ryusui|GM: Said third party remains largely unknown, but your team has identified the earmarks of a shadowy and dangerous criminal organization which won't hesitate to turn to less subtle means of murder to get what they want!
Ryusui|GM: So here you stand: Hotchkiss still has the Owl, and his crimes remain unrevealed, but the man is in way over his head with these people. Only a short time remains before the deal to sell the Owl goes down somewhere at City Hall. How does the team want to exploit this opportunity to bring down Hotchkiss, get back the Owl he stole, and return it to Hazel Halliday's next of kin?
Ryusui|GM: This is the gameboard as it stands. It's your move, <@&466676711379959808>! 😉
Casper: (Hm, we just tapped the courier company that handled the letter. What did that turn up? Anything we can actually use?)
Casper: (Or is this shadowy group beyond our reach for now?)
Reality Glitch: ((The information we uncover is that there is a shadowy organization.))
Casper: Casper walks back into the apartment with the others, making a beeline to <@!Mr. Fisk>. “What are our next orders?”
Mr. Fisk: ((Point is we are still very much in the dark, unless there was something more to the letter.))
Ryusui|GM: <@!Casper>: Basically, Mr. Fisk's intel suggests these people are untouchable and extremely dangerous, but that's an angle you can actually play here.
Mr. Fisk: (Would Fisk be able to know anything about how they operate at all? Like a Mastermind + int roll?)
Ryusui|GM: (This is stuff you'd already know, so I'll just go ahead and tell you outright. XD)
Reality Glitch: ((Heh; the "D)" looks like a smug cyclops.))
Ryusui|GM: (heh heh)
Ryusui|GM: (it's funny you should say "smug cyclops")
Reality Glitch: ((How so?))
Ryusui|GM: You don't have a name, but you do have an inkling of an emblem. That's fine; the few people you've run into who've survived dealings with them only knew them by the sign: a golden pin resembling a circle with a half-opened eye in the middle. There's no specific uniform for them; the pin alone serves as an identifier of their agents for those who know to look for it.
Reality Glitch: ((Oh.))
Ryusui|GM: They also don't like to send the same agents to deal with the same contact more than once.
Ryusui|GM: Said individuals reportedly never met with the same agent twice.
Mr. Fisk: Would take moment to think, doodling out what would probably be a pretty bad rendition of what the reports said the badge looked like. "We really still know less then I'd like, and it seems like we are running out of leads. So lets work with what we have left."
Mr. Fisk: "But I think Mr. Hotchkiss could be convinced to answer a few questions, if we go about it right."
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Ah, the good 'ol threat, right?"
Mr. Fisk: Would sigh "No, we probably couldn't make a threat better then what the other half of the trade is."
Casper: “What if we were the other half of the deal, sir?”
Mr. Fisk: "Give this man a cookie"
Casper: “I don’t do cookies. What will we need?”
Reality Glitch: I give another head quirk and questioning sound cue.
Casper: (?)
Reality Glitch: ((You know; that little "awr" dogs do when they tilt their heads at something they don't understand.))
Casper: (Ah.)
Susan: "We need a time and place," Susan says, "And presumably a way to get rid of the real buyer."
Mr. Fisk: "Not much, just a nice little pin." Would hold up the doodle of the pin they doodled. "Something that looks like this."
Susan: "Unless we want to surprise Hotchkiss with an unexpected visit from his mysterirous buyers," Susan says.
Casper: (<@!Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla>, does your character have anything to say on this?)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "I like the sound of that, very much"
Mr. Fisk: "Suprising them could work, but I'd rather they had Owl on hand and ready. Uncertainty is something to be avoided, as much as we can at least."
Casper: “I find in my experience that a delicate operation like this can rarely be accomplished in a single step... with all due respect.”
Susan: "Hm. Maybe we can just make Hotchkiss afraid of the group," Susan says, "Tell him there's been a change in plans and he's now a loose end, and fake an assassination attempt. Maybe one of us can 'save' him, maybe convince him to turn on the gang."
Reality Glitch: "Yes!"
Mr. Fisk: "No, our best bet of getting the owl is act like we are the group, and changing the field to work for us."
Reality Glitch: "Mmmm."
Mr. Fisk: "We mimic both their method of contact, the letters, and the only indentifiying make they use, This pin."
Casper: “Yes, though either way, the real group may suspect something is up. Whoever decides to make the first contact should take measures to ensure we can monitor the target and be privy to any inquiries this group takes.”
Mr. Fisk: (heads up I'm going to need to take care of something in a few minutes)
Susan: "We just have the one letter, though. We don't know all of what was said, I wouldn't trust trying to carry on a long conversation," Susan says, "Masquerade as the group, yes, but keep it simple."
Mr. Fisk: (sorry about having to run off suddenly, I'll be back in a bit)
Casper: (So, who’s going to make a move? I don’t see anything for a Hitter to do.)
Susan: (The plan Susan proposed would offer Casper a role - show up and intimidate Hotchkiss, masquerading as a member of the gang.)
Casper: (But we need the pin, or to make one of our own.)
Casper: (But yeah, once we have that, Casper would be perfect for the stone-cold monster agent role.)
Casper: (But I also wanna save him for when we really need to put the screws in him. I think it should be our grifter that makes first contact. Possibly at work.)
Ryusui|GM: <@Reality Glitch>! Forgery is in Eli's line of work, I think? :3
Reality Glitch: ((Making a fake pin?))
Ryusui|GM: (yes :3)
Mr. Fisk: (The contact might want to bring muscle)
Ryusui|GM: (i rule that you make the pin regardless but if you succeed whoever wears it will have a d8 asset they can use)
Ryusui|GM: (Mr. Fisk it's always a single agent)
Ryusui|GM: (forgot to make that clear)
Mr. Fisk: (Oh, ok)
Reality Glitch: !roll 1d10, 1d10
DiscoDude: <@Reality Glitch> rolled 1d10 for 8 [1d10 = 8] and 1d10 for 2 [1d10 = 2]
Reality Glitch: ((Hacker+INT=10.))
Ryusui|GM: (crap, i forgot to go ahead and roll opposition XD)
Casper: (Fisk, were you listening to how the agents operate? Single agents, different person every time.)
Ryusui|GM: !r 1d6, 1d6
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d6 for 6 [1d6 = 6] and 1d6 for 4 [1d6 = 4]
Ryusui|GM: (welp, that's a tie)
Reality Glitch: ((Also ten.))
Ryusui|GM: Eli, making a pin that'll fool Hotchkiss is simple. Making one that'll fool another agent is a little beyond your resources right now, given all you have to go on is a word-of-mouth description. It'll start the deception but it won't sell the whole thing.
Mr. Fisk: (Iwas paying attention to the second half)
Mr. Fisk: (The, please exploit the lack of consistent contact, half)
Casper: (Alright, so enough to fool Hotchkiss, is what I’m hearing.)
Reality Glitch: ((Explain?))
Reality Glitch: ((Did you mean "explain"; <@!Mr. Fisk>?))
Mr. Fisk: ( No, I meant Exploit, I was talking about how much of the information about how they operate that I was paying attention to.)
Casper: (Do we get the pin as a full mechanical advantage?)
Ryusui|GM: (no, he didn't succeed the roll)
Casper: (Ah. But Hotchkiss will be fooled, probably. XD)
Ryusui|GM: (right, that's what i'm getting at XD)
Mr. Fisk: (Ok, we have the resources to convice Hotchkiss we are an agent of the group, and can set up a new location/contrivance/whatever atleast once before people figure out their communication is getting spoofed)
Ryusui|GM: Righto. So who will be making first contact?
Mr. Fisk: (We could either, do the deal in their place, or pull a you have outlived your usefulness, but making a corrupt politican, depending on the political climate will be harder or easier. but either way we need to makesure he isn't in a position to retaliate.)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (either Melissa or Susan should do it due to their high grifter rolls)
Mr. Fisk: (Pitting them against each seems like a good choice, but to be honest, Hotchkiss turning up as a corpse is pretty likely if we do that...)
Casper: (Only pull out Casper when it’s time to pull the final pin on his composure.)
Mr. Fisk: (The alternitve, is to ghost in and out, but then if the owl statue turns up, and he figures it out, someone is going to have hell to pay.)
Mr. Fisk: (And we aren't in the buisness of screwing over our clients)
Susan: "I will say this, attacking Hotchkiss gives us a little more control, we can prevent these two sides from talking to each other," Susan says.
Casper: “I get the feeling that we do not wish to provoke this group, with all due respect.”
Susan: "I think we'll be pissing them off no matter what we do," Susan says, "But we'll be directly threatening Hotchkiss, not them."
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Oh, we surely don't, but they can't do much if they know us as much as we know them?"
Mr. Fisk: "I can't see this ending well if they know who we are, so yeah, we can't give them a face if we can help it."
Mr. Fisk: "Hmm... In the end, maybe we should just say Hotchkiss can handle himself, and worry about reaquiring the statue, if we learn anything else we can act on sure, but for know it isn't our focus."
Ryusui|GM: (remember, you also need to expose him, though again, it may be sufficient to convince him he'll be in hot water with the shadowy group is he fails)
Ryusui|GM: (he might turn himself in to get the police to protect him)
Mr. Fisk: "Actually, the second he learns he gave the statue to the wrong person... we could use that."
Mr. Fisk: "No corpses, and hopefully no trail for them to follow. Hotchkiss just needs to be convinced that he needs protection more then he needs to keep his reputation."
Casper: (So at what point do we stop talking and act?)
Ryusui|GM: (now sounds about right)
Ryusui|GM: (so is it Melissa or Susan who takes point on the deception?)
Mr. Fisk: (Yeah, we know all we need to know really.)
Mr. Fisk: (I'd say Melissa, having more career criminal in her the Susan)
Mr. Fisk: (Hmm... I have a stupid idea for Mr. Fisks first specalty if you would mind)
Ryusui|GM: (fire away)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Heh, Let's say that I know how to tip him over the edge" (REMEMBER, Can I use my skill to intimidate him?)
Mr. Fisk: (Could I pick Hypnotism, though it might be more accurate to call it pointed suggestion, think Now You See Me, the movie, not to the ridiculous degree of the second movie though.)
Ryusui|GM: (well, if you're talking about leaning on your family connections, bear in mind you'll be identifying yourself to him!)
Ryusui|GM: (like you can, but remember, leaning on an established reputation means you will be leaving a trail that goes straight back to you, and don't forget these people you're impersonating do not forgive!)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (damnit guess I cant use it that way)
Ryusui|GM: ( <@Reality Glitch> you need to watch more of Leverage there is totally a bit in there where Nate Ford actually uses a mild hypnotic suggestion to get Hardison to play the violin like he could when he was a teen prodigy )
Reality Glitch: ((Sorry; I missed a bunch, let me catch up.))
Mr. Fisk: (Would I even need a specialty for it then?)
Reality Glitch: ((Why hypnotism? And on whom?))
Ryusui|GM: (not a specialty, maybe, but definitely a Talent)
Ryusui|GM: (maybe something to create a specific Asset)
Mr. Fisk: (It probably isn't really nessecary, but basiclly I just want to prime him for the fear of being targeted.)
Mr. Fisk: (It is a stretch, but I do think I have the full plan now)
Mr. Fisk: (First open with the letter, a change in plan, we act out the deal, obtain the owl)
Mr. Fisk: (Then make it clear he fucked up, and that the group won't tolerate that)
Ryusui|GM: (sounds about right. Melissa contacts him first, convinces him she's an agent and that the deal is going down now, and then we have Casper show up and convince him he's about to get his spine snapped for screwing up)
Ryusui|GM: (that about it?)
Mr. Fisk: (yes, though first I'd like to put the fear in him if possible, like Now You See Me, just little details to make sure he has a few ideas of what happens to those who fail in the forefront of his mind, so it isn't so far fetched when it is. But that could me going a bit too far.)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (I mean, Susan also has a higher roll on Grifter, dunno which we would prefer for this, a d8 or a d10?)
Ryusui|GM: (okay so then)
Mr. Fisk: (Thats why I wanted Susan held back, so she could act natural, and do the suggesting.)
Ryusui|GM: (uhhh. how.)
Ryusui|GM: (are you talking about)
Ryusui|GM: (susan doing the hypnotism thing?)
Mr. Fisk: (Nevermind, it is wholely excessive, and not really hypnotism. I just wanted susan to just happen to cross paths with Hotchkiss, going on for one reason or another(lets say she is an pretending to be an author of a crime novel) of what people like the group does to those who fuck up.)
Mr. Fisk: (Prime them alittle for when Casper comes in.)
Mr. Fisk: (But if that is really bad idea, then Susan should be the contact, and Mellisa and Casper should be together more or less to make the threat, because nothing says your in trouble like finding someone in your house who shouldn't be there then without signs of forced entry.)
Mr. Fisk: (Only Casper really need to do the intimidating, but Melissa getting him in like so would be a nice touch.)
Ryusui|GM: (ha ha, all right)
Ryusui|GM: So, folks! Where do you want to hit up Hotchkiss? You've got a few options!
Reality Glitch: ((At City Hall seems the most likely.))
Mr. Fisk: ((They already said the deal was going down there right? this is just a change in time.))
Mr. Fisk: ((We need to put all these details somewhere...I keep forgeting stuff))
Ryusui|GM: Righto, so! The next day - a full 24 hours before the deal is officially supposed to go down - you, Susan, are at City Hall wearing the fake pin Eli created.
Ryusui|GM: Casper and Melissa also have their fake pins for their end of the con.
Ryusui|GM: It's early morning and people are filing in to work. Hotchkiss slumps behind the rest of the pack, sweating profusely even only halfway up the stairs.
Ryusui|GM: ( <@!Susan>, this is your cue! 😉 )
Ryusui|GM: also, <@!Casper>, <@!Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla>, you're waiting for your turn in a nearby...car? van? I'm gonna presume Melissa has her choice of ride for this con XD
Ryusui|GM: You're close enough you can see the steps and the whole con about to go down.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: A yellow Ferrari L Mancia works?
Ryusui|GM: (XD)
Reality Glitch: ((????))
Susan: Susan stands at the top of the stairs, dressed in a black suit. She watches Hotchkiss, waits for him to look up in her direction, and clears her throat loudly. She tugs at the collar of her jacket, brandishing the fake pin she'd placed.
Casper: (So Grifter and... Strength? Did I read how the attributes work correctly?)
Ryusui|GM: (Intelligence is a Grifter's #1 attribute.)
Ryusui|GM: If Hotchkiss was sweating before, he's pouring buckets now. "What are you doing here?" he hisses. "I got your letter! You're supposed to be here tomorrow!"
Reality Glitch: ((But this feels more like a social application of strength.))
Ryusui|GM: (Willpower, then! 😉 )
Reality Glitch: ((That would be what Hotchkiss rolls in this exchange.))
Susan: ((Should the brandishing count as a face action?))
Ryusui|GM: ((he doesn't have attributes he's an NPC))
Ryusui|GM: (anyways yeah let's make this a face action!)
Ryusui|GM: !r 1d6, 1d6
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d6 for 4 [1d6 = 4] and 1d6 for 6 [1d6 = 6]
Ryusui|GM: (beat that! 😉 )
Reality Glitch: ((Then where did the second die come from?))
Susan: ((Now, would having the pin count as 'personal information', knowing that Hotchkiss was associating with people bearing that emblem?))
Susan: ((I want to know if I can trigger my 'Hey, are you my sucker' talent.))
Ryusui|GM: (the base roll if nothing else applies is 2d6)
Ryusui|GM: (and yeah i'll rule it applies)
Ryusui|GM: (we know enough about Hotchkiss you can, aha, leverage your Talent 😉 )
Susan: (Alright, for Grifter+Willpower + talent)
Susan: !roll 1d10, 1d10
DiscoDude: <@Susan> rolled 1d10 for 5 [1d10 = 5] and 1d10 for 10 [1d10 = 10]
Ryusui|GM: (oh hell yes)
Susan: (I do believe I spooked him.)
Reality Glitch: ((Eyyyy! 👉))
Ryusui|GM: You sell it hard, Susan. You can almost swear he pees his pants a little.
Ryusui|GM: (the asset [Spooked Hotchkiss d10] is now in play)
Reality Glitch: ((That's in response to the pun.))
Casper: Casper is on the lookout for third party trouble, in the meantime.
Susan: Susan glares at Hotchkiss, not moving a muscle in her face. "Are you kidding," Susan says, "You know how much money is at stake here, right? More than enough money to make it worth causing accidents to poor, incompetent politicians, -way- more. So you had better tell me you did not seriously get the wrong date."
Ryusui|GM: Hotchkiss looks back and forth in terror. "I'll get it to you. Right away. Meet me in the lobby." He bounds past you as fast as his stubby legs can carry him.
Ryusui|GM: About the time he vanishes from sight, <@!Casper>, <@!Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla>, you see two rather thick-looking men - one a wolf, one a panther - emerge from a vehicle parked somewhat closer to the stairs. They're wearing casual clothes but you catch sight of a glint on the wolf's shirt collar that could be a pin.
Ryusui|GM: They're making a beeline for <@!Susan>, though she doesn't see them yet.
Casper: I move to intercept.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: Once Melissa spots them, she starts freaking out, whispering to Casper "C-casper, who are this guys?!"
Casper: (I hide my pin first.)
Ryusui|GM: (right, remind me what your Talents were? 'cause i think i discussed something that might apply here)
Casper: Casper doesn’t say a word as he hides his pin and steps out to intercept.
Ryusui|GM: (for one thing they totally have their backs to you, both of them)
Casper: (But they’re not alone... then again, is that restriction really necessary?)
Reality Glitch: "Pretend to be mafia. Say he owes unrelated money." Watching everything unfold, I can't help but try and bark out the first potentially helpful idea that comes to mind.
Casper: “Sorry, but with all due respect, I don’t think anything will scare them.” I palm a flash grenade in one hand and a taser in the other as I move to catch up to them.
Reality Glitch: "Not scare; explain. You aren't competition."
Mr. Fisk: "Melissa, Stall them, I'd rather not have a scene on our hands."
Mr. Fisk: "At least not untill we have the owl."
Casper: “If they know someone knows they exist, it is already over. From what Mr. Fisk described, they don’t seem to appreciate that sort of intimacy.”
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Shut up Eli, this is why he is here." she starts bitting her nails as she gets off from the car, this is gonna be exciting.
Reality Glitch: "But .... we aren't dating them. Are we?"
Ryusui|GM: Okay, so Casper, both goons are still unaware of your presence. Ready for action? :3
Susan: Susan, at the moment oblivious to the complication in the plan, follows Hotchkiss a few paces behind, stepping just loudly enough to be audible to him.
Reality Glitch: I let out a small whimper at the mouse's scolding.
Mr. Fisk: "Just, try and do it somewher people won't see, ok?"
Mr. Fisk: "Cops and witnesses aren't exactly productive to a clean get away."
Casper: (I am now.)
Casper: (What do I roll again?)
Casper: (I forget how my Talent worked, mechanically.)
Ryusui|GM: (same; you never wrote it down on your sheet :/ )
Ryusui|GM: (anyways Hitter + Strength)
Reality Glitch: ((What was the talent called? I could go searching Discord for it.))
Casper: (I know it essentially worked like that Fighting Dirty Talent, but with less penalty in exchange for a more narrow application.)
Ryusui|GM: (Hawkeye, it looks like?)
Casper: (That’s for seeing and hearing things.)
Casper: (It’s possible I was saving this Talent for a later level up.)
Casper: (Yeah, it turns out I don’t have that stunt yet.)
Casper: (So no combat bonus.)
Casper: (Roll stakes?)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (. _.)
Ryusui|GM: (you roll first for this 😉 )
Ryusui|GM: (this will be a contest)
Casper: !roll 1d10 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Casper> rolled 1d10 for 7 [1d10 = 7] and 1d8 for 8 [1d8 = 8]
Casper: (Beat 15.)
Ryusui|GM: !r 1d8, 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d8 for 4 [1d8 = 4] and 1d8 for 1 [1d8 = 1]
Ryusui|GM: (HA HA HA)
Ryusui|GM: (the first one goes down; flavor it!)
Casper: One of them is trailing behind a bit, good, and it’s the sleepy hours of the morning, better, and if my eyes don’t deceive me, the camera coverage doesn’t start until you’re in front of the steps; perfect. I tase him in the neck, finish with a knock to the temple, and dunk him head first into the nearby trashcan, making sure to take a second to stuff his legs in out of sight, before moving in a similar gait to him behind his partner.
Ryusui|GM: (that's perfect XD)
Casper: “I’d appreciate it if I didn’t have any mechanical eyes on me for the other one, hacker,” I whisper into my earpiece.
Ryusui|GM: ( <@Reality Glitch>, that's your move! Time to flex your hacking biceps and shut down some cameras :3 )
Reality Glitch: ((Roll?))
Casper: (Hacker + ... Agility...?)
Ryusui|GM: (sounds good to me!)
Reality Glitch: ((Does "Batteries Not Included" work here?))
Ryusui|GM: (no, but i will say you will generate a D8 asset if you succeed)
Ryusui|GM: !r 1d6 1d6
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d6 for 6 [1d6 = 6] and 1d6 for 3 [1d6 = 3]
Reality Glitch: !roll 1d10, 1d6
DiscoDude: <@Reality Glitch> rolled 1d10 for 6 [1d10 = 6] and 1d6 for 3 [1d6 = 3]
Reality Glitch: ((Tied.))
Casper: (Hm, I forget; did we agree on “story success, but no mechanical benefit” on ties?)
Ryusui|GM: (i'm fine with that)
Ryusui|GM: The cameras go dark. You've given Casper just enough leeway to beat the other goon off-camera, but no more.
Casper: After glancing around to make sure no one was around, I move forward to quickly dispatch the other goon and get him out of sight before the cameras stop glitching!
Casper: (Hitter + Agility?)
Casper: (Or Strength. Both are d8.)
Casper: !roll 1d10 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Casper> rolled 1d10 for 10 [1d10 = 10] and 1d8 for 3 [1d8 = 3]
Ryusui|GM: !r 1d8, 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d8 for 7 [1d8 = 7] and 1d8 for 6 [1d8 = 6]
Casper: (Not quite enough! XD)
Ryusui|GM: (oh man that's a tie; you get to roll again!)
Casper: (Crap...)
Casper: !roll 1d10 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Casper> rolled 1d10 for 10 [1d10 = 10] and 1d8 for 4 [1d8 = 4]
Casper: (AAAAAAAAAAAA)
Casper: (Beat 14...)
Ryusui|GM: !roll 1d8, 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d8 for 4 [1d8 = 4] and 1d8 for 8 [1d8 = 8]
Casper: (fistpump)
Ryusui|GM: The other goon turns around just in time to meet your fist (or however you choose to dispatch him; flavor it! XD)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (fanfare)
Susan: (Nice job kicking ass!)
Casper: He doesn’t even get that; he has just enough time to register a hand shoot out in front of him from over his shoulder, grasping a pulled flash grenade on the end of a string. It goes off, and next thing he knows the hand that held the string is now holding the side of his head as the other side gets slammed into the edge of the base of one of the two obligatory lion statues you see accompanying every set of big important stairs. By the time the cameras come back on, his unconscious body has been stashed in between the statue’s legs, and Casper is continuing his ascent like nothing happened.
Ryusui|GM: (HA HA HA)
Ryusui|GM: In the meantime, Susan! Hotchkiss has kept you waiting in the lobby during the fracas outside. He doesn't quite manage to be surreptitious as he walks up to you, a wrapped parcel in his hands.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: Melissa just saw that happen, she is almost shaking in place from witn- aaaand she didn't close her eyes for the granade, ow.
Ryusui|GM: (whoop, i meant <@!Susan> )
Reality Glitch: ((I'm imagining the lion statues being of the city's first mayor.))
Casper: (Well they’d have to be quadruped or else the goon getting stashed underneath wouldn’t make sense.)
Reality Glitch: ((Not necessarily; you can still be "between the [....] legs" of a bipedal statue.))
Susan: Susan holds her hand out palm-up, looking at Hotchkiss's face and down at the parcel.
Ryusui|GM: He shudders as he hands it over. "In the usual account?" he says.
Casper: (Would I need to make a roll to be waiting in his office?)
Reality Glitch: ((I though Melissa was gong to get Casper in?))
Casper: (?)
Susan: ((Is there an equivalence of an insight check to make sure Hotchkiss isn't expecting a code phrase?))
Reality Glitch: ((The plan was that Susan would get the owl from Hotchkiss, then Melissa would break Casper in as so that he's there waiting for Hotchkiss.))
Casper: (Right, right. So Melissa is right behind me?)
Ryusui|GM: (( <@!Susan>: If you wanna gauge him let's make that Grifter + Alertness ))
Ryusui|GM: !roll 1d6, 1d6
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d6 for 1 [1d6 = 1] and 1d6 for 2 [1d6 = 2]
Ryusui|GM: ((HA HA))
Susan: !roll 1d10, 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Susan> rolled 1d10 for 1 [1d10 = 1] and 1d8 for 4 [1d8 = 4]
Ryusui|GM: ((still beat him, but that's a Complication))
Reality Glitch: (([The Price is Right failure music]))
Ryusui|GM: ((you do get a Plot Point though!))
Ryusui|GM: (Suspicious Hotchkiss D6 is now in play)
Ryusui|GM: So, the good news. He's not expecting you to do anything but confirm the cash will be in the agreed-upon account.
Ryusui|GM: The bad news is you hold your gaze just a lit-tle too long, planting just the tiniest seed of doubt in his mind.
Ryusui|GM: "P-pleasure doing business with you," he says regardless, and turns to head back to his office.
Ryusui|GM: ((Your opportunity to spook him further will come at lunchtime. Ready to timeskip, peeps? :3 ))
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (yeah she is, blinded for a second, but she is)
Reality Glitch: ((Can we stop here? I'm getting unusually worn out.))
Casper: (That’s fine. I think we’re pretty close to the endstate regardless.)
Ryusui|GM: (yeah, we're almost done)
Ryusui|GM: (just need to hammer in the final nail)
Ryusui|GM: Hotchkiss is, as usual, in the back of the pack as people file down the stairs for lunch break. As you might guess from a man of his stature, the cafeteria just will not do. It's Subway or nothing for him, baby. (He is thoroughly fooled by that old ad campaign hinting you can lose weight by eating foot-long meat and bread sandwiches.)
Ryusui|GM: ( <@!Casper>, <@!Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla>, are you ready to deal the finishing blow? :3)
Casper: (Yeah, all I need to do is walk up and say the magic words.)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (Aw hell yiss)
Casper: (Wait, this is a Subway, why do I need Melissa’s help sneaking in?)
Ryusui|GM: (no, you're on the steps)
Ryusui|GM: (it's just silly flavor text explaining why he's leaving for lunch and not taking it on-site XD)
Casper: (So can I just be there waiting for him?)
Ryusui|GM: (unless you want to buttonhole him on the steps!)
Casper: (I meant waiting on the steps.)
Ryusui|GM: (ha ha XD)
Ryusui|GM: ( <@!Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla>, you there too?)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (Oh boy oh boy oh boy, yepyepyep)
Ryusui|GM: Well, then! Hotchkiss walks down the steps to see two figures waiting for him, one imposing, one petite, both wearing eye pins!
Casper: (I still think appearing as more than one at once is a bad idea.)
Ryusui|GM: "What. What what what what what," he mutters under his breath. "I thought we were done! I thought we were DONE!"
Ryusui|GM: (don't forget <@!Casper> there were two legbreakers keeping an eye on him earlier)
Reality Glitch: ((<@!Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla>; that brings back memories; specifically, Land Before Time memories.))
Ryusui|GM: (presumably they send extra when they want to exert some actual muscle XD)
Ryusui|GM: That last part he says out loud, by the way.
Casper: “What are you talking about? We’re just here to make sure you understand and remember the importance of our deal tomorrow.” Casper’s voice is stoic, almost robotic.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "It's far too valuable to have it on your hands, capiche?" Melissa's voice imitates Caspers' normal stoicness, but not going to robotic-lengths like he did.
Ryusui|GM: "But I just...the other guy, she just...I just..." He starts backing up the stairs, turning redder by the second.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (pretend she did did: <:vineTalian:316955153645305856>)
Casper: “The other guy?” My voice turns harsh.
Reality Glitch: ((Oh; that one made me laugh hard.))
Ryusui|GM: (y'know i'm not even gonna make you roll for this)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "WHAT other guy?"
Ryusui|GM: "Th-the other guy! The one who came to collect! Said I g-got the date wrong! Oh god..."
Casper: “... Hotchkiss... What are you trying to tell us?”
Casper: Casper moves up the stairs towards him.
Ryusui|GM: "Th-the other guy...I g-g-gave her the statue...y'mean...she wasn't...?"
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: Melissa gives a glance to Casper "Should I go report?"
Casper: “... Yes. Tell them that the deal is APPARENTLY off...” A dark glower is leveled at the badger.
Ryusui|GM: "W-w-wait! W-w-wait...I can fix this, I can fix this..."
Reality Glitch: ((Badger.))
Casper: (Sorry, forgot Melissa was a mouse.)
Reality Glitch: ((Oh.))
Casper: “Stop.”
Casper: “It is clear that you no longer have the statue. True?”
Ryusui|GM: He stops, frozen in his tracks.
Ryusui|GM: He nods.
Casper: “Then there is nothing left to discuss. You have failed us, Hotchkiss.”
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Got it" Melissa turns around and walks away from the building. "If I were you, I would prepare my confession, Mr, Hotchkiss"
Ryusui|GM: "C-c-c-confess? W-w-what do you mean, 'confess'?"
Casper: “Hmph, good day, Mr. Hotchkiss.” I just walk down the steps, and speak in a hushed tone just loud enough for him to hear: “You’re soft, giving them warnings. Now he knows we can’t touch him there.”
Reality Glitch: ((What does that last bit mean?))
Casper: (Implied: “he knows we can’t touch him [in prison].”)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Just wait until the inmates get a hold of him, dear. " she whispers back "They scare even me"
Ryusui|GM: Hotchkiss whimpers, and takes off in a run back towards the innards of City Hall.
Reality Glitch: ((That went way over my head.))
Casper: (What, no! We want prison to seem less* scary! Please tell me that part was actually quiet?)
Reality Glitch: ((This is why too many pronouns can be confusing.))
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: (whispers, Caillou, whispers)
Casper: (Ah, okay. Sorry for freaking out.)
Ryusui|GM: (the whole plan was to convince Hotchkiss that he's likely to be killed for his failure to deliver the Owl and that his best bet is to confess and hope he'll be safe in prison)
Ryusui|GM: By the next day it's all over the news.
Ryusui|GM: Edgar Hotchkiss gave a full confession to no fewer than seven counts of deliberately leaking confidential information with personal gain as an object, including the whole sordid story of Hazel Halliday.
Ryusui|GM: The man was, as it were, a serial life-wrecker.
Casper: (BTW, can we search the statue before handing it over, and tell them not to go public with its recovery for a bit?)
Ryusui|GM: (hang on 😉 )
Ryusui|GM: Curiously, there is no mention of the Van Meer Owl, nor his collection, nor the mysterious buyers.
Ryusui|GM: The rationale given for ruining Hazel Halliday's life is that purportedly she refused to sell her property, not the statue.
Ryusui|GM: And speaking of the Owl.
Ryusui|GM: It's in your possession now, a thorny question waiting to be resolved.
Ryusui|GM: For one thing: the plan was obviously to return it to Hazel's next of kin...
Ryusui|GM: ...but considering who wants it, that might be a risky proposition for the time being.
Ryusui|GM: (So, peeps, want to discuss the Owl a bit, or shall I proceed to one final reveal in narration?)
Susan: Susan, just kind of looks at the statue, wistfully.
Reality Glitch: ((Shoot, I was hoping we'd have to storm his place to get the owl, then I could send in a, R.C. 'bot with a cardboard helmet and sword and have me shout through the speakers "BEGONE FOUL DRAGON! YOUR HOARD IS FORFIT!" as we forcibly take back the owl and confiscate the rest of the collection. Plays into the whole "me describing Hotchkiss's behavior as akin to that of a dragon's bit I was trying for.))
Ryusui|GM: (XD)
Reality Glitch: "🎵 Secret, Secret; I've got a Secret! 🎵"
Casper: “When a group like this wants a statue so badly, it is always either a secret compartment or a legacy that is at the center of it. The former would make this much simpler...”
Ryusui|GM: Well, Casper, now that you have the thing in your hands, it certainly feels pretty solid. The craftsmanship is nothing short of masterwork. That said, there is something curious you notice.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Well, see if it has some.... Oh God what if it DOES have the map for some secret loot?!"
Reality Glitch: My face lights up at the mouse's comment. "Then we get to go on an epic adventure!"
Reality Glitch: "Yoe Hoe!"
Ryusui|GM: It might just be a natural defect in the stone, but the base of the statue seems to be etched all around with tiny notches.
Ryusui|GM: Like perhaps some kind of exotic key, or maybe a message you can't read because half of each letter is missing.
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "Come on Casper, do you see anything?!"
Ryusui|GM: There's no other evidence of damage to the statue, so it can't be weathering or vandalism.
Casper: “Notches. They mean nothing to me, but it’s clear they mean something to someone.”
Susan: !roll 1d10, 1d8
DiscoDude: <@Susan> rolled 1d10 for 7 [1d10 = 7] and 1d8 for 2 [1d8 = 2]
Ryusui|GM: (what are you rolling for?)
Ryusui|GM: !roll 1d6, 1d6
DiscoDude: <@Ryusui|GM> rolled 1d6 for 1 [1d6 = 1] and 1d6 for 6 [1d6 = 6]
Reality Glitch: ((Whatever it is, you got it.))
Susan: Susan just sits around idly, sort of listening to the conversation.
Ryusui|GM: (all right, people, last lines? :3)
Casper: (Okay, srsly, what was that roll for?)
Reality Glitch: "Adventure! Adventure!"
Mr. Fisk: (should we leave the digging for next time, or should I go ahead now?)
Susan: (Just a little roleplay, to see how Susan was going to react to the situation.)
Casper: Casper just places the statue down like the priceless artifact that it is. “I take it you’ll continue to require my services?”
Ryusui|GM: ( <@Reality Glitch> "McDonalds! McDonalds!")
Casper: (Well, it’s assumed that this isn’t a mystery we can solve right now; not until the season finale, that is.)
Ryusui|GM: (and yeah, next time 😉 )
Ryusui|GM: (anyways, last lines? :3)
Reality Glitch: ((?))
Casper: (Already did mine.)
Melissa "Baillie" Brambilla: "I can see this as the beginning of a fruitful partnership, I may even bring a Brambille '79 to celebrate!“
Reality Glitch: "What's that?"
Ryusui|GM: (i'm guessing the famiglia makes its own wine on top of everything else XD)
Mr. Fisk: "I was hoping to avoid complications, but I guess we never had a choice in the matter. The statue has to say with us until we know what it is."
Ryusui|GM: And with that, let us...
Ryusui|GM: !end
