Date: 014-1105 Imperial / Herbst 036.758 local
When Ling emerges from the maglev station up onto the street level, rain is lashing the Blau-46 business zone. Clutching her over-sized parcel wrapped in red pin-striped paper, she runs across the street through the stalled traffic to take shelter beneath the awning of an upmarket electronics shop. The raindrops sting her face and scalp; acidity levels must be up again. At least it keeps the air from leaving that greasy film on exposed skin, but it will leave a rash on her cheeks around the edges of her filter mask if she isn't careful. She should have checked the weather report.
After five minutes it's not letting up at all. She fumbles for the datapad in the inside pocket of her long grey overcoat but holding the parcel makes it impossible, so she nips into the shop to ask the bored clerk for the forecast.
"They're saying it won't let up until tomorrow at least. Monsoon season's starting early this year, I guess."
Ling sinks into her collar and braves the torrent. Three shops down she finds the entrance to an indoor market where she can buy a cheap rain hat to save her hair and a new packet of wrapping paper for her parcel, since the water has already begun eating through it. Then she heads out into the zone and threads her way through the damp and miserable crowds choking the pavement.
She pushes her way forward into the Mfunduplatz pedestrianised area where the crowd thins out to a manageable density, which would be a relief if it were not for the pair of cops right ahead in her path.
She's not technically out-of-bounds; there are no travel restrictions coded on her identichip for any civilian areas. She has no current Infraction Tags which would result in mandatory detention, nor is she carrying any prohibited materials. But the sodden cops also seem to have been caught short by the monsoon season, and will probably find any excuse to take it out on the first person who catches their attention.
Ling knows better than to change direction to avoid them, especially as her big stupid shiny parcel will draw their attention like fireworks outside a Sanctioned Ethnic Festival period. She instead casually alters her speed and trajectory so they nab the poor courier who paused to check their datapad for directions. She continues across the square to her destination, a modest 56-storey office building.
The building may not tower above the streets, but the marble foyer with its vast arched ceiling is an ostentatious display of wealth, as is the streaming water feature. Ling checks the gleaming iridium directory stela under the watchful gaze of building security, then re-wraps her parcel whilst she waits for a lift to arrive.
[Another Adventure
or is that, An Other Adventure?
Being in the mood again for some Classic Traveller, and wanting something to put on the blog, I started yet another adventure in my MTU sandbox (see previous post for broad details). I wanted to start with a single PC again, so followed more-or-less the procedure I did when rolling up Ortance, though I rolled really high INT so didn't have to swap any stats. Also, having had so much fun with my last character's sub-optimal career path, I chose the Other service on purpose. This time it was much more obvious that I had rolled up a career criminal. The background events I rolled and the random homeworld selection suggested two threads for her starting adventure: doing a job for her boss, and trying to finally get off her awful homeworld.
So, what is the crux of first adventure? Ling has 6 levels of non-combat skills, so I rolled against them:
1. JoT
2. streetwise
3. air/raft
4. electronics
5. bribery
6. bribery
d6=bribery
The opening paragraphs were mostly to paint a picture of life on her homeworld, a very important TL 14 Industrial world, which is classified as an Amber Zone due to its oppressively high Law Level (13).
Avoiding the police required some die rolling. I'd asked the Oracle,
Q: Is she carrying anything obviously illegal? 50/50: O2 C6 - no.
Q: What does she have? Beautifully / Bizarre (to be explained below)
As she doesn't normally visit this business district, I decided she would need to roll Law Level or better (13+) to avoid police harassment. DMs +streetwise, +2 for INT 11+: 2D+3=14, success
As much as I love the stories you get from Traveller character generation, I felt this adventure (and indeed, the entire campaign setting) would benefit from a gradual unfolding rather than long bouts of exposition. But her character sheet doesn't give anything away, so I'll put it with her portrait below, and confine myself to the single observation that, with bribery as her highest skill, she might be the most Traveller-esque character I've ever made.
Gōng Xǔrling
6B5D85 Age 38 Other 5 TermsJOT-1, Streetwise-1, Air/raft-1, Electronics-1, Bribery-2, Auto pistol-1
Auto pistol
Cr1,000
This adventure was played almost entirely with just the main rulebook. For some reason I keep playing Traveller without using Mythic's scene structure. I think it's because there are so many tables to roll on (especially when I use Zozer's Solo, though I won't need that unless this adventure gets offworld).
Enough with the preliminaries, back to the adventure...]
Ling steps from the lift onto 31st floor, finding herself directly in the lobby of Fanton-Cao Mobilier Galactique, LIC. The lobby is tasteful yet entirely nondescript, much like the home furnishings sold by corporation it serves. Ling approaches the reception desk and addresses herself to the suspiciously ageless blonde woman behind it, holding up the freshly wrapped parcel with its neatly tied bow.
"I have a parcel for Mr. Enoscov."
"One moment, please. I'll call someone from the post room."
"No... it's a gift. I'd like to deliver it in person, if I may. He is in, isn't he?"
[Q: Is he in? likely: O5 C7 - yes]
"Of course. Whom shall I say is calling?"
"Actually, I was hoping it could be a surprise."
[This requires a Reaction Roll from the receptionist. DM -1 for being a High Population world. 2D-1=9, intrigued.]
"Of course." She turns to the identical if somehow younger-seeming woman behind her. "Tasria, before you go on your lunch, could you escort Ms...?"
"Ms. Gōng."
"Tasria, could you escort Ms. Gong to Garvin-- to Mr. Enoscov's office."
"Right away. Would you care to leave your coat here?"
"Please!"
The young woman takes Ling's still-dripping coat and hangs it on a hook in the corner above a discreet drain. She then leads her back to the internal lift and up one floor, then through the sea of cubicles to a corner office. The receptionist knocks on the door and opens it, but before she has a chance to announce the visitor Ling dashes in and says, "surprise!"
[Initial reaction 2D-1=7, neutral]
Mr. Enoscov does look legitimately surprised.
"I'll take it from here," says Ling to the receptionist, then closes the office door peremptorily.
"So... surprised?"
"I thought I told you never to come here." [UNE: hostile - resentment - knowledge]
"But Garvin, we've not spoken in ages. Maybe you told Iuroaa not to come here. Maybe he told you to mind your manners. Besides, don't you want your present?"
"You wrapped it? If you'd been stopped--"
"Oh, please, I'm not an amateur. I didn't seal the top until I got into the lift. So if the police had stopped me, they'd have seen I've nothing to hide. This piece isn't illegal. Just tacky."
"Philistine."
Hardly. I just don't happen to rate Chuuhrian coral-work. The gilding spoils the natural translucence." [rolling her EDU or lower (8-) to have valid opinion: 2D=5, ok]
"Hmpf. A matter of taste. But you shouldn't have brought it here."
"How else were we to find you? Showing up at your home isn't quite the message Iuroaa wanted to send. Not yet, if you hold up your end of the deal in a timely fashion."
[Q: What is his obstacle? Oppress / Inside
Q: Mission target? Hastily / Dull (a list of transit codes to get ships through customs)]
"It isn't that simple. I need time."
"Why?"
"Questions are being asked about things going missing. My source in LogOps is under a lot of pressure to account for every failed delivery. You've no idea the paperwork a misallocation creates. And with the threat of the auditor--"
"I don't care, Garv. This hideous golden tat is your payment, as promised, for services rendered. Now render your bloody services and I can leave you in peace with the beastly thing."
"I don't think you understand the complexities of transferring transit codes to a 3rd party. Let alone to a dozen or more."
"You could waste time explaining them to me, or you could give me what I came for."
"I'm telling you, I'm not the hold-up."
"Your source in LogOps is?"
"Exactly!"
"Garv, you're the one who said they could provide. Blaming your, er, subcontractor is a piss-poor excuse. And largely irrelevant."
"I can't give you what I don't have!"
"I'll just take this objet d'art back and tell Iuroaa the deal is off, then, shall I? I'm sure he'll chalk it up to experience."
"Really?"
"No."
"Maybe if you talk to [d6=]her..."
"Her, who?"
"My source."
"Fine. Where? And how soon?"
"I need to set up a meet."
"Make the call. I'll wait."
next post: delivering the goods
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