The Mansion II [on hiatus]

[Montmorency]

Basement. Gear up. Assemble your plot armor, fellows.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xVEYcTyj1Do

[Jarema]

we must go to the basement, of course. Anything else?

[Myrddraal]

Regarding theories on the reason we are here:
We were obviously put here by someone, and it does appear to be a test. The blueprints and the note that led to the discovery of the secret bathroom were clearly targetted at us (and not just random discoveries). They are evidence enough that our captor is giving us hints, but testing is nonetheless.

Perhaps we are immunised againt the virus? Guinea pigs in a test of the 'cure' alluded to in the business journal?

If we get a chance, I would like to carefully examine the corpses in the lobby. If they have needle marks on their backs, it would confirm that they were victims of Mansion I.

I didn't act on the last sentence of this post last round, but I got a hint that that was a mistake. One which I won't repeat.

Whatever happens next, I'm checking those corpses.

[Myrddraal]

I don't get this whole 'heat reveals the ink thing'. Is it that the writing is scrambled? Is it code? Is it worth looking at the text in the mirror?

EDIT:

Incidentally, we can now confirm 100% that they are the same creatures as Mansion I. We can also confirm the same behaviour - any kind of perceived threat and they transform. They're very volatile, but I'm not sure their transformation is completely inevitable...

I'm kinda tempted to walk slowly out the front door and get to the humvees without a single threatening gesture, without even looking at the grey men...

[Montmorency]

I'm kinda tempted to walk slowly out the front door and get to the humvees without a single threatening gesture, without even looking at the grey men...

Shaun of the Dead and original Night of the Living Dead come to mind. Either way, not good odds.

[El Barto]

Why not wait until ngiht when the effers can't see us, eh?

[Choxorn]

Owww, my head. I wonder if the basement has any aspirin...

[Montmorency]

Why not wait until ngiht when the effers can't see us, eh?

We don't have nightvision. We don't have blind mechanics.

[El Barto]

We can just remember how many steps it takes for us to reach the humvees. We have all day to plan, watch, calculate, then slip out quietly. One after the other in single file, peep, peep, we're at the Humvees and home free.

Unless we find/invent an antidote, or a secret exit via the basement, or a Bren.


I think 3 or 4 of us should stay together trying to investigate these symbols and such while the rest make sure none of the monsters remain indoors. Then we can plan… could we use the billiards table as a mantlet to force our way through to the humvees? A testudo formation comes to mind.

[Greyblades]

...Wow, I dont remember putting that in my orders. :P

[Montmorency]

We can just remember how many steps it takes for us to reach the humvees. We have all day to plan, watch, calculate, then slip out quietly. One after the other in single file, peep, peep, we're at the Humvees and home free.

Unless we find/invent an antidote, or a secret exit via the basement, or a Bren.


I think 3 or 4 of us should stay together trying to investigate these symbols and such while the rest make sure none of the monsters remain indoors. Then we can plan… could we use the billiards table as a mantlet to force our way through to the humvees? A testudo formation comes to mind.

I am confident that there is no point in further studying the documents until we have explored the basement, and if we agree that we need to understand the documents, and by extension the mystery of the game, to get a good ending, then we shouldn't expect any exit strategy to succeed.

We could run into monsters in the dark. We could become separated. The vehicles could not work immediately, or perhaps could require hours of dedicated inspection and work to make road-worthy. Perhaps some of us manage to ride off in a Humvee, only to have it break down or run out of fuel in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by more monsters.

Testudo and other rush jobs (presumably in daylight) are also a bad idea, as our primary advantages lie in numbers and mobility. Even just sprinting to the Humvees every person for themselves would be likelier.

We are going to need sleep soon. Let us spend the next two rounds securing the basement and making progress on the mystery.

[Myrddraal]

Zain, was there any sign of damage to the humvees from what we could see?

Looking at this from a broader perspective, and continuing with the theory that this is a sequel to Mansion I - it would appear that the virus that was unleashed on the world in Mansion I was successful, but it would also appear, given the humvees, that the army has tried to stop the spread.

It doesn't seem likely to me that this will all be over the moment we step out the front door, or even if we were to drive away... I think the mansion itself is just a starting point for this story.

We mustn't forget though that we were definitively placed here by someone, so things that appear random might not be.

I still agree the cellar needs to be explored, but I also think we need to seriously consider leaving the mansion.

[Ironside]

The first thing we need to do is to search this floor. Since the floor is cleared for enemies, we can have 1-2 people for each room. Pretty important for items and clues.

[Golden1Knight]

Maybe we should explore and clean the basement, before we start investigating. In this way we will have the entire mansion as a safe area, and we will need to protect only two entrances.

[Montmorency]

Maybe we should explore and clean the basement, before we start investigating. In this way we will have the entire mansion as a safe area, and we will need to protect only two entrances.

I agree.

[Myrddraal]

It's a shame that Khaan died. Given this does seem to be a virus, and Khaan had plenty of exposure to it, it would have been interesting to find out definitively if we could become infected. Perhaps we should do an amateur autopsy on him?

OOC: In the first mansion, WhiteEyes definitely became infected and became a puppet of the GM. This happened pretty quick in game time. It does make me wonder if somehow we are guinea pigs for a cure, perhaps immune to the virus?

[Montmorency]

Perhaps we should do an amateur autopsy on him?


Interestingly, I don't think that in all our time here we have discovered any cutting instruments, other than tableware.


nothing but dining supplies and other kitchen necessities

Unless this includes some legit knives, any autopsy would be a real hack job.

It's pretty straightforward guys, basement or bust. If you've played a proper PC adventure/mystery/puzzle game, then you know that exploring the Important New Area will advance the narrative and the locations more often than pixel-hunting everything you've already covered.

[Myrddraal]

Don't get me wrong, I'm fully bought in to the basement plan, just speculating on broader ideas.

[Winston Hughes]

Perhaps we should do an amateur autopsy on him?

Ooh, and then we could wear his skin like a... No, hang on, that's a terrible idea. Must be the lack of wine. Waiter!

[Golden1Knight]

That's kinda paranoid, but we must be careful with khaan's body.

Maybe we should behead him before dissecting the corpse... :inquisitive:

[GeneralHankerchief]

I'm not sending in any orders to dissect corpses, and will specifically countermand them if people try to send them in for me. That is so far beyond my level of expertise that nothing good could possibly come out of it.

[El Barto]

If anything (sorry if I'm a bit too repetitive) I'd burn the corpse if it shows any signs of changing. Or at least decapitate it.

[Jarema]

I think that one or two of us should search groundfloor: look for secret compartments and so on. I volunteer for such action

[Myrddraal]

Jarema, I think if we are going for the basement, we should go as a group. We've shown on multiple occasions that the orange giants are much stronger than us on an individual basis, but also relatively easily overwhelmed by numbers.

I'm going to include a quick search of the corpses in the lobby in my orders, but then I will be joining the group to head to the basement. We should all go I think...

[Beskar]

I'm not sending in any orders to dissect corpses, and will specifically countermand them if people try to send them in for me. That is so far beyond my level of expertise that nothing good could possibly come out of it.

I could consolidate his debts for him.

[Beskar]

But yes, Basement seems a safe bet, having the entire area cleared and searching for clues, then we can discuss other options. It appears we are not needing food urgently to force us to run out any time soon.

[Montmorency]

I could consolidate his debts for him.

Very British humor.

[Ironside]

Interestingly, I don't think that in all our time here we have discovered any cutting instruments, other than tableware.



Unless this includes some legit knives, any autopsy would be a real hack job.

It's pretty straightforward guys, basement or bust. If you've played a proper PC adventure/mystery/puzzle game, then you know that exploring the Important New Area will advance the narrative and the locations more often than pixel-hunting everything you've already covered.

Getting better items are good way to avoid the loss of people. Right now, everyone starts to have plot armor, so we are running losses for poor/competent gameplay, rsther then killing of inactives.

Getting out without solving the mystery is most likely a loss for us (otherwise most of the game would be pointless). So there's no need to rush for the "bursting out of here" gear that probably in the basement.

[Montmorency]

Getting better items are good way to avoid the loss of people. Right now, everyone starts to have plot armor, so we are running losses for poor/competent gameplay, rsther then killing of inactives.

Getting out without solving the mystery is most likely a loss for us (otherwise most of the game would be pointless). So there's no need to rush for the "bursting out of here" gear that probably in the basement.

Besides weapons, I'm sure the basement contains the documentation and equipment that will allow us to realize what the plot situation is.

[Winston Hughes]

Besides weapons, I'm sure the basement contains the documentation and equipment that will allow us to realize what the plot situation is.

So what you're saying is that the basement is one big trap filled with soul-devouring abominations to which your secret victory condition requires you to feed us?

Sounds good to me. :2thumbsup:

[Winston Hughes]

So, if we're all going down together, I guess it's a question of tactics.

Do we take it slow and careful, or do we charge in hard?

How do we form up, and where should our gunner be placed?

What contingencies should we plan for?

[Montmorency]

First send one or two guys to tentatively scout the basement entrance, turn on lights, evaluate the size of the space...

We don't want to end up charging single file into cramped darkness, only to have hulks rise around us as though from dragon's teeth.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Probably the best call.

I volunteer to hang back in the rear guard. In case it goes horribly wrong and people need to be patched up.

[El Barto]

With all those weirdos out there, I propose that we strengthen the defenses on our ground-level exits. Just in case. A small group can do that while the others start cautiously exploring the basement, turning on lights, etc.

Do we have any containers for liquids? This might constitute thinking way too far outside the box but I'm thinkign that we could throw our urine at the effin' bleeders.


Very British humor.
Indeed, what?

[Choxorn]

I'm not sure what good throwing pee at them would do, unless one of us is a practitioner of Jarate.

I think we should cautiously press forward into the basement, being very careful to be on our guard for whatever might be down there. Have the front heavily armed, the stairs are probably a bit cramped and running away won't be easy, meaning fighting may be our only option if we run into another one or two or three of those things down there.

[El Barto]

I remember watching M. Night Shyamalan's Signs, so I thought the monsters might have some allergy of sorts.

Hey, if we're going down the stairs into the basement, why not use chairs or a small table as a shield to push in front of us? A sturdy chair should allow us to keep the monsters a good metre or more away.

[Ironside]

Besides weapons, I'm sure the basement contains the documentation and equipment that will allow us to realize what the plot situation is.

And this floor doesn't?

We got the ammo, how to fix the ammo, the code cracking book, the secret door, the key to the secret door, etc through spending time searching.

In RPG terms, the upper floor was lvl 1, this floor lvl 2 and the basement is obviously lvl 3, while outdoor is lvl 4.

The plan is to go to lvl 3 with lvl 1 gear. Because we want to rush, despite the GM giving us a tip on that it's a good time to search, since we know where the hostiles are.

[Montmorency]

Not to much extent, IMO. Fine, we have time here. Maybe if we're thorough the GM will come up with something for us to discover.

Advance party to the near-basement just to gauge and prime the environment (i.e. lights, traps). No venturing into the basement hall, i.e. not exiting the basement rotunda-room. If possible, bring up any useful items from the room, and set up a small trap around the path to the hall so as to make any activity coming into the basement rotunda more noticeable from the first floor while we have no one below.

The rest of us can barricade the front door of the building, spy from the sunroom, examine the bodies, and carefully search out the first floor, especially the mud room and conservatory.

[Myrddraal]

I would expect the basement to be a complex of multiple rooms.

If I examine the bodies in the hallway, could somebody help me? (Just in case there are other crippled grey men among the bodies)

[Montmorency]

I would expect the basement to be a complex of multiple rooms.

If I examine the bodies in the hallway, could somebody help me? (Just in case there are other crippled grey men among the bodies)

We already have a (blueprint) map of the basement.

GH can help.

[GeneralHankerchief]

We already have a (blueprint) map of the basement.

GH can help.

Yeah, that sounds reasonable enough and certainly more productive than opening up a fresh corpse.

I'm also going to grab a quick bite to eat since we have food again.

[Golden1Knight]

I'm going down into the basement. Since we will only explore the first room, a few more people will do. Volunteers?

[Myrddraal]

Happy to come with you, but examining corpses first. Might be better for someone else to volunteer to head straight down.

[Winston Hughes]

I'll join the scout party.

[El Barto]

I'll support you -morally for sure.

[Choxorn]

Happy to come with you, but examining corpses first. Might be better for someone else to volunteer to head straight down.

I'll help you with this and stay on the lookout for any surprises that would be difficult for just one of us to handle.

[Montmorency]

Basement: Golden, Winston, Choxorn
Bodies, Basement: Myrd
Bodies, Sunroom: GH

The rest - Monty, Bart, Iron, Jarema, Beskar - should be doing first-floor search and front entrance reinforcement.

[Myrddraal]

What about the door to the garden in the mud room? I suggest somebody takes a peek out the door, to get an idea of what lies beyond, then bolts it / locks it / barricades it.

If there's a shed out there, I strongly suggest we have a look. I'm thinking gardening implements and power tools will make good weapons.

[Montmorency]

We don't want to stretch ourselves thin. To restate:


Basement: Golden, Winston, Choxorn
Bodies, Basement: Myrd
Bodies, Sunroom: GH

Let's hold off on barricading the main doors, then. While doing the search of the first floor, we should specifically note all large pieces of non-fixed furniture for reference, but avoid moving them for now. Documents, weapons, and special items are more important.

Team First: Monty, Bart, Iron, Jarema, Beskar

Here's what we will do on the first floor, then:

0. Focus on careful search of the right side of the house. Specifically note all large pieces of non-fixed furniture for reference, but avoid moving them for now.
1. Start with the dining room.
2. Avoiding the mud room, search the bedrooms and their closets, looking especially for documents and unique items. Any useful new clothes would be a good thing to collect as well.
3. Next, search the sitting room and the bathroom. In the bathroom, check for any chemicals or pharmaceuticals.
4. Up to now, the activities should have taken 2 hours. For the remaining 2 hours, give all attention to the conservatory and the mud room.
4.a. In the conservatory, take samples of the dead plants and soil to bring back to the base.
4.b. What's in the mud room? Once we've got that figured, prepare to open the door to the backyard. First, ask GH in the sunroom for a recon report on the state of the backyard. If there isn't considerable hostile presence evident, or sign of much other danger, then we open the door and peek out. Fanning out slowly and carefully, the initial idea is to search for any small structures on the grounds (e.g. shack, cellar door, gazebo) without attracting attention. If there are outdoor buildings, then they should be searched for significant items. Any monsters confronted should be taken out quickly if it is possible to do so stealthily, otherwise retreat to the mud room door and take care of it around there.


P.S. Hankerchief, when you finish with the bodies and go upstairs to spy from the Sunroom, could you bring down Greyblades' body from the master bedroom and drag it to the sunroom?

[El Barto]

Just a thought: we should check for trapdoors (especially under rugs). And also for bookcases and other such objects that might reveal doors. If this is a mad scientist's house then there might just be a secret lab around. And, possibly, a secret exit, or a bunker.

[Montmorency]

Just a thought: we should check for trapdoors (especially under rugs). And also for bookcases and other such objects that might reveal doors. If this is a mad scientist's house then there might just be a secret lab around. And, possibly, a secret exit, or a bunker.

Whether or not this is the case would be fairly-obvious from the ground level.

We would expect such things in the basement.

[Zain]

Just a reminder gents that all orders are due by the deadline, which is 9:00am CST, Saturday (tomorrow) morning. May want to google it for local time or check the countdown in the last write-up post.

[Choxorn]

As a member of Team Basement, what should I be doing down there?

[GeneralHankerchief]

Orders sent. I plan to observe the crap out of the outside world from the comfort of that sunroom. Godspeed, Team Basement!

[El Barto]

Choxorn: It seems that slow and careful, only going into the very first room, should be enough. Remember to tur on the lights!

My personal recommendation is that you use a chair or small table as a sort of shield, to ward off anything. Look out for boobytraps, e.g. tripwires.

And, just like the Order of the Stick, be ready to employ that most trusted of tactics: Expeditious Retreat. We'll be ready to assist you if at all possible, so holler if you need to.

[Myrddraal]

Orders submitted:

I will start by examing the bodies in the lobby. I will ask GH to help me before he heads up to the sun room.

I will first check all the bodies to identify if any of them are grey men, and if any show any signs of life.

I'll check corpses for red needle marks. I'll also check for ID, and particularly I'll check if any are armed.

If they do show signs of life, but are not threatening, I will NOT kill then. I will instead try to tie them up (with GHs help) and will stand guard over them and only kill them if they do anything threatening.

If all this goes well, I will slowly and cautiously go joing the basement team and support them (bringing with me any handy portable weapons I might find).

[El Barto]

Erm, you were supposed to PM that. :)

[Zain]

Apologies for the delay gentlemen, working extra today so I can be off tomorrow for the Super Bowl. Will get the write-up out soon.

Thanks :bow:

[Zain]

Phase 8

The ten remaining survivors of the Hell Mansion chose to continue exploring the mysteries, assigning Faith Faulkner (GeneralHankerchief) as their lookout in the Sunroom before heading out the back door. Though beforehand, Lola Richards (Myrrdraal) chose to inspect the bodies and requested Faith's assistance. Further, Bradley Palmer (El Barto) in his paranoia began to barricade the front door with whatever he could find.

"They haven't come in, and we've been here for a while. And we haven't exactly been quiet..." Jake Kelly (Montmorency) said.

"Yes, but I'd rather not run that risk. That okay with you?" Bradley asked sarcastically as he frantically moved small pieces of furniture to the front door.

A rather large group, six in total, including Lola herself, Jack Foster (Jarema), Charlie Wallace (Golden1Knight), Callum Simmons (Choxorn), Hollie Daniels (Winston Hughes), and Leo Webb (Beskar), intended on investigating the basement. Though Lola would be come in behind them after investigating the bodies.

The remaining, Jake, Bradley, and Kyle Bevan (Ironside) would search the first floor for anything interesting and possibly the back yard.

They dispersed...

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Lola and Faith, two of the three remaining women in the mansion, approached what they counted were eleven corpses. "Are they monsters?" Lola asked.

"No. They appear to have died as regular humans." Faith answered, crouching down to check a body. "It's safe, let's search them."

Lola and Faith checked the bodies for identification, "Look, this one has a government ID. Tobias Summerland, Secret Service."

"Why would the Secret Service be here? Isn't their job to protect the President?"

"Yes... among other things. Let's keep looking."

They found that two of the corpses had Secret Service ID's on them, as well as carried single .9 mm pistols with empty magazines. The other bodies seemed to be regular people, all except one...

"Look!" Lola said as she pulled a key out of one of the corpse's pocket. She ran over, "Not to the front door, and it doesn't look like it goes to a vehicle."

"Keep it then, it probably goes to a door or something here." They returned to the corpse.

"What's that?" Faith asked, pointing to something underneath it. Lola tilted her head slightly, a brief pause, "Laptop case!"

They both hopped down and timidly pushed the body off the case. They grabbed it, feeling lighter than it should, they opened it up. "Empty... No notes or anything in the pockets either."

"I bet it's here somewhere though, could have some answers."

Disappointed they continued searching but found nothing of true note, just the knowledge that the Secret Service had been there, two empty .9 mm pistols, a mysterious key that was held by the civilian as well as the empty laptop case.

"Think that one is the owner of the house?" Lola asked.

Faith stood, looking, "No, looks too Urban. Whoever owned this house was old, perhaps crazy."

"Wish we would've found the keys to those humvees..."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Faith made her way up the stairs, around the corner, into the Study, and further into the Sunroom. She gazed out the window, careful not to bring attention to herself, and saw that the smoke from a distance had dissipated. She looked into the backyard, which was largely blocked by the roof, and saw that same gray man from before. "Only one..." She said to herself. She looked for anything else of note, but to no avail.

Upon request she placed Kieran's corpse inside, thinking it a bad idea to place a rotting corpse in direct sunlight, but the group "knows best".

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Jake, Bradley, and Kyle investigated the first floor of the mansion, beginning with the Dining Room and making their way around, taking note of any large furniture, looking for anything interesting, and just as before, found nothing. They did, however, take some soil and plant samples from the Conservatory for further study.

It was Faith's report that she had only seen one gray man outside that made them feel that much more optimistic. Though she warned them that she could not see the entire back yard, they insisted on at least taking a peak outside.

The Mud Room was traditionally for keeping shoes, hats, and coats when one came inside from their work in the garden. Therefore the room was mostly bare, only a chair by the door, hat rack, dead plant in a pot in the corner. A pair of keys hung off a hook by the door, "These should be useful." Jake said as he pocketed them.

"Are they the same key?" Kyle asked him.

He investigated them, "Yes, two copies."

"Give me one, in case something happens to you." Bradley said quickly, thinking on the same page as Kyle.

Jake did so, and then, they began to turn the knob...

...

What they saw was another bright light, the pleasing smell of fresh air, green grass and blue sky, and dead bodies in the yard. At least half a dozen.

They looked around for any signs of life, and to their right they saw one small gray man facing away from them. They stepped forward quietly and glanced around to their left where the Sunroom had no vantage point, a small garden shed next to an overgrown and wild garden lay in their midst, only twenty yards away. The back yard was fenced in by a privacy fence covered in vines. The tall fence appeared sturdy, and not even Faith could see directly over it, though she did spot the occasional hostile outside.

"We can take that one, that's all I see." Kyle said quickly.

They wielded clubs, and thought that by the element of surprise they could take it out.

Creeping slowly across the grass, hoping their quiet footsteps would not draw any attention, Faith looked on as the three men wielding chair legs as clubs snuck up on the small, pale, gray man.

Jake stepped on a small twig, cracking it, and the tiny noise was enough to catch the gray man's attention. It turned it's head, eyebrow wrinkling, but it was too late. Jake, Kyle, and Bradley were on it and with a few powerful strikes, took it down.

They smiled, looked around cautiously, and silently high-fived each other. "That was too easy! Catch them before they transform and it's like taking candy from a baby!" Bradley said.

"That's just cruel..." Jake said sarcastically with a grin. They crept their way toward the garden shed and Jake used the key to unlock the padlock on the door, avoiding the corpse that lay next to the front door, a machete lay next to it. It popped open and inside lay another corpse, one of a gray man. His head was bashed in, a bloody shovel next to it. They kept their eyes on the corpse, but scoped the small building.

All items of note, in which they happily brought outside the door, included the shovel, a hoe, rake, and metal garden scoop along with the machete.

They each carried something, Jake the machete and rake, Bradley the shovel, and Kyle the hoe and garden scoop, and made their way inside after a final glance at the back yard. There seemed to be no apparent gate to the outside... If they wanted to leave, they would have to climb the fence, which appeared to be 8 feet tall, into the blind area below. That, or the front door. Either way, the men were satisfied with their find.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The larger portion of the group had chosen to head downstairs into the basement, having no real idea what to expect down there, Leo led the way with his club fashioned from a chair leg, Callum and Charlie close behind. Jack walked behind with Hollie, and Lola held up the rear. They crept down the steps, hearing the pops and cracks associated with an old staircase.

They reached the bottom, the door was cracked open, and Leo and the group stood quietly and listened.

Silence. Surprisingly.

He pushed the door open timidly and waited once again, startled by the creak the hinges gave off. Still nothing, he reached around the corner and felt the lightswitch, and flipped it. The light shined on a relatively empty room with four doors, just some empty boxes and tattered books lie on the wall opposite of them. No signs of hostiles or death, a welcome sign. The six made their way down, noticing it was a bit cooler and the ceiling was considerably shorter. Charlie reached up and palmed it, "I feel like a giant."

"Me too." Callum said, reaching up.

"Okay, let's check the other rooms, be careful, any sign of life and we haul butt upstairs." Leo commanded, beginning by opening a door and flipping a switch.

They quickly discovered that two of the doors led to an encircling storage room which scaled the entire basement. It was directly beneath the Great Room, and held what looked like hundreds of boxes, crates, and random stuff. It would take hours upon hours to search it, but at first glance looked mostly like junk.

The Furnace was interesting, lying directly below the Kitchen. Charlie, their architect, concluded it was used to help heat their appliances or perhaps the heat was channeled to help heat the bedrooms on the other side of the house.

It was the door on the right, that remained a mystery to them.

"It's locked." Hollie said, trying the knob. It turned, but the deadbolt above prevented access. The group, feeling relatively safe but still leaving Jack behind to watch their backs, attempted to open the door.

Lola remembered the key, "Guys! Let me try this!"

She pulled the key out of her pocket and slid it into the lock, turning it and hearing that satisfying metallic thud. The door crept open, and inside lie a corpse...

He sat on the floor, a laptop lay sideways next to him, a gun in his cold stiff hands and blood smearing the wall.

"Suicide..." one of them said.

There was food in there with him, lots of it, some eaten. Other survival supplies like a first aid kit and blankets, lined the wall next to the food. Surprisingly no weapons. Further, one corner of the room was obviously his bathroom, and the smell of death and sewage was unbearable. They quickly searched him, found another copy of the key which had opened the door, and his ID. They took the laptop, feeling confident that they could come back for the food and supplies if they needed it and quickly left, heading upstairs.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The groups met back up in the Billiard Room, Jake and his crew showing off their "weapons" they had found outside, and Lola carrying the laptop.

"Battery's dead, and I couldn't find the charger. Anybody know how to rig it?"

"I may. I was a marine equipment mechanic. Rigging electronics is what we did." Hollie answered her.

"Great!"

Jake spoke up, "Who was he, that guy down there?"

"Looked like he was holed up for the Apocalypse. Tons of food and more supplies down there." Leo answered him.

"That charger may be in one of the humvees. The keys too." Jack said.

"Well, let's get to work. What should we do?" Faith asked.

---------------------------------------------

Items added:
Shovel
Rake
Hoe
Garden Scoop
Machete
Dead Laptop
First Aid Kit
Blankets
2x .9 mm Pistols

Discussion & Order Phase 9 has begun! Orders due on Saturday, February 13th at 3:00GMT



Stats will be updated in Stats & Storyline thread.

GM Comments:
Long write-up, 'nuff said. Have fun guys :2thumbsup:

Good luck everybody :bow:

[Zain]

Further, I am removing the eat/sleep mechanics in the game. I have provided plenty of food through the Pantry and the mystery room downstairs, and I believe at this point your characters are all running off of adrenaline fairly strongly. :laugh4:

This is no longer a game of the Sims but a game of puzzles and survival.

[Montmorency]

Dibs on machete.

We should also have the empty 9mm pistols, right?

I would suggest incinerating the corpses, but I suppose we would lack the fuel to get it going even if the furnace were of sufficient (industrial) grade.

1. Search basement storage and bunker.
2. Search backyard bodies (GH).
3. Do something with plant samples and secret documents.
4. Work on the laptop (Winston). If the power works in the house... Zain: Was there a charger in the locked room in the basement?


The other bodies seemed to be regular people, all except one...

5. Examine that body (GH).

[Zain]

We should also have the empty 9mm pistols, right?
Yes, you do have the pistols, allow me to edit the posts.


If the power works in the house...
Light switches and light bulbs shining light is generally from electricity :laugh4:


Was there a charger in the locked room in the basement?
No.

[Myrddraal]

What happened to the gun the man shot himself with? Presumably it had ammo, if he used it?

[El Barto]

It seems as though the gun has been left behind.

Talking points:
-Computer, computer… how do we get that thing running? There might be something in it… I was/am good with cameras and other electronics so perhaps I could be of help.

-Someone take that body right out of the sun. Anyone, as soon as possible. And let's make sure the corpses won't get up -decapitate them, stake them, burn them, something.

-The gray men appear to have quite a sense of hearing, don't they?

I have the feeling that moving the stacked crates downstairs in the basement might reveal something.

[Choxorn]

At the very least, taking a good long look at the crates downstairs will be worth it, there doesn't appear to be any more of those things down there.

[Myrddraal]

It does seem like the mansion is now reasonably secure... I'm 95% confident we've dealt with all the hostiles on the ground and upper floor. We should probably be a bit more careful in the basement. Otherwise, with the threat of imminent death by violence or starvation seemingly dealt with, what next?

Laptops are generally 12V DC aren't they? In any case it should be marked on the casing.

I will check the laptop bag in the lobby (there might be a side pocket with a charger). I'll also check to see if there are any halogen spot lights or stand lamps around, as I think they use DC and should therefore have transformers attached.

Otherwise, it's quite possible that the laptop charger is in the humvees...

I'm inclined to say we should spend one more phase doing the following:
- Search the basement thoroughly
- Try to power the laptop with what we have in the mansion
- Scout the garden fence (see if we can peek over, to assess our options)

Before heading out (either via the fence or the front door).

[Zain]

I will check the laptop bag in the lobby (there might be a side pocket with a charger).



"What's that?" Faith asked, pointing to something underneath it. Lola tilted her head slightly, a brief pause, "Laptop case!"

They both hopped down and timidly pushed the body off the case. They grabbed it, feeling lighter than it should, they opened it up. "Empty... No notes or anything in the pockets either."

Here you go.

[Jarema]

I think I would like to go outside and scan a little

[El Barto]

We should take all the corpses out and see if that helps climb the back wall.

At the very least, taking a good long look at the crates downstairs will be worth it, there doesn't appear to be any more of those things down there.
We should always explore the possibility that, in spite of our best efforts, the monsters outside might break in, sneak in or be allowed in. So we should leave some posibility of fleeing back upstairs or down to the bunker. (btw I was right about there being a place to hole up in downstairs, wasn't I?)

[Myrddraal]

(btw I was right about there being a place to hole up in downstairs, wasn't I?)
Yes, although the facilities left something to be desired :wink:

[Montmorency]

We should take all the corpses out and see if that helps climb the back wall.

I don't see the connection.

[Golden1Knight]

We need to check if the wall is not electrified or something like that.

[Winston Hughes]

There are a couple of ways we might get the laptop working without the charger. The simplest method is just to warm the battery up, but that would only buy us a very short period - likely nowhere near enough for me to hack any security features. Better would be to find (or build) another battery with enough charge. The best, though, would be to jerry-rig a mains transformer - quite possible, and very quickly done, if we had the right materials. When I was backpacking in India, I saw guys put them together in under ten minutes, using only very basic tools.

(OOC: Credit to my friend Rainbow Joe - a brilliant sound engineer and hardware hacker - for the tech knowledge, including the India story. If there's a way to make this work, he can tell me what my character's brain would already know.)

Zain

What electrical items have we seen around the house? (Ideally, I'm looking for something like a TV, a radio or a sound system.)

Do we have any lemons among our assorted food stocks?

[El Barto]

Yes, although the facilities left something to be desired :wink:
We are meant to throw urine bombs at the monsters, I can tell you.

I don't see the connection.
We have to get them out anyway. Might as well use them to climb the wall.

Well, maybe not out, as the GM did hint about the sun.

What electrical items have we seen around the house? (Ideally, I'm looking for something like a TV, a radio or a sound system.)

Do we have any lemons among our assorted food stocks?
Remember we have wristwatches but not much else.

Do you intend to use lemon juice as an electrolyte, or is the food here that bland?

[Ironside]

We have to get them out anyway. Might as well use them to climb the wall.

Well, maybe not out, as the GM did hint about the sun.


I think furniture are better for climbing on than corpses.

[Montmorency]

When we get around to leaving, climbing an 8-foot fence and walking around the house will accomplish nothing that just leaving through the front would not.

I think the best we have for electronics is the light fixtures around the house. Are there any desk laps? Maybe even common small batteries? Definitely something to keep in mind while searching the basement. Worst case, create a direct connection between the household electricity and the charging terminals (i.e. battery taken out first), but that would be liable to destroy the thing very quickly. I'm sure legit chargers have features to manage power intake in a way that the hardware can withstand.

[Myrddraal]

Worst case, create a direct connection between the household electricity and the charging terminals (i.e. battery taken out first), but that would be liable to destroy the thing very quickly.
Wouldn't that melt the battery?

Laptops and PCs run on DC power, at 12V iirc.
US mains power provides AC power at 120V.

What Winston said makes sense though. Radios, TVs, Halogen lights, all these things run on DC, and should have transformers in them. If we can find one with the right output we're in business, and even one with the wrong output (but still DC) would give us options.

Heating the battery sounds a very interesting idea... After all, we may only need a very short period of power to find out the information we need.

EDIT: Also... car batteries are usually 12 volts. Humvee?

[Winston Hughes]

As I say (OOC: thanks Joe!), a transformer is easy enough to build if you've got a few basic components. We'd have to improvise a soldering iron, but that's just a bit of copper wire, some kind of insulator for the grip, and a source of heat. The biggest obstacle could turn out to be the lack of appropriate screwdrivers to open both the laptop and the source of our components. Cutlery from the kitchen could probably be worked into what we need, but that's going to slow the whole thing right down. If, on the other hand, we had a half-decent tool kit plus something like a stereo amplifier for the components, I could whip up a suitable transformer in no time.

Edit: Of course, we might just find a charger next phase, rendering all of this macgyvering entirely unnecessary.

[El Barto]

And what's ever been more fun in an RPG than doing unnecessary stuff?

I think furniture are better for climbing on than corpses.
Are there any chairs or tables whose legs we haven't ripped off to burn in the upstairs fire or to use as blunt weapons?

(btw, we need firebombs, that'd clear the way to the Humvees.)


Now, these Humvees… is it possible that the CIA or other agency found out about this infection, tried to put a stop to it, but were overpowered somehow? Also, there's still electricity so the world's not over.

[Myrddraal]

I can't help but come back to wondering what the motives of our captor are. The mansion isn't locked, the bodies of these people have obviously been left here for us to find, and the humvees left within reaching distance. It's not as if we are particularly trapped. It comes back to what I was saying before - we either play the game or play our captor, and right now I'm struggling to see how we can play our captor when his motives are so unclear.

[GeneralHankerchief]

I can't help but come back to wondering what the motives of our captor are. The mansion isn't locked, the bodies of these people have obviously been left here for us to find, and the humvees left within reaching distance. It's not as if we are particularly trapped. It comes back to what I was saying before - we either play the game or play our captor, and right now I'm struggling to see how we can play our captor when his motives are so unclear.

Considering the state of the outside world, maybe he realized his mistake and we're somehow connected to making it better?

[El Barto]

Leaving the philosophy for later, what do we do now?

[Myrddraal]

Spend one more turn exploring the house and garden I think, before making any move on the humvees.

We need to:
- Search the crates in the cellar
- Search the whole mansion for transformers, heat the battery and try to get that laptop booting
- Search the garden shed for electronics (batteries would be ideal, even a torch battery would be good)
- There were half a dozen bodies in the yard, we should search these.
- Prepare weapons for a breakout attempt to reach the humvees? Maybe more torches to burn?

[Ironside]

I agree on searching. I'll go down in the basement and see if I can find anything to get some use of my mechanical skills.

We could also see if we can create a diversion on the backyard. Luring some or all of the monsters away makes things much easier. Even having them scattered about would help as we're ok when taking them down in a 2+2+2+2 matter, while 8 on the same time is too much.

We should still search the billiard room and the bedrooms on the main floor.

[El Barto]

OK, so we assemble groups… I'd search the bodies and the shed.

[El Barto]

Maybe we can dig somewhere with the hoe and shovel.

[El Barto]

Ironside: can you search the billiards room and the main floor bedrooms? Take any inactives, I'm searching the shed and the corpses.

[GeneralHankerchief]

I'll be sending in orders after I wake up tomorrow (hopefully won't sleep in!) to do support duty once again.

[Choxorn]

I'll join team basement and help search the crates.

[Ironside]

Orders in, 2 hours to go. I followed the advice of El Barto.

[Zain]

Deadline passed half an hour ago, and only 3 orders have been received.

Deadline extended for a few hours. If orders are not received, WOG's will be swift. :whip:

[GeneralHankerchief]

I was one of the three! I didn't oversleep! :cheerleader:





:sweatdrop:

[Winston Hughes]

Oops, thought we had longer. Sending orders now.

ps. I'll be away from Monday to Friday this week, and will not be able to post at all during that time.

[El Barto]

I was one of the three! I didn't oversleep! :cheerleader:
So Choxorn didn't send in anything? :inquisitive:

[Ironside]

Deadline passed half an hour ago, and only 3 orders have been received.

Deadline extended for a few hours. If orders are not received, WOG's will be swift. :whip:

A 24 hour reminder is quite useful when you have a long period before a deadline.

[Myrddraal]

I was away yesterday, but I've submitted orders now to search the whole mansion for transformers and batteries.

[Beskar]

I was away yesterday, but I've submitted orders now to search the whole mansion for transformers and batteries.

Congratulations, you could found Optimus Prime!

[Winston Hughes]

Congratulations, you could found Optimus Prime!

Want. :pray:

[El Barto]

Given how much of a crapshoot these grey fellers are, I shudder to think how aggressive such a war robot would be.

[GeneralHankerchief]

Zain? You around, buddy?

[GeneralHankerchief]

In a little under 24 hours, it will have been a full week since Zain last posted in this thread. If he does not post and give some indication of his status by that time, give or take, I am going to exercise my prerogative as moderator and declare the game dead - though Zain will have an option to pick it back up in the future with the consent of the players.

I realize that the game is not a mafia game and thus is not bound by Mafia's more stringent deadline restrictions, but our players should have a reasonable expectation of timeliness from the host no matter the game's format.

[El Barto]

If I may weigh in, I suggest that the game be left simply in a hiatus, with some clarifying note added to the thread title.

Of course, maybe Zain reads this and decides to pass over his duties as host to another willing forum member, perhaps one of the dead players?

[GeneralHankerchief]

Agreed, that's a better way of putting it.

Anyway, I'm declaring the game on hiatus but leaving the thread open in case Zain returns and wants to pick up where he left off. I'll have a non-mafia game up by the end of the weekend, but if you choose to continue posting in this thread in the meantime please keep it confined to discussions related to this game.

:bow: