The Porcelain Dolls: Session 56 (March 01 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 56 (March 01 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 56 (March 01 2017)

The Docks Flocks Shock & Rock – Part 2:

Job 3: Constance and Gears head over to the Bellhaven warehouse. They spend some time in cover watching the comings and goings of the guards outside. Constance has also brought along Marlane as backup. The two of them head around the building in opposite directions, while Gears keeps watch on the main entrance. Constance and Marlane are easily able to knock out all of the guards without raising any alarms. They confront the last guard, a fellow patrolling the inside of the building with a lantern, and convince him to run when he sees his buddies all laid out. With the way clear, Gears rigs the main entrance to blow (and crits on his Wreck roll). The door falls inward, and the locals descend on the place as the Bluecoats respond (not too hastily).

After making their escape, Constance and Gears head to the Pint and Hound. She pours him a drink, and explains the next part of the plan. They will approach the businesses that were hit, and offer them the protection that the Dockers obviously cannot provide. Gears has the idea to get some of the dock workers sick, and allow the rumors of a plague sweep through. Constance likes the idea, but reminds Gears that she doesn’t want to destroy the dockers, she wants to replace them. Gears promises he can concoct something that will make people sick, but won’t kill them. After Constance leaves, Gears coughs up a bit of blood.

Aftermath for The Docks Flocks Shock & Rock:

Rep: 3.

Heat: 4 (2 to start, +1 because the Dockers are indeed a well-connected target, +1 because of a Devil’s Bargain for Kobb)

Coin: 8 from the burglary of Dunham & Sons. The piano will be assessed later.

Entanglement: Interrogation. The Bluecoats round up Kobb to ask him about his involvement in the theft of the piano. Constance presents herself as his insurance agent, come to deliver the payout of the theft to the apparent victim. She leaves the cash with the Bluecoats on their assurance that it will reach Mrs. Dunne safely (yeah, right). Constance and Kobb are free to go.

Downtime:

Constance reduces Heat twice (down to 0), and spends a Coin to reduce Stress.

Shade trains Playbook, and follows up on Jezelle, finding her at the spirit well. She begs him to let her in past the wards. It’s obvious that she’s going through some kind of withdrawal.

Gears starts a project to build a pathogen, and uses both actions to complete it (6 of 6 segments). It will make people sick for a few days, but shouldn’t kill anyone.

Moira: Indulges her Vice. She visits Rachel Dalgaard, a fortune teller at the Night Market who reads the bones. She begins a reading, then gets spooked and shoos Moira out. After that, Moira visits a ghost friend of hers, who gives her a bit of background on the scarab (mostly the same info as Kamali already knew). When she mentions Shade, he warns her that Shade is very dangerous, and she shouldn’t associate with him.

Kobb: Trains Playbook, and works on the project to solidify Marian Dunne’s trust in him (4 of 6). He spends Coin to work on a project to cultivate Sebastian Atkinson as a contact, feeding him information that

Kamali: Reduces Stress (down to 1), and trains Prowess. She also spends a Coin to help with Moira’s project on the scarab by perusing the bookstores in Silkshore.

The Moon’s Daughter and the Pint and Hound earn a total of 11 Coin.

Notes:

Gears’ player and I had a discussion a few weeks back, and we both agreed that it would make the most sense that he would be working on some way to cheat death if he were actually facing some sort of terminal condition. So Gears is basically dying of lung cancer, and he’s looking for a way to replace human organs with machines. This will inadvertently lead to the invention (or rather rediscovery) of Hulls.

Also, I had a brain fart, and when Moira’s player said “I’m going to visit my ghost friend”, I ended up making up a completely new character on the spot rather than using Nyryx. Oh well. More NPCs are always fun.

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 55 (February 22 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 55 (February 22 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 55 (February 22 2017)

Kobb heads over to Dunham & Sons to get more info directly. He and Gloves present themselves as wealthy merchants looking to engage a shipping company in some business, explaining they have some furniture that needs to be shipped overseas. He gets the name of the Shop Steward Oswald Mikkelsen, and a good idea of the company’s comings and goings.

Kamali heads to the Harbormaster’s office in the Docks. She is able to get in and distract the foreman long enough to lock the office door and copy down the most important names from the most recent ledgers. She is gone by the time he returns with the key.

The Docks Flocks Shock & Rock – Part 1:

Constance gathers everyone to review the information they have gathered. She mentions the Crimson Skulls.

She says her father once told her that if the dockers were to strike, the city would starve in two months. She declares that they are going into the protection business (something the dockers are already doing). To that end, they will need to manufacture some crises that they can then exploit.

She says she would like the Tyler Brothers warehouse to suffer some spoilage. Shade will employ the Crimson Skulls in bringing this about.

She tells Moira and Kamali to find something valuable to steal from Dunham & Sons. Kobb also has an idea to persuade Marian Dunne to part with some of her furniture to alleviate her current financial burdens.

Constance herself will vandalize Bellhaven. She asks Gears if he has any devices he needs to test.

I ran this as three separate jobs, each with their own Engagement roll.

Job 1: Shade meets up with the Crimson Skulls. Byron recognizes him and asks where Constance is (it is apparent that he has not given up on the idea of wooing her). Shade has several sacks of salt and instructs them to break into the Tyler Brothers warehouse and spread it around liberally to taint all the food stored there. He goes with them to ensure that the job goes smoothly. They attract the attention of a roving guard, but Byron successfully plays on his reputation as something of a ladies’ man and convinces the guard that he’s got a girl in the warehouse. The guard berates him but lets it go. On the way out, Shade gives Byron some misleading tips on wooing Constance.

Job 2: Kobb visits Marian, who is understandably distraught over the suicide of her husband Ellsworth. He persuades her to sell some furniture, in light of recent developments. She decides to sell the grand piano. Kobb approaches Dunham & Sons again to tell them that he has a buyer for the piano, and they send a couple of guys to cart it down to the Docks.

That night Kamali and Moira break into the Dunham & Sons warehouse and begin to loot the place. Kamali has brought along Prichard and the Lampblacks to deal with the piano. All she has to do is get the loading bay door open and keep the guard distracted while they wheel it out. Meanwhile, Moira is hard at work opening crates and bagging anything that looks valuable when she comes across a large brass scarab inside a metal-lined box. She can feel the arcane energy radiating off of it, and can hear it whispering to her in a language she doesn’t understand. Fortunately, she is able to fight the urge to touch it. Kamali wanders past and sees the item and immediately recognizes it. It’s the symbol of House Anixis, one of the noble houses of U-Duasha, dedicated to Ixis, the Demon Prince of Secrets. Kamali wisely boxes it up again, and they bag the whole thing, along with a fair bit of gold & jewelry and assorted valuables, and they all get the hell out of there.

Notes:

The scarab was the result of a Devil’s Bargain, and completely improvised. Thanks again to John Harper for the additional material in the Special Edition, it has already come in handy.

We’ll see Constance wreck some stuff next time.

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 54 (February 15 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 54 (February 15 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 54 (February 15 2017)

Moira is summoned to meet with Constance at a construction site near the factory, where she is given a choice: If she decides she is a woman, she will have a place at Constance’s table, and a voice in the crew, and will receive a share of the crew’s profits. However, she must bear the weight of her words, and do her part to earn for the crew. If however, she decides she’s still a girl, Constance will take care of her, but she will not share in the crew’s profits, and she will not have a voice in the crew’s plans. Moira says that she’s ready to be a woman, so Constance takes her to the factory. Upon climbing the stairs, they are confronted with a cacophony of screams and several dozen floating doll heads that all turn to face them. Shade apologizes for startling them, but declares his new security measures a success. He will work on calibrating them to recognize members of the crew.

Constance convenes a meeting. She advises that the Crows are moving on Charhollow and Charterhall, so if anyone has any personal business there they should keep Constance informed. Meanwhile, the Dolls will be expanding into the Docks.

Kobb and Moira volunteer to keep an eye on the dock workers. Constance tells them to start with Dunham & Sons, Bellhaven Mercantile, and Tyler Brothers Carting.

Kamali will infiltrate the harbormaster’s office to copy the union rolls. She will stay out of Kobb and Moira’s way.

Constance will take on the Crimson Skulls herself, and Shade volunteers to go with her.

Preparation for the Docks Flocks Shock & Rock:

Constance and Shade head to the Docks to talk to the Crimson Skulls. Due to Kamali’s recon, they have no trouble finding them. They work the night shift at one of the warehouses, and spend most of their downtime in The Pearl. Constance and Shade head to the bar, and order two ciders.

Shade Attunes and speaks to the resident ghost, Gerard “Flat Jerry” Archer, who was killed by a falling crane out on the nearby dock, and who doesn’t like the Crimson Skulls. They are too noisy for his taste. He points out their leader Byron.

Kobb and Moira head to the Docks to check out some of the warehouses. Moira Attunes (though she’s always at least halfway in the ghost field) and is attacked by a ghost who is being driven mad by the tolling of the crematorium bell. She successfully defends herself with a crowbar to his face, which seems to snap him out of it. After the bell ceases tolling, he can converse coherently, though he’s still quite surly. He’s a former dock worker named Louie, and he gives her some info on the warehouses Constance mentioned:

Tyler Brothers: Shop Steward Adolfo diPaolo. Imports food from Severos (Louie used to work for them, so he has the most information on them).

Bellhaven: Shop Steward Kabir Wakim. They deal in mostly spices and silks from Iruvia.

Dunham & Sons: Doesn’t know anything about them, other than it’s a Skovlander-owned company.

Constance goes to occupy herself with a round of darts, and finds herself playing against Byron, leader of the Crimson Skulls. He’s surprisingly more friendly than expected, and even flirts with her. She decides that she has a better use for them than simply grinding them up.

Notes:

The start of a new chapter, and the beginning of new conflicts. Constance’s background will be coming to the forefront very quickly.

I took a cue from a post on this community, and decided that the crematorium bell is only audible in the ghost field.

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 53 (February 08 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 53 (February 08 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 53 (February 08 2017)

Flashback:

A member of the Ink Rakes (Sebastian Atkinson of the Doskvol Daily Mirror) confronts Constance about the gathering at the boxing club (The Pint and Hound), and the fact that several members of the city council were seen there. After he leaves, Constance and Shade discuss what possible trouble this might be in the future.

Present:

The Dolls meet with Lillie Thomas, and take on a new member, Moira Tamany. Constance wants the Eels to provide another distraction in the Docks. She warns against starting another fire, she just wants the streets densely populated. Lillie has the idea to throw a street fair.

The Done and Dunne Gun and Run:

Kobb goes to Ellsworth’s house to get Mrs. Dunne and the kids out of the house and bring them to the street fair. He brings a bottle of high quality liquor, to help the servants get good and drunk. Gloves is following along. However, when they get there, they find that Ellsworth’s son William is quite ill. Kobb manages to convince Mrs. Dunne to go out with “Khaalid”, while he stays and takes care of William (daughter Jenny is currently at her friend Kate’s house).

Kamali and Moira enter the house and begin looting the house, while the lampblacks are waiting outside to carry off the stuff to a cart stashed nearby. Boots is on a nearby rooftop keeping watch. Kamali gets right to work, cutting paintings out of frames, taking a purse out of a drawer, taking a gold pen off a desk. She and Moira are able to get everything from the top floor with no problem. They are almost caught by the junior maid on the second floor, but manage to sneak past her. They get down to the basement, and Kamali hands Moira her lockpicks to open a jewelry box. Moira gets it open, but ends up breaking one of the picks in the process. On their way out, Kamali blackjacks Kobb on the back of the head to give him an alibi.

Constance, Gears, and Shade are on Team Murder. Thanks to the legwork they did, they know exactly where Ellsworth is supposed to be.

The Strays will be running interception in the flophouse itself, making sure no one gets in or out of the building (at least via the ground floor).

Shade positions himself outside in case Ellsworth gets the bright idea to jump out a window. Constance and Gears head up to the top floor, and Constance forces the door open. The noise attracts the attention of a young thug who was hanging out on the second floor, and who now comes marching up the stairs to deal with the situation. Constance meets him on the staircase, and pushes him back down the stairs to the 2nd floor, shoving him up against a wall. Constance addresses the entire building. She announces herself and gives a speech. This is enough to silence any opposition.

Meanwhile, Gears strides into the apartment and confronts Ellsworth. He’s brought a homemade stun gun that softens up Ellsworth a bit. In the end, he hands Ellsworth a pistol and tells him to do the right thing. Ellsworth’s resolve crumbles. Constance can hear the gunshot as she’s returning to the top floor landing, and Gears walks out and says it’s over.

Kobb is awakened by Marian and Gloves, who have returned. Kobb feigns ignorance, and Marian tells him that the place was robbed. Her main concern is for her son and the servants. Fortunately, William is sleeping soundly, and the maids are alright. David the butler comes in a bit alarmed and attempts to take responsibility for allowing it to happen, but Marian won’t hear of it. Gloves helpfully goes to fetch a Bluecoat, who takes notes on everything. Kobb gives a sufficiently obfuscated description of the perpetrators to throw suspicion off of the Dolls.

Aftermath:

Rep: 0.

Coin: 6 (+2 for the Fence).

Heat: 5 (2, +2 for killing, +1 from a Devil’s Bargain).

Entanglement: Gang Trouble (which the crew avoids again).

Downtime:

Constance: Reduces Heat (down to 2), reduces Stress and heals her two level 1 injuries.

Kamali: Trains Prowess. Spies on the Crimson Skulls (faction that has operations in the Docks).

Gears: Reduces Heat (down to 0), and indulges his Vice, advancing the second stage of the Big Idea.

Kobb: Works on a long term project to solidify Marian’s trust in him (1 segment filled), and Gathers Info on the Ink Rakes (makes contact with Sebastian Atkinson). Also Trains Playbook.

Moira: Trains Insight, and Gathers Info on her parents. Nyryx says that he’s talked to someone who claims to have seen them, who confirms that they are unfortunately dead.

Shade: Finishes the project to upgrade the security of the factory, and heals his level 1 injuries. He also Gathers Info on Jezelle.

The Moon’s Daughter and The Pint and Hound generate 9 Coin total.

Notes:

Moira is our newest PC. She’s a Whisper who just grew too old to hang out with the Eels. Lillie Thomas herself will find herself in a similar situation very soon.

This is also the first time wee hear Constance’s last name (Carter).

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 52 (February 01 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 52 (February 01 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 52 (February 01 2017)

Aftermath of the New Guy Try-Before-You-Buy:

Rep: 1 (Dacio and his guys were Tier 1)

Coin: 8. There is enough for one Coin each, after their tithe to Lyssa.

Heat: 2 (the building fire was high profile, but the Dolls managed to keep their names and faces out of it for the most part).

Entanglement: Gang Trouble (which they avoid because they’ve trained the Wild out of the Lampblacks).

Downtime:

Constance works on eliminating the crew’s Heat, and has Gears assist in healing her bruised collarbone.

Kamali takes Kobb with her to The Veil in Nightmarket, after buying him a new set of syringes. There they both indulge their shared vice, Blue Cloud. Later, she runs him through some exercises in opening various kinds of locks (Kobb trains Prowess, gaining him an advance and raising Finesse. Along with the bonus dot he gets from Everyone Steals, his Finesse is now a 2).

Shade works on the project to set up arcane defenses for the hideout. After that, he heads to the spirit well to meet with Quellyn, and Kamali follows at a distance. Along the way, one of the alarm wards Shade had set up triggers, and he races there to find Sebjorn in a rather feral state and attempting to batter down the wards that had been put up around the alley. When Sebjorn sees Shade approaching, he lunges. Shade manages to hold him off with a binding ward, while Quellyn approaches from the opposite direction. Kamali maintains her distance in order to keep herself hidden. Sebjorn takes a swipe at Shade, who brings out his Lightning Hook. he manages to get the loop around Sebjorn’s neck, but not before taking a nasty scrape across his chest. He has to fight to keep hold of the pole as Sebjorn attempts to wrench it out of his hands. Kamali jumps into the fray to help Shade, and throws her spiritbane charm around Sebjorn’s neck. However, since Quellyn doesn’t know who this newcomer is, she targets Kamali with her binding spell, rooting Kamali to the ground. Shade manages to wrangle Sebjorn into an open spirit bottle and clamp the lid shut. Sebjorn is still kicking when he picks up the bottle. Quellyn realizes that Kamali is on Shade’s side, and releases her. They discuss what to do with Sebjorn, deciding that selling him to the Path of Echoes is not a good idea, since they have no idea if he will end up being released by them. Shade decides to keep the bottle on his shelf for the time being. This enterprise brings Quellyn to Neutral status. She’s willing to work with Shade, but not without compensation.

Gears continues to work on his Big Idea, and trains Resolve (gaining an advance, and raising Command).

The Moon’s Daughter and the boxing Club generate a total of 8 Coin, and Constance encourages everyone to stash it.

Constance gathers the whole crew at the factory. Kobb now has a seat at the table. She brings up Ellsworth Dunne. Kobb has heard of him, but knows very little. Constance brings him up to speed on the Dolls’ involvement, and of her intention to finally bring this matter to a close. She’s of the opinion that even without resources and allies, Ellsworth is dangerous enough that it’s better to end it quickly, but she recognizes Gears’ right to vengeance.

Preparation for The Done and Dunne Gun and Run:

Constance wants Kobb and Gloves to compete for Ellsworth’s wife’s affections. Gloves make a joke that he might have a bit of an advantage over Kobb in this. However, it’s Kobb that makes the most headway toward befriending Mrs. Dunne, playing the role of a sympathetic confidante. He uses his niece’s name as a way of making introductions, and over the course of several days, has schmoozed his way into her social circle.

Shade goes to look up Virgil, his ex-Bluecoat contact, introducing him to Nyryx in the process. He asks them to keep an eye out for Ellsworth. After a few days, they get back to him to let him know that they spotted Ellsworth in the Docks, and he’s hiding out in a flophouse there. It seems he has the same plan that Ulstano had: get some Coin together and get the hell out of the city. Nyryx also mentions that Jezelle is not doing too well, and that Shade should check in on her.

Kamali and Boots scope out the Dunne household for a couple of days. Once Kamali gets a good picture of the routine, she more or less has the run of the house, while Boots keeps watch from a nearby rooftop. She examines the paperwork that Ellsworth left in his study upstairs. It’s mostly council stuff, the only item of note is an upcoming vote on troop movements into Skovlan. Heading to the secret study in the basement, she finds it’s been cleaned out, but she discovers a receipt for a flat in the Docks that Ellsworth has been maintaining for at least several months. The address matches the one given to Shade.

Constance heads to Charhollow to talk to the Strays. She finds the shop closed, and the basement hideout deserted (but not abandoned). However, she finds four of them in the back corner of the dive bar nearby. She confronts them, and they respond predictably, with threats and verbal abuse. When Constance doesn’t back down the Strays quickly escalate to violence, but they didn’t expect that Constance was Not to Be Trifled With, and the fight very quickly goes her way. She manages to knock out three of them, and interrogates the fourth, a guy named Tony. It’s clear that they believed Ellsworth turned on them and hired an unknown third party to attack them, so they took the opportunity to go to work on Luther Curtis in revenge. However, things spiraled out of control, and Luther was killed, along with a couple of the Strays. Tony manages to put it together that Constance was leading the group that attacked his gang. Constance tells Tony that she’s promoting him to leader of the Strays, and that he will make sure that they work with her to find Ellsworth and bring him down, otherwise she’ll simply kill all of them. Tony communicates his understanding of his new situation. Constance further instructs Tony that the Strays will now pay tribute to The Crows on a regular basis, and will present themselves to Lyssa forthwith, as the Crows will be expanding into Charhollow soon.

Notes:

Kobb and Kamali seem to work well together.

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 51 (January 25 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 51 (January 25 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 51 (January 25 2017)

The New Guy Try-Before-You-Buy:

Gloves heads back to speak with Dacio in the morning. He reports back to Constance that he informed Dacio that his patron is considering the price of 10 Coin, but is looking to negotiate. He was also able to get a look at the bird, and confirms it is in excellent working condition.

Team “Pretend to Buy Something” consists of Gloves and Kobb, who is in disguise. He’s wearing clothes that are much finer than he’s used to, he’s had a shave and a haircut, and Gloves has applied a healthy layer of face powder to help him look the part of a wealthy merchant. For the meet with Dacio and the buyer, Gloves has selected a Severosi restaurant called Carmelo’s which is only about 3 blocks away from Dacio’s home. It has a suitable atmosphere in which to discuss business, and the subdued lighting should assist in ensuring that Dacio does not recognize Kobb. Constance and Shade will hang out in the small cafe across the street in case things go south.

Kobb and Gloves get to Carmelo’s a few minutes early, and have just ordered drinks when Dacio shows up with his bodyguard, who he introduces as Sireno. Gloves introduces Kobb as his employer, Oliver Dolan. Kobb’s disguise works exactly as expected. They sit and drinks are served. Kobb does well in the first round of making small talk and stalling for time. They order dinner before getting down to business. Kobb very nearly gives himself away by mentioning Charhollow, but manages to pull out of it when he explains that his wife is involved with the Ladies of the Open Hand, and he recently made a sizable donation.

Dinner arrives, and it’s very good. Even Gloves, who usually finds anything non-Iruvian to be bland and tasteless, has to concede that the chef has outdone himself. More small talk, and as the plates are being cleared away, the conversation finally turns to business. There’s some haggling back and forth on the price. In the process, Kobb is subjected to a lecture from Dacio on who exactly Benedict Lyness was, which he finds inwardly amusing. Dacio also has some choice words on the subject of the man’s son, whom he regards as a wastrel who he was glad to have swindled, as he obviously had no idea of the true value of his father’s work. Kobb takes it all in stride. In the end, they settle on a price, with the stipulation that Kobb is to produce the money right away, and then accompany Dacio back to his place to retrieve the piece. Gloves excuses himself to retrieve the rest of the cash, and goes to make his report to Constance, telling her that Kobb is doing quite well, and even managed to talk Dacio down to 9 Coin. When Gloves returns with the Coin, they agree to all take a walk down to Dacio’s apartment.

Team “Rob the Place Blind” consists of Kamali and Boots, who are up on the rooftop across from Dacio’s apartment. Gears is down in the alley below with his cart and a couple of the Lampblacks. The Eels’ distraction is right on time, but comes in an unexpected form: since Kobb didn’t go into specifics as far as what they wanted, the Eels did the easiest thing they could think of, which was to set the building on fire. Smoke is emanating from the windows on the first floor, and people are already running to evacuate. It’s only a matter of time before the fire brigade shows up (and possibly the Bluecoats).

Kamali crosses the gap up above, and attaches to the window frame the pulley assembly that Gears had put together, sending the weighted end down to the street below. It’s a small matter for her to lever the window open and climb inside. She immediately gets to work opening the first of four strongboxes, finding valuables worth a total of 3 Coin inside. She slips them into a sack and sends it down the rope to the cart below.

Gears heads in the front of the building as the inhabitants are running out. He claims to be from the fire brigade and they offer no resistance, happy for the unusually quick response time. As he heads upstairs, he comes across Dacio’s two guards on the way down, and one of them is carrying something wrapped in a cloth. He tries to fast talk them, ordering them to form up outside to help with the bucket chain, deftly taking the package from them in the process. They get about two steps past him down the stairs when they realize what’s happened, and immediately turn to confront him. He doubles down on the ruse, barking some further orders at them, telling them that they’re wasting time before turning to run up the stairs. He gets to the second-floor landing when one of them clamps a hand on his shoulder and demands the package. He turns and blows a handful of Drown Powder in their faces, and they go down hard, coughing and choking.

He makes it to the top floor to find that the goons had left the apartment door open in their haste to evacuate. Kamali nearly has a heart attack when she hears someone enter the apartment, and Gears finds himself briefly staring down Kamali’s crossbow as he enters the back room. Removing the cloth, the package turns out to be a small wooden box with a delicate latch. Opening it reveals the clockwork bird on a velvet cushion. He quickly wraps it up again and sends it down to the cart while Kamali works on the second strongbox, which yields 2 Coin.

Between the two of them, they make short work of the remaining two strongboxes, and they find a total of 3 Coin in them. They finish sending it all down to the cart just as the fire brigade arrives on the scene. Kamali goes out the window and rides the rope down to the cart, while Gears grabs a bottle of whatever alcohol Dacio favors, takes a long swig, and douses himself with the rest, and pretends to be drunk on his way down the stairs.

He is almost undone as he exits the apartment to find Dacio’s two thugs, who have recovered enough to be able to stand, if a bit wobbly, and attempt to tackle him, roaring unintelligibly as they do so. Fortunately for him, three members of the fire brigade have made it to the top of the stairs, and physically restrain them before escorting Gears down the stairs, his ruse to pretend to be a harmless drunk working perfectly. By the time they get to the bottom and out the front door, the fire is in full swing, and ceiling beams are starting to crumble under the strain. The thugs take one last swipe at him out in front of the building before being tackled by the rest of the firemen. He quickly makes his escape, meeting up with Kamali and the Lampblacks coming out of the alley around the corner. They all head back to rendezvous at the Bucket.

Gloves and Kobb are still carrying the money as they’re following Dacio and Sireno to the apartment. About halfway there, Dacio sees the smoke and immediately takes off running towards the building. Sireno growls something at Kobb and breaks into a jog after his boss. Gloves and Kobb exchange a look and decide that they really don’t need to be there anymore, so they simply leave, Coin in hand.

Constance and Shade follow Dacio to the apartment, where they see him berating his other two guards, while the street around them is a flurry of activity as the fire brigade struggles to put out the fire. In the end, there are no casualties, but the building is significantly damaged.

Boots stashes the Coin and stays behind to guard it, but everyone else meets at the Bucket to debrief. Constance declares the job successful, though she is not happy about the level of exposure that the fire generated. She reminds everyone that they were very lucky no one was injured or killed. She congratulates Kobb on a job well done, and charges him to accompany Gears to deliver the bird to Sabine, after which she will have a serious conversation with him.

Gears and Kobb go to Sabine’s townhouse in Charterhall, which used to be Benedict’s house (and thus where Kobb grew up). They are met at the door by Sabine’s doorman Martin, who is surprised to see Kobb, but ushers them inside and informs Sabine. She is pleasantly surprised to see Kobb has cleaned himself up, and is awed when Gears presents the bird. She thanks them profusely, and demands to know who much she owes them for it, assuming they had purchased it on her behalf. When Gears said she doesn’t owe anything, she’s suspicious for a moment. They manage to convince her that the piece was not obtained through illegal means; it is simply a gift, to show that Kobb has truly seen the error of his ways, and wishes to make amends.

Kobb’s good mood is spoiled somewhat by Constance’s gruff manner when he and Gears return. She bids him to accompany her while she goes to speak with the Eels. Along the way, they stop in Charhollow (as it’s one of the most convenient places to dispose of a body), and she explains to him the graveness of using her name without her leave. She warns him that if he does anything like that again, she will kill him. He indicates his understanding of the situation and promises it will never happen again.

They make their way to Cable Street in Coalridge and find one of the Eels’ lookouts begging on the corner. The girl immediately recognizes Constance, and leads her to an alley where Lillie Thomas is playing a dice game with several other children for peanuts. Constance speaks with Lillie, saying that the fire, while an effective distraction, was a bit more destructive than she had been hoping for. For the favor that Kobb promised her, Lillie asks that Constance take on one of the Eels who is growing older, and is no longer as effective as a member of a children’s gang. Constance agrees. Lillie mentions that Merrill has promised to send her to school when she tires of running the gang, and Constance advises her to take him up on it, as well as to stash away Coin for her eventual retirement.

On their way back, Constance tells Kobb to take her to see Bryl. She buys Kobb’s debt from the man, and instructs him to never sell drugs to Kobb again. Bryl is happy to be rid of him.

Upon returning to the Bucket, there’s a party for Kobb, and later on Constance gives him a tour of the factory and the upper floors.

Notes:

Kobb’s first job. It went pretty well. His engagement roll came up a 6, so everything went exactly according to plan. He had two opposed clocks, one for stalling Dacio for long enough to rob his house, and the other was for Dacio’s suspicion level. Successfully completing the stalling clock gave an extra die on the engagement roll for the burglary.

For the robbery, there was only one clock, a countdown for when the fire brigade would arrive. Kamali and Gears essentially had 8 turns to do stuff until the extra attention would make things awkward. Also, even with the extra dice, their engagement was a 4, so everything they did in the vicinity of the building on fire was Risky by default.

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 50! (January 18 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 50! (January 18 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 50! (January 18 2017)

Preparation for the New Guy Try-Before-You-Buy:

Shade goes to Fitz’s antique shop in Six Towers to ask him if he’s heard anything about the clockwork bird. He hasn’t, but if he does, he will let the Dolls know.

Gears heads up to Brightstone to see Basran (their luxury fence), who says he was indeed approached by Dacio, but that they were unable to agree on a price. Dacio seems to be unwilling to budge on his rather unrealistic demands.

Kobb goes to Coalridge, to look up his drug dealer “friend” Bryl, to whom he owes a great deal of money. Bryl is not happy to see him, and mentions that the only reason he hasn’t broken Kobb’s legs is because he has a niece on the City Council, and Bryl doesn’t want that kind of heat. Kobb manages to get him to give up a rundown of the major players in Coalridge, but Bryl demands 10% off the top of whatever job he’s planning in exchange for the info. Only the Eels (having recently migrated from Charhollow) are of any note (Bryl has not come across the Lost as of yet). The rest are about half a dozen unnamed crews (Tier 0). Dacio doesn’t seem to have any outstanding allies or enemies. Most seem to prefer to simply steer clear of him.

Kobb goes to find the Eels. After pacing up and down the street where they’re supposedly easiest to find, he eventually is approached by a young boy of about 5. Kobb says he’s looking for the Eels. The boy doesn’t say anything, but heads into an alley. Kobb follows, and soon finds himself surrounded by street kids. The way back out to the street is blocked by three children, the oldest of whom is a girl of about 13 or 14, whose hair is a veritable rat’s nest that looks as tough it’s never been combed in her life. Kobb comes very close to having his shoes and coat buttons stolen, but he manages to convince the kids that he’s working with Constance, to whom they seem to be well disposed. The girl knows Dacio, and doesn’t like him. The kids are open to the idea of helping Kobb and the Dolls rob Dacio, but they want something in return. It almost all goes wrong when he offers to pay them afterward (with no assurances of anything up front), but when he promises a favor from Constance, one of the younger boys gets the girl’s attention, inadvertently mentioning her name (Lillie), and whispers in her ear, after which she is more than happy to help provide a distraction while the Dolls break into Dacio’s apartment.

After Shade and Gears return and deliver their reports, Constance sends Kamali and Gloves to Coalridge. Gloves heads up and knocks on Dacio’s apartment door, presenting himself as an agent of a wealthy merchant who is interested in purchasing the clockwork bird. Meanwhile, Kamali heads around back and climbs one of the neighboring buildings to get a good look in Dacio’s back window. After vaulting across to the building itself and lowering herself on a rope down to the window, she gets a good look at the back room, which contains four strongboxes secured with combination locks. She does some mental calculations, and is worried to discover that there is a distinct possibility that the Coin resulting from this job could come up seriously short if those boxes are not all full. She ducks back out of sight as the door to the room opens, and is gone before anyone can catch her spying on the place. She meets up with Gloves out front, and they head over to Nightmarket for some proper food. He helps her fill out the sketch of Dacio’s apartment.

Kobb returns to the Bucket and gives his report. He mentions that he promised Lillie a favor (and Constance is not happy that he used her name), but he doesn’t mention that he promised Bryl 10% off the top.

Kamali presents her map of Dacio’s apartment, detailing a plan to run a line down to the street, to send items out the window and down to a waiting agent in the alley below. Gloves admits that he was so taken aback by Dacio’s audacious demand of 10 Coin for the bird that he forgot to actually get a look at the thing. He promises to go back in the morning with assurances from his employer that the price is acceptable, and to make arrangements for a meeting.

Boots gets the idea to disguise Kobb as the buyer after finding out that Dacio only saw him the one time, and the two don’t actually know each other very well. The fake transaction will get Dacio out of the apartment, and with the Eels providing a distraction for his hired goons, the place will be ripe for the picking.

Notes:

This was Session 50, and the previous Friday was the 1 year anniversary of this campaign. We celebrated with dodgy sticks, meat pies, parsnip & cabbage soup, and no small amount of alcohol.

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 49 (January 11 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 49 (January 11 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 49 (January 11 2017)

Flashback – One week ago:

The crew is at the Bucket when they receive an expertly written note via courier:

——————————————————–

To: Constance, Chief of the Porcelain Dolls, Crow’s Foot, Doskvol, Akoros

Circumstances have aligned themselves in such a manner that I find myself once more within the confines of this great city.

I hereby request the honor of your company, at a time and place of your convenience, to discuss the well-being and education of Aleira Baz.

I can be contacted at the Altamont Hotel in Brightstone. Please respond forthwith.

Sincerely,

Mylera Klev, First Sword of the Royal Academy of the Red Sash

By the grace of His Excellency Hassan the XVII, Sultan of Bright Harbor, Iruvia

——————————————————–

Everyone knows the Altamont Hotel, although none of them have ever been there. It’s spoken of with the same hushed tones of awe as the Waldorf Astoria. Constance gets as dressed up as she can and brings Gloves with her to the hotel.

The Altamont is easily as large as City Hall, but much more extravagantly decorated. On its marble facade are dozens of statues of various figures in the empire’s history, including the Weeping Lady and the Immortal Emperor himself. Once inside, they are dazzled by the sheer size of the lobby. Gloves leads Constance over to a reception desk, and they ask for Mylera. The clerk checks a ledger, sees that they are expected, and has someone usher them into the dining hall.

Mylera sits alone at one of the dozen large dining tables, dressed more elegantly than ever before. Constance makes a point of coming right up to her to shake hands, and Mylera takes it in stride. They sit, and discuss Mylera’s intention to bring Aleria back with her to Iruvia, to begin her education. During this, a lavish meal is served. Constance charges Gloves with sending a crow to the crew to retrieve the girl immediately. By the time they’ve finished their meal, Prichard and Aleira arrive (also as well dressed as they can manage). Constance introduces them, and Aleira mentions that her father used to call Mylera very bad names. Dessert is served, slices of cake with very elaborately crafted icing, which leaves Aleira (and Constance) unsure of how to proceed. Gloves saves the day by showing them the correct fork to use. Prichard informs Constance that Aleira’s luggage has been sent to Mylera’s suite. Mylera is set to depart for Iruvia on the morning train. Aleria says goodbye to Uncle Albert (Prichard), and as Constance is walking out, Mylera is seen conspiring with Aleira to order seconds on the cake.

Interlude:

Back in the present, the morning paper reveals that Luther Curtis was found dead on his boat. Constance is concerned, as this is almost certainly evidence that Ellsworth is still alive and active. Before anything else can be done in that regard, Gears arrives with a message sent via crow from Sabine Lyness, addressed to him, but asking that Constance visit her office when convenient.

Constance and Gears head across the bridge to City Hall, and are ushered into Sabine’s office. While Gears’ attention is once again drawn to Sabine’s collection of clockwork sculptures, Sabine addresses Constance. She notes that Constance is healing quite rapidly from the event at the boxing club. Constance says that Sabine is always welcome at the establishment.

Getting down to business, Sabine expresses her intention call in the favor the Dolls owe her for her assistance in getting Lady Drake appointed. She mentions that her uncle Kobb Lyness has been more than a passing inconvenience. After the death of her grandfather, Kobb managed to squander his portion of the family fortune, and made a habit of selling off his father’s work to anyone who cared to show any interest. As a result, Sabine has had to expend no small amount of time and effort to reacquire the pieces that now grace her collection. In short, she wants Constance to do something productive with Kobb, she doesn’t much care what. Boxing club, the Moon’s Daughter, or any of Constance’s other business concerns. It becomes clear that Sabine either doesn’t know about the Dolls’ extralegal activities, or is very carefully not mentioning them. Constance asks why she cares, and Sabine responds that Kobb is still family, and she still holds a fondness for him, despite his efforts to vex her at every turn. A debt is a debt, so Constance agrees. Sabine gives them an address where Kobb can be found, and a letter addressed to him directly. She also mentions that there are certain of her grandfather’s pieces that have not yet made it back into her possession, and she hints that she will pay handsomely for any assistance in that regard.

They find Kobb in a flophouse in Charhollow. After giving him a moment to dress, Constance gives him the letter from his niece. In it, Sabine berates Kobb thoroughly, but advises him to straighten himself out and he can still make something of his life.

Constance brings Kobb to meet the rest of the crew. Everyone is introduced, and Constance immediately sets the task of engineering a profitable job for the crew. She essentially makes him chief for the duration, but he has 48 hours to turn a profit, or he will be dealt with (Constance’s penchant for throwing people out of windows was mentioned).

Kobb chooses as his target a clockwork bird made by his father, that was sold to Dacio Fantin, a low-level thug in Coalridge (Tier 0). If the crew can retrieve it and deliver it to Sabine, she will certainly compensate them accordingly. Whatever else the crew can steal from Dacio in the process would be pure profit.

* Shade will talk to Fitz, and Gears will talk to Basran, to see if either of them knows of anyone trading in these items.

* Kobb will feel out the other gangs in the area, to see what their relationship with Dacio’s crew is like.

* Kamali will case Dacio’s residence to get the general layout.

* Gloves will talk to Dacio to get a sense of his financial situation.

Notes:

Kobb is a new PC. When the player said he wanted a character that had squandered his family fortune and whose father had been a brilliant scientist, I knew exactly who to tie him to.

Also, I had prepared an actual handout of Mylera’s invite this time around.

http://www.burnafterreadingpress.com/news/wp-content/uploads/Invite.png

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 48 (January 04 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 48 (January 04 2017)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 48 (January 04 2017)

While Kamali is in Silkshore, Constance and Gears go to visit Emmet Taylor at his home in Dunslough. On the way, she asks him about the nature of his work, asking if it’s his intention to raise the dead. Gears explains that he wants to learn how the body works, and how to replace the body with metal (either in part or in whole). Constance advises him to let Kamali assist him.

At Taylor’s house, they are confronted by a Bluecoat guard at the front door. After some resistance, she convinces him to go speak to Taylor on her behalf. After a few minutes, the guard comes back and ushers them into a waiting room.

A few minutes later, Lord Taylor himself comes into the room. Constance introduces herself and Gears, and explains that they are acquaintances of Lady Drake. Taylor expresses some distaste at the mention of her name, and Constance asks for clarification. He corroborates Lady Drake’s story, that he feels she was responsible for no small amount of financial loss due to her influence over her late husband’s business decisions. He states his belief that women are over sentimental, and thus unsuited for business. Constance does a fantastic job of keeping her cool. She expresses her differing belief that what’s important in business (and governance) is the proper application of authority, looming just a bit while she does so.She and Gears manage to pique Taylor’s interest by mentioning the boxing club, as well as an offer to get in on the ground floor investing in the Skovlan shipping company, and thus secure his vote for Lady Drake.

On the afternoon of the vote, news quickly circulates that Lady Naria Drake was appointed councilor for Charterhall. In addition, Ward Kirkham was appointed councilor for Crow’s Foot, and Vincio Caserta was appointed councilor for Charhollow. The councilors who voted for Lady Drake are Ettore Rodia, Kent Hansen, Sabine Lyness, Tobias Norgaard, Kabeer Wakim, and Emmet Taylor.

Invitations are sent to Lady Drake and the councilors who voted for her to attend a private event at the boxing club that evening. Gears takes some time to make a brooch out of metal in the shape of a rose, and sends it with the invitation to Sabine.

That evening, everyone gathers at the boxing club. Lord Rodia, Lady Drake, Lady Lyness, and Lord Taylor show up. Lord Wakim sends a well-written note politely declining, Lord Hansen sends a terse note indicating simply that he’s busy, and Lord Norgaard doesn’t bother sending a note at all. Lady Drake promises to have some choice words with Arnold Beckham and Alda Monaghan at a later date.

Constance spends the majority of the evening watching the interactions between the councilors, and eventually ends up getting a good sense of which ones get along and which ones don’t. It’s made difficult by the fact that on the face of it, they are all very polite and cordial to each other.

After the scheduled roster of fights is over, Constance takes off her jacket and has Gloves announce that she is challenging all the boxers at once. The six men take to the ring, and Constance manages to take them all down (including Sam, the proprietor of Sam’s Pub, and his nephew), but not before she suffers a broken nose and collarbone.

Aftermath:

Rep: 5 (for dealing with the Doskvol City Council)

Heat: 1 (there was the barest minimum of illegal activity involved)

Coin: 0

Entanglement: Rivals. We’ll see what happens with the Ink Rakes next session.

Downtime:

Constance reduces Heat, and Stress. She also spends Coin to Heal, allowing Gears to take care of her broken nose and collarbone.

Gears: Finishes the project to mount the cannon on the cart. We also start up a couple of new projects. There’s an overarching project associated with his Vice, tentatively called “The Big Idea”. Each segment on this clock represents a smaller 6-segment clock that will cover one specific aspect of his obsession. We’ll work out exactly what those are when he gets to them, but they’ll be things like “Fashion a clockwork body that is capable of autonomous movement”, or “develop clockwork hands with sufficient dexterity to rival those of a human”, and so on. The ultimate end goal is the invention of a Hull (which don’t exist yet in my campaign, except as myths and legends from previous lost civilizations).

Kamali: Heals the psychic damage from being shot in the face by a ghostly pistol several sessions ago, and Trains Prowess.

The Moon’s Daughter and the boxing club generate a total of 12 Coin (it’s nice to be Tier 2).

Notes:

I’ve implemented the Healing house rules mentioned earlier in this community. Instead of the normal 8-segment project clock for healing Rank 2 and 3 Injuries, I use a 4-segment clock. When you take an action to Heal, completing the clock drops the Injury by one Rank. A Rank 2 Injury becomes Rank 1 (and thus will heal automatically on the next Heal action), a Rank 3 Injury becomes Rank 2 (and thus starts another 4-segement healing clock). When an Injury drops in Rank, reword it to reflect that some healing is happening (broken nose becomes bruised face, etc). The practical upshot of this is the Rank 2 Injuries take less time to heal than in the normal 7.1 rules (one 4-segment clock and an additional action vs. one 8-segment clock), and Rank 3 Injuries take slightly more time (two 4-segment clocks and an additional action vs. one 8-segment clock).

#dontmesswiththedolls

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 47 (December 28 2016)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 47 (December 28 2016)

The Porcelain Dolls: Session 47 (December 28 2016)

Constance discusses the Doskvol City Council members with Lady Drake:

* Ellsworth Dunne (Charhollow): Missing.

* Matthias Brogan (Charterhall): Arrested and convicted of treason, currently in Ironhook.

* Hosea Cawley (Crow’s Foot): Dead, courtesy of the Strays (at Ellsworth’s behest).

* Ettore Rodia (Nightmarket): In Constance’s pocket.

* Arnold Beckham (Whitecrown): Possibly favorable.

* Kent Hansen (Coalridge): Possibly favorable.

* Alda Monaghan (Brightstone): Possibly favorable.

* Sabine Lyness (Six Towers): Complete unknown. Appointed shortly before Lord Brogan was arrested.

* Kabeer Wakim (Silkshore): Not likely favorable, for cultural reasons.

* Gomberto Santoli (Barrowcleft): Not likely favorable, for political reasons.

* Tobias Norgaard (The Docks): Not likely favorable, for cultural reasons.

* Emmet Taylor (Dunslough): Not likely favorable, for personal reasons (which Lady Drake is initially unwilling to divulge).

Santoli’s issues with Lady Drake have entirely to do with his disapproval of some of the decisions she’s made in court. He believes her to be entirely too lenient on crime.

Norgaard was appointed at the behest of the Skovlan Consulate 10 years ago, against his wishes. He does his job, but he’s not happy about it, and he’s not happy that he has to deal every day with the Akorosi that subjugated his people. However, his sense of duty has thus far overridden his desire to go home.

Wakim is a truly rare thing in this world: an idealist. He really believes he can make a difference in his adopted city. However, the numerous racially motivated incidents in Silkshore have taken their toll. His resolve has been weakened, and he has been growing increasingly intolerant. The attack on the butcher shop has not helped matters at all.

Constance presses the issue of the personal grudge involving Lord Taylor. At first Lady Drake advises Constance to leave it alone, and insists simply that Taylor will not be swayed. When Constance threatens to walk out on the whole affair, Lady Drake reluctantly confesses that Taylor had some business dealings with the late Lord Drake, and it didn’t end well. It becomes clear that the botched investment is the reason for Lady Drake’s diminished financial state, but she assures Constance that the debt has been paid. However, Taylor blames Lady Drake for influencing her husband in certain decisions. Taylor is a traditionalist, and believes that women have no place in business (much less government). Constance determines that Lady Drake’s reluctance to speak stems from the pain she feels at the mention of her late husband.

Lady Drake agrees to speak to Rodia, Beckham, Hansen, and Monaghan to secure their votes. Constance agrees to look into the rest.

The crew holds a meeting, and Constance doles out the assignments:

* The Skovlanders (specifically Markus and Clermont) will be dispatched to work on Norgaard, and offer him a share in the shipping company.

* Gears will approach Sabine Lyness. Constance gives him a Coin to grease the wheels, and authorizes him to promise more, as long as it doesn’t get out of hand.

* Kamali will approach Wakim, and appeal to him as a fellow Iruvian.

* Constance will speak to Taylor herself.

Gather Info:

Constance goes to Dunslough, but at the Devil’s Tooth, the bartender says that Markus is currently at work. Constance decides that work is work, and you don’t interrupt a man while he’s working. Instead she goes to Charterhall and visits Clermont at his office in the Skovlan Consulate. She lays out the plan to get Lady Drake appointed to the Council, and asks him to speak to Lord Norgaard on her behalf, and offer him a stake in the shipping company in return. Clermont agrees to speak to Norgaard that afternoon.

Gears goes to City Hall to speak to Lady Sabine. Her office is adorned with several intricate clockwork mechanisms, and these immediately draw Gears’ attention. It turns out that Sabine is the granddaughter of Benedict Lyness, a famous inventor. The conversation ends up going very well, and Sabine agrees to vote for Lady Drake, but Gears gives away a little more about the business than he should when he mentions the Moon’s Daughter (Devil’s Bargain). It is hinted that Sabine is agreeable to Gears returning at a later date to take a closer look at her grandfather’s work.

Kamali visits Lord Wakim at his residence that night, a surprisingly humble townhouse in Silkshore, which is decorated quite traditionally. She gives him a letter “written” by Constance. It asks that he vote for Lady Drake, and in return Constance offers to eliminate an enemy of his choice. He’s impressed by the eloquence of the letter, and speculates that Constance was educated at an Iruvian school, which Kamali inwardly finds quite amusing. His primary concern regarding Lady Drake is her stance on social policy. He asks if Lady Drake would be open to working with him to help improve relations between their two cultures, and Kamali responds in the affirmative.

Wakim seems agreeable to the idea of voting for Lady Drake. However, he is unwilling to accept Constance’s offer of a blatantly illegal act, as he believes that justice is the province of the courts and the council, not of the streets. Kamali indicates the city around them, and he responds that he knows all too well the way of things, and thus is not offended by the offer itself. However, he insists that if he were to lower himself to such level, he would lose all hope of maintaining the proper rule of law. She is taken by surprise, as he seems to genuinely believe what he’s saying, and may possibly be the most idealistic person she’s ever met. She speculates that if her father had been like him, her life would have turned out quite differently.

Kamali takes the letter back and writes at the bottom another passage from the Book of Light: “Let he who has been given a crown and permitted to rule in the world of men dispense justice with my wisdom.” In light of this, Wakim acknowledges that even the courts are fallible, and justice may occasionally require outside assistance. If there were (for example) someone who had faced the courts for some heinous crime but was freed on a technicality, then perhaps Constance and her crew could provide a service in the name of justice after all.

Notes:

It’s become apparent that all of Kamali’s problems stem from how she relates to older men.

Also, Doskvol is not a democracy. The City Council appoints new members themselves (one for each neighborhood), but they are ostensibly answerable to the Lord Governor, who is ostensibly answerable to the Immortal Emperor. However, everyone is usually quite happy to take a fairly hands off approach, so long as the taxes roll on regularly.

More background on Iruvian history and the Book of Light to come.

#dontmesswiththedolls