Friday Night Game Report - Coriolis - The Third Horizon RPG Session 9
Last night, the Friday night gaming group continued playing in the Coriolis - The Third Horizon campaign that they've got going on. You can read about the previous game session by following the link. This post is somewhat long, so I've put it behind a cut for those who don't want to read about my roleplaying game campaigns.
CHARACTERS
Naima Saab (KathyB) - Trailblazer (Scout)
Hafisa darRouash (Angela) - Pilot (Freighter Pilot)
Zouma Abid-Arif (Ellie) - Stowaway/Ship Worker (Engineer)
Moustafa Harouz (DavidM) - Negotiator (Peddler)
Tafik Sharoun (Mark) - Scientist (Archaeologist)
First Triad, Dancer Segment, Day 12, CC 58
Failing to dodge her attacker, Naima Saab tries to roll with the impact and is relatively successful [she takes 2 Damage Points]. She attempts to use the attacker's momentum against them and is able to dislodge her opponent, rolling away. Zouma Abid-Arif draws her dura knife, while Sumala Fadros cowers against the nearest wall. The attacker turns out to be a young boy, likely a street urchin, Kef, who tells them after everyone calms down that he was merely exercising his prerogative to rob a house that had obviously been broken into. Once they are convinced Kef is telling the truth, Naima lets him go his own way, but she retrieves her 50Birr tag that he attempted to pickpocket from her during the "attack". Naima and Zouma enter the building, a cautious Sumala bringing up the rear.
Back at the Foundation rep's office, Tafik Sharoun asks Sariha Milmasine if she has any of the data from the archaeological dig that Professor ibn Salumar was working at. She tells him she doesn't, saying that her representative, Hamid al-Fazoulis, hasn't yet returned from the dig with his initial report. Moustafa Harouz knows that she's lying to him [he spends a Darkness Point to make the Empathy check]. He gives Tafik a speculative look, and the two player characters say goodbye to the Foundation rep and leave her office. She says that she'll expect their call when they're ready to head out to the archaeological dig. They discuss what happened in the office, and Moustafa speculates that she's lying, given what Sumala Fadros told them; Milmasine is either double-crossing the Foundation (and in cahoots with the Colonial Agency) or something else is going on that they don't know about. Either way, they need to make preparations for going to the bin Salumar dig site.
Back aboard the Ruby Flower, Hafisa darRouash is conducting ship tests and checks when Scherza informs her there is a message incoming from Mira Station. The message is from Dr. Asima Siwaal of the Colonial Agency, and the crew's Patron, and informs them that since they are currently at Mira Station, there are two cargo runs they can make, either back to Coriolis or on the Miran route at Tarazug (which lies dangerously close to the Odacon system). She expects them to decide which job offer to accept and to get back to her before they leave the Mira system.
Back at Hamid al-Fazoulis's home, Naima, Zouma and Sumala Fadros find that the place has been trashed completely. Based on her experience, Zouma tells Naima that she can't tell for sure how many people did this, but it was a professional job. The three women cautiously search through the house, but find no evidence of foul play occurring to Hamid. Sumala says she can't tell whether anything has been taken or not (since her most recent visit to his home), though Naima notices that Sumala is nervous about something. After some quick talking and questioning on Naima's part, Sumala admits that she and Hamid were lovers during the archaeological dig, and that he was always scared of something. Naima's scout's eye notices that one of the cupboards appears to be missing stuff, though there's no real trashing there. Sumala tells her that it's his expedition gear. She has no idea where it is. The three women leave Hamid's house, just before the authorities arrive there.
Returning to the Ruby Flower, the player characters bring each other up-to-date on what they've learned. Tafik tells the others that it's time they visit Professor Darfal ibn Salumar's dig site, and he makes the arrangements with the Foundation office for the sub-orbital shuttle transport. He asks Hafisa if she can fly one of those vehicles, and she tells him she can. "Good," he says, "because I told them that we'd take the shuttle to the archaeological dig site ourselves." The others are surprised, but he just touches his hand to his nose in reply. Moustafa tells the others that until they're ready to leave Mira proper, he's not going to look at the two cargo job offers that Asima Siwaal has suggested for them. First things first.
The next morning, after spending a night at the Miran Arms Hotel (since the crew decided they didn't want to stay on the ship when they could breathe actual atmosphere), the player characters go about some business and learn what they can about the social and political situation on Mira. It's not good, and Tafik realises that the timing on Professor ibn Salumar's dig could not have come at a worse time. The characters and Sumala along with Blake Harold board the sub-orbital shuttle that Sariha Milmasine has put at their disposal, stowing some gear that they figure they'll need with them in the Miran "outlands". Hafisa pilots the shuttle flawlessly according to the navigation coordinates provided by the Foundation offices, and the player characters are soon on their way to the ibn Salumar archaeological dig site.
Several hours later, the player characters arrive at the site of Professor ibn Salumar's dig site, to find it...lifeless. The surface ruins seem to be intact and while there's some animal life in the area, Naima tells the others that the sensors aren't finding any humanoid life at all. She says that she's suspicious of the results, as there are some "sensor ghosts" in her readings that she can't explain. Searching for a landing site, Moustafa tells Hafisa to land the shuttle within walking distance of the archaeological dig site, as they don't want to disturb anything. Hafisa locates a good site, within half a kilometre of the camp buildings, and brings the shuttle down without a bump or a scrape.
The various characters descend into the oppressive, dry heat of the southern continent, and Moustafa asks the others if they're now glad that he made them pick up certain clothes and gear for the trip to the dig site. The others merely grumble in reply, only Tafik and Zouma feeling comfortable in the oppressive climate. Making sure they've got their weapons and equipment properly ordered, the group are led by Naima in the direction of the archaeological dig, her scanner held in front of her. As they reach the site of the archaeological dig, they see that the habitat structures have been ransacked and seemingly torn to pieces. Tafik looks around worriedly, pointing out that they're a long way from civilisation. As the characters wander the area, Blake Harold is the first to spot the tell-tale signs that they're not alone. Half a dozen robed individuals, carrying weapons of various type step out from the ruined buildings and their surroundings, telling the player characters, Sumala, and Blake to stand very, very still.
Last night's gaming session of the Coriolis - The Third Horizon Friday night game campaign was quite a lot of fun, and to be honest, very relaxing for me. The players did some excellent roleplaying that put them on the right track (with a couple of red herrings thrown in for good measure), and I was pretty happy with the Darkness Points expenditures balance throughout the session. The next game session will likely be the wrap-up of the Coriolis - The Third Horizon game for a bit on Friday nights, as the players are quite eager to play The Dark Eye after we wrap up the Coriolis scenario.
In the meantime, I'm looking forward to next week's game session.
CHARACTERS
Naima Saab (KathyB) - Trailblazer (Scout)
Hafisa darRouash (Angela) - Pilot (Freighter Pilot)
Zouma Abid-Arif (Ellie) - Stowaway/Ship Worker (Engineer)
Moustafa Harouz (DavidM) - Negotiator (Peddler)
Tafik Sharoun (Mark) - Scientist (Archaeologist)
First Triad, Dancer Segment, Day 12, CC 58
Failing to dodge her attacker, Naima Saab tries to roll with the impact and is relatively successful [she takes 2 Damage Points]. She attempts to use the attacker's momentum against them and is able to dislodge her opponent, rolling away. Zouma Abid-Arif draws her dura knife, while Sumala Fadros cowers against the nearest wall. The attacker turns out to be a young boy, likely a street urchin, Kef, who tells them after everyone calms down that he was merely exercising his prerogative to rob a house that had obviously been broken into. Once they are convinced Kef is telling the truth, Naima lets him go his own way, but she retrieves her 50Birr tag that he attempted to pickpocket from her during the "attack". Naima and Zouma enter the building, a cautious Sumala bringing up the rear.
Back at the Foundation rep's office, Tafik Sharoun asks Sariha Milmasine if she has any of the data from the archaeological dig that Professor ibn Salumar was working at. She tells him she doesn't, saying that her representative, Hamid al-Fazoulis, hasn't yet returned from the dig with his initial report. Moustafa Harouz knows that she's lying to him [he spends a Darkness Point to make the Empathy check]. He gives Tafik a speculative look, and the two player characters say goodbye to the Foundation rep and leave her office. She says that she'll expect their call when they're ready to head out to the archaeological dig. They discuss what happened in the office, and Moustafa speculates that she's lying, given what Sumala Fadros told them; Milmasine is either double-crossing the Foundation (and in cahoots with the Colonial Agency) or something else is going on that they don't know about. Either way, they need to make preparations for going to the bin Salumar dig site.
Back aboard the Ruby Flower, Hafisa darRouash is conducting ship tests and checks when Scherza informs her there is a message incoming from Mira Station. The message is from Dr. Asima Siwaal of the Colonial Agency, and the crew's Patron, and informs them that since they are currently at Mira Station, there are two cargo runs they can make, either back to Coriolis or on the Miran route at Tarazug (which lies dangerously close to the Odacon system). She expects them to decide which job offer to accept and to get back to her before they leave the Mira system.
Back at Hamid al-Fazoulis's home, Naima, Zouma and Sumala Fadros find that the place has been trashed completely. Based on her experience, Zouma tells Naima that she can't tell for sure how many people did this, but it was a professional job. The three women cautiously search through the house, but find no evidence of foul play occurring to Hamid. Sumala says she can't tell whether anything has been taken or not (since her most recent visit to his home), though Naima notices that Sumala is nervous about something. After some quick talking and questioning on Naima's part, Sumala admits that she and Hamid were lovers during the archaeological dig, and that he was always scared of something. Naima's scout's eye notices that one of the cupboards appears to be missing stuff, though there's no real trashing there. Sumala tells her that it's his expedition gear. She has no idea where it is. The three women leave Hamid's house, just before the authorities arrive there.
Returning to the Ruby Flower, the player characters bring each other up-to-date on what they've learned. Tafik tells the others that it's time they visit Professor Darfal ibn Salumar's dig site, and he makes the arrangements with the Foundation office for the sub-orbital shuttle transport. He asks Hafisa if she can fly one of those vehicles, and she tells him she can. "Good," he says, "because I told them that we'd take the shuttle to the archaeological dig site ourselves." The others are surprised, but he just touches his hand to his nose in reply. Moustafa tells the others that until they're ready to leave Mira proper, he's not going to look at the two cargo job offers that Asima Siwaal has suggested for them. First things first.
The next morning, after spending a night at the Miran Arms Hotel (since the crew decided they didn't want to stay on the ship when they could breathe actual atmosphere), the player characters go about some business and learn what they can about the social and political situation on Mira. It's not good, and Tafik realises that the timing on Professor ibn Salumar's dig could not have come at a worse time. The characters and Sumala along with Blake Harold board the sub-orbital shuttle that Sariha Milmasine has put at their disposal, stowing some gear that they figure they'll need with them in the Miran "outlands". Hafisa pilots the shuttle flawlessly according to the navigation coordinates provided by the Foundation offices, and the player characters are soon on their way to the ibn Salumar archaeological dig site.
Several hours later, the player characters arrive at the site of Professor ibn Salumar's dig site, to find it...lifeless. The surface ruins seem to be intact and while there's some animal life in the area, Naima tells the others that the sensors aren't finding any humanoid life at all. She says that she's suspicious of the results, as there are some "sensor ghosts" in her readings that she can't explain. Searching for a landing site, Moustafa tells Hafisa to land the shuttle within walking distance of the archaeological dig site, as they don't want to disturb anything. Hafisa locates a good site, within half a kilometre of the camp buildings, and brings the shuttle down without a bump or a scrape.
The various characters descend into the oppressive, dry heat of the southern continent, and Moustafa asks the others if they're now glad that he made them pick up certain clothes and gear for the trip to the dig site. The others merely grumble in reply, only Tafik and Zouma feeling comfortable in the oppressive climate. Making sure they've got their weapons and equipment properly ordered, the group are led by Naima in the direction of the archaeological dig, her scanner held in front of her. As they reach the site of the archaeological dig, they see that the habitat structures have been ransacked and seemingly torn to pieces. Tafik looks around worriedly, pointing out that they're a long way from civilisation. As the characters wander the area, Blake Harold is the first to spot the tell-tale signs that they're not alone. Half a dozen robed individuals, carrying weapons of various type step out from the ruined buildings and their surroundings, telling the player characters, Sumala, and Blake to stand very, very still.
Last night's gaming session of the Coriolis - The Third Horizon Friday night game campaign was quite a lot of fun, and to be honest, very relaxing for me. The players did some excellent roleplaying that put them on the right track (with a couple of red herrings thrown in for good measure), and I was pretty happy with the Darkness Points expenditures balance throughout the session. The next game session will likely be the wrap-up of the Coriolis - The Third Horizon game for a bit on Friday nights, as the players are quite eager to play The Dark Eye after we wrap up the Coriolis scenario.
In the meantime, I'm looking forward to next week's game session.