DreadStormers [IC]

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by TGLS

Well, on one hand, the food store on 19 is pretty isolated. On the other, it would be pretty silly to waste an otherwise perfectly good store of food because the door is stuck.

Huh, food on deck 19 is pretty isolated. But it still has multiple doors, and they will get the door unstuck eventually.

Floor 19: Staged Collapse: toss all the flour out of the boxes and then cause all the shelving to collapse.

Interesting... That's going to be tons of flour. We're talking about enough grain to feed 700 men for a month on just flour. Thats 21,000 man-days of food-stuff, or around 10.5 tons. You've also got some pasta to take care of while you're at it. Its not an impossibly large job, but it will take some good hard work.

Floor 18: Flood Food Storage: if the flour box sets are water permeable, then it should be just a matter of keeping the door open and pumping the water in.

There will be a water-resistant lining on the boxes. That's standard food storage. The packaging would need to be compromised first.

Floor 17: Arson: in a high traffic area (there's an elevator there), it's probably best to do something that won't take a real long time.


Could I use Observation or something to check whether there's a higher degree of fire suppression, at least near the food stores?

Traps to analyze the fire suppression, Observation to not look like you are observing.

[TGLS]

Originally Posted by ericthered

There will be a water-resistant lining on the boxes. That's standard food storage. The packaging would need to be compromised first.

Better get a box cutter.

Originally Posted by ericthered

Interesting... That's going to be tons of flour. We're talking about enough grain to feed 700 men for a month on just flour. Thats 21,000 man-days of food-stuff, or around 10.5 tons. You've also got some pasta to take care of while you're at it. Its not an impossibly large job, but it will take some good hard work.

Hm... Will need to figure out how well sound travels though a compartment too. Don't want to be climbing a shelving rack and get someone coming to check what's making the racket. Depending on the bag size and whether we're talking short, long, or metric tons, this would be ~500 units? Would need to work real fast; maybe toss all the flour off the racks then slice everything that didn't split? Maybe slice all the flour then break it down?

Originally Posted by ericthered

Traps to analyze the fire suppression, Observation to not look like you are observing.

Let's go ahead with that then:

[27] 20-08-26 05:14:33 CEST
And now avoid detection (Observation)
3d6 <= 13 (5 + 5 + 6 = 16 ... failure)

[26] 20-08-26 05:13:58 CEST
Right, let's analyze the fire suppression (Traps)
3d6 <= 13 (4 + 3 + 2 = 9 ... success)

Well, call that a qualified success.

--

I'm starting to get the impression that trying to make this look like an accident might be unworkable.

[GnomesofZurich]

Originally Posted by ericthered

Down on deck 19, the enertainment is really only getting started. There are a few games of chance, most dice-based. A lot of the people here are the ones who will actually run things later on, and they're busy discussing who goes where and will be doing what. Over a few friendly wagers, of course.

One ship's tradition is to bet on things that will happen, and one fellow, a short guy from transport, is taking bets on how long until the ship sees combat.

Pothi is scoping things out and making small talk. There seem to be spacers from all over the ship, but there are no officers. There ARE a few folks from morale, and one guy from security.

Day will join Pothi and get introduced to some of the other crew.

[28] 20-08-26 13:00:02 CEST -

Carousing to get on with the other crew

3d6 <= 12
1 + 5 + 5 = 11 ... success

[29] 20-08-26 13:01:27 CEST

Acting to avoid security/morale crew members without looking like I'm avoiding them.

3d6 <= 14
4 + 6 + 2 = 12 ... success

He'll also jump into a dice game when he sees an opening.

[30] 20-08-26 13:02:52 CEST -

Gambling

3d6 <= 15
2 + 6 + 5 = 13 ... success

Observing the wagers being placed on when they will first see combat, Day asks Pothi, "So, what do you think? Two weeks? Three?"

Edit: How accessible are the kitchens for the mess Day eats in? Now that his powers are returning, he was thinking of stopping in to thank them for the wonderful cooking, and take the opportunity to point out, with Suggestion, that the flour is "contaminated with rat droppings", and the cook had best throw it out. Just wondering how viable that is to do.

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by TGLS

Hm... Will need to figure out how well sound travels though a compartment too. Don't want to be climbing a shelving rack and get someone coming to check what's making the racket. Depending on the bag size and whether we're talking short, long, or metric tons, this would be ~500 units? Would need to work real fast; maybe toss all the flour off the racks then slice everything that didn't split? Maybe slice all the flour then break it down?

Sound travels within compartments fairly well. Going from one to another is a lot more muffled, and it can be difficult to tell exactly how far away and what direction it came from. Note that 19 and 18 are directly under bunkrooms, while 17 is under a bathroom.



Yeah, 500 units sounds about right, depending on size. If we're talking about individual attention to each bag, splitting and then throwing, that's 5 to 10 seconds each. Just throwing them down might take 5 to 3 seconds. You're looking at 25 to 80 minutes here.

I'm starting to get the impression that trying to make this look like an accident might be unworkable.

If you hit all three flour stores? yes, that will not look like an accident. Even if it was a complete coincidence, it would make everyone suspicious and come up with wild theories.

Well, call that a qualified success.

The food stores are rigged with better fire-supression systems, mostly water. It is possible to arrange a failure in those, if needed, and they don't have backup systems other than manually getting out a hose.



the second time Hua passes by the food storage on their way to a destination, Botha brings it up. Not immediately, but while they're resting after unloading some bricks, Botha stands way too close to Hua, slaps her on the back and says "Is there some reason we keep driving by the provisions?"

[TGLS]

Originally Posted by ericthered

Note that 19 and 18 are directly under bunkrooms, while 17 is under a bathroom.

Hm. Got the ship upside down.

Originally Posted by ericthered

Sound travels within compartments fairly well. Going from one to another is a lot more muffled, and it can be difficult to tell exactly how far away and what direction it came from.
…
Yeah, 500 units sounds about right, depending on size. If we're talking about individual attention to each bag, splitting and then throwing, that's 5 to 10 seconds each. Just throwing them down might take 5 to 3 seconds. You're looking at 25 to 80 minutes here.

Hm… not something that I could do terribly subtly. Maybe I should just cut every bag and hope that it all ends up on the floor. Maybe rig up the sprinklers go off at the same time as I tumble everything down.

Originally Posted by ericthered

If you hit all three flour stores? yes, that will not look like an accident. Even if it was a complete coincidence, it would make everyone suspicious and come up with wild theories.

If I took out only one or two, could it be written off? Would taking out one or two have a meaningful consequence (i.e. would they be stretching it out, run through at regular pace and switch to pills, or what)? What kind of schedule are we operating on?

Originally Posted by ericthered

The second time Hua passes by the food storage on their way to a destination, Botha brings it up. Not immediately, but while they're resting after unloading some bricks, Botha stands way too close to Hua, slaps her on the back and says "Is there some reason we keep driving by the provisions?"

I pause carefully, then say, “The first time wasn’t for any reason in particular, but I thought I saw the canola oil wasn’t properly tied down. Didn’t want to raise a fuss if nothing was wrong, so I decided to pass by a second time, just to make sure. Turns out I was mistaken.”
So Fast-Talk with complementary Freight Handling roll:

[32] 20-08-28 06:26:35 CEST
Fast Talk
3d6 <= 14 = 3 + 5 + 4 = 12 ... success
[31] 20-08-28 06:26:12 CEST
Complementary Freight Handling
3d6 <= 14 = 6 + 2 + 4 = 12 ... success

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by GnomesofZurich

Day will join Pothi and get introduced to some of the other crew.

[rolls...]

Day slides right in. He doesn't have to fake enjoying himself: he's already in his element. He doesn't have to work hard to avoid the morale section: they get fawned over by other people. This night is slow, a warmup to what is to come.

Observing the wagers being placed on when they will first see combat, Day asks Pothi, "So, what do you think? Two weeks? Three?"

Pothi: "Two weeks? do you know something I don't? It should take us three just to get into position, and four until we have the possibility of seeing the enemy. If our captain is trigger happy, we might then see a few shots on week five, but I think we can make it until week eight before the maneuvers break down and we start shooting. And that will probably be a warning shot. We outnumber them pretty badly. I bet we can finish the war without getting into a real fight."


Pothi is a touch optimistic. Daymar , between being a competent navigator (which pothi doesn't know about) and having been briefed for the mission (which we should really hope pothi doesn't know about), knows this ship is built for hyperspace speed, and will probably see action in scouting duties almost as soon as they arrive on the front lines (week three to five). Of course, he also knows its going to be taken over by dreadstormers, so it either won't fire a shot (not with this crew) or its going to get into a fight very quickly.

Edit: How accessible are the kitchens for the mess Day eats in? Now that his powers are returning, he was thinking of stopping in to thank them for the wonderful cooking, and take the opportunity to point out, with Suggestion, that the flour is "contaminated with rat droppings", and the cook had best throw it out. Just wondering how viable that is to do.

The mess halls and their adjacent kitchens are highly accessible, being tucked in right next to bunks and bathrooms. The hardest part is getting the suggestion to all of the cooks who feed you (different cooks are on different shifts).

Telling a cook to throw out the flour is easy enough. You do have to deal with two of them (buddy system). A single use of suggestion will only last one meal.

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by TGLS

Hm. Got the ship upside down.

Oh, yeah, I suppose the ship is upside down, compared to a building. The top of the ship is floor 1, an it counts down from there. I was looking at ship designs when I designed it, and Ships count up or down from their main deck, which looks mostly like counting down from the top.

If we had a main deck, it would be three. That's where everything gets loaded in.

If I took out only one or two, could it be written off? Would taking out one or two have a meaningful consequence (i.e. would they be stretching it out, run through at regular pace and switch to pills, or what)? What kind of schedule are we operating on?

Taking out only one would be written off. Taking out two would raise suspicions, and increase precautions taken on the third. They've packed enough flour for three months. They might start stretching it if they lost some, but the extra food is mostly just in case. They figure if they delayed dreadstormers by three months the decisive battles of a war are likely to have occured anyways.

They've got enough pills to put in the food for another 3 months. If the ship stays out 6 months, they'll have switched to eating reprocessed food, and people will actually start complaining about actual slop. The flour is used as a suppressant source because its so much harder to destroy or swap discretely than a simple bottle of pills, and is difficult to avoid eating.

I pause carefully, then say, “The first time wasn’t for any reason in particular, but I thought I saw the canola oil wasn’t properly tied down. Didn’t want to raise a fuss if nothing was wrong, so I decided to pass by a second time, just to make sure. Turns out I was mistaken.”
So Fast-Talk with complementary Freight Handling roll:

Botha raises an eyebrow "Canola Oil? I figured you might be looking for a snack." She gives Hua another hearty slap on the back "Figures".

[TGLS]

Originally Posted by ericthered

Taking out only one would be written off. Taking out two would raise suspicions, and increase precautions taken on the third.

Well, guess I got to take out all three stores. I assume that there are people on duty all the time, with some kind of shift rotation. How suspicious would it be to be going around without a "buddy"? Anything I could do to offset that, try and disguise myself as someone who doesn't need a buddy? Is there anything I could What would I need to do to throw my "buddy"? Slip out at "night"?

[GnomesofZurich]

Originally Posted by ericthered

Pothi: "Two weeks? do you know something I don't? It should take us three just to get into position, and four until we have the possibility of seeing the enemy. If our captain is trigger happy, we might then see a few shots on week five, but I think we can make it until week eight before the maneuvers break down and we start shooting. And that will probably be a warning shot. We outnumber them pretty badly. I bet we can finish the war without getting into a real fight."


Pothi is a touch optimistic. Daymar , between being a competent navigator (which pothi doesn't know about) and having been briefed for the mission (which we should really hope pothi doesn't know about), knows this ship is built for hyperspace speed, and will probably see action in scouting duties almost as soon as they arrive on the front lines (week three to five). Of course, he also knows its going to be taken over by dreadstormers, so it either won't fire a shot (not with this crew) or its going to get into a fight very quickly.

Day responds to Pothi, "Oh, that long? I've never served on a ship this large before, but I guess it makes sense that the bigger ships can handle longer travel. I certainly wouldn't complain if this was resolved without firing a shot."

Originally Posted by ericthered

The mess halls and their adjacent kitchens are highly accessible, being tucked in right next to bunks and bathrooms. The hardest part is getting the suggestion to all of the cooks who feed you (different cooks are on different shifts).

Telling a cook to throw out the flour is easy enough. You do have to deal with two of them (buddy system). A single use of suggestion will only last one meal.

Day is going to approach the cooks before breakfast while they're still preparing the meal. "Excuse me? I'm Daymar, I'm new on board, but I just wanted to thank you for all the excellent meals you've been preparing. An army marches on its stomach, even if it's a navy!" He'll approach each of the cooks, and look for an opportunity to touch the skin of each to use Suggestion - a hand shake would be the easiest, but if either of has on a short sleeved shirt a touch on the arm 'to get their attention' also works.

[33] 20-08-30 12:55:43 CEST

Savoir-Faire (Military) to know the correct approach to thank the cooks and allay suspicions that Day might have other reasons to visit the kitchens.

3d6 <= 15
4 + 3 + 6 = 13 ... success

[34] 20-08-30 13:01:08 CEST

Suggestion 1 used on cooks 1 and 2 - suggests "the flour is contaminated, throw it out". Rule of 16 in effect, so Day's effective skill is 16.

3d6 <= 16
1: 5 + 6 + 3 = 14 ... success
2: 2 + 1 + 4 = 7 ... success

[35] 20-08-30 13:01:55 CEST

Luck to re-roll first use of Suggestion.

3d6 <= 16
1: 4 + 2 + 6 = 12 ... success
2: 1 + 6 + 2 = 9 ... success

Day succeeds by 7 on the first cook and by 8 on the second (accounting for the -1 for already having someone under his control). Since if the flour supply in the kitchen is thrown out they would likely then use the additives, and his likely margin of success will allow him to send commands for several minutes afterwards, he will follow this up with the suggestion "Spill the additives on the floor".

Once that's accomplished, he'll excuse himself saying, "Oh, I see that you're really busy, I'll get out of the way. Keep up the good work! Have a nice day!"

Edit: Success should be by 7 and 9 (base skill is 17, so the -1 for multiple subjects is absorbed before Rule of 16 is applied).

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by TGLS

Well, guess I got to take out all three stores. I assume that there are people on duty all the time, with some kind of shift rotation. How suspicious would it be to be going around without a "buddy"? Anything I could do to offset that, try and disguise myself as someone who doesn't need a buddy? Is there anything I could What would I need to do to throw my "buddy"? Slip out at "night"?

The ship has no effective night. They don't always have someone guarding the food stores, though transportation around them is fairly heavy. They might post a guard if the stores start getting trashed, of course.



The top officers don't have to observe the buddy system. This is about 40 people, each of whom heads up 1/3rd of a section of the ship (like morale, transportation, or drives). So they've got fair facial recognition, but people are unlikely to know ALL of them. You do need an officer's uniform, of course.



People running errands occasionally get to flout the buddy system. This is usually done at a run.



People will also stretch the buddy system. Its not observed in living quarters, and people will count themselves as paired up if they are merely in the same compartment.



Most people informally "Swap" buddies, but Botha is probably a stickler about that.



Someone found in a reasonable location without a buddy will be officially reprimanded by most Sergant-level people who see them, and escorted back to their section, but that's as far as it goes, unless you do something to really arouse suspicion. Your buddy could report you missing, but that's seen as fairly extreme. Pothi probably wouldn't, Botha probably would, but Botha would probably have to be left for 10 to 20 minutes before she really got her dander up and reported you. You think. If you want more information on her expected behavior, that will have to be earned in play.