OOC: Chapter Four - At Sea

[Decrepit]

This puts me in mind of a question, Raiko: are you keeping current stats somewhere, he asks nervously ... ?

[Raiko]

OOC: Has the news about the dogs' poisoning become common knowledge?

It's only currently known to you if you join the cleanup operation down in the hold, you can still post that you're helping if you like. Otherwise it will become common knowledge to the expedition in a couple more hours of game time.

This puts me in mind of a question, Raiko: are you keeping current stats somewhere, he asks nervously ... ?

The character sheets are all on my http://www.cthulhu1933.co.uk website. As far as I can remember they should be fully up to date apart from Kitt's sanity after that failed check.

I'll double check them once I've had those Sanity checks from Blackgoat.

Talking about the website:

Hmm, need to update that blog as well...

I'd like to add news of the other expeditions to the blog as well, this would be information known to you all via the ship's radio, but I keep forgetting about it. :rolls:

I'll be adding the Starkweather-Moore Expedition news as presented to the world by Mr Starkweather himself.

Acacia Lexington is still a few days ahead of the Gabrielle, but I'm not sure of the current status of the German Expedition.

[Decrepit]

Thanks for the reassurance. I'd forgotten to look there; I'd only been peeking at my stats here.

[Raiko]

Welcome back Mister Juan!
On a similar note, I've made arrangements with Charles Graves for him to send me updates via SMS text message, as he now has access to the RSS feeds, but can't post himself more than once or twice a week. So Professor Graves will be run as a kind of quasi-npc, I'll follow directions from Charles Graves' text messages, but add more detail to the actual post.
So hopefully we now have a full group of players again, apart from Thewhat, who never really started posting in this game anyway.

Sorry I didn't post an update yesterday, I was planning on spending some time during the evening updating stuff before posting, but things didn't work out that way. :rolls:

I'll make a lunchtime post today, and then hopefully find enough time at home for the other updates later this week. If there is any information that you think I owe you, please PM me, I'll try to wrap everything up at once when I find that illusive spare time.

I'm going to advance the clock by about two hours, to the point where news of the poisoning becomes common knowledge together with a few other, as yet unknown details.

[Raiko]

So Professor Graves will be run as a kind of quasi-npc, I'll follow directions from Charles Graves' text messages, but add more detail to the actual post.

Note that the Professor's large speach that he's just given was taken from the actual adventure - it should have come from Greene, but as the Professor beat him to the dogs, he got to make the big speach.

I hope that nobody minds me moving straight on from the poisoning to this, but I don't really want the game to slow down for as long as it did for the last incident.

I'd rather move from event to event, stopping whenever your characters find clues, with a few real life days for in character conversations after each event.

Hopefully that way the story can continue moving without getting too frustrating, but you'll still get enough chances to make your own plans and chat.

[Raiko]

Jack guesses that one concern Moore and Starkweather will have is publicity. Nothing like a story about a doomed ship to liven up the folks at home. He tries to think of how much he'd be willing not to tell his editors, hoping he'll know if and when the question comes up.

8) I'll really have to try and update the blog, so that you see the spin Starkweather puts on things.

Lets just say for now that in his radio broadcasts your illustrious leader is letting the world know that, despite a couple of 'minor hiccups' everything is ok, and the 'chaps' are dealing with it all with 'stiff upper lips'.

[Decrepit]

Cheerio!

[Raiko]

"I am a little suprised about how quiet Mister Starkweather is being whilst all this is going on, it is a joint expedition between the two of you isn't it Professor Moore?"

You want Starkweather to join in?

Well he's been busy on the radio sorting out replacement provisions for when you reach Australia, but as you're missing him in see what I can do.

Seriously though Starkweather is always out and about on the ship, and was involved with the reefer store incident and it's aftermath, he just isn't at this particular meeting. Moore did include him as one of the people to speak to if you find anything.

Anytime that you want to speak to Starkweather he is available, just post that you're looking for him.

[Raiko]

One more thing:

James re-iterates the fact that Callum, Isugtag & himself had been checking the holds for any signs of tampering & were making notes on stocks ect the previous night and had found nothing wrong with the dogs at all insinuating that it would be more likely that the dogs were poisoned recently..

Professor Graves confirmed that the dogs were poisoned by their breakfast this morning.
Somebody added strychnine to their pemmican, either in New York or during the voyage.

That's why the Sorensen brothers are organising the rest of the expedition to check all the rest of the pemmican, because you all ate the same stuff for your breakfast.

Professor Graves' report on the poisoning was in this post, you might have missed it as it's very near the bottom of a page.

[Raiko]

I've been reading all the posts, but I haven't posted for Moore / Turlow yet as I'm giving you all a day or two to decide on your own course of action. The adventure in npc driven enough I think, without me butting in while you plan.

I'll probably post again for Moore and/or Turlow tomorrow, so you've got another 24 hours or so to try and reach a consensus. Of course if somebody directly addresses Moore or Turlow I'll reply as soon as I've read the post.

[Raiko]

Finally managed to post.

Professor Graves' post was made by me, based on a text message sent by Charles Graves the player. I edited the post details so that it appears as a Charles Graves post.

As Charles Graves is so busy in real-life there may be times that I have to npc the Professor. At those times I'll leave the posts as 'Raiko posts', so that you can distinguish between 'Graves the pc' and 'Graves the npc', if you want too.

I'll allow the debate to continue until you have a plan, providing some progress is being made. After that I'll move things on by another few days (taking your plans into account).

[Raiko]

I've been having some network problems at work, things are looking ok today, so hopefully I'll get posting again at lunchtime.

[Raiko]

Ok, so the network problems weren't over after all. :rolls:

Apparently they are now though.

I'll post a reply from Turlow to James; then I'll assume that James is following Callum, and that everybody has left the meeting.

It seems that your current plans involve the following:

1) Continue searching the cargo holds
2) Search other areas (lifeboats, etc) for signs of a stowaway. I've got to admit there aren't a lot of places for a stowaway to hide aboard, apart from the holds.
3) Stake out the #4 & #5 holds, while locking up the others.
4) Possibly help to keep watch over the water supply.

You have already searched the #2, #4 & #5 holds, and Callum, James & Isugtag started searching the #3 tween deck hold, but there's a lot of gear in that hold.

The Sorensen brothers are leading the rest of the expedition as they check the remaining food in the reefer store.

You may want to recheck holds that have already been searched, at least until you (hopefully) catch the culprit.

So please can you all post here to decide who's doing what, I'll pause again to let you update your plans if signs of a saboteur / stowaway are discovered, or if the search of the holds is completed without any clues being located.

[Laraqua]

You forgot one option.

5) Card games at Kitt's!

[Raiko]

OOPS!

5) Card games at Kitt's!

[Decrepit]

Jack's fine with searching holds in the daylight and helping stake out one of the two holds at night, although none of us can work 24-hour shifts (well, not steadily, anyway).

Turlow made a reference to Driscoll--does that mean he heard me talk about him? Coincidence?

[OrionUK]

As Kitt doesn't seem to get James English sense of humour he will follow Callum as per Raiko's post.

[Laraqua]

Kitt would help if asked but it's unlikely anyone would or that she'd consider the job. She may be a pilot but she's still a chick and not a very strong one at that. Give her a big gun and she might reconsider!

[Henrik]

Olof will check the lifeboats and other areas trying to be inconspicious about it.

[Charles Graves]

As a medic, Graves is particularly aware of the value of the water supply.

He therefore tells his comrades that he will be keeping a close eye on the drinking water.