Rogue Trader - Mini-Contest

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Dorian
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Post by Dorian »

well no, Garrius is quite old minded and up himself, but he has morals that he lives by. Sure, 99.9% of the crew are well below him on the evolutionary ladder in his mind, somewhere between Mould and a liverpuddlian street pigeon, but one cant change the name of a ship. That's... that's just wrong. Next you will be asking him to eat with his elbows on the table.
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Goatkiller666
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Post by Goatkiller666 »

Back in MY day, we didn't HAVE elbows.

Or tables.

Damned spoiled kids, whining about where they can put their elbows. You think you got it bad? You should be happy to have the problems you have.

Whipper snappers!
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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

And the winner is - Invictus Aeterna.

XP awarded -

Lt. Cmdr Zarkov 100XP
Drak-Kung 40XP
Garrius Amphael 40XP
Andrea 40XP
Malachi 20XP

Thanks to all for taking part and casting your votes so promptly. The suggestions were all very good, and I think you have chosen a very good entry for the ship's name.
"For the love of God, Montresor!"
"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Post by Menolly »

Somehow I missed the announcement.
Congratulations, Lt. Cmdr!
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Andrea Chan-Gauthier
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Post by Andrea Chan-Gauthier »

Montresor wrote:Just as Charun was giving orders to abandon his vessel – the Mandragora’s Wake
Nice re-use of the name you'd suggested earlier.
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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

Andrea Chan-Gauthier wrote: Nice re-use of the name you'd suggested earlier.
Delayed response but, yes, thankyou. It seemed to fit what I wanted to write about, but not in an over-obvious way (like calling a colony Hubris, and having it fail, for example).

NEW CONTEST

An unorthodox contest. Players are invited to create a simple write-up for either a minor NPC onboard the Invictus, or a small clan/gang.

You may make an entry for both, if you like.

The only other stipulations are:

- the NPC may not be from the Senior Staff, or be in a position of authority over another player. They cannot be a subordinate of your own player. NPCs must be the kinds of people you would legitimately find on the vessel.

- the clan or gang can only be small, and may only number about fifty people. No NPCS for the clan are permissable to be created in the entry.

- entries should be short (no more than a hundred and fifty words).

- entries are due by the 1st of Feb.

There will be a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place, and all winners will have their creation used on the vessel (as is appropriate). Awards will be in XP, and the values will be divulged later (most likely the same as the 1st comp).

The purpose of this contest is to give players the opportunity to involve themselves in the enlivening of the ship, without directly using their PC.
"For the love of God, Montresor!"
"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Stone Magnet
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Post by Stone Magnet »

NPC.

Enginseer Gaiussall

An Enginseer who toils on the Jovian Class II Plasma drives. A dedicated servant of the Omnissiah, he is in charge of the activation and deactivation of the drives, and takes his role very seriously. Thus, he has dedicated much of his life to memorizing the "Ritual of Ignition" laid out in the Mechanicus volume Runic Spaceflight. He is unusually vocal, unlike the rest of the Enginseers assigned to the plasma drives, and is often heard wandering the halls, reciting the Ritual of Ignition in his screeching mechanical voice:

"Strike the first rune upon the engine's casing, employing the chosen wrench. Its tip should be anointed with the sacred oil of engineering, using the proper incantation when the auspices are correct. Strike the second rune upon the engine's casing, employing the arc-tip of the power-driver. If the second rune is not good, a third rune may be struck in like manner to the first. This is done according to the true ritual laid down by Seberus the Enginseer Magnus. A libation should be offered. If this sequence is properly observed the engines may be brought to full activation by depressing the large panel marked "ON"."

Due to his proximity of the Plasma drives he has a large growth on his forehead, which he sees as a blessing from the Omnissiah for his long service on the drives. He possesses several mechadendrites and an artificial rebreather replacing his lungs and the bottom part of his face. It is rumoured that he knows the whereabouts of the mysterious Venerant, and even converses with him occasionally.

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

CLAN.

The Venerant's Children.

A small and secretive clan that exists among the Plasma Drive crew. They are made up of some of the oldest, longest serving ratings, and as such are completely hairless, pale, and covered with sores. Numbering about forty members, they are a small but fanatical group. Due to their long service, some have seen the Venerant with their own eyes, and regard him as akin to a god. They preach of his omniscience and all knowing power. The Enginseers tolerate this pseudo-Mechanicus cult, as the crew are some of the more experienced with the drives. No doubt Detronimus would regard them as heretical, but they have yet to be disturbed as they keep to themselves. Like the rest of the Plasma drives crew, they are suspicious of other crew members and are never seen outside their assigned area.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The text from the "Ritual of Ignition" is from the original 90's Rogue Trader 40k book, with a few alterations. wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Quotes_Adeptus_Mechanicus
Druids gather at the circle of stones,
To worship the ancient ones.

In the glow of a dying red sun,
Their rites of evil have only just begun...

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Andrea Chan-Gauthier
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Post by Andrea Chan-Gauthier »

GELLER FIELDS wrote:Access to the Geller fields is strictly off limits to all but engineseers, the lord-captain, and the navigators. The ornately carved metal doors before the Geller room (depicting an Imperial Saint holding daemonic entities at bay with a banner), are heavily guarded by a score of armsmen. Two small guard rooms are beside the main door, in ante-chambers.
CLAN.

Bastion

For generations, the Bastion have guarded the entrance to the Geller Fields from all but the most exclusive of A-listers. The members of the clan believe that they can better police entry to the chambers because they're related by blood to almost all those permitted inside. It's nearly impossible to trick one's way past them. It is a matter of pride with the entire clan that not even they themselves are permitted past their line.

The clan numbers about 50 bodies, who work in shifts to keep a score of guards at the entrance at all times. A previous Rogue Trader once attempted to assign others to this group, and to assign members of the clan to other guard positions. Shortly after this, the entrance to the Geller Fields was mysteriously locked mid-journey. The ship's Navigator forced the ship out of Warp immediately because the Tech-priests were unable to access the machinery, where the ship stayed for over a week until the Captain quietly gave in. Since then, the Bastion has retained sole responsability for guarding the Geller Field Generators.

The head of the clan is referred to as Captain of the Guard, and is typically given the rank of Captain upon assuming the role, if he didn't already possess such rank. The clan is split up into three groups. The Day Shift, with a Lieutenant and Sargent plus 18 junior guardsmen. The Night Shift, with the same makeup. And the Command group, including the Captain and his support staff, plus some floating guardsmen who work either shift as needed to cover sickness and leave, etc. The Command group is also where the clan's young are put for training.

The Bastion is responsible for the doorway to the Geller Fields, and the large hallway leading to it. The hallway is large enough to admit the massive equipment involved in generating the Geller Fields, so this area is actually quite spacious. Even so, 20 people are always on shift at any time. An area of the hallway facing the doors is corded off as a training area for the clan, and some of the 20 guards will generally be busy training there during their shift.

As most ratings don't even come to this part of the ship, the clan is very infrequently called upon to defend the doors. But, they take their job with such zeal that they have become the acknowledged best at extreme-close-quarter combat on the ship. Their fighting style assumes that all fighting will be done with other friendlies very close to you, and takes pains to not get in each others' ways, as well as to minimize friendly fire issues. Shotguns are preferred to las or melta weapons. Shots tend to be fired at point-blank range, often shooting upwards instead of horizontal, to avoid hitting the person behind the target. The hand-to-hand aspect of their fighting style relies on the presence of others, with those behind the fighters being instructed to provide balance points and extra pushes to augment the activities of those engaged with enemies. In almost any other environment, these techniques wouldn't work, but in this place and with these people, it is quite effective at what it does.

During most longer port visits, when the Geller Fields aren't actively being used, the Bastion will invite various groups of guards (even once, they invited a group of the Eternals) to attempt to "Storm the Bastion". In known history, nobody has succeeded. While the ship is travelling, unauthorized crew aren't allowed to even enter the hallway to a point where the doors are visible, and the clan will react with extreme hostility to any who try.

NPC

Portia Bastion, Sargent of the Guard

Portia can trace her ancestry back through 20 generations of Bastions, though her maternal grandmother joined the clan by marriage, herself coming from the Lord-Captain's personal guard. Portia is very proud of her clan and of her ancestors' contributions to the clan. As a Sargent, she leads the Day Squad for her Lieutenant (also her second cousin and brother-in-law).

She is next in line for the Sargent-Major's role, leading the Command group for the Captain, when her father retires from the role.

She's one of only six people in the Bastion who have the authority to open the doors to the Bastion, though she is not permitted to enter within, except in case of an emergency.

Since there's actually very little traffic into and out of the Geller Fields, except for those authorized personel who have need to be there, and nobody else even makes the attempt, Portia spends a lot of her time on duty drilling the guardsmen. Next to Drak-Kung himself, she is regarded as the best person on the ship for extreme-close quarters combat, both armed and unarmed.
Revere the Emperor; Honour the name of Amphael, holders of the Sacred Warrant of Trade.

Blessed be the Imperium of Man; blessed be the Sacred Writ.
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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

For the record, each entry gains the player 25 XP. First place for each category gains 40 XP.
"For the love of God, Montresor!"
"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

The contest is open for votes. Please nominate a first place in each category. As there are only two entrants (both of very high quality), there's no need to nominate a second place entry.
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"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Andrea Chan-Gauthier
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Post by Andrea Chan-Gauthier »

As can be expected, I nominate Bastion and Portia.

Or must I pick only one of those?
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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

Andrea Chan-Gauthier wrote:As can be expected, I nominate Bastion and Portia.

Or must I pick only one of those?
You nominate one for each category. Send the votes to me in PM. Now everyone knows you voted for yourself :p
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"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Andrea Chan-Gauthier
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Post by Andrea Chan-Gauthier »

Everyone could have safely assumed that I would vote for myself anyway.

I'm awesome. I deserve to win. (So does Stone, of course.)

Come to think of it... do we need to vote? Could not you simply build both items into the story? It's not like anybody invented the gang of killer mutant clowns who hang out in the lower decks.

Oh, snap. I just did.

They started out as teenagers daring each other to go down there. Then, they started dressing in weird costumes, so that when the younger kids would dare each other, the older ones would scare them. Now, it's been going on for 800 years, and is full of traditions.

It'll be like the Freemasons, a secret society spanning all clans and ranks of the ship.

(They originally were dressed as Harlquin Eldars, but over the years the costume turned into more of an "evil bozo" kind of motif.)
Revere the Emperor; Honour the name of Amphael, holders of the Sacred Warrant of Trade.

Blessed be the Imperium of Man; blessed be the Sacred Writ.
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Lt. Commander Zarkov
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Post by Lt. Commander Zarkov »

Now everyone knows I voted for Goatkiller's. Couldn't handle voting for myself haha. The award for winning is 40XP i seem to recall, and bragging rights of course. Space bragging rights. Oooh!
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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

Andrea Chan-Gauthier wrote:Everyone could have safely assumed that I would vote for myself anyway.
Do you have that reputation?

Not that I mind who people vote for, but if people vote on the basis of winning XP for themselves, I would consider that 'unsporting'. If I run a future competition, I will make all self-votes only half value.

Anyway, to answer one of your questions - owing to the quality of all entries, I had weeks ago decided to use all.

Technically you both broke the rule of not exceeding 150 words, but I don't mind. I also reserve the right to edit the entries a bit, but I may not have to do that.
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"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Goatkiller666
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Post by Goatkiller666 »

Montresor wrote:
Andrea Chan-Gauthier wrote:Everyone could have safely assumed that I would vote for myself anyway.
Do you have that reputation?
I guess I do now. (Though, honestly, it really never occured to me that one could reasonably vote against oneself. Except in really rare situations, I guess.)
Montresor wrote:Not that I mind who people vote for, but if people vote on the basis of winning XP for themselves, I would consider that 'unsporting'. If I run a future competition, I will make all self-votes only half value.
It's only unsporting if nobody else does it. But I see your point.
Montresor wrote:Anyway, to answer one of your questions - owing to the quality of all entries, I had weeks ago decided to use all.
Excellent!
Montresor wrote:Technically you both broke the rule of not exceeding 150 words, but I don't mind. I also reserve the right to edit the entries a bit, but I may not have to do that.
I fully expect to have my verbose post condensed down a bit. I'm not one for succinct. Most of my daytime writing is technical write-ups. More details are usually better.
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Montresor
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Post by Montresor »

WINNERS

1st Place Clan - Bastion

1st Place NPC - Enginseer Gaiussall

XP awarded:

Andrea Chan-Guathier, 90XP

Darius Zarkov, 90XP

Well done, and thanks for the entries.
"For the love of God, Montresor!"
"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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Post by Lt. Commander Zarkov »

Oh and my two suggestions for the competition to choose a competition...(if this is still up for contesting) are:

1) Continue the "minor NPC or Clan" competition (original I know, but this was my first suggestion).

2) Create a ghost/horror story told by certain sections of the crew. There should be a certain level of restraint exercised here, since Montresor has not made clear the extent of the actual manifestations on the Invictus. However, the apparition or spirit does need to be shown to actually exist (although someone may choose to give it life :twisted: ). The legend itself (or the crews overactive/"corrupted" imagination) could be strong enough to provoke fear (or reverence) of an entity/legend. The 41st millennium is a superstitious time after all.

Mine:

When men fall sick with fever in the lower decks, superstitious crew-members whisper about an invisible presence they call the "Horlae". Testimonies of fever victims often reflect this: a vague sensation of being watched and a strange weight on the chest (as of a presence bearing down on them) are common symptoms of affliction. When fever or sickness is rife, superstitious crew will hang thuribles filled with strong incense outside their rooms (ostensibly as an cleansing ritual in the name of the God-Emperor), for the legend states that a thick enough incense will reveal the apparition of the Horlae moving between cabins, spreading its sickness.
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Lt. Commander Zarkov
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Post by Lt. Commander Zarkov »

I got bored, so heres another entry for the ghost story. If I only get XP for one entry, that's fine.

Amongst the macrobattery crew there exists an ancient legend, telling of an Imperial Navy officer still wandering the ammunition service tunnels. His real name and rank long since forgotten, he has gained many colloquial titles: "The Cursed Walker", "Old Attilus", "The Mangler" and, perhaps most ominously, "Frag". It is rumoured that he was a fierce and brutal leader, harsh in his treatment of crew and fellow officers alike. The story tells of a pitched battle at some point in the past, in which the the service trains supplying the dorsal macrobatteries jammed and the Invictus' ammunition supply was compromised. After executing several members of the crew who refused to enter the service tunnels to repair the jam, the officer went down himself.

The story diverges at this point. One version states that he went alone, and was crushed to death after repairing the trains in the service tunnels. Another version states he forced several ratings and tech priests down with him, who all later emerged covered in blood claiming that he had been crushed. All were promptly executed by the naval commisar for ‘fragging’ their unpopular superior officer.

Regardless of which story is recounted, the end result is the same. The corpse of "Old Attilus" now wanders the sevice tunnels, preying on the unwary. His face, said to be horribly smashed and disfigured, leaks brain matter onto his ancient Imperial Navy uniform. Rather than active predation, he causes death through 'accident' and equipment failure. Casualties in the service tunnels are idiosyncratically referred to as 'frags' by gunnery staff, though many have forgotten the origin of the term. Some of the older gunnery crew refer to the trains themselves as "The Manglers". Some simply hold a hazy belief that the tunnels are cursed.

Confined to small sections of the macrobattery crew (who mostly speak in sign), the story has not spread to the crew at large. Although no sightings of the macabre corpse-visage have been reported in many years, the legend has a strong hold on believers, who will do anything to escape duty in the service tunnels...
Last edited by Lt. Commander Zarkov on Thu Nov 04, 2010 12:06 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Post by Montresor »

NEW CONTEST

Ghost stories of the Invictus

Each player may submit up to two entries. The first submission earns the player 30 XP, the second earns 20 XP. Submissions must be no shorter than a paragraph, and no longer than 350 words.

The entry must focus on a ghost story told by members of the crew, which has been in circulation for at least two hundred years. All stories are to be considered apocryphal. You must not involve any PC in a story.

The contest will remain open until the end of November. After this, player must vote. All votes earn the player 5 XP. You earn no XP if you vote for yourself (though you can still win the XP for the contest). All votes cast in favour of one's own entry are valued at only half their weight.

First place earns the player 30 XP.
Second place earns 20 XP.
Third place earns 10 XP.

The top-three entries will be assumed to be part of the ship's folklore. Whether they hold any truth or not is up to GM discretion.
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"Yes," I said, "for the love of God!" - Edgar Allan Poe, The Cask of Amontillado.

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