[rednblack]

Chino's willing to go with the team on the plan, so long as there's a fair enough shot that he'll get to kick something.  The obelisk didn't quite sate that desire.

I still think we'd get farther if we could do the negotiations in person.  I just don't know how to go about doing that safely, or without separating the team for an extended period.

[Malevolence]

Ohanzee had an epiphany concerning the negotiations. Here's his new thought on how they would proceed once a meet has been made.


1. The bomb is attached and activated. There is now a timer on how long we will wait for payment. All parties are physically present, Doc running Matrix duty in case they try to disable the device that way.
2. They pay us before we disarm the bomb. Since they likely have overwhelming force, there is little chance of us running off with the nuyen prior to disarming it. However, before disarming it, we drop 1M¥ of it with an anonymous (to the other side) third party that is not present (perhaps one of our team members that we elect) on the condition that if we do not get away safely, that money will become a bounty to any Shadowrunners that want it to take back the artifact from our purchasers by force.
3. Once we are away and reasonably safe, the contract is rescinded and we get an additional 1M¥, minus whatever fees we might have promised to the retainer.


From their perspective, they have assurance that we will call off the contract because that is an additional 1M¥ in our pocket, which is an unreasonable sum to drop on a vendetta if they play fair.
From our perspective, that 1M¥ goes a long way toward making sure that the opportunity cost for attempting to screw us is higher than just paying for the item outright. We can show them the video of our original assault to retrieve the artifact and mention that that job was done for considerably less than 1M¥ (which is almost certainly true) - imagine what havoc and loss of property/lives a 1M¥ bounty could bring.


Thoughts?

[Tecumseh]

From a GM perspective, I don't see any technical issues or other mechanical dealbreakers for this approach. This plan seems feasible to me.

From Katsina's perspective, she's never going to be thrilled by a scenario that involves Sam's device attached to the obelisk with the countdown running, but she respects the need to play hardball and to use all the tools at one's disposal. She'll support the plan, despite her misgivings.

Is the revised plan to contact Cannon sooner than later, or do you wish to take the obelisk with you to a more temperate location?

Next
Thoughts on the plan from Doc, Ace, Chino, and Sam

[rednblack]

With Ohanzee's new plan how do we contact Cannon, and where do we set the meet?

[Zweiblumen]

My name is Doc (I think), and I approve this message.

[Tecumseh]

Doc found Cannon's work commcode during his searching. You can call/write/text him at the office.

As for the meet location, that's up for discussion. I presume Ohanzee and Sam would want to meet in the valley to have the avalanche option, but that's up to you.

Katsina acknowledges the value of the avalanches but is concerned about the valley essentially being a dead-end with only one way in or out. She's not a tactician and will defer to others but to her it seems like a vulnerability to be bottled up like that.

[Malevolence]

At this point (and in the interest of time considering our looming deadline), yes we should contact Cannon and arrange the meet here in the valley. The lack of entry/egress options is only a minor concern since we don't plan on fighting our way out. If the bounty gambit backfires, it'll hardly matter where we are - they'll likely have air support that makes escape on ground (our only option) tricky.


In his research, did Doc happen to find a rough estimate of what Cannon's annual acquisition budget might be?

[Tecumseh]

In his research, did Doc happen to find a rough estimate of what Cannon's annual acquisition budget might be?

No, nothing like that. But, between their connection to the Draco Foundation / DIMR, plus having Hestaby as a patron, plus their contracts with the UCAS, Doc gets the sense that the ASPS finances are more stable than many other non-profit organizations.

Do you want to call Cannon before or after the gold melting and jewelry making? What about contacting Styles to move a major amount of product? It's now Monday morning. A possible timeline:

1. Go into Grand Junction to get necessary equipment (3 hours)
2. Return to camp (2 hours)
3. Melt down the gold and (maybe) osmium (4 hours, there's a lot of it)
4. Fashion simple golden artwork (varies, could work on this overnight since events up to this point would take you to Monday evening)
5. Return to Grand Junction and sell some gold to gold dealers (3-4 hours, now noon on Tuesday)
6. Contact Styles?
7. Contact Cannon?

Of course you could contact Styles and Cannon sooner but set up a meet for a future date, if they're available.

[Poindexter]

Ok, I'm back.

Reading through the OOC thread now.
I'll try and get something decent up tonight.


EDIT:

Poindexter
Body * 2 roll for Sam's Physical healing
+1 to a chosen Skill Group

Healing Roll (Bod 10): 10d6t5 4
Healing Roll (Bod 10): 10d6t5 3

Can I hold off on the skillgroup until I learn exactly how Sam has awakened?

PC

Break/Sell Base

Cannon

Sam is Leaning toward No on breaking the obelisk, but only cause Kat is worried about it. and Yes on hitting up cannon. (although I realize the deed is already done)

- Katsina will probably not go along with any plan that leaves Sam's device attached to the base where there's a significant risk of the device detonating accidentally, or by default.

Nor would Sam, although he is onboard with the revised plan.

Gonna go read the IC stuff and see if I cant get something started tonight.

[Tecumseh]

Welcome back, Poindexter. Glad to have you with us again.

For the current situation, the IC thread is a bit of a trick since we're doing the planning OOCly (which is fine). Once we have a plan of action I will post ICly to move us forward. In the meantime, people are free to post thoughts or opinions or continue to roleplay.

Sam heals all of the damage he suffered from Drain (from trying to dispell Katsina's Mana Bind). Katsina will feel less guilty right away. I think everyone has a clean condition monitor, although there might be more environmental rolls coming soon depending on how long you spend outside.

@Poindexter, yes you can hold off on the skill group. What we could use next is thoughts or opinions on the plan Malevolence has outlined.

Per my earlier post, we also need some agreement on a rough timeline or order-of-operations. Eventually we'll also need to identify who you want to use as a third party "escrow" account of sorts. As Mal said, it could be one of you or it could be someone you know (and trust with a million nuyen).

[Zweiblumen]

Doc is happy with the current plan as it's moving us forward in a real way.

I'd think we can reach out to Cannon and Styles while we are working on the gold/osmium process, so lets do those two things in parallel.

Mal, does Ohanzee want to work with Doc on comms?  If so, lets have Doc go with Ohanzee into town so he can help with the shopping and the comming.  If Ohanzee is g2g with reaching out to Styles and Cannon, then Doc is happy to stay in camp and not risk causing problems with his lack of SIN (he really needs to get himself one of those pretty soon).

[Malevolence]

If I reach out to Cannon, I'll need Doc with me to run security. I'd rather hold off on him until we are done with the gold/osmium in case we end up having to move out (successful trace or other reason to believe that we are no longer "safe" here). But I can reach out to Styles now, probably even from camp. The problem we have is how to get our goods to him. Chances are we'll need to meet him in person, which either requires him traveling out to meet us or us getting in to town to meet him. I'm open to options on that.

[rednblack]

I'd feel a lot more comfortable doing all of the meets from a city center.  More places to disappear to, less chance of NGOs wanting to cause a ruckus in the streets, etc. 

[Tecumseh]

Hello Tabula Rasa!

Tec Jr. was born at 5:05pm on Wednesday, which was precisely his due date. Mrs. Tec went into labor at 2:30am, so she was operating on about three hours of sleep the whole day. It was an intense experience but she emerged largely unscathed and is recovering very quickly.

Birth weight was 8 pounds 2 ounces, length 21 inches. Overall, he's very proportional. He sleeps well, eats well, and doesn't fuss much. So far he's been more manageable than I could have hoped (knock on wood).

Mrs. Tec is recovering well but the doctor's orders are for her to be on bedrest for the next week. While our chores were evenly divided before, they are now all on my plate. Going up and down the stairs 50+ times a day (usually with my hands full) is proving to be a workout. Luckily we're getting a decent amount of sleep, although Mrs. Tec has to get up in the middle of the night to nurse.

Next steps
It's actually pretty easy for me to keep tabs on the game on my phone or tablet. Sitting down to write is trickier to fit in. I'm managing this post now because we have a friend staying with us for the weekend to help with the cooking and errands. With luck that will let me get some posts in.

My goal is to get an IC post up tonight. It will cover going into Grand Junction to get supplies, then the return to do the melting and goldsmithing. We'll then return to Grand Junction and have a bit of RP with the jeweler(s). My apologies in advance if the post is less descriptive or narrative than usual.

Katsina's Artisan roll for goldsmithing: Intuition 6 + Artisan 2: 8d6t5 3 hits, she does a good job and doesn't waste much material

What I need from you
@Malevolence Pre-emptively, give me rolls for Etiquette, Negotiation, Con, and Artisan. This will cover things with the jeweler(s).

@Everyone else RP around what you're doing during the trip(s) into town, either back in camp (if you stayed behind) or what you're doing in town (if you go along). The assumption is that you won't contact Cannon until you have some extra cash on hand so that you can skedaddle if things go sideways, which is prudent.

[Zweiblumen]

Mazel tov!  Welcome baby Tec to the big wide world