It's been almost two weeks home for the holidays. The advantages include time spent with family, home cooked food, and the very welcome escape from public transit and city life in general.
Of course, the downsides involve not being able to run GURPS for my players and an almost total lack of computer access.
I caught the second Hobbit film. I couldn't help but think about how the various fights could be translated into various GURPS concepts- and Legolas' point total is likely ridiculous given some of the antics he gets up to (Obligatory mention of Heroic Archer here). Good media helps stimulate the formation of new ideas, and gives me a desire to run games set in the setting/genre in question.
There's a chance I'll be running some DF-style GURPS for some teens aged 12-14 tomorrow, which should be a nice departure from modern combat involving guns. I don't get to game with this group frequently, meaning that it's really hard to convey the various combat options available to them, but it's a good challenge moving forward on how to get them to at least state what they want to do- even if I have to handle the mechanics of a deceptive attack or similar.
For Agency 17, I believe I want the next mission to involve protecting some kind of terrorist or dethroned government type- inspired partly by some of the recent riots and revolts in Latin and Southern America. The group has a lot of familiarity South of the border, so setting missions in Mexico, Latin America or even further South allows them to avoid nasty cultural faux pas (if I ever want to bring those to the forefront, almost nobody has significant experience operating in Africa or parts of Asia).
Chances are the principal they'll be protecting will be dirty, providing the twist. The expectation is that they'll be escorting some wounded rebel or asset out of a hot spot when in reality their man underwent extensive cosmetic surgery to change his appearance so that he could escape not only the guns of local rebels but possibly the long arms of international war tribunals or something similar.
There's likely going to be an emphasis on stealth, possibly with a few choices to be made if their contact desires that they retrieve choice items for him before they leave. I still have to run the conclusion of the hijack mission first however.
About that- the new guys will likely be trying to sabotage one or both of the helicopters that will attempt to intercept the players once they've taken the truck. It will give them something productive to do that ties in with what the others have been doing without dropping them in without reason.
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Friday, December 20, 2013
How I Plot
Douglas Cole commented on an earlier post, asking how I went about planning complex spy stories, so I might as well discuss it a little. My thanks to Doug for handing me a topic to write about, and I hope the verbosity displayed here doesn't irk anyone.
It starts with my background when it comes to consuming media related to the portrayal of Covert Ops, particularly television. I prefer serialized television shows with plenty of intrigue with strong mythological arcs. Episodic television doesn't really do much for me.
My players are playing secret agents working for an elite organization of bad guys. The players don't know that their organization is evil.
What work do these organizations have their agents do? What methods do they use? What goals do they hope to accomplish? How do they pay the bills? What kind of people pay them to do things? What kind of people end up working for such an organization?
Setting up Agency 17 is still a work in progress, a luxury that I have that many authors don't. I can create as I go, just as long as I pay attention to continuity very carefully. In fact, planning and on the fly improvisation go hand in hand running a game like this.
More often than not, some of my best executed twists have been the thought that came to mind when I had nothing planned and needed something awesome to happen.
Planning sessions and plots involves looking at things on various levels. A building floor plan exists on a separate level from how the man living in said building reacts to violence, creepy dudes in cars peering at him through his windows or blackmail. I spend a lot of time deep in the GURPS sourcebooks, reading Wikipedia, checking google maps, researching specific topics and attempting to learn about the stuff that's relevant to what I want to run.
A17 is a largely mission based game. My players will generally have an objective, a goal. Above all else, there is one thing that must be completed or done, even if all else fails. Thankfully most entertainment media revolving around this genre makes it painfully clear that without good reason, ignoring such objectives and duffing off is a bad idea. It helps players buy into the rigid aspects of this campaign. While they have great freedom with how they wish to accomplish missions, finishing missions is still the driving motivation for the campaign.
Motivation established by the campaign setting and genre, it turns to the specific goal or objective set by their employers. This will almost always entail deceiving the players- Agency 17 isn't very likely to tell them exactly what it is that is going on, or what the Agency really wants to accomplish.
Being set in the real world, finding a location to set missions is easy- pull up Wikipedia and Google Maps, and get to work. Artistic license is very helpful here, especially when players point out inconvenient real world facts that you got wrong, like that time that Virgil's player let me know that where I staged the Los Zetas convoy's starting location was actually Sinaloa Cartel territory.
Having these real-world resources allows for a little less crappy geography, something that always causes me issues when working with homebrew settings.
There are other advantages to a modern setting- no magic, no aliens, no time travel. Quibbles of whether technology exists or actually work that way are mostly trivial, and are always subject to GM fiat for the good of the game and plot.
The overall narrative is important. It's initially one of betrayal, then the hunt for revenge. And that hunt for revenge will likely span until the end of the campaign. During this time, hopefully a history of game events can be built on as a base for future ideas and plots.
The complexity in this campaign is built into hiding information from my players, and in making sure that this works to enhance the sense of betrayal upon the final reveal. Planning for it takes a lot of thought, reading, and dutifully recording good ideas so that they aren't forgotten later. It also helps that I have a close friend to bounce ideas off of.
Coming up with plots is a deep topic that covers a range of various elements, elements that I've only really been able to briefly touch upon here. I might go more in-depth with some future facets of plotting and planning, as I encounter them attempting to run this game.
It starts with my background when it comes to consuming media related to the portrayal of Covert Ops, particularly television. I prefer serialized television shows with plenty of intrigue with strong mythological arcs. Episodic television doesn't really do much for me.
- Burn Notice: I was a big Burn Notice fan when the series first began (and quickly lost interest after a few seasons as I found the intrigue surrounding the entire premise of the series lacking)
- 24: I caught the middle of 24, which was always about high-octane action at almost every possible moment. The pacing was arguably the best aspect of the show.
- The Unit: One of the few television shows out there trying to show how such operations might be carried out by a purely military group.
- Covert Affairs: Big focus on HUMINT and the use of Assets
- Person of Interest: Possibly the best show for intrigue that I've seen in a very long time. The mythology of that show is large and treacherous (and completely awesome).
- Alias: Without Alias I probably wouldn't be so set on deceiving my players like a manipulative bastard. That said, the science fiction/prophetic elements sucked.
- Chuck: My guilty pleasure show.
- It's hard to understate just how much Sean Punch's The Company campaign has helped push me to run my own Covert Operations game. His templates and specialties have been invaluable character creation aids.
My players are playing secret agents working for an elite organization of bad guys. The players don't know that their organization is evil.
What work do these organizations have their agents do? What methods do they use? What goals do they hope to accomplish? How do they pay the bills? What kind of people pay them to do things? What kind of people end up working for such an organization?
Setting up Agency 17 is still a work in progress, a luxury that I have that many authors don't. I can create as I go, just as long as I pay attention to continuity very carefully. In fact, planning and on the fly improvisation go hand in hand running a game like this.
More often than not, some of my best executed twists have been the thought that came to mind when I had nothing planned and needed something awesome to happen.
Planning sessions and plots involves looking at things on various levels. A building floor plan exists on a separate level from how the man living in said building reacts to violence, creepy dudes in cars peering at him through his windows or blackmail. I spend a lot of time deep in the GURPS sourcebooks, reading Wikipedia, checking google maps, researching specific topics and attempting to learn about the stuff that's relevant to what I want to run.
A17 is a largely mission based game. My players will generally have an objective, a goal. Above all else, there is one thing that must be completed or done, even if all else fails. Thankfully most entertainment media revolving around this genre makes it painfully clear that without good reason, ignoring such objectives and duffing off is a bad idea. It helps players buy into the rigid aspects of this campaign. While they have great freedom with how they wish to accomplish missions, finishing missions is still the driving motivation for the campaign.
Motivation established by the campaign setting and genre, it turns to the specific goal or objective set by their employers. This will almost always entail deceiving the players- Agency 17 isn't very likely to tell them exactly what it is that is going on, or what the Agency really wants to accomplish.
Being set in the real world, finding a location to set missions is easy- pull up Wikipedia and Google Maps, and get to work. Artistic license is very helpful here, especially when players point out inconvenient real world facts that you got wrong, like that time that Virgil's player let me know that where I staged the Los Zetas convoy's starting location was actually Sinaloa Cartel territory.
Having these real-world resources allows for a little less crappy geography, something that always causes me issues when working with homebrew settings.
There are other advantages to a modern setting- no magic, no aliens, no time travel. Quibbles of whether technology exists or actually work that way are mostly trivial, and are always subject to GM fiat for the good of the game and plot.
The overall narrative is important. It's initially one of betrayal, then the hunt for revenge. And that hunt for revenge will likely span until the end of the campaign. During this time, hopefully a history of game events can be built on as a base for future ideas and plots.
The complexity in this campaign is built into hiding information from my players, and in making sure that this works to enhance the sense of betrayal upon the final reveal. Planning for it takes a lot of thought, reading, and dutifully recording good ideas so that they aren't forgotten later. It also helps that I have a close friend to bounce ideas off of.
Coming up with plots is a deep topic that covers a range of various elements, elements that I've only really been able to briefly touch upon here. I might go more in-depth with some future facets of plotting and planning, as I encounter them attempting to run this game.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Two New Players
We started the campaign with four players, but due to a medical issue, one of my players had to bow out. Sadly, Alex will be relegated to another team within Agency 17 and won't be going out with the Agents I am most concerned with.
Three people was leaving the group pretty thin. There were already a few skill gaps that painfully obvious with four people, and losing their main breaking and entering savant was going to hurt.
So I could either fill the ranks with GMPCs, give the existing players more points, recruit new players, or let it lie and have them work around their skill gaps.
My new philosophy in this campaign has been to be more hands off when it comes to the use of NPCs and GMPCs. Nima was a stop-gap, provided largely for a mission that involves barreling down a highway at 70 MPH trying to shoot at a convoy of mexican drug dealers. It begged to have a competent driver along with skill somewhere in the 15-18 range who can reliably navigate traffic jams at unreasonable speeds.
So besides situations where I don't want to leave the PCs entirely high and dry lacking a mission critical skill, I'd prefer to avoid GMPCs.
More points is a tricky beast, especially if they end up spent on Attributes or non-talent advantages. That would do nothing to help the gap in everyman skills that is evident.
Letting it lie would probably have been my second choice overall. Natural growth would allow the PCs to begin fleshing out their skill sets, given enough time to do so. But at the same time, I originally hoped to run for at least four or five people, and three gets really thin if someone is sick, can't make it, or something.
Five people gives us wiggle room. It's something I should probably check with the others on how they want to handle absences.
Besides, bringing in new blood is going to be an opportunity to teach GURPS to two new players. They're going to come to the table with ideas and opinions, which will hopefully continue to push the game forward. I'm optimistic considering both almost completed character creation within a few hours of getting in touch, with assistance. Both of their characters are looking pretty solid, although the group has a huge amount of overlap concerning surveillance, and both new characters are relatively similar given their skillsets.
But hey, that's what points earned during play are for.
Three people was leaving the group pretty thin. There were already a few skill gaps that painfully obvious with four people, and losing their main breaking and entering savant was going to hurt.
So I could either fill the ranks with GMPCs, give the existing players more points, recruit new players, or let it lie and have them work around their skill gaps.
My new philosophy in this campaign has been to be more hands off when it comes to the use of NPCs and GMPCs. Nima was a stop-gap, provided largely for a mission that involves barreling down a highway at 70 MPH trying to shoot at a convoy of mexican drug dealers. It begged to have a competent driver along with skill somewhere in the 15-18 range who can reliably navigate traffic jams at unreasonable speeds.
So besides situations where I don't want to leave the PCs entirely high and dry lacking a mission critical skill, I'd prefer to avoid GMPCs.
More points is a tricky beast, especially if they end up spent on Attributes or non-talent advantages. That would do nothing to help the gap in everyman skills that is evident.
Letting it lie would probably have been my second choice overall. Natural growth would allow the PCs to begin fleshing out their skill sets, given enough time to do so. But at the same time, I originally hoped to run for at least four or five people, and three gets really thin if someone is sick, can't make it, or something.
Five people gives us wiggle room. It's something I should probably check with the others on how they want to handle absences.
Besides, bringing in new blood is going to be an opportunity to teach GURPS to two new players. They're going to come to the table with ideas and opinions, which will hopefully continue to push the game forward. I'm optimistic considering both almost completed character creation within a few hours of getting in touch, with assistance. Both of their characters are looking pretty solid, although the group has a huge amount of overlap concerning surveillance, and both new characters are relatively similar given their skillsets.
But hey, that's what points earned during play are for.
Monday, December 16, 2013
Decieving Your Players
My players have been lied to pretty much from the start of the campaign.
Dastardly, I know.
See, I told them that their characters were joining some shadowy government agency (Agency 17) that's so deep under wraps that barely anyone knows it exists. In reality, the player characters are all part of a shadowy criminal counterintelligence organization that has been raising all kinds of hell, all while convincing their operatives that they are legitimate.
Now, just to be clear, Agency 17 is the criminal counterintelligence agency.
Section 17 is the legitimate government organization that Agency 17 is mimicking.
Every mission the players go on will have a twist somewhere that turns what they're doing from doing good to doing bad. It's about making sure that they perceive in game events one way, while something else entirely is going on.
The first mission involved someone who was actually a legitimate NSA agent, who the players were mislead into believing was simply a journalist. They never did figure out he was NSA, instead believing that he had a source within the NSA who he used to feed info to his uncle.
This current mission, the drug hijacking, has the twist further down the line. There may be legitimate reasons for attempting to steal twenty tons of cocaine from the Los Zetas cartel, but Agency 17's motives are definitely not pure. The players really have no way of knowing this except for the effects of Agency 17's use of the drugs. Possibilities include selling it for profit, planting it on individuals to frame them, and possibly even increasing Zeta/Sinaloa violence in Mexico.
Other times, I hope to hide what the players are actually doing. An example would be having them retrieve black boxes from a downed Agency 17 craft to prevent legitimate investigative crews from being able to access them. Another could be planting devices that don't do what the Agency tells them they do- a 'keylogger' could really be something more insidious (stuxnet comes to mind), while "medical supplies" could be crates full of guns and 'oxygen tanks' hold deadly sarin gas.
Now, there are some important things to consider when a major facet of your campaign involves lying to your players consistently:
Dastardly, I know.
See, I told them that their characters were joining some shadowy government agency (Agency 17) that's so deep under wraps that barely anyone knows it exists. In reality, the player characters are all part of a shadowy criminal counterintelligence organization that has been raising all kinds of hell, all while convincing their operatives that they are legitimate.
Now, just to be clear, Agency 17 is the criminal counterintelligence agency.
Section 17 is the legitimate government organization that Agency 17 is mimicking.
Every mission the players go on will have a twist somewhere that turns what they're doing from doing good to doing bad. It's about making sure that they perceive in game events one way, while something else entirely is going on.
The first mission involved someone who was actually a legitimate NSA agent, who the players were mislead into believing was simply a journalist. They never did figure out he was NSA, instead believing that he had a source within the NSA who he used to feed info to his uncle.
This current mission, the drug hijacking, has the twist further down the line. There may be legitimate reasons for attempting to steal twenty tons of cocaine from the Los Zetas cartel, but Agency 17's motives are definitely not pure. The players really have no way of knowing this except for the effects of Agency 17's use of the drugs. Possibilities include selling it for profit, planting it on individuals to frame them, and possibly even increasing Zeta/Sinaloa violence in Mexico.
Other times, I hope to hide what the players are actually doing. An example would be having them retrieve black boxes from a downed Agency 17 craft to prevent legitimate investigative crews from being able to access them. Another could be planting devices that don't do what the Agency tells them they do- a 'keylogger' could really be something more insidious (stuxnet comes to mind), while "medical supplies" could be crates full of guns and 'oxygen tanks' hold deadly sarin gas.
Now, there are some important things to consider when a major facet of your campaign involves lying to your players consistently:
- Especially in a system like GURPS where characters made for one campaign will suck if dropped into another campaign/genre, it's important to ensure that people's characters will be useful throughout even after the reveal. For Agency 17, learning that their employers are evil won't serve to change the fundamental understanding of the universe (no magic, no time travel, no aliens), it's just a large betrayal of trust.
- If your players begin to see the cracks, let them! How they decide to handle the small inconsistencies will help force how and when the reveal happens. There's also the fringe benefit that things that don't make sense to players due to fridge logic can later be explained as a consequence of their characters constantly being mislead.
- Controlling information becomes hugely important. Giving out too much information will blow the surprise early. Giving too little means that the players will be entirely clueless. I've tried to make them work for the really juicy bits, and I've accepted that they won't always learn everything.
- A lot of this rides on the players accepting things at face value and not digging. If their handler says that those crates are medical supplies, hopefully they believe him and don't try to smuggle in a few pistols on the top themselves.
- It helps that Delusions exist in GURPS which can help explain why their handler never caught on that their employers were scum.
- Recovering the black box of a downed Agency 17 plane to prevent other organizations from using it
- Moving something (Food, Medical Supplies, Building Schematics) that is really something else (Drugs, Sarin, Weapon Schematics)
- Protecting wanted terrorists, fugitives, assassins, etc
- 'Enemy agents' are really legitimate CIA/SAS/DEA/Mossad
- Framing CEO/Dignitary for Child Porn Possession
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
Action Report: Preparing the Hijack
The Agents
Tobias Stöhner: Gray hat hacker and electronics whiz, Tobias makes computer security experts at the Pentagon break out into a cold sweat when he infiltrates their systems.Virgil Cooke: A former CIA agent, Virgil is a master of acting a part and working the social aspects of covert ops. You probably should avoid windows if he wants you dead.
Jack Herman: Former SAS, Jack is the group's heavy muscle and military man. If the group needs his talents, it's inevitably because something went FUBAR and they need saving.
Alexandrina Veselovsky (Alex): Russian criminal. Breaking and entering expert. Overly complicated last name. Impossible to keep away from your valuables.
Nima Caspi: A former IDF combat medic, Nima is perfectly at home driving like a complete maniac and patching up complete maniacs who have taken a bullet or two.
This session we had Matt (Virgil), Thomas (Tobias) and Ryan (Jack). Kim (Alex) was absent.
Logan calls the players right after Nima and Miguel finish relating to Virgil that they've found the location of the Los Zetas garage where the escort SUVs are being worked on. Logan informs the players that their destination with the drug shipment is Roswell New Mexico. The agents and Logan talk for an extended period of time, going over the options available.
The Agents decide that they want to avoid Juarez and attempting the passing at Ojinaga. The hijack itself will likely take place just North of Ciudad Madera, with the Agents taking the stolen semi East before turning North again.
Jack goes out in the morning and hits up a few hardware stores, preparing a couple of impromptu spike strips consisting of a tire tread with sharp pointy bits ticking out of it. That finished, he does some scouting of the roads just North of Madera.
Nima busies herself working on their own two SUVs. In the space of ten hours she's reinforced both vehicles with makeshift armor where it's possible (+2 DR), and added ramming bars to the front of each SUV (front DR vs. Slams/Collisions).
Virgil makes a solo run out to the Zetas garage once the mechanics leave for the night. His previous CIA experience coming in handy, he slips inside to review their process and place a few GPS trackers Tobias scrounged together on their vehicles. Each SUV has been outfitted with an extra fuel tank in the trunk, as well as run-flat tires.
Meanwhile, Tobias has been very busy. Between monitoring the bugs on Hernando and Chavez, setting up the radio jammer and ensuring that the jammer won't interfere with their own communications, he even manages to encrypt their own radio traffic.
The Agents manage to record numerous conversations between Chaves and Hernando. It seems the local Zetas are waiting to hear from their superiors where the convoy is supposed to pass into the United States. The information is being kept under wraps to prevent the Sinaloa Cartel from attacking the shipment. This is making Hernando and Chavez very nervous. They learn a few hours later that Hernando is meeting with a Los Zetas courier at a local Los Zetas hideout.
Virgil and Jack visit the local Zetas hangout, which turns out to be a bar, hoping to be able to snoop on Hernando's meeting with the courier.Virgil convincingly plays a harmless tourist (hello critical success), preventing any hostility from the Zetas as long as he's keeping the bartender happy purchasing overpriced local tequila.
At one point, Hernando bursts into the bar, yelling that an arms shipment is under attack, ordering the gang members out to attack the Sinaloas.
The Zetas courier, dispatched to deliver the final route details to Hernando fails to make the rendezvous, dying when he's attacked and killed by Sinaloa Cartel members.
Virgil and Jack learn that the Courier was attacked thanks to Tobias' phone tap on Hernando. Chavez and Hernando decide to try and take the convoy to Juarez, thinking that even if it is the wrong border crossing, the local Los Zetas presence there will prevent the loss of the shipment, even if it was meant to go through Ojinaga.
The Agents begin their final preparations to hijack the drugs.
Friday, December 6, 2013
Mission Two: The Hijack
After a mission 'success' that will have consequences the players won't learn about for some time, Logan allowed the PCs a single week of downtime before sending them to Mexico.
See, Agency 17 had learned that the Los Zetas Cartel was moving an extremely large shipment of cocaine into the United States in the next week or so, and tasked the players with hijacking the shipment.
The players haven't learned Agency 17's intended destination for the shipment, but I've decided that their drop off point is the Roswell Diner in Roswell New Mexico.
See, Agency 17 had learned that the Los Zetas Cartel was moving an extremely large shipment of cocaine into the United States in the next week or so, and tasked the players with hijacking the shipment.
The players haven't learned Agency 17's intended destination for the shipment, but I've decided that their drop off point is the Roswell Diner in Roswell New Mexico.
The Setup:
- The shipment is leaving from Ciudad Madera, a city of population roughly 15,000. Although not controlled by the Los Zetas cartel in real life (as pointed out by one of my players), I've taken artistic license and just stated that the Los Zetas cartel has expanded rapidly in the last few years
- The shipment is being loaded on a semi truck with trailer. The shipment is going to be well over 20 tons of cocaine- easily one of the largest drug shipments to be moving across the Mexico-United States border in history. The Los Zetas cartel wouldn't be doing this without a very good damn reason, something that I've admittedly not come up with- yet.
- The trip to Kermit Texas (the final destination for the shipment) is likely going to take at least 12 hours.
- There are three possible routes the shipment can take. The first major branch point is whether the truck crosses from Juarez into El Paso Texas, or goes west to Ojinaga. From there, two of the potential paths cross again just an hour away from Kermit Texas. The third route goes through Juarez but does not meet up with the path the truck would take if it crossed into the US at Ojinaga.
- The player's intended destination complicates things. Roswell is about 3 hours from Kermit Texas. I'm sure they're hoping that the drop off point for the drugs will be further East, away from the Zetas areas of control, not North through them.
Los Zetas Preparation:
- The semi and the two dedicated escort SUVs have been outfitted with auxiliary fuel tanks to extend their operational range.
- Additionally, the semi has been outfitted with ramming bars across the front grill, providing an additional DR 4 from collisions from the front.
- Border Patrol agents have been given a sizable bribe to allow the shipment through the border. This is how Agency 17 initially learned of the shipment.
- The Zetas will have multiple response teams available along the route the shipment will be taken. These teams will be composed of multiple cars, SUVs, motorcycles, as well as a single civilian helicopter. They will reinforce the escort vehicles and respond if something happens to the convoy.
- The convoy will communicate with one another using CB radios, using cell phones for longer range communication.
- The cartel has blackmailed an extremely skilled (Driving, Heavy Wheeled-18) trucker to drive the shipment for them. His family will be at risk if he does not cooperate with them.
- The dedicated escort team will be armed with old AK-47s loaded with armor piercing ammunition. (Originally 5d6+1 pi damage, becomes 4d-1(2) pi- damage due to the change in ammunition)
- The response teams will be armed with more varied armaments. Those on motorcycle will be limited to sawn-off shotguns, pistols and other small arms. Those on four wheels will have a greater selection available to them.
- The helicopter will have a light machine gun of some sort. It's likely whoever is shooting it will be hanging from the side of the aircraft and not shooting it from a weapon mount.
PC's Preparedness:
- Thanks to a local asset and some legwork, the PCs know the location of the facility where the cocaine is being loaded onto the semi.
- They also know where the dedicated escort vehicles are being outfitted and checked over by Zeta mechanics.
- Their local asset helped them bug the communications of the local cartel leader.
- The PC armament currently consists of a .50 BMG sniper rifle with APHC ammunition, multiple carbines and assault rifles, as well as two bricks of C4 explosives.
- The party's communications expert should have no problems knocking out the Los Zetas cell and radio communications. Doing so should help mitigate the cartel's capability to respond with force.
- The players have ample opportunity to sabotage the escort vehicles.
- Done right, the players could possibly divert the shipment to their preferred route- bypassing a lot of the response teams and other preparations. Doing so might mitigate the helicopter if it is forced to scout for their position.
Chaos and Insanity:
This is mostly a list of ideas I've had for complicating things to make the ride to their location a little more... wild.- Heavy traffic
- Legitimate cops
- Rival gang attempting to hijack the shipment for themselves.
- DEA agents
- Bad weather
- Support from Agency 17 itself
Things to Consider:
- The Zetas driver will be vastly superior to anyone the players have. The players' combat driver would be looking at a -2 default from her driving (automobile) skill of 16, meaning a 12 if familiarity penalties are also assessed. Tobias is looking at a modified 7-9 driving skill behind the wheels of the truck.
- The handling penalty with the trailer is -3, meaning that they are going to want the dedicated driver behind the wheel.
- Majority of the Los Zetas enemies are going to be praying and spraying, likely with skill 10. Figuring in speed and distance penalties, and the players are actually unlikely to get completely wiped out.
- In fact, crashing, falls to the pavement and other hazards associated with high speed chases are much more likely to get them killed.
- Total aim bonus while aiming from the semi or SUVs cannot exceed 4. -2 attack penalty if attacking after a vehicle a character is riding in dodges.
- -1 to attack rolls through vehicle windows to strike occupants unless occupants are hanging out of the windows.
- Occupants and vehicle damage on page 555 might come up. SUV is SM +3 and a Semi is SM +4 (Since nobody will be in the trailer on the Semi, it is not SM +5)
Non-Hijacking Related Information:
- I've decided that Agency 17 (the group that the players are working for) is the corrupt organization. Section 17 (the legitimate government agency the players believe they are a part of) will be how I refer to the real deal.
- Agency 17 wants the drugs for a few reasons. It's a huge opportunity for financial gain selling the cocaine. It bloodies the reputation of the Zeta cartel, and will likely lead to a bloody surge in violence. Cocaine could also be planted on certain government officials to buy their silence... or to end their careers.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Events Thus Far
Agency 17 has had handful of sessions in so far. We've had at least 5-6 of them, with a few missed ones due to frequent headaches and other real life issues.
Tobias Stöhner: Gray hat hacker and electronics whiz, Tobias makes computer security experts at the Pentagon break out into a cold sweat when he infiltrates their systems.
Virgil Cooke: A former CIA agent, Virgil is a master of acting a part and working the social aspects of covert ops. You probably should avoid windows if he wants you dead.
Jack Herman: Former SAS, Jack is the group's heavy muscle and military man. If the group needs his talents, it's inevitably because something went FUBAR and they need saving.
Alexandrina Veselovsky (Alex): Russian criminal. Breaking and entering expert. Overly complicated last name. Impossible to keep away from your valuables.
Nima Caspi: A former IDF combat medic, Nima is perfectly at home driving like a complete maniac and patching up complete maniacs who have taken a bullet or two.
Mission One: Arthur Bingham
Initially tasked with investigating a journalist who may have stumbled onto the existence of Agency 17, the players were flown into New York City, where they met with their handler, Logan, as well as Logan's bodyguard, Mr. Monson. Logan explained the nature of Agency 17 to them, and then set them loose to investigate Bingham.
It turned out that Bingham is the nephew of a British diplomat, one George Hardings. Although it initially appeared that Hardings was feeding Bingham information about a botched mission that involved A17 spying on the SAS, it turned out that Hardings had come into possession of a CIA dossier. The dossier contained a full summary of the Russian Bratva hierarchy, listing out the command structure, information that also detailed the identities of a few CIA moles within the organization.
Hardings had been hired by the Belarus KGB to steal the list and give it to them. The Russians and CIA both had vested interests in making sure their side could acquire the list for themselves, meaning that Hardings was a target. The players thwarted an assault on Bingham and Hardings, helping them escape.
Even after searching Bingham's apartment, the players were unable to learn what information he had on Agency 17. Hardings was able to convince them that his nephew had supplied him with the CIA list, immediately turning them against Bingham.
Bingham, cornered and threatened by Tobias, shot Tobias and jumped out of a two story window to make his escape, receiving help from an extraction team.
Hardings was returned to the United Kingdom, disgraced, at the center of a diplomatic firestorm over his possession of classified CIA intelligence documents.
The players never learned that Bingham is in truth a NSA analyst, one who has stumbled onto the activities of both the real Agency 17 and the insidious imposter group that the players are part of. This will come back to haunt them.
The Agents
Tobias Stöhner: Gray hat hacker and electronics whiz, Tobias makes computer security experts at the Pentagon break out into a cold sweat when he infiltrates their systems.
Virgil Cooke: A former CIA agent, Virgil is a master of acting a part and working the social aspects of covert ops. You probably should avoid windows if he wants you dead.
Jack Herman: Former SAS, Jack is the group's heavy muscle and military man. If the group needs his talents, it's inevitably because something went FUBAR and they need saving.
Alexandrina Veselovsky (Alex): Russian criminal. Breaking and entering expert. Overly complicated last name. Impossible to keep away from your valuables.
Nima Caspi: A former IDF combat medic, Nima is perfectly at home driving like a complete maniac and patching up complete maniacs who have taken a bullet or two.
Mission One: Arthur Bingham
Initially tasked with investigating a journalist who may have stumbled onto the existence of Agency 17, the players were flown into New York City, where they met with their handler, Logan, as well as Logan's bodyguard, Mr. Monson. Logan explained the nature of Agency 17 to them, and then set them loose to investigate Bingham.
It turned out that Bingham is the nephew of a British diplomat, one George Hardings. Although it initially appeared that Hardings was feeding Bingham information about a botched mission that involved A17 spying on the SAS, it turned out that Hardings had come into possession of a CIA dossier. The dossier contained a full summary of the Russian Bratva hierarchy, listing out the command structure, information that also detailed the identities of a few CIA moles within the organization.
Hardings had been hired by the Belarus KGB to steal the list and give it to them. The Russians and CIA both had vested interests in making sure their side could acquire the list for themselves, meaning that Hardings was a target. The players thwarted an assault on Bingham and Hardings, helping them escape.
Even after searching Bingham's apartment, the players were unable to learn what information he had on Agency 17. Hardings was able to convince them that his nephew had supplied him with the CIA list, immediately turning them against Bingham.
Bingham, cornered and threatened by Tobias, shot Tobias and jumped out of a two story window to make his escape, receiving help from an extraction team.
Hardings was returned to the United Kingdom, disgraced, at the center of a diplomatic firestorm over his possession of classified CIA intelligence documents.
The players never learned that Bingham is in truth a NSA analyst, one who has stumbled onto the activities of both the real Agency 17 and the insidious imposter group that the players are part of. This will come back to haunt them.
An Introduction to Agency 17
There are 16 official members of the United States Intelligence Community. The world is well aware of the actions of the likes of the CIA, NSA and DOD. The world, and the Intelligence Community are not well aware of Agency 17.
Agency 17 (A17) is rumored to report directly to the President, and even the agents it employs are left in the dark as to true scope and nature of their employers. Agency 17 values its secrecy dearly, being able to spy indiscriminately on US allies, the other Intelligence Community members and the American people with little scrutiny or red tape.
It's said even the Director of National Intelligence might not know that Agency 17 exists.
What is known is that A17 hires from a wide swath of supremely skilled and talented individuals. The vetting process is tough, only selecting candidates who are prime physical and mental specimens who are up for some of the most covert work available. A17 largely recruits from other Intelligence Agencies, secretly courting members. Some hope to escape office politics, others jump at the chance to come out of a forced retirement to get back in the game. Others see Agency 17 as a way to do some good in the world, unhindered by petty concerns like accountability.
It's also known that secrecy comes at a price, and A17 operates on a shoestring budget that frequently leaves extravagant gear requests unanswered. Agents also have to give up their entire lives, being willing to travel across the world, into some of the worst hot spots for terrorist and criminal activity, all without being able to have a wife and kids waiting at home.
This campaign follows a number of Agency 17 spooks as they begin operating as a team for the mysterious government organization.
Of course, the players and their characters are not aware of something, a fact that I've known since the beginning of the campaign. The organization that they've been working for- Agency 17- is a doppelganger, a group operating under a false flag.
Some powerful and dangerous individuals stumbled upon the existence of Agency 17, and made a decision. They would make a criminal and terrorist organization in the guise of the legitimate Agency 17, competing with it for the same pool of recruits, clients and resources. By becoming a dark reflection of the most secretive US Intelligence Community member, the founders of the Criminal Agency 17 hoped to stymie the group they were modeled after- and remain in the shadows themselves.
The players have no clue that they're ultimately working for a terrorist organization much like SD-6
from Alias. Each mission they have done or will go on will have some kind of twist or nefarious bent where all is not what it seems and their actions, while appearing just on paper, are just creating more misery and mayhem for the world.
I can't wait to see how pissed the players (and their characters!) get when they figure that out.
Agency 17 (A17) is rumored to report directly to the President, and even the agents it employs are left in the dark as to true scope and nature of their employers. Agency 17 values its secrecy dearly, being able to spy indiscriminately on US allies, the other Intelligence Community members and the American people with little scrutiny or red tape.
It's said even the Director of National Intelligence might not know that Agency 17 exists.
What is known is that A17 hires from a wide swath of supremely skilled and talented individuals. The vetting process is tough, only selecting candidates who are prime physical and mental specimens who are up for some of the most covert work available. A17 largely recruits from other Intelligence Agencies, secretly courting members. Some hope to escape office politics, others jump at the chance to come out of a forced retirement to get back in the game. Others see Agency 17 as a way to do some good in the world, unhindered by petty concerns like accountability.
It's also known that secrecy comes at a price, and A17 operates on a shoestring budget that frequently leaves extravagant gear requests unanswered. Agents also have to give up their entire lives, being willing to travel across the world, into some of the worst hot spots for terrorist and criminal activity, all without being able to have a wife and kids waiting at home.
This campaign follows a number of Agency 17 spooks as they begin operating as a team for the mysterious government organization.
Of course, the players and their characters are not aware of something, a fact that I've known since the beginning of the campaign. The organization that they've been working for- Agency 17- is a doppelganger, a group operating under a false flag.
Some powerful and dangerous individuals stumbled upon the existence of Agency 17, and made a decision. They would make a criminal and terrorist organization in the guise of the legitimate Agency 17, competing with it for the same pool of recruits, clients and resources. By becoming a dark reflection of the most secretive US Intelligence Community member, the founders of the Criminal Agency 17 hoped to stymie the group they were modeled after- and remain in the shadows themselves.
The players have no clue that they're ultimately working for a terrorist organization much like SD-6
from Alias. Each mission they have done or will go on will have some kind of twist or nefarious bent where all is not what it seems and their actions, while appearing just on paper, are just creating more misery and mayhem for the world.
I can't wait to see how pissed the players (and their characters!) get when they figure that out.
An Introduction to Insidious GURPS Planning
Inspired by the likes of Douglas Cole at Gaming Ballistic and Peter V. Dell'Orto's Dungeon Fantastic, I've decided to begin chronicling my experiences as a I run a modern GURPS 4th edition campaign called Agency 17.
First, I must give credit to Sean Punch (also known as Kromm) whose campaign write-ups involving The Company really influenced me to begin running something set in the modern day. His session write ups are absolutely great, and I really enjoy reading them when they do come out. Kromm also provided some extremely useful templates for use making agents, which have been an invaluable resource.
I should also mention the fine folks over at Strolen's Citadel who have gladly read through multiple drafts, ideas, and concepts of mine in the past. I will likely sporadically post Agency 17 related material there under the alias Ted- that is me and no someone is not stealing my content to post on Strolen's Citadel.
And without much more further ado (except for some caffeine because I just woke up), I should begin explaining just what Agency 17 is in my next post.
First, I must give credit to Sean Punch (also known as Kromm) whose campaign write-ups involving The Company really influenced me to begin running something set in the modern day. His session write ups are absolutely great, and I really enjoy reading them when they do come out. Kromm also provided some extremely useful templates for use making agents, which have been an invaluable resource.
I should also mention the fine folks over at Strolen's Citadel who have gladly read through multiple drafts, ideas, and concepts of mine in the past. I will likely sporadically post Agency 17 related material there under the alias Ted- that is me and no someone is not stealing my content to post on Strolen's Citadel.
And without much more further ado (except for some caffeine because I just woke up), I should begin explaining just what Agency 17 is in my next post.
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