Chapter 2 - Getting to the bottom of it?

[Nocturno]

"Well, we may want to change. We are going to a secret meet, in a sewer. He will pull out the items from his previous investigating."

"You have a bigger brain than me Woody. Maybe you can piece some of this together?"

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The first part of this game is so long ago, and Sue rolled so horribly, I don't actually remember what he figured out, if anything.

[Chris1234]

What are the items?

[Nocturno]

Sue will open one of the packs he is carrying.

"Here are some of the things I have collected over the last few days. They all seem to be tied to the Corpse I was sent to investigate. We are going to make the meeting the Corpse was to have,
hopefully we will get more information once there."


Leather Harness and rope
wooden canary
a blue, almost transparent, silk cloak with fine silver chain stitched along the collar and shoulders.
a sheathed dagger
a red silk outfit, troos, shirt, cloak & mask.
a black cotton mask.
a small bundle of leather straps and wooden pegs.
minotaur ring
knowledge that the corpse had a Moon on it, and that they were expecting a Moon at this drop.

He was returning back with a tonic for his poor old ma.
It's just him that looks after his ma and her three starving babies.
Hunters Alley was fairly deserted last nigh sometime after ten bells**
A man was face down, back of his head well bashed in, but no blood. Didn't smell of the docks.
The Watch came round very soon after he saw the man.***
The Watch come round Hunter's Alley about 3 times per bell. (So the deceased had been on the deck less than 20 mins).
His body was still warm. (So he hadn't died ages before and just been dumped in the Alley).
Arry moved off before the Watch saw him.
Not usually any such 'appenings in the Hunters.

Hand Tattoo
Womens Gitch
Corpse Did not smell of Docks
Clean Boots

Investigating these in turn, he discovers:
1) The silk cloak feels sensuous against the skin and almost completely transparent when held up against a bright light.
2) The chain edging on the cloak matches the scuff marks on the strange leather armour previously found under the deceased's bed.
3) The sheathed dagger is of fine quality and has a blackened (non-reflective) blade that is exceptionally sharp. It doesn't particularly 'match' anything found to date (so far as Sue is aware.)
4) The red silk outfit, troos, shirt, cloak & mask appear to be a good quality party costume - some kind of red bird with a large-ish beak. Sue could not fit into the costume.
5) The cotton mask is made from a lightweight, dark material that wouldn't impede vision or hearing.
6) The bundle of straps and wooden pegs Sue recognizes as being restraints, more for weird recreational use than for purposes of law enforcement.

Six Hands.png (154.22 KiB) Viewed 8553 times

The second parchment is a numbered invitation, unsigned, dated five days hence:
"Dear Red Parrot,
You are cordially invited to attend at the Bird Sanctuary hosted at The Purple Palace,
Yours fondly,
Yellow Canary"

Parchment A.png (8.21 KiB) Viewed 8553 times

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Ok, hopefully I can find the list. I think we had a couple lists of items Sue gathered while investigating.

It's a list lost in over a year or posting. What day are we on? Did we miss the party at the Purple Palace?

[Chris1234]

It is between five and six bells (post high sun) on day three.

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If someone wants to surrender a GM Inspiration, I'll post a summary of what my notes indicate various members of the adventuring band had discovered.

[Nocturno]

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I will this has been bugging me for over a year lol, with the horrible rolls earlier of Sue, and the time since I first looked at it, I am missing something.

[Chris1234]

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Notes on investigation:

• Taffis Bornam, murdered in Hunter's Alley, was a member of 'The Six Hands' gang and possessed a ring of 'The Minotaurs' gang.
  • ==> Sue knows that gang novices wear coloured sashes to show member ship & full members are characteristically tattooed. He belatedly infers such rings are for 'guests'/safe passage.
  No indications that the murder was gang related, so either a random act or something more complicated.
  • ==> Location, timing and absence of robbery or conflict suggest a premeditated murder.
  He is expected to make a rendezvous in the sewers at nine bells this evening (see map) to deliver two Harbour Moons; one for the current shipment and one for the missed payment (due to him being dead).
  He is invited, via a numbered, unsigned invitation, in the persona of "Red Parrot" (a red silk outfit, troos, shirt, cloak & mask) to a party at the Bird Sanctuary hosted at The Purple Palace Palace tomorrow evening by "Yellow Canary". The latter is inferred to be superior in hierarchy to Boris (who in turn is above the hands-on team leader).
  Nether Boris's superior nor subordinate appear to know Boris is dead & there's an inference that "He", (Yellow Canary's superior) also does not know that Boris is dead.
  • ==> Assuming the murder was to prevent the Boris from turning “Lord’s Evidence”, there is a tentative inference of a layers (or layers) of the operation higher than “He”.

From his personal effects Boris:

• likely had burglary skills
  had odd personal tastes (sensuous, restraint, other gender undies etc)
  has poor personal hygiene but kept his working personae (sewer walker versus well-groomed gang senior) compartmentalized
  has a cotton mask, lightweight, dark material that wouldn't impede vision or hearing. Speculation: might be used for sewer rendezvous.
  has a wooden canary which remains a mystery

[counterkid]

"Well, we may want to change. We are going to a secret meet, in a sewer. He will pull out the items from his previous investigating."

"You have a bigger brain than me Woody. Maybe you can piece some of this together?"

=========================

The first part of this game is so long ago, and Sue rolled so horribly, I don't actually remember what he figured out, if anything.

Does Woody need to do a roll here?

Also we need Woody to impersonate who? The dead figure?

[counterkid]

"Impersonating is not my strength but I'm willing to try. Sue what additional information can you provide me so I don't mess this up."

[Squirrellord]

OOC - Assuming the information collected is relayed to Jim

That is a tangled mess of a situation. What exactly are you trying to figure out? I find that complicated problems tend to get easier to see your way through if you can identify the problem you want to solve. Are you trying to figure out who killed this Taffis fella or why he was killed? Or are you looking deeper than that? What do you hope to gain from going to this sewer meet in place of Taffis?

[Nocturno]

Sue shares it all.

"I know friend, but we need to try and figure this out."

Sue thinks a moment then replies to Jim.

"We already figure he was killed for being an informant. Truly we are trying to figure out what he was smuggling, and whom he was working with. But it seems none of his associates know he is deceased."

Sue will pick up the black mask. "This should help."

[Chris1234]

What next?

[Nocturno]

Sue will pick up his armour next.

But he wants to make sure everyone is on the same page before they start moving.
Maybe Woody needs clarification, or can figure something we need out?
=====================///////==================================

"Anyone need to pick anything up? I have some shiny new Plate armour to pick up on our way out."

[Chris1234]

When Sue goes to collect the armour, it is ready (upon appropriate payments).

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All happy with the point of entry into the sewers?

[Nocturno]

Sue will take off the chain and hand it over.

He will take a deep breath as he says good bye to his second skin. But then says hello to his nice new shiny shell.

====================////////////////===================
I am good as long as the other 2 are.

[Squirrellord]

"I don't think you have enough of an understanding of the details of what is going on in order to pull off impersonating this Taffis fellow. Especially in what I presume to be a meeting that he made regularly or semi regularly. Your current... plan... seems a bit umm, unwise, as far as I can see. Are the three of us going to this meeting or will it just be one of us? Do you know if the people we are meeting are expecting more than one person? Not to be rude, but how well thought out is this plan of yours?" He sighs and continues "If you are indeed set on doing this, I am with you, however I suggest you figure out a way to play this meeting in a different way. I do have a vial that can disguise a person for an hour if needed as well."