Apologies and Clarifications regarding September's Plot

[initiates]

As the moderators (and a helper moderator) of Exsilium, we, Ishmael, Liz, and Sophia, extend our apologies for the presentation of the upcoming September kidnapping plot given yesterday evening. Concerns have been brought to us in regards to the apparent focus of this plot, and what agency characters have during the course of events. We would like to clarify that the focus of the United Earth kidnappings is meant to be on the kidnappings and their purpose, not on the character(s) who allowed the United Earth initial access.

Catsovi acted as a catalyst; Vanadi is a means of having a walking camera inside the Hold. Kaworu was actually the first intense scrutinization of a Transport by the UE. They stopped being important players as soon as the United Earth had their information: who the PCs are, their names, their files kept by the Initiative, and a way to get as many to gather at once as possible.

The information should have been given as follows:

• The United Earth is starting to kidnap Transports from Exsilium. Some may be mind controlled into being willingly kidnapped, or to assist in kidnapping a friend or loved one. Others are simply kidnapped and carried off to the United Earth. ( Sign up to be kidnapped here.)

• The cumulation of these kidnappings will happen in a direct storming of the party being held on September 15th, in which a giant monster called the Misery will roll into town along with the UE special forces. A combination of these factors will cause all powers to be nulled in a mile radius of the epicenter of the attack, which is the party.

→ Leaving that one mile radius allows powers to return.

• The only exceptions to the above are people who have been kidnapped by the United Earth. The United Earth has developed null-technology, and this is their first obvious use of said technology against the Transports. No kidnapped characters will regain their powers until after they are rescued.

• How the kidnapped are tracked down is up to the PCs. If they can figure out who was kidnapped prior to the 15th, they can be sent back in time to track those early victims to the UE holding compound. If they track them now in the aftermath of the party, that works. If they use their abilities in some other manner, that works.

→ Direct powered attacks on the UE soldiers will fail due to these nulls. PCs can learn this information by trial and error.

• All sign-ups remain as is. The United Earth has access to all files; anyone who looks interesting and presents a window of opportunity is a likely victim.

→ Once all victims are claimed, and (hopefully) all victims are known, the rescue mission will be mounted.

• Going back to the immediate past to weaken the defenses of the compound will allow more insight into anything characters might seek to learn about the United Earth. Characters involved in the rescue can look for information while in compound. People on the distraction mission will be able to learn more about the UE. The Kidnapped will also have access to information, if more limited, during their time in the compound.

→ The Kidnapped will have their own interaction log-post for the duration of their kidnapping, should they choose to use it. Their stay is going to be pretty boring all around, so their best entertainment and distraction will be each other.

• The two-prong rescue mission on the 19th will be split so that those people with great power will distract the United Earth. The people who are on the sneaking mission (who have no abnormal powers) will be able to infiltrate defenses while the enhanced UE soldiers are confronting the distraction. Fake left, go right.

• People involved in any of the missions, or even the kidnappings, have agency in what happens, or what they might learn. Please come ask any of us for what could happen if "my character does x" so we might provide you with the potential answer(s).

→ More on these will be released later when mission details and a detailed The Kidnapped guide are released on September 1st (The Kidnapped guide) and September 8th (rescue missions info) respectively.

We want to sincerely thank the people who come to us and present their concerns regarding plots, game state, or anything of the sort so that we can improve the game experience for everyone. Our own human tendencies mean we don't always see what isn't made obvious, or we presume that our intention is clearly presented when that is not the case.

We apologize for our lack of coherency, and are grateful to the members of this game for speaking with us in any of our available avenues to let us know when we done goofed.

Thank you, Exsilium, and may we do our best for you as we continue to move forward.

Quick link reference:

Original Plot Post | Sign-Ups for The Kidnapped | Sign-Ups for Rescue Mission/Diversion Tactics | Sign-Ups for Missions in Time | UE Info Q+A, Plot Information

Comments

QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

[initiates]

[speakveryclearly]

I'm really blown away by your due diligence here, mod team! Right off the bat this plot was impressively complex with many different chances for characters of all types to get involved in all sorts of ways. (though some of flexibility is thanks to hostage THANKS MISTER PINKMAN... YOU ROCK) To address so many player remarks in the span of 24 hours and (and have another writeup coming soon in 24 hours!!) is downright amazing.

So I have another question that doesn't seem to have been addressed very much in either of the posts. Where do the communicator and the networks play into this? Do they work at all outside of the island Exsilium in the first place? Are the communicators considered Initiative-technology and disabled in power-null areas like evolving weapons? Will the United Earth manually confiscate devices from kidnapping victims? OTHER???

I don't have any concrete requests in this area - I just want a clear image of what's happening online in September.

Besides shit hitting the fan. That's pretty much a guarantee at this point.

[initiates]

Oh, sorry about that! Those being mind-controlled out of Exsilium will willingly leave their tablets behind (suspicious???), and those being kidnapped without mind control will be made to leave them behind. Characters kidnapped but-not-mind-controlled at the party get more of a rush job, and will have a chance to shriek obscenities at the network all they like on the way out. If they attempt to use their tablets within the UE, though, they'll be confiscated.

Those going to the UE for rescues/diversions can use their tablets (yes, the range does extend that far! upgrades, baby), BUT wise people will probably want to encrypt any sensitive information away from Vanadi, who will still be uploading info to the UE.

[fintastic]

Just a little question actually not entirely related to the above. I know only a handful will be chosen to be mind controlled, but does that also apply to characters signed up to get regular kidnapped? Or does everyone who signs up for normal kidnapping get in?

[initiates]

The random lotto goes for everyone signing up, regardless of mind control or regular old kidnapping. Also, we'll be responding to everyone individually in the next 3-5 days, allowing time for new applicants to throw themselves into the pot.

[interspace]

With the power-nulling field, what happens to those whose powers are more a quirk of the genetic lotto than an out-and-out superpower?

[initiates]

That would count as a power!

[quackery]

So are missions still going to be a thing after they move to the moon?

[initiates]

Yep! They're uprooting the whole Transporter, too.

Re: QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

[velveteened]

will the sentient weapons selection still.....exist on the moon?

[initiates]

Yes, if it will be a reduced selection from before.

Re: QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

[hobgob]

How plausible is it for a pet (a small cat, for example) to be ferreted away to live up on the space station when they make their break for it?

[initiates]

Entirely plausible. You may want to secret away some food, too, since supplies will be uncertain, and cats need high protein diets!

[unholy_rebirth]

DAD ARE YOU SPACE?

[initiates]

THIS IS YOUR MOTHER SPEAKING
















do the dishes okay they're sitting there all gross

[cradlerobbed]

SO FOR WHEN EVERYONE IS SENT TO THE MOON... what happens to people's pets that they brought from home... do they die with everyone else on Exsilium or are the Transports gonna have any chance to grab them before being carted off?

This is a very important question clearly....

[sithiche]

Do we have any idea how long "for now" is going to be, re: everyone living on the moon?

More moon stuff :o

[freezerburned]

Oh my god you are sending werewolves to the moon

I figure this will probably be a 'work this out amongst yourselves' type thing, but as for the werewolves who are going to the moon, could we potentially make their powers go haywire? And could there be a way to prevent them from (I'm assuming) going completely crazy after awhile?

Additionally, if there are any sort of guidelines and things you'd like werewolf-peeps to keep in mind while trying to figure out how their character's werewolfism would work on the moon, let me know too! Ahahahaa omg.

[crocodilesmiles]

Can we get injected with nanobots for any variety of purposes if we're among the kidnapped?

... Not to explode ourselves later though!

[scentofpink]

Will Transplants with relevant abilities get a chance to help with the evacuation? I saw someone else talking about using an extradimensional pocket thingy capable of safely holding people, and Rosy herself is likely to volunteer to go early and set up temporary attuned teleportation circles (basically, she'd be leaving to create the moonside half as soon as she finishes setting up the earthside half).

Or is this the kind of thing that'll have signups on the 21th?

[sawhatyoudidthere]

Question for the Nuclear info... very very character specific...

Mary's psychic, can she "see" it happen beforehand and be permitted a lovely freak out? And if she can, how much (usually she sees little scenes like in a play or a summary of the event unfolding)?

Thank yooouuu!

Re: QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

[imperfect]

I feel a bit behind the times asking this now, but! Would it be possible for a character who wasn't signed up as a rescuer or a distraction to abscond in the middle of things like an idiot and try to, say, go on a rescue mission of their own to the UE? And if that's something that could happen, how spectacularly could it be expected to fail?

[wilder]

THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION:

How much booze will be on the moonbase? Will there be a bar or will it be just whatever the transports thought to bring with? Will people have to smuggle booze through missions and possibly sell it for outlandish black market prices?

As you can see, I have great priorities.

Re: QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

[deadlybanker]

For characters who might be reluctant to leave the Earth entirely, would it be possible to escape to the mainland and hide out there for a while or would they be tracked down and brought along/'summoned' like they would be for missions?

And if that was possible would they have to be on the look out for United Earth forces during their stay there or what else might they encounter?

One of these days I swear I will reply to the right thread on a post! >,<' ]

Re: QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

[have_hat_will_travel]

So, with the revealing of EXPLOSION, I have three questions.

1) If the range on Pidonus' teleportation power is unlimited, can she directly teleport to the base once made aware of where it is sufficiently? ("Unlimited" in this case does have the limit of "On the same plane of existence", but teleporting to the moon is so outside D&D norms that I feel I need to explicitly ask.)

2) With her magic items, Pidonus can stash quite a bit of stuff. Is it safe to assume, once she's aware what's going on, she can stockpile things she believes will be valuable, possibly involving massive amounts of thievery from innocent soon-to-be-nuked people?

3) If she goes for the second, will The Initiative, if they find out, give her trouble, given what is going on?