New chat room entered at 8/4/2005 8:40:42 PM.
You are now in chat room “sotsw080405.”
CirclMastr has entered the chat room.

MilesMk1 has entered the chat room.

Thematrian1 has entered the chat room.

CirclMastr (8:41:42 PM): MacLeod returns, ready and able to do absolutely nothing to help in the run!
Umbrafer (8:42:01 PM): When we last left our antiheroes they were skulking about the tunnel entrance.
Thematrian1 (8:42:01 PM): 'swhat you get for making a character who can only do combat
Thematrian1 (8:42:10 PM): skulking about a door?
CirclMastr (8:42:32 PM): I thought we were still skulking about the camera'd hallway
Umbrafer (8:42:44 PM): Actually, you were out in the hallway. IIRC Glitch had found the lavatory.
Umbrafer (8:42:51 PM): No, the cameras both got Accidented.
MilesMk1 (8:42:51 PM): I was skulking by a T-intersection, watching a bathroom door and listening to strange clicking sounds. The rest of the the group was skulking a little further back.
Thematrian1 (8:42:59 PM): aaaah
Thematrian1 (8:43:06 PM): that's right, the clicking
MilesMk1 (8:43:41 PM): From what I remember - one direction, several doors including the head. Other direction - strange clicks and hums.
Umbrafer (8:44:09 PM): Yep
MilesMk1 (8:44:26 PM): #Let me see what those strange noises are about, then let's find a place we can hole up while we plan our next move... Sound good?#
Thematrian1 (8:44:37 PM): #Go for it#
MilesMk1 (8:44:54 PM): *skulks over to check out the strange noises*
Umbrafer (8:45:05 PM): Roll Skulking.
MilesMk1 (8:45:12 PM): (I *really* need a camera with a fiberoptic lead...)
MilesMk1 (8:45:16 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 2 1 6 4 1 4
CirclMastr (8:45:18 PM): (Yes you do)
MilesMk1 (8:45:21 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 2
MilesMk1 (8:45:29 PM): 20+spirit
Thematrian1 (8:45:37 PM): um. Are we still in City domain?
CirclMastr (8:45:56 PM): I think indoors is Hearth domain
MilesMk1 (8:45:57 PM): (Can't believe that piece of gear somehow didn't make it into SR canon)
Umbrafer (8:46:16 PM): I… suppose to the extent you ever were. It would be a major stretch to call this Hearth, and I'm not sure what else you could call it.
CirclMastr (8:46:41 PM): (SR writers: "A camera with a fiber-optic lead? Why would they need that? We don't want them role-playing colonoscopy.")
Thematrian1 (8:46:53 PM): ("Or do we?")
MilesMk1 (8:47:04 PM): (Clearly, they've never heard of Bubba the Love Troll, either...)
Thematrian1 (8:47:04 PM): (I think people who want that sort of thing tend to acquire drones. But yeah, for the non-VCR set...)
Umbrafer (8:47:14 PM): (Judging from the Surgery rules, I'd say they do)
CirclMastr (8:47:38 PM): (Judging from the surgery rules, they want them role-playing the billing)
Umbrafer (8:48:22 PM): In any event. You sneak to the corner.
Umbrafer (8:48:40 PM): The clicks and whirrs are still some distance away (judging by indoor standards, at least)
Thematrian1 (8:48:51 PM): (What we really need is Scavengers)
MilesMk1 (8:49:09 PM): ("Phftt...Who'd ever want a camera with a fiberoptic lead? Hey, but check this out - it's an oral slasher! A blade on a long flexible shaft that you attach to your tongue!")
MilesMk1 (8:49:28 PM): So what do I see looking around the corner?
CirclMastr (8:49:50 PM): ("Wait, a shaft in your mouth? Isn't that a little suggestive?" "Yeah, we'd better release a sourcebook with catgirls to balance out the sexual preferences.")
Umbrafer (8:50:23 PM): You peek around the corner, and find yourself face to face with…
Umbrafer (8:50:25 PM): Perception.
MilesMk1 (8:50:32 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 6 3 1 2 3 3
MilesMk1 (8:50:36 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 6
MilesMk1 (8:50:39 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 6
MilesMk1 (8:50:42 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 2
MilesMk1 (8:51:02 PM): Everything else fades into the background, but I see one thing really clearly...
Umbrafer (8:51:45 PM): …A long hallway. There's an open door along the wall to your left, and a few closed doors along your right. At the end of the hallway is a closed door with a camera trained on it.
MilesMk1 (8:52:24 PM): Which arm of the T is this? Right or left? And which way was the turn, right or left?
MilesMk1 (8:52:31 PM): (trying to draw a map...)
Umbrafer (8:53:22 PM): The lavatory was to the left. This is down the right and the turn was to the left.
MilesMk1 (8:53:52 PM): So what I've seen so far looks like an incomplete tuning fork, sort of.
Umbrafer (8:54:22 PM): Give or take.
Umbrafer (8:54:32 PM): The bottom bar is longer
Umbrafer (8:54:41 PM): Maybe more like the upper part of football goalposts
MilesMk1 (8:54:55 PM): Ok.
MilesMk1 (8:55:18 PM): And, does my spatial recognizer give me any clues as to where the sound is coming from?
Umbrafer (8:56:05 PM): Sound 1 (Whirring/Clicking part 1): seems to be coming out of a vent above the door to the closed room at the end of the hall.
Umbrafer (8:56:21 PM): Sound 2 (clicking part 2): somewhere through open door.
Umbrafer (8:56:38 PM): Sound 3 (unidentified): somewhere through open door.
MilesMk1 (8:56:58 PM): *relays the info on the strange sounds to the team*
Thematrian1 (8:57:19 PM): *quietly* "What do you make of it?"
MilesMk1 (8:57:24 PM): (BTW, does the other part of the T only have a bathroom door, or sother doors as well?)
Umbrafer (8:57:52 PM): (It had some other doors that you hadn't investigated)
MilesMk1 (8:59:03 PM): (None of them conveniently labeled "main matrix feed", are they?)
Umbrafer (8:59:03 PM): (Where by "some" I mean "two")
Umbrafer (8:59:07 PM): (No)
MilesMk1 (9:00:07 PM): #I think it's time to step back and see whether the other rooms or the head give us access to anything before we tackle this... I don't think we want to fry another camera just now.#
MilesMk1 (9:00:10 PM): #You?#
MilesMk1 (9:00:25 PM): Or rather #What do you guys think?#
Umbrafer (9:00:41 PM): "Hey, Jaime."
Umbrafer (9:00:44 PM): "Yeah?"
Thematrian1 (9:00:52 PM): #Yeah, soon it will start to get suspicious. But I'd bet you that what we need is behind that door.#
Umbrafer (9:01:07 PM): "Something's wrong with the camera feed. Keeps flickering."
Umbrafer (9:01:13 PM): "Just as long as it doesn't go down on us."
MilesMk1 (9:01:17 PM): (This is so much easier in movies, where the tech-ninja is guided by someone in the van with a precise schematic of the facility and all the air ducts are 2'x2'...)
Umbrafer (9:01:22 PM): (This from through the open door)
Umbrafer (9:01:31 PM): (Heh. So very true.)
Thematrian1 (9:01:41 PM): (Keeps FLICKERING? Gonna kill that spirit...)
MilesMk1 (9:01:50 PM): Ok... As *soon* as that happens: #Look sharp!#
Thematrian1 (9:02:11 PM): *is poised*
MilesMk1 (9:02:27 PM): #I hear guards talking about the camera feed, they might come out to look, so get read to hide - in the bathroom, I gues...#
Thematrian1 (9:02:57 PM): ::makes an 'after you' gesture to MacLeod'
Thematrian1 (9:03:15 PM): /'/::/3
MilesMk1 (9:03:29 PM): *listens for further cues for the guards and gets ready to get out of the way if someone comes this way*
MilesMk1 (9:03:37 PM): (Do you have a cat too?)
CirclMastr (9:03:43 PM): ::goes first, I suppose::
Thematrian1 (9:04:09 PM): (Heh, no. That's "substitute the third instance of ' with ::". I think; my sed is rusty)
Umbrafer (9:04:49 PM): (Ah, sed. I need to play around with it more.)
Umbrafer (9:05:10 PM): It's a small bathroom with a stall, a urinal, and one sink.
Umbrafer (9:05:23 PM): The place is clean, but one of the flourescent bulbs above has burned out.
Umbrafer (9:05:38 PM): Also, the faucet seems to be dripping.
Umbrafer (9:07:09 PM): And I could have sworn I'd asked for Perception from Glitch. Ah well, I am now.
MilesMk1 (9:07:18 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 2 5 4 1 4 5
Thematrian1 (9:07:29 PM): ::tightens the faucet::
MilesMk1 (9:07:55 PM): (10 nuyen says it keeps on dripping anyway)
Umbrafer (9:08:02 PM): You faintly smell vegetable oil tarted up and trying to pretend that it's butter.
Umbrafer (9:08:16 PM): The faucet tightens slightly. The dripping doesn't slow.
Thematrian1 (9:08:18 PM): (No bet)
MilesMk1 (9:08:35 PM): Do the clicks suddenly start to seem more like pops to me?
Umbrafer (9:08:53 PM): Nope
Thematrian1 (9:08:54 PM): (As in popcorn. The employee break area. Right)
MilesMk1 (9:09:12 PM): (But I *do* smell what seems like popcorn?)
Umbrafer (9:09:43 PM): (Yes)
MilesMk1 (9:09:55 PM): (And no sounds of anyone walking out?)
Umbrafer (9:10:07 PM): (None)
MilesMk1 (9:10:16 PM): (Actually, I keep putting the wrong things in parentheses...)
MilesMk1 (9:10:59 PM): #They seem to be enjoying their popcorn and don't seem to be leaving... I'm going to check those other two rooms, since the bathroom probably isn't the best long-term hiding spot...#
MilesMk1 (9:11:49 PM): *goes back, and first carefully listens at, and then cracks the doors to the other two bathroom-adjacent rooms to look inside*
Thematrian1 (9:12:10 PM): While I'm here, I'll look for easily-accessible ducts and ceiling spaces
Thematrian1 (9:12:20 PM): things MacLeod could fit into; Gem's a little tall for that sort of thign
Umbrafer (9:12:29 PM): One is a small maintenance closet. The other is locked.
Umbrafer (9:12:45 PM): The ceiling is concrete, oppressively so.
Umbrafer (9:13:00 PM): You also gather that they have no Trolls on duty.
Umbrafer (9:13:59 PM): (By which I mean the ceilings are about eight feet)
Thematrian1 (9:16:50 PM): While I'm here, I summon a Watcher, force 4
Thematrian1 (9:16:54 PM): Thematrian1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 1 1 6 4 5 2
Thematrian1 (9:16:56 PM): Thematrian1 rolled 10 6-sided dice: 3 1 5 6 2 6 6 1 6 1
MilesMk1 (9:16:59 PM): What would it take to unlock the other one without leving signs of tampering? Does it look difficult?
Thematrian1 (9:17:02 PM): (3 hours of service)
Umbrafer (9:17:44 PM): It has a little keypad next to it.
Umbrafer (9:18:04 PM): Doesn't look all that well-protected, but would take a bit to crack.
Umbrafer (9:18:36 PM): (During which time anyone who were to come into the hallway would probably notice it)
MilesMk1 (9:20:41 PM): Bah. Does the maintenance closet have any air vents, ducts, etc.?
Umbrafer (9:20:55 PM): The Watcher, meanwhile, looks like wet concrete.
Thematrian1 (9:21:20 PM): "Right now, stay in the space between worlds."
Thematrian1 (9:21:31 PM): (that, to the watcher)
Thematrian1 (9:21:40 PM): *curiously, to MacLeod* "Can you see it?"
Umbrafer (9:22:05 PM): None immediately obvious. The door isn't entirely flush with the floor, though.
MilesMk1 (9:23:31 PM): Am I missing something, or is that just an interesting factoid? ;)
Thematrian1 (9:23:52 PM): You could look under the door, but that's it
Umbrafer (9:24:09 PM): That's a possible source of air to the closet.
MilesMk1 (9:24:16 PM): Right, right... Or, I could turn into mist form...
MilesMk1 (9:24:26 PM): Crap, I've said too much.
Thematrian1 (9:24:31 PM): heh
MilesMk1 (9:24:59 PM): Does the other room have a crack under the door I could look through?
Umbrafer (9:25:55 PM): The other room's door is much more flush with the floor.
MilesMk1 (9:26:06 PM): (And does anyone feel strangely like they're playing Splinter Cell? :p)
Umbrafer (9:26:24 PM): (Never played it, heh)
Thematrian1 (9:26:32 PM): (Me neither)
MilesMk1 (9:26:37 PM): (Bah.)
MilesMk1 (9:27:39 PM): #Nothing of interest so far - though the maintenance room is an alternate place to hole up... I'm going to go examine the other hallway, see if I can get into any of the other rooms aside from the breakroom.#
Umbrafer (9:28:50 PM): The left side of the tuning fork?
MilesMk1 (9:29:25 PM): I thought the breakroom and several other doors were on the right side.
Umbrafer (9:30:17 PM): Ah, other doors on that side. Yes.
MilesMk1 (9:31:19 PM): I will investigate those - but only ones I can tamper with without being seen from the breakroom.
MilesMk1 (9:32:06 PM): Also... The camera is in that hallway, but pointed at the door on the end, not down the hallway, correct?
Umbrafer (9:32:33 PM): That's correct.
MilesMk1 (9:33:05 PM): Ok... I examine the doors - listen, look under if possible, try to open.
Umbrafer (9:33:16 PM): Both of the two doors along the right side of the hallway are in view of the breakroom from some angle, though one of them is at a fairly steep angle.
MilesMk1 (9:33:44 PM): Hmm... Well, I risk a quick peek into the breakroom, then, to see whether anyone is actually looking in the direction of the door.
Umbrafer (9:34:03 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 6 4 2 2 1 3 2 1 1 3 2 5 4 4 3
Umbrafer (9:34:09 PM): Umbrafer rolled 1 6-sided die: 5
Thematrian1 (9:34:23 PM): (The spirit on him was F4, by the way)
Umbrafer (9:35:53 PM): You see one person sitting on a chair, a bag of popcorn in one hand. He's eating it, which is generating the mysterious noise you were hearing earlier. His line of sight does include the door, but he's not really looking towards it.
MilesMk1 (9:37:10 PM): Can I see the whole room, and am positive there's only one guy?
Umbrafer (9:37:34 PM): You'd have to stick your head in more to see the whole room.
MilesMk1 (9:38:12 PM): Mhmm.
MilesMk1 (9:38:47 PM): #We seem to be stymied... There's a guy in the breakroom with a LOS to the hallway, which means that until he moves, I can't play with the doors much, and you guys won't be able to get by. Ideas?#
MilesMk1 (9:39:17 PM): *moves over to get a better look at the camera-protected door, and see more of the breakroom as he passes by the door*
Thematrian1 (9:39:29 PM): #Mmph. I can get a watcher to whisper in his ear, but I'm not sure how that would help.#
Umbrafer (9:40:24 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 2 4 6 4 6 2 4 6 2 5 1 3 4 4 2
Umbrafer (9:40:38 PM): Umbrafer rolled 3 6-sided dice: 2 5 4
Umbrafer (9:41:10 PM): There's another guy in there examining something that seems to be giving out the clicking noises you heard from in there earlier.
MilesMk1 (9:42:05 PM): Knowledge Electronics to see what it is?
Umbrafer (9:42:34 PM): Sure.
MilesMk1 (9:43:10 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 8 6-sided dice: 2 5 3 2 1 5 6 5
MilesMk1 (9:43:15 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 2
Umbrafer (9:43:55 PM): It appears to be a status readout of some variety.
Umbrafer (9:44:15 PM): It's a relic—in addition to electronic display, it prints out a hard copy on paper tape.
MilesMk1 (9:45:00 PM): Ok. I shoot him, and take a look at the door at the end.
MilesMk1 (9:45:08 PM): Or maybe just look at the door.
Umbrafer (9:45:28 PM): Hehehe
Umbrafer (9:46:01 PM): The door at the end appears locked at first, but then you notice the duct-tape latch.
Umbrafer (9:47:32 PM): The camera watches it with unblinking vigilance.
MilesMk1 (9:47:40 PM): *is appalled*
MilesMk1 (9:48:25 PM): #They... They're just down the line from a nuclear power plant, and one of their security doors is held closed with DUCT TAPE!#
MilesMk1 (9:49:24 PM): #Wells with plywood covered doors, half-planted explosives, operatives nearly killed by the wild life... What IS this place?#
Thematrian1 (9:49:54 PM): #A good place to plant some false information#
MilesMk1 (9:50:25 PM): #Hopefully.#
MilesMk1 (9:51:13 PM): 1. Are there any "Alarm will sound..." signs on this door, or other indications it is alarmed? 2. Is it in LOS of the break room door?
Umbrafer (9:51:54 PM): It is out of LOS of the break room, and there are no such signs. The keypad has not been taped over, though.
MilesMk1 (9:52:05 PM): Mhmm.
MilesMk1 (9:53:06 PM): #Ok... All I can think of at the moment is wait till they go off-break - though you guys will have to vacate the bathroom, in case they stop there before going back on duty - and wait for them to go back up
MilesMk1 (9:53:21 PM): and maybe see the keypad combination if we're lucky.#
MilesMk1 (9:53:55 PM): #I could try getting into one of the other rooms, but that might just let them see me for nothing.#
Thematrian1 (9:54:00 PM): #Back into the tunnel, then?#
Thematrian1 (9:54:17 PM): #I wouldn't worry about it. Their break can't take long, can it?#
MilesMk1 (9:54:36 PM): #I was thinking maintenance closet - do you think the tunnel is a better idea? If the camera is only flickering...#
Thematrian1 (9:55:18 PM): #Fair point. MacLeod?#
MilesMk1 (9:55:55 PM): (Reuters: "Police group OKs shooting suicide bombers in head." Very SR-ish, as far as news headlines go.)
Thematrian1 (9:56:25 PM): (And weirdly specific/unspecific, for a headline)
Umbrafer (9:57:36 PM): MacLeod stands in stony silence.
Thematrian1 (9:57:56 PM): I take him by the hand and lead him to the closet. #Clear?#
MilesMk1 (9:58:44 PM): #Clear.# (unless I have reason to believe otherwise)
Thematrian1 (9:59:04 PM): Gem enters the closet.
Umbrafer (9:59:46 PM): Seems clear to you. It's a tight squeeze, but you make it.
Thematrian1 (10:00:06 PM): "It's a good thing we're friends"
MilesMk1 (10:01:17 PM): MacLeod would get a kick out of this if he wasn't catatonic.
Umbrafer (10:01:46 PM): (The fact that there was no response to that is proof positive that Dave isn't paying attention. However, according to the IM he sent a bit ago, it isn't entirely his fault I suppose)
MilesMk1 (10:02:22 PM): *positions himself where he'll have be able to clearly see the keypad*
Thematrian1 (10:02:24 PM): We wait
MilesMk1 (10:02:51 PM): Can that be hanging right under the ceiling, ninja-style, or is that just asking for trouble? :P
Umbrafer (10:03:06 PM): Asking for trouble :D
MilesMk1 (10:03:37 PM): Ok, I guess the floor will have to be good enough...
Thematrian1 (10:03:44 PM): (Good chance you could do carthweels in front of them without being noticed)
Umbrafer (10:03:58 PM): (Cartwheels are a big TN mod)
MilesMk1 (10:04:09 PM): (Noticed, yes - heard, is a different story.)
CirclMastr (10:05:14 PM): (Apparently today is the anniversary of the invention of champagne)
MilesMk1 (10:05:27 PM): If the doors are recessed a bit like many doors are, I'll wait with my back to one to minimize how much I stick out into the hall.
MilesMk1 (10:05:31 PM): (Hic?)
CirclMastr (10:05:43 PM): (My parents are using it as an excuse to go out drinking)
Thematrian1 (10:05:59 PM): (Hah, drunken SR. That'd be as much fun as drunken coding. And you have my sympathies)
Umbrafer (10:06:22 PM): You do so
Umbrafer (10:06:38 PM): Just waiting?
MilesMk1 (10:06:48 PM): (I actually play pretty good D&D after a few beers. That's pretty far from "drunk", mind you...)
CirclMastr (10:07:06 PM): (I've never been drunk)
MilesMk1 (10:07:13 PM): Listetning, examining the area for security measures, trying to figure out what that other weird sound is...
Umbrafer (10:07:27 PM): Which other weird sound?
MilesMk1 (10:07:46 PM): (I thought there was another one coming from a vent or something over the door with the camera.)
Thematrian1 (10:07:51 PM): (Drunken D&D is the best D&D. It dulls the pain.)
Umbrafer (10:07:54 PM): Ah yes, whirring and clicking.
Umbrafer (10:07:57 PM): (Heh)
Thematrian1 (10:08:14 PM): (I mean, I've heard that)
CirclMastr (10:08:18 PM): (It's the drone for the other runner team)
Umbrafer (10:08:39 PM): (I still remember the shock the day I realized that my years-long defense of D&D was null and void because what I ran had about as much resemblance to D&D as your average brick does)
MilesMk1 (10:09:15 PM): (Well, all good D&D games are far from your bog-standard dungeon crawl...)
Thematrian1 (10:09:18 PM): (Brick has a lot in common with normal D&D. Dull, heavyweight, can be used to build things that are worthwhile)
Thematrian1 (10:09:49 PM): (Yeah, I've run D&D and liked it. But I'd sooner run SR, GURPS, or Synnibar)
Thematrian1 (10:10:13 PM): (Anyway)
Thematrian1 (10:10:15 PM): lots of waiting
Umbrafer (10:10:26 PM): A few minutes pass.
Umbrafer (10:10:36 PM): "Hey Jaime."
MilesMk1 (10:10:46 PM): And hoping they don't get industrious and head for the maintenance closet to try to fix something...
Umbrafer (10:10:51 PM): "What? Can't you see I'm trying to watch a stimflick?"
Umbrafer (10:11:02 PM): "Camera's busted."
Umbrafer (10:11:06 PM): "So?"
Umbrafer (10:11:13 PM): "So go fix it."
Thematrian1 (10:11:16 PM): If they do...oh hell.
CirclMastr (10:11:18 PM): (A stimflick? Isn't that when you take drugs during a movie, like a drinking game?)
MilesMk1 (10:11:20 PM): *relaying this conversation as it happens*
Thematrian1 (10:11:24 PM): Can we get out of the closet without being spotted?
Umbrafer (10:11:27 PM): (Sorry, simflick)
Umbrafer (10:11:32 PM): Right now, yes.
CirclMastr (10:11:35 PM): (Aww. I like my idea better)
Umbrafer (10:11:38 PM): "You fix it."
Umbrafer (10:11:42 PM): "I fixed it last."
Thematrian1 (10:11:45 PM): (What's your idea?)
Umbrafer (10:11:50 PM): "Greg fixed it last!"
CirclMastr (10:11:54 PM): (Taking drugs during a movie like a drinking game)
Umbrafer (10:12:04 PM): "Yeah, but I fixed it before him. Still your turn."
CirclMastr (10:12:25 PM): ("Take a drag when..." "Snort a line when..." "Inject yourself when..." )
MilesMk1 (10:12:44 PM): #I think you guys need to move. Damn it. Knew I should have cracked open that other room...#
Thematrian1 (10:12:53 PM): I open the door and flee like the wind
CirclMastr (10:13:02 PM): ::ditto::
Umbrafer (10:13:07 PM): "Fine." There's a sound of something heavy slapping on flesh, a grunt, and then the guy who was sitting on the chair with the popcorn walks out.
Umbrafer (10:13:16 PM): Where are you two fleeing to?
CirclMastr (10:13:22 PM): I'm just following Gem.
Thematrian1 (10:13:29 PM): How many stalls did the bathroom have?
Thematrian1 (10:13:33 PM): or was it just a toilet area
Umbrafer (10:13:37 PM): One.
Thematrian1 (10:13:45 PM): crap, ok. Bathroom
Umbrafer (10:13:52 PM): One stall, one urinal, one sink.
Thematrian1 (10:14:14 PM): open, into the bathroom, into the stall
MilesMk1 (10:14:35 PM): #Lock the door... If someone goes for it, hopefully they'll think the lock is broken like everything else in this place and it'll buy us some time#
Thematrian1 (10:14:42 PM): #Good idea.#
CirclMastr (10:14:46 PM): ::would make a sexually suggestive joke about the continued close confines, but would rather stay quiet. And not get smacked.::
Thematrian1 (10:14:48 PM): Can the door be locked?
Thematrian1 (10:14:57 PM): (You had a chance, you missed it)
MilesMk1 (10:15:00 PM): (Hah. You missed a perfect chance earlier)
Umbrafer (10:15:03 PM): Yes.
Thematrian1 (10:15:08 PM): I do so
CirclMastr (10:15:16 PM): (Yeah. I had some undercooked meat for dinner, missed it. Ironically...)
Umbrafer (10:17:36 PM): Door is locked. The guy who was sitting is carrying a medium-large case with him.
Thematrian1 (10:17:45 PM): ::whispering:: "Spirit? Can you change your shape? Show me."
MilesMk1 (10:17:57 PM): *melts into the wall*
Umbrafer (10:18:07 PM): He goes around the corner and, unless Glitch follows him, disappears. The spirit, meanwhile, oozes into a different wet-concrete form.
MilesMk1 (10:18:37 PM): Glitch lets him get out of LOS before following and looking around the corner.
Umbrafer (10:19:30 PM): He's muttering some very naughty words.
MilesMk1 (10:19:36 PM): Shocking.
Umbrafer (10:19:55 PM): You look around just as he vanishes down the path to the tunnel.
CirclMastr (10:20:04 PM): (He's talking dirty to the case he's carrying?)
MilesMk1 (10:20:59 PM): Mhmm.
MilesMk1 (10:21:24 PM): Ok, I go back and see whether *now* I can snoop into one or more of those doors without being seen from the break room.
Umbrafer (10:21:59 PM): The door slams. Silence. The door more or less directly across from the breakroom is probably the safer of the two options, but the guy's got his back to you anyway.
MilesMk1 (10:22:04 PM): #You guys are clear... Looks like he had his tools with him. Really have no clue which is the safer spot, bathroom or closet...#
MilesMk1 (10:22:27 PM): #Going to see if I can find a better one...#
MilesMk1 (10:22:33 PM): Ok, I try the safer door first.
Thematrian1 (10:22:40 PM): #We'll stay here#
MilesMk1 (10:23:06 PM): #I'll yell if anything new develops. Hope neither of them has a small bladder...#
CirclMastr (10:23:38 PM): #I can stick my feet down and make the john look occupied.#
Umbrafer (10:23:41 PM): You do notice with horror that the guy remaining appears to have a Big Gulp next to him, but he's sipping it slowly.
CirclMastr (10:24:28 PM): (Big Gulps are wuss drinks. Double Gulps are where it's at. 1.9 liters of sugar water.)
CirclMastr (10:26:50 PM): ::glances around to see how many bugs infest the stall::
Umbrafer (10:26:57 PM): Roll it.
CirclMastr (10:27:12 PM): .......
Umbrafer (10:27:14 PM): Meanwhile, the safer door: it's unlocked.
CirclMastr (10:27:30 PM): CirclMastr rolled 4 6-sided dice: 6 3 1 5
MilesMk1 (10:27:34 PM): I open it very carefully after listening to make sure the room is unoccupied
CirclMastr (10:27:38 PM): CirclMastr rolled 1 6-sided die: 5
Umbrafer (10:27:46 PM): Roll.
Umbrafer (10:27:55 PM): MacLeod, meanwhile, finds no bugs.
CirclMastr (10:28:39 PM): ::hates dirty bathroom stalls::
MilesMk1 (10:29:09 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 5 5 4 6 5 6
MilesMk1 (10:29:15 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 2 6-sided dice: 5 3
MilesMk1 (10:29:20 PM): Damn.
MilesMk1 (10:29:44 PM): 11,9,5,5,5
Umbrafer (10:29:48 PM): You hear nothing from the other side.
MilesMk1 (10:30:26 PM): How's the guard's heart doing? Judging by the sound the soda makes, how much is left in the Big Gulp? ;)
MilesMk1 (10:30:43 PM): Ok, I open it carefully and quietly and check out the room.
Umbrafer (10:30:48 PM): It isn't slurping the dregs. Other than that you can't tell.
Umbrafer (10:30:57 PM): His heart, on the other hand, is beating slightly irregularly.
Umbrafer (10:31:03 PM): You'd guess he's probably had too much caffeine.
Thematrian1 (10:31:06 PM): (Man, he's going to need to pee)
Umbrafer (10:31:12 PM): His breathing is also getting annoying.
MilesMk1 (10:31:42 PM): (#MacLeod, stop fidgeting.#)
CirclMastr (10:32:21 PM): ::whispers quietly:: "Don't you love this line of work..."
Thematrian1 (10:33:52 PM): ::also quiet:: "Oh for a life on the rolling sea..."
Umbrafer (10:33:56 PM): On the other side is a window showing sunlight. There's also lockers on both sides, and a bench down the middle.
MilesMk1 (10:34:22 PM): Ah! It burns, it burns...
MilesMk1 (10:34:31 PM): #Shit. A locker room. Definitely no help...#
CirclMastr (10:34:46 PM): ::still quiet:: "So why'd you come ashore?"
Umbrafer (10:35:10 PM): Perception.
MilesMk1 (10:35:13 PM): #We need to be somewhere else before shift change happens, because this place will be crawling..., between the john and the locker room...#
MilesMk1 (10:35:18 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 2 1 6 2 6 5
MilesMk1 (10:35:22 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 2 6-sided dice: 1 3
Umbrafer (10:35:57 PM): Most stuff is pretty well-locked-up, but you do notice a pair of the goggles on the floor as well as a box of what looks like shotgun shells.
CirclMastr (10:35:59 PM): #What do you suggest?#
Thematrian1 (10:36:03 PM): "Didn't plan to. I got a little greedy, and suddenly it became wise to get on to dry land."
Thematrian1 (10:36:20 PM): #If we can get deeper in, we can find another hidey-hole. Can we pass the break room?#
MilesMk1 (10:37:23 PM): #I'm looking into possibilities as we speak.#
MilesMk1 (10:37:30 PM): Still no convenient air vents?
MilesMk1 (10:37:51 PM): If there's nothing remotely promising, I check the other door, if the guy still has his back to me.
Umbrafer (10:38:22 PM): There is an air vent
Umbrafer (10:38:33 PM): It is not, however, of traversable size.
CirclMastr (10:38:41 PM): (Not even for li'l ol' me?)
MilesMk1 (10:38:48 PM): *curses soundlessly*
Umbrafer (10:38:56 PM): Really, there's the building isn't large enough for traversible air vents anywhere but the tunnels.
Umbrafer (10:39:09 PM): Scratch that "there's"
MilesMk1 (10:39:22 PM): (I'm roughly your size and double jointed... If it looks bad to me...)
MilesMk1 (10:40:17 PM): Ok, on to second door, before the second guard gets back.
Umbrafer (10:41:31 PM): This one is locked.
MilesMk1 (10:41:37 PM): Keypad?
Umbrafer (10:41:40 PM): Cardreader.
MilesMk1 (10:42:13 PM): Bah. I'd still need to crack the case to get through, right?
MilesMk1 (10:42:30 PM): Is it any easier/faster than a keypad?
Umbrafer (10:43:26 PM): Not really, no
Umbrafer (10:43:44 PM): (And yes, you'd still have to crack the case)
Thematrian1 (10:43:46 PM): How is Glitch at picking pockets?
MilesMk1 (10:44:55 PM): Who knows? What's the relevant skill?
MilesMk1 (10:45:08 PM): I don't suppose there were any cards laying around in the locker room?
Thematrian1 (10:45:31 PM): #There's an easier way. I can get a spirit to cloud his mind, keep him quiet and spacey while we walk past. And maybe rifle through his pockets.#
Umbrafer (10:45:32 PM): You didn't see any.
CirclMastr (10:45:54 PM): #So why didn't we do that before?#
Umbrafer (10:45:58 PM): IIRC the relevant skill is something insane like Stealth.
Thematrian1 (10:46:36 PM): #It's...not an easy thing to ask for.#
MilesMk1 (10:46:38 PM): #Well, there's still the camera over the door, remember. They're bound to get suspicious if the cameras all break down, in a sequence getting closer and closer to the secure areas...#
CirclMastr (10:46:39 PM): (Stealth is better than Negotiations or Computers for pickpocketing)
Thematrian1 (10:47:58 PM): #Glitch, are we clear?#
MilesMk1 (10:48:23 PM): #For the moment... What's your plan?#
MilesMk1 (10:48:47 PM): (Remember, the door we really need has a keypad, not a card reader)
MilesMk1 (10:49:01 PM): (I was just messing with another door, hoping for a better hiding place.)
Thematrian1 (10:49:04 PM): (Argh, I had lost track of that.)
Umbrafer (10:52:56 PM): The team faces crippling indecision.
MilesMk1 (10:53:43 PM): (Well, I got nothing. I can't do anything without cracking lock cases open, and I can't crack the one that matters while the camera is on, and I don't have the ability to take out the camera. I could hang out in this place forever
MilesMk1 (10:53:57 PM): by myself, but I have no clue how to get you guys hidden.)
CirclMastr (10:54:36 PM): (I say we go batshit crazy, knock everyone out, plant the whatever it is and run)
CirclMastr (10:54:54 PM): (They can't discover the sabotage while they sleep!)
Thematrian1 (10:55:16 PM): #A jackpoint would go a long way toward solving our problems#
MilesMk1 (10:55:29 PM): (I think a shift change might be coming up soon, though. The day shift will find them.)
CirclMastr (10:55:41 PM): #Can't you use a camera as a jackpoint? Aren't they hooked into the host of the building?#
MilesMk1 (10:55:45 PM): #Let me see if there's any way of getting one...#
Thematrian1 (10:55:51 PM): (Was there something that could be jackpointified in the closet?)
MilesMk1 (10:56:04 PM): #We can, but the last time I tried, I got chased off by IC.#
CirclMastr (10:56:21 PM): #Couldn't you use a different camera?#
CirclMastr (10:56:28 PM): #We took out two, didn't we?#
Thematrian1 (10:56:42 PM): #I'm willing to make another try at it.#
MilesMk1 (10:56:53 PM): #Knocking out the camera?#
MilesMk1 (10:57:05 PM): #Or letting me jack in?#
CirclMastr (10:57:11 PM): #The latter.#
Thematrian1 (10:57:45 PM): #Jacking in. We can do it without creating that scary accident pattern.#
CirclMastr (10:58:28 PM): (What defines a Matrix user as far as security tally goes?)
MilesMk1 (10:58:35 PM): #Ok, let's do it... But you need to be real sure you contact me if one of the guards comes back. I'm not that visible when I jack in, but the cable will be sort of obvious.#
Umbrafer (10:59:54 PM): (Since we're using the SR3R decking rules, the host keeps tally.)
CirclMastr (11:00:06 PM): (Ugh, backing up on me again, brb)
MilesMk1 (11:00:34 PM): (Does that mean this in not doable? Not sure what that means... Also, hasn't some time passed - maybe enough for the tally to go down?)
Thematrian1 (11:00:35 PM): #All right. One moment, then.#
Umbrafer (11:01:32 PM): (Time has passed.)
Umbrafer (11:01:40 PM): (Whether it's enough for the tally to have gone down is uncertain.)
Thematrian1 (11:01:54 PM): I conjure up a City spirit, force seven
Thematrian1 (11:02:02 PM): 6/10 distribution:
Thematrian1 (11:02:04 PM): Thematrian1 rolled 6 6-sided dice: 5 3 2 4 3 2
Thematrian1 (11:02:09 PM): Thematrian1 rolled 10 6-sided dice: 5 2 4 3 5 3 1 6 3 2
Thematrian1 (11:03:18 PM): #That...didn't go quite as well as I'd hoped. I can alert you, but probably not mess with their minds#
CirclMastr (11:06:29 PM): (Back)
MilesMk1 (11:06:50 PM): #All right.#
CirclMastr (11:07:08 PM): (We should have brought gas grenades)
MilesMk1 (11:07:10 PM): I guess I'm going to jack in to the camera, and hope I do better this time.
Umbrafer (11:07:41 PM): Roll your Electronics B/R and then Electronics
Umbrafer (11:08:39 PM): (And then Computers for the access test if you do well enough on the other two)
MilesMk1 (11:10:52 PM): (Ah, optimism.)
MilesMk1 (11:10:57 PM): B/R
MilesMk1 (11:11:03 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 8 6-sided dice: 6 6 6 6 4 2 6 2
MilesMk1 (11:11:12 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 5 6-sided dice: 3 6 1 3 5
MilesMk1 (11:11:15 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 3
MilesMk1 (11:11:21 PM): Electronics...
MilesMk1 (11:11:25 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 8 6-sided dice: 1 1 5 3 6 3 3 6
MilesMk1 (11:11:30 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 2 6-sided dice: 5 4
MilesMk1 (11:11:36 PM): Will that do? :D
Umbrafer (11:11:51 PM): Indeed it will.
Thematrian1 (11:12:21 PM): At this point, one of us has to keep a lookout, right>
Thematrian1 (11:12:32 PM): I nominate MacLeod, he can disable anyone who sees him
CirclMastr (11:12:52 PM): I still have that bokken right?
Umbrafer (11:12:58 PM): Yep
Umbrafer (11:13:09 PM): Unless you disposed of it
CirclMastr (11:13:46 PM): #So I go stand over his body now?#
Thematrian1 (11:14:00 PM): #Sounds like fun, right?#
CirclMastr (11:14:30 PM): #Oh yeah, so much more fun that being in close confines with an attractive woman.#
Thematrian1 (11:15:10 PM): #Look on the bright side: I won't let you kill people#
MilesMk1 (11:15:18 PM): #I'd reccommend standing at the corner, rather then over me as such - that way you can see more and don't have to sneak past the break rooom.#
CirclMastr (11:15:38 PM): ::heads out quietly, bokken in hands, going to the described corner::
Umbrafer (11:16:47 PM): (I hate to do this, but as my brain's about to die I think we're going to have to wrap up soon. Up to you if you want to do the decking first.)
MilesMk1 (11:17:22 PM): (Meh... It probably won't take that long, right?)
MilesMk1 (11:17:37 PM): (Up to you, I understand if you're tired.)
Umbrafer (11:18:05 PM): (Probably not. Go for it if'n ye'd like--I can do it just fine)
CirclMastr (11:18:35 PM): ::stand stand::
MilesMk1 (11:19:00 PM): (Ok... So first I do Log On To Host, right? Six allocated to... stealthy stuff, forget what it was called, rest to computers?)
Thematrian1 (11:19:13 PM): (Detection Factor, and yeah, that's the best plan)
Umbrafer (11:19:16 PM): (Detection factor, yes, and yes, in no particular order)
MilesMk1 (11:19:19 PM): Ok.
Umbrafer (11:19:23 PM): (<-- teh slow)
MilesMk1 (11:19:27 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 7 6-sided dice: 2 2 4 4 1 5 1
MilesMk1 (11:19:35 PM): Oh, God...
Umbrafer (11:19:44 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 6 1 2 1 6 4 6 3 6 5 1 4 3 3 4
Umbrafer (11:19:55 PM): Umbrafer rolled 4 6-sided dice: 6 6 2 2
Umbrafer (11:20:00 PM): Umbrafer rolled 2 6-sided dice: 2 5
MilesMk1 (11:20:02 PM): All right, this shitty rolling on decking ends NOW.
Umbrafer (11:20:11 PM): Deception 6?
MilesMk1 (11:20:14 PM): Yeah.
Umbrafer (11:20:26 PM): You're in.
MilesMk1 (11:20:37 PM): Mhmm... I believe it's Browse now?
MilesMk1 (11:20:45 PM): Same Deception allocation.
MilesMk1 (11:21:01 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 7 6-sided dice: 3 2 4 4 4 2 2
Umbrafer (11:21:37 PM): (Detection Factor) What are you looking for, exactly?
Umbrafer (11:21:43 PM): Camera controls?
MilesMk1 (11:22:42 PM): Yeah, camera controls.
MilesMk1 (11:23:05 PM): (Look, I'm going to make up my own names, and you're going to like it, ok?)
Umbrafer (11:23:10 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 3 4 1 6 3 3 6 2 4 3 5 1 6 4 1
Umbrafer (11:23:17 PM): Umbrafer rolled 3 6-sided dice: 2 5 2
Umbrafer (11:23:51 PM): You make a little progress, but it's slow going.
MilesMk1 (11:24:18 PM): Do I try again at this point? Or should I look for things trying to bite me in the icon?
CirclMastr (11:24:27 PM): Keep going
Thematrian1 (11:24:44 PM): Don't look for them, just pray
MilesMk1 (11:24:47 PM): (From what I remember being told, looking doesn't help since it just wastes time and raises tally.)
Thematrian1 (11:24:51 PM): (Pretty much, yeah)
MilesMk1 (11:25:02 PM): Ok, I look again - same Detection Factor setup.
MilesMk1 (11:25:10 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 7 6-sided dice: 4 4 5 1 6 6 5
MilesMk1 (11:25:15 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 2 6-sided dice: 6 2
MilesMk1 (11:25:19 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 3
Umbrafer (11:25:31 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 6 5 6 1 5 3 4 4 5 1 6 3 2 6 6
Umbrafer (11:25:38 PM): Umbrafer rolled 5 6-sided dice: 4 4 6 5 1
Umbrafer (11:25:45 PM): Umbrafer rolled 1 6-sided die: 4
Umbrafer (11:25:50 PM): Sensors.
MilesMk1 (11:26:12 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 7 6-sided dice: 3 2 3 3 2 1 5
Umbrafer (11:26:32 PM): There's something out there, but you can't rightly figure out what.
Umbrafer (11:26:43 PM): You've found the camera controls, though.
MilesMk1 (11:27:09 PM): (Do I run at this point, or should I try to hack the camera? If so, how do I do that?)
CirclMastr (11:27:31 PM): (Hack the camera! Die a hero!)
Umbrafer (11:27:37 PM): (To make the camera loop, you'd just need to Edit Slave)
Thematrian1 (11:27:50 PM): (Hack the camera, yes. That takes Edit Slave, which requires Spoof, which works just like everything else you've done)
MilesMk1 (11:28:22 PM): Ok... I try to make the camera loop.
MilesMk1 (11:28:35 PM): Same setup...
MilesMk1 (11:28:39 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 7 6-sided dice: 6 1 3 5 2 3 3
MilesMk1 (11:28:42 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 6
MilesMk1 (11:28:47 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 3
MilesMk1 (11:29:07 PM): Do these things just take one success, and extras reduce time, or does it work differently?
Umbrafer (11:29:14 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 1 6 1 5 2 3 2 3 5 6 5 1 3 1 3
Umbrafer (11:29:36 PM): Umbrafer rolled 2 6-sided dice: 2 2
Umbrafer (11:30:02 PM): I'm actually double-checking now, but IIRC that's how it works for Edit Slave. Search actually requires a number of accumulated successes.
Umbrafer (11:31:12 PM): A-hah.
MilesMk1 (11:31:23 PM): I win?!
Umbrafer (11:31:40 PM): Yes. Your prize is music from the 1980s.
Umbrafer (11:31:58 PM): You actually need to keep editing for the duration of the altered input, if I understand this correctly.
Thematrian1 (11:32:28 PM): (Wait, seriously? Doesn't that make it impossible for the decker to tell us that he's hacked the cameras?)
MilesMk1 (11:32:31 PM): You mean if I want a 30-second loop I need to edit for 30 seconds?
MilesMk1 (11:33:02 PM): Or I just need to be editing for it to loop at all, and once I log off, it won't loop?
Umbrafer (11:33:28 PM): That appears to be the implication. You only make the test once, but you need to spend at least a Free Action each round thereafter to maintain it.
Umbrafer (11:33:53 PM): (The decker can communicate via transducer or similar)
Thematrian1 (11:34:07 PM): (Ah)
MilesMk1 (11:34:55 PM): So... As long as someone is smart and doesn't make their system accessible from the outside, decking is... useless. Unless the people you're hacking provide a convenient room for the group decker to sit in while the run goes on.
CirclMastr (11:35:13 PM): (Or, you use Validate)
Thematrian1 (11:35:16 PM): We only need thirty seconds or so, it's ok
MilesMk1 (11:35:31 PM): Except I'm the guy who needs to hack the keypad.
Umbrafer (11:35:54 PM): (Not really, IIRC you can also set up a command set to do it, but that requires preplanning)
MilesMk1 (11:36:03 PM): (Ah.)
MilesMk1 (11:37:18 PM): (Though that still makes what I've done unhelpful, since we can't open the lock... I suppose the duct tape could mean the door is not actually locked, but I doubt we're that lucky.)
Umbrafer (11:37:21 PM): In any event. The camera is now looping its feed.
MilesMk1 (11:37:30 PM): *lets the others know this*
Thematrian1 (11:37:44 PM): ::per around the corner, look at the door, try to open it::
Umbrafer (11:38:50 PM): *Click* It swings inwards.
Thematrian1 (11:39:18 PM): I peer cautiously
Umbrafer (11:39:31 PM): This is definitely the computer room. There's someone sitting in a chair facing away from you, clearly jacked in.
CirclMastr (11:39:48 PM): (Please bring MacLeod over to smite him!)
Thematrian1 (11:39:51 PM): #Jacked in guy facing away from us. This is the computer room.#
CirclMastr (11:40:02 PM): #Want me to take him out?#
MilesMk1 (11:40:20 PM): #Aw, hell... I need to be able to physically work in there to get the bugs in.#
MilesMk1 (11:40:42 PM): (At least that's how I understand things, yes?)
CirclMastr (11:40:48 PM): #Let me take him out. Otherwise I won't have done anything this whole run.#
Umbrafer (11:41:03 PM): (You fought the bird)
Umbrafer (11:41:14 PM): (Unless someone else installs them, yes)
CirclMastr (11:41:18 PM): (Change to "I won't have done anything productive" then)
MilesMk1 (11:41:28 PM): #And they're not going to notice this for the rest of the day?#
CirclMastr (11:41:42 PM): #We'll sit him up so he looks like he's still jacked in.#
Thematrian1 (11:41:54 PM): What else is in the room?
MilesMk1 (11:42:18 PM): #I doubt he works 24/7, someone will spell him eventually... And presumably, someone will notice he stopped working, no?#
CirclMastr (11:42:32 PM): #Have you got a better idea for how to get him out?#
MilesMk1 (11:43:19 PM): #The only way I can think of this working is if we take them hostage, and sit on anyone who comes in to work during the day until the time contracted for.#
Umbrafer (11:43:23 PM): There's a small window letting in some very distorted light, and otherwise it's just computers and relevant parts.
Umbrafer (11:44:01 PM): Correction:
MilesMk1 (11:44:04 PM): #Of course, someone might notice if these guys don't come home...#
CirclMastr (11:44:06 PM): #Yeah, that doesn't sound like a very good idea.@
CirclMastr (11:44:09 PM): * #
Umbrafer (11:44:16 PM): There's a partially-eaten sandwich and Big Gulp sitting in front of the guy.
Thematrian1 (11:44:46 PM): #No one else there, guy has a sandwich...and a Big Gulp. He's going to need to go pee soon#
CirclMastr (11:44:56 PM): #We just have to make sure the changes go unnoticed, don't we? We can't possibly do this without disrupting anyone.#
CirclMastr (11:45:15 PM): #Can he even feel it if he's jacked in?#
Thematrian1 (11:45:28 PM): #Almost certainly not, but he'll notice when he wakes up#
MilesMk1 (11:46:27 PM): #Can we make him pass out in a way that'd make him think he fell asleep? Probably not, depending on what he's doing...#
Thematrian1 (11:46:49 PM): #Does anyone have any appropriate poisons?#
CirclMastr (11:46:54 PM): #Pull the plug and hope the dumpshock knocks him out?#
MilesMk1 (11:48:03 PM): I have a very high Biotech... Can I think of any way of making this work that'll make him think "natural causes" when he comes to?
Umbrafer (11:48:20 PM): Roll it.
MilesMk1 (11:48:25 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 8 6-sided dice: 4 6 6 3 6 3 5 4
MilesMk1 (11:48:29 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 3 6-sided dice: 6 6 2
MilesMk1 (11:48:33 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 2 6-sided dice: 2 1
MilesMk1 (11:48:36 PM): Yeah!
CirclMastr (11:48:53 PM): (You'll probably successfully realize that no, you can't make it work)
MilesMk1 (11:48:56 PM): (Of course, if the answer is "no"...)
Umbrafer (11:49:01 PM): Unfortunately, the answer is: not without some specific condition in his medical history, which you do not know.
CirclMastr (11:49:26 PM): #Just let me knock him out, we can put something on the floor, he'll think it fell on his head.#
MilesMk1 (11:49:56 PM): #Maybe hit him with the shock glove? Should leave no marks, and he'll just end up wondering what the hell happened...#
MilesMk1 (11:50:20 PM): #Of course, then they'll just run diagnostics all day... Still, I have no better ideas.#
CirclMastr (11:50:33 PM): #I like my idea better.#
MilesMk1 (11:50:56 PM): #I don't suppose either of you has any booze we could spike his Big Gulp with, make it look like he got drunk on the job?#
MilesMk1 (11:51:09 PM): #What do you think, Gem?#
CirclMastr (11:51:15 PM): (Didn't I get a bottle of booze from that backpack?)
Thematrian1 (11:51:21 PM): #I've got a plan.#
Thematrian1 (11:51:58 PM): #He has to go to the bathroom soon. When that happens, Glitch jacks in. I keep him occupied via spirit in the bathroom. MacLeod watches Glitch's body.#
CirclMastr (11:52:03 PM): ::grumbles subvocally about no one listening to their elders anymore::
Umbrafer (11:52:11 PM): (For reference, I'm pretty sure the answer to that is "no")
CirclMastr (11:52:28 PM): #Where do you and I hide while he goes to the bathroom?#
MilesMk1 (11:52:39 PM): #Maintenance closet.#
MilesMk1 (11:52:54 PM): #Can you make the toilet back up on to him, or something?#
CirclMastr (11:53:02 PM): #That's harsh.#
MilesMk1 (11:53:10 PM): #I'll need the time.#
Thematrian1 (11:53:20 PM): #I was thinking, let the spirit daze him#
MilesMk1 (11:53:28 PM): #Ah. Yeah, better.#
MilesMk1 (11:53:55 PM): #So, I'll have to wait for him to leave the room, and sneak past when the door is open, right?#
Thematrian1 (11:54:15 PM): #Right. Chancey as hell, but it's all I've got.#
MilesMk1 (11:54:30 PM): #All right... Better than the plan we've had so far.#
Thematrian1 (11:56:19 PM): Gem repairs to the bathroom stall.
CirclMastr (11:56:53 PM): ::repairs to the closet::
Umbrafer (11:57:19 PM): *Repair*
MilesMk1 (11:57:29 PM): I log off - hopefully without getting killed by IC - and stake out the door to the room. Oh, and fix the duct tape if necessary.
Umbrafer (11:58:06 PM): As you're logging out, you catch a glimpse of something big and inky-black
MilesMk1 (11:58:20 PM): #I think we should figure out what to do if we get busted... Take them out and run, or try to hold them...#
MilesMk1 (11:58:28 PM): Does it... Get me?
Umbrafer (11:58:31 PM): Waitaminute
CirclMastr (11:58:35 PM): #If someone tries to bust me, I'm hitting them.#
Umbrafer (11:58:37 PM): Let's have that roll.
MilesMk1 (11:58:43 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 7 6-sided dice: 3 1 1 3 1 2 6
MilesMk1 (11:58:47 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 6
MilesMk1 (11:58:50 PM): MilesMk1 rolled 1 6-sided die: 1
MilesMk1 (11:58:53 PM): ...
MilesMk1 (11:58:57 PM): I hate decking.
Umbrafer (11:58:59 PM): Umbrafer rolled 15 6-sided dice: 1 1 1 4 3 5 4 1 4 3 5 2 4 2 3
CirclMastr (11:59:03 PM): (Wow)
Umbrafer (11:59:08 PM): You're out. Barely, but you're out.
CirclMastr (11:59:09 PM): (All those dice and only two 5's)
MilesMk1 (11:59:25 PM): (All those dice and only 2 over 2.)
Umbrafer (11:59:27 PM): It's very big, very black, and… sticky.
MilesMk1 (11:59:31 PM): (actually, 3)
Thematrian1 (11:59:47 PM): #I think we get caught, we start killing people. Once we've done that, we plant the data and pray.#
CirclMastr (12:00:11 AM): #Killing is a bit extreme. I'll just hit them with the bokken unless they come armored.#
MilesMk1 (12:00:20 AM): (Ok, so I assume the plan will be for me to use the jack inside the room, rather than my deck? Because I'm pretty sure something in there is alreted to my presence.)
Thematrian1 (12:00:32 AM): #And here I was trying to humor you...#
Thematrian1 (12:00:41 AM): (Yeah, definitely.)
CirclMastr (12:00:51 AM): #I'm really only interested in killing angry Immortals.#
CirclMastr (12:01:09 AM): #And people who drive with their blinker on, but that's another story.#
Umbrafer (12:01:23 AM): (I swear, if you so much as think "there can be only one"…)
MilesMk1 (12:01:25 AM): #I think if it goes south, we should consider taking hostages and forcing at least one to cooperate with grabbing anyone else who comes and maintain the facade.#
CirclMastr (12:01:47 AM): #That could be fun. I'll grab a hostage.#
CirclMastr (12:02:14 AM): (Oooh, that lawyer reality show is on. These people are morons.)
MilesMk1 (12:02:28 AM): #They don't seem highly motivated, but that sort of thing has so many ways to fail...#
Thematrian1 (12:03:53 AM): #We'd need to keep it up until midnight. Or...plant a fake.#
Thematrian1 (12:04:25 AM): #Give them something to find, so they don't look for whatever we're leaving in the system.#
CirclMastr (12:04:30 AM): #I'll carve some hate speech into the wall, or something.#
Thematrian1 (12:05:30 AM): #I was thinking bombs, or some such#
CirclMastr (12:05:43 AM): #Do we have bombs?#
MilesMk1 (12:06:00 AM): #We know where to find some...#
Thematrian1 (12:06:32 AM): #I didn't want to be the one to say it.#
MilesMk1 (12:07:24 AM): #Though I have a feeling bringing down all sorts of security down on this place will be considered a failure even if we meet the letter of our contract...#
CirclMastr (12:07:26 AM): (I missed the intro, they're just decribing one case as "the Dominatrix case", I want to know WTF that is about!)
Thematrian1 (12:07:43 AM): #Touche#
CirclMastr (12:08:08 AM): #Back to the hostage thing? Make political demands or something?#
MilesMk1 (12:08:13 AM): #At least before midnight.#
MilesMk1 (12:08:47 AM): #Uh... I was thinking more, take a hostage so we can use him to pretend everything is normal, or help grab the day shift people...#
MilesMk1 (12:09:55 AM): #But that leaves all sorts of issues unanswered, like silent alarms and so on... Let's hope plan A works...#
Thematrian1 (12:10:09 AM): #I am, oh I am#
Umbrafer (12:10:59 AM): And with that, the GM expires.
MilesMk1 (12:11:12 AM): #If things go to shit, it might be best to just leave a few guards with headaches and fade quietly away... It'll be a less spectacular failure...#
MilesMk1 (12:12:19 AM): Ok... Tuesday?
Thematrian1 (12:12:26 AM): sounds like fun
Umbrafer (12:12:29 AM): Indeed.
Umbrafer (12:12:32 AM): *Wobble*
MilesMk1 (12:12:46 AM): All right... Get some sleep. *wave*
CirclMastr (12:12:49 AM): No Tuesday for me :(
Thematrian1 (12:13:02 AM): yeah. Believe it, they miss you :-D
MilesMk1 (12:14:24 AM): Just because we sometimes mention what sort of bloodshed would happen if Shojo was still around to witness things, doesn't mean we don't/
Umbrafer (12:14:37 AM): Hehehe
CirclMastr (12:14:47 AM): Aww
CirclMastr (12:14:54 AM): The "Dominatrix" case is just about a website.
CirclMastr (12:14:58 AM): What a letdown.
Umbrafer (12:15:17 AM): Sue them.
MilesMk1 (12:15:42 AM): Were you hoping for a manslaughter case involing an elderly billionaire, or something? ;)
CirclMastr (12:15:58 AM): basically, the webmaster of a dominatrix's website is an idiot who thinks that because he built the website, he owns it even though it's someone else's business.
MilesMk1 (12:16:39 AM): It'd free up so much backlog in the court system if they just let me shoot some of those plaintiffs...
CirclMastr (12:16:59 AM): This is the defendant in this case, the dominatrix is suing the webmaster for lost business.
MilesMk1 (12:17:10 AM): Participants.
Umbrafer (12:17:13 AM): Well, he could
MilesMk1 (12:17:22 AM): Parties.
Umbrafer (12:17:25 AM): It would require the dominatrix to be an idiot
Umbrafer (12:17:48 AM): But he could have maintained copyright with a revocable license to the dominatrix
CirclMastr (12:17:51 AM): The dominatrix, from the prepatory interview they showed, was calm and reasonably intelligent.
MilesMk1 (12:17:53 AM): Hell, lots of things would work better if I just had the skills and morals of my SR character.
Umbrafer (12:18:10 AM): Including a probably much more lucrative line of work.
CirclMastr (12:18:21 AM): The webmaster thinks he owns the business because he made the website.
Umbrafer (12:18:34 AM): Oh
MilesMk1 (12:18:37 AM): Well, yes, that too.
Umbrafer (12:18:41 AM): Never mind, he's an idiot.
CirclMastr (12:18:43 AM): Things like the domain, images (of her and her business) used on the site, etc.
Umbrafer (12:18:57 AM): The hell?
CirclMastr (12:19:05 AM): He thinks he owns it.
Umbrafer (12:19:21 AM): Y'know, it's been said that assassination is the highest form of public service
Umbrafer (12:19:30 AM): Hey Matt, want to do some pro bono work together?
CirclMastr (12:19:34 AM): That depends on who you assassinate.
Thematrian1 (12:19:38 AM): mostly by assassins, though
CirclMastr (12:19:50 AM): Was the assassin who started World War I doing a public service?
CirclMastr (12:20:05 AM): I'm sure he thought he was, but he started the first World War.
Umbrafer (12:20:26 AM): Only because everyone involved were idiots.
MilesMk1 (12:20:40 AM): He wasn't an assassin, he was just crazy, and it was the German's fault anyway. It always is.
CirclMastr (12:20:44 AM): Well, most people in the world are idiots, you have to assume that it will involve idiots.
Umbrafer (12:20:58 AM): Yes, but particularly so in this case.
MilesMk1 (12:21:03 AM): Pretend that ' is one over to the right.
CirclMastr (12:21:29 AM): So it was the German 's fault?
MilesMk1 (12:21:58 AM): Well... Germany was very happy to have an excuse to go to war, IIRC, but WWI is not my forte.
Thematrian1 (12:22:27 AM): not just Germany
MilesMk1 (12:22:48 AM): True, we can blame the French too. It's win-win. ;)
Thematrian1 (12:23:03 AM): yeah. Half the area wanted a chance to try out its military prowess
Umbrafer (12:23:10 AM): Everyone was itching for a fight, give or take.
Umbrafer (12:23:17 AM): Not just the area
Umbrafer (12:23:28 AM): Japan got into the fray hoping for some land somewhere
MilesMk1 (12:23:31 AM): Except maybe the Brits. Maybe.
Thematrian1 (12:23:40 AM): Yeah, Japan, forgot about them
CirclMastr (12:24:03 AM): One of the lawyers is a total bitch, and idiotic.
Umbrafer (12:24:29 AM): Would this be the webmaster's lawyer, or are they trying to make it an even match?
MilesMk1 (12:24:35 AM): My encounters with lawyers so far leave me unsurprised.
CirclMastr (12:25:15 AM): Webmaster's lawyer.
MilesMk1 (12:25:45 AM): He just has everything going for him, doesn't he?
Umbrafer (12:25:51 AM): Incidentally, has everyone here already heard the contact-as-area rules proposal-in-progress?
CirclMastr (12:25:54 AM): I know.
CirclMastr (12:25:58 AM): Yeah
MilesMk1 (12:26:08 AM): I don't think so.
Umbrafer (12:26:30 AM): The basic idea is that the SR3 contact rules suck
CirclMastr (12:26:50 AM): Meanwhile on the other case, one of the lawyers is also an idiot.
Umbrafer (12:27:07 AM): So in SR3R we're trying to make them unsuck. My proposed new system involves four main axes:
CirclMastr (12:27:26 AM): "Our entire defense is this was a joke." "Okay. Now without telling anyone, I'll cross-examine witnesses to say that they're dangerous."
MilesMk1 (12:27:41 AM): (BTW, if anyone here has German roots or something, please know I mostly kid, and don't hold you responsible for what my Grandmother went through except when the dice go bad.)
Umbrafer (12:27:44 AM): Closeness (or Friendliness), Power, Versatility, and Immediacy.
CirclMastr (12:28:10 AM): Ahahahaha
Thematrian1 (12:28:14 AM): (I'm a quarter German or so, but that side of the family all got out just before WWI)
CirclMastr (12:28:22 AM): The judge in the dominatrix case is asking the dominatrix about the web site's content.
Umbrafer (12:28:27 AM): (I have quite a bit of German blood, so I understand if you hold me even more responsible when the dice are being mean :) )
CirclMastr (12:28:30 AM): Perverted old man.
Umbrafer (12:28:43 AM): (But all of the German blood came out of the country before the turn of the century)
CirclMastr (12:28:54 AM): "Are you going to present a copy of the site that I can look at?"
MilesMk1 (12:29:11 AM): Heh.
Umbrafer (12:29:32 AM): (Actually, "quite a bit" is an exaggeration except in a very ancestral sense. The Brit in me is more immediate.)
Umbrafer (12:30:06 AM): Closeness/Friendliness is more or less the obvious, and the only thing that SR3 contact levels take into account.
MilesMk1 (12:30:10 AM): (I'm actually 1/8 German myself, I think. Explains the mild self-loathing.)
Umbrafer (12:30:52 AM): I should mention that under normal circumstances the proposed contact attributes range from 1 to 6, with exceptional values up to 9
Umbrafer (12:31:00 AM): Much the same as human attributes
MilesMk1 (12:31:15 AM): What do you buy contacts with?
Umbrafer (12:31:27 AM): Getting there.
Umbrafer (12:32:04 AM): Power is relatively obvious, Versatility is the number of specialties the contact has, and Immediacy is how close they are to what they're getting for you—do they have it in the back room or know it off the top of their head, or do
Umbrafer (12:32:15 AM): or do they know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy… you get the picture.
CirclMastr (12:32:30 AM): It seems to be, if I might raise something...
Umbrafer (12:32:47 AM): Typical Fixer is high Versatility, low Immediacy, for reference.
CirclMastr (12:33:03 AM): Power and Immediacy could probably be consolidated. It's obvious that someone who has guns on the back shelf is more powerful than someone who might have a cousin with a friend.
Umbrafer (12:33:16 AM): I don't agree
CirclMastr (12:33:30 AM): Even if the friend of the cousin is Damien Knight, they won't do something Powerful for someone not Immediate.
Umbrafer (12:33:35 AM): Someone who has a rack of Predators is not more powerful than someone who knows someone who knows someone with a PAC
MilesMk1 (12:33:39 AM): Although the most powerful gun runner in the world isn't necessarily going to have tanks in the back room...
Umbrafer (12:33:51 AM): Sure they will. It just increases the cost and risk.
CirclMastr (12:33:57 AM): But someone who knows someone who knows someone with a PAC is less likely to actually GET the Pac.
Umbrafer (12:34:19 AM): We're assuming that they have a chain of business relationships here
Umbrafer (12:34:53 AM): At chargen, the only time these contacts are purchased, the player purchases "contact points"
CirclMastr (12:35:12 AM): Well, explain to me the different in capability between someone with low Power and high Immediacy, and high Power and low Immediacy.
MilesMk1 (12:35:58 AM): The first one can sell you a gun from the back of a van. The second knows how to arrange for a foreign country to sell you a submarine.
Umbrafer (12:36:06 AM): Low Power, high Immediacy: has all the Heavy Pistols you could ever wnat in the back room. High Power, low Immediacy: can get you PACs and HMGs, but it needs to pass through half a dozen hands on its way to you (with associated cost
Umbrafer (12:36:12 AM): (s and Wrong Party risks)
Umbrafer (12:36:18 AM): Yeah, or that
CirclMastr (12:36:28 AM): Alright
CirclMastr (12:36:49 AM): .....AHAHAHA
Umbrafer (12:36:56 AM): ?
CirclMastr (12:37:03 AM): The webmaster is DENYING THE EXISTENCE OF THE PLAINTIFF
MilesMk1 (12:37:19 AM): Though I think you probably *could* consolidate the two and still have a good system, but I think it works... SR contacts are important enough to warrant some complexity...
Umbrafer (12:37:25 AM): Yes! The solipsistic technique!
CirclMastr (12:37:29 AM): "Do you know [the plaintiff]?" "I don't know any real person by that name..."
CirclMastr (12:37:51 AM): {"I know a fantasy created that has that name, but no real person I have ever met has that name..."
MilesMk1 (12:38:00 AM): He sounds like a jerk so I won't will that approach to work...
CirclMastr (12:38:04 AM): As the woman sits RIGHT THERE
Thematrian1 (12:38:23 AM): She has another name, that she uses for dominatrix reasons?
Umbrafer (12:38:28 AM): The cost of a contact in contact points is equal to the area of the quadrilateral formed if you take each axis and map them to the +x, -x, +y, and -y axes of a coordinate plane
Thematrian1 (12:38:32 AM): and her real name is comparatively lame?
CirclMastr (12:38:40 AM): If she's called that name in a legal proceeding like this, it's her name or a legal alias.
Thematrian1 (12:39:03 AM): I'm not saying he's right, just looking for an explanation that isn't "he's batshit loco"
Umbrafer (12:39:08 AM): Probably with a modifier tossed in, as that's how I think I'm going to fix the problem that I'm going to get to momentarily
Umbrafer (12:39:30 AM): (It's really not as messy as it sounds, the math is quite simple)
Umbrafer (12:40:06 AM): This does a few things:
MilesMk1 (12:40:27 AM): (Aren't you going to get different values based on which specific values are high and low?)
Umbrafer (12:40:43 AM): Firstly, it means that expanding along one axis is significantly less expensive than expanding along all axes (of course)
CirclMastr (12:40:48 AM): AHAHAHA
CirclMastr (12:41:03 AM): One of the lawyers in the other case just invoked "If you find this man guilty, the terrorists win"
Umbrafer (12:41:08 AM): Secondly, it means that increasing opposite values is less expensive than increasing values at right angles
CirclMastr (12:41:14 AM): Not a direct quote, but that exact sentiment.
MilesMk1 (12:41:37 AM): (Like, if you had two 5's and two 1's, you'd get completely different costs depending on whethre you had a 5 and a 1 on each axis, or both 5s on one axis and both 1s on the other?)
Umbrafer (12:41:43 AM): Specifically, it allows us to make the Powerful/Friendly and Powerful/Versatile combinations more expensive
CirclMastr (12:41:47 AM): (Yeah)
MilesMk1 (12:41:51 AM): (Oh. Never mind, so that's a feature. :) )
CirclMastr (12:41:59 AM): ....What the hell?
CirclMastr (12:42:16 AM): The judge just ruled against the dominatrix
Umbrafer (12:42:21 AM): It also means that Friendly/Versatile is a cheap combination, encouraging Fixers.
CirclMastr (12:42:29 AM): "The terms are too indefinite to be enforced."
MilesMk1 (12:42:42 AM): I swear, I only thought about it briefly...
CirclMastr (12:42:46 AM): Even though it specifically states that it's a licensing agreement.
CirclMastr (12:43:14 AM): So what is the problem J?
Umbrafer (12:43:19 AM): The problem is scaling appropriately.
Umbrafer (12:43:30 AM): The difference between a L1 and L3 contact in SR3, cost-wise, is a factor of 40.
CirclMastr (12:43:42 AM): Do like SSG does with lifestyle. If one value is too low/high, put a cap/minimum on related values.
CirclMastr (12:44:05 AM): You can't have Power 9/Versatile 1
Umbrafer (12:44:23 AM): But that makes perfect sense to have, though
Umbrafer (12:44:34 AM): FastJack is probably Power 9, Versatile 2
CirclMastr (12:44:41 AM): And prohibitive scaling at the top end just makes an effective cap on contacts, so you can't have a 9/9/9/9 contact
MilesMk1 (12:44:46 AM): (Unless he's also unfriendly, that's still expensive.)
Umbrafer (12:45:05 AM): But at Chargen, 6-6 6-6 is the max
Umbrafer (12:45:15 AM): With the possible exception of an edge to hit 7
MilesMk1 (12:45:31 AM): (As long as you don't make it so that you can set BOTH components of an axis to 1 with little penalty, you're ok...)
Umbrafer (12:45:35 AM): If we peg the "default" contact level at 1-1 1-1 (where each pair is opposing poles) and the "high" level at 6-6 6-6, the cost difference is a factor of 36
CirclMastr (12:45:57 AM): ...Didn't you say the difference between Level 1 and 3 is a factor of 40?
MilesMk1 (12:46:04 AM): In SR3
CirclMastr (12:46:14 AM): So you're already doing better than SR3'
CirclMastr (12:46:28 AM): It's just not MUCH better.
Umbrafer (12:46:35 AM): That's not better
CirclMastr (12:46:46 AM): Well I don't get the problem. You want it to match?
Umbrafer (12:47:00 AM): If we peg a 1-1 1-1 at ¥5,000, 6-6 6-6 comes out at ¥180,000
Umbrafer (12:47:19 AM): Well, the lesser issue is that a 6-6 6-6 is significantly more powerful than most L3 SR3 contacts
CirclMastr (12:47:30 AM): So put a lower cap at chargen.
Umbrafer (12:47:47 AM): That's not the real issue.
Umbrafer (12:48:27 AM): The real issue is that, if possible, I'd like to peg the "default" level at higher than 1-1 1-1, so we can have cheap but not-too-useful contacts below the default level
Umbrafer (12:49:00 AM): And so Friendliness 1 can represent the "may not remember your name if you aren't there" sort of contact it is in SR3
Umbrafer (12:49:13 AM): Without that being the default level, which I dislike.
Umbrafer (12:50:02 AM): But yeah, the solution I came up with is to have multipliers to the contact point cost at certain levels
CirclMastr (12:50:08 AM): Could you make 2-2 2-2 cost 5k, lower the cost of 1-1 1-1, and scale it so 6-6 6-6 is higher.
CirclMastr (12:50:13 AM): ?
Umbrafer (12:50:25 AM): I haven't figured out what levels yet
MilesMk1 (12:51:09 AM): So... You'll be making the "freebie" contacts more useful relative to a Friend For Life than SR3... Why is that necessarily a problem, as long as they're not a great deal more useful?
Umbrafer (12:51:52 AM): Well, because I need to keep the price gap between the default level and 6-6 6-6 significant
Umbrafer (12:52:23 AM): But yeah, basic (rough) idea:
Umbrafer (12:52:51 AM): Well, two basic ideas.
Umbrafer (12:53:29 AM): One scales multiplier based on total quantity of contact attributes, which is potentially subject to gaming by minimizing two axes
Umbrafer (12:54:25 AM): The other scales based on the crossing of certain thresholds. For example, if you've got (one, or more than one, or whatever—rough idea) attribute of 4 or greater, say, multiplier goes up.
CirclMastr (12:54:49 AM): The latter is what SR3 tends to do.
Thematrian1 (12:55:03 AM): that's true...
Umbrafer (12:55:09 AM): Well, SR3 doesn't really try this with multi-axis stuff
Umbrafer (12:55:33 AM): It's generally things with a single rating, like programs or cyberware or electronics
CirclMastr (12:55:38 AM): You could just make a table with arbitrary costs for different point values.
Umbrafer (12:55:52 AM): Tables == evil.
CirclMastr (12:56:09 AM): NBC must die for putting Martha Stewart on TV again.
Umbrafer (12:56:37 AM): A player should be able to build a contact without reference to the book, IMO.
Umbrafer (12:56:51 AM): (Well, to the table in our case, since we aren't publishing any books)
MilesMk1 (12:57:06 AM): Just a calculator and some graph paper. :p
Umbrafer (12:57:20 AM): The graph paper isn't actually necessary
Umbrafer (12:57:29 AM): Nor is the calculator, the math's quite simple
MilesMk1 (12:57:38 AM): Just joking / playing devil's advocate.
Umbrafer (12:57:49 AM): *Nods*
MilesMk1 (12:57:58 AM): You know someone will complain about having to multiply numbers as high as 12*12...
Umbrafer (12:58:10 AM): Yes, I do.
MilesMk1 (12:58:12 AM): Goess off the multiplication table, that does...
CirclMastr (12:58:25 AM): Um
CirclMastr (12:58:27 AM): No it doesn't.
Umbrafer (12:58:33 AM): I encountered them when they were complaining that I wasn't removing basically all programs from Decking.
Umbrafer (12:58:53 AM): (They wanted me to reproduce the Otaku Channels in programs)
MilesMk1 (12:59:07 AM): It doesn't? I thought the multiplication table goes up to 10x10?
Umbrafer (12:59:24 AM): Some go up to 12x12
MilesMk1 (12:59:28 AM): Did grade school math advance since I was a kid?
MilesMk1 (12:59:33 AM): Ah.
MilesMk1 (12:59:43 AM): Those medieval 1980s...
Umbrafer (1:00:07 AM): Incidentally, can anyone figure out why they bother teaching the little-x multiplication sign anymore?
Umbrafer (1:00:17 AM): Given that it just gets replaced when people hit algebra?
MilesMk1 (1:00:28 AM): What's used in algebra?
Umbrafer (1:00:38 AM): *
MilesMk1 (1:00:54 AM): It does? People write out the asterix?
Umbrafer (1:01:19 AM): Give or take, yeah.
Thematrian1 (1:01:28 AM): or parens
MilesMk1 (1:01:33 AM): Huh.
MilesMk1 (1:02:06 AM): Don't recall being taught that, though my math education in the US began in the 9th grade... Or anyone complaining I was using wrong symbols, for that matter...
Thematrian1 (1:03:00 AM): we graduated to dots in high school calculus, IIRC
Umbrafer (1:03:13 AM): Generally avoided for clarity to avoid confusion with variable X
MilesMk1 (1:03:25 AM): That's what I was taught to use since about 4th grade...
MilesMk1 (1:03:36 AM): (the dot, I mean, not the lower case x)
Umbrafer (1:03:43 AM): And, when vectors are introduced, because there's a separate operation
Umbrafer (1:03:48 AM): Fair enough
Umbrafer (1:03:54 AM): Dots are also a distinct operation
MilesMk1 (1:05:34 AM): Mhmmm...
Umbrafer (1:05:41 AM): But yeah. Any thoughts on which method is preferable? The second choice seems less exploitable to me.
MilesMk1 (1:05:50 AM): Well, I think idea 2 works better...
MilesMk1 (1:06:28 AM): But I'm beginning to feel drowsy... I will think on it.
Umbrafer (1:07:12 AM): Excellent. Now I just need to think about what points to increase multipliers at.
MilesMk1 (1:07:48 AM): 4 and 6?
MilesMk1 (1:08:19 AM): Bah... I really need to get going... Work looms... See you guys Tuesday ( or in a week's time).
MilesMk1 (1:08:24 AM): *wave*
Thematrian1 (1:08:30 AM): tuesday
Thematrian1 (1:08:36 AM): for sure
Thematrian1 (1:08:41 AM): unless I die
CirclMastr (1:08:49 AM): Week is for me
MilesMk1 (1:08:57 AM): Try to avoid that.
MilesMk1 (1:09:04 AM): It makes it hard on everyone stuck with the bills.
CirclMastr has left the chat room.

MilesMk1 (1:09:20 AM): ;)
Thematrian1 (1:09:26 AM): so noted
Thematrian1 (1:09:31 AM): especially when the rest of the building can't make food
Thematrian1 (1:09:37 AM): they'd feast on my corpse, then starve to death
MilesMk1 (1:09:55 AM): I blame Alive. Anyway, godnight. Have a good one, guys.
Thematrian1 (1:10:05 AM): I'll do my best
Umbrafer (1:10:09 AM): Heh. Sleep well.
MilesMk1 has left the chat room.

Umbrafer (1:10:40 AM): I can't believe I didn't think of this until yesterday. Rather, that I didn't think of it as /viable/.
Umbrafer (1:10:46 AM): Ah well. Thanks again for feedback and soforth.
Thematrian1 (1:10:49 AM): it happens
Umbrafer (1:11:21 AM): Anyway. I toddle off to collapse now. Please don't die, it would be dreadfully inconvenient.
Thematrian1 (1:11:37 AM): see what I can do
Chat room exited at 8/5/2005 1:11:52 AM.