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TimeWatch RPG Playtest Story Hour (Updated 9-2-14)
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<blockquote data-quote="Ladybird" data-source="post: 6261765" data-attributes="member: 10689"><p><strong>Episode 1, Chapter 10: Finding a Lost Sheep</strong></p><p></p><p>Yves parlays his family knowledge and resemblance to get us some fairly nice accommodations with his relatives, pretending to be a distant cousin. Privilege has its privileges! His local knowledge is useful to our mission, too: he knows exactly which neighborhoods to start looking in, and we soon find Damiens' parish church.</p><p></p><p>It turns out that the priest knows Damiens well, and is worried about him. "He is…he is not well," says the priest, a little uncomfortably and very sadly. "There is something that preys upon him. I might almost say something that possesses him." </p><p></p><p>Damiens rants the way some people rant while they're drunk, explains the priest, except that Damiens says those things when he's sober. He's pious, but says odd things about the church; patriotic, but says odd things about the country. It's starting to sound like Damiens is just mentally ill.</p><p></p><p>"Has he said anything against the king?" asks Hypatia.</p><p></p><p>"I don't want to bring a lost sheep to harm," the priest hedges - which is about the same as saying 'yes.'</p><p></p><p>Still, Edward reassures him: "We don't want to hurt him! We're trying to prevent him from doing harm to himself or others."</p><p></p><p>"Yes, he blames the king," says the priest, reluctantly. "For church policy, for national policy."</p><p></p><p>"Who does he work for?" asks Hypatia.</p><p></p><p>The priest hedges again, but this time, from uncertainty rather than protective instincts. "As best as I can tell, he has found it difficult to remain in service. He is a troubled man."</p><p></p><p>Damiens might be mentally ill, but that doesn't mean that he's acting alone. "Does he have any particular friends?" Yves asks.</p><p></p><p>The priest shakes his head. "None that I've noticed, other than his family."</p><p></p><p>Yves presses a little more, because this is one of the most important parts of our puzzle. "So you don't think he's being influenced in any way by a friend? Or a charismatic?"</p><p></p><p>"No," the priest repeats. "Not that I've seen."</p><p></p><p>"Has anyone else been acting strange in a similar way to Damiens?" asks Mace.</p><p></p><p>"Not really," says the priest. "Others become embittered, or have trouble keeping a job, but no, there is no one quite like him."</p><p></p><p>"How long has he been troubled?" asks Kat. </p><p></p><p>"As long as I have known him," sighs the priest. "And from what I have heard, longer than that."</p><p></p><p>"How very sad," Kat says, and she means it.</p><p></p><p>"I hope you can do well for him," says the priest.</p><p></p><p>"So do we," says Edward. "We very much want to do the right thing."</p><p></p><p>So we leave the church and retreat to Yves' family's house to discuss what we've found. All of the signs are pointing to Damiens being mentally ill and acting alone: he doesn't have many friends at all, let alone ones who could have planted the assassination plot in his mind; and his erratic behavior seems to be a lifelong pattern.</p><p></p><p>Now our question is: what did Forrest change to prevent the assassination? The tether says that the assassination failed because Damiens was using a penknife, and that Louis XV was wearing a really heavy coat. So either Forrest made sure that Louis was wearing heavier clothes (by influencing his valet?) or he made sure that Damiens had a really bad knife. </p><p></p><p>But Forrest still let Damiens try and fail. "What would happen if Damiens didn't try at all?" asks Edward. "What if we stopped him from getting anywhere near the king?"</p><p></p><p>"That might not fix everything," Kat says.</p><p></p><p>Hypatia agrees. "The most important thing to do is to stop Forrest. So we should watch both Damiens and the king." Which means that we should split up. "Some of us are better suited for dealing with kings, some for looking for lunatic domestic servants."</p><p></p><p>Edward is obviously on Team King, and so is Yves. Kat decides to go with them, while Mace and Hypatia volunteer for Team Lunatic.</p><p></p><p>Sidebar:</p><p>[sblock] Michel's player couldn't make this session. We are soon going to regret Michel's absence in more ways than one![/sblock]</p><p></p><p>But the first step in any plan concocted by Hypatia is, of course, to do Research. Now that we've learned more about Damiens, we want to figure out where Forrest might be and what he might be doing. We know that he made a fortune later in the 18th century by predicting financial markets, so Hypatia tries to search through financial records to see if anyone is following a similar pattern. She can't find any records, so we decide to see if court gossip turns up any information. That's definitely Edward's territory - he's very good at getting along with the nobility, and soon finds his way to the people who know everything about court gossip. There are a few notable winners and losers at court, but nobody who has the uncanny record of success that would match Forrest's pattern. </p><p></p><p>There is, however, someone who matches Forrest's description: the king's new valet. The person in charge of dressing the king is a noble, not a servant - because the position gives such proximity to the king's person, it implies deep trust. And in this case (as Hypatia and Mace suspected) it places Forrest perfectly to ensure that the king will be wearing a nice thick coat in a few days to turn aside Damiens' knife.</p><p></p><p>So Edward, Yves, and Kat stay at court, while Hypatia and Mace head back to Damiens' neighborhood. Hypatia trails Damiens as he goes about his daily business, but Mace is really not suited to being unobtrusive. Mace Hunter! is kind of the opposite of unobtrusive.</p><p></p><p>"Happy New Year!" Mace shouts as he bursts into a tavern. "The next round's on me!" Cheers erupt around him, and much festivity and alcohol ensues - followed by some leading questions about local gossip and neighborhood people, once everyone is in a thoroughly good mood. Local gossip about Damiens matches what the priest said: he's erratic, a loner, has trouble keeping a job, occasionally rants against the king and the church, and doesn't seem to be under anyone's influence.</p><p></p><p>Meanwhile, Hypatia is subtle enough to manage to track Damiens to his house. He's having a fairly ordinary day, it seems - he's celebrating the New Year with his wife and daughter, and nobody else. His wife and daughter look a little wary of him, but nothing terrible is happening. Plus, when Hypatia sees him, she can tell that he's local to this time.</p><p></p><p>So their investigations confirm what we've found so far: Damiens isn't being influenced by Forrest or anyone else that we can determine; he isn't a time traveler; and his hatred of the king seems to stem from mental illness alone.</p><p></p><p>Next up: Team King!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ladybird, post: 6261765, member: 10689"] [b]Episode 1, Chapter 10: Finding a Lost Sheep[/b] Yves parlays his family knowledge and resemblance to get us some fairly nice accommodations with his relatives, pretending to be a distant cousin. Privilege has its privileges! His local knowledge is useful to our mission, too: he knows exactly which neighborhoods to start looking in, and we soon find Damiens' parish church. It turns out that the priest knows Damiens well, and is worried about him. "He is…he is not well," says the priest, a little uncomfortably and very sadly. "There is something that preys upon him. I might almost say something that possesses him." Damiens rants the way some people rant while they're drunk, explains the priest, except that Damiens says those things when he's sober. He's pious, but says odd things about the church; patriotic, but says odd things about the country. It's starting to sound like Damiens is just mentally ill. "Has he said anything against the king?" asks Hypatia. "I don't want to bring a lost sheep to harm," the priest hedges - which is about the same as saying 'yes.' Still, Edward reassures him: "We don't want to hurt him! We're trying to prevent him from doing harm to himself or others." "Yes, he blames the king," says the priest, reluctantly. "For church policy, for national policy." "Who does he work for?" asks Hypatia. The priest hedges again, but this time, from uncertainty rather than protective instincts. "As best as I can tell, he has found it difficult to remain in service. He is a troubled man." Damiens might be mentally ill, but that doesn't mean that he's acting alone. "Does he have any particular friends?" Yves asks. The priest shakes his head. "None that I've noticed, other than his family." Yves presses a little more, because this is one of the most important parts of our puzzle. "So you don't think he's being influenced in any way by a friend? Or a charismatic?" "No," the priest repeats. "Not that I've seen." "Has anyone else been acting strange in a similar way to Damiens?" asks Mace. "Not really," says the priest. "Others become embittered, or have trouble keeping a job, but no, there is no one quite like him." "How long has he been troubled?" asks Kat. "As long as I have known him," sighs the priest. "And from what I have heard, longer than that." "How very sad," Kat says, and she means it. "I hope you can do well for him," says the priest. "So do we," says Edward. "We very much want to do the right thing." So we leave the church and retreat to Yves' family's house to discuss what we've found. All of the signs are pointing to Damiens being mentally ill and acting alone: he doesn't have many friends at all, let alone ones who could have planted the assassination plot in his mind; and his erratic behavior seems to be a lifelong pattern. Now our question is: what did Forrest change to prevent the assassination? The tether says that the assassination failed because Damiens was using a penknife, and that Louis XV was wearing a really heavy coat. So either Forrest made sure that Louis was wearing heavier clothes (by influencing his valet?) or he made sure that Damiens had a really bad knife. But Forrest still let Damiens try and fail. "What would happen if Damiens didn't try at all?" asks Edward. "What if we stopped him from getting anywhere near the king?" "That might not fix everything," Kat says. Hypatia agrees. "The most important thing to do is to stop Forrest. So we should watch both Damiens and the king." Which means that we should split up. "Some of us are better suited for dealing with kings, some for looking for lunatic domestic servants." Edward is obviously on Team King, and so is Yves. Kat decides to go with them, while Mace and Hypatia volunteer for Team Lunatic. Sidebar: [sblock] Michel's player couldn't make this session. We are soon going to regret Michel's absence in more ways than one![/sblock] But the first step in any plan concocted by Hypatia is, of course, to do Research. Now that we've learned more about Damiens, we want to figure out where Forrest might be and what he might be doing. We know that he made a fortune later in the 18th century by predicting financial markets, so Hypatia tries to search through financial records to see if anyone is following a similar pattern. She can't find any records, so we decide to see if court gossip turns up any information. That's definitely Edward's territory - he's very good at getting along with the nobility, and soon finds his way to the people who know everything about court gossip. There are a few notable winners and losers at court, but nobody who has the uncanny record of success that would match Forrest's pattern. There is, however, someone who matches Forrest's description: the king's new valet. The person in charge of dressing the king is a noble, not a servant - because the position gives such proximity to the king's person, it implies deep trust. And in this case (as Hypatia and Mace suspected) it places Forrest perfectly to ensure that the king will be wearing a nice thick coat in a few days to turn aside Damiens' knife. So Edward, Yves, and Kat stay at court, while Hypatia and Mace head back to Damiens' neighborhood. Hypatia trails Damiens as he goes about his daily business, but Mace is really not suited to being unobtrusive. Mace Hunter! is kind of the opposite of unobtrusive. "Happy New Year!" Mace shouts as he bursts into a tavern. "The next round's on me!" Cheers erupt around him, and much festivity and alcohol ensues - followed by some leading questions about local gossip and neighborhood people, once everyone is in a thoroughly good mood. Local gossip about Damiens matches what the priest said: he's erratic, a loner, has trouble keeping a job, occasionally rants against the king and the church, and doesn't seem to be under anyone's influence. Meanwhile, Hypatia is subtle enough to manage to track Damiens to his house. He's having a fairly ordinary day, it seems - he's celebrating the New Year with his wife and daughter, and nobody else. His wife and daughter look a little wary of him, but nothing terrible is happening. Plus, when Hypatia sees him, she can tell that he's local to this time. So their investigations confirm what we've found so far: Damiens isn't being influenced by Forrest or anyone else that we can determine; he isn't a time traveler; and his hatred of the king seems to stem from mental illness alone. Next up: Team King! [/QUOTE]
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