home home news news columns columns features features

<-- Back to modules

Falcon Genesis - Phase 2


Plot Synopsis

The team has just come off a run and delivered a man to Jaron Falcone. Jaron tells them he has more work, and he will pays them 25,000¥ each to do it. They must find a way in to a Quality Assurance lab owned by Ballefour Biotech. They just screwed a Johnson from Ballefour by delivering William Body (the man mentioned above) to Jaron. Now he wishes them to rob their laboratory of some magically active viruses and bacteria.

The team will find the lure of bigger money hard to refuse, and accept the job. Jaron describes the loot as “anything with a funky aura.” He further explains to the mage in the group, “the fools at Ballefour have grown awakened forms of bacteria and viral strains, but they don’t know it! I am working on a project which would be greatly enhanced by these astral bacteria, anything that small with an awakened aura can be of use in my research. I’m not terribly picky, nor am I sure what they’ve got. Just go to Blue Hills Corporate Center, and grab everything you can.”

The team will have to track down any information they need on Ballefour, Blue Hills, and astrally active bugs. Using their corporate contacts they will learn about the Blue Hills Security and many other details about lifestyles of the young and corporate. Corporate Security Guards, and Dock Worker contacts may give them some information on the underground tunnels used to service the Center. A good fixer can supply a “delivery” complete with truck, security clearance and empty boxes.

Arranging the Job should go relatively easily, even if you have to cheat the rolls make it really easy to go on this run. The challenge does not lie in getting in, rather it lies in getting out with the goods.

Two challenger await the team, the Melcher Munitions Security Force which handles all the security for Blue Hills, and another shadowteam seeking the self same bacteria. The other team is stealing the bacteria under direction of the Captain of Astral Security for Blue Hills, Eric Greardon. His ever vigilant, and slightly under handed watchers detected the active bacteria and reported it to their summoner. He is just as curious as Jaron and he has inside knowledge of the facility. His team is well informed.

The team will arrive at the lab to find the specimen fridges emptied of all the astrally active materials. As they are just about to give up in dismay the will hear an alarm klaxon upstairs on the street level. The team must then decide whether to chase the other invaders or run the other way to avoid the security teams.

A team of three guards and a large dog will arrive shortly, but the team will crawl every inch of the way out. The odd acoustics of the cavernous rooms divided by tiny meter and a half cubicle walls will convince them the next security team is right around the corner. After the first team arrives and tries to pin them down, the other shadowteam runs past them pursued by a double team. The Corp cops will call for reinforcements until the team(s) are outside. Then the choppers and Patrol-1’s take over.

Once outside the team may stealthily sneak off the Blue Hills complex, hopefully with the specimens.

THE MEET

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT

You have just delivered Mr. William Body, a.k.a. the corpse come back to life, to the nuyen rich hands of Jaron Falcone. Still unsure what this turncoat activity will do for your rep, he begins to offer you further employment.

“25,000¥ each,” he does start his sentences eloquently though, doesn’t he? “All I need is some specimens from a Biotech lab in the Blue Hills Corporate Center. The fools at Ballefour have grown awakened forms of bacteria and viral strains, but they don’t know it! I am working on a project which would be greatly enhanced by these astral bacteria, anything that small with an awakened aura can be of use in my research. I’m not terribly particular, nor am I sure what they’ve got. Just go to Blue Hills Corporate Center, and grab everything you can with a funky aura.” Simple enough, if the security is light.

If the team asks him for details on the Blue Hills Corporate Center, he is not very helpful. “I apologize for the lack of reliable information as you are about to embark on this perilous deed; however, my prime source of inside knowledge has just recently come back to life after his untimely murder. I think you will find this credstick will contain enough money to buy the soul and wit of a former Blue Hills Guardsman or possibly dinner and other strenuous activities with a pool of gossiping secretaries. The funds are fairly clean, though you may wish a third party to verify that fact before you spread too much among the young corporators at Blue Hills. After all, a magical find like this may not go unnoticed by the security mages for long, and even they know how to trace nuyen.”

As they are about to part, read this. “Do be careful, there is so much more I need you to accomplish. I hear the ruffians hired by Melcher Munitions can be quite deadly, when they finally realize they have been invaded.”

EARLY LEGWORK

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT

Because this run was not fully planned by your employer you must be very active in the preliminary stages of planning. Gather the information on the complex, get access to the specimens, and get out.

Ballefour Biotech

Any Corporate Type, Any Decker, any Medical Contact. Etiquette (Corp.) T#3

1-2: Good producers of symbiotes and Super White Cells, quick recovery by “nature’s course” they advertise

3: They use microbiologicals to increse healing rates and prevent disease, plenty of sales to samurai sick of side effects and mage wannabes who think it will preserve their souls.

4: Hard place to leave! Don’t know why they are so touchy, but the only way their employees skip is in a plain pine box.

Melcher Munitions

Any Corporate Type, Mercenaries, Samurai, Armorer, Humanis, Ecoterrorist, or Cop. Etiquette (Street) T#4, Etiquette (Corp.) T#3

1: Maker of guns, armor, bullets, missiles, and any other form of lethal device.

2-3: Slight anti metahuman bent, but still a favorite among muscle. Hey, anybody who sells guns and ammo that cheap is bound to make friends. Their Sec Force is well armed, but they know more about flirting with the secretarial pool than detecting intrusion. Once they find you though, look out, they are nasty.

4: I think they are completely Humanis run. They have and APM called the “Trollkiller” for crying out loud.

Blue Hills Corporate Center

Any Corporate Type. Etiquette (Corp.) T#3

1: Very nice place to work, great grounds for walking at lunch, good variety of people to talk with, I wish my company would rent there!

2-3: It’s also very secure, the guards are well armed by the owners. They are trained in manners and deportment as well as lethal aim and brutal force. Melcher Munitions is always testing new toys with this force.

4: The whole complex is controlled by riggers in “The Basement” a network of access tunnels and supply conduits.

Dock Worker, Security Contacts, Riggers, Architects, Mail Room Managers

Etiquette (Street) T#5, Etiquette (Corp.) T#4

1: The whole place is link through a tunnel network, they use it for deliveries, mail routing, storage, and even training their sec force

2-3: Melcher Munitions owns the whole complex and they maintain control of “The Basement.” Any threats to the tranquil and safe image of the complex are quickly moved down here to be cleaned up, quieted down, or “disappeared”

4: All the access points are conrolled by a platoon of riggers by day, at night the unused area are “secured” by maglocks while non vital power is cut. This renders these area dark, cool, and nearly without matrix access. The cameras are turned off, but the thermal detectors are turned on. Motion detectors are used only at the doors and windows. Give them the Basement Map.

THE BASEMENT

  1. Delivery Access. Only acces point for Vehicles. Actually this building houses little more than an Elevator
  2. Marestan Industries
  3. Shopping Strip
  4. Complex Control point
  5. Complex Control point
  6. Controls vehicle acces to complex from outside world
  7. Ballefour Biotech. Two main access points to upper levels
  8. Melcher Munitions. Three Access points to upper levels
  9. Various

DELIVERY FOR MR. JOHNSON

The team may invent some slick way of entering the complex, skimming the bugs, and exiting before anyone notices, let them. If they get stuck and need a way in that won’t get them geeked have their favorite fixer suggest a delivery truck.

TELL IT TO THEM STRAIGHT

If they go with the delivery truck scam, they will need to secure the truck. “Sounds simple enough, but do you plan to bring it back unscathed? Do you want an entry in the gatekeeper’s log? How about uniforms?” Fixers always make things so difficult. “I can borrow a truck from Seattle Package System for around 1,000¥, but the replacement cost will be around 15,000¥. A wel painted forgery will run you 3,000, unless you supply the truck, then its only 700¥.

Decker can get you a real official like log entry for a fast 1,000 while uniforms can be secured for 40¥ each, 45¥ for your larger metatype friends.”

Action

The most important piece of this section is to get the team to plan their penetration of the compound. Encourage them to come up with their own plan. If they cannot agree, or if the plan they give you is really bad suggest the truck via a fixer or some other contact.

They should consider 4 obstacles in their plan, the compound gate, the run for the building, raiding the cold lockers, and escaping with their lives. The truck scam will give them an armored shell in which to escape, and it will provide cover for any weapons and equipment them will need to get to the cold lockers. They will not, however; get through the front gate without the decker’s log entry. They will have great difficult getting to the building looking like a shadowteam. Encourage the purchase of uniforms and one or two rolling cargo boxes for hiding their gear, they will only cost 200¥ and make great cover in fire fights. If they have a decker have him ride cover, they will have many doors to open, and even more sensors to fool.

If they do not have a decker encourage the purchase of ID’s. Visitor passes will get them in and to the access points, but the really sensitive areas (like the cold lockers) require employee ID’s. If they opt only for the Visitor Pass, stop them cold with a Maglock that won’t open, either while they are pursuing the other team or while they are being pursued by a patrol or two. This stoppage should not be deadly just very inconvenient. Visitor passes cover a group of couriers or dignitaries, one card vouches for all persons. These cost 500¥.

If they do not buy any passes, make it a deadly stop. Kill a player, let them other team get away with the goods.

If they buy employee passes, impress upon they the ease with which they move through the compoud. Have doors open for them, have lights turn on have cyberdecks and workstations power up for their access. Be smart, the badges constantly update the employee’s preference files. This means if they tell the system to turn off the light two or three times it won’t turn them on next time. If they want the workstation to stay off they will stay off. 1 Employee pass will cost 1,000¥, additional passes will cost 200¥ each.