From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Adam Weishaupt [illuminati_13@hotmail.com] Sent: Saturday, March 25, 2000 9:58 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: The Illuminati >Hmmmm....Reputed founder of the Bavarian Illuminati and George >Washington's evil twin? Absolutely totally right. I'm curious as to what the Illuminati might be up to in a game of cosmic horror. They most certainly aren't the conspirators on top this time. ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of EdDrWho@aol.com Sent: Saturday, March 25, 2000 10:30 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: delving deep into Yithians In a message dated 3/25/00 6:26:05 AM Central Standard Time, mib@cyberspace.org writes: > and curious british phone boxes Or anything else, if that bloody Chameleon Circuit works... From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of EdDrWho@aol.com Sent: Saturday, March 25, 2000 10:41 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: The Illuminati In a message dated 3/25/00 9:54:39 AM Central Standard Time, cpencis@yahoo.com writes: > Did you care for The Difference Engine?... most of the guys around here > who read Bruce Sterling (from Austin TX, my hometown BTW so I get a bit > saturated) couldn't stand it. It needed work, but the idea was a good one. From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Davide Mana [doctor.dee@libero.it] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 4:42 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: Steam-powered Conspiracy Greetings. I'm replying on-line to the various requests for info about my Victorian Conspiracy campaign idea simply because a . I'm gonna discuss a conspiracy game, so maybe I'm not so OT after all b . I guessed a few of the subscribers would be interested c . I'd really appreciate input/comments I hope Alphonse will not take umbrage, as I'll strive to keep this as on-topic as possible. So, what I'm trying to do is to set up a Global(-ish) Conspiracy game in a Victorian/Edwardian setting. The late 1800/early 1900 mindset is great (IMHO) for the conspiracy genre - class-issues and imperial politics make the thing just a little more spicy, and there's still a lot of blank spaces on the map. For the rest there is not a single element of the modern-day conspiracy game that you can't project back against the Industrial Revolution background with little or no adjustment. The idea - still very much in its infancy - is to work on multiple levels. At starting level, this is all a Victorian adventure - Alan Quatermain fare. The characters can be developed at this level and given enough time to acquaint themselves with an almost realistic Victorian setting of Haggard/Burroughs high adventure and scantly clad native princesses. Next step, the characters discover the most mundane, beliavable face of the conspiracy - someone manipulated events from Lincoln's assassination to Jack the Ripper and beyond. Shades of Moriarty and Fu Manchu, characters that can be blamed for all that's bad in a morally upright society. One more rung up in the ladder, and steampunk-style technology comes into play - the ubiquitous Babbage engines, possibly with some weird Chinese add-ons (peripherals?), airships and submarines. A liberal dose of Verne, but at the service of the Secret Masters. What hi-tech there is does not show in everyday's life, just as it does not show in Dickens' novels. Another step up the ladder, and things start getting _really_ weird - like the British govt. cover up of the Martian spaceship crashlanded in Scotland, for instance, or the secret funding of dr. Jeckill's researches by a German apothecary company. And the Earth is hollow, of course. At this point the characters should be involved enough in the Conspiracy to be, one way or the other, part of it. Think the Invisibles. A dash of supernatural can be added here and there to season the stew, but really just a small dose - this is a magic poor setting, not Castle Falkenstein. So far, for the background. The action can move from urban and urbane settings to wilder places - a campaign like this has a good globetrotting potential, and as soon as airships make their appearence, getting around becomes easier (and more hazardous). Now, for the 'Steampunk' angle. Most Steampunk I've seen does not make allowances for radical changes in social mores due to new technology - most authors are simply content to show us Victorians acting Victorian while handling shiny new toys. We know it does not go that way. What should be important in a game like this (IMHO) is the possibility, for characters, to grow in unespected directions, their worldview progressively adapting to their new reality. Implanting the postmodern attitude on the Victorian mindset. This last bit is probably the hardest and the most rewarding. It requires good roleplayers and a system that allows for the growth of the character not only in terms of practical knowledge, but also of personality evolution. GURPS could really help here, with its advantages/disadvantages and quirks (or whatever). Expert roleplayers could probably do without, and just take a few notes on the back of their character sheet. But it could help. As inspirational material - and then I'm done - I'd suggest . In the Country of the Blind, by Michael Flynn (IIRC) - it's set in the modern day, but details a Victorian conspiracy . The List of Seven, by Mark Frost - I did not like it a bit, but it IS a Victorian conspiracy story. . The Man that Was Thursday, by J.K. Chesterton - comments are superfluous. . Assassination Bureau, by Jack London - sadly unfinished, and pretty superoministic, but good. The movie version featuring Oliver Reed, Diana Rigg and Telly Savalas is well worth checking out. plus the usual fare of Haggard, Burroughs, Verne, Wells, Kipling, etc etc etc. And here I stop for good. I hope the steps I hear at my back are not Andrea's. Sorry if this went off topic. Cheers! Davide Mana Torino, Italy doctor.dee@libero.it The Ice Cave - http://www.fortunecity.com/tattooine/leiber/50/ice_cave.htm From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Andy Robertson [andywrobertson@clara.co.uk] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 6:33 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: Re: Steam-powered Conspiracy ----- Original Message ----- From: Davide Mana > . The Man that Was Thursday, by J.K. Chesterton - comments are superfluous. Stout fellow. And may I suggest a look at Alan Moore's new comic "the League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen"? a bit farcical comical, but good ideas From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Tolga Yanasik [yanasikt@superonline.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 7:06 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Steam-powered Conspiracy On Sun, 26 Mar 2000 12:42:24 +0200 Davide Mana wrote: > Greetings. > I'm replying on-line to the various requests for info about my Victorian > Conspiracy campaign idea simply because > a . I'm gonna discuss a conspiracy game, so maybe I'm not so OT after all > b . I guessed a few of the subscribers would be interested > c . I'd really appreciate input/comments I believe I can be of help if you are interesting to add a different flavor in already interesting Victorian setting. I have my own conspiracy theories about the fall of Ottoman Empire which started in the 1800s ended at 1924. Also the empire was building a disciplined and regular army after disbanding the Janisseries -Yeniceri- . The empire sent many military representives and high ranking officers to Britain for training, making arms deals and industrial espionage. Tolga From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of David Farnell [daf@iwa.att.ne.jp] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 7:31 AM To: Delta Green List Subject: DG: Fiction: ANGEL 5 ANGEL (David Farnell, 2000) Five: Though his tongue dropp'd manna... Sometimes, Maria felt that she spent more time in hospitals than out. Ahmed had been mauled terribly, but he would survive. Severed muscles in his back and ass would keep him bedridden for some time. One lung had been punctured, and he'd lost a lot of blood. In her brief visit, he had joked feebly about how much he hated to sleep on his stomach. He was handling the trauma about as well as could be expected. Ruth, on the other hand, had withdrawn into a semi-catatonic state. She was in the psychiatric ward; Derek and Maria hadn't yet gotten permission to visit. Though Ruth hadn't actually seen him crucified on the wall, what had happened to Jerry had hit her hard. Then seeing the thing stooped over Ahmed, claws dug in and rotten wings beating, getting a good, hard look at the grinning face of the Outside--the face of the universe--had sent her over the edge. Maria had been there herself. She mentally wished Ruth a speedy recovery and got on with business. Later, perhaps, she could help. She approached Derek in the lounge. He was seated, elbows on knees, staring into space. "They won't let us see Ruth yet. They say it's too early for visitors." He nodded, frowning. She sat down across from him. "Derek." His eyes rolled up, focused on her; he didn't move a muscle otherwise. Stone-faced. She couldn't tell what he thought of her now, but she didn't think it was good. She took a breath. "Do you want out?" He thought about it. Slowly shook his head. "Doesn't matter what I want, does it? The devil wants to get you, he's gonna get you. Just 'cause you give up doesn't mean he will." She nodded. He leaned forward and stared her in the eye. "But you want us to follow you into hell, Doe. And the simple truth is, you haven't earned that kind of trust." She looked back at him, thinking, What would Jerry do? Slap him down, or let him in? Jerry, Linus, had been the "Friendly Guy," the recruiter-on-the-spot, for L Cell. Laura had always been content to leave that up to him--she was never as suave, as cynically manipulative, as he. At the same time, he had cared about every one of them. Perhaps that was how he pulled them in so easily--they knew that, even when he used them up, sacrificing them to the mission, he loved them, deep down. She could barely imagine the demons that haunted his nights. Anyway, Derek had already seen something from Outside, and read more. With what he'd translated of that Mexican missionary's journals--before they'd been stolen from the library's secure room--he'd be putting things together. Better to have him on the inside. Besides, he'd called her Doe. Nobody'd ever called her that before. She kind of liked it. "OK. I can't tell you everything. But after what you've seen, I can tell you some of it." She took his hands, long and slim, much darker than hers. "But know this: The more you know, the deeper in you get. And you never get back out. This knowledge is like a disease. It kills your peace of mind, forever." He nodded, as if he'd expected that. "You know, I decided to be a scholar because I thought it would help me find the truth. I grew up in Bumfuck, Louisiana--my grandmama sells love charms and potions, and if you pay her enough she'll throw grave-dirt on your enemy's doorstep to give him bad luck. I couldn't stand that superstitious shit--it was embarrassing. After a while, I decided my uncle, the preacher, was just singing the same song to a different tune. Now, after seeing that..._thing_, I've got to wonder if all those brilliant anthropologists I've read, who scientifically categorize and dissect the things my kin believe in--well, I've got to wonder if they don't know half of what my grandmama knows. "I don't figure I'll be getting many good nights' sleep from now on anyway, Agent Verde. Tell me what you can. Give me the truth." *** It took her a while to find a place to park--Austin had recently been "discovered" by _Fortune_ and _Lifestyle_ and others and had been dubbed the "number one (or two) place to live in America." Now the roads were gridlocked, the rents skyrocketing. She saw a lot of California plates on the cars, recession refugees. She also saw a lot of bumper stickers on cars with Texas plates, things like "Welcome to Texas--Now Go Home!" It made her smile. Same old Texas. It was years since she'd been back to Austin. She'd done her undergraduate work here; it had been a great place to be a student. A sort of retirement town for hippies and freaks--at least, that was the impression you got downtown, near the University. The Bubba mentality was present, but warped into strange and delightful new paths by the freaks. It was Texas done in psychedelic colors. She got out of the car, walking swiftly to get to the pay phone. Late afternoon on Guadelupe saw lots of students strolling, hanging out in the cafes, bookstores, and head shops. She raised an eyebrow at a new sushi bar where her favorite sandwich shop used to be. Beggars, young and old, called out to her--she ignored them. She had left Derek napping fitfully in a cheap motel room--they would change rooms after nightfall to make it harder for anything seeking them out. She had gotten in about an hour of sleep herself. She felt bone-tired, having had no real sleep since leaving Hawaii. She would have to do something about that soon. The phone was already ringing before she got there. A young Hispanic guy with a Van Dyke beard and enough piercings to pick up radio signals had drifted over and was about to lift the receiver, a puzzled look on his face. She slid in front of him and intercepted it, flashing him a smile. "Sorry, it's for me." >>Hello, is Michelle there?<< "No, I'm sorry, she's not here right now. This is Laura--can I help you?" >>Good to hear your voice again, Laura.<< As always, Luke's voice was electronically modified. He tried out new settings every time; on this call, he sounded like Bobby Kennedy crossed with John Wayne. The electronics couldn't take care of Luke's Boston accent, yet, but Maria was sure he was working on it. She could hear all sorts of echoes and clicks as the call was bounced around and scrambled to make it all but impossible to trace or intercept. >>Why did you request real-time communication?<< The pierced guy was still hanging around, his puzzled look slowly changing to a semi-macho come-on. Maria held the phone away and said, "Excuse me. This is a private call." The guy looked back at his slacker friends, who were egging him on, then turned to her with what he surely considered a winning smile. Maria sighed. "Hey, fuck off, OK? I'm not in the mood for games." His face darkened, and for a moment she thought he was going to try something macho, but then he saw the look in her eyes and the way she was standing. He and his buddies moved on, muttering. "Sorry, Luke. Local color." >>No problem. What's up?<< "You know. I am rapidly running out of backup here. Linus and two of the three Friendlies are out. Send me some help." >>I told you by email, Laura--we're having a situation right now.<< "What situation?" >>I don't want to burden you. You have enough to deal with.<< "Damn right I do. I'm _alone_, Luke! I'm gonna to turn up dead tomorrow, and you won't even know for sure who did it. Divert some resources, get me a couple of combat-qualified Friendlies, something." >>I'm sorry, Laura. You'll have to recruit on-site. I know I'm letting you down, but really, I can't get hold of any resources like that just now.<< "Fine. I'll take that as permission, then. I've had a talk with Derek Williams--he demanded to know more, so I told him. The Outside, our place in the universe, that kind of thing." >>Oh. Well, I trust your judgement as always.<< Maria snorted at that. >>And his knowledge of us?<< "Level 2: We're a secret agency of monster-hunters with a government-issued license to kill. Obscure, poor funding, so we won't expect money from us. I can tell he doesn't fully buy it, but he's willing to let it slide for now." >>OK. What else?<< "I need someone in law-enforcement. Williams is in ROTC, so he knows one end of a gun from the other, but I need someone who can fight and who has a grasp of procedure, so we can break the rules the right way. And it should be someone who's met the Enemy before." >>Sounds like you've already chosen someone.<< "Yeah. Um, there's really no one among the local police force who's suitable. So...I called my brother." Silence. >>Are you sure that's a good idea, Laura?<< "No. I'm sure it's a bad idea, really, but I can't think of anything else. He's coming up from San Antonio tonight. Unless you can offer me a better choice?" A pause. >>Right now, no. You're right--you have no choice. But I will get a cell out to you as soon as possible. Assuming you don't finish the job first.<< "Well, maybe I'll do that before Daniel gets here. I'm going over to Collins' office right now." >>You can't gun him down in public, Laura.<< "Unfortunately true. But it's time to have a talk, feel him out. Anyway, he has to be expecting another visit from the FBI, after his attack on Linus. There's no point in hiding my face from him--his servant must have gotten a good look at me. I'll just play dumb; he doesn't know that I know who he is." >>Do you? Be careful Laura.<< "If I were a careful person, I wouldn't be working for you, would I? Be seeing you." *** "And how may I help the FBI today, Agent Verde?" Lt. Colonel Bradley Collins, Professor of Military Science, leaned back in his chair, a catty smile playing across his sensuous lips. Maria could tell that she was providing him with great amusement. She kept her face as neutral as possible and looked past him, through his window. His office in the AROTC Center in Steinham Hall had a good view, across the East Mall and taking in the UT Tower. Maria looked at it, thinking of Charles Whitman up there in 1966--what had he been thinking as he prepared to erase the lives of strangers in the streets below? "I'm sorry, Professor. I must admit, I'm a little distracted by the smell." More than that, she could feel a growing pressure in her chest--her constant companion stirring. His smile became thinner. His face was square and solid, heavily angled and highly expressive. She found him strangely attractive and repellant in equal measures. She imagined he must have some ardent admirers among his more impressionable students. He spun an expensive pen between his fingers. "Ah, yes. A cat got in here a couple of months back, I'm afraid. University campuses are simply infested with them, you know--besotted young men always giving kittens to their lady-loves, who then abandon the poor things come summer vacation. People feed them; I favor the law of the jungle, myself. Anyway, it must have slipped in through an open window and then been unable to find its way out. Trapped in here the whole weekend. Poor thing got frightened and ran around _spraying_ everything. I've had the cleaners in several times, but I imagine the smell will linger for the next several decades. It was a tragedy, really--I had no choice but to throw out some very rare books." "Well, now that you mention books--" "Ah, yes! I've heard about Agent Smalls' misfortunes. I do hope he will recover fully?" Collins' smile was verging on a sneer. Maria looked hard into his hard eyes and spoke carefully and coldly. "They're reconstructing his eyelids from the skin of his fingertips. His tongue will always be a numb lump of meat in his mouth, and he'll never be able to eat regular food because he's lost half his digestive tract." And that's nothing to what I'll do to you when the time comes, you bastard. "Well, I suppose, in the service of our country, these things sometimes do happen, unfortunately. But tell me, have you found the books you were looking for?" She stood and walked over to his bookshelves, scanning titles to avoid looking at him. Her stomach felt knotted up. The further she stood from him, the weaker the smell became. It was just something in the background, perhaps not even noticeable if one wasn't sniffing for it. It did not smell like cat piss--more like something spoiled, rancid. Mayonnaise, maybe. "The books are still missing." "I'm sorry to hear that. However, as I told Agent Smalls, I know nothing about it." "But you did request access to the Special Collections room, specifically to view _Le roi en jaune_ and _De la marca amariya_ a few days before the robbery." He rose and came toward her. The smell grew slightly stronger. "Come now, Agent Verde, you don't seriously think I tore the steel door off the Special Collections room with my bare hands, do you?" "No, I don't think you did it. However, it is curious, isn't it? And you were the last person to check out the English translation of that play, _The King in Yellow_, before it disappeared from the library last year." She let him approach her, felt his presence behind her. The pressure in her breastbone was becoming intense. "Very curious, indeed." He reached past her to seize a gray fuzz of dust from the shelf, his fingers delicately balling it up. When he opened his fingers, the dust was gone. His breath tickled her ear. "For example, I am quite curious about you, Agent Verde. You see, I have some connections in the intelligence community, and after my conversation with Agent Smalls, I did some checking. Just out of...curiosity." She tensed, but did not flinch, as he lay his hands on her shoulders. She closed her eyes. Her breath came tremulously. Collins whispered huskily, "They tell me that there is no Special Agent Alan Smalls. And no Special Agent Dolores Verde. Some faked computer records, yes, but I never trust machines. And so I have to wonder, just why are you interested in these books?" His hands radiated an oily warmth through her light suit jacket, gently directing her to lean forward. Her vision swimming, she did so, gripping the bookshelf for support. The warmth quickly spread through her body. One of his hands slowly slithered through her thick hair, then grasped it, easing her head back, while the other slipped under her arm to cup her breast. She made a small sound in her throat as his hips nestled into her buttocks--whether it was a sound of fear or pleasure, she could not afterwards say. His lips made a snail-trail along her throat, and his voice buzzed as he whispered to her, "Tell me, have you seen the Yellow Sign?" She felt something pushing against her skirt, writhing, snake-like. Alive. Aware. She heard a voice of memory, of her training, from some locked-away, terrified part of her mind: "Look at your hands." The sane part of her mind thrashed beneath a heavy, water-soaked blanket of suffocating surrender. So much easier to let go, to let the inevitable happen. "Look at your hands." Shut up. This feels...good? Monstrous? Whatever--it _feels_. Her clothes, melting away, veil-thin now, insubstantial, barely blocking the abominable pleasures she was about to experience. Oh, yes... "Look at your hands." Experience...and then death. Yes, but it feels goooood... "LOOK!" She did. Her entire body jerked, and she found herself in the chair. Collins was sitting behind the desk, leaning back, elbows on the chair's arms, fingers together. She thought perhaps his eyes had opened at the same time as hers. There was a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead. He looked at her for a moment, his face expressionless. Then he cleared his throat and said, "Well then, Agent Verde...will there be any more questions?" Her sense of dislocation was profound. She could still feel his hands on her, the thing, writhing...she put one hand to her neck, wiping it. Was that moisture? Her heart was beating hard and fast. She fought to gain control--she felt like vomiting. She tried to stand slowly, but stumbled and almost knocked the chair over. "No, no more questions." She fought to keep her voice under control. Her right hand moved toward her gun. Collins smiled, amused again. "Well. I really do hope to see you again, Dolores." At the sound of her middle name, from her father's favorite West Texas ghost story, she stopped the trembling, put aside the fear. She straightened out of a defensive posture and forced herself to look him in the eyes, focusing cold rage and contempt on him, her head high, staring him down. His cat-like smile flickered and lost a measure of its confidence. She smiled, cold and predatory. Then she turned and left. From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Davide Mana [doctor.dee@libero.it] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 7:14 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: Steam-powered Conspiracy Greetings. Andy wrote.... >Stout fellow. And may I suggest a look at Alan Moore's new comic "the >League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen"? a bit farcical comical, but good >ideas The problem's finding the thing! So far I've been able to track only issue number 3, but my local dealer's on a costant lookout. As we are at it, both series about Luther Arkwright, by Brian Tallbot, are well worth checking out, too. The second's more light-weight, but has more direct Mythos-like content. And to plug the national product - go and check "Martin Mystery", currently published by Dark Horse in the USA. There's a lot of conspiracy and fortean stuff in there (including MIBs), and now I can vouch for the writer's pedigree (let's say he was pretty close friends with my tutor, so I got a few details about his background - another HPL fan). The same staff is about to launch here in Italy a series called "Dhampir", about a team of contemporary vampire hunters/occult troubleshooters. Looks promising. And here I better stop (it is a well known fact I could talk comics - and lots of other hobbies of mine - ad infinitum). Take care! Davide Mana Torino, Italy doctor.dee@libero.it The Ice Cave - http://www.fortunecity.com/tattooine/leiber/50/ice_cave.htm From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Toby Rushton [trushton@mailbox.co.uk] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 9:15 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: DARPA Exoskeletons An interesting link cobbled from another list: EXOSKELETONS FOR HUMAN PERFORMANCE AUGMENTATION (EHPA) DARPA solicitation for research proposals. See http://www.darpa.mil/baa/baa00-34.htm Toby From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Michael Beck [msb216@is7.nyu.edu] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 9:13 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: Steam-powered Conspiracy There's also "Darkchylde", which isn't quite so directly applicable but which has a good mood to use. What are the stories about Arkwright? Davide Mana wrote: > Greetings. > > Andy wrote.... > > >Stout fellow. And may I suggest a look at Alan Moore's new comic "the > >League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen"? a bit farcical comical, but good > >ideas > > The problem's finding the thing! > So far I've been able to track only issue number 3, but my local dealer's > on a costant lookout. > > As we are at it, both series about Luther Arkwright, by Brian Tallbot, are > well worth checking out, too. > The second's more light-weight, but has more direct Mythos-like content. > > And to plug the national product - go and check "Martin Mystery", currently > published by Dark Horse in the USA. > There's a lot of conspiracy and fortean stuff in there (including MIBs), > and now I can vouch for the writer's pedigree (let's say he was pretty > close friends with my tutor, so I got a few details about his background - > another HPL fan). > The same staff is about to launch here in Italy a series called "Dhampir", > about a team of contemporary vampire hunters/occult troubleshooters. Looks > promising. > > And here I better stop (it is a well known fact I could talk comics - and > lots of other hobbies of mine - ad infinitum). > Take care! > > Davide Mana > Torino, Italy > doctor.dee@libero.it > The Ice Cave - http://www.fortunecity.com/tattooine/leiber/50/ice_cave.htm From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Andy Robertson [andywrobertson@clara.co.uk] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 9:44 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: Re: DARPA Exoskeletons > EXOSKELETONS FOR HUMAN PERFORMANCE AUGMENTATION > (EHPA) > > Toby Someone's been reading STARSHIP TROOPERS. This will be interesting. It's generally accepted that biological limbs are about 10 times stronger and more robust than artifical ones - at the moment. The Glove Cleaner From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Rob Shankly [ludo@bigpond.com.au] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 9:46 AM To: The Delta Green List Subject: DG: Meego? This is from one of my players: Ken Blakey wrote: (-) > "Bronson Pinchot returns to series television as Meego from planet > Marmazon 4.0, an alien wise beyond > his 9,000 years, whose spaceship crashes onto Earth. Meego is > discovered by three children: Alex, Maggie > and Trip Parker, who could use a little TLC and pass him off to their > single dad, Dr. Edward Parker, as the > perfect caretaker. Originally intending to stay only until his > spaceship can be repaired, Meego has a change > of heart and decides to move in after he becomes emotionally attached > to the kids, particularly to young > Alex, and realizes that he has an out-of-this-world knack for > child-rearing on Earth." (CBS press > release) I'm not sure what show this is (Ken has access to cable TV that I can't be bothered with), but if I get a chance I'll send a review. -- Rob Shankly ludo@bigpond.com.au From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Jonathan Turner [j.turner@irishnews.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 10:10 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: USS Scorpion At 04:33 PM 3/24/00 +0100, you wrote: > >JT, does this answer your question? > >Philip Henry > >"Give me one ping...one ping only..." > Yes, thank you, Vasily... From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Jonathan Turner [j.turner@irishnews.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 10:14 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: USS Scorpion At 10:26 AM 3/25/00 -0500, you wrote: >Yes, we know. > Well, I didn't. So there! ;-P JT From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Davide Mana [doctor.dee@libero.it] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 9:57 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: Steam-powered Conspiracy Greetings. Michael wrote >There's also "Darkchylde", which isn't quite so directly applicable but which >has a good mood to use. What are the stories about Arkwright? Brian Tallbot wrote two series about Luther Arkwright, "The Adventures of L.A." (from the '80s) and "Heart of the Empire, The Legacy of L.A." (published last year). In the first, which is on a narrative par with many novels, he introduced a Moorcock-style multiverse (the series does have a Jerry Cornelius feeling), and two Secret Masters-like factions fighting for control over it. Arkwright is a tool (and evolution's next step in humanity), created through selective breeding by one of these factions, and is currently working as a free agent of sorts - he's endowed with psychic powers and the capability of freely jumping from one universe to the other without external aids. The action does jump through a series of 'parallels', some of which are just hinted at while others (including a standard Steampunk one and one in which Cromwell's line still governs Britain) are extremely well detailed, and is complicated by extensive use of flashback. 'The Adventures of Luther Arkwright' is the comic that started me reading comics seriously about ten years ago. The second series is lighter as far as plot twists go, and is almost exclusively centered on a striking Victorian/Restoration England of the 1990s, in which Arkwright's natural daughter (later helped by Luther himself) will have to confront various court intrigues. polithical upheval and a critter that is straight out of the Necronomicon (or of 'Dunwich Horror'). Both series were published by Dark Horse and are an extremely rewarding reading, IMHO. The artwork is stunning, which is also a plus. End of fanboy rant. Davide Mana Torino, Italy doctor.dee@libero.it The Ice Cave - http://www.fortunecity.com/tattooine/leiber/50/ice_cave.htm From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Davide Mana [doctor.dee@libero.it] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 10:06 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Steam-powered Conspiracy Greetings. Tolga ventured.... >I believe I can be of help if you are interesting to add a different >flavor in already interesting Victorian setting. > >I have my own conspiracy theories about the fall of Ottoman Empire which >started in the 1800s ended at 1924. Ah! The Sick Man of Europe nonetheless - there was talk (and little else) about an Ottoman supplement for Castle Falkenstein, but that went nowhere - I wonder what R. talsorian is doing these days! The Empire was indeed one of the most fascinating elements of the 19th century. >Also the empire was building a disciplined and regular army after >disbanding the Janisseries -Yeniceri- . Disbanding is too good a word - many were killed right away, IIRC. According to a book sitting here somewhere, the Janissaries were said to have turned into vampires after death, so they had to open all the graves and stake and decapitate the lot, just to be on the safe side. I was indeed planning to use that detail in my game. >The empire sent many military >representives and high ranking officers to Britain for training, making >arms deals and industrial espionage. Sounds like the Iran/Contras thingie from a few years back. Sure this sounds promising - there is a lot of potential for corruption and manipulation. Hmmm. This thing is getting bigger. Davide Mana Torino, Italy doctor.dee@libero.it The Ice Cave - http://www.fortunecity.com/tattooine/leiber/50/ice_cave.htm From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of LizardRoi@aol.com Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 10:16 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Fiction: ANGEL 5 In a message dated 3/26/00 5:38:28 AM Pacific Standard Time, daf@iwa.att.ne.jp writes: << She heard a voice of memory, of her training, from some locked-away, terrified part of her mind: "Look at your hands." The sane part of her mind thrashed beneath a heavy, water-soaked blanket of suffocating surrender. So much easier to let go, to let the inevitable happen. "Look at your hands." >> A rhino reference, DG messages hidden in porn and now "look at your hands". I am so proud right now. Sniff. "Wait until he sees the bats." Hunter S. Thompson, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas SINCE you make such good use of locale (such as Charles Whitman's last stand) I can't wait for nightfall in Austin. My brother-in-law moved his family to Austin a few years ago, and he told me about when he was at the opening of a trendy funky restaurant that was located in a renovated classic building. The festivities included a surprise attack by swarms of bats that had been nesting in the attic spaces and whose usual exit had been closed when the restaurant opened it's doors. Since hearing about it I've had an ongoing fantasy of releasing thousands of bats at Wolfgang Puck's. I'll have my goat cheese \ pesto \ Shitake mushroom \ tofu \ radicchio \ Kiwi \ sundried tomato \ truffle pizza with the bat guano on the side please. And a Pellegrino. Mark McFadden From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Rob Shankly [ludo@bigpond.com.au] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 10:15 AM To: The Delta Green List Subject: DG: New Roles for Friendlies Greetings DG has a bias towards military and paramilitary characters, which is not unreasonable. Even so, it is important to remember that the agencies from which the conspiracy recruits are quite varied. Next time a player is searching for a character idea, consider this: http://www.cia.gov/cia/employment/jobpostings/theatrical.htm -- Rob Shankly ludo@bigpond.com.au From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Jonathan Turner [j.turner@irishnews.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 11:25 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Stolen lap-top Pity that MI5 agent didn't have one of these... Never have your paperback Necromonicon stolen again! http://www.spyzone.com/catalog/personalprotection/sb-100.html From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Appelion@aol.com Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 11:21 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: The Illuminati In a message dated 3/24/00 12:10:57 PM, ffreyiii@luna.cas.usf.edu writes: >Regis, may I call Cthulhu please? Country code 666. "Sorry Rege, I'm having dinner now. [Screams. Crunching noises. Burp] Okay, what is it?" Xavier From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Appelion@aol.com Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 11:44 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: LLWs In a message dated 3/25/00 4:59:20 AM, mib@cyberspace.org writes: >NBC suit? There *are* magic pills/injections for that sort of thing. Yes, but most of those (atropine) will save you if you use atropine and are exposed to nerve gas, but if you don't take the gas, you die, and if you do, but with no atropine, you die. Tear gas isn't lethal, so I doubt the antidote is, but a gas mask is still easier. Xavier From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Appelion@aol.com Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 11:50 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: Minor sci point In a message dated 3/25/00 5:29:53 AM, mib@cyberspace.org writes: >But you meant exceptions among the honkies right? I meant exceptions among the book's target audience. So yes. Xavier I don't believe this, as I'm sure you realize... You wanna talk courage, cuttin' yer guts open is pretty damn courageous... Not sure that does much for the intelligence thing... From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Jonathan Turner [j.turner@irishnews.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 11:56 AM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: LLWs At 12:43 PM 3/26/00 EST, you wrote: > Tear gas isn't lethal, so I doubt the >antidote is, but a gas mask is still easier. > Tear gas might be lethal if you have asthma... ;-) A friend of mine is kinda bizarre in that he's apparently immune to CS. He was doing an army training op and had to stand in a room full of it. Everyone else retched their guys out and his eyes didn't even run... There was a pretty weird court case in England last week about a former member of the SAS - a cross-dresser who took skirts and dresses to the Gulf in his kitbag - who went beserk when the cops tried to arrest him for threatening behaviour. They sprayed CS into his eyes twice, and it had no effect. Zip, nada. But then, he was a nutter. Therefore, it follows that my mate must be one too... Jonathan From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Appelion@aol.com Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 12:10 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: The Illuminati In a message dated 3/25/00 8:29:02 AM, mused@idirect.com writes: >I always pronounced it Lizardry. Sort of like heraldry but using reptiles > >instead of banners. Behold! The White Skink! We are saved! Hagbard has come! Xavier The Yellow Iguana From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Michael Beck [msb216@is7.nyu.edu] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 1:26 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: Theme Song This was originally intended for another fiction project that never got off the ground, but I think it applies to DG as well. Tell me how you like it. The words in normal type are the lyrics, the one’s in asterisks are the images that we see and the ones in capitals are the words that scroll across the screen. *We see an ocean wave, focusing in on a single droplet. It then becomes a bead of sweat on the brow of a man whose face we don’t see hanging from a bar* Streetlamps on a moonless night, oases made of day, THE SUPERNATURAL IS NATURAL *Four strands of DNA, one red, one green, one yellow, one blue. As we watch they combine together* If we could talk to them what would they say? THEY ARE COMING *A typical grainy UFO shot* Would they speak only of things that the light has seen, TRUST NO ONE *The tip of a scorpion’s tail, descending beneath water* Or perhaps of the darkness that lies in between? IT’S ALL OUR FAULT *A picture of a human brain, with an EEG pattern imposed* Because there are places that no one should go, THEY HAVE ARRIVED *A book bound in oddly pale leather with a pentagram on the cover* Because there are secrets that no one should know. THE REAL IS SURREAL *A apple with a bite taken out of it, falls and hits the head of a person whose face we don’t see.* It’s not that we’re deaf, it not that we’re blind. ONLY TRUST CAN SAVE YOU *An inverted Qballah tree of life* It’s that there are things we won’t let ourselves find. NOTHING LASTS FOREVER *A typical corporate board meeting, except that everyone has an identical face* Absolute power, total control, THEY HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE *A woman, seen in profile. Suddenly her head morphs into that of a king cobra, and as the camera draws back we see that the snake has legs* Why settle for a part when you can have the whole? EVERYTHING YOU ARE IS USED AGAINST YOU *Fish falling from the sky* The armies of darkness, the armies of greed THE PARANORMAL IS NORMAL *An origami crane made out of ice* They are the crop, but we are the seed. BIG BROTHER DOESN’T CARE ABOUT YOU *A pyramid with an eye in it* Can they be stopped, can they be saved? THERE IS NO SCIENCE *An angel falling upwards passes a demon soaring downwards* What is the price, your whole life betrayed? NOTHING EVER CHANGES *A statue of justice with a single eye instead of a blindfold* Are they the problem, we the solution found? THE ONLY CRIME IS NOT GETTING CAUGHT *A rainbow, seen in black and white* Or maybe things are the other way round. NIETZSCHE IS DEAD *A skeleton with an odd number of limbs and an even number of torsos* You say it sounds evil, you say it sounds wrong, THERE IS NO MAGIC *JFK in Dallas* But now you see you’ve been here all along. EVERYTHING IS A LIE *A computer program scrolls past* And beware, once you know the secrets deep, THEY DID IT ALL *A woman being raped by tentacles* You will never be able to go back to sleep. IT’S ALL TRUE *The hands, still gripping the bar* <> ANY QUESTIONS? WELCOME TO REALITY From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of T Dyer [tddyer@sfu.ca] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 1:24 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: Re: DG: Re: Steam-powered Conspiracy Another Victorian-era conspiracy/alien novel is: The Other Log of Phineas Fogg, ISBN: 0812524683 by Philip Jose Farmer. I read this book with I was a wee tyke, and then lost it. It took me a long time to track it down again, but I still enjoy it. The TRUTH behind "Around the World in 80 Days." Spoilers: Fogg is a representative of one of the two alien-backed world-spanning conspiracies. He is opposed by Captain Nemo (champion of the other faction), who will eventually become known in London as Moriarity. Danny From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Jonathan Turner [j.turner@irishnews.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 1:45 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: Tradecraft goodies This site is a useful source of goodies for DG agents. And I'll even remember the URL this time! www.spyzone.com My particular favourite is the camera hidden inside a car aerial. Park the car, bugger off and pan and scan by remote. http://www.spyzone.com/catalog/videosurveillance/ae-62.html Jonathan From: owner-dgrpg@delta-green.com on behalf of Jonathan Turner [j.turner@irishnews.com] Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2000 1:59 PM To: dgrpg@delta-green.com Subject: DG: DG runabouts Just the runabout for every agent... http://www.spyzone.com/catalog/bulletproofproducts/ccsbulletproofcars.html