Character generation went very smoothly, and I will post the four characters shortly (just waiting for two more traits to be confirmed).

Only question that came up was whether a player had to add or subtract a dice during the experience scene or could pass?

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

That's all sounds great and I really look forward to finding out what the characters are like.

How did you find the game creation process, especially when conducting the game over Skype? Did it run smoothly or were there any hiccups along the way? Billboard Guy sounds like a great NPC, I wish I had thought of having people like that wandering the streets when I was writing the game!

Oh and in answer to your question, no player has to use their add/subtract power during a conflict, but they are encouraged to make use of that ability.

Cheers
Malcolm

Contested Ground Studios

The game creation process went pretty well, although we did struggle with one of the players whose microphone set up wasn't as good as the others. However, we managed well enough by using a conferenced IM set up at the same time.

One thing we did agree was that we would have an open game as we felt that this was more optimal playing remotely. Closed games work better when you can hear everyone well.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

The players all came up with a B&W photographic image each;

Photographic Images.
*A derelict power station looms in the background with a small boy – 3 to 4 years old, dressed in shorts and a tank top, grubby with ruffled hair - running in the foreground with a concerned or scared face. His hand is raised as if holding a balloon or kite, but you can't see what as it is off the edge of the screen. In the mist in the background a figure stands watching. [Graham]

*It's night time, and 3 to 4 people are standing and watching a large house standing on its own burn furiously, blotting out the stars. It's obviously beyond saving. You can't tell who the people are as they are wearing large coats and hats. [Stuart]

*A group of 5 men are standing closely around a brazier in the foundations of a ruined house warming their hands against the frost. The trees around are bare of leaves. One of the men is looking up to the sky and tapping the shoulder of a second who is facing him. The other three haven't noticed. With their hats and coats on, you can't recognise the rest. [Elaine]

*It's raining so hard you can't see clearly, but the garage under the railway arches is close enough that you can make out the boxes within, along with their government property labels. 2 figures in hats, with coat collars turned up against the rain, are talking to a third who is inside the garage and somehow doesn't look quite right. [Neil]

One of the things that happened during this which was interesting was that I suddenly had an image pop into my head too. I suspect that it may end up in the scenario some how, but it set me thinking about whether the GM should have this option two.

For what it's worth, my photo would have been;

A Vulcan Bomber trails flame and smoke as it falls from a rent in the angry sky above towards the person taking the picture. [Dom]

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Carlyle Gregory Burgess
Well-spoken and as well-dressed as possible under the circumstances (think Terry Thomas), leaning on a cane in his left hand. Dark, slick hair. Trim moustache. Trilby hat.
Faction - MI5 (I guess this is effectively now a subset of the War Office)
Action: 2, Influence, 3, Insight 3

Traits
Speaks BBC English, the Voice of lost culture (+)
Feigned limp appears a sign of weakness (+)
No compunctions about killing people(+)
Slick-tongued but cynical (-)
No-one else will look after me (-)
Somewhat Impulsive (+)

Factional agenda:
There are lots of well-connected deep Soviet agents out there. Find them! (9)
Personal agenda:
Find the family fortune - it's not in the bank vault! (5)

Relationships:
Charles St. John Bryan: former Cambridge college room-mate - "I owe him for the tip-off, but I'm worried that he could just be a Soviet mole, all that appreciation of the Russian State Opera..." 2(+)
Tobermory Jones: One of the "little people" 1(-)
MI5: I trust nobody completely, but I distrust my controller the least. 2(+)
Josie: We both know the importance of appearances 1(+)
Mortimer Tod, the Undertaker: We know where we stand with each other: I trust him as long as I can see his hands 2(-)

Experience scene:shortly after Cambridge suffered serious damage from a near miss by a shadow weapon (war fact) Carlyle Burgess was in the study of his tutor, Sir Christopher Miles, senior fellow of Jesus College, who, thinking Carlyle was a potential Soviet sympathiser clearly stated that he could offer Carlyle protection in the current conflict. Furious at the implications of this statement Carlyle attacked the man with his sword cane, only to be physically ejected from the study by the more able opponent, bruised and battered. Both men left Cambridge shortly afterwards without seeing each other. Carlyle was shown to be "Somewhat impulsive" (-) in the scene, but it opened the door to MI5 recruitment.

Arguably, a second war fact is established here - Miles is a Soviet Sympathiser.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Tobermory Jones.
Factory Worker. Perhaps a Soviet sympethiser? Looks exactly like Dick Van Dyke's character from Mary poppins. but with a Stirling sub machine gun. Evidence on Soviet Infiltration that has got him recruited into the SSG.
Faction - Trade Unionist,
Action 4, Influence 3, Insight 1

Traits
Gun play (+)
Keep the Red Flag flying here (Insider Soviet intelligence) (+)
Loveable rogue with a place in the heart of the people (+)
A cheerful optimist who is often surprised (+)
Unlucky in love (ladies who have telekinesis) (-)
Gullible and eminently hoodwinkable (-)

Factional Agenda - Root out the Red Menace who are unleashing the monsters in our midst. (5)
Personal Agenda - Help the orphans get shelter and protection. (9)

Relationships:
Mary Scroggins - London borough Child Protection League 3(+)
Trade Union - harvesters of doom purvaeyors of despair keepers of secrets. The red devils flow like ants fro their myriad chambers in the dark factory valleys of London 1(-)
Mrs Bloomer - I never got my pants back 1(-)
Jonathan Fly - ratcatcher collector of children. Glue factory. 2(-)
Burgess - He's a toff, but anyone who wears a handkerchief like that is all right! (tugs forelock) 1(+)

Experience Scene: Tobermory returned to the Jelly baby factory after the shadow bombs fell, seeking three of the lost kids he knew had last been seen in the area. As he entered the factory, even though it was broad daylight, the site remained as if it was the cold depths of night. Groping his way around, he soon found the kids who were too scared to move. He tried to draw them out of the darkness, which pulsated, hungrily. [Two of the other characters took dice off the antagonist at this point because Tobermory was being a hero!] When the kids couldn't be persuaded, he somehow managed to grab them all and pull them from the factory just before the shadows pulsed one final time, and disappeared, leaving nothing loose behind. As a result, he has a reputation with the locals that he's a bit dodgy, but his heart is in the right place.

War Fact - The Soviets used twisted shadow bomb technology on industrial sites in London. It was hungry.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

James O'Brien
Former Royal Marine now with SSG. Squat, red haired, gruff, the proverbial "brick shithouse". Demolitions expert who saw a little too much during the war. This has left him slightly cold and detached. He hates sleeping without some form of light on and a weapon on hand.
Faction - Navy
Action 4, Influence 2, Insight 2

Traits
Hard as nails +
Hatred of all "horrors" -
Knows how to take orders and execute them +
Distrusting of those in authority -
Need it blowing up, O'Brien's yer man +
Overwhelming odds don't cause fear (+)

Factional Agenda:
Weaken the Army's hold on the city. Blow as much of their stuff up as possible but make it look like it was terrorists. (3)

Personal Agenda:
Find out who's behind the black market in London and if the "stories" are true. (9)

Relationships:
Burgess -2 An authority figure
Black Market Thugs -2 Do they realise who they are working for?
Staff Sgt Henry Williams +3 Never one to leave a man behind
Lilly St. John +1 A welcoming smile on a cold night

Experience Scene: Tasked with destroying a Soviet forward position by his Navy commanders, O'Brien's unit find that the Soviet forces were much better dug in and in greater numbers than they had been told. Does the explosion go to plan and do the unit get out alive? Goes to plan, wins by 2 successes.

War Fact: Navy Intelligence is an oxymoron, those in charge knew less than they claimed.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Josephine (Josie) Miller
Former assistant to one of the Professor's scientific teams at BERB. Often has bad dreams about what went on at Porton Down. Smarter than she was given credit for in her BERB role, she has now distanced herself from the team but has useful inside knowledge from when she was there. Slight stature, as smartly dressed as can be under the circumstances. Was away from Porton Down during Yellow Sun - assisting a small team who were carrying out experimental chemical explosive tests on the Devon moors.

Faction - BERB
Action 2, Influence 3, Insight 3

Traits
Tentative contacts from Porton Down days (+)
Charming/sweet talking (+L)
Insider science knowledge (+)
Not trusted by people when they find out where I used to work (-)
Bad dreams (-)
Truth seeker (+)

Faction agenda: Seek information on what the Porton Down team survivors are working on. (5)

Relationships:
My father - "I heard from him shortly after I moved to London. I made sure he moved to a vigilant neighbourhood area. I don't see him as often as I'd like, but at least I know he's safe for now." 1 (+)
Dr Christchurch - "I'm worried that working at Porton Down may have contaminated me in some way, but I don't know how to ask the doctor." 1 (+)
SSG - "They need a scientist like me." 2 (+)
BERB - "They're going to notice if I sniff around too much; I've got to be careful who I talk to, and where." 1 (-)
Carlyle Burgess - "Appearance counts. People respect you more if you appear charming and presentable." 2 (+)
The billboard man - "He knows where I worked and thinks I'm a gross sinner. I hope he doesn't turn violent." 2 (-)

Experience scene: After she returned to London, Josie made contact with a member of BERB who had also survived, who she met a couple of blocks from Down Street. She wasn't certain if someone was following them, but wanted to try and find out more about what was still going on in BERB, so started sweet talking them. [Influence conflict]. She soon found out that they weren't happy about what BERB was trying to do now, and developed an ongoing contact.

War Fact: There are people inside BERB who do not agree with the direction that it took after Porton Down was destroyed.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

As one of the players I have to say that character generation via Skype was challenging but rewarding. I'm really looking forward to the actual play sessions.

When I'm a lot less tired I want to flesh out James a bit more.

- Neil.

That's a nice selection of characters there. The facts established during the experience scenes all sound really cool and I like the way that stuff (like shadow bombs) has been created through this.

Really looking forward t hearing how this all pans out in play.

Cheers
Malc

Contested Ground Studios

We played our first proper session tonight, aided by the 1960 map of London which had arrived today in the post thanks to Alibris...

Week 1

The game started on a cold wet afternoon in November, with the team enroute to the old Carriage Cleaning Sheds south of Victoria Station to collect an urgent requisition in a motor pool Bedford Truck from the government stores there. They skirted the Green Park and Hyde Park refuge camps, and pulled into the railway areas through the side gate by the Victoria BOAC terminal, which both Tobermory Jones and James O'Brien knew about. They had to divert some kids away who were scavenging for fuel to take back to the camps in the Chelsea Hospital. Arriving at the shed, Josie entered by the pedestrian door to open the vehicle entrance, and was faced by a very jumpy and lonely guard (Pvt John Anderson, Sometimes I get a bit Panicky (-) ) who challenged her. The first conflict of the game happened her with Josie sweet talking him into co-operation and looking at the papers to see they had a legitimate reason to be there rather than shooting her. On unloading, they discovered that some of the electric supplies they had to collect had already been requisitioned, and had been taken away by an M Todd. Burgess thought that this sounded like a dodgy undertaker who he knew, who was exploiting public health payments from the Ministry of Food.

It was late afternoon when they got back to Down Street, and they found that their boss, Major Hugh Wilson had left them a note telling them they were late and to meet at the Ritz. Josie was barged by one of the BERB people on the Down Street stairwell, and she realised after the event that she knew him from Porton, one Harry Ackroyd. Burgess was pretty shocked at the treatment. They took the truck to the Ritz, and after O'Brien and Jones were changed into ill-fitting but appropriate jackets and ties by the concierge, they entered the bar. The Ritz was a shock to most of the team as it was like the war had never happened. Good food, drink and a great jazz show by Humphrey Lyttleton accompanied their brief meeting with Major Wilson, who ordered them to deliver the parts to HMS Dreadnought (moored at Charing Cross Pier) and then to follow up the potential pilfering of the stores by Todd the next day. As the team rose to leave, the waiter asked Burgess to come over to see another gentleman. Short, well dressed and probably as wide as he was tall, he was sitting back to the wall with a pipe. It was, of course, Richard Powell, Burgess' MI5 contact who told him to keep an eye on the 'BERB Johnnies' as they were 'up to something'. There was a short discussion of the merits of moles vs weasels vs rats, and the shame that there were so many these days, and Burgess then rejoined the group.

Relieved, O'Brien and Jones were out of their jackets and they drove down the razor wire protected Navy Compound by the Thames. O'Brien did the talking with the Marines on guard, and the team entered the compound and saw HMS Dreadnought tied up as they were unloaded. They then headed to the pub and had a drink, agreeing to start at the Carriage Cleaning Sheds the next morning to track down any clues as to who had pilfered their supplies. Tobermory Jones wanted to verify the story Burgess told about Mortimer Todd, so he went to visit Mrs Bloomer (I have the confidence of everyone who's anyone (-) ) with her favourite tipple. Being drunk, and also a bit a a cheeky chap he charmed his way back into her confidence, narrowly missing his negative traits adding unexpected consequences. He found out that Mortimer Todd did, in fact, have a haulage firm which had been doing rather well and was built on Army trucks.

Next morning, the team took a Land Rover and headed back to the Shed, where they discovered that M Todd was the haulier, and it was signed for by a J Swales. The requistion was authorised by a Squadron Leader Lazenby Harris, who was in a similar position to Major Wilson, but suffering from the INDIGO-DIAMOND effect in the way he was treated in the SSG.

They decided to leave Harris for later, and headed west along the Embankment towards Brompton Cemetery and Mortimer Todd's Offices...

The game engine worked beautifully

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

We've been having a problem with one of the player's connections on Skype, which was strange because on an individual basis his connection was fine. Anyway, he was the last contact alphabetically in the conference.

We found a solution which seemed to work; I had been hosting the conference with my circa 2003 20" iMac with PPC G4 1.25 GHz processor, and we changed to another player, running the same version of Skype, on a new MacBook with a significantly faster Intel processor, which immediately solved the issue on clarity!

So host the conference on the fastest machine you can!

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Nice! (in the style of Louis Balfour).

I really do like all the little details of London that were brought in to this game, especially the scene with all the high-ranking types in the Ritz, living high on the hog and listening to Humphrey Lyttleton. Lots of really good colour and detail in there.

Hopefully Neil and others might drop by and give their thoughts on the game as well?

Cheers
Malc

Contested Ground Studios

So play session 1 is under our belts. I was perhaps a little distant last night as two weeks of being the only tech person in the office was starting to take it's toll. I'm quite surprised the other players didn't hear me yawn every few minutes.

Dom did a fantastic job of adding colour and atmosphere. The last minute arrival of his map of London did a lot to aid that. I was able to close my eyes and see the routes he was describing, but then I was born and brought up in London.

The game ran smoothly and was great fun, even if we are just starting to get a feel for the setting and it's challenges.

More when I'm not snoring all the time.

Neil.
--
Games Co-ordinator
Dragonmeet 2008

"There is no place for Messiah here - it`s only hobby" - Deckard @ The Burning Wheel Forums

I had to get the Humph in there. It was a shame Skype didn't play the music I put on in iTunes.

I guess the thing that I think is important in a game like this is the details and the characters. You can hang everything around that.

If the Hot War book has one weakness, it's the lack of a map. I just don't have London in my head well enough to visualise it easily as a GM. As a game, it's more akin to Cthulhu than D&D in that the little details matter for the suspension of disbelief. Which is why the map helped and why I'll send it to Malc when the game finishes ;-)

Thank goodness for Alibris.co.uk, where a search for 'London Map' published <1965 paid off!

;-)

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

I am playing Tobermory Jones, who is basically Dick Van Dyke with a sterling sub machine gun. Lots of disconcertingly optimistic 'Cor Blimeys' and, well, at least my dancing can't be witnessed over the audio...

Very much enjoying the game. Everything from the atmosphere that Dom is swirling up right through to the neat dice rolling!

Skype is also interesting - looks to work well enough to me as a medium. If it weren't for it the five of us would not be playing.

Cheers

First Age
http://www.worpdlaygames.co.uk

I'm playing Burgess, or Terry Thomas with revolver and sword-cane.

I've not RPGed over Skype before, although I've used it for game development sessions, and aside from some sound issues (which it sounds like have they have their origins in my mike, thanks for telling me guys!) it seems a good medium, especially when backed up by a text interface. Possibly the biggest difficulty is not knowing some of the other players especially well, leaving me to do a bit of educated guesswork every so often over whose voice is which! A webcam might be in order although I'm worried about how much bandwidth it might eat.

Games wise I really like the setting - for me if something gets my imagination going then it's a winner, and that's exactly what this does. I'd echo the value of a map though, especially if non-Brits are being targeted for play, and even if not many folks don't know London.

Another touch I really appreciate is the feeling, sorry, the reality, of a shared creative process in the presentation of images and the need to define at least some of the relationships with other players during the pre-play session.

I just hope (like the others it would seem) to be less tired next session!

More, I'm sure, to follow.

QED
The (elusive) Dr Moose

http://www.gwenthia.org
One million ideas... and all of them incomplete!

I landed another map for Hot War tonight via Alibris - the half inch OS map of Greater London in 1962. This is great because it goes quite far out from London into the home counties, which is pretty educational for us Northerners.

It's all so close together down South; or rather, it was before the Apocalypse in Nov 1962! I can feel a trip to Wimbledon Common coming tomorrow night for Burgess and team.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Week 2 -

The team drove down to the cemetery, and parked up the Land Rover, walking on foot towards the Mortuary Chapel and the parts of that Mortimer Todd had requisitioned. As they drew close, they saw a number of people hanging around the outside in smart suits, with obvious bulges for guns. The only member of the SSG team with an obvious weapon was Tobermory Jones, who was discovering that it was pretty difficult to hide a Stirling Submachine Gun. Burgess recognised the leader of the group as Billy Todd, Mortimer's younger, less subtle, and less bright, brother. With his clear upper class accent, Burgess made it plain that he would brook no dissent, and insisted on seeing Mortimer. Billy made a show of pretending that he wasn't around, but went and checked, coming back to say that everyone but the guy with the gun could come and see his brother. Tobermory was left upstairs as the rest of the group descended into the bowels of the mortuary chapel to the offices that Todd had established. Todd and Burgess' mutual loathing was obvious, and the initial pleasantries rapidly deteriorated into a set of sharp exchanges as each tried to browbeat the other. [A conflict on Influence initiated here to find as much out about what Todd had been shipping. Josie chipped in to support Burgess with her Truth Seeker trait, aided by the details of the transactions they had found out earlier which gave an extra 2 dice as a tool. The players won, and asked for Todd to blurt out something important as well as answer the questions.]

Intimidated by the potential risk to his government contracts, and the quiet man (O'Brien) standing behind Burgess and Miller, Todd let it slip that someone called Edward Robinson was involved with the work that he had been doing moving stuff. Josie recognised this as someone senior in BERB. Todd denied knowing where the stuff went, but said John Swales, a driver he used would know. He said where he could be found, just south of the river and downstream of Battersea Power Station. He also let Josie review the documents for transit and take the originals on a promise that she would return them if he needed them. One of these referenced a Morganhammer Drive, but the rest seemed to be electrical kit and on genuine requisition dockets. Todd denied any wrong doing.

The team left, picking up Tobermory who was trying to psyche out the men upstairs. As they left, they noticed that the catacomb entrances showed signs of use, guessing that they were probably stores for Todd's operations. They chased off the kids who were trying to steal the Land Rover's tyres, and headed south across the Chelsea Bridge, past Battersea Power Station (now running a few hours a day at most and guarded by army reserves) and along the southern bank of the Thames until they reached the location where Swales was meant to be. As they pulled up, O'Brien decided to stay with the car, watching the increased activity on the river. Most of the houses here were bombed out, but the team found a group of men warming themselves by a brazier. As the team arrived, one of the men was pointing to the other, west along the river towards the power station and saying ' and it was shooting up into the sky'. [This was Elaine's image from the pre-game session.] Using cigarettes as a bribe, the team rapidly established that Swales was talking, that he was describing some weird lightning that shot up from Battersea Power Station into the sky a few nights before during a storm, leaving a purple after-image. He assumed that it was something to do with the weapons the Russians had used. After some more cigarettes from Burgess, he happily talked about the work that he'd done for Todd. Apparently he'd dropped off some electrical supplies at the Power Station, some more up near the hospitals by Westminster bridge in some lockups near a railway, and finally one delivery to Goodge Street Station which had been collected and taken down below by a senior looking RAF officer and his men, going by the name of Michael Gordon. The last one rang alarm bells as Goodge Street had been closed for so long. Cultivating the opportunity to use Swales as a contact, they found that he lived in one of the less damaged houses here and was willing to work.

The team headed back to Down Street. As they came to the barricade, they witnessed the army executing a suspected Soviet NCO who was found in the Regents Park refugee camp and had obviously forged papers with Americanised spellings. It was a big change from the London they knew and loved. At the station, Josie pulled out her old BERB pass, and took Tobermory downstairs to the deeper part of the station to pay a visit to Harry Ackroyd to try and establish if he knew what the connection to Edward Robinson was. Crossing the boot barrier into the clean area, with Tobermory disguised as an electrician (using a tool bag to hide his SMG), Josie Miller went and found Ackroyd's office, dimly let except for the desk light which he was peddling. The door closed, they proceeded to intimidate him, with Tobermory adding to the threat by pulling out his SMG just as Ackroyd was being asked how he survived. [Conflict, lead by Josie to get him to sing. She invokes her hidden agenda about finding out what BERB are up to, gaining 3 more dice. The team wins, and Ackroyd gains a temporary trait of 'Sings Like a Canary'.] Going pale, panicking and soiling himself, Harry admits that BERB are planning something to 'put them back were they should be', and mentions that a lot of RAF top brass have been seen here, visiting The Professor and others. He also tells Josie that Robinson isn't based her in Down Street at the moment, but is at a BERB safe house out in Wimbledon, near the Tennis Courts. Apparently, he's working on a secret project. Satisfied, Josie and Tobermory leave, reminding Ackroyd to tell no one of their visit, and not to ever push Josie Miller on the stairs again.

Reunited, the team decided to head to Wimbledon even though it was late in the day...

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

No game next week, although we are talking about a FTF session at Continuum. We'll all bring laptops and our Skype headsets (joke). It's good fun!

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

More good stuff there. It's interesting that the the vision of London that you guys are creating is still quite 'civilised' in certain ways. Is this a conscious decision, or simply something that has come about as the game has progressed?

Also, I'd be very interested to hear how the interactions over Skype have been going. Obviously, a big part of a face-to-face game is nuance, body language and the casual remarks and joshing that happen around the table. How does this translate to a play-by-VOIP environment? Has it caused any changes in the behaviour of the particpants when it comes to the game?

Cheers
Malc

Contested Ground Studios

On my part, I've probably got a slightly more intact vision of London than the game hints at. I see it as a shattered, deserted place compared to how it used to be, but with a core that is still quite intact. The Barricades represent the only secure zone, but areas close by are dangerous, empty but filled with refugees from the Greater London who survived. Of course, there's going to be a big die back once the coal reserves run out and disease takes hold, but not just yet.

However, I do have a somewhat nastier picture in the suburbs like - say - Wimbledon, which may not be as nice as their intactness would suggest. I liked the Day of the Triffids style vibe of a city somewhat intact, but a lot emptier and more brutal (which I started alluding to in the last session with the Russian soldier being shot and thrown in the river).

In a lot of ways, MegaTraveller's Hard Times has influenced this. They're not over the abyss yet, oh no!

However, it's a co-creative approach so the rest of the game may want to chip in.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Skype has been better than I imagined, especially now Dr Moose has his mike sorted out. The key things are avoiding two people talking at once, and also having a chat window open at the same time.

I was sending pictures/links via chat as players reached sites like the cemetery, and it seemed to work. Fortunately, I know the players so it's not entirely cold from a GMing sense. I do think you loose some of the opportunity to push things as it is a lot more difficult to read player's state of mind. However, it's been good fun.

Again, the rest of the gang may chip in.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

I am really enjoying the game, but need to rein in my inner child a bit. I seem to be a bit frivolous during the sessions and wonder if the remote nature of Skype brings out the naughty in me? I'm going to be more focussed during the next session, which might be at Continuum.

Hot War is a fantastic game. The game supports everything you want to do and is highly evocative. Dom is guiding us through it and serving up some excellent situations.

Skype is working well. Once you have five on the conference call there can be some overlapping chat which is confusing, but once all are used to the interface polite conventions of conversation circumnavigate the technological limitations. When the moment arises I am encouraged to try a game over Skype myself.

First Age
http://www.rpgfurnace.com

I've not RPGed over Skype before, although I've used it for game development sessions, and aside from some sound issues (which it sounds like have they have their origins in my mike, thanks for telling me guys!) it seems a good medium, especially when backed up by a text interface.

We (finally, after a 3 month hiatus) finished the game last night (I'll post the AP later) but it definitely showed that Skype is a viable medium to play with provided you have the chat/text open as well and the conference is hosted on the fastest machine and fast broadband connection posssible.

Worked well.

---
Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

The final session was an absolute blast, quite literally. I won't spoil Dom's AP post but lets just say, James "Big Bang" O'Brien lived up to his name :)

A very big "Thank You" to everyone involved and hopefully we have another go sometime in 2009.

- Neil.

Games Co-ordinator
Dragonmeet 2008

"There is no place for Messiah here - it`s only hobby" - Deckard @ The Burning Wheel Forums

We finally got to play again a few weeks ago for the first time since Continuum. It was a close run thing, as I had a lot of issues at work which meant that I got home late, and my preparation was less than I really wanted. Neil couldn't make it, so we ran his character James as a co-owned character between me as GM and the players.

The game resumed with the team heading south of the River in their Land Rover, in the direction of Wimbledon. The trip there was pretty uneventful, even though it was heading towards late afternoon. The centre of Wandsworth was a mess, and the team were relieved to reach Wimbledon. They passed the Lawn Tennis Association's Courts as the sun was starting to sink low, looking on at the despair of an abandoned refuge camp. Finally, they turned west along Copse Hill (graffiti'd to the obvious) and arrived outside the suburban address they had been given as being the location of the BERB safe-house where Robinson was holed up.

The house was in good condition, protected by a well established tall hedge with razor wire on the top. Alongside, to the right, was a track going towards the golf course at the back. The team immediately picked up on the fact that this was pretty clear, despite the general overgrown look of other parts of the street. They had a quick discussion (with Josie increasingly taking the lead) and drove around the back, parked around to the left.

As they did, they noticed some figures in the distance on the Common and Golf Course to the north, silhouetted against the fading light. Strangely, they looked as if they were walking dogs, and were almost a picture of normality except they were all wearing weird sloped and pointed hats, and the high grass and shrubs which had sprung up since the war broke out somewhat concealed them.

The team decided that discretion was the better part of valour, and to focus on the job in hand. The back of the house had the same high hedge with razor-wire on top, but set within in was a black wrought iron gate, with a well maintained padlock. Needless to say, this failed quickly to the application of brute force, and the team entered into a scarily well kept garden. It was almost as if the last 12 months hadn’t had any impact on the place. They forced the back door into the laundry/utility area, and moved on into the kitchen. Two things immediately became apparent; the house had power, and it was well stocked with good food and drink, albeit preserved rather than fresh in some cases. Tobermory immediately liberated some ‘vital supplies’, and the team started to explore the house.

The dining room showed signs of having been used recently (the meal had not been cleaned up). The front parlour was covered with dustsheets and obviously not used. And then they noticed the stairs going down to the cellar under the staircase to the first floor. They also realised there was a hum from downbelow. “Must be the generator”, was the comment. So, have established from tracks in the dust on the stairs that people had been down here recently, they headed down, somewhat nervously.

Two things became apparent; although the room was not lit, there was a disturbing set of glowing orange lights in linear arrays in the gloom, and the place was warm and seemed well ventilated. Finding a light switch, Josie revealed the room to contain what seemed to be a near start of the art computer set, with tape and piles of punched cards around. The light also revealed that the cellar stairs continued downwards and had thick, armoured, power cables coming up into the computer system.

The lower cellar was a storage area with a surprising find. There was what looked (initially) like a water tank in the middle of the room, about 2 yards in diameter, clad in polystyrene. As the team examined it, they realised that the ‘water tank’ had an atomic trefoil warning symbol on it. Examining it further showed that a polystrene jacket surrounded a concrete cylinder with a steel drum inset into it around a yard diameter. Writing on a plate on the top stated ‘Mark IIa Portable Atomic Pile – Licence holder: BERB’. The team were lost for words. They went back upstairs to discuss the finds, heading to the first floor.

One of the main bedrooms was obviously being used by a man for its intended purpose. The other was a veritable treasure trove. The walls were covered in plans, PERT charts and calculations. There was a drawing board with maps and calculations. Spending some time examining the room, the team shared experiences which started to put things together;

• The map showed a location in Wiltshire near Porton Down.
• There was a second map of London with the Battersea Power Station marked on.
• Both locations had detailed latitude and longitude recorded.
• The Wiltshire Map was an Air Ministry one, with Indigo Diamond Eyes Only stamped across it. There was a navigation route for an aircraft on it.
• The PERT chart indicated that something was due to happen that night at Battersea.
• There were references to the Morganhammer Drive and some complex engineering designs which suggested some kind of twisted technology with a temporal and spatial purpose. References were made to a portal.
• There were many complex calculations for time and distance which seemed to be linking Battersea to the Wiltshire location, but with time and spatial references a year apart.

From this, the team immediately concluded that BERB was trying to get a team to retrieve something – or someone – from Porton Down a year ago before it was H-Bombed. Burgess grabbed what appeared to be the key documents and maps to take back to HQ and as he did so the team heard a truck of some-sort pull up outside.

Keeping a low profile, they did their best to observe from the windows. The truck appeared to drive alongside the building to the gate to the golf course. There was silence for a moment, and then a whistle and some ululating cries coming from the golf course. Some of the figures, which had been on the common, met with some uniformed people from the truck (in greatcoats and hats) who appeared to direct them to unload something. Soon after, the cries were heard again, and then the truck departed.

Shortly after, Tobermory slipped out to see if the coast was clear, and saw someone in a fur coat had the bonnet of their Land Rover open, looking like they were trying to steal parts. Waving his Sterling SMG, he challenged the person, only to realise when they turned around that the person was some kind of horror. Perhaps just short of 6 foot tall, stocky and wide, with a white fur/hair covering, the creature opened a yellowed pointed snout to reveal vicious fangs. Beady eyes looked out from the snout, and what looked like nothing so-much as a park keeper’s peaked hat seemed to grow out from the head, meshing with the matted fur. The abomination had what looked like the remains of a Royal Parks Uniform jacket, and a long, sharp, litter stick. [Hello, Wombie!].

Tobermory decided to escape rather than fight, and the creature wanted to rend him limb from limb. [The conflict was a bit unsatisfactory as the 15D vs 11D didn’t get a clear win for either, as it was, Tobermory took a -1D temporary descriptor in damage]. He narrowly escaped backwards, being hurt on his arm, and then the rest of the team piled in to back him up. They definitely hurt the creature, which dived back into the undergrowth. [The second conflict hurt the creature, reducing the action score and reducing the later threat.]

As they gathered their wits, another truck arrived; the team fled to the kitchen, and barricaded the door with furniture. And then they were surprised to hear a knock on the door, followed by an upper clash English voice with a slight eastern European hint call-out; “Robinson, are you alright? Did the creatures get upset?”.

Deciding the time had come to bluff, the team opened the door to be faced by a senior RAF officer in his greatcoat. “Hello,” he said, “I’m Group Captain Michael Gordon. And you are?”…

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And we wrapped at that point. The game suffered from the long break, and also the fact that the team had decided to take a direct route to the main BERB site rather than check out the other areas that were hinted at. This made the evening somewhat exposition heavy. But Skype was working well, and Hot War has a nice, flexible system.

Oh, and the Group Captain is not all he seems, but you can find out later…

The Wombies are based on a blend of the Wombles, Park Keepers and Bayonet Troops. They have a bunker in the common, and are controlled by the agent with twisted technology who manufactured them.

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Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/

Nice work as always, Dom and great to see the game getting back on track.

Are you finding that playing via Skype makes it easier or harder to arrange sessions than you would with a face to face game? Or is it just about the same? And as the game has been progressing and you've been doing exposition on certain parts, how do you feel that has gone across when you can't see the reactions and moods of the players round the table? Is exposition more of a drain in this kind of play?

Cheers
Malc

Contested Ground Studios

On reflection, I think that playing by Skype is easier to arrange sessions, as this game wouldn't be happening otherwise if it was face to face. The complication is real life, as ever. Several of us have jobs that involve travel and other commitments, and family always adds to the mix. We did well for the first run of games, it just took too long to get started again.

With regards to Exposition - the main thing I miss as a GM is the ability to know if the players are either enjoying or being bored by it. I'm fortunate that I've played with some of the gang here before, or otherwise I would have been flying completely blind. VOIP did make it harder, but not so much that the game suffered. I hadn't quite realised how much I relied on this when I run.

One bit of GM-fu I recommend is getting things like pictures, maps, background identified on the web and your local drive early, then using the IM side of Skype to feed them in as appropriate while you're talking through stuff.

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Dom Mooney
http://www.bits.org.uk/
http://www.powerprojection.net/