On 9/8/22 17:27, kaladorn at gmail.com (via tml list) wrote:
> Are you looking to run classic missions? The Devil's Brigade, Where
> Eagles Dare, Guns of Navarone, etc? Are you wanting to have it feel
> more like a Aussie/Brit/Canadian sort of WWII movie?
>
> Or are you imagining Sandbaggers, Bridge of Spies, or sort of more
> diplomacy, secret deals, and not a huge amount of raids and
> shootemups? More like actual spy work?
>
> Some interesting spy mission:
>
> a) Help friendlies identify an enemy control somewhere in neutralish
> territory - sort of like operating in Casablanca while trying to get
> your man or woman... some foes, some friends for a price, some with
> orthogonal goals to muddy the situation.
>
> b) Rescue scientist from secret lab after figuring out how to get
> there and get out
>
> c) Work to screw up a planetary def sat constellation to allow a
> strike or invasion by infiltrating and then trying to figure out how
> to muck up the command and control of the sats (virus, jamming,
> retargeting, etc)
>
> d) Trying to protect a key courier they are supposed to meet, but
> don't, finding them dead but very momentarily and the situation starts
> with a chase to try to catch up with the thief.... who might not get
> caught, but might have left enough to begin chasing down once they
> fail at the pursuit (or they get the assassin, but he's already put
> the courier's package onto a train or shuttle or with another agent
> they need to work to identify)
>
> e) Someone gets arrested to get into a prison camp or prison to try to
> find a source of info that is incarcerated and convince them to
> divulge and either organize an escape for the capturees or capturees
> plus the source which will mean a jail break coordinated from inside
> and outside
>
> f) Doing some spacey stuff and doing 'quietly hiding in the outer
> system or behind a moon to watch some key route or installation' and
> then introduce some patrols and maybe a strange message beamed in
> their direction which suggests someone knows they are there, but
> doesn't appear to be immediately a threat... but why are they trying
> to contact you? Maybe then you have to sneak closer and get to meet
> the strange caller. And maybe it ends up with the group burning out
> with lasers and missiles chasing them.
>
> g) Trying to stop a group of bad actors that are supposedly setup to
> take out an orbital hab with a nasty bomb that will take a big chunk
> out of the spin rings.... they need to run all their contacts, all the
> people they can bribe, and maybe have to do some old fashioned
> percussive interrogation... time is running and the bad guys, once
> they are alerted, will be dangerous and maybe will start to accelerate
> the timetable
>
> There's some ideas for spy/striker types.
>
> TomB
> -
  TomB,

Thanks for reminding me I need to figure out _what_ I want to run, in
addition to _where_ I want to run it.

Leaning more towards the actual low-level spy gubbins (probably going to
borrow liberally from Spycatcher, the Tweed & Co novels, etc).

In the early 2130s, the Vilani provincial (and central) government is
still fairly strong - Danny's Wild Ride hasn't happened yet, nor has a
certain upstart bunch of barbarians shown their ability to resist the
AZS' massed might.

Addressing your suggestions in order (this might knock something loose,
or at least cause discussion):
a) I'm not sure if there would be any _neutral_ territor, at least
betwixt the Ziru Sirka and Terran Confederation - thus the questions
about exactly _where_ this lot will get into trouble.  As the Terrans
haven't yet shown they can really stand up to the Ziru Sirka, _no one_
in the Rim Province aristocracy really takes them seriously (Kadur
Erasharshi being the glaring exception).

b) Secret Lab.  Ziru Sirka - where you can get done for "unlicensed
innovation".  The failing may be mine, but I'm having trouble matching
those two up.  Magaar would be a bit too far from Erasharshi's power
base for the PCs to trip over one of his schemes.  Maybe a local
khagarii group?

c) BIt of naval sabotage leading to bolide impact?

d) Thanks for the reminder they're going to need some method of
_exflitrating_ themselves and their observations so Derryn Dodgie et al
can _make use_ of it.

e) Yes, this seems fairly likely - Shenanigans are Expected to Ensue,
after all.

f)  Would deep-system skulking (beyond star's 1000D) work better, story
wise, in a system with a naval base?

g) The last lot bullshitted their way onto an orbital factory during
wartime - so this is quite doable.  Given the AZS tendency to see a red
door and want to nuke it flat, you would expect at least one nuclear
device to initiate.  Maybe a multipart chemical agent release?  (iirc,
ZS bioweapon capabilties aren't even up to the 1980s Soviet Union).

In whatever subsector of Magaar (iirc, Sharurshid turf, just like
Kushuggi) this mob end up happening to, I would like at least a rough
handle on the local aristocracy themselves, their factions, rivalries, etc.

Thanks heaps for your help so far.

Alex