MILLION CREDIT COMM JOB

[shaidar]

DJ

DJ decides to buy HEAP ammo from Bill. He also asks about holsters for the revolver and his snub pistol, particularly the underarm type.

[atpollard]

DJ

DJ decides to buy HEAP ammo from Bill. He also asks about holsters for the revolver and his snub pistol, particularly the underarm type.

Revolver holsters they have. Snub Auto Holsters they can make in a couple days, but don't have any in stock (because they don't sell automatic pistols).
The Clothier does custom Leather work and can make whatever you want.

[shaidar]

DJ will purchase a belt and underarm holster for the revolver and order an underarm holster for the snub pistol. He's happy to have it made in the local style.

I'm assuming he's already got a belt holster for the snub, otherwise I'll order one of those too.

[atpollard]

12:30 AM Arctic Hamlet X-2 [11:30 PM local time]

Herbie left the plane ready for adventure with his supplies from Brulantfort already on …

• Adventure Backpack (TL 11): [Cr 3000; 12 kg] includes Multi-Spectrum Binoculars, Grapnel Gun, Inertial Locator, Piton Gun, and Atmospheric Water Distillation System.
• General Purpose Vacc Suit (TL 9): [8 kg; Cr 7000; -3 DEX] A bulky suit, gloves, boot, and helmet that protects against temperatures from +1000 C to -1000 C with the equivalent of CLOTH armor.
• 24-hour Portable Life Support System (TL 9): [14.5 kg; Cr 5000] A backpack-like device that provides (recycled) oxygen and battery power to the Vacc Suit for the listed duration.
• 7mm Semi-Auto Rifle [Cr 200, 4.0 kg, 3D6] with 8 magazines [160 rounds, Cr 160, 4 kg] and bayonet [Cr 10, 0.25 kg]
• Field Medikit [TL 10] [Cr 5000; 10 kg] A backpack sized Field Medikit like those found in an Ambulance good for 100 [Medic-1] rolls.

Herbie checked out the Clothing Store and discovered THREE different classes of Cold Weather Clothing available to choose from:

• Natural Cold Weather Clothing [TL 5]: [Cr 200, 9 kg, -2 DEX] One complete set of clothing made of organic, locally available materials (cloth, leather, and fur) designed to protect against the elements, including boots, mittens, two layers of leggings, an outer and inner coat, and head protection. Immersion in water negates the effects of this clothing.
• Standard Cold Weather Clothing [TL 9]: [Cr 300, 4 kg, -1 DEX] One complete set of clothing made of synthetic fabrics (lighter and more flexible) designed to protect against the elements, including boots, mittens, two layers of leggings, an outer and inner coat, and head protection. Immersion in water negates the effects of this clothing.
• Waterproof Cold Weather Clothing [TL 10]: [Cr 800, 2 kg, -0 DEX] One complete set of clothing made of smart fabrics (automatically compensate for most conditions) designed to protect against the elements, including boots, mittens, two layers of leggings, an outer and inner coat, and head protection. It loses none of its effectiveness if wet.

Speaking with the locals at the shop, Herbie learned that the Arctic Cold could still cause injury even with Cold Weather Clothing … it just increased the length of time Herbie could remain exposed before returning to shelter to warm up. Wearing Natural Cold Weather Clothing [TL 5] would allow up to 5 hours of activity before suffering any harm (15 hours before suffering a “light wound” from Cold Damage); wearing Standard Cold Weather Clothing [TL 9] would allow up to 9 hours of activity before suffering any harm (27 hours before suffering a “light wound” from Cold Damage); wearing Waterproof Cold Weather Clothing [TL 10] would allow up to 10 hours of activity before suffering any harm (30 hours before suffering a “light wound” from Cold Damage). You were warned about the dangers of getting wet, which would inflict 1 “light wound” per hour as the Natural Cold Weather Clothing and Standard Cold Weather Clothing lost most of their insulation properties … assuming you didn’t die in the water itself where damage accumulates in minutes rather than hours.

The headlamp … they throw in for free [Herbie’s excitement is contagious].


Mick invested some time digging into the local economy. He discovered that the community is home to a V.E.T. DEEP CRUST mine (100% robotic) that extracts tantalum and niobium (0.03% concentration) from deep ore veins where it is processed in a surface factory in Arctic Hamlet X-2 and transported to Ville d’Espoir. These rare earth elements are critical to manufacturing superconducting quantum computers making them both valuable and a “vital strategic resource”. The “Community Council” collected a percentage of the value of the minerals extracted, which it used to support the “community” (part of the trade agreement for the mineral rights). Beyond that one “foreign” industry, the majority of the community lived closer to a barter economy or a hunter-gatherer collective.

[Thumper]

Feeling the affinity for big guns with The People, and appreciating their continuing choice to live an austere life in a harsh climate, Mick thinks he likes these people and hopes to return and do more business with them.

He will follow-up with questions on local Arctic creatures. Which pose threats to humans and their methods of hunting. Which are good eating…which taste like crap. Do they believe in any mythological creatures? Trying to get an education on the Northern wildlife

If nobody requests the 12mm composite rifle with folding stock and telescopic site, Mick will ask for it. Did he find a speed loader for his revolver?

He likes his new knife and looks on the quality engravings with admiration. Mick is actually interested if The People make and use any non-lethals. Those are occassionally useful for live safaris.

He’ll take a hundred magnum rounds each for his rifle and revolver. He’ll also ensure plenty of ammo supply for the crews private armory.

He returns to the plane with his new revolver in a shoulder holster that could fit over his BPS or his new TL10 Cold Weather Clothing

[Leitz]

Jim

Jim gives Olivia space to talk, or not, as she chooses. He's seen this before, and will do his best to be a friend. He does monitor the comms, and runs as much of a scan of the local area as he can with what the craft has.

I'm assuming we all got some sort of personal comm gear, to include for Olivia?

[Hvalreki]

12:30 AM Arctic Hamlet X-2 [11:30 PM local time]

Herbie left the plane ready for adventure with his supplies from Brulantfort already on …

• Adventure Backpack (TL 11): [Cr 3000; 12 kg] includes Multi-Spectrum Binoculars, Grapnel Gun, Inertial Locator, Piton Gun, and Atmospheric Water Distillation System.
• General Purpose Vacc Suit (TL 9): [8 kg; Cr 7000; -3 DEX] A bulky suit, gloves, boot, and helmet that protects against temperatures from +1000 C to -1000 C with the equivalent of CLOTH armor.
• 24-hour Portable Life Support System (TL 9): [14.5 kg; Cr 5000] A backpack-like device that provides (recycled) oxygen and battery power to the Vacc Suit for the listed duration.
• 7mm Semi-Auto Rifle [Cr 200, 4.0 kg, 3D6] with 8 magazines [160 rounds, Cr 160, 4 kg] and bayonet [Cr 10, 0.25 kg]
• Field Medikit [TL 10] [Cr 5000; 10 kg] A backpack sized Field Medikit like those found in an Ambulance good for 100 [Medic-1] rolls.

Herbie checked out the Clothing Store and discovered THREE different classes of Cold Weather Clothing available to choose from:

• Natural Cold Weather Clothing [TL 5]: [Cr 200, 9 kg, -2 DEX] One complete set of clothing made of organic, locally available materials (cloth, leather, and fur) designed to protect against the elements, including boots, mittens, two layers of leggings, an outer and inner coat, and head protection. Immersion in water negates the effects of this clothing.
• Standard Cold Weather Clothing [TL 9]: [Cr 300, 4 kg, -1 DEX] One complete set of clothing made of synthetic fabrics (lighter and more flexible) designed to protect against the elements, including boots, mittens, two layers of leggings, an outer and inner coat, and head protection. Immersion in water negates the effects of this clothing.
• Waterproof Cold Weather Clothing [TL 10]: [Cr 800, 2 kg, -0 DEX] One complete set of clothing made of smart fabrics (automatically compensate for most conditions) designed to protect against the elements, including boots, mittens, two layers of leggings, an outer and inner coat, and head protection. It loses none of its effectiveness if wet.

Speaking with the locals at the shop, Herbie learned that the Arctic Cold could still cause injury even with Cold Weather Clothing … it just increased the length of time Herbie could remain exposed before returning to shelter to warm up. Wearing Natural Cold Weather Clothing [TL 5] would allow up to 5 hours of activity before suffering any harm (15 hours before suffering a “light wound” from Cold Damage); wearing Standard Cold Weather Clothing [TL 9] would allow up to 9 hours of activity before suffering any harm (27 hours before suffering a “light wound” from Cold Damage); wearing Waterproof Cold Weather Clothing [TL 10] would allow up to 10 hours of activity before suffering any harm (30 hours before suffering a “light wound” from Cold Damage). You were warned about the dangers of getting wet, which would inflict 1 “light wound” per hour as the Natural Cold Weather Clothing and Standard Cold Weather Clothing lost most of their insulation properties … assuming you didn’t die in the water itself where damage accumulates in minutes rather than hours.

The headlamp … they throw in for free [Herbie’s excitement is contagious].


Mick invested some time digging into the local economy. He discovered that the community is home to a V.E.T. DEEP CRUST mine (100% robotic) that extracts tantalum and niobium (0.03% concentration) from deep ore veins where it is processed in a surface factory in Arctic Hamlet X-2 and transported to Ville d’Espoir. These rare earth elements are critical to manufacturing superconducting quantum computers making them both valuable and a “vital strategic resource”. The “Community Council” collected a percentage of the value of the minerals extracted, which it used to support the “community” (part of the trade agreement for the mineral rights). Beyond that one “foreign” industry, the majority of the community lived closer to a barter economy or a hunter-gatherer collective.

Remembering the time he fell through the ice on the pond the other children assured him was “frozen”, Hebie selected the expensive, but waterproof high tech cold weather gear.

He also looks for a foldable entrenching tool he can wear on his pack like they had in the army. Just in case they need to dig a latrine.

Once purchased, Herbie wears the headlamp as often as possible.

[atpollard]

1:30 AM on the Plane at Arctic Hamlet X-2 [12:30 AM local time]

Everyone is aboard the plane with all your Arctic Equipment. [We will go over the equipment list later since you have one more stop and it may grow.] There were no stars visible in the sky due to the heavy cloud cover and a light snow had begun to fall, the wind whipping it around in every direction rather than falling straight down. The cockpit radar indicated that this storm would be getting worse rather than better so the group was eager to press on for the short hop [by plane, 12 hours by tracked ATV] to ‘Saint Oyland’ before really bad weather set in.

Winds buffeted the plane and the clearly audible howl made some long for the roar of a propeller or turbine to drown out the noise. Thus it came to pass that it was just shy of 2 AM (1 AM local) that the plane in total darkness of night with zero visibility and a pilot feeling the fatigue of an active 20 hour day taking a toll on his DEX, INT and EDU … approached a miserly stretch of road barely adequate as a landing strip and invisible beneath the snow … to make an instrument only landing at a remote Arctic Community a mere 100 km from the Relay Station.

2 AM on the Plane at Saint Oyland [1 AM local time]

There is an old saying “any landing you can walk away from is a good one”. This wasn’t quite THAT bad, but the plane set down hard, bounced, slid sideways as it skied over the top of the snow-covered ice, then broke through the ice to plow to a stop in a 4 meter snow drift. It was late, everyone was exhausted [most having been awake since 8 AM the previous day, and some since 6 AM].

It was 1 AM local time with sunrise at 10 AM. The plane was roomy and warm and it was snowing heavily. Thermal imaging confirmed the village was just ahead … from the radar, just over the rim of a crater and buried into its sloped sides.

Do you enter Saint Oyland now or after sleeping?
What time do you get up? [Let’s switch to LOCAL TIME … it is 1 AM]
(You have a second Tracked ATV reserved at this community.)

Pilot roll = [7]+1-2 = 6 … minimal success.

[Thumper]

Mick quips: “Damn, we’re gonna have to issue you the callsign “Skip” or “Lucky.”

As he peers out the window, he says, “Dang, it’s WOXOF out there…and super windy! Ok, I take it back. Won’t name you either”.

What’s the forecast? Better or worse by morning? It’s late. Don’t know what the village will be like at this hour. If I can offer a suggestion: how about half of us get some sleep while half go into town and get the ATV. Then those who sleep now can do the driving while the others sleep? Nap in shifts. No point in starting an expedition while everyone is fatigued.

If there is agreement, he’ll offer to go into town then try to nap on the road.

[Leitz]

Jim

Jim shutdown the engines and checked what he could of the readouts before unstrapping himself from the pilot's seat. "I'd recommend we don't send anyone out in that without the rest of us being alert and on watch. You're right, though, sleeping in shifts is a good idea. I can go second, I really need time to stretch and unwind."

Neither pleased nor displeased from the landing, Jim knew he did his best. Everyone was too tired for any discussion to not get on someone's nerves.

Jim will go back to the readouts for the forecast, if no one else does. He's been staring at them for too long; right now he can't really do well with it.

[shaidar]

DJ

Having spent time flying in various vehicles, DJ joins Jim in trying to make some sense of what the weather might do in the next few hours.

[Eris]

DJ

Having spent time flying in various vehicles, DJ joins Jim in trying to make some sense of what the weather might do in the next few hours.

OOC: Joe puts in his two credits on the weather...based on whatever our Ref rolled.

"Guys ain't nobody going nowhere in this storm. So if someone is racing us to the station they aren't doing it tonight. I say we get some sleep before moving on the the village." says Joe, "Maybe see if we can raise them on the radio and let them know we're here and hunkering down to ride this out."

"What do you think?"

[Thumper]

I actually disagree. If we can get the ATV back here and load both of them while the weather is extreme, we gain a time advantage over any other competitors who are kept at bay by the storm. I don’t want to start out for the station in this mess….we’d likely fall off the road somewhere. But someone should wander over to that town and get the ATV and whatever info we can at this hour.

I’ll be that guy if I can get one more to go with me and one to keep a radio watch here on the aircraft. I’ve got a Body Pressure Suit, LI Goggles, and a couple Inertial Locators. I’ll plug our current georef coordinates and those of St Oyland. Walk the short distance there and drive the ATV back.

Load them up while it’s bad and we can push out for the station just as soon as this storm begins to lighten up and conditions permit.

[Hvalreki]

1:30 AM on the Plane at Arctic Hamlet X-2 [12:30 AM local time]

Everyone is aboard the plane with all your Arctic Equipment. [We will go over the equipment list later since you have one more stop and it may grow.] There were no stars visible in the sky due to the heavy cloud cover and a light snow had begun to fall, the wind whipping it around in every direction rather than falling straight down. The cockpit radar indicated that this storm would be getting worse rather than better so the group was eager to press on for the short hop [by plane, 12 hours by tracked ATV] to ‘Saint Oyland’ before really bad weather set in.

Winds buffeted the plane and the clearly audible howl made some long for the roar of a propeller or turbine to drown out the noise. Thus it came to pass that it was just shy of 2 AM (1 AM local) that the plane in total darkness of night with zero visibility and a pilot feeling the fatigue of an active 20 hour day taking a toll on his DEX, INT and EDU … approached a miserly stretch of road barely adequate as a landing strip and invisible beneath the snow … to make an instrument only landing at a remote Arctic Community a mere 100 km from the Relay Station.

2 AM on the Plane at Saint Oyland [1 AM local time]

There is an old saying “any landing you can walk away from is a good one”. This wasn’t quite THAT bad, but the plane set down hard, bounced, slid sideways as it skied over the top of the snow-covered ice, then broke through the ice to plow to a stop in a 4 meter snow drift. It was late, everyone was exhausted [most having been awake since 8 AM the previous day, and some since 6 AM].

It was 1 AM local time with sunrise at 10 AM. The plane was roomy and warm and it was snowing heavily. Thermal imaging confirmed the village was just ahead … from the radar, just over the rim of a crater and buried into its sloped sides.

Do you enter Saint Oyland now or after sleeping?
What time do you get up? [Let’s switch to LOCAL TIME … it is 1 AM]
(You have a second Tracked ATV reserved at this community.)

Pilot roll = [7]+1-2 = 6 … minimal success.

Herbie

“I don’t know about running in a blizzard when we don’t know the terrain at all. Sunrise is 9 hours, maybe we set a watch and wait until daybreak to see what happens with the weather? Everyone is knackered which makes for unsafe driving.”

[atpollard]

1:10 AM on the Plane at Saint Oyland [local time]

Herbie is the first to make a weather prediction and he is confident in his forecast … Herbie was the only person that watched the sunset from the airplane window and it was red … so the weather will be better tomorrow! [Everybody knows that.]

Joe was next … it was snowing hard and he was tired … beyond that, nothing else mattered. The snow will stop when it stops and Joe has no clue when that will be.

DJ and Jim poured over the Radar. They were certain that this storm would be getting worse before it got better. The next 6 hours held heavy winds [Moderate Breeze] and snowfall with an outside temperature around -20C and a wind chill reducing that to -40C … cold enough to halve the protective time for “Cold Weather Clothing” [still measured in hours]. They disagreed about the forecast for the next six hours after that with Jim predicting the snow to continue and DJ predicting the snow would stop. Both agreed that the clouds and snow would continue at least lightly for the next 24 hours.

Mick was at a disadvantage for “nowcasting”. He couldn’t see the clouds and sky in the pitch darkness. He had just arrived, so he had no sense of the “flow” of this system. He had no opportunity to observe any animals hunkering down to indicate a long storm or a quick storm. Mick’s forecast would become more accurate after about 6 hours to observe his environment and some light to see by. The best he could do was “feel” in the air that this storm still had a lot more energy and wasn’t going anywhere soon … more wind and snow for the next 6 hours and Mick would know better beyond that in the daylight. Mick relied on his trusty “weather stone” … it was never wrong.




Most of the crew was for hunkering down until dawn. Mick was determined to reach Saint Oyland tonight … well, technically this morning since it was after midnight and pre-dawn. Olivia was agreeable to joining Mick. Unlike everyone else, she needed almost nothing and was accustomed to sleeping whenever the opportunity presented itself … Olivia had slept most of both flights (although she was now wide awake after the landing).

[Any questions, comments, discussion before Mick and Olivia “snowshoe” out in the wind and cold?]

[shaidar]

DJ

"The very least we can agree on is that it's going to be nasty for the next 6 hours and nobody, including any rivals, ain't going to be going far in this. We should hunker down and get some rest. Mick, I think you're taking a big risk trying to get to the village in this, and we won't be making friends by waking them up at 2AM, but you're a grown man and I ain't going to be trying to stop you from leaving."

[Eris]

"If you two insist on going now, at least, keep your radios on and use a rope to tie yourselves together." Joe says dryly, adding under his breath so no one hears, "It'll make it easier to find your bodies...."

[Thumper]

Mick looks to Olivia and says, “Do you agree that with the plane’s coordinates and the town’s coordinates in the Inertial locators, there’s little chance of getting lost…just blown away? The real threat is going over the side of the crater in the dark and low vis. What do we know of terrain around the town? Is there a map that can help us ID coordinates of the road leading from here to there?

I want to start out in 5 hours, 6:10am local time…so as to be in town by 6:30am. Assuming all’s in order, we should be back to load up both ATVs and be ready to set out by 7 or 8am… about the time visibility is expected to get a bit better…and not drive off a cliff. I would hate to waste safe road time solely for not having the logistics in place. This way, I can catch what may be the only sleep available.

Of course, we’ll keep continuous 2-way comms if you will provide someone to keep a comm watch on the plane.

Olivia, can you wake me at 6am? You and I will suit up and push out then regardless of the conditions. Why else did we buy the BPSs if not to operate in rough conditions? If weather conditions improve earlier, wake me please

In the meantime, can someone use the global radio to get hold of Bart. Have him relay a message we’ll pick up the rental ATV at 6:30. Also try to get a good description from him of the terrain leading down the road to town .

[Hvalreki]

In the meantime, can someone use the global radio to get hold of Bart. Have him relay a message we’ll pick up the rental ATV at 6:30. Also try to get a good description from him of the terrain leading down the road to town .[/dialog]

Herbie perks up at this last bit, "Aren't we here to fix the global comms array?"

"Why don't we all knock off until 6 and see how the weather is then. We can all take an hour watch?"

Is any comm traffic working?

[shaidar]

DJ

"So we've been up 12 or more hours, you want us to get maybe 6 hours sleep, drive in difficult conditions and then perform delicate repair work with potentially hostile creatures or people around. When we're you voted slave master Mick?" he sighs and runs his hands through his hair "I'm just saying that if we push too hard we can't spend the money if we are dead, or can't fix the relay."