# (S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread (2 spots left, jump in whenever)



## mudbunny (May 13, 2013)

I picked up Nights Black Agents a couple of months ago, and given that my face to face group has pretty much self destructed due to personal drama, I decided, after having been run through a brief scenario by     [MENTION=2]Piratecat[/MENTION], to attempt to run a campaign via play by post.

In case you are wondering, here is the box quote for Nights Black Agents:



> The Cold War is over. Bush’s War is winding down.
> 
> You were a shadowy soldier in those fights, trained to move through the secret world: deniable and deadly.
> 
> ...




If you are asking yourself, "Am I signing up for James Bond vs Dracula", you would be right.

From a different thread, there are some people who have already reserved spots:

     [MENTION=2]Piratecat[/MENTION]
     [MENTION=59043]Walking Dad[/MENTION]
     [MENTION=15341]Committed Hero[/MENTION]
     [MENTION=1656]Hypersmurf[/MENTION]

I also had interest from      [MENTION=1231]Kaodi[/MENTION] and      [MENTION=6705529]tunafish[/MENTION] in the thread. They will get right of first refusal for the two spots that are left.

*Characters*
On the Nights Black Agents page over at Pelgrane Press, there is a set of pre-generated PCs. We will be using those with one important caveat. The stats will be kept the same, however, I would like people_ to feel free to_ re-skin the details, backstory, etc should they desire. However, the current crop of PCs have integrated backstories...

*Posting rate*
I will endeavor to post at least once a day, and will try to go faster if you guys manage it. Weekends, OTOH, are pretty busy and computer time is limited most of the time, especially with the summer coming up.

*Game thread*
The game thread will be up in a couple of days. Watch this thread for links.

*Dice*
When   [MENTION=1]Morrus[/MENTION] gets the dice roller up, we will use it. Until then, you can either use something like Invisible Castle or your own dice and report the results, whichever you prefer.


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## mudbunny (May 13, 2013)

Here are the original characters, and it will also be used to provide links to the posts where they have been reskinned:

Gabriella Castellanos (thief): [MENTION=2]Piratecat[/MENTION]
Dr. Felix DuBois (assassin): 
Hung-Ke Lee (hacker):  [MENTION=15341]Committed Hero[/MENTION]
Mace Hunter (con man): [MENTION=1231]Kaodi[/MENTION]
Oliver "Ashcan" Quinn (wheelman, explosives expert):  [MENTION=1656]Hypersmurf[/MENTION]
Persephone Cardiff (Analyst):


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## Kaodi (May 13, 2013)

I was definitely interested in keeping on. That is why I asked,  . 

If  [MENTION=1656]Hypersmurf[/MENTION] is planning on keeping Gabriella I will stick with Mace. Otherwise I may give choice of character a second thought.


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## mudbunny (May 13, 2013)

Also, I will use the second post as a way of tracking how much you have used from your various pools. As you use points from one of your abilities, mention it in a way that lets me know the pool, the number of points you are using, and the total number of points in the pool. So, if you have an 8-point Explosives pool, and are using 3 points, then something similar to "Explosives 3/8" so that it is easy for me (and for you) to keep track of how much you have used and have left. Also, there are certain abilities that you can use to get pool refreshes, or by doing a techno-thriller monologue. If you do so, let me know in an OOC comment so that I can adjust the points and am aware of what you are doing.

Finally, have fun. I am going to try to give a basic description of the situation and i will also do my best to let you draw in the environment, within reason. If you can justify (using action/spy movie logic, not Simpsons logic) something being in the room, go for it. If I am unsure, I will ask.

Finally +1 - I am completely inexperienced as a DM. Please feel free to offer any advice or suggestions.

Edit to add - In the IC thread, please try to remember to keep your sigs from being shown.


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## Hypersmurf (May 13, 2013)

Kaodi said:


> If  [MENTION=1656]Hypersmurf[/MENTION] is planning on keeping Gabriella I will stick with Mace. Otherwise I may give choice of character a second thought.




I can do - I'm just feeling a hankering to blow some stuff up.  I've played Gabriella a few times now, but haven't had a chance to try Ashcan before.

But I know I can have a lot of fun with Gabby.  Hmm.  How about - if anyone has a particular yen to play the sneak-thief, I'll cede Gabriella and take Ashcan.  But if nobody's especially enthused to give her a spin, I'll keep her on.

-Hyp.


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## Piratecat (May 14, 2013)

*(S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread*

Kaodi, you cool still playing H-K if I switch with Hypersmurf and take Gabriella?


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## Hypersmurf (May 14, 2013)

Piratecat said:


> Kaodi, you cool still playing H-K if I switch with Hypersmurf and take Gabriella?




You mean Mace?  Kaodi played Mace, Committed Hero played H-K.

-Hyp.


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## Piratecat (May 14, 2013)

*(S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread*

Right, that!


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## Piratecat (May 14, 2013)

mudbunny said:


> *Characters*
> On the Nights Black Agents page over at Pelgrane Press, there is a set of pre-generated PCs. We will be using those with one important caveat. The stats will be kept the same, however, I would like people to re-skin the details, backstory, etc.



Ha! I can tell I have pride of ownership. I'd argue that stats are ephemeral, but the backgrounds are the things that make those characters work. Clearly, I'm prejudiced.


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## mudbunny (May 14, 2013)

Piratecat said:


> Ha! I can tell I have pride of ownership. I'd argue that stats are ephemeral, but the backgrounds are the things that make those characters work. Clearly, I'm prejudiced.




The backgrounds *are* awesome, and the pictures to go with it are great, I just want people to have the opportunity to make them their own should they desire.


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## Hypersmurf (May 14, 2013)

Piratecat said:


> Ha! I can tell I have pride of ownership. I'd argue that stats are ephemeral, but the backgrounds are the things that make those characters work.




I was thinking the same thing   I think mudbunny's just clarified an important point, though - there's a difference between "I'd like people to change the backgrounds" and "I'd like people to change the backgrounds if they'd like".

I don't think it's unreasonable giving people a chance to personalise, but I figure most of us will keep the major points intact to preserve the interlinked relationships...

 -Hyp.


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## mudbunny (May 14, 2013)

Yeah...forcing people to rewrite the backstories is totally not what I mean to write. I am not sure how I typed what i did. I will blame it on not enough caffeine and being sleep-deprived.

Let me fix that...


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## Hypersmurf (May 14, 2013)

mudbunny said:


> Yeah...forcing people to rewrite the backstories is totally not what I mean to write. I am not sure how I typed what i did. I will blame it on not enough caffeine and being sleep-deprived.
> 
> Let me fix that...




Much more clear now!  

-Hyp.


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## Committed Hero (May 15, 2013)

I'm down with H-K Lee.


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## Piratecat (May 15, 2013)

Oh, cool. Thanks!

I'm really delighted that these PCs have become sort of half-assed iconics for NBA. That's neat. Mace Hunter's reach gradually grows.


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## Hypersmurf (May 15, 2013)

Piratecat said:


> Oh, cool. Thanks!
> 
> I'm really delighted that these PCs have become sort of half-assed iconics for NBA. That's neat. Mace Hunter's reach gradually grows.




What's his meta-story?  Is he a pregen who's migrated from system to system over the years?

And yeah - as the only set of pregens available for download from the official NBA site, I think their iconic status is probably more than just _de facto_!

-Hyp.


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## Piratecat (May 15, 2013)

Hypersmurf said:


> What's his meta-story?  Is he a pregen who's migrated from system to system over the years?



Mace Hunter has been banging around different rules systems for a decade; he's fought giant gators in the Amazon Jungle (Mace Hunter and the Crocodile God, _Adventure!_) and battled Ponce de Leon himself (Mace Hunter and the Fountain of Youth, _Savage Worlds_). He's unraveled galactic mysteries in _Ashen Stars_, he's charmed the ladies and fought vampires in _Night's Black Agents_, he's shot through the sky on a rocket pack in _Danger Patrol!_. I'm sure he'll show up in _TimeWatch_ as well as a Doc Savage analogue or turn-of-the-century African Explorer.

Mace originated on a corporate mailing list back in the 90s when I saw we had someone named "Mace Hunter, Plant Manager." Plant Manager? That's ridiculous. No one named Mace Hunter is _actually_ a Plant Manager. So I've set out to correct this cosmic injustice by giving him the heroic roles he's deserved. One of these days he'll get to be "Mace Hunter, Private Eye," and I'll finally be satisfied.


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## Kaodi (May 15, 2013)

Piratecat said:


> Mace originated on a corporate mailing list back in the 90s when I saw we had someone named "Mace Hunter, Plant Manager." Plant Manager? That's ridiculous. No one named Mace Hunter is _actually_ a Plant Manager. So I've set out to correct this cosmic injustice by giving him the heroic roles he's deserved. One of these days he'll get to be "Mace Hunter, Private Eye," and I'll finally be satisfied.




Oh my God, that is amazing,  . 

To answer your question though: Yes, if you want to take Gabriella I can stick with Mace.


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## Hypersmurf (May 15, 2013)

Piratecat said:


> So I've set out to correct this cosmic injustice by giving him the heroic roles he's deserved. One of these days he'll get to be "Mace Hunter, Private Eye," and I'll finally be satisfied.




*So you're saying the multiverse has a grand plan to see Mace Hunter finally recognised by all as a Dick?*

Wait, I should stop doing that now.

-Hyp.


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## Hypersmurf (May 15, 2013)

So we have a confirmed Mace Hunter, Hung-Ke Lee, Gabriella Castellanos, and Ashcan Quinn - you're waiting on word from  [MENTION=59043]Walking Dad[/MENTION],  [MENTION=6705529]tunafish[/MENTION], and maybe [MENTION=88980]71gamer[/MENTION] about Felix duBois and Persephone Cardiff before going out to market?

-Hyp.


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## mudbunny (May 16, 2013)

Yup. By my reading of the thread, this is what we have so fr by way of confirmed players/characters

Gabriella Castellanos (thief): [MENTION=2]Piratecat[/MENTION]
Dr. Felix DuBois (assassin): 
Hung-Ke Lee (hacker):  [MENTION=15341]Committed Hero[/MENTION]
Mace Hunter (con man): [MENTION=1231]Kaodi[/MENTION]
Oliver "Ashcan" Quinn (wheelman, explosives expert):  [MENTION=1656]Hypersmurf[/MENTION]
Persephone Cardiff (Analyst):


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## mudbunny (May 16, 2013)

There is still room for up to two more people in this game. Nights Black Agents is a pretty easy system to play in. If you can imagine yourself as a superspy, you have 75% of the knowledge you need to know.


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## Walking Dad (May 17, 2013)

I would like to confirm that I have currently not the time to join this game. RL hits again. Have fun everyone!


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## Hypersmurf (May 20, 2013)

What's your current thinking regarding timeframe, mudbunny?

-Hyp.


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## mudbunny (May 21, 2013)

Given that today is a holiday in Canada, my plan was to spend some time on my computer and put up the first post.

My wife had a very, very different vision for the day.

Her vision won.

It should get up in the next 30 minutes or so.


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## Hypersmurf (May 21, 2013)

Rock 

-Hyp.


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## mudbunny (May 21, 2013)

Aaaand, it begins.

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?337024-NBA-(S)Entry

I had to take some liberty with Hung-Ke's initial actions to kick things off.









*OOC:*


  [MENTION=15341]Committed Hero[/MENTION] The image with the picture is of a very high quality. Surprisingly high for a picture you would expect to see in a normal Craigslist post.


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## reyak (May 21, 2013)

*(S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread (2 spots left, jump in wh...*

I'd be interested in joining up. (Btw, mb, this is dylanmcintosh from twitter).

I'll play the analyst unless someone else has spoken for her already.

I'm a rookie for play by post so be gentle with me, you can beat the crap out of character though.


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## Piratecat (May 21, 2013)

Welcome! Persephone's awesome and is so, so needed (says the guy whose PC has diddly for Preparedness). Great to have you on board.


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## reyak (May 21, 2013)

*(S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread (2 spots left, jump in wh...*

Thanks! I'll hit up the character sheet tonight and get to know her a bit more. Probably won't personalize her and just play from the write up on it.


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## Piratecat (May 21, 2013)

Her big deal is that she can interpret data easily and can pull a plan out of her... out of thin air on a moment's notice. Not only can she easily attain needed gear, through her "in the nick of time" ability she can trigger flashbacks that let her have done things in the past. For example, let's say there's a bad guy who has a trigger for a bomb. Cackling, he holds up the trigger mechanism and stabs the button... and Persephone (after narrating a Filch flashback) holds up the two batteries that normally power the device.

Totally fun. And good first post.

So you know, the {ooc} and {/ooc} tags can set aside ooc text. Just replace {} with [].


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## reyak (May 21, 2013)

*(S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread (2 spots left, jump in wh...*

Great thanks!


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## Hypersmurf (May 21, 2013)

Hung-Ke's mention of Trieste reminds me - this may occasionally come in handy:
Random Reminiscence Generator

-Hyp.


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## Piratecat (May 23, 2013)

I love that generator. And for anyone who ever wants to make a character, here's Hypersmurf's most recent auto-correcting character sheet.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/eobghoc02dxqgrj/Calculating character sheet - NBA v1_13.pdf


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## mudbunny (May 24, 2013)

Tonight I sleep. Tomorrow, sometime round 10am (EST) I will post continuing the story.


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## Hypersmurf (May 29, 2013)

mudbunny said:


> *Posting rate*
> I will endeavor to post at least once a day, and will try to go faster if you guys manage it. Weekends, OTOH, are pretty busy and computer time is limited most of the time, especially with the summer coming up.




Are we in a temporary lull, or should your estimate here be revised, or is this more than a brief hiatus?

-Hyp.


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## Piratecat (May 29, 2013)

I'll echo this. I'm really excited about the game, but now's the time to know if our illustrious GM might not have the time. I'll plan my Gabriella-getting-into-trouble time accordingly.


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## Hypersmurf (May 30, 2013)

[MENTION=56746]mudbunny[/MENTION], [MENTION=56746]mudbunny[/MENTION], [MENTION=56746]mudbunny[/MENTION]?

-Hyp.


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## mudbunny (May 31, 2013)

Due to some incredibly awesome time mismanagement on my part over the last couple of weeks, I found myself ignoring you guys.

No more. I am back on track, and will be keeping on top of it. I am working on the next post right now. Well, once I hit POST QUICK REPLY.


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## mudbunny (Jun 5, 2013)

Hey all. I will be posting something tonight. I am in First Aid training all day today.


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## mudbunny (Jun 10, 2013)

Pleae feel free to let me know (here or by PM, your choice) if you like or dislike how I presented the information to you guys in the game thread on possible directions to go and stuff to do. I have never DMed NBA face to face, let alone over a PbP, so there may be some feeling out of how to best do it.


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## Piratecat (Jun 12, 2013)

*(S)Entry - Nights Black Agents - Recruitment thread (2 spots left, jump in when*

Catching up after a fabulous long weekend—looking forward to posting tomorrow! Sorry for my absence. I had a house full of gamers in every sense imaginable.


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## Committed Hero (Jun 16, 2013)

And I was on vacation this week, which I forgot to disclose before I went


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## Committed Hero (Aug 13, 2013)

Does anyone want to try a new mission?


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## Committed Hero (Oct 7, 2013)

Folks,

I have an adventure I will be running in town in a few weeks' time, and I was hoping a few of you wouldn't mind trying it out. We can use the pregens if that's easiest.


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## mudbunny (Oct 8, 2013)

I would be interested in playing the scenario.


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## Hypersmurf (Oct 8, 2013)

Committed Hero said:


> Folks,
> 
> I have an adventure I will be running in town in a few weeks' time, and I was hoping a few of you wouldn't mind trying it out. We can use the pregens if that's easiest.




I'm interested, with the caveat that I'll be out of the country from 18/10 to 31/10 - so if that cuts through the middle of your intended play-space, probably best not to include me.

-Hyp.


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## Piratecat (Oct 8, 2013)

I'd love to but can't right now -- too busy prepping _TimeWatch_ for Kickstarting. I'll read it, though!


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## Kaodi (Oct 8, 2013)

I guess I am in if you are looking to try something out.


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## Committed Hero (Oct 11, 2013)

I'm happy starting in November, then, if you two wanted to hash out custom characters prior to the 18th.


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## MiscellanyMan (Oct 21, 2013)

If you lot are looking for extra hands on deck, I'd love to join up, provided that you're not planning on using any content from The Zalozhniy Quartet--eventually my N.B.A. game in Chicago will start up, and while my GM won't mind me cheating on him with the internet, I don't want to spoil what he's planning, either.

I'm happy to play a pre-gen character or whip up someone who can fill in the skill gaps.  Need a medic?

Cheers,
MM


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## MiscellanyMan (Oct 21, 2013)

If you lot are looking for extra hands on deck, I'd love to join up, provided that you're not planning on using any content from The Zalozhniy Quartet--eventually my N.B.A. game in Chicago will start up, and while my GM won't mind me cheating on him with the internet, I don't want to spoil what he's planning, either.

I'm happy to play a pre-gen character or whip up someone who can fill in the skill gaps.  Need a medic?

Cheers,
MM


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## mudbunny (Oct 30, 2013)

Unfortunately, the game kinda died on the vine.


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## Committed Hero (Nov 2, 2013)

I'm still checking in periodically. The scenario was a success as well.


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## mudbunny (Nov 4, 2013)

If someone wants to run something. I am all for that. 

I looked over the game thread and am trying to figure out why it died...


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## Committed Hero (Nov 4, 2013)

I do think it's hard to run the intro adventure online, since it requires a lot of setup that can be hard to slog through. Recall that all of Kevin's demo scenarios start in the thick of the action.

Anyway, I am happy to try something if you like & there is interest.


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## mudbunny (Nov 5, 2013)

I would be willing to play. And thanks for the feedback on why my game died. I will think on it and look into how I could change it up a little bit.


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## Piratecat (Nov 5, 2013)

I'd agree with that analysis. I think that for an online game you need to immediately grab peoples' hearts, souls, and imaginations. Starting with set-up doesn't do that. Online games are the same as what they tell us in storytelling and writing: start as late as you possibly can, in media res if possible. Imagine if you'd started us in the middle of a firefight during our border crossing, instead, then gave us backstory as we went along?


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## mudbunny (Nov 6, 2013)




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