Thread: Questioning chirine ba kal

Originally Posted by Gronan of Simmerya

The tubeways were all underground; no monorails whizzing over the countryside. There were viewscreens, but good luck on getting them pointing where you wanted. The tubeways themselves were featureless metal shafts with little or no lights.

The tubeways' existence was known to all "educated" people of Tekumel. I use "educated" in the 15th century sense; that is, anybody in 15th century Europe who could read Latin and knew who Aristotle was, would have known of the tubeways. Most of them frankly didn't CARE.

If they're metal, how comes nobody has broken them down and reused?

Originally Posted by AsenRG

If they're metal, how comes nobody has broken them down and reused?

Several reasons. First, the metal used is the same as in the hulls of the starships and spacecraft sitting on the Plain of Towers. Nobody knows how to work it, or even what the alloy might be. We're at about the same level of technology as the Greeks and Romans (and yes, I'm over simplifying, here) and we just don't have the means to use the stuff.

Second, too many people use the tubeway car system; start messing with it, and they'll get upset and do nasty things to you. Third, the system is maintained at a near vacuum, so it's more or less inaccessible.

Fourth, the maintenance crews are still active in some sections of the system, and they - being entirely inhuman, and mostly inorganic - take a dim view of people messing about with the infrastructure. They react very badly, and tend to be quite forceful about getting one to not do things. They don't do nasty things to you; they simply vaporize you - or worse. Much, much worse.

Originally Posted by chirine ba kal

Several reasons. First, the metal used is the same as in the hulls of the starships and spacecraft sitting on the Plain of Towers. Nobody knows how to work it, or even what the alloy might be. We're at about the same level of technology as the Greeks and Romans (and yes, I'm over simplifying, here) and we just don't have the means to use the stuff.

Second, too many people use the tubeway car system; start messing with it, and they'll get upset and do nasty things to you. Third, the system is maintained at a near vacuum, so it's more or less inaccessible.

Fourth, the maintenance crews are still active in some sections of the system, and they - being entirely inhuman, and mostly inorganic - take a dim view of people messing about with the infrastructure. They react very badly, and tend to be quite forceful about getting one to not do things. They don't do nasty things to you; they simply vaporize you - or worse. Much, much worse.

It's not that PCs haven't taken worse risks to get something that turns out to be useless, but I get your point why it's really uncommon.

Now, let's imagine a hypotetic scenario. You have a legion that was away on a pirates-hunting mission for a decade or so by now, and it's the kind of war where the locals that sell you fish might be your next target tomorrow. Still, they have built a Vrimulha temple in what is basically hostile territory, and said temple has dedicated priests.
If on top of that said temple was holding a relic of some importance, and you knew that other temples might want it, what would the security measures against intrusion be like, apart from impalement of anyone who tries to steal it?

Originally Posted by AsenRG

It's not that PCs haven't taken worse risks to get something that turns out to be useless, but I get your point why it's really uncommon.

Now, let's imagine a hypotetic scenario. You have a legion that was away on a pirates-hunting mission for a decade or so by now, and it's the kind of war where the locals that sell you fish might be your next target tomorrow. Still, they have built a Vrimulha temple in what is basically hostile territory, and said temple has dedicated priests.
If on top of that said temple was holding a relic of some importance, and you knew that other temples might want it, what would the security measures against intrusion be like, apart from impalement of anyone who tries to steal it?

Understood!

Right; I've done this, actually, and have had a little experience with similar problems.

First, location. I'd site the temple much as I would a little fort or military post - good access to water, no overlooking ground, that kind of thing. Second, the exterior is going to be walled and fortified; since it's a Vimuhla temple, you'd want to do something like that anyway, but this is not going to be decorative stuff - it's going to be practical. Third, the priests are going to be more of a garrison, but again, that's normal for a Vimuhla temple; it'll be a good guard force. So far, all stock and standard stuff.

Once we had the position secure, I'd build a nice vault for The Object, seal it up, and then invoke Lord Jnekksha'a to really secure the vault. This is pretty high-level stuff, but if The Object is really worth it, it's worth doing. There are some spells that can be used to ward the vault, but I always prefer to go right to the top in these things. That way, the garrison / priesthood can simply worry about dealing with the locals and any intruders.

I would also make sure to visit and support the garrison on a regular basis, but on an irregular schedule; nothing impresses the locals and any would-be intruders like the knowledge that they are likely to be hit from behind by more troops. Again, it helps that this is a Vimuhla temple; this is the kind of thing we do best!

"Trust me, Glorious General, you don't want to know how we secured the Sacred Doohickey."

"... you know, Chirine, I believe you."

Every good commander needs to know when to NOT ask questions.

Originally Posted by Gronan of Simmerya

"Trust me, Glorious General, you don't want to know how we secured the Sacred Doohickey."

"... you know, Chirine, I believe you."

Every good commander needs to know when to NOT ask questions.

First thing I learned from my cadre sergeants as a kay-det.

That is one sweet table. I miss using miniatures.

Originally Posted by Bren

That is one sweet table. I miss using miniatures.

Thank you!

This table - and the collections that live on it - are really my reaction (over-reaction, maybe) to the game room in Phil's basement. Maybe nine by twelve, the table was five by nine, and you usually had to crawl out under the table to get to the toilet. (We all learned to ration our fluid intake.) Hot and stuff in the summers, cold and dank in the winters, with metal folding chairs to sit on. We had The Tree, and The Hill, and that was it for scenery. Later on, Phil splurged and bought The Other Tree. The table was covered in green carpet tiles, and that was all we had for our games.

So, what I did after a decade of using several 30" x 60" folding tables in my basement - and two electric radiators and a dehumidifier, with a fridge for drinks and a dedicated toilet for the gamers in the laundry room across the hallway - was build a table that was comfortable to game on, easy to set up, and even easier to clean up. Set up for this particular game took fifteen minutes; tear-down took about ten.

For RPGs, it's even easier. There are photos of the game room on my Photobucket page; everything possible that a GM or player could want is within easy reach. Stuff can be on the table in literally seconds, so that the flow of the game is not interrupted. I can do anything on this table that the game campaign demands; I've been building models for our adventures for years, and they're all down in the game room. We have half the basement, courtesy of The Missus; the other end from the game table is the 'game lounge' (often referred to as The Lava Lounge, from all the tiki stuff to give it that 'Tekumel look') where all the suits of armor, props, costumes, weapons, and Tsolyani furniture lives.

(An Aside: Remember, Glorious General, when Phil bought that hand-and-a-half sword that was the same as yours? It's now hanging up in the lounge with the 'El Cid' sword he got at the same time on that Fabrica Gurrito order.)

You can play EPT here, and use the very same figures that we played with back in 1976 and after; I still have them all, in all their leaden glory. Every second and fourth Saturday, we visit Phil's creation, and we manage to have a pretty fun time.

And thank you again for the compliment! I am very proud of the game room, if I do say so myself...

Originally Posted by chirine ba kal

(An Aside: Remember, Glorious General, when Phil bought that hand-and-a-half sword that was the same as yours? It's now hanging up in the lounge with the 'El Cid' sword he got at the same time on that Fabrica Gurrito order.)

... now I'm feeling positively soggy with nostalgia.

(Remember that damn Flamberge of his?!? No WONDER the fucking Landsknechts were so feared!)

Originally Posted by Gronan of Simmerya

... now I'm feeling positively soggy with nostalgia.

(Remember that damn Flamberge of his?!? No WONDER the fucking Landsknechts were so feared!)

You don't think it was the poofy clothes?