A small adventure idea. Needs fleshing out.

[Cymew]

Hi!

I have this little nugges of an idea. If you want to help flesh it out, feel free.

The characters are workign in a security firm, owned by a bigger comapny specializing in arranging conferences. They are often charged with arranging the neccessary details when heads of state meet and discuss things.

Now some important diplomats are going to meet, it's not to important who. I'll probably use Solomanis, Imperium guys, a nearby pocket empire and maybe a minor alien race. The company is in charge of all the arrangements and providing security.

The planet they are at are a pastoral resort. It's highly enogh evolved to have the facilities needed, and a spaceport, but it is "unspoilt paradise". Luxury vacation for those who can afford it, and it is an non aligned world.

Three days of diplomatic bickering and smaller incidents are broken up by the nightlife when diplomatic envoys party and have fun. The characters have to keep an eye on everyone and soon various problems occur.

The truth is that the diplomats all have a personal reason for the meeting to fail, while their supperiors have strong reasons for the meeting to produce results. Thus the envoys start to make *real* problems for security and hire saboteurs that make it look like somebody is trying to kill the envoys and security isn't handling it!

Thus the characters suddenly find themself wanting the harassments to stop, and the meeting to succeed. Otherwise their company isn't going to look good. The have a reputation to protect of providing top notch security and working facilities.

What do you think?

 

[sandman]

Sounds good.

As for the "fleshing out" part, just involve the character personally in some minor squibbling, else they might not think that they'll be held partially responsible if they only serves as minor bodyguards.

Involve one in a sexual harrasment complaint and watch him squirm all over to get that complaint dropped... A minor fight with another brings on light bruises but major diplomatic hassle with a delegation...

You can go one and on and on...

 

[Cymew]

Excellent ideas Sandman! I think I'll use that about the sexual harassment. If that doesn't get the message across that he might lose his job, nothing will...

 

[sandman]

Glad to be of help...

 

[Ganidirsii O'Flynn]

Cymew (Welsh, right? pronounced Kim-myoo?)

Anyway, some inspiration might be found in some old Star Trek episodes (like Memory Alpha, or Journey to Babel), STS9, and Babylon 5.....

There is another truely kickbutt effort is the old FASA adventure "Ordeal by Eshaar".

Hope that will help.

 

[Cymew]

Ganidiirsi O'Flynn,

Sorry to dissapoint you, it's not Welsh at all. It was an old name I used when we playtested 4th ed. Talislanta and now I've started to use it online as my name since nobody can invent such a quirky name, it's never taken...

That way I don't have to remember what username I have on all these webforums and mail accounts I use.

Thanks a lot for the Star Trek idea! The amount to material on the net on ST summaries are amazing!

 

[Burocrate]

And let us not forget who is the front line law enforcement agency for your pastoral non-aligned planet. Do you choose a large bureaucracy, with many different agencies within (customs/immigration/agriculture/public health etc.) or perhaps it is a completely corporate owned world-and what is their opinion of these talks.

What locations are available for the diplomats to unwind in? Casinos, Natural wonders, extreme sports? Ever consider the amount of preparation needed to secure a site for a VIP visit? Who do you have on the ground as a source of local information you can trust? Are you searching for indications of any factions/terror groups who may wish to disrupt your talks? What about protestors, those who would use the media coverage of a disruption to bring attention to their message?

Pardon my paranoia; please return to your normal activities.

 

[Mythmere]

Suitcase nuke threat phoned in from a pay phone.

 

[Ran Targas]

Man, there are so many possibilities

- The official parties should be a small army of deputies, secretaries, assistants, valets, translators, security personnel, and perhaps a few "interns". Imagine the pile of dossiers your players would have to digest just to make sure they know who is on whose side. Add resort personnel and the list could be in the 100's.

- The diplomatic security detachments would be very wary of any attempt by the players to control their activities. The players have a lot less to lose than the ambassador's own body guard and these guys would be packing serious heat.

- Any third party assassins would probably have been in place far longer than the players have been on planet. Weeding any out would be difficult in the extreme. Then there is the high probability that someone in one of the official parties is a trained assassin, available just in case.

- Being in the country, there are a lot of activities that could put the diplomats in danger; hunting/target shooting, riding local beasts, mountain climbing, etc. Whose going to tell an ambassador he can't visit the one area that your team forgot to secure earlier? This opens up plenty of opportunities for close calls.

Security is a 25 hour a day headache; by the end of their job your players should definitely think they haven't been paid enough!

 

[Mythmere]

Here is one specific portrayal of the "conference security" concept. Feel free to flesh out further or ignore.
The year is 1116 or 1117, and Imperial authority on the fringes of the empire is eroding rapidly. In the economic turmoil following the end of the Fifth Frontier War (I have postulated this - it isn't OTU that I know of, but it explains the powder keg that blew up when Strephon was killed and also the weakness of the Trojan Reach when the Aslan moved in). The conference is being held in Tobia subsector of the Trojan Reaches; several of the democratic planets have sent delegates outside the Imperium to Fist. The purpose of the conference is to discuss the democratization of the subsector and (though it is not openly spoken of) secession. Why? Money is being bled from the subsector (and all outlying subsectors) to maintain stability in the Imperial heartland. The colonial fleet is in turmoil and has not been paid or well serviced. Pirates from Theev are roaming the area freely, and some systems are cooperating with them. Delegates will be arriving from Sabruse, Saurus, one of the balkan countries of Hexx, Darchona, and Berg. Each delegate will be aware that he may personally be declared a traitor to the Imperium; if treason becomes the issue, their governments will toss them under the bus. This is not a secret meeting, and terrorism could come from pro-Imperial right wingers, or from the Imperium itself (secret police have surfaced in canon modules). The media may need to be kept away from sensitive meetings, and there will be lots of reporters. The Duke might send a delegate to present the other side of the argument, and to caution the delegates against treason. The Imperial delegate would be at risk to the other terrorists (pro-democracy, pro-secession, or home rule), or to pro-Imperial groups trying to spark a conflict. This would be exactly the sort of high tension environment that would keep the players hopping.

 

[Ran Targas]

Cymew -

Two big questions;

- by design, are your players/PC's really prepared (resources, experience, skills) to do all that is necessary to safeguard the proceedings or are they over their collective heads?

- have the Corporate Execs set them up? Business being business, they must have some interest in the outcome of the meeting.

 

[Cymew]

I was actually going to let them have characters that's up to the task, but it will be quite a show for the *players* to see how such a feat is pulled off. We'll see if it works...

 

[Zutroi]

Great idea, but I see a marked lack of "Evil Sadism" in the replies...

Those attempting to disrupt the conference succeed, beyond their wildest dreams. When the smoke clears the center is rubble and the attendees are a collection of empty, smoking boots. Blame must be affixed. Patsies must be located. PCs who are unfortunate enough to survive (by an amazing coincidence...) must be taken to swift, impartial justice and merciful execution.

Now your tiny adventure seed is a full blown campaign arc as the PCs attempt to clear their names, evade misplaced justice and megacorp death-squads, find The Real Killers (Sorry OJ!), etc.

They'll need money if they're to survive, and no one in the sector will hire them, at least not for an honest job. How will your honest, upstanding PCs handle being fugitives who need to resort to quasi-legal 'odd jobs' in order to keep food in the belly and air in the tanks?

And BTW, I did run more than my share of 'Paranoia' games

 

[Cymew]

Zutroi,

I do belive you wehn you say you have run Paranoia!

I'm using this adventure seed as a basis for a one-shot so I don't need to make it a sustained campaign. I have so many games to play!

But I plan on returning to Traveller after this one-shot. then hopefully with a set of rules....

 

[jatay3]

Variation:

There is a tense peace conference between an enemy of the imperium, and an ally who is dropping out. Amid the discussion secret terms are talked of which affect the Imperium greatly. The secretly pro-imperial PC(s)hears of it(perhaps he is a member of a free-trader charged with catering to the conference say a imperial hired on a foreign ship. How does he get the news to the Imperium?

Historical Model: Napolean had a meeting with the Czar on a raft on a Polish river around 1806-1808 (I can always look the date up). Secret Clauses were discussed. But the British managed to have a spy on that raft.

 

[jatay3]

sub-variation to above: the careacters are a mercenary company hired for the security job above, but one finds out the Secret Clause wants to tell the Imperium and the others don't know about it. Will they find out? And can they balence between loyalty to there contract and there if they do find out? Perhaps the mercenaries are Aslan and the "finder-outer" belongs to a clan that has an interest. This can bring in lots of "Aslan honour" type complications