Second Dawn:Jules Dyer

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This is a reference document for the LARP The Second Dawn.

Jules Dyer Player: Thomas L Agent of the Watch Age: Mid-late 30s

Additional Information (read first): Seerstones, Black Science

Background: You were born on the edge of Danbury County, not far from the Eastern Union’s heart in New Hudson. One of your earliest memories is standing in the kitchen of your family farm, your mother crying as the local magistrate, Jon Grant, served you your eviction notice. You did most of your growing up in seedy apartments in Danbury City, watching your parents struggle to get by until you became old enough to start working as well. You saw the underside of Union life, the poor conditions endured by those who work the factories and streets, the willful denial of the law that becomes necessary as one scrapes for survival. Once all three pairs of hands were bringing in money, after the long hours and harsh conditions had irrevocably sapped your parents’ health, you began to drag yourselves back up into the middle class, but you never forgot what life was like in those days and for those people. That’s why you eventually took up a career in law enforcement. It may seem counterintuitive, but it makes perfect sense to you. Much of crime is born of desperation, but only a fraction of it becomes truly violent and malign. An unwise policeman will treat all crimes the same, and a corrupt policeman will do even worse; it takes a policeman who’s seen both sides of the law to truly understand when their actions are helping the people. You started in the police, but you soon saw dangers worse than ordinary crime. Sometimes you found criminals who had found or bought illegal black science, turning them over to the Watch. You only really started caring about it when you saw someone suffering the horrible rotting death caused by the path of decay. The people of the Union are harmed every day by crime, but black science attacks the fundamental fabric of the Eastern Union and life itself. You took and passed the exams to enter the Watch, where your legal authority extended to the most pernicious elements of all in Eastern Union society: foreign saboteurs and black science. As an often-undercover field agent, you searched out those who took advantage of peoples’ desperation, who offered them the easy corrupting lure of black science for their problems. Foreign spies are merely people, seeking one way or another to uproot the Union at its heart, to destroy the system rather than fixing it. Most were selfish or weak-minded individuals working for pay, but a few were misled idealists, who believed that the Union’s system was too corrupt and chaotic to rule fairly. But you know that a revolution or war would disproportionately bring suffering to the poor and downtrodden, and the Cataclysm has taught us all of the horrors that come when a damaged system breaks. You were still a mid-ranked agent when Luther Gaines took over the Ministry of the Watch in 322, six years ago. He’s done great things for the Watch, building up its resources and strength, but you know he’s barely begun bringing it up to the levels he seeks. More agents, more resources, more pay; things have gone upwards. But somewhere along the line you seem to have gotten lost in the bureaucracy, with none of those increased rewards ever making it to your plate despite your continuing excellent work. You pulled some seniority to come up from New Hudson with Minister Gaines on this mission, and hopefully you’ll earn his personal attention and approval enough to remind him of the raise you’ve long since earned. This job is becoming quite a headache, though. The original idea was to be a public presence for the Watch, to walk among the partygoers and remind them, despite the shadow of the Second Dawn, that the government remains wary of black science. Reports from local agents suggest a flourishing black market in forbidden sciences here in New Providence; you find it hard to believe they haven’t broken the ring already. Regardless, you’re here as a senior outside source, and a number of implicated individuals will be here at the party. Keep your eyes peeled, apply some pressure, and maybe you can crack the case yourself. Lastly, this event will surely be a magnet for foreign spies and saboteurs, so perhaps you can catch some of those too. Well, that was supposed to be “lastly.” The surprises started with the utter failure of security for the event tonight. There was going to be a police (Ministry of the Interior) security manager here, but apparently he got seasick and had to be left behind. There’s local security for the launch boat, but you wouldn’t trust them beyond their fried-dough shops. There’s a secret service man, but he’s the President’s personal bodyguard. Your boss will surely be busy with high-level diplomacy and whatnot. One way or another, the job of managing security for the evening has fallen to you. You haven’t done work like this for years, but you’re responsible for it regardless. There’s one last surprise, of course, though it really should’ve have surprised you. Of course, President Jonathan Grant will be here to see the launch of his dream. The same man who coolly served his family friends with an eviction notice will be, for the first time since those childhood days, close enough for you to see and talk and touch. He’s the President, so you don’t want to have any trouble with him- so it’s probably best for everyone if you just stayed away from him.

Roleplaying notes: Your sense of justice is your greatest underlying motivation. Sometimes you feel like you and your dream would be more pure if you were a simple policeman again, but you know that you must work where the need is greatest. Restraint is skill you have learned well, knowing which crimes deserve action and which require watching or even a tacit acceptance. Tonight you are under great stress, with a much more involved job to do than you’d anticipated.

Goals: 1) Fulfill the missions of the Watch, especially with regard to black science trading. 2) Deal with your simmering anger at ex-magistrate Grant. 3) Keep the launch platform and party safe and secure. 4) Get the raise you’ve long since earned.

Opinions: Second Dawn: Watch buzz is that it has to use black science in it somewhere, since your people have been kept out of its design pretty thoroughly. You’re withholding judgment until you get some evidence. Black Science: Corrupting and malevolent. It teases the unwary with promises of power and ease and strength, but it ultimately leads only to mankind losing control of its creations and devastation both global and local. You have seen people die in horrible pain from the path of decay, you have seen whole cities paralyzed as the path of power disrupted their electrical grids, you have seen people’s minds erased when possessed by demons. Tinkers: Troublesome folks, they have the authority to work their secret sciences away from the Watch’s eye. They do much good for the Union, but they more than balance out by allowing black science to fester in its midst. Religion: Your parents used to be Gaians, but gave it up after they lost their farm and connection to the family’s ancestral land. You never really regained religion either. Plains States: Now that they’ve got one central government, they may be a military threat to the Union. If they’re planning war, they’ll surely have agents looking to destabilize the nation. Maple Kingdom: Angered by the Second Dawn, they’ve grown increasingly hostile over the past few years. They may be trying to harm the Union as well, though they might be more forgiving if you can demonstrate the Union’s strong stance on black science. Appalachian Confederacy: They’re worried, and they have no army, so they’re certainly resorting to whatever techniques they can wield. That surely includes covert agents. El Dorado: These recent arrivals claim to have a “White AI,” purged of its black science. You’re not sure how that would be possible, but if it’s real, it could mean something strange and new and maybe even glorious?

Key Information: •A black science trading ring is known to exist in New Providence. You have many suspects, but probably only few of them are really involved. •Watch agents believe that there are at least 2 secret agents of foreign powers here tonight, in addition to their obvious ambassadors and emissaries. While you recognize the importance, your personal job and priorities focus more on the black science. •You have been left in charge of security for the launch boat, due to a series of unexpected events. There is no brig. Furthermore, there are no spare lifeboats beyond the bare minimum needed in case of a major emergency. Therefore, troublemakers cannot be ejected, and it may be difficult to reliably imprison criminals until you return to shore. Expenses for the Second Dawn led to enormous cost-cutting on the launch platform, apparently. •The Watch is in charge of internal security for the Eastern Union, primarily in terms of rooting out black science. You also normally have law enforcement jurisdiction, but try to avoid using it whenever possible, to avoid conflicts with police (who ultimately report to the Minister of the Interior). •All Ancient ruins in the Eastern Union are property of the Tinkers. Independent ruin-delvers and spelunkers are criminals, though it’s not an oft-prosecuted crime. Some destroy their black science finds, but others sell them, so they would be worth investigating. •Your “yellow seerstone” contains a report, provided today by local agents, on a recent New Providence socialite’s death and autopsy. Some citizens insisted on the autopsy; while it did contain a few odd things, the woman really did just die from tuberculosis. •Jonathan Grant, now President of the Eastern Union, evicted your family when you were a child, throwing you off a farm held in the Dyer family for generations. He was a local magistrate at the time, and your parents were family friends of his. You are completely loyal to the nation, but hold a long-simmering hatred for him individually. •Minister Gaines is known to be an expert at identifying people under demonic influence. You could have him try to look at suspects, but quizzing an individual suspect would certainly be an imposition on a Minister’s time.

People (in approximate order of importance): Luther Gaines, Minister of the Watch (Kyle R): The leader who’s really changed the Watch for the better in the past six years. You want to earn his attention and approval by doing damned good work tonight. After all, he can’t be blamed for every bureaucratic oversight (like your long-missing raise). Jonathan Grant, President of the Eastern Union (Ted M): How this sleazy bastard got to be President, you’ll never know. Since you don’t normally see him, your residual anger at him usually barely matters, but tonight you’re both in the same place. Rumor has it he may lose the presidency tonight; you know Gaines no longer supports him. Regardless, your problem with him is personal, not political. If he tries to give you some lame “heartfelt” apology for destroying your family’s life, you just might snap. However much you love the Union, you’d give it all to see him pay for destroying your parents so callously. William Cone (Richard S): A construction worker, he’s been an informant for the Watch for the past two years. He’s provided good information, mostly on criminal activities around the construction site. You’ve exchanged a few letters lately, but you should meet up with him and coordinate efforts, but he’ll likely want to continue keeping his allegiance secret. Mario Patriarca (Paul S): Head of the construction crew, he’s reported to have many local contacts of varying shadiness. He might be involved in black science trading. Russ O’Malley (Santo S) Another construction worker, Cone says that he’s a ruin-delver. He could be digging up black sciences to sell. Donald Baxter (Jerry S): A wealthy local merchant, field reports suggest that he might be involved in black science trading. Edward Archibald (?): A local socialite and dilettante, he’s suspected of being a purchaser of black science. Isaiah Whittaker (Joey B): Another local socialite, his strange religion has raised suspicion of involving black science somehow. Reports remain vague, however. Jackie Drake (Sheyna G): A famous ruin-delver from the Plains States. She’s well-known for destroying black science, but if you can get names of her associates, you could keep an eye on them. Malamhin Tinker (Abrihette Y): An engineer on the Dawn project, she’ll surely know something about the possibility of black science in the space ship, if you can somehow get her to tell you. Elizabeth Rowell (Isabel K): A construction worker, reports suggest that she’s recently become a freelance assassin. Bad, but not so awful, since assassins are tools of the well-privileged, never used against the poor and downtrodden. Besides, you have bigger fish to fry, between the black science rings and foreign agents. Like it or not, she just might be useful if President Grant pisses you off enough. Kenneth Sanford (?): A member of the Secret Service, which theoretically reports to the Minister of the Interior. He’s the President’s personal bodyguard, so he’ll surely be quite loyal to Grant himself. Regardless, he’s one of the few other law enforcement types here at the party, so you can probably call on him for security help if you need to. Captain Ivy Pearce (Rachel O): Pilot of the Second Dawn. She’s a member of the Army, but almost certainly loyal and security-minded, you just might be able to convince her to help with security if you need more help. Walter Palmer (Ilya M) [Plains States], Conrad Gaudet (David C) [Maple Kingdom], Jefferson Lee Wharton (Albert L) [Appalachian Confederacy]: The three ambassadors. If you pay close attention to their movements, you may get some clues about the identities of their agents. Franklin Kennedy, Chief of Staff (Matt W): Grant’s second, you don’t know him at all. Looks like the autopsy report on that seerstone was for Patricia Kennedy, his young wife. Poor guy. Victoria Tillman (Sarah H): A stowaway? Damnit. You’d like to get rid of her, but you don’t have any boats to put her on. You’d rather avoid a confrontation, because it’ll make you look like a jerk.

Ratings: Pilot: 0 R: 1 D: 3 G: 2

Nametag Symbols: E

Attributes: Physical: Defense 4 Pool Rating 4 [] [] [] [] Mental: Defense 3 Pool Rating 3 [] [] [] Social: Defense 2 Pool Rating 2 [] []

Recoveries: -Find a clue about, or quarantine a piece of, black science (+1 point, 3/hour) -Take a concrete step to limit a threat to the security of the launch, party or Union government (+1 point, 3/hour) OR go half an hour without finding any such threats (+1 point) -Flip out at President Grant (+3 points, once ever)

Abilities: Penetrating Insight, attack, freeze!, suspect, black ways, survivor (x1), convince, what do you want?, call for backup, security clearance

Items: Pistol, pouch of coins, babbage, yellow seerstone

Black Ways System: Any item with the “B” quality seems suspicious, potentially using black science. Only an extensive study of its workings or uses could verify this with complete certainty, so you will have to use your personal judgment tonight. If you want to study an item and try to find out for sure, see a GM. This may take some time.