Writers block on TWO scenario idéas...

[Andreas Junzell]

Like so many times before, I find myself with a head full of scenes, plots and ideas but seems to have a problem elaborating these into actual scenarios... So, if anyone out there feel up to it please help me out here

The first one came to me after watching Funeral in Berlin with Michael Caine. I would like it to evolve around a soviet clairvoyant defecting to the west and the PC's being british or american agents aiding in this. It takes place in the early sixties.

The clairvoyant is part of a secret soviet "mind enhancing programme" and has been tripping on LCD for the last couple of years, expanding whatever visions that he experienced in the first place. To the soviets rejoyce, he've seen visions of secret american missile deployments, whereabouts of nuclear submarines and so on. But after severe and continous drugging he has seen much worse things in the depth of the ocean - or into the vastness of space.

Now, he or some other party wants him to defect to the west. Perhaps kidnappers or whatevere wants to make a deal with the allies and deliver a secret weapon.

Here's the thing. I want the scenario to end with the PC's detonating a nuke in West Berlin as a last resort to save manking from whatever evil crap the clairvoyant has started. The detonation of the nuke brings upon nuclear war, of course, and in the long run world war III. The world suffer from nuklear devastation and Azathoth writhes ever more happier than before. And I want the PC's to be pushed to make that call...

The other idea I have? Well, its more of a pitch actually. Set in three different DG eras the PC's play soldiers or government agents involved in the Innsmouth Raid in -28, they kill and spread havoc during DG's "cowboy years" and finally they play DG officals in a secret congressional hearing after the Cambodia debacle resulting in the shutdown of Delta Green.

Now, I'm not sure if this is even doable, but it "sounds" cool in my head anyway.

[AncientHistory]

"When in doubt have a Fungus from Yuggoth come through the door with a gun."

The big thing about these games is to set up a sandbox and let the players build their own castle. If you know all the players that are going to be involved, and their resources and motivations, what they know and don't know, then you can have them act as they would, and the PCs act as they would, and let the game run from there. In other words, you need a few scripted events - an intro, some scenes that will probably happen, barring the players being psychic themselves, and multiple different ending scenarios. Most players these days are familiar with the expository scene at the beginning of the movie where the spies get an info dump from their boss, and if they're from out of town (they're always from out of town), they get to meet the local talent whose job it is to get them places and talk to the people they need to talk to. So those are two good places to start: a slide show and a meet'n'greet. Things should seem fairly routine until they go pear-shaped.

[Andreas Junzell]

[QUOTE=AncientHistory;237488]"When in doubt have a Fungus from Yuggoth come through the door with a gun."

Haha. Got to remember that one!

I hear you. Since I know my players pretty good I'm gonna be able to set them up with characters that will push exactly towards the intended goal...

[wombat1]

As for the first one, perhaps the clairvoyant has seen something particularly sinister and fell in West Berlin in his visions, that would justify the destruction of the place. A Fungi from Yuggoth with a gun would not necessarily qualify, but I note that the standard Call of Cthluhu description of serpent men has listed a group of "Sleepers" who are cryogenically stored under the earth. Perhaps one of these sites is under West Berlin, was found by the Nazis who did not quite know how to exploit it in the 1940's, but that a remnant group of Nazis has finally found a remaining serpent man to show them the necessary details. Work now proceeds apace on this; meanwhile, our defecting visionary can have a series of visions to show the entire history of serpent men, including the lab, which form one set of clues, while the records of that group of mystics that Himmler attracted to him furnishes another.

Not so much the "Boys from Brazil" as the "Iguanas from Ipanema."

The second one does sound very interesting, but more difficult to do well. That would be an extraordinarily long time for a single investigator to remain active, but perhaps not so for a family--how about father, son and grandson investigator characters?

[Gil_Trevizo]

The second one does sound very interesting, but more difficult to do well. That would be an extraordinarily long time for a single investigator to remain active, but perhaps not so for a family--how about father, son and grandson investigator characters?

An 19-year old Marine in 1928 would only be 61 years old in 1970. Old but certainly not an invalid. Even a naval intelligence officer in their mid-twenties would still be in their sixties by the time Delta Green is deactivated.

[wombat1]

I agree to a certain extent--40 years or so would be very good for a standard career story. Mythos investigators, however, often have a career span that is more like the life span of mayflies where 40 hours might well be a better expectancy

[Gil_Trevizo]

Mythos investigators, however, often have a career span that is more like the life span of mayflies where 40 hours might well be a better expectancy

I don't think it would be an issue across three scenarios.

[Mr_Lin]

My suggestion is that the defector has made contact with Daoloth during his mental travels in other planes of existence. The god is now using him as a gate to enter this world. It's a gradual process but reaches fruition just as the defector makes contact with the investigators after escaping from the east. The defector disappears, transported to some dismal far dimension, and in his place appears a rapidly expanding near invulnerable metallic mass. It soon reaches a size where only a nuclear weapon is even going to put a dent in it. The PCs are left with the choice of nuking Berlin or letting Daoloth envelop the whole planet.

Any help?

[Andreas Junzell]

An 19-year old Marine in 1928 would only be 61 years old in 1970. Old but certainly not an invalid. Even a naval intelligence officer in their mid-twenties would still be in their sixties by the time Delta Green is deactivated.

Actually, Gil, I didn't think of it like that at all. I figured three different sets of characters for each episode respectively. But this seems much better.

[The_Tatterdemalion_King]

Obviously the defector is a plant, a telepathic conduit by which the Soviets can spy on the American's burgeoning MK-ULTRA and remote viewing programs. He's being drugged with an extra concoction by his 'handler,' a double-agent who's planning on facilitating the cross-over, in order to increase his paranoia and credibility. An ex-Nazi, paperclipped into service to the US's military-industrial complex, recognizes the defector's ability to find something the Nazis stored in a bunker during the fall of Berlin, and then kills the handler—who's the go-between that's supposed to deliver the defector to the Americans—but the defector gets away. The opening of the scenario is the delivery the handler's dead body; tracing the defector's activities puts them in contact with another team of ODESSA members the Nazi is using to track the defector.

[Andreas Junzell]

My suggestion is that the defector has made contact with Daoloth during his mental travels in other planes of existence. The god is now using him as a gate to enter this world. It's a gradual process but reaches fruition just as the defector makes contact with the investigators after escaping from the east. The defector disappears, transported to some dismal far dimension, and in his place appears a rapidly expanding near invulnerable metallic mass. It soon reaches a size where only a nuclear weapon is even going to put a dent in it. The PCs are left with the choice of nuking Berlin or letting Daoloth envelop the whole world planet.

Any help?

Right up my alley. Good ideas, but I'm kinda stuck on what happens from the point when the Clairvoyant disapears from the soviet grasp and to the actual defection. Does anything play out in Soviet? With KGB investigators?

Also, I was thinking that the Clairvoyant is more or less a psychotic wreck from all the testing, druggin and mind-expanding experiences. So perhaps he's been kidnapped by someone who's trying to strike a deal with the west.

Mr Lin, I think that you are dead on though

[Mr_Lin]

Right up my alley. Good ideas, but I'm kinda stuck on what happens from the point when the Clairvoyant disapears from the soviet grasp and to the actual defection. Does anything play out in Soviet? With KGB investigators?

The KGB and/or the Stasi are on the case but they only catch up with him just as he meets up with the investigators. Depending on your taste a gunfight, a chase or much sneaking about ensues.

Also, I was thinking that the Clairvoyant is more or less a psychotic wreck from all the testing, druggin and mind-expanding experiences. So perhaps he's been kidnapped by someone who's trying to strike a deal with the west.

I think the obvious solution is another western agent. The investigators know who he is and that he's bringing a valuable Soviet defector over. What they don't know is the defector is a mental wreck, and has been rendered quiescent by tranquillisers. Once the party has evaded the Soviets and think they're home free the drugs wear off and The Render of Veils makes his appearance.

[Andreas Junzell]

You've done it again. Finally a story is forming.

Thanks to you all for you input. I will post a plot summary here shortly

[LoneKharnivore]

I really, REALLY want to play both of these. The second - running through DG's history from Innsmouth to present - had occurred to me as well, and it sounds like you'll make a fine job of it, but it's your first idea that really hits the paranoid, creepy and twisted buttons; exactly what you need to evoke that period of history.

Do keep us updated!

[LastChance]

Andreas, you might want to chance a look at Hot War (http://www.contestedground.co.uk/hotmain.html), the sequel to Cold City. It has the whole 60s WW3 kicking off, with the added benefit of eldritch otherworldly entities being a vital component of it! I've only played Cold City(which had you running around 1950s Berlin and trying to sort out all the terrifying crap hidden after the war or stop what still being summoned). Necroscope the book might be worth a read as well. Its got a lot of flaws but on the plus side it does feature an E-branch of the Soviet and British intelligence agencies vying against each other. Different people have different talents, for example one Sov is able to plot the locations of US missile subs by their nuclear reactors.

Plus reading John le Carre style stuff or anything about defections and double agents during that period might give you a nice idea!

Vietnam....I'm not going to lie, running campaigns in that time period are a lot of fun. My players have played a couple of games of it, they're going to get some shock when they play the 90s onward DG and the realisation they're illegal slips in! The sheer variety of scenarios you can play is amazing and its quite easy to run introductions for military characters. Your grunts could run into a patrol of NVA that....aren't. Or have a Navy PBR boat fighting Deep Ones in the Mekong Delta.

Sounds like a really cool idea though, charting the rise and fall of Delta Green, the bodycount will be phenomenal I think! For a WW2 game, there seems to be tonnes worth of information online, its an idea I'm dabbling with myself.