Faces in the Moonlight: Trust Games and Shadow Wars, An Occult Spy Thriller
“Deception is a right. Truth is a privilege. Innocence is a luxury. The war is never over.”
You are summoned to the meeting room of wherever you're stationed or work at and sat down, back facing the glass wall around the secure glass box of secrecy. Men and women you recognize as higher-ups, as well as a peculiarly lax-dressed man, are having a conversation. They are sifting through different dossiers- you see this in glances carefully taken over your shoulder- and they finally settle on one. They call you in, ask you a few questions on your home life- marital status, children, close family members- and then send you outside again. This only makes you more nervous. Is this the day you're discharged? Given a promotion?
One of the higher-ups leans out of the glass door, “Come inside.” They say.
You do. “How do you feel about flying?” The lax-dressed man asks you. He goes on to ask you how much you know about Mexican CEO Roberto Vallejos, Narco Gang leader Guillermo Reyes and anything you know about the Mexican drug trade.
You give your answers, and depending on those answers, he replies appropriately. You receive orders to report to Holloman AFB at 0500 on the 22nd of June that night.
You are told to pack light.
You make your way to Holloman AFB by the deadline, are let through at the gate by the guard reading your name on a list. With a few other peculiar characters, you are hustled onto a small passenger plane that later lands on a country airstrip. You are picked up by a gray Chevy Suburban and a Hyundai Sonata ferries those who can't fit. Welcome to Dust Plains, Arizona, a small town in the middle of the desert that's been largely abandoned after the work dried up in the 80s. Your safehouse is in a relatively well-kept house on the inside of town. This town has all the very basic amenities one could ask for; a small convenience store where most groceries could be got, with a gas station to fuel up the Hyundai Sonata and the unmarked gray Chevy Suburban.
The mission briefing is held in the living room by the same lax-dressed man that you talked to those few days back. He tells you that the first lead in the operation you will be helping with is one Frank Olvik. You are searching for a freelance journalist and author named David Jimenez. He returned from Mexico a month ago and has recently gone missing. His superiors want you to investigate the disappearance of David Jimenez in relation to a recent drug outbreak.
"Officially, you are all advisers for the Department of Justice/Department of Homeland Security. Unofficially, we all know how this goes. This operation will be going after one of the most ruthless cartels rumored to have a foothold in several US agencies and responsible for a string of kidnappings and killings in Texas, Arizona, and California. Welcome to the team. My name is Steve Foster."
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All Forum-wide Rules Apply
The GM's word is law
This RP was inspired by the Delta Green tabletop game, The Cthulu Wars by Kenneth Hite and Kennon Bauman, True Detective S1 and Denis Villeneuve's Sicario
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Name: And any aliases, nicknames or code names, if applicable
Age:
Gender: Take this into account when choosing an Agency/Organization. There isn't exactly a lot of females in the Army Rangers or other such organizations.
Appearance: Height, build, facial structure. Voice and mannerisms, even. A picture may be attached, but oh, so help me if it's anime.
Agency/Organization: Rank, if necessary. We do need a balanced team and it wouldn't make sense for a group comprised entirely of tier-one special missions unit guys to be sleuthing.
Education: Were you a straight-edge, motivated college-boy riding a scholarship through West Point straight into a Lieutenant rank or did you learn everything you know during your time in the military/law enforcement?
Background: This is where you flex how good your writing and research into your character goes. Are they a Green Beret? A DEVGRU or Delta Force Operator? An independent contractor? CIA? DIA? DEA? ICE? US Marshal? What part of JSOC/US Intelligence Community/Federal Law Enforcement do you come from? You are the cowboy, the idealist, the unfettered, or the grizzled veteran with one last op in him. You are motivated and believe in what you're doing, half the reason you were picked.
The other half is that you've brushed shoulders with the unknown in some way but have yet to go mad; come across some weird stuff in the Afghan mountains, seized some weird artifacts on a raid, busted a small-time religious cult while undercover. Cognitive dissonance worked wonders, it seems.
Personality: Try to get detailed with this. You'll want to know how they'll react if they ever come across a drug-fueled sacrificial blood orgy to Nyarlathotep.
Weaknesses: At least one nonphysical and physical weakness.
Off-Duty Clothing/Equipment: Because you're not going to be walking around in door-kicking gear all day, every day on a clandestine op. Clothing: Weapons: Tools/Equipment:
Operational Clothing/Equipment: Nothing that would remove all doubt that you are part of the US military/are American. NATO weaponry is fine, but not required. Clothing: Weapons: Tools/Equipment:
Combat Marksmanship, long guns Marksmanship, handguns Marksmanship, sniper Demolitions/EOD – The ability to create makeshift explosives, use high-power explosives, and defuse them. Hand-to-Hand – Covers the use of one's own body as a weapon, as well as improvised weapons, knives, machetes and the like. Tactical Driving – Pit maneuvers, etc.
Tradecraft Stealth – Sneaking, concealment of objects on your person, and the ability to hide. Awareness – Listening, spotting hidden things. Interrogation – You are well-versed in being both the good cop and the bad cop. Persuade – You are versed in flipping people to your side using anything from their vices to their ideals, as well as convincing people why they should or should not do something. Disguise – Yourself or an item. Crafting – The ability to make things. SERE – Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape
Sciences & Studies First Aid – Treating light wounds, broken bones Surgery – Self-explanatory Criminology Anthropology Archaeology Computer Science Military Science History Forensics Law Psychology Engine Mechanics
Foreign Language – Just list any other languages your character is fluent or knowledgeable in.
Clout This is stuff like connections. List one or two people in positions that can get you information or do you favors. Anything from getting TSA to hassle someone at the airport to tampering with evidence.
This can be used a maximum of 3 times for various things that make sense for your connection(s) to be able to do for you. A higher-up in the US Marshal Service won't be able to reach down far enough to get you past a police cordon in the suburbs.
Team Roster
Case Officer Steve Foster, CIA SAD/SOG Parmamilitary Operations Officer
To what extent can the 'shoulder brushing' with the strange go? Are we talking 'might've seen a Skinwalker' level, or 'got swallowed up by the Dreamlands for a week' level?
To what extent can the 'shoulder brushing' with the strange go? Are we talking 'might've seen a Skinwalker' level, or 'got swallowed up by the Dreamlands for a week' level?
Definitely nothing insanity-inducing on its own. It's really places where the mind could wander but you really don't want it to. Things like your SEAL guy raiding pirates in Southeast Asia (for the CIA, no less) and has to wonder why the CIA spook had to double-tap that thing in the bodybag.
A big smuggling ring getting busted by US Coast Guard and Navy SWCC, only to have the guys from team two that went to secure another shipping container with the "DoD Liaison" all developed acute radiation poisoning.
Definitely nothing insanity-inducing on its own. It's really places where the mind could wander but you really don't want it to. Things like your SEAL guy raiding pirates in Southeast Asia (for the CIA, no less) and has to wonder why the CIA spook had to double-tap that thing in the bodybag.
A big smuggling ring getting busted by US Coast Guard and Navy SWCC, only to have the guys from team two that went to secure another shipping container with the "DoD Liaison" all developed acute radiation poisoning.
Etc.
What about unexplainable occurences or phenomena that has happened to the agents? You know, something odd has happened, but the agent has no idea of how or why, or even what happened.
I think my heart rate just bumped like 20 BpM. This is exactly what turns me way on. So down. Where should we throw the CS?
I'll wait until we've got one more guy roped into this thing before I open up the OOC. You can start throwing together a CS now though.
<Snipped quote by Leidenschaft>
What about unexplainable occurences or phenomena that has happened to the agents? You know, something odd has happened, but the agent has no idea of how or why, or even what happened.
Do elaborate. Really, anything is fair game to have witnessed/felt on the stipulation that it wouldn't cause a character to lose all sanity.
I'll wait until we've got one more guy roped into this thing before I open up the OOC. You can start throwing together a CS now though.
<Snipped quote by Peik>
Do elaborate. Really, anything is fair game to have witnessed/felt on the stipulation that it wouldn't cause a character to lose all sanity.
I was thinking of playing a man who, unbeknownst to him, was dead for two days (shot or something). Probably played into why he was selected for this sort of thing.
I was thinking of playing a man who, unbeknownst to him, was dead for two days (shot or something). Probably played into why he was selected for this sort of thing.
That's fine with me. People experience "dreams" during comas and surgeries and whatnot a lot.
<Snipped quote by Leidenschaft>
Consider me well roped, this looks very interesting and relevant to my interests.
Ach, gut. Everyone keep an eye on this thread, a link to the OOC will be coming later today.
