C.M. Simpson's Blog, page 131

Progress Report: Weeks 2-4, September 3-30, 2017

The first week of September was a bit rough from a health perspective, right up until I figured that almost two weeks of not exercising was having an adverse effect on my creativity and production. I returned to my walking routine on Tuesday, and, by Wednesday things had started to improve across the board – I even managed to start sleeping properly again. So, exercise and sleep, two very important things to being able to write, and not a wasteful diversion of time. Repeat after me: Exercise and sleep are not wasteful diversion of time. Right? Got that? Okay, so you get to remind me of this next time I fall off the wagon, okay? Yeah, okay – I’ll remind me of that next time.
Writing-wise, I got things moving, again. Not as much as I’d like, but I’m working on getting back up to speed.And then Week 2 hit, and I struggled. I struggled for most of Week 3, too. Week 4 saw me completing the essay-in-lieu for one subject, and hoping for the essay question for the essay-in-lieu for the other. That question hadn’t arrived by the time I went to bed last night. It’s here, now, though, so guess what this week’s task is…And I’ve had two kids home with gastro for the last week – fun times… One’s over it, now, and the other one is just starting to recover. If I don’t go down with it, this week, I will be very grateful.Progress for the last three weeks was as follows.Week 2 Progress
New words produced: 9,171Bloggery: 1,052University Prep and Assignments: 2,808 words + unrecorded hours
Week 3 Progress
New words produced: 0 creativeUniversity Prep and Assignments: 6,496 words, and 28 hours 35 min. recorded + 7 hours lectures/tutorials
Week 4 ProgressNew words produced: Nil creativeCovers created: 1University Prep and Assignments: 11,445 words, and 14 hours 44m recorded study/prep + 7 hours lectures/tutorials
Writing NewsLast week saw me try and get my shit together, after a particularly disrupted week, where Life did a change-direction-left on me, and I also had to get over the flu. Took me long enough, but it landed me behind, and I’m still struggling to catch up. This writing is like holding down a full-time job while doing full-time study.
Of last week’s priorities, I completed none of them, but I did manage to claw my way out of the rut I’d landed in, which was an achievement in, and of, itself. Let’s just say that exercise helped, but I’m still at a loose end as to what to do at the end of the year.
In addition, I got my walking back on track, and finally realised that this is no longer an optional activity for me. Be prepared for more Ingress and PokemonGo updates in future, as I strive to keep myself occupied while out and about so that I can keep in shape for writing.
I also completed a cover, for Army Boots and Stilettos, October's second release, and put Shades of Memory out in paperback via CreateSpace. 

















June-July Challenge: Babes in LondonThe first week of September, I tried to make Babes a priority, but only managed 4 days at a thousand words, and blog entries complete through to the end of October. Needless to say, this priority has slipped until I get the second essay done, and then I’ll be studying for exams. At that point, I’ll try to slip it in between the cracks.
NOTE: This adventure is not sanctioned in any way, shape or form by Fantasy Flight. It is not an official product, and I am in no way affiliated with them or they with me. There is no relationship between us. This adventure is mine, for fun, and for you, because some of you asked me to finish it.

Also, if you like this adventure and want to play it, please go buy the official rulebooks from somewhere where the original creators and publisher of the setting will be paid. I got mine from a Melbourne game store, but I’ve found PDF versions of the Player's Handbook and the Gamemaster's Handbook are now available from DriveThruFiction. If you enjoy their world, this is the best way to thank them.



Ingress UpdatesI returned to a regular walking routine this week, so Ingress got a bit of a work out, with the result that I decided, on Tuesday, that I might try and get the last 800,000 AP I needed, in order to level. I managed to achieve this on Friday, and it was a very cool thing to get under my belt.
After that, not much got done as I knuckled down to study.PokemonGo UpdatesEven though I increased my walking this week, I focussed mainly on Ingress, so not a lot of PokemonGo got played. Why? Because I’m hooked on the tactical and strategic elements of Ingress, and PokemonGo doesn’t have them. I enjoy hatching eggs and finding new pokemon and levelling, but I enjoy having to think strategically even more. Other NewsIn addition to everything else I have to prep for university classes. Guess what I was doing Saturday and Sunday? Shut-up. I know it’s late, but I have four weeks left, no supervisor in any of my areas of interest, and I’m not willing to sign away my IP in exchange for another piece of paper – even if it’s the PhD I don’t have. So, I’ll be done with formal study at the end of this year, and that makes it hard to stay motivated. Do I squander writing time on class prep in order to achieve the really high grades that no longer matter? Or do I start to use every moment I can to prepare for the future, whether it be writing, temping, or whatever? I’m still trying for the grades, but it’s getting harder to not just throw it all away. If I didn’t like wasting my time, or anyone else’s, I’d have chucked it in long ago – and, besides, I like my subjects so maybe I can do some ‘civilian scholar’ work in them in future.
Four weeks to go. I’m on my second last essay for grades – the next one I write will be for me, and to advance my understanding in whatever field it happens to be in. It might be a ways off, though. I have a ton of writing to do.Priorities for Week 1, October 2017I’m struggling, so my goals will be simple:

Finish the second essay-in-lieu-of-exam.Prep for classes.Get the CreateSpace version of the Army Boots and Stilettos cover doneGet the CreateSpace edit and format for Army Boots and Stilettos done.Write 1 piece of flash fiction each dayWrite 1 piece of poetry each dayComplete 1 Inktober sketch each day.

I’d like to add the format and upload for ebook, as well, but I just don’t think I can squish it in. We’ll leave it as part of the wish list, okay?

Babes in London: Act Four, Scene 1B (Part 4: Kew Gardens—In Case of DI Mullins)

If PCs call D.I. Mullins:
D.I. Mullins arrives in the garden with Leyila’s parents. If the PCs have mentioned Lewistrom Beam being present they arrive with Beam’s father, as well, but have not had time to collect his mother. Modify this scene as necessary. Read, or paraphrase accordingly:
Suddenly, Anika’s eyes widen, and she turns towards a point behind you. “They’re coming,” she says, but she does not seem to be afraid. At the same time, your mobile rings, and D.I. Mullins’ number comes up.
Give the PC who called the D.I. time to react. The girls won’t hide from Leyila’s parents, or the police, although they are very apprehensive. They seek reassurance from the PCs that they will be safe, and that the PCs will help them find Anika’s parents. The police want to drop Anika home in the care of Leyila’s parents. Upon seeing Lewistrom, if they have not been informed, they insist on dropping him off first. They will also insist on this, if Lewistrom’s father is with them, as they are concerned about Lewistrom’s mother being home alone. In this case, go to Act 5, Scene 1, where the PCs arrive in time to thwart the Setite attempt to abduct her. If the PCs insist on dropping off the children at Leyila’s house before collecting Mrs. Beam, go to Act 5, Scene 2. Either way, they will still arrive in time to try to prevent Mrs. Beam’s abduction.
NOTE: This adventure is not sanctioned in any way, shape or form by Fantasy Flight. It is not an official product, and I am in no way affiliated with them or they with me. There is no relationship between us. This adventure is mine, for fun, and for you, because some of you asked me to finish it.

Also, if you like this adventure and want to play it, please go buy the official rulebooks from somewhere where the original creators and publisher of the setting will be paid. I got mine from a Melbourne game store, but I’ve found PDF versions of the Player's Handbook and the Gamemaster's Handbook are now available from DriveThruFiction. If you enjoy their world, this is the best way to thank them.

 

Just Released: Shades of Memory

I'm pretty excited to announce the release of Shades of Memory , a dark urban fantasy thriller set in Australia's capital city, featuring werewolves, shadow mages, shadow creatures, ancient artifacts, government secrets, and internationals spies and intrigue. It's a new genre for me, and I really enjoyed writing it. I hope you enjoy the story just as much.


When Aggie Dormain arrives in Canberra to paint some old diggers, she does not expect to meet an out-of-work archaeologist investigating an alien conspiracy, much less to be pulled into an adventure that would give Indiana Jones a run for his money.

Babes in London: Act Four, Scene 1B (Part 3: Kew Gardens—In Case of the Gehenna Consortium)

If PCs call the Gehenna Consortium for back-up:

Alice McIntyre arrives with her goon squad. She comes on foot, accompanied by half a dozen men, but, before negotiations reach a point where opposed Trickery tests are required, the Consortium sends a retrieval team. The team arrives in two helicopters, and the PCs might notice that these are approaching. Give them a short time to react to the helicopters’ approach, if they do. A successful opposed TH4 Air (Senses) test alerts them to the fact Alice is watching the machines approach, and seems to expect them. Anika and Leyila make a break for it as soon as the helicopters stop overhead. Alice orders the PCs to help capture the children and bring them back. The PCs can either choose to aid Gehenna in capturing the girls, or they can hinder them and help the girls escape. There are consequences for either path. If they help the Consortium, they retain any standing they might have with the group, but they lose the Modern Era status of friendship with the girls. (i.e. They lose the benefits of Friend of Anika Collins or Friend of Leyila Andrews.) Their actions do not affect their Mythic era status with the brood, however. If they choose to help the girls, they lose any standing and benefits they might have with the Gehenna Corporation, including the Modern rewards of: Friend of the Gehenna Consortium, and gain entry into the Gehenna Redemption scenario.
If the PCs are successful in helping the children escape:
Anika leads them through a garage, and several back gardens (via loose boards in fences, or gaps in hedges), until they come to an abandoned potting shed, which she secures after they have all gone in. It’s cramped, but seems safe enough. At this point, she asks the PCs what they think they should do next, who the ‘bad guys’ were, and if they know of somewhere safe the children can wait while the PCs rescue their parents. Right now, they all want to go home, and, if the PCs dither too long in deciding, Lewistrom throws a tantrum about wanting his mother. He calms only if they promise to take him to her. At this point, the characters can either return Lewistrom (Act 5, Scene 1); go to Leyila’s parents (Act 5, Scene 2); or attempt to hide the children in their own place (Act 5, Scene 3C). PCs lose all friendly standing with the Consortium and are no longer considered Friends, or Better Friends of the Gehenna Consortium.
If the PCs are successful in helping to capture the children:
Anika regards them with horror at their betrayal, and they lose any Modern day rewards regarding friendship with the girls or the brood, until they redeem themselves. Go to Act 5, Scene 3A, and modify as required.
If the PCs are captured helping the children but the children escape:
The PCs wake up in cells, either in a shipping container in the Connix Haulage Ltd. yard at the Eastway Commercial Centre, or in holding cells at Genesis Ltd in Innova Park, where the Consortium plans to keep them until they have learned what they can of the PCs’ supernatural abilities, and either turned them into loyal Consortium agents, or they PCs are no longer useful in Genesis Ltd.’s stem cell and viral research. How they escape from this facility, where it is, and the nature of its business, is up to the GM—as is how to bring the adventure back on track. (Although reinserting them in Act 6, Scene 1, is always a possibility, should their escape either the shipping container or holding cell be successful.) PCs are no longer considered Friends of/Better Friends of the Gehenna Consortium, and lose these awards and all accompanying benefits.
If the PCs fail to help the children escape and they are all caught:
Go to Act 5, Scene 3A, and modify as necessary. Note, also, that the PCs have been stripped of their standing as Friends of/Better Friends of the Gehenna Consortium, and, although the Consortium is happy to use them to retrieve Anika’s parents and keep the children happy until the two groups can be separated, they plan to capture them and use them in their human-viral genome experiments as soon as the Consortium no longer has a use for them being ‘in the wild’.
If the PCs fail in their attempts to help capture the children:
They lose any Modern friendship status with the children, and skip most of Act 5. The Gehenna Consortium, however, wants them to find Anika’s parents, as they have had prophecies revealing that the PCs’ assistance is of the greatest importance to winning the children to their side, although, once this is done, they have other plans involving the PCs’ DNA. The PCs are told to win the children’s affections, and convince the families to seek shelter with the Consortium’s subsidiary, Genesis Down Under. Go to Act 5, Scene 1, letting PCs choose an option of where to go first. Gehenna’s preference is Anika’s house, Act 5 Scene1B, although the PCs might have other ideas.
If the PCs called the Gehenna Consortium:
The Consortium does not believe in taking chances. They have sent their best, including a number of ex-military types who have found it more profitable to make a living doing what they know for ‘private’ firms, than working for the government. The Consortium folk, however, are slightly less organised than LN7, with no designated team to go for the girl, or to provide cover, so all agents are focussed on capturing the children, and they keep to this goal, unless the PCs do something to get their attention, or get in their way.
Consortium Soldiers (5):
Use the same stats as the Soldier (Cypher) entry in the Gamemaster’s Handbook .
Thugs (10):
Use the Thug stats from the Gamemaster’s Handbook . Note that these mooks are armed with Browning PRO-40 pistols, rather than chains, and will use them against the PCs. They try to capture the children by grabbing them, and will use the following sequence, or a variation to catch them:
Stride-Grab-Hold Effect: The target is considered pinned and suffers a +2 penalty to break the Grab in addition to other penalties imposed by size, or Presses that followed this sequence – as per the Grab rules.
Hedge Wizards (4): use the states in the Gamemaster’s Handbook .
Alice McIntyre
Era Modern; Race Natural being; APL 1; Init 8; Aspects Fire 2, Water 3, Air 4, Earth 3; Health 3m; <3 / 3+ / 6+ / 9+ / 12+ / 15+ / 18+ / 21+; Size/Reach 0 / 2; Armor 0; Karma 15; Stride 20 ft. (Moderate)Colt Python Elite 24 ~ range 150 ft. ~ reload 1/6 Fist 3/L, Kick 4/M, Sequences NilSkills Athletics 2, Casting 4, Interaction 4, Ka 2, Knowledge: Ancient Cultures 2, Knowledge: London 4, Knowledge: Occult 2, Knowledge: Religion 2, Melee 2, Quickness 2, Ranged 2, Senses 2, Trickery 3, Will 3; Edges Allies 3, Casting 2, Mentor 2, Network: Occult 2, Network: Academic World 2; Spells Rank 1 – Beguile, Buzz Kill (A); Rank 2 – Aegis (B), Slow the Living (D); Traits Supernatural heritage (fae)
NOTE: This adventure is not sanctioned in any way, shape or form by Fantasy Flight. It is not an official product, and I am in no way affiliated with them or they with me. There is no relationship between us. This adventure is mine, for fun, and for you, because some of you asked me to finish it.

Also, if you like this adventure and want to play it, please go buy the official rulebooks from somewhere where the original creators and publisher of the setting will be paid. I got mine from a Melbourne game store, but I’ve found PDF versions of the Player's Handbook and the Gamemaster's Handbook are now available from DriveThruFiction. If you enjoy their world, this is the best way to thank them.

Ingress Report: Exercise, Levelling, and Building Blobby

Why Ingress?

By now, you pretty much know how much I hate just going outside, enjoying the beautiful (or not-so-beautiful) weather and scenery, and just… walking. Being raised to understand that anything that does not lead directly towards achieving a livelihood is a colossal waste of time, I have a lot of trouble justifying just going for a walk.
Sure, in my head I understand the health benefits, the lower blood sugar, the lower blood pressure, the easier maintenance of a healthier weight, lower stress, reduction of back pain, reduction of the likelihood of a back injury recurring, greater creativity, and greater productivity, but the actual doing? Well, that always seems like I’m not doing anything. So call me human. The thing is, it’s easier to get motivated if I make it fun, so I go outside and play.
How do I justify playing? Well, walking is something I have to do… Trust me, there’s logic in there somewhere, but whatever works, right?
This time, I returned to a walking routine when I got too stressed and tired to write, and wasn’t achieving anything at my desk. I was also grouchy, and couldn’t sleep, and I realised I’d taken a break out of the walking routine for almost two weeks. Something my body didn’t appreciate. The goal is an hour a day, followed by 10,000 steps if I have the time. Either way, the hour is the minimum.
This Week’s Goals
Since I was about 780,000 AP off levelling, I bribed myself with a patch of densely packed portals in a local suburban centre, and the promise of a hefty session of micro-fielding. 260,000 AP later, and I’d managed to work my way out of the centre and start filling in the periphery. I have to admit, while the initial bribe was AP, the most fun I have with Ingress is creating little blue triangles in the ephemera, and then turning the intel map into a colouring guide. The aim, this week, was to get to L15 and see how much of the local suburban centre I could ‘colour in’ before the greens came along and took it all down, again.
How It All Went Down:
Day one saw the centre of the blob, all blued up and ready for expansion. 260,000+ AP in total, with approximately 90,000 from taking down the existing green fields, and 170,000 from bluing up the portals and reinstalling the fields. Day 2 would see it grow.The best laid plans of mice and men, and all that.
The next morning, the fields were still up when I got on the bus to expand my patch of blue, but they were almost all down by the time I arrived, with the portals left strangely white. Yes! I got to do it all again. 190,000 AP later, and I had started expanding the blob.The third day, the fields stayed up overnight, and another of the local blues started expanding the blob, as well. Now, it really was starting to become fun. I might not see my local team mates a lot, but I like knowing they’re around, and I really like it when they come and add to something I’m doing - or when I get to build on something of theirs. It makes me feel like I’m part of the team, instead of just knowing the team is out there... somewhere…The third day, I was able to expand my little patch of blue even further, taking out one of the local green L8 portals. There was a second one, nearby, but it would have broken my pattern to take it out before I was ready to field from it, so I left it. A lot more walking occurred in a shorter amount of time, but less AP was earned – only around 85,000. Still, that’s not a bad day’s work. To celebrate, I got off the bus early and took down a field from one of my local walk routes; it had been annoying me all week, but I’d been saving my blasters and power cubes. With what I’d hacked in the last few days, this was no longer a problem – although my resource limits were.That evening, I had another green take down the core of my blob – logical, given the amount of AP stored there; a third nibbled at the edges; and a fourth took out the local walk portal – also logical as it never stays up long. Why they didn’t bother re-fielding or capturing it, I’m not sure. They’re often weird that way. There were also a couple of ripples by a fifth, but nothing a bit of recharging didn’t fix.By this stage, I was rapt! I had been wondering what I was going to do to get the final 160,000 AP I needed for levelling, and had mapped out contingencies to extend my blob just a little further into one of the local parks. This is not a hardship; it’s a lovely park. But the weather was looking to storm, so I was worried. If the core of the blob I’d been working on all week stayed down until I could get to it on the fourth day, I’d have a good chance of dodging the bad weather. Otherwise I was going to be one soggy blue by the end of it.Next morning started off okay. Another local blue took back a half dozen portals at the core of the blob. Awesome! I could build from there. I had Real-Life Adulting to do in the morning, so I broke the routine I’d had of getting into that suburban centre just after 09:00, and went to a completely different burb, instead.This ended up being a good thing. Those greens had obviously caught on, and were waiting. Now, maybe they weren’t waiting for me to rock up, so they could stop me bluing up the interior, again. Maybe it was just a coincidence they were in the area at all, but I’d never have gotten the fielding done that I needed to do, while they were there, and they’d taken down the baseline I’d planned for the next phase, so I’d have some serious re-jinking to do, if they were anywhere around, and looking to make life difficult.I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to cheer when your portals start crashing, or laugh, but that was my first reaction – followed by a certain amount of worry that my unwittingly helpful opponents would still be there when I arrived later in the day. This was going to get interesting. Those pesky greens weren’t making it easy. They were making building Blobby downright difficult! Even if the AP was pretty good, and I had most of the keys to get the core back up quickly, expansion was going to have to wait another day. Still, maybe I’d level before I had to call it quits for the afternoon. Family commitments will always trump the game, so I had a pretty tight schedule to keep.By the time I got there, the greens had taken down almost all my team-mate’s repair job, and seriously dented what was left. It took me just under an hour to set things to rights, and even then, I think I missed a couple of spots on the periphery. Result: One urban centre all blue... again! Newly greened portals, links and fields cleaned up and returned to their proper colour, and 176, 148 AP later and not only had I managed to scrape through to Level 15, but Blobby’s core was back up again.For the third time this week.I wonder how long it will take them to take it down…Addendum:Two hours, apparently.For half.Busy little devils, those greens…Poor Blobby. Next time, I’ll try to remember pictures. The fluidity of this game is quite fascinating to watch.

PokemonGo: Still No Raiding for Me (Error 33)

Well, on the upside it looks like Niantic has made some progress on the red-banner error that stops me from raiding. And, while I *still* could not have taken this big fella down on my own, it's a little disappointing that, months after their introduction, I still can't enter raids. Mind you, what a *very* pretty pokemon - and it came to visit not once, but twice in one day. What are the chances of that happening again? <sigh>

So, this is this morning's effort. Notice that I'm still being asked if I want to "rejoin" the battle, when I've never been part of it to start with. I suspect this might be part of the error, but I can't be sure. Anyway, you'll also notice the intriguing (33) at the end of the Error message, and the more detailed message, which is an improvement on the single-word message I used to get.


And this is from the same gym this afternoon. Same error message,but I wasn't quick enough to screen-shot it.I will also note that this is the first time I've been able to catch my pokemon facing off against a raid beast, so that was pretty exciting, too, even if I was errored out straight after each shot.


Like I said, it is a very pretty pokemon. I'm hoping it, and all the others are around by the time this glitch gets fixed.

Babes in London: Act Four, Scene 1B (Part 2: Kew Gardens—In Case of LN7)

If PCs call LN7 for back-up:
LN7 arrives in force, and with back-up. The Girl-with-the-Dog comes straight to the garden and attempts to convince the girls to go with her willingly. She is accompanied by 5 LN7 operatives (2 thelema, and 3 cyphers) whose sole task is to secure the girls if Girl fails to do so. There are other agents nearby, but they hang back unless the children try to escape and the PCs try to assist the children rather than the agency. Anika is very taken aback by their arrival, but will speak with the Girl.
If the Girl makes a successful TH4 Air (Trickery) roll, opposed by Anika’s Earth (Interaction or Trickery) skill, whichever is higher, the Anika agrees to go with LN7, taking Leyila and Lewistrom with them. LN7 allows the PCs to tag along. If the Girl is unsuccessful in her Trickery test, Anika and Leyila try to escape, and the PCs are ordered after them, along with a number of other LN7 operatives. PCs must, at this point, decide if their primary loyalty is to Anika’s Brood, or to LN7, and act accordingly
They can choose to pursue the girls and capture them for LN7, or to foil LN7’s attempts to capture the girls. If they choose the former, they lose the status (and benefits) of the Modern rewards: Friend of Anika Collins/Leyila Andrews, until such time as they do something to redeem themselves in the girls’ eyes. Their actions do not affect their Mythic era status with the brood, however. If they choose to foil LN7, they not only lose any beneficial standing with that group (such as Friend of LN7/Better Friend of LN7/Access to LN7 Library), but they will also be put on a hit list and designated ‘Containment Required’, which earns them entrance into a Containment Required scenario, and means that any future interactions with the group are conducted on a hostile footing—at least, from LN7’s point of view.
If the Girls Agree to go with LN7:
The PCs are allowed to accompany them, and Anika requests this, if the PCs do not think to ask. They are taken to a group of waiting limousines and driven from the gardens to a basement garage in an office block belonging to the agency. Go to Act 5, Scene 3b.
Escape Attempt:
The garden is full of places a child can hide, but it is not able to hide them from LN7s advanced equipment. Attempting to stay in one place, under cover of foliage results in the PCs and the children being surrounded, and captured, as LN7’s snipers find a clear line of fire and dart them, or they are surrounded by an overwhelming force of agents and given the choice of surrender. This can either lead to a fight, or the escapees being darted. The darts contain a powerful soporific and victims wake up in a cell at LN7’s Headquarters. Go to Act 5, Scene 3B, and modify it accordingly.
The childrens’ tactics: Anika is not aware of LN7’s equipment, however, and tries to hide in the foliage. If she sees this is not working, she’ll try to make it to the edge of the garden and the way they came in. This will require 3 rounds of successfully evading LN7’s (or the PCs’) pursuit. The PCs are able to follow the girls, either through the gap in the fence, or over an easily scalable section of the wall. One more round of evading their pursuit is all the girls (and the PCs) require to escape the agency’s clutches and move on to the next part of the adventure. Leyila will do her best to evade capture, also, but will try to trip or hinder agents who look like they are about to capture her friend. Anika is burdened with Lewistrom Beam, and this adds a +2 penalty to any physical tests she must make that require agility or speed. If a PC takes on the burden of Beam, the child adds a +1 penalty to any physical tests the PC must make that require agility or speed.
LN7’s tactics: The agents of LN7 are seasoned veterans when it comes to dealing with supernatural foes. They are equipped with darts that can be used to put targets to sleep for capture, or the usual, lethal rounds. At least three of them have net launchers, which are reserved for the children, unless the PCs are the only ones left free. They are aware that, if they have been ordered to bring the children in, then the children are anomalies and therefore potentially dangerous. However, they are children, and the agents will not use lethal force against them. The same does not apply to the PCs, whom the agents will credit with knowing who and what they are. However, unless the PCs manifest supernatural traits, such as their draconic forms (either in full, or partially), or show an ability to use magic or psychic abilities against them, the agents will try to bring them in alive. LN7 still runs a number of facilities for the study of anomalies, and their understanding is that is often best done when the subject is alive. Alive does not mean uninjured (or that this will remain the case), but it is preferred. This policy, however, does not mean that agents will be put at risk. If the PCs use lethal or supernatural force against them, all bets are off. In this pursuit, the children are the main focus, and PCs who side with them will be treated as distractions and dealt with swiftly to prevent them from hindering the capture. There will always be a core team of five LN7 agents who focus solely on the children, and ignore the PCs, relying on the rest of the team to cover them as they try to achieve their prime objective. The agents acting as cover take 1 round to enter the combat as they have hung back out of sight.
If the PCs are successful in helping the children escape:
Anika leads them through a garage, and several back gardens (via loose boards in fences, or gaps in hedges), until they come to an abandoned potting shed, which she secures after they have all gone in. It’s cramped, but seems safe enough. At this point, she asks the PCs what they think they should do next, who the agents were, and if they know of somewhere safe the children can wait while the PCs rescue their parents. Right now, they all want to go home, and, if the PCs dither too long in deciding, Lewistrom throws a tantrum about wanting his mother. He calms only if they promise to take him to her. At this point, the characters can either return Lewistrom (Act 5, Scene 1); go to Leyila’s parents (Act 5, Scene 2); or attempt to hide the children in their own place (Act 5, Scene 3C). PCs are now designated ‘containment required’, and gain entry into a Containment Required scenario.
If the PCs are successful in helping to capture the children:
Anika regards them with horror at their betrayal, and they lose any Modern day rewards regarding friendship with the girls or the brood, until they redeem themselves. Go to Act 5, Scene 3B, and modify as required.
If the PCs are captured helping the children but the children escape:
The PCs wake up in cells, either beneath an office building that serves as LN7’s London Headquarters, or in a facility elsewhere. How they escape from this facility, where it is, and the nature of its business, is up to the GM—as is how to bring the adventure back on track. (Although reinserting them in Act 6, Scene 1, is always a possibility, should their escape from the facility or LN7’s HQ be successful.) PCs are now designated ‘containment required’. If they escape, they have gained entry into a Containment Required scenario.
If the PCs fail to help the children escape and they are all caught:
Go to Act 5, Scene 3B, and modify as necessary. Note, also, that the PCs have been designated ‘containment required’, and, although LN7 is happy to use them to retrieve Anika’s parents and keep the children happy until the two groups can be separated, they plan to arrest them as soon as LN7 no longer has a use for them being ‘in the wild’. They have gained entry into a Containment Required scenario.
If the PCs fail in their attempts to help capture the children:
They lose any Modern friendship status with the children, and skip most of Act 5. LN7, however, wants them to find Anika’s parents, as their mystics are convinced it is of the greatest importance to winning the children to their side. They are told to do their best to ‘win the children over’, and to convince the families to enter a government-based protection program for their own safety. Go to Act 5, Scene 1, letting PCs choose an option of where to go first. LN7’s preference is Anika’s house, Act 5Scene1B, although the PCs might have other ideas.
LN7 Agents:
There are two groups of agents the GM will need to track: the ones focussed on the children, and the ones covering them from the PCs’ interference (if there is any). There are 2 thelema adepts and 3 cyphers (all carrying net launchers) focused on the children, and double that for the PCs. (LN7 does not do anything by halves.)
Thelema Adepts
See the Game Master’s Handbook .
Soldier (Cypher)
See the Game Master’s Handbook .

NOTE: This adventure is not sanctioned in any way, shape or form by Fantasy Flight. It is not an official product, and I am in no way affiliated with them or they with me. There is no relationship between us. This adventure is mine, for fun, and for you, because some of you asked me to finish it.

Also, if you like this adventure and want to play it, please go buy the official rulebooks from somewhere where the original creators and publisher of the setting will be paid. I got mine from a Melbourne game store, but I’ve found PDF versions of the Player's Handbook and the Gamemaster's Handbook are now available from DriveThruFiction. If you enjoy their world, this is the best way to thank them.

Progress Report: Week 1 September, 2017

Last week saw some significant progress for the first week of September. It also saw a massive change of expected direction, with focus shifting to finding full-time work as opposed to full-time writing. I have four months to turn that around, but I’m a realist; it probably won’t happen. Ironically, that is only going to push me to try and prove myself wrong, but I doubt I can build a liveable wage from my writing in the next four months. The next twelve was a possibility. Once I start working full-time that goal will take a little longer, especially in today’s crowded market. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?
 
Week 1 Progress (September 3-9, 2017)
New words produced: 9,171Outlines and Notes: 0Works completed: 0Works edited: 0Covers created: 0Works published: 0Works submitted: 0Competitions Entered: 0Bloggery: 1,052University Prep and Assignments: 2,808 (and uncounted hours)
Writing News
Last week saw some shorter works progressed, but a lot of time lost to the first essay, when it became uncooperative. I struggled with it, and, while it will pass, it probably won’t hit my Distinction average. Still, it went over time, and I’m out of time.
June-July Challenge: Babes in London
After a slow start, Babes got some of the loving it deserved and needed, this week, with almost 3,000 new words laid down, and the next five Friday’s worth of entry ready to go. If I can get another five entries done, that will see me through the heavy exam and assessment phase that’s going to hit in five weeks’ time. Ideally, I’m going to try and keep going with laying down the thousand a day I’ve been managing, but we all know what happens when I say that, so let’s not go there, okay? Just keep your fingers crossed, and I will do my best, regardless.
NOTE: This adventure is not sanctioned in any way, shape or form by Fantasy Flight. It is not an official product, and I am in no way affiliated with them or they with me. There is no relationship between us. This adventure is mine, for fun, and for you, because some of you asked me to finish it.

Also, if you like this adventure and want to play it, please go buy the official rulebooks from somewhere where the original creators and publisher of the setting will be paid. I got mine from a Melbourne game store, but I’ve found PDF versions of the Player's Handbook and the Gamemaster's Handbook are now available from DriveThruFiction. If you enjoy their world, this is the best way to thank them.



Ingress Updates
Last week’s Ingress consisted of the barest necessity. For one thing, I still felt sick, for another, I was still horribly behind on my essay and that took priority starting Monday. Yes, I did give myself time off on the weekend, but it was cold and I wasn’t well, so I got to write. This is frustrating given I’m less than 700k of reaching Level 15, and should have made it, but sometimes priorities shift. It’s been a rough week.

PokemonGo Updates
PokemonGo suffered the same fate as Ingress, although I did manage to do more catching than usual, always on the fly, and mostly without breaking stride.

Priorities for Week 2, September 10-16, 2017
This week’s priorities are as follows:Finalise the second essay for university – it’s due next week;Maintain 1,000 words a day on Babes , and, hopefully, get the blog entries for it complete through to November;Create the cover for the Young Adult Science Fiction novel, Army Boots and Stilettos ;Edit Army Boots and Stilettos ; Upload Army Boots and Stilettos for pre-order.

Paperback Release: Collected Short Works from 2015 and 2016

I should also let you know that C.M. Simpson: Short Works from 2015 and 2016 has now been released as a large-print paperback. It is currently available on CreateSpace, and should be available from other venues, such as Amazon.com later in the week.


Seventh sons and space colonies, bird flu and poetry from the stars, flying ships, early Australia and fairy, pixies and elves in modern urbania, all can be found in this collection of poems and tales.

Progress Report: August, 2017

This report summarises the writing progress made in August. Much happened, and I find myself at the end of August, and half-way through my final semester of university.
 
Overall Progress for August, 2017
New words produced: 32,973Outlines and Notes: 2,924Works completed: 0Works edited: 4Covers created: 3Works published:6Works submitted: 0Competitions Entered: 0Bloggery: 9,398University Prep and Assignments: 1,571 (and innumerable hours)