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Encounter Conditions
Being on Dr. Thomas' Quest, otherwise he won't actually talk to you, if doing Dr Amundsen's Legacy, Slimy Student shows up instead.
Initial Text
A young man with greased-back hair notices you. "Ah, you must be Dr. Thomas's new catch. Welcome aboard."
"What can I do for you?"
As he waits for his response, you notice him nursing an over/under with one hand and playing chess online with the other. Kids these days, can't focus on one thing at a time.
Summary of Choices
- I need a drink - the over/under
- I need some cred - fresh cred chip
- I need information
- Chess - Go to "Care for a game?" options
- Dr. Thomas - information
- Eclipse - information
- Midgard - information
- The Protests - information
- The PDA (Only after PDA Rundown) - information
- Watson - Gain 2 XP in Will)
- The frat guy - (During Halloween 2010, after meeting Chuck) informaiton
- Halloween - (During Halloween 2011 and onwards) information
- The dorms - (Post Halloween 2012) information
- Nothing - Nothing
- Care for a Game? - (Requires Chess) If you lose, Gain 3 XP in Perception, better at chess, otherwise:
- Money - +~127 cred, 2 battered cred chip, 1 fresh cred chip*
- Information
- Dr. Thomas - Unlocks conversation with Dr. Thomas
- Eclipse - information
- Midgard - information
- The Protests - information
- This PDA - (Only on Dr. Amundsen's Legacy) - Unlocks PDA Rundown next day
- The PDA - (Only after PDA Rundown) - information
- Dr. Amundsen - Gain the over/under.
- Watson (Only if you know about Watson) - information
- Your dad fight crime? - information
- How about the Vigilante? - Gain the over/under.
- How about the Hammer? - information
- Sorry for asking - Nothing
- The frat guy - (During Halloween 2010, after meeting Chuck) information
- Halloween (During Halloween 2011 and onwards) information
- The dorms - (After Halloween 2012) information
- Nothing - information
- Honor - Gain 4 XP* in Will if you win, 3 XP in Perception if you lose
- Nothing - Nothing
*note only once per day, then you get the over/under
Choice Text and Results
I need a drink
"You believe in the simple things."
He smiles and hands you a drink, "I like that."
You found: the over/under
I need some cred
"Creds? Sure, take this. I'll just tell mom I lost it," he chuckles to himself.
You found: fresh cred chip
or if you have won cred from him with chess the same day
He laughs in honest amusement, a strange sound coming of out his mouth. "Sorry but you already cleaned me out playing chess, remember? Here, have a drink instead, I'll put it on my tab."
He slides you his over/under and orders another for himself.
You found: the over/under
I need information
"Questions are dangerous, friend. Can't tell you too much about Midgard, but what do you want to know?"
Chess
"Hmmm?" he looks down at the chess piece in his hand. "Sure, I suppose we can do that."
He slides his comm out, which projects a holographic board over the table. "What would you like to play for? Don't say to the death, it's overdone."
(Choose from one of the "Care for a Game?" options)
Dr. Thomas
"Doctor Thomas? Well, not much to tell I suppose."
He slurps the top layer off his over/under. "Well, alright, here's what I know. She works downtown for… one of the big corps there, but she's up to her shades in the Eclipse trade."
He stops to think for a moment, then slams the rest of his drink. "Scary lady either way. Don't piss her off."
Eclipse
"Eclipse? Well, it's a pretty big deal in these parts. The Third Eye can't get enough of the stuff… like candy."
He pauses to take a drink. "All I really know about it is what the Third Eye say. And they say some pretty crazy stuff. You'd be better off talking to the source."
Midgard
He looks around, as though to make sure no one is listening. "They say it's not just a company, it's a way of life. They're right. My dad worked for Midgard, my grandfather worked for Midgard, and I've already got my job there lined up."
"Just don't cross them. People on the wrong side of office politics end up floating in the lake and they take even less kindly to outsiders interfering."
The Protests
"Well, they're done now, but they were protesting because some Dr. Myers guy was working on a sample for Midgard."
"Midgard has a bad rep around here. Which is kind of silly, you know? Place might as well be called Midgard University, almost every cred that keeps this place going comes from the corps."
This PDA
He thoughtfully sips the top layer off an over/under while examining the PDA. "Hmmm, yeah, it might look like normal hardware, but it's corp grade… which around here means Midgard. I like to think I'm a nice guy… but not a pissing-off-Midgard-for-a-stranger nice guy."
He shrugs. "Sorry."
Dr Amundsen
"Amundsen, yeah, I know her. Keeps trying to fail me, not that I blame her."
He picks up his over/under, considers it for a long moment, then sets it back down, disturbing the layers. "I'll give her this, though: she actually gives a damn. Not many teachers would show up in the back room of a bar to try to reach a student."
He shrugs and finally slams his drink. "I hear Evans is okay too, though."
The PDA
He shakes his head. "You just don't let up, do you?"
After a few seconds' wait, he cracks. "Fine, fine. I already told you the plan, though."
"You'll have to break into a Midgard facility, a serious one like the main Slags lab. The get admin rights to their server and open a temporary connection to the central Midgard server… technically it's a… doesn't matter, anyway. Hook up the PDA, it'll start downloading the key. Just don't get shot and you're golden."
"Good? Good. Now, please, don't ask again."
Watson
The young man's face twists into a grimace for a moment. "Wats… no, I have no idea what you're talking about."
He glares at you wordlessly until you get uncomfortable enough to leave.
You've earned 2 XP in Will
Halloween
Nothing
He nods. "Good, good. Well, come back anytime."
Care for a game?
"Hmmm?" he looks down at the chess piece in his hand. "Sure, I suppose we can do that."
He slides his comm out, which projects a holographic board over the table. "What would you like to play for? Don't say to the death, it's overdone."
Money
(If you win)
"Money? Seriously? Let's choose something we have less of, like air. But alright, if you want," he finally stops complaining and sits down to play.
He plays expertly, but you're just better than he is. He relies a bit too much on his knights and once you take those, it's a quick checkmate.
"Ahh, the wound to my pride is far greater than the wound to my pocketbook, but you've managed both in one stroke."
You gained 101-145 credits!
You found 2-3 of: battered cred chip, fresh cred chip
(If you lose)
"Money? Seriously? Let's choose something we have less of, like air. But alright, if you want," he finally stops complaining and sits down to play.
He plays expertly, relying a bit too much on his knights perhaps, but not showing any real weakness. You lose pretty badly, but do learn a few new moves from the experience, though.
You've gotten better at chess.
You've earned 3 XP in Perception
(If you've won at least once today:)
"Money? Seriously? Let's choose something we have less of, like air. But alright, if you want," he finally stops complaining and sits down to play.
He plays expertly, but you're just better than he is. He relies a bit too much on his knights and once you take those, it's a quick checkmate.
"Sorry friend, you can't hustle me again until I make it home to refill my account. Here, have a drink instead, I'll put it on my tab." He slides you an over/under.
You found: the over/under
Information
(If you win)
"Information. A fine choice, I'd say. Let's see if you can take it," he slams the rest of his over/under and gets ready to play.
He plays expertly, but you're just better than he is. He relies a bit too much on is knights and once you take those, it's a quick checkmate.
He nods solemnly. "Alright, you got me. What do you want to know more about?"
(If you lose)
"Information. A fine choice, I'd say. Let's see if you can take it," he slams the rest of his over/under and gets ready to play.
He plays expertly, relying a bit too much on his knights perhaps, but not showing any real weakness. You lose pretty badly, but do learn a few new moves from the experience, though.
You've earned 3 XP in Perception
Dr. Thomas (from winning chess)
He nods and sips the top layer off his over/under. "Fair enough, I suppose you deserve to know. Although, I don't know that much more than you do."
"Dr. Thomas works for Midgard Industries, which I suppose you might have guessed already. She's with Office Services, which is where they put their moderately secret stuff, trusting people to ignore it because of the name."
He sighs. "So, I can't really say for sure if her Eclipse business is part of her day job or just something she's doing on the side."
Eclipse (from winning chess)
"Eclipse? You mean other than the Third Eye handing it out like it's candy?" he looks into his over/under.
"Well a few other gangs are in the business too. Renegades out around the highways and the Fangs, well used to, in Southside and the Docks. All the same MO. Taking a few creds each, if that."
"So here's my theory, somebody's trying to get a lot of people hooked before they throttle down supply. Pretty standard. But it's someone with deep, deep pockets and some serious connections."
He shrugs. "Just my guess though. Everyone but the yakuza seems to have their finger in it. I'd suggest you keep yours out unless you want to get bitten."
Midgard (from winning chess)
"Today in Midgard news?" he chuckles and sips the top off his over/under. "Well, big operations in the Slags, very hush hush. Some people say they're hunting down a saboteur, some say they're harvesting something from the wreckage."
He tosses back the rest of the drink. "Ah, well, who can say, really?"
The Protests (from winning chess)
"The protesters? There isn't much to say really. Well…" he looks around cautiously.
"They were protesting because of a sample Midgard gave a guy by the name of Myers to look at. What people don't know is where the sample came from."
"What I've heard is that a Midgard test subject escaped, claimed to meet some kind of crazy sea serpent on the Docks and got mauled. He's back in Midgard custody now and Myers has the sample to look at."
He leans back and grins, "but the ravings of lunatics, of course. Interesting story, but no real substance."
Dr Amundsen (from winning chess)
"Amundsen," he shakes his head slowly. "She's the only teacher I had here that gave a damn… bit pissed about that thing with her and the Third Eye, actually."
He slams his over/under, then sends the empty glass spinning across the room to shatter in a corner, drawing a few stares. "Yeah, more pissed than I'd like to admit. I don't like regretting things, regret makes you weak."
"Not like any of it matters anyway… not like I'd be allowed to take on the Third Eye even if I was that stupid…"
"Huh, there I go again with the regret thing." He makes an imperceptible gesture that apparently means it's time for another round of over/unders.
You found: the over/under
This PDA (from winning chess)
He takes the PDA from your hand as though it's a great weight. "Well, I suppose it's going to be a long night."
"Take this," he slides you his over/under. "I won't need it where I'm going."
He stands and, for the first time in your experience, leaves the VIP room.
You found: the over/under
The PDA (from winning chess)
He sniffs and sips at his over/under. "Like picking at old wounds?"
"Regrets are trifles, tiny stuff you wish you had done but never got the chance to try. But as my dad is so fond of saying, 'there's nothing so important as trifles.'"
"Dr. Amundsen's probably the biggest now, but I'm young… give me a couple years and I'll weigh myself down until I'm bent over like my dad."
He takes a long pause, slowly sipping more of his drink. "Hell, maybe I'll see that cute student council girl when Midgard finally lets her out."
Watson (from winning chess)
He glares at you for a moment, then laughs bitterly. "My dad set you up for this, didn't he? Stupid old bastard's always talking… Holmes this, Watson that. Elementary my ass."
He shakes his head. "Anyway, better than the rest of the time he's drinking… but yeah, I know all about Watson."
Halloween (from winning chess)
Nothing (from winning chess)
His eyes flicker with confusion for a second before he turns on a winning grin. "Well… okay. Free advice then."
"Be careful around Dr. Thomas. Nobody I've ever met has seen her in person, which means she could be anyone. Think about that before you cross her…"
He clears his throat self-consciously, "not that you're going to cross her of course."
Your dad fight crime?
(What trigger is needed for this option?)
The young man's mouth gapes open with incredulity at your question. "I'm… sorry? What?"
He shakes his head, as if to clear out a drug high. "Yeah, um, he reads about crime fighters with smoking pipes and stupid hats. He works in 'building security.' So if you ever end up in a Midgard facility wondering why the section of floor you just stepped on went click… that's my dad."
How about the Vigilante?
(What trigger is needed for this option?)
"The Vigilante?" he pauses for a second. "Yeah, of course. He's all over the college radio station because the real news won't cover him."
"Actually, funny story… we ready for story time?" The young man slides you an over/under then grins. "Now we're ready for story time."
"Anyway, this one time I'm at a party with my dad in the private Midgard habitation downtown. Top floor, by the waterfall, tons of VPs and their kids. We're there because dad just nabbed some ecoterrorists with one of his booby traps."
He leans towards you and lowers his voice to a whisper. "Anyway, this guy comes into the room and my dad's like 'pop
quiz: what's wrong with that man?' so I look him over, right? The guy's suit isn't fitted, his face doesn't move quite enough, and he has a speck of something under a fingernail… Told you the old man loves his Holmes."He takes a long pause, then slams the rest of his over/under. "Anyway, he gives me a big pat on the back and tells me to wait there. I listen in as he's talking to the guy, of course."
"So dad goes over to this guy and leans in like we're doing now. He tells the guy 'get out of here, vigilante, before I have to report you to security.' Guy said something I didn't quite catch about bosses and freaks, then leaves."
He leans back and clears his throat, going back to a reasonable volume. "So, yeah, might have been The Vigilante and might have been some ecoterrorist… who knows. Dad's got a soft spot for theatrics, though. Me, I'd call in the guys with the needlers."
How about Hammer?
(What trigger is needed for this option?)
He shakes his head, clearing out your previous conversation. "What is this, some kind of free-association hour? I knew I should have gone into psych."
"No, the only hammers I know are the kind other people use to pound in nails. I guess there's kind on old guns too, if you're the Old West type."
You found: the over/under
Honor
(With sufficient skill in Chess?)
"Ah, honor. The only thing worth playing for, really. Let's see how you do."
He plays expertly, but you're just better than he is. He relies a bit too much on his knights and once you take those, it's a quick checkmate.
"Ahh pride, the greatest wound to thee," he catches himself waxing melodramatic and stops himself quickly.
You've earned 4 XP in Will
Otherwise:
"Ah, honor. The only thing worth playing for, really. Let's see how you do."
He plays expertly, relying a bit too much on his knights perhaps, but not showing any real weakness. You lose pretty badly, but do learn a few new moves from the experience, though.
You've gotten better at chess.
You've earned 3 XP in Perception
See Walk Away