In The News...

[Whipsnade]

If you're not using events in the real world to create adventures, you're not doing it right!

First, the link. It's the online edition of Science, the house magazine for the AAAS.

Here are a few excerpts from the article:

"Nobody is quite sure what’s going on at the Sunspot Solar Observatory in New Mexico, which was quickly and mysteriously evacuated on 6 September amid reports of a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) probe, and has remained closed. The manager of the mountaintop site, the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), today released a statement saying the observatory “will remain closed until further notice due to an ongoing security concern.”

"In the wake of the shutdown, Otero County Sheriff Benny House told the Alamogordo Daily News: “The FBI were up there. What their purpose was nobody will say.” Facility employees are similarly in the dark. “We have absolutely no idea what is going on,” says Alisdair Davey, a data center scientist at the National Solar Observatory (NSO). “As in truly nothing, which in itself is just weird.” Messages left with the FBI field office in Albuquerque were not returned."

"The U.S. Postal Service (USPS), which has a small office on the same site as Sunspot that mostly handles mail deliveries for the observatory, has also been shut down, though spokespeople for the office say the post office being closed is incidental."

"Liz Davis, a public information officer at the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which handles law enforcement for the USPS, confirms there is “no criminal activity, which is what Postal Inspection Service would be dealing with.”

"The Sunspot observatory on Sacramento Peak overlooks Holloman Air Force Base and an observer could potentially see out to the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Test range. That has raised questions about possible espionage."

"But, Aftergood says, a solar observatory might not be the best place to conduct such activity. “I imagine most or all of its sensors are directed up.” He wonders if someone at the Sunspot observatory somehow inadvertently spotted a classified satellite or transmission, triggering the shutdown."

And a later explanation of some sort:

Spoiler:

Update, 17 September, 3:55 p.m.: The Sunspot Solar Observatory in New Mexico reopened today. In a statement, the operator of the site, the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), said it has been cooperating with an ongoing law enforcement investigation of criminal activity that occurred on the site. The organization said it evacuated the site because of a concern that a suspect posed a threat to the safety of staff and residents. AURA has not said what the suspected criminal activity is and said it was reluctant to share news during the shutdown because it did not want to alert the suspect and impede the investigation.

We've got a science station close for mysterious purposes, nearby military bases, and the post office of all people involved.

Sometimes the adventure seeds just write themselves...

 

[Nightwind1]

 

[Kilgs]

Oh my yes. I scour news sites for adventure ideas all the time.

And I have been TOTALLY keeping an eye on this one.

I, for one, welcome our new alien overlords.

 

[khadaji2002]

I need to get plugged into more sources like this one. Any suggestions on where to watch for news like this?

 

[Fovean]

The ‘news of the day’ and ‘this day in history’ on Wikipedia’s home page are great sources of adventure/plot seeds, NPC names and motivations, etc etc

 

[Cryton]

Ever play Dark Conspiracies by GDW?

The game itself suggested mining the Tabloids for adventure ideas.

Fun times.

 

[Whipsnade]

Any suggestions on where to watch for news like this?

Look for the on-line journals of professional associations. Not blogs and not "news" services, but what professionals write for their fellow professionals.

 

[Whipsnade]

We've all had time to read the news report, so now it's time to turn the report into an Amber Zone or adventure seed.

Channeling our inner Joe Friday and boiling it all down "just the facts" gives us:

Locations:

• Sunspot Solar Observatory
• USPS office
• Holloman Air Forse Base/White Sands Missile Test Range

Background:

• Observatory is remote
• Observatory is operated by academic consortium
• Observatory has been evacuated in the past for infrastructure/safety concerns; sewage leaks, loss of power, snow storms, etc.
• USPS office there "mostly" handles mail for observatory
• Holloman/White Sands deal with "national security related science"

Events:

• The FBI, a national police force, and not local or state agencies closed the observatory.
• Almost two weeks of speculation follows.
• FBI explains that a criminal investigation and potential threats made during that investigation are the reasons why the facility was closed.

I'll explain that further in a spoiler because the crime in question is absolutely disgusting.

Spoiler:

A janitor was using the facility's WiFi network to trade child ⌧ography.

Months ago, the staff noticed the laptop he was using had been running in empty offices and it was quickly apparent just what the laptop contained. The facility director called in the FBI and it began monitoring IP addresses and checking server records to determine who was the culprit. In the meantime, the janitor knew the laptop had been found and realized what an investigation would uncover. According to reports the janitor "started making comments about "lax security at the facility," said it was "only a matter of time before the facility got hit, and he "believed there was a serial killer in the area" and that killer might enter the facility and execute someone".

The FBI finally shut the facility down and sent everyone home before the janitor decided to start killing people in some idiotic attempt to cover up their crimes.

The real reason the observatory was closed WILL NOT be part of this adventure seed and I'll remind the Usual Suspects there is no need to further discuss it. The only reason I explained it was to forestall some well meaning, but foolish, members from posting the reason openly.

 

[Whipsnade]

Using our locations, background, and events, we can now write a short "narrative" of the events created by the plot. Some of the events are what is known, some events will occur during play, other events may or may not happen due to the players' actions, and the plot creating them will initially be unknown. During the course of the adventure and thanks to the events the players witness, react to, or thwart, the players can hopefully uncover, derail, or prevent the plot in some manner.

Another way to look at the narrative is that it is a complete account of what will happen IF the players never become involved. We also want the narrative to be simple at first because that simplicity helps us add or remove events as we need which in turns gives the players more opportunities to interact with the plot.

Our narrative is: A remote research station is shut down by the authorities. A period of speculation follows until the reason for the shut down is revealed.

With the narrative supplying the "what", we now need to come up with the "who" and "why". While you come up with the who and why on your own, the "Adventure Creation" section of the Star Without Number core book as some excellent tables for doing just that. Using such tables also helps you avoid any personal tropes or ruts.

After five die rolls, SWN gives us:

• - Conflict Type: Resources
• - Overall Situation - Hidden strike of rare resources
• - Specific Focus - Offworlders want it badly
• - Restraint - The government is cracking down in the conflict
• - Twist - The focus isn't nearly as valuable as both sides think

With our elements, plot, events, and "What, Who, and Why?" all in hand, it's time to write the Amber Zone.