Pulp Fiction RP (Season 2: Mad Science, Starships and Aliens!!!)

[Wenterburn]

TG, Ruking, Steampunk, Pulpy Adventures.

Season 1 Complete: Steampunk Colonial Exploration Adventures

Season 2 Sci-fi now in production, stay tuned...

[Kyra tg]

Hmmm.

India. The HMS Intrepid, one of her Majesty's finest airships, defender if the colonies and exploratory vehicle has been discovered floating unmanned and all but crew less - the sole exception being an unknown girl in a tattered officers uniform driven out of her mind and babbling of the evil Fu Gal Chu (that has completely unintended connotations), a shangri la paradise and a glowing diamond the size of an ostriches egg.

Lord Byron Buttersworth the third, ex patriot and adventurer, has taken command of the Intrepid. Given the expert needs to pilot the craft and the prssing nature of things (insert mcguffin here - or is it the egg) he has been forced to take on crew that are neither born in the colonies or citizens of the crown.

Leave Calcutta

Possible convoluted treachery establishment

Storm / attempt at hijacking / arrival in Shangri La

...

[Wenterburn]

(counteroffer)

India!

Untold land of riches and opportunity. Much like Africa in the South, and America in the far West, one of the shining lights of pride for His Majesty's Empire.

Tea and opium and spices, art and dances and henna and gold, so much can be found in India. But suddenly, on the outskirts of the city, at the Buttersworth estate on the edge of known Colonial Civilisation is discovered a zeppelin of unusual make, drifting unmanned and unfuelled. Part British airship, part German gunboat, and another part of completely unknown make. The intrepid old Lord Byron boldly ascends the rope, sinks anchor, and discovers masses of papers in unknown script and a babbling girl.

One last adventure, with his trusted associate Harry Flashmann, and housekeeper/secretary Winona, and swarthy native guards Sahib & Torun, Byron drives deep into the heart of India to discover diamonds and arms and cutlasses and natives and paradise on earth.

Honestly, it could be Africa and still be the same plot.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Stands to applaud in the balcony, waves the Union Jack a few times, then sits down with a cough. "Oh, do carry on."

(Sorry, that was just such a magnificent exchange or properly pulpy old-school STUFF.)

[Kyra tg]

Agreed with version 2. The locale just needs to be exotic. Quicksand, canibals, crocodiles ...

Query. Having Winona the plucky Suffregette along seems a bit off though. Is she there to cook scones and make tea? Zounds. (first and last use of that word) These are men of action who can forgo such civilised luxuries for the good of empire and god. Wot!? She could sneak on. Most unladylike. Wot wot? (No more wots) I was expecting a bit of chauvinism. But a saucy lass might be ok. A school marm? And maybe just one manservant. I know each adventurer should have one history wise, but one fills the role.

[Kyra tg]

Stands to applaud in the balcony, waves the Union Jack a few times, then sits down with a cough. "Oh, do carry on."

(Sorry, that was just such a magnificent exchange or properly pulpy old-school STUFF.)

"Quite alright my dear. But let's keep that jingoism buttoned down. Stiff upper lip and all that..." Lord Byron notes, chest puffing out with pride.

[Wenterburn]

Agreed with version 2. The locale just needs to be exotic. Quicksand, canibals, crocodiles ...

Query. Having Winona the plucky Suffregette along seems a bit off though. Is she there to cook scones and make tea? Zounds. (first and last use of that word) These are men of action who can forgo such civilised luxuries for the good of empire and god. Wot!? She could sneak on. Most unladylike. Wot wot? (No more wots) I was expecting a bit of chauvinism. But a saucy lass might be ok. A school marm? And maybe just one manservant. I know each adventurer should have one history wise, but one fills the role.

Saucy lass if you like. the idea is someone needs to calm the poor babbling dear down, and maybe chat with her to keep her sane. what do men of women's hysteria, when their entire womb moves about their body? tish and fiddlesticks, we may be having too much fun with this.

one gruff guard. not from india maybe, even. or a conniving villainous french lieutenant, villains are good.

[Kyra tg]

Yes the French are evil. Unless we are playing Americans in which case the British are evil.

What if we play French - the Germans or the Russians are evil?

Ok. A servant or a lady could work. Assume the dirigible is quite automated so no crew required.

Flashmann! Sounds ready for a song by Queen - saviour of the universe!!! I like.

Will avoid a pompous stuffed shirt - maybe an Alan Quartermain ala Connery. Conniving French mechanic?

[Wenterburn]

I dislike natural racial stereotypes, but if it's pulpy it's gotta be one of the French-German-Russians. Call him Estonian, everybody hates the Estonians.

You make up your character. Assume it's some sort of AU where His Majesty rules the British Empire, with tendrils all over Asia, Africa, Australia and America. Can't be arsed to live through a war, and also sets up possible sequels.

[Kyra tg]

Name: Lord Byron Butterworth III
Age: 40
Appearance: Imposing man with thinning hair worn in a stylish comb over. Chiselled jaw. Peircing blue eyes. Commanding voice. Can handle himself. Lost his arm to a polar bear and now has a steam powered prosthetic he affectionately refers to as Winona (ok better than Mrs Palmer and her five sisters...) The polar bear still lives. One day he will settle the score.

Byron is well educated and high born. A keen intellect and lighting reflexes mean he is a man not to be taken lightly. He is an expert pugilist, marksman and fencer. He is also an accomplished poet, with three compilations of love poems published to critical acclaim. Many a woman has read his works and felt her heart aflutter with excitement. 

[Wenterburn]

Bradley "Pittsburgh Phil" Fleshmenn, Fourth Land Marine Corps, Second Captain. President's Eagle Scout Troop Leader.

Clean shaven, crew cut, baby faced, bright blue eyes and sandy brown hair. Built like a strong farmer's son who went into the army. Born to farmers, went into the army. Bright eyed and keen and bushy-tailed, ready and eager to keep into action, except he does not have a bushy tail. More guts than wits, but more cunning than he looks -- which, alas, isn't so hard .

Tinkers with clockwork, steam power and alchemy.

[Wenterburn]

Sasha Sacquesbi

An archivist, chronicler and secretary to Lord Byron from the steppes of Eastern Europe. Mysterious, raven of hair and red of lip, pale and curvy and soft of flesh. Desirable; though she dresses modestly, the faint creak of whalebone corset and the occasional flash of lace frills or a bestockinged ankle suggests what lies beneath is more adventurous and ...exciting.

Mysterious Antartican Henchman.

[Kyra tg]

Nyarl Grollo

Lord Byron's Mysterious Antartican Henchman. Born in a small sealing village near the base of The Mountains of Madness, Nyarl speaks with an odd guttural accent. He was a member of the Chorazos Cult, a sect dedicated to the Outer God Yog-Sothoth, but started to question his beliefs when the cult leader decided to vivisect him and sacrifice him to the elder gods. Lord Byron saved him from this fate. He possesses knowledge of the arcane and beyond. He likes to talk of indescribable horrors and things that would shatter men's brains. He also collects match boxes. Incidents of arson tend to increase in his general vicinity and pets also strangely disappear. Odd. Despite his dark past he owes a life bond to Lord Byron for saving his life and is feircely loyal to his lord. He tolerates Fleshmann, following the Americans orders ably, and sees the potential benifits of tapping Sashas dark sensual energies in his more esoteric rituals.... Or in lay terms he wants to shag her.

[Wenterburn]

Shinja

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

Shambala

Spoiler: Click to Show/Hide

A mystery wrapped up in an enigma within a conundrum. Shambala is a lush, fertile valley of undiscovered treasures, hidden deep within a high, impassible mountain range surrounded by a wide expanse of desert and lush, thick forests outside. The thick rainforests deny entry by land, be it by foot or animal or wheel, whereas the high mountains prove a problem for modern airships -- except perhaps the curious ones our adventurers are piloting. The desert spells death for those who are unprepared, and has ensured the secret of Shambala remains a secret. It has been revealed, for now, but who is to say that Shambala will not soon reclaim its secret?

[Kyra tg]

So the portmanteau characters - what are your thoughts?

[Wenterburn]

I might be too in love with my ideas

Fleshmann didn't dive into Shambala, he pushed Rynon in since the cultists had left. Originally I wanted Fleshmann to pick Wisdom, and discover how he got older and was given a black robe for it, but I changed my mind. somebody needs to rescue Lord Ashton

[Wenterburn]

So, after the completion of the first one, suggestions for the next adventure:

+ Egyptian Mummies and the Afterlife. Big fan of The Mummy and The Mummy Returns, not super excited about the Chinese Market Pandering

+ Atlantis, search for a secret island, etc. Also possibly The Bermuda Triangle

+ Mad scientists, electricity and bodies, infinite army, etc

+ Mystery / thriller / detective fiction; on the trail of Jack The Ripper. Also possibly Courtroom drama.

+ Lord/Court intrigue in Austria: succession, poisoning, incest, bastard children, political manoeuvres, Game of Cards and House of Thrones and West Wing and VEEP and all that

+ Cold war, spies, espionage, seduction, secret plans

+ Moon base.

[Kyra tg]

Monsters.

Jekyll and Hyde

Journey to the centre of the earth.

2000 leagues under the sea.

Scarlet pimpernel

Pirates. Arrrr! Slavers...

[Wenterburn]

Season 2: Fleshmann and Buttersworth against the Masters of Mysterium!!!

Was thinking there would be an element known as Mysterium which allows all the stuff we need. Flow of electrify through it affects gravity. So the ships would use the element - big chunks or integrated into hulls - to fly. Could be used to keep a bubble of air in space around ships. Sails use solar winds. Masters of Mysterium would use the element to transmute matter through use of electricity and thaumaturgical sciences. Electricity guns.

It is a time of peril.

Whoever controls mysterium controls the flow of ships, and whoever controls the most ships can mine the most Mysterium and build more ships.

Mysterium is everything. Literally everything; the Masters of Mysterium can transmute matter; anything can become anything else, and you can make everything from nothing.

Into this is thrown Continental Guard Captain Fleshmann Upsilon and Doctor Professor Master Bachelor Scientist Byron Buttersworth Lambda-Seven, MD PhD PhD PhD MBChb MA MSc MEng Visiting Chair Chair Emeritus Folding Chair.

[Wenterburn]

A pitch:

Evilness! Evil, nasty, sinister, bad. More evil than could possibly fit in Evil Master Evil's Evil Grimoire of Evilness (Evil Reprint Version "E" for Evil, Evil Print Press, Evil Year 426). The Evil Masters of Evil Fleshmann and Buttersworth face an adventuring party of heroes trying to infiltrate The Evil Lair and destroy all their great works and research.

Really, those meddling kids! And just after they'd put in the new carpeting and got new vases for the flowers and everything.

While our intrepid heroes do their best to kick down doors and walk into dark rooms with flashlights and search valiantly for clues that will lead to the financial and scientific undoing, The Evil Masters must race against time in order to entrap, ensnare and destroy the heroes who are commit crimes of breaking and entering, loitering within public property, petty theft, grand larceny, vandalism and destruction of property, public (and private) nuisance, trespassing, attempted murder, public defamation, libel, and jaywalking.

Fleshmann (Evil Master of Surgery and Medicine, Creator of the Flesh Heap and Synth-Vats) and Buttersworth (Atomic and Laser Science and Neuroscientechnician Supreme) must rely on their skills, wits, and incredibly expensive superhuman technology to prevent the heroes from ending them once and for all...

[Kyra tg]

Intriguing. It's been a while since I've arched up in villainy. So this will be a stream of do gooders getting their just deserts. Steam punk or modern / future times... Trying to out do one another sounds amusing. And I've just been watching the great race so feel happy to unleash my inner Professor Fate. Mwahahah. Push the button Max!!!!

[Wenterburn]

This is a bit of a hijack from the original formula. I'm also pleased to run some sort of sci-fi thriller. Fleshman and buttersworth are investigating mysterious crop circles when all of a sudden one of them is kidnapped and must attempt to rescue the other. a trap must be set, with bait, to entrap the aliens, who (maybe) mars needs women! or something.

[Wenterburn]

and of course mysterium could be the crucial element.

[Kyra tg]

A pitch:

Evilness! Evil, nasty, sinister, bad. More evil than could possibly fit in Evil Master Evil's Evil Grimoire of Evilness (Evil Reprint Version "E" for Evil, Evil Print Press, Evil Year 426). The Evil Masters of Evil Fleshmann and Buttersworth face an adventuring party of heroes trying to infiltrate The Evil Lair and destroy all their great works and research.

Really, those meddling kids! And just after they'd put in the new carpeting and got new vases for the flowers and everything.

While our intrepid heroes do their best to kick down doors and walk into dark rooms with flashlights and search valiantly for clues that will lead to the financial and scientific undoing, The Evil Masters must race against time in order to entrap, ensnare and destroy the heroes who are commit crimes of breaking and entering, loitering within public property, petty theft, grand larceny, vandalism and destruction of property, public (and private) nuisance, trespassing, attempted murder, public defamation, libel, and jaywalking.

Fleshmann (Evil Master of Surgery and Medicine, Creator of the Flesh Heap and Synth-Vats) and Buttersworth (Atomic and Laser Science and Neuroscientechnician Supreme) must rely on their skills, wits, and incredibly expensive superhuman technology to prevent the heroes from ending them once and for all...

Seems more chaotic and frenetic than usual

Maybe an evil ray hits our heroes and they turn on their allies in a most dastardly manner? Rather than seeking to defeat the villainous invaders from the first scenario they take over and run the invasion... Until the effects of the evil ray wear off and then they have to extricate themselves from the mess they have created. Mayhem and chaos. The best place to escape too is a corset of course. Dammit!!!!

[Wenterburn]

The EVIL RAY is a good idea (irony!). It makes sense.

The Masters of Mysterium are slowly losing Masters, so they decide to kidnap a couple of humans to intern as temporary Evil Masters...until the ray runs out. Where then better to hide from the do-gooders and escape, except among the many fleshy, corseted victims that they have claimed?