Okay I've read the previous thread here.

I'm wanting advice on how to get the final act of RFYAT to flow better without making things too obvious. I'm after advice on how people have made it a bit more believable.

• My PC's are probably going to be arriving in Ambulon believing that they have a lot of time pressure (due to the mess they are leaving behind, they think they have only a day or so until Theo gets wind of them)
• I want to encourage it so they go into the lab themselves without calling Arbitrator hit squads/external help (I'm fine for them using external help to "mop up" though)
• I want them to use the Oracle but not in the "All seeing" way that is described. Something that "just knows" everything that goes on in the city is a bit too powerful useful (ie. any future adventures on Ambulon, lets just ask the Oracle)
• I want them to have to "pay" the Oracle in some form. Something that doesn't take too long in real time to play out or something that will cause them to really think about it...
• I want to link in the Serrated Query better & get a better link from Illuminations.
• Then it's gun fight at the Joyous Choir hidden lab!

Here are my ideas and where I'm stuck...

1. PC's arrive and settle in with their cover story.
2. Get told about the Oracle but they have to go via the Ambulon tech priests who are incredibly sensitive about who speaks to the Oracle even. (Time for the Techpriest and the Forge World Guardsman to roleplay a bit to get the access)
3. Oracle is more of human computer/controller for Ambulon (think of the Hybrids in BSG)
4. Oracle asks for some sort of payment. (HELP what can it ask for????)
5. Oracle gives them the information about where the Joyous Choir are setup and the link with the Serrated Query, it will be hinted it knows it more from scavenging records than "the city speaking" to it.
6. How do I then encourage them to go into the church themselves and not just send in an Arbities hit squad? (Hit squad can't be formed up in time, squad that they are offered is green behind the ears and will obviously botch the job up)
7. Finally they are going to find documents that suggest that the reason why Aristarchus was killed in Illuminations was because he was beginning to investigate some of the Serrated Query operations, even though he thought they were most likely a normal smuggling operation & so spoke to the Scintilla Arbities, the SQ got wind of it via a mole & then hence put in place the events of Illuminations. (Does this seem okay?)

Any advice?

My players skipped the oracle entirely (they heard about him, but decided not to go see him) and went in guns blazing an mopped the SQ operatives and Theodosia. The was kind of expected as they are higher rank than intended for these adventures (I ran Rejoice mostly unmodified just as an experiment to see what high-end pre-ascension acolytes could do. It was messy for the Serrated Query.)

As to your points:

1-2: NP

3. Makes sense to me.

4. Any task on Ambulon could fall within the Oracle's purview.

Perhaps going to the underbelly and demoing off a shanty hab who's weight is keeping one of Ambulon's legs from moving w/ maximum efficiency. Two ways you can go with this 1) acolytes have to destroy the homes and perhaps kill a bunch of poor underbelly refugee types (for the hard-choice/sacrifices must be made scenario) or 2) the hab in question is the home base of a brutal "swing" gang. (Underbelly gangers who have adaped to Ambulon by becoming practiced with grapnels and swinging from one hanging surface to the other, highly mobile can come at your from any direction) This gives a nice warm up brawl (perhaps an even more deadly one) to the showdown w/ the query.

5. IMO the "city speaking to it" is just the poetic license the Oracle puts on the massive data feeds and filtering of data from throughout Ambulon. More of a analysis algorithm than communication. Just remember for the Admech, all technical aspects are couched as religion so the oracle probably looks at sifting data from electronic and other records as communion with the machine.

6. Primary law enforcement on Ambulon is Magistratum not Arbites. The Magistratum are notoriously corrupt, a hint that the SQ have a spy in the local enforcers. Follow this up by having the actual Adeptus Arbites presence be a small force of tithe enforcers, the majority of whom are out-in-force off-hive investigating/responding to a major attack/high-jacking of one of the land trains that carries mineral tithes from Ambulon to Sibellus and Gunmetal. "We'd really love to help the Inqusition, but we just don't have the men until task force CASTIGATION gets back in 3-5 days. As soon as they're back we'll give you all the back up you could want."

7. Sounds like a great tie in to me. You could even have some minor NPC from Illumination (one of the congregation at the Cathedral, or maybe one of the tribal warriors, someone they saw and may recognize with a good enough Intelligence or Perception check, but not one of the named major players) turn up as one of the SQ operatives, and then he (or she) of course uses his poison tooth as soom as the acolytes try to question him.

1) What the Oracle wants from them
The oracle is still "connected" to data-vaults and similiar things, right? I would say that the Oracle wants (naturally) the pc to re-attached a severed data-line. One that is rather "outside" of ambulon. Say, a line to a sensor array that was once usefull to sense things outside of Ambulon. The pc will have to make some dangerous climb checks to get to the place...perhaps with some bat-like creatures attacking them (they "nest" near the cable and destroyed said cable for their nest).

2) Why to hurry up
Let´s assume that Theo/the SQ is smart. That they know about the Oracle. They guess that whomever was after them in Sibillus just might turn to the Oracle in order to search for them. So, they have a spy near the oracle. Watching who is coming in. If he sees "new faces", he reports back to the Querry. Theo will dispatch a small hit team (Kill Squat Troopers?) to get rid of them after they went back. The Team will not attack the Oracle (which would make sure that the Mechanicus will strike against them) but will ambush the pc after they leave the Oracle. They might not be SURE that "it is them", but then again...the SQ will not have any qualms of killing some-one "just in the case" right now, will they?

After a brief fight (which the Acolytes should win, perhaps some "Guardian" of the Oracle jumping in on their site) the pc should be smart enough to know that a) the Joy-Boys know about them and b) that they do not have much time until Theo & the SQ will recognize the missing "rapport" of their would-be-assasines means that things are going southward NOW and that they should clean house and leave. "Getting the Arbites /the Enforces / the PDF mobilized" will simply delay them to the point that the heads of the SQ will escape. So, all they can do is run, give a short call for "back up" without to much proof/explains and pray for the Emporer to Smile upon them will they go in first & on their own.

1. Nice.

2. Good idea. I also thought it tob e a little weird that such a saint-like figure like the oracle is somwhere alone without any guardians, groupies, hangers-on, whatever nearby. My group’s Tech-Priest ventured to the local AM presence none the less, which is the Guild Peripatetica situated at Ambulons head if I remember correcty (check the Rulebook for details). I played them very conservative with only the movement of Ambulon in mind and almost a little mind-rusted, so that they even disregarded my group’s Tech-Priest when he tried to rouse them later after he found out about the SQ tapping the power of Ambulon itself.

3. I think it is better to have the oracle detached from any real ‘down-to-earth’ task, so that his only real activity is the 24/7 calculating and accessing of data streams.

4. If it is sort of a controller for Ambulon in your campaign, let him order the groups Tech-Priest to venture to one of the many (lower) knee-joints of Ambulon to perform the Rite of Maintenance there. If performed, they are granted an audience (a short amount of attention regarding their questions).

5. As already mentioned this is simply a metaphor and thus the same (you know like Machine Spirit and artificial intelligence…).

6. Well, this question could almost always be asked. Because your PCs are the main protagonists and not the Arbites Enforcers. First of all the AA has no presence on Ambulon as far as I know and the Magistratum cannot always be trusted and may even be outclassed by man-stopper armed SQ-Operatives lead by a Power Blades wielding and heavily augmented bad-ass like good ol’ Theo. Second, the PC’s are sent to do the job for the Inquisition (or their Inquisitor) and most probably should keep a low profile or at least keep other Adepta out of the mess. And this for a good reason, as the warped stuff in the basement of the temple is not for the eyes of mundane Magistratum Enforces, it could drive them insane or it could spread unwanted rumours about things best unspoken of. Third, the AA cannot simply be ordered around, even by Inquisition operatives (especially as lowly as most PCs), without any prove or indication of breaking the Lex Imperialis.

7. Seems a bit awkward to me. They could have simply sent an Assassin or any other operatives of their own (on Iocanthos or wherever). This way they only brought it to the attention of the Inquisitor, involved an instance of major daemonic manifestation and let the Inquisition got hold of some of their xeno-tech. Sounds a little like breaking a butterfly on a wheel as well as throwing the baby out with the bath water.

I got the impression that the Oracle of Ambulon is actually Ambulon's Princeps or Moderati. The "city" is some sort of pre-Imperial Titan, and all human Titans operate on MIU interface, massive data-jacks and so on. When he is "communing with Ambulon" he is not really speaking in metaphor, his mind is linked and interfaced with the "mind" and "perceptions" of this most unusual God-machine.

With the Oracle I'm trying to give the impression he's not just a deus ex machina in a room. There is a reason for him/her/it to be there other than to give out wisdom for any two bit acolytes of the Inquisition who come along. However you guys are right in that the Oracle should be more religious/mystical/machine spirit than technical/logical.

As for the link to the Serrated Query from Illuminations. It need to be there in some form. Enough so the players think they have stepped up and uncovered a link in the chain. This is one of main problems with PtU, there is little linkage between the adventures. It doesn't have to be subtle though. In the adventure the Oracle says they SQ killed Aristarchus to "kill a seer.", so my thoughts is that he was close to their operation in a way that they had to get him out of the way. With the Illuminations link it works because if the party hadn't rescued the situation Aristarchus would/might probably be considered a radical fallen to daemon worshipping.

Finally as for the job for the Oracle. Your ideas of solving a problem that the local Adeptus Mechanicus are having problems are attractive. The players have an Aquilla lander on loan for the mission so maybe something that requires a lot of lift and hanging off the side of Abmulon & fall checks & low level scavengers & players having to use pistols whilst hanging on etc. etc. etc...