unforum

[Sentinel]

I for one, like the idea and think it's at least worth a try. Juxta, I don't think Ollie is meaning to push him self-forward in a "me, me, me" manner I think he just offered his services so that we may try to extract more information from the ³ P. But that said, if you don't like the idea, that's your opinion which is fair enough.
Although, I do agree about the Speculation about C being Helena Frye unless anyone has any solid evidence of this.

[GasparLewis]

I'm still with it, but I think such a blaring message with such a minimal-effort encoding... unwise.

It's still a good idea, but we have to be artful about it!

ROT-13 =/= classy.

[Mikeyj]

Definitely, as this is for the general populace (including journo's on the Sentinel for example) we don't really want a media outcry and public witch-hunt of our nice juicy lead (remember Aiko?), or worse, 3P take her out as a liability. A code won't get our message only to the 3P as anyone in PXC is likley to be able to crack it.

[Hituro]

We have a book, so a lookup cipher seems the prefect choice, assuming that all of the characters needed (including the @ sign) is in the text somewhere.

I think we can trust Oliver to forward us any response he actually got

[duckiemonster]

Spot the people jealous they didn't think of it

Well, it's worth a shot, but I don't think they'll go for it. In fact, I think it might 'mysteriously' dissappear during printing...

Unless it's sneakily incorporated into the artwork?

[sledgecallier]

I like the idea of including some sort of code but agree that the current one is far to simply to crack and too specific.

We need this to be far more complex to stand a realistic chance of being included. However, more importantly it needs to be a code based on something that only a member of 3P would be able to understand or a message that would only mean something to a 3P member. Something as obvious as naming a prominent police officer as a member of the third power is only going to cause chaos because, inevitably, the Sentinel will get hold of the story. What we need is something that would appear just to be a normal, innocent puzzle to the masses but mean something specific to members of 3P (even if it is just something that the leads to a trail elsewhere.)

Oh, and we need it in the next couple of days!

[Edit - An idea just struck me (although it may not be the first time it has been suggested?) We know that the 3P have used morse code on the Viard CD to communicate so can we then not include a line of text into either the cover art or one of the illustrations in the book iteslf? Kind of like the old Inspector Morse thing of including the name of the murder in morse code during the opening theme music...]

[Scott]

Right. So let's improve upon that cypher.

----------------

0100

t " EOT 10010010 11100010 ENQ b ENQ 10000100 DC4 $ 10100010 EOT 10100101 T " EOT 11000100 $ 10000010 EOT 11100100 U " 11100010 ENQ b ENQ 10000100 DC4 $ 10100010 EOT 10100101 T 11100100 r EOT 11000100 $ 10000010 EOT 11100100 U " ENQ DC4 % d NAK B 11100010 EOT 11000100 $ 10000010 EOT 11100100 U " EOT 5 10010100 11100100 11000101 d NAK B EOT 11100010 ENQ D 11100101 10100101 " EOT 10100101 d u R EOT 10000100 b 11100010 EOT u U d b ENQ d b EOT DC4 $ r EOT 11100010 EOT t U d 10010101 d 11100101 10010010 ENQ 10100100 11100100 t u $ R 11100010 ENQ b ENQ EOT $ 10000101 10010101 DC2 ENQ d NAK 4 $ U 10100010 EOT u U " EOT 11100100 10000100 u T $ U d u e $ b EOT 11100100 b EOT t " EOT 11000100 $ 10000100 R ENQ e NAK $ DC4 u d t 11000010 EOT u U d b ENQ 10100101 d DC4 10000100 u " 11000010 EOT 11110100 10000100 r EOT 10100101 U $ U " EOT 10100100 $ 10000101 10010101 DC2 EOT u U " ENQ 4 10000100 DC2 EOT 11110101 " ENQ d DC2 EOT u T 11100100 s 11110010 ENQ b u 10100010 EOT 5 10010100 11100100 11000101 d NAK B ENQ 4 $ R EOT u U " EOT 10100100 T $ NAK B EOT e e NAK " 11100010 ENQ b EOT 10100100 11100100 DC4 r EOT t " EOT d 10100101 d u ENQ R EOT 11100101 10010101 10010101 % E d 11100100 NAK ENQ $ b 11000010 EOT t " EOT 11000100 $ 10000100 T b 11100010 ENQ EOT $ DC4 t 11100101 EOT r ENQ 10100101 " EOT 11100100 r EOT u U d b EOT 11100101 NAK DC4 U $ d b 11000000 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ 5 d T d r ENQ d b EOT 11100010 ENQ T % 10010101 " 11000010 EOT 11110101 e B EOT 11100100 NAK DC2 EOT T $ 10000100 NAK DLE 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT e % EOT $ NAK DC2 ENQ d b EOT d t T 11100101 e E T r 11000010 ENQ 10010100 $ NAK B 11000010 EOT 11100100 NAK DC2 EOT DC4 11100100 T T $ 10100000 11010000 10100100 11000100 $ 10000010 EOT e % " EOT u T T $ 10000101 E R ENQ 10100100 11000010 EOT u U d U DLE 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ 4 $ 10000100 T u R ENQ d b EOT 11000100 $ 10000000 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ 5 e 4 u R ENQ d b EOT 11100010 ENQ DC4 T 10000101 B 11000010 ENQ U $ U " EOT $ DC2 ENQ $ 11100100 T u P 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT e d 10110100 u R ENQ d b EOT 11100010 EOT 5 d T 11100100 u " t b ENQ EOT 11100101 10010101 10010000 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT e $ 10010101 $ DC4 u R ENQ d b ENQ 10100100 $ NAK e EOT 11100010 ENQ D T 11100100 NAK DC2 t b ENQ EOT % NAK $ DC4 11100101 10100101 space 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ % e D u R EOT 11100100 NAK DC2 EOT NAK d DC4 u R EOT 11100100 U " EOT u U " EOT d 11100101 10100101 " EOT 11100100 b ENQ 10100100 11000010 ENQ 5 e 4 u P 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT u $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT u U " EOT d 11100101 10100101 " EOT 11100100 b ENQ 10100100 11000010 EOT e d 10110100 u P 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ % 10010101 $ 10010101 $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT 11100010 EOT d DC4 11100101 10000101 space 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 % 10010101 4 u R EOT 11100100 NAK DC2 EOT u U d T u % $ DC4 u R EOT 11100100 U " EOT u U " EOT e U e 4 r EOT % 2 EOT u U d b ENQ EOT % NAK space 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ 4 $ 10000100 T u % $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT 11100010 EOT 4 U $ 4 $ e d u d $ DLE 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ 5 e 4 u % $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT 11100010 ENQ T $ 10000100 e " 11000010 ENQ ENQ U e 10100100 NAK $ 11000010 EOT 11100100 NAK DC2 EOT 11100101 10010101 10010000 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT e d 10110100 u % $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT u U " EOT d 11100101 10100101 " EOT 11100100 b ENQ 10100100 11000010 ENQ 5 d T d p 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT e $ 10010101 $ DC4 u % $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT 11100010 ENQ T $ r ENQ DC4 U d NAK 10000010 EOT $ DC2 ENQ $ 11100100 T u P 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 ENQ % e E T u % $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT t 10100101 d DC4 NAK % DC2 EOT 11100100 U ENQ U $ ` 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT NAK d NAK $ u % $ DC4 u R ENQ d b EOT e % EOT $ NAK DC2 ENQ d DC2 ENQ 10010100 11100100 d p 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 $ DC4 u e $ u R ENQ d b ENQ 10100100 11000010 EOT u U d U DLE 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 $ DC4 t 11000010 11010101 5 d T d r ENQ d b ENQ 10100100 11000010 EOT e % EOT $ NAK DLE 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 $ DC4 t 11000010 11010100 e % EOT $ NAK DC2 ENQ d b EOT 11100010 EOT 4 % d DC4 p 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 $ DC4 t 11000010 EOT u U d U DC2 ENQ d b EOT 11100100 DC2 EOT % ENQ $ 11100100 DLE 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 $ DC4 t 11000010 ENQ 4 $ 10000100 T u R ENQ d b ENQ 10100100 11000010 ENQ 5 d T d p 11010000 10100101 10100100 11000010 EOT t 10100101 $ DC4 t 11000010 11010101 5 e 4 u R ENQ d b EOT u U " EOT t 10100101 d DC4 NAK % DC2 EOT 11100100 U ENQ U $ ` 11010000 10100100 11000100 $ 10000010 EOT 10100101 e 10010101 10010010 EOT e % " EOT 10100101 T 11100100 r EOT e 10000101 e 10010101 10010100 b ENQ b ENQ T 11100100 10010101 " EOT t " EOT % 5 5 $ R 11100010 STX 11010100 "

0000

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Mostly, it uses exactly what ollie wrote already. rot13 and all, cos hey why not. So then i converted it to binary. Then the fFun begins. I shifted the bits all over 4.

[sledgecallier]

Isn't there a chance we could be making it too hard?? A code no-one can crack will give us nothing...

Also, do we want it to be an obvious code that readers will try and crack, or just something more subliminal that will only mean something to 3P.

Maybe something that directly relates to events of the live event that only the 3P mole and his associates would know about? We could pervert one of the images used in the clues that were put up to divert people away from the helecopter pick-up? (Although as I wasn't there I don't know if this would be entirely possible...)

[Catsworth]

How about we gave them a VERY stark warning, something that would stop them from falling foul of the same evil that has been plaguing Earth for many, many, years?

We wouldn't have to make it too complicated, we'd want them to understand the warning so we could have something like:

01010011011011110110110101100 10100100000011100000110010101 10111101110000011011000110010 10010000001110011011000010111 10010010000001110100011010000 11000010111010000100000011101 11011010000110010101101110001 00000011110010110111101110101 00100000011100000110110001100 00101111001001000000100110101 10100101100011011100100110111 10111001101101111011001100111 01000010000001000011010001000 11100110010000001100010011000 01011000110110101101110111011 00001011100100110010001110011 00100000011110010110111101110 10100100000011010000110010101 10000101110010001000000101001 10110000101110100011000010110 11100110100101100011001000000 11011010110010101110011011100 11011000010110011101100101011 10011001011100010000000100000 01000101011101100110010101101 11000100000011101110110111101 11001001110011011001010010000 00110100101110011001000000111 01110110100001100101011011100 01000000111100101101111011101 01001000000111000001101100011 00001011110010010000001110100 01101000011001010110110100100 00001100110011011110111001001 11011101100001011100100110010 00111001100101100001000000111 01000110100001100101011011100 01000000111010001101000011001 01011110010010000001101001011 01110011100110111010001100001 01101100011011000010000001010 11101101001011011100110010001 10111101110111011100110010111 0

[Scott]

[Juxta]

[Mokey Fraggle]

[oliverkeers13]

Juxta, man. That's just out of order. I am aware we have a certain...animosity between us, and I accept that. I also accept your criticisms of the idea, and also that you may fundamentally disagree with it. Yes my code was simple, I believed the book was being sent of very shortly after I had written it, so I didn't think I had time to devise a complex encryption method. Still, I'm glad to see the community helping. However, there is no reason at all to slate the new guy. His comment was hardly cutting, not even necessarily aimed at you. In your own words he "registered less than a week ago" we don't want to scare players off, your comment came off as catty, and n00b-flaming, and I know that you're better than that. Come on, man. Chill.

[Scott]

Don't worry juxta. You are not incorrect. I don't know who is more correct, but you are not incorrect.

As an aside, my very ambitious d20 module is done. Done meaning I don't have time to avidly playtest and come up with tons of wicked new ideas and a fFull campaign or two to setup the player with. I have described a nice big setting in perplex city which can theoretically be used as groundwork fFor a d20-like game.

http://wiki.incognitus.net/ppc/index.php/Tales_From_Earth:Perplex_City_D20_Module

And... I am the geekiest person alive, right now: I made an RPG module of an ARG. oi vey.

[number9dream]