Wolfpack involvement with G. Dan Thrule investigation

[Jane Starborn]

The title pretty much sums up the purpose - for continuing discussion of what's been going on in PM.

So far we think the black ops team the Wolfpack will probably be sent to work with Jane Starborn and co. as they work to gather solid evidence against General Thrule. (I'm sorry, I hate calling him General Dan, its so... so... just ugh.)

What needs to be worked out is how Jane learns of the Wolfpack and how she contacts them. Estelle was mentioned, though I'm not sure how to connect her to Jane as the information Jane has on the General will probably be filed For Director's Eyes Only, on the highest level of classified.

So Grace Van-Derveld might point Jane towards them?

[Dasquian Belargic]

That would make sense to me.

Also, if Jane is going to be drafting the help of Intel agents with the 'quarantine' I guess it would be best for her to organise that through the Director too!

[Jane Starborn]

WHICH could be a way for Grace to bring Estelle into the loop.

[Dasquian Belargic]

Six degrees of Rebel separation ftw!

[Kyran O'Hurn]

As I mentioned in the PM.

Basically my thoughts would be that Jane would want to keep whatever it is we cook up off the books as much as possible, and thus want to use back channel methods to contact Kyran and his team.

Alternatively, while my initial suggestion was based around trying to root out some of the good General's plans/motives, this could also be changed over to fit more into the search for Laprovik.

The "who" get's plucked and the "what" in terms of what information that is trying to be extracted/collected will fit pretty easily into the framework of what I had in mind for the make up of the thread.

[General Dan]

I know it hasn't been RPed, but it would make sense for Phoenix Cell to at least have some kind of operational familiarity with a group like the Wolfpack, unless there's a reason they wouldn't? PC kind of exist to coordinate like-minded freedom fighters, guerrillas, and/or anti-Imperial terrorists, so they've always been kind of a networking group.

[Kyran O'Hurn]

Well I'm not sure how much PC would know. At least operational details.

The Wolfpack is one of those units that is only know in true form to only a select group of the military leadership (and possibly compartmentalized only to SpecOps). Essentially they've been given a list of targets, and the alliance don't care how they go about removing them.

Obviously there is some sort of knowledge in the high ranking military, and probably the highest level of intel of an "asset" that is available for extreme covert operations that need to be kept out of the usual channels. But the who and the what that "asset" is would be very much need to know.

In some ways they actually operate like a merc team that have been hired. They get the job done discretely (usually) and don't ask any questions about what they are being asked to do. They just don't ask for money to do it.

So to answer this question. I guess the easiest way is that PC, Grace, and possibly Celest (in relation to this story arc) may know of something called "Echelon" (and not saying that's what to use, just first thing that popped into my head probably because of Splinter Cell) that is out there that may fit what they are looking for. The request for it's use would probably have to go through Grace to the proper handlers on the military side of things.

[Sanis Prent]

That's fine if there's a degree of removal. PC works in a double blind anyway so there's the "here's what Phoenix Cell is used for" line that's discussed by command, and then there's the stuff only Grace knows because the blowback would make the Alliance look very bad.

They basically are designed to get violent and unsavory people talking to and working with other violent and unsavory people, even those who may not even have compatible goals outside of anti-Imperialism.

Think Iran Contra, or Golda Meir's Israeli death squads.

[Kyran O'Hurn]

Yeah Wolfpack is essentially one of those plausible deniability groups as well.

Your right though, as I think about it. PC might not know the proper name or how to get in touch with them, but they are probably going to know that someone is running around blowing up Imp instillations and taking out Imp targets, so at some point they are likely to have received some sort of advisory from Intel, even if it's just basically to say "ignore them".

[Lilaena De'Ville]

De'Ville is still floating around in SpecOps as well - she's on paper as a Force adept but no one knows how powerful she is as she is hiding her talent. That is, the Alliance knows she is a former Jedi padawan, but not that she got any further training after the fall of the Jedi when she was 6. Using her to help flush out Dan would be VERY cool (and in line with her true mission bwahaha).

Perhaps teaming her up with the Wolfpack to offer some small amount of Force assistance? When trying to figure out if someone is a darksider any small edge might help.

[Kyran O'Hurn]

I guess it would depend on who the target ends up being. My initial thought was that the Wolfpack would be tasked with kidnapping an officer under Dan's command to try and get information about then General, and any possible greater scheme. And possibly information about Laprovik, or at least confirmation that the General knew about the non-existent prisoner.

I'm not sure how to tie De'Ville into that, though I'm open to a change in the mission that the Wolfpack would be given and I'd be okay with working De'Ville in, so long as she was basically told that she was working with another asset that had been arranged by Intel, and not told that they were alliance affiliated.

If IC she didn't believe that they were mercs or an intel team or whatever fine, but she would have to make that assumption on her own, she wouldn't have the "need to know" to have been officially told that they were a part of the Alliance.

Also it might add some drama as Kyran wouldn't be too happy working with an adept.

[Jane Starborn]

Well, we can bring her in later, or not in conjunction with Kyran's team. We'll see. It was just a thought that occurred to me, having a Force adept of any amount of skill affiliated with specops and not working with the Jedi.

On the other hand, that may actually just throw suspicion on her, as a possible Darth Acera. O_o Which is actually pretty likely. A Force user who isn't a Jedi in the Rebellion just as a Sith is revealed?

[Dasquian Belargic]

Twists within twists!

Who do you want me involved as, btw?

[Jane Starborn]

Well, Dashiel, as he's one of the inner circle right now. We'll probably need him to go to the Wheel to conduct some of the 'medical screenings.' I bet there's a promotion in it for him if we take down Dan.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

http://sw-fans.net/forum/showthread.php?t=14927 in this thread Serena Laran shows Intel how to test a being's blood for midichlorians - so all the Wolfpack has to do is get a sample of Dan's blood straight from a vein, and test it.

Deceptively simple.

[Kyran O'Hurn]

That's an intriguing mission, though there are a few logistical things I'd have to figure out in my head before proposing an idea for a thread, assuming that Charlie would agree to it being done.

However, given that the test would be an option for Intel, would it not be easier to get the blood sample from a medical exam? I would assume that like in the real world, that the Alliance would insist on all of their high ranking officers to undergo yearly physicals to make sure they weren't going to keel over via a heart attack in the middle of battle.

Though that being said, Dan being a Sith on par with Palpatine it would be easy enough for him to mind control the doctor into thinking that he had given him the exam and that everything was in the green. The result being that there would be filings of the yearly reviews, but no record of blood samples being tested or stored.

[Lilaena De'Ville]

Well yes, but we can assume, and I think charley would agree but I will run it by him, that Dan knows Intel can test blood for midi count and has substituted 'clean' blood for a very long time. Or what you said.

So it would be essential to know the blood came from his arm and then was tested.

[Kyran O'Hurn]

Or a combination of the two. I guess in my mind I skipped by the idea of him substituting blood to find the easiest plot tool that would flag Intel when they actually looked at it closer that something wasn't quite right.

ie. As far was the Alliance infrastructure was concerned, the medical reports were filed on time and with no issues being present and so they would not be flagged for review. But when Intel went and looked at them, they would notice that there was no blood work ordered but that the reports indicated that the blood tests came back with no issues.

The assumption could be made by Intel that he had possibly substituted clean blood to be tested and that they should try and get a verifiable test done, but it wouldn't be an obvious flag that something was amiss.

Meaning that it would be a greater leap to question the reports with a substituted clean blood sample being tested, then it would be for there to be inconsistencies with the report in relation to blood tests that were never actually done despite the report saying they were.


Now if we go with this idea, getting the sample to be tested is a whole different ball game... Have to think on that one...

[Kyran O'Hurn]

I'm working on thinking up a possible idea for a mission.

However as I was writing some things up, something struck me that someone might want to include in a post if/when this mission goes off, and only bringing this up as something that would likely be discussed IC with the decision making group.

That being, that despite the lack of proof of the accusations there would have to be some discussion about why they should keep the mission from b being an assassination mission rather then one to recover some blood.

Because of that there would probably be a "if this guy is as bad as we think, why are we letting him live?" moment in a meeting someplace.

[Kyran O'Hurn]

Okay starting to form an idea.

Quick question. Didn't have a specific amount state in the thread where the test is explained, but guessing that in that thread it was a standard blood sample vial give or take.

But is that correct? Like how much blood is needed to do the test?