ORLAIS MOD PLOT ↠ ROUND TWO

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ORLAIS PART 2: SNATCH & GRAB

The Players

Beleth, Cassandra, Isabela, Rachette, Thranduil, Vivienne

The Plot

Inquisition agents have intercepted messages between Florianne de Chalons and contacts in Tevinter and the Anderfels which indicate that she is in league with the Venatori and assisting with the planning of some sort of major operation in Orlais. This fits with several odds and ends of evidence collected by agents during various operations over the last few months, but has also been convincingly corroborated through the extended interrogation of Baron Pierre-Henri Brunet, who was identified as a Venatori agent during a mission last month. The case against the Grand Duchess is compelling.

Attempts have been made to have agents infiltrate her household to surveil her until more is learned about her plans, but they have been unsuccessful. Her security is remarkably tight: she is herself a highly trained player of the Game, with keen powers of observation and a healthy paranoia, wealthy enough to surround herself with a private army of guards, and she operates essentially with impunity given her status and Gaspard's current power. One agent has already been killed for suspected spying and another narrowly escaped. More immediate measures must be taken.

Given that the Grand Duchess and her household are on high alert, there are very limited opportunities to move against her. She is presently spending almost all of her time in her nearly impregnable palace just outside Verchiel. Agents have managed to learn that she is currently attending a spa retreat hosted by Duchess Lynette Furneaux at the famed Bains-les-chers, on the coast near Lydes, across from Val Royeaux.

GOOD NEWS: The Grand Duchess still believes this trip to be secret, and while she travels in heavily-guarded style, relatively few guards will be accompanying her into the baths to avoid drawing questions or (more importantly) ruining the relaxing atmosphere. The baths themselves are much easier to get inside than her palace. The resort is also known for its discretion, and guests frequently attend anonymously to conceal health concerns or scandalous assignations, or simply to avoid each other.

BAD NEWS: The only discreet access is by sea, no one is allowed inside except in extremely skimpy costumes, and the baths are (officially) a silent retreat so any noise much above a whisper is likely to draw attention. It will be full of nobles, each of whom will have their own contingent of guards who will be unhappy at having to be nearly naked and mostly unarmed and so will probably take any opportunity to stab something and leave. This is in addition to the establishment's own guard force of implausibly beautiful oil-slicked people with impractically revealing armor but very sharp swords.

The Possibilities

They could try to march up to the gate and demand that Florianne be turned over to them for trial and judgment. But those familiar with Orlesian nobility have confidently said that this blunt approach is likely to lose the Inquisition a great deal of face, anger the nobles inside, and has a quite limited chance of succeeding. More likely they will simply keep the doors shut, forcing the Inquisition to lay siege to the place, which would basically doom their efforts in Orlais, as they would thereafter be seen as violent (and very uncouth) interlopers.

This leaves them with two options:

1. Impersonate a noble and his or her retinue.

2. Scale the wall on the sea-cliff side, discreetly take out some spa guards, and impersonate the guards instead.

Once inside, their orders from the advisors are to capture the Grand Duchess alive and return her to Skyhold for interrogation. If this proves impossible, her death is preferable to her escape.

How exactly they go about this is up to the team. They have three real options:

Diplomacy: Approach other nobles inside, make Florianne's crimes known, and enlist their help to bring her in peacefully.

Stealth: Stealthily drug Florianne and remove her without other nobles knowing they were ever there.

Force: Storm her location within the spa and drag her out, letting everyone see the power of the Inquisition.

Please use the comments on this post to discuss and pick which approaches you as a team prefer. You have until tomorrow night EST and then if there's a tie, we'll help break it. If you reach consensus sooner, we'll get the threads up sooner! In the meantime, we're putting up an initial thread for rping travel to the site HERE and you should feel free to discuss the possible approaches IC too if you'd like! The only definite orders coming from the advisors are to take her alive if at all possible, but definitely don't let her escape. The rest is up to you.