Cryptopoly Cells.

The Cryptopoly rules from the Silver Ladder book (pXX) are fully sanctioned for play within
the Isles of Darkness chronicle, using the following rules to convert them from tabletop play
to LARP play. 

Ownership: 

Cryptopoly cells are created by each venue storyteller for a domain, working in consort with
the domain storyteller for those domains that have them. All the assets and rules of a
cryptopoly remain under the control of the Awakening Venue Storyteller for the domain,
unless specific exceptions are listed below. 

Creation: 

Each domain is limited to one Cryptopoly. 

A Cryptopoly is created using the rules listed on p59 of the Silver Ladder book, with a cap of
fifteen points worth of Cryptopoly assets in each Cryptopoly without specific approval from
the aNST Awakening, after discounted costs.

The points allocated are under the control of the venue storyteller, not any individual player
character.  

Where a venue storyteller wishes to have points purchased at the discounted costs due to
favours owed, they are encouraged to contact other venue storytellers to work with them to
unify the cryptopoly network across the United Kingdom. However contacts in DPotM are
also available (and encouraged) to give the sense of the UK Cryptopoly being connected to a
larger whole. 

Where there is no player character Illuminate (see Player Character Interaction below) then a
Proximi NPC Illuminate should be created using the appropriate rules as presented in the
Silver Ladder book. 

Player Character Interaction: 

With the exception of player character Illuminates (see below) no player character may
possess merits dots invested in a Cryptopoly, their interaction with the Cryptopoly should
instead be conducted through the Allies (Cryptopoly - Domain) merit or for those individuals
with direct control over an Illuminate (the areas Deacon or Magister – Silver Ladder Status 3
or higher) with a five-point retainer.  

Allies (Cryptopoly - Domain) – This represents the conventional access to the resources of
the Cryptopoly and follows the standard rules for allies, while it may connect to some
supernatural contacts, it does not represent a supernatural faction and is low approval. The
rating in this merit is the highest level of allies, resources or contacts within the domain (or
without, by using the connections of the Cryptopoly) that the character may call upon.  

Retainer (Illuminate) – This represents direct control and patronage of the domain’s
Illuminate, and allows for a single downtime action to be handed off to the retainer, using any
and all of the Cryptopoly cell's resources up to the rating of the retainer (always five).  
Player character Illuminates: 

Player character Illuminates should be Proximi (constructed as normal) or low ranking Silver
Ladder Magi (Status O or OO). Player character Illuminates are a High approval, which must
be filed on the character. They should also be noted on the approval for the Cryptopoly.  

A player character Illuminate must purchase at least half of the existing Cryptopoly as merits,
and may purchase all of it if they wish. These merits are directly under their control. They do
not require the Allies (Cryptopoly – Domain) or Retainer (Illuminate) merits to issue
instructions, and may hand off more actions to the Cryptopoly. Additionally, their actions are
always considered the defender when conflicting instructions are issued. 

However, with great power comes great responsibility. Player character Illuminates are
expected to expedite the instructions of other Silver Ladder, and to a degree stand outside the
conventional Allies/Retainer system for the Cryptopoly. Their allies, resources, contacts and
retainers may be ‘locked’ by the actions of other players if unopposed (although they should
be informed of from where the request came, and what their merits are doing) and failure to
heed the instructions of senior Silver Ladder may have significant consequences. 

Conflicting Instructions: 

If players give conflicting instructions to a Cryptopoly, or attempt to use resources that have
already been ‘locked’ by prior actions, then it is recommended that opposed Manipulation +
Politics rolls be made, with Silver Ladder status acting as an equipment bonus. The storyteller
should determine which action is the aggressor in these cases, with the exception of PC
Illuminates (see above). 

Building it up and tearing it down:

Player characters seeking to attack or improve the Cryptopoly should file downtime actions –
such actions should always be resolve actions. The actual method of mediation of such
attacks or attempts at improvement is left mostly to storyteller discresion, with the following
rules to limit growth or destruction: 

Each allies or resolve action grants one dice roll of an appropriate nature (e.g. Intelligence +
Politics, Manipulation + Streetwise, Presence+Allies(Street)) plus an appropriate equipment
bonus for the nature of the action. These contribute to an extended (and potentially opposed)
roll, with five successes granting the Cryptopoly an extra dot of the appropriate nature, and
five subtracting from it. It is expected that (if aware of its presence) the local Seers of the
Throne will generally oppose the expansion of the Cryptopoly, while this is left to the
storyteller, this should not be easy. 

Any increase or decrease in the size of the Cryptopoly should be reported to the DST and
ANST, and will be recorded. This is a formal note that should be placed on the Cryptopoly
approval.