76 Patrons contest at Zhodani Base

BeRKA over at the Zhodani Base site is holding a contest for the best "76 Patrons" style adventure outline. The rules are here http://zho.berka.com/2012/07/01/the-zhodani-base-76-patrons-writing-contest-2012/: and this is my first entry.

76 Patrons Writing contest

Sparkly Hoozits

Patron: Businessperson

Location: any

Skills required: Liaison, Streetwise, Thief skills

Job: The patron recently bought a rare Sparkly Hoozit. It cost a lot, and the patron barely out-bid a local underworld boss and fellow collector of Hoozits. The Hoozit was even more recently stolen, and the patron has reason to believe that the gangster was responsible. The Hoozit requires special care, so there’s only a few places the gangster could have hidden it. The problem is that the patron bought it at an illegal hot property auction, so he can't file charges with the police, and wants to keep this quiet. The patron wants the PC's to act as go-betweens, to negotiate the return of the Hoozit. The PCs should have no trouble in locating the gangster, and little trouble in determining where the Hoozit is being kept.

Complication: After the first meeting with the gangster, but before a deal is made, the Hoozit vanishes. The gangster accuses the patron of a double-cross, the patron accuses the gangster of a further swindle to drive up the price, and by all accounts, there may be a criminal war erupting any day. The patron turns out to have access to armed enforcers. On the chance that the gangster is telling the truth, the patron wants the PC's to find out what really happened and where the Hoozit is now, and get it back.

     The six options are listed below, but in white text to hide them. Click and drag to highlight the possible ways this scenario could play out.

Options:

1 The gangster is faking, and will offer to sell it back at a greatly inflated price.

2 One of the gangster's people stole it so he can sell it himself.

3 One of the gangster's people stole it, to goad the patron into 'removing' his superior.

4 The previous owner of the Hoozit has stolen it back, and plans to leave the planet with it.

5 Unrelated thieves have stolen the Hoozit, and are unaware of the trouble they have started.

6 The patron is trying a double-cross and instigated the war to eliminate the gangster (reason left to the referee)