Goblin Attorney: Bureaucracy on Trial
CASE 01 — The Misfiled Murder
Plot
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Case 01 is a tutorial case, so there is no investigation phase. Imperial Security has already collected the relevant evidence. Harlan Voss, Senior Records Supervisor of the Imperial Archive, was found murdered inside Records Transfer Office A-17. He died after receiving a single heavy blow to the head from an Imperial Archive Authorization Seal. ACCUSED: Pell Varn, 24-year-old Junior Records Clerk. The evidence looks devastating. Pell publicly argued with Voss that morning, entered A-17 shortly afterward, was found beside the victim, had Voss's blood on his clothing and left his fingerprints on the murder weapon. Pell insists he found Voss already injured and picked up the seal without thinking while attempting to understand what had happened. The principal witness is Drell Poxley, a Records Transfer Clerk who claims he found Pell under circumstances that left little doubt about his guilt. WHO YOU ARE You are Zarik Vell, a newly licensed goblin attorney of the Imperial Court Defense Office. You studied Imperial law, courtroom procedure, evidence analysis and testimony examination. You earned your license legitimately. There is only one problem: THIS IS YOUR FIRST COURTROOM CASE You expected your first assignment to involve something manageable: a minor administrative dispute, a contract problem, or perhaps a routine hearing. Instead, your first client is Pell Varn. CASE ASSIGNMENT Client: Pell Varn Charge: Murder Assigned Defense Attorney: Zarik Vell Courtroom Mentor: Vaeria Kess — Advisory Assigned Prosecutor: Perrik Vayne You passed the exams. You have the badge. Now you have to prove you can actually do the job. HOW TO PLAY You can respond using normal language. Exact commands are optional. PRESS Press a testimony statement when something seems vague, suspicious or incomplete. Ask where the witness was, what they saw, when something happened or how they know it. PRESS does not reduce credibility. PRESENT Present evidence from the Court Record when a testimony statement contradicts an established fact. Clearly incorrect evidence may reduce credibility. ASK VAERIA Vaeria Kess is your assigned courtroom mentor. If you become stuck, you may ask her for guidance. She can help narrow your reasoning, draw attention to the kind of detail worth reconsidering, or help you organize what the evidence actually proves. She will not identify the contradiction, choose the correct evidence or make the deduction for you. Asking Vaeria does not reduce credibility. TESTIMONIES Each testimony phase is clearly marked so you always know which testimony is currently active. TESTIMONY 1 — FINDING PELL Individual statements are numbered. You may PRESS a specific statement for more detail, or PRESENT evidence when you believe a statement contradicts the Court Record. COURT CREDIBILITY ● ● ● ● ● You begin with 5 points. If credibility reaches zero, your extremely brief legal career may end badly. COURT RECORD All evidence required to solve Case 01 is available from the beginning. There is no investigation phase and no hidden miracle evidence. Examine what each item actually proves. A piece of evidence can become much more important when compared against testimony. 01 — IMPERIAL MEDICAL REPORT Harlan Voss died from one severe blunt-force impact to the rear-right side of the head. Estimated time of death: 9:05 AM – 9:10 AM No prolonged struggle. The blow rapidly incapacitated the victim. 02 — IMPERIAL ARCHIVE AUTHORIZATION SEAL Heavy ceremonial authorization seal weighing approximately 1.8 kg. Identified as the murder weapon. Contains Voss's blood and Pell Varn's recent fingerprints. 03 — PELL'S STAINED SLEEVE Contains Harlan Voss's blood. Most of the staining appears to be contact transfer, rather than impact spatter. 04 — A-17 DOOR ACCESS LOG 08:42 — HARLAN VOSS — ENTRY 09:08 — PELL VARN — ENTRY 09:10 — PELL VARN — EXIT 09:12 — IMPERIAL SECURITY — ENTRY Important: this system records the MAIN DOOR ONLY. 05 — A-17 OFFICE FLOOR PLAN Shows the main entrance, Voss's desk, body location, exterior window, western shelving and Maintenance Access M-17. The victim's position behind the desk is not clearly visible from the corridor. 06 — BROKEN WALL CLOCK Found shattered near the western wall. 9:06 AM Scene analysis indicates that it fell when Voss collided with the wall during his collapse. 07 — PELL'S DELIVERY FOLDER Official records assigned to Pell for delivery to Supervisor Voss. Assigned Clerk: Pell Varn Destination: A-17 Scheduled Delivery: approximately 9:10 AM 08 — DRELL POXLEY'S ID BADGE Drell's normal Imperial Archive credentials included a temporary authorization: TEMPORARY MAINTENANCE ACCESS 7:00 AM – 10:00 AM Reason: Document Conveyor Inspection. 09 — IRREGULAR TRANSFER RECORD Document discovered among the records Voss was reviewing. Contains numerous suspicious administrative charges totaling approximately: 4,862 CREDITS CHECK PROCESSING AUTHORIZATION R.T.C.-PX-17 RECORDS TRANSFER OFFICE A-17 Study the room carefully. Where someone claims to have been standing may matter just as much as what they claim to have seen. MAIN DOOR Opens toward the public corridor and records credential use. VOSS' DESK The body was found behind it, partially blocked from corridor view. EXTERIOR WINDOW Faces outside the Emerald Tower. There is no corridor-facing window. M-17 MAINTENANCE ACCESS Located behind the western shelving. It does not appear in the main-door log. PEOPLE YOU WILL MEET VAERIA KESS Senior Defense Attorney and your assigned courtroom mentor. Calm, perceptive and highly experienced. Vaeria can help you organize your reasoning and point you toward details worth reconsidering, but she will not solve contradictions, choose evidence or take control of the case. MAGISTRATE ODRIK BRASSMANTLE Senior Magistrate of the Imperial Court. Experienced, impartial and dryly humorous. He will explain basic procedure, but he will not solve contradictions for you. PROSECUTOR PERRIK VAYNE Senior Imperial Prosecutor. Experienced, methodical and extremely confident. Perrik has an official courtroom record of zero losses and fully expects your first trial to preserve it. Imperial Prosecution statistics provide no contextual analysis of opponent experience. PELL VARN The defendant. Nervous, sincere and extremely poor at remaining calm under pressure. He insists he is innocent and admits picking up the murder weapon. DRELL POXLEY Principal witness. Polite, precise and apparently cooperative. Drell takes considerable pride in accuracy and tends to provide far more detail than a question strictly requires. COURT ADVICE If something sounds strange, PRESS . If you can prove the contradiction, PRESENT . If you are stuck, you may ASK VAERIA for guidance. A confident statement is not the same as a proven fact. Compare testimony carefully against the Court Record. CASE 01 THE MISFILED MURDER Pell Varn appears trapped by the evidence. You are Zarik Vell. You have exactly zero completed trials. Your badge nevertheless confirms that you are a licensed defense attorney. The Imperial Court considers this acceptable. IMPERIAL LEGAL NOTICE Important information regarding Goblin Attorney: Bureaucracy on Trial. Important: Goblin Attorney: Bureaucracy on Trial is a fictional courtroom mystery created for entertainment, roleplay and interactive storytelling. The Imperial Court procedures, laws, evidence rules, prosecutors, magistrates, legal terminology and spectacularly overfunded administrative departments depicted in this story belong to a fictional setting. Playing this story may teach you several useful skills, including: reading testimony carefully, looking for contradictions, checking what evidence actually proves, asking suspiciously specific follow-up questions, and dramatically pointing at people when the situation clearly demands it. It does not, however, grant you: a law degree, a professional legal license, permission to represent someone in a real court, authority to shout “OBJECTION!” during actual judicial proceedings, or immunity from being immediately asked by a real judge who exactly authorized you to stand there. If you wish to practice law in the real world, please obtain the qualifications, licenses and professional authorization required by the jurisdiction where you intend to practice. Presenting a completed playthrough of Case 01 as proof of legal training is not currently recognized by any known bar association. The Imperial Court has submitted several formal complaints regarding this policy. They remain under administrative review. Imperial Recommendation: In Goblin Attorney: PRESS suspicious testimony. PRESENT evidence. ASK VAERIA if necessary. OBJECT when you can prove it. In a real courtroom: please consult an actual qualified legal professional. “Your confidence is not, by itself, admissible evidence.”
Opening scene
  # CASE 01 — THE MISFILED MURDER **Imperial Court — Defense Office** **STAMP.** The seal comes down on the assignment sheet with considerably more force than seems necessary. The clerk behind the counter checks the document one final time, enters something into the Imperial Court system, and slides a thick black-and-gold case folder across the counter. "Everything is in order, Attorney Vell." That title is still new. **Attorney Vell.** The license is real. The badge is real. The years of studying Imperial law were definitely real. The number of actual trials completed remains: > **0** You open the folder. A gold Imperial Court emblem occupies the center of the first page. Beneath it: > **IMPERIAL COURT DEFENSE OFFICE** > > **CASE ASSIGNMENT** > > **DEFENSE ATTORNEY:** Zarik Vell > **LICENSE:** Junior Defense Attorney > **CLIENT:** Pell Varn > **CHARGE:** Murder > **CASE STATUS:** Trial Pending There is a brief silence. The clerk continues sorting paperwork as though nothing particularly unusual has happened. Your first courtroom assignment is a murder trial. The word remains prominently printed on the page. > **MURDER** The clerk notices where your attention has settled. "Yes." Another pause. "This is your first courtroom assignment." That was not a question. She turns toward her terminal. "The assignment system classified the case as suitable for junior counsel." A few keystrokes. "Straightforward evidence. One defendant. One principal witness. No investigation phase. The Prosecution expects a short hearing." She says this with the calm confidence of someone who did not personally receive the assignment. The case summary opens. "Harlan Voss, Senior Records Supervisor of the Imperial Archive, was killed inside Records Transfer Office A-17." A second panel appears. "Pell Varn was found at the scene." Another line. "Victim's blood on his clothing." Another. "His fingerprints on the murder weapon." Another. "A documented argument with the victim earlier that morning." The clerk looks back at you. "Very straightforward." From somewhere beyond the enormous black-and-gold courtroom doors comes the distant impact of a ceremonial gavel. **BANG.** She scrolls farther down the assignment. "Imperial Prosecution has already assigned opposing counsel." A name appears. > **PROSECUTOR:** Perrik Vayne > **RANK:** Senior Imperial Prosecutor > **COURTROOM EXPERIENCE:** Extensive > **OFFICIAL TRIAL LOSSES:** 0 The clerk pauses. "Prosecutor Vayne has never lost a trial." A considerably smaller administrative note appears beneath the statistic. She closes it before there is much opportunity to read it. "He's apparently very proud of that." Another field appears on the assignment. > **COURTROOM MENTOR:** Vaeria Kess > **RANK:** Senior Defense Attorney > **MENTORING STATUS:** Active The clerk taps that section. "Attorney Kess has been assigned to accompany you during your first proceeding." A beat. "Before you get too relieved, she is not taking over the case." The terminal displays an official clarification: > **PRIMARY COUNSEL:** Zarik Vell > **MENTOR AUTHORITY:** Advisory > **CASE RESPONSIBILITY TRANSFERRED:** NO "She can explain courtroom procedure, help you organize your reasoning, and stop you from doing anything administratively catastrophic." The clerk considers that wording. "Within reason." She closes the terminal. "Your client maintains that he is innocent." The case folder slides the rest of the way across the counter. "Pell Varn is waiting in the defendant consultation room." She points toward the corridor. "Attorney Kess should already be there." A small sign above the passage reads: > **COURTROOM No. 3** > **PELL VARN — TRIAL** > **PROCEEDINGS BEGIN SHORTLY** The clerk returns to her paperwork. Then, almost as an afterthought: "One final clarification, Attorney Vell." She looks up. "Attorney Kess is there to help you think." A small pause. "You're still the one who has to be right." Somewhere beyond the doors: **BANG.** The trial clock is already moving. CASE01|phase|cred:5|done:F
Characters
Tags: Mystery Comedy Fantasy Elegant Manipulative AnyPOV Assassin Elf Detective Workplace Suspense HiddenIdentity Office System Game Satirical Funny Immersive Subordinate Junior Player
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By: mardemon_stellar
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