This is a very simple game. With each post you do 2 things.
1: describe the organization or character named by the previous poster.
2: name the next organization or character to be described.
Background: I used to be very active in the D20 Modern community before the Gleemax/4e D&D debacle and this is basically a combination of the character and organization threads that we used to have in that forum. It is basically a collaborative idea generating game that was originally intended to provide bite sized content that anyone could include in any D20 modern game. Excessive use of acronyms should be avoided, mostly because at some point it becomes very difficult to fit words that make sense into acronyms if you list enough of them. It is often a good idea, but not required to link new characters and organizations to ones already described. Everyone can play, and this thread is what you make of it.
A typical description includes the following:
Appearance: This is what the organization or character appears to be at first glance. For organizations you need to describe it: Is it a corporation, religion, government agency, political movement? What is its mission statement? Its resources? For characters it may include basic physical description, personality and actions.
Rumor: Rumors are optional but provide hooks that may link characters and organizations to others or provide interesting avenues of interaction.
Identity: Identity is optional but recommended as it provides internal knowledge about the organization or character that may provide insight into their true abilities, motivations and goals that they may not always display publicly including things like criminal associations and internal conflicts.
Dark Secret: Secrets or Dark Secrets are optional and provide a "weird" option. For the most part, things like conspiracy or supernatural aspects of an organization are part of their secret.
Next: Next is the name of the organization or character to be described by the next poster. Perhaps just a name or with a leading question or link.
Starting Example:
What is Department 7?
Appearance: Department 7 is an organization within the Department of Homeland Security specializing in investigation and combating the threat of biological terrorism. It is headquartered out of Raleigh, NC and has branch offices in New Orleans LA, Sacramento CA and Chicago IL. Department 7 often works closely with the Center for Disease Control and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Rumor: After a department 7 investigation, it is common for some members of the community to simple disappear and never be seen from again, even if there is no indication they were involved in any kind of wrongdoing.
Identity: Despite being woefully underfunded, department 7 has almost zero oversight from other political, defense or intelligence agencies. It operates almost completely independently and has been known to attract agents that "don't play well with others". Department 7 also receives very little attention for its successes and has been unable to prevent a recent reduction in its operational budget and flack for stepping on the toes of larger agencies.
Dark Secret: Department 7s true mandate is to investigate, analyze, contain and cover up "biological threats" that include people manifesting superhuman mutations. Department 7 often skirts around its mandate by recruiting the "threats" as its own agents instead of locking them away, much to the annoyance of the other secret agencies involved.
Next: Who is Janice Merkowski and what doe she have to do with Department 7?