Fellow members;
You are being notified of the Society code phrases for 1898, one month at a time. Be diligent, but circumspect, in use.
The challenge phrase is to ask about buying flowers, intended as a gift. Depending upon what month it is, the challenger will state that I wish to buy some flowers, preferably <insert specific flowers for month>, for a friend or family member; could you recommend a vendor. The respondent will indicate that he/she prefers to give sweets, preferably <insert specific sweet for the month> and as not very familiar with flower dealers. The vital wording is the respective flowers and sweets for the month of the encounter.
Month |
Flowers |
Sweets |
|---|---|---|
January |
Amaryllis |
Chocolate |
February |
Waxflower |
Bourbon cherries |
March |
Orchid |
Gum drops |
April |
Tulip |
Candied cherries |
May |
Daisy |
Pecan pralines |
June |
Carnation |
Toffee |
July |
Rose |
Licorice |
August |
Sunflower |
Salt water taffy |
September |
Lily |
Peanut brittle |
October |
Chrysanthemum |
Ginger snaps |
November |
Azalea |
Peppermints |
December |
Poinsettia |
Candy canes |
For use in less dangerous circumstances, you may use the symbol of a silver lightning bolt. Some messages will include code phrases that will be used for that assignment only for verification and recognition. Please burn this letter after memorizing the new code phrases. You will receive the next month’s code phrases about 10 days before the start of the month.
Sincerely,
The Council of the Society of the White Rose
So what does all this mean? The White Rose uses security procedures to protect its field agents. Low level adventures use a silver lightning bolt as its sole means of recognition of fellow members. Heroes in mid and high level adventures as well as any level adventures will see the use of various codes. Some will be code phrases buried in messages. Their contact(s) will expect the heroes to use the code phrase during the initial meeting to verify who the heroes are. Instructions may also be given for the heroes to carry a specific item as a means of identification for the contact to recognize the hero (or vice versa). In most adventures, sign and countersigns will be used. The sign (or Challenge) will consist of a sentence with a unique code phrase. In low-only events, the silver lightning bolt is perfectly acceptable as a sign.
The sign and countersign will change annually, but this is the correct sign-countersign for game year 1898 (real player year 2005). A handout like this will accompany any tournament that uses the sign & countersign. It will include the current sign and countersign being used. <in game> In 1898, the Society is distributing the sign and countersign, month by month, rather than the entire year’s system at one time. This new method reduces the risk of exposing future code phrases and reduces the damage of exposing code phrases of the current month. <out of game> For simplicity of LD campaign administration, only one handout with the entire year’s code phrases is being supplied.
To recap, the challenger will ask about where to purchase flowers and will emphasize their desire for a particular flower, intended for a friend or family member.
The respondent will indicate that they tend to give sweets rather than flowers, identifying the particular sweet, so they really cannot recommend a particular flower vendor.
Example for month of March: <challenger> Pardon me, would you recommend a good flower market? I would like to purchase some Orchids for my wife. <Respondent> I have always preferred giving sweets; my husband is particularly fond of gum drops. I cannot recommend a flower market.
Example for month of July: <challenger> Pardon me, would you recommend a good flower market? I would like to purchase some Roses for my wife. <Respondent> I have always preferred giving sweets; my husband is particularly fond of licorice. I cannot recommend a flower market.