The new crew

Each role holds one name, so the two Astronomists never serve together, nor do the two Fools, nor the two Cupbearers. Naming one Astronomist after the other replaces the first. Ramses refuses HOLOCENE outright ("I am not working with HOLOCENE."), and the call offers him only when Karolina is the Astronomist ("Ramses."). With HOLOCENE as Astronomist, PSEUDOPOD is the only Fool ("PSEUDOPOD."). HOLOCENE also names a condition of his own: "My one condition -- I won't work with anyone from the old Crew. They simply cannot be trusted.".

Yana and KALEIDOSCOPE are never offered together. The call names KALEIDOSCOPE as Cupbearer if Yana went through with the trade (As she slides from her seat, her eyes don't come close to meeting yours.), and Yana otherwise, so that choice is made in her conversation, before the call.

Everyone can be recruited before you choose. When the ginkgo leaves fall, the game looks at the recruitment tasks of Ramses, Karolina and HOLOCENE and, if all three are done, says You have everyone. The task now is to choose.. Tasks still open when the call ends are cancelled by its last passage (A click in your ear -- a moment of silence, then the familiar hum, somehow more empty than the silence.); the list is below.

The assignment begins on the call to Melita, Your Controller with "We're on, Mel. Tomorrow." [Commit to the assignment.]. That option is offered only after the ginkgo leaves have fallen (Look, around your feet.). She then goes through the squad, the plot and the tools, and moves on only once all three are settled ("Yeah. That's us.", "If this is a 'ritual', there must surely be rites to perform. With luck, you may even catch the Lich unattended...…, "Very good."). The tools step does not look for a gun: "Yeah, I got one. We're set." is always offered, while "I didn't 'procure' anything: I fabricated my own death machine." needs the gun you built. The plot step has no condition.