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OOC/Recruitment thread It was a mere hour ago that Wide Eye, one of UGN's unawakened intelligence agents, sent an urgent message to Branch Chief Belcry (Ex Machina): a trio of hikers were transformed into Gjaum from an unknown incident. At some point they came into contact with civilians and the situation escalated. The Zurich mission has left the N Branch woefully short on resources and apparently the situation went completely unnoticed until it was too late. Instead, American military forces (believed to be connected with Tempest) intervened and (with heavy losses) managed to kill or subdue the uncontained Gjaum. Wide Eye's contacts in the local police forces advised him of the situation but all attempts to enforce UGN authority have been stalled. Latest reports indicate that military transport trucks from the Yokota Air Base were en route. UGN intelligence also indicates the base is a likely location for a Tempest anti-Renegade research base. Within 5 seconds The World's Smartest Man had already formulated dozens of potential responses and dismissed hundreds more. Unfortunately, his body cannot react as quickly as his mind and the staff and tools at his disposal react even more slowly. 30 minutes later all Overed Agents within UGN headquarters had been alerted and given an extremely quick briefing. A transport helicopter and pilot was procured. Streaming reports from Wide Eye indicate that the trucks have arrived and several photos were sent showing twisted bodies being loaded into the vehicles. It was decided that "secondary resources" (i.e. non-Agent Overeds) may be necessary. A database search of available Overed resources would have likely taken at least an additional 10 minutes. Fortunately Ex Machina's flawless memory includes the names and data on all friendly Overeds in City N and a few microseconds spent calculating probabilities is enough to determine with exceptional accuracy their probably location at this time. 5 minutes later the helicopter is in the air, it's route calculated to most efficiently pick up additional agents and then intercept the military vehicles en route back to the base.  Now the helicopter is cruising along parallel to the highway, full of Overeds: enough power in one place to demolish the city several times over if need be (or if they fail to keep control). Traffic this time of day isn't exactly jam-packed but this many exposed civilians is a security nightmare. Back at the UGN headquarters the counter-intelligence staff are already scrambling to get active control over cell phone feeds and emergency lines in the area and preparing for a massive obfuscation project to ensure minimal breach of secrecy.  The truck's green cameo pattern stands out among the civilian vehicles, two long transport vehicles. There appears to be no escort cars or anything similar. Maybe they are trying to keep a low profile to prevent exactly this sort of interference or maybe they simply don't care if their cargo endangers Japanese civilians. They seem to currently be maintaining radio silence. Back Alley (Not going to start with a roll, I'll assume that enhanced Angel Halo senses catch this): Although its not immediately apparent, a pair of light combat helicopters are keeping pace with the trucks. They're far out enough that the civilian drivers probably won't spot them but close enough to quickly come to the aid of the transport trucks. I like to start things In medias res. However, everyone should feel free to post what they were doing before Ex Machina called you into service and then place yourself in the scene. The assumption is that you'll be in the helicopter, but if you want to come up with some other plausible position then go for it. Back Alley could be in his car, keeping pace with the transports. Someone else could have positioned themselves further down the road, waiting for the trucks to come to them, etc. I'm assuming that everyone is currently only at Awakened Power Level, tell me if that's not the case and roll corruption as needed. Likewise feel free to mention any particular bits of gear or items that you've grabbed or procured in the rush to get here. It's assumed that everyone likely has a radio headset to keep in touch. Since Ex Machina is the man in charge it'll fall to him to set things in motion if no one else takes the initiative. Ultimately, there's no "wrong" approach here but the UGN charter does kind of frown on massive damage and loss of life if it's not necessary. oriongates fucked around with this message at 05:32 on Mar 2, 2016 |
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Mar 1, 2016 08:00
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Thanks for the heads up on the images. By the way, everyone should feel free to go ahead and make any rolls for your characters via Orokos when you're taking an action. Even if you're not sure if the Trait is going to be the right one or if you're not sure if a roll is even necessary. It never hurts to throw a roll out there and that way you can also make any decisions about supplementing your action with Powers at that time. I'll handle "reaction" style rolls, except for defenses (so you can declare your defensive powers and such), but go ahead and roll for anything you initiate. In The Truck "Kevin" had been in deep cover in the Yokata Air Base for over two weeks now. Tempest security was good enough that there'd been no chance to send any of his intelligence to the UGN yet, if not good enough to keep him from gathering the intelligence in the first place. The UGN had long suspected that some kind of Renegade-related research had been going on here and "Kevin" has confirmed it. The lower levels of the base (going much farther than "official" maps would have you believe) are crawling with undeclared American staff and researchers and while he hasn't gotten more than a glance or two inside one of these high security labs what he's seen has confirmed the UGN's worries: research being carried out on Gjaum corpses and genetic samples. In the past two days high ranking military officials have shown up, taking "tours" of the lower levels. "Kevin" managed a few minutes alone with one of their laptops after it was foolishly left logged in. Not enough time to find much, but definitely worrying results: data on classified UGN activities, plans for the construction of covert missile silos off the coast of several "ally" nations (including Japan) and indications covert diplomacy with several highly placed Japanese politicians. And on top of it all, today was not going as it should. It should have been the perfect chance for the UGN to swoop in and debrief him. A heavy-handed attempt by Tempest to steal away Gjuam bodies (even ones they created) should have been swiftly dealt with and he could have been debriefed under the pretense of an interrogation. But there's been no call for them to stand down and submit to UGN authority, no UGN agents swarming the site of the Gjaum attack and no blockade to keep them from getting back on the highway with Tempest's prize. Now the trucks are loaded with twisted Gjaum bodies and, escorted by a pair of choppers in the distance, the two trucks are getting frighteningly close to the base, where Tempest can easily make the corpses "disappear". A retroactive infiltration is unexpected but I like the idea enough that I'll roll with it. I'll allow the infiltration to succeed and we'll roll to see if you know anything useful already but Tempest security is pretty tight so the Opposing Force is going to be a d10. Perfect Infiltration [1d10]=8, rerolling that 1 with Flawless because there's no reason not to 1d10=6. Now, Tempest Security [d10]=2. Alongside The Truck Jezebel smoothly sails through traffic and pulls up alongside the two trucks. Fortunately most of the other Japanese motorists are also starting a bit. Even this close to an American base big, military vehicles like this are a rare sight cruising down the highway. Glancing over, Back Alley squints his eyes ever so slightly, gripping the steering wheel tightly to keep control while shuffling through different spectra. He doesn't manage much more than a cloudy jumble, sort of like looking at a stuffed piece of luggage going through the x-ray machine at the airport. But Back Alley is a bit better at interpreting things than your average TSA agent. The rearmost truck is carrying a single, large creature. something the size of an elephant or a rhino but with almost no bones or hard tissue to speak of, just layers of muscley or fleshy matter. The forward truck is loaded with two smaller forms: a bigger one about the size of a bear whose exterior is even harder to see through than the truck itself and a smaller, almost human-shaped figure. Just before Back Alley snaps his vision back into the regular spectrum he spots something...something barely visible in the body mass of the smaller form.... ...A heartbeat. Hmm...at Awakened getting a good look is going to be pretty tough but getting a bit of a peek shouldn't be too hard. Lets set the Opposing Force at 1d6, but if you get over twice as much (effectively beating Inhuman level difficulty) you'll get a better look. Angel Halo [d10]=7 vs. The Side Of A Truck [d6]=5 Down The Road Somehow despite being on foot Wraithblade has made better time than the UGN helicopter transporting his fellow agents. He stands on top of a walkway spanning the highway, watching the two big trucks driving towards him. Within minutes they'll pass underneath. No need for a roll here. Wraithblade is currently about as far in front of the trucks as the helicopter is behind them. In game terms, both are currently at [Extreme] range. In Wraithblade's case that'll be changing shortly no matter what he does and the helicopter can move in closer with ease, although that'll likely draw attention from the truck's escort choppers. For now I'm leaving things in the helicopter and elsewhere up in the air. We'll see how the Branch Chief reacts to the info provided and whether or not anyone wants to do anything rash. By the way, I'm fairly new to the SA Forum's PbP section, so I'm not 100% up on the etiquette here. Definitely let me know if there's anything I should know or anything I can do to make things smoother.
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Mar 2, 2016 07:06
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Since we haven't entered "combat time" yet, there's no need to worry about turns or actions just yet and we can just assume EP refreshes itself after each roll. The Opposing Force here is pretty minimal Spotting Trouble [d4]=1. Wraithblade A quick glance left and right shows you exactly what you expect to see: a pair of choppers, small enough not to attract much attention and without the military's standard camo pattern. However, you're certain that they're both sporting discrete weaponry and they're flying just far enough out that they won't be obtrusive from the highway but they can easily come to the aid of the two trucks. The real question is how far is Tempest willing to go in the middle of a civilian highway to protect their prize?
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Mar 2, 2016 20:18
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Keep in mind the limits of each Power Level. At Awakened you're super-human but only just. With your Syndrome in particular it's good to look at the Powers for guidelines on how you can affect the world and others with your abilities. For instance, Inhuman is when you get abilities like Projection (ranged attack) and Obstruction (Create an Opposing Force) so that would be the minimum to start pulling stuff like creating pools of bloody quicksand or spike-strips. Actually snatching the trucks from the road and transporting them underground via blood-river is probably going to be at least Monstrous. That's not to say you can't do it, just remember that you'll be Powering Up and increasing your Corruption to do so. As far as Stranger's presence, the Branch Chief is aware of his infiltration and may have included the info in his briefing to everyone else but unless Stranger breaks cover himself no one is currently aware he's on one of the trucks. Perils of being a double-agent. By the way, since I don't want to keep everyone waiting too much longer if we don't hear from Ra'id in the next 24 hours or so I'll probably give things a push myself, but until then I'll give Transient a chance to post and anyone else a chance to do anything on their own initiative if they wish.
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Mar 3, 2016 06:21
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Answering questions first, will post IC stuff next Theantro: The walkway is about 20-25 feet from the ground. That sort of fall isn't much trouble for an Overed even at Awakened, so dropping on top of the truck is even less of a problem. Unless they're sped up a lot or taking evasive maneuvers it won't even require a roll. Swedish Thaumocracy: Transient People pretty well covered what the UGN'll want. But the general priorities for the UGN go like this: Prevent Large Scale Death/Chaos > Keep The Secret > Prevent the death of UGN personnel > prevent the death of any other individuals > Perform Renegade related research. More specifically the current goal is to keep the Gjuam bodies out of Tempest hands and the preservation of the bodies isn't necessarily a big priority (although it might be a nice bonus). Tempest is a military organization and while they might cross a few more lines than the UGN as a general rule they're not outright villainous...but depending on the mission they might be willing to pull some shady poo poo or accept "necessary losses" but they're unlikely to intentionally commit outright atrocities. Technically they aren't enemy of the UGN but they're considered untrustworthy and they're dramatically overstepping their bounds with this action. So far they're just obfuscating and smuggling, it remains to be seen if they're willing to push things further to keep their prize. Transient People Your initial d10% at character creation serves as your corruption for the first session and you'll roll additional corruption at the start of future sessions. The corruption cost of Powering Up covers you for the remainder of the Scene you Power Up in and you'll roll for extra corruption at the start of each following Scene if you chose not to power down. Roland T. Dapperman Generally, blinding is going to be an attack that inflicts Stress rather than Injury. Syndrome Boost would be enough for a "melee" attack (hitting someone within [Nearby] range with a powerful flash, visual distortion or temporary veil of darkness), but you'd need Projection for a ranged attack. So you could pull up alongside a truck and hit the driver but to get a helicopter you'd need to Power Up to use Projection. EDIT: I should note that you could certainly pull a handgun out of your glove box or something and try and shoot down a chopper with that. Angel Halo covers uncanny targeting and so using a Syndrome Boost for a more mundane attack with a handgun would be fine, just less subtle. They're [Extreme] range currently but closing in. oriongates fucked around with this message at 06:42 on Mar 4, 2016 |
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Mar 4, 2016 05:58
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Stranger The driver is pretty much helpless against you on his own but we'll give a rating of d6 to see if his struggles make controlling the vehicle difficult before he passes out. Feeble Struggles [d6]=5. I didn't specify but for the sake of simplicity we'll say "Kevin" is in the lead truck. The driver manages to get out a short "Kevi-" before you're on him. He struggles valiantly, you've covered his side arm but he tries to break your hold...but there's no joints to twist or nerves to put pressure on. In a last desperate attempt he tries to hit the radio button with his foot but you casually move it out of his reach. Within a moment he's unconscious and a few minutes later you slam the brakes to bring the truck to a hard stop. There's a lot of honking and a bit of swerving but no sound of crashing cars or any other sort of extreme chaos. The rear-view mirror shows that the truck behind you has pulled to a stop just shy of hitting the rear of your vehicle but no one's broken radio silence just yet. You see the escort choppers start to close in. The trucks have stopped [Far] from Wraithblade's position. The Tempest choppers are far enough to still count as [Extreme] but are closing in as they're not trying to hide now that the trucks are stopped. Stricken could be in position down the road like Wraithblade or hanging onto a (now paint-free) part of the helicopter to be deployed aerially, your choice.
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Mar 4, 2016 06:45
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Remember that Might only adds if the roll is a success. It's largely intended as a damage-booster. However, just positioning yourself approximately under a helicopter won't take much effort so it won't need a roll. Easiest would be simply pulling up next to Wraithblade. Wraithblade With the first step you're in the road, a panicked driver smashes his horn before you're suddenly not in front of them anymore. A few more steps and you're in front of the forward truck. The sight of an apparent civilian appearing in traffic and closing in on the stopped truck with unnatural speed has clearly not gone unnoticed. One of the helicopters picks up speed, hovering above your position. A loudspeaker crackles to life "Step away from the vehicles. All civilians must step away from the vehicle. This is a secure operation and your cooperation is compulsory. Step away now!" Stricken Keep in mind that you're limited to one Power at a time unless you have a Combo Signature Power, so you won't be able to combine Flawless and Syndrome Boost. Doesn't make a big difference in this case, just means that the extra EP is lost. The upside is I'd say we can add lifeline sensor since the action is getting you in position in time Lifeline Sensor [d6]=8, gives you a total of 15. Scaling the building in time to intercept the helicopter (the one not currently harassing wraithblade) is going to be a [d8] Obstacle, Moving Fast [d8]=4. You reach the roof just in time, the chopper is moving in towards the hub-bub on the highway at a steep angle to come in close. They don't seem to have noticed you. As they approach you can see the barrel of a machine gun tucked under the snout of the helicopter and a pair of stubby wings have small missile pods mounted underneath. You'll have effectively one round where the helicopter passes over you and is considered [Near] range, so if you wanted to do something like attack or leap onboard that's your opportunity
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Mar 4, 2016 20:22
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This game has taken unexpectedly artistic turn Stricken The helicopter counts as an awakened-level opponent. Maneuverability [d6]=5. That's 2 damage since your roll was 12. As you rise up towards the helicopter the pilot finally notices you and tries to swerve away, but it's too late: your power slashes at the helicopter. The gun barrel corrodes and crumbles and sparks rise from the missile pods as wires fall to bits and metal plating begins to flap in the wind. Wraithblade The chopper has no particularly helpful Qualities here: Keeping It Together [d4]=3. That's 2 Stress. Not enough to take it out but certainly enough to shake the crew. Apparently someone in the chopper accidentally had the button for the loudspeaker still on. "Is that a sword? Why does he have a...oh poo poo! It's--" the audio cuts off for a bit, then resumes, with a little less confidence and authority, "This is a Tempest-authorized operation, the UGN's presence is not requested or required. Please clear the area and allow us to continue." Apparently the pilot is still not good at radio discipline, because you hear, more faintly, from the loudspeaker: "Do you think they bought it?" Back Alley:The helicopter still hasn't swooped low enough to be within [Near] range so Syndrome Boost still isn't quite up for a blinding attack. You could try creating dramatic SFX to intimidate much like Wraithblade is but that's also be a bit more obvious to everyone nearby. However, I think later events will render this fairly unnecessary, see below Ex Machina The Helicopter will try and fly away from the sudden bot swarm: Maneuverable [d6]=5. Vs a 17 that's 3 Stress and combined with Stricken's attack that'll take it out. There's muffled shouts from the helicopter's cockpit as the UGN chopper swoops alongside and you open the door. For a moment the two helicopters are close enough that you can see the panicked American inside jerking the control stick and trying to get weapons to bear. Then the swarm of micro-bots surrounds his chopper and by the time he can even try to evade they crackle with short range magnetic-pulses. The Tempest-built helicopter is hardened enough to not simply fall out of the sky, but clearly the thing is barely under the pilot's control anymore and is steadily losing altitude and stability as it drunkenly wobbles towards a clear patch of ground by the highway. Blood Bath Indeed, words would have been insufficient. I showed this to my wife and she told me that whatever you were trying to do I had to let you succeed. Fortunately I don't think you'll need much help, Troops [d6]=3. Both Troops are taken out. I'm sorry I can only respond with text. With the front truck stopped, one of the soldiers in the rear truck opens to door to try and figure out what's going on. Clearly he's expecting trouble because he has one hand on his sidearm. Clearly he was not expecting the skeletal man who stepped out of the ice-cream truck and the thin, reddish mist that flowed past him and into the truck. He and the driver both begin choking and retching, falling to the ground with the intense stench. Stranger You're mean! Keeping It Together [d4]=3. vs 20 that's 3 more Stress, enough to take it out in conjunction with Wraithblade's Stress damage. The radio is silent for a moment after your transmission. Then it crackles, "Wha...what...why?" His voice is full of confusion and fear. However before he can continue there's a scream and a burst of high-pitched static. Gjaum (Inhuman; 5/5)  The roof of the lead truck doesn't so much get torn apart as it rots to bits and scraps are knocked aside when a vaguely humaniod form leaps from inside the truck onto the roof. The thing looks like a skinned human with writhing tendrils of bare muscle forming long cords, covered in slime. The thing's jaws open unnaturally wide and sprays a stream of thick black liquid at the helicopter hovering above. The moment the liquid touches the metal it crumples, belching out foul grey smoke. There are screams from inside as the chopper flies out of control, smashing into the ground at the edge of the highway. The creature scans the area as motorists scream. Some slam on the gas and try and drive away, others simply abandon their vehicles and try and flee on foot. The road in front of the truck is mostly empty except for fleeing pedestrians while behind traffic jams into a knot of wrecked or abandoned vehicles. I'll try and roll initiative soon, with a Gjaum on the scene combat has begun in earnest, but it may be a bit before I can post again so feel free to roll yours if you like
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Mar 5, 2016 21:40
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Initiative counts as the first part of a full round, so any EP spent on initiative is unavailable until the start of your turn. As I type this I realize that this seems a little awkward so I'll put a pin in it as a possible thing to tweak in the future. However, for now we'll stick with it. Don't worry about EP you spent before this: since we weren't in "combat time" we weren't tracking Energy round-to-round yet anyway. So for purposes of initiative you've got a full EP pool right now. If you spend it then you won't have it until your turn starts (so if you go first it fills back up right away, but if an opponent acts first you won't have it available to use for defense). For the sake of the PbP environment I'll go ahead and roll and assume that you'll let me know if you want to use Flawless to re-roll. Going forward let me know if anyone wants to have a "standard" way to handle initiative (like using their Syndrome boost to use an appropriate Syndrome for initiative or the like). This is just one of those things that would be the matter of a second if we were at a table together but a pain to handle in PbP. That said: initiative rolls, placed in order: Acid-Spitting Gjaum: 17 Stranger (Unnatural Speed): 7 Stricken (lifeline sensor seems to work as a reflex/alertness aid, plus style) 6 (also remember you're [Very Far] from the road) Blood Bath (no relevant Trait): 5 (breaking the tie in alphabetical order, just cuz). Ex Machina (Preparation and Foreknowledge) 5 Wraithblade (I figure one thing Aetherstep doesn't include is actually being fast, but your style applies): 5 Back Alley (Dance?) 4
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Mar 6, 2016 07:09
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I should be more careful posting later at night after a work day. I almost forgot that having the NPC win initiative means that I'm supposed to start things off! Considering how well the Gjaum rolled I imagine no one wants to gamble on Flawless Acid-Spitting Gjaum (Inhuman; 5/5) The thing on the truck gives off a gurgling howl, its tendrils whipping back and forth. It seems to be considering potential targets...civilians are running everywhere, a pair of Tempest soldiers lie helpless on the ground but perhaps some instinct tells it that all of you are the greatest potential threat. It turns its deformed face on Wraithblade, opening its mouth wide for another gout of black acid. The Gjaum uses Projection: Biological Weapons [d8]=3+2 from its Spitting Acid Knack =5. Not great, but since its Inhuman that gets doubled for a result of 10 unless Wraithblade wants to Power Up to Inhuman as well.
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Mar 6, 2016 09:48
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Interesting point on Flawless. One of the main intents of the Power is as an "oh poo poo!" tool, where (assuming you haven't used a Power already) you can try and avoid the consequences of a set of really bad rolls, especially defensively. Perhaps it'd be better if Flawless let you reroll all of your dice at once instead of just one. For now we'll keep things as-is, but I shall certainly keep this in mind. The stream of acid lands nowhere near Wraithblade, which is fortunate since the fluid spits and boils on contact with the concrete, throwing gobbets of steaming semi-liquid concrete several feet. Still boiling away, the bulk of the liquid has already reached a depth of almost half a foot. Stricken I think I'd avoid Lifeline Sensor for combat purposes. The intent is largely for combat tools be relatively specific (like Wraithblade's Tchernabog) with non-combat Ext. Traits being more flexible. Gjaum "lore" is pretty broad, so lets set learning anything useful as an Opposing Trait of d8. Obscure Gjaum Facts [d8]=5. With such breadth of mutation Gjaum are difficult to classify. This one however is certainly one of the "bestial" variety. For whatever reason, its impulses are simple and easily satisfied with mayhem and destruction. Usually such Gjaum can be distracted by easy prey in large numbers (of course, the use of civilians for this purpose is frowned upon) or driven into mindless rage if frustrated in its desires. Standard UGN doctrine is that if encountered in a "secure" combat zone then non-lethal subdual and capture should be attempted (in the hope of one-day curing the victim), but when civilians are endangered (like now) then rapid extermination is required. Waiting on what Ex Machina in the helicopter decides to pull. Whether its contributing to the team-up or pulling something with Stricken, etc. oriongates fucked around with this message at 22:56 on Mar 7, 2016 |
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Mar 7, 2016 01:59
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Sorry about that, you're absolutely right on the team up. I'll correct that. For Ex Machina's question: Q1) Yes. Q2) The Syndrome Trait only functions via Powers like Syndrome Boost, Projection, etc. Q3) Potentially. In the chopper I'd say getting [Far] away would be no problem. Getting [Near] would probably require something like rappelling out of the helicopter into the thick of things, forcing the pilot to make a risky roll, etc. I think in my next version of BAKFDG I'll definitely make that change to flawless, maybe even at the start of the next "session". Just to give it a last chance we'll stick with the way it functions now until at least then. As far as IRC, I'll try and show up. Unfortunately a lot of my "computer time" is during work and otherwise my online time is done in fits and starts (that's how I missed that thing with the Team Up and stranger...I started writing that post about one to two hours before I finished it. Still, I'll definitely give it a try. I could probably manage to make an appearance around when I make a post. Also, it's been years since I've used IRC, now I've got to recall how that whole thing works.
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Mar 7, 2016 22:55
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Counterattack doesn't combine with total defense. That looks like something I had in my main game rules that I apparently didn't put in the Double Cross version for some reason. By the way, with Ex Machina's Signature Move, I meant to say this back during character creation, going with the full Syndrome Trait is fine, the difference isn't huge and the Obstacle seems secondary to being able to predict the enemy's actions. I'll post soon with resolution (and maybe try and make an appearance in IRC, but a bit busy at the moment.
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Mar 8, 2016 00:51
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Team Up Let's see just how well he'll manage against such a coordinated attack. It's already used one EP for projection this round and I'll save the other one and see what happens after the roll. Unexpected Speed [d10]=4. Doubled gets an 8. Against a total of 42 on the team up. That'd be a total of 7 damage, obviously taking it out. But since I've got a single EP left on it I'll roll that I'll reroll that 1 with Flawless. Reroll=9. Doubled to 18. Against a 42 that's still 5 damage. Note to self: Team Up rules might need to be nerfed just a bit. We'll see. Behind the snarling gjaum a figure looms up. Perhaps driven by instinct or catching the odor of blood, the gjaum spins around to face Blood Bath's half-formed servant. There's a second of hesitation: maybe it's unsure of what it's seeing, perhaps bemused by the strange gesture it seems to be making. But the brief pause is over quickly as it lashes the servant with one of its tendrils, shredding its form into a spatter of blood. But in that moment Back Alley is behind the gjaum, attempting to pin its limbs to its side. The skin of the creature quickly begins to weep clear fluid. The liquid smokes where it meets Back Alley's flesh and clothes, although it doesn't burn nearly as aggressively as the black spittle, but it lubricates the monster, allowing it to twist its way free of Back Alley's grip. Before the gjaum is entirely free Back Alley manages a hard shove with one shoulder: the monster is hideously strong but its not significantly heavier than an ordinary man and it falls off the roof of the truck onto the pavement below. However it recovers quickly and, in a flurry of limbs it regains its feet and crouches in preparation for a pounce...but Stranger is already descending from above. That half-second off its feet was enough time for the operative, bone-spurs extended, to land solidly on its back, all 500 lbs of him. The impact punches bone spikes deep into the creature's flesh and drives the thing to its knees. Within the blink of an eye its blood reacts to the hardened bone and the wounds fizz with greenish foam, dissolving the bones like icicles in boiling water. Fortunately Stranger isn't foolish enough to include unnecessary nerve endings in his weaponry. But as fast and heavy as Stranger is, the gjaum is faster and stronger. The struggle quickly turns and the gjaum is looming above Stranger, its tendrils ready to strike, dripping ominous-looking fluids. There's a flickering blackness and the gjaum goes still for a moment...then its limbs separate messily from its torso. Stranger moves quickly enough to avoid the spray of fluids (who knows what they might do). Standing over the gjaum, holding the pitch-black Tchernobog, is Wraithblade. Another quick slash bisects the gjaum's trunk and takes a hefty gouge from the pavement underneath. The individual pieces twitch and writhe for a moment, but eventually go still. Fortunately Gjaum can't Power Up so this is it for our tentacled friend. First fight and no one had to take extra Corruption, or indeed got injured at all. Feel free to post reactions, etc. You can assume that a team of non-Overed UGN "cleaners" are en route to help get the situation under control. I will tell you that things aren't quite done here at the scene of the fight so no-one should be skipping back to base just yet.
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Mar 8, 2016 04:06
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Fortunately the area has been mostly abandoned by fleeing civilians. They'll spread crazy tales about monsters or crazy sword-wielding maniacs, but the presence of military trucks and the obvious chemical damage to the road will make hallucinations from some kind of toxic spill an easy cover story and the Americans will make easy scapegoats. Now that their gamble has failed Tempest will likely force the military base to go along with the deception and likely won't cause further trouble in that regard. Above the sounds of the helicopter blade you can hear honking from the cars too far back in the traffic jam for the drivers to have any idea what just transpired and just how lucky they are.
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Mar 8, 2016 04:53
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Stranger Fortunately your quick "scan" of the truck reveals that the creature inside is not moving. Maybe the smaller gjaum was more clever than the others and knew how to play dead or maybe it simply hadn't been killed all the way and possessed exceptional healing abilities. Blood Bath Having been precisely, if not neatly, vivisected its easy to see that the Gjaum's body is full of unusual organs with very little resemblance to the original human physiology. The thing doesn't actually seem to have blood anymore, in fact the entire circulatory system seems to have been simplified and remade into a chemical distribution system, allowing it to deliver fluids from these organs to the skin, tendrils or orifices. Now that its dead the amount of fluid is actually surprisingly minimal. Likely, like a Solaris Overed, the Gjaum simply produces the needed toxins and chemicals on demand and these organs can probably be reshaped and re-arranged as needed. Or could. It is now, quite definitely, dead. Back Alley The helicopter closest to the action, the one hit by the gjaum's acid, is a smoldering wreck. It's clear that there were no survivors. The helicopter downed by Ex Machina and Stricken has fared better however. Shortly before the gjaum was taken down it managed to make a clumsy landing on the grass not too far from the road. The two Tempest soldiers have disembarked, apparently unsure of what's going on. They seem to be arguing with one another under their breath. Then one of them points at something, something past the highway and past all of you. Everyone The Yokata Air Base is just a few miles away as the crow flies, just hidden behind a tree-covered hill from your position. The trucks had almost reached their goal. In the helicopter the pilot is the first to spot it, another helicopter, rising from the Air Base. This one is a larger and bulkier than the two escort choppers, a transport vehicle. Probably carrying clean-up crew from Tempest or maybe one or two higher-ups hoping to talk with the UGN and gloss over the "misunderstanding". Clearly not a threat. As the helicopter reaches cruising altitude and orients itself towards the former combat zone. Then, from somewhere on the ground, a small, fast moving object trailing smoke streaks from the ground to the helicopter. The rocket catches the helicopter right in the belly and the whole aircraft explodes in a fireball of twisted metal and spinning blades. 
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Mar 8, 2016 20:19
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As Ex Machina issues orders a trio of UGN vans pull up along a road parallel to the highway. The cleanup crew has arrived. Two teams disembark, one in official-looking high-visibility clothing who'll take over crowd control and rerouting traffic. The second team wears something that resembles a cross between SWAT uniforms and HAZMAT suits...because that's basically what they are. The MTF (Mobile Task Force) will help ensure that the area is secure until things are cleared enough to remove everything. Bringing in a crew of helpful NPCs to take on some of the busy-work. The trucks and Back Alley's car are pretty well blocked in by abandoned and wrecked cars on both sides, so unless Stricken starts straight-up disintegrating cars it'll probably be at least an hour or two before the place is cleared out. They can also take care of the Tempest soldiers from the first downed chopper. Currently assuming that Stranger and Blood Bath go on ahead as previously stated. Stranger Let's see, we'll put the OF as a d10 for the reasons below. Staying Out Of Trouble [d10]=17 Looks like trouble found you. That'll trigger a d8 Hazard from the gunfire Random Gunfire [d8]=4. It doesn't take long for you to find out that the biggest obstacle in your way is the Yokata Air Base itself, as apparently the shot came from the far side of the base, traveled over it and took out the helicopter. Unfortunately the smoke trail is already mostly faded and if you gave the base a wide berth you'd probably lose it entirely. You try and move too quickly to be noticed, skirting the fence towards the source of the attack...unfortunately with the heli just being blasted out of the sky the base is on high alert and the moment a group of panicked soldiers spot a weird figure moving far too fast along the perimeter they open fire. You don't have to worry about actually fighting the soldiers or not reaching your objective, this is just to see if you catch a few bullets along the way. Blood Bath Arriving on the scene of the helicopter crash you find a smoking wreck. Fortunately the aircraft landed in a small wooded area which cuts off most of the Air Base from the more urban areas around it so there were no direct witnesses and no one for the flaming wreck to land on. Unfortunately the burning mess of metal is clearly too thoroughly destroyed to hold any survivors... ...or so you would think. There's a loud grunt and the squeal of tortured metal as a piece of scorched fuselage is knocked away from the wreck and a muscular man in the badly scorched remnants of an American uniform pulls himself out of the wreckage. His exposed skin is burnt and bruised, but with that crash he should be nothing but a pile of broken bones. At first you think he must be a Tempest Overed, but when he turns his face in your direction you see a hint of exposed bone from a deep cut and it gleams with a metallic sheen. Fortunately this is no Overed, but one of Tempest's "enhanced infantry", cybernetically modified soldiers pumped with huge doses of tailored combat drugs. He may have been a bodyguard for someone more important on the helicopter. Unfortunately, he seems pissed. Spotting you he spits out a stream of angry English, along with a couple of teeth. He grabs a still-smoking piece of a helicopter blade and (ignoring the audible sound of hissing flesh) advances on you.  The angry american is an Awakened level opponent. If you want to just try and escape that's doable, but otherwise you probably want to give me an initiative roll. Ex Machina The new roll is fine. Wasn't 100% from your post but I'm assuming you're taking the helicopter higher and closer to the base to try and see what's going on/draw fire. The helicopter pilot dutifully pulls up on the controls, taking the chopper up and swinging over the swathe of greenery that cuts off most of the Air Base from the outskirts of city N. It's impressive just how dedicated the "ordinary" staff of the UGN can be, risking their lives alongside the superhuman Overeds, often without question or complaint. Of course, most have lost friends and family to the Renegade Virus in one form or another and most are determined to prevent that from happening to others. The base is clearly in chaos, red lights flashing on the barracks and hangars, soldiers rushing about. Although the rocket's trail is gone now the image of it still hangs in your mind like a Polaroid and its easy enough to work out the firing angle in your head. The origin was a point near the North end of the base, near the end of its runway. As you look to that area one of the smaller utility buildings goes up in flames. Clearly whoever is behind this has no problem with the idea of giving away their location. Now its time for my artistic contribution. The black X is the position of the unknown attacker, where Stranger is headed. The Red X is the helicopter crash, where Bloodbath currently is. The O is the approximate location of the helicopter and the rest of the crew still on the ground (Back Alley, Stricken, Wraithblade). 
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Mar 9, 2016 06:31
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For Stricken's action, wiping out a cluster of cars is going to require Powering Up to Inhuman. Assuming you're up for that I'll give you the bonus for Chewing The Scenery. If you decide you'd rather reign it in feel free to retcon the last post. Wrecked Cars [d8]=7. Even without Chewing The Scenery that's enough to wipe out a wide enough swathe that someone could take Back Alley's car and/or one of the Tempest trucks through through the line and reach the gates of the Air Base in a round or two. I'll avoid putting down a description until I get a definitive yay or nay on Powering Up. Back Alley The Tempest soldiers are, fortunately, mostly fluent in Japanese and don't seem inclined to cause any trouble. With the help of arriving MTF members they're swiftly disarmed and they seem largely cooperative. Probably following orders, even as brazen as Tempest is they probably don't want their men getting in a shootout with the UGN over a failed operation. Ex Machina You have to bark into the radio a few more times before there's a response. You can just imagine in the radio room some poor operator desperately trying to get orders from someone who knows what's going on amid all the chaos. Finally a response, "Sir, this is Yokata Air Base. I have been asked to defer all communication to--" a gruff voice cuts in "Give me that, get out of the way!" "This is Colonel Kurt Austin, in charge of Tempest operations in the Pacific. If you've got a problem with the way we handled our cleanup of the freaking mutants, fine. Let the pencil-pushers whine about who did what in violation of whatever. But if I find out you bastards are the ones that shot down my Lieutenant, there's going to be hell to pay! You hear me!!" There's a pause, " Dammit, do these bastards even speak English? Where's a drat translator!" By the way, I'm assuming as a Branch Chief and a Neumann that Ex Machina has a good command of english. Blood Bath I think we can use Not Standing Out as a good Trait for being non-threatening. Not Standing Out [d6]=5 and we'll put that against an OF of d8 Really Pissed Off [d8]=15. Yeah, he's not listening. You could always try again in future rounds though. Initiative rolls: Blood Bath=3, Angry American=5. Guy's swing: Super Soldier [d8]=13. A momentary look of confusion crosses over the guy's face and he pauses slightly in his advance, but then his face clouds over again. The scent of this guy's blood tells you that whatever drug delivery system he has implanted is probably working overtime: pumping chemicals into his bloodstream to enhance his durability, reduce his pain and give him the strength needed to fight free from that wreck. But all that synthetic adrenaline has got his "Fight or Flight" reflexes screaming and he's clearly not one for "Flight". Gripping his hunk of metal the soldier charges, screaming something that sounds like "Murika!!!" and bringing the blade down towards you with enough speed and force to splinter a small tree. Stranger Bullets whizz by like angry bees but none of them even ruffle your hair and it's not long before the shouts of the soldiers have faded in the distance. You take a couple of sharp rights at high speed and before you know it you've arrived. It's not hard to tell that you've come to the right place. Someone smashed a small SUV directly into the fence here and, standing on top of the car, laughing like a maniac is a slender young man in a hoodie. On one shoulder he has a quad-barreled rocket launcher, hefting the bulky weapon with minimal effort. As you take in the scene a small squad of soldiers, responding a bit faster than there fellows, come around the corner of a small building. The lunatic on the car raises his left hand and sprays the soldiers with a quick burst from a small SMG of some kind. The bullets don't seem to hit anyone but the soldiers take cover behind the building. This just causes the guy to laugh and raise his rocket launcher, discharging one of the barrels and sending the building up in flames. "That's right assholes! Come at me!! You got nothing! Nothing!!"
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Mar 10, 2016 06:48
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Stranger Keep in mind that all Overeds are at least peak-human in most areas. At Awakened an Overed in even slightly decent shape could easily lift someone one-handed or punch through tempered glass. This particular Overed is using Counterattack: General Destruction [d8]=9. Ties go to the PC, so the attack succeeds. That's one point of Damage if you just want to body slam him, or you can Seize Control to do something like grapple him but inflict no damage.  As you leap the gunman notices you out of the corner of their eye and his grin grows even bigger. He tosses the big quad-launcher aside and spreads his arms as though you were coming in for a hug. Then his arms and torso ignite. The flames aren't huge, only enough to scorch the paint of the car he's standing on and feel only a momentary pain as you make contact. Maybe this guy isn't used to dealing with other Overds or maybe you just didn't give him enough time to prepare. As the two of you topple off the top of the SUV he spits out a stream of angry curses and the aura of flames gutters out. Rolling initiative for the two of you: Unnatural Speed [d8]=6 vs Unknown Overed [d4]=1. Make sure to let me know whether you were going for damage or not on your last attack Blood Bath The 13 beats your 10, inflicting 1 Damage. Since you won't be striking back since you're on total defense I'll give the soldier a roll to see if he puts two and two together: http://orokos.com/roll/381662. A tie, which goes in his favor, meaning he begins to see a bit of reason. Blood surges up from your limbs, forming itself into a shield to take the force of the crude weapon, but although Tempest's work isn't pleasant it is clearly effective: this guy is strong. The swing tears through your bloody barrier, and leaves a long cut across your arm. The bleeding is instantly staunched without even a thought but it still leaves a sharp, searing pain from the ragged wound. Seeing his strike land the soldier instantly vaults back, crouches and rolls and spins rapidly left and right: evasive maneuvers for a counterattack that just isn't coming. Now several yards away the soldier, with a confused look, hefts his weapon and gestures brusquely, "[What're you waiting for]" He sounds mad, but you can tell he's not sure what to do, "[What's the matter?! Chicken?]" Ex Machina Note to self: do a better job of remembering character backgrounds There's a brief noise of confusion from the other line before the American responds, "Right, right, I forgot they had a Brit running things here." He clears his throat awkwardly, "Well, good! Because if you UGN jaggoffs had been involved it'd have been your last mistake! Now, you stay back and you tell your man not to set foot on base! We are more than capable of handling our own problems without help from the drat UG--" He's cut off by sounds in the background: yelling and gunfire. "What's going on!? How the gently caress did they get down here! Quick get-" There's a clatter as the headset on the other end falls to the ground and then the sound of muffled yelling and more gunfire in the background for a few seconds before the radio cuts off in a burst of static. No attempts to try raise a response on this or any other Tempest frequency get any result. Stricken The cars aren't a small obstacle even at Inhuman...but somehow I think you'll manage. Lots of Cars [d8]=6. Yeeaah, you're fine. The cars nearest Stricken simply fly apart: blasted into sand and individual components scattered here and there. The further cars are destroyed more roughly, sent tumbling away by a blast of gravitational force. A plume of dust rises up, a mixture of concrete and disintegrated Toyotas and Hondas. When the cloud clears the road is clear of obstacles...and somewhat flatter and rougher as the top layers of asphalt where blasted away. You can practically hear UGN's media control department gnashing their teeth. For Back Alley, were you going to load up the two Tempest soldiers into your car and drive along with the trucks, or did you want to hand them over to the UGN ground crew? oriongates fucked around with this message at 05:39 on Mar 11, 2016 |
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Mar 11, 2016 05:09
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Stuff like straight up teleportation or creating full on micro-dimensions is the stuff of Unique Powers, but you could always use a bit of spatial trickery with Syndrome Boost to do something like hide the truck in a building it wouldn't normally be able to enter or leave. That's probably be a d12 OF, tough at Awakened, easier at Inhuman. Ex Machina Trying to suss out the Sneaky Stuff[d10]=19. Still an easy win for you Within minutes you've got eyes everywhere, camera feeds giving dozens of different POVs. The information would normally be overwhelming but you're able to glance over every single feed in rapid succession, discarding redundant data and combining different fields of vision into a single coherent whole. The effect is much like having a high-definition satellite view of the area around the air base. Bit by bit you piece together the clues and build a picture of what's happening. First, you spot Blood Bath engaging with an unknown individual near the crashed helicopter. But your vision is drawn to Stranger engaged with the attacker on the north side of the base and the soldiers converging on that position. It's clear that this is exactly the intent of such a scene: a diversion. Quickly you calculate the areas of the base this would leave undefended and you spot what you're looking for: another vehicle. This one is parked much farther from the fence around the base on the south side and appears to be empty. Next you spot a section of the fence on the south side which has been torn open, the metal simply split apart like netting. From there the path becomes a bit harder to trace, but then you notice an unobtrusive hanger not too far from the entry into the base. It would seem to be just another storage hangar but its roof and walls are subtly reinforced with unusually durable materials for a simple utility shed. Sure enough the door (which is much thicker than would be normal) has been ripped from its hinges and lies on its side. From there all traces of this second intruder(s) vanish...this hangar was clearly their goal and he, she or they still seem to be inside.
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Mar 11, 2016 12:14
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Stranger The Overed is resisting with Determination [d6]=4. That's a total of 3 Stress inflicted and he's still pinned down by you. Pinned down the kid, he couldn't be older than 16, stares in shock as you twist your body like a nest of snakes. "gently caress! Get the gently caress off me!!". He struggles futiley against your grip for a few seconds in blind revulsion. The surviving soldiers are joined by a few more, but you realize that these aren't Tempest-trained men, used to dealing with the horrors of the renegade virus, these are just ordinary US air force stationed at the Yokata base. As far as they're aware the base has just been attacked out of the blue and then they stumble upon this scene: a hideous, vaguely human, creature and a (still smoking) raging teenager. There's a moment of hesitation and confusion, especially when you speak directly to them. But then someone snaps or maybe a new soldier stumbles onto the scene and sees only a inhuman mass and they open fire. Then everyone else joins in. The two of you are peppered with small arms fire from handguns and mp5's. We'll approximate and say about 15 d6 Troops are attacking, using the multi-attack rules, split between you and the other Overed. US Troops [d6]=3 (keeping the lowest result). Rolling for the pinned Overed: Ignoring Injuries [d8]=13. He's fine. I figured since you've got no EP left for this round anyway I'd go ahead and roll Unusually Dense [d6]=4. you're fine too. A bullet barely grazes the forehead of the pinned kid, which doesn't seem to faze him but he does stop his wild struggles and instead steadies himself, glaring at you, "You don't scare me, you're just another freak like me. Think you can take the heat?" As he speaks his face distorts slightly from heat haze, you can feel his entire body heating up like an electric grill. He's attacking with Syndrome Boost Salamandra [d10]=7. Blood Bath The soldier raises the remains of one eyebrow at your behavior. However, when you mention the UGN some understanding seems to dawn on his face. He looks at the helicopter, grimacing at the utter ruin that still smolders there. He takes a deep breath and peels the metal blade from his hand, skin tearing where it's been fused with the metal, and tosses it aside. "[Uh...poo poo...go...uh...gomen assey....sorry. Whatever.]" he points, "[ Uh, you UGN. Me...Me Tempest]" He clumsily clasps his own hands sort of like a handshake, "[friiieeends. Er...friends-aru]" He rubs his forehead, wiping away blood, "[gently caress, I just need to know who to shoot man. What's going on?]" didn't have time to make a post for everyone's actions, will try and post more tonight but it may be tomorrow morning. Been a busy day
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Mar 12, 2016 07:03
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Stricken Fortunately, your arrival is largely unopposed with soldiers converging on Stranger's location. The few bullets shot in your direction are effortlessly deflected or disintegrated before the soldiers are caught in your Warding field. Arriving at the site of the apparent intrusion you get a good look at what's going on. The "hangar" is quite unobtrusive from the outside, with a large front gate for admitting trucks or aircraft, which is still shut. However one of the side entrances, sized for foot traffic, has been torn apart, revealing it to be an extremely thick security door. The edges of the door are torn and bent, as though by giant claws. From outside you can only see that the interior seems to be mostly dark and empty. Back Alley Swerving around the occasional car left mostly intact by Stricken you tear down the road towards the Yokata air base. You come to the gate where a pair of, clearly confused and stressed, soldiers stationed at the front gate desperately start to wave you away as you approach. "No visitors! The base is locked down! You must leave the area immediately!" Wraithblade Fitting Inside [d12]=3. You made it. After consulting with a member of the cleanup crew on an appropriate place to store the vehicle they direct you to a place that would be easy to secure, assuming that you can get the truck inside: an underground parking garage nearby. The interior space should just barely fit but the clearance on the entrance is too low. Picking up speed you release a small swarm of Evil Eyes around the truck, subtly compressing the space within the swarm compared to the space outside. You approach the gap at speed with the second truck being driven close behind by one of the ground crew. Doing this slower would be much safer but you can only keep up the compression field for so long. You barrel straight for the entrance to the garage and fortunately there's no grinding or tearing and you slip inside without inside. You let out a breath as you release the compression field...even just a foot or two of compression on this scale is no small feat. As you get out a squad of the UGN MTF secures the entrances to the garage, assuring you that they'll keep the place locked down until a proper UGN transport can come pick up the corpses.
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Mar 12, 2016 20:28
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Blood Bath The soldier shakes his head in confusion but seems to be willing to go along with you. "I'll give it a shot man, but the Lieutenant wasn't enhanced. Pretty sure he and the pilot are toast." Seemingly a bit more conscious of his injuries now he opts to use a piece of the helicopter propeller as a lever instead of simply grasping the smoldering metal directly. With a grunt of effort he manages to pry the mangled doors the rest of the way off. It turns out his assessment was accurate: the two corpses in the body of the helicopter are well past saving. Even if they weren't dead when they hit the ground the the heat and fumes would have done the job before you even arrived on the scene. "drat. Poor bastard. Pretty sure he was on the way to smooth things over with your crew too." The soldier shrugged. "Back to base it is. My orders were to keep an eye on the Lieutenant and that's turned to poo poo." He flexes and stretches a little, likely his sense of pain has been functionally shut down and he's manually testing to see how functional his limbs are. "You're one of those fr...I mean uh, Overs or whatever you're called, right? So you can keep up?" If Blood Bath is down with jogging back to base with the soldier I figure we can have the two of you show up at the gate just a moment after Back Alley arrives, before he starts flash-bombing the guards. Sound good? Stranger Going to continuing resisting with Determination [d6]=2. That'd be 2 Stress already, +11 from Might brings that to 5 total. Would take him out completely except... Still caught in your grasp you and the angry kid tumble away. He screams in frustration and impotent rage. At first you think he might be exhausting himself but he bares his teeth and...well you've seen Overeds releasing their control on the Renegade, you've done it yourself. But this is the first time you've had such an up-close-and-personal view. His eyes dilate and his skin flushes, you can see the effect of the change, subtle as it is, literally ripple under his skin and up his body as each cell absorbs more of the Renegade virus. The same process that could go wildly out of control and turn an Overed into a raging monster. Flush with new strength he grins up at you simply shouts "gently caress! YOU!!" With a surge of strength he simply tries to fling up his arms and tear you off. Powering Up to Inhuman and trying to blast you off, using Excellence twice, combined with a Knack and his current corruption bonus General Destruction [d8]=9. Boy his rolls suck, but unless you Power Up as well that's doubled to 18.
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Mar 13, 2016 05:40
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Stricken Let's see. You're Inhuman, we'll say the distance between the mystery hangar and the fiery Overed's location is Very Far but you can close that distance by one step freely, so combined with Projection we're good for an attack with no penalties. By the way, what form does your Warding field take? If you're trying to get soldiers out of the area you could always just repel them. Anyway, Overed's defense: Ignoring Injuries [d8]=5. He'll take a Dark Bargain for an extra EP and uses it for Unbreakable, blocking that point of Damage. The crazed Overed staggers to his feet even with Stranger's weight wrapped around his torso. He swings and fights wildly with clumsy, but powerful, blows. When Stranger yells out he doesn't seem to get what's happening at first, "Stricken? What are you talking about?" That's when the edge of Stricken's warding field reaches you and his eyes widen, he looks up and spots the floating and at first seems more confused than scared, "Wait, she wasn't supposed to..." then recognition seems to dawn and he barely manages to get out "Oh shi-" before Stricken's annihilation blast slams into the hilltop. The ground explodes into a spray of dust and pebbles, sending the unknown Overed flying (with Stranger still clinging on like an eel). The two slam into a nearby tree, nearly snapping the trunk. However the attacker doesn't seem much worse for wear and he gamely starts to rise again, "Oh, you fuckers. You don't know who you're messing with." The ground begins to smoulder and the fractured tree starts to blacken. With one hand he finds purchase on Stranger's elastic body and slams him into the tree-trunk. He pulls back his other fist, surrounded by a halo of flame, ready for a devastating blow. Attacking with two EP for Excellence, plus Knack and corruption bonus General Destruction [d8]=12. That's doubled to 24 if Stranger remains at Awakened. At the Gates it wasn't 100% clear from the post so I'm taking some liberties with how Ex Machina speaks to the soldiers The soldiers are still clearly unnerved and while Ex Machina's proclamations, delivered via flying robotic beetle, certainly sounds authoritative they're obviously still worried. But when Blood Bath and (more importantly) his American companion arrive they seem to have concluded that keeping anyone out at this point is beyond their pay grade. The American reassures them that the two out-of-place looking japanese fellows are here to help and the gates are opened. Of course, that's about when Stricken streaks through the air above and opens fire with an air-shaking blast of destructive power across the base. As she sweeps by her Warding field catches the two soldiers, sweeping them harmlessly away. The enhanced American soldier gapes, "Is...is she with you to?" At the Hangar The pilot dutifully lands the helicopter outside of the hangar (fortunately shielded by his Anti-Warding equipment) "Here you go sir. Take care of yourself." Inside the hangar your robotic minions easily provide illumination. The first wave of defenders here clearly did not last very long...the room is filled with plants. Crawling vines choke the walls and floors and have destroyed the lighting fixtures which would have ordinarily lit the huge open area inside the hangar. Here and there stand soldiers, hands on their weapons, held in place by the roots and vines that have burst forth from inside their bodies and wrapped around their limbs. Fortunately the place seems empty and dead. Whatever force compelled the plants to grow so quickly and powerfully has left them now shriveled husks and the room itself seems devoid of any living thing: human, overed, plant or gjaum. The other main thing you notice is the freight elevator, a huge section of the floor, large enough to accommodate vehicles or dozens of men. It's clearly already descended below ground (the elevator shaft slants so the lower floors are not visible from here, but its clearly quite far).
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Mar 14, 2016 02:20
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Stranger/Stricken So, that's 2 points of Damage to Stranger, 1 point of Damage to the hostile Overed. Of course, he's got a big flurry of attacks headed his way, so let's see...Going with his regular Ignoring Injuries [d8]=8, he's spending his final EP (his corruption is high enough for a bonus) on Unbreakable. That reduces the 2 Damage to 1, for a total of 3 to him so far. The fiery Overed jerks from the impact of your fists and you're certain you feel bones giving way, but gamely holds his ground, struggling to extricate himself from Stranger's...well, self. Unfortunately for him that's when Stricken slams into him from the opposite side. I don't think we properly established turn order between you three. Let's say it goes Stranger > Stricken > Crazy guy. Crazy Guy's defense against Stricken Ignoring Injury [d8]=8. That's going to be a point of damage and the effects of Affliction, keep in mind that's an Ongoing EP on Stricken's part. 4 damage total. Start of his turn so he's going to have to resist the Hazard from Stricken, but he does get his EP back. Being Disintegrated [d8]=4 vs Ignoring Injury [d8]=8. The blow from Stricken knocks both the enemy Overed and Stranger through the tree. The hostile grits his teeth as portions of his body begin to "froth" at the edges as Stricken's annihilation field attempts to eat away at his Renegade-infused flesh. So far he appears to be holding his own, but he's clearly starting to think a bit better of his earlier bravado. With a howl of frustration he ignites his arms, trying to burn away the fleshy hooks in order to free himself. Going all out, 3 EP invested in Excellence. General Destruction [d8]=15. Also, FYI if he manages to beat Stranger's defense he's going to start fleeing away from the airbase. Ex Machina Several camera drones descend after the elevator. There are no stops until the elevator shaft reaches the bottom, several stories below. The platform is resting at the bottom and looks undamaged and the room below looks much like the hangar you're standing in now except without the plants and lots of crates and pallets stacked about. Before the cameras can show you much else there's a sudden blur of motion and one camera is down. The remaining cameras manage to capture several fast-moving, vaguely human forms before they too are destroyed by whatever is waiting at the bottom of the shaft. For clarity, you've got plenty of minions left, just figured you send a handful down as scouts
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Mar 15, 2016 07:59
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Stricken That's a big hit, I don't think he'll be able to take it. Ignoring Injury [d8]=8. Yep, that's 3 damage. I guess that leaves him no choice... Tearing his way free of Stranger like a red hot knife through meat, the hostile Overed staggers free, grinning through blood-stained teeth. "You may think you've won, but you're just playing right into our hands. I think I've taken enough abuse though, I'm out of here!" He gathers his strength and dashes off. His strides turn into wild leaps, bouncing from tree to tree and leaving scorched footprints on the bark and a trail of blackened and flaming leaves. He turns around to deliver one last mocking farewell... ...only to see Stricken barreling after him. His eyes widen and he brings up his arms to try and block her attack but it's entirely ineffective: Stricken's annihilation field bores into his flesh, tearing his shirt to dust and shredding layers of flesh and muscle before he's blown backwards by a blast of superheated air. Powering Up, and just barely avoids going Berserk The force of the blow carries the Overed to the edge of the trees, now blazing. A corona of flames blast outward, toppling nearby trees. The young Overed stares up at you with blazing eyes, gritting his teeth in an effort to retain control as his flesh quickly heals over. "Now look what you've done. And I promised her I'd try not to make too big a mess. Oh well." Now you and the overed are just a few dozen yards from a highway, and beyond that the buildings of City N proper. The Overed raises a hand towards the road and flames dance along his arms, "Now, back off lady. I've done my job and I'm leaving. It'd be nothing for me to turn everyone there to toast along the way. You're UGN right? Bet you'll get a demerit or something dumb like that if two hundred people burn to death."
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Mar 15, 2016 20:40
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The Overed's flaming eyes notably widen in surprise for a moment, but he steadies himself, "You're crazier than I am...or you're bluffing." He snarls "But I'm not surrendering or dying today. It's up to you how many other people have to die before you realize it." I'll let other people react before I do anything concrete. Now is probably when Stricken's "Lifeline Sensor" is going to be blaring in Ex Machina's ear. By the way, I meant to say earlier but Wraithblade can arrive on the scene (either at the hangar or in the general area of Stricken and Stranger) by now
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Mar 16, 2016 02:16
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Hah! Well, this wasn't how I planned the scene to go but you know what, let's rock and roll! Since the enemy hasn't taken his action yet I'll have him go first but Stricken's Power Up still kicks into effect first so she's at Monstrous. But first the Hazard. 8 vs 6. No damage this round. Stricken/Stranger As Stricken's field of destruction increases so does the crackling energy field still clinging to the Overed. At this point its unclear if he actually feels pain from it anymore but the surface of his skin hisses and frays while the stray energy from the field carves away at the ground. For a moment he hesitates, hand still outstretched towards the city but with a curse he spins back towards you and blasts you with flame in tremendous quantities. When the white-hot torrent hits your annihilation field there's a crack of tortured air and a shockwave which levels more trees, blasting many of them to glowing embers in a second. Behind the overed the shockwave hits the road, crackling concrete and sending several of the lighter cars tumbling. heavier vehicles rock on their wheels (which burst from the heat) and their windows shatter. Unleashing a Signature Power: a Combo of Projection, Might and Flawless. The roll will be for 3 dice since the one level of Flawless automatically kicks in. Salamandra [d10]=22 Might brings it to 23. Even in a worse case scenario that's probably not going to Take Out Stricken so I'll go ahead and resolve her actions, but remember to make your defensive roll to see if you take any damage. You've got extra 2 EP from Powering up to monstrous which you can spend freely since you'll be refreshing at the start of your turn. Now, resolving Stricken's attack. Resisting with Ignoring Injury=13. That'd be 2 Damage normally, he's got 2 EP left so he'll go ahead and use Unbreakable to negate that. As you surge forward, dissolving everything in your way your target screams defiance at you. He blasts the ground with an explosive blow, throwing up huge chunks of dirt and rubble. You easily blast through it but it turns your demolishing attack into one that merely sends him flying. Trailing flames he first hits the road, splitting the already weakened asphalt, and bounces into what appears to be a coffee shop. The little store goes up in flames and the uninjured Overed strides from the wreckage. Now for stranger. Rolling for Ignoring Injury=7. That's 3 damage, 2 for Stranger Seizing control. Going ahead and using Dark Bargain once for extra corruption to reduce that to one Damage. He doesn't get far when he's hit by...something. It's moving faster than the human eye can perceive and looks like no human that exists. Stranger hits the Overed faster than a rifle bullet, hardened spine driving itself into the boy's body and then the two of them are off. Stranger's trail is marked by a flaming corona as his victim's feiry aura rages around them. The passage of superheated, supersonic air is catastrophic, tearing plants from the ground and turning them to ash. The highway is the fastest way out of town and while the flaming gale that Stranger leaves in his wake blasts aside flaming cars and scorches the ground it's better than running through the middle of the city itself. Finally the Overed tears his way free of Stranger's grip, leaping several meters away and shaking his head to clear his senses...but by now the two of you are several kilometers away, in a little woody hillside north of the airbase. The overed coughs up blood, "Bastard. I'm not going to fail her. She's got everything planned and she's not going to let me die." the words seem to give him renewed strength, "I've just got to keep you idiots occupied...just a bit longer I guess." With that he raises both hands and unleashes another torrent of flames, turning the hilltop into a miniature volcano as he attempts to pin Stranger down with the gout of white-hot fire. Using the Signature Power again: Salamandra [d10]=13. If that succeeds then Might brings it to 21. Oh, and forgot about the Hazard: 7 vs 3, successfully resisted. The Hangar I'm assuming that everyone can easily make it down the elevator shaft, it's not particularly challenging. The American soldier is also with you. As you make your way to the bottom of the shaft the American whistles in surprise, "Wow, I knew they were up to some poo poo down here...didn't know it was something like this. It's like something from a Bond movie." The bottom is full of crates and barrels, marked with ominous looking warning labels. "Biohazard" features prominently. Although several corridors lead out here it's not hard to tell where your quarry has gone...only one corridor has had a heavy steel security door shredded. Littering the ground are a few spent shells and the remains of Ex Machina's initial scout robots. Both Ex Machina and Wraithblade quickly note the lack of bodies or bloodstains and immediately go on alert just seconds before the creatures leap from hiding behind the crates. They move like psychotic tree frogs, hopping from floor to wall to ceiling and back again. They don't stay still long but its easy to see that while they aren't human now they certainly once were.  There are 8 Gjaum, Awakened Power Level. I'm minutes away from getting off work so I don't have time to roll and post initiative currently. Feel free to roll it yourself if you beat me to the punch but I should be able to in the next hourish. EDIT: here we go: *Gjaum: 11 *Wraithblade: 9 *Ex Machina: 7 *Back Alley: 5 *Blood Bath: 2 *American: 2 oriongates fucked around with this message at 07:51 on Mar 17, 2016 |
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Mar 17, 2016 05:58
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Gjaum Attack Okay, 8 Gjaum surrounding Ex Machina and crew. Lets see...they'll focus a bit more on the obviously dangerous one so 2 on Wraithblade, 2 on the American and Blood Bath, 1 on Back Alley and Ex Machina Wearing the tattered remains of American military uniforms the Gjaum quickly surround the group and emit a ululating croak and launch themselves forward. Two of them attempt to flank Wraithblade, feinting with primitive cunning and seeking for an opening past Tchernobog. First attack: 9 and 25. Looks like that feint may have worked well. Others seem to be attracted by the scent of blood, surrounding Blood Bath and the American who moves into a back-to-back stance. "What the gently caress happened here?" The American growls, "Are these some kind of experiment...what the hell!?" Against the American first: 9 vs 5, the American will try and reroll: another 1 and 4 vs 6. He takes one Damage. The other two go for Blood Bath: 6 and 9. Two of the creatures remain, leaping upon the "helpless" Ex Machina and Back Alley. The attack vs Ex Machina: 7 and 9.
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Mar 17, 2016 07:48
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The Burning Hill Seizing Control that way would shut down his Signature Power and would prevent him from manifesting actual flames (which is going to shut down a few of his Knacks as well). Salamandra still allows him to use pure heat...or he could switch to cold if he wants. But, since everyone's trying it he's going to Manifest "Wings Of Fire" and use his last EP to defend with a Syndrome Boost Salamandra [d10]=13 plus Wings of Fire [d10]=7. total of 20 but Stricken and Stranger's combo is 24, then +17 from the huge Might boost. that means you beat him by 21 for a total of 5 damage. The first sign of Stricken's arrival is when the blazing trees are suddenly extinguished. A lightless vortex pulls fire, ash and air into its black maw, slowly growing closer to the hostile overed. He raises his arms, presumably to try blasting it with a gout of flame but the fires gutter as the air they need is sucked away. As the vortex grows closer he crouches down and a pair of blazing wings sprout from his back. Although The End tries to consume them the wings spread open, crossing from one side of the hill to another. With a powerful beat against the remaining air the Overed is airborne, the downdraft scouring all remaining life on the hillside. But the air is where Stricken is waiting for him. Beams of nothingness carve away at his wings faster than he can create them and finally, with a savage blast she knocks him earthward again. He recovers well enough to make a three point landing in the ash and dust but now both the The End and Stricken are above him and the air around him is consumed as quickly as new air rushes in. You can see him gathering his willpower once more...still fighting despite the incredible opposition. When Stranger slams into him with the force of a tank shell. The impact plows him into the dirt, throwing up a huge cloud which is greedily sucked up into The End like an inverted dust devil. On the ground, bleeding, exhausted and...apparently...beatenis the boy you've been fighting. The suction of the vortext begins to drag him along the ground, threatening to pull him up into nothingness. He claws feebly at the dirt, only slowing the inexorable attraction slightly. There's minimal air left, but you can just barely make out his gasps over the wind being sucked into The End: "I'm sorry...I'm not strong enough...please...please help me..." And then suddenly, he's no longer alone. A young woman, older than him but not by much, in a simple white dress with long black hair is suddenly standing beside him. She looks down at him with a blank expression as though considering something of mild importance. You can't help but notice that neither her hair or her dress moves in the wind. She looks up at Stricken and Stranger, seemingly undisturbed by the rampant destruction. "Would you mind," her voice seems quite but it carries eerily, "if I took him home now? I'm sorry he troubled you, please consider it all my fault."  I did not think she would be making an appearance this early on, but it's an interesting twist. Putting this up in case I don't finish the post for the second group before I leave work, but it should be done shortly.
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Mar 18, 2016 04:43
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Down Below Gjaum's reactions: Vs Wraithblade=5 (as Dogkisser pointed out I'm giving you that pre-emptive attack you rolled, but dropping one of the +2's to account for the Counterattack, still 3 damage). Vs Ex Machina=13. Vs Back Alley=4, so 2 Damage. and finally the American=7 vs the gjaum=3, 1 Damage. Below is a handy little engagement chart:  One of the Gjaum rears back from Foucault's laser, only to be caught by Back Alley's sneaky assault. The thing twists around, turning its attention to this new threat. Meanwhile the American, still back to back with Blood Bath, snaps several of the gjaum's ribs with a kick only to be caught by its claws, cutting several bloody streaks across his stomach. The taste and scent of blood seem to drive these gjaum into a greater frenzy and they renew their assault with little regard for their own safety. New Round, gjaum counter-attack: *Vs Wraithblade (this still gets all-out defense bonus): 7 and 7 *Vs. Blood Bath (also all out defense bonus): 16 and 4 *Vs Ex Machina: http://orokos.com/roll/383671]13 *Vs Back Alley: 12 *Vs The American: 1 Damage and 1 more Damage oriongates fucked around with this message at 05:47 on Mar 18, 2016 |
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Mar 18, 2016 05:42
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sorry for the brevity on the second part, almost out of time. By the way, I set up an editable google doc in case there was stuff you guys wanted to put down as feedback or questions when I'm not in the chat: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X28m6r5ewj4gNrO7a_istLbaofzlEHRV5g9vbhd3O5A/edit?usp=sharing
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Mar 18, 2016 05:49
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The Hillside As Stricken looms closer to the strange young woman her blank expression breaks a bit, but not with fear. Instead she smiles, a small, slightly sad, smile. "I'm very sorry. I wish we could all be friends. Maybe," she tilts her head, looking at Stricken in particular, "maybe after all this is over we can." She looks down at the other Overed, now nearly passed out, "But I'm sorry, Ruby Phoenix and I can't make it better right now. But I promise you, once I'm finished if you're still mad I'll try and make it up to you." From Stranger's perspective she and the fallen overed simply vanish. One moment they're there and the next they're gone. Stricken senses something different however. In the space between seconds there's a warping in space and time emanating from the odd young woman. This is a variation on the Freeze Time Balor power and Stricken is currently powerful enough to force her way along if she wants...but fair warning this is a Boss character. Under the Base Still missing Back Alley but I have a feeling that the gjaum aren't going to be surviving this. I'll go ahead and roll and see if there's any that might need an extra push to go down. Let's see: Lots of Rolls Highest is a 13 which means a minimum of 5 damage has been inflicted (accounting for Deadly Weapons) to everyone. There's a bright flash of laser light from Ex Machina's device. The effect is little more than a sunburn but the intensity is enough to cause them to reel back, clutching their eyes. Blood Bath shouts out his advice (while clearing afterimages from his own eyes) and Wraithblade is already in motion before he even finishes speaking. Within seconds none of the abominations are still standing. A few of the larger...bits...continue struggling for several seconds, attempting to claw their way forward. But then they all go still.
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Mar 19, 2016 01:49
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Stricken/Stranger Hmm...cool idea. Let me think about the metaphysics of it. Obviously you can't monitor anything the spybot would record "live" since a second after she's vanished she's already completed anything she wants to do during frozen time. Let's say give me a Syndrome Boost roll aided by Ex Machina's Machine Minions trait. The OF will be a d10 Navigating Timeless Space [d10]=8. Depending on if or how well the roll is beaten there'll be some info later. Also, this is more or less officially the end of a Scene so you two get to decide if you're staying at Monstrous (and thus taking the extra Corruption) or Powering Down. Blood Bath It's amazing...your entire family: wife, children...everyone! Not only were they apparently Tempest double-agents but then they mutated into killer monsters...and now they're DEEEEAAAAAD!! The American limps over to where you're sobbing over the corpses. "So..uh...that sucks" Everyone Else Standing Around While Blood Bath Freak Out While the room has several exits there's little question that one in particular is the route taken by the unknown invaders: a passageway labeled "ANTI-RENEGADE TESTING LAB A" and below that "PASSCODE, KEYCARD AND DNA VERIFICATION REQUIRED" and next to it is a security terminal: top of the line-cutting edge security systems, likely nearly unhackable even by a Neumann or Black Dog Overed and with scanners quite capable of seeing through an Exile's shape-shifting or an Angel Halo's illusions. It has been bypassed by simply tearing the 3 inch thick steel door from the wall. Wraithblade your senses are telling you that there's no immediate danger in the area. Putting together the clues paints a picture of what happened here: the invaders made there way down the elevator where they were greeted by...well apparently the entire Brel clan, the first security forces responding to the breach. Apparently the invaders were capable of transforming them into Gjaum and directing the Gjaum's fury away from themselves against anyone who followed them. Signs point to a powerful Solaris. Although the destruction to the door indicates the strong possibility of a Chimera as well. Back Alley, the bright illumination and your keen senses show you that further down the hall there are signs of further resistance eliminated. In this case simply torn to pieces. Many have been struck by what appears to be very high caliber gunfire and others have simply been torn limb from limb. There's a few bullet marks on the walls from return fire but few enough to indicate that likely the soldiers were slain within a matter of seconds.
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Mar 20, 2016 23:58
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Outside You're both fairly far from the Air Base...but there's no question that you'll be able to follow your path back.   Sadly a large scale disaster like this can be much easier to cover up than smaller-scale incident. Hearing about someone leaping from rooftop to rooftop or swordfighting monsters in an alleyway is the stuff urban legends are made of...a major and very public disasters must have a logical explanation. Maybe it'll be a gas line explosion. Maybe it'll be terrorists (it is an election year). Who knows. In the distance there's the sound of ambulance and fire trucks rushing to the scene. Among all the chaos the two of you likely won't draw any notice and with Stranger running at full speed and Stricken flying low to the ground you're both back to the Air Base within a matter of minutes. Although by now the soldiers at the base have been killed or are responding to the larger disaster outside, the few remaining forces are easily evaded. Below I assume you guys are waiting for Stricken and Stranger to catch up Blood Bath: The American holds up his hands to try and pacify your rapidly shifting moods. "Woah, woah. Look, I just got here today with the Colonel and his crew...but I'm pretty sure they wouldn't dress experiments up in uniforms." He peers at the nearest corpse, "Yeah, I remember this one. She was on duty, that half of her face still looks familiar, and I remember she had a weird first name. Wafu or something." Ex Machina: When Stricken activates your previously placed spy-bot you get an alert from your computer system. There's roughly half a second of video, mostly the back of Stricken's head and then a decent shot of the strange Overed woman's head. The drone has just enough time to "lock on" its recognition software before Stricken banishes it to...the wherever. You've talked with other Balor-Syndrome Overeds within the UGN and frankly even to you the physics of somehow moving and acting within "frozen time" just doesn't make sense. How would you see or breath if time is at a standstill, how could you move through the frozen wall of time-locked gas molecules? But nevertheless, it seems to work. It's the sort of thing Neumann's have to be careful about thinking too much about or they could end up in a recursion and that leads to a hell of a migraine. Of course, if the drone was sent into some kind of frozen time then, from your perspective in normal time, it should instantly re-appear on your GPS and begin transmitting any info it gathered while it was out of contact. But all you've got is a "Signal Lost" message from the drone. It's autonomous software should have ensured that it would have followed, stealthily, the Overed it locked onto but of course she might have detected and destroyed it...but unless its black box was utterly demolished you should at least get a GPS ping from its transponder. Of course, who knows if the drone's sensors were properly calibrated for navigating in the...wherever. Or maybe the Overed simply traveled somewhere where radio signals would be blocked or scrambled. Fortunately before the signal was lost the drone sent a high-density dump of it sensor data. Reviewing the information it was able to gather in that short amount of time you can tell one thing at least...the girl is likely a human, not a Renegade Being. Your research on the virus has led to some fairly distinct ways to detect a Renegade Being and she shows none of the signs. Clearly a Balor and probably, given her apparent power, a Pure Breed. By the way, there will be more info from that spy drone, just delayed a little.
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Mar 22, 2016 00:28
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Been a bit busy myself, sorry for not showing up in chat today. About to go to bed but in the morning we'll go ahead and push things forward if we're still in a lull
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Mar 23, 2016 08:08
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Stricken It's easy enough to locate the vehicle Ruby Phoenix drove in on. It's pretty badly damaged by the fallout of your fight but still largely intact. A quick search reveals nothing convenient like a wallet or map with "secret base" or anything. Also no phone or GPS device left behind. Down Below From down the hallway there's a sudden sound like the crack of thunder and the lights (and Ex Machina's electronic devices) flicker and dim briefly. Both Ex Machina and Wraithblade notice that the power interference seems to happen a fraction of a second before the thunderous noise. The electronics stabilize quickly but there are several screams from farther down the hallway.
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Mar 23, 2016 20:48
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The screams are definitely human. Fear rather than pain.
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Mar 24, 2016 20:40
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Ex Machina Hacking the system! Black Dog [d8]=5. It doesn't take long for your suspicions of a Black Dog to be confirmed. The computer system has clearly been compromised but there's no sign of physical access anywhere. The intruder clearly was more concerned about shutting down systems than suborning them. The base does have several automated defenses, as well as a suite of well-hidden security cameras but all of them have been fried...not merely shut down but fragged with a power surge. At the very least this means that no one will be deploying these forces against you but unfortunately they can't be taken over as well, nor can you get a good look at what's going on now. However, you do get two pieces of useful information. First, the intruders haven't bothered to wipe the video log of the cameras and so you get a good glimpse of the intruders in the half-minute or so it took them to enter the secure area, transform the guards and cripple the security system. There are two: a young woman in a simple dress who clearly is the one who transformed the guards, with merely a wave of her hand. Solaris without a doubt. The other is a Westerner dressed in a military manner with short-cropped hair. You notice that he's carrying an unusual weapon: the design is similar to Tempest's "man-portable" rail-guns. However, its missing the back-pack sized capacitor bank and has no visible power source at all. Second, you learn that there is a second line of automated defenses: high grade, semi-autonomous security robots, code-named "Pit Bulls". These robots are still connected to the security grid but have been suborned and are operating in fully autonomous mode. The robots are Awakened level opponents, equipped with light armor and weaponry. Stranger Let's see...Sensing Danger [d6]= 6 and Nothing Gets By Her=16. Ruh-roh! Creeping noiselessly along the corridor, past the bloody mess that was Tempest's second line of defense. The corridor takes a short right where it, after about 5 meters, opens into a larger room. Security cameras line the walls but they're clearly inactive...you can even see wisps of smoke rising from one. The room beyond is quite the scene. Its clearly a research lab of some kind. Along the left side of the room are several computer terminals, lab tables and a mess of documents. On the right side of the room are large clear cylinders of some kind, maybe glass or plastic. Inside the cylinders are what you would assume are test subjects of some kind. Several of them are quite obviously gjaum, and they're also very obviously dead. Several have left claw-marks or gouges in the inside of the cylinder and most appear to be leaking various fluids from the eyes and mouths. There are also what appears to be the corpses of normal humans, most naked but a few wearing the ragged remains of everyday clothing. One of the cylinders closest to the entrance contains a living person, apparently human, and clearly terrified. The young boy (he looks like he'd be in high school) has pushed himself against the far side of his cylinder and is curled into a fetal crouch. The center of the room has a collection of people who were presumably Tempest staff. Most wear white lab coats but you spot a military uniform among them. You recognize the face and figure of Colonel Kurt Austin, the high ranking military brass who arrived at the base a few days ago (the one whose laptop you managed to sneak a peak at). They're all alive and imprisoned in a net of thick, woody vines. The vines are sprouting from the dead bodies of several uniformed men, sporting large-caliber gunshot wounds. Piled in front of the collection of vined-up hostages are several metal cylinders...you're not sure what they are but they're marked with multiple large "biohazard" symbols. Standing between the doorway and the imprisoned Tempest staff are two out of place individuals   They're clearly in control of the situation, and flanking them are half a dozen of Tempest's "Pit Bull" security drones, heavily armored combat robots about 8 feet tall.  You're about to back out so you can report the situation to your allies when the girl turns her head in your direction slightly. Her reaction is minimal but one of the corpses near the door rapidly desiccates, producing dozens of thorn-studded and ropy vines which lash out at you, attempting to snare you. Attack, using a Syndrome Boost Solaris/Orcus [d8] plus Exotic Seeds [d6]=10
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Mar 25, 2016 08:37
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Stranger The vine attack will be Seizing Control so no damage, just holding you tight. The imprisoned Tempest staff cringe from the massive volume in the enclosed space. Even the woman winces slightly at the sound. The hulking westerner remains stoic however. Meanwhile the vines dig their thorns even deeper into your flesh, not enough to shred your elastic flesh but the net of thorny vines is a surprisingly effective trap. The woman smirks slightly, "Well Yuri, it seems we have an intruder...and it seems he's brought friends. We're almost done here so could you be a dear and help hold them off for just a little while." The military-looking brute simply nods and hefts his impressively sized gun and gestures to the robots who also raise their guns to cover the entrance. Wraithblade Let's say this is a perception-based roll for them to notice your appearance. Nothing Gets By Her [d10]=11 and Sensing Danger [d6]=10. You can place yourself wherever you want in the room and no one is the wiser As you step into the room you take in the scene: Stranger and several Tempest personnel (including someone who looks like a high ranking officer)...the two obvious Overeds. Fortunately they all seem focused on the entrance. You can sense, but not quite see, Stricken as she floats into the room. Stricken I assume you're trying to be stealthy, so lets see...Nothing Gets By Her [d10]=9 and Sensing Danger [d6]=7. Moving slowly in your field of warped space you enter the room. Several weapons are pointed right at you as you come through the door but fortunately your stealth field seems to be holding and no one opens fire. The one with the fancy looking cannon scowls slightly as though suspicious but he still doesn't seem to spot you. Initiative rolls. We'll assume that since Stricken and Wraithblade are in place already they're automatically at the top of the initiative chart. Yuri and the robots are holding to fire on anyone who comes through the door so they'll be able to do that. Stranger: 26 Ex Machina: 8 Back Alley: 5 The creepy woman: 4 Blood Bath: 2
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Mar 26, 2016 07:25
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