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Beast nodded, "That was our first thought as well. Apocalypse has developed some kind of countermeasure after Herr Wagner's sorties behind his lines became a little too successful. The Celestial technology at his disposal is not to be trifled with." Wolverine added, "Whatever you send across hits some kinda wall at the border... lemme tell you, bub, never been happier to have an adamantium skeleton and healing factor than when I got teleported into a big invisible shield." "You are all here of your own free will, and if this is what you think is best, I will wish you good luck," Xavier conceded. "I can offer you conventional transportation, should you require it."
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Jun 24, 2015 18:51
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "Oh? Well then yes, let's do try that last desperate hail mary play. In the least we could come at Apocalypse from a direction he's unlikely to expect attack from right?" Emma rose from her seat and began poking around the room, rattling through cupboards and shelves in search of cups and possibly a teapot. Finding nothing to suit her purposes she called out over her shoulder at the seated war council. "I do have one other suggestion though, try me if these four words mean anything to any of you." "Phoenix. White hot room." Darn I wanted to wait until Jean was talking or holding a cup of something hot to share this particular chestnut but yeah...
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Jun 26, 2015 03:07
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"I've worked very hard, with the help of my friends, to try and put everything involving the Phoenix and the M'kraan Crystal behind us," Jean responded icily, folding her hands in her lap and looking very much like someone delivering a performance review (even wearing something with shoulderpads). "It nearly consumed the universe." Cyclops put both hands down on the table and leaned forward like he was getting ready to charge. "If you're implying that we try and... and USE it, you're crazy. We're trying to SAVE Westchester, so that we can continue to live in it." The stern lecture Cyclops was preparing was disrupted by Colossus entering the room with the leather-clad Johnny Blaze. "Comrades, I found this man in the hole in our lawn," he told them. "I tell him to see a doctor but he thinks he did not need it..."
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Jun 30, 2015 07:36
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The Shocker Team d8, 3 XP, 1 PP, d8 Physical Stress "Leather makes me chafe..." Herman replies to the Goblin, but mentally he reels from the discovery of his companion's identity. Herman hadn't spent much time with Norman, outside of the times he'd faced off against the Thunderbolts, but the Green Goblin had never seemed like a friendly guy. Or at least this sincerely friendly. He'd certainly smile and laugh, but it was... scary. Even when he wasn't wearing the mask. And when Norman put an arm around your shoulder, it was to make sure you couldn't get away. But this doesn't feel like a threatening arm. Maybe this Goblin is different, Herman thinks. Kind of like me. These thoughts are interrupted by a set of gestures and faces from Ms. Frost, which Herman doesn't really understand but which seem intended to indicate... something negative about the Green Goblin, at least. Herman shrinks slightly from the arm around his shoulder, but doesn't actually do anything to get himself out from under it. As Domino's plan gains traction, Herman grows more worried. The suggestion of anything involving the Phoenix is enough to push him over the edge. "Um, I'd actually prefer the teleporter plan, now," he chimes in, just before Colossus enters with Johnny. For a moment Herman has enough presence of mind to wonder where Johnny had gotten off to during the fight, but the thought is gone as quickly as it came as another wave of panic and embarassment hits. Oh my god we forgot Johnny. I hope he isn't mad...
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Jul 3, 2015 04:57
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "An M'what? Sorry if I'm not familiar with your modern science terms, but if this 'Phoenix' of yours is powerful enough to consume the universe why don't you just teleport her onto Apocalypse's teleport shield and let all the destroying happen on his real estate? I was just wondering why you've got an apparently very powerful in-house psychic if she doesn't do much of anything useful. Ah, here's that teakettle!" Having rattled around in the cupboards enough she emerged triumphant with a silver teakettle. Emma surreptitiously buffed away a spot from its gleaming surface. "Take for instance this mostly untested, highly unstable teleport machine of yours. A competent project leader or gifted scientist (or mildly competent psychic) could probably make good headway the worst of the technical problems. Dr. McCoy would you mind sharing with the class the major issues underlying safe operation of the teleport machine? There's plenty of brainpower and expertise gathered around the table right now, not to mention any number of exotic energy sources. Maybe we can find a safer bet or cleaner solution?" Greetings from a parallel Earth! Hope this finds everyone well. Still pretty down for a mostly random teleport into a DIMENSION OF MYSTERY, although if we're going to do that I'd love the chance to spend an action creating a scene Resource beforehand by conferring with all the science-heads while they're in the same room and all. And also incidentally why isn't DP being used as a psychic weapon of mass destruction against the Apocalypse?
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Jul 7, 2015 19:09
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"You want us... to turn a world-destroying cosmic force loose on the planet where we currently are? Right now?" Jean asked, raising an eyebrow. "Frankly I'm not sure how to dignify that with a response." "I know exactly how, darlin," Wolverine cut in, defending Jean because he knew in his heart she was his true waifu, "I want the planet to continue being where it is, so I can live on it." "There's no need to be coarse to our guests, Logan," Beast cut in. "I don't know if I've made the situation clear, so perhaps the problem was with me... the transporter can relocate you virtually anywhere, save for the unknown Zone 6, where the irregularities in its natural phenomenon interfere with its functionality, and the Domain of Apocalypse, where Celestial technology has created an impenetrable barrier." "Imagine being thrown against a brick wall at a thousand miles an hour, bub," Wolverine elaborated. "I might survive but I don't imagine any of you will."
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Jul 9, 2015 19:21
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The Shocker Team d8, 3 XP, 1 PP, d8 Physical Stress Herman looks over to Beast. "Di- Um, did you try vibrating the, uh... things you teleport?" He cranes back his head and gazes upwards at the ceiling, carefully avoiding looking anyone in the eye. "I mean, um, my repulsors sometimes have better shield penetration than Stark's, and I think it might be thanks to the, ah, vibro-shock component. Most shielding doesn't consider for the random and abnormal distribution that vibration causes, so bits can slip through the gaps. You'd need to make sure it all got through for a teleportation though so the vibration would have to be specifically set up to counter whatever interference is, um... there." Herman pauses as he realizes just how long he's been talking, and snaps his head back down again, simultaneously trying to look at Beast and avoid looking anyone else in the eye. "So, uh, maybe we could try something like that?"
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Jul 9, 2015 20:10
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The Green Goblin Team d8, 1 xp, 2PP, Stress: Resources: Invader Tech Understanding d8 Peter was intrigued by the Shocker's suggestion, and he tilted his head. "You know, I think you might be onto something there, Quilty." He pulls out a sharp-e and starts writing on the wall...pausing a moment to issue an "oops, sorry, some windex'll clean that up." As he illustrates. "Now, I mean, obviously he was wrong, because a vibrating shockwave is going to pull us into pieces and scatter us every-which way if he were to use it on a one-to-one scale - I mean no offence but what's good for zapping things with lasers probably isn't effective as a mode of transit. But, the idea's sound, kind of. I'm talking a wide-beam dispersal waveform. You'd still have to compensate for the pattern degradation but assuming you had enough auxiliary buffers in place, you could force everyone through the brick wall by essentially getting us to flow over, around, and through it, talking like changing the composition frequency - make that brick wall into cheese cloth if only for the seconds it'd take for us to get through." Parker caps his sharp-e and points at his formula, for Beast's sake, and shrugs. "I mean, this is hypothetical assuming fine-tuning's even possible on your transporter. If it's as jury-rigged as you say it might not work at all."
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Jul 9, 2015 20:40
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"I assure you Forge and I have tried many different methods." Beast stated. "Our most recent attempt to use techniques pioneered by Berman and Braga Engineering actually resulted in the feedback loop that sort of caused our teleporter to... well..." "Explode," Wolverine finished. "With me still inside the beam, even. STILL feeling the effects from that." "That would be the reason it was, as I mentioned, in need of technical attention on your arrival." Beast added.
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Jul 9, 2015 23:53
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "You keep using words like 'cosmic world destroying being' like they're supposed to be impressive, but you canoodle with a man that can pierce a hole through the crust of the planet if he stares at it long enough. And that we're sitting four feet away from another that can blank every unprotected mind on the planet with a modest effort? But if you can't do it, you simply can't do it. I hear imaginary friends are tricky that way. Now, how do we avoid being wrung through a dimensional cheesecloth?" Having asked the question aloud Emma waited and was promptly rewarded by the complex thoughts of every scientifically inclined mind in the room. Their technical solutions were as diverse and varied as they were, but using the common mental image of a canoodling Cyclops she homed in on the problems of each and digested them through the filter of her own subconscious. "Why not deal with the short term instability by using a vibrational buffer to draw off the inherently unstable energy. Use these as a focus point to redirect the instability and bleed it off gradually instead?" She rapped the Shocker's gauntlet with a knuckle, synthesizing his understanding of the device with Parker's. "It's impractical to prevent signal degradation, so why not let it happen and use it to blow things up that aren't us?" I'm terrible at technobabble and was hoping one of you would provide the impetus so yeah! Pool is 2d8 No Secrets From Me, Tech Expert, 1d12 Telepathy, 1d10 Team Combo mind-steal from the gathered eggheads' brains + Emma's own tech knowledge to make a Scene Resource: Frequency Director: 2#1d8 7 5 1d10 8 1d12 8 7+8 = 15 d12.
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Jul 10, 2015 01:01
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We're now in Act 2. The doom pool resets to 3d6, any stress you have clears, and we're in a whole new area. The crackling static of the teleportal cleared from around the group, depositing them in an area that was roughly what they were told to expect: a green, rolling countryside with a dusting of trees and shrubs to break up the monotony of grass. They had landed in a clearing at the base of a hill, in exactly the same positions they'd stepped into the vortex in. McCoy's machine may not have mastered two-way trips, but it seemed astonishingly accurate, at least. At the top of the hill, it was a possible to get the lay of the land. They were in a low basin in a hilly region. A river wound out of the hills (the direction of the sun and time of day suggested their direction was northeast) and meandered lazily through the terrain. A well-maintained dirt road began at a distant settlement to the east and cut through dense woods until it turned south and headed to a town to the south, smaller than the one east of them. That road then headed south and over the next rise, vanishing from view. They could see a few groups of travelling wagons moving up and down the path, and even a few boats paddling up and downstream. Based on the map they recalled, Zone 6 was some distance to the south and since Ghost Rider's motorcycle didn't come with multiple sidecars, they might want to seek help in making their crossing, if only to obtain transportation. So you have a few things to think over while you're figuring out how to travel south. How openly do you travel, do you approach travellers for information, and do you want to seek out a city or just pass through and try your luck on the road?
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Jul 19, 2015 20:15
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Mystique (currently Domino) Team D6, 2 XP, 1 PP Domino sniffed the air. "I don't like this. It's far too peaceful and quiet - it's like we wandered into a children's book, or a really happy version of the Morte D'Arthur. Let's stay off the road and go as quietly as we can - the last thing we need is a dragon or whatever messing with us." This is what we all pretended the glory days were, back when I was young. Worship the old and proper, and ignore everyone trodden underfoot.
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Jul 20, 2015 13:25
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The Green Goblin Team d8, 1 xp, 2PP, Stress: Peter kept his glider low to the ground so he could keep in touch with the rest of the group, but he still was up, a bit. Maybe an ego thing, maybe just a scouting thing. "Peaceful and quiet is cause for alarm? Seriously?" He scoffs. "You must come from a really...exciting reality, Dom." He does, however, shrug a bit. "But you're right, staying off the road is probably a good plan; doubt we really look like we fit in here, except maybe for Brucie." Another pause, as he considers something. "Still, we should like, get horses or something for the rest of you. Unless anyone other than me and JB have a ride hidden in their back-pocket, the glider's not really a two-seater or anything."
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Jul 21, 2015 17:15
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The Shocker Team d8, 3 XP, 1 PP Straightening up from his fear-crouch, Herman re-opens his clenched eyes. The pastoral surroundings fill him with an unusual calmness, and he realizes how long it has been since he was somewhere that wasn't war-torn, constantly anticipating the next attack. He takes a deep breath of the abnormally fresh air. This is a nice pl- wait what was that about dragons? "Well, um, I can fly too," he replies to Spider-Goblin's evaluation. "But I can only carry one person. So, uh, yes. I think finding transport would be a good idea." As Herman finishes, his stomach growls, and he realizes how long it has been since his last meal. "Um, some food might be nice too."
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Jul 21, 2015 20:21
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "Do none of you ever just walk anywhere or ask for directions like normal people?" Emma laughed at the prospect of dragons, the pants-making GBS threads terror radiating from Shocker turning out to be almost too hilarious to resist. But this was hardly anyone's idea of an all-powerful, Apocalypse-resistant land. In fact the scenery and gentle waft of cow dung on the breeze brought nothing more to mind than rural Avondale. "I'll try asking. Shouldn't hurt to be polite in case these people are inexplicably omnipotent. Maybe we can hitch a ride on one of those carts and find someone who can take me to their leader." Looking around for any takers or suggestions and finding none Emma walked down the hill towards the wagons in the distance, stretching her legs and enjoying the sun on her face. "Excuse me? Hello?" English. Whoever they were could probably speak English, and anything she couldn't speak she could easily fill in the gaps just the same. Previous encounters with random bystanders foreshadowed her next question, and though she smiled she passively watched for signs of herself or other psychics as she spoke. "This might seem like a strange question but have we met before?" Didn't hear any results on that scene resource so I'll assume it failed. Anyway my vote is to find one of the locals and just ask for a ride/info. Asking nicely works 7/10 of the time and the other 3/10s probably involve lasers so either way imo it's a win. So right, diplomacy ho!
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Jul 23, 2015 18:47
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The driver of the wagon was wearing a large, wide hat that covered most of his face and head, keeping the sun from his face. He looked reasonably fed, if a bit thin, and the skin of his fingers was thick and calloused. Next to him was a woman of the same general look wearing a tied-down bonnet to cover her black hair. She leaned back against the seat with her feet up on the runner board in a pose that might have seemed decidedly scandalous, were someone of such a persuasion to declare it such. Their clothes were of rough homespun cloth, but ornamented with many pins and other baubles, indicating they had been travelling for some time. Both of them turned to look at Emma, their expressions betraying neither excitement or apprehension. "Certainly is an odd question, isn't it, Ignatius?" The woman asked. "Certainly would be nice, were such a fancifully-dressed lady familiar with our little troupe." Ignatius' eyes had the twinkle of a carnival barker for a moment. "Sounds like we have a chance to make a fan. I'm Ignatius and next to me is Joan. Klaus and Thomas are in the back, keeping an eye on the gear." "We're a travelling minstrel group touring the southern Kingdom," Joan explained. "Maybe you haven't heard of us yet but we're going to be huge one day. We're headed east... we'd give you a ride if you're willing to help us set up. You know, our stage and such?"
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Jul 27, 2015 17:31
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "Performers? What a marvelous coincidence, two of my dearest friends are performers." She waved at the others further up the hill. "Our Peter is a master at tumbling and juggling, and Herman's a mildly famous clown. Is it alright if they hitch a ride too?" Emma extended her hand to Joan in greeting, clasping it in greeting as she eyed the wagon. Definitely not very omnipotent or technologically advanced. Magic maybe? "I'm Emma and I'd be happy to help you set up your stage. I'm a little out of sorts at the moment though. Took a knock on the head I think and my mind's all ajumble. Mind if I sit with you and chat while I gather my wits?" I'm going to feign a head injury and pump these dudes for info about the area/themselves as soon as I can figure out how to access Orokos from my current position and what to throw down for my roll.
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Jul 27, 2015 19:48
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"Sounds fine to me," Joan said, sliding over on the bench. She fished a baroque guitar from behind the bench and began to inspect its tune. "If you're performers, does that mean you've found a gig in the city?" Ignatius regarded them with curiosity. "I'm always looking for leads. We do okay performing in the square, but we'd really like to get a gig at an inn. Drunk coinpurses are open coinpurses, and the owner usually throws in a meal."
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Jul 27, 2015 20:07
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The Shocker Team d8, 3 XP, 1 PP "Um, a meal definitely sounds good," Herman says, newly arrived to the conversation. "What exactly, uh, would we need to do, to get into an inn?" Herman's hunger overrides any fears as the thought of eating takes hold. "We could try talking to some people. Miss Frost can be very convincing."
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Jul 31, 2015 02:45
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Joan looked over Herman, "based on that outfit I'm sure you could earn a night's sleep with your performances," she said with an appraising eye. "Whereabouts are you famous? We've always found that name-dropping helps you book a job."
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Jul 31, 2015 03:01
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "You know, I have absolutely no idea. That knock on the head really was quite something. I barely have an idea of who I am and where we're going." No matter how you cut it, the Shocker was pretty believable as a clown. A quilt-wearing, nervous, and not-terribly-bright clown but that was stage humor for you. Counting on the others to pick up on the gist of the conversation on their own, Emma gently interrupted before Herman could out himself as an outsider with an improbably or impolitic place name. "I think I've heard that going over familiar details helps. Where are you from? Of course we're all going to the city, but for the life of me I can't remember who it's ruled and protected by..." Guiding a conversation and mining it for actionable intelligence was basic spyycraft, Emma helped it along by reading surface thoughts and filling in the gaps with ordinary cold reading. Here's me feigning a head injury in order to gently pump these dudes for information the old fashioned way/pick their surface thoughts. Hopefully Herman's convincing enough as a clown that they don't suspect we're otherworldly invaders bent on gleaning their military technology in a war against an implacable foe. Pool is 1d8 No Secrets From Me 1d12 Telepathy, 2d10 Team, Psych Master Teep their brains and steer the conversation like a good spy would - Create a Scene Resource: Knowledge of (Setting): 1d8 2 1d12 5 2#1d10 3 2 3+5=8 d10 effect. Bleh a quite weak roll but at least there's no 1s.
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Aug 1, 2015 18:47
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Mystique (currently Domino) Team D6, 2 XP, 1 PP Domino spoke up, adopting a high-class aristocratic English accent. "We are from Bath. Ignore the girl; she is knocked in the head, as she admits. We will be happy to accompany you - I myself play quite the harlequin, as you can see." Mystique knows Victorian England, but she's acting period appropriate. D6 Team + D8 Older Than She Looks + D10 Covert Master: 1d6+1d8+1d10 9 with a D10 effect die
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Aug 4, 2015 04:42
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The Green Goblin Team d8, 1 xp, 2PP, Stress: "Ugh, great. We'll just do what The White Queen wants, seems like a smart move." Peter frowned under his mask and muttered to himself - he'd found that most reality's Spidermen (is that the term? He wasn't sure) were kind of pushovers. Not used to being treated like one, though. Still, he set his glider to follow (at about 30 paces) and caught up with the group. "Uh, yeah, acrobats. We have a lot of that. I can do a strong man routine, too. Well, mostly."
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Aug 5, 2015 17:24
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The Shocker Team d8, 3 XP, 1 PP "And I can, um..." Herman's gaze wanders towards the ground as he contemplates how much he can really contribute to a performance. Being in front of a group of people always makes him more nervous than usual. "I can put on a light show and fly, I guess. I, uh, prefer the less on-stage side of things."
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Aug 8, 2015 02:55
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It doesn't make sense that you wouldn't be able to read the surface thoughts of regular folks who don't have training to resist thoughts. Most telepaths have to train NOT to pick that poo poo up. Didn't Jean used to go crazy in airports? Likewise, they're not really looking for subterfuge so I'm not gonna oppose your rolls for investigating right now. Logically it would be trivial for either of you. Joan was focused on her baroque. "Bath's a long ways out, isn't it? You come all this way just to perform in Warwick? " "Everybody who's anybody plays in Warwick these days!" Came a voice from the wagon. "Anybody who wants to be a serious musician is already there, only a matter of time before other performers wised up, too." "It's true," Ignatius told them. "Count Davis has been putting up travel checkpoints out to keep out the riffraff, there's so many. Lucky for you guys you ran into us, we've got a travel pass." He nodded, clearly pleased with himself. "It'll get us through any checkpoint on the roads in the whole realm." Another voice came from the back over the noise of people rifling through a trunk. "There's a lot of people want to get their hands on one. Fortunately for us we have this!" A burly man with spiky blonde hair popped up from under the wagon's cover holding a massive two-handed battle axe in both hands. The axe looked... it looked awesome. There were skulls and dragons all over it and even though it was a perfect black color, when the light hit the silvery edge, it refracted into a double rainbow. It was the coolest axe any of them had ever seen that didn't have lasers on it. "Whoa, Thomas!" Ignatius said, the look in his eyes betraying amusement. "The man in green is a genuine strongman, you come at him he might bend your axe into a pretzel!" Thomas grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess." "So, what do you say? Want to come with us to Warwick?"
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Aug 11, 2015 20:00
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The Shocker Team d8, 3 XP, 1 PP "We'd love to!" Herman exclaims, as much to cover up the ever-louder sound of his growling stomach as from personal enthusiasm.
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Aug 15, 2015 04:07
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Emma Frost Team d10, 2 xp, 0PP, Resources: "Warwick then! We'll raise a glass to the uh... Sheriff? King? Queen? when we get there, have no doubt." Gonna assume there's an tide of inane and mundane thoughts, probably centered around boobs or what ridiculous outfits we're all wearing. Either way, Excelsior!
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Aug 20, 2015 17:26
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| # ? Apr 23, 2024 18:26 |
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The city of Warwick was the sort of city assembled by someone whose idea of England in 1602 was mainly informed by a mishmash of ideas about pre-Industrial England that involved Robin Hood and gentleman farmers and forcing the Irish into an exploited subclass. The city was characterized not by being better-kept than the surrounding area, but mostly just by being more densely-populated. Dirt roads criss-crossed the city at random between houses, turning into mud whenever it rained. The center of the city was marked by a large group of market stalls where the outlying farmers brought wares on market days and were otherwise used by travelling peddlers as they came through town. By the time the group made it in, the sun was starting to go down and houses were lighting lamps. Ignatius and his band brought them to their preferred tavern, denoted by being both much larger and much louder than all the buildings around it. People were currently streaming in, awaiting the night's festivities to provide them a break from their worries for a few hours. Ignatius showed them in as the band began unloading the cart. As one of them [whoever posts first] passed the front desk, the short, hairy man behind the desk reached out and grabbed their forearm before leaning in. "Hold on," the man's rough voice whispered, heavy with the smell of ale. "I know you... I don't know where or why but I have the strangest feeling that someone wants me to give you this. I think... and this sounds crazy... I think I wrote it in my sleep. I don't even know HOW to write, let alone while I'm passed out." He held up a folded letter and handed it off. It read: I'm sorry for communicating in such a cryptic method. I do not dare contact you directly for fear of alerting our enemies to our mission. I suggest you find a way to befriend the mayor, and in doing so, get access to his advisor. he is the true power in the area and can provide you with a means to cross the border. We are currently holding but I ask that you hurry. -Charles
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Aug 21, 2015 01:21
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