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 Newark, Newark, it's a hell of a town. To say the mob runs the place is like saying the ocean is a little damp. However, the new mayor has doubled down on recruiting new superheroes to defend the public at large. Current odds put his life expectancy at about two months. Half a dozen new volunteers have been called to the local police precinct for a brief orientation session with the captain, Nicky Valentino. The briefing room is unremarkable, dominated by a large table on which rest several communicators. The team finds a man in his early forties, short and corpulent. His black hair is mostly absent, having fled the premises some time ago. The pockets of his uniform bulge with unknown contents, nearly as overstuffed as their owner. He audibly wipes his nose with a sleeve before he starts speaking, his voice nasal and grating. His words are stilted, as though reading from a script. "Greetings, new superhero volunteers. On the table before you are your official communicators, which will alert you to ongoing crimes, and enable you to exchange both voice and text messages. Your responsibility is handling superhuman threats, which will show up in red on your communicators. Other crimes can be handled by the police force, though you may assist, if you so desire. As you have elected to use your own personal spaces rather than be assigned a base of operations by the city, you will need to fill out form 37-C to receive your standard-issue crime computer, XD-7 workbench, GH-3 equipment storage locker, and E-5 microfusion generator, used to power the aforementioned. This form will require you to provide an address for delivery, but this need not be the address at which the item will be stored, to protect your privacy. However, in such an event, you will need to provide your own transportation, for reasons that should be obv-obvi-o-achoo!" The captain sneezes, creating a cloud of green as the dollar bills burst out of his pockets from the force of his sneezing. He quickly snatches the money out of the air and stuffs it back in his uniform. "None o' youse saw any o' that, capisce? Arright, where was I? Eh, whateva. You'll getcher crap in a few weeks, there's some safety warnings in here, nothin' important, just don't be a jamoke. Now I got a lotta friggin' paperwork cuzza youse guys signin' up, so amscray. And figure out a goddamn name fer yesselves!" He lumbers from the room, leaving the team with their communicators and requisition form. They'll need a fair amount of storage space to keep their new stuff, possibly part of a large warehouse or stock room. There are uniformed officers and detectives in the squad room who could probably answer and questions the new heroes have, seeing as Captain Valentino didn't see fit to stick around. (In your first post, link to a Google Doc containing your character's stats and such, including my conversions of your powers. Be sure to use the original posts, to make sure you get the most recently-edited versions. This is also an opportunity, if you want, to go into detail about how you got involved in this, which you can work out with each other on Discord. It's first-come, first-serve when determining whose version of events is correct, in the case of minor conflicting details.)
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Apr 2, 2017 05:33
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The officer BRAD! approaches jumps and nearly grabs his gun before realizing who the skeleton is. Grumbling something about "Super-weirdos", he explains what he knows about the payment system. "CHESS does some black site mumbo-jumbo and distributes your cash randomly, like it's all legit for your secret identity. It's like money laundering. Uh, not that I know anything about that. You got full benefits, too, health, dental, mental, you even get a guy to fix your spandex. If you build any fancy crap, you can expense some of the parts, too. That answer your question so I can get back to my job?" As he huffs the last word, a roll of money falls from his pant leg, and he nonchalantly slides it under the desk next to him with his foot, hiding it from view.
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Apr 3, 2017 04:44
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No sooner do the words leave Nora's mouth than the team's communicators begin to buzz. Apparently they got connected a little early, or more likely, the captain just called the meeting late. The communicators' screens show a map of the area, with red markers all along Broad Street. It appears that a group of supervillains have decided to rob all the banks between Military Park and Hill Street. So far, the system has identified Ten-Ton Tony and Bada-Boom from the Carozzo Family, so it seems safe to assume the mob is behind the heist. The sitrep mentions that the nearby precinct has officers surrounding the area, but they're waiting for superpowered backup to deal with the metahuman elements.
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Apr 4, 2017 07:22
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As the team rushes for the door, a few of the cops in the precinct, having overheard their conversation, pass along some basic information about the identified criminals, though New Jersey residents would already be familiar with them. "Ten-Ton" Tony Valenti can turn into cement, increasing his size considerably, as well, while Johnny "Bada-Boom" Lopenti can make things explode. They're both minor lieutenants in the Carozzo family, due to their limited powers and even more limited intelligence. Given the size of the job, it's likely someone smarter is on the scene to keep things organized. By choosing different means of transportation, the group is inevitably split up. BRAD! makes a beautiful entrance, skidding to a stop in front of the Bank of America on Market Street, knocking a pair of Carozzo goons sprawling in the process. In front of the doors, barking orders at other thugs carrying bags of cash, is Ten-Ton Tony, made obvious by the fact that he's twelve feet tall and made of cement. His pinstripe suit was apparently treated with the same chemicals as any superhero's outfit, as it fits his enlarged frame perfectly. He looks over the pair of superheroes that have just arrived, and cocks an eyebrow. "Wouldja get a load o' these jokers! We got a us a decrepit ol' pile o' bones, and a skeleton!" He guffaws loudly, a harsh grinding sound accompanying his every word due to his stony composition. When he's finished mocking BRAD! and Nora, his expression turns to a dismissive glare. "Arright, boys, waste 'em." The remaining half-dozen mobsters level their tommy guns and prepare to open fire. One of the uniformed officers on duty offers to give Isaac and Liam and lift, and his patrol car is fortunately able to handle Claymation's weight. He drops the pair off just north of Hill Street, where a trio of banks are being cleared out. Slugger arrives at about the same time, having followed along. This group of would-be bank robbers is led by a thin, weaselly gangster with a thin mustache, presumably Bada-Boom. His suit is ill-fitting and an almost offensive shade of purple, and his wide-brimmed hat does little to hide the constant look of nervousness on his face. As soon as he spies the heroes, he jumps back in surprise, his eyes locked on Claymation's imposing figure. "Ah, crud, we got capes! Hey, you guys, get out here and help me out!" Ten goons with machine guns have soon poured out of the banks, ready for a fight. Vincent, traveling by air, sets down north of Market on Broad, landing among the first banks hit. While it seems they've been cleared out and the criminals have largely moved on, he can spy several ne'er-do-wells loading the ill-gotten loot into the back of a van. Standing by the van is a man in an expensive-looking Italian suit, with a white scarf draped over his shoulders. At first, he's just overseeing the heist, but just before The Suit sets down, he perks up, and makes a waving gesture to his men. "Okay, let's get a couple more bags in and then we gotta go, some heroes just showed up to hassle the boys. I don't recognize 'em, but I ain't takin' no chances, 'specially since we got company, ourselves." It's then that he looks at Vincent, having apparently sensed him before seeing him, somehow. His five henchmen take up positions around the van, while their leader confidently strides forward, making no move toward cover. (That's right, three running battles! Gonna need initiative rolls from all of you. Ten-Ton Tony has a 13 and one action, his boys are at 14. Bada-Boom is at 16 with two actions, his cronies at 13. The ringleader, Mickey "Peepers" Carozzo, is at 31, with three actions, and his men are at 14. When attacking, the adjustments for level are -1 for Tony and Bada-Boom, as they're the same level as you guys, and -2 for Mickey, who's level 2. Mickey's also got an additional -4 from Heightened Defense. Nameless henchmen are always considered exactly one level below you guys, as a houserule, so no penalties. Nobody is using any special defense rows this time around, but Tony has much lower Intelligence and Charisma than Nora, so use those rows if attempting to use Telepathy or some sort of taunting special attack.) EclecticTastes fucked around with this message at 21:02 on Apr 5, 2017 |
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Apr 5, 2017 08:37
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The Suit As one of the goons guarding the vans starts to clutch at his rapidly reddening face, eyes bulging in their sockets, a beam of pure destruction only barely misses their leader, leaving a small hole in the side of the bank behind him. The energy from the attack appears to be redirected through the scarf over his shoulders, more than half the material burning away from the sheer destructive force. The guy looks impressed. "Not bad, not bad. Name's Mickey Carozzo, I'll be killin' ya today. Now hold still." He moves with impressive speed, and is soon right next to Vincent, looking him over. The Suit suddenly feels very exposed, despite his newly-formed armor. "Arright, I think I get it. Yer a lot like us, you got a bad rap. Eh, who cares about public opinion, 'm I right?" The Suit's reply comes in the form of another beam of annihilation, and another hole in the bank wall. The remainder of Mickey's scarf burns away, and his suit looks a little singed. "Whoa! Not much of a talker, huh? Arright, lemme show you why they call me 'Peepers'!" Twin beams, similar in color to Vincent's particle beam, shoot forth from Carozzo's eyes, which sear right into Vincent's bio-organic armor, hitting a spot left uncovered by his chitinous armor plates. As The Suit misses with a vacuum bubble, another pair of beams burn a hole in the chitin, as Mickey moves backwards. In the meantime, the goon squad opens fire, unleashing a hail of gunfire. Of the four not subject to depressurization, only two score any hits at all, each of them nailing The Suit with three bullets, the other two of their volleys going wild. Half of the bullets impact his armor plating, while the remainder get through to hit his primary armor. The remaining mobster shoots wildly, but only hits the scenery as he struggles to remain standing. (You have been scanned with Weakness Detection, giving "Peepers" a +10 to-hit due to his 30 Intelligence, as well as knowledge of your Prejudice weakness, and then you got blasted with Disintegration beams dealing 17 damage to your Bio-Armor, and 26 to your bone armor. Mickey's target number for you is so high now that very little will keep him from hitting you. The bullets dealt 11 damage to the Bio-Armor and 8 to the bone armor. Keep track of their current AR values. He got a couple lucky armor rolls, and both of your nicks wound up going to his outermost layer of armor, part of the Carozzo Family three-piece suit. Fortunately, unlike all other attacks, your particle beam, being phenomenally destructive, deals excess damage to the person, or their next layer of armor, depending on how the dice pan out, rather than excess damage on armor being ignored. In this case, his main suit took the remaining 2 points of damage that the scarf couldn't handle. Mickey's initiative for the next round is 34, and his henchmen are at 12.) BRAD! and Nora One of the thugs on the scene immediately throws down his weapon and flees back into the back, screaming, "I'm sorry, ma, I didn't mean it!" His compatriots, including Tony, are less impressed by the show. In fact, Ten-Ton Tony booms, "Are youse guys makin' fun... of MY MAMA?!" BRAD! manages to graze one of the gangsters, but he rolls with the hit, and is left almost unscathed. Nora's attack fares a little better, her target had shown up expecting a lot this morning, but being pelted with telekinetically-controlled candy was not included, he could only gape in surprise as he's knocked back towards the wall of the bank by the force. However, he's left standing, and the five mafiosos spray the pair with hot lead. Only the pair that had been attacked manage to hit their marks, with a few grazing shots effortlessly deflected by Nora's defensive field, and two bullets impacting harmlessly against BRAD!'s bones. That's when Brad leaves the ground, launched back down the bank steps by the massive fist of Ten-Ton Tony. "Don't NOBODY make fun o' my mama!" (The bad guys rolled really well to disbelieve the illusion, but one dude rolled a 20, so he just bailed. The other guys didn't deal enough to get through Invulnerability, but left BRAD! with 3 left for the round, which didn't go so well when Tony scored a critical hit, dealing 26 damage, halved to 13. That's 10 damage you can either roll with, or take. I'm assuming you rolled with the hit to reduce it to 5 damage. Tony is at 10 this round, his boys at 12.) The other guys Slugger's strike against Bada-Boom was quite effective, but rather than simply folding, the gangster's suit seemed to protect him from the attack, though whatever sort of underwire was serving to protect him would be bent and broken by the force of his attacks. Bada-Boom merely smirked, picking up a nearby rock and throwing it at his assailant. However, the rock merely bounced off Slugger's chest and fell harmlessly to the ground. "What the hell?" was all Bada-Boom could manage before he was encased in plastic, his powers momentarily neutralized by Isaac. However, the encasement disrupts Isaac's hold over Bada-Boom's powers, and soon a muffled "Arright, now this is happenin'!" can be heard through the plastic. Then the plastic starts to glow. The explosion rocks the street, but isn't large enough to hit anyone besides the guy standing right next to it. The plastic itself does nothing, Slugger proving as immune to high-speed objects as always, but the raw energy that had suffused the plastic to cause the explosion burns quite a bit and throws Joseph backwards, landing only barely on his feet. "Now ya pissed me off!" Most of the other mobsters end up focused on Slugger's companions, as both Claymation and Isaac leave them reeling from blunt force, and one unconscious entirely. They block as best they can, but they're left unsteady on their feet. Three fire uselessly at The Slugger, the bullets that hit doing nothing, while another two take aim at Isaac (including the remaining one he'd clobbered), and the other four try to fill Liam with daylight. While most of the shots miss Akela, several still find purchase, providing a painful reminder of the frailties of flesh. Liam is also peppered with bullets, but only one manages to get through his earthborn strength. (That explosion was pretty powerful, dealing 18 damage, but remember that you can roll with the hit to reduce the damage. Isaac has 2, 5, 3, and 5 damage coming on separate bullets, they can be rolled with separately, as well, to basically negate the damage. Liam takes a 5-damage bullet and a 2-damage one, the former is absorbed by his Invulnerability, while the latter can be rolled off. Bada-Boom is at 21 this round, his buddies are at 18. One of the guys hit by Isaac actually rolled poorly enough to get knocked out by the hit he took, he was the guy whose shots were deflected by Akela's pendant lowering his HTH target number before the edit, so that usage isn't consumed, but all the same bullets hit.) EclecticTastes fucked around with this message at 06:56 on Apr 6, 2017 |
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Apr 6, 2017 06:19
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The Suit Mickey's mouth gapes as he's all but enveloped in a ray of destruction, but fortunately for him, his suit absorbs the hit. Of course, most of it is reduced to atoms as a result. "Dammit, that was a nice suit!" Realizing the tide is rapidly turning against him, he presses his advantage, firing beam after beam. In return, he takes two more hits that seem to burn away his undershirt. Vincent takes three more shots to his armor, but he's left with a hell of a lot more than Mickey. The wall of the bank behind Mickey now has several sizable holes in it from the incoming particle beams. As The Suit tries to taunt the gangster, he can only laugh in disbelief. "Buddy, really? Mickey Carozzo? Of the Carozzo Family? We freakin' run this town! I'll admit, I didn't expect a buncha new hero-types, but these were blitz tactics, ya think this is the first van we filled up? Just hurry up and die already!" However, "Peepers" can't hide the worried look on his face as his armored suit evaporates around him. Then he, like his lackey, ends up clutching at his face as the area around his head depressurizes. He barely chokes out "You.. miserable... sonuva... argh!" Apparently inspired by their leader's show of defiance, most of the mobsters demonstrate a marked improvement in accuracy. The one Vincent had hit with a vacuum bubble is still coughing and choking, and his aim suffers for it. However, The Suit's armor flakes away under the hail of bullets, and a few finally find their mark, causing minor injury. (You take 16 and 9 to your Bio-Armor, and 20 to your bone armor, from the disintegration beams. You then take a bunch of bullets, your Bio-Armor is down to 45, your Bone armor is down to 11. Your Invulnerability absorbs most of the force from the shots that get through, leaving bullets of 1, 3, and 2 damage, which can be rolled with separately. If you're wondering, Mickey's down to 22 armor on his suit, and 18 on his undershirt. You have a +8 to hit Mickey next turn, and he's at -8 initiative and -8 to-hit. He's at 27, with two actions, while his boys are at 16, with two.) BRAD! and Nora BRAD!'s brilliant plan works splendidly for the first second or two. However, while his first shadow bolt hits, it doesn't seem to do anything, and the second hits one of the floodlights on the front of the bank, meant to spot robbers at night. It focuses on the shadowy skeleton, and he's quickly forced back into his previous, bony form. However, while he was incorporeal, the mobsters, no strangers to that sort of thing, shifted their focus to Nora, as did Tony after her reasonably effective taunting. "Shaddup, y'old bag!" Tony's fist swings wide, and after the barrage she'd taken from his men, it was a drat good thing, too. However, Tony is heard crying out in rage and pain immediately after. "Watch where you're shootin', idiots!" It appears a pair of his men had accidentally shot their boss in the back, his large frame blocking their view of the little old lady. (Tony's Invulnerability absorbs the shadow bolt, but it leaves him more vulnerable to two of his men rolling critical failures, and dealing 11 total damage to him, that he can't roll with because it was a surprise, making it actually more effective than if BRAD! had just hit him normally. Nora took no damage, but boy howdy was that a close one, Tony would have dealt 20 damage on top of the 20 total from all those bullets. Tony's got 9 initiative, his boys got 17.) The other guys The Slugger kicks things off by immediately beating both Bada-Boom and one of his henchmen unconscious before they can react, helped along by Isaac, who also finishes the guy he'd hit a few seconds prior. Claymation bursts into action and knocks out another pair of goons, leaving only two mobsters standing, who both throw down their guns and throw up their hands. Liam quickly tosses some mud at them and transmutes it to steel, sticking them in place for a few minutes, long enough for officers to arrive from the barricade down the street. (That round went exceedingly well for you guys, so now you can move on to help out with the other fights, or hang out with the unconscious losers and accept praise and accolades from the local boys in blue. Slugger could get to the fight with Ten-Ton Tony by the round after next, and could fairly easily carry the other two guys such a short distance without worrying about the finer points of logistics. It'd take a little longer to get to the other fight, it'll probably be over by the time you get there.)
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Apr 7, 2017 02:50
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The Suit Mickey catches a lucky break as The Suit's decisive blast merely destroys what's left of his suit. He catches the second in the chest, but while it staggers him, he only seems to have taken minor injury. The third shot blasts away nearly all of what remains of his undershirt, leaving just the smallest rags hanging from his body. He fires back, but as he's still suffering the effects of depressurization, he only manages two shots, neither of which are very powerful, and both collide relatively harmlessly with Vincent's armor, though his bone armor is reduced to ash. The henchmen, however, seem to confer among themselves, and one of the three that aren't suffering the ravages of the vacuum of space steps forward and, along with the two choking thugs, lays down a hail of suppressing fire. With his armor mostly destroyed, Vincent can't help but duck while the final two mobsters make for the van. (Your bone armor took 23 damage and is now destroyed, while your Bio-Armor took a whopping 10 damage, bringing it down to 35. Three of the mobsters poured a bunch of Power into a HTH special attack that gives you a -8 to hit any of them, though it doesn't help their boss, while the other two spent their actions getting in the van and getting ready to bolt. I hadn't mentioned it, but you may have inferred that the -8 to initiative applied to henchmen hit with the depressurization, as well as Mickey, so only the guy leading the special attack had two actions, he used one aiming. Mickey rolled disgustingly well on his armor checks, but now he's left with just 2 AR on his undershirt, and he's finally taken some HP damage. He's still suffering the debuffs you nailed him with last round, and is at 28 for initiative. The mobsters are at 13, 5 for the debuffed guys.) Everyone else BRAD!'s bone shards bounce harmlessly off of Tony, and it seems that the group of mobsters has at this point dismissed the skeleton as a bad joke, and are now focusing their attention on the apparent brains of the operation, Nora. She manages to lift and drop one of the mobsters onto another, who fails to notice in time to avoid getting knocked out as well, but not before both get a shot off, though one volley goes wide. The remaining ruffians fill the air with bullets, as well, and while one of their number demonstrates especially poor aim, the other two more than make up for it. The bullets don't harm Nora, but what happens next certainly does. Ten-Ton Tony, apparently fed up with the present situation, winds up dramatically. "I've had enough o' both o' you freaks! Now hit the bricks, grandma!" His fist connects, and after absorbing all that gunfire, Nora's protective field shatters, and her feet leave the ground. The blow sends the old woman sailing back across the street, but she's saved from a sad sprawl across the pavement by a soft landing in a comically oversized hand. Looks like the others have arrived, and one can assume they're not particularly pleased about what they just witnessed. (Okay, all five of you are up and ready to go next turn. Nora took a critical hit from Tony, which on top of the damage from the bullets, resulted in 23 damage getting past her Invulnerability. That said, she can roll with 7 of it to get down to 16 damage, which leaves her on her feet, at least. Tony's initiative is at 10, his boys' at 15.)
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Apr 8, 2017 21:24
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The Suit As the final exchange between The Suit and Mickey Carozzo begins, Mickey finally takes a look around. "Goddamn idiots, looks like the others got their asses handed to 'em by your friends. Whatever, doesn't matter what happens, I'll be walkin' free by dinnertime either way." His last shot slams harmlessly against Vincent's armor as the barrage of dark energy finally overwhelms him. The last bolt knocks him flat on his back, and he doesn't look to be in any hurry to get up. However, during this, the brave mobster that had laid down suppressing fire waved the pair that was still with him into the open back of the van, and the vehicle sped off. Most of the money was left on the curb, though according to Mickey, this wasn't the first van to be filled. The last gunman drops his weapon and calls out, "I surrender! We're cool, right?" A feeling of familiarity tugs at Vincent, and now that he can focus, he has a chance to get a good look at the surrendered henchman. It doesn't take long for the mystery to be solved. Under the ugly hat is Vincent's second cousin, Rico. (Mickey's down for the count, and there wasn't much you could do to avoid the other henchmen bailing and leaving you alone with your second cousin. Welcome to your subplot, titled "Witless to the Mob".) Everyone else Ten-Ton Tony didn't have time to process exactly how badly his rear end was kicked, but he would later be dimly aware of a baseball player moving at truly unnatural speeds. The blows from Slugger left him barely standing, and then, having been dismissed as an idiot, BRAD! took him by surprise and delivered the knockout blow, immediately before claiming full credit for the villain's defeat. Isaac and Liam handled the remaining thugs, leaving the situation neatly handled. However, at that moment, the man who'd been scared back into the bank by BRAD! illusion rushed back out, briefly enraged. "Hey, that wasn't my mama! Why I oughta... er... uh... bad time?" He didn't try to resist arrest. It would be a moment until the police arrive to apprehend Tony and his pals, likely with the press in tow at this point, giving the heroes a brief reprieve in which to collect their thoughts or enthuse over their first victory. (I changed a target to fix the math on this turn, but regardless, congratulations, you win!)
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Apr 10, 2017 23:29
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The Suit Rico sighs before sitting down on the curb, looking somehow even more defeated than would seem appropriate. "Yeah, arright, I just, I gotta make a phone call real quick. My aunt told me my cousin just moved into town, and I, uh, kinda need his help with somethin', if I'm goin' to jail." There's no time to stop him from dialing without employing unreasonable force, and a moment later, Vincent's phone rings. His mother must have passed along his number, seeing as he and Rico were never particularly close. As kids, Rico was always getting himself into some sort of trouble or another. It wasn't that he was a bad kid, he just seemed to have a knack for getting exploited by those stronger or smarter than him. And now it seemed like Rico was once again in over his head, and he was left staring at The Suit, realization dawning on his face. "Oh. H-hiya, Vinnie. I screwed up again. Sorry." Rico turns away, staring intently at his shoes, waiting for a response like a death row inmate waiting for news of his final appeal. Everyone else As police began to collect the defeat villains, several members of the press corps force their way onto the scene, and each of the new heroes ends up cornered by a journalist. Liam, ever the handsome, rugged figure, finds himself in front of a camera talking to Greta Tannhauser, senior correspondent for the Channel 4 six o' clock news, the local CBS affiliate. The reporters for the other networks soon join her, but their questions all follow the same general theme. They ask about this new, local team's name, their origins, their motivations, and so on, mostly phrased in such a way that they can be answered with pithy soundbites. It seems that the local news crews have some experience with local hero teams, as the "report" seems to focus so heavily on expository information that it will inevitably turn out more like a PR reel than a sincere work of journalism. Given that trusted and proven superhero teams have been linked with higher tourism numbers and property values, their motives for crafting such a glowing report are rather obvious. It's just up to Liam not to mess it up by sticking his foot in his mouth. Nora finds herself face-to-face with National Public Radio's senior correspondent (in that her stories are all about seniors), Ina Jaffe. She speaks in a clear, professional tone honed by a long career, her voice filled with a sort of genuine respect Nora hasn't heard directed at her in decades. "Excuse me, miss. I'm Ina Jaffe, with NPR. It's fortunate that I was in town as part of a report on the President's push to expand Meals on Wheels. If you have some time, I'd like to ask you a few questions. Have you been keeping your powers private before now, or did they develop recently? Did you face any obstacles to registering your status as a superhero due to your age? What made you decide to take up this responsibility?" BRAD! is met by a reporter for the New York Times, Barry Fargas, so the rest of the team can rest easy knowing that whatever crazy poo poo he says will go almost completely unread. He receives many of the same questions as Liam, but the reporter also takes a keen interest in BRAD!'s nature as what appears to be some sort of biker skeleton. Barry is well north of forty, with thin hair and a thick midsection, and he clearly sees this as a once-in-a-lifetime chance to make the front page, of a weekday edition, at least. Maybe even above the fold, but he'll take what he can get. He brought a photographer, so if does manage to make it, BRAD! will be appearing in all his glory on newsstands across the nation. Come to think of it, if a denim-wearing, drunken skeleton superhero doesn't get people buying copies, print media really is dead. Standing in front of the Slugger is a pale, bespectacled teenager in an ill-fitting suit, nervously choking out his words. "H-hi, I'm Brendan Mitchell, from the Central High newspaper. I w-was writing a story on h-how the school board operates when all this h-happened. I-I mean, there's some offices just up the street, across from the first bank that g-got hit. Um, c-could you give a statement for my report? A-are you a, uh, local fan, or do you prefer a team from somewhere else?" The kid gestures to Slugger's getup, still visibly shaking, whether from the stress of interviewing a superhero or from, apparently, having only barely avoided getting caught up in the bank robbery. It occurs to the Slugger that it's remarkably fortunate that there were no hostages, but then he decides to spare the matter no further thought and so does everyone else. Isaac is nearly tackled by a girl close to his age wearing a Huffington Post pin on her shirt. She immediately launches into a rapid-fire barrage of questions, too many for even Akela's legendary intellect to keep track of, but the pair are soon saved as a policeman walks over and whispers something in her ear, causing her eyes to widen in shock and embarrassment. "O-ohmigosh, I'm so, so sorry! I didn't know you couldn't-, um, well, sorry! I'm Sophie Durham, HuffPo. Erm, oh!" She takes notice of the communicator on Isaac's belt and snatches it up before he can raise a protest. "Is this a Model 4b handheld communicator?! Oh, wow, that's so retro! These came out almost a whole year ago! I've always wanted to check out a handheld communicator!" She notices that the screen is currently on the text messenger, and raises a finger. "Wait a minute, have you just been using text? You know this thing has a vocalizer, right? Here, lemme see if I remember the schematics I downloaded that one time. Uh, totally legally, of course!" After several minutes busily navigating menus, followed by several more trying to undo some sort of extremely loud Portuguese-language mode, Sophie arrives on the option she was looking for. "Okay, I set it up, it'll be on the home menu now. Now you can just type something in and the communicator will read it out loud for you. Oh shoot I forgot, I need to interview you!" Then the questions start back up. His brain may have been replaced by crystal, but the capillaries in his skull are still, unfortunately, present, as Isaac's looming headache indicates. (Alright, gang, do well on these interviews, and you may earn a Charisma increase check, on top of any you may have earned from the preceding battle. Be sure to keep your audience in mind for this.)
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Apr 12, 2017 00:05
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The Suit Rico looks like he has something important to say, but he keeps it to himself. While foolish, he's not stupid enough to go spreading Vincent's secret identity. The real question is, why was he there in the first place? He's not the sort to engage in criminal activity of his own volition. It's not hard to deduce that he probably made some bad bets, and owes the Carozzo Family money, a debt they called in when they needed the extra manpower for the heist. What will happen to Rico, or his family, next is unclear, but distinctly ominous. However, Vincent can tell that sticking to his principles by letting Rico get arrested when he could have easily let him go will have long-term effects. When the cops have finally taken the criminals in, the sergeant handling the area gives The Suit a stern look. "I assume you're responsible for this." He gestures to the wall of the bank, full of holes, which, as if on cue, promptly collapses from the damage. "Typical, just what I'd expect from your type." The sergeant shakes his head and walks away to oversee the booking of Mickey Carozzo and Rico. Despite this, most of the talk among the officers is how Vincent single-handedly defeated the youngest son of Frankie "The Fryer" Carozzo. (Good job, you've finished the first part of your subplot. Things will start to spiral out of control later on. Your Prejudice worked in your favor in this rare case, in that everyone just kind of expected you to cause some collateral, but taking out Mickey by yourself took them by surprise.) Everyone else The interviews go mostly well, each hero more or less achieving their overall goals. Liam gives the cameras exactly what they were hoping for: a handsome, enthusiastic protector of the peace. Clips from the interview are replayed on every local news segment for the next twenty-four hours, and he even shows up briefly on the cable news channels covering news from around the country. Claymation even receives a modest amount of fan mail from admirers, mostly commenting on his well-developed musculature. Brendan scribbles notes into his pad as Slugger speaks, and seems satisfied with the answers. He seems to have regained a little confidence, though he doesn't exactly exude self-assurance. "Thanks a lot, Mr. Slugger, people might actually read this one." While left unsaid, it's easy to tell that he's grateful that the quotes will be transcribed in text, so the reader can infer inflection that didn't actually exist. Brendan concludes his interview by snapping a quick photo with his cell phone, then runs off. The sports-themed hero soon finds himself very popular with the local youths, the baseball aesthetic and their lack of knowledge of his horrific body-warping powers proving to be appealing to the demographic. If only Slugger were more widely-known, he could start merchandizing. A few days after her interview, Ina Jaffe's report airs on NPR, where she gives account of the elderly woman who, discovering wonderous new powers, didn't spare a second thought before signing up to be a superhero. The story focuses a lot on one's ability to make a difference, even at an advanced age. This provides comfort to older listeners, who often feel as though their lives have already ended and they're just waiting out the clock. Over the coming months, several other senior citizens who have developed superpowers begin registering as heroes, citing Nora as their inspiration. The Times reporter looks about a decade older by the time BRAD! has finished his diatribe, and stares glumly at his notes. "Well, thank you... I guess." He slowly walks away to commit whatever he can salvage to paper. The report appears on page B5 of the Thursday edition. The following day, Barry Fargas is rushed to the hospital, having been found unconscious in his garage, his car engine running. Fortunately, his wife's divorce lawyer had shown up to deliver some paperwork, and heard the engine. When he regained consciousness, Barry expressed profound disappointment, but resigned himself to life for the time being. Sophie, enthusiastic to a fault, hangs on Isaac's every word. Or rather, the words being recited in the soft, feminine voice of his communicator. When he finishes, she flips her notebook closed and thanks him profusely. "Wow, that's SO COOL. I bet this'll get a ton of hits, thank you so much! I gotta run, but if you do anything else really cool I'll totally be back! Bye now!" The young internet reporter dashes off with speed likely fueled by one too many energy drinks, leaving Isaac and Akela in peace. Her article ends up on the front page of the Huffington Post website, and the new superhero team. The commentary on Reddit and elsewhere prove to be an absolute dumpster fire, as expected, and Akela in particular finds himself confused by some of the insults used, given that everyone on the team is single. (Okay, now for the actual battle results! The various mooks were worth 50 experience each for a total of 800, with Rico worth 100 on his own. Tony was worth 320, Bada-Boom 200, and Mickey was worth 520. I'll toss in an additional 60 for good roleplaying for an even 2000, bringing everyone up to level 2. See the section in the how to play document about leveling up for how that's gonna work. Similarly, see the section about changing Charisma. For a successful first outing, everyone on the team gets a roll to increase. Additionally, Claymation, Nora, Slugger, Isaac, and The Suit get an additional roll, either for good interviews or Vincent's show of valor.)
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Apr 13, 2017 07:23
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With their first big crime handled, Newark's new local superhero team relaxes into a more normal cycle of stopping minor crimes by stupid kids who think they're the next big supervillain. They end up with a lot of time to themselves, able to work on developing their abilities, inventing gadgets, or improving the team's public image, among other things. The arrested criminals are arraigned quickly. It looks like Mickey Carozzo's lawyer is going to get him off on a technicality, but Ten-Ton Tony and Bada-Boom are gonna be doing at least a little time, though not nearly as much as most would agree they should. The rest of the Carozzo crew are charged similarly. Rico, however, is not so lucky. With a couple phone calls to relatives, Vincent confirms that Rico was up to his eyeballs in debt to the Carozzos, and this was his way of paying it off. But, the DA's up for reelection, and he's running on a tough-on-crime platform, and while he's unable to really stick it to the mob, a sucker like Rico is the perfect patsy to make an example of. He's been charged with every possible crime, and the maximum sentence has been recommended. While he's not looking at a life sentence, it's unlikely he'll see freedom again, unless he somehow lives to a hundred and fifty. The charges are, in part, for show, what the DA really wants seems to be for Rico to spill what he knows about the Carozzos, to aid an ongoing federal investigation. Of course, if he opens his fool mouth, he and his family are as good as dead. His trial's still a few months off, giving Vincent time to figure something out if he wants to save his idiot cousin, because the odds of Rico keeping quiet on his own are slim to none. About a week after the incident at the bank, Slugger gets a call on his communicator from a researcher from CERN in Switzerland. According to his story, he's a CHESS reservist, and received some data on Obasi's powers, apparently CHESS was aware of Joe's curiosity about his own true nature. The researcher, a quantum physicist by the name of Maxwell Grant, explains that he'll be in New York soon, and if Slugger pays him a visit, he can borrow a lab at Columbia to run some tests. However, he's only available during the week, and the daytime at that. Slugger will need to make arrangements to keep the store running smoothly if he wants to take the trip, or else risk things falling into chaos in his absence. (Alright, it's officially Downtime! Both The Suit and Slugger have active subplots they can participate in, in place of one of the normal choices for downtime. Slugger's subplot is titled Bis Vincit, Qui Se Vincit In Victoria.)
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Apr 14, 2017 19:30
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Isaac and Nora Isaac's new goggles work perfectly, though the CHESS liason made it clear that, as one of the few living experts on Atlantean technology, Akela's skills would be called upon sometime in the near future. Due to the expedience with which he was able to get ahold of that Atlantean stylus, he can still squeeze in a second invention. It only takes a few hours for Akela to adjust the psionic conduit in Nora's cane, all non-technological psionic devices created on Earth are descended from Atlantean traditions, and even filtered through thousands of years of bastardization, the ancient wizard can still find familiar thaumaturgic patterns. Nora's public appearances go well enough, and she soon finds herself serving as the team's mascot, of sorts. Few take her seriously as a superhero in her own right, but instead see her as a wholesome, friendly face for a group that might otherwise appear downright sinister. (Isaac has one invention, and may be able to swing a second, depending on what he's willing to owe to score the ingredients. Nora has earned a Charisma roll.) Slugger and BRAD! A few hours' travel sees The Slugger safely to New York, where he meets with Dr. Grant. In the lab at Columbia, Slugger is made to summon various quantities of plastic, expand his limbs, and so on. After a few days of collecting data, the doctor shares his theories with the hero. "It seems your powers rely on tapping into parallel dimensions. The phrase has taken on a few different meanings, now that interdimensional travel is a reality, but I'm not referring to alternate Earths. I'm referring to dimensions that are, in a sense, superimposed over our own, but slightly out of sync in a way that can't be properly represented in three dimensions. One of the original goals of the Large Hadron Collider was detecting them, if they existed. A handful of metahumans are capable of perceiving these "higher" dimensions, but you're the first person I'm aware of who can directly interact with them. Somehow, you're drawing on them, and using them to alter various physical and temporal properties. However, the real question is, how are you able to do all this? As of right now, I don't have a good answer for that. But this is a first step in understanding your abilities. I'll keep in contact, let me know if you find anything on your own." With this, he thanks Slugger and lets him head home for the time being, perhaps with more questions than answers. Leaving the store to BRAD! turns out to have been exactly as good an idea as it sounded on paper. By the time The Slugger has returned, all the smokes, booze, and adult materials have been moved to the front of the store, Debbie is being temporarily filled-in for by a guy named Mike (apparently she refused to come in until Slugger had returned after the first day, apparently unimpressed by BRAD!'s winning personality), and worst of all, the cereal aisle was completely out of order. Slugger's perfect, orderly world had been consumed by chaos with merely one week's absence. Further investigations into his powers may take even longer. He'd have to make some difficult decisions soon. BRAD!'s various appearances go about as well as can be expected, but he made some money from it. Turns out people will pay a premium just to meet a new superhero, even one as shady as BRAD! However, he gets a number of inexplicable requests to see him breathe fire, "like on the statue". Being a carny, rather than a circus performer, his one attempt to satisfy the request with a bottle of gin and a lighter ended with a stern talking-to from the local fire chief. (BRAD! has a modest amount of cash in his pocket now.) Claymation Liam's sculptures do moderately well, though a few people get the wrong idea about BRAD!'s powers. There's also a brief, violent run-in with some Carozzo Family thugs. They're easily dispatched, but it's clear that it was a warning, rather than a sincere attempt to harm the hero. Apparently, according to the goons, Mickey didn't appreciate his depiction. By the end of the month, the only surviving copies of The Suit's statue were those still in Liam's possession. (Liam has earned the group 500 experience.) The Suit Rico gives up his bookie almost immediately, a guy named Johnny Chicarelli, or Johnny Chick for short, who works out of a no-name bar downtown, running numbers for the Carozzos. He wouldn't be hard to lean on, but with his recent training from CHESS, Vincent finds out that Johnny Chick's one of the most popular guys in the neighborhood. The Suit could try to put the screws to the guy, but he'd might have to beat down an entire bar full of normal citizens trying to defend their pal, which wouldn't be great for his image. On the other hand, Vincent could try a more subtle strategy, going incognito to gather information, or waiting for Johnny Chick to be alone and vulnerable. Aside from Isaac, busy inventing, and Slugger, busy putting his store and life back together, the rest of the team is available, if Vincent thinks they could help him out. (You've got a choice to make, decide how you're going to put the squeeze on the bookie. The rest of the team is free to react or do whatever while this plot thread is handled.)
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Apr 18, 2017 02:58
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Isaac Akela had little difficulty etching the necessary runes onto his robe to ensure they provided adequate protection, but were themselves prevented from being damaged in battle. Replenishing the energy in the protective wards would be a simple enough matter, but if he had to repair the robe, he'd need the stylus again, to replace any damaged symbols. Fortunately, due to cloth's flexibility, indestructibility runes applied to it consume so little energy that they'll last basically forever. On returning the stylus, the CHESS liason asks no questions, simply assuring Isaac that they'll be in touch. They'd only specified a time to return the stylus, so Akela was taking no liberties by using it for multiple purposes while he had it. Slugger Slugger's attempts to observe his own powers more closely bore little fruit. There were times when he could perceive things moving in directions that human language cannot articulate, faintly, as though in his peripheral vision, though he wasn't seeing with his eyes. However, the sensation did little but disturb him, he was no closer to figuring out his powers than he had been on his way back from Columbia. However, his experiments were not without cost. His store shelves were in disarray, as his attention shifted away from maintaining the store. If he didn't find some way to balance things out, his orderly life could crumble around him. Then again, considering what he's learning about himself, perhaps resigning himself to the chaos would be easier. A decision would have to be made, either way. Everyone else Vincent, BRAD!, and Liam made their way to the bar, insinuating themselves into the crowd. This wasn't especially difficult, neither BRAD! nor The Suit were recognizable in their mundane, human forms, and Liam's identity was secured by the Sidhe magic in his blood. Johnny Chick was a hale, talkative fellow, surprisingly likable, for someone working for the Carozzo Family. It was almost trivially easy to collect evidence for the DA. However, Vincent's problems weren't solved quite so easily. As the DA explains, for a minor illegal gambling charge, Johnny would almost certainly choose to do the time rather than turn state's evidence. However, the DA reminds Vincent that superheroes have special investigative dispensation. That is to say, they can search someone's home without a warrant. It's likely that Johnny Chick has at least some information that could lead up the ladder to a big enough fish for the DA to let Rico go. On the other hand, Johnny might be willing to talk, if he thought his life were in danger. While the gang's initial investigation showed that he was above-board, if someone were to make it look like he was skimming on the family before hauling him in, he'd know he was marked, and spill everything he knows just to get as far away from New Jersey as possible. It's unlikely it would do much to save his life at that point, but it might prove more expedient than rifling through his stuff. However, any long-term decision-making would have to go on the back burner, as the team gets a call, roughly a month and a half into their time as superheroes. As the group gathers around their crime computer, the face of Captain Valentino appears on the screen, looking more than a little flushed with anger. "Hey, Other Guys, time to get yer asses in gear. The Track & Field Gang just rolled into town. Find out what they're doin' here and apprehend 'em, capisce?" The Track & Field Gang, as everyone knows, is a group of athletics-themed supervillains known mainly for disrupting sporting events. There aren't any major events scheduled in the near future, so their purpose in Newark is a mystery. According to the files sent by the captain, their whereabouts are also a mystery, they've yet to make a move since they were first spotted in town. The only lead is a student at Rutgers Law, who saw them while stumbling home from a frat party with the kids from NJIT. (Alright, now you got a proper adventure. As an aside, if you haven't at least taken a cursory look at Newark on Google Maps, now might be a good time, particularly the area around the locations I name. I'm leaving it up to you guys to figure things out. Feel free to act as a group, or split up, as needed. Now, since this is something that'll take a while to percolate, you have off-hours, during which you can progress your subplots, get some work done on another invention, or whatever other personal matters you want to attend to that aren't restricted to downtime.)
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Apr 24, 2017 02:11
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(First off, here is a dossier you guys were sent, compiled primarily by CHESS analysts, describing the current Track & Field Gang.) Most of the team The investigation and stakeout turns up relatively little evidence, though what the team finds raises some very interesting questions. In the Golden Dome, there's evidence that the gang had spent the night, but the battered corpse of a Carozzo Family goon, stuffed haphazardly into a locker, suggests a larger confrontation that went unnoticed. Apparently, whatever the Track & Field Gang wants, the Carozzo Family is involved. Enough low-level mooks are known quantities that the team could find a couple to put the screws to, find out what's going on, or they could try a more subtle approach, if they want to avoid tipping anyone off. Slugger Slugger is off by himself, keeping an eye out on the Golden Dome after finding the evidence a few hours prior, when a Isaac/Akela The college student is more than happy to tell Isaac everything he knows, which is essentially nothing, but Akela gets a good, long look into his memories as he recounts them. Akela sifts through thoughts about that cute pre-med student who in retrospect was making eyes at him and he totally should have made a move, stupid stupid stupid, and moves on to more relevant thoughts. He gets a blurry image that's still unmistakably the Track & Field Gang, though dozens of yards off. Even in a druken stupor, the kid had had the prescience to duck behind a tree as soon as he realized what he was looking at. Even at that distance, the student managed to barely overhear a few words. "Tomorrow night". "drat Carozzos". "Holdin' out". "Be the best again". Unfortunately, unless Akela has some particular interest in the social anxieties of a neurotic twenty-something (and why would he, given he lives inside one), that's all the useful information the student has. BRAD! While keeping an eye out in the vicinity of the Bear and Eagle Stadium, BRAD! spots someone keeping an eye on him. They're way off in the distance, but he can still feel their gaze. He can't tell their identity past their motorcycle helmet, but as soon as he looks their way, they hop on their motorbike and take off, leather jacket ruffling in the wind. BRAD!'s no expert on motorbikes, but as a hobbyist, he could tell that it's a model designed for motocross, rather than a chopper like his baby. He'll probably recognize it if he sees that model again.
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Apr 26, 2017 06:21
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Isaac/Akela It's not too difficult to break into Johnny Chicarelli's apartment, turns out the lock's already busted, likely a result of poor maintenance rather than deliberate effort, by all appearances. The bookie's not home, fortunately, giving the two-in-one terror ample opportunity to rummage around for evidence. They find some ledgers pointing to Carozzo gang members higher on the chain than Johnny, and directly implicating them in the illegal gambling operation, but if he knows anything about what the Track & Field Gang wants, he didn't write it down. Slugger, The Suit, and Claymation Slugger makes it to the park, with a significant portion of the Newark PD forming a perimeter, as well as The Suit and BRAD! keeping an eye on him, and Claymation waiting in the wings. And there, he waits for The Umperor to appear. And he waits. And waits... BRAD! While keeping an eye on the park, BRAD! once again gets the feeling that he's being watched. Now aware of his mystery observer, he can make an illusory double of himself before shifting into his shadow form, in order to watch the watcher. The motorcyclist is just standing there, watching. It looks like they might be reluctant to make whatever move they're planning on. BRAD! could wait it out, or try to get the drop on them. Nora It takes a little bit, but Nora finds a few local Carozzo goons, with help from the crime computer's digital assistant, Crimey. After the first few minutes, he appeared, a police badge with googly eyes, and said, "It looks like you're trying to canvass some local thugs. Would you like help?" He quickly pointed out some nearby mooks, and Nora was off. Her telekinesis made it a simple matter to immobilize the first one she found, lifting him into the air. While he was still in shock, she relieved him of his gun, and had a quick peek inside his mind. Apparently, an important shipment was arriving in Port Newark, right on the Elizabeth Channel, and everyone's on edge, because the Track & Field Gang wants it. It was due to arrive at around midnight. It's presently 11:15. (Not gonna make you roll to read this guy's mind, since you have a pretty decisive advantage. Whatever BRAD! decides to do will happen before Nora's gotten her info. Also, your communicators have a pretty huge range, so Nora will have no problem warning everyone, assuming she can work the darn thing.)
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Apr 29, 2017 20:55
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Most of the gang It doesn't take especially long for the team to gather near the docks, with Slugger picking up Nora from near the store on the way. It was a lucky break for Isaac that Johnny's house was only a few blocks away. They're able to convene behind a warehouse, out of sight. They can see a number of Carozzo goons standing guard, forming a perimeter around one of the mooring points. A ship is already there, though it looks like it hasn't begun unloading yet. It's about half an hour to midnight, and some of the family's heavies have started arriving. "Hothead" Malone (fortunately his literal fireball of a head provides some lighting with which to view the others), "Thumps" Mackenzie, Ricky the Crab, Jimmy Two-Arms, it's like the whole crew showed up for this. It's around that point that the Carozzos themselves step into view, right behind their lieutenants. Looks like Mickey got to stay home, likely a punishment for his recent failure, but his brothers are present, as is their father, the don. None of the heroes can hear what's being said as the mobsters prepare to unload their shipment, but the Track & Field Gang are nowhere in sight. (Alright, you guys can choose to just observe for the moment, or you can try to intervene, but the latter option involves trying to take down dozens of henchmen and about ten supervillains, most of them level 5 and up. You can also work on more advanced recon tactics than "a stack of heads peeking out from behind a corner" or try other, more inventive options.) BRAD! BRAD!'s plan appears to be a rousing success, at first, the biker clearly hasn't noticed the deception. However, rather than approach, they seem to be indecisive. Now that he can get a little closer, BRAD! finally notices that his mystery observer is a woman, though her features are hidden under her helmet. Though, if her face matches her figure, she'd likely be a sight to behold. As a former carny, BRAD! was taught a few things about body language, and right now, it's pretty clear this lady doesn't want to hurt him. It appears more that she wants to talk to him, but is too nervous, probably doesn't know what to say. It wouldn't be difficult for BRAD! to approach and break the ice for her, if he was so inclined.
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May 3, 2017 22:08
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BRAD! The girl with the bike yelps in surprise as BRAD! speaks to her, but to her credit, responds with a reflexive roundhouse that passes harmlessly through his body, still coalescing from the shadows. It appears to take her a moment to piece together what just happened, but it seems she's enough in the know to be aware of BRAD!'s powers. She reaches up and takes off her helmet, freeing long, dark hair that blows gently in the night's wind. Her face is as beautiful as the rest of her, and if BRAD! had a type other than "breathing", she would be it. The woman sizes BRAD! up for a moment before introducing herself. She speaks bluntly, but doesn't sound unfriendly. "Uh, hey, I'm Angela. This isn't quite how I was hoping our first meeting would go, but I guess it's difficult, looking for someone for so long, and not knowing what to say once you find 'em." Apparently, this Angela must have been admiring BRAD! from afar for quite some time. Everyone else Nora senses general feelings of unease from the group of mobsters, but it seems they're less worried about the heroes than they are the Track & Field Gang. She can't get a read on the don or his sons, her powers are no secret, so they may be wearing anti-psionic earpieces for just this sort of occasion. Luckily, they're too expensive to deploy in any large amount. In any case, their lieutenants provide a few bits of choice information. A couple seem to have reservations, they think what they're up to is a violation of the tradition, and a couple others are feeling a little insecure for some reason, like their positions are being threatened. They seem to be deliberately avoiding thinking about what, exactly, is on the boat, probably another precaution against Nora's abilities, but it's apparently something that could play havoc with the family's power structure. The Suit and Slugger are able to take up stealthy positions close enough to the meeting to overhear a bit of talking. It's primarily a discussion about the shipment. It's referred to in vague terms, but it's clearly nothing living, and there's a large supply of it aboard the boat, enough that they're concerned they may not be able to load it all up before sunrise. However, before the conversation can go much further, Nora detects new minds entering her field of awareness, closing in on the meet, and quickly. A loud crashing can be heard, like a truck ramming into the wall of a nearby warehouse. However, seconds later, it's proved to be no truck at all when The Juicer punches his way through the other end of the warehouse opposite the cargo ship, the other members of the Track & Field Gang in tow. He shouts, "Oh yeah! The juice is loose!" as the Carozzos open fire. Don Carozzo taps the ash from the end of his cigar dispassionately before gesturing to his sons, who gather around him. He takes a small device from the pocket of his overcoat, and presses a button on it, activating what must have been an emergency teleporter of some kind, as the five of them immediately vanish. This leaves half a dozen of the Carozzos' lieutenants and a large, though rapidly dwindling, number of nameless mooks. The Track & Field Gang seem to have the advantage, and if left alone, will likely make off with whatever's on the boat. Whether or not both sides will immediately turn on any intervening heroes is unclear, three-way battles tend to be extremely unpredictable. (Here's the choice, you can just let the Track & Field Gang have whatever's on the boat, you can wait for a winner of the fight and try to take them on, or you can jump in right now and hope that the Carozzos don't shoot you all in the back.)
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May 9, 2017 08:22
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BRAD! The woman takes a step back, suddenly looking very uncomfortable. "Uh, wow, okay, better get to the point, then. Do you remember going to a Dave Matthews Band concert back in '98? You told one of the groupies you were a roadie, and could get her backstage? Well...," Angela gestures her hands down past her sides, looking a bit embarrassed. "Probably should've played it safe, Dad." (Welcome to your subplot, titled "He Already Died".) Everyone Else Slugger doesn't have much trouble slipping into the cargo ship. The crew was apparently dismissed, presumably as soon as the ship docked. One could assume it was to maintain plausible deniability on their part. Making his way to the cargo hold as the battle rages outside, he finds a large number of crates, marked as carrying pharmaceuticals. Peeking inside reveals boxes of pre-filled syringes filled with an unknown chemical agent. Lacking more than a basic knowledge of chemistry, Slugger can't identify the contents offhand, but he might make a deduction, if he can put the clues together. The others stay put and observe as the Track & Field Gang finish clearing out the Carozzo goons, and shift focus to the capos. Hothead Malone breathes flame at them, but it does little to hold them back, and Jimmy Two-Arms is sent sprawling by a tremendous blow from The Juicer. If the team waits much longer, they'll be left to stop the gang themselves.
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May 18, 2017 18:43
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BRAD! Crossing her arms, Angela's tone turns annoyed. "Okay, look, all I know is the story my ma told me, and it looks like you remember. A few days ago, some private investigator shows up at my apartment and tells me he knows my father's location. I dunno who the hell hired him, but, after he showed me the article sayin' you're some kinda superhero, I figured I'd track you down. I live right over in Hoboken, so it wasn't exactly an epic journey." She sighs. "To be honest, I didn't really think this through, I got know idea what to say to you. I mean, you're s'posed to be my father, but you're really just a stranger to me." Angela seems to be at a bit of a loss. Everyone else Slugger gets to the deck of the ship, and his future sight shows him a unique opportunity. Rather than jumping immediately into the fray, he lands himself behind some crates near the ship, the ongoing fracas keeps the bad guys occupied, and he isn't spotted. What is spotted, however, is the bright streak of light that sears a hole through the cargo ship, causing it to begin taking on water. The fight seems to stop all at once as everyone looks for the source of the blast. It's The Umperor who speaks up first. "Crap, they're here! I was hoping they'd be occupied longer." A few stray shots whiz and streak past Vincent, but being a starfield against a starfield has its advantages, and it quickly becomes clear that they can't actually see him. After the unsuccessful volley, the remaining villains seem to come to an unspoken agreement, and rush the ship, intent on absconding with as much of the shipment as they can. (As long as The Suit is flying around, he has the benefit of Invisibility. You're at -1 to be hit, and +1 to hit, and the bonus goes up 1 every turn you go without doing anything to give away your position, giving it away resets it back to 1. Also, enemies attacking in the wrong direction miss automatically, so if you were to, say, attack, then move and not attack, you'd be completely safe. Everybody roll initiative if you want to try to stop the villains from grabbing the pharmaceuticals. The Triathlete moves on 37 with three actions, everyone else moves on 23 with two. You're all at -2 to hit the Carozzo lieutenants or The Triathlete, as they're all level 3, you're at -3 to hit Juicer or Umperor, as they're both level 5, you're at -7 to hit Le Fenseur due to his being level 5 and having Heightened Defense, and you're at -4 to hit The Tosser, as he's level 7, one benefit of being the oldest member of the gang. The remaining Carozzo guys are Hothead Malone, Thumps Mackenzie, Ricky the Crab, Gene Gene the Killing Machine, and Little Frankie, not to be confused with Big Frankie, who already got knocked out.) EclecticTastes fucked around with this message at 04:25 on May 22, 2017 |
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May 22, 2017 04:19
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BRAD! Angela waves her hand at her father, as though shooing him away. "Go, go, save the city or whatever. Give 'em one for me. The dick gave me your number, so I'll be in touch." She laughs as she dons her helmet and hops on her bike, taking off with a cloud of dust. Unfortunately, by the time BRAD! arrives, the action is already over, and the police have finally made it to the docks. Everyone else The team makes a valiant effort of holding off the criminals, and may have even succeeded, had it not been for the Triathlete. Slugger feels a massive weight on his impromptu shield, and then sees the villainess on her custom bike, The Juicer holding on behind her, having used Slugger as a ramp. She calls out, "Thanks for the lift!" behind her as she hurtles toward the deck of the ship. However, at that moment, Vincent hits what must be a fuel tank of some sort, as the entire ship goes up in an enormous fireball, neither The Triathlete nor her boss can be seen, but all things considered, it's entirely possible they survived. The remaining Carozzo goons, realizing their plan is a bust, decide to surrender, likely realizing that with the evidence burnt to a crisp, any potential case against them has gone up in smoke. However, the remaining members of the Track & Field Gang flee in the confusion, and chasing them would mean leaving the mobsters unattended and possibly able to salvage something from the burning ship. However, Nora did manage to pick up some stray thoughts from the retreating villains, the words "underground", "genes", and "CHESS". A few minutes later, the police arrive, having managed to regroup after falling for the Track & Field Gang's ruse. Captain Valentino approached the heroes as the Carozzo lieutenants are led away, and asks, "Would one o' youse mind explainin' what the hell just happened here?" (On the plus side, you deftly prevented the bad guys from getting at the shipment, mostly, and the explosion was definitely nobody's fault, plus you got a clue. Downside, it looks a little bit like a fiasco to the uninformed outside observer.)
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May 31, 2017 20:21
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Captain Valentino nods along with Nora's story, and shrugs helplessly when it's finished. "Guess there ain't nothin' ta do about it now. Way to get dem steroids offa da streets, youse guys." Aside from his blatant display of incriminating knowledge about the drug shipment, Nora picks up an additional surface thought from the captain with remarkable clarity. "They was behind on their payments, anyways." As The Suit sets down, Valentino scoffs, "Of freakin' course it was you what set this shitshow off." The cleanup effort continues apace, with The Slugger and Claymation doing what they can to mitigate the overall damage. A few syringes remained unharmed, though the chemical was apparently quite flammable, causing the blaze to consume the vast majority of the shipment. Slugger was able to lay claim to the remaining samples, as superheroes have been given jurisdiction to independently investigate superpowered crime ever since the Italian superhero, Il Pipistrello, lobbied the UN for the privilege. When passed through the crime computer's built-in mass spectrometer, the drug is revealed to be, in fact, a steroid, as Captain Valentino had let slip. However, it was like no steroid on record, many of the hormones used are identified as extraterrestrial or even extradimensional in origin, and would be exceeding difficult to obtain. The biological simulation program in the crime computer has difficulty predicting the exact effect the steroid would have on the human body, but a dramatic increase in all physical parameters is all but guaranteed. Anyone who shoots up with the drug could probably punch their way into a fallout shelter or rip a tank in half. And the Track & Field Gang probably have at least one crate of the stuff. BRAD! gets a call from Angela the morning after the incident at the pier, and forwards Slugger's offer of a place to crash. Angela is confused by the offer more than anything, reminding her father that she has an apartment, and only lives about half an hour away. She offers to instead meet up for coffee later that week. (The T&F Gang are off the grid for the moment, so now it's up to you to solve the case before they strike again, gumshoes!)
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Jun 14, 2017 21:28
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(This is a note for posterity, reflecting what's been discussed on the Discord channel, that the two V&V threads have been merged, the Philly characters will be finishing their downtime activities from the other thread while this story arc is wrapped up. Additionally, Go RV has dropped from the Newark game, and Tyrannosaurus has dropped from Philly.)
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Jul 13, 2017 21:00
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Michael Greeblox laughs, which for his species sounds a bit like someone having an asthma attack. "Yeah, I hear ya, who'd have thought a buncha jumped-up primates would have this kind of technology! But Brolem's some tricky stuff, sets off all the wrong sensors, takes a lot of moxie to even try smuggling it. You must have shtoogies of polytitanium alloy, man! I got nicked for stoobies and forbicks, of all things. I mean, geez, don't these guys have real crimes to deal with?" Greeblox refers to the rather mild effects of using the two chemicals together, which is roughly equivalent to Earth marijuana, with the added effect of being able to see into Dimension 420, a universe composed entirely of tie-dye. "I mean, sure, occasionally staring through the walls between dimensions causes dark powers to take notice of our world and attempt to claim it as their own, but there's no evidence stoobies and forbicks cause eldritch incursions!" Having gotten his frustrations off his chest, Greeblox calms back down. "Well, at least this time I'll have a decent lawyer, he should be able to get me off the hook. The guy I'm running for these days has a lot of pull." Janice After the second knock, the door to the studio apartment opens, revealing a cross between a living space and some sort of new-age fitness "dojo". Crystals hang from the ceiling in places, and a smiling Buddha sits on a pedestal near a large workout mat. Standing at the door is a man with wavy, blonde hair and a light tan. He's not wearing a shirt, his lean muscles on full display. He smiles as he greets Janice in what is perhaps the thickest Californian accent she's ever heard. "Whoa, 'sup, wahine, namaste! Welcome to Casa de Billy! A CHESS dude came by to let me know you were coming, he was all like 'you should really get a phone' and I'm like, 'cha, yeah right, I leave the phones to the phonies, brah'. Like, I'm not gonna cloud my chakras with modern technology and junk. So, c'mon in, cop a squat. Oh, right, like, name's Billy Brand, just call me Billy, 'kay?" Vincent While the case with the Track and Field Gang is important, Vincent doesn't forget to turn in the information he'd acquired relating to Johnny Chick and his superiors. The DA looks it over, and after a long moment, deems it worth releasing Rico for. A few hours later, Vincent finds himself roped into dinner with Rico and his parents as they celebrate his safe return. However, after dinner, Rico asks to speak with his cousin, privately. "Hey, Vinny, I don't know how you pulled it off, but, thanks for saving my rear end. Again. Thing is, the Carozzos ain't done with me. I got a call this afternoon, right after I got out. They ain't forgiving my debt, since I got off the hook. Now, get this, they told me the cops managed to recover a crate or something from some boat that burned up a few nights ago, and they want me to get it for them. How'm I supposed to do that? You remember that party back in high school, I couldn't even break into pa's liquor cabinet! If I don't get it done before the crate's shipped off to the feds, I'm a goner, Vinny. You gotta help me!" Rico grabs Vincent's shoulders pleadingly as he sinks to his knees in fear, weeping. Claymation With some help from CHESS, Liam fashions a pretty solid disguise to make himself look more villainous, and starts spreading rumors of a new supervillain in town, themed around bodybuilding. Surprisingly, the plan works, and he's soon contacted by The Umperor, still the closest thing to "brains" their operation has, and they arrange a teleconference, The Umperor deeming a face-to-face meeting too risky given their recent activities. Giving Liam a once-over, The Umperor nods. "Good build, kid. All natural? The, uh, boss," he refers to The Juicer with clear disdain in his voice, "insists that everyone 'roid up, but, confidentially, you can just trash the stuff, it's what most of us do, anyway. Though, we got some new stuff that I'm pretty sure we're not gonna be able to avoid taking without ol' Juicy noticing, so, just between you an' me, might not be the best time to take on a new recruit. I'll try to keep in touch, though, I like your style, very Charles Atlas." The call ends, and while Liam may not have gotten the information he was looking for, he certainly learned quite a bit. Slugger The CHESS analyst meeting with The Slugger strokes his chin thoughtfully as he considers the information presented to him, staring absently at the ironic cat poster on the wall of his cubicle until he's ready to respond. "That's a heck of a story, there. We've been following this case, too, but your firsthand account has filled in a lot of holes we've been wondering about. Lemme check the database, see if we've got any facilities nearby. Their existence is need-to-know, but I think this situation qualifies as needful." He punches a request into the computer on his desk, and his jaw nearly hits the floor. "Oh no. This is bad, like, really bad. Turns out we do have a facility in the area dealing with genes. Specifically, a subterranean gene storage warehouse." The analyst swallows hard, sweat beginning to form on his brow as the gravity of the situation starts to overwhelm him. "It's where we keep genetic samples from all of history's greatest athletes. Babe Ruth, Jesse Owens, Michael Jordan, Arnold Palmer, the list just goes on and on. If the Track and Field Gang were to acquire these samples and use them...," He looks Slugger square in the eye as he concludes, "They'd be unstoppable."
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Jul 17, 2017 17:43
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Solomon As the soothing burn of whiskey washed past his lips, Solomon heard a coarse voice in the back of his mind. "You know that ain't enough to take the edge off, Sol. You know what we gotta do." At first, Solomon was able to ignore the intruder in his mind, but as the contents of the bottle swiftly vanished and Vivian had gone to bed without him, his resistance crumbled, and he blacked out. When he came to, he was safe at home, next to the love of his life, and would have been able to dismiss the voice as a dream or passing fancy, had he not turned on the morning news. The top local story concerned a mugging gone horribly wrong, for the muggers. Three teenage ruffians were in the ICU with severe burns and multiple lacerations after they'd attempted to mug a young couple the previous night. While two of them have yet to regain consciousness, the third was briefly lucid near dawn, and spoke of a horrible monster seemingly melting out of the shadows before bursting into flames and attacking. PRIMORDIO was not yet a known quantity in Newark, so his name wasn't brought up, but Solomon didn't even need to look at her to feel V staring at him in shock. Her words pierced him in a way no blade ever could. "What did you do?" (And so begins your subplot, "Monkey Business".) Michael Greeblox laughs at Mik'gael's story. "By gorf, you get up to some crazy swizbak, don'tcha? But don't you worry, I got Space Johnny Cochran on my side!" Space Johnny Cochran was known as one of the best defense attorneys in the galaxy, Greeblox isn't just full of it when he says he's probably going to walk. "Naturally, it's all taken care of by you-know-who." Fantastic. It only takes Michael a moment to figure out exactly who Greeblox is running drugs for, and it presents a problem all its own. You-Know-Who, of Nonspecifix VII, is one of the most elusive crime lords in the galaxy, because a quirk of his people's language means that no matter what language one is speaking, his name is always pronounced exactly like a vague allusion to a third party. This will make it somewhat difficult to share the information with the CHESS analysts waiting outside. Janice Billy puts his hands out as Janice jumps right into things. "Whoa, slow down, chillax, wahine, this is a peaceful dojo. I know what it's like, when I stumbled on the mystical city of Xanadu while backpacking in Nepal, and the kung-fu aliens that lived there named me their king, I got a direct line right to the plane of lightning. Used to be, I'd sneeze and things would just get gnarly, so I learned to center myself. Your mind's goin' a mile a minute, and you gotta just slow your roll. Today, let's just focus on clearing your mind." For the next three hours, Billy coached Janice in not thinking, something at which he appears to be an expert. At the end, Janice could feel some of the pressure inside her alleviate, and she was almost used to the smell of patchouli. Billy walked her to the door. "Alright, that was a pretty righteous start, wahine, drop by around the same time next week and we'll keep going. Namaste!" Vincent While walking home, not long after their team meeting to discuss the matter of Rico and the ongoing investigation, Vincent realizes he's being followed by a Bentley with darkly tinted windows, all but certainly owned by the Carozzo family. Eventually, along a stretch of the street with no nearby witnesses, it pulls a little ahead of him and comes to a stop. A large man steps out of the back, and Vincent recognizes Ten-Ton Tony from briefly seeing him get carted away by the cops some months back. The recognition doesn't appear to be mutual, however, as Tony makes no reference to Vincent's alter ego as he addresses him. "Vinny Scarfo, I resume? Da boss wants to talk to ya, it's about yer cousin." He gestures towards the open door into the limo, where the light of a cigar is all that's clearly visible among the figures seated within. Slugger and Claymation Slugger meets with some resistance on retrieving the location of the gene storage facility. Apparently, it's one of the few CHESS facilities that Intercrime still doesn't know the exact location of, and any transmission of that information risks a leak. Instead, they've sent a certified CHESS intern to track down a hard copy in their file room, a "room" that's roughly the size of a football field, filled with filing cabinets. While CHESS assures Slugger that security has been increased and that there have been no reports of trouble at the storage facility, he won't be receiving the exact location for at least a week. On the bright side, given that not even Intercrime knows exactly where the facility it beyond that it's in Newark, the Track & Field Gang are unlikely to find it first. As Liam and Slugger float their plan to save Rico with the CHESS liason, they're met with just a cold gaze. She says flatly, "After what happened at the docks, I recommend you forget everything about that shipment. If anything happens to the remaining crate, we'll never figure out who formulated it." Now that they've said something, it's clear that the police would be expecting them if they try anything. It seems that if Vincent wants to perform Rico's theft for him, he'll have to do it himself.
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Jul 26, 2017 03:13
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