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Yeah, it's not sure that the guy came up with the plan on his own, but he was at least a major lynchpin, and it's entirely possible that he's the one who came up with the idea, and Damien Knight signed off on it. And even if he didn't come up with it on his own, Oliver most likely was a major figure in putting it into practice. Which really puts some heavy questions on how friendly we're gonna be able to remain with them in the long run.
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Dec 17, 2017 16:29
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I mean unless we actively work to cover it up somehow, the Olivers are gonna be under arrest and universally reviled in a few months, I don't think there really is a long term.
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Dec 17, 2017 16:34
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The speculation is interesting. I like it. Speculation doesn't exactly change the plot, but it does change what I highlight. It's feedback and I like that. I took a short break from the story in order to finish storyboarding. I leave room for myself to be flexible an if we get off track somehow which has happened quite a bit I don't exactly scrap my story as much as I strip it for parts. The ending I wrote ages ago looks nothing like the one I have planned, but it does if you see the progression in ideas from A-Z. So far my current ending (which is open ended to allow everyone to have their say in how the story ends) has been fairly bulletproof since around the middle of Kenji's story. So we're going to start heading in that direction. That said, let's head into arc 4. It's Fuzzy's plot but it's going to involve everyone as I do my best to tie down loose plot threads which means getting people talking to one another. She was the intro character, but it looks like she's also going to be the outro character. We'll be able to see how she's changed as a person and how her experiences have changed the way she looks at the world from the first day at school where she thought a school bonfire was a ritual gang initiation for the Kab-eenz to now. Her involvement in arc 4 also puts her the most at risk. Karma rewards are now limited to whomever participates from now on. No more free karma save for the small boosts that the school gives in teaching for free and those are only to specific skills. Writing now.
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Dec 17, 2017 19:13
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Crazycryodude posted:There is evidence in how Mr Oliver mysteriously got a major, almost unprecedented promotion right as Ares was getting the Seattle contact. It's admittedly circumstantial, but you've got to squint really hard to not see the connection. Ice Phisherman posted:"Oh, he's the chief of police for Renton. Well, one of the bigger precincts anyway. He got a promotion when I awakened. We had a huge party," she said, and smiled wistfully. Then she sighed. "I see him a lot less now though. Lone Star is really bucking hard to win back the Seattle police contract from Knight Errant so he works long hours." Ice Phisherman posted:"We used to live out in town, but once I awakened..." she said, an trailed off for a few seconds before continuing, "It's basically an instant promotion." Ice Phisherman posted:"My dad didn't start at the bottom, but he just used to be a normal cop. Not a beat cop, but he was just a detective when he started. I was little back then, but he kept climbing and climbing. He got his big break when Knight-Errant took over the Seattle contract and they needed an assistant chief for Seattle's Renton district. Then I awakened and dad made the jump from assistant chief to deputy chief and now he runs one of Seattle's thirty precincts. You know, one for each million people in Seattle? Anyway, it was a huge promotion and they must have been wanting to do it anyway, because normally something like that would only get you a small promotion. Like it was ceremonial or something," said Sasha. I really wasn't 'vibing' off the rampant accusations against Mom and Dad Ares, so I went back and looked up instances where the 'promotion' was discussed. (see above) Could have sworn that I read Dad Ares discuss it a few times, during the winter cabin sequence; guess I mis-remembered. So, what it comes down to, do you believe what Sasha's saying? Or, more to the point, do you believe what Sasha has been told, and what she understands of how Ares works and how they treat 'awakened'? Maybe Dad Ares was involved, got the promotion, and told Sasha it was because she 'awakened'; it would explain why Sasha killed herself, if true. Or, maybe Dad Ares did get the promotion because Sasha 'awakened', and that's just how it works in MegaCorps; I don't know enough about the setting to gauge this properly. Point is, accusations and speculations (as Ice stated) is one thing and makes the story fun; I'm just not seeing that 'strong' connection, and want to offer a counterpoint. Ice Phisherman posted:Writing now. 
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Dec 17, 2017 19:39
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Well I for one totally forgot about that explanation for his promotion, so now I'm back to being torn apart by the authors puppet strings instead of being sure of anything. Goddamn you thread! 
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Dec 17, 2017 20:36
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Crazycryodude posted:I mean unless we actively work to cover it up somehow, the Olivers are gonna be under arrest and universally reviled in a few months, I don't think there really is a long term. I agree that it looks like he's guilty, and am totally in agreement they're going down unless we frame somebody else, find the actual guilty party if there is one, or make it all disappear before it's exposed, none of which is really something we can do. We can mitigate it's effects on Sasha hopefully.
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Dec 17, 2017 22:42
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Boy did I miss some poo poo while I was sick 
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Dec 18, 2017 06:44
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Hexenritter posted:Boy did I miss some poo poo while I was sick Been wondering where you've been; you okay?
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Dec 18, 2017 07:41
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CourValant posted:Been wondering where you've been; you okay? I was going to say yes I'm over it but the horrible stomach cramps that just hit me a few minutes ago when I stood up are saying no. gently caress 
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Dec 18, 2017 07:56
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Hexenritter posted:I was going to say yes I'm over it but the horrible stomach cramps that just hit me a few minutes ago when I stood up are saying no. gently caress Bed rest and fluids Mister, you don't want to be sick for Christmas.
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Dec 18, 2017 08:05
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I just want to say I just binged through the entire thread in the past 2 days. Great job so far! I'm enjoying reading it, and avoiding the mechanics mostly. It's more for the story and not the rolls behind the screen for me.
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Dec 20, 2017 06:51
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IAmTheRad posted:I just want to say I just binged through the entire thread in the past 2 days. Great job so far! I'm enjoying reading it, and avoiding the mechanics mostly. It's more for the story and not the rolls behind the screen for me. Welcome! Join Us and Vote Vote Vote!
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Dec 20, 2017 07:42
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IAmTheRad posted:I just want to say I just binged through the entire thread in the past 2 days. Great job so far! I'm enjoying reading it, and avoiding the mechanics mostly. It's more for the story and not the rolls behind the screen for me. Hey, welcome to the thread. I'm glad you enjoy it. I'm increasingly impressed by people who binge my work. I'm not sure what the word count is now, but it's easily past 250,000 words. As time goes it takes more and more investment to get caught up. I get not caring about the rolls. They're there as extra and you can 100% skip past it. I'm writing them up anyway so I might as well post them for people that like that stuff. That said you're more than welcome to vote on what we do. Most choices can be made intelligently if you have an an understanding of the characters and there are a few people in the thread who know enough about the lore to present more options than I have. Even then you don't need to know the lore to get a feel for what to do next. I do my absolute best to make the story relateable and try not to go too high concept. If I feel like I am I go right back to how it effects the characters and setting in concrete ways. You're coming in at a good time. This is the last arc of year one and you're at the beginning of it. That means your choices can influence the narrative too. It's everyone's story. That said I'm still writing. I want to get the introductory post for the final arc right. I've been doing my research on a number of topics, thinking about how they'll change in the future and thinking about how to add my own flavor to the story so I'm not drawing 100% from the lore while also writing Fuzzy as a different kind of person than who she was in arc one. Plus at some point I need to edit this monster, make better notes on the characters and add better character descriptions to give my mind's eye more to latch onto as I'm realizing the main characters are a little generic in how they look and don't really get described all that often. That's my fault. I'm not used to writing series. As far as editing goes I've been cleaning up character sheets so everything makes sense and everything agrees and that's been taking up my time lately. Also on a completely unrelated note that is one pro Zelda: Ballad of the Wind Fish avatar. Loved that glitch run of MechaPrime's. On another note, I'm hope you're feeling better, Hex. I meant to say it earlier but I wanted to roll it into a post. I've been a little slow though. Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 07:58 on Dec 20, 2017 |
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Dec 20, 2017 07:51
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Ice Phisherman posted:I've been a little slow though. Hope you had a good time at the graduation!
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Dec 20, 2017 08:24
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Fuzzy and Julie - Saturday, March 16th, 2075 –Evening - Seattle Metroplex, Tacoma, Casey Crawdford memorial music hall The sun was down and that's when the freaks come out. Tacoma smelled like its usual brand of acrid awful. Smoke was belched from the stacks of the microfactories which made much of Seattle's goods. Fuzzy and Julie stood outside of the Casey Crawford memorial music hall which was one of Tacoma's smaller venues. The smell of sweat and stale beer and the sound of music played loud and fast radiated from beyond the doors of the otherwise inconspicuous and dilapidated building. Fuzzy was doing a small favor for Dave tonight. He was worried about his kids as they were both just at the age when they were both old enough to know better and young enough not to care. He was the man who delivered flowers who Fuzzy kept from getting killed in an alley some months back by human supremacists. Besides the boatload of flowers she’d been given from the grateful residents of Touristville who’d scraped to make it happen, he’d been sending her a bouquet a week as thanks. Dave had a family, a wife and in this case, two kids who hadn't left the house just yet. He just wanted someone to watch over his kids at a show since it wasn't in the best part of town and he worked late. These kids of his were named Peter and Olivia, or as they liked to be called nowadays, Tek and Oli. Fuzzy and Julie hadn't met them yet and they weren't responding to texts. Julie was tall at about 1.8 meters, or six feet tall. She was a caramel skinned Latina with long, straight, black hair down to her shoulders, brown eyes and a gawky build. She was also an ork and that meant she had tusks jutting from her lower lips though they weren't particularly pronounced compared to most orks. She'd done her homework as to what she should wear to her first punk concert. Surprisingly she found little to tell her what to wear to a punk show. Perversely there were a lot of matrix sites dedicated to selling her what to wear to a punk show with little to no context about what was acceptable. There were some basics though. Wear boots so you don't get your toes crushed, wear light clothing because it gets hot, wear cheap clothing that you don't mind getting ruined as you will probably come into contact with sweaty people or drunk. Don't wear a skirt if you go into the mosh pit. She wasn't planning on it, but she was careful just in case. She wore a pair of comfortable black jeans, hiking boots, a dark coat wrapped around her middle and a brown shirt that said, "Inside: Metahuman being x1. Color may vary. 100% organic. Fragile, please do not shake. 100% recyclable please recycle. This side up," complete with the recycling sign and an arrow pointing upwards. She wore simple glasses, not because her eyesight was bad, but because it let her view augmented reality which was a requirement for living in most of the world, Blake Island being a rare exception. From her research she found out that punk values individuality and her shirt was the best Julie had on short notice. On a more personal level Julie valued her own skin so after so recently being shot at by a corporate princess who was secretly a lunatic in her own home. So after lamenting her lack of armor Fuzzy fixed her up. Julie now wore an armor vest underneath her clothing bought from Rat Man, who Fuzzy was glad to direct business towards. Fuzzy on the other hand was shorter at a little over 1.5 meters, or just over five feet tall. She had pale skin, blue eyes and medium length blonde hair which was currently tied into a messy tail. Unlike Julie her blue eyes were concealed by a pair of thin, black goggles for viewing augmented reality. Her build was far more compact than Julie's and her muscles were completely hidden by her outfit. Her jacket was open and she wore a plain white tee with pink words on it. "Nobody knows that I'm a lesbian," it read. Sasha, her girlfriend, had given it to her the day before as a joke once she heard that Fuzzy was going to a concert. She wore simple blue jeans and black boots, nothing fancy, no patches on the jacket as she’d never been to a show before. It was their first punk show after all and the only people they both knew to tap were still not responding to texts. Unlike normal Sasha wasn't with Fuzzy. The two were normally inseparable, but Sasha's mom had a birthday tonight so she was spending a night out with her mom and dad. Like normal, Julie's boyfriend, Marco, wasn't with her. She and he were forever busy and rare had free time at the same time. They had to snatch away time from their ongoing obligations like one snatched meat away from a starving dog. "Think they're trying to send us a message?" asked Julie. “We could text them again,” said Fuzzy. People of all shapes, sizes, colors and metatypes sported clothing of all kinds. Outside was a food truck named, “Mom’s Noms” whose sign was displayed prominently in augmented reality. Fuzzy looked longingly at the truck as good smells wafted from it and briefly overwhelmed Tacoma’s aroma. “Hey, can we get a snack before we go in?” asked Fuzzy. “Maybe we wait for them to text back.” Julie looked at the people milling around outside. Some were eating, some were smoking, some were talking, some were drinking and not doing a good job of hiding it, some were going back inside or paying to go inside for the first time, and some were making out both discreetly and indiscreetly. The line was where most people were though, and not just the punk crowd. One of the bands just finished a set so the people that came to see the openers were outside getting a snack and cooling off. That was ending as music began to play and people went back inside. However the line to the food truck was long even with some of the concert goers leaving before they got their food. This left people who just got off work so it was now only half way around the block instead of the full block. “It looks like a long time. Maybe we come back when it dies down,” said Julie. Fuzzy sighed and nodded. The two young women entered into the line not for the food truck, but to get into the venue. Minutes later the bouncer checked their commlinks and eyed their virtual ID’s, marked their hands with X’s with a black, permanent marker and let them on in a whole 15 nuyen poorer. Fuzzy eyed her marked hand critically. “Okay, so what does this mean?” Fuzzy asked. “Aren’t we welcome?” “I think that it means that we’re too young to drink. It’s so the bartender won’t give us any alcohol. What do you mean not welcome?” asked Julie. They began to walk down the stairs and there were a number of doors they had to go through as well. The smell of sweat, the rush of heat and the sound of music all intensified. Now they had to raise their voice to hear each other. “Whenever you’re tagging in gang territory you put an X through the tag or name of who isn’t welcome. I thought we weren’t welcome for a second,” said Fuzzy. “It’s not through anything though,” said Julie, her tone confused. Fuzzy wiggled the back of her marked hand at Julie. “It’s through me,” said Fuzzy. “Okay, yeah, I get your point. Anyway, let’s look for Dave’s kids. Tek is his son and Oli is his daughter, right?” asked Julie. “He said step-daughter, whatever that means,” said Fuzzy. Fuzzy, not being raised in what one would call a normal family was still sketchy on the details of what constituted one. She’d been raised by Rat Man who plucked orphan children off the streets. He gave them food, water and a safe place to live for work. Some of Fuzzy’s first memories were of skinning street animals. Rat Man worked just as hard though and had been good to her. Being found by Rat Man was about as good as it got for children in Puyallup. “Right, I was wondering why he’s an ork and she’s human. We have pictures. I’ll get Chip on the case. He’s great at finding people and stuff. Let’s go look. Maybe we even have a good time,” sighed Julie. Fuzzy was about to ask Julie what she meant by that last remark when they both entered into the music hall. There were hundreds of people here, too many to properly count. There was the stage where the musicians were playing loudly, the front where people were tightly packed with fists in the air, the mosh pit where people were currently circling, though Fuzzy didn’t know what it was called or why they were doing that and the back where people where people were more milling around than anything with more of them entering by the minute as people arrived. That’s where Julie and Fuzzy came in. On one side was the bar where a fat guy was serving drinks. It was probably the only permanent structure she could see besides the stage and there some makeshift tables nearby where people seemed to be selling stuff. What distracted her most was the graffiti. Some of it was art, but most of it was just text. It was a mishmash of the real and augmented reality. She saw the five second animated gif of her fist punching Minuet’s teeth out. Fuzzy was confused, she thought she had that only for herself, but here it was big and bold not just in one place, but in several places in several sizes, big, small and in-between. She had a moment where she was both offended by not getting to share it first and overjoyed that what she’d done received so much attention. The music didn’t as much fade into the background as become indistinct as she looked at her first hit Minuet’s face over and over again in augmented reality. She’d never hit anyone or anything so hard, and the majority of the corporate princess’ teeth flying out of her head was a testament to that. Minuet’s teeth were now currently powering her newly enchanted spearknife as well. She patted it again under her jacket and felt the handle of the knife as that was its current form. It was reassuring to have it on her once again. “Jump around you motherfuckers!” roared the ugly front man on the mic. “Hands in the air, run around I don’t give a poo poo so long as you move!” The music sped up in tempo as the man on the drums and the woman on the guitar played even louder. The man with the microphone was shirtless and actively engaging with the crowd. Fuzzy felt her pulse quicken as the man launched into the song, but his words were fast that she had no idea what the man was saying. She wondered how a man with hair like that got a shirt on. Maybe he just didn’t wear shirts. She looked around for Julie and didn’t find her. Julie was tall and hard to miss, but there were so many people and Fuzzy was short. She had no idea what was expected of her or what to do, but she decided to go up front to enjoy the show for a bit while she looked for Dave’s kids. As Fuzzy made her way forward the man turned the mic on the crowd and they roared what she assumed were the lyrics back at him before he continued. On and on, faster and faster, he pointed the mic back back to the crowd seconds later. Again they roared, he roared and jumped about in a frenzy as the music blared. Fuzzy wasn’t sure what she was doing, and she was short, so without knowing what she was doing she was sucked into the mosh pit. However her reflexes were boosted by magic and her sense of danger was too. She’d been learning since January and it kept her from getting overrun by circling men and women. For a time she and the pit became one as she circled with the crowd. At first she wanted to leave as soon as possible, but after a few turns she didn’t decide to stay as much as she moved with everyone. She wasn’t just hearing the music, no, now she felt it on her skin and in her chest. Her heart was racing and she was having fun. The music wasn’t just passively being received. Instead she was in it, of it; the words weren’t the point in the pit. Not to her. There was no time to think. Instead it was about feeling and motion. She had to run, sometimes skip and adjust her course as she was banged into by bigger people which basically meant anyone, but she never lost her place or her balance. There was a crash and the song ended, not an accident, it was just the sound of the drums and guitar ending in discord. She stayed in the pit. Fuzzy’s blood was up and she wasn’t even winded, so she stayed in for two more songs. She didn’t stay for the final one as much as she allowed herself to be spat out by the circling punks. She was thirsty and it was hot. She’d temporarily forgotten why she was here, but Julie was on that with her spirit ally, Chip. As Fuzzy panted she made her way to the bar. She had to scream to be heard. The music was still playing so he paid attention to her as soon as she came up. “Water!” “What?!” asked the fat man behind the bar. “WA-TER!” Fuzzy both screamed and mouthed. The fat man gave her a thumb’s up as the song ended. Fuzzy twitched at the sound of feedback from a guitar as the man produced a bottle of water. “Three nuyen,” he said, now audible. Fuzzy thought about it. She wanted to make a good impression on Dave’s kids since she was here to look after them and make sure they were okay. “Actually, I’ll take four,” amended Fuzzy. The fat man grumbled but produced four bottles of water as Fuzzy was suddenly pressed by people trying to get drinks from the bar. She paid the man 12 nuyen with her credstick but didn’t know to tip. After all she was raised in the barrens and had never bought drinks, even legal ones, from a bar before. The water wasn’t cold. In fact it was room temperature. Fuzzy wasn’t picky though and so she stashed two in each of her biker jacket’s front pockets. Not knowing how long it had been she checked her commlink. “Chip found Oli. We’re in the back. I’ll ping our location. Maybe you should come quick,” rear the text from Julie. Fuzzy looked in back and through her augmented reality goggles she saw a green arrow. It made a soft “ping” sound and bobbed above where Julie presumably was. Most of the music hall was well lit, but she hadn’t seen this part in back. There were couches and the low lighting gave a degree of privacy. Fuzzy saw Julie whose arms were folded as she hung back. She tossed her head over towards an old couch. On it were two people despite its length. One was a young teenage girl. This was definitely Oli. Her hair was bubblegum pink, her face pale and cherubic which made her look younger than her 14 years of age. It seemed like she’d really went overboard with the makeup as well, especially on the mascara. She was slightly on the heavy side in a plaid skirt with heavy rings as the belt and a too tight black band t-shirt pulled over her upper body. She sat on the lap and stroked the face of a human man in a silver and gold jacket. His eyes reflected the light and they were chrome: One silver and one gold. The rest of what he wore was black and he had on a band t-shirt underneath. His sleeves were rolled up to display obvious cyberware. These were his arms, and they shined chrome in the light as one of them was around her body while the other was on the top of the couch. The only hair she could see was a patchy beard as his head was shaved. The lean angles of his pale face suggested someone at least in their late teens, if not twenties. “Thought I’d text you first,” texted Julie. “He looks like he’s in a gang. Do you know which one? You’re from close to here, right?” Fuzzy was in fact. Puyallup, her home, was adjacent to Tacoma, and these colors were actually local to Puyallup. “Yeah, the Reality Hackers,” texted Fuzzy. “They’re a small gang but not small time. They’re into matrix crime so they don’t jump straight to violence. Can you get Chip to convince him to leave her alone?” “Maybe for a couple of minutes. He’s not the strongest and eventually he’ll figure out he got tricked and we don’t know where her brother is yet. Chip took twenty minutes just to find her,” texted Julie. “Right, you go look for him. Kill your commlink and erase the conversation. I’ll talk to him,” texted Fuzzy. She turned away from him and drank her bottle of water as she thought of what to do. Anyone who eyed a gang member for too long would set off their internal alarms so she looked at them only briefly. Fuzzy wished she’d bought a burner commlink, but she only had her personal one. She’d been meaning to upgrade her own for a while, but she just hadn’t done it yet. It would be as simple as breathing for him to skim through her commlink for her information. The odds of him being here alone were bad, but it looked like he was alone for the moment. Fuzzy guzzled her water and moved away for the moment as she waited for the song to end as she thought about how to handle the situation. CYOA Time There are a couple choices. They'll help set the tone for the arc. Feel free to vote on all, some or none of them. 1.It looks like the younger Oli is making eyes at an older guy and he’s returning her interest. He’s part of a gang that specializes in matrix crime. Fuzzy has no idea what kind of cyberware he’s sporting save that his arms and eyes have been replaced with tech. Oli is sitting on his lap and his arm is over her. What does Fuzzy do? The situation: Fuzzy got 3 hits on her gangs knowledge roll so she knows quite a bit as they’re a gang native to Puyallup. The reality hackers aren’t overtly violent though they can be if pressed. There are only about thirty members in the gang. They’re a small gang, but not small time. Human but not human supremacist. They specialize in matrix crime and specifically in datasteals, meaning they find, steal and sell sensitive information though they deal in BTL’s (recorded experiences which function like drugs), pirated software and drones. He looks like he’s alone at the moment, but if he gets a positive ID on Fuzzy or Julie he and his buddies can ruin their lives in a big way if they mess with him. Not as bad as most people because Fuzzy and Julie’s matrix presence is limited, but still, pretty bad. Further, having the commlink as off would be seen as suspicious at best and offensive at worst to the ganger. Fuzzy could cast a spell, but spells aren’t invisible. Her trid phantasm spell (make illusions) is potentially powerful, but it can be disbelieved as Fuzzy’s magical strength for casting isn’t particularly high. Her stunbolt could put him to sleep but it would be obvious that she’s casting it and would be considered an attack. She could call on Julie, but Julie is hunting for Tek right now. Fuzzy could ask her to come back and just leave Chip to it. 2. Fuzzy is going to be out and about in the Seattle metroplex more in this chapter for reasons which will soon become apparent. She’ll specifically be in the Tacoma area which I’m going to flesh out as a location. This means that she might think about getting a vehicle. She doesn't have to though as she can use public transportation. However, where she's going to be spending a lot of time is nominally Human Nation territory and they have a serious problem with her since she sent one prospective member and two members in good standing to jail while publicly making them look weak by beating them up. So does Fuzzy get a vehicle, and if so, what type of vehicle? 3. Fuzzy is getting her adept training. However, unlike spellcasting the training consists doesn't consist of rote memorization. In fact the magical skills aren't that difficult to develop. What is difficult to develop is control. You might be able to wall run, but doing it every time on command is a different animal. Fuzzy's reaction time is now peak human, bordering superhuman and she needs to learn how to control that. What skill does she develop to learn control? They’re listed below. Fuzzy has gone from being merely accepted in Touristville to having a solid reputation, which gives her a +1 street cred bonus there. This has been earned. She punched the hell out of Minuet who was only minutes before shouting racial slurs and shot at two out of three of their community's healers. Fuzzy has her spearknife back! Julian decided that none of his wards actually went to lethal combat despite 2/3 of them being armed with weapons (Fuzzy had a knife and Kenji had a knife). So Fuzzy is once again being trusted with her spearknife. The spearknife/nogway has changed. Mr. Peters had some trouble enchanting it because it's a high tech weapon. He had to rip out its guts and was left with just the memory metal. Fuzzy can still shape it manually given a little bit, but it only shifts as a free action if it's been activated. Both good and bad here is that it won't respond to matrix commands. In short, her spear can't get hacked anyone which was definitely going to cause a problem at some point as Fuzzy's commlink is laughable in its defense. Fuzzy has roughly 20k in nuyen (I'll get an exact count in a bit). She's been training her enhanced reflexes and danger sense with coach Bolt (who I'll be introducing soon) as well as her animal training. Adept training is different in that it's 100% practical. Developing the power isn't the hard part. Controlling the power is the hard part. So she's been practicing skills related either to agility or reaction. I'm dumping five free points into Fuzzy's adept skill. It's a sort of subsection of her magic skill, it costs 5 karma each time for her to get a point of adept skills. I’ve maxed her out at her current magic level. She's been getting training so it's free. But she has to actually train with her powers by training physical skills. She's been training since January and it's mid-March, so she's been training primarily with her powers. She gets 5 extra karma in skills. The big ones are: Reaction based: Pilot ground vehicle (The driving skill). (1 karma will buy 2 ranks to rank 2) This means we'll also purchase a vehicle. Pilot water vehicle (The boating skill). (1 karma 2 ranks to rank 2) Please note that Fuzzy can't pilot a boat to and from Blake Island. She'd have to moor it elsewhere. Agility based: Bows. (We have to sink 7 extra karma into this to gain another rank to rank 7) Blades. (5 karma 1 rank to rank 5) Gymnastics (3 karma 1 rank to rank 4) Sneaking (7 karma 1 rank to rank 7) Throwing weapons (5 karma 2 ranks to rank 3) (Author's note, she should have a rank in this and I forgot to list it. Whoops) We have 22 karma left. We’re actually only 3 karma from upgrading any of Fuzzy’s attributes from 4 to 5, including magic which is an important stat for mystic adepts as their ability to cast and their top points for their adept powers are governed by magic. Body would give us another hit point and another point of damage resistance and let us wear heavier armor (homebrewed, I value strength and body for wearing armor, not just strength), strength would give us another point of damage with the bow and spearknife as well as let us wear heavier armor without penalties, charisma would help us talk better, give us a new contact (not normal, but hey, I’m running this) and resist drain more effectively, reaction/intuition would make us faster and dodge more easily and edge would make us luckier. Fuzzy has a ton of attributes at 4. This is on top of upgrading all skills linked to that attribute by 1. We can also specialize in these skills for what is normally 7 karma, but this will only cost 2 due to the extra free 10 karma for attending school this semester, 5 of which I've already assigned. It gives a +2 bonus to a specific instance of skill. The bows skill is already specialized. However blades can either go with the spear, staff (this is GM fiat, there's no specific spear skill and almost all staff drills are spear drills. I did them for years so I should know), knife, or her spearknife. Her spearknife would cover none of the previous skills, but if she picked spear she'd be covered while using her spearknife she'd get the +2 bonus when it was transformed into a spear. Finally, sneaking comes down to terrain. So she could be excellent in a wilderness environment as that's what she has available to her. Urban, desert, arctic and jungle are currently off limits as specializations as she can't develop those specializations on Blake Island due to the terrain. Also, as per thread decision a while back she's ignoring her summoning classes. She's going to fall behind come year 2 if we don't upgrade it. It wouldn't ding her grades though and she wouldn't be expected to. Mystic adepts are jack of all trades characters. The karma cost in 10 karma to go from the summoning skill group (called conjuring) of 1 to 2. Three things about vehicles: 1. Fuzzy is a pretty good bargainer. She can tap Julian or Kenji and either can assist her in purchasing a vehicle. Every hit they get over the salesman gets 5% knocked off the total cost. 2. You can upgrade the hell out of them. It's an investment, but who doesn't want to spool up a turbocharger? Or maybe she’s more conservative and puts a solar charger on it so she doesn’t have to pay as much for gas. Fuzzy doesn't really know a mechanic though and she isn't mechanically inclined, but she could find one. 3. She doesn't have a lifestyle. Julie actually can provide parking because she doesn't have a vehicle and Touristville has parking for her as part of her middle lifestyle. So it wouldn't cost as much (parking fees are murder even now in Seattle), but electricity and insurance isn't free. It'd cost her 200 a month for motorcycles and 300 a month for cars. She’ll still be paying for public transportation or merely walking, both of which aren’t particularly efficient. Here are vehicles if she wants one: Motorcycles: Dodge Scoot: A straight up scooter. No frills. Toot toot! It can technically seat 1 easily 2 people max. It costs 3k nuyen. Yamaha Growler: An off road dirt bike. Again, it's normally made for 1 person, but it can seat 1 easily 2 max. Great for the lovely streets in the barrens with its off-road tires, though we can put off-road tires on any vehicle. We can also put better shocks on it as well. 5k nuyen. Harley-Davidson Scorpion: Meant for cruising and it's tough as hell. It's not particularly fast nor particularly slow. It can seat 1 easily and 2 max. 12k nuyen Suzuki Mirage: Gotta go fast. It's a racing bike. It'll outrun pretty much anything save for a sports car or police vehicle. It seats 1 easily and 2 max. 8500 nuyen. Cars: C-N Jackrabbit: The lowest of low end cars. It's a subcompact and entirely electric. Can seat 2 easily and 3 uncomfortably. 10k nuyen. Honda Spirit: I'll just post the description because it's funny. "This sleek three-wheeled two-seater features an electric engine and is popular with commuting sprawl dwellers. The spirit has a bubble hood for bad weather, with a chemical coating “guaranteed to neutralize 89 percent of acid rain.” Can seat 2 easily and 3 uncomfortably. 12k nuyen. Ford Americar: Not sexy, not sleek, not fast or slow, but it gets you from A to B safely, comfortably and with a degree of anonymity since they're everywhere. 16k nuyen. Seats 4 easily and 6 uncomfortably. Finally, and Fuzzy would have to go into debt (which means ask Kenji, she's 17 after all), but she could get a Hyundai Shin-Hyung for 29k. It's as fast as the Suzuki Mirage and she can mod the hell out of it and make it a beast. Kenji would float her some nuyen for a favor to be named later or repayment in a month with 1% interest because he likes Fuzzy and that's as low as his internal programming can go. It seats 4 easily and 6 uncomfortably. Boats: We don't really need a boat for what I have planned, but I can roll that into the story later and further in year 2. Samuvani Cruisecraft Otter: The single boat that Fuzzy could buy is a 5 meter (15 footer) boat. It's an all-purpose fiberglass bottom boat that's good for fishing, crabbing, trawling, basically workhorse stuff. In the most technical sense she could live on it in a squatter lifestyle, but it's not meant for that. Its base price is 21k nuyen, but she could talk it down. Probably. Also, Fuzzy can't swim as in the norm for most people who grow up poor. A proper houseboat called the Corsair Elysium (Yes, Shadowrun has splatbooks for everything) would cost 78k nuyen. I'd knock off 25% if she could get one used and she could bargain to get better prices, but it would come with problems. Currently Fuzzy is unable to purchase one outright. She might be able to find a cosigner. However if Fuzzy focused on making money it might be within her reach for the summer. Houseboats are good for being on the move in the Puget Sound area. She’d still have to pay for the lifestyle, but she’d be mobile. -- Fuzzy and Julie are going to a punk concert. No girlfriends no boyfriends, just regular friends. The bouncer at the front wants 15 a head. Julie’s lifestyle covers herself and a couple (non-alcoholic) drinks if she wants them (she will, it’s hot inside), but Fuzzy has to pay. Their commlinks are checked for their ID’s and they get x’s on their hands. Fuzzy doesn’t know what the X means. She’s used to gang tags and X means something along the lines of, “Unwelcome here.” Julie explains that it means that they can’t get any alcohol because they’re underage. It’s a local show in a small venue so they play it loud. Julie summons Chip who looks like a young, barefoot ork. Dave had a physical picture printed out of the two so Chip could actually look at them and find them as Chip can’t see electronic displays. Chip the ally spirit is fantastic at finding things (it’s one of his powers) and that includes people so long as he can get a look at what they look like or Julie imagines what she wants him to find correctly. He has to make a magic 3 + intuition 4 test and get 5 hits over time. Each test takes 10 minutes. She gets 3 and then 2 hits, so 20 minutes. Fuzzy looks on her own for the kids, but she gets sucked into the mosh pit because she has a hard time seeing over people. Short girl problems. She has fun though and manages not to get banged up. She buys some water and gets pinged by Julie who has found Oli. Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 00:08 on Dec 26, 2017 |
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Dec 20, 2017 11:04
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Wait we loving have one of those. Can we get Fuzzy to call Kenji to ask him if he knows a drek-hot decker that can give us a hand here? Octo owes him... well, a lot.
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Dec 20, 2017 11:46
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Fuzzy is definetly the type to interprete "Keep an eye on Oli" as "beat up anyone who touches her" she's seen the predatory look of some men in the barrens, if this guy reminds her of any of those she is not goin to be happy. She has enough tact to wait for Chip to find Tek though.
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Dec 20, 2017 11:49
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I initially thought we could just say "hey dude she's 14" but he no doubt already knows that on account of mad hax0r skillz so we'll probably have to come up with something else.
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Dec 20, 2017 12:23
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quote:1.It looks like the younger Oli is making eyes at an older guy and he’s returning her interest. He’s part of a gang that specializes in matrix crime. Fuzzy has no idea what kind of cyberware he’s sporting save that his arms and eyes have been replaced with tech. Oli is sitting on his lap and his arm is over her. What does Fuzzy do? quote:2. Fuzzy is going to be out and about in the Seattle metroplex more in this chapter for reasons which will soon become apparent. She’ll specifically be in the Tacoma area which I’m going to flesh out as a location. This means that she might think about getting a vehicle. She doesn't have to though as she can use public transportation. However, where she's going to be spending a lot of time is nominally Human Nation territory and they have a serious problem with her since she sent one prospective member and two members in good standing to jail while publicly making them look weak by beating them up. So does Fuzzy get a vehicle, and if so, what type of vehicle? Also get the Pilot Ground vehicle skill. quote:We have 22 karma left. We’re actually only 3 karma from upgrading any of Fuzzy’s attributes from 4 to 5, including magic which is an important stat for mystic adepts as their ability to cast and their top points for their adept powers are governed by magic. Body would give us another hit point and another point of damage resistance and let us wear heavier armor (homebrewed, I value strength and body for wearing armor, not just strength), strength would give us another point of damage with the bow and spearknife as well as let us wear heavier armor without penalties, charisma would help us talk better, give us a new contact (not normal, but hey, I’m running this) and resist drain more effectively, reaction/intuition would make us faster and dodge more easily and edge would make us luckier. Fuzzy has a ton of attributes at 4. This is on top of upgrading all skills linked to that attribute by 1.
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Dec 20, 2017 13:36
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This is (supposed) to be Fuzzy and Julie's thing: while it may be optimal, I don't feel right pulling other characters in. Sometimes you just got to deal with what you've got.
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Dec 20, 2017 15:21
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nothing to seehere posted:This is (supposed) to be Fuzzy and Julie's thing: while it may be optimal, I don't feel right pulling other characters in. Sometimes you just got to deal with what you've got. Counterpoint: that's why we've made friends and contacts, so that we can call on them when we're lacking a specific skill set. And sure, we can rough the nerd up, but loving with a gang is dangerous and Fuzzy is very much aware of it.
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Dec 20, 2017 15:42
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Dude's trying to pick up an underaged girl at a punk concert? Tag him in AR and trust him to bounce before some white knights decide to leave the mosh pit and go looking for him. Shadowrun's punk scene is even more violent than IRL's old-school scene, and deeply tied to shadow-communities, so mob justice is the best tool at our disposal. I definitely think that Fuzzy should spring for the Shin-Hyung, for two major reasons. First, the back seat. She's friends with at least one troll and the goblinoid community in general, so having a back seat she can stick him in is a serious social consideration - like how Underground bathrooms have two different-sized toilets. And second, the trunk. She's got a bunch of tools and items that she can't carry around all the time, but wants to have on hand. If she's eating dinner somewhere nice with Sasha, for example, she'd probably be a lot more comfortable with her bow, quiver, and armored jacket sitting easily-accessible in her trunk. That's hard to match even with the biggest motorcycle saddlebags. As for skills, I like the idea of buying Pilot Ground Vehicle 1, a specially in Cars (or motorcycles, if she gets a motorcycle instead), and then saving everything else towards increasing Magic. I like the idea of getting a houseboat too, but that can wait. There are two really neat things about houseboats, especially in Seattle. First, you can putter on out into international waters if you don't want eyes on you for some reason. That's super useful. And second, all vehicles in Shadowrun are self-driving drone vehicles. You can tell your car to circle the block a few times and then pick you up instead of parking, or take a nap in the back seat on the way in to work, for example. For a houseboat, that means that you don't need to go back to a static location, or go back to a location where it's parked - you can rendezvous with it at the edge of any shore, river, or canal. It's all around great for someone like Fuzzy to have, in other words. If we do go with a motorcycle, though, I think it should be a Suzuki Mirage. It's cheap and good, as far as getaway bikes are concerned. That makes it a great choice for outrunning Human Nation. jagadaishio fucked around with this message at 16:10 on Dec 20, 2017 |
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Dec 20, 2017 16:02
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I really want to lobby for the Scoot just for how hilarious I think it would be, but more realistically I'd go for one of the other cheaper options. Maybe the Mirage. Karma wise I always feel like more adept powers is going to be a great investment so raising Magic is a given. From there a little bit into being able to drive her I like the idea of just publicizing the guy's cradle robbing and letting nature take its course. Hopefully attitudes towards his bullshit have at least not gotten worse in The Sixth World. Another idea would depend on the rest of the gang's opinion on underage girls, hoping that they'd also find it creepy. Fuzzy snaps a picture of him with some superimposed Impact text (saying something like "uhh actually its ephebophile, guys" to lay a sick burn) and his gang pals might not want to help him out as much. Not sure if Fuzzy has the Matrix savvy to attempt dunking on this rear end in a top hat via social networking, but at the very least documenting what he's doing could be helpful. Edit: Just noticed my quote in the OP, proud to be able to vouch for you Ice. Bear Enthusiast fucked around with this message at 21:32 on Dec 20, 2017 |
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Dec 20, 2017 20:52
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Bear Enthusiast posted:Another idea would depend on the rest of the gang's opinion on underage girls, hoping that they'd also find it creepy. Fuzzy snaps a picture of him with some superimposed Impact text (saying something like "uhh actually its ephebophile, guys" to lay a sick burn) and his gang pals might not want to help him out as much. This but lets seriously rope Octo in on this. I just don't see Fuzzy doing that on her own and it give us another shot at Kenji getting to do a good thing (using Octo's debt to rationalize it, since he ain't gonna do it for free). It also gives Octo a little more agency in the story, a chance to interact with some other people her age, and maybe we can make her a contact for the other protagonists as we move toward year 2.
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Dec 20, 2017 21:39
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Choose the Scorpion. It's the best option and for a Barrens girl like Fuzzy it makes an impact. Its tough, real tough. Its also brash and makes a statement, and that statement is, "Mess with me and I'll push your teeth down your throat." Gang leaders ride Scorpions. Its also bully enough that with only slight modification, even a troll can ride rear. And the mental image of that is hilarious. And of course Fuzzy needs some Pilot: Ground Vehicle to go along with that. Ice you write punk shows like you've been, and I've been to plenty. That rush in the Pit is the closest thing to a combat high most people will ever get. Having had both, I prefer the Pit. At least it comes with music. That said, the SR punk scene is pretty violent, but also surprisingly honorable. Punks take care of their own, gently caress everyone else. If that means you have to gently caress up one of your own in order to keep another safe, so be it. And you never, ever, gently caress with a kid. That's a good way to take a soup bath. And by soup I mean getting tossed into a glowing green pool of toxic waste. So tag that sumbitch in AR, it'll get sorted quickly. Ganger or not, he'll wish he kept his paws off a girl. If he's lucky, he may even get to keep that fancy chrome of his and not end up in a chop shop.
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Dec 20, 2017 21:56
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Deadmeat5150 posted:
I've been to a couple, but it was years ago. I have spent a lot of time in my old music hall though before it closed down but it was more "whoever is local, cheap, can bring in a crowd and convince them to buy Fireball" than any single genre. Every time I went there was something new. I loved that old deathtrap and I'm sad that it closed down. I made sure to do my research and I talked to Cryo to make sure I wasn't missing anything. Plus when people talk about their experiences I draw on them for inspiration.
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Dec 20, 2017 22:06
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I'm gonna say splurge on the Shin-Hyung. That wonderful monster of a car can fit the whole gang plus gear, goes fast to run away from or towards Nazis, and has lots of space for upgrades. It'll still be coming in handy in Year Two and even beyond (no pressure Ice), whereas we might outgrow some of the other stuff.
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Dec 20, 2017 22:51
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We will never outgrow the Scorpion.
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Dec 20, 2017 23:09
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I mean "outgrow" like "we now need something that can carry the whole squad at once, mounts armor plating, and has a full EWAR suite for hacker-Sasha or Octo to gently caress poo poo up with." The bikes just don't have the capacity for stuff like that.
Crazycryodude fucked around with this message at 23:15 on Dec 20, 2017 |
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Dec 20, 2017 23:12
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 Posted without further comment.
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Dec 20, 2017 23:44
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Yeah, the Shin-Hyung is definitely the best option for Fuzzy and four of her closest friends to pile into for antics. Bikes are cool, but they have real logistical issues. And on the motorcycle front, while choppers are totally cool, a crotch rocket like the Mirage has the speed needed for chases/escapes. The scorpion just isn't fast enough to outrun a cop car or chase down a sedan full of Nazis the way that the Mirage easily can.
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Dec 20, 2017 23:56
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Ice Phisherman posted:
Where's Marco's perpetually vacant seat?
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Dec 21, 2017 00:42
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Toughy posted:Where's Marco's perpetually vacant seat? That's already a monster for turning. Imagine making a troll sized seat too.
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Dec 21, 2017 00:57
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jagadaishio posted:Yeah, the Shin-Hyung is definitely the best option for Fuzzy and four of her closest friends to pile into for antics. Bikes are cool, but they have real logistical issues. The Scorpion can mount a panther cannon for those pesky cops. Firepower is just another kind of speed! Ok not really but you know what I mean.
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Dec 21, 2017 02:16
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I could see Fuzzy being more of a dirty blonde over just a straight up regular old blonde. All the pollution in the slums probably wouldn't have been good for her hair, and even when she kept it short and is growing it longer now, it probably still wouldn't be a strong blonde. That's my own vision of her, that is. As for her vehicle, I could see her having the Yamaha Growler over anything more practical. She's still learning how to work with others but she probably still has a bit of the selfishness in her from growing up and basically only having Ratman as family.
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Dec 21, 2017 03:55
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The dirt bike's probably best at getting around/getting away in the barrens. Driving's probably more limited by torn up pavement and dodging obstacles than top speed, so a bike + lots of suspension should help. Plus it has the best chance of Fuzzy doing a sweet jump off something.
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Dec 21, 2017 06:52
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By my count we're actually split 2/2/2/2 between the fast car (Shin-Hyung), the Harley (Scorpion), the racing bike (Mirage) and the dirt bike (Growler). So if anyone wants to change their vote or wants to add their vote go ahead. I'll count the votes in the morning.
Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 07:25 on Dec 21, 2017 |
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Dec 21, 2017 07:16
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I vote for : finds a weird gear-head who is friends with rat-mom in the barrens who has cobbled together a bizarre conglomeration of all of the above votes.
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Dec 21, 2017 09:44
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Scorpion Fuzzy is the type to go for the big loud bike.
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Dec 21, 2017 10:11
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Eh, close enough to morning. It looks like Fuzzy is getting a hog which actually works well with what I was already writing while waiting and she'll be getting points in pilot ground craft (which covers cars and motorcycles both). I say well, but the word well is relative. Interesting though. Fuzzy doesn't get a car, but motorcycles are more portable. One can even fit on a house boat if she wants. Her motorcycle is more tough than fast, but that's what upgrades are for. I'll see how much she spent on it, but she'll most likely have money left over. She's also going to tag the ganger and Oli even though she's not really great with computers and her logic stat is crap. It's a trade off because calling Kenji who calls Octo would take time and it's not guaranteed that Octo would be immediately available. Octopi are very reclusive you know.  Fuzzy is lucky though so we'll see how it turns out for her.
Ice Phisherman fucked around with this message at 11:03 on Dec 21, 2017 |
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Dec 21, 2017 10:58
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