Iron Stars - grim

 level 2: new hp 6, taking level 2 psychic training. 2 points to raise telepath to level 1. Taking transmit thought as free skill. Using 1 point to buy facile mind. Using bonus point from psychic training level 2 to buy organic purification protocols.

Grim heads back into camp. After a night of rest he meets up with the resistance leader to see what missions he has.

Convoy interruption is now being handled by Ivan's specialists, leaving getting the actual city populations on our side as something that needs to be handled still. The news has been silent about who was involved, but there were reports of a foiled terrorist attack in one of the cities- stating that three officers were killed, along with the lone attacker. No faces or names have been released. Tension in the cities is on the rise, as it seems someone died acting up.

“That’s not good. I hope Shakey is ok. I can try to pick up where he left off but I am worried with the increase in tensions. Is there any new information we have, or any suggestions on how to get the guards to believe my cover story?”

"THere is another way to get you into the city, it is riskier, but less risky than trying to pass off phony papers again. Our identity shop was raided, and we think that's how they got him. Must have realized the information was a forgery

“No risk no reward right. Alright I will try the riskier method.”

"We have a volunteer from the countryside around the city, a farmer. He is contracted to send food into the city. Fancy hiding under some produce?"

“It sounds very risky, but I will give it a try. Do we have any contacts on the inside once I get in?”

"There is a woman who was running a boarding home that reached out to us, but her transmission got cut off. She said she had a radio that was left behind or something like that. she might be related to Shakey. We also know about some workers in the machine district who make the rocket parts, and are unhappy with the current situation. They haven't directly contacted us since its too dangerous for them too. They're being watched too heavily, but if you make contact with them in person, it's going to be a lot safer for all of you to talk"

“Thank you. Is it possible to have someone drop me off near the city via helo or do you recommend taking a grav bike? Either way I would like to leave tonight if possible.”

“They’re going to be watching the sky. A helicopter is large and noisy and we don’t have many of them. I’d suggest a bike to remain unseen”

“Ok I will take the bike.” Grim gets his gear and bike ready and then heads out as soon as night falls.

Your trip takes you two days across the countryside passing at least one mass grave where rebels were buried. You reach the farm on the night of the second where the farmer in league with the rebels has promised to bring you into the city to resume the work Jake left behind

“Thank you for agreeing to take this risk. Is there anything you know that may be useful once I am in the city?” Grim talks to the farmer to see what he knows, if there is nothing of interest he goes to bed and awaits the morning when he will enter the city

(I don’t think he would know anything that the rebels don’t already )

Grim wakes in the morning and waits for the farmer to let him know he is ready.

The farmer has bags, boxes, and loose stalks of leafy vegetables in the back of his vehicle, ready to go to the market with you safely tucked in underneath. He cautions you to stay quiet, and to try not to move. The drive should only be about a half hour, and once you're inside the city gates he will park and help you get out.

I stay under and try to be as quiet as possible

(Sneak/dex)

(8)

THere is a juddering halt as the farmer comes up to the gate, and you hear him talking with the soldiers for a few moments. Someone jabs a metal pole into the produce around you a few times, but they do not come close to where you are nestled (5) With a hiss of the air brakes, the truck is cleared to go into the city.

I can’t believe that worked. I thought for sure they would find me

2:46 PM

Grim waits until the farmer tells him it’s safe.

You feel the truck stop and a strong tap on your boot. "Alright veggie boy. We're here. Brought you to the home where your friend was last seen. Spoke to the landlady, she understands what's going on. She;s a friend"

“Thank you. I will try to make sure your risk was not in vain.” Grim heads in to see the landlady.

Grim goes up to the land lady “hello how are you?”

She says nothing but gestures for you to come inside with a quick chop of her hand. She casts a furtive eye down the street before shutting the door

I take a seat. “You seem to already know who I am and why I am here. I’ve apologize for any trouble my friend caused you. Do you know what happened to him?”

"Security forces caught him in the street. He died well, if such a thing is possible. You're here to continue the work then?"

“I am. Unlike him however I am native to this world. I have been fighting against the dictator for a very long time. I would hope to avoid his fate however. I am looking to obtain temporary employment at the rocket parts factory in the machine district. Do you have any suggestions on how to do so as someone new and lacking paperwork?”

“I might be able to get you an interview over there but we will have to make sure it’s just for cleaning or something like that. You’d be working away from the sensitive areas. This gets you inside at least. You seem resourceful enough , you’ll figure it out from there”

“Thank you. That would be perfect. Did Shakey leave anything behind by any chance?”

(i dont think there was anything that wasn;t on your bike) "You could try getting his bike. I don;'t know whats on the saddlebags anymore, but its likely been impounded. He didn't leave anything here"

(Everything was on the bike. I was just asking because earlier you mentioned a radio. So I thought it might be something important to ask about. If it’s not important I’ll just move on.)

8:00 AM

“Thank you. May he Rest In Peace.”

8:00 AM

I wait until she is ready to setup the interview

(she's holding onto it since she's a rebel contact here now)

(Copy)

That afternoon she returns to the room with some more regional looking clothes, and she has everything ready for you. "We're going to say you're from the countryside and lost your citizenship papers. You're a distant relation of mine and I'm trying to find you some work so you're not hanging around my house. That's our cover at least going into this. Hopefully we won't join your friend"

“Thank you” I leave the rifle and armor at the boarding house so I won’t be suspicious and then I head to the interview

(I marked everything as other to reflect being left at boarding house)

(perfect, thanks for keeping tabs on that for me, helps a lot)P

(No problem. Learning as I go. First the posting level ups now this)

The factory is on the north end of the city, near where you had been smuggled in though protected by a ring of concrete ballards and a half battalion of the dictator's security forces. The ones here are from one of his most well trained and loyal divisions, as the rocket parts are something his regime prizes very much. Your landlady is able to confirm with them that you have an interview scheduled today and they make no remarks to Grim personally. Entering the building you are all but drowned out by the smelting machinery, stamping tools, and industrial fasteners putting everything into place.

Into the heart of the beast. I head to the interviewer. (I use telepathy on one of the security guards. At my level it should only give me emotional state or intense emotions. Basically trying to get a hint if something is amiss)

They’re bored and tired but that’s all you can really glean (edited)

At least the guards don’t seem to be on edge

You're brought into a small room where a man in a suit is relaxing behind a desk. He has many luxuries here that the people on other parts of the planet do not, so much so he extinguishes his fat cigar in a whiskey tumbler, filled with the dark spirit. "come in, come in. I understand you['re here for an interview, going to be doing some cleaning for us and the like"

“Yes sir if you will have me.” I use telepathic contact an him as well.

(how deep?)

(Right now I can only get emotional state at my level)

10:30 AM

(Also any intense emotions give me one word basically doing same as with guard. I mainly am just trying to use my limited ability to see if I can get a clue if everything is normal or if I’m being trapped) (edited)

Everythinfg feels routine and boring. There is no suspicion

Grim relaxes slightly. ok everything seems to be ok

“Alright. Well all I’ve got right now is a recommendation from a friend. I need more than that. What can you do?0

6:00 PM

“Special skills. Even a hobby. Sell me here0

“If you are hiring me for the janitor position Im a hard worker and I am good at getting the work done without being in the way and bothering important people like yourself Sir. I also know the value of keeping quiet and not repeating things I see while doing my job. As far as hobbies I dabbled at learning some card tricks nothing too fancy. For special skills I’m a decent shot with a rifle or at least I was back in the country side. We would hunt lopes and other sorts of animals that would try and eat our crops.” (edited)

“Alright. Well maybe we will have a game sometime. You’ve sold me. Can you start right away?”

“Absolutely Sir, just tell me where to begin.”

He points to a supply closet out in the hallway. “Uniform, tools, and a facility map are all in there. Grab a radio and let them know you’re new. They’ll guide you”

Grim heads to the supply closet and gets his gear and map. He presses talk on the Radio “Good afternoon. I’m the new guy. The boss said to radio in and get further instructions.”

"Hey new fish. Well you're stuck with me, head of facilities today. We're going to something especially annoying and not fun, which is why we're doing it together. Meet me on the main factory floor in five minutes, we're going to clean some fuel mixing lines, and its going to be a great time"

I head yo the main floor as instructed. I pay attention to everything on my way and look for anything interesting.

11:45 AM

“On my way”

You reach the main factory floor where a slightly elderly man in his 60’s is waiting for you.

“Hello Sir, I believe we talked over the radio. I am the new guy. Where should I start.”

“We get to scrape some carbon deposits from the fuel lines today outside, at the mixing building. If you smoke do it on the walk. These pipes are big enough to walk in and the vapors are thick. One spark could set the whole thing sky high”

6:26 AM

“First day on the job gives you some forgiveness but not if you send the whole plant sky high”

“I don’t smoke. But that is good to know, I would hate to get blown up day one, or really any other day for that matter. This seems like hard work, but I’m glad to have the job. How do you like it here.” (Basically just making small talk to see if he says anything else useful as we walk to building) I follow him there and then get to work

He says little but brings you to the cement sided mixing building, where large tanks full of the fuel compounds all wait to be mixed and used for eventual shipment north to the rocket supply base. "So, we're going to be cleaning out these lines, as tall as we are, so you'll be able to stand up tall in there. We're going to clear the carbon deposits off them with hammers and as much as we can scoop out with our gloves. Any kind of spark is going to set the fumes off, so be careful where you swing. Also, make sure you grab one of the masks on the wall there"

“Got it boss” I get to work cleaning the lines as carefully as possible.

(So my plan is to spend some time whether it be a few days or weeks basically working as normal. While doing that I was going to scan workers as my effort allows and also chat with other workers when able. The goal of all of that is to try and see who is loyal to dictator and who is sympathetic to resistance. I’m also planning to probably start sabotage things in ways that hopefully can’t be traced back. Like adding stuff to the fuel to mess it up. Basically I figure it may create a rift between dictator and the guy who hired me)

(Yeah that’s what I was trying to set up here by them showing you some of the sensitive stuff We can fast forward then and I’ll write you a report )

(Awesome thank you. I was hoping you would say that. Would of been a boring few weeks just cleaning and listening.)

The executives , foremen, section leaders and senior workers are all mostly loyal to the regime since they’re working in an industry he heavily favors, and he incentives them with decent pay. The support staff, unskilled labor, and minor admin are all disgruntled with the state of things here, though no one has tried to do anything that would cost them their job or cause larger problems

After a few weeks Grim decides as soon as he gets some time unsupervised from the foreman he is going to sabotage the fuel. I collect a vial of algae from a pond in the city. The EP intranet say this stuff can really mess with rocket fuel, hopefully it’s right.

12:46 PM

Grim also purchases a box of printer paper and a printer for his compad(or whatever TL4 equivalents let him print) and prints a ton of revolutionary propaganda leaflets Sons of Erdoza Liberty has a nice ring to it

(yeah you could get that done easily as far as the leaflets)

6:34 PM

(as far as algae, are you using it to like gum up the workings, or what's the desired effect here)

(The fuel basically would get sludge like and would be ruined. If used it would damage the rocket used in. But they would likely catch it before using it. My thought process is because the algae would take time to grow it won’t be noticed here but will there making dictator pissed at the factory boss here. I have some other ideas I thought of I can use instead if the algae is no good.)

8:20 PM

(I could just blow it up. Probably more exciting and we could pick up and run that day at the office to see if I pull it off)

8:24 PM

(Actually lets do that. I want to blow it up now.)

(yea we could blow it up for sure)

9:55 PM

(okay, so we're going to change tactics from algae then? or keeping that and hoping for sometihng else. the leaflets are solid, just what other preparations would you be doing in those few weeks, since we have a new plan)

(Prep wise one thing I am doing is as I clean each day I am collecting the cigarette butts from the military guards. I then spread a few of them around the outside of the fuel tank buildings. Not enough that it looks like the place is trashed and none in the main areas people walk. Just like a few thrown in the grass.)

10:12 PM

(Another thing is when I clean the bosses office I am going to check under his keyboard or on his desk. If I am lucky he has a sticky note with his username/password. Maybe not but he seems the type.)

10:16 PM

(If he has any business cards of his on his desk I am going to swipe a few, not enough to be noticeable. Like if he has a big stack I would swipe 2 or 3)

(I think sneaking in could almost be a mission, since the risk/reward are both very high)

10:16 PM

(i think there's too much there to just blanket skip over things and say we did it)

(I agree)

10:17 PM

(Just listing the things I want to try. We will see how lucky I get. The only one that probably wouldn’t need a mission is the spreading the butts around.)

(right, thats just being a litterbug

)

(I would like to try the office first. Before I blow up the fuel and put security on edge.)

10:24 PM

(Also not sure if it needs a mission but scattering leaflets across city. Like on ad boards in hotel lobbies and similar locations.)

(I think the leaflets would probably not need something if youre putting them up and leaving the area)

(That was the plan)

9:10 AM

(So I will pick up with Grim being at work and deciding today is the day he takes a risk and explores the office, if that work.)

There is a meeting scheduled today between important executives in the factory and you know that your cleaning schedule will be less observed today. Things are tense as raids along the road have now actively destroyed a shipment and several areas of woodland. This is the day to make your move, trying to sneak into the plant manager's office for any information that could be passed to the resistance movement here. Over the past weeks you've been able to convince the landlady to throw her lot in with the resistance, and several like minded individuals all rent rooms there, though you're still cautious about what you discuss inside, and do most of your preparations in secret, on your own.

This is it time to take a risk and make some moves. Once the meeting begins I bring my cleaning cart to the boss office. I place the cart along the door so if anyone else comes in the door will hit the cart. Hopefully giving me a heads up. I then begin to search the office trying to find things like a stick with passwords, personalized stationary or pregenerated adress labels, and/or his business cards.

(notice/wis)

(11)

One of the drawers in the desk has a fake bottom, you're able to tell from knocking on the outside of the desk, but opening it and getting in may have some time eating complications

Grim attempts to open the fake bottom

(your notice was good, so this will be seen first) A small mag strip between the desk and drawer front has a wire running from it. some sort of alarm if the drawer is opened looks to be present. Something would need to be slotted between to block the conductivity

Grim goes to his cleaning cart and grabs a flat head screwdriver (or some similar tool) and some tape. He then grabs a spare type a power cell. Basically connecting the cell to the screwdriver to magnetize the metal. Then wedging the screwdriver in to pop it open and still maintain a magnetic connection to avoid triggering the alarm.

The contraption works, and the door hisses open. You see some assorted papers laying flat to obscure the false bottom and lock.

7:28 AM

There is a key for it.

7:28 AM

but it does not seemt o be stored in the same drawer

I continue my search looking for the key and other objects

The desk has an underside drawer on it that has not been looked through. There is also a file cabinet, liquor cabinet, and a larger wardrobe like piece of furnature with drawers inside of it going up one side.

I will look at the underside drawer first

This one is not locked, but it does not have the key in it. There is some personal stationary, a few pens, paperclips, a half deflated stress ball, and some loose rubber bands. There is also a paper football made from an old vending machine receipt. It is perfectly triangular.

I grab several sheets of the stationary and then unfold the football check it and refold it perfectly. I then move on to the drawers in the wardrobe

(Let’s get a perform/wis or dex for re folding it and concealing your messing with it. The paper itself just shows he eats a lot of vending machine meal bars)

(Before I fold it back can I write “Elysium” on the inside of the paper)

(8)

(sure you can, and you're able to fold it back up perfectly)

Ok after I do that I try the drawers in the wardrobe

(fix/int or sneak /dex for that, there is a lock)

(11 Did sneak/dex)

There is a gentle pop as you pick the lock and open the drawer. Folders with personnel information are laid neatly in here

(Im assuming compads can take photos like a smartphone, correct me if it’s a bad assumption) I take photos of the information and then put everything back and relock everything. (About how long would you say I have been in here?)

(It can. And probably about ten minutes )

I go to the liquor cabinet next and search around. He has better taste in liquor than I expected. I wonder what else he hides one here.

The cabinet does not have a lock, it might have once but everything in here seems well used and used often. Aside from the ice maker, bottles, glasses, and chiller element, there is a small cubboard along the bottom

I check the cubboard

There is a small bump, and a cigar box filled with scraps of paper is pressed out into your hand

I quickly review the papers for anything important and the take photos of what I can. I make sure there is no key and then put everything back. (Have I checked everything?) (edited)

(You've checked everything in the room now, and have pictures of the personnel files)

9:33 PM

(Which would probably need to be looked at in more detailw hen you're in a safe place to do it)

he must have the key on him I put the room back like I found it. Clean it and then (pending any arising issues) finish out my day. I then head to my room to review my intelligence

The files here are all people suspected of involvement with subversive activities. He was trying to compile more information before handing it over to the authorities

First I review the list for anyone I know or anyone of importance who could be of use to the cause. Second I use the stationary to forge a letter from the overseer to the resistance leader. The forged letter is an inquiry of asking for what the resistance and Elysium can offer in exchange for turning over the city. I take a picture of the letter. I then intend to turn it over to whoever is in charge of the military guard in the city. I am going to tell him the letter was in the trash so I don’t know if he was actually going to send it, but I thought it my duty to turn it over.

11:09 PM

After that I intend to let the factory overseer know that the guards have been smoking too close to the fuel and that I keep finding cigarette butts when cleaning. Then my intention is to go blow up the fuel

The dossiers do not have descriptions of anyones skills, just what theyve been suspected of doing. Most of them are suspected of smuggling information or tools out to forces less friendly to the current regime, but no one knows exactly how this is happening. You have some samples of his handwriting, and will need to make it look like a convincing copy before enacting your plan any further, because any official scrutiny will overturn any consequences (perform/dex, or int)

(6)

You're unable to replicate the handwriting using your own skillset, but get the sense that in the right hands this is a good and credible idea

This looks terrible they are never going to believe this I talk to the landlady and show her the names. “Do you recognize anyone on the list? Also, I am looking for an expert forger. Do you know anyone we can trust?”

"There might be someone. Banker by trade. I'd need to look into some of the others while youre visiting him. I can invite him to dinner but hes going to need some convincing to help us. He has a safe job under the regime right now,and hes not going to want to risk it unless we can really compel him"

“Please invite him. I will do my best to convince him. I appreciate all you are doing.”

(I am going to apply the 3xp from the war game unless you have any objection to doing it now. Should have it done before the end of the day.)

(go ahead, we're between stuff)

11:47 AM

(3xp, and 5000 credits additionally for what we did in the factory)

 Level 3. New hp 11. Raising Biospon to lvl 2 using 3 skill points. saving 1 skill point for next level up. The 4th skill point is from lvl 2 psychic training. Taking major organ restoration as my free technique for hitting lvl 2 in biospon

(edited)

The invitation is sent and you have little to do but wait for the night. Adventuring gear can be found in town if needed but weapons and armor sales are tightly controlled and are not available to commoners

(Nothing I want to buy right now. Especially not going to any tailor shops. I do however want to spread around some more rebel propaganda while I pass the time)

Night arrived and so does the time for your meeting. The landlady has made a few dishes and it’s not much but it’s what she can do with the limited food that gets into the city

“Thank you for making these meals. Your help has been important and u couldn’t do this without you.” When the banker arrives I great him. “Hello Sir, thank you for coming.” We eat for a bit and the I ask “ So how much have you been told about why I wanted to meet you?”

"Almost nothing, it was best to hear it from you first to make sure I got the correct message"

“To establish trust I will go first. I am with the resistance and we are going to liberate Erdoza. I want you with us. To build trust even more I am going to let you in on a secret very few know.” I open a telepathic contact (both checking for any strong emotions and to transmit thought) “ *I am a Psionic. What I can offer you if you join us is this. If you have anyone close to you that is gravely sick I can heal them. As a banker I can assure you lucrative financial options once Erdoza is connected with the greater universal. The final thing I will say is that the dictators fall is inevitable and I am offering you a chance to join what will be the winning side. * “

"I wou;d need to see some of these options. I have a comfortable job and I can provide for my family. I do not consider the rebels a credible threat to the regime"

“That is understandable. The resistance has been around a while and only recently has been a threat. What changed is several things. One we now are being supported by off worlders from the Elysium Protectorate, two there is a ghoul threat I can tell you more about if you would like, but without backing from an large interstellar polity it’s only a matter of time before erdoza is invaded like it’s neighbors, last let me show you what he has done to his own people.” I show him the photos of the mass graves. “As far as the options if you want to speak to someone directly it will take time, but when the dictator is gone and trade opens up, they are going to want to know who they can trust if you understand me”

He blanches a bit at the sight of the graves "Where were these photos taken? As specifically as you can tell me I guess would be good. I can have some of my people check the veracity"

7:00 PM

"The dead aren't going anywhere, am I right?"

I give him the coordinates “You should find these coordinates place the graves not far to the west of the city. You can see for yourself what a monster this dictator is. My own family ended up in similar graves just for the crime of being born Psionics.”

"I see, you clearly have some talent. What can you do?"

8:31 PM

"Or better yet, can you give me an example?"

I communicate with him telepathically. “I have already shown you I can communicate telepathically. Additionally I can heal almost any injury or disease. Is there anyone I can heal for you?” If instead you want proof of my non psionic talents I have something in mind. I can take care of it while you investigate the graves. (edited)

(You'd be able to tell then he's interested int he healing, specifically)

“By chance is there someone you would like healed?”

"My wife...has not been well. Degenerative muscle disease, and we can't seem to do anything about it, especially now"

“That is something I will take care of for you, but I need you to get me to her. I can only heal so many at a time but if you know others who would be willing to join for similar assistance please let me know. You arrange the time and place and I will be there”

"I'll need to see what I can do, I don't want this to happen in my home in case the wrong people are watching. I am sure they are"

“I may have a solution to wrong people problem. But I would need you to help me forge a letter. If my plan goes well the factory boss and the cities military will join us. I just need the letter to pull it off.”

"And what does this letter need to say"

I hand him my previous failed attempt. “This is what I tried to write but I couldn’t match the handwriting close enough. The gist is I need a letter making it look like the factory boss is talking to the resistance.” I offer him handwriting samples

"So a trade then. I'll give you the letter, and you heal my wife. We'll call it even,"

“That is fair. If you ever decide you want to do more you know how to reach me. Perhaps when you see the graves and see we pose a credible threat to the dictator. Anyway let me know the time and place and I will be there to heal her”

"It will take me a few days to travel, and I will work on the letter while I do. Lets meet again here in say...three days? If I may impose on your hospitality again then, we will make our final arrangements.

“I will meet you again in three days then.”

8:59 AM

(In the meantime while I wait for him I want to blow up the fuel)

(I know we mentioned it before but it got buried in the stuff we have done. Can you walk me through the plan for that again, and sort of what was done over the weeks we spent blending in?)

(I have been spreading cigarette butts I take from the guards when I clean. I am trying to frame it as just an accident caused by the guards.)

(Right, but how are you specifically going to explode it)

(As for how I am going to blow it up I am still trying to work it out, but earlier in the thread you mentioned any spark is a risk, so I was thinking toss a match, but I am worried about blowing myself up)

9:23 AM

(I think I I have an idea I will start some of the vegetation on fire outside the fuel area. If it blow the fuel up great, if not it still suits my needs because it makes it look like guards almost caused it to blow)

((sure suits our needs fine!)

As Grim gets to work the next day he decides ok time to execute the next part of my plan When my schedule has my over at the fuel depots I head over. (Waiting for your go ahead before I do anything else)

It seems like a normal day in the plant so far. you have been working here for a few weeks now, and the initial curiosity that comes with being a new face has gone away, relegating you to the background labor your role was always meant to be within the company. (edited)

I look around to make sure nobody else is in the area and can see me. I then head to the path that goes around the building. I start a bush along the path on fire and then head back to main area and start cleaning. As some smoke starts to be visible I yell “Fire, Fire” I then leave the area the same I would any other fire

(Exert/str or con)

(5)

(7 damage) There is a tremendous explosion as the gasoline storage facility goes up, the shockwave throwing you for dozens of meters as it washes over you, stripping the clothing from your burned back, and wounding you horribly. It travels underground, collapsing pipes, and leveling the entire plant with its workforce, and the trappings of the rocket industry it was supporting.

3:38 PM

The fires continue to spread as the plant slowly falls into the enormous and spreading sinkhole. Voices inside your head, not outside your head, but you yelling to yourself over the ringing in your ears you come to realize, you get up as the sinkhole spreads closer and closer to you

I get up and try and run away to safety. All of those people. I can’t believe I did this. tears stream down Grim’s face as he runs for safety.

(6xp, 10,000 credits) Tonight will be the first night in almost three years that a rocket hasnt carried a defense satellite, space monitor, or other vanity component into space for the dictator's never ending paranoia.

4:06 PM

Civilian observers on the ground who watch such things, the rebels, and the dictator himself will all make note of this, and you're left with the sense that the politics of this planet are going to change- along with the war for its independence

4:06 PM

This has gone from a cold war, to something very hot

  Level 4. New hp 22 (Rolled 18 then added 4 from con bonus). Raising Telepathy to lvl 2 using 3 skill points. Using the 1 skill point saved from last level to raise con from 13 to 14. Saving the skill point that needs to be in Biospon for future level up. The 4th skill point is from lvl 2 psychic training. Taking Suppress cognition as my free technique for hitting lvl 2 in Telepathy

10:56 PM

Grim is going to try and help as many people as possible get to safety. He is then going to try and find out who survived. Of interest would be if the factory boss survived and if the old man who trained him on the job survived.

10:56 PM

(also, not healing my injuries yet because having them helps my cover)

The old man is alive, he was in his car smoking safely away from the areas of danger, and the sinkhole stopped spreading two parkign spaces before swallowing up his car. He is shaken, and unnerved at the devastation around him, but is otherwise unharmed. It's unclear if the factory boss survived or not, digging through the rubble will take days to find anyone living, and weeks to complete the body recovery portion of the operation

After helping who I can I will get checked out by paramedics (so there is a record of me being injured). I will then head home for the night. (Until i know who survived or it is time to heal the bankers wife I don’t really have anything planned)

(Itwould be time to heal her first, since the disaster recovery efforts are going to take a while)

(Ok that works for me)

A letter arrives at the landlady's house by personal courier, in a faded yellow envelope. There is no address on the outside of the letter itself, but deep seated ink stains on the inside have a rudimentary map, and the closest roads leading to the woodland retreat where this healing is meant to take place

I head to the woodland retreat following the map. As I head there I try to make sure I am not being followed. (Doing things like doubling back, making 4 right turns etc.)

It doesnt appear you've been followed to the woodland rendezvous, and you turn off the main road down a logging path.

I head up the entrance to the retreat and knock on the door.

I double check my map to make sure I am in the right place as I await someone to answer the door.

You seem to be in the right spot and small slot opens in the door. A pair of eyes regard your

3:57 PM

“Name?”

“The name is Grim. I’m expected.”

There is the sound of some heavy bolts on the other side unlatching as the thick wooden door is pulled aside, and you;re let into the warm cabin. A frail looking woman lays under some blankets near a large fireplace. It is sweltering inside fro those of you who are healthy, but she cannot seem to ever get warm enough

I walk over to her. “This will only take a moment.” I take her hand (I use organic purification protocols. Can cure any disease or poison. If that is not successful I will attempt major organ restoration). “Ma’am are you feeling any better?”

(you'd get the sense on healign her with one, that ytoud need to use both if you can)

(I use both then. Once that is done I will use lvl 2 psychic succor to heal any hit points she needs restored,)

8:52 PM

(I have mastered succor so if I’m reading the book correctly it only costs me the one effort for the organic purification.)

1

(correct)

9:06 PM

(i am just never sure what anyone has exactly with this many of you, so i make blanket statements)

9:06 PM

After both surges of bioscopic energy, she shivers and falls asleep while her body finishes the work of re-knitting itself. Color is returning to her skin, and you can see health returning to her nails, hair, and around her eyes where the dark circles of anemic disease are beginning to fade

“I have healed her, she is going to need some rest but when she wakes you should find her to be in perfect health. Is there anything else I can do, or would you like to continue our earlier conversation here or in private?”

“We can have it here. My staff is aware we have planned something. It’s only fair they know so they can get to safety if they don’t want to be involved. Everyone has chosen to be in this for the long haul”

“Fair enough, I previously both asked for a letter and gave you the location of the dictators mass grave. Things have escalated since our last talk so I won’t drag you into this if you don’t want to see Erdoza freed. I can leave now letter in hand our bargain complete. Alternatively if what you have seen changed your mind I could use your help.”

"You have the use of both myself, and the bank security forces for whatever lies ahead. We're in it now. "

7:24 AM

(Ivan has a small enclave worth of people now too. We're getting close to being able to do some kinda operation valkyrie shit to the dictator here)

(Nice)

7:30 AM

“You have my thanks. I will be in touch.” I head back home again taking precautions not to be followed. I will rest for the night and then in the morning attempt to see if the factory boss survived.

He has survived. He was wounded, but was likewise outside taking some air and was at the edge of the explosion.

I attempt to make an appointment to meet him

Not being family, not being an employee he was close with, or any of the other issues that come with trying to get into an overcrowded hospital, the staff there are either unwilling or unable to accommodate your request.

I am going to try and sneak in. My first order of business is to try and get scrubs from the laundry room in the basement.

(sneak/dex)

(5)

Security is watching any easy ways into the building and you are kindly escorted off the property

I leave the premise peacefully. I then send him a message to his compad that I think i have information related to the explosion and wanted to give it to him first. I then try and schedule an appointment with the incident investigators to give them my version of what happened

If you have time this evening, and a place to meet, investigators would like to speak with you. There is no reply from the plant boss for now, though it sounds like he is in and out of awareness with his injuries

I set up a meeting with the investigators at a local cafe.

2:20 PM

I then contact the banker to see if he knows anyone I can bribe to get access to the plant boss (edited)

(This is turning into a lot more background relationship plausibility than i was expecting, i am going to need to some time to figure some of this out) (edited)

(No problem)

2:37 PM

(If it helps I can just skip doing that)

(No we can do it. Just gonna make a few things it sounds like we might need$

(Ok i will wait then)

The banker is going to plumb his contacts to see if he can make any headway without entirely giving away his involvement in what might be happening. It is his entire household on the line now, not just his personal family The investigators are a man and woman, both in dark government suits and sunglasses, ina move both stereotypical and unnervingly effective. The coffee is bitter, and as black and chem rich as their suits.

“Hello Sir and Ma’am. My name is Grim. I was a janitor at the plant before it ... well you know kind of just exploded” I open a telepathic contact on the woman (level 2 so I should get surface thoughts. Target gets a mental saving throw. Also not sure if I can have it active on both at same time)

(you can have it open on both.)

(In that case I attempt to open it on both)

(both fail, 8 and 11 v 13. They're cool and even tempered right now, just open to what you have to say, since you called them)

“The reason I called you is I clean the patrol paths around the fuel every day and I’m constantly cleaning up cigarette butts. I didn’t think much of it until I saw a bush burning along the patrol path. Nothing will probably happen to them because of who they are, but the guards caused this and now I have burns and can’t afford treatment. I just thought you should know on the off chance someone can make them take responsibility or someone can get me treated at the hospital.”

"We saw the accident report, and you were treated on the scene and released. Have your symptoms worsened? "

“Not worsened no. But I wouldn’t exactly call what they did treatment. But that’s fine I will drop the request. I’ve told you what I know and you can decide how to proceed. Did you have any questions before I go?”

“This is just a general information gathering session. If you require more treatment we will of course get you enrolled in what you need so you’re back to your life as quickly as possible “You said you saw lots of smoking going on in that area. Did you have names of specific guards so we can try to question them individually”

“I don’t have any names unfortunately. I was not close enough with the guards to know any. I just know the path they use to patrol the building was always littered with butts. I can’t prove anything, I’m just angry because my job is gone and I’m not sure how I’m going to survive without it. If the guards just followed the rules this never would of happened.”

One of them produces an envelope with a few thousand credits from a suit pocket. We will continue the investigation from there. I hope this money helps your family. We will speak with the medical division and get you transported to the hospital as well. It may be a day or two

7:09 AM

“In the meantime we will have to investigate the guards”

“Thank you. This means so much.” I leave and I will spend the days following while I wait trying to make contact with some people from the list of possible rebel sympathizers

9:04 AM

I will use my telepathy and be as careful as possible to avoid saying to much to folks who aren’t sympathetic

(And a connect/cha for that)

(4 is that enough?)

(you can sift out some obvious unsympathetic folks or some who might be liabilities but beynd that there's a risk)

(I will move on and wait for either the banker or the investigators)

(Was curious if you needed help with stopping the raiding of civilians)

The banker has come back with a lead, he's not able to get you into the hospital, but now it hardly matters. The letter was sent, and the dictator has ordered his arrest once he is stable enough to travel. there have not been any further launches over the last few days, and Nexcorp mercs have moved in to secure the hospital here. They dont' interfere with the flow of normal traffic in or out right now, and seem to be just watching the place

(The forged letter? I haven’t sent it. I was going to see if I could turn him. I guess we can say I sent it. I will just have to come up with a different plan.)

2:47 AM

(Kerilyn if you want to come to Erdoza and help you are welcome. I think Ivan is dealing with the raids on civilians though.) (edited)

(Ok here is my rough outline of a plan. I think I’m ready to try and get city under control. I am going to ambush a nexcorp guard to get his uniform. Then have banker have a meeting with the city guard leader. The meeting will be about how the dictator is going to replace city guard with nexcorp, and it already started with factory boss. I then disguised as nexcorp “ambush” the car. Banker then convinces guard leader that dictator is trying to have them killed and they need to eliminate nexcorp and secure city.)

(yeah we're taking these in very big steps, if we can do this one thing at a time)

2:20 PM

(because we're encapsulating like 2-3 missions of stuff easily here)

2:20 PM

(and im getting lost)

(Sorry, was just giving my overarching plan. For now I just want to kidnap a nexcorp Merc. So if you are good with it I will start with that mission.)

(sure thing) Nexcorp has several patrols and stationary guards around the hospital, along with a trio of marksmen on the roof watching the surrounding streets. They do not interfere with the coming and going of traffic for those who needs help, but they do unnerve the people actually working here

I am going to borrow a car from the banker and spend a night sitting in the car parked across the street. I am trying to observe when they do shift change. Once shift change happens I am going to follow from a distance to find out where the Mercs are staying.

The banker has several available, most of them are flashy but he does have a couple toned down grocery getters that he is happy to let you use. you're promised your choice of a roadster if you're able to free the planet. Maybe even two if you can help him after the fact

9:33 AM

your stakeout has the Nexcorp guards using a few small utility vehicles to get around the city, and you see them frequently coming out of "The Grand Constellation Hotel" three blocks away in a somewhat affluent part of the city

If the vehicle’s are ever left unattended I am going to slash the tires and key a vehicle writing “SCABS” (basically trying to frame the city guards).

(sneak/dex for that, but we can sure try)

(7)

You’re able to deface the vehicle and make your prompt escape before being seen or heard by any of the guards in the area

I come back in about an hour and go to the main desk of the hotel . “Hello, I was wondering if you have any rooms for rent?”

(Also is there a bar attached to the hotel?)

(there would be) 'Ah we h ave a few suites. Identification?"

“My name is Torgrim Gulakson. I will take one of the suites. If you need any official papers well unfortunately they were in my locker at the fuel refinery were I used to work.” (edited)

"A name is enough we should be able to find you. Needing ID to get a hotel room is nothing new unfortunately" she sighs, but does her best to remain professional. "Its 250 a night, but it includes 2 drinks at the bar every night, and a continental breakfast in the morning "

I pay her for 2 nights. After checking out my room I head to the bar once night falls. I order a double shot of whiskey and then I strike up a conversation with the bartender. “How has business been?”

1:07 PM

(Also do I notice any nexcorp in the bar?)

Two nexcorp officers are enjoying some drinks in the bar right now, but it is slow and the middle of the day. They must have just come off shift. Their black polo shirts with the orange triangle logo look a bit worn and dirty from duty the previous night

I tell the bartender “open a 500 credit tab for nexcorp .” I put 500 credits down for them to get drinks. I then head over to talk to them. “I want to thank you guys for watching the hospital. A lot of my friends got hurt in the explosion and are being cared for there.”

“You’re too kind. You were at the plant then? Worked there and the like?”

“I was I worked there until the idiot guards decided to smoke to close to the plant. I am lucky I didn’t loose my life. I am just glad our leader sent professionals like you guys to finally secure our great city.”

'not much to secure in that smoking crater. No more rockets going up for a while, that's for damn sure. Guess you guys all get a break for some time then. Which couldn't be a bad thing"

“Personally I like to keep busy. Any chance nexcorp is hiring people?”

"Could always use more admin or help. Not able to hireyou myself though. Could probably get you in front of an officer though if that helps"

“That would be great, thank you.” (I spend some more time drinking with them then head back to my room and wait until I can meet the officer)

There is a short phone call to your room about four hours later, letting you know the officer is in the bar down below and has requested to speak with you- getting your name from some of the soldiers you had been speaking with earlier in the day

I head back down and introduce myself. “Hi, my name is Grim. I heard your the man to talk to about signing up?”

“I am indeed. Heard you were kind enough to let some of my men drink for free. “

“I was. It was the least I could do seeing as you guys seem to be taking over security for the city. The guards nearly got me killed in the factory. Maybe I’m being to forward but if you are moving against the guards I want in.”

"does the term SCABS mean anything to you? "

7:27 PM

"Found it carved on a couple of our vehicles, and we didnt have any moves planned against the guards. just a little light property damage between rivals, but you seem to have an angle here"

“I think it was an old earth term for people who take other people’s jobs.”

7:29 PM

“If you move against them or not, I will be honest I am looking for work. The factory I worked at is gone. You guys seem like a chance to move up.”

"Do you have any security related skills? "

“I’m an ok shot, but living in the city I have not been practicing. I am a good judge of character and I am good at following orders.”

"You tihnk you've got the stamina for one of the street patrols?"

“Absolutely Sir.”

"You'll need to fill out some paperwork but otherwise we'll consider you hired, at least for now in a probationary role"

“Thank you” (I will spend a few days playing the role of nexcorp merc. I will then contact the banker and see if he can get me an appointment with the city guard leader.)

10:19 PM

(Can I contact Ivan and ask him to send me his intel on what Nexcorp has been doing?)

(Yes you can)

Grim,

Some hamlet in the middle of nowhere razed, all but one civilian left who was eyewitness. Enclave of Forcia was attacked very recently, but we warned them. We helped evac their vulnerable to elsewhere. I will try to get something concrete for you.

Glad you're alive.

P.S. - know where the emergency bunkers are and watch the sky. No timetable.

(Now that I have the Intel I contact the banker.) “I have new intel on nexcorp. I would love to share with the leader of the city guards. My plan is to pretend like I am one of your men you had me under cover with nexcorp. Can you arrange a meeting?”

(one of the bankers men?)

(I want to meet with whoever is currently in charge of the city guards. Like the general or whoever. I want the banker to say I was one of the bankers guards he put undercover with nexcorp because he didn’t trust them)

11:24 AM

(I am to go for broke and try to get the military of the city on my side.)

You get a message back from the banker stating that he is not willing to even pretend he was engaged in shadow ops against the city, the dictator, or his chosen agents, because that is a one way trip to a blindfold and a brick wall no matter how innocent your intentions might have been

I upload Ivan’s evidence against Nexcorp and photos of the mass grave to the whatever the local data net would be. (How many other nexcorp are with on my patrol?)

(okay, circling back to the job, it is you, a sergeant, and 3 other people with a vehicle)

I will just go on a patrol for the night. (Is there 0 chance of me getting the city guard on my side or just banker won’t help)

12:55 PM

(Also I need to get to computer later but if going on patrol I plan on getting my armor on and weapon ready)

(The banker just won't help. Its a degree of danger and personal incrimination he's just not willing to risk especially since he wasnt even remotely close to doing the thing you asked him to say he was doing)

(Ok I will do a patrol mission then if that’s ok with you. I will also still try to contact the general or his officers if I can I send them a message asking to meet.)

You're given the typical khaki pants, black nexcorp polo with logo, a black hat with the same, a pair of sunglasses, and a dust scarf for the road. A suit of stout black combat boots and moisture wicking socks round out the outfit.

2:47 PM

Outside, an open sided jeep like vehicle, though lacking a mounted weapon, pulls up in front of the hotel

2:47 PM

(You can send a message to his office, if it gets buried in red tape who can say)

After equipping my gear I head downstairs and get in the Jeep. “Good evening gents, what’s the plan for tonight?”

A service pistol and holster, and a stun baton are the last pieces of your uniform, given to you now since you're joining the patrol. "We're going to take a walk through the factory district, see if anything is happening down there, and then finish with a two hour rotation outside the hospital'

“Sounds good.” While we travel to the factory district I make small talk. “So how did you guys end up with nexcorp?”

most fo them are army retirees, washouts from more elite branches of service, or general wastrel that once held arms for the dictator and werent quite ready to bury their uniforms in the backyard.

I continue with the patrol until or if anything interesting happens.

(3xp, 5000 credits for what we did so far)

(Thank you. I think that’s enough to level. Is it good if I level now because we’re not doing much yet or wait till after patrol?)

(Go ahead and do it)

 Lvl 5: New Hp 25 saving the 2 skill points that need to go in psi leaving me with 3 saved psi points (2 of which need to be biospon) spending the other 2 points to raise talk to lvl 1. Taking henchkeeper focus. Focus raised lead to lvl 1. added 500,000 credits from endeavor, 50,000 credits dai gave everyone, subtracted 1,000 credits for hotel and bar tab. Everything should be current now

The vehicle begins driving through the industrial district, not stopping to harass any of the workers but most of them instinctually avert their eyes, or try to move down the sidewalk with a higher degree of speed. Getting noticed by Nexcorp seems to be universally recognized as a bad thing

It seems Ivan was right about these guys. I establish a telepathic contact with sergeant (he gets a mental saving throw. My telepathy is lvl 2. If he fails I should be able to read his surface thoughts.)

(15 v 13 Pass)

(Fair enough. I just continue the patrol for now then)

Moving through the factory district, rounding a corner you come to a road with many alleys between different machine shops near them. A fight between workers is occurring in one of them, and the vehicle halts. The men are too caught up in what theyre doing to notice. "Ahem, Gentlemen!" the squad sergeant yells, as the rest of the patrol dismounts and begins moving to apprehend them

I move in as well. “What is this fight all about?”

The two of them continue to brawl, and the patrol members forcibly grab them and pull them apart from one another. Clubs extend, and they weigh in heavily, beating the two into compliance

I tell the Mercs “Ok they have had enough.” I then ask the brawlers “what was this all about?”

"No no, cmon, get a couple hits in. You're gonna have to be doing shit like this all the time"

“When it’s needed fine, but these guys get the point. I thought we were here help make things better?”

"Getting dangerous ruffians off the street is making things better, these two had nothing better to do than brawl over probably something dumb. We're going to make an example out of them"

“That’s a waste of our time, let’s just move on.”

The sergeant asks the two men what they were fighting about and it comes out that they’re both after the same romantic interest. “Alright well we have an easy way to solve this then.” He says , thinking out loud. “I’ll decide who gets her. I’ve got my own special method for these things “ He moves to unclasp the pistol from his holster.

This sucks, but It would be 5 to 1 not much I can do I stop my objections and let the sergeant do whatever it is he is about to do. (edited)

He takes the weapon and removes every bullet save one, and gently sets it on the ground between the two separated fighting men. “You two want to fight so bad, whoever takes the gun and kills the other gets to walk away, and then there’s no fight over the girl anymore either then right? Truly everyone wins”

I unclasp my pistol while everyone is focused on the brawling workers. I shoot the closest of the Nexcorp mercs.

(Is the pistol the stats for the semi auto pistol in book?)

)yeah it’s the tl4 pistol )

(Ok so the mag pistol then if it is tl4) (edited)

10:06 AM

(Am I good to roll hit and damage?)

(Yeah you get a surprise round they’re for sure not expecting this)

(15 attack 5 damage)

10:15 AM

(8 initiative)

The guard closest to the group falls, shot through the back. From the ground one of the captives , now free, grabs the fallen pistol and shoots the sergeant through the head. The remaining worker on the ground begins wrestling with his captor , leaving this a much more even fight.

5:27 PM

(They’re surprised so take another round and I’ll roll them)

I shoot one of the 2 guards that’s not fighting the worker

5:35 PM

(Attack 3 damage 10)

The shot goes wide and hits pavement. The worker with the gun is fishing through his downed kill to find a magazine amid the collection of tools on the slain guards belt. The worker and guard on their feet are grappling still neither one getting them better of the contest. The remaining guards try to get rounds off and miss

I try shooting the same guard again

7:41 PM

(11 attack 10 damage)

The shot strikes the pavement , and the two workers surge forward tackling the struggling one to the ground between their combined weight and force. The two guards near the truck open fire ahain slowly retreating back to the vehicle

5:13 PM

(17/6 if that hits. On mobile. Other is a clear Miss)

(First one hit.)

5:17 PM

I fire at the guard again

5:19 PM

(8 attack 9 damage)

The two workers have beaten the downed guard senseless, and the surviving two are retreating to the vehicle, trying to get the doors open and it started up

5:33 PM

(Between moves and main actions to either double move for the passenger or move and get inside their moves are done)

(I am confused)

(Oh never mind their moves)

5:42 PM

I fire again

5:42 PM

(11 attack 11 damage)

The shot strikes the driver in the side of the head deforming the helmet he is wearing and stunning him. Blood runs down the side of his face. He puts his foot on the gas while the passenger steers, bobbing a weaving course down the street

Grim fires his last shot at the tires of the truck hoping for a lucky shot shot.

6:36 PM

(11 attack 12 damage)

One of the tail lights blows out in a shower of glass and wire, but it turns the corner and it’s tires squeal

7:37 PM

Sirens in other parts of the city are starting to come on as all of you stand there a moment in stunned silence

“Damn.” I turn to the workers “Run! In different directions. Be ready when the time comes.” I quickly check the sergeant for anything useful. (Not trying to loot everything. Mainly looking for things like security badges, notepads etc.) then I turn down one of the alleys and run for it

He has a notebook and keycard, along with 2 mags of ammo, and a gun you can easily get your hands on

I grab all of it and then make a run for it.

(Sneak/dex)

9:24 PM

(Sneak/dex)

(8 for 1st one) (edited)

10:21 PM

(4 for second one)

(didn't mean for it to duplicate like that, 8 is plenty) You're able to vanish into the streets, though still are wearing a Nexcorp uniform. So far it does not seem like the immediate response to the incident is going to be successful in finding you

I am going to try and get back to the boarding house without being caught or followed

(the 8 holds, you won't have trouble doing so)

When I get back I read through the notebook looking for anything important.

Some of the individuals that the manager of the plant had highlighted as seditionists are in this notebook as people that Nexcorp is looking to round up. Operation Clean Slate is set to launch next week- a massive security blitz meant to apprehend rebellious minded citizens.

I send 3 messages via my compad. The first is to the rebel leader. In the message I ask him to launch an attack on cekonis. I explain I will have a resistance on the inside also attacking. The second is to the banker, I am asking if he knows any black market options for purchasing weapons. The third is to the cities general, I send him an email with information on the ghoul and racht threats and asking to have a meeting.

Your message to the general is sent back as spam, an unknown citizen sending a message to his office about nonsense information -and you have no credibility with the office at all. The banker has a personal collection of some firearms among his security staff he can provide, as it is now do or die, anything else would have to be taken from battlefield salvage or scavenged. The resistance leader can have soldiers in place in a few days, but needs some kind of guarantee the city defenses can be overcome- or else hes sending his brave fighters into a death trap

I respond to the resistance leader, “You have my personal guarantee for what it is worth. Beyond that I have soldiers on the inside with me. If there is anything in particular you need as assurance please let me know”

2:25 PM

I also begin to reach out to seditionists. I let them know about clean sweep and then will try to get them to join me

(I think we have a lot to gain here taking this in smaller steps, I don't know if your future slant is something in a henchkeeper like direction but this would be a great way to make some contacts/collect some people)

(I did take henchkeeper 1 and plan to take lvl 2 once I can. I am good with however you want to run it Just not sure what smaller steps you are thinking? Like do seditionists individually?)

I go through the list of seditionists looking at the notes for anyone with programmer skills. I come upon a name Ava Van Reijn. The notes say she goes by the hacker alias Raven and is suspected of defacing datanet sites friendly to the dictator as well as using malware to steal funds from dictator loyalists. It lists an address of a cafe she is expected to frequent and operate out of.

3:45 PM

The next morning I put on some non descript street clothes and head to the cafe

The Boiling Point is an internet cafe of sorts, mixed with something like a diner, with a steady flow of people headed in and out. Booths line the outside of the entire L shaped dining area, with tables closer to the kitchen for groups of between 2 and 6. The cafe right now is about half full, and the booths near the back all have flags up showing they're occupied

I sit down at one of the open seats in the cafe. When the waiter comes by I ask for a menu and ask if there is a waiting list I can sign up on for one of the booths

There is a short list, and you see your person of interest is due to run out of time in about five minutes. This is the booth you are assigned as you wait. Without asking, a cup of strong black coffee is poured for you by the wait staff, along with a thick piece of pie.

Now that I know which person she is I reach out with my telepathic contact an transmit thought. “Hello, try not to look too startled. I am speaking to you via telepathy. I am with the resistance. I got you name and location from a nexcorp merc I defeated. They had you on a list of suspected dissidents they plan to round up. I am here to help you.”

There is a muffled cry that she plays off as a sneeze after a half second of collecting herself. I wonder if you can hear me back. I feel so stupid just sitting here thinking like this and....alright, here goes. Okay Mr. resistance psychic. They're watching the cafe. I noticed them too. How are you going to help me?

“I can hear you. Do you know who it is watching you? Also, I have the booth reserved after you. Stay there for now and I will head over”

9:25 AM

I head over to the booth

There is a click as the privacy door opens, and she surrenders her remaining time to you on the small panel in there, to ensure no one comes over to remove her and interupt your meeting

2:12 PM

Two motorcycles across the street, the men near them in gear talking

(I am going to attempt suppress cognition on the two men near the motorcycles. They each get a mental saving throw. I am trying to make them not think about us and our upcoming absence.) “I am trying to cloud their minds. We need to go now follow me. We won’t have much time if this works and if it doesn’t they will be hot on our trail” (is there a back entrance through the cafe kitchen area?)

(you can't see it from out here but you'd have to presume so)

I get up and have her follow me. I head to the register. “200 credits if you let us out the back quietly without making a scene.”

(The two guards outside fail, by the way)

(That is good.)

3:03 PM

(If i read the technique right they won’t think about the fact we left until the scene ends. I am not sure if there is a distance aspect, like if I get far enough away or anything)

(Youd; be able to get away)

3:04 PM

(the guards won't realize something is wrong for probably several moments and by then two guys won't be able to search whole city blocks)

3:05 PM

(and theyre not trying to apprehend her right now anyway, just watch, because it would tip off the operation coming up)

(Copy)

Once we get away I bring her back to the boarding house. “The land lady here can be trusted. I know you must be pretty shaken up. If you know any one else sympathetic to the cause feel free to warn them if you feel confident you can do so securely.”

"I will do what I can, what will you do?"

“I am going to try and rescue some more people, but there are so many I won’t be able to get to them all. We are going to have to be ready to fight back when the time comes”

I look at the list of dissidents again looking for a technician. I come across an interesting entry, Param “The Smith” Lazarus. It give both an address and his contact information for his compad.

10:11 AM

I attempt to call his compad

It rings twice before the call is cut off, the line resolving to just dead air

I should of known it wouldn’t be that easy. (If I still have access to the car I used for my earlier scouting I take that) I head to the address listed for him

(You do, but I tihnk it would be near the coffee shop wouldn't it?, or did you circle around the back and grab it)

1:19 PM

(the guards weren't paying attention to you but it feels hazy on if a car starting up and lingering around extra is more than a few minutes or not)

(I never mentioned even bringing the car there so when we ran that scene I didn’t think I had it as an option. I was actually kicking myself for it at the time)

3:13 PM

(Either way I can play as if I have it or if I don’t. Just need to know either way.)

(got it, okay, car is around at the boarding house for use)

I take the car to the address listed. I circle around the block a few times looking for any goons on motorcycles watching him.

3:47 PM

Then if it’s clear I head up and knock on his door

(notice/wis)

(12)

5:11 PM

(Also is it too late to say I have my rifle in the car?)

(No that’s fine)

(In that case I have the rifle in the car )

You don't see anything that leaps out to you as 'government goon' as you circle the property, but there is a cable van here with no obvious workers going in or out, or working on anything nearby

I pull up behind the van and gently bump my car into it. Not enough to do any real damage other than cosmetic but enough to be noticeable.

(where in the car is the rifle, before we get into anything weird)

(In the back seat on the floor.)

There is a scrape as you trade paint with the cable van, and the back door bumps gently outward as its opened from inside and two techs in cable company uniforms emerge. One of them is carrying a toolbox.

I establish telepathic contact with both of them and attempt to read their surface thoughts (they get mental saving throws to resist).

(3 and 5, both have failed) They are annoyed their vehicle has been hit, one especially since his soup was knocked over and he now has no lunch

7:17 AM

though you wouldnt be able to see that from outside

I get out of my car. “Sorry guys it was an accident is there anything I can do to make things right?”

"Well, you're going to ahve to take it up with corporate, and we nee to report the accident to the police"

“I really don’t have time for this. Is there any way I can just pay you guys direct and avoid the police? What are you guys working on anyway?”

"Hey now, one question at a time" one says, the other reaches down to open his toolbox, though you can't see what he's doing inside with the way the lid opened

11:49 AM

"Sorry, corporate policy, we have to go through the police when there's been an accident, otherwise we get docked for it'

(I believe I should still be able to get surface thought. If that gives me any insight into what is in the toolbox or if these guys are who they say they are)

(We did surface thoughts, and since you'd just been into a car accident with them thats what thry were thinking about)

(I thought it was a continual, not a one time thing. I can press though)

1:13 PM

“Alright well while you call the police let me get my information.” I get in the car and open the glove box and pretend like I am looking for papers.

(okay i didnt know you were level 2)

1:20 PM

One of them is assembling a small SMG, just in case its needed but he is not planning to use it. They think tis is just a run of the mill traffic accident

I grab some papers (preferably real paperwork like registration, but anything will work) from the glovebox and then get out of the car. I start walking towards the guy assembling the SMG. “I found the paperwork. The police may take a bit to get here. Can I leave the paperwork with you. While we wait I am just going to head across the street and get my friend Param.”

(the car would have an actual registration

3:39 PM

(if that makes a difference here)

(Ok I bring the actual registration over.)

The kneeling figure takes the paperwork from you and hands it to the standing one.

7:18 PM

"Leaving the scene of an accident? That doesn't seem like a very good idea"

“Neither is what you guys are doing trying to secretly pull a SMG on me. You aren’t being as sneaky as you think about it. I can totally see what you are doing. Can you blame me for wanting to leave and not get shot?”

He rises, SMG pointed at you. "You're not going to leave the scene of an accident. Get in the van please. Don't make me ask again"

I sigh. “Fine. But tell me who are you guys?” I start walking towards the van.

"We're close enough to the government where you might want to do what we say"

10:10 PM

'We're not out to hurt anyone, but we can't have you wandering off until the police get here"

“So neither of you is Param?”

“Param? How do you know param ?”

“Ok this is all one big misunderstanding. I work for the actual cable company. They sent me out to investigate because They suspect Param has been tampering with our lines. I saw a cable truck and knew it wasn’t ours. So I gave it a little bump. I thought one of you was Param tampering with our lines.”

(Oh boy. Talk/cha)

(3)

2

1

“No id. No uniform? And you didn’t say that right away? Stay where you are and put@your hands up”

Fucking Nexcorp

7:00 PM

I punch him in the face

7:03 PM

(Not sure mechanically what to do. Do I roll initiative first? Or do I get a free punch?)

(They wouldn’t be surprised so we would need initiative )

(8)

(6)

(13 attack 2 damage)

The punch lands solidly as the two men snap to combat positions. One of them levels the smg

4:37 PM

(15/7 , I took the -4 to fire)

4:37 PM

The other dives into the back of the van out of sight

I run to my car and jump in the drivers seat and start the car

(move to get there, i think getting in and starting it is a main action)

(Are you saying I can’t do both? If so I just get in then.)

(you can do both but cant driv yet)

(ok then my turn is done for now)

The SMG fires again and puts a neat line of holes down the hood of the car. It will still run for now but can’t take more of that

I hit the gas and run over the guard with the machine gun. I then put the car in park. (Probably all I can do for now) (edited)

(Yeah I’d say so) He flips over the hood and over the windshield. He tumbles down the back and hits the street- the gun goes clattering away down the sidewalk as his companion from inside the van radios for reinforcement and help

I grab the rifle from the back seat and jump out of the car

You don’t hear any sirens yet but the more time you spend outside means the less time you’re going to have to get to Param, explain what’s going on enough to get them to trust you, and then to make your way out

I run towards Param’s building. (Not sure how far I can get, but the plan is to try and get to him.)

(if you're ignoring the guy in the van we're out of initiative for the moment)

I knock on Param’s door loudly. “Param Im with the resistance. You probably saw or heard the shit show outside. Nexcorp knows who are. Open up I need to get you out of here.”

There is a click inside as a lock is disengaged and you’re pulled through the opening door by strong hands

“Param?”

“Param” he says, locking the door again and packing what looks to be an inexpertly concocted bug out bag

“We need to go now. The police will be here soon.”

(Also going to heal. Will roll in a minute)

(Heal using what )

(Psychic succor lvl2)

11:57 AM

(It’s also mastered so it does not use any effort)

12:01 PM

(9 points of healing

12:03 PM

(So back up to full but took 1 point of strain)

"What happened out there?" he says, ducking into the other room to grab a few articles of clothing

“Big misunderstanding. I thought it was you in the van, but it turned out to be the nexcorp goons watching you. I killed one but the other one called reinforcements. Look they know your name. So you can either come with me, go your own way, or wait here to get rounded up. Whatever you choose do it fast.”

"I saw you heal yourself like that. Get me out of here, and we can talk." Out front, a Nexcorp SUV pulls up with a light machine gun on the roof hatch, its gunner keeps an eye on the front of the building while three guards dismount , and prepare to enter the building

“They will be in here any moment now. Help me move some of this furniture and then get in the other room and wait.” I move the furniture to create a make shift firing position. (Basically trying to get partial cover and defensive firing position bonuses and have a clear shot at the door when they bust in)

"We might be able to escape out the back if we go quick. It's going to take them a minute to get up here"

“Ok let’s head out the back then.” Param and I head out the window onto the fire escape and begin making our way down

He opens a window, and a spark from a gunshot in the alley his the metal decking below him. Two quick taps of his own handgun drop the guard down there, who was only partially ready for someone to actually emerge.

7:32 AM

"Lets go!" he shouts

I run down into the alley and head away from the street with the nexcorp mercs. We try and make our escape

Heading out into the alley, the machine gunner on the truck is facing the opposite way, panning the front door and windows of the building's front. (sneak/dex)

(9)

(6) He does not notice the two of you crouch down behind a nearby car, out of his view. Inside there are a few startled shouts as the Nexcorp goons begin ascending the stairs and people react to armed men in their midst

We’re going to keep heading away trying to lose the mercs. If we are able to lose them we will head back to the boarding house

The patrol was small, though more cars show up over the course of the day since there was a nexcorp casualty. It doesn't seem like you've been trailed or spotted as you arrive at the boarding house.

(At my level 2 henchmen is all I can recruit. If I can get a companion character now I will do that. If not I will figure out my next move)

“Param it’s not much but this is we’re we have been calling home. You are welcome to stay if you would like.”

(You could make a companion now)

1:48 PM

(I will get you a sheet)

1:48 PM

(top one in EP companion NPC folder on roll20)

(Thank you.)

 Creating Grim's companion Tyr Ulfson. Selected Martial Companion with soldier back ground. exert, survive, shoot all started at 0. Dex selected to be 14. Purchased 2 laser pistols, 1 laser rifle, 2 armored undersuits, 1 CFU, 5 type a power cells, backpack tl4,compad, small advanced weapon. (total cost 3,140 deducted from Grim).

9:29 PM

Tyr leveled to 2. 2 skill points to raise shoot to 1. 1 skill point to make stab 0. New hp 9

Grim is sitting in the common room of the boarding house trying to work out a plan of what to do next. All of a sudden there is a knock at the door. The landlady is trying to get rid of whoever it is. that voice sounds so familiar “Tyr is that you? My god it is. Let him in I know him” Tyr and Grim both came up in the resistance together and have know. Each other for years.

9:48 PM

They reminisce for a while and Tyr tells Grim how the rebels are planning to attack the rocketry base but that they sent him to help with things here. After some more time, Grim calls the a meeting with Tyr, Raven, and Param.

9:49 PM

“We know that Operation Clean slate is happening in a few days. Does anyone have any suggestions?”

"We need to get the populace to rise up before that happens. This will serve two objectives- Security forces will be forced to deal with the civil unrest and won't be able to round up suspects. The confusion may also buy any known persons of interest more time to escape or get far enough underground The population will also attack government infrastructure if motivated with enough proof of the crimes Nexcorp and regime forces have committed. I have little evidence myself, but if we can hack a broadcast...."

“Raven if you think you are up for that sounds like a solid plan”

9:41 AM

(To hack the broadcast do we need to get physical access?)

(someone would need to place some line shunts on the transmission equipment for her to do it- and she would also need to be there. The mission would be getting into the studio, and onto the roof, placing the shunts without being detected, and then broadcasting your message and GTFO before the authorities inevitably show up to shut things down)

To: Grim
From: Ivan and Kerilyn

See attached. Last one is encrypted, but probably links it all together.

--- forcia.vid - Footage of Ivan, Kerilyn, and the rest of the EP soldiers in rebel garb clearly talking with enclave peacekeepers. As the group leaves, the camera pans over shelled buildings and hastily-erected defenses, including burnt-out Nexcorp vehicles being used as barriers. abandoned.vid - Short video of Ivan and Kerilyn making a brief stop at a desolate, abandoned town. No signs of fighting, but it looks like everyone up and left. forest.vid - Video of Ivan, Kerilyn, and the EP soldiers trudging through the dark and complaining of the rot smell that Kerilyn is now keeping at bay. Evidence of many guns being fired until empty is present on the ground. Ivan digs and finds bodies that roughly match the "age" of the abandoned village. Too many to count. 656e637279707465640a.enc - Encrypted data copied from the dataport of a downed Nexcorp drone.

“Raven, give me a list of what you think you need to carry this out. If your contacts can get you a black slab and/or a phase tap I will cover it.” (I figure 5 line shunts so we have extra, but not sure if I can purchase the other gear for her.)

4:31 PM

“Also can you try and crack the encrypted file Ivan and Kerilyn sent?”

4:33 PM

(Does she get a +1 just for skill or a +2 skill and attribute? I saw in help you told someone skill and attributes but they don’t have attributes so I probably miss understood.)

(Your hacker has enough line shunts to get the job done, as far as the check, its +2 if they're not your companion)

(Ok I will roll in a little bit to try and decrypt the data)

(sounds good!)

(10)

The decryption is successful, but the file will not be completed for several hours. "We're going to need to make do with what we have. That's already more than enough" Raven says, assembling her bag and putting on her most convincing news reporter outfit

I put on my gear and get ready to head out. I also grab the nexcorp polo and throw it in my backpack. “Alright, I want to do this a bloodlessly as possible. If it comes to it we will do what we must but let’s not seek violence.” We head out and approach the tv station as discretely as possible. For now I am just observing what I can see. Such as security etc

there are two security guards (not nexcorp, like rent-a cops) out near the main doors that the employees use to enter the building. There is a side door without guards that needs keycard access, and is inside the metal fenced in parking lot. The fence is 4m tall, and possibly electrified if the ozone stink in the air is anything to go by. the only gap in the fence is at a guard booth and gate where a parking guard lets employees with proper credentials inside

I use suppress cognition on the parking guard at the booth. I am trying to make him not think of our presence. (He gets a mental saving throw)

(6 v 13, he fails)

He walk in and head to the door that needs keycard access. “Raven or Param, do either of you think you can get this door open without setting of an alarm?”

"I have no idea what's going to happen in there if I make a crack at it and fail, but I can try" raven says, placing a line shunt on the keypad

(6)

(what was the 6 for?)

(thought I needed it for the door) (edited)

(oh, well if Raven is rolling it, its a 2d6+4)

(If +4 it should be an 8 then. I did +2)

There is a small beep and the light turns from red to green- and it pops open gently. The line shunt is useless now, 4 are left, but she plucks it off the box and crushes it between her fingers

We procede into the building. I look for any sort of directory on the wall. (Like some buildings have, where it’s like room 301 - Mr. Grim’s office) if no directory we will press on and try to figure out where the tv control room is.

3:12 PM

“Good work Raven”

(I'll get you a map, just wanted to see how this went before i got too far)

4:08 PM

4:08 PM

(coming in between 9 and 10)

(Do I know what rooms the numbers are?)

(The offices are 3,4,5, and 6. 7 is obviously the cafeteria. 1 and 2 are studios. 9 and 10’arent marked and roof access is in front of 10 and to the east of 5)

We head to room 10 and if it’s open we enter.

10 is a supply closet where extra cleaning supplies and some parts to repair electronics have been kept. The paper products for the cafeteria are also being stored in here

Heading over to studio 2

You notice several people walking around have badges on- even those who are visitors and you move briskly to make your way across the station floor. A news broadcast is being filmed in studio 2, in advance of when it would be broadcast. Two anchors are making some closing remarks, and there are 10 other people in here between sound engineers, camera crew, and those necessary for the transitions and associated technical matters

7:28 AM

ON THE AIR glows in red on a sign above the door

(I don’t know the technicalities of all this. Like can I just burst in here and have raven do her hacks? Or do I need to do other things first?)

7:55 AM

(I guess were already in the room so might as well press)

Tyr and I pull out our pistols. “Raven upload the footage and broadcast it to every channel if you can. Param help with and technical work that needs to be done.” I move over in front of the camera’s and wait for Raven and Param to give me the thumbs up. Tyr holds the crew and anchors at gun point so they don’t run out and sound an alarm

(she can do it from in here, as you're on live TV)

8:05 AM

(there is enough computing equipment and the broadcast is already running)

8:06 AM

(just need a nother program/int at +4 total for her)

(11)

(You're free to narrate how the broadcast goes, and any personal statement you want to make but it works)

9:18 AM

(she's used her line shunts up)

The videos of the mass graves begin to play. “Fellow people of Erdoza. The dictator has plagued our planet for too long. Our people are being killed in mass graves, mercenaries are free to roam around and terrorize citizens in the countryside. In a few days they plan to round up and exterminate even more citizens in an operation they call clean slate. Now is the time to rise up together. To those in the military who see this and are appalled I urge you to join us. Any who side with us will receive a pardon when we are victorious. To ordinary citizens if you rise up now you will have support. The choice is yours Erdoza Live free or die.” (edited)

A message appears on your pad showing Ivan is close by, just as power is cut to the station, though you hear your message being repeated outside on dozens of viewscreens around the main parts of the city- and no doubt into thousands of living rooms across the city

“We need to get out of here fast.” We head back out the way we came until/if we run into any opposition

(Ivan and kerilyn might be taking care of the guards so let’s see how that goes and we will all come together )

(Sounds good.)

On the other side, you can hear Ivan's helmet speakers booming, and after talking to the guards for a few seconds, you hear the pressure on the door lighten up as they're no longer pushing on it. You've got a chance to make a break for it.

We head outside and meet up with Ivan.

7:30 PM

(Not sure how I handle this. Do I jump to his thread?)

(yeah lets do that)

(So this kind of wraps up several goals I had that I thought would be separate things. I don’t want to be gamey and claim a bunch of exp all at once if it’s not warranted. So not sure how you want to handle it)

(I'll take a look at the sheet, its more than earned i am sure)

7:23 PM

(I feel like these are all valid here man)

(Ok I am counting 21 from goals and 6 from the mission which would be 27. Please let me know if you count different)

7

6

(Nope, got the same math!)

(I am going to take a transport back to Heras. First though I am going to do so RP for the final night there to wrap things up)

8:30 PM

“Meet me at the boarding house guys. I will be there shortly I just need to make a small stop.”

8:33 PM

I head to the hospital and heals the factory boss. I then heal as many people as I can before exhaustion. The people who got hurt when I exploded the factory still weigh heavily on me. I then head back to the boarding house.

8:35 PM

I give Param, Raven, and Tyr each 1k credits. I give 2k to the landlady and 5k to pay the hospital bills for those injured.

8:37 PM

“I appreciate everything you guys did to help free Erdoza. Param, Raven, and Tyr I am heading to Heras tomorrow and will appreciate if you came with. I understand if you choose not to however.” I then get a nights rest. The first nights rest on a free Erdoza.

The group all plans to go with you. Erdoza is home, but right now home doesnt feel much like it and there is always the chance a lingering sympathizer with the old regime might want to make sure none of you enjoy the free world you have helped create. Away from here, at least for a while, is better for everyone

 level 6 new hp 36. 4 points spent to raise Biospon to 3. Taking terratic overload as technique. I had 3 psi skill points saved. Saving the remaining skill points for next level. So 3SP saved one must be in any psi

(edited)

 level 7 new hp 37. 4 points spent to raise telepathy to level 3. Telepathic  assault taken as technique. 3 points spent to purchase accelerated succor. All points spent now. Henchkeeper keep focus raised to level 2.

(All done leveling. How many days downtime to Heras?)

(it is a 3 day spike journey)

Trade 3/90

Arriving back on Heras, things have not changed much since your departure. The pirate problem continues to the West, and the final city seems to be undergoing the last stages of a civil takeover, a scene you know all too well from your time abroad.

I am going to purchase a months worth of good lodging for the squad (3,100 credits). Then I am going to head to the local psychic academy. (I need to finish training. I am probably going after pirates too but want to talk it over with the other EP members)

(Sounds good to me, Some parts of the academy might be damaged depending on how this fight with Kay ends

9:25 AM

(that should be wrapped up later today)

(Talked it out with the rest of EP. I want to deal with the pirates.)

(Do I have enough face for storm armor?)

(You do have enough face for storm armor)

(Having Param mastercraft a suit of storm armor for me. Should take two weeks and 200,000)

(not sure if the cost of mods have been factored into that or not, but otherwise it sounds like the timing is right)

(I will add mod cost. Is that also at 10x or face value)

(Ten times if master crafted)

(Ok 40k more and 1 more week to add exoskeleton)

(Not sure how we want to do the pirate mission . Kay said he doesn’t have time before leaving. So I am going to do it. Kay said the AAA has been sabotaged and he has gravflyers built to attack the base and deliver troops. Val is loaning me the ships she produced to originally conduct this mission as well.)

Some sort of alternation at the academy has just ended. A company of soldiers and one of the large fighting vehicles is being dismissed, and Kayden, his brother, and the Lamplighter are all talking at the academy steps. Kayden's assault array has a few holographic imperfections in it now that will need some tuning to fix- something has damaged it.

“Hello, nice too meet you all. Kay glad to finally meet in person. Although it looks like you may have seen combat recently. I come by way of Erdoza and am a psychic. I received training from my grandfather but would appreciate formal training though the academy.”

1:32 PM

“In addition to training I would like to first participate in Kay’s plan to rid of of these pirates.”

"We have a direct link to the psychic school on Galatea, and I guess everywhere else a branch is too here. You should be able to find the material you need. Fergus is a bit weird but he's got some good insights too. Desolane scares the shit out of me. You'll see her. She migh tnot see you though. I think between them you'll be safe trying to learn some things here"

“Thank you. I will begin my studies. I may have to take a pause when we launch against the pirates but when that completes I will be back to finish.” Grim heads to the research terminal and try’s to see if there is any information on judication.

"You're not a torch risk are you? Using your powers without the safeguards?"

“Not at risk of torching, but my grandfather only taught me the basics of telepathy and biospon. I have improved greatly in both techniques. But I have seen others like Kerilyn use move things telekinetically. I want to learn what else can be done. I also want to learn more about something called judication. My grandfather once mentioned our family coming from a line of Judicators but his mind was so scrambled from the scream that it was hard to understand.”

"Well, perhaps Headmaster Fate knows something more about that, my job is just making sure you're not going to blow up half the building "

10:29 PM

"Sounds like you won't"

“I certainly hope not. My powers lie in healing and the mind, so no risk there. I promise to be cautious as I embark on practicing any new disciplines. For now though my efforts are purely academic. Reading up on the fundamentals and such, should I chose to devote effort outside my core techniques. So that was my long way of saying I promise not to blow up half the building.”

10:37 PM

(For asking headmaster fate do I post a message in the academy thread, or do it in this thread?)

(We can tag him here since he won't see it otherwise, and doesnt really have much of a thread going for reg himself)

@Regulus/Grupp

 To: Headmaster Regulas Fate,  From: Torgrim,   I am new to the academy and doing some research into my family’s history with Psionics. Have you ever heard of a discipline called Judication?

Torgrim,
Welcome to the academy Torgrim. Judication is a rather outdated term, and not precisely a psionic discipline but something adjacent, though they use metadimensional energy in similar ways. In modern times they are known as Yama Kings. I will attach a file of what we currently have archived on Yama Kings. Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you, I hope this aids in your research.
Headmaster Fate

Interesting, it seems to use MES in a much different manner than I am used to. Maybe with some effort and training I can find a way to blend the two and bring back traditional judication but for now this will do. Grim spends some time reading through the files on Yama Kings unto satisfied.

1:32 PM

(Does that satisfies the learn about judication goal?)

(it does!)

Grim scrolls through the academy networks and looks for a schedule of courses to attend in order to learn about the other disciplines

4:37 PM

Grim also spends time practicing his telepathic connection with Tyr, Param, and Raven when time allows. (Book says for facile mind with a week of practice with an ally the contact can be initiated with no effort I am trying to work towards this)

(Up to you how long we spend here but I think we could easily pack in that whole week by time the other operations end

(So right now I am just training/learning at the academy. I may do some RP. But basically until we start pirate mission I am mainly chilling at the academy. Maybe I will go talk to the lamplighter a little bit)

(If you decide to we can do that)

All this studying and practicing is exhausting I could use a break. Grim heads out to the courtyard and finds the lamplighter out there. Grim strikes up a conversation. “I thought all the lamplighters were gone. I’ve read a little bit about your organization. You guys did good work back in the day.”

"ITs a pleasure to hear that. I never expected to be around to see the fruits of the effort paying off- and I still think it hasnt"

“May I ask, what efforts were being worked here on Heras?”

(I will update the gear I am bringing on the raid on my sheet. Hopefully I can get to it soon but may take until 1300 when kids nap)

(No problem, weekends are always slow until night time for me anyway)

(Purchasing 2x icarus harness)

12:52 PM

(Gear set up should be complete. Added a few goals as well)

(Goals are still missing xp. Not trying to rush anything just asking because pirate raid is almost completed)

(oh jeez, i missed them down in the notes, your sheet doesnt have any actual goal lines on it)

10:57 AM

(fixed)

Thank you

Grim rushes back to his room after the pirate fight. I hope I haven’t missed the Lamplighters

(I need to update my sheet and level up. I am hoping to get to it later but today is hectic so far)

(Take your time)

9xp for mission + 3xp for pirate goal + 6xp for mind blade = 18 xp by my math

9:59 PM

+3 for previous goal of mes instruction so actually 21

10:04 PM

 level 8 new hp 42. 1 Point spend to purchase remote repair. 1 point to buy metaspi 0. 1 point to buy stab 0. Remaining 1 point saved (1 general points.)

(edited)

not sure how much shock damage if any the mindblade does

The projector won’t let me set bio as the skill so I just adjusted the ab for the difference between my shoot and bio

Shopping list pending approval - Storm armor for Tyr - 20k 7 Type B power cells for Grim - 700 7 Type B power cells for Tyr - 700 30 days rations Grim - 150 30 days rations Tyr - 150 Shear rifle for Grim -600 Shear rifle for Tyr -600 40 meters of TL4 rope - 80 Total - 22,980 Credits

(mindblade doesn't do shock since it works differently Mind blades usually take the form of intricately-fashioned gloves or stylized hilts, all fabricated with advanced psitech circuitry. Use of a mind blade requires at least 2 levels of the Telepathy discipline. In the hands of a trained psychic, the glove or hilt extends a translucent, meter-long “blade” of telepathic static. Th is blade has no tangible substance, but if brought into contact with a living creature, it does 1d4 points of damage, plus 1 point of damage per level of the wielder’s Telepathy discipline. Damage done takes the form of shock, disorientation, and ultimately unconsciousness; a mind blade will not kill a subject brought below 0 hit points by it. Th e static fi eld created by mind blades suff ers only minimal disruption by armor, and all attacks made with it are +3 to hit. Mind blades have no eff ect on robots or inanimate objects.

7:02 AM

(Its damage is listed as "special" in the book, with this writeup instead)

(Copy. Thank you)

(so its a +3 to hit bonus native with the weapon, no damage bonus from the weapon itself)

7:35 AM

(as well)

(Ok I think on the sheet I just need to drop the shock the damage. Is the shopping list ok?)

(list is perfect)

(Ok I think I am all set.)

9:22 AM

Returning from the lamplighter station Grim calls a meeting between his friends. When they arrive Grim starts. “I am planning to go fight the Ghoul King’s forces on Yauvanni. It is dangerous and only Tyr has real combat experience. So I am planning on just bringing him. Param I would appreciate if you could master craft me a shear rifle similar to what you did with my armor. Raven, I don’t currently have any work for you, but feel free to bill me for any expenses within reason while I am away.”

9:25 AM

(If the EP stealth shuttle is available and can get me to Yauvanni I am planning to go there and try to engage in resistance and rescuing people. As long as that fits with larger plans for everything)

(Not sure if there is anything I can do before the ghoul stuff.)

(We'll be planning that out probably later tonight or tomorrow based on the pace of the SCAF discussion so far)

3:03 PM

(I'll think of something short)

3:04 PM

(there was an old lamplighter site in the mountains Dai and Kayden found a long time ago. They took the salvage and vault contents but there's a few busted defense bots and the site itself is kind of neat if you wanted to go up there)

(Ok, I will be patient. Just didn’t want to not do anything if it’s going to be like a week before ghoul. I could go there. Thank you)

A site in the mountains that used to be operated by the lamplighters is pointed out to you and a landing craft is prepared to take you. The cargo and supplies have been taken long ago but you may yet find a moments

Grim asks Raven and Param “Before Tyr and I leave to fight the ghouls would you two like to join us on a trip to the old lamplighter base?” Grim then boards the craft with whoever is willing to join him.

They are both interested in going, seeing something beyond the city, on a new planet. This is going to be an experience for all of you

Grim excitedly thinks to himself. I wonder what this facility will be like? I wonder if it could be potential start to be restored and become usable by lamplighters on Heras again?

The lander sets down outside the city ramp down and awaiting your boarding.

Grim and crew board the lander. Everyone takes extra precaution to make sure their seatbelts are secure and tightened.

3

The lander heads skyward, moving south and depositing you in the mountains several hundred kilometers from the city, on one of the higher peaks. A lamplighter symbol adorns two large metal doors set into the side of a mountain. The doors are sealed now and based on the notes, a fire needs to be created ni a special alcove within the base of the lamp on the doors for the smoke and heat to operate themachinery correctly, and they will open

Grim and team carefully follow the notes to start the fire in the alcove. The excitement and anticipation building as the first embers begins to light.

The lamp begins to glow, casting the doors in a beautiful shade of orange-red, before they slowly grind open revealing a downward sloped metal ramp large enough to drive a truck down. there is no truck here, the contents were taken by the early Protectorate expedition that found this place.

The team begins their decent down the stairs. “This place is a piece of history. I know we aren’t the first here but it feels good to see what the early lamplighters built”

Glow lights begin rising in intensity as the doors finish opening. The ramp leads downstairs to a wide open vault now bereft of supplies, but an office to the left of the ramp, and something like a commons room to the right still exist in their original furnishings

Grim heads to the office to the left. Looking for a computer or potentially some of broken bots.

The left door has a computer terminal, along with a pair of data drives still connected to it. Back when Mytikas was in the middle fo actual starvation, taking them was not high on the list of priorities

“Raven can you see if you can get the computer working and see if there is any usable data on the drives?”

(program/int for Raven)

(9)

Raven is able to get the computer working and some basic functions of it up and running again. Facility information is displayed, and from down here she is able to close the vault doors to seal out the weather. There is a shudder as the air filtrators come online

Grim leaves Raven here to play with the computer and see what else if anything she can find. The rest of the crew checks out the common room.

The common room has been laid out as though expecting people to come back at any time. The refreshments have long expired, as has the case of stims on the wall, but the couch, chairs, fireplace, and some of the heavier wooden tables have survived the passage of time. There are a few books in this room but the titles have been worn away, and opening them without taking care might cause them to flake, or rip

(Can I make a roll to try and open the books carefully and start scanning them into my data pad in digital format? If I Can Grim tries to do that. If not or if it would be crazy to try I move on to the vault room.)

(We can do a sneak/dex I think makes sense since sneak is used for lockpicking and general slight of hand stuff)

(3) Grim clumsily tries to scan the books into his datapad

Only a few fragments of information are carried over, not enough to put together anything close to completed works

Grim takes the books with him on the off chance he can get an expert to restore them for some exorbitant fee. He then moves the check out the vault room.

(Can I expand the lamplighter vault into a sanctum? Or should I just build one somewhere else?)

(you can make it into one)

11:59 AM

The vault hasbeen emptied of its supply and is a featureless, flat room. There were once vehicles and rations stored here, now in use by the Protectorate itself- the exact purpose they were left behind to achieve

(Ok I will work up a map and a cost estimate)

(Are there broken defense bots I can try fixing? If not and if everything has been explored I will head back to prepare for the Ghoul fight)

(there are two spider bots on the mountain peaks leading up here. Dai and Kay stripped them for parts since they had some pretech in them, but the remains could be turned into mundane defense bots)

Grim and the team bring the broken bots into the facility and store them in the vault. (I may fix them later. For designing the additions I want to make to the facility, where is the entrance the top of the mountain? I am wondering if I can flatten the top and create a landing pad for a free merchant)

(yes at the top. You could level it and do some engineering yeah)

1:40 PM

(however you want it to look, youve got enough clout to get the changes made)

(Awesome thank you) Grim checks on Raven to see if anything was able to be found. He also has her make a copy of the drives.

There is an old star chart here that may not mean much once she compares it to stellar geography as it’s known now. Even a report on one or two worlds makes this worth something and she’s doing her best to recover some info

“Great work Raven. What you have found is priceless. Anything else you can recover is greatly appreciated.” (Can I give her a lead/cha as motivation?)

(Yeah we can do that)

(9)

(Deducted earlier shopping list and grav explorer from credits)

10:25 PM

 Landing Bay 100K
Living quarters 10K
Research Lab 25K
Secure Library 25K
Workshop 25K
Supply Bunker 50K
Garage 10K
Rec Facility 25K
Total: 270


Existing rooms - Not sure if credits are needed to fix them up
Secure Vault
Common Room - Planning on Turning it into Grims room
Room with computer - planning on turning it into Grims office

Not sure if there is a premium for building in a mountain
Also, not sure what the cost would be to add an elevator system

(Nothing. For the current rooms or elevator. Power is 5% of total sanctum cost and we can just call it part of that )

(Copy I will update totals tomorrow)

(Anything on the drives I can send to Nat before I leave for the Ghouls)

(Nothing we can do anything with right now)

(Copy) Grim asks Raven to keep working on the data while he is gone. He then tasks Param with overseeing the Sanctum renovations. Grim and Tyr then heads back to Mytikas to meet the rest of the team heading to the Ghoul fight.

5:25 PM

(Other than updating the sanctum costs and deducting them from sheet I have everything done. Will post updated sanctum costs here and deduct them tonight. Then I am 100% ready to switch to ghoul thread)

adding 13.5K for power and 27K for sealed environment advanced for 310,500 credits.

Will try and do level up today

(Take your time)

 Adding 400,000 credits for LLF pay. 500,000 credits for Psi Academy endeavor and 10,000 for ghoul mission. new credit total is 1,310,405

9:50 PM

 Level 9. New HP is 43 (1 HP increase due to rolling less than previous HP) Using the 1 saved SP and the 4 new SP gained to purchase Biospon Lvl 4. Taking Holistic Optimization Patterning as free power up for leveling discipline.

 Tyr (Martial Companion Character) Lvl 3. New HP is 10 (1 HP increase due to rolling less than previous HP). Spending the 3 new SP to purchase shoot 2.

Checking to see if I met the following goals: 
Participate in operations against ghoul king 3xp
Demonstrate effectiveness of my psychic abilities in combat 3xp
Stop harvesting of population on Yauvani 3xp 
Build a personal sanctum for me and my team 3xp

(edited)

10:27 PM

Adding 6xp from mission and 10K. new xp is 81/93. New credit amount is 1320405

(All accomplished)

3

4

ok adding the xp from all the goals puts me at 93/93. starting level up to 10

3

 Level 10. New HP is 51. Saving all SP. 1 must be biospon, 1 must be any psychic. 2 can be anything. Taking Tinker 1 Focus. Increasing fix from -1 to 1 because of 3 fix sp from tinker. AB raised to five.

(hot)

3

(Not sure if I can start a mission or not. If I can I figure I will contact Raven and see if she has any leads of LLF stuff from the computer she was decrypting)

(We can do that, no leads yet on that, but if you have anything else in mind, or maybe we make the jaunt to meet up with nat)

(I am good with that. I will figure out more later. Heading to church then spending day adventuring with the kids)

(sounds good to me)

(I talked to Nat. Heading to Tece is the plan)

(Having the Knarr travel from Heras to Erdoza to Yauvanni with Raven, Tyr, and Param aboard. Then going Yauvanni to Korra-S to Lerden to Tece. 6 days downtime for travel? If so trade 9/90)

(yessir)

8:36 AM

The Lamplighter platform is in station over Tece, and greets you as you enter the system. Natalia is on the surface, having recently recovered information from a lamplighter facility there. She is now following leads in town.

(Also, I wanted have my new grav explorer in the ship. I have enough room, but not sure if there is an official way to indicate it)

(there is enough free tonnage to haul it)

It took a bit for a response to come along, but eventually it did. Relayed up from the surface, to Vesikko, and then to Grim.

Hello!

We're making an effort to blend in with the local population right now, so here's some basics:

Leathers, dark colors, bright metals, and the occasional neons are all the style right now as is dark makeup for both men and women. 

Most carry small blades or a small gun, as the city does have a violent crime problem, and the leadership there seems too decentralized to do much about it

Most activity seems to be at nighttime, with people sleeping through the day cycle.

The grav explorer would very much stand out, as would any weaponry heavier than sidearms. 

Local slang and attitudes trend towards... excess and edginess.

Down there, I'm going by Catherine Mars. Just look me up. Oh, and Lan's here, too - under Su. :)

(edited)

Grim brings the Knarr down to the surface trying to remain undetected. (I am going to land in the ocean south of the city. I will change out my gear on roll20 when I get a chance. Then have Tyr drive me as close to the city as is safe and then have him drop me off and head back to the ship.) (edited)

(I’m just gonna get past where nat’s immediate interrogation is so we know how things are going when you meet up)

(Copy)

(finished setting up my sheet as far as readied/stowed items)

While driving towards the city Grim turns on the advanced sensors. “Tyr, we might as well do a bit of exploring while we are out here.” (Checking to see if there are any points if interest worth investigating)

There is a downtown strip with many nightclubs, a large university, a manufacturing district, farming domes, and an upper heights neighborhood where the ultra-rich have squirreled themselves away from the rest of the more violent city behind large walls and gates

Grim heads to the university

The university is a large campus with ten buildings, and a large quad in between all of them-possibly some of the only green space within city limits. The plants here are a mix of daylight loving plants and bioluminescent counterparts taking advantage of the longer night cycle of this world

Grim checks to see if his compad can connect to any university networks. (Not trying to hack into anything secure. Just seeing if there is a university network like you might find at a university in America) Grim then heads to the main administration building.

There is a public network here, along with a private one that requires a password. The admin building is a tall five story building with a bell tower on top. A crew is up there right now working on polishing it and maintaining it

Grim connects to the public network for now. (Basically just want to make sure I have access to basic info like you would find on a schools website. Like courses taught, who is the dean etc.) then Grim heads into the admin office and proceeds to the front desk.

(You’d have access to that yeah)

11:34 AM

The front desk has no attendant but there is a console where you can type in requests

Grim enters a message into the console. “I am looking to speak to someone about possibly making a large donation to the university.” Grim then leaves contact number for his compad

The financial office will be sending a reply message soon. There’s no indication if it will be an automated service or a person.

8:46 PM

(Nat is about free so we can probably move to that meetin)

A message arrived, chiming gently. Not the financial office's (un)fortunately.

Things on the ground are looking... strange. Can update better in person. If you're dressed to blend in, we've got a hotel suite at <address>, number 404. Meet up, talk details, see where we go from there?

- Natalia

1

(Switching to Nat’s thread)

9:26 PM

After receiving Natalia’s messages Grim heads the hotel listed

Grim heads to the club Natalia told him about

(back in single threads? i havent made it down to hers yet)

(yes. We are basically switching missions. I am heading to the club and she is heading to the university)

Pound Town is reaching the apex of how busy it is currently, and there are floods of patrons being let inside. No cover charge is being collected. The music is a rapid industrial and electronic beat, and the crowd already here is either mostly drunk or on drugs. Glow sticks and black lights are prominent

7:41 PM

A curving stairway with a pair of armed security standing in front of it lead upstairs

Grim establishes a telepathic connection with the guards and pushes his connection further to attempt to make them not think of his presence. (They each get a mental saving throw) he will ten attempt to walk past the guards and up the stairway. (4 effort committed for scene. 3/4 remaining)

(One pass one fail)

6:41 AM

The one who has passed shoves his seemingly oblivious partner aside, to block your path. “Hey. You can’t go up there. This is for VIPs only”

“Exactly, which I am. I am here to talk to your boss. You can bring me to him if you would like, or wait here.” (I believe telepathic contact stays open even with the fail. If so) Grim telepathically tells him “Quickly”

The music is very loud and he may not realize you’re speaking in his head. “I’m sorry. This is a VIP section. You’re not expected!” He has one finger in his ear to try to block out some of the noise

“You’re not expected.” (Telepathic assault)

6:03 PM

(20 non lethal damage. Mental save to half it)

The one that you’ve been able to connect to collapses. (Initiative )

(3)

(4)

6:49 PM

the second of the guards draws his service weapon, a small compact handgun and fires, though the low caliber round doesnt have enough force to punch through your protective clothing

6:50 PM

The shot however is loud, and people begin to scream and stampede toward the doors

“Your boss is not going to like you unloading a firearm in his club. Now why exactly are you firing at me? How about we go see him an get this sorted out?” (That’s all I want to do this round. Not sure if I can roll to try and talk him down)

(your talking so far is a free action, but you can to a talk/cha. Skill checks are usually a main action unless some foci or psionic ability makes them not.) (edited)

6:58 PM

(from his perspective, someone they don't know is bothering them, said something ominous and now one of his co-workers is on the ground, so it doesnt look good)

(Yeah I can see why he would think that. I’m basically trying to gaslight him into thinking he screwed up or over reacted)

7:01 PM

(8 talk/cha)

He wavers a bit. "What did you do to him? What did you do!?" Around you all, people are streaming out of the club, the gunshot enough to convince them sticking around is a bad idea.

“I argued with him. That’s it. Does he have some sort of health condition? He looks like he is still breathing. All I know is he started getting mad and then collapsed. Talk to your boss, if he wants to talk to me bring me up, if he wants you to kick me out or worse, well you can try and do that. But at this point after you unloaded a firearm he is going to have questions for you either way.”

“You’ll have to talk to him on the street behind the club, they’re moving him. Couldn’t risk it with the gun”

7:59 AM

He has a finger on his earpiece and makes a few taps on it

Grim heads out to the street behind the club.

There is a suited figure in the midst of four armed bodyguards. A car is pulling down the street and they're openly carrying compact automatics, as panicked partrygoers stream out of the club

Grim initiates telepathic contact with the suited figure (6/7 effort committed. Should be able to get surface thoughts but not probing further than that yet.)

10:58 AM

“Hello, are you the one in charge around here?”

(did the effort from earlier come back, with the guard inside and the psionic assault? if you need it for them)

(The psychic assault was for the day, the other 5 was for the scene. So it depends if it’s the same scene. I assumed it was)

(yeah i think his wording is saying that he has 1 effort left after this contact)

(Yes that’s what I’m saying. I only have 1 left by my math)

(okay, i thought you were saying you only used 1)

5:16 PM

You can sense anxiety. The group is preparing to leave after someone was crazy enough to shoot up their club. "You the one shooting weapons inside my club?"

“That would be your guard. If I was coming to your club to cause violence I could have come much more heavily armed and not alone. I came because I would like to have a friendly conversation. Are you the man in charge here that my friend talked to earlier?”

"The student? Are you the professor? "

“I am not. But that does not really matter. Who I am is someone who cares about her safety. I came here to try and have a civil conversation and to ascertain if you are a threat to my friend. So Sir, are you a threat I should concern myself with or can we both go our separate ways?” Grim waits a moment to see if anything come across his surface thoughts. Then drills down into the mans thoughts to try and find out how someone can live so long (he gets a mental saving throw.) (edited)

(fails, but a mental save for you in return)

2

(Success 19v5. I also have metaspi 0 so if it was magic or telepathy I should detect it and get a +2 so 21v5)

(6 damage, halved that from 12 since you passed) There is a click, and a black rectangle ejects from a concealed port on the side of the figure's head. "Now now. Firewall chips are very expensive. You really don't want to be doing that again." You didn't get more than a glimpse before the chip fired, but there was a clear view of blood in the snow, and boot prints

Grim grins. well this just got interesting. “I now know you are not as easily dealt with as I thought, and you know a little bit about what I am capable of. What happens next? Is there any scenario in which we both avoid bloodshed?”

"Do your questions need to be handled so abrasively? Get in the car. We will talk, but if you try that again you're going to see what the chip I have in my second slot does, and you're not going to enjoy yourself"

“I apologize for my abrasiveness. Growing up on my planet it was necessary for survival.” Grim gets in the car. “You have my word I won’t use my abilities against you or any of your people so long as I’m not threatened.”

He sighs , unsure what constitutes a threat. "Alright, well, hop in. If I try to hand you a drink are you going to try to get into my head again?"

1:06 PM

The bodyguards begin splitting off, two ride in the large limo section with you, with another in the cab by the driver. The last seems to be heading for a motorbike parked a bit further up the street

"Thank you for the drink. I gave my word I would not, and I meant it. To help clarify when I said threatened, I meant I won't try anything unless you or your people try to kill me." Grim sits anxiously to see what happens next and tries very hard to maintain a demeanor of calm.

The car begins moving off. “Alright. You have the questions so please ask them” Youre handed a frosty glass of the local whiskey to occupy your hands

“The primary question I have is are you a lamplighter from the original expedition and if so how have you lived so long without aging?”

“I am, you’ve caught me but you’ve been in my head. There’s no use denying it. As for how I’ve lived so long, it’s a story. An epic almost, and I may extend such a benefit to you, if you would be willing to assist myself and my family in return”

Grim swirls the whisky in the glass and takes a sniff before sipping the whisky. “I may be willing to assist but I will be upfront that I won’t do anything to hurt any of my friends.”

“No no. You deciding to do that would be your own choice for your own reasons. Money, power, materials. That’s what I’m after. You have a ship, access to off world trade, the like. In return I can offer you the gift of eternity”

“Money, power, and materials are doable. But it is a two way street. Eternity is nice and would be appreciated, but we also have worlds that could use more development. I can help you access these worlds, but the money, power, and materials come from building industries and creating jobs on those worlds. If you are willing to help these worlds grow as your power on the worlds grow I think we have an understanding. Sort of a rising tides raise all ships situation”

(What did you want him to do, exactly?)

1:18 PM

(I don’t know what he would be agreeing to)

(Maybe I misunderstood. I assumed he was asking for some level of access on other worlds. So like materials for example, if he wants to mine on Erdoza I would expect also for jobs to be created. Basically I’m ok if he is talking for instance doing what a player faction might do. Like building holdings. If he is wanting on the other hand to like strip mine populated planets Im not ok)

( I guess really what I am getting at is that i agree with his proposal in theory. In my mind I guess I see money power and resources as something generated by corporations, like in Texas for example and oil. Drilling for oil generates a lot of money power and resources there for the corporations doing it, but it also generates lots of high paying jobs for the people working. So if I misunderstood, we can just say Grim agrees to his proposal)

(Okay I see what you mean now. Yeah they would want that)

“Also, I’ve noticed there only seems to be one city here, is there a reason? I am just wondering if we are planning to increase, wealth, power, and resources is there potential here on Tece?”

“The environment is challenging. The dark does not make for Easy exploration , and neither does the local wildlife. You may find the occasional homesteader out there. I wouldn’t be shocked, but a colony or new settlement is a challenging prospect “

10:30 AM

“More trouble than its historically been worth”

“Fair enough, I may do some exploring if you don’t mind. As far as your earlier proposal I accept. I will assist your family.”

"Some exploring here on Tece?'

“Yes, eventually but only if that’s ok. I hope to find some resources or something of value. If we hope to grow the family’s power then I saw it as a step to those ends. I may be overthinking things. I have accepted your offer, so if I am overthinking and you have other ideas for helping the family I am willing to take your lead.”

“And in return, I can offer you immortality. We will be at the estate in a few moments and I can administer the bite. I mean, rights. If youll allow”

“I will allow it.” Grim ponders Immortality? Bite? Can my powers even cure this? I guess I am about to find out.

The car pulls up toa large gated estate with a mix of bio-luminescent and more traditional plants. Yellow and warm looking landscape lights have been set into a stone drive and walk, and you can see house-guard are on patrol and on the roof. They wear matte black combat armor and enclosed helmets devoid of any kind of insignia. Many nod respectfully, or bow shallowly if their gear or posting allows them to but there is a lack of salutes or more formal military organization here. You're led directly into the spacious front room of the house where a pair of staircases bend gently on the left and right sides of the room to lead to the second floor.

7:16 PM

"Welcome to my home. Our home, now I suppose. We're glad to have another of you here with off-world connections. We understand Sister Valentina has been quite busy on Yauvani. Maybe you've heard of her?"

Grim lights up at the mention of Val. That’s a friendly name. Is she connected to these people. “Yes, Val is a good friend. We fought together on Yauvanni, her forces were also of great assistance on Heras when I fought some pirates. Going back further we were friends when she used to be a member of the protectorate. How do you know Val?”

"Val has also become a member of the family. She promised access to off world, much the same as we requested of you, in exchange for the same power in return. It was a good deal , it sounds like"

“I trust Val. If she has gone through with this and trusts you then I will to. I agree to the same deal as Val and I am ready whenever you are.”

(physical save, when you're ready)

(Success 12v5)

Sunlight will not trouble you and rather than physical strength you feel your cognitions and reserves of willpower surging as without warning the man you’d been speaking with lengthens his fangs and bites deep, sending a spurt of crimson across the room.

(added the 9xp now 102/117, also added the 250,000 new total is 2,070,405)

(Hot!)

(Just checking if I can continue here now, or if I should finish the meeting first)

(Let’s finish the meeting)

“Youl need to feed on blood, once every three days” he steps back, wiping a thin trickle from his chin. “Miss three feeding cycles and you’ll become quite feral. The condition will re write your genetic code and things will be very unpleasant for you. Animal blood will work for a time, and we have had mixed trending poor luck with synthetic substitutes. For now human blood seems to be the only true way of staving off the condition. It can be preserved , taken from others, stolen from blood banks , infused. As long as it gets into your system somehow”

“How much blood is needed per feeding and is it possible to feed without killing?”

“350ml of blood is enough. If you can get that mich from a volunteer there’s no reason to kill them, but that means they know the secret “

“I was thinking if they were unconscious my powers and my mind blade have the potential to assist me there. As I work towards both my goals and those of House Onoferos I am planning to establish my own affiliated house if you don’t mind. I am thinking of calling it House Drakon. Additionally, if house Onoferos would like to provide an advisor it would be appreciated. Someone who could advise on your interests as well as help me with knowledge of this change.”

10:43 PM

(Basically seeing if I can pick up another henchman. Possibly skilled in either know or know magic.)

“An affiliated under house. That would provide a nice shell company for our off world operations. I would agree to you being under me. Our deal then, 15% of house profits as the retainer fee for Us? And a savant, well I’ve got some academy students I’ve been keeping my eyes on for future house service. I’d be happy to provide you the list and you can make your selection”

“That would be appreciated. Once the savant is selected I will have to depart shortly. I received an urgent request for a psychic academy ritual pertaining to a being called the Still Lady. She is a threat to both of our houses as well as every other being. If I may ask for one more request, if possible can I get a months supply of blood to get me started and allow me to make this journey?”

“Of course. Draw from the house reserves in the basement. We will replenish our stores once you have left “

Grim contacts Tyr to have him meet him outside the city with the grav explorer. He the reviews the list of candidates from the Academy. The name that stands out is Minerva. Although one of the top students at the academy Minerva’s file has her marked for a servant position in House Onoferos upon graduation. It looks as though her family has served as low level servants to House Onoferos for generations but lacks the wealth or connections to improve their station beyond that. Perhaps by serving as my advisor on matters involving this condition she can gain the status her family needs to advance and in return I may gain her loyalty. Grim then forwards the name to Octavian to request the transfer. (edited)

Octavian approves, and will handle the introductions, and will handle explaining the situation to them. All you need to do is stop by after the next day cycle to collec them. He promises they will serve, and at such time you can also pick up the supply of blood you need for the trip

3:49 PM

he will disguse it as actual medical supplies, so you're not forced to disclose your condition to your associates unless you want to

The next night Grim collects the “Medical Supplies” and enters the backseat of an expensive vehicle that will will take him to meet Minerva and then drive them out of the city to his grav explorer. When Minerva enters the vehicle Grim introduces himself. “Hello, my name is Grim and you must be Minerva. How much have you been filled in on the situation?”

“My briefing was for our intents , complete. I’m ready to assist you and bring success to our joint endeavors. I don’t have much in the way of belongings. I’m ready to go whenever “

Grim and Minerva then proceed to meet up with Tyr. All three then take the explorer back to the ship and begin making preparations for departure to Galeta.

As you reach your ship, Octavian is there waiting, along with a battered looking Lan, who has been given normal clothing in place of her armored assault suit. Octavian himself is looking worse for wear, with scratches, stabs, and other wounds across the visible parts of his body.

7:34 AM

He doesn't seem upset with you, just expectant, and perhaps a bit annoyed

“Octavian this is a surprise, what happened are you ok?”

"Your friend..who promised to remain neutral and not meddle in our affairs? She was in my bedroom when I went to settle in for the night. She and this one here.."he gestures to Lan. "They attacked me. Something about trying to extort information for a cure out of me. She didn't leave me much choice, was very quick to pull her gun"

8:19 AM

"I'm sorry about your friend, but this changes our deal a bit, in your favor, if you'd indulge me a few moments to listen"

“Sometimes people surprise you like that. Her behavior was highly inappropriate. It always stings when someone you thought of as a friend betrays another. I understand the choice you had to make. But, yes of course I always have time to hear you out.”

"Lan here, has been promised freedom and service, and will smooth things over with the Lamplighter staff on the platform above. You make an ideal choice to take up the mantle, and the legitimacy LLF offers you helps hide your involvement with House Oniferos.

10:04 AM

"You'd already approached them about possible employment is what Lan here tells me, rare chance to have your cake and eat it too"

“This does seem like a perfect opportunity for both of our houses. Instead of the 15% which for the LLF would raise flags. I suggest we draw up a lease deal for the Arctic facility. Say 1mil a month for now? It’s more than the 15% of my house would if brought in. Additionally we can look for ways to covertly direct more money in the future.” Grim then initiates a telepathic contact with Lan. I want to trust you. But if you betray us I can read your memories and I will know.

You can feel Lan's sorrow, and the swirling matrix of her thoughts as she was ripped from her home planet (though can never go back) ,and then continually forced into more and more situations that made her uncomfortable, or put her into extreme danger to satisfy the ego of someone who held her in wage bondage. Lan had a guilded cage, but it restricted freedom no differently than the iron bars and bullet proof windows of Lucid Industries, her employer back on Polychrome. (edited)

11:43 AM

You get a glimpse of the bloated, tumorous mass too swollen to walk her brother had become, when his knock-off Proteus Implant failed and The Stain began accelerating the cancer he already had far beyond even a bioscopic's ability to treat, even though they could never afford one. (edited)

Lan, I had no idea. I don’t want you to feel this way with us. You are free to go if you choose. I only ask you keep the secret. Also, if I could of done something for your brother I would have. Consider any debts or obligations you once had paid. If you choose to stay you may in whichever roll you choose. If you choose to go as soon as we finalize transfer of the LLF I will arrange transport to whichever world you choose and transfer 10 Mil from the LLF funds for services rendered. From now on your life is your choice.

(she's yours if you want her. I know you don't need a doctor but she's got fix, know, and heal, just in case)

(Awesome thank you. I am probably Primarily going to use Lan as the person doing most the actual work for LLF. Like while I’m doing missions or adventures, Lan gets to do the paperwork)

(yeah, she can be an admin person too which is handy for running your trade routes, ect. You ready for the official role shift?)

(I am ready)

Lan begins walking over, and presses a data-chip into your hand, which will allow you access and control over their platform in orbit. "Nat died with the jacket on. I'm sorry I wasn't able to save it"

“Thank you. I guess our next step is to head up to the platform. If you want to take her ship I can meet you there.”

“I’ll meet you up there. We took a lighter down, it’s still out in the woods along with our grav explorer. I’ll meet you in the expedition hangar

Grim and crew head up to the station. His first order of business is addressing the Lamplighter Foundation. Grim gets on the intercom system. “My fellow Lamplighters, Natalia is dead. But the Lamplighters will live on. It is with a heavy heart that I say she engaged in action unbecoming of a Lamplighter on the surface and it resulted in her death. I plan to lead our organization forward and would appreciate all of your help in doing so. For those of you willing to continue the lamplighter mission things should continue much the same. For anyone wishing to leave, transport will be arranged.” Grim the leaves instructions with Lan to bring the station to Yauvanni and begin humanitarian operations on the surface. “Lan, I need to head to Galeta and assist in a telepathic ritual. I trust you can handle the humanitarian operation in my absence.?”

8:47 PM

(Kind of a long post, sorry. Basically sending the station and lamplighters to Yauvanni to do humanitarian stuff while Grim heads to Galeta to get narratively caught up to the ritual thread.)

“Of course Chief. I’ll handle things while you’re away and we will wait at Yauvani for you to get back. And. Thank you for getting me out of there. I won’t let you down”

(Tece-Savita-Shalini-thjodhild-asta-shahriar-Galeta. 16 days. 7/7 to add customized mod to storm armor. 9/21 to build mastercraft sheer rifle with customized mod. If approved)

(I don’t see any issues with the timing)

(added endeavor award to Grim sheet and subtracted credits for the customized mod. 3,569,405 new credit amount. 3 pretech - total, 1 plot point)

(awesome, so we would then be in time with the ritual mission, which we know the end results of now)

(yes, so I think I am caught up to real time. I am probably going to head to cratylus to try for the bounty board thing if nobody has gone for it yet)

It was rumored that in Knoxville city, a navigation device can be found, that will take a ship below the waves and to a trove of stashed pre-scream loot.

2:58 PM

No members of the government have managed to get there themselves, and have quit any claim over any salvage

(Galatea-Danae-Hallia-Craytulus, 6 days. 15/21 master craft sheer rifle with customized mod)

3:21 PM

Grim enters orbit above Craytulus and contacts Knoxvill city requesting permission to land and meet with the government.

The government is in Halcyon, and you’re permitted to land there first inside the green zone to meet with the local officials

Grim lands on the surface and then heads to visit the Halcyon government officials.

You’re met 5km away from the city by six soldiers and an official in a formal looking set of traveling clothes. Their vehicle is modern looking, a scout truck running on biofuel rather than a reactor

“Hello. My name is Grim. How are you fine gentlemen today? I take it you are here to escort me the leadership of this city?”

"We're who you're going to be speaking with. The last outsiders we let into the city ended up being Brothers of Fenris, and we've learned our lessons since then"

“That is understandable. My friends on Heras had a similar incident with the BoF. They were very deceptive. I hope in time I can prove both myself and the lamplighter organization. In the meantime I would like to request permission to explore Knoxville city as well as the ocean here.”

"If you transmit any survey data you take while you're out there, anything you find in the wreckage or ruins is all yours"

“That is more than fair, you have a deal” After reaching the agreement Grim and crew fly the ship to outside of Knoxville city and then depart the ship in the grav explorer. As they begin exploring they turn on the survey equipment.

The air, soil and water readings begin populating based on local conditions. It’ll take some time for a full read. The city is walled with a thick metal gate that has been blasted open- though that effort looks old. The handful of skyscrapers poking above the walls are glass blasted and scorched

(Will the grav explorer fit through the gate?)

(yes, barely but yes)

Grim brings the explorer into the city and heads as close to the city center as possible. (Figure thats a good spot to wait for sensors to do their work)

(is grim behind the controls, or tyr?)

(Probably Param, the tech. Nobody on my crew has pilot skills though. If I have to pick between Grim and Tyr I will say Tyr.)

(param is fine!)

12:53 PM

Heading into the city, passing between the first two low buildings you pass, there is a pop of smoke from one of the wndows, and then one on the opposite side of the street (pilot/dex, so 2d6+2 for Param)

(11)

A descending net large enough to trap the vehicle misses, narrowly

Grim is going to have Param press through and if it exists find a more defensible position. If there isn’t one we will keep moving until the sensors pick something up

There is a train tunnel for the old subway ahead that doesnt seem to have a train in it anymore. It's a bit of a bottleneck but it keeps your flanks secure for a few moments

Grim has Param pull into the tunnel. Grim and Tyr don their storm armor and exit the explorer. Raven will man the machine gun on the explorer.

You can see five figures, 20m away at the end of the tunnel. THey have a combination of pipes, bats, and a three fire arms among the group- battered looking long pattern rifles. They're ancient looking Rimworlder Class semi-automatics.

Grim and Tyr aim their weapons at the approaching figures but don’t fire. “Let’s talk. Who are you and what do you want?”

They advance slowly, weapons low in a guard posture

“Last chance stop moving and start talking.”

They do not stop

Grim opens a telepathic contact with whichever one looks to be the leader and the does a telepathic assault. (Facile mind makes the contact an instant action. Committing 2 effort for day. 1 for instant contact, 1 for assault)

8:35 PM

(20 nonlethal damage. Mental saving throw to try and half)

8:36 PM

Tyr and the explorer are not going to act yet

One of them falls, and the others open fire

10:01 AM

(Crit/6 on grim. The others miss

(6 damage before or after the crit?)

(6 total, the second dice was only a 2)

(either way rolled 19 for healing taking 1 strain)

12:34 PM

Grim attacks another with his mind blade

12:34 PM

(23 attack 9 Damage)

12:35 PM

Tyr will attack with his knife

12:36 PM

(17 attack, 5 damage 2 shock against AC 15 or less)

12:38 PM

Not firing the machine gun on the explorer.

(They're 20m from you, so a melee weapon wouldnt reach them)

1:02 PM

(unless you're all double moving, in which case nobody can also attack)

(I thought storm armor was 20m move)

(It has a 20m jump, but doesn’t get to always move 20m by default)

1:11 PM

(But the leap is your move so it’s fine)

(So all good or I need to redo anything)

(You’re fine I’ll update later)

The two of you lay into the four surviving attackers, blocking their ability to keep firing on you.

4:40 PM

(I’ll roll for them when I am back at a pc)

(No rush)

One of the bandits falls leaving three remaining and their nerve at the sudden reversal of fortune has them running, breaking contact (main action to disengage without provoking an opportunity attack from you), and fleeing 10m away to the tunnel mouth

Grim will engage another bandit and Tyr will follow up against the bandit he previously attacked.

9:27 PM

(Grim: 28 attack 8 damage)

9:28 PM

(Tyr: 17 attack, 7 damage 2 shock against AC 15 or less)

Tyr is able to kill his opponent as grim locks blades with another. None of the survivors are able to punch through your armor

Grim will try and finish his opponent, Tyr will move on to the remaining bandit.

7:58 AM

(Grim 28 attack 8 damage)

7:58 AM

(Tyr Attack 14 damage 3

THe bandits routed, calm returns to the area. Only a pair of gunshots were fired, and the city seems not to have reacted to it. If there are others around, gunfire must be part of the normal background noise, and they are not reacting

Grim stabilizes any bandits that need it. Waking the bandit leader Grim establishes a telepathic contact. “Who are you and why did you come after us?”

Youre intruders and this is our territory. The clan could use your vehicle to destroy our rivals

This territory belongs to the Halycon Government and I have permission to be here. I am looking for something and would rather not be constantly harassed while doing so. I let you and your men live so far. I have no interest in fighting your clan if you leave me alone. Is there anyway to convince you guys to leave me alone or possibly assist me?

Weapons. Or help us destroy our rivals

Who are your rivals? How many are there?

Silver Bucks. Dozens. Maybe more

1:08 PM

You can feel the pain of his wounds through your connection, its clouding a bit of his thinking

Grim heals his wounds and then the wounds of his allies. Grim says out loud. “If I was interested in bloodshed I would have just killed the 5 of you and then hunted down the rest of your clan. I have no interest in killing either your clan or the silver bucks. Why do you guys even live out here instead of The green zone in Halcyon?”

"Its across the ocean. How do you think we'd get there? I'm not going to swim all that way"

“I could always bring you guys there if that’s what you want and they would take you. Alternatively I could possibly hire your clan. It would take some time for me to get transportation here but it would beat living in ruins. How many of you are there anyway?”

“Thirty of us but five are just juves. Too young to be doing the fighting”

“Ok so two more questions. What makes you different from the silver bucks? And can you take me to the clan leader?” (edited)

(thier leader, or the leader of the silver bucks?)

(Theirs)

"Hah, you fix me up for them to slit our throats? Better you do it yourself then"

“Sounds like a real nice guy. I am going to continue my search. If your clan attacks me again I won’t be as forgiving. You are free to go” Grim presses into his mind asking where the beacon is. (He gets a mental saving throw and may not even know but worth a shot)

(Fails) Sometimes radios get funny near the center of the city, but his clan doesn't have too many and he never bothered to figure out why that happens

After letting them go Grim and Tyr enter the explorer and begin heading to the center of the city

There’s evidence of gang violence and misery everywhere. You don’t see many people but you see evidence of habitation in random places.

8:27 PM

The center of the city is a convention center, city hall, and a large stadium where soccer was played in better days

Grim has Tyr stay with explorer and the rest if the crew. “Contact me if you get any readings or are in any danger.” Grim then opens a telepathic contact with each of the crew. (Should be free due to facile mind). Grim then heads to the city hall first.

(it is, ill get a map up)

(Copy)

10:24 AM

Arriving in the lower west quadrant of the building you see that the front desk and the immediate cultural displayed here has been ransacked. Cases are broken, terminals are smashed or missing all together and there’s evidence of fighting though no bodies have been left behind to nature

Grim heads north to the next room

The doors leading itno it are heavy and you can see a poorly fastened wire running across the top

Grim is going to examine the wire and try to see if he can do anything with it to get the heavy doors open

The wire is connected probably to some sort of device on the other side, though you can't be sure what

Grim is going to connect the wire to one of his power cells to give the wire electricity

Something pops on the other side of the door and there is a hiss of air being released into that room. It goes on for a few moments, before stopping.

If Grim can he will enter the room now

(physical save)

(success 11v5)

THere is something of a choking gas still in the room but whatever it is doesnt seem to be bothering you for right now. You can see the other side of the trap, that would have filled the room with it if the wire wasnt but before the room was entered. Rigging in the second power cell seems to have overloaded things and it triggered anyway. The large office has a terminal on the table with thick cables running to the roof, that might be the source of the beacon.

Grim will attempt to access the terminal and see if he can get any data

(you can ask it questions and if we get into anything really sketchy we might have a program check)

Grim tries to see if there is any data on this facility like what’s in each room

This seems to be the administrative center of the town hall. The other rooms are for meetings or for the residence of the city mayor themselves.

(Can I get to the roof from this room like from an access hatch by the cables? If not I will query the computer on where the access to the roof is)

(You could from here yes)

Grim climbs up to the roof and begins following the cables

There is a dish and another terminal on the roof. The terminal has alignment controls and in the distance you hear more gunfire of the gang violence endemic to the survivors here

Grim will access the terminal and attempt to get the dish into the correct alignment (edited)

Aligned with a satellite above, the beacon shuts off, and instead the cargo capsule in space begins transmitting instead

4:52 PM

It would have been impossible to find without it

Grim will head back down to the room below and then start backtracking to the grav explorer

The explorer is picking up people moving along side streets and within buildings nearby as you climb aboard. So far none have attacked but there’s close to sixty of them

Grim is going to have Param start driving, trying to avoid heading towards the people even if it means taking a longer or out of the way route

(Survive/wis for param as we are trying to avoid a street gang)

(I rolled 4 on a 2d6. Not sure if there are any mods positive or negative)

(+2, one from int and 1 from program as she’s a normal npc)

(Ok final number is 6 then)

The vehicle swerves around corners and cuts through alleys but you don’t know the city like they do and a blocking force of ten gangers with an old city bus dragged across the road ahead blocks your path. They’re 50m from you

Grim fires the Grav explorers heavy machine gun doing suppression fire

12:07 PM

(14 damage rolled. So does 7 with evasion save to avoid)

(Alright. We can just bypass initiative since it’s a small combat. ) Two of the bandits go down immediately while the rest scurry for cover. An armored shutter on the bus opens and something like a magnetic tipped point emerges on a launcher. It goes wide and the cable snaps.

Param reverses the explorer and tries to get out of there

(you're way faster than them, so you'd disengage without trouble)

After disengaging Param continues trying to get the Explorer out of the city

Your ship is able to pick you up at a large park nearby , rather than get through the endless streets and your explorer is brought aboard - the presence of the ship is enough to keep any opportunists gangs at bay

Now back aboard the ship Grim and crew will head to the cargo capsule

(3xp, 5000 credits)

7:20 PM

You;re able to recover it, now knowing where it is, revealing the wealth of this world, a cache of five pretech components.

1

Heading to Gudrun (3days travel. 12/21 mastercrafted sheer rifle. This will also put me at 25/30 days of blood supply. So 5 days left.)

(righto) Gudrun is quiet, most of the fleet is out west, helping to co-own the battlespace of the Ghoul king's realm with the Protectorate fleet, and Trivedi cloud is one of the few presences in the system- along with the refueling platform near the moon. You're welcomed into the system, and advised to moor near the moon as well, to keep planetside running lanes clear

(Shopping list: 4 specialist suit mechs)

8:46 AM

Grim contacts the local hospitals and offers his biospon services in exchange for blood samples. (Basically my cover is I want to study the blood of individuals I heal to see if the biospon power affects it.)

(how much would you want to take from any one place?)

(I will try 4 bags each from 4 places. So I figure full day of Biospon effort at each hospital in exchange.)

(works for me, Central, Rebirth, Port New-Rotterdam, Dahab, and Prime would all be relatively easy to spend a day at)

12:40 PM

(those are all predominantly human settlements with no other layers of government)

(Ok by my math, I should have enough to last 40 days now.)

12:59 PM

(If the suit mechs are done Grim will reach out to the Daughters of the Lotus)

(They'd take a few days to complete, and getting ahold of them is an actual adventure)

2:08 PM

(if we wanted to run that)

(Ok let’s do that)

The mech suits are being constructed, and Param mentions that the job is only half done. Finding the Daughters is another piece of the puzzle. It was thought that the late Cyrus Adonis and his agents might have had a run in with them on Aslief, near its southern settlement, though the meeting broker was found with his severed head on a parked car antenna before he was able to provide specific information on where they might be residing

While waiting for the suits to build Grim will head to Aslief to try and get a lead on The Daughters. (3 days travel. 15/21 on sheer rifle)

https://www.worldanvil.com/w/iron-stars-nekosmash/a/aslief-article?preview=true

Aslief

8:07 PM

The last sighting of the daughters was near harmony in the mountainous region to its south. From there the trail is hard to pick up , though if word gets out of your intentions they may be more amendable to being found

Grim will land as close to harmony as he can safely/legally and then head into the town on foot and alone. (Leaving crew on ship. Will change out my gear on roll20 when I can. But wearing armored undersuit and just bringing the mind blade and mag pistol) (edited)

(Connect/cha)

(7)

(Also is goal: Examine bounty on Craytlus good to mark complete?)

(Yessir)

6:40 AM

You’re able to get some feelers out into the city and are brought to the hotel one of cyrus’ informants had been staying in. This is where the trail went cold but like any good paranoid organization you can hope that they’ve left some kind of watch behind or regularly check in on the site to see if anyone’s asking around

If there is a hotel bar Grim will head there and begin asking the bartender questions

The hotel does have a bar, one of the few that have been left totally intact even since the time of Remnant occupation. Bartender is an affable young human male, who seems to enjoy making drinks and conversation as much for the sake of it, as for the generous tips he hopes to get. A small fishbowl with no water in it has been left out, with a paper sign taped on the front in a phallic shape, asking for "Just the tip"

Grim puts a hundred credits in the tip bowl and then orders a bourbon neat. Then Grim asks the bartender “Do you get many visitors here?”

“None who tip as well as you do. We get some though. Farmers and off worlders passing through.

“You might say I am a clothier of sorts. I have four suits I am looking to exchange. They wouldn’t fit you but maybe if you know someone whose daughters are looking for some suits, I may be able to assist.” (edited)

"I know about a boutique, up in the mountains. Might be someone there to take em off your hands"

1:24 PM

"Could maybe draw you up some directions, if you want"

“That would be very appreciated. From what I hear this is a perfect time to visit the mountains, if I am lucky I may find some lotus growing up there.”

"Wild Lotus is hard to find, but you never knoiw what might be on the highest peaks"

“Much appreciated, thank you.” Grim head out to the mountains following the directions given.

(Survive wis just to set the scene)

(9)

The mountainous terrain on this night world is made of dark stone and a road leading up ends after 250m, giving way to loose forest and an arduous climb that vehicles - even grav fitted ones would find almost impossible due to the steep angle. You’re beginning to see why the daughters might have chosen this place to make their encampment. You find a climbing gear and rope set into the base of a nearby cliff, with the lines still attached. C. Adonis is written in the tags, another echo of his previous attempt to try to find this shadowy organization

Grim attempts to use the climbing gear to scale the cliff. Cyrus was here. I’ve heard much about him. Hopefully I can succeed where even Cyrus did not.

(I don't know why this never re-lit for me)

(Discord has been weird lately)

The harness is ill fitting, as you do not share his 'herculean' build, you have to fiddle with some of the straps to cinch it up properly, and even then you feel a bit loose inside the harness. Setting up the mountain, you climb for about half an hour before coming to a place where you can sit on the lip of a low cliff and take a break for a few moments. A small spring bubbles out of the rock providing a wonderful source of cool mountain water. A small carin is built next to it, with crushed and dried flowers placed on top of the stones.

If there are available rocks and flowers Grim will add another level to the cairn out of respect. Then Grim will rest for a bit before continuing up the cliff.

You place a stunning white rock from the pool onto the top of the carin. A sense of this being the right thing to do falls over you, and after another drink you head up the cliff face to another peak, reaching it as the sun begins to fall. this one likewise seems barren, and there is one more to go come morning- but for now- you are tired and rest will mean you dont have any accidents on the final leg of your climb. There are a few scraggly trees on this speak- enough fallen wood to build a fire if you dare.

Grim will gather the wood and start the fire before resting for the night. As far up as this is, I imagine the worst case is the Daughters see it and I’m looking for them anyway.

Night passes, and as dawn comes to find you, you emerge to find two seated women enjoying the fire. A kettle has been placed over the re-ignited coals, and the smell is a calming one. They are armored in dark combat field uniforms, and armed. One has a long Dao spear set next to her on the ground, the other is armed with the more traditional Wakazashi of the Lotus order.

“Good morning, and thank you for allowing me to live through the night. My name is Grim. Although an organization such as yours probably already knows that.”

"We have heard a bit, but we would hear it from you. It is the only way to get the truth of any matter-face to face"

“In that case I will be direct. Your organization the Daughters of the Lotus have discreetly put out a request for four suit mechs. I would like to fulfill that request. I currently am having them built on Gudrun and if we reach an agreement I can have them delivered to a place of your choosing.”

"And there is proof of these suits being constructed? We have been betrayed by former employers." the one with the Dao says, standing. "You can understand our desire for caution"

2:06 PM

The woman with the Wakazashi stands as well, drawing it only slightly, enough for you to see the flawless steel

“The proof will be when I deliver. You owe me nothing until then. I understand your need for caution as I to was recently betrayed by someone I trust. If it makes you more comfortable I can have my crew pick up the suits and bring them to wherever you would like. In the meantime I can stay as your guest. If at anytime you feel like I am being less than sincere I won’t stand much of a chance. But also in the spirit of trust I will let you know I am a psychic with telepathy and biospon powers.”

"A biopsion? We worked with one once. A lovely woman named Doona Ahn. Do you know her?"

“I have heard the name, but I have never met her in person. The Daughters are free to use my services if anyone needs healing.”

“Just idle interest. She was a good friend to us during the Atrovian Revolution”

10:50 AM

“The terms are acceptable. You will be our ward until the time of delivery”

Grim radios his crew to pick up the suits and bring them back. In the meantime he follows the Daughters back to their camp. “I am glad we could agree.”

The trip is going to be about five days , possibly shorter if the navigator is any good at trimming the course. You’re blindfolded and helped up the mountain slopes, being carried in a sling wrap between the two of them for most of the way so even counting steps and direction is impossible.

11:57 AM

Your blindfold is removed after an indeterminable amount of time at the base of the final peak where large stairs lead you up the mountainside to the most remote point on the planet, the pagoda where the warrior culture of the Daughters of the Lotus lives on

Grim looks in amazement at the place. It is quite spectacular how they are not only able to survive up here, but also thrive and build this place. “You have a lovely home up here. If you don’t mind my asking, is there any wildlife up here such as animals?”

"Birds, rabbits, some species of mountain..I think the word in english is Goat. We hunt them sometimes, especially for their pelts, but we only take one when we need it, not as a matter of sport"

11:50 AM

"The horns we fill with the rendered fat to make candles"

“Thank you. Are you able to negotiate for the suits or is there a leader I can talk to?”

"We will be having tea with the head matron tonight, and the two of you may conduct business for as long as is necessary. Our charge was to bring you here, and escort you safely to the chambers we have set aside for the rare visitor we do get"

1:14 PM

(and if you want to skip that wait time we can, but you're the first person in probably more than an IRL year to see any of the daughters)

(I won’t skip then)

1:16 PM

(Will write something in a bit)

“I would love to see the chamber. Also please let me know if there is anything I can do to help out while here.”

"To help? How are you with your hands? Do you think you could mend a trap?"

“I can give it a try. I am also able to heal anyone who maybe sick or injured.”

Grim will attempt to repair the trap

(We could do either one you just got back faster than me)

(Sorry wasn’t trying to rush you. Just realized I quickly wrote something because I was out running errands and wasn’t sure if I was clear in what I wrote. I will try the trap first)

(Fix/Int)

(10)

Your technical skill is something they appreciate. You're brought into a workshop where aged weapon masters are hard at work creating the next generation of proud Lotus weapons, and refinishing those that have seen use in the hands of those with the rights to wield them. The work is as much artistry and ceremony as industrial process, and the smell of jade, lavender, and other offered herbs burning in the smelting fires fills the workshop. The smiths seem happy, honored, and pleased to be here, bowing respectfully as you pass by, and you're shown to a work table where the remains of the wire and box traps lay.

7:48 AM

You're able to fix them over the course of a few hours with their fine tools, borrowed, and the smiths bring you a warm cup of tea once the labor is done

“Thank you for the tea. Your smiths are as much artists as they are craftsman. Is there anything else I can do to make myself of use? If not I would learn more about your culture, maybe practice some of your meditation techniques.”

(what reward were you tihnking of going for? because i can sort of build this scene into it)

(I was thinking of going for having one of them join my crew)

1:12 PM

(The martial arts option looks cool, but the psi ones are other disciplines, and I don’t know if the kenjentsu one applies to mind blades)

(it does, its still a sword)

(Ok I will go martial arts then)

Evening passes and you're brought from the workshop across the edge of an open-air training field, where dozens of children are involved in conditioning training, along with a few adults at the back of the group. They are being watched by a trio of prowling sparring masters, doling out swift corporal punishment to anyone not working hard enough. your destination is a small hut at the other side of it, where the smell of stew, and more tea rises pleasantly out of a beaded curtain window

“They are really good at martial arts for being so young Are male children trained too or only females?”

3:23 PM

Grim follows them to the hut as they walk and talk

“The males are trained in self defense but not the final few years of martial training , instead they become artisans and craftsmen “

“Both honorable professions. Perhaps I can learn a little from your masters while I am here if that is acceptable. For now though l will await until the head matron is ready.” These people and their was are amazing. Perhaps I can find a way the Lamplighters and the Daughters can be mutually beneficial to each other.

There is a gentle ringing of a bell, or several ones. It sounds like rain tinkling against a glass roof, and you're let into the small hut. An elderly Taros woman sits behind the table , pouring a glass of warm tea and gesturing for you to sit down

Grim bows respectfully and then sits at the table. Grim considers opening a telepathic contact but then thinks better of it. The Daughters have treated me with respect, I won’t betray their trust “Good evening Head Matron. I have very much enjoyed my time here so far. It is quite the accomplishment how much you have achieved here.” (edited)

she sits, and as you both recline a Daughter-in-training enters, and pours, along with the first course of stewed mixed fruit. "I understand you've had an ear to the ground for some time now. You've picked up some gossip that we may be getting into the business of needing suits again"

“That is the rumor I have heard. My organization the Lamplighter Foundation is in the business of helping worlds recover. But some worlds the problem is individuals taking advantage of the post scream suffering to oppress their people. The world I come from was one such world until we defeated the dictator there. I want to establish a mutually beneficial relationship with the Daughters of the Lotus. I want to help you grow and thrive, and perhaps in return the Daughters can occasionally help the Lamplighters when it comes to quietly removing dictators and despots who threaten the recovery of worlds we seek to assist.” (edited)

"We were killers for hire once, back on Gudrun. The Taros city of Atrovia. You've heard reports of the rebellion there, before the UNW was as it is now. It has been a long road, and much suffering to get from there to here, where we would be a tool for no one. You do however offer a set of capabilities we lack, and are assisting us in restoring a lost piece of our culture. Our final suit until now was stolen by a man named Silvano Mazzio, and he flaunted it during the unity conference."

“I apologize if I came off that way. I don’t see you as a tool of anyone. I won’t press the issue, if you want me to drop it. I was only offering options to use your skills against individuals who would murder and exploit those less fortunate. Any mission would be yours to undertake or not. Back to the suits however I have four being manufactured and the should arrive in 5-6 days. If there is any other assistance you need please feel free to ask.”

“We lived under a council of them in Atrovia. I know all too well the horrors of autocracy and facism. None should have to live under it.”

“I will leave that for now, perhaps we can revisit it sometime in the future. I would like to ask a favor though, and it may seem strange, but if you are going to slaughter any animals for food while I am here may I have the blood? I have a unique disorder that requires me to occasionally ingest some.”

"Anemia, ah yes. My son perish from the same condition when he was an infant. I am familiar with it. Of course, please, the hunting lodge and its facilities are yours. "

“Thank you. So in exchange for the suits I was wondering if you would be willing to instruct me in some of your martial arts techniques. I was thinking potentially Kenjutsu and ghost walker styles.”

"Looking to have our instructors beat on you, are we?"

3:12 PM

"That can be arranged upon delivery. The time here will be somewhat lengthy to truly become a master, but you know how to find us now

“Thank you. While we wait upon delivery I will help around camp and earn my keep. Is there anything else?”

5:42 PM

(I don’t really know what else to do until the suits arrive.)

“Enjoy the meal and we will train you in the meantime. Our contacts have confirmed the shipment is on its way”

7:27 PM

(So we can use the travel time while the ship comes to train )

“Thank you. I will begin training as soon as your trainers are ready.”

(There would be enough time to train one of the two martial arts you mentioned

(I will do Kenjutsu first then)

Grim retires back to his room to get some rest. Before dawn ever arises he is awoken and brought to the training circle to meet his new Sensei. Hours pass of learning how to hold the sword properly and move in the correct form. His sensei constantly correcting him and providing discipline. The training lasts until late evening. Bruised and weary Grim quickly falls asleep. The next several days are much the same routine, however Grim slowly begins increasing in skill. He learns the proper grips, cuts thrusts and movements. The only breaks allowed during training are for water and meals. During these breaks Grim drinks a wineskin filled with the goat blood we was allowed to take. It doesn’t feel wholly satisfying and Grim realizes Octavian was right. The goat blood should suffice for now, but he will need to be better prepared in the future. By the time his crew returns with the suits Grim has made significant progress mastering the basics. He will have to continue training to truly become a master but for now he has learned much.

11:10 PM

(Hopefully thats an ok write up. If not what you had in mind I can delete.)

(this is perfect)

8:16 AM

As you feel like your body cannot take anymore, a shadow on the horizon begins growing larger and larger as your transport arrives, the cargo important to the daughters is aboard They look at the sky and marvel as the cargo pallet is released a few meters off the ground, as the ship makes to land back at the starport and not give away its location.

Grim thanks the Daughters for his time their and for the training. “I will try to make time soon to return and finish my training. In the meantime I will continue to practice my techniques. Anything the Daughters need just send me a message.”

"You have shown a great respect for our culture, and our society. You were a guest we enjoyed having, and we do not normally host any."

9:22 AM

"If you come discreetly, you are welcome here , any time you wish. See Dr. Ahn about that anemia. She is a powerful biopsion. She helped many of my sisters"

9:23 AM

(she thinks you're dealing with an actual sickness, that wasnt a plot hook to get your vamprism cured somehow)

Grim will head back to village below and meet up with his crew in the grav explorer. Which they then take back to the ship

9:31 AM

(Figuring out next move. I will post when I have an idea)

(3xp, 5000 credits, full Kenjtsu training)

1

9:33 AM

(there should be a way to add custom skill boxes to the sheet/adjust your weapon modifiers based on it as well)

(I will take a look. Thank you)

(Asleif-Mariam-thorfinna-Chloe-Yauvanni 9 days. 21/21 sheer rifle 13/90 trade)

2:39 PM

(Also added a ton of goals. My plan on Yauvanni is to see if I can try to reverse ghoul condition with biospon. Also trying to get some ghoul blood samples to study.)

(Alrighty. There’s a couple assaults underway as it is, we can join one or you can quietly try to get some experiment materials. How did you wanna play this)

(Probably quietly get materials. I figured first I would stop by wherever the ghouls are being kept in prison. I want to see if I can reverse the condition and get blood samples if possible.)

Ghouls are being executed on site as standard policy. If one exists then more could be made.

(Ok I will go on a mission to try and capture some and maybe their tech. If that’s ok)

2:04 PM

(If you would rather I join an existing mission I can do that too.)

(we can do our own thing)

(Awesome. Thank you)

The countryside where the estates are are lousy with ghoul patrols and with some luck you might be able to capture one for some brief experiments

5:11 PM

The knights of draconis and the aphroditan guild are also here attacking other settlements that are in the hands of the ghouls, providing cover for your much smaller raid

Grim will have his crew take the grav explorer towards the countryside. Once close Grim and Tyr will get out out try to find a good location to set up the ambush. (Will update gear later on roll 20, but will be wearing storm armor. Also, the explorer has stealth integument.) The grav explorer and the rest of the crew will then fall back until radioed.

(Updated gear on roll20) (edited)

Finding and following a patrol seems like the best plan for the moment and trying to find one seems to be the order of business. They’re assuredly keeping an eye on the conflicts deeper into the plains

Grim and Tyr will continue on towards the estates keeping watch for patrols.

(Notice / wis)

(7)

You notice a small fire, about a kilometer from your position, by your enhanced smell rather than seeing the smoke or hearing the crackle of the flames.

Grim and Tyr will begin to approach the fire as quietly as possible. (Trying to get within 300 without being seen)

You're able to approach quietly. You see the remains of a camp here, slowly melting away into the ground as the wind carries away the ash. You can see four sets of prints here, one ghoul, and three human members of the patrol.

Grim will investigate the prints to see which way they went and then follow the prints trying to catch up to the patrol

They've gone west, and you're at their backs though are upwind of them right now as it steadily comes from behind you. The terrain is heavily forested, and rolling

Grim and Tyr will continue chasing after the patrol moving as fast as they can

12:57 PM

(Both are in storm armor if that helps them catch up)

12:57 PM

(Also Grim has the exoskeleton mod so probably going to be noisy)

(sneak/dex, and thats at -2 for the armor/skeleton)

(7)

You’re able to close to 150m before the sound of the power armor and the stomp through the jungle has the enemy patrol alerted

7:59 PM

(Initiative)

(2 roll +2 from having a sword readied would be 4)

(4. Tie goes to you)

Grim and Tyr will both fire their shear rifles at one of the humans and then will move towards the enemy

10:36 PM

(21/9 Grim & 23/6 Tyr)

The humans you fired on are wounded but now downed, and begin forming ambush positions to return fire. The three humans and the ghoul begin shooting back with laser weapons. (21/2 Grim, 18/7 Grim- not sure if this hits or not, 22/10 Tyr, 15/1 which probably doesnt hit tyr)

(Grim takes 2 damage. Tyr is down)

9:15 AM

(So I think reading the book I can heal him. But not sure if I need to stabilize first)

(bio can get him right back up)

Grim uses his biospon to heal Tyr (on turn power, also even if I roll all 1s it’s more than enough to fully heal him. So not rolling unless you need me too.) Grim will then fire back at the next human and then move up another 10 ft

12:38 PM

(24/10)

(not worth rolling)

One of the humans falls, shot through the chest to bleed out onto the forest floor. (23/10 on Grim, the others miss) The ghoul connects with its laser rifle, sending a pinprick beam into Grim's armored suit. The humans miss, their aim less disciplined at the loss of one of their own

Grim and Tyr will both fire at the next human

7:39 PM

(Grim 13/13 Tyr 22/8)

7:40 PM

Then they will each move closer

Tyr is able to down the second, leaving a ghoul and a human left. They shoot back, shredding plants and hanging branches, but they miss you and Tyr

Grim and Tyr will fire at the last human and then move up again

10:05 PM

(28/14 grim, 18/15 Tyr)

The last human falls, leaving only the ghoul. He fires his laser weapon, but misses and sets a nearby tree on fire

Tyr will fire at the ghoul and then Grim will establish a telepathic contact and conduct a telepathic assault. (1 effort for on turn contact 1 effort for assault. 2 out 8 commited for the day)

9:52 AM

(Tyr 16/10, Grim - telepathic assault 21. Mental saving throw to half)

(14 v 12 pass) The ghoul is wounded but continues fighting, though his injuries are beginning to tell and another wild laser blast sends shots into the ground

Grim and Tyr will continue firing

10:12 AM

(Grim crit 6dmg before crit. Tyr 15/14

(okay so you're both shooting weapons at it now, no telepathy?)

(Yes I can only hit the same target once per scene) (edited)

The combined fire brings the ghoul down, blowing apart its chest cavity and severing one arm at the elbow

Grim is going to run over and try to use major organ restoration to restore the ghoul

It begins to rise as the damage is repaired, thrashing and trying to brawl with you in its weakened state

Grim and Tyr will attempt to tie the ghoul up with rope

(exert/dex or str, since it is fighting you off. +2 for Tyr's help)

(Grim rolled 8. Tyr puts it at a 10 total)

(8 for me)

3:05 PM

The ghoul is overwhelmed by your combined strength, and is subdued quickly, bound in thick industrial rope and unable to move under its own power

Grim radios the grav explorer to come pick them up. While waiting grim will establish a telepathic contact lvl3 and ask where the ghouls keep their research. (He gets a mental saving throw to resist)

(18, pass)

7:28 AM

The explorer emerges from the woods a few moments later, weapons panning for threats. Tyr is looking a bit better, and is eager to prove himself to you despite being wounded

Grim and Tyr will board the explorer with the captive. They will then start heading back towards friendly territory. They will take blood samples from the Ghoul. Grim will also use the spell truth of flesh and bone (basically scans for injuries , disease, toxins, implants).

He has injuries from the fighting, and he has implants that allow him to ingest the chemical cocktail that forces the gene change that turns you into a ghoul, and maintains the condition. THey're not much more advanced than shunts put into a body for the targeted delivery of medicine or for blood cleaning.

I am going to try and cure the ghoul condition using organic purification protocols.

11:43 AM

(The biopsion’s Psychic Succor now cures any poisons or diseases the subject may be suffering, albeit it requires Committing Effort for the day as an additional sur- charge. Biowarfare organisms, exceptionally virulent diseases, or TL5 toxins may resist this curing, requiring a Wis/Biopsionics skill check at a difficulty of at least 10. Failure means that the adept cannot cure the target’s disease. This technique cannot cure congenital illnesses.)

The ghoul condition does not change

3:00 PM

Their entire genetic code has been re-written due to this routine of treatment, and any healing you apply repairs damage to their body, but the repairs retain the shape and function that a ghoul has. The once human is very much gone

Well It looks like there is no saving them. I had hoped there was a more peaceful way forward. A chance for the remaining ghouls to surrender and live. Grim turns to his crew “I can’t reverse the condition. I tried but even my healing powers are useless.”

3:12 PM

“I am not going to force someone else to make this hard choice.” Grim takes the ghoul outside the explorer and executes him. I hate killing in cold blood, but it looks like there is no saving the ghouls

3:13 PM

(I am planning on heading back to Tece exploring the planet more if that works for you. I will probably stop at the llf station first though) (edited)

(sounds good to me, ill get downtime settled once we stop at the station since its also here

(I have a bunch of goals that I added previously. One was cure ghoul condition. I know it’s not possible now, but not sure if trying nets any do)

(okayu ill go through them)

4:41 PM

(3xp and 5000 credits for doing it, and 3 more xp for the goal)

(Ok that is enough for level up. Thank you)

Level 11. New HP is 57. Spending 8SP all SP from level 10 were saved. 2 have to be biospon and 2 addition have to be psychic skills. Using 5 of those SP to purchase Telepathy 4. Taking Unity of though as free technique. Using remaining 3 to purchase metamorph.

)what did you want to do on the station so I know what to have ready)

(Not too much. I just wanted to circle back on the hard drive that I found at the llf facility on Heras. Basically I just want to try to track down a lead on next llf thing to do.)

(Ah Gotcha)

8:54 AM

The drive has yielded some fragmentary results. There are several mentions to other vaults scattered across this region of space , and the planet Eaiphyle is mentioned time and again.

8:54 AM

It’s entirely possible the monks who inhabit the grave world don’t know what’s buried beneath their feet

After receiving the drive results from Lan, Grim and crew will switch ships from the Knarr to the Vesiko and then head to Tece (Yauvanni-Erdoza-Lerden-Tece 6 days downtime. 19/90 trade)

11:10 AM

Once at Tece Grim will land the Vesiko at the LLF facility. From there grim and crew will take the explorer and begin exploring. (Going start heading south basically following a clockwise route exploring the landmasses for now)

(alright, hit me with a D10 and i'll generate)

(2)

The area to the immediate south of the facility is a relatively flat icy plain, though there are indications that nesting birds adapted to the climate range here sometimes. You do not see any evidence of them now aside from the large snow mounds they build to nest in during storms- and for now they've moved off to other hunting grounds .

Grim will take a soil sample and then the The explorer will continue south

(hit me with another)

(4)

Frozen foothills mark the next part of the expanse and you can see formations of ice spikes coming out of it.

Grim will continue taking the explorer south after taking another soil sample. (edited)

(6)

)this never lit for me )

8:26 AM

The ice is littered with bones ahead and occasional splashes of crimson. You’re near a small lake and it seems some sort of predator has made their hunting grounds here. The bones themselves look small. Smaller than a human at least , but in some cases not by very much.

Grim and Tyr will get out and explore. Grim tells Tyr “Be on guard there looks to be something dangerous in the lake.”

(Survive/wis)

(10)

Something dark , twice the size of your vehicle drifts below the ice just for a few seconds before vanishing again.

Grim and Tyr will approach the lake and throw some rations near the edge to try and lure the creature to the surface

(How close to the edge would we be getting. If you’re throwing stuff I’d assume within 10m but I don’t want to force you to do things )

(Grim will get within 10. I will have Tyr stay back with riffle ready)

(how far back? just so i know who is where if i need to target anything)

(100)

Grim begins sprinkling food around the breach in the ice. The dark shape begins drifting toward the surface and steam is rising from the hole in the lake

Grim activates his holistic optimization patterning and Tyr holds his sheer rifle read awaiting the creature to surface.

4

8:20 AM

The massive glowing fish rises to the surface, whip like appendages around its face grasping across the ice, trying to get the rations and questing inquisitively to find something to eat.

8:21 AM

It is easily 10m long, if not longer, and has a mouth full of razor sharp teeth

upon seeing the glowing beauty that is the fish Grim no longer wishes to harm it Grim will throw more rations for the fish and then will back away and try to photograph the fish with his compad.

it quests for the food, large upturned mouth gaping near the hole in the ice as its whiskers curl around the morsels and dump it into its cavernous maw

Grim is going to wait for the fish to finish eating and see if it goes back

rations gone, its feelers skim over empty ice for another moment, before it slides down below the surface of the lake again on its endless hunt for prey that gets too close

Grim will mark on his map the location of the lake and then head back to the explorer and then head south again

(and a final d10 as we get to just outside the city)

(10)

The survey scanner begins pinging w material contact , but an unknown variety as Youre 50km from city limits

Grim and team will try and inspect to discover what the material is. First they will try and analyze a soil sample and also see if they can more finely tune the sensors

(program/int for tuning)

(5. Using a reroll)

10:18 PM

(7)

(Also not sure if Raven can help or not)

(If she’s present we never really established who came down )

(She is present. I have just been saying crew but I will list them out going forward)

(sounds good, so 9 with her) It is a mineral intertwined with carbon, and would be very light, but she;s having trouble narrowing it down further. It looks like it is deep underground in the thickest part of the forest outside the city, where generations of decay and undergrowth have built up and compressed.

Grim will mark the location for now. Then he will send a message to Octavian asking for a car to be sent to bring him to the House Onoferos mansion.

Happy to see you back, the car pulls around and you're permitted to climb in. It is empty aside from the driver.

Grim takes the car the mansion and awaits for Octavian to be ready.

(What was the plan here just so I can figure out what to do)

(First I was going to give him some ghoul blood to research, then see if he knows where I can get equipment or people or whatever I need to mine up some of that resource. Then talk to him about soccer team. Then I was going to ask more about the city. Like he mentioned a split between lamplighters so try to look into that more. Like is their another faction of lamplighters in the city. Oh and also ask about that fish)

(Oh okay. No problem , that helps a lot)

9:22 PM

Octavian is seated at the dinner table and the crew along with Grim himself are welcomed as though they’re long lost relatives finally coming home for a visit. Extra places are set for them, more food is prepared and both regular drinks and a stock of blood for you, to be taken out of sight as a consideration for your human company is all brought out.

9:23 PM

“Grim Oniferos. Welcome home. You haven’t been gone that long but I trust you’ve been staying busy”

“I have been very busy. On the way here from the LLF facility I made some discoveries. There was a massive glowing fish and I was wondering if you had any more information about it. Additionally I found what may be a valuable resource just outside the city. I was looking to hire some miners to investigate it and see if it’s worth industrializing.”

"I can certainly put out some kind of public works project. And you ran into one of those fish eh? I think it might have been trapped here when the oceans receded years and years ago. Not sure of much else about it though. It's pretty . I saw it once, didn't stay long- morning was coming"

“Thank you I would appreciate the help. Also, in regards to the ghoul situation. I captured one and tried my best to try and reverse the condition with no luck. However I did obtain some blood samples. Maybe your researchers can have some luck.” Grim hands Octavian one of the vials

"I see. You're wanting them to look into a possible cure? or if its even something that can be done with these samples?"

“I don’t think a cure is possible. But perhaps some good can come of the research. It is yours to research as you see fit.” Grim telepathically tells Octavian Perhaps it can give some insight into our own condition. It turned the ghouls into disgusting beasts so not something I would replicate, but I didn’t want to keep it from you.

Your foresight is commendable and appreciated. We will of course look into obtaining as much information from this as we can

“I was also curious about the Lamplighters here on Tece. If you would like to talk more about them privately I understand. But I am wondering is there only one faction in the city or several?”

"I'd perfer to talk about this in private, for you'll find the answer informs both of your questions"

“I understand.” Grim finishes eating and once the dinner ends he follows Octavian into a side room to discuss the lamplighter situation.

“To answer you, the city does have factions. There’s others like me. Like us...in this city. Some have made other families like this one. Some prefer a solitary life. Those that have organized are also original lamplighters like me. “

“If you could I would appreciate a rundown of who is who. Primarily if our house has enemies. Is there any group that may try to kill me. Also, is the university allied?”

“The university is neutral. Public education is a mission of the original organization, and the citizens here only stand to lose if the university takes a side. Learned citizens also make skilled household retainers when they can be found. The arrangement benefits all.

7:33 AM

“There are enemies of course, none with the strength to act openly, or of note. The city council will occasionally push back on some issues now and again but the reality check is sometimes ...healthy “

“I found indications of a lamplighter vault possibly being located on Eaphyle. Do you have any information that may be useful?”

“This is where my own expedition ended. We haven’t been out that Far East. Nobody from this outfit ever was. Dealing with the Order of Quiet Oblivion is dour business though. I wish you well”

“Thank you. Unless you have anything else for me I will head out.”

(3xp, 5000 credits. )

2:30 PM

He has nothing else

(So thinking through my plan for what to do next. What I am thinking is taking a round about way to eraphyle. First I was going to stop at mobion and talk to the remnant folks there. As part of the endeavor to get sway 3 NPCs to supporting the cause. Basically trying to get them to recognize my version as the llf as legitimate. Then head to the void warden station to talk to their leader, I know Robert has given credits to llf, but if you are good with it, I would visit station and talk to their leader to count it towards endeavor. Will probably stop at unexplored planets on the way as well. Then head to eraphyle after that’s all wrapped up.)

)that’s fine by me

After concluding the meeting Grim and crew head back to the LLF facility and then board the Vesiko. They then head to mobion. (2 days downtime 21/90) Once in orbit Grim will attempt to contact the Remnant government. “This is Head Lightbringer Grim of the Lamplighter Foundation. I would like to request permission to land and meet with your leaders.”

"What is the purpose for landing on Mobion?" one of the comms officers on the ground replies, defensively. Their other meetings with the outside world have not been kind

“The LLF mission is to help the iron stars rebuild. That includes Mobion. If landing is not currently acceptable I understand. However, I know you are working hard to develop Mobion and the information I have says you previously have suggested you are open to fair trade. I was hoping to get a list of resources you desire and begin having one of my trade ships routinely deliver them. The selfish part of my request is that I want the LLF to be recognized as the legitimate successor to the old LLF by more than just Galetean council polities. So I am looking to earn your nations trust and goodwill in hopes that doing so will lead you recognizing the LLFs legitimacy.”

Lamplighter's Eh? Lot of good those vaults ever did. Galaxy is a mess, and we're just here to mop things up for the next generations to ruin. We will respect your message, and give you recognition, but we don't believe in your mission

I appreciate your recognition. I hope in time to also change your mind regarding my mission. I however know that will take time and trust. If there’s anything I can do or anything resources you need let me know. I want to help

(Seen. I gotta draw a map)

(Am I cleared to land then?)

(yes, sorry haha)

Grim lands the Vesiko and awaits the remnant representatives to meet with him

(how close to the city did you want to get? they're not going to shoot you down but you might see some different things on the way in)

(So I guess I might not understand what’s going on. I thought I was just landing and they would tell me what they need help with. I guess I assumed they had somewhere they want ships to land. If I get to pick probably south of the city by about 3 miles)

From this distance you can see the border of green zone and desert brown, where the wasteland and the revived areas are contesting one another for control of the soil. Cobwebs of blue filament strung between the grass and into the brown terrain are also visible from up here, growth lines for future expansions to follow. A tractor with an armored trailer is on its way over to you, emerging from behind a nearby foothill. Rain clouds overhead promise a prolonged shower, and some respite from the dust in the otherwise dry ground

Grim waits for the tractor to arrive. While waiting grim packs his bag with some blood just in case he is gone for a while.

The tractor parks 20m from the ship and a trio of soldiers emerge before one taps on the side. A hatch opens and a dignitary steps out. She is poised and proper despite the mud and dust of her surroundings , extending a lace parasol to block out the sun.

“Hello, I am Grim. What you all have accomplished here is impressive and as I told the comms officer I spoke to, I would like the chance to prove myself and the LLf.”

"You've seen what we're working with here on the way down then. Can the LLF help the plains advance? Can they help grow our frontier?|

“It depends. If it is a matter of needing resources the LLF can have them delivered. Otherwise I guess I just need to know what is needed.”

"We were under the impression the Lamplighter Foundation would have advanced technologies we could use to reclaim the land- not necessarily just raw materials. Your vaults...We just assumed you'd have access to them still. Is this no longer the case?"

“We are in the process of recovering our vaults. I just came from one and am on my way to another. Nothing has been recovered yet that could help here though.”

“Youll have us convinced when you return with it then. It sounds like you’ve got bigger problems trying to recover the vaults then”

“Fair enough. I will return once I have something that can help.”

“In the meantime do you mind if I explore some of the sites here like the dead port and the feared bastion?”

"We can't reach them, and can't use them. You're free to do what you will if anything you find helps us:

(Totally makes sense. But you made a map, so I didn’t want to just take off it was explorable)

8:07 AM

Grim will head to Matecena. (1 day downtime 22/90 trade)

(yeah you can explore anything)

8:08 AM

(they needed a map for a while I just hadnt gotten back to it)

(So I Can or can’t explore. Maybe I misunderstood. If I can I will stay. If I can’t heading to matacena)

(You can explore)

Grim will take the explorer to the feared bastion then. (Taking my entire crew)

4

8:30 AM

From above, you can see that the bastion is inhabited, and probably has a large number of beings in it. Lights dot the surrounding hill,s the fort itself, and most of the waterways around the area- though none seem to be made by anything brighter than conventional pitch torches.

Grim will continue towards the bastion keeping watch for any beings.

(how close would you want to get with the ship before setting off on foot)

9:05 AM

(just so i can figure out what they'd see)

(Probably as close as I can still being safe. As in not risking anyone on the grounds safety. Not sure if that’s like half a mile?)

(i think thats fair)

10:31 AM

YOu get a quick glimpse as you set down, seeing the battlements of the large bastion. You're going to be dealing with Geon, and its difficult to discern their temperament

Grim and Tyr will exit in their storm armor and begin heading towards the battlements until they meet one of the Geon

(Should have asked this too. Would you approach openly or Try to sneak close to thenplace

(I was approaching openly)

Three geon are foraging in the woods around the sprawling settlement and the sounds of your power armor approaching have then defensive and guarded before you approach. None of them appear armed and you’ve stumbled on a group of six

“Hello. I am friendly I am just looking for whoever is in charge to talk.”

“What you want with the geon?”

“I just came from visiting the human settlement. They said I could explore, but never mentioned there was anyone else on the planet. So what I want with the Geon is just to talk. What I want to know is do you know about them? Do they know about you? Anything relevant a visitor on this planet should know? “

“We know about them but I don’t think they know about us. They’ve never come out this way”

“How do you feel about them trying to terraform the planet?”

"Terraform? NOt sure what this means. You should speak to the stonespeakers. You come now?"

“Yes, I would appreciate that.” Grim follows the Geon to the stonespeakers

The geon bring you through the woods , heading East to the massive earth and stone settlement they have constructed out of the ground here. A stadium, endless housing, and the domineering keep are all important fixtures. The Geon have mastered advanced weapons and although their dwellings look old their equipment is not- though you see they have no vehicles or pack animals. The keep is a dark stone and the metal gates are pushed aside by strong guards for you to enter under armed and closely watching escort. You’re taken through a fore chamber of marble and onyx lined with statues in shadowed alcoves before Youre brought to the meeting chamber. Five geon are seated in imposing chairs, with an empty stone chair and desk before them where petitioners sit.

11:18 AM

One of the guards taps you with their weapons to get you to move toward it

Grim heads over and sits in the stone chair at the desk. Unsure of protocol in this situation he awaits the Five Geon to address him.

"Human traveler, speak. What is your business here and what do you want from us?" the seemingly eldest and most weathered of them says

“I want to help the humans who settled here terraform the planet. Mainly just growing vegetation. I don’t think they realize you are already here. So I want to both try and help everyone share the planet together and get your permission and possibly help to terraform.”

“Terraform? They dare defile the sacred stones of this world? And what about you is that what you want too?”

“Before I knew this world had other inhabitants yes. Now that I know you are here I would like to broker a diplomatic solution between Geon and the Human settlement.”

"There is no solution that involves defiling this planet or the sacred stones of its crust. The Geon already live here, and can survive- and thrive, as this world is"

“So to be clear, you consider the growing of vegetation a defilement? You also are not open to any solution that involves a compromise?”

"We eat the stone, build from the stone, and the stone speaks back to us. The humans will destroy, crush, defile, and expand. We will lose our connection to the sacred stone of this world, for something we do not need"

“It is not the LLFs place to take a side here. I can offer to put you in touch with their leaders. I would like your permission to explore however. I would also appreciate if you could point me in the direction of anything interesting, or if there is anything other than the humans I can help you with?”

"Interesting? What might be of interest to this LLF you serve?"

“Mainly I am interested in helping the races of the Ironstars recover. If there is anything that may help. Whether it is learning more of your culture and seeing if I too can communicate with the stones, or if there are anomalies to investigate, maybe there is old tech from a crashed ship or previous civilization that is defiling the stones that I can remove for you.”

(they'd point you to the other landmarks and ruins on the map, but i dont think they'd divulge anything more secretive than that)

(Fair enough. I should probably head out anyway because I said I was going after the EE with the VW. If they want me to put them in contact with the remnant colony I will. But otherwise it’s not really my place to tell the geon or remnant what to do here) (edited)

(They want to wipe the colony out as it stands right now)

“I do want you to know that the human colony is filled with good people. They did not know you were here and they did not realize they were defiling anything. Can I talk you in to at least meeting with them?”

"Meet with them? you think they will stop what they are doing?"

“I am not them, so I don’t know. But right now they don’t even know they are doing something you disagree with. All I am asking is you try diplomacy and asking them to stop before resorting to bloodshed. It’s possible they will refuse, but without asking we will never know if this could have been resolved peacefully.”

"Return here after your explorations, and we will have a decision made about meeting with them. We will not confer on this matter in public"

“Fair enough. I will head to the dead port if that is acceptable to you. Also, may I give you a compad so you can contact me when you are ready?”

They are willing. To accept the communication device and give their blessing to explore the vacant site. It’s not something they have constructed and don’t believe humans made it either

Grim then heads to the dead port while waiting for the Geon to decide

(Program/int)

(Had Raven roll she got 13)

ECM is active on the ground. Raven is able to detect it and cautions against landing the ship too close, or trying to use a drone to snoop when yo're down there, as it will be scrambled

Grim lands the ship as close as he can without ECM interference and him and Tyr procede on foot towards the port

It would be a 20km hike to the port and the grav explorer should be able to make it through the interference as its controls are more robust and not wireless.

In that case the whole crew will take the explorer

The grav explorer controls drift a bit as you enter the ECM field, and above, you see nothing but clear sky. The port ahead looks like it was home for starships as opposed to sailing vessels and the bones of a free merchant poke out of an overgrown landing pad at the edge of the port complex. Some of it looks to have been salvaged or stripped away, exposing a few compartments to the elements on at least one side

Grim and crew will head to the free merchant and attempt to explore it.

Grim will investigate the loose cargo boxes first

(d100)

(27)

"Hail! Bathsheeba!" is the name of the book. There are probably 200 copies of them in here. No one has heard of the writer, or the book before, and the language inside is not Mandate or any of those currently known within the Iron Stars region Records from previous Lamplighter excavations also do not have such information on record

Grim will put the boxes of books in the explorer. Then grim will see if he can access the ship’s computer or at least salvage the drive

The drive looks to have been destroyed in The Scream

Grim will then look for anything unique or high tech about the ship. (Like any pretech or unique fittings)

(The computer would be a program/int)

(12)

A data drive is extracted. The ship doesn’t seem to be anything hyper advanced or high tech, but a salvage team could take what’s left of it and at least break it down into parts for your own craft if needed later (edited)

Grim will see if he can locate the source of the ECM or at least the direction it’s coming from.

The source is still the spaceport.

Grim will to head into the actual port

(I’ll get a map together when I can. Been crazy on my end today)

(No problem. I never want you to feel pressured to update my thread if you are busy.)

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 2/28/2021 9:24 AM

Grim and Tyr will head to the starport administration first.

Starport admin is a filthy office with dust covered windows. Some of them are broken and papers have scattered out to molt into the landscaping that is now overgrown. The door is smashed leading into the office and Theres evidence someone lived here once and possibly recently

Grim will attempt to search the office for any records or computers. Basically anything that could either tell him about this planet pre-scream or anything else of use.

(notice/wis)

(9)

Searching the office in its entirety is going to take hours. The computers are functional , but off, and each desk has mountains of bound, hard copy shipping records.

Grim will turn on a computer and see what he can access

A registry of the ships that are in port, a summary of what they needed done at the time of docking, and their cargo manifests are all on this machine - though you can guess a good portion of this data is not reflective of Scream damage, and the passage of time since

Grim will copy the data to his compad. Grim will then move to the shipyard at the top of the map

One of the listed ships, Cosmic Countess , is a luxury yacht. Records show it had a drive issue and set down here for repairs a day before the Scream occurred. The shipyard here was waiting on some specialty parts from one of its factories closer to the core- and that cargo flight never arrived.

Grim and Tyr will enter the Cosmic Countess and begin inspecting the ship.

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 3/1/2021 3:47 PM

Grim will head to the cashier/service desk

There is a dead card reader behind the counter along with thousands of chips used for gambling. With a dead computer on board they have no value and would be programmed to reset to 0 if removed from the ship anyway

Grim will take the stairs to the second deck

There doesnt seem to be a second deck, everything looks to be essentially confined to this one

Grim will head to the cockpit

(notice/wis)

(6)

There is an iris port in the ceiling above the closed cockpit door, that you and Tyr notice as you close to within 20m of it

Grim and Tyr will attempt to examine the iris port

(initiative) A small security turret emerges from the hatch as you stop to ponder it. The energy cell attached to it begins to buzz as it feeds power into the laser cannon it has mounted

(8 roll+2 from Kenjutsu =10)

1

(you and Tyr, then the turret)

Grim slices at the turret with his mind blade (19/17)

3:36 PM

Tyr takes a poorly aimed shot (8/12)

(I’ll have to look and see if the mind blade works on non living targets

10:27 PM

(Since they can’t exactly go unconscious )

(but if brought into contact with a living creature.)

10:28 PM

(So probably not)

(thats what im seeing now too with the book in front of me)

8:10 AM

The mindblade seems to have no effect on the mechanical turret, and Tyr's shot misses by a decent margin. The turret for its part manages no better, unable to effectively track you this close to it, and the gyro system is not capable of keeping up with you

8:10 AM

(missed)

8:10 AM

(back to you)

Grim and Tyr both fire their shear riffles

9:20 AM

(27/9 grim 13/9 Tyr)

Grim is able to score a fine hit on the turret. Tyr Misses. The turret shoots back. It misses.

As the firefight continues Grim and Tyr continue firing. (25/9 grim 15/10 Tyr)

The turret falls out of its ceiling Mount , and breaks apart on the ground into dozens of pieces

Grim will try and open the door to the bridge

The bridge door now opens and the place is empty. Nothing has been broken but it’s clear the vessel has not had people aboard it in some time. Screens were turned off, chairs were slid under consoles, and everyone simply left

Grim will attempt to boot everything up and then try to get information off the computer. Such as data on this planet pre scream. (The Geon seem like they wouldn’t approve, so who built this.) Grim will also try to get diagnostic information on the broken engine,

The data was just a small possible colony world for the future but the settlement never got off the ground. Refugees from the Drakite war were going to be settled here as the crisis got out of hand for both the Tenebrian Empire and Black sun.

7:02 AM

The ship will need extensive repairs to fly again , its initial damage compounded by sitting unmaintained for years have degraded any kind of pressure seal and power distribution below the threshold needed for safe space flight

Grim will copy the data to his compad and then move to the repair yard

The repair yard is a place where ships were repaired and where the larger components for them were assembled before being installed. Most of the major salvage has been removed- probably by the people that used to work here when The Scream happened and the subsequently scattered.

10:35 AM

You've seen no traces of any of those people since you've been here

Grim and Tyr are going to see if they can find what’s generating the ECM to potentially turn it off

Spike drives generally give off these kinds of signals, rather than any dedicated ground construct themselves. You can probably find one around the yard somewhere.

Grim and Tyr will try to find the active spike drive

(how would you try to figure out where it is? I'm having a hard time trying to detail these posts)

(Sorry. I will try and be more detailed. Is there anything else I can work on to help? Or really just more details?)

(details are super useful because it gives me something to riff off)

Grim and Tyr will conduct direction finding on the ECM signal. They will take the data on which direction the signal is currently coming from and combine it with directional data from their current location. Next they will head back to the gambling ship and attempt to utilize its sensors to add another data point.

7:29 PM

(This picture is kind of a visual example)

7:30 PM

(this is perfect)

7:41 AM

The signal is coming from deep within a wreck field and there is a steady mechanical hiss that you hear as you get to within 50m of the signal. The bones of a crashed tramp merchant that will never fly again obscure your view of the offending object, but it sounds like some kind of war bot might be present out there

1

Grim activates holistic Optimization patterning on Tyr. Grim telepathically tell Tyr Be careful. I think I hear something. Both Tyr and Grim then ready their shear rifles and move forward on guard for any threats.

50m from you, a security bot that looks to have been damaged prior stalks around the yard. It is four legged like a dog but as tall as a battle tank, with a snout fill of cannon ports. A missile pack rests on its back, swiveling independently of where the head is looking- on its long neck of tensile cable and bracket reinforcements. Several tall piles of junk are interposed between you and the robot, and it looks like it has not detected you for now.

Grim and Tyr will both try and get cover behind different piles of junk without being seen.

1:47 PM

(Basically trying to get cover and potentially set up a prepared firing position if possible before combat starts)

(you could get some cover, but i think the minute long set up for an execution attack is going to lead to being noticed before you complete that)

(Ok. Was not planning execution. Was going for the +2 hit for a prepared firing position. If I don’t have time to do that that’s ok. Planning to fire as soon as you say I’m good)

(The prepared position is good with me. You guys get a surprise round)

Grim and Tyr both get into position and steady their riffles on the junk and then fire. (Grim 28/8 Tyr 12/17. Added +2 for firing positions for both their hit. Then added holistic optimization bonuses for Tyr)

The shot from grim scores a blow that crumpled one of the armored plates of the war bot while tyr misses. It whines as it becomes alerted. (Initiative )

(4 roll +2 Kenjutsu =6)

(4 , you two are up first buddy)

Both Grim and Tyr continue firing from their positions. (Grim 24/6, Tyr 14/11. Both have modifiers added)

The robots twin cannons chew up metal and mud as they miss you but destroy@most of the wreckage around you. Neither of you are hurt but it’s no doubt aware of your presence

(Do I know if I did any damage? Or know if it looked like I had any effect?)

The shots look to have crumpled a few plates, but most of the damage appears superficial after this first round of shooting

Grim and Tyr now without cover focus their attacks trying to bring down the mechanical beast. (Grim 20/14, Tyr 20/18. Only added the pattern optimization bonuses for Tyr.)

(are those 20's crits or just regular. I can't get roll20 to load)

(Not crit)

The two shots damage and dent the back plates of the walker bot and it makes an alarmed beeping sound as it registers the weapon impacts. The missile pack on its back swivels and a dozen cottony white contrails streak high into the sky, before the rockets slam back down (Evasion save)

(Grim success, Tyr fail.)

(14 damage, halved if passed)

(Grim 50/57 Tyr 13/10. Pattern optimization gave him 20 bonus HP.)

12:22 PM

Both Grim and Tyr continue firing. (Grim 13/16 Tyr 26/8)

Grim misses but Tyr manages to knock an antenna of some kind off the side of the missile pack. The creature bucks as though it was an animal smacked in the rear. Its twin cannons fire again, missing Grim, but the fat rounds chew the ground around Tyr (19/9)

Tyr barely manages to avoid getting hit by the rounds coming at him. Both him and Grim continue to return fire. (Grim 14/9, Tyr 29/10. Crit for Tyr so 20 damage)

12:48 PM

(Or 18 depends if the +2 from pattern optimization is also doubled or not)

(modifiers aren't doubled, just the core dice roll)

(Ok 18 damage then)

The robot is in a Sorry condition now and one of its ammunition feeds snaps. This salvo of shots will be the last one coming from the chin guns anytime soon The guns send blooms of mud and debris high into the air but you both manage to avoid being hit by any of them

Encouraged by the damage Grim and Tyr see they press their attack. (Grim 28/7, Tyr 21/13)

Black smoke pours out of a shattered front sensor cluster, as it folds onto its forelegs, and then onto its side as it plows into the ground. The ECM signal seems to die with it.

Grim and Tyr head over to the downed machine. Grim then begins to perform a thorough examination of the downed bot. First looking for what in the bot may have caused the ECM. Next Grim looks for anywhere to connect his compad. Attempting to download it’s schematics and also discover what the bot was programmed to do if possible. (Obviously try and kill me, but trying to see if it was programmed to protect something)

It was programmed to patrol the area, and protect the ECM generator inside of it. It seems like a modified version of the Centaur security bot that was sometimes attached to large military formations of pre-scream armies to provide mobile jamming, and nuke snuffing. It seems that some sort of technological failsafe system inside has fired we cessation of signals from the bot's core, and destroyed these systems.

Grim radios his crew to bring the Vesiko to one of the landing pads now that the ECM is off. Grim and Tyr will then head to the supporting startown. Grim turns to Tyr. “We saw some evidence of people possibly living here. Let’s see if they need help”

(did you mean the old ship crews or something else? I forgot what we did a little bit)

(the administration offices we first visited. When I got there I thought you mentioned it looked like someone was recently living there. So i figured if I visit the place labeled startown I might find them and possibly others. I might not find anyone, but in character Grim just wants to make sure he isn’t leaving anyone behind who is struggling to survive without at least checking)

6:54 PM

(You’re fine. I just forgot what we did)

(If this is a dead end or you want to drop it that’s fine with me. Just trying to be thorough)

(That works for me. )

7:05 PM

The team is eager to try to find anyone who might be here. The approach and how to lure them out is some manner of debate

The team will see if there is a communication system throughout the town. Such as loudspeakers. Basically looking to see if there is something they can attempt to connect to in order to broadcast a message

Heading into the startown (on foot? in the atv? flying over with your ship?)

(I was going on foot.)

The two of you enter the star town and see signs people lived here once but that number has either dwindled to a few or are just not present anymore. The town hall has a public address system you could probably get into

5:00 PM

And it doesn’t seem like the building is dangerous , just abandoned and left to rot

Grim and Tyr will head to the town hall public address system. “Keep your guard up Tyr, I don’t think we’re in danger but there are a lot of places to set an ambush.”

Heading into the buulding and through the offices to the place where you can access the system- you see no evidence of traps, just abandonment and a settlement left to its own ruin and the passage of time. The terminal has dust filling its screen, along with a hand held mic, and a a few keys on the keyboard that stick.

Grim gets on the public address system. “People of Startown this us Lightbringer Grim of the Lamplighter Foundation. If there are any survivors seeking passage out of here meet me at the entrance to the town.”

(would you guys be heading right there or hunkering down for a few to watch?)

(Heading to the entrance by the administration office and waiting there)

|(notice.wis)

(11)

Nobody has shown up but you see a shadow duck down inside a backlit window, from a clock tower 2 blocks from here.

“Tyr you wait here in case anyone shows up. I am going to check the clock tower I think I see someone.” Grim then proceeds to walk the two blocks to the clock tower.

Passing by the two blocks of run down homes you hear the wind whip up again and a bell gently begins to toll. Once. Twice. And then a third time before going silent

I don’t know if that was the wind or if someone deliberately rang the tower but this is getting ominous Grim procedes towards the tower hoping to find people and not ghosts

The wooden door has been kicked in recently and a large wooden staircase winds upward Into the guts of the tower

Grim enters the door. “Is anyone here? I am friendly. I just want to help.” Grim then proceeds to head up the staircase cautiously. (By cautiously I mean it’s old so making sure the stairs are safe and not rotten)

(If you’re in power amor it would probably be too much weight with them being wooden and creaky

(Would I be able to exit the power armor? Like is there an under suit or would grim be naked?)

(you've have either clothes or any armor with the 'street' tag that could be worn underneath for when you're out of the suit)

Grim removes his power armor and is now just wearing the plain clothes he has underneath. Grim then tries the stairs again

Something on the upper floor stirs, causing dust to gently rain down in a fine sheet of particles and dust. It scrabbles, too large and heavy to be a rodent or some other pest animal taking shelter here

“If you can understand me. I really mean you no harm. I am just here to help. If you want me to leave I will. I am just trying to help you.” After trying to offer an olive branch Grim continues onward as he awaits a posible reply

Two sets of eyes look at you from several floors up. They look like children or very dirt covered young adults. They scatter deeper into the tower after looking upon you.

7:36 AM

You sense fear, rather then trying to entrap you

One grim sees their eyes he attempts to make telepathic contact. maybe the don’t speak my language. Hopefully I can reach them this way.

Reaching the top of the stairs, you see them huddled in one of the corners, and now that you see them, you're able to establish contact with one. They say nothing, possibly unaware that you've opened a channel directly into their mind.

(I don’t know what’s up with my discord. I keep not getting notifications.)

3:38 PM

Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you. I don’t know if you could understand me before but you can trust me. grim is trying his hardest to convince them he means well

They try to respond back but you realize these children never learned a language growing up, any language at all. You sense fear, but a senseof you warming on them- the emotion at least, is the honest part of this conversation

Grim tries to push warm emotions of caring to them, and images of helping them and images of a home and food.

They seem to be warming to your intention, if not your language. They’re clearly feral now that you can get a look at them

7:46 PM

(Feral as in not socialized, not feral psychics )

Grim will gesture for them to follow him will send them images of the ship and food and of his friends. He will then start heading back down the stairs hoping they follow.

They seem to be following at a distance, keeping about 15m between them and you, as you march down the stairs

Grim puts his armor back on but leaves the helmet off when reaching the bottom of the stairs. He then radios the crew to some rations prepared for the children when they arrive.

They are both filthy, and squint at the bright sunlight when you all emerge outside. They;'re a bit nervous at the sight of the rest of the crew- despite the warm food being displayed.

Grim continues to reassure them telepathically that it is safe through images. He shows them image of them all eating together. Overall Grim is going to try to get them to the ship and will bring them back to Tece. (My plan is to spend a few days teaching them the basics of language through telepathy by showing them images with words. I am going to make them my wards so they have protection on Tece and then hire specialized care givers and tutors for the children)

(Did you want to play that out or should I summarize it)

(I would prefer summarize if that’s ok)

(no problem, this will be a longer one, so ill get on it)

1:41 PM

Language studies are difficult, but telepathic prodding seems to speed a process that would otherwise take weeks into days. They know enough to understand- and their tutors on Tece under House Oniferous will no doubt be shouldering the remainder of their educational burden. They seem to have at least some memories of the time on this planet before The Scream, and once again, you have no doubts Octavian and his tutors will be greatly interested in what they have to say. Octavian for his own part is doing well, the soccer stadium is staffed by his own businesses , and he is making more money than he used to. Inefficiencies at collecting blood are starting to come to the surface however, as enough disappearances and vanishings in the clubs are being investigated by journalists and other private citizens who have no conception of the actual truth.

1:42 PM

You're permitted to stock your supplies for another 30 days from the household, but he fears that they're going to need to go on strict rationing if some sort of solution isn't figured out.

After restocking supplies Grim approaches Octavian with a potential solution. “I recommend moving to less lethal means into something both more ethical and more efficient. Through the LLF I plan to start offer free medical services and building the infrastructure to do so across the various worlds the LLF has a presence. My researchers in the universities I started inform me that roughly 3% of a given population give blood. If we siphon off a small percentage of that say 1% of the 3% we will still start accumulating a large enough supply. We will also avoid the attention disappearances create, and ethically it is better than killing. I understand some of us may still retain the desire to feed directly and even to kill. If that is required I also recommend sticking to criminals or other dark elements of society.”

“I will pass the word. 1% of only a few million people however is not many.

11:45 PM

“Especially if a household is to grow. We would starve to death before king and even now we are just. A bad season or two away from a complete breakdown of higher function”

“How many units of blood per month do you think we need to be averaging? If we want to take some risk we can go higher on the percentage. As the operation spreads out across other worlds however we should start obtaining a sizable amount.”

(I’d say three new minor or upgrades to major medical service operations across the worlds you can build on should cover it

Grim agrees to begin building medical services buildings. Having developed a plan to deal with the blood supply Grim and crew then head to Shahriar to help participate in the fight against the Extaurren. (Tece-shalini-thorfinna-sumati-Shahriar 13days downtime. 34/90 trade)

Once they meet up with the LLF and VW forces there Grim and crew transfer to the LLF corvette Nimbus. The crew then reviews message traffic for any reports of Extaurren attacks on shipping. Looking for any patterns. Trying to determine likely locations of Extaurren raiders as well as seeing if there are reports on numbers of raiders and sorts of ships

(I just need to see how vere’s thread ends to see if anyone’s alive to give you a tip or not)

(Fair enough. I need to do some admin at some point today. I was looking at the LLF ships and it looks like several have 6month maintenance due)

(Alright. We can catch up on that)

Vere did not survive to relay her message of contact but the Geder was able to disengage, and reports contact with an Etxaurren fleet at Chavvi. They may not be there by time a fleet arrives, as the fleet battle was fierce and both fleets were heavily damaged

(Enemy frigate, destroy, and corvette? Also would I know this for planning?

(Was technically a Heavy Frigate + 2 corvettes. Unknown if you would know the ship class at this time.)

(I'd say they'd get the transmission of the enemy fleet/ship types but there's no guarantee they're still at Chavvi)

Taking the corvette nimbus and the Vesiko to chavvi. They might not be there still but worth checking out

(You’re going to be massively out numbered by actual warships if the enemy fleet is still there. You committed to this?)

(I thought they were damaged. I guess I will take the station too.)

(If this whole thing is just a terrible idea though, I am ok doing something else)

(I can’t really ooc comment on that but it’s a 17 day trip down there. I think it’s conceivable theyd be helped in that time if they’re still there)

(ok moving on)

8:51 AM

(I will just go explore the llf vault. I will post something when I can)

(alright, once you're out of work we can get a new post going)

Shahriar- asleif-eriphyle (4days 38/90 trade) Grim and crew take the Vesiko to Eriphyle to check out the LLf facility there.

The Order of Quiet Oblivion, sacred undertakers owns this planet and takes care of the universes' dead here. Many cultures from pre scream days are interred here, and the Lamplighters were once honored partners in helping to maintain the legacies of the dead here. They constructed a vault on this planet to safeguard some of the more dire knowledge, and the ORder has been unable to get through the now malfunctioning defenses.

Grim contacts the Order “This is Lightbringer Grim of the Lamplighter Foundation. I am requesting permission to land near the LLF vault. I understand the vault may be malfunctioning and the defenses may be posing a danger.”

The Order gives you permission to land and would like to know how you wish for your remains to be treated if it becomes necessary

Grim relays back “In the case I perish please cremate my body” can’t have people examining my body and asking questions

12:56 PM

Grim the lands the Vesiko just out of weapons range of the facility. He then attempts to electronically communicate with the facility and send his credentials as the head of the foundation

Your name is not recognized as a Lamplighter member, and the credentials you have now are not compatible with the ancient vault

“Acknowledged, I will send the correct credentials.” Grim turns to Raven “Can you falsify credentials or potentially hack the system if I keep it distracted for a bit.”

They’re unable to try to spoof anything. A failed attempt might even trigger a failsafe where the contents are destroyed

Grim checks the records for a list if defenses. (Basically just trying to figure out what i would be fighting at least initially, like 1 weapon or 5.)

There is a point defense laser that seems to be doing the killing on the external side of the fort. There’s nothing listed about the defenses within

Grim boards the grav explorer and prepares to try and combat the defense laser.

The ship is able to get you some imagery of the 100m or so leading to the vault entryway. Cover is sparse, and the laser in the crown of the door has a good line of sight on the approach, especially with two sets of stairs in the way- where natural cover and concealment is not present. The Lamplighters picked this spot well, and the relatively little defensive power the vault has individually is being used here for maximum effect.

(Would I be able to use my grav explorer? Or on foot only?)

(You could use the explorer, but the turret is a heavy weapon so it can be hurt)

1:46 PM

Tyr and Grim will take the Sleipnir. We are going to fire the hmg. (Max range is 2000. So not sure if the laser gets a shot before We are in range)

(Lets get into initiative if we're going to engage at these distances then, your range is the same as the turret) (edited)

(7 for the turret)

(6)

The turret swivels in its housing above the door, laser weapon tries to track the rapidly moving explorer, but is unable to get its barrel oriented in the right direction fast enough. The shots chew up dirt and grass where you had been just seconds before, and the vehicle is unharmed

7:27 AM

(missed)

(Grim/crew up)

Grim and crew hastily attempt to return fire without much luck (8/10)

Sparks and dust ricochet from the door as the explorer advances, and the tracking systems within the door turret struggle to keep up with the difference in speed, missing horribly (3/miss)

Attempting once again to strike the turret with its HMG the explorer makes a better placed shot (23/7)

You see smoke, and some electronic compoentn has been torn off. It tracks, slower now, but it might still get lucky. It does not, and the shot misses again

Grim overconfident from his last shot does not take the time to properly aim the next and the shot comes no where close to target (5/18)

12:32 PM

(Max damage but a nat 1 to hit lol)

You're confident the bullets would have been absolute bangers had they hit something, but they did not. The laser fires, this time striking a brutal hit on the side of the vehicle, rendering the side panel into a molten and rapidly cooling useless slab of metal. (11/14, is a heavy weapon so armor value does not reduce damage)

After taking a heavy blow Grim retaliates by firing the Sleipnirs HMG once more (17/11 assuming Still applying-2 due to range)

(Yes. We are moving at a good coop but haven’t passed into short range )

10:01 PM

There is a series of sparks from atop the door and a large piece of machinery tumbles out of the inset socket. It seems you’ve knocked out the defenses at the cost of moderate damage to your own ride

With the defenses down the crew takes the Sleipnir as close to the door as they can get. Then Raven and Param begin to use their respective computer and technician skills to try and get the door open.

"Hey boss?" Raven calls you over, frustrated by something on her computer screen. "I know you're new to the job. Do you ever remember seeing anything about the former leadership making some kind of deal with aliens...like a group we don't have contact with now- because this language isn't depicted anywhere in Council archives"

“I don’t remember anything like that, but we are just scratching the surface of what is in all the old documents. Think we will be open the doors anyway? Maybe through mechanical means?”

"I can get them open, another five minutes should do it, but we're seeing this a lot in the ciphers , and we will probably see more inside"

3:29 PM

"I thought maybe we could grease some wheels,"

“Thank you. For now let’s copy as much of it as we can. I will run it through the files we have on board the Vesiko and see if we get a match. If not When we get back to the Paivatar we can cross check it with their records, failing that maybe the university on Tece has something.” (So for now just seeing if I can try and check the ships computer to see if I have any records)

The ship does not have any records so that means the larger universe does not either. tece is a neutral planet and may have something hidden away

Grim instructions the crew to keep working on the door and awaits it’s opening

Ten minutes later there is a crack of light from between the door panes. The security systems on the inside of the door have been deactivated. "And access" Raven says, folding up her computer.

Grim and Tyr will enter first and scan for any immediate threats. The rest of the crew is instructed to wait for the all clear be for also entering.

(I’ll get a map up when I get back to my computer tomorrow. I didn’t bring it with me )

4:27 PM

(I have the map I want I just don’t have it handy)

(Never any rush at all. That’s the beauty of this game. We can all play when we have time and still get to rpg even with busy life’s.)

2:28 PM

(Stairs ar the middle south side is right behind the door )

Grim is going to explore the two little rooms by the entrance first starting with left one. Tyr and the rest of the crew will wait at entrance in defensive position (basically weapons ready) until Grim explores more and they can move up.

(Which one do you want to start with, so i know what to describe)

The left one first

The door to the left of the entryway opens easily and it looks to be a cloakroom for Lamplighters who may have had to access the vault in bad weather Slickers and rain hats , as well as a set of lockers with winter climate gear in them all marked with Lamplighter logos are a good find and don’t seem to be treated with any kind of security

Pleased by the find but with no danger and not much else to do here grim moves to the right room

The door is jammed, and a shoulder barge has you getting through it into the security room. Gate guards would have been stationed here when the vault was manned. There is a laser rifle and three power cells in a wall case, for emergency use only. A computer terminal also controls the doors though you can see that Raven has had her way with it,a nd the gate controls themselves are stripped from the system- now slaved to her pad

With that done Grim is going to move to the large room on the right middle

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 4/13/2021 6:57 PM

(The one with the tables?)

Yes

7:03 PM

And the books

7:03 PM

Im just going to go counter clockwise basically

The door to this room is secured and it’s beyond the hacking skills of anyone in the group. The silver plated doors have a shelf carved out of them where matching silver number blocks have been placed. Several are missing. The existing ones are arranged so They spell- A R I (edited)

8:15 PM

(Should be blank blank A R I blank blank)

It seems Im going to need to find the other blocks Grim continues onward after examining the door and realizing he can’t do much without the other blocks, and moves to the kitchen looking room in to upper right.

The kitchen was the main galley when this vault was in service. You're growing more convinced the vault or data repository itself is what is beyond the doors you need the letter blocks to get into. This room has several long tables for the preparing of food, a large stainless steel oven, and two refrigeration units that are still running - one of the few things hooked up to reserve power.

Grim will search the room to the best of his ability looking for the missing blocks. He opens the refrigeration units, Looks in the oven, opens cabinets being as thorough as possible

Inside the oven you find the first of the letter blocks that are missing. It is a letter C

After finishing searching the kitchen Grim will move to the room with the billiards table in the bottom left

Passing back into the main hallway, Raven has the door to the Rec room unlocked already though she hasn’t opened it. A caution sign nailed to the door says construction underway: live wires, and nobody wanted to be the one to cause a medical emergency

Grim will cautiously open the door and attempt to see what he can without yet entering the room

(notice/wis)

(4)

A set of sparking wires propped up by the door falls, hissing violently with live current and blocking the way forward. The ceiling panels in the next room are scorched brown and black from the previous occasional electrical discharge

Grim tells Raven “I am going to explore the remaining rooms maybe I can find an electrical panel to shut of power to this room” Grim then heads to the room above (the one with a long table)

The long table has been set for a banquet nobody has been to. The food had rotted away leaving nothing left but bones and dried husks but on a silver tray in the middle of the room , you see a pair of the blocks. H, and V

Grim takes the blocks and then moves one room north.

A common room has been set out with plush leather chairs , bookcases and a few curio cabinets with reflective glass and brass filigree doors. Cigar smoke faintly hangs in the air even after all this time. , though no one has been here in quite some time. Several logs are piled up in the fireplace but a fire was never lit

Grim takes out the logs and sits in one of the comfortable leather chairs. He radios Raven. “Try and see if you can find a way to shut off the electricity to the room that was under construction. I may be a while.” Grim then sets to reading the logs.

(Like wooden logs )

7:47 PM

(My bad. I wasn’t clear)

7:48 PM

Undoing the fireplace logs you find another block. T

(Oh lol. I thought like someone was about to burn some mission logs, haha)

8:13 PM

After finding the block, Grim will now check the bookcases for any rare or lost books not already in the Galnet.

Most of them are literary classics from old earth , which Galnet does not have copies of anymore in these forms. Amateur literary critics have tried to put translations together from memory, but now, they'll have something to compare to- and more importantly will have originals to copy and circulate

Grim will then check the cabinets to see if there are anymore blocks or anything else of interest

The block you have and the paper copies of the classics in this room seem to be all there is. The exploration team makes it into the billiards room, and there are more blocks than spaces in the door. Unscrambled, they'll spell either CHARITY or AVARICE

Grim will join the team and the spell out Charity on the door

(6xp, 10,000 credits) there is a hiss, as the doors open- allowing you access to the data vault. A massive computer bank for storage occupies nearly the entire room.

Grim will have Raven attempt to carefully access the data vault

Downloading and decoding what is locked in here will take a considerable amount of time- mostly to decode. It may be weeks. Raven is not sure she can speed that process up without risking damaging what you've worked for.

(Is there anything left to check out in the vault or have I pretty much finished it?)

10:08 PM

(Also does this complete my discover llf vault goal and then Mobion complete my explore unexplored world goal, and finally is the fully explore tece goal complete?)

(That’s it. It completed a goal for unexplored world and there’s a lot more on tece so no to that one) (edited)

10:18 PM

(Completed a goal for vault as well. I think that’s everything you listed

(Thank you. I will think about plan for what to do next and post in the morning)

(sounds good to me)

(I need to convince 3 NPC groups to recognize the llf for the endeavor. So I guess while I’m here I can work on the order of quiet oblivion, or is the fact they let me go into the vault enough to count?)

(We'd need a convo with them, we have 1/3 right now, due to House Oniferos supporting you)

11:29 AM

(but we can easily make this 2/3 by time you leave)

(Ok thank you)

11:30 AM

After finishing what he can for now in the vault Grim contacts the Order of Quiet Oblivion and requests a meeting .

They are pleased to hear you are alive, and send coordinates for their chapterhouse on the planet. They request you come prepared for dinner, as a guest, not as the main course.

As the crew pilots the ship to the coordinates Grim puts on official LLF dress attire. I hate dressing up, this outfit is so uncomfortable. But it comes with the job and I need to make a good impression. As they arrive Grim exits the ship and heads into the chapterhouse

Assembled outside, the caretakers are arrayed, there are nine of them, though there are dozens more monks and nuns of all faiths that manage the graves here and provide labor for the work details that build new monuments, maintain the ones that exist here, and perform the other activities necessary for the settlement to flourish. Their own vessel, a free merchant, is parked near the monastery, where it is currently undergoing routine repair before it heads into space once again to collect the dead of the various Iron Stars planets.

“Greetings. As you know I am Lightbringer Grim of the LLF. Thank you for inviting me here. Your work across the Iron Stars is appreciated”

"As is yours. We are pleased you were not killed down in the vault. We haven't been able to get close without it shooting at us. We're very eager to go mow those lawns and make the land presentable"

“I will share what knowledge I can from the vault. However, the reason I wanted to talk is I know your order had contact with the LLF before the scream. As such it’s important to me to earn your orders recognition of the current LLF as a legitimate successor to the old LLF.”

"We did. Please, come inside and share a meal, and we will discuss how the LLF used to do things, and our contact with them. Our organizations were great partners once, and in this new age, perhaps we can be so again"

"I also, hope we can be again." Grim sits down for the meal and makes small talk with the members of the Order. Grim tries his best to be charming and win them over. Grim also specifically listens for any topics of interest or conversations threads he may particularly be able to add to.

5:29 PM

(basically trying to be a sociable guest)

(Did you want to actually play this out or are you in a hurry to get to something else )

(Im not in a hurry, but if I have a choice I will skip it)

7:07 PM

(But if you find it interesting if fine playing it)

(We will skip it then. I don’t wanna drag you. )

7:08 PM

(3xp, 5000 credits. I’ll update the endeavor to 2/3)

(Thank you.)

7:48 PM

(Eraphyle-Aslief 1 day 39/90 trade)

7:50 PM

Grim and crew travel to Aslief so that he can continue training with the Daughters of the Lotus. When in range Grim contacts them and announces his arrival

Special coordinates are sent to you via tightbeam link, as not to compromise their hidden position in the mountains. Your ship is secured in a sub-mountain hangar, and you're brought to the surface inside their compound, where you're permitted to reside as a friend of the Daughters for as long as you wish.

After spending dinner with the Daughters Grim heads to the room they prepared for him. Grim felt like he had just fallen asleep when awakened by a group dressed in traditional Ninja attire. Grim had not even heard a sound until then. The Ninjas identified themselves as Grim’s Ghostwalker style trainers. The trainers informed Grim that he will be doing most his training at night and will need to learn how the do so in silence. Over the next couple weeks they taught Grim the basics of unarmed combat, how to apply the style to athletics in order to climb, jump, as well as evade dangers. The ninjas also taught Grim how to move in unarmed combat without leaving his defenses open. Grim will need to continue training and using his new skills, but after the two weeks he was finally able to master the basics

(that finishes up the reward, basically just RPing us doing the bookkeeping for getting it, I'm good for anything)

(Would I be able to work on earning recognition for the LLF from the daughters?)

(Doing that would basically announce to the world they're still around, which is the exact opposite of what they want)

3:21 PM

(it was a favor for a favor, but they wouldnt want any kind of political/business entanglements)

(Makes sense. Not sure what to do next at the moment. Im going to have to think on it)

(I’ll help if you’re stumped )

(Yes please)

Gudrun is close and a man in Central there known as the Baron is known to be supportive of many adventuring groups and otherwise important people Many of the heroes of the iron stars got their starts from him. From aslief it is not a far jump to Gudrun and he may be someone worth looking into, though his support will no doubt come at a cost.

(Aslief-Gudrun 3days 42/90 trade.)

10:02 PM

(Sounds like a plan)

Returning to Gudrun, you see most of the battlefleet that normally patrols this system is gone. Space defenses still hold, and your vessel is welcomed to dock within Trivedi cloud, where you can take a transport down to the surface, to any of the main cities. Advertisements for Baron's Brewhouse, and his first property, the Harvest Spirits, are on one of three electronic poster-boards you pass.

Grim takes transport down to the location of the Harvest Spirits on the surface. He then enters the tavern and inquired with the bartender on if Baron was around.

The Harvest Spirits is the place where almost everyone in the United Nations of Worlds got their start. The building is still rustic, and wooden, though there are some modern touches like slot machines, and the drinking apparatuses themselves. A pair of crossed scrap mauls, along with a battered and old blood soaked shield are mounted above the bar, with pictures below them of the very early colonists, in their stand against the Underhill nest their colonization efforts had disturbed. There are more recent photos, The Baron with Seung Whitaker standing in front of a battle tank, his charter with Lazlow Mining, where Svenka had her start many years ago, and several others are on the wall, light obscuring their holoframes from this distance. The Baron is in, and will be able to meet with you, especially since you represent a major galactic faction.

Grim grins when he sees the picture of Svenka. Knowing she helped start the LLF may hopefully help with getting things off on the right track. Grim then heads to the Barons office to meet with him.

The baron brings you into his back office , where a wooden chair is set on the visitor side of his desk. The room is very tidy and he has all manner of drinks on a cart- alcoholic and otherwise. “Help yourself. Please” he gestures , siding his glasses on his face

Grim pours himself some whisky and thanks Baron for it. “I have heard rumors that your a man worth talking to. None of the rumors say why, but judging from the pictures of you with all the legends on the wall, Im starting to feel the rumors were definitely right.” (edited)

“That all depends on what you want your Legend to be. I can help you get things done. For a price of course. Any deal meant to stand the test of time needs an equitable exchange l

“Did you have an exchange in mind already or are you looking for me to make a suggestion?”

“The new lamplighters don’t look how they used to. For the better I think but it also means you’ve become something of an unknown to me. I’d like to hear what you’re after in coming to me. You wanted this meeting. You must have something in mind, or some idea of what I can do for you”

“Well legitimacy is high on the list, having someone so well respected in the UNW vouch for us would be a huge boon. Beyond that any leads on artifacts or similar items would also help.” (edited)

“So this boils down to reputation and information. All things I am capable of doing. What can the new lamplighter foundation offer in return?”

“For starters I can heal almost all injuries and diseases. But I’m sure someone of you reputation already has access to top tier Biospons. If not however I would be willing to provide that service as requested. Beyond that what is you would want? We have money and resources, but I feel like that’s all things you already have.”

“How often do the lamplighters find one of these vaults that you’re constantly hunting ?”

“In roughly 6 months 3. I don’t expect the pace to always be so fast however.”

(Actually I think it may of been 2, my memory is spotty)

(Does the Nimbus helping in the fight count as "Assist in operations against at least one of the major threats to the Iron Stars" also, does the medical facilities count for "Take a major step to fulfilling deal with Vampire family. ")

(Yes and yes )

4:37 PM

“Of course not. They are out there though which is what I wanted to know. Do these vaults frequently contain agricultural information?”

“It’s hard to say at the moment. I have files from the vault on Heras and files from the vault on Eriphyle. However they are still decrypting.”

7:01 PM

(Not sure if the tece vault had that or if the Heras files are decrypted yet)

(Tece vault did , we dont know about the Eaiphyle vault yet.)

“There was agriculture data in the Tece vault I could share”

"That data will do nicely. What I am after is new ways of growing, new things to grow, and thusly new things to make exotic foods and beverages out of, to further enhance my own business interests. Transmissions of any agricultural data you find will be enough to secure my support. Mind you, I'm not expecting the originals, but I am expecting unedited copies. I am not here to take food out of a starving planet's mouth for my own gain. that said, things on Gudrun and within the UNW are well, and I would like to make some credits"

“Unedited copies will be transferred. As soon as they receive word on Tece they will transfer the data, by my estimate it should take roughly 20 days due to transmission time with the Tece vault. Beyond that I will share any agricultural data from additional vaults discovered. Having someone putting the knowledge to use will benefit us as well because it demonstrates the benefits the LLF mission provides. It also incentives you to pass along leads on potential vaults. So I agree to the bargain.”

Level 12. New HP is 58 (+1 increase due to rolling lower). 4SP gained. 2 being used to purchase tissue integrity field.  saving the remaining 2 sp

"Then you have my support. What can I do to give you a leg up on your next find?"

"It may be a longshot, but have you heard rumors of potential vault locations. If not something that is more of a personal vendetta on my end, I have heard Nexcorp is acting up again, I would appreciate if you could point me in the right direction to finding them."

"I'd have to put my contacts to use in finding them, but the Knights of Draconis, and the Aphroditan Guild had recent run ins with Nexcorp at Ziya-Al- Ghulam

9:19 AM

https://www.worldanvil.com/w/iron-stars-nekosmash/a/ziya-al-ghulam-article?preview=true

Ziya-Al-Ghulam

“Thank you. I am going to head there soon. One last thing, I have a rare blood disease and require occasional transfusions, would you be able to set me up with the ability to purchase some blood bags before I go?”

(I know we were working on those medical services sort of running it back to you quietly, as well, though the House would also be the primary benefactor of those, so we have some effort toward the problem -youre making good headway)

1:55 PM

"Ah medical transfusions? of course. Something the bioscopics can't purge eh? I'd imagine someone in your station would have access to the best"

(Yeah starting next month, I just didn’t want to risk running out or put you in a situation of calling me on it, because I haven’t been tracking exact number of bags well.)

5:13 PM

“Once we know each other better I can explain the details of the disease a bit. I wouldn’t even so much call it a disease because it has its upsides too. But that’s a story for another time. As for the station normally you are right. But it’s off fighting the Extaurren in order to protect the people of the Iron Stars “

(No you’re good. I sort of got where you were going with it but I didn’t want to assume)

7:20 PM

“I’ll talk to my friends over at the hospital and arrange for the supplies to be stowed for you when you leave the planet. “

“Thank you. It was good meeting you and I look forward to continuing our arrangement.” Grim sends the order to have the requested data transferred to the Baron. Grim then heads to his ship prepared to go after Nexcorp.

7:33 PM

(I am thinking of adding goals to tell my crew the truth about condition and some goals for going against Nexcorp. But I don’t know if it’s ok or if it’s too late to add)

(Gudrun-Mariam-Asta-Ziya al ghulam 9 days 51/90 trade)

(What ship are you in?)

(Vesiko)

(few things we gotta figure out before you're in the middle of everything, and you can add goals)

(Added the goals.)

(okay, so e need a program/int check for being hidden, +2 for being frigate sized. I don't see any other stealth fittings)

7:54 AM

(the planets and any other ships in the s ystem will also roll to detect)

(9roll +2 =11)

(13, 2D6+5 for a planet)

8:28 AM

The system of ZAG 1 location locks the Vessiko as it enters the system, and a pair of Nexcorp destroyers fueling near the sun- along with a free merchant doing the same, begin powering up their engines to investigate. They aren't bothering to hide their own signatures.

Grim opens comms “This is the free merchant Vesiko. I am on a mission to set up new trade routes for the LLF. Requesting permission to land.”

Access to this system is forbidden to all civilian vessels. This system is a war zone and there is no safe place for you on the ground

8:36 AM

The Nexcorp crew seems professional, even polite, but firm

“Acknowledged, I will leave the system. Before I go, may I ask who is at war here and why?”

"The rulers of the first and second planet in this system are fighting one another to see who should dominate the system. "

“That’s no good, are you with the first or second planet?”

"We are attempting to perform peacekeeping operations on both, we have been hired to mediate the conflict"

“I see, what is your organization and is there a better world to meet with you your organization to establish trade?”

"We are not interested in trade. We have a contract here and it is our focus"

“Fair enough enough. I am leaving now. The LLF has deep pockets though, so if you are looking for more contracts reach out to us”

9:07 AM

(Heading to Chloe to figure out my next move. 53/90 trade)

As you've complied with directions, the destroyers continue their screen of the planets, but do not come closer or act aggressively in the six hours it takes for you to exit the system

(Thinking of heading to acatyl to deal with Extaurren, but Im not sure if there’s anything to do on the ground?)

(Actayl doesn't have any settled planets, but they're on the ground at Maysoon, and i think Max and Val are gearing up to do just that, if we want to make it a group mission)

(Yes I will head there.)

(alrighty,got that thread going)

(Chloe-rannevig-Natasha-gunhil-alcatyl-maysoon 14 days 67/90 trade)

3:52 PM

(Am I already there in the group thread or just the nimbus right now?)

(there in the group thread with the vessiko now too)

To: Octavian
From: Grim

I am sure you have seen the news from the exchange of light. They emptied the LLF accounts. I am planning on selling stored up resources, but it is going to set us back some. At least we got the medical services up and running beforehand. I messaged the Exchange asking for our funds back. Do you have any connections from the past that we may be able to leverage. I also want to make sure they aren’t friends before I murder them, drink their blood, and place their heads on pikes as a warning to any organization that crosses house Onoferos.

(edited)

2

(I can’t do the boxes on mobile but assume this formatted properly) Grim, We have friends here on Tece who may be able to assist with the cash injection you need. Why don’t you come home for a bit, and we can discuss how to best continue the mission of the Lamplighter organization

(I don’t need it formatted, but a trick that may work on mobile is holding down the ‘ button on the keypad. It may give you the ` option.)

9:34 PM

Octavian,

I will head to Tece soon. Just wrapping up some loose ends dealing with our Extaurren problem

(I make other people do it so I’ve got to make sure I hold myself to the same. I didn’t know you could do that. )

(Maysoon - alcaytl- chhavvi-zindilis-draemia-akhlaqi-Galatea. 17 days. 84/90 trade)

(Defeat planet cracker goal complete?)

(complete for sure)

(galatea-asleif-mariam-tsatsos-creusa-abauntza-tece. 15 Days. 90/90 trade, 9/90 Administer)

On the trip back to Tece, Grim finally finished the book on trade Lan gave him when he took over the LLF. It took forever but maybe Lan will finally let up a little about me spending more time doing my LLF duties and less time adventuring. Just then there is a knock at his door. As Grim opens it he is greeted by a new junior LLF recruit, who says "Hello Sir, Ms. Lan calculated that you should be finished with your first set of assigned reading and asked me to deliver this stack of books on business administration." As the young recruit leaves. Grim starts digging in the new reading. Bored by how dry the text is Grim only gets a few chapters in when he decides to call a meeting of his closest companions. Tyr, Param, Raven, and Minerva all arrive in the LLF's executive conference room. After everyone is seated Grim starts. "So, Minerva is already aware but there is something I need to tell the rest of you. My blood disease is more than just anemia although it shares similiarties. It is more akin to vampirism. Now I am sure you all may have questions, first I want to say I have never killed an innocent to sate this disease. Second I hope you all will continue following me knowing the truth. I just couldn't hide this from those so close to me any longer. If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask them."

Most of them want to know things like, can you still eat garlic, does silver hurt you, and so on. You have not preyed on them so far and they trust you will continue to not do that

Grim answers their questions as best he can then says. “I appreciate the support and I would never pray on any of you. My ultimate goal is to ensure nonviolent methods of sating the disease.” Once all the questions are answered Grim goes back to reading the stack of books Lan has been pestering him about. The Paivatar then continues its journey to meet with Octavian.

The station arrives in Orbit over Tece and you can see much activity in the city streets below- far more than normal. From orbit you can also see that Octavian's state has been heavily locked down and only workmen focused on repairs have been permitted on the property. The rest of the occupants look to be house staff. You are not sure what has happened down there.

Grim has his old ship the Knarr take him his crew and the Sleipnir down to the surface landing at the LLF facility up north. Grim then has two cars called from the LLf hq on Tece. The first car will take his crew to the hq. The second car grim packs his heavier gear like the storm armor into the trunk and then has it bring him to Octavian’s estate. Grim then calls Octavian on his way there. “Octavian I recently arrived on Tece. Things seem to be … interesting at the moment. I am sorry it took so long to get here, there was a planet destroying super weapon, but we can save that story for later. I will be there shortly and you can let me know how I can help.” (edited)

(Also assuming I completed come clean about being a vampire with crew goal)

(Yeah I would say so)

6:07 PM

“Make sure you’re not followed when you make your way here. The houses of the night are in chaos. We have hunters in our midst and the whole planet might find out about us soon”

Grim attempts ensure he is not followed by doubling back on his route, making full circles around several blocks. At one point he will have the car stop to pick up coffee. While taking these precautions Grim will attempt to notice if any vehicles seem to be following.

7:48 PM

(Also will do level up tonight when I get a chance)

Level 13. 
New HP is 59 (+1 increase due to rolling same). 4SP gained. (1 Bio, 1 any Psi, 2 normal sp) plus 2 saved SP from last level.
New Focus: Tinker level 2
Raising Fix to level 2 - 3sp cost. 
1 Bio SP, 1 PSi SP and 1 Normal SP being saved

Edited-Actual level is 13 not 12

(edited)

1

2

9:58 PM

Lan Yu
Level 4. 
New HP is 14. 4SP gained. 
Raising Connect to level 1 -2 SP cost
Raising Know to level 1 - 2 SP cost

(edited)

10:03 PM

Tyr
Level 4. 
New HP is 19. 
3 SP gained. 
Raising Exert to level 1 -2 SP cost
Saving 1 SP

(edited)

(hot)

8:02 AM

(also. notice/wis)

(6)

You ar enot followed as you enter the gates of the manor. Construction work is beginning on the front of the home to both repair and fortify it and as you enter the grounds you can see many house servants are in the process of getting things packed into trunks and boxes as though the entire estate is moving. Octavian is in the center of the chaos, directing everyone to their positions and ensuring things are handled correctly. (edited)

Grim heads towards Octavian. “You mentioned hunters in our earlier conversation. “What is the threat and how can I help?”

"Hunters. Yes. They have evidence we exist. In ten days, if we do not evacuate the planet, they release whatever evidence they have to the public and it will become open season on us. We have seen enough to be assured this threat is credible, as they've also attacked my home and murdered the elder of a house we are affiliated with"

Grim gets quite for a few moments and then speaks. “There is something I have been putting a lot of thought into, but put it off because I thought we had more time. I don’t think running is a viable option. I have over the past year helped the major polities battle Ghouls as well as slavers, blood cults, and even simply tyrannical governments. This are all battles that would of been fought anyway, but my experience has led me to the concern that if we don’t control the situation we could be added to the list of threats to humanity and I have seen what the polities do to those threats. We need to control our destiny and I don’t think Tece can stay neutral much longer. The existing polities are expanding and I think our best bet at avoiding becoming a target is joining one of the polities. The two nearest are the UNW and the EP. The UNW are a bunch of Dudley Do-Right Little Goody Two-Shoes, they will investigate the rumors and won’t stop until they find the Truth. With the Protectorates current situation however I think we have an interesting opportunity. The Khan who recently was promoted is somewhat morally flexible and both I and your friend Val have friends on their leadership council the Elysium Cloud. We need to stop these hunters before they can release what information they have, we also need to stop killing so many humans because it is going to bring unwanted attention. We have blood supplies coming in and anyone who can’t manage their impulses is a threat to us. Once those immediate threats are dealt with I recommend we apply for membership in the protectorate with whichever figurehead you designate as the Khan of Tece.”

11:00 PM

(Sorry it was way longer than I thought)

“That’s a sound plan and it’s one to consider when the blade of those hunters is removed from our back. We will not live to see anything we decide come to fruition “

“I agree they are absolutely the first priority. Do you have any leads? Maybe a living hunter whose mind I can read?”

“We had one but they were killed by an over zealous underling. We will have to do some investigatory work to figure out where they may be hiding. We believe another noble house may also be aiding them with intelligence gathering efforts “

“Unfortunate, that would of made things easier. Another noble house, that is interesting. Are there any houses I should start with? Or any locations we think the hunters may frequent?”

"This is going to need some investigation. They know more about us than we do about them, by a long margin. "

9:12 PM

"If we knew where they were or where they frequented I'd have dozens of them here in chains being torrtured for information"

“Ok I am thinking I have Raven start scanning the deep web to see if she can find anything. Maybe she can get me a lead. Worst case she see if there is any information on us out there. While she is scanning the web if you don’t have any objections I was going to take a look at the house library. While I’m waiting for a lead maybe I can at least see if I can find any LLF information or data on vaults.”

“Please. Do whatever you think you need to do to bring this to a close “

Grim takes leave of Octavian. He then calls Raven and instructs her to search the deep web for any leads. Grim then heads to the house library and starts searching for anything Lamplighter related.

(admin/int)

(8)

Octavian only knew about his mission here but another branch of his expedition made a run towards the planet Uloth back when they were dispatched. They were never heard from again

Satisfied with his find about the additional expedition Grim starts to leave the library when he starts to hear a faint hum in his head like something is calling to him. Grim follows the hum it faintly growing louder as he gets closer. A book on the shelf labeled Alchemy seems to be the source of the humming. Grim takes it off the shelf only to realize it is no book but actually a metal box shaped like a book. Examining the box doesn’t reveal any discernible method of opening it, however Grim gets a feeling like the box or something in it is trying to communicate with him almost as if it is urging him to push his psionic power into it. Grim does so and the box opens. Inside is a necklace attacked to a stone. Grim reaches into the box and grabs the stone. As he does he can feel the stone pulling at his psychic energy but is unable to stop the flow, almost as if the stone is recharging itself with his energies. Grim feels himself collapse and he passes out. He finds himself surrounded by total blackness except for a female being seemingly made of energy. Grim find himself unable to talk as she begins to communicate “Don’t be alarmed, you are the first of your kind I have actually been able to communicate with. I am an artificial construct and we are in your mind right now. I am similar to what your mind would refer to as a virtual intelligence, but more closely could be described as a collection of imprinted knowledge left by my creators. The last of which perished on your world long ago. I was then found by a member of your species who came to refer to me as the sorcerers stone.” Images begin to flash in Grim’s mind showing the history of the stone on earth. “I was able to be used to conduct what your kind called alchemy, a rudimentary and weaker version of what my creators termed psychic engineering. My true purpose however was to contain my creators knowledge of this discipline so that it would not be lost as their species died out.”

10:16 AM

“Eventually my energy ran out and I was placed into that box asleep for untold centuries until I detected your energy. I am charged now but still weakened. As I recover and our energies mix I should be able to show you more, but for now…” Grim receives more images showing him the basics of psychic engineering and how to transmute matter. He the awakens and find the stone has turned crystalline. Grim puts on the necklace and retreats to his quarters to recover.

4

(take a re-roll token, that was better than anything i was gonna do)

(Thank you) (edited)

Octavian is nowhere to be found when you have completed recovery. It’s several hours later. Raven believes that there is a hunter server farm being kept hidden in an old telecom building created back when the world was first being settled and lines needed to be physically run to buildings and switched to be connected to one another. It would make for a highly controlled and highly secure building to house an operation like that.

Grim contacts Tyr and has him meet him at the building at dawn as the hunters would likely expecting any attacks to come during darkness. They will meet a couple blocks away and will attempt to see what they can see outside the building.

(what are we looking at gear/transport wise? is it just you and Tyr?)

(Just me and Tyr but we are in storm armor and have our sheer rifles. If it’s in the city I won’t take the grav explorer, if it’s out further like house hovell I will)

(It would be within the city)

1:45 PM

If there are any night kin out there, they sense your presence and leave you alone on your errand. Octavian did not see you before setting out and was unable to dispatch anything to assist you.

1:46 PM

There are no windows on this building, and only a small person sized door at its base, a perfect base of operations

Grim and Tyr will attempt to head to the door one on each side. (Basically one to the left and one to the right of the door, preparing to kick it in) However, they will try and identify any traps as they approach the door.

(notice/wis)

(10)

spending 1 Psi SP to purchase psychic engineering lvl 0

You don't notice any traps or anything that would alert anyone you are here, but there is a small scent in the air of burned electronics inside.

Grim will attempt to kick the door open while Tyr covers him.

The door flies off revealing an entirely empty lobby level. The only things remaining here are the large steel beams supporting the weight of the building. Each of them is about the size of your explorer vehicle. At the far end of the lobby there is a wide cement staircase that winds back on itself, heading upwards

Grim is Slightly shocked at the lobby being empty having fully expected a heated battle, then continues up the cement staircase no longer knowing what to expect

As you go to round the corner, you feel Tyr close a hand around your pauldron and pull you back forcefully, looking downwards you can see some kind of tripwire hidden on the stairs as they double back. Two demolition charges would have brought the entire place tumbling down

Grim will attempt to disable the tripwire without setting it off

(fix/int, or dex, your call)

(9)

The trap is disarmed and Tyr sprays the charges down with foam so the electrical detonation signal cannot be sent

Between the empty lobby and tripwire Grim and Tyr realize it is beginning to look like this building is one big trap. However they continue to proceed upwards exercising caution as they do so.

The second floor has a normal enter door made of tinted glass. You can feel machine heat and hear the clicking noise of processing terminals on the other end.

Grim will check the door for anymore traps before proceeding through

You do not see anything that resembles a trap. The demolition charges seemed to be enough.

Grim and Tyr enter the door and Grim attaches his compad to processing terminals. This will hopefully allow Raven remote access to the terminals in order to download and exploit the data.

(you would need line shunts)

10:31 AM

(if we don't have any, that won't work)

(No line shunts)

11:16 AM

Grim unable to establish remote access will then attempt to access the terminal himself and download what he can

It seems as though without the shunt to attempt a connection with the device, you're unable to attach any new devices to it. Most of the machines here are on some kind of passive search mode, combing the ever expanding information networks of this world for certain key words, and archiving hits into folders.

(Can i use fix to remove the hard drives?)

(To physically disconnect them, yes we could use fix)

Grim still struggling to access the system decides to just take the hard drives (fix/int 10). Grim and Tyr will then destroy the remaining machines. Once completed they will then attempt to leave the building and meet up with Raven at the LLF hq on Tece.

As the first of the drives is cut there is a small beep that begins further upstairs in the facility.

8:08 PM

It grows faster, and you can hear shouts along with the pounding of booted feet on cement stairs. The clicks of magazines being slotted into rifles is a very distinct sound among the sudden chaos.

Grim will activate holistic optimization patterning on Tyr and himself. (Only Tyr If I only have time for one). Grim and Tyr will then prepare for potential combat.

(you'd have time for both, lets get initiative while we're here)

(4 roll, but Kenjutsu should put it at 6 because I have the mind blade readied)

(You and tyr and the the hunters) There are more coming but the first two hunters round the corner of the stairs 20m away and lower crossbows are you. The tips look to be mono metal- armor piercing despite your heavy protective overlays

Grim activates the boosters in his storm armor leaping into melee with the first hunter and cuts cleanly with his mind blade (18/18 after pattern optimization) Tyr then brings his shear riffle to bare against the second hunter . (17/14 after optimization)

The hunter is knocked unconscious by the passing blade and falls asleep at your feet. Tyr wounds the second, but the gravely wounded hunter barely hangs on. Two more of them appear on the stairs, and the trio of bolts from the survivor's combined guns launch. (20/11 grim if that hits, the other bolts miss, back to you)

(AC is 20. So that hits right?)

Grim and Tyr both attempt to take down the wounded hunter (grim 14/19 , Tyr 16/12)

(yes, AC is meet or exceed )

The wounded hunter falls, leaving two more standing at the stairs. Their bows click as the reloading mechanisms worked into them bring up another bolt from a small magazne, and they fire again (20/3 Tyr)

Grim attacks the first of the remaining hunters (16/20) while Tyr fires at the second (14/18)

Tyr misses while Grim drops his target The remaining hunter takes a handful of cylindrical objects off his belt pouch and throws them at you, the small pellet like devices sail through the air (Evasion save)

(Grim success 8v4, Tyr succeeds 19v11)

12:05 PM

(Not sure if I should take turn or wait for what happens with pellets)

The pellets explode in Hails of silver clouds. Protected in your armor it seems to be keeping the silvery material out from contact with either you or Tyr

12:15 PM

(Your turn)

Grim quickly executes a series of slashes with the mind blade at his opponent (27/20). Tyr will enter a defensive position while waiting to see if Grim has defeated the hunter. (total defense for Tyr)

Two hunters now lie asleep, and two are dead. Moving through the silver powder your armor prevents it from touching your skin. Octavian never mentioned if silver is harmful to you or not.

1:54 PM

(anything downed with the mind-blade is knocked out, not killed, so if you want those other two to be dead you've got to finish them off)

(Knocking two out was the plan)

4:10 PM

Grim and Tyr shoot the terminals several times then they each throw one of the knocked out hunters over there shoulders. Grim radios Param to meet them with a car. They then head for the exit.

You'renot followed though you can hear other hunters and shouts within the building. The ATV ramp is down and you make it aboard as a series of bolts from the few windows that exist on the structure thump into the vehicle. None of them penetrate

Grim will message Octavian.

Octavian, I have captured two hunters and the hard drives from the hunters communications facility. Do you want me to bring them to your compound or back to LLF headquarters. I plan to have my people decode the drives while I use my abilities to try and pry information from the hunters minds.

His home is the closer option and doesn’t involve driving hundreds of kilometers north before the data can be looked at. It should be done here if possible

Grim then heads to Octavian’s compound. While doing so he will take precautions to avoid being followed. Such as doubling back, taking an out of the way route, and trying to watch to see if any cars are trailing them

Octavian;'s compound looks much the same though there are more guards available right now than there were before. It seems watch has been at least doubled since last time you were here possibly in response to your raid. Octavian is in the middle of the parlor when you are welcomed in with your prisoners. Two racks have been set up and it looks like two of his aides are busy getting various torture tools ready though you can see some of them are impractical and are probably more for intimidation than actually being useful for extracting information.

Grim talks to Octavian in private. “Before doing anything too painful let me see what I can dig out of their minds. Weak willed creatures like these hunters shouldn’t provide too much resistance.” Grim then gives Raven the hard drives to begin decoding and then heads to the prisoners to begin gathering information. (If we are keeping the scene I should have 6 Topics if a new scene 8. With mental save to resist) the first topic Grim will probe for is who are they working with.

(same scene. So six topics )

4:41 PM

They are working with House Holvell in a limited capacity but mostly are working for themselves- having taken up this fight on their own initiative . (edited)

Next Grim will try and discover what the silver powder weapon was and what they expect it to do

It was a cloud microgrenade. Pure Silver is poison to vampires and they expected it to burn you had you not been on storm armor

Grim is surprised at the knowledge silver is poisonous however he manages not to show it. Next he probes to see if the hunter knows of other hunter strongholds or bases.

He knows of House Holvell and their compound outside the city , the server farm where you had apprehended him, and the disused 14th floor of an otherwise busy department store building in downtown Neo-Night city

Grim will probe one last time trying to see if the hunter knows who the leader of the hunter organization is.

The hunters operate in cells based on information they see online and the things people set up in comments on those vampire conspiracy videos that have been drawing more attention. Groups form and disband as interest in the subject waxed and waned. To the best of his knowledge most of his cell is either dead or here in this room about to be dead

Grim satisfied he has found all the information the hunter has then contacts Raven to see if she has had any luck cracking the encryption on the hard drives.

Raven can confirm that there is a large volume of data originating from the department store and that it seems a good a place as any to search

Grim will report all the information to Octavian. "House Holvell are a bunch of traitorous snakes, they are working with the hunters. I am going to strike at the hunter hideout we discovered as they are the ones with the data to expose us and the immediate threat. House Holvell seems to be hunkered at their compound but don't trust anyone from there and don't let any of them here until I get back."

"An assault on their compound would be folly. They are surrounded by kilometers of woods and they are undoubtedly booby trapped. They know the land, they know how to hurt us. For now we will need to ensure they remain isolated"

“That makes sense. I will leave those rats in their den for now. In the meantime I will investigate the 14th floor hunter hideout, unless you have objections. I will also purchase some supplies beforehand. Do you know a black market tech dealer you can direct me to?” (edited)

9:05 AM

(Basically looking to purchase 6 line shunts, a black slab, a Data phase tap, and a remote link unit)

(okay you have the little bit of face needed for the black slab)

1:27 PM

Everything you need, Octavian is able to provide from the stocks in his own home. He does not have anything considered malteech as at heart, he is still a lamplighter, but everything else he has managed to collect over time.

After gathering the gear Grim will head out to 14th floor hideout. Tyr and Grim will go first with Param and Raven instructed to follow behind 10 minutes later. Minerva will be instructed to “shop” at the department store but really keeping an eye for unusual behavior. (basically giving a heads up if a large force enters the building after us. So a lookout).

You're able to find a back door to use so your power armored frames do not draw attention as you trundle through the store. Minerva places herself in a rear department, browsing cookware and home goods while also being close enough to the stairwell you used to listen in- as any reinforcing hunters would no doubt be armed and would want to avoid creating a similar scene. Minerva also seems to be enjoying some time to actually pick things out for her corner of the station. The climb to the 14th floor is all done on metal stairs that are wide enough and sturdy enough to take your weight. Trash has accumulated at the bottom of the shaft and it looks like no one has been here in some time.

Grim and Tyr continue up to the 14th floor being as cautious as possible. (Basically checking for more traps)

As you ascend the stairwell you do not notice any traps here. The inaccessibility of the and remoteness of the stairwell seems to be its primary defense. At the top of the stairs there is a rolling metal door on a track you can slide to the right. You hear activity, machine noise, and voices on the other side

Grim will have Tyr cover him as he slides the metal door open as quickly as he can. Grim will then command the voices to surrender "On the ground hands on your head, surrender quickly and nobody needs to get hurt." (probably a very very long shot but hey maybe they will do things the easy way)

They are resolved to not do things the easy way, and the dozen hunters in this room decide they would rather fight and try to hope for a victory than submit and die without a chance

7:46 AM

(initiative)

7:46 AM

(they are 30m away)

(10, 8+2 Kenjutsu)

1

8:37 AM

(6 for Tyr)

(Grim, Tyr, Hunters)

Grim moves 10m closer the hunkers down while waiting for the hunters to react (total defense for grim) Tyr then fires at the nearest hunter (26/7)

One of them is wounded, as a hail of silver tipped bolts is unleashed back in your direction. Two of them look to be rushing toward some heavy gun on a work table that looks ponderous and hard to set up. (21/9 grim which may not hit due to total defense, everything relse misses)

(The total defense saved him 20base ac + the 2 total defense)

1

10:05 AM

Grim will use his armor to leap vertically 20m into combat with the nearest hunter and slashes him with the mind blade (17/17), Tyr targets one of the hunters moving towards the gun (28/5)

Tyr finishes off one of the hunters he had hit. THe others are oncoming, and angry. Grim strides into the melee and downs a second but there are ten remaining, and at least one of them is still intact to handle the large weapon. It begins to swivel into the fight (evasion save for both)

(Grim success 14v4, Tyr fail 10v11)

the heavy barreled weapon is made from scrap and is jury rigged. A shot punches through Tyr's armor (4 damage) but misses you as the under-powered ammunition snaps against your storm armor. Crossbows and knifes flash but none of them find purchase in armor seals or thinner joints (no hits and too high AC for shock)

Grim and Tyr having fought many fights together settle into their usual pattern of combat Grim slashes the nearest hunter (crit/32) and Tyr fires at the hunter with the heavy weapon (14/9)

1

The hunters begin to realize how outmached they are, those who are able begin to break contact and retreat 10m. In another 20m they'll be at the back door and near the fire escape.

10:47 AM

(main action to do fighting withdrawal so they dont get AOO from you or Tyr, and running, Morale check failed)

Grim and Tyr continue fighting as their enemies flee. There are likely to many to stop all of them but the less hunters the better. (Grim18/18, Tyr 19/14) (edited)

The team trying to mount the heavy weapon is killed, as they were the last to leave. The remaining hunters are busy moving out the door and down the stairs. There will be another moment before they get to the bottom to filter out into the streets. They have left behind a large stockpile of information and material

3:12 PM

(Vampires they can handle. Vampires in power armor with psitech are calibers above their level of readiness)

Grim will begin looking through the stockpile of information. After the hunters have cleared out and it’s safer, he will have his crew come assist with gathering all the data and getting it back to Octavian’s. It will likely take time to go through it all but for now he is looking for anything that stands out.

(Admin/int)

(4, using a Reroll)

7:58 PM

(11)

The hunters were working on a special type of bullet. It is translucently blue inside like spilled sunlight suspended on water. Your eyes almost want to shield themselves from it on their own accord

(Is there more to do here? Like other rooms or anything?)

(I was just gonna go step by step for what’s around rather than give you a wall of text)

(Ah ok)

6:06 AM

Grim begins to realize that silver might not be the only threat That is two vulnerabilities you never told me about, what else are you hiding Octavian Grim thinks to himself. He then continues his search

You notice that there is a large stockpile of audio video equipment here and it looks as though the hunters had been working on some kind of editing or production here. There are also many maps of the city. You can see House Oniferous has been marked as a vampire stronghold, as has the outside-city compound of House Holvell, and the holdings of two other houses you never had the opportunity to meet. There are icons in other areas where strongholds or places of interest were suspected. You notice the LLF medical services and the university here are marked for further investigation

I can’t allow the LLF to get tainted by these rumors. I need to end the hunters quickly. Grim scans the maps into his compad and thencontinues his search. (edited)

Tyr puts on the earphones and begins watching the video, keeping his other ear out for the hunters returning. Grim notices the armory, full of crossbows, silver bolts, more UV rounds, and large caliber weapons for using them. It looks like something serious was being planned here. You can also see radio equipment here where it seems the rule of keeping things contained to cells might have been broken

(sorry)

4

Grim begins gathering the weapons, when the rest of his crew arrives he will have them brought to LLF hq for inspection. He then checks the radio equipment to see if he can get any more data

(program/int)

(7)

The video that was going to be released is here. You have the original copy.

Grim takes the video. Grim then helps his crew gather everything obtained. After gathering everything they will head to House Onoferos.

2

THe house is in cinders as you approach. Fire trucks have a block in all directions cordoned off and aside from some house staff the authorities are questioning, it does not seem like any of the night kin here have survived, or stuck around long enough to risk discovery. Several black body bags are laid out on the pavement though you can tell by the shapes and how mismatched they are it is mostly just collections of burned parts they will need to try to match up later.

Grim will have the car pull around out of sight and will switch into his armored undersuit. He will then approach the staff and authorities that are doing the questioning.

They are going about their duties and dont pay you much notice

Grim will make telepathic contact with whoever is the senior most staff member he can see. This is Octavian’s friend Grim. Yes I am talking in your head, but I’m sure you have witnessed stranger during your employment. Quickly update me on the situation so I can deal with these authorities. There is already too much attention on our activities. Comply and I will ensure you are rewarded once I get this mess dealt with.

(I think rather than risk typing things out and missing details, mentally you would be relayed all the events from the explosion at the gate, so Nora bursting into the house and downing one of the LT's with those UV bullets. The servant would not have seen what happened to Octavian but the house being engulfed in blue flame is probably some strong evidence of his fate)

(I think you are right, that does work best)

After getting the story Grim gets on his compad and wires 1 million credits each to the Neon Nights City Police Benevolent Association and the Firefighter & Paramedics Association. He then gets the attention of the ranking police and firefighter on scene. “My name is Torgrim I am a friend of Octavian and the head of the LLF. I am aware of your previous arrangements with him and would like to assure you that despite this unfortunate mess, your organizations will still be well taken care of. 1 million credits have been transferred to each of your organizations. I believe that should be more than enough to make sure this won’t be a problem and there won’t be needed paperwork and investigations. Do not press me on this or refuse my generosity, I am calmer than my friend but do not mistake that for weakness.” (edited)

They get the message and understand your context for delivering it. "As soon as the structure fire is out we will remove ourselves from the scene. We cannot allow it to spread as one of the city's main power sub-stations is nearby, and this will create a much bigger problem. We will limit our approach to containment of the fire, and will not enter the dwelling remains themselves"

“I appreciate it.” Once that’s handled Grim will have the surviving staff housed at LLF hq until he is able to rebuild. (Would I or the staff have received Nora’s messages? Or alternatively would they know who she is and have her contact info?)

(Other vampires in Octavian's service would have got it, but they're either dead or fled, we do not know. I don't think Nora would have yours, since you're not from here and havent spent a lot of time here getting networked until like, right now)

2:50 PM

(though with a program/int from Raven, we might be able to get something from the net traffic, as she would no doubt be anticipating your need to look more into this)

Grim has Raven attempt to monitor net traffic for anything related to the attack or fire (6).

There’s nothing she can see aside from the standard emergency calls and reports of the fire.

(Would I have contact info for other houses. As in would the staff be able to provide me a way to contact the elders of the houses?)

(I think the servants would, at least a few of them, since they'd need it to do the menial things octavian might ask of them)

Grim enters the car that brought him here so that he can have some privacy and then metamorphs into a perfect likeness of Octavian and then records a a video message to be sent to the House Elders. (edited)

5

8:46 PM

An attempt was made on my life. It failed. Those who are loyal will report to the old LLF vault up north where you will meet my offworld friend. Those who do not show up will be known for the traitors they are and will be assumed to have been complicit with this ill advised failed attempt. You are to report tomorrow as soon as the sun sets. Elders must be present, I will view any attempt to send an underling as a direct insult

5

8:48 PM

Grim then takes the car back to the LLF HQ to prepare for what is next. He will have Minerva handle the situation at house Oniferos ensuring anything important that may have survived is transferred to the hq

(seen, nora would have seen it too, so just want to see how this plays out)

(While waiting can i have Raven try to look into the hard drives we got from the communications facility)

(The amount of real time passing while IRL dai figures out what to do is going to be magnitudes more time than is going to pass in character, so not right now)

(Copy, that’s fair)

(did you want to have anything prepared before people show up?)

(Basically I see it as they arrive will be escorted to a conference room. Minerva who is from here will handle all the admin things like seating who where, etc. Grim will be sitting at the head of the table wearing a LLF formal outfit and cloak with the hood obscuring his face. Only weapon I will have on him is the mind blade. Tyr will lead security in checking to make sure everyone is unarmed. I will have Param prepared to bring in and give a report on the hunter weapons and Raven prepared to brief on the data we have obtained so far. Also, if I can I will have that division of battle robots along the road on each side. Not to do anything other than make a point.)

(works for me,. I'll describe in Nora's and we'll bring you all together)

(Got it)

Grim sends a message to all of House Hovell minus the Elder.

 All of the houses know of your Elders treachery. Whoever kills her can be the new house elder, will receive 10 mil credits, and earn my friendship.

It does not seem as though there is a reply that will be coming

(Worth a shot)

Grim arrives back at LLF HQ and gets some much needed rest. Starting the next day he checks in with the technology department to see if they have had any luck decrypting the hard drive from the eaiphyle vault. Grim also gets a sample of the alien language and shares the sample with the different elders to see if anyone has seen it before or has files on it (edited)

(I’m gonna shoot you a PM once this meeting is over irl)

7:45 PM

(Drive is done. The other stuff is not )

The drive contents are encrypted and it seems to be directing you toward the Gunn system, where there was thought to be nothing technologically advanced and no people. It is just outside Protectorate territory to the east, 7 days from your current position

Grim leaves orders for the recovered sword to be analyzed. He then tasks teams of lamplighters to visit each of the houses and make digital copies of their libraries. He also leaves blueprints for House Torgrim to be built (will post in sanctum channel tonight) the house will be built where Hovell was previously located as it is defensible. Finally after leaving all the instructions he has his Grav explorer loaded onto the Gnarr and heads to the Paivatar where it is transferred over so repairs can begin. A course is then set for Gunn.

2:42 PM

(Tece-metanor-astyoche-Gunn. 7 days 16/90 administer)

The Gunn system when you arrive is vast. A ringed gas giant is the furthest from system center, with a moderate asteroid field around it from what was once a moon. A barren planet is the next furthest out with no moons. The inner rings consist of a planet wreathed in methane gas, and finally an alpine planet in the habitable zone with a moon sharing the same climate. A bright pair of yellow Suns burn at the system heart Previously undetected- but visible to you due to the encryption data you have, a small signal on the largest asteroid begins giving you vector and docking information. The 'tower' is an automated navigation program and there are no comm channels opening and no hails

Grim gets on the station intercom “All LLF personnel, we are tracking an old LLF signal and will be docking soon. Be on alert and ensure all positions are fully operational. I don’t expect issues and things will hopefully proceed smoothly but better to be prepared than surprised.” Grim then directs the pilot to follow the vector and docking information received.

(the platform is probably too big to navigate the debris field , we can take a smaller ship in and you can let me know who/what you want on board)

As the Paivatar approaches it becomes clear that it will be unable to navigate the debris. Grim instructs the station to hold just outside the debris and boards the Gnarr. Taking the newly repaired Grav explorer, Tyr, Param, Raven, and Minerva with on ship. (Will evaluate who/what debarks when we get there)

(Checking on goals. Tece join a polity, defeat hunters, on tece, heal a pc who would otherwise die, and personally contribute to adding another world to EP. the last one is a relic from my time in EP so not sure it still counts)

3

(ill say those all count and i know as unaligned you're not going to keep setting specific worlds up to join EP)

8:29 AM

(so we can take the XP for it now)

2

(Checking if I need to do anything else right now?)

(No, just didnt get back to you)

8:25 AM

The station is hidden deep inside the asteroid field and without the signal data you obtained it would have been impossible to find. Power seems to be on standby- it must be for there to be a return signal broadcasting to you. There is a small hangar on the upper reaches of the facility that looks to have atmosphere seals working still.

Grim and crew navigate through asteroid fields and into the hanger. Once there Grim will attempt to survey his surroundings

"Hang on a second here cap" The pilot says as they look over the display. A ring of metallic contacts bobs gently around the facility. "Looks like mines. Might be tracking, last ditch to keep people away. They've armed themselves somehow and we're going toneed to get rid of them before we get any closer"

Grim attempts to send the LLF signal data recovered from the drive to the mines

The mines do not change their posture upon the signal being beamed to them. This layer of defense looks to have been installed later- almost as an afterthought.

Grim has the pilot attempt to slowly and carefully navigate the minefield attempting to avoid triggering or attracting the mines

(Pilot/dex or int, your choice)

(8)

The mine beeps twice as the ship approaches, the course drifts close enough to arm it, before it loses the lock and powers down a few seconds later. A ring of explosions woujld send all kinds of debris in the direction of the station- and its not known whats inside or what other security measures there might be. Comms and computers are silent as the ship heads in. The armored doors of the docking bay begin retracting as it senses the ship get close.

Panicking from seeing the mines flash Grim thinks Damnit I have killed us all Then the mines power down and he feels massive relief. He then directs the pilot to try and enter through the opening doors and to dock the ship.

Lights and life support activate as the ship sets down onto its landing claws. Sealed armor or vac suits are still recommended for this portion of the ship , and a single hallway leads from the docking bay into the station. There are no maps on the walls in the bay but it has the trappings needed to repair or refuel any incoming ships so they can leave again. This place was in active use for some time.

Grim and Tyr will head out in storm armor. The rest of the crew will wait on board. The crew on board will attempt to connect to the stations network remotely if possible. Meanwhile Grim and Tyr will head down the hallway

Entering the hallway you see it is a straightforward transit to what would be a reception hub up ahead. Incoming crews would be met by the stations inhabitants and they would handle their business. A rickety looking valet bot is there now, doing its best to rotate its body on a rusting gimbal. It’s faceplate lights up a dull but welcoming blue upon detecting both of you getting closer.

Grim attempts to communicate with the valet bot. “Hello. I am Lightbringer Grim of the LLF. Can you provide me with a map or direct me to the station control center?”

"Hello Lightbringer Grim. I am Friendo! Your guide for your time here in this station. I will show you to the control center. Please follow me" The robot speaks, but does not seem to be moving. It begins humming to itself in some strange electric tone, almost musical in nature, but not quite.

“Is something wrong? You don’t seem to be moving, if you want I am a bit of a technician. I can try and repair any damage.”

"Hello Lightbringer Grim! I am Friendo!" it repeats, stuttering gently and looking to move again but the actual locomotion never occurs.

7:32 AM

There is a bubbling sound as oil leaks from joints to splatter across the floor.

Grim attempts to fix Friendo. First by seeing if there is a switch or obvious method of shutdown. He will also attempt open friendo up to access the inner components. Any loose wires or bolts will be tightened. Any power cells will be replaced. (Fix/int 15)

7:59 AM

If able to get Friendo somewhat fixed, Grim will attempt to turn him back on

Friendo goes through his lengthy reboot cycle. A game of pong appears on his screen to play while the system is rebooting. "Hello! I'm friendo!" He finally says as the screen announces the reboot process is finished. A diagnostic movement of the locomotion system shows he is functioning again.

“Hello Friendo. I am Lightbringer Grim. You were going to guide me to the command center but you needed some maintenance first. If you are up to it I will follow you there now”

“Hello Lightbringer Grim. Please follow me to the command center” The robot begins to trundle off through the corridors of the ship, its inbuilt navigation lights helping to illuminate some of the darker hallway recesses here. The hallways are twisting and you take at least two elevators , with no indication of where you’re located in relation to the command center

Grim attempts to keep his bearing but is totally lost as to the way they took. *This place is much bigger than expected. I am going to have to try and download a schematic eventually. * Grim gives up trying to maintain his directional bearing and contents himself to just following Friendo. While trying to maintain alertness to any possible dangers.

"We're here!" Says friendo as you enter an empty corridor. "Welcome!" his screen turns red and the face goes from a happy one to an angry one. "To your doom!"

2

7:50 AM

Alarms begin to go off across the station , and you can hear the stomping sounds of mechanical defenders beginning to deploy in hallways you can hear, but not see.

“Not very friendly of you Friendo and after I repaired you. Why are you doing this?” Grim attempts to pin down friendo so that he can try and reprogram.

(Exert/dex)

10:39 AM

"This station's secrets are only for the worthy. You have not proven yourself!" Friendo says, keeping his light hearted tone despite the gravity of the situation

(6) “How can I prove myself then? Would you like me to take a written test, submit a resume, maybe provide reference letters?”

You are unable to catch Friendo to forcibly reprogram him, but you are able to avoid the electric discharge it emits in self defense by narrowly twisting out of the way. "You must prove yourself in a battle of strength and of wits!" Friendo says. A lighted path in the floor begins taking form as LEDs worked into the panels begin lighting.

12:36 PM

"Good luck, future corpses!" Friendo says cheerfully

“See you when I pass the tests Friendo” Grim and Tyr begin following the lighted path.

Two long shadows are cast from around a corner as you and Tyr move 30m down the hallway. They are bulky and look to be armored but by shadow alone you cannot get a strong idea of what they are.

Grim and Tyr will ready their rifles and prepare to fire depending on what comes from around the corner. “Be read Tyr, whatever is coming sounds heavy”

(initiative)

(5)

(3, you and Tyr are first. A move would get you in range of them but not in melee)

Grim and Tyr each move forward and focus their shots on the first enemy. (29/12 grim and 27/7 Tyr)

The two war bots project powerful projectors of energy and the shots are absorbed before the glass like protection field breaks. Sparks from emitters on their backs show another will not be generated anytime soon. The two war bots are 10m away and electrical charge begins building in their arms from the absorbed energy. The forked weapons continue building charge (bracing this turn for heavy weapons fire)

Grim and Tyr concentrate fire on the first bot hoping (grim 26/13, Tyr 26/6)

The bot is damaged. The electrical currents flicker but continue building charge before both unleash their electrical attacks. (missing tyr, grim crit/21)

1

Grim heals himself with biosponic energy (+22 59/59hp 1strain) then both Grim (13/9) and Tyr (16/14) fire again

The first of the bots is destroyed. Its upper limbs simply fall away leaving just the exposed wiring behind. The second bot gathers energy for another devastating attack again.

Grim and Tyr continue firing (Grim crit/18, Tyr 15/8)

The second robot falls, ankle blown out. It's weapon fires into the floor plate succeeding only in destroying the war-bot and damaging the deck plate under it. Sparks and silence fill the corridor, and stomps elsewhere in the winding hallways let you know more robots are active and on the way

Grim and Tyr will continue following the lights on the ground moving as quickly as possible

The lights wind around a corner into large room where the hyrdoponics have been turned loose, there is an actual large tree and soil layer in this room, along with ivy colored walls. There is a tree grown and twisted that looks oddly like a warrior holding a spear. The spear tip is pointing to a certain point on the ground where archaeological tools, including several shovels, are stabbed into the ground.

Grim will attempt to start digging where the spear points

(work/con)(

(6)

Digging quickly before more robots arrive you recover the damaged form of some kind of lantern. The bulb within is a strange design and you’re not sure what it might do. To help when eyes fail is scratched into the baseplate

Grim holds up the lantern and closes his eyes. Maybe I need not use my eyes

The lantern seems to have a use but in this room all you do when closing your eyes is plunge yourself into darkness. The stomping is getting closer and the lit path winds around this room to a door around the back- covered by the tree. Some kind of small elevator powers on to go down several floors

Grim opens his eyes back up then heads to the elevator. Realizing he needs to see this though he presses the button and awaits to see where the elevator takes him

(Just checking in)

(Just didn’t get to this

2:12 PM

(Weekends are scattered for me

(No problem)

The elevator opens on the next floor below and you see a large computer terminal is located here with an exit door to the west and east. Friendo’s empty shell is next to the terminal and is plugged into it with some data cables

Grim will attempt to access the computer terminal to see what’s going on

(ProgrM/int)

(7)

The computer can answer basic questions you might have but the hack is not enough to get you through the secure systems in place

Grim checks the computer to see if it can tell him what the adjoining rooms are. (Basically trying to see if it can give anything that helps me decide between west or east first)

To the west there is a maintainers room where pipe fitters and other workers would have fabricated the endless stream of replacement parts a station this size would have consumed. To the east there is a large hallway leading to one of the station's main transit hubs- that links to several destinations,

Grim and Tyr will head to the east hallway and continue to transit hub

The transit up is a long monorail type car. A holoscreen begins coming to life as you get inside, just a a security robot rounds the corner from the direction you came. Its opening shots fall short and scorch the platform rather than hitting the side of the vehicle directly. The car looks to have a direct link to the bridge and can get there on this track.

Grim will attempt to direct the monorail car to head to the bridge

The car will set off in four rounds as its charge builds up. Warnings to mind the door and keep hands inside the vehicle begin to play over the loudspeaker

(I am confused. Like during the four rounds am I fighting off the bots? Can we shoot at each other or is it enclosed?)

(you're fighting off the bots)

Grim and Tyr will ready their rifles and prepare to fend of the bots. (Initiative 8)

(6, you guys first, only one bot for now)

Grim and Tyr both take shots at the approaching bot hoping to pin it down until the monorail car finishes charging (Grim 18/5 Tyr 13/11)

(Crit/20 grim) the bot cycles it’s sonic cannon and a wave of disrupting force shatters the glass in the concourse area. The blow crumples the side of the monorail and buffers grim as the battery reaches 25% charge

Grim channels biosponic healing into himself (19 heal. 2/14 strain. 58/59 hp) Grim hurting from the canon shot struggles to shoot back (12/10) Try however gets a solid shot on the bot (crit/29)

Its core is blown out by the laser shot. It falls to the ground and begins to become consumed by electrical fires as a swarm of eyebots rounds the corner. Their laser fire in return burns the exterior of the car, but misses the both of you as the battery charges to 50%

Grim and Tyr both fire bursts of rifle fire into the swarm (Grim 26/13, Tyr 27/14)

The eyebots spark and fizzle as several of them are hit with laser rounds. Their return fire is a thicket of energy bolts that pops holes in the side of the monorail car, but is unable to punch through your armor. The battery rises to 75% charge.

Continuing their burst fire both Grim and Tyr get massive hits on the swarm (Grim Crit/24, Tyr Crit/15)

2

As the eyebots fall into shattered metal wrecks, the battery of the tram reaches 100%, and the locking lever disengages.

1:08 PM

Five minutes pass as you wind through the rail in darkness, before a lit holographic sign that says BRIDGE begins lighting up the darkness at the platform ahead.

As soon as the heavily damaged monorail car comes to a full stop Grim and Tyr will follow the sign to the bridge.

The heavy doors remain closed as you get off the monorail and approach them. There are scratches or some kind of inscription on the door but it seems too dark in this room to make much sense of them. Tyr shines his weapon light over them, illuminating the dim room, and somehow light being applied to it makes it worse.

Grim takes out the lantern and points it toward the inscription hoping it does something

The alien text on the door burns brightly before fading out, and the bridge doors unlock with a massive bang of electronic locks disengaging.

Grim followed by Tyr enter the newly unlocked bridge. (edited)

THe bridge doors rumble open revealing the complex array of the nanofabricator, and the directional controls to get the ship to clear the asteroid field. The plans to activate the fab and turn this station's mass into atoms, to be added to your own begin scrolling rapidly across the screen

Grim contacts the Paivatar and relays the directions. He then begins the process to prepare the fab for activation.

(just gotta design our platform)

3:35 PM

(3xp, 5000 credits)

(So are there any restrictions or anything I can legally build in the omnibuilder? I’m guessing no free pretech mods on it as one restriction, but it’s worth checking?)

( i think we covered this in PM anyway later on sicne i didnt answer this here fast enough, are we still okay to proceed? )

(We are.)

(any ideas what to handle next? I think we were planning on heading to IA space weren't we?)

(Yes I was going to plot the course for IA. But first I figure I will try to see if friendo still exists and is on the station)

2:39 PM

(I guess I can plot the travel and do that over the days it takes to get there. I will write something up when I get home)

(Gunn-Pletakira-Xandros-Svalfdi-Oni Nafarri-Laos-Albadie-Leucipp-Saliv 20 days. Instead of downtime my thought process is Grim takes the time to explore the upgraded station. Trying to see what if anything happended to Friendo, make sure there arent killer robots on the loose, see if there are any unexpected suprises, and also I figure a lot of work would need to be done getting the crew familiar with the updgraded station) As the nanofabricator finishes upgrading the station to an Arx Grim realizes that Friendo was still connected to the tower when the merging process was initiated. Grim imediately contacts the Paivatar bridge crew as well as his own crew to have them begin checks on the new systems to see if anything is unusual. Grim then heads out of the room he is in and tries to get his bearing and he see if the room Friendo was in still exists or if he can find any trace of him.

(Did you want to stop at any of those worlds or are we just pushing on? If the plan is blitzing for IA, I’m going to be honest , I don’t want to do those reports if we aren’t stopping)

(No need to do the reports. I will probably stop by worlds on my way back, but I have been telling IA I am coming for a long a time so I don't want to delay it)

Friendo’s damaged frame is found just outside the bridge. The blue happy face screen is back but has been cracked around the sides. He looks like he has been through some rough times

Grim will collect the damaged friendo and bring him to the stations workshop. There him and Param will work together repair the frame and cracks.

(Seen. Going to get a big post since you mentioned a few other things too)

Friendo is repaired and is undergoing an elaborate rebooting sequence that looks to take several weeks to complete. There is more to your friend than meets the eye. Whatever materials made up the war bots and the existing station here have been folded into the Parvitar, now expanded and refitted into an arx class platform. Previously hung furnishings like the lamplighter banded desk and chairs and meeting Tables Natalia found long ago had been packed into storage and now are being laid back out since the upgrade is complete.

8:36 PM

Additional crew is needed to keep things running at peak efficiently , and your trip to IA space may yield some new recruits for your group

Satisfied that there aren’t killer robots on the loose and with nothing more Grim can do for Friendo until he reboots Grim gets some rest and enjoys his downtime until the station arrives at Saliv. (If you are good with it I will post in IA channel letting them know I am there and requesting permission to take my ship to the surface)

(sure thing, lets do that)

A Inheritor Alliance shuttle is seen flying toward your vessel. Your comms system begins to light up with a oncoming notification.

(Deleted, just saw other notification ) (edited)

Grim and his crew board his free merchant and head to the Dremlas council building on the surface. He then instructs the Paivatar to follow the shuttle to one of the nearby systems, preferably Psalairon.

(Psalairon is fine, just stay on the edge of their system. ) After traveling six hours to Saliv you immediately notice that it lacks any bodies of water, instead Saliv is a series of floating contents over a gaseous sea. Landing within the large walled city of Dremlas, you see a large central tower, mechanical equipment and runes are placed carefully along the surface. Landing at the relatively small landing pads you are greeted by two human Inheritors each one dressed in the traditional burgundy and magenta diplomatic clothing. One of them speaks first. “Welcome lightbringer, “ they both bow “are you ready to meet with Ambassador Issac?”

“Thank you. Yes I am ready to meet with the ambassador. My crew will wait on board for now if you don’t mind. Please lead the way” (figure it’s easier than taking a bunch of people with to his office)

Grim is escorted into the council building, much of which seems to be recently reconstructed. They pass by a large central room with a large table and many chairs, are lead up a spiral staircase and brought to a office door. “Alright, he’s in here. We will be waiting out here. “ They open the door, inside you see a tall man in a grey suit with short black hair bowing to and thanking a Noctua. “Ah, Lightbringer Grim, so nice to finally meet you face to face. Please come in, I was just finishing my meeting with Ambassador Indigo. “

“Nice to meet you in person too. Your world of Saliv is very intriguing. I have never seen a planet quite like it. I know you are a busy man though so I will get the point, how can the LLF help? I have heard rumors of a disease effecting people and that’s where I would like to start, but it’s your world and your people, so I will leave it to you how LLF helps.”

Issac nods to the Noctua, as they depart the room. Then Issac clasps his hands together. “Yes, you speak of Terminal Breach Exposure. “ He turns around to face the window, taping it for a moment before it activates a holoscreen. The screen displays several different humanoids, each with various plant and animal mutations. “As much as we wish otherwise, our recent studies have concluded a clear lack of intelligence, and a lack of any natural means of curing the disease. Their mutations have accrued in both a meta and molecular level. “ He turns back towards Grim “Here I will send you our information to your Dataslab, if you are willing, hospitals will still be needed due to the extremes of life in the Salivian wilds and due to frequent Termie attacks. ” (https://www.worldanvil.com/w/iron-stars-nekosmash/a/terminal-breach-exposure-condition)

Terminal Breach Exposure

“I was going to to try my biospon healing, however looking over your notes I see that it has been tried. A hospital will be the first thing we build after establishing a headquarters. Followed by a university to hopefully help study this. Is there anything I can help with on the ground while things are being built?”

7:22 PM

(I don’t want to just come in and start doing missions IA players want to do. But if there’s anything you want Grim to do and isn’t taking away from IA players let me know)

Issac chuckles a little. “Grim, would care for some Whiskey? We are very proud of our Great Maker Melange. “ He grabs two glasses from a shelf and opens a small compartment pulling out two geometric ice cubes. He sets them on his desk and pulls out the bottle. “There is always work to be done on Saliv.” He pours the caramel liquid into each glass “tell me if you can taste the cinnamon” “ if you are willing to get your hands a little dirty I’ve got a few things you could do for us. “ He takes a sip “We have a influx to our population with a million Noctua, twenty-five hundred of which moving both to East and West Dremlas and while we are happy to have them we will need some support helping them settle and securing the nearby area. “ “Another similar option is to help us create a settlement on our oceanic moon for our Mosk citizens to properly live, due to saliv’s lack of large bodies of water. “ “If you are interested in something more, dangerous you could always head directly west of here deep into Termie territory to try to find one of our disabled Arcane Resonators. Here, let me send you our map”

8:56 PM

Grim twirls the whisky in the glass and takes a deep breath of the aroma before taking a sip. “I can taste the cinnamon. This is quite good. Fixing an arcane resonator does sound interesting, but helping with the immediate situation first makes sense. I will start with Dremlas West, then reassess the situation from there.”

Issac chuckles, “the information regarding our Resonators are a closely guarded secret, you will have to earn our utmost trust to get privy with that information.“ Issac takes another sip. “Thank you for taking us up on this. We can count on your kindness towards our new inheritors. The lands nearby are safe due to the resonators, but Termies and other unknown creatures are known to have shown their ugly heads. I recommend you wait until the morning to head out. “

“Thank you. If you need anything while I am here don’t hesitate to ask. Unless you have anything more for now though I will take my leave and begin work in the morning.”

“That is all, and likewise, if you need anything you can just message me through your dataslab. “ Issac pauses for a moment “ oh and if you are thinking about entering the breach zones you will need a Orion belt, so just let me know first. “

“Good to know thank you, and have a good night”

10:08 PM

Grim then departs and heads back to his ship until the morning when he can get started

(Alright, takin back over. So we've got the free merchant, and two settlements to look into. West or east first? )

(I am planning on going to the west settlement first. I plan to take entire crew, Tyr, Param, Raven, and Minerva.)

It is early morning when your Free Merchant and crew begin making their run for Dremlas West. The settlement is a reconstructing ruin anchored by the spire like form of a central Resonator. Citizens are doing what they can to try to tame the wilderness here but official support looks to be misdirected and you can see where they'd benefit from some help. THere are no doubt sites in the wood now safe from null breach, though there are still beasts and terminals within that have prevented exploration.

Grim will leave Param, Raven, and Minerva in the settlement to use their technical and administrative skills to help with rebuilding the ruin. Grim and Tyr however will don their storm armor and head out to the wilderness to clear it of any threats.

(there was a bunker with some weird cyberware here where one of linya's old characters was recently rescued, if you feel like checking that out)

(That would be perfect)

You have the location of the bunker, 2 kilometres into the woods, too dense for a ship to land but the overland trek through the woods in power armor will get you there. It is also a chance to possibly encounter some of what the locals call Terminals, and eliminating them removes a threat from the region that could menace the village and the ill prepared people there. The woods are a misty jungle, the fog here a silver miasma intermixed with sparkling dust that never seems to fully go away. It clings around ankles at high noon, but is a thick curtain in the morning and evening hours sometimes stopping you from seeing ahead entirely. As you enter the woods mid morning, you have some comfortable visibility. None of the senses within your armor are able to penetrate the fog that well, outside of what your naked Mk 1 eyeball can do. A small game path carved by large herbivores is your best path into the woods, and the map on your right eye lens will help keep your path true.

Grim and Tyr continue along the path remaining vigilante to try and detect any threats. They also take several samples of the miasma of fog and dust, for the scientists to analyze later.

(survive/wis)

(12)

You;re able to take some samples of the mist and fog for later analysis. You also find the footprints of a pack of four terminals that have recently cut across the game path. They continue heading south, skirting the edge of the settlement. It seems they're hoping to go around it.

Grim and Tyr will attempt to follow the tracks and get within visual range without being spotted.

Following the tracks you find yourself meandering further from the bunker, but come to a clearing where the four terminals are 50m away refilling various crude drinking implements from a pond here. Two of them have long antlers like bucks, while the others sport small pairs of vestigial dragonfly like wings. They appear to have patches of scales and fur across their skin, though the two dragonfly forms clutch laser rifles.

Grim will try and deduce which is the leader while initiating telepathic contact, while if possible trying to remain somewhat hidden. (Basically going to see if they can still be reasoned with or are too far gone)

Confirming what the article Ambassador Issac gave you on TBE stated, you sense animal instinct and cunning, but no evidence of higher thought.

Grim realizing he won’t be able to directly communicate attempts to send images their animalistic brains may register. Grim shows images of this area with humans and guns and then try’s to show images of further away from the city with images of plenty of food and no dangers

The dragonflies begins sniffing the air at the reception of the thought. You're not sure what might be taking place among the pack but upon filling their watering devices, they move deeper into the woods, away from the settlement.

Hopeful that the Termies will move away and violence can be avoided Grim and Tyr move away from the Termies and try to get back on the path to continue the previous route

The walk will take you until evening, and you approach the bunker close to twilight. Its blast door looks to have been picked open previously by a former IA expedition, though there are scant details about what might be inside. Tyr scans the woods as you assess the door.

Grim and Tyr enter the bunker and after inside and now having access to the lock. Grim will attempt to both fix the picked lock and reset the access code so that he is able to lock and unlock the lock at will (edited)

(fix/int)

(9)

The bunker entry now seems to be under your control. CLosing it behind you, a ladder heads into the basement level where the previous expedition team noticed some kind of strange cyberware lab.

Grim will head down the ladder first and if it’s safe call for Tyr to head down. While Grim is climbing Tyr will attempt to cover him as much as possible aiming rifle down the ladder. Then Grim will take over watch while Tyr climbs.

Getting to the bottom you first see a storeroom. About half the supplies here have been used and you see a space on the floor where someone was medically stabilized. IV bags and loose wrappings of injected nutrient paste are scattered about the space as well

Grim will tidy up the mess as he can’t have the Bunker looking in such disarray when he shows It to the IA. After the mess is dealt with Grim and Tyr will attempt to enter the cyberware lab

(so I've got a module I can run for down here if you're interested, its got some fun audio files and stuff)

(That does sound really cool. I might be slower posting though until I get back from California)

Entering the lab you see some sort of helmet plugged into the computers, and and a massive array of servers. Some sort of simulation looks to be running on the screen and the chair seems to be well sat in.

Grim will see if he can access the computers and severs to see if he can see what is being simulated and if he can potentially affect the simulation

It seems without donning the helmet none of the console commands or keys are going to work.

Grim gives instructions to Tyr to monitor him but not to remove the helmet unless it’s absolutely vital. Grim then dons the helmet.

1

3:04 PM

The world outside goes dark and before your eyes you are transported to a distant shore where bland elevator like music plays. The menu screen of this game is represented as a physical space. The communications tower is in the center of this world, where you are, and four settings are each represented as doorways. A looped 2D sky is above you as the music continues playing. Blimps and planes float on by on endless journeys as the image resets and replays over and over again A weird pink and jerky looking glitch sea surrounds this area, though you can see a distant tower on the other shore. There are a few blank 3 meter polygons laying about the space.

Grim will head to the doorway with a wrench first and see if he can open the door. If he can he will walk through

A brief ad for Mr. Goodnight line of sleepy-time teas and other wonderful relaxing drinks plays as you enter the room. It is empty save for a desk with a simple control panel on it. The settings are Brightness Time/Date Connection Test Restore Data

Grim will first check the time and date currently listed

The time and date appears to be broken. It randomly scrolls between different times and days, but doesnt set on any one of them. It can be manually set as well.

Grim will attempt to set today’s date and then run a connection test

Nothing happens when the current date is set. After a moment the sliders begin moving of their own accord again. When the connection test is run the panel flashes to life for a moment, broadcasting Test Failed: No Signal. The panel then glitches and shorts out. Its texture changes between several possible options before settling on stone, and becoming inaccessible.

Grim will now attempt to restore data

The panel cannot be interacted with any further, and you cannot enter new commands

Grim will exit the room and head to the next room (room 2 with floppy disk)

Upon entering the room a panel set into the back wall comes to life. A logo for Mr. Goodnight appears for a few seconds before you can skip it, and a message loads. "Game Data corrupted. Game Data may be lost or slickware might become unplayable. Play anyway? " a box for Yes, and a box for No appears on the screen.

Grim enters yes

(mental save)

(12v4 success)

You seem to have avoided another glitch but there doesn’t seem to be any new data once things are restored.

Grim will leave this room and enter room 3 with the lock

Back out in the main plaza before you enter room 3, you can see that whatever you did upon messing with the save data has caused some corruption in the game world. The sky is darkening now and you can see the somewhat illuminated form of Mr. Goodnight, the mascot for this game shining in the sky. Roller coaster tracks covered in bridge like weeds now grow from the plaza, leading to the tower. You can see two human figures in fox masks block the way down those tracks. Each of them has some kind of pole axe, but they make no moves toward you as you approach Door 3. You notice ten golden coins scattered in the dirt among the flagstones of the plaza, right at the threshhold of the door.

Grim will grab the 10 coins and then after seeing the damage and realizing he needs to try something different instead of continuing to room 3 he inspects the blank polygons and sees if he can pick them up.

You cannot pick them up until a texture is applied to them, but inside the open third door you can see it is some kind of shop, and there are items on sale for the coins you have just picked up. One of the items looks to be a large paintbrush, that would let you interact with the polygons. The shop has (Cool Tools!) Paint Tool- 7 Coins (Bedroom) Buy or change furniture - 5 coins Cat Ear Cosmetics - 5 coins Hideo Fox Mask- 3 Coins There is also an option to enter a code to be redeemed for special in game items.

For now Grim will buy the paint tools and the Fox mask

4:02 PM

Then he will head to the last room

(Seen. When im@at my computer I’ll have the module in front of me again

6:42 PM

(Only downside of playing something I didn’t write )

(Absolutely no rush. Still in California with family anyway and you have real life stuff going on)

This door, labeled "home" Doesn't seem to open, but you can see the same symbol, faintly from this distance, is also on the doorway of the large tower across the glitch sea. (There is a small communication terminal in the main plaza here we didn't investigate yet too)

Grim will investigate the communications tower

THe comms tower has five options Clock Connect to Satellite Player Info Message Board Food Stand

Grim will check player info first

There is one player logged in, someone named Hideo. It shows a sleeping icon in the form of a cloud with some Z's. Their location is the Home symbol you've seen in the sealed door here, and in the door across the water on the tower. The two raiders standing near the path out there are also highlighted.

I will check the clock

The clock is frozen, and the temperature and weather icons with it are also unresponsive.

Grim will attempt to connect with with the satellite

"No Signal" is displayed on the screen.

Next Grim will check the message board

The message board shows a few interesting things on it. There is a list of system updates and you find an automated happy birthday message from the system to Hideo, the game's creator. Before then you can see receipts for Mr. Goodnight soda, and a note Hideo left for himself. "Remove Paint tool from final version of game"

Grim will check the list of updates for anything interesting

(That was the update list. But it shows Hideo, the creator, is logged into the game somehow and a clue about where In here he is)

Grim will check the food stand

The food stand is glitched. It is pink now, with a mix of different textures and polygons. There is only one working button, corresponding to the delivery of a fresh can of Mr. Goodnight soda via drone to your IRL location.

Grim will put the Fox mask on and see if the guys with the pole axes let me cross the tracks

Their mask is the same as your own and upon putting it on their Spears stand straight up as opposed to remaining crossed and blocking your path. When you have the mask on you appear as a raider.

If grim can now that the path is unblocked he will cross the tracks to the door across the water

The raiders take a long look at you as you pass by, but do not speak. The walk across the glitch sea is challenging and longer than you think it should be. (D10 for me please)

(7)

Crossing the bridge you get halfway down its length when two Bugs jump out of the depths, and 10m before you block your path. They are a strange uncanny valley looking humanoid, each looking like an attempt at programming a human avatar that went terribly wrong. In the simulation it does not seem your equipment has come over with you, but you have a paint tool, and a polygon you can fashion into anything you might need.

Grim paints a heavy duty fly swatter on the polygon

2

2

(Initiative , the swatter is a large advanced weapon)

(7)

(You’re up first )

Grim smacks the first bug with the giant flyswatter (22/2)

The humanoid figure growls as the pixelated swatter passes through them. They flicker as several polygons are knocked free and dissolve in the background static of this malfunctioning slickware simulation, They attempt to fight back, their arms growing to unnatural lengths to be used as whips or lashes, but none of them manage to get close to you, or tangle up your large weapon

Grim continues smacking the bug with the swatter (17/2)

The fucked up uncanny valley human looking bug scrambles as the swatter passes through it and it’s pixels fade on the simulated wind like blowing ash. The other bug tries to make a grab for the swatter itself, but is unable to grapple it from your strong grip

Grim forcefully smacks the last bug as hard as he can with the swatter (24/7)

The bug is knocked from the walkway into the glitch sea below as the strike and the broad head of the swatter takes it in the center. There is a splash as the strange abhuman glitch is dissolved back into its source code.

Grim continues along the walkway towards the door

Entering the door you can see this is a bedroom. A man wearing the same fox mask you are lies in a bed, wrapped in tendrils of darkness. The icon of Hideo, who you saw on the player terminal, and who is the designer of slickware is asleep here , held in place. Above 20m in the apex of the rooms cavernous ceiling, Mr. Goodnight looks down upon proceedings from his perch. His cratered full moon face coldly takes on every detail.

Grim will attempt to wake Hideo up gently. (Also do my psi abilities function?)

(They do not. The simulation doesn’t have a way to translate them into an in game effect)

8:45 PM

Mr. Goodnight begins lowering himself from the ceiling as you try to wake Hideo It glowers at you and continues its descent, dark tendrils of energy firming up into eight spider legs

Grim will attempt to communicate with mr goodnight “what is going on here?” (edited)

Mr. Goodnight looks at you. If he can speak, right now he either will not, or can not. (initiative)

1

(4)

)you’re first. Mr.Goodnight got a 2)

Grim uses his trusty swatter on the mr goodnight spider. (21/4)

The moon recoils slightly as the swatter buffets him. Dancing in an almost cartoonish like pose, he takes a deep breath inwards (evasion save)

(8v4 success)

Stars and swirls emerge from the creatures mouth, tumbling across the space like spiked tumble weeds but you’re able to avoid the attack by finding a corner where they are not rolling. (Back do you. No damage )

Grim continues swatting away (24/4)

The creature looks to have some damage to it now. You can see it beginning to glitch a bit as you scrape away more of its code. Mr Goodnight lashes out with two of its dark glitch tentacles (Miss, then crit /19 after math. Back to you)

Grim continues his barrage of swats (14/11, 40/59 hp)

Mr .Goodnight continues looking worse for wear, and winds up for the star attack again like a choreographed videogame boss fight. (evasion again)

(15v4 success)

The breath attack sweeps wide as you evade low, preforming the choreographed dodge sequence, as you close back into melee range with the moon

Grim off balance after dodging the attack makes a poorly aimed attempt to swat Mr. Goodnight (8/4)

Mr. Goodnight launches into the air and pounds the ground nearby, just barely missing you before resuming his menacing up and down bob. (missed horribly)

Grim attempts another swat (14/8)

Mr. Goodnight flickers as glitches begin spreading across his body. Hideo sits bolt upright in his bed and screams, just as the simulation comes to an end. The goggles go black, and Tyr is grunting as he unloads a crate of Mr. Goodnight bedtime soda from the delivery drone.

“Don’t drink that Tyr. Until I know more consider anything Mr. Goodnight as a potential danger” Grim then goes to check the system to see if anything new can be discovered now. Such as who is Hideo, is he still alive and if so where, and what was going on in the simulation.

(Get ready for a lore dump)

6:27 AM

Hideo was the name of a brilliant IA programmer before the Alliance was a thing and back when society was ruled by mages and psychics. The man was a prodigy and invented a type of cyberware called slickware that would allow the brain to keep working in a virtual workspace while the body rested and restored itself for the day. There was a body plugged into the computers here when IA first came upon the bunker that they believe was Hideo. His mind was trapped within the program by encounters with the glitch sea and other irregularities within the heavily corrupted simulation. Mr. Goodnight was a popular drink here in pre scream times and their corporate funding was helping him push the concept of slickware forward - his beta being the simple game you found yourself in.

6:28 AM

You believe based on schematics you see now that you can offer up the plans to interested parties but future research will be needed to develop new modules for the device to allow someone to actually use it.

6:29 AM

The soda is berry cherry flavored and alleges for help you get to sleep on nights where you just can’t seem to get comfortable

(Is there more to the bunker? Like more rooms or am I finished up here?)

(it was just his storeroom for food and water and the machinery that made slickware tests worth it, but there are two slickware modules here, if you want to keep one to tinker with and give the other over to IA

8:03 AM

(oh and I guess if you want the crate of soda)

Grim will take the two slickware modules with the intent to discuss them and the technology with the IA. (Will send them a message in their chat) Grim will leave the soda for now, not wanting to carry around the crate while finishing securing the area around the town. Once done with that Grim will head out of the bunker and continue his mission of securing the area.

(the bunker here was isolated all on its own, but no one else is around)

(So is the job IA gave me completed then? Just want to make sure before moving on)

(it is! 6xp, 10,000 credits, and a slickware module we can poke around with)

(Awesome, thank you)

Slickware- 3 strain, TL4 cyberware, allows passive training of a skill or skills where downtime would otherwise not be possible once appropriate training modules are found. Must be switched off to regain health and system strain when sleeping. (Can train or heal, not both)

5

Grim and Tyr will head back in to town to meet up with the rest of the crew and report on the success to the town leader. Once the crew is gathered they will move to Dremlas East.

(d10 on landing)

(2)

Setting down in Dremlas East you see a small village being constructed around one of the tall arcane resonators. The village is thinly populated but more people trickle in every day. Dense woods surround the place and abandoned mine works a short distance from town are a matter of curiosity and fright for the townsfolk. There are rumors surrounding the place of dark activity and evil ritual by moonlight

Grim will follow much the same game plan as Dremlas West. Taking Tyr with him to investigate the mines. Meanwhile the rest of the crew will stay behind and help with the work around town. Basically applying their skills while Grim and Tyr do the dangerous stuff

10:58 PM

(Does the 5 pretech from the soccer count towards the 5pretech goal grim has?)

(I think it should. We had to wait a lot of flips for the season to end and you put a lot of money into the team)

2

(Another +6 xp for goal)

Level 14. 
New HP is 60 (+1 increase due to rolling same). 4SP gained. (1 Bio, 1 any Psi, 2 normal sp) plus 3SP saved (1 bio, 1 psi, and 1 normal).
Raising Psychic engineering to lvl 1. -2 Psi SP. Taking purify the bonds technique
Raising Talk to lvl 2 -3 normal SP 
2 biospon SP being saved

(survive/wis as we step out into the woods)

(7)

You can see there has been humanoid activity in the woods near the settlement amost as soon as you step in. Packs of tracks, at least two groups of six, and no one in the village seems responsible for them, or any the wiser that they are being observed from the woods.

Grim will try following the tracks while trying to stay on alert in case they notice him

(left tracks or right, we have two groups here)

(Left)

Four sets of tracks move in this direction and you see two parallel lines in the mud indicating they were dragging something with them like a skiff or a sled. Based on how deep the tracks are it must be very heavy with whatever they’re carrying

Grim will sacrifice some stealth to try and make time and catch them, hoping that the heavy sled has slowed them down

The extra speed does help and as late afternoon dawns on the settlement you find the pack of four, 50m from you taking a break in a small clearing. They're terminals, that much is clear, and the sled seems to be loaded with things pilfered from the aid shipments sent in from Dremlas to help bootstrap the settlement here.

Grim will approach the Termies trying to non threatening, so weapon holstered hands visible. Grim says “I just want to talk” not knowing if they still possess the ability to speak or respond.

They scatter like animals and take positions behind trees and shrubs. These ones do not have weapons and do not have weaponzied natural mutations

Grim will say “I am not here to hurt you, but I can’t let you continue stealing from the village” as grim does that he also attempts to telepathic project accompanying images such as Grim and the Termies as friends but stealing the resources as bad

The creatures are skittish and keep their distance but don’t seem willing to attack. You’re reminded of forest creatures too wild to tame but too meek to attack

Grims heart is heavy. The Termies plight is a sad one. Grim doesn’t have the heart take the supplies from the desperate Termies. Grim and Tyr head back to try and follow the other tracks. During the walk Grim begins to think over ways on how to peacefully handle the Termies longer term.

The other tracks have not been burdened by a sled but you can see six sets of prints here and an empty shell casing from a bolt action rifle is somewhat pressed into the dirt

Grim and Tyr will continue along their path using their storm armors capabilities to move quickly although not stealthily

You find this group two hours later and they’re well aware of your coming. They brandish weapons , rifles and shovels mostly. Some wear uniforms of the pre Inheritor Alliance scouting corps.

4:05 PM

They’re all bestial and twisted

Grim ignites his mind blade while Tyr brandishes his rifle back at them. “Drop your weapons”

(talk/cha)

(12)

They do so, their animal instincts knowing when an apex predator is in the area, seeing that in the both of you.

“Leave this area and never come back. To stay will only invite conflict with the town.”

1

They may not understand every word, but they understand the tone, and they begin backing away doing their best to comply without taking their eyes off you,.

Grim will wait for them to finish leaving and then he will try and find the mine the spooky rumors talk about

(early afternoon about now I'd think) The mine is seen overhead from orbiting spacecraft and you're able to track your progress to it after walking for a couple hours. The forest here is very dense and and you're kept from directly landing in the small clearing around it. A mix of termie bodies and a few people in scout corps uniforms are found right at the mouth of the mine, and the pumping station keeping water from flooding it clicks ominously as its wheeled pumps cycle mindless of the carnage around it

Grim will check the scouts for identification. •Perhaps, I can give their loved ones some closure* After getting whatever Identification he can, Grim will then check the pump to make sure everything is working properly

The Type A cell that has been spliced in has almost run out of power. Derrick Morrigan, and two others are among the fallen. You recognize the fallen rifle of a gunmage and some rune inscribed bullets among the dead, but without being trained in those arts they're worthless as more than a collectable

Grim will take the weapon to give back to IA. He will then attempt to replace the power cell with one of his own so that power doesn’t run out on him in the mine.

The pump runs with greater vigor now and you feel things down below will be quite dry by time you decide to step in. What happened to the last IA scout team is now answered but it’s unclear if there are mroe terminals living here or something far worse

Grim and Tyr proceed into the mine on high alert. Taking care to try and not end up as more victims

(I'll find some nice batlte map art for us)

(Awesome. No rush. Im about to be in the no electronics vault for a bit anyway)

10:48 AM

THe wooden outer works have been mangled and you're able to make your way through the broken gate. It is evident it was damaged in the fighting. Tracks lead into the dark mine where ore carts would be rolled in and out.

Grim and Tyr will take the lower path that runs alongside the sleeping room. (edited)

(sneak/dex)

10:43 AM

(sorry this never lit up for me)

(It came up 0. But I don’t know how. I don’t have any negative modifier.)

(the dice were 5 and 2. so 7 + whatever modifiers you may have for Sneak/Dex)

2

You slowly sneak into the mine and you hear voices within. There is life here, and it sounds more organized than terminals. You can see the glow of electric lamps ahead and just yet, they do not seem to have noticed you within the confines of the sleeping area, though you need to turn into some kind of common room to get into the sleep area itself

Grim will attempt to quietly turn the corner enter the sleeping area without being discovered

as you round the corner you pull yourself back quickly. At the long tables here you see some sort of feast is being prepared. There are human figures at he tables, wearing traveling clothes and almost all of them are armed. They have an all seeing eye worked into their chest clothing, and look to be entirely un mutated.

Grim has Tyr train his rifle on them and then steps out mind blade in hand. “Nobody move! You’re surrounded. Who’s in charge here.”

The cultists rise from the table, most of them brandishing weapons back in turn, but not firing just yet. "You're going to re-think what you've just said and done. Who are you and what are you doing here?" one of the feast attendees at the table closest to you says,

(I am planning on using the storm armor to leap at them and start swinging. Should I do initiative?)

(Just so you're aware, we're looking at about two dozen people)

8:35 PM

(If you're going ahead, they're aware of you so we would not get a surprise round, we will move into initiative)

(10, 8 roll +2 Kenjutsu)

(9 for the swarm)

Tyr fires at the closest cultist (28/11 might be a crit but on mobile and can’t check) he then backs up 10ft. Grim also backs up back into the tunnel and switches to his sheer rifle.

3

9:33 PM

(Basically I am trying to back into the tunnel to use terrain to my advantage)

A shot punches through one of the cultists at the table, as the rest rise up to chase. A pair of grenades are thrown, before the horde begins chasing. (they;ll round the corner once the grenades go off, letting those main actions happen first, following the same 10m to be in view but a few meters short of melee with you. 8 and 6 damage, evasion save on each for half, would hit both of you)

(Grim fails 8 damage 52/60 hp. Tyr succeeds 3 damage 16/19 hp) Grim uses holistic pattern optimization on Tyr (on turn power 36/39 hp) Grim and Tyr each take a shot with their sheer rifles and then continue backing away 10ft (16/9 grim, 15/12 Tyr after optimization bonus)

Two more of the cult members fall but you're faced with 21 guns, splitting their fire against you. (21/8, 21/3, miss, miss, miss, miss, miss 21/2, miss, 21/3, miss, 21/7 grim, for a total of 23 damate on Grim and five hits totaling 26 damage on Tyr)

(Grim uses psychic succor with integrity field and accelerated succor 5/8 effort remaining. 21 healing each. 50/60 hp Grim 1/14 strain. 31/39 Tyr 1/10 strain) Grim and Tyr then each fire another shot and continue backing away 10 ft (19/4 grim, 23/16 Tyr) (edited)

12:51 PM

(Also how many more feet do I need to back up to get to end of tunnel)

(10m more will get you outside)

1:26 PM

One of the cult members is downed, leaving an even 20 now, and anothe ris wounded but not taken out of the fight just yet. A rain of brass casings are ejected as the mob fires another series of rounds in your direction sending sparks flying from your armor. (23/4, 21/ 6 , everything else misses grim, everyone misses Tyr)

(Grim heals himself 22. 60/60 hp 2/14 strain 4/8 effort) Grim and Tyr continue their strategy and fire once more followed by backing up 10m out of the tunnel. (18/7 grim, 15/17 Tyr)

Two more of the cult members drop (now 18, and we're clear of the tunnel) (23/1 , crit/ 11, the rest missing grim, on Tyr its crit/9, and 21/ 4 ,the rest miss there too) Dozens of sparks continue punching into the storm armor. Integrity warnings begin flickering before your eyes but your bio readouts hold level as you heal injuries as soon as they're inflicted.

(Grim 48/60 hp, Tyr 18/39) Grim and Tyr each fire of a shot then move 10m north on the map to get out of the cultists line of sight. (24/12 Grim, 14/12 Tyr)

Two more fall, and it seems that the cave is their preferred place to stay now that youve moved out of sight, You'll have to come to them, rather than a forest hunt, it seems. These are not mindless terminals, but trained cult fighters

(I should be able to heal without using effort now because I’m not making it on turn Grim 23 healing 60/60hp 3/14 strain, Tyr 19 healing 37/39hp Tyr 2/10 strain) Grim takes some time to heal both himself and Tyr. Grim and Tyr will then head to the north path with the tracks and begin to head back into the cave.

(its without effort but it still causes strain)

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 10/23/2021 6:41 PM

The cult is waiting at the cave entry, sending dozens of shots in your direction from 50m out, as it has only been a few moments, and you've just killed severa of them

(I believe I added the strain)

6:43 PM

After seeing the shots and realizing the numbers Grim and Tyr will attempt to head back out to the entrance

(Youd have to push your way through them to even get in. You’re 50m away from the entry right now)

4:23 PM

(You just killed a bunch and circled back after just a few minutes. They’re on guard and ready for you)

(Ok do I have line of sight?)

4:42 PM

(I guess I’m just confused on what my options are)

(You went into the woods. They didn’t chase you. You decided to go back and from 50m away from the entry you can see theyre ranked up at the entry to the cave. You didn’t get inside I was describing what happens as you try to

4:45 PM

(They didn’t just go back to dinner like nothing happened )

Grim and Tyr return fire at the cultists (Grim 29/11, Tyr 13/17)

(We are going to get initiative then if we are diving back in. They’re not surprised )

(2 initiative)

(1 for me, haha fuck)

(Do my earlier rolls stand or want me to redo?)

(if you're still shooting we can keep them. I know you were asking abuot line of sight or telepathy so I wasn't sure where this was going)

(I will just shoot at them for now)

One more of the cultists fall, and the seventeen remaining rifles return fire. Sparks and dents appear all over Grims armor (out of 17 shots, 4 hit for a total of 13 damage)

(My count is 15. There were 18 then I took out 2 in the last combat. Now I just got another)

1:26 PM

(Grim 47/60hp) Grim and Tyr continue their assault (Grim 21/11, Tyr 11/9)

(there are others in the shelter, not everyone was in the feasting room)

(Copy)

Grim drops another, leaving 16 left at the entryway to the mines. Something of a skirmish line is forming and dark cloud of gunsmoke begins spreading across the mine entry. They continue shooting (crit/9, 6 other hits totaling 20 damage, all on Grim)

1:34 PM

The defended entryway and firing position is beginning to work in their favor.

(Grim 18/60hp) Grim heals himself while Tyr returns fire (Tyr 29/11, Grim 19 healing 37/60)

The 15 remaining cultists continue firing , trying to defend their home from two random people who wandered in and started shooting. They’re bewildered and confused but are defending their home with all the might they can (Crit/12, crit/7, 21/3, 21/1, all grim, the other shots miss and . Tyr is entirely missed )

(14/60hp) Grim heals himself (16 healing 30/60hp using 1 effort to make it instant 5/14 strain and 5/8 effort committed.) Grim and Tyr then use their full turns to attempt to flee. (30m if ok. 20m from storm armor ability and then another 10m from moving again instead of attacking)

Breaking line of sight the locals do not follow , remaining on guard to defend their shelter , tend to their wounded , and if the coast seems clear , bury their dead with honor

Grim and Tyr once clear will radio to the rest of the crew to come bring the Grav explorer and pick them up. They will also radio the IA and let them know there are cultists in the old mine. Grim and Tyr will then attempt to fix the broken gate so that it can be locked from the outside

(The gate on the mine/cult area?) (edited)

7:49 AM

(That’s pretty much right in their face and you’ve killed a bunch of them. They’re going to be on guard )

(Ok I didn’t realize they would be able to see me doing it) Realizing they won’t be able to get the gate sealed without being shot at Grim and Tyr will continue their retreat putting distance between themselves and the cult as they wait for the Grav explorer to come pick them up

(3xp, 5000 credits) The community is marked, and Dremlas will have to determine how best to deal with them one way or the other. Hostility being so recent anything you can do now will turn into more violence, and you have reached the end of your rope for the day.

After getting picked up in the grav explorer Grim and crew will board their ship and head to the moon above where the Mosks are beginning to build a habitable settlement. (assuming one night of sleep bringing grim to 4/14 strain and Tyr 1/10 strain) (edited)

(any preference for what you want to do here on the moon?)(

(I have been thinking about it. I don’t know if it’s something I can throw money at, or if I need to explore some. But I figure I will look for a decent area to start working on a settlement, maybe take water and soil samples and see if the LLF databases have any leads of plants or fish that would thrive here. Maybe try and establish agriculture. If we implement some of the outpost stuff this may be a good candidate for that, but for now I figure it’s just laying the groundwork. Doing some exploring figuring out what’s needed to be done.)

(there is a colony going here already, we could always explore, throwing money at it isn't really going to make things go any faster)

(I don’t really know what to do then. I was just looking for a way to help them. If there isn’t much to do I can always just start heading back ISF space exploring worlds along the way)

(I think things here are pretty settled)

10:05 AM

(we've got a few players doing things down there, if we don't want to explore hexes we can get into some other things)

(Ok leaving IA space then) After seeing the moon colony seems to be progressing and not much help is needed from the LLF, Grim decides to leave IA space. Heading to Albadie (Saliv-Leucipp-albadie 5 days. If allowed putting 5 days study into trying to figure out alien language from the vault)

10:13 AM

(Basically looking to explore Albadie for now.)

(okay, ill get a report together)

(the vault language will be something longer term, solved through quests)

(Thanks for stopping by! Thanks for your help!!)

(didn't forget about this, just thinking things over)

(No rush. Being attacked by toddlers anyway)

(Program/int as we enter the system due to a navigational hazard )

(7)

Entering the system your vessel quickly is able to shroud itself in the small section of nebula that makes up part of this star system. The comms officer of your ship calls you over , pointing to some strange displays on the console. These signals have been seen in the Iron Stars before. Rachk Warshard raiders. The ships here consist of three heavy frigates and a supply cruiser all taking on fuel from the sun closer to the system center , outside the nebula. Their ships are angular and brutalist in appearance and show signs of having been in a recent fight. A force like this could threaten any number of local systems

Knowing that his free merchant won’t be able to defeat 4 larger ships no matter how damaged, Grim and crew shut off all non essential systems. The Knarr won’t be able to leave without scooping fuel itself, so the best Grim and crew can hope for is to remain undetected until the Rachk leave.

(you can scoop from in here too if you want to jump start that, it has no effect on seeking and hiding)

The Knarr will also begin scooping what fuel it can from the nebula

Two days pass and the enemy fleet begins retracting its fueling booms. They begin heading East, preparing to leave the system. The Knarr will need to scoop for two more days to be able to leave the system itself.

Grim will finish scooping fuel in order to be able to leave if needed. But once the rachk leave and the fuel is gathered the Knarr will move towards the planet to see what’s in system

(will have this up in a second)

(Ok no rush)

https://www.worldanvil.com/w/iron-stars-nekosmash/a/albadie-location

Albadie

Grim will land on the planet, where he and Tyr will attempt to locate and meet with the various Geon tribes. (Basically I am going to offer to take them to ISF space and relocate them if they want that.)

(Alrighty. I’ll get a map drawn since there would be a few scattered groups )

From space you can see a large tribe of two hundred or so creatures vanish into what must be a cave system nearby

2:18 PM

(Either or. You’re a lot closer to IA)

(I didn’t even think about bringing them to IA. Good catch.)

2:29 PM

Grim will land the Knarr near to cave system but outside of small weapons range. So maybe a KM out.

The ship sets down and you can see a dark mountain range and a series of cave systems built into it. You see no signs of the geon who have fled, but you know they are probably watching.

Grim will head out by himself in his storm armor because of the atmosphere, but unarmed. He will head near the entrance close enough to hopefully be heard when he speaks but not entering their caves uninvited. “Hello, My is name is Grim. I am the leader of the Lamplighter Foundation. I come in peace and want to help you.”

(talk/cha)

(9)

You hear grinding rock from within the cave complex as two sentries made of dark stone materialize from the darkness. They have no weapons but each is hulking and made from dense looking material , their mass and thunderous fists seem to be the only weapons this group needs in close quarters like this.

“Hello, as I said I am Grim and I am here to offer help. I saw the Rachk in the system and I see the devastation here and can only assume they are to blame. I also noticed this world is dying. I have the ability to transport your people to another world if you so choose.”

"You will speak to the chiefs, we cannot decide , it is the job of the chief" one of the brutes says as the other turns into the cave,indicating you should follow.

Grim follows them to the chief.

The remains of three tribes occupy this cave and each is led by a chief, each of whom are in the center of the chamber, given a wide ring of space by the other members of the tribe while they deliberate. Almost everyone in here is wounded in some way, some seriously. "This human arrived. He wishes to speak with you!" the guard escorting you calls out and the chamber falls silent.

“Hello, my name is Grim and I am here to help. I know right now you probably are struggling to trust me, but as a show of good faith may I heal your most seriously wounded?” (edited)

There is some argument, but after a few moments of the clans speaking it becomes clear that you will be given access to them, and allowed to prove both yourself and your intentions.

Grim will go around healing who he can. (Any standard healing should be free. If there’s anything more complicated I have 8 effort to expand on things like clearing any diseases or poisons, or restoring organs, etc) (edited)

Whispers of a miracle worker begin spreading through the cave and you can feel the tension beginning to slack off

With the decreasing tension Grim outlines his plan to the chiefs. “I can have a transport ship take you all to my friends in the Inheritors alliance. Up at Saliv. My concern is between the deteriorating atmosphere and the constant raids by Rahck it isn’t safe here.”

“What Is the alliance like. Do they welcome outsiders ? Would we be slaves ? The rachk make us slaves”

“I can promise you won’t be slaves. They have already welcomed Mosk refugees who were fleeing the slavers of the chimeran ascendancy. They even gave them their own moon to develop. The IA is just starting to rebuild but are good people. I can also tell you that they have good motivation not to engage in slavery because it would seriously harm their diplomatic and trade relationships with most other polities.”

It takes another hour of discussion where you're forced to wait outside the cave, but in the end it seems to make the most sense given their current position that they make for the Inheritor Alliance, rather than risk getting raided once again here.

(Biggest issue is the ship I sent for was 25 hex away. So 25 to get message and 25 to get here. I figure some of that time is getting everyone ready and prepared. Also are there more tribes?)

(We don't know, we just happened to see this one on a quick scan. There's also no harm in just saying hey they're getting ready to go and we add the population to IA in a couple months, and that ship is tied up for that long)

“The ship is enroute and will bring you to IA space when it arrives. Do you know of other tribes that may want relocation as well?”

3:26 PM

(Ok will do that with the transport ship and it’s heavy frigate escort)

“The raids scattered many. Do not know who else is alive or still on this world. No way to find them unless fate brings us together “

“Thank you. I will try to find as many as I can before the ship arrives.” Grim will take the grav explorer and have it broadcast through speakers the message that he is there to help. Will try to cover as much area as possible

(I'll get us an official map since we're going to need it now)

10:22 AM

(here you go king. If the filters are messing with your coloration let me know and I can pull them off)

(Awesome map, thank you. Only question is where am I currently on the map?)

(the northeastern- most mine/cave type icon)

12:20 PM

(if its too hard to see let me know)

(I see it. Thank you)

12:37 PM

(So my plan is to take the explorer south towards the other cave icon down there)

(Alright. Let’s get a d10 since we are driving and get a hex together )

(1)

The area is a rocky field and the mineral scanner chimes gently. There’s a concentration of rare metals close enough to the surface to ping the sensors.

Grim will mark the location then continue south towards the cave continuing to look for more survivors

10:58 AM

(7 if you need a 1d10)

(we've got many hexes to go but lets also get a notice/wis)

(9)

THe next region begins setting the bioscanner into a frenzy. Some sort of local predator was found here, and your machine finds many possible matches, but nothing conclusive returns.

Grim and crew not wanting to wait around for the predator continue south (5)

You begin to detect mroe geon in this area

Grim will attempt to hone in on the Geon and head towards their location

(survive/wis)

(12)

1

You're able to use your expertise in tracking through mountainous climates to find the entry to the cave. You see no guards outside but the entry here seems like more attempts were made to deliberately disguise it

Grim will shout into the entrance before entering. “I am here to help. I mean you all no harm.”

There is nothing responding to you from within the darkness of the cave. You can feel wind coming out from within, and it must indeed go very deep underground

Grim will head into the cave while the rest of the crew waits in the grav explorer. Wearing my storm armor and bringing the mindblade, but leaving rifle behind.

(Coming in from the bottom left)

7:50 PM

The vision module on your helmet clicks on and paints the inside of the chamber a monotone green. You can see some kind of wooden barricade has been constructed to the right of the cave entry

Grim will walk up to the barricade while continuing to announce his presence and peaceful intentions as to not startle the Geon.

You see nothing here either, and it looks like there is a chamber to the right that branches off of this main central cave. You cannot see into it from this angle.

Grim will enter the right chamber try and look for any Geon that may be there

The Ratchk are waiting. A dozen of them crouch in this cavern, stripping the Geon bodies of minerals, gems, and so on, things built into their anatomy. They've heard you calling, and two guards near the chamber entry prime their plasma rifles, lowering the barrels toward you from 15m awy

Grim will ignite his mindblade and prepare for combat (2 initiative)

(Should be. 4 with kenjitsu, since the mind blade is a sword right )

(Yes. Thank you)

(You’re first. Got a 3)

Before the Ratchk can fire Grim activates the storm armor’s grav boosters to leap at them and strike with his mind blade expertly guiding the blade into the nearest foe. (24/16)

Boosting quickly into the fight the first of the invaders is overcome by the knockout effect of the blade. The other fires their plasma rifle point blank into the storm armor but does nothing more than spark the plate and cause some scorch on the metal

Grim turns to the remaining foe and delivers another round of strikes (27/18)

The mindblade punches through the front armor of the creature, and it falls. In the cave, the others are scattering into the honeycomb of holes and tunnels cut into the walls here- melting into the background like cockroaches from a sudden sun.

First Grim checks on the Geon to see if any are still alive. If so he will attempt to stabilize. Then Grim radios back to the grav explorer to have the crew come collect the two unconscious foes, so they can detain them in the explorer for later questioning.

The geon are dead. They’ve been torn to pieces in this room and they’ve been dead too long to save

After the Ratchk are brought away by the crew then Grim will continue through the cave heading to the northwestern most room in the cavern

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 11/13/2021 5:46 PM

Recovering the captives takes about ten minutes. They’re chained and crews in containment suits take them aboard in the off chance there is disease they’re not equipped to be immune to. Heading back into the cave the northwest room looks to be the same. The geon have been quite literally pulled apart for the rare minerals and gems they’re made up of

Grim continues onto the next room in the northeast no longer expecting to find any survivors but hoping to avenge them

The cave system is empty. There are more bodies and more evidence of the geon being torn apart for their minerals and things within but no evidence of the rachk that did this. The cave is cobwebbed with wide passages and other avenues of escape

Grim records the evidence to share proof of the crimes against the Geon. After recording the proof Grim will head back to the grav explorer.

(3xp, 5000 credits )

8:37 PM

The explorer picks you up and records no sign of the escapees

Grim will attempt to use telepathic contact on the captured Ratchk to find out where their homeworld is and what sort of defenses they have. Additionally he will try and see if they have more than one world they control

The Rachk had a homeworld once but it has been lost to the tides of generational memory. They travel in a large mother-fleet, but it travels frequently, sending out raiding parties to territories that surround it frequently to get more supplies, more ships, and more materials. The current mother fleet is hundreds of ships, and lies outside the sectors ISF has charted

I will try and find out if they have other raiding fleets other than the one I saw. I will also attempt to see if they have any ships on the ground here and if so where.

They don’t know. They’ve been out of contact with the mother fleet for a long time and we’re about to make the journey, though the fleets coordinates had not come in yet

Grim will the begin taking the grav explorer to the remaining cave on the map. (The one on the West Island)

You are redeployed via your ship as this long day begins coming to an end. A skirmish on the ground between the geon and the Rachk draws your attention - the plasma fire lighting up the darkness like a series of candles

Grim will land the ship nearby behind the Geon lines and attempt to join the fight as soon as able.

Small arms pings off the hull from Geon and Rackh alike as yet another ship enters the local area. The Rachk are violent and warlike, hardly needing provocation to hurt anyone, but the Geon have seen nothing but destruction come from space so far, and are not taking chances on another ship bringing in yet more people who want to cut them apart for mineral wealth.

After taking the small arms fire Grim takes the ship out and f weapons range and then lands

You're far from the combat now about three kilometers before the shots start to miss far more than hit, scanners watching the two sides fight during your relocation. The Geon have the numbers but the Rachk have the advantage in technology, and both sides are fighting to a bitter stalemate where neither one seems willing to break.

Grim will head towards the combat and engage the Rachk when able

2

The 3km walk has you getting there just as the combat begins coming to an end. The Rachk have been driven back for now, but Geon losses are heavy. Many of the survivors are wounded and death might even be a kindness for some of them as they struggle to rise or prop themselves up to at least get their weapons pointed in the right direction again. These Geon have no knowledge of you either, and approaching them when their guard is up like this might be dangerous. \

“I am here to help. I have already met with a few other. I can heal up your wounded if you let me.” Grim sets down his weapons to show them he is no threat (edited)

They have not seen a human possibly ever before, and many of them begin to retreat slightly unsure if this is a new threat, or something else.

While some are retreating Grim will proceed to start healing those who are to wounded to retreat. He will continue to heal as many as he can

(They’re not convinced you’re not a threat and they might take you continuing to approach their comrades poorly especially if nothing else is said or done. They haven’t seen humans before really )

Seeing the geon get nervous as he starts to approach, grim attempts to instead talk to them again. “I put my weapons down and I am no threat. These Geon will likely die if I don’t help them. May i please try and save them?”

With some elaboration given, they wait and train their weapons to see if you are true to your word.

Grim the proceeds to heal who he can. He goes Geon to Geon stabilizing, psionically sealing cracks in their stone, reattaching broken off limbs and getting the many wounded and dying back on their feet or in the gravest cases bringing them back from the brink

The Geon are thankf ul you've been able to help them and the tensions here are defusing.

It’s not many weapons, but Grim will offer the Geon what weapons he has in the ships armory to assist with the Rachk if they return

(If you're ok with emptying the whole armory we'd just need to pay for the fitting again when you're back in friendly space, but with some training they'd take you up on your offer)

(I am ok with it)

10:13 AM

Grim begins training the Geon on the weapons. He will also slowly introduce them to the crew so that Tyr can also help train and the rest of the crew can attempt to improve the battlefield by creating defensive fighting positions.

(exert or work/con)

(9)

The area around their cave has been improved as much as can be done. The Geon have makeshift fighting positions to work from now and are armed with weapons at least as good as their enemy. Despite their losses they still have a numbers advantage over the Ratchk, and any follow on engagements will likely not be as favorable for the invaders.

Grim will talk to the leaders and let them know about IA’s offer to take them in if they want. “I can bring your people to safety, but I can’t promise the ship will arrive before the next attack. Hopefully you will be much better protected now though. Please let me know if you want passage off world to the IA or if there is anything else I can do to assist.”

The Rachk know they’re here now and will keep coming back. Evacuation is an offer they will accept

With all the Geon Grim could find offered safety and the ones here fortified as well as can be until the ship arrives there’s not much else Grim can do. Grim and the crew head to the ship and prepare to leave this world for now. (Midesti-Clanco-melea-korophali-Tece. 14 days. 14/30 Rachk. If I am allowed to learn language from prisoners using my telepathy to assist. Not stopping at other planets for now)

(That’s fine. They wouldn’t really be able to stop you from learning it. I will say their language isn’t easily spoken by humans since you physically don’t have some of the parts so even at 30 days you’re not going to be a master )

(I don’t foresee many conversations with them either and if needed I can communicate telepathically. It’s more for the off chance I ever need to read their language on a computer or something)

Grim will land his ship at the landing pad of the newly built House where Octavian’s old house was. He will the have the house Guards bring the Rachk prisoners to one of the cells next to the Ghouls. Once that’s done he will have the house servants bring him some warmed blood and will sit in the library reviewing the copies of texts obtained by the other houses. Specifically looking for information on the vampire condition. (Trying to figure out if Grim can learn how to create new vampires and if there are any techniques to improve the potency. Any vampires created would go through you for approval. Right now just looking to see about potentially trying to turn the Rachk and ghouls. Then the improving potency I was looking at reskining some cyberware as vampire ability, specifically pan spectral optics and bio adaptation and possibly imunofilttration. Would still take the strain, so only difference would be vampire vs machine. Unless you have other ideas on how I can improve vampire ability) (edited)

(I don't know if I really want to improve it since it's already pretty strong)

3:00 PM

(I'll figure out what might fit, but as far as your other question we know from the LLF facility on Tece from the old days that only humans or humanoids can be turned. The ghouls are too far from baseline human, and the Rachk aren't really even close to humanoid either)

(Ok that’s fair. I will grab the stuff just as cyberware then. Am I allowed to figure out how to turn humanoids?)

(I get what you're saying with mimicking cyberware effects, and i'll take a look in some other books and see if we can figure that out. The information for all that is out there but we entirely blew past it when we scouted that LLF facility, though I know at the time Nat got in the middle of that too )

3:02 PM

(But that's where the information is)

(Ok I can have Grim head to the facility and check it out more then. If that’s ok?)

(sure, we'll pick up there! We totaled up downtime and I know we didn't plan to stop anywhere)

After reviewing what he can in the library Grim realizes he will need to head back to the Tece LLF facility. He will take the ship there and begin to explore the facility some more. On route he will also issue orders for the new LLF stealth ship to be brought to Tece.

(Would your battle robots still be guarding the place ?

(They would of at least gone back there after fighting, but I didn’t consider having them on display like before. So probably would only deploy in response to threats)

It looks like the facility has been visited recently in the time since you got the Vampric Court assembled here. The massive display of force was not entirely unnoticed by the civilian population , but of those who have ventured near the facility it doesn’t seem like any of the too curious have made it inside

Grim after noticing the recent traffic to the facility will have have plans drawn up to secure the area. (Will probably build some sanctum stuff. Basically thinking I will build the sanctum connected to entrance.) After making his notes, Grim heads into the facility to begin his search. (edited)

(will what the recent traffic? )

6:42 PM

(i think there might be a couple words missing)

(I think I fixed it. Going to blame dad brain for this one.)

(i just didnyt want to miss anything and not make arrangemetns you asked for or something, so thanks for that)

2:17 PM

(program/int, as we re-enter lamplighter systems)

(13)

You begin interacting with the Lamplighter system when suddenly you feel a pull on your mind and body, opening your eyes into some sort of virtual space. "DarkDabloon: The Bloodening" is the title screen- seemingly whisking you into some sort of Gothic Horror type interface. Your Mind Blade is still with you, now looking like an elaborate longsword. You're unsure how it's knock out properties might work in a game. The projector pistol now looks like a flintlock, with a bandolier of silver balls going across your body. The cobbles are dark and rain soaked under your feet, and lightning flashes overhead. A dark inn , lit by candles in the windows is before you.

Grim is somewhat used to ending up in simulations now and instead of panicking is actually pretty excited to check out this virtual world. He heads to the dark inn with gleeful anticipation of what it holds.

Entering the inn you see a pale looking barkeep polishing a glass. Steampunk contraptions of brass and jade mix drinks through a needlessly complicated system that he controls with levers and dials from a control panel on the bar. Company is a mix of humans in period appropriate adventure equipment , your typical game fan service bar staff, and a foreboding stranger in the corner who seems to be interested in nothing but the knife they carry

Grim will head to the barkeep and introduce himself. “Good evening, my name is Grim. I know it’s a strange question but, where am I?” (Do I have any of whatever currency is used here. Basically seeing if my credits changed like the weapons)

(Yeah you do)

7:17 PM

“You’re in Darkhollow, one of the small towns in this region. Just come in from the roads have you? Not many travel by night anymore. Isn’t safe “

“Unsafe, that’s good to know. Thank you. I would appreciate it if you could elaborate on the what sort of danger I may have to worry about. A cold ale as well kind sir. How much does one go for around here anyway?”

“2 coins and the ale is yours. 5 if you want the information with it “

Grim passes the barkeep 5 coins. “The information would be much appreciated.”

(So for 5 coins we can ask about a hazard in the area, an important group in the area, the terrain, or an important recent event)

“Can you tell me about recent events in the area?”

Recently, a large column of pilgrims were attacked on the road. The survivors were few, but all of them have been babbling about Vampires being responsible. The holy relics carried by the group were stolen by the raiders and many were taken captive into the dark woods.

“Vampires, huh? Interesting. Know where I can find theses survivors?” Grim slips him another 5 coins

"There are strongholds in the woods, and nearby where slaves may have been taken. Getting close is not the smartest idea if you decide you love your life and freedom"

“I see, thank you. You have been of great help. Do you have any available rooms by any chance?”

"I have one, ten coins for the night, comes with breakfast and some warm milk before bed tonight if you're interested in staying"

“I am. Here is the 10 coins for the room” Grim passes the man the 10 coins and then heads to the room. Once there Grim will check to see if in this world he is a vampire or human.

You are a vampire in this world, but you seem to be blending in with the locals for some reason. There's no indication of what vampires in this world do look like, so you may not share common traits with them.

Grim will head out to the road where the pilgrims were captured and see if he can find any clues

(are you doing this the same night? Or are you waiting for the following day? )

(I will go during the next day)

(that said since we're passing a bunch of time, was there anything overnight or on waking we wanted to do in town before we go out into the woods)

(No, for now i will just go investigate in the morning)

Sunlight and safety comes in the morning, and the rains from overnight seem to have passed now. There are people on the street already beginning their daily errands and otherwise taking advantage of the safety morning brings. The dark woods surround this hamlet, and you begin heading out into them following the path north to the site of the ambush, finding the overturned wagons after two hours of walking. There are three wagons here, blood stained and overturned.

Grim will inspect the wagon for clues and then to see if he can pick up a trail if where they went

(notice/wis)

(6)

You find claw drags on several of the wagons, torn clothing, and blood. Any bodies have also been taken but they vanished north, back along the trail for the moment. They would have gotten off somewhere, but you cannot see where from where you occupy now.

1

Grim will try and follow the trail as best he can

Following the trail north down the road, you are on it for about 500 feet, before it veers sharply into dark trees on the eastern side of this roadway. You can see fabric torn from someones clothes hanging on branches here, evidence of a struggle or it catching something loose while being dragged.

Grim will examine the fabric and try to discern if they continued down the path or went another direction

They stepped off the path to the east, and you see more drag marks leading up over a berm another 200m away deep in the woods

Grim will follow the drag marks and into the woods

The woods are quiet. You hear the complaining of ravens in the trees and a quest marker appears before you deep in the woods ahead. There is a faint outline of a skull on your navigation map, slowly getting bigger as you get closer. The birds suddenly take flight

Grim will follow the quest marker to the skull

(if you're not sneaking, we'll get initiative. There's not a lot for me to work with here)

(6 or 8 if my Kenjutsu bonus works here.)

(If you're using your sword the bonus works, if you're not, then it does not)

(I have it equipped. Also, sorry about not having more in the previous post. I couldn’t figure out what else to do. My creativity just got stuck)

(all good, art and scene coming!)

The large guardian creature comes into the clearing, roaring and stomping. It spreads its wings, but remains on the ground -just trying to look bigger than it is. Its size is impressive, the size of a tank. It is 10m away, snarling at you, using the shade of the dense forest to move about during the day.

1

12:54 PM

(you're up )

Grim engages the beast with his sword. Making several strong strikes against the creature (24/17)

1

The long sword lashed out and several cuts are made into the body of the beast. It shrieks before raking its own claws across your armor. Sparks fly from gothic looking platemail, and a ruby eye set into the middle of your plate over a chalice of bronze cracks with the force of the strike. (25/8 and the second one misses )

(52/60 hp) Grim receives a strong blow from the creature and then retaliates with another wave of strikes (22/15)

The Varghul sets both of its muscular arms into the ground and surged forward , taking a bite out of the ground where you had been a second ago. Hissing venom turns the plants under the creatures jaws black.

7:36 PM

(Missed)

After barely avoiding getting bitten Grim strikes again at the creature (17/15)

(evasion save, then I'll tie this all up!)

(18v4 success)

The corrosive envenomed blood breath goes high as you cut in underneath with your blade, scoring a terrible hit along its belly, it does not seem like it is going to be able to use its breath weapon again due to the wounds you;'ve inflicted. It looks close to death. Another strong blow should do it. (it would be your turn again anyway since its breath weapon was its turn, and it just went)

Grim attempting to finish the fight lands a solid blow with his blade (29/17)

1

The creature dies, its head is neatly lopped off with your expert swordsmanship, and 500 coins, along with a tattered note fragment are left behind as loot.

Grim collects the coins and fragment. He attempts to see if he can read anything or if he will need to collect additional fragments first.

The note is as complete as its possible to be. Taken...into woods....keep by the water..north....please hel- The note cuts off. There was more there and it looks like other text existed on the page once but a rather large blood smear has obscured it.

Grim will head north try and find the water source mentioned looking for a lake or a river. Hopefully I am not too late

(checking on make a profitable far trade goal and establish foothold on korra-s goal)

(The planet has been made eligible for settlement but no one has set foot on it or made much of anything there so that goal is not done, ill check your faction turn in a minute and get back to you on the other thing) (edited)

8:06 AM

(Profitable trade is done, Korra-S only has a small hQ with a couple people. An actual colony needs to be made here)

(Thank you, that’s fair)

(something we can look into when this is over maybe since you're close )

10:49 AM

Moving over the berm and to the edge of the woods following the drag marks north, the skull fills in and some game text appears above you. Castle Blood: Home of the Blood- Drinkers

10:49 AM

The castle is foreboding, and lightning crackles behind the dark stone giving it a sinister appearance, even from 2km out such as you are. Bats and birds circle the towers

Grim will try and quietly approach towards the castle while also being vigilant in case of an ambush.

(what measures are you taking to get close, since we're not sure what those bats and birds are doing)

Without much cover to hide him from the birds and bats circling overhead, Grim mainly just tries not make a lot of noise as he approaches. (Probably not good enough to avoid detection, but basically just not charging in loud and reckless)

1

The bats and birds swarm around the towers and upon you getting close they begin hiding in the tall belfries. A bell tolls twice and the gates begin to open, sending a shaft of crimson light out into the gloomy countryside

Grim against his better judgment enters into the now open gate, as he does he remains vigilant for any surprise attacks

Three dark figures appear at the gate, you cannot see much detail as they are being backlit by the crimson light, but do not seem to be willing to come outside. "That is close enough, outsider. You should turn back, before we decide not to show you mercy"

“Greetings, I appreciate the kindness of offering me mercy. However, I can’t turn back just yet. You see there are some travelers who were ambushed and captured recently and the trail has led me here. Perhaps you can help me locate them?”

"What concern of yours is finding them? " the center figure asks. He is the tallest of the bunch, whipcord thin but with taunt muscles that betray being able to lash out with sudden activity at any second,.

“Well for one people are saying Vampires took them. Which isn’t a rumor I am particularly fond of. Secondly people just getting kidnapped tends to put humans on edge and attract hunters. So if you guys actually are vampires maybe we can have a civilized chat. If not I would still like to know why you are taking people so brazenly”

"We might be. You have a strange smell on you, we cannot figure out what you are"

“Some might call me a vampire, but I imagine it’s not exactly the same as what you are. So may I come in?”

You feel something change in the air. You've been invited in and some kind of subtle pull against your body that you were not previously aware of seems to vanish. "Enter, but keep your hands where we can see them. You will be dealt with harshly otherwise"

“Fair enough. Although, my word that I will behave is more valuable. If I meant harm, I have many other ways of doing so. As I am sure you do as well” Grim then enters into castle gates.

“You said you’re looking for missing people and that you seem to care about what’s happening out here. Why? What do you hope to get from this?”

“I do care about people, which I know is strange considering I require their blood. However, where I am from I am the leader of our kind and careless feeding drew a lot of attention and brought hunters. I have implemented reforms that enable our kind to feed without killing. You may not be able to implement all the same changes, but have you considered obtaining servants or other such loyal humans you can feed from without killing?”

"Loyal! hah! Humans are livestock , we don't need their loyalty or want to serve us. Humans are temporary things, and vile ones at that"

“A farmer takes care of his livestock. There are many more of them than you as well. You don’t fear them turning on you?”

"They might try, but we will slaughter them. It would be a waste of food, and a few of us might die, but it will cull the weaklings in both cases, don't you think?" You walk through dark stone hallways. Gothic statues of blindfolded sword wielding maidens, knight protectors, and dark gargoyles line the hallways as you pass by.

“It is a shame you think so little of them. Their lives may be short but they have a nobility to them. I fear however I will be unable to convince you of their value” (edited)

“You haven’t said much to do that. Why don’t you try ? We are having the civil conversation you wanted “

“Sure, first I would say many of my friends are human and I trust them with my life. They take care of a lot of administration work for me. They operate my fleet of vehicles, or I guess your equivalent would be carriages. They provide security. They clean and prepare my mansion. You could continue as you are now sure, but if you have real ambition then you will need to either utilize humans as more than mere food, or create more vampires which then can either become rivals and will most certainly increase the demand for blood. I also understand most humans aren’t a threat but hunters are trained and equipped with weapons such as silver that make them more deadly. They also come in numbers.”

“What keeps these servants from turning on you? They must not like being a servant to you and getting nothing out of it”

“I treat them well and I pay them generously. I have noticed if you treat people right they are usually pretty loyal. Occasionally promoting one and turning them also helps. It gives them motivation and something to work towards. If you still need to kill, there are always criminals and bandits. Taking care of these problems also creates security for the humans under your care. To be treated well and provided with security is what most humans crave, they will be very reluctant to risk that by turning on the one providing it.”

The words seem to be sinking in to some degree. “No one in our charge now would accept it. We have done too much to them, and they know too much. But we can start again with new stock maybe”

“That is unfortunate. On my way here I was attacked by a creature, you could blame the deaths on it and take credit for its defeat.”

"The locals are smarter than that I think. They've seen it accompanying us, it helped us raid that convoy. These ones here have seen too much"

“You are beginning to convince me that you may be right. If these locals have already seen you then it may be too late. I believe in my vision but I am becoming less convinced you are the right ones to carry it out.”

“Maybe not from here at least. We believe in your message , or we are starting to, but there are circumstances we need to mitigate “

“I don’t like it. But I understand if you must kill them. On a separate matter and I know this might sound like a strange question, but what do you call this world and the town here?”

"This world is known simply as The Realm. The town near here is Darkhollow (the same name the bartender gave you) .

8:18 AM

"Its one of the smaller ones in the region. More of a trade outpost really"

“Thank you. I will be heading back then. Unless you have anything else to discuss. I do look forward to Darkhollow becoming a prosperous town. It has potential to become much more than just a trade outpost. I also wish your clan the best and I expect you to prosper as well with this new style of management.”

5:29 PM

(Not really sure what else to do at this point other than head back to town)

The connection to the game begins today ace as the Quest Complete sound begins playing. You see some game items added to your inventory. (3xp, 5000 credits) In real space you’re able to crack into the drive. Humans or close humanoids are the only ones this vampirism process can work on. Ghouls, Rachk, and other strange species Cannot undergo this process and live and their blood is not good enough for nourishment due to how it works. The old lamplighters had been working toward some kind of cure but their work is incomplete and inconclusive.

After adding the new data to the lamplighter databases Grim will try and see if there is someone in the facility that can install the cyberware obtained on Saliv as well as panspectral optics.

The facility remains otherwise abandoned but you’ve got skilled doctors both in Neo-Night city and aboard your own ships medbay that should be able to install these things for you

Grim heads to the medbay of his ship and prepares for the procedure. (-15,000 credits for the optics. Not sure if or how much charge for slick ware installation is)

(there isn't one since you owned the module already, just have to apply the strain for it)

After getting the cyberware installed Grim will take the new stealth ship the Eclipse to LLF station above Brienzo. (Basically I am going to see how things are going with Friendo)

(Okay, I’ll get downtime figured out and report back, away from a map and computer right now )

(Tece-Koraa S-Zerbino-Madhur-Maysoon-Brienzo. 21 day journey by my count. If that checks with you I will allocate the downtime)

(Yep, works for me then)

(30/30 Rachk 5/30 chimeran) (edited)

(We don't have any samples of their language, Chimeran can;t be learned right now)

4:39 PM

(nothing comprising a database at least )

4:41 PM

Entering Brizeno space the platform and a fleet protect this border world from any aggression from the west. Reconstruction efforts are underway on the surface, and the Knights of Draconis have also just made their way into the system in order to assist with peacekeeping efforts on the ground. Guild troopers and occasional Etxaurren holdouts still dot the countryside, keeping away from the more civilized and patrolled areas.

(Ok I will just finish up the Rachk language then. Grim will spend the other 5 days testing out his new slickware, practicing his Kenjutsu, and catching up on LLF admin work. Not expecting anything mechanical out of that stuff, just don’t have any ideas for the 5 days)

4:48 PM

Once on the station Grim will head to the workshop where Friendo was recovering. Grim greats the techs as he enters. “Thank you for all your hard work. How is the little guy doing?”

“We might have a problem” one of the techs leads off. He looks nervous and as you look around the ship you can see most of the lights are out and power is being kept low

“What happened? Is everyone ok?”

"Friendo woke up, and immediately interfaced with the systems of the platform. We were forced to turn the power down manually to keep him dormant, but he threatened to turn off life support if he didn't speak with you at once. You were already on your way here, sending you a message wouldn't have got you here any faster and we have no indication of your route back"

“I don’t think we have much choice. Turn power back up and I will speak with him”

You are brought to the bridge where the consoles and computer systems have been turned down to standby mode. The crew begins working at their control bits to slowly spin the reactor back up to normal operations, and everyone else begins settling in

“Hello Friendo, are you able to hear me? Are you doing ok?” (edited)

“I can hear you!” Friendo says. The entire forward viewscreen becomes a large picture of his pixelated face.

“Hey, buddy. Did you get fixed up ok?”

"Frriendo has been fixed. Friendo doesn't need that ugly machine body anymore. This home of yours is very nice. I think I might stay!"

“If you promise not to try and harm any of the Lamplighters here you are welcome to stay. I would appreciate having your advice and guidance, after all you were part of the lamplighters before the scream. But the people here just want to continue the dream and vision of the old lamplighters. I can’t allow to shut off their life support.”

(Talk/cha)

(10)

"They were not the director of the group. They were using this station without your permission. Friendo would never hurt your other friends" (edited)

10:15 AM

The Ai's behavior is erratic, and you get the sense one or more of its cognitive brakes may be slipping.

“These Lamplighters work for me. I was away on a mission. I am worried one of your brakes may have been compromised. Do you know how I can help you?”

"I don't know anything about that!" he says whimsically (AI would not really be given the mechanics for that, lest they try to undo them )

Grim turns to the crew “Pull up the LLF records and everything we have decrypted so far and let’s run a search. Maybe we can find something that tells us how to go about fixing the brakes.”

(admin/int)

(9)

Lamplighter records don't specifically mention brakes, and the Iron Stars polities have braked ones already for those fortunate enough to have recovered one. The NFSS may possess the facilities and technical expertise, given their history. (edited)

(Do I know which polities?)

(For ISF groups, they are in the UNW, as far as the NFSS, We deal with the NFSS as a whole, so that;s the lead) (edited)

(Copy misunderstood. I thought the pc polities and NFSS have both done it)

(Billy technically did with Devnoc, but he's retired that character, and the way we did it generated a lot of problems so he wouldn't be able to do it again and still be in good legal standing in the UNW)

(Ok, I let Iracus know because he messaged me about the ai thing earlier and I didn’t want it to look like I’m hiding things. I will message in federation chat too if that’s ok, because I don’t want it looking sketchy when I go to NFSS) (edited)

(looks good to me)

Grim finishes sending messages to both the Federation and the NFSS. Then continues conversing with Friendo. “I am glad to have here and as part of the station. I am going to do everything I can to help you get better.”

Friendo doesn;t seem to have an actual reaction to this, but the systems begin coming back online and he doesn't interfere with platform operations any further for right now.

(Planning to head to the black hole but it’s 43 days away, I also know my communication with NFSS would of take time, so not sure if I am allowed to head out immediately)

(you think there might be anything out there you'd want to tackle on the way or in the meantime? )

(I could stop by NMC space and get the draco thing Iracus found. If that’s ok?)

(If they’re ok with you taking it)

(I will probably work that later. If it’s ok I will just head to the llf facility in NFSS space)

(get me a route)

(Will try to get this tonight. Holiday has been hectic)

(no worries, has for us all)

(brienzo-maysoon-alcatyl-gunnhill-somatra-rannveig-chloe-alcibiades-savita-matacena-thoragn-thepolo-clanco-katsaride-kanos-nalaenides-vigerd-uonw02-8, 45 days downtime 7 days to attach sheer rifle to storm armor, 14 days to make storm armor flexible, 14 days boosted mod on sheer rifle 35 days total. Other 10 days I will spend going through llf archives to see if I can find anything helpful about facility)

(there's going to be a couple stops on the way, just need to roll a couple things)

8:33 AM

(we're going to do a couple missions on the way since we've otherwise essentially teleported across the galaxy twice in one month)

(Ok that’s fair)

As you enter may soon system space you are hailed by the colony on the ground. The etxaurren and their war slaves had overrun the colony here after Jaxton Ryder tipped the slavers off to its existence. Many of those on the ground are dead or taken into the stars as slaves but for those left behind the difficulty of maintaining civilization on a harsh planet is beginning to get beyond them.

1

(That guy was such a scum bag)

7:17 PM

Grim will respond to the call and bring the station into orbit. (Is the peerless station still there as a threat?)

(No it’s been destroyed )

Then Grim will use the station’s teleporters to bring him to the surface near where the colony hailed him

The northern side of the colony is situated on a river delta and you’re greeted on the ground by two safari trucks. Each of them has six people in it and about half of those are armed - though the weapons are kept shouldered or on slings

Grim greets the colonists. “Greetings friends. I am Grim of the LLF. I received your message and I would like to help.”

“You can help. There’s a lot to do but most of all the jungles. The etxaurren have been attacking us almost nightly. They come over the walls to steal food and supplies. Nothing we do seems to keep them out “

8:57 AM

“They’re still fighting even though we drove them out of the city. They just won’t quit”

“Alright. I will head into the jungle and see if I can find them and put an end to the threat. Once that’s done I can meet you at the colony.” Grim will head into the jungle near the Colony and will try and track the location of the extaurren

(Survive/wis)

(6)

You manage to find a few tracks in the woods. You see evidence of sunblades here and the chainsaw shouted Zadak war beasts they managed to tame and sometimes use

Grim will follow the tracks in an attempt to locate the sunblades. He won’t be stealthy as he is looking to make contact.

The first of the Zadak beasts sniffs you out as you intentionally and carelessly tumble through the jungle trying to initiate contact It howls from 20m away and is joined by two pack mates who howl their chainsaw revving screech at the sky

Grim shouts out “Is anyone with these beasts? I am looking for the Extaurren warriors who are out here?”

(They’re going to attack but this is going to allow you to make some@noise I guess haha)

Grim seeing them preparing to attack ignites his mind blade and prepares for their charge

(You’re up

Grim waits for the first beast to come into range then strikes with his blade (21/17)

The three chainsaw snouted beasts charge forward and the first of them is wounded by the lashing mind blade. (Their snouts are primitive weapons so can’t hurt you in your armor, but the noise of the fight will be heard and carried louder as the rounds go on so the combat is worth seeing how many it takes )

Grim continues his attack (29/17)

The first of the chainsaw beasts is downed. It will sleep for some time now. The other two batter and pry at your armor, unable to do more than cause some cosmetic damage

8:16 AM

(Is Tyr with you? if he is, he would go next but again- won't matter about the animals turn just might cut down our number of rounds ) (edited)

(It’s only Grim no Tyr this time)

10:53 AM

Grim continues fighting against the beasts trying to take the last two down (23/17)

(Perfect) The second hound is already wounded from a previous fight with the colonists , and is downed into unconsciousness by the swinging mindblade. The third issues a loud cry, (fighting withdrawal as main, then 15m run) and begins to flee into the jungle

Grim let’s the beast flee and then continues his search for the extaurren

Your search is fruitful after following the hounds for ten minutes. It looks like a network of tunnels have been worked into the foundations of a large foothill here, and its clear the foe has made this their home

Grim yells into the tunnel “Hello, is anyone here? I am looking to talk?”

There is a revving of some sort of weapon inside the tunnel as it is fueled up. Then it guns again and a black cloud of smoke billows from the tunnel

Grim will enter into the tunnel charging towards where he heard the weapon

A thrall with a mag chain cutter stands just inside the doorway, the machine revs and cycles as he prepares to swing. (mag chain's always go last in a round so you'd be first)

Grim sighs, “You guys do know the war is over right?” Grim then attempts a hastily and poorly executed kata (13/18)

It seems to be enough, cutting through the spinning blade of the mag chain and thrall underneath before the scattered pieces of both male warrior and machine clatter to the tunnel floor.

1:40 PM

You hear more noise and commotion deeper within.

Grim will quickly continue deeper into the tunnel towards the noise. Grim moves as fast as his legs will take him, afraid the Extaurren are torturing or killing innocents

As you run through empty side tunnels and abandoned rooms you begin picking up a notice from your armor's filtration system that decay is in the air. Many of the chambers seem abandoned and some have been marked with a red X , crudely sketched onto the rock walls themselves.

Grim thinks to himself Damnit what have they done here He then continues towards the sounds hoping to be in time to stop whatever atrocity is being committed

You move through the tunnels and find no atrocity, just disease. Maysoon is a dangerous place and some sort of contagion has wiped them out, but it may spread to the locals if not cleansed.

Grim relaxing once he realizes nobody is being hurt will then try to find anyone still alive so he can try and heal them

The disease has been thorough. You find two sunblades and a few thralls suffering from the later stages of the disease toward the back chamber of the cave. Their breathing is heavy and unless you can cure diseases with your bioscopic powers, there is nothing that can be done for them.

(I can but may need a skill check depending on your ruling)

2:39 PM

2:40 PM

Grim will attempt the healing hoping something can be done

(We would need a check for this one)

(10)

(10 meets or exceeds so we are successful)

Grim pushes his biosponic power further than he has ever had to push it before trying to fight the disease, meeting resistance to healing he has not previously encountered. However he is able to overcome the disease after much struggle

Three thralls and a weak sunblade are all who have survived the plague. His free nexus bond partner was not able to fend it off before she became overwhelmed.

6:54 PM

Their presence here is secondary to whatever is brewing in the jungle to make them sick. The colonists could be next ,and these people might have information you need.

“I am sorry for your losses. It looks like many suffered a painful death. Honorable warriors such as yourself deserve to meet your fate in combat not to some faceless disease. I know you have had conflict with the colonists, but honorable warriors such as yourselves face your enemies in combat. Any information you have on the origins of this disease would be appreciated so I can prevent others from suffering the same as your fallen comrades.” (edited)

"Data..pad...and a pen" the sunblade says weakly. His body is worn out from the fighting off of disease. "I cannot hear our god anymore. Did something happen?" he says as the items are pressed into his hands by one of his recovering thralls. The other two, now that they can walk, are bundling up the body of his companion so it may be burned outside.

Grim hands him the data pad and pen. “I wasn’t there, so my understanding may be slightly off, but I have heard the war is over and we are at peace. Brienzo is starting to recover and the big threat now is the CA. The one you call god is still alive choosing to purse power through other means than sacrifice. “

10:17 AM

(Hopefully i am describing it right, but I’m not 100% sure)

(You've got it probably as right as you can with Grim's second hand information)

11:43 AM

"I see. So the Empire is no more. I...I understand" He is sketching, drawing some kind of swamp like region nearby, north from here from what it looks like. Some landmarks like foothills, a place he designates "snapper sanctuary" and a starship wreck are also picked out on the map.

11:44 AM

Just beyond that ship is where he marks as the place they encountered the creatures that made them sick.

Lightbringer,

Thank you for informing me of the success of the Mushera expedition. That is fantastic news, unfortunately I am unsure if I will be able to personally visit soon. If we have any other Lamplighters available to explore and document the site that would be most excellent, I am very interested to learn what might be found. Once I tackle some local issues for the NMC I then plan to spend some time figuring out a solution to our need for a secure lab to store and research dangerous artifacts. So, it is uncertain when I could even make my way south.

Regards,

Iracus Varanu

“Thank you. I will go investigate and hopefully put an end to this disease. As for you and your few remaining allies there are some options. I can transport you to the LLF station were you can get improved care until you are feeling better. You are then welcome to either join us, I can have a shuttle bring you to Brienzo, or I can drop you off at the next developed world we stop by. You also of course are free to stay here, but with your limited numbers and hostility with the locals, that seems to be the worst possible option.”

"We will join you if you'd have us"

8:39 PM

The sunblade is gruff, and is still recovering. You're not sure what happened to his weapons and most of his armor is a wreck of what it used to be. These aren't enemy combatants anymore. it is a collection of wretched men, in need of aid.

“I would absolutely love to have you. The LLF is a home for anyone who wants it.” Grim has them teleported up and gives Lan instructions to get the settled. After they are gone Grim will procede to the location of the creature first

(We;'d have to try to track them from that wreck, the sunblade doesnt know where they went after)

8:16 AM

(so we have no way to teleport right to them unless you've got a psychic thing you're gonna do)

(I will track them then. The teleporting was just the station using It’s teleporter to bring up the Extaurrens) Grim begins the hike towards trying to find the wreck marked by the Sunblade

(survive/wis for trackig)

(10)

(Checking on two goals, first is establish foothold on Korra-s, second is Get a VI or at least a level 4 advanced system for the Pavitar. I know Friendo is AI and not VI but seeing if it counts because its better.)

(it will when we fix him)

8:26 AM

(he's not really active or doing anything for you right now until he;s been braked

(Is the foothold on Korra-s good?)

(Same answer as last time unfortunately, nobody lives there right now, so we've got to find some colonists somewhere)

11:13 AM

(EP can't afford to sustain a colony at the moment, so they haven't sent anyone over there. Housing and social support are in place, but we've got no actual bodies doing anything)

(Ok fair enough. )

(if we find some folks somewhere we can send them there but we're still sitting at just the handful of people needed to run the HQs there, which is barely double digits)

(That makes sense) Grim checks the hand drawn map done by the sunblade and compares it to the terrain, confident he knows where to go Grim continues towards the ship

The ship is a research vessel, or might have been at one point in time. Weapons fire sent it into the atmosphere where gravity did the rest of the work. A giant rent in its side slammed open upon contact with the suface and a sticky, moss like sludge has spread from the side of the vessel to begin growing through the nearby terrain. Small white flowers bloom across it, coughing up puffs of spores

Grim will take several samples of flowers and spores for analysis. After having collected enough samples Grim will attempt to enter the vessel with the goal of being able to access its computer

(I'll get you an interior map)

Miska's Maps on Twitter: "A rough #landing #mapvember #mapvember2016 #RPG #Scifi #spaceship #wreck #crashlanding https://t.co/O36OQXVBgl" / Twitter

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 1/13/2022 8:36 AM

Grim will try and examine the front portion of the ship first trying to find the bridge

(trying to find an exterior entry, or moving through the rear compartments? )

(For now examining. So seeing if there’s a door on the front part or seeing if there is a entry point in rear.)

There looks to be some kind of hatch near the front of the ship where supplies could have been loaded. It is sealed now and would need some work to force open

Grim finding the hatch takes out his tools and attempts to work towards getting it opened

(fix/int)

(13)

THe work takes two hours to convince the hatch to release. There is a puff of trapped air from within the airlock, and you enter the gloomy interior of the inside of the ship. A second set of entry airlock doors lead to the bridge- and these are easily manually opened. You can see the bridge was heavily damaged in the crash. Many control stations have been melted by fire. Others have been topped from their mountings by the impact with the ground and have fallen over to break on the metal decking.

Grim will try and splice into the ships network, first by utilizing one of his type B power cells to provide some power and the taking his compad and trying to wire it the now frayed wiring confections where mountings used to be. Although not really expecting to get much from such damaged systems, he makes the attempt to see if any rudimentary data can be found such as ship ID, origin, and potentially cargo manifest.

1

(We can ask some questions with the jury rigged repairs here. Some info may be missing or inaccessible )

First question grim tries to find out is what was the ship transporting

The ship was transporting experimental genetic materials that were meant to help crops grow on inhospitable worlds. The details of the experiment have been lost aside from the obvious, that the cargo got out and is acting in an unexpected way in the environment of Maysoon

Next he will try to find the origin of the ship

The ship was a former Tenebrian Empire research vessel. The planet it was sent from and its travel log is unavailable.

Grim will head outside the ship and find a decent size branch of wood he can use to make a torch. He will the use his survival kit to help light it. Once created Grim will begin to safely burn as much of the sludge and spores as possible

(okay so we're doing this at the breach around the back of the ship then? Theres nothing organic on the bridge)

(Yes heading back outside and to where all the infected stuff is)

(exert/con)

(9)

The corruption bubbles and shrieks as though alive when you burn it. There is a shriek from the woods as you begin trying to clear the sticky organic wreckage. It is high pitched and you see integrity warnings pop up about the glass in your eyeplates.

Reacting to the seeming aliveness of the organic compound Grim attempts to reach out telepathically. (Attempting telepathic contact)

The fungus itself seems inert to the kind of telepathy you're trying to use. (gaiascopics would have worked here) The shriek from the woods sounds again, this time closer, and the creature sounds both big, and angry

Grim expecting the creature the Extaurren warned him about prepares for combat (7 initiative 5+2 Kenjutsu)

1

5:27 PM

The creature emerges from 100m away. It roars and shrieks (5 for initiative ) and you can see the runaway biological processes inside

Grim seeing the creature is far away switches to his sheer rifle and lets off a well place shot (I can’t see on mobile but I believe Crit/14)

(I can check for that back at a computer tomorrow )

(its a crit, so 32)

1:25 PM

(28 i mean)

1:26 PM

The shot punches into the creature and a large cloud of spores chokes the air. (evasion save)

(The 14 was the crit damage, sorry)

1:34 PM

(19v4 evasion save - success)

(this creature has a vulnerability to this type of damage, so 28 stands!)

Spores begin saturating the ground causing the grasses and other plants to shrivel up on contact. Seconds later they explode out even thicker and with more seed pods among them. You avoid being tripped up or having any get on you but as the creature gets closer it seems to be just s matter of time

Grim takes another shot (15/17. Also would I be able to terratic overload against it. That’s the offensive biospon power. PAFO works too, just don’t want to try it if it’s a hard no)

2

(it would work on it)

(Is that an on turn for you , or is that next turn?)

7:00 PM

(I didn’t want to cut you off)

(That will be my next turn I do that. Sorry. This one is just the sheer rifle shot)

The shear rifle shot punches a large section of creature off its body, and it wriggles on the ground spurting yellow foam as the grass and plants hiss from the chemical reaction- dying only to regrow seconds later thicker, taller, and more out of control.

1

Grim lashes out with biosponic energy at the creature (7 damage, physical throw if failed triples damage and the creature gets an obvious cancer)

(Failed)

1:13 PM

The creature and the land around it begin to blossom with tumors as this turns into a twisted garden of disease. A shriek signals the creature's death throes as it thrashes on the ground and tears itself to pieces- a victim of over-powered cell degeneration.

While the creature is down Grim will continue his burning, starting with the creatures remains first.

(3xp, 5000 credits)

1

3:15 PM

Flames engulf the area, and spread into the wreck. The potential here was already wasted and gone, and now you've solved a problem here before it had the chance to get worse. Thousands of lives have been saved.

(Should be enough for level up. Will try and do it tonight) After clearing up the spores and having dealt with the Extaurren threat Grim will head back to the colonists to inform them of the situation

With the site of the spreading disease sanitized and them no longer contagious it seems you’ve made all the logical moves to keep the disease from spreading. The colonists have no idea what happened and will want to know the raids from the jungle will stop before you leave

Speaking to the colonists Grim says “Upon investigating the Extauren threat here I discovered they were being ravaged by a disease. This disease was actually caused by mutated spores from a crashed ship. I was able to successfully destroy the spores causing the disease to prevent it from spreading and infected the colony. The remaining Extaurren will be leaving with me. So Maysoon should now be free of known threats. I plan to depart soon, unless there is anything else needed.”

(Nothing more needed here!)

(brienzo-maysoon-alcatyl-gunnhill-somatra-rannveig-mushera 13 days downtime, plus the 2 from brienzo to maysoon applied to adding flexible mod to storm armor- 5k credits. The mod was included in my old plan, but with making stops this will be the first one I knock out)

1:54 AM

Grim heads to the Mushera system. Upon arrival Grim and Tyr will use the transporters to head towards the newly discovered underground facility. (basically just going to where it was discovered and will try and get it open to explore it)

1:59 AM

Level 15. 
New HP is 61 (+1 increase due to rolling same). 4SP gained. (1 Bio, 1 any Psi, 2 normal sp) plus 2SP saved (2 bio).
Raising Psychic engineering to lvl 2. -1 Psi SP -2 normal SP. Taking set the cogs spinning technique
3 biospon SP being saved

(oh! those stranded 15,000 AGET soldiers and vehicles are stuck in Actayl. Do you have room for them!?)

(I have 4,000 tons cargo space if they can fit in there and are allowed to go in cargo. Other option is I can put vehicles in cargo and send for the troop transport to meet us there) (edited)

(they need to breathe so they'd count against your life support, if we can't take them in, we'll need to pick them up later. The vehicles could fit, and can be dropped off in EP with a slight detour. )

12:34 PM

(if you decide you don't want the vehicles i suppose)

(I will message the transport to come pick them up and will detour to drop off the vehicles)

(Sounds good. )

11:19 PM

The platform enters Actsyl where as soon as you enter the system distress calls flood your screens.

11:19 PM

The AGET fleet that fought thenEtxaurren incursion north was destroyed here and soldiers in escape pods and vehicles left to float through space

Realizing the scope of the problem Grim sends an encoded message to the LLF troop transport to come assist. After sending the message grim will have the station start transporting the vehicles into the cargo bay of the station. Next Grim will take the shuttle and use it to start gathering pods. The plan being attempted is to get the pods consolidated in one area of space while awaiting the transit. Additionally examination will be made to determine which pods need repair or are low on energy

(Which transport is coming and where is it now? Just so we can mark it as tied up for about a month)

(Refuge of Elipse, last mission was the Geon to Saliv. I assume it would of gone back to Tece after but I never specifically directed it too.)

(That is fine , just wasn't sure what we had available. I'd; imagine that mission is done now)

(Reading back. We have three months of life support for them still before it runs out)

(The AGET troops? Not sure what else to do here other than just wait on transport) (edited)

(Yeah, so we won't need to repair any pods or anything is what I was meaning, you've called it in, and the folks you're calling to collect the pods don't need direct supervision, so we can move on to the system you want to travel to next)

(Ok moving to mushera then to investigate the ruin that was discovered)

(alrighty, i gotta refresh my memory on that since its been so long)

2:08 PM

(from your turn, right, okay, ill get my notes)

Musheera is the world of twisting junk it always is and the planet sized city has all kinds of sub terrain passageways under its surface. The site in question is a storage vault built into a lab complex that has fallen in. The prospectors have cleared the debris away and have exposed the heavy starship grade doors keeping the contents from exposure to the outside

Grim and crew arrive at the door and will work towards getting it open. (Bringing all my crew for this one)

(fix/int )

(9)

Tools and supplies from orbit are brought down and you begin the long work of cutting through the door, exposing the contents to the corrosive atmosphere here. As the tools power down after cutting halfway through to undergo the necessary cooling and maintainers review, you can hear something loud crashing through distant wreckage. It is out of sight but you can hear the metal on metal clangs of its rampage through the debris field.

“Param, Raven. You two stay here and take cover. Tyr and I are going to investigate” Grim and Tyr then begin heading in the direction of the crash

Picking your way through the junk you enter the ruins of an old power plant, and come out the other side. You pass the final resting places of mighty transformers the size of homes that have fallen over to spark and burn on the floor in ages past. Nature has them now, the metal rusting and the rad resistant ivy spreading up its sides. The boom is louder now and 200m in front of you a torrent of dust and metal shards flies skywards . You can see some kind of loud repeated clicking noise, reminding you almost of morse code or other physical machine communications.

Grim will try and utilize his compad to see if it can recognize the noise as Morse and potentially translate it.

The code is short. It repeats a few times and essentially broadcasts that this surface maintenance vehicle is out of control and assistance must be rendered right away. Technicians have not been around in generations

Grim begins running towards the sound Tyr not far behind both taking care to avoid obstacles. Grim yells to Tyr “When we get to the vehicle you get its attention and distract it. I will will try to get around it so I can try and shut it down.”

Tyr yells back that he will do his best, neither of you are sure what you're about to encounter and the shaking and machine noise gets louder.

Grim and Tyr continue heading towards the noise. As they get close they will initially look for cover to be able to asses the situation from

Getting in close you can see that some kind of large maw grinding vehicle is present here. The front is a series of massive grinding wheels and the design is clearly Slyth in nature. At one point, constructs like these combed the surface, programmed to clean and recycle discarded material as this manufacturing world generated massive amounts of it in service to the war-needs of the Slyth empire. The vehicle is gargantuan, and you can see ladders on the front and back allow access to its roof. Getting to them and climbing with the flying trash and debris around it, while also compensating for its erratic course will be a challenge.

Tyr begins firing shots at vehicle in an attempt to draw its attention (not a heavy weapon so no damage, just trying to get attention). While Tyr is doing that Grim utilizing the ghost walker techniques taught to him by the Daughters of the Lotus will try and maneuver around the vehicle in order to get ahold of the rear ladder

(We can make a ghost walker check with dex)

(11)

Moving silently as Tyr plinks shots off its sides, you manage to make your way to a ladder near the back without the external cameras picking you up. You quickly haul yourself halfway up the ladder, above their field of vision.

2

Once Grim succeeds at climbing onto the vehicle Tyr begins to retreat and look for cover. Meanwhile Grim starts examining the vehicle as he climbs looking for any sort of maintenance access panel

There is nothing on the roof to let you get at circuits but this vehicle could be optionally manned. There is a small port in the roof that can be levered open to get inside.

Grim finishes climbing to the port and begins to try and lever it open using the knife from his survival kit, trying to get just enough space to be able to get his power armored fingers a grip in order to rip it open

The door opens without needing to put much force on it, revealing the dark guts and narrow access way of the machine within. You can smell grease and exhaust on the inside.

Grim begins crawling into the access way moving towards the manual controls.

Heading toward the front of the machine you see a wheel locked door leading into the control area. The inside of the crawler has been damaged it seems and sparks can be seen flickering in the gap between the door and floor

Grim will utilize his psionic alchemy to turn the floor in front of the door to rubber. He will then attempt force the wheel lock open using his power armors strength. While standing on the rubber to avoid being electrocuted.

4

The door opens revealing a damaged control room. Things here have been degrading steadily for decades now and the clean up machine is now just mindlessly gobbling up anything it can find it smash itself into. It’s material hoppers are full and many warnings about back up and over pressure in the material feed lines are piling up. It’s going to blow itself apart at the seams before long

Grim will try to fix the damaged controls by tightening any loosely connections and splicing back together and broken wires. Once confident he has mechanically done what he can Grim will then attempt to reboot the machine

(fix/int)

(13)

2

There is a belch of hot oil as a pipe ruptures and the machine comes to a grinding halt. Time has worked away at what it takes to keep this thing running and you’re unable to keep it functional but you are able to divert power just in time to the material hoppers, allowing them to jettison 1000 tons of peerless ingots for collection

4

3

4

Grim will have the Paivatar beam the ingots up to the station. Then Tyr and him will head back to the vault door.

3

The team has managed to get the ruins opened. Everyone is looking very tired. The door was technically complex to open. A large causeway heads down into the darkness of the artificial metal caverns below.

Grim and crew cautiously and slowly proceed down the causeway looking for possible traps as they begin their decent

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 2/2/2022 8:13 AM

(coming down at Q)

8:14 AM

Q is a large entry room and you see one of the traditional lamplighter fireplace locks to the south of you, blocking the way into those chambers. To the east, a hallway leads into another chamber. There are names inscribed in the floor of those who had fallen on this world. You are not sure the cause, or how long after the Slyth vanished the lamplighters came to this world, or what they did when they were here.

Grim is surprised to find the Lamplighters were previously here. “This is a welcome surprise” Grim says to the crew. They then record the names before heading into the East chamber

(recording them could take hours, did we want to assign people to do it, or would we be elapsing that time as a group so I know what might be happening elsewhere)

(I will have the non combatants stay to record and Tyr and I will continue)

The eastern chamber (R) is a large chamber with several industrial sized holding tanks constructed within it. You can see there are about a hundred of them in here and they are hooked up to a large set of control panels. Bubbling green fluid fills each container and through their glass sides you’re able to see the form of a slyth in suspended animation within each one

Grim will check the control panels to see if there is any data indicating if these slyth are still alive, or if they are infected with the disease that once plagued their race.

The Slyth are alive, and they are infected. They were placed in these new chambers when LAmlighters stumbled across their original cryo facility and found it badly damaged. Based on the records, the fight to get to them through automated security was deadly, as was dealing with the environmental challenges. These hundred souls were all that made it out of a vault that once contained tens of thousands

Grim will contact the Paivatar and have the medbay begin preparing for Slyth survivors. Letting them know the situation. As it will take the medbay time to prepare, Grim and Tyr will continue to the next room (s). (Not disturbing the cryopods just yet but making sure they are prepared for when we do)

S is a brightly lit room and you pass through an electrostatic chamber that wipes out any accumulated static charge on your body. It hardly matters as you pass into a room open to the sky. Scientific machinery has been shattered under the weight of the factory floor that has fallen in here. Moss and bright yellow mushrooms have invaded and cover the bronze lamplighter foundation disc set into the once beautiful tile work here. Something stirs in the factory floor above out of sight

A shiver runs down Grim’s spine as he hears sound above. He turns to Tyr and says “Tyr, I think I hear something above us. We will need to be careful” Grim then utilizes his panspectral optics to try and scan above hoping to get a glimpse.

There is a large heat signature above you. The shape is clearly organic based on where the heat is being distributed, and how you see it moving. The creature is large, the size of a bear, but 50% larger than that

“The thing is huge. Best to be careful” Grim and Tyr will move to room T while maintaining vigilance in case the creature or whatever it is drops down

you hear the large mass drop behind you as you try to enter T.

2:28 PM

)initiative)

(Grim 4+2 Kenjutsu=6 and Tyr=8)

(Tyr, war bear who is 30m away, and then Grim)

Tyr makes a well placed shot at the oncoming bear (crit/21 damage accounting for crit)

The bear looks to be wounded and continues barreling forward knocking into Grim (physical save)

9:07 AM

(depending on how that goes he's got a move to do)

(Success 20v5) Grim blade in hand steps back with one foot and then twirls around in a blindingly quick movement and then bringing the blade back up into a defensive position

The bear lashes its claws across you, unable to hit since the brutal ramming attack did not succeed in pitching you off your feet.

Grim responds with several strikes (16/17)

The bear does not seem to be hurt by the swings, its thick hide making the sword blows nothing but superficial wounds. It roars, rounding on Tyr who steps up to make a move for himself

Tyr makes another well placed shot (crit/14 including crit damage)

(What are you shooting with? we are in melee so he can’t use any two handed rifles )

(It was sheer rifle. If I can I will move away first and suffer the attack that comes with it)

(miss, got a 14) A large paw swipes at Tyr as he tries to back out of the fight, returning the bear's aggression with a shot of his own. More metal/flesh hunks are blasted off the mutated beast as it rounds on Grim, still within range of the claws. Both sets of long claws batter the storm armor, but do not breach the incredible protection

Grim struggles in his fight with bear (17/16) while Tyr backs away some more and the lands another well placed shot (26/14)

The shear rifle shot blows something important out in the bear's back. It groans and struggles, thrashing on the ground before finally expiring.

The fight now over, Grim and Tyr now continue into the next room.

"I wonder if we could have saved that thing" Tyr says as he gives the corpse a gentle kick. "You think with all the weird wildlife we kill we'd open a trophy room on the platform or something" he says, moving past the body and covering the door as you enter the next room. Room T is the first room in a long chain of transit corridors. There is a small information panel worked into the wall with a keyboard, but otherwise this seems like just the end of a hallway.

“I feel bad about killing it too, but what if we left it and it damaged to cryo pods.” Grim says, before moving to information panel in order to attempt to open the door south

Your credentials seem to be valid for the computer system here. The doors begin rolling open across the facility.

Next Grim and Tyr will move to room U

Room U is dark, and upon entering it you can see there are more holding tanks here. These slyth lie dormant as well and it is unclear on a first sweep if they are dead or if the machines here are running in low power barely keeping them alive

Grim moves towards the machine and examines them to find out if the slyth still live and if there is some way to safely increase the power to them

(Program/int)

(7)

The power can be increased when the base reactor is found and attended to. The slyth in this room are close to death. 50% have died already as power has been systematically cut from the weakest to ensure the survival of everyone else.

Grim and Tyr now knowing they need to reactor to help here continue their search. Now making their way to room V

Room V is a well lit room that is very clean. The Slyth have set up laboratory equipment here and looked to be in the process of running experiments and searching for a cure before abandoning the work to enter the Great Freeze.

Grim will attempt to download the data on the experiments and the cure. With the disease already solved it may not matter, but maybe the research can provide insights into other diseases or help bolster existing medical science Grim thinks to Himself (edited)

The download begins and should finish without you needing to keep tabs on it by time you leave.

Heading to room 2 next

Room 2 is the site of another collapse from the surface. Industrial equipment has fallen in and pulverized the sleep pods, scientific machinery, and other complicated devices in this room. It looks like the Lamplighters were trying to excavate the room here and several hazards have been highlighted in weather resistant engineers grease pencil. Actual heavy labor to clean this up, and re-seal the chamber had not yet been conducted but there are calculations for doing so written on the walls as various LLF technical teams worked through solutions to the problem. Organic debris from the rotting sleepers has also been piled up in the southwestern corner of the room, marked for any kind of genetic sequencing possible, followed by dignified incineration.

Grim will take samples of the organic material and photograph the instructions. Afterwards he heads out with Tyr and will see if he is able to continue south or if there is an obstruction he remove

The hallway has been cut off by more collapse from the surface and is impassible further south in this direction

Grim will begin making his way back to the fireplace lock at the beginning of the structure

You return to see the technical team mid wa ythrough their initial tasks.

Grim examines the lock looking for a way to open it

This reminds you of the report from Heras, where a flame needed to be lit in the cauldron of the lock. The warm air and smoke would fill other chambers and wind mechanisms, allowing the door to open.

Grim follows the same steps as Heras and lights a flame in the cauldron using his survival kit to do so. After lighting the fire Grim waits to see if the lock opens

The lock begins to disengage, slowly winching open the large doors to allow you further access to the facility

Grim and Tyr continue their exploration moving to room W

W is a dark room with spare parts stacked up here. You can see a handful of security bots have shut down here with their fuel cells long bled dry. Otherwise the parts here look to be a mix of slyth and lamplighter approximations to try to fix some of the pods in the other rooms

Grim makes not of the room and will return here later, but his priority now is getting power restored before any more Slyth perish. “I am very interested in those bots and approximations Tyr, but right now we need to get power restored” Grim then moves to room P

P seems to be what you have been hunting for. The reactor room is here and the controls- as well as the reactor itself seem intact if a bit neglected by time.

Grim will inspect the reactor to determine what if anything is needed to be done to make sure the power can be adequately and safely brought back to optimal levels

It seems to just need to be refueled. It is not damaged.

Grim will relay instructions to the station to have fuel brought down and delivered to the chamber. While waiting on the fuel to be delivered Tyr and him will move to room O

Room 0 is a large chamber and it Looks like this is a place where Lamplighter and Slyth have come together. There are mixtures of both computer systems with thick cables leading to some kind of central holo table.

Grim will examine the Holotable to see if anything can be done with it at the moment or if it needs the fuel first

it looks like it can still be powered on with the residual power that is left.

Grim powers up the holotable and the sees what it can do

The table is slyth tech and begins booting up. This is the administrators terminal and can be asked questions.

“Hello my name is Grim and I am the the new Lightbringer of the LLF. I am trying to save the Slyth in stasis. We have additional fuel coming but is there anything you can help with to save the ones who remain? Maybe a damage assessment to point me to anything else needing repair?”

The Slyth have all been infected with the genetic targeted virus that ravaged their race and forced them into the freeze. There are 500 still living in this site. The breaches to the surface need to be repaired so the facility can sanitize, and a cure needs to be completed or administered right away on reviving the sleepers. Many are also going to need extensive psychiatric services.

(Would I be able to have the cure synthesized on the station or do I need to send a ship to get it from a different planet?)

(We know how to make it, so I think we could finish what they started between what is on hand and things from the medbay on the platform)

Grim radios the station to begin synthesizing enough cure for up to 500 Slyth. He also issues instructions for the troop transport “refuge of elpis” to head here. (I believe it was moving the group from the last planet to safety so it should be fairly close) Next he asks the hologram “do you have technical and/or historical archives that can be copied to my station. Many records were previously lost”

(Wasn’t that transport picking up Val’s abandoned folks)

8:53 PM

(It would be bringing them to Heras this month if we are intending to finish that up)

(Oh yeah. Alright then I guess I can heal them and start repairs here when ready. The Slyth can wait a month or 2 if they want a ride.)

(The scale of the undertaking would be a massive reconstruction project. I think its more than Grim could accomplish in a day or even a few days unless you've got some other ideas. We could explore the rest of just move on further north if youre determined to be off)

(Ok, I will do the repairs as longer term reconstruction projects. I will just continue exploring for now.)

(sounds good to me, where to next? )

(Was asking the hologram if there is any data it can transfer me. I get for balance reasons not wanting to give me a trove of advanced tech, so was mainly trying to get historical records and stuff like that, like all background stuff no need to actually say what’s in the records. Just trying to do what LLF should basically)

There are Lamplighter Historical Records that can be transferred to you. There are no tech documents here, this looked to be a facility focused on Slyth population preservation rather than advanced research, and the Lamplighter work here was more medical and humanitarian than cutting edge tech.

Grim sets up a secure connection between the facility and the ship to transfer the historical records. Afterwards Grim moves on to room N

Room N is dark and represents the southwestern corner of the facility. It looks like the Slyth once had security robots at work here that engaged the original Lamplighters coming to clear the facility. Their broken pieces have been stacked up into a massive pile in the corner of the room, many shot through several times, burned, or riddled with bullet holes.

Grim will note the broken bots so that they can be salvaged or repaired later and then move on to room X

Room X is a lit chamber where the remains of workbenches and some heavier mechanical assemblies have been left behind here. The Lamplighters don’t seem to have set up permanent shop here though there is battle damage and they’ve cleared the room

Grim will move on to Y

This room looks to be in a similar state as X in both function and how it looks right now.

Seeing the room in a similar state Grim moves on to room Z

Room Z is a large space that is in partial darkness. A machine is being constructed here using many of the recycled robotics parts and a single computer is plugged into the foreign construction

Grim heads to the computer and tries to decipher what is being built by the machines

(program.int)

(5)

You can take the equipment with you, or assign a team to work on this long term, but the machine for now keeps its secrets

Grim unable to figure it out radios for a team of specialists to be assigned the task. He then moves on to the last room 1

1 is a damaged room that once led to the surface. This looked like the basement of some kind of lab space once and the lab it served must have been above before the floor pancaked in to bury the southern side of the chamber and prevent passage up into the building. There are undoubtedly secrets here, and another layer of ruins both above and below based on what you have seen.

With this floor of the facility fully explored Grim and Tyr radio the work crews to ensure the fuel has been provided and the medics are in place. If everyone is ready Grim will head back to the generator room and begin restoring full power to the facility

(3xp, 5000 credits)

1

Once fueled Grim will begin waking the sleeping Slyth and will have them treated for their disease. He will also begin the longer term task of repairing the facility starting with this floor. Crews will also be instructed to clear the entrances above and below, but not to enter the other floors yet. (Not sure how much we think repair work should cost or take. I figure I will come back here after some time to check out the other floors. Also, potentially looking to help the Slyth I rescued start reclaiming this world)

(sounds good, yeah something to grasp at in the future for sure)

(If we are good with it, I will figure out where to go next. Will post that and the route tonight)

(Sounds good. We are still making our way north to get friendo braked iirc)

Grim spends some time talking with the Recently awakened Slyth and assigns some lamplighters to help catch them up on current events. Transport will be arranged and once the Refuge of Elipse finishes transporting the folks to Heras it will come here to transport the Slyth. Supplies to last until the ship arrives will be transported down. With the current tasks wrapped up Grim will return to the station and make preparations to head to Korra-S to check on the recently finished Acclimatization project (Mushera-urreturre-korra S, 4 days 4/14 boosted mod to sheer rifle)

The planet has a small village established in a modified version of the umbrella system, anchoring the land in place, and forming a bubble of climate where people can actually live without being burned by the surrounding landscape. The domes are impressive to behold and in time the people here will make further innovations, learning to tame the planet while mining its valuable flows of surface level heavy metals.

Grim will head down to the village and meet with the settlers. “This is a harsh world filled with danger, but you are all strong and brave. I thank you and admire your determination in taming this land. In time I expect you will obtain great riches from the metals, but for now you are doing the hard work needed to get there. You have my respect.”

There are only a few settlers here now, but they're proud to be some of the first to plant human roots onto this world, and hope to one day be notable figures in planetary history.

(Not really sure what else to do here just wanted to stop in because I hadn’t yet. I was going to move on. If you are ok with going to the NFSS vault I will go there, if you want me to break it up more I can explore some more hexes on Tece, or if you have any ideas I am open to suggestions)

(I thought we were going to get friendo taken care of in NFSS land, are we giving up on that? )

(That is the plan. But I need to explore the vault for them first. I am asking if I can plot a route to that mission now)

(Oh yes, we can)

(Korra S-Lerden-salima Tej-tecmeda-gotzana-saez-katsaride-kanos-naleanides-vigerd-uonw02 8, 27 days 14/14 boosted mod to sheer rifle, 7/7 permanently attaching sheer rifle to armor. Program 10/90)

(seen, ill get a report up before monday )

(No rush. Today and tomorrow are both beach days so mostly off phone anyway)

(Sounds good. I’ll get this finished EDIT: I've got a world anvil page up, its a stub, so its not worth posting. Most of what we have to say will be based on your mission) (edited)

Upon entering the system you see a trio of NFSS frigates in a patrol pattern. A communications channel is opened upon you jumping into the system from the leader of the patrol element.

“Hello NFSS patrol, this is Lightbringer Grim. I trust you have already been notified that I would be coming. I will await your further instructions before heading to the LLF vault to begin work.”

“The station can be boarded via an airlock we will provide security from space threats while you are aboard but we are not permitted entry. We do know that’s your part of the task

“Thank you. I will take my personal ship over to the airlock and board. I will contact you once the mission is completed or if there are any relevant updates the require your attention as I complete the task.” Grim then checks with Friendo to see how he is feeling and if he is up to the task of exploring or if he will need to sit out until the brakes can be restored. (I don’t mind either way, but if he is ok enough I figured I would bring him because it’s an LLF vault)

(He still isnt braked, so if he's online hes going to slowly be going insane. Its a risk you'll have to decide if you want to manage)

Grim and his crew, to include Friendo head to the Knarr and begin the short flight to the LLF facility. (Taking Tyr, Param, Raven, and Fríendo. Leaving Minerva)

(mental save at -1 for friendo as we set off, need to beat a 10)

(6)

Friendo is silent as he turns on. He seems focused as much as a junk frame can be and silently stands to shadow you as you begin assembling with the rest of the team in the airlock.

8:06 AM

(I'll get a map)

1:36 PM

(coming in at the airlock room on the top left)

Grim and Tyr cross the airlock first to check the room and to assess if it’s safe for the others before the rest of the crew crosses (edited)

(notice/wis)

(9)

You sense nothing in the airlock as you first move into the welcome chamber, where space suits and ship suits are waiting for anyone coming in or leaving the safety of the partially damaged station. Each has old lamplighter sigils on them, and it looks like many of them are missing as is the escape pod normally fixed to this chamber. Its iris door is closed now, keeping the hole that would be on the other side from depressurizing the inside of the ship.

Grim signals for the remaining crew to come over and those not in storm armor put on space suits. Once everyone is ready Grim begins operating the airlock to allow access to the next room

2:33 PM

(so we'll be there)

2:33 PM

Entering the door, this room looks to be some sort of duty office or watch office where people coming into or leaving the station would check in. A simple desk and computer are located in this room, but nothing else.

“Raven, I am not sure how much or if anything even helpful will be on it but can you give the computer a look.” Grim says. Followed by Raven trying to access the computer and gather what information she can.

(She might be here for a bit, would you wait, or press on?)

(Press on) “We will continue on. Radio is when you find anything” The team then proceeds into the next room

This room is dividded between hallway and security station. A barracks room is to the north, and this room is split between the security station and transit into the hallway around the spaceward side of the station

Grim will first check the security station to see if there are any buttons or controls or anything else of interest

The station has a button to unlock the doors to the south and another to access the armory. A small log book has been left open on the desk

Grim will unlock all the doors and then review the log book

The logs don’t look to have been maintained during the abandonment of the station itself but it shows a steady coming and going of personnel into and out of the station between different research vessels.

Grim takes pictures of the log book pages as they fall under historical record and then moves north to the barracks room

(notice/wis )

(11)

The faint smell of rot hangs in the air. Your enhanced senses pick it up, where the others do not notice. A set of lockers, twelve bunk beds and a small work table occupy the barracks room.

“Something smells rotten in here, let’s check these lockers. Hopefully someone didn’t leave food out for who knows how many years” Grim and crew will begin checking the lockers looking for the smell or anything else important

A body falls from one of the rear lockers.

8:57 AM

It is wearing a Lamplighter uniform, but has been taken to rags from the time spent decaying in a locker. It is transitioning from advanced decay to dry remains

Grim attempts to examine the body for signs of foul play, such as murder. He also checks what’s left of the rag for any clues

The body was stabbed several times before being shoved into the locker. Blood loss would have killed on a long enough timeline if the blade didn't hit a major organ.

“Murder. This man was stabbed” Grim says to the crew. He the goes over to the workbench and begins examining it

1

why he was murdered and what might have been happening on the station to make this something undetected are mysteries that remain. The workbench has been stripped of projects and tools, and its impossible to see what they might have been working on. There are lamplighter approved safety messages that occasionally appear on the back screen of the bench.

Grim and crew finish searching the barracks and then move back down to the hallway, on their way to heading to the next room.

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 3/16/2022 6:20 PM

The hallway remains empty. Raven continues to work at the computers , taking her time and doing the work as diligently as possible.

Grim and crew minus Raven will move into the nearby room. (Looks like a desk and half circle couch on the map)

conference room- is printed on the door. It is made of a heavy, reinforced looking hatch and some kind of steady tapping seems to come from some kind of machinery that must be running on the other side of the door.

Grim opens the latch and they enter into the conference room interested to see what machinery is making the noise

The sentry bot inside who had busied itself ramming into the table over and over again perks up, its motors allowing it to whirr on its waist, as its four long blades extend from various housings.

“Friendo anything you can do to communicate with it?” Grim asks as he moves towards the bot. Knowing his blade will be ineffective Grim decides to try and grapple with the bot in order to try and pin it down so it can be disabled. (Basically trying to see if I can wrestle it to the ground and pin it so someone can either turn it off or reprogram it.)

(mental save at -2 for friendo first, then we'll see)

(11vs15 fail)

Friendo looks at you strangely for a long moment before his screen flicks off. It clicks back on after a moment before he launches himself headlong at the security drone. Its own screen looks to be flickering and changing as it and Friendo engage in some kind of digital combat before he ultimately prevails, just as his scrap box frame is reduced to metal and wire rubble. From his new body, he looks on at the room with machine like impacity.

Seeing Friendo seemingly win the combat Grim let’s go of the bot and asks “Is that you Friendo? Are you ok?”

1

Friendo sends a message that he is okay, and has taken over this shell for his own use now that the original scrap box has been destroyed.

Satisfied that Friendo is ok Grim and crew will continue their investigation moving to the adjacent room (the one to the right with 3 desks)

An office occupies this room. Three desks have computers and data pads on them where the workers here were marking up what look to be artful renditions of 27th century illuminated manuscripts. The information on them details some kind of Bannerjee station

With Raven already occupied Grim will attempt to examine the manuscripts and station documents himself.

Plans for a Bannerjee 12 station were being copied into different human languages here. You don't see anything wrong with the plans on its surface.

Grim will note that the plans are here but won’t copy them as per the agreement. He will then move to the room to the south

The chamber door for this work room is sealed. The keypad is armed and it is looking for admin level authorization before the printers inside can be accessed.

Grim turns to Friendo and asks “Do you have admin authorization?”

"I can try, Lightbringer, but it will not be easy"

“Let’s give it a try. It’s ok if it doesn’t work. But I have faith in you.” Grim instructs Friendo to try and access the room

(program/int at +3,)(

(Roll 20 is saying 15. But friendo has the ai equivalente of expert in programming, so there may be an extra dice in there. I can’t check the actual individual rolls though)

(il take a look, if the sheet is configured right it should automatically be dropping the lowest)

(looks okay to me)

2:06 PM

Frindo spends a few moments working on the lock before the door finally opens, revealing the workspace and 3D printing apparatus within

(My b. Disregard :D)

Grim will document the existence of the 3d printer and passively examine it to see if he can figure out more, but won’t push any buttons or do anything to activate it. (Primarily trying to stay in bounds of agreement. As in allowed to document what it is but recognizing it belongs to NFSS)

(You could activate stuff to log it better if you want to )

6:35 PM

(I don’t want you to feel like this is gonna be passive looking into rooms, but if you’re that nervous and just want a dungeon clear screen I don’t want to waste your time )

(I am not nervous, just was trying not to screw things up with NFSS. But I can activate then. I never feel like you are wasting my time, though. You tell great stories and I enjoy them.) After his initial examination of the printer Grim decides to turn it on to see what it does.

Loading from a material hopper that must be occupying the majority of the station's cargo bay, it seems the printers here can make any number of spare parts or other objects the Lamplighters might have made use of in Pre-scream times.

(From an NFSS Standpoint, as long as you aren't physically/digitally removing spoils from the station we are kosher. Turn on whatever you would like

) (edited)

1

Next grim will head back to the hallway and around to the next room (the one with the different looking table)

The door to this room has also been sealed. Access codes seem to have been burned out of the keypad using an access port.

Grim will attempt to access the access port physically to see what can be done, and to see if he rewire the door so that he can access it via his compad instead of the burnt keypad

(fix/int)

(14)

1

The burned port is something you're able to work around,e ven though it takes close to an hour to swap the components out. Opening the door you can see that there are bodies in each of the chairs around the conference room table. They do not show signs of violence, and look to have expired here from hunger or thirst.

“What a terrible way to die” Grim sadly says the the crew. He then checks the table for anything that may give more insight. (Basically looking for compads or notebooks. Trying to see if anyone left an account of what exactly happened.)

One of the men in this room has a compad. The battery has entirely drained after their long stay in here, but it seems like it is in better condition than the other left behind objects.

Grim will see if the compad accepts standard a type batteries or if he needs to try and rig up a charging device (edited)

It looks to accept the standard type A, this has just not been charged in a very long time.

Grim replaces the battery. He will then give it some time to see if it accepts the charge. While waiting he will move down to the first room along the bottom hallway

The hallway door itself is open and upon entering it you see these three rooms look like officers bunks for the junior members of the station’s officer contingent

(I am good calling now if you are, and everything meets the requirements to make NFSS satisfied)

(Oh alright. That is up to you then)

(Well might as well look if I am here. Sorry indecisive) Grim quickly looks through the rooms of bunks. He will make note of anything interesting mainly looking for any journals or logs, things that might give more insight into the station

(We've got three rooms here, 1, 2 or 3)

(Ok. Checking the first of the three) Grim enters the first of the three rooms to begin his search

The first room looks to have belonged to a junior bridge officer, and it contains a computer, a desk, a wardrobe, bed, and finally a storage trunk. The room is not well furnished or lavish, but it seems comfortable enough and has a private restroom.

Grim will first open the trunk and examine its contents.

The trunk opens easily, it was not locked. Inside there are four uniforms, all identical and belonging to a junior lamplighter officer from the pre-scream days when everything was much better than it is now. You've incorporated some of the design elements in your own uniforms, unbeknownst to yourself at the time.

Next Grim will contact Raven. He establishes comms and asks “Any luck getting into the network? I found a room with another computer.”

"It;s only been about an hour, the amount of things to sort through here could take hours, days even. And that's just to find out if any of it is worth anything"

“Copy, we are finishing up here soon. Just check what you can.” Grim says. He then checks the computer in the room himself.

(prorgam/int)

(5)

On your own it doesn't seem like you're able to make sense of the data here. It details day to day operations of the station, but it is all written in a cant the pre-scream Lamplighters used, and it did not carry over to your own organization. You're unable to make sense of most of it.

Grim and crew will now move on to the second room

The second room is a bit more elaborate and looks to have once been the home of a mid ranking officer. The furnishings are more ornate and the room is slightly bigger. A mid-officer uniform, a storage trunk, the bed, and what looks to be a data card encoded locker are features of the room in addition to what look to be several hunting trophies mounted to the wall.

Grim will first head to the trunk gently opening it in order to see what’s inside

(d100)

(6)

You find a stim case in the strunk. Two are missing, but one is still there and looks to be stable based on the readout. Philtre Most often employed as part of relationship therapy, religious ritu- als, or cultural conditioning processes, the Philtre stim charges the user’s skin with a highly psychoactive nanite compound. The next human they touch within the following hour must make a Tech saving throw or be flushed with a sudden feeling of affection and devotion toward the user. The emotions are not strong enough to defeat the subject’s reason but dispose them to do all the favors for the user that they might do for a good friend. The emotions fade 1d6 hours after the triggering, though if the user has done nothing displeasing they might linger in a more authentic fashion.

9:35 AM

(tech saving has generally been replaced with physical or mental depending on the actual effect the condition would cause, I'd say mental in this case)

This is one thing I am glad humanity has forgotten to make. In the wrong hands this stuff would be a nightmare. Grim thinks as he internally grapples with the thought of turning it over. While still contemplating what to do he then heads to the locker to see if he can override the access card

The lock looks to be incredibly secure and you suspect that Raven would struggle to get this done even- finding the card would be the best way to open it without risking damage to the contents within.

Realizing he isn’t getting this open Grim decides to look for the key card. He will first check the uniform pockets, then he will check the bed looking between the mattress and box spring and in the pillow cases, finally if not there Grim will try moving the hunting trophies to see if the card is behind them.

The card doesn't seem to be in this room but you do find 100 credits stashed in the wall behind the trophy of a lope with a very impressive rack of antlers.

Satisfied the card isn’t in the room but feeling lucky after the 100 credits Grim and crew move on to the last room

CAPTAIN is engraved on the door and upon opening it you see the same furnishings in here, with a pair of data lockers and otherwise far more ornate fittings. The hunting trophies have been replaced by scenes of jungles and nature in different worlds, along with some cross diagrams of ships like you might see on display as art in some kind of naval academy.

Grim will check the trunk in this room, turning to Tyr as he does so and asks “what are the odds the key cards are all in here?” Tyr responds with a chuckle and shrugs his shoulders, “with our luck it can’t be that easy”

Opening the trunk you see that one is clipped to the captains uniform within.

Grim will take the card and try it on the two lockers in this room

One of them opens. One does not. Inside you can see a rack of data drives that can be inserted into lamplighter computers elsewhere

(Elsewhere in the facility, or elsewhere as in like one of the other vaults?)

)computers in other vaults )

With all the rooms explored that can be without the missing data cards Grim will move back to the 3d printer. There he will attempt to print 2 cards like the first but without any codes loaded.

The job is accepted. Both of their forms print in the trays after an hour of waiting. During this time Raven estimates she is about halfway done looking through the computers.

Grim gets an idea and wonders if he can print a core for Friendo. He examines the printer to see how f it has the schematic already or if he has a copy from the one Friendo installed in the station

Brakes are an incredibly advanced mechanical and digital process that requires the constant attention of thousands of specialists. You're unable to do that from here.

“Worth a try guys, let’s go see if Raven can use any help.” Grim says as he heads back to the room Raven is in

Raven cannot be helped, aside from more time going by. Previous team attempts to try to force data out of the machines here have failed in other ways already.

Grim will head to his ship and acquire body bags for dead lamplighters throughout the station. He will then take time to head the various rooms that had dead lamplights in order to collect them. He will remove uniforms and then place bodies into the bags and Grim and the crew will begin moving them to the ships cargo bay so that they can be given a funeral later. Grim will then examine the uniforms looking for anything useful such as keycards

None of the dead had anything on them in terms of cards but from what you could put together this station was manned by a skeleton crew- and when The Scream hit there was something of a mutiny on board as factions developed and tried to determine the best way forward. Officers were murdered, weapons were taken, small boats fled the station and escape pods were fired into open space.

(Are there rooms I haven’t explored? I think I checked them all but just making sure)

(there is more to the map, I just did it in segments so we wouldn't get too turned around- but if we're eager to get friendo handled and wrap this up I can just close it off, I know we've been at this for a bit

(I will finish it up. You planned it and it’s interesting. I will try and do better at my thread. I feel like I’m boring you)

12:12 PM

Grim and the crew will move on to the next section of the station while Raven continues her work

Heading south from the administrative areas you enter a workshop type room where it looks like a heated battle had been fought for control of the room. Broken bulkhead doors and the remains of battle robots are scattered across the hall, and it looks like the attackers did manage to get inside after a time.

Grim looks toward Tyr and says “lots of scoring on these walls from missed shots, it’s a miracle they didn’t completely wreck the place”. Tyr nods in agreement and then asks “where should we start” “You guys search the workbenches and see if you can find anything. I am going to examine the robots” Grim the proceeds towards the nearest bot. First looking to see if any have any intact memory drives that may have recorded the fighting and then second seeing if he can possibly piece together any complete robots by combining the still intact pieces from the wreckage

(fix/int)

(12)

2

You're unable to get a working bot together given the level of damage, but these do not look much different than the ones you already own. You can see the faction of Lamplighters who wanted to leave the station tried to fight their way through here to get to the escape pod bay and the shuttle hangar beyond.

Grim asks the rest of the crew “Any luck with the search?” As he then begins to help go though workbenches and examine stations

It appears the workbenches were being prepared to work on FEP armor devices likely preparing for an influx of damaged gear from the fighting here. The tools do not look different from standard, but the schematics are ones that the NFSS has, and the rest of the galaxy does not.

Grim begins to struggle with dilemma of trying to copy the schematics or keeping his word to the NFSS. Deciding he has time to weigh it over before making a decision he then heads to the next room.

From here a long hallway goes around the spaceward side of the station before ending up in a mess halll where there has also been some kind of fight. The tables and chairs have been circled up and made into some kind of a miniature fortress. The bodies have since been taken but the scars of war darken the room.

“I hate that it came to this, Lamplighters fighting Lamplighters. People are people though I just had an overinflated ideal of what they were I guess.” Grim says to the crew. They then continue forward making there way through the station

You see more evidence of the same along the north wing of the station. Rooms had been pulled open and the escape pod bay is empty. Combat was heavier here than it was along the south side of the station. There is little of value here, and it seems like your main discoveries are the computer files , FEP plans, and whatever the end result of Raven's project might be.

Grim will head back to FEP plans. When in the room he will begin to scan the room using panspectral optics and his power armors sensors. Primarily trying to see if there are any recording devices or anyone invisible following the crew in the room

(notice/wis)

(12)

!roll 2d6+1

Nekosmash Roll: [5, 4] Result: 10

You do notice a small spy eye drone nestled in the corner of the room. It is matte black in color , and non reflective, about the size of a coffee cup and designed to be almost entirely silent.

Damn, that would of been too easy. It makes sense though for them to watch me, and I can’t do anything to the drone without causing an issue Grim thinks. He then takes one last look at the plans and tries his best to commit as much to memory as possible looking for anything that might stick out as unique to FEP. Knowing it’s likely in vain but the best he can do given the situation

(know/int, so we can try to recall this information lateR)

(11)

(okay, noted, we'll see what happens if we come back to this later!)

After trying his best to remember what he can, Grim and the crew will head back to Raven to check on her progress. (As far as I am tracking everything else is done.)

(Yes I agree )

8:52 AM

Raven has some historical lamplighter data. Names. Ranks. Rotations. Names of projects or operations but she will need to do some additional work later to match up the pre scream star chart with how the disaster has changed spike lanes , and what any matching coordinates might be now.

“Good work Raven. This should really help fill in the LLF database” Grim then sets up a channel to the NFSS ships in the sector. “I have completed exploration as best as can be done for now. However, there are several drives that can’t be decrypted here. The LLF facility on Tece should be able to decrypt them with time. But I understand if you choose not to accept that offer.” Grim then transfers his report on the facility over and awaits confirmation from NFSS on concurrence of mission completion, their decision on the drives, and instructions on where to go for them to help re-brake Friendo.

The NFSS is taking all data with them, as to limit your exposure to it. They do not need your help decoding it and you were able to recover the historical data as promised. Handing Friendo over to them will see him braked and returned next month , now safe, and ready for use.

11:27 AM

(so you'll get him back in M11)

(Can I send a small team with led by Raven and some pilots in a shuttle. So they can fly Friendo back when the jobs done?)

(The NFSS is going to bring him to you, they wouldn't want any of your folks getting insight on the brake process)

(Ok, Uonw02 8-Diomikato-nalaenides-kanos-katsaride 11 days. Grim will use the time to try and recall the FEP plans as best as possible writing down what he can remember and experimenting in the workshop trying to recreate tech until arriving in orbit of the planet)

(Know/int)

(7)

(checking on if I earned any xp for the vault)

(yes, we kind of jetted off before we brought this to a close, but 3xp, 5000 credits)

7:55 AM

It seems our understanding of the FEP is missing several key pieces, and it could not be replicated.

Upon arrival in the katsaride system Grim will activate the station’s scanners looking for an planets potentially worth visiting

(Checking on several goals. This one is old and may not count because not EP anymore but “Find a way to be able to defend EP from other polities. such as a capital ship on par with what SCAF has, or something as powerful as what Suha gun is. Basically some sort of deterrent against aggression in case a new Vukan apears.” - the llf station Help a struggling world to begin recovering - either the work on Saliv or the work with the spore disease killing people on the planet. And then checking if the colony world and Korra goals are good this month or if they still need more time to develop Oh also Make significant progress toward filling out the databases in the LLF facility on Tece. (3 previously undiscovered items total from any of the categories) - the book from Mobion, and then the spore creature, and the agriculture data) (edited)

( LLF - no, this goal realistically cannot be completed now ( Goal 2- yes ( None of the colonies have developed, aside from a handful of people being there. Nothing has been done for them) (Done)

(Copy thank you)

(I’ll get a system report together over the next day or two)

(Ok no rush)

https://www.worldanvil.com/w/iron-stars-nekosmash/a/katsaride-location-1

Katsaride

Grim tells the crew “I am going to the surface. I will have station transport me down. Be prepared to beam me back up if things go wrong” Grim then has the station place him at the ruins of the failed colony

(Any precautions being taken? anyone going with you? )

(Grim is going by himself. Precaution is wearing storm armor.) “Is there any other precautions you guys can think of?” Grim asks his crew

They're unsure of the conditions on the ground aside from wearing something armored and fully sealing like you are already doing. The teleport pad is going to need six minutes to recharge after sending you down, and they won't be able to pull you out from inside a building, so attention to your surroundings is critical.

Satisfied with his precautions Grim has them begin the transport process. Double checking his seals on his armor until he feels himself begin to transport

There is a flash of light as you appear on the ground, mid afternoon sun burning brightly on the horizon. The colony around you is dead in every direction and was suitable for thousands of people to once live here. Nature has reclaimed the boundary blocks, moving about a block into the city in every direction. About 1/3 of the settlement is buried under thick creeping vines.

Grim will look around the colony to try and get his bearings specifically looking for any buildings that look like they may have held important functions like a command center or townhall. Maybe I can find a log or journal about what happened here

You move toward the center of town, thinking that is where they might be and where the highest likelyhood of anything not overgrown would also be since it is further from the encroaching jungle.

Nekosmash pinned a message to this channel. 4/15/2022 7:30 AM

Grim will first head to the object in the upper right corner (it looks like a white vehicle to me, but not sure)

A crashed survey drone has been partially swallowed up by the jungle in the northeastern side of the colony. Vines have slowly wrapped around its fuselage, and one of the wings has been wrenched off by the tension of the different parts being held in different places.

Grim will carefully attempt to open up the survey drone trying to get to its internal drive. Maybe it recorded something that can tell me more about what happened.

Approaching the wreck, the vines recoil and wriggle, lashing out to try to stab you full of holes with their long piercing points

8:36 AM

(Evasion save)

(4v4 success)

The vines break and shatter on the ground as the bone like tips are broken into pieces as you throw your more sensitive bits out of the way and your armor and the ground takes the rest of the blow. Your bio monitor shows no injuries or impact on your body, aside from some superficial scrapes and breaks on the armor that can easily be repaired later on. A creaking, skittering sound that reminds you of large insect legs lets you know that the vine is growing closer to you as if spurned on by your proximity.

Grim takes a deep breath to steel his nerves and then pulls the drone back away from the vines so that he can continue his work trying to carefully open it to access its internal memory

(evasion save)

(Fail 2v4)

!roll d8

Nekosmash Roll: [6] Result: 6

This time one of the stabbing spears punches into a soft part of the armor. Its tip comes away red and it seems like it needs to be dealt with somehow before the drone wreckage can be tampered with- as the plant will not give up its hold

Grim will attempt to forcibly pull away the vine willing to risk damage to his armor to do so. Will use organic purification protocols just in case it infected him

(with a weapon? with your hands? )

(First attempt I am trying to rip it out with hands. If that failed I was going to see if a mind blade would do anything, but that’s next move)

Diving in with hands the armored glove tops take the thorns without issue, but as you disturb the vines you see them begin to crawl and slowly tighten around your wrists .

As the vines begin to tighten Grim unleashes a wave biosponic power into the vines to try and kill them (terratic overload on the vines touching him)

(is a save required for this? Am I to be doing something? how much damage does it take on a pass or fail? )

(10 damage. Physical saving throw, if failed damage is triple)

!roll d20

Nekosmash Roll: [20] Result: 20

(passes)

1:03 PM

You see some of the thorns near the tip begin to fade, and wither, though it is not enough to kill the plant outright. It wriggles and continues growing and spreading now, angered by the constant interference. It refuses to give up its prize.

(Would grim be able to use his mind blade or are the vines on his wrists preventing it?)

(if it is readied you'd have it close at hand and could probably create enough slack to draw it. If it is stowed I don't think you'd have enough leeway here to dig through a bag or anytihng)

(It is readied. Do I roll like an attack?)

(if its readied you can get to it, so yes, just a normal attack roll then)

Grim desperately trying to get the vines off of him struggles for his blade at his side, able to grab it he presses his psionic energy through it as he slices upwards towards the vine (14/17)

The vines recoil somewhat at the touch of the blade. The plant seems to slacken and go dormant as the immaterial blade descends down to cut through the plant matter.

Grim will shake the plant material off and see if he can finally pull the drone back a safe distance

The data drive within looks to be intact, though the body has been too shredded for simple field repairs to allow it to fly again. Its design does not look much different from the types of drones already in use.

Grim will take the drive, to be investigated later in a safer environment. He also takes some of the dead vine so that the scientists can look at it when he gets back. Next Grim will check the building in the bottom right to see if it’s vine infested or safe to investigate

A rusting guard tower looks over the jungle outside and has not been wrapped in vines or needles so far, The jungle is closing in but for now this is empty, and open.

Grim will cautiously head into the guard tower and begin searching for any clues to what happened here. It looks like the vines got these poor colonists, but maybe I can find out more about them, at the very least record what I can find about them and what happened in the archives. (edited)

The guard tower has a few combat rifles that are beginning to rust, and some fire fighting equipment in it- mostly long handled axes and spades, as well as a long curved tool used to pry sealed entry doors open. It reminds you of a crowbar, just very large.

Grim will pick up an axe thinking it may come in handy with any more vines. Next he heads over to the far left (whatever the white things between the garden and the truck are) investigated the objects there.

(D100)

!roll 1d100

Grim Roll: [39] Result: 39

Moving into the landing pad you see the overgrown ruins of two landing ships here. THese were cargo lighters either bringing cargo down or meant to be moving people to shelter in orbit. There are bodies here, gone to bone and parts of bone now crushed below the vines and thorns. The plants have been feeding here for a long time and the locals have unwillingly provided all sorts of compost.

Grim will try and enter the first of the cargo lighters prepared with the axe to chop at any vines that try to entangle him.

Approaching the first of them, you can see that vines have choked the entire cargo hold. You can see you will need to chop them apart.

Grim chops at the vines with a terrible swing, unused to the difference between utilizing an axe instead of a sword (6/5 rolled large primitive weapon for the axe)

(yeah that is good, 2 handed is generally considered large)

1:36 PM

The swing bites into more metal than vine, and sine you did not make direct contact with any of the plant material it does not seem to respond.

Grim tosses the axe aside and ignites his mind blade. Better to stick with what I know he thinks to himself as he then tries cutting the vine with his blade (30/15 I believe it’s a crit. If it matters I can check later when I can get on computer)

(it is a crit)

9:03 AM

The blade chops into the vine and it goes slack , but doesn actually sever.

9:03 AM

The vine for the moment is out of the way.

Grim enters the first cargo lighter heading to cockpit and begins searching to see if it has a black box or any sort of electronic storage device. Its a long shot but maybe something in here can tell me more about these people

There is a data drive with the flight recorders and other instrument's are still intact here. The vines had no need to nest within the compartments themselves. It looks like with the current vines being slack you should be able to get to them.

Grim will take the drive and flight recorder and then check the cargo section to see if anything was left behind

There are two cargo containers that have not been splintered or broken among the overgrown compartment - though you see the vines you previously slashed beginning to curl upon themselves once more.

Grim will quickly move to open the first container knowing at any moment the vines may come back to life and try to claim him again

You can see a box of magma grenades has been left here, something to help the locals fight back that never got into their hands.

Grim will grab a couple of the grenades and then press his luck trying to get the second box open

The vines tighten and begin to slink toward your ankle once again. You barely notice the whip like frond recoiling back for a hearty attempted crack against your leg

Grim steps back and slices down at the the vine attempting to disrupt it once more(25/16)

The vine slackens off again as you temporarily put it to rest, the unique properties of the mind blade giving you a much greater effectiveness against the plants than the more conventional chopping equipment the locals had

Grim will check the contents of the final box trying to move quickly not knowing how long he has before the vine awakens

There are four axes and three grenades in this box .

Satisfied with his exploration and that he has what he can obtain with regards to documenting the colonists and what happened Grim will head back to the center of the clearing and contact the station to bring him back up. Once aboard he will work with Raven to examine the drones storage as well as the flight data from the cargo lighter. He will also have some lamplighters store the piece of vine he took in a secure area. Precautions taken are freezing it (as in storage freezer) placing it in a container that has no organic material and having a security system set to spay Jets of fire should it become uncontained

The drone has done a long overflight of the area before running out of fuel and crashing. The woods are dangerous everywhere and it seems growth is out of control. Thuis condition has always been present on the planet and the hubris of the colonists had them thinking they would be able to thrive here when all other non-plant organic life had also failed to do so. You, nor the drone, saw any evidence of animals larger than bugs on the plant below, and it seems that any life larger or more complicated than that was choked out by the all consuming vines.

(How would I go about hiring a gaiaspon? Would I ask the psychic academy, or is there a PC? Basically trying to see if I can get someone who can communicate with the spores I previously collected)

(we would ideally get a PC in on this, but if we don't want to bother with it, we'd need to contact the academy)

(A PC would be good. I just don’t know who all is a gaiaspon)

(Can always find out)

(Would I message the academy to find out or ask in ISF?)

(You can ask ISF for sure

(I think we've done what we can as far as trying to connect with people, if we're looking for players it doesn't seem like anyone's able to get off mission right now to help)

(Ok, I will figure something out and post a route later)

(sounds good to me)

Grim will head south one planet to Ingig as he retires to his quarters while awaiting the jump to the next system Grim catches himself drifting off having memories of the past

8:16 PM

Torgrim.docx

14.34 KB

8:17 PM

(Short story I wrote about Grim’s childhood when the dictator first came to power)

2

To      | Lightbringer Grim
From    | Thulee Blue
Subject | Re: Gaiapsion Help Wanted

Hello Grim,

Thanks for the detailed message, sounds like an interesting problem, and a good thing to do.  I am currently indisposed on Parnika but can help you out after I'm done here.  Got some form of Monster to wrangle first.

Some food for thought - To communicate I feel I'd need to be reasonably close to the subject. Not sure if the technique has significant 'range' so to speak.

Star-light & sturdy growth,
Thulee

(I'll get a report together)

(nearly done, was kind of stumped on ideas)

(No problem, if ever stumped I can always just go somewhere else. I was just hanging out up there until Friendo is done at the flip. But I can always go follow an existing plot thread)

https://www.worldanvil.com/w/iron-stars-nekosmash/a/ingig-location

Ingig

Grim has the Paivatar moved into orbit of the Arctic world and instructs the station personnel to begin scanning. He then attempts to contact the colony below. “Hello, we are the Lamplighter Foundation and I am the foundations leader Lightbringer Grim. We were exploring and discovered your colony. Are you in any need of assistance?”

(Does Grim speak 'Tre? That is what the answer would be coming back in)

(Grim does not speak ‘Tre. I did not think of that. Just assumed they also spoke common. I will have Grim react to receiving a language he can’t understand)

Unable to to understand the response in 'Tre, Grim prepares to head to the surface. As part of the preparations Grim dresses in a formal cold weather Lamplighter uniform, consisting of secure under armor, thermal underwear, uniform, lamplighter cloak complete with fancy lamplighter logo brooch. The only weapon being taken is the mind blade secured to his side in an obviously visible manner. Once prepared Grim will the station transport him to the surface just outside the colony. Where he can be seen clearly but also has not entered the colony yet (edited)

(these 'Tre have been out of contact with the rest of polite society, so in this case that is not the case)

7:46 AM

You teleport down to the surface, and you see three of the locals in their own cold weather gear are also trying to make their way to your position. Two of them have long barreled ranged weapons, the third doesn't look to be armed at all.

Grim reaches out telepathically to the unarmed ‘Tre. Establishing a shallow gestalt that enables him to communicate. “Hello, I am Lightbringer Grim of the Lamplighter Foundation. I apologize for just teleporting down, but I was unable to understand ‘Tre until establishing a shallow psychic connection. We wish to provide help if it is needed. Our sensors indicate an ice age is occurring and as it is our mission to help colonies as well as help with post scream recovery we wanted to check in and see if you wanted assistance.” (Not going deep enough to read thoughts or require a saving throw. Just to be able to communicate)

Hello, Lightbringer Grim. This ice is our punishment, and we will accept it willingly. This struggle against the environment is ours for the sins we have done to one another, and to the planet that we share (edited)

I am not aware of the sins you are referring too. Can you please enlighten me? Is this ice age caused by a nuclear winter?

This was caused by the fury of colliding atoms. Yes. The white snows of purity hide the sins of our kind underneath, and this is our punishment

I apologize if this is too intrusive, but may I ask if this is a religious belief the punishment and atonement? I would also ask if I can be provided with records of your history and how the sin came to be, perhaps by recording it and making the greater universe aware the lesson can be spread and perhaps can be prevented from happening elsewhere? (edited)

you may come with us to the city, to the place of learning, and you may spend all the time you wish if you promise to spread our story

Thank you. I promise to spread the story. If it helps save even just one world from repeating the sin it’s worthwhile Grim the follows the ‘Tre to place of learning

Approaching the city you get a better appreciation for its modular construction and the massive efforts the locals are taking to try to keep the dense thickets of buildings warm enough to maintain some kind of life. Thousand of 'Tre live here, and you doubt that expansion is easy, or something they have the numbers to do right now. Industrial buildings and heat sinks seem to take the most space in this sprawling floor plan, but as you get closer to the middle of the city- passing packed apartment buildings as you go where the locals huddle together for warmth, you approach what looks to be a decommissioned merchant size ship, hollowed out and now converted to be something of a research space and library. A 'Tre outside with a long, hooked metal rake looks to be working to clean some piles of snow off the flat roof of the ship to prevent the weight from accumulating much.

2

Grim makes note of the lack of warmth and the need for generators and warm clothing. This knowledge is very valuable to my organization. As a thank you would you accept some generators as payment? (edited)

This is our curse. We must bear it ourselves. Why would you offer this to us? What would be gained from our story ? There is a sense of mourning and otherwise deep regret in the keening mental song that the creature uses in place of spoken language. You’re reminded of the way war scarred broken men and women sound after they’ve seen too many horrors.

I offer it because it is needed. I can see the people struggling and freezing. I understand you see it as punishment for a sin. But were all those now suffering in power? Or are they innocents who suffered because those with power sinned are suffering again now needlessly when something can be done. Is it more fitting to suffer for this past sin or to try and make amends. Generators and warm clothing would be minuscule for my organization to provide and may save lives. If the people here are more comfortable and no longer just suffering to survive, perhaps efforts can be made to help heal this world and undo the damage. As for what can be gained from the story, it is history. It shows potential consequences to actions. Perhaps seeing it and the results, persuades one nation not to engage in nuclear war if even just one tragedy is prevented then I would say the story is priceless. (edited)

3

(take a re-roll token, I'll write something suitably longer for their history before the weekend is out, need some spoons forit)

(Thank you. No need to write anything super long if you don’t want. Can even just be handwaived if it’s easier. Appreciate all you do, and absolutely understand not having the spoons)

(I want to. Just need to put some thoughts together )

5:07 PM

(Hurry up and go do what? You know?)

This world was once a paradise of plant and animal life, with a 'Tre society that survived in harmony with the living world around it. Partnerships were deep and meaningful on this planet and life continued until the time of The Scream, with little change, aside from some improvements of technology that came with the various ages of the planet. The effects here were more subtle than they were for the human planets out in the universe. The 'Tre always maintained a slight connection to metaspace, burning as low candles as compared to the supernova of human souls. No one is sure what kind of thinking passed through the Council of Sixteen, the elected rulers of the planet, but one by one the nuclear power plants on the planet cooked off in short order. There are rumors that orders were given to overload them, and at the time of The Scream the planet had been dealing with an ideological struggle for the soul of the 'Tre living here. A spiritual and secular movement clashed with one another , with occasional skirmishes between the two- culminating in one outburst of dirty atmoics and snow.

If you allow it, I will get some generators going, arrange for a shipment of fuel and supplies, and then see if any of the old nuclear reactors are leaking. Securing them won’t immediately change anything, but it’s a start towards recovery. If we don’t ensure the people here survive and steps are taken to heal the world, you are then just acknowledging the crime and accepting punishment, but are not trying to make reparation for the damage done.

*Our society would grow again, just to make the same mistakes. I do not think we are going to be able to survive such a disaster if it was to happen a second time"

The people here might not survive as is. But to address you concerns technology has come a long way. We can have nuclear snuffer fields put in place to prevent a repeat. Additionally we can rebuild with modern power generation technologies that don’t involve nuclear energy. Furthermore we can put an education system in place that teaches the history and danger. But not trying to do better now is just punishing your future descendants for crimes they had nothing to do with.

and in return you would what, carry away the wealth of our world, forging a new set of chains to bind our future?

In return I help a lot of people. My organization has plenty of resources and credits we don’t need your worlds wealth. We can be involved or as uninvolved as you choose. The NFSS is very close by and has a significant ‘Tre population. If you feel more comfortable dealing with them that’s also an option depending on what they say. But it really is no strings. I would like to build a university and medical center here if allowed, but again your choice. If asked i would even give you the supplies and leave.

But why help us? The universe sending us a truly altruistic person after so many generations of suffering and horror...you can understand how alarming this may be"

Interesting. I never considered that. I am not claiming to be a saint or altruistic though. I am just trying to help. I get it’s alarming, but I am also no callous. I can’t see these people suffer and do nothing

*This is all a gift. We will accept what the organization provides and will hope to create a better life in the future. We will not allow off world presence to be established here, but we will accept supply"

that is fair. I will have a shipment sent at the beginning of the month with additional supplies such as fuel, food, and colonial supplies. I will additionally make copies of the historical records to freely make available on the various databases throughout the Ironstars, hopefully the history proves useful to preventing others from following suit. Is there anything else you need? If not I will be on my way, thank you for your time

(We'd need to actually buy the goods and dispatch a ship to bring them here if we plan to follow through, just for book keeping purposes)

(I am going to do so. I put beginning of the month so that my trade ships will be available. I should of been clearer though)

(Alright. Sounds good to me. I don’t think they have much of anything else for the moment )

(Me either. After the flip and when I get Friendo back I have some ideas. But until then I am just killing time.) (edited)

(Alright, I'm going to be working on that news update either this evening or tomorrow depending on how my afternoon goes, so I guess we're just going to hold for now)

(Month has flipped, so Friendo would be shipped back to you. )

Shortly after returning to the station Grim receives an encoded message from the NFSS letting him know that they had arrived in System with a freshly braked Friendo. Grim smiling and excited to see if his friend is feeling better and able to think clearly now, quickly heads to hanger to greet him. Once Friendo arrives Grim asks “How are you? Did the procedure work? Did they treat you ok?”

"Friendo is ready for work" the mechanical arms of the scrap-box frame gently enclose you in something of a hug. "And to be your friend" It seems although the NFSS fixed his mind, preparing a mroe high tech body was something they were unwilling to do.

Grim gives Friendo a big hug back. “Are you able to tell if they stuck to just the brakes? They didn’t tamper with you as far as you know?” Grim asks inquisitively as he then begins running diagnostic tests to ensure Friendo is ok

The deal was followed exactly from what you can tell. Friendo was not altered, aside from just modifying a few running parameters to make the brake process compatible. His actual contents and stored data were not accessed or tampered with in any way.

Satisfied that Friendo is fixes and not tampered with Grim has the station set coordinates for Tece. (Ingig-Thorg-Melea-korophali-Tece 10 days downtime used for 20/90 program)

(what do we want to do at Tece? I don't know what the plan is so I can't say anything here other than we get there)

(For now I was going to check the archives for any leads on the next llf vault or point of interest. Then i need to do my faction turn tonight, because I believe a 6 month expedition on Tece finished so there may be something here to check out)

(Alright, we will wrap that up and it might turn into something )

(checking on goals: Get a VI or at least a level 4 advanced system for the Pavitar. Help Friendo Restore Brakes Found a new colony on an empty world Establish foothold on Korra-s) (edited)

(We haven't leveled friendo that I've been made aware of, Second goal is complete We have not established any colonies We have not spent time improving anything on Korra-S)

(Copy, thank you. )

(I'll finish your turn today and we can see if anything new generates from those expeditions)

Arriving on Tece Grim gets word of the rescued people from the salvage mission. He gives word to have them brought to Tece for reintegration support, bringing them up to speed on what’s changed and providing needed medical support. maybe some of them will want to join the new colony on Korra-s when they are ready, but first I need to get them sorted Grim then heads to the archives to see if any new leads have been discovered or if he can help with the research to gain any leads on either LLF artifacts or clues on cores for Friendo

Level 16. 
New HP is 74. 4SP gained. (1 Bio, 1 any Psi, 2 normal sp) plus 3 SP saved (3 bio).
Taking Quintessential Reconstruction (4Bio sp)
Taking Authority lvl 1 focus (+3 Sp from focus raises lead to 2)
Saving 1 psi SP (unrestricted) and 2 normal SP

(I reported our only find in the faction channel, no anomalies were rolled)

(Sorry I should of been more clear. Grim isn’t looking for anomalies on Tece. I was trying to check the llf archives to try and get a lead on a mission, like seeing if there is a planet I should check. If there are no leads that’s ok though)

(I did not roll any leads, but the Chimeran war is getting started this month, so we can pivot into that if we wish)

(That works for me. How should I go about that)

(That or if we want some filler I can pull some system reports for worlds by tece and we can see what’s going on. Rayce also found something interesting and needs a lab)

(If Rayce wants to work together on that. It sounds good to me. If not I could maybe check out that machine world they found a while back. Sorry I am struggling to figure out a plan)

(I sent him the offer, just waiting on hearing back)

(Tece-Lerden-Korra S, 5 days 25/90 program) Grim unable to find anything in the library, suddenly receives a message from the Elysium Protectorate indicating he should head to Korra-S and contact Rayce. He then heads to the station and begins his travels there.

1:57 PM

(Switching threads now)

(With the Rayce mission done, Grim would head to Tece to get the android situated until we get a response from Imago Dei and then he would head to the Chimeran fight he is currently in. So I can either RP out setting up the android in its cell or if you are ok with it wait until the space combat finishes and then see if there’s any missions for Grim to participate in at Veovis.)

(There will be missions at Veovis once the space battle is won)

(While we are figuring out the peace negotiations is it ok if Grim and his crew works on training up some rebels? No breaking the peace but helping the rebels build skills so if things don’t work well on negotiations they are better prepared, and if things do go well they can still be a training force to protect the people here)

(Sure we can get into that )

With the spaceport secured and the ceasefire ongoing Grim has his crew come down to the surface. If the negotiations fail the rebels will need to be ready to fight and if the negotiations are successful having the ability to defend themselves will still ensure they can keep their freedom. Once there Grim instructs the crew to prepare facilities and training courses to enhance the rebels skills. Tyr converts one of the ports buildings into a training room where he go over how to use firearms such as rifles and pistols. Covering everything from weapon care, safety, and operation. The second half of the course takes place at a nearby hill where he set up a firing range using the hill as a backstop to prevent injuries from stray fire. Raven gathers up as much computer equipment as she can find in the spaceport and sets up her classroom. She is teaching basic skill on how to use the machines in a support function. Everything from development of high quality situation aids like maps with containing troop layouts and plans, development of sitreps, and briefing materials. She develops a second course for more tech minded rebels to learn how to set up communication servers and networking equipment that will give the rebels increased comm support.

9:04 PM

Param’s courses take place in the maintenance facilities of the port. Here he teaches technicians how to maintain vehicles and artillery as well as how to repair broken and damaged equipment. The rebels and Param repair as much broken equipment from the fighting as possible and work on developing the skills needed it keep it operating if a fight does break out. Minerva spends her time with a significantly smaller number of students, but still is able to be of use. Her course is to develop well trained aide-de-camps who will assist the newly emerging officer corp of the rebels. Finally Grim serves two rolls in his training. The first is martial training, teaching his Kenjutsu and ghostwalker martial arts to special forces soldiers who may be operating behind enemy lines and may need to be able to dispatch adversaries without the noise a firearm would cause. Finally he also uses his metaspi ability to keep watch for any rebels with psychic ability. Although not strong enough in metaspi to help develop new psychics he will offer his training to any who already have a small grasp on their abilities and know how not to torch.

(Lets get a D4 for this latter part)

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d4] Roll: [1] Result: 1

(1)

(We will find one person among the rebels who would have talent. I'm not sure if you're far enough along in meta to know specifically what it might be, just that they're MES sensitive)

(Copy. Yeah just have the ability to detect the mes you are correct.)

(Can you do anything to prevent them from torching at your current level? )

(No I was mainly looking for mes users who could not torch but were unskilled. Grim is just at 0 metaspi. So if he can’t make that determination this may be a dead end)

(Not torching means they’ve been trained by the academy or a skilled metapsion for a week already so that specific subset of people you’re looking for is mutually exclusive )

(Fair, i guess we just say he didn’t find anyone then)

(Works for me then. Hard to really prolong this while talks are going on. We could do some kind of exercise with the rebels maybe but otherwise I’m sort of drawing a blank )

(That would work for me if ok with you. I figure I can use the war bots on oneside)

(Sure, we can do that)

(About what size force are the trained up rebels who will be participating?)

(They didn’t have more than a brigade here at the starport )

(Not sure what you had in mind for this, I didn't forget about you, but I didnt want tospam you either)

(Sorry been meaning to write something. Just way busier than I expected at new job)

Grim begins organizing training for the rebels. The first exercise consists of practicing irregular warfare beginning with properly using the terrain and setting an ambush. Everyone is outfitted with training weapons that are basically advanced laser tag. The war bots are set to conduct a patrol like a regular military unit white the rebels utilize concealed fortifications and their tunnels to surprise the bots and try and defeat the much larger force.

(did we want to do a mission with this? )

(Yes please, or I can keep detailing different training exercises. Whatever is easiest) (edited)

(thats not really much of a mission. Maybe embedding grim with one of the ambush units? )

(Ok we can do that)

The bots follow one of their programmed patrol routes as Grim finds himself embedded with a mixed squad of very green Noctua rebels. Each of them has a modified weapon for this training exercise, and you look to have 12 of the rebels under your command. The land around you is heavily forested and rocky

First Grim will attempt to identify the most likely route the bots would take, simultaneously showing several of the rebels his methodology. Looking for natural paths where travelers or animals may frequent and where it would be easiest to cross. (edited)

Challenged during the day as they are, this is none the less good for the Mosk to learn. Using scent, they are supremely gifted trackers, and it looks as though they take at least this lesson to heart. There are three paths that look to be likely routes for the warbots to take through the forest.

With the routes narrowed down to the three most likely Grim will pick the one that looks most advantageous to the defending Mosks. They will then at about the halfway point chop several trees. Placing one across the path to be an obstacle. The others will be placed deeper in the woods off the path and utilized as firing positions some Mosk can hide behind and use as cover. Other Mosk will be placed in trees wearing makeshift camouflage and ghille suits. (Will pause here in case you want any rolls before I continue)

(i think we'd need a lead/cha for instructing them to do all this)

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [2d6+4] Roll: [3, 1] Result: 8

(8)

Some of the noctua are having trouble weaving the camo together properly, either not letting it breathe, not using enough local material, or not blending things properly so their outline is not as broken up as is necessary.

Grim provides the leaders with feedback pointing out what went wrong were and how to improve it in the future, they may not have time to fix it now but hopefully learned some things to get better later. He will also write a more detailed report once the exercise ends. For now though he also sends a small team of light scouts able to move quickly. Their instructions are to quickly engage the bots then retreat back taking the desired path for the ambush. Basically attempting to take several shots from distance trying not to be discovered until shots are taken, then immediately retreating once shots are taken. The goal is if the bots follow they are lured to the ambush site.

(Are you going with those scouts or are you keeping back with the main body? )

(I will head with the scouts, but leave a radio with the leader so I can let him know when we are coming)

The scouts look to be working their best to get over the rough terrain. Most of them are undisciplined, talking among themselves, making noise as they pass over the terrain, and otherwise do not have their gear secured so there is a slight jingle to each of their movements. Tactics like this might have worked against overconfident Chimeran patrols who believed they had already won the war over this world, but is not going to work for a determined enemy later.

Grim will attempt to give direction and guide the scouts into more disciplined tactics. Giving pointers and providing explanations of why they should change tactics

(lead/cha)

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [2d6+4] Roll: [6, 6] Result: 16

(16)

It looks like the lessons are being taken to heart. They make the adjustments they can, and within a few moments you hear the sounds of the stomping robots approaching from 200m away.

Realizing they are within range and not concerned with accuracy at this point Grim instructs the rebels to all fire once and then disperse back into the woods quickly moving to the ambush site.

(lets get some hits and damage, the rebels would be shooting at a +3)

(I never specified how many in the small team, is 4 scouts plus grim fair, before I roll?)

(that seems fair)

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d20+6] Roll: [18] Result: 24

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [2d8+2] Roll: [8, 2] Result: 12

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [4d20] Roll: [20, 17, 15, 2] Result: 54

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [4d10] Roll: [6, 5, 5, 4] Result: 20

(Grims shot 24/12, scouts crit/12, 20/5, 18/5, 5/4)

Two of the bots have been hit with enough fire to shut them down and take them out of the fight as simulated enemy losses. The others adopt ambush positions, doing their best to spread out and fire into the woods, they have taken the bait and look to be following as your company begins pulling back.

Seeing the bait being taken Grim instructs the scouts to move as quickly as possible escaping to the fallback position in the woods where the ambush is set to occur

Digging in, the robots continue their stomping advance through the forest with weapon mounts primed. Their torso sections swivel left and right, panning for targets in the dense environment to which they were unsuited.

Hearing the approaching robots Grim will give the signal to the ambushers to be prepared. Letting them know to prepare their hiding positions and ready their weapons.

(lets get initiative)

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d8] Roll: [6] Result: 6

(6)

Nekosmash

used /roll

Nekosmash Request: [1d8] Roll: [8] Result: 8

The bots seem to act first, their programming allowing them to quickly see where the fire is most likely to coming from and they fire suppression bursts from their simulated weapons into the surround.

8:39 AM

(We'll treat the Noctuan ambush as a mob in terms of statblock, I'll give you their modifiers when we need to do stuff with them, since they may go up or down depending on the mob size)

Nekosmash

used /roll

Nekosmash Request: [1d20+3] Roll: [18] Result: 21

Nekosmash

used /roll

Nekosmash Request: [3d6] Roll: [6, 5, 2] Result: 13

A few of the rebels are hit, their vests registering them as wounded or dead according to hit location. There are a few being trained as medics and they have their own duties to perform now as their own part of the training. (you, then rebels)

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d20+6] Roll: [5] Result: 11

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [2d8+2] Roll: [5, 1] Result: 8

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d20] Roll: [17] Result: 17

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d10] Roll: [2] Result: 2

(Grim 11/8, noctua 17/2 unless they have any modifiers to hit)

(Their modifiers are a +6 to hit currently given the swarm size, it is a +3 to damage)

2:33 PM

(this will decrease as they take damage but for now they're at 'full' health)

(Noctua should be 23/5 then)

The first of the Robots is downed, giving off simulated damage and it ceases taking further part in the conflict.

9:21 AM

The rest of the column continues its inexorable march forward, firing from their number of stunning weapons

Nekosmash

used /roll

Nekosmash Request: [1d20+5] Roll: [17] Result: 22

Nekosmash

used /roll

Nekosmash Request: [1d10] Roll: [10] Result: 10

Three more members of the Noctuan ambush team are downed as part of the exercise, and you can see a few of the others are beginning to run.

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d20+6] Roll: [5] Result: 11

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d20+6] Roll: [14] Result: 20

Soren (Grim)

used /roll

Grim Request: [1d10+5] Roll: [5] Result: 10

(Grim misses, noctua 20/10)

Two more of the bots are disabled, and this looks to have tripped the signal for the robotic patrol to begin falling back to regroup.

When the robots fall back Grim will have the Noctua disperse using the opportunity to escape back into their tunnels.

They follow your command, this being one of the parts of the exercise that occur without problems. Escaping to their tunnels is something they had long trained in.

Once back in the tunnels Grim will begin with his debrief. “Overall excellent work. Thinks could of been tighter but that will come with experience. The goal here was to ambush, inflict casualties, and escape with minimal to low friendly losses. You all accomplished that.” (If ok, I was going to bring things up to more current events and let them know of the new treaty with the chimerans and give the rebels the option to either leave with the LLF or stay here.) (edited)

(If you can tell me how many your station can take right now we can take that many. It is important to know what ships are where, and how long it will take for them to come and go. We can't have things teleporting all over the galaxy)

(Station is full, but the transport ship can do 18000. The robots are a division. Book says that’s 10k-18k. So I guess the question is how big is the division of bots? Is it taking the full transport? If so then I guess I can’t take any)

(generally we've been operating with full sizes , so we can't take any)

“The ISF and the Chimeran’s have reached a ceasefire agreement” Grim then goes over the details of the agreement with the Noctua. “If they don’t comply with the agreement I will be back and will assist in whatever way is needed, but unfortunately for now I need to withdraw. You all are always welcome within the LLF if you choose to use your new freedom of movement to head to ISF space.”

(Did you have any thoughts on what you might want to do next? We've got another mission with the NFSS being scheduled right now which you might like, otherwise there's other things I can point you to if you're not sure)

(I was thinking of going to Mobion unless that’s covered already to help Geon there. Otherwise the NFSS thing potentially)

(Either one works. We can roll with either )

(I will do Mobion. I will plot a route after work.)

(sounds good! I can total up downtime with the fastest if you had no plans to stop anywhere in between)

(I was going to swing by Tece or maybe some other world that would make sense to buy supplies)

(sounds good, norma; procedure of just listing out what you're getting , and we'll kick this off)

(Am I allowed to travel through SCAF space? Specifically muntsaratz, at the edge of their space?)

(Yes)

(Veovis-maarra-mou26356-savarna-andere-muntsaratz-Koraa s-Lerden-Tece-Mobion 23 days downtime 48/90 program. Will work on shopping list) (edited)

(Sure, did we want to stop in any of those places before Mobion? ) (edited)

(Just Tece to buy supplies. Still working on list. Also did I get the standard 3xp for the training exercise with the noctua?)

(Yes )