I was also inspired to replay it, but it just doesn't feel right to me. I think I've been spoiled by XCOM, JA2, and Fire Emblem, because the interface and mechanics seem to be lacking something. I think I'm just going to enjoy the LP and be thankful that I don't have to play it myself.
AnteCantelope on
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
edited October 2011
In Which many people get what they want, and few are fully satisfied.
From the journals of Senior Initiate Nina "Farsight" Stills
I did some quick math today. I've killed about 100 people. Ghouls, raiders, these new beast lord bastards. General scum of the Earth.
And, so far, they've all had it coming, don't get me wrong. No accidents like Stitch and the Elder's daughter, or "accidents" like Rage and, probably, a dozen people over the years, minimum.
But that's a city. I grew up in Gary. The first ten years of my life, before the Brotherhood came in, I didn't meet 100 people.
It staggers the imagination. Comes with being the best, I guess.
We hit Quincy just recently. Apparently, they had a hostage situation. And a beastlord situation. Also a Deathclaw situation.
It all added up to a general "We're fucked" situation, which meant they'd accept Brotherhood help. Milo tried to sugarcoat things in the briefing and talking to the locals, but I was less optimistic.
If the Beastlords could keep Deathclaws in line, then we had nothing. We parked the truck on a couple and barely killed them. Every story I'd heard about packs ended with "And then I ran like hell. Luckily, they were full from eating everyone else." or "And that's why we're out of 7.62. Funerals for Paladins..."
They had an air raid siren set up in town for disasters. Unfortunately, the raiders had it set up as part of the takeover. If anyone tried to do something heroic and stupid, alarms go off and hostages get shot.
We wanted to do something fairly heroic and incredibly stupid, which meant the alarm had to go down. The mayor had the keys, so we had to rescue the mayor. Rage, Ice, and I had stealth training, which meant we'd go in, drop the leader, rescue the mayor, and kill the alarms, allowing us to take the hostage issues one at a time instead of in one burst. It was going well.
Then Rage made a crack about threesomes. Asshole. The commander heard it and raised his automatic.
I read once a revolver with the hammer back can shoot faster than an automatic. I never planned on being in a situation where I had an automatic right next to my skull.
But it worked. One in the cock staggered the shit. One in the skull put him down. I grabbed the key off his body and went for the mayor.
Rage called her a leathery old man-bitch, which was a typical Rage comment. First you hate him for being an asshole. Then you hate him for being right. Then you hate yourself for agreeing.
She had more work for us, which would involve Deathclaws and getting torn to ribbons.
At least the alarms were off.
The first thing, though, was getting out. First floor was full of baby deathclaws and raiders. Milo, Jo, and Stitch rushed the outside while we went down the stairs.
Full auto fire. Frantic hammer blows.
Impossible angle shots through the window. We cleaned house.
Milo didn't seem impressed.
"Nothing, nothing, shitty mass produced nothing. And Deathclaws don't have wallets. Good work, I guess."
I reloaded my old hunting rifle as he continued poking the corpses.
"We just took out three infant deathclaws at knife fighting range."
He didn't even look up.
"Of course you did. You're brotherhood and, more importantly, three of the most terrifying people I've had the pleasure of knowing. If you couldn't take baby deathclaws, we should all roll over and die right now. Infant deathclaws, then. Mission should be a little simpler than planned."
"Fucking Deathclaws? YOU SAID WE WERE GOING TO A FUCKING WHOREHOUSE!"
"Ladies of the night later, Rage. You still have to earn the new stripes."
Our little recon team went ahead with some cursing from Rage, which ended when we saw the adult Deathclaw. Just... standing there. Not tearing a beastlord to shreds.
I hate to overuse the term "Fucked", it gets enough abuse from Rage, but it seemed the time for it.
Full auto bursts from the roof and some flachettes ripped the beast lord to ribbons. They just pissed the deathclaw off. It jumped onto the overhang and clambered after us. We ran, firing behind us.
And it leapt over us to cut off the escape. And laughed a little.
"Rip you. Gut you."
It was a mistake. I managed one in each eye while it was taunting us.
Lucky shots. But they did the job. It fell on its back for long enough that I could empty an AK into its stomach. It died. Eventually.
It was half a minute before anyone could do anything besides suck in air. Rage spoke first.
"Victory fuck?"
"Rot in hell, Rage."
"Ice?"
"Later."
"Hell yes."
Which is when Milo stepped into view.
"Adult Deathclaw?"
"Yes."
"Now, Ice? That is the kind of work worth noting."
She nodded in my direction, and went back to cleaning her shotgun.
"Farsight, then. Well, they have adult deathclaws. That changes things. What do you know about them?"
"They're mean as hell, smarter than anything else that isn't human, and pretty much pure evil. Official line is they're mutated wolves or something, and the ones out west are lizards. I find the demons story from tribals holds more water. Killing one just now means we're heroes. Any more and God starts getting involved."
"Alright, then."
He poked it a little with a spear.
"Hmm. Scales and fur. Unusual. Well, anything goes out here. Wait."
"Where's Ice?"
We found a corpse and Ice notching her shotgun, which settled the question. Stitch and Jo saw the deathclaw then, which gave a fresh round of "Holy shit!"
Milo just looked at his PIP. I need to ask where he got that one of these days.
"Alright, multiple hostile groups. There's been... some gunfire recently from the south. If anyone is making a stand, it's down by the tracks. Which means they'll be ripped up first, and are in urgent need of backup. We're moving south. No need to run quiet."
It was a shantytown.
And, as Stitch pointed out, full of Ghouls.
"They're dead men walking already, Squad leader. There are people needing help, and..."
He sighed.
"Look. Can we just get away from the ghouls?"
Milo just walked forward to the apparent leader.
"John Milo. Brotherhood. What do you need?"
They talked a little more, and I didn't catch it all when they came back.
I decided to just ask the main question.
"We're helping here, right?"
"Yes."
Suited me fine. Ghouls have never seemed much worse than anyone else in the wastes. And when they try something, the rotting flesh makes them an easier kill. Rage bitched, but Rage always bitches about things.
Then I saw the Deathclaws.
And I started cursing again. Dogs, beastlords, fine.
Raiders? I can handle some inbred hicks.
A pack of Deathclaws? Might as well shoot ourselves at the start and save time. We formed a line, full auto bursts, shredder rounds, everything we had. Deathclaws kept charging.
And then Jo fired her sidearm. And it toppled.
Guess it just took a while to realize it was dead.
The blood was still pooling when we hit the barn. Hostage situation. Kick in the door. Ready weapon.
"ON THE FUCKING GROUND OR I BLOW YOUR FUCKING FACE OFF!"
And while Rage is shouting, find the hostiles and hit them before they shoot the hostage. Fast, loud, and disorienting.
Hostage rescued.
Ghouls happy. Nice and quick. So, of course, we go out looking for trouble again.
They said they'd join. Not betting on it, but it'd be worth it for the look on Barnaky's face when they show up.
Milo had us huddle around and look at the Pip boy's map. Its tiny, tiny map. I tried to keep Wolcott at the other end of the huddle.
"This isn't a hostage crisis any more. Not really."
Stitch objected.
"There are people in danger with psychopaths waving guns at their heads, Sir. Call me crazy, but that's textbook hostage crisis."
"It's multiple small hostage crisises. Crises? Never mind. We started with six, and we're down to four."
He tapped the screen
"First priority is the mayor's daughter. From what Farsight said, the alliance hinges on it."
tap
"Second, securing the barracks. Not so much for the hostage, as fine a person as Felix may be, but if we need to pull out, it would give the beastlords a prime position to rip any followup squads apart. Not an option."
tap
"Generator third. The local power plant was one of the reasons we were sent here, and the bulk of the hostages should be present."
tap
"Finally, the brothel."
Ice just glared at Rage, who did his best to look innocent.
Rage is shit at looking innocent.
"Any complications will be dealt with when they come up."
The town hall had guards outside, but we managed. It turns out some people are still stupid enough to charge assault rifles. It works for Deathclaws, maybe, but kung fu doesn't make you bulletproof.
Milo set us into two breach teams. Also easy.
Then, Deathclaw. Like clockwork.
It sniffed me out and started charging. Milo rushed in, to his credit, but he's still a mediocre shot at best. It nearly tore out Rage's stomach before we downed it.
And nothing of value would have been lost. Stitch stabilized him, and Milo went ahead to check for combat drugs and ammo.
He came back limping a little with a stimpack injector sticking out of his arm.
"Hostage secured."
He handed Jo a gun before hitting the floor.
Ice said it was an old British rifle. Milo said it was a collector's item.
Stitch was more pragmatic.
"So, are we done here? We've completed the assignment, you and Rage are half dead, there's probably more Deathclaws around. I hate to suggest this, but we should, well, extract."
Milo stood up then. I guess you could call it standing. And he staggered to the door.
"People to save. Money to earn. And you want to leave? We're staying."
By "We" it seemed he mainly meant me, Ice, and Rage. Staying meant "Attacking a fortified position as quietly as possible."
I can be pretty quiet when I put my mind to it.
Ice is better, which made the slight intake of air a bit odd. Then I saw a new shotgun in her hands.
"NeoStead 2000. Bullpup design, used by the SAS. Long range accuracy. Custom model, modified for fully automatic fire."
She held it a little tighter.
"Not many left. Good gun."
I went ahead. It looked like she wanted some alone time.
When we hit the roof, we saw a maniac who looked important with a gun to a hostage's head.
Ice had a new shotgun that fired unholy quantities of flechette rounds in a cone. His body dissolved into bloody chunks, and the hostage was barely nicked.
Rage cleaned up the rest of the beastlords there, and, as the closest thing we had to a people person (not close at all) I made sure the hostage was alright.
He reminded me a little of my dad. Same easy drawl, same old warhorse attitude.
Couldn't tell when he was getting too old, either. Tried to play hero, got caught. Heard the story before.
Happier ending this time at least. And it didn't take him long to shift back to worrying about everyone else.
"Is Evita alright?"
"She's fine. Don't worry about it, the situation is well in hand."
"Good. Tell her that her old man's alive."
"I will... wait. You mean you and her mother?"
His head moved into a nod. I dropped the line of questions, and went with something stupid and personal on my end. Evening the score.
"So, you've been wandering the wastes for a while, right?"
"Longer than you've been alive."
"Ever met a desert ranger?"
"No. Heard of them, though. Good folks."
"Now you have. Junior Ranger Nina Stills, on assignment with the Brotherhood of Steel. Keeping them honest."
It was a lie, or mostly a lie. "Junior Ranger" was just something I'd been called years back. Dad said I was on assignment the day I joined with the BOS. I think he was proud. Not that I got a chance to ask.
"Just you? I assumed..."
"One riot, one ranger. Take it easy, and I'll see you at the dawn."
And bullshit talking up the old unit.
"I will. Well, except with Hillary. Heh."
Mental image I didn't need.
Ice gave me a look and Rage was snickering. Fuck 'em.
We saw a church on the way to the generator. Small. Fit the town.
I said it looked like a good spot for a sniper. That I should check it out.
Mostly, it was true. It wasn't the only reason, of course. It's been way too long since I visited church. I mean, saving the wasteland falls under doing God's work the way I see it, but there's form to consider.
Glad I checked. Couple of Deathclaws inside.
I had hoped they'd combust on their own from the holy ground. No luck.
Instead, we did it ourselves with burst fire.
Milo grabbed some metal armor from a chest inside. No idea why it was there, but the designs said Brotherhood. I left a little in the plate as we left. Seemed the thing to do.
Generator went fast. Lights off.
Shoot.
Clean up. Some det packs and wounded civilians around. We provided aid as best we could, and Milo scooped up the charges and disarmed them. Then we pretty much dashed out.
First light of the sun was coming, which would make our handiwork obvious, which made speed the priority. Also, we'd kept Rage from a brothel for a record setting length.
Standard procedure. Scouts take the back entrance. Assault team takes the front.
A beastlord leveled a rifle at me. And I did something stupid.
"Oh, yes. Brilliant plan. I killed three or four Deathclaws today. I've killed a whole century's worth of people. And you.."
And then it's blackness.
I came to with Stitch standing next to me.
"Just a grazing wound, Nina. You got lucky."
Groan.
"Yaaay. I'm guessing we won?"
And then I heard Rage cursing, and Ice snickering.
"Ghoul hookers? The only fucking good thing is the fucking flesh is so rotted you can get penetration anywhere. What kind of sick fuck is into that sort of thing?"
And Milo replied.
"There's a market for everything, Rage."
"Name one."
"Vault dwellers? Constantly being surrounded by genetic perfection can leave a man or woman with a taste for the exotic."
"My ass."
"It's true."
"Sick fucks."
Milo coughed a little.
"Incredibly sick fucks, yes. Mayor waiting. Heroes of the town."
He was right. Everything but a parade. I even had to shake hands.
"A real ranger? Like out west?"
"Golly!"
Rage barely kept down a snort, so I turned to him and mouthed "Ghoul. Hookers."
It kept things civil.
Of course, it had to end. Back to the bunker.
...Might mount one of the Deathclaws in the barracks. Paladin Solo's been going on a bit much lately.
Out of curiousity, how far in the game are we? Having not played this yet, I don't quite know, but it seems a little early to be fighting THAT many deathclaws.
M A G I K A Z A M
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
Out of curiousity, how far in the game are we? Having not played this yet, I don't quite know, but it seems a little early to be fighting THAT many deathclaws.
Five chapters in the game and a big final mission.
We're done with the first chapter (The first mission through the main Raider base.) This is the second or third to last mission (depending on if you get the bonus mission, probably not getting it here) of the second chapter.
Don't worry. There's plenty more Deathclaws. So many more Deathclaws...
I was also inspired to replay it, but it just doesn't feel right to me. I think I've been spoiled by XCOM, JA2, and Fire Emblem, because the interface and mechanics seem to be lacking something. I think I'm just going to enjoy the LP and be thankful that I don't have to play it myself.
Ugh, yeah. This game really isn't designed for playability.
Would you like to encounter robots? No, how about now? Well, how about now? Ooh, here's some robots, want to encounter them? Well, here's some wasps, how about them? Nope either, well we've got some robots with wasps, how about that? etc.
Hence why I like this Lets Play so much. Although I'm currently 80% through the game, but can't muster the will to compete.
zerg rush on
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
I was also inspired to replay it, but it just doesn't feel right to me. I think I've been spoiled by XCOM, JA2, and Fire Emblem, because the interface and mechanics seem to be lacking something. I think I'm just going to enjoy the LP and be thankful that I don't have to play it myself.
Ugh, yeah. This game really isn't designed for playability.
Would you like to encounter robots? No, how about now? Well, how about now? Ooh, here's some robots, want to encounter them? Well, here's some wasps, how about them? Nope either, well we've got some robots with wasps, how about that? etc.
Hence why I like this Lets Play so much. Although I'm currently 80% through the game, but can't muster the will to compete.
It's been said before by better men than me( and Thermocaw).
"We play games so you don't have to."
Which means, although I can't and won't promise to beat this come Hell or high water, I'll do my best, and persist in the face of game cruelty because this game, although it has a lot of good things, has some fairly bad ones as well, and forcing people to deal with the second category isn't the goal.
That was pretty damn awesome. And woo, Ghoul brotherhood members!
Are there any lady ghouls? I'd kill a man to see at least one mission with Rage and a flirty lady ghoul, just to watch his brain shatter into tiny little pieces.
I was also inspired to replay it, but it just doesn't feel right to me. I think I've been spoiled by XCOM, JA2, and Fire Emblem, because the interface and mechanics seem to be lacking something. I think I'm just going to enjoy the LP and be thankful that I don't have to play it myself.
Ugh, yeah. This game really isn't designed for playability.
Would you like to encounter robots? No, how about now? Well, how about now? Ooh, here's some robots, want to encounter them? Well, here's some wasps, how about them? Nope either, well we've got some robots with wasps, how about that? etc.
Hence why I like this Lets Play so much. Although I'm currently 80% through the game, but can't muster the will to compete.
It's been said before by better men than me( and Thermocaw).
"We play games so you don't have to."
Which means, although I can't and won't promise to beat this come Hell or high water, I'll do my best, and persist in the face of game cruelty because this game, although it has a lot of good things, has some fairly bad ones as well, and forcing people to deal with the second category isn't the goal.
Least I can do, right?
I just really missed JA2's suppression mechanic, Fire Emblem's detailed forecasts that let you plan more carefully, JA2 and XCOM's interrupts, FE and XCOM's ability to easily tell where you do or don't have line of sight on enemies, and so on.
When I read your LP I can't tell that it's missing, so I can just enjoy the good bits!
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
That was pretty damn awesome. And woo, Ghoul brotherhood members!
Are there any lady ghouls? I'd kill a man to see at least one mission with Rage and a flirty lady ghoul, just to watch his brain shatter into tiny little pieces.
1) Yes.
2) Have you read Thermocaw's old LP? It's linked back on the first page. Really good. Half the things I'm doing right in this one are shameless rip-offs. Of course, the catch to recommending it is that all the game's plot beats that might come as twists kinda get spoiled. But it's more than a fair trade off.
Followed it obsessively until it died. Forgot most of the details of plot. Plan to keep it that way.
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
In Which relics are repurposed for the good of the Brotherhood.
Journals of Initiate Jo Cermak
Milo got another promotion today. I've stopped sending in reports. No-one cares about minor errors in the mission invoice and looting when the squad is mounting Deathclaw corpses in the lobby.
Elders would probably just give Milo another promotion.
And... admit it Jo. It won't get worse if you write it down.
I've stopped giving a shit. About the Brotherhood, about the wastes, about living. I thought we were better. But Ice fell in with Rage, a used car salesman gets the privileges due a Paladin, we're honored for letting civilians starve.
I'd have said we didn't live up to our legacy once. I wish that was true. But no. I've been learning a little more about the old world. They were rat bastards too.
Farsight still has her Rangers and her God. Wonder how long that'll last? Probably until she bothers looking.
Some days I think Rage has the right idea. Some days I wish I was dead.
Same days, usually.
I saw some ghouls around the base when we got back.
Don't know how they beat us back. Don't know how they got past Barnaky. Milo didn't seem to care.
"John Milo, but you already know that. Pleasure to see you here."
"Right. Let me get that for you, then. And you! Third from the right, got the killing shot on one of the baby deathclaw, am I right?"
"And I'm sure... fight alongside? No mistake, Ghouls are the salt of the wastes, but in direct combat, I generally find most of you, no offense intended, to be... Rage, help me here."
"Fucking pussies?"
"You know, Wolcott may not have been the ideal choice in the matter."
"Heard worse. Nah, some of us still got it. We can fight better than you smoothskins when you get that old, anyway. Rest of us are on tech work."
"Excellent! Hope to see you then."
A crisp nod, a little 'friendly' gambling (robbery), and we headed back to barracks. Rage, Ice, and Farsight were dragging a Deathclaw behind them. It drew some attention.
There was a note on the door.
TO: ALL BROTHERHOOD OF STEEL SQUAD LEADERS
FROM: BROTHERHOOD OF STEEL HIGH COUNCIL
"Nothing important. As you were! Just... matters to be discussed."
And he walked off in the direction of the General's office.
When I turned around, Farsight was gone.
She was back before Milo was.
"Elders want Ghouls in the squad. Baranky wants us strung up for shipping them in. And there are enough supplies to freeze dry the corpse."
Rage didn't seem happy.
As usual.
"So, they're forcing zombies on us? Having them around the fucking bunker was bad enough."
"Aw, but you were so excited for the strippers."
Stitch broke in.
"So, politics. That's worse than the Ghouls."
"Sounded like Horton was involved too. Which means that everyone involved has it against you and me personally."
Farsight paused, then shrugged.
"Politics. I'm already missing the Deathclaws."
Milo isn't back yet. I don't know what will happen.
I've been thinking, though. Simple little idea, next time I'm between assignments.
Just taking a canteen. Walking west. And eventually being done with everything. No mess.
It could be nice. Not much else has been.
And now the question of squad composition.
The squad needs a ghoul. And Milo may be a silver tongued bastard, but there are limits to everyone's abilities. Someone's leaving.
Not Milo, obviously. And he's a little less awful recently, so that's nice.
Stitch is the only competent medic, but chems can do. Sort of. In a pinch. If there's no other option.
Farsight is getting good as a sniper. Solid scout, too.
Rage. Good with an AK, and he's building heavy weapon skills, which should be useful.
Jo still has driving and repair as the focus, but she's the strongest squad member right now, which is good when big guns come into play. Also, loner, same perk that buffs Ice so much.
And Ice. Highest level of anyone available.
As for the Ghouls?
This is Billy Bob. Looks alright, right? Sure, little slow, but look at that perception! Amazing, what it is.
Then you look at the perks. And read up on glowing one. And your heart sinks.
You see, he just irradiates anyone near him. And the rest of the squad rides in a van with him.
The only other ghoul so far?
Babs. No standout stats, no real deficits. And the best thief in the game.
Take Babs, reassign Ice. I say this for two reasons:
One, I feel Milo needs to help Jo out of her depression, and that if she were left out of his sight she'd likely pull that long walk inside of a week.
Two, I want to make Rage suffer as much as humanly possible, and this is most effectively done by taking his new fuckbuddy elsewhere and swapping in a nice ghoul lass.
EDIT: Definitely not Farsight! She's like the second protagonist, the pragmatic asskicker to Milo's semi-optimistic face action! You HAVE to keep her.
Take Babs, reassign Ice. I say this for two reasons:
One, I feel Milo needs to help Jo out of her depression, and that if she were left out of his sight she'd likely pull that long walk inside of a week.
Two, I want to make Rage suffer as much as humanly possible, and this is most effectively done by taking his new fuckbuddy elsewhere and swapping in a nice ghoul lass.
chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
edited October 2011
In Which living arrangements threaten to become an issue.
From the journals of Senior Knight John Milo
Discussions with General Barnaky today. Elder Hu as well, but mainly the general. They could have gone better.
"I repeat, sir, the squad you have permitted me to assemble is, if I am any judge, one of the best the Brotherhood has ever seen. Any change, and it has been tried in the past, I regret to say, only leads to impaired efficiency and increased casualties."
"And I said, maggot, that it was just too bad. You sent us these subhumans, and you can deal with them. You have two coming in shortly."
One seemed like bad news. Two would be worse. Then I reviewed the dossiers.
Only two ghouls were unassigned.
One of them was Billy Bob.
I make it a point, when I can, to find out what I can about people as soon as possible. What they want, what they can provide, any chemical stimulants they have a persistent longing for. Just good business sense.
William Robert was the sort of person I try to spend... less time with. Not personal dislike, certainly. But they tend to have occasional, unfortunate outbursts. Someone like, oh, Wolcott would be better. At least you know where you stand there.
Also, he was very, very radioactive, which is not a positive to my way of thinking. The Rad-x expenses alone would destroy the syndicate's quarterlies.
Of course, that second consideration seldom works very well in discussion with non-members. Accusations of profiteering and the like, ugly business.
I went with another angle.
"Sir, I'll arrange transfers immediately. I'll make arrangements."
Broad smile. Upbeat tone. And one of those rare "lapses" where I genuinely look like I'm hiding something. It tends to work.
"What the hell are you talking about, dirtbag?"
"Nothing sir. Gamma gulp is still legal on base, I assume? Of course, the turnover time for a glowing one is faster than the unshielded reactor, I have to factor that in. No regulations on labeling mutagenic properties, however. Useful and...."
I turned to walk out.
"On second thought, asswipe, you are not going to be deploying with two subhumans. One should be a sufficient reminder of your misconduct."
"Oh. Alright, sir."
Temporary respite at best, but it was a step in the right direction.
And all I would have to do would be find a safe place to transfer someone out of Magpie.
Rage was out of the question, unfortunately. Word spreads, and so on.
Farsight and Jo weren't quite as bad, but on short notice, for long term assignment, it would be difficult.
They also shared a major issue with Stitch. Their specialties were required.
Oliver, meanwhile, was always in demand, and, as much as I hate to say it about a subordinate, especially a talented one, but for general assignments she could be replaced.
I still worry about breaking the news to Rage.
I met the ghoul recruit soon enough. Alone. It would be enough of a political minefield without Rage or Stitch expressing disgust, or Jo being depressing.
She was fairly nice looking, in a radiation ravaged, dripping flesh way. Better than a human her age would look, judging from the dossier.
"Senior Knight John Milo. Pleasure to make your..."
"I was wearing armor a second ago."
"Don't know nothin' 'bout that, sar!"
"I'd prefer if you returned it, if it's all the same to you. That kind of kleptomaniacal gift is an asset, but it would work out better for all of us if you exercised... that's Barnaky's minigun. "
"Ah'll be givin' that back, then."
"No, just the armor, for the moment. There's armor for you and some light arms in the hummer. Don't take more than you can carry."
"Yew don't want to talk more?"
"Barbara "Babs" ...Harris, I think. 87, estimated date of mutation some time in the great winter. Biggest die off since the great war, which made scavenging an amazingly useful talent, especially for an outcast. Kleptomaniacal tendencies..."
She winced a tiny bit.
"Alright, that was cruel and easy. Let's say sticky fingers. Wouldn't mind talking more at some point, and there is a squad tab at the bar if that makes conversation easier, but right now, you said what matters. You're Brotherhood, and it's an honor to work with you"
Yeah, if Milo gets an ending where he gets the girl, it'll most likely be Babs.
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
edited October 2011
In Which things do not go as planned
From the journals of Senior Initiate Nina "Farsight" Stills
It was such a nice day when it started. Official notice that Deathclaws are sapient, and therefore initiate Stills is not bugfuck crazy.
It stayed that way for a full minute. Then Milo said what our next assignment was. Deathclaw nest, beastlord headquarters, and by the way, Farsight, your buddies on the scout team?
The one you can deal with is gone and the psychotic asshole is going to be even more of an asshole without her. Have fun!
The new sniper seems alright, but she's still too green for assaulting a main hostile base. I'd feel bad about this with five Paladins and a tank backing us, let alone a damn rookie.
Green. I made a ghoul pun. I hate everyone and everything.
We ran into a few beastlords and deathclaws on the way.
The ammo reserves in the hummer were half gone by the time we got away. Blood and steel all over the desert.
And a blown gasket. Or tailpipe. Or something, I'm not the mechanic. Jo was working on it, so Milo took the opportunity to walk off and look for "help."
He came back just as the hummer was fixed weighed down with power cells. He said not to question it.
The rest of the ride was less eventful. The only other thing I remember was sitting in the back with Babs keeping watch. Everyone else was asleep and I was chewing a little afterburn to keep focused.
She spoke up.
"So, are yew an Rage...?"
The afterburn hit a nearby cactus.
"No!"
"And Jo?"
"No. Why are you asking?"
"Jess askin'."
I didn't say anything, and we arrived in Mardin the next night.
Where we were immediately ambushed by giant cockroaches, radscorpions, wasps, and armed beastlords.
I'm a damn good sniper. One of the best in the brotherhood. (It's not bragging when it's the truth.)
That didn't matter then. You could have both eyes missing, fire full auto and every bullet would hit something. It was a while before anyone could hear again.
Which is when Milo brought up his tiny little map again, and it was time for another huddle.
Even worse this time. Rage kept moving away from Babs, I tried to keep my distance from Rage, and Milo seemed less sure of the tactics.
"Not many scouts have come back alive, of course, but there might be a secondary entrance to the west."
tap.
"Primary entrance is suicide"
I scouted ahead a little to get clear of the mess and found a beastlord aiming something at us.
He didn't see me before he had a round to the chest, but he managed to respond with buckshot that nearly knocked me out. I'd have been dead unarmored, or if he was a better shot.
Instead, he got one between the eyes, and I passed Stitch a new gun when he was patching me up. Didn't recognize the model, but I saw how much kick the burst mode had.
For someone like Rage or Stitch, it would be hard to manage.
It would have ripped my arm off.
Someone tried to ambush us just after that. All that was left was a red mist.
Milo smiled more than anyone should after seeing that. Bastard smiles more than anyone should, period.
"And with that, we should be able to find a quiet path to the western entrance. No further difficulties."
"Do y'all normally consider things like this no further difficulties?"
I responded. Might as well let the rookie know how things work.
"Normal, yes. No difficulties, no. Welcome to the rest of your stay. I really hope you like the taste of your own blood."
Rage put it louder and clearer a second later.
"Fucking piece of shit beastlord fuckers! Fucking command! FUCKING BUGS!"
I don't like Wolcott, but he has a way with words.
We waded through the bodies, stopping to police the corpses for ammunition, and went in with no difficulties.
Then, the roaches.
Jo was the first to notice.
"So, this is how we die? It fits. So goddamn stupid."
There were dozens of them. Maybe hundreds, I didn't keep a close count. Scorpions and giants too, before we were done.
Babs and Rage ran dry and had to club them with the tail end of the rifle.
Stitch treated their wounds, which left Jo, Senior Knight Milo, and me ahead.
A few more bugs. Then?
A big "empty" pit.
Milo said something then about going down.
I picked up a rock in response.
"Watch this."
"So, what's that supposed to prove, other than you can't throw rocks well?"
"Shut up, Jo. There's something down there. Look, there's blood on the ground, you can smell it."
I looked at them for a second.
"Well, I can smell it, alright? Look, if anyone's going down, bring the new shotgun. There's something nasty in the pit, and it might buy a couple seconds."
Stitch went ahead then.
He nearly lost a leg to a baby Deathclaw. Nasty little fucks.
Full auto burst, and some sniper fire settled things and we pressed on.
There were more baby Deathclaws in cages. Seemed like the Beastlords have self preservation on the list of instincts they revered.
We were marching forward, killing any hostiles before they sounded the alarm, when it saw us.
Now why cant the deathclaws in Vegas be this civil?
Also, you have a broken image tag in that last update. Just letting you know.
M A G I K A Z A M
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
In Which Farsight's nightmares are realized.
Although their written work leaves much to be desired, the midwestern Deathclaw tribes have a rich oral history dating back, according to some estimates, to before the great war. The story of their admission into the Brotherhood of steel is preserved below.
It was long ago, before the plague of steel, when my mother's mother was a pup, in the days of Daarr the oathbreaker and the great slaughter.
Our people were dying and enslaved when they arrived. Children of Steel and Ncl've (An old deathclaw theological concept, a combination of creator deity and demon whose disappearance marked the end of the first age.) who killed our finest. The Great Mother was in despair, and when a broodmother of the children of Steel arrived, she called for the release of death. The guards were slaughtered, and all that was left to her was oblivion.
"Kill me, Broodmother of Sssteel. Death is a gift."
"Glad to. If we have enough bullets."
"Broodmother, there's another way."
"What is this Broodmother shit, Milo?"
"She noticed you were in charge, Farsight. And she hates the beastlords."
"She's the next best thing to a demon. I have a shotgun. This isn't complicated."
"Hahaha. You always had a clever sense of humor, broodmother. I'm sure we can come to a mutually beneficial arrangement."
The broodmother of Steel did not slay the matriarch. Instead, she stepped forward to open the cage.
"Are you sssure, underling? The last 'arrangement' we had was betrayed."
"Don't worry about a thing. Steel Nina is the girl who will set you free. After you've settled your issues with Daarr, then we might discuss a little quid pro quo, but at present, consider this pro bono."
"Oh, we're the untrustworthy ones. If you twitch wrong once the cage is open, I'm filling you with buckshot."
"You could try, broodmother."
And the Matriarch was free to find justice for her children.
She tore through the armies of the betrayer, and ate Darr's bones as vengeance.
"Holy fucking shit. What the fuck is that?"
"Mother deathclaw. Milo said to let it go."
"Is he fucking retarded?"
"I asked the same thing, Rage."
"I'll be. That fella's liver just flew higher than a barman's IOU stack after a day at the ranch."
"So, we're letting the lizards do our killing for us?"
"If they're that good at it, yes, apparently."
The broodmother of steel and the Great Mother sealed a pact in the blood of Darr. Our people would join together.
In later days, the oaths would be more complicated. Hunting territory, common laws, the Great Accord...
But that first bond made us kin.
"Do you wisssh to devour his heart?"
"No."
"Fine. More for me."
"We can say we did, if you would prefer."
The children of steel gathered their captured kin as we devoured the sons of the betrayer.
And they left to the clatter of their guns, promising to return once their kin were safe.
"RUN!"
"Okay, there may be a few more Beastlords than expected. Not a worry. Civilians in front, brisk pace, steady suppressing fire, and they're mostly too distracted by the deathclaws."
It was one of the greatest days.
"I may have made a mistake."
"What's that Milo? Finally realizing letting out FUCKING DEMON HORDES wasn't the most brilliant move?"
"No, I forgot to properly police the bodies. We'll have to come back later."
John Milo is the bestest, and Farsight is the broodmotherest.
Since you're almost inevitably gonna end up with a deathclaw and need to boot someone out, I'm...Torn. Either you need a pure character session where you can get Jo in a position to not take a long walk through a short desert as soon as the eyes are off of her, or you need to send off Rage/Stitch for a while. Rage is awesome and Stitch is a damn good medic, so...Yeah. Anyone else you'd be able to bolt some decent skill onto?
Bonus points if you have the Deathclaw max out on pilot, because I love the mental image of a deathclaw driving everyone around (and they get to be useful while everybody else can shoot).
Bonus points if you have the Deathclaw max out on pilot, because I love the mental image of a deathclaw driving everyone around (and they get to be useful while everybody else can shoot).
I have the mental image of a Deathclaw in aviators, cigarette hanging out of his mouth, saying, "I don't get paid enough for this shit. Here I am, working my ass off getting shot at in a combat zone to chauffeur you assholes around. No thanks, no recognition, just 'drive, Deathclaw.' Fucking humans."
I have the mental image of a Deathclaw in aviators, cigarette hanging out of his mouth, saying, "I don't get paid enough for this shit. Here I am, working my ass off getting shot at in a combat zone to chauffeur you assholes around. No thanks, no recognition, just 'drive, Deathclaw.' Fucking humans."
Great. You just gave me the mental image of a deathclaw, driving a car, suddenly stopping just to say "Cant stop here. This is Gecko country"
It's also not a bad idea, mechanically, to have Deathclaws pilot. The stats used to determine the driver is PE + AG, both of which deathclaws have in spades. Driving causes your designated pilot to be unable to shoot anyways (or at least suck at it) taking them out of the fight. So doubling up with the deathclaw as the pilot saves you from losing one extra gun while on the overworld.
The only downside is that Loners like Ice have the +10, but that's not too hard to overcome.
Of course, the thought of Deathclaws driving cars would likely send Jo (and a few others) running out of the bunker screaming and gibbering.
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chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
Intermission 2
From "The War of the Steel Plague: An Initiate's Guide" The integration of Deathclaws into the ranks of the Brotherhood was one of the most controversial decisions in our history, but it would soon be almost forgotten in the wake of outright disaster.
The Brotherhood pushed to expand into the belt, leaving token defensive forces and their Deathclaw allies to guard our holdings as we expanded. It was called a betrayal of our principles. A devil's bargain.
It was more accurately called an absolute necessity. The belt was home to some of the most well armed and well trained enemies the Brotherhood would face. A harsh land, and grown harsher in recent years, its soldiers waged the fiercest battles seen since the great war. Paladin squads were torn apart, veterans of the raider conflict found their confidence ill placed, and the Wastes threatened to break all of the civilization we had fought and died to restore. But Steel does not break easily, and the land could not be abandoned.
In the days of the great schism, one of the airships we took to the west crashed in the Belt. It had technology and supplies that would greatly aid our mission, and was to be recovered if possible. Moreover, it might have survived, after a fashion, another branch in the Brotherhood's family tree and a fresh crop of allies. An idealistic assumption, in retrospect.
But some called it a place of ill omen, a curse. The Brotherhood had paid a harsh price to move East, and disturbing the dead would only lead to greater pain and disaster.
None of that mattered to the fresh tribals and initiates. They had their own legends, and their own stories. One of the most popular subjects was Knight Commander John Milo and Magpie Squad.
Whenever a soldier comes from humble origins, stories circulate. But Magpie Squad was becoming iconic among the lower ranks. Stealing from heavily guarded raider bases, laughing in the face of death, coming home with tame Deathclaws. Stories were bound to fill the gaps.
Milo couldn't be just another soldier. He was the lost scion of the Maxon line, taken from the west for fear of political infighting. He was related to the Vault Dweller. He was the Devil himself, working on contract for General Barnaky's soul. Or, even less probable, he was all of the above.
And when Paladins said he was just another asshole who had a knack for PR, well, they were obviously covering something up. No other answer.
But Milo's squad, as with the rest of the Brotherhood, was about to be tested beyond anything else. The fire was ready. The tempering would begin.
And the original chapter ending
The Brotherhood's ranks have grown, and with this swell of numbers they find themselves coming closer to the ultimate goal the time to expand is now. Leaving an outpost behind the warriors begin moving westward into a region known as the Belt. It is a scarred and desolate land, filled with death and relics of a time before. Those who dwell here have scraped together a bleak existence built on blood and grim determination; these isolated people are as hard as any in the wasteland. Pressuring these people to join the ranks of the Brotherhood will not be easy, many will not understand the Brotherhood's glorious vision to reunite the people, some resistance is expected.
While the inhabitants are dangerous, the land itself has the power to stir up fearful memories in some of the Generals and Elders. They tell of the ill fated flight across the mountains, and how their mighty airships were torn apart. Old law and surviving data suggests that at least one of the great Brotherhood zeppelins was lost in this very region; if it were located there is a chance that the equipment and supplies contained could be salvaged and returned to the noble purpose for which they were intended. There might even be survivors, but few hold any real hope of this, only time will tell.
chiasaur11Never doubt a raccoon.Do you think it's trademarked?Registered Userregular
In which mistakes were made.
From the journals of Knight Commander John Milo.
I knew I was going to pay for the last stunt. I had assumed it would take a little longer.
I met with General Barnaky to report the latest rousing success, and was promoted for my troubles. All normal and to the good, one may think, and I admit that was how I started to respond.
"Thank you sir. I will try to live up to it."
"Couldn't keep you from the promotion if I tried. The Elders would have insisted. And I'm happy to oblige them."
I should have noticed the problem by then. But I plunged ahead boldly.
"Yes sir."
"You know what comes with rank, maggot?"
"Yes sir. Privileges, sir."
"Responsibilities. Knight commanders are assigned to break in recruits."
"Yes sir. Initiate Josephs and Cermak have a lot to learn still. And Senior Initiate Farsight? Good soldier. Bad attitude."
He smiled then.
"No, they seem to be doing fine. You'll be breaking in the newest recruits. You see, your dirty animal friends have joined the Brotherhood, and the Elders insist they stay around. And when I suggested you should be in charge, they were over a barrel. We're moving ahead to Bunker Gamma. You'll stay back until you make those monsters proper Brotherhood or you're called for."
"Yes sir. I'll let Initiate Harris know."
"No, maggot. You're keeping the ghoul. We'll be needing Cermak for the transport south and Josephs in medical. "
"Yes sir."
Breaking the news went...
It could have gone better, I suspect. Much better.
Rage took it worst.
"Chase off my lady, make me work with a fucking zombie, and now fucking DEATHCLAWS? "
He extended his middle finger in my direction as he left. I wish I could say I expected better.
Stitch was more professional. Brotherhood salute. Semper Concordia.
And Jo slumped off. I worry.
Farsight was in the corner.
"Senior Initiate Stills? Do you have anything to add to this discussion?"
"No."
"Just assumed, with Stitch transferred and the Deathclaws coming in..."
"Someone needs to keep an eye on you. Jo doesn't care any more, Barnaky's content to shove you in a corner, and Babs is a serial kleptomaniac. If I leave, then you'll start selling tech to raiders again."
One week of patrol with the new recruits, then Bunker Gamma for a report.
Things could be going better. But that's the price of success.
Posts
I did some quick math today. I've killed about 100 people. Ghouls, raiders, these new beast lord bastards. General scum of the Earth.
And, so far, they've all had it coming, don't get me wrong. No accidents like Stitch and the Elder's daughter, or "accidents" like Rage and, probably, a dozen people over the years, minimum.
But that's a city. I grew up in Gary. The first ten years of my life, before the Brotherhood came in, I didn't meet 100 people.
It staggers the imagination. Comes with being the best, I guess.
We hit Quincy just recently. Apparently, they had a hostage situation. And a beastlord situation. Also a Deathclaw situation.
It all added up to a general "We're fucked" situation, which meant they'd accept Brotherhood help. Milo tried to sugarcoat things in the briefing and talking to the locals, but I was less optimistic.
If the Beastlords could keep Deathclaws in line, then we had nothing. We parked the truck on a couple and barely killed them. Every story I'd heard about packs ended with "And then I ran like hell. Luckily, they were full from eating everyone else." or "And that's why we're out of 7.62. Funerals for Paladins..."
They had an air raid siren set up in town for disasters. Unfortunately, the raiders had it set up as part of the takeover. If anyone tried to do something heroic and stupid, alarms go off and hostages get shot.
We wanted to do something fairly heroic and incredibly stupid, which meant the alarm had to go down. The mayor had the keys, so we had to rescue the mayor. Rage, Ice, and I had stealth training, which meant we'd go in, drop the leader, rescue the mayor, and kill the alarms, allowing us to take the hostage issues one at a time instead of in one burst. It was going well.
Then Rage made a crack about threesomes. Asshole. The commander heard it and raised his automatic.
I read once a revolver with the hammer back can shoot faster than an automatic. I never planned on being in a situation where I had an automatic right next to my skull.
But it worked. One in the cock staggered the shit. One in the skull put him down. I grabbed the key off his body and went for the mayor.
Rage called her a leathery old man-bitch, which was a typical Rage comment. First you hate him for being an asshole. Then you hate him for being right. Then you hate yourself for agreeing.
She had more work for us, which would involve Deathclaws and getting torn to ribbons.
At least the alarms were off.
The first thing, though, was getting out. First floor was full of baby deathclaws and raiders. Milo, Jo, and Stitch rushed the outside while we went down the stairs.
Full auto fire. Frantic hammer blows.
Impossible angle shots through the window. We cleaned house.
Milo didn't seem impressed.
"Nothing, nothing, shitty mass produced nothing. And Deathclaws don't have wallets. Good work, I guess."
I reloaded my old hunting rifle as he continued poking the corpses.
"We just took out three infant deathclaws at knife fighting range."
He didn't even look up.
"Of course you did. You're brotherhood and, more importantly, three of the most terrifying people I've had the pleasure of knowing. If you couldn't take baby deathclaws, we should all roll over and die right now. Infant deathclaws, then. Mission should be a little simpler than planned."
"Fucking Deathclaws? YOU SAID WE WERE GOING TO A FUCKING WHOREHOUSE!"
"Ladies of the night later, Rage. You still have to earn the new stripes."
Our little recon team went ahead with some cursing from Rage, which ended when we saw the adult Deathclaw. Just... standing there. Not tearing a beastlord to shreds.
I hate to overuse the term "Fucked", it gets enough abuse from Rage, but it seemed the time for it.
Full auto bursts from the roof and some flachettes ripped the beast lord to ribbons. They just pissed the deathclaw off. It jumped onto the overhang and clambered after us. We ran, firing behind us.
And it leapt over us to cut off the escape. And laughed a little.
"Rip you. Gut you."
It was a mistake. I managed one in each eye while it was taunting us.
Lucky shots. But they did the job. It fell on its back for long enough that I could empty an AK into its stomach. It died. Eventually.
It was half a minute before anyone could do anything besides suck in air. Rage spoke first.
"Victory fuck?"
"Rot in hell, Rage."
"Ice?"
"Later."
"Hell yes."
Which is when Milo stepped into view.
"Adult Deathclaw?"
"Yes."
"Now, Ice? That is the kind of work worth noting."
She nodded in my direction, and went back to cleaning her shotgun.
"Farsight, then. Well, they have adult deathclaws. That changes things. What do you know about them?"
"They're mean as hell, smarter than anything else that isn't human, and pretty much pure evil. Official line is they're mutated wolves or something, and the ones out west are lizards. I find the demons story from tribals holds more water. Killing one just now means we're heroes. Any more and God starts getting involved."
"Alright, then."
He poked it a little with a spear.
"Hmm. Scales and fur. Unusual. Well, anything goes out here. Wait."
"Where's Ice?"
We found a corpse and Ice notching her shotgun, which settled the question. Stitch and Jo saw the deathclaw then, which gave a fresh round of "Holy shit!"
Milo just looked at his PIP. I need to ask where he got that one of these days.
"Alright, multiple hostile groups. There's been... some gunfire recently from the south. If anyone is making a stand, it's down by the tracks. Which means they'll be ripped up first, and are in urgent need of backup. We're moving south. No need to run quiet."
It was a shantytown.
And, as Stitch pointed out, full of Ghouls.
"They're dead men walking already, Squad leader. There are people needing help, and..."
He sighed.
"Look. Can we just get away from the ghouls?"
Milo just walked forward to the apparent leader.
"John Milo. Brotherhood. What do you need?"
They talked a little more, and I didn't catch it all when they came back.
I decided to just ask the main question.
"We're helping here, right?"
"Yes."
Suited me fine. Ghouls have never seemed much worse than anyone else in the wastes. And when they try something, the rotting flesh makes them an easier kill. Rage bitched, but Rage always bitches about things.
Then I saw the Deathclaws.
And I started cursing again. Dogs, beastlords, fine.
Raiders? I can handle some inbred hicks.
A pack of Deathclaws? Might as well shoot ourselves at the start and save time. We formed a line, full auto bursts, shredder rounds, everything we had. Deathclaws kept charging.
And then Jo fired her sidearm. And it toppled.
Guess it just took a while to realize it was dead.
The blood was still pooling when we hit the barn. Hostage situation. Kick in the door. Ready weapon.
"ON THE FUCKING GROUND OR I BLOW YOUR FUCKING FACE OFF!"
And while Rage is shouting, find the hostiles and hit them before they shoot the hostage. Fast, loud, and disorienting.
Hostage rescued.
Ghouls happy. Nice and quick. So, of course, we go out looking for trouble again.
They said they'd join. Not betting on it, but it'd be worth it for the look on Barnaky's face when they show up.
Milo had us huddle around and look at the Pip boy's map. Its tiny, tiny map. I tried to keep Wolcott at the other end of the huddle.
"This isn't a hostage crisis any more. Not really."
Stitch objected.
"There are people in danger with psychopaths waving guns at their heads, Sir. Call me crazy, but that's textbook hostage crisis."
"It's multiple small hostage crisises. Crises? Never mind. We started with six, and we're down to four."
He tapped the screen
"First priority is the mayor's daughter. From what Farsight said, the alliance hinges on it."
tap
"Second, securing the barracks. Not so much for the hostage, as fine a person as Felix may be, but if we need to pull out, it would give the beastlords a prime position to rip any followup squads apart. Not an option."
tap
"Generator third. The local power plant was one of the reasons we were sent here, and the bulk of the hostages should be present."
tap
"Finally, the brothel."
Ice just glared at Rage, who did his best to look innocent.
Rage is shit at looking innocent.
"Any complications will be dealt with when they come up."
The town hall had guards outside, but we managed. It turns out some people are still stupid enough to charge assault rifles. It works for Deathclaws, maybe, but kung fu doesn't make you bulletproof.
Milo set us into two breach teams. Also easy.
Then, Deathclaw. Like clockwork.
It sniffed me out and started charging. Milo rushed in, to his credit, but he's still a mediocre shot at best. It nearly tore out Rage's stomach before we downed it.
And nothing of value would have been lost. Stitch stabilized him, and Milo went ahead to check for combat drugs and ammo.
He came back limping a little with a stimpack injector sticking out of his arm.
"Hostage secured."
He handed Jo a gun before hitting the floor.
Ice said it was an old British rifle. Milo said it was a collector's item.
Stitch was more pragmatic.
"So, are we done here? We've completed the assignment, you and Rage are half dead, there's probably more Deathclaws around. I hate to suggest this, but we should, well, extract."
Milo stood up then. I guess you could call it standing. And he staggered to the door.
"People to save. Money to earn. And you want to leave? We're staying."
By "We" it seemed he mainly meant me, Ice, and Rage. Staying meant "Attacking a fortified position as quietly as possible."
I can be pretty quiet when I put my mind to it.
Ice is better, which made the slight intake of air a bit odd. Then I saw a new shotgun in her hands.
"NeoStead 2000. Bullpup design, used by the SAS. Long range accuracy. Custom model, modified for fully automatic fire."
She held it a little tighter.
"Not many left. Good gun."
I went ahead. It looked like she wanted some alone time.
When we hit the roof, we saw a maniac who looked important with a gun to a hostage's head.
Ice had a new shotgun that fired unholy quantities of flechette rounds in a cone. His body dissolved into bloody chunks, and the hostage was barely nicked.
Rage cleaned up the rest of the beastlords there, and, as the closest thing we had to a people person (not close at all) I made sure the hostage was alright.
He reminded me a little of my dad. Same easy drawl, same old warhorse attitude.
Couldn't tell when he was getting too old, either. Tried to play hero, got caught. Heard the story before.
Happier ending this time at least. And it didn't take him long to shift back to worrying about everyone else.
"Is Evita alright?"
"She's fine. Don't worry about it, the situation is well in hand."
"Good. Tell her that her old man's alive."
"I will... wait. You mean you and her mother?"
His head moved into a nod. I dropped the line of questions, and went with something stupid and personal on my end. Evening the score.
"So, you've been wandering the wastes for a while, right?"
"Longer than you've been alive."
"Ever met a desert ranger?"
"No. Heard of them, though. Good folks."
"Now you have. Junior Ranger Nina Stills, on assignment with the Brotherhood of Steel. Keeping them honest."
It was a lie, or mostly a lie. "Junior Ranger" was just something I'd been called years back. Dad said I was on assignment the day I joined with the BOS. I think he was proud. Not that I got a chance to ask.
"Just you? I assumed..."
"One riot, one ranger. Take it easy, and I'll see you at the dawn."
And bullshit talking up the old unit.
"I will. Well, except with Hillary. Heh."
Mental image I didn't need.
Ice gave me a look and Rage was snickering. Fuck 'em.
We saw a church on the way to the generator. Small. Fit the town.
I said it looked like a good spot for a sniper. That I should check it out.
Mostly, it was true. It wasn't the only reason, of course. It's been way too long since I visited church. I mean, saving the wasteland falls under doing God's work the way I see it, but there's form to consider.
Glad I checked. Couple of Deathclaws inside.
I had hoped they'd combust on their own from the holy ground. No luck.
Instead, we did it ourselves with burst fire.
Milo grabbed some metal armor from a chest inside. No idea why it was there, but the designs said Brotherhood. I left a little in the plate as we left. Seemed the thing to do.
Generator went fast. Lights off.
Shoot.
Clean up. Some det packs and wounded civilians around. We provided aid as best we could, and Milo scooped up the charges and disarmed them. Then we pretty much dashed out.
First light of the sun was coming, which would make our handiwork obvious, which made speed the priority. Also, we'd kept Rage from a brothel for a record setting length.
Standard procedure. Scouts take the back entrance. Assault team takes the front.
A beastlord leveled a rifle at me. And I did something stupid.
"Oh, yes. Brilliant plan. I killed three or four Deathclaws today. I've killed a whole century's worth of people. And you.."
And then it's blackness.
I came to with Stitch standing next to me.
"Just a grazing wound, Nina. You got lucky."
Groan.
"Yaaay. I'm guessing we won?"
And then I heard Rage cursing, and Ice snickering.
"Ghoul hookers? The only fucking good thing is the fucking flesh is so rotted you can get penetration anywhere. What kind of sick fuck is into that sort of thing?"
And Milo replied.
"There's a market for everything, Rage."
"Name one."
"Vault dwellers? Constantly being surrounded by genetic perfection can leave a man or woman with a taste for the exotic."
"My ass."
"It's true."
"Sick fucks."
Milo coughed a little.
"Incredibly sick fucks, yes. Mayor waiting. Heroes of the town."
He was right. Everything but a parade. I even had to shake hands.
"A real ranger? Like out west?"
"Golly!"
Rage barely kept down a snort, so I turned to him and mouthed "Ghoul. Hookers."
It kept things civil.
Of course, it had to end. Back to the bunker.
...Might mount one of the Deathclaws in the barracks. Paladin Solo's been going on a bit much lately.
Why I fear the ocean.
Steam: Elvenshae // PSN: Elvenshae // WotC: Elvenshae
Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
Five chapters in the game and a big final mission.
We're done with the first chapter (The first mission through the main Raider base.) This is the second or third to last mission (depending on if you get the bonus mission, probably not getting it here) of the second chapter.
Don't worry. There's plenty more Deathclaws. So many more Deathclaws...
Why I fear the ocean.
Milo will be able to raise his swimming skill with all these goddamn Deathclaws lying around.
Ugh, yeah. This game really isn't designed for playability.
Would you like to encounter robots? No, how about now? Well, how about now? Ooh, here's some robots, want to encounter them? Well, here's some wasps, how about them? Nope either, well we've got some robots with wasps, how about that? etc.
Hence why I like this Lets Play so much. Although I'm currently 80% through the game, but can't muster the will to compete.
It's been said before by better men than me( and Thermocaw).
"We play games so you don't have to."
Which means, although I can't and won't promise to beat this come Hell or high water, I'll do my best, and persist in the face of game cruelty because this game, although it has a lot of good things, has some fairly bad ones as well, and forcing people to deal with the second category isn't the goal.
Least I can do, right?
Why I fear the ocean.
Are there any lady ghouls? I'd kill a man to see at least one mission with Rage and a flirty lady ghoul, just to watch his brain shatter into tiny little pieces.
I just really missed JA2's suppression mechanic, Fire Emblem's detailed forecasts that let you plan more carefully, JA2 and XCOM's interrupts, FE and XCOM's ability to easily tell where you do or don't have line of sight on enemies, and so on.
When I read your LP I can't tell that it's missing, so I can just enjoy the good bits!
1) Yes.
2) Have you read Thermocaw's old LP? It's linked back on the first page. Really good. Half the things I'm doing right in this one are shameless rip-offs. Of course, the catch to recommending it is that all the game's plot beats that might come as twists kinda get spoiled. But it's more than a fair trade off.
Why I fear the ocean.
Milo got another promotion today. I've stopped sending in reports. No-one cares about minor errors in the mission invoice and looting when the squad is mounting Deathclaw corpses in the lobby.
Elders would probably just give Milo another promotion.
And... admit it Jo. It won't get worse if you write it down.
I've stopped giving a shit. About the Brotherhood, about the wastes, about living. I thought we were better. But Ice fell in with Rage, a used car salesman gets the privileges due a Paladin, we're honored for letting civilians starve.
I'd have said we didn't live up to our legacy once. I wish that was true. But no. I've been learning a little more about the old world. They were rat bastards too.
Farsight still has her Rangers and her God. Wonder how long that'll last? Probably until she bothers looking.
Some days I think Rage has the right idea. Some days I wish I was dead.
Same days, usually.
I saw some ghouls around the base when we got back.
Don't know how they beat us back. Don't know how they got past Barnaky. Milo didn't seem to care.
"John Milo, but you already know that. Pleasure to see you here."
"Right. Let me get that for you, then. And you! Third from the right, got the killing shot on one of the baby deathclaw, am I right?"
"And I'm sure... fight alongside? No mistake, Ghouls are the salt of the wastes, but in direct combat, I generally find most of you, no offense intended, to be... Rage, help me here."
"Fucking pussies?"
"You know, Wolcott may not have been the ideal choice in the matter."
"Heard worse. Nah, some of us still got it. We can fight better than you smoothskins when you get that old, anyway. Rest of us are on tech work."
"Excellent! Hope to see you then."
A crisp nod, a little 'friendly' gambling (robbery), and we headed back to barracks. Rage, Ice, and Farsight were dragging a Deathclaw behind them. It drew some attention.
There was a note on the door.
TO: ALL BROTHERHOOD OF STEEL SQUAD LEADERS
FROM: BROTHERHOOD OF STEEL HIGH COUNCIL
IMMEDIATE SQUAD RECONFIGURATION EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY STOP.
I didn't see any more before Milo ripped it down.
"Nothing important. As you were! Just... matters to be discussed."
And he walked off in the direction of the General's office.
When I turned around, Farsight was gone.
She was back before Milo was.
"Elders want Ghouls in the squad. Baranky wants us strung up for shipping them in. And there are enough supplies to freeze dry the corpse."
Rage didn't seem happy.
As usual.
"So, they're forcing zombies on us? Having them around the fucking bunker was bad enough."
"Aw, but you were so excited for the strippers."
Stitch broke in.
"So, politics. That's worse than the Ghouls."
"Sounded like Horton was involved too. Which means that everyone involved has it against you and me personally."
Farsight paused, then shrugged.
"Politics. I'm already missing the Deathclaws."
Milo isn't back yet. I don't know what will happen.
I've been thinking, though. Simple little idea, next time I'm between assignments.
Just taking a canteen. Walking west. And eventually being done with everything. No mess.
It could be nice. Not much else has been.
And now the question of squad composition.
Not Milo, obviously. And he's a little less awful recently, so that's nice.
Stitch is the only competent medic, but chems can do. Sort of. In a pinch. If there's no other option.
Farsight is getting good as a sniper. Solid scout, too.
Rage. Good with an AK, and he's building heavy weapon skills, which should be useful.
Jo still has driving and repair as the focus, but she's the strongest squad member right now, which is good when big guns come into play. Also, loner, same perk that buffs Ice so much.
And Ice. Highest level of anyone available.
As for the Ghouls?
This is Billy Bob. Looks alright, right? Sure, little slow, but look at that perception! Amazing, what it is.
Then you look at the perks. And read up on glowing one. And your heart sinks.
You see, he just irradiates anyone near him. And the rest of the squad rides in a van with him.
The only other ghoul so far?
Babs. No standout stats, no real deficits. And the best thief in the game.
Why I fear the ocean.
One, I feel Milo needs to help Jo out of her depression, and that if she were left out of his sight she'd likely pull that long walk inside of a week.
Two, I want to make Rage suffer as much as humanly possible, and this is most effectively done by taking his new fuckbuddy elsewhere and swapping in a nice ghoul lass.
EDIT: Definitely not Farsight! She's like the second protagonist, the pragmatic asskicker to Milo's semi-optimistic face action! You HAVE to keep her.
Want to play co-op games? Feel free to hit me up!
This is great advice and reasoning.
Steam: Elvenshae // PSN: Elvenshae // WotC: Elvenshae
Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
Discussions with General Barnaky today. Elder Hu as well, but mainly the general. They could have gone better.
"I repeat, sir, the squad you have permitted me to assemble is, if I am any judge, one of the best the Brotherhood has ever seen. Any change, and it has been tried in the past, I regret to say, only leads to impaired efficiency and increased casualties."
"And I said, maggot, that it was just too bad. You sent us these subhumans, and you can deal with them. You have two coming in shortly."
One seemed like bad news. Two would be worse. Then I reviewed the dossiers.
Only two ghouls were unassigned.
One of them was Billy Bob.
I make it a point, when I can, to find out what I can about people as soon as possible. What they want, what they can provide, any chemical stimulants they have a persistent longing for. Just good business sense.
William Robert was the sort of person I try to spend... less time with. Not personal dislike, certainly. But they tend to have occasional, unfortunate outbursts. Someone like, oh, Wolcott would be better. At least you know where you stand there.
Also, he was very, very radioactive, which is not a positive to my way of thinking. The Rad-x expenses alone would destroy the syndicate's quarterlies.
Of course, that second consideration seldom works very well in discussion with non-members. Accusations of profiteering and the like, ugly business.
I went with another angle.
"Sir, I'll arrange transfers immediately. I'll make arrangements."
Broad smile. Upbeat tone. And one of those rare "lapses" where I genuinely look like I'm hiding something. It tends to work.
"What the hell are you talking about, dirtbag?"
"Nothing sir. Gamma gulp is still legal on base, I assume? Of course, the turnover time for a glowing one is faster than the unshielded reactor, I have to factor that in. No regulations on labeling mutagenic properties, however. Useful and...."
I turned to walk out.
"On second thought, asswipe, you are not going to be deploying with two subhumans. One should be a sufficient reminder of your misconduct."
"Oh. Alright, sir."
Temporary respite at best, but it was a step in the right direction.
And all I would have to do would be find a safe place to transfer someone out of Magpie.
Rage was out of the question, unfortunately. Word spreads, and so on.
Farsight and Jo weren't quite as bad, but on short notice, for long term assignment, it would be difficult.
They also shared a major issue with Stitch. Their specialties were required.
Oliver, meanwhile, was always in demand, and, as much as I hate to say it about a subordinate, especially a talented one, but for general assignments she could be replaced.
I still worry about breaking the news to Rage.
I met the ghoul recruit soon enough. Alone. It would be enough of a political minefield without Rage or Stitch expressing disgust, or Jo being depressing.
She was fairly nice looking, in a radiation ravaged, dripping flesh way. Better than a human her age would look, judging from the dossier.
"Sar, Brotherhood 'nishiate Babs reportin' f'r duty!"
"Senior Knight John Milo. Pleasure to make your..."
"I was wearing armor a second ago."
"Don't know nothin' 'bout that, sar!"
"I'd prefer if you returned it, if it's all the same to you. That kind of kleptomaniacal gift is an asset, but it would work out better for all of us if you exercised... that's Barnaky's minigun. "
"Ah'll be givin' that back, then."
"No, just the armor, for the moment. There's armor for you and some light arms in the hummer. Don't take more than you can carry."
"Yew don't want to talk more?"
"Barbara "Babs" ...Harris, I think. 87, estimated date of mutation some time in the great winter. Biggest die off since the great war, which made scavenging an amazingly useful talent, especially for an outcast. Kleptomaniacal tendencies..."
She winced a tiny bit.
"Alright, that was cruel and easy. Let's say sticky fingers. Wouldn't mind talking more at some point, and there is a squad tab at the bar if that makes conversation easier, but right now, you said what matters. You're Brotherhood, and it's an honor to work with you"
Another salute. She walked off.
I'm still worried about Rage.
Why I fear the ocean.
It was such a nice day when it started. Official notice that Deathclaws are sapient, and therefore initiate Stills is not bugfuck crazy.
It stayed that way for a full minute. Then Milo said what our next assignment was. Deathclaw nest, beastlord headquarters, and by the way, Farsight, your buddies on the scout team?
The one you can deal with is gone and the psychotic asshole is going to be even more of an asshole without her. Have fun!
The new sniper seems alright, but she's still too green for assaulting a main hostile base. I'd feel bad about this with five Paladins and a tank backing us, let alone a damn rookie.
Green. I made a ghoul pun. I hate everyone and everything.
We ran into a few beastlords and deathclaws on the way.
The ammo reserves in the hummer were half gone by the time we got away. Blood and steel all over the desert.
And a blown gasket. Or tailpipe. Or something, I'm not the mechanic. Jo was working on it, so Milo took the opportunity to walk off and look for "help."
He came back just as the hummer was fixed weighed down with power cells. He said not to question it.
The rest of the ride was less eventful. The only other thing I remember was sitting in the back with Babs keeping watch. Everyone else was asleep and I was chewing a little afterburn to keep focused.
She spoke up.
"So, are yew an Rage...?"
The afterburn hit a nearby cactus.
"No!"
"And Jo?"
"No. Why are you asking?"
"Jess askin'."
I didn't say anything, and we arrived in Mardin the next night.
Where we were immediately ambushed by giant cockroaches, radscorpions, wasps, and armed beastlords.
I'm a damn good sniper. One of the best in the brotherhood. (It's not bragging when it's the truth.)
That didn't matter then. You could have both eyes missing, fire full auto and every bullet would hit something. It was a while before anyone could hear again.
Which is when Milo brought up his tiny little map again, and it was time for another huddle.
Even worse this time. Rage kept moving away from Babs, I tried to keep my distance from Rage, and Milo seemed less sure of the tactics.
"Not many scouts have come back alive, of course, but there might be a secondary entrance to the west."
tap.
"Primary entrance is suicide"
I scouted ahead a little to get clear of the mess and found a beastlord aiming something at us.
He didn't see me before he had a round to the chest, but he managed to respond with buckshot that nearly knocked me out. I'd have been dead unarmored, or if he was a better shot.
Instead, he got one between the eyes, and I passed Stitch a new gun when he was patching me up. Didn't recognize the model, but I saw how much kick the burst mode had.
For someone like Rage or Stitch, it would be hard to manage.
It would have ripped my arm off.
Someone tried to ambush us just after that. All that was left was a red mist.
Milo smiled more than anyone should after seeing that. Bastard smiles more than anyone should, period.
"And with that, we should be able to find a quiet path to the western entrance. No further difficulties."
"Do y'all normally consider things like this no further difficulties?"
I responded. Might as well let the rookie know how things work.
"Normal, yes. No difficulties, no. Welcome to the rest of your stay. I really hope you like the taste of your own blood."
Rage put it louder and clearer a second later.
"Fucking piece of shit beastlord fuckers! Fucking command! FUCKING BUGS!"
I don't like Wolcott, but he has a way with words.
We waded through the bodies, stopping to police the corpses for ammunition, and went in with no difficulties.
Then, the roaches.
Jo was the first to notice.
"So, this is how we die? It fits. So goddamn stupid."
There were dozens of them. Maybe hundreds, I didn't keep a close count. Scorpions and giants too, before we were done.
Babs and Rage ran dry and had to club them with the tail end of the rifle.
Stitch treated their wounds, which left Jo, Senior Knight Milo, and me ahead.
A few more bugs. Then?
A big "empty" pit.
Milo said something then about going down.
I picked up a rock in response.
"Watch this."
"So, what's that supposed to prove, other than you can't throw rocks well?"
"Shut up, Jo. There's something down there. Look, there's blood on the ground, you can smell it."
I looked at them for a second.
"Well, I can smell it, alright? Look, if anyone's going down, bring the new shotgun. There's something nasty in the pit, and it might buy a couple seconds."
Stitch went ahead then.
He nearly lost a leg to a baby Deathclaw. Nasty little fucks.
Full auto burst, and some sniper fire settled things and we pressed on.
There were more baby Deathclaws in cages. Seemed like the Beastlords have self preservation on the list of instincts they revered.
We were marching forward, killing any hostiles before they sounded the alarm, when it saw us.
The biggest Deathclaw I'd ever seen.
And she was staring right at me.
Why I fear the ocean.
Also, you have a broken image tag in that last update. Just letting you know.
It was long ago, before the plague of steel, when my mother's mother was a pup, in the days of Daarr the oathbreaker and the great slaughter.
Our people were dying and enslaved when they arrived. Children of Steel and Ncl've (An old deathclaw theological concept, a combination of creator deity and demon whose disappearance marked the end of the first age.) who killed our finest. The Great Mother was in despair, and when a broodmother of the children of Steel arrived, she called for the release of death. The guards were slaughtered, and all that was left to her was oblivion.
"Kill me, Broodmother of Sssteel. Death is a gift."
"Glad to. If we have enough bullets."
"Broodmother, there's another way."
"What is this Broodmother shit, Milo?"
"She noticed you were in charge, Farsight. And she hates the beastlords."
"She's the next best thing to a demon. I have a shotgun. This isn't complicated."
"Hahaha. You always had a clever sense of humor, broodmother. I'm sure we can come to a mutually beneficial arrangement."
The broodmother of Steel did not slay the matriarch. Instead, she stepped forward to open the cage.
"Are you sssure, underling? The last 'arrangement' we had was betrayed."
"Don't worry about a thing. Steel Nina is the girl who will set you free. After you've settled your issues with Daarr, then we might discuss a little quid pro quo, but at present, consider this pro bono."
"Oh, we're the untrustworthy ones. If you twitch wrong once the cage is open, I'm filling you with buckshot."
"You could try, broodmother."
And the Matriarch was free to find justice for her children.
She tore through the armies of the betrayer, and ate Darr's bones as vengeance.
"Holy fucking shit. What the fuck is that?"
"Mother deathclaw. Milo said to let it go."
"Is he fucking retarded?"
"I asked the same thing, Rage."
"I'll be. That fella's liver just flew higher than a barman's IOU stack after a day at the ranch."
"So, we're letting the lizards do our killing for us?"
"If they're that good at it, yes, apparently."
The broodmother of steel and the Great Mother sealed a pact in the blood of Darr. Our people would join together.
In later days, the oaths would be more complicated. Hunting territory, common laws, the Great Accord...
But that first bond made us kin.
"Do you wisssh to devour his heart?"
"No."
"Fine. More for me."
"We can say we did, if you would prefer."
The children of steel gathered their captured kin as we devoured the sons of the betrayer.
And they left to the clatter of their guns, promising to return once their kin were safe.
"RUN!"
"Okay, there may be a few more Beastlords than expected. Not a worry. Civilians in front, brisk pace, steady suppressing fire, and they're mostly too distracted by the deathclaws."
It was one of the greatest days.
"I may have made a mistake."
"What's that Milo? Finally realizing letting out FUCKING DEMON HORDES wasn't the most brilliant move?"
"No, I forgot to properly police the bodies. We'll have to come back later."
Why I fear the ocean.
Since you're almost inevitably gonna end up with a deathclaw and need to boot someone out, I'm...Torn. Either you need a pure character session where you can get Jo in a position to not take a long walk through a short desert as soon as the eyes are off of her, or you need to send off Rage/Stitch for a while. Rage is awesome and Stitch is a damn good medic, so...Yeah. Anyone else you'd be able to bolt some decent skill onto?
I have the mental image of a Deathclaw in aviators, cigarette hanging out of his mouth, saying, "I don't get paid enough for this shit. Here I am, working my ass off getting shot at in a combat zone to chauffeur you assholes around. No thanks, no recognition, just 'drive, Deathclaw.' Fucking humans."
The only downside is that Loners like Ice have the +10, but that's not too hard to overcome.
The integration of Deathclaws into the ranks of the Brotherhood was one of the most controversial decisions in our history, but it would soon be almost forgotten in the wake of outright disaster.
The Brotherhood pushed to expand into the belt, leaving token defensive forces and their Deathclaw allies to guard our holdings as we expanded. It was called a betrayal of our principles. A devil's bargain.
It was more accurately called an absolute necessity. The belt was home to some of the most well armed and well trained enemies the Brotherhood would face. A harsh land, and grown harsher in recent years, its soldiers waged the fiercest battles seen since the great war. Paladin squads were torn apart, veterans of the raider conflict found their confidence ill placed, and the Wastes threatened to break all of the civilization we had fought and died to restore. But Steel does not break easily, and the land could not be abandoned.
In the days of the great schism, one of the airships we took to the west crashed in the Belt. It had technology and supplies that would greatly aid our mission, and was to be recovered if possible. Moreover, it might have survived, after a fashion, another branch in the Brotherhood's family tree and a fresh crop of allies. An idealistic assumption, in retrospect.
But some called it a place of ill omen, a curse. The Brotherhood had paid a harsh price to move East, and disturbing the dead would only lead to greater pain and disaster.
None of that mattered to the fresh tribals and initiates. They had their own legends, and their own stories. One of the most popular subjects was Knight Commander John Milo and Magpie Squad.
Whenever a soldier comes from humble origins, stories circulate. But Magpie Squad was becoming iconic among the lower ranks. Stealing from heavily guarded raider bases, laughing in the face of death, coming home with tame Deathclaws. Stories were bound to fill the gaps.
Milo couldn't be just another soldier. He was the lost scion of the Maxon line, taken from the west for fear of political infighting. He was related to the Vault Dweller. He was the Devil himself, working on contract for General Barnaky's soul. Or, even less probable, he was all of the above.
And when Paladins said he was just another asshole who had a knack for PR, well, they were obviously covering something up. No other answer.
But Milo's squad, as with the rest of the Brotherhood, was about to be tested beyond anything else. The fire was ready. The tempering would begin.
And the original chapter ending
While the inhabitants are dangerous, the land itself has the power to stir up fearful memories in some of the Generals and Elders. They tell of the ill fated flight across the mountains, and how their mighty airships were torn apart. Old law and surviving data suggests that at least one of the great Brotherhood zeppelins was lost in this very region; if it were located there is a chance that the equipment and supplies contained could be salvaged and returned to the noble purpose for which they were intended. There might even be survivors, but few hold any real hope of this, only time will tell.
Why I fear the ocean.
I knew I was going to pay for the last stunt. I had assumed it would take a little longer.
I met with General Barnaky to report the latest rousing success, and was promoted for my troubles. All normal and to the good, one may think, and I admit that was how I started to respond.
"Thank you sir. I will try to live up to it."
"Couldn't keep you from the promotion if I tried. The Elders would have insisted. And I'm happy to oblige them."
I should have noticed the problem by then. But I plunged ahead boldly.
"Yes sir."
"You know what comes with rank, maggot?"
"Yes sir. Privileges, sir."
"Responsibilities. Knight commanders are assigned to break in recruits."
"Yes sir. Initiate Josephs and Cermak have a lot to learn still. And Senior Initiate Farsight? Good soldier. Bad attitude."
He smiled then.
"No, they seem to be doing fine. You'll be breaking in the newest recruits. You see, your dirty animal friends have joined the Brotherhood, and the Elders insist they stay around. And when I suggested you should be in charge, they were over a barrel. We're moving ahead to Bunker Gamma. You'll stay back until you make those monsters proper Brotherhood or you're called for."
"Yes sir. I'll let Initiate Harris know."
"No, maggot. You're keeping the ghoul. We'll be needing Cermak for the transport south and Josephs in medical. "
"Yes sir."
Breaking the news went...
It could have gone better, I suspect. Much better.
Rage took it worst.
"Chase off my lady, make me work with a fucking zombie, and now fucking DEATHCLAWS? "
He extended his middle finger in my direction as he left. I wish I could say I expected better.
Stitch was more professional. Brotherhood salute. Semper Concordia.
And Jo slumped off. I worry.
Farsight was in the corner.
"Senior Initiate Stills? Do you have anything to add to this discussion?"
"No."
"Just assumed, with Stitch transferred and the Deathclaws coming in..."
"Someone needs to keep an eye on you. Jo doesn't care any more, Barnaky's content to shove you in a corner, and Babs is a serial kleptomaniac. If I leave, then you'll start selling tech to raiders again."
One week of patrol with the new recruits, then Bunker Gamma for a report.
Things could be going better. But that's the price of success.
Why I fear the ocean.
Loving this LP.
Steam: Elvenshae // PSN: Elvenshae // WotC: Elvenshae
Wilds of Aladrion: [https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/comment/43159014/#Comment_43159014]Ellandryn[/url]
Namely, 2/3 of them.