GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
"I'm an ectoengineer, not a corponumerologist!" With no helm her retort isn't as biting, her voice thin and high. She faces the ramshackle array and begins inputting the outlines for a new logogram.
In unfamiliar territory, she decides to incorporate Jouret's jagged cerament seal, hopefully forking the souls toward the Last Gatesmen. "Glory, I need that central area clear!" She shouts over her shoulder without looking, certain the living statue would handle the task with gusto.
-- @Glazius not sure if I need a roll for the logographic stuff @Wildwood to expand on what you suggested earlier, Koba probably throws tasks at Glory that seem onerous to her (fighting some mooks, getting ontop of a spire) because Glory just seems so excited to have a go.
Glory hears a call to action as he engages the skeleton in a deadly tango, a battle of life and... not life.
He turns the skeleton and himself some, looking over the central area, trying to get a sense of what it is that Koba wants him to do.
--
@Glazius - I think I need a recap of what's where. Are us party members all up on the outer walkway, Ajax and Glory at about 2:00, and Xeno and Koba close to 9:00? And the center pit is full of moshing headless zombies and giant glass tubes, some containing creatures in jelly, with stairs up to the outer walkway at 3:00?
I guess the core question is, looking at what's where, and knowing his own capabilities, what is Glory likely to think Koba means by "clear the central area"? (Is there a roll for "tactics telephone"? Roll +bond?)
Also, this seems like a good spot to use Plan of Action.
Hey all. Sorry about the lack of posts. Haven't lost this, just the aforementioned conference has really drained my batteries. I'll do what I can to get a post up tonight after I get back from work. Sorry for the delay.
At the north end of the room (12:00) is that projected drawing table thingy and the inanimate form of the yellow skeleton. Something about Mr. Yellow was allowing the table to function and it sits, quiet. It was never hooked into the logographic array and presumably served other purposes.
Coming around to the east end of the room, at 2:00 there's a tunnel blocked off by some light that has decided not to move. Against that light is a blue skeleton grappler (unarmored) that was about to stand up when Xeno rayed it one and it went down instead.
At 3:00 is the other skeleton grappler too, which Xeno also managed to tag, and that managed to back it away from Glory and Ajax.
Ajax, you get maced. As in, the blue skeleton macer (heavily armored) hits you with a mace.
Geth, roll 1d8-2 for mace impact damage (after armor)
This skeleton's a pretty good fighter - doesn't have obvious tells, takes care not to overextend, that kind of thing. But then you probably knew that already.
Glory, your path down to the center is as clear as can be expected. Let's wait a moment to talk about it, though.
At 4:00 are two skeleton swordians (lightly armored). They've retreated into the exit tunnel amid all the chaos that we'll talk about in just a moment. They're waiting for something -- a skeleton grappler ran down that tunnel shortly after the battle was joined.
At 6:00 is Xeno, who caused a decent part of the chaos we're going to talk about in just a moment. Also there are about 20 tubes with bodies suspended in them. 6 of them are Aspirants. 4 of those are the Aspirants who were headed to Ashcrown but died trying, presumably to these skeletons or skeleton-adjacent forces? Also there's the pile of soil and rubble that was your way in and now blocks your way out.
At 9:00 are the controls for the logographic array. One red skeleton logographist and one red skeleton scrivener are downed here. Koba, this is presumably where you're heading back to, in order to get this whole thing rolling.
In the center of the room is the work area - bodies, tubes, various fluids, slabs, and those squat servitors, with some kind of logogram plate where their necks and heads would be. As an act of desperation that may or may not have been what it actually intended, the other red skeleton scrivener (now heavily trampled) marred one of the servitors' headplates, sending black fracture lines all across its body and sending it berserk. Apparently this is like a contagion for the servitors, spread by touch or when an inanimate berserk servitor bursts into a cloud of black dust.
Say, there are still two berserk servitors out there, aren't there? I wonder what kind of mischief they've gotten up to.
Geth, roll 3d3-4 for berserker headcount.
Ah, looks like they've picked up one more so far.
But this is still where the logographs are going to materialize. Glory, there are all manner of detritus lying about to help a daring young statue get-- well, there's a particular ring carved in the center of the floor. That's as good a place as any to look to get clear.
Oh, and the roof is losing its pits and scars and getting a nice coat of paint, and mounting bolts are getting snipped in two as the stone youthens, causing the array to fall apart.
Koba, yes, using that shard of stone will help. In fact, it'll help orthogonally to what any of your buddies could do to help. You could be rolling 4d6k2 + int. Glory, Xeno, if either of you have a bond to spare for Koba, this might be important, because here's the result table.
On a 12+, pick 1.
On a 10-11, pick 2.
On a 7-9, pick 3.
If you still manage a 6, enjoy the XP, and all 4:
The process is slow to set up.
The process is slow to run.
The process will actually spit its results out somewhere other than that stone circle.
You will end up owing the Last Gatesmen in general and Jouret, the Bride of Stone, in particular for this.
Xeno sent a wave of Entropic energy towards the central area, in an effort the help clear it out before Glory entered the fray.
Xeno saw Koba juggling too many possibilities, and was all too willing to offer esoteric advice. “Koba, the fabric has been warped too far to reverse. But if you used the errant temporal energies instead, the proper path will be revealed!”
--
Adding and tapping the following bond to aid Koba: Koba knows the secret to my power.
Also tapping my alignment to directly aid another, to try and help Glory clear the center.
Geth roll 3d6k2+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 1d8+1d4-2 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, messy (+1d4 damage) and area (-2 dmg) to try and hit all the enemies in the center before Glory goes in.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'The GM removes a nonrange tag of their choice, and you deal -1 damage.'
Xeno, we do follow a "play the roll as it lies" policy, so consider this question to have been asked before you rolled: given that the servitors can turn other servitors into berserkers by touching them with the black fractured tracers that's taking over their bodies, are you sure you want to add that "messy" tag?
Granted the result would do no damage, but even so I thought I would ask.
GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
edited August 2016
Sweat begins to bead on Koba's exposed brow as she works the logographic controls to form something around Jouret's shard. She winces at Xeno's obtuse advice- but wait! the proper path, of course! By looping and threading a contiguous equation she could somehow...
--
Alright let's do this.
Geth, roll 4d6k2+2 for Logoprogramming
Ok, time is of the essence (NO PUNS XENO), so I will pick: Owe the Last Gatesman/Jouret; and results will be spit out somewhere other than the stone circle.
You pop free of the skeleton just fine, Glory, but you don't manage to knock it off-balance enough to dissuade it from following you. Or turning to Ajax. We'll see how that goes.
Meanwhile, Xeno has kind of... gathered the time in the work area up into the center of it? Like it was fabric? Or maybe a sandpile? Let's assume that makes sense and say that somebody, say, a dashing young statue with a gift for matters of daring-do, could drop in from a height and be able to clear that center circle out with a quickness, doing the work of minutes in only seconds of time as viewed from the outside. Of course, the rest of the work area would wind up being a shambles, but it's not like that's important, right?
Koba, you have completed your calculations and seen that your crew have done their usual stellar job of anticipating your needs and acting accordingly.
So I'm offering you a choice: you can handle this like people, or you can handle it like monsters.
---
Here is how you can handle it like monsters:
Xeno can give a glimpse of destiny. Glory can be more than stone, which in this case provides some measure of additional destiny. Added together, Xeno would roll 3d6k2 + his Destiny, which currently stands at -1. Something would happen based on the result of that. Even a 6- might not end up being so bad and you'd all get experience for it.
Unfortunately, you don't have much to contribute to that approach, other than making the choice to leave it to fate.
Here is how you can handle it like people:
Each of you would roll 2d6, plus a number of d6 equal to the bonds you have, right now, with the other two. You all may write one in this last second if it would be valid. Xeno is currently also Etana for purposes of being a person you have a bond with.
Now, I haven't been keeping too careful track, but if you had, say, one bond with Glory, one with Xeno, and one with Etana, you would be rolling 5d6.
From your dice you will pick two to keep for yourself - don't add anything, though. This is graded on the conventional scale, and you want to shoot for 7 to partially dodge the blowback and 10 to get off scott-free. You will also pick a die to contribute to the central task of getting a space cleared out in and with a reasonable time. All 3 d6s will apply to the total, though again, nothing added. This is graded tough, and a 7 will be a qualified success, a 10 a reasonable compromise, and a 12 a flawless victory. All three of you can wait until everyone's rolled their dice to decide how to assign things.
All results, both of solving it like monsters and solving it like people, are final. "Like people" has some angel-shaped potential in the setup for it, at least.
Make your choice, Koba, and tag the others when you're done.
@Glazius I believe my Destiny is at 0, You said it should be 2 minus my Paradox from my intro timeline edit move, which gave me 2 Paradox. Unless it changed for some other reason.
Also, does Xeno get to count Etana's bonds (2+Xeno's) to Glory and Koba, or only his own (2 after I add a Bond to Glory)
@Boozer Ah, right, sorry. I was going back and forth on that for a while and forgot what I settled on, thanks for spotting me. So just a flat 3d6k2 then.
The thing, though, about Xeno as the Wonderworker and bonds in general is that you're limited to the number of slots you start out with. You're not as connected to the party as a Lantern might be, so if you're willing to completely lock up your bond slots until the session's over (and spoiler warning, the grappler who ran off down 4 o'clock is probably going to keep this thing humming for a little while longer yet) you can be bonded by Etana's declared slots in addition to the one you've declared so far.
Ajax grimaced as the mace hit home. He staggered back a bit, a sharp pain slowly fading to dull as his armor and ultimately, his torso, took the impact.
Around him the others yelled, but his attention was focused now solely on the large skeleton. The monster was careful not to leave itself with an obvious opening, but the aWeaponmaster was very good experienced in finding openings where they weren't thought to exist.
--
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Hack and Slash
Spending 1 hold (from Battle Instinct) to find a way to use the environment to my advantage
Ajax, let me tell you something about a wall made out of light that's decided to stand still. To any sense except touch it looks like the open tunnel mouth that it was before Glory did his statue-magic copy thing.
Let me also tell you something about a guy who needs to rely on his sense of touch to find the walls. He is generally worse at melee combat than a guy who can just eyeball things.
So basically what I'm saying is, if you can maneuver this guy against the light-wall, he will be rolling 2d8l1 - that's lowest of 2d8 - as his base damage die as long as that condition persists.
And you can deal -1d6 damage or eat an attack (at the lowered damage value) to pull that off right now.
Ajax studied his opponent carefully, a step here, a slight pause there, each action was meant to observe the reaction he got. And then, a small potential opening. The Weaponmaster feigned to the left and actually struck right, bringing his sword above his head to strike downward.
As he did, however, another opening appeared. The skeleton was off balance and a well placed kick would send it into Glory's light wall. The downside, his sword strike wouldn't strike as hard, and he would certainly do less damage in his strike.
--
Take the less damage option.
Geth, roll 1d6
Edit: Geth I love you.
1d61 [1d6=1]
AustinP0027 on
0
Options
GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
Okay, so... I had a bond with Etana, which carries over to Xeno, at least for now? And the Koba-Glory dynamic that we've been working out sounds very much (from Glory's perspective) like Koba realizes just how great I am. So that's two bonds, and I'm rolling... 4d6?
Geth roll 4d6 for Team Power Activate
Post-Roll: Looks like I can contribute at least a 5, or a 6 if it's needed.
Ok, Xeno will be bonded by Etana's 2 declared slots in addition to the 1 Xeno has already declared with Koba. @Glazius , if you meant Xeno could also declare one with Glory as well, let me know, and I'll roll one extra.
I'd like to get a 12+ on the team roll, but if possible I'd like to get a 10 for myself since I'm down to 8 hp.
Geth roll 5d6 for Team building exercise
Post-Roll: I will contribute a 4, or a 5 if it's needed to get a 12+ on the Team effort.
If all of us took 10+ for ourselves, that only leaves 11 for the team roll. (2+5+4).
If at least one of us takes only 7+ for ourselves, We can get 12+ for the team roll. (6+5+4 if Grog takes 7), (2+6+4 if wildwood takes 9), or (2+5+5 if Boozer takes 9).
My vote would be to go for the 12+ team roll. I only have 8 hp, but I'm willing to take the potential hit of Grog or wildwood aren't. Not sure where they are HP wise, if that matters.
Edit - I know Koba had a bond with Etana and Xeno before this roll, could Koba create a bond with Glory to get an extra die roll? Might be too late but I thought I would mention it
Well, let's get the easy part out of the way first.
Ajax, you've got the baddest-looking skeleton with its back to a wall. They also serve who only stand and keep their friends from getting their entropy locally increased through various forms of applied metallurgy, and all that.
Anyway, while they're busy trying to do something in the scrum you got yourself out of, you notice the other skeleton grappler is edging into your blind spot, trying to get its presumed boss out of the fix you've put him in. What are you doing?
"Attacking mercilessly to try and kill the boss" is, as always, an option.
---
Now let's talk about the center. As the logogram starts to materialize wildly off its expected point of origin, Koba tries to steer Glory and Xeno toward the clean-up job she actually needs rather than the clean-up job the environment suggests.
We begin with Xeno, who does a little multimodal reflection sorting.
I mean, I don't know exactly what to call it. Envision the vectors that are collecting the time into the center of the room as kind of a cone of sticks, or clock hands if you'd rather. A teepee of clock hands, possibly. What you're doing is pulling those sticks apart and then using them to build... a wreath or a nest, maybe? Basically scattering small pockets of fast action Glory can take throughout the work area, to set up a series of collisions that will clear the area Koba actually needs to be cleared.
Glory, are you at all familiar with table stickball or, as it might be called elsewhere, pocket billiards? Because that's basically what you're doing. Sliding a slab or rolling a tube or something along a vector of slowed time and leaping away before you can see what the ultimate result of the shot is going to be.
And it's not that this isn't impressive, but, you know, you guys already know how awesome you are and this whole affair is going largely as planned. So let's jump to the part that isn't.
---
So, Koba. Trying to reverse-engineer a logogram of unknown construction and ultimate unknown function using an array that's actively falling apart under a serious time constraint, while issuing commands, or possibly highly authoritative friendly requests, to your teammates.
Typical Restday, I know, I know. But I'll level with you, this isn't easy. It's bad enough that the only place you can get the necessary resolution is outside the actual intended output destination so you're having to frameshift things but for a bunch of people working with technology way above their pay grade this whole soul-trapping logogram is proving really tough to understand. You guess that next you'll have to
sever the thread of memory, the last remnant of attachment to the physical form
right, cut the corporeality constructs, and then
the soul knows where its true home is, the path only needs to be clear
right, right, if you can just drop the total power of this whole thing you could probably just rely on those weren't your thoughts.
You look down at the controls. The shard of the cerement seal you wired into them, hoping to do something constructive with it later, has started to glow in a way that stones generally don't.
So, you remember a little while back when you dropped that giant skeleton off at Imscatha Tor and Jouret, Bride of Stone, went through this whole rigmarole about taking ownership of it while apparently dictating the specifics of the process to an unseen recorder?
You suspect you may have found it.
Now, I'll be clear here: she is not actually describing the problem in front of you in anything but extremely general terms and you are using her odd narration of receiving the bones as a welcome source of inspiration rather than an instruction booklet. Still and all you are not the first freebooter to wonder what the hell is actually up with the Last Gatesmen and you will not be the last.
Also there is one part where things get a little bit more literally applicable than is usual and, well, Jouret had four arms. You don't.
...well. You could.
See, the thing about the Conqueror is that it's capable of being more autonomous than you're willing to let it be right now, mostly because you haven't managed to completely beat the hard-coded loyalties out of it. You could certainly let it off the chain in order to achieve the necessary effect here, but, well, you'd also be focusing on something else at the time and it would almost certainly overstep its bounds. Or you could figure out how to bring the logogram to a point where two arms would be sufficient to input the necessary changes.
Basically what I'm saying, Koba, is: pick a countdown to advance to 6 -- the doom of the Aspirants or the fate of the Stygian Conqueror.
---
Either way, Glory, Xeno, two things. First, you've got a nice space clear for the logogram to take shape in but the berserk servitors are still roaming the lab floor looking to mess it up. Xeno, I'll say right now, tagging one with a time-elemental thingummy is going to freeze its decomposition if you do lethal damage so you don't have to worry about it popping and setting other servitors off. There are still like half a dozen of them trying to do their jobs too, even in the middle of all of this - nobody's told them different.
Also the skeleton swordians have looked at each other, and then back down the tunnel, and then reluctantly stepped into the room even as the array continues to snap loose and rain down, because really the shenanigans quotient is getting way too high in here.
Also, also, somebody's going to have to get Mohammed to that mountain or vice-versa and connect the logogram to the already-processed bodies. Somehow.
Xeno assessed the situation, and decided that the continued presence of the infected servitors would disrupt what was shaping up to be quite an impressive chronopattern. They needed to be dealt with, immediately.
Xeno threw out both his hands, sending a ray of Entropic energy towards two of the corrupted servitors in the center.
--
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 1d8-1 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, Elemental(time) and two targets (-1 dmg) to try and hit two of the three berserk servitors in the center.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'You feel drained, take -1 ongoing to INT until you have a few minutes to clear your head.’
GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
edited August 2016
Koba sets the suit's arms to work while she pulls her lithe frame halfway out through the neck. Though the proportions don't quite match Jouret's symmetry, it is a close enough match.
--
I'll loosen the Conqueror's leash a little and advance it's countdown to 6.
Would it be possible to use my heritage move Command the Undead to make the non-berserk servitors connect the logogram to the processed bodies?
Regardless of what was happening around him, or how important the work actually was, Ajax still had one goal. Make sure that the big skeleton in front of him wasn't standing all that much longer. Sure, he noted that the skeleton that had grabbed Glory was now moving back in his direction, but between the two, the big guy was packing a larger punch, and therefore, he needed the Weaponmaster's full attention.
Lowering his shoulder, Ajax braced his sword forward with the weight of his body behind it as he charged into the larger skeleton. Hopefully a strong blow here would cripple the monster, even if it just gave him some breathing room to deal with the skeleton minion that was circling the Weaponmaster in an attempt to preventing exactly what he was trying to do right now.
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Hack 'n Slash
Geth, roll 1d10+1 for Damage (if it hits)
--
Ugh, Geth. We had a such good thing going there....
Well, Ajax, if someone else wants to angel you, you can try to get +1d6 damage out of that? (if Koba, Xeno, and Glory post without doin' it, you're stuck, though it's just 50/50 odds that they'll be able to make it better)
Failing that at least the Unblemished Sword has armor-piercing. I'll wait on ultimate consequences until we know how well it went.
---
Koba, you're certainly able to give the servitors a simple order. "Unpack the 20 bodies at the 6 o'clock wall and bring them to this location" is not a simple order, but "go to the 6 o'clock wall and await further instructions" certainly would be. If somebody down there were able to cause those servitors to replay their previous actions but in reverse order and at high speed, that would certainly get most of the bodies unpacked. Or you could manually reprogram them for the task at hand. It wouldn't be that hard.
Xeno, you knock enough time out of the two servitors you pin with energy bolts that they won't be destructively decaying any time soon.
Of course, this makes you a priority target for the pair of swordian skeletons that are currently charging for the south wall. If Koba shows up that'll just make the environment slightly more target-rich.
Xeno thought the addition of two frozen servitors really improved the aesthetics, but before he could enjoy the vista, two skeletal swordsman began charging in his direction.
Xeno aim shifted slightly, sending the Entropic rays towards the both of them.
--
If Koba gives the order to bring the normal servitors over, I could cast a spell to reverse their actions and bring the bodies over, possibly even focusing on the 6 Aspirants I’ve identified?
I’ll assume that I need Koba to bring them over and tell me that we need the Aspirants there before I cast.
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 1d8-1 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, Elemental(time), and two targets (-1 dmg) to try and slow/kill the two charging swordian skeletons.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'The GM removes a nonrange tag of their choice, and you deal -1 damage.'
Edit- guess it's good I went for time and not messy
"Hang in there, Ajax! We have a plan, but we must hold them off!" Ajax needs education on this heroing business, and I will provide it whether he wants it or not.
Glory stays away from Xeno's otherworldly blade, and looks for his chance to jump in and swash some skeletal buckles.
--
@Glazius - would Parry work for trying to hold off two skeletons at once? Or would Defend be a better fit?
Ajax, 4 + 1 + 2 is still 7, so at least Glory doesn't make it any worse.
Unfortunately the macer actually steps into your blow to try and get itself away from the wall and the blade worms its way through its armor rather off-center. You're now tangled up with the macer - it smells like armor polish and empty rooms - and then that grappler insinuates itself and starts pawing at the Unblemished Sword, trying to break it free of your hold. You're all still collectively near or slamming up against the wall of light at various points during this melee. What are you doing?
---
Glory, you are in on the consequences, so let's just say that as you demonstrate proper form for a fearless heroic charge one of the swordians lashes out at you just before Xeno's rays connect, slowing it down, turning your artful dodge away and back again into a bit of an own goal, slashwise.
Geth, roll 1d6 for backoff bladeswing.
Also, Defend is focused around what you're defending and constrained by how much hold you have rather than any given number of opponents. Parry is limited to what you can lock blades with. Now, you could definitely sucker these dudes into both positioning themselves to catch themselves on your sword, and you'd be rolling probably +cha with advantage (remember, that's 3d6k2) thanks to their slowed reactions, and a normal Parry thereafter. If you wanted to do that, I mean.
---
Xeno, as part of your Cosmic Channel you could certainly focus on only those servitors who specifically loaded one of the six Aspirants.
GrogMy sword is only steelin a useful shape.Registered Userregular
"Line UP you filthy maggot-ridden corpses! Against the wall, DOUBLE time!" While she never enjoyed sounding like her father, Koba had to admit it was somewhat intoxicating to command her enemies. She tried not to think about how shouting would even affect headless undead.
"Xeno, let's try reversal again!"
--
Cool, I'll spend 1 heritage hold to command them to line up by the processed bodies and await further instruction. @Boozer work your magic.
Xeno's nodded as his perceptions shifted and slowed, focusing on the threads that connected the approaching servitors to the Aspirants. He gathered the threads up in a motion almost too quick for eye. The Wonderworker looped and knotted the servitor's threads, spooling their past into their future. Then he smoothed the knots and loops out, as if they had never been there. Finally, plucking them like lute strings, Xeno set the threads humming faster.
--
I’ll use Cosmic Channel to cause all the servitors who specifically loaded one of the six Aspirants to replay their previous actions but in reverse order and at high speed, in order to get the Aspirants into the correct position quickly.
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Channel
For 10+ I’ll choose: Your work has unforseen side effects, and might draw unwanted attention.
If I get a 7-9 I’ll add: You feel drained. You take -1 ongoing to Int until you have a few moments to clear your head.
Between a skeleton and a larger skeleton. That's kind of like between a rock and a hard place, even if it doesn't roll off the tongue as well. The Weaponmaster wished that he could say this was the first time he had gotten himself stuck in the middle of a melee. With his sword stuck in the armor of the larger skeleton, Ajax was now having to fend off an attack from the smaller skeleton that was trying to take his sword away from him. The thought of someone taking his sword away ignited a new kind of rage within him, there were things that you just didn't do, and trying to take away a Weasponmaster's sword has to be on the top of that list.
And so, Ajax tensed his legs and flung himself to the side, grasping onto his sword (which is currently lodged within a skeleton) in an attempt to bring the big skeleton to the ground, and hopefully force the smaller skeleton to lose his grip.
--
Edit: Geth, I'm beginning to think you don't like me.
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Defy Danger (do a barrel roll!)
"Face me, you skinless scalawags!" Glory tries to draw the skeletons away from Xeno with fancy flourishes and wordplay. "I've got a bone to pick with you!"
Okay, so, Xeno, here's the deal. First of all, you got your 12 so the countdown doesn't move, well done. Second of all, as the servitors line up along the south wall you see that there remain 10 of them. Each takes responsibility for 2 of the filled tubes there, of which there are 20 in total.
Five hundred programmers each trying to code the next Dwarf Fortress all just raised their fists to the sky in rage and they have no idea why.
Anyway, you're able to direct the six servitors who are responsible for the Aspirants through their paces at high speed backwards, meaning they move the heavy tubes with deliberate grace and careful precision at kind of a slow jogging speed? Like, not slow enough that you can call it walking but not fast enough to be in a hurry. For no particular reason we'll call them servitors numbers 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 10.
But it comes at a cost. The other four servitors resume their originally programmed duties at a similar accelerated speed and pace. They are intelligent not enough to bump into or otherwise impede each other in their intended duties --
...does anybody else hear a distant screaming? It kind of sounds like... "pathing optimization"?
-- and, uh, let me just check my numbers here but I think that 3 minus 2 equals 1, so there's one remaining black-traced servitor zipping around out there with manic speed. It may be possible that left alone it will eventually crack under the spreading corruption and waft a choking black conversion cloud over a portion of the area at high speeds.
(Also when dealing damage to it unless you are similarly time-upsampled roll twice and take the worse result. Xeno, this is an effect you can try to give people with Cosmic Channel without risking distorting the array. You or anyone could also just try to spot the thing the customary way and fire off a shot.)
So let's play a little card game, shall we? I've shuffled the cards from 10 through ace of each suit and dealt them out in 10 piles of 2 apiece. The jacks, queens, and kings of Hearts and Diamonds represent the Aspirants, of which one pair is unrelated to the message but you don't know which. The jacks, queens, and kings of Spades and Clubs are available "understudies" for the Hearts and Diamonds court cards, respectively. who can be reprogrammed to take up the slack. And of course there's always the option of lifting and moving the heavy things yourselves.
But why even talk about understudies or offer you the option? For that matter, why exactly 10?
It's so that if something unfortunate happens, like if a falling spire were to impale one of them--
Geth, roll 1d10 to decide who lives and who dies
--another one can pick up the slack. Xeno, when a Heart or Diamond courtier dies you will know who their understudy is, but not until then.
So before you get started doing the real work of engaging that corruptive speedball or the two sworders, I'm going to offer you two completely blind choices because I'm a cruel bastard. In the course of processing their loads, your designated servitors will act twice in order, all playing one of their cards, and when they've all played one they'll all line up to play the other. So, low numbers to high, or high to low? And top card first, or bottom card first?
(If for example you selected high to low, bottom to top, 10 would play its bottom card, then 9 its bottom card, then 6 its bottom card, then 4, 3, and 2 playing their bottom cards, then 10 would play its top card and you'd go around the horn again. Since there are 12 cards in play here I'm not going to do something like pretend an entire round of actions on your part is only worth one card, they'll come out in twos and threes and occasionally fours.)
Geth was feeling merciful, but I'll tell you what anybody's cards left are when they die. Number 8's top card was the Queen of Spades, and its bottom card was the 10 of Hearts.
---
Glory, the skeletons are not convinced that you're really the biggest threat here. Now, if you were to pull off something impressive and contemptuous, like, say, hurling your rapier like a dart and pulling one skeleton's sash clean off its body, pinning it in the wall? That would get both skeletons to come at you. But as it is you'll only get one.
(You can if you like invent your own flashy trick that gets your rapier away from you. You can just pull it off, no rolling but also no damage. You will still have a blade to meet the skeletons with -- I checked.
Or, don't, and just parry one.)
---
Ajax, this is not your first friendly wrestlebrawl over the pie-eating trophy/all-out life and death struggle for the most important thing in the world, and you can see this breaking one of three ways. So take your pick.
Way 1: extreme close quarters combat. You shift the brawl to bring everyone up against the wall of lazy light. While you're all in XCQC you're all on the same relative combatant level to each other so you can still Hack and Slash as normal, but you'll roll twice and take the worst damage result as well. Until one of the skeletons stops moving, then we'll recalibrate.
Way 2: total skeletonic reversal. You end up backing the grappler skeleton into the wall of light leaving the macer between you and the work surface. Your sword is free and you are free to wield it, and the grappler (who doesn't really have much in the way of a damage rating) will act at a disadvantage, which is something I'll explain on the off-chance it becomes relevant. But the macer is free and if he bolts to mess around with your friends you're probably at least going to be delayed a little in catching him up.
Way 3: the terrible way for total losers that everyone hates. You throw the grappler skeleton down into the work surface where he's probably going to get trampled or something. You deal full damage to the skeleton macer and leave him against the wall of light. And then you let the Unblemished Sword go.
Xeno watched the headless servants as they played out their improved destinies, when the dervish of the remaining corrupted servitor brought his attention back to the current moment.
The Wonderworker did his best to match his movement's to that of the flickering target, and let his Entropic Ray fly.
--
This was a tricky one, let me know if I've misunderstood you anywhere @Glazius.
I will choose High numbers to low, bottom card first.
My logic may be flawed, but since we've already gotten lucky with an 8, high rolls have a higher chance of hitting an Aspirant carrying a servitor, so we want to get them done first.
Since We've lost the 10 of hearts, if we go for bottom cards first we have a slightly improved chance of hitting a Jack instead of a 10, with a 50/50 shot of getting a suit we want.
If I read the post right you wanted me to roll twice and take the worst for the damage roll, not the attack roll, right?
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 2d8l2 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, Elemental(time) to keep the corruption from spreading, and Peircing 2 to the last berserk servitor in the center.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'You feel drained, take -1 ongoing to INT until you have a few minutes to clear your head.’
Edit - Sorry I messed up the roll for 2d8 pick the lower roll, it should have been 2d8l1 not 2d8l2. But I'll def take a 7 with 2 piercing.
Only thing you can do when you are in a hole....dig it deeper!
Edit: Geth...that's not what I meant.
--
Ajax wrestled with the two skeletons in close quarters. It was suboptimal for true combat, but he wasn't about to let go of his sword, and he wasn't willing to take a chance that these two go and interfere in whatever else the others had going on. These two were his responsibility, and it was time to finish that responsibility. The small skeleton had to go first, as he was more of an annoyance than a threat in the Weaponmaster's eyes.
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Hack 'n Slash (attacking small skeleton)
In case of dmg:
Geth, roll 1d10+1
Geth, roll 1d10+1
Posts
In unfamiliar territory, she decides to incorporate Jouret's jagged cerament seal, hopefully forking the souls toward the Last Gatesmen. "Glory, I need that central area clear!" She shouts over her shoulder without looking, certain the living statue would handle the task with gusto.
--
@Glazius not sure if I need a roll for the logographic stuff
@Wildwood to expand on what you suggested earlier, Koba probably throws tasks at Glory that seem onerous to her (fighting some mooks, getting ontop of a spire) because Glory just seems so excited to have a go.
He turns the skeleton and himself some, looking over the central area, trying to get a sense of what it is that Koba wants him to do.
--
@Glazius - I think I need a recap of what's where. Are us party members all up on the outer walkway, Ajax and Glory at about 2:00, and Xeno and Koba close to 9:00? And the center pit is full of moshing headless zombies and giant glass tubes, some containing creatures in jelly, with stairs up to the outer walkway at 3:00?
I guess the core question is, looking at what's where, and knowing his own capabilities, what is Glory likely to think Koba means by "clear the central area"? (Is there a roll for "tactics telephone"? Roll +bond?)
Also, this seems like a good spot to use Plan of Action.
Thanks!
At the north end of the room (12:00) is that projected drawing table thingy and the inanimate form of the yellow skeleton. Something about Mr. Yellow was allowing the table to function and it sits, quiet. It was never hooked into the logographic array and presumably served other purposes.
Coming around to the east end of the room, at 2:00 there's a tunnel blocked off by some light that has decided not to move. Against that light is a blue skeleton grappler (unarmored) that was about to stand up when Xeno rayed it one and it went down instead.
At 3:00 is the other skeleton grappler too, which Xeno also managed to tag, and that managed to back it away from Glory and Ajax.
Ajax, you get maced. As in, the blue skeleton macer (heavily armored) hits you with a mace.
Geth, roll 1d8-2 for mace impact damage (after armor)
This skeleton's a pretty good fighter - doesn't have obvious tells, takes care not to overextend, that kind of thing. But then you probably knew that already.
Glory, your path down to the center is as clear as can be expected. Let's wait a moment to talk about it, though.
At 4:00 are two skeleton swordians (lightly armored). They've retreated into the exit tunnel amid all the chaos that we'll talk about in just a moment. They're waiting for something -- a skeleton grappler ran down that tunnel shortly after the battle was joined.
At 6:00 is Xeno, who caused a decent part of the chaos we're going to talk about in just a moment. Also there are about 20 tubes with bodies suspended in them. 6 of them are Aspirants. 4 of those are the Aspirants who were headed to Ashcrown but died trying, presumably to these skeletons or skeleton-adjacent forces? Also there's the pile of soil and rubble that was your way in and now blocks your way out.
At 9:00 are the controls for the logographic array. One red skeleton logographist and one red skeleton scrivener are downed here. Koba, this is presumably where you're heading back to, in order to get this whole thing rolling.
In the center of the room is the work area - bodies, tubes, various fluids, slabs, and those squat servitors, with some kind of logogram plate where their necks and heads would be. As an act of desperation that may or may not have been what it actually intended, the other red skeleton scrivener (now heavily trampled) marred one of the servitors' headplates, sending black fracture lines all across its body and sending it berserk. Apparently this is like a contagion for the servitors, spread by touch or when an inanimate berserk servitor bursts into a cloud of black dust.
Say, there are still two berserk servitors out there, aren't there? I wonder what kind of mischief they've gotten up to.
Geth, roll 3d3-4 for berserker headcount.
Ah, looks like they've picked up one more so far.
But this is still where the logographs are going to materialize. Glory, there are all manner of detritus lying about to help a daring young statue get-- well, there's a particular ring carved in the center of the floor. That's as good a place as any to look to get clear.
Oh, and the roof is losing its pits and scars and getting a nice coat of paint, and mounting bolts are getting snipped in two as the stone youthens, causing the array to fall apart.
Koba, yes, using that shard of stone will help. In fact, it'll help orthogonally to what any of your buddies could do to help. You could be rolling 4d6k2 + int. Glory, Xeno, if either of you have a bond to spare for Koba, this might be important, because here's the result table.
On a 12+, pick 1.
On a 10-11, pick 2.
On a 7-9, pick 3.
If you still manage a 6, enjoy the XP, and all 4:
---
Geez, Geth. You like big numbers on that d8.
tags: @AustinP0027 @Boozer @wildwood @Grog
Xeno saw Koba juggling too many possibilities, and was all too willing to offer esoteric advice. “Koba, the fabric has been warped too far to reverse. But if you used the errant temporal energies instead, the proper path will be revealed!”
--
Adding and tapping the following bond to aid Koba: Koba knows the secret to my power.
Also tapping my alignment to directly aid another, to try and help Glory clear the center.
Geth roll 3d6k2+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 1d8+1d4-2 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, messy (+1d4 damage) and area (-2 dmg) to try and hit all the enemies in the center before Glory goes in.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'The GM removes a nonrange tag of their choice, and you deal -1 damage.'
PSN: Boozer_777
Granted the result would do no damage, but even so I thought I would ask.
---
Tags: @Boozer
Bah, I hadn't even thought of that, good point. In that case, if it's ok with you I would have changed Messy to Elemental(time).
PSN: Boozer_777
--
Alright let's do this.
Geth, roll 4d6k2+2 for Logoprogramming
Ok, time is of the essence (NO PUNS XENO), so I will pick: Owe the Last Gatesman/Jouret; and results will be spit out somewhere other than the stone circle.
Glory tries to push away from the grappling skeleton, hoping not to break in on Ajax's duel.
--
Geth roll 2d6 for Defy Danger
Meanwhile, Xeno has kind of... gathered the time in the work area up into the center of it? Like it was fabric? Or maybe a sandpile? Let's assume that makes sense and say that somebody, say, a dashing young statue with a gift for matters of daring-do, could drop in from a height and be able to clear that center circle out with a quickness, doing the work of minutes in only seconds of time as viewed from the outside. Of course, the rest of the work area would wind up being a shambles, but it's not like that's important, right?
Koba, you have completed your calculations and seen that your crew have done their usual stellar job of anticipating your needs and acting accordingly.
So I'm offering you a choice: you can handle this like people, or you can handle it like monsters.
---
Here is how you can handle it like monsters:
Xeno can give a glimpse of destiny. Glory can be more than stone, which in this case provides some measure of additional destiny. Added together, Xeno would roll 3d6k2 + his Destiny, which currently stands at -1. Something would happen based on the result of that. Even a 6- might not end up being so bad and you'd all get experience for it.
Unfortunately, you don't have much to contribute to that approach, other than making the choice to leave it to fate.
Here is how you can handle it like people:
Each of you would roll 2d6, plus a number of d6 equal to the bonds you have, right now, with the other two. You all may write one in this last second if it would be valid. Xeno is currently also Etana for purposes of being a person you have a bond with.
Now, I haven't been keeping too careful track, but if you had, say, one bond with Glory, one with Xeno, and one with Etana, you would be rolling 5d6.
From your dice you will pick two to keep for yourself - don't add anything, though. This is graded on the conventional scale, and you want to shoot for 7 to partially dodge the blowback and 10 to get off scott-free. You will also pick a die to contribute to the central task of getting a space cleared out in and with a reasonable time. All 3 d6s will apply to the total, though again, nothing added. This is graded tough, and a 7 will be a qualified success, a 10 a reasonable compromise, and a 12 a flawless victory. All three of you can wait until everyone's rolled their dice to decide how to assign things.
All results, both of solving it like monsters and solving it like people, are final. "Like people" has some angel-shaped potential in the setup for it, at least.
Make your choice, Koba, and tag the others when you're done.
---
tags: @Grog
@Glazius I believe my Destiny is at 0, You said it should be 2 minus my Paradox from my intro timeline edit move, which gave me 2 Paradox. Unless it changed for some other reason.
Also, does Xeno get to count Etana's bonds (2+Xeno's) to Glory and Koba, or only his own (2 after I add a Bond to Glory)
PSN: Boozer_777
The thing, though, about Xeno as the Wonderworker and bonds in general is that you're limited to the number of slots you start out with. You're not as connected to the party as a Lantern might be, so if you're willing to completely lock up your bond slots until the session's over (and spoiler warning, the grappler who ran off down 4 o'clock is probably going to keep this thing humming for a little while longer yet) you can be bonded by Etana's declared slots in addition to the one you've declared so far.
Around him the others yelled, but his attention was focused now solely on the large skeleton. The monster was careful not to leave itself with an obvious opening, but the aWeaponmaster was very good experienced in finding openings where they weren't thought to exist.
--
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Hack and Slash
Spending 1 hold (from Battle Instinct) to find a way to use the environment to my advantage
Hit anyways
Geth, roll 1d10+1
Let me also tell you something about a guy who needs to rely on his sense of touch to find the walls. He is generally worse at melee combat than a guy who can just eyeball things.
So basically what I'm saying is, if you can maneuver this guy against the light-wall, he will be rolling 2d8l1 - that's lowest of 2d8 - as his base damage die as long as that condition persists.
And you can deal -1d6 damage or eat an attack (at the lowered damage value) to pull that off right now.
---
tags: @AustinP0027
As he did, however, another opening appeared. The skeleton was off balance and a well placed kick would send it into Glory's light wall. The downside, his sword strike wouldn't strike as hard, and he would certainly do less damage in his strike.
--
Take the less damage option.
Geth, roll 1d6
Edit: Geth I love you.
Let's be people.
Geth, roll 4d6
@Boozer @wildwood roll them bones.
Edit: I'm happy to contribute that 6 and take a 7 for myself.
Okay, so... I had a bond with Etana, which carries over to Xeno, at least for now? And the Koba-Glory dynamic that we've been working out sounds very much (from Glory's perspective) like Koba realizes just how great I am. So that's two bonds, and I'm rolling... 4d6?
Geth roll 4d6 for Team Power Activate
Post-Roll: Looks like I can contribute at least a 5, or a 6 if it's needed.
Ok, Xeno will be bonded by Etana's 2 declared slots in addition to the 1 Xeno has already declared with Koba. @Glazius , if you meant Xeno could also declare one with Glory as well, let me know, and I'll roll one extra.
I'd like to get a 12+ on the team roll, but if possible I'd like to get a 10 for myself since I'm down to 8 hp.
Geth roll 5d6 for Team building exercise
Post-Roll: I will contribute a 4, or a 5 if it's needed to get a 12+ on the Team effort.
PSN: Boozer_777
If Boomer gives a 5, wildwood gives a 5, andGrog gives a 2, it's a perfect pass.
That leaves Grog a 10, wildwood a 11, and Boomer a 11
No, each of us can keep two for ourselves, and give one for the team roll. the rest are discarded.
Grog - 6, 5, 2
wildwood - 6, 5, 4
Boozer - 5, 5, 4
If all of us took 10+ for ourselves, that only leaves 11 for the team roll. (2+5+4).
If at least one of us takes only 7+ for ourselves, We can get 12+ for the team roll. (6+5+4 if Grog takes 7), (2+6+4 if wildwood takes 9), or (2+5+5 if Boozer takes 9).
My vote would be to go for the 12+ team roll. I only have 8 hp, but I'm willing to take the potential hit of Grog or wildwood aren't. Not sure where they are HP wise, if that matters.
Edit - I know Koba had a bond with Etana and Xeno before this roll, could Koba create a bond with Glory to get an extra die roll? Might be too late but I thought I would mention it
PSN: Boozer_777
Sorry, you're right. Didn't read it correctly.
I'm assuming that with Ajax being otherwise occupied, I can't provide a 1d6 reroll here @Glazius ?
As I said, I'm happy to take the 7 in order to have a 12+ team roll. Only hit I've taken is to the suit.
Edit, just so it's clear, I'll keep the 5 and 2 and contribute the 6 to the group.
If it turns out to be a dramatic sacrifice, I promise that Glory will ramp it up with some suitable "Koba! Nooo!" kind of display.
I'll take the 6 and 4, and contribute 5 for the group.
I'll take the 5 and 5, and contribute 4 for the group.
PSN: Boozer_777
Ajax, you've got the baddest-looking skeleton with its back to a wall. They also serve who only stand and keep their friends from getting their entropy locally increased through various forms of applied metallurgy, and all that.
Anyway, while they're busy trying to do something in the scrum you got yourself out of, you notice the other skeleton grappler is edging into your blind spot, trying to get its presumed boss out of the fix you've put him in. What are you doing?
"Attacking mercilessly to try and kill the boss" is, as always, an option.
---
Now let's talk about the center. As the logogram starts to materialize wildly off its expected point of origin, Koba tries to steer Glory and Xeno toward the clean-up job she actually needs rather than the clean-up job the environment suggests.
We begin with Xeno, who does a little multimodal reflection sorting.
I mean, I don't know exactly what to call it. Envision the vectors that are collecting the time into the center of the room as kind of a cone of sticks, or clock hands if you'd rather. A teepee of clock hands, possibly. What you're doing is pulling those sticks apart and then using them to build... a wreath or a nest, maybe? Basically scattering small pockets of fast action Glory can take throughout the work area, to set up a series of collisions that will clear the area Koba actually needs to be cleared.
Glory, are you at all familiar with table stickball or, as it might be called elsewhere, pocket billiards? Because that's basically what you're doing. Sliding a slab or rolling a tube or something along a vector of slowed time and leaping away before you can see what the ultimate result of the shot is going to be.
And it's not that this isn't impressive, but, you know, you guys already know how awesome you are and this whole affair is going largely as planned. So let's jump to the part that isn't.
---
So, Koba. Trying to reverse-engineer a logogram of unknown construction and ultimate unknown function using an array that's actively falling apart under a serious time constraint, while issuing commands, or possibly highly authoritative friendly requests, to your teammates.
Typical Restday, I know, I know. But I'll level with you, this isn't easy. It's bad enough that the only place you can get the necessary resolution is outside the actual intended output destination so you're having to frameshift things but for a bunch of people working with technology way above their pay grade this whole soul-trapping logogram is proving really tough to understand. You guess that next you'll have to
sever the thread of memory, the last remnant of attachment to the physical form
right, cut the corporeality constructs, and then
the soul knows where its true home is, the path only needs to be clear
right, right, if you can just drop the total power of this whole thing you could probably just rely on those weren't your thoughts.
You look down at the controls. The shard of the cerement seal you wired into them, hoping to do something constructive with it later, has started to glow in a way that stones generally don't.
So, you remember a little while back when you dropped that giant skeleton off at Imscatha Tor and Jouret, Bride of Stone, went through this whole rigmarole about taking ownership of it while apparently dictating the specifics of the process to an unseen recorder?
You suspect you may have found it.
Now, I'll be clear here: she is not actually describing the problem in front of you in anything but extremely general terms and you are using her odd narration of receiving the bones as a welcome source of inspiration rather than an instruction booklet. Still and all you are not the first freebooter to wonder what the hell is actually up with the Last Gatesmen and you will not be the last.
Also there is one part where things get a little bit more literally applicable than is usual and, well, Jouret had four arms. You don't.
...well. You could.
See, the thing about the Conqueror is that it's capable of being more autonomous than you're willing to let it be right now, mostly because you haven't managed to completely beat the hard-coded loyalties out of it. You could certainly let it off the chain in order to achieve the necessary effect here, but, well, you'd also be focusing on something else at the time and it would almost certainly overstep its bounds. Or you could figure out how to bring the logogram to a point where two arms would be sufficient to input the necessary changes.
Basically what I'm saying, Koba, is: pick a countdown to advance to 6 -- the doom of the Aspirants or the fate of the Stygian Conqueror.
---
Either way, Glory, Xeno, two things. First, you've got a nice space clear for the logogram to take shape in but the berserk servitors are still roaming the lab floor looking to mess it up. Xeno, I'll say right now, tagging one with a time-elemental thingummy is going to freeze its decomposition if you do lethal damage so you don't have to worry about it popping and setting other servitors off. There are still like half a dozen of them trying to do their jobs too, even in the middle of all of this - nobody's told them different.
Also the skeleton swordians have looked at each other, and then back down the tunnel, and then reluctantly stepped into the room even as the array continues to snap loose and rain down, because really the shenanigans quotient is getting way too high in here.
Also, also, somebody's going to have to get Mohammed to that mountain or vice-versa and connect the logogram to the already-processed bodies. Somehow.
---
tags: @AustinP0027 @Grog @wildwood @Boozer
Xeno assessed the situation, and decided that the continued presence of the infected servitors would disrupt what was shaping up to be quite an impressive chronopattern. They needed to be dealt with, immediately.
Xeno threw out both his hands, sending a ray of Entropic energy towards two of the corrupted servitors in the center.
--
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 1d8-1 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, Elemental(time) and two targets (-1 dmg) to try and hit two of the three berserk servitors in the center.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'You feel drained, take -1 ongoing to INT until you have a few minutes to clear your head.’
PSN: Boozer_777
--
I'll loosen the Conqueror's leash a little and advance it's countdown to 6.
Would it be possible to use my heritage move Command the Undead to make the non-berserk servitors connect the logogram to the processed bodies?
Lowering his shoulder, Ajax braced his sword forward with the weight of his body behind it as he charged into the larger skeleton. Hopefully a strong blow here would cripple the monster, even if it just gave him some breathing room to deal with the skeleton minion that was circling the Weaponmaster in an attempt to preventing exactly what he was trying to do right now.
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Hack 'n Slash
Geth, roll 1d10+1 for Damage (if it hits)
--
Ugh, Geth. We had a such good thing going there....
Failing that at least the Unblemished Sword has armor-piercing. I'll wait on ultimate consequences until we know how well it went.
---
Koba, you're certainly able to give the servitors a simple order. "Unpack the 20 bodies at the 6 o'clock wall and bring them to this location" is not a simple order, but "go to the 6 o'clock wall and await further instructions" certainly would be. If somebody down there were able to cause those servitors to replay their previous actions but in reverse order and at high speed, that would certainly get most of the bodies unpacked. Or you could manually reprogram them for the task at hand. It wouldn't be that hard.
Xeno, you knock enough time out of the two servitors you pin with energy bolts that they won't be destructively decaying any time soon.
Of course, this makes you a priority target for the pair of swordian skeletons that are currently charging for the south wall. If Koba shows up that'll just make the environment slightly more target-rich.
Glory, you may have something to say about that.
---
tags: @AustinP0027 @Grog @Boozer @wildwood
Xeno aim shifted slightly, sending the Entropic rays towards the both of them.
--
If Koba gives the order to bring the normal servitors over, I could cast a spell to reverse their actions and bring the bodies over, possibly even focusing on the 6 Aspirants I’ve identified?
I’ll assume that I need Koba to bring them over and tell me that we need the Aspirants there before I cast.
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 1d8-1 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, Elemental(time), and two targets (-1 dmg) to try and slow/kill the two charging swordian skeletons.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'The GM removes a nonrange tag of their choice, and you deal -1 damage.'
Edit- guess it's good I went for time and not messy
PSN: Boozer_777
Glory stays away from Xeno's otherworldly blade, and looks for his chance to jump in and swash some skeletal buckles.
--
@Glazius - would Parry work for trying to hold off two skeletons at once? Or would Defend be a better fit?
Geth roll 1d6 for Ajax angel
Post-Roll: This is me helping.
Unfortunately the macer actually steps into your blow to try and get itself away from the wall and the blade worms its way through its armor rather off-center. You're now tangled up with the macer - it smells like armor polish and empty rooms - and then that grappler insinuates itself and starts pawing at the Unblemished Sword, trying to break it free of your hold. You're all still collectively near or slamming up against the wall of light at various points during this melee. What are you doing?
---
Glory, you are in on the consequences, so let's just say that as you demonstrate proper form for a fearless heroic charge one of the swordians lashes out at you just before Xeno's rays connect, slowing it down, turning your artful dodge away and back again into a bit of an own goal, slashwise.
Geth, roll 1d6 for backoff bladeswing.
Also, Defend is focused around what you're defending and constrained by how much hold you have rather than any given number of opponents. Parry is limited to what you can lock blades with. Now, you could definitely sucker these dudes into both positioning themselves to catch themselves on your sword, and you'd be rolling probably +cha with advantage (remember, that's 3d6k2) thanks to their slowed reactions, and a normal Parry thereafter. If you wanted to do that, I mean.
---
Xeno, as part of your Cosmic Channel you could certainly focus on only those servitors who specifically loaded one of the six Aspirants.
---
tags: @AustinP0027 @wildwood @Boozer
"Xeno, let's try reversal again!"
--
Cool, I'll spend 1 heritage hold to command them to line up by the processed bodies and await further instruction. @Boozer work your magic.
--
I’ll use Cosmic Channel to cause all the servitors who specifically loaded one of the six Aspirants to replay their previous actions but in reverse order and at high speed, in order to get the Aspirants into the correct position quickly.
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Channel
For 10+ I’ll choose: Your work has unforseen side effects, and might draw unwanted attention.
If I get a 7-9 I’ll add: You feel drained. You take -1 ongoing to Int until you have a few moments to clear your head.
PSN: Boozer_777
And so, Ajax tensed his legs and flung himself to the side, grasping onto his sword (which is currently lodged within a skeleton) in an attempt to bring the big skeleton to the ground, and hopefully force the smaller skeleton to lose his grip.
--
Edit: Geth, I'm beginning to think you don't like me.
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Defy Danger (do a barrel roll!)
--
Geth roll 3d6k2+1 for s-wordplay
Five hundred programmers each trying to code the next Dwarf Fortress all just raised their fists to the sky in rage and they have no idea why.
Anyway, you're able to direct the six servitors who are responsible for the Aspirants through their paces at high speed backwards, meaning they move the heavy tubes with deliberate grace and careful precision at kind of a slow jogging speed? Like, not slow enough that you can call it walking but not fast enough to be in a hurry. For no particular reason we'll call them servitors numbers 2, 3, 4, 6, 9, and 10.
But it comes at a cost. The other four servitors resume their originally programmed duties at a similar accelerated speed and pace. They are intelligent not enough to bump into or otherwise impede each other in their intended duties --
...does anybody else hear a distant screaming? It kind of sounds like... "pathing optimization"?
-- and, uh, let me just check my numbers here but I think that 3 minus 2 equals 1, so there's one remaining black-traced servitor zipping around out there with manic speed. It may be possible that left alone it will eventually crack under the spreading corruption and waft a choking black conversion cloud over a portion of the area at high speeds.
(Also when dealing damage to it unless you are similarly time-upsampled roll twice and take the worse result. Xeno, this is an effect you can try to give people with Cosmic Channel without risking distorting the array. You or anyone could also just try to spot the thing the customary way and fire off a shot.)
So let's play a little card game, shall we? I've shuffled the cards from 10 through ace of each suit and dealt them out in 10 piles of 2 apiece. The jacks, queens, and kings of Hearts and Diamonds represent the Aspirants, of which one pair is unrelated to the message but you don't know which. The jacks, queens, and kings of Spades and Clubs are available "understudies" for the Hearts and Diamonds court cards, respectively. who can be reprogrammed to take up the slack. And of course there's always the option of lifting and moving the heavy things yourselves.
But why even talk about understudies or offer you the option? For that matter, why exactly 10?
It's so that if something unfortunate happens, like if a falling spire were to impale one of them--
Geth, roll 1d10 to decide who lives and who dies
--another one can pick up the slack. Xeno, when a Heart or Diamond courtier dies you will know who their understudy is, but not until then.
So before you get started doing the real work of engaging that corruptive speedball or the two sworders, I'm going to offer you two completely blind choices because I'm a cruel bastard. In the course of processing their loads, your designated servitors will act twice in order, all playing one of their cards, and when they've all played one they'll all line up to play the other. So, low numbers to high, or high to low? And top card first, or bottom card first?
(If for example you selected high to low, bottom to top, 10 would play its bottom card, then 9 its bottom card, then 6 its bottom card, then 4, 3, and 2 playing their bottom cards, then 10 would play its top card and you'd go around the horn again. Since there are 12 cards in play here I'm not going to do something like pretend an entire round of actions on your part is only worth one card, they'll come out in twos and threes and occasionally fours.)
Geth was feeling merciful, but I'll tell you what anybody's cards left are when they die. Number 8's top card was the Queen of Spades, and its bottom card was the 10 of Hearts.
---
Glory, the skeletons are not convinced that you're really the biggest threat here. Now, if you were to pull off something impressive and contemptuous, like, say, hurling your rapier like a dart and pulling one skeleton's sash clean off its body, pinning it in the wall? That would get both skeletons to come at you. But as it is you'll only get one.
(You can if you like invent your own flashy trick that gets your rapier away from you. You can just pull it off, no rolling but also no damage. You will still have a blade to meet the skeletons with -- I checked.
Or, don't, and just parry one.)
---
Ajax, this is not your first friendly wrestlebrawl over the pie-eating trophy/all-out life and death struggle for the most important thing in the world, and you can see this breaking one of three ways. So take your pick.
Way 1: extreme close quarters combat. You shift the brawl to bring everyone up against the wall of lazy light. While you're all in XCQC you're all on the same relative combatant level to each other so you can still Hack and Slash as normal, but you'll roll twice and take the worst damage result as well. Until one of the skeletons stops moving, then we'll recalibrate.
Way 2: total skeletonic reversal. You end up backing the grappler skeleton into the wall of light leaving the macer between you and the work surface. Your sword is free and you are free to wield it, and the grappler (who doesn't really have much in the way of a damage rating) will act at a disadvantage, which is something I'll explain on the off-chance it becomes relevant. But the macer is free and if he bolts to mess around with your friends you're probably at least going to be delayed a little in catching him up.
Way 3: the terrible way for total losers that everyone hates. You throw the grappler skeleton down into the work surface where he's probably going to get trampled or something. You deal full damage to the skeleton macer and leave him against the wall of light. And then you let the Unblemished Sword go.
---
tags: @Boozer @wildwood @AustinP0027
The Wonderworker did his best to match his movement's to that of the flickering target, and let his Entropic Ray fly.
--
This was a tricky one, let me know if I've misunderstood you anywhere @Glazius.
I will choose High numbers to low, bottom card first.
My logic may be flawed, but since we've already gotten lucky with an 8, high rolls have a higher chance of hitting an Aspirant carrying a servitor, so we want to get them done first.
Since We've lost the 10 of hearts, if we go for bottom cards first we have a slightly improved chance of hitting a Jack instead of a 10, with a 50/50 shot of getting a suit we want.
If I read the post right you wanted me to roll twice and take the worst for the damage roll, not the attack roll, right?
Geth roll 2d6+2 for Cosmic Blade
Geth roll 2d8l2 for Cosmic Blade damage
Adding Tags for range, Elemental(time) to keep the corruption from spreading, and Peircing 2 to the last berserk servitor in the center.
If I get a 7-9 I'll choose: 'You feel drained, take -1 ongoing to INT until you have a few minutes to clear your head.’
Edit - Sorry I messed up the roll for 2d8 pick the lower roll, it should have been 2d8l1 not 2d8l2. But I'll def take a 7 with 2 piercing.
PSN: Boozer_777
Edit: Geth...that's not what I meant.
--
Ajax wrestled with the two skeletons in close quarters. It was suboptimal for true combat, but he wasn't about to let go of his sword, and he wasn't willing to take a chance that these two go and interfere in whatever else the others had going on. These two were his responsibility, and it was time to finish that responsibility. The small skeleton had to go first, as he was more of an annoyance than a threat in the Weaponmaster's eyes.
Geth, roll 2d6+2 for Hack 'n Slash (attacking small skeleton)
In case of dmg:
Geth, roll 1d10+1
Geth, roll 1d10+1