Hmm's Incident at Absalom Station (Inactive)

Game Master Hmm

On phone so cant do map

Cade hears Zeyram and withdraws up toward the bridge.

Jim hits the deck!

Stabilise

• Simagus' shot will miss (but please be more specific as to who you aim for)
• Cade, I moved you up to just before the "crossroads", since you did not really scout them yet, but you can move further up if you want
• Zeyram: just in case you are aiming for Supernova, it does not exclude allies (and Big Jim will not be moving on his own volition).

If Zyklik comes up with me, then can Zeyram make a 5ft diagonal step to exclude Jim? Depends on the template for 'creatures within 10 ft'

Zeyram takes a guarded step back and fires again at Orange.

Static Arc Pistol: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 = 20
Electrical non-lethal damage, Photon mode: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

"I'm going to need more room between me and Jim!"

Took Supernova to Discussion.

Simagus steps away and presses the trigger, but the rifle lets out the non-charged beep, and it does not fire: Drats!

Cade moves away and down the corridor.

Zeyram moves back and shoots the orange-eyed beast, that recoils and seems pretty badly hurt now.

Big Jim's blood stops flowing... he seems stabilized.
Buster remains motionless.

Xyklik...
___________
- end of Round 2 and start of Round 3 - BOLD are up
Cade
Orange (-13)
Hawthorne
Yellow
Simagus
Zeyram
Big Jim (sp 0/7 | hp 0/12) stabilized
Buster (unresponsive until Big Jim regains consciousness)[/i]
Xyklik
(and Cade - starting round 3)

Feeling out of the way, Cade shoots again for the injured space lion.

attack: 1d20 + 1 ⇒ (5) + 1 = 6
damage: 1d6 ⇒ 3

Xyklik takes a step back and aims and fires at the orange lion.

Xyklik blasts the "Space Lion" with a precise shot... but, somehow, the beast's rubbery skin seems to "soak" the fire produced by the laser, and most of the damage is alleviated.
You see the critter has some Fire Resistance
Hurt, the orange-eyed beast turns towards Xyklik and moves up to the shirren, biting at it, and delivering a blow. 5 damage

___________
- end of Round 3 - BOLD are up
Cade
Orange (-16)
Hawthorne
Yellow
Simagus
Zeyram
Big Jim (sp 0/7 | hp 0/12) stabilized
Buster (unresponsive until Big Jim regains consciousness)
Xyklik (5 damage)
(and Cade - starting round 4)

Happy New Year all!

Seeing the result of Xyklik's laser fire, Zeyram says "Drat! They are resistant to fire. So much for that plan."

Hawthorne steps away from the wall and fires at the yellow space lion standing over Big Jim.

Pulsecaster, Defensive: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (7) + 3 - 4 = 6
E, NL: 1d6 ⇒ 3

+2 AC until next turn

Hawthorne's shot misses the yellow-eyed "Space Lion", that looks left and right, hesitates... and then moves towards Simagus, biting the android's leg.
5 damage

Cade's shot misses too.

___________
- Round 3 - BOLD are up
Cade
Orange (-16)
Hawthorne
Yellow
Simagus (5 damage)
Zeyram
Xyklik (5 damage)
Big Jim (sp 0/7 | hp 0/12) stabilized
Buster (unresponsive until Big Jim regains consciousness)

With none of the space lions on him, Zeyram fires twice at the orange space lion hoping to take it out. Although there is no sound in space, after the second shot the floor plates beneath the creature vibrated in an ominous way.

Static Arc Pistol, full attack: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (16) + 4 - 4 = 16
Electrical non-lethal damage, Photon mode: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

Static Arc Pistol, full attack: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 - 4 = 20
Electrical non-lethal damage, Photon mode: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (6) + 1 = 7

Crit damage, Electrical non-lethal damage, Photon mode: 1d6 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

If the first hit took out Orange, I would use the second attack on Yellow which would have cover.

Since it is too far to Arc, I will use the Ominous fusion. Fort DC 13 (10 + 2/2 + 2 for Dex) or shaken for 1d4 rounds.

Zeyram takes a double shot, first dropping the orange-eyed enemy, and then ripping right through the second enemy, opening a vicious gash down its entire right flank.
The critter wobbles on its legs, badly hurt and visibly shaken.

_________
Fort DC13: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6
rounds: 1d4 ⇒ 1

- Round 3 - BOLD are up
Cade
Hawthorne
Yellow (-12) shaken until next round
Zeyram
Simagus (5 damage)
Xyklik (5 damage)
Big Jim (sp 0/7 | hp 0/12) stabilized
Buster (unresponsive until Big Jim regains consciousness)

"Good shot, Zeyram!" Hawthorne cheers the kasatha.

Xyklik growls at the realization that these creatures possess fire resistance. He drops his laser rifle to the floor of the spacecraft and rushes the yellow-eyed creature, drawing his club in the process. He swings down at the creature, attempting to end it.

Xyklik Cold-Club-In-Harvest rushes down the corridor and caves in the skull of the "Space Lion", that just drops to the floor, dead.

The threat has been dealt with, though the attack was pretty rough, and a couple remain battered, while Big Jim is still out.

_______________
Simagus (5 damage) -> SP 2/7 HP 10/10 | RP 3/4
Xyklik (5 damage) -> SP 3/8 HP 10/13 | RP 3/4
Big Jim (sp 0/7 | hp 0/12) stabilized -> what is your RP ?/2

"Alright, we need to get Big Jim conscious. Then I suggest we retreat to the shuttle, closing the doors behind us."

As he is saying this, he uses his knife to kill the unconscious orange space lion.

"I do NOT want to fight more space lions when we are in bad shape."

His weapon does non-lethal damage, so the one he knocked out isn't dead yet.

”I’m into that.”

He looks around, ”Maybe back to Absalom? We can get properly healed and rested, come again with a sack of serums and some kind of combat plan?”

Zeyram puts the Space Lion out of its misery, or saves you from misery on behalf of the Space Lion.
Sorry, forgot the NL

RP should be 1/2 unless there was some spent whilst I was away

Probably best to fall back for now and rest up I agree.

“I’m not sure I want to give another interceptor a chance at us. Let’s get back to the shuttle, check everyone over, and then see how we are doing.”

Headed to bed. If Simagus can’t get Big Jim mobile, I will use another healing serum to get him up. Bot as needed.

Big Jim: you had already spent 1 RP to recover your SP (Dec' 18) so you are at 0/2 ; also, you were not at full HP but at 11/12 but never updated that either.

Cool thanks, it seems like so long ago :p

Cade shrugs, "Well, okay. Let's see what Si can do."

Cade stands in the corridor, holding his pistol.

Then he looks at it, looks at the space lions, looks at Zyklik's bloodied club...

Cade walks over, toward Xyklik, "Y'know. I think I've fired this sucker five times since we saw Steelhand fall. Not hit a thing." He turns the gun over in his hand, offers the grip to Xyklik. "You could make better use of this: put some holes in any more space lions we find. You can give it back to me when we get back to Absalom Station. If you don't need it any more."

Xyklik nods, accepting the pistol. "I will kill with it if needed."

He waits to see if Simagus has any beneficial magic left from his strange god.

In the meantime, he says, "We could sleep on our shuttle, post watches at the airlock. Perhaps Hawthorne could rig a camera feed to watch the corridor. (Flashbacks to Five Nights at Freddy's!) And we could finish the mission in eight hours. We do not have a firm time limit, correct? Although," he says, looking about the derelict vessel, "I would not like to stay here any longer than needed."

"We do not have a deadline, no," Hawthorne confirms through the comms, "But it is clear from the attack on our way here that others have interest in this vessel and the rock and are willing to go to extreme lengths to steal it."

He drags the heavy vesk slowly toward the power core. "Sigamus, can you heal this lug so that he can walk?"

"Keep an eye on the bow while I go search the holds. There may be something useful in fighting those jelly-fish lions. I'll search the engineering station again. While Big Jim recovers, I'll see if I can build another pulsecaster or two to replace your lasers, since the beasts seem to resist the beams."

He coughs and takes a few deep breaths as he drops Big Jim at the android's feet. "I think we know what happened to the crew, though."

"I will continue watching the passageway as you do that, Hawthorne. Be quick about your search."

Looking forward and starboard, he asks "Is there any way someone could rig a trip wire or something, protect the hallway?"

"If we don't have a detonator, I can fashion one, but it will take time," Hawthorne says as he searches the starboard hold for weapons, tools, and supplies.

Can you move your minis to where you wish to be?

As you mill around Big Jim's cumbersome body, with its tail flopping around like a giant eel, Hawthorne courageously - or foolishly? - moves off all alone into the starboard cargo hold.
That is what it turns out to truly be.
The cargo hold has been customized and now contains a small science lab, compact mining equipment, and collected rock samples - which seems to be from the Acreon’s prospecting mission.

Strangely, though: numerous resinous shards litter the floor of the cargo hold.

Hawthorne looks around.

Cade backs up Hawthorne, ”Hold On! It’s dangerous to go alone!”

perception : 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (8) + 4 = 12

"Jim already drew the beasts out of this hold," Hawthorne reassures Cade. He bends down and picks up a shard of the green element. "This must have some sort of relationship to the lions. We've found them everywhere we've encountered them."

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14

He bundles the shards to take back to the ship and then rifles around through the science and mining equipment. He pulls out a propane tank and small flamer. A curt snort sounds over the comms. "Precisely what we did not need. Hold onto this for me while I search the port hold," he asks of the technomancer.

"If we've learned one thing, it's that you should supercharge anything other than a laser," the engineer says as he manually shuts the doors to the starboard hold. He deposits the bundle of shards at the intersection before continuing on and opening the port hold. "Someone get Jim on his feet. We're going to need more engineers if we're going to start building traps and non-heat-based weapons."

As Hawthorne and Cade move from starboard to port, you see that the two side air lock doors are closed on the outside, as spotted before coming on board, and that the inner doors are open.
Both air locks are slightly larger than the one in the aft through which you entered.
Both starboard and port air locks are empty.

Having shut the starboard doors, and dropped off the pile of resinous shards, to which you will add the shards found in engineering (about the same amount) - you move up to the other door on the port-side, and open it.

Inside, under the emergency lighting, you see the ship’s supplies lining the wall - food-rations and water-bottles, spares parts and replacement air filters and such.
A big 8 foot square shipping container is the only remarkable thing you can see before going in.

”What’s all this about?”

Cade casts a spell, searching out magical auras.
detect magic, first on the container, then around the room.

Can you move your mini to where you go: into the room? Behind Hawthorne?
Just a reminder: Detect Magic does not detect magical traps (which have special anti-detection wards).

The only magical aura Cade detects emanates from Hawthorne's rifle.

Simagus leans over Big Jim and calls upon the power if its deity, channeling a Mystic Cure into the felled vesk--
Cure: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4
--and then keeps on channeling power, the android pushing its health into the vesk.
Transfer 4 HP from Simagus to Big Jim
Bg Jim's eyes pop open.

__________________
Simagus - 7/7 sp - 6/10 hp - 3/4 rp
Big Jim - 0/7 sp - 8/12 hp - 0/2 rp

After Big Jim is on his feet, Xyklik follows Hawthorne and Cade into the hold. He says, looking at the shards. "It might be why they're nesting here. Something significant about this rock draws them across the void." He shrugs. "In any case, the vesk is up. We are battered, but the bridge may hold the secret to this place."

Back with the others, he says, "I will take a breather for a minute." He holsters his laser rifle and checks the pistol Cade gave him. He ejects the magazine, inspects the bullets, slams it back into place. He maneuvers the slide, calibrates the sight, and locks the trigger guard into place. He lets the choices flood over him like a waterfall. Back to the airlock? Press on to the bridge? Inspect the asteroid?

Taking a 10 minute rest, -1 RP.

Hawthorne eyes the spare parts lining the walls.

"Yes!"

Yes!

"These I might be able to use," the engineer says to Cade. "Scavenge as much as you can."

He then inspects the shipping crate, looking for an opening mechanism or access pad. "Is it too much to hope for that there be guns in this locker? Or at least something that I can re-jigger into a weapon or force field."

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 = 8

“Since you are searching the cargo holds, remember to look the Ambassador’s crate.”

The spare parts are air filters, bulbs, cans of oil... nothing to make a weapon out of.

In the other hold there is some compact mining equipment, but even the drills will not make a great weapon: cumbersome, have to hold the thing you want to drill steady...

The shipping crate is addressed to: Eoxian Embassy on Absalom Station
It is a heat-sealed plastic container that can either be jimmied with a Disable Device Engineering check or smashed open with attacks - Hardness, or a Break check.

Oh, that's what you think!

"Cade, take the parts back to the science lab. We'll see what we can do with them there," Hawthorne says over his comm unit. The LED on his datajack turns green, and the 3D printer port start generating a set of small tools.

"This yours?" he asks the recording drone as he works at the seam.

Engineering: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (1) + 8 = 9

"Tough nut," he grunts. "Any chance what's in here will help to keep us alive?

Engineering: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (17) + 8 = 25

Tough nut? What is he doing in there?

“Hawthorne, who are you talking to?” Zeyram asks as he nervously watches the corridor leading towards the bridge.

Hawthorne starts working on the seam, breaks his tools and pricks his fingers, hurting himself: Ouch!
He then tries again, and is less incompetent this time,

Prying the shipping container open you see that inside there is a smaller transparent polycarbon plate capsule that looks much like a coffin.
The coffin impression is heightened by the capsule’s occupant: a skeletal humanoid figure with an elongated cranium wearing a military uniform.
Even more surprising, the skeleton suddenly opens the capsule and stands up, exiting the coffin! See image on slide 2

The skeleton looks around the hold: "Is this... no, this is not the Eoxian Embassy on Absalom Station."
Facing Hawthorne, the skeleton asks: "What is going on? Your finger is bleeding."

Cade chuckles, "Oh boy, this is just great: the package has a personality!"

"Sorry, um, buddy... you're transport was waylaid in a diplomatic row. We're here to check the vessel out and, well, I guess once that's done we're your passage to the embassy."

He pauses, looks at Hawthorne, then back at the skeleton, "So, um, I'm Cade. This here is Hawthorne... we're Starfinders, sort of."

He offers his hand, "What's your name?"

You see the medals are pinned on graphite carbon skin armor, and that the uniform comprises a tactical dueling sword and a tactical semi-auto pistol, both sheathed.
The skeleton extends a hand - you see a nice gold ring on its ring finger - and shakes Cade's had: "Nice to meet you, Cade. I am Commander Hebiza Eskolar."
The voice is actually feminine.
"She" nods to Hawthorne: "Nice to meet you, Hawthorne."
Then, back to Cade: "Define 'sort of'. When can I return to my capsule, have you seal it back up, and be delivered to the Embassy?"

Culture: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24 Where was that when fighting space lions?

Hawthorne extends his hand and a holographic symbol of the Starfinder Society illuminates above his palm. "There is no 'sort of' here. I am a full member. Some of my companions, less so."

He eyes the Eoxian's uniform. "Corpse Fleet? You're rather well armed for a prisoner, Captain Eskolar. However, we can get you sealed back inside once we clear the alien infestation on this ship. We were going to retreat and recover, as the creatures we've encountered are quite dangerous."

He feeds the customized tools back through the disintegration port on his specialized datajack.

Jim looks battered and busted, but as he opens one puffy eye he looks at his vidcorder for a moment to snap a quick blog "Remember kids, when you are poking around in derelict starships you might just find they have a heck of a pest problem, so always make sure you get a quality pest inspector down to fumigate and clear out any nasties - as you can see, some of them bite. Safety first!"

Then turns back to the party, "Thanks friend, they were nasty".

***

"Well howdy there Commander, we can get you underway in just a jiffy. You sure you really want to go back in a box though?"

Int check, how quick does he pick up on the details: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (11) - 1 = 10

They found someone alive?

"This is Zeyram, one of the people currently guarding the corridor. The ship is not secure, we have encountered several strange creatures that we have been calling space lions."

Commander? Who the heck did they find!

Corpse fleet? What does that mean?

"The Acreon is currently under quarantine. If you are in a hurry to get to the Embassy and know how to fight, we wouldn't mind some help clearing the ship."

Hold it...Embassy? Maybe they aren't alive. I don't think this is the right place to have an extended conversation though.

"I think it would be a good idea to retreat to engineering and shut the doors if we are to have a lengthy conversation. At least there it would be more secure."

Diplomacy: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (19) + 7 = 26

The Corpse Fleet Hawthorne mentions, you all know, is the exiled remnants of Eox’s officially disbanded navy that opposed Eox’s membership in the Pact and is considered a terrorist military threat in the Pact Worlds.

Commander Eskolar shakes Hawthorne's proffered hand: "Fine, then why don't you get cracking and clear the alien infestation on this ship stat."
The skeleton leans over and arranges the smaller transparent polycarbon plate capsule that looks like a coffin.

Seeing or hearing Big Jim and seeing his icon on the communicator, she smiles: "Well howdy! I am familiar with your show. It is broadcast by Zo! on Eox. Yes, back to the "box" it is for me. I will exit the capsule once it is delivered to the Eoxian embassy."

Hearing Zeyram over the comm', Commander Eskolar answers: "Greetings Zeyram. You make a good argument, and I am truly wholeheartedly with you, and will root for your success, but I must regretfully decline to assist you in your clearing this ship. It is not, if I may be so blunt, my problem. And I have my own business to attend to."

Xyklik walks into the hold after his rest and eyes the Commander. He takes a long look at her, then shrugs.

"The bone-thing is being smuggled into the Pact Worlds. This is not our concern. Hostiles have only the bridge to hide in now. We will exterminate and complete the mission."