SFS 1-04: Cries from the Drift! (Inactive)

Game Master James Martin

A strange series of multicolored sparks is starting to accumulate on the walls as you rest. Your hair stands on end and you're starting to shock each other as you stand close together.

What now?

"Onward?! To the Bridge!"

Reynold's face visibly pales. He springs to his feet and resets his pistol. "We have to move. No way I'm dying on this gods-forsaken ship. Let's go!"

"Yeah. Lets" wheezes Da'at. Damn this wound HURTS.

"Triune has not forsaken us..."

You stop by the engine room for Piggy to wire up the battery as the static charge builds in the air. With the battery in place, you head through the mess to the bridge!

The ship’s bridge is alight in red warning screens. The nearing ethereal storm looms beyond the forward viewing platform, while the ship’s failing power causes each station’s panels to flicker intermittently. A battered captain’s chair oversees two tiers of descending operations panels.

Something or someone is sitting in the north-eastern chair. (Marked on map with an arrow.) Perception checks!

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 4 = 24

"Hey! Who goes? Starfinder? Kasatha?!", Pangea calls out to the shape at the helm - not expecting much of a positive answer.

P-K can clearly see there's a body sitting in the chair.

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (6) + 5 = 11

Da'at moves on in last, weapons gripped tightly.

Pangea raises both hands, signalling all to stop-- then the android uses its Comm' Link, whispering a message to all: "Wait up! The body it... It's another dead Kasathan but it has something inside it. Something... breathing?".

Perception: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (17) + 4 = 21

Triune might be all warm and fuzzy for you, but he certainly didn’t owe this ship or anyone onboard any favors, Reynold thinks bitterly as he accompanies his team to the bridge. Seeing P-K’s reaction to the far creature, Reynold points his pistol at it with lightning speed. He listens to P-K’s message, and readies to shoot whatever is lurking inside the corpse. No. No more parasite bugs. No more ghosts. No more ether storms. I am DONE with this. Once everyone else gets here I’m gonna blast that bugger until my battery runs out. Worst, mission, ever!

Piggy starts visibly shaking, stop Porkers. HOLY MOTHER OF TRIUNE THAT SUMGUN HAS AN ALIEN APPENDIX! He manages to retain control of his bowels and slowly raises his gun. He whispers. "Do they look like exploding larvae? I don't want to clean my armor again... "

Perception: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (4) + 5 = 9

When B4B2 heard what other people are saying, he took out his gun. He is completely calm and targets dead Kasatha.

Pangea takes a few steps to the side and a bit closer.

Nothing happens. The corpse lies still.

Please make sure you're on the map where you want to be.

Piggy guides Porker closer. He whispers to the darkness. " Hello? Please don't ghost us... "

Nothing happens until you're within touching distance. As you know of the creature's prescence and it isn't aware you know of it, what would you guys do and where would you be in the room just before the creature acts?

Pangea will move up closer, calling out to it, observing, then stop when the android is a step away.

Piggy looks around at his hesitating teammates. He starts listing things off on his fingers. "We were sent here to get the crew's bodies, their keepsakes, any data we could find, and the ship's log. That's a body, and it's in front of the ship's log. "

He looks around and sighs. "Well, I'm bored. " He walks up to the chair and touches the body gingerly with a finger. "It can't be that bad, right? "

Everyone can move themselves into position and post a single round's worth of actions you would have taken, but I want to keep moving since we're soooo close.

Piggy pokes the body. Which EXPLODES as a red skinned four armed monster casts it off and leaps out! It's only about Piggy's size, and looks young and half-grown, but its claws and teeth and the improvised weapons it clutches looks menacing enough!

Round 1:
Heroes
Ravenous Multi-armed fiend!

Heroes are up!

Wow, that is so not what I was expecting to pop out. Lol.

Porker gives a beep of surprise, and backs up. The drone pops out a single laser blast towards the fiendish alien.

Azimuth Laser Rifle: 1d20 + 3 ⇒ (6) + 3 = 9
dmg@EAC: 1d10 ⇒ 6

Piggy's face lights up with fear when the body-bag erupts into an alien enemy. At Porker's beep, his expression changes to a frown. "Bad Porker! Restart Pig-Sound code! " The chubby Ysoki squeezes the trigger on his rifle. " Look what you did! You scared Porker out of his code! "

Rifle: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (10) + 5 = 15
dmg@EAC: 1d8 ⇒ 3

Reynold whistles at the creature from afar, trying to distract it while his comrades gang up on it. "Kill it fast, we have a ride to catch!"

Standard action clever feint.

Bluff (DC 10+Sense Motive mod OR 15+1.5xCR): 1d20 + 10 + 1d6 ⇒ (15) + 10 + (2) = 27

Success means it's flat-footed against all PCs until the end of Reynold's next turn.

"OH YES IT CAN BE P! DUCK!" yells Da'at, who toggles the safety off and lets off two bursts of hot lead.

Machine Gun vs Thing, Burst #1: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (20) + 3 - 4 = 19
Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 7
Machine Gun vs Thing Burst #2: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (15) + 3 - 4 = 14
Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 3
Extra Crit Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 1

Porker misses, but Piggy hits and Da'at hits twice, while Reynold distracts the alien!

Xenal, P-K and B4B2 are up!

Xenal thrusts and slashes with the head of her tactical pike, hoping to put the strange creature down before it can hurt any of her comrades.

Tactical Pike: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (18) + 4 - 4 = 18
Piercing: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (7) + 3 = 10
Tactical Pike: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (3) + 4 - 4 = 3
Piercing: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4

Coordinated Shot is active for a +1 to hit for ranged people not shooting through me

Pangea is totally surprised: "This is not a ghost!"
And wonders what the heck this thing is doing carrying all those items...?
Red? A Devil...

Recall Knowledge: 1d20 ⇒ 5 (+6 Culture ; +5 Life or Physical Science ; +4 Mysticism)

Then the android takes a step forward, letting the photonic power cycle through his body, and Pangea lashes out with its Solar Fist of darkness...

Attuned 1 round

Solar First: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17
Ouch!: 1d6 + 3 ⇒ (1) + 3 = 4 (+1 Insight Damage already added from Photon mode)

B4B2 tries to sneak and then attack with his tactical semi-auto pistol.

Trick Attack - Stealth: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (13) + 15 = 28 DC equal to 20 + the target’s CR. If the skill check is successful, the attack deals 1d4 additional damage and the target is flat-footed against this attack.

to hit KAC: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (17) + 4 = 21

damage: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (1) + 1 = 2

damage - Trick Attack: 1d4 ⇒ 4

The alien takes a pounding as Xenal, P-K and B4B2 all hit him at least once. He snarls and attacks P-K!
Bite vs P-k KAC: 1d20 + 12 ⇒ (8) + 12 = 20 The alien hits for 1d6 + 5 ⇒ (2) + 5 = 7 damage! P-K Fort Save: 1d20 - 1 ⇒ (2) - 1 = 1P-K suddenly freezes as his muscles lock up in paralysis!

Heroes are up!

"Pork, unload. I'm too cute to die. " Piggy slaps the robot's pink side and looks down the sights of his gun again.

Rifle: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (9) + 5 = 14
dmg@EAC: 1d8 ⇒ 8

Porker's eyes flash and his ears flop back up with a squeak. "OINK OINK "

Azimuth Laser Rifle: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (2) + 3 - 4 = 1
dmg@EAC: 1d10 ⇒ 1

Azimuth Laser Rifle: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (13) + 3 - 4 = 12
dmg@EAC: 1d10 ⇒ 8

”Nope! Not happening!” Reynold shouts at the creature as P-K becomes visibly immobilized. He points his pistol at the monster and squeezes the trigger.

Full Attack.

Attack (static arc pistol, full attack): 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (2) + 4 - 4 = 2
Damage (electricity): 1d6 ⇒ 5
Attack (static arc pistol, full attack): 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (5) + 4 - 4 = 5
Damage (electricity): 1d6 ⇒ 6

B4B2 tries to sneak even close and attack.

Trick Attack - Stealth: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (20) + 15 = 35 DC equal to 20 + the target’s CR. If the skill check is successful, the attack deals 1d4 additional damage and the target is flat-footed against this attack.

to hit KAC: 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (10) + 4 = 14

damage: 1d4 + 1 ⇒ (4) + 1 = 5

damage - Trick Attack: 1d4 ⇒ 3

"HEY UGLY! SMILE, YOU'RE ON TRID IN FIVE DIFFERENT SYSTEMS YOU WART-LOOKING F&%!!"

Machine Gun vs Thing, Burst #1: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (2) + 3 - 4 = 1
Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 7
Machine Gun vs Thing Burst #2: 1d20 + 3 - 4 ⇒ (8) + 3 - 4 = 7
Damage: 1d10 ⇒ 10

The kick from the machine gun proves to be too unfamiliar to Da'at, who ends up shooting and frying what would have been at some point some very valuable equipment.

Tactical Pike: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (7) + 4 - 4 = 7
Piercing: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (2) + 3 = 5
Tactical Pike: 1d20 + 4 - 4 ⇒ (4) + 4 - 4 = 4
Piercing: 1d8 + 3 ⇒ (3) + 3 = 6

Xenal's normally measured swings and thrusts take on a more hasty rhythm, nearly frantic as Pangea goes rigid.

The creature reaches for P-K, its mandibles salivating, but multiple shots and slams hit it as reaches and it falls, splayed upon the decking.

Combat over!

A broken hard drive rests in the ship's console and a silken face scarf, probably the pilot's, sits on the floor in front of the kasthan corpse. On the view screen, the storm's leading edge hits the ship and the entire vessel rocks as multicolored sparks erupt from every electronic device!

Pangea shakes its head, and makes sure its systems are purged. of the paralysis.

"Get the data..."
Pangea helps analyze and crunch the data for its companion that will work away at getting the info'.

To help with the Computer checks
Computer Aid Another #1: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (7) + 5 = 12
Computer Aid Another #2: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (16) + 5 = 21

The paralysis only lasts a minute.

Da'at grabs the hard drive and the face scarf, stuffs them in a pocket, hollering "GRAB THAT BODY AND LETS GO!" as he makes to grab the body as well.

Reynold turns back ahead of the group. "Get what we need fast! I'll get the engine running!" He sprints back to the Drake and revs it up, muttering to himself as he watches the storm descend and waits for his comrades to return. He preps the starship for a jump into the Drift as soon as everyone returns. "C'mon c'mon c'mon...!"

B4B2 helps Da'at carrying the body.

Da'at's method of computer repair is crude, but effective as you now have a hard drive. With the scarf and body in tow, you leg it out of the bridge and through the ship. The secondary turret drops down, but it's sparking multicolored lights and spinning like a top instead of firing!

You hit the airlock and cycle through as things begin to glow and fizzle with the storm. You're no sooner back aboard and away than you have a spectacular view as the ship breaks apart only to be swallowed by the storm!

The trip back home takes 1d6 ⇒ 2 days. Once there, you're greeted by the indomitable Ziggy, whose telepathic voice is bubbly as ever as he requests a status report on your mission.

Piggy smiles at the sight of the familiar face. "Well, it was like this old movie I saw once. You see, there was this ghost-monster, this face-hugger-monster, and this body-suit-monster. " He shivers, then continues. "Their ship got hit, killing a crew member, I think. That crew member came back from the dead, and took a couple more crew with it. I'm not sure how the body-suit got there, but I think the face huggers were it's babies. Gross. "

What was on the hard drive? That was the whole point of the mission, right? The bodies and belongings were secondary.

"What was that thing? Some dental assistant? I was paralyzed!"

Having two days to decompress after the narrow escape, Reynold's heart rate gradually returns to normal. Back at home, he helps carry the busted computer—complete with hard drive—to Zigvigix's headquarters. He turns and looks the shirren in the eye. "It was a nightmare. Ghosts, parasite monsters, dead folks everywhere, massive storms threatening to suck us into the void. I won't sleep for a week. If you find another salvage mission, send someone else. I won't do that again. Not ever."

The hard drive was full of data, but its encryption was top-shelf. It was nothing you'd be able to break without a lot more time and a lot more computing power.

"How exciting! Did you recover the bodies or any of their possessions? Ziggy inquires.

Piggy nods. "Yes, sir! We grabbed every crew member's remains. They're... not all in great shape. But they're in the shape we found them in! " He smiles sadly. " We were also able to retrieve the keepsakes of each. "

He points towards the captain. " Also, we found some data which may shed some light on the destruction of your old base. "

Ziggy nods. "Their records indicated they wished their remains and belongings returned to their families on the Idari."

"Did you recover the data?"

"Yeah" replies Da'at. "I'd like to have the bodies sent over to the Idari for the proper rites to be said" he states somberly before continuing in a harsher tone: "Also, I'd like to get some information about the crew members. I have something that belongs to a couple of them."

"We did recover the data! Didn't have time to crack into it yet. Perhaps you have the key? " Porkers looks at the Host curiously.