New campaign page.
Gameplay test post.
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Now I'm in.
The galaxy has been turned upside down. The Mandalorians, long thought neutered, have returned with a vengeance. They have ruthlessly blockaded the peaceful planet Naboo, capturing their Queen and threatening their citizens unless the Republic makes concessions.
QARTH PANAKA and SABE, against their wishes, followed the Queen's command; they avoided capture. They wish to be with their liege, but the Queen insists they would be of more use free. They would be in the hands of the Mandalorians if not for the intervention of JONJON BANKS, a Gungan native to Naboo near Theed when the attack occurred. The three of them were able to get word to the Republic and request assistance.
SUPREME CHANCELLOR VALORUM is in a quandary. Any official Republic force sent to aid Naboo might result in open battle. Instead, he contacts some of his allies among the JEDI KNIGHTS, guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy. QUI-GON JINN, a powerful Master, has been dispatched with his apprentice, OBI-WAN KENOBI. Their mission is simple; meet with Panaka, Sabe and Jonjon, and resuce the Queen.
Unable to send a Republic ship, Valorum instead reached out to members of the Trade Federation. They suggested RALK DALL'REY and KYRA DOVAN, crew of the INTRIGUE, a ship fast enough to beat the blockade. Ralk and Kyra have picked up Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon, and are en route to Naboo.
Meanwhile, star systems away, a young man named ANAKIN SKYWALKER dreamed simply of freedom, unaware of the terrible purpose that awaited him...
You have a couple of hours before the race; you can relax, maybe try to get a leg up on the competition, or continue tuning your podracer. You could even bet some of your credits on yourself, if you so desire.
Jonjon initially stepped in to save what he thought was Naboo's queen, but was not terribly bothered that she was, in fact, not. A native Gungan, his ears are notched and he has scars on his skin where he'd survived numerous attacks from the fauna of Naboo. While he's not the most intelligent conversationalist, he's a capable guerilla.
Jonjon explains he was searching for something, and that he was exiled from his homeland for having 'strange voodoo'. Weird powers. In fact several times he's completely disappeared only to reappear at an opportune space to bomb a target or skewer a soldier with his spear. Still, he's dedicated himself to aiding you two with little need to convince him.
He will sit crouched at a high point where he could view the dock and peer across the space, scoping out the place discretely before dropping down and letting the other two know what he saw.
Anyone looking at Sabe would think that she was just a rich kid taking a snack break. She sits on a low wall, eating some sort of meat on a stick.
Inside, her blood was boiling. Republic. Jedi. At this point she would be happy to punch them both in the face. They had gotten a message out to the Republic 7 days ago, and so far the only response was promises and hot air. Help, whatever that meant, should be arriving any minute. She and Panaka should never have let the Queen send them away. Think what could have happened to her in a week with those Mandalorian brutes.
They had had some luck in finding a Gungan who had proven useful, if strange. She had never worked closely with one of the amphibians, but this one seemed alright. They had sent him out on a short recon mission. A not small part of her hoped that the landing platform wasn't clear. She wouldn't mind picking off some Mandalorians.
Her long poncho conceals her weapons and equipment, but can quickly be shed to reveal her Shadowsuit.
Ralk is leaning back in his chair, idly thinking while the ship spends the last few minutes in hyperspace. It may be disconcerting to see him so relaxed--after all, when the ship does reenter real space, they're going to be breaking a Mandalorian blockade and flying into orbit, possibly under fire. But at the moment, the Bothan seems completely unconcerned at such prospects, his feet up on a space apparently cleared of equipment for just such a purpose, his hands folded behind his head. The only signs of preparation are the flight suit he's wearing and the blasters he has on--a pistol in a shoulder rig, concealed under a vest, and a subrepeater on his hip.
"So, Jedi, huh?" Ralk asks the question regardless of who else is in the cockpit at the time, even if he's alone. "I've run a lot of contraband, broken a few blockades, even some people before. But I have to say, this is a first for me. Guess I can notch that on my belt."
Trying to maintain her calm demeanor, Sabe thumbs her comm. "How's it going up there, JonJon? See any trouble?" She tried to keep her hope for trouble out of her voice.
Then she casually scanned the street.
For the last several hours, the smooth thrumming of the engines, quieter then his own breath in his ears, had been the only sounds Obi-Wan Kenobi had heard. Sitting with his legs crossed, eyes closed and breathing in the slow, easy fashion that are the first step of entering a Jedi trance, the visible world faded away. Despite his personal misgivings, the trance helped the young Padawan clear his mind and reflect on the task before him calmly. Ralk's abrupt inquiry shattered the peaceful meditation and Obi-wan exhaled sharply.
Looking at the pilot, sitting at his ease, Obi-Wan replied, "Yes, master Gui'gon and I are of the Jedi order. I suppose I should be honored to have earned a place on your belt, Master Dall'Rey. I've no doubt I'll be in good company there. I don't suppose you've had the pleasure of evading Mandalorian starfighters? Or will that be another notch for your belt?"
Anakin attempts to push the dream from his mind, annoyed that such things would continue to plague him the night before an important race. Cursing under his breath, he grabs his toolbelt, the items mixed from various sets, some looking so used that they are clearly not even second-hand, but perhaps fourth- or fifth-hand, and heads out the door, figuring that if he couldn't sleep, he could at least do something productive.
Climbing out from the his tiny, basement-level apartment, Anakin walks down the street. Passing by a street vendor selling fruit, he waits for an opportune moment before palming one of them and disappearing around the corner, into an alley, mostly filled with refuse.
He takes a bite from the fruit in his palm, letting the juices run down his face, still early enough in the morning that they aren't immediately evaporating under the hot suns, as his other hand tosses old boxes and rags to the side, uncovering his carefully hidden swoop.
Surrounded by trash, as it is uncovered it looks more and more out of out place - while it's an older model, it's looks well-cared for. Anakin takes a grey rag from his back pocket and runs it along the side of the bike while continuing to eat his fruit. With a prideful grin, his eyes take in the machine that he'd mostly reconstructed himself. 'My dreams may not make sense, but at least you do'. He thinks, looking underneath at the elegant system of wiring that surrounded the motor. Confident that the bike hasn't been tampered with, he hops on, speeding off towards the Arena.
After leaving a bet for himself to the tune of 10,000 credits (more than he ought to wager, less than he wanted to wager, and certainly much more than he even had), Anakin begins making the rounds. More pilots have begun to fill in, getting last minute tweaks taken care of. Anakin nods silently to some he knows, but is more focused on observing the machines of those he doesn't. With such a dangerous sport, death and racer turnover was frequent - as Anakin wanders the racer bays, his eyes stay on the machines, avoiding even surface-level smalltalk with their racers. It was better not to get attached, to focus purely on the mechanics. It was safer that way.
Captain Panaka was, silently, fuming. Again. He'd acknowledged Queen Amidala's order to have his troops stand down and not resist the Mandalorian occupation. He'd then insisted she flee the palace, and have Sabe take her place. This was precisely the situation that Sabe had been created for, and the Queen had ordered her to leave the palace! Oh, they had argued, they had protested, but in the end, they had been given little choice. These were Mandalorians, with a reputation for savagery and brutality unmatched by any other species in the galaxy with the possible exception of the Hutts, and the Queen had chosen to remain in their clutches! Instead of protecting her like he should, he'd been out here in the city of Theed with the Queen's personal bodyguard and a Gungan exile with 'strange voodoo powers.'
The Republic's extraction team had better get here soon. They needed to get the Queen out of there before the Mandalorians executed her. Looking about the street for any signs of Mandalorian patrols, he quietly says to Sabe, "Who do you think the Republic sent to support us?"
Ralk grins at Obi-Wan's responses, catching the tension in his voice and the annoyance in his tone. The Bothan didn't know a Force trance from a daydream, but he figured he'd interrupted something.
He swivels around in the chair to regard the Padawan. "Good company indeed. The Mandalorians are there, although I'll admit it wasn't a full blockade. More like an unsuspecting cargo transport..." He snickers in memory of the event and shakes his head. "Anyway. Feel free to loosen up a little. I know what I'm doing, Kyra knows what she's doing, and everything's gonna go smoothly."
Ralk turns back around to the control console and leans forward, preparing more as the ship nears the exit from hyperspace. At least it should. If not, I guess those new thrusters are going to get a workout.
The Republic's extraction team had better get here soon. They needed to get the Queen out of there before the Mandalorians executed her. Looking about the street for any signs of Mandalorian patrols, he quietly says to Sabe, "Who do you think the Republic sent to support us?"
"Based on how long it is taking them to get here, I'm guessing a Kitonak strike force riding 3 legged bantha's."
"Based on how long it is taking them to get here, I'm guessing a Kitonak strike force riding 3 legged bantha's."
The Republic's extraction team had better get here soon. They needed to get the Queen out of there before the Mandalorians executed her. Looking about the street for any signs of Mandalorian patrols, he quietly says to Sabe, "Who do you think the Republic sent to support us?"
At this point Jonjon lands silently into a crouch next to you from a long distance up. Rising to his feet, he straightens his long ears. "What is a Bantha?" he asked. "They like Hrumphs?"
"Mees-" he clears his throat. "Here's what I saw."
Obi-Wan schools his emotions, not entirely successfully, as the smuggler explains how he had already encountered Mandolorians. He glances at the Bothan's copilot, unsure what to make of the silent woman, then back to Ralk.
Aware that there's little chance of him meditating further, Obi-Wan stands from his cross-legged position on the floor. Reaching out, the lightsaber that had been sitting on the floor in front of him zips to his hand, held by invisible strings. After buckling on his only weapon, the padawan replies as he checks his belt for his gear, "I do not share your confidence, but if Master Gui-Gon and the Council trust you, then I suppose I must trust your judgement as well. I suspect this blockade will prove a little more resilient then your cargo transport."
"Oh, they're more resilient." Ralk smirks and raises a hand with a short wave, as though brushing Obi-Wan's concern aside. "That's why we don't get into a straight fight."
And exit on the outskirts of a pitched battle. Lasers and torpedoes are flying through space as what appears to be the droid armada of the Trade Federation clashing with the Mandalorians in the space above Naboo. Getting to the planet will prove no easy task.
Make a Pilot check.
Ralk has his hands on the controls a few seconds before the ship exits hyperspace, and as soon as it does he's glad for the preparation. The planet isn't so much surrounded by a blockade as a war front, at least at the moment, and he has to instantly begin maneuvering. "Hang on," is the only warning he can give before pitching the ship into a tight spiral, garnering speed as he rolls down to avoid the fire as best he can.
Absent from the conversation between Ralk and Obi-Wan, Kyra bursts through the door just as they exit from hyperspace in the midst of the battle. "Oh for--Ralk, only you would leave hyperspace smack dab in the middle of a battle!" The tall Echani woman rushes to the front of the Intrigue as Ralk swerves to avoid a proton torpedo, before jumping into the co-pilot's seat and doing what she can to help. "Ralk! We're about to fly straight through a dogfight, you need to make a hard left." Kyra scowls as she activates the ship's weapons and gets ready to fire, hoping they don't get embroiled in the dogfight themselves.
Any rejoinder he might have wished to make is lost as the ship leaves hyperspace in the amidst the blazing guns of a war zone. He slides into a seat nimbly, giving only a cursory glance as Kyra enters the room. Taking a calming breath, he reaches out, letting his emotion drift away on the Force that streams around him. A twinge betrays the sense of danger from a gutted, fiery hulk drifting off the Intrigue's port. "Roll low and to the left, Ralk!"
Ralk glances at Kyra as she takes her seat, and he grimaces and grunts as he swerves the ship clear. "Only the Republic would tell me there's a blockade when there's an open firefight," he mutters, flicking off the cover of his torpedo controls. When Obi-Wan calls out, he considers asking for less backseat piloting, but his eyes catch the danger a split second after the Jedi's comment. Guess the Force is good for something in space after all.
The area where you are is sort of a labyrinthine industrial area, with several buildings, some of them out of use, and dozens of interconnecting alleys and side streets. It probably wouldn't be too hard to set an ambush or create a distraction, if you wished.
Make a Mechanics or Use Computer check.
Anakin frowns, double-checking the power converter before cursing loudly, his expression hardening. "Stupid." He admonishes himself. Either the part had been faulty or he'd installed it wrong. Those damned dreams are to blame, he decides, constantly distracting me. I've gotta get it together.
"But no..." He realises, muttering to himself. "It was working... wasn't it?" Thinking back over the last couple of days, he tries to recall if he'd seen anyone suspicious hanging around, anyone that might be out to get him. He begins to look at those in the arena in a new light, as potential saboteurs. It had been his hope that Pod Racing would be more... civilized... than swoop racing was, but now he saw that things weren't so different after all. "I'll show you!" He says, louder than he should, but quieter than he feels like at the moment, and sets about fixing the power converter, determined to check and recheck and recheck every single wire and nut and bolt afterwards.
"What's the play, Captain? Damsel in distress? Queen on the run? How do we reel these Mandalorians in?
Panaka looks about before deciding on one of the abandoned factories. "Queen on the run. We'll use that factory there. JonJon, let's get into position. Inside we'll set up in a crossfire position so that if the Mandalorians take cover from one of us, they can't take cover from the other."
Panaka will then go to enter the factory so he and JonJon can take up positions inside.
Jonjon will close his eyes, focusing on his senses and sending them around the corner and beyond, getting a feel for how many they'll be dealing with.
"We must be on guard." Jonjon says quietly, shifting his oversized ears as he opens his eyes and regards his comrades.
"HaHA!" Ralk gives a short laugh as he peels away from the combat, flying 'under the radar,' so to speak, of the gathered mass of ships. "Well, folks, that's the exciting part of the ride over. Thank you for flying Intrigue, where even the bumpy parts are smooth." He's still on manual controls, guiding the ship ever closer to Naboo's atmosphere, at which point he can start looking for...
"Say, where did we want to land, again? I'm assuming right in Theed would raise a little unwanted attention, not to mention orbital defenses."
It's probably pointless to try to track down who did this. More than likely it was one of the other racers...maybe that punk of a Dug, Sebulba. He's well known as a dirty racer. It would be next to impossible to prove, though.
Is there anything else you wish to do before you race?
Area attack rolls, if you please!
You also know that the Queen was able to open a bit of a "blind spot" in the planet's orbital sensor network. It'll be tight, but you know where to fly to avoid detection. You are, actually, bound for Theed; you're to fly low to avoid radar detection, meet up with the guerillas in an abandoned office park with a dock, and hope that anyone looking up and seeing your ship will just assume it's one of the Mandalorian fleet.
Getting through the blind spot will require a DC 20 pilot check/
One of the Gungan's energy bombs prove to be fairly effective.
Panaka lofts a stun grenade at the clustered group of troopers, spreading a burst of stun energy over them.
A moment after he asks the question, Ralk glances back at the Jedi and winks. "Nah, I'm sure it'll be fine. What are they gonna do, call the Mandos on us? Hang tight, everybody." With that, he dives into the atmosphere, the ship plunging nearly straight down to reduce the chances any sensors pick them up until they're low enough--at which point he pulls back the throttle and wrenches the controls back, bringing the ship up to level off at breakneck speed.
"Yaha! That was fun."
Of note, now, is the plan you three have come up with; Jonjon has pointed out that the Naboo themselves are ignorant of how traversible the city of Theed is by use of waterways.
Jonjon has been around the city extensively over the past several days, and believes he has found a way into the palace, where the Queen is being kept. You have found enough rebreathers for anyone that will need them. The plan is to swim into the palace through a side room (a conservatory needing vast amounts of water for the plants, with a massive central fountain). Once there, you will find the Queen, extract her, board the ship and make your way to Republic space.
Jonjon will collect any credsticks they have, discard weapons into said waterways, and collect any grenades they have. "We leave them?" he asks, not against finishing them off if needed to.
"Running out of time, let'sa move." he declares. "Once we have our republic troops, I can lead us into the palace."
Sure, it isn't at all embarrassing that the Gungan knows a way into the palace that we don't. As soon as we get the rest of this, we'll have to make sure to get sensors in that path to the fountain.
"Just a moment. I want to see if we have caused a disturbance."
Sabe will slip one of the Mandalorian helmets over her head, listening for any comm chatter related to their deception or attack. Rumors of the Queen moving freely around the city could be useful, but she wants to make sure no more heat is coming down on them at the moment to interrupt the rendezvous.
Anakin snorts at the hack job. "Amateur." He mutters, contemplating other, more surefire ways (or at least less obvious) to sabotage a pod racer. For a moment, Anakin considers approaching Sebulba, whether it was actually him or not, a bit of shouting, maybe a few fists, it would get word around. In the end he shakes his head. 'Let them think that their plan worked.' He tells himself. With a grin, he looks down at his pod, 'It'll make it even more impressive when you win.'
Trained her whole life in deception and manipulation, Sabe attempts to replicate the codes and jargon she has heard during a week on the run.
"Negative on that report in Sector 7. Just a harmless young woman eating a snack, nothing unusual. Over."
The voice on the other end of the comm acknowledges your response and orders you to resume patrol. It seems that you succeeded.
The guerillas are, at this point, able to make their way to the landing platform. Intrigue crew, feel free to post any preparations you like; otherwise, you have successfully and stealthily docked. Three people are waiting for you in the abandoned dock.
As you climb into your podracer, you're almost certain you see Sebulba leer at you for a moment. The crowd is beginning to get loud, and the announcer begins listing the participants.
You remind yourself that you don't need to win; the top six will advance to the Boonta Eve Classic.
You press the ignition and the pod roars to life. The engine is practically singing, and the throttle is begging you to let loose.
Three...two...one...
Make a pilot check! This race will require several checks.
Vehicular Combat will, in this scenario, allow you THREE rerolls of pilot checks.
Captain Panaka will take the time to restrain each of the Mandalorians, then remove their helmets so that they can't call for help easily, except for the one Sabe has. "Sabe, try to remove the comm from that helmet. It will be useful to be able to listen in on their chatter."