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Source Starfinder Core Rulebook pg. 377
Classes Mystic 3, Precog 3, Technomancer 3, Witchwarper 3
School transmutation
Casting Time 1 standard action
Range close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Targets up to one creature/level, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Duration 1 round/level
Saving Throw Will negates; Spell Resistance yes
Description
An affected creature moves and attacks at a drastically slowed rate. Creatures affected by this spell are staggered (see page 277). A slowed creature moves at half its normal speed (round down to the next 5-foot increment). Multiple slow effects don’t stack. Slow counters and negates haste.
Source Starfinder Core Rulebook pg. 277
You can take a single move action or standard action each round, but not both, nor can you take full actions. You can still take swift actions, but not reactions.
Source Starfinder Core Rulebook pg. 273
You are on fire. As long as you have this condition, at the start of your turn each round before you take any actions (or attempt the Reflex saving throw described below), you take the listed amount of damage as fire damage (or 1d6 fire damage, if no amount is listed in the effect that causes burning). Fire damage from multiple sources that inflict the burning condition is cumulative.
At the end of each round you are burning, you can attempt a Reflex saving throw to remove this condition. The DC of this saving throw is equal to 10 + the amount of fire damage you took this round from the burning condition. If you succeed at this saving throw, you lose the burning condition. You can attempt a new saving throw each round you have this condition, and you receive a +2 bonus for each previous saving throw you’ve attempted in consecutive rounds.
You can also automatically end this condition by jumping into enough water to douse yourself. If you don’t have enough water on hand, you can spend a full action to roll on the ground or otherwise smother the fire to attempt a new saving throw with a +4 bonus (plus any bonuses from previously failed consecutive attempts) to end the condition.
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The jinsuls change tactics. Even a sluggish jinsul can move quickly enough to get behind Harlan.
The third jinsul (red) dashes forward with simply incredible speed. And it's leg blade tries to ginsu the halforc technomancer. The blade cuts deep. Could half-orc sushi be on the jinsul's menu.
The jinsul between Navasi and Never rears up. Dark energy flashes out in ripples, momentarily blinding the two Starfinders and crushing through their armor to compress their chests. Fortunately for Zephyr, he's just outside the blast radius. Navasi and Never immediately regain their vision.
Reeling, Navasi flips over the barricade. She lands cleanly on both feet and fires her plasma pistol again.
... S; critical bleed 2d6) Ranged
... E & F; critical burn 1d8; 20 ft. line, unwieldy) Ref DC 17
Harlan endures the first attack and, judging based on the severity of the slash, decides to take his chances against red once more. He intentionally rushes around it to draw it's attention and then casts another spell to turn himself into a blazing missile that dashes westward through both red and blue.
Continuing to hold the path to the bridge, Zephyr fires again at green, hoping to burn him down, even if the attacks are not fully effective!
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Expecting to take a hit, Harlan circles the third jinsul. It obliges his expectations with a low slash of a leg-blade. Then Harlan blazes a trail through both jinsuls and poisons the big one.
Navasi's acrobatics take Zephyr by surprise when she momentarily blocks his view, and he hurries his shots. Both go wide.
The big jinsul doesn't chase Harlan. Instead it moves to the other door to auxilliary control.
The red jinsul doesn't turn around. It merely reverses it's plasma gun and blasts the wall beside Never, then wings her.
The green jinsul pursues Navasi, and leaps the barricade behind her. She ducks under a legblade while firing at it. It hits the deck behind her pivots to face her and Zephyr.
IN WORK YET
Source Character Operations Manual pg. 127
Level 3; Price 260
Type poison (injury); Save Fortitude DC 14
Track Dexterity (special); Frequency 1/round for 4 rounds
Effect Progression track is Sluggish—Stiffened—Staggered—Immobile; no end state. Immobile victims can continue to attempt a saving throw each round as a full-round action to revert to stiffened.
Cure 1 save
Sluggish : The victim takes a –2 penalty to Reflex saves and Dexterity based ability checks, attack rolls, and skill checks; the DCs of her spells and special abilities decrease by 2; and she becomes flat-footed.
Stiffened : The victim loses her Dexterity bonus to her Armor Class, and she can’t take reactions.
Staggered : The victim is staggered but can take purely mental full actions.
Immobile : The victim is helpless and can take only purely mental actions.
Staggered
Source Starfinder Core Rulebook pg. 277
You can take a single move action or standard action each round, but not both, nor can you take full actions. You can still take swift actions, but not reactions.
... S; critical bleed 2d6) Ranged
... E & F; criticalburn 1d8 Ref DC 16)
... E & F; criticalburn 1d8 Ref DC 16)
Never burn damage if she fails next ssave.
Zephyr takes his attack of opportunity, trying to block the jinsul from getting past him to the sensitive bridge equipment.
Hoping he did a good job locking down that port door, Zephyr continues to focus on the green jinsul just in front of him!
Harlan scoffs at blue hobbling its way down the corridor. He's content to leave it to it's sluggish advance on the bridge and instead focus on the one Never is fighting. He sends a barrage of magic missiles into its back.
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Never tries to turn so the fire spreads to new areas so as to keep the eventual skin peel and tan more evenly distributed. Then she cheers Harlan's endless barrage of magic missiles. "Haha! I bet you didn't guess we'd be using first-level spells and weapons when you tried to attack this ship!" She looks at you, yes you, and winks.
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The jinsul was obviously not expecting the welcome it receives from Zephyr. The punch in midair queers its landing. The second attempt keeps it off-balance dodging, and the third lands for more damage, causing a puff of smoke to escape its armour.
Showing immeasurable contempt for the emotionally scarred blue, Harlan switches targets to help Never with another brace of magic missiles that not even eyes in the back of red's head can help it avoid.
Never's smoldering suit burns itself out. A slightly cooler vanguard draws chartreuse ichor with a well-placed flick of her taclash.
[ooc] Status: jinsuls to go.
Jinsul Red (-54)
Jinsul Blue (-98) (slowed, staggered 5 rounds left)
Jinsul Green (-99) Burning (slowed, staggered 5 rounds left)
Zephyr -82 (1 rounds of healing left)
Never -46,
Navasi -60
Harlan -29
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Blue finds the door locked, and tries to open it. Harlan's contempt seems well-founded.
Red lunges forward and its mandibles snap at Never's face, it follows the feint with a quick step to the right and a low slash of its legblade.
In auxilliary control phantom tendrils of black writhe around the jinsul. It lashes out at Navasi and the leg blade scores her ribs.
... S; critical bleed 2d6)
... S; critical bleed 2d6)
Zephyr keeps pounding away at the green Jinsul, seeing his physical attacks were working better than the lasers, at least for now.
Harlan bombards red once more, confident that although he can't see what's going on around the corner, it involves the remaining jinsul getting smashed into the deck.
"I'd say we're doin' our best to provide that end." Harlan laughs.
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Never cuts into a leg-joint. The jinsul's leg folds and it hits the deck. It tries to stand, but doesn't have the strength. After a few spasms, it stills.
"Zephyr, behind you!" The large jinsul has opened the other door.
The dark aura around Red tightens and densifies. It rears and the darkness flares out to engulf the bridge.
[/dice]
Badly hurt, Zephyr continues to pummel green in the hopes of taking him down!
Harlan makes his way around the corner, somewhat disappointed to find that the jinsul he'd left for dead is still kicking and has somehow managed to pry the door open. He extends a gauntleted hand toward it and clasps his pocketwatch in the other. "Alright, lets see how you like this." A ripple of heat rolls toward it.
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Never tries to dodge fire.
But that goes about as well as the first three attempts and she eats a supernova.
"The only useful Solarian is a dead Solarian, especially if it's a giant bug." She doesn't know if this thing is a Solarian or not, but it hardly matters. She runs around to help Harlan but doesn't quite make it.
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Harlan drops the big one. Never arrives just in time to see it bounce once on the deck.
In auxilliary control, green slashes at Navasi. She parries and her riposte cuts deeply into one leg. The buzz blade catches and while woman and jinsul struggle to control the limb, there's an opening for Zephyr.
... S; critical bleed 2d6) Ranged
... E & F; critical burn 1d8; 20 ft. line, unwieldy) Ref DC 17
Harlan pushes forward as the blue assailant falls. He gets sight of the final remaining foe and looks to help Navasi and Zephyr out with a quick pair of force bolts. "Still not done? We've got places to be, heh."
Stepping to the side and lining up his shot, Zephyr tries to time his strike to when the struggle between the jinsul and Navasi exposes a vulnerable spot on the foe. He then strikes hard with his powered-armor enhanced strength!
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The combined assault punches through the last jinsul's carapace, its legs splay outward and it collapses unto the deck. Auxilliary Control is secure.
Shortly thereafter, Jadnura broadcasts on shipwide comms that the jinsul boarders have been repulsed. Preparations for the jump to the Drift will begin while the ship is swept for any possible jinsul survivors. Reports come in from across the fleet that the other carriers are secure. The jinsul ships break off pursuit.
One by one in a rapid succession, the enormous Starfinder ships dive into the Drift. The carriers converge at their rendezvous point, still at full battle readiness. Nominated First Seeker Luwazi Elsebo addresses the fleet through the ships’ comm units.
“Starfinders, today we did something no one would have thought possible a year ago. We were able to rescue many of our comrades and two members of the Society’s former leadership, and what we now know about the Scoured Stars system may at least bring some closure to the loved ones of those who were beyond our help. Despite our victory today, we must remain vigilant, because a new threat has revealed itself. We know little of these jinsuls, but we all witnessed that their armada is massive, and they may have hundreds of thousands of soldiers eager for battle. It is clear they are an enemy we cannot ignore. Today, we must head back home to recuperate, but tomorrow, we must prepare. The Society endures, but a new threat to the galaxy is rising.”
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Never looks for medical help immediately. She's badly burned and not having Luwazi's big speech. She didn't join for pride; she joined to get out of poverty, a common motivation. That she had come this far, with Zephyr specifically, but now with Harlan at her side, did give her a sense of belonging that would not have crossed her mind. The past year had been crazy - the places they'd been and all the crazy battles they'd fought - the Society had sent her out to do a job, and she had done it.
Tidbit chirped at her from her pocket.
"I don't think so," replied Never. "These kinds of stories never really end."
Despite his injuries and exhaustion, Zephyr moves to the helm, eager to use his piloting skills to aid in the evacuation. He tries not to dwell on how close he came to falling in the last battle, with his healing nanites exhausting themselves just as the struggle concluded.
Still, he is proud of his contribution and he spends some time thanking the others for their part, getting to know these organics as best he can given his own limitations with social morays.
Harlan's a little bruised up, but that's the way he likes coming back from a fight. If you didn't get dirty, was it really worth your time? He smirks at the speech from Luwazi. More fights is something he's not likely to say no to, and if there's a whole army of jinsuls out there asking for punishment, it means plenty of lucrative contracts with the Starfinder Society.
"Good showin', you two." He nods to Zephyr and Never, and then another to Navasi, who had joined only for the last part.
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Absalom Station is still abuzz with news and even more rumors about the weeks-old rescue of the Starfinders trapped behind the golden god-shield in the Scoured Stars. And, if you're familiar with certain quarters of the city, especially the Lorespire Complex, the place is awash with refugees.
Starfinder missions had come to a virtual halt during the immediate preparation for the rescue mission. They have not resumed while the Society struggles to reabsorb and care for the rescued agents.
So it is with some small amount of curiosity that you open a message from Radaszam, the vesk leader of the Acquisitives.
Docking Bay W-495 is not regularly used by the Starfinders. It is a Station maintenance bay, shabby as such facilities usually are. The dim lighting hides, well minimizes, the impression of grease and detritus lining the walls and floor.
No ship is to be seen. Airlocks line the curving wall. Andromedaemust lie through one of the ports, and judging by the spacing between airlock doors, she can't be very large.
Across the bay an android in a voluminous brown cloak waves at you then reverses his hand and draws his fingers towards himself twice to beckon you closer.
”Be prepared for hazards,” repeats Zephyr to himself as he pilots the hover suit powered armor. Walking to conserve the battery life, the android still seems to be getting used to operating the large armored suit. Weapon mounts are visible at each shoulder, but the powerful hands are free of any obvious armaments.
Quietly to Harlan, Zephyr says, ”We have orders for the ship, right? Nothing about meeting contacts in the bay—unless those are the Stewards,” with some concern.
Harlan, who had never met a hazard he didn't like (or at least didn't get a kick out of tearing apart), takes the request in stride... At least until he reads the meeting time. When he finally arrives, 15 minutes late, with an extra large coffee in one hand and a thick cigar in the other. He has his full heavy armor on, but the face plate is down and his pudgy tusked face is visible.
He looks up to Zephyr in his powered armor "Hell of an upgrade. Hope it's got the firepower to match the looks though, eh?"
Following Zephyrs gaze to the android, Harlan grunts and calls out "Yeah, how 'bout you mosey on over here instead. 'S too early to be gettin' bothered by shady 'droids in dark corners."
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The android pushes off the wall and strides across the bay. He stops three feet away, and says softly, "Z-4. Riggs. Andromedae awaits."
This close you can see a black bodysuit under the hems of the cloak. He turns on his heel and returns to the airlock door that he had been waiting beside.
Just to be clear, you meet each other on this mission for the first time in the private room.
Nodding, Zephyr says, ”Works for me.” Totally missing out on the social cues and secrecy, he speaks in a normal (if not loud) voice instead of a whisper. He then looks at his friend and says, ”Let’s go,” as he moves in the indicated direction.
The door to the private room cracks open. A head pokes through, the large bright eyes of its cat-like face scanning the space within. Triangular ears perk up and then flick, before the head slowly retreats back to the hallway beyond.
A moment passes before the door swings open and a lone pahtra enters the room. He wears a plain loose-fitting grey shirt, belted at the waist, and matching trousers, tucked into charcoal boots.
Closing the door behind him, he makes his way to a nearby seat where he slips his few belongings - a well-used backpack and a fresh-looking long rectangular case - from his shoulders and gently lowers them to the floor, propping them up against the arm of the chair.
Easing himself into the seat, he takes a deep breath and exhales, closes his eyes and calmly awaits the arrival of his team members.
Harlan shrugs and then nods to Zephyr "Seems it's part 'a the job after all." then follows along.
The door to the private room almost swings shut before it abruptly reopens. A narrow elven face brimming with excitement and curiosity peeks in. Seeing the pahtra already in the room, he smiles broadly and offers a wave.
“Helloooo, fellow Starfinder!” His lilting voice fills the room with enough energy to charge a battery.
A swoop of loose silver hair bounces near his face. The rest is pulled into a low ponytail running halfway down his back. The pointed tips of his ears barely poke through the wave of hair, looking like a pair of dorsal fins in the surf. His skin gives a pearlescent shimmer as he moves.
“I’m Faelyn Arban Safir, but my friends call me Nym.” His voice softens slightly as he sees the size of the room, but still crackles with performance power.
He ducks slightly as he enters, a pair of silver white wings narrowly missing the top of the door frame. He releases his compression backpack with practiced ease and slides it to the floor. He takes a seat on a backless stool.
”Granted, they usually laugh at me too, but that’s part of the job. I was doing quick gig at The Dirty Renkroda when I got the call for the mission. How ‘bout you? Been called into the field a lot lately or does your luggage take you along because it likes to travel?”
The pahtra turns at the sound of Nym's arrival. Standing, he exchanges pleasantries with the Starfinder.
"Nice to meet ya, Faelyn," he murmurs. "Name's Locket."
His bright eyes widen slightly in surprise as Nym's silvery white wings come into view.
Perching on the arm of the chair, he twists to face Nym as they converse. "You a musician? What do ya play?" he asks at the other's mention of a gig.
"Ya could say that," Locket replies with a half-smile. "But I'm a pretty recent recruit so don't have much to go on."
"This seems out of the ordinary, though? Getting messages like this?"
Zephyr ducks as he enters the airlock, maneuvering his massive armor deftly. He looks ahead with a mixture of excitement and concern, wondering what kind of mission this will be and if he will get the chance to pilot the Andromedae.
Nym shakes his head.
“Not a musician, no, but I see where you got that. I’m a stand-up comic in my non-Starfinder time. The gig was at a decent local club that pays a little more than they should, so I'm always happy to oblige them. Always appreciated a bonus!”
He shrugs at Locket’s question about the mission call. “These messages come in all kinds of ways. You get used to it. So what’s your shtick for the Society? What do you do?”
Nym listens, then frames his face with his hands and smiles big. “I’m usually the team's diplomat and general ego-smoother, but I can shoot pretty well too. A lot of times, I settle for infuriating the enemy.”
He leans forward, reducing his voice to a conspiratorial stage whisper. “Everything gets stupid when they’re mad. I help them make bigger mistakes than they'd do on their own. It's kinda fun, really, being an agent of chaos.”
Harlan follows right behind Zephyr, not wanting to be left out of the action.
Locket grunts. "Comedian, huh?" He nods several times. "Nothing like laughing to lift the spirit."
"My shtick?," the pahtra murmurs, brows and ears lifting in thought as he considers. After a moment, he shrugs, replying with a smirk, "Still working that out."
"I can find my way around a fight." He nudges the rectangular box with a booted heel. It is decorated in Shobhad motifs, with the letter G emblazoned in large, child-like writing. "And a friend's been teaching me to shoot this thing."
Nym looks skeptically at the box.
“Uh huh. Looks like your friend is… uh, young. What is it? Vidgame?”
He abruptly pulls out his comm unit and begins scrolling.
“You don’t s’pose we got the wrong room, do you? I mean, I’m good at what I do and you’re… clearly… the master of the box. But surely they’re sending someone else with us, right?”
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The Fullbright Lounge is outside Skydock customs. Like all of Skydock, the lounge is expensive real estate, and so is very nicely appointed. Leather, broadly defined leather, chairs, quartz tables, and wall hangings in muted browns and greys provide a soothing complement to your view of Brightside, the perpetually illuminated side of Verces.
The door opens and an unavoidably lanky verthani walks in. The male is well attired in a black slim suit. "You may have a few hours wait. Mr. Harsk asked that we provide you with whatever you need."
Well over a year ago, after finding an ancient artifact oddly named the Tear, First Seeker Jadnura developed an obsession with the Scoured Stars, a cluster of stars surrounded by a golden energy shield, dubbed the godshield, that prevented space travel into and out of the cluster. The artifact provided a means of piercing the shield and allowing travel into the cluster.
So naturally he took almost the entire cadre of active Starfinder Field Agents into the cluster to explore this mysterious hidden pocket of space. And the shield closed behind them, and they were lost to the galaxy.
A little over a year ago, new First Seeker Luwazi Elsebo held a now-famous fundraising gala where she planned to announce her plan to rescue the Starfinders trapped in the Scoured Stars. She gathered together a number of potential allies, Royo, a brilliant ysoki academic; Zo!, the fabulously wealthy undead media mogul; Iteration-177, a fast rising star of the Aspis Consortium ; and Ykris,a symbiotic pair representing CeriCore Labs. What she didn't know was that she was targeted for assassination at the Gala, and the team a raw rookie agents that had been assigned to schmooze the guests ended up saving everyone from an explosive end to the evening.
Perhaps not surprisingly, that team became her go-to. Details are scant and there have been no officially published reports, but rumors, or legends, will get around. A few months after the gala, the go-to team went on a mission with Royo and Iteration-177, and came back with evidence of a second Tear.
They visited the planet Icefront, exposed an illicit research operation that was wreaking havoc on the environment and biosphere, and established first contact with the izalguun race.
Finally they returned to the izalguun system and found the second Tear.
In the Scoured Stars campaign, the team seemed to be everywhere. They scouted key locations that yielded important clues to locations where the stranded Starfinders might be and rescued many of them personally.
Over the year attrition took its toll. Soon after the Gala Alison Whiteangel signed a contract with Zo! Various agents joined the team for short missions and were re-assigned. In the early stages of the rescue Harlan Riggs was assigned to replace Lorne Skyjumper. During the rescue Jaeric Kem was pulled off the team to perform analysis, and has since become the Society's permanent liaison with Royo; After the mission, Never Stormfox resigned her commission, citing, "Bullshit."
Oh, and you're top agents also, as good as any that the Society has produced since Jadnura's folly.
"I am Selah Sci. Your pilot and hostess for your trip. " The inner door opens. The space beyond is hardly more roomy than the airlock. It may have been a cargo bay but is filled with machinery, including a domed cube with readouts and displays. A tube empty of machinery with a few handholds, ladder segments, and isolated deck plates forms an impromptu corridor into the ship.
"Be careful moving about the ship. It is easy to bump your head, bark your shins, or generally bruise yourselves. Accommodations are minimal. It will be easier to get around once we're free of Absalom's artificial gravity field. Common area and work space are forward. Cockpit and quarters are on the halfdeck above. I will go prepare for departure. Absalom Flight Control is busy today. You have perhaps 30 minutes before we are free. I will sound the acceleration warning two minutes before we undock. "
Piloting, Engineering DC 20
Somewhat unconventionally, the machinery in this bay seems to consist of a Signal 4 Drift drive, an outsized fusion bottle to power it, and thruster systems usually found outside the hull.
What are we flying? Piloting, Culture DC 25
It's hard to tell from inside, but this is a very heavily modified Atech Beetle, a small commercial hauler, and salvage workhorse. Hundreds of these fly the Pact Worlds.
"Funny ship ya got here." Harlan runs a mitted hand over the exterior of the high-class drift drive "For gettin' places fast and quiet, I'd guess. Odd ship for a rescue mission. Not a lot a' space." He goes for a cigar and lights up, not caring that it'll probably overwork the scrubbers in such a small space "We rescuing a pile of squoxes or something?"
”And quite nondescript from the outside as well. This should prove to be an interesting mission,” observes Zephyr, ”Though it will be odd for me not to be the one piloting the craft.”
”Selah, I am Zephyr. Thanks for the acceleration warning plan. Anything you need us to do here while we wait?” offers the android.