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You begin the adventure onboard a Veskarium transport ship, Kagzala’s Jewel, on the final leg of their tour through several remote worlds in Near Space First Seeker Ehu Hadif is aboard and has just pinged you all to join him in the briefing room. Feel free to post character intros as you will all have got to know each other over the previos uneventful missins
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A thin, somewhat scarred shirren sits next to a porthole about the Kagzal's Jewel. He glances out the window, antennae twitching in a slightly nervous manner. When his wrist-com beeps indicating a message has come in, he starts so much that he tips over his mug of water, spilling it everywhere.
"Sorry, sorry..." he chitters. Checking the message the shirren quickly makes his way to Ehu Hadif's briefing room where he finds a chair.
"Hello..." he chitters. "It is probably best if you just call me Liftt. I used to be a drop ship pilot, back before we got sealed into the..." he pauses, shrugs and shuts up.
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Rilynn was beginning to regret agreeing to this assignment. It had been a dull affair, and a Vesk transport ship was not her idea of fine accommodations.
The tour had given her an opportunity to spend more time around Ehu and watch him operate. She had been involved in his selection, to a small extent, having performed a task for him, and she thought she understood that he was willing to compromise not only his personal integrity, but that of the entire Starfinder organization, by associating with known terrorists. Or at least, a race, the Curators, that had no qualms about committing genocide to protect their power.
But she had learned that Ehu, a traditional Kasatha by any measure, was a pragmatist, and not particularly encumbered by moral dilemma. The trait was useful to his role, and she even came to admire him for his consistency and truth of purpose.
Aboardship, Rilynn was her outwardly diplomatic self. That she remained always a little skeptical of the Vesk's motivations for providing this vessel to be used during the tour was her secret to keep. When her comm lit up she does a quick refresh of her makeup and then joins the team, offering Ehu one of her trademark confident smiles and then replying to Liftt, "The past is passed, my father would say," she offers reassuringly. "But my mother would say the past is prologue." She shrugs and sits down.
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The alien known as Kippi Longfeeler has been a constant presence around the ship these last few days or weeks. Kippi is a kiirinta, a small-mothlike creature with a long dark violet furry abdomen and large iridescent wings in the colors of the rainbow. However, she seems to be doing her utmost to hide those colorful features by wearing a long black cape, black eyepatch over one compound eye, streaks of black mascara on her feelers, and a coat of thin silvery paint over her wings.
She slides the door to the meeting room open smoothly and then silently floats in to settle into a chair. She immediately ruins the moment by losing her balance and tumbling the chair to the floor noisily while she flaps in place. "OH, UH, SORRY! I'll get that. Really. Sorry." Her speaking voice is high and chirpy.
She clears her tiny throat and then does her absolute best to sound dark and menacing "Ah-hem! It is me. The PRINCESS OF SHADOWS, THE SEER OF THE EMERALD NIGHT, AND THE DARK WING OF DAWN~" She puffs up and swirls her cloak back. The hem catches against the chair and she has to tug it free. "Here to help with this important mission."
"We do have an important mission, right?"
She extends legs to Liftt and Rilynn to shake "People tell me my name's too long, so you can call me Kippi if you like."
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"Rilynn Rae," replies the Lashunta, accepting the gesture from Kippi. Of coruse they were already acquainted, but this was the first time the had been formally summoned by the Seeker. It seemed appropriate to get up to speed.
Then, at the entrance of another of her race and sex, Rilynn affects an expression of concern. "Oh good. But let's say you had been followed; who or what would we expect to see next?"
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First Seeker Ehu Hadif springs into the meeting room and gestures around the comfortable seats available inside the cozy meeting room.
"Sorry I am late but I was hoping that our science officer would be able to clear up the message we have received however it has proved to problematic we think its relayed through several links but..." He pauses doing a quick count of the starfinders present before resuming
“Thank you for responding so promptly. I know you’re all tired and looking forward to returning home, but starting now, our tour won’t be proceeding as scheduled. A few minutes ago, we received a transmission from a nearby planet that we believed to be uninhabited. I’ll play it for you.”
A flickering holovid of an aging dromada appears over Ehu’s datapad. The dromada’s fur is speckled with gray, and he speaks in a tired but firm voice: “I am Colrid of the Star Treader herd. We took refuge on Zrulik-3, but now many of our herd are—”
Colrid’s image stutters as the message fades into garbled static. After a moment, the message resumes. “—attacks. If anyone can hear this,
please help us.” Ehu paces anxiously as the message plays, his brow furrowed with concern.
“This is truly a strange coincidence,” Ehu explains. “Colrid is a retired Starfinder and an old friend of mine. We can’t always assist former Starfinders, but since we’re already here, I’d like to help him however we can. We’ve already changed course for Zrulik-3; we’ll reach orbit in a few minutes. Please prepare to board a shuttle and find out what’s going on planetside."
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Kippi clings lightly to the top of a comfy seat. "Oh, this looks like an urgent mission! What's the Star Treader herd that your friend was talking about? Oh and, do you know why they were out here? Oh and, do you think there'll be a chance to-" She tries to pitch her voice down "-mete out DARK JUSTICE?"
"Oh oh, and can you tell us anything else about Colrid that might help us?"
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What do I know about Zrulik-3? Not much, to tell you the truth. It’s a remote world covered by thick forest. The Jewel’s crew say that landing might be tricky and scanning from orbit is nearly impossible. Pirates used the rock as a hideout in the past, but the High Despots put a stop to that after they began targeting vesk ships. I’m not surprised Colrid chose it as a hiding place. The apex predator on Zrulik-3 is the zrulicat. A zrulicat can see in all directions at once and has a prehensile tentacle it uses to drag prey into its mouth. The beasts are solitary hunters that
live deep in the forest, however, so you may not even encounter them.
What can you tell us about Colrid? He is a Dromada. Dromadas are often skittish and rarely leave their herds, but Colrid was brave and independent. He once told me that he left his own herd in anger and sometimes regretted it. He wanted to fight the poachers that hunted them, but the others refused to stand together. He served as a Starfinder for many years, but his missions were often complicated by those who wanted to murder him for his meat—a despicable practice that still goes on today. He decided to retire after one of those monsters captured him and put his entire team in danger. I tried to talk him into staying, but he’d hear none of it. As for the Star Treader herd? When last we spoke, Colrid confided in me that he dreamed of forming a herd for other exiled or lost dromadas. He must have succeeded.
After the actions of Datch a certain level of Paranoia is helpful but I dont see this as factor here We shall proceed as you say Ehu Smiles As for Dark justice. Well whatever is attacking the herd will need to be neutralised I suspect a diplomatic solution will prove elusive
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"We've got jungle cats like that on Castrovel. You never see them until it's too late. Alright, Ehu, we'll get down there and rescue our old compatriot."
Rilynn steels herself from thinking too much about the dangers of the planet. The tattoo along her torso is a constant reminder that the natural world is filled with creatures that see everything else as lunch.
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At the positive encouragement from Ehu, Kippi touches the tip of a leg to her eyepatch. "Hu hu. This eye of mine tells me... THAT THE TIME HAS COME!" She floats awkwardly for a moment "By that I mean we should get going. Who knows what kind of trouble Colrid might be in this very minute. Something about attacks at the very least!"
She rises up and pulls her grenade belt out of her pack, donning it.
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Yippee, the ysoki part time pilot that was seemingly sleeping in a chair in the corner, looks up toward the end of the discussion.
"OK, crew. I'll be getting the shuttle prepped, plan on leaving in 15. I'm not too worried about landing in the forest, but it might make for a rougher than usual ride, so pack little disposable bags if you think you'll need one."
The ysoki seems a little frail, but he bounces out of his chair and quickly checks his weapons. His movements show he is quick... in contract to Kippi.
"Do we know if we have enough space to bring them back up if they don't have a working transport?"
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While the First Seeker was briefing the group, another Starfinder had joined the group. He didn't seem too concerned about missing part of the meeting. Max nods at the eager ysoki's plan to leave in 15 and leaves the room just as quietly as he entered it. He quickly heads to the quartermaster to purchase some new equipment.
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"Well, I was thinking--the best way to set a trap is to dangle an obvious lure for a trap like the distress call but then have the real trap spring now before someone who's expecting a trap (me) gets to where they think the (actually fake) trap is going to be intending to fight their way through it! It's obvious!"
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Madrigal does not find a bomb but does find a Star Sugar Heartlove T shirt that is definitely in need of a thorough cleansing
Tracking down the source of the broadcast is requires a certain level of competence (computers / engineering check) and finding the closest clearing without hitting every branch requires a piloting check
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Seeing as Yippe seems keen on piloting, Liftt settles into the co-pilots chair.
"Seat belts on everybody. Now, Yippe, remember, on the planet there is atmospheric drag to account for..." in a 'If I've told students this once, I've told them 1000 times' tone of voice.
You note he very carefully does up his own harness, double checking it throughly.
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Kippi initially has a little trouble identifying the source of the signal but adding in a computer algorithim to the sensor feed points to the location. Yippee expertly lands the shuttle with Liftts Guidance
A set of hooved tracks meanders around the clearing and appears to lead south to an overgrown trail
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"Well done!" says Liftt, looking relieved at having firm soil under his feet once again. Stepping out from the shuttle, he sighs and peers around the clearing.
"I guess those tracks are Colrid" he adds.
Then, ignoring the tracks, heads over to some nearby greenery and pulls off a camo net.
"Ahh, a class-B shuttle. I love these ones. Reliable even in poor conditions, but it would never win a race."
He tries the door to see if there are any clues inside as to what has happened here.
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Yippee looks a little sheepish, as he clearly had little to do with the graceful landing. "Thanks for the.. um.. assist, Liftt. You've been doing this a while now, eh?"
Looks like I still have a few moves to learn!
"Do we think this is the shuttle that our friends landed in? Should we check it out first for clues as to where they may have gone?" Clearly, he is just saying out loud what Liftt is already in the process of doing.
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Lifft, Kippi, and Yippee each perform their duties with expertise, and Rilynn is treated to a flawless shuttle descent and landing. She has the feeling this team will work well together.
Outside she reviews the tracks. Is there only one set? Did Coldrid come here alone, and for what possible reason?
She then joins the others inside Coldrid's shuttle, searching the computer for a manifest or log that would give any clue to why Coldrid would come here alone, if that's the case.
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With someone else offering to pilot, Max was content just sitting back and enjoying the ride to the surface. He hadn't even had a chance to step out of the shuttle before Lifft was pointing out the tracks and the other shuttle. Nice job everyone, "he says as he follows the group over to the other shuttle. "Any luck with the logs?"
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Kippi hovers around where the trail disappears into the woods. "Colrid's got to be this way... but there aren't that many tracks. I wonder why. Wasn't he supposed to be here with his herd? And why did the track meander around?" She points with a leg at where they're circling around the clearing. "If you won't find anything on the shuttle, we should go quick. Colrid might still be in trouble!"
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The logs show that Colrid arrived mid to late morning and recorded the message and set it for repeat transmission before leaving. The shuttle is in low power mode but there is no signs of comms to contact Colrid. (Zrulik-3 has standard day cycle standard gravity Timing of signal start and your receiving it matches up)
Madrigal uses the camoflage to cover up your shuttle and you are left with little choice but to try and track down the skittish Dromada
A massive old-growth forest stretches unbroken for miles beyond the clearing. Trees with vibrantly pigmented bark form a nearly impenetrable living wall. A chorus of hoots and screeches reverberates through the humid air, and thorny vines grasp and tear with every step.
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Yippee finds this tracking to his liking and he is leading the group through the forest when suddenly, all the cacophony dies away, and an uncomfortable silence settles over the trees
Initiatives
You spot the distinctive tail of a Zrullicat moving in from the north
Another burst out of the shrub and lands whipping its tail at Max Madrigal and Yippee Who need to make a dc10 reflex save
Party is up
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Yippee is a skilled guide, and the group makes steady progress through the dense growth of the ancient forest. She lets her mind drift back to the lush jungles of Castrovel, the flora and fauna always closing in on any intrepid adventurers.
She's surprised but not shocked when the Zrullicat comes pouncing out of the tress at the party. Without a weapon in hand, she thrusts her arms forward and launches three magic missiles at the terrifying cat.
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The green swings back at Liftt with that incredibly long tail
But Liftt fires back effectively and is supported by three
Bold to act
Kippi
Madrigal
Max
yippee
All but kippi still have a dc 10 reflex save
Green -17
Red
Liftt
Rilynn
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Yippee just manages to keep his feet as the Zrullicat lands next to him he draws a knife and tries to stab the cat but it evades.
Madrigal is not surprised and in one smooth action draws hew sword and manages to draw blood from the strangely emaciated cat
Kipp flies up and shoots green causing a singed mark on its fur that causes a cry of pain from the cat
With a flick of his wrist he pulled his arc pistol to hand and then with practiced tumble tried to evade the cat before shooting it
Not liking the source of those red photon torpedoes Green moves up and attempt to grab Rilynn with its tentacle
Its tentacle pummels into Rilynn pummeling her and also grappling her
Red attacks Madrigal with its tentacle
It hits but doesnt manage to grab Madrigal
Party is up
Madrigal -8
Rilynn -8
Max
Kippi
Yippee
Liftt
Green -19
Red -4
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**Computers Stunt: Dirty Trick Whenever you attempt a Computers check as part of your stunt and strike and succeed, you can cause the target to gain one of the following conditions until the start of your next turn instead of the flat-footed condition: deafened, off-target, shaken, or sickened (your choice).
, bestowing the Sickened condition on green if successful.