GM Cellion's Devastation Ark

Game Master Cellion

Feel free to retroactively rest 10 mins, if you'd like. Let me know if you do so I can correct the tracker properly.

Ajithu is taking this option, along with the replenished spell slot.

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 19 ⇒ Act normally.

No no no. They resisted my assault and now they play in my mind. Not good...

The kalo spirals with anxiety and the whole group can hear it.

Powers of my magnitude cannot be allowed to fall into their hands!

He quickly lines up his weapon with one of them and hopes that firing on it will break the confusion. But he knows better.

[move] draw weapon
[standard] attack BLUE
ultracold ice carbine attack, C & P damage: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (14) + 13 = 276d6 + 13 ⇒ (5, 2, 1, 4, 5, 3) + 13 = 33

I would like to rest first please. I'm down to 6/11 RP.

confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 22

Achlyss feels something messing with his mind--which hadn't quite been the same since he died--and stops him in his tracks for a moment.

But he charges forward anyway, swinging wildly.

Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (1) + 19 = 205d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (3, 6, 4, 3, 4) + 14 + 13 = 47

Some excellent confusion luck at least!

The two Prexians rise higher, flapping out of Achlyss' immediate reach (15 ft up now). They move with surprisingly swiftness, evading any immediate counterattack. (No AoO)

They turn to regard Arc, the only member of the party who seems in full control of his faculties, and focus their magic upon him. One sends an enervating ray that Arc manages to dodge, while the other attempts a psychic attack similar to the one Ajithu attempted.

Arc Will: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (7) + 8 = 15

The psychic shock hits Arc hard. (Dealing 25 untyped/mental dmg)

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (53 dmg)
Achlyss (confused)
Ajithu (confused)
Shocca (104 dmg, confused)
??? Red Mutant (29 dmg, -2 Will)
??? Blue Mutant

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 88 ⇒ Attack nearest creature.

Oh no... that would be Shocca :/

Suddenly Ajithu squints and swears he sees the head of one of the fleshy creatures on Shocca's body.

Did they take over poor Shocca? Trade places with her? Nooooooooooo!

He turns and fires on the ikeshti.

Please roll low...

ultracold ice carbine attack, C & P damage: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (2) + 13 = 15

The spray of ice needles flies harmlessly past Shocca and into the opposing wall. Ajithu keeps blinking at the figure standing before him, trying to gain visual clarity and verify friend or foe.

Phew!

Achlyss seems about to throw his ranged weapon at the creatures but stops in his tracks.

"They are not above us--they are INSIDE of us!" he bellows. "Dig deep!"

Though he carries no weapon, he bashes his leg with his shield, causing a contusion even through his armor.

confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 51

self harm: 1d8 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 98 lol of course. Sweet sweet revenge.

Shocca turns in place, seeing Ajithu's shot get dangerously close to her. "Ajithu, it seems you are confused. You need medicine." Unfortunately, in her addled state, she forgets to add the serum to the needle. And... forgets to target non-essential organs. With a soft smile on her face, she turns and fires a needle right at the kalo's neck.

Needler @ Ajithu: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (12) + 20 = 32
P Dmg: 4d6 + 13 ⇒ (5, 6, 4, 4) + 13 = 32

The confusion results this round really evened out with last round...

Arcalinte grits his teeth at the psychic assault and grimaces as his team starts attacking each other. Nothing for it but to take these things down and FAST. He takes another shot at the wounded one.

Liquidator Disintegrator Pistol: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (13) + 18 = 311d10 + 13 ⇒ (3) + 13 = 16

One of the prexians delivers another mental shock to Arc, while the other (blue one) swoops down toward him and tries to get him with a radioactive bite.

Arc Will: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (20) + 8 = 28

He pushes past the worst of the psychic attack, though still suffers a nosebleed as the surge of suffering and agony washes over his mind. The other prexian's jaws close on his arm briefly before he shakes the mutant free. (14 untyped/mental, 23 piercing after DR) His armor's environmental protections shield him from the radioactivity.

Seeing Arc fighting with a clear head, Nifri decides to risk jumping in to help. Though he doesn't have anything to deal with the confusion, he fires his arc pistol to distract the blue prexian. (harrying fire; the next attack against blue gets a +2 to hit)

@Everyone: Confusion is punishing enough already, so I'm not going to enforce the rule that once you're attacked, you always attack back. Instead, everyone who's confused can continue rolling on the d% table each round.

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (90 dmg)
Achlyss (confused)
Ajithu (32 dmg, confused)
Shocca (104 dmg, confused)
??? Red Mutant (29 dmg, -2 Will)
??? Blue Mutant (harried)

They were flying but I think it had to come down to attack Arc? I'll assume so. If not, I'll change my attack to my singing disc.

Achlyss shakes his head as he briefly overcomes the confusion effect.

"Let the blows fall! Strategy is born in blood!" He reaches out with his clawed hand, and entropy rips the enemy apart from a distance.

confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 21

Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 - 3 ⇒ (15) + 19 - 3 = 315d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (3, 5, 3, 6, 5) + 14 + 13 = 49
Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 - 3 ⇒ (18) + 19 - 3 = 345d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (1, 2, 1, 1, 3) + 14 + 13 = 35

@Everyone: Confusion is punishing enough already, so I'm not going to enforce the rule that once you're attacked, you always attack back. Instead, everyone who's confused can continue rolling on the d% table each round.

Yikes... That could be a TPK right there...

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 88 Or I'll just keep rolling that option.

Shocca shakes her head and stares intently at Ajithu. "Sorry, forgot the meds that time. Here, take another shot." The ikeshti raises the muzzle of her rifle to point right at her friend's fish tank. "Say AHHH!"

Needler @ Ajithu: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (20) + 20 = 40 So... my bad.
P Dmg: 4d6 + 13 ⇒ (6, 1, 5, 3) + 13 = 28
P Dmg: 4d6 + 13 ⇒ (6, 1, 5, 6) + 13 = 31

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 44 ⇒ Do nothing but babble incoherently.

shorry for shooting at Shocca, I really ibby skibby yibby...

He winces at himself and shakes his head, struggling mightily to gain moments of clarity.

Ajithu gets blood on Shocca in revenge for the crit. Take that!

Arcalinte barks an Akitonian curse word when he sees his gun is useless against these things, but as they're closer to his level now, he switches to his sword and tries to hack at it.

Strident Wailing Blade (Sonic+Slashing): 1d20 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 20 + 2 = 376d6 + 19 ⇒ (1, 3, 1, 6, 4, 6) + 19 = 40

Over to the south, the red Prexian weaves another instinctive spell, this time trying to debilitate Arc with sensations of pain.

Arc Will: 1d20 + 8 ⇒ (15) + 8 = 23

Arc resists, enduring only a brief look into the creature's painful experiences. (You take a -2 penalty to attack rolls, ability checks and skill checks, but only for 1 round thanks to the successful save)

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (90 dmg)
Achlyss (confused)
Ajithu (91 dmg, confused)
Shocca (104 dmg, confused)
??? Red Mutant (29 dmg, -2 Will)
??? Blue Mutant (84 dmg)

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 65 ⇒ Deal 1d8 + Str modifier damage to self with item in hand.

Ajithu tries to get a handle on his babbling and smashes his gun a little too hard into his helmet.

Self harm: 1d8 ⇒ 7

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 69
Self Damage: 1d8 + 0 ⇒ (1) + 0 = 1

Shocca gets a little closer to sobriety, seeing the pain she is causing Ajithu. Not fully in control yet, she begins slamming her rifle against her forehead - which is thankfully covered by armor. "STUPID STUPID STUPID!"

Achlyss quickly losses his brief moment of self-awarness.

"The flutes! Can no one else hear them?!" he exclaims, pounding his leg with his shield again.

confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 68
self-harm: 1d8 + 6 ⇒ (3) + 6 = 9

Arcalinte activates his jetpack and pursues the monster into the air to try and finish it off!

Strident Wailing Blade (Sonic+Slashing): 1d20 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (1) + 20 + 2 = 236d6 + 19 ⇒ (5, 4, 1, 1, 6, 4) + 19 = 40

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (90 dmg)
Achlyss (4 dmg, confused)
Ajithu (98 dmg, confused)
Shocca (104 dmg, confused)
Red Prexian Mutantspawn (29 dmg, -2 Will)
Blue Prexian Mutantspawn (84 dmg)

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 27 ⇒ Do nothing but babble incoherently.

Skibby yexa bunga? Yub nub?

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 14

Shocca gasps as she returns to consciousness. "Holy moly, shoulda done this first." She lifts her microlab above her head on her tail and opens her jaw wide. A soft pink liquid squirts into her waiting mouth and she smiles. "Mmm... watermelon." Neurochemistry booster and immunity to confusion for me! She takes several steps backwards, separating herself from the other group members who are still confused. "Achlyss, I have some medicine cooking up for you right now! Hold on to those flutes my guy!" She eyes Ajithu with concerned eyes. "Uh...you too, probably."

Now airborne, Arcalinte goes after his target, hoping to finish them off FOR REAL THIS TIME!

Strident Wailing Blade (Sonic+Slashing): 1d20 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (15) + 20 + 2 = 376d6 + 19 ⇒ (5, 6, 5, 6, 3, 4) + 19 = 48

Achlyss Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 84
Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (2) + 19 = 21 Damage: 5d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (2, 5, 4, 6, 2) + 14 + 13 = 46
In his confusion, Achlyss reaches over to try to smash the nearest mutant's head in... though the fact the mutant looks a little like Arc causes him to pull his punches.

Arc Will: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (5) + 7 = 12

What he doesn't manage to defend so well against is the psychic strike from the other Prexian, blasting his mind with the torments of a death by radiation. (Dealing 25 dmg)

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (115 dmg)
Achlyss (4 dmg, confused)
Ajithu (98 dmg, confused)
Shocca (104 dmg)
Red Prexian Mutantspawn (29 dmg, -2 Will)
Blue Prexian Mutantspawn (122 dmg)

Arcalinte continues his assault, trying to kill the Prexian.

Strident Wailing Blade (Sonic+Slashing): 1d20 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 20 + 2 = 256d6 + 19 ⇒ (5, 5, 3, 5, 3, 4) + 19 = 44

Shocca watches Achlyss stike Arc grimly. And... that's why I moved. She moves forward on quiet feet, then jabs a needle in the soft part of Achlyss' armor at the back of the vesk's knee. "Shh.... this will make you feel better, big buddy." She steps back, assessing his response. "You should be getting a hint of watermelon on the back of your palate. If you taste tomato... then you're going to need to spend an hour in the loo later. Sorry bout that." Using my last biohack this rest to make Ach immune to Confusion.

Thanks, Shocca!

A rush of tomato is all it takes to clear Achlyss's mind of the confusion effect.

But wondering if he should have been tasting watermelon causes his ranged attacks to go wide.

"Grrr! Come get me!" he yells at the flying creatures.

Singing Disc (soprano, returning, sonic): 1d20 + 19 - 3 ⇒ (1) + 19 - 3 = 171d6 + 6 + 13 ⇒ (5) + 6 + 13 = 24
Singing Disc (soprano, returning, sonic): 1d20 + 19 - 3 ⇒ (1) + 19 - 3 = 171d6 + 6 + 13 ⇒ (5) + 6 + 13 = 24

Boo for snake eyes! They're both still flying, correct?

Ajithu Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 28
Overwhelmed by confusion, Ajithu continues to babble.

The remaining Prexian dips and twists in agitation, the heroes it had confused are breaking out far far too early for its plans. It casts another spell and sends a rippling ray of exhaustion out at Arc, but for a third time, the solarian manages to duck and weave to evade it. The Prexian suddenly jerks forward, flying close to the ceiling as it rushes for the door to the room. (note that the doors themselves are normal height, so it'd have to dip down to ground level to get through)

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (115 dmg)
Achlyss (4 dmg)
Ajithu (98 dmg, confused)
Shocca (104 dmg)
Red Prexian Mutantspawn (29 dmg, -2 Will)

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 14 ⇒ Act normally.

A moment of clarity!

Ajithu uses this opportunity to sprint away from the creature, turn and unload on it.

[move] 20'
[standard] attack RED
ultracold ice carbine attack, C & P damage: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (17) + 13 = 306d6 + 13 ⇒ (5, 2, 4, 1, 2, 3) + 13 = 30

Shocca calls out, pointing at the creature. "It is demonspawn, we cannot allow it to escape!" She loads a vial of medicine into her rifle and fires. My dart may be small, but it's payload is large. Then she takes a small step, putting Achlyss between her and Ajithu.

Needler @ spawn: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (7) + 20 = 27
P Dmg: 4d6 + 13 ⇒ (2, 5, 4, 2) + 13 = 26 Includes Analgesic medicine, flatfooted if it hits.

Now immune to the confusion effect--thanks to Shocca--Achlyss leads the renewed assault on the remaining enemy.

"Flank it--give chase so it cannot escape!"

He tries to pick the back of its head apart with his entropic powers.

Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 - 3 ⇒ (3) + 19 - 3 = 195d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (5, 1, 6, 3, 6) + 14 + 13 = 48
Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 - 3 ⇒ (14) + 19 - 3 = 305d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (3, 3, 4, 4, 6) + 14 + 13 = 47

Arc Bot:
Strident Wailing Blade (Sonic+Slashing): 1d20 + 20 + 2 ⇒ (10) + 20 + 2 = 32 Damage: 6d6 + 19 ⇒ (3, 6, 2, 5, 5, 5) + 19 = 45

It attempts to fly evasively to escape, but the doorway is enough of a bottleneck that it can't avoid your attacks (triggers AoO from everyone at the doorway). If it gets out, it flies northward around the main curving hallway.

|||| INIT ||||
Arc (115 dmg)
Achlyss (4 dmg)
Ajithu (98 dmg, confused)
Shocca (104 dmg)
Red Prexian Mutantspawn (127 dmg, -2 Will, flatfooted)

Confusion: 1d100 ⇒ 56 ⇒ Deal 1d8 + Str modifier damage to self with item in hand.

You know, there would really be a lot more room in my gloves with less fingers. Let's get rid of one...

Self harm: 1d8 ⇒ 5

Achlyss tries to tear the thing apart with his withering strike.

"Don't let it escape!" he orders.

AoO, Entropic Strike (vs. EAC, bludgeoning)(10' reach, penetrating): 1d20 + 19 ⇒ (9) + 19 = 285d6 + 14 + 13 ⇒ (1, 3, 4, 3, 6) + 14 + 13 = 44

If it gets away, I'll double move after it.

Achlyss' entropic strike tears the mutant apart, sending its remains tumbling past Nifri. The scattered remnants twitch as they dissolve into a pile of uniformly tumorous flesh. While it falls, Shocca's able to suppress Ajithu's confusion, leaving you all both victorious and in control of your actions!

Combat Over!
---------

A breathless Nifri stumbles out of the corridor, pale in the face despite not being the one directly in the line of fire. "I- We did not observe anything with that appearance when we first passed through... those horrors must have started waking together with everything else. Oh... what have we done! We should have stopped this foolish resort long ago." He clutches firmly to his zero pistol.

While Nifri worries, you notice the oppressively evil aura in the room fading. The fleshy walls grow still instead of actively breathing and start slowly growing welt-like sores across their surface. Most importantly, nothing else jumps out to start attacking you.

As you noticed before the the prexians attacked, the room is dominated primarily by the three examination tables. Each table has a built in holographic terminal interface, and while two of them are completely destroyed, a third one is both intact and still receiving power. If you interact with it, you find that much like the other terminal to the west, a genetic lock restricts access to any of its functions. (Hackable though!)

With Nifri's aid to point out the exact spot, you also spot the location of the concealed door in the southeast corner of the room. An access panel hidden under a layer of still-unliving tumorous flesh seems to be what you would need to press if you wanted to get the door open.

Arcalinte descends and touches down lightly as his jetpack deactivates.

"The Dawn Brings New Light, Nifri," he says. "We're here now, and the more we learn from what we find here, the more the way forward will be illuminated."

He judiciously doesn't offer any opinion himself about the resort's future.

"Thank you again, Shocca. Without your formula, those things probably would have overwhelmed us despite us outnumbering them."

Another moment of clarity!

Ajithu panics and counts his fingers. He stops, looks around to see who was watching.

Good... nobody saw that.

Yes, Arc is right, we can't just escape now. The resort was probably a mistake, but we have to learn how to undo the damage to this planet. Learn to unlearn.

He lightly knocks on the side of his helmet.

Wow, I'm really not used to that happening the other way around. I really must protect my head better.

Returning to Nifri, he looks up again and around at all of the oddities on the now lifeless fleshy wall.

Starting with these phenomena. The walls. Is that something you observed before you became trapped?

Achlyss is relatively unscathed after the battle, with the only damage he sustained being damage he self-inflicted.

"It looks like a couple of you could use a breather. Get it in--Abadarcorp wants this mission done pronto. Open your MRE and let's be on our way."

Shocca nods at Achlyss' instructions. "Good advice, I need to refill my stores." She sits down cross-legged and pulls her tail around in front of her to work with the micro-lab. "All those anti-confusion cocktails really drained my watermelon syrups. You'd be surprised how many medicines call for it."

Ten minutes later, the ikeshti closes up the technological marvel and stretches out. "Alright, I can scarf down my MRE while I code." She heads over to the genetic lock, flips down her microgoggles to get a good look at the small details, and gets to work.

Computers: 1d20 + 22 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 22 + 2 = 27 fudge

As she works, poorly, she calls out to Nifri. "When, specifically, do you think you should have stopped? Any red flags that you saw on your way down?"

After they question Nifri, Ajithu will also spend an RP, rest, and gain back a spell slot. lol, yes, hoarding averted

Nifri nods to Arc and Ajithu's statements, particularly Ajithu's comment about undoing the damage, before answering the kalo's question "The walls were like this before too. We had taken some samples. Talla had, quite reasonably, seen it as a good piece of evidence that the Resorters were disrupting lifeforms native to the planet. Another piece of ammunition in the case for stopping the project." He answers Shocca less enthusiastically "The Resorters should have never started. But that is hindsight, of course."

Shocca's attempt at the terminal attached to the examination table swiftly hits a dead end. (You can try again. DC35. Don't fail by too much :>)

Arcalinte nods at Achlyss's suggestion to get some fuel and recover. Taking out one of his R2Es, he preps it and meditates while it heats up before eating it.

1 RP to recover!

"Yepp, those Resorters sure did spoil the land with this one. Maybe more." She gives Achlyss a side eye. "Happens to the best of us, especially when we're a money-hungry corp."

Computers, DC 35: 1d20 + 22 + 2 ⇒ (3) + 22 + 2 = 27

She accidentally hits ENTER and starts the same code again. Since nothing terrible happened, she tries again.

Computers, DC 35: 1d20 + 22 + 2 ⇒ (19) + 22 + 2 = 43

Shocca works a bit longer on the terminal and eventually manages to bypass the genetic lock and get into the file system. The holographic interface is at first quite unintuitive to navigate, but once Shocca realizes that it's set up to let a creature with pseudopodal limbs manipulate it, she gets going.

The system is focused entirely on the function of the attached examination table, but it also includes a deep archive of records. The copious written records are too voluminous and complex to be particularly useful with your current understanding of the language, but the accompanying diagrams, 3d models, pictures and video footage tell the tale well enough. The visual records show a series of aliens being strapped and secured to the examination tables. Machinery surrounding the tables powers on and powerful blasts of focused radiation are delivered to the victims. Many fry on the spot, while others exhibit rapid mutations over the course of several hours. None survive, though many suffer for days before meeting their final end. Some particularly long-lived specimens are placed in the holding tanks to prolong their lives and subject them to more invasive measurements.

You notice that the majority of the test subjects are the same kind of alien - one that looks like a tapered column of flesh over a spherical "foot". Just barely out of sight of the footage are the "doctors" conducting the experiments - you catch occasional glimpses of grey pseudopods.

Ajithu winces as the holographic videos play.

How can sentient life forms feed off of living suffering so easily. It did not even seem productive, or achieving a goal.

Life Science (library chip): 1d20 + 22 ⇒ (6) + 22 = 28

After a time of squirming he frowns and looks away from the holo-vid with a dismissive wave of his hand.

The victims are Bantrids, of the small Liavaran shepherd moon named Hibb.

Achlyss watches as Shocca works with the terminal and observes the torture without flinching.

"I wonder what they thought to gain from this--hopefully something marvelously useful to justify this," he offers. "I wonder why these Bantrids would be of utility for this experiment."

Arcalinte, meanwhile, is visibly sickened by the horrific experiments.

"Moreover," he manages. "What is data about bantrids doing out here? As far as my understanding of their history goes, they only emerged from stasis on Hibb less than a decade ago! This place is...ancient...it raises all sorts of questions: could this place hold more information on the bantrids' origins? What connections do they have with the sivv?"

He starts rambling a bit, thinking aloud on the historical significance of what they've just uncovered.

You realize that the answers to some of your questions might be in the textual records that accompany the videos and images, but it'll take time-consuming linguistic study to pull out the truth. While you look over the data, Nifri's over to the side, anxiously waiting for you to be done so the search can resume.

I keep forgetting that we’re actively translating for each of these knowledge checks. Adventurers are amazing!

Shocca shakes her head sadly. ” Science is a wonderful thing, but only if used safely and for the betterment of the worlds. This is… not right.“ She readily engages in Arc’s historical discussion with great interest. ” Excellent point! I had forgotten how recently that was. “

She gathers her things and prepares to move on in the search.

I’ll be on a trip for the next week, so my posting will be sporadic! Please bot me as necessary.

Are we sure their presently known history is complete? There may be a time before they went into stasis that we're getting a glimpse of here.

Ajithu is also ready to move on. Where do you suggest we searc next Nifri?

Nifri points south-eastward "I am absolutely sure I came through there during my flight to safety." You all recall that you spotted a hidden access panel and concealed door earlier.

Shocca shakes herself loose. "Sorry, Nifri, guess our heads are a bit rattled from the demon-spawn. Give me a few to get that bad boy open." She pulls out her thieves tools from her bag and pops down the microgoggles over her eyes when she gets to the access panel. It takes a few unsuccessful clicks before she breaks the genetic lock. Which hopefully doesn't trigger any death lasers.

Engineering: 1d20 + 22 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (2) + 22 + 4 + 2 = 30

Engineering: 1d20 + 22 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (5) + 22 + 4 + 2 = 33

Engineering: 1d20 + 22 + 4 + 2 ⇒ (20) + 22 + 4 + 2 = 48