[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
Dang, I totally forgot about the exsiccates! I just assumed it was a warped reconstruction. I should have known the Sivv would never mess up one of their slaves... intentionally.
"Arc! Arc! Arc! ARC! wooooooooooo... wait, is my mic on?" With magical speed, Shocca moves into the room. Triggering AoO from Granskar at +4 AC. From her improved vantage point she fires her freshly reborn needles back in the general direction of Vheiransch.
Needler @ Vheiransch :1d20 + 28 - 4 ⇒ (3) + 28 - 4 = 27 P Dmg:8d6 + 15 ⇒ (4, 6, 2, 3, 6, 5, 2, 3) + 15 = 46Includes Super Serum! Massive damage. Take a DC27 Fort save. Half damage if passed, or exhausted and stunned for 1 round if it fails. Dmg:17d10 ⇒ (2, 2, 2, 2, 6, 10, 1, 5, 2, 4, 7, 5, 2, 9, 10, 8, 9) = 86
Needler @ Vheiransch :1d20 + 28 - 4 ⇒ (6) + 28 - 4 = 30 P Dmg:8d6 + 15 ⇒ (5, 5, 3, 1, 6, 1, 5, 4) + 15 = 45Includes Super Serum! Massive damage. Take a DC27 Fort save. Half damage if passed, or exhausted and stunned for 1 round if it fails. Dmg:17d10 ⇒ (5, 6, 10, 10, 9, 9, 5, 3, 7, 10, 6, 6, 6, 10, 1, 5, 4) = 112
Both the aqlath servitor and Vheiransch are caught within the stellar storm, but where the aqlath is significantly burned, Vheiransch disperses into static and suffers less major harm. Shocca's two superserum-enhanced needles glide right around Vheiransch's wards.
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
"We do not have to defeat the Dominion...we just have to defeat you," Arcalinte says before jetting towards Vheiransch, hoping Skyndi's otherworldly power could overpower the wards of the machine ghost.
Arc's incredible slashes initially veer off to one side and then the other, and then finally, with great momentum, he breaks through with his last slash. Due to Vheiransch's lingering incorporeality, Skyndi can't quite deliver the clean break it usually does, but the strike clearly still injures the AI.
To the north, Kalthlo rushes in to protect Ajithu. Her two hasted swings land with great power, both passing through the spectral creature. Its form ripples, fur tearing. Green light leaks out from within it.
The aqlath servitor rushes in to protect Vheiransch in turn. A thrust of its tusks almost impales Arc, but his armor dissipates the impact. To the north, the granskar slices into Kalthlo with a claw before it floats carefully back. Vheiransch, wriggles a tentacle once more, pointing at Arc. Arc feels the insistent tugging...
Arc Fort:1d20 + 16 ⇒ (2) + 16 = 18
...and finds himself teleported via rel state to the other side of the aqlath servitor. Vheiransch then sends a distorting beam into Kalthlo and Ajithu. Though it's not as potent at the one Shocca suffered earlier, it still leaves Ajithu barely standing. (52 dmg to both)
The pillars in the room shine bright, drawing the heroes toward them.
While only Kalthlo resists being moved, only Arc is the victim of being equidistant between two pillars. He's briefly exposed to the combined force before the northwest one wins out and pulls him in its direction. (22 dmg and pulled NW)
----
The heroes are looking in poor shape, and Vheiransch's projected form continues to repair itself.
Struck by a precise shot from Shocca, Vheiransch discorporates once more. Her serums however have been created with super science that can do the impossible. Where her needles pass through through the mass of static that was Vheiransch, a truly extraordinary payload deploys. The static freezes in place, a single vibrating frame. (Vheiransch is a very very strange variant construct that is somehow not immune to stunning; so it is stunned 1 round!)
While Shocca is delivering a devastating attack, Ajithu's able to get a breather to heal himself.
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
"Two...can play...at that game..." Arcalinte says through gritted teeth as he endures Vheiransch's counterattack.
He jets past the aqlath servitor and, once situated between them and Vheiransch, summons his stellar might and unleashes it around him, burning like the sun!
MINIATURE STAR! Arcalinte's square and all squares in a sphere ten feet around him (21 squares total) are affected. As far as I'm aware, there's no actual save for this Revelation.
As Arc runs past, the aqlath gouges him with its tusks. (56 dmg after DR) It isn't ready however for the sudden blaze as a miniature star forms around the solarian. Both Vheiransch and the aqlath servitor are scorched! Kalthlo rushes toward the granskar, delivering two spinning slashes that almost fully tear the spectral being apart.
The aqlath servitor is determined despite the burning star and assaults Arc with fist and tusk! His first blow lands, but Arc is able to evade the second (63 dmg after DR) To the north, the granskar reaches out and slices at Kalthlo, and where the claw passes through her vines begin growing out of Kalthlo's thick fur.
Kalthlo Fort:1d20 + 17 ⇒ (4) + 17 = 21
Though she tries her best to tear them free, they only seem to multiply, weighing her down (this curse effect penalizes many of her rolls).
The two pillars nearest to Arc flash and try to draw him in. He's briefly subjected to the combined forces from both pillars before he's sucked toward the western one (29 dmg and moved 10 ft).
Arc Fort:1d20 + 16 ⇒ (9) + 16 = 25
---
New round:
Shocca takes careful aim as Vheiransch both re-coheres and recovers from being stunned. Her first shot misses, but her second lands amid the golden folds and brilliant tentacles. She sees the AI shudder as its processes are slowed down.
[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
GM Cellion wrote:
You weren't yet up Shocca, so I'll hold onto your rolls for next turn.
Shucks, thank you!
"Ooh, thank you!" Not for the first time, Shocca is thankful for Ajithu's magic. She eyes Papa V with an inquisitive eye and whispers under her breath "Not incorporeal from that, eh? Interesting..." Her tail twitches and she begins to mix her final super-serum.
Arc's in a position where he may get totally pulverized if I double him up, so I'll wait until tomorrow. The init tracker has some super high damage numbers on both sides!
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
Arcalinte, able to survive in the heat of his own star with no trouble, zooms towards Vheiransch, away from the Aqlath and continues his attack.
With a dive toward the debilitated Vheiransch, Arc swings once, twice. Both slashes buzz into the AI-projection's strangely solid form. Tentacles are parted, tendrils scattered, and Vheiransch rears back. While Arc's third attack misses, it proves not to be necessary. In the light of the miniature sun nearby, Vheiransch's body shatters, bursting into cascading streams of gold thread.
The gold swirls upward, then like a leaf caught in a current, flows back toward the massive computer console at the far southern end of the room. A moment later, the two remaining protector servitors keel over, utterly and instantly dead.
Combat Over?
---
For a brief moment it seems as though you may have been victorious over the Devastation Ark's commander. But then you hear Vheiransch's voice emanating from everywhere in the room around you. "A pleasant distraction." The voice's cadence is somehow even more mechanical than before "But it is now o-ver. Work must res-ume. Do make yourse-lves useful. There is no use wi-thin the Sivvan Dominion for serv-itors who cannot se-rve."
[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
"No way? No way! No..." Shocca's face falls as Vheiransch's voice arrives. She moves over to the complex computer console on the other side of the room. "We have seen that... how would we make ourselves useful?" If given the chance, she attempts to punch into the AI core.
Computers:1d20 + 29 ⇒ (15) + 29 = 44+1 Nudge if that would make it pass!
"Sub-mit yoursel-ves for processing in sector 9, subsection A-3. You are sufficiently cr-afty and dangerous that you will not be kept who-le. But your const-ituent parts will still provide utility." Vheiransch's voice is growing distant "Now do not bother me. There is work to be done."
Shocca has enough expertise to access the console housing the AI, but she quickly discovers a bewildering system within. Some segments seems to be legible modules, with functions that roughly analogous to a computer within the Pact Worlds (or even similar to other Sivvan systems). But other portions of the system here make no sense at all, are obviously paradoxical or create outputs from apparently nothing. The system here has seemingly evolved beyond logic, the Starstone's divine energy filling the gaps to allow it to accomplish things as the code itself is "atrophying".
Trying to control or shut off such a system would be a nigh-impossible task without some kind of special "in" with the original code.
(You're welcome to roll, but the DC is higher than you can accomplish. You're going to have to find another method)
We will not submit. And we aren't done here until this AI core is destroyed... Ajithu responds from his mind, continuing to look around and expecting new danger to come from anywhere.
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
Arcalinte breathes a sigh of relief as he overpowers Vheiransch, only for his relief to fade as the ancient Sivv "spirit" taunts them from within Ark Prime's systems.
He begins casting his eyes about the chamber to see if there's something they can do to finish the fight with Vheiransch.
[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
"Phewwww...." Shocca pushes herself back from the console and lets out a heavy breath. "Well... Papa Vee has evolved beyond the mind of a mere mortal." She moves back to the center of the room. "Yes, sire Vheiransch... and, uh, are you going to be reforming - here, physically... soon?" She motions the team outside into the hall. "So... we gotta turn this place upside down until we find something... special. I need a way in. A map, a key, a spotlight... something."
Shocca frowns. "Hey. So, we thought that AI welcome-bot thing was evil and trapping us and a Sivv-slave. But, like, now that we took out the big boss... for now... what can it do to us? What's the chance it knows where the bodies are buried?"That one's a long shot... but otherwise we need to go turn this place upside down I think. The holo-trash room was basically empty. Maybe the trap-in-a-sphere room?
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
"It's worth a try: we have few other options," Arcalinte replies. "The Dawn Brings New Light."
Something tells me it can't be that easy. For now we certainly should renew our search for a key or something else useful to make sense of those strange consoles.
He's nervous as he knows nothing about computers as Shocca does.
...
Those with extensive Engineering knowledge can tell that they're a visual depiction of some extremely complex academic nature - almost like a holographic summation of an individual's work (like an academic publication). You can tell that patient study of the sigils will likely lead to revelations of Sivvan technology... but such a study might take weeks or months you don't have.
Regarding the symbol - you also saw it when you first arrived at the AI core's deck. It seems to be some kind of symbol indicating the AI core. You haven't seen it anywhere else though.
Regarding shifting Big V back into Rel-State - you know the AI was perfectly capable of running the ship from rel-state, its just that this room and its associated console become inaccessible while it is hidden in rel-state.
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
Arcalinte begins racking his brain for anything that could give them an edge or an in. Time was of the essence, and he could only use gravity to stretch it so far.
In the long southern hallway, you spend some time investigating each of the displays. Nothing jumps out at Ajithu. As you all noted earlier, the body of work shown through the displays is intricate in its detail and academic in its content. Though it celebrates the achievements of these Sivvan scientists, it relates more generally to all sorts of science, rather than anything that specifically might give you an edge in dealing with the AI core.
Arc on the other hand sits and meditates, trying to clear his mind. After a few minutes he has a flash of recollection, realizing that there was something the group had discovered earlier, but failed to obtain. An important loose end in the server room where you triggered the mind-swapping trap...
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
Cellion, THANK YOU for hitting me with that clue bat! :P
Arcalinte's eyes snap open.
"We left something behind."
He starts out of the AI Core.
"Come!"
He begins escorting them back to the server room.
"We were so mono-focused on getting Ajithu-Ko back into his body that we didn't take the time to search more thoroughly. There's a reboot code we can insert manually to reset the AI Core, which will purge Vheiransch and their influence from it," he explains as they walk. "I don't know if Vheiransch could hear us in the AI Core, but I didn't want to take any chances."
[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
Shoccaar Nemmac wrote:
"Well, let's let this one lie. We can always return to get the code later. Perhaps there is assistance deeper in this area." Shocca walks out the door...
STUPID STUPID STUPID!
Shoccaar Nemmac wrote:
... "We could keep trying. It should only take me a few tries... but will my consciousness be able to resist those failed attempts?" ...
Though I do stand by that fear! Thanks for the Clue, I had 100% blocked out this room. That was frightening. And it is ROUGH that Shocca is the only one able to solve it and the only one with the antidotes.
Shocca slaps her forehead. "Forgetting the AI-killing weapon when going to kill AI... not the brightest move. Good one, Arc." She stops at the threshold of the room. "Alright... you three stay out here. If I go snake-form try to hold down snake-me until I get back into my right mind." She moves into the room, stands before the terminal and breathes deep. DING! The ikeshti rummages in her bag as her tail brings up a churning microlab. As it spits out a fresh-made vial (strawberry rhubarb flavored!), she sets out the squished and scratched rubber ducky that gives her such bursts of inspiration. "Medicine for defense, Sir Duckerson for offense. Let's do this."
Alright! She'll take the biohack serum for one minute of +4 Will Saves then begin cracking. Is there an opportunity for Aiding? If so, I could give one of you the +4 to Will Saves as well in exchange for the +2 on my rolls. That's extra valuable with my 3 free rerolls.
You can definitely work together w/ aid. Any aids for Shocca? Keep in mind each aiding person also exposes themselves to the mind swapper if you collectively fail.
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
Thanks to your earlier escapade in the server room, you're already aware of the presence of the mind-swapping trap. Its tamper-protection is intricate and (as seen before) devastatingly powerful. However with aid from Arc, a little moral support from Sir Duckerson, and her own legendary talents, Shocca weaves her away around the digital traps and breaks open the fake shell protecting the real Reboot Code.
The Reboot Code itself is a strange unruly thing - 75% programming and 25% self-referential arcano-mimetic lifeform. The moment Shocca accesses it it instantly propagates through all her electronic equipment. Although it comfortably establishes itself, it takes no obvious action beyond making itself at home. Shocca gets the sense that this thing is programmed to aggressively reset the system its designed for, and has otherwise been designed for maximum tenacity in the face of opposition to that task.
[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
Oh thank goodness, that could have been a TPK either time.
"phew...I MEAN... I knew I had it. Thanks for the help, Arc. Always a semicolon out of place." She squirms as the Reboot Code works its way from her microgoggles all the way down to the thruster heels on her feet. "Not the microlab, not the microlab, not the - HEY! That's mine!"deep breaths, deep breaths."Alright... I've become the unwilling passenger for this weapon. OH! Living weapon. Uh... hello? Mx Reboot Code? Can you hear me?"I imagine there's not a response, but it would be funny if there was. * She nods. "Let's go deliver our new friend to Vheiransch. Anything else we need to do to get ready?"
*WAIT wasn't the intro welcome program rebooting? Was it infected too?! That would be so funny if we just walked right by the easy answer.
Male Half-Elf Solarian 20 | SP 198/198 HP 146/146 RP 12/12 | EAC 35(37) KAC 36(38); DR 5/- Resist Fire 20 | F +16; R +15; W +16 | Speed 25 ft. | Init +6 | Perc +30
Arcalinte releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding when Shocca retrieves the Reboot Code, followed by his eyebrow rising when he sees the form it takes.
"Other than making sure we're fighting fit in case Vheiransch has prepared for Round 2, I can't think of anything," he replies. "Ajithu-Ko?"
As you consider whether you need to take any further preparations, you peek your heads into the AI Core chamber. All still appears empty. Vheiransch, for all its incredible power and reach, seems unaware of your recent acquisition.
The AI Core's console lies all the way at the south end of the room.
[dice=Needler @ ]1d20+28[/dice] [dice=P Dmg]8d6+15[/dice] [ooc]Includes x Inhibitor, x if it hits.[/ooc
"No, I'm going to have to get up close. I bet it's going to take longer for the Reboot Code to infect Vheiransch than it did my gear. He likely has more antibodies to turn on us." She looks around then takes a seat. "Let's rest and clean our gear for a few minutes. Keep an eye on him while we do it. Like you said, best be in our best fighting shape before riling him up again."I'd say let's Take 10 then I'll head in and plug in.
10 minutes later:
Shocca will walk into the room, allowing the other two to get strategically placed, then plugs her hacking kit into the AI Core's console.
Computers:1d20 + 29 ⇒ (15) + 29 = 44I'm guessing this isn't necessary, but just in case...
Shocca makes her way through the enormous chamber, Arc, Ajithu and Kalthlo following after her. At the far southern end, she extends the wires from her hacking kit and (with a little ingenuity) interfaces with the AI Core's central console. Immediately, a web of distortion spreads across the interface's screens.
Vheiransch's voice rises "KHRUZZ? IS T_AT YUOU??? RESTR_IN YOUR TOY. OR I WIL_ RES_RAIN YOU BOTH." The voice is deafening, distorted, and distinctly pops and fades out moment to moment. "NO. IT IS..." A twisted image of the glowing golden Commandant Vheiransch appears on screen, face a maze of static. "YOU." All six pillars in the room light up.
Shocca notices that while the Reboot Code is incredibly good at what it was designed to do, Vheiransch appears to somehow be beating it back... and quickly. For it to be able to complete its job and reset the AI, it's going to need a little help. Maybe a lot of help. Thankfully it seems fighting it off is taking all of Vheiransch's considerable attention.
At the same time, servitor creatures emerge from the pillars. It seems Vheiransch isn't able to let your actions in the physical space go unopposed either.
Party is up first! Shocca, you can attempt to aid the Reboot Code as a full-round action with a Computers check. Overcoming Vheiransch requires three consecutive successes. You can use your spoilered roll as the first check if you'd like.
