"Oh, I can come along in the Van or travel through the sewer system." he quips as everybody gets ready. "Only the most paranoid put a security system on the toilet."
"When I'm ghosting, I can't use a comm link. I'll need someone in telepathy range so if there's a problem, I can get word to someone. My range is about 50 yards. Psyclops, can you stay invisible and tail me? I'll send telepathy pings as I get inside and when I don't hear you respond, then I'll know I'm out of range and will head back. If I call, send in the cavalry."
"I'll be waiting in the van."
Karma is in full Omega mode, with all her weapons, her cape, wearing her mask and tangible but invisible. She has dropped the illusion that was making her look like a blonde while she was networking earlier.
Psiclops has all his gear with him, and is invisible.
Karma, you're the one that can go where you please. If you go in the front door and scope things out, and there's no people or cameras in that room, you could open the door for me to get in.
"Will do."
Karma goes into ghost mode, disappearing and becoming intangible. She makes a mental message to only those on the team in range. Marco!
...Karma is in full Omega mode ...
...Karma is in full Omega mode ...
She does, although it will not be functional while she is intangible. That is why I am trying to organize logistics so she can ghost into the building to scout the area, but wants to be within her telepathy range to another team member so she can call for help without having to go tangible and activate the comm unit.
Everyone
Same question as Karma. Did you bring your OMEGA com-links?
Also last chance for gear changes. Please verify that what is listed as being carried on your sheet is being carried.
And finally, did anyone take the strange revolver?
Doctor Toxic Are you in the VVan or are you walking stranger roads?
--------------------------------------------------------
So everyone (and Gilgamesh if they get back to me, we will flashback their arrival later) except maybe Doc is in the VVan correct?
Unless people say it's a bad idea, I'll head up the sewer pipes. I will have my Omega commlink to be able to reconnect with everybody.
Have Omega commlink. I think the best spot for me is in the van, but I could also be close looking like a nobody.
I have my Omega link, but I implied above that I was invisible and waiting at the front door for Karma to let me in if there's no living or mechanical surveillance in the front room.
Karma has all her gear with.
I confess, I completely missed the description of the revolver. It must be a good weapon to be shipped as a reward in a double locked set of boxes. Can we ret-con a little test firing of the gun?
When you say each bullet must be loaded individually, does that mean loaded into the presumably revolving chamber? So we could load all the bullets into the revolver and choose the order?
If Karma were to do the test firing, she'd suggest a group mission to a deserted and isolated warehouse and fire one of each of the bullets that have a duplicate. That would give us an idea of what two of the bullets do and we could then extrapolate as to the usefulness of the two unique bullets.
In case the rounds explode, she would suggest they be directed into a sturdy area and that we be well back behind cover to watch. We could post a sturdy object to target to judge the power of the bullet by measuring the mass of the target and the mass of each bullet. Maybe a mockup of a human torso wrapped in some kind of body armor if we have it, with a few cans of food packed inside to see what the rounds to to them, if hit.
Karma has a d8 in shooting but if someone has a better die, she'd prefer that PC do the test. If the bullets seem useful, she might like to carry the gun and perhaps use it as we discussed, where she could do a phase to phase the gun into tangible form long enough to fire it and then phase back.
But if someone with better shooting skills wants it, Karma would not claim it.
By the way, we should keep the note and maybe take a picture of it. It is evidence of (presumably) the mayor giving gifts to a violent street gang, even if we can't prove the provenance.
Revolver Ret-con!
Strange Revolver
It is easy enough to set up a makeshift target range. I do not believe you have any armor to test it against but you set up a target with a heavy steel plate as a chest as a stand in.
Test 1. Bullet type A, firing at a target painted on the "chest".
Result: Bullet appears to have missed. Until you examine the steel plate. There is a clean hole through the plate and the outer wall. No evidence of fragmentation or tumbling.
Conclusion. Armor piercing.
Test 2. Bullet type B, firing at a target painted on the "chest".
Result: You do not fire the round. Unlike with the first round the trigger now has 2 positions. Just as you notice that the first position exists the bullet(!) makes telepathic contact with you. It is less than a word, just a concept "target?"
Conclusion: Seeking round
Other two rounds. Doc confirms that one is explosive but the other is a mystery.
Remaining ammo:
1 type A, Armor Piercing
2 type B, Seeker
1 type C, Presumed explosive
1 type D, unknown
So are you bringing it?
So bringing it or not?
Everyone
Are these your positions?
Doc Toxic in the pipes. Heading for which floor? There are 5 floors the bottom two appear to be less used. There are sinks and restrooms on each floor more than one of each. There is also likely a pool on the roof, something dumping chlorinated water anyway.
Savant in the Vvan. How far away is the van? In line of sight of the building?
Karma in the Vvan in full ghost mode. Same questions as Savant.
Psiclops at the door. The ground floor is divided between a defunct Cafe (1) and boarded up nail salon. Stairway to the upper floors sandwiched between them. Non-military grade locked armored glass door leads to the stairwell. Top 3 floors are (were?) something called "...look technologies". The beginning of the sign is missing.
Any questions?
dammit, knew I forgot something.
Footnote 1: The cafe was the "Moon Power Cafe" a very popular locally owned Sailor Moon themed coffeehouse. They were nationally famous for a time as Marigold, the owner, skillfully used the Streisand effect and the resulting free media to force DIC America to withdraw their copyright suit. The cafe did chance their name from "Sailor Moon Cafe" and removed all exactcharacter likenesses allowing DIC to declare victory but this was seen as a face saving gesture. The Cafe was a tourist site and a beloved local cafe until shuttered by the invasion.
I will coordinate by the communicator. "Do you want me as another scout, or to keep me ready for a pincer movement?"
For now he is ready at the first floor.
Doc Toxic
Are you scouting/peeping out of the drains etc on the first floor or staying quiet? If scouting give me a Notice. It staying strum then give me a Stealth at +2.
Savant
Check no scary gun for you. What skill is JOT giving you at the moment?
Stealth roll please.
Karma
Scary gun for you?
Stealth at +4 please.
Psiclops
It's not your idiom but are you bringing the Odd Revolver?
Stealth at +4 please.
Bennies reset to base totals.
If no one else claims the revolver, Karma will get a shoulder holster and keep the gun under her left shoulder.
Karma will depart and head for the locked door leading to the stairwell, establishing telepathy with Psiclops. She starts narrating her observations. She moves through the door and moves forward until she can see if anyone is in the stairwell. If no one, she looks around for cameras. She'll also check the door for alarms.
Spend a Benny to reroll that.
Result: 6 + 4 = 10
Powers active: Intangibility, Invisibility, Armor, Flight, Heightened Senses, and Telepathy.
= Raise
Karma, Looks like you missed the Stealth roll instruction. Total 8.
....
Other than remembering the order and manually rotating the cylinder there is not another way.
Experimenting: You cannot find an ink or adhesive that sticks to the metal. You try some of Doc's stickum but the tolerances are too tight between the cylinder and the frame for that to work easily. You could try etching the metal of the cylinder with a vibro-knife if you wish. Rotating the cylinder is a readying a weapon and you get 2 of those for free each turn. Make sense?
See my post just above yours "Bennies reset to base totals." Easy to miss. You just spent 2 so you have 1 benny left.
You do not notice any cameras, other people, or any security systems. The door is not even locked. You do smell dog. Not overwhelming but strong.
Doc Toxic
The Nail salon and Cafe also smell of dog and K'tharen but both scents are about a day old.
There are stronger and fresher smells of both dog and K'tharen in the stairwell. You also note some old human blood on the ceiling and in the floor drain you are currently hiding in.
Psiclops,
You notice no security or locks on the door. I am assuming you are invisible? Any other powers active?
Savant, The Vvan is quite comfortable.
No map yet but soon.....
Karma telepaths to those in range. No cameras in sight. Still, take a look yourself as you enter in case I missed something. Door does not appear locked or with any alarms. Beware of dog sh!#. I'm scouting the stairs.
Karma then floats up the stairs, continuing to watch for signs of cameras or tripwires.
Result: 6 + 5 = 11
As Karma starts to float up the stairs they and Doc Toxic hear a LOUD
Everyone else does hear the Woof but the sound is muted to the level of normal loud barking.
Immediately following the WOOF there is a cacophony of barking echoing down the stairwell. From the outside the windows of the top floors are visibly shaking.
There are at least two sources for the very loud barking and many sources for the more normal sounding barks.
turn 1
Exterior. Star City. Full daylight. Clear and calm conditions.
Scene elements.
Type T intersection.
There is a block long 6 story building at the head of the T.
The ground floor houses a defunct cafe and a closed nail salon.
The second and third floors appear to be abandoned.
The upper 3 floors appear to be inhabited.
Other buildings around the intersection as you desire them.
There is a great deal of barking going on.
Benny count
Savant 5
Doc Toxic and Psiclops 3
Karma 1
thing blue. red joker. gm benny gained
Karma Ace of Hearts
thing two. queen of diamonds
Savant Nine of Hearts
Doctor Toxic Nine of Clubs, discarded the Queen of Hearts
thing one. seven of diamonds
Psiclops Six of Diamonds
the other thing. six of clubs
thing red. four of hearts
Cards reshuffled.
thing blue does
Karma you are up. Your high Notice identifies the sound as coming from at least 2 floors up. The smell of dog is strong and stale.
I assume you can hear that barking. I doubt they can detect me, but if Doc T is moving in their area, they may be smelling him. Moving closer.
Karma moves at her normal flying pace until she can see the source of the barking.
Result: 6 + 4 = 10
Well, our cover's blown. Dr. D *did* say he just wanted this building leveled, so why don't we just do that? Karma can quickly scope out what's happening on the top floor, and then we can just storm the building and start attacking everything in sight.
...
I believe Psiclops is still outside the stairway door.
Karma moves at her normal flying pace 12 until she can see the source of the barking.
The barking is clearly coming from an upper floor. Are you scouting the second floor or heading up the staircase to the 3rd floor? Or I suppose you could just fly through the ceiling to the 3rd if you want. You have the movement to reach the 5th floor if you go straight up. Where are you looking?
Open the spoilers for the floors you investigate or pass through. Open the Scouting spoiler if you stop vertical movement and take your turn to look around.
Success: You notice 2 types of shoe prints one larger, broader and less common than the other. Also lots of dog paw prints.
Raise: There are actually 3 types of shoe-prints. The smaller size comes in 2 varieties but the just discovered one is rarer even than the large print. Also some of the paw prints are quite large.
Additional instructions: You have movement to cross 4 floors. This means you could reach the fifth floor but your scouting ability there will be limited. You could also fly through the first four floors and then double back to the third floor to scout if you wanted to.
If you want to do something other than scouting a floor then do not open any Scout spoilers and tell me what you want to do and where. If you reach the fifth floor you can still take an action you just do not have the movement to Scout that floor.
Raise: The squatters have not been here for 3-6 months.
Extra information on a raise. There has been some minor attempts at cleaning. The large paw prints are more common here.
A second set of elevators are located across the central open area from the stairwell. The doors of these elevators appear dented and damaged.
There are a half dozen Drones scattered about the floor. They appear to carrying equipment, cleaning, standing guard or other simple tasks.
Most of the rooms on this floor have been converted to labs of some kind
Please make a Notice roll, no modifier.
Success: Given the pattern of the scratches on the elevator doors and the tears in the tile floor something(s) with claws have been active here. There are large bloodstains on the floor and walls of area "2".
Raise: You identify freshly mutilated human remains among the debris in area "2". Please make a Spirit roll. Raise or Success, nothing happens. Failure, you are overcome by fear and nausea. You are Shaken and have one level of Fatigue. Critical failure, as failure plus please roll on he Fear Table on pg 124 of SWADE core. There is a revolver similar to the one you are carrying on the counter separating area "3" from area "2".
This is the source of the barking. In one of the cases you see a number of large to medium sized dogs of various breeds. They are quite dirty and appear to be panicking in response to what is in the other cage.
In the other cage there are four of the largest dogs you have ever seen. They are each at least 6' tall at the shoulder. They are clearly not natural animals. Various tubes and metal plates are attached to their skin indicating likely cybernetic enhancement. None of the four have eyes. Two have visible empty sockets and two have their eyes covered by metal plates. All of them have the tops of their heads covered by metal.
Notice roll please, no modifier.
Success: There are armed K'tharen in the room 1d6(cannot ace) are visible at the moment. There are also V'sori present. They do not appear to be armed or armored. 1d2 are visible. They appear to be studying the dogs.
Raise: The giant dogs have had their claws and teeth replaced by metal. They also appear to be barking directly at you. This could just be chance but maybe....
thing 2
Savant, Doc Toxic, you are up as soon as Karma posts.
Doc Toxic if you travel via the pipes you can reach any one floor as a move. Feel free to choose the floor and open the floor spoiler. Scouting will be more difficult due to limited pipe access. If you spent a benny to get to the floor (see post in discussion re: pipe movement) then you manage the access issue. Feel free to use your action to Scout that floor and open the relevant Scouting spoiler.
If you used the skill roll to reach the floor then either use a benny to Scout or make an Athletics roll to move quickly and quietly enough to Scout the floor.
Failure or Success: This floor is set up as a chemistry/biology lab with extra unknown bits.
Raise: The unknown bits are specialized neuroscience equipment combining earth and V'sori tech.
Please make a Science roll, no modifier.
Failure or Success: This floor is set up as a surgery theater and an electronics lab with extra unknown bits.
Raise: There are several clearly alien machines scattered through the labs and operating rooms. You have no idea what they are for.
Karma moves up the stairwell and into the second floor, moving into the room far enough to see that it is devoid of anything of immediate concern or interest. She says as much telepathically as she flies straight up to the third floor, keeping close to the stairwell and making sure no sentries are in the stairwell landing. She narrates that this floor is also empty and deserted as she moves up into the 4th floor, where she stops to take a closer look.
There doesn't seem to be anyone or anything on the second or third floor. I'm looking about the 4th floor which has furnishings and some drones. I'll wait for those that are following to get up to this level before going further. Let me know who's where.
A moment later, Karma adds, Drones have moved into a defensive ring about a central point. Not sure why. They are close to where the stairs open into this floor, so walk softly and keep your bang sticks in hand. You all might want to hold on the third floor and let me scout further.
Karma is watching from the door of the stairs.
"I'll be ready to back you up on 4."
Savant opens the van door and moves toward the building.
Psiclops will open the front door and walk in.
He tries to pick the lock :
He opens the door to the stairwell and starts to climb.