GameDay XIV "Fate of the Scoured God" [Tier 9+]

Game Master Chris Marsh

Same :) If I need to choose, I'd vote #2 next, but I've GM'd this before, so very happy to go with the group here.
FWIW though I remember very little of the scenario - it's been well over a year since I last ran it.

I vote #2

I vote #2

Celita, the android leader of the Dataphiles, looks down at a three-dimensional hologram of the Scoured Stars, complete with red and green dots representing jinsul and Starfinder ships. “The jinsuls know this system better than we do; as long as they are well supplied, they will outlast and repel us. We need to starve their fleet of resources, but we cannot do that without finding their courier ships’ flight paths. The communications I have intercepted have limited value, but I traced them all back to a massive data-processing station on Agillae-4. I need you to infiltrate the data center, hack the computers, and bring back some intelligence we can use to cut the jinsuls’ supply lines.”

Celita sends you in a cramped stealth pod that shares many similarities with a torpedo. The stealth pod quickly reaches Agillae-4, a hyper-industrialized city-planet that the jinsuls have adapted into their main information hub. Prior to tyour departure, Celita emphasized that the stealth pod is a disposable, single-use landing pod and that you need to find your own way off the planet, which ..."you should do quickly before you're caught and slaughtered by the local jinsul forces."

The process of reaching and entering the tower, finding and retrieving useful data, and escaping without being killed requires you to work as an efficient team. You can use Aid Another, but it doesn't net you the same amount of prgress as rolling your own skill.

First thing's first, you need a cover. You're clearly not jinsul. You'll have to blend into the jinsul community long enough to reach the tower. You can mask your approach by fitting into the scenery as “captured” or “converts” (a Hard Culture check), creating a compelling jinsul armor suit (an Average Disguise check), or approaching via unoccupied back routes (a Hard Survival check).

Varuthalla tries to bluff her way through, pretending to be a recent convert. Her most recent rank in Culture let her learn Jinsul, which, okay, is a bit meta-gamey since I levelled up to 11 right before this, but...shrug? Makes sense, in a mission prep kind of way?
"Yeah, yeah, Dhurus...love that guy. Makes a lot of compelling arguments."
Culture: 1d20 + 20 ⇒ (6) + 20 = 26

Drei tries to maneuver through unoccupied areas toward the goal.

Survival: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (17) + 13 = 30

Omni's also fluent in Jinsul & an above-average student of culture, so she takes to the streets as a recent convert, offering pseudo-babble about Dhuras & his connection to universal math if pressed.

Culture: 1d20 + 17 ⇒ (4) + 17 = 21

shirt-boosted Culture roll: 1d20 + 17 + 2 ⇒ (7) + 17 + 2 = 26

Headed to see Bruce Dickinson tonight, so posting will be non existent... and I'll be on the struggle bus tomorrow morning. SO, we still need Stees to roll for this obstacle, but I'll post the second now anyway.

Seems like the best way to sneak a dinosaur into a Jinsul city is to find an unoccupied back route.

Survival: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (11) + 15 = 26

Oops! Missed Huckleknuckle! Sorry! Still need Stees

Should we just bot Stees, if everyone else is good to move ahead? Looks like their best bet is +7, in both Culture and Survival.
Bot Stees: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (14) + 7 = 21

Go ahead and bot. I'll update posthaste afterwards

I did already, in that message :) I rolled a 21.

LOL yes, sorry about that. Read too quickly.

The blending in goes.... poorly, but thankfully no violence breaks out yet as the party then moves among the worshippers. Now it's into the tower's outer defenses Bot or Stees on that one too.

The tower’s entrance has security guards and automated doors. you can break in through a back door (a Hard Engineering check), distract the guards (a Hard Bluff check), or steal a key card (an Average Sleight of Hand check).

With her mediocre Engineering skills (+10), Omni happily assists any of her teammates trying to break thru the back door.

Varuthalla makes for the door, taking out her thieves’ tools.
Engineering with thieves’ tools and Aid: 1d20 + 21 + 2 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 21 + 2 + 4 = 31

Drei will assist the door opening as well. (auto succeed)

If we were at a table, I'd have stopped you before the dice. you're more than welcome to stick with the Aid, but the more individual successes, the better the result. Obviously if you don't think you'd pass on your own, Aid is a good way to go.

If we were at a table, I'd have stopped you before the dice. you're more than welcome to stick with the Aid, but the more individual successes, the better the result. Obviousl,y if you don't think you'd pass on your own, Aid is a good way to go.

I get that, and thanks for the advice, but I felt that Omni's efforts would be better served by boosting someone else for a Hard-level check than just fishing for a really high roll.

Well if you'll allow a swap..

Engineering: 1d20 + 18 + 4 ⇒ (4) + 18 + 4 = 26

Varuthalla starts the party off with some quick and effective work. Drei's tailgates the attempt to help out, with Omni right behind. Hucklknuckle and Stees remain

The tower’s entrance has security guards and automated doors. you can break in through a back door (a Hard Engineering check), distract the guards (a Hard Bluff check), or steal a key card (an Average Sleight of Hand check).

Huckleknuckle will try to nab a key card with one hand while keeping a guard distracted with his other five.

SlightOfHand: 1d20 + 6 ⇒ (17) + 6 = 23

Oops! Missed Huckleknuckle! Sorry! Still need Stees

Stees fades into the background.

Stealth: 1d20 + 24 ⇒ (11) + 24 = 35

Stees flexes his fingers and aims for a card key.

Sleight of hand: 1d20 + 22 ⇒ (1) + 22 = 23 If he's off by 1, his turquoise cube will kick in.

Thank goodness nat 1’s aren’t auto fails on skill checks!

Missed by more than 1 The party breaks in, but now you've got to navigate through the halls....

Quickly scale the stairways (a Hard Acrobatics or Athletics check) or find a shortcut (a Hard Perception check).

Stees scans the walls, looking for a hidden opening.

Perception: 1d20 + 21 ⇒ (20) + 21 = 41

Varuthalla tries to double-time it through the stairs.
Acrobatics: 1d20 + 24 ⇒ (16) + 24 = 40

Drei simply jetpacks up the stair halls.

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 21 ⇒ (1) + 21 = 22

Omni tries to find secret pathways to their goal

perception check: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (17) + 15 = 32

Huck gets to scaling down, hand over hand over hand over hand over hand over hand.

Acrobatics: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (6) + 18 = 24

Senses heightened, the party starts to gel, moving and ducking just out of sight. Getting caught here would be.... bad. You eventually make it to the mainframe.

Now you have the "simple" task of finding and extracting the info you need. Hack the computer (a Hard Computers check), eject and steal a starship data log (a Hard Piloting check), or connect the dots from some adjacent documents detailing supply transportation (a Hard Sense Motive check).

Omni realizes that she's out of her depth here, having no training in any of those skills. But her Unknown Known's discipline allows her to use any skill untrained, so she's got a decent shot at assisting anyone on these tasks (Computers & Piloting +8, SM +5).

Rolling the assist here - just apply the right bonus for the skill being assisted

assist roll: 1d20 ⇒ 11

"Tillbidge, have you got the Computers?", Varuthalla asks, as she gets started trying to hijack a starship to eject its logs.
Piloting: 1d20 + 22 ⇒ (10) + 22 = 32
I'm gonna risk it and not take Omni's Aid Another ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯

That's all it takes to secure victory here.

Varuthalla secures the information and you prepare to get out of there. As you make your way to the dock, the sirens blare. Apparently you weren't quite as successful as you thought. The air lights up with laserfire and bullets. thankfully you've got enough of a heads start that nothing comes close to pinning you down or taking you out.

You eventually reach the tower’s docking bay. Celita remotely locks the doors behind you to slow the pursuers long enough to steal a starship and rendezvous with her in orbit. The area holds several starships, including a mostly repaired Starfinder shuttle left over from a previous Starfinder mission into the Scoured Stars!

However, two scorpion-like robots are guarding the starships and immediately attack!!!

TACTICAL MAP
ROUND 1
Drei: Go
Stees: Go
Varuthalla: Go
Omni-Lithic: Go
Huckleknuckle: Go (Need pog)
Hostiles: TBD

The moment hostile robots appear, Varuthalla draws her stormcaller by instinct (free action on rolling initiative from Lightning Hands.) Then she'd move forwards 40 ft (Don't seem to have edit rights to the map doc, but something like this) and the fire the stormcaller, causing a projected line of electricity to appear between both robbits!
vs both robots' EAC: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (17) + 18 = 35
Electricity dmg: 2d8 + 11 ⇒ (5, 2) + 11 = 18

This is the Stormcaller; it has the flexible line property, which makes it great at hitting multiple enemies :)

Map fixed!

The lightning fast soldier wastes no time, opening fire and easily connecting. The robots don't seem to be weak against the energy, but they definitely don't resist it either!

TACTICAL MAP
ROUND 1
Drei: Go
Stees: Go
Varuthalla: Hit
Omni-Lithic: Go
Huckleknuckle: Go (Need pog)
Hostiles: TBD

"Great start, Varuthalla. Let's finish the job!"

Stees targets black for a trick attack. He moves 40' southeast, then fires.

Stees auto-tricks CR 15 using stealth 10+24+1-20=15

Static arc pistol vs black EAC: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (6) + 13 = 19
If hit, electric damage and flat-footed: 1d6 + 5 + 5d8 ⇒ (4) + 5 + (5, 3, 1, 8, 8) = 34

T-shirt re-roll plus 4 Novas
Static arc pistol vs black EAC: 1d20 + 13 + 4 ⇒ (20) + 13 + 4 = 37

Crit damage
Crit damage: 1d6 + 5 + 5d8 ⇒ (1) + 5 + (2, 6, 4, 7, 8) = 33

Total 70 points electric damange on black

Orange also takes 2 points electric damage from the arc crit

Omni triggers her jetpack & arcs around the shuttle to engage the orange-hued scorp-bot with her entropic powers.

entropic strike vs Orange's EAC: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (12) + 16 = 28
acid damage that ignores 9 hardness: 3d6 + 18 ⇒ (5, 2, 2) + 18 = 27

Entropy Points = 1

Drei raises his hands as if holding and aiming a rifle, and then one appears. He quickly continues his aim and then fires one shot. (vs. black)

Elite Diasporan Rifle w/ deadly aim v EAC: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (6) + 18 = 24 reduce bonuses to AC granted by cover by 6 and negate miss chance from conealment

F: 4d8 + 16 ⇒ (8, 8, 1, 2) + 16 = 35 treat any fire resist as 5 lower

Drei then moves over to cover hand hides.

Stealth: 1d20 + 21 ⇒ (10) + 21 = 31

Stees takes a shot and it's a perfect hit! The smell of burning circuitry fills the air. These jinsul robots are tough though, and the machine keeps coming.

Omni appproaches the other in a pincer attack, landing her entropic strike on the robot's flank.

Drei's shot just barely sneaks in, striking the robot before he blends in...

TACTICAL MAP
ROUND 1
Drei: Hit
Stees: Crit
Varuthalla: Hit
Omni-Lithic: Hit
Huckleknuckle: Go (Need pog)
Hostiles: TBD

Huck readies his capture pole to grapple. "Let's help gang up on that one, UT. Charge!" Huck spurs UT into the fray, then grapples the northern robot when in range.

Grapple: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (8) + 15 = 23

Huck bravey lunges in, but the robot easily thwarts the attempt to grab hold.

Each robot shifts position a bit, spreading out and locking on to targets.

One swings a pincer blade at Omni: ATK: 1d20 + 21 ⇒ (16) + 21 = 37 for DMG: 2d10 + 15 ⇒ (1, 8) + 15 = 24

The other fires at Huck from an integrated LFD sonic rifle: ATK: 1d20 + 18 ⇒ (10) + 18 = 28 MISS

TACTICAL MAP
ROUND 2
Drei: Go
Stees: Go
Varuthalla: Go
Omni-Lithic (SP:106/130): Go
Huckleknuckle: Go
Hostiles: TBD

Omni gains an Entropy point from that hit. Total is now 2

Omni redoubles her efforts vs. Orange, striking twice with her entropy-enfused tentacles.

tentacle strike 1 vs Orange's EAC: 1d20 + 16 - 4 ⇒ (7) + 16 - 4 = 19
strike 1 acid damage: 3d6 + 18 ⇒ (5, 2, 5) + 18 = 30
tentacle strike 2 vs Orange's EAC: 1d20 + 16 - 4 ⇒ (13) + 16 - 4 = 25
strike 2 acid damage: 3d6 + 18 ⇒ (4, 1, 4) + 18 = 27

"Focus on the other one - I'll keep this one busy." she yells.

Drei pops out from where he is hiding and shoots at the same target twice.

Elite Diasporan Rifle v EAC: 1d20 + 20 - 5 ⇒ (15) + 20 - 5 = 30 reduce bonuses to AC granted by cover by 6 and negate miss chance from conealment

F: 4d8 + 11 ⇒ (6, 6, 8, 5) + 11 = 36 treat any fire resist as 5 lower

Elite Diasporan Rifle v EAC: 1d20 + 20 - 5 ⇒ (5) + 20 - 5 = 20

F: 4d8 + 11 ⇒ (8, 2, 3, 6) + 11 = 30

”Copy that — still working on black!”

Stees targets black for a trick attack. He moves 35' southeast, then fires.

Stees auto-tricks CR 15 using stealth 10+24+1-20=15

Static arc pistol vs black EAC: 1d20 + 13 ⇒ (8) + 13 = 21
If hit, electric damage and flat-footed: 1d6 + 5 + 5d8 ⇒ (4) + 5 + (5, 7, 5, 4, 7) = 37

Drei's opening shot is impressive. It connects the moment after Omni's tentacle strikes. Unfortunately Stees misses with his pistol

*****************************************
TACTICAL MAP
ROUND 2
Drei: Hit
Stees: Miss
Varuthalla: Go
Omni-Lithic (SP:106/130): Hit
Huckleknuckle: Go
Hostiles: TBD