Nettlox's page

Understandable.
I must say I do quite like the system - and I don't think it is less fitting for pbp than say Pathfinder.
The extended tasks seem a bit confusing, but everything else plays pretty smooth imo.
Thanks for having me :-)

(and give me a heads-up should you want to try another go)

The Chief Engineer nods and continues to brush his chin, while muttering under his breath in a manor that starts to feel familiar.
"Quantum-based computer architecture...
Neurological patterns influenced by humanoid brain structure...
Multi-Consciousness uploads...
Mhhh...
Doctor, maybe we should think of this problems in a less mechanical way and more in a biological way?
Maybe we could use the transporter systems to target and store the quantum-neurologic structure of the system in the pattern buffer?
It is designed to store neurlogical patterns after all.
We would have to figure out a way to target the KI in one swoop ...
and also a way to stabilize the buffers for the entire travel back to the star base to not loose it of course..."

Things slowly go back to normal on my end.
Nettlox is rubbing his chin in a thoughtful gesture while checking over the computer system.
Insight+Engineering 15: 2d20 ⇒ (14, 14) = 28
"This will not be straight forward, Captain.
The system is both highly advanced, very complex and also deeply integrated in the power system of this installation.
We will have to come up with a thorough concept for the transfer and storage of the system."
He turns to the direction of the medi robot in a way of addressing the KI.
"Do you have an estimate of how long your computational and energetic reservoirs can keep you operational?
We will need a bit time to prepare our computer systems."

I really should have taken the computer focus - lol.
It was a long internal debate between transporter and computer and I decided to take transporters instead.

I may be unable to post for the next couple of days.
Wife got sick and I got to watch after our lil'un.

Great to hear!

Yeah, us out, armed photon torpedo in.
In one transporter exchange.
Or you know ... Exterminatus the entire planet just to be sure there aren't other installations like this one hidden elsewhere...
(I kinda play 40k in my other game, so I know exactly what you mean)

Oh, ehem, yeah, let's not do that if we can help it *lol*
Good call, Captain.
But maybe we can *only* copy the database and not the AI?
If I can convince the bot that I will prepare the upload, maybe I can exclude the AI stuff from the data or something along that line of thinking...

"If we need to prepare our computer first, I can return to the ship to assist Mr. Xin."
He turns to the robot.
"Would you mind me reviewing the database before we start with the upload.
It would help me prepare our systems accordingly.
We don't want the process to fail because our memory banks are incompatible or we don't have enough space in our memory cores, right?"
Insight+Command?: 2d20 ⇒ (1, 3) = 4
Ohh, with diplomacy Focus that should be 4 successes!

Nettlox leans over to the Captain to whisper in her ear:
"Captain, I think I understand what is going on.
The computer system was likely programmed with a prime directive to do anything to conserve the cultural, historical and technical information contained in its database by the original creators.
When it ran out of computation power or ... I don't know maybe the energy supply went dark, it started to use humanoid brains to increase its capacity.
I would recommend to let it upload its database to the ship - after ensuring our computer systems will not be infected.
Not only will that appease the computer, it will also be a true treasure for any archeologists - access to an entire database of an almost extinct alien species."

Alright, I am all for fluff posts, just wanted to know whether soemthing was going on rule wise I should be aware of :-D
As the text appears, Nettlox lets out a high tchirping whistle sound.
"Ah, that's not good...
Captain...
I'd rather not walk into a trap if I can help it.
Whoever authored that message seems in serious distress and in need of help.
I vote to take the elevator - for what it's worth.
Please note that my tactical abilities are far from secure, Captain."

@GM: just for my rule understanding: how did I miss?
I though that ranged attack was a Difficulty 2 check, so with 2 Successes I should have hit, right?
And as for the minor action, I though switching between tricorder and phaser would cost me a minor action.
"Thank you Sobek, I should train more on smaller targets, I guess..."
As the voices come up, Nettlox starts throbbing his facial crevice, obviously deep in though.
He wanders over to another terminal and starts typing away swiftly, muttering under his breath:
"Give me a moment to test a theory, Captain..."
Insight+Engineering=16: 2d20 ⇒ (5, 19) = 24

Having failed at wrestling control of the simple drones before, Nettlox takes out his phaser and fires at the swirling target - hoping it will work better than the more sophisticated approach before...

Control+Security: 2d20 ⇒ (10, 7) = 17
2 Success, so a hit since it is Difficulty 2, right?
Damage Type-1 Phaser: 2d6 + 2d6 ⇒ (3, 3) + (4, 5) = 15

Nettlox tries to aid the Captain, although he does not like workingthat spontaneous and ad-hoc.
Darin+Engineering: 1d20 ⇒ 20
... which immediately shows as he messes up with a remote command chain!
Very fitting moment to roll a 20.
@GM: would Parent figure also apply if I am not the one "leading" the check?
Like in the present case, where I am only assisting?

Nettlox continues to search the alien database for additional information while continuing to think out loud.
"Well, that is one way to select the survivors...
... not the best by any stretch, but there certainly is no correct choice when faced with such a situation.
Still, it sounds like they know what was coming and this all they could to prepare and prevent extinction...
... so what went wrong?
Was is a long, slow decline due to inbreeding of the few survivors?
Technical problems?
An illness?"

As the Captain speaks up, Nettlox looks up in surprise.
"Oh, yes, that would be a good idea.
Do you think it possible for us to meet an actual survivor down here?
Would first directive apply?"

Nettlox, while browsing the computer systems with increasing confidence, muses loudly to no one in particular.
"Hmm, installation such as these are build to remain intact and working for a long time even in an apocalyptic event.
How long will the crew of this silo have survived the doom of their species...
A year. Two?
Long enough to starve?
Maybe the modern primitives of this world are descendants of the few people surviving the disaster in places like these..."

I am getting definite Fallout vibes here :-D

Nettlox takes a seat in front of one of the terminals and starts carefully typing away on the old keyboard with the unfamiliar letters.
"Captain, Sobek, would you please observe my work.
This will not be easy and an additional pair of eyes and brains will work wonders here..."
Setting up parent figure which will let us ignore the first complication that turns up.
C+E=15: 2d20 ⇒ (7, 9) = 16
Time for some techno-babble I think!
"Ah, so they were working with a multi-host, server-side operating system...
Interesting memory layout. Van-Neumann, no. Arch-Hostan? No. This is something different entirely...
Huh, what is this screen saying? Whether I want to continue? Would I have have called the command if I did not want to continue..."
Looking good so far, maybe the assists will generate additional successes for more questions?

"No life signs yet, Captain.
But those walls are thick enough to survive all but a direct hit from a thermo-nuclear warhead - so I wouldn't be too surprised if the scan does not penetrate all the way through all those levels."

2d20 ⇒ (11, 11) = 22
Hmm, different result than in the preview.
Somehow I managed to delete the closing bracket o.O
So this are 2 successes.

"Huh, oh, yes, of course Captain."
Nettlox seemed to be distracted by the voices and just now returns to reality.
He quickly produces his tricorder and performs a wide-spectrum scan of the surrounding.
[dice=Insight+Engineering 16]2d20[/dice
Nice, that should be 3 successes I think.
Bank one to restore the one used by the Cpt..
Now back to: Momentum: 6

The Denobulan is visibly shaken by the voice.
Eventually he calls out to the 'child'.
"Hello there, can you hear me?
My name is Nettlox.
My friends beside me and I are here to help, you have nothing to fear from us.
Where are you?
Tell us and we will do all we can to help you!"

"Do we have access to a vid-feed or other data from the vault?
Going in blind sounds dangerous."

Nettlox will wave for the Captain and the CHief of Security.
"On a word, Captain, Commander?"

13: 2d20 ⇒ (11, 8) = 19
Nettlox leans closer, trying his best to shut out the whispering voices at the edge of hearing.
He had a real bad feeling about this...

"Yeah, you're right, Captain.
He got lead fragments embedded in that wound.
If my scanner is right, he died of sepsis.
Maybe he got shot by that damn malfunctioning robot?"

Could bank momentum but we'Re at max, so maybe a question?
Could the fragments origin from primitive bullets, as fired by the robot we encountered?

Nettlox turns to the doctor of the team with a worried expression.
"Can we perhaps set up a monitoring protocol for the brainwaves of the away team with our standard tricorders to detect any mental influence?
I don't know enough about neurology but I know a lot about tricorders, maybe we can work something out together?"

"We could check out the seed vault, since the scans were unable to penetrate it.
On the other hand, this might be the source of all the stations problems - somehow.
And disturbing it might cause us problems too.
Might be better to just learn all we can from all the other modules..."

(heh, oops, currently re-watching ds7, so this kinda slipped through.)
"Oh yeah, my people had dealings with the Klingons in the past and not everything in their cuisine is horribly and alive.
It's like... Terran coffee... But...
Stronger. It keeps you sharp and warm for an entire shift if need be and it has a quite unique taste.
Let's hope they will grow out of their militaristic mindset soon, so they can join us and we can get trade going."

*** Later ***
As the door snaps open, Nettlox seems a bit startled and on the verge of rushing forward to help before recognizing the futility of such an gesture.
Vs 13: 2d20 ⇒ (16, 10) = 26
"This is not good.
I was still hoping to find all of them in a cryo chamber, where they fled from a engine problem into deep sleep until help arrives...
Hey, what is this...
That is no wound.
Doc correct me if I am mistaken but this looks like surgery.
As if...
As if some kind of implant was removed from the brain..."

Nettlox moves in front of one of the ventilation outlets and hols his gloved hands in front of the warm air stream.
"Ahh, much better.
It's getting warmer.
The engines are humming.
The computer is processing.
That's how I like it.
Anyone got a Raktajino?"

Oh, ehm, I ... kinda... rolled 2d10 instead 2d20.
No wonder I rolled so well - ehehe.
That was no intention *innocent whistling*

"Right, you are Captain, let's wake this old slumbering beast.
First things first, those 203-R's must click in right here -
Ahh, Captain, careful-careful, those old broadband interconnectors are a bit less robust than the newer fiber relays, they don't link getting squeezed or bended."
Control+Eng=15: 2d10 ⇒ (4, 6) = 10
Not sure whether power system focus applies here, if so that's another success.
So with difficulty 1, that's either 1 or 2 Momentum stored.
"Good, good. Looks like new, right?
So, now to the difficult part...
Bypassing those burned out circuits.
How come other Engineers do fit fall-back circuits to such important systems so rarely - I'll never know."
Daring+Eng=12: 2d10 ⇒ (2, 3) = 5
Whoop, my dice are on fire!
This time the focus is more likely to apply I guess?
That's another one or three momentum generated.
"That's it. We'll use the power supply and modulate the control sequences on top and transmit them along the primary energy flow through the system.
And ... done.
Captain, I'll grant you the honor to start the restart sequence."

Momentum: 7(10) Threat: 9

The new Chief Engineer returns from behind his cover - his face slowly resetting from its expanded state.
As he hurries to the side of the wounded Vulcan, he offers his thanks to the Captain.
"Thank you Captain, that was a most timely intervention."
But once he reaches T'Venek, the ships medic has already rushed to her side and is stabilizing her.
He lays a hand on his fellow Engineer's shoulder and whispers:
"Everything will be fine T'Venek. Take your time to rest up. I don't want to see you anywhere near the engine room for five days - that's an order."

The Denobulan ducks low behind a console, swearing.
"Damn you, stupid bot, I am trying to repair the very station you are tasked to protect!
Barstow, aim for its camera system and it will not be able to target us!"
Assist? Insight+Engineering? 15: 1d20 ⇒ 9

Nettlox grimaces and calls over to the Commander while ushering his crewman into cover.
"And with what, my toenails?
The computers of the stations aren't running yet and I seriously doubt that it will react to external commands."
Once in cover he performs a scan of the robot while shouting in its general direction.
"Command word: Shutdown.
We are star fleet personnel from the USS Amity."
Scan the Bot, Control+Engineering? 15: 2d20 ⇒ (19, 17) = 36
Heh, not my field of expertise indeed - at least no complication.

"Barstow, Sobek, I could need a few additional pair of hands for this.
We need to engage the consoles, the reactor and this little juicy battery within a few seconds of each other to get this old Mark-IV going without enduring the multi-hour warm-up phase."
He grins and adds:
"And from what I learned of the Captain, such a lengthy process would strain her patience beyond acceptable levels, right?"

Control+Engineering = 15: 2d20 ⇒ (13, 3) = 16
Power System focus applies, making this 3 successes from Nettlox. Can I use the excess Success to lower the threat produced by beaming down the tools? Otherwise I'll bank it as momentum, right?
Parent Figure applies as well, so we can ignore the first complication that may show up.
-
@GM: can we say my above roll (the one for scanning) allowed me the spoilered insight, despite the roll being on something else (I still succeed with your set)?

"Aye to that, Captain."
Nettlox flips open his tricorder and.foes to work, collecting data and makes sure to coordinate the collected information from all members of the away team.
Assist? Insight+Science=14: 1d20 ⇒ 8
(this is probably an assist roll?
If so, then my Denobulan talent Parent Figure will likely come to play,letting us ignore the first complication when 3+ characters work together on a problem.
Re: Equipment. I suspected as much and thus stated that I'd bring a portable energy source before.
@GM Do I need to 'buy' it with threat then?
@Group: do you think it would be worth it?)

Yah, stay safe!

If the year keeps going on like that, we'll have a first contact around Christmas.
With some stray Klingons that is...

"Lovely - another world to visit in extreme weather gear only then.
Captain, my advise is to directly move to the main generatorium rather than Control.
It is more than likely that I have to restart the reactor or perform some hands-on repairs to get it back online.
And I won't be able to do so from the control room."
After a moment he adds:
"We could of course split up if you prefer to check out Control immediately.
Although I'd prefer if we continue to move as a group until we find out what happened to the scientist..."

Thanks for handy botting, was still fast asleep back then - and I kinda thought I couldn't do it myself since I'm also getting transported.
Nettlox shudders a bit at the freeze, although it is pretty obvious that the outside would be even worse, temperature wise.
"Brrr, not very cozy right now, isn't it.
Captain, I intend to go down to the generator room and see whether I can restore power.
If we get the computers operational, we might learn a lot about what happened here - and when.
And a bit of heating certainly wouldn't hurt either..."

In a usual Star Trek scene of this type the away team nearly always split up - for obvious reasons of getting picked apart one-by-one.
It's like the horror movie genre has been all but forgotten in the future - ugh :-D

The new Chief of Engineering appears in the transporter room right on time with thermo suite, a well-filled backpack and two standard equipment cases.

"Ready for a walk in the fridge everyone?
Do we know about any dangerous native wildlife?"

"Aye, Captain."
Time to prepare a stash of gear, I think.
A portably power cell, Tetha grade.
A couple type-1 phasers and power couplings to use as heaters.
Portable transporter relays.
...

Good to know about the EVs.
Still, that's only a difference of 12 degrees after all.
It still means -44° Celcius, enough to stop your average car from starting because the fuel lines freeze shut and your battery going down to like 10% power...

"That does sound worrisome.
Maybe their power systems shut down and they ran out of reserve energy.
Captain, I think I should accompany you.
Although I must say, that I am much more found of modest temperatures averaging out at 20 degrees.
I am no man of extremes.
EV Suites?"
Are those even a thing in that timeframe?

"Now that does sound ... interesting.
And not a little terrifying.
Outnumbered five to one and getting out after giving the enemy a good right Sut'Ark does make for an impressive story though.
I certainly hope that one day, the Klingon will start to realize that we all have much more in common than what divides us and will join us in peace.
I am sure their culture and people have a lot to offer and will flourish even more with a little intake of ideas from the Federation."

Got a lot longer than I thought, but I got into the flow.
Well, that's one talkative Denobulan for you :-)

Well, tell it from your perspective then?
Might as well be "wrong" canonically but if told from an individual point of view might still be valid.
Nettlox chuckles.
"Interesting indeed.
It was a pretty desperate move on my part.
But it actually worked.
The swarm retreated a bit and then started to fly around me as I continued to dance.
The Chief took T'Hal and brought her to the sickbay - nothing serious, the secrete just overloaded her olfactory system.
After a few minutes the swarm started to mirror my movements until we were moving in perfect synchronization.
It was incredible.
We had to develop a three-dimensional, movement based actuator and come up with a way to couple it with the universal translator to actually communicate with them.
Took us three days but the Ariani were very forthcoming and patient once we learned to not use any kind of auditory or radio-based technology on or around them.
We later learned that this disrupts their gestalt swarm intelligence, causing the individual drones to fall back to a primal behavior and lash out at any perceived danger.
In the end, they offered to tow the Utah back to Federation space and we accepted.
They are such generous people, the Ariani.
Even invited us to come visit their homeworld some time.
The problem is: it's in the far, far end of the delta quadrant."

Hmm, interesting.
Captain Tharhat picks a bloody battle as her most interesting career event.
So, what does this tell us about her...
"Well, most interesting, then we'll go with the good memory.
Fifty-two years ago.
I was a simple junior Lieutenant aboard the USS Utah back then.
We had just completed a simple medical supply run to a Terran colony when we were thrown off-course by a neutrino storm our scanners did not detect in time.
As the storm dropped us at long last we were badly damaged, emergency power only, no shields, no subspace comm, weapons down to 5% and in uncharted space.
As we began to enact repairs, an unknown vessel dropped out of the warp right beside us.
It looked nothing but a tiny, space going Klingon Mant'Iz - you know, those insects with scissors sharp enough to cut steel.
The ship closed to a few hundred meter and then started to fly around us on trajectories I've never seen before or after. It's maneuvrability was astonishing. It went on for hours. They didn't hail us. They didn't scanned us as far as we could tell - and our own scanners were still damaged.
Captain Thule held a meeting of his officers and I was there because Chief Brendt was in sickbay.
After the Captain replayed the movements of the ship repeatedly and at various speeds, I suggested it might be some kind of communication attempt akin to different types of insects that rely on non-verbal communication forms.
Lacking other ideas, Thule went with mine and had the Utah roll and circle the other ship a few times - using the very last of our impulse energy.
And what can I say, it worked well enough.
The unknown ship came portside and docked with the Utah.
Cpt. Thule picked me to accompany him, our Chief of Security and our Science Officer T'Hul to the bulkhead.
As it opened, we were met by a truly alien sight. A gestalt swarm of tiny flying insects hovering a good meter off the ground - buzzing loudly. They immediately moved towards us and circled the Captain - who it must be said, was a secret insectophob, and he panicked. He tried his best, offered the proper first contact greeting using the universal translater on full spectrum translate. But as the the swarm became agitated and lashed out on him - I don't think they actually hit him but it was a close thing - he panicked and backed away trying to shake them off.
T'Hul then tried to scan the swarm with her tricorder and it immediately turned on her. Sprayed her face with some kind of fluid that smelled horrible. Knocked her out on the spot.
Our Chief of Security then grabbed for his phaser.
And I...
Danced the traditional, slow Denobulan wedding march."
Short art break to allow reactions :-)

He grins a wide grin that nearly reaches his ears.
"I'd be honored, dear Captain, but considering that I have been in service for a longer time than some of the present have been alive-",
at this he winks at Barstow sitting opposite him,
"- I guess I should limit myself.
Shall I start with the best or the worst moment of the past 63 years?"

Let's do this a bit more interactively, eh?

nice promt.
Had a BIG post to make in my GM-game, and now have to work a bit more.
Might get tomorrow before I have it up.

The slightly round-bellied Denobulan with the surprisingly white hair returns the offered handshake of the Caitan with only a slight hesitation but then returns it with a wide grin.
He sits back down as the Captain is done with her reply, nodding.
"Thank you, Captain, I will be giving my best to fulfill your expectations."

Yah, that makes sense.
I guess Nettlox would be very much a challenge to a strict vulkan stickler.

"People before Protocol" and "More than the sum of Parts" isn't exactly compatible with their usual point of view either ^^

How does my Research task look like? Seems fine? How many questions do I get to ask with those rolls?

The last couple of days were filled to the brim with activity for Lt. Commander Nettlox - but he was very satisfied with the state of affairs.
The position aboard the USS Amity was a dream come true.
Chief Engineer aboard a major, brand-new ship type with a crew as diverse as one could only find once in the entire fleet.
Practically everything he liked was here, except for his sprawling family back on Denobula of course, but he had every intention of forging a new "family" branch aboard the Amity.
Just like his grand-grandfather third-degree Phlox did aboard the previous-previous Enterprise before him.

As he makes his way towards the Captains prep-room, he mentally reviews the data he pulled from the database the night prior.
Not having have to sleep - at least for several months to come - has its benefits.
Iceworld. M class.
Former, advanced population all but extinct.
Remnants of their civilization underneath the massive snow and ice fields.
Federation outpost of scientist, mostly archeology and paleoclimatology.
Seven permanent resident researchers.
Those were the primary database entries.
But he was not satisfied and decided to dig deeper - the night had been pretty young at that point anyway.
Just trying to try my grasps at a task and play up the "Better be Prepared" value (not using it)
Research the database to ask GM questions. Reason+Science? 14, ship systems can assist I think: 3d20 ⇒ (7, 4, 5) = 16
Those are nice rolls. Um, so 3 questions since I get all three successes?
1) Are there known conflicts in the vicinity of the system?
2) Are there database entries of unknown/strange/dangerous interstellar phenomena in the vicinity?
3) Are there known claims of other species for this region of space?

A fast turbo-lift ride later and he has reached his destination: the prep-room.
He made sure to arrive on time, with enough time to spare for one short unexpected detour should it occur - like a crewman asking a question or a turbo-lift re-route.
He takes a seat at the opposite end of the entrance and waits for the Captain to begin the briefing - making sure to greet each participant personally with a friendly nod and a (very) wide grin.
As he is introduced, he stands and makes a traditional Andorian thanking gesture towards the Captain.
"Thank you Captain."
He turns to the assembled officers and spreads his arms in a pretty universal gesture of welcoming.
"Welcome, fellow officers, my name is Nettlox.
Lt. Commander or Chief for those keen on protocol minutiae.
I am very keen to get to know everyone of you in due time and look forward to us working together.
Beside my obvious skillset in the engine room, I am also an officially accepted counselor and have served as diplomat on more than one occasion.
So if you have any personal problem or difficulties, don't hesitate to call for me - day and night.
You will not wake me, as we Denobulans as you may know, do not sleep unless for a hibernation period once a year.
Ask away if you will."