All Hands on Deck!
Don't worry, the skittermanders are here to help!
Gazigaz looks around for anyone who needs help.
Nako, checking in, with thirty fingers playing his mini drums in perfect time.
Another successful salvage operation! You’ve just returned from an abandoned mining asteroid, and its spoils fill the cargo hold of your vessel, the Helping Hand—your very own ship! You’re still so proud of it and of the fact that your boss Nakonechkin trusts you enough to send you on lone missions.
You've been in the Drift for a little more than two days since you left the asteroid when an alert on your ship’s sensors lets you know that another vessel is approaching. You all gather on the bridge as a communication channel opens from the incoming starship. The view screen lights up with the image of a scarred, angry human woman.
“Attention, filthy vermin,” she sneers. “Prepare to be boarded by the crew of the Nova Warlock. We will take your cargo, destroy your power core, and leave you to float aimlessly through space until you die from hunger, thirst, freezing temperatures, or lack of oxygen. Whichever. It really doesn’t matter to me, as long as you die slowly and painfully.”
"Hello angry nu-friend! We would be happy to help but our cargo belongs to our boss. I would be happy to make some modifications to your engines though!" Quonx hops up craning her next to get view of Nova Warlock's bridge and yet to be optimized systems on the screen.
Nako slips away from the bridge to her gunnery station.
"Nako thinks nu-friends have had a bad day, and need Good News!" she adds into the communications channel.
"Nako knows great game to play to improve hand-eye-computer interactions." she finishes with.
Gazigaz shakes his head. This might not be a nufriend. This nunotfriend sounds like she wants Gazigaz and his friends to hurt.
"GAMES!? GAMES!? You don’t remember my brother, Abram Silazi,
captain of the Nova Witch? You humiliated him! It was a bunch of you that STOLE his rightful salvage only a year ago! While piloting a luxury cruise liner! I could not let such a slight stand, so I tracked you down. It wasn’t easy, but I'm here to avenge my brother!”
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Dakoyo is sucking on one of his "magic healing wands" (i.e. wooden tongue depressor). He takes it from his mouth, then replies slowly over the comms. "Yeah, I remember. We helped a lot of people on that luxury cruise liner. Your brother was *not* helpful, but maybe now we could help him with something, and then you wouldn't need to avenge him?"
Gazigaz nods hopefully at Dakoyo's helpful suggestion. He has a bad feeling, though, and tries to prepare for trouble.
"Oh yes." says Nako happily. "I find games both helpful and relaxing. Would you like to play a game?"
"INFURIATING CREATURES! My name is Captain Anga Silazi. Let that name ring in your fuzzy ears, for it is the name of your downfall!”
"Then you should use handrails." suggests Nako.
"They are good at preventing falls."
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Dakoyo nods in earnest. "Okay, nufriend Anga. We will ring your name in our ears ..." He clears his throat and begins singing, "We have a nufriend on a ship, and Anga Silazi is her name-o ..."
While singing, Dakoyo points from Quonx to the computer with one arm, and mimes typing with two of his other hands, pointing in the direction of the other ship with a fourth arm.
The song being the final straw, the Nova Warlock starts bringing weapons to bear and it looks like things are about to get rather spicy!
The Helping Hand’s sensors begin to screech wildly as a swirling cloud of multicolored energy suddenly surrounds both ships. There is a vertigo-inducing wrenching sensation as your vessel is teleported somewhere, the strange but familiar backdrop of Drift space replaced with an unknown configuration of stars. However, alarms are still blaring, signifying total engine failure and countless other problems.
To make matters worse, the computers indicate that the Helping Hand is high above an unidentified planet and plummeting rapidly.
Quonx skittles the other Skittermanders out of the way to be the very first helper! Sadly he was so busy typing he seems to have forgotten to turn the computer ON.
"Pretty colours.." notes Nako.
"And a pretty big planet. Getting closer fast. Quonx need a hand?" she asks, not really knowing where the computer power button is located.
"Try the red one?" she suggests.
Random button pushing turns out to be #topqualityhelping
Quonx examines the readouts and immediately sees that the Nova Warlock is missing, but the Helping Hand’s mass and dimensions have increased twofol, further, the pucky Skittermander realizes the two vessels are fused together, most likely by the energy cloud that brought the ships to the Material Plane.
Looking at the readouts also reveals a dozen additional life-forms aboard the Helping Hand — most likely the space pirate crew, and they’re headed toward the
ship’s cargo hold!
The readouts also tell you that the Helping Hand’s engines are badly damaged and the ship will imminently crash into the planet below.
Luckily, your crew salvaged a zero-g mining vehicle that, if ejected from the cargo hold, could withstand reentry and impact. The cargo hold is just a short distance away from the Helping Hand’s bridge, but the space pirates are racing that way, so there’s little time to waste!
Nako summons her Doshko to her hand.
"Guess those Pirates need a helping hand escaping too." she says.
"Though we might need to restraint them for their own good. I'll go first."
Grabbing her gear she quickly leads the way toward the hold.
Nako starts running to the cargo hold!
Gazigaz makes sure his pistol is in his hand, and races after the others, calling out, "Wait, I want to help, too!"
Nako quickly checks the seals on her armor, grasps her weapons and then waits for the signal before leading the way through the door into the hold.
"Help is at hands nu-friends!" she proclaims.
The Helping Hand’s bumpy return to the Material Plane has thrown the cargo hold into disarray. Crates—some cracked open and spilling their contents across the floor—have been flung out of the cargo webbing and are scattered everywhere. A small vehicle festooned with claws and drills sits on a quartet of thruster nozzles near the airlock door.
Nako seems three space pirates who seem really unnufriendly.
Dakoyo
Gazigaz
Nako
Quonx
ENEMY
...and they pull out grenades and get ready to throw them at him.
[R1]
Pirates - READIED
Nako
Dako
Quonx
Gaz
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After getting ready to deal with anything (wielding a rifle in 2 hands,a survival knife in another,a healing serum in yet another one) Quonx follows after Nako before noticing multiple pirates behind crates everywhere and decides to make a run for the vehicle.
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"To the life saving device"
Nako moves forward, flaming doshko in two hands and a pistol in another. He takes a quick pot shot at the unnufriendly pirate in red.
"Need some help resting?"
As the Skittermanders scatter, the grenades get lobbed!
Two at Nako, one at Quonx!
Vs Nako
Attack (Hit)
Damage DC10 Ref for half
Attack (Hit)
Damage DC10 Ref for half
Vs Quonx
Attack (Hit)
Damage DC10 Ref for half
Nako fires at the pirate, and the shot hits the crate.
[R1 cotd]
Pirates - GRENADES!
Nako - attacked
Dako
Quonx - moved
Gaz
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"How rude!" He calls out as he walks into the room, wielding his battle staff and needler pistol, but not being particularly aggressive. "We are trying to help! Together, we can use that mining craft to get off the ship safely!" As he speaks, he waves his hands in arcane signs and a glowing shield of energy flickers around him, preparing in the event these people won't listen to reason and accept their help willingly.
Gazigaz moves into the room, and then points at the enemy with the yellow uniform. "Get that one, oldfriends!"
Nako just surges forward, taking the grenades as she tries to occupy the pirates attention and keep them away from her friends. Still, she manages to avoid the full impact of the first as it lands behind a large crate.
The pirates keep lobbing grenades!
Red bandana pirate
Attack (Hit)
Damage DC10 Ref for half
Hits: Gazigaz, Nako
Orange bandana pirate
Attack (Hit)
Damage DC10 Ref for half
Hits: Dako, Gazigaz, Quonx
Yellow bandana pirate
Attack (Hit)
Damage
Hits: Dako, Gazigaz, Quonx
[R2]
Pirates - Acted
Nako
Dako
Quonx
Gaz
Nako takes the third grenade straight in the stomach. Luckily that armour is pretty tough golemplate!
She surges forward, swinging her flaming dashko as she does so.
"Our ship, our rules. I try to help, but you throw grenades!" she fumes.
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Quonx keeps dodging the thrown grenades by quickly stepping out of the way and moving with the blasts
Moving forward Quonx pauzes for a second behind a big crate to catch her breath and notices a pirate hiding behind a near-by crate as Gazigaz points it out and she raises her rifle and takes a quick shot at it
Nako comes in swinging for the fences, thwacking a pirate!
Dako comes in and there is a flash of rainbow sparkles!
Will
The poor pirate is completely overcome by the display!
Quonx is slightly OFF target, but the encouragement from Gaz causes a minor readjustment of aim gets the shot just accurately enough to hit!
[R2]
Pirates - Acted
Nako - Acted
Dako - Acted
Quonx - Acted
Gaz
R 11
O [Dazed!]
Y 6
"Ouch! Bad notfriends!" yelps Gazigaz. "Keep after the yellow hatted one, team!"
Gazigaz then shoots at the yellow notfriend.
Gazigaz tags the pirate wearing the yellow banana with a well-placed shot! Gaz then urges the rest of the Skittermanders to follow suit.
Big Red steps back from Nako and pops off a shot from a pistol
Attack vs EAC
Damage
Orange pants pirate is still completely lost in a daze.
Yellow steps across for a clear shot at Dako!
Attack vs EAC
Damage
[R3]
Pirates - Acted
Nako
Dako
Quonx
Gaz
R 11
O [Dazed!]
Y 12
"Let me help you play catch" suggests Nako. However the skittermander is not too sure the new playmates coordination is up to it yet, so retains a strong hold of her dashko as she waves it around him.
Gazigaz keeps shooting and encouraging his friends.
Nako clobberises the pirate who drops like a sack of rocks.
The yellow bandana pirate gets swung at by Dako, but Dako hits only air.
Quonx has better luck!
Gaz does too - yellow bandana is firmly unfriended.
Orange pants pirate comes out of stupor and takes a shot at Gazigaz
Attack vs KAC
Damage
[R4]
Pirates - Acted
Nako
Dako
Quonx
Gaz
R Cactus
O
Y Cactus