UNITY 2010: A New Champions Campaign

[Lonewalker]

How did Straight Arrow's player take the 'doesn't trip your sensors' trick?

Straight Arrow is not a happy archer. He's currently working on revamping his home's security systems. With his position in UNTIL, he has access to some fairly high tech gear and he'll be incorporating some of those ideas with his own.

Oh, and maybe he'll throw in a few bear traps, alligator pits, death lasers, and rabid attack dogs...just for variety.

"Break into MY home, will you? <grumblegrumble>"

-Lonewalker
aka Straight Arrow

[Chromatic]

Don't forget the sharks with fricken lazers on their heads!

[Red Knight]

You can never have too much home security. There is nothing worse than waking up with your arch nemesis standing over your bed with the fake rock where you hide the key in his hand. It's enough to ruin your morning....

[teh bunneh]

UNITY Recap this week! UNITY Team C vs. Eurostar!

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After getting the report from Simian and Ifrita about the attempted jailbreak in France, Major Bec ordered UNITY Team C to investigate Eurostar and find out what they are planning. "They’ve been getting more and more active, and they need to be stopped before they complete whatever it is they’re building up to."

First, the team hit UNTIL Intelligence for an update on exactly what Eurostar has been doing. They learned that Eurostar had been quiet for the past year, but that they have suddenly become active again, striking three museums in the past month – plus the jailbreak in Russia and the attempt in France.

The first museum hit was in Istanbul, about a month ago, at the great Museum of Calligraphy, where a handful of books by the great philosopher and astronomer Abiz al Hilya were stolen.

Ifrita checked the records and learned that these books had been locked away, forbidden to be displayed by the religious authorities. No one knows what was in them, but they are said to contain star charts and references to the names of ancient demons. Hilya himself had been executed as a Shirk (idolater) in 1481, and most of his writings were burned. The only reason that any of his work survives is because his calligraphy is said to be among the greatest works of art the Muslim world ever produced.

The second attack was in Stalingrad, where Eurostar struck the Museum of History. They attacked the Czarist collection, but (according to the reports out of Russia) were driven off by the heroic Super Soldiers before they could take anything. This is when Durak was captured; it happened about 2 weeks ago.

The most recent theft was from a private collection in Sicily, owned by Mr. Ivan Vonovich, a very wealthy Russian ex-patriot who is said to be a gangster and arms dealer. He has an extensive private collection of ancient artifacts from around the world. He is very private about what he owns, and a full catalog doesn’t (publicly) exist. He claims that a daVinci painting, seldom seen by the public (and insured for 50 million dollars), was stolen. According to Interpol reports, he is not averse to using questionable methods to enhance his collection, from threats to bribes to outright theft and violence. They have him under constant watch, but he is very clever and nothing has ever been proven against him.

The team split up. New Man, Aurora, and Straight Arrow went to Bastion-1 to see if they could get any information out of Jean Dubois, AKA Ultrasonique. The second team (Ifrita, Red Dragon, and Tank) headed to Sicily to talk with Mr. Vonovich.

Team Two flew to Vonovich’s palatial estate. They found him to be an unpleasant man, to say the least, with little respect for authority except to use as a tool against other people. He gave no deference to Ifrita (she’s only a woman), but seemed to get along with Red Dragon (since they are both gear-heads). The team got the impression that he was livid at the theft – that someone would dare do to him what he has done to so many others.

Vonovich was very proud of his "good taste," showing off his eccentric collection to the heroes. He showed them to the room where he kept his DaVinci. They saw a wall filled with paintings from every artistic period (no particular emphasis, making it an eclectic collection to be sure). Apparently, Durak smashed through the outer wall, broke a few display cases, and removed the painting from its frame.

The team’s suspicions were raised immediately. Why would Durak take the time to remove the painting from the frame when he could have easily pulled the whole thing off the wall? Ifrita poked around the room while Red Dragon distracted the gangster, and she found something interesting. In the rubble, she found a half-destroyed plaque identifying the case in which the Armor and Sword of St. Jean Parisot de la Dubois of Malta were displayed.

She confronted Vonovich with this piece of evidence, and he denied knowing what she was talking about. He told her that the display case was empty, and that he had the plaque made because he intended to someday acquire the pieces. She obviously didn’t believe him and he grew angry, insulting her as "Someone who has no knowledge of such things, since she’s only a stupid woman," and he spit at her feet.

Red Dragon took umbrage at this, and began to unsheathe his sword. No one may insult a Samurai’s master! But Ifrita told him to back down, and the three heroes took their leave (much to the relief of Vonovich’s security team, which did not want to have to fight a group of superheroes!).

Meanwhile, Team One went to see Ultrasonique, who was being kept in Ultimate Security lockdown at Bastion-1. EuroGuard were planning to move him to a secret location soon, just because they didn’t want to present a tempting target to Eurostar. The team was met by Bielo the White, Passion, and Speed. Bielo greeted them like old friends, and took them to see Mssr. Dubois.

He was being kept in a small but comfortable cell, sitting quietly, wrapped up in a straight-jacket, and muttering to himself. When Straight Arrow questioned him, he kept repeating what he said before. He talked about how everyone wants his blood, his precious blood, and how the eyes in the sky were watching for him and wanted him dead so they could come back. "They’re going to come back for me because they know the eyes, the eyes in space – they want my blood and they know I’m the last, so only my blood will do! That’s why they want me!"

While this was going on, New Man attempted to read the madman's mind. He found it to be a disconcerting place, like a Technicolor river of thought, rushing past faster than the eye could follow. He could pick up basic themes (not much different than what Straight Arrow was getting), but nothing else. He decided to go deeper. Thanks to a phenomenal roll (beating Ultrasonique's EGO by 40+!), New Man managed to plunge through the river, straight into what was left of the man’s Id.

He found himself in a dark place – which did not surprise him, since he knew that Dubois was blind. He saw Dubois as a young man, standing before a workbench covered with tools and gizmos. Dubois was working on the equipment with the sure, steady hands of a good engineer. New Man approached and spoke to him, asking what he was working on. "My work is what gives my life meaning," Dubois answered.

"What are you hiding from in here?" New Man asked.

"Someone is always watching me," Dubois answered. "There is an eye that sits eternally on me. Someone wants me for something – something terrible. I believe they mean to sacrifice me." He pointed upward, and New Man saw the full moon overhead… except it wasn’t the moon, it looked like a huge, red, slitted eye.

"Why would they do that?" New Man inquired.

"Because I am the last. I think I am some sort of conduit or gateway. Perhaps by taking my blood, they will open a passageway. Or perhaps I am a barrier; my presence prevents them from coming through, and my death will mean no more barrier."

"What are you the last of?"

"My family were once nobles," Dubois explained. "There are stories told of great warriors in our past, and I am the last of my family."

"You have no relatives?" New Man pressed.

"I had a brother, once," Dubois said, his hands visibly shaking. "But he is now dead. I think I may have had something to do with that."

New Man could see that Dubois was becoming agitated, so he bid the man farewell, and came out of his trance. He told Straight Arrow what he learned, and the Team headed back to Midgard to meet up with Team Two.

They decided they needed to know a little bit more about the Sword of St. John, so they called the mysterious phone number that Simian acquired. "John" was very interested to hear their story. He told them a little bit more about the legends of the Sword – how many people think it is more than a mere weapon, and that it holds great magical powers. It is supposed to be a "weapon of defense;" when the wielder uses it to protect a person or a place, he gains incredible abilities – and indeed, the place that he is protecting cannot be harmed while the Sword is still held by a man with a noble and innocent heart. Some people even believe that the Sword is one of the things that prevents evil from overwhelming the world.

However, John didn’t know anything about Jean Dubois, AKA Ultrasonique. He told them that the original St. Jean Dubois had many children, but he doesn’t know anyone who has bothered to keep track of the family line. He went on to insist that it was very important that the Sword not stay in the hands of someone like Rasputin. "There’s no telling what sort of mischief a man like that could get up to, hanging on to an artifact like that."

The heroes did some investigation into the theft of the Sword. It was a professional, non-super (as far as the authorities can tell) job, pulled about 5 weeks ago (before the first Eurostar museum heist). Authorities had no reason to believe that Eurostar was involved, and thus didn't contact EuroGuard or UNITY about it. It was certainly not their style (which tends toward brute-force). It was a "Mission Impossible"-type heist which left few clues and no leads. No leads, at least, until now...

They also did a little bit of research into Jean Dubois and learned that he has one living relative, a wife who divorced him years ago. She has not remarried and is fairly comfortable in her spinsterism. They had no children. According to their records, she visits him in the asylum a couple of times a year. Dubois also used to have a brother named Luc, but he died in a fire about 10 years ago. Police think that Ultrasonique, in his madness, killed his own brother. Luc was unmarried.

They decided that their best bet was to call on Mrs. Dubois and find out if she knew anything.

TBC!

[Scifi_Toughguy]

Yay, the plot thinkens!

[Red Knight]

I'm SOOOO hooked...

[Lonewalker]

I'm SOOOO hooked...

YOU'RE hooked? Try being an actual player in the game. When my fiancee and I miss a single session, we start going through withdrawal symptoms!

Luckily, I got a fix coming this Saturday. Yay!

(Bill, I'm sick....)

-Lonewalker

(PS: This has nothing to do with me sucking up to my GM for a few more XPs. Honest.)

[teh bunneh]

YOU'RE hooked? Try being an actual player in the game. When my fiancee and I miss a single session, we start going through withdrawal symptoms!

Luckily, I got a fix coming this Saturday. Yay!

(Bill, I'm sick....)

(PS: This has nothing to do with me sucking up to my GM for a few more XPs. Honest.)

Glad to hear y'all are enjoying the game. Just wait'll you see what I've got planned for the very near future.

Bill.
(The big "metaplot" starts this week...)

[Red Knight]

I'd love to get into a good super's game. The game that I'm currently involved with is on and off. We don't meet at regular intervels and it is really hard to "keep the feeling" when is bounces like this.

I even looked at Mutants and Masterminds trying to find a gaming group. I have a 19 m/o son that hampers my ability to go out on a regular basis. I have a lot of things going on and it all adds up to having limited time to do anything. SO... I live vicariously through the posts on this board. Keep up the great work.

[Lonewalker]

I have a 19 m/o son that hampers my ability to go out on a regular basis.

You know, it's never too early to start teaching Junior about life skills.

"That's right, son. The bad guy did a critical hit on Daddy because he's a twink elf."

-Lonewalker

[teh bunneh]

You know, the Llama posted a link to an interesting article on getting little kids into gaming not too long ago. It was on the "Other Games" section of the boards. I'll see if I can find it.

Bill.

[CourtFool]

I think it was 5 Tips For Roleplaying With Younger Children.

[teh bunneh]

That's the one. Thanks, CF!

Bill.

[Red Knight]

You know, it's never too early to start teaching Junior about life skills. -Lonewalker

I can see it now.... My son's first word being "Critical!!!" I think my wife would kill me. She is not a gamer and I don't think that she grasps the depth that gaming can warp...err... I mean touch your soul.

My son sits with us when we play D&D.



I was trying to teach him the Green Lantern Oath. He still hasn't recited it yet... but he does hold his fist out.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

I'd love to get into a good super's game. The game that I'm currently involved with is on and off. We don't meet at regular intervels and it is really hard to "keep the feeling" when is bounces like this.

I even looked at Mutants and Masterminds trying to find a gaming group. I have a 19 m/o son that hampers my ability to go out on a regular basis. I have a lot of things going on and it all adds up to having limited time to do anything. SO... I live vicariously through the posts on this board. Keep up the great work.

I so understand. The only difference is that my wife will game with me. Its the rest of the 'group' that are flakesters. Imma rep Bill just for having this thread.