PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Skinwalker:

Whoohoo! Now I'm gonna eat Speedball! =)

 

I will wait for Geoff's response as that will determine what I can do (since Speedball is carrying my character . )

 

Actually, my first action will be to take a recovery! Second action will depend upon what Speedy does.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Oy. Hard going last all the time - so much of this is dependant on the

changing dynamics of the combat/interaction.

 

Assuming that no one is hitting anyone, Dr. Cairo will gently take a

step backwards, satisfied that Antaeus does not want to fight, but also

curious of his purposes and respectful of what seems like the ranger's

area. He will hold his phase until the still-confusing situation sorts

itself out. He will also try to stay aware of what is happening with

Speedball and the Lycanthrope.

 

If Antaeus and Ranger get into a fight, then I will post again with

Cairo's actions.

 

From MIRV:

"Ummm, a large statue, gotcha. Shouldn't be too hard to find." MIRV will start scanning the area when he gets within range.

 

Speedy'd know that MIRV has an array of medium ranged energy attacks and an entangle which were used against the Warlord's flunkies during the big

altercation. At least I think Speedy would, he kinda ran off early in the

fight, but I think that MIRV and Speedy have had enough time to understand

the basic abilities of each other. Am I right Neil?

 

---

 

From GM:

Skinwalker: As Speedball hesitates for a second you straighten in his skinny but surprisingly strong arms and breath deeply, feeling your strength return... though your chest is still very sore. (Recovery.)

 

Speedball: Insert next action here. (Speedy is fine on juice, but his normal STR use is tiring him... hitting and carrying... just so you know.)

 

MIRV: Computer adjustments of micro-degrees keep your trajectory up and over Manhattan in line with the Central Park Reservoir. Upon hearing the radio chatter and the description of the large stone figure, you reach back your gauntleted hand and place it against the grip and trigger guard of your plasma rifle. Contact points send an electronic signal, releasing the carbine into your grip and you hear the comfortingly whine of the power charge fluxing. Readouts in your helmet show output at optimal range... tangle pods fully primed... and the oscillating, pulsed ruby laser in your chest emitter fully charged.

Ahead of you, past the high rises of Manhattan, you see the green (more brown, actually, this time of year) of Central Park spreading out before you. It's still a mile or so away and you can't pick out any details, though.

 

Dr. Cairo: With an overly dramatic shrug and sigh, Antaeus pauses and looks at Ranger. His eyes narrow and he say, in English, "Another one? I did not know New York had so many changelings!" Then he makes a casual brush off gesture toward Ranger and says, "Go away. I will be finished soon." To you he says, "Wizard. Take your pet away, please. Do not make me hurt him," and he goes back to his digging.

Ranger growls at this, clearly pissed, and yells, "That was not a request. Stop what you are doing... NOW... or I will make you stop!" And he clearly flexes into an aggressive combat stance... ready to spring.

Antaeus... ignoring him and looking down into his hole suddenly grins and says, in Greek, "Ah ha! There you are!" and starts to reach down into the darkness.

 

Dr. Cairo has held half move. Skinwalker still has a move: Then, Speedball (1st), Ranger (1st), Antaeus,Dr, Cairo, Skinwalker, Speedball (2nd), Ranger (2nd)

 

From Dr. Cairo:

For the half-move, Dr. Cairo will say quietly "What is it you seek, son of the Sea-god?" and narrow his eyes, opening his sensitivity to the ebb and flow of arcane energies. If anything within the radius is magic, Dr.

Cairo wants to know everything about it.

 

Dr. Cairo will abort to dodge if he needs to, but assuming that Antaeus does not come at him, Dr. Cairo will step to the side, the cloak swirling around him until he and the cloak fade into nothingness. As he disappears, his voice seems to come from no where and everywhere, deep and foreboding "your arrogance will be your downfall, Antaeus - offend the 'whelp of Anubis,' and you will taste the power of his master!"

 

Dr. Cairo, unseen, will continue to mouth words in an arcane tongue after this, freeing Antaeus' fear of the unknown, unleashing the awe that all men have for the face the supernatural.

 

(held action will be a Detect magic with all of the special juice for it) (Next phase will be 40 points in invisibility, 45 in his invisible Ego drain, giving him 6d6 of drain [3d6 of Ego drain?]. Both levels are put into hitting with the drain)

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: Speedball will stop, put the man down against a tree and say "Now--you're gonna tell me what the Hell just happened, or I'm gonna have to turn you over to the cops. Who are you and who" jerking his thumb back towards the others "is the statue-guy? What's the fight about?" (recovery)

 

2nd Action: Assuming hostilities with Badger don't begin again, Speedball gets on the comm. "MIRV, I've got one of the paras with me. He's subdued. Name's Badger, I think. Check on the giant statue--I didn't like the look of him either, but Ranger and some guy in a suit seemed to be taking care of him while I was dealing with Badger. Let me know if you need me to help out, but be aware that if I help you with him, I may lose track of the para I have with me. I'm 'bout 6 seconds away from the statue's 20 (location, natch), if you need a hand." (recovery again)

 

 

Speedball's in a fantastic mood, actually. This is the first time he's gone up against another para and taken him out without any problems. The fact that he had to blindside the para to do it bothers him not at all...

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will continue looking for the statue. . .

 

"I read you Speedball. Keep tabs on your catch and see if you can find out who or what it is. We need to know what's going on."

 

From Skinwalker:

"Nonono... my name's not Badger. Look, that isn't important right now. What is important is that I stop that... thing... over there from doing... uh... whatever it's doing. Whatever it is, it's... wrong. It's disrupting the Land." (recovery)

 

From Speedball:

"Well, I don't know you, so I'm not gonna get into it here and now, but my source (Ranger) tells me that *you* were the one who was making trouble.

All I saw was you run up to that guy and try and scratch his eyes out."

 

Joe pauses, and continues "now, if your name isn't Badger, then what is it?

Keep in mind that I'm about 3 seconds from calling the cops on your ass.

People could've been hurt."

 

After the man answers, Speedball switches over to his comm. "MIRV, be aware that the para I've subdued says that the statue-guy is the one to watch out for. Probably a good idea to stop him doing what he's doing first, then getting a story out of him."

 

Joe doesn't like this. He feels much better about things when someone points out the bad guys so he can take them out. All this thinkin' is makin'

his head hurt.

 

From MIRV:

"Got it Speedball." MIRV will go in with weapons systems hot. (The Minbari had the right idea about that one. . .)

 

From Skinwalker:

With an exasperated sigh, the Amerindian says, "My name's... John." He says this as if he has to really think for a moment. "Your source is misinformed. I was... resting in the park when I... felt a disturbance. A wrongness. It was coming from where that," he says, pointing to where the stone guy is, "was coming out of the ground. Uh, Badger helped me get to thing. I shouldn't have contacted Badger. Should have used Gopher..."

 

From Speedball:

Speedball starts laughing, and says "Hey, I'm getting hungry. When this is all over, d'you think you could contact 'steak?'"

 

When John gives him the inevitable exasperated/annoyed look, Speedy shrugs and says "well, I've got another friend going to check it out now. If there's trouble, I'll know. If you're right and Antaeus is the problem, I'll be out of here like a shot--and I'll owe you an apology for decking you."

 

After a moment, Speedball reflects and continues off the topic (killing time till he hears from MIRV) "You, uh, live in the park?"

 

From Skinwalker:

John glares at Speedball. "You have the gall to mock me after attacking me?

Contacting the Animal Spirits is no laughing matter, so if you have any more snide comments about my religion, keep them to yourself." And then he turns to head back to where Antaeus is.

 

---

 

From GM:

Ok, once again, players have gone WAY beyond the time frame... so I'll try to pull it all back together. Very funny dialogue, though!

 

>>>Dr. Cairo: (held action)Your senses reach out to the surrounding area. The enchantments laden upon Antaeus' form flare brightly in you eyes... but all else is mundane. Ranger has a vital, strong nature, but he is not a mystical creature. You also sense nothing from beneath Antaeus that is mystical in nature. Whatever he is fixated upon is nothing you can determine this way.

 

Skinwalker & Speedball: (Held action and First action) You both stare distrustfully at each other as you banter, breathing heavily... trying to figure out what is going on. Joe gets the clear direction from MIRV to stay with the badger guy at this point. (One recovery for Joe, second recovery for Skinwalker) Then, back at the sight of the first fight, there is a small burst of dirt into the air and it looks like the battle is joined again.

 

Dr. Cairo: As you were sensing about Ranger stepped up in front of Antaeus, but off to the side of where you are. He watches as the rock giant ignores both of you and digs again, sending a spray of dirt all around (not an attack). At this, Ranger goes off.

"Ok pal! That's it! I said to stop... now I'm going to make you!" And with that he springs upward, tucking his legs up right in front of Antaeus' face, and then kicks outward, both heels hard into his enlarged chin and mouth. Soil and some small roots fly off and his head is knocked upward slightly... but the kick doesn't seem to do anything more than annoy the giant.

Antaeus swings one huge arm in a casual backhand, as if brushing Ranger away. The blow is mighty, but Ranger's speed should easily avoid it... except that his fist grows. His hand swells to a great rocky club and Ranger's back step isn't enough to avoid it. Stone smashes into sinew and hurls Ranger to the ground, blood spraying from split nose and mouth.

That is when you fade from sight. Antaeus does not seem to notice your disappearance... at first. Then your words begin to penetrate and you see his eyes go wide. The force of your spell weaves around him... but unfortunately his enchantments are strong. The fingers of your power poke at his soul but find little purchase. He notices though and is enraged!

"I will crush you, little acolyte. You temper with powers beyond your meager skills!"

 

Speedball: (2nd) Here is where you begin questioning Badger and getting into the debate, looking back to hear Antaeus yelling in some foreign language but obviously really angrily. Ranger seems to be down!

 

MIRV: You are still some seconds away from the park, trying to radio a calm, measured response to Speedball. Sounds like things are getting a little hot down there.

Then you see it. A helicopter... not uncommon in New York... but this is one of those larger models, normally used as flying ambulances, bigger than your average business transport or news chopper. It might just be an ambulance chopper but you can't see any markings, and it is coming low across the tree tops, over a mile away, but clearly flying much lower than the regs allow. It's not how civilians fly at all. You just know it. That's a military pilot. Lot's of civilian pilots are ex-military but they'd get their licenses yanked in a hurry, flying like this guy. Your threat instincts go off, big time.

 

(Speedball, you are fine on you normal END, now. Skinwalker, you've made three recoveries.)

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Antaeus, Dr. Cairo, Skinwalker, Ranger, MIRV, Speedball (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Skinwalker:

John rolls his eyes, muttering something like, "Great Bear, save us..." and he starts to change.

 

Big. Much bigger than the previous transformation. Dark brown fur this time. Claws not as long, but the hands (paws?) twice as big. Much more... ursine. Finally, there stands a massive bear-man, wearing the same clothes as the human.

 

(Senses: Discrim. Smell, Enhanced PER +3. Life Support: Intense heat/cold. Powers: Armour 10/10 (30), STR +20 (20), Density Increase (10), PD +10 (10), PRE +5 (5), Hand-to-hand attack +5d6 (15) (90). Psych. Lim.: Code vs. Killing)

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Assuming that Dr. Cairo doesn't have to abort to dodge during this round

(which he will do if there is any chance of being hit, levels in DCV),

Cairo will remain invisible and on the move (1/2 move trying to get

behind him, trying to adjust to saty out of his extending reach). As he

runs, he reaches into the eight Scarab bag, pullingout a handful of scarb

beads. They become visible as he throws them, as if broadcasting, in the

direction of Antaeus. Immediately after becoming visible, each bead

unfolds into a shadowy, abstract bat, and the swarm changes direction to

fly towards Antaeus' head. Under his breath, Cairo mutters "let's see if

your eyes are as well protected as your mind!"

(this is Vengeful Bats of Tefnut, a 4d6 flash, with two levels into OCV

for it)

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: By the time the splatter of blood from Ranger's face hits the ground, Speedball is already running back towards the action, having all but forgotten about the shape-changer. "MIRV, Ranger's down. I'm moving in to assist." As he runs, Speedball will try and note where the closest trash

can is, in case he needs something to fill with water.

 

2nd Action: Drawing out his shiny metal cueballs out from his pouch,

Speedball performs a full speed move-by on Antaeus, hopefully from behind.

He is also trying to drive Anteus towards the water, hoping that getting him

wet will slow him down or reduce his strength somehow.

from the water is he?>

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will slow to normal combat speed and across the Maverick's private channel he will broadcast,

"Wild Heart from MIRV. I'm over the park on an intercept course of Speedball's cordinants and just spotted a military style helicopter flying low and right at us. Looks like more players on the field. I'm going to hail the 'copter to see what's going on, but I don't like the feel of this. Get here as soon as you are able."

 

MIRV will then switch to Yuri.

 

"Yuri from MIRV. Get Crusader and Impetus on the horn and prep them for back up, we may need them. I'm going to find out more about this 'copter."

 

MIRV will then switch to Speedball.

 

"Speedball from MIRV. I hope you just listened to all of that chatter, cause I'm taking a detour from the statue. Help Ranger to keep it busy and I should be there to help soon."

 

MIRV will then thumb the all channel broadcast button on his radio.

 

"Attention inbound helicopter, this is MIRV Alpha of the Mavericks. You are flying in a restricted zone. Please raise your altitude or I will be forced to make you land."

 

MIRV is quite ready to abort to a dodge if his systems detect a missile lock or something from the helicopter.

 

From Impetus:

Assuming that I get the page (which, since it's a alphanumeric pager {extra $35,000, don'tcha know}, I should be able to know where they'll meet), I'll immediately beg off from work saying my sickly mother just paged me about my sister, leave the premises, then leap over to Central Park at maximum speed. Time frame it takes to get there? Up to you, Neil. Not for awhile, certainly, in combat rounds; even though I have the Superleap noncombat speed from hell, there are some factors that take time (like clearing it with the foreman, et cetera).

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: You tear back toward the battle scene in a flash. Dead leaves and dirty sprays in your wake. You do see a trash can, but it's not something you can access. It's one of those metal mesh canisters in a wrought iron cage cemented into the ground. No way you are going to be pick one of those up... let alone tear it out of the ground. Instead you juke sideways and get a better angle on Antaeus, who is about 18 meters from the water's edge.

 

As you approach you see a strange spray of what look like gems appear out of nowhere in front of Antaeus, and suddenly transform. In seconds a flurry of flickering, flapping black shapes... creepy bat like shapes... swarm about Antaeus's head.

 

Dr. Cairo: Antaeus is still swelling with earth and stone when you unleash the Bats of Tefnut against him. They swirl around his head in seconds, and he jerks back, swearing in Greek, his massive hands vainly trying to swat the phantom shapes.

Then he gets bigger. Now at least four meters taller then he had been. "AAAARRRGGHHH!!" he cries out in frustration... and at that moment he explodes!

Dirt and rock blast outward from him like a massive artillery shell just burst. You are pummeled with dirt and rock. One piece striking you squarely in the chest with great force. There is an audible crunch... and intense pain spears through you as you are lifted off your feet and smashed back onto the sidewalk... and into blackness. (37 Stun, 10 Body... you don't have any defenses up at this point. Take 32 Stun 6 Body... then 7 more stun from KB after defenses... Negative 4 stun at this point.)

 

Skinwalker: You see the explosion as you transform. You feel the strength of the bear flow through you just as your enemy disappears in a rumble of destruction. As you begin to stride back to the battle (a long way, actually), you see a victim of the explosion... that strange shaman who attempted to stop your fight earlier... sprawl to the ground in a heap half covered in the flying dirt.

 

MIRV: As you radio to the helicopter, you see a sudden burst of dirt and rock shooting up into the air in the direction of the reservoir. At the same time the helicopter veers... away from you. It cuts up a little bit quite suddenly. Its speed is quite high, especially as you've begun to slow down on approach and it immediately begins to move away from you. There is no response on the radio.

 

Speedball: (2nd action) Dirt and rocks hail around you, even smacking off your armored vest, but you are far enough away that their velocity is spent and it is simply annoying rather than harmful. You can't see much as you tear through the haze of dust... and you think... for a nano second... that Antaeus blew himself up... but then you see him! Much reduced in size at this point. His body the size it was originally, before he started to grow, he stands in a crater of blasted earth.

He has no idea you are there as he seems to be adjusting to the effects of his blast as well... and you tear past him slamming your steel ball in a gloved fist into his earthy side. It's an amazing shot, knocking earth in a spray away from him and he bellows something angrily... but you almost rip your arm off, doing it. He doesn't move at all and the jarring impact on your shoulder is quite painful. You are just glad you didn't run into him, full steam. (Take 12 stun after your defenses)

 

Impetus: You grab your beeper and blink, suddenly realizing this is the first time the emergency pager has gone off while at work. You curse and look around for the foreman, and hoping the sick sister excuse won't wear thin if this starts to happen more often. (It will be a while before we are back to you, Bill.)

 

Crusader: Storn... I know you are busy. If you don't have time to respond... we'll just have Crusader be too far away to make it to the battle. Just let me know.

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Ranger, MIRV, Antaeus, Skinwalker, Dr. Cairo, Speedball (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Speedball:

<

 

1st Action: "OWWW! MIRV, don't play with the 'copter any longer than you

have to. This guy is heavy-duty. He just took out another para without

batting an eye. Its just me an him--and I don't like my odds." While

saying this, Speedball circles Antaeus so that Speedy is between the giant

and the lake, coming to rest only a couple of feel from the water. He hopes

to goad Antaeus into coming after Speedball (thereby coming closer to the

water). "Hey, mud man--was your father a cyclops, or did you have to work

to get that ugly?" Abort to a missile deflect if necessary, but he is

attempting to stand his ground.

 

2nd Action: If Antaeus approaches, Speedball keeps up the taunting. "So

you're not just ugly, but you're slow too? That's just sad. No wonder they

threw you out of whattayacallit--Olumpiss?" Speedball holds his action,

ready to abort to a deflect. If Antaeus is within hand-to-hand striking

distance, Speedball will continue tuanting, holding his action until he

needs to dodge an attack (by rolling under/around him or leaping over

him--acrobatic maneuver as you see fit), landing behind Antaeus. Again, the

idea is to eventually get him into the water, where Speedball surmises that

he will at least grow less quickly. If Antaeus dos not approach and resumes

digging, Speedball will take a recovery and reopen his comm to MIRV. "Let's

GO, slowpoke--I need some artillary in here!"

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Ouch. You know what Dr. Cairo's next action is going to be (or his nextcouple - does he have to recover from being stunned before he can recover to positive Stun? By the way, does Antaeus still have the bats of tefnut around his head?

 

From Skinwalker:

The Bear growls softly, almost a whine, at seeing the Shaman fall. He will continue hurrying to the fight (push running if possible - I should only have the standard 6").

 

From MIRV:

When MIRV sees the helicopter move away, he will say over the radio, "Coming your way Speedball. Try to lead it toward my coordinates (MIRV gives them) so I don't have as long to get there."

 

MIRV will head toward Speedball at full combat speed, keeping an eye out for the helicopter.

 

From Speedball:

"MIRV, Near as I can tell, this guy's made of dirt and rock. I'm trying to get him into the pond--I figure it can help him and it might slow him down a bit."

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: You circle into position, yelling into your comm, trying to raise MIRV. As you start to taunt Antaeus, you see that he isn't paying you the slightest attention. Instead, he is bellowing in Greek and trying to swat at the strange, black, flitting shapes that are wrapped about his face in a swarm. Then MIRV comes back with his reply that he is on the way and almost there. You think you hear his boot jets in the distance.

Twenty or so feet away, half buried in dirt, the Dr. Cairo guy groans and twitches, maybe coughing blood slightly. A football size rock is impacted in his chest in a very painful looking manner.

Then, suddenly Ranger comes out of nowhere. Unseen by Antaeus he hurls himself, dirty and bloody, into Antaeus' now somewhat smaller form. His claws are extended and a vicious growl tears from his throat as he rips chunks of dirt from Antaeus who cries out in surprise/pain, though it's unclear how badly the attacks are hurting him. No flesh or blood... just rock and dirt.

 

MIRV: Turning toward the reservoir you are still going faster than normal combat speed (takes an action to slow down each multiple of Non-combat speed). And though you are slowing, it's still fast enough to tear over the tree tops, coming into direct view of the combat for the first time. You are still over two hundred meters away but closing fast. You can see bystanders scattering or standing some distance away watching. The large rocky guy is in the middle of a large crater of destroyed turf. Speedball is some meters in front of him and Ranger seems to be trying to rip his head off. You see the rocky guy swing a large fist which hits the ground in a huge spray of dirt, but doesn't hit Ranger. The enemy seems to have some strange black, shifting shadows surrounding his head, obscuring his sight.

There is also an enormous grizzly "bearing down" (pun intended) on the group from a number of meters around the lake. There is a strange, human element to this "bear" and it looks unnatural and somewhat monstrous. The helicopter continues away from you.

 

Skinwalker: Lumber lumber lumber. Pick up speed. (I assume you accelerate to non-combat, which will get you there a LOT faster.)

 

Dr. Cairo: Red hazed pain. Blood in your mouth. World is a blur of agony. (Recover from Con Stun)

 

Speedball: Antaeus is so pre-occupied at the moment that he doesn't seem to be hearing you at all. His swipe at Ranger just tossed mud everywhere, but even his big hand couldn't hit what he couldn't see. You take a deep breath (recover), while considering what next to do... and catch sight of MIRV coming in from the East.

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Ranger, Skinwalker, Antaeus, MIRV, Dr. Cairo, Speedball (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Skinwalker:

("My momma done tol' me... bring home sumpin' fer dinner..." is the official song to depict slow movement)

 

Yes, Neil, Skinwalker will accelerate to NonCombat speed running to eat up some distance.

 

From MIRV:

Since MIRV is still over a two hundred meters away, and the helicopter is heading away from the park, MIRV will accelerate to non-combat speed again to get within a realistic targeting range. ( Antaeus is within range of all of his ranged weapons abilities, but the modifier is way to steep. Neil, remind me to spend xp's on telescopic sense or something. )

While enroute MIRV will respond to Speedball, "Speedball from MIRV. I read you, just get him to the edge and I'll knock him into the water. Is the area clear of civilians?"

 

After confirmation, MIRV will contact Yuri, "Yuri from MIRV, I just ran into a very suspicious black military style helicopter headed (insert directions here) please see if you can notify the police after you've gotten those messages out to the other Mavericks. I have my hands full at the moment."

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo will recover, giving serious thought to this whole "hero" thing.

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: Abandoning all pretense at strategy, Speedball will close on Antaeus and start swinging, using his metal cueballs. 6d6 may not do that

much against him, but Speedy's hopeful that between him and Ranger, we

should be able to slow him down until MIRV can wade in too.

 

2nd Action: more o' the same, unless Joe gets knocked into next week.

 

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: You are a blur of motion as you tear into Antaeus. Your arms and hands slam your steel cueball into his earthen body multiple times, and you are covered in the resultant spray of dirt that you churn up (you hit all five times, actually). Ranger launches himself at your foes back, like he's trying to find a weak spot... tearing at his neck... though you don't know that he is any more effective than you are, at this point.

 

Then Antaeus grows again. His mass had been reduced by the explosion, but now your feet start to go out from under you as he pulls more soil and rock up from the ground, feeding his body. He doesn't attack, but seems to stretch his arms out, expanding his chest... growing at least four meters in height and his legs going from large to tree trunk size... dwarfing you. Looking up, you see Ranger drop to the ground, a snarl of frustration... and you see that the weird shadowy bats around his head seem to be fading a bit. In broken English he calls out, "Your spell if fading, acolyte! Your allies are ineffectual and weak! You cannot stop my mission!"

 

Skinwalker: Your lope becomes a more rapid gate, and you close more than half the distance to the earth elemental. As you are barreling down you see him grow large... bigger than before... tearing up the earth all around him as he does so. (You are now about 11 game inches from Antaeus, and your non-combat is 12")

 

MIRV: With a last burst of speed, your turbos kicking on for only a second and a half, you cover 90 meters in only a second, leaving only 115 meters between you and the now VERY large target. Your targeting HUDs line up sights on him. It's still a difficult shot, but at his size, and without him knowing of your approach... it's not impossible. If you miss you'll only blast into the reservoir behind him. The biggest threat is possibly hitting Ranger or Speedball who are tearing about his feet. (Next round you will decelerate to Combat speed... a half move will cover 22 meters or so (11 inches) and a full move will cover 45 meters, 22 inches... decelerating from 30" NC to 15" combat speed. You can effectively half move and fire at a range of 46 inches... if you want.)

 

Dr. Cairo: Your eyes focus, stinging from the dirt in them, your chest heaves painfully as you take in breath. (Recover... puts you at 4 stun, I believe) You see Antaeus... truly a giant now... bending over, ignoring the attacks of Speedball and Ranger... and reaching deep within the crater he has made and starting to lift something out.

 

Speedball (2nd action): You regain your footing quickly (i.e. no penalties) as Antaeus rips into the earth, his knees bending as he reaches to grab something in the earth and HEAVE! You futilely slam your fists into his trunk like legs as he pulls a massive bundle out of the ground. Pulling it up over his head you see a large, dirty, canvas wrapped object. It is about half as big as Antaeus himself, and though bound with metal bands it is vaguely humanoid in shape. As dirt falls away from it... you also see that it has small electronic devices... you can see the digital readouts through some of the caked dirt and dust... attached to the metal bands. The object is otherwise bulky, undefined and unmoving.

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Ranger (1st), Antaeus, (1st), Dr. Cairo, MIRV, Skinwalker, Speedball (2nd), Ranger (2nd), Antaeus (2nd)

[Speedball]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

In this post we begin to see the confusion and argument over the scenario spill into game speak. Happens in FtF' date=' but worse in PBeM where it is very difficult to break OOC and says, "Ok, I (the player) am confused here. Let's clarify some stuff because I'm getting bugged." This was actually a pretty nasty argument offline.[/quote']

 

 

Gosh--I don't remember this argument. Was I part of it? Sorry to anyone I p.o.'d, if so!

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

Geoff... actually I don't think you were, as it was often amongst those of us in FtF range... spilled over into other games. You were spared.

 

---

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will half move and fire a shot from his plasma rifle ( the double knockback attack ) at Antaeus in hopes of distracting him from whatever it is he is doing and possibly knocking him down. He is still wary of the copter however, and will abort his action to dodge any attacks he may be able to perceive at the last second.

No dialogue this time.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo will roll into a kneeling position, coughing and spitting

blood. trying to clear his head and ignore the needles of pain in his

chest, he will mutter in an arcane tongue. His Ankh begins to glow, and

then shines with white light, and he raises to a standing position, his

maroon cloak swirling around him as he stands with renewed vitality.

 

(Half phase to stand, half-phase to cast his aid. If Anteaus blows

before this point he will abort to dive for cover, hoping to get clear of

the blast)

 

 

PS. I seem to remember a house rule for this game that speaking and

using the radio is a half-action. Is this so?

 

From Skinwalker:

sigh* I knew it would come to this...

 

With a mighty ursine roar, the bear-man continues charging towards Antaeus, with no sign of slowing. He leaps at the last moment, curling foreward to protect his head and take the brunt of the impact on his shoulders...

 

Full NC move through, all levels into OCV. Goodnight, folks! =)

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: Speedball withdraws to Cairo's position and yells to Ranger to

back off too. (I doubt he'd even notice that Skinwalker is trundling in, but

if Joe does see him, he'll try and wave him off. "MIRV, Antaeus just pulled

something out of the ground. If you can blow it out of his hands that'd be

good. He's way too eager to get hold of it."

 

2nd Action: Standing next to Cairo, Speedball says "Listen--can you figure

out what's in that tarp? If Antaeus disappears with it, we'll need to know

what it is." Switching to his com, he says "MIRV, there's no way we're gonna

beat this guy by just hitting him. We gotta get smart." (Not sure if I can

take a recovery, having said all that, but if so, then that's what I'll do.

 

----

 

From GM:

Speedball: You back pedal quickly, coming up next to Cairo, and yelling to Ranger. He springs back immediately, looking about for what you might be warning him of. Antaeus is shaking his head as the last of the bats disappear and he looks down and around him, still keeping his large prize held up high. His voice rumbles lowly in Greek as if he is talking to himself... but then he is looking up in the sky, as if waiting for something.

 

Dr. Cairo: You don't hear what Antaeus is saying, as your chanting begins and you have to concentrate. You barely have the energy to focus the spell (it costs 2.5 END... you only have 4) but you speak through split lip and cracked ribs and the golden light fills you. (Unbelievable roll... 26 on 5d6!! Get back 4 body... 18 END and 8 Stun... now at 9 Body, 20 END, 12 Stun!) Energy flows through you and the pain receded almost immediately... leaving that giddy joy of relief and strength in your limbs!

 

At that moment, two things happen. A beam of diffuse red energy blasts over Antaeus' head from the west, and then you see the were-beast approach. He looks different now... same native leathers, but now larger, more bear like... and he plows hard into the side (lower hip actually) of Antaeus. The impact is tremendous, though Antaeus moves not a bit, and the lycanthrope is stopped cold in his advance!

 

MIRV: Your shot goes high (you had an 11 or less chance at that range... rolled a 14), but you are close enough to see the large grizzly bear... definitely not Ranger but the other one Speedball was talking about... just plow at a full run into the giant. The loud SMACK resounds around the park... but Antaeus doesn't go down.

 

Skinwalker: Antaeus must have been distracted by the blast over his head, 'cause you have no trouble running into him (Rolled a 5 to hit!) Unfortunately, it's like hitting a mountain. Though Antaeus makes a pained sound at the impact and you dislodge a great deal of dirt and rock, he moves not at all, and your body absorbs the full impact as well. (13d6... 46 Stun 14 Body... you take 17 stun after defenses)

 

Speedball: (2nd action) When you snap your orders at Dr. Cairo you are surprised to see him standing up, much straighter, less pained and looking as if a golden glow infuses his body... emanating from the Ankh on his chest. You can't tell if he's hearing you, as he is chanting in some weird language... different again from what Antaeus and he were speaking. At that point you call out to MIRV, hoping to figure out a way to take Antaeus down. (No recovery)

 

The fight explodes again, though. Ranger launches himself back against Antaeus, who in turn is bringing down his enormous fist in a huge blow against Skinwalker while yelling in English, "That hurt, beast!"

 

The blow is MASSIVE! The entire park shakes with impact and you and Cairo are nearly tossed to your knees. The ground splits open, shattering a part of the concrete rim of the reservoir. Skinwalker disappears in an avalanche of rock which drowns out the snapping bones in his body! (Oh crimminey. First full strength hit... did 72 STUN and 20 BODY! Skinwalker takes 43 and 2 Body, putting him at negative 27... and that's not including KB... which does another 14 points of damage! Geeze. Sorry... but you really pissed off Antaeus by hitting him so hard!)

 

Initiative: Speedball 14 (1st action), Ranger 10, Dr. Cairo 9, MIRV 8, Antaeus 6 (uh oh), Speedball (2nd action). Skinwalker is "buh bye" at this point.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Dr. Cairo:

"I'll see what I can do" Dr. Cairo says quickly to Speedball. He then

will make a half-move backwards, away from Antaeus, and then turn,

raising his hand towards Antaeus. As he speaks his voice takes on a

musical quality, deep and slow, "It seems that you will have to exert

yourself after all, Antaeus, to rid yourself of these men. Put the

bundle down so it doesn't impede you, and you can pick it up again after

these whelps have been dealt with!"

 

(This is 16 dice of mind control to put down the package, two levels in

ECV, making it 6)

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: (This is strangely familiar) Speedball will run to where he last

saw Skinwalker and try to locate his busted-up form. He intends to get him

out of harm's way. So I guess that's a 1/2 move and a grab (or a perception

check, if he's totally covered in dirt).

 

2nd Action: Having located Skinwalker amidst the rubble (hopefully), he will

grab him and 1/2 move back to where Cairo is standing. "MIRV, its good to

see you. Now blow this guy into next week!"

 

From MIRV:

"Speedball from MIRV. You want me to shoot the bag out of his hands? From this range? I should be so lucky. Do your best to keep him busy and I'll try to get that thing out of his hands."

 

MIRV will then half move to get a bit closer and shoot again, only this time he will try using his chest cannon to vaporize the bag. The idea being that something the size of Godzilla, (Granted, only the Matthew Broderick mutant iguana version, not the original city stomper, but still pretty damn big...) can take quite a punch, if the shot misses.

 

In light of recent meta discussions, I realize that this is getting close to a one and a half phase action. Which seems fair to me. Maybe some kind of tactics roll to coordinate Speedy and MIRV too?

 

----

 

From GM:

Speedball: Before anyone can react, you are through Antaeus' legs and around the mound of dirt created from his attack on Skinwalker. Luckily, the now human looking man is only partly covered by dirt and easy for you to find. You bend and grab him around the shoulders, trying to haul him out into the open, while keeping an eye on the giant towering over you and hoping he can't take a swipe at you in this vulnerable moment.

At that point multiple attacks blast in at Antaeus, keeping his attention well away from you. Ranger yells, "Get out of there!" to you as he literally climbs up Antaeus' back, going for an attack on the enemy's face!

 

Dr. Cairo: Speedball doesn't wait for a reply from you and is on the other side of Antaeus before you can even speak. You do feel a bit more comfortable though, as you step back and to the side, putting some more distance between you and the seemingly invulnerable foe. Still, in that brief moment, you see that Antaeus seems a bit besieged and not quite as stable as he was. Perhaps the constant pounding is taking its toll.

As you see Ranger tearing at the giant's eyes, you cast your spell. Your voice booms out amid the din of battle. The simple words, "Put down the bundle..." go right into his thoughts and he looks at you with eyes wide. Even though the battle distracts him and hinders you (i.e. below average roll) he still gets an angry look on his face, and yells at you in Greek, "Damn you mage! I should have killed you first!"

 

MIRV: (No problem getting simple statement in with your actions as you described it.) Your directional jets flare, bringing your trajectory slightly upward, and leveling your chest cannon at the burden Antaeus is holding above. Normally shooting something out of someone's hands at this range would be incredibly difficult, but Antaeus is huge... and the bundle is half as big as he is! It's twice the size of a normal man, at least. Also, Antaeus is visibly distracted by Ranger climbing all over him and some man in a suit and hood by the water's edge.

Your laser cannon flares. A tight beam of ruby stabs outward, cutting into the heavy black canvas... but not punching through it as you half expect. The object doesn't move in his massive grip... but a second later, you watch him lowering the massive bundle to the ground and see a spray of sparks and small burst of flame break out on it, where your beam struck. (you are now 39 inches/78 meters from the fight)

 

Speedball: With Skinwalker solidly held, you run backwards for about twenty five meters or so, coming up near Cairo as Antaeus places the large bundle on the ground, and pulls back. You immediately see that, sitting on the ground like that, the object looks like a big statue covered in tarp, banded with metal. Small electronic locks hold the bands... and one of them was just slagged by the shot from MIRV. A hole is burnt through the canvas at that spot and small flames lick out of that spot.

"This could be bad..." grumbles Antaeus as he looks at the package... with a new, and subdued tone to his heavy Greek accent.

 

Initiative: Speedball 10, Ranger 10, Dr. Cairo 8, Antaeus 7, MIRV 6

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Just wanted to clarify before I post - it seems like Cairo's attempt at

mind control failed, but then he put it down anyway. I assume that his

putting it down has less to do with mind control than with the new hole

in the bag and destroyed seal. Is this the case, or does Cairo have some

control over him?

 

---

 

From GM:

Dr. Cairo's mind control worked fine. MIRV just got a shot off before Antaeus' action came around and he could comply with the command. (It was an easy command. He wasn't actually against putting the package down.)

 

Not that Cairo has "control" over Antaeus. He performed the action you told him to do, it's over. If you want to make him do something else, you have to attack him again.

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will repeat his last action, half move then shoot the object with his chest cannon.

 

From Speedball:

"Now, guys: Get' him!" Speedball half moves to Antaeus's back and hits him with with cueball in hand.

 

(I think this is the first time he's only had one action since I've been playing him. I've been spoiled, obviously...)

 

After MIRV shoots at the object for a second time, Speedball will say over the comm "Uh, MIRV? We don't know what that thing is. Could be a bomb, for all we know...Why don'tcha shoot at the BIG GUY ABOUT TO POUND MY A$$!"

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo will atempt to take advantage of the uncertainty that Antaeus is starting to show, and try to subtly dominate him with his will.

 

"There are too many enemies, the object of your mission is damaged now,

what will this mean? is it hopeless?" He will take the full phase to

attack his will, his sense of self.

(now a full 5d6 Ego Drain)

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: Though your effort is well intentioned, and your blows many, Antaeus doesn't seem to notice them. The hammering of the steel cue balls dig divots in his giant leg, but unfortunately have no other effect.

Ranger, still ripping into him as well, is standing atop Antaeus' shoulders, pounding his fist into the earthy cranium, yelling, "Fall down, d_mn you!" His blows do seem to be causing Antaeus pain, as he reacts with a grating flinch and shake of his head.

 

Dr. Cairo: Antaeus is truly wavering at this point. All the attacks seem to be wearing him down a bit... and your words go right to the core of his being. Though the enchantments around him blunt your attack, you can still tell that your words have the desired affect. His legs wobble a bit, and he looks at you, almost throwing Ranger off his back with the movement. The uncertainty wages with anger and pain... then he says, "Next time... wizard!" and seems to collapse before your eyes.

 

His enormous mass falls away like a collapsing building. Ranger's perch crumbles and he drops as well, twisting to land on all fours. Speedball, ducks falling rocks and the entire giant form of Antaeus disintegrates. In the midst of this you see the shrunken body of Antaeus falling into the loose, inanimate earth. He plunges downward, entering the earth like a normal body would enter a pool of water. He disappears below the soil, literally making a wave of earth swirl around him and then close after him in a SCRUNCH! and rumble of implosion. There is a last grumble of words, coming through the ground itself, which says, "Your time will come, acolyte. Next time I crush your head like a melon!"

 

Dust is everywhere and rocks continue to roll down the now large mound of dirt in the center of the crater he originally created. And just then, another bright red flash of light cuts into the twelve foot high burlap wrapped form that Anteaus left behind.

 

MIRV: Though it seems that the giant has fallen into dust, you are still able to strike the large bundle. This time, it burns a hole through the dust cloud, and strikes dead center, cutting five feet across the heavy cloth and metal bands. Light flares bright as the bands cut and the electronic locks holding them explode in sparks showers. An enormous gap is burned through the wrapping, dislodging much of it. A fiery red glow seems to come from whatever is underneath... but it fades quickly... a reflection of your laser's light.

Revealed is a portion of the object underneath. A shining, burnished metal object... perhaps a statue of some kind. It appears that the curve of an massively muscled torso and shoulder was revealed, a faint red line glowing on it where the laser tracked.

 

And for the moment... the dust settles...

 

Out of combat for now.

[Speedball]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

Gosh--I don't remember this fight *at all.* I remember fighting some guy (Metalstone?) in the park...maybe this is a preview? I can't for the life of me recall what that big bundle is, if it isn't Metalstone. This is fun--like reading a whole new book!

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker will lie stoically where Speedball left him. Well, lie unconsciously, anyway...

 

From MIRV:

In response to Speedy's concern, MIRV will say, "Sorry Speedball but I'm still pretty far away and if I had tried for the creature, then I would've risked hitting you, Ranger and the other two paras nearby. Attacking the object was the only way to get the creature's attention. So I did. I'm coming in to have a look at the wounded and check the artifact."

MIRV will then contact Yuri. "Yuri from MIRV. Request for backup still a priority. The giant has been neutralized, but he left behind a BIG artifact and a few broken paras. Standby for emergency medical assessment."

MIRV will then kick in the overdrive to get to the crater and see to the downed combatants, ignoring the artifact altogether.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Cairo will move over to the item, saying to Speedball "tell your comrade to stop destroying this item, Maverick. I believe that the danger is

passed, assuming that this were-creature can gain some control over

himself (looks at Ranger, his face a shadow beneath the cowl).

 

From Speedball:

Speedball will walk over to the statue, panting to regaining his breath. "I guess...we should...figure out....what this thing...is." Without disturbing the wrapping, he will look at the 'statue.' He is concerned that it might be another Antaeus-like foe, and is somewhat jumpy. When others approach, he will thank MIRV and Cairo and Ranger. He has all but forgotten about Skinwalker, who seems to spend more time unconscious than conscious.

 

When he is reminded, however, he will first make a crack about the Indian's

fondness for being horizontal and then sincerely apologize for cold-cocking

the man.

 

"Say, MIRV--we should call someone who can figure out what--or who this

thing is; UNTIL, or whoever. I can't keep those guys straight in my head."

 

From Skinwalker:

When sufficient time has passed for Skinwalker to regain consciousness, insert the following:

 

With a soft groan (more of an uuuuuhhhgggg sound), the strangely dressed

Amerind blinks his eyes open. Anyone nearby will hear him mumble, "That...

was the stupidest... thing Bear has ever done..."

 

He sits up, holding a hand to his forehead. "Oh, man... did I really just

run into a brick wall?" He looks around, not seeing Antaeus. "Did... did

it work?"

 

From MIRV:

Assuming Skinwalker comes around while MIRV is doing his triage, MIRV will reply with a "We refer to it as bravery in this business. We have to, or there'd be none of us left. And yes it worked... kind of. Why don't you relax

a bit while I check on you." MIRV will then finish his emergency medical examination.

 

---

 

From GM:

About two minutes pass as MIRV lands and everyone begins to catch their breath. The stillness after the chaos of battle is odd and everyone is still running on adrenaline.

 

MIRV: The only really injured person is Skinwalker. He is a lean, muscular man, Native American, in traditional style clothing, including boiled leather and bone armor. He's got some serious cuts and bruises and maybe some internal injuries, though that is always hard to tell. He comes conscious as you are checking him over and your conversational exchange takes place.

 

Dr. Cairo: You are left alone for the moment as Speedball goes to look at the statue. You do see Ranger busy brushing dirt off of himself while checking out the collapsed tunnel where Antaeus went. He looks up at the "control over himself" comment and walks to you. His features are human again, though sharp and hairy. He sniffs at you, and says, "Who are you, buddy? I don't know where you get off telling me to calm down in my park, but I'll cut you some slack seeing as you seemed to be against that big stony bastard. What's your story, anyway?"

Before you can answer, he turns to watch as Skinwalker wakes up next to MIRV. His nose wrinkles again and he murmurs a question to you, though not looking at you, "You with the dead guy?"

 

Speedball: You recover quickly, glad that the fight was over. Your arm is a little sore, but otherwise you are feeling good. Studying the statue/bundle, you can see it seems to be a large male figure. The red glow of the laser scoring fades... and you notice that it left no permanent mark on the object. You are no technical whiz, but you know MIRV's chest cannon can cut through steel plating with some effort. This thing doesn't seem damaged at all.

At your feet are the broken metal bands and some electronic lock doohickes that were holding them on. The bands are real heavy duty stuff, at least a 2 millimeters thick and three centimeters wide.

 

The wind blows a little then, making the heavy canvas move as if whatever it was covering was beginning to stir.

 

Impetus: Well, it took forever to get away, but now you are not far from Central Park. A couple more leaps should bring you to the battle sight. With your com on, Yuri has communicated that the battle is seemingly over, but MIRV still wants backup at the sight. Some big thing was left behind when the villain tunneled away... a statue or something. Whatever. They probably just want you there for the heavy lifting.

 

Your feet come down. Your field displaces the force outward, keeping the sidewalk under you from shattering. Forty feet away a couple of business women waiting for a bus jump at the sight of you, and the rolling feel of your energy wave... like a thick breeze... washes over their legs... then you are up again, rocketing away, heading for the open fields and the Central Park Reservoir.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

Here is another short piece by Geoff, showing some character building bit and filling in background on Speedball. As a GM I honestly enjoy this kind of thing MUCH better than someone who tries to write a novel about a character before they have ever been played. Lots of players often love their character so much that they have entire lives and histories all played out so that their imagined life of the character is more important that developing the character in actual play. I like it when actual play inspires character growth that the player then drives... like this... (artistically, I really like how Geoff explored Speedball's psyche by writing a projection of Joe's thoughts through the dead Arcsilver. I think it captures how Joe would think in a very powerful way.)

 

From Speedball:

Just another little thing I wrote as I was sitting on the bus from Boston.

Its real not connected to the storyline, but just some ideas I've been

fiddling with. (hope I don't take Arcs' character in vain...)

 

Speedball--the Grave

 

As the sun hits the thin strips of pavement between the plots, the dew

begins to evaporate. As it does, a close look at the horizon reveals the

beginnings of the wavy lines that indicate how hot its going to be today.

You don't mind, though, because you're dead.

 

It isn't long before he shows himself. He's one of the two visitors you can

count on. Not as reliable as your grandfather, who just sits and wrings his

hands, crying. But you know Joe comes as often as he can-about once a week when he's in town. You almost feel bad for the guy, but he tells you stuff you want to know about, how your old friends are doing, what they've been up to, and whether everyone thinks that Wildheart's finally given it up to Impetus.

 

In the winter, Joe would walk along the path to your plot quickly, leaving

footprints in the snow or slush. The prints were far apart and notable for

the fact that the tread on his shoes had been worn away, leaving just a flat

print without the small peaks and valleys other shoes-like your

grandfathers', make. He walked so quickly that you worried he would fall,

slipping on the ice or whatever. You saw others walking more cautiously who

did. If Joe was close, he would appear behind them just in time to save

them from a nasty spill and an unpleasant visit to see their loved ones. If

he was too far back, Joe would just walk up to them to make sure they

collected themselves and the flowers they would inevitably be carrying

before their fall. They would offer quiet thanks and Joe an even quieter

'your welcome' delivered with a wince that indicated he wasn't here to talk

to anyone who was going to talk back. They would immediately, without

question, understand.

 

It isn't winter anymore. In fact, spring never seemed to appear before

summer came this year. One week Joe had been wearing his old ratty NYU

sweat shirt, hands stuffed in pockets as he walked, a black watch cap

covering his fuzzy head. He kept his hair short to avoid having to wash it

too often, you always suspected. The next week both hat and sweatshirt were gone. Joe ran his hand over his head as he walked and you guessed that he was growing his hair out a bit. It could be that he had finally found a

place where he could shower regularly and you thought about how grateful the other Mavericks would be to keep biting their tongues every time he stood upwind of them.

 

As Joe continues his slower than normal approach, you suddenly remember that before you came to stay here, you had only seen his face once before. It was on a tropical island in the middle of the pacific where there was sun

and a beach and glorious blue water. That had been a fun couple of hours

and the last time all the Mavs were together-at least until the funeral.

 

You noticed how quiet everyone was, but Joe seemed to take your death

especially hard, given that you'd known each other only briefly and not even

well during that time. It was only after he began his visits regular visits

that you understood why. It had turned out that the same man who had put a bullet in the back of your head and kidnapped another hero and essentially

forced Joe between killing the hero or seeing the rest of his team die-along

with God knows how many others. Joe had killed Kid Fantastic, not knowing

what else he could have done. The two deaths, yours and the Kid's, both of

which he felt responsible for, had almost driven him to indulge his heroin

habit in monstrous quantity. More than once he had shown up with his works in his pockets intending to give himself the hot shot right in front of you, as a sort of apology for leaving you to die.

 

Something had always stopped him and at one point he stopped bringing his

works altogether. Instead he brought you the old fighting wraps he had

asked our grandfather for. Though neither Joe nor grandfather had

understood it at the time, the wraps probably saved Joe's life when he got

them in the mail. They had given him a way to turn his grief and guilt and

anger in an outward direction, instead of in, though a needle. He began to

use the wraps to clobber thugs exactly the way you used to (without your

style, of course), except that you'd been flying at the time.

 

He had begun bringing the wraps with him instead of the works which made you feel that this uncomfortable obsession was running its course. He had

bruises on his knuckles and forearms occasionally, telling you that he

probably hit that last thug harder than he should have. You got the feeling

that what he wasn't telling you was that every once in a while he ran into

someone-or something-that just wouldn't give and that maybe some of the

bruises were from being inexperienced. Joe still had a lot to learn about

how to use his speed in combat and he remarked on this a lot when he came to see you. In fact, he wished he could have asked you for pointers, or at

least that when he did ask, that you'd answer.

 

Some visits were better than others and as he walks towards you today in the rising heat you mistake the balls that he tosses in small circles in the air

as he walked as a sign of jocularity. In fact, as he draws closer the tight

expression on his face reveals that the juggling is a sign of anxiety more

than anything else. He kneels, still absentmindedly juggling, which strikes

you as strange. This is a man with not just one habit, but two. After a

moment, he mumbles something about having to take off for a while, needing

to go see Molly up North. You've heard her name before, of course, and you

know that the Kid let him know where she was, but you never figured him for

the type to actually go up there and see her. He must be getting more

comfortable with life, you think. That's good. But you hope that he won't

stop coming here. You're bored just lying here when you used to be the

picture of motion just as much as Joe is now. Its no fun being dead.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

Now, back to our regularly scheduled adventure, already in progres...

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo will approach the item, lifting the tarp to look at it more

closely, if possible. As he walks he answers Ranger (I assume that Ranger

and Skinwater are pretty close to where the item was set).

 

"Yes, I _was_ against Antaeus, so it seems that we are allies. I can't

help but think that the situation might have been handled in a less

violent way, as Antaeus didn't seem like he was desirous of a conflict.

Your willingness to attack could have put the citizens of this city in

danger, and aren't they the ones with the greater claim to this park?"

When Cairo nears MIRV and Speedball he will speak (this may seem like a

brush-off to Ranger, as he changes focus immediately), saying "Mavericks,

it is fortuitous that we meet, for I have long sought you. I would like

the chance to speak with you at length after we have dealt with...this

(gestures towards the thing that is about to stomp our a$$)."

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker smiles faintly at MIRV. "Glad I could

help..." He sticks a hand out. "I'm John. John

Runningwolf."

 

He blinks up at Ranger. "I beg your pardon? I'm

moving, so I don't think I am dead." He does sound

somewhat defensive, however.

 

"I suppose I may be somewhat to blame for all of this.

I was... here in the park when I sensed...

something... wrong. Then that thing, Antaeus, came

out of the ground." He looks down, seemingly slightly

embarassed. "My, um, bestial side got the better of

me." He looks at Ranger. "I'm sure you can relate.

I can see the Wolf is strong in you." To everyone, he

says, "I meant no harm, and I apologize for any

damages done to the park."

 

From Speedball:

When the canvas moves, Speedball drops into a defensive roll like he's avoiding a punch (that never comes). After a moment, he stands up with a sheepish grin on his face, looking around like a cat who's fallen off a

shelf and wants to know who saw it happen.

 

"heh...well, I guess we oughtta take a look at our bogey-man, huh?" With

that, he'll approach the figure and see if he can't remove the canvas to

give everyone a better look. (Neil, were the locks holding the canvas on or

were they underneath the canvas? I'm assuming the former)

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will say to Skinwalker, "Good to meet you John. I'm MIRV of the Mavericks and well, other than telling you to take a few aspirin, you're beyond my training to help. You don't seem to be in critical condition."

 

MIRV stands up to get a look at his surroundings, then radios Yuri on the situation. "Yuri from MIRV. No immediate need for emergency medical attention, paranormal or otherwise. I'm going to take a look at the artifact to see what we have to deal with. And whether we have to call in those Primus pansies."

 

MIRV will then move toward the statue and within range of Dr. Cairo's salutation. He will then reply with, "Well perhaps we can start with names then. My name's MIRV and this is Speedball. He's Ranger and he's John Running Wolf." MIRV say's, pointing at the conversing pair of shapechangers.

 

"Maybe you could clue us in on what's going on."

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker nods to MIRV. "Thanks for what you could do, but I'll be

allright in a day or so. I, uh, seem to heal pretty quick lately..." he

says, as he gets to his feet, wincing slightly at the jabs in his side from

the broken ribs.

 

"Anyone have an idea what this thing is?" he asks, pointing to the statue.

 

From Speedball:

Speedball looks over his shoulder when he hears his name mentioned, waves briefly while at the same time flashing a cheesy smile (that nobody can see because of the full mask) and mutters under his breath "Primus? They're calling in Les Claypool to take a look at some statue?"

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo turns towards you, taking his gaze from the object as Speedball inspects it. His face is almost completely shadowed under his cowl until he reaches up and puts it down around his shoulders, revealing a slightly

chubby-faced black man. He looks at each person as they are introduced,

and says "It is indeed a pleasure to make your aquaintance. My name is

Mr. Gibran, but if you like, you may use the name that the press

prefers...Dr. Cairo." looking again at the item, he continues speaking

with MIRV, glancing over at the were-beasts to include them, if a little

grudgingly, in the conversation. "It seems that I am at a loss as well,

Maverick. I was led here by a spirit-wolf, perhaps sent by one of you

(glances again at the two were-beasts)? It seems that Antaeus was not

here for a fight, and although I have to admit that his complexion was a

bit choleric, it didn't seem as if he initiated any sort of

confrontation. His foundation seems to be surrounded by a magical

essence, which may be the key to combating him when he returns to 'crush

my head like a melon,' but the item seems mundane in the extreme, at

least in terms of arcane enchantment. (after responses from the group)

Speedball, what have you found"

 

Dr. Cairo's voice is deep and forboding, but less so than when his hood

was up and he was using his voice as the medium for his spells. He is

reserved in the extreme, and although his countenance is generally

friendly, he does not smile, and he is not warm. He is like the

professor on the first day of classes.

 

From MIRV:

MIRV, being a superb engineer but less than perfect word smith, will make a mental note to look up the word, choleric when he gets the chance. "Yes. Well. Good to meet you Mr. Gibra--er-- Dr. Cairo. What was it that you said you'd like to talk to the Mavericks about? I assume it has something to do with recent events."

 

---

 

From GM:

Cairo and Speedball stand nearest to the large statue like item. They have half pulled the heavy canvas tarpaulin away, revealing more of the massive torso and arms underneath. The head is still covered, as are most of the legs. The metal bands that held the tarp from the outside are scattered around the ground. As the group introduces itself and begins to converse, the tarp falls away enough to reveal that the statue is not completely made of the burnished steel like substance.

Running perfectly up the middle of the torso... like a seam... is a division in substance. While the one half (the statue's right side) is smooth and metallic... the other half is gray, black flecked stone. A Rough granite like surface... yang to the smooth, metallic yin. It's a jarring juxtaposition... and for MIRV, reminds him of something... or someone... he's heard of in the past.

 

Ranger stands off to the side, growling under his breath at Cairo's comments, saying, "He was tearing up the park and refused a lawful order from a park ranger to cease. What do you expect me to do?"

 

At that point, Impetus arrives. Coming out of the air like a bomb, he lands fifty feet away from the gathering... his gravitic force wave rippling across the grass, and causing waves across the reservoir. He floats casually over the ground, around and over the torn up turf and cratered earth, his eyes on the massive statue that dwarfs even his muscled form.

 

Crusader: The page had come while you were doing Kata. You'd gone to a small park on the east side, enjoying the spring air. Focused on your form and breathing, you'd missed the low hum of the pager in your back pack. By the time you grabbed it, the message was limited to "situation stable - backup requested" Your armor was with you so suiting up and moving in was quick. You are just across Park Avenue, looking toward Central, when you see Impetus coming down in the far distance, his trajectory is from the north west. Chatter on the comm is casual at the moment, though you've come in stealthily, maintaining silence up until now.

 

Then a radio message comes across all official Mavericks' radios. "NYPD to Mavericks. This is Officer Metcalf of air traffic patrol. We've received reports of meta-activity in Central and are moving in for observation. We have an unmarked helicopter, Bell Huey model, orbiting your reported location. Is this craft with you? MIRV? Are you receiving? The helicopter has not responded to hails."

 

Crusader... you can pick out the police helicopter and the target chopper both near the southern end of the park. You are on a rooftop and can see over the range. Those on the ground don't have any LOS to the copters at this point.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From GM:

I rolled an intel roll for MIRV who would be the only person to possibly recognize the following fact. Based it on his "Agent Of Paradigm" status. Rolled a five.

 

MIRV: You've read the files. Nothing you've been directly involved with, but some of the Alpha Threat files have really stuck with you. What some paranormals are allegedly responsible for/capable of is pretty scary at times. This one stuck out.

 

Name: Metalstone.

Origin: Unknown. Possible link to Dr. Destroyer

Designation: Class 6 Alpha

Known abilities: Massive humanoid of stone and steel. Strength level off the charts. Defensive level nearly Omega levels. Destructive potential unlimited in scope, but no known energy manipulation. Low level intelligence demonstrated. Utter lack of discretion in using force. Last seen with Dr. Destroyer when he was defeated. Considered lost at sea... middle of the Atlantic.

 

This giant "statue" looks just like Metalstone.

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker looks pensive as the imposing figure of Impetus drops to the ground nearby. He crouches slightly, but upon seeing that no one else reacts in a similar manner, he will straighten. He'll move over to the statue (wincing slightly at the broken rib). "Well, I've never seen anything like that, except maybe in the movies..."

 

From Impetus:

Impetus looks at the statue briefly, then says in a crisp, no-nonsense voice, "Aw right, c'mon, fight's ova -- let's get dis statchue back t'whereva you guys wannit and go from there, aight? Ain' got all day." Over the intercom he adds, sotto voce, "If y'all don't need me, I gotta get back t'work; I can't take off every lunchbreak before ah get mah a$$ fired, yknowwhadahmsayin?" He tears the rest of the tarp off and prepares to heave it up gently.

 

From Speedball:

Almost simultaneously, Joe starts talking to three different people:

 

"MIRV, why don't you check out the copter. It looks like we can handle things for the moment and I can call you if things get out of hand."

 

Turning to Impetus, "Sorry man--we all thought we had a much bigger fight on our hands than we did. We got lucky, I think. Let's make sure this statue isn't a threat before we start lugging it around--besides, I don't know where we should take it."

 

"Yuri, this is Speedball--Can you run a check for missing statues from art museums, private collections, stuff like that? We're looking at..." and he will relay a description of the statue. He doesn't really thing this is a piece of art, but if it is, then the threat isn't from the statue and it can be moved without fear.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Before Impetus' entrance, Dr. Cairo will answer MIRV, saying "well,

actually, I don't know if it has anything to do with this or not. I

rather think that my being here was a fortuitous coincidence, although a

spirit-wolf did lead me here from the street nearby. Was that your

familiar, Ranger? Back to the matter at hand, I think a certain

individual (who I am tracking) has also earned your enmity, and I think

it might serve both of our needs if we combine our efforts." Dr. Cairo

steps away from the statue when Impetus arrives, allowing the Mavericks

to take over in handling this affair. He keeps speaking with MIRV,

however, saying "I think you encountered this entity under the name of

'Rune.'" At some point Dr. Cairo will also ask MIRV what frequency his

radio is set to, and set his to the same if MIRV is forthcoming with the

information.

 

Sorry, one more note: Dr. Cairo will take amoment to look at the statue

and run it by all of his KSs, trying to at least place it historically (I

know that he doesn't have Art History, but he has history and literature,

and historical studies are interdisciplinary yadda yadda yadda just

practicing for the speech i have to give when I apply to teach Home Ec.

with my PhD in medieval lit!)

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker turns to Dr. Cairo. "A spirit wolf, you say? What did it look like? How did it act?"

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Since Speed and Impetus are talking amongst themselves, I figure I can go on a little bit with the convo...

 

"It was large and silver, and seemed no danger to me, but instead led me

here. What do you know of this, Shaman?"

 

From Crusader:

Crusader will push his telescopic to the max and start recording on the chopper. This will be done as he jump/glides to the next roof towards

Central Park (or parallel the park along 5th ave roofs). Mini-gyros keep the

camera and t-scope on the copter fairly well... even while moving...attempt

to get a read-out, schematic on weapons systems (with a close look for hidden systems).

 

Crusader will cut in over the chatter: "this is Crusader, sorry I

wasn't around to help with the situation. I'm a bit out of the loop, didn't

have my helmet on. Anything I should know?"

Will then add: "I'm getting a bit closer to the unmarked helicopter...

will report anything unusual."

 

From Skinwalker:

"Oh, I'm no shaman, Doctor. Just a traveller on an

extended vision quest. It sounds as though this wolf

is a... manifestation of the Great Wolf." He thinks

for a moment. "The Wolf is a teacher. He guides us

in our dreams and meditations. He must have led you

to where you needed to be."

 

From Dr. Cairo:

"Yes, I thought as much, but what is the origin of the wolf,and why did it appear to me unbidden? I am not a practitioner of your religion,and

would not expect such an apparition."

 

From Speedball:

Speedball turns to the theologians and says "uh, guys? The wolf thingy might be important, but we're trying to figure out if this statue is going try and kill us, or if someone's going to try and kill us to get it. Can we

concentrate on that for a sec?"

 

"Yuri--what's going on with Primus? Can you get an estimated response time

from them? I don't like just sitting here with this thing, but its not like

I want to lug it back to MAvs HQ."

 

From MIRV:

Realizing that Speedy needs a focus for his paranormal attention deficit, MIRV will say to him, "Speedball. Why don't you go back up Crusader? You are much faster than me or that helicopter and present much less of a

target. You don't have to combat it, just find out what they want." MIRV

will switch to comlink, "Crusader from MIRV. Glad to have you here, I'm

sending Speedball to back you up."

 

Assuming that Speedball goes to help Crusader, MIRV will try to resume the

discussion with Dr. Cairo only to be distracted by Impetus, when he remove

the tarp. When Impetus removes the tarp, MIRV will be seen doing a major

double take, then turn away from Dr. Cairo entirely to walk over to the

"statue". While looking at the thing, MIRV will say to Impetus, "I'm afraid

you're going to have to call in with a case of food poisoning or something.

This is no statue, this is an Alpha level paranormal by the name of

Metalstone, last seen with Dr. Destroyer, who could eat the Warlord for

breakfast in a toe to toe match!"

 

After all that happens, and whatever reactions have taken place, MIRV will

then turn to Ranger. "Ranger this is your Jurisdiction, and therefore your

call, but you may want us to coordinate with Primus and a few of New York's

finest Cat Squads to contain this guy.

 

From Crusader:

"Roger that. Metalstone heh?" *wheohwwwh* {sound of a whistling}, "sounds very tough. Hope he doesn't reanimate..." Crusader replies, "but

just in case...."

 

"Yuri? does Metalstone have any psych profile, power vulnerabilities

on record? Check Paradigm cross references." Crusader will ask (on the

group line, so everyone hears.)

 

From Impetus:

To Speedball, quietly: "It happens. Jes' doan make a habit a'callin' me in unless it's important, 'kay?"

 

After hearing MIRV state what it is, Impetus' eyebrows raise in interest.

 

"Alpha level, hmm?" He quietly turns on his force field, looks at the

statue with considerable fascination, appraising it, trying to figure out

what sort of weaponry this thing would be packing. "Mebbe ah shouldn't

touch it, then. So who wannit'is thing, anyhow? Some big rock guy?

An'what happen't th' statue afta the Destroya battle?"

 

After MIRV makes his statement to Speedball, Impetus replies: "You sure you

wannim t'go 'way? I mean, y'say this guy's mo' pow'ful dan d'Warlawd, an'

you goan up an' splittin owah fawces AGAIN? Speedy, do me a favor an' keep

yo a$$ back here 'til we established dat this mofo's inert, aight? I got my

ass kicked by t'Warlawd enough; I doan need somebuddy else handin' it to me

twice in a year."

 

From Skinwalker:

"Warlord? Alpha? What are you talking about?" He sticks his hand out to Impetus. "Oh, um, I'm John. John Runningwolf."

 

He cuts a strange sight, looking for all the world like an Amerind straight

out of the old west. Leather buckskin pants stitched together with leather

cord, moccasins, bone and wood chest piece over a fringed and beaded

buckskin shirt. Some kind of paint makes stripes on his face, and tribal

tattoos adorn his neck and disappear into his shirt.

 

Despite his ancient seeming appearance, he speaks with a slight midwestern

accent, no real traces of an Amerind accent.

 

From Speedball:

After hearing MIRVs suggestion to follow the 'copter, Speedball stops for a moment and looks at him. "Uh....I dont FLY. I'm not gonna be any good following a copter."

 

After MIRV realizes who the bad guys is and makes his announcement,

Speedball picks up the broken locks (or what ever was over the tarp that

MIRV shot off) and run over to MIRV. "OK, so all we need to do is figure

out how to put these things back on him and put him back in the ground,

right? Let's just put him back and act like we were never here, right?"

 

Speedball is kidding, of course, but he is obviously nervous.

 

From Impetus:

Impetus looks over in mild confusion for a moment, as if to say, "Who IS this guy, anyway, and why does he have such a funny name?"... Then realizes that his Islamic name isn't exactly John Smith either and remembers he's supposed to be promoting tolerance.

 

Impetus reaches out to shake; you feel your hand sucked into the gentle

violet glow of his forcefield, feel the pressure curled around your wrist as

he releases it. "Impetus," he says curtly. "Warlord's a guy who kicked mah

ass from here t'Brooklyn 'bout six months ago; ah'd do it again, but ah'd

prefer not to 'f ah could. 'Alpha' is a designation of parano'mal

strength -- an' since yo' a wolf, ah' assume y'all c'n unnastand what an

alpha-class supa means. MIRV say he bad.

 

"Whatchoo doin' here? You a paranormal?" For the first time, Impetus looks

around without the vague distraction of getting things over with, starts to

take in the surroundings. He does not, however, take an eye off of the

statue. Alpha-class. Hmm.

 

From Speedball:

"Crusader, this is Speedy. We've got a fish-fry here that trumps the

'copter, you you're on your own. Can you get close enough to it to identify

who's inside or maybe any markings on it? I'd bet my ass they're involved

with this Metalstone guy somehow."

 

From Skinwalker:

John smiles slightly. "I thank you for the compliment, but I'm not a wolf."

 

He crosses his arms, and looks down at the statue. "I suppose that what has

happened to me in the past year could be called "paranormal", therefore

making me a "paranormal" as you put it. As for why I am here? I was drawn

here by... well, the spirits of this land. I was simply resting in the park

when the recently defeted Antaeus dug this thing up."

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo has silently joined the group around metalstone, butstands off to the side, his face shrouded in the near-black cowl. It is unclear

where he is looking, but at one point when Impetus looks his way the cowl

dips as Cairo nods slightly to him. When there is a break, he will lean

closer to MIRV and ask for the frequency of his radio, just in case this

thing comes to life.

 

From MIRV:

>>Geesh you say just one thing about an Alpha and the whole group goes into a tizzy.<<

 

"Okay. Hold on here for a minute folks." MIRV says to the group, holding up

his arms and motioning to them all like a quarterback calling a huddle.

 

Assuming that everyone will actually pay attention to him, MIRV says "Sorry

for the lack of an introduction, you two, (implying Skinwalker and Impetus)

but I'm trying to do a lot of things at once. Mr. Gibran, you have yet to

meet Impetus, one of the Maverick's new recruits. Impetus, Mr. Gibran goes

by the name of Dr. Cairo, and that's Ranger; we've worked with him before."

 

"Skinwalker, I don't know if you've ever encountered this thing before, but

I'm thinking that this Antaeus character was merely a delivery boy in all of

this. I also think that the helicopter is here to pick up that package."

MIRV points to Metalstone.

 

"From the information that I have about Metalstone, this can't be good, we

have to contain Metalstone so that the proper authorities, i.e. Primus can

take him off our hands. In the meantime we have to keep that 'copter away

from Metalstone long enough for Primus to get here."

 

"I have a plan for containing Metalstone should he waken, but it hinges on

you, Impetus, on being able to lift him telekinetically like Vector could.

 

Metalstone is not known to have any ranged attacks and once removed from the ground could be kept inert for a while. I can use my entanglement pods for extra measure if need be. I also have this trusty rifle to keep him busy

should he get testy."

 

"Metalstone isn't known for his quick wit, Dr. Cairo. You seemed to be able

to communicate with Antaeus telepathically; could you try controlling

Metalstone if need be?"

 

MIRV looks at Speedball and says, "Do what you want, I know you can't fly,

but you're the only one fast enough among us to be able to catch up with

Crusader and pull his fat out of the fire should it need pulling."

 

Looking to Impetus, MIRV says in a lowered voice, "I know what you mean but

we started this whole thing off separated. I'm just trying to get us back

together before we have a repeat of last time."

 

MIRV then contacts Yuri about Primus and where the hell is Wildheart. . .

 

MIRV will definitely give the frequency to Dr. Cairo when he gets the

chance.

 

From Skinwalker:

I would point out that John has yet to refer to himself as "Skinwalker"

 

---

 

From GM:

A couple minutes pass as conversations happen and ideas are exchanged. Radio chatter is complex and a constant buzz, but Yuri breaks through for a moment, responding to the various queries. His Russian accent is thick, but understandable. "Crusader... as MIRV did state, this Metalstone person is an Alpha threat level paranormal. Being very strong, and nigh invulnerable! (insert Tick jokes here and get it over with.) I am being looking at history records now. Not much detail. Originally captured by Thunder Jock, over twelve years ago, after nearly killing him. There are then records of an investigation into how the creature was "lost" by the authorities for many years. It is believed he... or it... never was put into Stronghold. There were unsubstantiated reports of sightings in South America during the early '90s... but it wasn't until the Destroyer War and the battle over the Atlantic, where he was truly to be seen again. Reports were that nothing was seen to be harming him in that fight, and only at the end did he fall into the ocean and disappear. There is no report of him since then. His intelligence is said to be low... tactically limited... but other than that... nothing is being known."

 

Crusader: You've managed to move closer, heading south, to the area where the choppers are looking to rendezvous. The police copter (to whom nobody responded by the way) is still closing in, and anyone scanning the police bands on their radios would hear the following from Officer Metcalf "Unidentified helicopter, this is the New York Police Department. You are in violation of multiple FAA ordinances and must immediately raise your flight path to at least three thousand feet. You are ordered to take altitude and fly at 20 degrees south east... exiting Manhattan airspace. You will then be directed to land at a designated spot on the New Jersey coast. Failure to respond will escalate this. The Coast Guard has already scrambled further pursuit if you attempt to flee. Please respond!"

You can see nothing that looks like weapon systems on your visual scan of the helicopter, but it is a top of the line model. Larger carrying capacity than most passenger copters... but you'd be surprised if it had the lift to carry something as massive as this Metalstone character. It's not Sikorski, or even heavy duty rescue model.

 

MIRV: You glance at the bits of broken devices that Speedball shows you. Besides being heavy duty electronic locks, they also contain the slagged remains of quite powerful, high frequency receiver/transmitters. Not much you can do with them in the moment, but might be worth investigating back at the workshop.

 

Ranger responds to your question, saying, "I agree we should get this thing out of here as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the Park Service ain't equipped for this. I'll call this in and see if that will expedite things with PRIMUS or Stronghold. Other than that, I'm going to clear these crowds out (he gestures to the growing numbers of park goers starting to slowly close in and gawk at the scene) before this thing comes alive or that Antaeus bastard comes back." He walks closely past you and whispers, harshly, "Watch that Runningwolf guy. There's something... wrong about him," and then he is away, on his radio to the police and starting to wave the crowds back... looking more like a regular Park Ranger than a paranormal at this point.

 

Speedball, Impetus, Runningwolf, Cairo: Nothing specific happens immediately other than your various discussions. Then a new voice comes across the Mavericks' channel. "This is PRIMUS Commander Cotton, scrambling from the Norfolk base. We are enroute to Manhattan/Central Park. I need confirmation of those on the scene identified as Mavericks. Is the situation still hot? I have three squads prepped, with Iron Guard support. Please respond."

 

Crusader: As you are watching, you see the unidentified helicopter turn sharply and do a sudden power dive down to tree top level... heading back toward the reservoir area. You see one of it's side door slide half way open, though you can make out only the dim figure of a dark clad person partially in the door. The copter is over a MILE away from you at this point... and you are still some hundreds of meters from the reservoir where the group is gathered... though you have some altitude for gliding off the roof you are on.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Speedball:

"Cotton, this is Speedball of the Mavericks. We have contained the scene, but you should get here as soon as possible--and bring your back-up. There are 6 friendlies plus myself in the area. There's also a helicopter in near us that we suspect is a hostile. What is your ETA? We've just received

word that this bad boy we've got here is Metalstone--I'd sure feel better if

you guys got here in a hurry."

 

Yuri didn't answer MIRV's question about Wildheart so Speedball will chime

in: "Yuri, that info's great--thanks. I think you should get Wildheart on

the horn. NOW. If she's unresponsive to the regular signal, send out the

priority alert."

 

Speedball continues to look around nervously, uncomfortable standing still

in this situation, feeling vulnerable.

 

From Skinwalker:

Runningwolf stands patiently as the others converse with their radios,

hearing only half of the conversations. He turns to Dr. Cairo, "To

continue, doctor, we are all practitioners of my 'religion', as you call it;

most just don't realize it. The animal spirits, or totems, are present in

everyone." He points to Speedball. "For example, the Horse runs in his

blood (sorry, Geoff... couldn't resist...). Ranger is led by the Wolverine,

for whom aggression is second nature. The Owl seems strong in you. I...

don't know about MIRV yet, but possibly he is a friend of Cougar. Impetus

is maybe guided through life by the Bear, but don't quote me on that yet."

 

"Why Utháyatkwáí', the Great Dancing Wolf, appeared before you, I don't

know. He must have had his reason."

 

From Crusader:

Crusader will say first; "thanks Yuri, although its not the best news to get."

 

Then as the unmarked helicopter continues to push into Central Park

towards the group of the Mavericks, Crusader will broadcast on Mav frequency;

"Heads up folks, the unmarked helicopter is doing the tree top fandango in

your direction. Coming from South south East. One man in black has opened

the cargo door and may be preparing to insert into your area. I'm attempting

to flank onto its 6. I recommend that MIRV gets airborne to get LOS and put

Impetus on standby back-up {being that those are the only two I know of in

the area with altitude abilities}. The others should protect, prevent

Metalstone from dropping into unknown hands."

 

With that Crusader, cybernetics smoothly pumping in concert with

quiet, soft bursts of jumpjet air, will continue south down 5th Ave with all

due haste (NCM) along the rooftops and as soon as the helicopter passes his

position on its way towards the group, Crusader will launch into a glide

behind the helicopter (or swoop to the area) of the helicopter's 6.

John thinks *This might be really stupid, my gliding is going to get

really, really difficult near the helicopter wash*

 

Switching to Metro frequency; "Office Metcalf? This is Crusader, the

unmarked helicopter might be disembarking a paranormal. Advise extreme

caution. It is heading towards 3 Mavericks who can take care of themselves

(Dr. Cairo & Running wolf are not Mavericks, not counting them, yet.). I'm

approaching the Unmarked as well. Would advise giving Unmarked a wide berth.

Over."

 

note: I'm not expecting Crusader to get RIGHT behind the helicopter

(at least not in this statement), but be trailing 200 meters or so.

 

note to Runningwolf/Eric: Ranger is about the most peaceful, gentle

RDU super I've ever played. I don't think the Wolverine is his aspect. More

like a black lab. Labs are extremely protective, but they don't start many

fights. Which was the point of the character, give him claws, but a gentle

nature.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo clearly has split attention between what Runningwolf is saying and Metalstone, especially after keying into the Mavs channel and hearing the chatter. When Crusader's message comes, he will crouch a bit, his cowled head turning sharply to the direction of the incoming chopper.

 

"It seems our metaphysical discussion will have to wait, Runningwolf.

There is possible danger coming in from the south east by way of

helicopter. I recommend that you stay here and protect this statue - it

seems to be quite dangerous."

 

Turning quickly then, Cairo's swirling cloak will disappear into itself,

and he is gone. He will make a non-combat t-port, but maintaining

invisibility. He will go the the south south east, trying to gain

altitude by way of a bulding roof or sturdy tree. He will say into his

radio (when he has a moment to do so) "Crusader - MIRV has given me your

frequency because I am an ally. I am the man in the hooded cloak."

 

From Skinwalker:

Runningwolf blinks. "Oh, yes, of course. There are much more important things to do than discuss philosophy."

 

He frowns for a moment, and says, "A guardian... Ah! Of course!" He closes

his eyes, and seems to concentrate for a moment. With a shudder and a flick

of his head, he begins to change. As before, tufts of fur start to appear

on his skin, only this time it isn't fur. Rather... feathers! His face

elongates some, a sharp beak forming and turning down at the tip to indicate

a bird of prey. His buckskin shirt seems to disappear under the feathers,

but the wood and bone armour remains. After a few moments, the

transformation is complete, and a hawk-like man stands before you.

 

He crosses his arms over his chest, and stands before the statue. "None

shall get this statue while Katsi'tás guards it."

 

(Senses: Enhanced PER +3 (all), Ultrasonic Hearing; Powers: Armour 5/5 (15),

STR +10 (10), PRE +15 (15), HKA 1+1/2d6 (25), Flight 10" (20), PD +6 (6);

Psych Lim: Will only fight in defense of object/self defense)

 

From Speedball:

If Ranger is close enough, Speedball will simply yell "Get those people out of here--we've got an incoming 'copter that looks like its gonna start

something!" If Ranger is far enough away or too preoccupied with the folks

in the crowd, Speedball will move to his side and yell, authoritatively

"Ladies and gentlemen, get out of the area as calmly and as quickly as you

can. There may be some fighting here in a minute and I can't guarantee your

safety." Once he has warned the civilains--either from afar of from close

by, Speedball will stand about two feet in front of the statue, take the

juggling balls from his pocket and begin to nervously juggle. Whirling the

objects has another purpose--he is preparing to deflect whatever might fly

at the statue.

 

From Impetus:

To MIRV: "Ah'd keep 'em around 'f ah wuz you. 'Til we know whuss goan on, ah'd 'preciate th' backup. Not that ah cain't handle a lot by m'self, but a lotta people seem innerested in dis thing."

 

((((Impetus is maybe guided through life by the Bear, but don't quote me on that yet."))))

 

With mild irritation: "Atchly, I'm guided by Allah an' th'prophets, but ah'll letcha know 'f dat changes."

 

As Ranger runs off, you hear Impetus mutter under his breath in a pretty decent imitation of a white Brooklyn-born cop, "All right, folks, nothin' ta see here... Just a guy who looks like Big Bird, a seven-foot tall glowing Negro, a Transformer clone, a smack-fueled speedster, and some bat-throwin' capey mothaf--a, all standin' around a big metal statue that could kill all of you... Nothin' ta see..."

 

When Crusader's broadcast comes across, Impetus immediately snaps to face south southeast. "Speedy," he says, "Ah know you can't do s--t against air warfare, so MIRV an' me'll take the six. Yo' job is t'watch the metal f--ker an' if it moves, you shout as fast as you goddamn can, 'aight? I don't want no frankenstein sneakin' up on me, now -- 'at sorta thing jes' pisses me off."

 

To Crusader: "You want me t'take it down, or are we in seriously th'air 'bout its intentions?"

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker turns his head to Impetus. "Allah, Bear, Shiva, they are all the same force. But if it brings you solace to call it Allah, then by all means. It is the act of Faith, of believing, that is important. I meant no disrespect to you or your religion." Something about the tone of his voice conveys a certain... power, strength; this form definitly has a presence. Also, maybe a little sense of him speaking of personal experience...

 

From Speedball:

"Yeah, whatever, Imps." Speedball kicks a clump of dirt while continuing to juggle the metal balls in a whirling, almost humming circle and continues "I've gotcher back."

 

If Impetus is attuned to this sort of thing, he might notice that the

refernce to Joe's habit is not welcome. Their friendship has been set back

drastically. Speedball knows that the situation is serious enough that now

is not the time to get into it, however.

 

From MIRV:

MIRV looks down at the ground while shaking his head and sighs. After a moment he looks up, toggles the power switch to his plasma rifle and jets into the air, trying to get a line of sight on the helicopter.

 

---

 

From GM:

(Now MIRV knows how Wild Heart always feels. Orders given... nobody listens.)

 

>>>Crusader: The helicopter doesn't seem to notice you at all and you easily get into position and launch yourself out over 5th Avenue toward the reservoir and park interior. As you streak inward, the following unfolds...

 

MIRV: A bit frustrated that absolutely NOBODY listened to anything you had to say, you blast upward approximately fifty feet, easily getting clear view out over the tree line stretching beyond the softball diamonds around you. Your targeting HUDs zoom in on the incoming helicopter easily. No swerve or weave... just a full throttle run toward your position. It is closing the mile distance to you very rapidly but you have plenty of time to lock on or maneuver as you feel necessary.

 

Impetus: Probably not noticing Speedball's demeanor at the moment, you turn from the "statue" and position yourself to have a clear "leaping" area toward the incoming helicopter. You know that you have incredible distance and acceleration in your "leap" but you also know that once you have leapt, there's no changing your trajectory. Going after a highly maneuverable, quick moving craft like a helicopter could be really tricky.

 

Just then Wild Heart's voice comes over the radio. "I'm a couple minutes out. Leaving the hospital now. For god's sake, do NOT go knocking a helicopter out of the air over Manhattan unless you have no other choice. That kind of destruction could be horrendous. MIRV's in charge until I get there!"

 

Dr. Cairo: You disappear and make your move... ending up some distance away from the clear target zone of the helicopter, unnoticed by anyone. You do see Runningwolf take on a new and significant form. The aspect of Horus is clearly flowing through him now... and it is stunning, even to one such as yourself. People around you gasp and point and shout, and you also see Speedball shouting and waving his arms at the crowds while Ranger tries to shoo them all away. None are too close but there is no telling what kind of power might begin to be cast about. A stray energy bolt or bullet would have way too many luckless targets about, you fear.

 

Speedball: Unhappily you stay back by Metalstone and find yourself standing next to a giant hawk man, exuding a presence that is quite impressive. Your shouts to Ranger gets a quick look and thumbs up recognition and he begins to shout himself, driving back a large group of the closest gawkers. Though your attention is torn between all the action going on, you keep a good eye on Metalstone, and nothing seems to change with the statue guy.

 

Skinwalker: Your sharp eyes spot the incoming form of both the helicopter and then the rushing black, bird like form of Crusader from a separate angle. You sense no life in the statue you are guarding... then your attention is turned back to the helicopter, as an amplified voice comes forth for all to hear, saying, "Attention Mavericks. This is a highly dangerous situation. Please stand back from the creature known as Metalstone. His presence in Manhattan is a threat we are equipped to contain! Even your power is no match for his."

 

With everyone's eye's on it the side door fully opens and a man in simple dark fatigues hangs out the side. He has a black helmet on and is handling a machine... unfolding it from the interior. It looks a lot like a rocket launcher, though with four barrels. MIRV and Crusader don't recognize the make or model. "Please back away from Metalstone. Let us remove the threat as we are capable of doing!!"

 

The do NOT identify who they are in any way.<<<

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Crusader (1st), MIRV (1st), Copter, Impetus, Dr. Cairo, Skinwalker, Speedball (2nd), Crusader (2nd), MIRV (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Impetus:

"None taken," he says. " 'Slong as you got space f'yo' beliefs an' mahn, we set. Now let's get this turkey."

 

 

He flips an embarassed glance your way, not meaning to offend you with the turkey comment. Impetus is cool with a lot of things, but he hasn't met anyone who can bird themselves....Two things:

 

1) Matt, if you gave any orders I didn't see them here (I just searched my email to doublecheck), and therefore Impetus didn't react to them. I know I've missed some other posts from you in the past. You sure you're cc'ing me on all of them? If you had a plan, Impetus would have reacted to it; he only starts snapping orders when nobody else is.

 

2) Geoff, if Speedball is still really sensitive about that then Imps probably wouldn't have made the "smack-fueled speedster" reference... But considering that at the end of last episode every scientist within twenty miles seemed to know about it AND you admitted it to everybody out loud on some occasions, it didn't seem like it was all that serious OR secret.

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: Speedball positions himself between the copter and the statue, ready to deflect any attacks (or energy) aimed at it. He is essentially

right on top of the statue.

 

2nd Action: the same. He will follow MIRV's orders, otherwise.

 

Joe has a 'self-loathing over addiction' psych lim that doesn't encourage

jokes...

 

Don't sweat it, bill--these are the kinds of things even the best of friends

let slip when things get tense.

 

From Crusader:

Hey, Crusader has been listening to MIRV and adjusting his actions. I don't think he has gotten a direct order. Its tough taking orders from and NPC ... ooops, MIRV ain't NPC material no mo'!

 

To Dr. Cairo: "Uh, ok...sure. If MIRV vouches for you... thanks for

the help!"

 

To Wildheart and whole group: "Roger that 'Heart, Imp, I'm not sure

of these guys intentions. Don't knock it out of the sky until absolutely

necessary."

 

Back to the action: While Crusader has initiative over MIRV, MIRV is

in plain sight of the copter. Crusader will switch just to MIRV radio; "I'm

going to try to get closer and take away the missile launcher. Stall him. I

don't think a rocket launcher is going to do much to Metalstone anyhow."

Crusader will think *what are these yahoos doing? Going up against

several P-norms with a rocket launcher? That's not bravery, that is

foolhardy!*

 

Crusader will hesitate to go in order after MIRV so he can react

accordingly, but most likely Crusader will try to go under the helicopter,

hopefully get a handhold on the skids that the Missile guy is on and be able

to swing up and disarm the launcher away. If this is clearly impossible (the

helicopter is moving too fast, the downdraft from the blades is too severe...

I'll totally understand. But a guy has got to be heroic!)

 

--storn

 

Neil, I just re-read the post. Is the rocket launcher thingee mounted

to the helicopter interior floor? Disarming that would be rather tough. But

I could still try and disable it. Swing up and kick the crap out of it.

 

From MIRV:

MIRV's first action will be spent communicating with just about every player on the board of this little game and trying to cover Crusader.

 

"Roger that Wildheart." Broadcasting to all Mavericks on their channel, MIRV will start in on some ordering around.

"Okay. Here's the plan. . .

Speedball: I need you to do three things for me. First. Coordinate all our communications with Runningwolf to keep him in the loop, while guarding that statue. Second. Verify our presence here with Primus and update them on our sitrep, the less I have to deal with those bozos the better. Third. Run crowd control if it gets out of Ranger's hands."

"Crusader: See if you can neutralize that rocket launcher, I've got you covered should you need it. But I don't like the idea of firing on that thing."

"Impetus: See if you can get closer to the copter and let me know if you can catch that thing should it hit the ground. I don't even know if you can do something like that, but like Wildheart said, it'd be disastrous if that thing crashed in such a populated area."

"Cairo: I have no clue where you are or if you can do anything to help in this situation. Let me know what's up."

 

If there's still time left, MIRV will hail the copter, trying to keep it distracted by getting in between it and the target. "MIRV Alpha to black helicopter. The only way I know to destroy Metalstone would be through thermo nuclear detonation. I can not let you do that here. Please stand down. We have the situation in hand. This is your last warning."

 

MIRV will hold whatever is left of his second action.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo wants to get into that helicopter, but I am not sure abotu a

couple of things. I am assuming that arriving from a teleport is

relative to the location to which one teleports. If I could teleport

into space, I wouldn't maintain the speed of the earth's rotation upon

appearing, etc. So if I teleport inside the helicopter, I am assuming

that the speed of thing wouldn't be a problem (I wouldn't hit the back of

the helicopter at the copter's current speed...). I am also assuming

that it is still pretty far away, so that I have at least an action or

two before it passes Dr. Cairo's position.

 

If these are the case, then Dr. Cairo will shadow walk at an oblique

angle to the oncoming copter, trying to get a look inside the side door

as soon as he can see inside. He will make this a full distance noncom.

t-port, so that he gets inside as soon as possible before the copter gets

near the statue. If it looks like he will not be able to see inside

before it is much closer,then he will teleport and grab a landing sled.

 

If these are not the case, and he cannot t-port into a moving vehicle or

the copter has already passed him, etc., let me know and i will repost

 

From Speedball:

"Babysitting. Gotcha, MIRV." Switching to his radio, Speedball says

"Primus Commander, this is Speedball. We have control of the statue for the

moment, but there is a helicopter in the area which appears hostile. The

copter has at least one rocket launcher aboard and possibly a paranormal.

 

What is your ETA, over?"

 

From Skinwalker:

The hawk-man glowers (well, as much as someone with a beak can glower), and raises his arms above his head. "PEOPLE!!!! I suggest you MOVE AWAY! This is a dangerous situation, and I can NOT allow the People to be harmed!" He then starts making 'shooing' motions at the crowds.

 

(PRE attack on the crowd)

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo's action will to use the Knife of Kasrith to attack the rocket

laucher, hopefully at the firing mechanism, so that he can sever it

between the hand and the rockets/whatever the thing shoots. Cairo will

use the full attack, swinging his arm with two fingers extended as he

adds his strength to the attack.

 

(this will be 3d6 killing attack [2d6-1+4dc], invisible, armor piercing,

and uses no range penalties).

 

Hopefully not! Of course Dr. Cairo knows about as much about this kind

of thing as i do (which works out well), but it doesn't seem like there

are many pieces of modern armament that would explode if disected by a

non-metal, very sharp thing...

 

Crusader has probably got this under control anyway (unknown to Dr.

Cairo). Neil, if Crusader does have things with the rocket launcher in

hand, Cairo will t-port back to the statue instead.

 

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: You wait, forcing yourself to keep from flitting about... watching as the helicopter approaches. MIRV is fifty feet over your head... his boot jets flaring, and you can feel the wash of heat from them. From your left... the east side, you can see Crusader streaking through the air... a lethal looking bird of prey... but you wonder if he can reach the 'copter before it fires.

 

Crusader: You have to go full out (non-combat) to have any hope of reaching the helicopter before it is in range to fire. Your arms flex backward, reducing both the resistance and lift of your wings, and you feel yourself cut through the air even faster. You estimate your plan is possible... but VERY difficult. Your glide lowers your height to maintain your velocity (Gliding makes you lose 1" of height for every round you fly). You will be well below the helicopter by the time you reach it, almost on the ground... BUT... a difficult swoop, pulling out of the dive at the last second, MIGHT bring up back up... just high enough to grab a strut. You go into your dive, waiting for the last second, to see if MIRV calls you off, or something else happens (you'll have to do the actual attempt to grab on your second action)

 

MIRV: You bark out your orders, and most folks seem to fall into place... but the few seconds it takes brings the helicopter inbound... much closer. You can even see the one man in helmet and jumpsuit literally waving you away, with a desperate jerk of his arm as you reluctantly raise your rifle to your shoulder. Before you can call to them, another, desperate sounding plea comes out of the helicopters loudspeaker... "For God's sake! We can contain the thing! Don't let him get free! Get out of our way!!"

 

Impetus: The copter is clearly in firing range you figure, but it looks like the door gunner is holding... hoping you and the others will get out of the way. As to catching the damn thing??? Well, it might be fun to try... and you can't imagine the weight would be too much for you... but it's bulk, velocity, and the deadly spinning rotors make it a little more of a challenge. Keeping it from coming apart upon impact would be really difficult as well.

 

Dr. Cairo: You see the black form of the Maverick known as Crusader, swooping in, almost from behind you... and he seems to be heading for a crash landing at the speed he is going. MIRV is 100 meters from the craft, leveling his rifle at it. You hear a tinge of fear in the voice of the helicopter pilot as he calls out as well.

But you are left to act at this moment. Within you mind, you summon the heft and feel of the Knife of Kasrith and fling it at the impossibly long distance between yourself and the gunship... knowing that space and time mean nothing to the power of the old gods.

In your minds eye, you see the blade cut through the strange gun... and you strike true! The assemblage of metal tube and firing mechanism splits right down the middle... to the astonished and fearful cry of the gunner... as he depresses the firing mechanism at nearly the same moment.

 

Skinwalker: Your wings out, you cry to the crowd in a commanding voice. The few that had come around the side of Ranger stop in their tracks at the sight of you... many backing away again... and then a fearful yellow/orange light flares around the incoming helicopter making you, and everyone look back to it.

 

Speedball/MIRV: The two of you, watching intently... see what looks like a misfire of some kind. The door gunner seems to reel backward, falling in his harness as a weird flare of energy erupts... uncontrolled from the rocket launcher. It is not an explosion as such. More like an expanding bubble of energy... strangely disorienting... a ripple effect washes through the air... and the helicopter seem to be slowed... suspended and enveloped by the glow. (You guys both have held actions, still)

 

Crusader: You have just begun your power swoop when this happens. Your arms out, braced against the slam of air into your wings and the extreme G's of such a sudden reversal. Your body bends in the armor, bent backwar, as your direction moves from 30 degree downward angle to almost a perfect 90 degree thrust upward, your velocity drained so much it's like hitting a wall...

.... and you find yourself climbing... slowly it seems, painfully... up toward the copter... which is now surrounded... fading... difficult to see in a nimbus of yellow and orange light... and for a moment... you are suspended... free... floating... a subtle twitch one way or another and you feel you will either begin falling back to the ground (possible but difficult to pull out before you hit) or... strangely... something pulls you upward as well... you could go up, into the light... reach for it... the choice is yours.<<<

 

Actually... no need for initiative right now... but Speedball and MIRV both could do something in these last split seconds, if they wish. Crusader/Storn... just need to know what you do... up or down...

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Crusader:

The sky is not Crusader's natural element. He votes for down.

Understanding that there is considerable velocity, Crusader will try and

parallel the ground, snap wings out, and then before impact, fold the glider

and jump paraphernalia into the backpack unit. Then tuck and roll.

Crusader's Breakfall is decent: 14-.

 

Just why can't anyone communicate in this world? If the stupid

helicopter guys told us who they were... then perhaps some cooperation could have been accommodated. It isn't like they couldn't talk on the cops

frequency, even if they didn't know Mavericks freq. And integration of new

talent (read: Dr. Cairo) into the Mavericks...d--n, it really shouldn't be

done in a combat situation...sheesh.

 

From Impetus:

For his part, Impetus watches the fireworks, then turns around to glance at Metalstone. They seem so concerned. Is this f--ker moving yet, or are they totally nuts?

 

If there's anything he can do (like, say, catching Crusader) he'll be ready for it, but he has his multipower set to deflect at the moment. It might make a difference. As far as catching a helicopter? Nuh uh. He could do it, but not so's it'd be in one piece or nonfatal for the inhabitants....

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker will continue trying to usher people out of the way. But he will be ready to interpose himself with any attack coming from the helicopter.

 

Damn that heroism! =)

 

From MIRV:

At the time of the explosion of energy, MIRV will try to close the distance between him and the helicopter so that he can try catching anyone i.e. Crusader should he need it or any of the copter's crew members. "Ranger from MIRV. It's coming down! Get those people out of the way."

 

----

 

From GM:

It should be noted that NOBODY would have any idea that Dr. Cairo caused this accident. Not only was he invisible... but his attack was invisible as well. To everyone else, it just looked like the rocket launcher exploded from a misfire or something.

 

>>>Crusader: You torque sideways, turning your upward reach into a downward pike. It isn't that the velocity is tremendous... just that there is little room to pull out... but you snap your wings out, pulling the dive into a parallel glide... your chest practically brushing the grass... then tuck and roll... a somersault into a forward flip... to land on your feet some fifty feet from the gathering around Metalstone. Above you the air blossoms with bright energy.

 

MIRV: It's like no explosion you've ever seen. Rather than a violent eruption of force... it is more like an expanding bubble... ripples created in the air... and the forward velocity of the helicopter... which should have passed over you by now... slows drastically so it hangs in the air... for the moment, roughly 30 meters in front of you.

Boot jets flaring, you curve toward the helicopter, watching it disintegrate in front of your eyes. Just as you are closing... the light flares even more brightly for a nano-second... and then there is a loud "POP!"... almost a "BOOM"... and the bubble vanishes! All that is left is a suddenly hurtling collection of sheared pieces flying toward you. The largest is the tail and rotor, the end normally connected to the rest of the copter, cut cleanly, and it now tumbles end over end toward you and the reservoir beyond. Also, one landing strut, it's metal connecting posts also cleanly cut, shoots forward at it's full velocity, like a thick, curved spear. There are a couple other chunks of the craft... unidentifiable in the split second you see them...

... and a fifth piece... a grotesque half a torso of the door gunner... his lower body and most of his right arm completely gone from the sternum and elbow on down. The remaining chest, head and arm twist sickeningly through the air... huge gouts of blood erupting from the open chest cavity in a disgusting spray of red.

 

Dr. Cairo: It seems your attack was SPECTACULARLY successful... if you were intending to destroy the helicopter. Most of it seems to be disintegrated in a ball of strange energy... but then you see the destroyed remains rain toward MIRV... and the severed torso of the door gunner flail and spasm across the sky. You hear the gasp of horror and fear erupt from the surrounding crowd... cries of terror... eyes turning away... hidden behind hands... and despite your invisibility, you feel as if you stand exposed before them all.

 

Speedball/Skinwalker: You both see the eruption above you and the ghastly remains tossing through the air, as the crowd you are watching reacts in horror... adding to your shouts and urgings... making the crowd fall back, many stumbling or turning to run.

Then you both see Impetus. He stands stoically, backlit by the light of the explosion, clearly not caring about that at all. His eyes, instead, are looking at you... past you... to the form of Metalstone. His muscles tense, instinctively, and you see his hands close into fists!

 

Impetus: You were the first to notice... the only one to concentrate on the target rather than the attackers. You see the twitch. Perhaps, at first, it might have been a trick of the light, explosions and flying supers tend to throw all kinds of shadows and light... but then you see the hand move... the fingers twitch and splay in the stone hand... the steel fist, clench and release...

... but most of all you see the eyes. They snap open with inhuman suddenness... featureless glowing orbs... one in a steel like socket... another bound in granite... locking with yours in that instance... nearly palpable power emanating from them. Metalstone's head begins to rise... and the monster comes to life.

 

END CURRENT ISSUE: (Three points EXP each for Impetus, Crusader, MIRV Alpha, Skinwalker, Dr. Cairo, and Speedball. Note: When declaring next actions... Crusader, Dr. Cairo and MIRV (and Ranger who is a ways away) have NO idea Metalstone is awake. Impetus clearly knows... and Skinwalker and Speedball have a good idea.

[aylwin13]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

More. More. More. This has been awesome, as always. Your narratives are very enjoyable to read.

 

I especially love the helicopter scene. I could almost see what was left of the gunner flying past me.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

Thanks aylwin... so as requested...

 

Speedball never heard back from Primus. Is that intentional or was it

an oversight?

 

From GM:

so short a period of time passed, I didn't think PRIMUS would have a chance to respond.

 

Thought it interesting to put bits like the above in here, just to exemplify how side conversations were held to keep everyone on the same page.

 

---

 

From Skinwalker:

Oh. Oh dear. Oops. Well, I hope you all have ideas for your next characters. I'm pretty certain mine will survive... =)

 

Skinwalker will tilt his head to the side a bit, giving Impetus a quizzical look. Then he turns to see what Impetus is staring at, and blinks. "Oh. This does not look good." After saying that, he begins to shift form again, this time taking on the aspect of the Wolf. The feathers change to greyish fur, the legs thicken, and the armwings change to longer, stronger looking arms, ending with sharp claws. The face softens as the hard beak changes to a muzzle, wicked looking teeth forming inside. Ears appear, stretching above his head. Over it all is the same anacrhonistic native costume.

 

(Senses: Discriminatory Smell, Enhanced PER +3 (all); Life Support: Intense heat/cold; Powers: Armour 10/10 (30), STR +20 (20), PD +10 (10), HKA 1d6 (15), Running +9" (18); Psych Lim: extremely loyal to "pack")

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Actually, Dr. Cairo put all of his juice into the attack on the

launcher, which means that he became visible, although he does so quietly

and in a place you wouldn't expect him. Nevertheless, anyone paying

attention to him might have seen a gesture, as Cairo wasn't intending to

hide it.

 

Dr. Cairo will stand and stare at the burning wreckage, completely at a

loss for words or actions. Even as his stomach clenches and his mouth

winces at the wreckage flying towards MIRV, he makes no move, completely

dumbfounded by what his attempt has caused (he thought that it was the

way that violence could most easily be avoided between two groups that

seemed to be on the same side!). He will make sure that no civilians are

in danger, and assuming that they are not, he will stand there in shock

until something catches his attention. If he sees any wreckage flying

towards anyone (Maverick or not), he will teleport in the way, and try to

switch his points to Armor of Heaven before it hits. He is feeling so

bad at this point that dying doesn't seem like too bad of an option.

 

From Impetus:

Impetus just scowls and says, "Heads up, folks! M-Stone just went active!"

 

Neil, I am going to assume that from what Impetus knows of Metalstone (he reads the POST back-to-front on a daily basis, remember, so he'd know a bit about the Destroyer fight and the aftermath), he understands that Metalstone is a killing machine, has no intelligence to speak of, and so it's not worth much negotiating with the guy. If that is NOT true, or at least not the current public perception, then he may hold an action to see what M does -- but otherwise...

 

Impetus leaps forward and cocks a fist, shouting, "Center on the bastard and hit it with whatever you got! I'll play target until someone can aim some serious firepower at this f--ker!", then smashes as hard as he can (not pushing, just not holding back like he's been doing fighting against normals all this time) into it, attempting to bash it straight into the ground like a fencepost.

 

Then, under his breath, "Well, at leas' m'lunch hour's gonna be mo' innerestin' than that BLT ah had planned..."

 

Note that even if MIRV gives counterorders, Impetus (assuming that Metalstone is just all combat insofar as he knows) will act independently. Sorry, Matt, but when there's a big threat that whole "Fearless" thing comes into play....

 

From Crusader:

Crusader will snap up onto his feet and snap out: "WHAT THE F--K

WAS THAT?!?!!???"

 

That's it. That is his entire action.

 

--storn

 

It is noted that the GM's Deus Ex Machina did indeed go boom!

However, the helicopter crew had more than ample time to get a few words in of who they were and why they were on the scene. To be honest, I was

frustrated by the lack of info, but more importantly, the lack of info got

some NPCs killed.

If we had received some information about who they were, they might

still be living. You can't come into a paranormal battlefield, pull a rocket

launcher and expect to emerge unscathed. And yes, this was a P-norm

battlefield, even if no action was taking place. It was still a crisis

situation. Obviously they knew of Metalstorm and his power. To not illicit

help or to announce themselves... duh....

To Crusader's mind; who's had years of experience of working in

teams to take on P-norms, these guys were IDIOTS!!! plain and simple.

Doesn't make it less tragic, probably makes it more tragic.

 

From Speedball:

Speedball notices Impetus's look of concern and steps around Metalstone in order to see his face. "Primus Commander, it appears that Metalstone is becoming active. Be aware that you are coming into a hot area. What is your ETA, over?"

 

After sending that message, Speedball will switch over to send a message to

Yuri. "Yuri, this is Speedball. Get Wildheart here NOW. This is an

emergency."

 

Obviously, Speedball will abort to a dodge if Metalstone takes a shot.

 

From MIRV:

MIRV pauses only the slightest of moments, yet for him an eternity, as whats left of the torso flies across his field of vision.

 

From Speedball:

Don't know if what Speedball said was enough to fill up his action or if he can squeeze out anything else, but if he can, he'll continue his

transmission to the Primus Commander:

 

"One more thing Primus Command--any tactical advice you can give, please

transmit to Mavericks team frequency (and will supply him with it)"

 

---

 

From GM:

Impetus lands the first blow before anyone can move except Speedball. Runningwolf has barely begun to shift when the shock wave from the massive blow rips outward. Speedball's last words are torn away by the KABOOM of impacting super dense flesh and force field on the ultra hard surface of Metalstone's chest. Impetus's coat billows in the waves. Grass is flattened and loose dust and dirt flies outward, intothe eyes and ears of any of those unprotected faces watching the mighty blow.

Just past Metalstone, the remains of the destroyed copter sail into the reservoir. The large tail section and rotor plunge into the water with an immense splash. The water covers the entry of the more grotesque debris.

 

Cut scene: Interior of a large aircraft hanger, location unknown. Large lamps illuminate the center of the floor, about 225 square meters, marked out like a landing pad. There is no roof opening or landing strip though. Large generators surround the area, with heavy cabling running from them, under the metal floor. Dozens of techs move around, reading instruments and maintaining the watch. A dozen more stand guard in unmarked military gear, with large energy shoulder arms at the ready.

From behind a bank of computer monitors... a definite control area... lights start flashing and an alert tech gets a panicked look on his face. He shouts out... "Incoming! Signal arriving now! I've got inertial distortion! Be prepa...." and then he is cut off as the generators suddenly roar to life... sparks shoot from a loose connection and a oblong ball of light suddenly flares into being over the landing pad. For a brief second, the distinct shape of a helicopter begins to grow within the expanding energy...

... then with a deafening explosion the helicopter rips into reality, bursting from the light bubble, sans it's tail section, tips of the rotors, one skid, and the upper half of the body of the door gunner. All of this is moving at its relative velocity of more than 100 mph, but now only half a meter off the ground and inside a building at this point. Three techs and four soldiers barely have a chance to scream before the hurtling wreck slams into them and the machines around them! Electrical arcs explode outward and the rear engine of the copter explodes! The twisted mass careens through a parked jeep and continues in a burning, sparking ball of metal and bodies, smashing into the side of the hanger... tearing a gaping hole in the sheet metal siding... before finally coming to jarring stop.

To their credit, the remaining techs and soldiers spring to action immediately, shaking off their shock and rushing to put out the fire and help the injured. The tech behind the controls desperately hits circuit breakers, shutting down the remaining generators as he gasps, "Oh god. What the hell happened? GET THE MEDICS UP HERE! This is really bad!"

"No," says a commanding female voice from behind the tech, "it's worse than bad." She strides up to him and toward the wreckage, a striking, severe blonde in a conservative business suit. Her voice is firm but bitter as she says, "It means that Metalstone is loose. Too bad. I always liked New York."

 

End Cut Scene

 

 

The monster seems unmoved by the blow. Impetus, normally a giant among men, stands dwarfed before Metalstone, who tilts his head with a possible frown creasing his steely/stony brow and looks down on him.

 

Over the radio comes the sudden chatter, "This is PRIMUS Flight E-1, to Maverick Speedball! ETA 1 minute 30 seconds. Did you say Metalstone? We have that name corresponding to an Alpha class threat! What is your situation?? Over!"

 

Wild Heart's voice cracks through as well, saying, "I'm still a minute away Speedy! MIRV? Impetus? Crusader? What is happening?" Then... "Geez! What was that? I thought I heard an explosion coming from your area?"

 

Note: Impetus does know the little that is known about Metalstone, and he is thought to be a mindless, destructive force. MIRV would know this as well. Runningwolf has completed his shift.

 

Initiative: MIRV (1st), Metalstone (1st), Speedball, Ranger, Dr. Cairo, Crusader, Impetus, MIRV (2nd), Metalstone (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Skinwalker:

Oh man, we are soooooooo boned! I don't think Skinwalker can hurt this guy in the slightest. Neil, you forgot me in the initiative list.

 

The lupine form of Skinwalker turns to Speedball and growls, "You! Get these people out of here! I'll... distract this monster. Your friend," he motions to Impetus, "probably won't last long against that thing. Not that I will likely fare better, but I'll be fine in a few days."

 

And with that, he leaps onto the leg of Metalstone, trying to tear his claws into it.

 

From Impetus:

Impetus comes to a stock-standstill, looking up at Metalstone with that sort of odd stare one gives the Terminator when you've hit him over the head with a poolcue and he doesn't even respond. "Sh!t," he says flatly, impressed but not scared.... Then adds a calm after thought to help out the radio crew: "Ah jes' hit him hard an' he didn't even move. Ah think ah may need some help here."

 

Impetus then gets ready to block and/or dodge and/or deflect (remember, he has his multipower in deflect mode and can deflect attacks at the attacker) Metalstone's response. Having decided that he's not going to knock him out on his own, Impetus decides that he's going to stall Metalstone as long as he can until some additional forces arrive on the scene. If Metalstone attempts to leave, then Impetus will tangle him, which should stall him for an action. Otherwise, Imps goes defensive.

 

From Speedball:

Recognizing that he can do little to directly affect the outcome of this fight, Speedball turns his attention to the radio. "Primus, unless you have

equipment or information that you believe will help the Mavericks contain

Metalstone, keep clear. We've engaged him and there may be fatalities."

 

Then, responding to Wildheart "Metalstone just took Imps best shot without

flinching. We're toast unless we can come up with something beyond brute

force."

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo will spend the whole round (or as long as it takes) getting

back to the fight, but he wants to arrive unseen, so his noncom teleport

will only have 45 points in it. In addition (and he will take the extra

time if saying this delays his action), he will respond to Speedball and

Primus (assuming that they are on the Mavericks channel - if not, ignore

the following), saying "Primus command - this is Dr. Cairo. There are

innocents nearby who may need to be evacuated. MIRV, if this man is as

dangerous as you predict, there must be other paranormals upon whom you

might call for aid. Perhaps it is time to entreat the other heroes of

the city..."

 

Actually, I think I know less about this than even Dr. Cairo might. I

know that Onyx is uptown and owes the Mavs, but surely there are a few

others, if not groups maybe some independents that could be contacted?

 

From MIRV:

After the split second of shock and the blood of the flying torso has soaked into his armor, MIRV will ignore the chatter between Speedball and Primus and interrupt saying, "Speedball from MIRV. Get those Primus Yahoos in here now!" He will then close the range between him and Metalstone. (I can't remember how far away he is) The targeting systems of his chest cannon will activate and he will spend the rest of his phase setting and bracing (If such a thing is possible for someone flying and targeting with a chest cannon.) to avoid hitting Impetus as well as offsetting range. His second phase will be (obviously) to shoot Metalstone. He will abort to dodge or dive for cover if need be.

 

----

 

From GM:

"What the..." sputters the PRIMUS commander... then, "Roger that, MIRV! PRIMUS incoming. Us "yahoos" have a few tricks up our sleeves. Maybe you should leave the situation to the official authorities! PRIMUS out!"

 

Then, any retorts are lost as the battle is rejoined.

 

MIRV: Targeting HUDs lock on to Metalstone, easily targeting over Impetus, and you fire striking dead on with the scarlet intensity of your ruby laser. The beam traces a bright red burn squiggle across his chest, cutting upward at the last and burning right into Metalstone's face. The creature rears back from this, it's mouth opening as if crying out in pain... but no sound comes out, but the strange grinding of stone and metal moving like flesh. (Unbelievable roll. 23 Body on four dice! One point from max damage!)

 

Speedball: You shield your eyes from the glare of MIRV's laser, hesitant and unsure how you can engage a monster like this, but heartened to see that it can be hurt. Metalstone's face glows an angry red where the laser scored it... but like before, it doesn't seem to have cut the giant... only heated it to red hot, not melting, and cooling almost immediately afterward. You then see it lash out, madly, a massive backhand slamming Impetus with amazing speed. The big man barely throws his forearms up to deflect the creature at the last second. What seems to be a casual swing almost demolishing the most powerful person you know (probably a bit tougher than Wild Heart) in an instant.

 

Behind you, Ranger is yelling at the top of his lungs for the crowd to move away, and you notice at least half of them seem to be listening for once. That's when you realize he has gone all furry and werewolf again... looking fierce and menacing... making them run from him... if not the real danger.

 

Skinwalker: You tear into Metalstone's flank trying to ignore the blazing heat around you. Instinctively, you go for the hamstring in a classical crippling move that predators have used for millennia to bring down big game... unfortunately this game is not made of sinew and bone. Your teeth and claws bounce painfully off of the impenetrable steel epidermis as his massive leg slides past you. You don't think the creature even noticed you, though MIRV does seem to have hurt it.

 

Dr. Cairo: Quiet, unseen, unnoticed, you begin to move back toward the main fight realizing that, whatever Antaeus' intent, this new creature is an infinitely greater threat. (NC t-port takes an extra phase, remember. You won't arrive until next round... but you'll be right up there.) You manage to cut through the radio chatter at the last moment with, "There must be other paranormals upon whom you might call for aid. Perhaps it is time to entreat the other heroes of the city..."

 

Impetus: You find your self rocked on your heels, your teeth rattling in your head, but you are still there. Your arms ache from the impact of the unbelievably fast swing that almost took your head off. (You needed a 9 or less... you rolled a nine. My suggestion... if you live through this fight... put some levels in HtH, my friend.) As you blink and reorient yourself, a black shape appears and bounds away, just over your head. Crusader, dashing in, kicking hard for the "throat" area of Metalstone and rebounding just as quickly... his blow seeming to have no effect.

 

Then Metalstone is moving... brushing past you with a strength and force that would be humbling to almost anyone else. His strides are long, covering multiple meters with each step. Impacting the ground like shock waves, his feet sink at least a foot into the ground each time they land. As he moves, his arms swing wide... his inhumanly human like musculature rippling like the ultimate body builders dream... before bringing his arms together in a split instance, just above his head.

 

It's almost like splitting an atom. The impact of the "clap" releases an explosion of force that tears outward and upward with unbelievable strength and speed. Only MIRV and Speedball have a chance to react. (One declared possible dive for cover... the other had a held action, and possible speed and distance to make it.) MIRV blasts his boots upwards against the shock wave, as Speedball backpedals furiously. Only Crusader, Skinwalker and Impetus are close enough to take the brunt of the blast which blows as much over their heads as directly into them. (read: bad roll) Crusader is swept out of the sky to slam into the ground. Skinwalker is knocked down, but undazed. Impetus barely feels it. (Skinwalker takes five stun after defenses... Impetus nothing.) Dr. Cairo and Speedball are blown about a bit... the force of the explosion depleted by the time it reaches Ranger or the crowd.

 

The problem is Metalstone is still up and moving, striding almost directly south, through the softball fields and toward the largest group of onlookers.<<<

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Metalstone (1st), Ranger (1st), Crusader (1st, now NPC), Impetus (1st), MIRV, Dr. Cairo, Skinwalker, Speedball (2nd), Metalstone (2nd), Ranger (2nd), Crusader (2nd), Impetus (2nd)

 

LOTS OF FIVE'S AND SIXES.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Impetus:

"STALL the motherf--ker!" Impetus shouts. "He ain't takin' Enn Why Cee! Trip him or delay him befo' he gets't downtown! Speedy, clear out his forefront!" Impetus then throws out his Armcrusher desperately, hoping to hold Metalstone off. (He's betting that Metalstone will have to stop to get free of his casing.) If Metalstone basically rips free without stopping, then Impetus will switch to active and go for the long-range blast, but if it does work (or he misses, or if he misfires), then he'll do it again until he gets taken down.

 

What did you think I was GOING to use those points for, hmm?

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: Speedball will run in front of Metallstone's path and stop

directly in front of the monstrosity in a seemingly suicidal move to

distract him. Vibrating into insubstantial state (and praying that there's

no "affects desolid' on Metalston's character sheet), Speedball calls out

"over here, big guy! You play with the Mavs, you'd better get ready to go

down!" as he adopts a boxers' stance. The idea is to get him to slow down

and at least use one of his actions to take a swing at Speedball.

 

2nd Action: Assuming he's still alive and in one piece, Speedball broadcasts

over the police emergency channel "Attention police and all available

paranormals: Alpha level threat Metalstone is in Central Park and heading

South from the resevoir. For God's sake, get the civillians out of the way

before this thing kills someone." Speedball will continue to keep up with

Metalstone, assuming he is still moving south. (just how fast is he moving,

anyway?)

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker throws back his head and lets loose with a howl, then charges foreward. He will attempt to knock Speedball to the side (not realizing

that the speedster is insubstantial), yelling, "No, you fool! It'll crush

you!"

 

If possible, he will attempt to get Metalstone's attention, waving his arms

and bark/yelling at him, "Me! Attack me, beast of the Earth!"

 

(Skinwalker will be as defensive as hell, attempting to block with all

levels in OCV)

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo is only arriving on this phase, and that is his action. Dr.

Cairo was pretty horrified by what happened to the copter, did he see

the general area that the upper half of the door gunner went to? If it

went in the water, Cairo will try to take a quick glance to see if it is

floating or not (seems like it is one of the only things that could have

floated coming off of that explosion). If it takes longer than a quick

glance he will go into the first half of next phase to do it.

 

From MIRV:

"I read you Dr. Cairo." MIRV will then broadcast to Yuri. "Yuri from MIRV. If you haven't already, try to contact all paras in NYC on our database and alert them to our situation, then call down to Boston and scramble the Champions. Tachyon and Big Guy should be able to contain this thing." (I assume that MIRV doesn't know that Tachyon is busy getting his a$$ handed to him in space!)

 

In reply to the Primus commander, MIRV says, "Primus commander from MIRV. If your team can stop Metalstone, I'll gladly retract that statement and set them up with free drinks for the rest of the year."

 

What's left of MIRV's action and probably half of his next, will be spent staying in range with Metalstone, bracing and setting, and then firing his entangle pods. He hopes to slow Metalstone down long enough for the rest to catch up. He has no delusions that the pods will hold for long. MIRV is also ready to abort his action if need be.

 

----

 

From GM:

Note: (Metalstone is walking about the speed of a normal running human. Nothing you guy's can't keep up with. I'll let you know if he moves so fast as to make you exert yourselves to keep up.)

 

 

>>>Speedball: You easily get in front of Metalstone, even before Impetus' shouts register with you. You skid to a halt thirty feet in front of the behemoth, kicking in your vibration field and shouting at Metalstone to draw his/its attention. With just the barest glance he continues bearing down on you, not slowing at all. You stomach knots and your throat tightens as a massive foot lifts up and slams down on your head. Metalstone tries to literally walk right over you.

And he does. The earth shakes with the impact of his stomp, but you feel nothing. His leg passes through you harmlessly. As you open your eyes to find yourself unhurt you see the Indian guy, now looking like a big wolf or something, scrabbling toward you, panicked as if trying to save you from the titan. Metalstone didn't stop moving though, continuing his march south without a hitch in his stride.

 

Impetus: You lash out with your gravitational field, having to focus hard to direct the power (i.e. rolled a 14 to activate) but easily targeting the huge villain who is making little effort to avoid being hit. If anything, he/it is glancing about in the air... probably looking for the one who actually hurt him. Then, as Crusader picks himself off the ground and Ranger turns from the fleeing crowds to try and figure out what to try against this monster, Metalstone finds his arms and torso suddenly locked in violet energy, arms akimbo, caught in mid stride/swing. His walk hitches, as if caught slightly off balance...

... then he shrugs. Sculpted muscles as big as your head grind across stony shoulders and with almost contemptuous ease, your "Armcrusher" pops like a balloon... releasing Metalstone to continue onward.

 

MIRV: You rocket ahead of Metalstone, seeing that Impetus was unsuccessful in slowing the creature. You send out your messages, getting a "I am rogering that, MIRV!" from Yuri, and a simple "PRIMUS still inbound on your position!" from the Commander. Then you position yourself for an easy shot at Metalstone, while keeping an eye open for any further attacks. (You are a good forty meters up and away from Metalstone, easy to target him, but hopefully out of range of anything he might try.)

 

Dr. Cairo: Moving up to the water's edge, you are quickly left behind by the battle following Metalstone. Your concentration is on the lake. Looking out, you search for the severed remains of the airman you saw, perhaps floating in the choppy, disturbed surface. With disturbing, morbid satisfaction you believe you see the remains about twenty five meters off shore. The waves of the crash impact quickly subsiding on this day of little wind.

 

Skinwalker: Your diving scrabble is in vain, as you come up to Speedball who is surprisingly untouched by Metalstone's passage. Your snout wrinkles and your ears pin back as you stare at Speedball's vibrating form. He is giving off a low power, but high frequency hum that is irritating to your senses this close to him. It does have the amazing effect of making him near intangible though, and you are relieved to see him unharmed. Ahead of you, Metalstone's massive back continues to retreat, stomping big foot prints across the packed dirt of a softball diamond.

 

Speedball (2nd): You speed off, easily catching up to Metalstone and leaving Skinwalker loping behind you. Over your headset comes a scratchy, choppy reply from the police, saying, "Acknowledged Speedball. This is NYPD Dispatch. CAT squad, fire and medical, plus multiple cruisers enroute. Please estimate your ability to contain Metalstone! Can you keep him in the park? Are their any casualties at this time? We have reports of a downed helicopter?"

At that moment, you see Ranger spring in from Metalstone's right side his body crossing right in front of the adversary, his claws out, scraping at his face. There is a dull "shuungg!" sound from the slice across the eyes, but his hand seems to practically bounce off with no effect. In fact... you notice very distinctly... that Metalstone doesn't even flinch... like even the most powerful human would have the involuntary blink flinch, hesitation if something attacked its eyes... Metalstone doesn't even react.

 

Impetus: This thing is POWERFUL. It went through your field like it was rice paper. Even Wild Heart has to put some effort into breaking out. Metalstone just SHRUGGED! (i.e. Casual strength went right through it) That is HUGELY powerful.

Still, he can be hurt. MIRV toasted his face pretty badly. Maybe energy is the key. With that you jump forward enough to keep up, but not overtake the monster, building up a more explosive discharge of energy. When you land, you aim for the upper back, just as Crusader streaks in low, kicking hard for the back of Metalstone's left knee with a blow that would probably drop even one like yourself... but he rebounds off, with a painful "KLUNGG!" sound, rolling up into a stance, favoring the leg he just kicked with.

Then you release your energies... and your focus is off! Instead of a tight beam of gravitons, your energy spills out and away in harmless waves of energy that light up the area, flattening grass and causing some strange, swirling winds... but doesn't cause any harm to anything. (i.e. 16 on your activation) You hate it when the energy gets out of control... but sometimes it just slips away like that... frustrating and normally harmless... but every instant that Metalstone continues to stand, he becomes more and more dangerous.

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Impetus (1st), Ranger, Metalstone, MIRV, Crusader, Skinwalker, Dr. Cairo, Speedball (2nd), Impetus (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker pauses briefly when he sees Speedball get "stepped on", sagging with relief upon seeing him unhurt. He is about to say something to him when the speedster then speeds on ahead.

 

Then, a light seems to come on over his head. "Great Bear, I've got it!" he says, and shudders again, in the throws of another transformation.

 

This time, however, he shrinks a bit. As before, his clothes stay the same, but the fur changes from the thick, grey pelt of a wolf to a deep brown, with his face becoming pinkish again. His snout changes, the razor sharp teeth retreating until they look more like a rodent's. The tail almost disappears, remaing as a little stub with no fur. What remains at the end: a Mole.

 

(Mole: Senses: Active Sonar, Ultrasonic Hearing; Life Support: Intense heat/cold; Powers: Armour 10/10 (30), PD +6 (6), Tunneling 11" through DEF 11 (55); Psych Lim: Cowardly - avoids combat at all costs)

 

From GM: Sent privately

I was wondering when you'd think of this. Should be very interesting.

 

From Skinwalker/Eric:

Hah! You saw through me... =)

 

I was racking my brain about what the hell we can do to hurt this guy. It's obvious that we can't fight him, and there is no way any of us can do enough damage to knock him back. It was the comment you made about Metalstone not even seeing Speedball that gave me the idea. He made no move to stomp him, or kick him out of the way, but just walked on, as if nothing on the ground can hurt/stop him. So he must not be even looking at the ground.

 

Now, with 11" of tunneling through DEF 11, how fast can he move? How deep a hole can he make? It does not have the advantage of filling the hole in above.

 

From GM:

Assuming you'll try to dig out a trench underneath him, you can easily move 11" in a phase, creating a 1" diameter tunnel under him. Try to dig a tunnel from behind him, so he falls back into a trench. Get in front and move toward him (Easier... but perhaps more dangerous). Come from the side.

 

Maybe even try to star digging straight down, right in front of him, so he falls really deep... but also likely to fall right on top of you.

 

If you can get him in a hole... it will them be a question of how he reacts... what can he do, etc.

 

You have a good idea... now it's a matter of execution, teamwork... and a lot of luck.

 

----

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will finish his action (entangle pods), then spend the rest responding to whatever radio chatter there is. As usual, he is ready to abort.

 

From Impetus:

Brace and fire for the first action, making sure he takes real good aim and avoiding the others. If that hits and has an effect (or if he misses), then he'll fire again. If it bounces off, then he'll try to push, brace, and fire again.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo stand, his eyes closing somewhat as his blood-red cloak swirls around his calves. Palms outward, he shifts, opening his mind to the

world of spirit and shadow. He turns slowly, searching for the shade of

the crewman whose grisly remains float grimly in the lake. When he finds

him, he will speak in the low, commanding voice of the Cant of the Dead,

commanding to him to obey:

 

"Now, shade, tell me who you are and what your mission here was. Tell

me the name of your organization, their purpose, and what frequency they

communicate on. Tell me also everything that you were told about Antaeus

and Metalstone (he will not let him go just yet, he might have more

questions after this. I understand that this might take a number of

actions)."

 

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: Speedball is going to try and extrapolate Metalstone's path and will half move in that direction with the idea that the civilians in the way need to be cleared out before Metalstone arrives. Thus, he will half-move while yelling loudly slowly enough to be understood "Everyone out of the park: This is an emergency. Leave your stuff where it is and get the Hell

out of the way!" (I'm not intangible any more, by the way--gotta save that

juice!)

 

2nd Action: Another half move ahead (making sure Metalstone hasn't shifted

course. "NYPD from Speedball. At least one fatality from the unidentified

chopper. We aren't even slowing Metalstone down, let alone stopping him.

 

Tell CAT to bring energy weapons--big ones. That's the only thing that seems to even make him flinch."

 

----

 

From GM:

Speedball: As before, you have no trouble staying ahead of Metalstone who is moving in a steady straight line that you can easily run circles around. Ahead of the monster, a few dozen people had been gathering but they have already begun to break and run. As you shout and wave you see one man go down, his ankle giving out under him. He lands in a heap, immediately clutching his leg and swearing loudly. He isn't in the direct line of Metalstone's path... but he is close. You also see at least three people with cameras, video and still shot, shooting away like they are at Sea World. This is a common occurrence in New York and other big cities that have more regular paranormal occurrences. People don't often get directly in the way, but they do tend to stay too close for comfort.

 

Impetus: At this point, Metalstone is moving away from you. Nothing as fast as Speedball, but the distance is growing rapidly. He's almost fifty meters away at this point, as you clamp down on your power and focus it out toward the huge, retreating back of the enemy. This time you get it right... the energy pours down your arms and pulses outward in a bright, purple flare. You are glad Metalstone is so big and not paying all that much attention since the range makes the shot a bit tricky. Still, the force strikes home this time, enough to rock the armored giant... slightly. You see no physical damage, but its shoulders twist and his head shakes at the blast. The concussion echoes around the park.

 

MIRV: Relieved to see that the creature can be hurt... even if only slightly, you finish targeting your wire pods... just as Ranger leaps in to attack again. Clearly not expecting to hurt him, the wolf man has a large rock in both hands and is again leaping for Metalstone's face, trying to bring the chunk down on his eyes and mouth in an overhead smash.

He is a second too slow. Metalstone does stop... but only to bring his left fist around with that startling speed of swing that almost took Impetus' head off. Ranger is not as lucky. The blow catches him under the arm in the side of his ribcage, impacting with a horrible "SLAAMMMTTCCHHHLLL!!" sound. Ranger folds like a tissue around his fist, bending in a way a body is just not meant to go. When the swing stops his limp form is flung away like a wet sock, hurtling deep into the outfield of the nearest softball diamond. He sprawls... unmoving. (game description... went for a haymaker, leaving himself open... WHAMMO)

You fire... taking advantage of Metalstone's brief stop. Your pod snaps out of its shoulder launcher to smack into Metalstone's lower hip and immediately flares open in a mass of whipping wire and banded steel. The mesh forms in a split second wrapping a net around his entire lower torso and legs with a loud "SCHANG!"

 

Skinwalker: As you change, you watch in horror as the wolf man is struck down with brutal ease. As your body shrinks and warps into its new form, you see the black armored form of the one they were calling Crusader sprint past you, heading toward the spot where Ranger landed. He is calling out, most likely into his radio (which everyone else will hear as well) "Ranger is down! One shot. God, it looked potentially lethal! Medical assistance needed immediately!"

Then your new body solidifies and you eye your adversary and the ground between you and he. For the moment Metalstone is stopped, which might be a chance for you to catch up before it moves away again.

 

Dr. Cairo: In the real world you stand, silent and alone at the waters edge. Internally, much more happens.

The world goes gray to your eyes as you reach outside the physical realms, looking into those places that no one should see before their time. The shade of the agent is easy to find. It stands alone in the air above the battle, a stark and confused look on its face. The spirit is clearly still wrenched from it's sudden, violent passage to the other side. When your commanding voice reaches it, the pale face of a young man turns to you, eyes wide, jaw slack. His hands move over his torso in an absent way, as if tracing the place where his physical body was severed. Then, in response to your order "Now, shade, tell me who you are and what your mission here was." His mouth opens and your mind is flooded with images....

A locker door. His for the last year. The name "Phillips, M" stenciled on it. M is for Mark... you just know this. Flurry of disconnected images, then you are sitting at a desk in a room with other agents, a manila folder in front of you. "Operation Excavation" on it's cover. Further flurry of images, a page showing operating instructions for modified rocket launcher and its special load. A prototype "teleportation web" that was to be fired on to Metalstone after he had been unearthed... a flurry of mass and inertial calculations, targeting vectors, flight paths... all beyond your understanding. Then glimpses of the flight, and radio frequencies designated for contacting Antaeus, if necessary.

(That's it for now. About one question answered per round, most likely)

 

Speedball (2nd): You move in to a position to help any stragglers when you notice that Metalstone has stopped for the moment. Standing not ten feet from the man with the injured ankle you survey the scene behind you, watching as Impetus closes a bit of the distance before firing again with his graviton blast. You shout into the radio, "NYPD from Speedball. At least one fatality from the unidentified chopper. Tell CAT to bring energy weapons--big ones. That's the only thing that seems to even make him flinch." You get a chatter smothered "Affirmative, Speedball!" that you think was NYPD dispatch, at which point you see a young, Hispanic woman with a small camera running toward you while trying to take a picture at the same time.

 

Impetus: You leap forward about fifteen meters (half move with STR, without Superleap, as you still need your slot in EB) building your energy up again. It feels good to unleash your power without reserve, but it is a bit tiring as well. Still, your focus is on, and Metalstone is halted for the moment. Your bolt hits him but the impact is at an odd angle, careening off his backside without much more effect than tearing away at MIRV's restraint. The blast doesn't totally wreck the mesh wrap, but it does slag it pretty effectively.<<<

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Metalstone (1st), Skinwalker (1st), Impetus, Dr. Cairo, MIRV, Speedball (2nd), Metalstone (2nd), Skinwalker (2nd) Crusader is out of combat for now... as is Ranger if you missed that part.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Impetus:

Shift my power into reflect mode and wait. If Metalstone doesn't take a swing at me, I'll recover; otherwise, I'll reflect the attack. If he comes straight for me, I'll try to punch him out, but I don't really see that happening.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo will now concentrate on learning who this guy worked for -

maybe the name of a superior/leader, the location of the base, and their

radio frequency.

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker blinks in the now uncomfortable light,

wrinkling his nose. Then he drops to the ground, his

hands digging into the ground with blinding speed. He

quickly disappears underground.

 

Neil, the plan is to get ahead of Metalstone, and

start digging a hole large enough fot the figure to

fit into, yet snug enough so that it can't easily get

out. The hole will be a few feet under the ground, so

that the top is covered. I'm sure that with

Metalstone's weight, it will easily break through the

surface. Skinwalker should then have plenty of time

to get out of the way... hopefully...

 

From Speedball:

1st Move: Speedball will pick up the man with the injured ankle with a curt "hold on. I'll get you out of here." And will move away from the fight in

the direction of the woman with the camera.

 

2nd move: Coming to a halt right in front of the woman, Speedball says

"Miss, you're heading the wrong way. Turn around right now or I'll carry

you out myself." Without waiting for an answer, Speedball half-moves in a

direction oblique to Metalstone's last path. He will then put the injured

man on the ground, turn around, and get ready to head back towards the fray (and looking to make sure the woman has turned around like a smart little civillian)

 

From MIRV:

"Impetus and Speedball from MIRV. I'm going to try another entangle to slow him. Speedball, good save on those civilians, see if you can get Ranger out of harm's way. Impetus, let's coordinate our attacks on this guy. If we hit him at the same time, maybe we can actually hurt him." MIRV will brace, then fire another entangle pod; called shot to the same location that the first one hit. If his legs stay entangled, then everyone should get a chance to recover. . .

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: The man "yelps" in surprise as you scoop him up and dash away... crying out, "JEEZE!" as you immediately skid to a stop in front of the young woman with the camera. She screams, and stumbles back, startled by your sudden arrival, but her fear quickly turns to glee when she recognizes you, a big smile coming across her pretty face as she raises the camera again, saying, "Oh madre! Perfect! Don't move, please!"

 

Skinwalker: You tear into the ground, ripping through the earth with ease. You can't see what is happening above but you keep a straight line direction, aiming for where you think Metalstone is heading. Though you have done this burrowing before it's never been at desperate speed. You hope end up in the right place or otherwise you'll have to poke your head up and look around.

Then after you've traveled about twenty meters (you estimate) you feel the ground shake with the rhythmic pounding of what has to be the giant's steps. Dirt and rock dumps around you... shaken loose by the great impacts.

 

Impetus: You were still a number of meters back from Metalstone, not needing to close completely to blast him. As you watch, waiting for a possible counter attack, you see the weird Indian guy, looking like a big ugly mouse or something, dive under the ground and literally BURROW toward Metalstone. Despite of the desperate situation, you are unintentionally amused by the "Bugs Bunny" ripple in the earth that he/it traces across the field, quite evident as he undermines the first to second base line of one of the soft ball fields. He seems to be heading a little away and in front of Metalstone.

Speaking of which, the monster does not attack you, but instead strides forward again, tearing through the mesh around his legs as easily as you'd walk through high grass. You breath deep, preparing to pursue and attack. (recover)

 

Dr. Cairo: You press on, the shade of the dead pilot barely moving before you, its arms slightly fluttering at it's side as you demand, "Tell me the name of your organization, their purpose and the frequency on which they communicate!"

The images that flash before you are confused this time. First there is flash of a National Guard Headquarters in Iowa... then a shot of what looks to be a baseball field... then the Chicago skyline... where a big, black bird... a Raven... flaps across the scene. Then other, disconnected images... a sense of loss... moving from place to place... then a contact from Chicago... a man... the pilot of the helicopter you realize... and movement... a military like base in a dry, desert area... the Southwest part of America... New Mexico... maybe Arizona... somewhere far from any city. Lastly, you see the mission briefing again... the file report again... and a frequency chart... again the one for contacting Antaeus... and two others.

In the real world, your body moves slightly, pulling a leather bound note pad from a breast pocket and writing numbers and letters down in an elegant script.

 

MIRV: Damn! Just as you are lining up another shot and ordering people into position, you see Metalstone step forward and tear out of your mesh entanglement without the slightest signs of effort. His strides move forward, continuing South but seeming to pick up speed. His eyes are up, though... locked on you as you fly above and in front of him.

You fire your tangle wire again. The monster is an easy target and the pod strikes home. Unfortunately, it has almost no effect. The metal net springs out and around Metalstone's legs but his forward momentum stretches and tears it into shreds of steel confetti without slowing him at all. Just then, Crusader's voice comes over the comm, saying, "I've got Ranger. Christ! He's a mess! I can't believe he's still alive, but I don't know how long that will last! His ribs are completely shattered!"

 

Speedball (2nd): After ordering her away, you are gone before she can snap the picture... running an easy dozen meters or so and setting down the injured man. When you look back, the woman has spun around looking for you, that smile still on her face like she's having the time of her life. You realize she can't be more than twenty. "AAAHHH!!" she shrieks in happiness when your eyes meet, "You can grab me ANYTIME!" she shouts, practically giggling. She takes a step toward you... thankfully in the right direction now, when suddenly a massive "KAWHOOOM!" explodes from Metalstone and another wave of concussive force washes toward you. You are far enough away, but the woman is caught in the edge of the blast. Her face turns from glee to fear as she picked up off her feet and tossed toward you, roughly.

 

 

As Metalstone strode forward, actually picking up pace and closing a bit on MIRV's position, his muscles again rippled along his shoulders, and his arms snap out and around, bringing his hands together in a massive thunder clap. Though clearly intending to blow MIRV out of the air, the explosive concussion rips outward in all directions. At approximately twenty meters away, the blast strikes MIRV with enough force to send him spinning back through the air though not enough to harm him through the armor. This action does bring Metalstone to a near stop, as he glares over his clasped hands at the armored Maverick righting himself in the air. Then the creature lurches. His right leg seems to give out on him. His body tilts in a strangely rigid manner as his head lowers, brow furrowing in confusion, to watch the ground to the side of him give way like a sink hole, taking him down with it.

 

Skinwalker (2nd): The resonance of the heavy foot steps seemed to be moving away from you even as you dug. With a burst of energy you started digging at a dizzying speed, tearing forward, trying to somehow catch up to the striding giant. Suddenly there was a "BOOM" and a heaving like a bomb went off over your head, nearly collapsing your tunnel around you... but you dug on, tearing through the packed earth, no longer trying to conceal your approach. Then... just as you felt you must be completely in the wrong place... a loud "sshhrruucckkk!" comes from behind you and you turn to see the entire tunnel collapse,as the massive, pile driver like leg of Metalstone comes thrusting down, missing you by little more than two meters.

 

Brief shot of the battle scene. Metalstone has paced about a hundred meters from where he started leaving a path of destruction, but now is in the bizarre position of being off balance, with one leg buried up to the waste in the worlds largest gopher hole.

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), MIRV (1st), Impetus, Skinwalker, Dr. Cairo, Speedball (2nd), MIRV (2nd)

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From MIRV:

"Impetus. That's what we've been waiting for! Pile on as much of that energy as you can!"

MIRV will brace,set,push(15pts if it's possible to push it, I mean, it does cost END and all.) his chest cannon. Then do it again, aborting if needed.

 

From Impetus:

"MIRV, drop the damn pods!" says Impetus just before Metalstone strikes. "Ah hittim wit' mah Armcrusha, and neitheruvus ain't slowin'im -- "

 

BOOM.

 

"Sh-t."

 

He hears MIRV's cry come across the wire, then shouts, "Hang on, MIRV! We fire together hiddim at the same time an' maybe we can hurt him!" Assuming that MIRV listens, Impetus will brace, stand, fire (and do whatever else he can to make sure he hits, including moving closer), push to the max and try to coordinate an attack with MIRV. Failing that, Impetus just fires at normal pace and tries to jam Metalstone further into the ground.

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: After seeing the woman tossed by the blast, Speedball will run over to her, pick her up. As he does so, he turns on his comm again "NYC rescue, I got two non-critically injured civilians by the (give the

position--I've sort of lost track). Please swing in for a pick-up."

 

2nd Action: Speedball will take the woman to where he dropped the man. He

comes to the same skidding stop as usual and lets her down. "Miss, you

follow me back into this battlezone and I'll have you arrested. Stay here

and take care of this man until help arrives." With that, he begins to tear

off back to the scene, scanning for more civilians to rescue. (Neil, how'm I

doing on juice?)

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will delay his attack so that he and Impetus fire on the same phase. He replies to Impetus by saying, "Oh I'm with you on that one. Let's take this thing down."

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker continues to dig, this time below the leg,

in an attempt to make the hole bigger, allowing all of

metalstone to drop in, wedging his shoulders in to

prevent him being able to leverage himself out with

his arms.

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Dr. Cairo snaps out of his trance, saying "right..." as he looks around

for the fight. Seeing how far it is, he mutters "damn." and makes a

half-move t-port, taking the second half-phase to try the first of the

two frequencies not assigned to Antaeus.

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: In the blink of an eye you have scooped up the woman, and are retreating again, calling over radio to the police. Before any reply comes back, you feel the woman's arms wrap around you in a strong hug as she clings to your chest and neck, her left arm coming about your head, and half dislodging your headset from your ear. "Oh god, oh god, oh god..." she is saying over and over, as her head comes up and she shakes it a bit clear, staring right at your chest and the "S" logo there. Her words almost immediately go up in volume to "Oh My GOD!" as she realizes who is carrying her... and her arms tighten around you even more.

 

MIRV: You line up your shot as Impetus leaps closer. Targeting arrays triangulate on Metalstone's head as the giant puts it's hands down onto the ground, and heaves upward, trying to pull itself out of the ground. It is only partially successful, as the pressure from the massive strength causes further collapse of the ground around the sink hole. His leg does come up somewhat, but his right arm goes into the ground much too deeply, and he flounders for a second, unable to get purchase. At this point, you see Impetus land much closer, his energy pouring around him, and then release in a haze of purple. You give the calm command of "Fire."

 

Impetus: The behemoth is an easy target and you blast him dead on... though you notice that MIRV's shot nearly misses, as the creature bends at the last second and the laser, noticeably brighter and more intense than usual, just grazes it's back. Your blast kicks up dirt and splays all along the metal and stone body... but you really can't tell if it hurt the beast or not. It has yet to make any kind of vocalization. It's thrashing in the ground covers any possible physical response to the attacks against it.

 

Skinwalker: The earth around you churns like a turbulent sea as Metalstone lifts and pushes and digs and tears, trying to pull himself out of the collapsing earth. With difficulty you dig downward, having a hard time navigating and even breathing as the tunnel collapses as quickly as you dig it and the dirt starts to suffocate you. (No damage yet, but you have "breathe in water" but not "doesn't need to breathe" so it could get messy.)

Still, you forge downward trying to undermine Metalstone's position even more... when suddenly your digging claws slash into and THROUGH a concrete barrier and you find yourself plunging a few feet into foul smelling, thick, viscous, disgusting stream of dirt and waste. You immediately rear up out of the foul bath you find yourself in... realizing you've tunneled your way right into a sewer... when suddenly the earth and curved pipe above you collapses and you are slammed downward and buried by a massive weight plunging through the loosened earth (take five stun... NND... from choking/suffocating)

 

Dr. Cairo: Stepping through the shadows you key your radio to the first frequency you have. Ahead of you, you see Metalstone easily weathering the attacks of MIRV and Impetus... but suddenly plunge into the earth even deeper than he already had fallen, disappearing in a plume of dirt.

On the radio... you pick up only static.

 

Speedball: When you try to drop the girl... you find that she doesn't want to let go. Her arms are wrapped tightly about your neck and all you are able to gasp out is "Miss... !!" When you release your arms she hangs on to you, swinging her legs to the ground but thrusting her body into yours. Her face... quite pretty in a young, fanatical and disturbing way... is right in yours as she hangs on your neck. She practically nuzzles your mask, as she gasps, "Oh wow! You are soooo HOT!"

 

You realize at that point she isn't even twenty. Probably an uncomfortably attractive and developed FIFTEEN would be more like it.

 

MIRV: You move over the hole into which Metalstone has plunged, trying to get a second shot and seeing only his head barely pushing through the loose soil filling over him. Another shot might hit... but would more likely strike dirt and be absorbed. For the moment, though, Metalstone is contained.

 

Initiative: Speedball (1st), Metalstone (1st), MIRV, Skinwalker, Dr. Cairo, Impetus, Speedball (2nd), Metalstone (2nd)

 

Ok... to make up for my mistake, you need to jump ahead to

Post #337

to get the correct continuity... then come back to post 320 after those nine posts. Sorry for the confusion.

[RDU Neil]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

From Speedball:

1st Action: "Everyone keep pouring it on while I go find the bands that were

keeping Metalstone from moving! Primus Commander--get any techs you have

ready to see what these things are." With that, Speedball tosses the lance

to Skinwalker and tears off for where they found th creature. (I'm assuming

it can't be a tough thing to backtrack and find the bands)

 

2nd Action: Depending on the distance involved, Speedball will grab the

restraints and head back towards the PRIMUS ship--or keep looking for the

bands.

 

From Skinwalker:

Skinwalker will tunnel slightly closer to Metalstone,

so as to be ready to rescue someone should the

creature be about to smite him/her mightly.

 

(Half-move towards the fight, holding rest of action

and second action to tunnel under someone should it

prove necessary.)

 

From Dr. Cairo:

Not sure if Metalstone is out or not, as he is not in the iniative

order. Either way, Dr. Cairo will maintain the last command (keep paying

end.), and take a phase to activate his aid again (I have lost track of

his end, but it must be very low at this point).

 

From MIRV:

MIRV will try the same attack as last time, only no pushing and he wont waste time syncing w/ Crusader. He will brace and set and try to aim for the same head shot he scored last time. "Crusader, see if you can get over to that cattle prod that Speedball left. We might need you there just in case this thing isn't down for the count."

 

---

 

From GM:

Speedball: You toss down the energy lance and tear backwards, following the trail of destruction back to it's beginning. It's not hard to see where all this started, as the great lawn is torn up, with a ruinous path through the trees, crossing the now wrecked 85th Street pass through, directly to the reservoir. You run through the gathering crowds, showing up where a lone officer has reached the original sight of the battle, and is trying to keep the crowds back. Your appearance startles the crowd and pushes it back some, but delays your initial search for the original bindings.

(Note: after visiting Central Park, I realized I had not known about the heavily wooded areas, and the 85th Street that cut through the park. That would have been a major hazard for all, had I known. Oh well... live and learn.)

 

Skinwalker: Against your better instincts, you plow toward Metalstone, getting close enough to poke your head up out of the ground and look around. For the moment, Metalstone is still... and you see the strange silver staff that Speedball had used lying a few feet away. Speedball is nowhere in sight, but Wild Heart charges past you, toward Dr. Cairo, ready to engage the monster again, if he moves. The Dr. stands stock still, just staring at the beast, though he looks a little pale and drained.

 

Then the sky lights up again, as MIRV fires his laser, and the remaining Iron Guard unload on Metalstone as well!

 

MIRV: Crusader yells, "Gotcha! On my way!" And snaps free of the connections between his armor and yours. Immediately, the color overlay leaves your visual HUD, and you target normally, firing your chest cannon again, though not spiking the power levels, as you have again dropped low on your generator charge. Your laser strikes home, burning into the now unmoving giant, just as the Iron Guard fire away as well. Over the radio, you hear the female IG near you say, "I really hope this works, 'cause we are OUT of ammo after the next salvo!" The concussion and heat from the multiple energy batteries sends billowing waves of dust and hot wind across the Great Lawn.

 

Dr. Cairo: The world erupts around you again, as you reach deep into Metalstone's mind, submerging it deeper, making it sleep... rest... retreat. Unlike most intelligent beings, this is not an easy task, as it's core consciousness seems to maintain a state of barely controlled rage... but it seems to be working...

... and then Wild Heart is hauling you backward as you feel the heat of an energy blast much too close to your position for comfort. "Watch your ass, Doc!" she yells. Putting herself between you and the incendiary display. "You put some kind of mojo on this guy?" she asks, as you feel a replacement of energy come up through your system, flowing from the glowing ankh on your chest. (Yes, you are almost out of END... but things look ok at this point.)

 

Speedball: Dashing through the people, you scramble in the dirt, pulling up the most obvious metal banding. It's heavy stuff, and looks to be some kind of flexible steel. The only thing that seems special about it is the burnt out electronic lock/transmitter attached to the band. There were probably at least five of these, and MIRV was given one before the fight started. You find a couple more, but have no way of taking them off the band, so you start running back, trailing ten foot long, two in wide strips of metal in your wake. It does make the crowd back off even faster.

 

Skinwalker: As the latest fusillade goes out, you see the black armored form of Crusader drop into the area, and pick up the metal staff. He twirls it around, taking it in a fighting stance, then notices you poking your head out of the ground. "Uh... hey there. Good work bogging down the big guy." He holds out the staff toward you, triggering the button that makes the business end flare. "You want to take a whack at him?"<<<

 

Off combat for now. Just let me know what you want to do.

[aylwin13]

Re: PBEM - RDU: The Mavericks - Example & Discussion

 

Wow, my favorite thread is back.

 

And to think, just yesterday I finally took it off of my subscribed list. Neil's typing fingers must have been burning.