Freedom Reborn

Scene One - East Vallee Industrial Park

You don't know what caused the explosion. You don't know why an abandoned warehouse just outside of the Lakeside district would explode. What you do know is that explosions shouldn't be green and that green explosions are worth a closer look.

You are among the first in the area. The warehouse is in the middle of the East Vallee industrial park. After the industrial works allegedly started polluting the ground near the natural beauty of Lake Vallee, the disreputable landowners of the estate closed most of the facilities. Only a few private enterprises and storage facilities still operate, on the principle that their operations cause no further environmental damage. Everything else has become dilapidated over the last two decades. The park has been a matter of shame or disgust for the increasingly gentrified region of Lakeside.

For this reason it will be a while before the police, and whatever investigation unit they may dispatch, arrive. Even longer before they begin actually investigating. The first of the police sirens can be heard from beyond the small wall that separates Lakeside from the industrial park.

The warehouse itself was, until very recently, of a very nondescript rectangular footprint with a very nondescript sloped roof. In the last few minutes however, chunks of brickwork and cement have been hurled onto the adjacent roads like a paint splatter. Where those walls once stood are now gaping holes in various parts of the structure. Regardless of the angle from which you approached the building, parts of the steel structure of the walls and roof are exposed. The air is full of dust and green smoke, slowly starting to settle or disperse.

With the visibility still unclear, it is hard to tell what ever went on in this particular warehouse. From where you stand, beyond the metal wire fence between you and the warehouse, there are no signs to give any clues as to who operated here, and certainly nothing that tells tales of why the building exploded with such magnificent viridescence.

You arrived alone, either for curiosity, for a keen sense for opportunity or simply for a habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. You know, however, that something this dramatic in a place like emerald city is sure to attract other superhumans, vigilantes . . . and maybe a few villains.

Spoiler

You may begin your character's introduction from whatever point of the story you like. This can be anywhere between before the explosion to the end of my narration. Take this opportunity to describe your character to the other players, and if you choose to, take a closer look at the scene.

As we go on, I will use these spoiler dialogues to give short OOC tutorials during this first scene, or descriptions of why a roll is done in a certain way. For rolls themselves, I will use the code tag. Longer explanations of what's happening under the hood will take place in the OOC thread.

Five minutes ago, in the downtown region

Cheerful music filled the air.  There was nothing remarkable about it to people walking around.  They did not notice that they music was louder than it should have been, or that it could be hear for far too long before any source could be seen, or that the sound stood out just a bit more than it should have.  No, in spite of his best efforts, Bill Morgan, the self-proclaim Organ King was not having the best of days.

In appearance, he was quite old fashioned.  He wore a band style uniform, mostly blue with a splash of red.  On both sleeves were the words "Organ King." His street organ hung on a strap running around his neck and shoulder. A small platform had been built on its side, right underneath the crank.  The platform was currently empty, Bill grinding the organ himself.  On his right shoulder sat a capuchin monkey wearing a small uniform jacket identical to Bill's.  When the song ended, the monkey climbed down his body, picked up a jar sitting at Bill's feet and began running up to the very few people nearby.

"Bill Morgan the Organ King thanks you for your kind patronage and any more tangible appreciation you choose to show."  No one does.  The monkey returned to his shoulder as  he began to grind the organ again.  A minutes later, there was an explosion in the distance.  Bill stopped playing, staring in the direction of the smoke. Bill could see that it came from the direction of the Industrial Park.  "That will be all for today folks, and thank you for your patronage.  Bill Morgan, the Organ King will be back tomorrow." Bill then quickly went to his car, a beat up Yellow Jetta parked by the side of the street, deposited the organ in the back, and began to head in the direction of the explosion.

Wild Card stands across the street from the exploded warehouse where even now a small crowd of people are beginning to congregate.  His clothing - black slacks, a black long sleeved dress shirt with red sleeve garters under a white vest, and mirrored shades - made him stand out amongst the regular jeans and t-shirt-types that normally populated the Lakeside area. First the lead proved wasteful, he thought to himself, and now the only potential lead left  that I know about is an exploded warehouse spewing green-coloured smoke. Today is not a good day.

The faint sound of approaching sirens brought a frown to his face.  "Cops," he mumbled under his breath, "just what I need right now.  This job better be worth it!"

Sighing heavily, he crossed the street and slowly pushed his way through the crowd. Watching for signs of someone trying to make a hasty exit from the scene or anything that might give him an idea if his quarry was near, he shouldered his way to the front of the crowd and took in the full view of the warehouse.

"Green smoke," Wild Card mutters, "Don't see that everyday.  Probably contains something poisonous and me without any breathing protection.  This day is just getting better and better."

Spoiler

I know the intro stinks but once we get running and everything, the writing will get better. I just gotta get into the groove of my character a little....and see what everyone else puts forth to play off of too.

The ants crawled across a barren landscape, no destination in mind. Their small scale search for nearby provisions hadn't attained any results. Still, they wandered, they looked, they did their duty. For the colony. For the queen.

She lay, resting, her garments crumpled. The ground hadn't been right in this area. Too hard. Filled with poisons. Too much like the old place. Still, there were less people here. Empty spaces. It was a place to rest. She had been on the run for some time now, and while mobility of this level was interesting, it was taxing too. So she rested. She dreamed, though she did not fully understand what this meant.

She was roused by a loud and terrible sound. The ground shook. The colony felt it, called the seekers home. She wondered if this would bring more people, if she should flee? Yet, she was interested. They had aroused a curious nature in her, some pulling feeling. She would send a small convoy, see what was happening. It was the only way to learn. Herself and the colony would keep their distance for now, stick to the hidden places. Try to remain unnoticed. Try to remain safe.

The ants crawled across a barren landscape, with a destination in mind.

Bill Morgan

You approach the scene in your vehicle. You become aware that, except for the distant sirens, your vehicle is the only thing making any sound. The warehouse itself is silent now, despite the extraordinary percussion with which it announced itself. You are still driving towards it in your vehicle. The windscreen is beginning to dust up as you approach, and any onlookers that you pass are keeping their distance from the thicker fog of debris.

Spoiler

Keep in mind that doing anything significant in a car would require a point in the car skill. I'm going to say you're incapable of any manoeuvre beyond turning corners, reversing, three-point-turning... and will receive a severe penalty or instant fail if a driving skill is needed.

Wildcard
Perception 7 vs DC10
d20 = 2
Failure to 1 degree

You may have pushed your way to the front of the small, growing group on onlookers, but in front of you is the thick dust of concrete. Even the evening sun is dulled by the cloud, but still harsh enough to make the scene ahead appear to be a blurred, fiery red hue with the green glow of the warehouse framed in the centre. You are near the edge of the industrial park, still a few rows of warehouses away from the explosion. If anyone remotely capable was leaving the scene, they would have done so under the cover of the dust and would have ran in the opposite direction. As you begin to survey, a few members of the crowd behind you try to nudge their way in front of you, in the same fashion you did to them.

Queen Ant
Perception 14 vs DC10 (Routine)
d20 = 17
Success to four degrees

The small detachment of ants rapidly navigate their way under the small fence, into the perimeter of the industrial park and finally arrive at the exploded building. You may not understand the precise differences between complete piece of architecture and an exploded wreckage, but you can instinctively glean that there is something extremely wrong with this structure. Maybe it's the eerie, greenish hue it seems to be emitting from within. Nowhere else seems to have that.

You become aware of three more oddities. There is a small crowd of humans forming near to the ants. Most of them have mouths gaped, eyes glossed, communicating in uncertain murmurs and mumbles to each other. But there is one at the front who looks at the scene with intent. Something about his eyes indicate a talented observer. The second particularly strange human seems to trapped in some sort of yellow box on wheels. Though the windows into the box are becoming dusty, you can tell that he is more brightly coloured in his fabrics. You also observe that he is not alone: another very, very small human is with him.

The third strange human you notice is high on the rooftops nearby. He is crouched, caped, waiting.

When observing the building, you notice you could enter from five different ways in. On the ground level are two large but closed dock doors. There is a smaller door, about the right size for a human to get through. Higher up, the walls of the building have collapsed in two places. It's not like walls have ever stopped determined enough ants anyway.

Spoiler

Since Cat didn't really specify what he was doing, other than approaching the scene, I didn't have much to roll. That's fine, of course. It's easy to assume he was successful in approaching the scene since that requires no special skill or power of any sort.

In DJ's case, he failed the roll by 1. This would be within one degree of failure, which I'll explain in a bit. Where perception is concerned, degrees of failure probably won't mean a whole lot to you - I'm obviously not going to tell you what you've missed. In these cases, I hope to try and create a prompt for characters to do more so that failure isn't just a narrative dead end. In this case, the crowd pushing back might deliver a sense of urgency or require the character to move. If you feel like you aren't given any space to move your character, let me know and I'll adjust.

Now, Queen Ant has a high perception skill. It was higher than the Difficulty Class I gave to the perception check, so he could only have failed if he rolled a 1. That's going to be a routine check. If we were playing in real time, the player could opt not to roll their dice in this circumstance so as not to risk the critical fail, while choosing to roll may offer higher degrees of success. Since we aren't playing in real time, I will roll on a routine check and you will like it. In tamer circumstances than this, you would all be able to achieve a DC10 perception check routinely.

Since he rolled 17, the total of his skill + his roll was a huge 31. Every integer of five between the outcome and the difficulty is another degree of success or failure, to a maximum of four. He achieved four here, so he saw both Bill Morgan and Wildcard, as well as several ways into the building, and more mysterious things.

Obviously, even though you can see the narration for Queen Ant, her observations only account for Unkoman. Both Wildcard and Bill Morgan only have the narration given to them.

"Damn smoke," Wild Card mutters, "blocking me from seeing anything. Guess I'm going to have to go in blind! Can this day get any better?"

Not seeing a way around the fence, Wild Card climbs the fence, hoping it's not electrified. Even as he climbs, he scans the warehouse for a nearby "entrance" - whether it be a door or a gapping hole, he doesn't care - to the warehouse.

Spoiler

I'm just looking for the nearest entrance, no other details per say.

The scene looked pretty bad.  Even at a distance, it was getting harder to see.  Bill parked his car at the first place he could find, then climbed out, removing the organ from the back seat.  The monkey climbed up him, then took his place on the organ's platform and grabbed the crank.

Bill continued to approach the scene, looked for anyone in need of help or rescue.

Spoiler

The car was just an excuse to get him there.  I had planned on him walking up to the scene anyway with the assumption he had parked it somewhere.  I have no plans on ever doing anything significant with it.

The crowd was getting bigger. Her natural instinct was to avoid, but she did not feel fear. The humans seemed to be too busy gawking to notice her, but the colony reformed an approximation of their shape anyhow, just in case a stray glance came her way. A few among the crowd stood out. She didn't understand why the one up high watched and waited, but the other one with the intense eyes... He seemed like he could be trouble. She'd try to avoid him for now. Try to avoid everybody. Stick to the shadows, the small corners, be ready to disperse. Still, if there was a hidden way to get closer, she would use it.

The small group of ants marched single file towards the large doors. Either slipping under or trying to dig, they would check the inside of this odd glowing structure. Human structures were so strange, built with their own walls. She hadn't really been inside one for some time. What would this one be like on the inside? Curious.

Wild        Card

You vault the fence and charge into the dust without a problem. If the fence was ever electrified, it has been long turned off.

As the crowd behind you turns from a haze to a blur, the warehouse does the opposite. You can now make out some more details. You are in the delivery forecourt of the warehouse. Ahead of you are two large delivery doors for trucks to reverse into. Currently, both are closed. Higher up, the top right corner of the wall you are facing has been blasted open. Chunks of brickwork from the opening now litter the ground around you, though the roof seems to have fallen inwards. You can't help put be aware of the green glow emitting from within, casting verdant rays in the dust. It doesn't seem to have faded since the explosion.

Already, the dust is beginning to disperse.

Bill Morgan
Perception 11 vs DC10 (Routine)
d20 = 13
Success to 3 degrees.

Of all the people who have arrived, you seem to be the only one who made it this far into the industrial park with a vehicle. The other onlookers, numbering less than a couple dozen, all either ran from the edge of Lakeside or were one of the few warehouse workers still using this place. Nobody was fleeing the scene, which might indicate that anyone responsible or victim of the explosion would be inside. Assuming, that is, that this isn't some sort of freak incident.

For a moment it seemed like nobody was making any effort to help anyone trapped inside until you see one man climb over the metal fence and rush into the dust and debris. With the intent that he moved he surely must be on the lookout for survivors. He might even know more of what happened. As the dust starts to disperse, he is becoming clearer but it is still difficult to get a read.

Where you left your car is a short distance from the gate into the deliveries forecourt. The perimeter of the warehouse is surrounded by the wire fence, you can spot that a mix of age and explosions has dismantled the hinges of the gate. From where you stand, you can see that the delivery end of the warehouse has two large dock doors, a side entrance and one more opening in the form of a large missing chunk of the building.

Queen Ant
Stealth 9 vs DC10
d20 = 13
Success to three degrees

You and your colony remain undetected by the humans, a safe distance away from the trouble. Nor does anyone notice the very purposeful looking ants marching towards the wreck. The small cluster of ants begin the job of excavating the mortar from the brickwork around the door. Working rapidly, they create a little loop around the steel tracks of the warehouse door. As they work, you become aware that the man you noticed earlier has come closer to the scouts. With the tunnel complete, they enter.

Perception 14 vs DC20
d20 = 3
Failure to one degree.

The space they are in is especially dusty. Without clear, still air and with the dust swirls sweeping every surface, it would be hard to deploy pheromones correctly to guide or organise them. As they enter the space from the tunnel one by one, you get a picture of what the scouts see. To them, surrounded by towering steel and concrete rubble, the interior of the warehouse seems impossible to navigate. The air feels thick and heavy, with a green hue that lingers in the dust.

Spoiler

A little background knowledge that I won't reveal in future instances: I rolled a perception check for both Wild Card and Bill Morgan versus a Stealth check for Queen Ant. In both cases, Queen Ant won. Since even just telling you that I made that roll would indicate that there is something to look out for, I'll often keep those sorts of rolls secret.

In Unko's roll, even though he got a high degree of success, the outcome of stealth is kind of binary - you're either seen or you're not. In some cases, the consequences could be worsened by dice rolls.

Unko: I remember us talking about the borrowing ability being indirect, but the modifier has disappeared off your character sheet. I'll treat it as still there being there for now; maybe I had good reason for removing it that I can no longer remember.

I'm not getting paid enough for this, he thinks to himself as he nears the building. With how my luck is going, that blasted suit will double cross me too.

Reaching the building, Wild Card flattens his body - back first - against it's exterior wall. Sldestepping stealthly, he comes to the double doors. Hope these aren't locked because I left my picks at home.

Wild Card carefully reachs out - making sure to keep his body flat against the wall - with his right hand and tries to push the nearest door open...

She knew he was dangerous. Now he seemed to be heading the same direction as her dispatch. Had he spotted them? Was he here to bring her back? A few workers for the sake of their queen was no great loss, but she still felt responsible. She had strange feelings like this since what they had done to her. It was confusing. Her scouts hadn't learned much from inside building, and it was still difficult for her to remember the difference in perspective that she now held. They would have to wait for now. Keep on the move. Hug the small, dark corners. Stay away from the man, if they could. Come back to the colony when they could.

The queen turned her attention to the two who climbed out of the box. She had seen these structures before. They moved with incredible speed. She did not understand how. They weren't organic. They held these humans inside them. It didn't make sense. Still, time for worrying about that later. These two must be of the same colony. Their outer markings were the same. No, not markings. These strange things humans draped themselves with. Like what she wore now, what she had found on her first night out. She would have assumed almost all humans were flowing and white, but since leaving the place she had learned they have all sorts of colourings.
The smaller one, there was something familiar. She vaguely remembered the flowing white people keeping some smaller, darker people in cages, but she hadn't seen much of that. She had seen other small humans since she had been out, though. Not in cages. They seemed to be taken care of by the larger ones. Were they queens? Were the larger ones workers? It was hard to tell.

They seemed very interested in the happenings. Moreso than the rest. Would they follow the other man?

Could she slip past the crowd? Find another way to get close to the structure that had broken?

Spoiler

No problem. I'll take it like the ants are less inclined to take on big tasks in general, without more of the group. That would make sense. They don't tend to do much tunneling on their own.
I'll just try to do what I can and leave whether it works or not to you. In essence I am just playing the queen and trying to mentally command all these other ants. So maybe they do stuff or maybe they are too unintelligent or incapable of doing it.
Oh, and so you know, she should be wearing her coat and hat right now, too, to blend in a little more, though if anybody scrutinized her they might notice something wasn't right. Leave that to dice? I think that's what I had in my mind for expansion of the stealth aspect.

Wild Card

The door is locked. It would also require lifting rather than pushing, but it's locked however you move it.

Spoiler

It's two large docking doors rather than a double door.

small posts like this will be used to give individual players a bit more information without leaving them behind. This way, DJ can make a new decision without other players being given the opportunity to accelerate beyond him. I'm not ignoring other posts, just keeping the timing steady.

A rough expletive escapes Wild Card's lips as he discovers the bay doors looked. Sighing heavily, he continuess to stealhly slide/creep around the warehouse in search of an easier - and hopefully unlocked - entrance.

As he goes, he notices the green dust glowing.  That's not good, he thinks before continuing on. My quarry best be here or I'm going to be ticked...

Bill Morgan thinks for a second about following the other man, but realized that it better to go elsewhere and help the people that he doesn't. he instead approached the broken gate and will try to move it off its hinges enough to get in.  If he does, he will enter the building through the destroyed wall and will continue to try to find any signs of survives with the help of his monkey.

Spoiler

Help of his money is just for story purpose.  His perception score was made to account for both of them anyway.

Queen Ant

Stealth 9 vs DC10
d20 = 15
Success to 2 degrees

Even by human standards, your choice of dress is quite conspicuous. However you are fortunate to been preceded two other equally unusually dressed humans into the chaos, so the crowd is getting used to it at this point. Some of them are still trying to keep track of the two humans ahead, both finding different ways into the structure. Others have begun to chatter, giving uneducated opinions on how this occurred. Some insist that they should wait for cops. Others insist that they should wait for superheroes.

You wait for neither and walk ahead. Whether you choose to behave like a human and find a way around the fence or, given what you are, simply walk through the permeations of the wire fence, you would find yourself in the deliveries forecourt with no further suspicions aroused.

You can still see the three entrances you did before. There are the two bay doors - which one of the humans seems to have just given up on - a door to the west and a large, wrecked hole partway up the building to the east. The two brightly garbed figures are heading towards that hole.

Wild Card

Failing to nudge the bay door, you move around to the western side of the building. There, you find a personnel entrance. It looks as though it had been locked, but the same explosion that had blasted walls off the warehouse also bent the door out of shape. It takes a sharp pull, but it opens with a unenthused groan. You find yourself in the southwest interior corner of the warehouse.

Perception 7 + (d20 = 15) vs Stealth 0 + (d20 = 8)
Success to three degrees

From the corner of your eye, you see someone else enter into the warehouse by climbing over the damaged wall to the east. He doesn't exactly look dressed for the occasion. You spot an unstable metal panel seesaw on the roof above him. It looks like it would crash onto him if it fell. With the sound of steel groaning under the uneasy structure, it seems very likely.

You notice that he has spotted you.

Bill Morgan

The gate is easy to force ajar enough for you, the monkey and the organ to squeeze through. You opt for a different route to the other rescuer, who is trying to lift a locked bay door as you pass. The air is thicker and foggier with dusty debris as you approach the building, but there isn't the smell of smoke that you might have expected from an explosion.

The base of the wall is still intact, the blasted entrance a little over head height. The capuchin might be able to make the leap up without difficulty, but it would take some effort to climb on your part. From it, you can see the green glow casting rays of light in the dust.

Strength 1 + (d20 = 10) Vs DC10
Success to one degree

Fallen debris, a closed dumpster and damaged brickwork make for good footholds to make it up and over the wall, even encumbered as you are by the organ.

As you make it into the southeast interior corner of the warehouse, you can hear the groan of an unstable steel joint.

Perception 11 + (d20 = 15) vs Stealth 9 + (d20 = 14)
Success to one degree

As you ascend over the wall, someone else has entered the building. It looks like the fellow ahead of you had opted for another route in. In fact, it looks like he had simply just found the back door.

Wild Card & Bill Morgan

The warehouse looks like it could have been a manufacturing plant rather than a storage facility. The ground floor where you find yourself was the machine floor. Rusted, blackened machines and broken conveyer belts make an elaborate route, forking and turning, rising and dropping at various points. Dulled and aged as they are, the metal reflects the green glow that lingers in the air, giving everything a mossy gloss.

Unhappy and unsure of the new arrival, Wild Card very subtly flicks his right wrist causing three playing cards to fall out of his sleeve into his waiting hand. Best to be prepared when it comes to colourfully dressed interlopers, he thinks.

"I'd turn back if I was you," he shouts out while motioning towards the metal panel with his eyes. "Course, if you want to splatter yourself on the floor it's none of my business."

Happy that the interloper has been warned, Wild Card starts to cautiously search the area for clues - making sure to keep the newcomer in sight.

Spoiler

Using investigate skill for search via Jack of Trades and hope I beat the Dc...I'll use my hero point to improve roll

Bill is taken aback somewhat the response, but realized that he hardly looks like a typical rescuer, or even a typical hero.

"Thanks for the warning, friend, but there may be people in need of help.  If do find anyone that can't get to let us know.  Bill Morgan, the Organ king has his ways. Still you are right that caution is in order.  Confidence, if you please."

At this the monkey stands on the platform and begins cranking the organ.  Strangely the sound seems--muffled?  Certainly not right for any sort of instrument in proper working order and very quiet.  If anyone is standing close enough, they might notice that the sound seems to be coming, not from the instrument itself, but the air around Bill.  If the light were brighter, or someone had visions keen enough, they might notice a slight shimmer in the air around him.

He then began to search in the opposite direction away from the stranger, still looking for survivors.

Spoiler

I am activating my Sound Barrier around myself and will continue to Sustain it until further notice.  Up to Reap whether anyone is able to notice the shield or whether they just think the organ sounds broken.

The queen watches the humans who had approached the building. They seem to find their own ways in. She brings her colony towards the larger doors and calls her scounts back to the group, away from the danger.
She is hesitant about proceeding further.

Spoiler

For reference, how hard is the ground here? Would it be possible to burrow in if I wanted to? Further, would it be possible to burrow most of the way in, then somehow stealthily rise? (if the dice goes in my favour)
Just trying to get a handle on how I am able to approach things. I guess I could also swarm under possibly? But then would I lose the coat and hat?

Queen Ant

The cement foundation of the building would be too dense to dig through, but you could feasibly burrow into the brickwork and mortar of the walls. The small deployment of ants are returning to you this way, arriving back at you through their small egress dug around the bottom corner of a door. The doors themselves are metal. The quicker you'd want to move your mass through, the more wall you'd need to demolish.

Spoiler

unko: be aware that not having the wall climbing effect doesn't mean you can't climb. But you'd need to use your athletics or strength modifiers to do it, which Bill just did. So going up through the gap is still an option.

cat: I shouldn't really dictate what you impress upon each other, so however you describe the organ music (for instance) in your narration is how it communicates to other players. Their characters can interpret your narrative as much as the players can.

If there are times you want to do something secretly, I guess you should just PM me.

Spoiler

In that case, I'll let that others decide how much of that they notice, other than the fact that the music does sound right, which should be obvious.  Although Queen Ant might not be familiar enough with music to understand that.  The visual effect is quite subtile though, even under normal lighting conditions.

Acting on a sudden impulse, the queen decides to proceed around the door. Slowly, cautiously, she will tell the colony to crawl their way through the walls, making just enough space to slide in what she has come to consider an adequate human style covering. She will try to keep her mass low, and move undetected into the area. To take in what the other humans are interested in. Try to discern their motives, their own reasons for entering.

Spoiler

Guessing you're running timing so that Queen Ant gets in before my investigation begins, Reep. That's cool.

As Bill Morgan and Wild Card turn their attention away from each other, the metal tile slips down from the roof. It would have wrecked Bill Morgan's Organ, had it not decelerated during its descent, bent out of shape and found its falling trajectory now arced towards wall where it crashed harmlessly in a plume of plaster.

So far, none of you have experienced any sort of nausea that one would usually expect from being around so much green glow.

Queen Ant

To anyone in the crowd who might have been able to distinguish you in the dusty scene, they would have seen a woman with a long coat, a broad hat and a strange gait approach a brick wall, stand there for a moment and then vanish through it like water through a plughole. If that sounded strange, wait until you hear about the view from the other side.

Wild Card
Intelligence 4 + (d20 = 18) vs DC 15
Success to two degrees

Searching your immediate position, you find two clues.

Just next to where you entered is a row of four coat hooks. On them is one long, white coat and one parka style rainjacket. Another white coat is crumpled on the ground. With all of the dust, it is hard to tell how long they've been there - but they look well for two decades of neglect, if that's how long it's been. Neither of the white coats have any means of identification, but in the parka is something a little more interesting.

The second thing you notice is an array of security cameras, each pointed in the direction of an entrance into the building (with the exception, of course, of the more recently made entrances). They are the small, inconspicuous, dome variety of security cameras. Not the kind of security camera you imagine would have been in circulation when this area was abandoned.

Spoiler

It's a good thing you did specify, DJ. I ran two perception checks beforehand and you failed both (you were very unlucky with the dice). But the investigation check succeeded. Since you beat the DC anyway, you can keep your hero point.

Though that does bring up a good point. Y'all have one hero point. Refer to the first post in the table talk thread for all the cool things you can do with it.

Also, yeah, exactly. Kinda like golf, priority goes to the person furthest behind. Especially since Unko only needed to know about materials to proceed, similar to how you only needed to know whether a door was locked or not.

Bill Morgan
Perception 11 + (d20 = 5) vs DC15
Success to one degree

Technology 4 + (d20 = 4) vs DC10
Failure to one degree

Perception 11 + (d20 = 6) vs Stealth 9 + (d20 = 6)
Success to one degree

As far as you can tell, nobody at all was caught in the blast. Very little of the building has actually fallen inwards, with most of the wreckage being blown away from the structure. What little there is of debris on the inside wouldn't have done much to bury anyone beneath view.

The upper floor looks like it would have been offices and staff space, with the entirety of the ground floor committed to machinery and storage. Located near you at the delivery bays are stores of large reels of thick plastic filament, now yellowed by age. The filament would be fed into a nearby machine, but trying to tell what would happen to it next is indecipherable. Following the conveyer tracks, you notice that they're mostly intact - if a little bent - except for one spot. At that spot, the conveyer belt has been blown out of its fixing on the ground and snapped in two. Each side was now arced upwards off the floor. A nearby machine has received a huge deforming dent in the side.

Before you have a chance to investigate, you notice something even stranger. Out of the brickwork near you, a small hole has opened and a stream of black fluid starts to rush out of it into a puddle on the ground. The hole in the bricks get larger and larger, more and more black fluid - no, not fluid, some sort of aggregate - pours through. It starts piling up. It starts taking shape! It's bringing a hat with it!

Spoiler

Unko and Cat are on a first-come-first-serve basis on how they react to each other.

Pocketing his find, Wild Card makes a mental note concerning the dome cams. Those are too new to go with how old these coats appear. Course, if there are security cameras, that means there is probably a CCTV/security room around.

Intent on discovering more, Wild Card wanders deeper into the warehouse. His eyes scanning for clues of his quarry being here - perhaps an office of importance - and anything that might look like a security office.

Spoiler

Woohoo! Didn't think my investigate skill would beat the DC!

Wild Card

You find some stairs near your location and head upwards to the offices, away from the factory floor. The steps themselves are those galvanated folded steel type with a tread pattern. The type that clang loudly and echo through the warehouse when you ascend.

The upper level makes an L shape on the north and west side of the building, overlooking the machine floor. It is composed of three rooms connected by walkways. There are two offices and a staff room. In one of the offices, the closest thing you can find to a computer terminal is a typewriter. In the other, however, you find something very out of place: a laptop.

The queen begins to reconfigure her colony, and as she does, her perspective shifts back to the level of these human creatures. Seeing the world in this light is still new to her, still takes adjustment.

Spoiler

I'd have to assume the first thing the queen would notice is that she was in a place that may have similarities to where she escaped. I'm not sure how it works but if I could do perception check followed up with my expertise in either science or tech (whichever is relevant). She may be too taken back (white coats after all) to notice the people for a second. If she isn't reminded of much she'd then do her standard checks for human spying and would want to hide herself from that.

Bill Morgan seeing the strange being take shape.  He and Confidence both shrug in unison.  There are all kinds of strange supers out there.  Of course some of them would show up like he and surly stranger had.  He addresses the forming shape.

"Greetings my friend, I am Bill Morgan the Organ King, and this is my associate, Confidence."

Confidence gives a slight bow on cue, still grinding the organ.

"It looks like no one is hurt, so our job seems to be done.  If you'll excuse me, I may still be able to make a few bucks before the shopping crowd goes home."

Without waiting for any kind of reply, Bill will attempt to exit the building through the side door that he saw Wildcard come in through and will try to return to his car the same way he got in.

Wild Card slips the playing cards he'd been holding back into their spots, up his right sleeve. Well, well, a laptop here. I wonder if I should just take it and look it over latter or let my curiosity get the better of me?

A slight grin crosses his face as he cracks his knuckles and sits in front of the laptop. Curosity it is, he thinks. Besides, it's good to know if it's even worth a bit of cash before making off with it.

Queen Ant
Expertise: Science 6 (d20 = 17) vs DC10
Success to three degrees

As you and your colony enter the building, you feel a familiar sensation. While human dwellings aren't your favoured environment, there's something more intrinsic. It's the way that the air trembles. Not trembles. Wobbles? Waves. It's the way that the air waves. It's a dull and slow vibration. It's considerably more faint than how you experienced it in the past, but it seems to be emanating from somewhere below the space you're now in.

The space you're in is very mechanical; obnoxiously human. It's a lot dirtier than places you may remember, but there is the same feeling of motion and industry that you know well. From where the colony is rebuilding, you can see the darker dressed stranger ascend some stairs with clanging footsteps.

Before you've even finished assembling the colony into a fully formed vehicle, the brightly coloured human and the small brightly coloured (possibly queen) human address you. He starts to turn to walk away, making for a nearby egress.

Spoiler

Basically, your characters' emotional reactions to things are entirely up to you. I can only tell you what you experience externally. The exception would be if someone were using some sort of mind altering power on you. So if you do feel like a scene would be traumatisingly familiar to the character, you can go ahead and be traumatised.

If I do write something that seems to be putting thoughts into your characters' minds, you are welcome to ignore it. That's probably more a slip of my writing style than supposed to be actual instructions.

I'm going to give you a chance to communicate with Bill Morgan if you choose to, as per his post in table talk.

Bill Morgan

Satisfied that nobody was harmed by the explosion, you start to make to leave. At the door, you spot something. There are some clothes pegs, on which is hung one lab coat and one parka. Another lab coat is crumpled on the ground by your feet.

You may not be a fashion expert, but you see a lot of coats in your line of work. You don't recognise this exact parka, but it is an off-brand variety from a recently opened outlet near one of your busking spots. Even just for the glossy nylon material, there is no way it predates the closure of the factory. So, either somebody recently left it behind and forgot about it...

From where you now stand, you can see out into the street to the south. Three vehicles have arrived. Two are police cars. Their occupants are either backing the crowd away from the site or cordoning off the area. Depressingly, your car is within the cordoned zone. The other vehicle is a Hazmat utility van. Near it, someone is climbing into a suit of yellow, rubber overalls.

Spoiler

DON'T LEAVE MEEEEE

Wild Card

Technology 7 + (d20 = 8) vs DC10
Success to two degrees

The laptop has two outlets: A power lead and a USB cable. Both are padlocked to the desk, but the laptop could be removed and stolen. The USB cable vanishes into the floor if you follow it, but you might have guessed where it leads.

Hacking is old hat for you. The computer runs on a standard proprietary operating system and before long you find yourself logged into an account named 'Orsec'.

The laptop doesn't do very much. The hardware is kept quite minimalist too. In fact, it only seems to regularly run three functions. It controls the cameras, records the feed and then sends each 24 hour video feed to a server... elsewhere.

Each daily purge of the laptop's local storage of the camera feed is done manually and logged. A different pair of initials signs off on it with a date and time stamp. There are three different sets of initials, but they don't seem to run in any order. There is no indication of what the record is for, but the most recent timestamp was this morning.

Over the last five days the order of initials and the times stamped to them were:

JF - 05:22
PM - 05:31
BS - 06:24
BS - 06:04
JF - 05:22

Bill and Confidence sighed in unison.  Great.  Just great.  By the time they got their car back it would be past prime busking time, and they were not about to walk all that way carrying the organ.  The bus wasn't a great option either as most bus drivers frowned at both the organ and the monkey and absolutely HATED both at the same time.  Besides, the HAZMAT van was troubling, especially with Confidence's low bodyweight making him less tolerant to toxin exposure.  Well, there was that oddly new coat.  Maybe they could help the police find the culprit, or at least a useful witness.

He turned to face the Queen Ant.

"Well, it looks like I'm not going anywhere for a while. . ."

Take a close look at her for the first time, he stops.  There is something very strange about this person.  She is not just another shapeshifter.

"Well, you're an interesting one, aren't you?"

"Hmm."

Wild Card rubs his left hand over his chin, as he thinks. Wonder if initializing this again will open the log or delete it...

He sits there, pondering the idea...while tapping a few keys...

JF is most likely Forbes while PM could be Marko. Yet a lot of folks have the initials PM. Still contemplating the find, Wild Card steps away from the laptop and starts check the office for more clues. Maybe something in here will make more sense...

Spoiler

Am guessing this will probably be another investigation test...though, it could be a precep one...unsure...

Edit: Am forgoeing the search after learning what I have via the laptop. See following post.

Struck by the similarities to her previous place of dwelling, the queen ant realizes she has been less cautious in entering this area than she should have been. Perhaps this thirst for knowledge that has been fostered in her is not always a good thing.
The room gives her a feeling of fleeing, but the lack of people makes her curious to explore more. To gain more understanding of the place she was held before. The place where she came from.

She hears noises from the larger of the two bright humans, and though she hadn't paid enough attention to get the specific sound formations, she garners their meaning from the larger one's thought waves. It wasn't predatory in nature. In fact it seemed quite the opposite. So far she had only experienced this sort of reaction when humans interact with one another. She has to assume, then, that her disguise is working enough that this one must not know what she is. As they make their way to leave she is inspired once more to try something she never has, communication with these creatures.

Unfortunately, since she does not possess the required anatomy to reproduce the sounds of these creatures, she's left to try other means of communication. The queen has never communicated with words before, having only the need to send commands, feelings... Raising her colony to a straight posture she has seen in humans who seem sure of themselves, she attempts to fill the two creatures' minds with cordial tidings, the kinds she remembered people from before using. She sends out a mixture of calming and pleased emotions and words such as, "Hey Fred, how was your weekend?", "Nice to see you.", "Ugh, Mondays, right?", "Hey did you catch the game?"
She isn't sure the details of these greetings yet, but hopes that her message will get through, and her disguise be maintained.

Spoiler

Ha ha, took so long to write I got sniped by both of you! Have to be quicker.

The mental communication surprises Bill and Confidence.  It is comfortingly familiar.  Somewhat similar to Bill's own powers, but much less intimate and much more basic, although the other being does not seem to have needed to form a specific link or bond.  very interesting.  They had heard of mental powers before, but this was their first experience with them.  They will attempt to send comforting thoughts back, as well as the feeling of curiosity and hope she can pick up on that.

Bill will take over the grinding from the monkey allowing Confidence to climb down and move closer to Queen Ant to get a closer look.

Spoiler

He will attempt to climb up her to look at what they presume is her face, but will stop whenever he realizes that this a mass of ants.

The queen feels her acceptance returned, with other feelings mixed together. What's more, the two alike creatures seem to share their mental patterns as well. Were they part of a larger colony. She had suspected that of the people before, all looking the same, but their minds were scattered. Vastly different. Disconnected.
These two creatures were more similar to what she was used to. She could sense they felt the same. She could tell they were curious about her. There was some other feeling the queen couldn't quite place. She had picked it up sometimes before, off the occasional human from the structure she had become aware in, but it's meaning was unfamiliar.

The smaller one began to approach her colony. She was unsure if physical contact would be necessary or not, and slid her form slowly away, hesitantly. She still couldn't tell which was queen and which was worker. Surely a queen wouldn't expose itself in this manner. Wouldn't probe. Perhaps they had many functions and the queen lay elsewhere. It was a very curious colony, however it was formed.

At the same time, she was also curious about the waves from below. Could she tunnel down at this point? Should she? She would be wary to end up back in that place or similar. It had taken so much careful planning to leave.

Wild Card

The office is dusty, a little grimy and empty. The desk on which the laptop sits is worn out. There is a filing cabinet, coated in a thick layer of dust. On the floor is a smashed desk fan and some scattered pieces of paper that look like they may once have been manifestos. It looks like it has been frequented by many rats, spiders and other things best not to dwell over.

DC10 vs Perception 7 + (d20 = 12)
Success to two degrees

The laptop itself is new to the space. So are the cables. So are the holes drilled into the room to feed the cables to the cameras.


Queen Ant

The ground is cement. It would need to be in order to fix the machines down onto it. Even if it were an aggregate, the faintness of the waves implies that its source is several meters underground. You can reason that it would take a few precious minutes, maybe more, to descend that far.

Spoiler

DJ has what I hope is the last bit of evidence you would need to progress (via PM). Or at least figure out what specifically to consider. There's still time to take a closer look at anything that may seem out of place.

Also, in the format for rolls, I'm going to start placing the DC at the start of the equation. Nothing has changed mechanically, I've just been having to write the rolls out of sequence with the roll in the middle, if that makes sense. Just bear with me while I make those sorts of changes.

Wild Card cursed under his breath at what he saw on the laptop. How could I be so stupid! I should've realized that something wasn't right...

Jumping up from his spot in front of the laptop, he hurries out onto the catwalk over the warehouse. We're not alone here, he thinks to himself as he scans the warehouse. Slowly he reaches into his vest pocket and pulls out a deck of playing cards. "I know you're still in here, Jasper," Wild Card yells out. "Best quit hiding and come out peacefully. No need for this to become physical!"

Seeing the creatures reaction to Confidence's approach, Confidence stops, then returns to his platform.  No reason to spook her.  Besides, there still the matter of that coat to check out.  Bill and Confidence will picture said coat being worn by an uncertain figure and hope she understands that they want to know if she knows where the wears is.  They will then go to the coat and begin searching it for clues.

Spoiler

Do they hear Wild Card's shouting?

Wild Card

Your announcement is met with no response, not even a nervous muffle. If there is any sound, it is either coming from the two other investigators, the ruckus outside or from crumbling walls. Contrary to what you've just found out, there simply isn't anyone else on the factory floor.

Bill Morgan

The coat is covered in dust from the explosion, but you notice that there are fingermarks around the pockets made very recently. It would seem the coat has already been looted for evidence.

Spoiler

Cat: Yes, definitely. The warehouse isn't enormous, about 200m², and Wild Card is still in the same half as you, just up some nearby stairs.

"I know you're still in here" they hear the first stranger shout.

Bill and Confidence begin filling their mind with one simple thought, hoping the strange being will pick it up

"DANGER"

Wild Card frowns. He's got to be nearby seeing as there is no body nor bloody chunks. Nor was there any signs of a body outside.

"Guess it's a hide and seek game then," Wild Card yells as he vaults down the stairs and starts towards the conveyor belts. As he walks, he switchs most of the deck of cards from his right hand to his left, making sure to leave two cards prepped in his right hand. Got to make this fast, I've already wasted too much time. Probably more than enough time for the cops to show up. With my luck, I'm probably be forced going to fight my way out. I'd prefer to find a way tocreate a distraction so I can sneak out. I'll worry about that after I find Jasper. Right now he's the most important thing.

Quickly, Wild Card looks the area over. So engrossed in his search, he completely ignores the fact that there are now two odd interlopers. "You're only making this harder for yourself, Jasper."

Spoiler

Am so rping this to the hilt! And the search is a precep test. Wild Card doesn't think he has "enough" time to do an in-depth search (investigate). The reason for the haste revolves around his idea - he isn't sure but with the amount of time passed he believes - that the cops have arrived by now.

The queen ant realizes she has taken too much time in contemplation. How could she have allowed herself to do this? The man upstairs sends distressing waves, and she gets a sense from the other multicreature. Is he trying to warn her?
The queen commands her colony to disperse their shape. The quickly drop and find whatever cover their can. Under exposed machine, in the small spaces nobody can get to.
She scans around with her mind, trying to pick up on stray brainwaves. Is anyone else here? She had thought it only the two others but the dangerous man seems to be seeking out another...

Spoiler

Just realized... I don't know if this is hive mind or just perception or what, but basically she's trying to sense if there are other lifeform's brainwaves present.

Satisfied that his warning had been receive--wait were those ant?  No time for that--Bill turned toward the other figure.

"Just what is going on here?  You aren't actually here to rescue survivors are you?  Judging by that" he said pointing toward the dented machine, I was going to assume an accident, but who is this person you keep yelling at and what does he have to do with any of this?"

Bill Morgan & Wild Card

The machine that Bill Morgan points to is indeed dented, but it's stranger than that. It was hit by an impact on its southern side, but it appears as though it was impacted from underneath. The dent is made in an upwards direction. very close by, a line of the conveyer belt has been snapped in two, and both halves have been arced upwards, away from the ground.

Queen Ant

Using your hive mind, you try to expand your perception beyond the colony. You can feel the thoughts of the two people you are already aware of. Beyond that are the people outside. Beyond that...

DC15 vs Awareness 6 + (d20 = 13)
Success to one degree

There are many minds underground, near the source of the air waves. Dozens. They're panicked and chaotic, many of them running around, hard to keep track of. A lot of them are lost and confused, everything is new to them. Two particular sources are especially strong, but one is losing their focus. The other seems like it has woken up for the first time.

Wild Card turns on the interloper who addressed him, his emotions running between anger and surprise.  "You think I'm not here to save people? Oh very good...then you didn't notice that the guy that belongs to that parka is not here?  Oh wait that's right, you don't know that he never left or that his name is Jasper Forbes!  He was in here when the place exploded and most likely still here somewhere. IF you'd taken the chance to look the place over, you'd have discovered that," he says, motioning ever so often with his hands to emphasis his point. "And who the hell are you anyways and why are you here?"

Shaking his head in consternation, he turns back to his search before the organ grinder has time to react.  Intently he studies the messed up machinery (machine and snapped conveyor belt); hoping to discover it's use, why it seems to have been impacted from underneath, or for even signs of what might've caused such an explosion and denting. "This doesn't look like it exploded, more like something from underneath exploded," he offhandedly says aloud.  "Something is not right..."

Minds! So many minds! She can feel their panic from below. Perhaps they are like she was. Trapped. Experimented on. But should she risk her colony to save others? What benefit would it gain?
Still, was she not just warned by this newer creature? In either case there were other creatures approaching her location now. She would dig down. Create a hole. A way out for the ones below, and perhaps from there, move elsewhere, under the ground. These humans seemed incapable of that on their own.
A sense of slight panic emanates from her, but she tries to hold most of it back. The two beings near her may feel a small ripple of emotion, whether or not they knew from whence it came.

Spoiler

Size of hole should be at least big enough for the organ grinder to fit in, though she wouldn't consider that he'd have to jump down the hole. She's operating on fear right now, in general.

Bill and Confidence sense the fear.  It must be coming from the ant creature.  Maybe they were a little strong with their warning.  Didn't mean to panic the creature.

He then replied to the rude stranger.  "Bill Morgan, the Organ King, at your service.  And this," he said, indicating the monkey, "is my associate Confidence.  We serrenade the fair citizens of this city in hopes of due recompense and sometimes Bill Morgan uses his more--exotic--talents to help.  We saw the explosion and came to help the injured.  Bill Morgan does not care about people who left their coats so long as they are safe.  It looks like there must be a basement somewhere.  Have you seen stairs anywhere?  The survivors must be down there, too injured to get out."

He then becomes aware that something is happening behind him, and turns in the direction the ants had scurried to.

Wild Card tucks the deck of cards in his pocket and waves his left hand at the organ grinder without looking away from what he's studying. "Nice to meet ya, Bill and...Confidence. You should though care about coats that are missing people. Sometimes those people are still about and they aren't always cheery, happy candy folk.  If my hunch is right, this Jasper sure isn't one of those nor are his employers. As for stairs down, I haven't seen any..."

Wild Card's voice trails off as he stares intently at the machinery, lost in his task. This doesn't look right for such an explosion as I saw, he thinks to himself.

Spoiler

I do believe the floor is concrete, Unko, which could mean digging might not be an option.

The machine looks like it might have once rolled plastic. There are several machines like it around the factory.

Wild Card

Examining the machine closely, you can see the reason it has been dented is due to a metal tile underneath it being dislodged. It seems the tile would have been recessed into the ground. Around the edges of the tile, when you look very carefully, there is a slight gap, no more than a few millimetres, with a green glow that flickers like candelight. The machine is still partially atop the metal tile, making it impossible to move. The machine is heavy. It would take a lot of force to move.

DC10 vs Perception 7 + (d20 = 4)

This machine is the same model as other machines, but now that you are looking underneath you can see that this one has a pair of hydraulic pistons underneath and a heavy, steel hinge on the north side.

DC15 vs Perception 7 + (d20 = 1)

It would seem those are all the clues you can get.

Queen Ant

The colony gathers in a thick circle like an oily black puddle and scratches and bites at the ground. A bit of dust and looser grains of stone get dislodges, but the ground is simply too dense to nest into.

Spoiler

Sorry, Unko. Don't forget, your burrow power is limited to aggregate. The ground would need to be less dense than cement in order to be able to pass through it. A maximum density might be in the region of bricks, old tarmac or some crumbly, looser sedimentary rocks. Sorry, Cat and Unko, I've got very little update for you guys at the moment, given that limitation. Were that limitation not there, I would have awarded that idea.

On the plus side, Unko, don't forget that your telepathy might be emotions, imagery and feelings to you, but they translate into dialogue for others. You can also translate from their dialogue into a way you can understand it. This is the 'understand, be understood' part of your Hive Mind power.

DJ: Because Queen Ant's empathy/telepathy are her only way of communication, you'd be able to pick up on the same vibes as per Unko's narrative. Not that I think you were ignoring it, just a heads up. Might be useful.

"Two pistons and a hinged section on a plastic rolling machine," Wild Card ponders aloud. "Plus a piece of slightly dislodged tile with green light seeping out of? Got to be a secret entrance or something..."

A wave of fear from else where washes over him, giving him goosebumps. Shaking his head side to side, he pushes the strange sensation out of his mind and returns to the machinery. He runs his left hand over the dented piece, searching for some form of hidden trigger or switch that could make the machinary move out of the way.

Spoiler

I didn't exactly ignore Queen Ant's mental projections as felt Wild Card was more engrossed in his search to notice it right off. Also, unsure if touching the machine for switches would be a precept or tech skill cause they both seem usable in this regard.

As far as you can tell, there is no switch on the machine. From you current perspective, there are no electronics at all. Nor can you see the engines that move the pistons.

Spoiler

Tutorial note: two of you have two very different solutions to this problem. Think about your powers - they aren't just for combat

A frown plasters itself across Wild Card's face. "No switches or levers," he mumbles.

Once more he's hit with the sense, or are they words, of danger or something below. "Damn it all," he yells as he throws a card at the machine, lashing out in anger and confusion - both of which are intensified by the weirdness of the odd...message.

Spoiler

Use Deal A Hand power, one attack, target the machine...even though I doubt my "powers" will do squat. Probably Unko or Cat's characters' powers are the answers...

He bends over at the waist and places his hands on his knees, cutting off his chance to see what his card throw may have done. He stands there like that, shaking his head side to side. "You just hear the words danger and down below eminating from some...other...source in your mind too, Organ grinder," he asks in a peturbed voice, "or am I imagining things?"

Spoiler

Oops, my bad. I actually messed up there, and missed the "even if it were an aggregate," part of Reep's message.
But, I will play off of this, no worries!

As for my dialogue, I was going to bring that in a little bit over the course of this intro scene, actually. This is when she learns to communicate correctly. She IS a fast learner, it's just something she has never done before. On that note...

The ants struggle with the hard concrete floor. Though they don't make progress, their queen commands and so they continue to try.

The queen realizes she has been acting in panic, and acting alone. She has always been the backbone of her colony, the controller of the others. The possibility of communicating to creatures on an even level was so strange, and yet one had already talked to her. Sent her compassion. Help. Now that multicreature spoke to the other, though about which she hadn't paid attention. Were they the same colony? She would chance it.
She opened her mind to them. Using a mixture of emotions, thought-forms, memories and a few of the words she had learned the meaning to, she conveyed a message.

Danger. Below. Trapped. Containment. Under. Danger. Danger.

She hoped her message was coming through.

Spoiler

Question I forgot to ask, Reep... What does my acid melt through? Does it go through metal? I assume not concrete. I don't remember if I had mentioned that I was thinking about using secretions to burn through the occasional door.
If not, that's cool.
Also, with her memory, just how much DOES this place remind her of the lab she escaped from? Any logos or anything like that? She wouldn't know their meaning but she'd pick up on it, and give her more urgency.

Spoiler

Out foxed by Unko right as I got done typing mine...gotta edit it...

Edit:

Spoiler

Would say that Unko's and mine happen at the same time for in game timing.

Spoiler

Going on assumption my actions were happening alongside DJ...

They had felt her, had understood. What's more, they seemed to want to help. She felt the frustration of the single being, felt a sense that he knew more about the current situation. The queen watched as that creature threw an object in anger. In the direction of the object, was that... An opening!?

Spoiler

Does this have any visual effects or anything I should know about? I'll edit accordingly.

The colony rose and formed its vague human shape once more, adorned with hat and coat, and moved past the other beings towards this space. It felt the metallic sheet, different from the other part of the floor. She had felt this substance before. Remembered burning through it. Spreading her colony slightly she begins secreting acid over the area, in hopes of dissolving it as she had done in the past. In addition, she commands some of her scouts to check through the space if they are able, to see what would come on the floor below.

"Oh, you felt that too?  Some kind of intelligent insect creature. Seems to be made of ants.  Seems to be friendly."

They sense the ant creature's warning.

"I might be able to get down there, but I'm not used to using my abilities this way yet.  I can try though."

The will try to send the ant creature the message "Get away from the machine.  I'm going to try to destroy it."

Assuming that they get clear of it, Confidence will focus some of the sound energy to use Shatter on the machine focused on the area by the dent.

Wild Card

Deal a Hand: d20 = 17

Your frustrated card throw bounces harmlessly off the machine's frame. It leaves a engraved scratched in the metal, but doesn't budge the machine itself.

Spoiler

I might have given you something on a critical hit, hence the roll. I see your cards as being more piercing than kinetic force.

Queen Ant

The ants that crawl underneath the hatch are met with an immensely long vertical shaft. Long to them, at least. Perspective is a little hard to grasp when you are a few millimetres in size. There are metal rungs descending down the shaft. The bottom of the shaft is somewhat shadowy, but there are definitely signs of electrical lighting. It flickers, casting occasional dusty rays up the shaft.

Dodge 0+10 vs Acid Secretion 4 + (d20 = 7)
+5 to effect
DC18 + 5 vs Toughness 9 (d20 + 4)
Success to three degrees

Swarming over the surface area of the hatch, the soldiers of the colony secrete their bile in vast quantities. The venom seeps into the minute cracks and facets of the metal, bubbling it up on a tiny scale and sending fumes into the air. Within a few seconds, the hatch has been reduced in size so far that it drops downwards into the shaft. Any hinges, locks or latches that may have been in place are now consumed by venom.

There is time to heed Bill Morgan's warning.

Spoiler

In the case of inanimate objects, if you beat the dodge/parry (you probably will), you'll get a +5 to effect. If you don't beat it, all you lose is that bonus. You can't really miss one. This isn't true in combat, unless the enemy is made as defenceless as an inanimate object.

The second part rolls the object's toughness against your attack. This is where you might have failed to destroy the object. Your attack is a set amount, in this case DC18.

Bill Morgan

It's hard to describe the sensation you may incur on to others. It seems like any noise or sound is being vacuumed into the space around the machine, until there's is a dense volume of organ music hanging in that spot. It builds pressure, with all present feeling a sensation of gravity.

Dodge 0+10 vs Sonic Manipulation 8 (d20 = 15)
+5 to effect
DC15 + 5 vs Toughness 9 (d20 = 3)
Toughness reduced by 8

The machine hums and vibrates from the effect. Its surface cracks like glass. Bolts break loose of their threads and fall to the ground. An industrial spring explodes from the shell and hurls itself across the room, leaving a bullet hole shape in the chassis. When the music stops, the machine is still standing for a moment.

Then, it simply shatters like glass.

Spoiler

I've got mixed feelings about this shatter power, now that we've put it into action. It seems quite underpowered. It seems like it is a lot easier to destroy an object through an attack than it is to destroy it through the weaken effect, since weaken only gets DC+10 to its effect while an attack would get +15. I'm going to spent some time figuring out this sort of thing. It might be that I'm incorrect in the way that objects roll for toughness. It would make more sense to me if they don't roll at all.

Wild Card ducks just as a broken spring passes by him, just a shade to close for his comfort. "Whoa," he yells, "Watch what you're..."

Before he has a chance to finish his sentence he sees the once dented and massive machine disinigrate into tiny pieces. I must remember to not make this guy angry at me, he thinks. Course with an organ grinder like that, I could...

He stops in mid-thought as Bill's words and the quick vision of the trenchcoated...woman(?)...flash across his mind. "Did you say insect creature?!? Where the [explative] did that come from?!? And you think it's friendly?!?"

Wild Card stares at Bill, exasperation written across his face.

Spoiler

I put the explative piece there so we don't have any probs but I get my character's point across. Best to be safe.

The queen feels a satisfaction as the piece of metal gives way. It bounces off the edges of the tunnel, sending reverberations upward.

Suddenly, she gets a message from the friendlier of the creatures she has met today. A message to move. Since the shaft is already open, she simply commands the colony to move downwards through it, quickly. She hesitates near the exit, hugging the wall of the space she is in, trying to avoid as shattered remnants of the machine fall around her. After this she extends part of the colony down into the area below, to see what is around.
Her mind reaches out, as well, for another quick scan.

Once done, she will convey what she has learned to the creatures above.

"It communicates with some sort of combined telepathy and empathy.  It told us there were people below in some kind of distress, which allowed Bill Morgan to find this" he said, motioning toward the now revealed ladder "which was more than you could figure out on your own.  Whoever you are look looking for is almost certainly down there too, so if you can stop being suspicious of the nice bug person and start worrying about just what exactly is going on in here, we can get going.  Um, if you wouldn't mind going first so I could hand this thing to you.  Trying to climb down that ladder with a huge street organ would be a tight squeeze."

Wild Card shakes his head concerning the comment from Bill about him finding the ladder and Wild Card not figuring it out on his own.  Some people just have to take the credit for everything, he thinks to himself. Even after you talk out lout about what you discovered.

Spoiler

Ladder, Cat?  What ladder? Reep hasn't said anything about a ladder yet!!

He turns his attention towards where the former dented machine once sat and the tile that sat below it.

Bill Morgan & Wild Card

With the hatch and the machine both now out of the way, the hole is pretty clear. There are rungs down the shaft beneath it. Even if you hadn't spotted them, they may have been communicated to you by Queen Ant.

Queen Ant

The reverberations in the air are wilder underground. It's interesting that they aren't harmful. They should be. You've had bad experiences with this sort of sensation before.

There are rats scurrying about. They are frantic and panicked. Some of them are starving too. They're already approaching you in their manic starvation to see if you might constitute a dinner.

Those who descend...

You are in a subway tunnel. The air is thick with smoke and dust, and the green glow now hangs heavily in the air like a bad smell. The ground feels like it is coated in slime. It even squishes uncomfortably beneath your footsteps. Trash of all sorts has been thrown about - dirt, debris, furniture, electronics. Some of the rails have even been bent out of shape, others thrown up off the ground altogether. A single light illuminates the dark, but even it is struggling to stay alight. It flickers occasionally, flooding the tunnel in darkness.

In either direction to where you have climbed down are what look like service exits.

Wild Card descends first, making sure to keep an eye on the odd organ grinder as he goes.  Something just isn't right with that guy," he thinks as he descends further.

Covering his mouth and nose with his left hand he looks over the place for a second and then turns back to the ladder.  "Go ahead and hand that organ down here, comrade," he yells back up.

Bill Unslung his organ from his shoulder as Confidence scrambled off it and down the tunnel on his own, then hung it down by its strap and dropped it into Wild Card's arms.  He then climbed down himself, recovering both Organ and monkey after doing so.  Looking around at the two exits, he said, "We take left, you take right?"

Spoiler

Sorry, I assumed that rungs would be obvious once everything was out of the way.  Also, can I see the ant colony and the rats coming after them?

Frantic, hungry, she recalls creatures like this from the place she was before, although these ones seem larger, more vicious. She tries to command them not to turn their hunger on her, but if they are too mad with starvation she will flick some acid towards them in the hopes of scaring them off.
The sticky ground seems like a struggle for an individual ant, so she gathers her colony as best she can on any available raised surface. She hopes to stay out of the sticky substance, to keep her colony with her. She watches as one of the others descend into the mire, and understands and his calls for the other to give him something. They both intend to follow her, however she now wonders if she had made a wrong choice. The creatures down here are less easy to reason with. She can sense that some are even ready to turn on each other in their struggle for survival.

Spoiler

Reep, I'm assuming you are letting me know everything about the waves that I can remember, and there's no need for some kind of tech roll or use of my memory skill here?
PS: Very cool map!

"Your call, organ grinder," Wild Card replies.  "Just make sure to yell if you find someone, okay?"

With that, Wild Card trudges off towards the right room, his mouth and nose still covered by his arm.  As he goes, he flicks his right wrist  causing the cards stored up his right sleeve to fall back into his right hand.  Slowly he goes, searching the area ahead of him - ever prepared to hurl a card at any minute.

Reaching the service entrance door to right, he slowly reaches out with his left hand - uncover his face during this - and tries the handle.

Unko

Spoiler

I'm not sure but your character might be able to pick up a combination of consternation towards the organ grinder and a slight amount of preparedness to strike from my character.  Unsure though seeing as I'm not sure how your character's empathy thing works exactly...nor if my character is one you'd pick up as well as Cat's seeing as I'm not a hive minded being.

The queen watches as the other creature... colony? comes into the tunnels alongside. She notices the two make sounds at each other. This time she takes more care to pay attention to their thoughts. They appear to be searching for more people still, yet they also seem to not take much notice of the starved life already in the area. She wonders if they are searching for specific beings?
She watches as the one heads away to a door.
The friendly, and more calming of the humans she has met today seems intent on going to the other door, so she decides to follow along with this and heads towards the left door, taking careful note of her surroundings.

Wild Card

You trudge westwards through the cacophony of stuff on the ground. The service exit from the rails is up a few stairs, ascending into a smaller tunnel. There's a door at the top. Or rather, there was a door. Now there's a hole. The actual door is behind you, flung off its hinges and bent out of shape. The side facing you is scorched and slightly melted.

DC15 vs Perception 7 + (d20 = 12)
Success to one degree

The effect on the metallic door is similar to the damage the ants did to the metal hatch.

If you enter the room, through the door, you will find yourself in an office. The damage here is worse than the railway. Desks, computers, chairs, desklamps, coffee mugs, a fridge. They've all been tossed out of place. The only light is a glow from a computer monitor that managed to survive being hurled off its desk. You notice that a lot of the debris has been thrown towards the left hand side of the room.

To the right there is another door. Like before, the door is missing. It's been blown off its hinges. Only this time the opening has been covered by debris.

DC15 vs Perception 7 + (d20 = 20)
Critical Success to three degrees

On closer inspection, it isn't just debris. Someone has intentionally barricaded this entrance with desks, sheet metal and steel shelves for a buttress. If you peer through the gaps in the barricade, you will see a man in a lab coat. He isn't unconscious. He's sat, trembling on the ground in a foetal position. He's covered in a film of green slime. All you can see of him is his wild, upstanding hair. Listening closely, you can hear him groan.

Bill Morgan & Ant Queen

You head eastwards. You too have to clamber over or through the wreckage of the room to get to the eastern room. Here, the door is still on its hinge. It was blown open and bent out of shape, but it has catapulted itself back into position. It wouldn't take much to open the door.

DC15 vs Perception 11 + (d20 = 10)
Success to two degrees
DC15 vs Perception 14 + (d20 = 6)
Success to one degree

You find that you are trudging through puddles of slime. It's a sickly green. In fact, the slime is glowing softly. It seems to be bioluminescent, when before it seemed like it could have just been the reflection of the light. The slime is responsible for the green glow. It flickers in the broken light, but watching it carefully you might spot that it seems to be pulsating slowly, as though breathing. It smells horrendous.

It makes navigation hard for Queen Ant.

Queen Ant will receive a -5 circumstance bonus to any move actions while there is still slime.

Spoiler

That's not to say you can't safely move around. This will come into effect in combat. Not to say there isn't any combat coming up. Um... Uh... Look over there!

Treading carefuly, the queen ant tries to stretch her "legs" to make sure she steps on any debris that may be free of the slimy substance, though it may prove futile in the thick wastes. She wants to get away from the slime as soon as she can.
She reaches out and tries to push the door aside, secreting acid to any attached pieces she needs to. Hopefully the other room will not have this green sludge covering it. Either way, she will slip in and continue to try avoiding it, stretching the colony around as needed.
For onlookers the shapes they are making would be even less human than usual. Extended, twisted shapes.

To the brightly coloured dual-creature she sends the message, Come. Follow. With me. She tempers this with a warning of caution. She mentions the air. The vibrations. Continued. Danger? She assumes they can feel it like she can, but does not know if they would have felt it before.
They remind her of something unpleasant, but the memories are far back, before she could understand them fully. Before she had the senses she does now.

Spoiler

She will be doing her own perception check upon entering the room, but I suspect you already are aware. Hold off on brainscan, since I'm going with her assuming the minds have been accounted for.

Seeing the bug creature and understanding it's message to let it take point, Bill Morgan and Confidence began playing the organ again, placing the Sound Barrier around the creature this time.

"For protection,"he tried to sent to it.  "Do not be afraid."

To a human, the sound barrier would seem to be the faint sound of organ music coming all around with a faint shimmer in the air surround which does not interfere with the ability to see and is easy to tune out.  They are not sure how this will appear to the insect mass.

Spoiler

I'm assuming I can only have one Sound Barrier at once, so I'm giving it to Queen Ant instead of myself.

Spoiler

Correct, though keep in mind that it drops your own toughness down to 2. That's extremely vulnerable. Though Queen Ant would definitely benefit from the buff, you may want to consider using it more situationally, to keep yourself preserved. Hopefully that will make more sense during combat.

Unko, you might feel the vibrations of the sonic power differently other people. But since we've not discussed any mechanical effect (Like a weakness to sonic?), it won't do anything harmful. Also, I don't know enough about ants to judge.

I'm assuming you both have entered the room, since the door has no DC to open.

Queen Ant & Bill Morgan

The shimmering kinetic field softly hums around Queen Ant.

Opening the door, you find that there isn't less slime, but more. A lot more. The walls and floor are caked in puddles of it. Some of it even drips from the ceiling. It gives the space a very eerie glow that breathes in and out, from a dim mossy colour to a sickly hue the colour of lime. You also notice the rats.

There are dozens of them in total, scurrying about the floor trying to avoid the puddles of goo. It's clear that they were caught in the explosion. Some of them are missing fur, or lay dazed and bewildered.

DC15 vs Perception 11 + (d20 = 6)
Success to one degree
DC15 vs Perception 14 + (d20 = 20)
Critical Success to four degrees

None of them are dead, however. You'd think that since the explosion had the kinesis to tear up a steel hatch, dent a metal machine and then blow down a concrete wall, it would at least kill off a few rats. But it seems that they've all survived.

Some of them are unusually large, others grotesque, others malformed. They're too panicked to investigate the two of you - it would seem like you're trivial compared to what they've just been through.

Part of the function of the room you are in was to cage them. The cages are smashed along the northern wall, not one of them left unopened. They didn't look like they would have been totally brutal - the cages would have had plenty of feeders, exercise wheels, water supply and space to run. But they were definitely not for pets. There are also what look to have been hydroponic beds and incubators. The glass on them is smashed, and whatever might have been growing within is gone. Littering the ground are files, syringes, measuring tools and microscopes. There are machines and tools that you wouldn't be familiar with.

Queen Ant

This is all too familiar to you. The cages, the tools, the incubators. You've seen all this stuff before. Most of all, you've seen the vague, vinyl decal that marks the heavier pieces of equipment. It is a circle with a line through it, like the negative space of a stop sign.

Wild Card finds himself torn between two equally interesting and potentially info laden objects. This guy probably has a ton of answers but he also might be nuts he thinks. Yet there's a computer probably packed with info about my target over there but it's not safe to dig through it with this guy here...

He finds himself forced into one situation - one that is less profitable or potentially safe. Sighing, he turns to the guy and says, "Jasper?"

The queen feels her colony surrounded by currents. She gets the message from the other being. This creature is able to make vibrations on its own. For protection? She hasn't encountered this in a human before. This was a strange creature.

She enters the door and is confronted with a familiar room. It strikes a chord in her of self preservation. She won't have her colony contained again.
However, this isn't the same as before. No flowing white humans. The sterility of the environment obviously compromised. Something violent took place here. And the rats... She sees now they were like her, subject to the whims of those people. Twisted from their original forms. She feels... what is this feeling? It reminds her of something the multicreature felt earlier. Compassion?
She tries to communicate with the rats. Run away. Leave this place. Get out of here! Their minds are less familiar than the humans'. Less capable. She doesn't know if they will understand.

She backs out of the room. Communicates with the paired humans in the bright coats. This is a bad place. We should leave. There is much danger here.
She tries to convey  a lesser version of this to the other human they entered with, though he seemed less receptive.

Bill and Confidence are a bit amused by this turn of event.  Of course it didn't think to distinguish between humans and rats.  Why would it?  Still, there no reason not to try to the help the things.

Receiving Queen Ant's message to leave, they agree, suggesting that they go find the other person instead and also suggesting that she try and communicate to the rats that safety lay in the next room and up the shaft.  They should be able to scramble up the rungs okay.  He then suggests that maybe she should simply communicate great fear in the room they are in and great safety in the room topside, as he doubts that rats could understand anything more than that.

They will then go back to the entry way and then on to the right hand door where the other man left.  As they leave, they will transfer the shield back to themselves, as they are uncertain as to what might be ahead.

Spoiler

I am assuming that they can't hear the message she already sent to the rat, so they don't know that she's already done so.  His suggestion of how to get them to leave might still be helpful though.

The brightly coloured creature seems to agree with her course of action. She affirms their message to the rats, Up the hatch. Leave this place. Safer outside. She wants them to understand.
She also sends a stronger message to the other man, the determined one. We should escape.
Not knowing what else to do, she follows the Organ King. She feels as the vibrations he had made on her leave to his own body. What a strange sensation. A remarkable new creature.

A wave of panic and the idea of leaving or something - he's so unsure of the emotion or the cause - passed over Wild Card.  Words kept repeating something about leaving and danger and bad place with the waves.  Why would I want to leave, he thought as he waited for who he thought might be Jasper to respond.  I've got to find out more! Now is not the time to leave! I've still got to get some concrete evidence on my target and what he has to do with all of this.

Shaking his head side to side to clear it - he pushes the odd, almost psychic phrases and emotions from his mind. "Jasper Forbes," he repeats his question to the man on the floor amongst the debris/makeshift barricade.

Spoiler

I'm waiting for Reep to chime in before moving forward.....want to know what I can learn before making my next move so I'm more than willing to wait until Reep has time to post before moving forward with everything. Esp seeing as I've got an interaction with an NPC to play out...

Queen Ant

DC15 vs Presence 1 + (d20 = 15)
Success to one degree

The trembling, swarming, scattered rats start to slow their pace. Some take a moment to actually survey their surroundings. Others explore the edges of the room, perhaps looking for egress. A small handful come and investigate you a bit more closely. One nibbles experimentally at the colony.

The rats are calmer, but they don't seem to obey your orders in the same way that your colony does. Between that and the issue of scale when you compare rats to ladders, it doesn't seem like they'll be ascending.

Spoiler

Without a mind control effect, you can only communicate. The rats would have to decide for themselves that what you're saying to them is a good idea. But, y'know, they're rats.

Bill Morgan & Queen Ant

Returning back to the railway tracks, past the hatch you descended from and into the western room, you see Wild Card. He's peering through gaps in what looks like rubble in a doorway. The room is littered with debris, trash, crashed furniture and puddles of slime.

Wild Card

Your first prompt to the man in the lab coat is met with heavy breathing. He shuffles slightly, but each movement sends violent tremors through his body.

He groans, almost a cry or wail. At this point, Bill Morgan and Queen Ant appear in the room with you.

All:

"Jasper Forbes," Wild Card asks,

There is silence for a moment. The voice that follows is hoarse, barely audible.

"I have it here . . . I can hold it . . . Help."

Bill Morgan approaches as the man speaks.

"Bill Morgan, the Organ King will be pleased to render aid."  Turning to Wild Card, he said "We need to get this man to a hospital.  There are lots of police just outside the building.  I'm sure they help us get him to a hospital if we asked.  Bill Morgan will go get them, and you can stay with him in the meantime."

Spoiler

I will stop here to give the others a change to respond/interrupt.

Wild Card cocks an eyebrow at Jasper's response.  "You have what? What can you hold? What caused all of this," he asks.  "And what does Dr. Marko have to do with all of this? And where might he be"

Feeling the approach of onlookers, he turns to see Bill and...the insect woman or hive....he's unsure what exactly it maybe.  "I found him here like this," he tells them.  "I haven't had time to check out the computer over by the wall that is still in working condition - been more involved with Jasper here. You two find anything in that other room that might makes any sense of what he's mumbling about?"

At Bill's mention of tons of cops outside and taking Jasper to a hospital, Wild Card hesitates.  "You sure you want to do that?  I mean, for all you know they could come rushing down here with their guns drawn and arrest this poor man.  They are going to be looking for someone to take the blame for the explosion and old Jasper here is the only one that was here beforehand. Isn't that right Jasper?" Before Jasper has time to reply, Wild Card continues on. "Besides, I'm not exactly sure the cops will know how to handle any of this."  He waves his hand around the room.  "It's best if we take care of him and see exactly what thing he supposedly is holding before putting anyone else at risk."

That and I don't want any cops to see me here.

"Course, if you are so interested in getting the cops down here then I'll go get them.  I think I remember you saying had a way to take care of folks when we first ran across each other upstairs. Or perhaps we can send your..umm...friend."

Spoiler

For those wondering, italics for my in character stuff revolve around his thoughts, not what he says out loud or anything.

"We found some kind of lab experiment involving rats.  Apparently our friend here doesn't distinguish between rats and people.  Some of those things barely look like rats anymore, so I doubt whatever they were involved in was very legal, or ethical.  Explosion seems to have come from there.  Regardless, we should still get this man some medical attention."

Spoiler

Didn't think those rats would listen, but she was going to try anyhow. If they actively nibbled on her she would probably start attacking them, with intent to kill. Can we go with them coming close with intent to nibble, and she moves to avoid them? She certainly wouldn't stick around to let it happen.

The queen "listens" to the exchanges between the humans. This Billmorgan wants to bring more people. His words sound like helpful people, but she is uncertain if she should be around more humans than necessary. The fact that there are people outside causes her to think about her next actions. Perhaps there would be a different way to leave this place.
The other man is asking questions of... a third... She moves forward, towards where he is speaking. A bunch of rubble stacked up against an opening. Beyond that, another human, covered in the same slime. She reaches out.

Do you know how to leave this place?

Spoiler

Edited my post, just so everyone knows.   :thumbup:

The man behind the barricade has his back to the three of you. You can only see him through small gaps in the makeshift wall, unable to get a clear view. From the angle you're at, and through the letterbox views you have of him, all you can see of him is his labcoat, his scraggly mess of hair and the ominous green slime that coats him. He's hunched over, sat on the ground.

Talking is clearly difficult for him. Not that he doesn't want to, just that you can hear him wheezing and struggling for breath between anything he says. "It... must be... contained." the voice barely sounds human at this point. "Container." He coughs, hardly able to assemble the words. "Brandon." .... "Peter"

He goes silent for a moment, trying to listen before, "No. No. NO. Can't leave. Can't leave it..."

"What container? Whose Brandon? And what does Peter Marko have to do with this," Wild Card turns back to Josef, ignoring Bill Morgan's want to get the cops down here.  "Whatever it is, I'm certainly not going to leave it.  I'd rather you keep hold of it for safety or maybe tell us about this container and where it might be. Once we get whatever it is contained, then you and I can talk about Peter and what the hell happened here. That sound good, Josef?"

Spoiler

Am using Persuasion for this, seeing as Bill Morgan seems to have helped frighten the man a bit with the idea of leaving and cops.  Maybe try to calm him down some that way and get more answers to this all?

Bill will add "If you don't want to leave, fine.  We won't bring the police if you don't want us to.  Tell us what we can do to help."

Spoiler

Bill's still new the whole superhero thing is a bit naive at times, but he's not going to force help on someone who doesn't want it.

Spoiler

While I figured the italics are for your internal dialogue, have we talked about how that should go, Reep? My character communicates solely through that so would she be hearing it the same as if he was speaking, or would she actively have to listen?
Now that we are in play I am realizing we didn't really go over the totality of her mental communication.
In addition, though forming words with his mouth is difficult for the scientist, how about forming words with his mind? Or does his mind have something in it as well?

The queen peers through the cracks and the human behind the debris. She sees the white coat... He was one of the captors. Has this all been a trap?
She flings her mass quick as she can to one corner of the room.

Spoiler

Ha ha, wish I could be more gun-ho about investigating right now, but Queen Ant's just freaking out at this point.

Unko

Spoiler

I highly doubt your character would hear my character's thoughts due in part to the fact he seems a bit resistant to your broadcasts..and has some training in his history that {I}might[/I] protect him some.  I'm unsure though, so is up to Reep.

Bill and Confidence see the mass of ant retreating into the corner.  They send out the message "What is wrong?  Are you okay?"

As she shrinks in fear she gets the message Bill sends. They seem sincere in their concern. She was worried they had brought her down as some kind of trick, some way to return her or possibly terminate her. They appear, instead, to have even less knowledge about this place than she did.

White coat. Bad creatures. You can't trust them. They lie. They hurt you. Communication is coming easier for her now. The ideas seem less abstract. Thoughts feel more like a language.

Bill and Confidence find its fear more than a little puzzling.  Confidence also remembers white coats.  He was born in a lab.  Lots of those people around.  They were always kind to him.  Confidence's memories were vague as he was just a baby, but Bill remembers that a lab had been working on cancer treatments and needed to test their effect on pregnancy and had injected Confidence's mother.  While they never discovered Confidence's powers--those didn't manifest until long after Bill had him--they had noted abnormal changes in the babies DNA, had canceled the project, adopted out the babies when they were old enough and still had the mother.  She was useless for experiments now, but they kept her as a mascot.  Bill and Confidence still visited her sometimes.

You are safe with us they send back.

Spoiler

For consistency, I'm going to start using italics for thought communication.  Also, the memories while faint, are still very powerful.  It's possible that Queen Ant may cast some impression of them.

Spoiler

I was going to say something but nevermind.....not important...

And I'll probably avoid mind speaking per say to keep from confusing folks with itallics (mine are inner thoughts, to myself)...will be saying stuff out loud if it has to do with Queen Ant.

Spoiler

Bill's message calms the queen somewhat. She eases the stress the rest of the colony is currently feeling, and sends a reply of calm to Bill. She picks up a vague notion about these people being good. Taking care of people. It is at odds with her own experiences.
Regardless, she feels like she can trust the brightly coloured colony. She will have to learn more about it in the future.

She will stay for now, but she still doesn't trust the white coat. She asks of both Bill and the other, What do you want from the white coat? Communication seems easier for her now. Less abstract. More like a language, though still with a strange mixture of words/feelings/emotions. She hopes her message gets across.

There's silence for a moment behind the barricade. The man in the labcoat shuffles, crushing glass beneath him. He tries to shift his legs, but his motions are clumsy and infantile. Even as he makes a weak effort to stand, he remains hunched over. His arms are folded ahead of him. He's clutching something.

Wild Card
Awareness 0 + (d20 = 2) vs Persuasion 8 + (d20 = 1)
Wild Card: Critical failure

"You can't help!" he snarls brutally, "You ... Who sent you? Oracle? Grim? The military? Who?" He still hasn't turned to face you. By his posture, he's intent on hiding something. "You can't.... take it. You won't! You'll ruin . . . everything!"

It looks like reasoning with him is off the table.

DC15 vs Perception 14 + (d20 = 6)
Queen Ant: Success to two degrees
DC15 vs Perception 7 + (d20 = 1)
Wild Card: Critical Failure ((Oh, man. Sorry.))
DC15 vs Perception 11 + (d20 = 8)
Bill Morgan: Success to one degree.

Bill Morgan & Queen Ant

You spot something especially strange about the scientist. Though obscured by the barricade and hiding beneath a labcoat, you spot that the shape of his legs are very peculiar. Instead of the usual trunk-like legs, they seem to bend backwards at the calf. It's like there is an extra, reversed knee on the back of them, protruding out.

With the barricade still in the doorway, you're simply not in the right place to investigate further.

Wild Card

A grouping of tiles drop from the ceiling just above the barricade. It kicks dust up into the air and into your face, entirely obscuring your already letterbox view into the room for a moment.

Queen Ant

Will 1 + (d20 = 8) vs Insight 12 + (d20 = 4)
Queen Ant: Success to two degrees

What you can tell of the man is that he is in a state of chaos. It's something more than mere panic or fear. It's more like he's wrestling with his very nature, his concentration not only slipping but being . . . overridden.

Bill walks as close to the man as he can.

"I don't really know this other fellow, but we only came here because we saw the explosion and wanted to help.  Bill Morgan does not work for any of those people.  Bill can help you.  What do you need?"

Spoiler

We can assume that for the rest of conversation, Bill will be translating everything that is said by all parties as best he can so that Queen Ant can get some idea of what is going on.

Spoiler

If you take a look at the map, you all are currently in the western room. Jasper is within the coffee stain. The barricade is made at the door between you and his room. You're already as close as you can get.

Wild Card staggers backward, coughing from the dust kicked up by the falling panels. He mutters something in Russian, his tone letting you know whatever he said was definetly not PG rated. What is Grim, he wonders.

Spoiler

Might WC know what Grim is via his expertises?

Finally able to catch his breath, he realizes there isn't a way to reason with Josef. Sighing, he turns his attention to the computer. "You, umm, two keep talking and watching him. Maybe play him some music, organ grinder," he says to Bill and Queen Ant. "I'm going to try and figure out something. See if I can find this...container...or a way to contain whatever he has if the container doesn't exist."

Not waiting for their reply, he heads to the computer. Slowly he shifts the debris away so he has a safe place to stand and starts typing on the computer.

Spoiler

Good old tech skill please give me a good roll...

Note: WC is stepping aside from the talking because he would like to learn a few things and feels that he can get those answers easier elsewhere. That and he's looking for more info on his own little...personal "quest" and realizes that Josef's emotional response to his perssuation makes it hard to impossible to learn the info he needs from Josed at the moment. He'll return to Josef in a few - once he has calmed and/or WC finds the container/info. Don't worry, folks.

The queen watches the white coat stagger. He is distorted. Different from a human. Perhaps he is a different creature wearing one of their coverings, much like her colony does. In any case there is something very wrong with him. Bill relays comforting words and the other creature turns away his attention, but nothing much is being done.
The queen realizes she doesn't have much choice. She commands her colony to slip through the cracks of the barricade and get closer to the white coat, readying herself in case things turn sour.
She will try to get around him, see what it is he holds, see what kind of thing he is.
She sends him a message, What are you? What have they done to you?

Spoiler

If the cracks are too tight it's possible her coat and hat will be removed by slipping through, at which point she would reveal her standard "humanized" form of this:
(https://i.imgur.com/0WSQODA.jpg)
Though her head may be in a less ant-like form right now. A smoother shape more similar to a human.

Wild Card franticly types on the computer keyboard and waves the mouse around.  I wonder if it evens works after the explosion, he ponders.  The fact the screen survived and is still casting light might mean I have a chance to access things.  If not, I best see what was in that other room because those two came back here way too fast.  Something in there must be wrong for that to happen. If that's the case, there might be something that will provide me some more info about this whole thing. Seems the esteemed Dr Marko has been up to something, but what?

Spoiler

Little if/then set up there within the thoughts for ya, Reep, to help out.   :thumbup:

Bill and Confidence will wait until the have get through the barricade, then will attempt to Shatter it and follow.

Wild Card

DC15 vs Technology 7 + (d20 = 9)
Wild Card: Success to one degree

The computer is on its side when you approach it. It's an old style monitor, with the computer itself contained within the monitor unit. It's amazing it's still working and managed to remain plugged in, despite being dropped off its desk in the brunt of the explosion. It's easy to wipe off the dust to clear up the screen and place the monitor upright. The rear of it has taken a bit of a dent, clearly dislodging something important. You can tell by glitchy flickering of the graphics on screen. You also would have no problem finding a nearby keyboard and plugging it in. It's one of those older keyboards with the circular sockets; you know the one.

It's quickly clear that trying to push the computer too hard would do some damage, and if it shuts down you probably won't be able to start it up again.

Already on screen is a log, with buttons to navigate between entries. Behind the space of the monitor that the log occupies is the desktop. The image there is a circle with a line through it, like the negative space of a stop sign. You recognise it from an ID card you recently pocketed.

Spoiler

(https://i.imgur.com/uvoPn83.png?1)

The entry is two days old and reads as follows:

Prog 24. Subject material grown by approx 2000% after serum application, seven weeks incubation period. Growth seems to have stopped within parameters. Rapidly learns and alters Rat DNA when exposed for 24 hrs. Like Progs 19-23, developed neural networks (exact nature not yet validated. May not be neurons). Zero fatalities at present. Like Progs 16-23, developed protective organic film (slime?), mass exponentially increased per Prog 24's growth. Personal note: bioluminescence is unexpected effect, not seen in Progs 16-23. Seems harmless. Next specimen to look into preventing too much slime mass growth, restrict growth to proportionally match Prog's growth. Must be manually purged daily to prevent critical mass. PM to eliminate subject due to limited containment of incubator no. O-I-188. Unfortunate, since observations with exposure to animals are incomplete, but necessary.

The following is speculation: Rats show increased intelligence after exposure to Prog 24. Test sample inadequate for validation, but observed cases of rapid problem solving. If true, then does this say something about the Progs' own intelligence? A symbiotic exchange?

Extrapolating progress, BS & I agree completion of Project Progenitor by specimens 30-35... PM believes sooner.

Queen Ant

You find enough of a gap, about 30 centimetres wide, to crawl through. That's plenty to bring your coat with you, with a big of a squeeze. Using the hole, you obscure the vision for Bill Morgan.

Reassembling yourself on the other side, you see the man is gone.

DC10 vs Expertise: Science 6 + (d20 = 8)
Queen Ant: Success to one degree

The space you are in is clearly the heart of the laboratory. It's very dark in the room, illuminated only by the fluctuating glow of the slime. Opposite the doorway you entered through is another entrance. It too is barricaded in much the same way as the one you used. Most of the furniture that would have been scattered around the room by the explosion has been used for this purpose.

Against the northern wall are three large cylindrical containers. You recognise them to be incubators. The more involved of the experiments from around the time of your own development into increased awareness were contained within some. This isn't the same laboratory - you know that much - but it has far too many similarities. The incubators are smashed, clearly responsible for the glass shattered around the place. It's also evident that one of the incubators was the centre of the explosion.

Perception 14 + (d20 = 18) vs Stealth 10 + (d20 = 17)
Queen Ant: Success to two degrees
Win initiative

It doesn't take long to spot him. He is given away by the object he is holding - it glows in a soft, breathing rhythm the same way as the slime, but more frequently. It seems that in the very short time it took you to navigate through the barricade, the man had made it into the shadows across the room. He seemed spooked by you, but not in the same way you might expect of a frightened human. He's obscured in the darkness, you can can tell that whatever he is, he is no longer completely human in neither form nor mind.

Cornered, he opts to fight. The space between you and the creature narrows as he scurries, preparing to pounce towards you, but you have plenty of time to react.

Spoiler

From here on, each action you make can only take the span of a few seconds. You will have time to make an action and move (though not necessarily in that order). Refer to the OP of table talk for more information of what you might be able to do, and if you want to try some more obscure manoeuvres, feel free to consult me for clarity over in table talk. The corebook has a whole load of different manoeuvres for reference that I simply won't be able to post anywhere without overloading the forums.

Queen Ant: Be aware that you still receive a -2 circumstance penalty with the slime.

Bill Morgan

Perception 11 + (d20 = 12) vs Stealth 10 + (d20 = 8)
Bill Morgan: Success to two degrees

Before attempting to break down the barricade, you become aware that the man had vanished. Through the apertures in the barricade, you too spot him appearing from the eerie green shadows when he makes a lunge for Queen Ant.

You grind the organ and the soundwaves harness in front of you like in a beam of vibrations. The barricade wobbles with the vibrations before its structure becomes flimsy. When the shelf used as a buttress collapses and smashes into fragments, the table, chairs and sheet metal that make the bulk of the barricade topple backwards, into the laboratory.

Spoiler

I finally got an answer to attacking objects. Objects don't make resistance checks, they just take the damage based on the difference between Bill's weaken effect and the Toughness of the object. That means that Bill's shatter effect will always destroy anything equal to one inch of stone (which a clumsily made barricade I imagine to be less) during action, but may routinely destroy sturdier things outside of action (My discretion will be involved). Otherwise, he will lower the toughness of the object down to the difference of his weaken effect.

Quote from: Page 188Objects do not get resistance checks; the effect works on the targeted object at its maximum degree of success. At the GM's discretion, someone holding, carrying, or wear- ing an object can make a Dodge resistance check against the effect, representing pulling the object out of the way at the last moment.

"Protective slime," Wild Card asks aloud as he slowly turns away from the computer. "Proj 24? Intelligent rats? Increased changes? What have you been up to, Jos..."

The combination of the sound of Bill's organ's music, the sight of the barricade collapsing, and the lack of Queen Ant not being around cuts Wild Card's questions short. "What the [explative]," he screams. "I told you to keep talking to him and watch him, not decide to run ahead into an unknown and most likely dangerous situation like lemmings!"

He follows that with a string of strong Russian words intersped with English phrases "rookies", "action happy Americans", and "this day just keeps get better". He dips his left hand into his vest's pocket and pulls out a deck of cards. Best to have the rest of the deck ready with how my luck is going, he thinks.

Sighing he consigns his self to follow after the bumbling "compatriots" or are they interlopes. At this point all he knows is they will probably need saving. "After you, organ grinder," he growls.

The queen sees the strange creature. It must have once been a human, but something altered it. Perhaps they experiment on each other, the way they experimented on her?
She doesn't have much time to think about it, as the creature lunges in her direction. She reacts on instinct, commanding her colony to confront him head on and try to restrain his bestial body.

Spoiler

So, stretch to cover the distance if I can, and use a grab action. Is this what my actions should look like in this round?

Queen Ant

The swarm lunges forwards, making to envelop the attacking scientist.

Attack Check:
Parry Defence 15 vs Colony 7 + Grab 4 + (d20 = 6)
Queen Ant: Success to Hit
Grab DC11 vs Dodge 9 + (d20 = 11)
Lab Rat: Successful escape

Seeing the thick cloud of insects elongate towards him, the transformed man scurries to the side to get out of the way. For a moment, it completely enshrouds him, but you can feel him wriggle and writhe in your grip. Finding a footing on the ground, he kicks himself into the air and leaps free of the ants. He's moving on three of his limbs, his last hand - now more of a claw - holding the glowing object firmly.

Lab Rat

The scientist leaps into the air towards the main bulk of ants, making to strike.

Parry defence 12 vs Claws 7 + (d20 = 19)
Lab Rat: Successful Hit
Toxic Claws DC20 vs Toughness 7 + (d20 = 12)
Queen Ant: Failure to one degree. Immunity to Toxic.

His claw swipes through Queen Ant's colony, scattering ants across the room.

Spoiler

Lab Rat happens to have a decent level of dodge, which makes him able to slip out of a grab.

His successful attack means that, should he attempt to attack you again, you will be subject to a -1 modifier to your resistance versus damage. At one degree of success, there is no other side effect.

The Organ King sees the scientist attack the insect creature.  He sends a blast of organ music at it.

Organ King uses Sonic Blast on Lab Rat.

He yells toward Wild Card, "Hey, a little help, here?"

Spoiler

I assumed I was into the room enough for the door to be clear, but if not, he'll step a bit into the room while he does this.

Hearing the din of combat ahead, Wild Card shuffles his deck of cards impatiently and with a tad bit of anger - espcially after just telling the organ grinder to get in there only to have him call for help. "If only you two had listened," he mutters under his breath. "But oh no, you just had to poke the angry, slime-covered scientist and destroy the barricade the help protect us in case he went nuts."

He sighes again before slipping into the shadows and sneaksing into the room ahead, making sure to stick close to the wall. If I'm going to save some type of info, I best get in there and end the fight now before everyone else ends up tearing the place up.

Spoiler

Am going in in stealth.

The queen feels as a portion of her colony is ripped from her, sent scattering. If only she had left as soon as she recognized this place!
She staggers and sees Bill rush in, sending strong vibrations towards the creature who struck her. With this distraction she commands her colony to spread out, leaving her garments where they lay. The other ants move to protect their queen.

Spoiler

So, if I'm correct I get a move and a standard action? I'm looking to use "hide in plain sight" but would that qualify during combat? First thought was she would make a dash to the other barricade, trying to get it between her and the fighting, but I feel bad about her cutting out on the others so easily. Could she use hide in plain sight and also go on the defensive, or are those two separate actions? Or would I even need to use defend if I am hiding?

Spoiler

Actually, right now no actions can be taken until Reep rolls the initiative on the new combatants and see where in the turn they fall. It may come out that one or both of us gets to act ahead of you or Lab Rat. That depends on the roll. We just need to be patient.

Spoiler

Oops! Sorry, I didn't even think about everybody's initiative. Okay, we'll see what happens.

Stealth 10 + (d20 = 10) vs Perception 11 + (d20 = 8)
Bill Morgan: Failure to one degree
Perception 5 + (d20 = 8) vs Stealth 9 + (d20 =  17)
Wild Card: Success to three degrees. Make two moves: One that will occur prior to initiative rolls and another that will take its place in the initiative order.

Wild Card rolls Initiative 5 + (d20 = 17) = 22
Lab Rat rolls Initiative 6 + (d20 = 12) = 18
Queen Ant rolls Initiative 3 + (d20 = 14) = 17
Bill Morgan rolls Initiative -2 + (d20 = 8) = 6

Spoiler

Bill didn't manage to get his attack in during the surprise round, though he has entered the room. The sonic blast will happen in his place in the next round.

Queen Ant and Bill Morgan both rolled their perception against Lab Rat's stealth to see if they get their attacks in during the surprise round. Queen Ant succeeded, but Bill failed - his move will wait until the main round. Since Wild Card specified he was entering the action in stealth, I rolled Lab Rat's perception against his Stealth. I should have waited for this, as it would have made Lab Rat unable to attack Queen Ant during the surprise round. To reward this win and to balance out my oversight, a successful hit will incur a penalty condition on Lab Rat.

I also should have made the initiative rolls on the previous post, even though they'll come into effect on the next round. That may have been clearer.

FYI, I rolled Initiative in alphabetical order and repositioned the list in the order the moves will go. To reiterate a point in Table Talk, you don't need to wait until your place in the order to post, but I will be reading and responding to posts in the Initiative order. You can opt to see the outcome of another attack before making your move, just be sure to make that clear.

Wild Card's whole demenor grows cold and calculated - no longer do his emotions flash over his face. His mirrored shades lenses reflecting the light.

With a quick toss, he sends the three cards in his right hand fly.

Spoiler

If the first free move I get is a standard action, I'll be using Deal a Hand with the multiattack targeting Lab Rat. If not, then I'll use it during my regular turn as ONE of my actions. Once I find that out, then I'll explain the rest of what I have planned for my turn.

Dodge Defence 19 vs Deck of Cards 13 + (d20 = 17)
Wild Card: Successful hit to three degrees. Multiattack adds +5 to effect DC. Surprise attack inflicts Dazed on Lab Rat.
Deal a Hand 22+5 vs Toughness 6 + (d20 = 13)
Lab Rat: Failure to two degrees. -1 Circumstance, Stunned.

The cards whip through the air with a sharp whistle. They swiftly orbit Queen Ant and find their target on the mutated scientist. He is sent off his balance, into the air and onto his back. His head hits the floor.


Lab Rat: -1 Resistance Circumstance, Stunned, Prone. In the middle of the northern laboratory.
Bill Morgan: Fine. Near the western door of the northern laboratory.
Queen Ant: -1 Resistance Circumstance, -2 Move Circumstance. In the middle of the northern laboratory.
Wild Card: Fine. Near the western door of the northern laboratory.

Spoiler

That was your clumsily GMed surprise attack. Your normal attack can start now.

Wild Card's attack first dazed Lab Rat due to the surprise attack. Two degrees of failure on Lab Rat's roll against Wild Card's power meant that he gets another level of dazed inflicted on him. Stunned means he'll miss his turn this round, but can still defend.

Cat and Unko, let me know if you want to alter your moves before your turn comes around. Which would be immediately after DJ posts again.

He watches as the cards hit their target square on, knocking Lab Rat off his feet. Time to get up close and end this now, he thinks as he slips the deck of cards in his left hand into his pocket.

Making sure that he won't block the other two's line-of-sights, he charges forward, prepared to punt the prone Lab Rat.

Spoiler

The card stowage is a free action while the charge is a combo of my move and a charge attack. I'm considering using extra effort for one more in close attack but I want to wait to see how the charge comes out. If it works and it knocks LR down to where Bill's sound blast will KO him, I'll hold off on the extra effort. We'll see...

Parry Defence 15 vs Unarmed 7 + (d20 = 4)
Wild Card: Failure to hit

The transformed scientist snarls as his attacker darts through the door towards him. Though dizzy and disoriented, he swipes the air just enough to block the kick from Wild Card.

Spoiler

Lab Rat has the Prone Fighting advantage and suffers no fighting penalty while prone. That's the ol' Bait-n-switch.

I'll treat any extra effort or hero point usage as narrative continuity, if you do decide to use one.


Lab Rat misses his turn this round.

Lab Rat: -1 Resistance Circumstance, Stunned, Prone. In the middle of the northern laboratory.
Bill Morgan: Fine. Near the western door of the northern laboratory.
Queen Ant: -1 Resistance Circumstance, -2 Move Circumstance. In the middle of the northern laboratory.
Wild Card: Fine. In the middle of the northern laboratory.

Spoiler

I won't be changing anything.  Except that it's understand his cry for help happened before his combat turn. 

Having missed thanks to a combo of slippery slime and the Rat's dodge, Wild Card decides it best to take the intiative with his fists instead. He throws a punched aimed at the Rat's head, sucking wind as he does it.

Spoiler

Extra effort for one more attack and then end turn. I'll be using my hero point to start next turn to avoid fatigue.

Wild Card
Parry Defence 15 vs Unarmed 7 + (d20 = 7)
Wild Card: Failure to hit. ((Sorry man, you had the odds. Good Try))
Extra Effort: Wild Card avoids Fatigue with a hero point.

The scientist scurries back onto three limbs as quickly as he can, still tightly clutching the glowing orb. On closer inspection to you, it looks like it could be organic. Even a bit squishy.

You swing a right hook at him, but something stops you. It's not the Rat blocking you this time, it's something else. Something in the air like an invisible force, powerful and kinetic. It shudders through your very bones . . .

Spoiler

Now that Wild Card has used an extra effort, he is put under the Fatigued state. For the rest of this scene, he can't use another extra effort without going incapacitated or unless something remedies him. If he wanted to use it again, he better be damn sure it's worth the consequences. There's no other penalty for Fatigued, so it's worth trying to get out per scene.

Edit: using a hero point prevented the fatigue, but I'll leave that explanation there for reference.

Lab Rat
Unable to move this turn.
State changes from Stunned to Dazed.

Queen Ant
Perception 5 - 2 + (d20 = 1)
Lab Rat critically fails Perception.
Queen Ant: Success to four degrees

As the hit from the rat man scatters your colony, you see three small, thin rectangles zip through the air. As this happens, your command scatters the colony. Your ants rapidly find dark corners, safe haven in the ceiling, cracks in the wall. Within moments, anyone who had seen you one moment would think a whole person had vanished like magic and only a crumpled hat and coat were what was left.

Bill Morgan
Sonic Blast Area Effect:
Lab Rat: DC19 vs Dodge 9 + (d20 = 12)
Successful Dodge, effectiveness halved
Wild Card: DC19 vs Dodge 5 + (d20 = 3)
Unsuccessful Dodge

Sonic Blast DC12 vs Fortitude 3 -1 + (d20 = 20)
Lab Rat Resists Damage
Sonic Blast DC10 vs Fortitude 3 - 1 + (d20 = 19)
Lab Rat Resists Affliction

Sonic Blast 24 vs Fortitude 5 + (d20 = 19)
Wild Card Resists Damage

Just as the scientist tears into the ant creature, you wind the handle of the organ. The music bellows, louder and louder, until it reaches a critical mass. Before you had time to stop yourself, however, the other man had hurled himself into the room and had failed comically to land a kick. The blast of music bursts forward. You can feel the vibrations ripple out ahead of you. It throws both your enemy and your ally off guard.

The rat man braces when he detects something is wrong. He kicks off the ground, turning in the air and makes some distance between himself and Wild Card to evade the shockwave. The loud noise does nothing to alleviate his headache, but he shivers away the vibrations and fixes his wild eyes on Wild Card.

Wild Card too is thrown off balance. It looked like he was trying to land a brutal fist, but your blast catches him midair and threw his hit off target. An outside perspective would wonder if you did that on purpose.

Spoiler

The Area effect that you have on Sonic Blast is a double edged sword. Wild Card is within melee range of Lab Rat, so he too got caught up in it. Since RNG doesn't like Wild Card at all, and clearly has a crush on Lab Rat, this got risky. It just so happens that Lab Rat rolled what he would have needed to resist the power even if it hit him at full throttle. But then RNG took pity on Wild Card and rolled the exact number he needed to resist. That was crunch.

The affliction part of your power isn't an area effect, however. That could mean that the target in the centre of the area must resist than in addition.

Having seen that in action, it may be that you opt to remove the area effect from the power in the future. Alternatively, you may decide to add the 'selective' modifier to allow you to choose who in the area is affected. It's hard to really understand how these things work until you see them, which is very much the point of this first scene.

Hazard

DC11 vs Fortitude 5 + (d20 = 17)
Wild Card: Resisted
Queen Ant: Immune
DC11 vs Fortitude 3 + (d20 = 5)
Bill Morgan: Weakened Stamina - Stamina -1

Bill Morgan
After your blast is done, you can't help but feel like something else in the room has changed. It's like the vibrations from your attack lingered for longer than they should have, only they give you a very slight awareness of your stomach.

Queen Ant
DC11 vs Expertise: Science 6 + (d20 = 19)
Success to three degrees

You also identify that the air has changed. The vibrations that your antennae were detecting before have become more violent. The increase wasn't gradual, it was sudden. It was deliberate.


Lab Rat: -1 Resistance Circumstance, Dazed. Northern end of the laboratory.
Bill Morgan: Weakened Stamina -1. Near the western door of the laboratory.
Queen Ant: -1 Resistance Circumstance, -2 Move Circumstance. Hidden. All over the southern side of the laboratory.
Wild Card: Fine. In the middle of the laboratory.

Spoiler

I thought Wildcard used a Hero Point to prevent the fatigue?

Spoiler

Right you are. Good catch.

Edit: actually, it's a bit more involved. WC was actually given fatigue at the beginning of Lab Rat's turn. It's on WC's next turn that he can remove the fatigue status with a Hero Point. I'm not sure why the game runs it in that way. I made the edit before double checking the rules, but will edit back if it becomes an issue.

Edit 2: Actually, now I'm second guessing myself on something. It says fatigue is applied on the turn immediately after the extra effort, which I took to mean Lab Rat's turn. But it could mean WC's immediate next turn. Digging for an answer. In the meantime, I'll leave it as is and alter it if it becomes an issue. The next turn is DJ's anyway, so it makes no difference.

Spoiler

The fatigue state happens on the Pc that used the extra effort (whether for an extra attack or other things) next turn. That's why using a hero point completely clears it and seeing as hero points reset after every session/whatnot, it helps some times. Also Reep, you forgot to add the advantage I have from ranks in Evasion against area attacks.

Wild Card's ears ring and his fist aches. (Expletive) organ grinder, he thinks as he digs his deck of cards back out. He's worse than the this blasted rat!

Once more he deals three cards into his right hand and wings them at Lab Rat.

Spoiler

Def add selective to areas! The deck draw is the move (going to need to use the PP I earn from this "session" on Quick Draw) and Deal a Hand with multiattack as my action. End turn. Oh...and your dice hate me, Reep. >_<!

Spoiler

Hey Reep Designed the power.  I didn't even know that selective existed.  I kinda figures the area thing was optional.  Should have asked.  Is there a way to adjust the power so I can it for either area or single target?  Anyway, there's not much I can do with WC in the way.

"Sorry.  Something in this room is messing with our powers.  I don't know what it is, but it's making Bill Morgan feel ill."

Bill circled around looking for a safe angle to blast Lab Rat. With Wild Card in the way of any attacks, he instead projected his music outward, making a sound which was strangely--inspiring.

Spoiler

I'm going to start to circle around lab rat with the goal to get on the opposite side of him.  I will spend a Hero Point to use Inspire on my allies.

Spoiler

There should be enough seperation between WC and LB to allow you an attack, Cat. Am unsure though, Reep? And it's up to you if you want to too.

Spoiler

sirry, DJ. Will try and remember evasion for next time.

I'd say if two people in the final code box of each post have identical locations, they're both at risk. Larger area effects might broaden that to 'southern half' 'northern half', and increase from there.

And yes. I take full responsibility for the area effect.

An outside perspective would wonder if I did that on purpose.

((I actually need to spend a day or so refining all the character sheets in leu of what I've learned here after this scene. Even just the way they're laid out isn't helpful.))

Spoiler

You want a versions of just M&M's character sheets in fillable pdf form, Reep? I got one if you want it. As for rejiggering, once we finish this scenerion I'll Pm you my changes to WC...they aren't as major as the rest (mainly just slight skill point changes) and some of the things I Pmed you about earlier have since changed.

Having safely hidden, the queen ant sees the rat/man attacked from multiple sources. Feeling strangely emboldened by this display she tries to get her colony close, tries to get them to swarm the creature's legs, so he cannot escape so easily.
The queen feels the vibrations in the air change as well, and wonders what could be the source of it. It isn't natural, and seems to her like something to stop if possible.

Spoiler

So, am I allowed to look for the source of vibrations, if possible, while doing that other stuff? I'm uncertain how much entirely my character knows about them, but to her they seem like a bad thing right now. Unknown factors are bad things.

Wild Card

Dodge Defence 19 vs Deck of Cards 13 + (d20 = 11)
Wild Card: Successful hit to one degree
Deal a Hand DC22 vs Toughness 6 - 1 + (d20 = 20)
Lab Rat: Resisted ((Seriously, I'm not pulling any tricks here. The guy keeps rolling 20s.))

As soon as the kinetic motions in the air subside, you waste no time flicking three more cards at the rat man. He snarls, now on his feet. His clawed hand swipes the air with bestial speed. His arm takes the brunt of the force. The cards scratch his flesh, but fall to the ground. His eyes are now fixed on you, the humanity in his glare now snuffed out by the animal that has taken over.

Lab Rat
Parry Defence 16 vs Claws 7 + (d20 = 20)
((SERIOUSLY. THIS GUY.))
Lab Rat: Critical Hit!
Toxic Claws Damage DC20 + 5 vs Toughness 6 + (d20 = 13)
Wild Card: Failure to two degrees. -1 Resistance penalty, Dazed.
Toxic Claws Affliction D13 + 5 vs Fortitude 5 + (d20 = 7)
Wild Card: Failure to two degrees. Exhausted.
Lab Rat: No longer Dazed

He charges forwards, zeroed in on Wild Card. In the same, feral motion, before Wild Card could move, the rat man's claw swipes furiously through the air and then into the flank of his attacker. His claws might have sunk even deeper, were he not grabbed by the legs by a truckload of ants, yanking him back midair like a yoyo.

Wild Card
You were hit pretty bad. Dizzyingly so. It doesn't help that when you look down, you see that the scratch mark had already discoloured your skin. You aren't sure if it's those diseased claws or the impact of the blow, but the room feels like its in motion. Any attempt to focus and it only spins harder.

Queen Ant

Spoiler

Since we do know that Lab Rat has no problem being tripped up, I'm going to 'interpret' your attack as a grab.

Looking around is more or less a free action, so I'll let you have it.


Perception 5 + (d20 = 17) vs Stealth 9 + (d20 = 11)
Surprise attack fails.

Parry Defence 15 vs Grab 11 + (d20 = 20)
Queen Ant: Critical Hit!
Grab DC11 + 5 vs Dodge 9 - 5 + (d20 = 5)
Lab Rat: Defenceless, Immobile, Impaired.

Presence -2 + (d20 = 17) vs Insight 12 + (d20 = 16)
Queen Ant: Success to three degrees

Your ants reassemble in an inky, black puddle in the path of the rat man. Just as he pounces into the air, so do you. The ants spring upwards, catching the rat by the legs and whipping him back through the air the way he came. You encircle and envelop him, held in place in a rock solid grip. He struggles, but before long his arms and legs are both bound. By ants.

You realise that within your grasp is the source of the vibrations. They become more frantic now.

Spoiler

I'd forgotten to add the surprise attack check on my first post of this. A successful surprise attack would have put Lab Rat in a vulnerable position where he wouldn't be able to use his whole defence score against your attacks, then have more penalties inflicted on him until his next turn. But he lost the attempt to escape anyway, thanks to the critical hit.

Bill Morgan

All allies receive +2 to all checks this round.

The music resonates through the room. Neither Queen Ant, inhuman though she may be, nor the dizzied Wild Card can ignore it. The resonance does more than just uplifts them; it galvanises them.

Hazard

DC12 vs Fortitude 5 - 1 + 2 (d20 = 13)
Wild Card: Resisted
Queen Ant: Immune
DC12 vs Fortitude 3 + (d20 = 19)
Bill Morgan: Resisted


Lab Rat: Damage: -1 Resistance Penalty | Status: Defenceless, Immobile, Impaired | Grabbed in the southern half of the laboratory.
Bill Morgan: Circumstance: Weakened Stamina -1 | Western wall of the laboratory.
Queen Ant: Damage: -1 Resistance Penalty | Circumstance: -2 Move Penalty. +2 all checks | Southern half of the laboratory.
Wild Card: Damage: -1 Resistance Penalty | Status: Dazed, Exhausted | Circumstance: +2 all checks | Southern half of the laboratory.

Spoiler

That does it! I want a new pair of ACTUAL, not computer, dice!

Wild Card stands there, sucking wind and holding his bleeding wounds. He grimaces slightly followed by a shout filled with anger, strong Russian words, and the phrase "If I'm going down, I'm taking your hairy arse with me, Ratboy!"

With that he lashes out with a kick aimed at Lab Rat's knee.

Spoiler

Wish I had a hero point now! And WE NEED NEW DICE!!!

Edit: Forget the recovery action, WC and I are ticked now.

GOING FOR A TRIP!! Use Ratboy's Athletics for his defense thanks to my Improved trip and I'll use my Acrobatics!! Sorry about the constant changes, this is my last.

As the creature struggles under the weight of the queen's colony, the vibrations go wild causing her ants to ripple. She realizes he is where they are coming from. Either this man, like Bill, is causing them himself or, more likely, the object he holds.
Either way, he seems to treasure it above all else.
The queen directs some of her ants to secrete acid on his hand, in an effort to get him to drop the glowing object.

Spoiler

So, I don't know exactly how this works but finally going in for the acid attack. It's a multiattack but I'll obviously be shooting it all at him. I also don't know how ranged/melee works in this game, or if specific body parts can be targeted like this.
I saw some rules for Smash? Was it Smash? A move to knock an object from the hands of somebody holding them, but I can't seem to see them now. Is that the only way to get somebody to drop something?

Spoiler

The action you're thinking about is Disarm (second page of the action and maneuvers), Unko. You'd normally have a -2 to such an attack (only 2 because you'd be using close combat) but thanks to Bill's Inspire, you'd do it without said penalty). If the attack succeeds, we end up making an oppossing roll between your damage vs the NPC's STR. If you win, the NPC drops the object. If you make the disarm unarmed, you can grab the object as a free action.