Topic: Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake (Read 14703 times)

Dwarmin · « **Reply #210 on:** October 07, 2013, 07:16:24 am »

Clair indicates a team attack would be the best strategy.

Blair agrees.

"Right. Let's get to it, shall we? I don't think we'll have any trouble from these clowns...though, they might hear the shots and come running. Best to go around them for now."

Together, Blair and Clair crawl out of the field to the Growth habs...

((Wont make you reroll a stealth check here, since circumstances haven't changed))

...

As before, the rebel search team remains momentarily clueless. Clair wonders why such poorly trained soldiers were sent on such an important mission...though, it's possible the rear guard is made of the less experienced.

The pair advances. Four soldiers outside the hab, one pair guarding the doors, the other idling around the building boredly-and they'll have to be silenced quickly. Blair nods to Clair. He'll take one pair-melee weapons only to attract no sound. He may not have a hand claw, but he's well trained in hand to hand combat.

"I'll take the group in front." He says, sliding silently forward.

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Clair (click to show/hide)

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Blair (click to show/hide)

---
Meanwhile...

Quote from: Initiative Order

Andrake/16+5=21
Fox/[15]+3+3=21
Septima/[17]+3=20
Striker/[13]+2+3=18
Siya/[8]+1=9
Riu/[2]+3=5

Septima continues her efforts to not get shot!

((Fighting Defensively))

Andrake draws back his snake-hood, enraged about something or the other. He suddenly drops his guns and spits a gout of acid at Septima!

Andrake Attack [2]+13=15 vs Septima Defense 25=Miss!

But, the deceptively agile Mechoid is not there to meet it-a timely distraction from Riu has her already springing to the side. The street where she was previously ate is suddenly consumed by a four foot deep pothole filled with toxic purple slime.

Riu tries to reason with the enraged captain-their conversation is fairly unproductive though.

"You should surrender or withdraw!" she shouted to Andrake. "You can't take too many more hits like that."

He responds, after a fleeting second.

"...A Hound never surrenders. They'll killswitch me anyway after this mess, so why give them the satisfaction? I'd rather die fighting traitors like you!"

Riu purses her lips. Her pistol might not be able to do any direct damage-but, her scanner is at full power, and she can help coordinate Septima's defense.

((Aiding/+2 defense against Andrake. ))

When she notices Andrake unspooling his heat-sinks, she immediately warns Septicemia of the incoming barrage of nano-molecular venom. Which her new friend dodges with ease.

A sniper rifle tossed by striker lands in her hands a moment later, with no pause. Firepower.

Such coordination is impossible with humans...

Striker is already circling around for another attack-but first, he calculates an easy trajectory and tosses it to Riu. A bit of a hairbrained manuever, but she catches it easily and without a seconds hesitation.

Then he reorients on his target.

Striker Attack [19]+10=29 vs Andrake Defense 19=Hit!
Crit Threat!
Crit Confirm? [20]+10=30 vs 18=Hit! Crit!
Damage 2d3+2x2=16-3=13
Andrake Death Save [6]+1=7 vs dc 7, Fail!

Andrake -130% Energy, KO
Striker -20% Coolant

Riu's critical scan comes in handy. He aims for the now exposed molecular generator, right on Andrake's left shoulders. It's usually sheathed in a heavy plate of armor, but for just one moment it's exposed-a design flaw.

Strikers lance pierces the drum, and punches straight through-shearing through his armor and spilling his own toxins into his system. Andrake himself might be somewhat resistant to his own poison, but not in those amounts and not so close. He collapses in a twitching heap.

((...you lucky dog

))

Siya clears her head, looking around. Realizing the captain fell in the moment she let herself be blinded.

Realizing she failed her team again.

She faces Septima once more. Her voice is monotone -barely a hint of emotion, but it's there.

"Cease combat. Captain Andrake is indisposed. Primary command falls to Fire Support Echo. Agent Echo is disposed. Primary command falls to Siya Unit. This unit offers surrender....Recon Davtree Johnson is not responding to my hails."

She blinks. Her fists and her shield are still raised. But, she's uncertain. Perhaps they will kill her. And her 'friends'.

"...What do you want from us?" She asks Septima.

The street suddenly goes quiet.

Fox keeps an eye out. Looking for the glint of a rifle.

Nothing but shadows.

Judging by the silence reigning, the fighting is over for now. But where's the sniper?

...

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Septima (click to show/hide)

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: RIU (click to show/hide)

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: FOX-01 (click to show/hide)

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Striker (click to show/hide)

!!Warning-Hostile Oids detected!!

[IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Siya (click to show/hide)

[IIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Echo (click to show/hide)

IIIIIIIIII]

Spoiler: Andrake (click to show/hide)

((Updoot!? It really only takes so long because I can't update on weekends...))

Criptfeind · « **Reply #211 on:** October 07, 2013, 07:58:47 am »

((16/2=8=3+3+2? I rolled a max damage and a critical strike? On a nineteen as well. Jesus. Never say RIU is not useful, even with a weak pistol. Anyway, I, personally, am unbothered by long update times.))

Strikers jets puffed up a cloud of dust and debris as he hovered over the ground, quickly looking around the battle field to make sure it was over. Seeing that Siya had stopped attacking he let his lance unfold and slide back into place beneath him. He landed on the ground and walked cautiously closer to Siya and Septima. Siya looked cowed, for the moment. But he didn't know how long that would last, or even what Septima would answer to her question. With Septime no longer in harms way, and these hounds mostly indisposed, Striker itched to be off and to find Clair, to make sure that she was unharmed by them splitting up....

On the other hand, leaving anyone from this hound group alive could be disastrous. They probably already reported what they saw here, but perhaps not everything. Striker almost shuddered as he contemplated their actions here eventually leading back to the discovery of the gray.

Dwarmin · « **Reply #212 on:** October 07, 2013, 08:20:59 am »

((Crits do maximum damagex2 normally, tho I may change that.

))

Errol · « **Reply #213 on:** October 07, 2013, 08:24:31 am »

Septima allowed herself a moment of relief. This moment of danger was over... mostly. She had worried a lot about her plans, but so far they had went off without a hitch... No, wait. She tensed up a little, remembering that the sniper was still on the loose. Letting him off the hook might have been a mistake... a loose factor that had to be taken care of. Moreover - this was his game. He could be anywhere.

But first, diplomacy... she put her weapons systems into sleep mode. It was important to get this Oid's trust. To reassure her she didn't have to fight. The last thing she wanted was to make her feel cornered, to have her start a desparate last stand...

"Preface: Let me state that I am affliated with neither Government nor Rebellion, that I am solely responsible for my actions here and that those who aided me are little more than my... well, my friends. You can call me a concerned citizen."

"Abstract: This engagement happened because I violated a lockdown apparently issued by your squad - I exited my flat, and instantly got confronted by the Harpyoid, Echo. Since I heard screams, and I consider myself responsible for this area... I assumed the worst, entering combat to force my way through. In retrospective, this might not have been the most appropriate course of action, but I, too, did not want to lose any of my friends living here, and in addition to that, Echo was really rude and Oids acting like that, truthfully, piss me off."

"Consequently: I do not harbor any ill will towards you, and do not wish to fight any more, although I must request your and your allies' disarmament and restraint - I hope you understand. However, I guarantee that under no circumstance will I take your lives, nor will I leave you in a situation I know is lethal - since your squad leader talked about kill switches, I have reservations about leaving you in the authorities' custody thus... But know that I will investigate what your squad was doing here, and may demand compensation if you were harming innocents. Your help in clearing up this situation - a report of what happened from your perspective - would be most appreciated, and I may also interrogate Andrake should he come to his senses... he is not in good condition. Can you stabilize him?"

"Proposal: But please, let us discuss this somewhere in cover. I understand that the sniper of your squad is still on the loose, and he appears to be an unpredictable person..."

Haul Andrake and Echo into a covered position, stand guard while keeping eyes open for the sniper, do conversation. Also, if that's somehow possible, surreptitiously report the situation to the Grey and request a little more time to investigate the situation.

Dwarmin · « **Reply #214 on:** October 07, 2013, 08:49:09 am »

"Agent Echo is not very experienced in field operations. She should not have been patrolling alone...standing down, as ordered." Siya says, disengaging the power systems on her fists, and then her shielding system. She can't exactly remove them, but powering them down completely is just the same-she can't activate them without you knowing.

She helps you haul her mangled friends down under a nearby awning. She seems to be scanning for snipers as well.

"Loading Sitrep.

Captain Andrake informed the Squad of a situation developing in multiple sectors at 0900 hours. Simultaneous attacks across the city. Our squad was assigned to this area as a garrison unit. We were supposed to remain quiet and dark-look for suspicious activity, report and acknowledge hostiles. Captain Andrake was displeased by this order. He wanted us to fight.

At 1100 hours, he ordered us onto the streets-Recon Davtree Johnson reported spotting a suspicious character carrying a package through the market. We then locked down the area, as per his orders. No trace of the suspicious character was found. Captain Andrake then detained three Mechoids on sight, local shopkeepers, I believe. He invoked Emergency Section TY68.B and began questioning them as to the whereabouts of the suspicious character. They were non-compliant, hesitant to answer. So, he ordered me to lay satchel charges in their stalls and destroy their goods and sundry to 'motivate' them. I obeyed this order, under protest. But, I still did it. He had planned to go from door to door and bring out many more prisoners for reasons I cannot guess, when you intervened. There have been no operational casualties so far. But, some are injured. The Captain was not gentle in his interrogation.

In my own estimation, Recon Johnson's report was erroneous or...deliberately mistaken. Either on orders or not, Andrake merely need an excuse to demonstrate his desire to engage an enemy. Since no enemy presented itself, he created one. "

She looks over at Andrake.

"Your friend did not strike to kill. He's out of commission-it will be many weeks before he is again fully operational-but, his core remains intact. I can bring him online for you to speak to. This will take a few moments."

It seems Siya is also the teams only medic-she begins patching into Andrake with a handmade tools of some sort, recharging some batteries and replacing some wires.

There's a subtle click. Andrake's brain, at least, is online-albeit in a torn apart body. You can communicate with him.

Errol · « **Reply #215 on:** October 07, 2013, 09:22:55 am »

"Assessment: This is a tumultous time, and I can understand cracking under the stress... Nevertheless, according to your report, Andrake has displayed poor situational judgment and escalated the situation for no good reason. If I were his commander, I'd be sure to take disciplinary action... then again, I do not know what kind of disciplinary action they employ these days..." She grimaces darkly. If Andrake wasn't lying about becoming kill-switched...

Request: Well, then, please hook me up to your captain - I'd like to hear his side as well."

//To:RIU: Could you help me with analyzing his response? I'm not too good at detecting lies.//

She focused as the procedure took place. Then, communicated.

"Message: Captain Andrake. My name is 78b-10262210-RV00, but Seven will suffice. You have lost, but your life is spared, and you are in my custody, not in a Government prison. As I do not want to judge you injustly, I request of you to provide a complete recount of the events that transpired this day. Furthermore, you mentioned 'kill switches' during the previous fight, so you are to provide a report about those as well. If you refuse or lie, I'll disassemble your limbs to remove your weaponry systems from them, so choose your words carefully.

This probably wasn't going to be a fruitful conversation, but Septima tried to give everyone second, even third chances. She always had to try. If she wouldn't give an Oid, or an human, their chances, but they were innocent... no, that'd absolutely never happen again... She'd never shoot before talking again. That had been her promise to herself. Once.

Dwarmin · « **Reply #216 on:** October 07, 2013, 09:39:15 am »

The voice that comes to you is Andrakes, somewhat softer-almost as a man would talking in his sleep.

"

...Command gave us Sentry duty in this slaghole of a district. They know I don't bow and scrape like those newboys from up top. I'm a soldier. I'm good at what I do. They wanted me out of the way. Johnson saw someone though. A little plugger carrying a satchel, documents he said, maybe something heavier. Who am I to second guess my soldiers?"

You detect the slightest amount of smugness in the final line.

"Engaged. No resistance. Of course, no one saw anything. They never see anything. A bomb goes off and kills a convoy of our guys, everyones blind deaf and dumb. So I took things to the next level. We were doing fine. Siya was griping, as usual. That's why she's not a captain like me. Doesn't know how to get the job done. I sent Echo to patrol the perimeter, needed her out of the way-that nosy bird reports everything she sees, fresh off the line, after all...then we got hit bad. I don't know what happened. They cut us apart. They cut me apart, and now I'm dead.

...

I suppose civvies haven't heard of Killswitches yet. Aren't you in for a surprise? They started putting them into...us...not long ago. Words or commands they can use. If it's transmitted or even spoken to me, I shutdown-total wipe. Can put them in any Oid, really-just programming. Said it was a last ditch safety measure against RUTIACS...but, really, you put power like that in someones hands? They can make you do things. It's not fair. But, I never played by the rules anyway. So my killswitch is probably being dug up right now. At least I can say I died fighting.

That's what they made me for, right..."

scapheap · « **Reply #217 on:** October 07, 2013, 12:20:35 pm »

Clair nod back at her brother sneaking toward the other pair, a claw to the neck will render them quiet if not out of the fight.

Silenced the others

SOLDIER First · « **Reply #218 on:** October 07, 2013, 04:03:10 pm »

Fox hovers over to them others, frowning in a confused way.
"I'm pretty sure I saw a s-sniper earlier, but they're gone now. N-no sign of them."

IronyOwl · « **Reply #219 on:** October 07, 2013, 05:59:57 pm »

((The slow update speed just makes the game slower, not worse, in my opinion.))

Riu reacted with alarm at Andrake's explanation of kill switches. That was completely unacceptable.

"Thank you, Siya," she said comfortingly to her... cousin. She knew it must be very distressing for her right now, having all of her allies incapacitated, being on this mission in the first place, not being sure what the sniper was up to...

"Scanning for proposed switches now. I possess no technical expertise and will require assistance should they be found," she transmitted to her new friends. It slightly worried her that Andrake's handlers might still be listening in somehow, and that tipping them off to her plan would cause them to accelerate their own... if indeed, that was what they intended. Andrake's view of the situation was hopefully rather more violent and grim than the reality.

Begin full scan to attempt to find Andrake's (and then Echo's and Siya's, if present) kill switches, and assess the viability of removing or disabling them. Share all found data with friends.

Dwarmin · « **Reply #220 on:** October 10, 2013, 09:55:55 am »

Riu performs a full scan of both Siya and what's left of Andrake-physical and diagnostic.

Perception [18]+5=23
1xFlexiarmor Schematic Sent to Scanner Station
1xGraviton Shield Schematic sent to Scanner Station
1xVenom Elemental Module Schematic sent to Scanner Station

Apart from picking up some interesting schematics to study later, she locates the 'killswitch' quite easily-a magnetic pulse device located at the back of both Andrake and Siya's mainframes-right on top of their memory core and a secondary device attached to their backups. It's almost completely separate from the rest of them, designed to be activated independently of their own systems, though it seems to ride partially their own audio and visual sensors...judging by what she's looking at, the explosion would be enough to wipe either of them out, and probably damage any oid unfortunate enough to be standing near them. She doubts recovery would be possible-it's fatal, insofar as an Oid can be said to die. Nothing would remain.

Removal, however, is far from certain or safe-she can already detect multiple intrusion measures no doubt designed ti detonate prematurely. They would either have to be removed physically or disarmed at the source, she thinks. In any case, it's not something that can be done in the field-you would need a team of technical specialists and a laboratory.

Depressingly enough, she also detects a universal clock device within the killswitch-an additional precaution, perhaps? Both of them are currently counting down.

Siya's is set to one week, but Andrake's is only 12 hours.

Errol · « **Reply #221 on:** October 10, 2013, 08:00:05 pm »

...this was a line. HOUND command had, apparently, chosen to cross it - shocking her. She had higher opinions of the brass than that, but thirty, fourty years were a lot... Enough time for cutting edge technology, like her, to become dull and almost overtaken by modern-day assembly line production... without even mentioning the wonders she couldn't even compare with - like FIOs, or Techoids. Marvelous beings. She only had seen few, and talked to even fewer, but each time had left her in wonder...
It was a lot longer than most Oids were active. Especially in the military, where many fell in the line of duty or became discharged, honorably or not. Few remembered the great Oid-Human Concordat, the achievement of basic rights... but it apparently didn't apply anymore in times of war like these, heh. And it wouldn't surprise her at all if there were other Oids behind this great travesty as well.
She spoke, bitterly.

"...Evaluation: Disgusting. And ignorant. Even if, short Does HOUND command not know that those who have nothing left to lose will fight like men possessed? Any organization willing to use their bitterness only needed to deafen these Oids to any outside interference and then let them loose where they want to inflict mayhem. Captain Andrake..." Her voice breaks off for a second. "...I can only pity. Not help. I fancied me merciful, but this mercy is cruel." Long ago, in a time where Oids like her were nothing but idle fiction, there was a man who proposed three - or perhaps four - absolute laws for robots to obey... she only knew of this because Coppola once made an off-hand mention of them, in disdain. Speaking of them as a barrier to be overcome. After all, his goal had always been to create a perfectly humanoid Oid, and artificial, human-centric laws stood in direct contrast to that.
But from one of these laws, she had ultimately derived her maxim to, through action or inaction, not allow anyone, be it Oid or Human, to die if she could help it. And, perhaps, she might still be able to help it now... several circuits returned a cold, logical solution.

"Addendum: Of course, there is a way... back up the mind, salvage what one can from the body, then let it detonate... what a ghoulish act. Still, this is your last salvation... and it is your choice to seek it, or not."

She turns away, shaking her head. Feeling the back of it, out of a latent, irrational fear. Still... there was much about her construction she did not understand... what if...

Remark: These killswitches.. Such an inefficient implementation as well... why not just wipe the mind clean, to save the body... and, of course, what if the kill switch dictionary is stolen..." She murmurs to herself, still not entirely believing to which extreme lengths the HOUNDs were willing to go. Not entirely certain whether they believed it justified in their desparation, or implemented a very cynical solution...

And yet, despite all of this, it will still be necessary to inspect the explosion site before moving on. Stay alert because of the sniper, and remember to confiscate the fallen Captain's ZMGs.

Dwarmin · « **Reply #222 on:** October 12, 2013, 03:38:15 am »

"Just let me lie. Your mercy is not of my concern." Andrake responds, his eyes flashing dully. "Command will recover me or not-and maybe I'll be back, maybe they'll make me better. It's not any worse than becoming a rebel...a traitor. I've no apologies for doing my duty." He claims, sealing his fate.

...

Septima recovers the weapons Andrake let fall. Not very accurate, but very deadly in close quarters-linked firing controls mean they have to be used in unison...she notes the armor piercing rounds in the chamber, highly effective. High rate of fire to account for the owners lack of marksmanship, perhaps.

She moves on to the market-a place she's visited often enough, since it's right down her street.

Zree0's repair shop has been gutted-it's still on fire. The smaller stalls, usually selling secondhand energy tanks and scrap are also gone. Mig's surplus is pretty much a crater. The deep caravan owned by Anim and his wife has been totally destroyed-along with their small plot of flowers. Similar damage extends up and down the street. There's no reason or pattern to any of it. The hounds just decided to go on a rampage...there's no bodies, though, and little destruction has been done to local homes however. It seems the demolition was centered here.

A few mechoids are already trotting out warily from their homes-a sad collection of old retired Oids, stumbling and limping about-but, each moves with their own dignity untarnished. With few words, they begin to clean up the wreck of their homes and businesses-they are unaware of the sniper. They are quiet folk, since no one really listens to them-not even their local zone 19 Senator, Tatum Short. He has 'semi-permanently' relocated to a higher tier, leaving his constituents to face such things with no representation.

They will repair what was done and move on, as they always have.

SOLDIER First · « **Reply #223 on:** October 12, 2013, 03:40:23 am »

Probably continue looking for the sniper.
Use heat/infrared vision if I have it.

Dwarmin · « **Reply #224 on:** October 12, 2013, 04:16:43 am »

Siya notices Fox scanning the horizon and speaks.

"...I can tell you that in all liklihood Recon Johnson is no longer in the area. He hates our kind, but he would not commit a suicidal act by re-engaging against superior numbers and firepower. He is a sniper, after all-and trained in evasion tactics. Furthermore, the dissipation of this squad would no doubt be to his liking.

There is a 84% probability he has fled the battlefield-no doubt, returning to Hound HQ if they will still take him."

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Author Topic: Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake (Read 14703 times)

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Criptfeind

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Errol

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Errol

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

scapheap

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

SOLDIER First

Re: Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

IronyOwl

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Errol

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

SOLDIER First

Re: Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake

Dwarmin

Re: Decembre in Paradisum Turn 9/Head of the Snake