Motherfucker! Blitz! Are you alright? Who the fuck did this to you?A dead man. It doesn't hurt, I used some Med-X.Fuck, alright! Look, We'll look into getting you fixed up as soon as we make our move out of here. I'll get on that crane, the car is ready to go! ROTFACE! Drop the gun and get to driving!On it, chief! Rotface yells, twisting his attention from his freshly reloaded gun and moving to the truck. He also takes the time to yell after Crackle, though it doesn't quite get through to the man quite yet. He's in his "zone" again...
Not your problem, not yet anyway. Rushing to the crane, you have Blitz follow you for now. You might need an extra gun while you work, and she seems to have picked up a nice one. Plasma defender, of all things. Strikes an interesting balance in power and ease of use, compared to most other plasma alternatives. Good old Glock, coming through on light and easy to use. If it wasn't for the ammo, it'd be the perfect gun for Blitz, really.
Almost the second you reach the crane, you see another horde of Buzzards rushing towards both the truck and you. Even an animal knows not to stick their nose where it hurts, but they just keep going at it! They're completely insane! Fortunately, they find the truck more interesting than your crane, and they only sent in about five. You get on a knee and start firing your varmint rifle, as it's the only thing that's still loaded. The fights got a tad tough, and taking on a distant position proved useful, but right now you really wish you thought of loading your shotgun again. You miss your first shot, but Blitz fortunately doesn't. The plasma seems to punch a hole clean through the buzzard, giving a unique look at the insides of the creature. It didn't seem to appreciate the insight as it flops on the ground. Your next shots are more successful, fortunately, two hits on the same Buzzard take it down. You never know how many bullets they can take, all you know is that they're either at full speed or dead. They can't possibly be human. More plasma shots fly, fortunately doing far more damage than your piddly little varmint rifle can manage. Three hits take down the Buzzards, allowing you to get to craning. You climb up the ladder, and climb in the booth. Crackle's flamethrower isn't firing anymore, in the distance, leaving only Rotface's rifle making sound. What happened? Did the damn thing finally give out?
A sudden, fiery explosion answers that question. You couldn't quite see it, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out that it was Crackle's flamethrower giving the ghost by exploding. You only hope it took down a few of the freaks.
It takes you a little while to figure out the controls, but they're mercifully easy. Just a button for lowering the grabby thing. You hadn't really paid attention to how it works, but
CLANGIt's an industrial magnet. That makes it a little easier. You turn the stick to the left, although you forgot to raise the damn thing. It skids along the ground, and guessing from the screams you hit some Buzzards as well. This place has no OSHA compliance. After a little bit of (panicked) button pressing, you eventually manage to raise it. You're glad you ARE able to see the truck, the trash piles aren't quite as all-covering as you feared, and after a little more wiggling around, you manage to place the forge on the truck. After pressing the release, you also think of raising the crane at least a little.
Right,that'll do.
Then you hear Blitz screaming.
Looking outside, you see Blitz is only barely fighting off two Buzzards. Her plasma defender is doing work, guessing from the corpse already present, but they must have come right out of fucking nowhere! You recognize the bullet wounds, too, you already shot these bastards earlier! Fuck, you should have double tapped all of them!
The crane gives you a good vantage point, at least, so you fire at the closest one to Blitz.
Time seems to slow down as you take your shots to save your little buddy. Whether by the tiniest course correction of sheer dumb luck on the bullet spread, you barely avoid hitting Blitz' left shoulder and strike a Buzzard in the foot instead. You cycle the bolt, and pop the other one before he can strike. Blitz's attacker, who you already hit in the foot, is rapidly melting from another defender shot. You just about jump off the ladder to get moving back to the truck. You hear Rotface screaming, and while it's hard to tell with ghouls, you're fairly certain it's in terror.
Turning a corner, you see why. There's an increasingly large horde approaching from one end, and Crackle's body is lying on the ground, twitching and burnt. That fucking flamethrower exploded, of course, and Rotface is out of ammo guessing from how he's holding his gun like a club (and that there's a Buzzard with a broken skull in front of him.)
IN THE TRUCK, WE'RE LEAVINGI'M NOT LEAVING HIM, GET CRACKLE ON BOARD!YOU GHOUL MOTHERFUCKER, GET THAT FUCKING TRUCK STARTED, HE'S DEAD! you scream at him, but his response is less than ideal. He jumps off the back of the truck, and rushes to Crackle's body. Guessing from the yell when he starts lifting, seems the tough bastard is alive.
Some sudden movement from the sides causes you to try firing off your varmint rifle, but the click makes you realize your empty as well. You take your sawedoff and load it as fast as you can as Blitz blasts the newest Buzzard out of the truck. They're here, and you don't have time to get those two idiots....
How well do you know them anyway? Crackle's obviously not going to make it and Rotface....
He's just a filthy stinking ghoul.
You press the button to start the truck. It's a simple system, just a gas pedal, a wheel and brakes. No stick, no problem.
We can't just leave them! NO!Blitz is pulling on your arm. Damn it all, they're just about here. You're out of ammo for everything but your shotgun...
It's THEM or US!But they-Suddenly, you are hit with a shower of glass and hear another roar from behind you. A quick move from your shotgun, without even looking, blasts the unwanted passanger away. You can't do anything else. They're already upon Rotface, who is desperately fighting off the first few stragglers. He's not going to make it.
Please...Why the fuck are you such a sucker for a kid, of all things?
You twist the wheel, and drive right up to Rotface and Crackle. just a few meters closer, but you manage to put the truck between the wave and them. You yell at Blitz to get Rotface on the back, which she quickly does. You fire off your remaining shell as another one enters, and then you are forced to switch to your damn kitchen knife. The door of the truck at least funnels them into the blade, so you're not instantly overrun. You hear more defender shots going off, and then Blitz enters the passenger's seat.
GOOOO! She screams, just about squeaking in fear as she is forced to kick away another one of those freaks. You don't need anything else, and slam the gas pedal down. You have to make an awkward three-way turn, but the sheer weight of the truck is enough to deter any Buzzards from actually stopping you. Soon, you're in the right direction. You may not know quite how to drive, but damn it you can figure it out. Following the road you took isn't hard, though Blitz is firing off her defender again after reloading it (using her legs to hold it. You'll get rid of that blade later)
You don't know if Rotface is even still on the truck, and you don't care. At least the road isn't that hard to follow, apart from some uncomfortable metal screeching and some slower driving at the ash, nothing really manages to STOP you. Eventually, you reach the exit. You keep driving a little further, and finally stop at the edge of town. Your reload your shotgun, mosly out of habit, as a score of people begin coming out of town, mouth agape.
The first sound is from the preacher, Chevrolet, which you didn't expect. Wasn't he at the centre of his part of town?
BLESSED BE! THE ANGEL COMBUSTION HAS COME AND BROUGHT US ALL! HAHAAA! HEATHENS, BEGONE, BEGONE! GUARDS! KEEP THEM AWAY FROM THE ANGEL!One quick shot from a particularly loud gun seems to disperse about half the crowd. You step out of the truck, and just barely manage to avoid collapsing entirely. Your vision is blurring, and you are coming to the realisation that your energy rush is at an end.
I'll be... Taking... that... fucking reward now? The malformed preacher slaps on the back, and nearly hugs you. You can feel him shaking from excitement.
Not only the Holy Forge, but a working Angel. All brought to us... Yes, you will be very well rewarded. First, however, we will tend to your wounds. Our finest organic mechanics will help, you'll see! you'll see! Fix you up, nice and proper to serve the Great Combustion!I'd argue, buT..... Fuck.You don't remember when you were put to bed, but when you awake you certainly feel a lot better. Relatively. You've got the shakes again, and you're fairly certain that you're also doped up by a wide margin. When you look to the side, you see Blitz is asleep and shirtless. There's also a stitch where that blade was, and a collection of bandages. You would have preferred if she got to keep some modesty. Looking at yourself, however, you see that you're on nothing but your underwear. Plenty of bandages, though.
After you sigh loudly, getting yourself ready to move, the cleanest looking man you've seen in this city comes through the door. He has a very thick moustache, contrasting the complete lack of hair on his head. Of course, that's only secondary to his positively massive frame. He must be seven feet tall or something!
Ahh! My patients are awake! How are you feeling? Blitz suddenly shoots up, wide awake. Not as doped as you were?
Oh my, you can shake off the anaesthetics quickly, can't you? Blitz doesn't say anything, and after a quick re-assessment of where she is (and seeing you) she instead covers her chest to preserve some modesty. Not that she's quite old enough to really be covering anything, but it's still better.
Your ghoul friend is in the other room. We're giving him a radiation treatment, alongside some blood transfusions. I really suggest you stay here for a while longer, though, you had a lot of internal damage. ...Was it bad?You were running on fumes when you got back. Believe me, without the Med-X you wouldn't be talking. Not coherently, anyway. You'll be fine in a few hours. As for you, Blitz, was it?She nods, blushing up a storm from the situation.
You weren't in top shape either, but you took very well to the drugs we had. After I noticed how the Med-X already in your system hardly affected you, I figured I could risk a few higher-strain treatments. You're probably good to be running around already, but I'd ask you stay with... I didn't get a name for him. He was referred to as the newest "Bishop" but I know about a dozen Bishops here. It's Diaz. You say
Right. You'll need a little while to be at full strength. Feel free to stay here a while longer, maybe catch up with your daughter. I'll leave you alone for a time.She's not my-The door closes.
Hm.
IS there something to talk about?
Statistics and inventory.
Combat Stats
HP: 150/315
Limb health: Perfect
Weapons: .357 revolver (Empty) (requires 0.3 second to fire, 0.7 to cock the hammer for the next shot) (reloading takes 0.7 seconds per bullet) (Can be "aimed" for a bonus to hit and allowing you to hit specific parts of the body) (Loses accuracy beyond 10 meters, by 5 percent per meter) (60 percent chance to hit, not modified for range) (does 36 damage)
Sawed-off 12gauge (2 shots) (requires 0.2 seconds to fire) (Reloading takes 2,5 seconds) (Cannot be aimed with precision, but you can still get a bonus to hit if you take care to aim) (Loses DAMAGE, not chance to hit, beyond three meters. 10 dmg per meter) (Does 70 damage) (70 percent chance to hit
9mm pistol (kind of alright) (0 bullets remaining) Requires 0.2 seconds to fire. (Reloading takes 1.5 seconds) (Can be aimed to a specific body part) (Loses accuracy beyond 12 meters) (70 percent chance to hit, not modified for range) (15 DMG)
Varmint Rifle (0 shots) (Requires 0,3 second to fire) (Reloading takes 3 seconds) (Can be aimed with extreme precision) (Effective range is 60 meters, Loses accuracy at 1 percent per meter beyond that) (Does 28 damage per shot) (80 percent chance to hit)
Grenades
Ammo:
4.357 bullets
1612-gauge shotgun shells
4 20-gauge shotgun shells
72 9mm bullets
16 .22 rounds
Inventory
Box.
Eight empty water bottles
Awkward backpack
Two doses of Jet
Seven leather arm scraps
1 Med-X
3 stimpaks
70 energy cells (relative charge, there's five actual cells)
30 microfusion cells (only one cell remaining)
70 caps
Emergency Shank (unequipped, takes 0.3 seconds to take out. 0.5 seconds to stab something)
Sack of legion gold.
664 caps
S.P.E.C.I.A.L.
STRENGTH 7
PERCEPTION 5
ENDURANCE 6
CHARISMA 7
INTELLIGENCE 4
AGILITY 5
LUCK 6
Barter: 37
Energy Weapons: 15
Explosives: 15
Guns:45
Lockpick: 30
Medicine:13
Melee weapons: 19
Repair: 35
Science: 13
Sneak:35
Speech:30
Survival: 27
Unarmed: 19
PerksLevel-up perks
Iron Stomach: Your extended life as an outcast left you with a strong stomach. Radiation and general filth does not affect you nearly as much
Weird Wasteland: Maybe it's that blow to the head, but things seem a little more loopy and funny. Some things seem to happen that shouldn't. Well, it's nothing bad, at least.
Cold as Ice: You're not exactly the pinnacle of romance, and why would you be? You easily see through people trying to manipulate you, but you suffer a -15 to all convincing checks.
Big Dog: Stature doesn't matter when you can bark like a true master. Whenever you need to incentivise a collection of people towards violence, you gain +15 to it (note: this is both a convincing check and a BUFF check. People love some motivation!). Also, you have some new dialogue to reflect this big dog 'tude.
On the move!:You suffer much less for moving and shooting at the same time. Accuracy loss is reduced by 75%.
Tanooki Perks
Furious Loyalty: Whenever somebody you value is in trouble, you gain +10 to all rolls related to saving them
Party membersTenderloin: Wields two machetes.
Heavy Machetes: Onehanded. Takes 0.2 seconds to swing from a readied position, almost a full second to swing again. Does 25 damage on a successful strike. Dual-wielding allows for attacks to be twice as fast, although the basic swing will not speed up.
10mm submachine gun. (0 shots, empty magazine!) (fully automatic, fires at 15 rounds per second.)(reloading takes 4 seconds (Insufficient Guns skill!)) (can be aimed with precision) (burst causes 5 rolls to be done for damage, with an accuracy debuff of 2 percent per shot) (Effective range is 14 meters, loses acc by 5 percent per meter beyond that) (15 dmg per shot) (70 percent base chance to hit.)
Status: Healthy.
Blitz:
Plasma defender. "Magazine" is 15 shots (15 shots max) (30 energy cell charge per 15 shots) (reloading takes 3 seconds) (effective range is 30 meters, 10 percent less acc per meter beyond that) (does 45 damage per shot) (60 percent chance to hit)
9mm pistol. Magazine is 12 bullets. 13 with the chambered round. (empty)
Silenced 10mm pistol (0 shots, 13 max with the chambered round) (requires 0.2 seconds to fire, ) (reload time is 3 seconds) (effective range is 40 meters, loses accuracy at 5 percent per meter beyond that) (Does 22 damage per shot) (70 percent chance to hit)
Varmint Rifle (5 shots) (Requires 1 second to fire) (Reloading takes 7 seconds) (Can be aimed with extreme precision) (Effective range is 60 meters, Loses accuracy at 1 percent per meter beyond that) (Does 28 damage per shot) (80 percent chance to hit) (Blitz' chance is 70 percent)
Status: Healthy.
Dog
Teeth: Shiny white things in its mouth.
Status: Healthy
Quest log
Revenge!
1 Gather a posse.
2 Bleed the town
Addiction status: You're shaking pretty bad. This will affect you.
Quest complete!
Forging The Way!Level Up!You have 14 skill points! Add them to the skills of choice!
Current skills
Barter: 37
Energy Weapons: 15
Explosives: 15
Guns:45
Lockpick: 30
Medicine:13
Melee weapons: 19
Repair: 35
Science: 13
Sneak:35
Speech:30
Survival: 27
Unarmed: 19
Choose a perk!
Intense Training: You can add a single point to a S.P.E.C.I.A.L stat of choice. You can take this perk multiple times.
Stonewall : Defending against actions will make sure you won't get knocked down, but surprise attacks still affect you.
Swift Learner: You gain experience at an enhanced rate, granting you 10% more EXP.
Awareness: You can see the exact HP values of other creatures, and gain a +10 for spot checks.
First impressions: Surprise attacks are far more effective. If the initial attack was within 5 meters it will always hit, and a follow-up (if any) has a 10 percent aim bonus
Educated: You gain two more skill points per level-up.
Piercing eyes: You just that little extra bit more attentive. Aiming with a gun will reveal weaknesses of a target, based on perception.
Head-on debate: A surprise headbutt will ALWAYS knock down the target and does additional damage. Your hair is also 50 percent more indestructible.
Child at heart: Okay, that's probably not right, but you DID learn how to manipulate children! You gain +20 to all convincing checks surrounding children.
Good fit: It really all comes down to how you spread it. Whenever you are wearing heavy armor, you aren't nearly as slowed. Also of note, you kind of figured out how to make things fit you better by a tiny margin. Enough to get started, at least.
Cowboy: The spirit of the west has made a quick visit down south! You fire off all revolvers and level-actions much faster, and are more accurate when fanning the hammer. You also unlock the right to make cowboy puns.
Hand loader: You figured out how to make hand loads, meaning you are able to make your own bullets and have them be better than normal bullets. Also gives a boost to gun maintenance (+5)
Shotgun Surgeon: You ignore 5 DT when firing your shotgun, regardless of what you're firing (slugs, birdshot, 00).