Ari
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Freedom City Guidebook
Freedom City PBP: A How-To Guide
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Everything posted by Ari
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Lowering the Conch, Wave-Eye watched the Black Plunder sail off into the distance, swallowed up in a thick mist that quickly took it from sight. Suddenly throwing his arms up in the air, the triton let loose a shout of triumph that reverberated like a foghorn. "OUUUURAAAAUGH!" he roared, laughing deliriously "That puts paid to you, Lordless One! Fly now, and trouble us no more! Send word to your master! Let the Drowned Man know the might of his-!" Suddenly his shark-like grin slackened, and lowering his arms the fishman stared at the sea, belatedly realizing what Blood's escape meant. 'And knowing these treacherous eels' he thought, futilely reaching out to feel the flow of the sea through his mind 'he will return, with comrades to strengthen him...' That brought the other three to mind. Despite his shameful actions in the engine room(he really would need to relieve Lady Tsunami on the voyage home), he at least knew they had some kind of connection and camaraderie. Turning and loping back to join them, the old triton paused long enough to explain to the captain what had happened, begging his forgiveness and offering to help get the ship back to shore before returning to the others. Bowing humbly, he reported "Captain Blood's vessel attempted to gore this ship. I stopped it, and that finally drove him off. We could chase him, but he will be hard to find in the fog the Black Plunder breathes. And your people here" he glanced at Lady Tsunami and Lady Temperance in turn "need caring for." "The pirate claims he will return. As a wandering spirit, with a history of such deeds, it is nigh-on a surety. And it is doubtful he will come alone. The sea is vast, and maybe his next prey might not be quick enough to call for help." Clearing his throat like a rattling of pebbles after a wave, Nochehuatl asked "Would you three...be of a mind to prepare in earnest for that time? As a group? With myself?" The giant eyes on the sides of his head didn't convey much emotion, but even besides the lights on the ceiling, a faint glimmer could be detected.
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GM As she passed through the apartment building, Velocity saw people flit by as if they and the building were the ones with super-speed. Many of them were leading or carrying children or hauling bundles or blankets as they fled. Warping into the room where the smoke billowed out, Megan quickly discovered the problem: the floor was nearly swimming in chemicals giving off an acrid smell, with a large hole melted in the wall of a closet revealing several waist-high tanks marked with variations on the universal symbol for "DANGER". Each of them had shattered, spilling their contents out into the living room. Tributaries of the foul-smelling chemicals led off into the other rooms, burning all it touched. "Hey!" a frantic, young voice yelled from the closet "Hey! Let me outta here! I'm goin' under, help!" A fit of coughing broke up the yell. The smoke inside made it hard to tell what level the acid was at inside, but from what little could be seen of the tanks and how sluggish it moved, it was a lot.
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GM The half-formed circles of Builder energy locked into place seconds after their target dodged aside. Standing back upright, the Red Salamander lit up with cascades of heat and flame, concentrating it into a second inferno that swept the floor! With a clench of her armored hand, the living furnace kept the swirling mass of fire clear of her allies as it blackened the already melted tiles, smashing into the two heroines like a burning avalanche. Stronghold was knocked unconscious, both by being flung against a wall by the force of the attack and from the Hellish heat and pain as Red Two's fire tore through even the Protector Ring's mighty forcefields! As the Salamander turned to the vault door with an air of triumph, the heroes scattered and battered, Thoughtspeed felt something brush the edge of his conscious thought. Even through the muddle of his confused mind, it was clear as one of his dad's old records, and just as musical. A soft, gentle voice was singing ~'...Oh there ain't no rest for the wicked/Until I close their eyes, for gooood...'~ It was gone as quickly as it had come, along with the faint hum of other unfamiliar minds, but it had certainly been heard.
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Okay, Red Salamander goes again. Uses Area Attack. As before, DC22 Reflex to halve the DC27 Toughness save. RobRX and horngeek's characters are the only ones int he blast radius. She then moves towards the vault. Rob, just as a reminder, Cho is still Dazed. Next round should be the last.
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What's even more pointless than a lighthouse in space? A lighthouse underwater. Put THAT in your pipe and smoke it, superhero-genre!
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Agreed, this Drowned Man sounds like an unfriendly customer, and worthy of further investigation. I say we let Captain Blood and his crew get away for now. He's hardly their archnemesis and they certainly aren't his. Maybe if there's a thread with Siren for the crew a bigger confrontation would be merited, but as-is the first adventure is not place for such things. Be like blowing up the Death Star in the first act. As for HQs, I'm leaving soon, so I can't really be part of that. I think an Atlantean watchtower near the coast, refurbished with the latest world-monitoring tech, might be radical.
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"Actually," Marceau said gravely, looking up from frantically working on stemming the nightmarish tide of blood in Carl's leg, "I was rethinking my strategy. Enclosed spaces and explosives are horrors waiting to happen. I and Carl will be out of your hair shortly, Deadshot. Please accept my apologies in lieu of more substantial reparations." Bowing his head slightly, the King of Suits got quickly into a crouch and scanned the bar floor over the counter, and satisfied that he hadn't missed anybody scooped Carl onto his shoulder once more. "You need real medical attention, my friend," the caped crusader muttered as he slipped out the back door, noting a convenient fire escape he could use to get the attention of the assassins and draw them away from the bar. By now his entire left arm and shoulder was nearly useless, blazing with agony at the least pressure, and throbbing otherwise. Marceau didn't want to think about how much danger of infection he might be in by now. But first things first, to find a good medical clinic...
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GM Rene de Saens At first, Marsha seemed not to see anything, and just glanced in confusion between the empty void of the dream and the vague apparition beside her. Then the shadow before her spoke again. "He's right. In this sanctum of the unfettered mind, any interference or deception is a great evil. So in that case..." The glittering metropolis vanished, and the costumed crusaders slid with it into the shifting colors of the dreamscape with a suddenness that had their laughter fading long after they were gone from sight. As they vanished, the demon appeared in full, a looming shadow that spread across the horizon. "Behold. Honesty." Marsha promptly turned and ran, a silver wall slamming down in front of the shadow behind her. Behind it the demon grumbled briefly to itself, and with a crash the wall crumbled, the demon beginning to steal across the glassy field of dreams. As it slowly passed Rene, the thing looked down at him "No useless gestures, please. I am the strong one here, regardless of whose minds are nearby. The woman could probably use a-" interrupted by a burning cage that rose up to surround it, the demon spat a curse and began crushing its way through, all eyes on its massive body glaring after the receding figure of Marsha. "As I was saying" it hissed "please exercise your heroic prerogative, and make her see reason. Maybe then her mind will stand still so I can crush her spirit beneath my voice."
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DC23 Toughness save: 8. Well then. It's down. The Dragons make their assault. Not going to bother with actual combat because that last took too long, so just narrate beating them senseless after the GM post is up.
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Also, SC, should Kingy make any Fortitude saves to keep going despite agitating his wound and straining himself?
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Medicine roll, DC10 Stabilizing action. 19. Aw, success. Okay then, going to spend the next few hurried seconds to check if anyone else is wounded in Deadshots, and then hustle them out the back. Notice roll: 20.
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GM Stronghold The ASTRO Summer Expo was one of Freedom's newer traditions. As younger and younger technicians and researchers joined the prestigious scientific institution, they brought with them a stronger and stronger urge to show the world what they'd come up with, contrasting sharply with the quieter and more secretive older generation. Naturally, much of their more important and government-sponsored work couldn't be shouted from the rooftops, but weird, implausible and esoteric gadgets and discoveries were more than fair game. So every summer since 2011, in the Midtown Convention Center, the the best and the bogglingest was put on display for all the world to see. "Hi there!" said a slightly mussed-looking redhead with a tired smile and professional posture, her voice carrying clearly across the packed con floor. Or at least the dozen feet between her and the door Stronghold came in from. "Mr. Bae called, said you stopped him from...making a mistake" frowning a little at that, the older woman stepped over to shake Haukea's hand "Our project's over here, in the 'Mind and Mentality' section, if you would just follow me-" Moving deftly through the throng into one of the square walled-off segments of the floor dominated by a gigantic banner of a purple 'Ψ'. Among the myriad of bizarrely-shaped machines that somehow changed one's perception, chemical formulae that turned memories as flexible as putty for a few hours, laser setups that literally burned information into your retinas, the dream-sharer still stood out. What looked like two orange lawn chairs were joined at the head by a vivid grey cupola that hung over the semi-beds like an umbrella. Power cables led from it to a small, very quiet generator and control setup displaying brainwave patterns and synapse activity. The narrow-faced and sullen-looking Dr. Faiur standing next to it was a significant clash, her crisp white coat, bulky goggles and black tool belt making the Indian woman look even more like a mad scientist than the outlandish machine could have done. After a quick, muted discussion with Abby, the doctor glanced once at Stronghold, nodded her assent, and raised the cupola, gesturing for the pair to take their seats. "You'll feel groggy when you wake up" she warned while holding a heavy, flexible mask over their eyes for a few seconds "but it's the only way to get you into and out of REM fast enough. Now relax..." The last of her words was lost as both lost consciousness, Haukea only barely aware of the cupola closing over their heads and lighting up... The first thing Stronghold 'saw' was a blasted cityscape, and Abby running frantically towards a small child lying in the path of two nightmares of metal and flesh...
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GM Amelyth Despite all she did, none of Amanda's blows struck home. Even as her dragon's claws raked at the sinister thing in Ted's mind, it vanished and attacked with cries like sledgehammers as it reappeared. Gusts of mental winds passed clean through the entity, and the one time she managed to get it close enough for a pulse of psychic power the thing blew apart...only to reform seconds later and send her crashing into a heap of fading memories with a lash of its many arms. Stalking onto the half-forgotten edifice above her, the demon looked down at its enemy with maddening cool "I am immutable here. Thanks to my efforts, I am as much a part of this man's being as his love for his children. Anchored here and in the Unwaking Underworld, even your might is useless against us!" Coiling its tail around its spider's legs, the thing all but grinned down at Amanda, hampered only by lacking s mouth "Like I say to him every day...it's pointless. Your efforts are futile. Get you gone from here..." a thousand blades sprang from the demon as it suddenly bored pure hate into the draconic psionic "...or else remain forever. To even scratch me, this human would need to change his heart! And you have not the power to do that!" It telescoped out like a gust of smoke, whispering as it neared Amanda's astral projection "Leave. At once."
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GM Riff As it turned out, the sound-warper was called for much sooner than expected. "In here," said the barrel-chested, gray-haired officer as he led the superhero to one of the precinct cells, glancing at the younger man in brief worry "uh...Mr. Wilder? That...that right? Or is it just Ri-yeah I'll stick to Riff. M'niece loves your work..." Coughing to dispel the growing fog of awkwardness, the policeman ushered Warren into the jail. The woman from earlier was sitting on the simple bench, head in her hands and breathing shallowly. From the first step inside, Riff had been able to hear something off about the ambient noise in the precinct. But only now did he know what it was. Her lips were moving rapidly, and from the whispers at the edge of conscious hearing she was talking a mile a minute. "Been asleep since she got in there" explained Officer Crenshaw, looking at his charge with real pity "name's Helen Gioielli, CPA. No priors and she bought the gun years ago. Claimed she'd heard about the formula in a dream, and they must be really somethin', 'cause none of us can get her to wake up again." Turning another look towards the young superhero, he added cautiously "So...got any ideas?"
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Snorting like a horse, Nochehuatl fell in stroke with the others, powerful arms swinging loosely at his sides and every swing of his pointed tail ringing softly with naked metal. To the Daughter of Earthquakes he said drily "Truly, it would be a strange thing if we had not such an escort. No less than a stain on the royal heart to leave guests unguarded. You lads," he added with a jovial gurgle and something like a human smile directed at the brawny Atlanteans in their wake are a welcome sight to frail elders and green children such as us." Turning away with a grinding chuckle, the scarred triton passed most of the swim silently absorbed in watching the people and buildings around them, trying to imagine the evolution that led to their current form. Listening to the conversation between the other three, the triton commented Learning the Atlantis tongue is a rarity. Few teach it above water. And though it is married to Europa's tongues like smoke to fire, it is like nothing that now lives." Despite his divine gift to understand and speak all languages, Wave-Eye still heard the syllables and intonations in the original speech. Their meaning was simply more open to him. "For my part, Mistress of Hippocampi, I hope we may see the great Atlantean towers of learning, and the buried depths of Neptune City. Such things were old and great when I was young, and it would give me pleasure to see them again."
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Via discussion in Chat, Thoughtspeed's Concealment has dropped thanks to the Daze/drama potential.
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That misses. Would you like to reroll, or use a Move Action to bash one or other of the heroes in harm's way out of immediate peril? Do both? Surge for some new action?
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As the captain's warning blared, Wave-Eye halted in mid-step. Already enormous, his father's black eyes widened even further at the fact that the pirate was about to go that far to destroy them. He wasn't paralyzed for long, however, leaping into a dead run that left imprints of his clawed feet on the steel deck, his nails tearing thin strips free of the vesseal as he ran to the front of the ship. An idea hurriedly forming in his furious brain. Scraping to a halt at the...prow? Whatever surfacers called the front of boats these days, he slammed into the thin fence surrounding that, facing the incoming mass of tattered-yet-deadly galleon bearing down on them. Captain Blood distantly visible as a blue spectre near the rudder. In a glance, the fishman saw how close Blood's ship already was, and fumbling with the strap raised the conch to his lips for a second time 'May this blow be wiser than my last' With another booming, thundering roar from the depths, the water around the ghost ship swirled, faster and faster as thin red streaks appeared, until a roiling red whirlpool surrounded the thing! Suddenly, Wave-Eye let the long-drawn note fade, and it fell still. Only a second later a massive arcing wave burst up in answer to a renewed blast on the horn, smashing against the crimson corsair's craft like a massive hand!
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Switching to the Move Object Power in the Device Array, and enacting a Power Check: 36. That is opposed by the Crimson Whatever's Strength score
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Sorry Valcili, but it's only politic to wait so long. Skipping BabyBrawler's turn, and moving on to Stronghold. Stronghold! What is your considered view on how to stop 1) Cho from being buried under rubble, 2) Thoughtspeed from being burned again on Red 2's turn, and 3) the Yellow Salamander from seizing all of this bank's easily-moved cash or cash-equivalents?
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GM Regarding Silvia with a gimlet stare, the defeated crime boss silently weighed his options. Darting down, he grabbed the tip of the sword between his jaws and cracked it off with a wet noise of breaking teeth and a rush of blood. Chewing it into manageable pieces, to the further obliteration of his uneven grinders, Newman finally swallowed and nodded. "You win. Tonight. This world's a ¥]%}heap where blokes can't see what's right in front of their faces, but I've better chances 'ere than the void." Getting up, Leigh idly fingered the small cut Stormbreaker's sword had made, widening it little by little as he strolled on heavy legs over to a hidden wall-safe "And Princess Flaggy" he addressed Vector with a glance of fire "don't go thinkin' I'll forget you" Shoving a pile of neat papers from the safe at Stormbreaker, the Omega of Crime marched over to the table, sparing a second to stare at its cargo with something like pleasure.Tossing the stiff corpse over his shoulder with considerable nonchalance, Leigh Newman went with the two heroines to meet justice. As it turned out, there was a lot more than 1/10th of a million laid aside by the Australian government. They were deeply relieved that such a horrible scandal as smuggling Terminus-tech weapons from their shores and through their cities had been dealt with so quickly, and showed it. Vector and Stormbreaker were loudly and warmly acclaimed for their swift and decisive work. There were even offers to begin work on a small docking station outside one of their major cities for the Ages Lost, though the tech-gap quickly stifled the plan. Leigh Newman, for his part, was charged and tried for smuggling, the murder of Lawrence Sykes(which he happily exposited upon for more than an hour when the autopsy technician began stammering), numerous smaller crimes, and having contact and trade with otherworldly enemies of mankind. It proved impossible to figure out how or why Leigh had acquired the weapons, and just what he'd intended to do with them, since none of the 23 shipments had stayed in Australia for more than a few days. Things then took an odd turn. The body found in Newman's office wasn't that of Lawrence Sykes at all, and the security footage, once analyzed, revealed that it came from a hotel on the other side of Darwin. The records from his vault, once deciphered, turned out to have nothing to do with the smuggling. The frustration and suspicion that greeted these revelations can be imagined. When questioned, Leigh couldn't keep from grinning, no matter how hard pressed, but swore that he hadn't a clue. Justice settled in for a long haul. The last time the Stormbreaker and Vector met on the case was in the middle of the trial, days after the ugly discoveries and shortly after being called on as witnesses. Inside the crisp, modern Supreme Court of the Northern Territories, it was almost possible to see the victory they'd won. In the actual court room, that was far harder.
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DC30 opposed Intimidate roll: 21. Failed. And this late in the game I'm not going to quibble. Newman is suitably impressed with the notion that being sent into space is not good times for him, and that it'd be best if he cooperated. For now. Savor the hate.
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Yes. I mean, Amelyth won't be able to win, but she can certainly make the attempt.
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GM As a matter of fact, Stormbreaker had. The envelope contained detailed reports about the movements of Ruster, AKA Lawrence Sykes. Evidently a hero of Darwin, a teenaged white native of the city with metal-corroding powers and substantial fighting skill, if the bills from various underworld doctors and increasingly vicious scribbles in the margins were to be believed. Newman had been tracking him for months, trying to keep the gallant off his own moves, a plan that failed when one of the Omega Mob caved to Lawrence after he found one of the early weapons shipments a mere week ago. Ruster had followed the trail right to Newman, after days of careful detective work and probing of his contacts, not to mention walking in on random gangster meetings and punching people through walls. He'd caught on to Newman being behind things only yesterday, and had been headed to confront the man last night. After that, the only word on his status was a hand-written note on the back of a security photo showing a slim, smirking youth in orange creeping down a hall "Stopped his bleeding head". "Trouble? Ha!" The Omega of Crime got to his full height, leering at the two heroines with contempt and eyes almost red with unrestrained hatred "What trouble've you got for ME, crumpet?". His breathing was labored, and one hand clutched his chest(from the venomous look he threw at Vector, he wasn't likely to forgive such an assault too soon), but he seemed otherwise perfectly comfortable. "Ye think if ye just waltz in here on your li'l pretty princess shoes, and mess up my sodding property, that'll get you anywhere?" he spat noisily on the ground "Forget it! Those arse-loving boys of mine know their work, put me behind bars all you like" for a second, as the word 'bars' hung in the air his scarred cheeks seemed to twist "it'll all keep movin' on. HIS will IS done." "Hey, pirate bint!" Leigh turned his eyes to Silvia "Tell you what, I give you half o' those gun shipments, you claim that's all, and when the wankers in Berry fork over a tenth of a mil, I give you a real payout. You'll never find the whole lot, by Taarvon, and ye look like you've some ****ing business sense. Not like Snivellin' Sykes 'ere!" With a grunt, Newman tossed glass shard off the ground, tossing it at the oblong bundle on the metal table with a sneer of disdain.
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Shaking off the last of the clinging shells and muck, bestial face twisted with disgust, Wave-Eye nodded shortly at the other's call to free Sammy. Clearing the space between him and the unhappy man with a bound, the weary triton raised a clawed hand above him. At the end of his thick, knotted and tattooed arm, it looked for all the world like a spiked club. "Be still" he warned, and struck downwards, claws slicing through the unnatural material like a ragged sword, scattering the stuff in a spray of shells. A few more vicious swings tore off the grasping ooze, and with a last jerk and a gush of black mud the fishman dragged Sammy out of his impromptu prison. Sitting the man on his shoulder, he told the rest "I shall go with him. The Lordless One may try to attack the lifeboats" Trudging with long strides that carried him out of the engine room, he paused and added over his shoulder "I ask that you will forgive my foolishness. I shall not attack again without orders." That said, he jogged quickly out of sight and to the captain, bringing with him Sammy(whose head was in frequent danger when Wave-Eye nearly forgot to duck) and Tsunami's message. Taking a moment to survey the surrounding waters as he waited on the upper deck, the son of Tlaloc carefully scanned for any sign of Blood's ship.
