Welp, I had all sorts of interesting thoughts on who to invite and why.... but that latest news? (Alas poor Vista, we could've grinded you.... actually
@Silently Watches how will you handle that Uncertainty Principle? Whether and not we are low enough to cheese it, wouldn't the nature of that awesome and logical bonus mean needing to wait on scanning people because its a bonus for each interaction and the chance is only "checked" when we finally scan and lock in an observation?)
[X] Vista
[X] Cailleach
[X] Circus
[] Dragon
[] Teana
I am a bit not understanding (with the flat no) why the arguments re: they owe us etc aren't of value. What does the TSAB think that IAE will do if its morality-chain dies as a result of (IAE view)
the Belkan-descendnet TSAB refusing to help defend her ? Its worth considering here that there is an appreciable difference (possibly, they probably don't get free time on deployment
) between asking
The TSAB to help with Coil and asking
Teana to help yes? The TSAB doesn't want to risk losing the morality chain on IAE in this way potentially, and their local contact.... but Teana may have her own views on corrupt officials who betray superiors (she is military), she or Erga may have a greater personal level of guilt over almost-accidentally-killing an innocent, and just more generally he is a rare-skill using Villain bombing civilians* while they sleep to advance his own power. Is she too by-the-book to personally step in as a mage and help protect the life of someone she has had peaceable contact with when the threat is semi-immediate (he had the intel to pick her civvie home once already, and attacking this far after last contact implies he'll try again) and the evidence is extensive?
Now, on the other hand and why theres no X.... I don't know if we want the TSAB learning about IAE's infowar capabilities (thats a whole separate direction of threat from his army-building capability) aannnd ffs more importantly she's already got a linker core xD Our Friends Come First yo.
And, that above reason about linker cores is 100% of why Dragon is getting pushed out of the third slot xD. Highly connected cape that the Protectorate can't really afford to lose, who we can potentially shuffle much of the evidence-gathering credit onto if necessary, who has made some nonzero study of Bakuda's work and is a skilled Tinker-analyst herself (man I wish i could write fiction
actually can we bring back samples from Bakuda's workshop to get Tim a point of inspiration for Exotic Physics >_> ? He's always one point off from our per week point allotment) , who has a great deal of combat experience, who is connected to but outside the Protectorate as far as a figure who'd help against a connected traitor.... yeah she'd be obvious if not for that amazing loveable surprise of Silently's and the fact that shes necessarily already included in so many socializing actions. She's my fallback if I can't get Circus atm.
Vista's power seems useful in countering AoE bomb shenanigans (combined with our shields and Recursion and movement tricks) , she's got tactical experience herself, she may want to help against this brocktonite villain, aaand poor girl deserves some shiny action to her credit after all this time on the yucky sidelines. Shes got shiny new toys to try out and we may even see if she can fit into an adult sized power armor (probably not if we aren't taking time to resize, even with a booster seat
). And honestly, imagine how our girl will react learning about this heap of shady past relating to the Protectorate? It'd make a damned lovely interlude scene with Miss Militia as she simultaneously accuses them over it AND airs her greivances over being sidelined for her age after she's successfully taken on a nasty trio like we're gunning for.
Cailleach and Circus are trickier to justify ICly, but how could I possibly not vote them OOCly xD Thou Must. Lesse.... Cailleach is a powerful fighter outside the Protectorate circle (obviously) who we've fought with before and who's already offered to fight with us on occasion, shes certainly likely (and Taylor would be aware after the mutual-unmasking) to take offense to attacking her home and all, and ice powers are one obvious vector for sealing a bomb? Plus inviting her is a good show of faith that we're willing to work with their side on problems even if the Protectorate is hesitant over the deal, and being underage she's easier to explain to the Protectorate in turn (hey, we have a proven if limited-sample record of redeeming gang villains! Do you want to ruin this?)
Circus.... obviously Taylor doesn't know any Coil ties issue directly, buuut she's been operating in Philly for weeks or months now without a whiff of Coil until recently, while he's off in Chicago, so theres reason to suspect she's not under his thumb (shes less useful than say Tattletale for independant action on an ongoing basis, Circus is more a thief and raider right?). She is a former brocktonite, and being a (rogue? villain? i forget) she might have some familiarity with Coil to share with Taylor or else an existing grudge to use against him (Coil obviously has interest in contacting local indies, even if Tattletale didn't reveal his MO cuz i forget, he tried makin a deal with Privateers after all). Shes not as brawly, but we've fought beside her and combat and she came out of things unscathed (even the Sewers, where other capes got injured or captured) and we might have some inkling that her instincts are useful for ambushes. Whats the chance her Hammerspace is either good for a cartoony "stuff a bomb in other-space and it harmlessly goes off in there with a burp from her pocket" or lets her pull a Shady-Sands-Shuffle on Bakuda herself
?
Anyway heres my vote, if we had four slots or Circus is unviable I'd have a tough choice between Teana and Dragon (and if former is not an option still, obv Dragon).
