THE INFINITE BROOD (Starcraft/Supreme Commander Crossover Quest!)

Reader mode
THE SWARM SHEET
  • Informational
    • The Brood of Blades
    ​
    Cerebrate Prime: Samantha Clarke
    LEVEL: 5
    XP: 205/210
    TRAITS
    Strategic Genius: Once per structured encounter, Sam can create a piece of the environment that is in her favor as a sticky spark. Roll a d3 for its value.
    Empathetic: upon meeting an NPC, learn their motivation!
    Legendary Commander: Gain 4 Command sparks at the beginning of each mission/combat. Command sparks may be spent to give NPCs orders, which they may either obey or refuse to obey (doing nothing instead.) Command sparks may not be regained via skills or powers.
    Hunted: Something wants her - but for what? +1 Danger to all scenes​
    SKILLS
    CLOSE COMBAT (2): Brawling, Edged Weapons
    PERSONAL (2): Awareness, Resilience
    SOCIAL (4): Charm, Empathy, Leadership, Taunt​
    MASTERY
    ACU Pilot (2): Nanofabrication [Mass], ObSat Operations [Range]
    The Hilt (4): Biomorphic Spawning (People), Regeneration (Durability), Physical Perfection (Speed), Telepathic Dominion (Range)​

    POWERS
    The Living Swarm
    Vent: 4-0
    Effect: Gain 1 Living Swarm spark, +1 per vent reduction.​
    The Living Swarm: While this swarm exists, move in three dimensions and through anything smaller than a keyhole, reforming at will. You may expend these sparks to cause 3 Hit Sparks in a Area 2 radius.​
    Area Upgrade: +1 to Area Characteristic​

    Biomorphic Reinforcement
    Vent: 4-0
    Effect: Create 1 Biomorphic Reinforcement spark, +1 per vent reduction, which can be given out to anyone within Range 2, or to yourself
    Biomorphic Reinforcement: +1 to Damage or Mass characteristic for the purpose of raw physical strength/feats.

    Back to Back
    Vent: 4-0
    Effect: Choose 1 ally (+1 per vent reduction), within Range 1. Each can take one action using one of your skills, any of them that you wish. Once they have done so, you may make a free attack with your melee weapon, getting +1 to your skill per ally that acted.​

    Adaptation
    Vent: 4-0
    Effect: Create a number of sparks equal to the enemy's difficulty, narratively based on turning their abilities against them. Works on enemies of Diff 2>, +2 per vent reduction.​

    Just as Planned…
    Vent: 6-0
    Effect: Vent 6 heat and create 1 Planning Spark for her or an ally, +1 Spark per vent reduction.​
    Planning: The person holding this Spark can expend this to get +1 to a skill check as a free action. Using this Stack counts as you are helping for the purpose of relationships.​

    GEAR
    Zeratul's Psi-Blades
    Adds: +0 (Edged Weapons) | Characteristics: Damage [Speed] (4)[1]​
    Shadowstep (3): Can expend as a free action to move without crossing intervening space.
    Guarded Space (3): Can expend to use Damage as a secondary characteristic for Durability, reducing incoming Damage characteristics.​

    GALACTIC WAR
    Victory Points: 5    ​
    RESOURCES​
    TERRAN DOMINION [Background] (1)​
    The men and material of the Dominion - limited, but they're mustering as we speak. ​
    ALLIANCE EXPEDITIONARY FORCES [Mastery] (1)​
    While you have access to several ACUs of every faction, they lack economic and technological support to be fully effective. ​
    ZERG HIVE [Mastery] (1)​
    The scant few Zerg you control that are free of Amon's influence. Mostly Zerglings. ​
    AEON FLEET [Background] (1)​
    While half a dozen CZARs seem impressive, they're not actually well made for ship to ship combat. ​
    ALLIED COHESION [Motivation] (1)​
    The alliance is fragile and weak.​

    FRONTS​
    Trade Sector-34-51 [Pirate Activity]
    Pirates Raiding 6 (Supply Lines in Disarray 1)
    COMMAND: Jim Raynor | ARMY: Raynor's Raiders
    RESULTS: Pending

    Braxis [Zerg Invasion]
    Borealis Siege 6 (Zerg Rampage1)
    COMMAND: General Samantha Clarke | ARMY: Brood Clarke
    RESULTS: Pending

    Typhan II [Active Xel'Naga ACU]
    Typhan II Occupied 6 (Xel'Naga ACU Spotted 1)
    COMMAND: Lt. Colonel Mathew Horner | ARMY: UEF Armored Command Unit
    RESULTS: Pending

    Deep Space Sector 981 [Hive Fleet Identified]
    Zerg Hive Fleet Spotted 6 (Kerrigan? 1)
    COMMAND: Citizen-Commander Dostya | ARMY: CN Armored Command Unit
    RESULTS: Pending
    ​
    ENEMY ASSETS (Currently Known)
    ​
    THE GOLDEN ARMADA
    ACTIVITY: Unknown | Threat Level: 6​
     
    Last edited:
  • Informational
    • DragonCobolt said:
    This works quite well! You'd create Outmaneuvered Sparks (6)(6)(6)(6)(4), then attack his reactor at diff 4+1 - which would cost you 3 heat.

    It's basically replacing shadow-step with using your taunting and Zergy speed, so really the main difference isn't mechanical, but narrative. What impression do you want to leave on the Protoss, how do you want them to think of you?
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Just to be clear, I didn't come up with the text you quoted from me here; that was entirely from SweetJackal, as far as I'm aware.
     
    Adhoc vote count started by DragonCobolt on Mar 6, 2024 at 7:24 PM, finished with 19 posts and 10 votes.
    • [X] Plan Once a Commander always a Commander:
      -[X] In a skirmish between 2 ACU Commanders there is only 1 truly finite resource, time. A simple battlefield feint to taunt the enemy into committing against false intel can cripple their efforts in a way they cannot recover. You've seen Fenix fight, you know the repeating rate of that cannon, and he doesn't know how fast you actually are. Bait out a barrage and posture yourself in a better position so he cannot bring the weapon to bear- then punish him for it. (Use Taunt and Physical Perfection[Speed] to draw out a plasma barrage and dodge it, creating Outmaneuvered Sparks to have us count as within the minimum range. Then tap some Outmaneuvered Sparks and use Close Combat: Edged Weapons with Shadowstep and Physical Perfection[Speed] to bypass his shield and rip out that reactor if Sparks can be left over)
      [X] Gathering Strength: You're Zerg, aren't you? Evolve. This will mean Fenix gets the first punch - but you will become impossibly strong for a short time. Long enough to put him down? Maybe.
      [X] Bye Bye Cannon: Sprint forward and slash his photon cannon off. Dangerous and risky, as it will expose you to a lot of incoming fire. Will lightly overheat you.
    Click to expand...


    Bzzt!
     
    ACT TWO, MISSION FIVE: True Colors (0.6)
  • Threadmarks
    • Fenix started off things with a bang - literally. The photon cannon on his back opened with a whirr and click and the focusing aperture emerged and shot at the same time. The whirring blue sphere of energy roared at you and you dove aside, your palms slamming into the deck and-

    There was a flare of contact. An awareness that this room was...aware. Alive. It had been sculpted by creatures that could sing to the metal, like you could sing to the hive. It was-

    -you finished the roll, coming to your feet as the bubbling crater blasted into the surface hissed and cooled. Fenix retargeted and fired again. You sprang aside, skidding and catching yourself with your palm. As smoke wreathed through the air, you grinned at him. "Nice shot, old man! Finding your range?" you asked, grinning as you did so.

    Those are merely human reflexes. Are you holding back? Fenix boomed.

    You chuckled, bouncing from foot to foot. "I might may be..." you said - then juked left.

    Sprang right.

    Yelped as Fenix kept tracking you and fired. The orb of photonic energy rushed at you and-

    This can't possibly work.

    -you flung yourself into a twirl, psi-blades buzzing and hissing. The energies that swept around you exploded and diffused away into a hissing ball of blue smoke and you landed on your feet with a thump, panting softly as you did so. Smoke steamed around your shoulders and the psi-blades buzzed and crackled. You grinned. "That shouldn't have worked," you said, a bit dazedily.

    Impressive! Fenix sounded almost joyful. His spidery legs started to stomp left - moving away from you as you considered. Getting close was important - but you had to buy the time. You started to sprint right. His photon cannon hammered away, sending shot after shot after shot. Some landed ahead of you, some behind - you kept changing up your speed, to confuse his targeting. By then, though, you had seen what you were looking for, thrumming on his chassis. You thrust your psi sword into the ground and swept up - filling the air with a misting of molten metal. The next photon shot slammed into the spread and exploded.

    Your smoking jacket went left - tattered, burned. The photon cannon tracked the motion, aiming.

    Fenix hesitated.

    You sprinted straight out of the cloud of smoke, your muscular shoulders exposed, your tank top tight against your carapace and your sinew. Your feet pounded and Fenix swung around. He lifted one leg up, blocking the life-support cocoon with a wall of golden metal as his photon cannon swung around. You rolled under the blast, came to your feet, and slammed your forearm into the shield. Once. Twice. Three times. Each time, the plasma shield crackled and flared, becoming visible, then worn, then shattered. The shield buzzed apart and the crowd gasped.

    You saw it was already reforming, the blue edges racing towards one another to complete the sphere.

    Your left blade plunged in and, with a spray of sparks, severed the generator that ran along the back of the chassis - easier to reach than the life support cocoon, and...well...you didn't want to kill your friend.

    The crowd filled the air with shocked mental static.


    ---
    HEAT: 3/6

    Your turn isn't actually over - that was just one action in your vote. So!

    [ ] Turn Fenix's size against him by slipping under his legs and tripping him up.
    [ ] Stay in range of his cannon so he can't use it to attack
    [ ] Be more cautious and take a moment to see what he does next.

    Plan One: Vent 3 heat to use Adaptation on his Legs to create Tripped (4)
    Plan Two: Vent 3 heat to use Adaptation on his Cannon to create Blocked Shot (4)
    Plan Three: Take a hit - lose one heat, but it means only ONE of Fenix's components gets to act, rather than 4 of them.
     
  • Threadmarks
    • [X] Stay in range of his cannon so he can't use it to attack

    I'll drop this instead of a write in, because we have knocked out the generator and making Blocked Shots will vent our heat and stop a second component from attacking. So there shouldn't be enough active combatants to do a full 4 hits penalty for using the Power- if I am right.

    Also got a question about Biomorphic Spawning. The Zerg do have some strains that make use of metal in their weapon composition. And we had mentally interfaced with the Cybran ACU. Assuming we had the Resources to do so, could we use that characteristic to make a Nanolathe, or "lathe" up a Cybran unit or structure?
     
    SweetJackal said:
    Also got a question about Biomorphic Spawning. The Zerg do have some strains that make use of metal in their weapon composition. And we had mentally interfaced with the Cybran ACU. Assuming we had the Resources to do so, could we use that characteristic to make a Nanolathe, or "lathe" up a Cybran unit or structure?
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    hmm...I'm going to say no.

    The Cybran "strands" are not yet integrated into the Swarm.
     
    [X] Be more cautious and take a moment to see what he does next.

    I feel like this is the more Clark-like option, even though keeping up the attack is much more sensible.
     
    Exciting!

    [X] Be more cautious and take a moment to see what he does next.

    Between Fenix being an extremely skilled and experienced warrior and surely having considered fighting a small and nimble foe while without a shield, on the one hand, and our desire to not accidentally do too much damage and our need to keep good track of the battle in service of that on the other, this seems the best of the three.

    Also, it occurs to me it might draw out the battle and make it more of a spectacle of two brave and honorable warriors dueling for the protection of others, and that in itself could work to our advantage.
     
    Bolo said:
    Couldn't we just cling to his body and crawl around stabbing stuff?
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Well, you used up all the sparks you made to bypass his durability to hit his reactor. This means the next time you whack him, you will face that durability one more time (then it collapses, since he has no reactor.)

    This means durability 6 versus your damage of 4 and your physical prowess gets tied up dealing with the downside of your damage (you need to make 1 level of speed just to use the things, then 3 speed to bap aside his 3 range characteristic), so that's 12 heat before you even hit the difficulty...

    And making more sparks to prep up runs into the increasing difficulty issue - you'd end up facing Diff 4+4, diff 8? That's 6 heat, that's still overheating you...

    Basically, you COULD stab another component, but it'd put you into more danger!
     
    Mailstrome said:
    Absolutely, but he could jump and try to crush us etc. And the point here isn't to defeat him, it's to have a duel.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    Well, we do ideally want to defeat him in the duel, but yes, I think losing in a way he and his fellows saw as just and honorable would be a much better outcome than winning in a way they thought wrong, here.
     
    [x] Write-in: cap his range weapon, and cap 1 of his dragoon leg, then ask for surrender. Repeat with the leg until he's immobilized or accept defeat with grace.

    Taunt Aldaris of his dishonorable conduct and blind faith, as well as lost sight of what the Protoss were meant to be... Once Fenix surrendered.

    I mean, he doesn't exactly have any organic legs left to speak of, so it's just a matter of repair, or if bad enough, replace his legs and back to full operational. Do the Sarah in HOTS speak about the Zerg accept her as, or she kill off one by one until they do, except we replace the kill with dueling. And taunting him in duel, just because. For men like him, the only thing he understands is by force.
     
    Adhoc vote count started by DragonCobolt on Mar 8, 2024 at 4:24 PM, finished with 19 posts and 10 votes.
    • [X] Be more cautious and take a moment to see what he does next.
      [X] Turn Fenix's size against him by slipping under his legs and tripping him up.
      [X] Stay in range of his cannon so he can't use it to attack
      [x] Write-in: cap his range weapon, and cap 1 of his dragoon leg, then ask for surrender. Repeat with the leg until he's immobilized or accept defeat with grace.
    Click to expand...


    HMm, interesting choice! Less heat loss, but also, less enemy actions! Lets see what Fenix does with it
     
    Reader mode
    You must login or register to reply here.
    Back
    Top