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A Rat's Guide to Glory

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If we want to connect with Limbus, considering the timeline and considering that we'll probably be a Color for the time of Limbus (I assume), maybe we'll be grabbed by Purple Granny because getting a Color for her Egoist team was her plan all along.
 
Brightflame said:
Either that or our body will be behind the local HamHamPangPang
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I assume that some corp already has a singularity for endless meat or it was a Singularity in the past. You don't feed 7 billions of people otherwise, I think.
More probably we would be in some Chef's kitchen if one of them discovers an undying person who can suffer.
 
Abyssius said:
I assume that some corp already has a singularity for endless meat or it was a Singularity in the past. You don't feed 7 billions of people otherwise, I think.
More probably we would be in some Chef's kitchen if one of them discovers an undying person who can suffer.
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K-Corp serum given to guards healed them faster then the Sinners could damage them. Maybe you could give it to cows or other similar livestock for a supply of endless meat. They'd become literal flesh factories.
 
thenew said:
K-Corp serum given to guards healed them faster then the Sinners could damage them. Maybe you could give it to cows or other similar livestock for a supply of endless meat. They'd become literal flesh factories.
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Yeah, would be in theme with something like W. Corp.
Everyone thinks that K. Corp is drug for healing people, while their main business was doing something like the ARG Happy Farm instead.
questioningmeme said:
Given Dante's reaction, I think we got a decent reason not to throw poor ol' Ciel life away willy nilly.
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I need the meme of Umbrella Academy with Ciel exiting from the door and Dante going toward it.
 
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Grade 9 - 4; A Lost Battle is a Battle One Thinks One Has Lost
  • Threadmarks
    • [] Fight
    -[] You were a rat, you know how to overwhelm people with superior numbers and surprise. Now you know what to watch for.
    -[] Step back, watch for people being overwhelmed or flanked. Dart in to keep the pressure off them and step back before you get overwhelmed in turn. You may not know how to fight, but you are an expert at jumping people with a pipe.

    In a moment where you can only move forward or backward, you race straight ahead. Ridiculous speed carries you into the mob's reach and transitions into your pipe as it opens a head like a ripe melon.

    You stop and scramble backward before they even realise you are there, too distracted by the other Fixers. One of yours gets mobbed and buried under three attackers, hacked apart screaming. The irony scent of blood hits your nostrils, eyes dilating.

    You barely manage to keep yourself together and abuse the distraction, beating one of those three over the head before they can even look up from their grisly work. You repeat it with another, almost feeling the skull break before they fall.

    Then you turn to the third, only for a screaming body to run you over. Four more are on you in an instant. What follows is a flurry of motion, searing pain as knives are stabbed into you, and the dull impact of a mace.

    ---Switching Timeline---

    Then you retreat from the third, barely evading a screaming body coming your way. The woman stumbles over the corpses and is buried when others follow. You leap back in to kill another with two mighty swings, then disengage to check for the others.

    The mob buried another of your colleagues and Parvati's dress is in tatters, but she has no more than shallow cuts. Her spear keeps the Thorns at bay, though the steady press of bodies pushes them into her reach. You leap over a desk and hit one with an axe in the temple before he can cut her down; then you trip on the bloody floor and frantically roll away through the crimson. Parvati steps in to cover you as you scramble to your feet.

    Rookwood all but roars as he cleaves another three gangsters apart with his axe nearby. Dexter dances around him, arms a blur as he surgically kills anyone who gets too close to his partner. But only one other Fixer is still fighting, you notice. You round another desk and dart to his aid, but a spiked glove tears bloody gouges in his face just before your pipe hits the attacker over the head.

    Your colleague screams in pain, dropping his weapon out of shock. You push him back, only to realise that the bodies serve as makeshift barricades. The mob keeps coming, but they have to climb over their dead. Two more gangsters come right at you, but Parvati stabs one over the desk between you and her; the other's head turns, only for your pipe to strike home the moment he is distracted.

    You know how to fight an outnumbered opponent, how to make use of your superior numbers. This is not quite it, but they probably did not expect this much resistance.

    Your heart beats heavily as you grip the pipe and keep going; the growing mountain of bodies shortly after the doorstep slows them down, but it also stops you from getting at them. Still you dart in and out of the mob, breaking wrists and arms wherever you can; Parvati and Dexter capitalise while Rookwood ties up the main group. Body by body falls, then you realise someone snuck around and stabbed your injured colleague in the back. By the time you get there, his jugular is already opened.

    Just then, the bodies in front shiver and are pushed aside. Someone else marches into the office while the last dregs fight on flesh more than stone.

    You flinch to attention and get at them before they can get Rookwood in the side, only for a thorn-covered hand to grab you by the throat. You almost crush your own windpipe from the suddenly arrested momentum, gasping as the thorns draw rivulets of blood. The new arrival snorts, squeezes, and throws you aside with your neck broken. You can only watch the battle as your life slowly fades.

    ---Switching Timeline---

    You flinch to attention, but stay still to observe for a moment. The newcomer has the same shoulder pads as the rest, but their clothes are a bit sharper. They act more certain, less bloodthirsty than the mob. What is more, some sort of thorny vine seems to grow from one shoulder pad, all down their right arm. They swiftly grow and entangle Rookwood as his axe cleaves apart two of the last three enemies, then begin to whir.

    Be it that or the sudden bellow from Rookwood, you shake off your hesitation. The vine digs into his clothes and flesh, rapidly whirring around as it tears him apart; its owner blurrily ducks under a rapid one-two combo from Dexter and catches Parvati's spear in his free hand; he never sees you coming, rearing back a bloody pipe.

    The impact rings through your entire body. Your pipe bends over his reinforced skull, almost assuming its shape before the body droops from under it. He catches his fall, only for Parvati to stab his shoulder with a shriek. Dexter chops through the chainsaw-vines, but half of them just keep sawing into Rookwood; his scream is only a faint moan of pain by now, body hidden under gore and blood.

    Instead of hitting again, you use the full strength of your augment and kick the Thorn in the head. He flies sideway, where Dexter does the same thing and sends him to Parvati. He blinks up blearily at her, bleeding from open head wounds. She raises her spear high and runs him through the eye.

    Then someone stabs her in the back. The last living Thorn and from the mob, grinning almost mindlessly. She does not have time to celebrate as Dexter takes her head off with a sharp jab; you catch your colleague, careful not to rustle or dislodge the dagger in her wound. Parvati curses under her breath.

    Getting treatment will take too long with such a wound. Your breathing grows laboured at the prospect, not wanting her to die in your arms. That would be just cruel, surviving whatever higher-up that was only to get shanked by a nobody. You look around for something to help, wildly taking in the carnage. Bodies lie everywhere and the floor is more red than grey. Half the desks are broken, paperwork flew every which way.

    Then your eyes fall on Dexter's safe. Of course.

    "Boss, the K-Corp stuff! We need one now!"

    He looks up from Rookwood's still form, blinks at you and the bleeding woman in your arms, and nods. "Yes, of course." He quickly strides over and opens it up. "Any injuries you need treated?"

    "Just some scratches, I'm fine." Which really is a miracle, all things considered.

    "Good. Here." A can is thrown your way and Dexter slides over half a desk. "You apply it, I pull out the weapon while you do. Don't want that to get stuck in her, now do we?"

    "Stop talking and do it," Parvati presses out between grit teeth. She twitches and tries to turn, only to gasp and moan in pain when you start. It is a little unsettling to watch her flesh grow back where it was, following one final spurt of blood as Dexter pulls out the dagger fully.

    He drops it and runs a finger over the point it stuck in Parvati's back. "You're lucky that didn't hit anything," is his verdict. Then he takes the can from you and sprays some more onto a cut on his leg.

    You help Parvati up in the meantime; she leans on you only as much as she has to, but one hand weakly claps your back. "Thanks for the save earlier. You're pretty fast."

    "Augment," you return, to which she makes an understanding noise. It may not be perfect for a fight, especially one like this, but it definitely paid for itself even just today. "I could get used to this hit and run stuff," you murmur, then grimace at the sight of Rookwood and your other dead colleagues. "But it could have worked a lot better."

    "It's more of a strategy for open ground," Dexter agrees. He seems half tempted to sit back in his chair, which you realise you should help Parvati do. The boss rubs his eyes, immediately regretting that when he realises his hands are sprinkled with not quite dry blood. "Anyway, does either of you know who our unannounced guests were?"

    You still feel a little numb, but mostly just jittery from adrenaline. Parvati shakes against you in the same state until she is on another chair and can lean back. Then you nod to Dexter next and kick the nearest corpse's shoulder pads. "The Thorns. They were growing around the time I got my license last month, looks like that kept going."

    "The Thorns, hm? That was one of the Urban Myth class Syndicates." Dexter watches you bend down to rifle through the dead man's pockets as he muses. "Looks like they decided they want to be Urban Legend before the year is out. Office Raids are an easy way to infamy, if sometimes a dumb one. Good work, you two."

    "Is this normal?" Parvati adds from her own seat. "That mob thing, I mean."

    "Sometimes. It depends on the Syndicate. This one seems to focus on quantity over quality. Maybe a new rite of initiation or something, considering none of this lot are augmented. They even had one of the higher-ups observing. That last one was on the level of a Grade Seven Fixer," he keeps musing. "Either got cocky because we were already battered, or was new to his augments Maybe a bit of both."

    It is just another lesson to stay grounded to you. At the same time, you slowly begin to fill with awe at yourself; you stood your ground today, killing several people despite being severely outnumbered. You rifle through that one's pockets, too. He has a decent amount of money in his wallet, among some other stuff.

    "Okay," Parvati finally says. "Are you seriously looting them, Ciel?"

    "Yes?" You glance back at the host of dead bodies. "Money is money. If we have time, I can check if this guy has any augmented organs we can sell. We don't really have the time to grab all of them before they go bad, sadly."

    The disgust is clearly visible in her expression at the prospect, though it swiftly fades in favour of acceptance. "Makes sense, I guess. Any chance we can share the loot?"

    You pause in your work, not having considered that before. It is true that everyone still alive contributed to the battle. Keeping all the loot to yourself would be prudent, but selfish. You do want to keep getting along with those two, too. Which is why you make yourself nod in the end.

    "Sure. Even split after we sold off whatever is valuable?"

    "Fine with me."

    You both look to Dexter, who seems lost in thought. It takes him a little while to realise you are looking at him, at which point he nods slowly. A soft "Sure" is his only response, though you doubt he really listened.

    Knowing that, you hesitate when getting to Rookwood's remains. "Boss?" you try, motioning for his former partner. "Is it okay if I....?"

    "Hm?" He follows your gesture before nodding. "Sure, sure. It's not like Rocky will need any of his things anymore. If neither of you want to keep the weapon, we can sell that too. And get his wallet, he was saving up for another augment."

    Something about how dispassionate Dexter is about his friend dying rubs you the wrong way. Everyone else you can understand, this is how the City is. But those two seemed close. Parvati does not seem to recognise anything being amiss; is it just you?

    Either way, you systematically loot everyone, friend and foe alike. Each body you finish with, Dexter carries outside; he stacks the dead gangsters in neat rows along the front while a pile of valuables grows on the floor. A few pieces of fake jewelry, various simple weapons in good condition, Rookwood's Workshop-made battleaxe, and most of all money. You also keep the body of that special Thorn inside and have Parvati buy a stasis bag from the supermarket. By the time she gets back, you can deposit a set of organs into it. His heart does seem augmented after all.

    If your colleagues are surprised that you have underworld contacts, they do not comment. If anything, Dexter seems to appreciate that you do.

    Two others come in sometime during the grisly work; they are surprised, but quickly put to work righting the office space as best as they can. Parvati makes sure to watch your little pile of treasure in case someone wants to grab some, her spear since returned. Dexter is writing up a report on what little clean paper he could find. "At least they will pay us for thirty-something gangsters killed, even if it is a pittance per head," he tells everyone. The leader's name and ID are also included, just in case there is a reward on that one's head in particular.

    You finish counting money by that point, dividing it equally in three piles of bills and coins. "How likely is this to repeat," you ask while handing Dexter and Parvati their shares. "Will they try again?"

    "Maybe," Dexter responds with a shrug. "That is really all I can say. Some Syndicates try to get revenge for 'getting snubbed', others shrug it off. Considering that they were ready to throw so many people into the grinder, I don't think they care much about them."

    There he pauses, squinting at the money and then at you. "But just in case, I'd suggest you spend that as soon as you can. With selling the rest, we can all afford some good stuff."

    "Absolutely," Parvati agrees at once. "I'm going to get augmented tomorrow, right after I decided what to go for."

    "Focus on dexterity if you want to stay with the spear," your boss recommends absently. "I used to use one too, but I like my hands better. Don't hesitate to try others, though. Just make sure you try the cheap ones."

    This brings you back to wondering; your pipe is bent and basically unusable. You could always get another pipe, but at that point it can just as well be a bat. Or maybe a dagger, or a spear like Parvati, or an axe. Maybe something more out there like a shovel? A crowbar? A scythe or sickle?

    You have many options and little time to think. After cleaning away the blood, you head to one of the drop-off points you used to trade with Syndicates before; it is almost ironic when a member of the Thorns welcomes you. Thinking back, you faintly recall this being one of theirs before already. None of them have any idea you are selling their compatriot's organs, they just congratulate you for staying alive another month.

    Something about the irony makes you grin on the way back. Again money is split, the other two freely believing that you are not scamming them. You thought about it, but decide to stay honest for now.

    Once the sky starts growing dark, the office is back in decent shape; blood and other stuff was cleared away with some cleaning solutions that removed everything right quick, the furniture was righted. Whatever broke is now next to the heap of corpses adorning the front; people give it a decent berth, though some give it speculative looks. It may even serve as advertising for Dexter's Office.

    "One last thing," the boss tells you and Parvati as he locks up; not that this will help much, what with the windows hastily boarded up. "I am a little miffed that I need to replace furniture and personnel. Keep your eyes and ears open about them the next week or two, I want to know whatever you can learn about them. If we can, we will go after them and beat them down. I doubt we have the manpower or strength, but you never know."

    You both nod, a little queasy at the prospect of actively attacking someone else. Parvati stands in a patchwork dress, badly repaired with clean scraps from the dead. She seems a little more ready, nodding along.

    Meanwhile, you walk home in a daze, trying to figure out how to go about the next few weeks. Listening to people and gathering information is simple enough. But the fighting bit is still daunting.

    That evening is spent calming down from the ordeal; you knit a bit, not that any of your practices has yielded much more than a halfway decent tablecloth. In the end, you put the needles aside and simply stare at your treasure for a while. The soft fabric and golden threads calm you some more.

    The next day, you meet Parvati at the office at noon. She almost glides inside, motions far more fluid than before. Her spear is still in place but she grins cheerfully.

    "I got a package deal," she reveals once seated. "The Workshop offers twenty percent off on a second, complementary augment to whatever the first I buy is. So I had them improve my reflexes and reaction time, then got a decent speed upgrade on top. Probably not as good as yours, but it'll do for now."

    That discounts like these exists is news to you and immediately suspect, but Dexter explains that Workshops sometimes do that to hook more customers. Considering that you need to buy at least one augment anyway, they probably even save more money than the discount costs if they only need to put you under once. So a marketing strategy, not a scam. Well, technically also a scam, but the Workshop is not hawking inferior quality on you for this one.

    "What about you?" your coworker asks next. Her eyes wander over you, but she can not spot any change. For good reason.

    You shrug in response. "I went over it, but I'm not sure what I want just yet."

    "Then let's go shopping together. I know a few good places."

    The offer surprises you, even if it makes you a little happy at the same time. The moment you nod, Parvati gets up and throws a glance at the job board, then shrugs. "Rent just went through and we have food money, so I can afford to take one day off."

    So saying, she waves you along on a surprisingly long shopping trip. You browse through a number of Workshops and even some regular shops, just because it is interesting to see what is in stock now that you can afford it. Parvati being armed draws some looks from the crowd, but she is by far not the only one with a weapon. Her spear and your combined alertness deter any would-be ambushers, too.

    In the end, you decide to...
    [] Buy a Workshop weapon
    -[] write-in what, be as specific or vague as you want

    [] Just keep one of the weapons from the raid and buy another augment
    -[] write-in what weapon (no extra effects, type is subject to QM veto if too infeasible to be among the mob)
    -[] write-in what augment (be as specific or vague as you want)
    -[] Keep Rookwood's reinforced, super-sharpened battleaxe and buy a strength-augment to wield it properly

    You can vote without specifying anything; if any option without any or all the required write-ins wins, the not specified parts default to being Ciel's choice. All write-ins are subject to QM veto if desired effects surpass Ciel's budget or sensibilities.

    One-hour Moratorium. Do not vote for 1 hour!
    Achievement Unlocked!

    And To Many More!: Die for the first time.

    -Ciel's Preferred Strategy changed from "Skittering Away" to "Hit and Run"
    -New Mechanic observed: Timeline Switch
    (Whenever Ciel dies, the narration switches to an otherwise identical timeline where Ciel did not commit the action leading to their death. In some cases, this will reset the story to a previous decision point.)
    -Death Counter: 0 -> 2
    -Rookwood is no longer among your contacts
    -Dexter's contact information changes: Grade 8 Fixer -> Grade 7 Fixer
    -Ciel's Wealth changes from "Decent" to "Really Well Off"; this counts the proceeds of selling loot
    -Lost weapon: old pipe
     
  • Threadmarks
    • Naron said:
    -New Mechanic observed: Timeline Switch
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    Did the timeline switches happen because of bad rolls, narrative reasons to introduce the mechanic, or because the plan wasn't specific enough to not avoid those deaths? Also, does the deaths have any immediate consequence to us, other than the boss I expect we'll encounter at some point named after some God or Myth or even just flat out being called Death that scales off the amounts of deaths so far?
     
    AzureSnake said:
    Did the timeline switches happen because of bad rolls, narrative reasons to introduce the mechanic, or because the plan wasn't specific enough to not avoid those deaths? Also, does the deaths have any immediate consequence to us, other than the boss I expect we'll encounter at some point named after some God or Myth or even just flat out being called Death that scales off the amounts of deaths so far?
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    This is a narrative Quest, there are no rolls.

    I am honestly not sure I even want to say it because it may spark another argument, but this was more or less unavoidable. It would have happened sooner or later unless the players were precognitive to start maneuvering around every issue coming up before I even start dropping hints.

    In this specific case, the only way to avoid Ciel dying would have been to run. Or a really good fight strategy that surprises even me. The one provided was decent, but a decent level of planning is not enough to account for a bad situation and lack of experience; if Ciel had either gotten an augmentation that suited this environment more, or fought the Rats at an earlier decision point to gain combat experience (and the confidence to take the occasional combat job), then it would have been possible.

    I try not to make deaths unavoidable, but I also will not tailour every encounter to be solvable without dying if previous decisions make that infeasible or impossible.


    Also, there are no direct consequences beyond you knowing that Ciel died.
     
    Yep. Naron clarified on after the first vote I think, that this quest won't have any rolls or money management, so don't worry about numbers!
     
    Ya, Rookwood perma-death and Ciel dying at least once is about what I expected, and this was with the Thorns essentially being cocky with just power of numbers in play and nothing else. I was 50/50 on Dexter and/or Parvati dying too, but they both seems to have made it out without permanent injuries, so this is a pretty lenient result already as it is.
     
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    Naron said:
    -Rookwood is no longer among your contacts
    -Dexter's contact information changes: Grade 8 Fixer -> Grade 7 Fixer
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    Yay! Parvati Lived! I really like her so glad she's alive. Sucks Rookwood Died tho. But good on Dexter for going up a grade.

    questioningmeme said:
    Given that the last time this thing was used, the man was going through people like hot knife through butter, maybe we should keep it?
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    I'd say since our main tactic is "Hit and Run" I'd say a big fuck off battle axe wouldn't match our playstyle even with the strength augment. Weapon of Choice would be something quick and fast... or a Bat like TF2's Scout.
     
    Naron said:
    ---Switching Timeline---
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    (look nervously)
    anyway...
    since we are playing the speed game, let's double down that with a combat knife or something light and fast, maybe some needles or short sword or a rapier?
    or we go for the axe for a momentum based fighting style, get enough momentum and hit them like a car with a blade in front of it.
     
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