The sun beat on the desert like an angry parent on an uppity child. Even the shade of the rock...
Bandit Clan Quest (Borderlands Series)
- Thread starter Vindictus
- Start date
- Created
- Status
- Ongoing
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- Threadmarks
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Statistics (6 threadmarks, 2.6k words)
User Total Vindictus 6
Opening
Vindictus
XENO
- Location
- Texas
The sun beat on the desert like an angry parent on an uppity child. Even the shade of the rock formation you and your new 'friends' camped under wasn't enough to stop the oppressive heat, though the occasional breeze left you... Not comfortable, but at least not dripping with sweat.
"Gonna die out here," A convict built like a bipedal tank moaned. "Fucking Dahl scaglicks. Why'd they bring is out here if they were just gonna leave?"
Because you were expendable, you thought. Just some shitty criminals, people nobody would miss one way or another- And when the time came to leave, nobody thought twice about leaving you behind.
Well, nobody from Dahl, anyway. There had been 'Natives' here before Dahl set up shop, the descendants of crazy survivalists seeking to avoid the clearly inevitable collapse of civilization and outlaws trying to avoid the long arm of the law by grabbing land on some gods-forsaken rock where nobody would look for them. They probably weren't any more thrilled by millions of criminals getting left on their front doorstep than you were at being left on this rock.
It's not like you were even that bad of a person. All you'd done was accept a courier job off of the echo-net without asking too many questions, and the next thing you knew you were charged with a list of crimes too long to remember, shipped off to serve fifty years on Hades IX, and then basically bought by Dahl (along with about fifty other people) like you were just so much human cattle.
And now you were here.
... At least you're free now, you guess. "Gonna need food and water to stay alive," you muse. "And guns, probably, to stop other people from taking them from us."
"Guns are easy," a skinny man with a baseball cap said. "I overheard some Dahl techs say they were going to have to leave a bunch of their military stuff behind in order to all fit on the star cruisers. There'll probably be a bunch in the security bunkers, like the ones at the old mining camps."
"Ain't gonna be no food in there, though. I heard there was some fancy hydro-woozle gardens supplying the kitchens. Supposed to be part of that science facility, on account of them using it for experiments and stuff."
"You boys are dumb, ain't you?" One of the few female convicts spat in the sand. "Think nobody else has heard about them bunkers of guns, or piles of hydra food? We go after them, and everybody else is gonna be gunning for us. We aught to find some of those folks who have been living here and cozy up to them, get them to show us how to get set up here."
"Or we could just take what we want from them, instead of playing buddy-buddy."
Most of your fellows keep quiet, watching you as much as the conversation playing out. It takes you a moment to realize that their looks are expectant- they want you to make the choice. How the heck did that happen-?
[] Go for one of the bunkers. They're literally built to be secure, so you should be as safe as it'd be possible to get once you're settled in.
[] Go for the hydro gardens. It might not be as defensible as a literal bunker, but food is also very important to that whole not dying thing.
[] Go for a native tribe. They've been living here long enough that they obviously know what they're doing, so they could really help out.
-[] Peaceful approach
-[] Hostile take-over
As you sort out your plans, one of the more quiet convicts speaks up.
"Hey. What do we call you, Boss?"
[] Boss is fine.
[] Write-in.
Gender and appearance is more aesthetic than anything, but, hey, might as well vote on it anyway.
Gender:
[] Male
[] Female
Appearance:
Post any suitable (SFW) picture with a short description (eg, '[X] Completely Anachronistic Knight Guy'), or vote for a previously posted picture.
"Gonna die out here," A convict built like a bipedal tank moaned. "Fucking Dahl scaglicks. Why'd they bring is out here if they were just gonna leave?"
Because you were expendable, you thought. Just some shitty criminals, people nobody would miss one way or another- And when the time came to leave, nobody thought twice about leaving you behind.
Well, nobody from Dahl, anyway. There had been 'Natives' here before Dahl set up shop, the descendants of crazy survivalists seeking to avoid the clearly inevitable collapse of civilization and outlaws trying to avoid the long arm of the law by grabbing land on some gods-forsaken rock where nobody would look for them. They probably weren't any more thrilled by millions of criminals getting left on their front doorstep than you were at being left on this rock.
It's not like you were even that bad of a person. All you'd done was accept a courier job off of the echo-net without asking too many questions, and the next thing you knew you were charged with a list of crimes too long to remember, shipped off to serve fifty years on Hades IX, and then basically bought by Dahl (along with about fifty other people) like you were just so much human cattle.
And now you were here.
... At least you're free now, you guess. "Gonna need food and water to stay alive," you muse. "And guns, probably, to stop other people from taking them from us."
"Guns are easy," a skinny man with a baseball cap said. "I overheard some Dahl techs say they were going to have to leave a bunch of their military stuff behind in order to all fit on the star cruisers. There'll probably be a bunch in the security bunkers, like the ones at the old mining camps."
"Ain't gonna be no food in there, though. I heard there was some fancy hydro-woozle gardens supplying the kitchens. Supposed to be part of that science facility, on account of them using it for experiments and stuff."
"You boys are dumb, ain't you?" One of the few female convicts spat in the sand. "Think nobody else has heard about them bunkers of guns, or piles of hydra food? We go after them, and everybody else is gonna be gunning for us. We aught to find some of those folks who have been living here and cozy up to them, get them to show us how to get set up here."
"Or we could just take what we want from them, instead of playing buddy-buddy."
Most of your fellows keep quiet, watching you as much as the conversation playing out. It takes you a moment to realize that their looks are expectant- they want you to make the choice. How the heck did that happen-?
[] Go for one of the bunkers. They're literally built to be secure, so you should be as safe as it'd be possible to get once you're settled in.
[] Go for the hydro gardens. It might not be as defensible as a literal bunker, but food is also very important to that whole not dying thing.
[] Go for a native tribe. They've been living here long enough that they obviously know what they're doing, so they could really help out.
-[] Peaceful approach
-[] Hostile take-over
As you sort out your plans, one of the more quiet convicts speaks up.
"Hey. What do we call you, Boss?"
[] Boss is fine.
[] Write-in.
Gender and appearance is more aesthetic than anything, but, hey, might as well vote on it anyway.
Gender:
[] Male
[] Female
Appearance:
Post any suitable (SFW) picture with a short description (eg, '[X] Completely Anachronistic Knight Guy'), or vote for a previously posted picture.
Clan Details
Mechanics:
Vindictus
XENO
- Location
- Texas
Dice table stolen shamelessly from Oni Quest.
>Any Doubles: YOU WIN, RAWR. SO STRONG.
>100: You win twice
>90-98: Stupidly Successful
>60-90: Successful
>40-60: Neutral
>10-40: Not So Good
>2-10: Terrible
>1: This is so terrible that IT JUST MIGHT WORK! (reroll)
Actions can be taken with any number of units, so long as they have a 'Hero' unit leading them.
Every additional unit of 'Human Resources' devoted to an action adds a minimum .25 bonus to your roll. Better units, or better equipped units, add to this bonus. Additional hero units add a base bonus of 5.
I will give suitable rewards for Omake and fanwork, should any be created.
>Any Doubles: YOU WIN, RAWR. SO STRONG.
>100: You win twice
>90-98: Stupidly Successful
>60-90: Successful
>40-60: Neutral
>10-40: Not So Good
>2-10: Terrible
>1: This is so terrible that IT JUST MIGHT WORK! (reroll)
Actions can be taken with any number of units, so long as they have a 'Hero' unit leading them.
Every additional unit of 'Human Resources' devoted to an action adds a minimum .25 bonus to your roll. Better units, or better equipped units, add to this bonus. Additional hero units add a base bonus of 5.
I will give suitable rewards for Omake and fanwork, should any be created.
Welcome to the Bunker
Vindictus
XENO
- Location
- Texas
Male (7 votes)
Boss (6 votes)
Bunker (6 votes)
Boss (6 votes)
Bunker (6 votes)
Your gang- And isn't that an odd feeling- weren't the only ones to hear about the guns left in Dahl's security bunkers. Or maybe you were just unlucky, and the other, slightly smaller gang of convicts had been looking for shelter, and merely happened to stumble across the small valley that housed it at the same time as you did by chance.
The two groups eyed each other and the distance to the bunker carefully for a moment. Nobody was armed, but that just meant whoever got to the bunker first would have an advantage...
"It's gonna be a race to the guns, then," You say quietly. "Whoever gets to them first will be able to chase the others off, so let's MOVE!"
With a shout, you start sprinting for the open gates of the bunker, the rest of the gang right behind you, and the other gang following after a moment. That moment of a lead is enough for you to clear the gates before your rivals, if only just.
"Hold them off in the doorway!" you shout. "You, big guy, come with me to find the guns, I'll need you to carry them."
The next few minutes are spent scrambling through narrow corridors, searching for the armory. Fortunately, you know when you find it- Dahl had been kind enough to label all the rooms with big, bold signs, even if they didn't include a map or anything like that.
You grab several rifles with built on slings and load them on to the big guy- Three over one shoulder, three over the other- and then grab a pistol for yourself. You've never really held a gun before, and even just a pistol sits a bit heavy in your hand, but it can't be that hard, right? Just point and shoot...
By the time you get back to the gate, the fight has taken a turn for the bloody. Nobody is dead- you think, at least- but several people are wrestling and punching each other, too caught up in fighting to notice your return.
You fire a round into the ceiling, and the fighting stops instantly.
"This fight is over now," you declare, voice sounding a lot more steady than you feel. "You boys... I don't know who you are, but I'm willing to bet you're not too eager to eat a lead sandwich. This is our turf, so you need to back the hell off."
There is a pause for a few moments, where everything is silent, and then one of the convicts on the other side of the fight starts clapping slowly. "Bravo. Yes, you've certainly made your claim on this place very clear. But I think we've gotten off on the wrong foot," He says, stepping forward. "You see, I can't help but notice there are about twenty of you, and not quite twenty of us, but this place is easily big enough for more people than that- Hundreds, maybe even thousands of people could fit in here with a bit of work. It's easily big enough for all of us- And there is safety in numbers, yes? You could always use the security of a few extra bodies between you and any other gangs, after all..."
The man stops, and you realize with a start that he's easily a mere ten feet away from you.
"So, what do you think about joining forces? With you leading us, and me as your second in command, we could rule this wasteland...
[] Kill him
[] Chase him off
[] Take his offer
[] Write in?
OOC: Leaving the appearance vote up for another day, as there hasn't been a lot of votes for that one way or another.
Asserting Dominance
Vindictus
XENO
- Location
- Texas
You make a show of considering it. "You've got a point... But," The gun in your hand barks as you pull the trigger, and the other convict's head explodes in a plume of gore. "You just ring all of my Stranger Danger warning bells."
The room is silent as the now-headless corpse of the other convict leader slowly topples over. Honestly, the guy wasn't even wrong- You'd be better off with more people working for you than otherwise, even if the person making that case was sketchy as fuck. You step forward, and gesture towards the now cowering rival gang.
"Now, allow me to make my offer. I'm the Boss, and you all work for me. Be part of my gang, do what I want, or you end up like good old Stranger Danger here."
There is silence for a moment, before one of the rival gang members responds. "You know, I never liked Steve anyway."
+15 Convicts
With that taken care of, your newly enlarged gang sets to work scouring the bunker for anything useful. There's almost nothing in the way of food- A couple of beat up old vending machines that get torn open, and the contents of one abandoned lunchbox that smell like they've gone a little off- but the armory is full of guns and ammo, and the bunker is secure enough that you're pretty sure a handful of people could keep it secure against most things.
+25 food
+250 combat rifles
+100 pistols
+100 shotguns
+50 sniper rifles
+1 Dahl Security Bunker
Near the end of the scavenging, one of your underlings taps you on the shoulder. "Uh, Boss, you're going to want to see this."
You're led to the top of the facility, where a small garage holds... Your eyes must be playing tricks on you, because those look an awful lot like Dahl jet fighters.
"They ain't working." You turn, and see the bodybuilder you came with. "They must have been brought in for repairs, because they've all got parts damaged or missing, and at some point all of the electronics systems got torn out, so there's no way to run 'em. They've still got working engines, though."
"... And you know this because?"
The big guy laughs. "I was a mechanic, before the authorities traced a few less-than-legal aftermarket modifications back to me. Anyway, I think I could probably fix these puppies up, if I had the parts- The tools are all here- but I've got no idea where to get those. If I can get these up and running, though..."
You can imagine- though obviously, it's just an 'if'. And... "I'm a bit more concerned with food. We don't have enough to last a week."
"Shit, really?" He whistles through his teeth. "Well, still- if you find any electronics, or busted up vehicles for salvage, could you bring 'em back here? Because that'd be great."
Yeah, sure.
+5 Busted Jet Fighters
- Bodybuilder converted to Mechanic
Congratulations, you have acquired a base of operations.
A base of operations needs to be staffed by a certain minimum number of people to remain secured. A secured base can resist and repel attacks from rival gangs, wildlife, and other aggressors, but if a base is left unsecured, a rival gang can simply walk in and take it over. Leaving human resources on staff beyond the minimum requirements grants an additional defense bonus.
A base of operations provides a safe place to manage several types of operation from. Operations take three major forms- Scouting, Offensive, and Diplomatic.
Scouting operations gather information about the local area, rival groups, and resources nearby.
Offensive operations attack specific targets to damage opposition or gather resources.
Diplomatic operations allow you to form treaties or alliances with rival groups, or take them over.
An operation must be managed by a Hero unit. Additional Hero units provide bonuses to the operation.
Congratulations, you have acquired a specialist.
Specialist units provide access to a new resource, or a new way of utilizing resources, beyond what could be performed by untrained labor. Specialists can still be used as general Human Resources, if necessary.
Available Human Resources
35 Convicts
1 Mechanic
Available Heroes
'The Boss'
Available Guns
250 combat rifles
100 shotguns
100 pistols
50 sniper rifles
Secure bases (Does not require Hero unit):
[] Secure Dahl Bunker (Min. 10)
Perform Operations (Requires 1 hero unit per Operation):
[] Scouting Operation
- [] General Scouting
[] Offensive Operations
- [] Firemagic missile bullets into the darkness
[] Diplomatic Operations
- [] Talk to:
-- [] Yourself?
Sample vote block for reference:
Secure Dahl Bunker (15 Convicts)
Offensive Operation (20 Convicts, 'The Boss')
- Attack Rakk Nest
The room is silent as the now-headless corpse of the other convict leader slowly topples over. Honestly, the guy wasn't even wrong- You'd be better off with more people working for you than otherwise, even if the person making that case was sketchy as fuck. You step forward, and gesture towards the now cowering rival gang.
"Now, allow me to make my offer. I'm the Boss, and you all work for me. Be part of my gang, do what I want, or you end up like good old Stranger Danger here."
There is silence for a moment, before one of the rival gang members responds. "You know, I never liked Steve anyway."
+15 Convicts
With that taken care of, your newly enlarged gang sets to work scouring the bunker for anything useful. There's almost nothing in the way of food- A couple of beat up old vending machines that get torn open, and the contents of one abandoned lunchbox that smell like they've gone a little off- but the armory is full of guns and ammo, and the bunker is secure enough that you're pretty sure a handful of people could keep it secure against most things.
+25 food
+250 combat rifles
+100 pistols
+100 shotguns
+50 sniper rifles
+1 Dahl Security Bunker
Near the end of the scavenging, one of your underlings taps you on the shoulder. "Uh, Boss, you're going to want to see this."
You're led to the top of the facility, where a small garage holds... Your eyes must be playing tricks on you, because those look an awful lot like Dahl jet fighters.
"They ain't working." You turn, and see the bodybuilder you came with. "They must have been brought in for repairs, because they've all got parts damaged or missing, and at some point all of the electronics systems got torn out, so there's no way to run 'em. They've still got working engines, though."
"... And you know this because?"
The big guy laughs. "I was a mechanic, before the authorities traced a few less-than-legal aftermarket modifications back to me. Anyway, I think I could probably fix these puppies up, if I had the parts- The tools are all here- but I've got no idea where to get those. If I can get these up and running, though..."
You can imagine- though obviously, it's just an 'if'. And... "I'm a bit more concerned with food. We don't have enough to last a week."
"Shit, really?" He whistles through his teeth. "Well, still- if you find any electronics, or busted up vehicles for salvage, could you bring 'em back here? Because that'd be great."
Yeah, sure.
+5 Busted Jet Fighters
- Bodybuilder converted to Mechanic
Congratulations, you have acquired a base of operations.
A base of operations needs to be staffed by a certain minimum number of people to remain secured. A secured base can resist and repel attacks from rival gangs, wildlife, and other aggressors, but if a base is left unsecured, a rival gang can simply walk in and take it over. Leaving human resources on staff beyond the minimum requirements grants an additional defense bonus.
A base of operations provides a safe place to manage several types of operation from. Operations take three major forms- Scouting, Offensive, and Diplomatic.
Scouting operations gather information about the local area, rival groups, and resources nearby.
Offensive operations attack specific targets to damage opposition or gather resources.
Diplomatic operations allow you to form treaties or alliances with rival groups, or take them over.
An operation must be managed by a Hero unit. Additional Hero units provide bonuses to the operation.
Congratulations, you have acquired a specialist.
Specialist units provide access to a new resource, or a new way of utilizing resources, beyond what could be performed by untrained labor. Specialists can still be used as general Human Resources, if necessary.
Available Human Resources
35 Convicts
1 Mechanic
Available Heroes
'The Boss'
Available Guns
250 combat rifles
100 shotguns
100 pistols
50 sniper rifles
Secure bases (Does not require Hero unit):
[] Secure Dahl Bunker (Min. 10)
Perform Operations (Requires 1 hero unit per Operation):
[] Scouting Operation
- [] General Scouting
[] Offensive Operations
- [] Fire
[] Diplomatic Operations
- [] Talk to:
-- [] Yourself?
Sample vote block for reference:
-
A Mixed Bag
Vindictus
XENO
- Location
- Texas
The first point of order is to get a lay of the land. You're honestly completely unfamiliar with the geography of this planet- Though, given you were brought down as basically slave labor, perhaps that was to be expected.
The area you were in was a large series of valleys, with mines carved into the mountain walls here and there. You suppose the higher ups knew what they were doing when they ordered you to dig, so there's probably something in them, but hell if you know what- or even if it's something you can make use of.
There's a briefly horrifying moment when, off in the distance, you see some giant dog-like thing climbing into one of the open mine shafts. You'd seen giant skeletons here and there with strange bifurcated jaws and shark-like teeth, of course, but you had assumed that those were fossils... Fortunately, the creature disappears into the depths without noticing you and your men.
"Real Scagzilla, there," One of the convicts whispers as it goes.
"Was that a scag, then? I thought they were smaller." If they got that big... What did they even eat, out here?
The convict spits. "Overheard some of the guards talking about 'em a few times. Fuckers don't stop growing, apparently. Most of them die before they get bigger than a person, but if the big ones find a nice safe spot, they can give birth to thousands of the little ones at once."
Oh, good. So it wasn't all giant, building-sized monsters, then- there were also swarms of smaller monsters to fill in the gaps, and probably a few monsters of intermediate size to boot. Lovely. But, well... You really need food, so. "Are they edible?"
"I dunno. One way to find out, eh Boss?"
+ Location: The Scag Pits
You continue to search the area, but don't find much else of note before the sun starts setting. You don't really want to get caught out here by the native wildlife in the dark, so you make your way back to the bunker quickly.
-5 Food
Available Human Resources
35 Convicts
1 Mechanic
Available Heroes
'The Boss'
Available Guns
250 combat rifles
100 shotguns
100 pistols
50 sniper rifles
Secure bases (Does not require Hero unit):
[] Secure Dahl Bunker (Min. 10)
Perform Operations (Requires 1 hero unit per Operation):
[] Scouting Operation
- [] General Scouting
- [] Scout The Scag Pits
[] Offensive Operations
- [] Raid The Scag Pits
[] Diplomatic Operations
- [] Talk to:
-- [] The Scags?
The area you were in was a large series of valleys, with mines carved into the mountain walls here and there. You suppose the higher ups knew what they were doing when they ordered you to dig, so there's probably something in them, but hell if you know what- or even if it's something you can make use of.
There's a briefly horrifying moment when, off in the distance, you see some giant dog-like thing climbing into one of the open mine shafts. You'd seen giant skeletons here and there with strange bifurcated jaws and shark-like teeth, of course, but you had assumed that those were fossils... Fortunately, the creature disappears into the depths without noticing you and your men.
"Real Scagzilla, there," One of the convicts whispers as it goes.
"Was that a scag, then? I thought they were smaller." If they got that big... What did they even eat, out here?
The convict spits. "Overheard some of the guards talking about 'em a few times. Fuckers don't stop growing, apparently. Most of them die before they get bigger than a person, but if the big ones find a nice safe spot, they can give birth to thousands of the little ones at once."
Oh, good. So it wasn't all giant, building-sized monsters, then- there were also swarms of smaller monsters to fill in the gaps, and probably a few monsters of intermediate size to boot. Lovely. But, well... You really need food, so. "Are they edible?"
"I dunno. One way to find out, eh Boss?"
+ Location: The Scag Pits
You continue to search the area, but don't find much else of note before the sun starts setting. You don't really want to get caught out here by the native wildlife in the dark, so you make your way back to the bunker quickly.
-5 Food
Available Human Resources
35 Convicts
1 Mechanic
Available Heroes
'The Boss'
Available Guns
250 combat rifles
100 shotguns
100 pistols
50 sniper rifles
Secure bases (Does not require Hero unit):
[] Secure Dahl Bunker (Min. 10)
Perform Operations (Requires 1 hero unit per Operation):
[] Scouting Operation
- [] General Scouting
- [] Scout The Scag Pits
[] Offensive Operations
- [] Raid The Scag Pits
[] Diplomatic Operations
- [] Talk to:
-- [] The Scags?