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Project Prometheus (Original Setting Superhero Quest)
- Location
- Outside the Box
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Well, the chance for 2d20 to roll the same number is... 1/20. So I wouldn't worry just yet.
SolarGemX
The Crystalized Sun
- Location
- Somewhere in the Cosmos
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Why am i doing this *Please don't let this be the hurt the Beetle/ the bad guy escapes roll....*
Edit: Anything above a 10 hates me apparently. Actually.... is this my second 9 in a row!?
Edit 2: NVM it was a seven last time.... why is me rolling a nine somehow better.....
Edit: Anything above a 10 hates me apparently. Actually.... is this my second 9 in a row!?
Edit 2: NVM it was a seven last time.... why is me rolling a nine somehow better.....
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Issue #1.2: Invasive pt. 2
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Plan: EVIL DOER BEWARE
-[X] . . . engage and defeat Earthen Owl (DC 12. HIT Check of 6).
--[X] Black Swan and Valiant Kabuto very loudly announces their intention to challenge Earthen Owl to a fight, taunting him all the while for his evil deeds and how Justice Unlimited has come to put him behind bars like they did last time, or is he too chicken to face her after his last butt kicking?
--[X] While Lady Leizi is in hiding, let Earthen Owl think Black Swan is a overconfident newbie and wait until he decides to use his vines to grapple either Valiant Kabuto or Black Swan.
--[X] Once his vines are around someone, or if he looks to be planning to escape, Lady Leizi springs her ambush, and Black Swan and Valiant Kabuto can assist her in knocking Earthen Owl out with all they can muster.
-[X] . . . engage and defeat Earthen Owl (DC 12. HIT Check of 6).
--[X] Black Swan and Valiant Kabuto very loudly announces their intention to challenge Earthen Owl to a fight, taunting him all the while for his evil deeds and how Justice Unlimited has come to put him behind bars like they did last time, or is he too chicken to face her after his last butt kicking?
--[X] While Lady Leizi is in hiding, let Earthen Owl think Black Swan is a overconfident newbie and wait until he decides to use his vines to grapple either Valiant Kabuto or Black Swan.
--[X] Once his vines are around someone, or if he looks to be planning to escape, Lady Leizi springs her ambush, and Black Swan and Valiant Kabuto can assist her in knocking Earthen Owl out with all they can muster.
Earthen Owl stands in the courtyard between the buildings. He's standing on top of an elevated mound of dirt with his arms spread wide, like a shepherd guiding his flock. A description that is, you realize, somewhat literal.
"Thy enemies loathe and envy you! For they have no Earthen Owl to protect them!"
His pronouncement is greeted by honks of agreement and wonder. Or just honks. The gorilla-geese in front of him amble about aimlessly with all the intelligence of a beast or someone stuck at the DMV. A few are even pecking at the ground.
Earthen Owl doesn't seem to notice. "Today! Today is the most highest, most glorious day of all days! For today is the day our borders shall be secure and our kingdom made whole!"
One gorilla-goose punches another in the arm and then gets punched back in turn. This starts a game and, soon, every gorilla-goose is punching or being punched.
"The vermin shall be extinguished! Their vile protector's carapace made a decoration on our walls! And then, all shall know of thy master, the Earthen Owl!"
"Earthen Owl? More like, Earthen foul-smelling! Pee-ew! You stink!"
Earthen Owl squawks in outrage, and looks up to see Black Swan hovering just overhead. On her shoulder is Valiant Kabuto, the sunlight glinting off his glasses.
"I've heard how you've treated these poor creatures, like they're your playthings! No more! Valiant Kabuto has done everything he can to keep this place safe, and now Justice Unlimited is going to help him take out the trash!"
DC 2.
Stat Check: REPUTATION 1. Black Swan has REPUTATION 8.
You rolled: 10.
10 + 3 = 13. Success!
Stat Check: REPUTATION 1. Black Swan has REPUTATION 8.
You rolled: 10.
10 + 3 = 13. Success!
"Justice Unlimited!" Earthen Owl sneers, "Those vainglorious fools? They threw their lives away struggling against the Looming God! Pah! Their time is over! The time of Earthen Owl is now!"
"What did you say!? How dare you! Fudge you, ugly!"
Earthen Owl drops his arms. "H-huh?"
Black Swan drops closer to the ground. "That's right! Ugly! You're ugly and your costume's theme makes no sense! Why is an owl going underground?!"
Valiant Kabuto waves an arm in agreement.
"B-burrowing owls are a thing! They're super cool and badass!"
One of the gorilla-geese honks in support.
"You stay out of this!" Black Swan snapped, "Justice Unlimited kicked your butt before and it's gonna happen again!"
"Pah! I say 'pah' again! Thou is not the first to lay false claim to that name, usurper! And my kingdom knows the just punishment for usurpers!" Earthen Owl declares, mugging to the crowd.
The punching game has started again. Only the gorilla-goose from earlier makes a sound.
"Kiss-ass!"
"Brown-noser he may be, but he knows the truth of my kingdom. The punishment for false witness is . . . death!"
In an instant, Earthen Owl emerges from the ground behind Black Swan. He fires vines from his body, which ensnare Black Swan and begin to drag her towards the earth. The "Earthen Owl" she had been talking to dissolves into a mass of vines.
You raise an eyebrow. Since when was he able to do that?
"Do not struggle, sweetling! Is this all 'Justice Unlimited' is capable of? Ha! Thou is not fit to do no more than lie forever in the gentle embrace of our loam!"
"What? Ewwwwwww! Gross, you sicko!"
"Wait, what?" Earthen Owl says, breaking kayfabe, "That's not what I meant! What did you think I meant?"
"I don't want your 'gentle embrace', perv! I'm nineteen! You're like, what, fifty?!" Black Swan shouts as Valiant Kabuto clicks his mandibles angrily.
"I'm only forty-three! A-and I didn't mean anything inappropriate! I was just gonna drag you underground and beat you up a little!"
"You do understand how that doesn't sound any better, don't you darling?" you say from directly behind him.
DC 10 - 3 (You are Lady Leizi) - 2 (Earthen Owl Totally Distracted) = DC 5.
Stat Check: ESPIONAGE 6. Lady Leizi has ESPIONAGE 8.
You rolled: 6.
6 + 1 = 7. Success!
Stat Check: ESPIONAGE 6. Lady Leizi has ESPIONAGE 8.
You rolled: 6.
6 + 1 = 7. Success!
Earthen Owl had been so busy losing an argument to a teenager, he never saw your approach. And now that he was tied up, he was vulnerable.
"L-lady Leizi?" he stutters, looking back and forth between you and Black Swan, "Then that means, Justice Unlimited really is back?"
"Naturally. It seems your type has forgotten about us. Allow me to remind you."
DC 12.
Stat Check: HIT 6. Justice Unlimited has a cumulative HIT 14.
You rolled: 18.
18 + 4 + 1 (Good Plan) = 23. Critical Success!
Stat Check: HIT 6. Justice Unlimited has a cumulative HIT 14.
You rolled: 18.
18 + 4 + 1 (Good Plan) = 23. Critical Success!
Your fist hits Earthen Owl's face so hard that his goggles shatter and the metal beak in his mask breaks his nose with a loud crunch! If it weren't for the lightning imbued in your strike, you would have broken every bone in your hand. As is, Earthen Owl lets out a wet gurgle as his body convulses and his vines erupt into flame.
But that is nothing compared to what happens next. Valiant Kabuto slides off Black Swan's shoulders, down the burning vines before they snap, and bounces off your shoulder into the air. He then dives forward, delivering a devastating kick directly between Earthen Owl's legs.
Even you wince as Earthen Owl hits the ground, letting out a high-pitched squeal of agony. You nod to Valiant Kabuto, who is posing on Earthen Owl's chest. Not exactly your style, but effective, nonetheless.
"He kicked him in the nuts. . ." Black Swan whispers reverently.
"Surrender," you tell him, "You're outmatched. The citizens of your kingdom are too busy roughhousing to notice their 'leader' lies defeated."
There is a lone honk of protest before another gorilla-goose punches the sycophantic creature in the head. It seems none of them are willing to jump to Earthen Owl's defense now that he's writhing on the ground.
"It's over," you repeat.
DC 15 - 3 (Earthen Owl Decisively Defeated) = DC 12.
Stat Check: REPUTATION 8. Justice Unlimited has a cumulative REPUTATION 11.
You rolled: 9.
9 + 1 = 10. Failure!
Stat Check: REPUTATION 8. Justice Unlimited has a cumulative REPUTATION 11.
You rolled: 9.
9 + 1 = 10. Failure!
But Earthen Owl's spirit isn't broken. "You . . . you'll all pay for this!" he roars. As he does, vines burst from his body, ensnaring you and Valiant Kabuto. They move and lock your limbs together before splitting off his body.
Something is definitely wrong. He absolutely could not do that before.
In a flash, Earthen Owl dives into the ground and moves away from you as fast as possible, a spray of dirt following his wake. He's traveling in the opposite direction of the lab, into the palm marshes where you'll never find him.
You flex and a burst of electricity frees you. But Earthen Owl is already gone, faster than you can catch him.
Minor Success: DC 5. Moderate Success: DC 10. Major Success: DC 15.
Stat Check: HIT 5. Justice Unlimited has a cumulative HIT 14.
You rolled: 14.
14 + 4 = 18. Major Success!
Stat Check: HIT 5. Justice Unlimited has a cumulative HIT 14.
You rolled: 14.
14 + 4 = 18. Major Success!
But not faster than Black Swan.
"Get back here! Burrowing. Owls. Aren't. That. Cool!"
A second sun blooms in the sky as Black Swan fires a blast of power from both her hands. It carves the ground like a scalpel slicing through flesh, creating a deep burrow. Black Swan maintains the beam, tracking the path where Earthen Owl flees until she catches up with his apparent position. Then she holds her beam steady on that location for nearly five seconds.
When she relents and you can see again, you see a scar in the earth from where Black Swan is flying to well outside of Dr. Ibis' compound. Where the mark ends, you see a deep crater with a figure lying prone in it. Earthen Owl's bark-like skin is singed black, his mask totally obliterated. He's found a white cloth from somewhere, and is furiously waving it from where he lay.
"Black Swan," you say.
"Y-yes, Lady Leizi?"
"Your banter needs work. But an excellent job overall."
* * *
Earthen Owl remainess perfectly still except for his wave of surrender as you, Black Swan, and Valiant Kabuto approach. You gesture for him to sit up.
"S-so Justice Unlimited survives yet," he says, wincing as his movements pull at his burnt skin, "Lady Leizi, we thought thou hadst perished in the struggle against the Leviathan."
"Rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated."
"A pity," he sneers, "T'would be easier thou had gone the way of thy wretched allies—hrrrk!"
Earthen Owl finds it incredibly difficult to breathe as you stand on his throat. You feel something ugly inside of you trying to get out as you lean over Earthen Owl with a snarl.
"They died joining the fight against the monster in the QZ. I couldn't help but notice you weren't there."
You ease off his neck enough to let him answer. And he takes a big gasp of air.
"I-I wouldn't have been able to help! My power is useless when the ground is goldnine!"
"Try again. I wasn't much help either, but I knew to be there. Lightstep was there. City Crier was there. Valiant Silver was there without her armor. Plenty of us were there at great risk to ourselves!"
Earthen Owl tries to answer, but you're pushing down again. You ease up and try to gain control of yourself.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I-I was just following orders!"
"Orders?" you demand.
"Y-yeah! After Uiara put out the general call for everybody to go to the QZ, I got a message from the boss telling me not to go. I thought it was 'cuz my power sucked!"
"Scarlet Maturity told you to avoid a fight? I find that hard to believe."
"N-not him! The big boss, Faust! President of Dominion! E-everybody on Powers, we work for him! He pays the bills—ugggahk!"
Your foot is on his neck again. "Then it seems you have nothing else of importance to say."
You're so angry you're beside yourself. You want to crush this worm of a man beneath your feet and watch him squirm. You push harder, waiting for a pop, but you feel a hand on your arm.
"Lady Leizi, stop," Black Swan says.
"Stand down, Black Swan!"
"You're hurting him!"
"I'm just crushing a worm."
Black Swan tightens her grip "Stop it! This isn't what Justice Unlimited does!"
She's right. You don't care. "Justice Unlimited is mine now."
"Is this what everyone else would have wanted?!"
"It doesn't matter because they are gone!"
The pain in your voice surprises you so badly that you take your foot off Earthen Owl and stumble away. You hear him gasp for air, hacking and wheezing, as you numbly march away. You hear Black Swan calling after you, but you don't answer.
What were you about to do? Why were you about to do it? You walk a few more feet before bending over and dry heaving. Your hands are shaking so badly you can't hold anything. Something small touches your knee, and you see Valiant Kabuto standing next to you. The sight is so absurd that you laugh, which turns into half a sob, and the pain in your chest eases.
You take a few minutes to collect yourself. You can still taste the bile in your mouth, your throat aches from screaming, but you're confident you're in control.
You march back over to Earthen Owl and Black Swan who have their screens out and are exchanging information.
"Okay! So you pay us, promise to not fight us for a month, and we let you go?" Black Swan asks.
"Yeah, it's standard stuff, kid. I can't believe this is your first time out. I won't be crossing you anytime soon."
"He's right dear. The other option is to imprison him, but haven't the space at the moment," you chime in.
Black Swan throws you a concerned look, but you give a reassuring smile and an remorseful tilt of your head. She nods back, accepting your apology.
"L-l-lady Leizi! I was just showing your new member how we do things! I wasn't trying to jerk her around her, I swear! I-I even threw in a little extra on the bail, just to say sorry. I, uh, went a little too far with what I said earlier and I feel real bad!"
"What are you even doing here, Owl?"
"I-I was told by the boss—Scarlet Maturity, not the big boss—to round up every metahuman I could find and get them to join Powers. I thought Doc Ibis would want in, but I guess he beefed it against the Leviathan."
"Quite. A tragedy."
"Yeah, and then I saw all these guys and I love animals so—hey, wait a second. Why are you guys here?"
"Are people who lose fights allowed to ask questions," Black Swan said tapping her lips, "I think that violates your parole?"
Earthen Owl paled.
"Nevermind! I'll go now! I'll be good, I swear! P-please! H-hey! Get that beetle away from me! N-no! Don't let him kick me in the nuts again!"
* * *
After that, retrieving the Doctor's items is trivially easy. The gorilla-geese prove remarkably docile with Earthen Owl gone; you swear you watched Valiant Kabuto scolding them for the better part of an hour.
Speaking of which, you offered to take him back to Jacob's Ladder with you. But, in his odd, pictogram language, he explained that his place was at the Doctor's lab. Just knowing Dr. Ibis was out there was enough for him. A tearful Black Swan hugged him goodbye and promised to return.
. . . honestly, it wasn't the worst idea. You would have to stabilize the OID first, but Dr. Ibis lab would make an excellent location for a satellite base for Justice Unlimited.
You and Black Swan returned to Jacob's Ladder without issue. However, upon inspecting the Doctor's things, you realized there was a problem.
Which is why you were currently hovering outside of his lab. With a sigh, you pushed the door open.
"Dr. Ibis. I hope I'm not interrupting."
"What? Who?" he said, blinking owlishly, "Oh, Lady Leizi. No, its . . . fine."
You frowned. The doctor was slumped in his desk, furiously typing something into a computer. He looked . . . morose. Less manic than you've ever seen him.
"I've received the samples of refined goldnine I requested," he said as you sat down, "My thanks, Lady Leizi. I'm putting them to good use. And I'm glad subject #3384—ah, Valiant Kabuto—is doing well."
Your frown grows sharper. Something is seriously wrong.
You hold up an envelope and speak, "Thank you, Doctor. There was one more thing. We did manage to recover the personal effects from your room—"
The doctor snatches the envelope from your hand and tears it open. "You did! Blast it, why didn't anyone tell me?! Where are they, where are then . . ."
The doctor pulls out a number of photographs depicting a much younger version of himself with a woman with sandy hair and a little girl in pigtails. He smiles as he flips through them, a sigh of relief escaping from his lips. That is a story you desperately want to know, but you give the doctor his peace. He reaches the end of the photographs before frowning.
"Wait, wait, wait! Where is—"
"Some of them were damaged beyond repair," you say, "Earthen Owl apparently broke into the safe, thinking it contained valuables. He left the photos there, but water got in . . ."
"Oh." Dr. Ibis' grin disappears, "I-I see. Regrettable."
"That's why I wanted to give you this, Doctor."
Out of your pocket you pull out a photograph and hand it to Dr. Ibis. It's a selfie of a young woman with radiant, silver skin and blank eyes. There is the barest ghost of a smile on her lips. Behind her, an indignant Dr. Ibis is being lifted into the air by a girl Towarri's age with brilliant, red hair and a costume the color of fall leaves. Her smile stretches across her whole face.
Dr. Ibis looks at you with wide eyes. "I thought you said it . . ."
"Towarri had the same photograph in her room. She would have wanted you to have it."
Moisture beads at the corners of Dr. Ibis' eyes. You politely pretend not to notice.
"Damn implant. My . . . hormone regulation is a mess without it. Involuntary mood swings, you understand?!"
"Of course, Dr. Ibis. I've had a few of those myself today."
The two of you sit in a companionable silence as Dr. Ibis flips through all of his photographs again. Eventually, he tucks them into his pocket and clears his throat.
"Ahem. As I said earlier, a lesser mind would have no idea what to do with the samples from my lab! But the Dr. Mammoth Ibis has already nearly finished integrating them into the Ambrosia!"
You smile, "How lucky we are to have you."
"Weep for heaven has shown you the greatest of fortune! Now, we have two options. The great Dr. Mammoth Ibis can use the refined goldnine to remove an element of randomness from what power is expressed from a dose of Ambrosia. Thought it will reduce the potency efficiency. Or, the greatest mind in Horizon can use it to raise a candidate's tolerance to Ambrosia over time! It will be slow and expensive, but perfectly effective!"
You applaud, "Doctor, you've done it again."
"Had you expected anything else? Now tell Dr. Ibis what you seek!"
* * *
[ ] Ask Dr. Ibis to eliminate randomness from the power expressed.
(One per dosage, you may guarantee the expression of one keyword in exchange for raising the potency of the dosage by 2. Can stack with potency reductions.)
[ ] Ask the Dr. Ibis to help raise candidates' tolerances.
(Unlocks global action "A Spoonful of Sugar". Costs -2000 income. Will raise a candidates' tolerance by 1. No limit to how often it can be applied to a given candidate. Will take up Justice Unlimited's global action for the turn.)
Justice Unlimited's Collective +1 HIT!
+ 500 Income!
Unlock Dr. Ibis' Lab as a potential base! (requires control of the OID)
NOTE: Additional Bases give +1 Global Actions and +1 AP.
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LucidProp
Pocky Eating MafiaDoka
Black Swan going for that low blow by insulting her opponent's theme. Don't worry Earthen Owl, you may be 40 years old, but I think burrowing owls are cool too!
Also, damn, we really need to give the Doc and Lady Leizi time to mourn. Hopefully, we'll be able to do that next turn with the Four Seasons.
[ ] Ask Dr. Ibis to eliminate randomness from the power expressed.
This would be my preferred option. Making it so that even a 1 vital 1x power appears opens up so many doors for us when it comes to synergy even if it does up potency by 2. Question though, can we still reduce potency by 3 if we do this? How does this work exactly for a candidate with say Potency Tolerance 10?
We use this and it raises them to Potency 12, and then we reduce it by 2 to bring it back to Potency 10. However, doesn't that mean they'll total Potency 14? I assumed Potency 13 was the maximum.
[ ] Ask the Dr. Ibis to help raise candidates' tolerances.
This is better for the long term, since we can pick up old concepts like the Chimera build. Not as useful to us right now however, since we're already making a new meta this turn and won't have the funds or time to apply this.
Also, damn, we really need to give the Doc and Lady Leizi time to mourn. Hopefully, we'll be able to do that next turn with the Four Seasons.
[ ] Ask Dr. Ibis to eliminate randomness from the power expressed.
This would be my preferred option. Making it so that even a 1 vital 1x power appears opens up so many doors for us when it comes to synergy even if it does up potency by 2. Question though, can we still reduce potency by 3 if we do this? How does this work exactly for a candidate with say Potency Tolerance 10?
We use this and it raises them to Potency 12, and then we reduce it by 2 to bring it back to Potency 10. However, doesn't that mean they'll total Potency 14? I assumed Potency 13 was the maximum.
[ ] Ask the Dr. Ibis to help raise candidates' tolerances.
This is better for the long term, since we can pick up old concepts like the Chimera build. Not as useful to us right now however, since we're already making a new meta this turn and won't have the funds or time to apply this.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Locking in the trait doesn't count towards the 13. The 13 is the sum total of the DNA profiles.
LucidProp
Pocky Eating MafiaDoka
For plan votes, I'd say yes since those need a lot of workshopping, but otherwise, it's fine without a moratorium.
Kermie
Roses Are Red, I'm Single And Blue
- Location
- Hell (An Unfinished Google Doc)
- Pronouns
- Any
[X] Ask Dr. Ibis to eliminate randomness from the power expressed.
I had a sick quote commentary that I wanted to leave… but I reloaded the page accidentally,
Basically, my thoughts summed up;
I had a sick quote commentary that I wanted to leave… but I reloaded the page accidentally,
Basically, my thoughts summed up;
- Mona needs a LOT of bantering work.
- Who the fuck is Faust? Faust is the name of a demon in that one story, so does he also have power granting or boosting capabilities? Earthen Owl did get Vine Clone Jutsu…
- Valiant Kabuto. Fuck yeah.
- Lady Leizi needs some therapy bad.
- World building with time outs is very interesting to see.
- Both Ambrosia options are stupid good. I'm good with either of them.
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Time outs?
Kermie
Roses Are Red, I'm Single And Blue
- Location
- Hell (An Unfinished Google Doc)
- Pronouns
- Any
Sorry! Paroles (I think). The thing where Earthern Owl can't fight us for a month.
Just biked for three hours yesterday, the words aren't wording.
LucidProp
Pocky Eating MafiaDoka
Faust is probably the CEO of the corporation that sponsors Powers. The fact that they pulled everyone that wasn't Scarlet Maturity out likely tells us that they were banking on this exact situation.
Can't say they didn't do their part since Scarlet Maturity was there, but it still left Powers in a very advantageous position over everyone else since they didn't suffer any casualties.
Kermie
Roses Are Red, I'm Single And Blue
- Location
- Hell (An Unfinished Google Doc)
- Pronouns
- Any
You think that he might be an Algernon-type? Or just a really smart CEO?