Reminds me of that "evasion decay" mechanic in SRW, where base evasion goes down after every successful dodge. The more you dodge, the harder it is to keep doing it.
Reminds me of that "evasion decay" mechanic in SRW, where base evasion goes down after every successful dodge. The more you dodge, the harder it is to keep doing it.
More like Latooni was so much of a loli-goth, that even her mech was (somehow) designed as one, confusing the enemy so much they couldn't hit her regularly.
Reminds me of that "evasion decay" mechanic in SRW, where base evasion goes down after every successful dodge. The more you dodge, the harder it is to keep doing it.
First of all: I'm not an adrenaline junkie or anything. I was pretty quiet and laid back as a cadet, they stuck me in a radar technical position, and then I ended up here at the DFRI. I never once thought I'd be the first official robot pilot from the EUDF or anything like that. Hell, if I was allowed to tell Mom, Dad, or Liz, they wouldn't believe me either.
But here I am. Driving a shapeshifting truck that turns into a robot, beats the crap out of separatists and Kausen, and combines with other vehicles to form an even bigger robot. Oh, and it has bits of Kaiju stuffed in it to make it even more dangerous. While I use a psychic helmet.
It's really weird when you take a minute to just look back and reflect. Wondering, 'Wow, how the hell did my life make that turn?'
So when I think back to how the defense of the base started this morning, why the hell am I grinning like a goddamn maniac?
Combat, Turn One
"Three-One, Nine-One, this is Command. Beowulf is on the field. Follow him and engage the enemy."
"Three-One copies."
"Nine-One," Second Lieutenant Oscar Tellison confirmed. "Good copy. Following Beowulf-"
He was abruptly cut off when a red blur just shot past him. "This is Nine-One, Beowulf just arrived," he frantically says. "…holy hell," he said under his breath.
Oscar later would note that while a lot of details from the battle tended to blur together, a few things he could remember with crystal clarity. For one thing, this was the day he saw an entire formation of Separatists be completely annihilated by a power skid of epic proportions.
The Beowulf plowed through the first gun truck before it turned, and began to skid in a wide circle. All the while, its armored flanks crunched into each truck in the formation, scattering them into the air like so many pins in a bowling alley.
Oscar just blinked at the display. "This is Nine-One, follow him in," he said calmly before gunning the engines on his own Jackal. He wouldn't be able to exactly follow Richard's example, but he could certainly try.
The following melee was when things got fuzzy for him to remember. He could clearly remember the Beowulf hopping one of the downed trucks as a glorified ramp, configuring in midair to strike at another gun truck, only for them to scatter quickly, leaving an impressive crater in the ground for his troubles. Oscar's own formation waded into the fight, but did nothing more than simply keep the bastardized mecha-trucks' tires squealing to maintain distance.
The firefight was, for lack of a better word, intense. The gun trucks barely skidded through giant plumes of high explosive death rained down by the V-33s, even as they fired high velocity rounds at Three-One's formation. Several rounds simply tore through the poor Jackals like tissue paper, forcing Jack's guys to fall back to regroup even as they perforated a few of the offending trucks for their trouble. Oscar himself was hit a few times; his shoulder patch was going to need a replacement, and his vehicle mode now had an improvised (and unretractable) sunroof, but he and his mostly got out of it unscathed.
Through it all, Beowulf remained utterly untouchable. No machine should have been capable of the movements he saw Richard pull off, but it was as if the Beowulf was a living, breathing thing and not just an impressive warmachine.
Combat, Turn Two
"C'mon!" Richard urged his machine. Configuring into Mecha mode again, one of the trucks barely made the turn to avoid Beowulf plowing into him as momentum and force propelled him forward while skidding on his feet.
The last truck of this formation apparently forgot that he had arms. One that he kept extended, even as the gun truck's torso collided with it.
Not even paying attention to the bisected torso unceremoniously clattering to the ground, Beowulf immediately leapt to grab another of the trucks. Several of them immediately scattered, only for Oscar's Jackals to immediately surround and unload an unhealthy amount of ordinance into them.
"Alright," Richard grunted, catching his breath for a moment. "Now, just gotta-"
He saw the incoming cannon shell from the corner of his eye, and was already moving before he knew it. "Whoah!"
He saw the next one come in. And the next. And the next.
Yet none of them could hit. None of them would hit. He and Beowulf were as one, and Richard weaved through the incoming hailstorm of fire fluidly.
He'd later have time to be shocked at how easy it was.
Combat, Turn Three
"I'll be honest," you say quietly as you watch Callaghan unleash a salvo of rockets at the latest set of gun trucks. You're not sure how they managed to sneak in here this close, but ultimately it was proving to be insufficient to coming close to the Institute. "Seeing him fight against Bandit with surprise on his side, that's one thing. But seeing him just not care at all about all of…this."
"It is a bit disconcerting," Sasaki agrees, her voice as flat as yours.
"Not complaining, mind," you add.
"Well, you shouldn't, Sir!" Katarina huffs. "…oh dear, he just plowed through the last of the gun trucks."
You shake your head. Against conventional EUDF forces? You could definitely see how these would cause all sorts of havoc. They could be dealt with, sure. But they could cause all sorts of damage before enough forces could be rallied to contain them.
But as you watch the lead Jackal of Ninth Reconnaissance literally tear away the extra 'armor' plates welded onto one of the Bucklers even as it reversed hard to get some distance, you realize that this particular bit of warfare was never going to be quite the same. And you hadn't even deployed-
"Warning! Incoming contact!"
"…what." You just stare at the contact. It had not been there at all just moments before.
"…is that a Pilum?" Sasaki asks incredulously.
"It used to be at one point," Katarina says frantically. The scanners show the outlines of a Pilum gunship, but there are so many details about it, especially to your eyes, that are just off. "I don't know what they've done to it, though!"
"It's never anything easy," you sigh.
"If you want something done right," Warlord growled as he nudged the flight sticks forward, "You have to do it yourself."
The Sensor Mask plates, finally spent, simply detached from the Pilum's hull as it gained elevation over the copse of trees. Some of the lesser trees simply broke from the howling winds generated from the customized engines powering the rotary-blades, and some of the bottom parts of the hull twitched, as if wanting to stop hiding from the world. Soon, Warlord thought.
"I don't know what kind of fancy new toy you Union dogs came up with," Warlord said. His pipe still hung from his mouth even as one hand idly began arming weapons systems. "But I'm going to BREAK it!"
Pilum-class Gunship (Heavily modified)
Warlord, Notable Character – Can make two attacks per turn at 2d6 for 1 HP each. Counts as a single Action. HP Unknown.
Custom Heavy Weapons Strike – Rolls at Advantage for 3d6 (Threshold of 5-6, deals 3 HP)
Alpha Strike – Can attempt to fire all munitions at once, rolling with Advantage (3d6) to strike for 5 HP. However, once done, it cannot act at all for one turn of combat.
Harsh Taskmaster – Can force allies to re-roll any failed roll once.
<Unknown Capabilities Remain>
1 x Buckler IFV Squadron (3/3 HP)
1 x Buckler IFV Squadron (1/3 HP)
Unreliable Weaponry - Can strike 1d6 for 1 HP.
After Market Armor - Re-rolls successful enemy strikes at Disadvantage (1d6) once per turn. Successes negate damage.
Unit One, Beowulf
Richard Callaghan's Jackal. 12 HP. 1LT Richard Callaghan, Notable Character - Can make two attacks per turn at 2d6 for 1 HP each. Counts as single Action.
Agile - May re-roll a successful enemy attack at 2d6, Threshold of 4-6). (K-Scale – May re-roll a failed Agile test once per turn)
Ramming Speed - 2d6 for 2 HP. Counts as a single Action. May attempt a free Strike at 1d6 if successful.
Targeting Solutions - If Notable, may target Strikes on different targets. (This also applies for Ramming Speed Strike at Disadvantage)
Combine - Spend Action to summon and combine with V-33 TMU.
V-33 TMU, 'Falcon Configuration' -> Foxhound
Fire Support - When not Combined, can make periodic Strikes at 2d6 (Threshold of 5-6, 1 HP) every other turn. Is loaded for Combination, so cannot make Heavy Weapon Strikes
Notable Character - Can make two attacks per turn at 2d6 for 1 HP each. Counts
as single Action.
Combine - Gale Formation: Spend Action to Combine with Jackal. +5 HP to Jackal. V-33 will make one free Strike at Disadvantage (1d6, Threshold of 5-6, 1 HP) during Combine.
Agile - Despite the extra bulk, rocket boosters still enable quick movement and limited flight. Can negate one successful Enemy Strike at 2d6. K-Scale bonus applies.
Additional Weaponry - Can Re-Roll one failed strike against Enemy Target at Disadvantage (1d6). Can be applied once every turn.
Charged Cannon - 2d6, 1 HP, Chance to Shock Enemy at Disadvantage (1d6, Threshold of 4-6). Counts as a Single Action.
Targeting Solutions - If Notable, may target Strikes on different targets.
Heavy Weapons (1/2 Charges Remaining) - Disposable Heavy Weapons specifically for use with the Jackal. Can make Heavy Weapon Strike against Enemy at Advantage 3d6 for 2 HP twice in combat. After both charges are expended, it is no longer usable. Normally a free Action, but can spend the entire Action to unload both charges in a single round.
Arc Cannon - Experimental K-Class Artillery Cannon. Fires electro-magnetically charged shots at high speeds. In its current state, it cannot sustain a rapid pace of fire, but can only fire a single, albeit supercharged, shot. Counts as a Heavy Weapon Strike that can be fired once every three turns. Alternately, can be used as a Finishing Strike. Test roll is contextual, but can deal up to 5 HP.
Notes:
Third Reconnaissance will be back on station at the beginning of Combat, Turn Four. Ninth Reconnaissance is still on station.
The First Experimental Support Wing is arriving at the beginning of Turn Four.
The 'Falcon' V-33's Fire Support will be available again on Turn Five.
Still, I think we picked the right machine to fight it, Timberwolf wouldn't have had the mobility to keep up, and the lack of Agile saves against those Heavy Weapon Strikes would have been devastating.
I would suggest combining with Falcon when it gets back and then jumping, catching and grounding gunship. Before that, not sure, concentrate on expendables?
Preliminary thoughts: Given that our enemy is a big beefy boss trying to rush them down doesn't seem like it would work.
I'd suggest quickly moping up the strugglers so they can't benefit from the 'Harsh Taskmaster' bonus and then focusing on fighting defensively 'cause Callaghan proved that those dudes can't touch him.
(And by rush, I do mean rush. Use the last heavy weapon strike and all the adds should focus on bringing down the Bucklers in the first round before Callaghan transforms).
[X] Plan: Gale Formation!
-[X] Strategy: Leave the small fry to our support units, something like this demands our full attention. Put on our gameface and get ready to throw down against an overgunned chopper! That may or may not have a mecha form because mad scientists like that kind of thing. Fortunately, we kept our cards up our sleeves.
-[X] Turn One Strategy: Jackal Squadrons and Longship support should attempt to mop up the remaining Bucklers, try to bait out their armor saves with the Jackal Strikes so that they don't tank the Longship bombardments if possible. Callagahn should use his remaining Heavy Weapon Strike and a standard Strike to support mop-up as necessary (Waiving the Heavy Weapon Strike if he doesn't need it to secure a quick kill), reserving his Agile save for enemy Heavy Weapon Strikes or the Alpha Strike, and use his Reroll on said defense.
-[X] Turn Two Strategy: Support units should complete mop-up if there are any enemy units left on the field but the boss, if not, provide support fire for Callaghan and cover him. The Falcon should get its free attack this turn, after which Callaghan should use his action to activate Gale Formation, getting a second bonus attack if possible. (If not, that's cool, combine anyway because this is the right moment.) If my reading of the situation is correct, he'll likely respond to this with an Alpha Strike, which we should use our Agile Save and Reroll to defend against. Otherwise, Agile and reroll should remain as Callaghan's safety net.
-[X] Turn Three Strategy: Should he be executing his Alpha Strike cooldown at this time, wreck his face with Charged Cannon into Finishing Strike Arc Cannon, with the Callagahn Reroll on the Finishing Strike. If he is not using his cooldown, launch two Charged Cannon strikes, with Agile and the Callaghan Reroll committed to dodging Heavy Weapon Strikes or the Alpha Strike.
[X] Plan: Gale Formation!
-[X] Strategy: Leave the small fry to our support units, something like this demands our full attention. Put on our gameface and get ready to throw down against an overgunned chopper! That may or may not have a mecha form because mad scientists like that kind of thing. Fortunately, we kept our cards up our sleeves.
-[X] Turn One Strategy: Jackal Squadrons and Longship support should attempt to mop up the remaining Bucklers, try to bait out their armor saves with the Jackal Strikes so that they don't tank the Longship bombardments if possible. Callagahn should use his remaining Heavy Weapon Strike and a standard Strike to support mop-up as necessary, reserving his Agile save for enemy Heavy Weapon Strikes or the Alpha Strike, and use his Reroll on said defense.
-[X] Turn Two Strategy: Support units should complete mop-up if there are any enemy units left on the field but the boss, if not, provide support fire for Callaghan and cover him. The Falcon should get its free attack this turn, after which Callaghan should use his action to activate Gale Formation, getting a second bonus attack if possible. (If not, that's cool, combine anyway because this is the right moment.) If my reading of the situation is correct, he'll likely respond to this with an Alpha Strike, which we should use our Agile Save and Reroll to defend against. Otherwise, Agile and reroll should remain as Callaghan's safety net.
-[X] Turn Three Strategy: Should he be executing his Alpha Strike cooldown at this time, wreck his face with Charged Cannon into Finishing Strike Arc Cannon, with the Callagahn Reroll on the Finishing Strike. If he is not using his cooldown, launch two Charged Cannon strikes, with Agile and the Callaghan Reroll committed to dodging Heavy Weapon Strikes or the Alpha Strike.
Overall thrust is using turn one to mop up his remaining trash mobs, and then Combining, poking him into using an Alpha Strike, and then exploiting his cooldown to go all in with a Charged Cannon into a Finishing Strike while he's unable to counterfire.
For all that he has incredible attack power, I doubt he's got too much HP. He probably has an Agile save though, which is why I want our finishing strike turn to try and go for the stun before we pull our all-out shot.
For one thing, this was the day he saw an entire formation of Separatists be completely annihilated by a power skid of epic proportions.
The Beowulf plowed through the first gun truck before it turned, and began to skid in a wide circle. All the while, its armored flanks crunched into each truck in the formation, scattering them into the air like so many pins in a bowling alley.
Through it all, Beowulf remained utterly untouchable. No machine should have been capable of the movements he saw Richard pull off, but it was as if the Beowulf was a living, breathing thing and not just an impressive warmachine.
he last truck of this formation apparently forgot that he had arms. One that he kept extended, even as the gun truck's torso collided with it.
Not even paying attention to the bisected torso unceremoniously clattering to the ground, Beowulf immediately leapt to grab another of the truck
But as you watch the lead Jackal of Ninth Reconnaissance literally tear away the extra 'armor' plates welded onto one of the Bucklers even as it reversed hard to get some distance, you realize that this particular bit of warfare was never going to be quite the same. And you hadn't even deployed-
Our minions are doing fine too. And yeah, war has changed: From now on, giant robots and girls in frilly dresses that shoot lasers will be the soldiers of the future.
Alpha Strike – Can attempt to fire all munitions at once, rolling with Advantage (3d6) to strike for 5 HP. However, once done, it cannot act at all for one turn of combat. Harsh Taskmaster – Can force allies to re-roll any failed roll once.
