2026.
Seattle, Washington.
New Pan-Pacific Defense Corp Base Camp.
It's been many months since contact was lost with the outside world. The last remnants of the PPDC-- or what is thought to be-- have made a last stand in what remains of the city of Seattle. It's only got a motley crew of capable members left-- the remaining populace is composed of survivors and refugees. A few military vehicles lie around, offering a smattering of defense from the kaiju menace.
But it's not going to be enough.
A week and a half ago, a convoy was sent down to Oblivion Bay in order to scavenge the most intact Jaeger available, and bring it back. With the limited supply of Pt-238 and spare parts that has been accumulated, it should be easy enough to keep this jaeger operational-- if not well-functioning.
Three days ago, the convoy returned with their prize.
A fully functioning Jaeger.
Blah blah some stupid introduction blah blah I'm indecisive blah blah jaegers. The point is that this is your last chance for a SV Jaeger Quest run by me.
I expect you all to obey standard Questing etiquette and whatnot during play. If you have any issues, feel free to bring them up with me in a civil manner.
It's with great joy that the identity of the retrieved jaeger spread itself through the camp; Tacit Ronin, long-time defender of Japan, had arrived! Morale jumped in a matter of days, the formerly dreary and downcast camp-city restored with the will to continue!
Restorative work began almost as soon as Tacit is set down in his holding cell. Stocks of scrap metal were melted down, forged into steel plates. The old reactor was removed, a spare salvaged from Anchorage being installed in its place, fully stocked with a supply of Pt-238. And Tacit's signature weapons-- his Fangblades-- were treated with special attention, care being taken to make sure that every part of their mechanisms function at peak performance.
But a week later, the jaeger is still the very same Tacit Ronin, even through all the renovation and replacements.
The two new pilots-- Webb and Williams-- are ready. Their simulator scores may not be the highest, but their bond is strong, and they're the most qualified candidates in the camp.
Paired with the veteran jaeger, they just might stand a chance against the raging tide of kaiju.
***
Three days after Tacit Ronin Reactivation Test (Successful).
Inside the Command Centre-- retrofitted from the remains of the Space Needle-- a light that hasn't gone on in months blinks. And then it blinks again. And again. There's no mistake, the device isn't malfunctioning.
Seconds later, an alarm goes off, the sensor screens flashing as sirens blare. Sirens that promise death and destruction. Sirens that mean only one thing-- one thing, flashed across warning screens, shouted through crowds, driving tens of thousands to the shelters.
For a couple of first timers, Alec and Noah have some remarkable luck. Tacit Ronin suffered no damage at all-- other than some negligible pitting of the blades due to Ridgeback's acid blood. In a gesture of companionship, the tank crews take it upon themselves to personally congratulate the duo on their astounding success-- along with a warning to not get too cocky with their strength.
A strip-harvester crew is sent out to SE-26-001's corpse, in order to gather anything usable from the remains. It's not terribly difficult; Ronin split the kaiju right in half, leaving a nice big opening for the harvesters to go through. However, that nice big opening's leaked highly corrosive Kaiju Blue across several hundred meters of Seattle's outskirts, and poses a serious risk to the environment if left untreated. Along with this, something very odd is noted about Ridgeback.
The kaiju has no mouth at all.
While the monster clearly has a digestive system, it's not connected to the head at all, instead leading to its skin. In all likelihood, SE-26-001 probably just absorbed nutrients through its pores. But, while interesting, this observation doesn't really have any use in the field-- as of yet.
Kaiju Stats:
Ridgeback
Class: Category II Kaiju
A hexapedal kaiju with a long ridge of bone running down its back. It's built like an ox, and has the horns of one to match. Its front pair of legs are raised off the ground, ending in two opposing hooks. Oddly enough, it doesn't seem to have a mouth.
Free Actions (choose one):
[ ] Begin Cleanup Operations (-600 Resources, prevents Environment drop)
[ ] Take the Environmental hit (Environment level begins to drop, stays at Stable... for now)
Pick any Three Actions from the Downtime Actions List (bottom half). Order does not matter. Just be sure to
[X] Put
[X] Them
[X] In this format
Cleanup is scrambled almost instantly, crews sent over to hose down Ridgeback's corpse with CO2 and Lithium Hydroxide to neutralize the acid. It's an expensive operation for sure, but the kaiju doesn't get the pleasure of salting the earth.
New cables and relays are installed, including sets of archaic semaphore towers, designed to grow the NPPDC's sphere of influence and communication prowess. Thanks to some recycling of equipment, the new systems aren't nearly as resource-intensive as they could be.
The rest of the week is spent researching improvements to Tacit's mechanisms.
The jaeger's joints are re-calibrated, work beginning on a new set designed to provide greater accuracy and more fluid strikes-- though due to several setbacks, the system won't be ready for quite some time.
In order to boost the venerable jaeger's ability to take strikes, a new formula is devised for an impact-resilient gel, which could be used to coat Tacit's precious internal components to protect them from harm. As with the new jointing, however, this research runs into a setback-- the current gel prototype loses all non-newtonian properties after immersion in water-- and given Seattle's weather, this isn't acceptable. But still, it's a starting point.
2/10 points to Toughness 2!
3/15 points to Hand-to-Hand 3!
Communications increases to 1!
Thankfully, Tacit's results are less messy than last time. The two kaiju's hard carapaces have kept most of their toxicity inside themselves, and the strip-harvester crews experience very little difficulty. Marvin's pneumatic weapon is interesting, and your scientists suspect it could be adapted for use onboard a jaeger to save on propellant.
As before, Tacit Ronin sustained no damage to its infrastructure and internal components, though the robot's arms do have to sprayed down with carbon dioxide and bases to neutralize the acid coating they've gained.
Funeral rights are held for the thirty soldiers who perished during the battle against SE-26-003, with Alec appearing to say a few words of honor in their name.
But there's no rest for the NPPDC.
Kaiju Stats:
Rippa
Class: Category I Kaiju
Unusually tall for a Category I, the kaiju's arms have grown into massive saws. Between its shoulders lies a sunken head, with numerous eyes and stubby mandibles.
Armour:
Carapace
Coverage: All but Eyes
Armor Value: 3/-
Resilience: All, +1 Fire
Durability: 8
Marvin
Class: Category I Kaiju
This kaiju is built like a quadrupedal spider, with four long legs and a defined abdomen that functions like a lung. However, the head mounts two very straight tusks, each one having an open tip.
[X] Plan Invest For the Future
-[X] Begin Cleanup Operations (-400 Resources)
-[X] Upgrade Manufacturing to 3 (-1500)
-[X] Scout for any abandoned Resources or Military Bases in the area
-[X] Research Cauterization effects for anti-kaiju conventional forces, such as Thermite Ammo
Cleanup is carried out rapidly, neutralizing the kaijus' acidic blood to the best of the crews' abilities. The crews work in rapid shifts, making sure that nobody receives too much exposure to the toxins at once.
Branch 03 undergoes a major renovation, having its older auto-jigs refurbished and freshly tuned, while new automatizing mechanisms are installed alongside the refineries. By the end of the week, the whole manufacturing section will be functioning at nearly 150% strength.
The remaining squadron is sent out on a scouting mission, attempting to find, well, any military assets available to them. What they find are two teams of stripped-down artillery, essentially immobile without the use of the carryalls or heavy tractors. Still, they're not useless, and the weapons are happily taken into the base.
After careful discussion, it's decided to pursue research into cauterizing ammunition, in order to limit the spread of Kaiju Blue in engagements. White phosphorous, concentrated from the nitrogenous elements found in the kaiju, proves to be a viable material to stick inside the weaponry. Within a few days, the entire NPPDCDF has been outfitted with the new weaponry.
Manufacturing increases to 3!
2 T-95 Anti-Kaiju Artillery Teams Gained!
Type 100 Tank Squadrons, T-95 Artillery Teams, Anti-Kaiju Brigades, and SH-60 Scout Helicopter Squadrons deal Impact/Fire and Cauterize Wounds!
Following the battle, Tacit Ronin is immediately rushed to the camp's Shatterdome equivalent-- Branch-01. The first wound that the jaeger's taken is a heavy one, and the venerable mech suffers significantly from it. Everything past the wrist has to be completely scrapped, melted down for spare parts. But that's not all; the internal damage has worked its way up most of the jaeger's arm, causing several splits along major fluid lines.
Tacit Ronin will require a dedicated action to repair, which will cost 1250 Resources. Construction of a new Hand and Armour for said Hand will be separate actions.
Tanken's corpse is thankfully not much of a hassle. The new phosphorous rounds have done a great job of sealing up wounds, and the only bleeding wound can be easily dealt with. Upon examination, it appears that the kaiju was simply lucky with its attack-- it doesn't have anything very special about it.
News of the kaiju's rapid defeat is spread throughout the camp, bringing some much-needed cheer to the streets! Morale jumps considerably, the population now confident after the fourth kaiju's defeat that they're capable to handle the threat!
Morale increases to Calm! Bonus: +10% Manufacturing!
Kaiju Stats:
Tanken
Class: Category II Kaiju
A very similar kaiju to the Category III Knifehead. Tanken is shorter, with a longer jaw and less-developed secondary arms. Instead of yellow, the kaiju features luminescent purple markings.
Branch-01 is abuzz with activity. A new set of armour plates are made, set to fit the jaeger's missing left hand. Tacit's forearm plates are removed while the internal damage is repaired-- a grueling experience that takes a long time. In the meanwhile, another left hand is under construction, made to replace the old one. After several days, the entire arm is reconstructed, the new arm gleaming in an unpainted steel shell.
All damage Repaired! Hand installed! Armour installed!
The last calibration test has only just finished when the alarms go off.
Unfortunately, Tacit's progress in clean killing seems to have been lost. Arbalest's corpse is leaking blood at a truly impressive rate, and more than double the standard amount of neutralizing CO2 has to be brought out to slow the reactions for it to be harvested. The jaeger's entire forearms receive a thorough scrub-down, and a repaint of their standard white.
Upon examination, Arbalest appears to have more than a few tricks up its sleeves. Not only was the kaiju's body perfect for grappling, its arms could inflict substantial damage-- assuming it could hold its foe still long enough-- but the kaiju's lateral musculature was developed so that any headbutts would have nearly double the force behind them as expected. Additionally, it appeared to have a similar organ to Marvin-- allowing it to propel a series of bone darts with impressive force at shorter ranges.
In other news, the surviving crews of the self-destroyed Type 100s have requested that they be taken off front-line duty, and reassigned to something less heart-attack-threatening-- such as DP guarding, or recruit training.
Kaiju Stats:
Arbalest
Class: Category III Kaiju
The kaiju is elongated, with shrunken, thin limbs it holds close to its body. Its head is roughly shaped like an 'x', with a cluster of sensors in the middle.
Stats:
HtH: 2
Ran: 3
Str: 2
Tou: 4
Agi: 3
Dex: 3
Structure:
Dura: 5
Stru: 14
Perks:
- Heavy Hitter: Treat Strength as twice its amount for the purpose of Slam attacks.
Weapons:
Bone Dart
Built-In Ranged Weapon
Attack Dice: 1d10+1
Armour Penetration: 0
Damage Type: Edged
Damage Bonus: 3
Range: 4/-/8
Special: Cannot be used while moving or as a reaction
