The Hashmal Remote is a nasty unit, but as used there's no special threat. Not realizing that Hashmal's are bad news from what was shown is merely failing to have OOC knowledge. The only thing that makes the Hashmal chassis especially problematic is that the beam cannon is practically designed to maximize collateral damage, and the beam cannon was never fired.
Now, Hashmal with the default AI is another story, and whoever gave the Dianna Counter forces those needs to die. Immediately. Because the only reason to deploy stock Hashmals is genocide.
"They're ahead of schedule." Commented Juliet O'Neill, Chief Engineer of the Dianna Counter Rear Echelon & Procurement as she oversaw another landing of transport ships. "And so few too…Did they get separated from the others?"
As she organized the unloading a subordinate approached her. "Ma'am? We looked over the serial numbers of these ships…they are not part of the scheduled drop. They belong to the Ghingham Fleet."
Juliet started at the mention of the most heavily armed faction in the Moon's military, her poofy pigtails bobbing behind her head as they followed the motion. "Those lunatics…I guess that explains the boosters." Magogame-Class transports could not return to space without the use of special boosters or a mass driver. "Did they have an inventory list?"
"Yes Ma'am." He said, handing over a data-slate. "There is also a message from one 'Captain Gadget' of the Ghingham Fleet."
Juliet clicked her tongue at the name before accepting the data-slate. She didn't recognize it, but anything associated with the Ghingham Fleet was trouble. A minute went by as she read the message. "Says here that we can expect a few squads of new Mobile Suits with the next drop, approved by the PM, and that they want us to enjoy the…'Mobile Dolls' they sent us?"
She quickly exited the letter and skimmed through the inventory list. Specialist munitions, unfamiliar weapons, and- "The hell is this? It sounds like something out of a Far Side cult…"
A short jog took them to the pair of transports holding the four units. Their gleaming white shells were massive, necessitating a whole transport for just two units. After a moment spent admiring the 'Mobile Dolls' Juliet tapped the data-slate to bring up the specifications. "Unmanned…" She mumbled as she took in the information. "Self-repairing…AI…"
"Ma'am?" Her subordinate nervously asked.
She looked up from the data-slate. "I found the schematics. Get me every engineer on duty. Tell them that none of their shifts are over until we have removed these things' reactor blocks."
"Ma'am?!"
"I am not trusting anything given to us by the Ghingham Fleet." She snarled, yet her anger was directed at the hulking forms that slept inside the transports. "Also, make the computer guys aware that it is going to be a long day tomorrow, because we are going over these things with a fine-toothed comb."
As her subordinate hurried to relay her orders, Juliet looked back at the data-slate. "The heck is a 'Hashmal' anyway…"
*********
I couldn't find anything on this character so I had to come up with a name.
"How are things going on the Tejan front?" You ask, eager to steer the conversation away from yourself. "We do not hear much from you here in the east."
Captain Peter's Pressure grows subdued. "We are holding on. The terrain favors our Devs, and that has been a lot of help to us."
"Devs?" Sochie wonders.
"Desert Wolves." Peter elaborates. "We shortened the name to 'DW' and the men started to call them Devs. They seem to be made for rough terrain like swamps and deserts, which gives us enough of an edge that the Dianna Counter hasn't driven us out of western Albam yet."
After discussing the war in east Tejas the subject of 'Queen Dianna's' speech comes up.
"What I think of it?" He says with a small smile. "I think that it means that victory is possible for us. She would not make such a speech if the war was going well for them."
The three of you debate the finer points of the speech until it becomes time to leave, though you find yourself outnumbered by Sochie and Captain Peter.
"One last thing." You declare before you part ways to opposite ends of the war. "Where did you find the Orange Wolf?"
Captain Peter shrugs. "Same place we found the Devs: In the northwestern mountains, not far from the border with Corado."
And with that you leave and fly the long flight back to Headquarters before eating dinner and going to sleep. It has been a long day, after all.
*********
Since letting others do the job for you or encouraging them from the shadows failed, you decide to go for the hands-on approach for the fourth cycle. You oversee the formation of the Universal Century, the Sides, and when conflict between the Earth and the Colonies arises you form a group to bridge the gap and lobby for colonial autonomy.
You do not make much in the way of progress, and you never had a talent for Compulsion (mild memory alteration on undefended minds, yes, but not outright control) so that avenue is closed to you. Progress speeds up immensely when you meet those two men, one of whom would take the reins of your nascent organization: Zeon Deikum.
---
"…And now I am here."
Your audience consists of one person, who is staring at you wide-eyed in wonder.
He asks a few questions, mostly about the AD cycle and the time before the cycles. Then he shares his idea with you.
You are less than impressed.
"Listen, Zeon, my people did not live in a utopia by any stretch of the imagination and-"
"They had more than just one Blessing!" Zeon interrupts. "You yourself said that a Mankind that only possessed the Blessing of Spirit formed a utopia, didn't you? What were they called…Innovades?"
You try to snap him out of it. "Innovators, Zeon, and there were…circumstances…that made that utopia possible!"
"Innovators…" He tastes the word. "Someone who creates something new…a new type of human being…" He trails off, lost in thought.
You failed.
The activist group lobbying for increased colonial autonomy you founded with Zeon and Degwin was already making sluggish progress, progress which came to a standstill when they left for Side 3 the next year.
You remained hopeful, however, that you would be able to bridge the gap between the Earth and the colonies in preparation for the Enemy to come. Even after the founding of the Republic of Zeon made supporting your position political suicide.
You remained hopeful, even as you were standing on your favorite island twenty years later, sensing the death of billions in orbit.
You have no one to blame but yourself; you were the one who told him. You were a fool to believe that Zeon could ever replace Aeolia.
'Newtype'… What lunacy. The powers gradually awakening in this era are a regression, a mutated throwback, nothing more.
---
"…And now I am here."
Degwin looks tired, his elaborate costume as the sovereign of the Principality of Zeon hanging unfittingly from his aged frame.
"You told Zeon this, didn't you Kreis?" He asks, his exhaustion clear.
You see no reason to lie, so you recount the conversations you had with your mutual friend over a decade ago.
Your own conversation somehow turns to the various dictators of the previous cycles; Satang, Ribbons, Ezelcant, and some dictator from the last century of the AD cycle's second millennium.
"Adolf Hitler!?" Degwin demands. "The actor in those old commercials? I haven't heard that name since…since I was a boy…"
You explain as best you can. "Do you remember what I said about Memory Relationships? How they make us recreate the same languages, names and cities? Adolf Hitler is another. In my time he was a boy who caused an accident on a colony, roasting all fifteen million inhabitants alive. In the AD cycle he was a dictator who used ovens as part of a program of ethnic cleansing. And in your time, he was an actor in toaster oven infomercials." You shrug. "But as you can tell from the massive decreases in severity, the Memory Relationship of 'Adolf Hitler, ovens, death' is about to fade away from the collective memory of our species."
You say farewell later the same day. You remain hopeful that the situation is still salvageable. It is also the last time you see Degwin Zabi again.
Even after four hundred thousand years of this torment, bidding your friends farewell still carves marks into your heart.
---
"…And now I am here."
Fourteen years later, having witnessed and attempted to harness those that came after the One Year War, you stand before a man with many names. Casval Deikum, Edward Mass, Char Aznable, Quattro Bajeena.
In other words, Zeon's son. The One Year War killed the best of the Earth, those that understood that this state of affairs could not continue. The Gryps Conflict and the Neo Zeon War killed those that would succeed them or rendered them irrelevant. Casval is all that is left.
And what a disappointment he is. "There are easier ways to commit suicide, boy." All this nonsense because he cannot choose between the delusions of his idiot father, the whining of a dead girl, and his own deathwish. "You are one of the few people alive who stands a chance at reviving the humanity of this era, prepare it for the Turn A, and you would throw it away just so that you can fight Amuro Ray again?"
He ignores you, ignores you, ignores you, instead taking another swig from his glass. Some sort of alcoholic drink, to be exact. A rare habit in your time, it has become a mainstay of several cultures over the past four hundred thousand years. Madness.
"You're just another adult."
What? "Pardon?"
Casval finally turns to face you. "You are no different from those leeches in the Earth Federation. Just another old man forcing his will on the young and wasting their potential."
"Are you serious…?" You whisper. "Without me mankind will never unify and advance to the point where they can challenge the Turn A! They will fight amongst themselves for the pettiest of reasons, just like how you are throwing away humanity's last hope for your own desires!"
"If your story has told me anything, Kreis, it is that those previous eras all had the 'benefit' of your involvement, and still they failed." He mutters as he sits back down after refilling his glass, the synthetic leather of his chair creaking under the weight. "And, of course, that nothing good ever comes from Jupiter."
You are about to argue further when he turns his tired gaze back to you. "Now get out. I'm tired of being ranted at by a hidebound old man looking for pawns."
Part of you wants to go over there and rip his head off before telekinetically tearing Axis in two, but you restrain yourself. "So be it." You grind out before you spin on your heel and leave. The guards outside the door make way for you as you stalk towards the docks, for even those with functioning Limiters can sense the rage boiling off you.
A few weeks later, and Casval is dead along with Amuro Ray. You try to approach his sister Artesia, but she too rejects you. Like Judau, she has given up on changing the Universal Century.
You remain hopeful despite these disappointments. Perhaps the next generation will hold the answer.
---
Casval, you muse half a decade later, was not entirely wrong. Nothing good ever comes from Jupiter. You yourself has spent times where you could not sleep wondering how things would be different if you and Satang had never met.
If the young, ambitious Sovereign of Sol had never visited Titan to meet that young engineer with big ideas and no regard for consequences.
If you had never built the Turn A…
---
A hundred years pass. A century of rot and disappointment. You find nobody who fits the bill, nobody who can unite humanity, so you give up.
You go back to the island where you plotted with Aeolia all those years ago, back to the secret bunker where you stored the second Turn System, and go to sleep. Perhaps the next Cycle will hold the answer…
*********
Another dream…
After the Moonrace reception a ceasefire went into effect, though how long it will last remain to be seen. During the briefing after returning to Headquarters Lord Guin made it clear that efforts to find and excavate Mountain Cycles are to redouble to take advantage of the lull in the fighting.
Still, as an Autonomous Corps you are mostly left to your own devices.
All Systems gain +1 Condition!
Roll 1d2 for Self-Repair = 1! White Doll regains 1 Integrity!
White Doll Integrity = 11/12
Between briefings you have the time to set this week's Priority Repair.
[] Keep it working of the I-Field (281 Condition)
[] Another of the White Doll's systems. (System gains 1d100 Condition)
--[] Write in System.
Weapons
Type-TX Beam Pistol 11/500 (Heavily Damaged. Ranged)
Attacks Per Turn: 1d2
Damage: 2
Critical Hit: On Critical Success.
Special: -Penetration 1: +1 to target's Armor Save DC. -Unreliable: Unusable for one Turn on Major Failure. Unusable for all following Turns in a Scene(Update) upon Critical Failure.
Defensive Systems.
Turn-Type Armor (Non-Combat Mode).
Armor Grade: 6
Armor Save: 1+
Special: -Beam Resistant 1: Beams that hit this unit lose one level of Penetration vs Armor. -Nano Lamination 2: Damage from non-Penetrating Kinetic and Explosive attacks is reduced by 2 (to a minimum of 1). Nullifies damage from Point Defense Weapons.
Left Arm Lightwave Shield (Non-Combat)
Shield Grade: 4
Shield Size: Medium.
Shield Save: 3+
Shield Integrity: 6
Special: -Lightwave Shield: Does not block lasers. -Regenerate 2: Regains 2 Integrity at the end of each Turn.
I-Field. 281/500 (Heavily Damaged)
Field Density: 5-2
Dissipation Save: 4+
Field Integrity: 4
Special: -I-Field: Barrier against Ranged Beam Attacks only. Immune to Beam Penetration. -Dampening: Whichever Ranged Beam Attack breaks through the I-Field has its Damage reduced by remaining Field Integrity. -Regenerate 1: Regains 1 Integrity at the end of each Turn.
Mobility Systems.
Landskimmers. 15/200 (Damaged) -Speed +: Hidden -15 modifier to speed DC while on the ground.
Lightwave Maneuvering Thrusters (Flight Mode). -Flight+: Unit can fly. Terrain modifiers ignored. Hidden -20 Modifier to Speed rolls while flying. -Lightwave Propulsion: This system requires no fuel, only energy.
Lightwave Main Propulsion (Voiture Lumiere). 15/500 (Heavily Damaged, Unstable) -Extreme Speed: Hidden -45 modifier to speed DC while in the air or in space. -Unstable: +1d45 modifier to speed DC while in use. -Demanding: +30 to Condition DC after three Turns or one Engagement of usage with Pilot Skill below 4. -Lightwave Propulsion: This system requires no fuel, only energy.
PSI Systems.
Psycommu System. -Psyco-Control: Pilot Level may not go below 1. May control the White Doll while outside the cockpit at NT-Level 3. -Requirement: Requires NT Level 2 to use.
Psychoframe. -NT-Amp: Allows the usage of MS scale NT powers. -Requires NT Level 2 to use.
NT-D Mode. -NT+: Allows the usage of NT power one level above that of the user's Level. -Demanding: +100 to Condition DC after three Turns or end of Engagement if the user is not NT Level 4 or above. -Exclusive: Cannot be used at the same time as Bloody Siege Mode.
Bloody Siege Mode. -Mode Change: Splits the mobile suit into pieces, nine in total (ten with backpack). Each piece (except backpack) has its own I-Field. Can be used within gravity. -Requirement: Requires Pilot Level 4 and NT Level 4. -Excusive: Cannot be used as the same time as NT-D Mode.
Stealth Systems.
Invisible Umbrella 15/500 (Heavily Damaged) -Cloak 1: -10 modifier to various DC as the White Doll disappears from passive sensors. Breaks when the White Doll enters Medium Range or attacks.
Holo-Decoy 15/500 (Heavily Damaged) -Decoy 1: Produces a faint afterimage.
Misc Systems.
LUNA Energy Transference Module 15/500 (Heavily Damaged) -Universal Compatibility: The White Doll can use most types of equipment by wirelessly transferring power to them.
Carapace Backpack. -Armory Backpack 5: Can store 5 weapons for later use. -Adaptive workings: Will alter itself to carry MS weapons no matter their shape. Within limits.
-Carapace I-Field 15/500 (Heavily Damaged)
-Carapace Flight Mode 15/200 (Damaged)
*
The next day has Lord Guin call you and your nominal subordinates Corin and Arisa present yourselves at Kingsley Valley. "Laura!" Comes the exuberant cry from the ruler of Inglessa the moment he spots you. "You are right on time!"
"For what, sir?" It can't be the spaceship...
"This!" He proudly presents as you turn a corner to see the relatively clean frames of the Trots and Gallops sitting among the trees. "Sid told me that you have been here to see them last week, but now a few of them have been made operational enough to deploy in the field."
Lord Guin points to a Gallop with an attached dome. "See that one? That is yours, Laura. We did have to give it a dome with hangar space, because the Gallop can only carry three Mechanical Dolls."
You quickly do some mental math. "Wait…does that mean-"
"Loran!"
The shout has you turning around to see a Papillion emitting Sochie's familiar Pressure waving at you as it strides towards your new land battleship.
"I approved of her transfer, as well as her new Mechanical Doll." Lord Guin explains. "With the new Papillion coming here in a few days the Militia can spare one, and it is only right that our more experienced pilots pilot our newest Mechanical Dolls. Furthermore, miss Kihel?"
Dianna-as-Kihel, who has remained silent up until now, perks up at being addressed. "Sir?"
"You will go with Laura. I expect weekly reports, even when you are not at Headquarters."
She gives him a shallow bow. "Of course, sir."
He turns to you. "You will of course be provided a crew. I have Lieutenant Dana and a few of his men stationed at the Gallop and from now they will answer to you. In addition, Ladderum Kune and Horace Niven insisted on being allowed to come along."
Sochie Heim (Papillion) has joined the Laura Rola Autonomous Mechanical Doll Corps as a pilot!
'Kihel Heim' has joined the Laura Rola Autonomous Mechanical Doll Corps as Lord Guin's Liaison!
Ladderum Kune has joined the Laura Rola Autonomous Mechanical Doll Corps as Helmsman!
Horace Niven has joined the Laura Rola Autonomous Mechanical Doll Corps as Chief Mechanic!
Laura Rola Autonomous Mechanical Doll Corps has gained a Gallop-Class!
That just leaves the issue of where your base should be. At the moment the Laura Rola Autonomous Mechanical Doll Corps is based out of the headquarters of the combined Militias of Inglessa and Luzianna, but your new land battleship opens up possibilities.
[] Stay based out of Headquarters.
[] Rebase to Kingsley Valley.
[] Rebase to Florian Headquarters.
[] Take the Gallop to southwestern Luzianna.
[] Take the Gallop to southeastern Luzianna.
[] Take the Gallop somewhere else.
--[] Write in.
*
With the ceasefire in effect you have a lot of free time between cleaning the Gallop and getting Sochie settled in…
Choose 3
[] Continue your training with Sochie under Arisa and Corin.
--[] Invite someone (write in).
[] Talk with Arisa and Corin.
[] Find Miashei and hang out.
[] Track down Captain Gavane and see what he has to say.
[] Grab Sochie so you can experiment with Pressure together.
[] Check in on Sid at Kingsley Valley.
[] Take independent action.
--[] On your own.
--[] With the rest of the LRAMDC.
--[] Get the Milita in on this.
Integrity: 10
Armor Grade: 2
Armor Save: 5+
Special: -Hovercraft: Vehicle needs no fuel. May hover over most terrain. -Speed++: -20 to Speed DCs while hovering above land. -Hangar 3: Can carry 3 normal-sized Mobile Suits. -Hangar Dome: Can carry 1 additional Mobile Suit.
Weapons:
Autocannon Turrets.
Attacks: 4d6
Damage: 3
Base AP: 2
Critical Hit: On Critical Success.
Special: -Fixed mount: May only Attack Targets in front of the Gallop. -Turreted 2: May Target 2 separate Targets.
Artillery Turret.
Attacks: 2d1
Damage: 4
Base AP: 3
Critical Hit: On Critical Success.
Special: -Artilley: No Long Range Penalty. May not Attack Targets in Close Range or closer. -Volley: May engage in Volley Fire. -Obstructed Mount: May only fire forwards during Volley Fire at Targets in Very Long Range.
[X] Keep it working of the I-Field (281 Condition)
[X] Rebase to Kingsley Valley.
[X] Continue your training with Sochie under Arisa and Corin.
[X] Grab Sochie so you can experiment with Pressure together.
[X] Check in on Sid at Kingsley Valley.
[X] Keep it working of the I-Field (281 Condition)
[X] Rebase to Kingsley Valley.
[X] Continue your training with Sochie under Arisa and Corin.
[X] Grab Sochie so you can experiment with Pressure together.
[X] Check in on Sid at Kingsley Valley.
Well, that answers why our mystery man is able to match the Turn A - he MADE it.
It also shows a major league fuckup, because going to sleep when he did means he missed out upgrading the Turn X with certain Late UC tech, and it means he missed out on fighting the Turn A with a Uso Ewin/Tobia Arronax/Kincaid Nau dream team backing him, and having Berah Ronah covering the unification angle.
He probably could have stopped it then if he hadn't missed out because three Full Body Psychoframe Victory 2 Assault Busters piloted by that trio should be a threat to a Turn Unit alone, three backing one Turn Unit fighting the other should tip the battle by force of Newtype Space Magic.
Worse, Old Man Judau is still willing to deal in when things get really bad, so he could have Grey Stoke, the guy who can fight Unicorn-era MS's in a patch-repaired Zeta era unit on side in a fourth.
[X] Keep it working of the I-Field (281 Condition)
[X] Rebase to Kingsley Valley.
[X] Continue your training with Sochie under Arisa and Corin.
[X] Grab Sochie so you can experiment with Pressure together.
[X] Check in on Sid at Kingsley Valley.
I feel like there has been a bit of a misunderstanding. The Turn X did not get its Psycommu system, its Psychoframe or the NT-D system from the UC era any more than it got its beam rifles from the AD era or its shield and the Voiture Lumiere from the CE era. These were all technologies that the First Humans developed on their own and as such installed intp the Turn A as well. The reason that the names are the same is for your benefit, so that you can tell what they are.
I feel like there has been a bit of a misunderstanding. The Turn X did not get its Psycommu system, its Psychoframe or the NT-D system from the UC era any more than it got its beam rifles from the AD era or its shield and the Voiture Lumiere from the CE era. These were all technologies that the First Humans developed on their own and as such installed intp the Turn A as well. The reason that the names are the same is for your benefit, so that you can tell what they are.
[X] Keep it working of the I-Field (281 Condition)
[X] Rebase to Kingsley Valley.
[X] Continue your training with Sochie under Arisa and Corin.
[X] Grab Sochie so you can experiment with Pressure together.
[X] Check in on Sid at Kingsley Valley.
It is a consequence of how the First Humans waged war. Lightwave Barriers won out over Beam Shields for reasons like better coverage and scalability, but the most important reason is that Lightwave Barriers can be projected. Unlike Beam Shields, Lightwave Barriers do not need to be in physical contact with the unit powering them, allowing for things like a single shield being able to shift to cover different places without taking up a limb, and multiple units pulling a Virgo and letting their barriers overlap for mutual protection. In short, they used Artemis-style Lightwave Barriers, not Destiny MS-style*.
As for using the Voiture Lumiere (Stargazer-like) over the Wings of Light...The First Humans knew that something like the Wings of Light was possible, but they never made use of it because the Lightwave Barrier leads to Lightwave Propulsion systems like the Voiture Lumiere, making it more tempting than further study of 'discredited technologies' like Beam Shields and related systems. They were actually considered for the Turn Project, but by then Lightwave Technology had been developed to the point where switching over to Beam Shields and the Wings of Light would be a downgrade.
*The Turn X's Lightwave Shield is not on the unit itself. It is projected a few inches off the armor of the left arm. If Loran knew how he could make it manifest several meters away. The Lightwave Barriers mounted on Destiny Mobile Suits OTOH, are inferior to UC Beam Shields, at least as far as this quest is concerned (Positron Deflectors remain better than UC Beam Shields within their niche though).
[X] Keep it working of the I-Field (281 Condition)
A quick tap of a holographic key keeps the Priority Repair System working on the I-Field.
Roll 1d100 Priority Repair = 58! I-Field Condition is now 281+58!
*
[X] Rebase to Kingsley Valley.
After some work fitting your Mobile Suits into the Gallop (Sochie's Papillion doesn't fit the Gallop's hangar because of its pointy pauldrons, so it must go in the dome's hangar), you and your new command take a trip back to Headquarters to pick up your belongings, retrieve all the spare Leo parts and weapons, and stock up on supplies.
With the Gallop and the dome's cargo holds filled up you take it back to Kingsley Valley, which will be your new base from now on.
*
[X] Continue your training with Sochie under Arisa and Corin.
It takes some time to find a new training ground, but before long you and Sochie are able to spend a lot of time training with Arisa and Corin when you are not busy elsewhere. While both of you have new things to practice with, a new Mobile Suit for Sochie and a pair of new weapons for you, Sochie gets the Lion's share of attention since she has gone most of the war without training by experienced Mobile Suit pilots. Either way it is hard work for the two of you, but you are definitively improving.
+15 Pilot XP. Loran has attained Pilot Level 4!
Sochie receives +30 Pilot XP.
"I'm going to be honest with you, Loran." Arisa says as you are finishing up. "I don't think just practicing is going to help you get better at this point, not unless there is something new you want to test or if we get access to some proper simulators." She shrugs. "Only experience can help you improve from here."
Practice with Corin and Arisa will no longer give Piloting XP unless: After a battle. New Mobile Suit. New White Doll Weapon/System.
Later that night, you toy with some ideas on how to fight.
Choose Perk.
[] Unrelenting. (Retargets spare Melee Attacks onto a new Target within Close Range after defeating an enemy)
[] Steady Fire. (Retargets spare Ranged Attacks onto a new Target after defeating an enemy)
[] Blitz. (If at Medium Range or more from an Enemy, add 1/2 of your Speed bonus to all Melee Attack Hit DCs for the first Turn)
[] Marksman. (Cuts Long Range and Very Long Range penalties by half)
[] Evasive. (Imposes a penalty equal to half your Speed DC bonus to Enemy Hit DC when they target you)
[] Ambusher. (Doubles the Ambush bonus to your Hit DC when ambushing)
[] Alpha Strike. (Ranged Weapons get their full possible number of Attacks during the first Turn of combat, but non-integrated weapons must take the next Turn off to reload afterwards)
[] On second thought, maybe you should hold off for now.
*
[X] Grab Sochie so you can experiment with Pressure together.
The next day sees you and Sochie going back to the new training ground to experiment with your Pressure together. Sochie's immediate decision when you land is to try her hand at the NT-D again, kicking you out to practice your non-assisted powers in a grove nearby.
You keep some of your Pressure directed towards Sochie in case something happens, but for the most part you just play with your telekinesis and discover that yes, birds, squirrels and insects can be scared away with the application of tiny mental needles.
Before long Sochie stumbles towards you, eventually half-collapsing against the tree you are sitting under before coming to a rest beside you.
"How did it go?" You didn't sense anything out of the ordinary, ignoring the sense of Sochie's Pressure being subjected to a pressure(heh) cooker.
"Same as last time." She mumbles before she settles in for a nap.
After an hour or so she wakes up and watches you practice for a bit before she goes to get your lunch and water canteens from the White Doll.
"Loran?" She asks after washing down her last mouthful of bread.
Pausing your telekinetic carving of your name into the bark of a tree, you look over at your friend and technical subordinate. "Hm? Yes?"
Sochie pushes your lunch into your chest. "Why don't we try making the White Doll go red while both of us are in it?"
It is worth a shot, so you eat your food as quickly as possible before joining her in the White Doll. Sochie is the one in the pilot seat, so you end up leaning into her when she closes the hatch with her Pressure and activates the NT-D
Immediately the familiar weight bears down on you as the demanding system tries to amplify your Pressure beyond what you are able to control. The boundary between you and the White Doll begins to blur, but then everything shifts and you are looking at Mrs. Heim. She's taller? What is this?
The scene shifts and you are sitting behind a desk in an unfamiliar room, taking notes as the lecturer recites Inglessa's history. Are these Sochie's memories?
The scene shifts again and you are watching yourself fixing a car. You are a stranger, an immigrant, looking to work in Father-Mr. Heim's! mines.
Suddenly Sochie's presence is separated from your own, replaced with a mutual view into a shard of multicolored glass. As if someone painted a nebula on a mirror and then smashed it into pieces. And then you are back in your body as the NT-D shuts down, your cheek squashed against Sochie's as the two of you gulp down air as if your lives depended on it.
Once you have calmed down (and opened the cockpit hatch to get some fresh air) Sochie lightly jabs you in the side. "Hey."
"What it is it?" You sigh tiredly.
"You look a lot like your mother. Especially when you are 'Laura'."
"My mother's name actually is Laura." You answer, smiling at the shock on her face. "But yes, I noticed when Miss Kihel first put me in a dress. I look identical to my mother at my age."
"What about your father? You've never mentioned him."
"He died right after I was born, so I've never met him." You freely admit. "Mom never told me anything about him, even went so far as to get rid of all our pictures of him. I don't even know what his name is." A part of you has always been curious about that, but it has never been a priority.
"…I'm sorry." Sochie mumbles after a brief pause. "I shouldn't have asked."
"It's alright, it was more than two thousand years ago." You try to assure her.
And yet all you get is naked disbelief. "What."
"I was born a few months before the calendar changed to the Correct Century." You clarify. You are about to explain further, but you are cut of when Sochie puts her finger in your face and yells-
"You're old!"
You reach out to jab her in the side, which does nothing to dissuade her laughter. "I spent most of that time in cryosleep, biologically I am only a little older than you."
Sochie just keeps laughing, and in a few seconds you are laughing too. The two of you spend a short while resting in companionable silence before it is time to go back to Kingsley Valley.
Great Progress made on Loran and Sochie's NT development.
*
[X] Check in on Sid at Kingsley Valley.
The day after that you take a walk down the valley to check in on Sid. Horace is working with him while the Gallop is not out of patrol, so Lord Guin poaching him to be your chief engineer hopefully won't slow down activity around the spaceship too much.
"We have gotten some of the internal machinery to work!" Sid explains excitedly as he guides you through the corridors of the now partially buried ship. "The power source, the lights, even the radio! We could watch Queen Dianna's speech as it happened!"
"How long do you think it will take to get it to fly?" You ask the moment you get a word in edgewise.
"Within the month!" Sid crows, making the technicians and work crews halt their work as they wonder what he noise is. "It is just a matter of getting it out of the ground so that we can repair the underside and finish cleaning out the engines!"
You are about to ask the old man to slow down before he overexerts your ears-himself, but a Militia soldier rushes into the still-dusty bridge. "Sirs! It is Mr. Game! He suddenly got into his Mechanical Doll and is making a run for Moonrace Territory!"
A moment passes as you and Sid process the information. Sid hesitatingly looks up to you. "Loran?"
[] It might not be anything, but you'll go after him in the White Doll just in case.
[] This sounds fishy. Rustle up the rest of the LRAMDC and go after him in the Gallop.
[] It is probably nothing.
**********************************************
Alright. Let's talk Perks.
Originally I was planning to have a Trait System in this, but couldn't think of a good place to introduce it during the intro. Then I missed the opportunity that was the introduction of Pilot Level 4 and above pilots. With that in mind, I am adding the mechanic now.
The idea is that at Pilot Levels 4 and 6 you get to pick a Perk, with other named pilots doing the same. Some lvl 6 Perks have requirements that you might never fulfill and some pilots have Perks unique to them.
If anyone has any thoughts or suggestions I am willing to hear them.
Corin's Perks: Unrelenting.
-Retargets spare Melee Attacks onto a new Target within Close Range after defeating an enemy
Dark One's Luck.
-No single Attack can reduce Corin's Mobile Suit from full Integrity to 0 Integrity.
Arisa's Perks: Marksman.
-Cuts Long Range and Very Long Range penalties by half.
Surprise!
- +1 Pilot Skill when Ambushing or attacking from behind.
Harry's Perks: Steady Fire.
-Retargets spare Ranged Attacks onto a new Target after defeating an enemy.
Loyalty! (Queen Dianna)
- +1 Pilot Skill when Harry is acting on Queen Dianna's orders/in Queen Dianna's defense/in accordance with Queen Dianna's ideals.
[x] Steady Fire. (Retargets spare Ranged Attacks onto a new Target after defeating an enemy)
That Destruction Manipulator rifle hits like a train and we've got more possible ranged weapons coming. Guns Akimboing people is very likely to trigger this. No need for Marksman because our main gun doesn't suffer LR penalties anyway. Unrelenting is doesn't help much - we're a lot less likely to proc it with saber melee because we just plain old have less attacks and Shining Finger can't proc it.
Blitz would be HILARIOUS if we could use Shining Finger often - get the Wings up and running and we'd be able to basically guarantee a Turn 1 Shining Finger kill, and possibly chain them if the enemies are far enough apart.
[x] It might not be anything, but you'll go after him in the White Doll just in case.
@Iceblocks
Are the various body part beam cannons Bloody Seige only, or can the Turn X do a Geymalk impression and turn into a solid wall of beam cannon fire?
Also, does Corin even HAVE a melee weapon for that Leo?
@Iceblocks
Are the various body part beam cannons Bloody Seige only, or can the Turn X do a Geymalk impression and turn into a solid wall of beam cannon fire?
Also, does Corin even HAVE a melee weapon for that Leo?
They all mean the same, I was just using different terms for it. I'll get on making it consistent.
EDIT: To clarify, it is because of changes to the Critical Hit mechanic. I wasn't decided in the beginning, so I wrote it down as 'On Perfect Success'. Then I thought of weapons having their own Critical Hit Ranges, so I wrote it down as 'On Critical Success'. Then I adandoned that in favor of the Critical+ Special, so now I just write 'Yes', as in 'This weapon can cause Critical Hits upon a Critical Success'.
EDIT 2: Correction: I considered doing away with 'On Critical Success' in favor of 'Yes', but only applied it to my notes to save time. The official term remains 'On Critical Success', and it has been standardized across the Informational entries.
[x] Steady Fire. (Retargets spare Ranged Attacks onto a new Target after defeating an enemy)
[x] It might not be anything, but you'll go after him in the White Doll just in case.
Intercepting him alone is less likely to look like an invasion
[X] Steady Fire. (Retargets spare Ranged Attacks onto a new Target after defeating an enemy)
After dwelling on it, you think you know how to fight from now on.
Loran has gained the Steady Fire Perk!
*
[X] It might not be anything, but you'll go after him in the White Doll just in case.
Sochie, Corin and Arisa stop you as you are about to step into the kneeling White Doll's hand. "You're sure you don't want us to come with you?" Asks Arisa.
You nod at her. "Yes. It might not be anything serious, but if it is it might involve Dianna Counter elements. It will seem less like an invasion if I come alone, and if they attack me? Then I'll just fly away." With that you use your Pressure to make the White Doll take you up. "I'll be right back. You stay here."
Once you have seated yourself within the White Doll's head you waste no time in getting it airborne. Your first stop is Will Game's house near the Kingsley Valley Mountain Cycle. The only clues as to where he went are the obvious footprints of his Mobile Suit and the report of a scout who saw him take it southwest, but it is something at least.
For the first stretch of the chase you use the Voiture Lumiere for some extra speed. The G-forces would probably have utterly exhausted you only a few months ago, but what makes you deactivate the system is the constant struggle to keep it from making the White Doll spin out of control. The brilliant Ring of Light that manifests behind the White Doll is visibly unstable as well as incapable of directing all its propulsion forward, instead sending the White Doll into random directions. Without the Ring of Light you are definitively slower, but the flight is so much smoother that you have no regrets not using it.
1d100 for Chasing Will Game = 36
A change in terrain as you enter the air above the borderlands makes Will Game's tracks harder to follow. You are fairly certain that you are going the right way, but your progress has been slowed to a crawl.
During said crawling you cross the border. You can only hope that whatever Dianna Counter elements you meet have seem Will Game anywhere and are willing to tell you about it.
1d100 for Dianna Counter = 14
"Descend! Descend! Descend! MOOOOOOON Descend!"
You groan through the endless chanting that started to fill your cockpit after you entered the comm-channel of a group of FLATs and their WaD complement. It is bad enough that they started taking potshots at you the moment they spotted you, which is the reason you are currently hiding behind a hill, but they just have to keep screaming-
"Descend! Descend! Descend!"
-That. Over and over instead of anything remotely intelligent.
You turn down the volume and start thinking. They are chanting in your mother tongue, but their accents are atrocious…Is the Dianna Counter using auxiliaries? That would explain why they are using FLATs as their heavy hitters, but surely the Dianna Counter isn't lacking for manpower. Not with that fleet that appeared over Nocis almost two months ago…
Whatever the case, firing back is out of the question. If a group of auxiliaries shoot at the White Doll you can play it off as a panicked accident, but if you start shooting the FLATs it might mean the end of the ceasefire. However, that arm waving seems kinda familiar...
[] Try to get it into the heads of the auxiliaries that you are not here to fight.
--[] Try talking.
--[] Try Telepathic Strikes.
[] Try to find another group of Dianna Counter soldiers to talk to.
--[] Along the border.
--[] Deeper into their territory.
[] Return to Kingsley Valley. You can ask Lord Guin to make inquiries later.
