So, six Mahiroo's. We can wreck them with impunity in CQC and still crush them in a shootout. But Sochie's much better at range. Going for shootout - we can take them out faster that way.
They're firing fairly powerful beam weapons into the station so we HAVE to take them out before they depressurize the place.
[x] Stay behind while sending someone to look for the Queen within Mistletoe.
--[x] Send Harry.
Newtypes get a power of love bonus for some things. Like finding and rescuing a loved one. He's better than Sochie for this.
[x] Engagement range.
--[x] Keep normal distance.
[x] Mobility.
--[x] Stick with the Lightwave Maneuvering Thrusters (Flight Mode).
[x] Initial Left Hand Weapon.
--[X] Leo Beam Rifle.
Probably should add that to the front page.
Of course, it's useless for us because the Leo Rifle and Dober gun are better at range, and unless we run into beam saber countermeasures an empty hand is better in melee because the Heat Nata costs us half of the wrist beam saber's superior melee hits.
Adhoc vote count started by Iceblocks on Feb 19, 2018 at 10:55 AM, finished with 1455 posts and 3 votes.
[x] Stay behind while sending someone to look for the Queen within Mistletoe. --[x] Send Harry.
[X] Engagement range.
--[X] Keep normal distance.
[X] Mobility.
--[X] Stick with the Lightwave Maneuvering Thrusters (Flight Mode).
[X] Initial Left Hand Weapon. --[X] Leo Beam Rifle. [x] Destruction Manipulator Melee Weapon. --[x] Beam Cutter. [x] Destruction Manipulator Ranged Weapon. --[x] Buster Rifle. [x] Defenses. --[x] Activate both of them. ---[x] Widen the I-Field. [x] NT Systems. --[x] Activate the NT-D Mode. [x] NT Power. --[x] Telekinetic Strike. --[x] NT Empathy. [x] Psycho-Field. (NT-D Mode only) --[x] Refrain from using a Psycho-Field ability. [x] Chorus. (Only if Sochie is present) --[x] Yes.
[X] Stay behind while sending someone to look for the Queen within Mistletoe.
--[X] Send Harry.
[X] Engagement range.
--[X] Keep normal distance.
[X] Mobility.
--[X] Stick with the Lightwave Maneuvering Thrusters (Flight Mode).
[X] Initial Left Hand Weapon.
--[X] Leo Beam Rifle.
[X] Destruction Manipulator Melee Weapon.
--[X] Beam Cutter.
[X] Destruction Manipulator Ranged Weapon.
--[X] Buster Rifle.
[X] Defenses.
--[X] Activate both of them.
---[X] Widen the I-Field.
[X] NT Systems.
--[X] Activate the NT-D Mode.
[X] NT Power.
--[X] Telekinetic Strike.
--[X] NT Empathy.
[X] Psycho-Field. (NT-D Mode only)
--[X] Refrain from using a Psycho-Field ability.
[X] Chorus. (Only if Sochie is present)
--[X] Yes.
"Lieutenant."
Harry is quick to answer. "Yes, Cehack?"
"Please enter the Mistletoe." You ask as you bring the White Doll's weapons online. "Sochie and I will draw their attention."
Sochie is quick to fall in with you as the Lieutenant's Gold SUMO accelerates towards one of the Mistletoe's many entrances. You would be worried that the enemy Mobile Suits might hit him while he is in there with all their wild shooting, but an asteroid colony this big can take a lot more than this. Besides, they have stopped playing around now that they have spotted you.
A press of a holographic key widens your I-Field, allowing Sochie to take cover within it. It does make it weaker overall, but the added protection will be worth it.
Rolling 2d100 for Initiative (Loran, Sochie) = 26, 26!
Rolling 3d100 for Initiative (Mahiiro Leader, Mahiroo Team 1, Mahiroo Team 2) = 47; 87; 77!
Turn Order is: Mahiroo Team 1, Mahiroo Team 2, Mahiroo Leader, Loran, Sochie!
Mahiroo Team 1 14/7
Target 1d2 = 1!
Targeting Loran (White Doll)
Shield Beam Lancer 2d2 Attacks = 2!
2DC 70+15(NT Empathy vs Hidden Hand) Shield Beam Lancer Hit = 83; 42! 2 Failures!
Mahiroo Team 2 takes 15(4+4+4+4+4-5(Mercy)) Integrity Damage! 3 Mahiroos have been Disabled! Mahiroo Team 2 has been wiped out!
Sochie (Qubeley Mk.2) 6/6
Targeting Mahiroo Team 1.
Alpha Strike! All ranged weapons fire their maximum number of shots this Turn!
Qubeley Beam Guns 2d2 Attacks = 4!
4DC 50+5(NT Empathy vs Hidden Hand)+5(Mahiroo Toroidal Shield)+10(Long Range) Qubeley Beam Gun Hit = 44; 93; 47; 55! 3 Failures! 1 Major Success! -10 to Qubeley Beam Gun Hit DC next Turn!
DC 3-1(Armor Grade)-1(Toroidal Shield) Target Armor Save = 5! Success!
Qubeley Mk.2 Funnels 12d2 Attacks = 24!
24DC 50+5(NT Empathy vs Hidden Hand)+5(Mahiroo Toroidal Shield) Qubeley Mk.2 Funnels Hit = 19; 98; 65; 86; 13; 38; 29; 94; 77; 14, 93; 59; 95; 31; 61; 11; 80; 100; 43; 84, 55; 85; 18; 87! 2 Critical Successes! 6 Major Successes! 5 Successes! 6 Failures! 5 Major Failures! Major Successes/Failures cancel each other out! -10 to Qubeley Mk.2 Funnels Hit DC next Turn! Critical Hit! Ignore Saves + Double Damage!
Mahiroo team 1 Takes 21(6+6+3+3+3) Integrity Damage! 2 Mahiroos have been Destroyed! Mahiroo Team 1 has been wiped out!
White Doll Lightwave Shield Regenerates 2 Integrity.
White Doll I-Field Regenerates 2 Integrity.
The Ghingham Fleet Mobile Suits move in formation one after the other, each Mobile Suit firing its shield beam rifle before veering off to let the one behind it take aim. The fusillade of heavy beam fire takes out your Wide-Angle I-Field, the one hit among the yellow lances managing do bring it down. Following the beams comes a volley of telepathic attacks, most of which you deflect, but one gets through to lightly sting you and Sochie. With your minds linked as they are, the pain becomes negligible.
One of the enemies favors telekinesis instead and lashes out with two blasts of Pressure transformed into kinetic force. The first blast is taken by your shield, but the second takes a bite out of it.
And then you open up with your weapons, straining their capacitators as they are pushed to the limit in the name of laying down as much fire as possible. The apparent leader (judging by the emblem on their shield) is struck by two Buster Rifle beams, which splash against their shield without penetrating. It does not come off unscathed, however, the sheer heat and energy of the beams have left both the shield and the Mobile Suit behind it glowing white hot, and a shot from your Leo rifle is enough to push it over the edge into non-functionality. Changing targets, you tilt your hand so that the Wrist Beam Gun has a clear shot at the enemy. All four shots hit, but only one goes through the shield of one member of the team. A volley of Chorus-boosted Telekinetic Strikes renders all three of them disabled, though.
Sochie is driving the weapons of her Qubeley hard, firing off a long succession of shots from the beam guns in its palm to little effect. But those shots are nothing but distractions for the swarm of gun drones (or 'Funnels' as Vestige calls them) she launched from the Qubeley's tail at the start of the battle. She has been excited to try them out ever since Vestige told her about them, and now that they are zooming around the two remaining enemies they are about to be fired in anger for the first time in millennia. Much like the Buster Beams, the deluge of beam fire that the twelve drones spit out makes the enemy Mobile Suits glow from the transferred heat until a few beams melt their way through and finish them off.
When the two explosions die down there is only four near-wrecks trying to use their thrusters to crawl back to their ships that remain. The White Doll's sensors detect no enemies in the immediate area, but a long-range scan detects a fleet of seven ships. four Gendarme-Class battlecruisers and three Aspite-Class assault-carriers. The Ghingham Fleet, or at least a part of it, has arrived.
The fleet is holding position on the other side of Mistletoe, out of range of any of your weapons, but other Mobile Suit teams are flying around the area, likely to find anyone hiding among the asteroids orbiting the Moon alongside the larger station.
Which is probably the reason why the Borjarnaught and the Lunamantique are approaching the Mistletoe, keeping the asteroid colony between themselves and the fleet.
"Hey."
Sochie, who has retrieved all her drones, lands her Qubeley on the surface of Mistletoe. "What do we do now?"
Good question.
[] Go look for the Lieutenant.
[] Wait here for the Borjarnaught and the Lunamantique.
@Iceblocks
I'm looking at the logs and you seem to have applied the Mahiroo's Toroidal Shield bonus to armor Saves to the baseline and then as a modifier, and applied it when it really shouldn't be there.
Mahiroos have a 4+ save, 3+ from the front on the stat block you gave. With the Buster Rifle's Pen moving that to 5/4 after factoring in their anti-beam armor they shouldn't be saving on a 3 against it. And they shouldn't be saving on a 2 vs the Wrist Beam Gun.
They shouldn't be getting directional armor vs the Quebley's funnels, and again, base armor save is better than it should be. Also they shouldn't be getting anything from Armor Grade, because they're AG3 if the shield doesn't help.
Half the point of funnels is attacking from all sides. NOBODY can use a monodirectional shield effectively against a funnel swarm. Geometry doesn't allow that.
Also, I hadn't realized that Grade > AP also improves saves till now. God, it's basically impossible to make the Turn X NOT have an effective 2+ save isn't it? Have to have 8+ points of Pen + AP.
@Iceblocks
I'm looking at the logs and you seem to have applied the Mahiroo's Toroidal Shield bonus to armor Saves to the baseline and then as a modifier, and applied it when it really shouldn't be there.
Mahiroos have a 4+ save, 3+ from the front on the stat block you gave. With the Buster Rifle's Pen moving that to 5/4 after factoring in their anti-beam armor they shouldn't be saving on a 3 against it. And they shouldn't be saving on a 2 vs the Wrist Beam Gun.
They shouldn't be getting directional armor vs the Quebley's funnels, and again, base armor save is better than it should be. Also they shouldn't be getting anything from Armor Grade, because they're AG3 if the shield doesn't help.
Half the point of funnels is attacking from all sides. NOBODY can use a monodirectional shield effectively against a funnel swarm. Geometry doesn't allow that.
Also, I hadn't realized that Grade > AP also improves saves till now. God, it's basically impossible to make the Turn X NOT have an effective 2+ save isn't it? Have to have 8+ points of Pen + AP.
Ok, now that I have looked over the Mahiroo stat sheet I think I know what happened: I mistook Armor Grade and Armor Save for each other. It is supposed to be Armor Grade 3 and Armor Save 4+, but in the update above I wrote as if it was Armor Grade 4 and Armor Save 3+. Must have been more tired than I thought.
You end up choosing to enter the Mistletoe to look for the Lieutenant. With his newfound senses he should be able to find Queen Dianna in there, and with the Ghingham Fleet ships holding position on the other side of the asteroid colony the Borjarnaught and the Lunamantique should have more than enough time to make it into cover without needing you and Sochie to protect them.
The inside of the Mistletoe consists of hangar bays, rocky tunnels, and miraculously still-functioning hydroponic facilities. The blast doors, bulkheads and airlocks between them creak and protest with every minute motion, but they still work despite the centuries of disuse. Other than the complaining mechanisms, the journey towards the presence you recognize as the Lieutenant is a quiet one until you begin to sense other presences.
"Sochie."
Her Pressure lightly touches yours in acknowledgement. "Hm?"
"Three more of the people we fought outside-" One of the presences releases a burst of terror and is suddenly silenced. "Sorry, two more of the people we fought outside have entered the tunnels. They have run into the Lieutenant."
The remaining enemy presences wink out one by one, allowing you to sense the weaker presences obscured by them. One of them is about as strong as the Lieutenant and has a familiar tinge to it, Queen Dianna must have gained powers of her own, but the two people with her are at the current baseline.
You receive sporadic updates from the Borjarnaught as you approach the Lieutenant, informing you that the Militia ship and its companion have entered the Mistletoe's larger tunnels together. By now he has linked up with Queen Dianna, judging by your senses, and is making his way towards you and Sochie. His Gold SUMO comes into view a few minutes later, followed by a FLAT that carries the three others within its cockpit.
"I take it you won, then." He says simply once you establish a comm-link.
"We did." You confirm. "And Queen Dianna?"
Another holographic screen appears, this one displaying the cramped interior of the FLAT. All three of the occupants are wearing Moonrace space suits, but Queen Dianna is easily identifiable by her stature. The other two, however…
"Big sis! It's her!"
"Laura!"
Vestige stirs.
These people again? Ugh.
"They're not that bad." You mumble to Vestige under your breath.
Sochie, who feels uncomfortable not knowing what is going on, speaks up. "Hey, Loran. Do you know these people?"
"They are the descendants of Moonrace scouts sent down to Earth a hundred years ago." You explain as the two Mobile Suits come closer. "Like me, but during the first days of preparing for the Return instead of the last." Looking back on how you felt about the Return four years ago, it all feels so very strange…
*
The Rett Team lead you though the tunnels towards a shuttle they hijacked from the Gendarme-Class that took them to space. You are not familiar with the Gendarme-Class battlecruiser, but Queen Dianna explains that the shuttle is actually the bow of the ship, ejected to serve as a heavy shuttle for various purposes.
"We were lucky that clown and her goons were fixin' up their Mobile Suits." Chatters the Rett woman, whose name is Cancer Kafka, as her male companion, named Muron Muron, and Queen Dianna enter the shuttle. "Muron and I waited until she had gone to bed before we busted out, and that Midgard creep didn't want to risk firing on us, and since he didn't have anyone to send we got away."
That is certainly a story. You are about to ask for more details when something rips through the tunnel wall as if it was made out of tissue paper and disappears deeper into the colony. You barely caught a glimpse of whatever it was, but you think it was elongated…
Vestige comes to the rescue while the others are stunned to silence, a holographic screen popping up to display a still image of some sort of harpoon, taken during the instant where it was passing through the room before it kept going into the Mistletoe. It kinda looks like-
"My spear." You mumble in realization. The Rett team stole one of those and shot you with it back when they stole that Hashmal.
Yep. Looks like somebody out there decided to break out the Dainsleifs.
Vestige's words are punctuated by a massive explosion rocking the Mistletoe, the colony shaking apart as a brilliant light, accompanied by radiation warnings, spills through the freshly made cracks. After a moment of hesitation you hurry to shoo the others out of the colony, and you end up speeding alongside a large chunk of the station as it breaks apart behind you.
Vestige blinks at the devastation behind you.
Sorry. They broke out nuclear-tipped Dainsleifs. Neat idea, but I would have preferred a proper DERB warhead. Much more practical, and more cost-efficient to boot.
"Admire them later!" You not quite snap at the Psychoframe Ghost as you attach the White Doll to the debris and take stock of the situation. The two allied ships have just shot their way out of the disintegrating Mistletoe and are exchanging fire with a pair of Aspite-Class battleships. The extreme range means that few of the heavy beams hit anything, but the Lunamantique is using its Hyper I-Field to act as cover for the Borjarnaught, so those beams that hit your people are deflected. The Aspites have their own I-Fields, so even if the two sides could hit each other with any regularity it would still be a slugging match.
By the way, we-
A comm-link from the shuttle bearing Queen Dianna and this Muron character opens, revealing the queen's face. "Loran! A piece of the Mistletoe is headed straight for Von City!"
...I was just about to say that.
Nothing is ever easy, is it? "Then we will have to destroy it." Obvious, perhaps, but having a concrete goal spelled out will help them focus.
Cancer Kafka slaps the back of her FLAT's hand against the White Doll's chest. "Hey! I don't care if you are Loran or Laura or whatever. I now see that you are full of love for our queen!"
You are?
Vestige smirks.
I have no idea. Are you?
Had she told you this before the first Dianna Counter landings you would never have questioned your feelings on the matter, but now…
[] "Now is not the time!"
[] Write in.
*
Having said your piece, you are interrupted by a familiar presence:
Gadget, piloting her Gundam and attended by a team of four 'Mahiroos' (as Queen Dianna names them) and the same number of those missile-slinging Mobile Dolls. She is also carrying one of the harpoon railguns you saw the Rett Team use all those months ago.
A comm-link opens to reveal her face. "Heya!" She chirps. "Didya miss me?" Her expression, and Pressure, turns feral. "Because I did! This time there will be no flying into the air to avoid me!"
[] Refuse.
--[] "Is now really the time?"
--[] "Be advised: Queen Dianna is with us. She might be caught in the crossfire."
[] Accept.
--[] "Bring it!"
--[] "If I must…"
[] Write in.
Whatever happens, it might still turn into a fight…
[] Engagement range.
--[] Stay at Long Range.
--[] Keep normal distance.
--[] Close in.
[] Mobility.
--[] Stick with the Lightwave Maneuvering Thrusters (Flight Mode).
--[] Risk using the Voiture Lumiere.
[] Initial Left Hand Weapon.
--[] Dober Gun.
--[] Leo Beam Rifle.
--[] Type-TX Beam Pistol.
--[] Dainsleif Spear.
--[] Muttowooo Gunsword.
--[] None.
[x] Chorus. (Only if Sochie is present)
--[x] Yes.
It's to bad they're using nuclear Dainsliefs instead of standard. I could really go for salvaging a bunch to make spears for everyone. It's really quite a nice weapon, especially if we could get a proper mounting to get rid of improvised.
"Now is not the time!" You snap at Vestige before making the White Doll accelerate. You can address your wavering faith in the Return after you and your allies are out of mortal danger.
*
[X] Refuse.
--[X] "Be advised: Queen Dianna is with us. She might be caught in the crossfire."
[X] Engagement range.
--[X] Close in.
[X] Mobility.
--[X] Stick with the Lightwave Maneuvering Thrusters (Flight Mode).
[X] Initial Left Hand Weapon.
--[X] Dainsleif Spear.
[X] Chorus. (Only if Sochie is present)
--[X] Yes.
"Captain Gadget, be advised: Queen Dianna is with us. She might be caught in the crossfire." Gadget seemed intent on taking Queen Dianna alive from what Kihel and the Lieutenant told you, so maybe you can avoid a fight with her. You are not looking forward to fighting her with an unarmed shuttle in the line of fire, not to mention the less durable allies that Gadget can leverage into forcing you to engage her in close combat.
Roll = 85
After some tense seconds where you find yourself staring down the wrong end of a Dainsleif railgun, Gadget relents. Frustration and anger radiates from her Pressure as she lowers the linear harpoon.
"Damn it…why are you always like this." She snarls as if to herself, though everyone can hear her through the comm-link. "You keep finding new ways to make this not happen, you asshole! I finally have you within reach, but twice now you have found something to hide behind! First the Zacktraeger, and now Her Majesty Queen Not-as-good-as-Queen Junno…"
"What is wrong with her…?" Mutters Sochie partway through Gadget's rant.
"I believe I can shed some light on their feelings." Comments Queen Dianna, who suddenly enters the comm-link. You can only assume the FLAT let her in on it. "Much of the Ghingham Fleet is staffed by the descendants of the people my mother tasked with staffing it two thousand years ago. The Ghingham Fleet Houses live relatively isolated from the rest of Moonrace society, with training, patrols and war preparations being their entire lives. Most of the exceptions are those that I or my mother assigned to the Fleet after its founding."
She sighs. "It is likely that Gadget has spent more days inside of a Mobile Suit simulator than outside of one."
"Not quite!" Gadget chirps in response, though somewhat more sullenly that before. Come to think of it, her sullenness is shared by the pilots of the 'Mahiroos' that accompany her. "I was selected for command, so there were a lot of ship simulations and Mobile Doll direction classes too! But even then, I only spent a few years in those pods, most of my time goes into helping the Fleet find and repair Dark History technology!" She stops, hesitating before she continues with a lighter Pressure and utmost sincerity. "But thanks for caring, your Majesty!"
Vestige stirs.
Would you look at that: I finally find people who kinda act and think like proper First Humans. It just took two thousand years of selective breeding and institutionalized psychological torture. Makes we wonder what they will be like in another two millenia...
"Can we please focus on the big rock?!" Yelps the Rett team man Muron, who is clearly distressed from watching the massive piece of space colony float with ponderous inevitability towards Von City.
Oh right, the hundreds of thousands of people about to be crushed by a giant rock. Specifically the people living in the city separated from the capital by the grand total of one canal, the canal in which all your known relatives live. You should get on that.
Pick first and second choice in order:
[] Contact the Ghingham Fleet and ask them for help.
[] "Gadget…"
--[] "Do you have more of those Dainsleif-nukes?"
--[] "Would you and your subordinates be willing to join a Chorus with us?"
[] "Vestige, do you have any ideas?"
[] Ask Vestige to temporarily activate the White Doll's Combat Mode.
--[] Write in argument.
Ok, nukes ... well they SHOULDN'T work physics wise, but they did in canon so I'm not going to argue too hard.
We probably don't have the combined Delta-V to shove it clear enough or slow it down enough with a grab-and-push approach.
[1] "Gadget…"
--[x] "Do you have more of those Dainsleif-nukes?"
[2] Ask Vestige to temporarily activate the White Doll's Combat Mode.
--[x] "If we don't stop that fragment, a city will die. At a minimum. Combat Mode is the only thing I can think of I'm CERTAIN will stop it. Please. Help me save those people."
