Touching down you release your passengers. Blue crouchs behind a taller piece of cover while Floral sits and grips at where you had been holding her during the flight.
"Next time could you be less grabby?"
"Floral."
"Ugh. Thanks for saving me a climb. Could you please be less grabby in the future." Floral Glory amended.
"Grabby?" You ask.
"The bit where you grabbed my waist and between my legs with your… stuff. It was-"
"She's just making sure we don't fall. It's basically a climbing harness." Blue interjected.
"Easy for you to say, your outfit has pants." Floral shot back, ending with a note of annoyance.
better defenses for other people are nice but most of the time intercepting fire is ranged counter fire which doesn't put us at a huge risk of getting damaged even if it fails. I want to skip over some of them and save up for peerless explorer. Improving Panoply and Fuse is great on it's own and Practitioner will be a nice ability. Finally getting it will also unlock ??? for ten more XP and ??? sounds like a super ability.
[X] Guard it.If command doesn't want it blown up then you shouldn't blow it up.
[X] Save XP
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right?
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--[X] Use Panoply in Manufacture mode to dig it up.
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right?
[X] Buy Flawless Interruption 210 XP
Look, they want to know what it is, and we don't want it to blow up in the faces of the squishies. Best option for both of us getting what we want.
they would have to be aiming at us for us to be damaged by their overpowering the counter. Guardian only works if we are not the one under threat. Guardian does not make the person we are protecting immune to splash damage. If we are intercepting attacks on someone else we are not being attacked personally, so not dealing with intercept damage isn't all that useful and if they are attacking us the ability wouldn't go off because it only activates while defending others. The ability would have to involve us teleporting in front of them to tank the blow with our body rather then doing a ranged intercept, for it to be used at all.
edit: wow not guardian Flawless interruption
is it take no damage from any source while under intercept.
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only accept guarding it if they have a very good reason, such as already knowing what it is.
--[X] Use Panoply in Manufacture mode to dig it up.
Touching down you release your passengers. Blue crouchs behind a taller piece of cover while Floral sits and grips at where you had been holding her during the flight.
"Next time could you be less grabby?"
"Floral."
"Ugh. Thanks for saving me a climb. Could you please be less grabby in the future." Floral Glory amended.
"Grabby?" You ask.
"The bit where you grabbed my waist and between my legs with your… stuff. It was-"
"She's just making sure we don't fall. It's basically a climbing harness." Blue interjected.
"Easy for you to say, your outfit has pants." Floral shot back, ending with a note of annoyance.
I take it that the Force's Artillery doesn't like it when the MG's call in for support willy nilly? I suppose that could be a problem at times. Especially when the guns are almost certainly needed to be pointed elsewhere and MG's are uniquely equipped to deal with Hell with minimal support more than just about anyone else is.
I get the feeling that Floral isn't entirely happy about how things are run in ICETHORN. She doesn't really seem like she's happy skulking about. Which in true fashion, after she did it once (a long time ago), she now is stuck doing it again repeatedly.
Yeah, Floral definately doesn't like Blue's attitude and behavior from what we've seen. There is quite a bit of friction between the two. I'm not entirely sure what's up with that, but I suspect that it has to do with differences in opinion and how Blue acts at times.
It actually should be the other way around. While we're used to hearing the sound of something first, in this case the artillery barrage travels faster than sound. So ICETHORN would see (and hear) the explosion first with the report of the cannon firing following a few seconds later.
Urg. Frankly, with the loss of the attacks per turn, I'd rather just see Summit use Full-Auto Panoply and hose any demons to death. It'd be faster to boot. Also, the Counter Force's Anti-Demon Tanks have machine guns with the Danmaku ability. Guess what? There's a bunch of tanks that are wrecked. Time to yoink a tank?
You burst through unharmed striking the Commander with all the skill and subtle effect of a freight train. His armor crumples with the blow and his body flies lifelessly away. The rest are dealt with in a spray of shots before they can react. Orange beams erupt from the Panoply's barrels, leaving none of the musket demons alive.
(Panoply: 1040 Base Damage, +92 Dice, +520 Ramming Speed!, +104 Death From Above = 1756 Total Damage
Demon Commander: 100 Base Resilience, +10 Dice, -50 Deer in Headlights = 60 Damage Reduction
As you twist in midair you wonder if there's a limit to how many times that happens. The last Commander on the field has attempted to hide himself behind some low bushes. You hit him with another one of your blindingly bright blasts
"My gut says the big hole's a trap." Blue said, marking something in her notebook.
"I can't disagree." You reply.
"Thanks. Anyway, concerning that trap, I tried to have them send a team to destroy it, but someone wants to take a look at it for 'strategic reasons'. They haven't gotten around to telling us to start poking at it, but I'm expecting they will. So, I was wondering if you had some kind of crazy blast effect in your list of powers?"
"Something like that, yes."
"Great! Go and blast the big patch before they tell us not to."
First note, Blue has a habit of writing in her (heh) notebook. Anyone have an idea what's in there? Second, Blue has a well developed sense of 'staying the fuck alive'. Third, she's a grunt isn't she. More preoccupied with blowing stuff up rather than how it works. And unfortunately, if Command has no clue what Hell has been up to, then I can't really blame them for wanting to poke the hole. So, it's up to us to poke it for them. Blue Bandit isn't going to like this, but oh well. She'll deal with it somehow.
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right?
[X] Save XP
Also, this is a nice addition to the shop, if a bit focused on MG's. We're not Nep. There's little chance we'll end up against something insane like a Divine Entity.
Calling for support is fine. Everyone else calls in, what's a few more? What they were worried about was the shot alerting all the demons. In that case ICETHORN would need reinforcements to clear the area.
Most MGs can't call in fire on their own either. Blue Bandit is quite proud of being able to do so.
The pair trust each other but can't stand one another. If you look at their sheets you'll see that Blue has almost no durability and low offensive power when spotted, Floral has lots of health and lots of regen. Accordingly Blue is precise and careful where Floral is much sloppier. They're stuck together since both of them are excellent infiltrators and MGs here are always sent in pairs.
Laser has a use case for aerial combat where Summit only gets one attack anyways. Panoply changes once per round, it was Full-Auto when she hit the first guy.
Calling for support is fine. Everyone else calls in, what's a few more? What they were worried about was the shot alerting all the demons. In that case ICETHORN would need reinforcements to clear the area.
Well, when several hundred pounds of steel and high-ex rain down on your position, I think it's fair to say that they've been alerted. Also, ICETHORN needing reinforcements? Pfft hahaha
The pair trust each other but can't stand one another. If you look at their sheets you'll see that Blue has almost no durability and low offensive power when spotted, Floral has lots of health and lots of regen. Accordingly Blue is precise and careful where Floral is much sloppier. They're stuck together since both of them are excellent infiltrators and MGs here are always sent in pairs.
Laser has a use case for aerial combat where Summit only gets one attack anyways. Panoply changes once per round, it was Full-Auto when she hit the first guy.
Fair enough. I was under the impression that the one attack per turn restriction was limited to A2A combat and not bombarding silly ground targets though. The fluff @crystalwatcher gave way back when was that the one attack per turn for fliers was because they had to maneuver to get into position. Therefore, less maneuvering --> more attacks per turn remain available. Then again, I don't think there was Word of God on that particular set-up, so I could very well be wrong.
Fair enough. I was under the impression that the one attack per turn restriction was limited to A2A combat and not bombarding silly ground targets though. The fluff @crystalwatcher gave way back when was that the one attack per turn for fliers was because they had to maneuver to get into position. Therefore, less maneuvering --> more attacks per turn remain available. Then again, I don't think there was Word of God on that particular set-up, so I could very well be wrong.
And a few more things from Decim's post that I ran out of time before answering:
The device in question was the control rod for the shadow generator.
I was going back and forth with the artillery strike. I decided that since they're fairly close and the gun used high angle fire that it could overlap. There wasn't any flash to see since the shadow generator was shrouding its location at that point.
This shining example of accurate fire brought to you by Null-Wind brandcraft! No more do you need to take atmosphere into account when aiming, take those terms out and get faster, more accurate results!
I was wondering when someone would get the idea to nom a tank. All Summit needs to do is isolate an example of danmaku that fits within a 3 meter diameter sphere. (This is quite possible)
This shining example of accurate fire brought to you by Null-Wind brandcraft! No more do you need to take atmosphere into account when aiming, take those terms out and get faster, more accurate results!
So all those high school problems where you're told to ignore air resistance and atmospheric conditions when doing ballistic calculations are totally accurate now? Seems legit.
It's been a while since the last vote, so here's another
Tally:
veekie
[X] Use Panoply in Manufacture mode to dig it up.
[X] Buy Flawless Interruption 210 XP
kitsune9
[X] Guard it.
[X] Save XP
crystalwatcher
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right?
ltmauve
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--[X] Use Panoply in Manufacture mode to dig it up.
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right?
[X] Buy Flawless Interruption 210 XP
nekcihc
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only accept guarding it if they have a very good reason, such as already knowing what it is.
--[X] Use Panoply in Manufacture mode to dig it up.
Decim
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right?
[X] Save XP.
*squints*
[X] Check in before acting.
-[X] Check in, but only to announce your intended actions. [Which are?]
--[X] Use Panoply in Manufacture mode to dig it up.
--Gut instinct says there's something Very Important in the hole. And despite what happened to the cat, your curiosity is getting the better of you. Not to mention the idea of sending squishy normals down there without knowing what's actually down there ahead of time doesn't sound like a good idea. Less chances of someone else getting hurt if you take care of the problem... right? [X] Save XP. (Two for spending, two for saving. Saving XP wins ties.)
This update promises to be shorter than usual. Summit is going to have a new baseline for "worst thing that's happened to me" .
"...I need to talk to command first." you say after a moment's thought.
"No you don't. This is definitely a 'better to beg forgiveness' situation." Blue Bandit said franticly, "Just tell them after you zap it."
"Zapping it could be a bad idea if we don't know what it is." you counter.
"You just said you could tell it was a trap! Isn't that enough?"
Floral Glory opened one eye from where she was lying, but closed it again without saying anything.
"Floral, back me up here."
Without rising or opening her eyes Floral replies, "If you aren't going to zap it why do you need to talk to them?"
"I want them to know what I'm going to do." you answer.
"Which is?" Blue asked.
You feel out the right size for radio talk and broadcast as you speak, "This is Summit, I'm going to dig up the largest hole to give a description of what's buried there."
Blue twitches slightly, "Are you nuts!"
"Summit, this is Paulson. Do not disturb any of the holes, we're going to arrange a team to excavate them."
"I… there's something there that makes my hair stand on end. I trust that feeling, so I'm not letting someone else fall victim if I can do something about it."
Floral sits up and looks at you, "Summit…."
"Summit, You've already done your part. Watch the area until the team arrives, this is an order." Paulson says gently.
Your face quivers as you recall the loss of your mother. How you had felt after knowing that you failed to protect her. Was the uneasy feeling you had now the same as you had felt then?
You don't remember.
"I'm not letting someone else die because i missed something!" you wail.
Blue shuffles in place awkwardly. Floral jumps to her feet and puts a hand on your shoulder.
"It'll be alright." Floral says.
She backpedals when you sweep the Panoply about, pushing yourself into the air and towards the suspicious hole. You resolve to be careful, with your talents you can remove a stone at a time and see what you're doing before you've thrust a shovel into it.
"Blue, please talk some sense into Summit."
You stop paying attention to the radio. As you allow yourself to fall towards your destination you see Blue running, not towards you, and Floral walking in a tight circle. Before touching the ground you thrust to gently land. Once grounded you push the Panoply out with many large feet to softly tread the last few meters, if it's some sort of mine you don't want to put too much weight in one place.
With exaggerated care you stretch one of those feet to the disturbed dirt. Even with your body shielded by the Panoply and four meters of distance to the edge your heart flutters with nervousness as you begin digging. The extended limb splits into dozens, which then carefully scoop soil away half a centimeter at a time.
You're a bit calmer after clearing away all the soil without seeing anything odd.
Around you see that Blue has reached a shrub on top of a cliff to situate herself. Floral has stopped pacing and is once again lying down on the sunny rock.
Resuming digging you carefully grip stones to pull them out a layer at a time without allowing any to tumble. As you start on the third layer you see through the Panoply something strange.
It's covered in mud, just like all the stones, but it stands out with the element of Corruption. Pushing a tendril of the Panoply to touch it has no response. After a quick check that there's no triggers attached you start warping space, once it's above ground it will be easier to see and won't be activated by digging.
Feeling about with your sense of space confirms that the Corruption object is the largest item in the hole and extends to the bottom. You have a jolt of danger about pulling it out, so you twist space to move the object next to you and whatever might be in the hole further away.
Abruptly the mud covered thing uncoils and snaps at you with large teeth!
You slam the head aside and drop the Elsewhere effect to slam it back into the ground. In a shower of loose rocks it uncoils out and spits something that trails black smoke at you.
A part of the Panoply swats it aside, but the vapor engulfs you anyways.
(Panoply: 1040 Base Damage, +150 Dice, -104 Bad Shape for Attacking = 1086 Damage
The smell almost makes you gag, your eyes burn, the rest of your face and neck burns a moment after. Your eyes slam shut from intense pain.
Ahead of you the creature finishes extracting itself from its pit. It's tail splits into three parts and it sports wicked looking claws and legs that make it look like a cross between a venomous snake and a T-Rex. You Shift away the instant it leaps towards you.
Teleporting to the air doesn't help with the burning sensation, if anything it's worse than ever. Your limbs spasm uncontrollably, your eyes feeling like they are simultaneously being frozen, burned, and sliced, and can't seem to make your mouth move to shout out a warning.
You can't breathe, you suddenly notice. This might be the worst thing that's happened to you.
(Horrifying Poisons: 50% of current Health, 1928 Damage!
Murder: 131 Damage!
Summit suffers total paralysis! [No effect due to Upon Iron Wings!]
Summit Health: 3857 - 2059 = 1798 Remaining
Impossible Biology: Toxic Horror recovers 50% of damage suffered!
Toxic Horror Health: 6637 + 181 = 6818 Remaining)
The creature lands and turns to sprint towards where Blue has set herself up. You can't see her at the moment, but suspect she was visible when the creature attacked you.
"All units! This is ICETHORN! Toxic Horror hit an element! Urgent extraction needed! Grid EV 101!"
You've got to do something! You put aside the pain and try to focus.
----
Plan?
[X] Write-in
(Summit's Magical Girl Instincts suggest you take a look at Floral Glory's Abilities…)
Status of Forces:
Magical Girl Summit: 1798 Health. Total paralysis, eyes dissolving, agonizing pain, at 100% combat effectiveness.
Magical Girl Blue Bandit: Unharmed. Six stacks of Slicer of Throats (+30% Damage, MM, and Resilience).
Magical Girl Floral Glory: Unharmed. Only just started paying attention.
Toxic Horror: 6818 Health.
Reinforcements: Helicopter with medical kit (already in the air), 8 turns.
War Angels, 17 turns.
+5 EXP Determined to protect
+5 EXP Found out what was in the hole
+25 EXP It hurts…
Impossible Biology
-Take 50% less damage. Recover Health equal to 50% damage suffered at the start of each turn. Can remain perfectly still, without heartbeat or breath.
Manhunter
-Humans take +100% damage from your attacks.
Horrific Poisons "Not only will this kill you, it will hurt the whole time you are dying."
-Targets hit with a Murder effect suffer additional damage equal to half of their current Health every time Murder activates. Murder damage triggers extra Body Modifiers.
So, should we spend a bit more EXP on Self-Repair so that we can get rid of that Murder effect ASAP?
Since that spell has Oneshot, this battle will become relatively simple once Summit isn't suffering from "lose a bit more than half your current health at the end of each turn".
That would not be a bad idea.
I'm thinking we grab BB and teleport her out of the way of the beast's charge, then hang out in the area either providing fire support or self-repairing.
