The Conclave

I've decided that since I came back to the Conclave, I might as well run a RP again.

I've had some ideas swimming around in my brain for a while now, and it wasn't until last night that I decided that this might be a good opportunity to A) do something with them, B) tidy up some older material of mine that ended up hanging for one reason or another.

I'm aiming for a semi-high power level (something along the lines of a Dark Heresy: Ascension or high-end Rogue Trader campaign), with a few opportunities for shooty-blam-work as well as for investigative stuff. Intro hooks will be provided on an individual character basis, primarily because I think that the prologue is enough for the moment, but also because most people's characters will have entirely different motivations for getting involved and it's a bit unfair to assume everyone can just be lumped together.

What we know, at the moment, is that there is an Inquisitor M. Haines who has a servant called Andreas. We also know that Haines is interested in a world designated ΣΘΦΡ-Interdicta. We know that something happened there in 993.M41, and we know that two individuals called Inquisitor Rowena Memphis and Nemurax may or may not have been involved. We also know that Inquisitor Memphis, at least, was executed.

For anyone that's interested, ΣΘΦΡ-Interdicta is in Pacificus, bordering Solar.

What else is there?

I'd like at least the following info about any characters joining in, though it can be as elaborate or sketchy as you deem appropriate -- bullet points are fine.

-Name
-Age
-Rank or Occupation, and Affiliation
-Physical Appearance
-Personality
-Abilities
-Weapons and Equipment (but please don't go nuts with this)
-Servants (if applicable)
-Brief outline of personal history (this can be a string of relevant quotes if you prefer)


FAO Sargoth, if you're reading: Yes, it's that Rowena Memphis, but with a slight facelift. I'm actively going for the "unhinged" option this time, rather than accidentally brushing against it.

FAO Marco, if you're interested: Unless galactic geography beslubbers this option completely, or you just don't want to, this is probably an opportunity to do something with Riley.


Current Members:

-Inquisitor Madoc Haines, Ordo Malleus (GM)
----Andreas Tuominen, lexographer

-Inquisitor Riley Hallona, Ordo Hereticus (Marco)
----Jael Lalgan, chief savant
----Ekkehardt Kuefer, Enforcer
----Steren Dowrick, biomancer/telepath/soprano singer
----Imeda "Chain" Marini, Tech-Adept
----Tama Morton, retired Colonel

-Inquisitor Desmond Holst, Ordo Hereticus (Octavian)
----Michael Wagner, Ship's Captain
========Hammer of Justice, Dominator class
----Camden Grieg, Arbites Proctor-Marshal
----Alexander Elgar, Colonel
----Richard von Karajan, orchestral conductor

-Inquisitor Anterus Semplice, Ordo Xenos (Dolnikan)
----Iota Tettares, bio-engineered test subject
----Gophion Dall, xenobiologist
----Kuma Karnak, Tech-Priest
----Pantariste, Guard Veteran

-Inquisitor Ambrose Barkley, no known Ordo (Herald)
----Redvers Sid, former General
----Jethro Rawles, convicted Untouchable
----Milo Banx, convicted fraudster

-Lord-Marshal Narl Ravion, Adeptus Arbites (Necris)
----Arbites task force (15-strong)

-Brother Sonneillon, Word Bearers Legion (Sargoth)
----Jacques Volos, magus
----Remiel, silent assassin
----Mordecai, heretek artificer

-Commodore Tyra Vargas, Battlefleet Pacificus (NPC)
======Orchomenus (Dictator class)
----Benito Aristan, Astropath
----Maurice Kees, Naval Lieutenant
----Saul Hargadon, Senior Helmsman
----Roderick Baris, Naval Commissar

I am willing to participate, but is this for inquisitors or interrogator level characters

It's up to you. Inquisitors, Interrogators, Rogue Traders, Adeptus Arbites Judges, Magi Mechanicus, Ministorum priests, I don't mind. I will say, though, that having Space Marines (and for that matter Adepta Sororitas) would make things a bit silly, unless there's a good reason for Space Marines/Sororitas getting involved (though for all I know, there might be), and similarly I'm not after any temple Assassins as they're a bit difficult to roleplay. Anything else should be fine.

And is there a followers limit?

You can have a list as long as your arm, if you like, but keeping track of five hundred characters isn't fun for anyone. So I'd say no, but don't go overboard.

Thanks, this is looking like a good rp to try!

Will give my warband some thought over the next few days.

This seems very interesting, I will write up a few characters over the next few days.

Quote from: Koval on January 29, 2012, 10:38:17 AMFAO Marco, if you're interested: Unless galactic geography beslubbers this option completely, or you just don't want to, this is probably an opportunity to do something with Riley.

Galactic geography isn't really a problem. There's nothing location specific in her background or history yet, so she can be dropped into any sector to start.

A bigger problem was that I lifted quite a large chunk of her personality and quirks wholesale for Gala, because I liked it and couldn't see any other likelihood of getting to use it in the near future.

That said, it's only part of their personalities and I imagine they'll pick up different quirks along the way. If I go back to Gala and make a couple of adjustments that might have been appropriate anyway, they should be different enough to start with.

Give me a moment to sort that out and perhaps flesh out Riley a little more.

Here is the start of my character (lacks followers and history).


-Name: Inquisitor Desmond Holst
-Age: Unknown, Holst was there as an acolyte to the Inquisitor who at the time represented the Ordos Terra on Mount Amalath.
-Rank or Occupation, and Affiliation: Amalathaian Inquisitor, Ordo Heriticus Terra
-Physical Appearance: Mostly mechanical, only a small portion of his organs remain (brain and heart*). His face is represented by a hologram of his face as it was at Mount Amalath
-Personality: Grim and determined, but still leads on demand despite his age. A valuable asset to the Imperium and a great loss should he fall.
-Abilities: Great Knowledge, Marksman, but lacks skill with a blade
-Weapons and Equipment: Bolt carbine with reload and stalker rounds, Shock Maul, high strength bionics to rival a Magos. Large data banks (backpack), implanted las-carbine in right hand
-Servants:

-Brief outline of personal history:

Octavian, just a quick note on timing/dates: if Holst was there at Mount Amalath (about a millenium prior to this RP starting) then either he's been subjected to Warp related time dilation (which can happen; it just needs to be mentioned somewhere), or he's got some funky life support. Keeping in mind that three hundred years is considered to be "pushing it slightly" round these parts, I'm guessing that Really Seven Hundred Years Old (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ReallySevenHundredYearsOld) is in effect here.

It's not actually a problem, seeing as the character's not fully fleshed out yet and I don't know what you've got planned, but it's just worth noting.

I was thinking funky life support (good ties with ad-mech after amalth)

Quote from: Koval on January 29, 2012, 07:13:15 PMeither he's been subjected to Warp related time dilation (which can happen; it just needs to be mentioned somewhere)

It's pretty much implicit in being an Inquisitor, given the degree of warp travel involved. The RT RPG gives the flow of time in the warp as, on average, about 12 days real time to 1 apparent day in the warp. Spend enough time  warp travelling, and you might easily have been born a hundred years earlier than your actual age would suggest.

<rambling>

That said, I imagine that while a better ship or more skilled Navigator might not be able to reduce the time in the Warp by much, they can instead find parts of the warp where the time dilation is much less.
So it might still appear to take seven days to make the journey, but rather than that relating to three months (on average) in the real world, it might have only taken two weeks.

This is why Marco's ship, the Ynys Mon, is so apparently fast - it has a real knack for this, with most journeys very close to 1:1 parity.
With a poor ship or a less than entirely competent Navigator, you might hit dilations of months in real space for every day in the warp.

It's a slightly odd interpretation, but I like it.

</rambling>

When you consider that 8 years in the warp would on average translate to a century in real time, and that warp journeys can frequently take months, it doesn't take that many trips for your birthday and actual age to slip drastically out of whack.

Considering my own interpretation, surviving a millennium wouldn't be impossible if you had a bit of crock of a ship.

Actually being a millennium old... nah, doesn't work for me. We know that some Mechanicus can live that long, but that's the very finest of their technology and they do not suffer outsiders their technology lightly.

Anyway, a slightly revised version of Riley:

~~~~~

FULL NAME: Riley Hallona

ALIASES: While Riley uses aliases, she is very unlikely to use them twice.

RANK / AFFILIATION: Inquisitrix of the Ordo Hereticus

Physical Stats:
Date of Birth: (5)751834.M41
Place of Birth: Pennal Secundus
Gender: Female
Height: 175cm/5' 9"
Weight: 56 kg/124 lbs
Physical appearance: Oval face, Almond shaped green-brown eyes, narrow "Celestial" nose, Slightly shallow lips. Blonde hair in a bob cut. Right Handed.

Thanks to regular rejuvenat, Riley remains highly attractive (and is most definitely aware of it). With almost all of the scars from her life as an Inquisitor carefully surgically healed (with a vat grown left forearm and parts of the right knee), it would be exceptionally easy to mistake her for a woman in her late twenties.

She has a toned build, rather small breasts (which she is slightly self-conscious about) and notably longer than average legs. She uses cosmetics, but other than a somewhat trademark deep red lip colour, this is usually fairly subtle.

Riley is content to wear a very wide range of clothing, with a huge wardrobe containing just about every style imaginable, from formal to casual. Given the choice, she tends to err towards somewhat high class clothing that gives  her the appearance of a lesser noble, typically dresses (preferably in a dark blue or black) loose and light weight enough to "flow" slightly and still allow a generous range of movement. Given her modest "assets", these are almost never cut to show cleavage.
These are usually worn with knee length boots with a shallow, wide heel, a compromise between form and function.

In the case that she's planning/anticipating a fight, she generally has one "go to" outfit. With a base layer of a tight fitting flak body-glove, a number of segmented armaplas plates can be attached over this to protect the torso, arms and legs. This is combined with a full face helmet, outfitted with a wide range of autosenses, spectral surveyors, anti-flash filters and an inbuilt rebreather.

HISTORY:
834.M41: Born on Pennal Secundus
842.M41: First introduced to the martial art of Recassa by her father
854.M41: Unable to find other work in Pennal's damaged economy, starts as an escort to high class gentlemen.
860.M41: Hired by Inquisitor Nann to help throw off suspicions when he attends Governor Kallel's yearly ball.
860.M41: Breaks Seward Kallel's nose and left arm.
860.M41: Officially recruited into Inquisitor Nann's organisation.
862.M41: Two assassins make an attempt on Nann's life. Riley kills both with their own weapons.
862.M41: Officially attached to Nann's primary retinue.
865.M41: After the Jovurnian operation, promoted to Inquisitorial acolyte.
872.M41: Develops a more advanced martial art based on Recassa, Powol and Weran
898.M41: Receives full rank of Inquisitor.
902.M41: Convicts a long running crime syndicate on her homeworld.
917.M41: First associated with the Appollyon group, a well known cell of Recongregators.
918.M41: On Pellusi IV during the time of the infamous riots. Has refused to speak about whether or not she had a part in it ever since.
939.M41: Successfully and peacefully replaces the corrupt military command of the Ynnal regiments.
961.M41: Acquires the "Sword of Integrity" after Inquisitor Nann dies of old age.
988.M41: Sees her first acolyte, Dana Sarac, promoted to full Inquisitor.
007.M42: Halley Notaro, Riley's chief savant for the last 108 years, dies to a sniper's bullet.

PERSONALITY/BELIEFS: Much in keeping with her gender ambiguous name, Riley mixes "masculine" and "feminine" traits quite freely. One moment she will be entirely happy to be flirting with men to help get her way but the next, she'll be equally at home stripping grease from engine parts.

While usually pretty level headed, Riley can still let stronger emotions get the better of her, particularly anger and grief. Her anger is marked by her becoming increasingly (and almost viciously) sarcastic. She never uses sarcasm as "humour", and often looks down on those who do.
One of Riley's main "flaws" from the perspective of being an Inquisitor is that she tends to become very attached to those around her, even after very short periods of time. The emotional grief of losing those people close to her can either drive her to incandescent rage or nearly incapacitating anguish.

Riley is a moderate Recongregator, whose originally more extreme methods were scaled back heavily after her overzealousness earlier in her career caused what she refers to as "some issues". At present, she is usually open and honest about her radical viewpoint, for which she seems to attract respect or ire in roughly equal measure.

She prefers non violent methods where possible, although as an Inquisitor, she is in no doubts about the frequent necessity of the unsubtle approach.

QUIRKS/NOTES:
-   Drops contractions from her speech when either tired or irritated.
-   Considered an excellent cook, although it is a rare occasion when she can be coaxed into it.

ABILITIES / STRENGTHS / WEAKNESSES: Riley is an expert martial artist, capable of easily besting armed opponents with only her bare hands.
Known for improvising, or stealing weapons (often out of the hands of opponents), she has something of a knack for using any weapon she might have in her hand - whether it happens to be a sword, a stave, a pistol or rifle.
Very agile and capable of quite spectacular feats of aerobatics and gymnastics, Riley can quite easily wrong foot attackers with her unexpected speed and manoeuvrability.

While certainly exceptionally learned by the average Imperial standards, Riley's knowledge is rather modest for being most of the way through her second century - she prefers to use savants to compensate for this shortcoming.

Riley is also noted for "letting emotion drive her" on occasions - many poor decisions have been made because of her having too much emotional involvement in situations. However, when she can maintain detachment, she has considerable foresight, and is able to figure out the likely consequences of given actions with startling accuracy.

WEAPONS AND EQUIPMENT: As she has a habit of improvising or stealing weapons, Riley carries fairly low-key weapons. She usually carries a compact Tripex-Phall laspistol (with a couple of reloads), and a number of retractable knives. In an emergency, the bracelet she normally wears on her right wrist houses a miniaturised needle weapon using a soporific toxin.

Normally trying to avoid looking like she is well armed or armoured, her primary defence in most cases is a conversion field, built into a rig designed to fit into the curve of her back. She sees the stunning effect this can have on an attacker as a very desirable trait, even if it does occasionally risk disorienting allies as well.

When "geared up" for combat, her ranged weapon of choice is the Hollen & Crasel GP9 5mm Personal Defence Weapon. With its low recoil, compact size, considerable magazine capacity and ability to defeat body armour, it makes a versatile weapon capable of killing most opponents.

Riley's primary interstellar transport is the "Sword of Integrity", a rather unimaginatively named Sword class Frigate. Refitted with less space intensive weaponry than the traditional laser batteries, it serves primarily as a form of mobile Inquisition base, with an extensive brig, interrogation/torture chambers, decent stocks of high level hardware and sophisticated command systems which can integrate with, supplement or override most Imperial data networks if necessary.
Actual troop complement is fairly low, existing primarily to defend against boarding actions.
   
SERVANTS/ACQUAINTANCES: Riley's most valuable servant is probably her chief savant, Jael Lalgan. At the very young age of 52, he has only served Riley for a few years, but he has been fitted with the memory banks belonging to his predecessor, Halley Notaro. While this gives him a huge wealth of knowledge to draw upon, it has resulted in a number of colourful side effects, although most are fortunately temporary - gender confusion, sudden personality changes, overwhelming déjà vu and similar.
Mostly, he is a fairly quiet and timid individual, although he can and will confidently expound at (often excessive) length when his extensive knowledge can actually come into play. He often appears to be distracted, although this is more to do with his attention falling on everything and anything within the area, as his impressive observation and recollection skills prove.
With little combat skill and only holdout weapons, Jael is normally dependent on the support of others in fights.

A former hive enforcer, Ekkehardt Kuefer serves as muscle and a bodyguard to Riley, although in most cases, he and his bulk are more of a deterrent than a necessity, with Riley generally proving exceptionally capable of defending herself if fights actually do start. Primarily armed with an enforcer's shotgun, Ekkehardt's talents in melee are more dependent on his bulk, shock truncheon and concealed armour than any particular skill.
Fairly brusque and sometimes prone to speaking out of turn, with a particular tendency to not take slights against the Imperial Cult lightly.

As a former soprano singer, many say Steren Dowrick would look more at home in front of a crowd than she does in Riley's employ, but Steren is possibly the most dangerous of Riley's entourage. With extensive talents in both biomancy and telepathy, her slight appearance and long flowing black hair belie the sheer threat she can represent.
She can be rather cold and distant at times, an affectation that tries to separate her from the constant psychic influx of the emotions of the others around her.

While born Imeda Marini, Riley's tech-adept now only really gets called by his long time "nickname", Chain. While relatively low in the ranks of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Chain is still considered something of a prodigy with grav drives, and is also notable for his talents with lasweapons, with his personal lascarbine being a masterwork of laser technology.
He is rather energetic and enthusiastic (sometimes to a fault), and often chops up his sentences with side thoughts, addendums and whatever else happens to be going through his head, even if it's not necessarily entirely relevant.

Colonel Tama Morton is largely beyond active field service. With more bionic repairs than you'd find in the entirety of a normal Imperial Guard company, he primarily remains aboard the Sword of Integrity to provide tactical advice and, if necessary, coordinate military operations.
Used to being the top of the command chain, he tends to speak authoritatively and does not take perceived subordination well.

-Name: Inquisitor Desmond Holst
-Age: Unknown, Holst was there as an acolyte to the Inquisitor who at the time represented the Ordos Terra on Mount Amalath, but warp-time effects makes him seem to be younger so while Amalath was a millennia ago, Holst's real age is somewhere in the 600s
-Rank or Occupation, and Affiliation: Amalathaian Inquisitor, Ordo Heriticus Terra
-Physical Appearance: Mostly mechanical, only a small portion of his organs remain (brain and heart*). His face is represented by a hologram of his face as it was at Mount Amalath
-Personality: Grim and determined, but still leads on demand despite his age. A valuable asset to the Imperium and a great loss should he fall.
-Abilities: Great Knowledge, Marksman, but lacks skill with a blade, His bionics also lend terrible strength to Holst's form
-Weapons and Equipment: Bolt carbine with reload and stalker rounds, Shock Maul, high strength bionics to rival a Magos. Large data banks (backpack), implanted las-carbine in right hand
-Servants:
Imperial Dominator Cruiser: Hammer of Justice and crew:
The Hammer of Justice was once a member of the battlefleet solar, but was acquired by Holst after cleansing the ship from a chaos virus. The portion of the crew that remained has had the task of rebuilding the full crew complement.
Captain Michael Wagner: Captain of the Imperial Dominator Cruiser: Hammer of Justice
Wagner is an aging terran born captain in the Imperial Navy and the oldest of Holst's living servants being close to 300 warp age. Utilises a hot-shot las-pistol and a Navy issue shotgun. Like Holst, Wagner also has extensive bionics which protects him from bullets and las-bolts to some degree.
Arbites Proctor-Marshal: Camden Grieg
Grieg is amongst Holst's inner circle, like Elgar, Wagner and Holst himself, Grieg was both born on terra and named after famous composers of ancient music. Grieg has served alongside Holst for half a century and is about 120 warp-age. Grieg is a steadfast character and holds to arbites traditions, but prefers his power maul to the shotgun.
Colonel Alexander Elgar: Commander of Holst's Coldstream Guards
The Coldstream guards are a unit of infantry who's title has survived 39 and a half thousand years. In that time they have served many different purposes, and been awarded many battle honours as well as an award winning military band. Elgar is their current commander and uses a duelling bolt pistol and a power rapier. His personal guard of 5 Guardsmen are armed with hellguns in the style of M1 muskets and gaudy red carapace armour. He is also the youngest of the inner circle at 90 years warp age.
Richard von Karajan:
Von Karajan is Holst's personal conductor who leads his own orchestra on the bridge of the Hammer of Justice. He also works for Holst as an interrogator, librarian and investigator. At the age of only 45, von Karajan is the youngest primary member of Holst's entourage. Uses a chainsword and las-pistol.

-Brief outline of personal history:
•   Born on terra
•   Recruited by inquisitor as an acolyte
•   His inquisitor represents terra at Amalath while he records the momentous event
•   Promoted to inquisitor
•   In his first investigation as an inquisitor, incinerates the arch-heretic Jermain Hendrix
•   Immolates the cult: Black Ascension, executing their leader, Sam Cullen with a bolt-carbine round to the face.
•   Genesis, a chaos super weapon is destroyed on the planet Pluto, but Holst's legs were destroyed in the process
•   Holst has Bill Scott, a planetary governor executed for lack of concern for his populace and allowing corruption to spread. Thus begin the:
•   Purges of Grateful Death, a decade long campaign where Holst shows his inhuman callousness by condemning the populace of 3 systems to death both by exterminates and by black templar assault. The populace of another 5 are set into slavery.
•   Presumed dead in the assaults on Death's Gap, re-appears half a century later with bionics to rival a magos.
•   Meets captain Wagner and acquires the Hammer of justice as his flagship
•   Seeks out the Coldstream guards on terra and hires them to his cause
•   Finds grieg, a single arbites on a planet caught in the fires of revolution, rescues him and has the planet virus bombed.
•   Meet's Karajan, a skilled conductor and hires him for entertainment, also trains him in other skills.

While there's definitely some good ideas in there, the Coldstream Guards surviving 39,500 years stretches disbelief a little too far.
History can't even recall the entirety of the Imperium's existence. Any information from prior to the Heresy and Great Crusade is very, very scarce. There's a reason it's called a Dark Age.

While, in theory, a Guard regiment might have derived from the Coldstream (although given all the upheavals in the past and the ultimate replacement of what we would think of as the national boundaries, very unlikely), the name certainly would have mutated down the years (remember, the characters aren't speaking English, they're speaking Gothic that has been translated for our convenience, and there wouldn't be a direct translation), but the records and dates wouldn't exist to prove such a link and the most that the regiment might be able to claim is to be a "Pre-Crusade Regiment".

EDIT: The other thing I don't like is when characters can't remember important chunks of their life, particularly when it's a character like this. Any Inquisitor worth his salt should at least be able to do some research (particularly as most Inquisitors will keep some sort of a log) and plug the basic details back together.

Missing parts of a character's history, unless done very well, usually comes across as either literary laziness or a plot hole that the writer can't work out how to fill.

NAME: Anterus Semplice

AGE: 286

RANK: Inquisitor of the Ordo Xenos

APPEARANCE: Semplice is ancient and battered by his years of service. His many injuries have left him almost completely immobile. A few years ago he was burned horribly by a team of assassins sent by one of his rivals when his previous chair burst into flames. Almost nothing of his body is visible, only part of his right arm remains of flesh and is visible, the rest is hidden behind metal and plasteel. He wears a bland silver mask over his face. The device that keeps him alive is bulky and noisy, it has a built-in force field, flamethrower and lasgun. He speaks through a vox projector and has a hoarse voice.

BELIEFS: Semplice beliefs that humanity is not yet as perfect as it could be. In his career he has found that xenos are superior to humans in many regards. He attempts to rectify this matter by continuing the work of the Emperor by enhancing humanity for the struggle against the enemies that surround it. To this end he initiated and oversaw the Stratiotes project together with Magos Biologis Haskil. The project was never completed because inquisitor Khar attacked the secret location where the work was done and killed Haskil and destroyed most of the work that was done to that point, all Semplice has left are a few notebooks. He aims to uncover more knowledge which would allow him to restart the project.

PERSONALITY: Semplice is controlled and prefers to work from behind the scenes. He has little to no attachments except to Gamma Hepta who he sees as his child. He has a tendency to get obsessed with his goals and on multiple occasions has persisted too long on futile efforts, this has led to more than a few of his injuries.

ABILITIES: Semplice has lost almost all physical abilities he once had. The one arm he has left is withered and cannot be used to lift much more than a quill. Mentally he remains at his peak, he knows a lot about most subjects.

HISTORY:

714M41   Anterus Semplice is born as the child of two administratum clerks on Doristor Prime.

719M41   After his parents die Semplice is sent to the Schola Progenium on his homeworld. He excels in many fields but is especially proud of his skill with the chainsword.

732M41   Becomes a commissar-cadet under commissar Dorgal of the 749th Trevask Line Infantry.

739M41   Promoted to full commissar after the storming of the fortress of Irgli on Mystim.

740M41   Assigned to the 1294th Doristor light infantry which is part of a taskforce operating against the Atinian League, a collection of four species of xenos occupying a small empire.

742M41   Inquisitor Gormatan takes a small force of three regiments onto one of the Atinian moons. The operation turns into a disaster and most of the inquisitor's staff and almost all troops die. The few survivors are
taken as permanent members of his staff.

759M41   After years of service Semplice is promoted to interrogator.

811M41   Semplice becomes a full inquisitor and member of the Ordo Xenos

828M41   While investigating the activities of a minor cult on Helena's Gate a bomb is placed in his vehicle and he loses not only his legs but also suffers severe damage to his spine crippling him forever.

914M41   Increasingly obsessed with the strength of xenos breeds and their advantages over humans Semplice meets Magos Biologis Haskil and sponsors his research into creating superior humans.

977M41   In the growing conflict between two rival cells Semplice is attacked by a band of unknown assassins. They set his wheelchair on fire and thinking him dead leave him horribly maimed. He is discovered by his few allies and kept alive.

992M41   Haskil's seventh batch of children is successful at last, for the first time they aren't stillborn and horribly mutated.

998M41   Inquisitor Khar attacks the facility where the Stratiotes Project is located. Semplice narrowly escapes with three of the Stratiotes but Haskil is lost together with most records of the research. Semplice flees the sector after faking his death.


NAME: Iota Tettares

AGE: 20

RANK: Interrogator

APPEARANCE: Iota Tettares is pale and has no hair at all. She is of moderate length and is quite thin. She has a long thin face with large dark eyes. She preferably wears simple dark robes decorated with symbols of faith. She has thin, almost colourless lips. She is considered unattractive by most people and looks cold. She has a soft monotone voice. On many occasions she wears wigs and make-up to look more normal. If she goes to fight she puts on body-armour decorated with skulls.

PERSONALITY: Iota Tettares is devotedly loyal and rational. She beliefs herself to be special because of her being spawned in the Stratiotes Project and being its only survivor. In private she feels lonely and wants to be close to others. Her strange appearance and manners however tend to chase off almost everyone.

ABILITIES: Iota Tettares is highly skilled in multiple fields. She is very intelligent and has great martial skills. Socially she often behaves awkwardly and suffers from sudden convulsions. She is particularly skilled with ranged weaponry.

HISTORY:

992M41   Born as part of the ninth attempt to create a new type of human in the Stratiotes Project

995M41   Training in martial fields starts, it is given by veterans from the Imperial Guard

998M41   When the facility where she lives is attacked she narrowly escaped with two of her sisters and the inquisitor.

007M42   Inquisitor Semplice uses the services of the three survivors for the first time when he has them cleanse a nest of mutants. The operation is a complete success

009M42   Both her remaining sisters die while attempting to steal several tomes from Brukian II, a forge world. Iota Tettares escapes with the books.

Other associates:

Gophion Dall:    An expert xenobiologist. He considers himself to be a great researcher. He remains unaware of Semplice's plans and motivations. In combat he uses an Atinian Silk Blaster and wears intricately decorated armour.

Kuma Karnak:   A minor tech priest and a former student of magos biologis Haskil. He is responsible for keeping the inquisitor alive. He knows much about him and his plans but always keeps to the background.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on January 30, 2012, 02:21:51 PM
While there's definitely some good ideas in there, the Coldstream Guards surviving 39,500 years stretches disbelief a little too far.
History can't even recall the entirety of the Imperium's existence. Any information from prior to the Heresy and Great Crusade is very, very scarce. There's a reason it's called a Dark Age.

While, in theory, a Guard regiment might have derived from the Coldstream (although given all the upheavals in the past and the ultimate replacement of what we would think of as the national boundaries, very unlikely), the name certainly would have mutated down the years (remember, the characters aren't speaking English, they're speaking Gothic that has been translated for our convenience, and there wouldn't be a direct translation), but the records and dates wouldn't exist to prove such a link and the most that the regiment might be able to claim is to be a "Pre-Crusade Regiment".

My thought on this was: A premier unit of infantry from neo-britain was given the title  in an honorific sense rather than them being the actual CGs of today, but claim to trace their roots back then.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on January 30, 2012, 02:21:51 PM
EDIT: The other thing I don't like is when characters can't remember important chunks of their life, particularly when it's a character like this. Any Inquisitor worth his salt should at least be able to do some research (particularly as most Inquisitors will keep some sort of a log) and plug the basic details back together.

Missing parts of a character's history, unless done very well, usually comes across as either literary laziness or a plot hole that the writer can't work out how to fill.

It is laziness, because I was in a rush this morning and thought of that to fill in the gap. How would you suggest filling this in?

Quote from: Inquisitor Octavian Lars on January 30, 2012, 05:19:59 PMMy thought on this was: A premier unit of infantry from neo-britain was given the title in an honorific sense rather than them being the actual CGs of today, but claim to trace their roots back then.

But next to no pre-Imperial history is known, so there's not really any precedent for them even knowing the name, let alone recognising its significance.

QuoteIt is laziness, because I was in a rush this morning and thought of that to fill in the gap. How would you suggest filling this in?

I personally use No More Plots^TM, but it's carcinogenic and quite fattening.

Skipping over large amounts of time doesn't have to all be in one huge chunk. As time travels slower in the warp, enough warp travel will do that anyway. (And as he's shifted from Segmentum Solar to the Pacificus, he's clearly done quite a lot of that).

If you're really stuck, come up with a load of names for rock bands, then decide how he defeated each of them. For example:

- 178.M41: Tames the Evanian Riots
- 256.M41: Executes the Arch-Lord Durne Limmbach for breaching the tenets of the Council of Nikaea.
- 349.M41: His famed operation against the Clone Kings of Angel's Folly.
- 422.M41: Loses right arm to the blade of the Pharoah-Assassin of Yngmar Secundus.
- 487.M41: Oversaw the High Conclave of Krane IV, called to judge the heresies of Lord Inquisitor Avendon.
- 532.M41: First recorded contact with the being known as the Oracle Mantis, which is now believed to have been responsible for conflicts on at least seven worlds.
- 591.M41: Names Planetary Governor Wexus Raiyn as a Haemovore cultist and delivers him to the excruciation chambers on Percan Beta.
- 644.M41: Declares warp region known as the "Vortex of Bile" Perdita, forbidding Imperial ships to approach.
- 703.M41: Locates the Ceremony of the Vision of Falsehood, and thus declares Exterminatus upon the moon Havan IV Beta.
- 753.M41: Pens the Warriors' Rite of Nothingness, a devotional vow now widespread amongst certain Inquisition Conclaves in the Segmentum Solar.
- 777.M41: Most recent of his bionic implantations.
- 857.M41: Officially believed to have died in his ongoing war against the Oracle Mantis. Does not reappear for thirty years.
- 942.M41: Has the Cult of Silence burnt at the stake for 31,872 counts of saviour-heresies.

Octavian: You've mixed up Wagner's name with Elgar's a couple of times. That's probably just a slip of the keyboard though -- the edit button is your friend.

The Terra angle surprises me a little, seeing as it's considered an enormous privilege to even get close to Terra, much less see it, or step out onto Terran soil* or breathe its air, but it's quite workable -- I'm fine with him initially being from Terra and being part of the Ordos Terran, though a little bit of diversity in where your entourage is from might be nice. There's a whole galaxy of worlds out there to hail from.

Your cruiser, though, needs a slight tweak, but could just be redesignated as being from Battlefleet Solar to avoid controversy. This is primarily because after Mars, Terra is the most heavily defended world in Segmentum Solar**; any fleet defending it is highly unlikely to either leave the Sol System, or suffer any heresy on any of its ships without the ship in question being blown into itty bitty pieces by the rest of the battlefleet. Hell, it took Necrons to trouble the Martian defenses, so heresy would get stamped out very violently.
I'm fine with it being Dominator-class, though, and there's an extremely good reason for that which I'm not yet willing to reveal :P

Re. the Coldstream stuff, I see where you're coming from, and I also see Marco's argument, but I'm gonna have to remind everyone involved that what we'd know as Britain (in fact, what we'd know as Europe) got turned into various wings of the Imperial Palace. That includes the Scottish Borders (which probably got turned into an Administratum bureau), so I seriously doubt that you'd be raising any troops from round those parts.
This is also why the largely Terra-centric angle surprises me, because Earth in the 40Kverse is essentially a giant planet-spanning version of the Vatican City, and I don't see the Vatican raising armies (the Swiss Guard being analogous, in this case, to the Adeptus Custodes).


Dolnikan -- Semplice immediately makes me think of Davros (Michael Wisher/Terry Molloy rather than Julian Bleach), though I'm not sure whether you initially had that in mind.

You've given us a character called Iota, but you've mentioned a Gamma Hepta under Semplice's profile. Similarly, the seventh and ninth iterations of Semplice's superior human project appear to happen at the same time. Were those just slips of the keyboard?

Dall's gun seems rather interesting -- I'm guessing it's a webber analogue? Is it xenotech, archaeotech, or just unusual?


*Okay, so it's more likely to be a palace floor or hive balcony, but I can still use it as a figure of speech.

**"In the Imperium" might've been stretching it, as Cadia and Macragge can debatably put up some rather stiff competition, but we can all agree that as systems in Segmentum Solar go, Sol is arguably the most heavily defended.

Those were indeed some mistakes in the constant process of rewriting everything. The silt blaster is an alien weapon that works by propelling many dust particles at high speed(using much technobabble of course) to tear a target away.

Okay, that's pretty cool (and grisly). I'm guessing Dall just shoves a big rock into the chamber and lets the weapon do the rest? :P

My argument is that the cs guards are an honorific title for a premier infantry unit from terra or that area. And thanks for the help on the cruiser fluff!

Also, the reason for my terra centric is that I wanted a very baroque (heck and PATRIOTIC) warband. The fluff follows that idea.

A silt blaster doesn't work for me.

The problem with it is that grit blasting in the real world has an effective range of inches. Tiny particles travelling fast is horrible aerodynamically. And if you actually get the particles fast enough to make it any meaningful kind of distance, they wouldn't be abrading the target, they would obliterate it.

I once got fed up with people's claims on a spudcannon forum about their tennis ball launchers that could fire a mile. So, I went and worked out how much energy you'd actually need to get something as aerodynamically inefficient as a tennis ball(a large blunt cross section, relatively little mass) that far.
The answer was that any tennis ball cannon that could actually fire a mile would also, if fired at any modern battle tank you can name reduce it to smithereens. And funnily enough, these same "mile cannons" seem to have difficulty getting though a few sheets of plywood.

Dust is far less aerodynamic (That's why it can hang in the air when tennis balls can't). To have an effective range of a few dozen yards, the muzzle energy would be obscene, as would the recoil.

Sure, there might be some sort of "anti-drag field" technobabble that projects an air tunnel that lets the particles reach a target some distance away, but to go to the trouble of developing (or even using) that kind of tech for the sake of accelerating dust particles is really counter intuitive.

Quote from: Inquisitor Octavian Lars on January 30, 2012, 08:54:23 PM
My argument is that the cs guards are an honorific title for a premier infantry unit from terra or that area.

The actual Coldstreams would probably find this rather amusing... :P

QuoteAlso, the reason for my terra centric is that I wanted a very baroque (heck and PATRIOTIC) warband. The fluff follows that idea.

Then just have them stem from a Cardinal world. Ophelia and Dimmamar are two prime examples. We get enough baroque just from it being 40K.

May I present for scrutiny Inquisitor Ambrose Barkley and his oddball associates for your scrutiny.

NAME: Ambrose Barkley

RANK: Inquisitor [No known Ordo affiliation]

DATE OF BIRTH: 836.M41

APPEARANCE: Ambrose does not fit the popular conception of an Inquisitor. He is a largely non-descript man who does not stand out from the crowd. At 5'10'' he is neither noticeably tall nor short and is of average build. His is short but untidy and, whilst originally dark is now beginning to grey.  He has a prominent nose on which he usually wears round spectacles and pale skin. His face is slightly wrinkled although rejuvenat treatments mean he has the appearance of being in his forties or fifties. He has no visible bionic replacements or enhancements although the second and fourth fingers on his left hand are vat grown replacements.

He usually dresses in fairly plain robes of greys or browns with a small symbol of the Inquisition pinned to the left-hand side of his chest. If the occasion calls for it he will dress more formally but dislikes doing so.

HISTORY:
836.M41- Born on the shrine world of St. Menda's Rest. His mother is a field medic invalided out of regimental service and his father a chef.
853.M41- Inspired by his mother he begins medical training.
855.M41- His medical studies are interrupted when he is conscripted to serve in the newly formed St. Mendan 18th Light Infantry in an ultimately futile campaign against the Ork held worlds to the galactic north of the Pyrrus Sector. He is ill-suited to life as a soldier but his previous medical experience sees him trained as a field medic.
859.M41- With the campaign abandoned the Mendan 18th are disbanded and Ambrose resumes his medical studies.
863.M41- He completes his medical studies and begins work as a civilian medic.
869.M41- His mother commits suicide after a long running battle with post-traumatic stress and depression caused by her military service prompting Ambrose to take an interest in psychology.
873.M41- Riots provoked by plans for a further campaign against the Orks engulf St Menda's Rest and Ambrose refuses to treat rioters injured in clashes with authority forces leading to a number of threats on his life. Inquisitor Von Strauss, a key proponent of the campaign against the Orks, arrives to quell the riots that are halting the campaign.
874.M41- Von Strauss crushes the riots and leaves St Menda's rest taking Ambrose with him.
880.M41- Following his role in unravelling the Croy Mysteries, in which the analytical skills developed during his medical training prove invaluable, Ambrose is made an Interrogator by Von Strauss. In this role his medical knowledge makes him a proficient torturer but it is not a role he enjoys.
889.M41- Ambrose begins working as an independent investigator on Von Strauss' behalf and in this role is instrumental in uncovering the location of twelve illegal copies of the Valos Code.
922.M41- Promoted to full Inquisitorial status.
946.M41- Purges the noble houses of Kreol after uncovering widespread dabbling in sorcery.
950.M41- Following his experiences on Kreol he writes a treatise entitled The Sins of the Father in which he investigates the possibility of heresy as a genetic disease. The text is regarded as interesting but little is thought of his theory and some criticise it for attempting to make excuses for heretics.
973.M41- Publishes a further text on the causes of heresy: Heresy Born of Neglect. It is badly received as it seems to level criticism at the Imperium for driving some people to turn their backs on the Emperor.
990.M41- Diffuses a potential rift amongst the high command of the Granoan Pacification Campaign by recruiting General Redvers Sid to his personal staff.
003.M42- Begins an investigation into the psychology of prisoners on Bagrah Minoris in an attempt to draw links between the causes of criminality and the causes of heresy. In this process he recruits a number of the prisoners including the psychic null and convicted rapist Jethro Rawles and the fraudster Milo Banx.

PERSONALITY/BELIEFS: Having been raised on a shrine world Ambrose is incredibly pious and devoted to both the Imperial Creed and the Lex Imperialis. As such he finds heresy incredibly hard to understand and find a logical explanation for. Whilst for many it is enough to know someone is a heretic Ambrose wants to understand why feeling that if the root causes can be understood then it is something that could be cured in the same way as a disease. His research has ranged from viewing heresy as an actual physical disease, possibly genetic, to a psychological ailment and yet he is still far from understanding its causes.

Ambrose is a quiet spoken and mild-mannered man seemingly ill-suited for the authoritarian position of an Inquisitor and yet his staff have great respect for him. He has a comforting manner which, combined with his soft voice, makes people likely to open up to him. His fascination with peoples psychological motives, however, often leads him to pry into matters that people would rather leave untouched and when his curiosity gets the better of him he can come across as uncaring of the emotions of others as he enquires into their backgrounds and motivations. Many find his habit of constantly psychoanalysing those around him and his desire to talk about issues irritating.

ABILITIES/STRENGTHS/WEAKNESSES: Ambrose is an incredibly observant investigator and clever analyst, helped by an extremely good memory, particularly for names and faces. He is also a trained field medic.

Whilst he does have basic combat training from his time in the Imperial Guard and does keep his eye in on the shooting ranges he is not an overly proficient combatant and so relies on others if his investigations require physical violence. If he does become embroiled in combat himself he is far more proficient at range than in a melee where he cannot rely on brute strength, natural viciousness or lightning quick reactions as he possess none of them. 

WEAPONS/EQUIPMENT:  For his own personal defence Ambrose carries a simple laspistol, the weapon with which he was first trained in the Imperial Guard, and a combat knife which is mainly used as a utility tool. If expecting violence Ambrose will try and avoid being personally present but where this is not possible he will carry a Mars pattern lasgun, another weapon he is familiar with from his days in the guard, and protect himself with a refractor field concealed in an Aquila worn around his neck. He is almost never without a basic medical kit.

QUIRKS/NOTES:
Prefers to be referred to by his first name unless protocol demands otherwise and assumes that others will want the same treatment so is often seen as slightly rude.

SERVANTS/ACQUAINTANCES:
General Redvers Sid- Part of the high command during the Granoan Pacification with a reputation for brilliant strategies but high casualty rates, hence the nickname 'Suicide' Sid. A rival in the command structure exposed his involvement with a Cydonian Death-Cult, the Emperor's Hands, and linked this to a desire for high casualty rates to fit with the cult's ideology of shedding blood in the Emperor's name. The two clashed leading to a potentially dangerous split in the campaigns command which was only resolved when Ambrose recruited the General to his personal staff. Sid is not only a brilliant strategist but his sword skills, honed in military duels and perfected by the Emperor's Hands, make him the most dangerous melee opponent in Ambrose's employ despite his advanced age.

Jethro Rawles- A pariah and convicted rapist recruited from the penal colony on Bagrah Minoris who hides his disfigured face (due to injuries inflicted by his father) behind a theatrical mask which changes to reflect his mood and expression. Incredibly violent and with a burning hatred of psykers, who he blames for the way he is despised, he acts as Ambrose's torturer a role he evidently enjoys. He refuses to use ranged weapons as with a gun it is far too easy to accidently kill someone quickly with a gun.

Milo Banx- an accomplished fraudster and confidence trickster also recruited from Bagrah Minoris, Banx is the youngest and arguably most mentally stable of Ambrose's permanent staff. While his skills are useful his innocence and naivety are often a hindrance and his combat skills are even less existent than those of Ambrose himself.

QUOTES:
"You would not choose to become sick or to go mad so why would you choose to turn your back on the Emperor? As with disease and madness it must be the cause of an external factor." Inquisitor Barkley.

"Mad? Possibly, but definitely interesting. Jethro certainly has some psychological issues stemming from childhood paternal conflict and Redvers has turned violence into his highest form of religious expression but the important thing is they have skills that are beneficial to me and hence the Imperium. If we spurn their skills then we risk this neglect driving them away from us and into heresy."


Thats come out quite long I fear but I got a bit carried away, hope it all makes sense and there are no glaring errors.

All seems to make sense, although I do hope that Jethro is kept away from other people when off-duty. At first glance you're also a bit light on combat types, but that can be covered for and/or revised as needed. I trust Marco to spot things I haven't, though :P

Interesting that you've brought an Untouchable on board, though I must admit I find the General your most interesting vassal -- I wonder what sort of angle his death cult background will take him in.

Rather than give out profiles for Inquisitor Haines (since there are a few things that I'd rather not reveal until after we start), Andreas, or Rowena Memphis (who is dead), I'll link some (not all, some) relevant tropes so that you have a rough idea of who the characters are.

Madoc Haines:
The Big Guy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheBigGuy): Comes in at 6'10", and he's built like a brick outhouse.
Mighty Glacier (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MightyGlacier): See above.
Genius Bruiser (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GeniusBruiser): He's an Inquisitor. Comes with the job description.
Artificial Limbs (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Artificial%20Limbs): Both arms and his spine (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RequiredSecondaryPowers) are cybernetics.
Drop The Hammer (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DropTheHammer): He's Ordo Malleus, and lugging around a thunder hammer (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ShockAndAwe) that's about as big as he is. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BFS)
When All You Have Is A Thunder Hammer (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer): Haines doesn't always resort to this, but the threat of being smacked with a gihugic hammer can come in pretty handy from time to time. Also useful at bypassing door seals.
Hand Cannon (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HandCannon): Carries a bolt pistol as a sidearm.
Playing With Fire (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PlayingWithFire): Carries a hand flamer as his other sidearm.
First Gray Hair (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FirstGrayHair): Inversion -- Haines has more grey than the average British summer sky, but doesn't care much. Extends to his beard (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BadassBeard).
Combat Pragmatist (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CombatPragmatist): With something as lethal as a thunder hammer, it's pretty difficult for this trope not to take effect somewhere along the way.

Andreas Tuominen:
Gentleman And A Scholar (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/GentlemanAndAScholar): Though you'll have to take my word for it for the moment.
Weak But Skilled (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WeakButSkilled): Because he wouldn't be an Inquisitor's aide if he couldn't take care of himself.
Servile Snarker (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ServileSnarker):
Haines: And how much ammo?
Andreas: Three cells. Which is three more than you have, my lord.
Hand Cannon (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HandCannon): Haines owns a plasma pistol (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DeathRay), but it's usually Andreas that carries it (or so Andreas claims)

Rowena Memphis:
Fake Video Camera View (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FakeVideoCameraView): See prologue.
Predecessor Villain (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PredecessorVillain): If Haines is to be believed.
Lightning Gun (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LightningGun): Carried a Dalek death ray as a sidearm. I wish there were an easier way to describe that.
Psycho Electro (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PsychoElectro): Mild version, stemming from the above.
The Heretic (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheHeretic): From the Imperium's point of view. From her point of view, Defector From Decadence (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DefectorFromDecadence) applies instead, mixed with Humans Are Bastards (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HumansAreBastards).
Nietzsche Wannabe (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NietzscheWannabe): Had shades of this.
Blondes Are Evil (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BlondesAreEvil): In this case, yes they are.
Mood Swinger (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MoodSwinger): Usually ended up somewhere around "impulsive" and "quixotic". I blame my earlier writing style not exactly matching up to modern standards.


EDIT: Some for the antagonists.

Kalen Goruvich:
War Is Glorious (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/WarIsGlorious): He's a World Eater. He's going to believe this.
Blood Knight (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BloodKnight): World Eater.
Ax Crazy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AxCrazy): World Eater.
Proud Warrior Race (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ProudWarriorRaceGuy): XII Legion.
Determinator (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Determinator): He's survived so many wars that he doesn't remember how long he's been fighting. Most recently, he survived the massacre of his own strike force, and all that did was piss him off (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BerserkButton) and give him a reason to hunt down Agares.
Evil Weapon (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/EvilWeapon): He bound Agares into his own hellblade. That sword's gonna be pretty damn evil.
NO INDOOR VOICE (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NoIndoorVoice): Every one of his lines that we've seen so far has been shouted very angrily.

Zagan:
The Soulless (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheSoulless):
Zagan: I died at Skalathrax, and now I exist only to kill and to make myself whole once more.
Shell-Shocked Veteran (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ShellShockedVeteran): Skalathrax did horrible things to Zagan's mind, which considering he's a World Eater is saying something.
Neutral Evil (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NeutralEvil): Doesn't have enough emotion left to be either Lawful or Chaotic Evil.
Large Ham (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LargeHam): Despite also being The Stoic (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheStoic).
The Unfettered (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheUnfettered): Aside from point 5, from what we've seen so far.
Combat Pragmatist (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CombatPragmatist): He doesn't bother engaging an enemy fleet himself. So he makes the enemy fleet itself do it for him...
Cool Starship (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CoolStarship): Even by the standards of the Imperial Navy, since grand cruisers are ancient. Not to mention the upgrades (we've already seen his shields (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DeflectorShields) shrug off a nova cannon shell, for example)
Magic From Technology (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MagicFromTechnology): How his Technopathy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Technopath) works. Minor overlap with Demonic Possession (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DemonicPossession) and Puppeteer Parasite (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PuppeteerParasite%5B/url).

Varachen of the Flayed Skull:
Deal With Khorne (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DealWithTheDevil): Which probably won't end well, knowing Khorne.
Disposable Vagrant (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DisposableVagrant): Arguably from Khorne's point of view, and from the point of view of whoever backstabbed him.
Damaged Soul (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DamagedSoul): Whether Varachen has ever been "resurrected" by Haemonculi is open to debate, but he does fit the trope well enough, if only because of Slaanesh munching on his soul.
Cold-Blooded Torture (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ColdBloodedTorture): His lifestyle post-backstab started off as this, because he Loves The Sound of Screaming (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LovesTheSoundOfScreaming), but eventually he had to escalate that into full Ax Craziness (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AxCrazy) because the longer he stayed away from Commoragh, the worse it got (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FunctionalAddict).


Will add more stuff, possibly actual profiles, when doing so becomes relevant.

Yeah Jethro really isn't very nice at all, think a combination of the Joker and Rawshack from Watchmen with extra-nastiness thrown in. Ambrose keeps him on a very short leash though and I hope his untouchable nature won't pose any issues plot-wise, if they do he can always misbehave early on and be sent back to brood on his own.

Sid is really the only combat-character but he's really very,very good at it. If anymore combatants are needed, which with the description of Haines seems probable, I'll think up some further associates or recruit from any resources available during the RP, or really on getting other characters to fight for me as Ambrose really is a lovely chap.

I must confess that I had never yet heard of anyone called Davros, but that's probably because I hardly ever watch tv. His wiki however is very interesting and I'm sure that I'll take some ideas from there for him.

I know that the weapon doesn't make much sense when looked at too closely. It is a xenos weapon designed by a species which is very good at field-based techno babble. It's mostly because I wanted something different.

NAME: Anterus Semplice

AGE: 286

RANK: Inquisitor of the Ordo Xenos

APPEARANCE: Semplice is ancient and battered by his years of service. His many injuries have left him almost completely immobile. A few years ago he was burned horribly by a team of assassins sent by one of his rivals when his previous chair burst into flames. Almost nothing of his body is visible, only part of his right arm remains of flesh and is visible, the rest is hidden behind metal and plasteel. He wears a bland silver mask over his face. The device that keeps him alive is bulky and noisy, it has a built-in force field, flamethrower and lasgun. He speaks through a vox projector and has a hoarse voice.

BELIEFS: Semplice beliefs that humanity is not yet as perfect as it could be. In his career he has found that xenos are superior to humans in many regards. He attempts to rectify this matter by continuing the work of the Emperor by enhancing humanity for the struggle against the enemies that surround it. To this end he initiated and oversaw the Stratiotes project together with Magos Biologis Haskil. The project was never completed because inquisitor Khar attacked the secret location where the work was done and killed Haskil and destroyed most of the work that was done to that point, all Semplice has left are a few notebooks. He aims to uncover more knowledge which would allow him to restart the project.

PERSONALITY: Semplice is controlled and prefers to work from behind the scenes. He has little to no attachments except to Iota Tettares who he sees as his child. He has a tendency to get obsessed with his goals and on multiple occasions has persisted too long on futile efforts, this has led to more than a few of his injuries.

ABILITIES: Semplice has lost almost all physical abilities he once had. The one arm he has left is withered and cannot be used to lift much more than a quill. Mentally he remains at his peak, he knows a lot about most subjects.

HISTORY:
714M41   Anterus Semplice is born as the child of two administratum clerks on Doristor Prime.

719M41   After his parents die Semplice is sent to the Schola Progenium on his homeworld. He excels in many fields but is especially proud of his skill with the chainsword.

732M41   Becomes a commissar-cadet under commissar Dorgal of the 749th Trevask Line Infantry.

739M41   Promoted to full commissar after the storming of the fortress of Irgli on Mystim.

740M41   Assigned to the Doristor 1294th Doristor light infantry which is part of a taskforce operating against the Atinian League, a collection of four species of xenos occupying a small empire.

742M41   Inquisitor Gormatan takes a small force of three regiments onto one of the Atinian moons. The operation turns into a disaster and most of the inquisitor's staff and almost all troops die. The few survivors are taken as permanent members of his staff.

759M41   After years of service Semplice is promoted to interrogator.

811M41   Semplice becomes a full inquisitor and member of the Ordo Xenos

828M41   While investigating the activities of a minor cult on Helena's Gate a bomb is placed in his vehicle and he loses not only his legs but also suffers severe damage to his spine crippling him forever.

914M41   Increasingly obsessed with the strength of xenos breeds and their advantages over humans Semplice meets Magos Biologis Haskil and sponsors his research into creating superior humans.

977M41   In the growing conflict between two rival cells Semplice is attacked by a band of unknown assassins. They set his wheelchair on fire and thinking him dead leave him horribly maimed. He is discovered by his few allies and kept alive.

992M41   Haskil's ninth batch of children is successful at last, for the first time they aren't stillborn and horribly mutated.

998M41   Inquisitor Khar attacks the facility where the Stratiotes Project is located. Semplice narrowly escapes with three of the Stratiotes but Haskil is lost together with most records of the research. Semplice flees the sector after faking his death.

NAME: Iota Tettares

AGE: 20

RANK: Interrogator

APPEARANCE: Iota Tettares is pale and has no hair at all. She is of moderate length and is quite thin. She has a long thin face with large dark eyes. She preferably wears simple dark robes decorated with symbols of faith. She has thin, almost colourless lips. She is considered unattractive by most people and looks cold. She has a soft monotone voice. On many occasions she wears wigs and make-up to look more normal. If she goes to fight she puts on body-armour decorated with skulls.

PERSONALITY: Iota Tettares is devotedly loyal and rational. She beliefs herself to be special because of her being spawned in the Stratiotes Project and being its only survivor. In private she feels lonely and wants to be close to others. Her strange appearance and manners however tend to chase off almost everyone.

ABILITIES: Iota Tettares is highly skilled in multiple fields. She is very intelligent and has great martial skills. Socially she often behaves awkwardly and suffers from sudden convulsions. She is particularly skilled with ranged weaponry. The process that was used to create her was far from perfect which causes the convulsions. She also reacts badly to bright lights and needs a diet containing several specific compounds her body cannot produce by itself.

WEAPONS: A thin-bladed chainsword and a shuriken pistol.
HISTORY:

992M41   Born as part of the ninth attempt to create a new type of human in the Stratiotes Project

995M41   Training in martial fields starts, it is given by veterans from the Imperial Guard

998M41   When the facility where she lives is attacked she narrowly escaped with two of her sisters and the inquisitor.

007M42   Inquisitor Semplice uses the services of the three survivors for the first time when he has them cleanse a nest of mutants. The operation is a complete success

009M42   Both her remaining sisters die while attempting to steal several tomes from Brukian II, a forge world. Iota Tettares escapes with the books.

Other associates:

Gophion Dall:    An expert xenobiologist. He considers himself to be a great researcher. He remains unaware of Semplice's plans and motivations. In combat he uses an Atinian Gluon Disruptor and wears intricately decorated armour.  He is starting to grow old but remains vain and arrogant.

Kuma Karnak:   A minor tech priest and a former student of magos biologis Haskil. He is responsible for keeping the inquisitor alive. He knows much about him and his plans but always keeps to the background.

Pantariste:   Imperial Guard veteran, trained Iota Tettares and bodyguard of the inquisitor. She distinguished herself in one of Bashrok's many regiments and is highly loyal. She resents the unnaturalness of her remaining student but nevertheless does her duty. Armed with a Bashrok double lasgun and a series of grenades.

Unbroken:   The Unbroken is the ship Semplice uses as a base of operations. It came into his hands after it was reclaimed from a space hulk by the Jade Serpents chapter. It is a relatively small transport vessel but still large parts of the ship remain empty. It is crewed mostly by servitors and has a living crew of only six thousand. The captain, Hyrule Gol was a minor merchant officer when the ship got its new crew. Over the years he has risen to command the vessel. He is not overly competent but so far Semplice has found no one to replace him. The hip is armed like the average ship of its size, that is to say, lightly. It has however been fitted with slighly more powerful engines.

Revised version of Semplice looks fine, although Dall still seems to be carrying a "Silk Blaster" rather than a "Silt Blaster". Actually, the more I think about it (so it's not just you and Marco), the less sense it makes -- it would sting like all hell but the worst it would do to someone is take off a few layers of skin cells. You can still do different without being overly impractical, and there's still plenty of ways to incorporate loads of weird field-related technobabble. Sonic blasters, for instance. You could even weaponise the field itself -- not suggesting you bring a conversion beamer to the party, mind you, but manipulating a repulsor field to tear something apart from within should be well within the purview of even the Mechanicus, never mind whoever designed the weapon. Granted, that would still be horribly impractical, but so are a lot of things in 40K.

Updated the OP with a partial cast list.

Initial plot hooks will go out to players soon™, most likely back end of Sunday.

FULL NAME: Narl Ravion

ALIASES: While unofficially Alliases are not used he is code named Reiver

RANK / AFFILIATION: Marshal / Adeptus Arbites

Physical Stats:
Place of Birth: Rypidor IV
Gender: Male
Height: 7"0'
Physical Appearance: Dark Olive Skinned, Grey eyes, square set jaw, cropped black hair and neat trimmed goatee beard, thin lips. Right handed.  

Narl is a walking power house of a man a towering figure with broad shoulders and heavily muscular body he bears the stern features of a man dedicated to the life he has chosen. Wear standard issue arbiter combat armour without any significant markings to signify him being a senior officer against his line troops save for a long issue storm coat.

During his long years of service Narl has received numerous injuries, his lower left leg is a bionic replacement shaped to mirror his natural leg, his right arm is a total bionic and features increased strength, he wears his regular armour over the arm and usually keeps it covered with combat gauntlets not out of shame or discomfort but out of a desire to maintain uniform, an advanced bionic eye lens has been fitted into his right eye socket with little in the way of external bionics it is discrete, the lens itself is a smooth silver surface  and features an infrascope and low light scope and target locator, implanted into his skull is a vox uplink allowing him to communicate with team mates without speaking.

PERSONALITY/BELIEFS: Is a staunch believer in the Imperial Faith and an supporter of the church and the authority of the Emperor, he is a resolute man determined and driven, yet he is not a fool he does not rush into situations blindly he is a tactical man a thinker and cautious when needed. Fiercely loyal to his subordinates and he refused to leave anyone behind in situations leading from the front he is the first and the last out of any situation. He is also willing to listen to the thoughts of those below him analysing each opinion and selecting the best approach.
 
QUIRKS/NOTES: Often mistaken for a brutish fool, but a cunning mind lies behind the stern mask of Narl  

ABILITIES / STRENGTHS / WEAKNESSES: Narl is a melee specialist, a brawler and fighter he is easily able to handle himself armed or otherwise, he's also well aware of the fact that "might does not make right" in the combat situations and has learned many styles of combat the utilise speed and agility over brute strength to compliment his natural prowess.  

Surprisingly agile for someone of his size he moves like a dancer when fighting yet when walking his strides are powerful and full of purpose, he is not often caught off his guard and if capable of fending off attackers from several directions.

While a drilled line marksman Narl true skills lie in closed quarter fire fights and he still prefers to use the issued shotguns of the Arbiters but has also found he has a skill with hand weapons as his strength allows him to ignore all but the most powerful of recoils from weapons giving his a high level of accuracy against targets.  

Narl prefers the subtle methods investigation and discrete action over the heavy handed and brutal public displays of Arbiter authority, this is often hindered by his size and he commonly defers these approaches to his subordinates, he carefully picks his force members to compliment his preferred methods.

WEAPONS AND EQUIPMENT:

Combat Shotgun - Mk IX Helax Pattern
Stubber - Calax Manstopper
Power Maul – Prefect IV Model
Full Carapace armour
Flak Storm Coat
Book of the Law
Frag Grenades X 4
Blind Grenades X 2
Smoke Grenaes X 4
Arbiter Helm – incorporating close feed vox scrambler link with team pairs with vox implant,

Narl and his team are known to operate from a requisitioned Crassus armoured assault carrier, the internals of the vehicle are retrofitted to allow the team prolonged deployment and incorporate bunks, kitchen, medical bay, armoury, master vox station. It is also known to transport a pair of patrol bikes to allow for rapid deployment.

Leads a Task for of 15 Arbitrators

1.   Narcia - Proctor, second in command, fiercely loyal to Narl, highly skilled markswoman.  
Shotgun, stubber, Power Maul

2.   Kaltos - Detective, mysterious, disliked beyond team, under cover specialist. (Snake)
Stubber X 2, Power Maul, Data slate, lock breaker
3.   Euphrati - Detective, sanctioned Psyker, reclusive, meek (Spook)
Stubber, focal rob (Like a force rob but not a weapon as such), Telepathic

4.   Varnias - Verispex, aged cynical, happy to challenge Narl. (Doc)
Shotgun, Power Maul, Field medical kit, field forensics kit
5.   Eisen- Chastener, dark and serious, master of interrogation. (Lash)
Shotgun, Suppression Shield, Power Maul, Book of Judgement
6.   Silon - Chaplin, Strict and stubborn sticks resolutely to the Lex Imperialis. (Book)

Specialist
7.   Uriah - Sergeant, Weapons specialist, Over protective of Lear and Narl
Power Maul, Stubber, Suppression Shield, What ever is needed from the armoury
8.   Kaarl - Heavy, simplistic outlook to life, tactical mind
Heavy Stubber, Shotgun, Power Maul

Arbitrators
9.   Lear - Younger sister of Uriah, head strong and eager to prove herself
10.   Chaldia - Stocky woman often mistaken for a man, quick tempered expert markswoman
Custom Assault Shotgun (AA12), Revolver, Suppression Shield
11.   Arla - Combat specialist, shuns firearms, fiery and zealous
Power Maul, Suppression Shield
12.   Lupus - Gear head, acts as operator for Crassus and entry and breech specialist  
Stubber, Compact shotgun, Assault buckler
13.   Van Heller – youngest of the team, unsure of himself, information gather and vox hacker
Shotgun, Stubber, Power Maul, Suppression Shield, Vox caster
14.   Zekka – Natural hunter, bombastic and lively, attractive
Compact Shotgun, Suppression Shield, Power Maul, las pistol
15.   Castus – Mastiff Handler, Jovial, very protective of his mastiffs.
Shotgun, 4X Cyber Mastiffs, power maul, data slate

The Team operates as a System wide strike team, assigned the Adeptus Arbiters Strike Ship Justified Fury they can traverse from planet to planet and make short warp jumps to nearby systems, the Strike Ship is of a similar size to a Cobra class escort.

In before CRASSUS ARMOURED ASSAULT TRANSPORT meme

Seems okay, mate, although I do wonder how he gets between worlds -- I'm guessing he could hitch a lift with one of the Inquisitors?

A brief outline of your squad's gear might be nice, even if it's as simple as "shotgun/shock maul/suppression shield" or similar under each entry. Sixteen characters in total is also a lot, but I'm not going to start complaining provided we can take a few casualties for realism. :P

I've added a short description of Semplice's ship and have been thinking about techno-babbling up a new weapon.

The Atinian gluon disruptor.
The weapon disrupts the gluons responsible by the strong interaction. Causing strong interaction to be disrupted leads to the collapse of atomic nuclei and hadrons in its target.

I know that this is quite unfeasible but with some proper Xenos Technoplogy(TM) it might even work.

Shame about the tank...

I just wanted something bigger than a Rhino on account of the team being 16 strong and not being able to fit into one and the next size option was either a super heavy troop transporter or a land raider :-D

to be fair the Crassus only has 4 heavy bolters as weapons and thick armour I was thinking of something a bit like the assault tank from Aliens and the Crassus seemed to fit, ah well maybe next time, he'll just have the leave it behind and take a smaller tank

Looking at the cyclops I'm afraid that it would bea bit on the small side to serve as a fully operational base, especially when it also carries two bikes. It can carry 35 men, which will be pretty cramped, but with the extra supplies your team will need and the extra space taken to allow then to sleep and the like it will probably be too stuffed. Perhaps he could use a small convoy of rhinos?

Quote from: Necris on February 01, 2012, 09:14:21 AMShame about the tank...

I'm fairly sure he wasn't slating it.

He was just referring to the CRASSUS ARMOURED ASSAULT TRANSPORT meme, which is not unlike the Ciaphas Cain, HERO OF THE IMPERIUM meme. Or the Othar Trygvassen, GENTLEMAN ADVENTURER meme.

Or for the hard of hearing, the BRIAN BLESSED meme.

Or on the Conclave, the traditional big yellow welcome.

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 01, 2012, 09:35:13 AMLooking at the cyclops I'm afraid that it would be a bit on the small side to serve as a fully operational base

No [EXCOMMUNICATE], Inquisitor (http://blog.kuon.cc/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/cyclops.png). Also, a bit too full of explosives. :P

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 01, 2012, 09:56:56 AM

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 01, 2012, 09:35:13 AMLooking at the cyclops I'm afraid that it would be a bit on the small side to serve as a fully operational base

No [EXCOMMUNICATE], Inquisitor (http://blog.kuon.cc/wp-content/uploads/2008/05/cyclops.png). Also, a bit too full of explosives. :P

Oops, I think I might have meant the Crassus, stupid, me, although, a cyclops could be a nice secret base for a band of evil miniature people. Most people lack the crazyness to try to infiltrate it, and it already has a built-in self destruct mechanism, what more could you want? (except for a volcano base on a moon of course).

That will teach me for watching Aliens while doing character generation

Another potential RP? Marvellous. I feel rather cynical about them all making it, though.

Like the opening. Dramatic. A bit Eisenhorn with the vid-cam thing, but that's not a bad thing.

'fraid I need a few more details/hooks before I can make a character for this, especially as the power level is slightly higher than normal (not that this is a bad thing). Aware you're planning tailored intro-hooks (great idea, did I do that once?) but need a bit more else I'll just come up with Generic Inquisitor Smith, which isn't my style. I could maybe get Sargoth out of storage, but I prefer to create new characters and frankly he's ready to be mothballed.

Quote from: Inquisitor Sargoth on February 01, 2012, 05:51:20 PM
Another potential RP? Marvellous. I feel rather cynical about them all making it, though.

I'm not entirely sure what you mean...

QuoteLike the opening. Dramatic. A bit Eisenhorn with the vid-cam thing, but that's not a bad thing.

I wasn't going for Eisenhorn in the slightest. If you remember an old White Dwarf from when the Tau first got introduced (back when Fat Bloke was fat and WD was actually worth reading), you might recall a bit of fluff about a guy who used to be Imperial Guard and then converted to the Tau'va; I based the vid-capture thing around how that was presented.

Quote'fraid I need a few more details/hooks before I can make a character for this, especially as the power level is slightly higher than normal (not that this is a bad thing). Aware you're planning tailored intro-hooks (great idea, did I do that once?) but need a bit more else I'll just come up with Generic Inquisitor Smith, which isn't my style. I could maybe get Sargoth out of storage, but I prefer to create new characters and frankly he's ready to be mothballed.

No worries, I'll try and get another demi-prologue up as soon as I've done some more job applications. I had a few ideas on the bus.
I'd rather not make too many details public, if I'm honest, but since you've already run an RP that had a previous iteration of Rowena in it, you know more than most of us anyway so feel free to PM me requests for anything you need to know, and I'll throw you more bones than a dig site.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 01, 2012, 09:56:56 AM

Quote from: Necris on February 01, 2012, 09:14:21 AMShame about the tank...

I'm fairly sure he wasn't slating it.

He was just referring to the CRASSUS ARMOURED ASSAULT TRANSPORT meme, which is not unlike the Ciaphas Cain, HERO OF THE IMPERIUM meme. Or the Othar Trygvassen, GENTLEMAN ADVENTURER meme.

Indeed. I'm absolutely fine with you throwing a CAAT into the mix. I was just making a funny comment on how it had inflated into a meme.

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 01, 2012, 08:41:26 AM
I've added a short description of Semplice's ship and have been thinking about techno-babbling up a new weapon.

The Atinian gluon disruptor.
The weapon disrupts the gluons responsible by the strong interaction. Causing strong interaction to be disrupted leads to the collapse of atomic nuclei and hadrons in its target.

I know that this is quite unfeasible but with some proper Xenos Technoplogy(TM) it might even work.

Bizarrely, this puts me in mind of Necron gauss flayers, though assuming the Atinians are Sufficiently Advanced Aliens (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SufficientlyAdvancedAlien), it's quite manageable.

I'm assuming the Unbroken is some kind of frigate?


EDIT: Apologies to Marco for making the assumption that Inquisitors Hallona and Haines know each other (to be fair, I stopped short of suggesting that it was through Andreas), but there's something new to whet your appetites. Apologies also to Sargy for stealing something he tormented me with about three years ago :P

We also know Haines' first name now, although the only reason I'd not revealed that one was because it wasn't anywhere in the IC thread yet -- it is now, so there we go.

Quote from: Koval on February 01, 2012, 06:14:13 PM
Apologies also to Sargy for stealing something he tormented me with about three years ago :P

Had a quick go. Not the same cipher, is it? All I got was gibberish. Damnit. Will have another look post-gym.

Updated the OP in both IC and OOC threads, both to standardise the style and to update with relevant info.

Sargy -- I may have just fooled you with your own encryption method :P

If you read straight down the right hand column, the word "Arse" can be found.

... is it something to do with the moon?

You had to make me go back and check (http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)

That wasn't intentional, honest.


We also have another update in which events that happened elsewhere, and about eighteen months prior (both in-universe and in real-time, oddly enough), are somehow relevant. Necris may remember the characters involved.
And as much as it probably ended up being Narmtastic (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Narm), this is what inevitably happens when you're trying to write Ham-To-Ham Combat (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HamToHamCombat) while being constantly distracted and suffering from a headache. :P

Quote from: Koval on February 01, 2012, 07:50:55 PM
Updated the OP in both IC and OOC threads, both to standardise the style and to update with relevant info.

Sargy -- I may have just fooled you with your own encryption method :P

Have you? I managed to get 'The ETA' followed by gibberish... It's been a while since I played with a scytale. Unless you're using another one of the (made-up) ciphers I used...

It's not a scytale. It's one you made up that left me, Gjl and just about everyone else that tried it utterly confused when you tried it on us. I don't even think it was a proper cipher in the end.

May drop a clue tonight if people try to solve it and can't :P

It is as moments such as this that I really hate myself for never spending any time with ciphers. A clue would be very nice.
The Unbroken actually is just a small transport, almost unarmed and lighly armoured, not much use in a fight but thats not its purpose, it just carries the inquisitor and his staff, and the cargo bays are useful for labs and torture chambers and the like.
I really hope to not run into that World Eater though.

Quote from: Koval on February 02, 2012, 06:41:01 AMMay drop a clue tonight if people try to solve it and can't

Don't worry. Riley knows what it says, although I suspect she cheated and gave it to Jael - not that I can blame her. She is a busy woman, but he does relish such things.

And yes, it does count as a cipher.

I've also worked it out. It's quite satisfying when it all falls into place in front of your eyes. It, along with the new post, have convinced me that Ambrose is getting into something where he will be very far out of depth and areas of expertise.

Sorry, I am very busy with homework (and my DM article), but If I get the chance I will make an attempt.
Looking for the clue though  ;)

The clue is: You can solve it in one move. :P

Immensely helpful clue that :P also had some ideas about a potential plot hook for Ambrose so PMd you.

I don't get it, either I am thinking in the wrong way or I don't know enough english to figure it out.

The second clue is: It reads horizontally.

Got it

P.S very doomsaying isn't it

I have some parts but can't get any further. There is a lot of doom already though.

Yep I'll never make a cryptologist :-(

Quote from: Necris on February 03, 2012, 09:10:51 AM
Yep I'll never make a cryptologist :-(

Four minutes. Perhaps I should.

well so far i have only managed to make the word death

I blame the 7 month old

Quote from: Necris on February 03, 2012, 09:28:12 AMwell so far i have only managed to make the word death

That's a red herring. Try rearranging the columns to see what you can get out of the LAST line (remembering that there are two A-s that might appear in either order*). The first line isn't one 5 letter word.

*Not that you necessarily need to move them.

doh

well that fell into place scarily easily

Now even I have it, I was obviously going into a completely wrong direction.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 03, 2012, 09:36:02 AM

Quote from: Necris on February 03, 2012, 09:28:12 AMwell so far i have only managed to make the word death

That's a red herring.

Also an unintentional one.

Quote from: Macabre on February 03, 2012, 09:25:06 AM

Quote from: Necris on February 03, 2012, 09:10:51 AM
Yep I'll never make a cryptologist :-(

Four minutes. Perhaps I should.

To be fair, Sargy was shticking himself when something similar foxed me way back when. It wasn't my intention to throw together a horrendously convoluted mess that I couldn't then rearrange myself, hence borrowing something (comparatively) simple that stuck in my head.

Dearie me. The simplest tricks are the best, aren't they? Chilling. Also reminds me quite a lot of the big twist at the end of Shades of Grey, actually...

Which never got finished and which you never shared with me... :P

That should be all the personalised plot hooks sent out the now, unless Sargy feels like joining in.

Thanks, when do we start our investigations?

I'll try to put something up by Monday evening.

Quote from: Koval on February 03, 2012, 08:34:42 PM
Which never got finished and which you never shared with me... :P

If you want I'll tell you...

Still interested in signing up, but I wouldn't mind a bit more background info. Had a few very off-the-wall ideas, unusually I'm thinking of playing a non-Imperial for this one. Problem is, not sure if these are too distinctive or powerful to be usable, or if they'd have a good reason to be here. Eldar outcast/ranger working to thwart/bring about a Farseer's vision, a chaos magus who made a deal with a daemon as a young man without realising the consequences and survives by continually making new deals (he's ended up pretty damn powerful) or, the most out there idea, a banished (and ritually blinded) Word Bearer on a pilgrimage of sorts. Mostly he'd act behind the scenes through servants and intermediaries (possibly including our magus), as it's hard to hide when you're a chaos marine.

QuoteIf you want I'll tell you...

Being as it involves Rowena, I think it might be helpful :P

QuoteStill interested in signing up, but I wouldn't mind a bit more background info. Had a few very off-the-wall ideas, unusually I'm thinking of playing a non-Imperial for this one.

Some of that stuff may be a bit sensitive at the moment, so if you could PM me with things you want to know, and how we can play around with the non-Imperial option (Eldar currently looks like the best option*), then we can hammer something out together.

Quoteit's hard to hide when you're a chaos marine.

If Goruvich is any indication, then hiding is very definitely not on many Chaos Marine's agendas.


*The other two are good ideas, to be fair, but if other RP'ers aren't careful, both of them risk turning into "Sargoth is the Big Bad" given what the message says, or alternatively, "we have two competing Big Bads" if Goruvich also gets interpreted poorly.

In case anyone needs a ride, you could always take passage on the Unbroken. It is in port near the system and because Semplice is posing as a down on his luck rogue trader passage should be securable I think.

I also posted a first part to develop a bit what Semplice is like.

I'm liking Semplice. He seems to just exude authority in spite of being stuck in a wheelchair with just one arm and one eye still working.

Rather surprised by Iota's mention of DFP though. Isn't that stuff used to treat glaucoma and/or make insecticide?

I used a semirandom abbrevation because I did not want to get too technical and involved with that. Diisopropyl fluorophosphate can also be used agains glaucoma. I intended it to be one of her extra blood proteins.

So, Iota does have insecticide and/or glaucoma-treating drugs running through her bloodstream. Remind me to come to her if we ever need any bug spray :P

The final piece of the prologue is now live. The speaker, summed up in three tropes, is somewhere between The Soulless (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheSoulless), Neutral Evil (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Neutral%20Evil)* and Shell-Shocked Veteran (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ShellShockedVeteran). He's also beyond ancient and doesn't afraid of anything.


*Because this guy doesn't have enough emotion in him to be either Lawful Evil or Chaotic Evil.

Yes, so don't try to use tyranids to eat her.

The former techmarine is very, very scary. I'm afraid that my characters will be in far over their heads with such baddies.

I am in the process of writing my first instalment detailing the bridge of the Hammer of Justice

Thought occurs - how will those without Inquisitorial clearance get through the blockade? I'll have a think...

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 05, 2012, 07:38:37 PM
Yes, so don't try to use tyranids to eat her.

The former techmarine is very, very scary. I'm afraid that my characters will be in far over their heads with such baddies.

There are five Inquisitors plus attendant staff, and a sixteen-strong Arbites task force in a Crassus, not to mention any allies you may or may not find on the planet itself. I could honestly throw a Bloodthirster at you guys* and sure, you'd be a bit worse for wear and less numerous, but you'd be okay.


*It's not my intention to throw a Bloodthirster at anyone. Sort of "been there, done that"

Quote from: Inquisitor Sargoth on February 05, 2012, 07:49:03 PM
Thought occurs - how will those without Inquisitorial clearance get through the blockade? I'll have a think...

If Eldar, webway. If Chaos character, Warp walking and/or blockade-runner. :P

It would always be possible to try to sneak through the blockade, depending on what it consists of of course.

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 05, 2012, 07:55:10 PM
It would always be possible to try to sneak through the blockade, depending on what it consists of of course.

They'd have taken a few losses in the run-up to being loaned as an interdiction fleet, and the squadrons were reorganised thereafter. What's left is as follows:

-Asculum, Lunar class (commanding officer: Vice-Admiral Cairn Burnett)
-Lord Tiberius, Tyrant class

-Orchomenus, Dictator class
-Resaena, Tyrant class
-Archduke Gordian, Lunar class

-Claymore Squadron, Sword class (3)
-Cyclone Squadron, Cobra class (2)
-Foehammer Squadron, Sword class (3)
-Manticore Squadron, Sword class (2)
-Templar Squadron, Cobra class (4)

-Assorted system monitors and non-Warp-capable ships of various configurations.


Note: it's very likely that the various ships will be spread out in different orbits around the planet, so you wouldn't be facing off against all that at once.

Should probably add: Feel free to start arriving.

Little prologue to Ambrose's involvement, I'll write something up tomorrow for the present and his arrival and what not.

What's the planet like when we arrive?

Rebuilding. The capital city, Stonechapel, is largely rebuilt, but in order to get the city back to normal they had to siphon people from other cities. Stonechapel's population is just a smidge over 55 million.

A lot of other cities are either in various states of being rebuilt (very slow when the population gets cut in half!), or they're nearly on a ghost-town level where it's just accepted that certain districts will never be rebuilt or cleared. That, or they're literal holes in the ground. With an estimated two and a half billion war dead, there's also a lot of places and bodies that just aren't accounted for.

The interdiction fleet means that no ships can get in or out without permission, but seeing as there are no starports (and any attempt to build one gets "discouraged" by the nearest cruiser), it won't do much good anyway. As a result, unless the interdiction fleet lifts, the planet will be facing famine in three years at most.

I explained it in rather a lot more detail to Sargy when we were hammering out the important points together, but suffice it to say that the planet's a bit screwed.


Oh, and one teensy little thing about Ambrose's prologue-post; you might want to run back over the dates. The vid-capture was received in 008.M42, so I'll grant you that, but there was a delay of fifteen years between the vid-capture having been made and it having been received.

By the by, if anyone wants to know the system name, it's Coriolis Alpha. ΣΘΦΡ-Interdicta is the system's third planet. I realise most of you would have wanted to know this a lot sooner, but ΣΘΦΡ-Interdicta gets the "it's a forbidden world" point across a lot more clearly.

Is there a way in which one is supposed to pronounce ΣΘΦΡ-Interdicta?

Sigma Theta Phi Rho? The latinisation is a rather ugly "Sthphr", although pronounceable as in the sounds in Aesthetic and Phrase...

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 06, 2012, 12:50:20 AM
Is there a way in which one is supposed to pronounce ΣΘΦΡ-Interdicta?

Sigma Theta Phi Rho? The latinisation is a rather ugly "Sthphr", although pronounceable as in the sounds in Aesthetic and Phrase...

They lopped off some vowels, changed the v to a ph, then changed the lettering (in this case to Greek, though I could've used some other alphabet system. Now if only I could read Cyrillic!).

"Sigma Theta Phi Rho Interdicta" is enough of a mouthful that most people would probably get confused just trying to work out where it is. :P

I'll PM you the planet's actual name (and I don't just mean Coriolis Alpha III; it does have its own name)

I was going to ask what it was - I assumed the inhabitants at least would still use that. I may need it if it comes up in my character's prophetic visions.

I just posted up the arrival of the Unbroken. I hope it is good enough.

Apologies. I was about to send Marco a PM, but my interwebs stopped working and then I had to leave to go to work. I'll PM both Marco and Sargy the now.

Dolnikan: Looks fine, although I do wonder how you're going to run the blockade. Does the Unbroken have Normandy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/VideoGame/MassEffect?from=Main.MassEffect)'s stealth system (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StealthInSpace)? :P

Marco: is it okay if Haines and Andreas catch a lift with Riley? I haven't actually given Haines a ship, which was a bit silly of me.

Quote from: Koval on February 06, 2012, 06:27:39 PMDoes the Unbroken have Normandy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/VideoGame/MassEffect?from=Main.MassEffect)'s stealth system (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StealthInSpace)?

Shame it's not Marco in this RP. Because the Ynys (being a smuggling ship) was designed to run blockades - either by through the generous application of pseudoscience stealth, or simply by having engines packed so full of stolen, illegal or (these days, anyway) Inquisition level tech that it goes like a jan'kan with a hot poker up its arse.

QuoteMarco: is it okay if Haines and Andreas catch a lift with Riley? I haven't actually given Haines a ship, which was a bit silly of me.

That's alright with me. I'm working on Riley's introductory passage right now, and while I'm not exactly sure when you'll get it (between trying the new warband and the Warhound titan I'm trying to get ready for the IGT, my spare time is wee bit pinched), you can kick off in the meantime.

It's easy to assume those two are elsewhere on the Sword of Integrity (elsewhere being somewhere other than Riley's office). If you want, you can decide whether you think it's still in the warp, approaching the planet or already in orbit. It shouldn't be relevant to what I'm writing.

Note: I've decided the Captain is Lord-Captain Arkus Mason - big, square shouldered, lantern jaw, clean shaven, short blond hair, large blue naval coat, bionic left eye. Laughs at his own jokes and is mostly "fun" in his manner but, obviously, not someone to mess with - should that be relevant.

It's interesting to see that all the Dark Heresy GMing means that I'm getting a lot better at coming up with NPCs on the fly.

Ambrose has arrived, I assume the interdiction fleet will let through an Inquisitor?
I've also invented a ship for him, just a sprint trader no real armament just a basic form of transport with a long suffering captain.

I was thinking about entering the system with as many systems turned off as necessary, includig the engines, momentum should be enough to get near the planet. The fleet will be easy to detect with all their systems turned on leaking radiation all over the place. I will approach from behind the sun accekkerating by gravitic slingshots. The planet will be passed by at a distance and a shuttle launched. Then the Unbroken will go into hiding in an asteroid belt or something like that.

Holst has arrived, pomp and circumstance: up to 11!

Quote from: Herald on February 07, 2012, 05:22:26 PM
Ambrose has arrived, I assume the interdiction fleet will let through an Inquisitor?
I've also invented a ship for him, just a sprint trader no real armament just a basic form of transport with a long suffering captain.

I'll PM you in a moment. Just got in, something's playing utter havoc with the Cambridgeshire buses this evening, and I'm uber cranky so it's safest if I leave it a bit before I say anything.

Octavian -- just a quick notice; you'll have to land in a shuttle (an Aquila lander is probably par for the course). The reason for that is because it's very hard to land a 5km long cruiser if you A) want it to get off the ground again B) want it to stay in one piece*. The closest they can get is a low planetary orbit.

This isn't me being mean here, by the way (or uber cranky...), it's just physics being a pain in the backside.

*If you actually tried to land your cruiser, then it wouldn't be able to support its own mass. The Adeptus Mechanicus actually have to build ships in orbital shipyards, or at space stations, just because that's the only way to build them without worrying about mass/gravity interactions.


Dolnikan -- Well I guess they could mistake the Unbroken for an asteroid, but you'd have to be extremely careful in case someone looks out of a window and sees you coming. That, and if a space rock is too big, they're likely to blow it up in case it falls on the planet. It's actually safer in that respect to use a shuttle, because they're more likely to just assume you're a small meteoroid, lump of space garbage, et cetera (and not only is that more likely to burn up on re-entry, but tryin to shoot it, and missing, is very very bad)

On a side note, the interdiction fleet refuels itself using resources from within the system itself (promethium refineries on other worlds, food from agri-moons, and so on). While there will occasionally (and inevitably) be relief provided for thousands of otherwise stranded Naval crew, and an inevitable changing of shifts, it's fairly infrequent (if regular), and generally takes the form of a Battlefleet Pacificus relief mission. Having to sit in the same place for nineteen years is too much even for the Navy.

Yeah, I knew he couldn't land the cruiser, I meant a shuttle, but he was given clearance to land is what I meant!

Okay, but just keep in mind that you'll have to land in the sticks 'cos there's no starport. Hope Holst brought some good walking-shoes.

?? sticks?

Middle of nowhere and/or town outskirts. There's not actually much scope for landing near Stonechapel, since it's built around six hills. Your best bet is landing near another, more accessible city and starting your investigation there.

Some nearby towns and cities are Dornsmount (near a big mountain with the same name), Coveton (market town by the River Sacris), Hilcenter (which is on top of a very large, but very shallow, hill), Haverkirk (in a valley) and Portiswade (by the sea). Or make up a town -- it's a big planet. Coveton and Dornsmount are fairly close to recovery, other places are likely to still be total dives.

Thanks, I have other things to work on currently, so another post may not be for some time (few days)

No worries, everyone else needs to catch up too, and I've got lessons to plan.

I'm just wondering, how far out are the ships. I was planning on flying the ship to a relatively small distance from the planet and then taking a shuttle, for a trip of about 0,01 AU. I don;t know much about the speeds of those things but think that it would take about a week to reach the planet(I know that this would be at an insane speed). The final part of the trip would take a few days.

Smaller ships (the system monitors and Cobra squadrons) will be orbiting the planet at around 10,000 to 12,000 km away. The various Sword squadrons will be further out, around 20,000 km. Cruisers will be sat out in the planet's Clarke belt (I'm no astrophysicist, so assume about 36,000 km out), with Archduke Gordian over a point due south of Stonechapel, and ready to open fire as and when required.

Since I'm bringing Clarke belts into this, assume the planet is roughly Earthlike (maybe a little larger) with one moon, and has a twenty-two hour day.

That should leave my 1,5 mln kilometers far enough to send out a shuttle I guess. It will of course be launched from behind the moon to mask the launch. How large is the moon? And are there any other celestial objects of note?(if this is irrelevant I will simply make some up.)

I'm on my 6th attempt to post my arrival but every time I try an post the conclave stuff up

Likewise, on several threads! It's infuriating.

I couldn't even get onto the Conclave since this time last night... Try drafting in a word-processor?

Dolnikan: Assume there is one moon, about Triton-sized. Re. other celestial objects, make something up -- it's more fun that way ;)

Marco, Necris: I'll put up a move-the-story-on post once you've given us your intros. Sargy's intro doesn't necessarily have to come before what I'm planning :)

I'm not sure how much of an intro you needed, but I've put something down. It came surprisingly easily when I actually got on with it.

I'm fairly sure non-refractive glass isn't very feasible (perhaps with meta-materials), but it was such a cool idea when it came to mind that I just had to go with it.

Thanks, Marco. I'll get something up myself when I get a break from this bloody essay I have to write.

Copied over from Darkness And Light OOC.

Sargoth and I are Facebooking each other; he's having extreme problems getting onto the Conclave, never mind posting. I have no idea what's causing it, but it's the same problem I had during the week.

Any advice I can pass on to him on what he can do would be appreciated.

He's already tried:
-cleaning out all his temporary Internet files, cookies, et al
-shutting down and turning back on
-resetting his router

There's probably a few other things he could try, but just keep in mind that he'll probably be a bit late to the party...

triple

Introducing Madoc Haines and Andreas.

Marco: Hopefully my inventing a Lieutenant Geester on board the Sword of Integrity was okay. Do you want to get us in-system, and onto the Asculum or shall I do that?

Quote from: Koval on February 11, 2012, 08:26:21 PMMarco: Hopefully my inventing a Lieutenant Geester on board the Sword of Integrity was okay.

Given it's a ship with thousands of crew and enough troopers to ensure the ship remains in the hands of the Inquisition, naming a few of them is hardly an issue!

QuoteDo you want to get us in-system, and onto the Asculum or shall I do that?

Sort of. I've posted something. I took the liberty of assuming Burnett would offer them dinner as well in a sort of "You wanna get a coffee and talk?" way.

Take it from here as you wish.

As far as the numbers, I'm fairly sure that while there are more Inquisitors, Burnett is only aware of two of them.
I've chosen three days transit as it sounds reasonably believable for a fast frigate that's managed to make a reasonably close jump. If you'd prefer more or less, I can change that.

~~~~~

EDIT: Need to start the timer for how long it is before I run out of text colours. Well, in any case, I hope it helps people keep track of who's saying what in a conversation without adding lots of "Riley said" and "Haines conjectured" lines.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 12, 2012, 02:13:43 AM

Quote from: Koval on February 11, 2012, 08:26:21 PMMarco: Hopefully my inventing a Lieutenant Geester on board the Sword of Integrity was okay.

Given it's a ship with thousands of crew and enough troopers to ensure the ship remains in the hands of the Inquisition, naming a few of them is hardly an issue!

Thanks. Haines does tend to jump into military training regimes during Warp transit -- it's his way of staving off boredom -- but I wasn't sure how far to go with it.

Oh, and introducing Andreas was pretty fun. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ServileSnarker)

Quote

QuoteDo you want to get us in-system, and onto the Asculum or shall I do that?

Sort of. I've posted something. I took the liberty of assuming Burnett would offer them dinner as well in a sort of "You wanna get a coffee and talk?" way.

Take it from here as you wish.

I'll do that a bit later. Essays on education theory suck.

QuoteAs far as the numbers, I'm fairly sure that while there are more Inquisitors, Burnett is only aware of two of them.

True, but even one Inquisitor in-system would be rather worrying. The fact that Burnett will now know of four, one of whom is built like a brick outhouse, is probably enough to make him change his breeches.

QuoteI've chosen three days transit as it sounds reasonably believable for a fast frigate that's managed to make a reasonably close jump. If you'd prefer more or less, I can change that.

No, that's sensible.

~~~~~

QuoteEDIT: Need to start the timer for how long it is before I run out of text colours. Well, in any case, I hope it helps people keep track of who's saying what in a conversation without adding lots of "Riley said" and "Haines conjectured" lines.

You have so many to choose from, though! You could use this if it isn't too close to teal. Or maybe this. Or this one, or this one. And that's just blues.

If anyone wants to use Vice-Admiral Cairn Burnett in any posts, then I generated a suitable likeness in EVE (http://i40.tinypic.com/2iaqyyx.jpg).

It was originally going to be Andreas, but I decided that this guy looked A) too close to Severino B) too proud and arrogant to be Andreas.

I hope to be able to post something today or tomorrow, depending on how well the writing goes this time.

Postage, now with 70% more colour so that Marco doesn't run out so quickly. :P

Haines' arms coffer was shamelessly stolen from Rogue Trader (in which it's a starting option for one character class, and is fairly easy to acquire even if you don't start with one). I decided that his thunder hammer would fit fairly snugly if it went in diagonally.

Marco, it's your call whether you want to post the start of the meeting with Burnett, or whether you'd prefer me to do it. If you do, then since Andreas doesn't really have a title, Haines will probably introduce him as "Arch-Curator Tuominen" or something to that effect.

double

If anyone's still sorting out an intro post, then keep in mind that I'd like to move the story on tomorrow evening (Tuesday) -- I appreciate there are some technical difficulties, so I might email round.

The planned story development shouldn't affect outstanding intros that heavily, though :P

After I get home today I will probably finish Semplice's arrival on the planet, but nothing more than that.

Bios for Sargy's characters, for when he gets back onto the 'clave:

Quote from: Sargoth, via FacebookOOC Bios for the 'The Maimed'

Sonneillon

Sonneillon was born on Colchis and inducted into the Word Bearers at the time of the Great Crusade. He was as much a philosopher as a warrior, hardly uncommon in the 18th Legion, but a strain of rationalism was. Among the pious and fanatical brothers of the Word Bearers he was a veritable Doubting Thomas. Still, his scientific mindset meant he was ideally suited to serve in the Apothecarion.

When the Legion turned from the worship of the Emperor, Sonneillon did so without sorrow, for the in secret he had never truly believed in the Emperor's divinity. Lorgar's new patrons fascinated him – he witnessed what could only be described as miracles again and again, saw daemons (some wearing or sharing the flesh of his brothers) and perhaps for the first in his life, Sonneillon believed.

After the Heresy, Sonneillon joined his brothers in the Eye of Terror, where he witnessed dark miracles that eclipsed anything he had hitherto witnessed; worlds shaped like spirals and discs orbiting stars that burned with cold; sentient planets that moved through the aether, consuming other stellar bodies in a grotesque hunger; hollow forge-worlds and daemons as large as star systems. It then his doubts were rekindled – the chaos gods, the dark pantheon, were creatures of madness and illogic. True, they rewarded those who served them – his own Legion especially – though these rewards were just as often curses (though his brothers seldom regarded them that way). Sonneillon's new gods were capricious and their ties to the hell-realm of the warp lead him to the heretical notion espoused by the pre-Heresy Imperium; that the chaos gods and daemons were little more than extradimensional aliens, reliant on the energies of the warp and powerless without it.

Sonneillon did not voice his suspicions, but he spoke to the hereteks who served the Word Bearers, to natives of the Eye both primitive and advanced, even (in rare times of alliance) to the more rational and polite members of other Traitor Legions. He saw how to some Legions the chaos gods were nothing more than a weapon, a tool for their own ambitions. He volunteered to help translate stolen eldar texts after a successful Webway raid and learned much. Sonneillon was now convinced that the Word Bearers were wrong in their view of the chaos gods, as was the Imperium, the tech-heretics, the other traitor Legions, everyone. Sonneillon wanted to understand what he suspected was beyond mortal comprehension. He wanted to know what he had unwittingly sold his soul to/

The Word Bearers are among the few Legions to have retained a leadership structure, fractured and disparate as they may be, and Sonneillon spoke to his Apostle and begged to be granted leave to pursue what he called a pilgrimage. The Apostle demanded to know why and the two would come to blows in the conversation that followed. Sonneillon expected to be put to death for heresy, but to his surprise the Apostle granted his wish, allowing his pilgrimage, though both of them and the rest of the host knew it was to be exile. Sonneillon vowed to return with the truth and the Apostle, knowing the futility of his quest, laughed. The two had each accused one other of lacking vision in their argument, so as punishment and penance the Apostle plucked out Sonneillon's eyes. He has taken no steps to replace them.

To Jacques'eyes, Sonnellion is like an ancient statue, handsome and powerful of feature but marred by scars. His armour is not the red of his Legion, nor the bone-white of an Apothecary, being the grey colour of naked ceramite (not unlike that of the pre-Heresy Word Bearers). All adornments have been filled away and the two antlers that once crowned his helm have been snapped off (the bases of each remain). He carries his old bolter, a stolen flamer (with a modified handle) which he uses as a hand flamer and power sword (again, with a handle resized for his hands). The weapon is a thin rapier that is essentially an unusually thin short sword in his hands.

Sonneillon is a capable warrior, in spite of being blind, an expert battlefield medic and has picked up a fair amount of basic sorcery as a Word Bearer. He's also very calm and rational, for a chaos marine, with little time for insults or gloating (though he's known to make the odd meandering pseudo-philosophical speech to his subordinates). He is guided by spiritualism, following visions and dreams, as much as his rationalist tendencies. Jacques has next to no understanding of him.

Jacques Volos

Jacques Volos was never ambitious or malign enough to become a magus by choice but he wasn't left with one. Born the youngest son of a noble house, there seemed little role for him. His eldest brother was to inherit his father's title, the second-eldest was captain of the house guard and the others were all married off in political marriages to other houses or else joined the Ecclesiarchy. Such a fate was reserved for Jacques, too, but he was always rebellious youth. He gambled, fell in with criminals crowd and was eventually disowned.

Finding himself penniless and powerless, surrounded by criminals he owned money too, he sezed upon a lifetime dangled in front of him. He entered into a pact with a magus and found he soon had money enough and his enemies died mysterious (and utterly horrible) deaths. Then the magus came to collect, and he did not come along, showing Jacques for the first time what manner of creatures he had dealt with and what the true price was.

The magus had underestimated how desperate Jacques was and was stabbed and killed with his own dagger. The real threat circled Jacques, killing those he was close to, taunting him with horrifying nightmares and visions, drawing out his suffering before it would come to claim his soul as punishment for a broken deal. Jacques picked up sorcery quickly, because his life depended on it. He had always been intelligent, though never motivated enough to make use of it, with loose morals and an inventive streak. He summoned the powers of the warp and made new deals, staving off the daemon on his trail for a time (though only gaining more enemies in the long run).

Jacques has been running since, fleeing from city to city, world to world, striking new deal to pay off the dark powers. The souls of innocents. Chaos. Disorder. Too afraid of discovery to act for himself, Jacques became like the magus who first made a deal with him, inflicting his fate onto others without guilt. Eventually his actions stirring up and helping chaos cults on a border world attracted the attention of Sonneillon and he was offered a simple choice. As always, he chose life and became Sonneillon's public face and main agent (under the watchful eyes of Remiel, of course).

He is terrified of his master and his silent servants and has little understanding of their actions. He has a good idea of what chaos is, however, having witnessed more daemons than he'd care to count. He also understands, to his horror, that daemons do not make deals for souls – they have souls enough. Daemons make deals for their own twisted amusement or, more commonly, to gain footholds in reality and he's seen what they like to do.

Jacques is charming, if a bit smarmy, and an elegant liar. To the wary and suspicious he appears too much like a con-man (which he more-or-less is) but he tends to impress such doubters with a show of power.

Perhaps the best way to describe Jacques 'appearance is to imagine a young, good-looking rock star who peaked early and succumbed to drugs as his success was forgotten. Jacques was once a handsome and charming man but these days he looks sallow and tired, with the first signs of grey at his temples and lines upon his forehead. His clothing was once fashionable and well-tailored, but now it looks increasingly frayed, patched and shabby. He is missing the last two fingers on his right hand and the other digits are stained with nicotine. Most of his teeth are replacements and he is currently missing one of his top incisors. Below the knee his left leg is a simple bionic replacement and he walks with a barely perceptible limp as a result. He habitually lies about how he received his injuries (but he habitually lies about most things). Though he one sported a magnificent ponytail, these days he wears his dark hair short. He has a well-groomed goatee and his eyes are brown and cold. He carries a laspistol he dislikes using and a customised revolver he seldom loads (be wary of ammunition when he does).

Remiel

Jacques has little idea where and how Sonneillon obtained the services of Remiel – the fact that he lacks a tongue is a major contributor. Remiel is lithe and well-muscled and is a master of close combat, wielding a telescopic spear and two short swords. He moves like a dancer, light on his slippered feet when walking and possessed of a fluid, acrobatic grace in combat. He shaves his head short. His eyes are violent, implying he is of Cadian (or other near/within-Eye) stock.

His loyalty to Sonneillon appears to be unquestioning, perhaps odd considering he cannot communicate with his master even using sign language (Jacques has learned enough to communicate with him). Name is afraid of him and dislikes the way he stares. He mentally considers him Sonneillon's hound and knows should ever betray his master Remiel would be sent to bring him to heel.

Mordecai

Mordecai is Sonneillon's personal serf, manservant and artificer who joined him in exile. He is a eunuch, thin and soft-voiced. His hairless chin is pointed and he usually wears a slight smirk. His hair is grey, but his age is fairly indeterminate. Jacques finds him sinister.

Would have put these in the text, but facebook isn't HTML. A few relevant tropes for you. Not that many.

Sonneillon -
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheHeretic
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CrisisOfFaith
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheExile

Jacques –
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheCorrupter
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DealWithTheDevil
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DragonWithAnAgenda (Sort of)
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheWatson (With regard to how we'll mainly be seeing the Maimed).
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ThoseTwoBadGuys (Has shades of this with his 'partner', Remiel)

Remiel-
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheVoiceless
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SilentPartner
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SubmissiveBadass

Mordecai –
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/EunuchsAreEvil
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BewareTheQuietOnes

double

The latest character to be introduced was drawn up together with Sargy a few years ago, including his apparent allegiance. I just never got around to doing an awful lot with him until now.

Besides which, since Semplice is Ordo Xenos, I felt I had to throw Dolnikan a bone :P

The story itself will be moving on tomorrow evening, but like I said, this shouldn't mean drastic rewrites of intro posts.

This is getting very interesting. An actual alien.

Chaos Marines, Dark Eldar, Thunder hammer weilding Inquisitors...Ambrose is going to die....

That is all.

The last one is on your side, Herald (or so we hope)

Invited Ambrose to dinner, hope that's ok.

You're missing an Inquisitor in your numbers, Herald.

Ambrose is one of four Inquisitors Burnett knows of (Barkley himself, Holst, Hallona & Haines) and Burnett was having dinner with both Riley and Madoc.

I'm somehow back on... this intermittent activity is getting annoying.

For anyone that would like to know, Haines looks like this (http://i39.tinypic.com/5fis5e.jpg) (notably, EVE doesn't let you render beards, so he looks like a weird cross between Geezer Butler, Richard Branson, and Noel Edmonds, but strangely enough it works), and Andreas looks like this (http://i42.tinypic.com/1gk3er.jpg) (and yes, the back of his skull is made of metal)

I'll get my next update up either tonight (as I said I would) or tomorrow morning (if worst comes to worst).

Necris, if you're still here: I've weighed up the pros and cons of you writing your many-times-aborted intro post out, and decided that it must've been so stressful for you to write that changing the pace of the story might at least let you get something new (and decidedly less stressful) down. I know I've encountered this before, where perfectly good posts just refuse to go live, and letting the story flow for a bit before adapting to the new development just helped me get it out of my system, so hopefully it'll do the trick for you as well. That's not to say I don't still want you on board -- I do -- but considering what the 'Clave is doing to us all, it's best to avoid getting worked up as much as possible.

Herald: I've noticed a ship called the Spear of Light -- should I assume this is one of the system monitor ships / escort vessels, to which you've given a name?

double

I'm going to split this up over tonight and tomorrow, purely because the cliffhanger gives you a bit of time to react to what this "situation" might be (don't worry, it's not Semplice being discovered -- it's rather a lot more major than that)

'clave seems to be working - at least for the last five minutes. Tempted to post a corrected version of the bios - there are a few typos and a rather crucial missing word (Namely, that Jacques' revolver may be loaded with magical/daemonic ammunition on occasion).

Also, assuming I keep this connexion, will read the IC post and get cracking on my introduction. I don't think it's too big a worry if the Maimed arrive late to the party - they are crashing, after all. What's the planet's unofficial name again?

spear of light is some ship in the interdicition fleet i've given a name to. I assumed the admiral didn't know about haines as he only got sent hallona's, ambrose's and holst's codes so doesnt actually know haines is there

While only one set of Inquisitorial codes was necessary to grant the right to be in interdicted space, I assure you that Lord-Captain Mason did report Haines' presence:

Quote"He wishes to extend his personal greetings and an invitation for both you and Madoc to meet and dine with him aboard the Asculum."
"Serendipity.", a smile appeared on her lips, "Yes, confirm his invitation. And do so on Lord Haines' behalf too."

:P

Good to see you back Sargy.

Quote from: Inquisitor Sargoth on February 15, 2012, 12:51:54 AM
'clave seems to be working - at least for the last five minutes. Tempted to post a corrected version of the bios - there are a few typos and a rather crucial missing word (Namely, that Jacques' revolver may be loaded with magical/daemonic ammunition on occasion).

Welcome back! I'll delete the post I made, if you do present an updated set of bios.

QuoteAlso, assuming I keep this connexion, will read the IC post and get cracking on my introduction. I don't think it's too big a worry if the Maimed arrive late to the party - they are crashing, after all.

Absolutely, but it might be best to wait until after I've finished resolving the "situation" on the Asculum's bridge. Speaking of which, I just realised that there's not an awful lot to which you guys can really respond, but working out who's doing what, going where, etc. would be useful, so that I don't forget about people's servants or suggest that they're in two places at once (or neither) once things start rolling.

QuoteWhat's the planet's unofficial name again?

Check your PM inbox, else I'll Facebook it to you if it's not there.

Quote from: Koval on February 13, 2012, 09:47:05 PM
The latest character to be introduced was drawn up together with Sargy a few years ago, including his apparent allegiance. I just never got around to doing an awful lot with him until now.

I'm assuming this is the dark eldar? I don't recall them at all... Far too much meth betwen now and then, clearly. Will post updated bios and get you an introduction in a day or two.

I've posted a passage posted on Koval's behalf, given he's suffering issues getting on the forum.

It can be assumed that any companions that you thought may have been with you have escaped by other means.

Double.

And I've posted something of my own based on one possible result of having a huge Inquisitor tripping onto an Inquisitrix about half his weight.
Hope you guys like writing confused Inquisitrixes, because she's probably going to start becoming considerably less coherent when the concussion kicks in proper.

I have access again. (This is probably going to become my most frequent post-starter in this OOC from here on in, after some variation on "multiple post")

To all fans of Mass Effect: I couldn't help myself when I was writing that -- Sovereign has exactly the same emotionless contempt for "inferior beings" that I want to portray in Zagan, so what started as a shout-out somehow evolved into line-borrowing.

To anyone that wants to know what Zagan's ship is: An Exorcist-class grand cruiser has guns on the top and launch bays underneath. Originally the ship was just going to be a heavily modified Vengeance-class, with the gun decks hollowed out to make room for launch bays, but I decided that explaining that in-character was just too complicated, so the ship evolved into an Exorcist so that I could avoid a headache later on.

The guns, in this instance, are laser batteries -- Zagan's been around for long enough that not having to care about stocking up on macrocannon shells is a matter of convenience.

I wrote a short piece about Semplice's reaction to what has just happened. I must confess that I did not expect that.

Well, it's still a distraction that helps you :P

Octavian: Burnett is catatonic at this point, and unless he's been screaming down the vox since Haines left the bridge, it's unlikely that he'll be able to get any kind of message across to the Hammer of Justice. Considering that the Asculum is now a burning hulk in space, Marwan al-Kalil (Lord Tiberius) is more likely to be alive at the time of your post. It's also Lord Tiberius that got taken over; these two things might as well just be name-changes, though.

Wagner must be one hell of a helmsman to turn thirty megatons of spaceship around so quickly, which to be honest I'm finding a little implausible since you're not accounting at all for inertia or the Hammer's current velocity. The nova cannon thing I can let go because Holst had already had it loaded (though keep in mind that these things take around an hour to reload after firing) but since nova cannons are fixed forwards, they can't just turn around like a turret to fire backwards, so at least have some mention of what's going on while Wagner's turning the ship around.

Quote from: Koval on February 16, 2012, 08:58:50 AM
Well, it's still a distraction that helps you :P

And I'm grateful for it.

I remember in Warriors of ultramar that it took half an hour, but I forgot I was facing the wrong way!

Quote from: Inquisitor Octavian Lars on February 16, 2012, 06:13:55 PM
I remember in Warriors of ultramar that it took half an hour, but I forgot I was facing the wrong way!

I'm going by the rules in Rogue Trader ("may fire every other turn" and "a space turn is about half an hour"; the rest follows logically), especially seeing as Battlefleet Gothic is much less specific. Suffice it to say, though, that it'll take a very long time to reload after firing.
Rogue Trader's also where I got the figure for the ship's mass from (where a cruiser's mass is actually a bit less than 30MT; reasoning that the guns, nova cannon et cetera would've added mass, I rounded up to make it a nice round thirty)

Weren't they really pushing themselves to reload in Warriors of Ultramar, to the point where the crew got fed up and beat their overseer to death? Or was that a different novel?

Can't remember, I just remember the figure. Ultimately, your the GM so you decide, half or full hour.

"A really long time" is all we realistically need to worry about at this point :P

Thanks for your post, it's awesome! Holst doesn't have much blood left to turn cold though!

Just a little something for you to deal with. Keep in mind that Zagan can fling ships at you until the cows come home, and if he runs out then he's perfectly capable of enslaving the airlock controls and venting all your oxygen. He's decided not to do that just yet because the psychological impact of the fleet tearing itself apart is more devastating, and it eliminates the problem of there still being ships around the planet.

Which reminds me, the Asculum's life pods are likely to come down somewhere within a 200km radius of either Portiswade or Coveton (whoever posts the life pod landing can choose which one it is; Portiswade is by the Coracian Sea, and Coveton's a market town over the River Sacris)

QuoteHolst doesn't have much blood left to turn cold though!

True. He's likely being autosanguinated. I've altered the metaphor accordingly.

Then I'll probably have Semplice land around the same location so he doesn;t end up on the other side of the planet while losing his transport.

Is there any way to halt the void battle/ destroy the grand cruiser?

Zagan's held onto it for millennia and has been constantly upgrading and augmenting it. In between it being better than an Exorcist should be, and being filled to the brim with all manner of arcane machinery and archaeotech, and the fact that his preferred fighting style is "control other ships and have them do it for me", I'd say the only way to end the space battle at the moment is to withdraw beyond the range where he cares about your existence. He's much more interested in the planet anyway, and at the moment, the Hammer is an irritant at best.

It being an Exorcist, the ship has rather a lot of bombers to discourage any attempts to get close, to say nothing for its guns or the fact that Zagan can just enslave your systems.

There's a reason why he can do that, by the way, and before anyone asks what it is, all I will tell you is that he is XII Legion -- sorcery is a no-go.

Quote from: Inquisitor Octavian Lars on February 16, 2012, 09:19:19 PMIs there any way to halt the void battle/destroy the grand cruiser?

That plot armour's too strong for blasters.

I like the plot armour comment, Marco.This vastly simplifies how Sonneillon and company will arrive. Annoyingly, I'm now on a different computer (still with spotty 'clave access...) until Monday and I have a lot of my main intro post already written on my main PC. So I'm afraid my intro will have to wait. I promise to make it as interesting as possible to make up for this.

Also, this was actually really fun to read. This is the kind of melodrama I adore. My comments about your improved style hold true, Koval, and I rather enjoyed Zagan's dialogue. Not overkeen on the name, mind.

Quote from: Inquisitor Sargoth on February 17, 2012, 02:07:51 AM
I rather enjoyed Zagan's dialogue. Not overkeen on the name, mind.

Is it because his name is too close to Carl Sagan, or because he's a town in Poland, or because he's been ripped from the Ars Goetia (he hasn't; I only discovered that little gem just now), or just because he doesn't sound very scary?

Necris: Good to see you're back with us :)

Your intro is pretty cool. I'm surprised that the Fury's sensors can't pick up the grand cruiser, but maybe you came in from the other side of the system.

Will PM you some more details.

EDIT: posted a life pod scene, hopefully Herald can add something before we make re-entry :P
I'll sort out colouring-by-characters later.

Hmm, this looks like an interesting story.

Is there still time to add another character to the mix? Also are there any rules as to using an existing character as I'd probably want to use Inquisitor Cortez as it will give me a chance to develop her story and character a bit further.

Recruiting did close some time ago, but we are still at that point in the story where characters can show up late and think "...what the hell happened here"

So if you throw Inquisitor Cortez out there: A) do you have any fluff already putting her in a particular Segmentum? B) what motive would she have to come along? C) how adverse are you to pitting her against the likes of Zagan and Goruvich?

Actually, that applies to any character you put forward, so basically, convince me. Just remember that you should be willing to bring more to the table than "laspistol / stubber / sword" which, to be honest, is the rough level of what I've seen on some (woefully underpowered) Inquisitors on the Rules Discussion board.

Putting that in perspective: Holst brought a Dominator-class cruiser to the party, but on a personal level he's on the low end of the scale in terms of how much kit he's brought along. Hallona gets a pass on how little she's carrying because Marco made a note that she can steal or improvise weapons as needed (though the conversion field is entirely appropriate!), Semplice gets a pass because he's physically crippled and needs Iota et al. to do the fighting for him, and Ambrose gets a pass based on him being a Combat Medic (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CombatMedic).

In realistic terms, consider this an order to break out the bolt pistols, the flamers, the power swords. ;D


EDIT: Updated the GM character list on page 2.


EDIT THE SECOND: Just hunted around for Inquisitor Cortez on the P&M board. I'm fairly satisfied that this won't be a case of "laspistol/stubber/sword" :P

I've always deliberately avoided tying Cortez to any one specific sector (although she's obviously been fairly active in the Carthax sector lately) and she works closely with Rogue Trader Natalia von Lucia so doesn't usually have any problem getting around.

As for motive she's an Istvaanian, so the situation here could be just what the empire needs to shake it out of its complacency! She is also being subtly manipulated by the Daemon sword Vor'cha that she believes she controls and has mastered.

I'll post up some of her background, equipment and other assets (such as a Trade Cruiser and escort ships) later.

Please do.

Your daemon sword shares a name with, at the very least, a Klingon cruiser (http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Vor%27cha_class) and a species of sentient space-vermin in Mass Effect (http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Vorcha) -- were either of those intentional?

no. Darn forgot about those stupid Klingons ::).

Edit: That isn't even the correct name anyway, just checked the character sheet and the sword's called Vor'Kal. No idea why I've been calling it Vor'cha.

Quote from: Cortez on February 19, 2012, 12:49:58 PM
no. Darn forgot about those stupid Klingons ::).

Edit: That isn't even the correct name anyway, just checked the character sheet and the sword's called Vor'Kal. No idea why I've been calling it Vor'cha.

Because secretly you are as big a Mass Effect fan as I am? :P

This reminds me, I've completely forgotten to describe the weapons of most of my characters, this will be rectified in a minute. Other than that, the more characters the more fun!

Although it might help if we still had Herald,  so that he could reply to my post -- I wonder if he's stuck doing the can't-get-on dance?

EDIT: Filler with Varachen, while the orbital battle plays out and everyone that's coming down to the surface makes it down.

Name: Josephine Cortez

Age: +++ classified+++ - estimated age 100+

Rank: Inquisitor - No known Ordos - suspected Istvaanian

Appearance: Cortez, despite her probable age, appears at first glance to be a young woman in her mid twenties. However closer inspection suggests a much greater maturity than her physical appearance. She is a tall woman with long auburn hair and blue eyes and would be considered by most to be striking if not quite beautiful.

Background:   +++ data on her place and date of birth and inquisitorial recruitment missing +++

Known facts are as follows:

Served as senior Investigator to Inquisitor Lord Gabriel Ortega during the Forsan incident.
Cortez chosen to infiltrate the stronghold of the renegade Damien Forsan on Salusa Secundus
Received a commendation for bravery. Believed to have been responsible for lowering the defences of the facility and thus allowing the assault to take place.
Rumours suggest that Cortez came into contact with the Daemon Weapon Vor'Kal during the incident. Rumours also state that Cortez is bonded to the weapon and that it is keeping her alive.

+++ Excerpt stolen from Lord Ortega's personnal log +++
During the assualt the renegade unleashed his newly created abomination upon us. Even Brother Sergeant Amaram could not stand against it. The cursed creature should have killed us but for the foolish intervention of Investigator Cortez. I do not entirely know why, but when Cortez struck at the fell creature, using the renegades own weapon, the Deamon's spirit was drawn into the blade and trapped within it. further inspection of the weapon suggests the blade was intended to be used to host a Daemon although the rituals had not been completed. Regardless the weapon seems to have bonded itself to Cortez and her wounds have healed as if they never were.
Brother Sergeant Amaram believes it would be better to kill her now and spare her the inevitable possession. I have ordered him to stay his hand as I believe Cortez to be capable of mastering the weapon. Either way allowing her to live will give me valuable insights into the capabilities of such a weapon...
+++ The veracity of this log extract can not be verified +++

Personality: Cortez belives that the current trend of stagnation will doom the Empire and all mankind. She is distrustful of many if not all of the Imperiums institutions, even the Inquisition itself, as she believes them to be often part of the problem.
She despises the ecclesiarchy and has doubts as to the divinity of the Emperor. She is concerned that the possible deceptions promulgated by the ecclesiarchy only serve to weaken the Empire with the belief that the Emperor will ultimately save them.
She believes (as did Lord Ortega) that she has mastered the Daemonsword Vor'kal although she is becoming increasingly concerned about the swords apparent compliance and submission to her will. She is just starting to wonder just how much influence the sword has over her beliefs and desires. However despite these fears the weapon is simply too powerful to ignore and she finds herself increasingly reliant, not only on its physical abilities, but also on its encyclopaedic knowledge and intellect.

Equipment: Combat: Carapace Armour with full Ceramite coating
                                  Mk III Bolter - assorted ammunition
                                  Needle Pistol
                                  2 Frag 1 Krak Grenades
                   Other:     Stubber
                                  Needle Pistol

Known associates:

Rogue Trader Natalia von Lucia
Investigator Raquel Helmawr

Other Assets:

Cortez is currently travelling with Natalia aboard her Trade Cruiser the Guaranteed Profit
She is accompanied by a squad of Inquisitorial Enforcers, the sanction psycher Anastasia De'vine and assorted members of her entourage. She uses a modified Thunderhawk gunship for her transport and a Rhino APC.

Guaranteed Profit:  Vagabond Class Trade Cruiser
Winged Dagger:      Viper Class Destroyer - predecessor to the current Cobra class
Void Runner:           Viper Class Destroyer
Spatha:                   Sword Class Frigate
Poniards Kiss:         Kysth Needle ship

All ships have been extensively modified. Probably illegal.

Quote from: Koval on February 19, 2012, 07:32:09 AMHallona gets a pass on how little she's carrying because Marco made a note that she can steal or improvise weapons as needed (though the conversion field is entirely appropriate!)

Given the way I like to write psykers, any warband of mine that includes a psyker (as opposed to what I wrote first time, a spyker, which is presumably some kind of telepathic James Bond) cannot really be considered lacking in grunt.

This goes trebly so when it's anyone who's described as not looking very dangerous - as Maya massacring cultists with abandon for The War of Shadows somewhat demonstrated.
(On the note of The War of Shadows, I am disappointed that it petered out before I got to use the line "Rhodes? Where we're going, we don't need Rhodes.")

Cortez: looks fine, I'll PM you a plot hook tonight.

One little thing that I've picked up is that a Vagabond is actually a class of freighter, according to Rogue Trader -- they're not that much bigger than a frigate. If you're after a cruiser, then Rogue Trader gives us the Ambition-class (which is more helpful than GW's offering of a generic "Rogue Trader Cruiser") -- this might be a little closer to what you had in mind.

Vipers are, alternately, refitted Cobras with extra missile bays, or scout ships with improved sensoria at the expense of onboard weaponry -- I'm guessing you mean the missile-spitting variety?

The rest looks fine.

Marco: What I meant, was that Inquisitors typically have the means and reason to carry things like plasma pistols and force swords about on their person -- the kinds of things most folk could scarcely even dream of seeing, let alone owning -- so why there are so many Inquisitors who insist on civilian weaponry is something I struggle with.

Dolnikan: I like the addition of a shuriken pistol for Iota. Guessing it's old tech, though, seeing as Eldar weaponry is psychically operated, so largely unusable by non-Eldar.

Necris: Will post a reply tonight. Vargas is probably being a bit slow to answer because she's more worried about getting the hell away from that Exorcist.

I think that many inquisitors prefer civilian weaponry because it draws less attention and it is much easier to resupply for them.

The shuriken pistol is a less effective replica of an eldar one, a bit like the cheap knock-offs of many products you find all over the place. It wasn't cheap but much less expensive than a real one.

I never played the original Rogue Trader. So I don't know the ship classes.

I've just given class names to the ships in the BFG Rogue Trader Fleet. If there are existing classes (i.e with more detail) then so much the better. I always felt the BFG fleet was far too generic.

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 20, 2012, 07:43:32 AM
I think that many inquisitors prefer civilian weaponry because it draws less attention and it is much easier to resupply for them.

Good logic. Also one of the main reasons why the humble lasgun is the best damn gun in the galaxy, IMO, despite lacking the punch of more exotic weapons and solid-shell weaponry (plus the total lack of forensic evidence).

Quote from: Koval on February 20, 2012, 07:23:48 AMso why there are so many Inquisitors who insist on civilian weaponry is something I struggle with.

When the humble laspistol is shown to be quite capable of shooting through walls and blasting people's heads apart, gets dozens of shots per charge, can be resupplied by leaving the cells in bright sunlight, almost never malfunctions and leaves no evidence, I think the question to struggle with is why anyone would use anything else...

Solid shot weapons might get a pass for being lower tech and less distinctively Imperial than the laspistol, making it a less conspicuous choice, even if not otherwise as sound.

In any case, more advanced weapons like bolters, plasma weapons and the like are shown to be generally more temperamental, not a good thing in a sidearm.
While almost all of my Inquisitors do keep such things in their personal armouries for when they need the firepower upgrade, they don't usually see them as the first choice of carry weapon.

Also, as an in-game consideration, those weapons are often avoided because that level of lethality isn't very fun to play or play against. (Says the man building a Warhound... :P)

Quote from: Cortez on February 20, 2012, 07:48:52 AM
I never played the original Rogue Trader. So I don't know the ship classes.

I'm actually talking about Rogue Trader (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=78) rather than 1st ED 40K. Which reminds me, I need to pick up The Koronus Bestiary when it comes out.

QuoteI've just given class names to the ships in the BFG Rogue Trader Fleet. If there are existing classes (i.e with more detail) then so much the better. I always felt the BFG fleet was far too generic.

That's fine, and I approve of your logic and initiative; all I'm pointing out is that those names are already taken :P

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 20, 2012, 12:09:04 PM

Quote from: Koval on February 20, 2012, 07:23:48 AMso why there are so many Inquisitors who insist on civilian weaponry is something I struggle with.

When the humble laspistol is shown to be quite capable of shooting through walls and blasting people's heads apart, gets dozens of shots per charge, can be resupplied by leaving the cells in bright sunlight, almost never malfunctions and leaves no evidence, I think the question to struggle with is why anyone would use anything else...

Because sometimes you just want something with a bit more punch, or you want to create the impression that you're not to be messed with. At the very least, I'd rather see a glitzy glamourous laspistol variant than a "generic" version. A gatling laspistol with an integrated motion predictor is cool. A high-powered laspistol that can punch through power armour (at the cost of shots per cell) is cool. The same type of pistol that Private Joe Guardsman carries as a standard sidearm is less cool.
Dark Heresy allows for rather a lot of variation in laspistols, and that's even before we get into Ascension or Rogue Trader, or weapon upgrades. So there's still plenty of room for creativity even if all you want is a laspistol of some sort.

QuoteAlso, as an in-game consideration, those weapons are often avoided because that level of lethality isn't very fun to play or play against. (Says the man building a Warhound... :P)

In my opinion, that's more a problem with the armoury and damage rules in Inquisitor than with the weapons themselves. /shrug

Quote from: Koval on February 20, 2012, 01:06:37 PMI'm actually talking about Rogue Trader (http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/edge_minisite.asp?eidm=78) rather than 1st ED 40K.

Given the number of times I've seen the confusion, I'm in the habit of referring to them as Rogue Trader RPG and Rogue Trader 40K these days.

QuoteBecause sometimes you just want something with a bit more punch

Maybe, but that doesn't mean it would be an Inquisitor's main carry weapon. Given that the problem in a typical firefight is more likely to be hitting the target than killing it, a weapon that would be overkill, more conspicuous and which you can only carry a fraction as much ammo for would be counter-intuitive.

Anyway, most of my warbands tend to have a way or two they could reasonably put down tougher targets like a Space Marine, Ork or Daemon in the unlikely event they should run into them unexpectedly, be it special ammunition, grenades or creative use of psychic powers.

But sure, when they're expecting tougher opposition, they'll up-gun as necessary or get in hired help. (Cortez will doubtless recall the Battle Sister and her chainsaw bolter.)

QuoteThe same type of pistol that Private Joe Guardsman carries as a standard sidearm is less cool.

I don't know about that. If there's a fluffy reason for having such a pistol, then it's fine by me.

QuoteDark Heresy allows for rather a lot of variation in laspistols

Given my own Revised Armoury had about ten thousand laspistol variants in the last edition, I have quite high standards about what counts as "a lot of variation".

QuoteIn my opinion, that's more a problem with the armoury and damage rules in Inquisitor than with the weapons themselves.

Not sure I agree. Bolters should be lethal, and I wouldn't want to see them nerfed for the sake of trying to shoehorn them into game balance.

They should be treated like they are... lethal but very conspicuous weapons which are exceptionally valuable and frequently hard to resupply.

I've googled those ships and the Ambition class sounds perfect for Natalia von Lucia. Not sure the Viper class really fits though as it seems to be described primarily as a scout ship.

I wasn't even aware that Fantasy Flight had done a Rogue Trader based game. Might have to get that.

I've always felt lasweapons aren't well represented in Inquisitor. Hence why Stubbers seem to be more popular.

As for Bolt weapons... well its good to have an impressive weapon, but they're rarely described as punching through power armour with no problems which is what tends to happen in game!

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 20, 2012, 03:15:22 PM
But sure, when they're expecting tougher opposition, they'll up-gun as necessary or get in hired help.

I interpret "when they're expecting tougher opposition" as "quite often", insofar as many Malleus and Xenos types are concerned (and Ordo Xenos operatives are likely to have a lot of fancy kit anyway, weaponry or not). That may just be my interpretation, though.

Quote

QuoteThe same type of pistol that Private Joe Guardsman carries as a standard sidearm is less cool.

I don't know about that. If there's a fluffy reason for having such a pistol, then it's fine by me.

A fluffy reason for having it, maybe, but Inquisitors can generally do much better, even if it's just internal upgrades that don't affect its cosmetic appearance. I would raise an eyebrow at the prospect of running off to fight a nest of heretics with such a weapon, for example.

Quote

QuoteDark Heresy allows for rather a lot of variation in laspistols

Given my own Revised Armoury had about ten thousand laspistol variants in the last edition, I have quite high standards about what counts as "a lot of variation".

In which case there should be even less of an excuse to restrict yourself. We're talking about Inquisitors, not hive gangers.

QuoteThey should be treated like they are... lethal but very conspicuous weapons which are exceptionally valuable and frequently hard to resupply.

The Inquisition should, and does, have ways of getting round the last two points. And if they care about bolters being conspicuous then either they're doing some serious undercover work, or they're operating "outside the law", in which case they have bigger problems. Besides which, nobody ever said that practicality was a defining feature of anything in the Imperium.

double

Introducing Commodore Tyra Vargas (http://i40.tinypic.com/24q09dc.jpg), commanding officer on the Orchomenus (Dictator class). Full body shot is here (http://i41.tinypic.com/315fukg.jpg).

She's not especially fond of the Adeptus Arbites, so having to deal with Narl is somewhat unpleasant.

Will probably post something about the life pod later this week, assuming people in the life pod are waiting for me to do something.

What are you using to create those character images Koval?

EVE Online's character creator. Their test server lets you buy all the "premium content" character-customisation items for a pittance. In the case of Vargas, Andreas and Burnett, that means their bionics and some of their clothing.

EDIT: Herald, just one little thing: The life pod (going by the Cain books) was designed for a full platoon, and since the Asculum was a warship it probably needed platoon-sized pods because of all the crew. In practice that means it's about the size of a coach or a train carriage, and although some coaches can get pretty crowded, I'm not sure if it counts as "tiny" or "cramped" :P

Other than that, I like your post. Haines will probably let you borrow his plasma pistol, as Andreas has his arms coffer.

One of the problems with bolters and the like would also be training and weight. They are big and heavy weapons and are quite different from what people normally use.

Quote from: Dolnikan on February 20, 2012, 04:36:53 PM
One of the problems with bolters and the like would also be training and weight. They are big and heavy weapons and are quite different from what people normally use.

I'll accept that, but I reckon that most Inquisitorial types (be they full Inquisitors, Interrogators, or staff) will be able to get the right sort of training if they need it. Besides which, if Guard officers can get that kind of training...

I think that there would probably be plenty of inquisitors who consider their time much too valuable to waste on things like learning to operate a boltgun, for the fighting they have their assistants, their work is much more about thinking than about brute force(which they will still use.) A more combat-focussed inquisitor or interrogator would probably go for more powerful weaponry.

A thing that surprises me more than the lack of weapons is the lack of force fields. They can easily be carried around, activated when needed and while not active they can easily be hidden or disguised as a piece of jewelry.

That also occurred to me, although it's entirely possible that some of us will be able to bring out a few surprises (Semplice must have some scary defensive kit tucked away in his chair, for example, and Haines is likely to be wearing at least a refractor field generator as well, as if he's lugging a thunder hammer around then he's got to be pretty damn stupid to have light carapace armour as his only means of protection against something nasty)

He has a few quite unpleasant things, I jsut have to think them up. Other than that he has his combat servitors who serve as redshirts.

Quote from: Koval on February 20, 2012, 03:47:35 PMI interpret "when they're expecting tougher opposition" as "quite often", insofar as many Malleus and Xenos types are concerned

But how many of those Inquisitors you're claiming to be underpowered actually are Malleus or Xenos, and how often do the run-in fluff and their actual games actually include that tougher opposition?

I up-gun when the game needs it, not as a matter of routine.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 20, 2012, 05:56:12 PM

Quote from: Koval on February 20, 2012, 03:47:35 PMI interpret "when they're expecting tougher opposition" as "quite often", insofar as many Malleus and Xenos types are concerned

But how many of those Inquisitors you're claiming to be underpowered actually are Malleus or Xenos, and how often do the run-in fluff and their actual games actually include that tougher opposition?

I don't even play Inquisitor any more because when I did, people would get jumped on for having things that you'd honestly expect characters to have ("why does he have that chainsword?"*). It's actually really easy to drive the power level down to the point where there's barely any difference between an Inquisitor and a dirt poor cultist or hive ganger. There's absolutely every reason for campaigns to involve daemonic / xeno characters (I'm using the word character rather loosely here, mind) and somehow we're talking about something on a level of one bunch of guys meeting another bunch of guys.

QuoteI up-gun when the game needs it, not as a matter of routine.

I'm fine with that being a valid approach, but I still can't help but think that
A) an Inquisitor would be extremely naïve not to expect trouble at every turn
B) there are perfectly valid reasons for characters to have equipment that somehow is frowned upon

I'm not really looking to prolong this argument, however, so while I did specify a rough power level in the original post, let's just agree to disagree on expected power levels as it's less messy that way.

*Actually a real example from a group I was part of at uni, said about someone's Inquisitor -- it didn't last long, though that's because people were more interested in getting pissed than running a game.

I just posted another short part, mostly about the reactions to the space battle. Meanwhile I'm thinking about the features of Semplice's 'wheelchair' and have started modelling him.

Seems cool. I'm just waiting for Sargy to post something (which he outlined in a PM to me earlier) and then we can get on the ground.

Probably a few typos for me to zap, but... postage!

Far, far more descriptive and floweriy than I normally allow. I really hope the second part, for all its brevity, pulls off the sense of scale and majesty I'm aiming for. One of the big themes of the 40Kverse is stagnation, the loss of a better past, and I wanted evoke this. Also note that Sonneillon has effectively committed deicide here...

Demeter is a wreck. Once she would probably have gone toe-to-toe with a Grand Cruiser but she's effectively unmanned, rudderless. She could be utterly destroyed, left to drift in space or slam into the planet's surface. Up to you guys! Zagan would find little use in taking her over, as even he probably can't stop her from spinning and half of her weapons are broken. It's possible he might struggle to possess such an ancient vessel - again, up to you.

Currently, Archduke Gordian's poised to take it out (because Zagan's not too thrilled about it suddenly dropping in), but whether it ever makes it is up to other people. If it does, then two ships of that size slamming into each other would probably yield results similar to what Vargas is worried about, just because of the sheer amount of energy involved when two ships counting their mass in megatons collide at (potentially) high speed.

I would've posted a life pod scene as well, but it didn't seem right with the tone of everything else in that post -- I might land tomorrow if I get home in good time. Herald, you've got free choice between a bolt pistol, a plasma pistol and a hand flamer if you want Ambrose to borrow one of Haines' guns.

double

Necris, just one thing to keep in mind -- I'd already had Narl suggest that Vargas send out a distress beacon (as it seemed the most sensible thing to do, based on what you put in his profile about him being more of a thinker than most Marshals).

Having sent it, somehow she's got to expect Narl telling her off for doing what he told her to do. At best, Vargas will think that Narl is schizophrenic, and at worst, she'll consider him an idiot.

As such, Vargas is probably not going to take kindly to Silon "reminding her of her duty", though Silon is of course very welcome to try.

I know but she's not done much else Narl just wants to give an unsubtle reminder to Vargas

Not from what we've seen -- however, keeping a tight handle on her own ship and Claymore Squadron is a lot more than the rest of the fleet's officers can say, what with Zagan sitting there in his Exorcist (which does have a name, but it's being masked by the IFF). Besides which, as much as this is going to sound like a Nuremberg Defense, all she's doing is what Burnett and later Narl told her to do.

Oddly enough, if this keeps up then Vargas is likely to end up either as Public Enemy #1 (because she'll probably thump Silon* if he says the wrong thing), or as an accidental supporting character rather than as a bit-part.

I'm not saying don't do it, but I would just like to make it clear that Narl's got Silon barking up the wrong tree.


Herald, Marco -- Just over four minutes until landing, so feel free to post where we end up.


*She really doesn't like the Arbites. She considers the Commissariat a necessary evil; on the other hand she'd rather the Arbites kept their noses out of Naval matters as she can get by just fine without their input.

double

Apologies for no activity tonight on my part. I'm busy lesson-planning. Will post over the weekend, assuming nobody else wants to do a landing scene.

Incidentally, if anyone wants to make stuff up, feel free, as there's a lot of blank canvas if anyone does. I've got a plan, of course, but it's your story too.

triple

Andreas is off into Coveton. If anyone wants to join him, feel free, in spite of Haines' suggestion.

Herald: The life pod has more lasguns than you'll ever need, unless you think Ambrose can carry twenty without falling over :P
Marco: I'm probably misrepresenting Hallona here, but I imagine that three men fussing over her would probably cause her to get a bit cranky...
Dolnikan: Feel free to set yourself down wherever.
Octavian: Will you be joining us, or are you landing somewhere else?
Sargy, Necris: Three guesses what the bright flash was, and the first two don't count...

Quote from: Koval on February 25, 2012, 10:42:33 AMMarco: I'm probably misrepresenting Hallona here, but I imagine that three men fussing over her would probably cause her to get a bit cranky...

Normally, she'd relish such a thing. She's fully aware that she's a highly attractive woman and not shy about using it. However, given the concussion, her irritability and denial are far more appropriate.

I will write a landing scene, Semplice will come down somewhere around Coveton.

Edit: I wrote the landing scene.

I've written a scene from the bridge of the Sword of Integrity and the landing of Steren and Jael's pod (evidently somewhat further way, presumably on the Coracian sea, for which I have taken the liberty of assuming some visually impressive cliffs). Text colour will come later.

In any case, Steren is supposed to have a pinch of the James Cameron Terminator to her, being a bit cold and indifferent (her coping method for being subjected to the emotions of others constantly), analysing situations in a rather inhuman way (due to her telepathy), as well as being inhumanly strong and tough (at least if she's had a moment to attain her psychic focus).

That's your vague baseline for writing her, but like said Terminators, she can also do a pretty convincing impression of being normal if she has to.

I've got to redraw the coast now, seeing as Andreas thought that they would overshoot the city and then hit the coast...

I'm going to assume there's a part of the coast that curves back on itself, and Steren's landed there.

Other than that, I like your post, although I just mindscrewed myself into thinking that Steren was a hot blonde (she's not -- you've mentioned her as having black hair)

double

Octavian: Just one little thing -- I've been having the Hammer of Justice plug away at the Resaena for quite a while, so one would hope those macrobatteries are reloading rather than just starting to get a lock.

If you want to mention escorts, then Templar Squadron (minus Templar Alpha now, so three Cobras) are still on your side, but the other escorts are either destroyed (Foehammer and Manticore Squadrons) or retreating (Claymore and Cyclone Squadrons).

I am pretty much finished with the spacebattle now, with the shuttles coming down when I get the chance to write. Also, I am getting a little lost with the plot due to homework, could I have a summary?

Righto. Plot so far:

-993.M41 The Coriolis Alpha system is interdicted by order of Inquisitors Gelert Hesh and Fabian Filipowski, among others, after a bloody civil war in which two billion people -- half of the population -- perished. Rumours point to a concurrent Dark Eldar invasion lighting the proverbial powder keg among the population, but this proves impossible to verify.
-008.M42 A vid-recording is received in which Inquisitor Rowena Memphis renounces her faith in the Emperor. The time stamp on the recording lines up with events at Coriolis Alpha and Memphis is denounced as a heretic and declared a traitor to the Imperium.
-009.M42 Memphis is captured by the Inquisition. Hesh learns that she was at Coriolis Alpha when events there took place. Ambrose Barkley signs the petition to have her executed.
-010.M42 Kalen Goruvich of the World Eaters binds the Bloodletter Agares.

-012.M42:
-Inquisitors Madoc Haines, Riley Hallona, Desmond Holst, and Anterus Semplice receive odd messages from Coriolis Alpha, and independently gain permission from the sector Conclave to investigate.
-Barkley similarly seeks permission to conduct a separate investigation.
-During negotiations, Zagan of the World Eaters exits the Warp and uses a techno-sorcerous device to enslave the ships of the interdiction fleet. The Asculum, the flagship of the interdiction fleet, is destroyed in the ensuing battle.
-Sonneillon of the Word Bearers sabotages the Chartist vessel Demeter, forcing it to exit the Warp in the middle of the space battle. The cruiser Archduke Gordian is enslaved and set on a collision course with the Demeter.
-Life pods from stricken capital ships and the Demeter land on Coriolis Alpha III.

...and that's roughly where we're currently at.

Don't sweat it if you're mostly done with the space battle. So are we, and the plot will be marching on shortly -- I'm just waiting for Herald to post something with Barkley.

EDIT: Yes, there was a reason I mentioned Goruvich and Agares :P

EDIT 2: If that homework is maths homework then being as I'm a trainee maths teacher, I'll help you out ;)

double

Cheers for posting, Herald, I'll throw something together a bit later.

Quote from: Koval on February 26, 2012, 07:07:12 AMI've got to redraw the coast now, seeing as Andreas thought that they would overshoot the city and then hit the coast...

Oops. Brain no worky in middle the night. The aim was to introduce some more of the characters and have them not conveniently close to the Inquisitor's pod, but apparently I didn't get it all completely straight.

QuoteI just mindscrewed myself into thinking that Steren was a hot blonde (she's not -- you've mentioned her as having black hair)

She's quite capable of using her powers to change her appearance, so she could be if it took her fancy.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on February 26, 2012, 04:19:53 PM

Quote from: Koval on February 26, 2012, 07:07:12 AMI've got to redraw the coast now, seeing as Andreas thought that they would overshoot the city and then hit the coast...

Oops. Brain no worky in middle the night. The aim was to introduce some more of the characters and have them not conveniently close to the Inquisitor's pod, but apparently I didn't get it all completely straight.

It's not a big deal -- I said I can just have a bit that sticks out a bit (the best example I can think of would be the heel of Italy, or failing that, northwestern France -- you've got this big old bit of sea between Brittany and where Cherbourg is)

Quote

QuoteI just mindscrewed myself into thinking that Steren was a hot blonde (she's not -- you've mentioned her as having black hair)

She's quite capable of using her powers to change her appearance, so she could be if it took her fancy.

Damn biomancers!

English actually, but I could need maths help occasionally!

Quick warning -- no update today, I had an awful day at work and don't want it to impact on my posting.

I keep trying to write something but nothing comes up. I think that I will await further developments.

Tuesdays are horrible horrible days for me anyway, and Wednesdays aren't usually much better, but I'll see if I'm feeling better by tomorrow evening. Stress is painful.

I posted up a short bit about exploring Coveton.

What you've posted is absolutely fine. The west end of town is the fairly affluent part, so assuming that you came in from the west, you'll have hit the "nice" part of town that you've just described (though there are bombed-out buildings everywhere so that's also fine)

Architecturally, the centre of town is closer to Brussels, but with taller buildings -- Coveton's a large place that, in practice, is about the size of Amsterdam.

In case anyone's interested, when I was designing these cities, I was going by my recollections of various excursions to France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, but preferred variations on English-sounding town names. There are some very odd place names out there.

It is a bit bigger then than I expected, but at least I know the architecture quite well. What kind of things do the locals wear?

For your part of the city, start here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1910s_in_fashion) :P

Less affluent Covetonians are more likely to wear slightly baggier clothes better suited to work than to general street fashion. I was reading an article earlier about the history of jeans (which started life as the sorts of trousers a miner or woodcutter could wear without needing to patch them up so often), so now that I've had the opportunity to think about what people in Coveton tend to wear, I'm leaning towards "things that started off as work-clothes, that then became more fashionable later on". Basic simple stuff that you could quite happily wear to a manual job.

Severino from Darkness And Light demonstrates. (http://i40.tinypic.com/33f6b76.jpg)

A dude from an older RP I ran is also doing it right, although the red's a bit much. (http://i41.tinypic.com/301qc21.jpg) (This guy was drawn up using a much older character-creator for a much older game I used to play. It's okay at putting characters together in fun action-poses, as this character (http://i42.tinypic.com/sql0tj.jpg) demonstrates most ably, but pretty bad at mug shots)

double, but while I'm on Tinypic, this is a rough map of Coveton that I threw together in about ten minutes (http://i43.tinypic.com/o6wxsk.jpg). I'm no good at doing street-maps, so that's as much detail as I want to show.

The River Sacris runs through Crantree and Kitwell, then curls up through the city centre in a loose anticlockwise loop, before passing up and out through the Industrial Zone.

EDIT: Rather than do a triple...

I've thrown in a post with Andreas exploring the (rather war-torn) south end of the city, Vargas on the verge of throwing in the towel, and Zagan being hammy/Narmtastic. Apologies for it being late, but Tuesdays are still nightmare-days, and it may get to the point where my other weekdays become nightmare-days too. :-\

Wonder what happened to Necris/Cortez. Sargy I know is still writing a post, but I do worry that we might get a bit ploddy if we're losing people.

I have decided to go with your suggestion and run into Andreas(a bit literally perhaps)

Cool beans. I'll have time to reply properly tomorrow evening. :)

I am working on my next segment, but the relevant news right now is that I've gone back and added text colours to my last post, as well as a few other minor edits to make the context of who's saying what clearer.

Cool. I'd be interested to see what Steren and Jael get up to next.

EDIT: In which Andreas does a Sherlock Scan (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SherlockScan) on Iota, and I (perhaps incorrectly) assume that Iota is making a conscious effort to behave somewhere in between Emotionless Girl (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/EmotionlessGirl) and Stoic Woobie (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/StoicWoobie).

Dolnikan: If it hadn't been for Iota not wanting to be identified, and having been ordered not to be discovered, I would've had her introduce herself to Andreas as "Iona Tethras" (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/SueDonym). A pity I didn't get to use that :P

You portrayed her like I imagined her to react. When questioned further she would still be likely to use such a bad name. There will come a time, I'm sure.

Edit: I posted a bit of Semplice's more human side, mostly to show that he has feelings somewhere.

I might have just precipitated an Andreas X Iota subplot by accident :-[

Andreas isn't an idiot. He's pretty suspicious of Iota, but isn't about to start a fight with her when they could just as easily cooperate. (For one thing, he'd lose.)

I will, however, admit that "Antero Tolnay" is a bit of a crappy pseudonym.

EDIT: I've drawn up a Dark Heresy character sheet for Andreas (who, in Ascension terms, is a recently ascended Rank 9 Sage).

I'm not sure how I managed it, but his highest stat (after Intelligence, at 50 with Unnatural x2) is Agility (at 52). He's completely useless in combat if you take his guns away, though (as expected), and he's had very little EXP invested in Forbidden Lore or extra wounds, but the way I set his talents up, he's more of a Battle Butler (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/BattleButler) or a Jeeves (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheJeeves) than a Sage anyway.

The only reason he's not an Interrogator is because I wanted to spend his bonus Ascension EXP on Common Lore Mastery, which Interrogators don't get until something like Rank 12 :P

double

No prizes for guessing that I've just thrown you guys another Zagan scene, or that one of the other speakers is Kalen Goruvich. I've also made references to the third speaker already, but this is the first time we've actually seen him speak (in this RP at least).

...and there's also a little bit of extra context for you guys, in case some of you felt the plot was taking a while to get going. :)

If Dolnikan and I can resolve the Andreas/Iota scene between us, I can start to move the plot back on.

EDIT: Marco/Herald, you now have a house.

I'll do some more Zagan stuff a bit later if I'm in the mood :P

I added a piece which should wrap up the part about getting the house from Semplice's side.

...yeah, I can certainly imagine a bunch of drunks round that area. Usually (in RL) when you have a train station, there's loads of bars and cheap living not too far away, with all that that entails. All sounds pretty good, in any case.

double

Since we're finally back online, expect an update from me some time around the weekend.

Sorry 'bout the delay on this, chaps.

Assume they're all holed up by now, but rumours of a space marine running through the city will be rife. Any info on his companions will be sketchy at best - people didn't pay them much heed.

So far, Sonnelion has been an unwitting red herring for you all. The Demeter no doubt appeared to be part of Zagan's attack and now when you hear of a space marine running around you're likely to assume he's on the same side. If Zagan has any informers on the surface I imagine he's going to be very interested indeed as to what's going on.

Feel free to post for me, I have numerous exams (3rd year tracking) coming up so I will be very busy!

Update. Assume it's either dawn or early morning.

Goruvich and the Ancient are deploying by Thunderhawk purely because neither of them is especially fond of drop pods.

If anyone wants a layout of the apartments, feel free to let me know.

I take it I don't have time to go to ground and set up a HQ before the [EXCOMMUNICATE] hits the fan, then?

I like the Ancient's dalek-like habit of yelling whatever he's doing. I dislike his name, however - it sounds far, far too similar to Skallathrax.

How many World Eaters are there......?!?!?!

*Sobbing noises*

Quote from: Inquisitor Sargoth on March 10, 2012, 02:58:06 AM
I take it I don't have time to go to ground and set up a HQ before the [EXCOMMUNICATE] hits the fan, then?

You'll have time.

QuoteI like the Ancient's dalek-like habit of yelling whatever he's doing.

I actually started with the basic idea of a Dalek when I first designed him, however long ago that was, and somehow I just ran with it. Helps that he's absolutely bats**t crazy.

QuoteI dislike his name, however - it sounds far, far too similar to Skallathrax.

It does, yes, but in general, "the Ancient" is what Zagan uses, and since the Ancient doesn't care what Goruvich calls him, anticipate seeing "the Ancient" more often than "Skatharax the Unfettered" :P

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on March 10, 2012, 05:06:12 AM
How many World Eaters are there......?!?!?!

*Sobbing noises*

Three. Zagan, Goruvich, and the Ancient. Don't worry, all three of these have been mentioned (in the IC thread, no less) quite a lot earlier than last night. Everything is perfectly possible to overcome, by the way; I've not thrown an impossible task at you, although you might find yourself relying on Haines and/or Sonneillon if other opportunities fail to present themselves.

Quote from: Koval on March 10, 2012, 06:30:20 AM
I've not thrown an impossible task at you, although you might find yourself relying on Haines and/or Sonneillon if other opportunities fail to present themselves.

I doubt Sonnellion could beat any of 'em. A Dreadnaught is out of his league, really, and though his armour's auto-senses and general marine hearing mean he's quite capable of fighting blind Goruvich and Zagan are clearly not fools and would take advantage of his disability. For one thing he's also going to struggle to block and parry by hearing. He is, however, probably the person who could hold them off the longest.

Holst might stand a chance, through using a millenia of experience and an augmented body

I'll admit, what I just presented implies "who can beat them in a straight fight", so I apologise.

What I meant by mentioning Haines and Sonneillon was that Sonneillon is a Space Marine (and therefore knows how to fight other Space Marines, as clearly Sonneillon isn't a fool either), whereas Haines has his thunder hammer (which only the Ancient would consider ignoring; the other two would treat him with a bit more caution). If it did come down to a straight fight, then the best the party can hope for is Holst and Haines being giant decoys, but there are other ways to defeat Space Marines than just in a straight fight -- Goruvich is arguably the most dangerous up-close*, but he's also the least powerful of the three, and in any case I'm not after straight fights against Space Marines. You'll have plenty of opportunities to do other things.


*I know the Ancient has a power fist and Zagan has all his servo arms, but keep in mind that the Ancient is an insane Chaos Dreadnought** and that Zagan's idea of fighting is "you require more cannon fodder", so those guys won't give you the chance of a straight fight anyway. Besides, Goruvich's sword is evil. And sentient.

**The fact that I've clarified something that one generally takes for granted is probably sufficient to get the point across...

About standing a chance, I would prefer to just get as large a mass of bodies between us and them as possible. Then we just have to get a lot of firepower and hope to escape safely.

By the way, can we notice their landing in any way?

Quote from: Dolnikan on March 11, 2012, 01:51:06 PM
About standing a chance, I would prefer to just get as large a mass of bodies between us and them as possible. Then we just have to get a lot of firepower and hope to escape safely.

Difficult but possible. There's a local PDF but there's not much to suggest they'll be especially welcoming, of either you or the World Eaters. Which of you they choose to listen to is another matter, of course :P

QuoteBy the way, can we notice their landing in any way?

Sure. They're not being especially subtle about it. They're coming in by Thunderhawk (with all the iconography removed; you'll be able to see the chainsword marks quite clearly).

I'm sorry I think I'm going to have to drop out of this my internet connection is terrible at the moment and I can't reliably commit to anything 

That is too bad, internet connections can be horrible sometimes. I hope that you will be able to come back when these issues are resolved.

I have exams so writing anything will not work particularly well.

Thank you for letting me know, Necris.

Assuming it's okay with you, I'll take over the stuff with Narl and co. as that's a lot of Arbites to just go missing.

Thats fine,

I posted a short bit, I hope that I haven't made any wrong assumptions.

One minor wobble -- the apartments are west of the centre and are west-facing. The layout of that floor is here (http://i44.tinypic.com/23i9z7k.jpg) and a rough city map is here (http://i43.tinypic.com/o6wxsk.jpg).

It's feasible that the Thunderhawk is coming down in the Aspen Firth, Crantree or Kitwell districts (although Kitwell would put it alarmingly close to the apartment), but somehow I've just taken away the impression that the Thunderhawk's landing in the city centre. Was that what you had in mind?

It's a shame that this week is gonna be an absolute nightmare, else I'd have thrown something together myself. :-\

I was thinking about it landing in the centre. Perhaps I can change it to her walking through the building, and seeing it from a window near the stairs?

That'll work. There's a small window at each level on the stairs that looks east.

I edited it in, this way everything should fit together.

Nightmare-week nearly over... will get an update ready over the weekend.

I should assure you, I am working on something, but I got a little sidetracked with making sure I'd got everything written up for this week's Dark Heresy... only to have to cancel the session because only one person turned up on Skype. D'oh.

Double.

This new post is evidence of why I should be forbidden from writing late at night. I will probably be making adjustments to improve the story telling (I'm not entirely pleased with the structure and show/tell ratios), but nonetheless, I think I have just written a post with an Inquisitrix walking around in her skivvies.

Mind you, it wouldn't be a proper RP from me without at least one reason for everyone to think I'm a pervert.

I'm waiting for that Thunderhawk to land before my boys do anything. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/VillainsActHeroesReact)

I have written a short piece about Iota arriving near the landing site, should I post it or wait?

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on March 16, 2012, 04:13:38 AM
Mind you, it wouldn't be a proper RP from me without at least one reason for everyone to think I'm a pervert.

I was wondering when that would come up :P

Nightmare week finally over, will probably post something in the morning.

Dolnikan: Feel free to make a post. Like I said, this week's been horrible, so hopefully I'll be able to put a meaningful response together that also moves the story along.

double

Triple-part post with a Vargas update in the middle, because I wanted to at least try and resolve the part with Vargas/Silon.

It's fair to say that the Ancient is far too busy/happy killing civilians and causing collateral damage to be all that interested in either Andreas or Iota, but he still poses a pretty high risk to both of them. So he shot at the building Iota was standing on because he thought there were civilians up there (and that she was one of them).

In terms of location, the Ancient is around the south end of the centre (using the map, between the "i" in "City Centre" and the "R" in "Red Light District"). Goruvich is also around there but he's gone a bit further southeast. I can draw on the map if anyone would like that.

EDIT: Added another Zagan scene. He's not messing around here...

If anyone would like the specifications for a Secutor, I've put something together that I can put up as/when people need it. We already know it's a bomber, so that bit isn't a huge spoiler; worth keeping in mind, however, that even with the advances in tech between now and the 40Kverse, they're still on the same scale as -- if not bigger than --  the contemporary B-2 Spirit (itself larger than a Thunderhawk gunship would be)

triple

Is interest waning? Should I try to pick up some slack on my end, plan my lessons faster? Stay up later, plan shorter updates?

I'm sorry for not having posted yet, I hope to finish something today or tomorrow, depending on how fast the theoretical work goes for my current project.

The bombers seem dangerous, I presume that they will strike at Coveton?

With the IGT approaching, Marco's outstanding modelling projects mean less time for Marco's writing. Something is on the way though.

Didn't intend to look pushy there, apologies if I did :X

Marco: IGT stuff is absolutely fine, but thank you in advance for anything you can add.

Dolnikan: "Dangerous" is one way of describing the bombers, but Zagan isn't an idiot -- he's not going to order a bombing run on Coveton while the Ancient's still there. There are other cities for him to blow up first.
Will PM you the bomber spec.

Very short update, will add more later.

There's a slight timing issue there, Sargoth. I couldn't give the exact time, but the Thunderhawk is landing during the night, not the day. (Unless I've completely screwed up...)

Yeah, the Thunderhawk's managed to come down at night, and Iota snuck out while Andreas/Nogal were asleep to go and investigate.

Ah, cheers. I'll fix it today.

EDIT: Fixed, improved and doubled in length. Very happy. Will update again soon. Sonneillon is going to VERY surprised to see other Traitor Legions here and, being both extremely unusual for a chaos marine and more than a little bit insane (in his own specific way) will be looking to talk to Goruvich (the rampaging Dreadnought doesn't look like much of a conversationalist).

Goruvich isn't much of a conversationalist either -- he's relatively civil towards the Ancient for the simple reason that he doesn't want the Ancient to flatten him. Still the easiest of the three to talk to, but saying a Khorne Berserker is easy to talk to is like saying it's possible to get blood out of a stone.


EDIT: Like your post, Dolnikan. I'll put something short up in a bit, with an aim of getting something longer done on Friday evening.

I decided to do soemthing to try to get us all a little less separated, amongst others to move the story along.

Cool stuff. Not sure when I'll be able to post again, mind, I've got an interview tomorrow.

Would like to point out, though, that if the Ancient can break into a run (as you've already had in one of your posts), he'll be going through those walls like a very loud and angry truck (and to be fair, the IA books list a Dreadnought's mass at around 11 tonnes). I appreciate Iota's reasoning, but the Ancient doesn't care about silly things like walls and barricades. :P

I figured that it would still brek through things, but a bit slower than when just running through an open street, giving more time to try to escape.

Yeah, I couldn't help but imagine the tank chase from Goldeneye (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMX7_z4ixFQ#t=0m45s) from when you talked about going down a too narrow alley.

Indeed, Dreadnoughts do have a real habit of remodelling any scenery that might happen to be in their way. If there's some Space Marines who are in need of a Big Damn Hero, that Big Damn Hero has a decent chance of being a Dreadnought taking a shortcut through the nearest wall.

When I designed the Ancient I didn't have the Goldeneye scene on my mind, but in retrospect I probably should have done, because that tank is doing exactly what I imagine the Ancient to be doing should Andreas/Iota hijack a car...

Somehow I almost feel compelled to have Iota steal a car somehwere, the only problem is that she doesn;t know how to, perhaps Andreas can help out in that department?

Absolutely -- Andreas can do a little bit of everything. It's shorter to list the things that, within reason, he can't do.

double

Problem solved, and hopefully I played Iota sensibly there -- crashing someone else's car into the Dreadnought does strike me as the sort of thing she might do, primarily because she doesn't have to care about the driver.

The post does however rely on the assumption that Nogal was sensible enough to get a city map from somewhere, even if that "somewhere" happens to be Andreas' kit bag.

It seems very good and in character to me, Nogal is not as big an idiot as Karnak and would have tried to do something.

Debating who to use for tonight's "Meanwhile" update. I've got a hook hanging with Vargas, but we've seen a lot of the Ancient and not much of Goruvich in the past few posts. Decisions, decisions...

Gurovich would be very interesting  think, I will do some random being chased by a dreadnought I think.

Considering that Iota's now on the back of a truck, I'd be surprised if the Ancient's able to keep up with her. :P

It depends, it can do several things to slow them down.

I've actually got a really good idea now of where they are... the fact that I'm basing parts of Coveton on cities I've visited really isn't helping me there :P

EDIT: Went with a Vargas post instead of a Goruvich one, as I think I need to tie that one up. I'm actually starting to grow fond of Vargas as a character...

EDIT 2: Marco, just out of interest, what are Jael and Steren likely to be doing at this point? Appreciate they're miles away from Coveton, but have they at least found their way off the cliff face?

Might be worth giving me a glimpse of what Goruvich is up to as Sonneillon is going to look for him soon.

Probably painting the pavement a pleasant shade of red. He went east from where the Thunderhawk came down so my guess is he's taking a leisurely stroll along the river, merrily introducing people to his daemonsword as he goes.

Any use to you?

Yup, thank you.

EDIT: Aaaaand postage. Probably needs a clean up but there's some nice bits in there. I imagine Goruvich is going to be a) confused b) tight-lipped and c) violent. Probably in that order.

I imagine very similar things. :P

Shame it's Tuesday, as Tuesday is always my annoying horrible torture-day that leads into a nightmare week. Nonetheless, thank you for another well-written post, and I'll get some kind of response together on Friday evening.

Cheers. I'm getting a LOT of pleasure from how craven Volos is and the religious theme that Sonneillon brings with him to everything. The deicide of Demeter,  the prayer of Coveton... it's really shaping up nicely. I'm wondering if I might even take him in a few unexpected directions... (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DarkMessiah)

Not forgetting this! Still got one more day of teaching before the Easter break. Can aim for three-times-weekly updates (if not even more frequently) over Easter.

I am waiting for inspiration of any kind to strike me, at the moment I just am completely exhausted.

Happens to me. Go and have a drink or two and come back to it once you've had time to relax. You'll feel better for it.

EDIT: Would've posted by now but I know Sargy's preparing something cool and I want to give Marco a chance to recover from the IGT (well done mate). I've got a flashback post in the pipes but now's actually a really awkward time to post it in terms of currently unfolding action-scenes.

double

Just want to check, who's waiting for whom? Is anyone waiting for me?

I didn't want to double post, but have done so for the sake of movement.

Cool beans. I'll get somethin up a bit later.

EDIT: Now taking bets on who actually ended up in the river. Apologies for the extremely unsubtle joke.

Agares likes Sonneillon. He doesn't like Goruvich, but then again nobody likes Goruvich. Agares is probably quite chuffed that even in sword-form, Sonneillon thinks he fights better than Goruvich does.

There is reason in the Ancient's madness, by the way.

Quote from: Koval on March 29, 2012, 06:48:52 PMI want to give Marco a chance to recover from the IGT (well done mate).

I am now back on the move with working on the plot I've got.

I've got an idea, but before I drop it into the story and someone thinks it's a stupid idea I've pulled from my backside, would anyone object to Riley using some of the anti-telepathic techniques she knows to stave off some of the concussion's effects, at least for short periods of time? After all, you could imagine that such techniques are often to do with gathering and focusing the mind, not un-useful traits here.

She's been written a lot more out of the story with her blow to the head (which I imagine Steren will eventually fix more permanently, but the two are not anywhere near each other right now) than I expected, so I think at least some excuse for marginal competence is needed.

A gripe  -how does Goruvich know Sonneillon is blind? He's been wearing his helmet - his relatively clumsy swipes might betray his sightlessness, but with his armour and helm he doesn't look or even move like he's blind. Also Sonnillon tastes brick dust at one point...

I assume this unsubtle joke is the 300 reference?

Quote from: Inquisitor Sargoth on April 04, 2012, 06:13:11 AM
A gripe  -how does Goruvich know Sonneillon is blind? He's been wearing his helmet - his relatively clumsy swipes might betray his sightlessness, but with his armour and helm he doesn't look or even move like he's blind.

Honestly, I thought Agares had said something to Goruvich in one of our posts, but I'll fix it as apparently that wasn't the case. (EDIT: A surprisingly easy fix.)

QuoteAlso Sonnillon tastes brick dust at one point...

Doh, oversight. The brick dust thing was purely because I couldn't properly describe the Ancient as bursting through the wall, owing to Sonneillon being unable to see it. Although that leaves me wondering how else to show how the Ancient got there. (EDIT: Deleted the brick dust thing, although now the broken wall thing has a potential ambiguity in it. Still trying to work out how to resolve this (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ThereWasADoor) in such a way that Sonneillon knows it's happened, without describing the sight or apparently taste of it.)

QuoteI assume this unsubtle joke is the 300 reference?

Which either went exactly as you'd expect, or backfired, depending on who fell in the river (you know who did but others don't)

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on April 04, 2012, 03:21:21 AM

Quote from: Koval on March 29, 2012, 06:48:52 PMI want to give Marco a chance to recover from the IGT (well done mate).

I am now back on the move with working on the plot I've got.

I've got an idea, but before I drop it into the story and someone thinks it's a stupid idea I've pulled from my backside, would anyone object to Riley using some of the anti-telepathic techniques she knows to stave off some of the concussion's effects, at least for short periods of time? After all, you could imagine that such techniques are often to do with gathering and focusing the mind, not un-useful traits here.

She's been written a lot more out of the story with her blow to the head (which I imagine Steren will eventually fix more permanently, but the two are not anywhere near each other right now) than I expected, so I think at least some excuse for marginal competence is needed.

Go for it. I didn't intend to write her out of the story as severely as that (in fact all I'd intended was for Haines to knock her down -- the concussion was your own addition which I think we just rolled with as it made sense), but until Riley and Steren meet up again, anything's going to help.

I'd imagine the effects have diminished sufficiently for it to work, anyway.

double

Another piece from three years ago. Not my best work ever but I've a fair bit on my mind right now. Hopefully it'll prompt a question or two.

Quote from: Koval on April 04, 2012, 06:51:11 AMin fact all I'd intended was for Haines to knock her down -- the concussion was your own addition which I think we just rolled with as it made sense

Well, having someone at least twice your weight tripping on to you is unlikely to turn out well.

But I blame it at least partly on some of the other characters I'm working on stories for at the moment having at least some degree of healing factor and thus my getting a bit too comfortable in bashing the people I'm writing around.

Edited my most recent IC post to remove an inconsistency -- we're not meant to be seeing everything that went on three years ago, but what we could see had a glaring screw-up in it that I've now deleted.

Sargy won't need prompting as to what the Helbindi Incident is, but for anyone else that's interested, it's a reference to an older RP, on an older iteration of the 'Clave, in which an older incarnation of Rowena Memphis was my main character.

double

Anyone waiting for me / got a post in the pipes / on an Easter-egg binge? :P

I'm working on something small, I hope to have it finished tonight or tomorrow.

A rather worrying if totally in-character development on your part -- I do wonder what's going to happen to Iota...

Just wondering what Marco's up to before I do anything with those bombers.

EDIT: Couldn't help myself. Small interlude piece in which things happen and big shouty things are big and shouty.

It even made me laugh. I'm thinking about writing the return to the appartment if that is ok.

I'm renaming the Ancient "Comedy Skatharax" just for you, Dolnikan :P

Feel free to write up the return to the apartment. There's enough space for Andreas to abandon the truck somewhere along the road.

Quote from: Koval on April 08, 2012, 08:05:44 AMJust wondering what Marco's up to before I do anything with those bombers.

Marco is still up to something. Some few real world worries to deal with though, and I had a bit of writer's block after having had to take the writing break to work on modelling.

Fortunately, some of my characters are pretty immune to writer's block, so I just get them to make suggestions. (I still haven't worked out how someone who only exists in my head can come up with things I can't.)

Fairly big post coming that should deal with both Riley and Steren/Jael though. (Possibly some stuff on the Integrity too, not sure yet).

Awesome stuff. I might get another flash-to-the-past post going in the meantime.

Flash-to-the-past post is now live.

For anyone wondering, I'm using these as a way to add a bit of extra background context, especially regarding Memphis, without turning Andreas (or worse, Haines) into Exposition Man.

Postage.

I decided to leave out the Integrity scenes for now, as I felt I was giving you too much to read as it was.  Sorry that it's not colour coded yet - I'm being lazy.

Awesome stuff Marco -- I'm off out this morning so I can't read it as thoroughly as I'd like to until this evening, but it looks great so far.

One slight concern, though, although since it's not even 6:30 yet I might've just missed something: how does Steren know the name Portiswade?

I was planning on having the others pick up on that seeming oddity in the near future, but... suffice to say that this isn't the first time in the story she's known something without being told it.

Fairy snuff. She has her ways.

Out of interest, which of Steren, Jael, Rosa, Dion and Javix* is the best driver? I'm about to default to it being Steren, but if you have any further suggestions for me then I'll swap a few things around in the post I'm preparing.


*Trying desperately hard not to spell this guy's name with a K...

Quote from: Koval on April 11, 2012, 03:32:51 PM
*Trying desperately hard not to spell this guy's name with a K...

I know, I'm struggling with this too...

I can change it to a K if you'd like. :P

As for who's the best driver, I can't imagine that naval voidsmen would have much need to learn how to drive - or at the very least, much practice/experience.
The other two... well, either would know how, but Steren has by far the better motor skills, perceptions and reaction times*. She also seems to be leading the group here (Jael has a pretty submissive personality), so I suspect that regardless of their relative skill levels, she'd probably take the job.

* I've just realised I've omitted this from her character description, and I'm not sure why - given she's quite capable of reshaping her own flesh, she's made a few adjustments along the way. Taking some years off the clock, a few cosmetic corrections and generally tuning up her body. So she's somewhat stronger and quicker than you'd expect (although still within mortal limits) even without the active use of her powers.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on April 11, 2012, 04:42:29 PM
I can change it to a K if you'd like. :P

But then he would need an airlock out of which to throw things...

QuoteAs for who's the best driver, I can't imagine that naval voidsmen would have much need to learn how to drive - or at the very least, much practice/experience.
The other two... well, either would know how, but Steren has by far the better motor skills, perceptions and reaction times*.

Thank you, that's all I need. :)

QuoteShe also seems to be leading the group here (Jael has a pretty submissive personality), so I suspect that regardless of their relative skill levels, she'd probably take the job.

Those were my initial thoughts as well.

Quote* I've just realised I've omitted this from her character description, and I'm not sure why - given she's quite capable of reshaping her own flesh, she's made a few adjustments along the way. Taking some years off the clock, a few cosmetic corrections and generally tuning up her body. So she's somewhat stronger and quicker than you'd expect (although still within mortal limits) even without the active use of her powers.

This is how I imagine biomancers as well -- even if you put them in a null field, they've still probably reconfigured their bodies to be somewhere between pro athletes and black-belt martial artists, and powers or not, facing that is still a pretty terrifying prospect.

I took that to its logical extreme once (as a concept only, not as an actual character), and ended up with the page image for this trope (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/FeelNoPain). And then somehow I ended up with a python.


EDIT: Postage. Nothing that'll set the world alight, but it's something to get the ball rolling again.

Left the door open for you to find the crashed flyer, Marco -- you already know what you'll find.

Quote from: Koval on April 11, 2012, 04:58:57 PMEven if you put them in a null field, they've still probably reconfigured their bodies to be somewhere between pro athletes and black-belt martial artists, and powers or not, facing that is still a pretty terrifying prospect.

Yeah, that's pretty much exactly what you could expect from her. She's actually a lot more skilled in combat than she chose to be against the enforcers, but she wasn't going for efficiency there. More shock value.

QuoteLeft the door open for you to find the crashed flyer, Marco -- you already know what you'll find.

Wilco.

I am in the process of writhing another bit, would I be correct to assume a city-wide panic by now?

In which city? :P

I would assume he's concerned with the city his characters are in. ;)

Coveton's the one yes, although, a little detour to another one to even further split everyone up...

There's general panic and mania in Coveton, although this is largely because local heretics have used the Ancient's arrival as an opportunity to show their true colours (Goruvich's arrival, not so much).

In Portiswade I imagine people are too worried by the prospect of dying horribly to reveal their allegiance (even though there's a lot of conflict between loyalists and heretics in Portiswade anyway), so there's a lot of panic there as well. Imagine a place roughly the size of Aberdeen being blown up and you'll have a rough idea.

I'd imagine there's unrest in other cities as well, particularly in Hilcenter, but if we're interested mostly in those two (as that's where the action seems to be happening at the moment) then that's what we've got.

I posted up a bit, I will do a second part tomorrow.(I hope)

Will post early next week, most likely. It will essentially by Sonneillon wandering around thinking (Mostly along the lines of 'What the hell is going on and why did a World Eater Dreadnought spare me?' but possibly even flashbacking to his exile) and then rejoining Volos and company.

Something I managed to omit earlier, Koval...

Steren tends to suppress most of her displays of emotion (unless she's "acting") - something of a backlash against telepathically mirroring other people's emotions - so swearing is pretty rare for her (even using sanitised language). That's not to say she never swears, but that it tends not to be out of stress or surprise.
Like I say, the starting point for writing her is to imagine a Terminator. She'll fake emotion when it helps her, but she tends towards stoic otherwise.

One thing to ask - are you likely to pick up the side of things with the Inquisitors at the lifepod, or are you expecting me to do that? I'd sort of planned it to give you a chance to weigh in, but I'll write more if necessary. Just don't want to find that both of us spend time trying to write the same stuff.

I'll tweak that post, then, my mind wasn't exactly on the ball when I wrote it. My mind's not been on the ball very much over the past few days, come to think of it.

I'll handle the life pod stuff, as I've actually thought of a halfway decent way to do it without doing a drawn-out departure scene. Will probably put something up later today.

EDIT: something's live

I posted up the second part of what I was writing yesterday, it was getting late and only got the first part finished before going to bed.

Fair enough. Bed first, writing second, otherwise you fall asleep at the keyboar asgvddajnfadvvghngdxvfgvbtbt

Public serve announcement: Term starts again tomorrow (Monday) so my productivity will most likely return to normal as I go back to endless amounts of lesson planning.

triple

Considering how shattered I am (and in how little time I wrote that latest update), I think I'm pretty good at throwing a spanner in my own works, although I think we all knew that was coming sooner or later anyway.

So now we not only have a world eater to deal with, but a daemonically possessed one, this is going to hurt.

On the plus side, it does mean we don't have to treat Goruvich as a Scrappy anymore.

That is a big plus.

I posted uptwo short bits in one. Both pieces were too short to stand alone. I apologize for the bad language, reading scientific papers all day does that to me.

Quote from: Dolnikan on April 18, 2012, 08:40:14 PM
I apologize for the bad language, reading scientific papers all day does that to me.

I also end up in a similar position every so often... At least the Edit button's there if you feel you want to tweak stuff.

The bigger question now is whether Nogal's telling the truth about Iota living on borrowed time.

That's rather what I'm wondering, given that there's a decent chance Iota will meet Steren at some point, for whom such things would be laid pretty bare.

Not that she'd necessarily be benevolent enough to fix it. She's spent most of her life being privy to all sorts of thoughts, emotions and health, so she's become very jaded to other people's problems. She's got to like you or need you before she starts bothering to deal with your problems.

Iota won't become very old, the many changes as well as the loads of injected chemicals are taking their toll, but Nogal is lying about how bad it is and the cause. Iota has been trained to mask her thoughts, her master is quite paranoid after all, especially because some of his rivals are known to use telepaths. Unfortunately Iota's problems cannot be dealt with in a psychic way, her basic genetic makeup is the problem.

Quote from: Dolnikan on April 18, 2012, 09:59:06 PMIota has been trained to mask her thoughts, her master is quite paranoid after all, especially because some of his rivals are known to use telepaths.

I'm taking the basic view that most of the main characters will have some telepathic resistance, be it through training, personal psychic talent, partially mechanical minds or just being too damn tainted. As I'm not an omniscient author, that's more or less how it has to be.

However, Steren would know such things through her biomancy, rather than her telepathy.

QuoteUnfortunately Iota's problems cannot be dealt with in a psychic way, her basic genetic makeup is the problem.

I wouldn't say that messing with genetics was beyond Steren. However, like I said, she almost certainly wouldn't.

I just left teacher-training today.

Excuse me while I explore the inside of this beer bottle... not sure I'll be in any state to post...


EDIT: Owing to the above, I'm currently undergoing a spot of creative burn-out. I'm still in the game, mind you, but I think I need a little bit more time before my next update.

I too have to apologise for my lack of creativity. The ideas are in my head, but the words aren't.

I recommend a few more drinks...

I don't normally drink (at all - for like the last decade), so I have so little alcohol resistance that trying to solve creativity issues with booze would probably result in a post like "Scramplflumf wu gyt, prendel varn pe voo - wendin zenx patl mott. Lorem ipsum."

Bork bork bork?

Update: I'm still having ideas...

...for during Days 2 and 3.

While I'm practically overflowing with creative juices* for events after Night 1**, I'm still wondering how to move onto that stuff. Damn you, brain, think harder!


*For the record, creative juice tastes suspiciously like beer...
**Don't worry, this won't turn into Majora's Mask, although the temptation was disturbingly strong.

Finally, Marco finishes the update needed so Koval could get on with things.

Sorry about the delay. I had a bit of a run in last week with real life, and I had to keep telling myself off for thinking about unimportant things. Problem was that after real life was over, I couldn't shake the guilty feeling that I wasn't allowed to be writing things, which made it really difficult to focus on writing. (Which, at the best of times, I'm a bit picky about.)

But I went off and drew some stuff (http://fav.me/d4yfoav) (yay, Infinity!), which managed to get the mental cogs turning again.

I may contribute some Riley side story soon. I need to write someone a bit more upbeat - that would ideally be Gala, but Darkness and Light went on hiatus, so Riley is a good substitute (given how much Gala borrowed from the then-sidelined Riley).

I really timed that PM badly (http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)(http://i35.tinypic.com/2akd7jq.jpg)

Cheers for the update, Marco. Reading it now. Being as it's a bank holiday I reckon I can get an update of my own out later today.


EDIT: I'm now very curious as to what that blob of gory stuff was. Being as I woke up only half an hour ago, though, I'm probably missing something obvious.

EDIT THE SECOND: In which I need to edit an edit to correct crappy grammar.

The PM actually motivated me to get some of the loose ends (like Jael's search of the cabin, which was the last bit I wrote) tidied up a bit sooner, so it wasn't a waste.

The gory mechanical blob - that's supposed to be the servitor's bionic heart, a likely enough upgrade. As Steren can't restart a bionic (particularly if it was also sabotaged as part of Zagan's suicide protocols), she removed it to create the necessary room to grow the servitor a replacement. Seemed appropriate for her combination of pragmatism and biomantic talent.

But I'll rewrite the passage later-ish to make it less vague and implied, I think.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on May 07, 2012, 07:36:20 AM
The gory mechanical blob - that's supposed to be the servitor's bionic heart, a likely enough upgrade.

Yeah, I imagine it's a likely upgrade as well, if only because it's probably sturdier than a regular heart. Khorne only knows what sorts of chemicals are running through the servitors' veins that might degrade an organic heart.

Quote(particularly if it was also sabotaged as part of Zagan's suicide protocols)

Also likely. Zagan's intention was to deny his opponents as much intel as possible. This is also why I'd intended the bombardier to be a servitor as well, though leaving him as an organic (I'm loath to describe him as properly human at the moment) actually makes more sense, as he'd be better equipped to respond to any battlefield changes -- new target priorities, that sort of thing -- as well as keep the servitor crew in check.

Quoteshe removed it to create the necessary room to grow the servitor a replacement. Seemed appropriate for her combination of pragmatism and biomantic talent.

Also makes sense...

The more I've thought about biomancy, the more ridiculous its users apparently get. I think earlier in this thread I mentioned an Alpha Biomancer that never made it past the design stage, but to illustrate what I mean by ridiculous: had she ever made it into a story, she'd probably have regenerated lascannon wounds, shrugged off heavy bolter fire, and treated immolation like a sauna. Super regeneration, super toughness, and apparently being fireproof ended up being Required Secondary Powers (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/RequiredSecondaryPowers) to explain why she could ratchet her bio-lightning up to Alpha levels without exploding into superheated chunks of molten flesh and boiling blood (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/LudicrousGibs).

Very short fake update while I get the real update sorted out, but if nothing else then that's the Agares stuff tied up for a bit.

Real update now sorted out, and it's a prelude to something I've fancied writing for a while.

Dolnikan: I imagine Semplice would want Nogal/Iota to throttle Andreas at this point, but for the moment there's the small matter of escaping a city that's being bombed by Secutors. Probably best as well to imagine Pantariste is still alive and wants to join in with the throttling.

Marco, Herald if you're still here: Haines' reaction will probably involve a lot of colourful swearing, but don't worry. Cities get bombed flat on a daily basis in the Imperium, after all :P

Quote from: Koval on May 07, 2012, 09:53:33 AMYeah, I imagine it's a likely upgrade as well, if only because it's probably sturdier than a regular heart.

Useful in high-G turns as well, I could imagine.

QuoteThis is also why I'd intended the bombardier to be a servitor as well

Oops. I took your description of him having "self-terminated" as an indication that there was actually a self to make that decision.

But, in any case, I could imagine that Zagan could have taken measures towards "securing" them as well. Suicide implants would be quite easy. (Maybe I'll add in something about that.)

QuoteThe more I've thought about biomancy, the more ridiculous its users apparently get.

That's just part of being a psyker, I think. An alpha-level anything would be terrifying.

But yeah, Steren is proving to be very capable. Fortunately though, I did write in some limitations to her power...

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on May 07, 2012, 04:54:50 PM

QuoteThis is also why I'd intended the bombardier to be a servitor as well

Oops. I took your description of him having "self-terminated" as an indication that there was actually a self to make that decision.

DERP. Should've made it clearer myself, but the way it is at the moment seems to work.

Quote

QuoteThe more I've thought about biomancy, the more ridiculous its users apparently get.

That's just part of being a psyker, I think. An alpha-level anything would be terrifying.

Biomancy in particular being the most terrifying, though -- there's not much they can't do if they put their minds to it (which is why I hate myself for never making Katherine a reality). At least with something like a telepath or diviner, you can be fairly certain they're not going to hulk out on you, or make themselves immune to bullets (though a telekine/pyromancer could probably have a go)

I hope to get something posted up by tomorrow, I'm working on it now.

Biomancy indeed is immensely powerful, that is why it is necessary to really limit it. If affecting cells is easy to do it would be very simple to disconnect a bunch of axons and whoever was hit with it is in a lot of trouble. If it is possible to alter people at the genetic level it becomes immensely complex, the genome is huge and complicated, not something that someone could zoom in on and alter things in all cells, even if the power would be there, the knowledge isn't.

Quote from: Dolnikan on May 08, 2012, 06:09:51 PM
I hope to get something posted up by tomorrow, I'm working on it now.

Biomancy indeed is immensely powerful, that is why it is necessary to really limit it. If affecting cells is easy to do it would be very simple to disconnect a bunch of axons and whoever was hit with it is in a lot of trouble. If it is possible to alter people at the genetic level it becomes immensely complex, the genome is huge and complicated, not something that someone could zoom in on and alter things in all cells, even if the power would be there, the knowledge isn't.

I'd wager that it's only really feasible to carry out that kind of flesh-sculpting if you're really powerful, more so if you're aiming to make a long-term change. I also think it would take a rather long time. Katherine would've been able to simulate a polymorphine shape-change, but Katherine being an Alpha that's sort of understandable.

Disconnecting axons, on the other hand, probably wouldn't be beyond the more powerful types, though my best guess is that it would be easier and/or more effective to induce something like a heart attack, or possibly a stroke.

Re. knowledge -- I imagine most psykers probably get a "feel" for whatever it is they're affecting, to some greater or lesser extent, which I imagine can then be supplemented with some extra understanding; I seriously doubt psykers also need doctorates to really know what they're doing. It probably helps, though :P

I posted up a short bit, I will probably do some more tomorrow when this headache is gone.

For biomancers I like to subdivide them into two groups, one which can affect their own bodies and a group that targets others but with broader effects. In my mind the two are completely different things. The second group could of course also do some things to their own bodies but not to the extent of what those in the first group can achieve.

Badly timed private messages strike again, apparently :P

If headache, then early night. Hopefully you'll feel better in the morning.

If we're going down this route with biomancy then this "two groups" thing is certainly worth considering, though I'd like to imagine a fair bit of interplay between the two groups -- sure, you might be better at doing things to other people, but that doesn't mean you have to be hopeless at fixing your own broken leg, and similarly, just because you're able to recover from the most horrific trauma doesn't mean you can't cause someone else's blood pressure to spike (although you probably do that to Monodominants anyway) or fling lightning around.

I don't tend to treat psykers as being good at one thing only -- their powers might fall only within one field, admittedly, but that still leaves room for lots of different things unless you're a pyromancer. The last psyker character with which I did something really major (and no, it wasn't Severino*) was a telekine, but although his main talent was for punching people from fifty yards away, he also managed to skydive into a city without a working grav-chute, "detect" mass-shadows of objects** on the other side of a door (and hence determine that he was about to walk into the scene of a bloodbath), and provide ad-hoc guidance for an otherwise unguided krak missile. There's plenty of stuff you can do within a power group, depending on how you write psykers.


*Severino's not far enough up the power scale to use his powers for much other than forensics, or cheating at hide-and-seek. He's probably the weakest psyker character I've used since my writing became both sensible and coherent. In 40KRP terms he's struggling to get onto Psy Rating 3, and in terms of the Assignment (which I dislike, and for which I've adopted an alternative system), he's around Theta level.

**Borrowed initially from Marco, although I don't see it as unreasonable for other telekines to have some form of object detection ability -- it's not all that hard to explain away as being able to "feel" where things are, or ought to be.

Well, as I think I've already said... actually, that was in a PM, wasn't it. To go back and quote that:

QuoteI don't think I ever detailed the full extent of Steren's powers either, so... her telepathy is quite good at sensing or intruding into minds, but more limited in affecting them. (Sort of "Jedi mind trick" level stuff here.) Her biomancy is the more powerful of her focuses, capable of pushing her to wildly superhuman extremes of strength, toughness, speed, perception and endurance as well as reshaping herself in all manner of ways, but is essentially limited to "touch" range.

If we're assuming these "two groups", Steren therefore largely fits within the "self" one, although she can project her powers to some extent through touch. As she's already demonstrated, she can heal and regenerate the flesh of others, and I would imagine she could do some very much less altruistic things as well.

That said, I'm not entirely sure about breaking it down into two "hard" groups. While I tend to restrict a psyker within their focuses, I don't keep any particular rules for doing it and tend to customise it pretty freely to give them their own individual flavour.

One thing I have to add based on some of what has been said is that I prefer to disconnect the concept of psychic level and skill/control. (There's still a topic I wrote about some experimental psychic rules around somewhere, where psykers had to achieve both a power roll a la Dark Heresy and a control roll a la Inquisitor). A more powerful psyker can do things on a greater scale, not with greater skill.

As such, while Steren is probably "only" about Epsilon/Zeta level, she could mess with you unpleasantly on a cellular level if she got in contact with you. On a genetic level... if she had some time, yes. But in neither case does it necessarily mean she'd get it right though. While she's interfered with her own body on many levels, that's a process that's taken her many years and a lot of care.

Quote from: Koval on May 09, 2012, 10:14:15 PMBorrowed initially from Marco, although I don't see it as unreasonable for other telekines to have some form of object detection ability -- it's not all that hard to explain away as being able to "feel" where things are, or ought to be.

The "feel" was pretty much as I have it for Marco - it's part of how I chose to portray his "Wyrd" nature, in that his power is so innate and intuitive for him that his surroundings are almost an extension of his body, and he can feel where they are like a normal person can feel their foot.

But Marco himself is quite limited in what he can do in that he's only about Theta level or so, and can't normally apply more than a couple of hundred Newtons of telekinetic force at once.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on May 10, 2012, 01:14:11 AM
One thing I have to add based on some of what has been said is that I prefer to disconnect the concept of psychic level and skill/control. (There's still a topic I wrote about some experimental psychic rules around somewhere, where psykers had to achieve both a power roll a la Dark Heresy and a control roll a la Inquisitor). A more powerful psyker can do things on a greater scale, not with greater skill.

Game mechanics aside, that's more or less how I break it down per something Robey suggested years ago. I can PM it to you if you like.

QuoteThe "feel" was pretty much as I have it for Marco - it's part of how I chose to portray his "Wyrd" nature, in that his power is so innate and intuitive for him that his surroundings are almost an extension of his body, and he can feel where they are like a normal person can feel their foot.

But Marco himself is quite limited in what he can do in that he's only about Theta level or so, and can't normally apply more than a couple of hundred Newtons of telekinetic force at once.

I'd probably have pegged Marco a little higher than that. The character to which I was referring back-converts to around Zeta level, for what it's worth, so I'd have supposed Marco to be around a mid-level Eta. Then again, you have a better handle on him than I do.

Quote from: Koval on May 10, 2012, 06:48:59 AMGame mechanics aside, that's more or less how I break it down per something Robey suggested years ago. I can PM it to you if you like.

I'm pretty sure I know what you mean (his three number system), but that's not quite what I meant.

People were talking about what a biomancer could do as if it were a function of their psychic level alone, and I don't agree. It might limit the scale of what they can do, but not necessarily the complexity.

QuoteI'd probably have pegged Marco a little higher than that.

I figure we likely have slightly different yardsticks. In order to stop Alphas being a sudden cliff on the power chart*, I tend to be a little more generous about what some of the lesser levels are capable of than most.

I've always taken it that Marco is a lowish end psyker, more of interest for how long he hid that "talent" than for the talent itself. Theta therefore sounds about right.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on May 10, 2012, 02:36:07 PM

Quote from: Koval on May 10, 2012, 06:48:59 AMGame mechanics aside, that's more or less how I break it down per something Robey suggested years ago. I can PM it to you if you like.

I'm pretty sure I know what you mean (his three number system)

I expanded it to something a bit more complex, later expanding further with back-conversions into the Assignment. ;D

Quotebut that's not quite what I meant.

Oh. Darn.

QuotePeople were talking about what a biomancer could do as if it were a function of their psychic level alone, and I don't agree. It might limit the scale of what they can do, but not necessarily the complexity.

Then my choice of words was wrong. I was certainly trying to suggest that more powerful psykers would find it easier to do, but at the same time I'm aware of the distinction between psykers simply being powerful, and psykers being able to focus their powers properly. I'm currently working on the basis that a more powerful psyker needs to focus more on the control part, as generating the right amount of power is that much easier -- a weaker but more focused psyker might have a really clear idea of what he's doing, but getting the power to do it may well be another matter entirely.

Quote

QuoteI'd probably have pegged Marco a little higher than that.

I figure we likely have slightly different yardsticks. In order to stop Alphas being a sudden cliff on the power chart*, I tend to be a little more generous about what some of the lesser levels are capable of than most.

I've always taken it that Marco is a lowish end psyker, more of interest for how long he hid that "talent" than for the talent itself. Theta therefore sounds about right.

Very likely, though at the same time I usually consider a "powerful psyker" to rank around a high Epsilon or low Delta. The more I think about it, though, the more I want to PM you my ideas just so that they're there. Didn't get a chance earlier as I had to go to work, but I have time now. (EDIT: PM sent, hopefully it's not too waffley)

You're also missing a footnote :P

Not so much "missing a footnote" as decided to remove it but forgot the asterisk, but I guess I can paraphrase:

I tend not to throw Alphas around. While I've written quite a few formidable psychic antagonists, I only think there's one occasion I specifically called them an Alpha. But in that case, there was some justification for the protagonist walking away a living victor - said protagonist was the M44 version of Jax Lynn, and thus the toughest and most experienced character I've ever conceived.

Instead, I tend to make the "terrifying powerful psykers" in my stories further down the charts, away from that level of almost unmatchable insanity.
But often, I don't state their power in any hard terms at all. It just seems like "Alpha" is a buzzword in a lot of stories, an "informed ability" that tries to make the psyker sound more dangerous than they will be.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on May 10, 2012, 07:27:18 PM
Not so much "missing a footnote" as decided to remove it but forgot the asterisk, but I guess I can paraphrase:

I tend not to throw Alphas around. While I've written quite a few formidable psychic antagonists, I only think there's one occasion I specifically called them an Alpha. But in that case, there was some justification for the protagonist walking away a living victor - said protagonist was the M44 version of Jax Lynn, and thus the toughest and most experienced character I've ever conceived.

Instead, I tend to make the "terrifying powerful psykers" in my stories further down the charts, away from that level of almost unmatchable insanity.
But often, I don't state their power in any hard terms at all. It just seems like "Alpha" is a buzzword in a lot of stories, an "informed ability" that tries to make the psyker sound more dangerous than they will be.

Fair enough, and Katherine's about as far as I've come to putting an Alpha anywhere. I once had a small child in a Dark Heresy campaign that came very close, mind, but said small child happened to be the preferred form of a Tzeentchian Daemon Prince (let's face it, who honestly suspects small children of mass murder and warping reality?) so Assignment scores ended up being meaningless.

I made a lot of people scared of five-year-old girls in that campaign. ;D

I have added a short bit to my previous post, I will add some more to it in the future.

Cool beans, will read as soon as I get a moment.

EDIT: Apparently Nogal's servitor slipped my mind entirely.

Andreas is arguably going to find Pantariste's introduction a little odd, considering he's currently fleeing an all-out attack and she's in Lost Tourist mode. I wonder what his immediate reaction is likely to be...

Pantariste isn't very good at this kind of thing, she behaves according to her instructions and now that the circumstances have changed she does not know how to behave. I guess that Andreas will be a bit surprised and could even consider her to be insane.

Ordinarily, yes, but I think he's a bit busy trying to dodge turbolasers and high-explosive ordnance :P

I'll see if I can put something together this evening -- I'll definitely have a plot-mover going by the weekend.

Mini update is live. Will get another bigger update going by tomorrow evening at the latest.

Zagan's not going to be shelling anywhere that's plot-relevant, yet (he's leaving that to the bombers) but there's going to be a very large crater soon where there used to be a city.

Dolnikan: You didn't specify an alias for Pantariste, so I went with "Pandora Tanis" which sounds sorta similar in my head -- if you want me to change that, I can.

Who might that bigger update be relating to, because if you've got a load of stuff you're writing for Haines et al, I'll stop trying to wrestle my thoughts on that matter into unwilling words.

Good question, should've specified. It's more stuff for Andreas.

Incidentally I'm really beginning to like Andreas as a character, probably because I've inadvertantly had him step out of Haines' shadow.

It seems like a good alias for her, she isn't all that creative with those things. I hope to get something up within the next few days as well.

Post updated. I'll try to add something extra, although I really wanted to at least get the party to the cathedral.

Andreas is basically heading for the river, as once they're there it's literally a straight run north out of town (as south means going back through the bombs), although they've still got a fair way to go before getting there.

EDIT: apparently, my words are proving to be just as unwilling...

I have posted a short bit, if you want to I can add another bit bringing everyone to the cathedral.

Actually, getting into the cathedral wasn't my main aim, although this is primarily because I ended up imagining more to the scene (in particular I'd imagined Andreas, at the very least, fleeing the city entirely, possibly with Iota/Nogal/Pantariste in tow)

I'll put something new up over the weekend, though if you want me to PM something about where I envisioned the scene going then let me know :P

I could write them getting a bit further towards the north edge of the city if you'd like me to do it.

In that case I'll draw you a map so you know which streets are available / blocked off / likely to be bombed as you approach them. Give me twenty minutes.

EDIT: PM sent. Main reason I'm waiting until the weekend is because I don't get any good posting-time until then :P

double

Dolnikan, am I reading this right in that the Secutors are also jamming Semplice's comms? Or is it just because Nogal et al. are in the city that he can't contact them?

It is just that he cannot make contact with Nogal et al because they are in the city and they lack powerful receivers or senders, he can however still contact people who have more powerful equipment.

Okay. I'm with you. For a moment I thought the Secutors' jamming kit had hit Semplice as well, but if it hasn't then that's good.

double

And we're now on the way out of town. Not the longest thing I've ever done, nor is it the best post I've ever written, but there's only so many different ways of describing Andreas running away from enemy bombers while the city explodes around him.

Dolnikan: Apologies for hijacking Semplice and Karnak but this ties in with a few plans I've been formulating for a while now.

There's nothing wrong with that, that way things can get moving again in that regard.

In case anyone's wondering: yes, we have stalled slightly, though that's only because I'm waiting to see whether the Semplice/Arbites link goes anywhere :P

I have posted the short bit I have so far, mostly to get something going again.

Argh. Frustration abound, as I know exactly where I want to take that and even have ideas for a decent action scene, but I just can't find the words to write with. I hate being ill and headachey.

In answer to your question, I'm just suffering a general state of overload mixed with no shortage of writer's block.

I've been writing other stuff relatively comfortably, but I sort of ran out of ideas for where to go here. I kept reworking a passage for Riley and Madoc until I decided the reason it seemed crap was because it was utterly superfluous, I'm not sure what I want to do with Steren's party, and I can't take the stuff on the Integrity that far either - given the relative impotence of a frigate against a Grand Cruiser equipped with techno-sorcery.

I have just had another idea, but aside from how many of my ideas have stalled, I'm not entirely sure how well it might fit into the scheme of things. However, if it "breaks" things, there's an easy fix.

I'll see if I can actually get my brain working on that.

Did I write you into a dead end then, Marco? :-\

Slightly. Coveton coming under attack did mean the original vector of the Inquisitors moving into town got deflected, and things like Andreas' vox being jammed meant that other ideas had to go on hold too.

There's not so much that stops me writing Steren, but her escape from Portiswade would mostly just be "Turned left, turned right, accelerated, lots of swearing from the passengers, occasional mention of some psychic trickery" and while she has got the servitor to entertain herself with, there's not a whole lot she could do with the information (of which there probably isn't much) other than go "Hmm, I should tell Riley about this".

Still, working on something, in between trying to redo Marco and co for the Summer Conclave. (More on that soon - maybe.)

Well, the bombers are well on their way to finishing off, so once they're gone, the jamming ought to lift as well -- while Andreas is now arguably outside the city (and jamming range), I'd probably be misinterpreting something about signal jamming if I just said "okay, he's out of range so he can call people again".

That would depend on how the jamming works, if it is done by the techno-sorcery it could easily have a limited range and a definite border.

I'm thinking more about how Andreas/Haines' comms are likely to work -- if it's a direct transmission then it'll have to go through the jammed area, which is probably a no-go. The Navy probably wouldn't have left many comms satellites up in orbit, either.

So they will have to go in a different direction from there, depending on how large the area is.

I'm trying to find a nice and concise explanation of how jamming tech works, but so far I'm having little success...

EDIT: Based on my limited understanding of things, the Secutors are emitting all sorts of random electromagnetic junk that's aimed to disrupt most if not all comms traffic, of all kinds (apart from their own; the crew and servitors might be in the service of a Khornate Techmarine, but they're not that stupid). That basically tells me as much as I knew before I started looking it up  :-\

I picked a location for the arbites team, I hope that I didn't mess up any geography I had forgotten about. If so, I will change it immediately to a more suitable location.

130km west... hang on, let me go away and do some trig for you.

EDIT: Derp, it doesn't even need bloody trig. I was trying to work out if being that far west of Coveton would let Iota and Semplice be able to radio each other again, and apparently the answer is yes.

EDIT EDIT: while I was at work today, my ideas for my next post proceeded to slip backwards. I may be a while.

double

Depending on how bad my headache is when I get in tonight, I'll put up a post either today or tomorrow.

EDIT: nothing hugely profound (well, okay, there's a couple of lines that kind of are) but it's certainly something that moves the plot along slightly and gives Semplice food for thought. I dare say he'll be phoning his daughter when the bombers leave and demanding to know exactly who the bald adept with a skull-shunt implant actually is.

He probably will, this has been very informative for him.

As my body is weird, and thus decided that 10 hours of hard stage rigging yesterday meant I was so tired that I would be fine to wake up at two o'clock this morning*, I found the time to finally fix two of the problems I wanted to solve, namely that I couldn't get it out of my head that the Inquisitors would have made it into the city, and that I had some characters who had been practically ignored thus far.

*Not sure why, but the approximate rule is that if I go to bed at about 11 o'clock or earlier, I WILL wake up at somewhere between one and three in the morning. Otherwise, I'll normally sleep through to my alarm (and quite possibly after...)

In any case, the "breaking" things I referred to before was if supplying the Inquisitors with an Arvus caused problems. If it does, then it can be assumed it takes damage during the escape and becomes out of commission in some fashion. (Although preferably not another crash landing!)

It doesn't break anything, and I must say that's a pretty cool way to resolve the threefold problem of Chain's non-presence, the Coveton bombing, and transport, although it means I'll have to go down a slightly different route with Andreas (which basically means that whatever I'd planned for him will have to involve Iota, Nogal and Pantariste rather than the Inquisitors. For once, Andreas is probably rather less than delirious at being surrounded by women and servitors.)

Out of interest, who's this "he" that Ekkehardt is referring to? Is it Haines, Barkley, Zagan, or none of the above?


EDIT: My own reasons for nothing substantial this weekend involve a threefold combination of Skyrim, tiredness, and building yet more tanks for my Guard army. I have only myself to blame for #1 and #3.

Well, if no problems are caused and a few are solved, then we're doing well.
There are of course still a questions or two it does raise, like "How the hell did they find her", but those are (probably) to be addressed in my next post.

Your plans for Andreas are perhaps not dead yet, as I can imagine that the Inquisitors will return to try and find Andreas after the carnage has settled. He's a useful asset and has what they believe to be a number of potentially useful leads with him. Your choice.

Imperial Armour 4 tells me an Arvus has a 22,000 km range (a little excessive, as this would be enough to circumnavigate Terra with room to spare), so they're unlikely to rule it out for lack of fuel, in any case.
(Funnily enough though, IA 4 doesn't list the Arvus as having VTOL capability, but other sources do - I went with it, because it made more sense, it was more convenient - and just cool.)

On the note of my choice of craft, Riley is of course the kind of person who would have an Aquila or similar, but there's two reasons I didn't include one - a) it's far too big and ostentatious for a quick and inconspicuous extraction in potentially unknown terrain, and b) I imagine she would have taken hers to the Asculum, so I don't imagine it's particularly flyable any more.

And Ekkehardt* is referring to Barkley. I've rephrased it slightly to clear up the confusion.

*He knows Haines from the journey in to Sigma, but wouldn't have been the first person Riley kept appraised of who her meeting aboard the Asculum was with. He's not exactly possessed of the social graces required to attend, and Riley didn't want him to have motivation to insist upon it. (He would have lost that argument, but she didn't want to have it at all). He's probably not going to be entirely impressed to be told.

Oh, my plans for Andreas are still alive and well, it's just that they'll involve two combatants and Nogal rather than one-and-a-half* and Barkley.

Re. Aquila vs. Arvus -- being as both are capable of transporting goods and personnel between one place and another, and are capable of limited space travel, it's not a huge deal either way. The Aquila looks more ostentatious (as you point out) and has better armament, and the Arvus is more common and utilitarian with a bigger hold. Of minor note is that the only one of my characters to favour an Aquila is Eliesa Schwertwald (because once you're stuck in a giant tank-chair, subtlety is a joke you tell your friends) -- you're far more likely to see my characters use an Arvus. Haines would generally favour an Arvus if he had to choose, because it's presumably big enough for him to stand up in without hitting a light fixture.


*I can't be entirely sure whether Riley's combat skills are still overly affected by the concussion. I gather Barkley's patched her up a fair bit, but as far as I can tell so far, that just means she's moving without having to hang onto someone to stop her falling over.

QuoteI can't be entirely sure whether Riley's combat skills are still overly affected by the concussion. I gather Barkley's patched her up a fair bit, but as far as I can tell so far, that just means she's moving without having to hang onto someone to stop her falling over.

There are no specific concussion treatments at present, so even if there are in the 41st millennium, I would imagine that with the equipment at hand, Barkley's not going to have done much for it.

I think there are only really three ways that are going to fix the concussion - time, quite a lot of hi-tech medical treatment or the friendly neighbourhood biomancer.

Time is going to be days and weeks, so not exactly practical here; The treatment is probably not a great rush either, and likely not too available on a war-torn world (maybe on the Integrity though); So, to be honest, I think she's probably going to be suffering from it to some degree until Steren finally catches up with her.

As such, probably very towards the shaky end of things at present, yes.

...At least Barkley knows his way around a lasgun? :X

Somehow I'm imagining what I have planned for Andreas working much better with Iota & co. than with the Inquisitors, although I want to see where the Semplice/Ravion thing goes before I really take that anywhere though. Main reasons it'll work better can be summed up below:


MADOC HAINES
-mother trucking THUNDER HAMMER that I have yet to do anything with
-still has his plasma pistol, bringing his gun count to three
-built like a fridge

RILEY HALLONA
-concussed...

AMBROSE BARKLEY
-can at least hold a lasgun the right way round, even if he'd likely prefer not to fire it
-has medical training

V

IOTA TETTARES/IONA TETHRAS
-very rationally minded
-well-armed
-also good at unarmed combat
-highly agile
-escaped a trigger-happy Dreadnought while both were in a wide open space...

HAJAD NOGAL/DOVIN
-is Mechanicus
-highly intelligent
-has medical training
-low combat ability

PANTARISTE/PELAGIA TANIS
-has military training
-is carrying a pretty chunky lasgun


I think Andreas' chances are better with Team Blue...

That depends a bit on whether Ekkehardt and Chain count as part of Red Team now. Ekkehardt is a big bulky enforcer and Chain is the best shot amongst my characters.

But yes, Riley is fairly useless right now. In her defence, she would be good were she not dealing with a head injury.

Mind you, I doubt all three of them together and on top form could add up to Steren in a fight - what with her being able to ignore most small arms short of bolters and rip armour open with her bare hands. Fortunately for those three though, they do have other strengths!
(I really shouldn't be allowed to bring psykers to an RP, because they always turn out terrifyingly powerful.)

Somehow I'd forgotten about Chain being a good shot. Oops.

Steren's power level doesn't bug me at all. I think you're the only person worried about how powerful she is, as in the grand scheme of things, there are more powerful things than Steren in this RP. I've given sixteen Arbitrators to Dolnikan, for a start, and, moreover, dumped Agares on you (granted, that means the World Eater contingent went from five entities -- Agares, Goruvich, the Ancient, Zagan, and Zagan's ship -- to four, but they'll probably be a more serious threat as a result when we see them again)

will probably expand later tonight and/or make an update

As soon as the bombers are gone Semplice will contact Tettares again and make his way to the arbitrators.

I completely forgot to add in Nogal. She basically is Karnak's apprentice, her first name is Hajad and she is quite talented with biological work and medicine. She isn't very good with weapons, she can use simple weapons but won't hit much. She was raised by the mechanicus which explains her attitudes towards emotions and the like.

Quotein the grand scheme of things, there are more powerful things than Steren in this RP.

True, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't aim to be more conservative in future.

She's got the boosted physique, she can potentially change her appearance as she likes (either to simply hide her identity, but potentially up to almost indistinguishable resemblance), has a general array of psychic senses (including mind reading) and can make psychic suggestions.
All in all, I think don't think too much short of our Astartes antagonists or being heavily outnumbered* is going to faze her.

*And by that, I do mean pretty heavily outnumbered. She's already curbstomped a five to one fight that she was deliberately hamming up for a mix of intimidation, non-lethality and as a deliberate distraction from the squishier people nearby.

Quote from: Dolnikan on June 26, 2012, 08:14:08 AM
As soon as the bombers are gone Semplice will contact Tettares again and make his way to the arbitrators.

I may PM you about that, actually, as I had an idea while I was at work today that I think would work better if you acted on it (largely because you have more of a handle on what Nogal and Pantariste are capable of than I do, whereas we both know that the only things Andreas can't do are piloting, acrobatics, and cooking)

QuoteI completely forgot to add in Nogal. She basically is Karnak's apprentice, her first name is Hajad and she is quite talented with biological work and medicine. She isn't very good with weapons, she can use simple weapons but won't hit much. She was raised by the mechanicus which explains her attitudes towards emotions and the like.

The fact that Hajad sounds vaguely Turkish/Arabic kinda kills the image I had of Nogal being a hot blonde. I have no idea why I keep imagining people's characters as hot blondes even when A) I prefer gingers B) I have no reason to even assume that a character is blonde*. Although I'm now imagining her as Team Blue's version of Ambrose Barkley.

Does her alias have a first name, by the way? Or will Andreas have to invent something should the group later be questioned?

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on June 26, 2012, 03:42:21 PM

Quotein the grand scheme of things, there are more powerful things than Steren in this RP.

True, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't aim to be more conservative in future.

As long as it can be justified and done sensibly, I wouldn't have a huge problem with it. My own character Eliesa Schwertwald springs to mind:
"Why is she in a tank-chair?"
"She was paralysed from the waist down when a rogue psyker fried her with Bio-Lightning. She decided a normal wheelchair didn't cut it."
"And she's an old lady, so how is she still alive after that?"
"Her background as an Arbiter meant she ended up on the front lines rather a lot, even after becoming an Inquisitor, so she's been in her fair share of scrapes."
"And what's with the multilaser?"
"Personal defence weapon."

I realise that's a poor example, not least because Eliesa is arguably the most powerful Inquisitor I've written by a long way, but it's still an example of a ridiculous character that ended up working within the confines of what I was trying to do with her. My philosophy when GMing a RP has always been that it's as much a given player's story as it is mine, so there's always room for something weird as long as all involved are fine.

QuoteShe's got the boosted physique, she can potentially change her appearance as she likes (either to simply hide her identity, but potentially up to almost indistinguishable resemblance), has a general array of psychic senses (including mind reading) and can make psychic suggestions.
All in all, I think don't think too much short of our Astartes antagonists or being heavily outnumbered* is going to faze her.

Prime Inquisitor material? If Haines meets her, and survives**, he's probably going to recommend her appointment to Interrogator...

Quote*And by that, I do mean pretty heavily outnumbered. She's already curbstomped a five to one fight that she was deliberately hamming up for a mix of intimidation, non-lethality and as a deliberate distraction from the squishier people nearby.

Right, so she'll probably curbstomp Narl plus fifteen Arbitrators if she puts some welly into it. Good to know.

I almost want to take that to its logical extreme with Steren V Ancient if they should ever come face-to-face...


*Thankfully, Riley is a hot blonde, although Haines was too chivalrous/embarrassed to comment.

**I'm not trying to imply that Haines won't survive the event of meeting Steren, but there's a strong possibility that at least one of my characters will be leaving Sathvairg in a coffin depending on who ends up where, when.[/quote]

Quote from: Koval on June 26, 2012, 07:33:11 PMIf Haines meets her, and survives, he's probably going to recommend her appointment to Interrogator...

One would imagine they've already become somewhat acquainted from the trip in, although I can't imagine that he received a demonstration of her talents.

In any case, Riley is aware of Steren's potential value - she just wants to be VERY sure about her first.
A normal Inquisitor can cause enough trouble if they go off the rails. Now imagine if the same Inquisitor can become immune to gunfire and almost infinitely disguise their appearance.

QuoteRight, so she'll probably curbstomp Narl plus fifteen Arbitrators if she puts some welly into it. Good to know.

I wouldn't exactly put it beyond her, but I can imagine that Arbitrators are better trained than your typical everyday Enforcers. So it would depend on whether the circumstances worked to her advantage.

QuoteI almost want to take that to its logical extreme with Steren V Ancient if they should ever come face-to-face...

I've been wondering how that might turn out. Obviously the Ancient has the more powerful offence and defence, but Steren definitely has the agility advantage.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on June 27, 2012, 12:45:38 AM

Quote from: Koval on June 26, 2012, 07:33:11 PMIf Haines meets her, and survives, he's probably going to recommend her appointment to Interrogator...

One would imagine they've already become somewhat acquainted from the trip in, although I can't imagine that he received a demonstration of her talents.

Yeah, it's not like Warp transit is the safest time for Steren to demonstrate psychic ability in front of Haines. :P

QuoteIn any case, Riley is aware of Steren's potential value - she just wants to be VERY sure about her first.
A normal Inquisitor can cause enough trouble if they go off the rails. Now imagine if the same Inquisitor can become immune to gunfire and almost infinitely disguise their appearance.

Unless you're being as secretive with Steren as you are with Alyx Paige, I imagine there'll be plenty of opportunities for Riley to later become sure about Steren. Admittedly it might not be in this RP, but still.

Quote

QuoteRight, so she'll probably curbstomp Narl plus fifteen Arbitrators if she puts some welly into it. Good to know.

I wouldn't exactly put it beyond her, but I can imagine that Arbitrators are better trained than your typical everyday Enforcers. So it would depend on whether the circumstances worked to her advantage.

Let's say Andreas has already gone joyriding in the Crassus, so they don't have that anymore.

Quote

QuoteI almost want to take that to its logical extreme with Steren V Ancient if they should ever come face-to-face...

I've been wondering how that might turn out. Obviously the Ancient has the more powerful offence and defence, but Steren definitely has the agility advantage.

[/quote] You do realise I'm going to spend my train journey into work thinking up ways that this'll pan out, right?

I have posted a first part, I will write more when I have the time to do it.

Quote from: Koval on June 27, 2012, 06:49:30 AMYeah, it's not like Warp transit is the safest time for Steren to demonstrate psychic ability in front of Haines.

Or indeed likely to raise much reason for her to turbocharge herself.

QuoteUnless you're being as secretive with Steren as you are with Alyx Paige...

I'm not. You actually know Steren's real name and various details of her past. (At present, the earliest other characters know of Alyx's past is their first meeting with her on the Holy Blood. They don't even know why she was on the ship in the first place.)

There's some details of Steren that have formed in my head that I probably won't pass around, but that's more because they're thus far irrelevant and a bit weird. Things like specifics of how she does/doesn't alter her body shape if she's adopting disguises.

QuoteI imagine there'll be plenty of opportunities for Riley to later become sure about Steren. Admittedly it might not be in this RP, but still.

It's something of a parallel to how Marco feels about Jax Lynn. Jax is also inordinately tough - not because she's immune to bullets, but because nothing you do to her seems to stick. Injury, death, mind scrubbing - you name it, she seems to be able to heal it all. (Whether she can be permanently dead is thus far unknown.)
He obviously comes to trust her (as per Ad Vitam Aeternam, in the even further future), but in the present day, he's got similar thoughts on the matter - he's uncertain whether to trust her, but better to keep her under his watchful eye than let her run loose.

QuoteYou do realise I'm going to spend my train journey into work thinking up ways that this'll pan out, right?

Yes, I do. I can imagine that there's a high likelihood of it going very wrong for her, but she's definitely got the best chances of the protagonists if it comes down to going toe to toe with a dreadnought.

Haines likely has a more powerful offence in the form of that thunder hammer, but he's not nearly as fast or agile. Perhaps she should borrow it from him.

Quote from: Dolnikan on June 27, 2012, 11:13:42 AM
I have posted a first part, I will write more when I have the time to do it.

In that case I look forward to seeing what happens next, although it's moments when you say "I will write more" that make me wonder whether I should do an update of my own, or wait for Part 2 :P

You'll be on the northern outskirts of the city. Architecturally, think of a London council estate (http://www.constructionphotography.com/ImageThumbs/A158-00228/3/A158-00228_Robin_Hood_council_estate_with_gardens_shot_from_inside_the_sportsground_London_UK.jpg) or cheap housing from Burnley (http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2011/7/4/1309783574927/Burnley-007.jpg). Used to be a rough part of town, but now nobody's any the wiser since it's been blown the hell up.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on June 27, 2012, 04:15:04 PM

Quote from: Koval on June 27, 2012, 06:49:30 AMYeah, it's not like Warp transit is the safest time for Steren to demonstrate psychic ability in front of Haines.

Or indeed likely to raise much reason for her to turbocharge herself.

This is true...

Quote

QuoteUnless you're being as secretive with Steren as you are with Alyx Paige...

I'm not. You actually know Steren's real name and various details of her past. (At present, the earliest other characters know of Alyx's past is their first meeting with her on the Holy Blood. They don't even know why she was on the ship in the first place.)

Stirling doesn't even know you have a ship, never mind what it's called or the circumstances behind Alyx's first appearance. As a matter of fact, all Stirling knows is that Alyx is probably someone he doesn't want to cross, particularly since she'll probably dismember him and leave the rest for Novus.

QuoteThere's some details of Steren that have formed in my head that I probably won't pass around, but that's more because they're thus far irrelevant and a bit weird. Things like specifics of how she does/doesn't alter her body shape if she's adopting disguises.

Well, there are similarly some details I've omitted with regard to Haines and Andreas, which similarly don't affect the story (though you correctly, and probably inadvertantly, guessed one of those things about Haines during the Riley-naked-under-the-full-moon post; I just didn't say anything at the time because it wasn't relevant).

Quote

QuoteYou do realise I'm going to spend my train journey into work thinking up ways that this'll pan out, right?

Yes, I do. I can imagine that there's a high likelihood of it going very wrong for her, but she's definitely got the best chances of the protagonists if it comes down to going toe to toe with a dreadnought.

Considering I managed to imagine her hulking out and literally ripping the Ancient in half*, your comment's making me lower my expectations of Steren. A pity, because that would've been rather fun to write. Though since I've now shared it, it probably won't happen any time soon.

QuoteHaines likely has a more powerful offence in the form of that thunder hammer, but he's not nearly as fast or agile. Perhaps she should borrow it from him.

I like your way of thinking, but if we're getting to the stage where Haines is also involved then he's likely to be scrapping as well. As such, he'll probably be too busy using his thunder hammer to lend it to Steren.


*Keep in mind, there isn't a lid on the Ancient's sarcophagus -- he's got a refractor field there instead, but in any case all there is is a rim where there probably should be a lid. So basically, imagine an excitable six-year-old, or large puppy, demolishing a cardboard box.[/quote]

QuoteStirling doesn't even know you have a ship, never mind what it's called or the circumstances behind Alyx's first appearance.

None of the characters know that they have a ship. They of course know of the Holy Blood, but not that they own it. The Inquisition have thus far kept them ignorant of the fact that all legal owners or claimants to the Holy Blood died in the Lacrymole infestation, so their recovery of it was both unknowing and unwitting.

QuoteAs a matter of fact, all Stirling knows is that Alyx is probably someone he doesn't want to cross, particularly since she'll probably dismember him and leave the rest for Novus.

Depends on how you cross her. While she's an assassin, she's generally more pleasant than that would imply. However, her past history does mean there are certain things that are a bad idea to do around her. And no, I'm not going to tell you what they are.

QuoteConsidering I managed to imagine her hulking out and literally ripping the Ancient in half, your comment's making me lower my expectations of Steren.

I don't know. She's already ripped the door off a Secutor - and while that took her some time, she may well have been sparing the power. (If she knew it would get her through the door, why take the extra risk?)

She could put fists through dreadnought armour, I'm sure of that. Whether she could rip one clean in half - for the sake of keeping her power level vaguely sensible*, I'm going to have to say it's unlikely, but you never really know when the warp is involved.
(But if she would is an another matter entirely. In a serious fight, she tends not to be showy for the sake of it. The Ancient would have had to have very much annoyed her for her to want to be that thorough.)

*While she's mortal enough if she's not boosting herself, it's not going to be easy to do something lethal or incapacitating enough to her before she can attain her focus and become a regenerating tank. As such, I think her boosts need some limits.

Minor notice: depending on how bad this conjunctivitis gets, I may not be able to post over the weekend owing to the need to take a break from staring at a computer screen. I'll see how I feel.

It's even more irritating because I had loads of ideas yesterday...

EDIT: It once again turns out that I'm allergic to something. This time, it's chloramphenicol (the active ingredient in those bloody eye drops). Oh, and it also turns out the pharmacist at Boots (who I didn't see the first time) reckons it's not even conjunctivitis. So I now have new eye drops that won't kill my eyes.

I've updated the gunfight, although I've not provided anything for the Arvus on the basis that A) I can now send Marco a PM B) I need an early night (for my eyes) and can do an Arvus post in the morning.

I'm going to take the hints in the PM, and am thus going to try and get this post I'm working on up later today.

First time I've had to write Andreas since back in the lifepod, I think.

He's basically Alfred to Haines' Batman.


EDIT: the promised shuttle update arrived a little later than intended, seeing as I ended up oversleeping quite heavily (8:30, whereas I'm normally up and doing stuff after about 6 these days), however since Herald hasn't posted in a long time (and hasn't even been on the Conclave for about seven or eight weeks), I felt I'd have a stab at resolving some stuff with Barkley now while I had the chance.

I've left it open for Riley/Chain/Kuefer to react as appropriate; Haines' reaction is arguably "oh, like that's a bloody surprise" (as he's probably seen and/or done something similar before) but I can't speak for the Arvus' other occupants.

I've added something as per Koval's suggestion.

It may have mistakes, as I've not yet had the time to proofread it or do clever formatting, but I've got to be leaving the house tohelp run a concert in only a few minutes, so you'll have to bear with that until I have the chance to get back and rest.

Steren not knowing that Andreas has been using an alias may well mess things up. However, whether the other characters are paying attention to what names she's using after the fact that a slender woman has just crashed through the wall - your choice. And Andreas himself has reason to be pretty shocked, given her entrance.
(Like Haines, he's probably not all that aware of her capabilities.)

If you do pick up on it, she'll probably go to the trouble of pointing out that none of you are being truthful and generally Sherlock Scan you, given she can read thoughts, emotions and biology - as well as knowing a lot of more mundane charlatan's tricks like cold reading, subliminal suggestion and the like (imagine Derren Brown kind of stuff) that she uses to improve the scope of her Telepathy.

As for the rest of her group, they're probably nearby - Steren will have broken off, leaving them at a safe distance while she chases after the telepathic/biomantic signature she recognises as Andreas.

Thanks for the update, Marco -- clearly that's you back in the game now that we can do stuff with your characters again :P

Considering that Iota at least now has reason to suspect that Andreas' alias is pretty darn flimsy, I reckon she'll pick up on Steren's use of his name even if nobody else does, though it's probably down to Dolnikan whether anyone actually does take notice.

No problem. We finally get to see Steren being a bit less benevolent in combat (had fun with that, particularly the bit on the back of the Salamander). Hopefully none of the characters she's crashed in on are daft enough to try their luck.

As for names, Iota may indeed notice - I'd suspect that even if she doesn't first time, Steren is likely to use Andreas' name again. (Unless perhaps Andreas is desperately trying to instruct Steren through his thoughts and she notices.)

In any case, I'm interested to see where it goes. I'm not sure whether people want to consider this fight finished (if not, Steren can either partake in more carnage or, if the author doesn't want to write that, she can "borrow" a rifle from some heretic and hunker down instead - in the latter case, probably to keep an eye on Andreas. She wants answers from him, and she's not going to let him get out of it by dying), but after that we've got quite a lot to get into.

Also, I've done the proofread now. There's a few changes to the word order in a few places and I elaborated on a couple of bits that weren't quite as clear as I wanted them. Nothing changed plot-wise, though.
(I basically converted the morning's notes through to the text in one pass, between a shower and going out, so I'm not surprised there was a thing or two to fix.)

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on July 01, 2012, 06:46:10 AM
No problem. We finally get to see Steren being a bit less benevolent in combat (had fun with that, particularly the bit on the back of the Salamander). Hopefully none of the characters she's crashed in on are daft enough to try their luck.

I wouldn't be surprised if they did, owing to the fact that a psyker has just crashed through the wall and only Andreas knows who she is, but that one's up to Dolnikan as the characters we haven't accounted for are his.

QuoteAs for names, Iota may indeed notice - I'd suspect that even if she doesn't first time, Steren is likely to use Andreas' name again. (Unless perhaps Andreas is desperately trying to instruct Steren through his thoughts and she notices.)

I can actually imagine the reverse-telepathy fitting in fairly nicely here (Andreas isn't a psyker, but he's not a fool either), though Steren should probably be careful if you want her to dig any further than that.

QuoteIn any case, I'm interested to see where it goes. I'm not sure whether people want to consider this fight finished

Let's just say there's a reason why there are now three trucks and a Salamander.

Quote(if not, Steren can either partake in more carnage or, if the author doesn't want to write that, she can "borrow" a rifle from some heretic and hunker down instead

I've neglected to describe exactly what most of the heretics have been carrying (apart from the agitator who had a stub gun and a fire axe) so there's enough room for shotguns, PDF las weapons, banged-up autoguns that probably came from a junkyard, the works.

Quotein the latter case, probably to keep an eye on Andreas. She wants answers from him, and she's not going to let him get out of it by dying)

Clearly Andreas is the man with all the answers. One wonders why he's not the Inquisitor instead of Haines.

Quote from: Koval on July 01, 2012, 07:16:06 AMI wouldn't be surprised if they did, owing to the fact that a psyker has just crashed through the wall and only Andreas knows who she is

Well, they don't yet know she's a psyker. Can't deny that they know she's come through the wall. (She did pulverise a heretic though, for whatever that might be worth.)

If anyone does take a poke at her, she probably won't be trying to kill them (given they're "not heretics" holed up with a known quantity), but that's not the same thing as saying she'll be gentle about it. Given she's currently boosted, even a pulled punch is going to be a serious blow.

QuoteI can actually imagine the reverse-telepathy fitting in fairly nicely here, though Steren should probably be careful if you want her to dig any further than that.

She doesn't tend to dig into people's minds most of the time. That's partly a deliberate narrative choice, so conversations with her don't end up with her predicting everyone else's sentences and being the only one speaking.

About the only thing she picks up on almost automatically is emotion (which, in my interpretation, is such a basic level of the mind that it's almost impossible to fake or block. Particularly to Steren's close examination, as she's also a biomancer who could read the chemical cues in someone's brain instead.)

Beyond that, surface thoughts take a bit more examination, and she tends not to put effort into reading them. She sometimes gets the odd piece though - in a similar way as looking at a page of text, you'll get some words, even if not deliberately reading it. To continue that analogy, thoughts with a particularly strong emotional cue attached to them are similar to bold or enlarged text.

She can delve further into memory and the like, but that's more like actively searching through the book to find things, and beyond finding simple details (like she did with Rosa's name) or certain recent memories, it's not usually worth the bother or increased risks.

So, if Andreas is worked up enough about it, she might pick up on the emotions and look a little further into it.

QuoteLet's just say there's a reason why there are now three trucks and a Salamander.

Three trucks and an empty Salamander.
She won't have done any serious damage to the tank itself though, so it could in theory be driven again. Anyone that tried though would find an angry psyker coming at them at hyper speed* - unless there's a missile launcher on the floor, there'll be no pussyfooting around with discarded weapons.

*I'm not yet sure exactly how fast her top speed is, but at least 60 miles an hour at full boost.

QuoteI've neglected to describe exactly what most of the heretics have been carrying

If there's one on hand, she'd probably go for a lasgun first. Reliable, lethal, something she'd be able to use pretty much off the bat.

Alternatively, one idea I left on the drawing board was her stealing the heavy stubber (it's still outside of course, but she's bulletproof) and re-enacting the scene from Commando.

Not long now 'til I go out to work, but I'd just like to say one thing:

QuoteThree trucks and an empty Salamander.

That's exactly why I brought the Salamander up in the post you were quoting. ;D

Sigh, how is it that I miss these threads? though admittedly it has been a while since I last logged on.

Anyway on a vaguely relevant topic: This story is turning out well; nice to see most of the writers holding their own. Not sure what's going on with that Kowal guy though... eh every chain has its weak link :)

Someone's apparently using my handle but spelled with a W rather than a V?

We have an impostor on the loose...



Clue #1: the impostor is a phantom!

A phantom, you say? I thought I recognised the dramatic masked forum organist from somewhere.

Depending on how drunk I get tonight, I might post tomorrow morning, or I might post tomorrow afternoon.

So I don't end up starting to write something that clashes, where are you planning on posting for?

As far as suggestions for what you said last night about Andreas trying to make up an alias for Steren, I've been looking around. You can either play off the name's meaning of "Star" (as I may have said, her name is Cornish), but names based around the Latin Serenus would be moderately similar phonetically.

As a Firefly fan, her having the alias "Serenity" is tempting. Also, it would be an amusing name for Andreas to give the woman who's just demolished a wall.

The Arvus and an extra scene with an antagonist, largely because I'm still curious as to how Dolnikan's characters are going to react to Steren and I don't want to start assuming they'll behave a certain way.

Fair enough. Given I also don't really want to be guessing at what Dolnikan's characters will be doing, I think that leaves me with nothing much to do for the moment. I might be able to chase up side scenes, but I doubt they'd add anything of any value.

That gives me time to get out the modelling kit or sketchpad this evening then.

Double postage. Neither piece is exactly my best work ever, given that I'm still out of it, but the Varachen scene in particular was great fun to write, especially since we've finally seen Nemurax... err, get killed off. Or have we?

Dolnikan: Are you waiting for me? If so, that'll influence what my update's going to involve this weekend.

I am indeed waiting for you, I'm a bit unsure about what to do next myself.

The scene on the outskirts of Coveton is mostly waiting to know how your characters are going to react to a psyker crashing through a brick wall. Andreas' reaction is fairly well known (the two are familiar with each other - although perhaps not well enough he was expecting her to power through a wall - so he's probably shocked rather than about to get violent).
But neither I or Koval want to be making guesses on behalf of your characters.

If you're not sure about how Steren might react in kind... well, if you want to PM me ideas about how your three might react to her arrival, then I'm perfectly happy to take on writing the scene. (I promise she won't end up killing any of them.)

Exactly so -- assuming that Iota/Nogal/Pantariste would react in a particular way would appear forced, and would no doubt prompt some debate in the OOC as to how the scene should've been handled. Apologies for causing confusion.

(For the record, Andreas has to put up with Haines, and has seen some pretty disturbing stuff courtesy of the various cults and groups he's fought, so I'd say "startled" rather than "shocked". Incidentally I really need to do something with the Blank Dawn rather than make them a footnote.)

Shaken, not stirred. Got you.

I hadn't ever given any thought to whether Andreas drinks vodka martinis...

Dol: Just seen your post, going to have a read now.

It's still a it short, I am suffering from a bit of writer's block I think.

That happens to me. I recommend listening to good music -- admittedly your tastes and mine may vary, as I listen to scores and symphonic metal when I need inspiration, with occasional bits of death metal and some trance thrown in -- and just letting the images flow.

Marco: Endless barrels might have to wait until next weekend. :P

@Dolnikan: You know, that's what I should have thought of - Iota would (and does) defer to Semplice if an unexpected situation occurs.

I'd still say that based on the brief observation the characters have had though, there are alternative explanations beyond immediately concluding Steren is a psyker. Sure, it's a possible and likely explanation for unnatural performance, but concealed augmetics/bionics, powerful combat drugs* and other biological boosts are all known in the Imperium.
Still, if that's the assumption she'd make, that's fair enough.
*Referring, somewhat, to the police officer in "Terminator" who suggested the T101 was on PCP as an explanation for its strength.

@Koval: Endless barrels? You've got me confused.

In any case, if I am to infer from that that you'll probably not have time to post until next weekend, I've got a few ideas I'll try and get down before then.

Marco: Page image. (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MrExposition) You know to what I'm referring. :P

Dol: Threw up a short post because I had time to do so. If I've misinterpreted Iota completely here, then please let me know, and I'll just can the whole post as it's rather reliant on her being a bit annoyed with Andreas. Actually, now that I think about it, I've probably been playing Andreas completely out of character as well (to the point where you could replace "Andreas Tuominen" with "Ottakar Grant" or "Fabian Filipowski", and it'll read exactly the same) so I'll revisit it anyway after work tomorrow.

Ah yes, now it makes sense. I couldn't remember whether it was something from Skype.

Am I unfortunately becoming adept at writing people into corners? :-X

I am currently on holliday without a computer, I will post whenI get back.

Ah, okay. Have fun! :)

I got a little something up, I will do another piece when I am less tired.

No worries, thank you for posting. Did you have a good holiday?

I've got a post that's mostly ready to go, but I have to go to bed now. Early-ish tomorrow then, I imagine.

Okay, early-ish was overoptimistic. But I posted something anyway.

I eventually decided that Steren would be less aggressive than giving a "Do you think you can shoot him before I can stop you?" speech. However, I have to be honest - if Iota et al continue to remain a threat to Andreas (either by pointing guns at him, or insisting he stay in a dangerous area), she'll likely deal with them in her own idiom.

For the sake of the story, I don't want her to be getting violent - but it's what would be in character. She's quite analytical - she needs Andreas alive, and if the risks against that get too great, she deals with the risks, even if they are Inquisition agents.

I might drop in an update over the weekend depending on how I'm feeling. Currently, I'm exhausted, and I want to tinker with some other projects as well (none of them involve RPs, mind). See what I feel like tomorrow.

I hope to write something during the weekend but it does depend on how I feel.

I think that puts both of us in a similar position, then :P

double

Okay, so I completely failed to come up with anything whatsoever. I'll have a think about how to manage the transition between here and the next big action-y bit while I'm at work tomorrow.

EDIT: Turns out I'll need to wait for Iota to be told (by someone other than Steren) to lower her weapon, or at least do something with it that doesn't involve shooting Andreas in the face. :X

Assuming that the group's going to bundle into at least one of the vehicles plus Steren's half-track thereafter, there's enough fuel in the trucks/armoured cars, combined, for one truck plus the half-track to go as far as we need to go, and let's assume the Salamander's got a few spare jerry cans in the back as well. We already know Andreas can drive (I think I enumerated the list of things he can't do, either in this thread or over Skype) and I'm hoping that either Nogal or Pantariste knows what to do with a ground vehicle as well.

In case anyone's curious, Portiswade was the closest city but I think the bombers over that way already wiped it off the map, as is technically still happening to Coveton*. Stonechapel's about a fourteen-hour drive away by tank (or six and a half hours by land-train), with other cities being a bit too far away for even a Hover Espace to cover in any reasonable amount of time.

Zagan's grand cruiser is in low orbit by now, by the way, so will be sort of visible to Steren and anyone with magnoculars if the sky's clear. (Keeping in mind that "low orbit" goes out to two thousand kilometres above sea level, Zagan is still very definitely in space -- he's not going to suddenly drop into Sathvairg's atmosphere on his own volition.)


*Although the bombers over both cities are long gone and have probably headed back to Zagan's ship to refuel, let's not forget that most of Coveton is still on fire...

I have little time at the moment but did post a short reply to Steren, Pantariste knows how to drive as does Nogal, so that should work.

Forgot to mention earlier that Stonechapel's northwest of Coveton, although do remember that I'm bringing it up primarily because it's the nearest city to Coveton that the party doesn't believe has been bombed.

Don't worry about time constraints, Dol, I'm a bit tight for time at the moment as well. Damn surprise commitments.


EDIT: I should be able to get something up tomorrow evening Saturday.

double

Yes, it's messy, but I'm not good with transitions between one scene and another. So while the justification for "let's go to Stonechapel" is as flimsy as a wet piece of paper, I'll be thinking of ways to bulk it out, and in any case this brings me closer to doing something with my ideas for once we're there.

triple

While I am working on my next post, I do plan to spend most of my time between now and next weekend painting -- I'm going to a 40K tournament in Wiltshire on the 19th, and I have a lot of Imperial Guard to paint between now and then.

If you're short on time, I am working on something myself. In any case, Steren will volunteer herself as one of the drivers. Her talents make ignoring physical and mental fatigue pretty trivial* - but I suspect that everyone else is already feeling the strain, either through skipped sleep or aching muscles.

*Mind you, regarding what I wittered about in PMs regarding Steren's boosted physical feats still normally being fuelled by her own metabolism (the psychic powers only a catalyst), Steren probably has the most fatigue to ignore.

Actually, what I was working on is totally separate to the characters of either you, Dolnikan, or myself, so feel free.

And yes, there is a reason behind my slightly odd wording :P

Okay, so apparently a full rewrite solved the problem, as did having a pre-existing Sonneillon/Jacques post open so that I could reference how they sounded.

I finally got to post again, I am still ill, with a light fever, so please point out any unclear bits, because my mind can't.

Cool. That works well with what I'm slowly writing.

What I was aiming to write today will have to wait until Tuesday at the earliest, but it all makes sense.

Get well soon, Dol :)

I promised Koval a segment where Steren killed someone with a brick, so there it is.

I should probably also tell you why Steren was only partially lying when she was talking about the Theklian 7th, but that would a) not be as much fun for me and b) require me to actually have a plausible sounding explanation.

Nice post. Must've taken a while to put together.

I'm in the process of deciding what my next segment is going to entail, so that probably means it'll come in two parts (and neither of them before the weekend, as I've been absolutely knackered for the past two days).

I'm also trying to work out how to manage a time skip, because fourteen hours of driving won't make for a very interesting string of posts.

It did. Partly because it needed a rewrite to get around Pantariste's instructions to drive the Salamander.

Not perfect though, so I've performed some minor rewording. No plot changes though.

I'm not hugely proud of the first bit -- it's a generic Vargas update that actually gets into the planetary bombardment Zagan was about to do several pages ago -- but the second bit ought to provide a bit more context to both what's coming, and what came before*. Have fun with all the new stuff.

This also allows us to facilitate a time-skip if we want to get past boring Andreas-Goes-To-Sleep posts and spoilery reveals between Ravion and Semplice. (On that note, Dol, if you want to play that one out over private messages, please feel free.)

*If you actually look at the date of Part 2, it came after the messages were received, and just slightly before Haines joined Riley on the Sword of Integrity.

*Insert dramatic organ music here*

Not quite organ music, but how about Apocalypse Please (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMfBmRuzSTs)?


EDIT: Just found this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOZjJISUGJo), and it is amazing.


EDIT 2: New colour for Hesh. Yes, it is important that I coloured his text.

Now that is very interesting to be sure. I will be posting a short bit about the meeting between the marshal and the inquisitor soon, and then I think it would be time for the PM's.

Edit: I posted the little bit I promised before.

I was about to make a post last night, but decided that I was too shattered to manage anything coherent past the first two sentences. If I get something up this weekend, it'll probably be tomorrow.

EDIT: Well obviously very little happened over the weekend -- I don't know why but I just felt absolutely knackered the whole time.


EDIT 2: Found the soundtrack for the next scene, I'll get writing in the morning.

I'll have to duck back into earlier pages to remind myself whether we're allowing armsmen-casualties, though.

double

Yes, Agares is back, although the bike isn't Goruvich's own, since suddenly saying he came down with one makes no sense -- he probably took it from an Arbitrator. As such, it'll probably be closer to a Scout Bike than a full Astartes bike, and I imagine it'll have just the one on-board weapon (if any).

I'm currently imagining the party joining the orbital from the southeast and currently going clockwise.

Dol -- I'm currently assuming Iota to be inside the Salamander with Pantariste, so if it looks odd that Nogal suddenly has a gun, tell me and I'll switch their positions around. (Oh, and the direction in which the party's going is quite important.)

Iota would still be in there yes. Now we have to find a way to rid ourselves of the space marine.

I doubt anyone is going to regret Steren having brought along that heavy stubber...

The heavy stubber is going to be helpful, but that won't do the job in and of itself -- it'll take a bit more than just bullets to stop Agares, even if you're more or less emptying a M2 into him.

If, on the other hand, you had four heavy bolters all trained on him as well as the heavy stubber, you'll probably have to get the hose out as well because he'll be joining Bort. :P

Not so much my thinking.

It may take a lot to stop Agares, but his bike (even if armoured) is a little more compelled to obey the laws of physics, and I doubt he'll be able to keep pace without it.

Well that's not exactly very spectacular, though I myself have had some ideas revolving around the bike. Do remember that I gave him one for a reason :P

Well, if you want something more spectacular (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3emhr_tq4lc#t=1m53s)...

We could try that, however, I have the feeling that he would leap off the bike and onto our salamander, otherwise it would be a bit undramatic.

Unfortunately, you've just given me an idea I won't have enough spare time to write before next week.

I'd say the Summer Conclave takes priority here, so feel free to take your time.

double

It's filler, but one of the lines in question popped into my head over lunch yesterday; I didn't get time to flesh it out until just now, though, so if it looks a bit spontaneous, it is.

I'm still not blessed with the spare time to be have written down more than notes for the passage I have got in mind, but to check a few facts...

1) As I recall, the Salamander Scout does not have any access between the gunbay and driver's compartment, making the only access to the driver's compartment the top hatch. I'm taking it, therefore, that Iota is stuck in the front gun position.

2) I'm assuming the only two characters (currently present, at least*) who would have any chance (beyond pure luck) in a close range fight against Agares are Steren and Iota (before bearing in mind point #1 above, at least).

*Counting only active PCs, unless Riley steals a nastier weapon (but she likely is going to), I'd think I'd probably only add Haines and his thunder hammer to the list.

We appear to have stalled again, and I'm busy all of tomorrow, but I might move the story along again over the weekend.

Actually, my problem is that I have a too complete post waiting.
I just kept writing and what I have basically plots out the whole chase/fight from beginning to end. I don't want to be all selfish and not leave anyone else their chance to cut in, but I really don't know where I'd want to break it into bits either.

In about five minutes I'll be completely unavailable until about 8 tomorrow.

While that looks unrelated, it does mean I wouldn't have much of a problem with you putting the post up seeing as I'll be too indisposed to comment :P

EDIT: Though if your post ends with Agares either still, or back, on his bike, then it'll go quite naturally into how I'd planned to A) end it and B) bring some more characters back into the picture.

Actually, it ends with the bike in more than one piece and a lot more vehicular/scenery damage besides.

I couldn't imagine that they'd be shaking his pursuit by outrunning or outmanoeuvring  him (not on an unoccupied multi-lane orbital) and the major characters all need to survive so the only ways of evading the chase seemed to be destroying the bike, separating him from his bike or one of the voidsmen throwing themselves at him in an attempt to buy the others time to escape.

Also, the scene took a possessed World Eater, a biokinetic, several high calibre weapons and a fair few grenades. It would have been underwhelming if serious carnage weren't happening.

I'll look it over again and see what I can come up with. If not, I guess I can post it as it is - it's not like it's short-changing any characters (I can't imagine them fighting off Agares without a pretty combined effort).

Oh, it doesn't matter hugely if the bike ends up in multiple pieces, it just means I'll have to have a slight rethink at my end. Which probably isn't a bad thing. It's easily workable if our characters (or at least, the Salamander) and Agares are still on the orbital, but equally I can do something with whatever you go for.

Right then. Well, unless Dolnikan jumps in with an objection, I'll check it over this evening and see if I can get it posted later tonight or tomorrow.

This would've been an edit, but it's not any more, so let's just say that having to rethink my initial ideas is one of the many reasons why we had a Hesh/Filipowski scene from what would have been the prologue, rather than three years ago.

It's also resulted in a few revised ideas for Zagan's future involvement (seeing as Khorne just pressed a reset button on the whole reason that he's there), and has caused me to reassess Andreas' long-term prognosis (again).

Rethinking ideas is fun. :)

The post is still coming, but is marginally delayed.

I decided to re-draft a section, but my muse ran off while I was dealing with some trials and tribulations of dog ownership, and I haven't yet found where she's hiding.

In case it looks like this thing's died a horrible death, it hasn't -- it's apparently just taking a back seat to the December Clave planning and the search for Marco's muse* :P

We are, however, nearing the endgame, as I'm devising ways to wrap this up over the course of about another half-dozen bombshell events.


*I think I spotted her running off in the direction of Juno Reactor, though that may just be because I've got Shango playing at the moment.

I have been writing as and when I get time.

Aside from realising I'm not very happy about my ability to write fight scenes - the mix between beige and purple prose, the balance between too short and too long, and generally avoiding reusing similar language over and over somewhat escaping me - I'm not sure how on the mark I am with some parts of Agares' personalty.

I won't say exactly why (such as to not give away too much), but I'm wondering exactly how Agares would think of Steren.

I know he's generally of a mind to turn most of the protagonists to pulp, but my question relates to how he would see the line regarding her "talents".
Although there's some telepathy in her skill-set, her approach in combat definitely tends towards the physical than the mental. She is, in crude terms, pretty Khornate as psykers go. But of course, she's still a psyker.

Basically, I'm questioning where the balance might be between respecting her as a warrior and disliking her for being a psyker (perhaps even for using it to cheat at being a warrior)?

(Part of the problem is it's never consistent exactly what it is that Khorne detests about psykers. A tricksy indirect approach, that it's "cheating", some warped version of "honour", descriptions that basically boil down to "racism", etc... they all exist in one source or another.)

I always thought it boiled down to jealousy -- Khorne was supposed to be really crap at spellcasting when he was younger, so now that he's older, that's sort of warped its way into "slinging sorcery around is for dishonourable tricksters" (which is why he's not exactly best mates with Tzeentch). He doesn't seem to have a problem with daemon engines and daemonweapons, though.

In terms of Agares' perceptions of Steren, he's still very likely to go "psyker = smash it"; however, Steren's still capable of putting up a good fight, and I personally prefer Blood Knight Khorne to Ax Crazy Khorne. So Agares is probably going to be:

-grateful for the challenge
-very unhappy that Steren's a psyker
-comparing Steren unfavourably with Sonneillon (because Sonneillon won, despite being blind)
-comparing Steren very favourably with Goruvich
-thoroughly enjoying himself

Possibly in that order, though being as Agares hasn't had a good fight since he got out of his sword (and probably hasn't had a fight at all), I suppose anything's possible.

If that doesn't quite answer your question, then I apologise -- I'm recovering from last night.

Quote from: Koval on December 15, 2012, 07:41:02 AMIn terms of Agares' perceptions of Steren, he's still very likely to go "psyker = smash it"

I'm rather assuming that "smash it" is going to be his response to all of the characters present.

Quote-comparing Steren unfavourably with Sonneillon (because Sonneillon won, despite being blind)

Although not actually disabled, Steren is still combatant at a disadvantage here.

While she's comparable with a Marine on strength*, and ahead on speed/reactions, she's certainly not as damage resistant and has a distinct size/weight disadvantage. It gets worse after you add in Agares' daemonic strength and toughness.
*She's perhaps actually stronger (seeing as she actually gets to break the laws of biology), but doesn't possess the required secondary powers to the same degree. A Marine's greater inertia and better footing** mean they can make better use of their strength.
** I'm not sure if she's actually still wearing her heeled boots. She may well be barefoot at the moment.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on December 15, 2012, 11:02:14 PM

Quote from: Koval on December 15, 2012, 07:41:02 AMIn terms of Agares' perceptions of Steren, he's still very likely to go "psyker = smash it"

I'm rather assuming that "smash it" is going to be his response to all of the characters present.

True, but Steren especially because she's psychic -- the next most interesting person after that is probably Iota*, with Nogal a close third.

Quote

Quote-comparing Steren unfavourably with Sonneillon (because Sonneillon won, despite being blind)

Although not actually disabled, Steren is still combatant at a disadvantage here.

While she's comparable with a Marine on strength*, and ahead on speed/reactions, she's certainly not as damage resistant and has a distinct size/weight disadvantage. It gets worse after you add in Agares' daemonic strength and toughness.

Actually, it's probably because of Agares that Steren's at that disadvantage -- I still maintain that she'd probably have curb-stomped Goruvich with little difficulty.

Quote*She's perhaps actually stronger (seeing as she actually gets to break the laws of biology), but doesn't possess the required secondary powers to the same degree. A Marine's greater inertia and better footing** mean they can make better use of their strength.
** I'm not sure if she's actually still wearing her heeled boots. She may well be barefoot at the moment.

Well, there goes the image of Steren kicking Agares to the curb while wearing a backless dress and Combat Stilettos (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CombatStilettos).


*Agares always seems to have had this ability to "read" another person's biology, to some or other extent -- it's basically a predatory instinct. It wouldn't surprise me, for example, if he had Vein-O-Vision (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/VeinOVision), or if he were able to detect pheromones without effort.

Quote from: Koval on December 15, 2012, 11:56:31 PMActually, it's probably because of Agares that Steren's at that disadvantage -- I still maintain that she'd probably have curb-stomped Goruvich with little difficulty.

I've never intended her to quite be that powerful. Obviously her limits vary a bit, dependent on how well she can maintain her focus, but she's still finitely fast (and Marines are a fair bit faster than they have right to be as well) and not clad in thick armour plate.

The odds somewhat depend on if a Marine know they're fighting a biokine. Wildly underestimating her probably would result in a very short combat, likely finishing with her snapping the Marine's neck.
I figure that's probably the easiest way for her to kill a Marine - she's strong enough to do it, and it focuses an attack on a weak-point in both the Marine's physiology (unlike most other internal organs, they don't have a redundant spare for their spine) that the armour can't protect very well (it's a flexible joint, so can't be reinforced as well as other areas).

If they were taking her as a serious threat though, a Marine would definitely have fair odds. From which perspective, Agares may have one of his biggest advantages - what with his daemonic perception of the warp (and apparently some sense for biology), he's not going to mistake her for benign.

QuoteWell, there goes the image of Steren kicking Agares to the curb while wearing a backless dress and Combat Stilettos (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/CombatStilettos).

The boots aren't quite stilettos. But frankly, if anyone can pull off fighting in high heels, a biokine with hyper-agility and invulnerability to such things as sprained ankles (at least while boosted*) probably has the best chance.

*And fairly resistant even while not, I suspect. Given the level of re-engineering she's done to herself, she's probably less prone to normal biological failings.

~~~~~

Two more things.
#1: It has occurred to me that Goruvich had a bolt pistol. a) Does Agares still have this, and b) would he be using it*?
*Obviously not at the same time as riding the bike and wielding a sword.

Unless you've got particular reason for him to shun it, I'd quite like to include it to help the flow of the fight.

#2: If his bike is mounting a weapon, does a grenade launcher (primarily for crowd control) sound alright for an Arbites bike? Although I suspect gas grenades might be the typical load-out, I'm thinking it's not that unlikely it was loaded with something a bit more lethal when cultists started showing up.

Quote from: MarcoSkoll on December 16, 2012, 03:15:59 AM
I figure that's probably the easiest way for her to kill a Marine

Actually, I think a plasma pistol would be the easiest way for her to kill a Marine. Or a krak missile. :P

QuoteIf they were taking her as a serious threat though, a Marine would definitely have fair odds. From which perspective, Agares may have one of his biggest advantages - what with his daemonic perception of the warp (and apparently some sense for biology), he's not going to mistake her for benign.

I don't think Agares can't take threats seriously. He's a Bloodletter* so he takes fights seriously no matter whom he's up against.

[quoteTwo more things.
#1: It has occurred to me that Goruvich had a bolt pistol. a) Does Agares still have this, and b) would he be using it*?
*Obviously not at the same time as riding the bike and wielding a sword.

Unless you've got particular reason for him to shun it, I'd quite like to include it to help the flow of the fight.[/quote] I don't actually remember if Goruvich picked it back up. Let's assume he has, and let's assume Agares would use it -- bolt pistols do, after all, make a nice gory mess of people. Agares might well prefer the thrill of actually getting into combat and hacking people to bits, but Intelligent Khorne beats One Track Mind Khorne any day of the week so he'll know when the pistol's just better. (Don't assume he'll be a particularly good shot, though.)

Quote#2: If his bike is mounting a weapon, does a grenade launcher (primarily for crowd control) sound alright for an Arbites bike? Although I suspect gas grenades might be the typical load-out, I'm thinking it's not that unlikely it was loaded with something a bit more lethal when cultists started showing up.

Yeah, I imagine tear gas or knockout-gas would be standard fare for an Arbites bike, with a few frags in a second drum. Let's roll with it and see what happens.

Actually, I guess I have at least one more question. Have we determined which way Saithvairg turns*?
*Although personally I think my favoured way to define cardinal directions is that a planet's east is the way it turns, I know not everyone will want to agree.

I know you said (although only OOC, I think) we were travelling west, but if we've got flexibility on either that or where the sun is rising, there's a section that would work better if the convoy is travelling towards the sun.

I haven't given that any thought -- if you'd like to give it a clockwise rotation, then that's fine.


EDIT: I've got to work out where all my notes went now -- I have some rough ideas for what's supposed to happen (which mostly centre around people dying and Tyra surviving -- a foregone conclusion given her attendance at the Twin Arches), but the specifics escaped me many beers ago and I've now got to hunt around.

Don't rush to find them. As I earlier alluded to, I'm not very happy with what I wrote before - not the actual storyboard in my head, that's fine, but the actual way I've put those scenes into words.

It's actually tricky to make it read interestingly as a scene. There's several protagonists and an antagonist who all have plot armour, so there's a challenge in getting it to read as something other than a lot of impotent flailing.

Agares, for example, can't really do more damage than mess up the vehicles/scenery, kill the voidsmen or slam around Steren - there's not really a lot of room for him to plausibly only inflict flesh wounds on the other characters.
(At a pinch, I guess Steren could fix up more serious injuries, but I really don't want her to be a walking deus ex machina*).

*As I may have already said, I think she's only not the most powerful character I've written because of how the M44 version of Jax Lynn is intended to be.

The plot armour is slowly disappearing -- feel free to beat up Agares as much as is necessary.

That said, you do have a point, if only because hellblades don't tend to "only inflict flesh wounds". :P

OMGWTFBBQ. Marco actually finishes that update he said he was going to.

I don't hugely like what I've written (it feels off to me), and I'm expecting this probably stalled for so long it crashed into the ground - but I've at least done it now.

Some notes:
- B flat
- Yes, I'm deliberately vague about how Agares disappeared.
- This is Jael having one of his "out of character" moments - in this case, he's manifesting some of the far more confident personality from the engrams of his predecessor.
- F natural
- Might explain plan Theta in character later, but it's basically shorthand for "I've got an idea, read my mind".
- C7 chord

And to think that on the train back from Bristol earlier, I was pondering whether I should actually do an After Hours style "conclusion", but this is certainly encouraging, and we may finally get round to why Tyra Vargas is alive and well as a 54mm figure :P

As it is, I've simply forgotten how to write as anyone in this RP that isn't either Hesh, Fabian, or Tyra.

EDIT: A quick look at Dolnikan's profile suggests he's been inactive for a month, for whatever it's worth.

I suspect I've probably messed up some of the characters because of the long delay, but I just decided to finish writing it even if it wasn't quite pitch perfect.

I've missed writing somewhat and, while I'm working on a short story for Clepsydra and may one day progress Ad Vitam Aeternam more, this was really what needed doing.

And that's even if I really fancied writing something for Gala, having been re-watching Eccleston-era Doctor Who recently. (Given he's one of the influences on her personality.)

Following your Skype notes, a couple of details have been changed.

--Agares' sword needs to be referenced some time before he starts chopping up the half track
Done. Andreas now almost mistakes the grenade launcher's muzzle flash for the sun glinting off the brandished sword.

--you mention Steren having suddenly grown claws, has she suddenly outgrown her boots?
Made clearer that the claws have punctured her boots.

--At what point does Steren work out that Agares is not, in fact, a World Eater?
Their final conversation has been adjusted to make it clear she has noticed. As for when, given she's a telepath, she probably noticed fairly fast after getting into close proximity with him.

--Where is Steren while Iota's shredding the half-track with the heavy bolter?
Made clearer that they're taking cover as best they can behind Agares and what remains of the cab.

Cool beans. I may get an update of my own going this weekend, but it does depend massively on whether I can remember where the story was supposed to go from here.

Which is, of course, to say that I'd planned out all of the major scenes, but very little to link them.

As Marco is aware, I've unfortunately decided to pull the plug on Defiant Echoes. Basically, when the story lost momentum, I ended up getting my ideas in a knot, and when Marco posted I'd just lost track of where I was even going.

Marco already knows the end result, but it's better to wrap it up at this point, so the short version is:
--Agares (having survived falling off the motorway) fights, and kills, Sonneillon in Stonechapel
--Steren encounters the Ancient, and the two end up killing each other
--Haines et al encounter the Nemurax entity in the centre of Stonechapel; so does Agares (who gets curb-stomped by Haines). Zagan leaves the grand cruiser to investigate personally.
--Zagan discovers that the original Nemurax entity is long gone; the thing in front of him is no longer what he sought. Cue bloodbath as Zagan immolates the Nemurax entity, returns to his ship (with Agares) and starts lasering Stonechapel.
--Cue two simultaneous escape scenes, one for Haines and co, the other for Andreas and co. (Semplice et al can probably make their escape at this point.)
--Enter Inquisitor Gelert Hesh and a Naval task force. Hesh decides that the only way to stop Zagan for sure is to kill him personally.
--Cue space battle as cover for a boarding action. In the process, Tyra Vargas' ship gets enslaved, but Tyra destroys her ship's thrusters to spite Zagan and ends up ramming him through momentum alone. Tyra escapes.
--Hesh kills Agares with his bolt pistol** when Agares takes too long challenging Haines to a duel.
--Most of the Storm Troopers and Naval armsmen that Hesh brought along are spaced when Zagan plays with the airlocks, but named characters make it to the bridge.
--Zagan enslaves Haines' bionics and uses him to kill rather a lot of people. Hesh tackles him to the ground; in an attempt to kill Hesh, Zagan kills Haines instead.
--At some point, Riley is killed in action.
--Zagan is overpowered through force of arms (and trickery when Andreas picks up Haines' plasma pistol), and is executed by Hesh.
--Cue escape scene as the grand cruiser is shot out of orbit and crashes into Sathvairg. Its Warp drive implodes, taking most of the planet with it.

Not the most satisfying summary of events, but the version I sent to Marco ended up spanning two private messages as we tried to ascertain who was, and wasn't, alive, and I still felt I could've said more. Haines, Riley, and Steren* died; Herald and Dolnikan's characters survived (unless they say otherwise); the Chaos characters are all very dead; and Sathvairg itself is at best a Shattered World (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ShatteredWorld) or asteroid field.

Tyra's survival leads into a court-martial, then a pardon by Hesh, then the Twin Arches campaign at WHW last December; Andreas' survival will eventually result in a model.


*She did end up turning into a major character in her own right, if only because she was just really powerful. Even so, she had to ramp her power level all the way up to go toe-to-toe with the Ancient; Marco and I decided between us that this resulted in a Heroic RROD (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HeroicRROD).
**Hesh now has a bolt pistol to avoid a conflict between two similar characters.

It was a little depressing to kill off quite so many characters quite so summarily, but many of mine didn't really have anywhere to go.

Riley had a large part of her personality recycled into another character (before I suddenly had a use for her again), and Steren turned out far too powerful*. In the great scheme of things, she rather had to go for the sake of my not being tempted to use her again.

*I'd favour very few of my other characters' chances in a fight . With prior warning and perhaps some help, maybe a couple of them could get lucky... but really, the only characters I'd give more than a paltry chance are Maya Avens**, Jax Lynn (in her even further future incarnation) and Leander.
And really, when I can only give decent odds*** to a single character that isn't either an immortal (who won't even reach the necessary potential for hundreds of years) or a titan... I probably overdid it.

**If you're wondering, Maya's best shot would probably be pyrokinetically incinerating Steren's head.
*** And if you're wondering who'd be the first of the runners up, probably Inquisitor Skoll. Laevateinn can slay daemons, and it's just as effective at cutting any other kind of warp hardened flesh - but it would rather rely on getting a good hit before she twigged.