Cthulhutech - The times have changed

[merashin]

Disclaimer: this is here because it can get nasty and unpleasant, not because it is intended to be sexually oriented.

This will be an Eldritch Society game. I already have 2 players (maybe 4, but 2 people haven't been responding to me) and would like to cap the game off at 6 people.

I plan on using John Chung's house rules.

We will use critical failure rule 1b and, for the purposes of 2b, all hybrid damage weapons will receive a +4 damage increase.

I will be running contrary to some stated pieces of fluff, but, for the most part, the characters will not know this until they encounter the inconsistencies. I'll specify most that the characters know in the game thread, but the big one is that the NEG still has a foothold in China in Shanghai and a 100 mile radius around it.

The game will be starting at the end of 2087, in October.

This will be my first Pbp game (that I'm running). So, you'll have to bear with me on this. Also, I'm training to be a lawyer; so my sentences are likely to be very fluffy.

I would like you to submit characters to me using the standard rules for making an ES character modified as per the linked house rules. Even though I expect this to be a tager game, parapsychics are allowed as long as they acknowledge they will either need to take some form of environmental or somatic powers to keep up in combat, or else not contribute to combat in a meaningful way. The same goes for mortal sorcerers, but replace enivronmental/somatic with summoning/necromancy (yes, I'm currently working on necromancy spells and almost complete. At third circle you can become a lich if you are mortal. Just ask and I'll post what I have). As per the normal rules, Tagers can be sorcerers as well, they just have to expect to not be as good as mortals until they get some ruach wells.

You will begin in the Merida arcology on the Yucatan Peninsula. You'll travel all around the world, so all of the Tager types will get a chance to act in their optimal environment. I also intend to have you guys metamorphose at some point or somehow empower your abilities if you are a para-psychic or sorcerer.

I will be allowing the Tagers that Bear posted up in the Liber Eques Sanctus project on the official forums. The project is a subforum on the Wildfire Cthulhutech forums (Please avoid the thread titled Super Dhohanoids. Don't worry if you've already looked at it).

If you want any other homebrew to be accepted then just tell me and I'll do what I can to accommodate it.

[Muse]

*Pounce!* 

Oh, may I play please? 

(And I bet Pretty in Pink would love a chance too!) 

I'd pitch Cory too you on the psot,but I'm fallling asleep in my seat, so I'll pop in again when I wake.

[Mnemaxa]

I have a distinct interest in this game.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

And I'm the nutbar who invited Mera over here and one of the two from the original recruitment.

Almost finished with an app for an Echo, criminal background (runner/dealer), Russian punk (literally and figuratively -- something of a cross between Wendy O. Williams, Samantha Wright, and Heather Doerksen as Sasha Kaidanovsky).

She's a refugee from Archangelsk by way of Volgograd. She's spent almost a quarter of her life in prison...And she's under twenty. The Society pulled her out when it went in to extract the bodies of some dead Tagers at the fall of Archangelsk (given its location, a logical jumping-off point for those seeking the fabled Plateau of Leng)...One of whom had sort-of adopted her off the record and was trying to keep her off the streets.

Just the person if you need something broken into, stolen, boosted, or when you need to find things on the black market. She has an unfortunate tendency to deal with her problems head-on.

But don't most Echoes?

[ChaoticSky]

Very interested! i love Tagers O_O

[merashin]

Alright, We've got 4 people posting in over here, 5 if we count Retrokinesis from the original GiTP thread, but she hasn't responded to me and I don't know if she's tried to make/already has an Elliquiy account yet. That's enough to play, but I'm going to wait a little bit more time just in case.

If people's characters are ready then it would be nice to start seeing them if you can. No need to rush though. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

Code Select Expand

[tt]  [u][b]CONCEPT[/b][/u]

Player:               
Name:                  Callsign:
Race:                  Allegiance:
Virtue:                Flaw:

  [u][b]PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS[/b][/u]

Gender:                Age:
Height:                Weight:
Hair:                  Eyes:
Coloring:
Dist. Features:
Birthday:
Place of Birth:

  [u][b]ATTRIBUTES[/b][/u]

Attributes  |  Rating  |  Feat Level
------------|----------|------------
Agility     |    ?     |
Intellect   |    ?     |
Perception  |    ?     |
Presence    |    ?     |
Strength    |    ?     |
Tenacy      |    ?     |

  [u][b]SECONDARY ATTRIBUTES[/b][/u]

Actions:
Movement:
Reflex:
Orgone:
Vitality:
Drama Points:

  [u][b]SKILLS[/b][/u]

Skill      |  Expertise  |  Attr. Base
-----------|-------------|------------
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
-----------|-------------|------------
Spec       |  Expertise  |  Skill
-----------|-------------|------------
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |
           |             |

  [u][b]QUALITIES[/b][/u]

Assets:
Drawbacks:

  [u][b]SPECIAL ABILITIES[/b][/u]

  [u][b]INSANITY[/b][/u]

Points:
Disorders:

  [u][b]EXPERIENCE[/b][/u]

Total:
Spent:
Log:

  [u][b]POSSESSIONS[/b][/u]

  [u][b]SPELLS[/b][/u]

  [u][b]ARMOUR[/b][/u]

  [u][b]WEAPONS[/b][/u]

  [u][b]WOUNDS[/b][/u]

[/tt]

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

I'm sure the master post will get updated with these soon, but for the moment:

John Chung's house rules

Liber Eques Sanctus

[merashin]

Thanks for that, for some reason it wasn't letting me put external links in the master post. I didn't try editing it to put them in as I didn't think my ability to link would have changed between posting and editing.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Thanks for that, for some reason it wasn't letting me put external links in the master post. I didn't try editing it to put them in as I didn't think my ability to link would have changed between posting and editing.

Hm. I wonder if it's because you've just been approved? But then what's the approval process for? Is it working now?

[ChaoticSky]

also useful: Mugshots

IIRC, stuff is limited right after you approved, when i first joined, long ago now, i dont think i could edit posts at all for like a week.

[merashin]

Hm. I wonder if it's because you've just been approved? But then what's the approval process for? Is it working now?

Somehow I can now do it. Maybe it was a restriction for someone just approved, but they chose to remove that restriction because I'm running a game. Maybe I'm just over thinking things and it was being glitchy.

[ChaoticSky]

Somehow I can now do it. Maybe it was a restriction for someone just approved, but they chose to remove that restriction because I'm running a game. Maybe I'm just over thinking things and it was being glitchy.

At a guess, maybe they have links disabled for initial posts? i mean, thats what spambots do yes? I dont think they are smart enough to go back and edit if it didnt work the first time XD. But its been a long time since i was new i dunno.

Anyway, im thinking of picking up a Efreet for my tager. Had a idea rolling around for one for a while, so taadaa.

[ChaoticSky]

I claim this colour

Sary

I have walked through valleys of death and oceans of night. I have looked demons and traitors in their eyes. I have heard the whispers of dark things that wanted my soul. And never once have I encountered anything that has struck the fear into me that those creatures would feel if they ever truly understood the resolve of Humanity.

Player:	Darkling
Callsign:	Crusader
Race:	Xenomix
Allegiance:	ES (NEG)
Virtue:	Confident
Flaw:	Arrogant
Gender:	Female
Age:	20
Height:	5'10"
Hair:	Black
Eyes:	Amber
Colouring:	Silver-grey skinned
Features:	Tattoos, though very different from usual nazzadi whitework, see Misc.
Birthday:	7th Feb
PlaceOfBirth:	UK

Bio

Sary is a tall woman who practically bleeds confidence, with a near perpetual cocky half-grin and all the physical gifts nature has to offer. A Xenomix, she has healthy silver-grey skin, amber eyes, and long, lustrous black hair that reaches down to her waist. Her physique is that of a goddess; a generous bust, tastefully narrow waist and nice curved hips, but more than beautiful, she is strong, and has a lean build of muscles like armoured cables beneath the soft veneer of flesh, giving her a very toned look. She doesnt often have time to bother with cosmetics, so she simply had a dark line of eyeliner and inviting scarlet lipstick tattooed on.

In addition, while she engages in the nazzadi tradition of tattooing, she chose to follow her own sense of style, and instead of the neo-tribal lines of her darkling kin, she favours more geometric shapes. To be specific; tall rectangles and triangles, writ in black ink. She has three triangles on her face, each cheek and her forehead, with points facing outward, another at the base of her neck, point descending into her cleavage, and a matching one on her lower back, its point disappearing below her waistline. The monolithic rectangles she wears on the outside edges of her limbs; outer upper arm/shoulder, outer forearm, outer thigh, outer calf, and on her stomach and upper back. She has begun a process of counter-scribing these shapes with additional designs in white ink, covering the black rectangles with quotes and text she considers inspiring, while having symbols and designs placed on the triangles. Currently she has a stylized flame design on the triangle over her chest, and the monoliths on her back and both upper arms are covered in text. 

Specifics

Chest tat


Some examples of text from her monoliths:
"Humans. They are not the cowering wretches we were promised! They stand. They are unruly, and therefore cannot be ruled. To challenge them is to court death."
"A machine can do the work of 50 ordinary people. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary person"
"War endures. War was always here. Before man was, war waited for him. The ultimate trade awaiting its ultimate practitioner. "
"Six thousand years, ten thousand wars, one hundred thousand battles, one hundred million heroes. "
"Much as the bleeding hearts may dislike the fact, war and its culture form an integral part of human history and human life and are likely to do so for all future to come. "
"Mankind has had ten thousand years experience of warfare and if he must fight he has no excuse for not fighting well. "
"Animals flee this hell; the hardest stones cannot bear it for long; only man endures. "
"I've never believed in the End Times. We are mankind. Our footprints are on the moon. When the last trumpet sounds and the Beast rises from the pit... we will kill it."
"A single inescapable fact is that humanity united with infinitely greater purpose in pursuit of war, than they ever did in pursuit of peace."

Tager

Sary is slightly arypical of Efreets, while no Tager shows a true gender, her shifted state still has a certain... waist-hip ratio that suggests the person beneath is a woman, even if nothing else in its body does. The otherworldly stone 'armour' that gives shape to its pyros body is more glossy in appearance than typical, resembling obsidian, riven through with spaces and cracks through which golden, smokeless, fire burns. Her fists and shoulders are every bit as huge and heavy as one would expect, though they have more angular striking faces, and a forest of bladed spikes jutting back from her forearms and up from her shoulders as a result of its glassy stone composition, instead of the more blunt spires of a typical efreet. The Efreet's 'face' is a smooth perfect oval, with a slit-visior 'eye' and jagged pumpkin-like mouth.

History
Sary was born in the United Kingdom, and grew up a relatively normal, happy child in the Nazzadi district of Manchester Arcology, which was still under construction at the time, but with the First War over, it was a mostly happy, uplifting time, and considering what came before and after, a pleasant time to be a child. Her parents, a nazzadi woman and human man, decided to raise her Nazzadi, for her mother considered her people's search for a identity to be a important one, and her father was content as long as Sary was happy. She played with her friends, went to school, and watched as a new world of hope and unity grew out of the ashes of the war. But such times were not to last, and she was only six when the Second War began; the rising of beasts of old, followed swiftly by monsters from the starry sky and the abyssal depths, and the far corners of man's own soul. Her happy world seemed to become darker, day by day, as the toll rose, cities burned, the Migou swarmed from the north like the locuses of old, while the Dagonites rose from the deeps, every bit the monsters of legend, and from the east, the barbarians howled,

first her father, then her mother, were summoned back into service, both ace pilots of the First War,
with them gone Sary was sent to live with relatives, though her life was largely unchanged, she saw the ever increasing numbers of refugees filping into her home as the north of the islands fell to the migou, and the coasts evacuated as the dagonites began tonpreyvon the people who lived there. Also despite her relative's best efforts, the ylung girl became more and more embroiled in the newscasts about the war, all carefully vetted by the NEG govt of course, they gave the girl a sense of eventual impending victory

'

Personal
In a word? Fire. Sary is a fierce and passionate person, with strong opinions about nearly everything from food to philosophy to politics, not to mention the best way to skin a migou. A fanatic Humanist, she considers ultimate victory in the Aeon War to be merely a matter of time, and believes that the only real threats are the secret ones, lurking in our own shadows, against whome mankind is unwilling or unable to turn its intent against. To this end she is proud to be a warrior in the shadow war against Chrysalis, and considers their overall goal of subverting humanity into monsters to be especially loathsome. Though she also has a black spot for the Dagonites; corruptors and usurpers who would turn our world over to some hoary old god in the hopes of buying salvation. The Migou she considers to be irritating bugs, yet to be squashed. While she holds nothing but pity for the Rapine Storm, who were so weak as to fall before the predations of a inferior being, though pity doesnt equate to mercy. She has but one answer to all mankind's enemies: Fire. It was our first weapon against the dark, and even in the Strange Aeon, its still one of the most effective, and she will cleanse the world, even if she has to burn it.

Sary is a Xenomix, but holds to both halves of her heritage with a passion, refusing to favour her Nazzadi side of her the way her people demand. In her life she has often been mocked as a Native, but her views are infact rather more nuanced; She doesnt feel that Nazzadi should become 'human' instead, she feels they are Human, Oh sure, the migou crossed some strands of DNA and made some tweaks, but biologically, they are the same species, just like a wolf and a dog are the same thing. She considers the Nazzadi to be a ethnic group of the human race, no more, no less, and just as every ethnicity has its contributions to make to society, so do they. Trying to blend as Natives would prefer, only serves to deny their kin the benefits of their joining together under one banner. To this end, and somewhat ironically, while Nazzadi are often lauded for their flair when it comes to creating bizarre combinations that work despite their oddness, Sary mixes Nazzadi and Human trends. Though her attire is often sparse Nazzadi-chic, her tattoos are wildly different from the neo-tribal look that her dark skinned forebearer's favour, comprised mostly of black monoliths and other block shapes on the large surfaces of her body, that speak to her strength and resolution. Many of them are counter-scribed with quotes in white, words that speak to humanity's greatness, from across history and literature.

But all that aside, she also has a wry sense of humour, and appreciates a good comedy, she cooks when she can, and is actually pretty good at it, though meat is both her area of expertise and her preference for meals. She doesnt tend to get along with Veggies. Her passion lends its self well to amorous pursuits, and shes no stranger to lovers of either gender, as well as to athleticism; Sary is a neigh-compulsive exerciser, seeking to perfect her body, and also spends a fair amount of time meditating, often in her shifted form, or before a fire if that isnt feasible. As one might expect she has a interest in fire, and keeps a firepit, fireplace, braizer, candles or other source of fire going whenever possible... where not, she often cranks the head up. Her Symbiont presses on her more than most, which occasionally causes her to flash over into anger, arrogant affont, and pride, though she has found that breathing smoke calms her... to which end she acquired herself a fine pipe, and smokes when her temper flares... not tobacco or any other kind of drug (do you know what that stuff does to you?), rather she uses sawdust, and has actually become quite the eccentric connoisseur of the flavour of various wood smokes (she prefers oak, but the way), but if needs must, shell stuff the pipe with anything flammable from leaves to grass to crushed treebark.

She considers herself to be the best possible leader for a pack of Tagers; Vision and Passion, welded by Will. However she knows the value of delegation, and is quite content to give the mantle to others when it suits the mission. If not a leader, she wont make petty dominance plays, or try to usurp command, but she will uphold anyone who would command her to the standards she holds for herself. She instead takes on a chaplain-like role, assuming responsibility for morale and setting a inspiring example for others, though shes utterly unforgiving of any who freeze when the pressure is on.

Character Stats

ATTRIBUTES 0/35

Attribute	Rating	Tager	Feat
Agility	6	+2	3(4)
Intellect	5	-	3
Perception	5	+1	3(3)
Presence	8	-	4
Strength	8	+7	4
Tenacty	9	+6	5

SECONDARY ATTRIBUTES
Actions: 1(2)
Movement: 13 mph[32/8 ypt] (23 mph[57/13 ypt])
Orgone: 6/6 12 (8/8 15)
Reflex: 5 (6)
Vitality: 70/70 [Step: 14] (100/100 [Step: 20])
Drama Points: 10/10 [2/2]

SKILLS 3/41(20sp+12cp+8draw+1race)-(10ass-1spec-30skil)

Skill	Expertise	Attr Base	Spec	SpecLvl
Athletics	Adept(3)	?	-	-
Intimidate	Adept(3)	Pres	-	-
History	Novice(2)		-	-
Hobby(Cookin)	Novice(2)	Int	-	-
Observation	Adept(3)	Per	-	-
Persuade	Adept(3)	Pres	-	-
Seduction	Novice(2)	Pres	-	-
Stealth	Adept(3)	Agi	-	-
			-	-
Dodge	Adept(3)	Agi	-	-
Fighting	Adept(3)	Agi	Tager	Focus(1)
Marksman	Adept(3)	Per	Tager	Focus(1)

QUALITIES
Assets
Alluring (1)
Tager (4)
Tager: Exceptional (2)
Tager: Rare (1)
Tager: Variant (1)
Driven (2)

Drawbacks
Misfit (1)
Exaggerated Symbiont (2)
Compulsive Behaviour (1)
Duty (3)
Fanatic (2)

SPECIAL ABILITIES
Low Light Vision: Can see in low light to 50yrds in B&W

INSANITY
Points: 1
Disorders:

Wounds

Tager

Type: Efreet
Special: Firestarter; The skin of an Efreet burns with heat and the seams in its “skin” and joints glow with fire. While it can consciously dampen these effects, the Efreet still leaves char marks anywhere it walks or on anything it touches that is not resistant to heat and flame. It lights things on fire with a mere touch, if its firestarting abilities are left at full effect. Anything that hits an Efreet takes one die of damage, which can be reduced by armor. Suffer a –6 Penalty to Stealth Tests in shifted form. Water boils around it creating a 3yrd radius cloud of partially obscuring bubbles. Immune to any kind of fire, including plasma blasts.

Size:Medium (8 to 9 ft. tall)
Attribute Modifications:
Agility -/+2
Perception -/+1
Strength +3/+7
Tenacity +2/+6

Weapons:
Dragonbreath– Range 10/25/50, Damage +4, Shots 1, Infinite Rounds. This
attack ignites combustible materials.
Spiked Fists (+2)– The hot and mace-like fists of an Efreet sear anything.
Soul Stare– The Efreet can fixate a nearby enemy with its righ-teous stare. If the Efreet succeeds at a Tenacity Feat Contest
versus an enemy’s Tenacity Feat, his foe loses 2 Actions (which
may reduce his Actions to zero for a turn or two).

Limit Weapon:
Meteor Strike– Range 30/60/100, Damage +6; this attack calls down a mystical shower of super-heated rocks, attacking all things in a 400 square foot area. Generate only one attack roll for the Combat Contest, against which all poten-tial targets must defend. This attack does Hybrid Damage. This uses all Actions and can be the Tager’s only Action that turn.

Armor:2/2
Regeneration:1/1 Die

Fear Factor:16

Senses: Nightvision, Scan, Thermal

Movement & Speed:Climbing (Double), Jumping (Quadruple), Land (Normal)

Metamorphosis

-0/12 Started large fires
-0/24 Enemies watched burn to death.
-0/12 Times acted with moral conviction against convenience
-0/12 Times destoryed Evil things when it wasnt a good idea.
-0/12 Major Old Ones ops destoryed
-0/93 third nights of last three months hunting.
-0/180 days of shifting and starting fires, must spend a hour contemplating the fire.
-0/20 times used Limit Weapon
-0/12 times stood against superior foes or out numbered
-0/12 times continued fighting with Serious Wounds or At Deaths Door.
-Presence of 7, unshifted.
-Strength of 8, unshifted.
-Tenacity of 7, unshifted.
-Adept level of expertise in Athletics.
-Expert level of expertise in Fighting.
-Novice level of expertise in Intimidation.
-Focused in the Overawe specialization.
-Adept level of expertise in Observation.
-Expert level of expertise in Marksman.
-Focused in the Tager specialization

Gear

Weapon
Steel Knuckles (+0)
CS-40 “Defender” (15/30/50. +1. 2:15/15.)

Armour

Gear
Pipe
Lighter
PCPU(w/ glasses)
Fine Clothing

EXPENDITURES

Chargen Cheats0/6
-12 Skillpoints [6]

Gm Stuff

Stuff

[Jaded]

I'd be interested if there is still room.

[merashin]

With Jaded we now have 5 (unless I can't count). That's good enough, but I'm currently away from my computer and information by several hundred miles, so I'll have to set up the OOC later.

[Jaded]

:-)

I am thinking a Vampire or Spectre if they are available, probably the Vampire as my main preference.  I'll try to create a character today or tomorrow. 

[Mnemaxa]

I'll have to wait and see what the others are making, though it seems an exceptional-heavy game so far.   Not a complaint mind you.

[Muse]

This is Cory.  I could play her if she'll fit.  :) 

I did her mechanics a long time ago, so it probably need some work, but I hope you like. 

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

This is Cory.  I could play her if she'll fit.  :) 

I did her mechanics a long time ago, so it probably need some work, but I hope you like.

There's no there, there? Was there meant to be a link?

So far I am seeing:

CarnivalOfTheGoat	Echo
Darkling	Efreet
Jaded	Vampire/Spectre
Mnemaxa	???
Muse	???
Retro	Voidspeaker/Vampire

NOT COUNTING LIMIT WEAPONS:
The Echo has a max weapon range of 200,
The Vampire has 150,
The Efreet has 50,
The Voidspeaker has 25 (Interesting definition of Artillery if it can only fire at "real" ranges 1/day)
The Spectre has 5.

On the one hand, figure that most encounters (IRL and in RPGs) take place at close/medium range, and since generally tagers can sneak up on a fight by looking human, if we're engaging at a range we didn't want to something went wrong already...

On the other hand, maybe little Ylizaveta had better put a few more points into Marksmanship.

Gripping hand, it's still too early to tell, after all there are variant tagers. Was any planning on inverting their primarily brawling tager into a ranged tager, or their primarily ranged tager into a brawler (oops, yeah I was thinking about that...But I don't have to ditch the Fathom Beam)?

I am really bad at misguessing party trends lately. I was betting on more shooters than brawlers. ;D There's another game I'm in where I was betting on more detectives than shooters.

Something to keep in mind: this isn't D&D. We don't necessarily need a fighter, a mage, and a cleric.

ASSUMING that Retro goes with the Voidspeaker, and Jaded goes with the Vampire, rather than doubling up vampires (which isn't a problem if that's what you want to do), as mentioned above there is a certain amount of stealth inherent in simply being human (although another tager or dhohanoid can see through that given a full minute of observation). So it isn't absolutely necessary that 'someone has to play the party rogue (Spectre/Whisper).'

If someone wanted to they could probably do a focus of 'Stealth (Tager)' I imagine if they wanted to rogue things up without selecting a Spectre. This would probably be difficult for an efreet (pay no attention, I'm just a random bonfire, nothing to see here). There's also the houseruled Banshee 'tanking' tager, but I'm not so sure that it is what it suggests that it is: it has no way to force enemies to attack it, and its limit weapon shatters the armor and does heavy damage to everyone (hostile or otherwise!) in a 50' radius. OW.

ADDENDUM: If nobody else has their heart set on bringing a sneaky/stealthy Tager, little Lizka is inherently a bit of a sneak, being from a predominantly criminal background. So at worst there's always Giant Ninja Shark Monster for laughs.

...Or I could rewrite her to be a bit more thuggish and brawleriffic. I'm not finicky.

EDIT: Somehow when I was building the table I deleted or pasted over Muse's line. Fixed!

[Muse]

Wierd...  I swore the link was in there.  Hang on: 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_C0Gj82lQJx__DvIhvKurUn85hOliWZyNWV8I-vZ9wA/edit

[merashin]

Oh god Muse, It's been so long since I've seen a My-Hime reference. Looking at Carn's post it appears that I am actually terrible at counting and there are 6 of you not 5. So, I guess the game's full up now. I'll post up the OOC thread soon, but, as I've said before, I'm away from all of my notes so I'll have to update the main post when I get home.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Looks nice, Muse!

Okay, updating the table for easy reference:

CarnivalOfTheGoat	Echo
Darkling	Efreet
Jaded	Vampire/Spectre
Mnemaxa	???
Muse	Shadow
Retro	Voidspeaker/Vampire

So Cory is our ninja, and has Acute Hearing. All Echos have Acute Smell, so between the two of us we've got most of a sensor suite. Figure that in an urban environment the most important element of Acute Vision will be spotting stealthed critters, as it doesn't contribute to range, particularly, and in an urban environment ranges tend to be short to medium...And I think the Echo's sonar probably will work for that in most circumstances. The description of Mecha stealth in the Core rules includes visual masking, heat signature reduction, silent running, and anti-radar coating. Which suggests sonar ought to work just fine. CT only allows sonar to work underwater...Not strictly accurate, we got the idea from bats and generally speaking they don't do well underwater, but okay, RAW.

Stupid Tech Commentary

Weirdly, CT lists Sonar as 'passive' meaning it is simply in use all the time, but sonar actually has two modes called active and passive...In passive you're just listening and building a 'map' based on how sounds are reflecting off things near you, but there's such a thing as 'active pulse' where you're deliberately pinging to confirm a specific target by generating your own noise. Torpedoes tend to switch to this when they're almost on top of a target (because if you're pinging and the other guy has sonar, he has exactly as precise a fix on you as you do on him...Or better, if he's really lucky and you aren't). But since stealth-tech a la CT does not seem to run to anechoic tiles (the big rubbery things you see in closeups of military submarines), and anechoic tiles would seem to be awfully hard to put a chameleon surface on (the whole point being spongy rubber sound absorption, not a smooth surface that sound reflects off of), but hey, technology is magic. But at least underwater, then, stealth systems shouldn't function well against sonar-equipped things (which means practically all EOD and many Migou, as well as Echos). Then again, the Shadow's stealth systems are 'mystical,' so we can just throw science out the window! Mera, do you have a call on this? Er, and is Mera okay? I'm usually referred to as Carny, unless the other Carny is in the same game (which actually happened once).

So we definitely have our ninja. I should probably bump up Ylisabeta's marksmanship and make her a little more capable of doing something approaching an overwatch/sniper role if it's necessary. Unless you were planning on bringing a Nightmare or something else that was big and shooty, Mnemaxa (nice Spellsinger ref, btw).

[Mnemaxa]

I'll be crafting an agility+close combat based Nightmare.  Max range with the Depthless Strike is 60' but the ability to ignore cover and strike around corners is worth it to me.

Incidentally, Voidspeakers have a full sensory suite second only to the Whisper.

[ChaoticSky]

Okay, i have to ask, because its been bugging me for a while. Ive noticed several people, here and elsewhere, spell it 'Tagger' (which i assume is pronounced Tag-ger), but never once is it spelled that way in the books. In the books its 'Tager', and given that its rooted in 'Ta'ge Fragment', pronounced 'Tah-jer' or 'Tay-ger'...
I dont mean to grammar nazi, but im starting to feel like i missed a memo or something, its so common @_@. Anyone care to enlighten me on the subject?

Also on the subject, im probably going to keep my 'balanced' approach, and use fists/soulstare/dragonbreath, she stealths in human form because obvious walking fireball is obvious. Though, it is worth pointing out that Inferno can melt into existing fires, hide, and travel through them. So if things go *really* bad post-metamorphsis, i may be better at hiding than most of you.  ;D

Atleased until the fire trucks get there.

[CarnivalOfTheGoat]

Okay, i have to ask, because its been bugging me for a while. Ive noticed several people, here and elsewhere, spell it 'Tagger' (which i assume is pronounced Tag-ger), but never once is it spelled that way in the books. In the books its 'Tager', and given that its rooted in 'Ta'ge Fragment', pronounced 'Tah-jer' or 'Tay-ger'...
I dont mean to grammar nazi, but im starting to feel like i missed a memo or something, its so common @_@. Anyone care to enlighten me on the subject?

Also on the subject, im probably going to keep my 'balanced' approach, and use fists/soulstare/dragonbreath, she stealths in human form because obvious walking fireball is obvious. Though, it is worth pointing out that Inferno can melt into existing fires, hide, and travel through them. So if things go *really* bad post-metamorphsis, i may be better at hiding than most of you.  ;D

Atleased until the fire trucks get there.

The ' in 'g is the usual indication for a glottal stop, the syllable break you get in the middle of words like 'ladder' or 'butter' when people don't pronounce the hard consonants in the middle. So, regardless of what the original writer of "Ta'ge" was hearing in their head, what they wrote by putting that little mark there ends up being either Tay-uguh or Tah-uguh with the middle 'u' barely pronouncerd before a hard G rather than a J-disguised-as-a-G...Something like someone saying 'ago' quickly enough that you almost lose the first syllable.

People who write it 'Tagger' are just having issues distancing what they're hearing in their heads/saying it as from how it is written in the books (with only one G). It's not spelled that way in the rules.

Either that or we're misunderstanding what those people really mean, which is that their characters actually spend part of their time throwing up illegal graffiti.

(Honestly I don't fuss about it, as long as I don't have to read things twice to figure them out...But since you asked!)

I think I am going to bump up Lizka's Marksmanship anyway. It's not like throwing one more point in to make her Adept is a commitment that would somehow make her melee-incapable, it's just that the default ranged weapon on the Echo has one of the longest ranges in the game for Tager weapons. The Vampire (which two people in this game have shown interest in, although I am betting Retrokinesis will go for the Voidspeaker) is a single-shot/turn, +2 Dmg weapon with range 150 and the Echo has a 3-shot/turn +2 dmg weapon with range 200.

Thank goodness it's usable in the air, unlike sonar. >_>