Blood-Soaked Stars: A Lancer System Mech Group Game CLOSED

[Juggtacular]

Okay Kaine's backstory is finished. And pics are up as well. He's done.

[Vergil Tanner]

Awesome possum! Keep 'em coming lads!

[Rajah]

== Personnel File ==

Name:  J#H0W7
Callsign:  Wizard
Aliases: Josh, Jack, Joe, Jacques, John, Jake, Jason

Age:  33
Gender:  Male
Sexuality:  Straight

Background: Mechanic

Appearance: Originally a moderately attractive man, vaguely Indo-ethnic, with dark hair and light brown skin. Since joining the Crimson Constellation, however, J#H0W7 has apparently taken an interest in cosmetic self-modification, and now sports a number of cybernetic and biological "aesthetic enhancements." A mechanical eye that changes colors at his whim. A bracelet of colorful feathered wings growing from his left wrist. Extra prosthetic tendrils below his own fingers on his right hand. Red and blue "stripes" of scaled skin along his neck. He has a quiet voice with a faint mechanical echo from a mimic-recorder in the back of his throat, and an easy smile marred only slightly by the addition of predatory eyeteeth. 

Basic History: If you only go back a decade or so, realtime, the man who prefers to go by designation J#H0W7 - a preference almost never honored - is of almost no consequence in Union terms. A farmhand and day laborer with a talent for overhauling field equipment, forcing new functionality out of aging software. A valuable skill upon his little rock - the former Wisdom Star Observatory, taken over by technical outlaws as an agricultural commune - but not exactly the stuff lancers are made of. Until the pirate clan Outer Voice, hurting and half-strength after a reckoning with the Crimson Constellation, fixated on the observatory as the nearest defensible port to recover and regroup...after they'd subjugated the inhabitants, of course. Between their array of scavenged milspec weapons and armor, a pair of ships (the Song and Red Oasis) capable of limited bombardment, and their mech-piloting matriarch, the madwoman Isadorai Vaquis (convinced of her personal destiny as consort to a god),  it looked pretty grim for the commune.

However, during the invasion, something went wrong. According to reports sourced from faulty surveillance equipment left behind by the observatory's original inhabitants, captured pirate confessionals, and the Crimson Constellation's own REDLIGHT forensics unit, the pirates came under attack from a collective of rogue farm equipment led by a heavily-modified all-purpose labor mech. Striking from ambush, the machine swarm and its apparent leader were responsible for the deaths of two pirates - one of those being Isadorai, caught off-guard by a deluge of harvest machinery - and the hesitation of the remainder, long enough for the CC to catch up and announce themselves by blowing both pirate vessels out of the sky and landing an assault team to deal with the rest. When all was said and done, the clan was no more, and J#H0W7 had become a person of interest to the CC. The attention was positive at first, but investigation also yielded a number of discrepancies regarding his history (lack thereof, specifically) prior to his arrival at Wisdom Star Observatory. Under suspicion of being a mutinied pirate himself, J#H0W7 reluctantly lead members of the Crimson Constellation to his apparent point of origin - an unusually metallic asteroid within which a rudimentary life support system of unknown design kept lonely company with a corrupted navigational log (despite the lack of propulsion systems or evidence of ever there having been propulsion systems on the asteroid) full of garbage data.

The log included a passenger manifest, listing as passengers the entire contents of six poetry collections (mostly theoromantic, spiritual horror, or children's rhymes) and one navigational officer, J#H0W7.

J#H0W7 has no memory that would explain any of this - he woke up drifting through space in the asteroid, he found an EVA suit "on board," there was a port nearby. He bounced across worlds for a couple years and then settled down at Wisdom Star, where his talents - such as they are - were of use and he found the atmosphere to match his temperament.

On suspicion of paracausal influence, CC widened the scope of their investigation and put J#H0W7 through a testing regimen. Soon enough they had made a number of eyebrow-raising discoveries: not only could he pilot a mech, he was a good pilot, showing signs of prior training. And here and there throughout the commune, where his friends and neighbors knew him as a cheerful and skillful laborer with a lot of technical aptitude, were caches of functional or semifunctional technology built using parts scavenged from licensed printings to construct things J#H0W7 quickly proved unable to explain - but which seemed suggestive of mech design. And, most alarmingly, the rudiments of a custom NHP. Despite readily admitting he conversed with it, he seemed unaware of anything unusual about the idea. After he agreed to a brain scan, which corroborated his claims while raising further eyebrows - someone had gone to considerable trouble to alter his brain, leaving undeveloped memory storage that appeared by all accounts to have never been used rather than merely rendered inaccessible - the CC decided to offer him formal training and after some consideration, he agreed. The commune was all the family he had, and the Crimson Constellation had saved probably all of their lives. Likewise, the potential for acquiring another lancer to add to their stable was attractive to the Crimson Constellation as they began preparing for their big debut.

== Skill Assessment ==

Grit:  0

Lancer Stats:
Hull: 0, Agility: 0, Systems: 2, Engineering: 0

Skill Triggers:
Act Unseen or Unheard (+2), Charm (+2), Hack or Fix (+2), Invent or Create (+2)

Pilot Talents
Drone Commander 1
  - Shepherd
    Your systems with the drone tag gain+5 HP. As a protocol, you may move one drone that you control and that is within SENSORS up to 4 spaces.
   
Engineer 1
  - Prototype
    -Sign of Chaos:[/b] Main Nexus, Limited 1d6+2, Damage 1d6+2 Explosive

Technophile 1
  - Servant Fragment
     You have developed a custom NHP. This NHP can speak
    to you and has a personality, but they are less advanced
    than most NHPs and are incapable of independent
    thought, relying on you for direction. When acting alone,
    they will follow the last direction given and defend
    themself as needed; however, they have limited initiative
    and don’t benefit from your talents.
   
    You may choose for your mech to gain the following system. Unlike other AI systems, it costs 0 SP.
   
     -Servant-Class NHP: 0 SP, Unique, AI
      -Your mech gains the AI tag.

== Known Equipment ==

Licence Level:  0

Licenses:  General Massive Systems

Core Bonuses:  General Massive Systems


Pilot Gear:
Armour:  Mobility Hardsuit (Flight, Eva 10, E-Def 10, Spd 5)
Weapons:  Captive plasma shotgun "Soulstealer" (Range 5, Damage 2 Energy), antipersonnel tactical spike delivery drone "Abigail" (Loading, Range 10, Damage 4 Explosive)
Extra Gear:  Dataplating, Subjectivity-Enhancement Suite, Thermite Charges

== Mech Schematics ==

Designation:  Eldest
Servant-class NHP: Apprentice, "Tiss"
Chassis:  GMS-SP1 Everest

Structure:  4
HP:  12
Armour:  0
Stress:  4
Heat:  6
Repair:  5

Atk Bonus:  +0
Tech Atk:  +2
SP:  7

SPD: 4, EVA: 8, EDEF: 10, SENS RANGE: 10, SAVE: 10


Weapons:
[Main] Thermal Rifle: Main Rifle; AP; Range 5; 1d3+2 Energy
[Flex] Tactical Knife: Aux Melee; Thrown 3; Threat 1; 1d3+1 Kinetic Damage
[Flex] Tactical Knife: Aux Melee; Thrown 3; Threat 1; 1d3+1 Kinetic Damage
[Heavy] Heavy Melee Weapon, "Toadkiss" osmium flail: Heavy Melee; Threat 1; 2d6+1 Kinetic Damage
[Integrated] Prototype Weapon, "Sign of Chaos" fissile greyhive: Main Nexus; Limited 1d6+2; Range 10; Damage 1d6+2 Explosive

Systems 
Rapid Burst Jump Jet System: 2 SP, Unique
You can fly when you Boost; however, you must end the movement on the ground or another solid
surface, or else immediately begin falling.

Pattern-A Jericho Deployable Cover: 2 SP, Deployable, Unique, Quick Action
Deploy two sections of Size 1 hard cover in free spaces adjacent to you and to each other. Each
section is an object with 5 Evasion and 10 HP that can be targeted and destroyed individually.
Sections of cover can be picked up again as a full action.

Repairing the system restores both sections.

Personalizations: 1 SP, Unique
Your mech gains +2 HP and, in consultation with the GM, you may establish a minor modification
you have made to your mech.

This mod has no numerical benefit beyond the additional HP it grants, but could provide other
useful effects. If the GM agrees that this mod would help with either a pilot or mech skill check,
you gain +1 ACCURACY for that check.

Semi-coherent nanoswarm holographic projectors that allow for medium-fidelity audiovisual and low-fidelity tactile projections. Originally designed as an assist for field repair via quickmorph three-dimensional blueprints and precision tool adjustment, the relative ease of jailbreaking the system to allow for use as a general purpose luxury entertainment suite has made it wildly popular among pilots unshackled by strict personal software regulation.

Turret Drones: 2 SP, Limited 3, Unique, Quick Action
Drone (Size 1/2, 5 HP, 10 E-Defense, 10 Evasion, Tag: Drone)
Expend a charge to deploy a turret drone that attaches to any object or surface within Sensors and line of
sight.  Gain the Turret Attack Reaction, which can be taken once for each deployed turret drone.
  - Turret Attack: Reaction, 1/Round per Turret
    Trigger: An allied character within 10 Range of a turret makes a successful attack
    Effect: The turret deals 3 Kinetic Damage to their target, as long as it has Line of Sight to their target.

Traits:
Initiative
1/scene the Everest may take any quick action as a free action.
Replaceable Parts
While resting, the Everest can be repaired at a rate of 1 Repair per 1 Structure Damage, instead of 2 Repairs

Core System:
Hyperspec Fuel Injector
Power Up:  Active (1CP), Protocol
For the rest of this scene, you gain 1 Accuracy on all attacks, checks, and saves; additionally,
1/turn, you can Boost as a free action.

[Vergil Tanner]

OK! Interesting bio! But there are a few issues with his backstory.

- As far as I can tell, HORUS is simply a manufacturer. They don't "Ally" or "Affiliate" with anybody. They just contact interesting pilots to give them Licences, so the pirates would not be allied or working for HORUS.

- I'm not sure about the scale of the farm equipment resistance. Bare in mind, he's not even level 0 yet so maybe tone it down a touch xD

- You seem to be inventing details about CC without asking xD this is an established group in my campaign, so you might want to ask before adding things. For one, who is REDLIGHT? And why would CC chase these pirates down? Who hired them?
Secondly, if Union was going to train somebody as a Lancer, they would NOT give them to a Mercenary group. CC is in their good books, but they're still a mercenary outfit and Union is very focused on maintaining as much central control as possible. And the point is that you were trained as Lancers by CC, not necessarily Union.

I have no issue with the general thrust of your background, but those are the things on first reading that need tweaking. If you want to involve CC in your characters backstory that's fine, but you need to coordinate with me to establish something that works in game rather than inventing things without consulting me ;-)

[Rajah]

Oof. Given that these are competing apps this is a pretty disheartening reaction; I'll do my best to address your concerns here and hopefully that'll get me back into neutral. Let me know if there's anything else I can do to unfuck myself here.

- As far as I can tell, HORUS is simply a manufacturer. They don't "Ally" or "Affiliate" with anybody. They just contact interesting pilots to give them Licences, so the pirates would not be allied or working for HORUS.

I haven't read everything - mostly just the core book and pieces of the artist lore reference - but I was under the impression that they're barely actually a manufacturer at all - they've got terrorist cells, cults, omninet free-access advocates, scholarly think tanks, and everything in between, with these very different interests being connected to one another haphazardly if at all, often espousing contradictory aims and philosophies. There's a note somewhere that HORUS seems to be becoming more organized since the Deimos Event, but their objectives, methods, and sponsorship are described as being pretty much black boxes. I figured pirates guided by a false impression of glorious destiny or even religious sanction would fit right in.

This part really isn't important, none of the parts really are, but that was my thinking on it. The reason the pirates even had a HORUS tinge to begin with because I like HORUS stuff and I wanted to establish a resonance somewhere since I'm likely to go for those licenses down the road. There's a couple mentions of the theory that HORUS licenses are transferred upon the death of previous holders (unsubstantiated and possibly untrue, like most HORUS mentions) and that seemed cute to seed here, but I can wipe it without issue for more traditional space pirates with no delusions of higher purpose.

- I'm not sure about the scale of the farm equipment resistance. Bare in mind, he's not even level 0 yet so maybe tone it down a touch xD

Apologies, I am getting the sense I have somewhat misread the tone of this game. There's a background you can pick for having been special op (and several other flavors of combatant including a pirate yourself, where "successful pirate" is presumably permissible) and lancers are presented as several cuts above the ordinary, so I was kinda running with that as the thing, you have to be extraordinary to be lancer material in the first place. I figured "two pirates trying to roll over a farming commune after just getting their asses kicked" was well within scope as a thing a lancer might do with a box of scraps Tony Stark style, but to be clear, my impression was that that would be normal for a lancer and not my character being special compared to other PCs who I'd assumed would be capable of similar feats in similar straits. I can cut that to 0 pirates for sure. Perhaps he merely prevented any preliminary bloodshed by bluffing the impression of a militia in the absence of any actual militia. But!

- You seem to be inventing details about CC without asking xD this is an established group in my campaign, so you might want to ask before adding things. For one, who is REDLIGHT? And why would CC chase these pirates down? Who hired them?
Secondly, if Union was going to train somebody as a Lancer, they would NOT give them to a Mercenary group. CC is in their good books, but they're still a mercenary outfit and Union is very focused on maintaining as much central control as possible. And the point is that you were trained as Lancers by CC, not necessarily Union.

This is the big one. And my sincere apologies for the overstep, I was hoping for the exact opposite response here. I was coming from a "it will be helpful to my chances to take initiative and show my interest in building a shared world" perspective and seem to have run headfirst into "why does this guy think he can just waltz in and usurp the game to make his Mary Sue look cooler" territory instead, which is of course, not where I'd like to be.

As notes of lesser import my loose implication was that REDLIGHT is a forensics/post-battlefield analysis arm (the kind of thing a big mercenary group seemed likely to have) and that's as far as I got with it, and I had deliberately left the details of why CC would be after the pirates open. Anyone who'd been raided recently could have hired them, I imagine, or Union, or maybe it was more "personal" and the pirates had ignorantly or accidentally started the fight by raiding a CC-guaranteed target they mistook for a soft one or bringing harm to people important to a ranking member. But the point above is the issue I'm most worried about. I wasn't trying to be a dick, and I can wipe the whole thing if desired, no problem.

Re: Union, again my apologies for the misread - the thinking here was that since CC's star is rising in the Union's esteem and they're looking to establish that deeper working relationship and vague legitimacy, Union kicking a potential pilot over to the pilot-hungry mercenaries would make sense as a good-faith gesture. I can wipe out mention of Union and leave the whole thing up to Crimson Constellation, they picked him up and investigated him and said "hmm, but I guess he can pilot," or I could go the other way and say he was Union-trained and employed for a while and has only just recently ended his contract for any number of potential reasons. Desire for personal freedom, this was always the end-goal and he just wanted to be prepared to make a good showing on his application, recent incident with regulations, a commanding officer, a bad experience, whatever. Let me know what' preferable.

[Vergil Tanner]

Oof. Given that these are competing apps this is a pretty disheartening reaction; I'll do my best to address your concerns here and hopefully that'll get me back into neutral. Let me know if there's anything else I can do to unfuck myself here.

Haha, don't worry about it. A few people have needed minor tweaks. I don't look at first drafts when deciding which apps to accept and which ones not to. xD

I haven't read everything - mostly just the core book and pieces of the artist lore reference - but I was under the impression that they're barely actually a manufacturer at all - they've got terrorist cells, cults, omninet free-access advocates, scholarly think tanks, and everything in between, with these very different interests being connected to one another haphazardly if at all, often espousing contradictory aims and philosophies. There's a note somewhere that HORUS seems to be becoming more organized since the Deimos Event, but their objectives, methods, and sponsorship are described as being pretty much black boxes. I figured pirates guided by a false impression of glorious destiny or even religious sanction would fit right in.

This part really isn't important, none of the parts really are, but that was my thinking on it. The reason the pirates even had a HORUS tinge to begin with because I like HORUS stuff and I wanted to establish a resonance somewhere since I'm likely to go for those licenses down the road. There's a couple mentions of the theory that HORUS licenses are transferred upon the death of previous holders (unsubstantiated and possibly untrue, like most HORUS mentions) and that seemed cute to seed here, but I can wipe it without issue for more traditional space pirates with no delusions of higher purpose.

You're kind of right, kind of not. My understanding is that HORUS rarely - if ever - attaches orders or directives to their Mechs. They might have a bigger purpose for granting licences, but they never outright order people to do things that we know of. And of course, pirates aren't Lancers, so not many of them will have Mechs at all. They might have two or three leaders who have HORUS Mechs, but the pirates themselves likely wouldn't be directly working under orders from HORUS. That doesn't seem to be how HORUS operates.

Apologies, I am getting the sense I have somewhat misread the tone of this game. There's a background you can pick for having been special op (and several other flavors of combatant including a pirate yourself, where "successful pirate" is presumably permissible) and lancers are presented as several cuts above the ordinary, so I was kinda running with that as the thing, you have to be extraordinary to be lancer material in the first place. I figured "two pirates trying to roll over a farming commune after just getting their asses kicked" was well within scope as a thing a lancer might do with a box of scraps Tony Stark style, but to be clear, my impression was that that would be normal for a lancer and not my character being special compared to other PCs who I'd assumed would be capable of similar feats in similar straits. I can cut that to 0 pirates for sure. Perhaps he merely prevented any preliminary bloodshed by bluffing the impression of a militia in the absence of any actual militia. But!

Well! You never stated a number that I could see. When you said "Pirate Clan," it implies that there are a good dozen of them, and that's what I was objecting to. If you actually meant that it was two, then that is a lot more acceptable xD Just be careful about specifying those details, since "Clan" does imply a whole lot more than two

This is the big one. And my sincere apologies for the overstep, I was hoping for the exact opposite response here. I was coming from a "it will be helpful to my chances to take initiative and show my interest in building a shared world" perspective and seem to have run headfirst into "why does this guy think he can just waltz in and usurp the game to make his Mary Sue look cooler" territory instead, which is of course, not where I'd like to be.

Haha, don't worry about it. I don't think you're a Gary Stu or anything of the sort. It's a new System, a new Setting, so there are gonna be teething issues. I have no issue with people adding to the scope and lore of the game - it's a big universe, after all! - but the right way to go about it would be to ask, especially if you're wanting to add things to an established organisation. EG, REDLIGHT. That does sound like something a big Mercenary group would have that I hadn't thought of, so I'd be happy to add that to the CC ledgers - as it were - but it's the sort of thing you should ask about instead of just inventing outright, since it has to do with an organisation that I'm directly controlling and creating for the purposes of this game. I mean, if you sat down to do a D&D game, you wouldn't just invent details about the world without asking the GM, would you? I'm more than happy for people to add details...but only if they ask me first
Part of my questions were genuine; who are they, what do they do, etc etc.

Re: Union, again my apologies for the misread - the thinking here was that since CC's star is rising in the Union's esteem and they're looking to establish that deeper working relationship and vague legitimacy, Union kicking a potential pilot over to the pilot-hungry mercenaries would make sense as a good-faith gesture. I can wipe out mention of Union and leave the whole thing up to Crimson Constellation, they picked him up and investigated him and said "hmm, but I guess he can pilot," or I could go the other way and say he was Union-trained and employed for a while and has only just recently ended his contract for any number of potential reasons. Desire for personal freedom, this was always the end-goal and he just wanted to be prepared to make a good showing on his application, recent incident with regulations, a commanding officer, a bad experience, whatever. Let me know what' preferable.

Yeah, I get the idea, and I understand where you got the impression, but Union is still very wary about other people getting more power than them. The Mercs will inevitably have Lancers, yes, but that doesn't mean Union has to help them That would be like the USA giving "freedom fighters" weapo- oh, wait. ( )
On a serious note, either one would work just fine. You can go with Union or CC as your characters backstory, though it will be CC who trained him as a Lancer.

[Rajah]

You're kind of right, kind of not. My understanding is that HORUS rarely - if ever - attaches orders or directives to their Mechs. They might have a bigger purpose for granting licences, but they never outright order people to do things that we know of. And of course, pirates aren't Lancers, so not many of them will have Mechs at all. They might have two or three leaders who have HORUS Mechs, but the pirates themselves likely wouldn't be directly working under orders from HORUS. That doesn't seem to be how HORUS operates.

Yeah, my apologies - I didn't mean to imply they had anything like official orders, more like Mad Max villain types loosely organized behind faith in a glorious destiny...some bits of lore, a single matriarch or patriarch holding actual licenses, a couple of drug-addled and radiation-poisoned "oracles" bunked next to a reactor, and personal conviction (at least in some members) of a divine mandate.

Well! You never stated a number that I could see. When you said "Pirate Clan," it implies that there are a good dozen of them, and that's what I was objecting to. If you actually meant that it was two, then that is a lot more acceptable xD Just be careful about specifying those details, since "Clan" does imply a whole lot more than two

My apologies - the line "the counterattack resulted in the deaths of two pirates before the CC caught up and put an end to the clan once and for all" was meant to sum up J's personal handiwork. Now granted one of those would totally be the person in the mech, earning some hesitation from the rest of the pirates and ultimately preventing commune casualties (as of the farmer-philosophers of Wisdom Star, there'd be a handful willing and able to fight back...and not likely to do so to much effect, since while I wasn't picturing a mecha squadron of pirates, I WAS picturing them with assault weapons, scavenged/cobbled hardsuits, and maybe a captured piece of artillery or two).

Haha, don't worry about it. I don't think you're a Gary Stu or anything of the sort. It's a new System, a new Setting, so there are gonna be teething issues. I have no issue with people adding to the scope and lore of the game - it's a big universe, after all! - but the right way to go about it would be to ask, especially if you're wanting to add things to an established organisation. EG, REDLIGHT. That does sound like something a big Mercenary group would have that I hadn't thought of, so I'd be happy to add that to the CC ledgers - as it were - but it's the sort of thing you should ask about instead of just inventing outright, since it has to do with an organisation that I'm directly controlling and creating for the purposes of this game. I mean, if you sat down to do a D&D game, you wouldn't just invent details about the world without asking the GM, would you? I'm more than happy for people to add details...but only if they ask me first

I will absolutely do so in the future. I actually do play a number of games where lore insertions in backstory are normal (and a couple where it even happens in session - one of which is ironically D&D) and someone's pitch is itself a sort of request for approval, but that's hardly a universal tradition. I have no problem making sure going forward to check with you before any definitive statements are made.

Yeah, I get the idea, and I understand where you got the impression, but Union is still very wary about other people getting more power than them. The Mercs will inevitably have Lancers, yes, but that doesn't mean Union has to help them That would be like the USA giving "freedom fighters" weapo- oh, wait. ( )
On a serious note, either one would work just fine. You can go with Union or CC as your characters backstory, though it will be CC who trained him as a Lancer.

Alright. I've gone through and made some edits to clarify the HORUS bits, the actual contribution to the pirate confrontation, and removed mention of UIB to keep things in-house for CC. I also realized "there were caches of stuff" is super-vague and not actually as eyebrow-raising as implied so I clarified that to include what would become his Servant-Class NHP and Engineer prototype weapon.

[Vergil Tanner]

Ok, in that case, everything is all good! Those weren't things I was mad at you about, just things I wanted you to tweak so I can look at your sheet fairly
It's also almost a test If you reacted with hostility and an argumentative attitude, I would have known not to let you in either way. So your approach to my feedback has earned you brownie points

[Dreaming Space]

I did write my own background before I read the release version of the book. I should probably go back and see if it needs revisions.

...

There is one thing I think a few of us got wrong. There's really no such thing as being trained to be a "lancer" as such. People get trained to be mech pilots. Lancers are folks who through some weird personal alchemy have the potential to be, like, legendary ace pilots. It's not a rank or a position. It's just that by the time you've got a few levels, the other soldiers who are qualified to pilot an Everest in combat know there's all of them, and then there's you.

I did edit my background to say trained as a mech pilot instead of trained as a lancer.

[Vergil Tanner]

Well, that's true. What I meant in the backstory is more that you guys are the CC's first Mech Squadron, and you've been specifically trained to try and become known as "Lancers."

[Rajah]

Yeah, it's not a rank or a position but it DOES seem to be semi-formally recognized once you start displaying those aptitudes, which is sorta what I've substituting "trained as a lancer" to mean - "trained to reach your obvious ace-tier potential."

There's a specific separation too in mechanical terms: an NPC soldier might be piloting an Everest inside the narrative, but mechanically NPCs don't actually use PC mechs, so your Everest is going to (usually) represent your ability to do more with and get more out of a machine than most people.

[Juggtacular]

Fixed Kaine's backstory involving the Union.

[Vergil Tanner]

Awesome Possum! I'll close recruitment this coming Sunday, to give people a last chance to apply!

[Vergil Tanner]

Okey dokey! Applications close on Sunday guys ^_^

[Vergil Tanner]

Also, happy new year!

[ChaoticSky]

*trips and lands in the thread*

Well hello.

I have been dying for a good mecha game since Cthulhutech fucking teased me on the concept only to be a nigh unplayable mess.

I shall try to have a character up before the deadline! Though i have to work through the corebook first.

[ChaoticSky]

Okay, so thats a thing! Very neat. Kinda sad by the lack of organic mecha but you cant win them all. Im planning a character from a transhumanist religion that seeks ascension by way of melding with AI, and im probably either going to make her a defender(saladin focus) or a nexus specialist (hydra focus) depending on where i settle (input welcome ).

That said i had a couple questions:
-What is the intended balance between missions and downtime? Are we going to be mostly on missions, mostly kicking back, or half and half or wot?
-When you unlock a system or weapon through Licences (for example, say hydra I gives you a new nexus gun) is that equipment only for the given mech? Or can you turn around and slap it on a different mech you also have a licence for? Im sure it must say in the book somewhere, but i cant find it now >.<

[Rajah]

-When you unlock a system or weapon through Licences (for example, say hydra I gives you a new nexus gun) is that equipment only for the given mech? Or can you turn around and slap it on a different mech you also have a licence for? Im sure it must say in the book somewhere, but i cant find it now >.<

You can slap it another mech. Ditto systems, mods for weapons, NHPs, et cetera - anything a License unlocks except the Frame itself is totally universal for use. Your only restriction is your available System Points on a given Frame.

[GunmetalDreamer]

'Ey, Cybercult buddy!

Rajah's right about the universality of the equipment once it's unlocked.

Was your interest in an organic mech mostly an aesthetic thing, or was there something in particular you were looking for?  Anything with an NHP can go "Berzerk" ala Evangelion, SSC does some man-machine interface stuff if you want to sync up with your mech that way (mostly via core upgrades), and if you're looking for a regenerating Defender chassis Horus's Balor can probably suit your needs (via nanotech).  That's most of the niches I'm used to biotech being used for in mech stuff.  If there's something else you're looking for I don't mind pointing things out.

[Vergil Tanner]

Well hello there, Culty!

- Organic Mecha: I think your closest bet would be a Horus with an AI attached. I mean, HORUS is basically "Cthulhu Incorporated" anyway xD

- The cultist idea sounds super interesting! Just remember that they have to have a reason for joining CC

- The mission / downtime balance will really depend on the players. The current plan is that you'll do a mission, then have a quick break for Downtime, but when you're on a mission you can still play the downtime scenes that happened before said mission. So if everybody has like...three downtime scenes going on as they do the mission, then it will lean very heavily in favour of "More Downtime," but if nobody wants to do downtime scenes (which would be sad ) then it will be primarily mission based. So it's really up to you ^_^

- Once you unlock something via a Licence, you can slap it onto any Mech. The idea is that you "3D Print" your mech parts, so presumably you design it so that it fits and then print it all out. The only restriction is System Points, whether your Mech has the Mounts required and whether you have the Licences. Remember, you can alter your licences between missions; you aren't locked into one build for the entire game, you can change them at will

[ChaoticSky]

Hizzah!

'Ey, Cybercult buddy!

Rajah's right about the universality of the equipment once it's unlocked.

Was your interest in an organic mech mostly an aesthetic thing, or was there something in particular you were looking for?  Anything with an NHP can go "Berzerk" ala Evangelion, SSC does some man-machine interface stuff if you want to sync up with your mech that way (mostly via core upgrades), and if you're looking for a regenerating Defender chassis Horus's Balor can probably suit your needs (via nanotech).  That's most of the niches I'm used to biotech being used for in mech stuff.  If there's something else you're looking for I don't mind pointing things out.

Honestly its a aesthetic sorta thing. Its not so much any particular mechanic, i just sorta like the idea of riding around in a cyborg kaiju instead of a traditional mecha. But its not a big deal, i have many other interests too. The Balor is fucking nice, but its not a Defender, you cant even hide behind it like you can with most defensively oriented mecha (no Guardian trait). I assume this because its half cloud instead of being a ambulatory armour slab like most heavier mechs are. If i was thinking about a offensive powerhouse, especially a melee one, i would pick that in a heartbeat. The two HORUS defenders are the Kobold (for playing Minecraft IRL) and the Gorgon, which is a mech based on tech defense more than physical. Sadly i find most of the Gorgon's abilities too situational and inferior to similar abilities on other defender mecha.

To use a example; The Gorgon's core system Harnessed Basilisk, makes it so anyone who attacks you, or anyone close to you, has to take a system check or be stunned. But they can only be stunned once per combat. Meaning that in a whole fight, the gorgon's key defensive ability only works once per enemy. Its other, passive, defensive abilities stuns enemies who roll a 1 or 2 on their d20 to attack (roughly 10% chance or it does nothing) and gives you two reactions.

Contrast with the Saladin's Tachyon Loop, which allows you to shield a ally from attack, giving them Resistance to all damage from the attack if it hits. If it misses, you get to point the attack at any target you want, including the original attacker. You can do this once a turn, every turn, for the whole fight. Its passives on the other hand, make you immune to shredded and impose difficulty against one attack aimed at it or a ally as a reaction, once a turn, every turn.

So while i love HORUS's themes to death, they dont work so well for a defender unless your also planning to be techfighting to hell and back. Sadly i think the Minotaur has amazing potential as a defender, but it ended up as a Controller type instead, which is a huge shame imo. (personally i think someone got their wires crossed the Kobold was supposed to be the controller but *shrug*)

Well hello there, Culty!

- Organic Mecha: I think your closest bet would be a Horus with an AI attached. I mean, HORUS is basically "Cthulhu Incorporated" anyway xD

- The cultist idea sounds super interesting! Just remember that they have to have a reason for joining CC

- The mission / downtime balance will really depend on the players. The current plan is that you'll do a mission, then have a quick break for Downtime, but when you're on a mission you can still play the downtime scenes that happened before said mission. So if everybody has like...three downtime scenes going on as they do the mission, then it will lean very heavily in favour of "More Downtime," but if nobody wants to do downtime scenes (which would be sad ) then it will be primarily mission based. So it's really up to you ^_^

- Once you unlock something via a Licence, you can slap it onto any Mech. The idea is that you "3D Print" your mech parts, so presumably you design it so that it fits and then print it all out. The only restriction is System Points, whether your Mech has the Mounts required and whether you have the Licences. Remember, you can alter your licences between missions; you aren't locked into one build for the entire game, you can change them at will

-I admit, my first idea was a dedicated Ewar type, full tech/hacking/HORUS, but there seem to be a bunch of people who are going the techy route already so i figured it would be better to be original. Make a nice defender for all those hackers to hide behind

-No worries! I sorta love designing religions and whatnot for RPs, i got their whole career path planned out so it makes sense for her to end up in CC.

-Fair!

-Noted! Ty (and others) for the clarification!

One more question, do you mind if i tweak the formatting on the text sheet? I too like to have all my information in one place so i habitually make text sheets for everything i play. I dont mind using yours if you want to keep them all the same, but i think i could streamline it with abit of effort

[Revelation]

Hizzah!Honestly its a aesthetic sorta thing. Its not so much any particular mechanic, i just sorta like the idea of riding around in a cyborg kaiju instead of a traditional mecha. But its not a big deal, i have many other interests too. The Balor is fucking nice, but its not a Defender, you cant even hide behind it like you can with most defensively oriented mecha (no Guardian trait). I assume this because its half cloud instead of being a ambulatory armour slab like most heavier mechs are. If i was thinking about a offensive powerhouse, especially a melee one, i would pick that in a heartbeat. The two HORUS defenders are the Kobold (for playing Minecraft IRL) and the Gorgon, which is a mech based on tech defense more than physical. Sadly i find most of the Gorgon's abilities too situational and inferior to similar abilities on other defender mecha.

To use a example; The Gorgon's core system Harnessed Basilisk, makes it so anyone who attacks you, or anyone close to you, has to take a system check or be stunned. But they can only be stunned once per combat. Meaning that in a whole fight, the gorgon's key defensive ability only works once per enemy. Its other, passive, defensive abilities stuns enemies who roll a 1 or 2 on their d20 to attack (roughly 10% chance or it does nothing) and gives you two reactions.

Contrast with the Saladin's Tachyon Loop, which allows you to shield a ally from attack, giving them Resistance to all damage from the attack if it hits. If it misses, you get to point the attack at any target you want, including the original attacker. You can do this once a turn, every turn, for the whole fight. Its passives on the other hand, make you immune to shredded and impose difficulty against one attack aimed at it or a ally as a reaction, once a turn, every turn.

So while i love HORUS's themes to death, they dont work so well for a defender unless your also planning to be techfighting to hell and back. Sadly i think the Minotaur has amazing potential as a defender, but it ended up as a Controller type instead, which is a huge shame imo. (personally i think someone got their wires crossed the Kobold was supposed to be the controller but *shrug*)

-I admit, my first idea was a dedicated Ewar type, full tech/hacking/HORUS, but there seem to be a bunch of people who are going the techy route already so i figured it would be better to be original. Make a nice defender for all those hackers to hide behind

-No worries! I sorta love designing religions and whatnot for RPs, i got their whole career path planned out so it makes sense for her to end up in CC.

-Fair!

-Noted! Ty (and others) for the clarification!

One more question, do you mind if i tweak the formatting on the text sheet? I too like to have all my information in one place so i habitually make text sheets for everything i play. I dont mind using yours if you want to keep them all the same, but i think i could streamline it with abit of effort

If you want a techy based defender (I admit it's something I was looking at) it doesn't have a Bio aesthetic, but the IPSN tortuga has great sensors, a positive tech attack bonus, and compliments very nicely with Goblin (The Hor_OS system upgrade level 1 allows you to move someone closer to you - which reacts on your overwatch if they get in your OW range and you shoot them. Combine with Hacker 1 & A lock on and they either take heat or move even closer to you) And Minotaur 2 (Agressive system sync to use Chains of prometheus or Excommunicate to force enemies to keep close to you. Metafold carver to bring the enemy to you). Tortuga is a very hacker friendly defender mech and if you wanted to go that angle I can do something else.

[Revelation]

If Chaotic sky is going with a defender type, I might just go full Blackbeard or maybe Tokugawa, I really like the risk/reward systems they both use. I keep changing ideas/thoughts on what i wanna do so every time I sit down for something, I start thinking on something else. i'm the worst.

[Vergil Tanner]

To use a example; The Gorgon's core system Harnessed Basilisk, makes it so anyone who attacks you, or anyone close to you, has to take a system check or be stunned. But they can only be stunned once per combat. Meaning that in a whole fight, the gorgon's key defensive ability only works once per enemy. Its other, passive, defensive abilities stuns enemies who roll a 1 or 2 on their d20 to attack (roughly 10% chance or it does nothing) and gives you two reactions.

Contrast with the Saladin's Tachyon Loop, which allows you to shield a ally from attack, giving them Resistance to all damage from the attack if it hits. If it misses, you get to point the attack at any target you want, including the original attacker. You can do this once a turn, every turn, for the whole fight. Its passives on the other hand, make you immune to shredded and impose difficulty against one attack aimed at it or a ally as a reaction, once a turn, every turn.


@Changingsaint

Well, don't worry about the Mech too much. Focus on the character first. Mech builds can be changed at the drop of a hat, after all And don't take too much longer, since applications close on Sunday
So while i love HORUS's themes to death, they dont work so well for a defender unless your also planning to be techfighting to hell and back. Sadly i think the Minotaur has amazing potential as a defender, but it ended up as a Controller type instead, which is a huge shame imo. (personally i think someone got their wires crossed the Kobold was supposed to be the controller but *shrug*)

I agree, but I think there's something you're missing. The defensive capabilities you listed - the Gorgon vs The Saladin - aren't exactly comparable. The Saladin can be used once per round as a Reaction. That isn't once per Turn, it's once per Round. So you only get to do it once before your next turn and that's it. Meanwhile, the Gorgon's isn't a reaction. After you activate it, it works for the remainder of the combat, and is a passive thing rather than a Reaction. So if six people attack you and fulfil the criteria? That's six Mechs who have to make that save. They're both just as good as each other, but in different circumstances. You're right that the HORUS abilities are more situational, but I think it fits with the theme of the Mech and isn't quite as clear a comparison as you made it out to be. I mean, that ability could be VERY useful if you're planning on going close range with your build.
Yes, the Gorgon's ability works once per enemy. But the Saladin's only works once per round. Swings and roundabouts, y'know?

-I admit, my first idea was a dedicated Ewar type, full tech/hacking/HORUS, but there seem to be a bunch of people who are going the techy route already so i figured it would be better to be original. Make a nice defender for all those hackers to hide behind

Well, I will be picking people based on character first and role second.

-No worries! I sorta love designing religions and whatnot for RPs, i got their whole career path planned out so it makes sense for her to end up in CC.

Just make sure you run the religion by me first. I love additions to the world, but I need to approve them first so that there aren't any unforeseen hiccups.

One more question, do you mind if i tweak the formatting on the text sheet? I too like to have all my information in one place so i habitually make text sheets for everything i play. I dont mind using yours if you want to keep them all the same, but i think i could streamline it with abit of effort

I do mind, yes. I provided the Template for a reason, and I would prefer it if everybody used that format. It has all the information I need there, and it provides a uniform look. Besides, when people "Streamline" it, you never know what information will get dropped as seemingly "Unimportant" that was actually key. So use the template, please

[Dreaming Space]

In case it matters, my intention is to go hacker/provider of buffs. I think the Spotter talent combos really well with the goblin frame, but I am also tempted by the Black Witch.