[IC] MnM 3e - The First Generation: the Apex

[Sakuro]

Here is some mood music: I WIll Not Bow, performed by Breaking Benjamin.

They can't see him, but Jamie and Russel both hear Rodney's confused and groggy voice as he is roused from restful slumber to the sound of Russel's shouted warning.

"Whaaaa … what? What's going on?"

In Rodney's bedroom Maryanne and Mel hear some stumbling in the area Anika had been sleeping. There are a couple crashes as objects from stands or shelves come crashing to the ground. Then there is a wwsskk as the room's one window has it's blinds pulled open. Maryanne and Mel can see Anika's form shilloetted in the light as she pushes the blind two either side of the window, offering some limited visibility to the girls in Rodney's room.

Jamie should have the Fatigued Condition.

Rodney is a Heroic NPC, and like a PC will be both tough to take down (in theory) and have/be able to earn HP. Anika is a Minion for combat purposes. The Foster family, other than Rodney, are Bystanders.

Rodney is Stunned, and doesn't get to act this round.

Anika uses her turn to move to the bedroom window and open the blinds. Some light from the city spills into the room. Mel, with her Low Light Vision, sees with no penalty. Everyone else will be suffering -2 to all checks involving accuracy or visual perception. In effect, Partial Concealment. This is for Rodney's bedroom only. Everywhere else is in total darkness (-5).

Anika uses her turn to move to the window in Rodney's room, then open the blinds to let some light in.

Those of you with higher Initiative than Unknown #1 may act in any order.

Rodney [Heroic NPC, 1 HP] Stunned, Vulnerable, Fatigued
Anika [Minion] Fatigued
Maryanne
Mel
Jamie
Unknown #1
Unknown #2
Russel
Unknown #3

[mrdent12]

Mel Sarah
HP: 3->2
CND: Fatigued, but fine

She had been trained for this. Stronghold was coming and if she was taken she wouldn't be able to get her sister back. Too many days would likely pass and whatever happened to her would be too cold for Mel to pick up the trail. So, there was only two ways out. Fight her way through or die trying. The chair she had identified earlier wasn't going to cut it very long against whoever Stronghold likely sent, so she scanned the room for something of more use with her trained eyes. Figurines, posters, some pencils, hangers, and other standard items. When she came across the scissors poking out from underneath some paper, she had her weapon. Verses guns, it was little comfort. Still it was either bring a knife to a fun fight or her fists to a gun fight. She preferred a knife.

Tired as she was, training kicked in pushing her forward to instinctively grab the scissors with one hand and transfer them to the other with the sharp ends out. Now with a weapon, she needed cover for when whatever was happening outside of the room came bursting in. Behind a bed maybe or under a pile of something or both maybe. Anything really to give her some advantage and not get shot to pieces immediately. Her eyes also glanced outside scrambling to see if any signs of drones or mercenaries storming in through the window.

Taking it all in, the rules she had learned and internalized kick in as second nature. Check the surroundings, check. Arm yourself, check. Find an ambush spot or cover. Something was better than nothing. Guns would tear through most things in a standard room so she didn't have much hope for cover save for causing confusion on where she was located. All she needed was a moment though.

Using an HP to edit the scene to have some metal scissors on a desk or somewhere poking out from underneath some papers.
Perception 10 if possible to check outside with the limited vantage point for any clues of drones, armoured vehicles on the street, etc while she is moving to an attack location.
Stealth 30 if hiding is even possible
If hiding is not possible, move to a location that seems optimal for a counter attack to anyone coming in.

Move Action: Grab Scissors
Move Action: Roll into hiding place

[melonLord]

Maryanne Fairweather
HP: 1
Condition: Fatigued

Alright. Enough of this. Something was happening, clearly.

Maryanne took the opportunity to "wake up" as she bumped into the table, letting out a muffled "OW!" of feigned pain. "Ngh...what the...Anika? A-attack? What's...going on?" she whispered. She rubbed her eyes as Anika opened the blinds, blinking and squinting blearily. "...why is Rodney's underwear drawer open?"

Meanwhile, her mind raced. If this was indeed an attack, they had the ability to cut the power beforehand and apparently had some sort of chemical weapons. Stronghold was really the only probable option with those criteria she was aware of. Why here and now, though? Was it for the girl, Mel? Rodney? Needed more information.

Using the limited light provided by the window, Maryanne found her phone and switched on the flashlight function, then proceeded to move towards the back of the room, peeking out the window to see if anything informative might be gleaned.

Move action: Retrieve smartphone from bedside table.

Free action: Activate Flashlight function of smartphone, illuminate area right in front of/around door.

Move action: Move towards the back of the room, behind something if possible.

Free (?) action: Perception check to look out window. Window Perception: 1d20+9 24

(Can't actually remember if making a perception check in combat is a free action or not. If it isn't, she'll just move to the back of the room for now.)

[CaptainChaos]

Based on the previous post, I thought both Jamie and Rodney were stunned and vulnerable because they had been sleeping. Unless I misunderstood?

Jamie and Rodney are considered surprised this round, as they were both well and truly asleep. They do not act this round and are considered both Stunned and Vulnerable until their turn next round.

[Sakuro]

BOth Maryanne an Mel retreat from the door and take up cover, or in Mel case a hiding spot. This limits their ability to look beyond the room and to the outside world. All they can see from their defensive positions is what is immediately across the from the window: a section of a neighboring building. Towering. Cracked with war scars. Sprouting gowergrown vegetation that has started to turn fowl. Amidsgt the beginnings of decay are reflective surfaces. Windows. Any lower or higher are outside Mel and Maryanne's field of view ... and a quick glance while hurrying around wouldn't have helped much anyway.

While Mel hides, aiming to ambush whoever comes through he door, Maryanne points her light on the door so that everyone can clearly see the area in front of her. This will, however, make Maryanne's position obvious and draw attention to her.

In combat rounds, if you want to do more than glance around, as in make a meaningful assessment of your surroundings (looking for noteworthy things or information that is not immediately apparent), you need to be in position to do so (near the window if you want to look out it) and spend time … a Move Action … to do so. Otherwise, you see the building across the street.

The same goes for using knowledge or making tactical assessments. Those things take mental effort and time.

While the girls have taken measures to alleviate themselves of the hindering darkness, or at least Maryanne and Anika have, the living room is still in total darkness. The boys don't even see the attack coming. All they hear is a soft series of thfff, thfff, thfff sounds from multiple direction. Then Jamie and Russel both feel a sharp pain followed by sluggishness of the body and my.

You are correct CaptainChaos. Rodney didn't take any Actions. His dialog was flavor for rousing. In the future please keep purely OOC posts, aside from rolls, to the OOC thread.

The Assailants attack! Please describe for me how Jamie and Russel manage to dodge the majority of attacks directed at them (you have no idea how many, but it sounds like alot) … in the dark … and in Jamie's case just getting up from sleep.

Russel, make a DC 22 Fortitude check. Failure means you go Unconscious.

Jamie, make a DC 17 Fortitude check. Failure means you become Exhausted. More than one degree of failure means you go Unconscious.

Rodney … there is no sound from Rodney.

Russel, if you are still Conscious, it is your go.

Rodney [Heroic NPC, 1 HP] Stunned, Vulnerable, Fatigued
Anika [Minion] Fatigued
Maryanne
Mel
Jamie
Unknown #1
Unknown #2
Russel
Unknown #3

[Flynnarrel]

Russel Briggs
HP: 2>1 LP: 2>1
CND: Exhausted>Fatigued

Fort: 1d20+5 8
Luck reroll: Fort luck reroll: 1d20+5 14 +10 is 24
HP to reduce condition to Fatigued.

"Ack! Darts! Sedative! Help!" Russel yells. Abandoning his shoes his grabs his glasses from the nearby table where he remembered putting them, donning them with a well-practiced flip, and hitting Mute; they should start scanning for any active comms frequencies and maybe he could overhear the communications of their assailants. His mind recalling the placement of furniture in the room (letting that compensate for lack of sight somewhat) Russel grabs the 3 cushions of the couch he was sleeping on holding them by an edge in each hand to drape to either side like a tortoise's shell meeting in the back like a 'V' and taking the third by it's edge in his teeth to complete the triangle of obscurement and cover (swearing inwardly that he would gargle with sanitizer afterwards*). He intends to start a 'crouch-walk' to the room containing the three women.

"Ja-ee! Follo -ee! To Ani-a. She Nee -Yuu!" He said from around the fabric, using words designed to snap the soldier's focus. "Ro-ee! En Guar!" He called out, hoping the other man's time at sword training would let those words reach him through the haze.

[Move action, don glasses. Standard action, arrange cushion for near-full cover with free-action crouch. Free action talking and flavor text justification for recovery on their turns.
*you can Compell Russel's Complication so that he cannot take the third in his teeth and there's a gp between the now-two sandwiched cushions Russel could still be hit through.]

[Sakuro]

There are soft hums in the airs. Air currents shift with movement in undefinable directions while Russel tries to remember his way to the room the girls were supposed to be sleeping in. He would have to move slowly. Carefully. Even then the environment could have changed since he was last awake. He was bound to bump into something that would impede him. The thought about sanitizing his mouth after biting into the pillow distracted him from his reflection on the room's layout. There was an odd texture on the pillow. Dry. Salty. Little bit breaking off. Falling into his mouth. Turning gooey. The three pre-teen girls came to mind. Where they inconsiderate enough too … were they … boogers? In his mouth?! Russel's tongue thrashed for a moment, and he knew it was a mistake. They spread out. Some lodging in his teeth.

I'll trigger the Complication … but in a different way. Russel has gotten a mouthful (not literally) of boogers. Dried nasal mucus. He'll suffer -2 to all checks requiring, concentration, perceptiveness, or mental acuity (to a max of -5) until he spends a Move Action to clean his mouth. While he probably wants to do a more thorough cleaning, the act of attempting to physically remove them will ease his nerves to a more manageable degree. Have 1 HP Russel.

Make an Intellect check (for memory, so Eidetic Memory's bonus applies, subtract the -2 from Russel's Complication) DC 10 to see if Russel can remember the way to Rodney's room. If you don't meet the DC Russel will spend his time wondering aimlessly. If you meet DC, when he does move he'll be at -1 movement rank, because he has to navigate blind and bumps into things. Jamie can follow the sound of Russel's voice, if he keep making noise, but will suffer the same movement penalty. A full round worth of movement will get you out of the living room and into the hallway. A Move Action after that can get you to the door the door to Rodney's room itself

While Russel was planning ahead, attempting to rally his companions, and dealing with his own emotional turmoil Jamie could hear a second volley from the assailants. 'Darts', as Russel had claimed, made their thff, thff,thff sounds through the air. He felt nothing though. Neither did Russel. There was a yelp of pain from Rodney, however.


Inside Rodney's room, Anika looks around. She sees Mel roll under her bed and hide. Maryanne has taken cover as best she can behind furniture on the far end of the room. After a moment to short through her thoughts she rushes over to the closet, opens it up and begins digging around inside of it.

Maryanne, Mel, and Jamie (if he is Conscious) are up.

Jamie is no longer Stunned and Vulnerable from being surprised in his sleep.

Jamie is still in the livingroom breathing in the gas. Make a DC 17 Fortitude check. Same results for failures as the last check I called for. Every degree moves you further towards Unconscious and it is Cumulative.

Rodney [Heroic NPC, 1 HP] Exhausted
Anika [Minion] Fatigued
Maryanne
Mel
Jamie
Unknown #1
Unknown #2
Russel
Unknown #3

[Flynnarrel]

Russel Briggs
HP: 1>2 LP: 1
CND: Fatigued, mental Impaired, Seriously-grossed-out, disoriented.

memory: 1d20+5+5-2 9
A freakin' 1? Seriously? okay, the dice-gods spaketh.

Russel drools profusely, a precursor to the bile trying to rise in his gorge. Only an effort of will kept it down. In his cushoined shell he bumps into something that shouldn't be there. What?!

[CaptainChaos]

Jamie Kane
HP: 3, condition: Fatigued

Jamie woke from a sound sleep to the voice of someone shouting. It was that kid Russel. He was about to protest when his mind registered that Russel said something about an attack. As he started to get up, he heard multiple soft, muffled sounds, followed by sudden sharp pain.

Someone was shooting at them!

Instinct drove his actions as he leaped over and behind the chair he had been sleeping in.

Fortitude save: 1d20+6: 25 [1d20=19], Acrobatics check to get behind the chair: 1d20+10: 15 [1d20=5

His training kicked in. Jamie knew he couldn't stay in the living room. He was at a tactical disadvantage. There were an unknown number of assailants and, more importantly, he couldn't see any of them. Thinking quickly, he grabbed the chair cushion. Crounching low, he used the cushion as a partial cover and headed in the direction of the hallway. The bathroom and kitchen might be that direction, he wasn't sure, but there would be weapons there.

2nd fortitude for the gas: 1d20+6: 10 [1d20=4] Jamie is now exhausted.

[mrdent12]

Mel Sarah
HP: 2->1(if ready action triggered)
CND: Fatigued, ready to pounce

Darts. Not lethal made sense as there was kids present and not even Stronghold could get away with shooting kids in an apartment raid without some seriously bad PR. It didn't change anything for Mel though. Despite the calls for help, Mel knew jumping into the other room only invited a flurry of darts flying at her. She hadn't heard the window break yet, so if there was a drone out there or snipers they would still need to shoot through the window. It was a risk, but she wasn't going to get caught. She also couldn't do nothing.

Eyeing the room, she looks for a position closer to the door within striking range of the scissors that also affords some way for her to hide if possible and have cover from the window. First one she sees through the door with a weapon was her target. It wasn't a a knife in a gun fight yet. For now, it seemed to be a knife in a dart fight and she liked those odds better.

Since ready action only allows readying a single standard action, she wouldn't be able to ready a move and attack as I understand it. So, doing the move first despite it meaning she comes out of hiding.
Move: To wait and attack from location with some coverage from the window if possible. Stealth 19 if applicable.
Standard if triggered: Attack 14 What do we say to the dice gods, not today! Attack 15+10 for 25 to hit. If it hits DC 19 toughness or DC 20 if the scissors count as +1 damage.

[Sakuro]

Russels knows where the hallway is. He doesn't, not really. but as far as he is concerned, he knows where he is headed. He has his turtle shell of pillows to privide him cover against his assailents. Jamie, having hear Russel's call, begins to follow the sounds of his voice and unknowingly mimic's Russel's actions of using a pillow for protection.

Thff, thff, thff.

The whispers of small object moving swiftly through the air, from all around the two young men, can be faintly heard amidst Russel's shouts. They quickly find that the pillows don't help at all. How could they against something that was likely meant to penetrate the thick hide of beast like rhinos, or military grade armors? It doesn't help that the spikes of pain begin are coming from multiple directions. Ahead of them. Behind them. To the sides. They must be surrounded.

Each cry Russel makes, each act of exertion, requires him to take in more air to feed his tried muscles. The gas he had warned about fills his lungs. Dulls his senses. Weakens his body. The painful puncture wounds from the dart attacks push the two youth's further pollute their bodies with chemicals pushing them towards sleep. They never should have woken up. That's what the intoxicant tells their bodies. Go to sleep. Everything will be easier if you just lay down.

The Assailants attack!

Russel, make 4 (1 from the gas, 3 from dart attacks) Fortitude checks at DC 17. Each degree of failure moves you one step closer to Unconscious (Fatigue, Exhausted, Unconscious.)

Jamie, make 2 Fortitude checks at DC 17. Same consequences as failure as mentioned above for Russel.

If Russel is still Conscious, it is his turn. I'll give Maryanne until Friday to get a post in, after that we'll be skipping her this round.

Rodney [Heroic NPC, 1 HP] Exhausted
Anika [Minion] Fatigued
Mel
Jamie
Unknown #1
Unknown #2
Russel
Maryanne
Unknown #3

[Flynnarrel]

Russel

4 Fort: 4#1d20+5 10 8 6 6

Russel dies. or at least appears to.

[Sakuro]

Repeated barrages of darts have begun to turn Russel into a human pincushion. The human body can only take so much, and Russel has already endured more than most would be able to. Eventually he succumbs to the chemicals invading his body. Tainting his blood stream. There is a thu-thump-up sound, signaling his inevitable fall to the ground. Then his shouting ends. The thff, thff, thff of darts flying through the air follows afterwards.

"Russel is down. I got him. Follow me."

… comes the sound of Rodney's voice. Unlike Russel had been, Rodney doesn't shout. If Jamie is still up and active, he's the only one hearing the short and concise speech of the normally boisterous teen. Then there is the sound of feet pounding against the floor at a run. There are a numbing a discordant sounds the follow, breaking of fragile glass, the toppled objects hitting the floor. A few curses come from Rodney, but he doesn't stop. He keep moving. Fast. Faster than anyone navigating a room full of dangerous people and numerous obstacles should go.


Outside Rodney's bedroom Mel can hear the sound of heavy, fast paced, footfalls drawing closer and closer. Eventually they halt near the door. At which point there is a wump sound as something heavy hits the ground outside the door.

Inside the bedroom Anika ceases her rummaging around in the closet, looking frustrated.

"Maryanne, help me tie some of these blankets together. Maybe we can make a rope and get out of here through the window."

At saying this he rushes over to one of the beds that had once bee used by Mel and Maryanne. Together the two young women begin blanket together at the ends in an effort to improvise some rope.

Mel and Jamie are up.

Jamie, if you are still Conscious … make another Fortitude check, DC 17 for enduring the gas in this new round. If you are still after all those check, you may make a DC 15 Athletic check to try to keep up with Rodney.

Rodney [Heroic NPC, 0 HP] Exhausted
Anika [Minion] Fatigued
Mel
Jamie
Unknown #1
Unknown #2
Maryanne
Unknown #3

[mrdent12]

Mel Sarah
HP: 2
CND: Fatigued, otherwise fine

As the sounds of grunting could be heard, Mel knew she had a choice. Rush out into darkness trying to save whoever was left standing taking on who knows how many attackers was one option. Alternatively, she could hold the line and prepare to leave with Anika and Maryanne. There was also just jumping out the window and making her own way, but that was fraught with issues as the cameras would all be laser focused on the area to support Strongholds attack. Alone she stood no chance. As cold as it sounded in her head, tactically having people who could take the fall while she hid made the most sense.

Jaime was still out there though. So was Rodney. Rodney had already given her a lead on disappearing youths, so she didn't know if he would know more or not. Options ran through her head, but all needed one thing, data. Going out the window might not even be a useful path if Stronghold was waiting outside.

Quickly, Mel bolted to the window trying to keep moving in case any snipers or drones were watching to get a better look. Stronghold being on the street or drones waiting would invalidate any attempt at fleeing through the window immediately. It was only a matter of seconds before the attackers came through the door, so she knew she might need to jump as well. During her training, she had made worse jumps. Tuck and roll, tuck and roll with it! Was drilled into her.

This assumes distance from door to window to cover is 30 feet
Move first part to window
Standard Perception 13 to quickly scope out the street outside the window for signs of Stronghold and a landing spot for jumping
Move finish back to some cover in case anyone comes in
She'll be trying to do it quickly as to limit chance of exposure, so if you want a stealth I can roll it, but not sure its even possible

[CaptainChaos]

Jamie Kane
HP: 3 Cond: Exhausted

Fortitude checks: 2#1d20+6: 2 # 16 [1d20=10] 18 [1d20=12]
That should put Jamie unconscious with the failed 1st save. Here is another one for the gas if needed: 1d20+6: 23 [1d20=17] Just remembered that Jamie has Great Endurance if that helps at all.