Aberrant: War Journal - War Journal OOC

[Grizzly]

Sh!t! And I have to wait for Heritage making up Kelso´s response. ::nervous ::smiley4

[Bahamut810]

Have fun Heritage! Kill a PC for me!

[Heritage]

I'm back, baby! And I'm broke and exhausted, as usual - I might post later tonight, or I might need to wait until tomorrow to fully recuperate. Either way, War Journal shall march on! ::thumbsup

[Bahamut810]

Welcome back Heritage! Did you kill any PC's while you were there?

[Grizzly]

I just want to remember you all to ask and probably correct me, if there is anything odd or so in one of my posts. ::blush

I just want to make sure that there are no missunderstandings due to translation errors or because a sentence gets a whole different meaning by using the wrong words. Don´t want to start a brawl or other "silly" stuff like the Havoc-Rex number.

[Bahamut810]

Dont worry. Just take Damien around and he will correct you.

And its supposed to be "Expiration Date" ::wink (just a taste of the Damien-goodness that you will eventually have) ::damien

[Heritage]

Okay, just a heads up for everyone re: Clone and Duration.

I found that in an earlier series of messages me and Alex had about duration, I agreed that paying 1 qp per clone per scene was acceptable - the question now is, do I redifine how long a scene is?

Earlier I said a scene would be a fixed two hours, since I don't like the vagueness of it as written. Alex suggested doubling a scene to four hours - how do people feel about this?

[Bahamut810]

Thats fine. Does that include combat as well?

[Alex Green]

Thats fine.  Does that include combat as well?

Yes and no.

If a scene has combat then maintenance powers have to pay juice to stay up because of the stress. Default cost is 1q per level every Q+L rounds.

Example: Joe with Forcefield (Q=4, Level=2), has to pay 2q every 6 rounds.

Out of combat maintenance powers' activation costs are paid once per scene.

Clone is unusual in that the cost is per scene regardless of whether or not there is combat in it.

[Heritage]

Yes and no.

If a scene has combat then maintenance powers have to pay juice to stay up because of the stress. Default cost is 1q per level every Q+L rounds.

Example: Joe with Forcefield (Q=4, Level=2), has to pay 2q every 6 rounds.

Out of combat maintenance powers' activation costs are paid once per scene.

Clone is unusual in that the cost is per scene regardless of whether or not there is combat in it.

This is a vailid point, actually - is combat more stressful for a Clone? I hadn't taken this into consideration, to be honest.

[Prince of Boredom]

Clone is unusual in that the cost is per scene regardless of whether or not there is combat in it.

That's not true, at least as written in the books. Clone is not a maintenance power at all. Its duration is simply listed as 'one scene'. To me, that means after a scene they're gone, no matter what (ie. you can't pay quantum to extend their life). That is supposed to be the drawback of the clone power in the first place, otherwise it seems a little too Uber to me. It seems to me the best tactic with a clone with warp (or teleport) is to leave your true self at home base and stay in audio/video contact with the team then warp in a clone when they need you (ie. combat).

As far as what is a scene, yes its pretty murky until you enter combat. An entire combat is considered one scene, period. So once in combat the clone stays the whole combat then disappears (I might give them a turn or two to warp/teleport back to their mothership to recombine...)

Just my personal thoughts, but turning clone into a psuedo-maintenance power (actually better than one) is definately making a powerful power, a lot more powerful (too much so in my opinion).

[ezekiel]

Clone is not a maintenance power at all. Its duration is simply listed as 'one scene'. To me, that means after a scene they're gone, no matter what (ie. you can't pay quantum to extend their life). That is supposed to be the drawback of the clone power in the first place, otherwise it seems a little too Uber to me.

Ditto...

It seems to me the best tactic with a clone with warp (or teleport) is to leave your true self at home base and stay in audio/video contact with the team then warp in a clone when they need you (ie. combat).

'Course Mike-classic could just go with the team and think of Colby, a baseline, who volunteered and doesn't have any nova powers to help her... ::rolleyes

[Heritage]

I am fully aware that Clone is not a maintainance power - this is something that me and Alex talked about, and I agreed to allow it. It may indeed be too powerful, but I already said I'd do it.

Maybe keeping the scene duration at two hours is more than enought time, seeing as I'm allowing him to maintain it, and everyone thinks it's too powerful already ::tongue

[Alex Green]

That's not true, at least as written in the books.  Clone is not a maintenance power at all.  Its duration is simply listed as 'one scene'.  To me, that means after a scene they're gone, no matter what (ie. you can't pay quantum to extend their life).

The problem with this line of reasoning is that Maintenance powers with Mastery have their duration upgraded to scene or scenes.

Since Maintenance allows you to pay for one scene, and then extend that effect to the next (with paying the cost), it would be a bit odd if the next step up on the scale didn't do the same.

[Bahamut810]

Maybe keeping the scene duration at two hours is more than enought time, seeing as I'm allowing him to maintain it, and everyone thinks it's too powerful already 

No. ITs not too powerful until Damien gets it ::devil ::damien ::damien ::damien ::damien

[Heritage]

Sorry I've been absent recently - RL has been interfering with my access. I should post later today or first thing tomorrow ::confused

[ProfPotts]

In the books a 'scene' duration out of combat is usually defined as an 'hour' - when such definitions crop up (usually something like 'a scene / hour'). Two hours, or more, I would say is very generous.

The general point of the loose 'scene' duration is to avoid un-fun book-keeping (like having to count exact QP costs when a character chooses to fly across the Atlantic) - it's not, as far as I can tell, designed to be an excuse for certain powers to become near-permanent (i.e. I agree with the idea of a finite duration to a single 'scene').

As for the Clone / Maintenance thing - I'd say that if the Clone can be maintained scene-to-scene, even when not near the 'original' Nova, then there must be some sort of maintenance / constant link between the two individuals. That would logically cause at least as many penalties as it would bonuses (such as being subject to certain types of disruption, being traced, the original Dorming down or dying, etc., etc.). An alternative would be to allow the character to pre-pump the Clone with a 'pool' of QP, but that brings up issues with pretty much any other Maintenance power as well. If it was me, I'd stick with the usual 'fire & forget' style of Clone & not be able to Maintain the things at a distance. ::sly

[Bahamut810]

As for the Clone / Maintenance thing - I'd say that if the Clone can be maintained scene-to-scene, even when not near the 'original' Nova, then there must be some sort of maintenance / constant link between the two individuals. That would logically cause at least as many penalties as it would bonuses (such as being subject to certain types of disruption, being traced, the original Dorming down or dying, etc., etc.). An alternative would be to allow the character to pre-pump the Clone with a 'pool' of QP, but that brings up issues with pretty much any other Maintenance power as well. If it was me, I'd stick with the usual 'fire & forget' style of Clone & not be able to Maintain the things at a distance.

wouldent the link be the Q-pool? They do share it after all.

[ProfPotts]

wouldent the link be the Q-pool? They do share it after all.

Sure - with the whole 'no Clone power for the Clones' bit, which is kinda' being bypassed if you allow the Clones to maintain themselves. If you allow the Clones to be maintained, but also keep the fact that they can't use the Clone power themselves, then you're really implying that the 'original' Nova is the one maintaining the power, not each individual Clone. To me, for the sake of game balance if not logic, that suggests more of an 'active' link than the power usually appears to have. I wouldn't have a problem with that variation on the usual power since, as I mentioned, it comes with its own distinct disadvantages as well as advantages which, overall, would appear to balance out.

::shrug::

It's not my call in any case, but personally I tend towards disallowing potentially abusive 'loopholes' to be brought into play. A Nova with the Clone power who can maintain those Clones for as long as he has juice (&, I might add, at less of a cost per Clone per hour than he'd regain if resting), with no equally limiting side-effects, possesses such an abusive power. In this case, he'd never actually need to risk his own 'original' self at all - just sit at home & play the game via Clone proxies (no Trinity pun intended... ::tongue ). Having a single (essentially) immortal, indestructable, player character amongst a group of 'normal' PCs tends to end up with a lot of disillusioned PCs... ::sly

[ConcreteDragon]

I'm no expert on Aberrant, but I thought that you couldn't recover Quantum while maintaining a power. ::blink ::unsure

If this is true, then he would run out of juice quickly, Esp. if the clones were using power, too.

Also, can you maintain a power while asleep?

[Heritage]

Okay, finally gonna post today (yay!), working on my nephew's PC, since my step-mom's is all caught up in a political struggle between me and her (please don't ask ::angry) and my own sad and lonely PC in the basement has no network cable ::sad I did just want to clarify the layout of Hole 23 before we went on any further.

First of all, it's small, less than half the size of X4. It's also more or less linear, one central corridor 15' wide by 75' long and 8' tall, with side passages branching off of it. The first 25' of the corridor is the sloping ramp you are all standing on, with the assembled forces of 23 standing some 30' away down the corridor. The end of it opens into a room, which you shall see shortly. Behind you at the top of the ramp is a sort of lozenge-shaped entrance like a stretched octogon, 15' by 25', it's wide side perpendicular to the main corridor. The squat gun turret partially blocks the entrance, and the floor there slopes outwards to help deflect weapons fire. The is also cammo netting draped over the entrance of the cave.

The main corridor is lit by small recessed lights in the ceiling, just like at X4, but many of the bulbs appear to be out or missing, leaving much of the corridor in partial shadow.

New Big Post is coming up! ::biggrin

[Heritage]

Ummmm.... did anyone see a post I made yesterday? Kinda big? I thought for sure it went up, but it seems to have mysteriously disappeared.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Shit!

[ezekiel]

no, I saw you online posting in the thread...and I posted...and you weren't there anymore by the time I'd posted...so maybe my itty bitty post was made at exactly the same time you posted and...squashed yours...

::blush

sorry?

I never saw the post though....

[Heritage]

I figured out what I did - I shutdown my nephew's PC just as it was putting up the post, and it cancelled it out - dummy! ::blush

[Alex Green]

He then stands up, and as he does so, two snakes, one green and one red, seem to appear from the ground and start slowly slithering in a spiral motion around, and up, his body. As he reaches his right hand out towards his patient, the green snake begins slithering down his arm until at the exact moment he touches her, the snakes fangs seem to sink into her arm. After a brief moment, both snakes disappear, and Lobe looks expectantly at Private Chance, noting any bodily reactions.

::laugh ::laugh

Bravo! That is one of the coolest special effects and/or anima banners I've seen.

[Heritage]

Sorry for the delay here, gang - sort of got a lot on my plate, and this is gonna be another big post.

Watch this space! ::thumbsup

[ezekiel]

The Captain's younger daughter,

One day fell in the water.

Excited squeals denoted eels,

Had found her sexual quarter!

[... um... the other verses are a bit worse than that...  ]

*If this doesn't get 'em, it's on to Eskimo Nell...*

Plato would join in... ::wink

[Heritage]

Okay, gonna post some stuff, but I wanted to make sure I understood the recon team's plan before I did their bit. This is how I undestand it to go:

1. Emma, Ernold, Epstein, Jennings and one of the Mikes warp in on the southeast side of Goose Egg Montain, directly opposite of Rimrock and hopefully in the 'shadow' of the Aberrant Detection Eletronics.

2. The Mike might open another warp deliberatly within range of the ADE at a different location to send Joey scrambling over there.

3. As long as a day might be waited before the next move, possibly with more feints to throw of the grunts.

4. The two telepaths will wait for a patrol and attempt to use TP at some distance to scan for general information (mine location, passwords, where the officers are, etc).

5. Dormed down Emma, Ernold and Epstein (the three E's) sneak in closer to the camp, leaving the Mike and Jennings behind to monitor patrols.

6. The E's track down an officer so Emma can scan him for more detailed information. They also sneak into command center and try to steal hard intel.

7. The E's return to Jennings and the Mike's hidden position.

8. The Mike warps everyone back to X4.

9. Epstein gives Ernold a victory backrub. ::devil

With the possible exception of item #9, is this how things are supposed to go down? And what's our timetable?

[tooho]

Yah, I believe that is what our plans are... right, guys? ::wink

[ProfPotts]

Hey - I just realised that War Journal's gone 44 pages without any XP being handed out... Does that make me look like 'the nice one' for handing out XP after a mere 20 pages of Quantum Zero?.. ::halo

[Bahamut810]

I think thats more the fact that we havent *done* anything yet, really.

[ProfPotts]

Hey - we should get at least 1 XP for every session we turn up to... ::sly

[Asbjørn]

Hey - I just realised that War Journal's gone 44 pages without any XP being handed out... Does that make me look like 'the nice one' for handing out XP after a mere 20 pages of Quantum Zero?.. ::halo

Considering the amounts you've handed out, I'd definitely say so. ::wink

[Heritage]

You guys are right, some xp should be forth coming - I kept thinking I'd wait til we got the first two missions taken care of, but so much role-playing (and inter-party combat! ::tongue) has gone on that it would be unfair not to give you guys some, especially the PCs that have been here since the begining.

XP will soon be sent out by PM, followed by a continuation of the current story. If you wish to spend it before going out into the hostile world, feel free to PM me with your 'purchases'.

[Alex Green]

Neither Mike has anything to add to the "are you ready" statement so I'll defere on posting.

[ProfPotts]

Yeah - Rex is still just waiting for action as well.

[Bahamut810]

Damien is...uhhh...sitting there. Yea.

[Grizzly]

Ok, next post is done. I hope I haven´t forgot something important. If somebody sees something missing or so, tell me! ::smokin ::devilangel

[ProfPotts]

Okay - this is very likely me just me being dim here, but I'm really unsure about what equipment Rex is meant to have with him. Did the whole big-ass gun thing ever get sorted out? Did he get an NBC suit, or was it decided that he didn't need one? What else would be standard-issue? How many condoms did he pack? These are things we need to know... ::lookaround ::devil

[Grizzly]

Rex carries one of those standard 30mm Cannons from the core book. At least that is what I understood. As for the rest, ask Heritage for that standard "Starter Pack" for Cobras. Everything else depends on Heritage. Refering to those NBC-Suits, Rex needs at least one of these Gas-Masks (and formate it to himself to have it fit over his nonstandard ::tongue human face ::wink) . If I got it right he doesn´t need the suit, but ask heritage for to be sure.