Fire
From SSDC, Inc.
Fire & Brimstone
(insert character's name here)’s phone rings.
When he/she answers it,
The call is from Gendog, a Gemeni who you met while training in science skills. Gendog is not an adventurer, but he got a job as a power plant supervisor on Palara. He says there has been an incident, and he needs your help, and the help of whatever “crew” you typically run with. Time is of the essence.
As questions are asked, the details spill out.
As you may know, Palara is a planet being colonized by the Gemeni. We have been here about 38 years. This particular settlement, at the base of Mount Rota, is done in conjunction with some Ikiri Geomancers. Mount Rota is a volcano on the verge of eruption. A power plant was built to harness some of that power in a pollution free manner.
Two days ago, something happened. People died. Two technicans called for backup. Nobody made it out alive. The backup team found the contents of the main power building burned. Well, the contents burned, as the entire building is stone. Fire can’t travel down stone hallways; the is no way this should have happened. The team looked further in. They weren’t heard from again. The town is without power, and in danger. We need Battlelords urgently.
We can offer a year of standard pay for finding out what the problem is, fixing it if you are able.
Aerial reconaissance photos are provided, showing a track with a few switchbacks going up a volcano. Once “on-site”, the track passes a large one-story sub-station building built into the rock wall. The track continues on, branching through a switchback at the front of a two story administration building. The right fork goes up to the volcano crest top with a small loop. This is for garbage disposal. The other fork goes past a large area of transformers and power distribution grid equipment before ending at the control building, which has been built into the volcano peak. You can see smoke eminating from the broken windows of the control building.
Answer any reasonable questions.
As the dropship comes down, you see an island clearly created by the volcano that dominates it. To the northeast, there is a plain on which the large town is built. Further to the northeast, a second crecent shaped island rings about a quarter of the main island. While you figure it must be water around the islands, you see it is an odd maroon color and doesn’t move quite like water should.
The town looks unlike anything that most of you have seen before. The town has been built into a ravine formed by a lava flow; the ground is one continuous rock. The Gemeni have terraced the rock to form roads, and formed the rock to build houses, businesses, and even fine statues. There are many buildings in the process of being built.
The maroon colored floating plants are called “kimbo”. They are not native, and the Ikiri don’t like them, they slightly dampen the power of the area. When the characters drive up to the site,
As you drive up, you see smoke coming out of the administration building.
As characters stop or get much closer,
You see slivers of cooling lava about 10 feet long and 1-2 feet in diameter. They are oozing out of the administration building faster than lava should, and do not seem to be attached to any lava flow.
From the side of the administration building, a bulky blob of lava is held up by three stout lava stubs.
There are 3 snakes and “baby” that will come out from the building. One snake will emerge from the rock from other side. Unless otherwise stated, initial range is 15 meters for snakes, 17 meters for baby.
If characters investigate the building, they will find two snakes inside, still lighting fires. The Palarans are unfamiliar with the creatures. They will want them eliminated.
As characters near the hulk of the main building,
As you near the main building, you see three more slivers of lava ooze toward you. The sound of crumbling rock, the hiss of steam, and a loud gurgle alerts you to an enormous creature climbing over the side of the volcano. It appears to be about the same size as a small bus.
There are 3 snakes (18 meters away unless changed by bus speed) and “daddy”, who is 27 meters away.
Second battle: 3 snakes and “daddy”
Weapon fire vs Fire beasts:
archaic hand weapons, chemical/biological weapons, emp cannons, gauss rifles, gravitational shears, jammers, meson cannons, and neuro cannons deal no damage. All hand weapons will melt on a hit. Energy mace – 20% chance to survive, bash-em hammer 10% chance.
Atomic particle weapons – ½ damage Disintigrators – full damage Frost guns – triple damage Lasers – damage per integrity damage Metal guns – damage per th reduction Thunderbolt generators do 1/10 damage as long as the creatures are on the ground. Web generators – ignore all effects that do not involve an external object. Those effects have a 50% chance to be ignored as the webs burn & melt, otherwise they last 1 round.
Attractor/Repressor, Archaic Powder (AI), carousel guns (AI), chainguns (AI), concussion damage, gauss rifles (AI), implosion fields (AI), causes waves through their body. This gives them a -3% chance to hit on the next round per point of damage taken. Note: AI means it is integrity damage that matters. If lowered to less than 1%, the creature will be stunned by the shockwaves. Any remaining damage gets added to the following round.
Juicer damage heals them – 2 points of damage heals 1 hit point. Flamethrower, Pulse cannon and thermatic damage heals them – 5 points of damage heals 1 point.
Snakes: Speed 3 Size class 4, but treated as 1 for targeting due to “prone”. Threshold: 1, 10 body points. IM:+8 Can breathe fire twice between lava immersions. 70/40/10 damage: 2-8 (flamethrower). Bite: 70% Damage per strike: 2-12 (juicer). Speed: 3 Anyone touching takes d3 damage(normal space only). Anyone in range 1 feels heat radiating off (further without armor) (normal space only). These creatures can ooze through local rock at ½ speed.
Baby – Size class 6, treated like size class 4 for targeting. Threshold: 1, Body: 29 IM:+6 Speed: 4 Fireballs: 4 70/50/30, Damage: 2-12 (juicer), # attacks: 2, Punch: 75% Damage per strike: 4-24 (juicer) Anyone touching baby takes d4 damage(normal space only). Anyone in range 1 or two feels heat radiating off (further without armor) (normal space only). These creatures can ooze through local rock at ½ speed.
Daddy – Size class 4 (vehicular): Speed: 6 Threshold: 1, IM: +5 Body: 130 Fireballs: 6 80/60/40/10 Damage: 4-24 (juicer) #attacks: 2 Punch: 80% Damage per strike: 5-50 (juicer) Anyone touching daddy takes d6 damage. Anyone in range 1 takes 1 point regardless of touching (normal space only). Anyone in range 2 feels heat radiating off (further without armor) (normal space only). These creatures can ooze through local rock at ½ speed.
The round after “Daddy” punches, have everyone roll percentile. This is an intuition check at -10. Those that make it get the full “ninja note”. Those that fail only get the first half. They will notice the information from the second half during the next round. Stay in rounds as if combat was still continuing.
Suddenly, the view out the windows change. You no longer see attackers on the side of a volcano, but you seem to be in the middle of a clearing in a forest. You hear weapon malfunction alarms going off.
The bus seems centered on a circle of solid stone. There is a creature to the left of the bus. It is oblong, about 3’ long, 1 ½’ in diameter. It is black, but silvery streaks cover its body. Four long spindly tentacles droop down to support its weight. Four more tentacles ripple through the air.
Give characters a chance to react. The malfunction alarms are “low power” from all energy weapons. Flux shield alarms are identical. The creature is off of the stone.
If characters approach the edge of the circle, symbols on the outside of the circle will illuminate. Characters will feel resistance. If characters persist (and make a strength check), they can exit the circle. Anyone doing so takes d4 constitution damage per round until they return. It will heal at 1 point per day, or a restore constitution matrix. Long term care (paramedic level 8) will double the rate of healing. This takes 4 hours per day.
You see purple light stream from you toward the stone circle, spreading out as it illuminates a portion of what must be a cylinder. It feels like pins & needles.
The “cylinder” also takes effect if characters displace or tunnel through the stone.
The creature calls out “Numda freek ectuma Phrazik! Pay ictu freek?
Give the characters a chance to respond. It was trying to summon a Phrazik (fire elemental). It got the characters instead.
Once it is clear that communication will be an issue,
The creature wriggles its tentacles, grabbing portions of the matrix of the air, visibly manipulating it. For the first time, you visually see how the natural matrix can be distorted. Everyone gets a tickmark in matrix manipulation.
Give characters a chance to respond. The creature says “You not Phrazik. Who you?”
Give out the applicable “ninja note” for which language would be the character’s primary language.
The creature is speaking the Gemeni language. It says “You not Phrazik. Who you?”
The creature is speaking the Zen language. It says “You not Phrazik. Who you?”
The creature is speaking the Orion language. It says “You not Phrazik. Who you?”
The creature is speaking the common tongue. It says “You not Phrazik. Who you?”
The creature is speaking the Ram Python language. It says “You not Phrazik. Who you?”
This area has a very easily maleable matrix - matrixes work about twice as well. If two numbers are in a matrix description, add 50% to both of them.
Hemda (the mage) will give out a bit of information throughout the conversation. He has summoned them here to help the Ricta in a war against the rampaging Mardook. The Mardook are evil, and attack the Ricta regularly. The attacks must be stopped. Although the Ricta are more powerful than the Mardook, the Mardook are cowardly sneaking bastards. The characters are to defeat the Mardook. If they succeed, they will be paid; the spell is as binding on him as it is on them. If they fall in battle, the matrix ends, and the characters will be returned home.
Hemda will give the character who takes the lead a matrically enchanced stone. It allows everyone within 6’ to comprehend languages. This stone will translate languages into the primary language spoken by the person, regardless if they are fluent in the spoken language. It will translate as “I went to the store earlier today” as “Me go to store today”. It translates “gold” as “yellow”.
When the conversation is winding down, Hemda will direct characters:
Head toward the mountains visible in the distance. The staging area forms our front-lines in the foothills. We will mount the attack from there, and conquer the Mardook!
Let characters head out.
As you are headed off to the staging area, you see town off to your right, about 2-3 miles out of your way.
Characters may divert to the town. Base Freelock on medieval England, with wooden houses and typical businesses. Everyone stares at them. There is a Gemeni technican, Rumruk, in the town. He is badly burned and unconscious (-8 body points). He is also getting malnourished and dehydrated. If brought back to consciousness, he will tell characters
I was working in the plant as normal. I got a call that we weren’t getting any power. I went down in the tunnels to check for problems. You know, the coolant lines that go down into the volcano to regulate temperature and bring power? I was walking along, and a gout of flame shot out from the solid wall. I must have blacked out.
He is not trained as a combattant.
Magic is semi-common, and some magic items are available. Note: the commoners here do not take credits as payment. Value is Freelock value. Double the prices in normal space.
1) Force pods. When thrown, they explode like grenades for 5-20 points of concussion damage. You can throw as many as you want at once. They have 10. Value: 750 each.
2) Gem of Striking: When held in the hand or tentacle, it energizes. The longer it is held before it is dropped and its matrix is used, the more damage it will do. It will cause an energy discharge of 1d8 per round it was held before using (up to 8 rounds). After 8 rounds, the gem discharges. Usable three times per day. To hit is as per grenade at -40, as within a meter is not close enough - contact must be made.
Value: 7,500 credits.
3) Mesh Headress: This Mesh Headress is matrically enhanced so that the mind inside can not be detected by any means. This prevents mind reading. The screening ability also gives + 35 to mental attacks.
Due to the size and shape, it can only be used by Mazians, or with an extra 3,000 credits worth of work, it can be made to vaguely fit a Python, Jedezzaic Preist, or (for 6,000 credits of work) a Gemeni. This takes up 4 spaces in a helmet.
Value: 40,000 credits.
4) Headband: This Metal Magnet Headband allows the wearer to detect metal. The type of metal, approximate distance and direction can be discerned.
It has a 75 meter radius (50 in normal space), and requires 3 rounds of concentration to operate. Value: 15,000 credits.
5) Green necklace/headband: This is a necklace of boosting. It aids the power of matrixes.
It adds two point of boost (one point in normal space) to any matrix used by wearer. It takes 1 full day to self-tune to a new wearer. Value: 30,000 credits
6) Spear: This is a 5' long rod of an unknown dull black material, sharpened to a point on one end. The other end has a wedge and a hole through the rod. It does not melt, chip, crack, or break.
It does not even bend. The rod does not guarantee that a heavy object can support its own weight on the 2 inch diameter rod. Value: 12,500 credits
7) Battleaxe: This axe has a head that spins like a circular saw when wielded. It thus can be used like an axe or against integrity like a chainsaw.
75% to hit. ROF: ¼ (or S). Damage: 4-10 (or 1-12 chainsaw) This takes a level 0 matrix manipulation roll and 1 power point in normal space. The chainsaw method affects heavy armor. Sale value: 15,000 credits. Will purchase for 7,500 credits.
8) Handaxe: This axe has a head that spins like a circular saw when wielded. It thus can be used like an axe or against integrity like a chainsaw.
55% to hit. ROF: ½ (or S). Damage: 2-7 (or 2/7 chainsaw) This takes a level 0 matrix manipulation roll and 1 power point in normal space. The chainsaw method affects heavy armor. Sale value: 7,500 credits. Will purchase for 3,750 credits.
9) Flail: This flail has white tubes instead of chain. The two spiked balls on this flail spin when wielded to do extra damage and gouge armor.
65% to hit, roll d2 for number of hits. Damage 2-7 per head, 2 points of integrity damage (before threshold). ROF:1/3 This takes a level 0 matrix manipulation roll and 1 power point in normal space. The armor integrity damage affects heavy armor in normal space. Sale value: 15,000 credits. Will purchase for 7,500 credits.
Attack on town
If characters avoided the town,
You see a mass of flying things coming from the direction of the mountains. As it nears the town, you see the things dive down, making repeated runs to the town as if strafing it.
If characters are in the town, run this while they are talking to someone.
You hear screaming from multiple creatures outside.
The town is being attacked by 50 Napai - After 10 rounds of combat or 10 kills by characters, the creatures will fly off. A few local townfolk will run and grab weapons similar to shortbows, and be firing them. A few others will have 20’ long lashes of fire to strike at those within range. Townfolk will be enraged that their main magic wielders are at the staging area, they left yesterday. Each round, characters will be attacked by d6 Napai. Multiple characters next to each other may be hit by a Napai blast.
A group of Ricta approaches you, talking in their language. From their body language, you can see one of them seems to be of great importance to the others.
Characters will meet the ministers, one by one. Characters will be urged out for the main attack the next morning.
You are woken by a Ricta. “You. Go at Mardook at dawn. Kill Mardook.”
As you head toward the Mardook, you can see the terrain changes quickly. Near the Ricta camp, there is scrub grass. A mile later, the ground is closer to gravel. As you go through the mile or two of barrier hills to approach the mountains, the terrain is largely exposed rock with large boulders and gullies.
You hear a commotion from the mountains and a cloud of small objects comes towards you from the distant mountain. You can’t immediately tell what it is – arrows? A swarm of bats? What do you do?
Give characters a chance to react.
You now see the cloud is a hail of large rocks, varying from the size of a human fist to a human head.
If characters look for cover, they can roll d8 to see how many size class of cover they can get behind. Characters doing this after the first message roll d8 twice, taking the higher result.
Each exposed size class has a 50% chance to be hit by a rock. Each rock does 2-12 damage, but each 6 means add 5 and roll again.
After another minute,
You notice a bunch of the teardrop-shaped creatures flying high over the mountains.
They are at about 1.5 km range.
After another 2 minutes,
The teardrop-shaped creatures starts heading your way.
A commotion partway up the mountain sends another hail of rocks to precede the flying beasts.
Same rules as before for the catapults. When the rocks stop falling, the Napai will be ready for attack runs. There are 24 Napai, but they can not all attack on the same round. One dive swoop (two rounds) every 8.
Find catapults, being defended by Mardook. Can tell there are not enough Mardook to man that many catapults. Ravine going up, but will be tough climb in parts (mountain climb level 5 or climb level 15). Part way up climb, may find an ambush spot. One of them has a message on a long strip. ambush is arrows with a cold damage (1 point).
If characters wait too long by catapults, Mardook counter-attack about 2 hours later – arrows, and rocks, followed by Napai, followed by Mardook charging in. One of them has a message on a long strip. Arrows have 1 point of cold damage with them.
If there is a Mardook conscious within 6’, the characters will be able to read: I ta we o ‘smsoertiosttdev ed.ile i d ttanrnosG.d nwsktuio.yea d- ll c-qwittot eni asec,F. sb lr b l ia irha atw yP udo raclo ct mloI mfnNleecbdfh aoahhmmnaseeoTri oaa to .ilc keatemtnseamneozN p lhanrntwerI m
The followers will only know the letters, not the method of code. They will tell characters it is meaningless to them.
If the text is wrapped around a pole of the right diameter, such as one of their axes, the text will become clear if one of the Mardook is conscious and within 6’ of the stone. The message says “I will direct the attack to be at dawn after the new moon at Giyon’s Pass. Hemda has summoned newcomers, not Frazik. Not as susceptible to cold. They travel in armored land-boat. I will tell more if I can. – Nimiq.”
Bad guys thugs (Napai) – teardrop shaped, Size class 6, fly at 30, but don’t turn exceptionally well. Threshold:1 (bottom only) Body points: 30 before crashing. They will retreat at 10 damage. The creatures fly around in range 4. There is a 30% chance per round to find one lower (on a grab run). They breathe cold – 6d6 (total) cold damage, allocated to (range) areas. This is lessened one die for every range bracket. 80/90/60/40/10 They can swoop down to grab characters size class 4 and smaller (base 80% chance to hit), then lift 5 meters per round. Falling damage is d6+1 (concussion) per 5 meters.
Mardook – about 6’ tall, 3’ wide, quadrupeds. When on hind legs, the legs swat and the body slides down onto them – they don’t move quickly like this.
Wield morning stars and axes from above. Some use handaxe/shield. Armor & shields are matrically enchanced. Treat armor as Bear, shields as combat shields.
Matrix using Mardook – use a matrix that creates a whip of pure fire. 2 attacks, 85/40 to hit, 2d8+3 damage, ignores threshold, doubled against armor rating (per flamethrower). They are also quite blurry, even when standing still (each hit has a 25% miss chance).
There are many routes to the end – Nimiq is prolonging the war to keep in power – A military person is not put in as a Minister of Peace.
