[Game Thread] Ashes of the Sea

[Retry]

Beyond Jolm, the typical bag sold in the bazaars never included a coping saw in them. Yet past experiences have lead you to swapping out one of the normal tools for a hacksaw. It came in handy in the past, although its not the best fit for the current situation at hand. The teeth of the saw bit into the bark of low-hanging conifer trees leaving fresh sap on the saw. It is tiring on the arm to saw through the thin branches but you push through. One branch, two branch, red (fir) branch, blue (fir) branch. The process is slow and with the tool in hand and the cold air nipping at the lungs with each breath; grueling. Yet, with the warm clothes and Vinter's alchemical spray it wasn't so bad. Some thirty minutes had passed at this point and there hasn't been any sign of Abanti. They likely went all the way to the village as mentioned. Nothing to worry over as of yet. The hacksaw had a cooling sheen of sap on it now and it was becoming all the more difficult to cut. A glance at the collected pile would likely warrant a 'good enough' verdict. At least something to get the fire going. Warmth pulsed out from the dancing flame upon the collected lumber. A soft hiss of burning sap accompanied with the overbearing pine scent hang about the immediate vicinity. Its warm. There is still no sign of Abanti's return. The hum from the pylons seemed to fall beyond the range of hearing unless one were to focus on it. The sound hadn't changed pitch or tone. It was just how humans worked, to drown out a constant noise. >HAYOW-YOOOOAAAA< A distant call reverberated in the air that sounded like something was in anguish. The world was silent - save for the hum. Then, two more of the same calls answered the first. Closer than the first. An unsteady feeling pranced on the nerves of the cyborg. OOGM As you mentioned, the hacksaw is not a part of the Light Tools. However, I don't see why you can't swap one tool out for it. Can easily explain it away with past experiences. The saw is slightly worn down and coated with sap from cutting. It can still be used once you get that sap off it. All of you are able to warm up around the fire before hearing the odd calls. Since Jolm is trained with Danger Sense I felt it appropriate for his instincts to be setting off the alarms right about now. How would you guys like to proceed? Hunker down and prepare for combat? Find shelter among the trees? Flee towards the village? Or something else?

[Strangemund]

Vinter Kheen Abanti never came back. Vinter waited by the edge of camp for him. He stood where the light of the fire met the shadows of the encroaching night. His visor’s light piercing the darkness just a little farther– a hopeful beacon to what he assumed was a lost and confused friend. All the while, Vinter’s body ached for the flame’s warmth. A hot meal and drink to ease the growing numbness in his fingers. But Vinter, uncharacteristically, could not sit idle while poor Abanti was out there, in the dark, without him there to aid him. What if he had malfunctioned again? Lost sense to who and where he was? Would he wander the ashen landscape forever? Or would he let it bury him, like it buried so much of the ancients’ past? "Kzzrt. Sh…should we look for him?" asked Vinter finally after a long, long silence. He wrung his hands together. A nervous habit that he just couldn’t stop doing once he started. He turned to Violet and Jolm, and while they could not see anything but the violet glow of his visor, his worry bled everywhere else. "I mean. I know we are not exactly set up for a search party. Our resources are dismal. And our equipment is not suited for a hunt in weather such as this. But it is only right we look for a lost comrade, isn’t it? He’d do it for you. Either of you. And me…" His voice broke at the end, his heartache just too much for Vinter to bare alone now. As his shoulders dropped, he slumped down next to Jolm and Violet, squeezing between them on a fallen log they pulled out for their makeshift campsite. Vinter sighed. Then sighed again, much louder, before he buried his face in his hands. "Kzzrt. Who am I kidding? We are clearly going to die here without him. It’s a hopeless endeavor. Why even try? The odds are against us. He was an automaton built for extreme environments, combat encounters, and paradoxical events, while we are composed of a half-baked cyborg who can’t decide who is in charge, an old woman who is just waiting for one of us to croak so she can harvest our organs, and me, an incredibly talented aeon priest who did not deserve any of this and yet, here I am." He threw his hands forward with a huff. "Lost in no man’s land while my damned apprentice is probably reaping the rewards of my research!" Vinter threw a handful of shellnow into the fire. "Kzzrt. She wasn’t even an official member of the church…" Vinter fell silent at the crackle of the fire as it lapped hungrily at the broken shells it fed it. He stared into its curling tongues of orange and yellow. Lost once again in his depressing thoughts, no doubt to the relief of Violet and Jolm who were probably less eager to give up than he was. And truthfully, Vinter hoped they’d argue the point. Inspire him to act, when he felt like he couldn’t. Was that childish? Maybe. But he couldn’t help it. His friend was gone, and he didn’t know what to do. Honestly, things just couldn’t get much worse. It was then that they all heard that bone-tingling howl. Vinter shot upward. His gaze affixed to the shifting fog of shellsnow swept up in the cold wind. Searching blindly for whatever caused that hellish sound. "Kzzrt, You two heard that, right? That howl? It was a howl, right? It did not sound like the wind. It sounded like–" Vinter was cut-off as two more of the same calls were carried over their campsite. Vinter shuddered in fear. "Kzzrt, Alright, well, all who is in favor of hiding from that say I: I!" Vinter raised his hand, and quickly ducked down and around Violet, hopeful that whatever that was would eat her first.

OOC   Might: 7 E 0 Speed: 12 E 0 Intellect: 15 E 1 Effort: 1 Max Cyphers: 3 Cultured Ability: Learned - Being well read and well educated, you have a wide range of talents. You can attempt one task in which you have no training as if you were trained. This ability refreshes every time you make a recovery roll, but the uses never accumulate. Inability: Using Medium Weapons is increased by one step. Using Heavy Weapons is increased by one step. Getting people to trust or believe me is increased by one step. Skills: T: Understanding numenera. T: Using Light Weapons. T: Alchemical Tasks. T: Knowledge of current events and history. T: Perception, detecting differences, and noticing minor flaws (or strengths) in the work of others. Esoteries: Ward: You have a shield of energy around you at all times that helps deflect attacks. You gain +1 to Armor. Enabler. Aggression (2 Intellect point): You reach into the mind of a character and unlock his more primitive instincts. Choose one character within short range. That character has an asset on Might-based attack rolls. The effect lasts for one minute. Action to initiate. Focus Abilities: Tier 1: Alchemical Dependence: You are trained in alchemical tasks. In addition, you take a daily regimen of special drugs you’ve designed to work with your body in particular, drugs that have slowly adapted your muscles and organs, allowing you to accept still more concentrated doses. In effect, you’ve enhanced yourself with permanent abilities while you keep taking your daily dose of drugs. You can change your matrix of active daily abilities by choosing to take a different complement of drugs on a given day, assuming you have the recipe in your manual and ingredients for granting yourself that ability. You can have only one active ability of a given tier at a time. To make the switch, spend ten minutes studying your manual, preparing a new alchemical concoction, and finally taking it, after which time your activity ability is changed out. You can choose to change your active abilities up to twice per day, immediately after a one-hour or ten-hour recovery roll. Others who’ve taken your drugs experienced life-threatening reactions the few times you’ve experimented. Recipes: Choose one of the following abilities as your active alchemical ability for tier 1. ACTIVE -- Deadly Reflexes. You deal 1 additional point of damage with every attack you make. Enabler. INACTIVE -- Densely Muscled. Your alchemical infusion provides +1 to your Might Edge, and 3 additional points to your Might Pool. Enabler. Equipment: Boring, regular lothing. Fine clothing. A book about numenera - provides an Asset. A book about alchemy - provides an Asset. Bedroll. Backpack. Armor: Ward - 1 point of Armor. Weapon: Buzzer - 2 points of Damage. Short Range | Action to Reload | Magazine of 5 Oddities: Goggles with glowing lenses (although, you can see through them normally.) Cyphers: Magnetic Master Level: 1d6 + 2 Wearable: Gloves with metal plates Effect: Establishes a connection with one metal object within short range that a human could hold in one hand. After this connection is established, the user can move or manipulate the object anywhere within short range (each movement or manipulation is an action). For example, the user could wield a weapon or drag a helm affixed to a foe’s head to and fro. The connection lasts for ten rounds per cypher level. Motion Sensor Level: 1d6 + 2 Internal: Injection into spine Effect: Indicates when any movement occurs within short range, or when large creatures or objects move within long range (the cypher distinguishes between the two). It also indicates the number and size of the creatures or objects in motion. Once activated, it operates for one hour per cypher level. Sleep Inducer Level: 1d6 Usable: Gas sprayer Effect: Touch or ingestion puts the victim to sleep for ten minutes or until awoken by a violent action or an extremely loud noise.

[Effete]

Jolm Ornax The fire popped and hissed, shooting off small jets of blue flame when the sap boiled through the bark and caught alight. Though small and pitiful, the fire was enough to leech the worst of the chill. Jolm's toes still felt like wads of dough in his boots, and his stiff fingers didn't always want to cooperate, but the warm air was easier to breath and helped the body to better regulate temperature. Vinter had spent a good deal of time pacing impatiently, and now he stood at the edge of the firelight staring out at the path Abanti had made through the shellsnow. The automaton had been gone a long time, and the Aeon Priest was clearly worried. Presently, Vinter returned to the fire and voiced these concerns. Jolm looked from the masked priest to Violet, but remained silent. An impulse tickled the back of his mind, urging him to move closer to the pylons. The thought brought the boy's attention back to that odd hum, which had managed to fade out of conscious awareness hours ago. Jolm forced his thoughts back to the issue at hand. Going after Abanti would not be an easy decision. If they followed his tracks and the automaton came back by a different route, they'd still miss each other. But if they stayed here and waited, they'd definitely need to gather more wood and eventual hunt for some food, both of which would prove extremely difficult. The small hacksaw Jolm carried was intended to cut through pieces of metal, not large branches, and the blade was now nearly ruined with sap. Using it was not easy to begin with, but now it would be a grueling and tiring task. Hunting game would be an entirely separate challenge. Silently, Jolm pondered the dilemma, not arriving at any satifactory answers. And you're no help at all, the boy thought, childing the alien awareness within him. Then, Vinter began to despair, casting aspersions upon himself and his companions. Jolm poked at the fire with a stick and tried his best to ignore the priest's remarks, but the hopelessness was contagious, and soon Jolm began to doubt their odds of surviving out here. Suddenly, a howl shattered the silence. Far off, down-slope, the sound reverberated up the mountain pass. Jolm's hand drifted toward a short metal rod, about two-feet long, leaning against the side of the log. In a mild voice, the boy answered Vinter. "Yeah, we heard that! TONE AND TENOR INDICATIVE OF PREDATORY FAUNA." The call was answered by two more howls, these closer to camp. The short rod was in Jolm's hands. *snikt* It was now a six-foot long spear topped with a wicked barb. "I. I. I already said "I". That means you too! US." A series of gutteral noises and partial words spilled from the cyborg's mouth. Then: "Where should we hide? Up a tree?" His eyes shown in the fading light as the boy peered wide-eyed into the shadows. He had no ability to see in the dark (yet), so he'd likely have very little time to react before the beasts were upon them. Whatever Vinter or Violet were going to do, they'd better do it soon.

OOC & Stats   Jolm Ornax is a Mechanical Delve who Fuses Mind and Machine TIER EXPERIENCE 1 0 xp ADVANCEMENT □ Increase Effort by +1Extra Effort □ Add +4 to any Stat PoolsIncrease Capabilities □ Increase Edge for one Stat by +1Move Toward Perfection □ Get Trained or Specialized in one skillSkill Training □ • Reduce Might and Speed penalties for wear armor by 1. • Add 2 to recovery rolls. • Select a new Delve Lore.Other ABILITY POOL EDGE MIGHT 9 /9 0 SPEED 12 /12 1 INTELLECT 16 /19 1 Costs 3 points to reduce difficulty one level. +2 points for each additional level.EFFORT 1 Restore 1d6 +tier points. Four rests per day: 1st = one Action, 2nd = 10 minutes, 3rd = 1 hour, 4th = 10 hours.RECOVERY 1d6+1 DAMAGE TRACK ■ All three stat Pools are at 1 or higher, and the PC has no penalties from harmful conditions.Hale □ • Effort costs 1 extra point per level applied. • Minor and Major Effect results on rolls are ignored. • Extra damage from a roll of 17+ is capped at 1.Impaired □ Cannot take any actions other than to move (probably crawl) no more than an immediate distance. If Speed Pool is 0, no movement is possible.Debilitated □ ..is dead.Dead SPECIAL DAMAGE - - SPECIAL ABILITIES Detect presence of active numenera by studying an object or location for about a minute.Sense Numenera Action (1 Intellect point) Perform small tricks: temporarily change the color or basic appearance of a small object, cause small objects to float through the air, clean a small area, mend a broken object, prepare (but not create) food , and so on. Cannot harm another creature or object. Must have a free hand and can pay the Intellect point cost.Hedge Magic Action Can use light and medium weapons without penalty; attacks with heavy weapons are hindered.Weapons Training Enabler Protects implants and enhancements from disruption or intrusion. Resisting such attacks is eased.Unique Enabler DELVE LORE Trained in perception, sense danger.Additional Training Enabler Trained in Speed defense tasks when not wearing armor.Trained Without Armor Enabler INTRUSIONS A trap or a dangerous device malfunctions before it can affect you.Fortuitous Malfunction When lost, something suggests the best path forward.Serendipitous Landmark A poison or disease turns out not to be as debilitating or deadly as it first seemed, and inflicts only half the damage that it would have otherwise.Weak Strain SKILLS Charm Inability Crafting Numenera Inability Deception Inability Geography Trained Identifying Numenera Trained Navigation Trained Perception Trained Persuasion Inability Salvaging Numenera Trained Sensing Danger Trained Understanding Numenera Basic WEAPON DAMAGE NOTES Spear 4 Long range if thrown ARMOR None EQUIPMENT Shins: 3 Rations/day: 3 Parts: 4 Backpack Rope (50ft) Hammer & spikes (3) Light tools Torches (3) Minor glowglobe (2) Warm clothes & boots - - - - - - ODDITIES Glass orb that slowly drips perfumed water Virtually indestructible /unsulliable scarf CYPHERS (Limit 2) LEVEL Explodes to release a burst of neurotoxic mist affecting all creatures within long range, hindering all attacks for about an hour. If effectively targeted during a conflict against a ranked horde or community, the affected horde or community inflicts 1 point of damage less than normal during that community action.Detonation (Horde Suppressor) 1d6+1 The user directs one end of the cypher at a target within short range, which is then subject to an attack by a projected mass of rapidly expanding and hardening foam. The target is held immobile in the hardened mass of foam for one hour, after which the mass turns to powder.Immobilizer 1d6+2 ARTIFACTS LEVEL - - IOTUM LEVEL VALUE/UNIT UNITS Io (basic iotum) 1 1 io 3 Responsive synth 2 3 io 1 Apt clay 3 5 io Bio-circuitry 4 10 io Synthsteel 4 10 io Pliable metal 4 10 io Azure steel 5 20 io Mimetic gel 5 20 io Quantium 5 20 io Amber crystal 6 30 io Protomatter 6 60 io Thaum dust 6 30 io Smart tissue 7 40 io Psiranium 7 40 io Kaon dot 7 40 io Monopole 7 40 io Midnight stone 8 50 io Oraculum 8 50 io Virtuon particle 8 50 io Tamed iron 9 70 io Philosophine 9 70 io Data orb 9 100 io Scalar boson rod 9 100 io Cosmic foam 10 200 io

[QueenQatherine]

Violet Vatrice Jolm was uncertain the device he had fused with could ever be separated from him, commenting that he didn’t believe it was ever meant to be installed in a human being. That did raise an interesting question as to what its original purpose was, but of course none of them had an answer to such a question. He seemed to be making his peace with his predicament which was fine and good on it’s own but she contemplated what, if anything she could do to ease his burden a little. It was something to ponder later. They couldn’t dwell on such things, not with more pressing matters at hand. Such as not succumbing to the terrible cold. Vinter managed to offer help with the biting cold that threatened to end their journey somewhat prematurely, however as always he did so in the form of his alchemic drugs. The way he slumped when he huffed his own vapors made the man’s addiction all the more apparent. As much as he wanted to complain about his position being stolen from him, it was easy to see that had developed a dependency on the hard stuff, and that just wasn’t a good optic for a priest. Still in this situation it seemed his addiction came through for them. He unbuckled a hose and sprayed them in his foul black vapor and while Violet wanted to object to being so unceremoniously drugged but as the mist started to take effect the bitterness of the biting cold slowly subsided. While her initial response was to object to his hypocritically cavalier behavior of spraying an unfamiliar chemical on a group of people without knowing for sure how their bodies would react, she did notice that the hateful wind didn’t dig its claws quite as deep into her as it did moments earlier. “Ah, sweet Vinter, a breakthrough at last! Bless you!” She said with a hum before gingerly putting the prized magnet on his suit. He was the first to aid her and thus won the little competition she had trumped up seemingly for her own sake. Now he would be further motivated to help the group arrive at their new destination, which unfortunately turned out to be a barren spot of land among the shell snow. Poor Jolm did his best to shovel snow and hack away at trees to make conditions livable but without Abanti’s help it was slow going. Violet pitched in where she could but ultimately she feared that she was only slowing him down. What a pathetic sight they must have been a teenage boy and an elderly woman scrambling to make a camp in this blizzard, how a real group of adventurers would mock them if they could see. When a fire was started at last the old woman could provide Jolm assistance no longer. Drawn like a moth to the flame, she sat in front of the small heat source and let it wash over her. Picking up a small branch from the remains of Jolm’s work she let her talon glide down the length of the limb to sheer off the smaller growths until she had a relatively clean stick. She used it to poke at the fire, hoping to urge more heat from it as she stared deeply into the dancing flames. The old woman had a somewhat complicated relationship with fire. She needed it to survive just as much as the others, but if she stared at it long enough she could feel it all around her, all over her, outside and in. How cruel that something as primeval as fire could easily end some of the brightest minds the world had ever seen, all in a single night. A joke with a miserable punchline, that’s what it was. She wouldn’t let the Vatrice name die in such a plain way. Neither cold nor flame would best her, she was more then a feeble old woman, she was nobility, she was a scientist, she was the best dandblamed fast-talking-explorinatin-problem-a-squishina-mastermind to walk the territory. She could lick this just like everything else! Her inner pep talk was suddenly interrupted as she heard an eerie howl. Snapping back to relative reality she realized that the other two had become fitful. She smiled the soft smile of the wise elder as she listened to their conversation, realizing as they spoke that Abanti had not yet returned and her friends were trying to figure out whether they should wait for them or press on, all while an unknown creature seemed to close in on them. They needed guidance, they needed a helping hand from a wise old woman, good thing she happened to know one... “Hm, sad to say, we may need to cut our losses lads.” She confessed, “We don’t know where to find Abanti or if there’s anythin’ left to find, if we terry too long, won’t be much of us left to find neither.” She tilted her head as she watched the panic take hold of Vinter’s heart. The man made a logical argument, if Abanti couldn’t make it in these conditions, what chance did the likes of them? From a scientific perspective it would seem they were boned. But the variable he failed to account for was the general stubbornness of his eldest companion. Pursing wrinkled lips together she thought in silence for a moment, looking at the fire as she considered their options, and ultimately decided on a course of action. Standing up she reached over and stripped the magnet away from Vinter, giving the technicolor rainbow feline instead to Jolm, “The gas was temporary relief. Poor Jolm worked way harder and gave us something a little more lastin’, I’d say that’s well worth the reward wouldn’t you say sweetie?” She teased. Her tone wasn’t truly mocking, but more in jest, a bit of humor to break the tension in the air before she spoke to what was really on everyone’s mind. “Which among you think ya’ll are good enough ta hide from the what-have-its that hunt in these territories?” She pointed to the fire, to Vinter, Jolm, and then thumbed at herself as she said, “Burnin’ fire, huffin’ mask, glowin’ eyes, and creakin’ bones, all of which reekin’ of burnin’ sap! Less what’s comin’ is blind, deaf, and sportin’ a broke down sniffer it’ll have us dead to rights. So either we run or defend huh?” She took a few steps away from the fire, her body creaking and crackling as she did so, “By the same logic we probably can’t be outrunnin’ the beasts either, so if we make for cover we’ll have them at our backs. My runnin’ days are about done. So I say we make a stand boys. Fend off what thinks to make an easy meal of us, make short work of them, show them we’re no easy meal and they’ll surely run. Then we can make our escape somewhat peaceful like.” She turned back around looking at the two men with hands on her hips and a smile on her face, clearly quite impressed with herself having felt as though she was demonstrating her logical mind and skilled tongue in tandem, ”So what do you say boys? Not going to let a few critters get the best of us are we?”

 

Violet Might: 9/10 E 0 Speed: 12 E 0 Intel: 14 E 1 Effort: 1 Max Cyphers: 2 Mercurial Ability: Changeable - Changing tacks sometimes achieves your objective. When you fail at a task, you can change the way you go about achieving it and roll twice on the second attempt and take the higher result. For example, instead of trying to pick the lock a second time, you might elect to bash the door down. Or instead of trying to skewer the tetrahydra with your sword a second time, you might take a shot with your buzzer. Inability: Intellect Defense increased by one step. Skills: T: Deception (Mercurial) T: Healing T: Surgery T: Endure Pain T: Persuasion T: Seeing Through Deception Exp: 2

[Effete]

Jolm Ornax The youth held the spear with a trained casualness, but his wide eyes darted from one dimming shadow to another. A tree limb swayed, and the speartip arched to follow it. The people of Jolm's village learned to hunt from a young age, but they always had the benefit of having much more experienced hunters to aid and protect them. Jolm spared a brief glance at his companions: an elderly woman who had seen too many winters (no pun intended), and a cocksure priest who looked substantially less arrogant hiding behind the old lady. We're definitely gonna die here, the boy remorsed as he shuffled to place the small fire between himself and whatever prowled out in the dark. Suddenly, Violet spoke, but her words were hardly reassuring. She seemed to think Abanti was already lost, and mused that they would meet the same fate if they tarried much longer. I was right! We're gonna die. But abruptly, Violet rose to her feet, snatched away the little adornment she had given Vinter earlier in the day, and affixed it to a metal buckle on Jolm's attire. Peering down at it, the youth was inexplicably reminded of that banger they heard back in the outpost. How long ago that seemed, though barely a day had passed. A synapse fired in Jolm's brain, trying to access a memory of the song. A thin, silver thread of alien material woven through the neuron intercepted the signal and sent it to a small spherical bead: a miniturized data orb. The song replayed perfectly within the boy's mind's-ear, bringing happier thoughts with it. Violet's pep talk continued, and though still dour, it now carried a hint of hope. The elderly woman, with her years of experience, was like one of those hunters teaching the next generation what was required to survive. Old lessons drifted up into Jolm's consciouness like the echoes of the howls from the valley below. "Set your feet shoulder-width apart. You want to be stable, but also able to move them swiftly if needed. Align your speartip with your eyeline. What you see is where you thrust." This and other important hunting lessons played amongst a backdrop of Nyancat. Presently, a smirk twisted the corners of Jolm's lips, and he growled, "Yeeaah! Let's show these things what we're made of! AND THEN WE WILL FEAST ON THEIR CORPSES."

OOC & Stats   Jolm Ornax is a Mechanical Delve who Fuses Mind and Machine TIER EXPERIENCE 1 0 xp ADVANCEMENT □ Increase Effort by +1Extra Effort □ Add +4 to any Stat PoolsIncrease Capabilities □ Increase Edge for one Stat by +1Move Toward Perfection □ Get Trained or Specialized in one skillSkill Training □ • Reduce Might and Speed penalties for wear armor by 1. • Add 2 to recovery rolls. • Select a new Delve Lore.Other ABILITY POOL EDGE MIGHT 9 /9 0 SPEED 12 /12 1 INTELLECT 16 /19 1 Costs 3 points to reduce difficulty one level. +2 points for each additional level.EFFORT 1 Restore 1d6 +tier points. Four rests per day: 1st = one Action, 2nd = 10 minutes, 3rd = 1 hour, 4th = 10 hours.RECOVERY 1d6+1 DAMAGE TRACK ■ All three stat Pools are at 1 or higher, and the PC has no penalties from harmful conditions.Hale □ • Effort costs 1 extra point per level applied. • Minor and Major Effect results on rolls are ignored. • Extra damage from a roll of 17+ is capped at 1.Impaired □ Cannot take any actions other than to move (probably crawl) no more than an immediate distance. If Speed Pool is 0, no movement is possible.Debilitated □ ..is dead.Dead SPECIAL DAMAGE - - SPECIAL ABILITIES Detect presence of active numenera by studying an object or location for about a minute.Sense Numenera Action (1 Intellect point) Perform small tricks: temporarily change the color or basic appearance of a small object, cause small objects to float through the air, clean a small area, mend a broken object, prepare (but not create) food , and so on. Cannot harm another creature or object. Must have a free hand and can pay the Intellect point cost.Hedge Magic Action Can use light and medium weapons without penalty; attacks with heavy weapons are hindered.Weapons Training Enabler Protects implants and enhancements from disruption or intrusion. Resisting such attacks is eased.Unique Enabler DELVE LORE Trained in perception, sense danger.Additional Training Enabler Trained in Speed defense tasks when not wearing armor.Trained Without Armor Enabler INTRUSIONS A trap or a dangerous device malfunctions before it can affect you.Fortuitous Malfunction When lost, something suggests the best path forward.Serendipitous Landmark A poison or disease turns out not to be as debilitating or deadly as it first seemed, and inflicts only half the damage that it would have otherwise.Weak Strain SKILLS Charm Inability Crafting Numenera Inability Deception Inability Geography Trained Identifying Numenera Trained Navigation Trained Perception Trained Persuasion Inability Salvaging Numenera Trained Sensing Danger Trained Understanding Numenera Basic WEAPON DAMAGE NOTES Spear 4 Long range if thrown ARMOR None EQUIPMENT Shins: 3 Rations/day: 3 Parts: 4 Backpack Rope (50ft) Hammer & spikes (3) Light tools Torches (3) Minor glowglobe (2) Warm clothes & boots - - - - - - ODDITIES Glass orb that slowly drips perfumed water Virtually indestructible /unsulliable scarf CYPHERS (Limit 2) LEVEL Explodes to release a burst of neurotoxic mist affecting all creatures within long range, hindering all attacks for about an hour. If effectively targeted during a conflict against a ranked horde or community, the affected horde or community inflicts 1 point of damage less than normal during that community action.Detonation (Horde Suppressor) 1d6+1 The user directs one end of the cypher at a target within short range, which is then subject to an attack by a projected mass of rapidly expanding and hardening foam. The target is held immobile in the hardened mass of foam for one hour, after which the mass turns to powder.Immobilizer 1d6+2 ARTIFACTS LEVEL - - IOTUM LEVEL VALUE/UNIT UNITS Io (basic iotum) 1 1 io 3 Responsive synth 2 3 io 1 Apt clay 3 5 io Bio-circuitry 4 10 io Synthsteel 4 10 io Pliable metal 4 10 io Azure steel 5 20 io Mimetic gel 5 20 io Quantium 5 20 io Amber crystal 6 30 io Protomatter 6 60 io Thaum dust 6 30 io Smart tissue 7 40 io Psiranium 7 40 io Kaon dot 7 40 io Monopole 7 40 io Midnight stone 8 50 io Oraculum 8 50 io Virtuon particle 8 50 io Tamed iron 9 70 io Philosophine 9 70 io Data orb 9 100 io Scalar boson rod 9 100 io Cosmic foam 10 200 io

[Retry]

Beyond Civilization, Beyond Rescue, Beyond Hope ~~~ "Artic Attack" by Tabletop RPG Music ~~~ Decided to stand against the forces that tried to squash them upon this mountain side the trio readied themselves. The dancing flames offered a respite from the cold yet the chills of impending predators was tough to chase away with mere fire. >YOOOOOOOA< Once more the entities cried in the distance, the augmented eyes of Jolm peered into the sea of blue needles and twisted wood. Movement. Fast movement. A blur at best. A white blur. They were closing in too fast. From the same direction a expanding thin red wave radiated out. It fickly danced about in jagged ways running across the ground and wrapping around trees. It washed over the trio in a seemingly harmless manner before all returned to whatever normal could be considered here upon a desolate mountainside. The first of their assailants was visible darting through the spaced trees some sixty meters ahead and moving towards them fast! It ran on all four limbs and had the body of a large frame of a wolf, yet its fur was sleek like an artic fox. Its massive feet bore four sharpened claws upon each paw. Its head was wide yet nearly flat. A bony ridge ran down the center leading towards where its nose and mouth should have been. Instead of a leather nose and maw filled with teeth, there stood a blackened avian-like beak at the precipice of a large mouth. Four mighty tusks stretched out with two to either side of the beak sharing its darkened color. A pair of forward-facing raptor-like eyes were spaced far apart on either side of the wide unusual head. Around the creature's neck was a darkened collar that pulsed with red characters in the similar hue of the light that just rushed across the way. So far there was only the one, yet the others were closing in fast! Based on its trajectory, it was aiming for the 'weakest' among the trio for a quick and easy kill! OOGM Encounter start Welcome to combat in Numenera. I don't anticipate much of an issue for you guys with the cyphers you rolled, however as I am still new to this - I can be very wrong in my assumption Pouring over the combat rules once more I believe it might be best for us to rely on the Optional Rule for pbp. Everyone rolls a Speed task and if one of you beat the set Task Difficulty of the approaching creature, you all go first and the enemies second. I can call a new initiative roll if the situations changes drastically. The approaching creature is called a Blacktusk. They have a level of 4(12) for their attacks and have a Speed Defense of 6(18) due to their quickness. They are also fast capable of covering a Long distance for their movement. As a reminder, in Numenera, The most common actions are as follows: Attack Activate a special ability (one that isn't an attack) Move Wait Defend Do something else you only get one (1) action for your turn. We'll play thing a bit loose here (mostly for my sake ) so do not worry too much on making a mistake as I will surely make some as well!

[Strangemund]

Vinter Kheen She took his magnet. There was no more a sorrowful sound than the pained gasp Vinter made when Violet stripped the magnetic artifact from his chest. He clutched where it once laid as if she landed a lethal blow upon him. The wound deep, cutting, and did exactly what the old woman wanted. As Vinter watched with a quiet jealousy as she gifted it to Jolm instead, even though they were about to die, here, in the cold, far from familiar sights– she still had the audacity to take away the one thing he didn’t know he adored until it was stolen from him! And that just wouldn’t do. Vinter huffed. "Kzzrt. But I got us here! I made sure we survived until he could make a fire! He doesn’t deserve–" Violet didn’t hear or care about Vinter’s tantrum. She continued her pep talk, and much to Vinter’s bewilderment, and his frustration, and deep hate for her, she… she was quite… inspiring. That even though she lived long enough to see the Eighth World rise and fall, she wasn’t afraid to face these hidden horrors head on. Death did not scare her, nor did the unknown. And these beasts were neither to her. Just vermin in need of eradication. It was embarrassing to admit but… that helped Vinter. A lot. Especially now he was without Abanti at his side. He needed someone to tell him he could do this– that he could survive. And if the woman he spent more than half his life hating thought him capable of it, then who was to deny that truth? He was an Aeon Priest, after all. The Truth was both the word he spoke and his whole entire belief system. "Kzzrt. I hate when you are right…" grumbled Vinter, although Violet could have sworn there was just a little bit less agitation in his voice. But that couldn’t be helped. She won him over, as well as Jolm, who took to her words like War Moths to flame. The young Delver rallied a war cry, spear in hand, and ready to take on the world. It made Vinter smile, just a little bit, under his helmet. Maybe they could survive this…if they… well, if they worked together. If he worked together with them. Preparation for the beasts’ arrival was met with a strange mix of tension and adrenaline, at least for Vinter. He was not much of a fighter but he had the appropriate equipment to make the battle go in their favor. Cyphers that he’d yet to make use of. But as soon as he saw that black tusked monstrosity, pounding through the snow with ravenous intent, ooh, there was no doubt in his mind that now was the time to utilize his special set of toys. And he had the perfect one in mind if that collar upon that creature’s throat was anything to go by. "Kzzrt. Don’t worry. I have this one." Vinter boasted proudly as his backpack opened up and its little robotic arms handed him a set of interlocking bracers that were covered in dials and levers. He slid them off with expert ease, as both Jolm and Violet saw him toy with it weeks back when he tried to figure out its purpose originally. Quickly, he flicked a lever, twisted a dial, pressed a red button, a green button, then red again, waited for the light to pop up and make a sound, and then pointed proudly at the beast. "Kzzrt. Behold! The power of an Aeon Priest." …. …. …. Nothing happened. And Vinter, in Vinter fashion, paused at the worst possible time, and glanced down at his hand in confusion. "Kzzrt. Wait. Hold on. I think I pressed the wrong button."

OOC Well, my plan to use my Level 5 Magnetic Master is out on this turn. XD I rolled a so poorly! So that's it for my action, godspeed that you guys roll better than me! Ha ha ha!   Might: 7 E 0 Speed: 12 E 0 Intellect: 15 E 1 Effort: 1 Max Cyphers: 3 Cultured Ability: Learned - Being well read and well educated, you have a wide range of talents. You can attempt one task in which you have no training as if you were trained. This ability refreshes every time you make a recovery roll, but the uses never accumulate. Inability: Using Medium Weapons is increased by one step. Using Heavy Weapons is increased by one step. Getting people to trust or believe me is increased by one step. Skills: T: Understanding numenera. T: Using Light Weapons. T: Alchemical Tasks. T: Knowledge of current events and history. T: Perception, detecting differences, and noticing minor flaws (or strengths) in the work of others. Esoteries: Ward: You have a shield of energy around you at all times that helps deflect attacks. You gain +1 to Armor. Enabler. Aggression (2 Intellect point): You reach into the mind of a character and unlock his more primitive instincts. Choose one character within short range. That character has an asset on Might-based attack rolls. The effect lasts for one minute. Action to initiate. Focus Abilities: Tier 1: Alchemical Dependence: You are trained in alchemical tasks. In addition, you take a daily regimen of special drugs you’ve designed to work with your body in particular, drugs that have slowly adapted your muscles and organs, allowing you to accept still more concentrated doses. In effect, you’ve enhanced yourself with permanent abilities while you keep taking your daily dose of drugs. You can change your matrix of active daily abilities by choosing to take a different complement of drugs on a given day, assuming you have the recipe in your manual and ingredients for granting yourself that ability. You can have only one active ability of a given tier at a time. To make the switch, spend ten minutes studying your manual, preparing a new alchemical concoction, and finally taking it, after which time your activity ability is changed out. You can choose to change your active abilities up to twice per day, immediately after a one-hour or ten-hour recovery roll. Others who’ve taken your drugs experienced life-threatening reactions the few times you’ve experimented. Recipes: Choose one of the following abilities as your active alchemical ability for tier 1. ACTIVE -- Deadly Reflexes. You deal 1 additional point of damage with every attack you make. Enabler. INACTIVE -- Densely Muscled. Your alchemical infusion provides +1 to your Might Edge, and 3 additional points to your Might Pool. Enabler. Equipment: Boring, regular lothing. Fine clothing. A book about numenera - provides an Asset. A book about alchemy - provides an Asset. Bedroll. Backpack. Armor: Ward - 1 point of Armor. Weapon: Buzzer - 2 points of Damage. Short Range | Action to Reload | Magazine of 5 Oddities: Goggles with glowing lenses (although, you can see through them normally.) Cyphers: Magnetic Master Level: 1d6 + 2 Wearable: Gloves with metal plates Effect: Establishes a connection with one metal object within short range that a human could hold in one hand. After this connection is established, the user can move or manipulate the object anywhere within short range (each movement or manipulation is an action). For example, the user could wield a weapon or drag a helm affixed to a foe’s head to and fro. The connection lasts for ten rounds per cypher level. Motion Sensor Level: 1d6 + 2 Internal: Injection into spine Effect: Indicates when any movement occurs within short range, or when large creatures or objects move within long range (the cypher distinguishes between the two). It also indicates the number and size of the creatures or objects in motion. Once activated, it operates for one hour per cypher level. Sleep Inducer Level: 1d6 Usable: Gas sprayer Effect: Touch or ingestion puts the victim to sleep for ten minutes or until awoken by a violent action or an extremely loud noise.

[Effete]

Jolm Ornax The small, spindly youth with the glowing eyes and the heart of a lion crouched in a hunting stance, holding his spear forward stoutly. He was certain he was going to die tonight, here beside this pathetic little fire, but he still held onto hope. The hope that through teamwork and courage this trio of misfits could win out; that by placing trust in one another there was a chance they could defeat these beasts and defy the odds to live another day. This hope blossomed through the voice of Vinter, who spoke full of confidence and with the pride that came from his station. "Don’t worry. I have this one. Behold! The power of an Aeon Priest!" Jolm grinned fiercely in anticipation and waited... and waited. The flower of hope began to wither. Jolm was never the strongest hunter in his village, and he doubted his skill with a spear against a proper threat. Panic gripped him, and his mind spun wildly. Think, think! Suddenly remembering his own contraptions hanging off his belt, Jolm quickly plucked what appeared to be a noozle attached to a spherical canister. He gripped the handle and held the business end out toward the dark, waiting for the beast to get within range.

OOC & Stats Using Wait action for creature to get within Short range, then using Immobilizer Cypher. Rolled a Natch 20 to activate Cypher. Stat Pool cost is 0 and gain a Major Effect. Hmm... since the target is already immobilized for 1 hour, can the Major Effect affect one of the other creatures? Maybe hampering it's first attack or something? P.S. - Who earned the magnet now?   Jolm Ornax is a Mechanical Delve who Fuses Mind and Machine TIER EXPERIENCE 1 0 xp ADVANCEMENT □ Increase Effort by +1Extra Effort □ Add +4 to any Stat PoolsIncrease Capabilities □ Increase Edge for one Stat by +1Move Toward Perfection □ Get Trained or Specialized in one skillSkill Training □ • Reduce Might and Speed penalties for wear armor by 1. • Add 2 to recovery rolls. • Select a new Delve Lore.Other ABILITY POOL EDGE MIGHT 9 /9 0 SPEED 12 /12 1 INTELLECT 16 /19 1 Costs 3 points to reduce difficulty one level. +2 points for each additional level.EFFORT 1 Restore 1d6 +tier points. Four rests per day: 1st = one Action, 2nd = 10 minutes, 3rd = 1 hour, 4th = 10 hours.RECOVERY 1d6+1 DAMAGE TRACK ■ All three stat Pools are at 1 or higher, and the PC has no penalties from harmful conditions.Hale □ • Effort costs 1 extra point per level applied. • Minor and Major Effect results on rolls are ignored. • Extra damage from a roll of 17+ is capped at 1.Impaired □ Cannot take any actions other than to move (probably crawl) no more than an immediate distance. If Speed Pool is 0, no movement is possible.Debilitated □ ..is dead.Dead SPECIAL DAMAGE - - SPECIAL ABILITIES Detect presence of active numenera by studying an object or location for about a minute.Sense Numenera Action (1 Intellect point) Perform small tricks: temporarily change the color or basic appearance of a small object, cause small objects to float through the air, clean a small area, mend a broken object, prepare (but not create) food , and so on. Cannot harm another creature or object. Must have a free hand and can pay the Intellect point cost.Hedge Magic Action Can use light and medium weapons without penalty; attacks with heavy weapons are hindered.Weapons Training Enabler Protects implants and enhancements from disruption or intrusion. Resisting such attacks is eased.Unique Enabler DELVE LORE Trained in perception, sense danger.Additional Training Enabler Trained in Speed defense tasks when not wearing armor.Trained Without Armor Enabler INTRUSIONS A trap or a dangerous device malfunctions before it can affect you.Fortuitous Malfunction When lost, something suggests the best path forward.Serendipitous Landmark A poison or disease turns out not to be as debilitating or deadly as it first seemed, and inflicts only half the damage that it would have otherwise.Weak Strain SKILLS Charm Inability Crafting Numenera Inability Deception Inability Geography Trained Identifying Numenera Trained Navigation Trained Perception Trained Persuasion Inability Salvaging Numenera Trained Sensing Danger Trained Understanding Numenera Basic WEAPON DAMAGE NOTES Spear 4 Long range if thrown ARMOR None EQUIPMENT Shins: 3 Rations/day: 3 Parts: 4 Backpack Rope (50ft) Hammer & spikes (3) Light tools Torches (3) Minor glowglobe (2) Warm clothes & boots - - - - - - ODDITIES Glass orb that slowly drips perfumed water Virtually indestructible /unsulliable scarf CYPHERS (Limit 2) LEVEL Explodes to release a burst of neurotoxic mist affecting all creatures within long range, hindering all attacks for about an hour. If effectively targeted during a conflict against a ranked horde or community, the affected horde or community inflicts 1 point of damage less than normal during that community action.Detonation (Horde Suppressor) 1d6+1 The user directs one end of the cypher at a target within short range, which is then subject to an attack by a projected mass of rapidly expanding and hardening foam. The target is held immobile in the hardened mass of foam for one hour, after which the mass turns to powder.Immobilizer 1d6+2 ARTIFACTS LEVEL - - IOTUM LEVEL VALUE/UNIT UNITS Io (basic iotum) 1 1 io 3 Responsive synth 2 3 io 1 Apt clay 3 5 io Bio-circuitry 4 10 io Synthsteel 4 10 io Pliable metal 4 10 io Azure steel 5 20 io Mimetic gel 5 20 io Quantium 5 20 io Amber crystal 6 30 io Protomatter 6 60 io Thaum dust 6 30 io Smart tissue 7 40 io Psiranium 7 40 io Kaon dot 7 40 io Monopole 7 40 io Midnight stone 8 50 io Oraculum 8 50 io Virtuon particle 8 50 io Tamed iron 9 70 io Philosophine 9 70 io Data orb 9 100 io Scalar boson rod 9 100 io Cosmic foam 10 200 io

[QueenQatherine]

Violet Violet was rather pleased with herself. She had managed to rally her friends and end the panic that they had allowed to settle in. Of course that was the easy part. The hard part was living up to her own hype and actually being able to fend off whatever it was that came for them. She didn’t know if they even stood a chance, but she knew one thing, she wasn’t going to go out whimpering and sniveling. She was a survivor, one that was determined to make whatever fury fell upon her work well for its meal. While most threats that came to bare their fangs against Violet, this too could undoubtedly fell her, but she had the same plan as worked well on all the others, she would prove that she was just not worth the trouble. Too stubborn, too old, and too clever to be bothered. She smirked to herself when Vinter prepared to show off his mastery of his technology, only to fret over the device, certain that he had done something wrong. While she was sure the true blame fell on a cypher that, much like her bowl, was irritable and irregular Violet couldn’t help but be amused by the idea that what he had done wrong was study alchemy rather than a real science. Yet still. This was a poor show for moral. If her words were to mean anything someone had to follow through, and it seemed as though it would have to be her. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and as the predator revealed itself, demonstrating it’s unspeakable speed, she could only tighten her lips, step to the front of the group, and pray the stunt she was about to pull didn’t kill them all. “I so hate when I have ta get nasty.” She purred before raising up her grafted arm. As she formed a fist the scales began to shudder and retract once more, flexing the muscles tightened and pulled at the seams until the arm’s silhouette began to change. Scale and muscle retreated to uncover a strange device that appeared to be fused to the very bone of the arm. Wet and undulating the mottled gray growth seemed to be crafted of some sort of plant matter. The instant it met open air it trembled to life, presenting what at first looked like a blooming black flower that soon more so resembled the barrel of a gun. Violet took careful aim as a rattling sound emitted from somewhere inside the flower like small, hard objects were being vibrated inside of hollow shells. Just as she readied to fire she felt a tickle at her nose, she tried to block it out, narrowing her eyes, but at the last moment; “A-ahKEeEPphha! Ah dagnabit!!” She cried out after a mighty sneeze. The sneeze struck in unison with a loud FUUM sound that hissed down the barrel as a large ovoid seedpod shot through the air, sailing into the distance where the pod continued to make rattling sounds as green light shimmered from in between the individual clusters on the pod. The instant the pod struck a surface it erupted in a splash of caustic liquid while simultaneously scattering smaller seeds in every direction. Though how many of those were active was anyone’s guess. The blooming graft probably wasn’t going to work that well on it’s first shot in such cold weather.

 

Violet Might: 9/10 E 0 Speed: 12 E 0 Intel: 14 E 1 Effort: 1 Max Cyphers: 2 Mercurial Ability: Changeable - Changing tacks sometimes achieves your objective. When you fail at a task, you can change the way you go about achieving it and roll twice on the second attempt and take the higher result. For example, instead of trying to pick the lock a second time, you might elect to bash the door down. Or instead of trying to skewer the tetrahydra with your sword a second time, you might take a shot with your buzzer. Inability: Intellect Defense increased by one step. Skills: T: Deception (Mercurial) T: Healing T: Surgery T: Endure Pain T: Persuasion T: Seeing Through Deception Exp: 2

[Retry]

Foam Party in the woods! Vinter stood poised to display the utter genius that he was wielding the technology of ages past whilst the beast charged them. It's eyes seemed focused on the Aeon Priest and its head seemed to lower moving into a bull charge. An entity of its height and frame would surely be able to tackle Vinter to the ground if given the chance. It raced around fir trees, over fallen logs, and over a shellsnow ditch that mayhap had once been a stream at a blazing pace. The seed pod launched by the stalwart noble surgeon struck down in its pathway demanding it to juke out of the way. This slowed the beast for a step or two. Especially when the pod exploded scattering corrosive seed-filled liquids to the surrounding scene; covering the base and roots of an unlucky fir tree. Yet, it was quick to recover and resume its charge. In the distance another figure was beginning to emerge, obscured by the bluish-green and red tinted needles that made up these woodlands. Recalling one of his own uniquely held contraptions, Jolm moved in to the path of the oncoming artic predator and readied the cypher. When the beast entered within a reasonable range the device was activated. Yet it did not really do anything. I instead hummed, much in the way of the angelic or possibly demented hum coming from the sky above. The device trembled and various characters projected above it with a series of dots that ran up the side shifting from a green to red hue. The creature was upon Jolm and shifted its body low to leap into the air when the contraption seemed to explode from the nozzle. A verdant wave of airy foam poured over the woodlands before the trio like a vicious tumbling fog. Shellsnow was sent tumbling in small twirling waves from the sudden blast, seeming to collect and slow in a churning orb. The foam that struck the beast quickly collected and grew in mass, swelling, connecting, and finally hardening. What stood before Jolm, Violet, and Vinter was a partially finished statue. The entirety of the creature, save its head, neck, and the tip of one paw; was encased in this hardened foam. Behind it the woodland floor seemed to have a collection of odd orbs of hardened foam speckled with the shellsnow they had collected while tumbling. Further back, a fir tree toppled over from the corrosive liquid of the seed pod drawing attention to the unlucky second creature that was currently attempting to free itself from the hardened foam shoes it now wore. Binding it to the area it was within. OOGM The first blacktusk is considered at Immediate Range and is completely immobile. Any Attacks against it can be eased by two-steps due to the level of restraint on it. The creature still has enough movement to retaliate if you're not careful, however! Around its neck, burried with the white fur, is the trace of a black and red collar of sorts. The seed pod missed the target and knocked down a tree, I believe the second Blacktusk is within Short Range of its spawn so there is a chance that it might be struck. The second BlackTusk is on the scene as well and is at the edge of Short/Long Range, but close enough to be affected by Jolm's cypher. It, too, is immobilized for the next hour.

[Effete]

Jolm Ornax NOW! a thought intruded, and Jolm activated the device. "Ummm..." The device vibrated and holograms flickered above it, but it didn't really do anything. The beast bounded forward, crouched low for split second, and leapt into the air, it's claws set to tear into the boy's flesh. Just then, the cypher made a distinct splooshing sound as a greenish foam came shooting out. The force of the ejection was so strong, Jolm had difficulty keeping the device aimed. The stream of foam shot over the creature, or to one side or the other, but the majority managed to find its mark, encasing the blacktusk in a quickly hardening substance. The boy shuffled back a few steps, warding himself against a potential blow from a deadly predator, by the attack never came. He looked up to see the beast stuck on place, its head jerking violently and jaws snapping as it tried feebly to free itself. Jolm looked from the mass of foam to the small device in hand, amazed and perplexed at how all the stuff fit into a sphere the size of a citrafruit. A chuckle escaped his lips before the sound of a falling tree caught his attention, and he peered off into the distance to watch. Balls of foam peppered the landscape, and there amongst them was another blacktusk, struggling to free its paws from a particular large clump of foam. A hunter's instinct returned to Jolm at the moment. The knowledge that you either get used to killing or accept that you will be killed. Dropping the dead cypher near the log bench, the young boy hoisted his spear, aimed it at the immobilized foe, and thrusted.

OOC & Stats Attacking the closest blacktusk. Dice Roll: d20 10 (10) 4 damage if it hits.   Jolm Ornax is a Mechanical Delve who Fuses Mind and Machine TIER EXPERIENCE 1 0 xp ADVANCEMENT □ Increase Effort by +1Extra Effort □ Add +4 to any Stat PoolsIncrease Capabilities □ Increase Edge for one Stat by +1Move Toward Perfection □ Get Trained or Specialized in one skillSkill Training □ • Reduce Might and Speed penalties for wear armor by 1. • Add 2 to recovery rolls. • Select a new Delve Lore.Other ABILITY POOL EDGE MIGHT 9 /9 0 SPEED 12 /12 1 INTELLECT 16 /19 1 Costs 3 points to reduce difficulty one level. +2 points for each additional level.EFFORT 1 Restore 1d6 +tier points. Four rests per day: 1st = one Action, 2nd = 10 minutes, 3rd = 1 hour, 4th = 10 hours.RECOVERY 1d6+1 DAMAGE TRACK ■ All three stat Pools are at 1 or higher, and the PC has no penalties from harmful conditions.Hale □ • Effort costs 1 extra point per level applied. • Minor and Major Effect results on rolls are ignored. • Extra damage from a roll of 17+ is capped at 1.Impaired □ Cannot take any actions other than to move (probably crawl) no more than an immediate distance. If Speed Pool is 0, no movement is possible.Debilitated □ ..is dead.Dead SPECIAL DAMAGE - - SPECIAL ABILITIES Detect presence of active numenera by studying an object or location for about a minute.Sense Numenera Action (1 Intellect point) Perform small tricks: temporarily change the color or basic appearance of a small object, cause small objects to float through the air, clean a small area, mend a broken object, prepare (but not create) food , and so on. Cannot harm another creature or object. Must have a free hand and can pay the Intellect point cost.Hedge Magic Action Can use light and medium weapons without penalty; attacks with heavy weapons are hindered.Weapons Training Enabler Protects implants and enhancements from disruption or intrusion. Resisting such attacks is eased.Unique Enabler DELVE LORE Trained in perception, sense danger.Additional Training Enabler Trained in Speed defense tasks when not wearing armor.Trained Without Armor Enabler INTRUSIONS A trap or a dangerous device malfunctions before it can affect you.Fortuitous Malfunction When lost, something suggests the best path forward.Serendipitous Landmark A poison or disease turns out not to be as debilitating or deadly as it first seemed, and inflicts only half the damage that it would have otherwise.Weak Strain SKILLS Charm Inability Crafting Numenera Inability Deception Inability Geography Trained Identifying Numenera Trained Navigation Trained Perception Trained Persuasion Inability Salvaging Numenera Trained Sensing Danger Trained Understanding Numenera Basic WEAPON DAMAGE NOTES Spear 4 Long range if thrown ARMOR None EQUIPMENT Shins: 3 Rations/day: 3 Parts: 4 Backpack Rope (50ft) Hammer & spikes (3) Light tools Torches (3) Minor glowglobe (2) Warm clothes & boots - - - - - - ODDITIES Glass orb that slowly drips perfumed water Virtually indestructible /unsulliable scarf CYPHERS (Limit 2) LEVEL Explodes to release a burst of neurotoxic mist affecting all creatures within long range, hindering all attacks for about an hour. If effectively targeted during a conflict against a ranked horde or community, the affected horde or community inflicts 1 point of damage less than normal during that community action.Detonation (Horde Suppressor) 1d6+1 -   ARTIFACTS LEVEL - - IOTUM LEVEL VALUE/UNIT UNITS Io (basic iotum) 1 1 io 3 Responsive synth 2 3 io 1 Apt clay 3 5 io Bio-circuitry 4 10 io Synthsteel 4 10 io Pliable metal 4 10 io Azure steel 5 20 io Mimetic gel 5 20 io Quantium 5 20 io Amber crystal 6 30 io Protomatter 6 60 io Thaum dust 6 30 io Smart tissue 7 40 io Psiranium 7 40 io Kaon dot 7 40 io Monopole 7 40 io Midnight stone 8 50 io Oraculum 8 50 io Virtuon particle 8 50 io Tamed iron 9 70 io Philosophine 9 70 io Data orb 9 100 io Scalar boson rod 9 100 io Cosmic foam 10 200 io

[Retry]

GM Intrustion - Successful One couldn't blame Jolm. Its been a heck of a day. Plus it was just one little thingy-mado, right? The creature was contained, as was its buddy. That only left one possible unaccounted monstrosity that howled earlier. The dish fully activated and let out a series of beeps and blips. A crimson flash danced across the sky painting the visage of a sunset that quickly faded back to sapphire. A mighty, ground shaking, trumpet roared through the heavens - four notes in all. Aside from the unnatural nature of the skies trumpeting it seemed almost...welcoming? Once finished the antennae returned to the collar as if none of this had happened. The encased creature, continued to thrash about wildly. OOGM 1XP to both Jolm and Vinter for this Intrusion!

[Strangemund]

Vinter Kheen "Kzzrt. Oh, come on, you stupid thing!" Vinter slapped the cypher on his wrist, his mood diminished greatly in the few seconds of struggle in which he couldn’t get the damn device to work. "What do I have to do to make you work! Turn you on and off again? Check the connectors? Speak sweet words of affection!? Work, damn you! You insufferable piece of…" Whatever foul language that was about to slip out of the normally poised and haughty aeon priest was silenced at the cacophony of noise that exploded ahead of him. Shellsnow was flung into the air, frozen in perfect orbs. A fir tree toppled to the ground, sizzling hotly from the annoyingly ingenious chemicals that erupted from the seeds that Violet somehow possessed within her. And Jolm, that young, wet-eared boy who wouldn’t know a nanomachine from a dust particle in the wind, somehow stopped the encroaching beasts with a cypher that escaped Vinter’s eye. The Blacktusks were stuck in the foam that grew hungrily around their limbs. Vinter waited a moment to see if they were indeed strong enough to break free. They had no trouble charging across the frozen wasteland, after all. But by some miracle, Jolm had done it. He had immobilized their would-be destroyers, all without Vinter’s aid. And that absolutely infuriated the aeon priest. I mean. Yes. He was impressed. And it was fantastic that they were not immediately gutted and had their entrails yanked out, one sausage link at a time. But that still didn’t make it okay for him to outdo him! Just the audacity of Jolm to be so much quicker and wittier and proving Violet right was enough to make Vinter bristle in the face of danger like a seskii. "Kzzrt. Forget it! Violence it is! Offensive mode, activate!" growled Vinter, and with that, his mechanical backpack opened up at the top, raising up what was essentially a buzzer built into the hardware of his gear. Vinter staying in theme with his hands-off approach to life, even when faced with death. He moved his hand forward, pointing at the Blacktusk with three fingers, and the buzzer hummed to life, its disc-like head following the motion like a bird of prey, snapping to attention. "Well, at least we’ll be able to make this quick, if nothing else." Vinter took one step forward, trying to regain some composure amongst the chaos– and immediately slipped on a patch of shellsnow that was covering a divet in the ground. And like that, his hand twisted in the unfortunate signal to fire, and the first of the buzzer’s sawing blades shot out, missing the… completely frozen Blacktusk by a mile. Words could not do justice the horrible things Vinter yelled in his helmet. But it was ghastly. And vulgar. And so incredibly, uncomfortably detailed that it seemed that the buzzer saw he fired into the wild was far more acceptable to threats than Vinter's cypher. Somehow, someway, it found itself bouncing between the frozen fir trees. The hard bark the perfect surface for the blade to catch and fling itself off of. The ricochette of noise would have driven them all mad if it weren't for Violet's second explosion-- but that wasn't what was important. No, what was important was that that buzzar disc found its way in the end. With a bounce, bounce, bounce, and a pop! It hit the Blacktusk right in the backside! And Vinter was too busy mourning his wounded pride to realize it just yet.

OOC It's just not Vinter's day, guys. XD I rolled a 6 on his Short Range Attack with his Buzzer, and still missed with all those decreased difficulties! Here's hoping Violet rolls better! EDIT: SYKE! We found out I did in fact hit! Way to go, Effete, for that catch!! That will deal 3 points of DMG due to using a Light Weapon and my passive ability of Deadly Reflexes!   Might: 7 E 0 Speed: 12 E 0 Intellect: 15 E 1 Effort: 1 Max Cyphers: 3 Cultured Ability: Learned - Being well read and well educated, you have a wide range of talents. You can attempt one task in which you have no training as if you were trained. This ability refreshes every time you make a recovery roll, but the uses never accumulate. Inability: Using Medium Weapons is increased by one step. Using Heavy Weapons is increased by one step. Getting people to trust or believe me is increased by one step. Skills: T: Understanding numenera. T: Using Light Weapons. T: Alchemical Tasks. T: Knowledge of current events and history. T: Perception, detecting differences, and noticing minor flaws (or strengths) in the work of others. Esoteries: Ward: You have a shield of energy around you at all times that helps deflect attacks. You gain +1 to Armor. Enabler. Aggression (2 Intellect point): You reach into the mind of a character and unlock his more primitive instincts. Choose one character within short range. That character has an asset on Might-based attack rolls. The effect lasts for one minute. Action to initiate. Focus Abilities: Tier 1: Alchemical Dependence: You are trained in alchemical tasks. In addition, you take a daily regimen of special drugs you’ve designed to work with your body in particular, drugs that have slowly adapted your muscles and organs, allowing you to accept still more concentrated doses. In effect, you’ve enhanced yourself with permanent abilities while you keep taking your daily dose of drugs. You can change your matrix of active daily abilities by choosing to take a different complement of drugs on a given day, assuming you have the recipe in your manual and ingredients for granting yourself that ability. You can have only one active ability of a given tier at a time. To make the switch, spend ten minutes studying your manual, preparing a new alchemical concoction, and finally taking it, after which time your activity ability is changed out. You can choose to change your active abilities up to twice per day, immediately after a one-hour or ten-hour recovery roll. Others who’ve taken your drugs experienced life-threatening reactions the few times you’ve experimented. Recipes: Choose one of the following abilities as your active alchemical ability for tier 1. ACTIVE -- Deadly Reflexes. You deal 1 additional point of damage with every attack you make. Enabler. INACTIVE -- Densely Muscled. Your alchemical infusion provides +1 to your Might Edge, and 3 additional points to your Might Pool. Enabler. Equipment: Boring, regular lothing. Fine clothing. A book about numenera - provides an Asset. A book about alchemy - provides an Asset. Bedroll. Backpack. Armor: Ward - 1 point of Armor. Weapon: Buzzer - 2 points of Damage. Short Range | Action to Reload | Magazine of 5 Oddities: Goggles with glowing lenses (although, you can see through them normally.) Cyphers: Magnetic Master Level: 1d6 + 2 Wearable: Gloves with metal plates Effect: Establishes a connection with one metal object within short range that a human could hold in one hand. After this connection is established, the user can move or manipulate the object anywhere within short range (each movement or manipulation is an action). For example, the user could wield a weapon or drag a helm affixed to a foe’s head to and fro. The connection lasts for ten rounds per cypher level. Motion Sensor Level: 1d6 + 2 Internal: Injection into spine Effect: Indicates when any movement occurs within short range, or when large creatures or objects move within long range (the cypher distinguishes between the two). It also indicates the number and size of the creatures or objects in motion. Once activated, it operates for one hour per cypher level. Sleep Inducer Level: 1d6 Usable: Gas sprayer Effect: Touch or ingestion puts the victim to sleep for ten minutes or until awoken by a violent action or an extremely loud noise.

[QueenQatherine]

Violet Well things weren’t exactly playing out as she would have hoped. Her detonator shot went astray missing the beast entirely and instead taking out a fir tree that hardly deserved the concussive blast of corrosion, but hey, she knew to expect a smidgen of collateral damage when using the graft, still it would have at least been nice to singe the dangblasted thing’s fur just a little. As it stood, she did very little to help other then the silly little pep talk that now seemed a little ill conceived. She wasn’t as fast as she used to be, and didn’t have time to react before the beast was upon them. She drew a rigid breath, expecting this to be the end for one of them, but Jolm, sweet, precious Jolm managed to pull a second chance out of the smashing, gnashing jaws of defeat. Deploying some sort of cypher he coated the blacktusk in foam, immobilizing it right where it stood, head high, claws up, preparing to pounce, ready to rend, um, um, expecting to eviscerate! Oh, that one’s good. The foam somehow managed to catch the paws of the distant blacktusk. It was kept in place at a nice safe distance from the team, and my, oh my, what a juicy little target it made out there, all on it’s lonesome. Violet wasn’t usually the type to try the same thing a second time, especially if it didn’t work on the first, but sometimes persistence was well, just what the doctor ordered. So she widened her stance a little, anchoring herself in place to ensure her position was a little more stable, with the hopes of not following in Vinter’s steps and loosing her footing right at a crucial moment. Once again the plant like growth grafted to her biomechanical arm vibrated, rattling like a beast that was more snake then plant before firing a second seed pod out into the distance. It was hard to say what the cold affected more, Violet’s aim, or the weapon’s accuracy. The colder it got the less reliable the weapon appeared to be, but then again, that could be said for her, so, she couldn’t judge too harshly... In the toss of shellsnow that came from the impact of the seedpod she couldn’t quite tell if she’d hit her mark, but if nothing else, it made a rather showy display as smaller seedlings were scattered about. “Oh my. That one might be a bit messy.” she muttered to herself, realizing that she was now officially getting into the territory where she may end up doing more damage to them than to the blacktusks.

 

Violet Might: 9/10 E 0 Speed: 12 E 0 Intel: 14 E 1 Effort: 1 Max Cyphers: 2 Mercurial Ability: Changeable - Changing tacks sometimes achieves your objective. When you fail at a task, you can change the way you go about achieving it and roll twice on the second attempt and take the higher result. For example, instead of trying to pick the lock a second time, you might elect to bash the door down. Or instead of trying to skewer the tetrahydra with your sword a second time, you might take a shot with your buzzer. Inability: Intellect Defense increased by one step. Skills: T: Deception (Mercurial) T: Healing T: Surgery T: Endure Pain T: Persuasion T: Seeing Through Deception Exp: 2

[Retry]

Beyond Once more the artic predator let out a pained cry as the buzzer blade tore into the exposed fur that the foam hadn't claimed. Was it sheer luck, or all part of the Aeon Priest's brilliance? He would claim the ladder - but the world may never know! From within the heart of fir-lined woods the first seeds quickly germinated. With an explosive bloom it fired off into the air and found a nice set up upper branches a short distance away. It ate away at the wood quickly causing the section to crumble and fall to the needle-covered ground. The noise didn't seem to be as loud as the first attack as it was hard to beat a whole dang tree with some branches yet these crashes were still echoing. Here. In the snow mountains. There was definitely a third creature out in these woods, yet if it was approaching - they didn't see it. The two remaining Blacktusks fought their fate yet with the hardened foam holding them in place, such a fate was all but guaranteed. Especially with the closer one already at death's door. OOGM Man, oh, man! I feel terrible for my delay - especially with this nothing-sandwich I'm offering! I feel I didn't handle the 'random direction' the detonator(spawner) has correctly so I might need to retcon if that stationary doggo Blacktusk is hit or not. Regardless - it would be a heavy hit and there are possibly four more coming its way!! While I did screw up Vinter's hit, Violet did roll another 4 so she missed her shot. That being said, pouring back over Blacktusks that third one would break off its advance after hearing the pained yelps. They're smart hunters so you're not out of the woods yet (pun intended), but I'd say this encounter is over. Let's chat in OOC on what, if anything, you guys would like to do next. We can hand-wave the demise of the Blacktusks or you can narrate it if you desire.