Day 1 | Afternoon | Terra Incognita | Thopter #2

[Kannon]

... and at some point those in the pilots' seats noticed one mouth of the cavern that opened into a cove. There, something that could be scattered human corpses was being feasted on by some flat-winged fauna.

[I ask pilots and/or leaders for a really quick reaction of what the thopter does next.]

[Ambrose Pantazis]

Glad he had refrained from any unnecessary maneuvers, Ambrose spotted what they'd come to find. "Sarge, take a look." He said while toggling his radio.

Come in thopter #1, this is thopter #2. I have possible sighting of objects of interest at our two o'clock. Likely scavenger interference. Recommend flyby to scare them off. Over.

We need some callsigns he thought to himself while he waited for a response.

[Kannon]

There would be no response, just static.



And then, things started happening. The creatures down there launched into an almost vertical flight with astonishing speed, both from the corpses and the sea beneath them, in the direction of the thopters. There were quite many of them, like a swarm of moths, yet as they approached they resembled a hybrid of a bird and a manta ray, with a horizontal beak instead of cephalic horns, their fin-wings blurred from the flapping frequency. What was the most terrifying, however, is that their tails were crackling with electricity just as they screeched.



They immediately corralled the thopters like orcas would a whale, displaying hunting pack tactics, and engulfed them, hogging windows, though some were probably mangled by the wings. A massive wave of zaps went through the thopter, systems collapsed one by one as they were being shorted by electric waves.

[Everyone suffers 5 strain or sacrifices the shield, having turned it on and got it shorted.]



---

The basic situation is as follows: your system strain is depleted due to lack of power; most of the systems seem to be fried, including the suspension propulsion and the shield. Some may just be turned off or fixable. No hull trauma though. The articulated wings are in mid-fold. Unless this changes, the thopter is unpilotable and you’re just a glorified drop capsule that heads toward the ocean.
Your speed is 2, but it increases by 1 every round because physics. It means you cross 2 range bands during the first round. You are at Long from impact, which means if you do nothing, you crash at the end of the second round.

The hatch is closed at the start of the event. If you ever open it, closing it will require the same kind of roll as with Straighten the Wings! You can throw things out and shoot at the manta birds only if the hatch is open. If the hatch is open and no-one has successfully shot at the manta birds this round or scared them off, the birdies make your life even harder: the thopter loses 1 System Strain and everyone has a Setback for any rolls in the thopter.

You function in structured time, though Initiative roll is not necessary. Everyone can take one action before the round rolls over. Manoeuvres can be used to offer assistance, open the hatch, trade places, or trigger appropriate talents. You decide the sequence in which you act. Things you can do to try to save yourselves:

• Straighten the wings! There are manual cranks on both sides that will do the job if you have the muscle to rotate them fast enough and hard enough. Athletics Hard, with an upgrade and a setback. If done for both articulated wings by separate actions, you both stop gaining speed per round by falling and your current speed makes you cross 1 range band less per round as you turn into a glider. You choose one of these effects if you’ve succeeded with only one wing.
• Fix something! Like the standard fuel ignition. The standard Mechanics at Average check, with a Setback. It restores 1 System Strain, plus additional 1 System Strain for each 2 successes above that. If any System Strain is recovered to the thopter, the Pilot can do Piloting checks.
• To the trees! Can be done by Pilot or Co-Pilot. You navigate up to ram a landing lane over the cliff’s edge. Piloting – Space Hard with an upgrade, and a setback for each half of System Strain not fully restored (so likely 2 Setback). If done successfully at least once you’re not plunging into the sea or into the rocks at the foot of the cliffs.
• Aerobraking! Can be done by Pilot or Co-Pilot. You can’t retro-thrust because the suspension propulsion is fried. But you can rotate the craft to make it lose speed. Piloting – Space Hard with a Setback reduces your speed by 1. If your speed is ever reduced to zero AND you have already turned the thopter into a glider you can have a controlled landing.
• Throw things out! If the hatch is open, you can choose to throw out any two items of the personal stuff or one item from the thopter supplies: explosives/antenna, shield generator, food and water, tents and camping supplies, parachutes, spare guns and ammo. They may or may not be retrievable later, depending on circumstances. You get 2 boost to the Piloting - Space rolls in your team for every such item out. It doesn’t require a roll but if you make an Average Coordination check alongside it to balance it all well inside, the pilot gets an upgrade on their next roll on top of other bonuses.
• Jump! If the hatch is open, you can grab one of three parachutes (if their batch is still available) and plunge on your own. If you are at Long or Medium from crashing, roll Coordination at Average to avoid the manta birds (with an upgrade if no-one’s shooting at them) and to open the chute on time. If you’re at Short or Engaged, roll Survival at Daunting with an upgrade, and a Setback if it’s rocks or trees that you’d land on, to… well, survive. In the latter case you can do the same without a parachute, but then it’s Formidable. It gives the same bonus to Piloting as Throw things out!
• Shoot at the them! You can do that only if the hatch is open. It’s a Ranged check at Average with an Upgrade against the manta birds either still on the thopter or flying around. Every 5 damage gives a boost to the next Piloting roll. This can also be done with a closed hatch by Pilot or Co-Pilot or Gunner with a Gunnery check and one of the thopter’s weapons if System Strain is at least 3.
• Scare them off! This can be done by the Gunner. If the System Strain is at least 1, you can rotate the dorsal turret in a way that tosses the manta birds off and discourages new ones from approaching. It requires an Average Gunnery check with a Setback. If successful, it gives a boost to the next Piloting roll.
• In addition to the above, if your talents yield any abilities that apply to the situation, you can use them as your action. When in doubt about it, ask the GM.

You use statements if they apply as well as the Advantages in the pool for Boost etc. at your leisure. Every time I get two Threat from you I upgrade the difficulty of the next roll. I pocket Despair for special stuff. If you want to use a Triumph in a non-standard way, consult the GM.

Consequences of crash landing will be resolved based on the details.

[Hadrian Martikova]

"Gaaahhhh, mother-"

Working on farm equipment occasionally left Hadrian's system fried. So he recovered and sprung into action rather quickly. Seeing that the wings had stopped moving he stood up and listened closely to hear if it was a fuel leak or a blown fuse. The former being much easier to fix than the latter. But sure enough the system had been shorted. He needed a bypass... but how.

Fix it or f*** it? TBD | Mechanical | (2 advant used, Always another way!): 2eP+1eA+2eB+2eD 4 successes

Gahhh, forgot the setback: 1eS 1 failure



"That should do it!" He said after bypassing non-critical systems and giving the bird a little more life. He found himself glaring at his brother who as usual was the talker where as Hadrian was the doer.

______________
2 banked advantages used, other boost from brother's speech, 5 strain taken

[Kannon]

Piloting controls suddenly blipped back into existence and the drag returned to the handles!

[System Strain 2/10, Aerobraking, Scare Them off and To the Trees possible.]

[Player Pool: 10]

[Ambrose Pantazis]

The electrical attack was a surprise for sure. The lose of power unfortunate, but luckily covered in training. Just needed a little power for some steering... And surprisingly the civilian stepped up and provided. Next the wings extended... Nothing yet. "Get those wings out or we're joining the bodies down there."

Ambrose calmly turned the thopter away from their descent to create more drag, slow them down, and prepare to glide once the wings were in place. They needed to do it by the numbers and they'd be on the ground soon enough, just not sooner than they wanted.

-----
D1, Afternoon, Terra Incognito, Aerobrake, Bernard and my own boosts & 4 adv for 2 boosts: 3eP+1eA+4eB+3eD+3eS 3 successes, 2 advantage

-2 setback, +1 adv
3 adv banked. Pool at 9 adv

[Kannon]

He got just the air current he needed, with the difference of heights and pressures between the top and the bottom of the cliff!

[Thopter #2 Speed is 1]
[Player Pool: 9]

[Bernard Martikova]

He wasn't much of a pilot, not even a mechanic. He could keep cool under pressure, of course, so he knew where he was needed. He rushed over to the mechanics of the wings and quickly did what he could to get them moving manually. He wasn't going to fail the Atreides at this point; not when they put so much faith in him to succeed this mission.

"Hey, big guy. Grab the other crank and let's get this thropter back into the air!" He looks to Dominic as he shouts his words and continued to crank the wheel in order to maintain some sort of stability.

~~
Thopter #2 SWOL MODE (Athletics), Invoking Brawn Statement, cashing in 2 saved advantages for 1 boost

Net Successes: 1; Net Advantages: 3

[Laila Bridger]

"Who you calling big?"

Laila... was grinning. Actually, honestly, grinning, as she got hold of the other crank. No doubt about it, some part of her had very much come alive in the crisis.

"Just a delicate fuckin' feminine flower here!"

--
Athletics roll to crank wings, "I Don't Mind Dying But I refuse to Be Beaten" boost, cashing in 2 from the pool for one more boost: 1eC+1eS+2eD+2eB+3eP+2eA 7 successes, 2 threat

[Dominic Rorkar]

Dominic for his part had been mostly relaxing and tuning out the chatter. He had reach a semblance of peace, or as close as he tended to get, right about the time everything had started to go to hell.

Seeing two others quicker than him grab the cranks he cursed under his breath. There wasn't much else of value he could do but he saw the gunner controls and thought he might be able to shake some of the fuckers off.

He didn't really manage much but at least he didn't make anything worse.

------------
Scare them off average Gunnery with setback: 2eA+1eS+2eD 2 failures, 1 advantage


Add one adv to the pool

[Kannon]

[The End of Round #1]

Still pestered by the screeching rays seeking a way in, them unaffected by the turret rotation, who nevertheless seemed to have depleted their electric charges, the thopter had two wings straight now thanks to Laila and Bernard, and caught wind to glide gently... toward the face of the cliff.

[Thopter is at Medium Range Band, Fall Speed is 1]
[Using 2 Threat to upgrade the difficulty of next roll]
[Pool is 10 - Laila had a boost from other sources.]

[Ambrose Pantazis]

Once the second wing extended and locked into place, Ambrose pulled up hard to clear the cliff and set them up to land amongst the trees. The chances of finding a viable LZ among the rocks below were slim to none.

He watched thopter #1 (why hadn't they arranged decent callsigns?) continue on course with one wing extended, but couldn't do anything to help them now. Ambrose had four souls on board that he was responsible for and their long range communications array that needed to be preserved for both their mission and their long term survival. Protocol was to give the most mission assets the best chance at survival, that was his priority at the moment.

-----
Statement: "Keep calm and trust your training."
D1, Afternoon, Terra Incognito, To The Trees, 6 adv from pool: 3eP+1eA+3eB+2eC+1eD+2eS 1 failure, 7 advantage, 1 Triumph

Triumph used to gain rank in piloting - space.
7 adv banked, pool at 11 adv

[Kannon]

The regime of semi-automatic reactions, minute corrections inculcated into his body helped Ambrose get attuned to the odd movement of a powerless craft, thrown to the whims of the wind patterns and the random weight distribution of the creatures swarming it. It wasn't apparently possible to lift the thopter just yet and just enough to climb the air current and go over the edge, but Ambrose seemed calmly confident that it was within his reach as long as he had the patience to claim the right moment. Narrowing the scope of his own responsibility, regardless of what he could think of the other thopter's imminent fate, certainly helped re-centering. The calm rested in the eye of the storm, on the tip of the needle, and this is what he felt he inhabited right now. With that, lessons once received but not-too-ingrained due to the distractions of his urges now clicked in. To bend like a reed in the wind...

[Player Pool 11]

[Laila Bridger]

Calm... was not the order of the day for one Laila Bridger. No, she seemed to be enjoying their utterly terrifying situation entirely too much to be calm.

With a somewhat manic grin on her face, a song in her heart, and the familiar rush of adrenaline, her best battle buddy, Laila grabbed a carbine she clearly found a bit cumbersome off of the rack, threw the hatch open, leaned out of what was now a well-handled glider, and started blazing away- without hitting anything, but that was to be expected with a gun she'd never trained with leaning out of a damn thopter shooting at moving targets.

[Taking 2 strain to do three things in one round, she's still sitting pretty on that front.

Shooting at some fishbirds- "I love Violence Almost as Much as i Hate It," Ranged- Heavy, Inaccurate, Upgraded Average Difficulty, spending 4 from the pool for two Boosts: 2eA+1eP+1eD+1eC+1eS+2eB 0 successes, 2 advantage


Let's put two of those four Advantages I took back into the pool.]

[Bernard Martikova]

Taking advantage of the open hatch, Bernard grabs the gun strapped to his back and cocks back the pump before letting off a spray attack against the closest manta that he could hit, knocking one clean out of the sky

~~
Maneuver to draw weapon, Maneuver to move to spot (2 strain), Action to Pew pew
Shotty Time! (Taking 2 Advantages for 1 boost) Ranged: Heavy Average Difficulty

Net Successes: 1; Net Advantages: 0
8 damage total, +1 boost die to next piloting check

[Kannon]

The cover fire wasn't too effective in downing the rays save perhaps one, but it definitely forced them to regroup!

[The manta birds won't short your thopter this round.]
[Player Pool: 7]

[Hadrian Martikova]

"Come on... come on... come on, WORK DAMN YOU!"

Hadrian tried his damndest to do a hard restart of the other subsystems but nothing seemed to work. "How'd animals manage to blow every single fuse in this thing?!"

"I am not dying here. There's always another way!" | Mechanics check | (Used two advantages): 2eP+1eA+1eB+2eD+1eS 0 successes


________________

Two advantages used. That's the Orokos I know and loathe...

[Kannon]

A thought could occur that Caladan, for all its similarities to your generic ocean world, had its interesting biosphere peculiarities, and one of them might be, if one was to believe the sailors' stories, quite a few forms of life that had way more voltage and electrical capacity than a standard wet brain. Their habitats usually didn't intersect with human-inhabited areas, but this was no such place...

[Player Pool: 5]

[Dominic Rorkar]

[Ghosting]

With not enough power found to reroute it to the weapons systems, Dominic decided not to exercises turret-turning in futility. He slid down from the dorsal porthole, with a manta stuck onto it, mockingly scratching its beak against the plaz, and grabbed one of those carbines Roger had provided. They weren't his favourite kind of weapon, but they'd have to make do. He took a moment to aim.

[Manoeuvre to change place, another to aim: 2 Strain, Quick Draw.]

The bullets tore one out and wounded another, making them fall back even further.

D1 Event Ghosting. Ranged-Heavy. 2 Boost: Aim, Advantage. Inaccurate.: 3eA+2eB+1eC+1eD+1eS 3 successes, 3 advantage


[+1 Boost to Piloting]
[Player Pool: 6]

[Kannon]

[End of Round #2]

Ambrose managed to keep the altitude, but only at the cost of flying by the cliff, riding the strong breeze. It was getting way too risky. Manta birds seemed to be very intelligent creatures and as they were regrouping amid screeches, it looked like they were thinking about pushing the thopter against the wall with a concerted assault. Against a glider, it couldn't be too hard...

[Round: #3: Fall Speed 1, Range Band Medium]