Archeotech - OOC and General Discussion

[Trokair]

I checked in with both over the last few days, and both had some IRL stuff come up but do still intend to play and are trying to catch up. So  hopefully will see them around soon.

[Urauloth]

Depends what is traditionally hunted on the world of origin, and how. If you think your character would have experience with ranged hunting weapons, thrown spears, bow and arrow, hunting rifle and so on then by all means keep it at BS 4+, I just figured from the description a lower BS seemed in character.

I'm going to go with the lower BS. The bulk of his hunting experience will involve catching beasts in snares and pit traps and killing them up close. There were archers in his old clan, but he wasn't one of them. I actually considered "what do they hunt and how" in some detail, which was fun but probably not relevant to the adventure.

 

The main creature they hunt is the Argakk: A large deer-like beast with reptilian scales on its back and flanks, a long lashing tail, and teeth that can grind iron ore. An argakk has two stomachs, allowing it to eat a diverse diet of tough plants - bark, roots, wiry grasses and even thorns. Stags have a third auxiliary stomach which uses potent acids to digest metals. In the run-up to the mating season, a stag will obsessively consume metal to augment, through a bio-alchemical process, its razor-sharp antlers and its scales. The creature evolved to consume ores for this purpose, but human settlement has introduced a wider variety of metals and a more convenient means of consuming them in quantity. While mature stags are avoided wherever possible, they often raid settlements for steel, forcing clans into conflict with them. Does and juveniles are hunted by catching them in snares and pit traps where suitable weapons (halberds, picks and hunting lances) are used to pierce their hides and slay them.

 

Anyway, he will have taken his ability to make traps off-world with him, and I wonder if I can represent this in some way? I figure he has a satchel where he keeps useful things he picks up - wire, scrap metal, vox-cord, shotgun shells, mag-clamps, broken weapon parts - for trap construction purposes. If nothing else, this magpie tendency would be a fun character trait. A line and grapnel for climbing/descending would be a good piece of gear as well.

[Trokair]

The Argakk sound interesting, perhaps you character has a cloak made from their skin, or a weapon made from their antlers.

 

As for snares/traps and what not, as well as rope and grapple, I don’t have a specific rule in mind, but we can certainly play to it narratively and if it comes up in story we can make something work then and there. So by all means play the character as such.

[Petragor]

@Urauloth nice to see you finished the character, looking forward to RP-ing.

 

One thing though: I don't know if you've heard, but Tro gave us all +2 wounds so we don't die as easily, so your W characteristic should be 3 and not 1.

[Trokair]

With that we have the next story update, it is a long boring day on the road as I need to get you lot out and into the hinterland.

 

Just so you are aware, on day we will leave convey (what’s left of it) behind and head inland, then we can get this story on the road (or off it :P)

[Urauloth]

 I don't know if you've heard, but Tro gave us all +2 wounds so we don't die as easily, so your W characteristic should be 3 and not 1.

Ha, I saw that, and then went and typed a 1 under "W" anyway... thanks for pointing it out, I've updated it.

[Trokair]

I am planning the next update for late tomorrow/early friday, so if you have anythign else to do for your characters there is stil ltime for placeholder or so.

[BadgersinHills]

Sorry about the lack of posting, serious family crisis came up which is now hopefully petering out. Will post today. 

[Trokair]

No worries, family comes first, hope all are better now.

[Beren]

Kara will probably want an autogun.

 

Maybe the heavy stubber should stay on one of the vehicles for mobility (maybe the Goliath, because it's slower?).

[Steel Company]

9825 would likely act as it if it not combat capable and avoid the heavy weapon, after all it is a "utility drone" after all. 

[Petragor]

I might have Mila suggest that they Mount the Heavy Stubber on the servitors back so it can kneel down and let someone else fire it. Does that sound good?

[Trokair]

9825 is strong enough to carry it out without problem, so potential it could carry the heavy stubber around and set it up for someone else to fire.

 

However having 9825 act as a gun platform like that I am not so sure on, Steel your call I think.

 

For the moment Beren’s suggestion to mount it on the goliath is good, if you have to leave the vehicles behind at any point you can always un-pintle it and then have 9825 carry it then.

 

While 9825 is not as good a shot as most of the other character, nor has the training programming for combat, being able to walk and shoot compared to two people being static to shoot may be a acceptable tradeoff, but that is a bridge we will cross in due course.

[Steel Company]

As I said, 9825 will object on the grounds that it is not a combat platform, but will follow orders from the humans... if only to maintain cover.

[Petragor]

Vehicle probably works better, let’s go with that.

[Trokair]

Right, sorry guys, been busier than expected, so what should have been an update near the beginning of the weak will now be end of this one. That said I guess I am not the only who has been busy as I don’t think I have seen some of you post in a while either.

Anyhow some additional info on the three sites to investigate so that you can choose where to go first.

 

 

Site one: Orbital scans have shown some ruins buried just below the surface next to a lake, it is speculated that this is an old settlement that was abandoned when the river changed course and flooded part of the settlement leading to the formation of the lake.

 

Site two: this is an area of mixed woodland and open grassland, what drew the attention to this site is that there is a high density cluster of vegetation (trees, bushes and so on) that is found next to nowhere else on planet, but that dose resemble species found elsewhere in the Imperium. It is speculated that this was an early farming community that introduced off world crop plants that have since run wild and spread in the local area.

 

Site three: if far in the mountains, geological survey indicates that this should be a good area for mining, but every venture to do so has failed and locals call that part of the mountains cursed.

 

 

Off road driving.

Starting with the next update we will be leaving the well (and less well) maintained main road behind and driving on old roads, dirt tracks or no tracks at all.

 

For each segment/travel distance there are a number of things that can happen/can be done.

 

First of there may be hazards on the road, as such each driver (and if somebody takes the bike to scout them as well) will need to do an initiative test (1d6, equal or lower than your I value) and a strength test (1d6, equal or lower than your S value). This represents your ability to spot a hazard, and then handling the vehicle to avoid one if there is a hazard.

 

Ariel, or anybody she designates, can spend more time with the maps, a successful leadership test  (2d6 equal or less than your LD value) may help with navigation, picking campsites, or some other benefit.

 

Anybody not driving can take the bike to scout, and if anybody dose then it likewise can help with road hazards or with navigation, finding campsites and so on.

 

Anybody not otherwise engaged can help out by being a lookout, observing the surrounding and so on, a singled imitative test is required. Passes might help with navigation, or with road hazards or with other stuff.  

 

While I would normally ask for these rolls at the beginning of a relevant segment, or when something happened, so as to move things along anybody can preemptively role between now and when I get the update life later this week.

[Beren]

Hit site one or two, then three, then the one we hadn't yet hit on the way back?

 

Either way, we'll probably need to set up digging equipment.

 

Can the Thallax or Servitor operate underwater?

[Trokair]

The Thallax can, for a while at least.

 

As for the servitor, maybe, from the concept we discussed I know that 9825 worked in the orbital docs for a time, so may be void hardeded, and if so that probably means ok for underater for a bit. Steel?

 

 

Either way I don’t think serious underwater skills are needed . The lake, while it has deep parts, is mostly shallow and all of us should be able to move through parts of it (if your characters don’t mind being chest deep or so) if required.

[Steel Company]

Void hardened doesn't mean submersible...

 

Space craft are designed to operate in a lack of pressure, subs are designed to work in a high pressure environment. That being said 9825 should be fine for limited depths, ie less than 100m.

[Trokair]

Oh I know that void hardened does not make for underwater gear, but I figured that if he is vacuum proof he should be water /rain proof so that none of the internal circuitry gets wet.  There is no intention of going underwater in the lake, shallows maybe, not so shallows is a possibility, but nothing very deep, otherwise I would have had one of your vehicles be a even more modified chimera.

[Steel Company]

The thing is about going into space, if it doesn't need to maintain an atmosphere it can be exposed or just have a thin layer of foil over it that is radiation and heat resistant and thick enough to resist particles in space.

 

That being said, when I look at the model that 9825 is based on (the Thallax class of bots) it doesn't have any exposed components so I can see it being watertight and pressure resistant to a limited degree.

[Beren]

Okay, so we have gauranteed ruins of an undetermined nature at the lake, and potential agricultural ruins we still need to locate at the other place. Either way, we'll need to do some excavation.

 

Does lake, mountains, agricultural sound like a good idea?

[Steel Company]

If we need to do any digging, then the agricultural site is easiest. But if the ruins in the mountains is easy to access they'd be good too. The one in the lake will be the hardest to properly explore.

[Trokair]

Remember you are a survey team sent to have a look at potential sites if you find naything you can let the main expedition know, and if they think it is of potential value more works will be sent for the actual digging/excavation. As such while some probing excavation may be required mostly what you will be doing is using some of the scanning equipment to look for clues, and so on, I imagine ground penetrating radar and such.

 

 

The site in the mountains is the hardest to get to, but might be the most promising site, it is certainly a conundrum. 

[Petragor]

Okay, so we have gauranteed ruins of an undetermined nature at the lake, and potential agricultural ruins we still need to locate at the other place. Either way, we'll need to do some excavation.

 

Does lake, mountains, agricultural sound like a good idea?

Sounds good to me. I’m ready when y’all are