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[LP CYOA] Epic

Baltika9

Arcane
Joined
Jun 27, 2012
Messages
9,611
Dude, I could kiss you right now, but I don't want to be misunderstood. Voting for Cthulhu Mythos.

Edit: You can name it Cthulhu Kings: The Old Gods.
:troll:
 

Azira

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Nov 3, 2004
Messages
8,518
Location
Copenhagen, Denmark
Codex 2012
Right, for those following the thread here’s a sneak preview at the next project. :troll:


Birth Zodiac:

Rat – (Perception +1, Intelligence + 2, Agility +2, Strength -1, Endurance -1)
Ox – (Strength + 2, Endurance +3, Intelligence -2)
Tiger – (Strength +2, Agility +2, Luck +1, Perception -1, Luck -1)
Rabbit – (Charisma +2, Luck +3, Strength -2)
Dragon – (Strength +1, Perception +1, Charisma +1, Intelligence +1, Luck+1, Endurance -1, Agility -1)
Snake – (Perception +2, Charisma +1, Agility +2, Strength -1, Luck -1)
Horse – (Endurance +3, Agility +1, Luck +1, Perception -1, Intelligence -1)
Goat – (Perception +2, Intelligence +3, Charisma -2)
Monkey – (Intelligence +2, Agility +3, Endurance -1, Luck -1)
Rooster – (Perception +1, Charisma +2, Intelligence +1, Agility +1, Strength -2)
Dog – (Perception +2, Endurance +1, Agility +2, Luck -2)
Pig – (Strength +1, Endurance +1, Intelligence +1, Luck +2, Agility -2)

***

Before you undertook your apprenticeship, you had a history. It may not be important to you anymore, but it has shaped your life and you would do well to remember it.

A. You belong to a clan that has served as bureaucrats to the Imperial Court for generations. Your father attempted to break the mold, trying out for the army instead of taking the Imperial exams like every other member of the clan. He failed rather spectacularly; to this day, when would-be recruits talk about a person failing the physical exam, they use your father’s name as a part of the proverb. Unable to fulfil his dream, your father has encouraged you to practice the arts of war. You are not particularly… adept… at the physical aspect – you are sure this incompetence is hereditary – but you have taken to the strategems like a duck to water. Of course, that didn’t help you one bit when your entire family was arrested on false charges of corruption and executed. How dreadful.
(Perception +1, Intelligence +2, Strength -1, Endurance -1, Begin with skill: The Art of War)

B. You come from a family of farmers, who have farmed the land for hundreds of years. The same land. As a result, your family’s farming prowess have been honed through the generations, and you are widely regarded as the physical culmination of a legendary line of farmers, one that can dig furrows with his bare hands. You are going to be the best farmer ever, they said. It’s just a pity that there’s no more land for you to farm, no thanks to your conniving landlord. If only your family was literate, they could have avoided signing away their land rights.
(Strength +1, Endurance +2, Intelligence -2, Begin with skill: Bare-handed Hoe)

C. You are a wandering child, an orphan; not so rare in these times of chaos. You grew up with the beggars; you were practically adopted by them, following the more adventurous ones from city to city. You learnt sleight-of-hand and also the art of play-acting. You soon found out how to make every drop of your tears earn a penny in return. Times were good, but not for long. When the new Emperor ascended, he outlawed begging in all the streets of all his cities. Those who continued to beg for food and money would find a pot of boiling oil awaiting them. Then they would beg for something else. Time to find a new line of work, it seems.

(Perception +1, Charisma +1, Agility +1, Endurance -1, Luck -1, Begin with skill: Ambidexterity)

How interesting, in real life, I'm a goat. I can see that tie in well with your stat gains/detractions. Still, I managed to overcome the charisma malus enough to breed. :roll:

In that thread, I'd go for the bureaucrat and make him a rabbit. A leader of men. A lucky leader of men. Something sorely needed with such a nerfed str score. ;)

Oh, and I'd rather not the Cthulu thing. It irks me. +M
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
I had to balance the stats, and goats have a reputation for crankiness and eccentricity. :lol:

The Ox Farmer low-int would make for an interesting play. But this isn't see in stone yet. Just a preview.
 

a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
Cthulhu mythos!

Hmm.

treave, does 1 for either of the first 2 options necessitate us being in the center of the fleet or just aiming for it?

For now, A2, B1, C2 all seem like good options. C1 is probably the pyrrhic victory option. D is dumb.
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
It doesn't, but you won't be destroying the flagship by taking potshots from the edge of their sensor range either.
 

Anabanana

Augur
Joined
Jul 31, 2012
Messages
1,061
We went for the maximum mobility and agility build, not power, which means that slipstream boarding is out of the question. What the combination of warp holes, gravity wings, and variable black hole cannon allows us to do is to take the fleet by surprise, dash past their fire with our super speed, reach the flagship, fire off our single planet-eating blackhole at it... and then get the fuck out of there.

In other words, our build is perfect for A1. If we'd wanted to do 2, we should've gone for something like remote drones to cause maximum confusion - as it is, we only have a single massive strike at our disposal. Far better to take them off guard than to wait until they arrive on their own terms; Rei is the one in charge of our frame's movements, ffs, you think our sis can't pull something like this off?

Also, by god, treave, where do you get all these excellent ideas? Definitely following whatever project you decide to start up.
 

a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
st_whatsinside_steaksauce_f.jpg
 

ScubaV

Prophet
Joined
Feb 20, 2011
Messages
1,022
I agree with Ana completely. A1.

All this talk about a next project is making me sad that this one will soon be over. It's gonna be like that depressed feeling when you finish a good book. Between the two, I'd prefer the clan in Cthulhu mythos. I really liked Curufinwe's LP where we controlled a tribe. It's too bad he fell off the face of the Earth.
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
When I say breeding project, I mean choose the mother of your baby dating simulator. Will you marry Ms. Sothoth or Cthulhu-chan? :lol:

Well, I can't keep this one running forever, since I do want to try out other ideas. Let's see where we end up.
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
Battle at Uranus

Uranus possesses only one human outpost, on the moon of Titania. By the time we arrive, it has been evacuated, along with all other human assets in the outer sphere of the solar system. Even the massive helium mining operations of Jupiter have temporarily ceased. Earth would rebuild after the Crusade passes. A message arrives, indicating well wishes from all of our comrades that we have left behind on Earth. Good luck, they say. I thumb it away with a smile, turning my attention back to the star-studded void.

The completed form of Project Defiance was finally named after much deliberation. The scientists decided to call it Anhur-Shu; the final persona of the mythological god of war as both slayer of enemies and bearer of the sky, separating the firmament from the earth. A somewhat fitting name, as we are about to split the heavens asunder. The four gravity wings are spread out around us, almost invisible except for the rippling distortions that they create in space.

“Preparations are complete, brother. All systems are clear to go.” Rei will not need to do anything for this part of the operation, but she will need to be ready to move at a moment’s notice. I am seated above and behind her, plugged into the frame via the cybernetic tentacles that Sekhenun has implanted. I think about saying something witty, but decide against it. Perhaps later.

I delve into the link between myself and Anhur-Shu, listening to the gentle hum as the twin black hole engines charge up in sync. Raising my hands up, I gather a storm, toying with the elemental force of gravity as easily as a child would with water. Numerous processes run through the undercurrent of my mind as I project the anomaly into slipspace. I am barely cognisant of the complex calculations being carried out for a such a thing to happen, and I allow it to stay that way.

My timing is precise. All I have to do now is pull.

Space twists, turning in on itself as the sky seems to split apart. Countles ships appear seemingly out of nowhere, tumbling in each and every direction as they are scattered from their slipspace travel. More than a few smash into the moons of Uranus, carving burning scars on the surface of Titania and Oberon. Others are caught up by the gravitational pull of Uranus itself and engulfed in its smooth, blue expanse. Many more collide with each other, exploding in rapidly expanding clouds of debris.

A large battleship careens towards us, spinning end over end as the engines desperately fire in an attempt to correct its position. “I’m on it,” says Rei. Our minds operating almost as one, we spring into action. The gravity wings curl up in front of Anhur-Shu. The prow of the battleship crumples and curls up as it smashes into the super-dense region of gravity – space made solid through what would seem like magic to the ancients. The CF is unmoved, remaining perfectly still just metres away from the frozen battleship. We reach for the vessel. The power output of the generators makes light of even a ten kilometre-long object. Anhur-Shu’s metal claws dig into the front of the ship. With a near effortless swing, Rei hurls it away, sending it off to join its compatriots as a wreck on the surface of Oberon. I do a swift calculation of the ships that I can detect; the accidents that have resulted from their untimely exit from slipspace have destroyed no more than two hundred and damaged around three thousand ships. They had plenty left to spare.

We will have to end it quickly. A few ships have already succeeded in reorienting themselves. Soon they would notice us. Luckily, the flagship is not far away, nor is it hard to detect. The Ereshu. I had only heard of stories about it from Mere, but it looks like the rumours were not a shade on the real thing. It is a monstrosity that is more than fifty kilometres long. The shape vaguely resembles that of the Empire’s sacred animal, the wingless mushussu dragon. The Ereshu had settled out of slipspace unscathed and unruffled, unharmed by the gravitational anomaly I had unleashed. Well, the bigger they are…

“Rei, we’ll use the black hole cannon. Follow my directions, we will get them into position for our shot.” She acknowledges my orders and pushes the throttle to the max. Anhur-Shu blasts forward from a standing start, heading for the gigantic dragon in the distance. As the ships of the fleet recover, they pick up our signature and begin to fire upon us. Fiery beams of death criss-cross the space between us and the flagship. I recalculate the trajectory at every millisecond, working together with Rei to slip through the defensive net that they are attempting to set up. The big guns of the flagship turn upon us and prepare to fire. Rei activates the verniers, dodging to the side. Then, I shift the angle of the gravity wings, propelling us upwards at a steep angle. As the fleet repositions itself in an attempt to track us, I activate the tactical warp system. The wormhole rings disengage quickly and surround Anhur-Shu. The space before us shifts. A second later, we are now below the Ereshu, floating at a safe distance away.

“All right, we’ve got them all lined up nicely,” I grin. I wrap the gravity wings around the frame. It will take at least ten seconds for them to rediscover our location. Coincidentally, it will also take us ten seconds to fire off a shot at full power.

“Stabilizing Anhur-Shu,” reports Rei. “Activating the variable black hole cannon.” The upper abdomen of the CF opens up, exposing a black cylinder within. It opens up into a spinning, hollow tube. We begin the energy-mass conversion, creating an artifical black hole in front of the cylinder.

Thirty percent… fifty percent.

It looks like their sensors are better than I expected – a scout ship has already found us. Its beams are harmlessly redirected by the gravity wings. Seventy percent. The rest of the fleet begins turning towards us, preparing to unleash a full salvo. The wings won’t block that much firepower. But that is alright.

The wings unfurl away from Anhur-Shu, revealing the black orb in front of its chest, its edges glowing white with the the light of creation. The cylinder unfolds and extends itself, forming a track which will guide and accelerate the orb.

“The charge is at one hundred percent,” says Rei. “Shall we let them have it?”

“Oh, yes.”

The orb shoots forward. The first thing it smashes into is the Ereshu. Surprisingly, it is temporarily stopped by a shimmering veil that appears to be made out of diamonds. Unfortunately for the ship, at that point the gravity field containing the orb loses strength and it implodes into a full-fledged black hole, breaking past the shield and swallowing up half of the gigantic flagship. This does not stop its forward momentum, however, and it continues accelerating onwards, pushing what is left of the Ereshu along with it while devouring its mass. The ships that stray too close get sucked in, smashing into their flagship to feed the black hole – once it has fed enough, it would explode with the light of a thousand suns, leaving nothing behind to mark its passing but the twisted hulks of its victims. My entire vision is filled with blue as the black hole stresses space-time to the extent that uncountable cracks fill my sight. Many more ships are ripped into pieces by the gravitational forces generated in its wake, entire parts of their hull greedily torn away by the black hole. The singularity continues to expand…

But it’s expanding slower than my calculations would have it.

Something is wrong here. The black hole stops expanding, at a size far lesser than I had expected.

Then, it begins to shrink. As light begins to return to its normal path, I see what has happened. A dragon – an actual dragon – has the diminishing black hole clutched in its jaws. From this distance, the dragon itself must be a few hundred metres in length. My first thought was that they had been hiding some biological experiment onboard the flagship, but as the dragon somehow gulps down the black hole, shattering all assumptions I had about reality, I instinctively realize that this is the Great Devourer; the Dragon Emperor of the Mushuszu Empire himself.

The dragon swings its long, sleek head towards Anhur-Shu and opens its maw. With no warning, a blinding light pours forth; a beam of pure destruction. This is not something I can block. Rei brings us safely out of the way, but Titania behind us is not so lucky. The beam cores right through the moon, the energy of its impact shattering it into fragments.

“Why do you even need a fleet if you’re a planet destroyer yourself?” I grumble.

“Well,” Rei begins, and I stop her with a sigh. “It was a rhetorical question. I know that having a fleet provides him with more strategic and tactical options.”

The fleet is already gathering around the Dragon Emperor. My attack had caught roughly ten percent of their fleet – it would have been much more had the Emperor not devoured the black hole. There are still more than eighty thousand warships left, although many of these are damaged.

Well, if that was the case…

***

A. I reengage them. The best time to strike is while they are weakened, before they manage to perform any repairs to their fleet and regain their strength. I should not give them any time to adapt to my tactics. Anhur-Shu is still unscratched and in pristine condition too. This would probably mean dealing with the Emperor, but I came out here knowing full well that I might have to fight him. I should finish the job.

B. I flee back to Earth to refuel and recuperate. This is a new development; I will have to think about finding countermeasures against the Emperor since he's shown that he can turn into a giant dragon somehow. It will take them a few more weeks to reach Earth anyway. Of course, there's the risk that he might actually exert his planet eating powers on the way to Earth, now that he seems to be active and hungry.
 

Anabanana

Augur
Joined
Jul 31, 2012
Messages
1,061
Ahahahaha, of course the Great Devourer is a hundred-meter long dragon who eats black holes for breakfast. How the fuck is that even physically possible, holy shit.

Regardless, I'm thinking we should go with A here. With our superior agility and maneuverability, we should be able to dodge the beams of death and avoid being nommed on while we thin out their ranks. Giving them time to recuperate is probably going to come back and bite us in the ass later. We managed to surprise them, let's take advantage of it while we still can. Staying to engage will probably let us learn more about the emperor's abilities as well.
 

TOME

Cuckmaster General
Joined
May 25, 2012
Messages
1,820
I agree. We should thin out the fleet while we have the chance, but we shouldn't engage with the emperor too aggressively.

A.

And I'm starting to have regrets we didn't accept Zeus' offer to go rift jumping back then.
 

a cut of domestic sheep prime

Guest
A - Yeah... Good thing we didn't go with the devourer shield. Marduk would have eaten it for breakfast...
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
It's not like you can't beat him with a black hole, it's just that the Vajra shield blocked the black hole long enough for the Emperor to respond.

Also, I don't consider the LP complete until we've had a giant robot and a giant space dragon smashing each other through moons and planets.
 

Smashing Axe

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Dec 29, 2011
Messages
2,835
Divinity: Original Sin
B - Senya is likely capable of developing a theory of how Marduk was able to eat the orb, its better to retreat and recalculate our plan of attack, given this new development. The ace up our sleeve is no-longer reliable. We chose the option that gave us the most time, we should use it. I think A will just lead to a damaged frame and possible capture.

Edit: May reconsider given the above.
 

treave

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jul 6, 2008
Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
Oh yeah, the flagship is also pretty much destroyed, so technically your mission is already successful. :lol:
 

treave

Arcane
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Joined
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Messages
11,370
Codex 2012
Yes, she has her tentacles back too. Sekh figured she might as well do the both of you.
 

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