Project Tomorrow - A Reassembly Filler Arc

[CandyLaser]

"Sounds like Magneto wanted someone to rid him of some turbulent priests," Sarah said as Fred made his preparations to leave. "Call if you need help. If you get in over your head, I can be there in the blink of an eye." To Gethsemane, she made the same offer. "Periodic probably won't be alone. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if she's the bait. As for your ring..." She paused, narrowing her eyes as she ran the numbers. Ronin wasn't the only one who could predict the future, after all. "Of course. That's where it will stay."

Spoiler: OOC and Rolls

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Seems like a decent time to dip into Sarah's precognition as well. (1d20+6)[22]

[Starsign]

Following the nightmarish hallucination, the rest of Rene's night had gone relatively smoothly. He finished his payments, gathered the materials, metal sheeting and explosives, and worked on the fortifications over the rest of the night. Despite the effort, it was a much-needed distraction from everything else that was going on with his reptilian mind. While the explosions were a bit unconventional to work with, being a builder rather than a demolition man, the remaining construction was smooth, easy to work with, and almost fun after the prior couple days.

So what was once a Hall, lavishly decorated in yellow-and-gold walls, red carpet and beautiful wood chairs and tables, is now a heavily fortified building of thick stone walls, windows sealed off by granite, a narrow pathway forged through these same materials that trail off into individual rooms and areas for each senate member, wooden rafters above to surprise and ambush infiltrators below, frame-less mirrors all set up within these narrow hallways, echoing the famed "hall of mirrors" from that one martial arts movie. And the best part: metal sheeting placed on and beneath the industrial concussive explosives for those assassins who'd barge right in. It was rather annoying that he couldn't use metal, but with Periodic on the loose, it's better to not take any risk for convenience. Besides, the end result was better than he expected. And it even left Rene enough time to get some sleep on the rafters!

...Or would've, until everything suddenly moved up.

"Ugh. Wh-what?" He groggily said, waking up after an hour of so of being slumped with his stomach on the wooden support and his tail and clawed feet. His mind feels weirdly lucid, for a change, as if the hallucination and work from last night utterly drained him of fear and paranoia.

Without any time to raise concerns, Rene quietly sees Fred and Supergirl off while hoping down on to the floor to meet with Katie, Sarah and Gethsemane. He nods slowly to Gethsemane. "You know we will," he tells her, attempting confidence with his dry, serpentine throat. "I just wish I had time to explain how this'll all work," he mutters loudly, looking at the various walls and thin hallways inside the large room.

"Alright, I'll just give you the point-form version," he tells the other Misfits, leaping up, putting his clawed hands and feet onto the wood and climbing back on top of the rafters. "I know it's just a narrow hallway, but don't get close to the walls. Try knocking any intruders into them. That oughta knock 'em out. And we've got these rafters too if you want to surprise them." He pauses, looks down at the room again. Did he forget something...? Oh! "And watch out for the mirrors!"

He paid quite a bit, monetarily and mentally, for Rachel's materials. It better be worth it...

[Quellian-dyrae]

Spoiler: Previously on Reassembly

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Following Project Tomorrow's efforts, led by Thunderstruck, to counter anti-mutant prejudice throughout the world, and heroic efforts in their defense by Ronin, Potence, and the Avengers against the Brainiac Arnim Zola, Genosha's Senate voted to allow the country to join Project Tomorrow, against the wishes of their President, Magneto. The Misfits, the X-Men, and several other Project Tomorrow heroes travelled to Genosha to begin the process of both getting an entire country of mutants involved, and bringing the Project's work to Genosha.

But what began as a day of shining possibility soon took a turn for the worst, as the mutate citizens of Genosha rose up in revolt all throughout the country, even as outside forces cut Genosha off with a Yellow Lantern barrier, doming off the entire island nation in a pure display of power. The heroes of the Project were able to quell the uprising with minimal casualties, and determine that the mutates had somehow been psychically compelled - but whoever was behind it was on the other side of the dome. Worse still, assassins skulked through the capital city of Hammer Bay in the aftermath, some killing Senators (and members of their personal staff and guard) who had voted for Genosha joining Project Tomorrow, and another, identified as the AWOL X-Man Wolverine, killing members of Magneto's forces and personal guard.

A plan was hatched. Using the telepathic powers of Professor X and Rachel Grey, and a focusing device produced by Sarah Saturn, the heroes of Project Tomorrow would gather the support and hope of the entire country, and channel it through Ronin's fey magic to cleave through the barrier of fear. To do this, they would have to whelm the more-or-less unanimous support of the people of Genosha. While the heroes of the Project spread throughout the country to help the people, earn their support, and put a stop to the remaining mutate attacks, the Misfits and some choice allies remained in Hammer Bay to stop the assassinations, prepare the technical requirements for the plan, and perhaps most difficult - convince Magneto to throw his support behind their efforts.

Now with the device ready and one of the assassins captured, the Misfits have gathered at the Builder-reinforced Senate building, to guard the Senators against an incoming attack from the remaining assassins - all but Ronin, who along with Supergirl have gone to face Wolverine and help Colossus thwart his predicted attack on Magneto.

Ronin

You and Kara appear beside a car on a...pretty much totally normal Genoshan street. Well, normal aside from what's happening on it, anyway. Magneto hovers a couple feet off the ground, staring down at Wolverine with regal contempt, cape fluttering behind him. Wolverine is charging forward, claws out, new adamantine teeth bared in a feral grimace, utter murderous fury on his face. Between them stands Colossus, with skin like metal, much good may that do him against either of these foes.

This battle is going down now.

Spoiler

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Here's a map. Note there's two tabs at the bottom; you should be on the Genosha Street tab.

Initiative:
Ronin: (1d20+16)[20].

Supergirl: (1d20+12)[22].
Colossus: (1d20)[2].

Magneto: (1d20+15)[31].

Wolverine: (1d20+20)[37].

(I'll do a second post for actions for any NPCs that beat Ronin, if any do.)

Everyone Else

With the notice that enemies are on the way, Professor X sends to the Misfits, ~I sense three hostiles on approach. They're right outside. Here,~ once again, he kinda "uploaded" a file into their minds - though this time, rather than a dossier, it was a map of the immediate area, along with the (rapidly updating) position of every mind he detected.

Spoiler

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Although the enemies are outside, Professor X is actually feeding you guys the battle map IC, so you're aware of their positions and such. I'm starting combat time so if you (we, whatever) want to do things while they're making their way in, we can.

Professor X isn't contributing directly to combat (much though he's a telepathic beast he's wayyyyy below PL defensively), but he'll keep the map streaming, so you are aware of the positions of enemies unless they can gain Total Concealment from his Mindsense, regardless of their Concealment relative to you (though they can still get Concealment for defensive purposes). He's also maintaining Rapid 2 Mental Communication. Finally, he's spending his standard action each round fueling his Mind Shield Features; everybody gets Second Chance (Will vs. Mental effects) for the duration of the battle (not that these guys are supposed to have much in the way of mental attacks, but whatever).

Here's a map. Note that there's two tabs at the bottom; you should be on the Senate Building tab. The darker gray borders and squares are the Builder's fortifications. Starsign, you can change or add to those if you want. Rene's fortifications have Toughness 11, compared to the 8 of the rest of the Senate building (4 for doors, 0 for windows). I'mma just figure your traps apply to any walls and doors, whether you built them or not. Also the squares that have the --- on them are "low" barriers; they don't actually fully block anything but you can duck behind them and such. Figure they give Full Cover if you're adjacent to them and opposite the enemy, or Partial Cover if you're not adjacent but they're between you and the enemy.

The little ^ in Builder's square is to indicate he's up in the rafters. You guys can alter your starting positions if you want, this is just what I kinda figured. Builder, if you want to keep your current position, between the rafters and being ideal for enemies coming in from that door, it's worth a +5 circumstance bonus on Stealth.

Initiative:
Sarah: So, you had been using Precognition that I didn't end up getting to, and I don't...actually know what you were wanting to learn anymore. So I'm going to let you substitute the Precognition roll of 22 for initiative if it's better. Which...it is, since you roll init at +0. So 22
Builder: (1d20+4)[21].
Gethsemane: (1d20)[11].
Potence: (1d20+16)[24].

Enemies: (1d20+17)[25].

I'll do another post for enemy actions if they beat all the PCs (or all but Katie, since I'll post for her simultaneously).

[Quellian-dyrae]

Ronin

Wolverine is the best he is at what he does.

And what he does is go first.

Colossus was between he and Magneto. Now, Wolverine was quick and agile. He could have easily just gone around him. But he was also in the full throes of his battle rage. He wanted to get to his target by the quickest means possible. And for Wolverine, the quickest route past an obstacle was rarely over or around.

It was through.

He rushed forward, inhumanly but not superhumanly fast, swiping with his claws at Colossus to get him out of the way. He didn't hesitate, to attack his (former?) compatriot. And the thing was, it didn't look like he didn't recognize him, or anything. He was looking him right in the eyes when he struck. The message was clear: "I know who you are. I do not care. Stay out of my way if you want to live. Bub."

Then he was past him, and lashing out again at Magneto. Normally, this would not have proven a particular threat to the Master of Magnetism, Wolverine's adamantine claws something he could have casually turned away with his powers. He raised a hand, a deflecting gesture, but the runes on the adamantine blazed red, and Wolverine's attack came unhindered, forcing Magneto to rely on his normal protections for defense (not that those were easy to get through themselves).

As far as Magneto was concerned, a fair fight against Wolverine was just beneath him. He grabbed for the nearest weapon to hand - Colossus's hefty metal body - and swung him like a maul at the feral mutant.

Supergirl went blurring into the fray, aiming to shield Colossus and Magneto from Wolverine, and then try and pull Wolverine back, grabbing him by one of the arms.

Spoiler

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Wolverine is in his Battle Rage! He functions as two characters in combat, but cannot flee or take defensive actions.

Wolverine:
Move: Into R11.
Standard: Attack Colossus with Adamantium Claws at (1d20+14)[20] vs. DC 15. On a hit, Parry ((1d20+5)[22]) DC 29 vs. Damage. Hit. Supergirl Interposes.
Move-by Action: Into N11.
Move 2: Attempt to Feint Magneto at -5 using his Ninjutsu Benefit (substitutes Stealth for Deception, opposed by Perception or Insight) at (1d20+15)[34] vs. (1d20+15)[34]. Full tie. Tiebreaker rolled offline and went to Wolverine. Feinted.
Standard: Attack Magneto with Adamantium Claws at (1d20+14)[28] vs. DC 25 (or 18 if Feinted). As a Complication, Wolverine's Immunity to Metal Control also prevents Magneto from benefitting from his Immunity to Metal or his +5 PL bonus against metal. On a hit, Parry ((1d20+15)[16]) DC 29 vs. Damage. Hit. Bruised and Staggered unless someone Interposes.

Supergirl:
Supergirl is starting with her Kryptonian Physiology set to give her the Immunities of Kryptonian Toughness, and 9 ranks of Flight from Kryptonian Speed.
Reaction: Supergirl will Interpose if necessary, prioritizing Colossus if they both get hit. However, due to her It's My Kryptonite Complication, the [Magical] enchantments on Wolverine's claws allow him to ignore her Kryptonian Toughness power. Parry: (1d20+14)[24].
Move: Into Close range of Wolverine if she isn't already. Bruised
Free: Swap to full Kryptonian Strength.
Standard: Attack Wolverine with Power Strike at (1d20+14)[15] vs. DC 24. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+14)[18]) DC 31 vs. Damage, Dodge ((1d20+14)[19]) DC 26 vs. Grab. Wolverine gets a second resistance check against the Grab, but if both fail it affects both tracks: (1d20+14)[29]. Whiff

Ronin is on turn.

Everyone Else

...You hear a tremendous bang.

Spoiler

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Burster:
Not aware he's in combat.

Singular:
Not aware he's in combat.

Periodic:
Standard: Attack the Sentry Building's Door with Magnesium Strike, Power Attacking for 3, at (1d20+9)[23] vs. DC 10. On anything but a natural 1, Toughness ((1d20+4)[6]) DC 35 after auto-crit vs. Object Damage. Cuts right through it. ...And sets it on fire but that's kinda irrelevant.

This triggers one of Builder's traps (he got one trigger free so there's six remaining). The trap strikes back at (1d20+12)[22] vs. DC 22, although if her Insight ((1d20+15)[34]) fails to beat DC 31 for Builder's trap setting, she's considered Vulnerable and the DC lowers by 6. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+12)[13]) DC 25 vs. Damage, Fortitude ((1d20+12)[13]) DC 20 vs. Impaired/Disabled/Incapacitated Linked Weaken Toughness. ...Wow. Double natural 1s. That...that is quite a trap. Bruised, Staggered, Disabled, -7 Toughness.

Move: ...Well she was gonna head inside after chopping the door down, but even assuming she's not Dazed she might wait a bit on that one now.

All PCs are on turn.

[SuperCracker]

Spoiler

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Let’s do an assessment, (1d20+11)[31]

Fight Theme

Wolverine went past Colossus but didn’t make it past Ronin. As Logan lunged forward with his claws, the samurai charged forward to intercept. Ronin dug his foot in and slid to a halt in front of Magneto, sword held out, the indestructible soul sword turning away the worst of the attack, but resulting in a rake across Fred’s forearm, spattering blood on Wolverine and the ground.

Ronin and Wolverine stood face to face. Fred’s eyes were blazing the color of a bonfire.

“No,” he said forcefully. A declaration of purpose.

Magic erupted from Fred as he changed into his favorite fictional form, lit up with gold and stronger than ever before. His expression was intense, what one expects from Fred Broll when the fighting starts. But there was no lethal intent. No malice. Only love.

“You’re coming home with me, Old Man, even if I have to drag you.”

Fred flashed his sword up, then back down rapidly, advancing on Wolverine with strikes aimed to slow him down.

“Supergirl, Colossus, three point formation.Stick to the plan. Magneto, get up in the air! Your powers don’t work on him!”

Spoiler

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Since he interposed, he would probably be in 12M or 12N. Fred is dazed but doesn’t need to move.

Free: SSJ2

Standard Quick Attack: (1d20+12)[15] – DC25+Multi toughness Damage and DC20+Multi fort vs weaken parry

Regen: Doesn’t work against incurable!

Partially concealed.

[Zelphas]

Gethsemane spins the two-toned blade in her claw, holding it up between her eyes. ~"This blade is a tool, subservient to the will of its holder,"~ she chants in an ancient language, seemingly unaware of the noise and actions around her. ~"It seeks, it strikes and it obeys. It does not choose. It does not defy. All parts are illusion; each part is whole, and each whole is part."~

Pointing down the hall to the broken-down door, Gethsemane releases the pent-up magic from the ritual through the knife, deepening the link between the knife and Periodic and changing its design. ~"Seek, strike, and obey, my knife,"~ she completes the chant, slicing the blade towards a water balloon she had held in her other claw.

Spoiler: OOC

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Move Action: Only if I need to do so to see Periodic at the doorway.

Extra Effort plus Hero Point: Power Stunt Thaumaturgic Compulsion: Affliction 10 (Entranced/Compelled/Controlled, Alternate Resistance (Toughness), Increased Range (Ranged), Progressive, Multiattack, Accurate 6, Subtle 2, Limited (Thaumaturgic Connection), Limited (Greater Thaumaturgic Connection)).

Standard Action: Use Thaumaturgic Compulsion on Periodic, All-Out Attacking for 5, Power Attacking for 2. (1d20+15)[29] On a hit, Toughness DC 22 + Multiattack vs. Progressive Entranced/Compelled/Controlled. This attack is Subtle 2. If Periodic is at least Compelled, she will use her action to attack Burster.

Status: Fatigued, -5 to Active Defenses (this turn).

[Quellian-dyrae]

Katie gave Gethsemane a serious look, and a firm nod. As Fred and Supergirl were heading out, she called to them, "Stay sa-" ...Okay wait we were still talking about a teamup of Colossus, Supergirl, and Fred. Try that again. "I mean, good lu-" wait, no, that's dumb too. UMMM... "...Be yourselves?...!" ...Sure, close enough.

She got into position. Unfortunately the big cost of giving up her wand came in the area of duration, so she couldn't really do much pre-buffing. She'd have to wait until the enemies were almost upon them.

Professor X dropped another of his telepathic uploads into her head, showing the enemies outside. That stuff really was pretty cool. Might have to start researching some Shared Awareness upgrades, she thought.

Meantime, bad guys were coming in. Katie started casting, and-

BOOM!

...Ah, right. Traps.

"Yeah, how do you like it?" Katie muttered under her breath. (She was aware that Magneto's guard had nothing whatsoever to do with Moses Forst, but still, they were the bad guys so...look it made sense in her head, okay?)

No need to be overly aggressive, she supposed. Rene had put all this hard work into traps and fortifications and stuff, after all. Katie sent her Helping Hand flying out, and with a gesture, conjured up barriers around her friends. This time, unlike their normal silvery light, the shields were invisible. She didn't want to draw any attention to Rene's hiding place after all!

Spoiler

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Free: Reconfigure Arcana array.

Metamagic: Variable 1 (Improve Existing Traits; Reduced Action 2 [Free]) {9}.
Helping Hand: Extra Limbs 1 (Projection, Indirect 4), Elongation 6 (900'; Quirk [Extra Limb Only]) {11}.

Free: Metamagic. -1 to remove the Linked Environment from Barrier. 4 points for Subtle 2 on both effects of Barrier. 2 points for Subtle 2 on Helping Hand.

Move: Nah.

Standard: Barrier on her team. Everyone's Deflected at 1d10+20 (-1 per point of Toughness above 12) and gains Evasion 2, Instant Up, and Crit Immunity this round.

Current Status: Deflected (1d10+20).

[Starsign]

*BOOM*

The thunderous, concussive explosion rattles Rene's reptilian bones up on the rafters. If he hadn't felt awake before, he certainly is now. The sound was accompanied with the slight ringing of his earholes and his clawed hands digging into the wood. He's never gotten used to the noise that explosions make; at least, this time, they're something in his favor rather than used against him. He barely comprehends the "map" of the place sent in by Professor X; had the reptilian not gotten sleep, he would've thought

He holds back the temptation to just dive in, run through the door, and claw at the first thing in his way. No, no, that's not what he should do. He's supposed to spring a trap. Just wait, wait, wait.

His tail lies up straight on the support, still against his usual tendency to swing it wildly or in panic. His clawed hands and feet rest on the wood, looking down next to the door and awaiting the trio of foes to come through. There were three left, right? Just three; one must have triggered the trap and the other two will need to be occupied. One of those two was the... inflating guy? And the other must be the... detachment guy? God, he can't even recall their names, like it's been months ago. But at least he remembers that he has claws for one, his fists and tail for the other.

He tightens his shut mouth, breathing slowly in and out of his nostrils. Like a predator, and lucid for once, he waits, watches the shadows enter, then dives down, claws first, right onto Burster!

Spoiler: OOC

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Alright, let's see...

Rene will make a Stealth check to see if he can surprise Burster: (1d20+10)[17]

Next, he'll spring down and attack Burster once he moves through the door Rene is next to. Switching to Killer Instinct and Rending Claws.

Attack: (1d20+12)[19] DC 25 Toughness and Secondary Effect on hit. Include Weaken Toughness 10 and Secondary Effect if Killer Instinct applies.

[CandyLaser]

With Builder on Burster, Singular was left to Sarah. The alliteration has its appeal as well. From behind cover, she leveled her portal blaster at him, staying stock still as she lined up the perfect shot and trusting in Builder's defenses—as well as her own shunt field—to protect her. When the chaos erupted, she did her part, adding to it with one of her old standbys: a bolt of Jovian lightning. The flash was a brilliant jagged line of actinic white, and it was followed by an ear-splitting crack of thunder, one that shook the whole building and knocked dust from the rafters.

Spoiler: Actions and Rolls

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Polymath: let's go with All-Out, Power Attack, Favored Environment, and a couple ranks of Improved Critical. Going full all-out and full power attack, adding the FE bonus to hit. Here's the roll: (1d20+10)[30]. If that hits, it's a DC 34 Toughness save.

EDIT: And on a crit, it's a DC 39 save.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Round 2

Ronin

When Starsoul met Wolverine's enchanted claws in a parry, there was a crackle of meeting energies. Wolverine's runes sparked and sizzled with crimson light, and Starsoul's prismatic shine intensified to a full-fledged glow. As his claws slid off the blade, Wolverine took a slight nick to his hand. Nothing serious, the sort of trivial cut any sword-fighter would receive plenty of. It was an entirely trivial detail.

...Except for the part where it didn't heal.

Spoiler

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Due to his All Magic Comes With A Cost Complication, Starsoul - as a high-level enchanted weapon that inflicts Incurable wounds - deals lethal damage against Wolverine by default, although the wielder can actively tamp down on it to still deal nonlethal damage if desired. Lethal damage from Starsoul ignores the Persistent extra on Wolverine's Regeneration power, and is exempt from his Immortality power - it is capable of actually and permanently killing him.

Kara had Wolverine flat-out beat in speed, but speed wasn't everything. The problem with super-speed was that the brain was lazy; even a speedster's brain didn't actually give them up-to-the-picosecond information. Wolverine anticipated Kara's attack, started moving one way, and then in that moment between the decision being made and the action being initiated, shifted the other way. Kara went clear past him.

Magneto, on the other hand, didn't care about speed. Metal went where he wanted it to go, and right now he wanted to drive Colossus straight into Wolverine. Piotr hit Logan with a crushing impact, but Wolverine healed the damage instantly.

As for you...well, Wolverine had trained you. He knew every move you had, and he was rightfully wary of Starsoul after that parry. He avoided your attacks with subtle economy of motion, only moving his body the bare minimum amount to keep it away from Starsoul's enchanted edge.

Colossus gave you a firm nod and lunged forward. He wasn't Wolverine's match in a straight fight, but Wolverine was currently trying to take on a Kryptonian, one of the most powerful mutants on the planet, and you. Maybe it would give him an opening.

Then Wolverine struck back, falling further into the throes of his blood fury, he assailed every attacker around him with savage blows. But you know, every time he went for you, Colossus, or Supergirl, he somehow managed to align himself to take another swipe at Magneto. You'd really think that wouldn't be possible from some of those angles, but here we are. Even so, Magneto's forcefield was no weak defense, and he turned aside the worst of Wolverine's assault. Supergirl got stabbed a bit, nothing she couldn't take. Colossus might have been impaled outright, but Supergirl whisked him away at the last moment.

Magneto gave you a glower for giving him tactical orders, but when you're right you're right so he took to the air anyway. Maybe he should have taken the opportunity to run, but he had kinda been wanting to kill Wolverine ever since he went for Wanda, the last time you were all on Genosha. That didn't stop him from shouting down imperiously, "My powers work fine, Frederick! Now give me that!" Magneto made a wrenching gesture with his hand, and the unbridled force of the Master of Magnetism vied to pull Starsoul from your grasp.

Supergirl and Colossus kept up the effort to try and restrain Wolverine, coming in with a coordinated pincer attack, one going for each arm.

Spoiler

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Colossus:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Attack Wolverine with unarmed strike at (1d20+8)[10] vs. DC 24. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+14)[34]) DC 27 vs. Damage, Dodge ((1d20+14)[28]) DC 22 vs. Fast Grab. Whiff

Wolverine:
Attacks resolved OOC.

Magneto:
Free: Reconfigure Tactical Ferrokinesis. 24 points to Control Electromagnetic Spectrum, 6 points to Ferrokinetic Platform.
Move: Let's say 500' up.
Free: Activate Control Electromagnetic Spectrum.
+15 to remove Burst Area from from Control Metal.
-30 to Link Command Metal sans Cumulative and the Enhanced Extra to Control Metal.
Standard: Control Metal on Starsoul. Since Starsoul is made of metal, Magneto receives his PL increase. Fred give me Strength DC 30 vs. Disarm, and Will DC 30 against the Affliction. On a one-degree failure, Starsoul's Restricted function is partially bypassed by Magneto's supreme metal control; when attacking with Starsoul he can benefit from its flat-cost extras. On a two-degree failure he can use points from his Tactical Ferrokinesis array to activate Starsoul's other extras. On a three-degree failure he can use Starsoul's extras fully.

Supergirl:
Move: Dazed.
Free: Reconfigure Kryptonian Physiology array. 32 points for the Linked Selective Area Deflect of Kryptonian Senses, 18 points for Power Lifting and the immunity of Kryptonian Strength, 14 points for Flight 7 from Kryptonian Speed.
Standard: Attack Wolverine with Power Strike, Power Attacking for 2, at (1d20+12)[14]+Aid (below) vs. DC 24. On a hit, Track 1 Toughness ((1d20+14)[26]) DC 33 vs. Damage, both tracks Dodge ((1d20+14)[24], (1d20+14)[18]) DC 28 vs. Grab. Whiff

Colossus:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Aid Supergirl at (1d20+13)[15] after Teamwork. ...Okay really? In four attack rolls the allied NPCs can't roll above a two? Like what?

Ronin is on turn.

Everyone Else

To be fair, Magneto's guards did learn quickly. Faced with the ominous specter of another door, Burster blew it up from a dozen yards away.

It was just...it was just that they didn't learn quickly enough. Or no, no that wasn't really it. It was that they learned the wrong thing. They had learned that their arrival had been anticipated, and that traps had been prepared against them. And that, you know, sure, it was a good lesson to learn.

But they hadn't learned that they were going up against the Misfits.

If they had, maybe they would have done the smart thing, and run away.

As soon as the door went down, Gethsemane unleashed her ritual, deftly binding the metal of the knife with Periodic's armor, taking outright control of it - and forcing her to accept its movements or be crushed by her own mail. It was an odd thing indeed, for the metal-shaping guardian of Magneto to find metal turned into a threat to her, but here we were.

Sarah, meanwhile, unleashed a tremendous lightning blast on Singular. It struck him full force, but the mutant's damage resistance had not been exaggerated. It knocked him back on his heels, but didn't take him out.

Burster wasn't...too inclined to go running into that death trap, so he inflated his arms like one of those long balloons used to make balloon animals, reaching for Gethsemane, aiming to inflate her to lighten her and then pull her out to his team. As soon as the inflated arms crossed the threshold, Builder dropped down to rend them, but Burster managed to weave them out of harm's way and complete his attack.

Singular charged forward on his hoverboard, flying over the low wall Builder had provided as cover and grabbing for both Potence and Sarah's faces, in an attempt to crush them in his pneumatic grip.

Periodic...slashed at Burster, her sword still ablaze with the white fire of magnesium.

Spoiler

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Given the readied actions and stuff I'm just handwaving Burster blowing up the inner door. That's where Gethsemane and Sarah's actions trigger.

Burster:
Free: Reconfigure Self Inflation, 10 points to Lateral Inflation, 2 to Springy Flesh.
Move: ...He's good.
Free: Elongate arms into the building, triggering Builder's readied attack, but it misses.
Standard: Attack Gethsemane with Tactical Inflation at (1d20+12)[14] vs. DC 15 or (1d10+20)[22]. Since he's Elongating he can just Elongate around the cover. On a hit, Fortitude DC 22 vs. Dazed+Vulnerable/Stunned+Defenseless and Strength or Dodge DC 22 vs. being pulled Distance rank -2+points of failure towards Burster. Oh so it's not just the allied NPCs. I see how it is.

Singular:
Move: Dazed.
Standard: Charge Sarah and Potence using his Hoverboard, flying into M25 and attack Sarah and Potence with Grab and Crush, Multiattacking for 2. On a hit, Toughness DC 27 vs. Damage, Strength or Dodge DC 22 vs. Grab.
Sarah (DC 13 or (1d10+18)[28]): (1d20+10)[15]. Miss
Potence (DC 20 or (1d10+20)[22]): (1d20+10)[24]. Toughness: (1d20+12)[13]. Dodge: (1d20+10)[14]. Bruised and Staggered but I'll Luck Reroll the Dodge check

Periodic:
Move: Compelled.
Standard: Attack Burster with Magnesium Strike at (1d20+7)[19] vs. DC 24. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+10)[26]) DC 29 vs. Secondary Effect Damage. Miss
End of Turn: Fortitude to remove Disabled (DC 20): (1d20+7)[21]. Toughness to remove Compelled (DC 22): (1d20)[11]. Recovers a point of Toughness. Removes Disabled, Compelled Progresses to CONTROLLED!

All PCs are on turn.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Singular came in over Katie's shield, and would have gotten a firm grasp on her head if Rene hadn't jumped in the way. Katie kinda blinked at that. She wasn't really used to people jumping in the way for her. (Well, not any more, anyway; it had been a more common occurrence earlier in her heroic career. Superman had done it so many times when she was trying to help him fight Zod.)

"Thanks, Builder!" she said cheerily. Of course, one good turn deserved another. Katie set her right hand on Builder's...well, leg I guess since he's up on the low wall, pouring her augmentative power into him. Nothing fancy, just a straight investiture, directly boosting the speed and power of his next attack. Or two, whatever. Meanwhile, she stared down Burster and with a single word of power fired a pair of brilliant silver eye beams right at him!

(It wasn't quite an illusion; Katie was still better at evocation than illusion, so this was a legit light-evoking spell, it just didn't actually have enough power behind it to do more than, like, supplement a PowerPoint presentation. ...But Burster didn't need to know that.)

"...I kinda feel like you guys are overmatched here. Do you feel overmatched? Would you like to surrender? You're allowed to surrender!"

Spoiler

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Move: Feint Burster at (1d20+16)[30] vs. (1d20+16)[35]. On a success, use Set-up 2 to pass the benefit to herself and Builder. Resists

Free: Devote full Arcana points to Metamagic and activate it, adding Secondary Effect to Investiture.

Standard: Aid Builder's next attack. This triggers Investiture to also provide a Team Attack, and the Investiture will repeat next round. (1d20+17)[37]. Welp. CRITICAL BOOST! +5 to attack and damage for this attack, +5 damage for the next one

Current Status: Normal.

Shared Awareness is UNNEEDED.

[Zelphas]

Gethsemane catches herself smiling, and lets compassion once again overwhelm the shame. Having someone entirely under her control is not a new feeling (not even control via their armor, strangely enough), but it has been at least ten years. An eyeblink, in some ways, due to her lifespan. An entire lifetime, in others.

Tabling these musings for a later date, Gethsemane mentally directs Periodic to press the attack on Burster, making sure that the armor forwent self-defense in favor of stronger attacks. For herself, Gethsemane points a single claw at Singular, the light from her ring, staff, and forehead transitioning to an ugly blue-yellow that never quite becomes green. A black fireball, shot through with tongues of diseased-looking yellow, gathers on the tip of her claw, before spinning off of it towards the unbreakable man.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Move Action: Have Periodic attack Burster with whatever is strongest for her, having her use All-Out Attack and Power Attack at their max if they are available to her.

Free Action: Swap to Unholy Terror.

Standard Action: Use Unholy Terror on Singular. [roll]1d20+12[/roll] Crit in the OOC! On a hit, Damage DC 25 30, Will DC 20 25 vs. Entranced/Compelled/Controlled (Limited: only to run away).

Status: Fatigued.

[SuperCracker]

Things went to hell pretty quickly.

Ronin’s sword was snatched from his hands screaming (literally).

“Hey f*ck you, buddy! You are definitely not worthly. Wait – shhh--”

The sword instantly felt like it weighed an impossible amount, yet Magneto was somehow able to move it around. On top of the disadvantages of being disarmed, given what Ronin just learned about Starsoul and Wolverine. . . this was very bad news.

He quickly reassessed the situation. Magneto was not going to cooperate with them. He was actively handicapping Fred, putting Piotr in harms’ way, and now quite possibly looking to kill Logan. Whether Magneto realized the sword could do that or not was irrelevant. One bad swing was all it would take.

A fight on two fronts, then. Untenable when both sides overpower Ronin and his team. Instead, he needed to try and break this into two fights. Luckily, in protecting himself, Magneto helped to create the distance necessary to do that.

“Audible!” Ronin called. “Kara, Piotr; get some elevation. Focus on Magneto first, do not let him use that sword!”

As for being able to get Starsoul back, Ronin doubted he had the physical strength to do so. And even if he managed it, Magneto could just snatch it back easily all over again. But Ronin had grown as a hero. He no longer put everything on his own shoulders. No… there was someone here who could break through Magneto’s shield.

And Ronin was going to help her do it.

Ronin powered down to SSJ1, conserving his power and making sure he didn’t somehow accidentally boost Magneto’s usage of Starsoul. Then he shot up into the air, coming at Magneto with a furious series of punches and kicks. Ronin was possessed of super-strength, so it wasn’t like Magneto could just ignore him… and the goal was to distract.

“You arrogant *ss. We’re here specifically to save your worthless hide. We defended you when your own guard was murdering your country’s senators. And you have the nerve to manhandle my friends?!”

He smashed his hand into Magneto’s shield, inches from his face. Ronin’s knuckles were already bleeding from the ferocity. “And the thing is? We’re still going to save you. Because we’re heroes. We’re Project Tomorrow.”

“But we don’t have to be nice about it.”

Spoiler

Show

Per QD: Ronin is Outgunned. Favored Environment kicks in. Let’s do Attack.

Power down.

Move into the air adjacent to Magneto.

Standard Action: Aid Supergirl – Attack: (1d20+14)[28] vs. DC 10

[Starsign]

Rene's reptilian body moved, as ever, like it was instinct. The moment his eyes saw Singular moving past him, his limbs reached out and lunged to the side. Faster than the mutant, he stood right in front of Katie, just in time for a human-shaped arm to grab ahold of his head and crack his skull in several places. The resulting pain sends Rene squirming in pain, hissing in a loud, uncomfortable panic before giving off a faint sentence to the villain. "You... get away from her!"

God, he has a splitting headache. The thumping of his brain correlates with his vision blurring in and out. Drops of liquid slip off and around his tongue and many sharp teeth. Blood? ****, it's gotta be. He'll live, he'll live. He's suffered worse than this. He'll regenerate. Yeah! He'll just... AUGH! Stop!

When he finally comes to, he sees Burster's arms closest to him. And, less by thought and more by instinct, the reptilian slithers down, a wild look in his eyes, as he reaches his right claw back and stands up, slicing upward at the arms!

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Since Burster is elongating his arms, Rene shall attack them with Katie's boost. We'll switch to Survival Instinct and Predator's Strike to weaken/tear up the arms in a debilitating fashion. Power Attack +2/-2. DC 32 Toughness vs Damage and DC 27 Fortitude vs Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless: (1d20+15)[21] Rerolled

[CandyLaser]

Sarah, meanwhile, smoothly shifted her aim toward Burster, aiming to put him down for the count after the Builder's savage attack. Blunt force trauma wouldn't work, but that basically didn't mean anything for Sarah; blunt force trauma was one of the few things her portal blaster couldn't do easily. "For you... high-energy plasma stream, I think." Once again, she took her time to line up the shot, staying still before firing of a blast of incandescent particles at the mutant.

Spoiler: Actions and Rolls

Show

Why mess with a good thing, right? All-out and power attack once again. (1d20+10)[23] Same Polymath settings.

[Quellian-dyrae]

Round 3

Fred

If you thought Fred was at a disadvantage here, well, let me introduce you to Colossus.

Colossus was probably the least-powerful person here just from the word go, and worse, his power was somewhere between useless and actively detrimental against their current opponents. But you know what? Piotr Rasputin was still an X-Man. He didn't quit.

And if there was one thing the X-Men could do, it was teamwork.

"Kara," he said, when Fred called the new play. Then he deactivated his power, his body returning to (still superhumanly-durable, if not anywhere close to as much so) flesh and blood.

He reached out a hand to her. "Swing me."

Wolverine raged as his quarry took to the air to escape him. Magneto, however, felt precisely zero inclination to fight fair. As Fred rushed him, he lashed out with Starsoul, ferrokinetically slashing at Wolverine with lethal speed and power. "First you attack my daughter! And now me! It is long past time for you die, Logan!" he shouted down with vindictive fury. Magneto might not have been in quite the rage Wolverine was, but well, he was kinda taking things personally.

Kara gave Peter a blank look for about half a second, then she grinned, took his hand and went up, up, and into the fray, rushing Magneto in a blur of super-speed flight as Ronin launched his distracting attack. She came in from the opposite angle, swinging Colossus at him like a club, the no-longer-metallic-but-still-super-strong X-Man lending weight to the attack with a crushing double-kick of his own.

Down below, Wolverine stopped howling and ranting...and smirked. A crimson rune blazed brightly on his back.

And with a hideous squelching tear and a gout of blood, a pair of gleaming black adamantine freaking wings, covered with runes of power and speed, tore from Wolverine's back and launched him into the air like a bullet.

"Oh that is" "Just not right!"

Once again, Wolverine attacked his clustered foes, slashing at everyone with his claws, though with the wings charged his attacks came with a bit less strength and were a bit more awkward, so they didn't slice quite as cleanly through anything he hit. And of course, once more Magneto was the focus of his wrath, Wolverine swiping viciously at him in an effort to sunder his defenses.

Spoiler

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Wolverine:
...Delay.

Magneto:
Free: Reconfigure Tactical Ferrokinesis. 8 points to Ferrokinetic Platform, 7 points to Casual Metal Control, 15 points to Superior Ferrokinesis.
Move: He's good.
Standard: Attack Wolverine with Metal Slam using Starsoul at (1d20+15)[32]. On a hit vs. DC 24, Toughness ((1d20+14)[23]) DC 29+Multiattack vs. Damage, Fortitude ((1d20+14)[22]) DC 24 vs. Cumulative Dazed/Stunned/Incapacitated. Hit. +2 Multiattack. Track 1 Bruised and Dazed, and Dazed

Supergirl:
Free: Reconfigure Kryptonian Physiology. 20 points for Flight 10 from Kryptonian Speed, 12 points for Power Lifting 10 and the Features from Kryptonian Strength, 32 points for the Linked Deflect from Kryptonian Senses.
Free: Pick up Colossus.
Move: Into Close range of Magneto.
Standard: Attack Magneto with Crushing Blow, Power Attacking for 4, +5 for Aid, at (1d20+15)[35] vs. DC 25. If that misses since a PC is supporting this attack she'll spend one of her Luck rerolls ((1d10+25)[33]). On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+15)[21]) DC 31+Team Attack (counting Bruise) vs. Damage, and if it fails to beat DC 25 his Toughness is also Weakened. In addition, Supergirl, Colossus, and Ronin are Deflected at 1d10+26, -1 for each point their Toughness exceeds 14 (so, +26 Ronin, +25 Colossus, +24 Supergirl). Would be a crit but Magneto's armor makes him immune. Regardless, Staggered and -4 Toughness

Colossus:
Move: Nah.
Standard: Support Kara with a Team Attack, All Out Attacking for 5, Power Attacking for 3 to get within the five ranks after her Power attack, +5 for Teamwork, at (1d20+15)[30] vs. DC 25. On a hit, Kara gets +2 to her Damage DC, or +5 on the off chance of a three-degree hit. Or Magneto's above Toughness save will be against DC 30 Damage on the off chance that Kara misses and he hits without counting the Teamwork bonus. +2, which happened to be the difference between a Daze and a Stagger there. TEAMWORK!

Wolverine: (For real this time!)
Free: Swap Predator array to Flight Rune.
Track 2 Move: Into Close range of...well, everyone pretty much.
Track 2 Standard: Whirlwind Attack! Dodge DC 24 for half, Toughness (since Blood Fury is off now) DC 29/22 vs. Incurable Damage.

Colossus: Dodge (-5 for AoA): (1d20)[11]. Toughness (Yes!...Except dang it my power's off!): (1d20+15)[30]. Full Effect. Full tank! Colossus feels complete.
Supergirl: Dodge: (1d20+14)[25]. Toughness (-2 for Bruises): (1d20+14)[18]. Half effect. Bruised.
Magneto: Dodge: (1d20+14)[30]. Toughness (-1 for Bruise, may be worse from above): (1d20+14)[16]. Colossus will Area Interpose that! He is a contributing member of this team!

Track 1 Move: Meh. Might be Dazed by this point so whatever.
Track 1 Standard: Attack Magneto with Sunder at (1d20+14)[23] vs. DC 25. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+15)[16] or less) DC 30 (counting Bruise, may be more) vs. Damage. If he fails to beat DC 24, his Stamina is Weakened. Miss

Ronin is on turn.

Everybody Else

If you think Colossus was at a disadvantage here, well! Let me introduce you...to Burster!

Let's review, shall we?

Periodic was mind body armor-controlled and fighting against him. Gethsemane's fireball, though it didn't seem to do much damage to Singular (although it did knock him off his hoverboard, though he would scramble quickly back on), and sent him fleeing in terror. Rene's augmented claws tore savagely into his arms, and he managed to dodge Sarah's plasma blast by inches. It left him worse than alone, plus mildly injured, facing four to one odds against the freaking Misfits!

And you know, sure. He still had his powers. He didn't need any weapons. He wasn't facing opponents with a massive advantage of raw personal power - in those terms he was in fact a bit stronger than any of his opponents, the compelled (but badly injured) Periodic aside. His only real disadvantage here was numbers.

And the fact that those numbers were made up of the freaking Misfits.

Colossus didn't know how good he had it. (EDIT after seeing the results of the round: this is incorrect. Colossus clearly knows exactly how good he has it.)

He was hampered by the injury that Builder had inflicted, but this...this was not a winnable battle. Singular fled in one direction. Burster. He was faster than Periodic in both senses of the term; Gethsemane's ritual allowed her to activate the magnesium jet pack in Periodic's armor, but it was nowhere near powerful enough to catch up to Burster's floaty parkouring.

Spoiler

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I rolled their opposed initiatives off-line, but Burster won handily with his +20 to her +10.

Singular:
Move: Compelled.
Free: Get back on hoverboard.
Standard: Flee using his hoverboard at Flight 12.
End of Turn: Will to remove Affliction (DC 25): (1d20+10)[25]. Didn't see that coming. Recovers.

Burster:
Move: Dazed.
Free: Swap to Floating Parkour.
Standard: Flee in the opposite direction of Singular at "Flight" (he has to begin and end each movement solidly supported, so he's running and jumping just like super-floaty about it) 12.

Periodic:
Free: Swap to Magnesium Jetpack.
Move: Staggered.
Standard: Fly after Burster. Unfortunately her jet pack gives her Flight 10 at best, and six of those ranks are Limited to Double Moving which she can't do while staggered.

I'm not calling this battle over though, since like...it's probably a good idea to chase these guys down so they can't try this again later and such. Up to ya'll though. Katie is offering speed buffs if anyone wants them.

All PCs are on turn.

[SuperCracker]

Fred’s friends are uniformly the best.

Ronin was a bit too busy rushing Magneto to see the set up, but he saw the execution with Colossus swinging in with the kick of the century. The blow looked like it cleaned Magneto’s clock. “Logan is mind controlled or possessed! It’s not him! And he didn’t attack your daughter because I was long gone with her. Your daughter has been living with my Aunt. She and Logan sit at the same dinner table.”

Sure Ronin made his case, but he was convinced they would need to knock Magneto unconscious. If they got to that point, it would present its own tactical challenges. We shall burn that bridge when we get there.

Speaking of bad things. Ronin has seen a tremendous volume of weird stuff across his present and past lives, so he normally isn’t too affected by seeing something weird. But when you mix his friend, that evil smirk, and some body horror, well, his eyes grew big.

“Right,” he said quietly before moving to defend himself against the attack. Without his weapon, he had nothing to parry with. He would have taken a deep stab from Wolverine if not for Piotr stepping in to help.

And the way Piotr was able to tank these attacks made Ronin realize something. It’s like Ronin’s spells. Logan (or if that was even Logan at all inside) had to choose. Flight or power.

“Stay airborne!”

Ronin kept his focus on Magneto. The bum-rush trick likely wouldn’t work twice, so instead Ronin used his super speed to flash-step repeatedly around Magneto, appearing to come at him from all sides at once and obscuring his vision of any other attacks coming.

And right at the last second, before Supergirl and Colossus attacked again, Fred totally powered down, his aura flickering out like a candle and his hair going back to normal. Ronin took all that magic and threw it into his vision. He looked right at Wolverine with True Sight. Time to figure out exactly what was going on.

Spoiler

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Move: Nah, he’s a meat shield here.

Standard: Aid Supergirl – (1d20+14)[28]

Free: Deactivate Metamorph. Dumps Fred back into his normal form.
Free: Switch to True Sight - Ranged, Acute, Analyze Detect Powers; Visual Counter Concealment (Invisibility), Visual Counter Illusions; Enhanced Perception 8, Enhanced Insight 4

Perception roll if needed: (1d20+19)[26]

[Starsign]

From frantic hisses to heavy breaths, Rene relaxes, relatively, upon seeing the would-be assassins flee from the stronghold. That... went surprisingly well. Now the Misfits can- wait, no, no, they can't let them go! They'd be back, surely, possibly with reinforcements. Rene didn't reinforce this place to stand for a long time.

On his clawed hands and feet, he zips over to the entrance of the building, God, they're fast. Which was the one who can't be cut? Singularity or something? Rene can probably just throw his fist and tail hard enough. He will just need a way to catch up. After all they're... prey... prey...

Prey.

...

Slithering back to the Misfits, he gives a rough, shaky-yet-determined look with his reptilian eyes. "I can't keep up with them," he notes. perhaps... obviously. He looks over at the standing Gethsemane, Katie, and Sarah; though taller when standing up, his slithering pose renders him at prone height."Shouldn't we chase after them? Don't we have some sort of spell or portal?" He practically grinds his many sharp teeth together, antsy over the thought of Fred stuck dealing with Wolverine and/or Magneto. But Fred should be fine; he should be fine. They've dealt with much worse so far.

Rene just wants to hunt get everyone out alive. After being cynical for the longest time, a little idealism, after all their planning and preparation, can't hurt, right?

[Quellian-dyrae]

When bad guys went fleeing at superhuman speed, you couldn't really afford to wait. As Rene went zipping for the door, Katie went shooting out past him, scooping up Gethsemane on her Helping Hand and flying fast after Burster. She'd snag Periodic on the way; her armor wouldn't put up any resistance, and conveniently it had the say right now.

Training in the Danger Room with Fred over these past months, she had learned a lot of things. One of them was the (objectively) correct way to chase down a fleeing opponent when you had the superior speed. With her Helping Hand augmented by some quick metamagic, Katie did. This could only end one way for Burster...

As the inflatable villain landed from one long superhuman leap, suddenly in a shining blur of silver, Katie, Gethsemane, and Periodic would be right in front of him! "Ha!" she cheered. A perfect execution! Except...wait, she felt like she had missed some-...

"Wait...flip! I was supposed to punch you!" Poor Katie. She wanted so badly to be cool.

But hey, maybe Gethsemane and Periodic could handle the hitting part...

Spoiler

Show

Free: Swap to Augment Arcana and reconfigure Arcana array. Full Metamagic, full Flying Hand, the other 16 points into Shared Awareness.

Free: Metamagic for +5 Platform Flight, +5 Deception, and with what's left just make sure Shared Awareness has all its Features and is rank 3.

Move: Chase Burster, using Free Lift to whisk Gethsemane and Periodic with her, end movement right in front of him.

Standard: Feint Burster at (1d20+21)[35] vs. (1d20+16)[22]. If it succeeds, use Set Up 2 to pass the benefits to Gethsemane and Periodic. Feinted

Shared Awareness is kinda redundant really but at least we can keep track of each other's position and status I suppose.

Current Status: Normal.

[Zelphas]

Gethsemane deduces the plan about halfway through her journey on the magical hand construct. By the time she lands, she has already directed Periodic to attempt another attack; for her own part, she springs forwards, her claws dripping with bright scarlet flame.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

Move Action: Direct Periodic. Priority goes to All-Out Power Attacking with a ranged move, then attacking with a Perception move, if she has either, and finally All-Out Power Attacking with her strongest attack, if she has neither ranged nor perception-range moves.

Free Action: Swap to Claws of Rage.

Standard Action: Use Claws of Rage on Burster, All-Out Attacking for 3, Power Attacking for 5. 16 to hit in OOC Nope, 22. On a hit, Parry DC 30 + Multiattack vs. Secondary Effect Damage.

Status: Fatigued, -3 to Active Defenses (this turn).

[CandyLaser]

"Rene, you're with me." Sarah made a quick cutting motion with her hand and sliced a hole in the world.

All right, that wasn't what happened at all. Technically, she manipulated the Higgs field to create a temporary accumulation of virtual mass, bending spacetime itself and opening up a variant semi-stable Einstein-Rosen bridge, with one end in front of her and Builder and the other right by where Periodic was about to be, according to her projections. The cutting motion wasn't strictly necessary, but it added a nice bit of flair.

"Mind your step; I don't know if you remember, but the transition can be disorienting."

Spoiler: Actions

Show

I believe the only thing Sarah can do to teleport Builder (without a power stunt) is open up a Portal, which is her action for the round.

[Starsign]

Sarah's warning was well-timed, for the moment Rene dashed into the portal, he found his head spinning and nearly tripping over his clawed hands. Hadn't he teleported recently? No, wait, he hadn't thrown himself at a portal so quickly in so long.

He does, however, quickly recover and find himself face-to-face with the retreating Singular. Without giving the mutant time to escape, Rene pummels Singular with a raving flurry of strikes. His fists, tail, and knees smash into the foe's body with enough primal force to cripple and weaken Singular. Ideally, Rene can keep a hold on him in order to prevent any further escape.

Spoiler: OOC

Show

I'll switch to Self-Defense Instinct and Predator's Strike. Since I've got a Team Attack, I'll Power Attack +5/-5. DC 30 Toughness vs Damage and DC 25 Fortitude vs Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless on hit. (1d20+12)[16]

[Quellian-dyrae]

Round 4

Ronin

With Magneto's attention on Fred, Supergirl and Colossus were able to deliver a crushing attack that smashed through his forcefield and left a spiderweb of cracks all through his armored costume. Honestly Wolverine might have killed him right there if Colossus hadn't turned him aside.

Furious contempt ignited on Magneto's face.

"Because you took her! You took her away, and you took her powers away!" Magneto shot back in what was certainly an...interesting revisionist take on history. As Fred started blurring around him, and Supergirl and Wolverine were coming in for their next attacks, he yelled, "And I have just about had it with ALL OF YOU!"

A ripple of electromagnetic energy burst out from Magneto, leaving hair standing on end all around him and reinforcing his forcefield. Down below, streetlights swayed and cars wobbled. Starsoul came flying black, and Magneto sent the soulsword lashing out all around him, hacking and slashing at his foes with utter abandon.

Spoiler: Open only if you choose to Interfere (see the mechanics spoiler)

Show

But even though Magneto's power had suppressed Starsoul's own command of its magic, Starsoul was still a soulsword. It was still bound to you. That bond, not even Magneto could break.

You moved in an instant, knowing in the same sort of indelible way that information came through Katie's Shared Awareness spell exactly where you had to move, so that even Magneto's prowess could not slip the blade around you. You stepped into the attack-

-and Starsoul ran you clean through.

"BOSS!" Starsoul cried out, and that was officially it. Magneto may have been able to force the Soulsword to attack Wolverine - under protest - but no one, but no one, gets away with making Starsoul hurt its boss. Prismatic light shined out, steaming from the wound where Starsoul was buried in your chest, as the Soulsword pit all of its magic against Magneto's command of metal. If freaking Wolverine could do it, Starsoul could too!

And Magneto's power shattered.

Starsoul was free, and back in your hands.

(Well, okay, in your chest, more precisely. But you're Ronin so I figure close enough.)

Fred was correct, Wolverine had to make the choice between flight and power. The strategy of staying in the air to reduce his effectiveness was a good one, but it came with one tiny flaw.

This was the flipping Wolverine!

Logan threw himself into a lethal spin, lashing out all around with his claws with his full predatory power, as always focusing his attack predominantly on Magneto. This, of course, required deactivating his flight rune - the wings were still out, but without the magic, I mean, they were made of adamantium. Lead balloon doesn't even describe it. Wolverine plummeted immediately to the ground, from five hundred feet up.

Which, you know, I'm sure would cause serious and lasting injury.

Kara and Colossus didn't press their attack immediately - if they had, a follow-up from Wolverine could kill Magneto. They'd let the berserk mutant strike first. But if Magneto tanked him? Well, they were more than happy to finish the job with a classic one-two punch right to the face! If Magneto was down, Kara'd catch him, set him on a roof for the time being, and then they'd go back to Plan A of binding Wolverine's arms (and...I guess his wings too now).

Spoiler

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Magneto:
Move: Staggered.
Extra Effort - Additional Standard Action: Recover from Staggered.
Free: Reconfigure Tactical Ferrokinesis. 2 points to Ferrokinetic Platform, 24 points to Control Electromagnetic Spectrum, 4 points to Alternate Resistance [Parry] from Starsoul.
Free: Use Control Electromagnetic Spectrum. +15 to buy off Selective from Metal Storm, -7 to Remove the Full Action limit from the Enhanced Extra on Metal Storm, -15 points to add Linked Deflect 15 (Perception Range, Limited [Close]) to Metal Storm, the other 8 points folded back to Tactical Ferrokinesis for another 8 ranks of Alternate Resistance [Parry].
Standard: Metal Storm. Perception Range Area attack. Ronin, Colossus, Supergirl, and Wolverine take Toughness DC 30 vs. Damage. If your Parry is at least three lower than your Toughness, this is instead Parry DC 27. Magneto is Deflected at +15. Ronin! Although you don't have Area or Perception Interpose, since this attack is being made with Starsoul you may interfere with it. This will negate the attack entirely for everyone else, but Ronin will automatically receive a Bruised and Staggered result. Since this attack comes from Starsoul it is of course Incurable, and the injury he takes would be too severe to Recover from.
End of Turn: Recover a point of Toughness.

Spoiler: If you choose not to Interfere

Show

Supergirl Toughness (-3 for Bruises): (1d20+13)[21]. Bruised and Dazed
Colossus Parry (-1 for Bruise): (1d20+4)[18]. Bruised and Dazed
Wolverine Track 1 Toughness (-1 for Bruise): (1d20+13)[25]. Bruised
Wolverine Track 2 Toughness: (1d20+14)[20]. Bruised and Dazed

Spoiler: If you choose to Interfere

Show

Starsoul:
Fiat Extra Effort - Power Stunt off of Restricted and Indestructible. Immunity 2 (Rare Descriptor - Metal Control). Starsoul can be damaged (but it defends with your stats and would still impose the held item penalty of attacks without Improved Smash, so like, not easily) and used by others for the duration of this battle, but is no longer subject to Magneto's powers.

Wolverine:
Move: He's exactly where he wants to be.
Free: Swap to Blood Fury. This will cause him to fall, but not before-
Track 1 Standard: Whirlwind Attack. Ronin, Supergirl, Colossus, and Magneto get Dodge DC 24 for half, Dodge DC 29/22 vs. Damage.
Supergirl: Half: (1d20+14)[17]. Resist: (1d20+11)[28]. Bruised
Colossus: Half: (1d20)[19]. Resist: (1d20+4)[10]. Supergirl will Area Interpose that
Magneto: Half: (1d20+17)[25]. Resist: (1d20+13)[16]. Bruised and Dazed
Track 2 Standard: Attack Magneto with Sunder (not activating the Enhanced Extra from Blood Fury for this) at (1d20+14)[17] vs. DC 27, Deflected at (1d10+25)[33]. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+12)[18]) DC 31/24 vs. Damage Linked Weaken Stamina. Miss

Colossus:
Move: ...Dangle?
Standard: Attack Magneto (or Wolverine if Magneto's down) as a Team Attack with Kara, Accurate Attacking for 2, +5 for Teamwork, at (1d20+15)[31]. Targeting Magneto. +2

Spoiler: If you choose to Interfere

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Extra Effort - Additional Standard Action: DO IT AGAIN at (1d20+15)[17]. Miss

Supergirl:
Free: Reconfigure Kryptonian array. 32 points to the Enhanced Kryptonian Combat of Super Strength, 6 points for Power Lifting 5 and Free Lift from Kryptonian Strength, 26 points for Flight 13 from Kryptonian Speed
Move: If Magneto's down, catch him with Free Lift and fly him to a roof, then move into Close range of Wolverine. If they fail to Grab him she'll Move-by back in the air so he can't toss Parry-resisted Area attacks around so easily.
Standard: If Magneto's still up, attack him with Hasted Strike at (1d20+14)[18]+Aid vs. DC 27, Deflected at (1d10+25)[32]. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+10)[21]) DC 31+Multiattack+Team Attack vs. Damage, Fortitude ((1d20+15)[26]) DC 26+Multiattack vs. Dazed+Vulnerable/Stunned+Defenseless. Otherwise, it's a Power Strike against Wolverine (DC 24), and the resistance checks are Toughness (adding +4) DC 31+Team Attack vs. Damage, Dodge (-1 from above) DC 26+Team Attack vs. Grab. He also gets a Dodge roll from his second track since both would be Grabbed: (1d20+14)[20]. Miss

Spoiler: If you choose to Interfere

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Extra Effort - Additional Standard Action: DO IT AGAIN at (1d20+14)[21], Deflect: (1d10+25)[32], Toughness: (1d20+10)[21], Fortitude: (1d20+15)[28], and possible extra Dodge if this is Wolverine: (1d20+14)[17]. Come on guys! Miss.

Ronin is on turn.

Gethsemane and Katie

Burster managed to defend surprisingly well against the sudden attack. I mean, he was still slashed up some and set on fire, but you know, it could have been worse, is what I'm saying! On the one hand, three-to-one odds were...actually slightly worse than five-to-two. On the other hand, running didn't seem to matter to these guys at all? So whatever screw it! He was part of Magneto's personal guard! Burster attacked! A snap of his fingers, and the insides of all three of his foes began filling with air, threatening to crush them from the inside out! (Periodic, who was already being threatened with being crushed by her armor from the outside-in, was really just having a great day at this point. Honestly just super.)

But you know assuming she was able to endure that, sure, Periodic would do what she could to prevent both forms of being crushed with a robotic slash of her magnesium blade at her erstwhile teammate.

...And then Moses Forst was suddenly there, arriving between one instant and the next to slash at Potence with his holy sword charged with his dispelling powers, the attack simultaneously radiating a burst of dispelling energy over the area.

"GIMME BACK MY KNIFE YOU UNNATURAL *****!" yelled the very angry, very well-armed, and inexplicably both awake and here Moses Forst.

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Potence (to the Team Pool) and Gethsemane take a Hero Point for my Fiating Moses A) able to break free of Katie's Finisher (something something mutant power Dispelling) and B) managing to find his way to the fight. Because Moses Forst is just the worst!

Burster:
Move: Charge Crush Insides.
Standard: Crush Insides on Gethsemane, Potence, and Periodic. Perception-range Area attack. Toughness DC 27 vs. Damage.
Potence: (1d20+12)[13]. ...I'm just gonna have her spend that Hero Point and reroll this.
Periodic (-1 for Bruise, -5 for Weaken): (1d20+6)[16]. StaggeredX2 = INCAPACITATED!

Periodic: (if still up)
Move: Staggered.
Standard: Attack Burster with Magnesium Strike, All Out Attacking for 5, Power Attacking for 5, at (1d20+12)[20] vs. DC 17. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+8)[12]) DC 27 vs. Progressive, Secondary Effect Damage.

Moses Forst:
Move: Arrive and move into Close range of Katie with Dispel Time.
Free: Swap to Dispel Magic.
Standard: Attack Katie with Bane Weapons (Variable Descriptor set to Dispelling Holy Sword) at (1d20+12)[14] vs. DC 20. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+12)[15]) DC 27 vs. Damage, Defense ((1d20+10)[21]) DC 22 vs. Weaken All Defenses. In addition, he Counters active Magical effects in a Burst Area. Miss
Periodic's Affliction: Moses: (1d20+12)[27]. Affliction: (1d20+11)[25]. Countered, for what it's worth. Not the best coordination by the bad guys but what can you do?
Burster's Secondary Effect: Moses: (1d20+12)[28]. SE: (1d20+11)[28]. Ties go to higher bonus, so Countered
Pretty sure anything else that's on could just be reactivated as a free action so whatever.

Potence and Gethsemane are on turn.

Sarah and the Builder

Sarah's calculations were correct, as always. The portal opened and gave the Builder a clean route to Singular. Unfortunately, he managed to dodge the lizard-man's blow.

Spitting a curse, Singular waded in, lunging to wrap both his arms around the Builder's waist and crush him until he was no longer a threat.

Spoiler

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Singular:
Move: Meh.
Standard: Attack Builder with Grab and Crush at (1d20+12)[23] vs. DC 19. On a hit, Toughness DC 27+Multiattack vs. Damage, Strength or Dodge DC 22+Multiattack vs. Grab. Hit

Sarah and Builder are on turn.

[Zelphas]

"No."

Gethsemane ignores Burster for the moment, immediately turning towards the hunter and striking at him full force with her claws.

Spoiler: OOC

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Move Action: Close with Forst.

Standard Action: Use Claws of Rage on Forst, All-Out Power Attacking for 5. (1d20+12)[31] On a hit, Parry DC 30+Multiattack vs. Secondary Effect Damage.

Extra Effort + Hero Point: Use Claws of Rage on Forst, All-Out Power Attacking for 5. (1d20+12)[24] On a hit, Parry DC 30+Multiattack vs. Secondary Effect Damage. IF Forst is inexplicably dropped by the first attack, this will attack Burster.



Status: Fatigued, -5 to Active Defenses (this turn).

[Quellian-dyrae]

Katie's training with Fred continued paying dividends. When Forst came at her she spun and thrust both hands hard into the wrist of his sword arm, with her full weight behind them. Katie's full weight wasn't much and she remained exactly as strong as she looked, but it was still the full strength of her body against his one arm, and she didn't have to stop him cold, just knock his strike a few inches to the side. Forst's sword swung past her harmlessly.

Meanwhile, she kinda boggled at him.

"Are you flipping serious!? You are supposed to be sleeping! And we were going to bring the knife back, we only needed to borrow it for a few hours but you attacked us! If you had just talked-" but actually Gethsemane was kinda slashing him up and setting him on fire now so...maybe not the best time for an argument. She reached out to cast upon Forst...and suddenly pivoted towards Burster.

Gethsemane had Forst covered, so she figured best to keep on him or he might try to slip away again.

Solar fire was an interesting energy. It was a force of both creation and destruction, capable of healing or inflicting injuries. A true master could wield both of its aspects together, healing friends while harming foes, or even invoking an area blast that would damage all enemies within while healing all allies. Katie wasn't nearly evoker enough to pull off something like that; she could invoke solar fire, but it would basically just do both things to the same target, healing the damage as it was inflicted.

Which sounded pretty useless, but the thing was, healing took a lot of energy. Normally, that energy had to come from Katie. But she was a way better healer than evoker; there were ways to cast healing spells that drew more from the target than the caster. Not great for emergency response since most normal people didn't have the energy to fuel any serious healing. Also not so useful in battle, as it would generally leave the target lethargic, even cause them to pass out.

But when you combined the two, you got an attack that healed the damage - including any pain (Katie was...a little more attentive to that after receiving Gethsemane's healing) - as fast as it was inflicted, while inducing a gradually-deepening lethargy on your target. Burster would be familiar with the premise; Stitch used the same sort of attacks.

Except Katie's version had one little extra advantage over Stitch's healing energy constructs.

As long as you weren't causing needless suffering, there really were just several concrete tactical advantages to setting your opponents on fire!

Spoiler

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Free: Metamagic to add Alternate Resistance (Toughness) to Slumber and change the descriptor to [Energy] [Solar].

Move: Feint Burster at (1d20+16)[18] vs. (1d20+16)[18], using Set Up 2 to pass the benefits to herself and Gethsemane because why not. Resists

Standard: Attack Burster with Slumber Invoke Solar Fire. If the Feint succeeds she'll Power Attack for 5, otherwise Accurate Attack for 2. (1d20+14)[32] vs. DC 24. On a hit, Toughness ((1d20+8)[9]) DC 23 vs. Progressive Sleep Damage. Holy snap Katie can attack! Bruised and Staggered

Shared Awareness if OFF (although we're still in telepathic contact thanks to Professor X).

Current Status: 1 Bruise.

[SuperCracker]

“What?!” was Fred’s incredulous response to Magneto, even as they were all getting attacked by Wolverine. He felt his hairs stand on end, not just from his danger sense kicking off (that had been on red alert for a sustained period by now) and heard the creak and groan of the surrounding metal. This was going to be bad. And it was. Starsoul’s enchanted blade was a bane to everyone present. And everyone present was someone Fred loved.

Kara was vulnerable to magic.

Piotr’s toughness wouldn’t help against Starsoul’s edge.

Wolverine couldn’t heal its attacks.

When Ronin felt the path of the attack, his choice was not really a choice. The sword came screaming (literally in defiance) towards Kara first. Ronin flung himself into its path. He knew he was going to catch the blade with his center mass. The best he could do would be to avoid taking a fatal strike. He turned his body at just the right moment before the sword slammed into and through his chest. Blood splattered from the blow.

The whole world turned into searing white pain. Ronin was famously able to shrug off pain and punishment to keep fighting at 100%. But even he couldn’t ignore aggravated damage like Starsoul could dish out.

The world came back into focus. Starsoul was sticking out of his chest and shoulder-blade, lodged just beneath his collar bone on his right side. It had missed his lungs and heart, but rendered his right arm useless, hanging at his side. He could feel that Starsoul had broken free of Magneto’s control.

Ronin didn’t have time to reflect. Wolverine attacked again and Fred avoided those deadly claws by the skin of his teeth. He reached up to grip his sword when he had a thought. They objectively need Magneto, bastard that he is, to try and save Genosha and the world even. They could also really use his help here… but how to make him understand.

Fred, as we’ve established, is not much of a wizard. He’s a fighter (or maybe paladin) with some spell-like abilities. Katie’s a wizard, though, and Fred had been paying attention. For the moment, while Magneto was still trying to use Starsoul and Fred held the weapon, he had an idea.

“Starsoul, let him grasp you,” magnetically speaking anyway, “just for one second.” And when Starsoul gave him the signal, Ronin used that sudden, strong thaumaturgical connection between himself and Magneto to cast a bastardized version of Shared Awareness. Except this one went further than words.

--------
Magneto found himself inside of a mindscape. Normally, with his helmet fashioned to block Xavier, Magneto doesn’t have to worry about this sort of thing. But Ronin used magic, not standard telepathy.

Fred was standing across from Magneto, calm and collected. The upside to a mindscape is that you can ignore the impalement you are suffering in the outside world. “We are going to come to an understanding now before we all get each other killed.”

Fred gestured over. When Magneto turned, he was facing the warped, 1950’s style happy sitcom home Wanda had constructed in the Fey realms. Magneto had been incapacitated at the time, so he didn’t see what had happened.

“Just watch.”

Everything began to play like a movie.

Spoiler

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See House of Maximoff, page 2 of the thread.

“Wanda was hurting. She couldn’t control her powers. They tortured her and they whispered things to her. Wicked things.”

"No more Avengers"

"No more Wanda"

"No more Joker"

"No more mutants"

"No more Brotherhood"

"No more X-Men"

"No more Maximoffs"

"No more humans"

"No more Ronin"

"No more Excalibur"

"No more Justice League"

"No more multiverse"

“She was being compelled to wipe us all out of existence. It would have been the end of mutant and human -- possibly of everything in every reality. You. Me. Quicksilver. Wanda herself.”

He showed Magneto the white-skinned man with diamond eyes urging Fred to kill her, and Fred throwing the man across the room and refusing. Then Ronin approaching her and hugging her tightly, imploring her to stop. Again refusing to end her life even though it looked like the only choice.

And he showed her the choice Wanda made.

”No more Scarlet Witch.”

“She was the hero that day. She sacrificed her powers to save everything. Can you fathom how noble that is?”

The scene faded away.

“She was still having a hard time after that. She has lost so much. But we took her in because we love her. She’s easy to love.”

Fred showed Magneto all the warm moments shared between his friends, his family, and Wanda. He showed Magneto what he was missing.

“She’s great. Powers or not, she’s a good person. We enjoy having her in our lives. But you are still her father and she has not cast you away. Why do you think she came with me here to Genosha? To see you and her brother.”

“She’s not gone. She didn’t die. She’s still here. Make an effort to see her. I’m a teleporter for f***’s sakes. She can and will visit you. But if you’re holding back because she gave up her powers, that’s your problem and you need to get over it. She’s still your daughter and she needs all the family she can get.”

Fred gave Magneto a wry smile. “Take it from me as an expert on self-torture, walking away from these things never does any good. It just hurts the ones we love and it makes us feel bad.”

The images all faded away now. Magneto was alone with Fred Broll.

“Anyway, can we drop whatever resentment this is? I am not your enemy. The whole point of us coming here was to help defend you against Wolverine. The animosity needs to end.”

“We need your help and you need ours. That’s not just this fight right now. Your nation is under assault by Yellow Lanterns and soon the Earth will be attacked by a genocidal celestial madman and his war-planet. We need to work as one or we all die. That includes Wanda.”

“I don’t care if you like me and I don’t care if you have a hard time working with humans. We need to do this for the mutant race to survive. For all of us to survive. There is no choice. Please. Help us and help yourself.”
-------

Ronin pulled Starsoul free from his chest with his left hand (good thing he’s a lefty). He grit his teeth and grunted. Blood poured from his body like a fountain when the blade was removed. His breathing was labored.

He looked at Magneto now. “Ball’s in your court. Better make it quick cause he’s flying up here again real soon.”

And with that, Ronin exploded back into SSJ2, erupting into a bright gold aura and crackling arcs of electricity then slashing Starsoul down at Wolverine, projecting a lethal (though he expected Wolverine to tank this pretty well) strike of magically-delivered TK into Logan.

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Okay. So Fred power stunts off of Starsoul oddly enough since it’s the thaumaturgical connection.

Mystic Mindscape: Mental Communication 1 (Rapid 6, Feature 1 [Mindscape]), enhanced skill: Persuasion +20) , not sure what other extras are helpful here but those are the big ones.

Using that hyper-rapid communication, Fred attempts to convince Magneto to stop fighting and help. (1d20+20)[40] – I will HP a bad result cause I feel this is urgent.

Move: Nope, staggered.

Free: Metamorph and switch to SSJ2.

Standard: TK Swordplay on Wolverine – DC 26 toughness, incurable with secondary effect. Fred will risk making this lethal, trying to soften him up on at least one of his Health tracks with something he can’t heal.

[Quellian-dyrae]

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Talking is a free action and I abuse that fact with gusto.

...I mean, technically Fred acted so the NPCs here could take their actual turns, but I'll hold that for the main post.

For the duration of the mind link...Magneto did not speak. He watched. He saw.

And he looked...old, there, in that phantasmal place. Tired. On his face was the same weary expression that had been on Xavier's, after the attack.

And then...something changed. It wasn't anything big. Like a quark zigging when it should have zagged, an electron jumping into the wrong orbit, a neuron firing when it was supposed to remain quiescent.

Like somewhere, out in the wide, wide universe, some tiny variable in the grand equation...changed.

Fred slashed at Wolverine from across the air, cutting into him, although his puissant regenerative powers managed to heal most of the injury before they were countered by the interaction between Starsoul's enchantments and the runes he now bore, keeping it from being too severe. But there was no denying he felt it.

And then Magneto thrust an arm out in front of Fred, a stalling gesture. "Hold!"

Out here, Magneto no longer looked old, he no longer looked tired. The expression on his face was not one of weariness, but it was one Fred had seen before.

It was the look that the Master of Magnetism got when he was riding out to save a mutant.

"You said he is...possessed, or something?" Magneto asked.

And then he took off his helmet.

"I'm his target, so I'm the bait," Magneto said. He spoke calmly but firmly, not so much brooking no argument as simply stating a fact. "Supergirl, Colossus, once he has engaged me, do what you can to impede and distract him. Ronin,"

He held out his helmet.

"I know you can conceal yourself from the senses. That helmet is not durable enough to withstand adamantium, and any competent mind-controller will act to protect its thralls from being freed. If he sees it coming he'll tear it to shreds. I know you have the power to conceal yourself from the senses. You're the only one here who has the necessary stealth. Once they have him distracted, get that helmet on his head."

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While you have since become aware that Wolverine isn't fully mind controlled, his emotions are being pushed, and Magneto's helmet would offer defense against that. It won't fix whatever underlying issues caused Wolverine to make these choices in the first place, but at the very least it might allow you to get through to him.

Supergirl and Colossus kinda looked uncertainly at you, since you know they hadn't been part of the mindscape and like five seconds ago ya'll had been kinda wailing on Magneto more than Wolverine and also didn't something else happen oh yeah he had impaled you on your own sword. So yeah, they weren't exactly keen on following his lead here.

But they'd follow yours.

[CandyLaser]

With Singularity going to grab Builder—not, perhaps, his best ever decision—Sarah had the chance to 1) shake off the disorientation that followed the teleportation, 2) get somewhere out of Singularity's reach, and 3) cut loose on the mutant. 1) was easy; it just took a few moments of focus. 2) was accomplished with similar ease as she took flight, moving to hover some thirty meters up, well outside of Singularity's grasp.

As for the third item on the agenda? Part of her wanted to see just how what the limits of Singularity's power of indivisibility was and open up with her portal cutter. But this wasn't the time for scientific experimentation, and also, if it worked she'd probably end up killing Singularity, and that would be both pragmatically and morally problematic. So she went with another blast of energy—this time, a concentrated maser beam, designed to sear Singularity from the inside out.

Spoiler: Actions

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It's not creative, but it is functional. Fly up and open fire. Polymath has the same settings, and I'll keep using the full all-out/power attack combo. (1d20+10)[24]

[SuperCracker]

“Hold!”

“You said he is… possessed, or something?”

Ronin, feeling pain with every breath he took, every movement his body made, somehow lit up with positivity and renewed vigor. Before Magneto said anything else, Fred knew that he’d gotten through to him. They could win.

“Or something. I got a better look at it just now. The anger is his own, but someone is pushing it way beyond anything Logan naturally feels. I think that if we can deal with that, we can talk him down.”

Then Magneto, the Magneto Fred had been defending to everyone, showed his true colors. A small smile came to Fred’s lips. He saw Kara and Piotr looking at him funny. “I’ll explain later, but we’re good. Let’s do what the man says.”

“It’s a way better plan than I had anyway.”

Ronin’s right arm was useless, he couldn’t move his shoulder without ungodly pain. His left hand was holding Starsoul, which didn’t factor into what he needed to do. So when Magneto offered the helmet, Ronin held out Starsoul to Magneto.

“Trade you,” Fred said. It was an absolute gesture of trust. “His name is Starsoul. He’ll give you his power freely. You have to hold back, though. Wolverine can't heal damage from this blade.”

Starsoul, who had been the connection for the Mindscape, had also seen the Mindscape, and thus was in the loop. “If the boss says we’re good, we’re good.”

After Magneto took the sword, Fred took the helmet.

[Starsign]

From attempting to pin down Singular to being pinned by him, Rene hissed in pain as he felt his scales and muscles pressed under pressure. The overly heavy scales and bulky frame keeps him from being crushed in an instant. Trying to crush someone who is bigger than you may not have been Singular's best idea.

Relying on primal instincts, Rene bulks his large arms outward and broke himself of Singular's bind. "Let GO of me!" he shouted, brandishing his right claw, for a moment, before closing it a bit too hastily into a fist; the tips of his claws poke through his palm and send small trails of blood down his arm. With another hiss, ignorant of his wound either due to his focus in combat or his maddening, serpentine mind taking over for him again, the reptilian sweeps his tail out around him to catch Singular's feet before smashing his face in with a scaly fist!

Even some of Fury's combat training bleeds into the Builder's animalistic fighting style.

Spoiler: OOC

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Alright, well no more Team Attack to help Rene, so we'll go with All-Out Attack and Power Attack +5/-5 with Predator's Strike, and also switching to Survival Instinct.

DC 30 Toughness vs Damage and DC 25 Fortitude vs Impaired+Vulnerable/Disabled+Defenseless on hit: (1d20+12)[30]