Scion: Hero (IC)

[DeTess]

Liliana kept an eye on the environment while Max and Julian dealt with the woman. "Julian, do you still want to take her with you?" She asked. "Given how much trouble subduing her seemed to be. Either way, we might want to move her out of sight quickly."

[PoeticallyPsyco]

Brand clambered through the newly open window, then winced as he looked down at what was happening below. Ouch. On the plus side, it didn't seem that these thralls were anywhere near as strong, tough, or skilled as a physically gifted Scion. On the downside, they seemed nearly as tenacious as him, continuing to fight and struggle through broken bones, severe oxygen deprivation, and a windpipe that was at least bruised and quite possibly crushed (which Brand knew from experience was absolutely agonizing). That would make rescuing them tougher than it strictly needed to be.

Still, on to the next step. Untying the rope from around his waist, he tossed the loose end down to his companions on the street. I could probably haul all three of them up at once... but I don't trust the floor to support all of that weight concentrated onto just my feet. Better to go one at a time, for however many want to come up.

[Kaworu]

Mateusz was flying, behind the back of Brandon. The second man seemed much more interested - and courageous - to go into the building, and Mateusz wanted to keep his distance in case something would be happening - so he could rush to help as a secundant.

[Justanotherhero]

After carefully positioning the elderly lady and her groceries behind a dumpster to shield her from view, Julian glances towards Liliana and speaks, ensuring his voice carries just enough to be heard by his team. "The car will be here in two minutes. We can't leave her exposed like this, so she'll be picked up and restrained."

While he speaks, Julian sends a quick text message, his fingers moving swiftly over his phone. Although texting during a conversation might seem rude, the urgency makes it necessary. "I've informed the driver about the necessary precautions," he continues, slipping the phone back into his pocket. "In the worst-case scenario, this buys us some time. She's seen our faces, which complicates the situation."

Julian then strides over to where the rope is coiled, ready for their next move. He gives Brand a thankful nod.

[PoeticallyPsyco]

Nodding back down to the well-prepared scion, Brandon gave the rope a slight tug to make sure that his friend had a good grip. Satisfied, he smoothly reeled in the rope hand over hand. When Julian reached the window, he smiled and joked "When it comes to air travel, we realize you have no choice whatsoever, but thanks again for riding the Brandon Flynne express!"

That had sounded funnier in his head.

He tossed the end of the rope back down.

[Justanotherhero]

Julian flashes a quick grin and retorts.
„Always a pleasure, worlds better then my last flight to Miami !"

He then texts Zahir: „Remove the cellphone and check for other communication devices.“

He then checks for any unexpected observers or security measures that could compromise their operation.

[Kish]

Zahir removes the injured woman from the immediate area.

[Justanotherhero]

Julian cautiously approaches the stairway, pausing to take in his surroundings. He stands still for a few moments, allowing the silence to settle around him as he listens intently for any sounds that might indicate movement or activity nearby.

After confirming the area is quiet, Julian carefully examines the stairway itself. He checks for stability, ensuring that the stairs are safe to traverse and won't betray their presence with unexpected creaks or groans underfoot. His eyes also scan for any security measures, such as cameras or traps.

If he finds nothing amiss, Julian gives a subtle nod to Brand and the rest of the team. With a silent gesture, he starts moving with light, careful steps towards the next door.

[DeTess]

After helping Zahir move the woman to the car, Liliana returned to keeping an eye on the front door and the tenement's surroundings. She would do a quick circuit of the building if local alleys allowed to check if there were any other exits or entrances.

[Benoojian]

Max is blocking the door until he hears a commotion, at which point he'll bust through the door like the Kool-Aid man.

[Kish]

Julian heads down into the occupied area of the tenement. The access stairway is closer to a ladder than a regular stairway, but unlike the floor of the attic itself, it seems quite solid. As the lower floor comes into view, he sees a man sitting in a chair. The man catches a glimpse of him as well and looks shocked.

Spoiler: OOC

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Time for some Join Battle rolls (not all of which represent people who are aware of what's going on, but to save time):

Max: (5d10)[10][9][9][1][5](34) 4 successes
Liliana: (6d10)[8][7][5][1][4][9](34) 3 successes
Julian: (6d10)[6][5][3][1][2][9](26) 1 success
Mateusz: (6d10)[10][3][1][6][9][4](33) 3 successes
Brand: (2d10)[9][3](12) 1 success

T1: (4d10)[3][6][5][2](16) 0 successes
T2: (4d10)[5][10][1][3](19) 1 success
T3: (4d10)[8][1][8][6](23) 2 successes
T4: (4d10)[8][3][7][1](19) 2 successes
T5: (4d10)[1][2][6][3](12) Botch
T6: (4d10)[2][7][2][2](13) 1 success
T7: (4d10)[9][3][7][8](27) 3 successes
T8: (4d10)[6][5][1][8](20) 1 success
T9: (4d10)[1][6][9][5](21) 1 success
T10: (4d10)[5][10][8][3](26) 2 successes
(4d10)[1][6][9][8](24) 2 successes
(6d10)[8][5][9][9][6][4](41) 3 successes

A rather crude but hopefully adequate-for-this map. Dotted lines are doors (all closed at the moment). The first letter of your name in blue is where you are. Brand and Mateusz, still in the attic and one hovering, aren't on the map but are within a few feet of Julian--up.

Max acts on tick 0, and presumably guards until something audible happens inside.

Liliana, Mateusz, and the guy Julian sees act on tick 1.

The man jumps out of his chair. Briefly hesitating, he pulls some kind of metal box out of his pocket and runs toward the east door, yelling, "There's someone--eh--intruder!"

Spoiler

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No one who's aware of the situation is up on tick 2. Mateusz is up on tick 1, Julian on tick 3, both before any other NPCs do anything.

[Justanotherhero]

As the situation rapidly unfolds, Julian's mind races. His initial plan is clearly compromised with the sudden recognition and alarmed reaction of the man. He quickly recalibrates, thinking, *Damn, damn, damn. Okay, plan B. If I look like a thug, I'll act like one.*

Keeping his composure but adopting a more menacing demeanor, Julian runs up behind the running man and kicks his left leg enduring that the man falls then grabs the running man and commands in a quiet and obviously fake and comically deep voice with a firm tone, "Stay calm," immediately followed by a sharp curse to emphasize his urgency and to intimidate. „Where do you keep the good stuff?“

[Kish]

Julian easily lands a crippling kick to the man's leg and grabs him. He responds with a much louder scream.

Yells come from all over the building. Downstairs, Max smashes in the door.

Spoiler: OOC

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Still tick 1. Max, Mateusz, and, if applicable, Liliana are up. Map is updated.

[Benoojian]

Max spots two targets in the ridiculously large room and heads for the one to the North, sizing up the target for weaknesses as he charges towards him.

Spoiler: Mechanics

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Taking the Aim action, Speed 3 interruptible, On T8. If he doesn't move I will reach him on tick 4 and interrupt, I will interrupt my Aim if he moves close enough to hit on tick 3 though, which I think can only happen if he is as fast as me(unlikely)

[Kaworu]

Mateusz has sworn under his breath. So many thing could go wrong.

But, he had a plan, that appeared in his head for a very brief moment.

He had flown in front of the man and used his Palarysing Gaze on him.

Spoiler

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Hm... I do not wanna be a party pooper, but... I am acting sooner than the guy, right? So i can use my Paralysing Gaze and he cannot run for others? Maybe? ;-)

But maybe it is too late now and I am interrupting something? ;-) Sorry, don't wanna be a bother... :-(

[Kish]

Spoiler: OOC

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Liliana, Mateusz, and the guy Julian sees act on tick 1.

Spoiler

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No one who's aware of the situation is up on tick 2. Mateusz is up on tick 1, Julian on tick 3, both before any other NPCs do anything.

Mateusz has sworn under his breath. So many thing could go wrong.

But, he had a plan, that appeared in his head for a very brief moment.

He had flown in front of the man and used his Palarysing Gaze on him.

Spoiler

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Hm... I do not wanna be a party pooper, but... I am acting sooner than the guy, right? So i can use my Paralysing Gaze and he cannot run for others? Maybe? ;-)

But maybe it is too late now and I am interrupting something? ;-) Sorry, don't wanna be a bother... :-(

You are acting on the same tick as the guy jumping out of the chair and running for the door, before Julian, which means I should have waited for your action before processing Julian's, sorry. But with a normal speed of 4, you can't get between the guy and the door unless your action is Dash, which will interfere with you also using Serpent's Gaze on the guy. That is, you're not so much faster than him that you can both cut him off and catch his gaze in one action.

[Kish]

Spoiler: Liliana

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It looks like there used to be several more doors into the tenement, but they've been covered with boards as well. It still looks like anyone with Epic Strength could likely break in or out anywhere, though. The building is remarkably filthy and rundown.

Spoiler: OOC

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Please clarify your action, Mateusz. You can't both get in front of the man you've seen and Serpent's Gaze him in one action, but if your action is to Dash in his direction, from where you start you could end anywhere between C-46 and M-50.

[Kaworu]

Spoiler: OOC

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Okay, so I am just moving more towards the front/place of action and I am trying to get ready for the fight that's incoming, if that's right.

Also, I completely forgot about the Speed stuff xD Usually I am not that much aware of the details of fighting mechanics, in every system xD sorry :-)

[Kish]

Materusz soars across the filthy, rubble-strewn floor.

Spoiler

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Tick 3, which is when Julian's action resolves and events proceed from it; Brand is up.

[PoeticallyPsyco]

Caught off guard by the sudden chaos, Brand lumbered into motion less quickly than he would have liked.

No time for ladders, he thought, and simply walked over the hole in the attic, plummeting to the floor below like a bowling ball. Graceless, but fast.

He sized up the situation as he fell.

Spoiler: OOC

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Falling this far won't hurt Brand; his Bashing Soak is too high, even without his partial armor. However, looking at the Movement rules, I think I still have to roll Dex+Athletics to travel at full speed and not fall on my clumsy face.

Dex + Athletics
(5d10)[3][4][10][5][5](27) + 1 Epic Dex

Not sure how far Brand must travel, but one success means he moves at 3 yards per Tick, 0 successes means 1.5 yards per Tick, and a botch means he falls on his clumsy face.

...which means he definitely makes it into the room without having to wait for the next Tick. I'll move on to his actual actions then....

One threat, a thrall, already had two Scions on him, and could be safely disregarded for now. No further threats in the room, so...

Onto the next, Brand thought, catapulting himself towards the nearest door almost before he hit the ground. It was important to keep the momentum on their side; the more enemies could be eliminated in isolation, the better of the ensuing fight would go once the other thralls joined the fray. The room wasn't quite large enough to necessitate a flying leap, so he just sprinted.

Spoiler: OOC

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Dash, 3 ticks, takes Brand to the East door of the room Julian, Mateusz, and the Thrall are in.

I'm assuming opening the door will be a reflexive action and not take any real time. If not, I'd like to combine it with my Dash action. I don't think this has any negative effects beyond a -2 dice penalty to the Move roll (which I still automatically succeed at), and of course literally opening myself up to attack from foes on the far side.

I think that covers everything?

[Kish]

Those thralls who can see any of you charge toward you, pulling out switchblades or crude clubs. The one Max is watching rushes up to him, switchblade ready. Brand, Julian, and Mateusz see a woman who looks about 20 run in, also holding a switchblade. All the humans you've seen have the same expression of unadulterated hate as the woman outside.

Spoiler

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And you're up, Max; someone with a Dexterity of 3 can Dash 9 yards per tick without magic. Possibly you were assuming he'd only move normally rather than Dashing so as to be able to attack you on the same tick he reached you, but that's not what he's chosen to do.

[Benoojian]

Max didn't expect the thrall to simply rush headlong at him, but that speed only means that Max's fist will only hit even faster. Now that there were multiple assailants and no witnesses, Max shifted to a more lethal strike, driving his palm into the thrall's unprotected throat with a quiet "Hi Yah!"

[Kish]

Max breaks the luckless thrall's neck with one punch. His switchblade goes flying.

Spoiler

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With Divine Wrath, Max does lethal damage, literally in this case.

Mateusz can be essentially anywhere in this room as his Dash completes, let me know...and Mateusz is up. Still on tick 4, at the same time as Max; I should have called for his action the same time as Max's just now, sorry.

To minimize the likelihood of my causing such delays again:

>> Mateusz: Tick 4
Liliana: Still examining the building outside, will be up immediately if anything comes to her attention
Julian: Tick 6
Brand: Tick 6
T7: Tick 7
Mog: Tick 7
T3: Tick 8
T4: Tick 8
T10: Tick 8
Max: Tick 9
T2: Tick 9
T6: Tick 9
T9: Tick 9
T1: Tick 10
T5: Tick 11

[Kaworu]

Mateusz used his Untouchable Opponent Knack, since the whole encounter was just beginning. He was floating a few centimeters above the floor and waiting patiently for an opportunity to use his attacks.

[Kish]

Mateusz takes no visible action for now.

Spoiler

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Brand and Julian, you're up. Current map.

[PoeticallyPsyco]

A thrall sprinted through the door Brand had been about to open, seemingly making a beeline for his squishier teammates.

Oh no you don't.

A switchblade was no threat to him in the hands of a (mostly) mortal, but... he didn't really know how tough these people would be to put down. Better to use overkill on defense than offense for now. Gripping his wrist, he twisted his bracelet just so, and the knotted band of cords (a gift from Ogma) called out to his armor, stowed safely in a storage unit back in Dublin, waiting for the moment he needed it.

With a mechanical clicking and clanking, each piece flowed out of his wrist, sliding over the existing pieces before slotting and locking into place. The process was fast; by the time his left hand reached the thrall's shoulder, the fingers were already surrounded by the interlocking solid metal plates and thick padded cloth gloves that made up his gauntlet; and his helmet (golden with white feather patterns, and a large T-shaped opening over his eyes, nose, and mouth/chin) had settled onto his head just in time for him to slam it into the thrall's temple. He left off the faceplate for now; he wasn't facing gunfire, so being able to breathe and speak more easily was higher value than completely protecting his face.

[Justanotherhero]

It was time to temporarily finish this. With his opponent already on the ground Julian used one hand to manage the hands trying to grab him and used his right hand to lift the thralls head off the ground and smash his temple back on the ground hopefully knocking him unconscious.

[Kish]

Brand grabs the woman who ran in, who drops her switchblade and hisses in pain. Julian slams the injured man's head into the floor with a disturbing crunching sound.

Another woman charges Max with a switchblade as two other men run up to him. From the room to Max's west, the flimsy wall next the door smashes in and the temperature drops noticeably as a huge, craggy figure, some fourteen feet tall, storms into the room with Max. He holds an archaic weapon, a foot-long blade with a white hilt, seemingly ready to cut someone.

Spoiler

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Switchblade attack: (5d10)[4][2][5][2][10](23) Damage to be rolled in OOC if applicable.

Liliana: Still examining the building outside, will be up immediately if anything comes to her attention
>> Mateusz: Tick 9
>> Max: Tick 9
T2: Tick 9
T6: Tick 9
T9: Tick 9
T1: Tick 10
T7: Tick 10
Mog: Tick 10
Julian: Tick 11
T4: Tick 11
T5: Tick 11
Brand: Tick 12
T3: Tick 12

Max and Mateusz are up.

[Kaworu]

Mateusz panicked a little bit. It was his first time seeing a giant and he wasn't really sure whether he was strong enough to defeat it. But considering he had some training in the martial arts and his friends were with him, all should be okay. He hoped...

He rushed at the giant with the intent of attacking him as soon as he could.

Spoiler: OOC

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I suppose Dash Action, and then unarmed attack?

[Benoojian]

Max sees the giant heading his way and tries to dispatch some of the thralls as quickly as possible. His hands are as quick and deadly as vipers as he drives his fists into the chests of two of the thralls' chests.