Roll to Dodge the Alien Threat

[Chainlinc3]

So! Most/some/a few of you will remember the other "Roll to Dodge" games I've run here. The first one was more entertaining, namely because I had the time to do it properly. Weeeell, it's summer again, so I've got time to do it properly again. GO TEAM CHAINLINC3!
[insert action shot here]

Anyway.
When we left off, we'd barely fended off a minor alien incursion. With massive casualties. And Plague transferred his mind into an Elder God spawn that burst from his belly. And Quaker built a fort out of several ruined dropships. And we were stabbed by civilians. Whom we killed.

THEN, we all went home and ignored the alien invasion.

---

So what is this thing again?
I'll take some time aside from the whole briefing thing to remind you all how this nonsense works. All actions succeed or fail based on the roll of a die. Look at this example for, say, a strafing run on an enemy space station.

1- Critical Failure-- You get shot to pieces. Also, your fighter's reactor overheats, and explodes in thermonuclear glory. But doesn't harm the station. Also, somewhere, your failure killed several dozen kittens.
2- Failure-- You get shot down. A plasma bolt hits your leg, evaporating it. At least you didn't harm any kittens.
3- Indeterminate-- You survive the strafing run in one piece, but it doesn't appear to have harmed the station...
4- Progress-- As you scream by in your fighter, you manage to destroy a couple of defensive turrets mounted on the station.
5- Success-- Your aim is true, and one of your targets detonates in a chain reaction, dealing severe damage to the station!
6- Critical Success-- Your torpedo magically flies down an exhaust vent and detonates the station's reactor, destroying it. And you. And the allied fleet. Also, kittens are now extinct. Good job.

Keep in mind that your character can (and probably will) acquire various skills that will apply modifiers to rolls regarding specific topics or situations. IE- Paranoia: +1 to planning for defenses, contingencies, etc; -2 to socializing. Most of these will be granted at my whim, when they seem appropriate. You can, however, start with some. I'll cover that more in Character Creation.

---

Okay, so, what exactly is happening?
Well, after "Operation Oh-God-The-Blood," XCOM had two priorities:
1- Installing a revolving door on the morgue.
2- Taking a fucking VACATION.

And, well, they succeeded on both counts. All of their best agents, aka those with field experience, aka the traumatized survivors of "Operation Oh-God-The-Blood," went home on a paid leave of abscence.

In the meantime, XCOM's revolving door broke on three seperate occasions, forcing the installers to reconsider the terms of their warrenty.

You lot are XCOM's latest batch of meatshields. It's your job to get the hell out there and hold the line at all costs. Well, for at least as long as it takes the next batch of recruits to finish training.

---

The Rules:

• Enemies make targeting rolls to decide who to attack!
  
• Combat has three parts: Attack, Dodge, and Mitigation. Figure 'em out for yourself.
  
• When a six is rolled, the operative has a one in six chance of receiving a relevant skill/trait!
  
• In the event of a tie, I default to the defender.
  
• Devicing rolls are hidden!
  
• Bending of the laws of nature will be more judgement based this time around-- the longer your character lives, the more badass he/she should become and the more reasonable it would be for them to be able to bend the universe to their will. Unless you have acquired some trait that makes it possible, you generally need to be pretty badass to play god.
  
• Rolls above six spill over into the learning roll.
  

---

Character Get!
Basically, your character is going to start of something like this:
[Name], Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [12/12]
Inventory-
[SHIT GOES HERE]
Traits-
[MORE SHIT HERE]
Kills-
None
Achievements-
None

Fill out the inventory from the equipment section below. I'll give each of you 15 points of equipment. More equipment can be requisitioned later, after you've proved that you won't just get it riddled with holes.

Requisition Store:
[Weapons]
[Pistol-[6/6][Clip:[6/6]]] 3 points
[Rifle-[8/8][Clip:[12/12]]] 5 points
[Shotgun-[6/6][Clip:[3/3]][SCTR]] 5 points
[Auto Cannon-[6/6][Clip:[3/3]][+1 to all endurance drains]] 7 points
[Heavy Cannon-[12/12][Clip:[1/1]][AP][+1 to all endurance drains]] 5 points
[Rocket Launcher-[10/10][Clip:[0/1]]] 6 points

[Grenades]
[Grenade-[3/3]] 1 point
[Smoke Grenade-[6/6]] 2 for 1 point
[Proximity Grenade-[2/2]] 2 points
[Incendiary Grenade-[3/3][I]] 2 points
[Flashbang Grenade-[6/6][STN]] 2 for 1 point
[High Explosive-[1/1][HE]] 2 points

[Armor]
[Personal Armor- [12/12][+1 to all mitigation rolls][+1 to all endurance drains]] 8 points

[Equipment]
[Electroflare-[4/4][LGHT]] 1 point
[Com. Unit-[4/4][CMD1]] 4 points
[First Aid Kit-[5/5][MDC1] 4 points
[Field Map-[3/3][See in all directions rather than looking in each direction. Does not show enemies.]] 3 points
[Spare Rifle Clip-[6/6]] 2 points
[Spare Pistol Clip-[4/4]] 1 point
[Spare Shotgun Shells-[2/2]] 3 for 2 points
[Spare Cannon Shell-[2/2]] 1 point
[Spare Rocket-[1/1][+1 to all endurance drains]] 2 points

Note:
All weapons other than the rocket launcher come with a full clip.
Note:
You can only deploy with two weapons and 5 grenades/equipments at any time. Similarly, you can only wear one set of armor. This can be modified by traits.

Traits are a bit more tricky... You get to make them up, but try and keep them balanced. If you feel they are unbalanced, make a note that you're dedicating some unused equipment points to them (if you have multiple traits, be sure to indicate which trait is getting which points). In general, the benefits and harms associated with a trait should balance out. If not, you should be sacrificing inventory points. I'll make modifications if I feel they are necessary, and you *won't* get a chance to revise my modifications (for the sake of speed) so try to be reasonable.

And... that's all, folks. Draw up your characters, or at least make a post that you'll do so at the next opportunity. The turns will update at roughly 9 to 10 PM EST, and I hope to get the game started by Wednesday at the latest. Finally, for the sake of keeping this managable, I'll limit it to eight active characters at a time. I doubt it'll get that busy, but I don't want to feel pressure to deal with more people than I can. Above all, remember that this is a game, and the goal is to have fun, so don't be an ass if a roll doesn't work out-- you'll get a 6 eventually.

---

The Squad:
Mack Terran, Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [-1/12]
Endurance: [4/12]
Inventory-
[Rifle-[8/8][Clip:[12/12]]]
[Pistol-[6/6][Clip:[6/6]]]
[Flashbang Grenade-[6/6][STN]] x 4
[The King In Yellow- [???/???]]
Traits-
[Future Action Hero: +2 to Social Skills, +3 in Heroic Actions]
[Bad with Electronics: -2 to using Electronics]
[The Glass Cannon: +2 Attack, -2 Defense]
[Reflexes I: +1 to all reflex-based rolls]
[Forsaken Knowledge: ???]
Kills-
None
Requisition Points: 0
Achievements-
None

Quaker McAwesome, Sergeant
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [11/12]
Inventory-
[Heavy Cannon Arm-[15/15][Clip:[1/2]][AP]]
[Incendiary Grenade-[3/3][I]]
[Field Map-[3/3]]
[Grenade-[3/3]]x2
[Spare Cannon Shell-[2/2]]
Traits-
[I'M A BADASS!: -2 to any roll that would, if it succeeded, be considered badass.]
[SHINY!: -3 to any roll where a shiny item may be present, chance to distract. +2 to investigative roll towards Shiny item.]
[I hate orphans!: -4 conversation roll when dealing with children.]
[Power fist!: +2 to any melee roll, a miss requires one turn of recovery time.]
[Sanity is for the weak!: +3 to all actions except self-saving ones when insane; i.e. running away, finding shelter, dodging, etc.]
[Pure awesomeness!: +4 to any roll indicated. Can only be used once every ten turns.]
[QUAKER CANNON: +2 to offensive action involving cannons.]
[Reflexes I: +1 to all reflex-based rolls]
[Float Like A Butterfly: +1 to unarmed combat rolls]
[One Handed: You only have one hand.]
[Jinxed: -1 to all rolls]
Kills-
[Mind Controlled Pilot: Punched in the face during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
[Grey Six: Detonated during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
Total Kills: 2
Requisition Points: 2
Achievements-
And stay down!- Kill a hostile in unarmed combat.
Squaddie, bruh.- Kill your first hostile.
First off the boat...- Be the first to kill a hostile.
It's A Trap!- Prepare a trap.
Senseless Violence- WHY? WHY IN GOD'S NAME WOULD YOU DO THAT?

Plague, Sergeant at Arms
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [9/12]
Inventory-
[Clubbington the First-[6/6] [Clip:[3/3]] [SCTR]]
[High Explosive-[1/1][HE]]
[Electroflare-[4/4][LGHT]]
[Spare Shotgun Shells-[2/2]]x6
Traits-
[Facepalm Regimen: +2 to any roll preventing head injuries, - 2 when conversing due to frequency of facepalms]
[Ginger: +3 to any roll involving fire, -3 to any roll involving water]
[Blunt like Logic: +2 to Melee involving blunt objects/weapons, -2 to Melee involving pointy/slashy weapons]
[Surefooted as a Mountain Goat: +1 to Stability rolls]
[Plaguegod: 1 in 6 chance to resist any poison/toxin/disease]
[Pyrotechnic: +1 to all rolls involving fire]
[Promethean: You have gained the ability to create small fires at will]
[Artistic: +1 to any artistic rolls]
Kills-
[Grey One: Shotgunned during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
[Grey 7: Burned during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
[Grey 2: Improper Ordinance during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
[Grey 1: Burned during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
[Grey 3: Burned during Mission 1-- Cairo Terror Mission]
Total Kills: 5
Requisition Points: 7
Achievements-
Team Player- Be the first to fuck up the plan.
Squaddie, bruh.- Kill your first hostile.
Defiant- You have defied the will of the GM, logic, and probability. And lived.
Improper Ordinance- You're doing it wrong.

Gunneh, Captain
Health: [11/12]
Sanity: [0/12]
Endurance: [9/12]
Inventory-
[Rifle-[8/8] [Clip:[12/12]]]
[Pistol-[6/6][Clip:[6/6]]]
[High Explosive-[1/1][HE]]
[Com. Unit-[4/4][CMD1]]
[Lacuna Imperium- [At the cost of 8 Sanity, you may ignore one rule for one turn.]]
[The Breaker- [25/25][ML][Inspiring: On kill, all local squad members gain +1 sanity]]
[Personal Armor- [12/12][+1 to all mitigation rolls][+1 to all endurance drains]]
[Spare Rifle Clip-[6/6]]
Traits-
[Loki's Tally: -2 to Sanity when a non-teammate pretty lady is around]
[Corn Fed: +2 to Endurance after eating]
[RAGEFAIL: -2 to Accuracy Rolls when angered]
[Banhammer!: The IRC's might BANHAMMER can only be summoned once every ten turns, can only be used for one turn and has a 1 in 10 chance for Auto-Crit on a designated target. If RAGEFAIL is active, -2 to Summon Roll and Auto-Crit Roll. If the Summon and Auto-Crit Rolls are successful, -5 to Endurance. If Summon Roll is successful but Auto-Crit Roll is not, BANHAMMER attack registers as a normal melee attack.]
Kills-
Multiple Greys: Detonated with Quaker's fusion generator
Total Kills: 0
Requisition Points: 5
Achievements-
Source Book-- Be the first to discover a rule!
Achievement Unlocked-- Discover the achievement system!
We Strike From The Skies!-- Kill a hostile via airstrike
Defiant-- You have defied the will of the GM, logic, and probability. And lived.
Savior-- Rescue the squad.
Sqauddie, bruh-- Kill your first hostile.
Armorer-- Acquire two unique items.


DeadEye, Squaddie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [11/12]
Inventory-
[Pistol-[6/6][Clip:[6/6]]]
[Flashbang Grenade-[6/6][STN]]x2
[Proximity Grenade-[2/2]]x2
[Smoke Grenade-[6/6]]x2
[First Aid Kit-[5/5][MDC1]
[Spare Pistol Clip-[4/4]]
Traits-
[Good shooting stance: +1 to all firearm accuracy rolls, -1 to dodging firearm attacks]
[Attention to detail: +2 to avoiding and spotting traps]
[Concentrated fire: When firing, +1 to firearm use to all teammates in the area]
[Accident prone: -1 stability rolls]
[Pyrophobia: -1 sanity when a fire related roll is less than or equal to 3]
[Scarred: +1 to attempts to look sexy, badass. -1 to interactions with anyone terrified or panicking]
Kills-
[Grey 9: Gunned down during Mission 1- Cairo Terror Mission]
Total Kills: 1
Requisition Points: 0
Achievements-
Dead on Arrival-- Kill a hostile before you make an action.
Squaddie, bruh.- Kill your first hostile.

[Dreamless Days]

I remember you running one of these on GW, if I remember correctly... barely anyone made it out of the crashing space ship. (I've probably done something wrong here, let me know if I have.)

Mack Terran, Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [12/12]
Inventory-
[Rifle-[8/8]] - (5 Points)
[Pistol-[6/6]] - (3 Points)
[Flashbang Grenade-[6/6][STN]] x 4 - (2 Points)
(Total - 10 Points)
Traits-
Future Action Hero - +2 to Social Skills, +3 in Heroic Actions (5 Inventory Points)
Bad with Electronics - -2 to using Electronics
The Glass Cannon - +2 Attack, -2 Defence (For actions that would be considered attacking and defending respectively. )

[quakernuts]

Quaker McAwesome, Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [12/12]
Inventory-
[Heavy Cannon-[12/12][AP]]
[Grenade-[3/3]]
[Incendiary Grenade-[3/3][I]]
[8 points]
Traits-
I'M A BADASS! = -2 to any roll stated with the word "BADASS" in them. (+2 inv. points)
SHINY! = -3 to any roll where a shiny item may be present, chance to distract. +2 to investigative roll towards Shiny item.
I hate orphans! = -4 conversation roll when dealing with children (+2 inv. points)
Power fist! = +2 to any melee roll, a miss requires one turn of recovery time (- 2 inv. points)
Sanity is for the weak! = +3 to all actions except self-saving ones when insane; i.e. running away, finding shelter, dodging, etc. (-3 inv. points.)
Pure awesomeness! = +4 to any roll indicated. Can only be used once every ten turns. Negates "I'M A BADASS" perk. (-4 inv. points.)
QUAKER CANNON = +2 to offensive action with anything with 'cannon' in the name (-2 inv. points.)

[Guilty Carrion]

Plague, Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [12/12]
Inventory-
[Shotgun-[6/6]] 5 points
[High Explosive-[1/1][HE]] 2 points
[Electroflare-[4/4][LGHT]] 1 point
[Incendiary Grenade-[3/3][I]] 2 points x 2
(12 points)
Traits-
Facepalm Regimen = +2 to any roll preventing head injuries, - 2 when conversing due to frequency of facepalms
Ginger = +3 to any roll involving fire, -3 to any roll involving water
Blunt like Logic = +2 to Melee involving blunt objects/weapons, -2 to Melee involving pointy/slashy weapons
Surefooted as a Mountain Goat = +1 to Stability rolls (Staying upright when being shaken etc...)
Plaguegod = 1 in 6 chance to resist any poison/toxin/disease(-3 Inv. points)

[Shadow Moonseye]

Shadow, Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [12/12]
Inventory-
[Rifle-[8/8]] 5 points
[Com. Unit-[4/4][CMD1]] 4 points
[First Aid Kit-[5/5][MDC1] 4 points
[Grenade-[3/3]] 1 point
[Smoke Grenade-[6/6]] 2 for 1 point
Traits-
Mah Imps = +2 to building/repairing/creating anything, - 2 to finding/searching for anything
Sneaky as a shadow = +2 to any stealth roll
Sense of a hunter = +2 to any attack from a hidden view, -2 to any attack when being bumrushed
Soul Stealer = +2 damage when attack hits the heart
Eight legged freaks = 1 in 6 chance to go insane at the sight of spiders

Aaaand I'll finished with your edit Chainy

[Gunneh]

Gunneh, Rookie
Health: [12/12]
Sanity: [12/12]
Endurance: [12/12]
Inventory-

[Rifle-[8/8]] 5 points
[Pistol-[6/6]] 3 points
[High Explosive-[1/1][HE]] 2 points
[Com. Unit-[4/4][CMD1]] 4 points

Traits-

Loki's Tally: -2 to Sanity when a non-teammate pretty lady is around
Corn Fed: +2 to Endurance after eating
RAGEFAIL: -2 to Accuracy Rolls when angered
Banhammer!: The IRC's might BANHAMMER can only be summoned once every ten turns, can only be used for one turn and has a 1 in 10 chance for Auto-Crit on a designated target. If RAGEFAIL is active, -2 to Summon Roll and Auto-Crit Roll. If the Summon and Auto-Crit Rolls are successful, -5 to Endurance. If Summon Roll is successful but Auto-Crit Roll is not, BANHAMMER attack registers as a normal melee attack.

[Chainlinc3]

Change Log:
Dreamless Days-
Erm, looks good. No changes for you.

Quaker-
Changed from things involving "badass" to things which, if successful, would be deemed by the average person aka me.
Changed from anything with "cannon" in the name to things involving cannons.
(Both of these changes are to avoid a possible exploit, ie- cannon pants, etc)

Plague-
Looks good. I'm not expecting there to be a lot of diseases, so you might have wasted three points there, but when I'm in charge I suppose it's better safe than sorry. And I just had some really ominous thunder while typing that. >.>

Shadow-
I hadn't planned for any health regeneration... No medic? Tough luck. So, I'll scrap the "Man Tears" deal, and everything else is good.

Gunneh-
I don't really know how to determine when you'll be angry from a gameplay standpoint, so I'll just arbitrarily apply RAGEFAIL when it seems fitting. Everything else looks good.

---

ROUND 1-
Your Skyranger tears through the atmosphere on route to your very first mission. As you near the destination, you take a moment to look to either side of you-- you've trained with them for almost a year, and you'd trust your life to any of them. Well, most of them at any rate. These men and women are humanity's best and brightest, and the sole chance of stopping the alien invasion.

You try not to think on this too long, because it's implications for the future seem rather... bleak.

You pull out the briefing document you'd received back at base-- in the rush to depart, you hadn't had time to look at it in too much detail. You read it, the blink, and read it again. On the sheet of paper, three words are written:

ALIENS TERRORIZE
Cairo

A quick look around the Skyranger reveals that the rest of your squad is just as puzzled as you are by this. Two screens, one on each wall of the Skyranger, buzz to life and display the following text:

TERROR MISSION
TERROR SITE-146
CRAFT> SKYRANGER-598
Mission will be successful when all enemy units have been eliminated or neutralised. You must attempt to save the lives of any civilians in the area by neutralising the alien menace. To abort the mission return XCom operatives to transport vehicle and click on the 'Abort Mission' icon.

...Which only serves to further your bewilderment. So far, this operation is going fabulously!

The pilot's voice buzzes through some speakers-- five minutes to arrival.

Less fabulous.

A minute later, you hear a strangled cry from the cockpit. Then the pilot steps calmly into the passenger area, pistol drawn, and opens fire.

You make a mental note never to ever, EVER, think positive thoughts, EVER again.

---

Well, have at it. Name your action, and I'll see YOU lot at 10 PM EST tomorrow.

[quakernuts]

Well obviously this entire trip is off to a great start, luckily the Quaker is always prepared for the insanity! The pilot has gone crazy...in a confined quarters...where Quaker can physically reach out and punch him. I think we all know where this is going.

QUAKER SMASH THE PILOT!

[Guilty Carrion]

Well, since Rookie Quaker(Communist Pig-Dog) seems to have the pilot handled, Operative Plague will just mosey around this little scrap, head into the cockpit and attempt to keep this thing on flying towards our destination, and hopefully land it in one piece.

Mental note to self... No positive thoughts. No Positive thoughts.

[Dreamless Days]

Because Mack cannot touch any flight instruments due to them being electronic dependant, and because Quaker appears to have the pilot handled currently, Mack will instead give a rousing speech to the two in order to try and give them some moral support.

[Shadow Moonseye]

Rousing speech...Meh, men and their words. Shadow promptly ignores the speech and decides to craft a make-shift parachute breaking system thingy. Because obviously you can't trust first year operatives to pilot a ship!

[Gunneh]

Gunneh stares wide-eyed at the situation, notes Quaker trying to punch the shit out of the now possessed pilot, Mack giving his "rousing" speech, Plague trying to pilot the Skyranger and Shadow making her parachute-thingy and decides that the only logical thing to do in this situation is to either:

A.) Piss himself.

OR

B.) Help Quakerman try to take down the aggressor.

He chooses option "B" and attempts a flying Superman punch aimed directly at the pilot's face, just in case whatever random deity controlling this situation has a sense of humour and uses vagueness as a deathtrap. (*coughcough*)

[Chainlinc3]

ROUND 2:
Initiative!
Hostiles: 49!
Operatives: 14!
Hostiles move first!

Hostiles-
Pilot:
The pilot makes the in-flight service round!
Target Select: 5!
Target: Gunneh!
Rule Discovered: Enemies make targeting rolls to decide who to attack!
Achievement Unlocked: Source Book-- Discover a rule!
Achievement Unlocked: Achievement Unlocked-- Discover the achievement system!
Attack Roll: 5!
Dodge Roll: 6!
Mitigation Roll: Irrelevant!
Rule Discovered: Combat has three parts: Attack, Dodge, and Mitigation. Figure 'em out for yourself.
A shot rings out, but Gunneh throws himself out of harm's way at the last second!
Learning Roll: 1!
Rule Discovered: When a six is rolled, the operative has a one in six chance of receiving a relevant skill/trait!

Operatives-
Quaker:
You take the logical approach and begin beating the living crap out of the only man who knows how to fly this thing.
Attack Roll: 6!
Dodge Roll: 1!
Mitigation Roll: 4!
You aren't exactly certain what living crap smells like, but you don't think you were QUITE successful.
Damage: 6- 4 = 2!
Target Health Update: [4/6]
Learning Roll: 4!

Plague:
Operation Press-All-The-Buttons is a go!
Roll: 2!
The plane rolls, and begins flying upside down.
Achievement Unlock: Team Player- Be the first to fuck up the plan.

Physical Threshold: 5
Pilot: 5!
The pilot is taken off guard, but quickly spins in midair and lands on his feet in the new orientation.
Rule Discovered: In the event of a tie, I default to the defender.
Quaker: 6!
Quaker lands on the ceiling perfectly, almost as if he was expecting this very event!
Learning Roll: 6!
Trait Acquired: [Reflexes I: +1 to all reflex-based rolls]
Plague: 3!
Plague smacks forcefully against the ceiling of the cockpit, stunning him!
Trait Acquired: [Stunned: 1 Turn]
Mack Terran: 6!
Mack flips with cat-like reflexes, and lands on the new floor-- without batting an eye.
Learning Roll: 6!
Trait Acquired: [Reflexes I: +1 to all reflex-based rolls]
Shadow: 6!
Shadow ignores the rotation, and simply slides along the wall of the Skyranger until she comes to a rest on the ceiling.
Learning Roll: 1!
Gunneh: 3!
Gunneh's thoughts are interrupted by the changing gravity-- he lands on the ceiling, sprawled on his back and winded.
Trait Acquired: [Stunned: 1 Turn]

Mack Terran:
Moral support-- that's what this team needs!
Mental Assistance Roll: 1!
That... didn't go as planned.
Mental Attack Roll: 2!
Quaker: 3!
Quaker employs the power of oats to shake off the poorly thought out speech.
Plague: 1!
Plague... feels remarkably stupid for flipping the plane, and the speech simply beats him while he's down.
2-1=1!
Sanity Update: [11/12]
Mack Terran: 2!
Mack Terran feels briefly silly for making such a foolish speech. But then he stops caring.
Shadow: 3!
Having been ignoring the silly men already, for Shadow to ignore them further is child's play. Or, should I say, men's play.
Gunneh: 1!
Stunned and defenseless by the plane's sudden flip, Gunneh's subconscious is exposed to Mack Terran's misguided words!
2-1=1!
Sanity Update: [11/12]

Shadow:
You ignore the manly men and their man-talk, and start figuring out a way to, you know, actually survive.
Roll: [hidden]!
Rule Discovered: Devicing rolls are hidden!
Lacking any special training in aerodynamics, you craft what looks like a serviceable parachute!
...You think.

Gunneh:
You attack the mind-controlled aggressor!
Well, aside from the fact that you're depressed, stunned, and sprawled on your back.
Yeah.
You spend the time getting back on your feet instead.
Trait Elapsed: [Stunned]

[Gunneh]

Gunneh finally catches his breath and, because of Mack's brilliantly lack-luster speech, sheds one single man tear. He then picks up the closest thing to him - which appears to be one of the Sanity points that leaked out of his ear while listening to the sorry excuse for esprit de corps - and hurls it at the pilot in a last-ditch attempt to take his sorry ass down.

[Guilty Carrion]

Groan obnoxiously and recover from being stunned. Did I really need to type that? NO.

But I did anyway.

[quakernuts]

Being proud that he finally did something right, Quaker glares down the pilot and watches as Gunneh throws something looking a lot like a little bit of sanity at the man. Only one thing is on Quaker's mind now.

That sunnovabitch is going down.

FIST TO THE FACE!

[Dreamless Days]

Mack, feeling ever so slightly disappointed in his inability to make a grand speech, decides to see if Shadow needs any assistance in making any adjustments to her parachute to ensure it works correctly.

[Shadow Moonseye]

Shadow waves Mack away! Obviously you can't let the silly man FUCK WITH THIS FINELY CRAFTED PARACHUTE. And since the crazed pilot seems to be well in hand between Quaker and Gunneh's valiant efforts, the next logical step would be to see just how close everyone is to dying in a fiery explosion.

[Chainlinc3]

ROUND 3:
Initiative!
Hostiles: 26!
Operatives: 50!
Operatives go first!

Operatives-
Gunneh:
You attempt to throw an abstraction at the pilot!
Mental Attack Roll: 5!
Mental Defense Roll: 4!
Mental Mitigation Roll: 1!
5-1=4 Damage!
Considering the intangible nature of sanity, throwing it works surprisingly well.
Target Sanity Update: [-427/California]
...Or not.

Plague:
You groan in a most obnoxious manner.
Trait Elapsed: [Stunned]
Then you get back on your feet.

Quaker:
The plane flipping says nothing about the importance of the pilot. PAWNCH!
Physical Attack Roll: 6!
Physical Dodge Roll: 4!
Physical Mitigation Roll: 2!
His skull crumples before your oat-fueled fury!
Target Health Update: [0/0]
Killcount +1!
Achievement Unlocked: And stay down!- Kill a hostile in unarmed combat.
Achievement Unlocked: Squaddie, bruh.- Kill your first hostile.
Achievement Unlocked: First off the boat...- Be the first to kill a hostile.
Learning Roll: 6!
Trait Acquired: [Float Like A Butterfly: +1 to unarmed combat rolls]

Mack Terran:
You try to be helpful.
Roll: 3!
You fail to be helpful.

Shadow:
You take a moment to assess the situation.
Roll: 3!
It's hard to think-- the treetops whipping by the window are distracting!

[Guilty Carrion]

Ah so much better. Now, let's get this bi-OH MY GOD TREES OUT THE WINDOW! PANIC AND TRY TO SAVE THE FUCKING PLANE.

If failed, tell others to burn in hell. Excellent.

[Shadow Moonseye]

Well, its clearly past time to leave this screaming ball of death. Since, you know, TREES. Time to find out if this parachute of mine works! To the nearest exit and ditch this sonuvabitch!

If I die and everyone else lives...I hope those aliens probe you all to death. TO DEATH.

[quakernuts]

FEEL THE FURY OF QUAKER!

oh look...trees! Wait...trees?

TREES! This must mean ninjas are afoot! Stick to the plan gentlemen!

With oat filled fury, Quaker gets to the dropship controls, and sees a language called "Instructions" that he doesn't understand! No worries! By using the power of PURE AWESOME...Quaker will land this dropship safely...maybe even near a starbucks!

[Gunneh]

Gunneh chuckles at the brief look of complete and utter stupor that the aggressor goes through just before Quaker's fist crashes through the man's face: Who knew that using an abstraction as a shuriken could do such miraculous things?

Then, a moment of monumentous terror befalls Gunneh as he watches Quaker take the controls of the plane! TAKE A SEAT, BRACE FOR IMPACT AND HOPE TO GOD WE DON'T DIE IN A FIREY FIREBALL OF FIRE AND DOOM!

If Shadow lives and the rest of us die, I hope the aliens use her as a yo-yo before they eat her flesh and then use her bones as toothpicks.

[Dreamless Days]

Feeling unneeded and a little bit like a dead weight on the squad, Mack does the only thing he CAN do in the current situation that might help save them... pray to, and make a deal with Cthulhu.

If everyone else lives and I die, make sure they don't wear my skin.

[Chainlinc3]

ROUND 4:
Operatives-
Plague:
You attempt to save your ass!
Roll: 2-3(WHY ARE THE CONTROLS ON THE CEILING)=-1!
Weeeeell, your ass is intact, but...
The control panel EXPLODES!
Physical Damage Roll (2d6): 5!
Physical Mitigation Roll: 2!
5-2+3(Ginger)=0 Damage!
Health Update: [12/12]
You escape the blast unharmed!
About half the control panel, however, is on fire.
Looks like a job for Shadow's Imps!

Shadow:
Fuck the control panel, PARACHUTE GOGOGO!
Item Use Roll: 5!
Item Quality: 3!
You dive from the plane with inhuman grace, deploying the parachute just late enough to keep it from getting mauled by the propellers!
But, well, this parachute wasn't meant for low altitude drops.
In the middle of a bunch trees.
Physical Damage Roll (3d6): 9!
Physical Mitigation Roll: 6!
9-6=3 Damage!
Health Update: [9/12]
Despite crashing through branches and hitting the ground at far too high a speed, you manage to land with just a bunch of cuts and bruises.
You think.
Nothing's broken at any rate.
Your parachute, however, was destroyed.
Learning Roll: 1!
The plane flies on over head, going north.

Quaker:
You shove the injured Plague aside.
"This is a job for a REAL man!"
Note: I'm not going to apply the "I'mma Badass" deal here, because I'm not THAT cruel. But really, landing an upside down, flaming plane in any way that ANYONE on board lives would be pretty badass.
Roll: 6-3(WHY ARE THE CONTROLS ON THE CEILING)-2(FIREFIREFIRE)+4(PURE AWESOMENESS)=5!
Note: I'm laughing right now.
Grasping the flaming controls with calm hence unknown to you, you right the plane and fly up above the trees. A few seconds later, the trees disappear and reveal what looks like suburban America-- in flames. Calm evaporating, you shout "FUCK YEAH" and land the plane in the middle of a street, crushing several abandoned vehicles.
You step out of the cockpit and salute.
"Thank you for flying air Quaker!"
Learning Roll: 1!
Trait Acquired: [Less Awesome: 9 Turns Remaining]
Note: I should go back and apply "I'mma Badass"... Curses.

Gunneh:
You brace for impact!
...
Which is a silly thing to do after you've landed.

Mack Terran:
You offer up homage to the Great Old One Cthulhu!
Roll: 3!
"Huh? Bah. Hastur, you want this 'un?"
"...Just give him a freebie. Maybe he'll go away."
Your backpack feels heavier.
Further examination finds a book you don't remember packing...
Item Acquired: [The King In Yellow- [???/???]]

[Dreamless Days]

Note: I'm hereby turning the new item into the PLAY BOOK, not the Book of Short Stories based on the imaginary play book.

Mack slowly examines the book, opening it and reading out a few lines, it appears to be a play book of some kind...

Along the shore the cloud waves break,
The twin suns sink beneath the lake,
The shadows lengthen
In Carcosa.

Closing the book, Mack thinks slowly about it before shaking his head and heading for the door, tapping the button that should open it. He wanted to be the first person (besides Shadow) off that plane.

[quakernuts]

Quaker blinks, unable to grasp the concept of him being able to land a dropship. However, PA can solve anything, so he shrugs it off...

Hefting his QUAK-...errr...Heavy cannon, Quaker decides to head outside the dropship to assess the situation.

[Shadow Moonseye]

Well. That went better than expected....minus that fact that Shadow's now alone. In likely alien infested territory. Lovely.

Well, it looked like the shuttle was heading north, so time to get walking!
Carefully, mind you. Paying close attention to her surroundings.

[Gunneh]

Hmmm...Realising that he looks just a bit silly, Gunneh quietly unbuckles from his seat, grabs his entire load-out and walks outside with Quaker to survey the surroundings and make sure that Shadow really isn't being used as yo-yo by the aliens...

Gunneh brings his rifle to the ready position and gazes through the scope to see if there's any suspicious activity on rooftops, in the less destroyed buildings and places that are just a bit too far to see otherwise.

[Chainlinc3]

Round 5:
Operatives-
Mack Terran:
Note: You actually don't get a say in that.
No mask? No mask!
Mental Damage (???d???) = 30!
Mental Mitigation: 4!
30-4=26!
HAVE YOU SEEN THE YELLOW SIGN?
Sanity Update: [-14/Nameless]
The book glows and flips shut as it slips from your limp grasp.
By the time it hits the floor, it is normal once more.
Trait Acquired: [Forsaken Knowledge: ???]

Quaker:
You step out of the Skyranger and give the surroundings a cursory examination.
Roll: [Hidden]!
Buildings, many in flames, surround you-- the cries of the wounded and dying fill the air.
That, and the smell of charred flesh.
No hostiles present themselves.
...But this doesn't look like Cairo.
Tic-Tock: [Less Awesome: 8 Turns Remaining]

Shadow:
You stealthily head in the direction of your fellows!
Roll: 6!
You're quiet as a mouse as you move, exiting the woods and entering the flaming suburbs.
You're so fucking quiet you forget you're fucking THERE.
Learning Roll: 3!

Gunneh:
Note: Scope? What scope? Silly Rookie, you're not good enough for a scope.
You observe the rooftops for hostiles!
Roll: [Hidden]!
In a flash of insight, you are aware of every living creature within a mile radius!
...It doesn't last long enough for you to filter through the list, though.
You did spot a group of hostiles approaching fast from the north, however.
Trait Acquired: [Forewarned: +2 to reactions vs unseen hostiles, 5 turns remaining]

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