Mission: Not With A Bang

[voidtreckermods]

On the morning of Day Seven of the month of Imagination (ooc: 13th November) the train on everyone’s Safety Control Apparatus will shimmer in multi colours looking almost like the void itself. A moment later a holo-screen will pop up with the following information.

Destination: System #6416. The jungle planet Nion is a long-established nature preserve near the Hub worlds. Home to a variety of animals, the most notable of which are the Violet Pandas and Giant Armadillos, both unique to this system.

It was once home to a human civilisation who have long left the planet to be reclaimed by the jungle. As such it hosts semi-automated planetary protection systems, which shield the planet. Unfortunately these ancient systems have long since gone offline. 

A meteor cluster is on a direct collision course with Nion. A direct hit will cause devastation to the planet and its unique inhabitants.

Your task is to reactivate the defence system, save Nion and help prevent future disasters.

All Teams

Locate and reactivate the planetary defence grid to prevent the destruction of Nion. There are three control stations to be located and activated. Orange are to travel to the north, Purple to the south and Blue and Red must travel together to the west. Control stations will be in overgrown areas and may be guarded.

Once the initial danger has been eliminated, teams must work towards preventing any future disasters. The emergency power will not last long, but there are solar stations that can be activated for future use.

Purple Team

Locate the solar stations and liberate them from the jungle. This will involve clearing the undergrowth and plantlife above the panels, as well as within the stations. There are hundreds of these around the island, and most will be difficult to reach. Be careful of the automated guards and other defense systems. While outdated and likely low on power, they may still be armed.

Red Team

There are malfunctioning robots and machines still attached to the power grid all across Nion, which is causing the power to drain faster than the stations will be able to supply it. Find and destroy as many of these roaming remnants as possible. The fewer that remain on your departure, the longer the system will last.

Blue Team

There are packs of Violet Pandas and Giant Armadillos all over Nion, along with a number of lesser diverse lifeforms. Some of them live close to the solar stations, which, if they are to be reactivated, could be dangerous for both the packs and the future of the stations. Relocate the wildlife living within the station limits.

Orange Team

The main facility where the power stations are located were intended to be maintained by small automatons. These have long since fallen into disrepair, and can no longer fulfil their functions. Find as many as you can and repair them so that they can maintain the planetary defence system for the future.

Additional Information

The Voidtrecker Express will drop all passengers in a large clearing, ideal as a base camp and centre of operations. Tents and camping equipment will be provided.

All the information you will need for writing the mission is below. Remember that the only information characters know about IC before the mission is the blockquoted section above, though they may learn the rest through play.

Lay of the Land

The jungles of Nion are as vast as they are overgrown. Left to grow wild for millennia, the plants are huge and hardy, and come in a dizzying array of shapes and colours. Most of them are safe, though largely inedible. There are a few that cause the SCA to beep in warning if they get near: a species of large teal mushrooms, each as large as a human child, and a sticky red moss that tends to grow on the northern sides of larger trees.

The main hub area is a clearing, entirely devoid of the larger tree species. However it is still pretty overgrown and wild. The terrain is even and spacious enough to pitch tents, which the train will provide in the dressing carriage as usual.

Routes

The three control stations are roughly three hours’ hike through the jungle from the hub area. All routes are overgrown and difficult to navigate. The control stations themselves will require some clearing of plantlife. The systems will need to be reattached to the power lines. It’s not very difficult but will take some level of teamwork, especially as they have a time limit.

The meteor is due to hit the planet five hours after the voidtreckers arrive, which will be enough time for the voidtreckers to reactivate the shields surrounding the planet.

Purple

There are hundreds of solar stations scattered across Nion. An explorer is more likely to run into the outer fences of one within an hour’s travel than not. They’re small complexes lined by wire fences now used only as supports for enterprising vines and climbing plants. The interiors are generally two or three chambers of concrete or metal cladding, containing large power cells, generators, and maintenance equipment for the small automatons Orange team will be retrieving. All of the chambers are thick with flora, and will need to be cleared. The solar panels are covered, and see little sun under the canopy; some of the larger trees may need to be pruned or guided away from the stations.

Red

Occasionally, their routes take them to the same solar stations as Purple team, however the majority of the excess machinery has long strayed out into the jungle, and can be found caught up in trees, half-buried in the earth, or roaming the clearer sections around rivers and streams. Fortunately, most of the machinery is loud or broken enough to be emitting sparks or flashing with warning lights, and can be detected from a decent range. Machine types vary from humanoid robots clearly designed and marked for security work, to larger terraforming constructs.

Blue

Once the system is rebooted, it will be obvious where the wiring and control boxes are: they audibly hum with the power flowing through them. This is enough to lure the violet pandas and other wildlife, since more often than not they are more curious than wise.

They have no fear of people, and will approach voidtreckers with interest rather than caution. They can be moved on easily enough, though making them stay away from the power systems may be more of a challenge. It is up to the blue team how they do this.

Orange

The automatons are compact robots resembling insects, with a number of tough legs capable of telescopic lengthening for access to panels or sections of the station. They are not capable of traversing the jungle terrain, and most have simply gotten themselves stuck in the undergrowth and run out of power or lost sections of plating or wiring to the elements. There are replacements in sealed compartments in most solar stations, once a route has been cleared to access the maintenance sheds. Many require updates, which require them to be returned to their base stations in the sheds.

Creatures

Violet Pandas

These creatures look similar to a terrestrial red panda in body shape and size. They have deep black fur with vivid purple strands. They live in small packs, and are protective of their young, the short, soft fur of which make them resemble nothing more than stuffed toys. They’re not particularly territorial, as the packs are nomadic in nature and tend to move about as the available food sources change with the seasons.

Giant Armadillos

These are around four feet tall, and while they somewhat resemble terrestrial armadillos, it’s clear that the name is a rough translation. Their leathery armoured shells are streaked with moss, and flush deep reds and purples when the creature is attempting intimidation or enticement. Their legs are reasonably long, bowed, with clawed feet including hooked back claws, and they have a short crest of fur at the base of their skull and at the tip of their segmented tail. They are equally found in the canopy and on the ground, and some can even be seen paddling through water or bobbing along a river half-curled in their shell. They live solitary lives, holding territory individually, but their areas overlap and confrontations are resolved through posturing rather than violence.

Others

There are an array of birds and insects and other small mammals that are evocative enough of terrestrial creatures to seem familiar. These creatures are timid and will hide from any voidtreckers who get close, though the very patient or calm will be able to spot them, especially in early mornings and late evenings.

This mission will run from the 13th to the 26th November. A post will go up on the 13th November (I7) and will cover the initial run to turn on the planetary defence system and the ongoing tasks to future proof the system. A ‘finale’ post will happen on the 23rd November (I12), with a final challenge for all teams.

This month the usual Ongoing post will not go up; instead, the start and ongoing parts will be combined, so that there are less parts for people to keep up with. However, we will be running optional side-missions. These will be related tasks that characters can do, whilst others continue with the main four tasks. Please reply to the interest check below if you would like to participate in these extra tasks. This isn’t a firm sign-up - you can change your mind, and if you don’t register interest now you can still take part later. But it will be helpful for us to know how many extra goals we need to create. The ongoing tasks would go up in a post on I9 (ooc 17th November).

Additionally there is a chance for some meta plot! This will run as a small mission structured like the boss battles of previous missions. Five people will be able to take part in this mission and it will be decided by RNG. Please sign up in the comment below. Sign ups are by player, not character, and if someone with multiple characters is chosen they will be able to pick which character they want to take part. This part will also go up on I9 (ooc 17th November).

Rewards.

Taking part in a mission in any way will earn you five team points. You claim those by submitting a link during AC.

Also threads of 10 comments or more where mission goals are being worked towards will also earn you 10 team points. To claim those please fill in the form below and reply to the rewards header.

<b>Characters:</b> <b>Mission goal colour:</b> <b>Link:</b>

Please feel free to use this as a plotting post. Remember there is nothing forcing your character to do the task assigned to their group so if you wish to do a different one, feel free! If your character decides to not do any of the tasks at all that’s fine too, just let me know! Please reply under the colour you decide to go with once you decide for definite!

Have fun plotting!

Comments

Questions

[voidtreckermods]

[theturksway]

Will the Meteor meteor be visible in the sky?

[10billionpercent]

1) Plants are 'largely inedible'...so what plants are edible; any of them have any medicinal purposes?

2) What kind of trees do we have in this jungle?

3) If Senku puts down traps, is there anything he can catch for hunting purposes?

4) Are there any insects that could cause them harm/illness?

5) Can they pick anything up on their void radio?

[blitzcheer]

For those who'd want to nose around for such things, in any of the stations, what kind of terminals can be found? Would any written materials be around?

Would anything on any potential computers provide them any information regarding .... contact information? Potentially sending out, say, a small signal... with some fiddling...

basically what is potentially possible for characters up to no good. B)

[ramengroupie]

Are the automatons for Orange mission about the same size as regular insects, in addition to shape? Once activated, will they immediately get to work or do they need to be guided?

Re: Questions

[unfavorableinstigation]

/edits question because Yes, I Can Read, derp. Missed that first reply.

... For that matter, is the meteor the only thing close enough to see beyond the planet's atmosphere? Assuming characters decide to go spaceward for a moment and see what's up there personally.

[blitzcheer]

hello would the animals be interested in following a squeaky glowing creature in relocation efforts instead of being fascinated with dumb humming electronics?? what if there were many smaller varieties that glowed and squeaked.

[diamondsfortears]

This child is still mostly mechanically inept.

So if he tried to fix a thing on his own, what are possible scenarios for what could go wrong? Or does he just break it worse?

Questions I forgot to ask:

[unfavorableinstigation]

1. Will the SCAs say how long they have until the train lands?

2. Will the more tech-adjacent folks (not just the wizards but the digital lifeforms/robots, here) be able to find out how long ago the shields went down?

Re: Questions

[emerald_mirror]

How well are the solar stations visible from the air? Xander's likely to try and find them that way...

Re: Questions

[so_dark_a_road]

I'm confused about the side missions? There are 4 tasks listed in the post, but then it says we should all tag in one thread.

Should I pick a task and then start a new toplevel for my character or have my character tag into somebody else's?

Or are we supposed to all stay in one thread?

On the void radio...

[adregem]

Hi! Roland happens to have the void radio on his person during the time of the bonus thread. If he whips it out to listen in, what would he hear? :)

Bonus Trek

[blitzcheer]

1: Did the exclamation mark only happen to appear for the people who received it?

2: Can none of them be contacted during the time of the bonus trek?

Side Mission, Task 3

[blitzcheer]

Following backwards they will discover a blackened, smoking area of jungle, raggedly felled trees and a small crater where something has impacted heavily against the earth. The surrounding trees are partially ablaze, though the dampness of the foliage mean that none of the fires have grown large enough that they can’t be put out with concerted effort. A small river runs through B-19, within walking distance of the impact site.

Is a meteorite or something else?

[wizard_redfive]

Would Dairine be able to check on the Voidflash before leaving the mission?

If so, would there be any life left in the vehicle? Like a CPU or data storage?

Re: Questions

[unfavorableinstigation]

Will/where will there be a world miner interrogation thread?

Though I understand that may be dragging out things a little at this point. ^^;

Interest Check: Side missions

[voidtreckermods]

These will be in lieu of the normal 'onward' mission post and will consist of extra tasks that can be done, not necessarily in the usual team structure. They will be worth ordinary mission rewards. If you would be interested in taking part in an optional onward section let us know here.

This isn't a firm sign up, you can change your mind! But it is useful for us to know interest levels so that we know how many side missions we need to create!

[its_dad_sanzo]

I'd probably be down for side stuff!

[namethattune]

I'm interested!

[seacub]

Emporio's the only one I don't really have huge plans for looking over this, so sign him up !

[theturksway]

Depends on the prompts/missions available but I'd probably be interested. Just depends on what it is.

[knifewithnoname]

All mine will be up for side things!

Sign up: Bonus trek

[voidtreckermods]

This bonus mission goal will have five participants, decided by RNG. It will be structured like boss battles have been in the past. All participants will reply in one single thread. Each round will be marked by an NPC tag and then each character may tag once before the next round begins. They are designed in a way that characters can skip a round and jump back in without it being a problem and the thread can continue regardless. It won't be boomerang speed but you will be expected to be relatively available to be tagging the thread once or twice a day during that time.

For a practical example of what these kind of threads look like see here or the npc threads in this post.

Please note this bonus trek will hold a content warning for themes of injury and death.

Please sign up here if you wish to be RNG'd for this bonus trek! Each player may sign up once, if you are chosen and you have multiple characters you may chose which one you wish to take part.

Xue Yang

[xue_yang]

Character: Xue Yang

Signing him up for a chance to do the Bonus Trek

Rewards!

[voidtreckermods]

Remember these must be threads where mission goals are being worked towards!

Re: Rewards!

[unfavorableinstigation]

Characters: Alfredo Martini, Koumyou Sanzo
Mission goal colour: Blue (Initial Task)
Link: Here

Characters: Nita Callahan, Koumyou Sanzo
Mission goal colour: Purple
Link: Here

Characters: Nita Callahan, Reno
Mission goal colour: Red
Link: Here

Characters: Alfredo Martini, Yoite
Mission goal colour: Blue
Link: Here

Characters: Nita Callahan, Senku Ishigami
Mission goal colour: Orange (Initial Task)
Link: Here

Characters: Webmind, Quatre Raberba Winner
Mission goal colour: Orange
Link: Here

Characters: Ken Ichijouji, Nita Callahan
Mission goal colour: Orange
Link: Here

Characters: Nita Callahan, Della
Mission goal colour: Purple
Link: Here

Plotting

[voidtreckermods]

RED

[voidtreckermods]