|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2011 4:41 pm
WE ARE HALLOWEEN  Moon Hunter
PRINCESS ISLAND
Maintaining a superior defense is the pride of the Moon Division, defending even at the expense of attacking. However, this can be hard, especially for trainees who just got new magic weapons full of glowing and powers. Thus the Princess Island. At the center of the island sits a princess who will do absolutely nothing to protect herself, and it's up to you to build defenses that will withstand shadowling attacks so she she doesn't die in a horribly realistic manner.
There's four main paths for shadowling's to travel through, and you have 3 types of building materials to create your defenses from: straw bales, wood, and bricks. The sturdier the material, the sturdier the barrier, but the fewer you can build in the allotted time. After a set amount of time, the princess will crush a pumpkin pill, attracting varying amounts of lurking shadowlings. You get to watch helplessly from the observation station, without getting to attack yourself.
These creature are extremely weak and ill formed, coming up against a solid defense they will disperse, but in turn they also weaken said defense. When a defense goes down, they go right to the princess and attack her. Should she survive the wave, you get to go back down, rebuild, and do it again.
If you fail: the princess has died, horribly, and you've wasted a lot of time on this only to look fairly incapable. All things considered? Most pleasant course to fail.
If you win: peen points and bragging rights go to those with the healthiest princess and lasted through the most attack waves.
If you choose to go beyond 5 rounds, switch the enemy dice roll to 4 d20s.
Mechanics
Your princess has 20 hp
First, roll the strength of you defense, using the dice for whichever building type you choose.
Brick: 4 d12
Wood: 8 d6
Hay bales: 12 d4
The order of the die determine the HP for each barrier location. For example, with bricks, rolling 5/6/8/1, would mean that path 1 has 5 HP, path 2 has 6 HP and so on. With a wood roll of 3/3/3/1/2/5/5/2, the first 2 dice would equal the amount of the first path. Brick would be the least math-y of the building materials (you lazy asses.)
Roll 4 d12 for the attacking forces. Once again the order of the dice correspond with the path being affected. Then do the math to determine the status of your defenses and princess.
Example:
My defenses are 5/6/8/10
The attackers are 3/7/3/8
The result defenses are 2/-1/5/2
Negative numbers are taken off the princesses HP, leaving her at 19 HP.
Go back and rebuild your defenses in the same manner as before, you'll be building on top of old defenses so you add the new defense HP to the remaining defense HP. Negative numbers = 0 HP for the defense, not negative HP.
Minimum rounds to complete the course is 3
Bonus Mechanics
Their defense expertise allows them to build slightly sturdier barriers. This applies to all paths that start at 0 hp. They do not stack. So if you are re-building on a barrier that lasted from an existing round, this bonus does not apply, as it is already still in effect.
Trainees: 0 hp bonus
Moon Trainees: +1 hp bonus to each path
Hunters: +1 hp to each path
Moon Hunters: + 2 hp to each path
Status Wave: (current wave number)Path 1 HP:Path 2 HP:Path 3 HP:Path 4 HP:Princess HP: /20 [quote="Status"]
[size=14][color=#00BFFF][b]Wave: (current wave number)[/b][/color][/size]
[b]Path 1 HP:[/b]
[b]Path 2 HP:[/b]
[b]Path 3 HP:[/b]
[b]Path 4 HP:[/b]
[b]Princess HP:[/b] /20
[/quote]
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2011 4:53 pm
Davey frowned as he stared at the mission briefing. Solo, which he liked. Defense, not so much. He was more of an attacking kind of guy (the best defense being a good offense), but that was precisely why he'd ended up choosing this mission from all those available. Davey needed to challenge himself. He had to step out of the rut he'd created for himself - the possibly-crazy, definitely-angry guy who worked alone and just wanted to hit things. That wasn't him. Or it hadn't used to be.
Like it or not, Davey had been sorted into the Moon division. That meant defense missions. Davey figured he might as well start training for that now, instead of taking out his frustrations on the unresponsive training dummies.
Building barricades, though? Davey might have bitten off more than he could chew. Just how much of a handyman did they expect a one-armed guy to be?
Eyes narrowing, Davey could hear exactly the sort of punny jokes Dr H and Clarice would be making at his expense right now. 'Screw them,' Davey thought, straightening his shoulders. He'd show them he was just as good as any of the other trainees.
~You could try aiming for better, you know,~ Azrael pointed out. ~But no, of course your feeble mind can only imagine mediocrity.~
"You ever hear of starting at the bottom and working your way up?" asked Davey.
~You're already at the bottom. Congratulations. Now get your a** in gear and be better, already!~
Nothing like the loving reassurance of one's weapon to get one motivated. Davey forced away a scowl, checking the mission parameters one more time. "Alright, let's get started."
On that note, Davey existed the observation bunker and made for the main island.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 8 6-sided dice:
4, 5, 4, 3, 1, 6, 5, 1
Total: 29 (8-48)
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2011 5:07 pm
~Don't forget that this section is timed,~ Azrael smugly pointed out as Davey stepped onto the main island. 'I know,' Davey thought back as he broke into a run, aiming for the centre where the defensive materials (and the princess golem) awaited. His breath was saved for running, all communication mental from this point. 'Can you keep track of time for me? We wouldn't look too impressive if we ran out of time halfway through building.'Mulling it over, the sword admitted that Davey's poor performance would reflect badly on himself and agreed. It wasn't like Azrael got to hit anything this time around. Davey reached the center of the island, skirting around the waiting golem to eye the piles of building materials. The straw, he immediately discarded as an option. Brick would be best, but... ~Could you really build enough in time, when you can only carry them in one arm?~Snotty as he was, Azrael had a point. Wood it was, then. Davey made a beeline for the pile and gathered a fair amount under one arm. He was turning to take one of the other paths when he caught sight of the princess golem's face. Davey froze. A mental prod from Azrael had Davey snapping his jaw closed. "That is disturbing," Davey said flatly, unable to tear his eyes away from Princess H. Azrael gave a mental nod, before poking Davey again. ~Time limit,~ he reminded the trainee. It was enough to snap Davey out of it. He took off up the farthest path from the observation bunker, creating barricades and in one case laying half-broken wood over a fissure in the ground. If he was lucky, the enemy would walk across the wood without noticing and have it snap under their feet. The other paths followed, Azrael actually performing as promising and providing a countdown of the remaining time, until, ~Time's up.~Davey dropped the last of the wooden planks with a sigh. He wiped his forehead as they made their way back to the bunker. Time to see how this played out. Status Wave: 1Path 1 HP: 9 (+1 = 10) Path 2 HP: 7 (+1 = 8 ) Path 3 HP: 7 (+1 = 8 ) Path 4 HP: 6 (+1 = 7) Moon Trainee Bonus: +1 HP to each path Princess HP: 20/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
6, 2, 1, 8
Total: 17 (4-48)
|
Posted: Thu Nov 24, 2011 5:18 pm
Safely back in the observation bunker, Davey watched on the displays as the shadowlings approached the defenses he'd built. The princess golem (he shuddered - there were just some ways he had never wanted to imagine Dr H) must have broken the pill at the moment time ran out, and it had taken Davey the same amount of time to reach the bunker as it had taken the enemy to reach the first of his defenses. (Well, Davey at least got to run. The shadowlings didn't seem as fast.) ~Here goes nothing,~ Azrael muttered. Azrael might sound the cynic, but of course he was the one cackling madly when one of the creatures actually did end up in Davey's makeshift pit-trap. Even as he hushed Azrael, the corner of Davey's mouth twitched up. It was rather funny. Two of the paths blocked all but the most cursory attempts at breaking through. Pride swelled within Davey. It was a nice start to the mission. Turning his attention to the last path, Davey watched as a very strong shadowling busted through every barrier. Either Davey's quality of work had suffered as Azrael's countdown had neared zero, or this enemy was much stronger than the others. Shoulders tensed at the creature broke the last barricade and approached Princess H. It was slowing down, but still managed a swipe at the golem before collapsing. Davey and Azrael shared the mental equivalent of a stare. "I guess it could have gone worse?" Davey offered. The sword snorted. ~It's hardly over. Time go to do it all again!~Sighing, Davey exited the bunker once more. Status Wave: 1Path 1 HP: 10 - 6 = 4 Path 2 HP: 8 - 2 = 6 Path 3 HP: 8 - 1 = 7 Path 4 HP: 7 - 8 = -1 Princess HP: 19/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
2, 8, 4, 12
Total: 26 (4-48)
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 3:12 pm
Using wood had gone well, Davey thought as he made he way back onto the main island. But he still had three rounds left. He could always swap back to wood later, but it might be worth trying one of the others. ~Straw,~ Azrael advised. ~What else are going to be able to lift?~Just for that, Davey decided, he was trying the bricks this time. He would have to move them all the way out to the edges of each path. He could just wall the princess in where she was. Easier for him and wasting less of the short amount of time he had to lay his defenses. 'Why do I feel like a little pig about to get a visit from a big, bad wolf?' Davey muttered in his head as he worked. Azrael jabbed at Davey's mind. ~Did you hit your head? Have you been out in the sun too long? I mean, yes, I see the similarities between yourself and pig, but normally you don't appreciate my comparions.~ There was a brief pause before he continued, tone very confused, ~Is the wolf Caelius? Because he does seem to snarl a lot. Or Dr H? His grin is rather wolfish, and should encourage smart people to run in the other direction.~Davey frowned, shook his head, and frowned some more. 'No. I- what-? No. It's... nevermind. Just an old human story.'~You humans are strange,~ Azrael advised. Davey didn't want to hear about 'strange' for an ex- fallen angel who only existed as a voice in his head and a sword in his hand. ~Time.~With a sigh, Davey made his way around the blockages he'd created (leaving the path, something which the monsters apparently couldn't do). Back to the bunker to see how this went the second time. Status Wave: 2Path 1 HP: 2 (+1 = 3) Path 2 HP: 8 (+1 = 9) Path 3 HP: 4 (+1 = 5) Path 4 HP: 12 (+1 = 13) Moon Trainee Bonus: +1 HP to each path Princess HP: 19/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
10, 6, 3, 9
Total: 28 (4-48)
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 3:20 pm
Time to see how brick defenses went against the shadow-creatures. Davey was confident nothing was moving the last wall he'd made, but there were two he was almost sure wouldn't last for long. Princess H might be in trouble this time around. The shadowlings had an uninterrupted run for most of the course. Their pace was slow and steady; Davey was rather bored by the time they finally reached the centre of the island. At least he'd be refreshed for the next round, he supposed. "Showtime," Davey said as the first shadowling reached a brick wall. To Davey's surprise, most of the walls held. To his complete lack of surprise, the first wall he'd built fell easily. He still winced as the monster continued onwards and then began ripping into Princess H. ... No, actually? This was kind of cathartic. A smile grew on Davey's face as the dark creature ripped off one of Princess H's arms. ~Uh, you do know that this is affecting the mission results, right?~ Azrael prodded at his human. Who the hell was happy to be taking damage? "I know," Davey replied calmly, serene smile still in place. "But you can't tell me you don't enjoy watching that." Azrael made a considering noise and then subsided. Too bad it wasn't real. But time was up and the monsters disappeared once more. "Third time lucky," Davey said as he left the bunker again. Status Wave: 2Path 1 HP: 3 - 10 = -7 Path 2 HP: 9 - 6 = 3 Path 3 HP: 5 - 3 = 2 Path 4 HP: 13 - 9 = 4 Princess HP: 12/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 12 4-sided dice:
2, 2, 3, 2, 3, 2, 4, 4, 4, 2, 3, 2
Total: 33 (12-48)
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 3:54 pm
~Straw?~ Azrael prompted when they reached the centre of the island yet again. Davey sighed. Well, why not? Either it would go very badly and training course would be a total failure, or it would be on par with the others. Hopefully there'd still be rounds later to make up for this one, if it went badly. Decision made, Davey got to work. At one point, he paused and snickered at the one-armed Princess H. Azrael prodded him, sharply reminding Davey of the time limit. Davey went back to work, still chuckling as he lifted another hay bale and took off up a path. By the time Azrael reached countdown, Davey had several blockades along each path. He'd tried using the pitfall trap from the first wave again, but was unsure if it would be successful a second time. ~Only one way to find out,~ Azrael said as they stepped back inside the observation bunker. Status Wave: 3Path 1 HP: 2, 2, 3 (+1 = 8 ) Path 2 HP: 2, 3, 2 (+1 = 8 ) Path 3 HP: 4, 4, 4 (+1 = 13 ) Path 4 HP: 2, 3, 2 (+1 = 8 ) Moon Trainee Bonus: +1 HP to each path Princess HP: 12/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
1, 10, 8, 3
Total: 22 (4-48)
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 4:15 pm
"At least we don't have to wait as long as last time for some results," Davey told Azrael as the shadowlings appeared. The makeshift defences were spread up the length of each path, meaning there was 'action' almost right away. The first barricades never last long, the creatures moving past them. Davey expected that, so he wasn't worried - not yet, anyway. The worry crept in around the midway point, as he waited to see if any of the shadowlings were faltering yet. One was, wait, not even getting that far - stuck halfway through the first hay-bale wall. One did indeed fall for the pit trap; perhaps it wasn't the same shadowlings each time, or at least not on the same paths. A third fell before reaching the centre. But one stubborn monster breached Davey's final defenses. Thankfully it was too tired to do more than take a weak swing at the golem. As the monsters disappeared, the computer display indicated that the princess golem was only down to half of its total health. ~Not bad,~ Azrael condeded. Davey nodded. One more wave of building and attacking to go until he 'passed' - anything beyond that was a bonus. Status Wave: 3Path 1 HP: 8 - 1 = 7 Path 2 HP: 8 - 10 = -2 Path 3 HP: 13 - 8 = 5 Path 4 HP: 8 - 3 = 5 Princess HP: 10/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 8 6-sided dice:
5, 5, 1, 6, 4, 2, 4, 6
Total: 33 (8-48)
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 4:34 pm
So, the deciding round. Either Davey would pass the course, or suffer a loss this round that was so great that it would be embarrassing to speak of. To anyone. Ever. 'Please don't let me have to write up a mission report saying how I completely blew it in the last round,' he prayed as he made his way back to the golem. ~Are you talking to me?~ Azrael asked. 'No. I'm- oh, fine. Sure. I'm praying to you, my new god.' Davey gave up on explaining regular human things to the sword. ~ ... Excellent.~Davey had a moment to wonder just what the hell he'd accidentally started, before arriving in the clearing. The first round had been the best of all three so far, so Davey went back to using the wooden planks. It was mostly quiet as he worked, Azrael probably busy contemplating his new 'godhood'. He remembered to sound the time every so often, but missed the usual minute marks, instead realising later and prompting Davey that he only had, ~One minute and 47 seconds left.~Somehow Davey managed to finish on time, but it wasn't any thanks to Azrael. Davey shook his head and quickly exited the main island. Status Wave: 4Path 1 HP: 5, 5 (+1 = 11) Path 2 HP: 1, 6 (+1 = 8 ) Path 3 HP: 4, 2 (+1 = 7) Path 4 HP: 4, 6 (+1 = 11) Moon Trainee Bonus: +1 HP to each path Princess HP: 10/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
10, 11, 1, 1
Total: 23 (4-48)
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 4:38 pm
This time, Davey was stressing - just slightly - right from the start. He thought he'd done fairly well at making his barricades, but you never knew. Overconfidence wasn't a good trait in battle. Davey watched the screens, tense, as the shadowlings appeared and began moving in. Two of the monsters were out of the running almost immediately (one of them managing to impale itself on an angled plank that Davey had just been hoping would slow them down - these things were clearly not the most intelligent of foes). Two remained, picking up speed as they approached the centre clearing of the island. They threw themselves at the last barricades, complex knots of criss-crossing planks. One shadowling grew stuck, halfway through. But the other slid and twisted and forced itself through gaps until it emerged out the other side. It made a quick one-two strike against Princess H. It wasn't a strong hit, but everything counted at this stage. "Course cleared," a mechanical voice announced within the bunker. Davey tightened his grip on Azrael, allowing himself a fierce smile of pride. The voice wasn't done, however. "Bonus round commencing. Shadowling strength: increased."~Challenge accepted!~ Azrael snapped at the computer. Davey sighed. "It can't hear you," he reminded the sword. ~You accept for us, then.~"I don't think I really get a choice in the matter," Davey said, amused. The mission went on until the mission was completed. Though with the shadowlings now getting an additional advantage, Davey didn't think it would be long til the mission was done. At least he'd passed. Status Wave: 4Path 1 HP: 11 - 10 = 1 Path 2 HP: 8 - 11 = -3 Path 3 HP: 7 - 1 = 6 Path 4 HP: 11 - 1 = 10 Princess HP: 7/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
7, 6, 3, 2
Total: 18 (4-48)
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 4:56 pm
It wasn't that he was following a pattern. It was just that Davey was tiring and he felt he could do a better job of staying close to the centre and barricading it off. So he returned to working with bricks. Maybe that was a mistake. He was still part-way through building the last barricade when Azrael regretfully announced that time was up. Taking in the wall that barely came to mid-thigh on one side to just to the knee on the other, Davey snorted. So, this was most likely the last round. Azrael wasn't the comforting sort, so he just awkwardly patted Davey's mind as they trudged back to the bunker. Status Wave: 5Path 1 HP: 7 (+1 = 8 ) Path 2 HP: 6 (+1 = 7) Path 3 HP: 3 (+1 = 4) Path 4 HP: 2 (+1 = 3) Moon Trainee Bonus: +1 HP to each path Princess HP: 7/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
6, 9, 7, 2
Total: 24 (4-48)
|
Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2011 5:06 pm
At least there was no stress this time. If the golem went down, it went down. It Davey was finished, at least there'd be no more building. He could go back to the dorms and relax. It seemed that was not to be the case, though. Two of the creatures attacked the princess golem, but Princess H was not going out that easily it seemed. She was hanging on for dear life. "I guess we're going again," Davey said. ~Joy.~Status Wave: 5Path 1 HP: 8 - 6 = 2 Path 2 HP: 7 - 9 = -2 Path 3 HP: 4 - 7 = -3 Path 4 HP: 3 - 2 = 1 Princess HP: 2/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 12-sided dice:
5, 10, 11, 11
Total: 37 (4-48)
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2011 2:03 pm
Davey wasn't sure why he went back to bricks again. Less walking, maybe, even if it meant heavier lifting. It was unlikely that the game would continue past this wave of enemies, but that didn't mean that Davey was slacking off. Like always, he gave it his all. It was just his all after several exhausting rounds of manual labour. It seemed to take less time than usual before Azrael finished his countdown. Davey headed back to the bunker. He waited to see how the stronger Shadowlings would perform. Status Wave: 6Path 1 HP: 5 (+1 = 6) Path 2 HP: 10 (+1 = 11) Path 3 HP: 11 (+1 = 12) Path 4 HP: 11 (+1 = 12) Moon Trainee Bonus: +1 HP to each path Princess HP: 2/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
kalindara rolled 4 20-sided dice:
3, 14, 20, 6
Total: 43 (4-80)
|
Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2011 2:07 pm
The downside to the brick defenses was the waiting for the Shadowlings to reach the centre. Though it seemed Davey wouldn't have to wait as long this time - the new and improved Shadowlings were faster than the previous ones, too. It wasn't long before they reached Davey's defenses. To his eternal surprise, two of the walls held. That was still two that fell, and the stronger creatures took out their wrath on the princess golem. At last she fell and the automated course began resetting. The monsters were herded back up, the broken and unbroken defenses cleared away, piles of materials restocking. The princess golem was the only thing that didn't reappear, clearly waiting for someone new to challenge the course before spitting out a new, randomised face. ~It was only to be expected. I suppose you didn't do too badly, for someone almost as intelligent as a trained seal.~Davey sighed and ignored the warning signs of a headache. He often felt that way around Azrael. "At least we can go back to the island proper, now," Davey said. He'd seen more than enough of this tiny one. With Azrael in agreement, Davey left the bunker once more. At least he left with the knowledge that he wouldn't be back - not for a while, at least. As the door to the bunker closed behind Davey, the computer recorded, " Trainee: David Brant. Course: Passed. Survived to Wave: Six." Status Wave: 6Path 1 HP: 6 - 3 = 3 Path 2 HP: 11 - 14 = -3 Path 3 HP: 12 - 20 = -8 Path 4 HP: 12 - 6 = 6 Princess HP: 0/20
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
