Messages

46

Forum Roleplaying / Re: We are our Avatars

« on: September 28, 2016, 12:07:03 PM »

Emma pocketed the key. At least Jack being ridiculously silly let her move past the temporary bruise to her ego. The words infinite and endless had also grabbed her attention. That couldn't be right, could it? What had the inn looked like from the outside, again? Ugh, it was still locked in that haze. She'd have to go outside and look again, and for some reason, that felt like a really bad idea.

"The room of endless sustenance for a thousand, Alex." A reference to something before the haze.

But seriously, Emma was kind of hungry. Something of a snack would be greatly appreciated. Although, come to think of it . . .

"None of this is gonna cost me, is it?"

47

Forum Roleplaying / Re: We are our Avatars

« on: September 28, 2016, 12:48:14 AM »

Gauntlets, huh? Interesting. Emma wondered what those might be for. Wondered, too, if Jack even knew what they were for.

"Chickie? I'll take that," Emma said with a roll of her shoulders.

At least that sounded interested, and not like Jack was passing her off as some dumb kid hardly worth his time. Not that his time was going to get her very far where it concerned answers to some burning questions, but this guy was the first person she'd seen since the haze--since forever, maybe?--and keeping up impressions was going to be important.

Attempts at that, however, were dashed once Jack tossed a room key at her. It hit her square in the chest, and Emma quickly scrambled to grab it before it hit the floor, displaying all the grace of a tranquilized house cat after a particularly bad vet visit. Key in hand, cheeks flushed with embarrassment, she straightened her back and squared her shoulders again as if nothing at all had happened. The key had a large and gaudy "3" tag attached to it, and it was temporarily the most interesting thing in the world, at least until the pride recovered a little.

48

Forum Roleplaying / Re: We are our Avatars

« on: September 27, 2016, 08:45:21 PM »

Wasn't he a silly one? What, did he think he'd seen a ghost? Had he not heard her open the door? She kind of remembered opening the door. That was still part of the haze, part of that gap in her recollection. There was an inn, a door, a table, and a very surprised man. Named Jack, apparently.

"Well, good thing I wasn't going to ask, huh?" She punctuated the statement with an innocent smile, "I'm Emma."

She extended a hand to shake his. She looked dainty compared to him--hell, she even looked dainty compared to other teenagers. But she'd meet this guy with chest out, shoulders square, back straight, and as firm a handshake as she could manage.

"Oh, and please don't call me kid," she said sweetly, "Unless you don't mind me calling you old man."

49

Forum Roleplaying / Re: We are our Avatars

« on: September 27, 2016, 12:54:20 PM »

"Obviously too many," remarked the small girl with light, reddish-orange hair.

There were obvious signs that something was wrong. The haze of memory, the blur between imagination and reality, how the world around her felt like a smudge over the iris. But that could be investigated later, once she had her bearings. Right now, she'd arrived at this place--this inn--without a strong understanding of how. And there was someone here, someone at the front desk, who looked exactly how she felt. Still, she needed to keep up appearances. Make it seem like she knew exactly where she was, exactly what was going on.

The girl, Emma, was short, just shy of five feet tall, with green eyes, and bushy hair tied back into a ponytail. Much of her bangs covered the right side of her face, concealing a set of scars she preferred remained hidden. Oddly. A bit of memory she had that pierced the haze. Cover the scars. Duly noted. The girl wore a purple spaghetti strap tank top and denim short-shorts. She folded her arms over her chest as she stood before the counter and the rather bored looking man.

"Are you the owner, here?"

50

Forum Roleplaying / Re: Post here if you are looking for a forum game, and what kind of games.

« on: September 26, 2016, 03:49:34 PM »

I just need to resize my usual avatar.

51

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] Treasure Hunting (Closed, for now)

« on: September 26, 2016, 09:27:39 AM »

"Good job, Zen," Qara began, "You disabled the explosive. You also destroyed the console beneath it. Now I absolutely can't open the airlock, jacked in or not. You're going to have to find another way."

Hardwired systems were always a pain. A Wyrd can't get in conventionally. No wireless communication happens with them at all. Back on Old Earth, they called them closed networks. The system hadn't fundamentally changed in the past five centuries, only new modifiers here and there. A Wyrd could only get in with a direct connection of some kind; a chip or adapter applied to the system, something the Wyrd could speak to, would give them full access to the closed network.

This console wasn't going to do it, though. Not anymore. Over half a millennia, and computers and magnets still didn't get along.

"You know, if you need me to be the competent one out there, we can switch places anytime."

52

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] TSS Approaching Dawn (Open)

« on: September 26, 2016, 08:59:13 AM »

The bartender, after acknowledging Aaron's request, made quick work of it. Four arms allowed him a lot of movement; he was able to grab a beer--Draal Imperial, a popular hops beer from Titan--with one hand, reach under the counter to get a rather generic looking pack of cigarettes (Distant Suns brand) with another, hold three shot glasses in a third hand, and pour rum with the fourth. The order was finished with mechanical efficiency.

"Busy afternoon, huh?" he asked idly, noting the large sum of alcohol Aaron was requesting, all while almost mindlessly handling another customer's order.


The surprise on Darius's face was genuine. Holy shit.

If Darius didn't have a big job to pull, following this gaudy looking guy around would be extremely lucrative. Actually, doing so could put some change in his pocket after all this was done. The job itself wasn't going to pay, after all. Just clear a substantial debt. Darius decided it'd be worth trailing the guy for awhile. Maybe when he felt Darius's usefulness was served, Darius could just pick one of his pockets and be done with it. So, he gave him a "yes sir!" and quickly met with the sommelier, an older woman with her own side of the bar, devoted entirely to wine and wine supplements.

Darius found the man at the tables within five minutes, a cheese tray balanced in one hand, the other holding a bottle of Martian red and wine glass. He stopped at the table, set the tray down next to the man, the glass following, and poured a generous amount for him.

"Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?" He asked brightly, realizing only too late that he may have come off as slightly too confident for his disguise.

53

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: Beyond the Stellar Sphere

« on: September 25, 2016, 06:34:22 PM »

Thanks, brah.

54

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] Treasure Hunting (Closed, for now)

« on: September 24, 2016, 12:57:07 PM »

"The graphic invention of Zen-bits, the hottest new breakfast food this side of the asteroid belt, yes," Qara remarked, "Unmined rocks, no."

Because that airlock wasn't on any maps of the place. As soon as Zen noted seeing something she wasn't, she hijacked his camera, blew up the image, and floated it by her right. This airlock was new, newer than this station. And it was hardwired, the best way to keep a Wyrd out of your system. She did a quick scan of what Zen could see.

"Hardwired and, by the looks of it, rigged to blow. See that orange card stuck over the console?" Qara uploaded a zoomed in shot of it to Zen's wristpiece, "Whatever's past this, it's more important to them destroyed than in someone else's hands. You need to figure out a way to disable that card and get me inside that console."

55

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] Character Sheets

« on: September 24, 2016, 11:53:42 AM »

Name: Qara Agilos kan Terra (pronounced ker-ah ah-gee-loes) Age: Eighteen. Species: Wyrd. Homeland: Born on Terra Nova, lived in Titan's Amber Hill colony. Physical Description: Fresh into young adulthood, with another fifty years of youth ahead of her. Qara has short red-orange hair, reddish-brown eyes, and is rather scrawny looking. She has the classic spacefaring paleness, which she complements by wearing dark clothes. Personality: Levelheaded, compared to her partner in "crime." She has a dry wit and a monotone sarcasm that blurs the lines of humor, sardonicism, and austerity. Qara enjoys exploration, discovery, taking the wind out of her partner's sails, playing tetherball, and the noisy return of math rock that is perverting the hearts and minds of kids these days. -History- Qara is certain she, as a full Wyrd (most of her brain being replaced with enhanced biomechanical parts), was born on Terra Nova. What she isn't sure of is how the got to Titan, a world where the greater Machinal anti-Wyrd cult is at its strongest. She was just a kid, had next to no education, no idea how to survive, and no real education on how to work the augments of her mind. She was taken in by a sympathetic Machinal priest in the small religious colony of Amber Hill, as the priest refused any of extremist Machinal teachings, embracing love and compassion over derision and isolation. There, she was educated in both scholarly and religious matters, and was eventually even accepted by the entirety of the colony. It didn't last.

As soon as the cults discovered a Wyrd in Amber Hill, the worst of them--Machinalis Superioris, known for their cruelty and barbaric rituals to some greater machine-god--beset the colony and endeavored to destroy it. They were all fortunate that a particular treasure hunter was doing work for the colony at the time, and that he had a rather powerful starship with which to fend off the attack. He was mostly successful. Qara, feeling that her presence caused much of the trouble, left a note thanking the priest--whom she regarded as family--for all he'd done for her, assuring him that he'd see her again, and that she will carry his teachings everywhere she goes. With that done, she stowed away on the hunter's starship. She's been his apprentice (and co-pilot) ever since. -Proficiencies- Infiltrating otherwise automated systems, merging her brain fuctions with starships, zero-g athletics (like tetherball), and tactical assessments. On the other hand, Qara is not very socially adjusted, has a difficult time focusing when she's inactive, suffers from a bad case of insomnia, and is not trained in any form of personal combat.

56

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] Treasure Hunting (Closed, for now)

« on: September 24, 2016, 11:45:30 AM »

With that, the small screen on Zen's wristpiece lit up: a three-dimensional map of the facility, holographic and projectable from the device. The map was certainly weird, though. Too small, at least by the looks of the place from the outside, wide and dug into the asteroid its crew was to be mining.

"I don't like it, Zen," said the man's partner, co-pilot, and apprentice, Qara Agilos, "The only map I can find ignores the asteroid's surface. The place is dug in deep, and that can't all just be foundation."

Back on the ship, the scrawny girl floated in her cabin, red holograms surrounding her. She had the station's map laid out and zoomed in, something she could use to be in Zen's position, to see what he should be seeing (according to the data she'd taken from the station), and help him navigate as needed. The artificial gravity was shut down on the ship at the time. Fuel was . . . costly. Something worth saving by shutting down unnecessary systems when they were docked like this.

"Are you sure this place isn't manned right now?"

57

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] TSS Approaching Dawn (Open)

« on: September 24, 2016, 08:24:40 AM »

Wait, what the hell was that? The goggle thing? The guy slipped the goggles over his face to look at Darius. Did they actually do something? Looked like so, he was trying to scope Darius out for something. Shit. At worst, he could see the things about Darius he wasn't supposed to. That wasn't good. Play it cool. Although not too cool. Darius was supposed to be kind of a twerp, an awkward mess of humanity bumbling his way into space. A little bit of fear would fit the character.

"A-ah, uhm, s-sorry, no," Darius smiled shakily and shook his head, "I don't smoke, sir. But, uhm, uhm, yes, if you head over there . . ."

He motioned towards the far right side of the casino, where stood long bar, a dozen or more patrons already seated before it. A pleasant looking gentleman with thick muttonchops and dark curly hair stood behind it, brandishing glasses and filling orders two at a time; he was, after all, aided by two mechanical arms extending out from his lower ribcage.

"The, uhm, the bartender over there, uh," shit, I forgot his name, "He carries cigarettes, too. If there's anything else you need, uhm, please let me or any of the other stewards know!"

Bail. Bail out. Now. Whatever sort of sensors this guy had strapped to his forehead, Darius wanted no part of. He got as far from the guy as he could, further in and towards the main entrance of the casino from the resort rooms and cabins. That was when the gaudiest looking man of them all strolled in, almost like he owned the place. Darius paused, took a deep breath, and looked around him. There were other stewards and stewardesses out on the casino floor, all making sure customers were having a good time, but for this guy . . . Well, every steward looked to Darius to greet this one. Great. What is this, some sort of hazing ritual?

Darius approached the gaudy looking fellow, smiling bright and nervous. "Hello, sir! Welcome to the Approaching Dawn casino. Please let me know if there's anything I can do for you!"

58

Forum Roleplaying / Re: Post here if you are looking for a forum game, and what kind of games.

« on: September 24, 2016, 06:18:25 AM »

Ahahaha, that actually sounds pretty fun.

59

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: [BtSS] TSS Approaching Dawn (Open)

« on: September 23, 2016, 11:09:29 AM »

Keep it simple. Don't act out. Don't step foot off the ship when you dock on Titan. Machinals have scanners in every spaceport; they'll gun you down where you stand. You'll be Darius Kaldeen, male, twenty years old, born and raised on Europa. Steward. Blond hair, green eyes; ID's in your mailbox. Bring a wig, change your lenses, practice your accent. This is your last chance.

. . . And "Darius" knew exactly what that meant. If he--ugh--stepped foot on soil, any soil, he'd be killed. And space was not a pleasant place to live, and work was not going to come easy if he was put on a system-wide blacklist. So he set to work. Booked a room in an Enceladus spaceport, prepared his disguise, his new identity for the next several weeks, and boarded as the steward Darius Kaldeen. The disguise was near-perfect: the mask a perfect likeness of flesh, bone, and muscle; the wig made of synthetically grown human hair, clinging to the scalp as if it were real; and the voice modulator, recently upgraded, tweaked for a young male still growing, but freshly past adolescence. He was on the roster, expected to be on the flight for the full rotation: Saturn to Jupiter to Mars, starting back all over again at Enceladus.

Except he was getting off at Europa. They'd be down one steward. Hopefully, that would be all they'd miss.

But that was a fair bit of time away. Days, at best. A week--or more--at worst. Why, though, did Darius have to be so insufferably young? Twenty?! The amount of full grown adults talking down to him was absurd. Reminded the person behind the mask just how much they hated the common folk. Darius should've been older, at least forty, to earn some mutual respect. Uggghhh.

Fortunately, Titan didn't cause any problems. The casino, and Darius's duties, were light until Titan. A few other stewards and stewardesses wondered why he was happy to stay in the servants' quarters when he could've seen the sights on Titan, but claimed to need the rest. Didn't bother telling them about fear of the moon's uniquely terrible Machinalis cult, lecture them on the lack of anything worth seeing on Titan, or inform them of just how much snooping he could do with minimal personnel on board.

Unfortunately, Titan gifted the Approaching Dawn with a mob of middle to upper-middle-class tourists looking for an economy cruise, which significantly cut down on time for his real job. By the time they were out of port and en route to Jupiter, Darius was out on the casino floor, there to make everyone feel welcome, make sure everyone's having a great time. Short, clean-cut, blonde haired, green eyed Darius Kaldeen, the perfect poster child for the bright eyed youth experiencing space for the first time, navigated the casino and its patrons with a forced awkwardness. Look the part, act the part.

He found himself staring at one customer, though. The most eclectic looking person here, wayward in the casino, probably here to lose all his money. Spiked up red hair? Goggles on his forehead? What kind of person did that to themselves? And--goggles? Really? Did they even do anything? Why choose goggles over bionic eyes and replaceable lenses? He choked back an aghast snicker and approached.

"Hello, sir!" Bright eyed, bright faced, socially awkward Darius Kaldeen. The person behind the mask wanted to puke. "Can I get you anything?"

60

Beyond the Stellar Sphere / Re: Beyond the Stellar Sphere

« on: September 22, 2016, 12:07:03 PM »

Questions & Answers
In this post, I'll keep track of any questions that've been asked about the setting, and my corresponding answers.

1) How does government work, is there a unified government or is each colony self governed?

Think of each planet like a solitary nation, with each of its colonies mostly self-governing city-states. Colonies make their own rules, but planetary governments can override those rules.

Permanent space stations, on the other hand, are usually controlled/built by a megacorp, and are self governed--unless, of course, they orbit close enough to be in the planet's uppermost atmosphere, in which case the planetary government can claim it.

2) Is there a shared economy? Are there mega/hyper corps?

Perhaps it's the pessimist in me, but I'd err on the side of hyper corps controlling most resources with fists jammed right into the hearts of local governments. The economy is a shared credit system; I tried to wrack my brain to invent a new money name, but "credits" are used a lot in science fiction for a reason. So credits it shall be!

3) Space Pirates?

Always.

Can physical currency still be a thing? With Wyrd and AI being a thing I think there would be some form of unhackable currency for people woried about that kind of thing.

There is absolutely a currency like that. Credit sticks, credit chips, things along those lines. Basically unmarked credits that can be deposited in a person's account.