Eric (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
overbringer) wrote2021-08-10 04:37 pm
overbringer) wrote2021-08-10 04:37 pm
Anglerfish Signups!
Welcome to the Cygni star cluster. Three stars, Cygni Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, that are far enough apart to each have their own planetary systems, but close enough together that travelling between them by Nearlight drives only takes a few (objective) weeks. Well within the territory of the Karrakin Trade Barony, the Cygni stars are owned by the House of Starlight, one of the wealthiest of the great houses of Karrakis. Under the rule of Baron Braxton-Forrest of the House of Starlight, Cygni has flourished for over a hundred years and is one of the richest systems outside of the Core Worlds. His son, James-Forrest of the House of Starlight, is a rising star who shows every sign of following in his father's footsteps and leading his people to even greater heights when the time comes to take up the mantle of rulership.
Braxton-Forrest's single greatest accomplishment is the Dyson Web, a constantly growing network of power satellites in orbit of Cygni Alpha that gather solar energy and beam it to a collection station on Aman's (Cygni Alpha II's) moon Beleriad, from which it can then be distributed across the system. Once it's complete, it will grant the people of Cygni Alpha functionally unlimited power with which to do whatever they please. The day of the dyson web's first activation (at this point it will only be functioning at 1% of its predicted final power output), is soon.
The number of stars we have built dyson webs around can be counted on the fingers of one hand, so this is a big deal.
Cygni Alpha's bottomless need for raw material has led to the prominence of Cygni Beta. Not nearly as well as settle, Cygni Beta is mainly home to agricultural worlds and mining colonies, outputting tremendous amounts of raw materials back towards Cygni Alpha.
The Ungreatfuls have, of course, been poking around and making a nuisance of themselves, and the pirates that work out of Cygni Gamma have been raiding shipping between Alpha and Beta. Despite their efforts most sectors remain on schedule.
The Dyson Web will be activated any day now.
So what is James-Forrest doing right now?
No one is sure. No one has even heard from him for weeks. No one, but a small strike force of Lancers and other mercenaries that he has slowly been gathering without his father's knowledge. James-Forrest insists that his father has gone mad, and has sold out his people to make a deal with a dangerous entity of unknown power that will doom the entire Cygni System, and perhaps all of mankind everywhere.
It's a ridiculous claim, many would say. But for the mercenaries, renegades, and outcasts who are desperate enough, a paycheck is a paycheck. As the Dyson Web's inauguration ceremony goes on, you will be the ones to commit high treason and save the universe.
Hopefully.
...
IF ALL THAT sounds pretty cool to you, you should consider joining The Anglerfish: A campaign of cosmic horror and giant robots. It will be a Lancer game playing on Roll20.net once a week in a 2-3 hour session, and will feature space pirates, alternate dimensions, evil rich people, and at least one masquerade ball. If necessary, I CAN supply a copy of the rule book to you.
If that sounds like a good time to you, respond to this post with the following:
The most likely times that will work for ME, just to get things narrowed down, are Monday after 5PST or Wednesday after 5PST. If we want to wait a month or two, the same time slot on Tuesday and Friday will clear up.
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Availability: Honestly this is cool enough that I'll work my schedule around it. As it is, Tues/Thurs after 5 PST, and Wednesday whenever, are good for me
Character Concepts: IF POSSIBLE: The Amnesiac! I want to not know SHIT other than being a cute girl.
IF NOT: A legendary space pirate Lancer, of sorts. The mask and cloak mean that when the pirate is ready to retire, they can just... give the mech, the cloak, and the mask to someone else. Keep moving on. The Dread Pirate Roberts approach.
The previous legendary pirate was this character's parent, who Vanished Mysteriously, leaving this character to take up the mask and the mech to find the truth.
Questions: what is a good pirate mecha
Suggestions: N/A for now
Meme: why do i need to post anything? i'm hilarious myself
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Depending on where you want to be on the Dirty pirate-noble pirate scale, I recommend looking at the IPSN section or the SSC sections, but really they all have good stuff.
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Availability: Wednesday after 5 PST, but Monday also works.
Character Concepts: An investigative journalist turned investigative blogger after she got kicked out of her publication as a warning turned renegade scum out of desperation after a particularly evil particularly rich asshole found her getting too close to the truth of whatever dark secrets they were hiding, which set off a domino chain of everyone else she ticked off coming after her. She's young despite her accomplishments of "being hunted (mostly for fun) by several prominent figures within the baronies for being a nosy journalist," and while she's bitter and cynical, she's an inherent believer in Truth, Justice, and the Power of Bonds despite overwhelming evidence that the system totally crushes that, and can drop friendship speeches and similar armaments at the drop of a hat. Real scrappy Teen Mecha Pilot type.
Questions: What's the status of the press in the Karrakin Trade Baronies?
Suggestions: Not much that I can think of at the moment, this campaign sounds like exactly my jam, but I do think having some kind of classic Holmes-esque murder or crime mystery take place and be inextricably tied to some big mecha battle conflict would legitimately be really cool.
Meme: Did you know that world-renowned writer Stephen King was once hit by a car?
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Once Union came on the scene it got a little better for the press, but it's still risky to give the Barons bad reviews.
I did know that about Stephen King, though. I understand he's also included SEVERAL graphic depictions of people getting hit by cars in his books, up to and including a book where all cars suddenly turned evil and started trying to kill humans.
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Availability: I think it's actually Wednesday only for me
Character Concepts: An extremely skilled pilot with a traumatic past and just a deeply terrible personality and sense of judgment. Someone who is Trouble.
Questions: Actually, not having started my read of the book yet, how much of the setting is taken straight from it? Like does the book contain most of the moving parts I would need to start actually assembling that backstory?
Suggestions: SHRUG
Meme:
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Availability: Tuesday or Wednesday evenings (after 5 PST), I could probably make Monday work if needed
Character Concepts: fairly flexible on this tbh, I had a few possible ideas already on the interest post, of which I'm currently most feeling #3. I also now have a vague idea for a mad scientist type haunted by visions from a real spooky NHP or something cause I've been listening to Archspire again. Mechanically I'm most interested in either wonky HORUS stuff or a speedy agile glass-cannon type depending on party comp.
Questions: Tips for a new player who's read the books but hasn't had a chance to play before? Also interested to know if you think this stupid meme idea I probably won't do would be viable/entertaining: what if a HORUS pilot (since HORUS frames have no set canon appearance) made maximum use of Lancer's respec options to change their frame's capabilities and role as much as possible from one mission to the next while the appearance of the frame stayed constant?
Suggestions: There's already gonna be space pirates so I'm real happy with that as is, but what if there were also power metal references as plot elements? Also there should a super dope hot badass space pirate queen involved somewhere, obviously.
Meme:
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But yes due to the way 3d printing works in Lancer, your goofy Horus Plan would be feasible. As would spooky NHPs.
Spoilers: It won't be the only spooky NHP.
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Also, hell yeah to all of these answers.
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Availability: Monday Wednesday or Friday, any time between 2 PM to midnight, Pacific Time
Character Concepts:
1: The Innocent Sweetheart, a bundle of joy off on her first like serious assignment, about to go through a trial by fire
2: A gung-ho career soldier who signed up to defend Cygni, possibly related to the Baron and with considerable mixed feelings about that.
3: A bitter seasoned veteran - probably female. They hearsthis assignment, expects it's a Keter class containment breach, and mutters "not this shit again." I can make this work either as a team leader or as a grunt below the actual XO.
Questions: What do you want to know about the system or game world?
I will need my hand held for most of it tbh please be gentle I'm baby. I do own the pdf because it was in the Megabundle, but haven't had the chance to read and absorb it prior to this.
Suggestions: What kind of characters or set pieces or plot elements do you want to see in this game, if any?
Since it seems like we SCP Foundation now, uh, some kind of team that hears "potentially hostile plenipotentiary entity" or "langford/berryman memetic kill basilisk" or whatever and immediately sends in Mobile Task Force Lambda-20 "Don Quixotics" or something, as a possible patron or threat.
Take that as a "I would like a group with these themes to show up" rather than "take this entirely literally."
Meme: Post something funny in here
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The baron may HAVE a metavault containment team but James can't really call on many official forces right now, for obvious reasons. And I fully intend to have several character building jams and some kind of session zero, for anyone who wants help.
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Availability: Monday, wednesday, or friday
Character Concepts: 1. Some kind of technician who wants to be an Albatross member but just... ain't there yet.
2. A classic heroic knight who is definitely a himbo.
3. A questionable old man who definitely is up to no good but actually is also something of a decent mentor to the younger kids when he's not being a crime guy. (think Fate Grand order moriarty)
Questions: What do you want to know about the system or game world?
I know a fair amount about the system and the game world being presently playing a game in it, though I'm going to have to avoid playing a Tokugaway or shitposting shark-themed newtype character again just to avoid playing my previous character :P
Suggestions: What kind of characters or set pieces or plot elements do you want to see in this game, if any? Some fun outside the mech fights would be rad, intrigue at the masquerade ball.
A musical interlude (mostly kidding. mostly)
Meme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I5s9p8_tI1A Just watch Pekora be the worst in funny ways.
no subject
Availability: Tuesday would be best, but Mondays before Gundam (10 EST) (or after Gundam ends, we're in the final season) also works. Wednesdays absolutely a no-go I run Soleil
Character Concepts: Probably my SSC black ops on the run character that I've gone over before. But I'm not married to it - after playing some Wallflower, I think I'm open to trying out other stuff if needed.
Questions: In conjunction with my character concept, what sort of SSC presence is in the systems?
Suggestions: shrug
Meme:
no subject
Availability: Wednesdays or Thursdays after 7p Central/5p Pacific are best. Mondays are a maybe.
Character Concepts:
1. Gritty, cynical old mercenary with a traumatic past and a super-fast rushdown mech. Lost any hope of change a while back and just goes where the Manna is, but has the stereotypical heart of gold. Probably a background as someone who wound up in prison for Valjean reasons or someone who got conscripted into a space-feudal army and got out as soon as they could.
2. Vaguely terrifying but generally chill genetically engineered child soldier, part of a larger effort to mass-produce fuck Quinn is already playing this better than I could in GV except for the chill part.
3. A disgraced, Black Knight-type noble, having thrown away their family name to become a mercenary/pirate but with a hunger to return to stupid space-feudal politics and restore (or more likely build from scratch) their place in the stars. Probably a dramatic bitch.
Looking at fast, agile mechs generally for any of the above, with variations in weapons and actual strategy depending on which. Unless we really need a tank, 1 would be good for that.
Questions: I'm reading over the corebook now and trying to absorb the excellent setting, but I think the main questions I have are about the Trade Baronies generally. Who's legally in charge of the Cygni System. Who's really in charge of the Cygni System? How integrated is the area into Union's governance?
Also how do people pick a mech they are all amazing. Even the shitty Bigdog-looking IPS-N repairmech is a good boy.
Suggestions:
1. We need to have a talk about Shackling NHPs. Might or might not be relevant to the campaign though.
2. Stupid shouty Gundam rival fights.
3. Fighting some monstrosity thousands of times the size of our robots with hard work and guts.
Meme:
Help I'm getting more ideas.
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1: Braxton Forrest of the House of Starlight
2: Braxton Forrest of the House of Starlight
3: Not very. There is talk that some time in the next few decades, the Cygni systems might get a Blink Gate, which would by necessity bring in a lot more Union attention, but for now, Union has very little ability to dictate what the House of Starlight can and cannot do.
4: IT'S A VERY REAL PROBLEM
no subject
Availability: I can do the Monday Tuesday and Friday slots.
Character Concepts:
> Wholesome heroic type who has bought into all the company propaganda and wants to do something really risky to show off and prove themselves
> Henchman figure to one of the other characters because that seems like it would be fun and add some extra emotional investment. I wanna call someone boss or bro and hype them up constantly and sob wildly if they get shot down.
Questions: I have played about one session and none of that was combat I will require handholding.
Suggestions: I never DID get into a proper bar fight in Ascension.
Also at some point I want someone to break open a cockpit and engage a pilot hand to hand, it does not have to be me but that would be so dope.
Meme: I got something real funny for ya - holds up a mirror
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- A bar fight can probably be arranged
- Fist fighting on top of
metal geara downed mech is certainly a thing that I could work towards...- /immediately shatters into a million pieces as soon as he see the mirror.