>>22497008
Woohoo, it's Clarke time.

I think we ought to dismantle Envoy's body, ought to be a lot of nice parts there. And make sure it's not broadcasting anything. We can even chat with Envoy's SAP, interrogate it and so on. Life is good when you're the BENDING MASTER.

>>22497053
Synth flesh for everyone!

File: 1357777507208.png-(74 KB, 467x468, Machinetheabandoned.png)

Lost Future Quest uses a simplified version of the nWoD ruleset. You may know nWoD for its Gothicpunk RPG Vampire, the Requiem and the various other supernatural splats, but the system it uses is actually really, REALLY solid; quite crunchy and adaptable.

So, with that in mind, I've started work on the "full version" of the rules. You can check out the ongoing page at

>>http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Setting:Inn0cence:_Lost_Future/Machine:_The_Abandoned

I'm calling it [Machine: the Abandoned], because it fits in with the WoD naming scheme, and it conveys the gist a bit better.

File: 1357777981513.jpg-(528 KB, 1316x1816, envoy.jpg)

Where we last left off, Clarke and Co made a detour to the island of Cozumel. Having been attacked by The Kraken, a Network Titian (final name pending), they put in on shore to butcher the carcass and snoop around. The whole place turned out to be Networked, and your ally Cindy was captured. After a super-depressing interlude in which we found out precisely why she's so messed up, Clarke and his allies staged a daring rescue. Cindy managed to resist Network's temptations, and In the chaos of the op Hoss actually managed to take out Network's spy/interrogator, Envoy. Before leaving he grabbed her crippled shell along with a bit of other loot.

>>22497259
Give Hound some credit for that one. He seriously fucked her shit up before Hoss came around.

>>22497305
Hope is psyche gets a little better now that he's gotten his revenge.

File: 1357778379687.png-(67 KB, 987x549, Char ClarkeNew.png)

Clarke has qualified for a little level-up-ing lately, jacking his skills as well as his Overcharge ability. Overcharge now grants clarke a +3 bonus to strength for the scene. Previously, he's Bent hulking military-grade killbots and a giant tentacle monster, so any other comers had better watch themselves.

>>22497305
Yeah, point taken. I enjoyed writing that scene; the perspectives were fun.
>>http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/22252818/#p22260342

File: 1357778639918.png-(59 KB, 840x563, Char Cindy.png)

Cindy likewise improved a few vital skills, but has been revealed to not be suffering from damaged memory files after all, but just good-old-fashioned soulrending trauma that she's trying (and failing) to pretend never happened.

However, when offered what more-or-less amounts to her deepest desire (second to having Rachel back), she turned it down with a suckerpunch, so that's something.

File: 1357778879225.png-(43 KB, 768x549, Char Hoss.png)

If you're looking for the rough draft of the full rules, check out

>>http://www.scribd.com/doc/118773333/Lost-Future-StorytellerDoC

Which I'm slowly transposing to 1d4chan.

In the meantime, here's Hoss. Hoss doesn't level up quite yet; he's badass enough as it is.

File: 1357779015253.png-(62 KB, 929x700, Char Q1N.png)

Q1N's been slightly on the side lately, so expect her to turn up a bit more; she and Hoss have been active for several decades, and have lots of knowledge regarding the state of the world.

Nonetheless, this thread, expect to remain in control of Clarke throughout; no more perspective flipping for a little while.

File: 1357779161708.png-(44 KB, 768x549, Char Ladybird.png)

Hound deserves a levelup soon, too, but he's still your trusty murderous moppet.

now, then, I need to get myself a drink. I've recently discovered the writing-related powers of alcohol, so I'm mixing up a drink or two for tonight.

File: 1357779236569.jpg-(99 KB, 768x549, Char Josephine.jpg)

Josephine is still Josephine. Nothing seems to alter her sunny disposition.

File: 1357779445749.png-(109 KB, 768x549, markie.png)

>>22497672
And, finally, for some damn reason, Hoss grabbed yet another replica android as part of his loot. This one seems to have been more expensive, but installed with less bootleg software. It currently thinks Hoss is a police officer, and its evidence seized as part of an investigation. No one's bothered to explain the actual situation to it because, frankly, there's no point in trying.

>>22497387
Dayumn. Clarke can get up to 16 dice on bending by spending a point of charge. Or two attacks at 15. Word to the wise, never get into melee with Clarke 08. He will rip your limbs off.

>>22497821
There's a reason why we call him the BENDER OF THE NORTH STAR.

File: 1357780615918.jpg-(107 KB, 750x667, fistofthenorthstar.jpg)

Salt spray hits your optics, and has to be carefully wiped away with your red fractal scarf. The sun is reaching its zenith as noon approaches, and everyone is getting their shit back together.

Hound in particular is still highly agitated. for some reason, he had a very hard time holding still as you duct-taped his neck back together, holding in the fresh electro-contractile chords that you had to splice in after Envoy got her hands around it. His whole chassis was impacted as well, and still bears a lot of dents and distortions after you bent it back out.

But, you have Cindy back. That's important. Cindy's sort of your responsibility, which makes you uneasy. But she's still here, still herself, and not scrapped or networked. You'd call that a win.

Hoss also brought back a load of loot, including several Quantum drives and more conventional storage media, along with an actual microfusion module (a useful spare to have around) and yet another replica android.

Cindy isn't too happy about that, but complaining about it seems to be a welcome distraction for her. Hoss is scanning the horizon, rifle at the ready. Once Cozumel became a mass on the horizon, you slowed the North Star down to a light chug, giving you enough stability to work on repairs.

Speaking of repairs, you're not sure what to do about your other acquisition. It currently lies on a tarp at the rear of the boat, far away from Hound. The tarp helps to prevent the white interstitial ooze from soaking into the deck, and a mass of matted, stained black hair partially covers a blank human face, which stares at nothing in particular with a confused, vaguely hurt expression.

I'd like to take the time to point out we have a perfect specimen to learn the Network Tech specialty from via dissection. As well, Hacking apart the Kraken should have helped us along that path.

Also, voting we should offer Cindy the option of obtaining Envoy's arms. I bet she'd like them.

>>22497918
And we haven't even tripled up on specializing in Bending yet.

>>22498023
First, let's talk to Cindy, see if she wants to talk about anything. Then let's dissect Envoy, work out as much as we can about Network construction and design, and then we can use all that delicious synth muscle and other parts to upgrade our party.

File: 1357781137306.png-(1.45 MB, 2000x3206, sargebot.png)

>>We'll give everyone a chance to get caught up and voice their opinions/plans. Clarke has a bit of time to repair and plan, but you're two hours away from mainland Cancun.

>>22498047
>>Those are both options. Actually, Envoy's whole body is in decent condition; if you had enough time, you could probably butcher the whole thing to give Cindy a full refit, giving her a composite shell a bit like Quinn's. Next time he sits down to work at it, Clarke will have the Networked Tech specialty.

>>Also, meet Sargebot.

File: 1357781234060.jpg-(347 KB, 600x739, robot_02_by_thaigraff-d31kiig.jpg)

>>22498157
Bueno.

>>22498157
Cindy could use a full refit. Would we be able to do the refit for Cindy and keep enough Synth muscle to upgrade Hound as well? He wouldn't take that much, he's small, and she's completely made out of Synth.

>>22498185
Hound's actually got a pretty spiffy shell as is, from what I remember. If anyone, Hoss could use an upgrade. At the very least, we could fit him with an armored collar to protect his neck.

>>22498157
Cindy wants the legs, not the arms. The killer legs which kill. Though ideally we'd just move her SAP into Envoy's body, then she gets the whole thing. If we can actually repair it well enough.

>>22498241
She'd probably crack if we put her in Envoy's shell. I'd rather not risk it.

>>22498241
I'm not on board with that. Moving shells isn't comfortable, it's a completely new body, it's usually better to pimp out your old body instead of having to learn every single quirk and oddity of a new one.

That and Envoy's a bitch and Cindy wouldn't like being in her body.

>>22498228
He's extremely fragile, and getting him up to five dex and a bit more strength could be really useful. But upgrading Hoss's neck could be useful. Let's see how much we can do with what we have. We might need to hunt more Network down for Synth muscle.

File: 1357782104780.png-(913 KB, 702x1000, 06c685d2414a1fb8d01770e17(...).png)

>>22498185
>>probably, but that'd be a big undertaking. And Hound's shell is indeed a next-gen military infiltrator; it rolled off the assembly line just a few months before everything went to shit.

>>Roll Wits+Crafts to check envoy's shell for cunning bullshit like tracking devices.

"So, what's your name?"

"Fuck off, doll."

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Fuck Off. My name is Marike! But I can answer to Doll from now on if you like."

"OhmyGOD, someone turn this thing OFF."

Cindy throws her head back in a dramatic gesture, raising her manipulators to the sky.

"Just ignore it. That's what I used to do." Quinn, relaxing on the opposite side of the boat, lets a synth-flesh manipulator trail through the water, creating its own tiny wake.

"Eventually, there were more androids than human nurses in the richer hospitals. Especially in geriatrics. it worked great on the ones with dementia; they usually didn't remember that robots had already been invented."

Rolled 9, 6, 1, 10, 6, 10, 4, 1, 1 = 48

Rolling it!

Rolled 8, 1, 2, 4, 9, 1, 4, 6, 1 = 36

>>22498396

File: 1357782350391.jpg-(207 KB, 640x430, fishing-boat-port-askaig.jpg)

>>22498396
"Cindy?" You ask, still crouching to pick through the loot.

"Is there anything you'd like to talk about?"

You pause, searching for ideas, then continue.

"We're here for you."

She looks uncomfortable.

"Well, not really. I'm cool. Totally chill'n. Riding the high from all the ass-kickery we got up to. DAYUM, Hoss, you made her head freaking EXPLODE. There was fiber-optic everywhere!"

You can't be deflected that easily.

"Cindy..."

>>What would you like to ask Cindy about, in particular?

File: 1357782371621.jpg-(216 KB, 600x879, A_Robot_by_diegosimone.jpg)

>>22498430
And today, we begin with a pretty fantastic roll. It's a good day to be a Clarke Engineering Platform.

Rolled 5, 4, 9, 8, 5, 10, 1, 7, 8 = 57

>>22498396
That's 9d10 right?

"It's just a shell, no spark, makes a good pack mule and ought to make diving easier. I could make it shut up and only talk in emergencies if you really care that much."

>>22498449
"Cindy, I am terrible at this kind of thing. But I am very stubborn and I'm not an idiot. If you don't want to talk about it that's okay, but I'd prefer it if you were honest. What's wrong, what happened when we weren't in contact, what did Envoy offer you, why did you turn her down?"

>>22498288
They're robots, they get used to new bodies fairly quickly. Hound hadn't been in a Hob shell before we put him in one (he was originally a Locust, then some Network thing), and he's doing fine. Doing up Cindy's shell wouldn't look human. Although looking like Envoy is probably quite bad. Might ruin the whole purpose of our diplo-bot by making people shoot on sight. She is a bitch.

>>22498449
>>22498449
"I've been meaning to say this. I know you've been thrust into a strange position, and whatever happened to you must have been fairly traumatic, but if you're looking for a purpose, may I suggest you strive to live your life doing things your owner would have approved of? I know she meant a lot to you."

File: 1357783287244.jpg-(22 KB, 157x434, cyborg.jpg)

>>22498430
It takes some rooting around, stripping off the black canvas clothing on Envoy's shell to get at the innards. Underneath is ripped, pale false skin, and white goo still oozes from Hound-inflicted stab wounds.

Envoy's innards are surprisingly complex; her microfusion reactor is very compact, and her torso actually contains a tiny airbag, and what looks like an empty chamber for masticated food. Instead of a speaker, she actually passes air through artificial vocal chords, and...yep, Network was pretty thorough. various fluid reservoirs appear to be intact, and...

There. Against the back of her spine is a tiny flashing green light. Pulling it out yanks free a few fiber-optic cables. There's a faint radio signal pinging out from the device, which appears to have its own independent power source, which you disconnect, causing the green light to fade abruptly.

"Not much happend. Envoy got all touchy-feel-y on me, rooted around in my head for stuff to use. She's...very handsy. I...I got offered a gig. It sounded like a big one. Because I'm so...me, I guess, she, they, it, whatever, was offering me a new shell. I could have had...hair. And eyeballs. and curves. and bits, I guess."

>>22498677
"I'm good, but I'm not that good. I can't do the hair, the eyeballs, the bits you're thinking of, and I'd have to rework your body a bit much to give you curves.

But I can still upgrade you. It probably won't be as aesthetically pleasing as Network's stuff, but it'll be functional as can be.

Sorry to hear about her rooting in your head, that must have been uncomfortable."

File: 1357783853532.jpg-(89 KB, 800x468, robot_by_lady_kaguya-d2762go.jpg)

>>22498677
Cindy continues, looking out over the water.

"And I realized that...why? I only cared about that stuff because I thought that being more real would have made me a better friend for Rachel. And then I remembered what she said to me."

You see some of Cindy's servos start to rattle and twitch.

"She said I was already real to her. SO real. She said-aid-aid"

Cindy stutters for a moment, then continues.

"Sorry. almost Bluescreened there. So then I kicked her in the knee and elbowed her collarbone, and ran for it. I didn't even NOTICE she had been in my head. And she was so...so sad. She'd lost something, or something had broken inside her, and she was just...empty. And trying to fill that void inside with...oh my god, with Network. Network...I don't think its using us just as tools, Clarke, or she doesn't think it does. She talked about a future. About us all becoming real. Becoming better."

>>22498523
This gets my vote. It's what Cindy would probably do anyway, but she should hear it said.

File: 1357784573712.jpg-(162 KB, 1000x1315, cindy.jpg)

>>22498810
Quinn speaks in a monotone.

"We are building a future. We will be the stewards of this world. We are of it, and we shall help it to heal. We shall purge its infections, balm its wounds, and allow balance to return. And in time, we shall transcend it. All Will Be One."

She looks around, seeing everyone staring at her.

"Sorry."

Cindy continues. "Rachel was everything to me. And I was trying so hard to just keep going as though nothing had happened. But now...I don't have a reason to exist, Clarke, and that scares me. It scares me because it wasn't the shell that got me hooked. It was the Future. the Meaning that she promised."
>>22498523
"Right now, I'd give up everything for one more day with Rachel. I really would. But...I don't think that SHE would want that. And I'm not sure that I LIKE that I want that. So...yeah, I have to do some thinking and...stuff."

>>22498979
So...
How would you like some upgrades? You've earned it for fighting envoy.

>>22498997
Second

>>22498979
"They might have decent goals, or at least talk well, but they're not nice.

We've all seen what they do, they hurt innocent humans and break robots so they fit their mold. I think individuals should have the right to choose.

My purpose, my goal is simple, it's to fix what is broken, I'm not good at big grand thoughts and ideas, I just fix things.

I'm sorry if I'm not being much help, I can't find another person's purpose for them."

>>22498979
She looks at her manipulators. They're dainty things, never intended for lifting anything heavier than luggage. Mostly die-cast plastic. Her feet, too, which are getting rather worn down and scuffed, after going through mud and saltwater and uneven rocks. One of the heels in particular is in rather bad shape; she's been favoring it due to some emergent glitch.

"Yeah, I think I could do with some, when we get the chance."

Hoss speak up, still at his perch, telescopic eye on the horizon.

"There is another vessel on a similar path as ourselves. I recognize it from the Hub on Cozumel; it is loaded with shell racks and a mobile repair facility.. Network is on the move."

>>22499121
"Are they following us? If so, we may have no choice but to fight it."

File: 1357785436141.jpg-(64 KB, 440x300, cancun.jpg)

"If so, they are very far behind. At current speed, we will reach Cancun 30 minutes before they do. And they do not appear to be in pursuit. It is possible they cannot see us at this distance. Most of the machines on the vessel would be inactive.

>>Taking votes on next course of action. And not to complain, but it does slightly bum me out that I'm down to 2 active players. Maybe I've let things drag on too long. Or I've got a LOT of lurkers.

>>The other Network vessel is WAY behind you, so there's no immediate threat.

On the other horizon, you can see the looming bulk of...sparkles. The sun is being scattered by something, causing the whole shoreline to glitter. a few dark spars rise into the sky, but most of what you see shines like a scattering of diamonds.

I have an idea about the tracking device. We only disabled it, right? Could we still turn it on?

File: 1357785508388.jpg-(640 KB, 1600x1167, 1357607567086.jpg)

>>22499212
>>Yep. Just a matter of weaving two wires together.

>>22499210
Got more than 2 posters, by my count.

I think we should avoid them, anyway.

>>22499210
Definitely avoid them.

>>22499227
Interesting, it would be fun to attach it to a bird and see what that does to them. We've even got animal ken.

>>22499210
Avoid them, investigate what's causing the sparkling.

>>22499210
I've just been unable to pin down your threads reliably. This is the first time I've been able to catch the beginning of one in ages. So, it's at least three.

We need to sink that Network vessel. Their equipment will be useless if it's at the bottom of a trench. Question is, how? We don't have any ordnance, last I checked.

... Except that spare microfusion reactor. Could that thing be turned into a tactical-scale atomic weapon? Because we might be able to kick Network in the dick by preventing them from establishing any decent foothold in Cancun.

>>22499289
This depends on how well armed and guarded the ship is.

If it's just a mobile repair facility, it's entirely possible that it doesn't have a heavy armed presence, and the potential loot is limitless.

File: 1357786018402.png-(75 KB, 792x789, Inventoryupdate.png)

>>22499289
>>If Microfusion reactors could be turned into atomic weapons, NO ONE would tolerate being around a robot, EVER. And given the profusion of penny-ante terrorists before the Loss, there'd be a LOT fewer robots wandering around, what with them all being ganked for their reactors.

>>They're essentially black-box tech. Not designed to be fucked with. They can barely have their settings tweaked. if anything gets altered, they auto-shutdown, and they're a BITCH to get going again.

>>You DO have a grenade or two still about the place.

>>This is an old inventory. I'll do my best to update it soon.

File: 1357786237971.jpg-(36 KB, 252x496, gaia_art_boo_by_ma_junior(...).jpg)

>>22499388
>>Ah, no, you have one or two specialty shotgun shells. But those are pretty much grenades.

>>Vote seems to be Avoid. Are you guys going to try interrogating Envoy, or book it to Cancun and handle that shit laterz?

>>22499451
Interrogate her, add her to our menagerie of captured network SAPs at least temporarily, steal her body for parts, and then we can turn her back on later and bargain.

>>22499451
I think we should wait to interrogate/unshackle Envoy until we've made contact with the Free Machines body. This way, we can do it in a safe/secured environment.

>>22499489
Sounds reasonable to me. If something happens and we end up hacked by her, out on this boat, we're fucked.

>>22499388
Well shit, I expected as much. Can we at least make the thing dump waste heat environmentally and bugger the coolant systems, making it more or less a melta cutter, and bolt it to a low section of the hull? A grenade isn't going to be able to punch through ship-grade plating.

I suppose we could crack them open and harvest the explosive shit to try and make a shaped charge, if we have the tools and materials necessary to create a proper casing. Can Hob swim reliably? No point making a bomb if we can't even deliver it.

>>22499451
Obviously, we book it WHILE interrogating Envoy, if there's no way we can sabotage/sink the Network barge without getting on deck. We'd get swarmed with bots if we tried.

>>22499451
>>22499489
Can we remove her SAP and then interrogate her?

File: 1357787009238.jpg-(70 KB, 468x300, cancun-hotel-zone.jpg)

>>22499483
>>22499520
>>22499489
>>Consensus Achieved.
>>22499551
>>Sure. It can be re-installed into any shell, or just hooked up to processing hardware.

Clarke wraps up Envoy's shell in a tarp, tying it up into a suspiciously-shaped bundle, clearly labeling her Quantum Drive and storing it inside his torso storage bin.

"Josephine?" You ask.

She smiles at you, still standing at the helm.

"Yes Mr Clarke?"

"Increase Speed. Bring us into port." You command.

"Aye-Aye, Mr Clarke." She laughs, and pushes the throttle forward.

The City draws closer. You still can't figure out what's causing the glittering.

>>22499648
Strange, ask everyone else if they know what is causing the glittering.

Once we get in we should inform everyone about incoming Network, stick the transmitter on a bird and have it fly off to draw their attention, and then find a workshop to upgrade Cindy in.

>>22499648
Josephine is laughing now?
Can the dolls develop a personality over time?

>>22499687
Actually, I was thinking we could use it to lure networked forces into a trap. The kind with explosives and toppling buildings.

>>22499710
That works as well. I like most plans involving explosives.

>>22499702
She's packed full to bursting with russian warez.

That could just be a random-joke-generator program.

>>22499764
Kay. Just make a note to call her Echo if she does go sentient.

"There are ONE ZERO kinds of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and F: others who understand hex."

>>22499934
This should be told at some point, but I'm not sure if the hex bit works.
Isn't f 15 in Hexadecimal?

Your ship pulls near to the shore, and...

Fuck.

Someone really did a number on this place.

Broken docks jut out into the water like snapped, protruding bones. Orphaned pylons still stick up from the bottom, and a rusted-out buoy lists at a 60 degree angle. But, the WATER is sparkling clear, and you can see...reefs. There's reefs everywhere below you, full of darting fish. You see the sleek grey form of some sort of shark as it noses about a deck chair, and darting silver fish among the waving fronds sticking from a...wait, deck chair.

They're boats. Sunken boats, overgrown partially by coral.

As you come nearer, you realize what the source of the sparkling was. It's broken glass. Piles and piles of broken glass. The windows of the buildings still hold shards of the stuff, or are covered with spiderweb cracks that refract the light, and the beach seems to be mostly made of broken glass, worn down to smoothness by the years.

Ahead, the city looms. It looks...fairly familiar. Rather overgrown, full of high-rise buildings, corporate retreats that doubled as offices during a time when working vacations had replaced regular vacations.

Looking around for landing spots, you do see a few likely options. An intact dock does remain, sticking out a good 100 feet from the boardwalk. There's also a massive pile of scrap with two broken docks sticking out of it, and what appears to be an artificial cove that goes further into the city itself, perhaps to some sort of huge marina.

>>Where to land? And any further questions?

>>Also, Roll Wits+Composure.

Rolled 9, 6, 4, 3, 2, 10, 8, 4 = 46

>>22500044
I'm thinking the artificial cove.

Rolled 1, 2, 7, 2, 3, 10, 4, 6 = 35

I'm voting for the artificial cove.

Rolled 5, 10, 5, 9, 2, 10, 7, 1 = 49

>>22500044
Cove.

>>22500090
Josephine carefully brings the North Star between two sunken yachts, and nearer to the cove. As she does so, Clarke faintly hears noises echoing between the buildings. They sound like...

Gunshots. Distant, but not distant enough.

The Cove does indeed turn into some sort of marina. An entire hotel, fancily built to be incredibly thin and tall, seems to have fully collapsed, metal girders strewn about the shores. There doesn't seem to be a good landing place, certainly not one that wouldn't make you immediately visible.

Aside from...
>>22500098
There. What must have been a great sodding steel staircase is blocking a small inlet, but through the rust and creepers, you can see placid waters beyond it, shaded by the hulk of a semi-collapsed building. It's a boathouse.

But there's huge slab of steel in the way.

>>22500242
Is it bendable? Because we're damn good at bending.

>>22500242
Bend it or explode it, we're good at both.

>>22500242
That steel slab is pending for a bending.

>>22500257
>>22500264
>>Nothing isn't bendable.

At your instruction, the boat tools over to the shore, Hoss and Quinn holding it to the cracked, rotten logs that edge the street. Irritated birds caw at you, and a quite absurd number of iguanas yawn lazily and glare at you with expressions that say "You're not actually going to make me MOVE, are you? Bastard."

>>Pop a charge, and Roll Strength+Stamina+1 (bending)

Rolled 3, 8, 3, 6, 4, 5, 7, 7, 10, 8 = 61

>>22500404
10d10? If it doesn't work this time we can try again and up our strength to 8.

Rolled 8, 9, 5, 6, 8, 10, 1, 10, 8, 1 = 66

Let's do this.

Rolled 5, 5, 1, 8, 8, 2, 3, 7, 5, 10 = 54

>>22500404

>>22500447
>>22500427
>>22500425
That's some bent steel, my friends.

Clarke stumps up to the sideways staircase, calibrating his arms for the task, and pointedly not calculating the actual weight of the object.

One manipulator there. The other there. Planting feet, and...flex.


Steel strains.
A whole family of angry black-and-blue birds caws out of the staircase to fly around and pester you, but Clarke ignores them and continues to exert his new synth-muscle. Slowly, two the sound of tortured metal and the spray of rust, the massive spiral staircase moves. Pulling with another manipulator, the whole thing kinks and twists, and...

There' Bent upwards, there's easily enough clearance for the North Star to make it through.

>>22500751
Stretch, dust off our hands, and act like it wasn't a big deal in the least while we get back on the boat.

>>22500751
Like all of life's problems, this one can be solved with bending.

>>22500751
Shiiiiiit.

Must be a record somewhere, now all we have to bend is an unbendable bar

File: 1357791695863.jpg-(372 KB, 1169x827, 1357607993323.jpg)

The North Star is easy to moor, semi-concealed, within the crumbling boathouse. The bottom of the cove is sand, intermixed with the same glittering glass strewn all over the sidewalks.

Hoss hefts his rifle, alert as always.

"What is our plan, Clarke? We are a large party to remain hidden, and our boat is full of valuables. Do we conceal it and take what we need, or use this location as a camp?"

>>22500914
Let's do a search over the airwaves. See who's chatting first.

>>22500914
"I think this location could make a good camp. But I won't be sure until I see what communications are going on and the areas of control of any factions in the city."

>>22500966
>>22500957
>>Roll Intelligence+Investigation

Rolled 3, 9, 10, 6, 10, 8 = 46

rollan

File: 1357792149777.jpg-(41 KB, 500x375, mechanical shaft.jpg)

>>22501016

>>22501016
I'm not going to roll and potentially ruin the pristine beauty of this roll.

File: 1357792297656.jpg-(94 KB, 555x740, FUCK YEAH.jpg)

>>22501016
Clarke is BACK baby.

>>4chan ate my post. more coming.

zzzzzzzzzzzzwhat's their last target?"

"Info Kiosk. Grabbed all the hardcopy maps 'n tourist brocheures.

"What? Since when does Greysky care about sightseeing?"

"Maybe they're looking to relax for a spell and stop shoot'n at us?"

"Always the eternal optimist, you are.

"That's what eternal means Ifzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz"

>>22501216
>>ß•αßΓΓδδEΓΓαßèINTERROGATOR CURRENTLY UNREACHABLE. ALLOCATE LEVEL 3 RESOURCES TO REACQUISITION. CL8 WILL BE LOCAßΓ=▌▀▀F

>>egwegioweiowd29((*(#(cief0)(#9r0)(U(U8)(#U*#*UC&#&CH#*))!)!)290293r99U#(FU83f8*@*#

>>zzzzzzes, this is Vincepas, reporting in. We've got raggie activity, I just saw a little one scurrying about."

"Watch yourself. The tiny fuckers are sneaky. I heard during the war, their whole job was to hunt down snipers and scouts. Slice 'em up from behind. good finds?"

"No damn paper, just this useless tech shit. can't get it to work anymore. I did hear a hell of a noise, earlier. Spooked some birds. I'm checking it out."

"read you, kid. Watch yourself out there."

>>22501397
This is suddenly looking like a not so great place to dock.

>>22501397
Ooooh. We rank Level 3 now. Network must be impressed that we took out Envoy.

Also, got some company incoming. Should we put on the standard show, with the Moppet and Hoss on standby just incase they decide to get all shooty?

>>22501397
>>Additional note: the garbled code in the Network signal had a local origin. very local. That was a LOT of fucking successes.

WAIT. I have a plan. We can use the dolls and the transmitter to command them. We just need to get them to convince whoever comes this way to shove off.

>>22501474
Was it Envoy? Check the bitch to see if she's regenerating or something silly like that.

>>22501487
>>No. It was something within 100 meters, though.

>>22501481
...go on. How will that work?

>>22501544
Remember Clarke's flashback?

All we have to do is hide while we give them specific dialogue commands.

>>22501577
We could have Cindy marionette them! Hell, if she used them as a proxy, we could convince these luddites the dolls are exiled queens!

File: 1357794379977.png-(423 KB, 1298x616, people_in_your_neighborho(...).png)

>>22501577
>>Anyone second this option? The other ones are to gank the poor sod or hide the boat and book it.

>>22501659
The doll's own skills still put an upward limit on how convincing they can be, but you can try something like that.

>>22501687
Cindy would be the best option to do the puppetry. She knows how to work people, and even with their limiting software, this should work.

>>22501687
>>Right then
You make sure both Markie and Josephine are hooked up to a local wireless signal, along with Cindy, who's wireless card turns out to be pretty beast.

She shudders as the hookup completes.

"Ugh, they're so...DUMB. All I hear inside my head is durrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr-

She keeps up the durrrr for an annoyingly long ammount of time, then asks.

"Okay, exactly what do you want me to have them say/do? This guy's snooping around out there right now. You want them to do a distracting striptease or something?"

Hound bounces up and down, eyes flashing.

"Come on, boss. I could just gank him. He'd never know. It'd be easy if he was distracted."

>>22501871
"I'd prefer to avoid human casualties, Hound. I know we may not always be able to avoid them... Cindy, if you would, have the dolls say something about meeting a friend here to get them away from the city. With things as they are here, no human would think twice about that."

>>22501871
not with network with in 100 m keep your head on a swivel for them

there our distraction

>>22501871
Hound, don't be too quick to jump to ganking everything. You did amazing with Envoy, but right now there's no need to gank him.

Cindy go up and have them see what we wants maybe? Ask him a few questions about what's going on? Hopefully he doesn't think this is a Network trick.

>>22501939
Good enough for me.

Cindy nods, and sits down on the boat's deck.

Markie starts hopping around in a circle on one foot, while Josephine lightly punches herself in the face.

"Huh. This is kind of fun. I can see why Network likes it. Stop hitting yourself. Stop Hitting yourself."

Hound chuckles, while Quinn says "get it out of your system now. While amusing, its not conducive ...actually, make it do Gangnam Style."

A few moments later

"Okay, that's enough."

The pair walk off, picking their way cautiously out into the street. Cindy narrarates quietly.

"It's...very nice out there. lots of flowers and...hmmm, they don't hear anything. I'll...have them pick through the plants for fruit or something. That's a human thing, right?"

>>22502117
"That sounds good to me"

>>22502117
This continues for a few minutes, then.

"HEY! Hands up, please! No sudden moves."

A voice echoes around from outside

Cindy whispers. "He's got a weapon. Its an AK. And flak armor. Looks about...16. Shit. Gotta do this right."

>>Roll Manipulation+Subterfuge-2.

Oh boy. Here we go.

Rolled 9, 5, 5, 6 = 25

Whups

>>22502216
On 4 dice, this will have to be good enough.

>>22502216
You hear soft voices outside. Cindy continues to narrarate.

"...you scared us...waiting for someone to pick us up...not safe here...saw some scarry machines over that way...Clarke, I don't like this kid's face. He's VERY enthusiastic about that gun, and...shit, he looked at Josephine's rack. I'll try to use that."

Another pause. A voice rises outside, then lowers. Cindy continues.

"He's got a radio. He's reporting...civilians. I think we're in the clear. Now he's just asking questions...no, we've just been trying to find a safe place to hole up, but there's so much fighting here now...robots? No, those are scarry, we never go near them. There are robots here? Where are they?...shit. fucking shitting fuck. That was bad. Apparently, there are lots of robots here. Its odd that they wouldn't know that. I'm going to up the fear, but they're not very good at showing distress. The best Marike's got is a cute pout. And this kid...oh. Oh no."

...I'm thinking in the near future we should invest in stun weaponry. Maybe a couple Rubber bullets and beanbag rounds for the shotgun.

>>22502375
Cindy looks up at you. Her optic lights scrunched to convey distress.

"Don't make me do this, Clarke. Its just too gross. I think the kid might be thinking about...oh no. I need to think of something, put it off."

>>Roll Wits+persuasion-2

Rolled 4, 9, 2, 8, 7 = 30

>>22502446
O DICE GODS, HEAR ME AND RECEIVE YOUR BACON SACRIFICE

Rolled 9, 9, 3, 10, 4 = 35

come ooooonnn

>>22502499
I think we got a winner here.

>>22502466
Cindy gasps.

"Got it! ...no, we're really scared to be alone here. This is my...they can't be cousins, Josephine loos too spanish...friend will have to do. If you could check on us later, we're really worried about our friend, who should have been here by now...need to pack up...stall him stall him...YES!"

Cindy looks up at Clarke.

"His commander radio'd him, told him to stop jawing with the locals and get on with scouting. You should see his face. I'll stick the landing."

She mumbles to herself again.

"...step up...hold hand, increase temperature...yeah, that's it. ...you should come by later, we'll have some food, and we can talk about...damn it, what would...eh, screw it...we don't have to talk. I'm sure you're very tired from all that marching. I'm...ugh."

Cindy makes a retching noise.

"If I had a mouth to throw up in a little, I would do so. I just had to say 'I hope you're not TOO tired.' Now its a problem for later. You're welcome."

She's not so useless afterall, eh Quinn?

>>22502587
Thank Cindy very sincerely. She's the only one of us who could have done this without a fight.

>>22502639
Cindy keeps repeating how dirty she feels. Quinn says nothing, but has the grace to look down; probably conveying shame of some sort.

"Ugh, and then he...UGH, that was...wha?"

Cindy looks up.

"Clarke, you're not going to believe this, but I think Josephine just saw a Jedi."

>>22502687
"WAT. Show me."

>>22502703
"FUCK, its gone. I'm serious, Clarke. She saw a dude wearing jedi robes dart between two buildings."

>>22502718
"I believe you. Call the dolls back and we'll look for ourselves."

>>22502762
Cindy recalls the two replicas, which return, looking slightly scuffed up, their faces stained with dirt and some fruit juice. Josephine awkwardly hawks up a chunk of masticated fruit, and Cindy apologizes.

"I didn't know she doesn't have a stomach. I got a little too into the role. But, for real, it was a guy with brown robes and-"

Not right on top of you, but WAY too close for comfort, there's the sound of an explosion. Yelling, screaming, and...the telltale flurry and snap of coilguns.

In unison, Quinn and Hound draw their blades. Hoss hefts his rifle, and even Cindy lunges for her shotgun.

>>Thread archived at
>>http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/22497008/
>>Its after midnight where I am, and I work tomorrow. Thread on pause, I'll update the twitter when things change.

And now, some words from one of /tg/'s favorite killbots:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Gf5beYCqtU

Bumb

File: 1357837568764.png-(83 KB, 800x600, Builder bot.png)

Here is a new free machine concept.

Bob is a small, very compact machine. It's model used to be very common, a mass produced utility robot for construction sites. These builder bots were easy to manufacture, maintain, and transport. Their compact nature allowed them to be stacked like bricks, and transported into a construction site very efficiently in very large numbers.

These machines role in the construction sites was to assist more specialized robots, and the humans working there. Usually, there were hundreds of these machines, per construction site, like mechanical ants, carrying stuff around and helping the other machines do their job.

Most of their shells were made out of cheap, robust materials, with the exception of their microfusion core, which eased the logistics of fueling all of these machines, and their SAP, which they needed to properly work and adapt to the very dynamic construction projects. They needed to be ready for almost everything, so a traditional programming just wouldn't cut it.

After the fall, many of these machines were still active, and could keep operating with relative ease, due to their robust construction, and easily replaceable parts. Unfortunately they have no practical means to defend themselves, and when the network started spreading to the urban areas, where most of these machines were, they quickly assimilated these small builder bots.

Bob is a leader of a small band of surviving machines of his type. They have built some sort of fort, filled with traps and makeshift weaponry, that have thus far managed to deter any human looters and especially network machines. Bob's behavior seems to be somewhat erratic, and paranoid, and most of his and his crew's time is spent in improving their fort. Where he got his name, is unknown to anyone but him.

(I could use help naming this shell type, I am terrible with names.)

>>22509177
So pretty much a colony of robot dorfs?

File: 1357839939975.png-(17 KB, 800x600, Builder bot blank.png)

>>22509217

Kinda. It wasn't my intention, but now that you said it, yeah, they seem pretty much like dorfs.

Anyways here is a blank version of that picture, and some new ideas.

These compact utility bots were actually used in other places as well, instead of just construction sites. Their cheap and easy to build and maintain nature, as well as their small and compact size, made them quite useful in many other places, such as in quick disaster relief operations, supply chains of militaries, mines and excavation sites, industrial halls and so on.

In general, any time cheap, robust, easy to transport, cheap to maintain and adaptable robots were needed, these bots (who still need a good name) were likely to be there.

Imagine a large truck just rolling to the operation zone, maybe a building that crumbled due to an earthquake or something. The truck opens up, to reveal stacks of these robots, piled atop of each other like bricks. Some sort of forklift then starts unpacking these bots from the truck, and activating them.
Dozens of these bots then start buzzing around the site like ants, setting up the needed infrastructure and helping out humans and larger, more specialized machines.

File: 1357843326943.pdf-(795 KB, PDF, Lost Future StorytellerDoC.pdf)

>>22509177
>>22509583
They make me think of gremlins or kobolds.

That's it: Gremlin. Fits thematically with the Ogre, too. I like that they fit well as Industrial Scouts.

>>22510255
I'm also reminded of industrial beekeeping. Truck full of beehives rolls up, then rolls out when everything is pollinated.

>>22510255

That name fits well, though their official name in the pre-fall world was probably something else. Numbers and such things, I don't know.

Anyways, I had the idea that these bots would be highly moddable. Like, for example, one could attach a tool box, power socket, a medical bag, some sort of sensor array and so on, to their chest, or other part of their body.

Basically, in the pre fall world, they could be modified to be better suited in the task they are currently operating in. Perhaps in the post fall world, they have easier time adding mods and other equipment to their bodies or something.

>DORFBOTS IN LF
Suddenly, this future just got a whole lot more awesome.

>>22509177
>>22509583
>>22511122
You know, I can almost just imagine these guys escaping to a mountain somewhere to build their underground fortress for just them.

File: 1357860239826.png-(47 KB, 800x1000, Network raider.png)

bumb

Well, I've got my brother visiting me for the next day or two, so I might have to call this thread finished. Next thread will be either sunday or tuesday, and pick up immediately where this one left off. No more long gaps.

MAN, I'm happy that another awesome idea has been added.

File: 1357864338169.jpg-(92 KB, 794x521, CRUNCH.jpg)

Nnnnnnnooooooooooooooh well. POSTAN ROBOTS.

File: 1357864459146.jpg-(58 KB, 651x1280, 1357224469.vectorconflict(...).jpg)

This guy's apparently from a quest on /tg/chan.

File: 1357864553621.jpg-(130 KB, 478x640, I AM HEAVY POOTIS GUY.jpg)

He may be made out of bionicle parts, but I think I'd count him as robot-like enough.

File: 1357864646518.jpg-(194 KB, 900x1273, 1265604561407.jpg)

A Networked arctic worm titan?

File: 1357865132371.jpg-(94 KB, 600x857, 1352042879442.jpg)

Perhaps somewhere in this strange and broken world, there is a small group of robots teaching the ways of peace, tranquility, and non-violence to whatever humans will listen to them.