Plot post for September 16!

[theearth]

PLOTTING POST

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This format of plot post is designed for players to ask questions and find ways to influence the plot. Be bold and ask what you can or can't do; the worst that can happen is that we will say no. As plots in Save the Earth are not self resolving nor on a time limit they can evolve in many ways. Although some potential outcomes are given, they are little more than suggestion and can be changed by character action. What role you take is up to you.

The post is also open for players to plot and coordinate between one another.

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Events that occurred recently or are occurring currently:

• Recent mafia activity has prompted several reincarnates to relocate to Las Vegas. With anti-numbered sentiment rising, this isn't something most Vegas natives are welcoming with open arms, though they are still mostly neutral on the topic instead of hostile like more and more residents of Locke.
Schools in Locke will make it very easy on students to transfer out (or they might even request it, if they are known to be numbered), and schools in Vegas, though they remain closed for now, will accept transfers (as will schools in the third location, once it opens).

• Media: While both negative and positive voices regarding the numbered can still be heard, negative ones now outnumber the positive/neutral voices. This is in part due to the mountain in Las Vegas, partly fuelled by mafia money, and partly a continuation of older trends. The claims are that they have sinister plans, are common criminals with superpowers, are a threat to public safety, are out of control and can't control themselves, and so on. Few media mention the mafia attacks on the numbered.

Locke City
• The Numbered rescued Robyn from the hands of Vincent Albero (defeating a Vermaxi during the process), effectively rejecting his proposal. So far he doesn't seem to have reacted to this, though reincarnates may note that all mafia attacks have ceased for now.

• Several reincarnates led an expedition into the newly-appeared Oublie Cathedral in an attempt to clear out the assortment of nasties within!

Las Vegas
• The cultist conference that a good number of numbered attended got somewhat out of hand. Not only due to some reincarnates experiencing interesting eprsonal developments, but also because it ended in a mass panic due to boiling water and an earthquake.

• Danny checked the mountain and there is no dragon inside... But also still no actual entrance to be found.

• There is a lobster-crab creature at the bottom of the newly formed lake in Las Vegas. The tremors in the city are caused by it stirring, though it seems to remain asleep and calm for now.

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Events occurring in the immediate future:

• Starting on the 16th, portals will show up... everywhere within the echo boundaries. The first couple of days, there will be many that all only last a few minutes or a hour at most; over time, the total number will recede in favour of some showing up that remain for days, weeks or months. They can have any shape or form, and they all lead to the Ghost zone - basically a parallel dimension that's just green as far as the eye can see, filled with floating doors that can lead to ghosts' "lairs" and sometimes rocks that may or may not have stuff on them. While there are no ghosts in the zone when it shows up, reincarnates are not the only ones who will be able to enter it... and everyone who is not a reincarnate that does will be turned into a ghost, and all except for humans will remain one even after leaving it. This includes the beings from Oublie and other echoed locations as well as Vermini, Vermedi and Vermaxi, but also random animals...

Distance there works differently. If you enter the Ghost Zone in Locke, go five feet, and exit back into the human world, you may well end up in another echo boundary, but definitely not five feet away. If you figure out how to navigate it, it could be handy. Or you could just end up stuck in the middle of a lake, or two hundred feet above ground in thin air.

Locke City
• The reincarnates' actions in rescuing Robyn have obviously not gone un-noted. Their success in defeating the Vermaxi has heavily influenced Albero's next move: he will (for the time being) no longer be favouring direct attacks on the Numbered themselves. He will, however, be employing much more underhanded methods - reincarnates may want to keep an eye on the news throughout the month, as things are about to take a rather nasty turn... See the subthread below if you would like your character to receive personal consequences (especially if they were visibly involved in Robyn's rescue)!

Las Vegas
• On September 26th at 11am, reincarnates stationed in Vegas will be in for an unpleasant surprise. A shockwave will resonate throughout the city - perhaps familiarly, for those who fought Wise Snake - and reincarnates will feel it strongly enough that it could potentially knock them off their feet. They probably shouldn't hurry to stand up again, because moments later the earth will start to shake as Arthur's giant lobstercrab buddy emerges from the flooded area of Vegas to say hello.

We should probably introduce this guy properly, huh?

REFINED SHELL

Refined Shell is a light pink crustacean somewhere between a crab and a lobster, if those were both 300 feet long. It attacks largely by using its claws and tail - the former are strong enough to tear a tank apart, while the latter is swept around with a force that can knock down buildings or create tidal waves. It is immensely strong and will destroy things around it indiscriminately. Its legs may also present a danger, as Refined Shell is deceptively fast and reincarnates may be in danger of being stepped on.

However, that isn't where Refined Shell's true power lies. Its shell is hard, durable and reflects almost all attacks. Projectiles, magic, and anything except for a direct physical assault will be reflected by the shell. To defeat Refined Shell, characters will need to work together to crack through the carapace and attack the more vulnerable parts underneath. If you aren't sure whether your character's power/s would be reflected by the shell, feel free to ask us!

Unlike in the case of Wise Snake, for the most part there will be no military backup for the Numbered. Some of the local law enforcement may show up to assist, and the emergency services will be out in full force, but the authorities will be far more concerned with evacuating the area than helping out the reincarnates.

The mods will not be NPCing Refined Shell. Players may npc its actions in their own subthreads, following the guidelines above. We will also not be holding signups for the moment of its defeat - Refined Shell will need to be worn down gradually, so having characters crack off smaller parts of the shell in their own subthreads and do their own thing from there should work fine in this case. If you wish to have your character do something such as break off one of Refined Shell's claws (ie, anything that would only be able to be done a limited number of times), please make a planning thread for it below so that we don't end up with seven claws being broken off a two-clawed monster!

Looking for something for less violently-inclined characters to do? We've got you covered. Shortly after Refined Shell emerges, its thrashing tail will crack open a fissure in the ground that will swallow up a group of cultists who came to see the object of their worship! Oops. The fissure will slowly be filling with water, so the poor unfortunates (and any reincarnates who may fall victim to it too) will be badly in need of rescue...

Neuschwanstein

• In the first half of October (depending a bit on the outcome of the Refined Shell Battle), a pink light will go up over Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany. Gee I wonder what that means. Congratulations, there now is an echo boundary in Europe! There will be a more detailed post about this when the time draws closer, but a few important pointers:
✎ Applications for characters from this echo boundary will open on the 1st of October.
✎ Currently, the echo boundaries include no college or university. If there is interest, we could expand the boundary to include Kempten, which for example has this university, and do thus welcome players' thoughts on this.
✎ The pink light will bring a very massive change to the area: Right on the border, the Orbital Elevator will show up. Farms and other houses that were standing in the area are now located inside the ground level of the elevator.
✎ Another smaller change will be the appearance of odd monsters of various sizes and shapes. They are all rather aggressive and seek out reincarnates, but why?

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Events potentially occurring in the immediate future:

• Signups for future mafia consequences

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Potential Echo Opportunities

• Encountering a ghost-like presence, a Vermini, a Vermedi, a Vermaxi for the first time grants one plot echo each.
• Using the teleporter for the first time will grant one plot echo.

Locke City
• Encounters with an altered Mafia subordinate grants one plot echo if the character never received an echo from encountering an altered Blood Key.

Las Vegas
• A first encounter with this symbol as worn by head waterfront "cultists" will also grant one plot echo.
• Being in the area of the lobster fight will grant a Tier 2 plot echo.

Neuschwanstein
• Encountering a wolpertinger for the first time will grant one plot echo.
• Seeing the pink light will grant a plot echo.


Please direct questions regarding these plot points to the thread below and not the post in general.

Comments

GENERAL QUESTIONS

[theearth]

[purestambition]

Simple, quick and dirty question: is Refined Shell's Tier 2 separate from the monthly allotted one ala Wise Snake?

Re: GENERAL QUESTIONS

[scarlet_devil]

Will the Vermaxi fight attract attention? Like causing a news chopper to turn up and film the battle from on high?

[italktofish]

OH BOY OH BOY HE FINALLY GETS TO TALK TO THE LOBSTERCRAB

So, yeah, Arthur will try to talk to Refined Shell. His talking-to-fish powers are actually telepathic in nature, despite the fact that he tends to verbalize way more than is actually necessary. What, if anything, might he learn from talking to Refined Shell?

[gogoghostpowers]

So because everything I ever do is hax:

what would intangibility do to Refined Shell? would it be helpful in phasing away the shell (or at least bits of it)?

[starlightheart]

So specifically on the capacity in which the Refined Shell reflects magic: Is it anything magical that will bounce off of it? What about the sorts of spells designed specifically to have massive physical force, made to basically punch through things, such as barriers, giant mecha, or... like. Battleships.

Basically if a spell has an effect of being a battering ram, does it still just glance off of it?

GENERAL QUESTIONS

[buildyourworld]

Am I right to assume GN Particles fueled beam attack (Virtue's shoulder cannons) will be deflected as well?

Also, will the Virtue's GN Field works to withstand Refined Shell's attack? It could withstand 1 Wise Snake's the previous time, I'll like to know how many attacks it can take this time? Virtue's GN Particles output has been amph-ed up to about... 60-70% at this point.

Re: GENERAL QUESTIONS

[vicmegane]

What happens if you cook the crabster meat once it's dead.

Re: GENERAL QUESTIONS

[icy_heavens]

So, I figure this, but may as well ask, whacking the shell with his Final Release's tail proooooobably isn't gonna freeze any of the shell, is it? Physical blow, but the thing doing it is supernatural, so.

[professorwolf]

I see that schools are accepting numbered students in Las Vegas and (eventually) Germany... what about numbered teachers? >.> Are they more open to that sort of thing than Locke?

Obviously, application process/interviews/etc, but wondering if it's worth a try :: chinscratches ::

[scarlet_devil]

When are the Mafia start stirring things up again? And would a certain Numbered couple be likely to be attacked if Albero is being more underhanded apparently?

Both characters echoes to do with that attack were approved, so...

[greenisthenewblack]

Sooooo, can a random student have videotaped Sheila's temper tantrum at school and leaked it to the media? Pretty please?

[scarlet_devil]

...Wouldn't some of the 706th Fighter Squadron from the nearby Nellis AFB turn up?

MAFIA CONSEQUENCES

[theearth]

<b>Character name and journal:</b> <b>What information is publically available about their powers?</b> <b>Any other information that could be used against them?</b> <b>Is there anything you would rather *not* happen to your character?</b> (If you'd rather us not interfere with future plans you may have, or if you have any preferences, lump that here!)

Please note that you aren't likely to hear back about these things immediately!

Re: MAFIA CONSEQUENCES

[onecream_fivesugar]

Character name and journal: Robyn Lyre. Onecream_fivesugar (I'm on mobile deal with it)
What information is publically available about their powers? Nothing specifically, though she isn't exactly good at hiding it.
Any other information that could be used against them? The mob took her cellphone when they nabbed her. They probably have a bunch of personal information plus any pictures she had on her phone. May or may not include pictures/selfies with other numbered. She probably also generated a bunch of Rose petals while she was captured and freaking out. Oh and she might have been seen escaping with a giant scythe gun.
Is there anything you would rather *not* happen to your character? Don't kill her dad plz.

Does being rescued count as being involved in the rescue team? Either way, they know she's numbered and she didn't leave town.

[scramasax]

Character name and journal: Anthony Janvier (scramasax)
What information is publically available about their powers? He hasn't been very detailed in public, but he's been explicit enough about the obvious - he's a zombie and is completely physically dead without any need to eat or sleep, and he's not at all contagious.
Any other information that could be used against them? He's been to and underneath the Oublie Cathedral chapel twice; was involved (to a less-flashy degree) in the Vermaxi battle and staggered around the area while before that listening for people to warn; and has both on camera and in print admitted to having run away from home and dropped out of school in June, having lived with three different people since then, having been examined at a low-end hospital and confirmed as by all measures and accounts dead, being completely blinded, and being able to speak Old Franconian and Latin, for whatever that might count; and he also works at Espresso Yourself.
Is there anything you would rather *not* happen to your character? Nothing which comes to mind, except that any override/conference permissions go to the player of Nick (detectivetroll), thanks to his proximity both to Anthony and the mafia!

[charcoalfeather]

Character name and journal: Rakka Yoshitoshi | charcoalfeather
What information is publically available about their powers? Nothing much. There's theories that she has a weapon that can shoot lightning, which is known by the mafia at least. Other than that, just the fact that she has a halo and grew wings.
Any other information that could be used against them? She's been living away from the home her parents gave her for months now.
Is there anything you would rather *not* happen to your character? No direct attacks on her. Threats will be okay, but not more than that.

[abhero]

Character name and journal: Emil Fiedler abhero
What information is publically available about their powers? He’s some sort of demon, has super strength and can cause massive property damage without much effort. There’s some footage of him mindlessly destroying shit in Vegas, and not-so-mindlessly destroying shit in Locke (he only acted in self defence, but got carried away and that’s what people remember).
Any other information that could be used against them? Mother and grandparents are his only family and they’re not doing very well financially. He’s forced to get counseling and while he isn’t terribly cooperative, some snooping around will confirm that the demonic powers are linked to his emotions and become harder to control when he’s upset. Also he likes to carry a double bass giant violin everywhere?
Is there anything you would rather *not* happen to your character? Don’t kill his family.

[espigeonage]

I expect pre-fissure (and during and after) there'd be other characters trapped, temporarily or otherwise. Rubble, and anyone who looks up and sees a carapace overhead, where do you go? Especially in the aftermath, when people need to be found quickly.

...I'm wondering if I should have Julien buried under rubble. Idk!

[wirsinddiejager]

Alan will be getting his titan butt over to Vegas as soon as he hears that there's some kind of cave demon on the loose, and he will be beating on it so hard.

So yes, I would definitely like for him to break off one of Refined Shell's claws! Unless other people want those really bad, I mean. I can be flexible yo.

[oncedevil]

Character name and journal: Anthony Sparado oncedevil

What information is publically available about their powers? Tony doesn't have a lot of "powers" per se above having an unusually aggressive streak and white hair, though the Mafia were personally privy to his turning into a monster and tearing one (or more?) of their people apart. Oops. They've probably got a bone to pick with him over that I'd wager. Cough.

Any other information that could be used against them? Probably not a whole lot? Homeless kids don't exactly have a long paper trail to keep track of. Unless they already know about his relationship with Richard from previous leaks. They know where he works, which he isn't currently doing, and I'm not certain they know he's staying at Richard's place or not? And of course they definitely know he's Numbered given they had him captive and tortured him for a week over it |D.

Is there anything you would rather *not* happen to your character? Not at the moment but if there's anything that might make this all a little too overwhelming for close CR I will let you know! For the most part he's trying to keep to himself while he heals so he may not be as easy to get close to atm.

[umbrael]

All right but I'm sort of on a hiatus this week (and last, though I'm only realizing that now) and as a result Doyle's been staying in Vegas for the most part, missing out on the fun in locke. He might pop back to get his stuff while everything's quiet, but it's not like everyone in Locke knows who the Locke City Dinosaur really is so he might be safe there (and he doesn't have any family in Locke anyway).

OTHERWISE he will be here for the Crab Battle! I'll be available on that weekend finally so he'll be able to lend a claw shelling the crabster! He's got claws and shadow powers and those are only going to get stronger when he gets in the fight thanks to echoes, but unfortunately he's going to need to concentrate to make his powers useful which would be hard if he's on the ground...

Alternately he could assist in ravine rescues. Making darkness and shadows physical through magic would help, and uh. Being a giant creature that can climb rocky terrain would help too. (*sigh* yes he can offer rides...)

Otherwise he's been hanging out in human-form around Vegas, mostly, but at night he might poke around the quieter parts of the mountain in his dinosaur form.

[ruleorserve]

Emil probably isn't going to be directly involved in the fight with Refined Shell, since he's not really much of a combatant. That said, he might well turn up to do what he can to help rescue anyone caught in the fissure and/or do anything else that might be needed during the fight.

Other than that, he might going exploring the ghost zone portals, if anyone else wants to come along on that.

[sunshinethatwarmsherup]

Okay. So I really don't have that many plans for Refined Shell, since Linda doesn't have any access to her abilities yet, and even if she did, it'd pretty much be a one-shot deal anyway.

But she is going to be present for the battle, and probably be screaming and panicking and trying not to do while everyone fights against it. She'll also be trying to help with the whole evacuation thing as far as getting people out of the immediate area in an attempt to let me get an easy recurrence echo not feel completely useless while everything is going on.

Also ghost portals. She should probably stumble into ghost portal shenanigans. Because why not?

[onecream_fivesugar]

I'd be up for these two meeting up at some point. In the middle of a giant crab battle or through ghost portals both seem like good options.

FINAL BATTLE ROLL CALL

[buildyourworld]

This is for plotting purpose, if your character(s) are participating in the fight, plop them in here and let us know what they will be doing + for further planning with others in similar situation!

There will be a thread for Phase 1 (physical attacks) and Phase 2 (everything goes here). If your character(s) will participate in both, check in both threads please!

PHASE 1

[buildyourworld]

Physical Attacks

This is for those who has the physical power to break the shells.

If your character(s) is attempting to destroy the shells, successful or not, we want to know too!

Please put it in your header so we know if your character will be successful or not.
[ CHARACTER NAME | YES/NO ]