Issue #10 - "Chaos" (Continued)
-Bombardier, Mana, Surge, and Atlantean Soldiers vs. Harpy, Iron Dragon, MorningStar, and Pathfinder-
***** Round Four *****
Surge jumped aside, evading Iron Dragon's attack. "So slow," Surge commented. "No wonder..."
Spinning in place, the villain lunged at the Asian hero, fists flying, but missed as Iron Dragon stepped aside to avoid the attack.
I need to get behind those foolish soldiers, Surge thought. They'll protect me and keep this hero busy!
The villain spun around behind a large group of Atlantean soldiers and awaited Iron Dragon's destruction. If only Trickster were here to see how I cleverly defeated these do-gooders!
{Surge punches Iron Dragon (DEF 19) and hits with 19. Iron Dragon gets a Reflex save (DC 19) and succeeds with 23 for no effect. As his other Half Action, Surge moves 60' around behind the Soldiers.}
"You can't escape that easily!" Iron Dragon called out following Surge's exit. He saw the Atlanteans preparing to surround him. Jumping in front of them, Iron Dragon bounced and vaulted over the first rank, landing behind a group of the soldiers. Shocked, the soldiers had no recourse but to stare at this feat of acrobatics.
Iron Dragon's fists glowed with an inner power, and he let loose a fury on the soldiers they had never seen. Pounding one after another, Iron Dragon did not stop until every soldier in the vicinity was dropped to the sand. He dusted off both hands and shot a look at Surge, who had been hiding behind the soldiers who had just been overmatched.
{Iron Dragon makes a Concentration check (DC 20) to activate his Strike power, and succeeds with 30. He turns off Power Attack. Iron Dragon attempts to move through an occupied area, so he needs an Acrobatics check (DC 25) and succeeds with 25. Iron Dragon stops in an area surrounded by 5 adjacent Soldiers. He strikes an adjacent Soldier (DEF 12), hitting with 31. The Soldier gets a Damage save (DC 26) but fails with 13 and is Disabled. Using Rapid Takedown, Iron Dragon gets one melee attack roll against the rest of the adjacent Soldiers (DEF 12), hitting with 22. The Soldiers each get a Damage saves (DC 26) and fail with 20, 6, 4, 5, and so all are Disabled. There are now 2 Captains and 18 Soldiers remaining.}
"You've got to be kidding," Harpy said in response to Bombardier's attempt to paralyze her. "You know it works, right? C'mon be a pal and stop throwing those bombs all over the place." Adding some emphasis to this suggestion, Harpy tried again to take control of the villain's mind. Bombardier seemed for a moment to comply, but shook off the control.
{Harpy uses a Free Action for Leadership. She attempts Mind Control again on Bombardier. Harpy's Mind Control check of 19 opposes Bombardier's Will save of 9, so Harpy can now issue him mental commands. Harpy commands Bombardier to toss away his Zapper Bomb, and this requires a Mind Control check (DC 18), but she fails with 9. Harpy spends a Hero Point to recover her Stun Hits.}
More of these... Pathfinder realized as more Atlantean soldiers came his way. He cocked and fired his SuperX Crossbow again, but this time, his bolt glanced off the battle armor of one of the captains.
Harpy needs more protection, I think, he realized, moving closer to his leader.
{Pathfinder fires his crossbow at a Captain (DEf 14) and hits with 17. The Captain gets a Damage save (DC 18), and succeeds with 19 for no effect. As his other Half Action, Pathfinder moves 30'.}
I... must... break... free... MorningStar thought as she struggled to even move a hand or a foot. Suddenly, she was free to move as she pleased. Finally!
MorningStar flew into the air, taking a bird's eye view of the battle. "First target is the lady with the spells. No hard feelings, OK?" With an outstretched hand, MorningStar shot forth a beam of superheated plasma, which exploded on impact right next to Mana. The flames struck Mana, her intended target, as well as Bombardier and some of the soldiers nearby. Unfortunately, Bombardier managed to avoid enough of the blast to keep himself from injury. The Atlanteans weren't so fortunate, and were obliterated in the blast. When the smoke cleared, Mana was yet standing, seemingly unaffected by the attack.
{MorningStar gets a Will save (DC 18) to break free of the Paralysis, and succeeds with 18. As a Half Action, she flies 40', and then fires off her area fire blast, centered on Mana (DEF 21), but misses with 10. Within the affected area are Mana, Bombardier, a Captain, and 4 Soldiers. All get Reflex saves (DC 18) to halve the effect. Mana fails with 7, Bombardier succeeds with 21, and the Captain and 4 Soldiers fail. Bombardier's Protection +8 is greater than the halved damage bonus of +4, so he doesn't need to make a roll. Mana gets a Damage save (DC 15), and succeeds with 16. The Captain and 4 Soldiers each get Damage saves (DC 20) and all fail and are Disabled. There are now 14 Solders and a Captain remaining among the Atlanteans.}
Which one should I attack? Hmm... Mana considered as she now had several possible targets. Harpy was still an enticing target, and the sorceress, chanting some words of arcane power, blasted the United Heroes leader with magical energy, but Harpy just barely dodged out of harm's way.
{Mana fires her Energy Blast at Harpy (DEF 19) and misses with 16. She uses a Free Action to activate her Force Field.}
The soldiers, seeing their brethren fall like children, gave Iron Dragon a wide berth. Two groups concentrated their fire on the Asian hero, but Iron Dragon was too agile for them and proved to be too elusive of a target. A third group fired at Harpy and nearly struck her, except that in her attempt to dodge Mana's bolt, threw off the soldiers' aim and they too missed.
{The Atlantean Soldiers move away from Iron Dragon. 2 groups of 4 Soldiers Combine Fire at Iron Dragon (DEF 21) and miss with 14 and 5. The Captain supported by 4 Soldiers Combine Fire at Harpy (DEF 19) hitting with 24. Harpy gets a Reflex save (DC 20) and succeeds with 21.}
Creeping forward, Bombardier looked for an opportunity to take one of the heroes down quickly. MorningStar was doing the most damage, so she would be the most obvious target. He already had his Zapper Bomb in hand, so he flung it toward the flying heroine, hoping to knock out her powers and give his allies an advantage. The weapon exploded next to MorningStar, but her powers resisted the neutralizing effects.
{Bombardier uses a Half Action to move 25'. He throws his Zapper Bomb at MorningStar (DEF 21) and misses with 12. MorningStar is the only secondary target, so she gets a Reflex save (DC 2) to halve the effect, but fails with 17. MorningStar spends a Hero Point to re-roll, but still fails with 12. Each of MorningStar's active powers must make a Power Check against DC 20. Force Field succeeds with 29, Energy Field succeeds with 26, and Flight succeeds with 21.}
***** Round Five *****
"Impressive, hero," Surge said in response to Iron Dragon's dismantling of the Atlantean soldiers. "But I am no quivering minion of the Atlanteans. I am power!" With that, Surge's body, charged with electrical energy, burst forth, creating a sphere of lightning bolts, several of which struck Iron Dragon. The hero reeled from the attack, but rolled away and avoided the most serious damage.
{Surge takes a 5' step. He uses Multi-Lightning, and only Iron Dragon is in the affected area. Iron Dragon gets a Reflex save (DC 20) to halve the effect, but fails with 10. Iron Dragon gets a Damage save (DC 17) and succeeds with 17 for no effect.}
Standing, Iron Dragon gave Surge a look of determination. The hero jumped forward and leveled a mighty reverse kick in Surge's direction, but the wily villain was able to dodge the blow.
"Yeah," Surge said. "I'm a little tougher than those rifle-toting morons, don't ya think?"
{Iron Dragon makes a Concentration check (DC 20) to activate his Strike power, and succeeds with 25. He uses Power Attack for a +3/-3 bonus to damage/attack roll. He kicks Surge (DEF 23) and misses with 17.}
"MorningStar," Harpy called out. "Get Bombardier and Mana." Bombardier was the most immediate threat, as his grenades tended to terrorize an area. As she considered the possibilities, Harpy neared Pathfinder. "Keep at those soldiers," she suggested. "There's only a few of them left."
Harpy concentrated on Bombardier's mind, overloading his mind with damaging psionic energy. Bombardier, who was focused on MorningStar, was caught unaware of the attack, and fell to his knees.
"Augh!" he called out in response. Bombardier leveled a finger towards the United Heroes leader. "Harpy! You're next!"
{Harpy uses a Free Action for Leadership. She uses a Half Action to move 15' next to Pathfinder. Harpy uses Mental Blast on Bombardier (adj. DEF 16), hitting with 23. Bombardier gets a modified Damage save (DC 15) but fails with 7. Bombardier is Stunned and takes a Stun Hit.}
Pathfinder stepped forward and loaded his crossbow, firing it at a nearby soldier per Harpy's orders. The bolt struck the soldier in the ribs, just between two armored plates, and dropped the soldier instantly.
{Pathfinder takes a 5' step and fires his crossbow at a Soldier (DEF 12), critting with a natural 20. It's an Impossible save for the Soldier, so he's Disabled. There are 13 Soldiers and 1 Captain remaining.}
Mana and Bombardier ignored my attack last time, MorningStar recalled. I'd better up the ante. She drew from her reserves of power, and let loose with a barrage of fire unlike many she'd fired off before. Fire rained down on Bombardier, Mana, and some Atlantean soldiers. Mana again avoided serious harm by jumping free of the affected area, but Bombardier wasn't so lucky. Fire pelted his armor, and the villain felt it. More soldiers were knocked out, including the last Captain standing.
{MorningStar uses Extra Effort to boost her Energy Blast to +10, and a Hero Point to ignore the fatigue. As a Half Action, she flies 30', and then uses her area EB to blast an area containing Mana, Bombardier, the Captain, and 6 Soldiers. All get Reflex saves (DC 20) to halve the effect. Mana, using her Luck bonus, succeeds with 20, Bombardier fails with 3, the Captain fails with 10, and the Soldiers all fail their saves. Mana's Force Field +8 is greater than the halved damage bonus (+5), so she ignores the attack. Bombardier gets a Damage save (DC 17) and fails with 14, taking a Stun Hit. The Captain and the 6 Soldiers get Damage saves (DC 22) and all fail, and are Disabled. There are now only 7 Soldiers remaining.}
"You know, you're a real pain," Mana declared, and, incanting a few magic words, hit MorningStar with another sphere of purple energy, trapping the flying heroine. "That's better!"
Seeing an opportunity to help Surge against Iron Dragon, Mana teleported behind the hero, giving Iron Dragon someone else to think about.
{Mana takes a 5' step and uses Paralysis on MorningStar (DEF 21), hitting with 24. MorningStar gets a Will save (DC 18) but fails with 13. As her other Half Action, Mana teleports 40' to behind Iron Dragon, giving Surge a Flank against the hero. She uses a Free Action to activate her Force Field.}
The remaining Atlantean soldiers, confused, fired randomly at Pathfinder, who eluded their wild shots with aplomb.
{The Atlantean Soldiers take a Half Action to move toward Pathfinder. 5 Combine Fire at Pathfinder (DEF 18), but miss with 10.}
{Bombardier recovers from being Stunned.}
***** Round Six *****
"Mana, thanks for the help, but I really don't need it," Surge declared, swinging wildly at Iron Dragon, who deftly stepped aside from the blow, and blocked another blow with an elbow.
"Yeah," Mana replied. "Looks like you've got everything under control."
{Surge punches Iron Dragon (DEF 21) and hits with 23. Iron Dragon gets a Reflex save (DC 18) and succeeds with 20.}
Iron Dragon ignored the rantings of his opponents for the moment and concentrated on Surge, the most immediate threat. Focusing his inner strength, Iron Dragon gave Surge a palm strike to the temple, dropping the villain to his knees temporarily. Electrical energy coursed across his body, but Iron Dragon was unaffected.
{Iron Dragon makes a Concentration check (DC 20) to activate his Strike power, and succeeds with 27. He uses Power Attack for a +3/-3 mod to damage/attack bonus. Iron Dragon punches Surge (DEF 23) and hits with 24. Surge gets a Damage save (DC 25) but fails with 9. Using a Villain Point to re-roll, he now gets 20 and only takes a Stun Hit. Since Iron Dragon's Protection (+6) is greater than Surge's Energy Field (+5), he doesn't need to make a save.}
His will is sapped, Harpy decided on Bombardier. I should be able to control him now. She concentrated on controlling the villain's mind, and it worked for a moment. "Stay there, Bombardier. Everything will be OK."
Bombardier seemed to heed her, but then broke for the falling MorningStar. This caused Harpy to see that MorningStar had again been paralyzed by Mana's magical powers.
Not again!
{Harpy uses a Free Action for Leadership. She tries Mind Control on Bombardier again. Harpy's Mind Control check of 20 is opposed by Bombardier's Will save of 9, so Harpy regains control of the villain. She commands Bombardier to stand still, which requires a Mind Control Power Check (DC 18) and she fails with 6.}
Knocking another crossbow bolt, Pathfinder realized that the fight was starting to get away from him. It was just the Native American hero and the soldiers on this side of the field of battle. He fired his crossbow, but the shot went wide of its intended target.
{Pathfinder fires his crossbow at a Soldier (DEF 12) and misses with 9.}
With a splash of sand, MorningStar, within the purple sphere of eldritch energy, struck the ground. She was not unconscious, just paralyzed.
Ugh, she thought. That Mana's going to get it!
{MorningStar falls to the ground. She gets a Will save (DC 18) to break the Paralysis but fails with 17.}
"Don't forget about me!" Mana urged Iron Dragon, chanting more magical power words, and launching the hero into the air.
"What the --" was all Iron Dragon could manage as he rose and then fell back to Earth. Recalling his acrobatic techniques, Iron Dragon spun himself into position, and landed on his feet, none the worse for wear.
{Mana attempts to lift Iron Dragon using Telekinesis. Mana's Sorcery Power Check of 19 opposes Iron Dragon's STR check of 17, so she gains telekinetic control of the hero. Mana flings Iron Dragon 40' into the air and then lets him go. Iron Dragon ignores the falling damage since his Protection +6 is greater than the Falling Damage bonus of +4. He gets an Acrobatics check (DC 15) to land on his feet, and succeeds with 27. After he lands, Mana takes a 5' step to flank Iron Dragon, and uses a Free Action to reactivate her Force Field.}
More soldiers fired at Pathfinder, and this time, a few of them hit. Pathfinder was protected, however, by his magical breastplate, and he basically ignored the rockets impacting against him.
{5 Atlantean Soldiers Combine Fire at Pathfinder (DEF 18) and hit with 23. Since Pathfinder's Protection of +6 is greater than the Rocket Rifle damage bonus of +5, Pathfinder ignores the attack.}
"Too bad, sweetie," Bombardier said as he casually strolled toward the frozen MorningStar. He produced a web-like device from his pack. The device crackled with a greenish energy. "Now I know what you're thinking. You're protected, right? That force field? Yeah, I know about it too. But see my little friend here? He's going to take care of that problem." Bombardier tossed the web onto the immobilized MorningStar, and the Neutralizer Web sapped MorningStar's energy, draining her powers, and causing her fire powers to wink out, including her force field.
Bombardier rubbed his gauntleted hands together. "Now, the fun can begin!"
Mana saw Bombardier concentrating his attention on MorningStar. "Bombardier, we could use some help over here! She's done for. Leave her be!"
"Oh, no," Bombardier replied with a sickening grin. "I'm afraid I can't do that..."
{Bombardier uses Gadgets to produce the Neutralizer Web (Neutralize), and spends a Villain Point to ignore the fatigue. He throws it at the paralyzed MorningStar (DEF 17) and hits with 23. Each of MorningStar's active powers must make a Power Check against DC 20. Force Field fails with 18 and Energy Field fails with 14, so both powers shut off.}
Next Up, Rounds 7-9 of Barracuda vs. Torpedo!