Strikeforce: Morituri Part One "the Mortals" Is Completed

[Look_a_Unicorn]

Awesome updates!
I particularly like the Brute Master's fate- trapped because he fears to lose his powers.
I feel a bit sorry for the Jaws though... he stops by the buffet for a snack & the snack tears him apart from the inside... damn beligerent food!

 

[Look_a_Unicorn]

Just wandered by in hopes of an update. I should warn you megamania- reality is totally overrated

 

[megamania]

Sorry. I'm experienceing aa major case of writers block. I've written and erased the intro to the third mission three times thus far and I'm still not happy with it.

There is also a lot of prep work for this one as there will be well over twenty 10+ levels NPCs to create along with the special nature of the reality / world they are going to next.

Its a Dnd/X-crawl/Modern D20 combo. Once it gets started it should be fun.

 

[megamania]

STRIKEFORCE: MORITURI
SEGMENT 049
“The World Below”

The Champions of Infiniti were hardly back before they were told where the next artifact was hidden. The urgency of locating the five artifacts became more important now that highly skilled agents of the Tattooed Man were apparent.

The heroes were given four days to rest and recoup while reading about their next world they needed to go to. It was another dark world.

The heroes were being sent to Carkartus.

Carkartus …The World Below.

The World Below was a place of greed and deeds best not spoken of. Life was cheap.

The true origins of Carkartus have been lost. Some say it once was an utopian society that was beset by demons or barbarians. Others say it was settled by demons from the very beginning. Even another theory suggests a god of crime and evil created it. What is clear is what Carkartus is now.

There are two sections of the city ruins known as Carkartus. The upper section is the newer section that is referred to as Carkartus. Crime and things done normally in the shadows are rampant here. Everything is for sale here. Life is cheap. The other section is referred to as The World Below. This large section fell into a crevasse in ancient times. Much of it survived intact. Carkartus surrounds this sunken area.

In the beginning, this area was beset by demons and things that lived in the deep earth. It was thought to be cursed by the gods. Later it was.

For the past two hundred years it has been slowly corrupted into a place of entertainment. It began as a place to punish those guilty of crimes major and minor. Later, it became a place of deadly contest. Planar travelers magically allowed viewing of these “games” for a fee payable only by the rich. The greatest place of monetary awards came from the betting pits.

After several hundred years of tweaking and specializing “The World Below”, the events have a planar recognition on level with the outer planes. Some worlds have even banned the viewing crystals from existing on their plane. Needless to mention, it is very hard to uphold this law where it is in place.

However, “ratings” are down and profits are wavering. There is pressure on the DMs (Dungeon Masters) to attract new viewers. Special Orc vs Elf matches were tried. Fiends vs Celetrals were tried. Viewing is still down.

Unknown to any of them, several powerful artifacts is hidden within the ruins. Included is the Staff of Destruction once owned by the Tattooed Man.

Each of the heroes has thoughts or insights on the evil place. Megamania refers to it as being brilliant. Sarcasm or truth is always hard to say with rogue from the future. The Captain remembers pit fighters from his service days. He never expected something of this scale. Vander is not impressed. He has been on the Chaos plane of Acheron. The entire plane is a gladiator match. Jean is saddened that life could ever be considered so cheap and expendable. Christina and her mothers take it all in stride. It is yet another plane twisted by greed and lust. So much like many other planes they have visited before.

 

[Look_a_Unicorn]

Sorry. I'm experiencing a major case of writers block. I've written and erased the intro to the third mission three times thus far and I'm still not happy with it.

The intro gives a pretty thorough impression of what kind of place they're getting into. It reads fairly easily- except for one paragraph that does not flow as your writing normally does:
"There are two sections of the city ruins known as Carkartus. The upper section is the newer section that is referred to as Carkartus. Crime and things done normally in the shadows are rampant here. Everything is for sale here. Life is cheap. The other section is referred to as The World Below. This large section fell into a crevasse in ancient times. Much of it survived intact. Carkartus surrounds this sunken area."

I think it's because of too many repetitions of two words. Perhaps "Carkartus", but "section" for sure.

But it's not like I'd do any better!

 

[ledded]

Niiiiice.

I like this story hour. Very good work you are doing here with quite an interesting concept. Consider this bad boy subscribed to.

 

[megamania]

STRIKEFORCE: MORITURI
SEGMENT 050
“DM Nomadis”

The sun was beginning to burn through the clouds when he awoke. His head ached and the nightmares were still vivid in his mind. He would write them down later for theme ideas …later …much later. His gaunt and sickly body shook visibly as he fumbled for the correct potion to drink. He had several he took daily. Everyone needed a vice. He had several.

The liquid burned going down his dry throat. Once he was human. Once before meeting the creature …the evil …named Nebrisflaxonfean. Today he is uncertain what to consider himself. Alive? Dead? Undead? Maybe even a new type of existence. He was beginning to feel the warmth of the drug in his stomach when the first of three females began to awake. He was uncertain what her name was. Perhaps Darla. She was not a pure human. There was some elf or fey in her bloodline. He could smell and taste it within her the prior night. The others were human. They didn’t survive the night. What started as sex became so much more. Such was the life of a ghoul-like creature cursed by fiends.

Nomadis had to drink these potions twice a day to live the life he did. One to survive in daylight. One to gain substance without consuming a person if so he chose. These two potions gave the fiends hold over him and his creative but twisted mind.

Nomadis was a DM on Carkartus. The proper term was Dungeon Master. He thought Death Manager was more accurate. Once a week he and several other charismatic and creative persons would watch, comment and dictate the games of “The World Below”. They created themes and events for these money making arena games. Themes were based on race, belief or ability generally. Creatures, teams and traps were placed within the ancient ruins weekly. He and his co-workers then worked as announcers and gave creative and colorful commentary to entertain the rich and depraved.

This week was going to be awesome. They had teams from various planes of expert levels competing. The traps placed in the ruins were unlike any seen elsewhere. It was going to be good. Better- it was going to be awesome. It had too …Nebris would kill him slowly if the rating didn’t change.

There were Orcs, Drow, Humans and even a team of large ½ giant type creatures. 6 teams total. The current champions- The Black Sun. They consisted of undead and undead worshippers. The new favorites were lead by a paladin. Nomadis hoped to create a good deal of tension by placing these two teams of opposites close to each other on the grid but not so close that they go into immediate battle.

He smiled to himself. It was going to be a good game. He just knew it.

 

[megamania]

Thankyou for the critique. Its something I ask for but never (at least rarely) get. That (the fifth one) was sent if only to move on. I knew it was still rough but I really needed to move on.

Welcome ledded. I hope to entertain while telling a story and it appears I am doing that.

Back to finishing the character sheet for "Squint". He is a Dromite Elocater that will be a member of a team competing in the game of "The World Below".

 

[megamania]

STRIKEFORCE: MORITURI
SEGMENT: 051
“Pre-show Game Event”

DM Nomadis, DM Furi and DM Blackblood each took their stations.

DM Furi , a beholder, hovered into place and allowed the assistants to place the Crown of Awareness on its large round scaled body it had for a head. This magical and psionic artifact allowed it to be aware and manipulate the events within The World Below. It savored these moments. The anticipation was great. It was better than any drug or act of evil it had ever committed. The best part- it was heralded as a creature of greatness while doing this.

DM Blackblood, a ½ fiend mutant, quietly took his position. He lets out his breathe slowly that it held for the past minute without even knowing it. Once it sucked in fresh air he nodded to the assistants whom placed a headpiece similar to the Crown of Awareness. This Crown of Revenge allowed him to communicate with The World Below and activate specialized traps and holdings. An eerie and malign smile creased its face as the awareness and sensations came slowly of what was within.

DM Nomadis paced a bit. The energy he felt was great. He knew something unique would come from today’s show. Deep down he just knew it. With a short but loud “Ready” that escapes from his mouth, he settles down to have the assistants place his Crown of Attention onto his head. This artifact allowed him to share the senses with the other two crowns and to communicate with the viewing crystals.

All that remained was the fourth and empty seat. DM Shelly was always late. But still, one could set a clock on when she would appear. The Mind Flayer would port in, blood still on it’s tentacles from a last moment snack and wait impatiently for the assistants to place a Crown of Sensation on her soft and cold head. With this crown, she could sense the emotions of any within The World Below.

The warrior teams had long since been gathered and waited for the event to begin. It was difficult for the Security force to keep some apart from each other. Feuds often occurred in the taverns and bathhouses in the city of Carkartus. The paladin and fiends had already had two confrontations. The orcs tried to tempt the elves into conflict. Their elven was poor, but the elves understood the racial and sexual insults.

DM Nomadis decided it was time to begin the pre-show and present the first surprise of the event. With a nod or glare from each DM, it began. The assistants scurried off as the crowns powered up to the fullest level. The surprises held within became to reveal their locations and temperament. Traps were primed and holding cells unlocked their primary safety-locks alerting those held within to be alert.

The World Below calls out
The World Below calls within
The World Below calls to you

Welcome to The World Below

DM Nomadis begins-
“Welcome to our latest and greatest event yet …of The World Below. Today we will witness the fighting and casting abilities of such great racial rivals as the Blackstone Orcs and the Greenleaf Elves. We will see the violent play of good vs evil as the Paladin of Heironeous and the Warriors of Bane dance a dance of death! But what else? What else? We have these teams also- Team: Athas. Trained as gladiators for all of their lives and they have the scars to prove it! Who else? Who else? We have the survivors of last year’s Grand Melee Team: The Fatal Five!”

Images of DM Nomadis and the other DMs disappear and are replaced by images of the Fatal Five. Fiends!

DM Nomadis pauses and gives a knowing smile to his co-DMs.

“The rules are simple. The last surviving team leaves. They leave with anything they have found within The World Below. This includes weapons, gold, trophies and even magical and psionic artifacts. As always- we have the Hounds.” He pauses again for effect.

“The hounds are back viewers! The greatest warriors and survivors of The World Below whom choose to stay behind to become a Hound. Hounds are warriors that hunt the teams and look to remove them from the event. They gain riches and rewards for each individual and team removed.”

Images of a ½ Ogress tearing a male human cleric in two appear. Another image of a drow cleric flaying a goblin mage alive and another image of a ½ dragon barbarian tearing into a team of elven archers caught unaware begin to swirl and stack. DM Nomadis can almost taste the excitement brewing outside.

Outside, fans and members of Carkartus stand tightly together looking at each of the starting points of teams and hounds in hopes of seeing their favorites.

“LET THE WORLD BELOW BEGIN!”

Large heavy iron gates begin to lift that allow team members to enter the ruins. An energy grid is activated that blankets the ruins to limit the advantage of flight. This grid is similar to the city protections used by some elven societies.

The teams and Hounds enter the ruins under the thunderous roar of praise and approval and the gates close again.

“So now, let us-“ DM Nomadis is interrupted abruptly by DM Shelly whom snarls. “There is a planar disturbance ripping into the audience!”

The wretched refuge of Carkartus leap and trample others as a sizzling ball of energy begins to appear and grow within their masses. Forms appear within.

The DMs each look at the others demanding to know whom arranged for this.

Out rushes a human fighter wearing gleaming scale armor whom carries only a shield that seems to reflect the cosmos. Behind him, a large human in full platemail. He holds a large falchion. The look on his face invites no argument. Following him, a woman with flowing silken robes and a staff. The air rushes about her lifting her hair making it look alive. A rogue leaps out holding something that looks like a cross between a light cross bow and a blackjack. He slowly down and gives a wave to the younger women watching. Finally a platemailed female cleric steps out giving the rogue a gentle push. A black cat rushes and bounds from between her feet. The planar gate closes.

“Who is this?!?!? I did not order this!” Squeals in rage DM Nomadis. DM Furi’s lone large eye flares in anti-magical rage. “Intruders!” Each of its ten tentacled eyes leans in to the viewing crystal in anger and awe. DM Blackblood smiles. “More to play with.” His twisted but talented mind begins to break down the probable strengths and weaknesses of the new team and begins to think of ways to “play” with them. DM Shelly smiles. “They come with a purpose. They seek something within The World Below. Some know what they have entered. Some think it is just another battlefield. I want to educate them.” The DMs each look to DM Nomadis for the final decision. Having little choice in the matter, his own mind and talents search for a spin on this.

“And as a final surprise, we have Team Planar. Humans looking to prove themselves. They want to face, meet and test their skills against the best! Who are we to turn them down?”

 

[megamania]

STRIKEFORCE: MORITURI
SEGMENT 052
“This Can’t be Good”

“I didn’t like this Cap.” Muttered Megamania as he kneeled over a puddle of mud with several large footprints leading from it. “Those gates opened to allow us in. We didn’t expect that.”

“The DMs have decided to allow us to play in their game. Don’t dwell on it much. What can you tell me of the tracks?”

“Well, five people came through here. Each was in a hurry. Each was big and wore heavy boots of shoddy design in my mind. However, good ol’ 20th century quality standards and the freaky worlds we go to are different. Who knows if they were magical or whateverhaveyou.” He replies while shaking his head slowly. Jim Addards is still getting used to the idea of magic, psionics, gods and fantasy that exist outside of his world’s time and reach. He was once a military black-ops rogue with a bad reputation for being a lose cannon. Then he had dreams of the end of the world. God vs the Devil stuff. He figured it was stress and tried to ignore it. Then the devil killed him. Life sucks some days.

“We need to be ready for anything team. I stress anything.” Their leader, Roger Stevens, came from a world similar to Jim’s. As best he can figure it, he lived in an alternate time or version of Jim’s world. He was a soldier is World War Two fighting Germany. He was considered to the best of the best. He was well trained and schooled in combat. He was given experimental tools including a throwing shield. He died trying to stop The Crimson Man. This nazi wielded powers that appear to be magical in nature. His shield was destroyed fighting a creature of strength and destruction. He found this shield and was proven worthy to wield it in Truth, Justice and everything correct.

“Not human. Humanoid however. I suspect Orc or something of that nature.” Vander Stormbringer added while looking down the path where the drying tracks led. He was a psychic warrior from a world known for psionics. He was a mercenary working in a world on the brink of a world war. Magic vs Psionics. He hopes it didn’t destroy his world. He has traveled the planes before. A fierce unnatural storm of magic and psionic creation whisked him to a world known as Alion. Then again he was forcibly removed on a planar level to a place of fiends. He, after the tortures became boring to the vile creatures, was traded to a warlord on the plane of Chaos and War. He fought to survive and survive he did. He still wakes at night in a silent scream. He lives by his own code and relies on his psionically-enhanced falchion and armor to continue to do so. He was killed by an orc for not pleasing her.

“This entire game is sick and disgusting. How immoral can we become?” Jean aka the Storm Wielder. She is a sorcerer that specializes in weather-related spells and tools. Though she dislikes killing anything or anyone, she will do so with a single lightning bolt when needed to. She talks little of her past. There were problems with her father and a dragon. This dragon killed her.

“We shouldn’t stay here for long Captain. These people know what they are doing. Some have trained all of their lives to compete in The World Below.” Christina is a cleric of Infiniti. Her goddess, Infiniti, watches over the creation and expansion of the realities of the universe(s). Each core universe has branches that differ in a single event that forever alters it. Sometimes this is good. Other times it is not. She was born on the demi-plane of Ravenloft and was cursed there. She will always met her mother whom has had a terrible fate brought onto her. Three of these alternate realities’ mothers have stayed with her. Momma is a black cat familiar with freewill. Mother is a fierce and powerful heavy mace. Mom is an invisible ghost that follows her everywhere. All three silently talk to her leading others to think her insane. She is the healer and planes expert of the group. She too has died.

Each died fighting a battle of great importance that would forever alter their world’s history. Each were cheated and died. The Goddess Infiniti brought them together and offered them a chance to live again. To be her Strikeforce Morituri. Another god, one dedicated to the destruction of the various realities has new followers. These followers are trying to resurrect their god. Much of his power has fallen into the very artifacts of his creation. One such artifact, a staff, has been hidden in The World Below for centuries. Using a magical item tuned to it's’ unique energies, they hope to find it and leave. So far, no item has been found with any great ease.

They sought out a circlet on a world ruled by the brute master. This HULK of destruction nearly killed three members. They escaped with the artifact and their second lives intact. Next came a ring hidden on a branch universe of Ravenloft. They fought an undead monstrous shark that was created by the ring then wielded by a wereshark. They found Christina’s mother whom was changed into a ½ bug creature and were involved in a battle there to free her people from cannibal barbarians lead by a ghoul whom controlled a huge earth elemental. They escaped that world only when the previous HULK creature came but was imprisoned by the world. They lost the ring as an agent of the Destructor collected it.

Now they are here in Carkartus, in The World Below, a gladiator arena on a planar level that is “televised” through the planes using powerful magics and psionics held in check within viewing crystals.

Jim aka Megamania is still moving ahead of the team, his skills in sneaking in and out of secured areas being most important now. The large humanoids have split to the left so he continues straight. Then he notices a silent small shadow slide up to him. He looks up with his finger on the trigger of his energy gun. A green gem or shard floats there about 4 feet from the ground. Slowly he stands up. “Uh …guys….”
He pauses in a crouch before standing to his full 5”10 height. The gem just floats there as if looking at him.

His greatest weapon is not his energy gun or even his Spellfire powers he recently has discovered. No, his greatest weapon is his brain. 100’s of random thoughts race through his mind while analyzes the non-standard piece of igneous rock. Silicone.

“hello…take…me…to…your…leader” mocks Jim.

The others pause a few steps behind him and look at it.

“Christina…?” prompts the Captain.

Instead it is Vander that replies. “Scrying crystal. Psionic. Someone is spying or trying to communicate with us through it.”

“na-nu na-nu” says Megamania holding up his hand with his fingers split apart to appear like three fingers instead of five. “how.”

“I think it’s broken. Boring anyway.” He goes to move around it but the crystal slides over to block his path.

Psionically, the six of them (can’t forget Momma) hear a simple yet calculating voice in their minds.

= I know not why you are here and why you have invaded our space but we will defend it ..publicly. =

A second crystal, this one pure white, appears. It slides high and to the left. Everyone but Vander and the Captain follow it. They turn to the right to see what is being recorded to “meet” them. The answer- a large monstrous snake. It is purple and black with a red gem on its forehead. Its tongue sticks out then it moves in closer. Along with another and another and another. Then the debris that it was seemly coming from behind falls over as the rest of the foul creature climbs out of a hole.

A 12 headed Hydra

“Oh well…now this can’t be good.” Quips Megamania as he snaps his head to the side and then quickly draws and aims his gun.