Sunday, May 07, 2006
Bryan Wins Death Stakes
(another cleaned up transcript from the Foundry)
JMendes says "Ok, cool. Christian, it's Death Stakes aboard a giant Battlestar-Galactica-like space opera thing. Join?"
Christian says "Hi Bryan. Nice to meet you."
Christian says "I'm in."
hamsterprophet tries to think of a good space opera name
JMendes says "'There's no way you were dealt that hand on chance alone,' the squadron commander growls as he sees the chips begin collected off the table. As he prepares to shuffle the deck again, the claxon goes off. 'We have multiple incoming Dalaks. Heavy bombers with fighter escort. This is not a drill. All pilots, man your craft.' You run to your space fighters and sit there, ready to be launched, tension mounting in the pit of your stomach, as it always does before a fight.
Damn Dalaks, why don't they leave us alone? The wind suddenly rushes out of your chest as acceleration from the slingshot hits you, and you are in space."
JMendes says "First one with a name gets first shot at narrating his own death. :)"
hamsterprophet is Jax Xaos, a freewheeling rebel type with a mean temper and a quick trigger finger.
JMendes says "Now, Jax, tell me how you died."
Bryan is S-Lander, a pilot that never gets any dirt on his uniform and who always has a glint in his eyes and a shine on his teeth.
Christian says "Alright, for one sentence of setting, here's my character out of my ass: His name's Rink Banastan, flyname Taurus. He's a large guy, and a sadistic asshole, but strongly supports authority and order. He does have feelings for some NPC that you can determine (of any gender, whatever), probably in the same flight squad."
hamsterprophet says "I immediately break away from the main body of ships. As I pull up the positions of the attacking forces on my screen I see that we'll need to even the odds quickly. I immediately key in a trajectory that will bring me in wide, and hopefully the rest of the squad will keep the fighters busy. As the commander yells at me to stay in formation, I swoop by one of the enemy fighters a little too close, and he breaks away to pursue me. I lead him away from the ships and out into space....but suddenly another ship decloaks right in front of me! Before I can warn the squad it triggers its pulse laser, and I'm just too close to avoid."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... the ship's laser hits the back of your ship, blowing out one of its engines and sending it into a spin. Thanks to swift intervention of the emergency repair systems, you are able to bring the ship into controlled flight again. Crippled but eager, you re-join the fight."
JMendes says "S-Lander, the action is thick in your part of space. One of your squadron mates has just blown one of the enemy fighters right off your tail, but now he is being tailed himself. Now. Tell me how S-Lander dies."
Bryan says "I quickly burn some extra fuel, pull an eight g turn and fire my lateral thruster. Flicking on the targeting computers, I notice an extra button on my control panel that the techs just installed, but before I can figure out what it does, two Dalak TK-12 Gunships fly up on my tail."
Bryan says "Luckily, my forward thrusters were repaired from the last battle, so I jerk the throttle and fly on backwards, blasting the two TK-12s out of the air. Then I yank my control stick to the left to avoid the shards of metal twisting in the air. My poor squadron mate cries over the com, "Quick, they're all around me.""
Bryan says "I turn my fighter around. She's shaking violently. I think I must have hit some of that debris. When I kick in afterburners, I feel a jerk in the ship, and my back starts to get warm, and then my back is burning. I the last second, I turn to see a fireball just before it consumes me."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... your ship jerks and the systems die, and for a split second, you are dead in space. But then, the backup circuitry kicks in and you are in control again. You swoop towards your squad mate Taurus, who is being pressured my two enemy fighters, but you are far away."
JMendes says "Taurus, you are asking for help, but none is forthcoming. So far, however, you have been able to outmaneuver your pursuers. Now, tell me how you died."
Bryan kicks back and relaxes fingers from all the typing and eagerly awaits Taurus's death.
Taurus curses under his breath as the ships on his tail unleash a firestorm of laserbeams on his ship. "I need assistance NOW! You fracking bastards are all going to be fracking court martialed for breaking formation!" He kicks down the pedal hard, savoring the sudden pressure, but his pursuers persist. A sudden turn left, a swipe to the right, and a maneuver that almost made his lung burst later, he lost one of them, but the second fighter remains. Taurus bites his teeth together and grips the controls so tightly that his knuckles turn as white as snow. "Alright, fracker. Let's see what you're made of." He hits the booster again and the ship zooms forward. The mothership is right in front of him, and he is on a collision course. Sweat runs down his forehead and burns in his eyes. He has to keep swerving left and right to avoid the bursts from behind, but his left wing takes a severe hit. "Frack!" Control lights flash and sirens sound as the mothership looms ever larger ahead of him. Closer. Closer. Just a little bit. In the last possible moment, he pushes hard to the right. His already damaged wing screeches against the mothership's side, but his pursuer slams right into it in a huge burst of flames and debris. But before Taurus can celebrate, his own wing finally gives way. The ship starts to turn and tumble. The mothership's back engine glows in front of him. He pulls hard at the controls, but it's too late. His ship crosses the mothership's engine exhaust and melts away.
Taurus says "Sorry, I'll make the next one shorter :)"
JMendes says "No way! Long and cool is good! :)"
Bryan says "This is all good."
hamsterprophet says "as long as its cool, dont matter how long it is!"
Taurus says "Alrighty then."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... An enemy torpedo had hit the mothership's engine just seconds before, causing it to blow up in a glorious fireball. Your ship hits the exhaust of a dead engine and bounces away, spinning on itself. Just then, Blue Squadron is finally launched. They dive into the frey with wild abandon, and little by little, the enemy fighter escort is whittled away, as the bombers turn and flee."
JMendes says "The salvage operation goes smoothly. Ejected pilots are retrieved, and those occupying dead ships are rescued. It's weeks later and the senior officers are in the command room. 'We have to strike back. Captains, assemble your squads. Launch Operation Deep Strike when ready!'"
JMendes says "You are flying in stealth formation, approaching the small moon where the enemy has their strike base. The squadron commander finally breaks radio silence. 'Red Squadron, engage!'"
JMendes says "Now. Jax, tell me how you died."
hamsterprophet says "Remembering the dire threats of my commanders that I would be courtmartialed to hell and back if I broke formation without orders, I grit my teeth and keep wing-to-wing with Red 4 and 6. We release our flak barrage over the main planetary defense battery on the hemisphere we're attacking, and pull back out while the bits of flack are consumed. On the commanders order, we dive in in a full attack pattern while the defense batteries recharge. I release my plasma torpedoes on cue - but suddenly a flash of light flies up from the moons surface, and I see the glittering tip of a missile zooming towards us. I kick straight up and almost black out from the mad G's. When my vision clears, I see clear skies - and then the severed wing of Red 7. It smashes through my windscreen edge-on, breaking my hermetic seal. I suffocate in the vacuum so fast that I don't even feel the wing burst through my face."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaaactually... The lose piece of fuselage rams right into your cockpit, but stops less than an inch short of your helmet, which seals itself automatically in response to the loss of cabin pressure. Your control systems are shot, however, and you begin creeping towards the ground, under the influence of the moon's tiny gravity. In the meantime, Red Leader's voice is heard again. 'Viper, this is Red Leader. You have window of opportunity.' As the assault landers come in on cue, a flight of enemy fighters appears over the horizon. 'Red Squadron, this is Red Leader. Take them out. Keep them away from the landers.'"
JMendes says "Now. S-Lander. Tell me how you died."
Bryan says "Not wanting to break formation for fear of Court Martial, I follow close behind Commander Taurus's fighter. As we close on the enemy fighters, I notice something strange out of the corner of my eye, but when I glance to my right, I don't actually see anything. I engage and follow closely Taurus orders. I say 'Let's get these fracking bastards.' And then blast the enemy."
Bryan says "We engage the enemy, and after we take most of them out, I notice out of the corner of my eye that what I saw earlier was a second fighter squad heading for our troop landers..."
Bryan says "I say, 'Sorry, Tarus, but you're going to have to court martial me. I'm breaking formation. There's a second fighter group.' I pull a high g turn and kick in my afterburners. And then I remember the button that I forgot to ask the techs about. I lean forward to push it, when I see one of our own on my tail blasting away. He hits my engines sending my fighter into a flat spin and I fall to the planet in a dizzying spin. When I hit the ground a pine tree spears up through the bottom of the ship and empales me. Legends will be sung about Lander the Empaled."
hamsterprophet says "haha, nice!"
Bryan says "should be impaled not emplaed."
JMendes rolls his eyes, "Aaaaaactually... the tree crushes under the weight of the ship, which explodes when it hits the ground. The autoeject mechanism sends you flying across the small grove and you land, bruised but in one piece, thanks to the low gravity."
JMendes says "Taurus, your squadron is spread all over the place, under the pressure of the two attacking enemy wings, but the landers are touching down under relative safety, thanks to your collective efforts. 'Red Leader, this is Viper. We're on the ground. Thanks.' You find yourself alone in low altitude, without cover."
JMendes says "Now. Taurus. Tell me how you died."
Taurus is fuming about his troops. Those fracking idiots, the bunch of them. Just as he was about to unleash his fury over the intercom, one of his wingmen resumes formation, and together they patrol the skies to make sure that there won't be any surprises. "Wolf, where the frack were you? I thought I made myself perfectly clear last time." She was one of the pilots he severely disciplined upon their return from the previous mission. She's a piece of work, and Taurus gave her a personal visit to make sure she wouldn't ever screw up like that ever again. At least her bruised arm from his visit didn't diminish her flight abilities enough to get her shot down. "Sorry sir," she says, but her voice sounds not quite as respectful as he would like it to be. He would have to pay her another visit, and this time really show her who's boss. Just as they're about to turn around and head back to the base, he checks her status and sees that her ship has drifted horizontally, to an angle behind his own. "Wolf, get back in formation. What the--" The sounds of her lasers tearing through his ship and burning holes through his body are the last thing Taurus ever hears.
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaaactually... the scene fades to flashback, back at the squadron briefing room. 'Is everyone clear?' you ask. 'The fracking Dalaks need to be completely convinced. Tiger, you blast Lander's ship as soon as the enemy shows his face. Wolf, you get mine at the first opportunity. Afterwards, join formation with their squadrons and blast away at the dummies from Blue Squadron. In the meantime, let's hope Viper Team can extract us after the strike.' The scene fades back to the fight as you crash-land your ship."
Taurus says "Niiiice."
Bryan nods head at the flashback. 'Sweet.'
JMendes says "Jax, your lifeless ship finally touches down, right in the thick of the ground fight. Hand blaster shots rage all around the battle field and the smoke of fused power armor cells fills the air."
JMendes says "Now. Tell me how you died."
JMendes :) "Yeah, I loved it when Nate pulled a flashback on me earlier, and I thought this was the time to use it."
"I flip down the blast guard on my helmet and grab my non-reg, and unnecessarily large, blaster rifle from behind the seat. I crawl out of my ruined craft and get a bearing on a pocket of enemy troops. Timing my shots precisely, I manage to pick off two or three without them noticing that my shots are coming from a different direction.
hamsterprophet says "I flip down the blast guard on my helmet and grab my non-reg, and unnecessarily large, blaster rifle from behind the seat. I crawl out of my ruined craft and get a bearing on a pocket of enemy troops. Timing my shots precisely, I manage to pick off two or three without them noticing that my shots are coming from a different direction."
hamsterprophet says "Suddenly, I feel a harsh impact across my shoulder blades. The smoke of my burning jacket assaults my nostrils as I roll over and face directly down the barrel of a Dalak elite stormtrooper. The sun glares off his visor as he kicks the rifle out of my hands. He smirks, and flips a setting on his gun - then shoots. I'm covered with sticky webbing that glues me to the ground - right in the center of the fire started by my burning jacket. I'm consumed in crackling flames as the battle rages on around me."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaaaactually... Just as the Dalak is lording over you as the fire spreads, a lone blaster shot pierces his helmet and he falls to the ground, lifeless. A three man strike team in power armor rushes to your side and puts the fire out. 'Johnson, Bierce, get the pilot out of here,' one of them says. 'I think they bought the bait. Sound retreat.' In concert, the other two pick you up by your armpits and head back to a nearby assault lander."
JMendes says "S-Lander, you stand around to take your bearings. According to the plan, you were supposed to wait for extraction near your crashed ship, but the explosion was unexpected. Between you and the ship, a small group of Dalak troopers are being pinned down by the long range fire of a Terran sniper."
JMendes says "Now. Tell me how you died."
Christian says "My connection is bad and getting worse, so I think I have to bow out of the game for tonight."
Christian says "Can you guys blog this or put the log up somewhere? I'd love to be able to read the stuff again, and I think I'll give up on my connection now, but I don't want to miss what's coming."
JMendes says "Sure thing."
hamsterprophet says "yeh, I should be logging it, i'll make sure i have a copy"
Christian says "Cool, and thanks for GMing! It's amazing how much fun and storytelling we can get out of something as strange as Death Stakes :)"
JMendes :)
Bryan says "Realizing that I'm ten clicks away from my extraction point, I quickly look through the ship to grab my survival gear. The button the techs installed that I didn't ask about is sitting loose on the seat so I grab it and stuff it in my pocket. I look myself over and notice, as always, my suit has no dirt on it. I smile my nice white smile and then run off into the woods towards the Terran sniper hoping to reach him before he is extracted...."
Christian says "Night guys."
Bryan says "about halfway to the sniper in the woods, I see a woman who is covered in dirt. 'Howdy,' I say. She answers, 'I need help...the fighting." I walk over to her and take the sleeve of my suit and wipe the dirt off of her face. She warms up to me, and soon we are off towards the sniper. We make record time and I find out that the sniper is the last Terran trooper on the ground in this section. He's waiting for me..."
Bryan says "and calls for a lift. As we're waiting, the woman I rescued eyes start to glow red. She a bomb. I grab the sniper and throw him as far as I can off the side of the hill. I run and jump to follow him, but the woman explodes vaporizing me into a red flash. The sniper survives."
hamsterprophet says, "dude, nice"
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... right before she explodes, out of some obscure instinct, you hand reaches for that fateful button and you press it..."
JMendes says "... and reality fades from your eyes..."
JMendes says "A split second and a bright flash of light later, you wake up... as you try to take your surroundings in, your back feels sore from sitting in that VR chair for so long. Slowly, you stand up and start disconnecting the elctrodes."
JMendes fights cheese with cheese... :)
Bryan says "Sweet. S-Lander leans back in the chair and smiles."
JMendes says "Jax wakes up as well, as a technician beside him brings the simulation to a halt. The commander is there as well, analyzing the results. 'Yes, I think it'll work. Very well, launch Operation Deep Strike when ready,' he says, then turns and heads out."
JMendes says "It's five months later and peace has been declared. Your squadron is on a routine border patrol, when an unidentified blip shows up on your radar screen. Now. Jax. Tell me how you died."
hamsterprophet lol's
JMendes fights cheese with cheese. :)
Bryan says, "I thought you were going to have us replay the battle."
Bryan wipes sweat off of brow.
JMendes :)
hamsterprophet says "the blip has a greater velocity than any recorded vehicle, Terran or Dalak. It's far too large to be a missile. As it approaches the Terran space it starts to slow to normal speeds. I signal to the squadron "Continue patrol pattern. I'm going to check it out." As I approach and bring it up on visual, I see a tubular craft in a totally unknown pattern, with no intelligible markings of any kind. "Patrol Alpha to base, unknown craft incoming. Am investigating.""
hamsterprophet says "as I approach, my instruments start wigging out, reading levels off the charts for gravity and atmosphere density. I try to back out, but even with my thrusters at full reverse I'm still inching towards the object. As I get closer, the power to my craft sputters and goes out, and I'm stuck in a dead ship, pulled into a massive gravity well."
hamsterprophet says "I see the sheet metal of my ship start to tremble and rupture, and resign myself to an ignomious death by crushing."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... Just before your ship collapses under its own weight, the gravity field subsides and the ship coasts limply towards the object. Right before you crash, a small window opens in the fuselage and lets you into a huge chamber, closing itself afterwards. Your ship bounces around the chamber walls for what seems like eternity, until it comes to rest amid a pile of debris."
JMendes says "S-Lander, as Jax's wingman, you followed him in and were captured by the same field. You exit your own craft, wondering what to do next. There is air here and the gravity is gentle. Suddenly, you hear a loud noise in the distance."
JMendes says "Now. S-Lander. Tell me how you died."
Bryan says "I call out to Jax, 'Are you okay?' And after I hear back an affirmative, I call out, 'Who's there?' Nothing answers, so I say to Jax, 'I'm going to check it out.'"
Bryan says "After walking for what seems like forever, I find a screen at the end of the building. The sound I heard is deeping from the speaker. I touch the screen and a strange looking green face appears. It say in Terran, 'We've come to test you.' I push back my hair, smile a white smile, and say, 'Shoot.' The green face says, 'Why would we want to kill you now.' I say back, 'You wouldn't.' It says, 'How would you know?' I say, 'I don't.' It says, 'This is not intelligent life.' I hear the airlock open behind me and am sucked out into the cold depth of space. My head explodes shortly before my body freezes."
hamsterprophet says, "lol" dude....awesome."
JMendes is laughing in his chair!
hamsterprophet says, "that may be a winning entry.....we'll see what Joao thinks....."
hamsterprophet is literally LOL as well
Bryan says, "Thanks."
JMendes says "Jax, you feel yourself being picked up by the air current and suddenly, you are out of air. The object fades from Terran space, scheduling a return in another ten thousand years. Your names are listed as Missing In Action."
JMendes drowns in a vat of molten cheese...
hamsterprophet says "haha! awesome"
hamsterprophet says "Death Stakes rules"
Bryan says "That was pretty fun."
JMendes says "Ok, cool. Christian, it's Death Stakes aboard a giant Battlestar-Galactica-like space opera thing. Join?"
Christian says "Hi Bryan. Nice to meet you."
Christian says "I'm in."
hamsterprophet tries to think of a good space opera name
JMendes says "'There's no way you were dealt that hand on chance alone,' the squadron commander growls as he sees the chips begin collected off the table. As he prepares to shuffle the deck again, the claxon goes off. 'We have multiple incoming Dalaks. Heavy bombers with fighter escort. This is not a drill. All pilots, man your craft.' You run to your space fighters and sit there, ready to be launched, tension mounting in the pit of your stomach, as it always does before a fight.
Damn Dalaks, why don't they leave us alone? The wind suddenly rushes out of your chest as acceleration from the slingshot hits you, and you are in space."
JMendes says "First one with a name gets first shot at narrating his own death. :)"
hamsterprophet is Jax Xaos, a freewheeling rebel type with a mean temper and a quick trigger finger.
JMendes says "Now, Jax, tell me how you died."
Bryan is S-Lander, a pilot that never gets any dirt on his uniform and who always has a glint in his eyes and a shine on his teeth.
Christian says "Alright, for one sentence of setting, here's my character out of my ass: His name's Rink Banastan, flyname Taurus. He's a large guy, and a sadistic asshole, but strongly supports authority and order. He does have feelings for some NPC that you can determine (of any gender, whatever), probably in the same flight squad."
hamsterprophet says "I immediately break away from the main body of ships. As I pull up the positions of the attacking forces on my screen I see that we'll need to even the odds quickly. I immediately key in a trajectory that will bring me in wide, and hopefully the rest of the squad will keep the fighters busy. As the commander yells at me to stay in formation, I swoop by one of the enemy fighters a little too close, and he breaks away to pursue me. I lead him away from the ships and out into space....but suddenly another ship decloaks right in front of me! Before I can warn the squad it triggers its pulse laser, and I'm just too close to avoid."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... the ship's laser hits the back of your ship, blowing out one of its engines and sending it into a spin. Thanks to swift intervention of the emergency repair systems, you are able to bring the ship into controlled flight again. Crippled but eager, you re-join the fight."
JMendes says "S-Lander, the action is thick in your part of space. One of your squadron mates has just blown one of the enemy fighters right off your tail, but now he is being tailed himself. Now. Tell me how S-Lander dies."
Bryan says "I quickly burn some extra fuel, pull an eight g turn and fire my lateral thruster. Flicking on the targeting computers, I notice an extra button on my control panel that the techs just installed, but before I can figure out what it does, two Dalak TK-12 Gunships fly up on my tail."
Bryan says "Luckily, my forward thrusters were repaired from the last battle, so I jerk the throttle and fly on backwards, blasting the two TK-12s out of the air. Then I yank my control stick to the left to avoid the shards of metal twisting in the air. My poor squadron mate cries over the com, "Quick, they're all around me.""
Bryan says "I turn my fighter around. She's shaking violently. I think I must have hit some of that debris. When I kick in afterburners, I feel a jerk in the ship, and my back starts to get warm, and then my back is burning. I the last second, I turn to see a fireball just before it consumes me."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... your ship jerks and the systems die, and for a split second, you are dead in space. But then, the backup circuitry kicks in and you are in control again. You swoop towards your squad mate Taurus, who is being pressured my two enemy fighters, but you are far away."
JMendes says "Taurus, you are asking for help, but none is forthcoming. So far, however, you have been able to outmaneuver your pursuers. Now, tell me how you died."
Bryan kicks back and relaxes fingers from all the typing and eagerly awaits Taurus's death.
Taurus curses under his breath as the ships on his tail unleash a firestorm of laserbeams on his ship. "I need assistance NOW! You fracking bastards are all going to be fracking court martialed for breaking formation!" He kicks down the pedal hard, savoring the sudden pressure, but his pursuers persist. A sudden turn left, a swipe to the right, and a maneuver that almost made his lung burst later, he lost one of them, but the second fighter remains. Taurus bites his teeth together and grips the controls so tightly that his knuckles turn as white as snow. "Alright, fracker. Let's see what you're made of." He hits the booster again and the ship zooms forward. The mothership is right in front of him, and he is on a collision course. Sweat runs down his forehead and burns in his eyes. He has to keep swerving left and right to avoid the bursts from behind, but his left wing takes a severe hit. "Frack!" Control lights flash and sirens sound as the mothership looms ever larger ahead of him. Closer. Closer. Just a little bit. In the last possible moment, he pushes hard to the right. His already damaged wing screeches against the mothership's side, but his pursuer slams right into it in a huge burst of flames and debris. But before Taurus can celebrate, his own wing finally gives way. The ship starts to turn and tumble. The mothership's back engine glows in front of him. He pulls hard at the controls, but it's too late. His ship crosses the mothership's engine exhaust and melts away.
Taurus says "Sorry, I'll make the next one shorter :)"
JMendes says "No way! Long and cool is good! :)"
Bryan says "This is all good."
hamsterprophet says "as long as its cool, dont matter how long it is!"
Taurus says "Alrighty then."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... An enemy torpedo had hit the mothership's engine just seconds before, causing it to blow up in a glorious fireball. Your ship hits the exhaust of a dead engine and bounces away, spinning on itself. Just then, Blue Squadron is finally launched. They dive into the frey with wild abandon, and little by little, the enemy fighter escort is whittled away, as the bombers turn and flee."
JMendes says "The salvage operation goes smoothly. Ejected pilots are retrieved, and those occupying dead ships are rescued. It's weeks later and the senior officers are in the command room. 'We have to strike back. Captains, assemble your squads. Launch Operation Deep Strike when ready!'"
JMendes says "You are flying in stealth formation, approaching the small moon where the enemy has their strike base. The squadron commander finally breaks radio silence. 'Red Squadron, engage!'"
JMendes says "Now. Jax, tell me how you died."
hamsterprophet says "Remembering the dire threats of my commanders that I would be courtmartialed to hell and back if I broke formation without orders, I grit my teeth and keep wing-to-wing with Red 4 and 6. We release our flak barrage over the main planetary defense battery on the hemisphere we're attacking, and pull back out while the bits of flack are consumed. On the commanders order, we dive in in a full attack pattern while the defense batteries recharge. I release my plasma torpedoes on cue - but suddenly a flash of light flies up from the moons surface, and I see the glittering tip of a missile zooming towards us. I kick straight up and almost black out from the mad G's. When my vision clears, I see clear skies - and then the severed wing of Red 7. It smashes through my windscreen edge-on, breaking my hermetic seal. I suffocate in the vacuum so fast that I don't even feel the wing burst through my face."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaaactually... The lose piece of fuselage rams right into your cockpit, but stops less than an inch short of your helmet, which seals itself automatically in response to the loss of cabin pressure. Your control systems are shot, however, and you begin creeping towards the ground, under the influence of the moon's tiny gravity. In the meantime, Red Leader's voice is heard again. 'Viper, this is Red Leader. You have window of opportunity.' As the assault landers come in on cue, a flight of enemy fighters appears over the horizon. 'Red Squadron, this is Red Leader. Take them out. Keep them away from the landers.'"
JMendes says "Now. S-Lander. Tell me how you died."
Bryan says "Not wanting to break formation for fear of Court Martial, I follow close behind Commander Taurus's fighter. As we close on the enemy fighters, I notice something strange out of the corner of my eye, but when I glance to my right, I don't actually see anything. I engage and follow closely Taurus orders. I say 'Let's get these fracking bastards.' And then blast the enemy."
Bryan says "We engage the enemy, and after we take most of them out, I notice out of the corner of my eye that what I saw earlier was a second fighter squad heading for our troop landers..."
Bryan says "I say, 'Sorry, Tarus, but you're going to have to court martial me. I'm breaking formation. There's a second fighter group.' I pull a high g turn and kick in my afterburners. And then I remember the button that I forgot to ask the techs about. I lean forward to push it, when I see one of our own on my tail blasting away. He hits my engines sending my fighter into a flat spin and I fall to the planet in a dizzying spin. When I hit the ground a pine tree spears up through the bottom of the ship and empales me. Legends will be sung about Lander the Empaled."
hamsterprophet says "haha, nice!"
Bryan says "should be impaled not emplaed."
JMendes rolls his eyes, "Aaaaaactually... the tree crushes under the weight of the ship, which explodes when it hits the ground. The autoeject mechanism sends you flying across the small grove and you land, bruised but in one piece, thanks to the low gravity."
JMendes says "Taurus, your squadron is spread all over the place, under the pressure of the two attacking enemy wings, but the landers are touching down under relative safety, thanks to your collective efforts. 'Red Leader, this is Viper. We're on the ground. Thanks.' You find yourself alone in low altitude, without cover."
JMendes says "Now. Taurus. Tell me how you died."
Taurus is fuming about his troops. Those fracking idiots, the bunch of them. Just as he was about to unleash his fury over the intercom, one of his wingmen resumes formation, and together they patrol the skies to make sure that there won't be any surprises. "Wolf, where the frack were you? I thought I made myself perfectly clear last time." She was one of the pilots he severely disciplined upon their return from the previous mission. She's a piece of work, and Taurus gave her a personal visit to make sure she wouldn't ever screw up like that ever again. At least her bruised arm from his visit didn't diminish her flight abilities enough to get her shot down. "Sorry sir," she says, but her voice sounds not quite as respectful as he would like it to be. He would have to pay her another visit, and this time really show her who's boss. Just as they're about to turn around and head back to the base, he checks her status and sees that her ship has drifted horizontally, to an angle behind his own. "Wolf, get back in formation. What the--" The sounds of her lasers tearing through his ship and burning holes through his body are the last thing Taurus ever hears.
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaaactually... the scene fades to flashback, back at the squadron briefing room. 'Is everyone clear?' you ask. 'The fracking Dalaks need to be completely convinced. Tiger, you blast Lander's ship as soon as the enemy shows his face. Wolf, you get mine at the first opportunity. Afterwards, join formation with their squadrons and blast away at the dummies from Blue Squadron. In the meantime, let's hope Viper Team can extract us after the strike.' The scene fades back to the fight as you crash-land your ship."
Taurus says "Niiiice."
Bryan nods head at the flashback. 'Sweet.'
JMendes says "Jax, your lifeless ship finally touches down, right in the thick of the ground fight. Hand blaster shots rage all around the battle field and the smoke of fused power armor cells fills the air."
JMendes says "Now. Tell me how you died."
JMendes :) "Yeah, I loved it when Nate pulled a flashback on me earlier, and I thought this was the time to use it."
"I flip down the blast guard on my helmet and grab my non-reg, and unnecessarily large, blaster rifle from behind the seat. I crawl out of my ruined craft and get a bearing on a pocket of enemy troops. Timing my shots precisely, I manage to pick off two or three without them noticing that my shots are coming from a different direction.
hamsterprophet says "I flip down the blast guard on my helmet and grab my non-reg, and unnecessarily large, blaster rifle from behind the seat. I crawl out of my ruined craft and get a bearing on a pocket of enemy troops. Timing my shots precisely, I manage to pick off two or three without them noticing that my shots are coming from a different direction."
hamsterprophet says "Suddenly, I feel a harsh impact across my shoulder blades. The smoke of my burning jacket assaults my nostrils as I roll over and face directly down the barrel of a Dalak elite stormtrooper. The sun glares off his visor as he kicks the rifle out of my hands. He smirks, and flips a setting on his gun - then shoots. I'm covered with sticky webbing that glues me to the ground - right in the center of the fire started by my burning jacket. I'm consumed in crackling flames as the battle rages on around me."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaaaactually... Just as the Dalak is lording over you as the fire spreads, a lone blaster shot pierces his helmet and he falls to the ground, lifeless. A three man strike team in power armor rushes to your side and puts the fire out. 'Johnson, Bierce, get the pilot out of here,' one of them says. 'I think they bought the bait. Sound retreat.' In concert, the other two pick you up by your armpits and head back to a nearby assault lander."
JMendes says "S-Lander, you stand around to take your bearings. According to the plan, you were supposed to wait for extraction near your crashed ship, but the explosion was unexpected. Between you and the ship, a small group of Dalak troopers are being pinned down by the long range fire of a Terran sniper."
JMendes says "Now. Tell me how you died."
Christian says "My connection is bad and getting worse, so I think I have to bow out of the game for tonight."
Christian says "Can you guys blog this or put the log up somewhere? I'd love to be able to read the stuff again, and I think I'll give up on my connection now, but I don't want to miss what's coming."
JMendes says "Sure thing."
hamsterprophet says "yeh, I should be logging it, i'll make sure i have a copy"
Christian says "Cool, and thanks for GMing! It's amazing how much fun and storytelling we can get out of something as strange as Death Stakes :)"
JMendes :)
Bryan says "Realizing that I'm ten clicks away from my extraction point, I quickly look through the ship to grab my survival gear. The button the techs installed that I didn't ask about is sitting loose on the seat so I grab it and stuff it in my pocket. I look myself over and notice, as always, my suit has no dirt on it. I smile my nice white smile and then run off into the woods towards the Terran sniper hoping to reach him before he is extracted...."
Christian says "Night guys."
Bryan says "about halfway to the sniper in the woods, I see a woman who is covered in dirt. 'Howdy,' I say. She answers, 'I need help...the fighting." I walk over to her and take the sleeve of my suit and wipe the dirt off of her face. She warms up to me, and soon we are off towards the sniper. We make record time and I find out that the sniper is the last Terran trooper on the ground in this section. He's waiting for me..."
Bryan says "and calls for a lift. As we're waiting, the woman I rescued eyes start to glow red. She a bomb. I grab the sniper and throw him as far as I can off the side of the hill. I run and jump to follow him, but the woman explodes vaporizing me into a red flash. The sniper survives."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... right before she explodes, out of some obscure instinct, you hand reaches for that fateful button and you press it..."
JMendes says "... and reality fades from your eyes..."
JMendes says "A split second and a bright flash of light later, you wake up... as you try to take your surroundings in, your back feels sore from sitting in that VR chair for so long. Slowly, you stand up and start disconnecting the elctrodes."
JMendes fights cheese with cheese... :)
Bryan says "Sweet. S-Lander leans back in the chair and smiles."
JMendes says "Jax wakes up as well, as a technician beside him brings the simulation to a halt. The commander is there as well, analyzing the results. 'Yes, I think it'll work. Very well, launch Operation Deep Strike when ready,' he says, then turns and heads out."
JMendes says "It's five months later and peace has been declared. Your squadron is on a routine border patrol, when an unidentified blip shows up on your radar screen. Now. Jax. Tell me how you died."
JMendes fights cheese with cheese. :)
JMendes :)
hamsterprophet says "the blip has a greater velocity than any recorded vehicle, Terran or Dalak. It's far too large to be a missile. As it approaches the Terran space it starts to slow to normal speeds. I signal to the squadron "Continue patrol pattern. I'm going to check it out." As I approach and bring it up on visual, I see a tubular craft in a totally unknown pattern, with no intelligible markings of any kind. "Patrol Alpha to base, unknown craft incoming. Am investigating.""
hamsterprophet says "as I approach, my instruments start wigging out, reading levels off the charts for gravity and atmosphere density. I try to back out, but even with my thrusters at full reverse I'm still inching towards the object. As I get closer, the power to my craft sputters and goes out, and I'm stuck in a dead ship, pulled into a massive gravity well."
hamsterprophet says "I see the sheet metal of my ship start to tremble and rupture, and resign myself to an ignomious death by crushing."
JMendes rolls his eyes. "Aaaactually... Just before your ship collapses under its own weight, the gravity field subsides and the ship coasts limply towards the object. Right before you crash, a small window opens in the fuselage and lets you into a huge chamber, closing itself afterwards. Your ship bounces around the chamber walls for what seems like eternity, until it comes to rest amid a pile of debris."
JMendes says "S-Lander, as Jax's wingman, you followed him in and were captured by the same field. You exit your own craft, wondering what to do next. There is air here and the gravity is gentle. Suddenly, you hear a loud noise in the distance."
JMendes says "Now. S-Lander. Tell me how you died."
Bryan says "I call out to Jax, 'Are you okay?' And after I hear back an affirmative, I call out, 'Who's there?' Nothing answers, so I say to Jax, 'I'm going to check it out.'"
Bryan says "After walking for what seems like forever, I find a screen at the end of the building. The sound I heard is deeping from the speaker. I touch the screen and a strange looking green face appears. It say in Terran, 'We've come to test you.' I push back my hair, smile a white smile, and say, 'Shoot.' The green face says, 'Why would we want to kill you now.' I say back, 'You wouldn't.' It says, 'How would you know?' I say, 'I don't.' It says, 'This is not intelligent life.' I hear the airlock open behind me and am sucked out into the cold depth of space. My head explodes shortly before my body freezes."
JMendes is laughing in his chair!
JMendes says "Jax, you feel yourself being picked up by the air current and suddenly, you are out of air. The object fades from Terran space, scheduling a return in another ten thousand years. Your names are listed as Missing In Action."
JMendes drowns in a vat of molten cheese...
hamsterprophet says "haha! awesome"
hamsterprophet says "Death Stakes rules"
Bryan says "That was pretty fun."
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Thanks for putting this up! I really enjoyed this game and owe you guys a GMing.
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# posted by 
: 7/5/06 8:36 PM
: 7/5/06 8:36 PM << Home
Wanna buy a game? 