Skye Prower

As Myra got out of the car, Skye was able to get a look at the building from the phone’s camera. “Wait, I….  The GPS co-ordinates were altered, but I’ve been here before….” He murmured quietly. ***** A group of young children were playing in the park, a rather exuberant game of tag, involving not just running but clambering all over the various rides. “It’s not fair you need to go home tomorrow,” said one of the kids to a little lynx girl in a blue dress.  “Maybe I can talk to Mommy and Daddy and ask them to stay longer,” replied the lynx.  “I like it here!  It’s fun!”  Before the other child could respond there was a cry of ‘TAG’ as the third kid barrelled into the two of them.  The lynx lost her balance and fell from the climbing frame, catching her arm of the side of the metal slide as she landed. Silence descended for a moment, then there was a rush as the children gathered round the lynx, babbles of ‘Sorry, sorry’ and ‘It wasn’t MY fault’ could be heard.  But as the lynx sat up the silence returned.  Her injured arm was visible, but there was no blood.  Instead, where the fur had been torn away, was gleaming metal.  The lynx looked to the other kids smiling. “I’m okay.  I can fix this easy,” she said.  Her smiled faded as the other kids didn’t smile back, but instead looked a mixture of angry and scared. “She’s a robot!” “Robots are mean!” “Daddy said we can’t let stinking robots take over again!” “Grandma told me of a nasty robot that pretended to be Mobian!  She said there could be more.” “But… but… I’m not a bad robot…” the lynx pleaded, tears in her eyes.  Her pleas were in vain as more insults, then some stones, were hurled her way.  The lynx turned and ran. ----------- “Skye?  Are you in here?”  Miles Prower’s voice echoed around the interior of the abandoned building.  His ears twitched as there was a sound of movement from upstairs.  Following the sound, it didn’t take him long to find the little lynx girl, hiding under an old bed, still crying a little.  “There you are.  C’mon out.  Daddy’s here,” said Miles gently.  Slowly, the lynx crawled out from under the bed, then hugged Miles tightly.  Miles hugged back, gently petting his daughter’s head.  His eyes fell upon torn arm.  “Did… the children find out again?” he asked softly.  The lynx nodded in reply. Miles sighed.  It was an all too common occurrence for his child.  When other children found out about his or her’s true nature, they would either bully, or run in fright.  It was one of the reasons the Prower’s had taken their holiday here.  Somewhere out of the way where Skye’s nature would be unknown.  Miles looked around, trying to think of some way to distract his child from what happened. “You know, I almost ended up living here when this place was an orphanage,” he said at last. “You did?  How come?” asked Skye. “Sally was pretty close to one of the founders,” Miles replied.  “A really nice lady called Rosie.  She offered me a place with kids my age, but I was just starting to come into my own as a Freedom Fighter, and I didn’t want to give that up.” “But why is it all run down now?  If Rosie knew Sally, couldn’t she have helped fix this place up?” Skye continued questioning. “That’s… a bit of a sad story.  I’m not sure you want to hear it,” said Miles. “I do!” Skye replied.  Miles looked down at his child, studying her.  He suspected she was also looking for a distraction, and even a sad story would be preferable to thinking about what those children had done.  “Alright, though I don’t know all the details,” Miles replied after a moment, trying to gather his thoughts.  “Rosie founded the Orphanage with the help of one of her friends, called Violet.  Together they ran the place, and very successfully from what I heard.  But then one day Violet went missing, I guess she got caught in the cross-fire of the war.  Soon after, that…. That happened to Rosie.  Eggman attacked the village, several times in quick succession.  Likely there was something in that village he wanted.  And during one of those attacks, Rosie died, but managed to get the children to safety.  Amy Rose was actually there, investigating after the first attack, but she didn’t arrive in time to save Rosie.” Miles went quiet for a moment as his mind drifted back to those day, while Skye waited patiently, used to her father’s more introspective moments about the past.  “Things went from bad to worse after that,” Miles eventually continued.  “Violet’s son…. For the life of me I can’t remember his name… anyway, her son and some volunteers tried to keep the place running, but it wasn’t enough.  And in the end, Violet’s son was accused of murdering his best friend.” Skye gasped.  “Why would he do that?” “He didn’t,” Miles replied.  “From what I heard, the two of them tried to break into one of Eggman’s bases, and it went badly.  But the villagers didn’t care, they’d come to see the young man as something of a ill omen given all the bad events around him, so they had him arrested and thrown in jail.” “But why, if he was innocent?” asked Skye, confused and upset at the idea. “Sometimes people can’t see past their fear.  They see only what’s on the surface. You know what that’s like,” said Miles. “But I look Mobian on the surface!” Skye protested. “But when they know you’re a robot, they can’t see past that,” pointed out Miles.  Skye looked down, and Miles mentally kicked himself for bringing up the one thing he was trying to distract Skye from.  “Come on, we better get back to your mother.  She’s worried sick about you…” ***** “Myra…. Amy….  I….. I need help…” said Skye, sounding very distressed.  “If there….. there is something you are told never to do, no matter what… because doing might lead to a lot of people getting hurt, maybe even dying in the future, yet…. Doing it… would save lives, right now…. What should I do?”

"If you were a robot... and wanted to go somewhere alone, where would you go?" wondered Zoe. "You need to study if you want to do magic or build things," said Skye to Dominic and Stacey.

"Of course sweetie!" winked Ziona as she stepped onto the dancefloor. ------------ "Well find him! Don;t worry!" said Zoe. "But study is borrrrrring!" said Stacey.  Skye looked a down a little.

"Really?  That is really cool!  Could I try making an AI?  Please!" asked Stacey. Skye laughed a little.  "That takes a lot of work.  And study." "Study?  Awwwww!" Stacey looked disappointed. "Where else would MAX have gone?" asked Zoe.  

"Ooooooh! Who's the taking computer?  Does it have a screen?  Did it come from space?" asked Stacey excitedly, causing Skye to smile and pat his head in a brotherly way. -------- "Sounds like a plan," said Ziona.  "You lead, I'll follow your moves."

"We're HERE!" cried Stacey as he ran into Zangoose's lab.

"Coming!" grinned Stacey ---------- "I can see!" said Ziona looking around. ---------- "Don;t worry!" smiled Skye.

Fingers crossed that won't happen ChaosKaiser.  And it looks like we have a soft start-date of late march-ish. As for rules.... well...  I can easily give people a copy of the Necromunda rules on PDF.  Ah, the good old days when GW offered some things for free.  After that, well, the rule 'additions' come in a few stages. First, is just renaming things.  Basically, using the rules as the come in the book, just changing stuff to sound more Sonic-y Second, is adding a minor rule to each of the gang types, to give them a bit more flavour.  It shouldn't unbalance things too much. Third, Is adding rules for the different species available.  I've tried to keep this simple, pretty much a free boost from the normal experience system, though it does have a slight potential to unbalance the game.  On the one hand, they can give you a very skilled starting group.  On the other, everyone gets the same advantage. And fourth is adding Chaos Powers.  I'm still working on these rules, because they could easily unbalance things quickly if mishandled. As for the setting, so far I've come up with an outline for this Dark Future world, one that fits within the framework of the Necromunda game as well.  I'll put it below.  I've kept stuff quite vague, so if anyone wants to fill in more details or make any additions, they easily can. Or, if people don;t like what I;ve got so far, we can scrap it and start again.  Your call. ---------------------   Overview In this timeline, Eggman was successful in his takeover of Mobius.  With his victory massive city complexes were rapidly constructed across the world, though often at the expense of the landscape.  But everything came to a crashing halt when Eggman suddenly and unexpectedly died.  At first most assumed he would return, having downloaded his mind into the computer mainframe or something similar, but it quickly became apparent that wasn’t the case.  The Grand Masters began fighter amongst themselves, and others rose up to try and take power for themselves, or throw off those who had it.  Chaos reigned, no, not the watery kind, the other kind, and the Empire swiftly crumbled.    A century later the world is a wasteland of polluted landscapes and ruined massive cities, with mutated horrors and rogue badniks wandering the wastelands.  Civilisation does exist, of a sort, in the so called Empire Enclaves, solidly walled settlements scattered across the world.  Life in these Enclaves is harsh, and often oppressive, but for many, it’s preferable to living out in the wastes.   Gangs   Feral Packs For some life in the Enclaves is unbearable, so they head out into the wastes to try and make a living there.  Groups of these people band together to form small settlements, and claiming the territory around it.  Of course, out in the harsh wilderness, these settlements need defenders from threats, whether wild creatures or other gangs trying to take over their territory.  Feral Packs count as House Goliath gangs, and use their Weapon List and Advancement Tables. Feral Packs have access to a mix of ranged and Close Combat weapons, but their skill selections makes them most suited to crushing their foes in close combat.   Freedom Fighters Even in these dark times some still cling to hope for a better world and strong ideals.  But to do so, usually means taking down the Enclaves.  Or perhaps just it’s corrupt leadership.  But either way, their beliefs force them outside the Enclaves.  Some groups of Freedom Fighters truly want to make the world a better place, others might be more cynical and simply trying to make the most of what they have, while others just want to set themselves up as dictators of their own small powerbase.  And the whole ‘Freedom Fighters don’t use guns’ rule; that was long ago dropped in the face of wasteland horror. Freedom Fighters count as House Orlock gangs, and use their Weapon List and Advancement Tables. Freedom Fighters are very much a Jack-of-all trades gang in both skills and weapon selection, allowing for varied and flexible tactics.  However, being a jack doesn’t necessarily prevent them from being Masters as is so often the case.   Guardians Followers of the Guardian ideals of old, the Guardians scour the wastes looking for relics and sanctuaries from before the Fall of the Eggman Empire.  And when they find some, they will protect it with all their strength.  Believing only they have the right to such relics, as well as their often brash and aggressive attitudes, will often put them in conflict with others in the wastes.  Especially if they try to claim ground already claimed by Feral Packs. Guardians count as House Cawdor gangs, and use their Weapon List and Advancement Tables. Guardians are another strong close combat gang, but can also be strong in short range firepower, given their easy access to flamer weapons.   Dragon Warriors In the former Dragon Kingdom the Four Houses survived, but were forced to band together to survive.  The Enclaves in their lands are perhaps some of the safest and secure to live, if heavily regimented.  In fact, overpopulation is a potential problem, so groups of the younger generations, normally the second or third children of families, are sent out into the wilderness, either with a set goal, or to seek out land, artefacts, or just trade for the Enclave.  Those that return successful are treated as heroes, and having learned to live frugally, are less of a burden to the Enclave than they might have been. Dragon Warriors count as House Escher gangs, and use their Weapon List and Advancement Tables. Dragon Warriors are capable of quickly and sneakily closing with their foes with both the Agility and Stealth skill lists, before engaging them in close combat, their other strength.  They are the only ones with easy access to swords, giving them a further advantage in combat.   Legionaries Following the Fall of the Empire, many of the Legion attempted to regain their former glory outside the control of Eggman.  Weakened in the wake of the collapse, rather than attempting to vie for control with the other Warlords, the Legion retreated to build up their forces and powerbase.  Patience is a virtue, and the Legion takes it to extreme.  Small groups are often sent out, looking for anything that could be of use for the Legion, from recruits, to lost technology, to a foothold to strike from when the time comes. Legionaries count as House Van Saar gangs, and use their Weapon List and Advancement Tables.  Note: While most, if not all, Legionaries have cybernetic implants, these are cosmetic and have no in-game effect, unless they are acquired in the usual way from the Trading Posts or other means. Legionaries focus on long range firepower, though the combat skill tree can give then a good edge close up.  Their access to Techno skills helps take the edge off some of the bad luck that can plague a gang, making them potentially easier and more reliable to play.   Mercenaries Many follow the Mercenary life as a way to make money.  Some work alone, others work in groups.  There’s always some job that needs doing ,so such groups are rarely short of work.  Exactly what motivates each group, or even each induvial merc, differs.  Maybe it’s all about the money, and they’ll do any act, even criminal ones, for coin.  For others it might be the thrill of the hunt or combat, or maybe some code of honour they adhere too. Mercenaries count as House Delaque gangs, and use their Weapon List and Advancement Tables. Mercenaries are the shooty version of the Dragon Warriors, having stealth and agility skills to move around the map, and the shooting skills and weapon choices to lay down firepower.    Special Gangs These gangs are more complex than the basic six gangs, so should be taken by more experienced players.   Reactivated There are plenty of wild badniks in the wastes and ruins.  Most are not major threats, easily dealt with by gangs or Enclave security.  Most are even taken and reprogramed by Enclaves for protections.  But there are worse out there, badniks still programed to only follow Eggman’s commands; E-series, weaponised Robians, and the feared Metal Series.  And sometimes, these robots wake up. Reactivated badniks count as and follow the rules for Spyrer gangs.  Only: each Spyrer is instead a different type of badnik, and Vows are considered to be Pre-Programed Orders.  And despite being robots, they can still be affected by moral conditions, gas or toxic attacks, and everything normal organic models are vulnerable to, due to somewhat faulty personality programing. Enclave Protectors Each Enclave needs its security force to maintain order within, and occasionally, without.  These teams are better equipped and trained than the gangs outside the Enclave walls, but have other duties that often tie them down.   Much like the Enclaves, the Protectors can range from hard but fair, to outright corrupt bullies, and everything in-between. Enclave Protectors count as and follow all the rules for Enforcer Patrols.  Except their Cyber-mastiff is a repurposed badnik.   Cult of Eggman Despite his demise a century ago, there are those who believe Eggman will still return, some to fanatical levels.  These fanatics often band together, trying to gain influence to rebuild the Empire in Eggman’s name, even though it is an utterly hopeless task.  Keen to avoid the trouble then could bring, Enclaves often just pay such cults to stay away and work in the wastes, rooting out those that would seek to prevent Eggman’s return, and believing with their devotion they can find a way to bring him back and everyone under his sway, even if it means implanting every single person with an explosive charge. Cults of Eggman count as and follow all the rules for Redemption Gangs, including both either Mobs or Crusades.  The differences are the donations the gangs receive are more bribes from Enclaves to stay away and not cause trouble, and the Priests Redeemer rule is less about making a convincing speech, and more the victim being implanted with a small explosive charge, which will be detonated if he does not agree to join the Cult.

"I just caught up with you guys," said Stacey.  "Really?  The lab?  Okay!  Lets go" -------- Ziona followed close behind. ------ "I'm sure she'll be okay," said Skye.

"So..uh... where are we looking?" asked Stacey

"So let's find him!" said Stacey. --------- "After you," said Ziona. ---------- "An AI system might have difficultly processing a new emotion for example," said Skye.

Scourge: From an alternate zone so different rules apply. Fiona: Was abandoned by Sonic as a kid, then left to rot in a cell.  Then when she joined the Freedom Fighters, only Sonic and Tails made her feel welcome, and others, such as Sally, actively hated her.  And given her conflicted feelings on Sonic, the whole thing pushed her towards Scourge, who she fell in love with an joined. Lightning Lynx: I have lost my honor, so I will fight with the few friends I have Eggman: I'll give you Eggman Lien-da: The Legonion is superior.  And having power is nice too.  But as long as the Echidnas do what I say, I'll look after them.  I doubt she sees herself as evil. And that's creepy, just as a witch should be!  Also, Bunny-cat's a dick!

Well very few people are evil cause they decide 'hey, I'm gonna be evil today!'  

Hey!  That's what makes characters interesting!   Light looks cute.  Or is she evil too?

"Like an adventure!" nodded Stacey

"Thanks!" smiled Stacey

"Oh!  Can I help?" asked Stacey.

"Where did he go?" asked Stacey

"I dunno, what were you guys doing?" asked Stacey. "We... were looking for MAX," said Zoe. -------- "Wanna try it out?" asked Ziona. --------- "Hmm.... If she's that advanced, it could be some newly emerging personality traits are causing a few minor hiccups," said Skye.

So... By the looks of things we could have four players in the near future.  (How long will you be busy for Dylan?  Will it be late March like Kat? ) I would say four players would be enough to make this game viable, and we could always say run two teams each, assuming no one else signs up. Looks like this project might be good to go.  Do people want me to post background/setting info?  If so, I'll probibly make a new topic for the game proper.

"O-okay... I'll stay..." said Zoe. ---------- "Lead on Vipey!" smiled Ziona. --------- Skye looked thoughtful for a moment.  "An interesting way for an Artificial Intelligence to put it." He looked over to Zangoose.  "How advanced is her personality software?"

Skye remained quiet for now inside Myra pocket.  If his face had been visible, he would have been very nervous, especially with the children around.

Imagine the chaos that would ensue when all these Vivian's meet!

"Uh...." Zoe looked between the others

More great work!