Crya

XCOM Enemy Unknown Season 1: The Coming Storm Interest Check

I love XCOM. I'd be in.

Mass Effect: Wanted

Jaerdi and Daryna should totally make a blog together.

Mass Effect: Wanted

Daryna frowned, looking down at her cooler. "Why have krogan testicles?" she wondered to herself. "What, am I supposed to get human testicles? Nobody pays 10,000 credits for a human testicle." Daryna paused. "Do they...?" She shook her head. "I guess I'll work up a plan to get into that ship to keep the pilot in check." Daryna looked around the room at the people who would be accompanying her on this mission. She figured nobody else could actually get into Siame's ship without shooting, so maybe she could actually be useful. After years of using her dominate ability, Daryna had learned that the best way to gain an advantage was to sit back and observe. When they didn't think they were being watched, people would do revealing things. Those quirks often were able to be taken advantage of. Not that Daryna would take advantage of anyone without good reason, but she had trust issues on a normal day. Gather the most dangerous criminals in the galaxy under one roof, and she had to try and be on top of things in case she needed a speedy escape route.

The first looked at Tanya. She already proved herself to be strong and charismatic. Whether or not it was just a face Daryna didn't know yet, but she certainly pulled it off well. If Daryna was going to trust anyone, she felt that Tanya would be a good choice. Her use of humor seemed to be her way out of a situation, and her relationship to the other drell in the room seemed more dependent on her part.

Now, the drell. Daryna was immediately nervous around him. She had spoken to very few drell after her little exchange with the doctor on Kahje. She was an outsider, and she accepted that.This man seemed snarky. He gave the appearance that he didn't want to be here, but Daryna guessed otherwise. She could tell he was a fighter first, and everything else second. He needed Tanya to articulate for him, she bet.

The next person she saw was the salarian. Jaerdi something, she thought. She always loved salarians. They were so fast and smart; Daryna wished she was more like a salarian sometimes. He too was stoic, not giving away much about himself. Daryna was beginning to fear that would be a pattern among these criminals. Would it be so hard to find someone fun to hang out with? But when he speculated about his mishaps with Sleuth, he gave away his innate salarian-ness that Daryna was so fond of. They loved testing their limits, just like Daryna.

Next was the big human, the one with the beard. Daryna wasn't fond of beards, she had to say. She learned about them in her teens, when exploring with Khel Jarr. It wasn't a pleasant surprise. She remembered a time when humans were fighting the turians in their so called "First Contact War", and now there was this big hairy man allying himself with her. Interesting, to say the least. This man portrayed himself as a mere henchman - either he was downplaying his abilities, or he was really just a grunt, in which case he wasn't a big threat, mentally. Grunts usually weren't, in Daryna's experience.

The other male human threw Daryna off. She had never seen a human with a synthetic arm. How much of him was actually synthetic? Was his brain part machine? Would Daryna's abilities not work on him? Daryna was... unsettled, at the least, at the sight of Iosif. Maybe she'd try to casually bring up whether or not he had any brain implants. She'd need more time to think of a way to do that.

There was yet another male human in the mix, and this one Daryna did not like that much. He seemed cocky, even arrogant.She never liked those kind of people, especially those that did nothing to earn it. On the bright side, those who were wrapped up in how great they were often overlooked people like Daryna, and that meant she could blindside him with her powers.

She next saw the guest of honor, Kesik the batarian. She didn't know why, but she liked Kesik. Probably because he was willing to go along with Tanya's crazy plan. Daryna didn't know if she would be willing to do that. He was braver than her, and she admired him for that. She was eager to see his hostage crisis play out.

The other batarian, Valok, was showing more of that stoical charm that criminals all around the galaxy loved. He seemed uncomfortable being around so many non-batarians. Daryna couldn't even begin to understand that concept. She had never been in a room with more than three drell. She was always the exception to the general population. She hoped that Valok would get more relaxed around the other aliens, or else she'd have to watch her back around him.

The male quarian was next on Daryna's judgmental journey. She felt a fluttering feeling deep inside her stomach whenever she saw quarians - how lucky they were, to hide behind suits every day! To never have to show their faces, to be hidden... what Daryna would have given for her own enviro-suit when she was growing up. She even tried to convince her parents to let her pretend to be a quarian, but they refused. Anyway, this Loral seemed like the typical dedicated scientist type. Daryna was hoping he was mad - every motley band needed one good mad scientist to round out their numbers.

Now the female quarian was different - she seemed less secure, almost like Daryna herself. When she spoke, she even sounded a bit like Daryna. She hoped she could find a friend in Kali. Hell, she seemed to be the only viable option in this group. Tanya looked reliable, but she was pretty sure that Tanya would kick Daryna's ass before she became her friend.

Daryna almost didn't notice Aran - the weird, hunched turian. She wished she didn't. she jumped when she saw him, looking all broody and weak-body-strong-mind in the corner. And Daryna did suspect his mind was stronger than most here - throwing a dominate at Aran would probably be like throwing a baby krogan at a brick wall. Even the way he introduced himself was all enigmatic and creepy. "Some of you may know me as Sleuth"... well, Daryna was just going to know him as that creepy guy in the corner.

Daryna stood up, almost finishing up her little peep show without noticing Saseen. Asari were so normal to see on Illium, Daryna sometimes overlooked them. She had to say, she was not looking forward to working with an asari. I went all the way out into the middle of the Terminus Systems. How far do I have to run to get away from these people? Daryna hoped that she could stay away from Saseen, and Saseen could stay away from her. Even looking at Saseen brought back bad memories...

I sit in the desk, eyes to the ground. The other girls circled me, laughing. Ugly Asari. Ugly Asari. Go back to the jellyfish, we don't want you. The teacher pretended not to hear. I was crushed, but at the same time, I wanted what they said to be true. Asari? Me? Only in my dreams.

Daryna snapped out of her memory and crashed to the ground. Her krogan testicle cooler bounced away from her, under an empty chair. "Dammit!" She screamed, much louder than intended. Daryna couldn't see anything. The memory left her totally blind. It had happened before, but the pain had never gone away. Besides, Daryna was fairly sure that she just revealed a humiliating memory in front of the group. She hoped she spoke quietly. She stumbled on her knees, trying to pull herself to her feet with dignity. It all happened because of stupid Saseen. Even out here, asari still plagued her. Why did they have to cause her so much pain? Why did she let them?

The Shadows of Peace

Name: Dr. Yair Kahan
Age: 61
Appearance (no anime):

Yair Kahan

Nationality or Place of Residence: Israeli by birth, usually based on frontier colonies
Title / Rank: Field Medic, Doctor, Counselor, Technician

Biography / history: Yair was born and raised on the streets of Tel Aviv. He grew up without any parents to speak of, and often affiliated himself with a local gang. Humanity might have been going through a golden age, but there would always be crime, and Yair was at the front of it. Yair took his first life in a gang fight when he was fourteen, and after that he was never the same. He stopped wanting to fight others and instead tried to help them. Staying with his gang, he acted as a medic. He helped those who overdosed or got in fist fights, and after educating himself would even go on to patch up bullet wounds and serious cuts and broken limbs. When Yair was 18, he got in with a full scholarship in Israel's most prestigious medical institution. He didn't quite have the grades that the other students had, but the dean of the school personally saw his work and was fascinated. He allowed Yair to enroll if he promised to keep good grades, and Yair did.

After graduating medical school in the top 10% of his class, Yair went on to serve as a doctor in a hospital back home, in Tel Aviv. He liked the work and certainly liked the pay, but he couldn't help but a little smothered by being so close to home, seeing his old friends still in the same gang or long dead from gang violence. He wanted out, and that's exactly what he got. He applied to serve with Flagship Foundation, a megacorporation which funded colonies on frontier planets. Dr. Kahan saw this as an opportunity to help people who were helping humanity progress, and who were in the greatest danger, facing the unknown. Usually it was a great struggle to get professionals to go out to the frontier, so Flagship gladly accepted Yair's work and sent him to a planet dozens of light years away from Earth. He loved it there: exploring the unknown, helping people make a real life out on the frontier.

He stayed on with that planet for three more years until he began to grow restless again. He asked to be enlisted on a different planet, and the process of amazement and exploration began all over again for Dr. Kahan. Every few years he would jump planets, join different colonies looking for a trained doctor. He eventually left Flagship Foundation when they tried to persuade him to move up the ranks, but Yair refused. He loved the life he was living, and he lived it from his late twenties all the way into his fifties, treating every kind of person, having every kind of injury, in every kind of environment. During this time he also dealt with the technology of frontier colonies: aka cheap and often second-hand technology. His tinkering turned into fixing, and often he doubled as both the resident doctor and makeshift mechanic in smaller colonies. It just never got old for him... until, of course, when it did begin to grow a little stale.

In his fifties, Yair wanted a more mobile life. He wanted to stay active as he was aging and the colonial life was often sedentary. So, he enlisted with Terran Central Military Police as a specialist - a medic and technician. He accompanied teams into dangerous situations and helped them get immediate attention to keep them in the fight. TCMP accepted a man with his experience gladly, and he was able to practice his athletic ability along the way. Although he was provided with weaponry, Yair has never killed a man since he enlisted. He has wounded two people - he shot an ecological terrorist in the chest and then kept him alive until he was taken to a hospital, and he shot a drug-crazed woman in the leg to immobilize her. Yair has only killed one person in his life, and he intends to keep it that way.

Dr. Kahan lived on Regillus VI - not surprising, name a colonial world and he's probably spent at least a year there - and he was concerned, but also intrigued at the thought of an intentional attack. He volunteered for this mission and wouldn't take no for an answer.

Equipment (out of combat theatre): Dr. Kahan has no implants; he doesn't believe in them and doesn't trust any doctor or scientist who claims to operate better with them. He carries everything necessary to fix all but the most dire wounds in the field. When out of combat and on duty full time as a doctor, he wears something like this. Besides that, he always insists on bringing his personal library everywhere he goes, including his journal, which he updates regularly. He doesn't trust electronic books, claiming them to be too shifty to read.
Equipment (in combat theatre): He wears light colored armor in combat to show that he is a medic. The armor has a white cross painted on the chest to farther symbolize this fact. He also carries a plasma pistol, which he actually owns and quite admires. It is a quality pistol despite its vintage appearance, but Yair felt he liked the look of it.
Specialised Skills:

Medical: Dr. Kahan has over 50 years of experience when it comes to treating wounds.

Technical: Dr. Kahan knows how to fix simple machines, as it was often required on the colonies.

Counseling: Colonial life comes with personal strife. Dr. Kahan is trained to deal with several psychological problems including anxiety and depression.

Other:

Because of his age, Dr. Kahan has to undergo far more aptitude testing than the normal soldier. He, as of late, has been barely getting by on the physical tests and feels that he will be forced to retire soon. Because of this, he volunteers for dangerous missions more often.

Despite his age, Dr. Kahan is considered by many to be immature and often disobeys the rules of TCMP. He is quite anti-authority, and always has been.

Mass Effect: Wanted

I'm trying to think of a creative use of Daryna's talents. I'm still thinking she could sneak onto the ship and ensure the pilot doesn't try and leave, and she can also prevent him from trying to contact any other ship waiting with backup.She could also cause a distraction near the ship, maybe have one of the Siame guards shoot another.

The Bureau of Unconventional Crime

One question: Will this roleplay be actual magic realism or just feature crimes that "seem" supernatural but have actual explanations?

Bigger than Us

Anything I can say to answer any questions? When I say we're exploring caves, I don't mean anything like we'd find on Earth. Like I said, we already think there's plant life down there. It will be new discoveries at every turn, not just boring cavern systems.

Mass Effect: Wanted

The thing is, I'm only willing to kill the geth because it's the only option. If the destroy ending would have caused all of the quarians' suits to malfunction, killing them all, but sparing the geth, I would still choose destroy. The control is what the Illusive Man wanted, and Synthesis is what Saren wanted. Both crazy, deluded men. I don't really want their visions carried out, not with all the unknown consequences.

But I have to say, if any race was to get wiped out, it would be the geth. They just gained consciousness. They have no culture, music, art, government, history, etc. etc. yet. Killing them doesn't leave as big of a hole in the galaxy as killing, say, the asari would.

Mass Effect: Wanted

I've done a lot of soul searching and, upon going through my first replay since ME3, I think I'm finally coming to terms with the ending. I'm going with destroy this time around. The geth will go down in history as heroic martyrs, and by allying with the quarians in the days before their death, the quarians learn forgiveness and peace.

Bigger than Us

Welcome to humanity's latest frontier! Welcome to Rhea!


CONCEPT -

Humanity has entered the next stage of civilization. Population has grown, and so has the technological level of our race. The time has finally come where we have left our own solar system in search of other habitable worlds…. In search of extraterrestrial life. We have broken beyond our shell! We have reached Alpha Centauri! In a time where Earth has close to 10 billion inhabitants and there is nearly 1 billion more spread out over Earth’s moon, Mars and other moons in the solar system, moving beyond was the only logical solution.

Going at virtually light speed travel – it takes under four and a half years to reach this new solar system. Going to Alpha Centauri certainly has no lack of volunteers from eager scientists and researchers, however only a very select few are able to make the journey, and as a round trip takes about nine years, it is no small undertaking, although thanks to cryogenic stasis it feels like a nap to the traveler. Both private and public ships can make the flight, but mostly it is dominated by the International Space Travel Organization (ISTO), a joint project containing dozens of countries.

Humanity is new to exploring Alpha Centauri, and we have not yet explored all of the four planets orbiting Alpha Centauri. The first, Perses, is too hot to be habitable and is very similar to Mercury. The next planet, Vesta, is currently where the bulk of the humans are. The planet is not earthlike, but mostly comparable to Mars: a terraforming prospect. The scientists are currently trying to grasp Vesta’s history by examining the landscape. The last planet is Selene, which is a planet captured by frozen blizzards and vast fields of snow. The idea that life could exist there is fascinating, but Selene is too difficult to explore right now.

The third planet from the sun is the one that captures the interest of scientists and humanity as a whole. This planet is Rhea, or “the cave planet” as many back home are calling it. It is barren on the surface – covered by blue rock with the occasional lightning storm – but what’s unique about Rhea is that it has a huge underground system of caves, and some caverns are speculated to be as large as the state of Rhode Island. There is even oxygen in many of these caverns – leading to speculation of some kind of underground plant life. Maybe Rhea holds the key to our first encounter with another life form?

It’s your job to find out. You’ll be on a mission to discover life on Rhea – think of the opportunities! The adventure of exploring the caves! To step where no man has stepped before! It was even relatively easy to get your spot on the expedition team, and the pay is astronomical (no pun intended). Of course, there is one catch. Another team went in before you, and all contact was lost. By all accounts, it appears that their communication was severed… violently. It was probably a cave in, but then again… maybe they made first contact with whatever lives in the caves.

Good luck in the caves of Rhea, brave pioneer. We pray that we see you again.

CHARACTERS -

You’ll have the choice of playing several kinds of characters. I expect (and encourage) that we will be mostly comprised of scientists – biologists, geologists, (Basically, any of these fields and biologists of all kinds) Also consider a sociologist, linguist, or archaeologist if life is actually found. Now, I know it might be intimidating to play a scientist – a smart one at that, to be accepted for this mission. But this roleplay isn't about science. It’s about expedition, adventure, danger and discovery. You don’t actually have to be a biologist to play one. In addition to respected scientists, assistants and students could also have secured a spot on the trip, if they were well trusted. Someone has to do all of the boring work, after all.

Second, there are a few guards this time around. Some are military (international, any country could volunteer a soldier). Others might be retired military, police, or privately trained. They aren't expected to do any actual work, but are just there for the safe of mind of the scientists, but they might be in for more than they bargained for...

In addition to the soldiers, there are also survivalists. Army rangers, emergency medical technicians, search and rescue experts, even park rangers, these people are trained in dealing with natural disasters and accidents. They’re to help if anything goes wrong with the science team in the caves. Their help is priceless when the team is on their own.

Lastly, there might be a ‘public figure’ going on this trip. This person could be a popularizer of science (think Neil deGrasse Tyson or Michio Kaku), who is there to gain public interest and funding by recording the experience and transmitting it back to Earth. It could also be a regular celebrity who has a history of supporting science. I’ll only allow one of these characters.

If you can think of anyone else who would fit on this expedition that you'd like to play, please suggest it.

...

This roleplay will, at first, be about character development. You’ll discover the caves and you’ll learn more about Rhea, make new discoveries, and the world the roleplay is set in. And then, things will change, and it won't be a change for the good. The roleplay will become about survival and finding out the secrets of Rhea and even humanity's interest in Alpha Centauri. It will be considerably more fast paced as the situation goes from exploration to life and death struggle to find answers and escape the danger. If you have any questions, please ask.