Three motorcycles are moving slowly through the narrow streets of the Docks. Above them in the roof tops a shadowy figure is moving at full speed. The runner knows the spot he wants to get to first. Expertly he avoids the security cameras and alarm systems as he moves from rooftop to rooftop.
Archer thinks back to the events of the day that has brought him here. It started with two emails. One from Craftsman and the other from The Oracle. The Craftsman invited him to meet together and The Oracle was informing him of a meeting between the Nicotines and Talons of the Jade Emperor. He meet with Craftsman first.
“The old man reminds me of the Master. Ha . . . well, without the hot coals, iron spikes, and death traps. I can’t believe I missed those alarms in those beat up old lighting systems. At the very least I should have recognized the energy flow in a dead system like that. I can learn much of the modern world from this man. First lesson, take nothing at face value.”
He had left the meeting with a better understanding of his Mother and … Father; and a new friend.
The avenging bowman went to the Docks as fast as he could. He arrived and found the best vantage point to spy from a nearby roof top. He silently moves to it. In the darkness Archer reaches out with his spatial sense toward where the meeting is occuring. He “sees” the outline of a sedan, three motorcycles and six men. The sedan has no passengers in the car and no weapons in the trunk.
“Genghis Chi! So . . . the Talons are using the Nicotine’s as foot soldiers? Idiots, as soon as they’re established the Talons will exterminate every last one of them. Maybe . . . if all the gangs in Megalopolis banded together before the Talons get their claws dug deep into the city, they might have a chance of keeping them out. I doubt it though. Apparently that kind of criminal leadership doesn’t exist in this city.”
The men separate into two groups of three. One group walks to the three motorcycles. They are carrying heavy saddle pads. Peering inside the bags, David senses powder. The texture of the powder reminds him of Blue Xiang. Blue Xiang is the designer drug that the Ministry of Pleasure sold in its Den of Delights establishments. It is a very powerful narcotic and very addictive.
“Those fools, Blue Xiang makes meth look like Tylenol. When that stuff starts hitting the streets, it’s going to poison this city from the underbelly on up. It took Singapore two decades to recover when the Talons got a foothold in that city. It was before I was born, and the Master still has wounds from those battles he will never recover from. I need to talk with Tommy. Let him know about Blue Xiang. If he can pass word around about how bad this new stuff is to his Center City friends, maybe word will get to someone in the halls of power.”
Quickly the avenging bowman focuses his senses on what the other three men are carrying. It is currency.
“Reaching out with his Spatial Awareness, Archer senses the weapons each of the Talons and Nicotine gang members. The Talons, of course, have a preference for bladed weapons and the Nicotines for firearms.”
Seeing the 3 Talons get into the sedan, Archer thinks, “Genghis . . . No, it’s still too soon. I need to know more. I need to know just how deep the Talon’s claws are buried in Megalopolis’s throat before I start working my way up the ladder. Most importantly, right now I need to get the Blue Xiang off the street. If I can do that, and possibly capture one of these Nicotines, it’ll be a start. Badai’s an archer. If I play it right I might even convince these bikers I’m a Talon and they’re being double crossed.”
The sedan is not leaving the docks. It is driving very slowly down to the waterfront. The avenging bowman guesses that it must be heading to where the ships are dock. The Department of Transportation must have one of its cargo ships docked in the harbor.
His thoughts snap back to the present situation as he sees the spot he is running to. Archer is ahead of the bikers. He lands on the desired rooftop and comes to a stop. The road has an ‘S’ curve in it which causes the biker to travel single file through the buildings. The ambush is set. He takes aim with a blunt arrow at the lead biker who is helmetless.
He fires.
The arrow files true and strikes the Nicotine the in the head. It is a perfect shot and it does “Nothing! How is that possible! I hit him cleanly and the helmetless biker doesn’t even flinch”
With quick practice ease, Archer draws a target arrow. He fires at the lead rider again. The arrow strikes the bike. This time there is damage done. The bike is disabled and the biker loses control. The helmetless biker tries to turn the motorcycle into a controlled crash. He is able to get off it before it pins him. The motorcycle flips and bounces several times before crashing into the building. The Nicotine slides and rolls behind his bike.
The second biker pulls to a stop and gets off his motorcycle. The third Nicotine stops at the entrance of the “S” curve and looks to the rooftops.
“Invulnero”, call the second Nicotine, “are you all right, man? That was a nasty fall.” Invulnero man replies, “What the smeg are you doing! Get back to your bike. This is an ambush you fool! That fall hurt but it wasn’t anything I can’t handle. What is more important is we lost one set of saddle bags.” Invulnero looks back to see the Blue Xiang scattered all over the ground with gasoline and motor oil mixing it with it.”
The third biker draws his pistol, “Marlboro can you see who did this. I can’t see anybody. Arrows isn’t Lightning Fist’s style, so who did this?” Invulnero responds, “Either we have a new player or the Talons are pulling a double cross. Doesn’t matter, we are boxed in. So let’s get ready to rumble. Lucky Strikes toss me your extra gun. I am guessing this fool is going to keep hiding and firing those arrows, so I am going to need more than my fists”.
[GM Note: Invulnero is not wearing a mask. I don’t have one without it]
Current Conditions:
Archer Hit Points: 53 Power Points: 75
Blunt Head Arrows: 5
Target Point Arrows: 11
Broad Head Arrows: 12
< Due Date: Feb 9th, Actions, Goal, Replies>
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Reply
Rough Draft/Questions
"I was hoping that letting you know where I live and what my connection is would give you the confidence to let me help you in person. If you never want to see me again, give me the word and I will never be a part of your life again. No need to apply any of the Monastery teaching on me."
OOC: I was thinking/hoping this paragraph would be deleted after we had talked through Archer’s post-epiphany response. I didn’t/don’t want Craftsman to think Archer harbors any ill will towards him at this point.
"Go David meet your other appointment, contact me again and I will meet you here. This isn't my only safe house."
With that Daniel shoulder's his gear and starts to head out of the "workshop" and back to his bike using the same path he entered by. Checking again with all his knowledge and senses, for the alarm systems Craftsman says he tripped. "No use wasting an opportunity to improve myself."
<Archer: IC> The old man reminds me of the Master. Ha . . . well, without the hot coals, iron spikes, and death traps that is. I can’t believe I missed those alarms in those beat up old lighting systems. At the very least I should have recognized the energy flow in a dead system like that. I can learn much of the modern world from this man if he’s willing. First lesson, take nothing at face value.
At the docks, the Archer moves with a practiced and measured pace. He is constantly moving forward as he shifts his spatial detection between half and full distances, making sure he can penetrate the objects he is scanning. He moves gracefully between alley ways to the roofs of the warehouses and back down to the alleys. He has constructed a detailed and precise mental map of this area of the docks.
At this time of night, he has only crossed a few security guards and no one else. He is nearing the location that The Oracle had provided. Archer quickly finds the best vantage point from a nearby roof top. He silently moves to it. Reaching out with his spatial sense he senses the meeting. He „sees‟ the outline of a sedan, three motorcycles and six men. The sedan has no passengers in the car and no weapons in the trunk.
The men separate into two groups of three. One group walks to the three motorcycles. They are carrying heavy saddle pads. Peering inside the bags, David senses powder. The texture of the powder reminds him of Blue Xiang. Blue Xiang is the designer drug that the Ministry of Pleasure sold in its Den of Delights establishments. It is a very powerful narcotic and very addictive.
Quickly the avenging bowman focuses his senses on what the other three men are carrying. In the duffle bags being carried is currency. He can‟t tell if it is American currency or some other form of currency but he knows it is money and lots of it. The men toss the duffle bags into the trunk of the sedan. Two get into the front of the car and one into the back.
OOC: Nice set up, I like the way you handled his approach to the Docks. Also I wouldn’t I have a few questions before I proceed beyond this point.
1) Does Archer recognize any specific individual from his knowledge of the Talons?
2) Can I tell if the sedan is manned by the Talons and the bikes by the Nicotines?
3) Using his Spatial Awareness, what kind of weapons does Archer detect on the individuals and their vehicles?
4) Are the bikers wearing helmets as they ride away?
Back at the motorcycles the three men have finished securing the saddle bags. They climb on and start to ride off. The motorcycles are heading back out of the docks the way David had just came from. They ride off at a steady and slow pace. Taking extra care because of the extra weight they are carrying. The Archer knows he can run back to the lit parking spot he had parked his bike and catch them before they reach the main roads.
The sedan is not leaving the docks. It is driving very slowly down to the waterfront. The avenging bowman guesses that it must be heading to where the ships are dock. The Department of Transportation must have one of its cargo ships docked in the harbor. The sedan is moving slowly enough that David could keep up with it by simply running.
Standing on the edge of the roof, the Archer looks towards the motorcycles and then the sedan, Blue Xiang or cash, Nicotines or Talons.
Which should he choose?
<Actions, Goal, Replies>
OOC: I’ll complete Archer’s response after you get a chance to answer my questions above. I’ve developed a plan based on those answers. Primary factor is identification of the two groups and any known individuals. If they are all Talon or Nicotines I’ll respond one way. If one group is talons and the other Nicotines then I’ll respond another.
Oh, and since I have hunting arrows-broadheads and blunts, I need to be sure of the effect of the broadhead vs the blunts. I read something on “killing damage” in your files and am going back to reread it, but I want to make sure we are on same page as to each kind of arrows effect. I also have a couple fishing arrows I’m trying to modify as a grapple/zip line, but I’m sure Craftsman would chuckle at his lack of gadgeteering. J
Thanks
John R
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GM Reply
I’ll make the change and resend. It will be posted on the web without that paragraph. That’s the nice thing about PBeM, easy to do revisions.
Of all the six men, Archer recognizes 1 man. He is Genghis Chi, Americas Director for Ministry of Transportation (Artwork attached). The other two in the sedan are dressed in the Transportation Ministries Golden Fang uniforms (Artwork attached).
You don't sense any weapons on Genghis Chi and the Golden Fangs each have a wooden staff, a pair of Deer Horn Knives (Artwork attached, artwork shows blunt but GF's are pointed and a ceramic has been added to give it a sharp edge , treat as knife but parry value is triple) and wooden throwing spikes (V&V rules treated as Shuriken).
The Biker are wearing the colors and emblems on the Nicotines. Two are wearing helmets and one is not.
Biker 1: No Helmet, Chain, and Pistol
Biker 2: Helmet, Knife, and Pistol.
Biker 3: Helmet, Brass Knuckles, and Shotgun
Safe Patrolling
Tom
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Archer reply
Just a quick overview. A 100lb pull bow can deliver more pentrating power than alot of handguns. Arrows are much heavier than bullets and can reach tremendous speeds. The reason they are so deadly is you have to take into account the penetration factor of an arrow is greater than a bullet. Has to do with Resistent Force. Short of it is hangun is easy to use, bow and arrow not. Both kill real good There's actually a few places on the Web that explain the physics, but from real life I can tell you if your hit by a broadhead there's a very real chance your going to bleed to death quickly.
Blunts are often used to hunt small game. The kinetic impact is enough to kill the creature without marring the pelt or potentially spoiling the meat by nicking the intestines.
Target arrows can be deadly due to their piercing damage. Any vital organ pierced by a target arrow is going to be serious problem. Possibly, but not necessarily fatal though.
Broadheads are nasty nasty buisness. Razor sharp with at least 2 but often 4 cutting blades about 2 inches in diameter. A teflon coating can really increase the penetration factor. Designed to take down anything from small game to elephants and polar bears. There's a whole thing about weight of the shaft improving the killing power of the arrow. I've only hunted deer personally, but have associated with men who have taken down the big game. When Archer starts asking for solid titanium shafts, you know he's getting ready to take down someone/thing serious Once the broadead penetrates properly, the blades move with each movement of the target continuing to cut tissue, blood vessels, etc. At least when a bullet hits the damage is done and doesnt normally continue to cause more and more damage.
The fishing arrows have a special head that after it penetrates the fishes body prevents it from sliding off. I thought it had the same look I've seen on some climbing gear somewhere if you were using comic book physics. I honestly think while Craftsman could whip something up Archers just trying something out he's doomed to fail make work, for various reasons.
Take all that as you may. Afterall it is a comic book story. Just let me know how you want each to act. Trick Arrows are going to be easier Id guess. Blunt arrow plus the special effect I'm guessing. I plan on Archer saving the Blunts for "innocence", Broadheads for bad guys, and calling shots on specific locations on both if he wants a specific result.
Funny we never had this talk about a guy using arrows as his "hook" The things we take for granted we know assumng others do also? Silly assumption, I'm old enough to know I don't know much .
John R
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Thanks for the information, John. While I have hunted quail and deer, they were with shotgun and rifle.
Here is how weapon type will effect the Killing Attack Saving Roll (modifiers applied to Save Number)
Arrows
Blunt: No Killing Attack
Typical: No modifier
Broadhead: -4 to Save Number
Broadhead with Special Attack (Killing): -8 to Save Number
Bullets
Mercy (Rubber): No Killing Attack
Typical: No modifier
Hollow Point (Dum Dum): -4 to Save Number
Hollow Point with Special Attack (Killing): -8 to Save Number
I hope this will keep a Marvel Max/Indie comic book feel. If we have a Jon Sable Freelance / Watchman feel I would know we have the rules right. I would say Punisher but I only read the original Punisher mini-series and that was it.
Regards
Tom
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