Yes, the rule is simply for balance. I'm making it very difficult to hack a network that doesn't have something connected to the matrix, thus it's not fair if you can use such a network with no penalties of any sort. To clarify, you can only have a DNI or trode connection to one commlink at a time. You could have a second one that you interact with via voice or keyboard no problem.

I want the case where 99% of the people that can get hacked without the rule can still be hacked (though it's a little tougher) with the rule.

It's in times like these I wished they had an emoticon for "why..... why!!!! WHY!!!!"

OK, 2 thoughts.

1.) Since Toy's team hasn't really materialized to her she probably isn't going to want to dig in at the base and have all the trolls be able to just bombard that position. This is in character because probably in prior experiences whenever the Indonesian government knew where the guerillas were dug in they'd just artillery support them to kitty kibble.

Is it OK if Toy runs to a random building which is maybe a block away from the Y in order to take a position behind a window or on the roof? This would let her get the chance to shoot at OPFOR without being in the Y itself which would probably take a lot of suppressive fire or something.


2.) If we lost a lot of PCs I think that it would be kind of lame to have them all die first redshirt style because it eliminates the element of risk from the battle. Since we *are* all a bunch of kids maybe we can say that they just sit around with dampening pants and shaking hands a la Saving Private Ryan.

@ GM

Speaking of inactive players. How do we handle the pcs from the players that obviously jumped ship? Are they supposed to be NPCs, will you controll them alone, do the pcs jump ship along with the players, do we simply ignore them all.. forever?

I think we should simply handle them like other gang npcs, but if anyone has objections...
I just don´t like it, to have so many characters hanging around, that mostla have no apearance in IC.

Just to clariefy, I´m only speaking about those players who are definitly no longer participating (maybe we should pm those who didn´t post in weeks, without making any anouncment).

I think we could handle it on a case by case basis. Some become like contacts (Thyn, 2x4) and are still around, but may be fringe gang members, not gang NPCs (that way they can still be in the neighborhood, but they don't have a gang role until their players return), some could get 'put in jail' with a sentence that lasts conveniently as long as their absence (Criminal SIN only). Others could go off to school or disappear for 'training.'

Things that are easy to undo, but that don't require us to RP their characters for them as gangers since we don't know what they want without them being here.

EDIT: I REALLY don't think we should kill them off. If we want casualties it should be meted out between active players/PCs and NPCs. Just think about how you'd react. You might understand, but you'd probably not dig it. The direction I'd like to take puts the PCs in a holding pattern, no karma advancement, and - hopefully - no stepped on toes, should the players return.

That sound´s good to me, still I think we should talk to the players in question.

Another possibility is having them wounded and be in hospital/thair squat, until the players return. Raising the question of expanses of cause.

I too have to agree with Sparky here, killing them off "just because they're not around" is crappy. Besides they make good contacts and or puppetable NPC's. And it would really suck if one of the current posting group suddenly couldn't play and then managed to come back and we had killed them off. There are lots of other options

The only complicated bit is in situations like now, were a good chunk of our "groups" are inactive PC's/NPC's. Coordinating who is going to puppet who and how plus the other general logistics.

Current Commlink mode - hidden/passive
Commlink - Comm is open to C410 Encrypted messages currently Block others.
Subscribed list - Glasses, Earbuds, Microtransciever (obviously currently not closed)

About inactive PCs - I like the locked up or contact idea.... I don't really think anyone should be pulling their strings, unless TG specifically would like to use any certain inactive PC for his GM uses... otherwise, let's ignore them.

Edit - If Chinadoll is running the Main comm... should we subscribe our comm to hers, to basically have our own closed channel, and then have her comm be the only "open" comm? - this way most of our comms are not even Open, unless we want to use it ourselves.

I kinda took Agent X to be an eggdrop chanbot online script... Using a public network that we keep encrypted channel in....

As for idle PCs... I guess killing them off was a little too forward, sorry.
Though I do see Shade, Knives and Cammy being in the front lines when this goes down.. it's in their character descriptions, so I guess we'll leave it up to TG to decide what should be done with them. I know if 0day was active, he'd probably be doing something simular to Wyrm, try to crash them online, then go fight.

Actually, does anyone know which characters are active and which are innactive? I've got a few ideas for dealing with the innactive characters, I'll just have to apply them.

I'm currently working up the next post and going back over the OOC thread to answer the last page worth of questions or so.

@ GM & TinkerGnome
The wiki gives a good overview about which players are inactive. Those who are listed under inactive, either said they are themselves or have not been posting for several weeks (most since the Stuffer Fight).

@ DireRadiant & ChinaDoll
The C410 Tactical could also be a layered system. I.e. each of the 3 teams could have a Team Router (any powerfull, low subscription load comlink), to which all other Teammembers are subscribed. The Team Routers would in turn subscribe to ChinaDoll. This way, no cycling is necesarry. The obvious drawback is when e Team Router goes down, but then we can allways reconfigure (having multiple setups pre-programmed) or use the cycling methode.

For the current situation why don't we have each team's techie subscribe to CD and then each team subscribed to their techie? (which means my team would be on CD's commlink, Wyrm's team would be on hers, etc). If we run out of PC techies, we might be able to deal with that, at least as long as this sure-to-be-daisies-and-candycanes meeting goes.

Then as comms prop through the group (relaying automatically? through the techie's commlinks) if one group gets hacked the other teams still have comms.

cues the dramatic western music....
[Fade in Town]
Commoners: <Gasp!> *points fingers and shut doors and windows* <whisper whisper>
Tumbleweed rides the winds down the empty roads....
::low rumbling can be heard from off in the distance::
Dust clouds form as over a dozen trolls, stride their Steel Horses, down this dusty trail on this fateful day.
[Fade out to TG post]

Sparky, Wyrm doesn't have a comlink. She doesn't even have a commcode... Though she does emit a tight band wireless signal (much like a Wi-Fi modem) I don't think that the group could subscribe to her... though she can subscribe to anyone.

Yeah, definitely time for an IC post. I remembered that the Wiki had an inactive section but for some reason I remember thinking that it only had a couple of characters in it.

Anyway, on the open/closed networks, if any node in the network is open, the network is open. That means, for the most part, you can only run a closed network among people and devices within the signal range of the master device (and each slave for it to be part of the network, of course, as both have to reach).

Oh, and don't forget the limit on subscribed devices.

@ TinkerGnome

I don't know what mods you want to give me for the shot, so I'll wait for you telling me whats what before I roll.

So... should we all start rolling Initiative?

Since it seems like the shit is really hitting the fan, I'll try to mark up everyone's position on the HQ's map, and upload them somewhere else. So, if everyone could just say exactly where their PCs are, that would be great

Those that I already know:
-Aziz: on the roof, toward the front of the Y
-Felix & JJ: in view of the enterance, by the Med station
-The 2 Doberman drones: flanking the main enterance
-Halo and Tao-Fighter: in the gym
-BronzeWyrm and Nurse: in the lounge
-Thyn and JAX: in the loading docks
-The Vehicles: loading docks / gym
-Raven: The 'gallery' above the gym on the 2nd level
-Auran: Window above the main enterance

Those I either don't know or don't remember:
China Doll
Neo
Toy Robot
0day
2by4
Cammy
Electrode
Knives
Shade
Slam

I'd appreciate someone else being on the roof. Preferably another shootist. Or a healer.

Raven is inside the HQ, at some front window, peering out on the street with astral perception.

Her location should not be immediately accessible/visible from the entrance.

The 'gallery' above the gym on the 2nd level would be a good spot, I think.

Bye
Thanee

As the Trolls take thair time, we will probably have some time to re-position, where apropriate, so they get some heavy fire once the lead starts flying, which is obviously at some seconds past 13:30.
Some should still cover the other access points, but the majority should return fire, as long as they are all lined up nicely.

Hiting simultaneously on a com comando would have been nice, but Aziz action is IC and funny, I think , maybe next time (if there is one).

@ MJ

Auran was at a window above the main entrance, IIRC.

Alright, everyone roll initiative. I'll give Aziz a +3 to his intiative for the round it to represent his jumping the gun. I think this works better than having everyone roll surprise since the two sides are well aware of each other.

We also need a map marked up with everyone's positions and a page on the Wiki for the combat. I can handle both, but it'll probably be tomorrow morning before I get a chance. If someone else can get to it before that, that's also fine.

Raven's Initiative is 5 (6 + 0 hits + 0 hits (see below) -1 (wound modifier)).

And here's the Control Thoughts spell, she is casting (as mentioned two or so pages back and in the IC). Dunno, whether that would be right before combat begins, or just on her first action...

She tries to pick a target, which is not in sight to the troll magicians (one of the heavily cybered ones, if possible, but definitely prefering one that cannot be protected with Counterspelling), if there is no such target, she will pick the first heavily cybered troll from the right side (from our viewpoint) of their line-up.

Control Thoughts Force 3 2 hits
Drain 3S 5 hits (No Drain)

(Grrr. Couldn't those rolls be the other way around. )

Bye
Thanee

If necessary Auran can be on the roof... Thought it was dumb when it was a 4 story place, but now it's fine if Auran's there too. If i'm allowed to just kinda start there, that's cool, if not then that is fine as well.

Now, Auran's initiative

Where did we park the bikes, auditorium usually?

And what were the team assignments again?

Felix's initiative

TF´s Initiative Roll

JAX's initiative

I just see, that I did Initiative wrong... you roll the Initiative dice without wound modifiers and apply it to the result instead?

Well, then here's the extra die: still 0 hits

Bye
Thanee

The position of TF and Halo should be swaped, as he´s lefthanded (she´s Ambidextrous). That is, if we keep these positions, I got another impression from the IC (more like at the door from the gym to the loading doc, but I´ll leave this up to Vegas). Also, I wasn´t aware, there where two additional unblocked entrances at the gym...

Ther is TF´s Spirit beside him in astral space.

Oh, right... the spirit. Raven surely called the one she summoned earlier to her side, when the trolls were sighted.

Astral Initiative: 15 (12 + 3 hits)

Bye
Thanee

Maybe Aziz, should join Auran and Toy on the second floor hallway, shooting out the window over the front door.... this way we not only can snipe them, and have cover... but we can be mobile and help protect the base from invaders on the inside as well?

Yee Haw. Now we're cooking with gas.

Good Luck y'all!

Initiative:

Initiative

Way to go Aziz!

Wyrm's Matrix Initiative:

Oh, I didn't.

Well, I managed to get the stats finalized and initiative rolled for the gangers. I'd appreciate it if someone would volunteer to handle the combat of inactive characters (you don't have to post a lot about it IC, just get the facts in) since this isn't going to be pretty.

I might point out that I really didn't intend for you guys to start a firefight right now I will go ahead and say that retreat is always an option.

China Doll's Initiative

Just to clarify.

Doors to the HQ open vs. locked vs. blocked?

Front doors have locks but are usable. Same for the Loading dock steel door to the loading bay as well as the doors leading into the gym.

Gym doors on the NW and SW corners have been welded shut/chained/blocked/etc. to keep them unusable and whatever.

The back entrance on the SE "corner"? What's everyone's thoughts? Open/Perma-Shut?