RB 4-15: Confronting the Gray Hive Queen

Mission Report

Sat, Jan 13, 2018 ((Jan 12, 2020))
Party: Jane Irwin (Cael), Cyrus Riggs (Sielic), Proud Flame (Aunne), Haelra Vayn (Basil), Shiro (DragoN), Sylvi (Daewendriel), Lyndi Fletcher (Aslene; player joined later)

The heroes confront the gray hive queen in the cargo bay. The queen shares intel on the adintech conspiracy, identifying 5 groups she calls the Malign Quintet. She doesn't reveal the identity of the Puppetmaster, but offers to trade this intel for one of the team. The team refuses. A battle starts. Cyrus and Sylvi are knocked unconscious more than once. Shiro gets the killing blow on the queen. The heroes do a final sweep of the ship and set the fusion reactor to self destruct. They return to Themis Station.

Confronting the Queen

• DM: > H succeeds in a way to protect Bron from the Helm of Liquid Imagination
• Dropship is the Subtle Word, captain Lyrei Reyran (she/her/hers), cargomaster Adresin Vara (she/her/hers)
• Lyrei reports that the ship has opened an escape pod hatch and is preparing to launch a pod
  • Vae'gaun leaves to intercept the pod
• Lyndi seems distracted early in the mission

• Team enters the cargo bay
• Enemies
  • Gray Hive Queen
  • Hunter Killer
  • Leapers & Clowns
• "We wish to parlay."
• "We have transcended fear."
• Give you gift: creep pod opens, offers datapad
• Datapad has stanzas 13 and 14 of the Bloodstone Prophecy
• "Generations have passed since a Herald has been chosen."
• "You are the hunters. In your enemies, you kindle much fear."

• Queen uses wisp swarms to create hologram-like images
• "Those that survive this shadow war, this war on the Edge, will call the forces the Malign Quintet"
  • Devils: want to harvest the souls of selfish arcanists and other great mortals who fall; they fear the machinations of their hierarchy; ants vying for the top of the hill, or in this case, the bottom of the well
  • Demons: want to spread Strain and random Changes, create chaos, weaken your beloved Breakwater; fear that mortals will build unity and common purpose
  • Reavers: want to weaken or bypass the Breakwater, for Earth's population and the weapons hidden in the Closeness; fear that humanoids will cease their conflicts and focus on containing them, or worse, ally with the Planters
  • The Warlords: Nicol Bolas and his cults, the League of the Rusted Crown, even elements of your Rational Ascendancy; fear what all mortals fear, powerlessness, suffering, irrelevance, and death
  • The Puppetmaster, whom your Dr. Nails calls the Puppeteer; you don't know what they want; fears that something broken can't be rebuilt

• Offer: "We will reveal the identity of the Puppetmaster and why they created the Adinzar"
• In exchange: "one of your Unbound"
• Proud talks and rants at the Queen

• Battle starts
• Wisp Swarms killed
• Leapers killed
• Hunter Killers killed
• ((Aslene joins early on))
• Cyrus and Sylvi go down more than once
• Draco: I'm continuing to analyze the hive queen. She is invulnerable to cold, and resistant to slashing, bludgeoning, and piercing. However, my multispectral analysis of her form suggests a vulnerability to some kind of damage.
• Jane Irwin: Jane, in the Chain: She feels like plants or something!!
• Max: She talked a lot about fear. What do plants fear?
• Heroes discover that the queen is vulnerable to fire
• Shiro gets the killing blow

After the Battle

• DM: > Proud & Shiro search ship
• DM: > Jane drags Sylvi away from the pool
• Proud Flame absolutely does /not/ leave until Sylvi is woken up - and she gets a rather fierce hug /immediately/ after her eyes open... and /then/ he gets to work.
• DM: > Cyrus & Draco analyze the queen's corpse
• DM: > H talks to the ghosts of the crew
• DM: > Shiro finds Edwin (nova intelligentsia)
• DM: > The crew worshipped Face of the Bountiful Lady
• DM: > H takes the religious tokens of the crew, to deliver to their relatives via a contact on Themis Station
• Jane Irwin: Jane helps Sylvi stand. "You good?"
• Sylvi looks at Jane and says, "Yeah, much better. Thanks. I owe you one...or three/
• DM: > Lyndi sterilizes the suits of the team as they leave the ship
• Jane Irwin: Jane looks away, a bit pink in the cheeks. "I mean, yknow, my job and shit. Anyways, uh, yeah."
• DM: > Also sterlizes Edwin
• Sylvi smiles, though there's a bit of blood in the corner of her mouth. "Mission accomplished, yeah?"
• Lyndi 4.0: Lyndi flashes a slight smile at Sylvi over Jane's shoulder, and then continues sterilizing Shiro's containment suit.
• DM: > Cy and Draco take a portion of inert assemblers
• Lyndi 4.0: On the ship back, Lyndi sits quietly next to Riggs, looking totally drained but determined. She quietly cleans her gunblade, listening to the conversation.
• Cyrus Riggs 2.0 [Common]: Cyrus sits down and is immediately asleep. Upright, no snoring, just sleeping.
• On the flight back, Draco talks about the evidence of adintech experiments in the Nigerian lab, and how burning a soul in a bloodstone would break the cycle of their reincarnation forever, removing a soldier from the forces of Lord Bahamut.

• Asked to stay in the drydock with the Tardigrade and Bron for now
• But they can virtually explore the station
• Everyone gets a long rest and a day of downtime