RB 4-6: Defeating the Prime

Mission Report

Friday, Jan 5, 2024 ((Nov 3, 2019))
Party: Lyndi Fletcher (Aunne), Jane Irwin (Cael), Cyrus Riggs (Sielic), Ryu (absent/incapacitated), Cadeos (DragoN), Haelra Vayn (Basil)
Absent: Proud Flame (Aunne) (on a separate mission for Nails)

The Raptors fought the insectoid cloaker Prime and its reinforcements, as the fire and structural damage continued to weaken the building. The Prime quickened a transformation of Jerry Artino into an insectoid brute, but Jane reversed the transformation. The VIPs aided when they could. The heroes triumphed. As Exannarq's magic started to return the whole party to the past, the Raptors tried to bring various beings and materiel with them. They arrived 6 days after they left, prompting some confusion and suspicion from Farwatch. Captain Lashell Kinton arrived and confirmed their identities. The VIPs thanked the team for keeping them alive. The Raptors returned to the Fort, where they learned that something was wrong with Nails.

Confronting the Prime

• > Cyrus polymorphs into a giant ape and smashes open the manager's office
• > An insectoid cloaker prime is talking with a humanoid projected in (semi-transparent)
• > The humanoid seems to be a combination of dragonborn and illithid
• The prime casts Time Stop then Misty Step, and paralyzes Ryu with a touch attack
• DM: > Draco is disoriented for a moment, because they didn't go on the path quest with Jane, but then Jane came back
• DM: > The Cloaker Prime was injured by flying debris, and now the partial impact of the Mind Spike
• > The Prime quickens a change in Jerry Artino, who turns into an Insectoid Brute
• Cadeos shadow steps behind the Prime
• DM: > Phobos drags the brute into the thick of the zombies
• DM: > Cloaker Prime has Globe of Invulnerability up (spells 5 or lower won't affect it)
• > Cloaker 3 smashes in through a window and attacks Cadeos
• Max and Draco quickly classify the spectral spectator as a draconic illithid, or drathid
• The drathid was talking with the Insectoid Cloaker Prime in Deep Speech, which Draco has recorded from Cyrus' perceptions
• Draco needs access to Aegis Database to translate the recording
• > Insectoid soldiers burrow up through the floor, followed by more insectoid drones
• > Draco (Chain): Based on previous specimens, expect amber drones to inject acid and emerald drones to inject poison. Both can also shoot webbing.
• Draco: > Prime shifts position, tries to cast Cone of Cold, Cy counterspells
• DM: > Jane uses portent 20 to cast Greater Restoration
• DM: > Jane reverses the transformation of Jerry, saving him
• DM: > Jerry survives, hurt, mostly naked
• DM: > The fire in the kitchen/nursery continues to spread. Black greasy smoke is drifting into the hallway, and the VIPs are coughing
• DM: > Between the ape, the brute, the drones, and the fire, the whole south end of this building is in danger of collapse.
• DM: > Prime tries to cast Lightning Bolt but Cy counterspells it
• Multiple times during the fight, the Prime detonates nodes in the hive weave in a lightning area of effect attack
• Draco: > Gen Lincoln and Maj Hunter are significantly injured. Both are compromised, with approximately 33% health remaining
• Draco: > I estimate the non-prime cloaker can withstand 20-30 more damage
• Cyrus kills that cloaker
• DM: > Prime tries to cast Cone of Cold, but Cy Counters
• Jane Irwin: Jane is heavily wounded, bleeding and snarling furiously.
• Cyrus gets the killing blow on the Prime

• The Raptors feel Exannarq's magic returning them to 2018
• DM: > Lyndi grabs Ryu
• DM: > Haelra reluctantly grabs cloaker corpse
• DM: > Cadeos grabs cloaker prime corpse
• DM: > Jane runs to grab Jerry
• DM: > Cy grabs the remains of the cyber armor
• Jane Irwin: JAne looks /terrible/- electrical burns and bleeding from her nose, deathly pale, jaw gritted and eyes angry, staff still out.
• Cyrus Riggs: Cyrus looks relatively unharmed, despite being all up in the Prime's face and having everyone worried about healing and preventing his death.
• The Raptors use their Unbound belief to try bringing pieces of the future back with them
• DM: > Cy has the damaged armor
• DM: > H has the non-cloaker corpse
• DM: > Jane fails to bring Jerry
• DM: > Cadeos doesn't arrive with the cloaker prime
• DM: > Jane trades in Bahamut's favor to bring Jerry with her

Back to 2018

• Same hallway, hive creep gone, no signs of battle
• Alarm starts sounding

• Farwatch forces respond to alarm
• Farwatch troopers pour in, armed
• Troopers detect insectoid biomatter
• Troopers order Raptors to freeze and disarm
• Cyrus Riggs: Chain: Ethereal Sheaths, stow weaponry.
• Jane Irwin: JAne stows her staff.
• Cyrus Riggs: Cyrus notes General's serial number.
• Jane Irwin: Jane steps in front of Jerry.
• Farwatch is suspicious of the Raptors' and VIPs' identities
• Stand off while waiting for an officer to arrive
• Rewards (from Emyla) appear: 6 blocks of shiny steel, then 1 disappears

• Captain Kinton arrives, with an escort
• Kinton confirms identities
• Kinton: "You disappeared near the start of the start of the meeting, at 9:49 am, Friday, January 5. It's currently 11:18 pm, Thursday, January 11."
• Cyrus Riggs: Cyrus produces a healing spirit, that follows the team to mend and heal their wounds.
• Raptors check on the VIPs
• DM: > Big thanks and respect from VIPs to Raptor Blue (Lincoln and Hunter of Cryos, Giordana of Farwatch, Kennet of Talarin)
• DM: > RB flies in Bron from Club to Fort, taking their specimens with them
• The steel cubes float-follow their respective owners, but otherwise are completely immobile
• The cubes are celestial steel. Each can be fashioned into an extraordinary item, or used to enhance an existing item. For example: some angels' swords are made of celestial steel.

• Draco translates the conversation in flight
• Drathid Projection: They've killed your lieutenants and set fire to your hatchery. They'll be here soon. Finish your report.
• Insectoid Cloaker Prime: You are too casual in your regard for our offspring. Our hive is bleeding in order for your strategy to succeed.
• Drathid: Our hive did not trick or coerce this alliance. Your hive has been given rich breeding grounds and minimal interference, thanks to our strategy.
• Prime: Very well. Here is our report. We are 13% ahead of schedule. If our pace continues, we can move up the timetable by 3 months. The soft skins of this city continue to harass our patrols and injure our harvesting swarms. But they seem unaware of our true work.
• Drathid: I will continue to ensure that the Terran leaders beyond the perimeter continue to distrust the soft skins within. When the soft skins report what they have encountered here, it will only infect the minds of their leaders with greater fear of your strength. Our followers will exploit that fear when they bargain for the next stage of the arrangement.
• Prime: We do not understand how these Terrans penetrated our hive so easily, and we don't believe you know either. We detect no traces of teleportation magic, nor was a portal opened. We extrapolate that divine power brought them from a great distance.
• Drathid: We agree there is something unusual about their arrival. But like the other scouting parties, you will let at least one survive to… They have arrived.

• When the Raptors return to the Fort, they're met by the on-duty controller (Max's substitute), Krisella Tolbert (human female). She says, "It's good that you're back. Something is wrong with Nails."