STAR WARS: RETROSPECTION- Family

Oh my. This certainly seems to have taken a turn for the worse. I'm sure even on his best days Aurel can't handle dozens of enemies. The question is what to do now...perhaps if we can locate the source of the voice we might be able to sever the proverbial head of this mechanical snake. In the meantime, a tactical withdrawal seems sound.

This turn: Retreat to (behind), engage droid if it is still a threat, and hope Jung follows along.

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"I don't think we'll be able to continue this investigation on our own, Officer," Aurel says calmly as he eyes the encroaching makeshift army closing in on their position, "it might be best if we return to the speeder, quickly." With that, he pivots somewhat, prepared to clear the way back so they could escape.

You sense that going back will bring death.

"We're not getting out that way," Jung says. "There's too many of them!"

Agh, my fault. I got confused as to which direction the army was coming from. Forward it is, then!

Resuming my previous action: Move to (ahead), engage droid, and generally try to get myself and the cop clear. If they get initiative, Tap Orthodox Guard.

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Aurel takes a moment to reorient himself, nodding in acknowledgment of the officer's statement and replying, "Then deeper in we must go! On me, Jung!" Before surging forward to clear the path ahead.

Jung leaves his cover to keep pace with you. Using a pistol grants him the mobility to shoot and run, though at a penalty because he is shooting behind himself.

You bowl over the droid ahead with seven successes, your lightsaber cutting in cleanly in half at its midsection.

Plunging deeper into the factory brings you into darkness, though your lightsaber provides a dim lighting for your immediate area. You have no idea where to go, though. All you can sense are the scrambling droids behind you and the monolithic machines around you.

Oh! If it's possible, could I use Push/Pull to grab the glowstick I threw earlier? Since Jung's using only one pistol, he could probably carry it while I'm running around with my saber. If not, I'll just end up cracking open a new one, once we're sure we've put some distance between us and the droids.

A small object like that can be carried easily without penalty. Consider it nabbed as you run past it, the light slapping into your hand as you willed it.

Jung keeps firing backward to little effect. You have to keep pausing to intercept bolts that stray too close to you both.

Alright, well immediate priority is to get something between ourselves the tin soldiers, so let's see if we can't move around some of the machinery. That should give us at least a few moments to consider our predicament.

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"This is no good," Aurel says as he looks around as best he can with the light of the glowrod while having snap his saber up deflect the still incoming blaster fire. His eyes settling on the large machines dwelling in the old factory, he motions to Jung and says, "Let's slip between some of these old things to give us some cover."

Weaving your way through the machinery helps. Many lose sight of you amidst the gargantuan wreckage of old machines, while others do not have a clear shot. The danger is significantly less as you race ahead of them.

And if you have Coordination, it makes it even harder to hit you as you focus exclusively on defending yourself and your ward. It prevents you from making an attack (or anyone you're defending), but as you are not in melee range and Jung has lost his shots as well, it saves you some trouble too. A good thing to keep in mind.

As a matter of fact, I do have Coordination, so thanks for reminding me. Does it cost a Force point to use a basic power, or is only Master Powers?

It is free to use if you do not attack. There is a variant when you Master Coordination called 'Ward' in which you can attack while using it, too.

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You have put some decent distance between yourself and the droid mob when you sense movement up ahead once more.

Good to know. The mob maybe behind us, but I'm not feeling safe enough to say we're in the clear, so I'll be keeping on guard with my good friend the Doc-, er, I mean, the officer. Luckily, Swiftness will let me quick draw my lightsaber if need be, so we're going to try and do a bit of hiding.

Lightsaber off, Glowrod smothered to hopefully not give us away but still see, and move cautiously forward.

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"Something's ahead," Aurel said as the silver light of his saber fades from its deactivation, "Let's try and get by undetected". He pulls the glowrod somewhat into the sleeve of his robe to smother its light, lightsaber in his other hand as they move forward as quietly as possible.

It will be Intrusion to slip by whatever it is undetected. Unfortunately, that is not your strong point. The dark and machinery mess normally would cloak you well, except that a set of four photoreceptors glow vibrantly in the darkness ahead and something lets out an awful mechanized shriek.

"That's not good," Jung mumbles.

Ah well, it was worth the shot. Gonna hand off the glowrod to Jung and reignite the saber. Let's see what all the noise is about. If Schticks are necessary at this point: Orthodox Guard, Bodyguard, Charge.

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"No, it is not," Aurel replied as he withdrew the glowrod from his sleeve and held it back to the officer, "hold this." At the same time the familiar silver beam hissed back to life as the Jedi held it forwards in preparation for whatever was before them.

They will be! Between the glowrod and the lightsaber, you illuminate a spidery-looking droid with a multitude of arms and legs. Its head is in the center of its chest, where the dual sets of eyes blaze from, and extending from its torso are four arms. Each holds a pistol, and its four legs on its lower half (which is bent back, like a centaur) end in large clamps.

It plods toward you and starts shooting without warning! You manage to whirl into cover before it gets you, and drag Jung with you.

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This is going to be a confrontation with a Named Character. If you can't tell, I'm giving you test scenarios so you can experiment with your schticks, powers, and tactics.

That being said, your schticks are refreshed from your fight with the droid mob, and your Force points are replenished. In the actual game, the schtick refresh between fights is at Ush's mercy, and Force points rarely (if ever) replenish during a game.

It's much appreciated, especially since I'm now active in the main campaign. I'll know what works and what doesn't so I don't hopefully put myself in too stupid a situation to get out of. A funny enough bit of foresight, it'll also make this a great thread to offer up for potential newbies if they want to see how things work. 😊

A Named Character is a big deal, as it'll have unique schticks and a damage pool just like Aurel does, which may or may not be greater than his own, right? Something to keep in mind since Aurel is already slightly winded from the mob.

Still, hiding in cover likely won't ensure any kind of victory, especially since said mob was only evaded, not destroyed. Let's see if we can get past this fellow before we're surrounded! I'll let Jung remain in cover, which I'm sure he's more than comfortable doing with his blaster in hand. Meanwhile, I'll show this bucket of bolts just what it means to face a Jedi! The refreshed Schticks and replenished Force Points give me a chance to flesh out my understanding there as well, so let's go all out!

First, I'll swap Bodyguard for Cleave. It's only effective against mooks, I know, but I get the feeling if this ends up taking too long I'll regret not having it ready to tap. Speaking of which, I'll be double tapping this turn, on Orthodox Guard and Charge, and I'll be choosing option B on Charge's tap list to gain a +6 attack pool! That's not all! My last bit of fancy footwork with the Force may have been a flop, but I think this time will fair better, as I'll be using Evade to reduce the droid's own attack pool by half!

This is really a gambit, but if it works like I hope it will, it should put the Droid and I on a more even ground, or leave me with the advantage in damage!

Summary: Swap BG for Cleave, Tap OGu and CH (+6), Evade on Droid. No initiative adjustments.

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"Surprisingly creative for programming," Aurel grimaces once he and the officer are immediately clear of this newest abomination. He did not like their current position, but with the makeshift army still likely trudging their way towards them, he knew they did not have to luxury of being pinned down. Adjusting the grip on his lightsaber, he says to Jung, "If you can find a shot, take it. Otherwise leave this to me." Without waiting to hear confirmation, Aurel Sing rushes out of the cover, charging down the monstrosity. At the same time, he opened himself up to the Force, letting it flow through his body and guiding him clear of the Droid's primary paths of attack.

That all looks good! I will just point out that I am not certain that the Charge tap is legitimate, as it implies that you attacked a different target last turn. I will check with Ush on that matter; in the mean time, I'll permit it.

The Initiative roll shows up Evens as both dice show 6s. In these situations, it goes to the Player Characters the first time it happens. In this case, that's you! Next time it shows Evens, then it goes to the enemy. And if there are Jedi and Dark Jedi involved, it goes to the Jedi first.

So Aurel storms out of cover! We'll have him perform some sort of phenomenal spring from his hiding place and off of another piece of equipment as he avoids the blasts coming at him, for dramatic effect. He lands off to the side of the droid and brings his lightsaber crashing down into its lower body.

Aurel has a dice pool of 10, boosted to 16 by his Charge tap! The big ol' droid has a natural Defense of 1, which does not much mitigate things for Aurel.

You show a total of thirteen successes, which translates to 19 damage! We can say that you chop off one of the droid's spidery legs with a powerful downward swing.

It emits a pained screech and rounds on you, trying to blast you apart with its guns. It has a special ability that means it shoots twice, having two sets of arms. Both sets of heavy pistols rattle off shot after shot after shot.

Aurel is already springing away before it can land one of its bolts in him. Evade halves the Droid's pool of 8 to 4, leaving it with no chance of hitting through the Jedi's Defense and Parry.

Jung tries his luck in shooting the droid and finds it to be lightly armored. That counters the base damage of light pistol, meaning only his successes really count. He rolls three for 3 damage.

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AMBUSH IN THE FACTORIES, Start of Turn 7

Among machinery

Aurel (LS11): 1/6 [OGu CH CL] [BGu BG] (4F)

Jung (G10): 1(1PR)/3 [GS ES DW] [WS] (1F)

Spidery Droid (G8): 1(2A)/22 [BB ??]

Excellent! That certainly makes up for my embarrassing Dash trip up. 😄 I was operating under the assumption that, when facing singular opponents, Charge could be utilized for a tap only once. After being refreshed one could only receive its standard bonus. Of course, Ush will certainly be able to clarify the situation. For now, I'll not look a gift tauntaun in the mouth. 😛

I feel more comfortable with that gap in damage, but I'm certain that I can't breath easy until this thing is done for, so let's keep the momentum going! I'll swap out my tapped Orthodox Guard out for Balanced Guard, since I assume I can't have two Guards in even if one is tapped, and I really don't see myself trying to exit melee range anytime soon. This makes me a bit more vulnerable, since I'm switching out defense for armor, but armor is still better than nothing at all!

Now to mix it up a bit more with Force stuff, which has me with another question. Is it possible to use two Master powers from the same force ability in one turn, or is that limited? I ask because I'll be using Evade again to help keep me safe, but I would also be interested in trying out Strike should my rolls go south. I think that'll about do it for my actions for the turn as well.

Summary: Swap OGu for BGu, Evade on Droid. Strike after roll if necessary. No initiative adjustments.

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The Force flows through Jedi in many ways, benefiting them when needed most. For Aurel, this had always been in the heat of combat, where its inexorable flow led him to safety under fire, and victory in melee, as he demonstrated now. Aurel feels the Force guide him, scaling the old machine that protected him and the officer nimbly. He climbs swiftly for a moment, and then draws his legs up and surges into the air in a twirl, silver saber humming before him.

With the aid of the Force, his body twists and flips in gathering momentum until the laser sword slices cleanly through the droid's foremost leg. Aurel rolls aside and springs back, watching the spidery thing lurch at its sudden lack of balance, causing its violent retort to go wide. The Jedi deflects one bolt on the mark casually before assuming a new stance and eyeing the machine for another spot to strike, feeling the Force's ebb and flow within him.

Evens again! This time the paired 5s means the Droid goes first. It skitters away from you and up onto a piece of machinery. As it is disengaging from a close-quarters fight with you, this gives you a Reflex attack! You roll seven successes on this, for 13 damage. You don't get the leg you were after, though.

It fires down on you, again having trouble as you strafe and twist around the bolts with Evade. This proves to be another miss for the droid, as it rolls like crap for both attacks.

As for your main attack... the droid has now gone out of reach, using its magnetic clamps to scale the side of a factory piece.

Jung still tries to shoot at it. He deals out 2 damage.

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AMBUSH IN THE FACTORIES, Start of Turn 8

Among machinery

Aurel (LS11): 1(2A)/6 [BGu CH CL] [OGu BG] (3F)

Jung (G10): 1(1PR)/3 [GS ES DW] [WS] (1F)

Spidery Droid (G8): 1(2A)/37 [BB EE]

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Your Strike did not go in, btw. You didn't roll a single 1 on your Reflex attack.

Hmm, that's probably for the best. It's certainly helped out quite a bit, but I shouldn't get too accustomed to relying on heavy use of the Force. Still, now that it's gone and backed off, a Saber Throw just might have come in handy. haermm

So, I assume it wouldn't have disengaged just to leave itself close enough for me to resume my assault, would that be accurate? From the description of it, it sounds like it took to some high ground to keep me from reaching it. Good strategy, especially since my Charge schtick is tapped out, meaning I can't just jump at him and take swings now. I'll have to swap that out and hope a refresh comes soon if that's the case.

I suppose in the mean time I'll move back to Jung's position and consider my options. I can even still take advantage of the Force from here, and use Coordination to keep the droid flummoxed since I won't be in attack range anyhow. Best of all, this use of the Force doesn't cost me a point! 😄

Summary: Swap CH for BG, move back to cover with Jung, Coordination. No initiative adjustments.

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Aurel sees an opportunity as he sees the strange droid retreat, thrusting his lightsabre towards a leg and narrowly missing as it pulls it back just in time. He watches as the droid clambers away, seeing it take a position somewhat difficult for him to reach.

"Clever," he mutters, the Force warning him to strafe aside a volley of blaster bolts. He withdraws as well, slipping into cover beside the officer and looking around the makeshift arena for a better place to resume his attack.

4-5, the Droid fires before you hop into cover. On the first, it rolls exclusively 5s, meaning Aurel dances clear of those shots. The second, however, gets two 6s, for a total of 6 damage.

The Droid has Eagle Eye, so the Armor from Balanced Guard is ignored. And cover would not have done you any favors anyway.

It also climbs higher before locking in its clamps and staying put.

Observation roll says... you notice some large segments of machinery above the Droid.

Jung shoots at a penalty up into the darkness. He misses.

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AMBUSH IN THE FACTORIES, Start of Turn 9

Among machinery

Aurel (LS11): 1(2A)/12 [BGu CH CL] [OGu BG] (3F)

Jung (G10): 1(1PR)/3 [GS ES DW] [WS] (1F)

Spidery Droid (G8): 1(2A)/37 [BB EE] (on machinery)

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