new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

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slade2501
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new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by slade2501 »

new player was making a 1d6+1 level character to join an established group. He picked out a Psi-tech (I said cool, ok) and wanted a suit of Kitanni Serpent armor to go in his truck (a large but cheap electric cargo truck, aka a traveling workshop/tool bin). I said "Ok, but how does your character get one?" This was his answer.

"Somehow, Kurak the Kitanni warrior had gotten seperated from his raiding party. It had been three days since he had any contact by radio. Five days since the last village raid. It had been a pitiful affair, with an appaling lack of loot or worthwhile slaves. There had been some small joy in slaughtering the weak humans and humanoids, burning their homes to the ground. Kurak enjoyed well cooked human.
Suddenly, Kurak felt his armor stop. Try as he might, the limbs were frozen, the controls non responsive. Kurak reached within himself for his innate psychic power, mentally reaching out to bond with his suit to search for an answer to this malfunction. To his surprise he found his power blocked. Someone else was already there, a psychic presence inhabiting his serpent suit with a power and strength that was incredible. Despite his best efforts and his cries of outrage, Kurak was held fast like a fly in amber. Then, he noticed it. The almost subconscious sound of his life support system turning off. Kurak struggled harder as his breath ran short and his vision dimmed. Dizziness and a great exhaustion settled on him as all thought fled and darkness filled his mind.

Kurak awoke tied to a boulder with thick metal cable, free of his armor and very surprised to be alive. Thick trees surrounded, close and towering. A young human was squating next to his serpent armor, lost in silent concentration. Kurak snarled "Human, release me and I will give you a quick death! I am Kurak, warrior of the Kitanni!" The human turned, his eyes thin slits of anger.
"Kurak. So thats your name. I didn't bother to ask any of the others what their names were. They all died screaming, or trying to. The one with the enhanced lungs took nearly half an hour to die." Kurak gaped, momentarilly at a loss for words. This human, a young male, killed his raiding party?!? Impossible! But then the human reached into a bloody sack and pulled out three heads. Kurak was bathed in anger as he recognized their faces. The human smiled darkly at Kurak's expression. "Oh yes, Kurak of the Kitanni. I killed them all. I freed the few slaves they captured, armed them with your companions gear, fed them on your companions food and freely gave away your companions ill gotten loot." With every word, Kurak's anger and shame grew greater. Capture, death and dishonor at the hands of this paltry human man!
"And now Kurak, I am going to take your fine suit of armor and leave you bound here to die of starvation, food for the animals or whatever might wish to devour you." Kurak snarled wordlessly as the human tapped the serpent suit's armor with a finger causing it to open as if eagerly welcoming its master. The human climbed inside, and the suit closed over him. Kurak watched in opened mouth surprise as the suit moves smoothly as if the human had piloted one all his life. Quickly and near silently it slithered off into the deep woods, suddenly gone as if it were never there.

Kurak screamed to the empty woods. Only the sound of twittering birds and buzzing insects answered him. "

After he wrote me this, I said "yeah sure thing."
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by zerombr »

see, for me this'd be reason not to allow it. but I play down a lot...
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by kaid »

Honestly allowing it is not a big deal. Kittani armor is going to be considered alien armor so keeping it repaired is difficult and expensive. Keeping its non energy weapon systems with ammunition is also going to be difficult and expensive. Plus you are using armor that is KOS to most people as very few have favorable reactions to splugorth minions so it makes it very challenging to posses it. If they want that roleplaying wise have fun but make sure that the fact they are wearing splugorth armor DOES impact peoples reactions to you.
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by Zer0 Kay »

Not only that but the player left you an opening, possibly intentionally, by leaving Kurak alive he also can have the sploogs hunting him.
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by Hotrod »

This isn't just a justification; it defines character and sets up a potential vendetta plot device. Heck yeah, I'd allow it! I like the feel of that passage; it reminds me of some Clint Eastwood westerns of yore.
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by Warshield73 »

Hotrod wrote:This isn't just a justification; it defines character and sets up a potential vendetta plot device. Heck yeah, I'd allow it! I like the feel of that passage; it reminds me of some Clint Eastwood westerns of yore.

I was thinking the same thing. When I started my first Rifts group back in '89 or '90 there weren't a lot of robot vehicles but I still wasn't going to allow players to have CS gear unless they were a CS OCC. A player gave me a great story about how his character got an Enforcer so I let him have it and milked the story for years. If a player gives you something to use in the story take it.
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by Father Goose »

Warshield73 wrote:If a player gives you something to use in the story take it.

Exactly. The best stories are born of players connecting with their characters. They have the greatest impact and generate the most investment from the players.
So if a player makes a connection and invests from the get go, run with it. It will be so much more meaningful than anything you can come up with alone.
taalismn wrote:Hey, you came up with a novel, attention-getting idea, you did the legwork, you worked it through, you made it fit the setting, even though initial thought might be 'nah, it can't work, it's too silly/stupid/lame', and you posted something that only required a little adjustment, yet can be added to, without diluting its original concept. How can we not give you due support and credit?
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Re: new character/player asked for serpent power armor.....

Unread post by Zer0 Kay »

Warshield73 wrote:
Hotrod wrote:This isn't just a justification; it defines character and sets up a potential vendetta plot device. Heck yeah, I'd allow it! I like the feel of that passage; it reminds me of some Clint Eastwood westerns of yore.

I was thinking the same thing. When I started my first Rifts group back in '89 or '90 there weren't a lot of robot vehicles but I still wasn't going to allow players to have CS gear unless they were a CS OCC. A player gave me a great story about how his character got an Enforcer so I let him have it and milked the story for years. If a player gives you something to use in the story take it.


'90... unless you started a year before publication.:)
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Holy crapy, you're Zer0 Kay?! --TriaxTech
Zer0 Kay is my hero. --Atramentus
The Zer0 of Kay, who started this fray,
Kept us laughing until the end. -The Fifth Business (In loving Memory of the teleport thread)
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