After mine installed a patch a little while ago, it seems to be stuck in slow motion.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

Ray Cusick, who created the look of the Daleks for Doctor Who, http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/02/24 ... sses_away/]passed away in his sleep over the weekend.  He was 84.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

And comments.
I've spent the last few weeks working on this as well as a bit of a story telling how my character aquires it, and note when he gets it, its completely DEMILLED. No weaponry onboard what-so-ever. so here she is, the FCS Werewolf.

Quote:Ship build: cargo ship/Escort carrier

Name: Fen Convention Ship (FCS) Werewolf

[table]

Chieko Honda played Kozue in Utena, Kurumi in Kimagure Orange Road, Nami in Silent Mobius, Amy in Gall Force, Chelsea in Riding Bean, Azusa in Ask Dr. Rin!, Tellu in Sailor Moon S, and over a hundred other roles.

She passed away on February 18.

She was one of the better seiyuu, in my opinion...
--
Rob Kelk
"Governments have no right to question the loyalty of those who oppose
them. Adversaries remain citizens of the same state, common subjects of
the same sovereign, servants of the same law."

- Michael Ignatieff, addressing Stanford University in 2012

Because in celebration of reaching issue #200, Antarctic Press put it online.  All of it.  As pdfs.  Take a look.
-----
Stand between the Silver Crystal and the Golden Sea.
"Youngsters these days just have no appreciation for the magnificence of the legendary cucumber."  --Krityan Elder, Tales of Vesperia.

Very nice, I look forward to the end result.

I stumbled over this entirely by accident today...  That live-action Yamato movie that came out a couple years ago?  Miyuu Sawaii, the live-action Sailor Moon, had a role in it -- someone named Higashida.
That's it, you can move on now.  It's just that I love finding little connections like that among things I like.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.

(Or: Why my players hate me some times)
Long story, but, it may be an interesting read for some of you.
Okay, so this idea came to me from our GURPS Teen Supers game.  As I was putting ideas together for my next story for the game, I was reading one of my standard sources of inspiration:  GURPS Classic: Creatures of the Night.  And, within this wondrous tome I found excellent inspiration:  The Fabricant (pg 41-42).  It wasn’t long (seriously, about 30 minutes) before I had the plot figured out, and began looking to stat the creature out.
Well, the first thing I looked at were TL10 Combat Androids in UltraTech.  After statting one up, I laughed and declared: “that would red-mist the teens; it would be a challenge for the ISTers.  Or a normal ambush foe in MegaDenver.”  (Cue lightbulb warming up).  I copied the stat block to another page, and went about statting the Fabricant as a TL10 general purpose Android.
After completing the Fabricant (Doctor Johann Fox) and his trusty fabricant pet, I went back to the TL10 Combat Android version and started tweaking it.  While doing this, my brain continued to percolate: Fabricants are “created” when someone becomes unstuck in time.  Well, if the Teens aren’t successful at destroying (or curing) Dr. Fox, then, he probably has a way to “travel” in time.  And, if it’s broken, he might be able to travel through dimensions and wind up in the I.S.T. game.  And, even if they do stop him, I like this guy enough to be a different Dr. Fox.
So, Dr. Fox got his TL10 Combat Android upgrade, and some more upgrades to make him boss-level tough.  His, original, Combat Android stats got cloned into his Fabricant-slave army.  And, being a full TL higher than the IST world (1.5, technically), he’ll be trying to build his own ship to leave.  The only way he can do this, successfully, is to convert more creatures to Fabricants and scavenge their bodies for technology.  The way Fabricants make more fabricants is to make them ingest their flesh.  For details, you’ll have to read Creatures of the Night.
Thus, he will come into conflict with the UN.  I’m figuring he’ll start out by capturing primitive tribes in Africa and South America, turn them into Fabricants, keeping the best for soldiers and sacrificing the rest for spare parts.  After several battles (unless the party is incredibly successful) he’ll get his ship built, and leave the Earth.  Leaving the horrible, living creatures behind.
At this point, I had started reading GURPS Aliens for more ideas for the I.S.T. L2 game, and came across the Kaa: an evil, slaving, cannibalistic, serpentine race that’s pretty much a stock GURPS race.  And, at this point, the lightbulb flared on, full force.
After a time, Dr. Fox will encounter the Kaa.  Upon learning of the Kaa’s predilection for eating sapiens (of any sort; it’s kind of a religious/power-rush thing), he will hatch the following plan:
He will offer his allegiance to the Kaa Duke whose realm he has come across.  And, as a show of his devotion, he will “execute” ten of his best soldiers and twenty of his strongest workers, and have them prepared as a meal for his new Kaa masters.  (This is not, in any way, dangerous for his followers: a shot through the “heart” with a TL10 laser pistol won’t even penetrate their armored hide, but will make for a good show).
While they are helpless, becoming Kaa-Fabricants, he will have them reprogrammed to obey him.  He will repeat this until he has the entire Duchy under his control. 
The Kaa-Fabricants will have an across-the-board TL upgrade, and he will use this (sacrificing all the workers he needs to) to build a fleet of TL10 ships to come back and attack the Earth.  Anyone can rule aliens . . . he wants to replace the Human Race with Fabricants.  And metahuman Fabricants at that!
TL;DR version:  Evil, life-hating robot, infects alien race and plans to do the same to humanity!  Send in the Heroes!

Both to flesh them out, and because I might have a model for it.

Still needs a few things, like a manufacturer(s), and some better quirks. I suck at quirks.

----------

AV-1 Jigabachi

First appearing in service with the AMP, the AV-1 Jigabachi was the result of an open design competition, chosen over the piloted A-56/W 'Airwolf', and GR03 Hokum series.

The Jigabachi is designed to fly as an unmanned craft, guided by its own artificial intelligence, or by remote control from the ground. Each Jigabachi is fitted with full suite of sensors, including a high-energy radar system capable of penetrating the skin of the city itself. A high-powered dual-turboshaft engine and a NOTAR tail allows the Jigabachi to maneuver safely within the relatively tight confines of the Crystal Cities.

Their signature features are a large bulging radome forming the chopper's 'head', and a modular, retractable tail cabable of packing a heavy sting. Underwing hardpoints can carry additional fuel, countermeasures, swarms, or heavier ordnances as needed. For obvious reasons, these are rarely used, except on interception duties away from cities

The standard A and B variants differ only in sensor suites. Neither are capable of independant spaceflight be default.

The C version employed by the STU forgoes the standard turbo-rotor in favour of an all-electric powertrain. Further details of its power source are classified. The Jigabachi C is near silent in operation, and tough to detect by conventional means with a minimal radar signature, almost no thermal signature and a highly advanced LPI sensor suite. The first warning of a Jigabachi C being present is usually the first bullet being fired.

The D variant is a spaceflight-rated version, originally specific to Nehallenia and Shin-Azubajuban.

A dedicated Firefighting F-variant replaces the main gun with a high-flow nozzle and tanks of fire-retardants. Painted in bright red, it forgoes all attemps at stealth. F-models also incorporate an auto-winch and rescue harness.

A piloted G-Variant is being developed for the AD-Police of Genaros.

------
Attributes:

Hornet Swarm: Operate in meshed swarms of 3-5, overwhelming a target's defences. One observes, while the others attack, with roles switching and changing between units. If you can only see 1 Jigabachi, chances are the other two are sneaking up on you.

A bug on the screen: All variants except F have somelevel of Stealth capability

Hornet Queen: A single Jigabachi can also act as a focal node for a swarm of smaller surveillance drones, launched from missile tubes.

Quirks:

Natural enemies: Tachikoma and Jigabachi do not 'get along'.

Buzzin' Hornets: Makes a distinctive and noticeable buzzing noise as it flies, rising in pitch and intensity as it swoops in for the attack , dropping it's tail to make its sting.

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________________________________
--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?

The caper packed up nicely : girls, stage effects; egg-chairs all vanished neatly within the stage as it reconfigured back into its cargo pod form. Wandblume unhurriedly toggled the power-skid’s G-canceler ; aligned her payload  towards the entrance. She waved a jaunty farewell at the two wincing, standing women watched the proceedings with warring expressions : one vexed, the other somewhere in between taken aback and taken with.
Vexed, it was probably Mikuru but Wandblume hadn’t done enough homework to be sure, ejaculated incredulously : “You’re just going to waltz off the station?”
Wandblume grinned the grin of avian-suffused cats : “With the two of you conducting the orchestra!” Wandblume’s sinister hand hovered over the gimmick that had ‘sealed’ the chamber. “Unless you don’t want the time to come up with a better scenario than the one that just occurred! Wakatta?” (‘Understand’ but in the wrong--past--tense :  Shego’s using her flawed Japanese lessons from watching the Über-cool Kill Bill Vol. 1)
Mildly miffed Yayoi mumbled, “???.” (Wakaru.)
Wandblume wasn’t actually certain what that meant, but given maybe-Mikuru’s look of grudging submission it was probably some form of unhappy Japanese acquiescence.
“Sayonara!” Shego actuated--turning things on is so Twentieth Century!--her toy ; made her egress between the  cinematically sedate cargo doors.  
“Yayoi, we’re really letting her go?”
“We’re not letting her go, Mikuru : our reputes are.”
“??”(Nanda) Tanned, out of her shell ; dealing with the self-discovery of a not all together wholesome fetish, the lass named Mikuru was a mess.
Yayoi quirked an enigmatic look at her partner as the Brobdingnagian portal hissed melodramatically closed. The glacially crystalline aspect of her grey matter, her inner Moriarty,  succinctly  & dispassionately considered the viability of her partnership with one that could be so easily plumbed.  
“Don’t worry, Mikuru we’ll see [your Mistress] her again. I promise you! I don’t like loose ends!” She instantly regretted that particular turn of phrase as it reminded her of own, decidedly not loose, end.  
*****
The only real risk to Wandblume’s egress  through the L5 superstructure arose from her own near inability to keep her sense of triumph from seething and spurting through a barely maintained frosty facade. She received some strange looks from passersby whom, after the fact, remembered an attractive, oddly gay greenish girl with enough luggage for a platoon of colonial marines.  A blue border collie  gave her a happy bark and tail wag as it proceeded past her on its quadruped route towards some bit of doggy L5 business. Wandblume came very close to blurting out , ‘What’s that, girl : Timmy’s down the gravity well?’She barely got by the blandly boring L5 egress security check. The pressurized hiss marking Envy’s atmospheric independence from the larger station cued Wandblume’s victorious touchdown dance.
She released the girls from the pod ; favored Stygia with an arch  grin.
“Love at first smite, girl!”
Stygia, for all of her gothic lassitude,  blushed a fetching, if somewhat languorous, full bodied carmine.