X-COM: Aliens

[Mirgalen]

* Playing Devil's Advocate *

Not sure about the others but I had to create a copy of my game on an external HD before adding D20. I keep the disk in a safe place until the next game. Next time, I will try to screen cap or write down my skills and repeat at every level up.

From memory FAST has 14 Int

Clone Enhancements Domain: Craft (electronic), Knowledge (earth and life sciences)

If using Craft (electronic) it would end like: 0 + 2 (INT) = 2

[Lazybones]

Right, I did not mean to come across as unduly harsh. This is a game, after all, not your organic chemistry final. I'm not going to verify skills and then penalize players who wrongly remember a character skill. I'll edit my original post.

My main point was that Vanya Mia isn't a lookup service.

[Gulfwulf]

//After thinking about it, I figured you didn't want a trend to start, LB.

[Lazybones]

Mostly I just want as many rolls as possible because of the cool stuff I have planned for when someone rolls a 1.

And natural 20s, of course, of course.

[Shadani]

The Pale One was pleased. For once, their mission had gone flawlessly, in spite of the masters' previous dissapointment. They had been swift and effective - a sign, it hoped, of their growth.

Moreover, it was intruiged by their captive. Unlike some of its siblings, the Pale One realized early on that subjugation of the humans was preferable to extermination. But it had not anticipated a willing convert - if, indeed, that was what this human was. It very much wanted to speak to it and delve into its mind, but it doubted that the masters would permit it to follow its curiosity as far it wanted to.

For now, it would have to satisfy itself by studying the inefficient and inelegant forms of human communication. It had begun to suspect that the masters' knowledge on this and other sujects already far outpaced their own - how could it not, after all? - and that this research they were asked to do was as much a test or experiment as anything else. But it laboured with great focus and intensity, all the same.

(Earth and Life Sciences: 9)

[Vanya Mia]

"Perhaps we give things to human to look at then say what are?" Nimble insists mildly grumpily, having been refused access to the human with any form of prod or probe. It prodded with irritation at the operating controls of a recording device to send sound output to the prototype of the translation implant, while "listening" to the implant's output and adjusting the levels of the latter. Speeding the voice output up, slowing it down, introducing levels of background noise, and changing it's pitch. All attempting to make one's output make sense to the others input in a variety of circumstances from the voice recordings they had. "We learn faster if we point at things and ask then record sound the humanz make. Help us learn faster."

"Like paper thing there." It pointed at an issue of a skin magazine that had been obtained at some point. "It can help know why some human make higher pitched noise when see us, and why have bumps in some places, and why have shoes with sticks on." The floater pointed at a woman in stiletto heels, and very little else. "Maybe they have something wrong with legs and need them to walk, because they couldn't run fast and their hips move funny when walking."

Nimble listened intently to the latest sound output, a recording of Du Hast Mich by Rammstein, and adjusted it's output watching the signals from the implant go wild. "Also tell us why sometimes they hit things and vibrate things and shout at the same time." It sighed at the lost opportunity. "When we get this work, maybe we find out."

((

If using Craft (electronic) it would end like: 0 + 2 (INT) = 2

LB's decision but if your character doesn't have the craft skill trained then I wouldn't think this is valid, regardless of how many related ability points you have, cos - you know - they haven't trained in it. Knowledge skills or computer use, really, I don't think require training. Can't remember on Repair.

Hence we get inventive, like my lame attempt above, to allow the use of skills we do have in processes where they wouldn't normally apply.

No training in either so attempting to use Computer Use (3) to assist in the adaptation of the translator output to oral input, and crossing fingers I don't get one of those 1s! *remembers Catarina's fall from the cable trays when attempting the same previously* ))

[smartalec]

The Scowling One was oddly subdued when it returned to the group. Whatever had occurred to it during its time away... it did not speak of it. Merely blinked its large eyes, and stared at corners. It chittered to itself, avoiding taking notice of the other clones in their new bodies, and even lacked the vitriol expected of it, when it was told of the human prisoner. Instead, all it did was take up its tools, and help work on the translator, distant... or waiting.

***

((earth/life sciences 5, I think!))

[Lazybones]

Week 7

Project: Alien Translator

Research Points (RP) Needed: 10

Project Leader: The Pale One: Knowledge Earth and Life Sciences 9, ROLL 7, Result 16
Project Support (all roll vs. DC20 to add +2, DC25 to add +3):
The Strong One: Research 2, ROLL 6, Result 8
The Fast One: Craft Electronic 2, ROLL 11, Result 13
The Nimble One: Computer Use 3 (Non-Core Skill), ROLL 7, Result 10
The Scowling One: Knowledge Earth and Life Sciences 5, ROLL 9, Result 14
The Quiet One: Craft Mechanical 7 (Non-Core Skill), ROLL 19, Result 26 (+1 to RP)

Research Earned: 10 (base) + 16 (project leader) + 1 (support) = 27 points

Alien Translator earned! Upload to implants allows clones to understand human speech.

17RP applied to Improved Armor 1 project (30RP to complete). All clones gain +1 natural armor boost once researched.

* * *

All the preparatory work on the laboratory pays off, as the clones rapidly complete the Alien Translator project. The final step comes as an anticlimax, as the new upload arrives with a gentle ping. You have a moment of triumph as you run around the lab, picking up human artifacts and examining the writing that you can now understand.

As the project is in its final stages, the Pale One is escorted below by a Muton soldier, to the medical lab. There the medics install a device into its helmet. The device allows the clone to translate mental impulses into audible human speech through a tiny speaker.

You can now communicate with the humans.

* * *

GAME NOTE: You can all understand human speech and writing now, though at the moment only Pale can speak with them. To distinguish speech from telepathy, use the Shout channel when addressing humans.

[RogueZair]

The Quiet One listened intently to the sounds Nimble created with its prototype recording and sound manipulation device. Nimble was always better with the electronics, but Quiet thought it could help by finding out how the sounds could be created by Humans. It examined the machine closely, sketching a diagram of all the knobs and buttons, plus the wires and holes that had been added. It carefully copied the symbols "Roland TR-808" off the side of the device, making a mental note to find the meaning of them at some point.

As the distorted sounds of Rammstein's Du Hast filled the lab, The Quite One built machines to recreate the sounds it heard. It built multiple boxes with various materials stretched over them, machined striking devices, and crafted metal plates that rang. It stretched, scratched, tapped, and warped the materials in an effort to emulate what it heard.

"So many different sounds..." it mumbled, as it watched the others work. "Do all the sounds humans make mean something?"

((Craft Mechanical +7, helping with the Translator as much as possible!))

[Lazybones]

I went ahead and used the skills you guys posted, but I believe VM is right about the craft skills in that they require training before you get any ranks. As you can see the die was stingy this week anyway.

I suggest everyone notes down their relevant skills for the various research domains during the next session.

LB