Young Justice: Outsiders (OOC)

[GuyRP]

If you're looking for suggestions on the scene, here's one:

The two attacks are not coordinated.

Neither Psimon, nor Manta knew about the other's attack tonight. Which means on one side of the room people are standing stock still, on the far side people are stampeding and in the middle people are getting crushed by each other. Kind of like a black friday sale.

I assume you're using 'The Light' as the overarching mastermind villain. So Manta and Psimon may both be taking orders from the Light. This could be intentional, not informing the two villains, to cause more chaos and accomplish separate goals. Or it could be they wanted Manta to kill Luthor's political opponent and he decided to bring his army on his own.

It's your show boss, just shouting out some suck-gestions.

Good luck with the black out. Hopefully the cat doesn't bat the phone out of your hands.

 

[Sean Renaud]

A lack of a plan does sound like the most likely option and frankly with how the Light often worked that seems to make a lot of sense. A lot of those guys have fairly mutually exclusive goals and were probably setting plans in motions that would fuck over allies if they could.

Oh and Nubian those are awesome. What's your deviant art name and what do you charge? It's always nice to have someone you know just in case something does come up.

 

[Nubian_Legend]

A lack of a plan does sound like the most likely option and frankly with how the Light often worked that seems to make a lot of sense. A lot of those guys have fairly mutually exclusive goals and were probably setting plans in motions that would fuck over allies if they could.

Oh and Nubian those are awesome. What's your deviant art name and what do you charge? It's always nice to have someone you know just in case something does come up.

I don't have a deviantart and my photoshop skills are lackluster, I made these with a basic GOT-style template generator. Anyone can make a decent coat of arms. It's just simple color and selection.

http://www.jointherealm.com/

 

[The Jeffinator]

But if there is a lack of plan, then we're back to figuring out how Manta got an entire army into the capitol and into the hotel without anyone seeing them on camera. And if Psimon didn't know Manta was coming, he wouldn't have programmed the genomorphs to believe the storm troopers were friendlies, and thus they would have been attacked the moment they entered the room. But Nubian portrayed a scene that was much less chaotic, where it seemed all eyes in the room were on him. Nobody is going to stand still and listen to his speech if they are trying to avoid getting torn apart by monsters. So, the only possible explanation that fits with Nubian's post is that the monsters stopped their attack momentarily to let Manta take control of the scene and give his speech, which means they had to know he was coming.

And the power finally came back on at some point after I passed out. I was watching Netflix on my phone, and the power was still out after an hour, so I decided it best not to waste my battery and took a nap. My sister said they had crews out to fix a busted transformer or something.

 

[Sean Renaud]

Well the boomtube intro seems our best bet there and talking si a free action in most media. Even ignoring that if I understand properly Psimon is basically hiveminding the Genomorphs and could do the same to anybody connected directly to one like Guardian was. I don't find it impossible to swallow that another army showed up and Psimon effectively went "Wait. . .what the fuck is going on here?" For long enough for Manta to go speak and after that all out three way chaos!

 

[The Jeffinator]

But Manta and the storm troopers clearly knew the genomorphs were going to be there and were not the least bit surprised by their presence. To use a boomtube, they would need a mother box or a father box or whichever one it was, which is normally a technology originated on either Apokolips or New Genesis, I forget which. He could have had someone construct a mini Zeta-Tube in a hotel room, but it would still take time to have hundreds of soldiers move into the building through the tube.

This time around, I decided I was going to stop asking people to change their posts if they didn't fit -- if it gets posted in the IC, it becomes part of the story, and we have to find a way to make it work. If I say the sky is blue and then someone else says the sky is red, then we have to figure out an explanation for how it changed color, lol. Hopefully we think about how our posts fit in with the scene before we rush to post them in the future, though.

 

[GuyRP]

You're going too high tech. They're amphibious soldiers. They came in through the sewers and came up from the basement, which is a mess right now. No one needs to see them that way either.

lol, or something like that.

I don't know. I'm tired. Good for you on the power coming back

 

[The Jeffinator]

But hundreds of soldiers swimming through feces-laden waters and then... coming in through a toilet in the basement? Or blasting open a pipe?

Ultimately, there was a lack of thinking on my part because I didn't explain the goal of Psimon's attack to Nubian, and there was a lack of thinking on his part because he didn't think about where the soldiers came from or how their entrance would alter the scene in progress. He disregarded the chaotic battle I had begun to unfold and had Manta hijack the scene and return order to the room. Regardless of how the soldiers got there, we still have to deal with the fact that the only way Manta could have had the room's attention and given a speech is if the monsters halted their attack and allowed him to do so.

I am still pondering over my post. I understand several of you think we should go with the idea that Manta and Psimon are unaware of each others' plans, but then we create another issue by explaining how Manta knew the genomorphs were supposed to be there. Nubian, in the future, we will need to make sure we discuss any joint-villain ventures in detail prior to either of us posting so we don't create problems like this again. We both have very different ideas about how this scene should play out.

Okay... So, here's what I'm thinking:

Manta clearly had to know the genomorphs were going to be there, but Psimon doesn't necessarily have to know Manta was. So it's likely then that Manta intervened without Psimon's knowledge and hijacked the mission, already knowing what Psimon had planned. The storm troopers were equipped with helmets that shielded them psychically, and also created a particle barrier around the room, cutting off Psimon's connection with the genomorphs, which brings them all to a halt temporarily.

Nubian, we need to decide why Manta decided to intervene and take control of the mission. Since you mentioned he did not like the idea of harming innocents unnecessarily, the most likely scenario is that he wanted to stop Psimon before he slaughtered the party guests. So then the question becomes, is he doing it on his own or did someone else in the Light urge him to do so? But why would the Light send Psimon to kill the party guests and Manta to save them? And we still have to figure out how he got hundreds of soldiers into the hallways outside the ball room without being spotted by any interior or exterior cameras.

Though, another issue is what Manta's ultimate goal is. He told the party guests, "Stay out of my way." Meaning his goal had nothing to do with the guests. So what is he after, then? I don't want to set the ship right again in my next post and then Manta reveals some alternate plot in your next post. So before I write anything else, I need to know what Manta is doing so I can make sure my post will match whatever you're going to do next. Psimon's goal was to attack the party guests, but Manta told them to stay out of his way, meaning he as some other plot in mind. What is he planning?

 

[The Jeffinator]

What kills me is that you did a good job writing Manta's intro, and it sounds awesome. It just doesn't fit with the scene I presented in the first post. In reality, there was so much chaos going on in the ball room that Manta and his men would have been trampled when they matched in, and he certainly wouldn't have had the room's attention to give his speech. The guests would have been too busy running away or trying to escape the monsters to stop and listen to Manta rave about how badass he is.

Everyone else's post fit in with the chaotic environment I had created, but your post took liberties with the scene and essentially forced all characters to stop what they were doing and focus on you without running it by me first. And given the fact that my superhero RPs tend to be fragile and crumble when writers reach a road block, I'd say you took quite a risk posting that. I got pissed at you for that kind of shit in the previous thread -- why would you want to tempt fate again?

A big part of me really wants to just write my post as if Manta never appeared, but I remember Sean saying that we should just go with whatever gets posted in the IC, so that is what I am trying to do. So when someone creates a plothole, I have to figure out how to seal it without making anyone edit their posts.

 

[Sean Renaud]

::looks up:: Goddamn I did say that. I'm just gonna hang out in the corner and see how this all plays out and in the meanwhile contemplate every possible meaning of quiet as a church mouse.

This is a bit nuts when you start getting into the details. That said group RPs are always chaotic and you (the generic you) need to learn/know how to roll with the punches because shit gets wonky fast. Ones with fighting seem to get wonkier faster than most since everybody tends to want to look effective in a fight and there are either too few enemies on the field or in some cases too many.

Encase you guys missed it when I mentioned it earlier feel free to take partial control over or beat to hell an Echo Echo. The thing about being able to clone yourself (in theory infinite times, in practice he's never gone beyond twenty or so) is that they are utterly expendable. Specifically chosen for this reason. Not that I knew we'd have a mass fight out the gate, usually I don't define which 10 he has access too.

 

[The Jeffinator]

Haha. Just means your input has value to me . Do you disagree with that stance now? How do you think we should proceed?

 

[The Jeffinator]

Just saw you edited after I replied, haha.

 

[Sean Renaud]

Haha. Just means your input has value to me . Do you disagree with that stance now? How do you think we should proceed?

No, I don't disagree with my stance so much as see how this one is a much bigger issue than some of the other ones. Not all of them ind you I can't remember them all to be honest.

Either way we may as well power on through this. It's your move since you did kind of imply you didn't want anybody posting again until you had so we didn't run away with things. Not that it seems anybody on this crew is particularly likely to do that. I have a soft rule when I have two characters not to post in a row. I will if I need to but I try to make sure someone else does and other things.

Whateves lets get this rolling I'd love to make it to the second sitting for a change.

 

[The Jeffinator]

In this case, its different. Manta came in with hundreds of characters and forced all the other characters to stop and pay attention to him -- he disregarded the chaos of people fleeing from monsters that were pouring into the room and ripping apart guests and instead inserted a scene in which everyone was silent and still and all eyes were on him, long enough that he could give a speech and have everyone listen. And then there is the fact he told the guests to stay out of the way during a mission to slaughter the guests. So if Manta is not there to launch an attack on the party, why is he even in this scene? As the GM, I need to know what the fuck is going on, lol.

 

[The Jeffinator]

In the OOC, I said I was going to try and not worry about scientific details, but I did say I wanted to maintain continuity from one post to the next and minimize plotholes, and in THE FIRST FUCKING PAGE someone has already disregarded that.

 

[The Jeffinator]

I think what is stressing me out the most is that Nubian didn't discuss this with me before hand -- he just rushed in, took over the scene, had my monsters stop attacking long enough for the party guests to stand still and listen to Manta's speech, and then offered no explanation for the sudden change in the genomorphs' behavior and the drastic change in tone. And now I'm stuck racking my brain for a way to maintain the foundation of the continuity by concocting an explanation for the events that led to such a drastic change in the tone of the scene. I just wish you would have run this by me first, Nubian. I honestly did not expect that when I suggested Manta could aid in the attack on the party. I guess I expected maybe a smaller group of soldiers to show up and attack the party alongside the genomorphs, not hold the party hostage in light of some other goal.

 

[GuyRP]

I don't know the history of you folks, but I've done alot of GMing. You only have a few options:

1) Roll with it. Just let it go this time and be more careful in the future.

2) Do a rewrite.

3) Kick the offender.

I'd have gone with number 1 already and fudged it. We can all agree, OOC, that some shit happened inside the Matrix and now there's Ogres.. But I'm not driving the crazy train.

Dead Ale Wives Club? Anyone?

 

[The Jeffinator]

I've already got an idea in my head to move forward, but I'm just waiting on Nubian to explain what Manta's goal is in holding the party hostage, otherwise his next posts may cause more plotholes.

 

[The Jeffinator]

I don't want to stall the RP any longer and cause people to leave, so I'm going to post when I get home from work regardless of whether Nubian has replied or not. I've already got a plan worked out for how the soldiers got in without being noticed and why the genomorphs halted upon Manta's arrival. I'm going to have to make some assumptions about Manta's motives and indirectly control a tiny sliver of his immediate past in a flashback, but then the scene will seam together nicely.

 

[The Jeffinator]

Okay, posted. Yes, I re-envisioned Psimon as a sith-like character instead of just a pure psychic. When Trigon granted him advanced telepathic abilities, it also gave him the capacity to channel and control telekinetic energy and spark raw electricity. Hopefully this sets the ship straight again and we can continue forward with minimal bumps.

 

[The Jeffinator]

In case you don't recognize him, the image I used for Psimon is Darth Malgus from Star Wars: The Old Republic. If you're interested, here's all the trailers featuring him combined into a seventeen minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuNvCOUy1Ts

 

[Sean Renaud]

Well Ben is back up. If anybody who has some power wants to help feel free, otherwise I plan on the hole being completely open and barring future complications civilians begin to escape ON the next post of the baddies.

Also I took a few liberties with the Echos partially combining their power with the Ditto and adding in a bit of Naruto's Shadow clones. Strictly speaking it makes them weaker than in cannon but a little more versatile as well.

 

[Nubian_Legend]

I think I'm going to have to withdraw my participation with all the controversy surrounding my most recent post. I don't want this to be another repeat of what killed the last game so the most sensible thing for me to do is removing myself from the scene altogether. I hope everyone well and the game succeeds going forward.

 

[The Jeffinator]

You don't have to leave, Nubian. You're a terrific writer, you just need to pay closer attention to the tone laid out in previous posts. Yes, your post pissed me off, but I pushed through it and we are on the path forward again. You're more than welcome to continue writing with us.

 

[The Jeffinator]

Consider this, also: If I wanted you to leave, I would have booted you and told everyone else to ignore your post, retconning its events. But I racked my brain looking for a way to make it all meld together, and now that it has, we are moving forward now. The fact that I put forth an effort to make your post work indicate that I value you as a writer and as a member of this team. Yes, I had a little rant and may have seemed like I wanted you gone, but I assure you, that is not the case. I cannot force you to stay, and we will move forward regardless of your decision, but it would be fun to have you with us.