Grid turned to look down at Laz, Jade and Mitose.  "I have no intention of battling 'whatever' " he puts emphasis on that last word, "is following us.  Slow it down, yes, die fighting it, no.  I'm big, but I'm not stupid."

He turns his attention back to the situaiton at hand, noticing that he might come to a grievous end if he didn't just onto the stairs at the right time.  Sighing, he unclips two of his own grenades, deciding on when the best time it will be to throw them.

"Lot, wa-... shit!" Roach attempts to protest, but then quickly trys to follow the man's movements.
This message was last edited by the GM at 06:29, Sun 27 June 2004.

"Your first mistake was to think you could stand in our way" growls Lot into the ear of the captive marine.  With a savage jerk Lot wrenches hard on the marines twisted wrist in order to keep the man in pain and under control.

Only a quick sidelong glance indicates that he is aware of Roach, perhaps wondering if his nervous counterpart will crack under the pressure or maybe show him something more.

Roach jumps forward from the corner.  He reaches out and takes hold of a smoke grenade strapped to the marine while Lot pulls the marine back in a corner.

The medic is apparently retreating.  You hear the door to the stairwell open from around the corner.

Lot wrenches and the soldier cries out in pain as his wrist dislocates and Lot holds him in a crippling wrist lock.

Roach pulls the pin and throws the smoke grenade in the direction of the demolitions team, which is still looking back in confusion.  The tear gas grenade lands near them in the corridor and smoke begins to rise.

Lot has aimed, and he fires at the demolitions team, but he is walking backwards with a struggling marine, and the demolitions team is over 50 feet away, so he misses.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:37, Mon 28 June 2004.

T-Minus 55 Seconds
2 Minutes, 42 Seconds until elevator 1 reaches the top.

Lot is pulling the marine back behind the corner.  Roach is following to get behind cover too.

As they do so, you hear the radios of the marines break out with, "Delta Force, this is medic Corporal Hamilton of Ranger Chalk 2.  Retreat and reinforce.  Ranger Chalk 2 is out of commission.  Do you read me, Delta Force?  Call command for reinforcements.  Do not engage Charly."

There is a crackle and a break before you hear, "Roger that.  What is your exfil status?"

"I need evac yesterday.  No other survivors believed."

"Roger that.  No one gets left behind."

"Huwah."

Lot drops his Beretta, grabs the marine with his head between his hands, and twists it suddenly for a neck snap.  The marine resists the attempt and squirms out of Lot's grasp.  He begins to lurch forward toward the stairwell.

The demolitions team appears to be retreating back toward the security station.

T-Minus 49 seconds
2 Minutes, 36 Seconds until elevator 1 reaches the top.

PLAYER WALKTHROUGH: Lot was attempting a "neck snap," which is a special maneuver in the Martial Arts book.  It defaults to ST-4.  It is done by first getting a successful Grapple with the victim's head with both hands.  On the following round, a Quick Contest is made (the Snap Neck maneuver score v. the victim's St or HT, whichever is greater, plus Toughness, if any).  In this case, Lot did not win the quick contest, and the marine got himself free.

As she is looking at the three grenades, Jade realizes that they are all different.

One is an ABC-M7A3 Riot Control Grenade.  This is a typical tear gas grenade shaped like a soup can.

The second is an AN-M14 TH3 Incendiary Grenade.  Also known as a "thermite grenade" these are used to destroy or disable equipment after being placed in a vulnerable spot.  A short 2 second fuse is attached.  (I will assume your jack in equipment includes a flare that you could theoretically use to light it.)

The third is an M67 Fragmentation Grenade, a baseball sized grenade for injuring troops (the same as the one she threw earlier).

Lot quickly draws his knife and throws it at the retreating marine...but the throw goes wide and misses.

The marine jumps behind the wall and into the stairwell area after the medic.

Lot stoops down and picks up his Beretta, letting the soldier flee.

T-Minus 45 seconds
2 Minutes, 32 Seconds until elevator 1 reaches the top.

At this point, I will be fast-forwarding to the explosion unless there is anything pressing in the next 40 seconds of game time.  Please post to let me know what your characters will do during and at the end of that 40 seconds, including finalizing any grenade action on the stairwell (as I'm not sure that has been finalized).

Please note:  Although it is unlikely that your characters will be caught in the explosion itself, it is likely that the explosion will damage the lower section of the elevator shaft.  Your characters know that and may want to make the necessary precautions.
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:48, Wed 30 June 2004.

Viper slings his rifle and scans the walls of the shaft for anything he might be able grab onto, like a service ladder, just in case. With no real idea how strong that explosion will be, he's not holding any faith in the old elevator.

Lot grins with satisfaction as the marines retreat before him.  His bloodthirst slaked for the moment his head begins to clear itself of the euphoric high that deadly stakes can bring.  As thoughts of his team and their situation return to him he breaks out into a full run towards the elevator control box.

"Roach, without the proper security protocols the freight elevator will not open at the top floor.  Everyone inside will be sitting ducks."

Lot attempts to hack into the elevator system to release the security lock, unless Roach feels he can do it better.

Laz looks at the two friends he has made on this journey and laughs, he just laughs for a few seconds and says, "That felt good."

Although not a ladder per se, Viper sees a pole in the center between the two elevators with metal prongs interspaced.  Obviously it was meant to be used in a similar manner to a service ladder.  (The image I am trying to conjure up is like those telephone poles with round metal grips spaced apart every two to three feet going up the space on either side of the pole.  Much more dangerous than a typical ladder, but still climbable.)

It is a ten foot jump across the shaft (where the other elevator goes up) to the stairwell.  And it is 5 feet to the center cable of the other elevator.

NOTE: Some players have been sending me their moves via private message.  I don't really mind either way.  The only downside to private messages is that the other players don't have a chance to respond to you.

T-Minus 35 seconds
2 Minutes, 22 Seconds until elevator 1 reaches the top.

Grid takes a flying leap onto the stairwell...and lands safely.  He begins charging down toward the Agent.  "If he gets past me, blow him to hell!" Grid shouts back at his companions.

Jade, Laz, and Mitose watch in horror as Grid descends toward the Agent.  Then Jade climbs back on top of the elevator and pulls out her tear gas and thermite grenade.  She holds the fragmentation grenade in reserve.

Lot and Roach make it to the elevator entrance door and begin looking at the code.  It takes a four digit pass code and...gasp...a keycard.

Also, as they passed the room with the computer to upload, they found that it had finished booting.  But a window popped up stating the following:


Welcome, Sarah.  Please input your login id and passcode.  You look very beautiful today.

The cursor is at the top of two lines, the first "loginid" and the second "password."

Grid approaches the Agent with his AK-47 roaring to life.  He empties his entire clip at the Agent in about 3 seconds.  The Agent, however, seems to flash before your eyes, moving so swiftly that you barely see the blur.  The bullets fly harmlessly pass.  Grid raises his Beretta and empties a clip at the Agent.  Not quite so quickly, the Agent dodges the bullets...except for one, which clips his shoulder.

"Now, now," he says, and touches the injury with his hand.  He pulls back a finger covered with blood and licks it.  "That hurt," he says.

He suddenly leaps up a flight of stairs without touching any and with one hand strikes out at Grid. (34 damage).  Grid stumbles back clinging his crushed chest and, fast as lightning, the Agent strikes sideways at the large man.  Grid, losing consciousness, is hit in the neck and flies out over the railing.  Mercifully, he is unconscious long before he hits the bottom 1500 feet below.

The Agent does not even look down.  He begins scaling the stairs again at his incredibly fast rate.

Viper can only watch in horror as the unconscious body of Grid flies past him flip-flopping down the shaft.

Jade steps up and simultaneously lights the thermite grenade and sets off the teargas grenade, dropping them both onto the stairwell.  The thermite grenade lights up brightly and begins burning on the metal.  But it is soon covered in the smoke of the gas grenade.

But then the elevator is rising out of the way.

You hear a crack and a snap.  The thermite grenade has eaten through a large portion of the metal and the metal stairs begin to break away from the wall into two pieces...concrete shards pull out and begin to drop.

The thermite grenade clinks off the edge of the stairs and falls down the shaft.

Viper watches as a brightly lit thermite grenade falls down the shaft in a long arc directly toward the elevator where he is standing.  He has maybe a couple seconds to react.  He guesses it will hit somewhere in the center or northern side of the elevator...assuming it doesn't rebound off one of the walls or the winch ropes.

T-Minus 5 seconds
1 Minute, 52 Seconds until elevator 1 reaches the top.
This message was last edited by the GM at 03:52, Thu 01 July 2004.

Laz yells for Grid to not go as he leaps on to the stairs. He waits to see Jade's reaction to what is happening but knows it can't be good when she starts to throw the grenades.

"Ohcrapohcrapohcrap" Yelps Roach, on the verge of panicing. "I'll... I'll... I'll go look for a keycard! It's got to be in one of these rooms!"
Roach dashes back and starts to search the rooms for a keycard or anything that might help them, starting with the closesed room.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:43, Thu 01 July 2004.

Lot sighs deeply, "why cant it ever be easy?".  He grunts his acknowledgement as Roach runs off looking for a keycard. Who knows, he might even find one.

Focusing on the task at hand Lot investigates the elevator closely.  Perhaps there was an easier way to bypass the security measures.

Viper stares as Grid sails past, one hand even making a futile reaching gesture as the other man plummets to his death. Cursing under his breath, he's startled by the sudden appearance of a live thermite grenade. Definately not something you see every day.

One step, two, and he jumps for the pole in the middle of the shaft, hoping to stay out of the way of the grenade that way.

09:52, Today: Viper rolled 5 using 3d6. DX 14.

Mitose watches Grid sail out, too slow, thanks to his injuries, to prevent him from making such a foolhardy move.  He stares at the inhuman speed of the Agent, and hopes the grenades slow him down. "Use them all ,Jade, user the all!"

He moves to the elevator doors, and begins to do what he can to lever them open.  He doesn't want them stuck when they have to get out.

Laz walks over to Mitose and lends him some help in opening the doors. In all the commotion he hadn't thought about the doors possibly being stuck.

Lot begins to examine the security system.  The doors that open are two sets of double doors that slide open.  They are made of bulletproof glass with a metal frame.  The security system is well insulated and probably cannot be easily bypassed manually.

Roach runs to the nearest room to look for a keycard.  With less than 2 minutes left, he hasn't got much time.

Viper runs and jumps.  He makes a clean catch on the ladder, and the elevator moves up past him.  The thermite grenade hits the top of the elevator, bounces and falls past Viper into the shaft below.  It seems to fall for a very long time...

Mitose and Laz begin looking at the door.  Since it is the same door that opened downstairs, it doesn't look like it will get stuck.  Mitose begins to lever them open, but he doesn't have much time before...

T-Minus 0 seconds
1 Minute, 47 Seconds until elevator 1 reaches the top.

The entire elevator shaft begins to tremble.  Far, far below, you see a bright light, but it is just a pinpoint.  It takes a couple seconds for the roar of the explosion to hit your ears.  It is like a concussion of air and sound hitting you.


12:25, Today: GM Heath, on behalf of Viper rolled 6 using 3d6.
12:24, Today: GM Heath, on behalf of Mitose rolled 6 using 3d6.
12:24, Today: GM Heath, on behalf of Lazarus rolled 16 using 3d6.
12:24, Today: GM Heath, on behalf of Jade rolled 18 using 3d6.

Viper holds tightly to the ladder and maintains his grip.  Mitose maintains his balance.  Lazarus loses his balance in the concussion and falls to the floor, hitting his head against the side of the elevator. (1 HT damage).  Jade (with a critical miss) is standing on top of the elevator.  The concussion throws her off balance and she falls from top of the elevator and into the deep shaft where Viper is climbing up a thousand feet below...

The Agent seems unfazed by the blast.  He is slowed by the broken stairway, which is hanging by just one or two screws and hangs out over the elevator shaft.

You hear a snap, and the elevator suddenly stops rising.  There is a strange whirring--the sound of snapped cables flying through pulleys.  You reach only one conclusion:  the explosion has destroyed the winches and pulleys at the bottom of the shaft, and now the elevators have lost their ability to climb.  They will most certainly begin to fall.

Jade instinctively enters bullet time...and with little difficulty grabs onto the cable that holds up Viper's elevator.  She looks across and is just below eye level with Mitose and Laz.

Their eyes open in horror as the elevator lurches and tilts, preparing to fall.  Somewhere, a brake or safety mechanism is all that prevents them from plummeting to their deaths.  Who knows for how many seconds it will hold.

The whirr of cable spinning through the pulleys is loud and ominous.

The Agent is still trying to maneuver around the twisted and broken stairway.  If he makes it past, he will reach the level of the elevator in probably under fifteen seconds since it is not moving now.  Correction, it is not moving up.

Viper far below feels heat surge up around him with the explosion.  He holds his breath and closes his eyes as the hot air passes around him.  When it is gone, he realizes his eyebrows and the hair on his arms are completely burned off.  The smell is not pleasant.

Above him, his elevator tilts and begins to fall.  He can only hope it does not hit him as it passes in its chaotic tumble.

As Jade tries to hold onto the cable, the inside cable begins to suddenly snake downward, cutting her fingers and almost making her lose her grip.  (2 HT damage).  Then, suddenly, she begins to rise at an alarmingly fast rate toward the top of the shaft.

Laz rubs his head as he gets himself up and braces himself as he feels the elevator wires snap; before he can say anything he loses sight of Jade but sees her again as the cables swing wildly. "You alright?" he yells but he sees her quickly disappear again and take off before she can answer. He looks to Mitose, his gaze landing on the service ladder and he looks to Mitose and says, "Can you climb?"
This message was last edited by the player at 06:14, Fri 02 July 2004.

To clarify, Jade is moving at approximately 15 miles per hour up.  Friction and the elevator contact with the walls keeps the cables from moving too quickly.

Near Laz and Mitose are four possible options (unless you can think of something more).  (1) Jump onto the cable lifting Jade and hope your fingers aren't severed by the cable moving in the opposite direction; (2) use the cable on your own elevator (with similar dangers); (3) jump to the service ladder like Viper; or (4) jump to the stairwell and try to outrun the Agent or hope to dispose of him otherwise.  Regardless, Laz and Mitose will need to exit the elevator first.

Elevator 1 is approximately 500 feet from the top of the elevator shaft (about 1800 feet above the ground below).

To successfully jump to the cable where Jade is, you will need an acrobatics check (or default DX check) at -1.  You get a +3 bonus if you go into Focus per my earlier house rule.  (There may still be hand damage upon a success.)

To get on the service ladder, it is an acrobatics check +1.  To get to the stairway or cables on elevator 1 is automatic (although there is higher probability of hand damage on the elevator due to the cables bundled together--whereas the internal cables have pretty much fallen all the way past on elevator 2, so there is a lower percentage).

If Viper waits for the elevator to pass and then jumps the 5 feet to the cable of elevator 2, he has the same modifiers.

This message was last edited by the GM at 05:32, Fri 02 July 2004.

Gasping in the after effect of the explosion, Viper almost doesn't notice the falling elevator. When he does, a quick movement around the 'ladder' puts him on the other side from his elevator. From here, he can only hope it doesnt' hit the ladder.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:55, Fri 02 July 2004.

A couple of rules comments:

First, I have added a combat flowchart which will show you from beginning to end how a GURPS combat turn is run.  This chart is taken from GURPS Compendium II and incorporates pretty much every option available.  As you read through it, you will see that not every step will apply to every action, nor is every optional rule used in my GURPS Matrix.  Thus, it seems longer than it is.

Here is the direct link:
http://www.fortunecity.com/riv.../693/matrix/id56.htm

Second, I have made a mistake in interpreting the rules.  At first, I was allowing a Dodge active defense to bullets, and then I realized that how can you dodge a bullet?  So I clarified that you cannot use Dodge for bullets in GURPS.

However, the official GURPS rule is that you can dodge when someone is firing at you (so I was right the first time!).  You can dodge any attack if you are aware of it.  So you are not dodging a bullet.  You are dodging the other person's aim.  If you are not aware that someone is firing at you, then you cannot dodge.  (In real life, if someone aims a gun at you, you duck, hit the dirt, or do something to dodge his aim.  This accounts for that.)  I don't think my mistaken interpretation harmed any characters, but now you know I will apply Dodge active defense.

Third, because of this, it only makes sense that I make you aware of the optional rule which is applicable here:

Dodge and Drop: While dodging under fire, a character can drop to the ground.  Hit the dirt! as they say in the military.  It applies to all of your defenses against one foe that turn.  It gives you a +3 bonus to your Dodge roll.  The disadvantage is that your character ends up on the ground and will need 2 turns to get back to his feet.  (Any cover the character drops behind does not count against the initial shot that inspired the Dodge and Drop, but is effective against subsequent shots.)

For Dodge and Drop on RPOL, you will need to announce it when you announce your movements or by way of contingency ("if aimed at, he will Dodge and Drop").  Otherwise, I presume your character decided not to or wasn't aware the shot would come at him (or that he wouldn't be fired at at that specific moment).  Since we post in groups of 3 turns, think carefully about this.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:07, Fri 02 July 2004.

Rubbing his chin as he examines the elevator doors Lot is hit with an alarming sight.  By the looks of the cable the occupants of the elevator must be on one hell of a ride.  Recovering from his initial shock Lot manages to not blurt out a warning to the others who are certainly already aware of their situation.

"Roach, they are running out of time down there! Did you happen to recover a thermite grenade from that marine?  It should get these doors open faster than you can find a keycard and passcode."

Roach pauses in his searching. "Oh! A Grenade! Right!" He runs back to the bodies to look for a grenade.