In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 24):

After learning it, I find myself liking the DDPL.

As to food that's moving, I have objections to eating living food.  I pass on anything alive or kinda maybe alive.

OOC: I thought that Japanese girl who caught an octopus arm across her face when she was eating live octo got what she deserved.

I listen to Garak.  He seems like a serious individual  Launchpad is clearly good at his job, but perhaps not the wisest man who ever lived.

I make sure to quickly take the chaos away from Slidehammer.  Perhaps that is how he got twisted.

I flip a coin, and follow one or the other first to their preferred thing.  I make sure neither is using magic or psi to influence the coin.

It's a favorite move of Launchpad's.



I didn't say it was alive. I said it was moving. It's most likely an autonomic response or a trick, like effervescence. Or you can go hungry.

"More for me!!!" Launchpad exclaims.



OOC) I would try it once. Who knows? You might like living octopus. Never know until you try it.



Well, it's not really your concern any longer. The thing, whatever it was, is now locked in the assayer's vault, where it should remain.



OOC) You don't seem to understand. You can't change what he did in Verserscum world. Nothing you do can change that. It's his future and your past.



Samantha wants to see the Telly Toobies, a children's themed show. Slider wants to see the Belly Booties, which is more adult themed. (Like WAAAAAY more adult themed.) So, as you follow Samantha to her show, Slider says he'll catch you both later. He hopes he can hang out with you some more. He thinks you're a cool guy and he wants to swap stories of The Verse.

Samantha may be a few hundred years old, but being trapped in the body of an eight year old girl has left her still quite childlike in thoughts and actions. So don't be surprised if she asks you to kiss her imaginary friend goodnight.

So the show is enjoyable for you and Samantha. When it's over, you find Slider hanging around the assayer's vault. He's a bit twitchy. Might need a slap across the face to reset his program.

I go to find some gun shoppes with Slider, and see if we can put some shots down range to test them.

Slider's eye light up at the idea of destruction and Chaos.

"Oh yeah maan. They got this range where you can rent guns. They got laser guns and phaser guns and magnetic rail guns and lightning guns and thunder guns and all kinda wild toys to play with."

Tapping the 45 he's carrying.

"Mage told me to carry something I felt comfortable with. No use carrying some awesome piece of tech if you ain't comfortable. So I just gots me a standard Colt 45. I figure the guy I pop with it won't know the difference......"

So you go to the range. Name it, it's there and you can probably buy it. Slider wants to buy things but he lacks the fundage. You don't.

I look for a 'one of everything try out deal' for me and Slider.  And buy a bunch of ammo or power cells with it.  I'm not looking to buy this time, but I will take notes, and I encourage Slider to as well.

Do the lasers glow?  Is their kickback?  Does it make a loud bang or a hum?  Are they invisible?

What exactly is a thunder gun I ask the clerk.

I'm mostly looking for a rifle I'd be comfortable with.

Of course they've got that. They don't have ammunition-based weapons, per se. The magazines are fitted with a removable replicator unit that replicates bullets indefinitely, until it runs out of power. Rechargeable, of course.

Slider says "Got one of them in my 45. The other two magazines are real magazines, for them pesky worlds where the replicator is biased out."

So he's got nigh infinite ammo in his gun, and for any gun you rent. Anything. You want to try an M1 Garand? M16? M60? Any M class weapon? You got it!!!

The replicator is removable and is the size of the magazine. All guns will function with a standard magazine instead.



The clerk says "Yes and no to all of those. Do you want it to glow? We've got models that glow. Do you want it to kickback? We've got models that kickback. Do you want one that makes a loud bang or hum........"

Slider jumps in "Let me guess. You've got models that bang and hum?"

The clerk says "Exactamundo."



In an obvious, but still terrible imitation of an American Indian, Slider says "Thunder gun? Thunder gun? That's there's a Winchester 30-06!!! Nah, just yanking yer chain. Saw that in a Far Side comic strip."

OOC) Indeed, that's where I got it.

No, a thunder gun fires a concussive blast of sonic energy. Strangely enough, the shooter and anyone behind him can't hear it at all. The people downrange on the other hand...... And God help the poor soul to whom it is aimed. At lowest power, you can punch a hole in a piece of cardboard. At full power, you could put a hole in a concrete block.



"First chance I get, I wanna get me a M1 Garand." Slider says. "Eight round semi auto 30-06. Mage had one. He let me shoot it a couple times. He said on his homeworld it was used in something called World War Two. I ain't got the extra cash for it though......"

And the look on his face says it all. He's really hoping you'll buy one for him. They are relatively inexpensive, as far as the other guns go.

The clerk says "So what'll it be pal?"
This message was last edited by the player at 08:02, Thu 01 Oct 2020.

Two Posts

The bullet replicator functions thusly. The round in the chamber is real. It's replicated as soon as you insert the replicator into the gun. When you fire, the replicator replaces the fired round in the time it takes for the action to cycle, so it can just shoot and shoot and shoot.

Slider brought the 45 from home. He was using real magazines and ammo for it until he got here. Here, he picked up the replicator magazine. If he lands on a world where it is biased out or it is out of power, he will get one shot off, the one in the chamber. Then the action on the gun will lock open, telling him it's empty. He simply needs to eject the replicator and replace it with a real magazine. Just like normal reloading. Hopefully that first shot took care of the threat though.

But you can purchase both replicators and real magazines and ammo here. The store only rents the replicator magazines, for obvious reasons.

Clear as mud?

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 31):

I ask the clerk if he has an X-Ray Laser, which I assume will be invisible (unless the target can see X-Rays) and silent.  If they do, I ask if I can get one in a rifle configuration, and custom fitted for myself.  I see no point or reason to have kickback on an energy weapon unless you wanted to u se it as a rocket.

I'll buy two M-1 Garands, and replicators, and spare bullets 1000.  One set for me, and the other for Slider.  Then we can spend the rest of the day shooting out 400 bullets each, and saving a hundred.

OOC) What exactly is an X-Ray Laser? What do you expect it to do? What capabilities does it have? Tell me everything about what you want from it.

As far as kickback, the clerk tells you that some folks like the kickback because it lets them know the weapon actually fired. Who knows?



You ever fired an M-1 Garand? Because I think your shoulder would tell you to stop after more like 100 rounds. (Quite a kickback.) Slider says that's something he likes about it.

"Loud and a heavy kick. If it's doing that to me, what's it doing to the guy on the other end?!?!??!?" And laughs.

But the range is holographic. You can set up simulations of thousand yard shots, 10 yard shots, lots of blood and gore, not so much blood and gore. You can shoot aliens and animals. You can have a simulated combat where the holograms appear to shoot back. (Although you're in no danger) What kind of shooting do you want?

And remember, you don't have to shoot real ammo. You can plug the replicator into the wall at the end of the day. It's good for 1,000 rounds between charges.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:16, Fri 02 Oct 2020.

Two Posts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GdTKm4eBAs
This message was last edited by the player at 02:11, Fri 02 Oct 2020.

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 34):

Lasers are light modulated to be in the same frequency at the same time.  You can move up and down the electromagnetic spectrum for the same effect as light is just the part of the EM specturm we can see.

X-rays are more high energy and shorter wavelength which is the same thing.  It would be invisible to a normal human.  I suppose Superman with his X-ray vision could see it.

I stop at fifty.  Slider goes on a bit.

Okay, so you get an M1 Garand and a laser rifle. It had three settings. 1,000 shots at Damaging, 100 shots at Dangerous or 10 shots at Lethal before recharge needed. Which setting at you putting it on?

Slider says "Mage told me to just stick with weapons I was comfortable with. He said the most important thing is to be accurate. It don't matter what weapon you're shooting if you can't hit the target. So I gots me a Seven-plus-one shot 45 instead of a 15-plus-one shot 9mm and an eight round 30-06 instead of a 30 round 223. Be accurate with something big and you won't need as much ammo."

Whatever, it makes sense to him.



So which day are you on? Have you slept at all? If this is the next day after your flying lesson, Launchpad is waiting to take you out. Slider asks to join you. If it's not, then you went to sleep, got up and had breakfast, and Slider knocked on your door and told you Launchpad was waiting and asked to join you.

Either way. Launchpad and Slider are waiting to fly with you.

(Doing Therapy)

Definitely get some sleep.  I go with Slider to Launchpad.

I set the Laser at ....Damaging.  I like the idea of a few shots and killing, but I got the Garand for that.  This is closer to a taser, a big taser, right now.  I shrug my shoulders, and leave it there, not sure what else to do.

OOC) Did you watch that video I posted about how to load and fire the M1 Garand?



Slider is hyper and jumpy. He looks like he's had about 20 cups of coffee.

He asks Launchpad: "Hey maan, you ever get another get another G-G-Ghost in the machine? Ev-ever since I saw that one, it's been burning me, burning me. I want one...."

Launchpad looks to you confused, then tells Slider: "It was a fake. A phony. Some guy put a lightbulb in a Mason jar."

Slider says "I don't. I don't think so maan...."



We can make it a laser pistol instead of a laser rifle.

So Launchpad gives flying lessons to you and to Slider. He teaches you maneuvers, how to hide, how to look for fuel, all kinds of cool things.

Whilst Slider is piloting, Launchpad answers the phone and then hands it to you.

"It's that little girl from the station. I gave her this number for emergencies."

When you get on the phone Samantha says:

"Did you ever have the dream of the Chess pieces?"

She sounds frightened, on the verge of tears.

(Doing Therapy)

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 38):

OOC: No.

"Slider, bud, sit down.  I think you've been influenced."  If he does, I began to pray for peace, and calm, and Order.  "God is the God of order, and not confusion, Slider." I put my hands on his shoulders, and continue praying.  Hopefully, the Chaotic energies inside him will be neutralized by the influx of Order and Peace.

I still like a laser rifle.  For one, its a better chance at aiming it.

OOC: Ummmmm?

"Hey Slider, Samantha sounds really worried.  Do you think we could get Launchpad to take us back, fast as possible?"

To Samantha 'We're coming kiddo.'

Slider calms down a quite a bit. His white iron hammer almost goes dark. It glowed faintly. He says:

"Thanks maan. Can you teach me how to do that?"

He means to pray, but he doesn't know the word for it.



Launchpad says "Just hold on a second there son. We ain't going back unless it's something majorly bad."

Ultimately, Samantha doesn't even want you to come back.



Samantha becomes adamant.

"No, don't come back here. I'm fine. I just had a scary dream. Four chess pieces, the black and white king and queen took me to their realm and asked me if I wanted to be a Chaos mage. I think I told them I didn't want to. I wouldn't have believed chess pieces could be that scary!!!! Have you ever had that dream before?"

She's just a little girl who had a bad dream and wants to be consoled, that's all.

I forgot to mention, she likes holding your hand. Everywhere you go, if she's with you, she holds you hand like a child would. And she's probably 5 times your character's age. Some things you never grow out of I guess.

Launchpad doesn't like turning around unless it's a real emergency. Not even if you really really want to. Although he probably would in the end.

Anyway, no emergency, no reason to act.

Samantha does ask to talk to Slider.

His side of the conversation, he says:

"Yeah, Sam-baby, I had that dream."

"Sorry Samantha. Yes. You told me not to call you that. Yes, I remember what you told me you'd do to me..... Can we drop it, please????? Okay, I'll give it to you!!! Just don't do that thing you're always threatening to do!!!"

You know that despite being in the body of an eight year old girl, Samantha is an incredibly skilled fighter. She's dedicated herself to learning every single martial art she's physically capable of performing in the entire multiverse. I don't care how obscure the weapon is. Samantha has one and has minimum 1@5 skills using it. That is, provided that a healthy eight year old girl would be capable of wielding it. Her preferred weapons are katana swords, nunchucks, staffs, and bare hands and feet. Slider was teaching her how to fight with a blacksmithing hammer. She said it was too heavy for her. Anyway, Slider has obviously developed reason to fear her.

Anyway, I digress.

After he calms down a bit, he says:

"Yeah Samantha. I had that dream. I started asking a bunch of stupid questions and they said "Next time, don't ask such stupid questions." and let me go."

"Oh yeah? They said that? The What? Demigod of Chaos..... Glowing white ghost thing? Huh..... Okay Samantha..... We'll do that."

He hangs up and tells you she wants you to check out a restaurant she's read about. She gives Launchpad the coordinates. He's never heard of it. She makes you promise to bring her back whatever a child's meal is there.

Launchpad says to you:

"So we staying out or what? It's three times pay to go back if it's not an emergency."

Standard thing. Pilots like to fly. The only thing they like more than flying is getting paid.

OOC) Check out that video. It explains the operation of the rifle.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 13:57, Mon 19 Oct 2020.

"All right. Its cool. Let's keep on going."

I explain prayer to Slider as best as I can.  (I try to do so with my boys, and I'm not that good at it.  Partially because I'm not that good at praying myself despite years and years.)  But I explain about trusting God, and listening to Him, and where He wants me to go instead of w here I want to go.

I make a point to remember Launchpad's over enthusiasm.  So far, no problems, but its a thing that could cause problems in the future.

So you head to Earl's House of Stish. Home of the fishy steak, the meaty fish. Anything with meat in it tastes like a pan fried catfish had its genome spliced with a top sirloin steak.

The side order is Pommes De Terre. Which, if you speak French, translates to "Apples of the earth." It's the word for potato. Except these taste like a fried apple and a french fry had a baby.

You pick up an Exuberant Meal for Samantha. It's a breaded Stish sandwich with a side order of the apple potato hybrid fries. And a milkshake. That at least tastes normal.



Slider says confused:

"Yeah, but what god are we supposed to pray to? Mage said the gods of Order and Chaos powered my hammer and made it magical. Do I pray to them? Who do you pray to? How do you know it's the right one?"

He's confused.



So you and Slider takes turns piloting. Launchpad comes in from the back and says "Hey Slider, what was that thing you were talking about? The Demigod of Chaos? I looked that up. It's a legend. It's a ghost that can supposedly be trapped by crystal. The supposed offspring of a mortal and the goddess of Chaos."

And they just share a look.

Two Posts



To continue and elaborate:

Launchpad shows you both the equivalent of a website about the gods of Order and Chaos. It's the equivalent of a Zeus page or a Thor page. The gods of Order and Chaos most commonly appear in the form of chess pieces. Unless the recipient is a child or otherwise doesn't play Chess. They appear as black and white figures that the recipient can easily comprehend.

They do not request or require worship. They just enjoy endowing certain individuals with powers. Just for the fun of it. It helps to have a magical weapon in your possession, although they have been known to endow even small children with powers.

The mythos of the Demigod of Chaos (Henceforth to be referred to as the DOC.) The DOC is a ghost. It's like pure Chaos energy, with just enough Order to maintain a viewable form. Most often, it resembles a potato shaped head, with (prime numbers here) One mouth, Two nostrils, Three eyes, and then five spikes growing out the top, that each branch off into a prime number of smaller horns. Its voice is said to make Megatron sound soothing.

The supposed "Father" of the child had an almost unpronounceable name. Translated, it means roughly "Magic Hammer Man." He is most often depicted with a long, out of control beard and wearing a black robe with an artificial hunchback. And of course, he wielded a blacksmithing hammer. The pictures in the book make Slider laugh. He says "Huh!! That looks like Mage standing sideways."

He asks if you agree.

Whoever it was, he seduced the goddess of Chaos and had a child with her. It's said in the different religions that he is completely under her protection.

That child is the Demigod of Chaos.

It escaped their realm. All Order and Chaos mages in the entire Multiverse are tasked with and obligated to help deliver it to the gods of Order and Chaos upon sight. Tool users like Samantha and Slider are not so obligated. Only someone who legitimately holds the title of Mage.

And it can be trapped in crystal, among other things.

The picture on the website looks like a Mason jar with a lightbulb in it.

Slider and Launchpad share a look.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 21:32, Wed 21 Oct 2020.

I take about an hour to explain the logic that shows Jesus is the Creator.  Every few minut3es, I ask him to explain in his own words what I just said.  This is to make sure he's getting it.

"This does not account for the existence of the gods of Order and Chaos.  But if they want to give you something without demanding worship, well, I guess I'd accept it."

I agree with Slider that the pic does look like Magehammer.

"We need to try to talk to this Ghost being." I say.

He repeats it. Not sure if he really gets it or not. Launchpad thinks you're nuts. In the end, you probably had a net positive effect here.



OOC) Actually you wouldn't accept it. You've had a few Order/Chaos weapons and you gave them all up. Just saying.......

He again asks you how you can be positive which god is the correct one, but in the end, decides it doesn't really matter to him.

"We ain't never gonna stay dead, are we?"



It's like a Renascence era painting. The man is in a black robe wearing a backpack. He's facing the white king. The gods of Chaos are represented by the king for the goddess and the queen for the god. It could be Magehammer, or it could be that biker guy you saw at the grocery store last week.

OOC) I know you don't like Magehammer. He won't be in the games. However, it is established canon (As in, just about every other time I've run Slider) that he met and apprenticed himself to Magehammer. That's something you're just gonna have to deal with.



At the mention of the "Ghost Being" Slider becomes jumpy and erratic at the controls. Launchpad activates the autopilot and forcibly removes him from the pilot's seat. And he takes control.

Slider says "Yeah, definitely. We should talk to the Ghost being......."

His hammer is glowing and vibrating.

(Doing Therapy)
This message was last edited by the player at 22:29, Tue 03 Nov 2020.

In reply to JohnA1nut (msg # 45):

What can I say.  Trust God, but the rest, nah.

"I don't know.  I expect that it ends sometime.  But is that ten thousand years from now...mebbe."

As to your second OOC...that's fine.  Magehammer is a likable guy.  But its a game for me as the hero, not MH.  And I tried to have a Tadeusz in a game with some new players, and MJ running it....epic fail.  So its not just MH.

"Breathe out, breathe in, Slider. One, two, three, four, one, two, three, four..." I keep an eye on him half the time and the other half on the hammer.

"Trust in Allah, but tie up your camel."

Muslim proverb.



Slider says "Yeah, Mage said the same thing. He had this list of things to see and do. Said he'd stop versing when he saw everything there was to see and did everything there was to do in The Verse...... Who knows maan?"

So you talk some more. Launchpad flies, unless you want to. He's not letting Slider in there right now.



OOC) Yeah, I was a player in that game. You got me sent to Pearl Harbor......



Half the time he's fine, the other half, he looks like he's about the jump out the airlock.

When you get back to the station, Samantha is there waiting for you. She says "Guys, they're moving that ghost thingie...." And points.

Indeed, there's an armed security detail carrying the jar. Slider sees this and freaks out. He shrieks and pulls his 45 in one hand and his magical hammer in the other. He runs at the security guys shooting wildly. Using magic flames to block any attacks that are headed his way. When he's close enough, he puts a round into the glass jar. It explodes far more violently than you would expect. A white aura is released. It forms into a shape like a potato. Craggy, mottled surface. Three eyes, spikes running out the top of its head. It has to the the Demigod of Chaos.

It and Slider look at one another for what seems an eternity. Finally, they begin moving towards one another. Slider holds up his hammer and the demon thing impacts it and is absorbed into it. Slider begins to glow and pulsate with electricity. Sparks fly from his body. He begins to float in midair. Then he turns to you, and in a voice which would make Megatron sound soothing, he says "Hey there Tadeusz. Meet Slidehammer!!!!"

He throws a bolt of lightning at you which misses by a good 10 feet. He was just showing off, not really trying to hit you.

The station security guards are running at him. He's mowing them down with a combination of fire, lightning and 45 auto fire. (He's got that replicator clip)

Samantha takes your hand and says fearfully "What do we do? He's possessed by that thing!!!!"
This message was last edited by the player at 07:23, Wed 11 Nov 2020.

Wrath curls through me, and I let it.  Then I pray...

"Give me your fury, O Most High, let me be your weapon against the wicked."

I shift into faster thinking with the psi skill, make to run, and teleport, and back smash.

"Let me strike as Samson, O Lord."  And I then pile into him, aiming to daze him, and beat him down.

OOC) You're not wearing all of your armor. You're only wearing the gauntlets. You've got enhanced strength. If you would like, you can suddenly discover a feature of the gauntlets which will summon the rest of the suit, like the way Iron Man's suit comes to him. Your call though!!!!



You become furious. But focused. Like a laser, single-minded in your pursuit.

You hear God's voice in your head. "Fear not for the innocent. I will spare them. Only the immortals will suffer."


So you attack Slider. He dodges, accelerated Chaos speed. He laughs at you and says "Is that all you got Old Man??? Geeze, I woulda thought you'd have more than that!!!"

He melee attacks you with his hammer. You deflect it easily with your gauntlets.

All at once, Samantha is behind him, waving her Chaos katana. She's pulling a white aura from his body. Perhaps trying to separate him from the Demigod of Chaos. The Chaos she removes returns in the form of a lightning bolt which strikes the both of you.

Slider screams "You little brat!!" And grabs Samantha by the arm. He brings his hammer down to smash her face. She blocks with her katana. You're all connected when white and black iron collide.

Slider is holding Samantha, you are holding Slider, the world ceases to exist, the world tastes purple and you are seeing the space station from the outside. Between all of the Chaos weapons, the three of you have been teleported into space.

Slider and Samantha will suffocate and die within seconds. Your helmet has a limited life support which lets you see this happen. However, its depleted power cells do not allow you to live long enough to get back into the station.

Thou Art Dead.

(Doing Therapy)