[NEXUS] OOC 16: Sweet!

[Darkcomet]

Riv being upset doesn't mean you can go back on what you said before, TE. It is a rather flimsy excuse.

Allow me to explain something from experience.

Generally speaking, swarming individual PCs with an army is considered a very bad move unless they're invincible gods or something. I would know, I'm the guy who basically started the whole faction mess with the Empire.

Speaking of the Empire! There's something I should tell you, also from experience, TE. This is more general than this specific example.

Ramping up the force you use whenever a problem comes up will not earn you many friends. It can make the person involved seem like something of a jerk to others. Throwing that force around constantly also tends to merit poor reactions-which is why the Empire usually doesn't attack unless struck first.

Those times it does are usually against those I believe it appropriate against, such as other factions with powerful troops. Hence the IA attack on Excelsior Technology-it looked like it was necessary, given the drones' armor and railguns.

Even those instances can be kind of touchy sometimes, I think. I believe there should at least be a way around the madness that is a full-on war, which is why I sent Noir's warning to AMEN in the first place.

I'm sure you're tired of being called out on things relating to Riv and his Pizza Drones constantly. I know, I've been in similar situations, though not as constant as this.

A few pointers. Downgrading the railgun-wielding and armored drones is a good idea. The ISF is a good example of this in my opinion-those doing stuff in Inside will usually find them responding first, but there's not that much really heavy firepower to them.

The newer elites/abominations are a bit much, I think. Hell, my own IA Heavy Soldiers are a bit much with their weapons, I think, but I haven't had the IC opportunity to downgrade them that much. Generally if I'm using those it's a sign that I think I might encounter something ridiculous, which is what I thought of the Pizza Drones I figured I'd run into at Excelsior. I think those might be better suited as rare elites, honestly.

Just trying to help prevent future instances of this. I'm sure people are tired of this issue popping up constantly.

[horngeek]

...O.o

Was her last name 'Walker', and was the wolf called 'Devil'?

/obligatory Phantom reference.

[Beans]

Something really awesome happened today at work. Something that I never thought I'd do in a city, let alone at a U-Haul.

I got to pet a Timber Wolf.

A lady that came in to rent a truck had a pet Timber Wolf that took up the whole backseat of her PT Cruiser. The wolf was really nice.

... You win, sir.
*claps*

[UncleWolf]

I'll be honest and say the problem with Riv is as much IC as OOC. It's just so hard for me to not twitch every time I see him post. It's not a complaint, it really isn't. But, if he's not mellowed out even slightly, I'm going to have to pull Mouse out of AMEN.

[KerfuffleMach2]

...O.o

Was her last name 'Walker', and was the wolf called 'Devil'?

/obligatory Phantom reference.

*watches reference fly over head*

Anyways, the wolf was sniffing all over in the parking lot. And she was huge! Like, Great Dane sized.

[ThirdEmperor]

Thanks for the advice DC. I also think you may have missed the question I asked a page or so back, which was how long the Empire troops were going to stay at the ruins of Excelsior before leaving.

I'm no longer arming the normal Drones with power armor/rail guns, but the problem is, it's kind of hard for Riv to avoid attacking Mouse IC, as she is going out of her way to mess with him. It's like if someone threw a grenade at ISF headquarters, again, and again, and again, then fought back when Empire troops were sent after them. Eventually, I can't imagine there'd be an IC way to avoid throwing heavy weaponry at them.

And what's wrong with Riv anyway? That he's an arrogant creep? That's kinda the point.

[The Bushranger]

Yes, but really, I can't imagine all this stuff is taking place over a few days. Seriously, that would mean every other time you stepped out of your house you ended up having to kill a dragon.

Yeah, actually, that's pretty much how the Nexus is.

[Darklord Bright]

It's the same thing we keep saying - he's hyper-aggressive. It's one thing to have to deal with arrogance, and another to have to constantly deal with a character attempting to call the kill-squad down on you and start fights.

[Darkcomet]

I figured the interaction was over already. No need to keep posting for it. *shrug*

Expect swift action if activity is seen there again, though.

I suggest we leave it as is, honestly. There's not much fun in it when there's already been so much bickering over it.

[Beans]

And what's wrong with Riv anyway? That he's an arrogant creep? That's kinda the point.

... That's not a good excuse.

[UncleWolf]

What DLB said.

Riv is completely arrogant, refuses to back down at all even when in the wrong, especially in the wrong, completely uncontrollable, even by his superiors, and would probably just find a way around the Binary virus.

That in itself is enough to deal with IC, but when you add in the fact that he'll always have a small army on hand, a few of which, the Abominations, are more powerful than the average Nexus PC, and seems to be completely unwilling to leave Mouse alone after this, and let bygones be bygones like she would(she's practical).

OOC, that'd be too frustrating to RP, and nothing but stress, so it's easiest if I just pull Mouse out ahead of time and probably Perma-deadtime her.

[TechnoScrabble]

Sorry I've been gone the last few days. My head felt like crap. What have I missed?

[ThirdEmperor]

I'd point out I've been trying to use the kill-squad as little as possible. Like, only in self-defense, or against gods/Demi-gods. One might note they didn't attack anyone at GLoG, they only started fighting when a pair of Exalted (who are, in my experience, invulnerable) charged them. One might also note that there were only two in the fight against the Servitor, and Riv had to run all the way back to his lab for reinforcements. In short, I try to avoid using them unless there is absolutely no way Riv could have even a chance of surviving without them. I'm trying not to use them at all, except for large-scale engagements, but throwing a giant robot at him is a bit much.

Finally, I'm trying to find a reason for Riv not to attack Mouse, and no, he actually does take orders. In fact, he's pretty much obeyed every command Gordon has given him. Problem is, he would have left Mouse alone, but now she seems determined to enslave him. You cannot honestly expect anyone to ignore that. I've already stated that he won't attack her, unless she tries something like this again. Seriously, he isn't anywhere near as completely unreasonable as you seem to think.

[Darklord Bright]

I'm sorry, but he really, really is.

[ThePhantom]

I know its hard to tone down a character, but it is doable. You just have to work at it.

[TechnoScrabble]

Everyone's a little bit OP...
*que the kinky puppets!*

[UncleWolf]

The toxin wouldn't cause instant death, it'd take a while. It'd be extremely painful though. Even so, they most likely will clash. And I doubt it'll be fun when it happens. And to be honest, he was completely unreasonable. She and Gordon were talking about punishing him, and he was mocking her. Didn't even take a word of it seriously, like it didn't matter at all.


But, I'll be willing to try, but she'll still leave(immediately), with all her assets, if something she doesn't consider at least semi-reasonable happens

[ThirdEmperor]

She sent a giant freaking robot to kill him, for no other reason then:

(Target of Opportunity, plus, she's never liked him and thinks he's too unorganized.)

His response was not to attack, but instead send her a message explaining that he was going to ignore her this time, but she better leave him alone from now on. To which she responded by killing his Drones, and trying to kill him. Then she goes and tries to get Gordon to kill/banish him, threatening to quit if she doesn't get her way. Dang straight he mocked her, cause he knew he would get away with it, and he knew he could escape if he didn't.

I have been trying to avoid conflict this whole time, Riv has IC been as reasonable as he could be. Mouse has so far been repeatedly trying to kill him, for no reason except that he smashed the robot she sent to kill him. Frankly, she pretty much dug her own grave.

[Murkus]

Sorry to interrupt this, but TE, I could use a post from you in AMEN.

[UncleWolf]

To be honest, her goal wasn't to kill(though it would have been a happy side effect). It was to take him down a peg or two and make him realize that maybe he should start thinking.

Removing someone as a threat doesn't mean to only kill. If he had survived the attack, but calmed down some, she'd have been fine with it.

As for attacking his Drones, the last she saw of him through the Servitor, was over thirty Drones, all heavily armed and armored, and that he was still alive, and very likely going to try and kill her.

What was she supposed to do? Sit back, relax, and wait for them to point guns at her vulnerable self? He has an army. She only had two options. To either leave AMEN right then(Which I hadn't wanted to do since she's my only AMEN PC, but now realize it would have been best because of all of this), or try to at least level the playing field. Again, no one sees Riv as a reasonable person IC. It's not like she could have just walked up to him and said "Dial it down before someone shoots you" and expect any other result other than a snide threatening remark and him saying let them try to get through his army.

As it is, she's still severely out-powered here, and is constantly threatened.

[ThirdEmperor]

And then he explained he wasn't going to attack her, as long as she left him alone. I have already explained that the Drones will no longer be armed and armored with advanced weaponry. However, she has tried to kill him, or at least done something with a very high chance of killing him, twice now. I have been trying to avoid attacking with full force. Riv has in fact been very reasonable considering she's made two attempts on his life.

He has explained, multiple times, that if she leaves him the hell alone, he won't attack her. He has let her go, twice now, and she has just gone and tried to get rid of him again, both times. He suggested having the Abomination fight the Servitor, because he intended to lose, so he could avoid having to kill her!

This is why I OoC warned you about all this. Mouse is purposefully and repeatedly annoying Riv, and I am trying not to throw something overpowered at her. She has persisted in attacking him despite this, because of a petty dislike. I have been doing everything I can without massively changing Riv's character to avoid this exact situation. So maybe, before you complain Riv is unreasonable, you should consider that Mouse is apparently unable to work for any organization where a single person doesn't act the way she wants them to.

[The Bushranger]

I'll just be perfectly honest here, TE:

When multiple people have decided that RPing with your character is something that stresses them out to the point they can't do it anymore, then the problem probably isn't with them.

[Gullara]

TE, Riv has been being a problem lately. There is nothing more to it. I'm not going to go into every nitty gritty detail and be pulling up exact posts and such and such, but there is a problem here. Interacting with Riv has just gotten frustrating. And this is a feeling I got a while ago, considering that I haven't interacted with Riv in a while. Based on limited interaction lately and by observing what's been going on, things have gotten worse.

[Goblin Music]

to be fair, some PCs are that way (the good guys seem to fall under the spell alot it seems to me). lampshade the deal, compromise and remember: we are here to have fun

[/rant]

[UncleWolf]

And then he explained he wasn't going to attack her, as long as she left him alone. I have already explained that the Drones will no longer be armed and armored with advanced weaponry. However, she has tried to kill him, or at least done something with a very high chance of killing him, twice now. I have been trying to avoid attacking with full force. Riv has in fact been very reasonable considering she's made two attempts on his life.

It was a single Servitor with only melee weapons vs. over thirty heavily armed and armored individuals. I don't see how, even with the Servitor being tough, that it was going to get close.

Also, you're saying it's almost OOC for Riv not to send his small army against a single PC who had no backup at the time? A PC, who he could not have known for sure at the time had even attacked him? Even as a guess, it would have been iffy. There had been no signs of what she'd been working on until that scene. And she hadn't even been in the room when it happened.

He has explained, multiple times, that if she leaves him the hell alone, he won't attack her. He has let her go, twice now, and she has just gone and tried to get rid of him again, both times. He suggested having the Abomination fight the Servitor, because he intended to lose, so he could avoid having to kill her!

How was she supposed to believe then, when they told her at gunpoint? Sure they were holograms, but the drones didn't know that at the time.

Also, how is something that's supposedly nearly impossible to kill except by a headshot, supposed to lose to something that has no self-intelligence?

This is why I OoC warned you about all this. Mouse is purposefully and repeatedly annoying Riv, and I am trying not to throw something overpowered at her. She has persisted in attacking him despite this, because of a petty dislike. I have been doing everything I can without massively changing Riv's character to avoid this exact situation. So maybe, before you complain Riv is unreasonable, you should consider that Mouse is apparently unable to work for any organization where a single person doesn't act the way she wants them to.

She'd been willing to talk about it in the hallway, as shown by her actually speaking instead of shooting, but he responded with an always accurate sniper rifle that pierces all shields, forcefields, and the like.

Her reasons for wanting to leave AMEN, weren't just him, even if he's the cause. To her, an extremely organized individual, AMEN and it's leaders have been anything but. The leaders especially. She can handle the rest. But for now, they've shown no ability to/willingness to deal with someone who is obviously a troublemaker(in her opinion), to the point where he's threatening the stability of the organization, and threatening to cause the entire group to be attacked.

Where she comes from, people like that are killed. Violently, to keep the others in line. She's trying to keep an open mind, but lost it when Gordon mentioned that a possible punishment might be to turn Riv into a duck.

To her, it proved that he doesn't really care. So, in all honesty, this is more of AMEN's last chance for her than just Riv's.

Her leaving isn't just about Riv, but the rest of her issues are. Even so, as she said, if Riv stays away from her, she'll agree not to attack/harass him except to comment on plans, and even then, she'll try to stay civil.

[ThirdEmperor]

Well, first off, I had no idea she was in another room when she started asking the thing in the walls to stop Riv, and you only told me after all this.

Second, Riv communicates everything at gunpoint, at least when talking to people who want him dead. He won't shoot, until they do, but he sure as hell isn't going to stand there undefended. As for how it would lose, it can still respond to commands. Like "When the thing aims for your head, stand still for a second". Not to mention that it isn't "unkillable except by headshot". It can be killed by explosion, being hacked at with a sword, or fire, ect. What won't work is shooting it repeatedly with a handgun, or arrows. An automatic weapon could kill one, although it might kill the person firing first.

As for Riv's gun, it aims itself. There's a difference between never missing and a self aiming weapon. He still has to point it in the direction of what he's trying to hit, it can still be dodged, and yes, personal barriers, forcefields, shield cloaks, those don't work. Armor, other kinds of wards, those work. It's worth noting at this point, the holograms had already attacked, and when someone is killing his Drones in the next room, he doesn't waste time talking.

Anyway, my point is this. If you don't want Riv attacking Mouse, I suggest you stop having her antagonize him. That's it. I have been trying to avoid OoC drama, but apparently that isn't going to work. I've done as much as I can to avoid starting another fight, but when you are discussing turning my character into a slave in the most insulting (to him at least) way imaginable, it's more then a little difficult.

And yes, I know Riv is annoying. I had a plan to tone it down a little, but constantly making OoC drama out of everything he does is not helping.

[UncleWolf]

She's actually not talking about turning him into a slave. Just trying to figure out a way to keep him from going overboard on things(like going through with the threat to go after The Empire or Mortal Coil, even though we now know OOC that it's for defensive purposes).

This is mostly because she doesn't like her slaves talking back to her.

She basically wants some form of reassurance that if things go completely south, she might be able to hold something over him.

Do you still want to do the fight between the Abomination and Servitor though? If so, I'd like it if you don't lose on purpose, but it's up to you.

[ThirdEmperor]

Kay. Just don't expect the virus to actually work for long. In addition to being a doctory madman, if that fails he's been planning something for a while now, which was his solution to the various IC and OoC problems, which should work for this one as well. As for the fight, sure. Just don't expect it to be an accurate representation of the Abomination's strength in combat, as Riv is going to give it various pieces of equipment the normal ones won't have. Like his artifact katana.

[Artemis97]

You're giving this thing artifact level weaponry? And if I've been following things correctly, you probably plan on cloning it? TE, the problem we've been trying to point out is the things you're using are too powerful. Adding to them will not solve this.

[ThirdEmperor]

Yes, but only for this fight, as the katana cannot be recreated. Essentially, if Riv isn't going to throw the fight, he's going to give the Abomination a few of his own items to ensure it wins.