[GURPS 4e, IC] The Dying of the Light — Infection

[Stegyre]

Spoiler

Yep. Blood all over me, I bet. I hope my Luck has recharged so I can use it against another possible infection roll.

I'm not sure if I'm also due for a combat paralysis roll. Under the circumstances (i.e., what has already happened), I would assume that Tal was not sufficiently "threatened" until now. If he's paralyzed, he's not going to be able to think to let go and get out of Steve's way. FUN TIMES!

Combat Paralysis: (3d6)[10]

I'll edit in action after we know the result.

EDIT: Tal glances back at Steve, with a bloody axe held over his head. "Aiiiiee!," he yells as he jumps aside, not entirely certain how many maniacs he's dealing with.

Spoiler

Tal will back away from the two combatants, moving to position himself between them and the stairway to the dance floor.

[xen0phile]

Ese steps in front of Brenda and Anna, both to protect them if the bloody woman attacks and to protect them from the visual trauma of the sight. He tightens his grip on the crowbar, should he need to use it, but doesn't raise it or otherwise try to appear threatening. Mostly Ese is uncertain how to react.

Spoiler

He will pause for a few moments, both to observe what the bloody woman does, and to wait for what the other members of his party do.

[Inglenook]

ESE & MAXWELL

The bloody woman simply stands there, looking at/past the group. Out of the corner of his eye, Maxwell sees the man named John raise the long barrel of his rifle, aiming it at her head.

"Wait!" Anna hisses, pushing his gun barrel aside and moving forward to the front of the group. "Ma'am, are you okay?" she asks the woman softly. You suddenly notice that the woman is shuddering ever so slightly, as if a small electric current is running beneath her skin. Tears spill down the woman's cheeks, washing clean paths through the blood, and her eyes seem to focus on the group for the first time.

"Dead," she whispers, and collapses forward.

As Anna and Lurch rush forward to help her, Ese realizes that noise he heard earlier when he found Morten—the banging from behind the door to the bridge—is gone.

---

STEVE & TAL

Spoiler

Whoops, I totally forgot about the Combat Paralysis!

Tal tries to jump backward away from the woman as Steve prepares to swing his axe, but he's slightly too slow; the woman reaches out with only remaining hand and clutches Tal's right hand, her fingernails digging in deep.

Spoiler

Tal's HT Roll to Avoid Knockdown and Stunning: (3d6)[5]

Tal cries out in pain and drops his walking stick as the woman's nails tear great chunks of skin and flesh from his hand.

Spoiler

Steve's Axe Attack (ESL15): (3d6)[11]
Damage if Hit: (1d6+5)[6]

I forgot about the +1 for modern melee weapons too, my bad! I don't think it's affected anything so far, though, and I'll make sure to remember it from this point on.

Steve swings his axe, cutting deep into the woman's ribcage … yet she continues to stand.

Spoiler

Steve has already gone for this round, so it's Tal's turn before the woman acts. Tal's right hand is crippled (due to a very lucky attack on the woman's part, and a very unlucky Dodge for Tal). And he's Shocked, meaning a -4 to IQ- and DX-based skills this turn.

The woman's attack did 4 damage, meaning Tal is at 6/10 HP.

[Stegyre]

Originally Posted by historiasdeosos

Spoiler

Whoops, I totally forgot about the Combat Paralysis!

Spoiler

But I didn't, and assuming my roll counted, I passed.

"OWWW! Dammit!" Tal yells, and without hardly thinking, lashes out with his other fist, a roundhouse swing!

Spoiler

AoA, committed, shock notwithstanding. (Defense never works anyway. 'Never should have let go.

The -4 from shock and the +4 from AoA should cancel out, giving him a 9: (3d6)[9]
Damage (swing) should he be so lucky: (1d6)[4]

EDIT: WHEEEEE! Surprising everyone, he connects solidly with her jaw . . . or something.

[Inglenook]

STEVE & TAL

Spoiler

Yep, counted your CP roll. You never specified Tal's handedness … so I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt here that he's left-handed, and you don't suffer the -4 penalty for using your off-hand.

Your punching damage is 1d-3, though? So you do 1 damage rather than 4.

Tal punches the woman hard, but she's unfazed. She snaps at your hand as you hit her, but misses.

[Stegyre]

Spoiler

Actually, Tal is (was?) right-handed: there is no -4 for off-hand strikes using karate skill -- I just confirmed that much from the Lite rules.

Where is the additional -3 for unarmed damage stated? Not that I'm doubting it, but I'm new enough to actually playing GURPS (as opposed to endlessly reading rulebooks and dreaming) that I was not aware of it.

Recovering more of his senses, Tal unleashes a thrust kick.

Spoiler

AoA, committed, I think that's +4 for AoA and -2 for kick: (3d6)[10]
Damage, with whatever is the applicable modifier for a kick: (1d6)[6]

EDIT: His reign of awesum continues! That should be another hit (11 or less), and max damage - whatever the max is.

[dekova]

Steve calls out a useless warning as the crazed woman ignores her wounds: "Tal!"

Desperate to stop her attacks, Steve takes another swing.

Spoiler

to hit: 15

• skill: 11
• aoa-determined: +4

damage: 1d+5

• swing: 1d+1
• axe: swing+3
• fine weapon quality: +1

To Hit: (3d6)[10]
Damage: (1d6+5)[9]

[Inglenook]

STEVE & TAL

Spoiler

Whoops, I totally didn't realize that there's no offhand penalty for Karate; that's pretty cool, actually.

And Karate uses "punch" as the weapon (pg. 271 in the Basic Set), which does thr-1 cr damage. If you know Karate at DX level or more, though, it starts adding extra damage. At least I think that's how it works—I've never used any martial arts skills myself in GURPS, so if anyone knows otherwise, let me know.

And your kick does thr cr damage (same page), so 4 damage.

Tal strikes a vicious kick at the woman's left leg, causing her to stagger, while Steve strikes simultaneously at her right. The axe cuts off the woman's right leg and she falls to the ground, still writhing and trying (but failing) to claw at your ankles.

[dekova]

"Oh, God."

The horror of what he's about to do showing clearly in his wide eyes, Steve takes another swing, hoping it will be the last.

Spoiler

aoa-determined. if necessary, taking a step back so she can't reach out and take off a toe or two (shouldn't be an issue with the range of the axe).

To hit 15: (3d6)[12]
Dmg 1d6+5: (1d6+5)[10]

[Inglenook]

STEVE & TAL

And the last it is. As the female crewman looks up and screams, Steve plants the axe directly in the center of her forehead. She gurgles and stops moving.

The black man and red-haired woman made it down the ramp while you were battling, and have stopped by the broken-in leading to the stairwell. The black man is looking up at both of you with an strange combination of revulsion and gratitude, and the red-haired woman … well, she strangely doesn't seem to be looking at anything at all.

"She's dead," the red-haired woman says faintly. It's not a question.

[Stegyre]

The horror of the situation begins to sink in for Tal and he shudders. Grabbing a nearby tablecloth to wrap around his right hand, he says to Steve, "We need to get these folks back to Deck 10, where they'll be safer, and get the Carvers, too. We'll have to attend to this,", he waves his swathed right hand, "later."

With his left hand, he picks up his fallen hiking stick and hands it to the man. "Use it if you need to.

"Let's get moving." He heads to the downward stairs, back to Deck 11.

Spoiler

Tal wants to get everyone back to the relative safety of Deck 10 as quickly as possible, before the infected make it any farther up the secondary stairwell. Then he will worry about first aid.

As with past requests, he will use his Luck rerolls - to the extent any are available - on any infection rolls.

[dekova]

Standing over the dead woman, Steve takes a deep, shuddering breath as he tries to come to grips with the situation. He looks down at the axe embedded in the woman's head and half-hears Tal talking: "..and get the Carvers, too. We'll have to attend...". Steve tugs on the axe handle, dislodging the axe from the woman's skull with a thick, wet, sucking sound.

And that, at last, is too much for him. He lurches to the railing of the dance-floor and vomits.

When he regains some semblance of composure, Steve numbly follows Tal's lead. He doesn't think to ask if they're headed for the Carvers or back to the 10th floor.

Spoiler

I know that this technically doesn't trigger Steve's guilt complex, but the man just put an axe in a lady's head. His **** isn't exactly together at the moment.

[xen0phile]

As Anna and Lurch go to help the woman, Ese also advances forward. He'd like to help tend to the collapsed woman, but at the moment he is somewhat worried that one (or more) of the infected is active nearby, and the party could be ambushed.

Spoiler

He will, in this order:
1. glance down that port-side hallway adjacent to the bridge
2. make sure the bridge door is still secure
3. look down the starboard-side hallways (both the one leading forward to the Royal Suite, and the longer one running toward the stern), at that intersection where the woman just collapsed

A "trying to not get ambushed" check, vesus Peception of 11:
/roll 3d6

[xen0phile]

Spoiler

Derp. Trying that roll with proper formatting.

versus 11 perception
[roll]3d6[/roll]

[xen0phile]

Spoiler

Blargh. i b smert wun dey

again:
(3d6)[9]

[Inglenook]

ESE

As the others are attending to the bloody woman, you quickly check all the adjacent corridors to make sure that nothing is approaching. The only thing that looks out of the ordinary is the corridor to the left of where the woman was standing: a trail of blood drops on the carpet leads back to the open door of the royal suite.

The bridge door is still secure, and you can hear nothing behind it.

[Corrino]

Maxwell steps over by the others and the woman. "What the hell..."

Spoiler

Dependent on others' actions, he will either look her over himself - looking for open wounds, bite marks, trauma - anything to suggest where the blood is from, if she's hurt or dying, and if she might have been exposed in some way to the contagion via blood contact - or, if others are already expecting, since Maxwell certainly isn't qualified, he will stand near Ese and also keep an eye out.

Also, when he meets up with the fire guy again, he will ask for his lighter back :D

[Inglenook]

ESE & MAXWELL

Maxwell kneels down beside the woman, looking to see if she's been attacked or is physically injured in any way. "I don't think she's hurt," Anna says, looking up at him with sharp, worried eyes. "At least not that I can see. This blood—or at least the majority of it—isn't hers. There's too much of it."

Maxwell can't see any noticeable wounds either, just lots and lots of blood.

Standing off to the side, Harmon clears his throat politely. "Perhaps we should get inside the bridge? Not to disparage the quality of your ship's fire doors, Captain, but the more metal between us and the things in the stairwell, the happier I'll be."

Morten nods. "Anyone with a gun—Mr. Speck and Mr, uh, Smith?—beside me. Everyone else, stay alert."

Spoiler

Unless either of you would like to do anything else beforehand, Morten's going to open the door to the bridge and try to lead the group inside, if he can.

[xen0phile]

Spoiler

Ese will keep an eye out on those two starboard-side corridors; focusing on the one leading the the Royal Suite, but also glancing down the other one. He thinks that, if the infected man is still active on the bridge, it would be better for the people with guns to take care of him. So, Ese's most valuable use at this time is as a lookout.

Also, does Anna or Brenda still have the first aid kit? Or was it just left laying on the floor?

[Corrino]

Maxwell stands, keeping an eye on the bridge door. "Just everyone stay alert; we've got possible infected in the bridge, as well as from any other direction, if the fire doors don't hold, and we need to keep a careful eye on her" he gestures to the woman on the ground, "Who knows if she's infected or not; she didn't quite act like it..."

Spoiler

Maxwell has nothing further to do before the bridge is opened

[Inglenook]

ESE & MAXWELL

Spoiler

Anna has the first aid kit still.

From down the corridor, Ese can hear the pounding growing louder. It sounds as if more of those things are in the closed-off stairwells wanting in. He glances constantly between the main starboard corridor and the corridor leading to the open door of the royal suite, but sees nothing of note.

Maxwell keeps close behind the three men with guns, brandishing his pick in case whatever's inside slips past.

"Here we go," Morten whispers, and slides his card through the reader beside the door. There's a small chirp and a click as the door unlocks, and the captain pushes it open.

The man who rushes through the door out of the darkness is like something from a nightmare; his fists are raw and bloody from beating on the inside of the bridge door, and shards of broken glass are embedded in his face and one of his eye sockets. He roars as he lunges toward the person nearest him—Morten.

Before anyone else can even react, a deafening boom echoes down the corridor and the infected man is suddenly thrown backwards, back inside the bridge. As his body hits the floor, everyone clustered around the doorway can see that the man's head has been (relatively) cleanly blown away.

"Excellent shot, Mr. Smith," Schultz whispers, a smile in his voice. The corridor is filled with the smell of cordite.

John takes point, stepping into the dark bridge and over the infected man's corpse. There's a brief, tense silence before he calls back out: "It's clear."

As Harmon, Speck, Brenda and Jamie enter the bridge, Maxwell notices that Morten has sunk to the floor, his face pale. Anna quickly steps over, kneeling beside him and putting a hand on his shoulder while quietly speaking to him in Norwegian. Maxwell feels a tap on his shoulder and turns to see the tiny Hispanic maid—Yolanda—offering him a pistol.

"The captain dropped it," she explains, placing it in Maxwell's hand, "and I don't know how to use it."

Maxwell and Yolanda follow the others inside the bridge, with Ese and Lurch dragging the unconscious bloody woman close behind.

---

Spoiler

Crappy map time again, everyone! The green lines are doors, and the blue line is a large plate-glass wall.

The bridge is a low-ceilinged room, narrow as you first enter, then widening into a large lobby area (#1), which is designed for passengers who want to see how the cruise ship operates.

Looking through the wall of plate glass in front of you, you can see the main control area (#2): a long, arc-shaped room with the pilot seats and control panels in the center.

Connecting the lobby and the main control area is a small, brightly-lit hallway (#3). Normally the hallway is locked and only able to be opened with an officer's key card, but both doors are at the moment thrown open.

Past the outward-slanting windows of the main control area is the officers' deck (#4), an open-air platform that wraps all the way around the front area of the bridge.

Captain Rendahl's office is through the main control area to the right (#5).

---

STEVE & TAL

As the four of you rush down the stairs, Tal suddenly realizes that he can't move or feel his right hand whatsoever—perhaps a blessing, giving its mangled state. Whether it's nerve damage or something else entirely, whatever that infected woman did, it must have been serious.

The group pauses to listen near the bottom of the stairs. Tal can hear nothing, but the red-haired woman apparently does. "There are some of them down there, I think," she whispers. She has a cultured English accent. "But they're still a good distance away. They … they might have heard us screaming." Her cheeks redden.

You all exit down onto Deck 11 and immediately round the corner. Tal throws open the door to the Living Room—

Spoiler

Dodge: (3d6)[6]

—and narrowly avoids being brained by Pete, who was keeping guard near the door.

"Tal! Holy ****! Sorry!" he cries, dropping the broken table leg he was holding. Danielle and the two kids rush into the room at the noise, eyes widening as they see Tal's arms and chest covered in the infected woman's blood, and the tablecloth wrapped around his hand that's soaked in his own blood.

"Your hand …" Adam gulps, growing pale.

Tal and Steve quickly explain the situation to the Carvers, stressing that they're very short on time. In a matter of moments everyone is rushing together down the secondary stairwell, which is now full of echoing screams from below.

Steve lifts the fire door blocking the way, allowing everyone to pass under it before stepping through himself; it lowers again behind him.

When you finally arrive at the door to the bridge, you see that the others have already managed to get it open. Morten is sitting in the corridor directly outside it, with Anna kneeling next to him and murmuring something to him in a soothing voice.

Pete and Danielle usher their kids inside. Before either of you can follow them, the red-haired woman lays her hands simultaneously on both Steve and Tal's forearms. Up close, it's quite clear that she's blind—her hazel eyes stare blankly ahead, unseeing.

"Thank you for saving us earlier," she says, and then turns to address the black man. "And thank you for leading me. I'm Sarah."

"Owen," the black man says, his voice almost bored-sounding. He glances at Tal, his eyes flickering momentarily to the injured hand. There's a small note of smug satisfaction in his voice when he says, "Doesn't look like you'll be playing guitar for a while, huh?"

Spoiler

Equipment-wise, the only change is that Maxwell now has Morten's gun.

Steve, Tal, Anna, Morten, Owen and Sarah are in the corridor directly outside the bridge, while everyone else is inside.

If everyone accepts it, the group now consists of:
- Ese
- Maxwell
- Steve
- Tal
- Anna
- Lurch
- Morten
- Yolanda
- Brenda
- Jamie
- John
- Owen
- Sarah
- Harmon
- Speck
- Adam
- Danielle
- Emma
- Pete
- the unconscious bloody woman

[dekova]

Owen: "Doesn't look like you'll be playing guitar for a while, huh?"

Steve turns to Owen at that last and says plainly: "Sir, he just traded his hand for your life, a decent man would be more grateful."

Steve holds Owens gaze for a moment then turns to the Captain. "We still need to get Rebecca, Sir. Can we call her from here?"

[Inglenook]

STEVE

Owen's stares at you coldly, leaving to join the others inside the bridge.

At your question, Morten looks up at you, his eyes red and his face drawn. "Yes, the intercom system is in the main control panel, and there's also a line in my office. You can broadcast to anywhere in the ship."

[dekova]

"Terry, can you please give Rebecca a call and make sure she's not freaking out? I want to help Dr. Holm look everyone over, starting with Mr. Faulkner."

Steve ushers the others into the bridge, locks the door and then heads for the damage control locker to grab the other first-aid kit.

"Captain, Sir... it may be worth trying the satellite link one more time before the backup radio. Whoever you talk to, have them send the army AND the CDC."

Spoiler

A couple book-keeping items that I don't want to clutter the IC dialog with.

1. Steve returns the lighter and one unlit (and hopefully unbroken, unbloody) cigarette.
2. Steve is getting the other first-aid kit from the damage control locker in the bridge.
3. Steve is a bit paranoid and will be keeping the axe near him at all times. Leaning it against something and in arm's reach while he's looking everyone over.
4. The door to the bridge is assumed to be closed and locked now.
5. The "looking people over" that he and the good doctor are doing will include a thorough washing off of blood and cleaning of wounds if there's a sink with soap on the bridge (captain's bathroom maybe?).
6. The looking people over that he's doing will also include checking for fever, dilated eyes, crazy heart rate... stuff he's thinking could be an indication of infection.
7. The above statement that Steve made regarding the radio assumes he still doesn't know that the world is in the crapper.

[Stegyre]

Tal holds his injured hand out for the doctor's cleaning and treatment. "It's numb," he tells her. "I don't know if that's from shock or from infection. I guess we need to assume I may be infected and keep an eye on me, in case I start 'acting out.' I'll keep you posted on what I'm feeling. It may be useful. I wonder how well the infected can think, and if they can recover."

He lies down in the hallway, with his arm elevated to reduce bloodflow to the area.

Spoiler

Unless, of course, Dr. Anna advises otherwise.

"So, Sarah, tell me about yourself. Maybe you can use that excellent hearing of your to help the good doctor - monitor me - for any changes."

[xen0phile]

Ese starts to unconsciously finger the rosary again, a combination of nervousness and nicotine craving. "Hey. I heard some of those things behind the firedoor. Lurch, tell the lady I am going to meet her in the engine room. I want to make sure she is safe coming here."

Ese places his bag and crowbar on the floor of the lobby. To Steve he asks, "Could I use that axe? Pues, more damage than that," motioning to his crowbar.

[dekova]

Ese: "Could I use that axe?"

"Sure, I'll grab another one from the locker. But if you're going to get Rebecca, I'm going to come with you."

Steve then addresses Dr. Holm. "That is if you can spare me Ma'am."

Spoiler

Sheesh. Steve can't keep himself behind a locked door for more than five minutes it seems.

I really don't want to take off again just yet, but if Ese's going, Steve's going.

And if they're going, from the locker he'll grab another axe and then the flash suit jackets, gloves, pants and hardhats if he thinks they might afford him and Ese some protection (i.e. DR of 1 or more).

If he can find a one-handed axe or a hammer (equivalent to small mace) in the toolbox, he'll take that over the two-handed axe.

[xen0phile]

Spoiler

Ese realizes it might be good to arm Rebecca once they reach her; he grabs the wrench out of the bag. (I assume there is some convenient way for him to store the wrench on his person; either some sort of loop on the jumpsuit itself that is tough enough to carry tools; or a belt--if not, he'll just carry the bag).

Also, yes, I am fine with all of us combining into one big party

[Stegyre]

"Call us when you get there," Tal asks them. "I will talk with the captain about how to work the intercom and how we might lure the infected down where they can be secured."

He moves over to Captain Morten to see how the man is doing. "Captain, can you show me how to work the intercom system and how to turn different sections 'on' or 'off'? We'll be better off once we give those people some place else they'd rather go."

[dekova]

Steve nods. "Yeah... and probably a good idea if we take a radio with."