[DeadPigeonGolem]

Source: http://th04.deviantart.net/fs5/PRE/i/20 ... _AP123.jpg

Thespis.

A gas giant similar to the image. Though it lacks the HALO Installation.

Normally, Gas Giants aren't of much use to the UNSC. Unusually, this particular Gas Giant happens to have rings of frozen gases, generic rock, iron...

..and Unobtanium. They don't really have a name for it yet. It is, however, very useful. For one thing, it's extremely dense, where a kinetic energy penetrator two feet in diameter and eight feet long weighs as much as the current KEP used by the UNSC, allowing UNSC ships to carry more rounds of equal, if not greater destructive potential. For another, it's semi-fissile and a good insulator, meaning that it acts much like depleted uranium upon impact and can be packed with high explosive or nuclear payloads. And, of course, Unobtanium conducts electricity well. It's a very experimental weapon at the moment, but initial MAC tests are promising. Unobtanium also has potential as a heat shield for Plasma Torpedoes, but it'll be another few years before the Sangheili, with Human engineers, can figure out how to fire a shell out of a plasma weapon.

Thespis is also the site of a moderately sized human colony, Areia, constructed out of two freighters welded together at the main cargo doors attached to a fairly large docking ring for civilian vessels. The colony is part of the debris ring surrounding Thespis and is the primary supplier of Unobtanium from the area. Lately, Areia has transformed into a small fortress, studded with point defense weapons as a Brute fleet of two CCS Class Battlecruisers, escorted by two Destroyers and six Frigates each, a fleet of 18 ships entered the system, dropping into orbit around Meris, the planet on the next orbital out from the system's sun.

At 0711 hours, a wide-beam distress call was broadcast from Areia. As the nearest fleet, the Fleet of Unstimulating Irony has been ordered to deploy in a search and assist mission. While the intent to drive off the Brute fleet earlier was created, the Brute fleet was also half dead when it entered the system. As such, the Fleet of Unstimulating Irony was supposed to be reinforced by the Fleet of Principled Justice and restocked with supplies. As it is, the Fleet is to jump immediately and scramble for immediate defense of the colony.

UNSC HIGHCOM has given us two objectives. Our first and primary objective is to secure and defend the colony until reinforcements come or the enemy fleet is destroyed or retreats. Our second objective is to defend the Unobtanium mines and refineries. There are three primary mines and two large refineries. While there are hundreds of mines scattered around the debris ring with associated refineries. These can be easily sabotaged or defended by no more than a platoon for the smallest mines and no more then a regiment for the three primary mines and two large refineries.

The Fleet of Unstimulating Irony will deploy in a Reverse Echelon formation, with the Spontaneous Valor leading in the center. Squadron 1 will form up with the Spontaneous Valor while Squadrons 2 and 3 will flank us. Squadron 4 will hold in the rear and in reserve. The First Division of Infinite Wisdom will deploy with the 507th Helljumper Division as a first response assault wave to secure the colony and its immediate vicinity of processing facilities. The Second Division of Unstoppable Reason and the 22nd Marine Division will deploy with the Second Division of Unstoppable Reason. will deploy across the Thespis orbital ring to disable as many small to medium sized mines as possible. If there is time, your secondary objective is to secure as much Unobtanium as can be loaded onto the Phantoms.

We will be jumping in thirty minutes and arriving at Thespis ten minutes afterward. All units should complete final checks of their gear and weaponry before moving to the hangers of their respective ships and preparing for deployment.

[DeadPigeonGolem]

Weaponry:
No restrictions for small arms.
Allied races cannot use spike grenades before encountering Brutes in battle and looting their corpses.
Special weaponry (missile launchers, energy swords, fuel rod guns) require justification in the bio.
Heavy weaponry (Plasma cannons, Heavy Machine guns) cannot be used unless you are a Spartan. Elites need special justification regarding to the criticallity of their deploying with a heavy weapon.

Gear:
Marines and ODST may not have energy shields.
Nobody may not deploy with ad hoc weaponry UNLESS you can convince me it can easily be done without going into ridiculous logic (sorry Eltharrion, but that massive and convoluted discussion about Rec was... bad.)
Non-standard armor requires justification (ie: If you don't need to have Explosive Ordinance Disposal Armor, you can't write it into your bio).

Playable races:
Allied Races:
Grunt
Human
Elite
Covenant Races:
Brute
Grunt
Jackal

Allied Races may play as part of either the Fleet or the Garrison. Covenant Races may only play as Invaders.

Special Abilities:
Special Abilities need to be written in the profile and fit the profile. For example, a Marine Sharpshooter can have ability "Steady Shot", but it doesn't make sense for said sharpshooter to have "Fuel Rod Bombardment" as an ability. You can't just say: "The sharpshooter took heavy weapons school", because it doesn't make any sense for a sharpshooter to use heavy weapons in the course of their job.

Field Improvisation:
Feel free to make up weapons in the field, but make sure they are reasonable given the circumstances. For example, you cannot make a MAC Cannon out of a dumptruck and two barrels of whiskey. You CAN make an incendiary grenade out of whiskey and a rag, however.

Artillery Bombardment:
Will not happen. You CAN call in Banshees, Seraphs, or Longswords for air support. Phantoms and other turret equipped and Zero-G capable spacecraft can also provide supporting fire, but you can't call in a Hornet because it's not an exo-atmospheric vehicle.

Have fun!

[DeadPigeonGolem]

Eh. This is supposed to be the OOC, so you can do whatever whenever.

[Eltharrion]

...What, I can't replay as a bag of worms? *BLASPHEMY*

[DeadPigeonGolem]

EDITED:

After some further consideration (after sleeping on it for the last 50% of a year or so), Hunters would also be excessively powerful. In a CQB situation, it's both unrealistic and unfun if you can just station a hunter at a door and have them blast away with infinity ammo at the enemy. They CAN (and will) be deployed as supporting fire, but given the general dearth of hunters in comparison to the amount of reg-infantry, this may or may not happen for your particular scenario.

[DeadPigeonGolem]

Bumping topic to remind people of its existence AND to post Nay'ar.

-------

Name: Nay'ar Sera'fumai

Race: Sangheili



Rank: Fleet Master of the Fleet of Unstimulating Irony, Ship Master of the CCS Battlecruiser Spontaneous Valor. 



Equipment:
-1 set of Zealot-level Combat/Commando/Assault armor with associated electronics, shielding, and damage resistance
-1 Energy Sword
-1 Energy Shiv/Dagger/Thing
-1 8 plasma grenades (Assault body has extra equipment attachment points, but Nay’ar doesn’t carry anything other than the hilts of his blades, so the remainder is taken up by grenades) 

Combat Style: Close Quarters Combat/Grenade Spam

Combat skills:
-Speed, dexterity (agility), and strength typical of most Zealots. That is: terrifying. Endurance has faltered a bit, since he’s now becoming rather old, but still able to match a chieftain in hand-to-hand.
-Recently schooled in the art of fleet conflict, less than preferred experience in that field. Excellent tactics at the tactical (platoon to squad) level, higher then average strategic level (brigade and higher) tactics.
-Has entered and won the equivalent several Energy Sword fencing tournaments. Not official (that’d be a duel), but they closely resembled the martial arts competitions of humans.
-Calm and Collected when under fire
-Accurate and swift with the application of plasma-rifle fire to enemy skulls. Also accurate and swift with the application of plasma torpedo fire to enemy control-centers.

Non-combat Skills:
-Has lost the ability to be disconcerted by anything.
-Learned to cook at some point
-Able to work with humans effectively, often breaking down various barriers that prevent Sangheili/Human fraternization.
-Still finds a good prank to be endlessly hilarious
-Has forced himself to become more serious, since he’s now a sub-category of Sangheili nobility.

Personality:
While essentially the same Major of old, Nay’ar has since taken a level in serious business and, ruefully, must stop the pranks and giggles and maintain an atmosphere of decorum. In combat, he reverts to a low emotion personality suited for efficiency. Managing 10 ships in combat is surprisingly taxing on his mental faculties. 






Appearance:

Timezone: US Central Time

[DeadPigeonGolem]

Also: Changed the reason for restrictions of Hunters for PCs.

[Shamus]

For this campaign I was thinking of playing the grumpy Elite with the missing hand present in my campaign. In the final chain of events in my campaign he was using Rec's energy sword polearm. I was thinking he would continue to do so, with slight modification. (Removal of the knives on the end for example, because it's hard to do much twirling and crap with only one hand, making them more of a hinderance than a useful feature.)

However...

Elites, Marines, and ODST may not deploy with ad hoc weaponry

So my question to you is: Is there any leeway? This isn't exactly a high-tech unrealistic toy capable of fifteen different actions. It is a pre-existing weapon with a added handle, similar to the polearms already used by some Elites.

On the other hand, this particular Elite is not a swordsman, and the use of a weapon incorporating a energy sword may raise some eyebrows at the very least.


My main reason for wanting to do this is to build on a pre-existing character with some interesting traits. I could make a new Elite with similar traits and a "normal" polearm, but I like the idea of working with the original one I came up with and was modified by events in the campaign (you were the one that said he picked up and used Rec's polearm, actually).

[DeadPigeonGolem]

Well, it really depends. I've forgotten what that polearm amounted too, so you'll have to run it by me again, but the point is that you can't say "Look! An assault rifle/shotgun/rocket launcher that I made in the shop!!" That's just inviting disaster. I'm assuming that its inevitable that whoever comes up with that weapon will forget about physics at some point and accidentally incinerate his allies (rocket back-blast IRL = dangerously hot).

BUT, like I said, you can throw it into the profile and I'll review it and determine if its excessively ad-hoc.

[Shamus]

Unless I'm mistaken, in this case it amounts to exactly what I called it: An Energy Sword on a stick.

[Shamus]

What the hell is that?


Edit: I looked it up, no further questions...

[Shamus]

And hey, for the first two campaigns I wasn't an Elite. Sorry if my first thought for this one just happened to be an Elite. (I could bring back Coufu...)

[DeadPigeonGolem]

@Energy Polearm

Ah. Well. In that case, no.

On the one hand, if it's just a plasma blade attached to a stick, you'd need to trigger it somehow, and there's really no way to do that without two hands. Then you'd have to bypass the failsafe. You COULD attach a separate triggering mechanism, but at that point it makes more sense to just use an honor-guard pike, which probably won't happen because they're for honor guards. You could get it custom made, but I doubt this would fly with the general military. There's also the problem of using a polearm one handed, as most polearms are made for two hands.

What you might consider instead is a plasma-shanker gauntlet. While no elite in their right mind would use a prosthetic, an Assassin's Creed style energy-dagger like gauntlet wouldn't be terribly out of the range of honor. Particularly if said blade is used in hand-to-hand with a plasma rifle for mid/long range.

---

Duke, keep in mind that you are in a ridiculously easy target and do not have impervium alloy for a shield. Those mining machines are essentially hunters without the speed or mobility. On the other hand, they've got more armor over more places, so your HP should be higher, even though you have lowered Defense. Also, the 20mm autocannon fires on 5-round burst, and I'll also give you the option of the LAAG (the minigun on the back of the warthog) or the Gauss cannon. Keep in mind the following:

LAAG = High rate of fire, low (comparative) DP, low penetration
20mm autocannon = Low rate of fire, High (comparative) DP, low penetration (I'm restricting you to HE shells, since it's unspeakably unlikely that you'd have a ton of anti-armor shells lying around)
Gauss cannon = Medium rate of fire, medium (comparative) DP, Excessive penetration (2 shots for a Wraith!)

All those will still kill a brute with no more than 2 shots.

EDIT: ALSO

Reason why this is permissible: to swap a jackhammer, you literally take the bolts attaching to the frame off, then bolt the autocannon in. The power supply has been solved by having a shitload of MJOLNIR IV power cells in the back, so you just have to attach the ammo feed. However, this won't be infinite (you are using shells), so someone needs to bring him auto-cannon ammo regularly.

FURTHERMORE: The military won't have these things, so you'll have to play as a part of the mining colony's garrison. I don't remember if I made this possible, but it is. Sorry if I forgot....

[Shamus]

This particular Energy Polearm was already made by Rec, so we can assume he did bypass the safeguards and rig a trigger of sorts. As for use I was thinking like a spear, primarily thrusting, which shouldn't make much difference for an energy blade.

Still, I'm not all that attached to this character concept and we do have to finish the Tower RPG first, so there's plenty of time to come up with something else or bring back Coufu. I'm just playing Devil's Advocate for my first idea.

[DeadPigeonGolem]

You still need two hands for a spear. It's six bloody feet long, you can't use that effectively one handed. Also, Coufu doing a flying assassination ala Ezio Auditore? EPIC WIN.