Name of Event: VARLE Drive Test
One Sentence Description: Testing of a new type of Faster-Than-Light jump drive goes horribly wrong when the station and her crew are transported hundreds of years into our dead system's future. Inspired by the 'IXION' videogame's storyline (will contain minor spoilers!)
Map Changes: No
Code Changes: No
Suggested Number of Players: Atleast 30 crew, and 5 or 6 ghosts.
Full Description of Event:
Start of Shift:
Once everyone is setup, kitted with all their standard stuff, a CC announcement (CC#1) (see bottom of thread for all CC announcements) stating that the station's goal has been changed to construct and test 'VARLE Drive' - a brand new type of Faster-than-Light warp drive capable of moving even the largest of stations and ships anywhere in the galaxy within minutes. The AI should also be set to Station Efficency lawset.
VARLE Drive:
The engineering department will construct the VARLE Drive (which will be a SMES but resprited to look like the gravity generator and renamed to 'VARLE Drive'. If you can edit descriptions, it should read 'A Prototype VARLE Drive designed by Nanotrasen to move large stations across the galaxy').
The engineering department should fully charge the resprited SMES, and have the output set to 0, once this is done, another CC announcement (CC#2) stating that final checks are being run, wait around 5 minutes, then another CC announcement (CC#3) will be sent, stating they are remotely starting the VARLE Drive, and all crew should brace
VARLE Jump:
As soon as the previous CC announcement is sent, all crew should be either slept, or knocked down and flashed immediatley, the VARLE Drive exploded, and then all station lights will go out. An 'automated' station announcement (CC#4) will be sent, stating that there are discrenpencies between expected time and current time, and that they are receiving no communications signals from anyone. The cargo shuttle should be deleted, however mining and labour shuttles will be useable - The station is now on its own.
Post-Jump:
From here on, chaos starts to slowly seep in, with the crew realising that all of their family and loved ones are now dead a few hundred years into the past. Cargo Technicians, becomming useless due to being unable to receive shipments from the NAS Trurl, are the first to break, receiving objectives to incite protest against the Captain's leadership, and perform minor acts of sabotage (breaking windows, hacking open doors, making the place a mess, etc). From here on, there are 3 paths/endings to this event, which I will detail now:
Ending 1 (A New Chapter):
This ending is most inspired by the IXION videogame's ending.
A while after the cargo techs go rogue, 'automated' station announcement sends another announcement (E1#1), stating that there is a ship, unmanned but with fully active and automated defences, it is protecting lavaland, and will attempt to destroy the station if any attempt is made to move all crew there. It will also state that there is a solution - Ramming the station into the ship, whilst simultaneusly evacuating the crew to lavaland.
Remember that the AI should be on the station efficiency lawset, and upon hearing this automated announcement, will be malf'd, and given objectives to prevent the station's destruction through any means necessary, even if that means murder. The AI will be given strict rules NOT to use the doomsday device, however the borging machine is permitted. It will also not be permitted to plasmaflood, as that destroys the station. When the AI is killed, the station will send another automated announcement (E1#2), stating that the nuke has been armed, and that the station is headed for a collision course with the automated ship, all crew are to evacute to lavaland immediatley. Once the nuke detonates, the round will end.
Ending 2 (Trans-Solar Federation):
Provided the cargo techs are arrested or do little damage, another 'automated' station announcement will be sent (E2#1), which is written as a distress signal sent across the stars. After about 10 minutes, a response will be received by a Trans-Solar Federation Vessel (E2#2), explaining that the Cyberiad/Kerberos/Cereberon disapeered ages ago, but they are sending a crew to investigate onboard a shuttle.
The shuttle they send will be the emergency shuttle, with a group of TSF Marines onboard, the shuttle will arrive at the station, and its departure will be delayed by admins, the TSF Marines will evacuate the crew onto the shuttle, once a good proportion of crew are on the shuttle, it will leave, upon arrival at its destination, the round will end.
Ending 3 (Change of Command):
If the rogue cargo techs have done enough damage, or convinced the crew, and are not all arrested, they will be converted into Revolutionary Heads, given one flash each, and tasked to kill all of command, security, and the AI, not just command as a normal revolution would have. Once all command, security, and the AI are dead, the round will end.
All CC & automated announcements:
CC#1:
Central Command Announcement
VARLE Drive
Attention NSS Cyberiad/Kerberos/Cerebron
As you may have seen in the news recently, the NSS Tartarus has discoverred and invented a new type of FTL travel - the VARLE Drive.
This is a device capable of moving ships and stations of incredibly size across the far reaches of the galaxy in an instant, and your station will be the first to test it.
The specifics have been sent to the Chief Engineer, who will be in charge of constructing this device - it is rather simple, and needs a room roughly the size of the gravity generator. Once it is built, it must be fully charged, and its output set to 0kw.
We do not expect this to take long. Good luck, Cyberiad/Kerberos/Cerebron.
CC#2:
Central Command Announcement
VARLE Drive Final Checks
We are now running our final diagnostic scans to make sure everything is in order.
This should take about 5 minutes. All staff are to remain on station, including miners and explorers, until the jump sequence has completed.
CC#3:
Central Command Announcement
VARLE Drive Activation
We are remotely activating the VARLE Drive now. All crew MUST Brace for jump.
Know that the future of bluespace travel rests in your hands, and we could not ask for a more skilled station to do this for us.
Godspeed.
CC#3:
Automated Station Announcement
ER#ORS DET£C7ED
Caution! Severe time dilation discrepancy detected. Calculated error: 253 years from planned arrival date.
Caution! No communications traffic detected.
Caution! No transponder signals detected.
Caution! VARLE Drive missing.
Immediate issues need addressing: Severe hull failure, Severe lighting failure, Severe chronological failure.
Estimated chance of life in system: 7.67%
E1#1:
Automated Station Announcement
ELECTRONIC SIGNAL DETECTED
Caution! Hera-class Battlecruiser; "Hermes" detected. 0 Life signs detected. Defence status: Fully operational.
Unable to evacuate station crew to planet: Ligures. Reason: Hera-class Battlecruiser; "Hermes".
Recommended course of action: Set course for Hera-class Battlecruiser; "Hermes", arm the onboard nuclear device, evacuate crew via mining transport shuttles.
E1#2:
Automated Station Announcement
COLLISION COURSE DETECTED
Caution! Collision course with identified vessel detected!
Estimated survival rate upon impact: #ERR_DLTA%.
E2#1
Automated Station Announcement
DISTRESS BEACON ACTIVATED
Attention all vessels!
NSS Cyberiad/Kerberos/Cerebron declaring MAYDAY.
As per protocal ZULU-37 of the intergalactic maritime code, all vessels are to immediatley respond.
E2#2
SGV Centaurus
Distress Signal Received
Attention NSS Cyberiad/Kereberos/Cerebron: Your distress signal has been received by the SGV Centaurus.
Please note: Your station disapeered over 250 years ago, after its VARLE Drive's cybersecurity was breached by the Syndicate, causing it to rip through a moon sized asteroid, shattering it, sending debris everywhere, making the system entirely uninhabitable, even for stations. For you to suddenly appear out of thin air is either a miracle, or bait - if there are any of you left.
We will be sending a squad of marines, along with a shuttle, to evacuate any of you who managed to survive such an ordeal.
Godspeed.
That's all. If you have any questions, ask. I'm more active on discord, though (xLouise#0386)