"Mr. Smith, it's break time. I'm going to go back to my room for a bit. I'll be back shortly."
When I get back to my room, pray. Pray for that guy that showed up before to teach me what the @1 and @0 psionic skills are. Not just a vague description, the patterns to them, like what The Architect was showing us in B movie monster world. All 15 of them, or at least all the ones I do not have. Pray for that guy to give me the psionic skills. Starting with the lowest. I guess 2@1, whatever that is. The 7@7 communicate with Deity. Fully body involvement, pray for 20 minutes. Aloud but quietly. Give me every psionic skill that will work in a flatline world.
Multiple Posts
Assuming that the guy shows up again, ask for blatantly obvious clarification on what God meant when He said that "No one knows where the princes come from." All that in itself means is that the princesses had an arranged marriage. See Behind the Screens if you're not sure what I'm asking for here.
You seem to have confused two distinct requests--or at least, you have confused me with two distinct requests. You say first
Pray for that guy that showed up before to teach me what the @1 and @0 psionic skills are. Not just a vague description, the patterns to them,...which to me sounds like you are asking for someone to give you the skill patterns and teach you how to do the skills. Then, though, you say
Pray for that guy to give me the psionic skills. Starting with the lowest. I guess 2@1, whatever that is....Give me every psionic skill that will work in a flatline world.That sounds like you want these to be gifted, that you want the ability to do them magically inserted within you, so you know them without having to learn them.
Those are distinct things in my mind. Which do you mean?
Oh, and by the way--given a month, I could probably come up with at least a thousand psionic skills that would work in a flatlined bias. I can think of at least twenty variants of 1@1 Read Minds that have been used in games in the past couple years (read current thoughts, read memories, perfect memory by reading mind of self, find image in target mind, tap visual center, tap auditory center, tap language center, read dreams--well, I don't want to give away too many free ideas here). I think that if you want this guy to give you every psionic skill that is possible in a flatlined bias, either your head is going to be overloaded very quickly, or it's going to take a very long time to learn them all.
--M. J. Young
MJ, you misunderstood me. When I said 2@1, I meant the 2@1 bias skill. Not to have a 2@1 ability in it. I've got 1@1 mind reading, 4@1 TK pulse, what I want are the 2@1-15@1 skills. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you. However, if so, give me whichever way will give me the highest SAL with the least amount of energy expended on me. And yes, I'm sure there are thousands of variations of the psionic skills. Just give me the basics. Whatever that guy would consider the basic @1 psionic skills. Easiest and fastest way to learn them. If I'm to be preparing for a war, I better be able to heal myself and throw up a force field around myself and my friends.
And don't forget this:
Assuming that the guy shows up again, ask for blatantly obvious clarification on what God meant when He said that "No one knows where the princes come from." All that in itself means is that the princesses had an arranged marriage. See Behind the Screens if you're not sure what I'm asking for here.
I read your reply on Behind the Screens, and if that would in fact kill me, forget about it.
Multiple Posts
Do I feel any other scriff senses? I've been wondering ever since that guy showed up, where he came from. I was thinking that he's probably another verser, because why would an angel from God need to use psionic teleportation?
Hmmm...this is getting complicated in communication here. Let me point out the misunderstandings.
- The word "angel" means "messenger"; you asked a question, and a messenger was sent with an answer. At no point did the messenger indicate that he even understood the message--he was the delivery boy. That doesn't mean that he couldn't teach you. In theory, he might have psionic skills (not unknown for magical creatures, actually); further, being a messenger, he could bring instruction for how to do something he himself cannot do. However, it is a faulty assumption to think that because you asked God what was possible and someone appeared with a list of things that were possible, that someone can do any of them.
- It is also faulty to assume that he teleported psionically. Were it not for the low tech bias, you would have no way of knowing that he hadn't beamed down from the Enterprise or the Liberator or some other spaceship equipped with matter transmission. It is certainly possible that he arrived magically; it is possible even that he has a body skill of becoming non-corporeal or corporeal at will, and just stepped out of one dimension into another.
- I did not misunderstand your use of "2@1" in the statement above. I was unclear between two concepts, and failed adequately to convey my confusion. Let me try again.
- Someone could come along, like that messenger, or the Architect, and show you how to do each skill. You've experienced this before, and the Architect has even gone so far as to telepathically place a skill pattern in your mind so you could see how it is done. That's what I understand your request, "teach me what the...psionic skills are," to mean.
- Someone could show up, wave a magic wand over you, and insert within you the abilities to do a long list of skills. You would never have to learn them, or roll to learn them, you would just know them, know how to do them. Think of it as the difference between being given a Berlitz book to learn a foreign language versus receiving the gifts of tongues and interpretation--in the former case you have the tools needed to learn to do what you want, while in the latter case you never had to learn anything, but just had it zapped into you.
I think you meant the first of these, but since your language later in the statement could be taken to mean the second, I thought I'd better ask. I don't yet know whether that guy will show up, but part of that depends on what it is you're expecting him to do, since those are very different prayer requests.
And I have not yet addressed the part of whether he can answer that other question because I have to get past this one first.
No, when you relax you sense only your own equipment. I'm not sure whether you relaxed when that person was in your room, however, so I can't say whether you would have sensed him as a verser or not at that moment. If he is a verser, he must now be out of range, wherever that would put him.
--M. J. Young
MJ Wrote:
Someone could show up, wave a magic wand over you, and insert within you the abilities to do a long list of skills. You would never have to learn them, or roll to learn them, you would just know them, know how to do them. Think of it as the difference between being given a Berlitz book to learn a foreign language versus receiving the gifts of tongues and interpretation--in the former case you have the tools needed to learn to do what you want, while in the latter case you never had to learn anything, but just had it zapped into you.
This is what I want. Any time I can learn something without having to roll (Rolls can botch) then do it this way. If no roll, no botch is possible. If I can just learn them that way, then that's the way to do it. All of the @1 psionic skills. Wave a magic wand and give them to me.
Note to self: How much does Mr. Smith charge to make an animal snap-trap?
Oh--it wouldn't be without a roll. After all, waving a magic wand is also a skill. It just wouldn't be your roll that mattered.
You kneel and pray for twenty minutes, and the man you saw before suddenly reappears, sitting on the bed.
"You asked for me," he said, "and I have come. I am a messenger; I carry messages and can answer some questions. I cannot do what you wish; it is not within my power. You will have to summon someone else. However, I can answer your questions, to some degree. What do you wish to know?"
You ask about what God meant when he said no one knows where the princes come from.
"The princes are demons. It has been their plan to magically bewitch and seduce the princesses, marry them, then kill the king and the princesses so that they will be the lawful rulers of this kingdom. They will then use the people of this kingdom to attempt to conquer the rest of the world. They are very magical and evil beings; however, God will not interfere with the laws of men, and cannot oppose them as long as they remain within those laws. You, however, are not so bound, and can take whatever action you wish. They can kill you, but you will not be dead. No one else in this kingdom can say that of himself. In that sense, you are unique, and the only person in this world who can do what must be done."
What other questions do you have?
--M. J. Young
"What must be done to stop it?"
"Who can I summon to teach me the psionic skills? I'm sure to need those. Also, can the skills be learned at a higher level than amateur? I'll be sure to need them as high as possible."
"You will have to expose them for what they are. Abishaw, one of the servants, has a magic cloak which makes the wearer invisible, and which also enables the wearer to see truly through magical disguises; if you can get it from him, you will be able to see the demons in their true forms, and show these forms to the other. However, Cathcart has already married Margaret, and so he will have to be destroyed to break his claim on the throne--and you must prevent Nerene from marrying Dicalus, or he, too, will have such a claim."
"I can explain to you what mind tricks are possible and how to do them; but I cannot do them myself, and I cannot grant you the ability to do them. If you wish to have someone grant you the abilities, you need a miracle worker of some sort; if you simply want someone who can show them to you, you need a someone endowed with those abilities. I am not certain what it is you want.
"All things are possible; but what you ask is rare and difficult. It would be easier to learn the abilities you want to know, and gain the power to increase them temporarily; permanent increases in the use of mental power--think of it like this: a miracle could give you the strength of Samson while you slept, but when you awoke it would take you a long time to understand how to use it without hurting yourself. In the same way, your ability with mental powers is about how much experience you have had using it. Giving you experience is not so easy a thing, although it is not impossible.
"You would do better, in this world, to use supernatural power; it is easy to get prayers answered here. However, you would rather use your own power, and that might be why you were chosen."
--M. J. Young
Is he still there? Can I talk to him some more? Since you didn't say he left, I'm going to assume so.
"No, you misunderstand. I'm sure to need both powers. God's and my own. A melding of the two. Praying and bullets can both change governments, but bullets often change them faster. With all due respect, praying takes too long. In the 10 minutes I spend praying, I would be sure to find a sword in my back. If I prayed under the protection of a psionic force shield though, it might work a bit better. If God could endow me with the psionic powers, I would have that with lightning speed, and God's greater power at a more subtle and slow rate. If you cannot give me these powers, who might I summon that can?"
Clarification for MJ: I want the quickest, easiest way to gain all of the @1 psionic powers, preferably a way which is botch-resistant, which gives them to me at the highest possible level. And how can you say "This is difficult but not impossible"? This is God we are talking about here. What would be difficult for God to do? God could snap His fingers and give me 3@10 in every psionic skill in the rulebook. How could this be difficult for God? That's like saying God doesn't know how to make dirt. You're the one that knows which way would be quick, easy, and botch resistant. That's the way I want it. Whichever way that is.
And yes, I know this might sound kind of curt. However, I must not have made myself clear yet. This way it should be crystal clear now.
Ya know, now that I think about it, that's exactly what I want. I want God to snap His fingers and give me 3@10 in every @1 psionic skill. Hey, it's quick, easy, and botch proof!!!!!!!!
Multiple Posts
"Archangel Michael, general of the armies of God. Can he be of assistance? Might I summon him to learn the ways of Heavenly combat? Might he come with me on this quest? God cannot do anything, but could one of His knights? Can these demons be hurt by bullets or crossbow darts? Maybe silver-tipped crossbow darts?"
Note to self: Music... Can that be a "spell"? I'm sure some of the Petra you are so fond of would be effective as a weapon against a demon. "No weapon formed against us shall prosper, all those who rise up against us shall fall. I will not fear what the Devil may bring me, I am a servant of God." That seems like it could have an effect on them. If nothing else, my singing might scare the bejesus out of them.... In fact, that's perfect. That's the whole song. Chanting that line over and over. I can do that!!!!!!!!!!!
Two posts, don't forget.
Yes, actually, if memory serves you have about half an hour to converse with him. I am, of course, estimating how long it takes to ask and answer these questions, but so far you're only about ten minutes into it (with this post).
"Ah, I see. Yes, I can see why you believe your own powers to be swifter. You've not yet learned enough about magic and prayer to know what can be done quickly, and what should be done in preparation for battle instead of in the midst of battle. You could, of course, create a force shield with your mind, but then you would be concentrating on the force shield and would be unable to use your mind for other abilities. On the other hand, you could pray as you enter the battlefield for God's protection, and then that protection would remain for a while, as strong as any mental shield, while you prayed for something else.
"If you wish for God Himself to give you these abilities, you must bring your request to God Himself; and I would counsel you to be specific, to pray for what it is you wish to be able to do, describing the powers individually; and I would counsel you to put as much into this prayer as you have ever prayed before, and then do that again, for the thing you want is not easy. God does not break His own rules, and He does not take an unfair advantage. If He does this for you, He must allow His enemies to do it for their supporters as well, and it must not be harder for them than it is for Him. You might be asking that God make your enemies much more powerful than they are.
"If you wish for someone who can empower you, there are spirits who can do this, spirits who are good and allied with God, but who are not His servants in the same way that I am His servant, nor in the same way that you are His servant, which is different yet again. You could summon a powerful Spirit of the Air, such as Magdi, Caliph of the West Wind, who has been given dominion over some of the winds in this world and who as a ruler of the djinn has great power. You will have to discuss with him what he would expect in exchange for so great a task. It is not within the province of messengers to grant such powers, so none of my companions can do so.
"You can call for God's archangels, the warriors of heaven, to fight with you. I would counsel you not to mention Michael by name, but to ask for an archangel to fight with you. Such cannot empower you, either, but they can fight alongside you.
"Yes, music is a form of prayer, and can be used to release the power of heaven.
"No, demons are not immune to bullets, but they are highly resistant to such attacks, and to most things. Your best weapon is to find a way to break their disguises and reveal them for what they are. Now they control by deceit, and so they have many cooperating with their objectives. Uncover them and they will have to control by fear and force. However, you will have to destroy Cathcart, for Margaret is a princess raised to keep her honor and her word, and while he lives she will respect him as her husband no matter what she learns about him. You also must have no illusions--it may be a grateful nation that thanks you for defeating them, but you will have raised your weapon against a prince of the realm, and I cannot promise that this will be overlooked entirely. They can resist fire and heat most effectively, and are strong against gases, poisons, and magic. They also have significant protection against chemicals such as acids, cutting and piercing weapons, blunt weapons, and even to some degree electrical attacks. What that leaves is difficult to know, but you are a man of many talents, and you might have ways of battling them they would not anticipate."
--M. J. Young
"How would I reveal them for what they truly are? You mentioned a magical cloak, how would I obtain that? Are there any other ways to reveal them? Would holy water be effective against them? I know it's not the water in itself, but the faith of the person wielding it. It does not take a priest to make holy water. Anyone of faith can do it. (Is it too late to add my Super Soaker to my equipment sheet??? Kidding) If I asked for a blessing on the bullets and the weapon before I fired, would that have a greater effect? Would ANYTHING improve the effectiveness of my weapons? Who can I tell of this, as far as the people of this land? Mr. Smith is a man of faith, and is incredibly strong physically. I don't want to risk his life, but could he be of assistance? Could ANYONE here be of assistance? Can I call upon the Lord Jesus Christ? 'In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I command the evil to leave this place, never to return.' Is a prayer I pray when I am feeling the presence of evil. Might that have effect against them? You're a messenger, could you deliver a message back to God for me? Tell Him that I need help, and the warriors of Heaven to assist? And how would I destroy Cathcart?"
"All of those things are possible.
"Your best bet would be to dispel the illusion itself, to counter their magic with God's power, so that everyone can see them for what they are. It will be most difficult with the princesses, for the demons have spent over a year working their charms.
"Abishaw and Babbareth are not at all clever; you could easily trick them one way or another. You might get the cloak that way. The cloak is limited by its small size and the need for people to wear it to be able to see--not to mention that it makes the wearer invisible, which is bound to be noticed before long.
"Undoubtedly anyone you could recruit to your aid would be of assistance; the question is, how do you persuade them of the danger without losing them to fear?
"As to how you would destroy Cathcart, that is for you to determine. However, I am certain that God would send help if you asked, just as He sent me in response to your prayer."
You have about five minutes left.
--M. J. Young
"Well, thanks." I say, holding out my hand to shake. "I'll see what I can do."
I then dismiss him, and kneel to pray again.
I pray "God, bless these weapons. Give them the power to harm and kill a demon. Bless the ammunition, that it may fire true and straight, and be damaging to a servant of Satan." I would ask God to bless all of my weapons. Knives, crossbow, guns, all of it.
"God, bring me a warrior, a soldier, a knight. Someone with the power to defeat these demons." I would pray for 10 minutes. That's 10 minutes for both prayers total.
Barely has the angel touched your hand but he vanishes.
Can you give me a list of exactly what weapons you wish to bless in this manner? I'll need to consider what you're attempting before I determine the outcome.
Assuming that you survive that, though, your other prayer leads to the assurance that God will provide for you, although no one appears in your room at this time.
--M. J. Young
When I said all the weapons, I meant exactly what I said. The Kabar knife, my survival knife, the 22 rifle, the MAK 90, the 9mm pistol, the crossbow, and all of the ammunition and arrows. I meant exactly what I said. Ah yes, it's easier for me to tell you than for you to look at the equipment sheet. I totally understand.
Multiple posts
What exactly does "the assurance that God will provide for you" mean? How would I know? I would know because God just told me.
It was also important for me to distinguish whether you were covering all three types of "weapons" in your possession, or blanketing everything. That is, the knives are weapons which could be bonused in a variety of ways, because they are complete in themselves. The guns and bows, by contrast, could be bonused in any of several ways themselves, or the arrows and ammunition could be bonused in any of several ways, or you could bonus both to work together. Of course, the more objects you are blessing, the greater the power you're unleashing, and the more difficult it will be.
Thus I perceive that you are attempting to bless with this prayer:
- 14" Hunting Knife
- Marlin .22 caliber rifle
- 2000 .22 caliber bullets
- Ruger P-99 9mm pistol
- 250 9mm bullets
- 1000 9mm bullets 90 9mm bullets (in six spare magazines)
- 3000 .22 caliber bullets
- MAK 90 automatic rifle
- Bayonet for MAK 90
- 5000 MAK 90 bullets
- 300 MAK 90 bullets in 10 magazines
- 12" KABAR knife
- Crossbow, which is missing from my list so if you have any stats on that please post them
- 20 steel quarrels 200 wooden quarrels
If my numbers are wrong, please address them. Thanks.
What "the assurance that God will provide" means is that you know the prayer has been answered (affirmatively) even though you don't see anyone in the bedroom with you. You don't yet know how it has been answered. It is within the realm of possibility that you are now being shadowed by an invisible silent warrior waiting to strike against a demon when given the opportunity. It might simply be that the warrior will arrive when you actually need him.
--M. J. Young
MJ, you seem to have an older sheet. I lost a great deal of my gear when I versed into this world. I'll post my equipment sheet as Kyler put it down, and you can update your files.
4 gold, 1 oz each
12 pounds
18 crown 4 oz each
2 half crowns 2 oz each
65 shillings, 1/2 oz each
116 pence 1/2 oz each
10 silver 1 oz each
3 sets clothes
lever & latch crossbow T3@1 8 pounds
150 wooden arrows 15 pounds
20 metal arrows 10 pounds
Straight Razor
Arrow quiver 1/2 pound
1 school backpack weight 1 pound
1 school duffle bag weight 1 pound
1 luggage style duffle bag, weight 1 pound
1 14 inch hunting knife, black nylon sheath with 2 carrying pouches. Inside one pouch is a Leatherman multi-tool, (pliers, 3 flathead screwdrivers, 1 Phillips screwdriver, blade, can opener, two-sided file and awl punch) 12 sewing needles and 3 small spools of thread. The other pouch contains a magnesium fire starting tool, 1 BIC cigarette lighter, fishing line, fishing sinkers and several fishhooks. Wrapped around the knife sheath is 15 feet of high-tensile black nylon cord. total weight approximately 4 pounds
1 tool box, containing complete ratchet set, 2 ratchets, 12 screwdrivers, 2 pair of regular pliers, 2 pairs needle-nose pliers, 1 pair vice grips, 1 soldering iron, 1 solder removal tool, 1 roll of solder, 2 pairs wire cutters, 2 crescent wrenches, 1 hatchet, 1 claw hammer, 1 box of 3 inch nails, 2 rolls duct tape, 1 utility knife with 4 changeable razor blades, leather work gloves, a complete set of Allen wrenches, 2-AA battery flashlight, voltmeter, and wood saw. weight, approximately 25 pounds.
100 feet high tensile white nylon cord, weight 1 pound
1 21 speed all-terrain mountain bicycle, with security chain and combination lock, weight approximately 15 pounds
1 complete first-aid kit weight 1 pound has tweezers, over 100 band-aids, several gauze pads, an instant ice pack, surgical tape, rubber gloves, instruction book
1 dynamo flashlight (shake it to charge, no batteries needed) weigh 1/2 pound
1 dynamo radio (crank to charge, no batteries needed) and black nylon carrying case with strap. radio receives AM, FM, audio to TV frequencies 2-13, 7 weather bands. It is equipped with an LED flashlight, siren, and hazard signal flasher. It can also be used to charge a cell phone battery weight 1 pound
1 Marlin 22 caliber rifle, 18 round capacity, 2,000 rounds 22 ammunition. total weight, approximately 10 pounds
1 can opener weight approximately 1/2 pound heavy duty crank type
1 aluminum baseball bat, weight approximately 1 pound
Misc. clothing, jeans, tee shirts, 1 heavy winter coat, 2 camouflage army jackets, socks, etc. total weight approximately 30 pounds
black jeans and red tee shirt, black leather belt, socks, black military combat boots, carrying leather billfold and house keys
Ruger P-99 pistol 15 shot magazine 9mm 3 lbs
5 boxes 50 9mm pistol ammo 5 lbs
8 magazines 15 round each for 9mm Ruger 8 lbs
Military Surplus Sleeping Bag 1 lbs
Keyring: house key, mailbox key, toolbox key, AND a key that will open standard issue police handcuffs
MAK 90 Russian-made shoots 7.62x39 ammo, low quality detachable bayonet comes with a metal sheath that can be hooked to the bayonet to become a pair of wire cutters, back of bayonet has hacksaw blade as part of the blade, serves as bayonet, fighting knife, wirecutters, and hacksaw. 7 lbs
Utility belt
10x30 round MAK magazines 10 lbs
Leatherman multi-tool, (pliers, 3 flathead screwdrivers, 1 Phillips screwdriver, blade, can opener, two-sided file and scissors) (second of these, slightly different) in black nylon case on belt
radio flyer wagon 8 lbs
tactical shoulder sling for Shotgun (Has loops to hold 15 shotgun shells)
45 rounds 12 gauge 00 buckshot 5 lbs
25 rounds 20 gauge #6 bird shot 5 lbs
4 30-06 bullets.
universal gun cleaning kit
three throwing knives 3 lbs
holster for a Ruger P-89
two-quart aluminum canteen with canvas case and shoulder strap 3 lbs
New Combat Boots, original SWAT brand, size 13 1 lbs
Hobo Knife, splits with knife and spoon on one half, fork and can opener on the other, fanny pack
15 BiC lighters, five (one sealed pack) in fanny pack
KABAR, 12 inch Marine (military) fighting/survival knife, black leather sheath.
Diamond ring, gold setting, $195 original price (B Monster Movie World), fanny pack
Diamond ring, gold setting, $200 original price (B Monster Movie World), fanny pack
Diamond ring, gold setting, $210 original price (B Monster Movie World), fanny pack
Diamond ring, gold setting, $225 original price (B Monster Movie World), fanny pack
Diamond ring, gold setting, $235 original price (B Monster Movie World), fanny pack
Fanny pack, black leatherette with cloth strap and plastic buckle, on waist; weight 5 lbs
Diamond ring, gold setting, $430 original price (B Monster Movie World), fanny pack
Ronco Pocket Fisherman
Deck playing cards
White Jumpsuit x4 (Pearl Harbor)
White Tennis Shoes (Pearl Harbor)
Olive underpants x4 (Pearl Harbor)
I have 5 boxes of 9mm bullets, and the magazines are all loaded. My sheet says 8 magazines for the pistol, and yours might say 6. The gun comes with 2 magazines, and I bought 6 more in B movie monster world, so a total of 8. That's 120 rounds, plus the 5 boxes, for a total of 370 rounds. The stats on the crossbow was maximum range for the wooden arrows 80 yards, and maximum range for the metal arrows 10 yards. I don't remember the damage categories, except that the metal arrows were one step above the wooden arrows. I destroyed the shotgun to keep the weight down on my next verse, since I only have a few rounds for that. I gave the 30-06 to Mr. Smith. I'm blessing all of the knives, the crossbow, all of the arrows, all of the guns, and all of the ammo. You need to update your listing of my equipment sheet. I'm blessing the throwing knives too (I forgot that I still had them) Here it is.
So, just to clarify, I'm asking God to bless 5 knives, 3 guns, the crossbow, and all of the arrows and gun ammo. And since you said "If you survive this" I'm going to assume that this is a prayer on which I can botch and die. I'd like to take all of my money (which is in coins) if I do die. Gold, silver, bronze and nickel might be precious metals in the next world.
I really hate to do it this way, because it takes so very much time at my end to compare everything you post with what I have. That, in fact, is the single biggest problem I have with maintaining equipment sheets--I don't have time to compare what you post with what I have. This is a very bad night in the middle of a very bad week; best guess, I'll be able to compare the sheets next week or the week after if I'm lucky. Since I'm not going to commit to doing this, I'm going to make the adjustments specifically noted for the weapons, and at some future point I will post what I have as an equipment sheet and ask you to tell me what things need to be changed or updated.
I am deleting:
- Case (1,000 rounds) 9mm ammo
- Remington 700 30.06
- 3x scope for Remington
- 1000 rounds 30.06 ammo
- Mossberg 500 18.5 inch barrel cylinder bore gun, (5 + 1 shot) 30 inch 20 gauge full choke hunting barrel
- tactical shoulder sling for Shotgun (Has loops to hold 15 shotgun shells)
- 250 rounds 12 gauge 00 buckshot
- 250 rounds 20 gauge #6 bird shot
- lever & latch crossbow T3@1 8 pounds
My sheet says six magazines because it also says "spare magazine" as a separate entry, and that all weapons are fully loaded, so that makes six plus the one plus the fully loaded pistol, eight total. Five boxes of 9mm bullets is the 250 listed.
You have not confirmed the number of .22 bullets you have; I see two lots totalling 5000 bullets. You also have not mentioned the MAK-90 nor the 5300 spare bullets and ten spare magazines. Since the quarrels (arrows) were all acquired in this world, I'm assuming that those numbers are correct. Since you say 3 guns, that would I think be the Ruger, the Marlin, and the MAK, yes? What's the ammo count on the Marlin and the MAK? Also, you say 5 knives; either that does not include the bayonet on the MAK or one of us is counting wrong.
Almost there, I guess.
--M. J. Young
2,000 rounds of ammo for the Marlin 22
300 rounds of ammo for the MAK (10 mags of 30 bullets)
370 rounds of 9mm ammo. (8 loaded 15 round mags plus 250 rounds loose)
I also have 4 30-06 bullets, 45 rounds 12 gauge 00 buckshot, and 25 rounds of #6 20 gauge bird shot. I do not have a gun to shoot them out of, but there's quite a bit of gunpowder inside them. I might need that. I'm not asking for a blessing on the 30-06 bullets and shotgun shells, but I could see a pipe bomb or two being made with the gunpowder.
The bayonet is attached to the MAK 90, so I figured it would be blessed in the same blessing as the MAK. Sorry for not making that more clear.
I lost 50 arrows practicing with the crossbow, so I have 150 wooden arrows and 20 metal arrows.
I'm sorry this has been such a pain in the @$$ for you MJ. What happened to Kyler anyway? I really liked his style.
MJ, multiple posts.
Does anyone ever say anything about my 9mm? Not Mr. Smith and William, but other people. The Kabar and Leatherman could pass for expensive tools of that time period. The 9mm would be unrecognizable as anything. If asked, I would tell people it was my lucky charm.
Kyler is a brilliant referee who began running Multiverser games over lunch in eighth grade back before the game was published, I believe. Lately he has had a string of disruptions and distractions, including the need to cultivate a serious long-distance relationship with a young lady, some legal problems, and some efforts to continue his education. I'm sure that he will run games again sometime, as he enjoys doing it, but it's up to him when that might be.
The people of this world are accustomed to members of various trades having tools specific to their trades which are unfamiliar to others. For someone to take that kind of interest in your gun, it would have to be a blacksmith who knows you are a blacksmith and thinks you are nothing else.
I am deleting:
- 3000 rounds .22 rifle ammo
- 5000 rounds MAK ammo
- 200 wooden quarrels, steel heads, ranges in crossbow 12:45:90:240:+5/12' (4:15:30:80:+5/4 yards), damaging
- 150 wooden quarrels, steel heads, ranges in crossbow 12:45:90:240:+5/12' (4:15:30:80:+5/4 yards), damaging
- 4 30-06 bullets
- 45 rounds 12 gauge 00 buckshot
- 25 rounds of #6 20 gauge bird shot
That means you are praying for a blessing, such that they will be more effective against demons, on:
- 1 14 inch hunting knife, black nylon sheath with 2 carrying pouches. Inside one pouch is a Leatherman multi-tool, (pliers, 3 flathead screwdrivers, 1 Phillips screwdriver, blade, can opener, two-sided file and awl punch) 12 sewing needles and 3 small spools of thread. The other pouch contains a magnesium fire starting tool, 1 BIC cigarette lighter, fishing line, fishing sinkers and several fishhooks. Wrapped around the knife sheath is 15 feet of high-tensile black nylon cord. total weight approximately 4 pounds
- 1 Marlin 22 caliber rifle, 18 round capacity, 2,000 rounds 22 ammunition. total weight, approximately 10 pounds
Ruger P-99 pistol 15 shot magazine 9mm - 5 boxes 50@ 9mm pistol ammo
- Spare 15 round magazine for Ruger P-99
- 6 magazines 15 round each for 9mm Ruger
- MAK 90 Russian-made shoots 7.62x39 ammo, low quality detachable bayonet comes with a metal sheath that can be hooked to the bayonet to become a pair of wire cutters, back of bayonet has hacksaw blade as part of the blade, serves as bayonet, fighting knife, wirecutters, and hacksaw.
- 10x30 round MAK magazines
three throwing knives - KABAR, 12 inch Marine (military) fighting/survival knife, black leather sheath.
- 20 steel quarrels, imitation metal fletching, ranges in crossbow 3:9:15:30:+1/30' (1:3:5:10:+1/10 yards), lethal
- 150 wooden quarrels, steel heads, ranges in crossbow 12:45:90:240:+5/12' (4:15:30:80:+5/4 yards), damaging
lever & latch crossbow T3@1 8 pounds maximum range for the wooden arrows 80 yards, and maximum range for the metal arrows 10 yards. I don't remember the damage categories, except that the metal arrows were one step above the wooden arrows.
--M. J. Young
Yeah, that looks about right. Those are the weapons I wanted blessed.
Looks like I'm going down to see Mr. Smith now.
"Mr. Smith, I regret to tell you that after today, I will no longer be working with you. I went back to my room to pray, and God told me some very interesting things. I need to leave. I won't be able to finish that tool I'm making for your daughter's dowry, but as promised, I'm going to give you two pounds silver to get you started on it. You invited me to stay for dinner, and I'm going to accept that. However, tomorrow, I must go. I've got demons to kill."
The smith thanks you for your assistance all this time, the interest you've taken in his apprentice and in his family. He says he'll let the girls know to make tonight's dinner special, as it will be your going away meal.
Early that afternoon, a man comes into the shop looking for someone to shoe his horse. The horse threw a shoe some distance from the village, and he wants all of them redone so it won't happen again. The man is wearing plain brown robes tied with a dark red cord with tassels, and a wide brimmed hat on his head. Around his neck hang two objects, one a pair of eyeglasses, the other what might be a religious emblem. He seems either very distracted or very focused on something other than this blacksmith shop.
--M. J. Young
"You need your horse's shoes redone? Well, I'm just the man for that. Mr. Smith, I'm going to get some horseshoes and assist this gentleman." Turning to the man in the robes "If you would just pay that good man over there, (pointing to Mr. Smith) I'll be with you shortly."
Might as well finish out the day working. It could be the last peaceful day I have for a while.
MJ, Multiple Posts
It just occurred to me that my Marlin 22 has been loaded since B Movie Monster World. I started with 2,000 rounds, 18 of which are in the gun. So, I've actually got 1,982 rounds and a fully-loaded rifle. If that matters at all.
Speaking of the Marlin. I'd say I'm at least low professional with it. I can hit a spent shotgun shell (3 inches long, about 3/4 of an inch wide) at 25 yards with it.
Since I have on the sheet that all your guns are fully loaded and that you have two thousand rounds of .22 caliber ammo, I will assume what I presume Kyler assumed, that you have 2018 rounds. I realize that this suggests 18 bullets were created ex nihilo, but given the number of bullets you lost otherwise, I don't think this is unreasonable. We'll just assume that you had those bullets all along, instead of some other bullets that you no longer have anyway.
"Thank you," he says in a foreign accent. "Is there a place I can get food and shelter for the night? I expect it will be too late in the day to get much farther on the road by the time the horse is ready."
--M. J. Young
"I'm staying at the inn. It's reasonably priced. I'll show it to you when we get back." Then, getting all the equipment I'll need to do 4 horseshoes, I say "Where's your horse, and what brings you to this neck of the woods?"
MJ, multiple posts
Take the 20 gauge bird shot, and secure it to the arrowheads. When the arrow hit, the shotgun shell would explode. They use the same principle in spearfishing for sharks. A shotgun shell on the end of a spear. Hit the shark with it, and the shotgun shell explodes. It's affectionately called a "Bang Stick."
Or the shotgun shell might explode when you fire the crossbow..... Make one, set the crossbow down, point it at a tree, and pull the trigger with a piece of string. The crossbow is made out of Oak, with a steel bow, and a steel wire for a string. It would probably survive that. Try it once, if it works, use it. If not, forget it.
MJ, I'm just making notes here. Don't worry about it.
Go see the bow maker again. See if he could make something like that. Maybe blacksmith something that would hold the shotgun shell in place on the arrowhead. Might only have time to make one or two, but who knows?
MJ, three posts
"Oh Mr. Smith, before I go, I have an emergency job for you to do. I'll be right back." (Run back to my room and get all of the 20 gauge shells, the crossbow, and all of the wooden arrows.) "Do you have anything, or could you make something that would hold this in place on an arrowhead? I would need to be able to insert it and remove it freely, but tightly enough so that the shotgun shell won't fall out when the arrow is flying. The arrowhead has to hit this button on the bottom. (Show him the shotgun primer) Also, they need to be as lightweight as possible, maybe use stiff wire or something. Be very careful with these. Don't get them too hot, and don't drop them. Also, do not hit that button AT ALL!!! If you do that, they are perfectly safe. If it works the way I'm hoping, we are going to need to make a lot of them tonight. I'll give you this ring (show him the $430 diamond ring from B Movie Monster World.) if it works, and we can make some tonight. I'm hoping for 24 more, but as many as we can. Can you do that while I help this guy? I've got an idea. Four strands of stiff wire, wrapped around the arrow shaft, and curved up around the shotgun shell, with a basket of some kind as the bottom to hold it. I could bend the wire to make it tighter or more loose. (The way I'm thinking, the wire should also act as a shock absorber, to keep the shotgun shell from exploding in the crossbow.) We might need to use that solder. See what you can do."
I used to make animals out of pipe cleaners when I was in Junior High. Dinosaurs, Christmas tree ornaments, etc. Made a life-sized Scorpion once too. If it happens that wire-bending is a skill, I'd say I have 2@5. And yes, I mean that. I did make these and sell them at school. I was employed doing it. That's a professional level skill.
The traveler's horse is right there; that part would be obvious. When you ask him what brings him here, he gives you a hard stare for a moment, and then says, "There is evil somewhere in this kingdom, and God has sent me to oppose it."
To your discussion with the smith: "Aren't you afraid that something heavy like this on the front of a quarrel will unbalance it? 'Specially if it's loose, it could rattle as the bolt spins, couldn't it? Course, you're the crossbowman; if you think it'll work, we'll try it."
My concerns on this idea are:
- You will unbalance the bolt by putting a weight on the front end, which will significantly reduce accuracy (expressed in a decrease in range). This will be worse if the harness does not hold the weight securely so that it is on a perfect line centered on the shaft--if the weight is off center it will cause the arrow to wobble, and if it shifts it will cause the wobble to be irregular.
- You're counting on the impact with the target to stop the shell and let the arrow ram into the firing point. However, as you've noted, the acceleration of the device is driven from the rear, so the arrowhead will be pushing the shell by pressing into that firing point. Your best bet really is to find a way to hold the shell in front of the arrow such that the rapid acceleration will not cause it to make contact or to lose alignment, but that the rapid deceleration of impact will collapse the harness forcefully enough that the arrowhead will trigger the explosion. That's going to be very tricky.
- No matter how you do this, you're going to be using a dangerous device in combat, and a botch has a high probability of exploding while still in your possession.
I think if you can address those problems, we might have a weapon here.
--M. J. Young
The way you described the scene, I thought the traveler came in on foot, and he left the crippled horse where the shoe was thrown. It didn't occur to me that the horse could still walk with a thrown shoe.
"Mr. Smith, you're very correct. That wouldn't work. You probably just saved me from getting my face blown off. Excuse me for a minute. (run back to my room, take everything back, and get the 12 gauge 00 buckshot shells. I was thinking that the 20 gauges are lighter, so better for the crossbow, but the 12 gauge rounds would work better in a spear.) See if you can make it into a spear instead. Six feet long, load the shotgun shell into the tip, and poke with it. (Describe a Bang Stick to him) Make it as light as you can. We will still need to make more than one, but not 24. Do what you can while I help this guy. It's still worth that ring to you if it works."
To the traveler
"God sent you to oppose evil in this land? What kind of evil? I too, have gotten direction from God to oppose demons in this land. I prayed for a soldier to come to fight alongside me. Could you be him? Where is the evil, and how are we going to fight it? And what's your name? I'm John."
I would be speaking whilst I put the shoes on his horse.
Multiple posts
(Just making notes)
Did Mr. Smith ever have a secret dream of fighting demons? Did he perhaps make and hide a weapon against just such a contingency? I could imagine a superstitious sort like him would do that. It would be a very high quality weapon, hidden somewhere where it would not be ruined, and hidden very well. I don't even think it would be a 3 GE roll. Of course, I'm not the referee..... Let's ask him.
I could make Mr. Smith an associate verser. He could know that if he died with me, he would not be dead, and could maybe possibly see his family again. His family would know that although he was gone, probably forever, he was not dead, but living forever in the Multiverse. And that he died fighting for something he believed in.
If Mr. Smith comes with me, give each of the girls one of your diamond rings. They might be cheap diamonds on earth, but here they would be remarkably clear and of extremely high value. Perfect for dowries.
The youngest daughter is 9, and William is 10 or 11, so they have a future husband for her. William gets to be the man of the house.
Leave something in Mr. Smith's house, that still belongs to you. If it disappears, Mr. Smith is not coming home.
Maybe show Mr. Smith how to use that 30-06 too. You only have 4 bullets, but with that scope, it would be idiot proof.
Mr. Young, roll for that, or whatever you do. Mr. Smith is going to overhear me talking with the traveler. Maybe Mr. Smith might reveal his true colors to me.
MJ, 3 posts
Now that I think about it, why not everybody? The bowers, fetchers, and arrow makers would have thousands of arrows, and dozens of crossbows stockpiled. The trapper would have hundreds and hundreds of pounds of dried meat stocked up. The carpenter would have tons of firewood, and whatever weapons he could manufacture. Form a militia. A demon militia.
I could very easily see something like this in a superstitious, and small community. A sort of secret society to which I am unaware. Mr. Smith doesn't have one sword stocked, he has 40. He makes one every once in a while, and I don't think much of it. I could very easily see this kind of attitude in a small, superstitious community like that.
And of course, everyone has their own personal stockpiles. A barter system of sorts exists. Mr. Smith fixes an animal trap, in exchange for 10 pounds of dried meat. Mr. Smith provides scrap steel to the arrow makers to be made into arrowheads, in exchange for the promise of protection from the crossbows. Mr. Smith makes/sharpens tools for the carpenter, in exchange for firewood and occasional maintenance on his house..... I could certainly see this in a community like this. Please be a good GE roll!!!
I better stop. I'm just fantasizing.
Since you're now a blacksmith, you would know this: horses in the wild don't wear shoes. Domesticated horses generally carry more weight and often walk on paved or travel-hardened surfaces, all of which causes faster wear on their hooves than the soft dirt of the open plains. Hooves grow something like fingernails, and protect the bones of the feet and legs, so they are important to the horse. The iron shoe can be nailed to the hoof without pain or damage, but once the shoe is thrown the hoof wears faster, particularly if the horse is ridden. Thus a horse with a missing shoe ought to be walked to the farrier or smith for shoeing before being ridden again.
By comparison, if you lost your shoes, you could still walk barefoot to the shoe store, but you would want to be careful where you stepped and would not wish to have a heavy backpack on your back.
Regretably, the smith has never considered the idea of making a weapon to fight demons, nor does he think it something a "mere blacksmith" could do. There is no secret underground anti-demon society.
The traveler's name is Pedro, and he was hoping that he would find someone in this land who knew something. He did not expect it to be a blacksmith, but God clearly works in mysterious ways, pulling the shoe from his horse so that he would meet the one person who can help him. However, all he knows is that God says there are demons in this land, and that they are working toward world domination, "a darkness so great there might be no more light." He wants to know what you know.
From the smith: "If I understand this, you want me to design and build a sort of cage harness that will attach securely to the front of a spear, that will hold one of these, what do you call them? Shotgun shells? In front of the spear point, without touching it, but held so that if you hit something hard enough with the front of the cage, the shell will be pushed back hard against the spear point, exactly in the center so that this little button is hit hard, and straight. I'll have to think on this a bit--and you'll gave to get spears, I don't make spears, only the heads for the weaponer to use in constructing them. Oh, with this harness thing, since the cage goes in front of the spearhead, do you want something like a spearhead on the front? Or do you want it blunt?"
--M. J. Young
"Mr. Smith, I want a sort of sharp point to hit the button. The top end should be open, but not terribly loose. The shotgun shell can't fall out on it's own. How this works is when that button gets hit, the top of the shell explodes. It would be mostly in the direction it was pointed, but I still don't want it anywhere near my body. I'll demonstrate one when you finish. If you don't mind doing the legwork, I'd really appreciate it if you could get the spears yourself. I am giving you that ring, after all. I'd appreciate it a lot. Otherwise, that's exactly what I wanted. And another thing. You may be just a blacksmith, but you're also strong as a bull, and you have the capacity to make weapons. Build yourself a spiked club. If I fail, you might very well need to defend your family. As strong as you are, no matter how you hit with that club, you're going to hurt someone."
To Pedro
"As I'm sure you can understand, this is kind of a sensitive issue here. I need to know if I can trust you, and I would think you a fool if you didn't have the same sentiment towards me. Can you offer me any proof of your mission? After I shoe your horse, I'll take you back to my room. There's someone I need you to meet. He will be able to confirm if your intentions are true."
MJ, two posts
Note to self: Don't forget to leave those white tennis shoes from Pearl Harbor with Mr. Smith. You won't need them, and if they disappear, Mr. Smith will know that you are dead, and he is on his own. To quote my Latin "Parabellum" Prepare For War.
"William, come over here. Do you have, or could you get a big burlap bag? Go get one, fill it with dirt, bring it back here, and I will give you a shilling for your trouble."