You find yourself in E1M1

[Syluxguy28O3]

deathknight?

[Shadowswift]

deathknight?

Sylux?

[Syluxguy28O3]

Sylux?

ill take that as a "yes", then.

[Shadowswift]

ill take that as a "yes", then.

<-- the artist formerly known as Death Knight.
The name Death Knight just didn't seem to fit me anymore. 'sides, other than Quake, I haven't used the alias "Death Knight" since 2008.

[foq]

>rcon_password ********
>rcon exec interactivemode.cfg

>You're stuck in complete darkness, trying to infiltrate an enemy base full of enemies that could appear at any moment from any direction. Only Ray could survive such an excursion. Use the Lightspark Rifle (sparingly) to illuminate your path as you search for a way to restore power to the base.

[Shadowswift]

>rcon_password ********
>rcon exec interactivemode.cfg

Initializing. Interactive mode online.

>You're stuck in complete darkness, trying to infiltrate an enemy base full of enemies that could appear at any moment from any direction. Only Ray could survive such an excursion. Use the Lightspark Rifle (sparingly) to illuminate your path as you search for a way to restore power to the base.

You look around the bailey. It's pretty dark, yeah, but not so dark you can't see. You bet, however, once you enter the actual castle, you won't have the luxury of low-light. You keep your Light weapons handy for that lovely occasion.
You survey the situation. The bailey is now yours for the time being, having been cleared of enemies. You need to find a way into the castle, however, or this trip is worth nothing. You need to find the keycard that opens the main gate, or some explosives powerful enough to punch a hole in the ground below the bailey. Currently, you have neither. Your Grenade Rifle's Rockets aren't potent enough to do that kind of damage, nor do you have enough of them. You've never seen the data room below you, so you can't scythe there, nor do you want to. There could be a trap waiting for you. There are still dozens of slain Shadows littered about the yard, so you begin to search them with hope in your heart. Your face lights up as you collect your loot.

You got:
Marine Corps Ceremonial Rapier
Minigun
Firewall Missile Launcher
Super Nailgun
(maxed) Shadow Plasma Cells
(maxed) Cells
(maxed) Nails
(maxed) 10ga. Shells
(maxed) 20ga. Shells
(600) 5mm Rounds
(60) 9mm Rounds
(25) .45 Rounds
(25) 30-06 Rounds
(10) Conflagration Rockets
(10) Rockets
(1) Super Cell
Slashed Keycard

If you got this kind of loot from just the first battle, you can't wait to see what kind of stuff you can take away from the castle once you conquer it. Woot! You examine your new stuff.

The Rapier is a ceremonial sword given to all Marines when they graduate from boot. You have one, too...somewhere...probably buried under a pile of junk in a closet at your home. It's a standard carbon steel full-tang blade with an engraved and decorated silver and copper hilt...not especially strong, or sharp. Pretty, though...and brings back good memories.

The Minigun is a beefy weapon not suited for short, standard firefights. This big boy eats 5mm bullets...and boy, does it ever. It can cap off 200 of them per seconds. Luckily, you can carry a maximum of 5000 of them. Being as small as they are, each bullet does very little damage, even against standard fleshy foes...but being able to fire a single round from this weapon is nearly impossible. You question the effectiveness of bullets against Shadows, but then again, you've never seen a Shadow soak up several hundred of them, either.

The Super Nailgun is an upgrade to your standard Nailgun. It's a four-barreled bringer of pain that shoots your Nine-Inch Nails. Against fleshy foes, it's deadly efficient, but against Shadows, it's little more than annoying. You distinctly remember being able to upgrade your Nailguns so that they fire Lava Nails instead of regular ones, but you even question how effective those would be. You might consider finding an upgrade for your upgrade if you want to make good use of this baby.

The Firewall Missile Launcher is a really cool weapon! It can fire regular Rockets, and be used as a normal Rocket Launcher (woot), but the fun comes with its capability to use Conflagration Rockets. These things will bloop out of the gun, fly a little ways, then crash down to the earth below, spreading a 12 meter tall wall of fire 100 meters outward scorching everything in its path. Against standard enemies, this weapon can clear a field of soldiers. Against Shadows, however, normal fire is significantly less effective. Sure, it might get a few, maybe even severely damage a big one, but if you want to make good use of this thing, consider upgrading the Conflagration Rockets to spread Plasma instead of fire.

The keycard has been slashed, likely damaged intentionally by the Shadow that was holding it as a last-ditch effort to keep you from your goal. Bastard. You can't repair it here, but the Mainframe back at E1M1 might be able to decipher it and make a working copy. Delays, delays...
...then you look at the Super Cell. You've never seen its like before. It's far larger than a normal Cell, and built very differently. It won't charge any of your current weapons, and doesn't seem to be compatible with their batteries at all. It's like lightning in a glass sphere. It almost looks alien in nature...at least, it doesn't look like a human made it, anyway. However, at the same time, it most certainly doesn't look like Shadow tech, either. You opt to hold on to it, if not just to find out what the hell it is, but also you have a weird feeling that this thing will save your life one day. You decide that now would be a good time to head back to E1M1 to regroup.

[Loading...]

You arrive back at your new HQ and head toward the Mainframe. Scribe Irish and the rest of the geeks should be there. You allow him to go over your new stuff and ask for his input.
"We can get you some Lava Nails right away for your Nailguns. Try them out on the Shadows first, and we'll gauge their effectiveness before deciding how we can upgrade them."
You got (100) Lava Nails
"That Minigun should be just fine as it is. Use it only when you're heavily outnumbered and it should help to even the odds." You ask him about the Missile Launcher. "Actually, I developed this guy myself some 25 years ago. I designed it to be strictly anti-personnel, but the brass were looking for missile launchers designed for anti-armor...so it didn't get a lot of attention. I'm glad you found one. It should serve you well." You ask if the missiles can be upgraded. "I don't see why not. I can get what's left of R&D to draw out the plans while the Science and Weapons departments figure out how it'll work. Shouldn't take more than a couple days....what's that?" He glances over at the Rapier. You hand it to him. Phoenix looks over at it with a smile.
"Hey, I remember that thing. I have one of those, too. Mine is sitting on my mantle at home." You explain the meaning behind the sword.
"So...they give all soldiers one?" You nod. "Interesting..." You raise an eyebrow. He reaches over and grabs some kind of device and begins to run it over the sword like a scanner. The devise begins to beep as it runs along the blade. "There are several microchips inside the blade." Your eyes widen.
"Did the Shadows put them in there or something?" Phoenix asks.
"No. They were built into the sword when it was forged. Why would the Marines do this...?" Nearby, Major Davis overhears the discussion and starts toward you.
"What is this? What are you doing to this ceremony sword, Brian?" Irish looks up at him.
"Sir, did you know that there are several microchips embedded into the blade of this sword? It's extremely puzzling as to why the military-"
"Never mind." He quickly grabs the sword away from Irish. "You will forget about this and not worry yourself with it any further, scribe. Understood?" Irish gives him a stunned look. Davis reaffirms his order, getting very close to Irish's face. "I said, is that understood?" Irish's face softens from stunned to sad.
"Yes, sir." Davis clutches the Rapier and turns away from Irish. Before walking away, he turns to look at you out of the corner of his eye.
"As you were, Captain." You turn away from him.
"What the hell was that?" Phoenix's jaw hangs open, utterly stunned by Davis's sudden transformation from human to jar-head robot.
"He's hiding something. It's painfully obvious he doesn't want me finding out whatever the reasoning is behind the chips in that sword."
"Yeah, no shit..." You say, coldly.
"But I'm not going to let this go. A true scientist wouldn't. Will you help me?" You nod without hesitation. "Good. We'll need to do this quietly and away from Davis's watchful eye. You two are the only ones that need to know about this operation. Bringing anyone else into this could jeopardize us." You ask him what you can do. "Well, we could try the direct approach. You're a lot more powerful physically than Davis is. You could lean on him until he talks...of course, if the secret he's hiding is that important to him, he could turn on you and order you to be killed on sight. You'd become enemies of the state...fugitives."
"...and the other option?" Irish smirks.
"Get me that sword back...and any others like it." You nod.
"I could scythe back to my home and get mine." Phoenix nods.
"Me too. Mine should still be above my fireplace." Irish grins with delight.
"Wonderful. Get me those, and any others you come across while at Fallen HQ. I'll need to run tests on as many of them as I can."

Side Mission accepted: Secret of the Sword
Collect 10 Marine Corps Ceremonial Rapiers for Scribe Irish. 0/10 collected


>

[foq]

>list missions

[Shadowswift]

>list missions

Objectives
Prime Directive: The Master
Our path is clear. It's time to invade his realm and put an end to the Master of Shadows.
X The Master Slain

Main Objective: Eliminate the Shadows.
This message from Lieutenant Zack Hastings, USMC: You have done well by resurrecting Chthon and sealing the dimension of Quake off from the Shadow Realm. Wipe out the remaining Shadows in Quake and whatever commanders they have. Use whatever methods necessary.
This message from the Death Knight Commander: My lord, the Shadows will continue to pose a threat if not destroyed at the source. I advise we go into their home and obliterate every last one of them then and there to end their threat once and for all.
X Shadow Lords slain:
-The Reaper
-The Beast
-The Serpent
-The Captain
-Protos
X Shadow Realm invaded
X Obliterate the Shadows

Side Objective: Foot in the Door (current mission)
My fighting prowess has been outshined by Phoenix and his new ability combined with his quick grasp of Kaio-Ken. Proud of him, but I need to step up my game if I'm gonna be of any use in the fight against The Master. I could learn Kaio-Ken myself, but it would take a long time. The idea is to research The Force and see if I can get stronger by utilizing it in battle. Might work, might not...but I'll never know unless I try. If I can, it'll bring something new to the fight.
X Ask Scribe Irish for any leads
X Infiltrate Fallen HQ
X Recover the Libram of the Ancients
X Learn to use The Force

Side Objective: Runes for Irish
This message from Lieutenant Fenmore "Phoenix" Stockton: Scribe Irish has asked that I catalog 25 different runes, runic items, and/or runic symbols that we find around the lands of Quake. If I complete this task for him, it'll guarantee me a promotion to full-fledged Scribe.
Runes cataloged: 12/25

Side Objective: Find the stolen grapes!
Some heartless bastard has stolen my Fresh Grapes right out from under my nose! I should try to find them whenever I can and reap bloody vengence upon the fuck that stole them.
X Fresh Grapes located.

Side Objective: Secret of the Sword
Major Davis is hiding something...and to keep a secret from a master Scribe is to declare war upon him. Bring Scribe Irish any USMC Ceremonial Rapiers that you find so he can analyse them and unlock whatever secret they're holding.
0/10 USMC Ceremonial Rapiers


...and just because...

-Inventory-
-Ammo-
(100) 10ga. Shells
(100) 20ga. Shells
(200) Nails
(100) Lava Nails
(100) Energy Cells
(200) Shadow Plasma Cells
(79) 30-06 Rifle Rounds
(600) 5mm Rounds
(60) 9mm Rounds
(25) .45 Rounds
(10) Conflagration Rockets
(30) Rockets
(1) Super Cell
-Weapons-
Grappling Hook
Maglite
Riot Baton
Protos's Swordstaff
Reaper�s Scythe
Blaster Pistol
10 Gauge Pump Shotgun
Nailgun
Super Nailgun
Shadowpulse Rifle
Plasma Rifle Prototype
R700 (scoped)
Grenade Rifle
Firewall Missile Launcher
Minigun
Chromaspark Prismabolt Cannon
-Consumables-
(11) Stimpaks
(5) Medikits
(2) Medic's Bags
(2) Dream Water Stims
Unopened Bottle of Water
Abyssal Armor
-Misc-
USB cable
Protos's Orders
Dalton Kirk's Journal
Rune of Earth Magic
Slashed Keycard


-Phoenix's Inventory-
-Ammo-
(100) Shells
(200) Nails
(100) Energy Cells
(200) Shadow Plasma Cells
(10) 30-06 Rounds
Charge = 0/100
-Weapons-
Grappling Hook
Maglite
Badly-Bloodied Hand Axe
Fireman�s Axe (charged)
Plasma Pistol
REALLY Super Shotgun
Lightspark Rifle
Thunderbolt
-Consumables-
Biosuit
(1) Pristine Void Armor
(2) Stimpak
(4) Dream Water Stims
-Misc-
Burlap Sack*
*(11) Shadow Crystals
*(1) Empty Crystal
USB Flashdrive
Fully-Stocked Toolbox
Complex Networking for Dummies Manual
Rune of Fire Magic
Rune of Wind Magic
Rune of Water Magic

-Velen's Inventory-
-Ammo-
(100) Shells
(200) Nails
(100) Energy Cells
(200) Shadow Plasma Cells
-Weapons-
Grappling Hook
Commander�s Sword
Enforcer's Blaster Rifle
Lightspark Rifle
-Consumables-
empty
-Misc-
empty

-Strogg Flyer X's Inventory-
-Ammo-
(100) Shells
(200) Nails
(100) Energy Cells
(200) Shadow Plasma Cells
-Weapons-
empty
-Consumables-
empty
-Misc-
empty

[ImperiusDamian]

> get the Slashed Keycard fixed or copied while at HQ
> get some Plasma Rockets

[Shadowswift]

> get the Slashed Keycard fixed or copied while at HQ

You take the Slashed Keycard over to the Mainframe and insert it into the Mainframe's keycard slot. You open the copying program and tell it to begin the sequence to decode and duplicate the inserted card. You pray it isn't too badly damaged.

> get some Plasma Rockets

You ask Irish how the Plasma Rocket research is going.
"It hasn't even begun yet, Captain, it's only been a few minutes since you got here. I'll call you when we have something." Hm...guess we have to wait for him.


>

[ImperiusDamian]

> see if you can find any Fresh Grapes around HQ... might not be so fresh any more though?

[foq]

>continue to pursue the force

[Shadowswift]

> see if you can find any Fresh Grapes around HQ... might not be so fresh any more though?

Fresh Grapes never go bad. But, oh, your eyes will be open. The coveted Fresh Grapes will be in your hands once again...and the anus that took them, oh he will know the meaning of terror...terror the likes of which this Earth has yet to experience!

>continue to pursue the force

You check the Mainframe to see how the duplicating process is going. Magnificent, looks like it's done already! You take the copy and hope it works. You then grab up Velen and Darkscythe and return to the Bailey of Fallen HQ.

[Loading]

When you arrive, you head immediately for the main gate. The gate should lower the moment the keycard comes within close proximity of it. You wave they card at the gate, and...hm. Nothing happens. Could it be the card didn't work? Wouldn't the gate make an error noise or something? Wait!! You idiot...the power is off! Shit. Even the automatic doors don't function without power. Well, you're gonna have to find another way in. This leaves option two: blow a hole in the ground and tunnel into the data storage room. You'll need something mighty potent to get through, though. The room is likely twenty-five to thirty feet below ground. A few bundles of C4 should do the trick. Hopefully the Marines brought some with them when they evacuated to the Slipgate Complex. Oh well, back you go.

[Loading]

As you arrive, a nearby Grunt looks at you confused.
"Captain, back so soon? Is everything ok?" You nod, and ask him where they are storing their munitions. "Talk to Gunner Garret. He's in the room above the hallway toward the courtyard. He's in charge of whatever munitions we have left." You thank the soldier and move along the hallway. You run past the covered slime pit, over to the lift and up to the catwalk to the little room with the terminal in it. Standing in front of the entrance to the room is a stern-looking officer. As he sees you approach, he salutes sharply.
"Good evening, Captain. Gunner Garret, Infantry Weapons Officer at your service." You salute back. "What can I do for you?" You ask if he has any C4 or any other high-yield explosives. "Negative, sir. Just rockets and grenades. All of our high-yield explosives were left behind when we had to flee." Damn. It'd take a hundred rockets or more to turn that much dirt. "Pardon, Captain, but I think I might have a solution. There was an old abandoned base, just on the outskirts of Quake that never got a Slipgate. We used it as a storehouse for heavier weapons. Might find some C4 there. Coordinates DM3." An abandoned base at DM3...you remember visiting that base for some peacetime competition matches. You don't remember seeing any C4 there, but if this guy says there might be some there, it's worth a look. The base is abandoned, so there shouldn't be any hostiles there. You opt to go alone. If you run into anything nasty, you can always scythe back and get help.

Velen has left your party.
Darkscythe has left your party.

You slash a rift open and step through, not quite sure what to expect.

[Loading]

You find yourself at the Abandoned Base. The place is quiet. You look about. You seem to be in a courtyard, standing upon a mound. A little ways away is an entrance to a hallways. Circling the yard above you looks to be more of the base. You decide to grapple up and get a look around. No one is here. In the distance, to your left, you hear faint beeping, familiar to what the computer boxes you often find in Marine bases in Quake sound like. To your right, you can hear some wind blowing, and what sounds like soft sloshing of viscous liquid. You try to remember the layout of this place, but you never really cared much for peacetime competition matches, so you didn't really spend much time here. You remember a data storage room, which might explain beeping computer boxes. Maybe you can get some information about this place from one of them. You follow the sound of the beeping. You were right. There's a huge data storage room here. Looks like a lot of the boxes are either very old-school and don't have USB ports, or are damaged beyond the point of function. There is one, though, that looks like it has an old terminal fixed to it. Fortune smiles. You just hope it still works after years of disuse. You approach the terminal and plug your console into it. You use your console to access all the data files within the terminal. You filter through the multitudes of corrupted folders to one that is labeled "Base Inventory". You open the file to find a complete listing of all the munitions stored within the base. Says there are 4 bundles of plastic explosive here. Doesn't say where. You'll just have to sniff them out. You pull out from the terminal and put your USB cord away. You leave the data storage room and follow the hallway leading the other direction. It leads you to a tall room with a catwalk leading up to a small platform. You grapple up to the top. Nothing here. You grapple back down to the exit and find yourself in the yard again. You grapple to the other side of the ring and follow it. You come across an open room with a short staircase. The other exit, the one you didn't just come in from, leads to a huge room flooded with liquid waste. You examine the room you're in. Hm. Four lights on the far wall. One of them is oddly dim. You remember a lot about odd lights. You blast the odd one, and wait. Nothing happens...at least, nothing you can immediately realize. You move on. You check under the staircase. A portal...nothing else. You turn around and head toward the room with the waste. Nothing interesting catches your eye, so your take a dive and swim around in the waste. There's a tunnel on the other side. Not narrow, but still enough to give you the chills. Fuck it. You surface, take a deep breath, and power-swim through it. It's not a long one, thank the gods. On the far end of the tunnel, there are some stairs that allow you to climb out of the waste. When you do, you find yourself in a large yard. A few feet away, there is an odd mark on the ground, as though the ground had been scorched by something. It's a large, circular burn, about the size of a Quad Damage. Hm. You touch the burn...images flash into your head. Visions of a place of horror and damnation. Rivers of fire flow freely over mountains of sulfur and brimstone. Demons and lost souls wage war with...the Shadows! What the hell?? What is this??? The hallucination ends abruptly. What the crap was that? As a few seconds pass after your vision, a deep, angry voice booms in your head.
Mortal, you desire the protection of my unholy realm, yes? You make an attempt to respond, but find yourself a bit flabbergasted at the moment. Yes, I can see your heart's desires. We fight the same enemies, little human. It is within my great power to help you, but you must offer me tribute first. You finally find your voice.
"Who the hell are you?!"
The answer, mortal, is in the question. I am he who reigns over the endless Void. The jailer of the damned. The ruler of the seven circles of Hell. Awesome...
"What do you want with me?" You ask, boldly.
I want nothing with you, human...it is what you want. The Shadows have brazenly attacked my realm, pilfering the souls of the damned from my collection, adding to their ranks. They even took my champion, The Reaper, and turned him into one of their own. These blasphemies are unacceptable and each account must be paid for in suffering. I am willing to aid you in your campaign against these foolish Shadows in the mortal realm. However, even if you do fight against my enemies, if you want my help, you will pay my price.
"What is it you want?"
I don't demand much, human...only praise. Find an unholy alter. There are a few in the Elder Dimension of Quake. You can use any of them. Light eight black candles around the alter, and offer a prayer in my name. Do this, and I will give you my mark of protection.
"The Pentagram...how do I know this isn't a trick? You aren't known for being very honest, you know."
The answer, little human, is...you don't. The voice vanishes without a trace.

Mission accepted: Deal with the Devil
Collect 8 black candles. 0/8 collected.
Find an Unholy Alter
Gain The Dark One's favor

You aren't even really sure if you want to pursue that mission. You put it on the back burner and continue your current mission. You look ahead and see a small entrance that you don't remember seeing before...something opened when you shot that light, perhaps? You snoop around inside. Bingo!

You got (4) C4

No detonator...oh well, that shouldn't be too hard to get. Phoenix can probably MacGyver one up for you out of a Cell and some paper clips. You got what you came for, back to E1M1 for you.

[[To Be Continued]]

[foq]

>After some meditation, you decide that you, in fact, are sure you want to pursue the quest: Deal with the Devil. But after you uncover the secrets of The Force.

[ImperiusDamian]

> head back and ask Velen about finding unholy altars