Bay 12 Games Forum

Finally... => Forum Games and Roleplaying => Topic started by: Weirdsound on April 04, 2022, 03:59:14 pm

Title: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 04, 2022, 03:59:14 pm
Parties at the Employment Agency for Empowered and Ambitious Scallywags (EAEAS) headquarters ballroom are typically a bland affair. The food comes from that crappy Italian place two doors down, the company consists mostly of retired Supervillains in their late seventies and older, and if you are lucky the drinks may be of a marginally higher quality than one might find at a college frat party.

You, however, are in no position to complain. This party is in your honor, celebrating your promotion from Henchperson to Underling in the eyes of the agency. No more two bit jobs robbing small town banks. No more second guessing every move in fear that your bosses will execute you for the slightest failure. EAEAS will now promote you by name to the biggest movers and shakers in the world of professional super-villainy! Soon the world will tremble at your name! ...or at least mention it while trembling at your employers.

"Hey kid! Hellofa party! Dafuq did you do to deserve all this?"

You grimace as Johnny Jungleblade approaches your seat of honor at the head of the table. At one point the Vietnam Veteran turned criminal mercenary and legendary party animal would have been great company, but you get the feeling that you are about to have to share your life story with the dementia ridden old man who now serves as the agency's greeter for the second time today and fifth time this week.

"I got promoted Johnny. I made underling." You sigh.

"Really? That's fucking awesome! How'd you pull that off? Back in my day all ya needed to make underling was a few years military experience and a willingness to kill, but nowadays you have to be the fucking anti-Christ to get the agency's attention. What makes you so special."

You can't help but grin in spite of poor Johnny's repetive question. What Villain worth their salt doesn't like a good brag?

Quote from: Choose One
A: I am a gifted leader and administrator. Those under me work effectively and without drama, and I always find the best man, woman, or extraterrestrial being for the job! This game will focus more on leadership.
B: I'm a gifted genius. Qualified to operate, maintain, and even improve whatever super-weapons or evil laboratories my employers might be using. This game will focus more on mad science.
C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.

Johnny listens intently to your speech. You doubt he will remember much of it for long, but it does seem to win his immediate approval. "Good stuff! I always say villainy is the best way for talented people to earn recognition! Glad to see that still rings true! But I am curious? How did you get into the evildoing busniess in the first place?"

Quote from: Choose One
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans
B: I was a soldier, same as you Johnny. After an unfortunate incident I found myself unemployed with a dishonorable discharge on my record. Didn't have the opportunity to do much else. So I decided if the government would no longer let me fight for what's right, I'd just find something else to fight for. +Knowledge of Military Gear and Tactics, +Peak Human Combat Skills
C: This bad guy shit? Its in my blood. Its where I belong. My family has been taking work from the agency for generations. Hell, some of my ancestors even became notable supervillains in their own right. I've dreamt of this for as long as I can remember, and have been given every opportunity to pursue said dream. +Starting Wealth, +Extra Villainous Connections
D: Villainy? Excuse me! I identify as an anti-hero! My edgy backstory often puts me at odds with society, and need for money has driven me to take morally questionable work from the agency from time to time, but I'm trying to do the right thing here. +More Likely to receive mercy from victorious heroes, +Popular Opinion, -Start with several heroic and villainous rivals

The old man again hears you out respectfully. "Makes sense," he admits, before gesutring for a server to bring you each another cheap beer. "Cheers to you kid! The newest fucking Underling!"

You offer a defeated grin. Even as a shell of his former self, Johnny Jungleblade's personality is infectious. No point fighting it. He will drag your life story out of you yet again, and you will enjoy telling it.

Give a brief paragraph or two describing the main character's life up to this point. The backstory should be consistent with the two choices you made above. If you picked options that give you powers, describe them in broad strokes only; I will balance them and work out specific details. The backstory will likely give the character additional boons and maluses.

Don't forget to include a name, and if you wish for a secret identity, a villainous alias.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 04, 2022, 06:57:21 pm
Quote
C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans

Like many incubi, the being known as Daydream (I'm also fond of giving my name as 'Whatever you think it is, darling') was mass-spawned in the pits of hell to provide minions for a demonic lord I never saw. In my natural form I look like some kind of pitch-black cephalopod about the size of a basketball, but me and my squad were fitted with stone shells- what mortals would recognize as gargoyles- to serve as shock troopers rather than infiltrators. We were fed bland rations of processed mortal emotion, trained in suicidal lightning strikes on fortified positions, and sorted according to worth. I came out on top, naturally.

My forces served dutifully but unexceptionally, punching through light resistance (this world's 'police barricades' are not especially effective fortifications) and feasting wildly on the sweet terror, vibrant hope, and juicy defiance one can get straight from the tap up here, at least in the middle of a demonic invasion. When the portal was sealed, my squad was too far away to make it and too unimportant to hold for, so we were discarded. We managed to evade the worst of the cleanup and get to ground, where my minions gradually splintered off to pursue their own opportunities in the criminal underworld.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Maximum Spin on April 04, 2022, 07:54:33 pm
A,C

As the scion of the rich and imperious Mezziano crime family, Giulio Mezziano was generally expected to become a pampered playboy without any real skills or useful life experiences. On the surface, that's exactly what happened — but beneath the public eye, the so-called Prince of Punks has been managing his family's network since he was just a child, securing their control over illegal activity in their territory while expanding the scope of their interests, playing rival families against each other, and so on. As he entered adolescence, though, his pride made him desire to make a name of his own rather than trade on his family's, so it wasn't long before he came to the EAEAS in the hopes of parlaying his skills into personal accomplishment. Now, finally, his hard work has been recognized with this promotion, and the real work begins...
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 04, 2022, 08:59:46 pm
B D

I was grown in a tube, in a secret government facility deep under the pacific ocean. They gave me the designation Tyrant Beta; though it's not much of a name, that'll what I'll keep calling myself until my mission is done, so that I do not forget my rage.
The project was to create artificial super powers so that the world order can fight villains themselves rather than having to rely on heroes. Ironically, the project only created more villains. I was the runt of the lot, who never even developed powers, and they tossed me into the sea, to die.

But I survived, and I learned, and soon enough I will have my revenge!
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 04, 2022, 09:08:41 pm
A, B

But unlike you Johnny, I severed honorably in a third world dictatorship. "The General" they called him. Ruled over a dozen peasant filled islands, half of which looked like skulls. He was good to his men. Like a father to all of us. When the rebels finally took his HQ he sent us away to act as decoys. Just like my old man! As it turns out, his nemesis knew he was going to use that plan and got the real one. So all us decoys got away. We had to start over from scratch after that.

In his honor I call myself "The Colonel" now a days. One day I'll surpass that old man and rule this world!
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 05, 2022, 12:58:59 am
B D

I was grown in a tube, in a secret government facility deep under the pacific ocean. They gave me the designation Tyrant Beta; though it's not much of a name, that'll what I'll keep calling myself until my mission is done, so that I do not forget my rage.
The project was to create artificial super powers so that the world order can fight villains themselves rather than having to rely on heroes. Ironically, the project only created more villains. I was the runt of the lot, who never even developed powers, and they tossed me into the sea, to die.

But I survived, and I learned, and soon enough I will have my revenge!
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: piratejoe on April 05, 2022, 04:17:10 am
First is an easy choice. B, but the second is harder... I guess I'll say for the second A, if only because being supernatural is likely to be fairly interesting, and I kinda like the idea of being a supernatural mad scientist. Perhaps we can actually succeed with a doomsday weapon by it being magical instead of traditional mundane mad science. Since you need a background for this though...Hmm...I think I might use something a bit...interesting...

While most simply see a short woman with a scar across their face named Melissa Powell, the truth is that person has been locked away. Well, their soul has anyway. The one in actual control of her body is a serpentine demoness of Envy named Monnid, ex servant of the great demoness of pride Onoskelis. Not really by choice, more so by the whole invasion thing going poorly and her being part of an loose infiltration group that was heavily dispersed resulted in her learning plenty of the various advancements the mortals have made. Something quite important given the at least hundred so years out of date the technology hell had. Still, this mean that getting stuck in the mortal realm was basically destined when the invasion failed. And this has delayed her plans of getting out of the horrible reputation that the circle of envy has by becoming a demon of pride by quite a bit much to her annoyance.

Still, at least it's far easier to feed off of envy when dealing with criminal enterprises than pride, at least given the state of most mooks. And it also helps that in the worst case scenario she can ditch the person she's possessing and go about a fair bit less covertly until she finds a replacement. Though, the ritual to do such always leaves a scar...There's plenty of other rituals that can be used as well, and the time she spent essentially being a spy and recon for the onset of the invasion has helped quite a bit in her more technical knowledge. The last two important things to note though, firstly, she hates codenames and nicknames as she wants people to envy her work under her name and finally become a demon of pride in a vain hope that some other demons who can actually go back to hell will notice, and secondly... Just never put her in front of a stove or any cooking appliance. She is certainly not a demon of gluttony and can probably find a way to screw up making even cereal somehow...
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 05, 2022, 04:23:44 am
Quote
C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans

Like many incubi, the being known as Daydream (I'm also fond of giving my name as 'Whatever you think it is, darling') was mass-spawned in the pits of hell to provide minions for a demonic lord I never saw. In my natural form I look like some kind of pitch-black cephalopod about the size of a basketball, but me and my squad were fitted with stone shells- what mortals would recognize as gargoyles- to serve as shock troopers rather than infiltrators. We were fed bland rations of processed mortal emotion, trained in suicidal lightning strikes on fortified positions, and sorted according to worth. I came out on top, naturally.

My forces served dutifully but unexceptionally, punching through light resistance (this world's 'police barricades' are not especially effective fortifications) and feasting wildly on the sweet terror, vibrant hope, and juicy defiance one can get straight from the tap up here, at least in the middle of a demonic invasion. When the portal was sealed, my squad was too far away to make it and too unimportant to hold for, so we were discarded. We managed to evade the worst of the cleanup and get to ground, where my minions gradually splintered off to pursue their own opportunities in the criminal underworld.
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: BlackPaladin99 on April 05, 2022, 09:16:15 am
Quote
C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans

Like many incubi, the being known as Daydream (I'm also fond of giving my name as 'Whatever you think it is, darling') was mass-spawned in the pits of hell to provide minions for a demonic lord I never saw. In my natural form I look like some kind of pitch-black cephalopod about the size of a basketball, but me and my squad were fitted with stone shells- what mortals would recognize as gargoyles- to serve as shock troopers rather than infiltrators. We were fed bland rations of processed mortal emotion, trained in suicidal lightning strikes on fortified positions, and sorted according to worth. I came out on top, naturally.

My forces served dutifully but unexceptionally, punching through light resistance (this world's 'police barricades' are not especially effective fortifications) and feasting wildly on the sweet terror, vibrant hope, and juicy defiance one can get straight from the tap up here, at least in the middle of a demonic invasion. When the portal was sealed, my squad was too far away to make it and too unimportant to hold for, so we were discarded. We managed to evade the worst of the cleanup and get to ground, where my minions gradually splintered off to pursue their own opportunities in the criminal underworld.
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Naturegirl1999 on April 05, 2022, 09:28:24 am
Quote
C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans

Like many incubi, the being known as Daydream (I'm also fond of giving my name as 'Whatever you think it is, darling') was mass-spawned in the pits of hell to provide minions for a demonic lord I never saw. In my natural form I look like some kind of pitch-black cephalopod about the size of a basketball, but me and my squad were fitted with stone shells- what mortals would recognize as gargoyles- to serve as shock troopers rather than infiltrators. We were fed bland rations of processed mortal emotion, trained in suicidal lightning strikes on fortified positions, and sorted according to worth. I came out on top, naturally.

My forces served dutifully but unexceptionally, punching through light resistance (this world's 'police barricades' are not especially effective fortifications) and feasting wildly on the sweet terror, vibrant hope, and juicy defiance one can get straight from the tap up here, at least in the middle of a demonic invasion. When the portal was sealed, my squad was too far away to make it and too unimportant to hold for, so we were discarded. We managed to evade the worst of the cleanup and get to ground, where my minions gradually splintered off to pursue their own opportunities in the criminal underworld.
+1
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 05, 2022, 12:59:11 pm
Huh. I thought I'd get outvoted in favor of mad science.

That or we'd have as many entries as posters. :P
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 05, 2022, 01:25:05 pm
fine, guess I'll have to go make my own mad science SG. with blackjack! and hookers!
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 05, 2022, 03:18:10 pm
Quote
C: I have superpowers of my own. When the meddling heroes guys come knocking, my employers know they have a fighting chance when I answer the door. This game will focus more on action.
A: Remember that Alien/Demon/Mole People/ect invasion a few years back? I was one of the invading officers who missed his chance to retreat. I was a mistrusted non-human with nothing but a stockpile of highly advanced gear to my name. Where else but villainy could I turn? +Stockpile of Alien Tech, +Additional Minor Superpowers, -Mistrusted by Most Humans

Like many incubi, the being known as Daydream (I'm also fond of giving my name as 'Whatever you think it is, darling') was mass-spawned in the pits of hell to provide minions for a demonic lord I never saw. In my natural form I look like some kind of pitch-black cephalopod about the size of a basketball, but me and my squad were fitted with stone shells- what mortals would recognize as gargoyles- to serve as shock troopers rather than infiltrators. We were fed bland rations of processed mortal emotion, trained in suicidal lightning strikes on fortified positions, and sorted according to worth. I came out on top, naturally.

My forces served dutifully but unexceptionally, punching through light resistance (this world's 'police barricades' are not especially effective fortifications) and feasting wildly on the sweet terror, vibrant hope, and juicy defiance one can get straight from the tap up here, at least in the middle of a demonic invasion. When the portal was sealed, my squad was too far away to make it and too unimportant to hold for, so we were discarded. We managed to evade the worst of the cleanup and get to ground, where my minions gradually splintered off to pursue their own opportunities in the criminal underworld.

You leave the party as early as appropriate for the guest of honor. Your stone shell prevents you from enjoying the mortal food and drink, and none of the two dozen or so gathered mostly geriatric ex-villain's find it attractive. You say your goodbyes, accept a few small badges and trinkets symbolic of your promotion, and climb up to the roof, where you take off from the helipad on large stone wings.

It takes about 55 minutes to fly from EAEAS headquarters on Long Island to your home in Detroit. You can't help but find long distance high-altitude flights like this boring, as unless you want to slow down and tail an airliner, you cannot smell delicious mortal emotions from so high up. Usually you occupy your mind by reflecting on your powers and abilities; re-running old battles in your head and imagining how things might have gone different.

Powers, Abilities, and Personal Artifacts:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Since the economic collapse and decay of the late 00's and early 10's Detroit with its many abandoned neighborhoods has become a popular location for minor evildoers such as yourself to set up lairs. As it is now 2:30 in the morning, and yours is the only occupied building on its street, you have no problem landing right in the middle of the road in full Officer's Shell and walking through the front door.

The building looks like a church, and indeed was originally constructed to house the faithful, but the neon sign on the door states that it is now called St. Pete's Theatre and Nightclub. Inside you find the place's namesake, and your chief henchman, Peter Westmoreland, sitting in one of the few remaining pews, editing a video on his laptop.

Peter is the sort of college student who has been attending class for the better part of a decade, but has yet to graduate. His major is film, his hobby is demonology, and he has been working on a documentary on the Incubus Invasion for several years. His absolute loyalty only costs you a few Demon Batteries that he sold on the black market to set up St. Pete's, where he screens films by himself and other student filmmakers, and the occasional filmed interview for his project.

Peter bills himself as an 'amature demonologist' but you are sure the human is selling himself short. As you had no childhood, and very little pre-earth experience, he actually knows alot more about demons and hell than you do. His knowledge of incubi in particular is quite impressive. He helps some of your former soldiers who still reside in Detroit hone their possession and feeding abilities beyond their limited military training, and has been instrumental in the rehabilitation of Blacklight, your other henchperson.

Blacklight was a soldier under your command, who found herself trapped without a Stone Shell. In desperation, she attempted to possess a human. The process destroyed the host's mind, and left Blacklight stuck with human fears and morals. The human body was able to walk out of the situation undetected, but the experience left Blacklight less than useless. Before Peter started working with her, she was a sobbing mess who did little but eat, sleep, and cry over her wicked deeds. Nowadays she is able to help out with small tasks around the Theatre, and can make good conversation, but is still afraid to fight or even leave her human host. She also sleeps alot, which you are guessing she is doing now as she isn't at Peter's side.

"How was the party boss?" Pete asks as he hears your heavy stone footsteps approach.

"About as bad as I expected. Glad to have it over and done with darling. I'd of much rather you hosted the event here. The crowd is so much better."

Your henchman nods. "I'm screening one of my professor's films tomorrow night. A biopic on one of those terrible Roman Emperors if you want to come upstairs and watch. Not sure what kind of crowd its gonna draw, but I bet it will beat Johnny Jungleblade and company."

As you consider Peter's offer, the human brings something else up. "Oh. Boss. Lustarms dropped by to get some feeding lessons from me, and went down into the basement afterwards. Not sure if they took anything. I'll do inventory after I finish up this scene if you want."

You groan. The dozen or so former soldiers under your command who live in Detroit often feel entitled to help themselves to your stockpile of military supplies at will. "I got it Pete. I don't need to sleep, but you should catch some winks at some point tonight dear."

Peter grunts in approval, and you head down to the basement to count your assets. Nothing is missing. Lustarms was likely just oggling the Hellpheonix Shell again.

Assets:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)

You spend the remaining night and some of the morning checking and doublechecking everything to make sure you were not robbed. You eventually return to the main floor of the club, where Blacklight is enjoying a breakfast of human food. The damaged soldier has also put out another suit that is fitted to your officer's shell and tough enough to survive flight.

"Am I going somewhere, Blacklight?" You ask.

She shrugs. "Perhaps. I figured you might be in a hurry to get back to New York and sign up for your first official Underling Job. That is up to you, of course, boss."

You consider the idea. If you wait too long to pick up a contract, it may reflect poorly on you as an underling. Signing such a long term deal to work with a more notable villainy, however, would likely take you away from your base of operation for some time. Perhaps there is some housekeeping in Detroit you would like to take care of before getting to work.

Do you want to look for work? Or is there something else you want to do first?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 05, 2022, 04:36:56 pm
Quote
1 Hellpheonix Shell Loadout- A massive bird shaped Stone Shell equiped with multiple armagedeon launches, agonizer forks, and conventional firearms, powered by a large advanced Demonic Battery. Capable of near hypersonic flight, It is the incubus equivalent of a nuclear bomber and air supeiority fighter rolled into one. Sadly, you no longer have contact with anybody trained to opperate such a weapon.
This is gonna be one hell of a season finale.


I say we look for work. There's some interesting things we could do with a demonic nightclub, but it's probably more important to figure out what our boss is going to be like first.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Naturegirl1999 on April 05, 2022, 08:29:00 pm
Yes, +1 to looking for work
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 05, 2022, 09:15:46 pm
Since our strength depends directly on our battery supply, it might be best to set up a passive way to recharge batteries now so we have victims to fuel them later. If we end up getting in over our heads before we get more we'll end up running out, even if we're full now.

We should have our six nameless minions start up a kidnapping operation, with Blacklight using her human morality to take good care of our victims until we actually need them. Since we're in Detroit they can probably just steal a van and throw random people in it and nobody will notice.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 05, 2022, 11:07:27 pm
Since our strength depends directly on our battery supply, it might be best to set up a passive way to recharge batteries now so we have victims to fuel them later. If we end up getting in over our heads before we get more we'll end up running out, even if we're full now.
I don't think this is a factor until we get more troops capable of using them. A single battery contains 2 weeks worth of intense combat, we've got 5.4x666 ~= 3600 batteries, or about 150 demon-years worth of battery power in there. I don't think we're going to get into a century and a half worth of trouble all on our own.

I would agree that it's always better to have too many evil crystals than too few, though, and they are a potential source of income.

We should have our six nameless minions start up a kidnapping operation, with Blacklight using her human morality to take good care of our victims until we actually need them. Since we're in Detroit they can probably just steal a van and throw random people in it and nobody will notice.
I agree we can probably blackbag people without any serious repercussions (at least until we get unlucky and knick somebody important), but I'd rather lure and release. Fratboys, hipsters, and drug addicts will probably all be pretty easy to get into a nightclub/movie theater/seance chamber for some cool promise or another, at which point we can let them get blackout drunk and slurp them. Gets a more vibrant and varied crowd, even fewer problems with The One Good Cop in the city, and lets our minions network while they're at it.

If we do go the route of aggressive expansion (and I assume we'll want to keep anyone hit by our agony lances) using Blacklight is just begging for her to get a conscience attack and help them escape, though.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 06, 2022, 01:12:39 am
+1 To getting job.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 06, 2022, 01:36:19 am
"You know me so well, Blacklight." You admit as you change into your suit, only mildly annoyed that your shell has no bits and bobs to show off as you change clothing. "Tell Pete that Lustarms didn't nick anything last night when he wakes up, would you darling?"

As it is broad daylight, you decide to be a bit cautious, and take off from the roof rather than walk out the front door in all your bespoke gargoyle glory.

Since our strength depends directly on our battery supply, it might be best to set up a passive way to recharge batteries now so we have victims to fuel them later. If we end up getting in over our heads before we get more we'll end up running out, even if we're full now.

We should have our six nameless minions start up a kidnapping operation, with Blacklight using her human morality to take good care of our victims until we actually need them. Since we're in Detroit they can probably just steal a van and throw random people in it and nobody will notice.

On the flight back to the Big Apple, you consider a battery farming operation. In theory, this is something you could do, but in practice there is an obstacle: Money. Between food, security, and feces cleanup duty it is expensive to stockpile human prisoners. Up until this point, between your henchmen level jobs, saturating the Detroit and New York markets with Demonic Batteries, and Pete's nightclub operation, your little family has barely broke even. Your plan had always been to gain solid financial footing by making Underling Rank and investing your first real villainous paycheck back into Pete's business so that he may hire staff and host more profitable events. A successful nightclub brings in a lot of cash, and makes for a great way to launder other ill-gotten gains you might come across. As things stand right now, Pete is too busy between his film project and serving as your second in command to have the theatre open more than a few nights a week.

With any luck you will find work today, and get the ball rolling on all that soon.

I say we look for work. There's some interesting things we could do with a demonic nightclub, but it's probably more important to figure out what our boss is going to be like first.

One good thing about being able to fly is that you can land directly on the helipad at EAEAS headquarters and walk right into the executive suits, skipping a conversation with Johnny Jungleblade or whatever other boring past-their-prime scumbag is working as the greeter at ground level.

Approaching the receptionist, you flash your credential, and after a brief delay you are escorted into Comrade Morozov's office. The Russian out of Time is currently the Agency's Coordinator for Underling Level Headhunting. Morozov looks you up and down with the most stoic of Russian expressions, but you can smell a strong but well repressed hate underneath the surface; You suppose this is understandable, the time traveling WWII officer is said to have matched wits with some of Hitler's best demonolgists and warlocks and lost much in the process.

"Ah. Comrade Daydream. It is good to meet you for first time despite you regularly visiting this office for the better part of six years. Funny coincidence, no?"

"You can dispense with the pleasantries, Comrade Morozov. I know of and can literally smell your distaste for my kind." You smirk, "But I also hear great things about your professionalism. So how about you just show me what is avaible, so we can get out of each other's hair?"

The headhunter nods curtly, and produces five folders, three black and two white, from his desk. "You can look at these. In lobby. Away from me. Make choice quick; Was told to let you have first choice to celebrate promotion. Don't make good human underlings wait."

Heeding the good comrade's advice, you take the folders out into the lobby. You look at the black ones first; Jobs posted by proper supervillains seeking underlings to fill them. The agency's bread and butter. Your means of moving up in the world.

Quote from: Vehicle Heist Contract
Employer: Enzo Earndhart-Mercy and Gina Earndhart-Mercy
Base of Operations: Mansion, Hollywood, CA, USA
Duration: 3 Months or until completion
Payment: **

Description: Dylan Mercy, better known as the auto-themed supervillain Pileup, has set some money aside to establish his two youngest children, a pair of twins who want to get into the family business. They are looking to hire a competent underling to help them steal some exotic cars and military vehicles that they may use as parts for their first death machines.

Noteworthy Office Comments:
This should go to one of the new Underlings. They can grow alongside an equally green villainy org, and possibly forge a long lasting partnership -Helen

Quote from: West Horn Civil War Contract
Employer: Sister Agatha Cockburn
Base of Operations: Rebel Base, Rural West Horn, Africa
Duration: Until Completion
Payment: ****

Description: Sister Cockburn, the self proclaimed commander of heaven and hell and the Nun of 27 Demons, is pulling that most classic of villainous ploys: supporting 3rd World rebels on the condition that their government tolerate her activities when they come into power. She is looking for several competent underlings to enforce her will upon and lead the scattered rebel cells that are not part of her main army.

Noteworthy Office Comments:
Pitch this to Daydream, they have much to gain working with a master of the unholy -Martin
Disregard Martin's comment. Sister Cockburn could easily destroy, absorb, or bind and incubus to her service. Too Risky for Daydream -Helen
(Redacted) -Morozov


Quote from: Mysterious Contract
Employer: Cletus 'Deinosuchus' Watson
Base of Operations: TBD, Likely in the swamps of Florida or Louisiana, USA
Duration: Until completion. Minimum 6 Months.
Payment: *****

Description: The legendary supervillain Deinosuchus is looking for super-powered underlings who like money and don't like asking questions. Contract includes an impressive signing bonus.

Noteworthy Office Comments:
Deinosuchus is a crazed cannibalistic loner. That he hires help is suspicious. Offer job to Daydream. He can't eat Stone Demon. Reject contract if Daydream refuses. -Morozov

Next you consider the the white folders. Jobs offered directly by the agency. There is a stigma attached to taking too many 'white folder' jobs. 'Agency Lifers' are seen as more interested in steady work than climbing the ranks and making the required connections to become a respectable supervillain. That said, the Agency always pays its people fairly, keeps safety in mind, provides proper supplies for the assigned job, and tolerates no overt discrimination against non-humans. None of these things are guaranteed when contracting for random supervillains.

Quote from: Investigation of Non-Compete Clause Violation
Employer: EAEAS Internal Affairs Department
Base of Operations: Detroit, Michigan, USA
Duration: Until completion. Maximum 4 Months.
Payment: **(**)

Description: Last month we were approached by Colonel Smog, who was looking to hire henchmen for an operation in Detroit he refused to disclose. Negotiations stalled when Colonel Smog refused to pay the surcharge for undisclosed secret plans. During negotiations, Keven from Henchmen and Mook Headhunting, broke protocol and mentioned the Tomahawk Brothers (Lance, Drake, and Gunther) as good candidates for the job. Last week, we received word that the brothers relocated to Detroit. We suspect Colonel Smog cut the EAEAS out of the equation, and hired the brothers directly.

We are looking for an Underling Level Employee to investigate, and if our suspicions are correct, punish the Colonel and the Brothers. Minimal suitable punishment would be rendering whatever Colonel Smog is up to a complete failure, and the death of at least one brother.

Noteworthy Office Comments:
Daydream, if you are reading this, should you take this job, half your paycheck will be withheld. The church you work out of will be converted into a command post that meets minimum agency standards. The conversion will be worth much more than the withheld money -Helen


Quote from: West Horn War Logistics Contract
Employer: EAEAS Logistics
Base of Operations: EAEAS Western European Air Command, Heathrow Airport, London, UK
Duration: Until completion.
Payment: ***(**)

Description: In addition to our headhunting services, Sister Cockburn has also hired the Agency to handle supply and logistics for her African project, as she feels she lacks the skill to take responsibility for such things on her own.

We are looking for an Underling to take point on this operation. Your primary duty will be to secure high value flights shuttling gold, arms, and supplies between Agency Vaults in Western Europe, Arms dealers in the Balkans and Middle East, and Sister Cockburns forces in Africa. Combat ability is a must - these supply flights are popular targets for wannabe heroes and villains looking to make a quick buck at the expense of their peers. You will receive a significant hazard pay bonus if the job becomes violent at any point.

Noteworthy Office Comments:
Make sure Daydream sees this. Is good job for them. -Morozov
Just so you are aware, Daydream, Morozov is hoping you will be stupid and send Winged Incubi to attack these flights so he can get you in trouble. Please redact this note before returning the folder to him -Martin

You consider the offers. Morozov implied that you should select a job today... but of course it would be fun to piss him off by delaying.

Even if you do intend to select today, there is no harm in asking some questions first. On paper, it is Morozov's job to address questions and concerns regarding the contracts offered to underlings, but if you don't care to deal with him you could seek out Helen or Martin, the other two members of his department who left notes in the folders.

You are fairly sure Helen is the receptionist sitting at the desk in front of you, who showed you into Comrade Morozov's office earlier. You are less positive about Martin, but think he might be that lanky 9-5 looking geek who is usually hanging around the executive level water cooler.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 06, 2022, 02:03:27 am
Noteworthy Office Comments:
Pitch this to Daydream, they have much to gain working with a master of the unholy -Martin
Disregard Martin's comment. Sister Cockburn could easily destroy, absorb, or bind and incubus to her service. Too Risky for Daydream -Helen
(Redacted) -Morozov

Amazing how we can tell almost exactly what a comment says even when redacted. :P


I think we should ask what conversion to a command post entails, but unless it's amazing I say we jump straight into the biggest alligator mouth we can find and take Deinosuchus' job. It's black so it boosts our status, it pays well, and the grumpy Russian is right: He can't eat us and most of the nonsense he probably gets up to can't eat us, and we're both incredibly durable and incredibly mobile. Hard to find a better fit for going into the swamps with a madman.

Also, don't forget to redact Martin's comment before handing the folders back, as requested.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 06, 2022, 02:17:27 am
Noteworthy Office Comments:
Pitch this to Daydream, they have much to gain working with a master of the unholy -Martin
Disregard Martin's comment. Sister Cockburn could easily destroy, absorb, or bind and incubus to her service. Too Risky for Daydream -Helen
(Redacted) -Morozov

Amazing how we can tell almost exactly what a comment says even when redacted. :P


I think we should ask what conversion to a command post entails, but unless it's amazing I say we jump straight into the biggest alligator mouth we can find and take Deinosuchus' job. It's black so it boosts our status, it pays well, and the grumpy Russian is right: He can't eat us and most of the nonsense he probably gets up to can't eat us, and we're both incredibly durable and incredibly mobile. Hard to find a better fit for going into the swamps with a madman.

Also, don't forget to redact Martin's comment before handing the folders back, as requested.
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 06, 2022, 02:30:50 am
Noteworthy Office Comments:
Pitch this to Daydream, they have much to gain working with a master of the unholy -Martin
Disregard Martin's comment. Sister Cockburn could easily destroy, absorb, or bind and incubus to her service. Too Risky for Daydream -Helen
(Redacted) -Morozov

Amazing how we can tell almost exactly what a comment says even when redacted. :P


I think we should ask what conversion to a command post entails, but unless it's amazing I say we jump straight into the biggest alligator mouth we can find and take Deinosuchus' job. It's black so it boosts our status, it pays well, and the grumpy Russian is right: He can't eat us and most of the nonsense he probably gets up to can't eat us, and we're both incredibly durable and incredibly mobile. Hard to find a better fit for going into the swamps with a madman.

Also, don't forget to redact Martin's comment before handing the folders back, as requested.
+1
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 06, 2022, 03:05:19 am
I think we should ask what conversion to a command post entails...

You turn to the woman at the desk. "Excuse me dear, you are Helen, correct? I have a question."

The young secretary blushes. You smell pride. The fact that a noteworthy Underling knows her name pleases her. "Yes. I'm Helen. How can I help."

"I was reading your comment, Darling. What exactly does conversion to a command post entail?"

Helen pauses for a second, fumbling with her desk, before a holographic projection of your base appears. The image is old, lacking the neon decorations and still possessing signage for the church it used to be.

"At bare minimum we vastly expand the basement, reinforce the walls, and address any safety and accessibility issues the building may have. We then install a quantum computer up to agency security standards, allowing you to conduct agency business from the comfort of your own headquarters."

You nod as the secretary continues. "Once your building is a codified agency command post, it gains several benefits as well. You can register any of your particularly valuable nefarious possessions kept on site, making them much harder for thieving villians and anti-heroes to resell. You can also hire discrete mooks directly from the EAEAS Pool at a discount if you intend to primarily use them at a command post that meets safety and accessibility requirements."

Helen then offers a wicked grin as her pride spikes again. "Lastly, architecture and utilities permitting, we install point defense systems and an emergency teleporter. With both these features online, your odds of surviving a raid by police or minor heroes relatively unscathed increase by 67%! 95% if you sign up for protection from our teleporting White Folder Security Team. Sometimes the installation team will try and balk at installing that stuff in Detroit. They might give you some excuse about the power grid. If that happens, call me, and I can usually sort it out."

"Sounds impressive dear." You admit, "But right now I'm running a nightclub out of the place. Will that still be possible if it becomes a command post?"

"That shouldn't be a problem. Plenty of command posts host cover busniesses." Helen admits as her scent changes to that of lust and anxiety, "umm... Your place wouldn't happen to be LGBT friendly, would it? I wind up going to Detroit alot for work, and the wife keeps nagging me to bring her sometime. Its tough to find good spots where we can be open about both our relationship and our villainy."

"Darling, I'm a genderless being from another realm of a race known for indulging all kinds of lust. I don't discriminate." You answer, "but that said, the crowd varies a lot night by night depending on the entertainment, and can sometimes get a bit old fashioned when classic movies are involved. Also, we are only open for business two nights a week, three tops. Don't have alot of time to put into it."

You produce a business card, "I'll give you Peter's number and social media. He runs the show. Call him a week or two out, and he should be able to tell you what nights if any would make good date nights."

The scent of joy and gratitude fills your nostrils. "Thanks a bunch, Daydream! We don't advertise it well enough, but did you know that EAEAS has an entire division devoted to helping underlings keep their cover businesses afloat? All sorts of cool services. All you have to do to qualify is make it to six months as an Underling in good standing with the agency. My brother-in-law Teddy is to that department head as I am to Morozov, so I'd give him a call in six months."

Helen takes your business card, and exchanges it for one of her own, writing Teddy's number on the back. You take the card and return to your seat where you resume staring at the folders.

How do you Proceeded?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 06, 2022, 03:20:14 am
Take the job which comes with a command post upgrade.
Can think about forging connections and such once we're actually established, and making our base into an actual base is good security for that.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 06, 2022, 03:21:46 am
Still think alligator man is our best bet atm.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 06, 2022, 03:22:45 am
Given all the stuff the command post comes with it's way more with it than any mission that'll give more money.
Take job that gives command post.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 06, 2022, 03:41:48 am
Imo the actual benefits are pretty minimal and having a organization of scoundrels know about our nuclear warbird is pretty bad idea.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 06, 2022, 06:39:40 am
Since our strength depends directly on our battery supply, it might be best to set up a passive way to recharge batteries now so we have victims to fuel them later. If we end up getting in over our heads before we get more we'll end up running out, even if we're full now.
I don't think this is a factor until we get more troops capable of using them. A single battery contains 2 weeks worth of intense combat, we've got 5.4x666 ~= 3600 batteries, or about 150 demon-years worth of battery power in there. I don't think we're going to get into a century and a half worth of trouble all on our own.

I would agree that it's always better to have too many evil crystals than too few, though, and they are a potential source of income.

We should have our six nameless minions start up a kidnapping operation, with Blacklight using her human morality to take good care of our victims until we actually need them. Since we're in Detroit they can probably just steal a van and throw random people in it and nobody will notice.
I agree we can probably blackbag people without any serious repercussions (at least until we get unlucky and knick somebody important), but I'd rather lure and release. Fratboys, hipsters, and drug addicts will probably all be pretty easy to get into a nightclub/movie theater/seance chamber for some cool promise or another, at which point we can let them get blackout drunk and slurp them. Gets a more vibrant and varied crowd, even fewer problems with The One Good Cop in the city, and lets our minions network while they're at it.

If we do go the route of aggressive expansion (and I assume we'll want to keep anyone hit by our agony lances) using Blacklight is just begging for her to get a conscience attack and help them escape, though.

You are under the assumption we don’t want to use the nuclear option as our default armament.

We obviously do.

I’m against using our nightclub to kidnap people given it would reduce our profits. We should be good to our loyal hippy/fratboy/drug addicts! The customer is king!

How many jobs can we take?

Everyone seems to be in the assumption that we can only do one, but we could probably handle two with our current team if one of them is small. Probably more in the future.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Naturegirl1999 on April 06, 2022, 11:26:19 am
Let’s go for the 5 asterisk black folder job
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 06, 2022, 03:08:36 pm
Ooh. Genuinely torn on this one.

Upgrading and reinforcing our nefarious lair would be cool. Right now its only real defense is anonymity, which isn't a great longterm strategy.

However, none of the upgrades we'd get are really great on their own. Reinforcing the walls is probably the poster child of this: It'd be nicer to have a sturdier base, but what kind of threat is going to be stymied by stronger walls? It's nice but doesn't necessarily change a lot.

The other thing to bear in mind is that the black mission gives status and moves us up in the world, so aside from the money issue we'd be trading street cred for infrastructure. I don't know how that shakes out overall, but I'm inclined to get out there and make a name for ourselves rather than build up our holdings like some kind of legitimate businessman.

I will reluctantly maintain support for the cannibal job.


You are under the assumption we don’t want to use the nuclear option as our default armament.

We obviously do.
Hm. I prefer punching people, but I acknowledge our pressing need for more batteries at all times now.

I’m against using our nightclub to kidnap people given it would reduce our profits. We should be good to our loyal hippy/fratboy/drug addicts! The customer is king!
I didn't mean kidnapping them, I meant harmlessly sapping their energy while they sleep.

...I don't actually know if we can do that. Should have asked about this earlier.


What does feeding on mortals entail? Can it be done in unobtrustive ways? Any lingering side effects?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 07, 2022, 12:14:47 am
Also, don't forget to redact Martin's comment before handing the folders back, as requested.

As you near your decision, you ask Helen for a sharpie and redact Martin's comment on the logistics contract per his request.

Still think alligator man is our best bet atm.

You enter Morozov's office several minutes later, and place Cletus Watson's mysterious contract on his desk. "I'll take Deinosuchus."

The Russian nods. "Very good. Now leave my sight and go to second floor. I message Herbert, tell him you coming."

With a nod, you leave and head for the elevator.

---

With his scrawny frame, gothed up highlights, and a Misfits t-shirt, Herbert is unassuming to the eye, but you find the Underling Deployment Coordinator far more intimidating than Morozov. The Russian may hate you, but he is merely human. As the bastard son of the Hellenic deity Hermes, Herbert is a divine being of some significance; Although you are fairly safe in your Stone Shell, he could probably destroy your true form on accident by sneezing in your general direction.

"So someone actually nutted up and took the Deinosuchus contract, right on."

"According to the notes, they were not even planning on offering it to anybody else." You reply.

Herbert nods and gives a sly grin. "Makes sense, my... um man?" He pauses awkwardly for a second. "Cletus wants you working ASAP, even though he dosn't have a proper base of operations ready. We will be sending you to Baton Rouge, where you will be working out of a 5-Star hotel for the time being. Upon arrival you will find a secure cell phone in your room, which will contain contact information for your employer. You are to call him within 48 hours and do whatever he asks of you so long as it does not directly oppose the interests or bylaws of the agency. Once you call him to check in, Deinosuchus is supposed to notify us that your employment has begun, at which point we transfer your signing bonus to your ac... erm... what. It says on your file I should foward your money to one Peter Westmoreland. Is that correct?"

"It is. I don't possess any form or shell that would fit into a bank outside of a robbery attempt, so I let my Henchman handle the finances."

"Fair enough. Moving onto your stuff... Standard Protocol for TBD Base of Operations situations. You will be given access to a single Boeing 737, mostly set up for cargo but with 12 passenger seats to fill as you see fit. Goods will be stored in a warehouse and staff in cheap motels on the client's dime until a place is ready." Herbert reaches into his desk, and slides you a pen and a piece of paper. "This baby right here is form 87d: Request for Transfer and Temporary Holding of Villainous Personnel and Resources. You only need to fill out the contact information of whoever is running point on your stuff in Detroit, and the list of who and what is to be moved. I'll take care of the rest for ya."

You consider the offer. You are not sure if you need to move many of your assets. Perhaps a few spare shells to be safe? Other than that, its only a two hour flight between Louisiana and Detroit for you. You could easily pop back home on whatever days off you are given should the need for something else come up.

What do you request to have transported? Do you have any questions for Herbert? Is there anything you'd like to accomplish in the 48 hours before you have to report to work?

Assets:
Spoiler (click to show/hide)
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 07, 2022, 12:33:36 am
Yeah I don't think we really need anything. We'll probably want an officer's shell loadout just in case, but the actual work will probably be a stone shell deal. Maybe two extras in case we get roughed up?

Spare batteries are probably wise in case we go full scorched earth, but those are probably easy to carry anyway.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 07, 2022, 12:38:20 am
It sounds like alligatorman wants multiple underlings, and we're the only ones being offered the job? Should we call up some of our incubi contacts so we can all get some cash? Ask Herbert about that I guess.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 07, 2022, 03:44:15 am
Wouldn't our big stone body be able to count as multiple people when it comes to fighting, so I don't see why we would need to bring multiple people.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 07, 2022, 03:46:09 am
For the money mainly, if we do get paid more for bringing more henchmen.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 07, 2022, 10:42:18 pm
It sounds like alligatorman wants multiple underlings, and we're the only ones being offered the job? Should we call up some of our incubi contacts so we can all get some cash? Ask Herbert about that I guess.

Having worked as a Henchman for several years, you know enough about how the Agency works to not have to ask. Underling level staff can bring their own crew to jobs. The agency will provide board and housing for them if needed, and offers a very reasonably priced insurance package on their lives and well being, but beyond that they would solely be your responsibility.

You could literally summon some of your more loyal soldiers within a day if needed via phone call, so you feel no need to drag them in until you know what you will be doing.

You also know that the Agency will likely assign lower ranking Mooks and Henchmen from its pool to the job. These minions might report directly to Deinosuchus or to you, depending on how the Henchman/Mook portion of the contract is structured. You suspect the later, as the Agency has expressed concern about Deinosuchus eating staff.

Yeah I don't think we really need anything. We'll probably want an officer's shell loadout just in case, but the actual work will probably be a stone shell deal. Maybe two extras in case we get roughed up?

Spare batteries are probably wise in case we go full scorched earth, but those are probably easy to carry anyway.

Filling out the form, you request that 3 Stone Shell loadout and 1 Officer's Shell Loadout, as well as 20 batteries from the open crate, be brought south for the job. This is in addition to the Officer's Shell you are currently inhabiting; At least until Cletus gets a proper base set up, you doubt the fancy hotel you will be staying at would appreciate you stomping around in the full sized 9ft tall stone body.

You make a brief call to Pete, letting him know about the job and his role in transporting the goods, before adding his contact information to the sheet and handing it back to Herbert.

"Congrats on your first underling job man... erm... dude... erm..." Awkward silence falls once more before Herbert speaks. "Anyway, you got 48 hours to make it to Louisiana and call Cletus from the hotel... starting now. Good luck!"

What does feeding on mortals entail? Can it be done in unobtrustive ways? Any lingering side effects?

Taking off from the helipad, you decide to visit your favorite New York restraunt before making the longish flight down south. It is a fast food joint only a couple blocks off Times Square. On the roof is a utility room to which you have procured the key, where you can safely lock up your Officer's Shell and access the ducts in your true form.

The ducts in this building connect to the restroom. One of those unisex deals with a door that locks. You wait, enjoying the aroma of joy and wonder from the nearby tourists, until somebody has to use the restroom. Today you get a middle-aged touristy looking Chinese Woman.

Once she locks the door, You spring from the vent above her, giving your victim a good scare and instantly raising her emotional state to suitable feeding levels. At this point she slumps over limp as soon as your black amorphous form touches her flesh, and the feeding begins. Fear isn't your favorite flavor, per say, but it brings back nostalgic memories of the old invasion days when it was pretty much all you ate.

Your military training allows you to resist the natural instinct to probe and mess with your meal's mind beyond a quick memory wipe. If too many folk exit the restroom with long term side effects, people could start looking into things and you'd hate to lose such an easy means of hunting. The woman will come around about a minute after you release her, feeling emotionally neutral and exhausted, but otherwise fine. Peter tells you that if you feed off the same emotion from the same person too many times, they may lose their capacity for the feeling you've been eating, but beyond that the woman in your grasp is at no risk unless you choose to hurt her.

Once you conclude your meal, you retreat to the vents before she can wake up. Usually when visiting this place, you stick around until a second course shows up, but you are excited to get to Baton Rouge and check out the hotel, so you return to the utility room, re-enter your shell, and lock the door behind you before taking off.

---

The hotel has a relationship with the Agency, and considers themselves 'Villain Friendly', but they still prefer more outlandish creatures such as demonic squid and gargoyles keep to the top two floors where they are unlikely to bother the regular customers. You land on the balcony, where you find your room key waiting for you, and head inside. Your large suite includes a master bedroom, bathroom, and two large sitting areas, one of which houses a hot tub. The other sitting room houses a desk, on top of which is the secure phone and a written copy of your orders.

You give the orders a quick read. Almost everything on the document is stuff you have already heard from Herbert or Morozov. The one new piece of information pertains to Henchmen; Three of them will be assigned directly to you. As little is known about the job, it is your responsibility to brief them as needed, and to do your best to prevent Deinosuchus from eating them. They will be instructed to follow your orders so long as they don't conflict with the agency's interests or bylaws.

The contact information of your Henchmen will be added to your phone as they sign up. With this in mind, you decide to wait out most of your 48 hours before calling Deinosuchus; You can pop out of your shell for awhile, enjoy the hot tub in your true form, and sample the aroma created by the debauchery of your fellow hotel guests. The Agency works fast; You will likely know who you are working with by the time you have to call, and with that information you can be more knowledgeable and confident on the phone with your scary new boss.

---

You were right to wait. Unlike Morozov in the Underling department, Steve the Henchperson Dispatcher actually likes you, and must have gone out of his way to get you a solid crew for your first job.

Super Phreak is an old hand, having henched for over 50 years. A wealthy trust funder who only dabbles in villainy for his own amusement, Winston Grey only works a job or two a year, so having him on your team is a huge honor. It is rumored that he turned down promotion to Underling a half-dozen times because he didn't care for the notoriety. A skilled hacker, gadgeteer, and social engineer, his work name dates back to the 70's when messing with phones (or Phreaking) was the pinnacle of disrupting technology.

While you have never worked with Super Phreak before, your other two henchmen are people you know and work well with. Alice Cho, better known as the Eco-Terrorist antihero Zero-E, and the half-fey trickster Ginger Brogue were your regular partners before your recent promotion. You can only think of a handful of jobs you did in which you were not partnered with at least one of the pair. With the possible exception of Pete, you cannot think of any human you are more fond of than them.

Alice has always gone out of her way to be your friend. In awe of hell's clean energy sources, it is her most profound hope that one day demons will again invade the earth, and that she may fight alongside the invaders. You have encouraged this friendship by giving her a single demon battery, which has powered her Zero Emissions Motorcycle for over five years and still has about 70% charge. Although she is proficient in firearms and explosives, Zero-E is most infamous for her Windmill Katana, an energy blade that allows her to punch above her weight class and cut through most things that lack magical protection.

Ginger Brogue is a magic user, and although he is not particularly powerful when compared to other spellcasting heroes and scoundrels, it is the breadth of talent that most find impressive. He understands the basics of almost every school of magic, and always seems to have just the spell to help out in a given situation. Unlike Alice, it was you who took the effort to befriend him; As a practitioner of geomancy, he is one of the few beings aligned with the agency capable of doing harm to your stone shell, so you made a point to stay on his good side. So far your efforts have been rewarded with snippets of his backstory; He is actually South African, and only puts on a ridiculous stereotypical Irish charade that includes a full leprechaun costume because he feels it makes him more marketable as a short, half-fay, alcoholic, spellcaster.

Satisfied with your crew, you finally pick up the phone and call Cletus. It rings once... twice... four times... eight. Then he picks up.

"This Daydream?"

"Yes boss." You answer. His voice is faint and static-tainted. You get the feeling only one party to this conversation is speaking over a state of the art secure skullduggery-grade cellphone.

"Good. Listen up. Your first job is to find me a recent copy of something called the USDAGC. No more than four months old. It is a top secret government document. You probably got to prowl around government agency offices in Washington DC or somthin. Be loud about it if you have to. There are enough Incubi running around in Stone Shells that it will be tough to trace whatever shit you get up to back to me. You understand me?"

"Yes sir."

"Good."

You hang up the phone without fielding any further queries. In part because the contract mentioned that Deinosuchus didn't want underlings asking questions, but also in part because you don't feel the need. You were aware that Cletus was a loner, but your very brief discussion just now showed exactly how uninformed and out of the loop he is. The Universial Spreadsheet Documenting Artifacts in Government Custody (USDAGC or DAGC for short) is indeed a government document you could find at the pentagon, but procuring a copy wont necessarily require a high level act of villainy.

Every aspiring Villain, and even many aspiring heroes, has had a copy to drool over at some point. The document serves as a master list of every notable piece of equipment ever confiscated from a monster, scallywag, or metahuman by the government of a UN member nation. The list includes as detailed a description of each item as possible, and a 22 digit location code for each. The codes are what prevents anybody from just tracking down whatever artifact they please; Some are too vague to be useful, indicating things such as 'no longer in government custody' or 'within the continental United States', and others are state secrets with their meaning only known to a select few.

Because the codes provide security, the document itself doesn't require any sort of super-high level clearance. Any agency, be it military, law enforcement, research lab, or museum, that handles relevant artifacts likely has somebody on staff who can access the document. You have a copy back on your computer in Detroit that is five or six years old. A quick google search reveals that someone leaked the entire thing to the web 11 months back. It shouldn't take too much effort to get an up to date version.

It would probably be poor form to throw your boss under the bus, but if you were to go to New York and tell the staff members at the Agency who like you that the legendary Deinosuchus is dumb enough to hire an underling level being simply to procure the DAGC, somebody there could likely get it for you.

Likewise you could delegate the task to Super Phreak. Nabbing a low to mid-level clearance document such as the DAGC should be trivial for a hacker and social engineer of his caliber. The thought of letting your henchman do all the work while you take a few days off to enjoy your signing bonus is indeed tempting.

Also tempting is just humoring your boss, and acquiring the document the hard way. Violence and manipulation are both fun, and Deinosuchus might be more impressed if your efforts to get him the document make the news. You could pick and shake down any major museum or big city police department in the civilized world, go far enough away from the deep south, and nobody will likely connect the dots between the heist and whatever bullshit the cabalistic gator-man might have you get up to next.

How do you plan on acquiring the Document?

If you intend to go about it the easy way, is there anything you would like to do with your spare time and signing bonus?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 07, 2022, 10:54:50 pm
Let Super Phreak acquire it. Treat him to a coffee or something afterwards.

Pete use signup bonus for business?

Talk with geomancer and ecoterrorist about potentially replicating and mass producing demon batteries so we three can potentially become billionaires and also save the planet.


Literally what we have Super Phreak on our team for so might as well use his expertise.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 07, 2022, 11:30:22 pm
Use SP to get the document, but show some initiative and look for a way to crack the codes while he is doing it. Since this is an obvious next step (and if he doesn’t need it we can make a wish list for later).

An obvious way would be to make a list of people we can kidnap/mindread
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 07, 2022, 11:54:08 pm
Let Super Phreak acquire it. Treat him to a coffee or something afterwards.

Pete use signup bonus for business?

Talk with geomancer and ecoterrorist about potentially replicating and mass producing demon batteries so we three can potentially become billionaires and also save the planet.


Literally what we have Super Phreak on our team for so might as well use his expertise.
Use SP to get the document, but show some initiative and look for a way to crack the codes while he is doing it. Since this is an obvious next step (and if he doesn’t need it we can make a wish list for later).

An obvious way would be to make a list of people we can kidnap/mindread
+1 to all this, though more likely good ol' fashioned detective work will be the only way to really "crack" the codes.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Maximum Spin on April 07, 2022, 11:56:50 pm
Another obvious direction of inquiry would be to look for items whose location could be determined by other means, so that other items with the same code can be narrowed down by comparison - although not necessarily very much, since we know some of the codes might correspond to entire countries, but with enough examples for a code we should be able to get a rough idea of its scale.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 07, 2022, 11:58:28 pm
Another obvious direction of inquiry would be to look for items whose location could be determined by other means, so that other items with the same code can be narrowed down by comparison - although not necessarily very much, since we know some of the codes might correspond to entire countries, but with enough examples for a code we should be able to get a rough idea of its scale.
This is very clever idea. +1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Taricus on April 08, 2022, 12:17:38 am
+1 to the stuff we have so far, but also ponder what would be necessary for making a new sort of stone shell. Sure, the officer shell is useful but there's not a lot of recreation you can do with one. At the very least, something that can let you enjoy basic stuff like mortal food.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 08, 2022, 02:13:21 am
I'd be tempted to go the route of entirely unnecessary violence and action, but lazing around is good too.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 08, 2022, 03:18:50 am
+1 To all the above things.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 08, 2022, 03:30:50 am
Also... This guy is a proper villain, let's think about, assuming for a moment that he's not just dumb, what's his angle for hiring an underling to do this?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Taricus on April 08, 2022, 04:17:57 am
Doing the stuff he can't because he's pre-occupied with something else. I mean we are hired help, we do whatever hired help is supposed to do.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 08, 2022, 04:20:50 am
Aye, but he could have hired a henchperson to do it instead rather than getting a whole crew.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Rockeater on April 08, 2022, 05:16:07 am
Could be distrust of the agency, making sure they didn't send the first henchperson he couldn't it as his underling
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 08, 2022, 10:51:34 pm
Let Super Phreak acquire it. Treat him to a coffee or something afterwards.

Literally what we have Super Phreak on our team for so might as well use his expertise.

Winston answers the phone on the first ring. "This must be Daydream, right? Unknown call from an agency secure phone."

"Aren't you the clever one, darling. Exactly as advertised."

"You are well advertised yourself boss. I'll be in Baton Rouge Wednesday. I look forward to working with you."

"The feeling is mutual," you grin, "anyway. I was calling to ask for a small favor. I need a recent copy of the DGAC, 4 months at the oldest. That should be fairly trivial for you, correct?"

Super Phreak chuckles on the other end. "Getting the document, trivial. Printing it will be a bitch. That's at least 2000 pages. Three and a half if we want a reasonable font size. You good with a digital copy?"

You consider the question briefly. Your very limited interaction with Deinosuchus dosn't give you much faith in his technological ability. "We probably need a hard copy."

"Shit. We doing some kind of artifact heist?"

"I would think so, but the client has me just as much in the dark as you, dear."

"Wonderful. Keep me posted, okay? No disrespect boss, but I've been in the game longer than you've been on earth. They wouldn't even tell us Henchmen who the client is. The agency usually doesn't throw its own to the wolves, but this situation has my guard up."

"Trust me," you giggle, "it doesn't get any less confusing if you know who the client is."

Also... This guy is a proper villain, let's think about, assuming for a moment that he's not just dumb, what's his angle for hiring an underling to do this?

You ponder the situation after hanging up the phone. From what you have heard, Deinosuchus is a simple being driven by gluttony and wrath. Left to his own devices, the Crocodilian Cannibal is usually content to hang around the swamps of the deep south. His crimes are usually beneath a being of his immense power: Hunting and fishing without a permit, cooking meth, consuming meth, robbing stores for meth ingredients, brutally murdering drug dealers who object to him giving away his spare meth, and eating hitchhikers. Once in a while, when gets particularly hungry, angry, or low on meth, he will assume his 7-story tall monster form and rain hell upon some hapless city until a coalition of Super Heroes forms to stop him.

It usually takes 3-5 of the Stronger Super Heroes to put a stop to Deinosuchus. Only The Refugee, earth's mightiest hero, has proven able to defeat Cletus one on one, and the visitor from a dead world uncharacteristically chose to adopt stick-and-move tactics against Deinosuchus, leading many to believe that the wild reptile is one of the few beings to have The Refugee beat in sheer physical might. Regardless, Deinosuchus has proven time and time again that he lacks either the smarts or the stubborness to maintain a rampage for long. Luckily for him, he has proven too durable to kill and too tricky to keep imprisoned.

Deinosuchus' history with meaningful schemes and plans is unimpressive to the best of your knowledge. Shortly after 9/11, he famously decided to try his hand at anti-Heroing and promised to single handedly travel to Afghanistan defeat the Taliban, but was stopped by superheroes and forcibly returned to the U.S. shortly after swimming across the Atlantic because he couldn't refrain from attacking European Cities on his travels. Another time he kidnapped a Hollywood Film crew in an attempt to star in the first ever live-action Kaiju move, but the project quickly fell through because Deinosuchus was unable to refrain from eating his co-stars. Most of the survivors required rehab for newly developed Meth addictions.

You spend the better part of an hour pondering his motives, but find it hard to escape from the idea that your employer is just stupid, or at least disconnected from realities of proper supervillainy. You next best idea is that Cletus is trying to treat the EAEAS as a food delivery service, and is presenting you with the illusion of a job so that you might let your edible Henchmen near him. Perhaps some of your Henchmen, who have been on earth longer than you have, could have some insight. Although to ask would probably require revealing to them that they are working for someone with a history of eating people when it is in his best interests not to.

Pete use signup bonus for business?

The next morning you recieve a call from Pete.

"Umm... Boss. The agency just wired a million and a half dollars into my account."

"That must be the signing bonus. Feel free to use as much as you want to expand the club."

There is a brief silence as Pete ponders your generosity. "Right. I'll get to hiring some more staff? Do you want me to wait until you can fly up and observe the interviews? If not, should I be telling the employees the true nature of the club's owner?"

This time the pause is on your end. "Get your hiring campaign ready, but don't pull the trigger on it just yet, dear. Let me get a better grasp on my schedule, and I'll get back to you on that shortly."

Talk with geomancer and ecoterrorist about potentially replicating and mass producing demon batteries so we three can potentially become billionaires and also save the planet.

Zero-E and Ginger Brogue both arrive in the afternoon. The agency isn't big on providing the best lodgings for Henchmen level staff, so you invite them to crash in your suite for the time being. As a genderless being, the agency has forced you to room with each of them during your own henchmen days, and they both make for fine company liable to bring back one-night-stands when work is slow and let you feed on their partners once they have had their fill.

The three of you spend most of the evening lounging around the hot-tub, indulging in your favorite topic of group conversation: Demonic batteries. Making them in bulk has always felt like a dream that was just out of reach. They require either Crimson Uranium or Soulite to produce, and neither element occurs naturally in the mortal dimension. Ginger Brogue can create small amounts of Crimson-U with his magic, but nowhere near enough to supply an industrial production effort. He could also, in theory, travel to hell to gather supplies, but making the trip safe, dependable, and reversible is a bit above his skill level.

Once you sort out materials, you would also face the issue of design. You would need somebody who is both a competent scientific mind and knowledgeable in matters of the occult to reverse engineer a demonic battery. In theory, Pete could bring the occult, and Zero-E the engineering, but up until now, neither has really had the time to meet up and put their heads together on the matter. Perhaps your new found underling level income could afford them some time off in the future.

---

Super Phreak arrives in town the following morning, and calls to inform you that he will be spending the day at a local office supply store getting the document printed. Shortly after that call concludes, you recieve a call from Deinosuchus, asking about your progress on the document.

"Its under control boss. I should have it real soon."

"Good. Let me know. I'll pay you a visit at the hotel to pick it up. Hopefully I'll have your next task ready by then."

"Sure thing."

You hang up, and stare at the phone like it is a live grenade. Deinosuchus wants to visit the hotel, where you just invited your very edible henchmen to crash with you. It will now take some finesse to keep your friends safe, especially if you plan to keep them in the dark about their employer.

On the bright side, Cletus didn't seem particularly rushed. You can probably wait a few days before you tell him you got the document, and use the time to either come up with a plan to protect your henchmen, or fly back to Detroit and help Pete with hiring.

How do you proceed?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 08, 2022, 11:33:24 pm
Lets segway from the past conversation. We just talked about demon batteries, how about trying to see if we can use Ginger's magic to allow our three minions to use some of our heavier equipment.

We can start by having him modify a stone shell with his geomancy. Since we know he is capable of messing with them we can have him physically modify them so they can be used by humans. If he can manage that then none of our minions will get eaten, since our employer will assume they're inedible as we are.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 08, 2022, 11:56:13 pm
Quote
Hunting and fishing without a permit, cooking meth, consuming meth, robbing stores for meth ingredients, brutally murdering drug dealers who object to him giving away his spare meth, and eating hitchhikers. Once in a while, when gets particularly hungry, angry, or low on meth, he will assume his 7-story tall monster form and rain hell upon some hapless city until a coalition of Super Heroes forms to stop him.
This is an amazing rap sheet. He's just a meth-addicted crocodile in human(?) form.


Anyway, there's no way he's paying us a million and a half dollars just for takeout. He might nibble on them anyway, but that's clearly not his main goal.

Lets segway from the past conversation. We just talked about demon batteries, how about trying to see if we can use Ginger's magic to allow our three minions to use some of our heavier equipment.

We can start by having him modify a stone shell with his geomancy. Since we know he is capable of messing with them we can have him physically modify them so they can be used by humans. If he can manage that then none of our minions will get eaten, since our employer will assume they're inedible as we are.
Could potentially have him render everyone inedible or unappetizing via simple enchantments or illusions of some kind. Stoneskin, smells-like-plants, tofu armor, etc. He seems rather blunt and simple-minded, so if something doesn't look or smell like food he probably won't bother eating it, even if intellectually he knows he could. If we knew more about his tastes I might even suggest keeping bad-smelling herbs in their pocket or something.

In the short run we could also just have them not be here when he arrives, but that won't hold for the mission as a whole. Might be able to make sure there's something tastier than they are on hand at all times, but without knowing his preferences that could be tricky, and he probably wouldn't appreciate us asking.


ALSO he is almost certainly going to give our henchmen meth. There's probably not a lot we can do about that.


I feel like it'd be unprofessional to keep him waiting, so I'm in favor of calling him as soon as we have the document. We should wait on either phase 2 or being told it's not ready yet before making a decision with Pete, but in general I'm thinking the staff should be in on the demonic cult aspect.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 09, 2022, 12:04:52 am
Could potentially have him render everyone inedible or unappetizing via simple enchantments or illusions of some kind. Stoneskin, smells-like-plants, tofu armor, etc. He seems rather blunt and simple-minded, so if something doesn't look or smell like food he probably won't bother eating it, even if intellectually he knows he could. If we knew more about his tastes I might even suggest keeping bad-smelling herbs in their pocket or something.

In the short run we could also just have them not be here when he arrives, but that won't hold for the mission as a whole. Might be able to make sure there's something tastier than they are on hand at all times, but without knowing his preferences that could be tricky, and he probably wouldn't appreciate us asking.


ALSO he is almost certainly going to give our henchmen meth. There's probably not a lot we can do about that.


I feel like it'd be unprofessional to keep him waiting, so I'm in favor of calling him as soon as we have the document. We should wait on either phase 2 or being told it's not ready yet before making a decision with Pete, but in general I'm thinking the staff should be in on the demonic cult aspect.

We could but we wouldn't be able to use our nuclear grenade launchers with tofu armor. Upgrading our minions so they can use our standard equipment allows them to keep pace with our demonic minions figuratively and literally, giving them all the toughness of our fighters with all their specialist skills the humans have. A spell would solve the immediate problem but if we can have some long-term benefit and solve the immediate problem then why not?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 09, 2022, 02:09:57 am
Using magic to make our dudes able to use our demon stuff sounds like a good idea.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Naturegirl1999 on April 09, 2022, 02:41:37 am
We should warn them about our boss so they know why we’re giving them the stone shells, also so they have their guard up, does Brogue know an invisibility spell?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 09, 2022, 03:46:20 am
Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 09, 2022, 04:01:14 am
Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.

this one gets my mindless plus
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Rockeater on April 09, 2022, 04:18:15 am
Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.

this one gets my mindless plus
+1

We can try work on stuff like having them use our equipment when we know what kind of equipment we will need.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 10, 2022, 02:28:31 am
Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.

this one gets my mindless plus
+1

We can try work on stuff like having them use our equipment when we know what kind of equipment we will need.
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Naturegirl1999 on April 10, 2022, 08:51:30 am
Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.

this one gets my mindless plus
+1

We can try work on stuff like having them use our equipment when we know what kind of equipment we will need.
+1
what about before he shows up, when he shows up would be too late, also we should go get the files from Phreak so he doesn’t have to go to the hotel, we have to make sure that we are the only one there and that we have the USDAGC I think I scrambled some of the letters by accident
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Rockeater on April 10, 2022, 10:06:00 am
Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.

this one gets my mindless plus
+1

We can try work on stuff like having them use our equipment when we know what kind of equipment we will need.
+1
what about before he shows up, when he shows up would be too late, also we should go get the files from Phreak so he doesn’t have to go to the hotel, we have to make sure that we are the only one there and that we have the USDAGC I think I scrambled some of the letters by accident
Very important, true
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 10, 2022, 11:19:12 pm
We can start by having him modify a stone shell with his geomancy. Since we know he is capable of messing with them we can have him physically modify them so they can be used by humans. If he can manage that then none of our minions will get eaten, since our employer will assume they're inedible as we are.

Ginger Brogue considers your request. "The shells are statues for magical creatures ta possess, not armor for people like me to wear. Solid all the way through. I'm not saying adapting them for human use would be impossible, but I sure as hell wouldn't know where to begin boss. Methinks you'd have a better shot teaching mortals how to do possessions, than you would hollowing out the statues."

The little man strokes his red beard. "But that said, if ye got a spare shell, when this job is over I could take apart the magics and see if I can figure out how they work. No way in on this green earth the shell would survive my experiments, and no guarentee I'd get anything useful out of it, but there is a chance I could find a way to apply the strength and protection charms on it to other objects."

Be open about our employer being that one meth-addicted crocodile. Try to plan around that. Have them go pub crawling or something when Deinosuchus shows up if that's going to be a problem.

Don't keep the meth-addicted crocodile waiting, get in touch with him as soon as we can with the stuff.


The hotel has a top floor common room with a bar where monsters and Villains' may gather without disrupting the regular guests. You bring Brogue and Zero-E out to meet Super Phreak. The old human picks out a quiet table in the corner, and opens up medium sized travel suitcase, revealing the many pages of the USDAGC.

"Here is the document you requested boss. Might I add it is a pleasure to meet you in person."

"The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Grey, but I am no mere person." You offer a slight smirk, before adopting the serious facial expression you have seen mortal leaders employ in briefings. "And on that note, neither is out employer. I have gathered you three together to share the facts as I know them. Our employer is the major super-villain Deinosuchus. As I am sure you are all well aware, Deinosuchus usually works alone, and has little to no history pulling off big complicated jobs that require a full team of Underlings and Henchmen. The agency suspects that he might just be 'ordering takeout' from them, if you well. As such I was given the job as I am not particularly appetizing."

A silence falls over the table. Super Phreak is the first to break it. "That is an interesting development. I thought I smelled something fishy. A few years back, just for fun, I looked into the assets of all the major Villains. Deinosuchus isn't much of the 'worldly possessions' type. In general the totality of his assets usually boils down to a few guns, some fishing gear, whatever truck he has most recently stolen, and whatever abandoned property he is currently squatting in to use as a Meth Lab. There is no way he can afford to hire the agency."

You decide against bringing up your big signing bonus as a counter-point. As much as you like the taste and aroma of envy, it rarely bodes well to be the one others a jealous of.

"Regardless of our concerns," you explain, "it is our duty to serve Deinosuchus to the best of our ability until he gives us good reason to do otherwise. But that doesn't mean we cannot be cautious. Unless doing so is completely unavoidable, Nobody aside from me will be meeting our client in person. Brogue, your task for now is to come up with a magical solution to make yourself and your peers less appetizing to Cannibals capable of transforming into Alligator Kaiju. It would reflect poorly on me if I were to let any of you dear delicious mortals under my care end up as gator food."

"Will do boss. Give me a couple days, and I'll whip up something to protect me an' the lads."

"And what of the rest of us?" Asks Zero-E.

"Our Client has been vague about our job, and doesn't care to field questions. I'm expecting to receive more information shortly after I hand the document into him. On that note, he is coming to the hotel to pick the file up. I suggest you all make yourselves scarce for the time being." You then wrinkle your nose, and give the same speech that every Underling you have worked for as a henchman has ever given. "Have fun until I call you back in, but no public display of your powers, gear, or uniforms. If the forces of justice know a specific Agency Henchperson is in an area, they are more likely to send heroes with the skills and abilities to counter said henchperson when we start doing our job. The longer we go without our presence here being public knowledge, the better, my dears."

You can smell the apprehension, perhaps even mild fear, on your henchmen as they learn the circumstances of their employment, but nothing that would suggest imminent disobedience or treachery. You dismiss the trio, and call Deinosuchus.

He answers on the 9th ring. "Yes?"

"I got the document."

"Good. I'll be by the hotel tonight. Keep an eye out. I'll arrive in a red Semi-cab without a trailer and wait across the street from your room. Come out to the truck, hand over the goods, and we will have a chat."

---

Deinosuchus' truck arrives a few minutes past 10pm. You check to make sure the street is clear, and fly out to meet him. The tinted window is open a crack, and from inside you hear a voice. "Passenger door is unlocked. Get in."

The batch of incubi forged for the invasion of earth were not designed to experience fear in any capacity other than as a meal, but as you enter Cletus' truck, you feel the sort of foreboding nerves that you haven't experienced since the final days of the invasion.

The passenger seat itself is clearly stained with fairly fresh blood, and a few large bones, including a broken human skull, sit at your feet, but it is Deinosuchus himself who really makes you uncomfortable. At first glance, he isn't much: Average sized, slightly overweight, and rocking a bootlegged Breaking Bag shirt that reads 'I am the Danger'. But you know that with the possible exception of the archdevils who created and trained you, that this is the strongest being you have ever met. Even in his human form, Deinosuchus is said to be obscenely strong and durable, and that is before you take into account the fact that he can turn into a 100ft tall reptilian monster at the drop of a hat.

Beyond all that, it is Deinosuchus emotional state that truly catches your attention. He doesn't have one. Perfect emotional neutral. Like smelling a flower. This in and of itself is quite unusual; You were specifically created to read, interact with, and terrorize the mortals of earth. You usually have some issues smelling and understanding the aroma of beings who are not, or not entirely human. But you are still a demon. You should be able to pick up something of an emotion from any mortal, especially one this close to you. It is only when he reaches over to grab the briefcase containing the document, and his arm briefly brushes your stone shell, that you sense it.

Your first thought is that you have never detected an emotion so perfectly repressed. But your first thought is quickly pushed from your head by the second; Never before have you detected a despair so complete. Deep down Deinosuchus is completely and utterly resigned to some less than pleasant fate. The fact that something can make a being as powerful as him feel that way is terrifying enough on its own. The fact that any mortal can hide such despair and function normally makes no sense. The fact that the person feeling this perfect despair is your employer is particularly troubling.

Cletus stares at the document for a few minutes before he nods, puts the truck in drive, and informs you that "We are going for a drive."

For the better part of three hours the two of you drive in silence through the nighttime swampscape. You can do little except fixate on the strange circumstances of the person sitting to your left.

Eventually, however, the truck comes to a stop outside a large metal gate at the base of a hill. "This town is Called Gator Gulch. There is an airport here I'd like to use as my base of operations for the upcoming work. Sadly, I have some... erm... bad history with the drug runners who control the place. I ate old Cajun Jack's arm and was silly enough to let him escape with his life because it tasted bad. The guy holds a grudge, and seeing as he is one of the Veja Cartel's major distributors in the American South, he's an inconvenient enemy to have. I'd go in loud, and eat his whole fucking crew, but then everybody would know its my base of operations."

Your employer points to the gate. "The family that lives in that house up the Hill are the Clancys. Bunch of rich fucks who's ancestors bought the plantation from a bunch of broke former slave owning fucks. The Patriarch and several of his adult sons fly planes as a hobby, and they own a hangar at the airport. As far as I know, they are the only non-drug people to utilize the place, so they probably have a relationship with Cajun Jack."

Deinosuchus offers you a wicked grin that is completely unsubstantiated by any detectable emotions. "What you and your crew are going to do is pay the Clancys a visit, and 'convince' them that it is in their best interest to let us use their hangar without making a fuss. Ideally we then use them fucks to reach out to Cajun Jack, and hopefully gain access to the entire airport without making a big public stink. Don't mention my name. Let them think you are running the operation. Jack should be more agreeable that way."

Having finished his instructions, Deinosuchus turns his truck around, and starts driving back towards the city. Do you dare attempt to talk with your employer on the ride back? If not, what is your next move?
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 11, 2022, 12:00:55 am
I think we can be more helpful of we know what our employer is aiming for so

Ask Deinosuchus if they're willing to share further intermediate goals so we can begin to prepare for those.

Not sure how we should approach the rest of the situation, will wait for someone else to come up with brilliant plans for me to +1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 11, 2022, 12:23:55 am
Does the fact he’s super powerful make him immune to our emotion suppressing ability? It feels like it works that way but it would be fun to suppress this bottomless despair and see what happens.

Otherwise we don’t really need an advanced plan. We’re a super charismatic demon. Do a quick social media crawl to find the best target, give them a fun night or two on the town to befriend them, then ask to use it as a friend. Agonize them until they agree if that doesn’t work.

Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 11, 2022, 01:21:13 am
Otherwise we don’t really need an advanced plan. We’re a super charismatic demon. Do a quick social media crawl to find the best target, give them a fun night or two on the town to befriend them, then ask to use it as a friend. Agonize them until they agree if that doesn’t work.
This. I say we have Brogue and Phreak investigate them independently as well, so we have a good pitch for showing up at their doorstep. But once we've got a compatible excuse for our interest in their family and airfield, we should be able to negotiate the rest over nice drinks.

We also have $1.5 million in the bank, so we can say with complete honesty that we're a businessman looking to expand, if that fits.


As for Cletus, ask about the area and make smalltalk about relevant hobbies. He'll either tell us to shut up or enjoy mentioning various fishing spots while giving us ideas for crazy schemes.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 11, 2022, 01:47:16 am
As for Cletus, ask about the area and make smalltalk about relevant hobbies. He'll either tell us to shut up or enjoy mentioning various fishing spots while giving us ideas for crazy schemes.
+1 It's better than an awkward car ride back to town.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 11, 2022, 04:59:54 am
Otherwise we don’t really need an advanced plan. We’re a super charismatic demon. Do a quick social media crawl to find the best target, give them a fun night or two on the town to befriend them, then ask to use it as a friend. Agonize them until they agree if that doesn’t work.
This. I say we have Brogue and Phreak investigate them independently as well, so we have a good pitch for showing up at their doorstep. But once we've got a compatible excuse for our interest in their family and airfield, we should be able to negotiate the rest over nice drinks.

We also have $1.5 million in the bank, so we can say with complete honesty that we're a businessman looking to expand, if that fits.


As for Cletus, ask about the area and make smalltalk about relevant hobbies. He'll either tell us to shut up or enjoy mentioning various fishing spots while giving us ideas for crazy schemes.
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Rockeater on April 11, 2022, 05:01:26 am
Otherwise we don’t really need an advanced plan. We’re a super charismatic demon. Do a quick social media crawl to find the best target, give them a fun night or two on the town to befriend them, then ask to use it as a friend. Agonize them until they agree if that doesn’t work.
This. I say we have Brogue and Phreak investigate them independently as well, so we have a good pitch for showing up at their doorstep. But once we've got a compatible excuse for our interest in their family and airfield, we should be able to negotiate the rest over nice drinks.

We also have $1.5 million in the bank, so we can say with complete honesty that we're a businessman looking to expand, if that fits.


As for Cletus, ask about the area and make smalltalk about relevant hobbies. He'll either tell us to shut up or enjoy mentioning various fishing spots while giving us ideas for crazy schemes.
+1
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Weirdsound on April 12, 2022, 02:26:40 am
I say we have Brogue and Phreak investigate (the family) independently as well, so we have a good pitch for showing up at their doorstep. But once we've got a compatible excuse for our interest in their family and airfield, we should be able to negotiate the rest over nice drinks.

We also have $1.5 million in the bank, so we can say with complete honesty that we're a businessman looking to expand, if that fits.


As for Cletus, ask about the area and make smalltalk about relevant hobbies. He'll either tell us to shut up or enjoy mentioning various fishing spots while giving us ideas for crazy schemes.

You try making small talk. Cletus isn't chatty at first, and your complete inability to read his normal emotions handcaps your social skills a bit, but at the end of the day he is still a mortal and you are still an incubus.

"I used to work at a little diner, 'bout two miles that way," Cletus explains, pointing at an easily missed turn on the empty backwoods road, "back before the Wrath Virus supercharged my powers and threw my mind and taste buds all out of wack. Did ya know Gators'll eat smaller Gators? I was no great cook, certainly didn't deserve that job, but I made a mean Gator omelet."

He chuckles, "I was fucking nothing back then. Sure, I could turn into a 6ft Aligator, but that is more a party trick or means of hiding out than it is a proper Super Power. Not sure if that would even cut it for Henchman level at the Agency. I guess I'm still nothing now. More famous than I was back then I guess, and I can turn into a bigger gator, but I'm still just some trashy fucking redneck piece of shit. But that will all fucking change by the time we are through, mark my words. Got me some big fucking plans."

"I'll bet you do, darling."

Under your cool exterior, you are still a bit shaken. You've never met any evildoer, much less a big name famous one like Deinosuchus, who would give up his backstory so easily. All you were trying to do is get him to make some small talk about the swamp, and he unloaded a full motive rant on you. You can tell for sure without reading his emotions, but you suspect he is doing nothing more than telling you what he thinks you want to hear. Trying to put your mind at ease.

---

As Ginger Brogue has locked himself away in his cheap henchman motel room to try and work out a solution to the 'Deinosuchus eating his staff' issue, only Super Phreak and Zero-E are present for your briefing on the next task. As you explain the situation, you feel Zero-E's agitation and hatred growing. The Eco Crusader considers commercial aviation an unspeakable crime against the environment, in her skewed worldview, you wouldn't be surprised if the unnecessary unnecessary pollution created by recreational flying would be akin to murder or rape.

Halfway through the briefing, Alice takes a deep breath, centers herself, and represses her destructive feelings. Your old friend is as much a pragmatist as she is an extremeist, and understands that punishing one or two polluters isn't worth botching a job and losing grace with the Agency in the long run. Still you are sure Zero-E would be quite thrilled if you chose less than amicable means of handling the Clancy family.

After hearing your instructions, Super Phreak pulls out his computer. "Give me an hour, and I'll look into our marks."

"Fair enough, Alice, lets take a brief recess."

---

When the meeting resumes, Ginger Brogue has returned from isolation. He looks absolutely wasted, and is tightly clutching a small pouch. "I think I got something. Should make someone nigh undetectable to ta brain of a reptile unless the user or someone else directly draws attention to em. Not entirely positive it works on a hybrid shapeshifter like our boss though. And I only got one, and I don't got the supplies to make more."

He scratches his red sideburns. "Twould take me three, mabey four days, if you want me to gather what I need to make two more for Phreak an' Alice. But we might want to test it 'for we invest that sort o' time into making more, eh? Your call boss."

"Hmm... I'll give it some thought, dear. For now, let me get you up to speed before Super Phreak shares with the class."

After you brief the half-fey, Super Phreak begins.

"There are five main members of the Clancy Household. Widower Brock, and his four adult children Heston, Chase, Nora, and Brock Jr." The old man begins, "For the most part, they lack any real jobs and live off the accumulated wealth of prior generations. Chase attended buissness school at Harvard and dropped out after a year and a half. He may be the only one of them trying to make money. He is listed on the board of several corporations, all of which are vaguely involved in financial advice or stock brokering. The fact I can't find much on Chase's companies leads me to believe there could be something fishy like Money Laundering or a Ponzi Scheme going on. Give me a day or two and I could look into it if you wish."

"Heston the oldest might also be a weak point. He's something of a playboy, with a long history of dating C-List actresses and capes." Winston wiggles his eyebrows and gives his best dirty old man smirk, "Good chance he'd be down to screw Alice."

Zero-E flinches at the thought, and both Ginger Brogue and Super Phreak enjoy a brief chuckle at her expense before continuing. "Nora and Junior are twins, and there doesn't seem to much to dig up on them. Younger Brock did a few months in juvie for animal abuse years ago, and Nora has tried her hand at actual air-races on several occasions, but always placed near the back. She and her father are the most avid fliers of the bunch; The go to airshows cosplaying as Howard Hughes and Amelia Earhart respectively. Kinda adorable actually."

"Sounds like a bunch of reprehensible rich American assholes unaware that their actions have consequences," Alice chimes in hopefully, "how do you want to deal with them boss?"
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 12, 2022, 02:38:52 am
Looks like the best time to meet them and inquire about using their hanger would be while their at an air show.

Also making the more of the not get eaten stuff sounds like a priority thing.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 12, 2022, 03:26:42 am
Looks like the best time to meet them and inquire about using their hanger would be while their at an air show.

Also making the more of the not get eaten stuff sounds like a priority thing.
I think we should test Ginger Brogue's solution before committing to it, but I'm not sure how we'd do that. Deinosuchus is unpredictable and hard to read, so we might not be able to tell if he can sense our minions or not. On that note, our suspicion that he's playing us is making me real nervous.

Don't think we want to wait around for an air show, especially out here. Probably better to strike with what we have.

As I see it, our openings are as follows:

Brock Sr (Patriarch): Tied for most avid flyer. Anything involving flight might catch his eye. Like a fancy aircraft, or the means to fly without one.
Chase (Businessman): Interested in making money, possibly in sleazy or illicit ways. Approaching him as a potential business partner should work out.
Heston (Playboy): Hedonist. Probably shouldn't whore out Zero-E, but a wild night on the town should get us in his good graces, especially if we insinuate we could set him up with villainesses in the future.
Brock Jr (Animal Abuse Twin): Has at least a distant episode of cruel or indulgent behavior, so fair chance he's got darker impulses we could leverage. Might also have been a fluke or misunderstanding.
Nora (Flying Twin): Tied for most avid flyer. Anything involving flight might catch her eye. Like a fancy aircraft, or the means to fly without one.


With that in mind, I say we play to our strengths and seduce Heston with wild debauchery, but then worm our way into the remaining family's good graces. Talk with Chase about business opportunities, and Brock Sr and Nora about flight and the possibility of developing our own hellpowered aircraft.

The latter also has the advantage of interesting and possibly placating Zero-E.


Speaking of investments, we should probably give Pete an answer regarding the nightclub. We're probably going to be too busy to attend interviews, so he should just go ahead with it. I'm still in favor of making the staff aware of our demonic nature. Increases the risk of defection or word getting out, but reduces problems with waiters stumbling into rooms they're never allowed to leave.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Demonic Spoon on April 12, 2022, 03:49:53 am
Looks like the best time to meet them and inquire about using their hanger would be while their at an air show.

Also making the more of the not get eaten stuff sounds like a priority thing.
I think we should test Ginger Brogue's solution before committing to it, but I'm not sure how we'd do that. Deinosuchus is unpredictable and hard to read, so we might not be able to tell if he can sense our minions or not. On that note, our suspicion that he's playing us is making me real nervous.

Don't think we want to wait around for an air show, especially out here. Probably better to strike with what we have.

As I see it, our openings are as follows:

Brock Sr (Patriarch): Tied for most avid flyer. Anything involving flight might catch his eye. Like a fancy aircraft, or the means to fly without one.
Chase (Businessman): Interested in making money, possibly in sleazy or illicit ways. Approaching him as a potential business partner should work out.
Heston (Playboy): Hedonist. Probably shouldn't whore out Zero-E, but a wild night on the town should get us in his good graces, especially if we insinuate we could set him up with villainesses in the future.
Brock Jr (Animal Abuse Twin): Has at least a distant episode of cruel or indulgent behavior, so fair chance he's got darker impulses we could leverage. Might also have been a fluke or misunderstanding.
Nora (Flying Twin): Tied for most avid flyer. Anything involving flight might catch her eye. Like a fancy aircraft, or the means to fly without one.


With that in mind, I say we play to our strengths and seduce Heston with wild debauchery, but then worm our way into the remaining family's good graces. Talk with Chase about business opportunities, and Brock Sr and Nora about flight and the possibility of developing our own hellpowered aircraft.

The latter also has the advantage of interesting and possibly placating Zero-E.


Speaking of investments, we should probably give Pete an answer regarding the nightclub. We're probably going to be too busy to attend interviews, so he should just go ahead with it. I'm still in favor of making the staff aware of our demonic nature. Increases the risk of defection or word getting out, but reduces problems with waiters stumbling into rooms they're never allowed to leave.
+1
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Rockeater on April 12, 2022, 04:02:52 am
Looks like the best time to meet them and inquire about using their hanger would be while their at an air show.

Also making the more of the not get eaten stuff sounds like a priority thing.
I think we should test Ginger Brogue's solution before committing to it, but I'm not sure how we'd do that. Deinosuchus is unpredictable and hard to read, so we might not be able to tell if he can sense our minions or not. On that note, our suspicion that he's playing us is making me real nervous.

Don't think we want to wait around for an air show, especially out here. Probably better to strike with what we have.

As I see it, our openings are as follows:

Brock Sr (Patriarch): Tied for most avid flyer. Anything involving flight might catch his eye. Like a fancy aircraft, or the means to fly without one.
Chase (Businessman): Interested in making money, possibly in sleazy or illicit ways. Approaching him as a potential business partner should work out.
Heston (Playboy): Hedonist. Probably shouldn't whore out Zero-E, but a wild night on the town should get us in his good graces, especially if we insinuate we could set him up with villainesses in the future.
Brock Jr (Animal Abuse Twin): Has at least a distant episode of cruel or indulgent behavior, so fair chance he's got darker impulses we could leverage. Might also have been a fluke or misunderstanding.
Nora (Flying Twin): Tied for most avid flyer. Anything involving flight might catch her eye. Like a fancy aircraft, or the means to fly without one.


With that in mind, I say we play to our strengths and seduce Heston with wild debauchery, but then worm our way into the remaining family's good graces. Talk with Chase about business opportunities, and Brock Sr and Nora about flight and the possibility of developing our own hellpowered aircraft.

The latter also has the advantage of interesting and possibly placating Zero-E.


Speaking of investments, we should probably give Pete an answer regarding the nightclub. We're probably going to be too busy to attend interviews, so he should just go ahead with it. I'm still in favor of making the staff aware of our demonic nature. Increases the risk of defection or word getting out, but reduces problems with waiters stumbling into rooms they're never allowed to leave.
Mostly agree, but I would prefer we look a bit deeper into Chase and see if we can use him as our entry point, we got some cash now and Super Phrik is rich as well, so we can get past initial checks if he capable of doing them better then just coming to Heston and offering a good night, also give us better position to say we are also interested in fun and financial investments then going through the other direction first.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 12, 2022, 06:49:23 am
Could test the reptile ignorance field by kidnapping something particularly tasty and then planting the device on it. I might not even have to be a human!

Yeah, next time we meet have a live alligator to offer as a snack and see if he reacts with surprise when we point it out.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Stirk on April 12, 2022, 09:02:26 am
I think we should test Ginger Brogue's solution before committing to it, but I'm not sure how we'd do that. Deinosuchus is unpredictable and hard to read, so we might not be able to tell if he can sense our minions or not. On that note, our suspicion that he's playing us is making me real nervous.

No, I don't think we shouldn't test it. If it works and he finds out about it it doesn't work anymore. He's clearly clever enough to find a workaround, which could be as easy as bringing out a smartphone and scanning the area with its camera if the solution doesn't work on recordings of the person too. Not to mention if he knows we don't trust him things are going to get harder here out.

Quote
With that in mind, I say we play to our strengths and seduce Heston with wild debauchery, but then worm our way into the remaining family's good graces. Talk with Chase about business opportunities, and Brock Sr and Nora about flight and the possibility of developing our own hellpowered aircraft.

We have our own helpowered aircraft. We can pretty easily give them a piggyback ride on a Stone Shell.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Egan_BW on April 12, 2022, 11:22:03 am
Why befriend these people? It would be simpler, and satisfying to at least one of our henchmen, to just hold one or two family members hostage until we're done.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Maximum Spin on April 12, 2022, 11:50:04 am
Why befriend these people? It would be simpler, and satisfying to at least one of our henchmen, to just hold one or two family members hostage until we're done.
Personally, I like them better than our henchmen.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Rockeater on April 12, 2022, 12:15:33 pm
Why befriend these people? It would be simpler, and satisfying to at least one of our henchmen, to just hold one or two family members hostage until we're done.
Not exactly sure actually, not doing something directly villainous on the rich folks may be reasonable, they may have villainy insurance which will send some heroes or something
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: IronyOwl on April 12, 2022, 03:34:51 pm
Quote
With that in mind, I say we play to our strengths and seduce Heston with wild debauchery, but then worm our way into the remaining family's good graces. Talk with Chase about business opportunities, and Brock Sr and Nora about flight and the possibility of developing our own hellpowered aircraft.

We have our own helpowered aircraft. We can pretty easily give them a piggyback ride on a Stone Shell.
Probably not very fast, high, long, or comfortably, though. In all likelihood they appreciate the art of controlling an aircraft themselves more than yelling at a minion. Or at least the two flying now probably do. Maybe the others would like a gargoyle chariot or something.


Why befriend these people? It would be simpler, and satisfying to at least one of our henchmen, to just hold one or two family members hostage until we're done.
We don't know how long that'll be. Keeping a high profile hostage for six months is no small feat.

It introduces complications to everything we do. Remember that Phase 2 is getting Cajun Jack on board, and if his rich friends are looking stressed and nervous while introducing us that might not be great. This also scales with the above time issue; the longer a precarious situation holds, the bigger the odds of something about it going sideways.

Finally, playing nice gives us more side opportunities. Maybe we really can start developing zero emission flight craft for the rich and evil. Maybe there are business opportunities waiting for a demonic investor. Maybe Brock Jr would make a great torturer and prison guard. Schmoozing gives us all kinds of options that threats probably don't.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 13, 2022, 02:01:55 am
Sure let us get aboard the friendship express and make friends with rich people.
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: Naturegirl1999 on April 13, 2022, 11:18:31 am
Seems like most are on board with being friendly, now we need to find out which of them to focus on and how
Title: Re: (SG) Underling, a Supervillain Game
Post by: King Zultan on April 14, 2022, 01:55:23 am
Go for one of the ones that's a businessman so we can do the we want to be business partners plan.