Welcome to HexCom

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JageshemashFTW
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Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 4:28 pm

Welcome to HexCom

Post by JageshemashFTW »

Welcome to HexCom. As the world of magic, arcane, and the occult has become more and more impossible to ignore, our emergency response team has been established to deal with this growing threat.

For whatever reason, it’s been observed that animals have a far better track record resolving supernatural phenomena than humans, so every field agent of HexCom is a bit fluffier than your usual commando.

Considering the recent influx of humans turning into animals, many of them are happy for the gainful employment. Don’t worry, everyone’s signed the waiver.

Thanks to your exceptional technical scores, you’ve been placed as the Tactical Commander of your own unit. Unit HP.

What does this position entail? Essentially, you will have a roster of Field Agents who you get to pick and choose to form 4-Person Strike Teams that are sent out on Missions. You choose their Equipment Loadout and oversee their development and training. Agents come in various Classes and will have various Skills, Abilities, and Traits that will benefit the Mission.

Missions will have Parameters, including Win Conditions, Lose Conditions, Hazards, and other such factors to consider when choosing your Strike Team.

However, there’s far more to being a Commander than simply going on Missions. Your Agents have lives outside their jobs.

On top of organizing Strike Teams, it’s also your responsibility to organize Barrack Accommodations. Essentially, choosing which Agents get to room with each other at HQ.

Agents that room with each other might form Relationships. Whether those Relationships are positive or negative depends on the Agents, but it will have an effect on their performance during Missions either way.

There’s also Support Staff at HQ as well, Requisitions, R&D, Arcane Research, Medical, as well as a number of Recreational Stations to help keep morale up. We can get into these more in detail as we go.

Keep in mind, just because you’re their Commander doesn’t mean you can’t establish Relationships with your Agents, too. Sometimes, it’s a good idea to establish a one-on-one rapport with an Agent. That said, you do run the risk of these Relationships turning sour, which could affect Mission performance in a bad way.

But before we can get to any of that, let’s first get to know our newest Commander. A couple of questions to give us a general idea of you.

What is your name?

What are your pronouns?

What is your species?
Welcome to HexCom: viewtopic.php?t=5602
JageshemashFTW
Posts: 294
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 4:28 pm

Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by JageshemashFTW »

So, it’s been brought to my attention that I didn’t really do the best job explaining how exactly this game works. So here’s a more in-depth explanation of what exactly is expected.

HexCom is a prompt based, collaborative forum game. You won’t so much be controlling individual characters as much as you’ll be submitting prompts for the Main Character to take.

Most of the time, suggested prompts will be offered at the beginning of each ‘Prompt Phase’ but you do have the ability to suggest original prompts. That said, the GM has the authority to ignore original prompts if they’re disruptive, irrelevant, or just nonsensical.

Suggested prompts will be Bold and Italicized to make it clear when a Prompt Phase has officially started.

Very often, you’ll also be asked to ‘Keep the conversation going’, which is essentially asking you to roleplay the Main Character’s exact words alongside the prompt. What the Main Character says can often have just as much impact as what the Main Character does.

Prompts are accepted by consensus. If you agree with a previous prompt, simply reply to the prompt with ‘I agree’. If you think a prompt can be tweaked a little for better results, reply with ‘I agree, but…’ and then type your suggested changes to the prompt.

If you disagree with a prompt, don’t be confrontational or contrarian about it. Simply suggest a different prompt.

If there is no consensus between prompts by the end of a ‘Prompt Phase’, deliberation is left to the GM. Prompt Phases will usually last a few hours to a couple of days in real-time, so you’ll have plenty of time to figure out what you want to do.

The game is split into two Stages, separated by Prompt Phases. HQ Time and Mission Time. HQ Time is spent between missions and will have you deliberating over room assignments for your Agents, addressing any problems or concerns your Agents have in the form of special Events, and assigning Non-Mission duties to your Agents to provide benefits to your next mission. (We’ll get into how exactly Non-Mission duties work in the actual game)

HQ Time will typically end with you choosing one Agent to spend personal time with to build a one-on-one rapport with said Agent. How this shakes out is dependent on the Agent in question and the prompts you choose.

Mission Time is further separated into two Sub-Stages, Preparation and Operation. Preparation has you choosing the four Agents for the Strike Team and outfitting them with any equipment you think they’ll need. Like the Prompt Phase, this is decided by consensus.

Each Agent can equip a Weapon, Gear, and a Support Tool. Often, Agents will have basic equipment already out the gate, but you can switch out their equipment as needed during Preparation.

Operation is the actual mission itself. An Operation will last throughout the day in real-time, so make sure you’re on the forum that day. You will be given heads up usually a day in advance before an Operation takes place.

For the most part, Operations are automatic and chances of success are determined by your choice of Strike Team and equipment. Chances of success are further determined by your choice of Team Leader, who will issue in-the-moment commands to the rest of the team. So make sure you choose well.

On occasion, your chosen Team Leader will radio in and ask for Tactical Advice. This begins a very short Prompt Phase that only lasts for a few moments, so be ready. This is why it’s important you’re on the Forum on the day of the Operation.

Between Story Segments detailing the Operation, you may be able to radio in emergency Tactical Advice if you feel the Strike Team needs it, but it’s up to the GM’s discretion whether or not to accept these prompts.

Behind The Scenes, Combat Scenarios and Challenge Scenarios are determined by dice rolls made by the GM. You can add bonuses to these rolls and decrease the challenge rating of these rolls via the choices you made throughout the game. However, poor choices will often result in penalties to these rolls or higher challenge ratings to overcome.

Beyond that, simply be respectful and have fun!
—-
So, with all that out of the way, we still need to decide who our newest HexCom Commander is. As a reminder, these things will be decided via consensus, so if you like someone’s prompts, be sure to reply with ‘I agree’.

What is your name?

What are your pronouns?

What is your species?
Last edited by JageshemashFTW on Tue Feb 28, 2023 11:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Welcome to HexCom: viewtopic.php?t=5602
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Krytus The Dreamer
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Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by Krytus The Dreamer »

Okay let's see

Name: River
Pronouns: She/her
Species: Cougar
JageshemashFTW
Posts: 294
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 4:28 pm

Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by JageshemashFTW »

(GM’s Note: Since we’re officially getting started, I’ll go ahead and wait till tomorrow to begin the tutorial so people can have a chance to submit their prompts)
Welcome to HexCom: viewtopic.php?t=5602
JageshemashFTW
Posts: 294
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 4:28 pm

Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by JageshemashFTW »

Tutorial Begins…

Welcome to HexCom, Commander River. Thanks to your exceptional tactical aptitude during your training in the Academy, you’ve been put on the fast-track to lead your own unit in our ongoing mission to defend the peace from forces unknown.

To help you get started, HexCom High Command has put you in charge of the Unit HP Base.

First things first, let’s meet your team. As Unit HP is a brand new Emergency Response Unit, all of your Agents are fresh out of the Academy just like you.
As such, many of your first missions will be low-profile ‘grunt work’.

This is a chance for all of you to prove yourselves to High Command, which in turn will lead to more high-profile missions and rewards.

Current Agent Roster

{GM’s Notes: An Agent’s Class mostly only comes into play if they are chosen as the Strike Team’s Leader, as it’s their commands being issued to the rest of the Team. The other Agents in a Strike Team might make use of their Classes in situations where they are forced to operate independently of their Leader’s commands}

Kaylee
(She/Her)
Red Fox

Class:
Commando: Kaylee prioritizes tactical and methodical approaches during missions

Traits:
Soothing Voice: When a teammate is afflicted with a mental status effect, Kaylee has a chance to help her teammate recover with words of encouragement. If in the middle of a combat scenario, both Kaylee and the afflicted teammate must be behind the same cover.

{GM’s Note: Any weapon with the word Shokr in its name uses a proprietary energy-based ammunition that non-lethally incapacitates living targets and dissipates non-sentient, magical constructs. It should go without saying that HexCom’s High Command would prefer their units to prioritize non-lethal tactics during missions}

Equipment:
Weapon: Shokr Pistol - single shot, one-handed, moderate damage
Gear: HexCom Light Armor - moderate reduction to physical damage
Tool: MedKit - used to heal or diminish physical damage done to a teammate, expended on use

Psych Eval: Like you, Kaylee graduated from the Academy with exemplary technical scores. The only reason she was passed over for a command position of her own was due to a noticeable lack of self-confidence. She has the raw talent to be an exceptional agent, she just needs to be convinced of that.
—-
Helena
(She/Her)
Raccoon

Class:
Brawler: Helena prioritizes in-your-face and aggressive approaches during missions

Traits:
I’m Right Here!: Will often taunt enemies during combat scenarios, drawing their attention towards her. Can be directed to taunt specific enemies, if so desired.

Equipment:
Weapon: Shokr Shotgun - single shot, two-handed, significant damage, short range
Gear: HexCom Heavy Armor - significant reduction to physical damage, minor penalties to actions requiring dextrous or quick movement
Tool: Breaching Charge - used to forcibly open certain doors or create holes in structurally weak walls, expended on use

Psych Eval: During her training in the Academy, Helena received multiple demerits for ‘Talking Back’ to her instructors. However, this seems to be the extent of her ‘disruptive’ behavior as she was still able to perform her exercises effectively and efficiently. Her instructors also begrudgingly noted that she had a natural talent for fostering camaraderie with her fellow Academy students.
—-
Kane
(He/Him)
Cat (Russian Blue)

Class:
Commando: Kane prioritizes tactical and methodical approaches during missions

Traits:
Cool Head: So long as he hasn’t suffered any lingering physical status effects, Kane automatically gets a bonus to ignore mental status effects.

Equipment:
Weapon: Shokr Combat Rifle - multi-shot, two-handed, moderate damage, minor penalties to accuracy, capable of performing suppressing fire to induce penalties to enemy movement
Gear: HexCom Light Armor - moderate reduction to physical damage
Tool: Hacking Tool - allows for special ‘Hacking’ actions to manipulate electronic devices or gain access to various computer systems. If in the middle of a combat scenario, induces penalties to hacking

Psych Eval: Kane performed exceptionally during Academy training, but instructors noted that he had very little patience for team-building exercises. Many cited that Kane might suffer from ‘Lone Wolf’ syndrome and sees teammates as more of a liability than an asset. Still, he’s yet to have any sort of hostile altercations with another Agent. So far…
—-
Rook
(He/Him)
Dog (Mudi)

Class:
Rogue: Rook prioritizes quiet and stealthy approaches during missions

Traits:
Second Story Work: So long as he hasn’t suffered any lingering physical status effects, gains an automatic bonus to any action involving climbing or traversing difficult terrain.

Equipment:
Weapon: Shokr Pistol - single shot, one-handed, moderate damage
Gear: HexCom Light Armor - moderate reduction to physical damage
Tool: Shokr Grenade - significant splash damage, moderate spread, expended on use

Psych Eval: While he received no demerits in the Academy, many instructors expressed frustration with Rook for applying only bare minimum effort into his training exercises, only enough effort to pass the exercises and nothing more. Instructors warned that his sheer lack of initiative and drive might make him unsuitable for field work, but he still passed his training exercises all the same, giving High Command no reason not to put him in a unit.
—-
Your first priority as the Unit Commander should be assigning your Agents to their quarters in the base. You currently have four available rooms to serve as Agent quarters.

Room A-1
Room A-2
Room B-1
Room B-2

Each room can comfortably house two Agents. Agents that share a room will no doubt build a Relationship with each other. Keep in mind, Relationships can be positive or negative depending on the Agents assigned to the same room. A positive Relationship will give Agents certain bonuses during Missions when they are deployed together, but they’ll likewise gain certain penalties if they have a negative Relationship.

You can give an Agent a room all to themselves, but the isolation may lower their morale if left alone for too long.

{GM’s Notes: Morale, by its very nature, is a transient modifier where the exact effects are meant to be unknown to the players. Needless to say, it’s generally a good idea to keep morale up}

If an Agent doesn’t have a roommate, you can mitigate this loss of morale by keeping them busy with Non-Critical Duties around the base, helping and assisting the base’s various Support Staff with their duties. (And the Support Staff will no doubt appreciate the helping hands!)

Keep in mind, you don’t need to pick Agents who don’t have a roommate for Non-Critical Duties. Any Agent can perform these duties, though some might be better suited for the tasks then others…

Another thing to keep in mind is that an Agent assigned Non-Critical Duties will have no time to do something else between missions. This includes spending one-on-one time with you, their Commander.

This is important, because you CANNOT start the next Mission without spending time with one of your Agents. So no matter what, you have to make sure at least one of your Agents is free to spend time with you.

The current Support Staff you can assign Agents to assist are…
—-
Glinda (She/Her Rabbit) - Requisitions Officer: Assisting Glinda will provide you with special Tools that are usable during the next Mission only.

PepperJack (They/Them Dog) - Munitions Officer: Assisting PepperJack will provide you with special Weapons or Gear that are usable during the next Mission only.

Dr Jiroji (He/Him Brown Bear) - R&D Technician: Assisting Dr Jiroji will help him discover new technologies that you can spend Research Points to develop.

Nurse Emerson (She/Her Mink) - Medical Officer: Assisting Nurse Emerson will give one of two benefits, either an injured Agent recovers twice as quickly, or she’ll provide you with a Stim, which gives one Agent a significant stat boost for the next Mission only.
—-
With all that said and done, it’s time to make some decisions, Commander…

What rooms are you assigning each Agent to?

Which Agents (if any) are you assigning to assist which Support Staff?

Which Agent do you wish to spend time with?
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Krytus The Dreamer
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Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by Krytus The Dreamer »

Wanted to wait a bit first to see if anyone would like to try posting first but since its been a while guess I'll start again.

Room Assignments
A-1 Kane-Helena
B-1 Rook-Kaylee


So I think this might be the best arrangement because Helena's talent for fostering camaraderie might help break Kane out of his lone-wolf tendencies. Kaylee's naturally calm and patient personality might help soften Rook up to opening up about why he's only doing the bare minimum.

Agents to Assist support Staff
Requisitions Officer Glinda - Rook
Munitions Officer Pepper Jack - Helena
Medical Officer Emerson - Kaylee


Spend time with Kane
I think the lone wolf bit might be a problem should it crop up in the field. It would probably be for the best if we spend time with him first to nip this problem in the bud.
JageshemashFTW
Posts: 294
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 4:28 pm

Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by JageshemashFTW »

Well, a consensus of one is still a consensus. We’ll go ahead and continue the game and just hope that more players will jump in once we really get going…
—-
The current room assignments are…

A-1: Kane and Helena
Helena: Wassup, Kitkat? Name’s Helena. Hope we get along okay!
Kane: …


A-2: Empty

B-1: Rook and Kaylee
Kaylee: Pleased to meet you! I’m Kaylee.
Rook: Hey there, I’m Rook.


B-2: Empty

Unfortunately, it’s too early to tell how your Agents will feel about these accommodations until after your next Mission, but so far, nobody seems to have any objections to this arrangement.

Rook is helping Glinda with Requisitions.
Glinda: For now, you can just help me with inventory.
Rook: Ugh, do I have to?


Helena is helping PepperJack with Munitions.
PepperJack: Let me ask you something? You like things that go Boom?
Helena: DO I?!


Kaylee is helping Nurse Emerson in Medical.
Emerson: No patients, so it’s a pretty slow day. Make sure you Agents keep it that way.
Kaylee: (nervous laughter)


Likewise, you won’t know how well your Agents perform these tasks or get any benefits from it until after your next Mission.

Finally, it’s time for your one-on-one with Kane. You're a little concerned about this whole ‘Lone Wolf’ business in his file, and you’d rather nip this problem in the bud before it becomes an issue in the field.

Luckily, HexCom provides all staff with personal communicators that allow one-to-one messages between staff as well as a communal radio mode for use in the field, so it’s no issue for you to send a message to Kane telling him you want to meet with him.

Kane, for what it’s worth, doesn’t really have anything to say on that matter, simply telling you he’ll wait for you outside your office when you're ready.

After finishing up the last bit of paperwork for the day, you leave your office and, true to his word, find the Russian blue cat standing nearby, patiently waiting.

This is your first time meeting any of your Agents face to face, and he does seem a little taken back by your larger stature (you are a cougar, after all), but he quickly regains his composure and dutifully snaps off a salute and a click of his heels.

“Commander River, you wanted to see me Ma’am?” He asks.

You read his facial features, trying to determine what he thinks you want with him, but his face remains stony and unreadable.

As Commander of this Unit, you are perfectly free to keep your own Relationships with your Agents as professional or as casual as you’d like. HexCom’s High Command are well aware of the Pros and Cons of either approach and are trusting you to choose the best approach for your Unit.

You can keep things professional with Kane and simply invite him into your office for a meeting, or you can try and build a more personal rapport by spending time with Kane in one of the Base’s many recreational facilities. There are other activities you can do outside of the Base, but let’s keep things simple for now and stay in the Base.

{GM’s Notes: Keeping things professional with your Agents will mitigate the risks of developing negative Relationships with them, but you’ll also be less likely to develop positive Relationships as well. It’s up to you to decide if a more personal Relationship is worth the risk.}

Kane remains standing at attention, clearly waiting for you to speak.

Time to make a decision, Commander…

Take Kane into your office for a meeting…

Grab something to eat at the Mess Hall…

Get in some sparring practice at the Gym…

Get in some target practice at the Firing Range…

Play some games at the Arcade (Yes, the Base has an Arcade. Someone at High Command was very insistent that it would help with morale)…


If you have anything specific you would like to say to Kane, add them in your prompts. Sometimes, what you say can be just as important as what you do.
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Krytus The Dreamer
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Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by Krytus The Dreamer »

Sorry its been a while. Again just wanted to let people give their suggestions but then got distracted with other things.

Take Kane Sparing
"Tell me, Kane, do you understand how to throw a proper punch?"
JageshemashFTW
Posts: 294
Joined: Fri Mar 05, 2010 4:28 pm

Re: Welcome to HexCom

Post by JageshemashFTW »

(As before, we’ll go ahead and continue and hope more players jump in as we go…)

“At ease, Agent. I just wanted to see if you’d be interested in some sparring?” You tell Kane.

Kane’s salute falters a bit in surprise before he lowers it entirely. “Sparring, Ma’am?” He asks. Whatever he was expecting out of this meeting, it certainly wasn’t that.

You turn on your heel towards the gym and Kane, to his credit, dutifully follows behind you despite his confusion, matching your stride in lock-step with practiced professionalism.

“I just want to make sure you’re up to snuff before I send you and your fellow Agents to the meat-grinder. Tell me, Kane, do you understand how to throw a proper punch?” You tell him.

For the first time since you met him, Kane’s composure breaks a little and you swore you caught him glaring at you for just a second. But the fire in his eyes disappeared as quickly as it came and he returned to being the image of the stoic soldier.

Kane’s opinion of you has slightly lowered…

“I believe my record at the academy speaks for itself, Commander.” Kane responds, pointedly.

“Yes, there’s certainly nothing wrong with your technical scores.” You say, stressing the last two words. You glance back, hoping to see a look of realization on Kane’s face as to the unspoken criticism.

No such luck. This cat is a stone.

On your way to the gym, you pass by the weapon’s lab where you’re happy to see Helena dutifully helping PepperJack take apart a standard issue Shokr Rifle, PepperJack apparently explaining to the Agent the finer details of the rifle’s inner mechanics.

Helena looks away from the dissected fire-arm for a second and spots you and Kane walking past, giving a light-hearted wave to the Russian Blue cat.

“Heya, roomie!” Helena yells out with a friendly smile before returning her attention to PepperJack’s lecture.

Out of the corner of your vision, you spot Kane rolling his eyes in contempt.

This might be trickier than you thought.

Finally, you and Kane now find yourselves in the middle of the Base’s gymnasium, stocked with all kinds of weights and high-tech exercise equipment to keep your Agents in tip-top shape.

But the only thing you and Kane are concerned about right now is the sparring ring in the middle of the gym’s padded floor.

Back at the academy, sparring matches were point-based. Solid strikes to an opponent's body counted as a point with the victor being decided to the first of three points. No reason not to use the same system here.

On that note, you recall your own days in the academy. You have a few years of seniority on the rest of your Agents since you were put on the fast track for HexCom’s Command Course, but it’s been a while since you really took to the mat against an actual opponent.

{Dice Rolls}

Sadly, most of your time and effort in the academy was spent on the finer details of strategy and tactics. The few times you really went all out in sparring matches resulted in a… let’s say spotty win-loss record, at best.

That said, you still have more experience than Kane, period. Plus, you have your larger stature (again, cougar) to fall back on. Even considering Kane’s exceptional performance in the academy, your chances aren’t completely one-sided here… but you can’t deny that Kane has pretty good odds, too.

Then again… Is beating Kane the better option here? Reflecting on your strategy for a bit, you’re trying to humble Kane to make him better receptive to your ‘constructive criticism’ regarding his attitude, but maybe the opposite is the better approach? Maybe giving Kane a win here would boost him up enough to be more open with you?

It doesn’t help that Kane has been so tight-lipped with you so you don’t really know which approach would better resonate with him.

Kane, however, seems raring to go. Your little crack earlier apparently motivated him enough to forego any reservations he might have had against sparring with a superior. He wants to prove himself to you.

Rather than indulge in any pregame ribbing or trash-talk, he’s already taken his position at the edge of the ring, just waiting for you to say the word.

Do you go easy on Kane…?
Or, do you go all-out?


While you're contemplating that little conundrum, let’s not forget the entire reason you singled out Kane to begin with. You need to touch base with him on his apprehension towards working on a team, or else it will just cause problems in future missions.

Earlier, you tried to bring up how Kane’s technical performance at the academy wasn’t the issue here, but you can’t really tell if he understands what the actual issue is.

Do you try to be subtle about it…?
Or, do you try to be blunt about it?


As always, if you have anything specific to say, write them down. And remember, these prompts are suggestions. If you think you have a better idea, write them down, too!
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