Synthetic Substrate, Session 5: Chop Job

Scene Setup

Countdown check

(D8): (7) => event happens

Countdown Event roll

(D12): (7) => Entanglement: Key relationship drawn into danger, old debt resurfaces, personal vice causes trouble

Cipher table roll

2x(D6 + D12) => Destroy + Dream

Interpretation

Dante made a copy of Vestige’s replicant manufacturing data during the previous adventure, and now he’s in trouble.

Fate Question
Q: Are Vestige hitmen after him?
A: (D10): (9) => yes

Playing the scene

I head over to the Snake Pit, where Dante and I usually meet, and take my usual stool. Mako’s working the bar tonight. I give him a nod, and he sets a whisky sour in front of me before I can ask. I’m on duty, but I need a drink. So shoot me.

I’m two drinks in when Dante finally walks in. Late. One look at the way he carries himself tells me something’s wrong. His eyes sweep the room, corner to corner. He’s expecting trouble.

Dante: “Nate. I might have a small problem. Something you could help me with? Just promise you’ll get pissed at me after we’ve cleaned up this mess.”

He’s scared.

Locke: “Too late. I’m already pissed at you.”

D: “Nate. Remember that Tyrell data you had me doctor? The replicant manufacturing data?”

I stare down at my empty glass and curse.

L: “Fuck. You made a copy, didn’t you? Even after I told you how dangerous that shit was.”

He won’t meet my eyes.

D: “I thought I had a good buyer. A solid one. I screwed up, Nate, I’m sorry. Now they’re after me. They were watching my apartment. I had to get out down the fire escape.”

L: “Who’s after you, Dante? Vestige?”

D: “I think so. Who else could it be? They sure didn’t look like corporate muscle.”

I pinch the bridge of my nose and think.

L: “Okay. First things first: do you have the modified KIA?”

Fate Question
Q: Did Dante prepare the KIA?
A: (D10): (6) => yes

D: “Yes.”

L: “Good. Hand it over and wait here. I need to make a few calls.”

Connections check
(D12 + D12): (6 + 2) => 1 success
1 Chinyen lost

I need somewhere to stash Dante until this is sorted out. Bringing RDU resources into this is out of the question, but I have a few unofficial contacts who might help.

Sector Table roll: Arts district. Crazy Legs Larry Used Autos

Two calls do it. I’ve got a safe house lined up at Crazy Legs Larry’s, a used auto lot in the Arts District. It didn’t come cheap.

L: “Let’s go. I’ve got a safe place for you.”

D: “Thanks, Nate.”

We leave the Snake Pit and board my spinner. I set course for the Arts District, keeping one eye on the rear scanner.

Fate Question (with disadvantage because Dante was watched)
Q: Is someone following us?
A: (D10 + 1): (9 + 1) => extreme yes => a spinner with weapons

I spot it right away. It’s hard to miss: a chop job, a spinner stitched together from scrap. And this one has teeth. I count two chin guns and a heavy gun mounted in the door.

I fire off a call to Dispatch: officer under attack, requesting backup.

This is bad. What the hell is going on? Are they Kamarr’s people? Why would she send them? I’m doing what she asked. But they’re after Dante, not me. She probably doesn’t even know he’s connected to me. If they’re even hers at all.

Questions for later. First comes the staying-alive part.

Chase

Vehicle stats

“Chop Job”: a criminal gunship spinner built from salvage

It started life as a scrapped LAPD airframe, or maybe several. The panels don’t match, the original serial numbers have been ground off, and a forged transponder broadcasts the ID of a cab company that went bankrupt years ago. Gangs in the Kowloon Riot and the outer sprawl use these for hits, for hijacking cargo haulers, and for making sure nobody follows them home. As with my other homebrew vehicles, these stats are scaled against the LAPD Spinner in the core rulebook.

Stat	Value	Note
Maneuverability	+1	Stripped for speed, with overtuned engines pulling hard
Hull	10	A patched frame with weak welds
Armor	4	Scrap plating, mostly around the cockpit
Seats	3	Pilot, a gunner in the door, and one passenger behind the ammo crates
Cost	~60,000 ¥	Black market, payable in favors
Availability	Illegal	Only through underworld contacts

Weapons

Weapon	Damage	Crit	Range	Note
Twin chin guns (fixed, forward)	3	2	Long	Fired by the pilot. Full-auto fire burns through ammo fast
Door-mounted heavy gun	3	3	Long	The gunner gets −1 to hit while the spinner is maneuvering
Smoke launcher (rear)	—	—	Short	One use. Blocks pursuit, giving −2 to a chaser’s next roll

Jury-rigged problems

• Overheating: If the pilot pushes the engines (an extra die on Driving, or a similar push), any 1s on the dice mean the engine overheats. The spinner loses its Maneuverability bonus until the end of the scene.
• Ammo limits: Each gun has roughly two good bursts. After that someone has to reload in mid-air, which is noisy and takes time.
• Hot ride: Every unit in the Spinner Division has its silhouette on file. Being seen in it draws LAPD attention fast, and a scanner check exposes the forged transponder.

LAPD Spinner, standard RDU issue

Stat	Value	Note
Maneuverability	0	Balanced and reliable, a workhorse
Hull	12	Police-grade frame
Armor	6	Light ballistic protection
Seats	2 + 1	Pilot, co-pilot, and a cramped rear holding area for a suspect
Cost	—	Department issue, not for sale
Availability	Restricted	LAPD only

Features

• VTOL ground/air: Takes off vertically, flies over the city, and lands on rooftops and police towers.
• Police lights and siren: Clears air lanes; civilian traffic has to give way.
• Dispatch and database link: The dash terminal can pull criminal records, vehicle registrations and the RDU replicant registry from the cockpit, with no roll needed if the data is in the system.
• Searchlights and scanners: Searchlights sweep the ground, and thermal scanning helps with Observation rolls when searching from the air.
• Priority airspace: Can enter restricted air corridors closed to other vehicles, including those around corporate towers when there’s a warrant.

Drawbacks

• Unmistakable: Everybody on the street knows a cop just showed up, so the driver takes −1 to tail someone unseen.
• Logged: Every flight, stop and database query goes into department records, where a superior or Internal Affairs can review it later.
• Department property: Damage means paperwork, an inquiry and possibly a bad mark on the blade runner’s record.

Setup

Initial range: long
Initial dice for RDU reinforcement arriving: (D6)
2 passengers on enemy vehicle: 1 driving, 1 shooting the chin guns

Enemy skill rolls
Mobility [Driving:] (D8): (8) => Expert (A/A) (D12/D12)
Agility [Firearms]: (D8): (4) => Competent (C/C) (D8/D8)
Stealth [Driving:] (D8): (7) => Experienced (B/B) (D10/D8)
Force [Driving:] (D8): (4) => Competent (C/C) (D8/D8)
Intelligence [Observation]: (D8): (7) => Experienced (B/B) (D10/D10)

Round 1

Pursuer Manouver: Pursue
Prey Manouver: Flee

Obstacle roll
(D12): (2) => A huge fiery explosion from an industrial site mushrooms toward the vehicles. Each driver must make a separate DRIVING roll to avoid it – failure means 1 points of damage and that the chosen maneuver for the Round fails.

Pursuer roll to avoid obstacle
(D12 + D12): (11 + 7) => obstacle avoided

Prey roll to avoid obstacle
(D6 + D8): (5 + 6) => obstacle avoided

Prey manouver resolution: [Mobility] Driving check
(D8 + D6): (4 + 8) => 1 success

Pursuer manouver resolution: [Mobility] Driving check
(D12 + D12): (6 + 12) => 3 successes
Range decreased by 2 => short range

RDU reinforcements check
(D6): (5) => no reinforcements

I open the throttle all the way, but the chop job is clearly faster. Then a fireball erupts from a refinery stack right below us, and I barely swerve clear. Unfortunately, so does our pursuer. The evasive move costs me speed, and Vestige’s men close in fast, guns trained on us.

Round 2

Pursuer Manouver: Stand and Shoot
Prey Manouver: Block

Obstacle roll
(D12): (9) => A major construction site is up ahead. It gives an advantage to the Hide, Block, and Cut Off maneuvers, but a disadvantage to Pursue/Flee and Stand and Shoot. A failed Pursue/Flee roll will inflict 2 points of damage to the vehicle.

Prey manouver resolution: [Force] Driving check with advantage
Prey: (D6 + D6 + D6): (3 + 6 + 6) => 2 successes => range increased by 1
Pursuer: (D8 + D8): (2 + 4) => failure => pursuer action canceled!
Range increased by 1 => medium range

RDU reinforcements check
(D8): (4) => no reinforcements

A construction site looms ahead, and I dive into it. A steel crane towers over us on the right. Could I clip it and bring it down on our pursuers? Can my spinner take the hit? Only one way to find out.

I bank hard right, and Dante screams. We slam into the crane. The spinner shudders violently but holds together. I glance back. The crane is coming down. The chop job has to break off its attack run to avoid being crushed, and it loses ground.

Dante: “That was some driving, Nate.”

Still no sign of RDU backup.

Round 3

Pursuer Manouver: Stand and Shoot
Prey Manouver: Flee

Obstacle roll
(D12): (10) => A huge holo ad for a digital companion reaches for the vehicles and blocks their line of sight. Each driver must roll OBSERVATION to stay on course. A failed roll means the maneuver for the Round fails automatically.

Obstacle rolls
Prey: (D10 + D10): (8 + 7) => 2 successes
Pursuer: (D10 + D10): (3 + 4) => 0 successes => action canceled!

Prey manouver resolution: [Mobility] Driving check
(D6 + D8): (4 + 6) => 1 successe => range increased by 1
Range increased by 1 => long range

RDU reinforcements check
(D10): (8) => reinforcements arrive!

As we clear the construction site, a giant holographic ad blooms in front of us, a digital companion reaching out with open arms. I keep my cool and fly straight through her, but the chop job’s pilot doesn’t have the nerve. He jerks the stick, and I open the gap again.

Static crackles over my spinner’s KIA.

Radio: “RDU spinner, this is LAPD04 and 07, on intercept course at the next junction. Keep clear of the eastern airway.”

Locke: “Acknowledged!”

As I clear the junction, two LAPD spinners sweep into the airway, lights flashing, and bear down on the chop job.

Fate Question
Q: Does the chop job escape?
A: (D10): (10) => Extreme yes

The chop job’s pilot has lightning reflexes. He slips between the LAPD spinners and peels off hard into a side lane. The cruisers give chase, but they won’t catch him. He has too big a lead.

Dante: “Jesus, Nate. That was close.”

I let out a long breath, still not quite believing we came out of it in one piece.

The rest of the trip is quiet. I drop Dante at the safe house, but not before making him destroy his copy of the Tyrell data right in front of me. I don’t think he has any other copies this time.

Time to head back to the farm.

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Scene bookkeeping

Nothing new.