Page 214: Ready for boarding action!

[Cthulhu]

Yeah, but was that even real?

Psionic propaganda is a truly frightening concept...

[Keklas Rekobah]

↑ Either Alex's mind is being shuffled like a cheap deck of cards, or everything is being presented "as is".  I am going with the latter.

[Cthulhu]

Yeah, I also would go with the latter possibility, although Alex seems to doubt what he saw after Tempo demonstrated that puppeteering ability. Or everything, for that matter. Talk about a massive mind-screw of gigantic proportions, and then combine it with that ominous warning? Poor Alex will need some therapy...

[Zorg56]

Yeah, but was that even real?

Psionic propaganda is a truly frightening concept...

He can be still in his prison cell, drooling on a floor, while Tempo simulates combat situation just to see how he would act.
With Loroi being psionic he cant be 100% sure that anything around him is real.
That actually will be even easier to belive from Alex point of wiev then that humans somehow magically absolutely resistant to psionic activity.

[CrimsonFALKE]

Will level 4 kill a hard trooper? I mean those fuckers look swole.

[Keklas Rekobah]

I am sure that Arioch is smart enough to NOT pull the old “Bobby-in-the-Shower” trick and cheat us out of a good story. I mean, if it turns out that Alex is in a Loroi experiment, or experiencing an anoxic hallucination as he drifts in a leaky spacesuit, or even if this is all a post-graduation alcohol-induced dream, then everything that had passed before would simply be wasted.

I believe that Arioch has some real surprises for us.

[CrimsonFALKE]

What does anti-Hard Trooper training advise in this situation?

[Highlord]

>Lack of any trigger guard.

[Incoherent Cursing]

[Cthulhu]

I am sure that Arioch is smart enough to NOT pull the old “Bobby-in-the-Shower” trick and cheat us out of a good story. I mean, if it turns out that Alex is in a Loroi experiment, or experiencing an anoxic hallucination as he drifts in a leaky spacesuit, or even if this is all a post-graduation alcohol-induced dream, then everything that had passed before would simply be wasted.

I believe that Arioch has some real surprises for us.

Of course, I know that Arioch will surprise us with a big reveal, and that it won't be the ol' "everything was a dream" trope, but Alex doesn't know it yet. Imagine his surprise if that "farsense-jamming"-device turns out to be a human instead. It'll drive anyone crazy...

What does anti-Hard Trooper training advise in this situation?

A bayonet charge? Or maybe shovels.

>Lack of any trigger guard.

[Incoherent Cursing]

How about interpretive dancing?

Audible cursing!Show

[Krulle]

↑ C'mon, dude!  It has a "point and click" interface, and no recoil!

What could possibly go wrong?

;)

You point and click in the wrong face, that's what can go wrong. 💥🔫

Well, particles do have a mass, and they need to be accelerated.
So I do presume that a particle beam weapon will have recoil.
Since it is a continuous beam, it'll be a lot less than slug throwers, but there will be some form of recoil force, which will likely be much more compensable due to its continuous force nature (you can "walk the shot" if necessary, without the fear of being off again - you'll see the "walk")

[Arioch]

>Lack of any trigger guard.

[Incoherent Cursing]

Why would an ultra-tech weapon need a trigger guard?

The weapon requires energy -- lots of it -- to fire, so the trigger, safety, etc. is not mechanical, it's electrical. It can't go off by accident.

It needs to be usable by people in heavy armor and bulky environmental suits. The fingers of which may be restricted by a trigger guard.

[Cthulhu]

Well, particles do have a mass, and they need to be accelerated.
So I do presume that a particle beam weapon will have recoil.
Since it is a continuous beam, it'll be a lot less than slug throwers, but there will be some form of recoil force, which will likely be much more compensable due to its continuous force nature (you can "walk the shot" if necessary, without the fear of being off again - you'll see the "walk")

I don't know if it would be a continuous beam. Unlike ship cannons that need only a carrier wave to focus the beam, a handheld blaster would also need to shield its "shot" from the atmosphere. Maybe a short pulse or a bolt of energy would be better? Well, we shall see it next week (hopefully).

[Arioch]

Nah, it's a pulse.

Even if it needs a carrier wave (which I doubt since the ranges of small arms combat are very short), the particle "blast" will still be a pulse.

These are weapons for shipboard marines, not sniper rifles.

[Demarquis]

Defending a friend is an admirable motive, from our point of view (and obviously from the Loroi's). But will it be from the Umiak'? Let's just hope no one is recording this!

"Imagine his surprise if that "farsense-jamming"-device turns out to be a human instead."

I'm holding out for a brain in a jar myself.

[Arioch]

The only way the Umiak can find out about what Alex does in the next moments is if they fail. In which case Alex will be dead, whether or not he chose to aid the Loroi.

[Keklas Rekobah]

Is it my imagination, or does Beryl's expression in panel #3 seem to imply that she is thinking, "Yeah ... right ..."?

Or maybe, "Hmph!  I was hoping he would say something more chivalrous and romantic"?

[Tamri]

He is a pink alien man. Romantic - maybe, but heroic ?! <noise of loroi chauvinism>

[Keklas Rekobah]

Ahh ... so more like, "Stupid pink ... he is going to get himself killed ... and maybe the rest of us in the process!"

[jan]

I think that Enzin can be somwhat useful if his senses upgrades like in page 210 combat usually enchance ones senses I hope..

[RockB]

It needs to be usable by people in heavy armor and bulky environmental suits. The fingers of which may be restricted by a trigger guard.

My first thought was "My, no personalized weapon." So that's the reason for that.

Why would an ultra-tech weapon need a trigger guard?

The weapon requires energy -- lots of it -- to fire, so the trigger, safety, etc. is not mechanical, it's electrical. It can't go off by accident.

Well, what kind of safeties (mechanical, electrical, metaphysical or something I can't imagine) would prevent that and still make it possible to be used by Loroi in heavy armor (so no skin contact to the weapon whatsoever) -and- by a human in a space suit? Alex even has the wrong body temperature but being in a space suit would make temperature a poor criterion anyway. So - what? I mean what does it react to? If the gun had some telepathic safety, it wouldn't work for Alex. (Btw., automatic pistols can't go off by accident because one safety is holding the grip tightly.)

If this is real, it's a strong gesture of trust, but nothing else. Alex has had zero training with it and doesn't know which setting does how much damage. The best course of action for him would be to give it back.

Also... does anyone remember the scene in Die Hard 1 where McClane gives a gun to the terrorist whom he found and who claims to be one of the victims of the terrorists?