 
--=< SECTION 1 - THE STARTING LINE >=-----------------------------------------
From the starting gates, the racetrack shifts to the left and then levels
out to run parallel to (and just below, as far as elevation goes) the paths
that lead to the stadium's other race courses. It goes on straight ahead for
about another hundred meters before things start shaking up.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 1: THE STARTING LINE CHALLENGE: MEDIUM BONUS: NONE
After the straightaway, the track jinks upward at a 90 degree pitch. It
then flattens out with another sharp 90 degree shift in pitch, and begins
to furiously zig-zag left and right to force the swoops into some serious
cornering maneuvers.
DIFFICULTY: 15 MAN (pitch changes) 15 MAN (turns)
------------------------------------=< Stadium: The Flipside, Underground >=--
"Ladies and Gentlebeings, welcome to the final heat of this weekend's GSL races at the Flipside!" the announcer calls to the crowd as swoops start making their way from the pit area to the starting gates. "Among our racers on the field are Ryshel Quinn, racing the Crimson Myst for Team Callandor, and Rhovana Navic racing the Queen's Honor for Team FLS, both in Grade 2!" A few other racer's names are mentioned as the sponsor's names are broadcast along the viewing screens. SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour engines rev up slightly moving to the starting line, then drop back to a low hum awaiting the signal. <SKILL> Rhovana rolls a 17 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. A Good roll! Ryshel and the Myst move from the staging area to the starting position assigned to her. Once there she doublechecks gloves and helmet settling into position. <SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 28 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. An Excellent roll! Once the swoops are settled into the gates, something is signaled and the countdown begins. On all the broadcast screens in the facility, including a hologram projection hovering out in front of the starting gates, the numbers tick down in a steady progression. 3...2...1...GO!!! With the word GO!, the starting gates open and the race is on! SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour engines roar to life, thrusting to full for the breakaway from the starting line.
SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
5 10
<SKILL> Rhovana rolls a 10 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. A Poor roll!
The Myst comes out of the gate shifting quickly into overdrive as Ryshel guides the machine into the first section.
SWOOP: Ubrikkian Phantom-Q -- Crimson Myst shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
5 20
<SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 28 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. An Excellent roll!
SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour streaks from the starting line with a shout from Rhovana and a backward glance as Rhysel starts seconds behind her, but quickly the other swoop passes her making for the zigzags. Leaning forward, Rhovana pours on the power maneuvering through the obstacles, barely scraping past. Coming out of section one the red-clad racer stays low on the swoop having managed all the obsticles without trouble. Ryshel doesn't look back having shut out the other racers from her mind focused only on the race at hand. "And coming through the first section of the race, it's the Crimson Myst in the lead, followed by the Queen's Honor a dozen lengths back!" The scoreboard is keeping track of things numerically, showing Ryshel and the Crimson Myst with 42 SRU's and Rhovana on the Queen's Honor with 29 SRU's. None have any damage so far as they head through to the second section of the track.
--=< SECTION 2 - BURNING INFERNO >=-------------------------------------------
The track straightens out and slopes steeply upwards. Once the racers
have reached the peak of their climb, a sharp turn aims them towards a
building that is perpetually on fire, then takes them straight at the burning
inferno.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 1: TOP FLOOR CHALLENGE: MEDIUM BONUS: NONE
The easiest path takes racers close to the burning building, entering at
the highest floor. Only the tops of the flames reach here, but the heat
is very noticable, and there is smoke to contend with.
DIFFICULTY: 15 MAN (flames) 15 MAN (smoke)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 2: THROUGH THE CENTER CHALLENGE: HARD BONUS: 10
The harder path takes brave racers straight into the raging inferno,
entering several floors beneath the easier path and taking racers clear
through the burning building. The heat is intense and visibility is poor.
DIFFICULTY: 20 MAN (flames) 20 MAN (low visibility)
------------------------------------=< Stadium: The Flipside, Underground >=--
Rhovana makes for the easier path, playing it safe for the moment waiting for a chance to pour on the heat and gain some distance, but she boosts her speed to over hoping to shoot past the inferno quickly. <SKILL> Rhovana rolls a 24 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. An Excellent roll!
SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
-1 18
Overdrive is the chosen gear once more for the Crimson Myst, the second path is slipping into while Ryshel stays low over her swoop.
SWOOP: Ubrikkian Phantom-Q -- Crimson Myst shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
3 20
<SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 21 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. An Excellent roll!
SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour careens through the flames and Rhovana almost loses the swoop. "Oh shi..." she struggles with the swoop to maintain control, slamming into something in the flames before shooting through to the other side. Ahead, she can barely see Rhyshel through her watering eyes. Blast it! That red swoop comes out of the smoke with a fair amount of damage but still in the race. Ryshel doesn't even look back to see what is really wrong just wanting to get into the third section. "Ooooooooh, looks like the Crimson Myst is taking a beating out there!" The announcer is backed by the roars of the crowd, eating up the competative action out on the race track. "Even still, it remains in the lead of this pack with 75 SRU's above the Queen's Honor with 70 SRU's!" They approach Section 3, the big drop.
--=< SECTION 3 - DROP OF DOOM >=----------------------------------------------
Racers exit the burning building and are faced with a deadly drop. Two
paths lead racers straight down some fifty stories, into the bowels of the
moon.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 1: 45 DEGREE DROP CHALLENGE: HARD BONUS: NONE
This path is a 45 degree drop straight down into the moon's unknown
depths.
DIFFICULTY: 20 MAN (steep incline)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 2: 90 DEGREE DROP CHALLENGE: VERY HARD BONUS: 10
This path is a 90 degree drop straight down into the unknown depths of
the moon. When racers reach the bottom, they have very little time to
pull up and level out.
DIFFICULTY: 25 MAN (steep drop) 25 MAN (pull up)
------------------------------------=< Stadium: The Flipside, Underground >=--
Rhovana considers the challenger path. She bites her lip, then narrows her eyes. No guts, no glory. Dropping back to full thrusters for the drop, she leans forward in the swoop anticipating the drop.
SWOOP: CASE S-6c Akula -- Queen's Honour shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
6 12
<SKILL> Rhovana rolls a 10 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. A Poor roll!
Rhovana loses the swoop on the upswing. Her handling of the craft too late to pull out, Rho is thrown headfirst into the sharp incline when her swoop slams into it. Smoke rises from the wreckage and she lies dazed; concious for now but afraid to move much. She moans softly, lifting a hand to her head. Downshifting to full Ryshel wipes clear the visor of her helmet before she enters the third section. She needs this to stay ahead but still she heads into the second path, she's either going to make it or crash out at this point.
SWOOP: Ubrikkian Phantom-Q -- Crimson Myst shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
9 13
<SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 18 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. A Good roll!
Not pulling up in time, probably from the damage in the last section Ryshel bangs hard but pulls the swoop back under control and heads for the fourth section. She's gonna need that prize money to get her poor ride fixed. The crowd is on its feet with a bloodthirsty roar as the swoops take damage in the plumett towards the Maze, Damage totals skyrocket across the field, with Ryshel faring better than Rhovana. The Queen's Honour quickly hits the 100% damage threshold by all estimates as it hits the wall and bucks the rider off into the incline. Her score is replaced by the words CRASH. Ryshel on the other hand, is listed at 108 SRU as she heads into Section 4.
--=< SECTION 4 - THE MAZE >=--------------------------------------------------
Once racers have arrived in the unknown depths of Nar Shaddaa's lower
levels, they are faced with a dangerous maze that is legendary throughout the
galaxy. Sections of half-sealed tubing provide just enough guidance to keep
racers on course, but the openings leave the racers vulnerable to attacks
from the beings and creatures that call the lower levels their home.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 1: UNDER ATTACK! CHALLENGE: VERY HARD BONUS: NONE
As racers speed through the dark and winding underbelly of Nar Shaddaa,
vagrants and other creatures lash out at them as they pass, hoping to
turn a would-be winner into a bite-sized meal.
DIFFICULTY: 20 MAN (dark, winding path) 25 MAN (vagrant/creature avoidance)
------------------------------------=< Stadium: The Flipside, Underground >=--
White gloved hands clench around the handlebars, blue eyes narrowing as Ryshel heads into section 4 with a cold determination. Full speed is chosen instead of overdrive as she wants to limit the damage. She doesn't know WHY she's doing so poorly in this race when she's been around this track a dozen times going faster and taking barely any damage.
SWOOP: Ubrikkian Phantom-Q -- Crimson Myst shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
11 14
<SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 16 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. A Good roll!
Hot dang!! THe Myst makes it through the fourth section without any damage. It doesn't seem to stir up anything in Ryshel though, she's focused on the next section. The field is thinning as the vagrants and creatures of the Maze take their toll, but Ryshel makes it through without any damage adding to her totals on the scoreboard. The Crimson Myst's speed is listed as 132 SRU's as the swoop heads into the last third of the race, angling for the windy rooftops of section 5.
--=< SECTION 5 - HUFFS AND PUFFS >=-------------------------------------------
The track heads back up and out of the depths of Nar Shaddaa once the
vagrant maze has been surpassed. Racers are lead back up to rooftop level,
where heavy gusts and violent winds assault them.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 1: EASY TUBE CHALLENGE: MEDIUM BONUS: NONE
This tube only has a bare minimum of protection for racers, leaving them
at the mercy of the strong winds.
DIFFICULTY: 15 MAN (wind) 25 VEL (wind/G1 ONLY) 40 VEL (wind/G2-G4 ONLY)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 2: HARD TUBE CHALLENGE: HARD BONUS: 10
This tube offers no protection to racers. They are left entirely at the
mercy of the violent winds, which gust up to 150 km/h, strong enough to
slam them into the side of a nearby building if they aren't careful.
DIFFICULTY: 20 MAN (wind) 40 VEL (wind)
------------------------------------=< Stadium: The Flipside, Underground >=--
Needing the bonus Ryshel throws caution to the wind and heads for the second path in overdrive. Determination marks the features hidden behind the visor.
SWOOP: Ubrikkian Phantom-Q -- Crimson Myst shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
3 21
<SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 12 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill. An Average roll!
Pieces of the swoop are left on the track as it 'limps' toward the last section. The racer will be lucky to finish this with enough swoop left to repair. The damage totals for the Crimson Myst edge up even higher, now up into the 95% range, as it continues on towards the last section of the track. The speed totals for the racer are 175 SRU's as section 6 is approached.
--=< SECTION 6 - THE END IS NEAR! >=------------------------------------------
The last leg of the track that leads to the finish line is difficult no
matter which way racers go. The tubes split off, leaving some racers skipping
across rooftops towards the final straightaway while others take a pluging
dive towards the infamous trash compactor.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 1: ROOFTOP JUMPING CHALLENGE: HARD BONUS: NONE
Racers must jump their swoops from building to building. Short lengths of
track have been affixed to the spires of each tall tower, with a jump pad
at the end to help launch racers to the next subsequent landing area. The
last jump pad has to launch racers up onto the final straightaway that
leads for the finish line.
DIFFICULTY: 25 MAN (rooftop jumps)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PATH 2: THE COMPACTOR CHALLENGE: VERY HARD BONUS: 40 SRU
This path dives straight down at a sharp angle towards the ground. Flames
burst from the sides of the walls intermittently, and at the bottom lie
the gaping jaws of the trash compactor that open and close with a
powerful force in timed precision, so that if racers can negotiate
their entry, they can avoid being crushed. Once racers leave the other
side, they head back up to the straightaway break for the finish line.
DIFFICULTY: 25 MAN (steep drop) 25 MAN (flames) 30 MAN (compactor avoidance)
------------------------------------=< Stadium: The Flipside, Underground >=--
The red swoop limps into the last section striving for full speed despite the damage. Though having never taken the first path in any practice it is the path chosen this time with the hopes that the racer will LIVE to the end of the race.
SWOOP: Ubrikkian Phantom-Q -- Crimson Myst shifts gears and provides:
Manuvering Velocity
9 13
<SKILL> Ryshel rolls a 19 for her GROUND VEHICLE OPERATION skill.
More pieces are left behind the Myst as it seems to be falling apart on the way to the finish line. It's all Ryshel can do to keep the bike from going off course as it sputters to a halt just twenty feet over the line. The final score for most of the swoops that competed today is CRASH, but not the Crimson Myst. It comes out with 206 SRU's! The sponsors are thanked by the announcers as medical teams and tech crews move in to retrieve bits and pieces of racers and swoops during the intermission. |
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