>>92932
Ah, so then we cut off EVERYTHING ELSE.

>>92913
I leap towards the bee's back, hoping to continue wounding the bee enough it flees to bring word of my charade to the Mandarinian Empire, in the hopes such misdirection shall keep Cydonia and my beloved queen safe.

As I approach, the bee moves far faster than I thought it could in such a dazed state, it's legs whipping up as it throws it's body in a mad spin, knocking me back into te air.

As I reorient myself once more on the bee, I find myself struck by a glob of some noxious substance. It does not eat away at my carapace, yet it causes a strange tingling sensation. What is this?

I am airborne, some few inches above the petal Burn Crazy The Hellion had resided on. The bee in question is nowhere to be seen.


What should I do?

>>93127
>noxious substance

FUCKFUCKFUCK GET IT OFF

>>93132
Seconding this. Crazy maneuvers should be undertaken to rid self of this stuff.

>>93127
Try to Aerosmith in an unbalanced way that causes rapid spinning. Shake off the goop.

>>93135
>cause spinning

Wait! Idea!

PATH OF GLORY while spinning tightly. It might make it even stronger!

>>93127
is the substance sticky? where did it hit?

>>93179
The substance has splattered across my left flank and part of my face, where it causes a strange tingling sensation to slowly build.

>>93132
>>93133
>>93135
Nothing good can come of letting this material stay upon my form. I leap into the air while wrenching my spiracles open, and position my body to be violently spun once I imploy my Valiance of mobility. I will remove this substance from my form forthwith.

Spinning AEROSMITH!

The world become a hectic snarl of shapes and blurred images as I rotate at vicious speeds, my body wobbling in the air. If it were not for the prodigious amount of practice I have with hurtling through the air, I imagine this would daze me. As it is, I successfully hurl nearly all of the ooze off of myself.

...And the tingling sensation persists, although it no longer grows in strength.

I drop back down to the leaf below me as I regain a static position. I scan the area around me, but do not see the bee anywhere.


What should I do?

>>93582
Let's take to the air again. We need to pan 360 degrees from a proper height, and see if we can't find him.

>>93582
He must have fled to the ground. Time to go check out the undergrowth.

>>93597
Switching to this.

>>93597
>>93599
I descend into the canopy of flowers, the obscuring smoke somewhat dissipated but still limiting vision, and I carefully pay attention to what I can smell.

...Well, I can't smell him, though that likely means the same for him.

Currently, I am perhaps one third of the way from the canopy of flowers down to the ground beneath the dusty cloud.


What should I do? Should I continue down into the smoke? Or perhaps I should try to use Aerosmith to clear off more of the smoke?

>>93965
Clear it out. That smoke might do more than just hide him.

>>93969
Enough. Clearly Burn Crazy The Hellion knows how to fight with stealth in mind, I should not leave him such a boon as this cloud to hide behind. Ever since I knocked him to the ground in the process of making this dusty shroud, I have not been able to hit him as decisively as I would like.

I leap out into the open air, pulling my spiracles wide open. I shall create some breeze to disperse this cloud more expeditiously.

AEROSMITH
I jet forward, plunging through the smoke, swirling and dispelling it in my wake. But so much more is left.

AEROSMITH
AEROSMITH
AEROSMITH
AEROSMITH

....I am.. beginning to become..winded, if only minorly, but a good deal of smoke is dissipating.

Odd, I do not see my foe still, where-

An immense weight slams into my back, skittering on my spike crest, as legs sweep about me to secure it's form! Burn Crazy The Hellion has somehow leapt onto my back!


What should I do?

>>94881
>onto my back

JUST AS PLANNED.

Aerosmith with EVERYTHING YOU HAVE, while UNSTOPPABLE IMPACTING the earth with all six legs.

>>94888
I am liking this idea. It's time we used the spikes for more than just decoration!

>>94889
Wait, scratch that. We're still in midair. Instead, use Fury of the Storm on him.

>>94895
We can't.

But we can use his weight and inability to steer in midair against him!

Turn upside down using Aerosmith, then use whatever you have left to slam him into the ground!

>>94888
>>94889
New Valiance Combination discovered!
New ability title: Body Breakdown


>>94901
He may be well-positioned to avoid any attack I can muster right now, but what if I bring him to the ground? Perhaps I could wound him enough he chooses to flee, bringing word of the ruse I have presented to him. I wrench my spiracles open and attempt to jet backwards as harshly as I can.

AEROSMITH

In a blur of motion, our positions are reversed, the bee clinging to me from below, my belly to the sky. My breathing is becoming labored, but I can do more. I keep my spiracles open, and once more command the wind.

AEROSMITH

I lend what force I can to our downward descent, abruptly accelerating our fall up into potentially dangerous speeds. I feel my foe starting to release me, attempting to get free in time, but it is futile: We crash into the ground below with a weighty impact, my spike crest slamming into Burn Crazy The Hellion's underbelly as he rebounds off of the compacted dirt below.

He has released me, and for the moment it upside down, back against the ground, with my form atop him. He immediately struggles to rise, to once more take action.

I must also note that if I do not have some time to regain my wind, I shall shortly start to asphyxiate from excessive use of Aerosmith, though I can likely use it at least a few more times right now before it comes to that.

>>94895
I will not let my foe recover, not when he has proven adept at ambush tactics, so well suited to this environment. I begin swinging mandibles open wide in staggered steps, each one clicking shut alone.

FURY OF THE STORM!!

Light crazily throbs as I pepper my foe with shock-waves, his form twitching violently... though I must note that he is able to still move, at least to some degree.


What should I do? Should I continue to maintain my assault with Fury Of The Storm, or should I do something else in my endeavors to force Burn Crazy The Hellion to retreat and bring my falsified origin to the Mandarinian Empire?

Grab one of his legs, then use Unstoppable Impact against his body, removing the appendage.

>>95397
Yes, crippling my foe further whilst still leaving him his life should help encourage the bee to flee.

I grab hold of a foreleg, and place several of my legs against Burn Crazy The Hellion's form. I hold tight, and trigger them, just as I end Fury Of The Storm.

UNSTOPPABLE IMPACT X3!!

I hurtle away from the bee, thrown by the recoil, my foe's leg ripped away in the process, ichor spraying about. I release the limb as I reorient myself, flaring small burst of air to land upon the ground safely from my calamitous flight.

But the bee shows no sign of pain or distress at it's lost limb, heaving itself upright, the flow of ichor from it's new wound already ending.

...?!

The wing I shredded.... it's whole again! ..If my foe can regenerate, this will be more difficult than I surmised.

Burn Crazy The Hellion Takes to the air, flying over me while spitting a hail of sticky globs at me. I could likely make a heavy attack on it's form, but in the process I would likely get struck by multiple instances of that strange ooze of his: I still feel a strange tingling sensation from where it was before, but otherwise suffer no ill effects.


What should I do, should I focus on avoiding Burn Crazy The Hellion's attacks, or should I focus on attacking my foe (And if so, how should I go about it?)?

>>96066
GOT FOR THE ASSAULT.
Your opponent can regenerate limbs and other wounds. We have to hurt him enough to the point where he just passes out from the advanced metabolism required, then flee and leave him to fly home.

YOUR SPINES ARE THE SPINES THAT WILL PEIRCE THE HEAVENS.

Also, if you go fast enough, it'll likely come off anyway.

>>96066
"Oh, you can regenerate? This is going to be even more fun than expected. I'll be able to take you apart piece by piece... and beyond."

Focus on dodging his attacks for a bit while you recover your breath, so you can use Aerosmith safely again.

>>96066
SCARS WILL HEAL
GLORY AND MEMORIES LAST FOREVER

>>96066
If your foe is that certain he wants this stuff on you, you should be just as certain you do NOT, especially if it's effects are unknown and persist. Dodge

Dodge like a motherfucker!

>>96066
The tingling sensation may be mild paralysis. Keep that sticky stuff off you at all costs.

Focus on dodging that goo. I'd rather not find out what the effects of it are.

>>96077
>>96441
>>96446
>>96452
>>96489
Yes, the goo could well be a paralytic, or some similarly disadvantageous concoction. I would do well to avoid it.

I dance about the ground, leaping about in my pursuit to avoid getting hit by Burn Crazy The Hellion's gooey projectiles as he follows after me in the sky.

While a hectic event, I am finding my breathing returning to normal as my spiracles once more regulate my intake of air at peak levels.

Once more I am rested.

....Now that I spy a glance back at Burn Crazy The Hellion during his pursuit, I see that the leaves of the flower stalks are partly obscuring his range and vision. Perhaps if I were to try to hide, I could lose his pursuit, either to re-engage, or withdraw. I have, after all, delivered out proposed story, and if I kill the bee, that puts the plan to waste and likely reveals our location through his disappearance.


What should I do?

>>96746
Hide.

Hide as best you can.

>>96746
Hide and retreat when able. It would be a small blow to your pride for leaving a fight, but that pales in comparison to the good it does the colony and the Queen.

withdrawing now also gives us the chance to determine what the long term effects of this goop are. It would seem that the Mandarinian Empire is learning to grant lesser versions of known valiances to its champions. It is possible this strange toxin is based on what the Mandarinian Queen herself can do.

>>96748
>>96789
>>96919
I start doing all I can to place as much material between myself and Burn Crazy The Hellion as I can. As he falls behind me, I hear his flight become more hesitant. As I check from behind a small rock, I see him wandering about, seeking me: I have lost him, at least for the moment.

As I continue to watch, I see the bee start to fly shakily,his flight now erratic, rambling. I see the bee set himself down on a leaf, as it inspects it's missing leg. Even from this distance, I can see that new segments are starting to grow, the leg reforming.... just as well as I can see the toll the regeneration and fighting are taking on the bee.

I continue to watch Burn Crazy The Hellion in silence, waiting for him to act first, to keep my location hidden. As I wait, I note that the tingling sensation in my body still has not lessened, nor has it spread. It could well be a paralytic, as I feel somewhat... numb, restrained where the ooze has struck: If that is so, a dangerous ability, coupled with his durable carapace segments and regeneration abilities.

Finally, action resumes: Burn Crazy The Hellion takes to the air once more.... and promptly starts to fly upwards, exiting the forest of flowers. I listen as the buzz of his wings recedes.

I am now in a predicament. Burn Crazy The Hellion has proven himself deceptive, ambush-oriented attacker. He could have retreated as I hoped, or he could simply be readying yet another trap for me.


What should I do?

rolled 3 = 3

---

>>97328
Well, don't go home.
If only we had a false nest or something...

Anyway, wander in a random direction, evading him, of course.

((1=North, and then go clockwise around the compass))

Go north until you are positive he's not returning. If he does return and finds us then we've added more credence to the other ant's claims that we hail from the north. Though, if we find he hasn't come back to spy on us then covertly return to Stealin' and then to Crescent to inform the queen.

>>97618
I begin to travel north along the ground, careful to make as little noise as possible. I listen for the buzz of wings, or for the sound of anyone else nearby, but I hear nothing, see nothing as I go. So I begin to move more swiftly, more aggressively. After all, the tingling sensation is finally wearing off, and I wish to stretch. So I begin to take small jumps with Aerosmith, to move more swiftly, still traveling north. Finally, I can hear the sound of Mandarinian Warriors buzzing around intermingling with those of the bumblebees above.

Hm. Well, none of them come below the canopy so far as I can see, and I have not seen Burn Crazy The Hellion in some time. feel confident I have lost him, and that if he gleaned anything from my escape, it was that I lived to the north, just as I said.


What should I do? Should I head back to Crescent now?

(NOTE: THIS WILL END THE QUEST: THE MANDARINIAN BUZZ)


Proceed? And if so, what eggs should be made with the 80 points of energy KILLER QUEEN has left (she regenerated her wings, recall)


Flash: 5 eggs worth, take 2 hours to mature
They Might Be Giants: 10 eggs worth, take 1 hour to mature, need five units of food per feeding
Sister Hazel or Sister Machine Gun: 50 eggs worth, take 1 hour to mature, need 15 units of food per feeding, must be fertilized to start spawning.
All other strains cost 1 egg, take 1 feeding and 30 minutes to mature, and are the following:
Fat Bottomed Girls
The Merciless
Lurkers at the Threshold

>>97913
Return the Crescent, KILLER QUEEN must be informed of what has occurred. KILLER QUEEN should lay 2x Flash, 20x Fat Bottomed Girls, and 50x The Merciless.

>>97992
This is good. This is a good plan.

needs more flash. Seriously, like everything we do is like "man, sure would be nice if there were some more flash with us to do X or for Y reason" and they take a long time to produce.

10 Flash
10 Fat Bottoms
20 Merciless

>>97992
Here
>>98373
This is also acceptable.

>>98373
I'm for this loadout.

LOADOUT:
10 FLASH
10 FAT BOTTOMED GIRLS
20 THE MERCILESS

TIMESTAMP

-All ants set to feed themselves whenever they have 30 minutes left before becoming Lethargic.

CRESCENT COLONY AGE: 7.5 HOURS

TOTALS:
1 KILLER QUEEN
1 The Hero Scars of Yesterday
1 Toxic
1 Wings of Destiny
1 Blue Mind Riot
1 Crimson Glory
1 Battery
20 They Might Be Giants
51 Death on Six Legs
211 The Merciless
277 Fat Bottomed Girls
44 Flash (10 more at hour 9.5)
30 Lurkers at the Threshold (30 'planted')

STATUS:
KILLER QUEEN: Sated (does not need food until hour 8), can produce more eggs in Chamber 11

The Hero Scars of Yesterday: Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or will become Lethargic), Idle outside Crescent

Toxic: Sated (self-feeding), At Spider/Wasp Field

Wings of Destiny: Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or will become Lethargic), Idle outside Crescent w/ Metallica

Blue Mind Riot: Sated (self-feeding), Idle outside Crescent with Aphids and fungus


They Might Be Giants:
-9 Sated (will need feeding in 1.5 hours or will become Lethargic), Stationed at Def Leppard’s field
-11 Sated (will need feeding in 1.5 hours or will become Lethargic), Idle in Chamber 4

Death on Six Legs:
-19 Sated (self-feeding), At Spider/Wasp Field
-22 Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or will become Lethargic), Idle outside Crescent
-10 Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or will become Lethargic), with Scars.

The Merciless:
-25 Sated (will need feeding in 1.5 hours or will become Lethargic), Patrolling Crescent (2 mutated)
-24 Sated (will need feeding in 1.5 hours or will become Lethargic), Guarding Fat Bottomed Girls gathering Concentrated Nutrients
-40 Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or will become Lethargic), Idle outside Crescent with aphids and fungus
-10 Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or will become Lethargic), Traveling to Spider/Wasp Field
-34 Sated (will need feeding in 1.5 hours or will become Lethargic), Stationed at Def Leppard’s field.
-50 Sated (will need feeding in 2 hours or will become Lethargic), Idle in chamber 11
-20 Sated (self-feeding), travelling northeast

Fat Bottomed Girls:
-100 Sated (self-feeding), gathering Concentrated Nutrients
-32 Sated (will need feeding in 1.5 hours or will become Lethargic), Returning with fungus/aphids/soil at hour 7.5
-20 Sated (will need feeding in 1 hour or become Lethargic), harvesting Flowers at Def Leppard’s field
-25 Sated (self-feeding), gathering Concentrated Nutrients at Def Leppard’s field
-52 Sated (will need feeding in 2 hours or will become Lethargic), Idle in chamber 11
-8 Sated (self feeding), aging Pearl Jam

Flash:

-2 Sated (self-feeding), Scouting for fauna to feed to the growth
-4 Sated (self-feeding), Scouting East
-5 Sated (will need feeding in 2 hours or will become Lethargic), with Scars.
-1 Sated (will need feeding in 2 hours or will become Lethargic), Stationed at Def Leppard’s field.
-8 Sated (will need feeding in 2 hours or will become Lethargic), Idle outside Crescent
-3 Sated (self-feeding), travelling northeast

Lurkers at the Threshold:
-20 'planted' about Crescent's surface
-5 stationed at Def Leppard’s field
-5 ‘planted’ around base at Def Leppard’s field

Pulsating Sac:
-1 ?????? in Stealin’ test chamber.

FOOD:
0 units of Yellow Flower Leaf (Quality: 1/10)
0 units of Dead Ant (Quality: 2/10)
0 units of Nest Robber Centipede (Quality: 3/10)
0 units of Black Dragonfly (Quality: 3/10)
10 units of Sand Pit Ant Lion (Quality: 3/10) Special: causes The Merciless to transform into Death On Six Legs
1,217 units of Pearl Jam (Quality: 4/10)
280 units of aged Pearl Jam (Quality determined when the aging process stops)
0 units of Yellow Flower Nectar/Blossoms (Quality: 2/10 Warriors, 4/10 Non-Warriors) Special: Masks Non-Warrior Scent
0 units of Flying Beast Bumblebee (Quality: 5/10) Special: Tastes Like Poison
30 units of Abomination Hornet (Quality: 7/10)
21 units of Bohemian Rhapsody (Quality: 9/10) Special: Instantly removes Lethargy, Strengthens Consumers
169 Units of Roots of Chaos (Quality: XOM/10)

Storage:
Chamber 1 current maximum capacity: 300 points (300/300 used)
Chamber 2 current maximum capacity: 500 points (0/550 used)
Chamber 3 current maximum capacity: 375 points (8/375 used)
Chamber 4 current maximum capacity: 600 points (0/650 used)
Chamber 5 current maximum capacity: 175 points (542/650 used)
Chamber 6 current maximum capacity: 600 points (0/325 used)
Chamber 7 current maximum capacity: 500 points (0/500 used)
Chamber 8 current maximum capacity: 300 points (0/300 used)
Chamber 9 current maximum capacity: 275 points (0/275 used)
Chamber 10 current maximum capacity: 1600 points (700/1600 used)
Chamber 11 current maximum capacity: 900 points (0/900 used)
Stealin' current maximum capacity: 200 points (105/200 used)
Stealin’s Test Chamber maximum capacity: 40 units (10/40 used)
(KILLER QUEEN, Wings of Destiny and They Might Be Giants are worth 10 points, The Hero Scars of Yesterday is worth 5 points, Death on Six Legs and Toxic are worth 2 points, Blue Mind Riot, Flash, The Merciless and Fat Bottomed Girls are worth 1 point. Food is 1 point per unit of food)

!!REMINDER!! KILLER QUEEN can now attempt to make up to two new strains at a checkpoint.
!!REMINDER!! KILLER QUEEN can now save upgrades for later checkpoints!
!!REMINDER!! KILLER QUEEN has gotten better at making new ant strains!
!!NOTICE!! Blue Mind Riot and escort have returned with fungus and aphids!
!!NOTICE!! Scars of Yesterday, his honor guard, the food brought back and Metallica have returned and are outside Crescent!
!!REMINDER!! Red Water Flower and Bright Day Flower are being stockpiled at Carpathian Ridge. Requests can be sent for tithes of supplies from them, but remember that demanding too much from them might cause resentment, and potentially rebellious tendencies.

ASSESSING UPGRADES EARNED.

Toxic bested a spider: 1 upgrade
Scars Of Yesterday fended off Burn Crazy The Hellion: 1 upgrade
New Hero unit: Battery: 1 upgrade
Battery bested the corrupted Twisted Sisters: 1 upgrade
Survived meeting David Bowie: 1 upgrade

You have earned: 5 total upgrades.

Please spend upgrade(s) on the following:

Improve Fat Bottomed Girls Strain Lv4. (REQUIRES 2 UPGRADES)
Improve The Merciless Strain Lv3. (REQUIRES 2 UPGRADES)
Improve Flash Strain Lv2
Improve They Might Be Giants Strain
Improve Lurkers at the Threshold Strain
Create New Ant Strain
Make Death on Six Legs a normal Strain (makes it upgradeable, lets KILLER QUEEN lay eggs) (REQUIRES 2 UPGRADES, d20 rolled, must beat 14)
Create Specialty Strain: Cry of the Brave Ant (REQUIRES 2 UPGRADES, d30 rolled, must beat 23)
Create New Ant Strain described by Blue Mind Riot to KILLER QUEEN(quality of new breed and restrictions imposed determined by rolling a d30, the higher the roll the better the results, if choosing this option a voting period will be opened to determine what description Blue Mind Riot will give to KILLER QUEEN)
Upgrade Exoskeletons Lv3. (REQUIRES 2 UPGRADES)
Upgrade Mandible Quality Lv3. (REQUIRES 2 UPGRADES)
Upgrade Intelligence Lv5. (REQUIRES 4 UPGRADES)
Specialize KILLER QUEEN (choose either attack, defense, harvesting, digging or mobility) (can specialize multiple times, and stack upgrades)
Gift KILLER QUEEN Poison Trait to a hero unit (specify the one desired).
Retain upgrade point for later use.

First upgrade(s) to reach 3 votes will be chosen.

>>103057
Improve TMBG
Upgrade Intelligence

I would think upgrading intelligence is a good idea, the smarter the ants get, the better off we'll be in the future. And for the other point, let's give They Might Be Giants a boost, they've certainly been deserving of it for a while.

Agreement with previous posters. This makes three votes, amirite?

>>103059
i agree

damn guys, our basic worker ants can use simple tools and understand drama. When will our intelligence be enough?

You know who is deserving of some upgrades? the Death on Six Legs. Also, it would be nice to be able to create male ants. Can we please make them a normal strain and start giving them some upgrades? Our elite warriors are growing less elite with each encounter.

I disagree with the point into intelligence, but I suppose I'm late to that party. Since the intellect points are already spent I'd like to upgrade the They Might Be Giants. If we're to fight the other queen and her minions we'll need some serious firepower if we want to go toe to toe with her and her gargantuan children.

>>103059
Um, guys, "TMBG" stands for 'They Might Be Giants'

That's already 3 votes for TMBGs + Intelligence.

>>103114
That's understood, I was voicing disagreement at one choice, while agreeing that the other is appropriate for an upcoming mission.