GPS? Pah, I'll go one better...

Well, it would seem a month or two since I last posted - alas, my intranet access had been revoked and it took some small amount of time to re-establish it. All was not lost, however, as I spent a few hours in the lab tinkering with some of the Arachnos scanning and communication arrays and have come up with... the ZR Zonal Discovery Array!

Now at the touch of a button I can scan my local vicinity and get a full map of the surrounding area. GENIUS!

MA Review: MA22433 - Total Domination

MA22433 - Total Domination
For the illiterate: World domination in 5 not-so-easy steps! Bring lackies!
Rated: 69% Entertainment Value

So, we have another petitioner for my tender attention to their creation. Seems that @Frosty Robot would offer me "Total Domination" for the mere cost of playing their arc. Ever the scientist, I'm willing to experiment with the concept.

Alas, a mere fictional premise but a hologram of Kelly Uqua forms the starting point for the diabolical plan. It would appear that the Rikti telepathic network is the target and the erstwhile Crey employee/spy is your first step.

The lab she was working in was actually filled with Crey Elite - introducing new stealthed covert agents, Paragon Protectors and ABC Scientists who seemed overly fond of throwing around extreme levels of radiation and not much else. That said, even these elite units were easily dispatched and it was not long before I faced Kelly Uqua herself.

Here began the first problem with this arc when you try to solo it - the ambushes. Wave after wave of them. Crey and Rikti. I had to retreat inside of my Personal Forcefield and let my ZR Autonomous Combat Systems take care of Uqua unaided.

Once captured, and suitably blackmailed she directs you to a warehouse at Area 51 in Nevada to acquire a Rikti Organelle - some form of biotechnology that controls the mental network installed in Rikti motherships. As suspected, it turned out to be a trap.

Fronted by a Vanguard HVAS! Immune to almost all my tricks, I was reduced to taking advantage of its poorly designed gyrostablisers and using a Force Bolt to keep it pinned. Time consuming, but effective when faced with a nasty foe.

After acquiring the organelle, I found that the Security Chief needed "convincing" that I was never there. Unfortunately, he was in a modified Rikti Heavy Suit and was accompanied by members of the US Military. Again, this fight was comparatively trivial compared to the ambushes that assaulted me during it - most especially the sheer weight of troops the Commando Colonels called in. However, after a brief setback, it was doable and the organelle was mine.

Next up.... oh, next up. The first time one of these arcs have thrown me against that most... detestable of Arachnos' scientists. Aeon. My personal nemesis, Dr Aeon. The arc scores bonus points for that alone! Alas, it seems that Aeon had been indulging in more experiments in the form of cloning and Aeondroids. His robotic technologies were nothing compared to my own, but his clones were... tougher than he himself.

Again, once fighting Dr Aeon, the ambushes were the issue and I had to retreat into a Personal Forcefield while my Systems completed subduing the real Dr Aeon.

With the machine now built, I set out to an abandoned WEB Control Node to install the machine and then broadcast a mind control signal across the world. It was here that I was brought up short.

The node was protected by Arachnos Cruise Missiles. Untargettable, undestroyable, high-yield explosives. They proceeded to lay waste to wave after wave of my robots that I was forced to send in first to take the collateral damage.

Secondly, the node was protected by Regent Korol. She shrugged off the damage my ZR Autonomous Combat Systems could output without a break in her own psionic onslaught. It was.... infuriating.

And so, I turned to outside contractors. Calling in my lab assistant Dr. Darkespark, we were ably assisted by two of Arachnos' finest in Operative Sicarius and Arachnocon. A Brute named Kaye Vin and a Corruptor with the colourful moniker "Kiss n Hell" rounded out my new field testers.

After wading through the carnage wrought by the Cruise Missiles, Korol dropped from our own heavy onslaught.

On to the final act, where I was glad to retain my contractors. For it seems a mind control system has alerted all the most powerful psychics across the globe. So, it was back to the node to clear out Capes and defend the Total Domination Machine.

And a who's who of the worlds' psychics it was too - the lesser spotted Malaise made an appearance first off (for less than 20 seconds before he was melted under combined firepower) followed by Sister Psyche and that vile traitor to Arachnos, Manticore.

After the good were cleared out, the "evil" came out to play - Seer Kalinda first attempted to assault us, and after she failed then Ghost Widow charged into the fray. What she was doing there without Wretch as well is confusing to me, but it just made her all the easier to subdue.

With that done, well... I ruled the world. Until the simulation, of course, ended. I found the mission challenging for the most part until I reached the unstoppable Korol - it was a shame to have to call in contractors for the last two missions.

MZ's Conclusion: Well, that was certainly a... challenge. Not an arc for the faint of heart, or the soloist

Thwarted by Lord Nemesis!

The time for a little Aeon Entertainment had to be put on hold today, as Dark Watcher of Vanguard contacted me to request my assistance in bringing in a defector from the Nemesis Army.

Unfortunately the defector died on the scene but not before telling me that Nemesis was behind the Rikti Invasion! (not enough information by far, I won't be immediately returning the gentleman's corpse to Vanguard - I have my own... questions that my colleague Dr Digitalis can extract from the undead corpse)

I was next dispatched to meet with some Longbow-types to secure their help with Vanguards' Portal Technology. This despite my assurances to Watcher that I'd be able to do that just fine, they wanted Portal Corps on the job. Still, I got to see a Longbow Cape die, so it wasn't a total waste!

So, I could finally head off to the Nemesis Base in the Shadow Shard to look for evidence that Nemesis started the Rikti war. Bypassing the external guards and heading to a cave behind this base I found some pretty compelling evidence in the shape of a steam-powered dimensional portal.

I was just taking notes on the construction of the device while a Drone ZR-2 fetched the documentation from a nearby safe when I was rudely interrupted! A bolt of radiation slammed into my Aegis Shielding and I turned to face what on first glance looked like Positron.

Closer scans showed that it wasn't Positron at all but a clever simulcra of the armoured "hero". With next to no time to react, the replica almost killed me - only the updates to my ZR Aegis Transponder saved me by teleporting me back to the ARAD Lab as I fell unconscious.

Looks like I'll need to go back with more reinforcements...

MA Review: MA101681 - Through Rose-Tinted Glasses

MA101681 - Through Rose-Tinted Glasses
For the illiterate: Excellent entertainment despite an unrealistic initial premise! Rated: 78% Entertainment Value

Well, today sees myself and my lab assistant at a loose end so we decided to see what "illustrious writer" has bestowed his gifts upon us, their unsuspecting public. So, @Leese would have me looking "Through Rose-Tinted Glasses"? Not truly my colour, but let us see what unfolds...

A fictional tale, the hologram resolved into an elderly lady by the name of Elspeth Wallace wearing said-titular glasses. One can only assume that she is blinded by them as she was under the mistaken delusion that I was Manticore... never the one to ruin a good narrative, nor to disappoint the lady I played along.

It seems she wanted to retrieve some baubles that President Marchand had secreted in some caves prior to his assassination. While the period of history (pre-Arachnos) holds little interest for me, I dutifully had my lab assistant access the Datastream with me to watch the scene play out.

It would seem that Arachnos were likewise searching the tunnels which were infested by those vile Arachnoid creatures. Baubles were an apt description for all that we found - jewellery and not much else. Of course, the fact someone else had been rummaging was... curious. And the Arachnoid King? Yes. Well.

Going back to Ms Wallace, it would appear that one of the rings belonged to her. The sight of it loosened her tongue enough to let slip that she had a list of locations that Marchand had stashed his valuables. She pointed out the one location that he had told her she was never to forget.

On arrival, it appeared that all the Arachnoids in this cave had been purged and Arachnos troops had taken up resident. Working our way past them we finally discovered something truly intriguing - an elderly computer. Alas, the security was tight enough that even I and my vast intellect could not breach it onsite but it did identify itself as Project Ragnarok. A palpable plot hook!

It is here that the story picks up a-pace as I decide to no longer pursue the myriad of baubles a frightened man may have stowed away for a rainy day but rather to investigate the presence of a system named after a mythical apocalypse. I love a good doomsday weapon, more so if its attached to a better robot!

After some prompting, the witless Elspeth revealed that Marchand kept journals that Arachnos had long since seized. This sees you going into an Arachnos compound to reclaim the fragments. Dr Darkespark had some minor issues in this mission when facing the compounds' Archivist (likely due to her lack of Aegis shielding - if I don't let her fight on her own on occasion, she'll never learn effective control of her nanobot technologies) but otherwise it was a profitable rampage. The journals reveal the Ragnarok system is a serious of large explosive devices, keyed to Marchand's DNA, designed as a "last resort" for early Arachnos invading the Etoille Isles. Seems that Longbow were also onsite, perhaps likewise looking for the information?

Ms Wallace, upon return, told us that her son (the spitting image of Marchand) has been targeted by Arachnos for kidnapping. It would appear that a scion of Marchand was indeed available for activation of Ragnarok. Unfortunately, on arrival I found that not only was it Arachnos that was after him, but my own Research and Development division - Black Scorpion was in attendance. After a heated debate between myself and the big lug he "agreed" to let me continue the investigation.

There was an interesting snippet overheard from one of the Longbow agents who were likewise trying to rescue Philip - it seems that my arrival was expected. Could it be the wily old lady was actually playing both sides of the fence and was not as near-sighted as she wants to appear...

Regardless, extraction of the Wallace kid was simple and next up it was back to the Project's Computer Cave to activate the device. It would seem that tales of me "impersonating" Manticore had reached the man himself and he came along with a cadre of Longbow to stop me. With a lack of any level of shielding (for delusional fool puts too much technology into his weaponry, and not enough into defensive output - an elementary mistake!) he fell faster than Ernesto.

The Arachnos Team Leader was pitiful and I let Dr Darkespark deal with him while I investigated the computer. Unfortunately, it seems that the network connection from this terminal has been severed though probing of the machines memory banks revealed other terminal locations. Something for another day.

Finally returning to Elspeth to taunt her? Gloat? I'm not sure why we returned at this point. Especially since only now does she take off her paint-covered glasses and actually see who is standing before her. No wily old lady here, alas.

MZ's Conclusion: Excellent premise for a tale though since that doomsday project doesn't exist in the real world, I may just have to create it officially. In Paragon City. What? You think I want to destroy the Etoille Isles? Are you mad?!

MA Review: MA34608 - Cancelled in Three

MA34608 - Cancelled in Three
For the illiterate: An enjoyable diversion from your lab work, though linear in plotting
Rated: 74% Entertainment Value

So, the hapless @JamieB is the first to step into the arena with their opus "Cancelled in Three". A fictional piece set in the cut and thrust intellectual world of the comics industry. Yes. Well... I soldier on regardless.

As this is my first foray I attended in person since my lab assistant was out of the office and my heavier duty AI's in for servicing. I brought a platoon of ZR Autonomous Assault Systems and my trusty ZR Aegis Transponder with me.

We open on the enigmatically dressed Walt Kurtzberg who duly dispels all thoughts of an evening of evil masterplanning and insteads sends me to a Comic Convention. Not even a science symposium! Worse yet, the booking agent needs dissecting for setting the whole affair up in a warehouse!

Still, fighting the hordes of Pests, Cosplayers, Messageboarders and Goths was nothing if not satisfying on a purely spreading mayhem basis! The Cosplayers were remarkably eagle-eyed - able to see my platoon of ZR Autonomous Assault Systems at an actual human distance! I would wonder how my Stalker unit Assault ZR-Beta would have faired... At the crux though, it would appear that Paragon Comics has been subject to a hostile takeover...

Note for self: Audit the AI on Protector ZR-5 who seems to have exited the convention with a broadsword, a shirt, and some form of plush toy with tentacles. Recommend to Dr Darkespark that we reformat it's personality chip.

Next up, the story took me along to the offices of Paragon Comics. Here, I discovered office workers with a penchant for toys - replica laserswords, rifles and recurve bows. The office culminated in a meeting with The Publisher whose Dark Miasma powers and horde of Thug-ish lawyers did little to hinder my progress beyond a chuckle at his witticisms as he was cut down. A barrel of drugged ink identified the "nefarious" plot du jour.

After having my suspicions on mindcontrol ink confirmed by Walt it was on to the Paragon Comics publishing centre to stop a special mind controlling issue being published and to meet with the new owner of the company. The click-whirring of the first foe was remarkably familiar, as were their rifles (where do those Automatons secrete such large weap... note to self: self terminate that train of thought).

A Fake Nemesis, therefore, was no great surprise as the new owner. This plot seems a little simplistic from what I've seen of Lord Nemesis in the past... though well I know how your own robotic creations can wander off with their own agendas. The foolish robot was summarily beaten down - only once being able to breach the shields from my ZR Aegis Transponder.

MZ's Conclusion: A story arc that was light on plot twists, medium to high on humour, solid on plot overall and I only find myself wishing for more interaction with the Nemesis Automatons for research purposes!

Public Transmission Intercepted

Source: Mission Architect BBS
Clearance Level: Public

Content: Citizens of the Rogue Isles, hated adversaries of Paragon City,

Yes, it is I - Master Zaprobo of Arachnos Research and Development who has breached the so called security of this "forum" to address all you "fans" of Aeon's flimsy entertainment system - the Mission Architect.

I have found myself using the system a little of late and find that there is a depressing lack of fine quality villainry to be had and that which is there is both hard to find and difficult to ascertain its worth.

So, I come to you with an offer... all you authors who think that your tale is one worthy of my attention - contact me with your "story" and we'll see if it can withstand both the might of my ZR Autonomous Assault Systems or hold the interest of the vast villainous intellect that founded Arachnos Research and Development.

I'll be waiting, in the name of SCIENCE!

MZ

Cracked It!

Yes! Now that Aeon has released his new "toy" to both Paragon City and the Rogue Isles I have spent some time accessing the fools' firewalls.

After some assistance by a willing user of the Architect Entertainment system - they know who they are - I now have permanent access to the devices attached to it and can use its Datastream System to teleport myself of colleagues anywhere across Paragon City or the Isles!

I can also indulge in any of its programming from the comfort of my own lab! Bliss!

Improving Arachnos Armour

So, I have been holed up in the lab for the past several months working on a way to improve the armour that is assigned to Arachnos' Bane and Crab Spider troops and I have finally developed a prototype.

Unfortunately, it has a drawback so far that I am unable to use the ZR Aegis Transponder while in the suit and as such I can not summon any of my ZR Autonomous Combat Units while wearing it.

As such, I am ensuring that I am only testing the armour in conjunction with my colleagues at Arachnos Research and Development - primarily with GS2010, a robotic creation of Dr Darkespark's that seems to be excelling itself in the field.

In order to test the suit unimpeded, Arbiter Daos has imparted upon me the rank of Arbiter. Luckily, the lower echelons of Arachnos are happy to help me test the damage resistance of the armour. I've yet to improve the weaponry for the suit - either the Crab Spider Blaster Arms or the Bane Mace... that's going to require more work.