The Dark Order, explained at last

As early as July 2011 I dropped hints about a mysterious Hero Factory backstory I was cooking up involving The Dark Order, or, in their original tongue, the Or'Da.  In 2012 I drummed up renewed interest with a series of cryptic, low-resolution videos featuring various heroes addressing an unknown character known as "Sempax."  Then, in January, I released a series of stories of the Crystals of Zemai-4 as told by master chronicler Zeyek, giving full view to a slice of history involving the work of the Order and their arch enemies, the Brotherhood of Light.

Today I finish the puzzle at last. Get ready for a bit of a read...

Guardians of Zemai-4

In this archival footage (most recent clips in this video are from August 2011), you get to see the seven members of the Dark Order who stayed behind to guard Zemai-4 for all of eternity.  For some unknown reason, their most recently known forms do not precisely match those of the historical record.  Zeyek passed along no explanation.

• Video: Guardians of Zemai-4

If you didn't follow the Crystals of Zemai-4 story, now's a good time to get caught up.

The Crystals of Zemai-4, part 7

Just when doom seemed absolute and inescapable, the very most unlikely allies emerged from the shadows...

The in rapid succession, the members of the Brotherhood met their violent ends before the glowing energy swords of the Dark Order.  Soon even Lecius himself was disarmed and facing his demise. One Rokkun miner, cowering behind a lifter, overheard some sort of final offer being extended to the fallen villain, but the offer was evidently refused, as quickly thereafter, Lecius was relieved of his head.


The same member of the Dark Order who had delivered the ominous warning so long ago now summoned the Rokkun out of hiding, for yet another proclamation.
 
"The sacred crystals beneath your feet, shall bring you pain and despair for so long as you covet them. When you depart this time, remove this system from your navigational databases. Spread word to your people that swift death will greet any who set foot upon this planet. We MAINTAIN protection of this land. DO NOT return."

Nothing further was said.  The seven warriors stood their ground silently as the weakened Rokkun liberated their transports and departed Zemai-4 for the very last time.

Members of the Dark Order number in the hundreds, but they tend to matters covering many galaxies, ensuring their own rarity.  These seven, however, took a sacred vow to remain upon the desolate surface of the planet for the remainder of their existence, to protect Zemai-4 and its crystals from all invaders, at any cost...
 
Or, should I say, to protect all invaders, from Zemai-4, and its crystals...
 

So ends this cautionary tale from the master chronicler himself, Zeyekti-Iiloptinous Mazzourel, a.k.a. Zeyek.

The Crystals of Zemai-4, part 5

All good things eventually come to an end, and such was certainly the case on Zemai-4.  Zeyek continues his account...

Angry Rokkun miners of all ranks and duties slowly and intimidatingly encircled Lecius.  Lecius broke the silence:
 
"Consider this, a negotiation..."
 
A miner interrupted,
 
"No!  No negotiation, we want you g..."
 
Lecius drew his spear-like energy staff weapon with his left hand and pointed it at the two mine managers who were standing together on the opposite side of the circle.  Slowly closing upon them, he continued...

"This, is a negotiation. I will give you two chances to increase my share to fifty percent of all material drawn from the mines."
 
The crowd gasped in unison.  The Rokkun who had interrupted earlier, did so again:
 
"To Xhin with you, ruffian!"
 
Without breaking his slow and deliberate stride, without breaking his gaze upon the mangers, Lecius drew his second weapon with his right hand, aimed at the boisterous Rokkun, and shot him through one of his shins, collapsing him to the ground.
 
"You now have, one, final chance, to increase my share, to fifty percent."
 
By now he had reached the edge of the circle and the point of his glowing, activated spear was nearly brushing the chins of the mine managers as it was slowly swung from side to side.  Defiantly, the site leaders stood their ground.
 
"You are a filthy, greedy criminal! We will make no further deals with you!"

Lecius raised his eyebrows with a bit of contrived surprise.

"Very well, then."

Quickly, he spun to face the center of the circle, but not before extending his spear ever so slightly further.  He sliced the throats of both mine managers, and they immediately fell dead.  Lecius looked around at the rocky terrain and the tallest mining machinery about the site as he retraced his previous steps. The living circle of Rokkun widened and parted before him.
 
"This mine, and all of its Sangrys, its Quaza, its Imbolan, its Khlorydar, its Leptul, and its Cymbis, is now property of the Brotherhood of the Light. You all work for me. You will no longer transport a single crystal off this planet.  You will no longer leave, this planet, for any reason. You will no longer make contact with any one or any thing, off this planet.  You will assist in the construction of a refinery in the valley, there [pointing]. You will follow my instructions to the letter and without complaint, or I and my brethren... will relieve you of your breath."
 
The morning Zemai sun had just begun to peek over the far ridge, and on that ridge, dozens of menacing silhouettes appeared.

The Crystals of Zemai-4, part 4

Finally, the tide of fortune turns in favor of the Rokkun miners with the emergence of a powerful savior...

For months, mining on Zemai-4 proceeded without incident. Members of the Dark Order did attempt to return, but Lecius consistently intercepted and dispatched them a safe distance from the mine. I say Lecius, and not "Lecius and company," as the miners only ever saw this one, lone warrior. He became quite the celebrity to the Rokkun, a super-hero of sorts. Whether he was truly acting alone or simply keeping his aides well hidden was neither here nor there.  The results spoke for themselves, and the crystalline riches flowed forth freely.
As time passed, more equipment was brought in, the mining site grew, and production gradually expanded. With this progress came an increasing haul of raw crystals for Lecius, but the seeds of greed to grow within him. He became dissatisfied with the agreed-upon share, and requested that it be doubled. Mine managers feigned shock and dismay, but eventually gave in, quietly happy to reward their soul savior & protector whose original take had been quite inconsequential.
All things continued along smoothly until one warm night, there was a sucessful attack upon the site.  A conveyance was slashed apart and several containers of freshly-mined material, awaiting transport off the planet, were destroyed.  The monetary damage was modest, but the psychological impact was severe.  Once again, the Rokkun and their mine were vulnerable and unsafe.  Lecius was most regretful for failing to prevent the incident, but he submitted that the expanse of the mining site had become so great that his resources were stretched too thin, and he needed to bring in more help. More help would require more supplies and more pay, which meant a larger profit share.  The mine managers rejected the notion, this time with absolute sincerity, countering that Lecius was simply... slacking off... and needed to re-focus and do his job properly.

The very following night, there was another attack, and more equipment was disabled.  This time, suspicion ran rampant through the site. The Rokkun did not believe for a moment that the timing was a coincidence. They believed the "attack" was staged, the equipment destroyed by Lecius himself as part of a greedy, treacherous scheme of extortion.
 

(to be continued...) 

The Crystals of Zemai-4, part 3

The Zemai-4 saga continues after the second devastating attack on the crystal mining site by members of the mysterious Dark Order.

The Rokkun miners were dazed and terrified, all of them. None had heard of this Dark Order, and all feared that the next attack could bring even greater losses, possibly involving loss of life.  Evacuation began immediately. Most of the expensive mining equipment was abandoned where it lay. For the time being, all was considered lost.

Back on the miners' home planet, news of the attacks & attackers spread fast.  Most of the population agreed that permanent abandonment of the Zemai-4 dig was the only option. Most. The mine managers were a bit too proud to give up so quickly, and investors were eager to collect more of the tremendous profits of refining and selling the six valuable minerals.
Pleas to the government for military support fell on deaf ears.  Rokkun political leaders wanted nothing further to do with what had turned into a heavily publicized diaster. With the most exhalted potential source of help off the table, some lower elements of society were sought out.  Word was sent out through back channels that the assistance of mercenaries would be entertained. To the dismay of the mining magnates, even these unsavory groups knew better than to challenge the Dark Order, and the call for help went unanswered for weeks on end.
Near the end of the Rokkun solar year, a meeting was called to discuss whether to finally give up hope of reclaiming the Zemai-4 site.  As the meeting commenced, an uninvited guest made an appearance.

Shod in brilliant white armor, this tall, proud character almost appeared to emit an angelic glow.  He introduced himself as Lecius ("lee-see-us") Olujean ("oh-loo-zyawn"), a high lieutenant of the secretive Brotherhood of the Light.  He was prepared to accept the task of retaking Zemai-4 from the Dark Order and providng long-term protection for the mine.  He would require no monetary payment up front, merely sustenance & supplies for himself and a company of compatriots, plus an infinitesemally small, fixed percentage of whatever crystals were pulled from the ground. 

Well, one thing lead to to another, background checks, planning, paperwork, collection of supplies, etcetera. Soon enough, Lecius was off to collect some of his "brethren" and liberate the Rokkun mine.  Two days after landing on Zemai-4, the Brotherhood encountered two members of the Dark Order and drove them off after a fierce, but brief battle.  After completing a comprehensive sweep of the entire planet, Lecius sent word to the Rokkun that the mine had been liberated, and it was safe to return.

(to be continued...)

The Crystals of Zemai-4, Part 2

We pick up Zeyek's Zemai-4 chronicle with the mining site fully repaired and back in operation.  As night fell, so did misfortune...

Without warning, not one, but both of the dig site's large and well-secured battery banks shorted out, dramatic showers of sparks & all. Backup generators failed to start -- they had been, sliced, open. Four security guards lay unconscious, though apparently uninjured. Atop a ridge that lined the back edge of the site, seven figures appeared, with the night sky behind them.
 

They wielded what appeared to be melee weapons, with blades made of pure energy. The individual in the middle, spoke in a grand, menacing, projected voice for all to hear:

"You may know of us as the Dark Order. We claim protection of this land. You know not the power of these 'crystals' you seek, nor the danger they bring to the uninitiated."

The miners stirred and whispered to each other. A squad of security personnel had drawn their weapons and snuck up the ridge in a flanking maneuver. As they emerged from cover to demand surrender, the nearest and only the nearest of the intruders snapped his head in their direction, relaxed, and slowly raised both hands above his head. Suddenly, he lowered his free hand and extended it towards the guards. He made a motion as if grabbing a handful of air, then quickly bringing it to his chest. The guards began to tremble where they stood. Their weapon hands were outstretched, though now empty, their former contents coming to rest at the intruder's feet as if yanked across the way by an invisible force.

The proclamation resumed.

"Leave this place. Quickly. And do not return. This is not a request."

With that, the "Dark Order" seven deactivated their swords and retreated into the rocky landscape.

Then things got... interesting...
 

(to be continued...)

The Crystals of Zemai-4, Part 1

Master chronicler Zeyek today brings us the beginning of a historical tale of dark and light in an alternate universe.

Imbolan, Cymbis, Leptul, Quaza, Sangrys, Khlorydar. All incredibly powerful, energy-rich, and rare substances. All found in abundance on the dusty, rocky planet called Zemai-4. Rokkun explorers landed on Zemai-4 roughly 7,200 of your Earth years ago, and it took but four months for a vigorous mining operation to begin. A single month later, came the first attack.

In the middle of a shift, someone sabotaged an important piece of equipment. A pump, it was, if I recall correctly.  Yes, it is coming back to me, a cooling fluid pump, used to prevent a particularly large drill from... melting... itself.   

A peculiarly small hole was made in the housing of the primary filter, but through this hole the attacker was able to inflict a massive amount of internal damage; just to the filter, though, nothing else.  After another hour of continued use, increasingly dense particulate matter decimated the pump from the inside, ruined the main cooling lines, oh, and clogged the mine's largest drill, causing it to seize up quite irreparably. Forgive the obvious reference, but the entire operation ground to a halt. Hmph. Not a single soul caught a glimpse of the culprit.  

It was two weeks before mining could resume, as a significant amount of equipment required replacement, and new shipments came from the far-away industrial Santrell system.  Along with a new drill, countless hoses & fittings, several new cooling pumps and quite a complement of spare filters, a civilian security team was brought to the site.  A state-of-the-art network of surveillance cameras was erected, too. Mine operators were absolutely determined to prevent another shutdown incident.

The new equipment was installed, checked, and re-checked. The security team went on high alert. Drilling resumed. All was well -- until night settled in. 

(to be continued...)

Battle for Kydea: Unit types & details

Battle for Kydéa was initially designed to be played with four main unit or character types, but you are encouraged to design others as well!  How many of each you use in a game is up to you to decide, based upon how many people are playing, how many figures you're able to build, and how long you'd like the game to last.  Feel free to experiment, and make adjustments to suit your needs & desires!

Pages of pictures & unit details follow...

Warrior
Equipment: 1x ion rifle
Armor: 4x value 2 armor plates, 1x value 4 armor plate
Movement speed: 2
Actions: Fire weapon (once/turn)

The Kydean warrior is your basic foot soldier.  He marches out into the field, shoots things, and tries not to get shot.  His armor coverage is good, but not great, and he carries a single handheld weapon with a respectable firing rate and excellent accuracy.

Warrior gameplay:  A warrior can shoot any enemy it can see, once per turn. Exact weapon damage is determined by the dice roll.


Lifter
Equipment: 2x ion cannons or 2x focused-fire multi-emmitter plasma cannons
Armor: 5x value 4 armor plates
Movement speed: 1
Actions: Fire weapons (two shots per turn)

The very name of the Lifter class betrays its basic history and purpose.  These units are heavily armored and their physical strength is unequaled, but they were originally designed to load & unload cargo and assist with construction projects. Today, most of them act as heavy weapons platforms. They are loyal and obedient, but not independently very smart, relatively speaking. While they can aim & fire their sholder-mounted guns like you would expect, their ability to hit targets reliably leaves a lot to be desired. As a result, Lifter weapons are always augmented with gyro-stabilized targeting servos, though for this system acquire a target lock, said target must be first painted by a smarter, more precise unit on the field.

Lifter gameplay:  Each turn, a Lifter can shoot twice. However, Lifters have extremely inaccurate fire, and a dice roll is used to determine whether each shot hits its target. By default, you must roll a 4 to hit your target. Roll once for each of your two weapons. When you roll a 4, you hit with 4 points of damage; otherwise, you miss with that weapon.  If you have a Scout on the field, your Lifter can execute assisted artillery-style shots, even if the Lifter cannot see the target.  Assisted shots involve firing both weapons as usual, but dice rolls of 4 and up will hit (so 4, 5, and 6).  See more on this under details for the Scout.  Note that a Lifter can only shoot once in a turn, whether it's blind or assisted fire. Like all units, Lifters only get one movement dice roll per unit per turn.


Scout
Equipment: 1x ion rifle, 1x targeting laser
Armor: 2x value 2 armor plates, 1x value 4 armor plates
Movement speed: 3
Actions: Fire weapon (once/turn), direct assisted fire from friendly Lifters

A Scout transforms a bumbling, practically blind-firing Lifter into a devastating offensive asset.  Agile & quick-thinking, a single Scout can direct fire from all Lifters in the theater of operation, resulting in an overall average of slightly more than one hit per Lifter per turn. Sweetening the deal even further, a Scout carries his own standard-issue rifle with a full ammunition energy reserve, just like a Warrior.  The downside is that Scouts wear less armor than any other type of unit, making them very vulnerable to enemy fire. As a result, scouts spend more time in much deeper cover than their brothers in arms.

Scout gameplay:  Each turn, a Scout can fire its weapon at any enemy in sight, like a Warrior. The Scout can also use its targeting laser to call in assisted artillery-style fire from one friendly Lifter on the field.  Any enemy unit that the Scout can see can be designated as a target, and the firing Lifter does not need to see the target, as the shot is arched high through the sky.  Assisted Lifter shots follow the hit/miss/damage rules described under the Lifter's unit details.


High Priest
Equipment: 2x zero-point energy disruptors/emmitters
Armor: 2x value 2 armor plates, 3x value 4 armor plates
Movement speed: 2
Actions: Deflect damage (twice/turn, self or any friendly unit in sight) or  zero-point energy blast (once/turn, acts like firing a weapon) or teleport friendly unit (once/turn, any unit in sight not including self)

The Kydéans have very science- and fact-based cultures, but there is a realm of dark arts, of sorts, with which only a select sub-class of highly trained elites can dabble.  The harnessing and manipulation of what we Earthlings call vacuum energy is the specialty of Kydean High Priests. After many years of study, development, and practice in scattered remote locations, High Priests become integral parts of any battle force with their seemingly magical capabilities of both offense and defense.  With only a very brief restorative rest between each action, a High Priest can vaporize an enemy armor plate, dissipate a incoming weapon blast (regardless of its target), or teleport a friendly unit to any location within sight. Their distinctive "antennae" are directly-connected implants that amplify their abilities. They are also well-armored.

High Priest gameplay:  Each turn, a High Priest can only execute one type of action. The zero-point energy blast acts just like firing a normal weapon. You can shoot it at any enemy target your Priest can see, and hit/miss/damage is determined by a dice roll.  With the Teleport action, you can move any unit the Priest can see (friend or foe!) to any location on the battlefield that your Priest can see. The Deflect Damage action is somewhat like healing, except you simply prevent the damage from occurring in the first place. The High Priest can cast Deflect Damage twice per turn. For each cast, roll your dice to determine how much damage you can deflect. The result of the roll is mostly handled like rolling for weapon damage, except in reverse:

1. Miss -- fail to deflect
2. Deflect 2pts damage
3. Deflect up to 3pts damage
4. Deflect up to 4pts damage
5. Deflect up to 5pts damage
6. (Deflect up to 6pts damage and roll again) or Deflect a killing shot, don't roll again

After each successful roll for Deflect Damage, you may place an appropriate destroyed armor piece back onto your unit, or re-activate a unit that was thought killed, based on the rules above.


Warrior-Priest (?)
Equipment: 1x zero-point energy disruptor/emmitter array, 1x ion rifle
Armor: 4x value 2 armor plates, 1x value 4 armor plate
Movement speed: 2
Actions: Fire weapon (once/turn), deflect damage (once/turn, self or any friendly unit in sight)

Little is known about this unit type as they are quite uncommon and are rumored to come as mercenaries from the islands. Based on what I've been able to gather, they are able to negate some incoming ranged weapon fire, though with less frequency than High Priests, and they lack any powers of teleportation.  They are, however, able to do limited offensive damage with their zero-point technology, in addition to operating a standard-issue rifle.

Warrior-Priest gameplay:  Due to the rarity of this unit, precise written rules have not been discovered.  See details of the Warrior and High Priest to see if you can piece together the probable combined rules.


Others
Throughout the years, numerous other types of battle units have been employed with limited success, including suicide berserkers, medics, dwarf pistoleers, and various melee specialists.

Battle for Kydea: Intro & Backstory

I'm happy to finally introduce Battle for Kydéa (pronounced kye-day-uh), an experiment I drummed up in the second half of 2012 with input from a couple of friends.  It's the foundation for a potential offshoot of the Hero Factory phenomenon that can support story-telling, MOC-building, and even game play.

Kydea is a planet within the Hero Factory universe, but beyond the edge of the region of space currently patrolled, protected, and served by the heroes of Makuhero City.  Kydea has a surprisingly homogenous tropical climate, and natural resources are distributed rather evenly about its surface.  The planet has a mildly saline, contiguous ocean that surrounds one primary mega-continent and several large island nations.  There is a single dominant species, a population of bipedal robotic life that has never chosen to name itself; off-worlders simply refer to the citizens as Kydéans.

With such a balanced & even state of being across the planet, there is nothing tangible to fight over. Instead, over the course of many millenia, Kydeans found ways to divide themselves along political and and ideological lines.  Sadly, these divisions grew so intense through the generations that seemingly perpetual civil war is the status quo. 

The main continent harbors two primary warring factions, the Northern & Southern Alliances, respectively, each uniting dozens of statehoods of similar-minded citizens.  Throughout the history of the war, some of these states have broken off to form alternate sides or non-warring colonies, but they eventually rejoin one of the two major groups in order to reap the benefits of strength in numbers.  The island nations try to remain neutral, but managing the neverending tide of refugees & war deserters often stresses them into choosing sides or taking up arms under a new flag.

On Kydéa, the idea of a future war-ending truce does not exist. The battles have now waged for centuries, as they will continue for centuries to come.  Get involved by choosing a side, or chronicle history in the making as an outsider.  I give Kydéa to the community as an idea to use freely. Make MOCs. Write stories from any time frame. Wage tabletop battles with friends or as stop motion animations.  Do as you like. Don't take credit for the basic idea or any of the specifics I write & show (duh), but take full credit for and freely share any of your own unique perspectives and contributions to or expansions of the concept. Or, just nod your head once while saying to yourself, "Hmm, interesting," and let the idea of Kydea fade away from your mind as a quick bit of entertainment, consumed and passed by!  Which ever path you choose, I've enjoyed the one I took to get here, and welcome any feedback!

Hero Factory RACERS: Miko + Sidewinder Superbike

Here's a different take on Hero Factory RACERS, one that drops half the wheels & ironically picks up a lot more complexity in the process.  This series is all about the vehicles, not the heroes, and this one took hours of experimentation over the course of about a week.

• Video - Hero Factory RACERS: Miko + Sidewinder Superbike

Hero Factory RACERS: Former + Condor Land Speeder

My second Hero Factory RACERS MOC pair features a pretty clean, simplistic, fairly easy-to-duplicate vehicle and a hero character I haven't used before:

• Video - Hero Factory RACERS: Former + Condor Land Speeder

Hero Factory RACERS: Regger + Myrnix Rover

Here's my first full overview video of a Hero Factory RACERS series MOC (or pair of MOCs).  This is Regger 2.0 from the "Don't Forget The Others" video, with his all-terrain Myrnix Rover:

• Video - Hero Factory RACERS: Regger + Myrnix Rover

Introducing: Hero Factory Racers!

Awhile back I mentioned that I was developing a small Hero Factory MOC series that included vehicles.  Well, here's the concept, the LEGO Hero Factory Racers!  The series will combine two popular LEGO themes together to add a plausible, tangential branch off the official Hero Factory storyline.

Here's a little backstory:

After the defeat & capture of the Fire Lord, Hero Factory staff found themselves overflowing with new technology & equipment and extremely well-trained heroes, but let's be honest, there wasn't a lot of major badness going on around the galaxy that required the full strength & attention of this heroic force.  So many small-time villains were scared into either hiding or reformed lawfulness by the might of the 2.0 heroes that field Hero deployments dropped to a 6-year low.  Frankly speaking, there were a lot of bored heroes and tech staff alike at the Factory.  Redox tried in vain to drum up support for a full aesthetic makeover of the iconic Assembly Tower. Nobody else wanted to do that much menial labor. Kalek pushed for remote drone competitions, an idea which got a lukewarm reception.  Stormer suggested taking Kalek's idea a step further, turning it into a more exciting activity that would more directly engage both tech- and sport-savvy staff. 

The Hero Factory Racers program was born with blessing from Mr. Makuro, who was convinced that the morale boost would be worth a respectable investment, especially if some of the technology developed for the competition could be adapted for official hero mission use.  Racer teams would each consist of one hero, one design engineer, one fabrication specialist, and one propulsion & electronics expert.  Budgets would be fixed and equal across all teams. Races would be multi-stage point-to-point rallies across varying courses on different nearby planets with unique terrain challenges.  Prizes?  A few credits would be doled out here or there, but the teams mostly wanted the glory & bragging rights of tallying up individual event wins.

With the premise set, I decided to create a miniature hero size, just a little larger than my Rocka XL XXS and Epic Witch Doctor, to allow the vehicles to be small & moderately simple.  I also specifically slotted the inception of the HF Racers concept in the 2.0 timeframe because with the 2.0 head system now completely abandoned, I wanted to use those parts one last time.

So that's it, that's what Hero Factory Racers are all about!  I'll start unveiling individual racer/vehicle combo MOCs soon!

Hero Factory chronicle by Zeyek: The Remainder

On the planet Quatros in the Hero Factory universe, an act of planetary revival has had an unexpected consequence. Zeyek explains...

• Video - Hero Factory chronicle by Zeyek: The Remainder

Hero Factory story by Zeyek: The Sho'i mission, Part 2

The conclusion of the Sho'i account introduces a never-before-seen experimental type of Hero Factory hero to attempt to address the mounting Reeka problem.

• Video -- Hero Factory story by Zeyek: The Sho'i mission, Part 2

Hero Factory story by Zeyek: The Sho'i mission, Part 1

Zeyek's first published chronicle since making the move to the Hero Factory universe recalls a most curious mission regarding what we Earthly beings would most closely relate to robotic... cats.

• Video -- Hero Factory story by Zeyek: The Sho'i mission, Part 1