RECAP
In part 2 of the Starfinder cyberpunk adventure Added Value, the party made their way into the Neebon facility, through a variety of different avenues. However they managed to get in, part 3 brings them to the facility floor, where things are already in disarray.
From the stairwell or elevator, the PCs find they are only able to get to one floor of the multistage underground facility. The rest are outside the scope of this adventure, but could form part of a followup. As the party arrives, they find that the corporate espionage attack on Neebon is in full swing, with many of the facilities systems compromised by malicious hacking. The lighting is turned off, with only flashing red emergency lights providing dim illumination throughout the facility. This means that unless the PCs have low-light vision, darkvision, or a light source, everything here will have concealment (20% miss chance; see page 253 of the CRB). Any character with a light source is the primary target of foes encountered here.
The doors on the map in green are unlocked, while the doors in red are locked. The locked doors have a red light lit above the door (the light isn’t on above the unlocked ones) and these locks can be bypassed with a DC 35 Computers check or DC 40 Engineering check on the key card locks.
a1. Lobby
The elevator lobby is relatively nondescript, with white tile floors, white walls and ceiling, and featuring a window into what looks like a conference room to the North. To the West a small window looks into a small room with charging stations for robots. There are two doors to the West, as well as a pair of large double doors to the East and West with a red lights shining above them. The normal lights are off, leaving only flashing red emergency lights to illuminate the scene. Tasteful plastic potted plants are arranged near the elevator doors. In the middle of the lobby, right in front of the elevator doors, lies a partially eaten body and three creatures noisily eating the remains. The moment the party enters they turn, revealing themselves as flightless birds with sharp beaks, patchy feathers and red tinged skin, as well as bony spikes running down the lengths of their spines. They attack without hesitation.
HELL BIRDS (3)
XP 135 each
HP 6 each (see stat block below)
Treasure: searching the body reveals an azimuth laser pistol with a battery (20 charges), flight suit stationwear in need of some repair, a tactical baton, as well as a cred stick with 150 credits. A DC 10 Culture check reveals this was not a Neebon employee, but the remains are too mangled to learn anything else.
a2. Security Station
Unlike the security station above, this room has no cameras or guards. Instead there are charging stations for 4 security bots. There are also windows giving a view into the lobby area, and the hell bird pens, as well as doors to the West, North, and East. The Northern door provides access to the bathrooms, which are clean but otherwise unremarkable. With a DC 10 Perception check PCs can find two batteries and an engineering kit here.
a3. Hell Bird Pens
This room has a distinct smell of animal pins, and is dominated by the three large animal enclosures that line the West wall. The doors to these enclosure are all open. Otherwise this appears to be some kind of veterinary or medical research area, with steel exam tables and a computer work station in the center of the East wall. Equipment, animal food, and other indeterminate debris is strewn around the room. Accessing the computer requires a DC 30 Computers check, and after the third failed attempt the workstation locks down. If the PCs do manage to access it, they learn about Neebon’s experiments with infusing imp flesh in the birds they kept here, as well as plans for a training regimen and obedience implant designs to be implanted into the birds. There is also an email chain detailing the scientists realization that the birds have figured out how to work the simple latches on the doors in the lab, and the implementation of key card locks throughout that soon followed.
However, when the PCs enter they can clearly see a security bot here, it’s integrated weapon aimed at the furthest North exam table. Behind the table are two hell birds that have been hiding from the bot. When the PCs enter the bot turns to confront them. On the next round the birds rush around to attack, while trying to stay as far away from the bot as they can. The bot focuses on taking out the intruders before turning its attention back to the escaped birds.
HELL BIRDS (2)
XP 135 each
HP 6 each (see stat block below)
SECURITY BOT
XP 200
HP 13 (see stat block below)
a4. Access Hall
There is a blood trail on the floor of the hall here that runs from the hell bird pins to the door to the North. A DC 10 Life Science or Survival check reveals that the blood is likely from one of the birds. Following the blood trail leads to a5. There are two doors to the North, a double door to the East, and a door to the South. Looking into the window to the lab to the North the PCs can see a security bots moving around in the room.
a5. Access Hall
The blood trail continues here from the South double door to the North double door. A security bot stands near the North door, attacking the PCs as soon as it detects them. On the next round after it engages the PCs, another bot enters from the doors to the North and attacks.
SECURITY BOT (2)
XP 200 each
HP 13 each (see stat block below)
a6. Cyber Lab
This room is dominated by the two automated surgery tables, with four robotic arms attached to each with a variety of implements in on the end of them. The walls of the room are covered with readouts, reports, and a white board with notes about tensile strength and bone stress failure rates. The workstation is likewise covered with reports on test runs, various material strength assessments, and such. With a DC 20 Engineering or Life Science check the PCs can figure out these are all related to a full exoskeletal augment system that Neebon was developing. Accessing the computer requires a DC 30 Computers check, and after the third failed attempt the workstation locks down. If the PCs do manage to access it, they learn about Neebon’s Exo-Rig project, gaining prototype plans and test results for the experimental system (see Part 4 for details).
The security bot here is systematically searching for a hell bird that made its way in here, as evidenced by the blood trail the leads to a cabinet that the bird climbed into before expiring from wounds received from both the bots and the surgery tables.
The surgery tables have received a particularly malicious firmware hack, and will lash out at any living creature that comes within five feet of them. The tables can be disabled as described below, but if the PCs decide to attack them, each table’s surgery arms have an EAC of 10 and a KAC of 14, a hardness of 5, and 15 Hit Points.
SURGERY TABLE TRAPS (2) CR 1
XP 400 each
Type technological; Perception DC 21; Disable Engineering DC 16 (disable appendages)
Trigger location; Init +6; Duration 10 rounds; Reset 5 minutes
Initial Effect slash +15 melee (1d4+1 S, critical bleed 1d2) Each round, the table attempts to strike any living target near it.
SECURITY BOT
XP 200
HP 13 (see stat block below)
Treasure: the lab is stocked with medical supplies and contains four mk 1 serums of healing, five medpatches, an advanced basic medkit, and 5 doses of tier 1 stimulant (Armory 133)
a7. Conference Room
This room is dominated by the large round table in the center, surrounded by chairs. A holo-projector is installed into the table. There are a few pens and other office supplies scattered about the table, but nothing else here of note. There are doors to the North, East, South, and West, as well as windows on each wall. The Window into a8 reveals nothing but pitch black darkness, punctuated by an occasional tentacle that gently slides across the glass.
With a DC 15 Engineering check and 5 minutes work a PC can remove sections of the projector and fashion a working holographic sashimono.
a8. Specimen Room
This room is locked, but should the PCs figure out a way in, they find a completely pitch black room. There is a broken specimen enclosure, a wrecked workstation and exam table, as well as various broken shelves and cabinets. There is also an Umbral Ksarik (AA page 70, Umbral template on page 151, add the Create Darkness ability) in here, having broken out of its cage. The researchers were studying its ties to the Shadow plane, as well as innate adaptive abilities. Now that it is free it is quite hungry and happy to accept any PC that comes in reach as a meal.
a9. Access Hall
An unremarkable hall featuring double doors to the North and South.
a10. Access Hall
An unremarkable hall featuring double doors to the East and West. The window looks in on a8, in total darkness with the occasional tentacle.
a11. Access Hall
An unremarkable hall featuring double doors to the East, as well South, and regular doors to the North and South. Windows looks in on a6 and a14. The blood trail from a5 continues here to the door to a6.
a12. Access Hall
An unremarkable hall featuring double doors to the East and West, as well as two regular doors to the North and one to the South.
a13. Access Hall
An unremarkable hall featuring double doors to the South and West, as well as a regular door to the South. The window looks in on a8, in total darkness with the occasional tentacle.
a14. Workstations
A locked room viewable through the window in a11, this room is full of a haze of smoke and the occasional sparks come from eight workstation computers that have been destroyed.
a15. Workstations
Another locked room viewable through the window in a12, this room is full of a haze of smoke and the occasional sparks come from seven workstation computers that have been destroyed.
a16. Security Checkpoint
The door to the South opens into this room, revealing a door to the East and a desk with a key card check station. During a normal workday this desk is manned by a security guard, logging all entry into and exit from the server room to the East. Now, there is a security bot waiting in its charging station behind the cover of the desk, attacking as soon as it detects the PCs entry.
SECURITY BOT
XP 200
HP 13 (see stat block below)
a17. Server Room
Check back next week for Part 4!
HELL BIRD CR 1/3
XP 135
NE Small animal outsider devil-grafted
Init +1; Senses darkvision 60ft, low-light vision; Perception +3
DEFENSE
HP 6
EAC 10; KAC 12
Fort +2; Ref +2; Will +1
Immunities poison; Resistances fire 10
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft.
Melee bite +4 (1d4+2 P)
STATISTICS
STR +2; DEX +1; CON +1; INT -3; WIS +1; CHA -2
Skills Acrobatics +3, Athletics +3, Stealth +3
The product of Neebon’s experiments with grafting imp flesh into animals, the hell birds are normally aggressive flightless birds that hunt in flocks. The infusion of hellish matter has amped up their aggression and cruelty, making them both cunning and vicious.
SECURITY BOT CR 1/2
XP 200
LN Medium construct (technological)
Init +3; Senses darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision; Perception +4
DEFENSE
HP 13
EAC 10; KAC 12
Fort +0; Ref +0; Will -2
Immunities construct immunities
Weaknesses vulnerable to critical hits, vulnerable to electricity
OFFENSE
Speed 20 ft.
Melee slam +6 (1d6+2 B)
Ranged harmonic dirge pistol +6 (1d3 So, critical sicken (DC 10 Fort, 1d4 rounds))
STATISTICS
STR +2; DEX +3; CON —; INT +1; WIS +0; CHA +0
Skills Acrobatics +4, Computers +4
Languages Common
Other Abilities integrated weapons, unliving
Gear harmonic dirge pistol with 2 batteries
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Integrated Weapons (Ex) A security bot’s weapons are integrated into its frame and can’t be disarmed.
Neebon’s security bots are not particularly remarkable, with little to differentiate them from any other security robot on the market. They do, however, have a database of personnel and key cards in their individual memories, and attack anyone they encounter that is not in that database.
Check back next week for more!
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Until next time Starfinders!
Jeremy Corff
Artist and Writer