Saturday, December 10, 2016

Pain and death

My sister recently asked me if I was interested in a used reclining couch that was still in decent shape and since sitting upright is painful, I said yes.

The plan was to move it last Saturday but getting a rare opportunity to work that day changed it so I got up at 7AM on Sunday, moved some things around to create a spot for it, and headed over there to lift it into his van uncomfortably riding in the back to make sure it did not fall out during the 2 block drive.

Then came a problem for me. My fatigued right arm. Somehow, I managed to carry as much as I could but by the time we were done, it was pretty messed up. It is at the point in July 2015 when I stopped playing disc golf and therapy was what was needed to make it better. In hindsight, I could have made a phone call or two and gotten help but as I often do, I fail to realize what I can't do until it is too late and something bad is made worse. Fortunately I know what exercises I did and still do most days for this so I am hoping to be better by next spring so I can try to continue the disc golf success I had in November.

I made sure when I went to the fitness center the following Monday and Thursday to concentrate on legs and abs and not even do anything with arms.

The following Friday at work, I had to do something on the internal server which took 15 minutes. I then noticed the time and realized since I was at the desk I use, it was a good time to take my break. When I got up from that, my legs were dead. Every step was painful but being Friday and knowing there was a company lunch, I forged through the next couple of hours which I have done many times. After sitting down to eat for 10 minutes during the lunch, my legs were even worse getting up which I needed to do so someone else could join the group and I sat alone with my legs up fortunately only having to get up once to answer the dock door. After it was over, I realized that I was no longer functional enough to continue and left early.

I wanted to take some pain killers and spend the next 18 hours on the recliner but life would not allow it. Though I had about 90 minutes to get my legs up and take a shower, from 3-6 PM had to walk a dog, pick up my daughter who needed to send four packages, and drive back to work to process them UPS since it was easier than filling out forms that were not in the slots at the post office since many ship things in December.

Then I had to drive to Plainfield for game night. It took over 1:15 to get there due to a car accident the other direction which caused a 4 mile gapers block.

My character in a slightly futuristic world was a former cop who had two identities, Bob James and Jim Roberts and I created a backstory where he was ratted out by two separate groups who discovered his dual life and joined the freelance security organization our fellow characters were in.

During the planning stages of our mission, I was really suffering and could not sit more than 15 minutes without needing to get up or risk getting to the point where I could not get up without risking falling. Once the combat part started, my instincts kicked in as they often do.

Even though this was the first real mission of the campaign, the mooks (henchman) were stronger than they were in other campaigns as they had become too easy and one of our players suffered multiple wounds before we all got on the chopper to leave the site.

The boss was able to open the chopper door and the mooks got a round of shots before we took off needed a 6 on a ten sided dice. Two of the three missed but the one who shot in my direction hit so the GM rolled for damage.

Their weapon called for 2d6 of damage (two six sided dice) and he rolled a 12. In the game we played, whenever a die is rolled to its maximum value, it is rerolled and the total is added. His next roll was a 6 and a 4, and the reroll of the 6 was a 5 for a total of 27.

My character's toughness was a 6 which it hit would leave my character shaken but not injured. Every 4 above that is a wound. Therefore at 10, 14, 18, 22, and 26, I suffered a wound. Four wounds leaves a character incapacitated and my character received 5. The game allows a character to spend a benny (token used to give second chances to soak (mitigate) damage and I needed an 11 on one of two six sided dice (allowing for adding on a 6) to mitigate two wounds to keep upright. Nope.

I then had to roll a 5 one of two six sided dice to avoid instant death and check for where I am permanently wounded. Nope.

On the way home, I figured out the odds of all that happening:

Hitting on the shot: 2.5-1
6-6 on first roll: 36-1
6-4 or 6-5 second roll: 9-1
5 or 6 on third roll: 3-1
Not getting 11 on one of two soak rolls:1.12-1
Not getting a 5 on one of two perm wound rolls: 9-4

Total odds of all that happening: 6,223-1

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