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Rejected title for this strip: There's no EA in "Team"
One of us contended that this was a great title, but was outvoted by everyone else. Mostly because we refused to sneak the word "Battlefront" into the comic just to justify the third joke/reference in a suggested title.
[Reminder: Our guest commentators have not seen Rogue One. Part of the fun is seeing how their untainted impressions re-interpret the movie through the lens of our comic.]
I think this is going to turn into one of those plans. Hmm, none of them wear hats.
First, who is this group? Making plans? Working as a team? Being organized??
We have a combat robot, looking for ways to have combat. No sense of stealth, making sure that everyone knows that they're there, etc. The robot's companion on the other hand, wants to have a stealth mission, wants to avoid anyone knowing that they are there, and wants the group to do this in an organized manner.
So we have "Bravo Squad". Not Alpha Squad. So this is already the second squad planned.
Who is in the squad? The blind monk, who needs a spotter. The spotter, who runs around with a giant flamethrower. And Bria, who is an NPC that messes up the escort mission... I mean, who is Jim's character (same thing).
Clearly, Bravo Squad is not actually the stealth squad. Bravo Squad is the distraction squad. Cassian and the droid are going to be the actual stealth squad. This will allow Cassian to keep an eye on the droid, and make sure the droid does not go out of control.
Finally, we have the Imperial NPC reminding everyone that he is ready to defect. So, someone is going to have to keep an eye on him.
In order for the real stealth squad to stay stealthy, the NPC cannot be with them. Since the distraction squad is going to be a distraction, and is going to be noticed, the NPC has to be assigned to them.
I mean, the alternative is for somehow the NPC to become the next character for one of the PCs. Who could this be?
The rules of plot and film pretty much say that Cassian is going to be a surviving hero*, and the robot has to be a surviving toy. We know that Bria is going to die. We even know the name of the character that is going to be next, and that name does not match the NPC. So Bria does not die here.
That would require that the monk dies. That would require that the Jedi dies. Not impossible. Obi-Wan dies in Episode IV. So it's entirely possible that the monk dies, and the NPC suddenly becomes a PC.
This is yet another reason for the NPC to go with the distraction squad. Just like the computer making sure that your clone is ready to go with you when you die.
I mean, it's still too early for the TPK.
* Well, at least making it to the final scene.
— Keybounce
Ouch, and this is what happens when a party isn't very well coordinated. If you have a team with a mix of moralities/goals, you can wind up in situations like this.
- Cassian here wants everything to be clean and bloodless, with minimal violence.
- K-2 doesn't really care about anything other than violence and making the Empire suffer.
- Chirrut seems like he might have some morals, but is totally cool with killing. He also clearly has no love for the Empire, but hasn't expressed particularly strong views either way.
- Bria is driven by personal vengeance, and is willing to do anything to accomplish that.
- Bodhi is the enemy who's hanging out in their ship and should really be restrained or something.
The best solution in this case is to have a clear leadership structure within the group, and for the chosen leader to be capable of reining in everyone's various eccentricities (and enforce policies like keeping enemy combatants tied up).
Sadly, all they have is Cassian. He's trying his best though.
Side note: I was trying to come up with a Justice League analogy here, but after Cassian being Captain Marvel, K-2 being Deathstroke, and Bria being Huntress, I got stuck. If anyone can do any better, please chip in. The general gist was that the JLA needs a leader like Batman or Superman, especially if for some reason Captain Marvel invited Deathstroke on a mission.
— aurilee
Transcript
GM: You approach the Imperial facility on Eadu. It's a rocky, craggy landscape, scoured by storms.
K-2SO: Let's recap our goals. We need to kill Krennic, acquire weapons, and steal one or more Imperial gunships.
Cassian: No. We're going to find Krennic, secure intel on the giant weapon they used on Jedha, and get away without a trace.
K-2SO: For ultimate irony we can kill Krennic with the weapons.
Chirrut: Or the gunships.
Cassian: We're not going to steal an Imperial ship.
Bria: We can sort out the order later. Let's just land first.
Cassian: No, we sort this out now. We need to start working as a team.
Cassian: Bria, Chirrut, gear up for a stealth mission, you're in Bravo Squad.
Bodhi: And I'll just be off, thanks for the lift!