Roleplay / Gama

"A mech/zombie RP? Hell...Fucking...Yeah..."

—Zweite Alaje sums it up for us

The Giant Mecha Roleplay of NationStates.

Describe Gama here...

Gama started out as an attempt to create a Roleplay based in an original Anime setting. Most of the Worldbuilding was done by a large group of people, and the end result is a compromise between the group that wanted "Teenagers fighting zombies" and "Giant Mecha". The plot, in short, is something like this:

In the year 2020, a Russian engineer named Vlad Harmanov invented a massive war machine, which he called an M.G.W. (Mechanical Giant Warrior). He eventually gave his idea to the Russian government in hopes that they would share it with the rest of the world. However, the Russian government saw it as an opportunity to be one step ahead of the US, so they kept it to themselves. Because the Russian government did not honor his wishes, Vlad moved to the US and created a better mech. He was eventually able to get the United States to share his mechs with the world. Eventually, due to the great power of these mechs, The United Nations decided that they would be used only by a single organization. The organization is today known as Gama. Gama is an international security and intelligence organization which specializes in the use of these mechs, now called VALKs. The machines are far too complex to be used by a single human pilot, but advancements in nanotechnology were able to solve the issue by making the pilots and the machines into one entity. The nanotechnology that merges the human with the mech must be used before the individual hits puberty. It also only works with people who are AB+. Those who have been made VALK pilots by Gama are called Valkyries.

In January of 2050, a new virus began to spread. It started out with a few individuals experiencing strange symptoms in China, India, The United States, Russia, Australia, Nigeria, The United Kingdom, and Mexico. Nobody knew how these individuals got this virus, nor did doctors know what to do about it. After a few days of feeling the affects of the virus, all the people felt perfectly fine. Because of this, most of them were released from the hospital. Bad idea. The next day, people in all of the above countries reported getting bitten by the same people who were said to be sick with the new virus. In a few hours, the people who had been bitten became zombified and began attacking people as well. The virus is now quickly spreading to other countries.

To make matters worse, a rogue religious extremist group (assumed to have originated in Europe) known as Proteus, began attacking resistance camps and research facilities. The United Nations has reason to believe that Proteus was responsible for starting the spread of the virus in the first place. The United Nations and Gama are now working to stop Proteus and rid the world of this deadly virus before all humans are turned into zombies.

The Roleplay itself can be found here

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This Roleplay provides examples of:

• Acceptable Breaks from Reality: The railguns that Charlotte, William and Jack use don't rip off their arms, their lack of recoil being Hand Waved.
• All Work vs. All Play: Allison represents all work, while the rest of the team represents all play to various extents.
• Animal Mecha: William encounters a VALK shaped like a leopard on the South Africa mission.
• Animesque: The entire thing is very Anime-like, but as a written work can't be considered actual Anime.
• Applied Phlebotinum: Nanomachines, used to help the pilots control their Giant Mecha.
• Asshole Victim: Snag, a Proteus mole in a local resistance group. Tried to overthrow the resistance and was subsequently, and fairly quickly, snuffed out.
• Battle Theme Music: VERY prominent in this RP. Many songs are set to be read to certain scenes. Also happens during briefing scenes.
• Beach Episode: After a few missions, Gama permits the Valkyries to get some R&R on a secured beach near their naval port on the West Coast. Hilarity ensues.
• Bears Are Bad News: Apparently, Anako wrestled bears when she was a child.

• Child Soldiers: The Valkyries are much more this than they are Kid Heroes

• Conservation of Ninjutsu: One enemy VALK is a threat, twenty enemy VALKs are cannon fodder.
• Cool vs. Awesome: Giant Mecha versus zombies.
• Crapsack World: The world has been plagued with a zombie virus that has killed somewhere around 90% of the population, not to mention the extremist group, Proteus, that is trying to infect the remaining population.
• Dropped A Bridge On Her: Allison dies suddenly and unexpectedly, Gama headquarters only briefly acknowledges her death. Only time will tell if the other team members make a big deal of her death, or if it will be ignored as well.
• Dysfunction Junction: Most, if not all the valkyries suffer from some kind of psychological issue(s). Justified, considering the setting.
• Embarrassing Nick Name: One for the entire team. Allison refers to everybody as "nugget", whether they like it or not.

• Fun with Acronyms: W.A.R.B.I.R.D. (Weaponized ARmoured Battlestation Integrated with Robotics to Driver), V.A.L.K.yrie (Vehicular Armoured Legged Killer, yrie), A.N.G.E.L. (Advanced Neuro-integrated Guardian Electronic Link)
• Genre Blind:
  • The Samoan chief. A few suspicious-looking guys show up on his doorstep and claim to be VALKyries, and then angrily claim that the actual VALKyries are Proteus spies. He believes them. Smart guy.
  • The members of the resistance in Warsaw knock out and detain Gilbert under the impression that he was a member of Proteus, even though he had just been fighting against them a few minutes beforehand.

• Glorious Mother Russia: Evidently, Anako wrestled bears and wolves when she was a child. The possibility of this being true is... unlikely, but the trope still fits. See Have I Mentioned I Am a Dwarf Today? below.
• Good Is Not Nice: Despite their Troubling Unchildlike Behavior (see below), most of the team is committed to wiping out the infection and/or just being selfless in general. The thing is, a lot of the character's are more willing to do outright villainous things to achieve those goals. A prime example is Jack: Feeling guilty about the Samoa incident, he planned to unite the (obviously dysfunctional) team by trying to ruin Allison's reputation and force her to fight Jason and Anna.
• Have I Mentioned I Am a Dwarf Today?: Anako is constantly reminding us she is Russian.
• Headbutting Heroes: Allison and Charlotte play into the Personality Clash version of this trope. The most notable is after the Cape Town mission when Allison scolds her squad for acting care-free by reminding them that their victory came at a high price. Charlotte blows off Allison's words by saying that she is wrong and that those who died knew what they were getting themselves into.
• Heroic Sacrifice: Allison dies taking out a Proteus Altar Boy.
• Homage:
  • Allison shares the same last name, along with many of her combat skills, as one notoriously badass secret agent.
  • At the end of the Cape Town mission, Allison addresses her soldiers about how even though they won, the victory came at a high price. The scene plays out almost identical to this one.
  • One of the newest Valkyries, Rei Nagase, has a name that has a strikingly familiar ring to it.
• Impossibly Cool Weapon: The V.A.L.K. units themselves qualify. Many armaments they carry qualify. Rule of Cool makes it all okay.
• It's Quiet… Too Quiet: In the first three missions, the lack of enemy activity is noted before all hell breaks loose.
• Just Before the End: It's clear civilization hasn't completely collapsed yet, given that people have access to enormous robots and other, similarly advanced technology, but a good amount of the world has been completely taken over by zombies. (No concrete amount is actually given, but estimates have gone so far as to say that ninety percent of the world could be infected.)
• Katanas Are Just Better: Allison's main melee weapon of choice is a katana that she carries on her back and in her VALK. Justified because her katana is specially made to take punishment and to stay sharper longer than the traditional blade.
• La Résistance: In the second half of the Warsaw mission, a group of former Polish GROM soldiers makes an appearance when the Valkyries start an assault on a Proteus stronghold and helps complete the mission with them. They also were the ones who safely rescued Allison after Gama pulled out in the first half and made her an honorary member of their group, complete with her own nickname.
• Leit Motif: Each of the major characters has their own theme song, picked to reflect their personality.
• MacGuffin: A crashed UAV that Gama doesn't want Proteus getting its hands on is this for the mission to Warsaw.
• Mission Briefing: Before every mission, complete with music.
• Mood Whiplash: The story alternates between the reactions to Allison's death and Gilbert Volleying Insults with Charlotte.
• Multinational Team: So far there are three Americans, three Germans, two Russians, two Englishmen, a Canadian, and a few others of mixed nationality, not counting the old characters.
• Never Bring a Gun to a Knife Fight: Allison wielding a katana vs a Proteus Mook with an LMG. Allison cuts the gun in half, impales the soldier on the sword, and uses his blood as face paint. She does get a bullet wound in her chest for her troubles, though.
• Never Found the Body: Allison was assumed to be dead after her VALK self-destructed and her body wasn't recovered. Following with the trope she makes a return not too long after.
• Only Fatal to Adults: Exaggerated. The nanomachines aren't just fatal to adults, their fatal to children too, however they can be used in-utero. In effect this trope is played straight, since those who have the nanomachines have grown to teenagers by the time the story takes place.
• Only Known by Their Nickname: The members of the resistance in Warsaw don't use real names when talking to each other.
• Peeka Boo Corpse: Allison finds one in her VALK. It's just an illusion.
• Photo Montage: Charlotte breaks into Allison's room after the first half of the Warsaw mission is over as a favor for Gilbert. In trying to find out what is with her, she comes across Allison's box of old photos from when her team was still alive.
• Press-Ganged: It’s implied in some characters backgrounds that GAMA wasn’t always the most honest to potential Valkyries about what they were signing up for when they ‘asked’ them to join, and in the case of the born-in valkyries asking wasn’t involved at all.
• Psycho for Hire: Charlotte. She reclaimed her position as a pilot solely so that she could seek revenge by rampaging against Proteus.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: Though they don't have the lack of resources usually associated with this trope, the VALKyries are still a dysfunctional, anger-prone group of teenagers. Lampshaded by Vance, who thinks of the team as "fidgety little kids", and Allison, who calls everybody "nugget" because of their immaturity.
• Real Robot: VALKs use up a lot of fuel, rely mostly on conventional weaponry (To be fair, that uses a loose definition of "conventional weaponry") instead of their fists or Cool Swords, and Gama is run by the UN.
• Recruit Teenagers with Attitude: Entirely justified (see Tyke Bomb below) and deconstructed. Some of the teenagers on the team are slightly messed up.
• Religion of Evil: Downplayed Trope. Proteus is briefly described as a "religious group", and one of their operators is called an "altar boy", but no other references to their faith are made.
• Sacrificed Basic Skill for Awesome Training: Allison is completely focused on being a better VALKyrie, and has No Social Skills as a result.
• Shout-Out:
  • When in a submarine headed for Singapore, Gilbert asks if anyone would like a peanut. Appropriate, given the setting.
  • One of William Kruger's Aunts is noted to have aided in the first defense of Cape Town. Her name is Flandre Scarlet
  • It's also note-worthy that one of the Blackhawk pilots who drops off the ground forces in the Cape Town mission is named Cliff Wolcott.
• Slap-Slap-Kiss: After Gilbert draws off an entire group of enemy VALKs on his own, Valeria reunites with him by decking him across the cheek and then hugging him with tears in her eyes.
• Sociopathic Soldier: Charlotte could be seen as the Broken Soldier variant of this trope, after living in a declared wasteland alone for three years she slowly grew into this trope over time.
• Survivor Guilt: Allison's painful past involved watching the rest of her team, one of which she assumedly had a relationship with, die in front of her and she feels guilty because of it.
• Taking You with Me: In Allison's fight against a Proteus Elite in the first part of the Warsaw mission, she grabs his VALK with hers before self-destructing her own and destroying them both. Subverted when she survives the explosion, but he does not.
• Talking to the Dead: Allison revisits the graves of her lost teammates and makes a one-sided statement.
• The Bus Came Back: After a long, unexplained disappearance, Jack has been revealed to have been reassigned to the African Gama base, coincidentally the same one that the rest of the Valkyries need to go to for their mission.
• The Psycho Rangers: Proteus's Inquisitor team in the Vancouver mission. And boy, do they give the Valkyries hell.

• The Spartan Way: Those Valkyries that were born into the Gama program such as Allison, Charlotte, and Gilbert, were all raised this way.
• Tragic Keepsake: Allison still has the dog tags of her dead teammates.
  "I swear on your memory - they won't rest, while I'm alive."
• Traveling at the Speed of Plot: Though it takes upwards of a few hours for Gama to deploy the Valkyries to locations, even on the same continent, the time flies out the window en route.
• Troubling Unchildlike Behavior: The main characters range from "A little weird" to "Borderline sociopathic and obsessed with their work", Allison, Yuri and Jack being the best examples. Technically they're teenagers, not children, but the trope still fits.

• 20 Minutes into the Future: Set in 2076, though less technologically advanced than it may be due to the Zombie Apocalypse.
• Two Lines, No Waiting: The Singapore and Warsaw plots happen simultaneously.
• Tyke Bomb: Almost all of the main characters are teenagers, justified, as the nanobots required to control a VALK must be injected before puberty, with Body Horror being the presumed result if this rule isn't followed.
• Wrench Wench: Mary Lewis, the chief engineer in Gama's base in New Mexico, fits this quite perfectly.
• Xanatos Gambit: Apparently, despite it seeming to be a rather one-sided Gama victory, the Cape Town mission was just part of Proteus's plan.
• Zombie Apocalypse: Exacerbated by Proteus, who are spreading the infection purposely.