OOC: couple of referee rulings here:
1. JJ doesn't hear the above comment by Dalmar because of the distance and the foliage certainly breaks up the sound but he does hear something else which will come up in the In character post.
2. Gedion's line of sight is actually through 50 to 60 meters of tree; Quote= module rules for encounter "Sighting in the tree canopy- characters may shoot at any character in an adjacent square and may shoot farther if their line of sight is not through a green square."
Note: the terrain rules are such that they level the playing field and strip away much of the advantage the pirates should normally enjoy.
Oh yeah and one more thing- a critical success does special stuff in my games- usually things I make up on the spot according to the situation; I'm mentioning that since it just came up in rolling someone's gun fire.
IC:
JJ was not sure what was happening but he did see the sudden eruption of fireworks but the distinct lack of the boom from real fireworks suggested they were holographic. He then heard the helicopter hit a tree. The engine sputtered and clearly there was some damage as he caught a glimpse of it spinning and swerving away from the forest. He watched Captain Skragg wave the other two pirates forward and observed Captain Skragg shouting into his chronocom at the copter pilot to get back on station and that he didn't care about damage to the tail rotor they needed the IR scanner on the copter to spot the escapees. Seconds latter the helicopter headed East the way it had come and Skragg spent several seconds shouting and swearing alone at the edge of the tall tree just west of JJ.
JJ manages to edge forward a few meters to get just within 30m of Skragg. JJ is lower and than the pirate captain and the trees in front of him are lower still.
Gideon was aware of the pirates roping down into the tree just northwest of his position and edged forward to the edge of his tree for a better view and shot. The pirates there were already moving and clearly they would count cover from foliage but one swung down from the 30m tall tree to the top of the 10m tree (P4) and was out in the open at 40m distance (short Range). He fires 3 rounds (92, 02, 36), the first shot missed but the second connected solid in center of mass and the third shot should have hit but the kinetic force of the second shot spun the pirate and he lost his footing and fell out of the tree to the ground (max damage for critical hit and for falling damage 25 STA 13 for skein suit and 12 for actual wounds on P4 who is now out of sight on his back on the ground).
Even as gun fire erupted behind Kriss one of the yazirians (Y3) jumped out of the tree due south of him and glided to Kriss's tree. As he's landing Kriss and Grekka had excellent shots at him. Kriss fires one carefully aimed shot but misses (79) however Grekka fires a blast pistol (23) and a light stunner (87) [with the blast pistol doing doing 27 STA from its wallop and the pirate lacking an effective defense against it].
Kahn edged up to the edge of the tree next to Rigel to watch the yazirian pirates below, the warrior spirit of his ancestors stirred deep within him to jump from the tree and glide down to combat. He suppressed this urge lest the two pirates shoot him before he could reach them. Instead he readied a tangler grenade. The two yazirians were attempting to run across the top of the tree and enter the tall tree the party had taken cover in. This brought them face to face with Kahn and Rigel. Kahn's grenade caught the pirate square in the chest (02) and entangled him to the tree branches around him. [Rigel fires at short range at a running figure but can count careful aim since the weapon only shoots at a rate of 1 anyway for an adjusted chance of 30%- roll: 07 which connects for 15 STA and again the pirate lacks an effective defense]
Dalmar holds his position and waits for a shot having determined to wait till the range drops for an optimal shot with his pistol. The roar of the blast pistols being fired by Grekka and Rigel is almost stunning, he had known the weapons were loud but the reality of them in combat was altogether shocking. The fire from the assault rifles was almost like the popping of fireworks for children.
JJ recognized the distinct sound of both semi automatic fire (no one fires a burst) and the loud blast from blast pistols. Captain Skragg looked concerned. Good he thought to himself, anyone giving Skragg a bad day was good news in Johny's book.
OOC: You all are effectively firing from the cover of prepared positions and I ruled for surprise round due to the holograph projector and that you had prepared for the pirates a little. From this point on they are spotting you all pretty much as well as you are spotting them. Except for possibly JJ who has not revealed his position yet.