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Defenders of the Heat It's later summer In Hemasr, which is significantly hotter than one might expect; while the ground remains frozen beneath your feet, heavy furs would be much too warm, and the snow has thawed on the surface. Hemasr is buisy fishing and whaling and gathering what scant fruit and berries can be found, as well as making much-needed repairs and chopping woods. The older children help, of course, when they aren't sneaking off to climb on top of the factory to rest on the spot above the heat generator; there, the roof is warmed from the heater beneath. The kids bring a small tarp and sticks, putting up a shelter from the cold wind, and on a sunny day you can lie on the hot roof with a bare chest, shielded from the winds, and enjoy the warm sun. Meanwhile, men and women both help out in the village, and the elders shoo the children away from the dangerous roof when they find them, but rarely get angry; in a week or two, it'll be too cold, and they remember climing to the hot spot on the roof when they were children, themselves. The mood is buisy and industrious, but generally elevated; working in the heat may be harsh, but it is not as harsh as starving in the cold; everyone in the village has lost friends and family to the harsh and unforgiving winters, to cold or to hunger. But despite the generally high moods, today is tense. Last week, fishermen reported a giant crab with a shell of pure ice and claws aglow with eeriee light. Such things pass by now and then, but three days ago, it was spotted again to the south, but this time, on the shore. It doesn't seem to be moving towards Hemasr, but it is too close to it to be left alone. And so, today, the village has gathered up what it has to give its champions, its monster hunters, and send them off to hunt the beast. Assuming they aren't toxic, its meats should also help the village make it through the long and harsh winter, and its legs may help stabalize some of the support pillars, which have been weaked by who knows how many years of thawing and freezing. It is noon; the hunters are gathered to be sent off by most of the community, who bring them gifts of knowledge or of other things they may need. Okay! we've reached take-off! Mechanically, the first thing that happens is that the community tries to place an aspect on you, collectively, for each Domain (except its +0). I'm leaving it up to you to decide what aspect, and to roll the appropriate domain. These may be that the community has been working to give you Freshly Sharpened Weapons, or give you the traditional send-off to give you High Spirits, or whatever you want. The first four people to act should also describe what the community is doing and roll a domain each, in addition to anything you do while leaving. You can use Orokos to roll Fudge dice with the dF syntax.
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Jul 14, 2017 19:20
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 00:43 |
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The Community Name: Hemasr High Concept: A beacon of Warmth in the snow Trouble: The Universal Lure of Warmth Domains 4 - Industry Aspect: Functioning Forge of the Forgotten Founders Stress: [][][][x] 3- Wisdom Aspect: Keepers Of Ancient Secrets Stress: [][][x] 2- Community Spirit Aspect: United in Purpose, Divided in Method Stress: [][x] 1 - Fight Aspect: Huddled Together Behind Ancient Walls Stress: [x] 0 - Stores Aspect: Frozen Ground and a Hateful Sea Consequences: Minor: Moderate: Severe: Magnusth fucked around with this message at 04:22 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 14, 2017 19:21
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Stephen is woken by the playing of children. The mass of putrid black ooze shivers in its grated sleeping pit, that some call its "cage" and takes shape around the hard "heart" at the core of its self. Stephen has seen many hearts. He does not think it is a heart. But this is the word they call it, and when he tries to think of what his heart could be besides his heart it makes his heart hurt. The goo invades its favorite parts, filling in holes, invading veins and nerves, bringing life back to the dead bits of his self stolen from other beings. The ooze takes on the shape of muscle and skin, hardening into a functional if unconvincing mimicry of the humans the surround it, small enough to just barely fit into human places, but larger enough to still carry its oversized claws. It carefully places the octopus on the featureless round ball of its "head," so it can have a "face" because humans like that. It politely waits for Sarah to lift the grate, because it can feel fear when it climbs out on its own. Once free, it lumbers to its feet and plays tag with the children. Every day it gets better at walking as humans do, rarely does it cheat anymore by pulling itself forward with long strands of itself. The children treat him like a normal part of their lives, even something "cool" but their parents watch, and mutter, and slowly pull them away. Community attempts to put "Feeling Human" on Stephen: 4dF+2 2 Stephen hears the call of the gathering, of the Hunt. It shivers with anticipation. The children are looking hungry and they do not have the strength yet to go out and kill crabs like Stephen. It thinks there is little to take from another crab thing for itself, but maybe its claws are larger and better? It likes claws.
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Jul 14, 2017 20:23
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Carver the Fleshcrafter was hard at work in his forge when the word came, scrimshandering away at a pair of keratinous skis, adding artistry to their utilitarian purpose, working the monstrous material with a deftness and dexterity that belied his black-shrouded prosthetic arm. He looked up at an interruption: How could that boy make knocking on a cubicle entrance sound cheerful and upbeat? With a smile, setting aside his work with care, he beckoned Ragnir Fletchersson inside to share the news he was practically bursting to get out. It was about damned time. Another monstrous crab, as well. That smile on Carver's face grew grim, darkly amused: He owed that particular brand of nastiness still, and intended to pay back in full. He pulled a cord, causing a panel to roll aside and reveal his personal armory, with the crab-carapace armor that was his pride, joy and the means of his retribution as the centrepiece. Ragnir proved to be a capable assistant in helping to ready and secure the heavy protective plates: Community Fight aspect, "Squire-assisted" readying arms and armor: 4dF+1= 0 He did so with more enthusiasm than skill, but it evened out to a competent assistance. A scene played out across Hemasr as the other monster hunters were also made ready. AJ_Impy fucked around with this message at 02:54 on Jul 18, 2017 |
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Jul 14, 2017 21:51
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Rook Rook was of two minds about the hunt. On the one hand, he would get to take a crack at another of the world's toughest beasts, get to pull it apart and see how it worked. On the other, he'd be leaving Hemasr behind - and leaving his precious equipment in the hands of amateurs. Oh, they meant well enough, and they were each talented individuals in their own right, but he was an artist. He didn't so much concoct as compose, and try as they may none could quite match him. Luckily for them, they didn't need to. Rook had worked diligently through the years with Hemasr's craftsmen and priest-mechanics to automate aspects of his processes, forming (as Rook liked to call it) Rook Pharmaceuticals. Individually-portioned potions were available from an impromptu storefront, and new varietals were added to the stock when available. Rook's real win, however, was convincing the powers that be to allow dilute additions to the water supply. Nothing dangerous, naturally - he insisted on testing new compounds on himself prior to community consumption at any rate - but enough to keep the more mundane ailments at bay. Unfortunately, the cooperation put him in constant conflict with- "Lucien, my good man, just the fellow I was looking for!" The Priest-Mechanic stiffened, but dutifully walked over. Lucien was not fond of Rook. Rook didn't care for the man much himself, but he had need of heat and water, and he controlled the flow of both from the very heart of Hemasr. "Lucien, I take it you have those compounds I asked for? I know our stores are low, but duty calls!" "Don't talk to me about duty, Rook, I'm well aware of the concept. And I say again that this auto-alchemizing system we've devised isn't meant for this sort of on-the-fly concentration modification. And finally, I'm not your secretary! Send one of your cronies to fetch your things." "Yes, yes.... Do you have them?" Community Industry Aspect - "Highly Concentrated Mass Produced Meds" 4dF+4 = 5 "...Yes, I do. This stuff looks potent. Don't overdose out there - I can't spend the manpower to retrieve your carcass." "I love you too! Yeehaw let's go get some crab legs!" Dog Kisser fucked around with this message at 22:41 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 14, 2017 23:30
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Just a fluff post since Evil Mastermind is gonna do the Wisdom aspect. Knight  Knight could not actually feel the temperature, though he somehow "knew" it was warmer at this time of the year. He knew this was somehow important to the people of Hemasr, but wasn't entirely sure why. A curious event that had repeated itself 4 times prior to this one, the increasing heat, the heightened activity. People seemed more energetic. Their faces showed what he now understood to be smiles. Most curious. People tried to avoid looking directly at Knight as he looked around the factory floor one last time before leaving on yet another hunt. They still feared him, apparently. Understandable, Knight understood that he could easily overpower all but the strongest members of the village. Not that he wanted to, for some reason he was unclear of. He turned his thoughts back to the hunt, trying to not pay attention to the children staring at him from the roof. Lucien had told him this one was particularly important somehow, though Knight couldn't see how. It was just another Knight shrugged his massive metal shoulders. A strangely human behavior, he thought to himself. Today was being a most curious day indeed. Perhaps he'd ponder his vocabulary on the way to "kill" this "monster". Maybe there were other words he had added to it without noticing? And since when could he notice that he sometimes didn't notice things? Curious indeed. With his mind abuzz, Knight grabbed his lance and got prepared to leave the comforts of home. Home. Yet another new word. Curious.
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Jul 15, 2017 01:07
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Longshot "Are you sure this is right?" Longshot looks down at the sheets of paper in her hand, then up at Ariadne. She respected the Archivist, true, but sometimes she let her enthusiasm about finding a connection in the ancient writings get the better of her. "I'm positive," the young woman said, pointing to pieces of text she'd circled. "The legs of crabs are vulnerable to blunt trauma, and if you can break three of its legs, then you should all be able to flip it over and reveal its weak spot. According to this hunter's guide here, it should be glowing. If you hit that three times, you'll kill it. Oh, and apparently it's weak against thunder, whatever that means." Wisdom roll: 4dF+3=3 Adding aspect It's Weak in the Joints Longshot grinned, then handed the sheath of paper back. "Take out the legs, hit the glowy bit; got it. Still, I'm sure this'll be an easy hunt. Tell you what, I'll bring you back a souvenir, okay? Maybe you can mount that glowing bit over your mantle. But if you'll excuse me, it's time for me to get going. After all, the hunt can't happen without me!" Longshot turned (missing Ariadne's eyeroll), adjusted her cap and goggles, put on her most winning smile, and stepped out to meet up with the rest of the group. As she walked through the watching crowd, she waved and shook hands with people. After all, presentation was everything. "Thank you, thank you all! Your faith in us is our strength! And that strength is what's going to put us over the top and together we're going to beat this beast! And when we come back triumphant, it'll be because of all of you! Thank you!" Longshot approaches the rest of the group, rubbing her hands together eagerly. "So whaddaya say, folks? Ready to hunt down a beast?" Evil Mastermind fucked around with this message at 03:58 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 15, 2017 03:14
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Rook Rook held out his fist for a fistbump. "Absolutely. I've got a pack of goodies here fresh out of the fabricator. Smoother mixing, perfectly balanced solution ratio, packaged in convenient crystal syringes. Should keep us alive out there long enough to kill this thing. And, uh, it should work well enough on our non-human friends. Just... rub it against your wounds? Without a circulatory system it'll be kind of a pain in the rear end, I'm sorry." A twitchy shrug. "I'll work out the kinks later!" Dog Kisser fucked around with this message at 22:41 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 15, 2017 03:43
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Carver An amused chuckle reverberated from within Carver's helm, the protective, gleaming bulk of his defensive accoutrements a stark contrast with the other two human agile loadouts. "You know it. Crabs are a speciality, let's hope this one has some meat on it. Dibs on shell-cracking duty, I have just the thing for it..." He flexed his prosthetic, clenched the hand into a fist and rotated it, mimicking the motion of one of his other replacement limbs.
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Jul 15, 2017 03:54
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Longshot Longshot returns Rook's fistbump. "I was just talking to Ariadne, turns out this thing'll have weak legs. So I think that's a good way to start one we find this thing. Not that that'll be hard. I mean, it's a giant crab and I'm an awesome tracker."
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Jul 15, 2017 04:04
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Rook "Hey, less yammerin' more... trackin'. I'm workshopping that one. Find that crab for us while I'm sorting out a better pun." Rook drummed against his kinetic harness, feeling each tiny pulse building the enchantment within it. Soon enough it'd be time to let it go... but for now he just walked out into the chill air. Crab puns, crab puns. Maybe something an icy shell? He felt it building like the pressure in his harness. He grinned under his mask so hard his face hurt - it was good to hunt! Dog Kisser fucked around with this message at 22:41 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 15, 2017 04:11
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Knight Knight stands quietly by the group, as he usually does. Not one for conversation. He simply sits perfectly, eerily still, lance at his side. Then he, unprompted, actually says "I do not believe organic medicines will function upon my body, Hunter Rook, but I am willing to experiment if such will not impair my primary functions." He does not move at all while talking, another eerie thing about him. He simply appears to be patiently awaiting the beginning of the hunt.
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Jul 15, 2017 04:13
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Carver "Last I heard it was seen on the shore, to the south. Sounds like a good way to head on out until we get a better fix on it. Let's move on out!" Stomping onward, the armored crafter took point, at least until the scout claimed it.
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Jul 15, 2017 04:17
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Rook Rook whooped and ran off after Carver (well, speed walked - the lummox wasn't all that quick with all his armor on!) and drummed against the man's armor with the back of his fists. "Knight, don't you fret your pretty little... head about it. It's maaagic. No, literally, it's magic. It's not just chemicals, there's lingering enchantment woven into their blood and guts that I can process out. Now, do I understand everything that I'm doing? No. Does it always work? No. But it's kept this lot alive, and it'll keep you alive too. If you ever get hurt, that is - that metal skin looks plenty tough. Wait, can you feel pain? I feel like there's so much I should ask you. Probably should have asked you any other time than now when we're about to risk our lives." Pull it back, Rook, they're gonna think you're a weirdo. Rook coughed through his mask and rubbed the back of his head. Dog Kisser fucked around with this message at 22:41 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 15, 2017 04:31
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Longshot Longshot ran up to Carver, trying not to give Rook an odd look as she passed him "Carver, I know you're excited to get to this thing, but I think it might be a good idea if you let me get ahead of the group a bit, make sure there's nothing bad between us and it." Evil Mastermind fucked around with this message at 18:17 on Jul 15, 2017 |
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Jul 15, 2017 17:48
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Carver The jade-eyed helm beneath the monster pelt turned to face the scout, canted to one side slightly. "Mite patronizing, don't you think, Longshot? All of us have been schooled in at least the basics of tracking these things, and making sure there's nothing bad in the vicinity is part of our task. Yes, you're the scout. Yes, you're useful to have on point. But when there's a risk of something bad is precisely when you should want me between you and it, so I can take whatever it has to dish out and you can get a good shot on it. If you're going to scout ahead, scout ahead! You don't need my permission to do your job. Go ahead, figuratively and literally."
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Jul 15, 2017 20:03
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Longshot Longshot smiles again, apparently not even noticing about half of what Carver said. "Thanks, Carver. I'm glad you know who the best person for each job is." She pats him on the shoulder, then aims her arm at a high tree a ways up the road. A string of web-like substance shoots out of a bracer-sized beetle carapace she has strapped to her forearm and attaches to one of the higher branches. She then gives Carver a happy half-salute and shoots ahead of the group.
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Jul 15, 2017 21:39
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The community gathered to send the... 'heroes'... off, helping them on their way best they could. They fitted their armor - or rather, Ragnir did. Well, he tried, at any rate, but to little effect. They looked up what they knew of such giant crabs, telling them of its Weak Joints, They gave them the surpluss of Mass Produced Stimulants they had, but beyond such things, they had little to give. Little tangible, at least; for the children of the village followed along them as far as they could without loosing sight of their home, cheering them on and asking for trophies and stories when they returned. Whatever they thought of such things, the hunters could not help but feel their Spirits Lifted even after the children had turned back; it was a faint thing, a warmth unlikely to survive the harsh land, but it was something; the less-than-human members of the party, especially, might cherish it. The group wandered south on an ancient road, following the coast for the easy way around one of the area's many cliffs. It was unpleasant, but better than climing through jagged rock. They were close enough to the sea for biting wind and the incesant smell of salt, and there and there the path has been made slippery by sea-spray. For many hours they wandered, bantering perhaps, until they'd circled the cliff and the country opened up. They still had half a day of walking left; the sun was lowering down, but not yet low in the sky. But where? They didn't quite know where the monster was, and there were several ways to go from here. If they went south, along the coast, they'd eventually run into the monster's track, knowing that it had gone on land three days south. This had the added benifit of being along the coast, meaning that they would be able to fish along the way, possibly even catch birds or a small seal if they got lucky; they didn't have much in the way of rations, after all, and this would at least allow them to stretch out their rations, if not stockpile a bit more food; and the old roads along the rocky cost were better preserved than those inland, so it would be easy going, barring inclement weather. The beast has been seen going north-east from where it landed, however, so going south would almost undoubtably make the whole trip longer. They could, of course, go south-east and hope to catch the beast's trail, but if the beast had turned surther east, or even south, they stod a very real chance of wasting days to find the track if it'd turned east or south shortly after landing. Moreover, in the summers, the top layers of frost would thaw and the land turn marshy and wet, and the jagged ruins were maze-like at places, and could turn a man around - or at least slow him down. Lastly, they could try to spot it from elevation. In the northern part of the marshy ruins, but still south-southeast of where they were, about two days south-east from Hemasr as the crow flies, there was an impossibly tall watchtower from which could be seen the land for miles and miles and miles around; a giant monster or its tracks would be easy to spot from there, and ground around the northern part of the marsh, along the jagged clif was firmer, and the ruins straigher, with less chance to confuse or trick; but it was also more barren than further south, and far less fruitfull than going along the coast. And if the monster had turn east or south very early, it might be out of sight from the ancient watchtower. Okay, tell me what you've been doing while walking, if anything (probably discussing which way to go?) and where you want to go now. You can of course try to make delcarations to narrow down where the beast might've went or other ways to find it. Also, i'm introducing a standard: Aspects and boosts are written with Underline. Aspects in play (The I represents free invocations) Weak Joints I Mass Produced Stimulants II Boosts in play: Spirits Lifted I
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Jul 16, 2017 02:02
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Stephen Stephen vibrates happily at the banter and, after some strain, forms an orifice and vibrates it like the humans are always doing, forming some words it knows. "Magic good Stephen eat." He follows along with the others and, when they reach the decision point, gives his well considered opinion: "Stephen eat fish good."
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Jul 16, 2017 02:31
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Carver He unhitched his helm at the point of decision, and looked quizzically at the tame ooze for a bit before looking back to the people. "I think it might be suggesting the coastal path, and I can see the merit in it, but it hinges on that thing being faster than us or not. We don't want to be lagging behind it all the way to Hemasr. Our best bet is assuming it kept that northeasterly path and is headed directly towards our town: That's the worst case, so if we cover it, none of the other possibilities are as bad and we can take our time with them."
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Jul 16, 2017 11:58
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Rook Rook scratched his exposed hair - still warm enough to go without the hood - and shrugged. "I mean, you're not wrong, and that's a safe assumption... but climbing that tower might let us get the drop on it. Also, with winter coming up it's gonna get a hell of a lot harder to get up there - this might be our last chance in a while to get a good look at the lay of the land." And also, though he didn't mention this, he really wanted to climb it. It had stood there as long as he'd been in Hemasr, but he'd never had the excuse to go make the trek over. This was as good a reason as any.
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Jul 16, 2017 18:53
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Knight "All three options have their merits." states Knight matter-of-factly. "The tower option seems like the one with the better odds of success for the purposes of tracking the beast in a reasonable time frame." Knight pauses for a looong moment, as if considering a new piece of information, before slowly saying: "There might be some concern with the lack of edible material in the vicinity, but I believe the benefits outweigh the risks, especially as we'd still be moving in the same general direction as the alternatives and can adjust if it becomes necessary." "... Also, I hold some interest in seeing the landscape.", he says in a much lower tone of voice.
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Jul 16, 2017 20:32
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Longshot "I'm all for the tower. Getting a lay of the land wouldn't hurt in the slightest." She looks at Knight. "Do you want to climb up, Knight? I mean, I can get up there quick but if you want to take in the view I won't stop you."
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Jul 18, 2017 01:31
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Carver He nodded as the majority was reached, and resecured his helmet. "All right, let's get a move on. Keep an eye out for birds or game, stock up when and where we can." He pointed towards the tower, and began trudging towards it, jade eyepieces sweeping the horizon. He beckoned Longshot to take point, all business now that they were in the wilds. AJ_Impy fucked around with this message at 02:54 on Jul 18, 2017 |
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Jul 18, 2017 01:35
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Knight Knight looks at Longshot for a long while before ever so slightly nodding. He turns away quickly and begins walking afterwards.
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Jul 18, 2017 01:41
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Rook Rook started like he'd been jabbed with a hot poker, then sidled up next to the mechanical beastie. "Oh! Uh, I'd like to climb it too! If it's all the same to you, I also want to see the landscape." And he was also generally curious whether he could jump off without killing himself. He'd never really pushed the harness that far, but there was always time for field testing.
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Jul 18, 2017 01:47
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Turning southeast, the group trudged on for a littlemore than an hour, when they hit what seemed to be the outer wall of whatever settlement had occupied most of the marsh; or perhaps its inner wall? They had passed by some ruined buildings on the way, and who knows how the great apocalypse might've shifted the land or the sea? In any case, the wall had mostly collapsed, but it followed the outer edge of the marsh, and they followed it. It swung slightly north, but curved back east, then then ever so slowly southward, and the ground was easy enough to travel on; a bit hard, at places, and with some parts covered by marshy water and having to be carefully walked around, but mostly dry and good. The weather held, too - for now, at least. Cool, but sunny, and not windy. If anything, a bit too sunny; the ruins especially were bone-white in some places, and in the sun it could be quite dazzeling and uncomfrotable. Most of it was sandstone and other rough rocks, but just a few places, they were alabaster white; sometimes even in sections of otherwise grey rock. It looked almost like jagged white scars on the buildings. As they walked, the group kept their eyes out for any particular game or salvagable food, but saw none. A few birds, too faar away to shoot; a few lizards that hid before you could catch them, and the carcass of some unfortunate creature - a fox, perhaps? - picked and rotten and unrecognizable. As nightfall approached, the group speed up a litte; there was a known shelter a little further ahead, and the night would get dreadfully, murderously cold. They found the shelter, a small, but still standing, building just on the other side of the fallen wall; the part that was still standing had a long, desk-like thing in one end, and the walls were full of small holes where shelves had been secured, though long since looted by the people of Hemasr. Burning what little shrubs they could find, the hunters lit a small fire for the warmth and put up their tents (two, to be precise; 1 for the humans, one for steven and knight) While heated by the weak fire, they also ate of their rations, before crawling under the furs to hide from the biting cold outside. It might be summer, but even in summer, the nights are freezing cold. The next day, the group moved on towards the tower; this time, however, the temperature had dropped, and a few of the pools of water they passed had thin layers of ice forming, and the group itself had a thick layer of extra furs and hoods to keep the cold out as they walked. The walking made the furs hot and sweaty, but taking off even a layer would be much more unpleasant in the near-freezing temperatures. An hour or two after noon, with the sun still high in the sky but past its highest point, they saw the tower. It took almost an hour more to get to it, and even then, seeing the top of the tower was difficult - mostly due to the sun, but also due to how high the tower was. The tower was around, and,for its hight, fairly thin - no more than 100 meters diameter, to compared to the tower, which stretched more than half a mile into the sky, and thinned as it went. The inside had a large staircase along the outer wall, but many many of the floors along the way had been collapsed and large parts of the staircase has been ruined by time. It was certainly a way to climb it, but perhas the tower could be scaled from without as well? it'd be incredibly difficult, but the hunters might be able to do it.
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Jul 18, 2017 03:33
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Stephen Stephen presses his body against the tower's sheer outer surface, softening the hard outer shell of its gooey essence into a sticky, gripping ooze. The ooze slithers up a little. It could climb but that would be little use when its only eyes were stolen from an octopus. Stephen hugs his good, indigestible, friend Knight, covering his robotic body with the black, gripping, living tar of his monster essence. He lays a firm tail of black "rope" from the back and waves it invitingly at the others who want to climb. Sticky: 4dF+3 4 Create an advantage. Knight is covered in Stephen to help scale the tower.
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Jul 18, 2017 04:21
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Carver The crafter headed inside, looking up as the line of the stairwell faded into the upper darkness, keeping notes of the breaks and impassable segments. He turned to the pile of detritus that was the natural consequence of collapsed floors above, and sought out a couple of still-sturdy beams from which he could tinker a scaling ladder to deal with breaks in the stairwell. Create an advantage: Using quote:[10:37 PM] magnusth: @AJ_Impy just use boneworking. there isn't a generalized craft skill, but boneworking works for these purposes. AJ_Impy fucked around with this message at 22:44 on Jul 18, 2017 |
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Jul 18, 2017 12:38
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Longshot Longshot stares at Stephen with what can only be described as a wooden grin for a long second. "...Thank you, Stephen, that's very...thoughtful. But I've brought my own." She fires her webshot up the side of the tower, and starts to rappel up the side of the tower. Using Shoot to webshot up; http://orokos.com/roll/534260: 4dF+4=2, invoking the item aspect to make that a +4. I have three Fate points left. She waves at Stephen and Knight as she rises past them. "See you at the top!"
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Jul 18, 2017 23:34
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Knight " And without actually waiting to hear a response, Knight moves inside and begins climbing the long broken-down staircase up, before an odd sense of nostalgia washes over him and he stops. He processes the feeling for a moment and then, with Stephen's help, takes a tentative step onto the wall of the tower. His entire body, as if adjusting to some ancient protocol, shifts its weight around in a very odd way that is clearly magic, though imperceptible from the outside. Knight doesn't climb up the wall. He runs up it. His feet sink deep into the tower walls with each long step, but when he leaps to the next one it's as if he weighs nothing at all. He doesn't know why his body is capable of doing this, but he knows it's not something he'd be able to do in most situations, it's almost certainly due to the stickiness that he can climb so efficiently. The faint feeling of nostalgia washes over him once more. He had done this sort of things before, for sure, but how? He's pretty sure it had nothing to do with Stephen, so in what situation was he capable of climbing a vertical surface? His memories fail him entirely, returning only absolute silence. Quite a curious day. "Perhaps I was overcautious. The outer wall might have been better afterall. Still, this should bring us to the summit with sufficient speed." Using Athletics to climb the inner tower: http://orokos.com/roll/534313 2dF+2+2 (invoking Sticky) =8 Gain Boost: Temporary Weight Shifting Control, seems like Knight still grasps some of the basics of how to do a version of what he just did. For now, anyways. Infinity Gaia fucked around with this message at 04:37 on Jul 19, 2017 |
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Jul 19, 2017 00:04
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Rook The tower was everything he’d hoped it would be and more. It was just so big. The ancients were clearly working under a whole different set of rules than they were - as though Hemasr itself wasn’t proof enough of that. Not for the first time, Rook felt the passionate tug towards the two great mysteries - what the hell had happened to them all? And second, how could they as they were now use them to bootstrap their way back to such glory - or hell, even past it, their own way? This and other thoughts had him nearly vibrating with excitement, and when Longshot boldly swung her way up the side of the vast edifice it pushed him over the threshold. He widened his stance, passing his hands over the runes scrimshawed into his harness in the prescribed pattern. The whole thing began to vibrate against his skin, pulsing out tiny motes of violet light as he moved. He dropped to a sprinting stance, the motion strangely dulled by the enchantment, and took a breath. Then he ran. ”Scrimshawed Kinetic Harness” 4dF+3 = 1 The pulsing grew stronger, and out of sync with his breath. Not good. He wasn’t going to make it; he wasn’t great at steering while the thing was gearing up, and he had an all too vivid vision of himself careening uncontrolled into the wall under his own amplified intertia. Luckily, Carver had his back. “Carver-I-need-to-borrow-this-ladder-bye!” The Bonecrafter had leaned the half-built structure against the tower to tighten the lower rungs, but Rook didn't need all that. Invoking “Improvised Scaling Ladder” to reroll ”Scrimshawed Kinetic Harness” 4dF+3 = 5 He leapt, trailing violet light, then kicked off the top rung, imparting just enough vertical momentum to keep him from splattering against the wall. It was uncontrolled, and utterly mad, but it felt like flying. He found he had tears in his eyes that weren't only from the dizzying ascent. Dog Kisser fucked around with this message at 19:23 on Jul 20, 2017 |
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Jul 19, 2017 01:39
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Atop the tower, the three hunters met up. The air this far up was noticably cooler, dipping into freezing, and yet a summer breeze compared to the night, or the depths of winter. And the view from up here was... Well, incredible. Not just good, or great, but incredible. A few stray clouds hover beneath you, and your eyes can see the whole of the tundra laid out before you, as well as the sea for miles and miles. Hemasr itself is hidden behind cliffs, but you can see the smoke rising from the fires there and the boats at sea, fishing, and beyond them, the sea for days. To the east and south. the tundra opened up before you, coverd in shallow marches and jagged ruins sticking out of the soft ground, the stagnant and frozen pools glittering in the sunlight. In the far distance, something brigther shone in the sun; difficult to see exactly what at this distance, but it was huge, the size of a tiny hill or several houses clumped together. It looked like... A shell of ice, glittering in the sunlight and.. shaking? or moving, perhaps. It was difficult to see, but at this distance it seemed two trails of large holes stretched from it to the coast. It seemd to have gone north-east and then turned sharper east; about three days out from here; two, if you make good speed. Well, here you are! Getting down from the tower won't be a dice-roll worthy problem, but feel free to make notice or investigation checks if you want some specific information or want to create advantages based on stuff you can see - "oh, there's a straighter path through the ruins a bit east", "Ah, i can a few trees to the south; they'll be sure to have moose we could eat", stuff of that nature.
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Jul 20, 2017 03:16
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Longshot From her perch on the side of the tower, Longshot peers out over the wastes where she thought she saw large movement. That was obviously the prey, but too far away to get a bead on. Still, the vantage point gave her a chance to see if there were any grazing herds nearby. Food was going to become an issue soon... Tracking roll to see if I can spot some game in the area:http://orokos.com/roll/534661: 4dF+2=2. If that's enough I want to create a Local herd of prey aspect.
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Jul 20, 2017 17:41
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Knight Once he got to the top, Knight didn't immediately look for anything useful. While this wasn't obvious to his companions due to Knight's face being unable to express emotion, he was momentarily overwhelmed by the sight of the surroundings. It felt strange, somehow. Wrong. It wasn't supposed to look like that, or so Knight seemed to believe. Not that he was exactly sure what it was supposed to look like, but it was certainly not like that. Truly strange. Coming out of his emotional state, deciding to file the thoughts away for later, Knight scanned the land below for the clearest path to the giant crab, his strange metal eyes moving with unnatural speed and precision as they quickly took in the lay of the land. Rolling Notice to spot out a good path towards the crab: http://orokos.com/roll/534677 = 1 Success, but Knight notices something else in the most direct path with his specialized eyesight: Several trees knocked over in a way as to indicate a smaller, but still dangerous monster is roaming around the area. That explains the lack of game in the vicinity, it's being hunted! Maybe the giant crab messed with whatever this thing's habitat is... "Fellow Hunters, it appears that the designated target codenamed 'Ice Crab' may have disturbed the hunting grounds of a Medium-class or smaller monstroid. The most direct route to our target leads to the likely new hunting grounds of said monstroid. Advise caution, but Medium-class monstroids shouldn't prove too daunting a distraction." Success at a cost! Aspect created: Medium-Sized Prowling Monster Infinity Gaia fucked around with this message at 17:08 on Jul 22, 2017 |
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Jul 20, 2017 19:07
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Carver He watched his teammates ascend for a little while, smiling beneath his helm. He turned back to the now-superfluous ladder, 'tsk'ing at where one of the vertical struts had fractured following on from Rook's emergency aerobatics. Still, no need to let the abundance of raw material available here go to waste. It would be a while before the rest of them could return with the lay of the land, and he couldn't abide doing nothing. He took up his whittling knife and prepared a few gifts for the long trek ahead. Create an advantage: Using Bonecrafting to whittle some sturdy beams into personalised walking sticks for everyone.4dF+4=3
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Jul 20, 2017 20:38
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Stephen Stephen vibrates contently, happy to help by being sticky but unable to perceive the same grand vista as the others and lacking the intelligence to prepare for the difficult journey and fight ahead.
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Jul 20, 2017 21:05
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Rook Rook just stared blankly over the edge. There was just so much out there - the ruins in particular twisted up something inside of him. Their ancestors (or whatever) had been so widespread, so advanced. Just look at this structure he was sitting on. He rapped against the surface with his claws, feeling the unworldly solidity needed to not only build this high, but to have it last for the uncounted years since its construction. All of that, and it had been lost. Hemasr was great and all, his favourite place in the world, but there was no deluding himself into forgetting that it represented a vanishingly small portion of humanity, living precarious lives in a frozen wasteland. He puffed out a sigh, sending twin trails of vapour out of either side of his mask. No time for this maudlin crap, he was working. He scanned the horizon, sighting the Crab and its route from the coast. Judging from its current position and heading, he attempted to forecast a prime location to intercept it and take it down. Investigating For An Interception Point 4dF+1 = -1 Ultimately, he only had guesses as to where it could go. Its path was erratic, and while he knew the area surrounding Hemasr fairly well he'd never seen it from this vantage point. He simply didn't have the prior experience to cross-reference his findings with past data. He groaned and prepared for his descent.
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Jul 21, 2017 14:43
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Surveying the land, the heroes were, for a moment, stunned by the view, and the sheer scale of the ruins and destruction which covered the land. But they also spotted their prey, and more. Longshot ran his eyes across the ground, seeking something to eat on the way, some way to improve their meagre rations, and found, well, something. To the east, west and north of the monster, black and white spots moving across the a rocky, grey hill sticking out of the tundra - Rock Ptarmigan. The birds were small game and difficult to hunt, but fatty; and they were game, and even small game would extend their rations. At this point, they might even have eggs, ripe for the stealing. Meanwhile, Knight surveyed the ruins for a clear path towards the monster, and found a broad road, a boulevard, perhaps? curving slightly north and then moving east and south, almost directly towards the monster. However... several places, he saw the clear marks of some monster or other having moved along the road as well, and though i couldn't see it from here, it was clear that a monster made its lair somewhere on or along the road; something dangerous. Meanwhile, carver made some quite excellent walking sticks. What's your next move? by the looks of it, unless something happens to change it, it seems like you might well go to bed hungry tomorrow, and find the hunger weakening you by noon the day after. You have the road to follow, but you also have choose if you'll spend time to go off the beaten path to hunt birds, and weather or not you want to risk meeting whichever monster Knight spottet. You might also be able to temporarily keep going on stimulants, but that'd burn through your stimulants p. fast. Aspects in play: Weak Joints I Mass Produced Stimulants II A clear path I Walking Sticks I Boosts in play: Rock Ptarmigan
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Jul 22, 2017 19:53
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Rook "Well, no sense sticking around up here. Our target is clear enough, and I'm sure between us we can cook up a good route over there. And, uh, speaking of cooking stuff up, we may want to consider supper. I'm heading down to talk to Carver, then I think we should get on the road before the weather turns." With a half-sarcastic, he began the long climb down, using the residual charge in his harness to take a few daredevil shortcuts. -O- Later, he dropped down beside Carver, panting. He indicated the staves breathlessly, pantomiming walking, then gave a thumbs up. "We found the bugger, not that it was trying to hide its tracks or anything. We should have no trouble finding it if it keeps its heading. Longshot also spotted some game up there with those sharp eyes of hers - I think we should stock up before we really lay into this thing. Besides, if we have extra we can maybe lay some bait or something." He picked up his alloted stick and swung it to hear it whistle through the air. Perfectly balanced, not that he expected anything less from Carver. The man was an artist.
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Jul 22, 2017 23:50
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