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The wind, cold and cruel, whips across the top of the glacier, a wall of ice scraping the earth and touching the heavens. It looms over the valley at its base, its melt filling the air with the roar of water rushing downslope, carving rivers and creeks into the mountain side.  The rivers and creeks wind down the mountain, a domain of majestically horned ibex and mountain sheep who wander the crags and cliff faces out of reach of their predators. The people here are hardy and stout, and give praise to the Mother Earth.  At the foot of the mountain the rivers merge and wind around the landscape creating a vast wetland where the lowing of aurochs, warning slaps of beavers, and cries of waterfowl echo across the rivers. Here the people live off of the bounty of the rivers travelling where the stars tell them to and erect stone monoliths to track the seasons.  Westward the wetland changes into verdant woodland, light filters through the treetops illuminating parts of the forest floor where deer and boar forage for food. The air here hums with life and this life gives rise to the myriad spirits that inhabit this land. To navigate the wants and needs of the spirits that surround them the people who reside here turn to shamans to relay to them the will of the spirits.  North and east the forest and wetlands give way to endless steppe grazed by herds of horses, antelope, and mammoths, preyed upon by packs of wolves, lions, and hyenas, your home. Powerful spirits with the forms of animals rule the steppe, to survive your ancestors made a pact with one of these spirits, taking it as their totem, for a place on the steppe.  But this is far from your mind. All you can think of is hunger. It fills you, consuming everything you do; it is all you can do to stumble along. Your head feels like it is full of fog, barely able to think or even react in time to what’s around you, and you almost don’t notice the stream until you’re on top of it. You drink, greedily and unceasing, hoping, praying, that you can trick your belly with just water. Eventually your stomach is full, but the fog remains. You force yourself to think of something, anything, just some kind of thought that will help put your mind into motion, anything. You think about … a) Your reflection b) Your tribe c) The past year d) The Hunger e) Alone, You’re Alone _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Hey y’all this is my first time doing one of these so please give some criticism if I slip up somehow. The game’s set during the late ice age with some fantasy elements but it may take a bit to get to them. Your character is going to be an ice age hunter-gather so keep that in mind when coming up with solutions to problems, no stone age steam engines and what not, this being said you’re not dumb you just don’t have the base modern people do and I reserve the right to allow some wiggle room if I want. You do not have plot armor, the choices you make can make things worse or even kill you, generally I will give you guys a warning that something might be a bad idea but the decision is in your alls hands. Speaking of voting, votes will be majority rules but other votes will influence your thoughts and sometimes even your actions. When you vote make sure to bold your choice so that they are easier for me to count otherwise do whatever you like in your post. I am aiming to have at least one big update or a bunch of little updates a week but will definitely have at the very least two big updates a month.
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Aug 6, 2020 04:35
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| # ¿ Apr 23, 2024 15:57 |
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Reserved
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Aug 6, 2020 04:48
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Hunger/Your tribe/The past year/Hunger Your tribe... was... hungry?... over the past year? The haze makes it hard to even focus on a single thought, they bleed in and out of each other impossible for you to grasp, like a school of shimmering fish, but you still try.  _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ It was hard for the past seasons, years really, the bountiful herds and edible plants seemed to dwindle until there was nothing. You were supposed to be protected by Cat. Right! Cat the totem of your tribe, she is your tribe and your tribe is her, your ears, pointed and furred, and tail are proof of your connection.  Cat was supposed to protect you, make sure that your tribe had food and shelter from the winter chill, but she didn’t. Why? Did you anger her? No, your tribe had held up its end of the pact, food had been left out, no cat, large or small, had been harmed, and the sacred places had been visited. Did she abandon you? Why now? In the end the why doesn’t matter as much as what happened to you, you suppose. With little food your tribe decided to split and meet again in the spring hoping that smaller groups would be able to support themselves more easily. They were wrong. It was all you could do to even barely feed yourself You only managed to survive because of ... A.) Your Strength as a hunter B.) Your Skill as a trapper C.) Your Knowledge of edible plants D.) Your Perception leading you to animal tracks E.) Your Agility letting you chase down hard to catch prey On top of this you are especially skilled in these areas … (Pick Three) F.) Spear use G.) Forage H.) Navigate I.) Story J.) Crafting K.) Awareness L.) Trapping M.) Movement N.) Tracking
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Aug 7, 2020 16:38
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From a young age you had always been praised for your keen eyes and memory, things which helped you become very good at foraging for plants. So when you were alone and everything edible seemed to be disappearing into thin air you were able to spot the few remaining edible plants and keep a mental note of where you had found them. You also tried your hand at trapping but your inexperience made it so you only caught a couple of animals. Most of your free time was spent making new tools or maintaining your old ones, something you also had a knack for, it helped keep your mind off of what was happening. Spring came and you headed to where your tribe was supposed to meet up. No one was there when you got there and so you waited and waited and waited eventually summer came and no one showed up leaving you with a choice: stay waiting for who knows how long or leave and hope you run into your tribe elsewhere, preferably somewhere with food. So here you are starving lying face down next to a stream while something is calling a name from the other side. Wait that's not just any name is it? Oh ooooooh that your name being called Which is... Write in… You look up across the stream and see... um… what?  Live     When you come to you find yourself lying on fur, to your left you feel the warmth of a fire and hear someone singing softly as they work on something. You slowly open your eyes seeing a roof made of thatch above your head You … A.) Talk to the person in the hut. What do you say? B.) Go back to sleep C.) Go over what just happened in your head D.) Take a closer look at what is around you E.) Write in Do you sit up … F.) Yes G.) No
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Aug 9, 2020 04:10
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By popular demand posted:I suggest just leaning on the cultural connection to Cat and name us Felisa Silvestrix. So collapse by a river, wake up in a hut, food just disappears from the steppe, and a talking cat!? Yep everything totally normal and nothing weird is happening. You drag yourself up into a sitting position noting to yourself that it seems a little harder than normal. You blink your eyes trying to get used to the light, across the fire sits a woman, her round ears and average height mark her out to be one of the river people.  After being unconscious for who knows how long you are naturally filled with questions. Where did all of the food in the steppe go? Why do you have “you hear me” in images in your dreams/whatever that was? Was there a talking cat!?! There are two however that you know are the most pressing, looking at your host you ask her “Where am I and what was I like when you found me?” Your host, looking surprised, scratches her head “Um well uh you’re in the riverlands as for what you were like when you were found you’d have to ask the hunters that found you for the specifics but as far as I know your were passed out from hunger near a stream. I’m Tanis by the way” Tanis then stands up and starts heading towards the door. She turns and points at a leather bag hanging near the fire “There’s some porridge for you to eat I got a turtle shell for you to put in” she then points next to the bag where there is a cleaned turtle shell Do you eat the porridge A.) Yes B.) Yes and you leave some for Cat C.) No “I need to tell the elders that you’ve woken up. Um don’t wander too far until I’m back I guess.” Tanis then ducks out of the hut leaving you with the porridge. With Tanis gone you go back over what has happened in your head, food just gone, check, stumbling next to a stream, sounds right, a cat, lets not think too hard about that right now. Now what happened after you passed out, you vaguely recall passing in and out of consciousness briefly, there were people talking about something over you, a sensation of being carried somewhere, and being laid down next to a fire on a fur. Also images that was weird wasn’t it. As you mull over what happened Tanis comes back into the hut looking over at you deep in thought she clears her throat “If you’re feeling up to it then the elders want to meet with you” Do you meet with the Elders D.) Yes E.) No, you don’t feel strong enough to walk over to meet the elders F.) No, you don’t trust these people enough to meet the elders G.) No, you want to get your bearing first
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Aug 11, 2020 01:52
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Lux Animus posted:B That's basically what F is the other two are delaying it for til you have recovered from starving/are in a better headspace
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Aug 11, 2020 02:37
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You scoop some of the porridge into the turtle shell, it is delicious and filling, tasting slightly nutty. You eat as much of it as you feel comfortable eating at this time and leave the rest of the porridge to the side as an offering for Cat. ____________________________________________________________________________ Tanis leads you out of the hut and you get a glimpse of the entirety of the camp for the first time. The trees have been beaten back creating a small clearing, most of the ground is stamped down by people moving around and clear of any plant life. A fire burns in the center of the clearing, people sit around it working on various crafts and preparing food while children dart around them playing. Further out from the fire stand a handful of conical huts draped with thatch scattered haphazardly around the clearing.  Something however seems off about this scene You … A.) Look over the campsite for what's out of place B.) Remember what your stories say about the river people to figure out what’s wrong C.) Ignore the feeling, you have your own problems to deal with D.) Ask Tanis E.) Go over what you know about geography of the area to figure out if there is something wrong with where you are Tanis leads you over to another hut and motions to you to go inside. Where Tanis’ hut was filled with tools and materials, the interior of this hut is decorated with carved pieces of bone and wood, each is covered with constellations of dots creating a false night sky within the hut. Sitting on furs around a small fire in the center of the hut are sit five people who you can only assume to be the elders that called for you. They are seated in a half circle opposite the entrance, looking over them they certainly look like elders, all wrinkled skin and grey hair. The one opposite the entrance is the first to speak, her voice is kind and soft, like your grandmother.  “Ah good to see our guest is up and moving already.”  “First good thing to happen in a while.”  The elder sitting next to the mumbler shoots him a death glare, this is obviously not the first time he’s done this. “Please sit and make yourself comfortable. I’m sure you're full of questions and us old fools can try to answer them. Although we were wondering if you could share any news from the steppe.”  “Especially since the Boar tribe hasn’t shown up yet.” “Yes we haven’t seen any traders from the steppe this year usually they are quite punctual.” “Just another of our many problems.” The elder again starts to glare down her neighbor but this time it seems that they’ve struck a cord and the mumbler begins to argue with her in hushed tones. “You think I’m just going to stay quiet while everything goes to poo poo” “This not something an outsider needs to know about” “You’re acting as if they don’t already you saw how they were when they were brought in, the steppe is affected too” “And that is why we are asking her” “All I’m saying is to be open and get openness in return” Once more the elder sitting next to the mumbler glares him down until he turns back to the fire with a huff  “It reflects poorly on us to bicker in front of our guest” the previously taciturn elder says as he glares at the two arguing with each other. The two elders both hang their heads mumbling to themselves about the injustice of what just happened “I apologize for that things have been stressful as of late and any news from the steppe will help” The most belligerent elder then shoots a triumphant look at neighboring glarer. You … F.) Tell them what has happened on the steppe G.) Tell them that you had a hard winter and spring but don’t tell them the full extent of the famine H.) (Lie) Tell them that everything in the steppe is fine I.) Other (Write in)
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Aug 15, 2020 04:21
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| # ¿ Apr 23, 2024 15:57 |
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Stories posted:The Last People The people of the riverlands are nomads, they migrate along the rivers following the instructions of the stars, they never stay in any place longer than a couple of weeks. This camp has had people in it for far longer than a couple of weeks, the ground is well trod, the hut frames are well set into the ground, and there is not a single sledge to be found. Your educated guess is that they have been in this camp for at least a season, if not two. For some reason they haven’t moved on like they are supposed to. But that's not the only thing that seems off. Unless your hunger affected you more than you thought you were nowhere near the wetlands. You are sure that you were at best a month’s travel from the wetlands you should not of passed out anywhere near the wetlands much less in it _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ You tell them everything, how everything edible seemed to disappear from the steppe, how you split to survive but even that barely enough, and how you waited for your tribe to meet back up with you only for no one to appear. When you finish the room is silent the elders look at each other with concern on their face This explains what happened with the boar tribe atleast To think this could happen to the steppe And only the steppe it seems like The lead elder turns to you "We are sorry to hear of the tragedy that you and your tribe have endured. If you need somewhere to stay then know that our camp will be open to you. We must help each other in these trying times. If you wish to know anything, anything at all, we will be more than willing to answer your questions" You … A.) Take them up on their offer to stay with them in the camp B.) Tell them you must leave and search for the other members of your tribe C.) Tell them you appreciate the offer but wish to go on your own for the time being Pick a Story D.) How Cat set the Stars in the Sky E.) How Cat stole Fire F.) Why Fish has Fins and Bird has Wings Questions are Open Sorry for the delay. With both work and school starting back up again updates are going to come out a little slower but I'm still committed to this.
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Aug 28, 2020 01:21
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