This sounds like a really cool game. If it's okay, I'll play as the Blessed Spirit of The River
And, a question on strength, Can we save up strength over turns for larger actions? Or do we lose what's left over when we sleep?
In ether case, I think I will use Broad Focus HEAL as I imbue positive energies into the river area. (8 NAT)
Indeed you can. If you sleep early, you conserve strength for the next period you are all awake. Staying awake for long periods of time consumes strength as well; you spend much faster than you regenerate.
The Grass of the Plains reporting in!
First action, view the valley!
The Grass: You adjust your senses to get a clearer view of the valley as a whole. [-1 GEN]
The valley is vast, stretching from the high mountains in the north down to the low sea in the south. The
Whispering Hills border the valley on either side, almost mountainous to the north. The upper hills are almost barren, covered only by a wide variety of sparse grasses and shrubs that call the high reaches their home. Birds are common here, but the shrubs and grasses don't support much in the way of large life except for a handful of herds of a sort of long-haired grazing animal. Rodents and insects abound, however.
As the hills descend, they turn into the
Forest of Sleeping Giants, a fairly dense forest that turns from evergreens in the higher reaches to deciduous trees in the lowlands. The forest is sparser at the lower and higher extents of its spread, but thick in the middle. Larger animals are more common here, with a small population of local deer and a smaller population of local wolves, along with a variety of other woodland creatures. You can't pick them out clearly, but you can see a pair of small huts on the edge of the forest belonging to the local woodcutters.
At the edge of the forest is yourself, the
Grasslands. You stretch down the whole length of the valley on either side of the river, rolling fields of dense grass. Burrowing creatures and small insects are common in your fields, with plenty of birds predating them. A small area has been cleared of rocks and trees near the human settlement, and small roots and grains planted roughly nearby the handful of huts. The huts border those on the river.
The
Blessed River itself bisects the valley, formed from several tributaries leading out of the hills to the north until it becomes a single channel running out to sea. Fish are fairly plentiful in the river, feeding on the various river plants and insects that spawn on the surface, while being predated themselves by herons and other water birds. Most of the human huts are built on the edge of the river, where they set up small basket fish traps and spear-fish for food.
The river flows down to the sea, but before it reaches it there is a dip in the landscape where the local soil is flooded; the
Glowing Bog is a dark, murky place filled with willows and other wetland trees, as well as a plethora of insects and local amphibians. The local fireflies are numerous, as is the occasional swamp fire, giving the bogs their name.
Finally, you have a broad view of the hamlet of
Narsis itself. There are twenty people living in it, if you discount the three living at the edge of the woods. The huts are clustered around one edge of the river, with a handful of primitive fields for subsistence agriculture. They don't appear to have any obvious identity or drive beyond merely surviving.
Blessed Spirit: [-8 NAT] You focus your power into yourself, and warm waves of health spread out through the whole of the river. Everything is filled with a little more vibrancy, a little more life. The river plants grow a little faster, the fish are a little friskier, the birds a little sharper. The local ecosystem self-balances, but your action increases the overall biomass of the river while preserving the diversity and slightly increasing the local health. This enchantment will continue for several years before fading, and the ecosystem will retain the benefits once it does.
The local fishermen reap the benefits too, finding the fish stocks increasing and larger catches as a result. How this will affect them in the long term you will have to wait and see.
Inhabitants: 12 (Fishermen)
Health: Moderate
Happiness: Optimistic
Ecology: Stable
Natural Health: Fairly Good
Biodiversity: Moderate
Biomass: Above Average
General Strength: 5
Natural Strength: 2
Cultural Strength: 0
You get essentially the same view as the
Grass did, but your attention is drawn more towards the inhabitants. You are able to identify that they are of four different families, drawn from your own ancient stock. [-1 GEN]
You whisper across the settlement, but your voice is little more than a passing thought. However, the thought sticks, and they find themselves attaching more importance to honouring the dead. How this will play out remains to be seen. [-1 CUL, -1 GEN]
[And yes, 4 GEN strength left.]
Whispering Wind: You call across the valley, planting a single thought in the minds of men;
come to the hills. Your thought doesn't seem to touch the minds of beasts, but you find you might be able to
Guide the migration of beasts for the same cost in Natural strength. [-1 GEN]
Several of the humans visit the hills at different times, finding and hunting some of the long-haired grazers. Nobody moves up there, but the compulsion will remain for some time. This may have effects later on.
[Meta: Viewing the valley as a whole might not have much of a different effect, unless you try to specifically look for different things. In the case of the Ancestors, there isn't really enough data available at that view about the village worth noting in addition to the existing issue.]
Sleeping Giants: You don't have the power to view in
Fine detail, as that would consume 8 basic strength, and you have only 5. However, focusing down to a
Narrow scope you can see the foresters' camp in detail. [-4 GEN] It is very basic; two huts constructed from simple wooden supports and sod walls, with roofs of layered branches. The camp doesn't even have a fence to keep out animals, but there is a communal firepit nearby, as well as a couple of racks for curing animal skins.
There are three humans living in the camp, a husband-and-wife pair and an older male in the other hut. The older male seems more experienced, and leads the three in woodcutting. You are able to watch them for several weeks, following their lives. They hunt the occasional animal, cut wood which they trade to the main hamlet for fish and vegetables. Over time, you see the older male cut and build a basic fence from branches after their food supplies (stored in clay pots) were raided by woodland animals. It becomes apparent to you that the female is with child.
You will sustain this level of viewing for some time, if you have more specific things you want to try and see about the camp.
Author
Topic: The Valley (Genii Locus) [For 6 Players] (Read 8561 times)