Go poke around in the plants a bit. Are there fruits, berries, or other potentially edible bits? Are any of the plants apparently carnivorous? Are there bees? Prick myself on a few thorns and eat the first suspicious looking fruit or stalk or berry or leaf that looks edible but probably poisonous. If it's poisonous enough, attempt to not die and to acquire the material: poison
The Ascetic Ghost Shepherd
A thin, wiry guy. Hazel eyes. Black hair. Long fingers.
current status: fine
Stats
6 str
6 spd
10 End
8 Know
10 Will
4 sense
Mana: 14 12
Materials: Porcelain, Black Flux, Force
Inventory:
Inhabited by a Spirit - a little shepherdess girl. Likes dolls. Adventurous. (Current request: cute and furry)
Currently hosting a Scarab ghost in muh brains. (Currently wants a religious relic that has been buried with the dead for some time)
One catamaran sailboat
Ghost Charm
Doctor's Kit
Lantern, Rope, Backpack
(1) rolling horse toy
shiny orb from the ruins on the lake (light blue glow. 1 mana invested.)
haunted obsidian and wood knife (with cold, light metal box)
0 gold
You look around. There are fruits and berries and even what look like edible tubers and roots, maybe leaves and stalks too. Your knowledge of foraging doesn't really encompass these things but they do have some similarity to edible plants you've seen elsewhere. None look inherently carnivorous , or at least not overtly so, though plenty do have thorns. You select one that has some very long and thin red thorns and jab one into your flesh. The Red color in the thorn vanishes as whatever fluid was presurized inside it injects into you, leaving nothing but a soft, clear nub behind.
[7v2]
You seize up and collapse back onto the stairs. For several minutes you can do nothing more than spasm on the ground but, after a while, the shaking subsides enough for you to sit up and lean against the wall. It takes another several minutes for you to get complete control over your limbs and stand up.
[Toxin] gained.
Buy three of those wyrm scales, a harness, 200 feet of rope and a belt to easily store and access my rope with.
Resume guarding the caravan after I'm done shopping.
Name: Robert Grant
Appearance: A stocky, tall man with black hair.
Magic path: Hunter Sculptor
Strength: d10+1
Speed: d6
Endurance: d8
Knowledge: d8
Will: d8
Senses: d4
Ongoing effects: Cut palm (treated), deep gash in the side (treated)
Mana: 3
Materials:
Shrink
Inventory:
War axe d8
Doctor's Bag
Leather armor d6
Bandages
Backpack
Lantern
303 gold
76 silver
Shield
Sword d6
Crossbow d6
20 crossbow bolts
Helmet d4
Leather gloves
Crowbar
Rope
Iron thread
8 lead weights (in storage)
Rifle d8 4/5
28 rifle rounds
2 single shot pistols d6
8 pistol rounds
Alright. Did I give prices for those other things before? If not lets say...add 20 gold to the price of the scales. If I have, use the earlier price.
We can fast forward straight to the merchants leaving if you got nothing else to do round here.
"I can try. what else do we know? Is there a list of reported victims? any locals that have already done some investigating I could talk to? Do we have a map of the slums I could plot victim's last known locations before disappearing, and where they're reappearing on, to check for patterns? Do we have any victims or friends of victims that I could talk to? any patterns of victim profiles like age, wealth, gender, hair color, whatever? What exactly do you mean when you say 'half-dead'? are they injured physically or mentally? if physical, what kind of injuries? blunt trauma? cuts? sickness? dehydration? burns?"
ask
Name: Nina Morellis
Appearance: A young, red-haired woman, green eyes, somewhat unkempt. She's had Adam for as long as she could remember, and has a bit of a reputation as a harmless nut. The town guard are okay with Nina though, occasionally getting her help keeping a mage secured by having her drain their mana so they can't cast. Since they don't have a proper magehunter available, having a local civilian channeler they can bring in as needed is a big help. And Nina tries to be on her best behavior with them to keep their relations good. Nina herself works as a healer, living out in the poor part of town, and has an erratic schedule based on the needs of those who want her help. so she has a lot of free time, but also gets woken up in the middle of the night a lot. add in Adam's occasional antics and she doesn't get to have a stable sleep schedule.
Magic Path: Channeler, Invoker.
Materials: Sound
Mana: 3
Strength: D4
Speed: D6
Endurance: D10
Knowledge: D8
Will: D10
Senses: D6
(Locked up) Inventory: Backpack, padded cloak (D4 protection, Light armor), Lantern, doctor's bag, waterskin (air), hammer, 2 silver, air bladder, white robes, aqua vitae.
(current) Inventory: a red gambleson, gray pants, metal bracers, shin guards and a sallet helm (d6 armor). Other than that there is a kite shield (d6), a long sword (d6) and a catch pole, along with 3 small bombs and a pair of manacles.
Inhabited by a spirit which takes the form of a floating disembodied limb that constantly melts and reforms into other body parts. She calls it "Adam."
Cabal: None at this time.
"I've got list of victims for you, and where they're staying. As per a map of where they disappeared and reappeared, its in a fairly wide section of the slums. Judging by how erratic it is, and the fact that people disappear when alone at night, we believe them to be crimes of opportunity rather than carefully planned. The only connecting thread between the victims seems to be that they are able bodied, relatively young, and walking alone at night. Everything else is unconnected. As per half dead, I mean they're exhausted, dehydrated, starved, etc. No sign of restraint or physical abuse, though some have scratches or bruises they don't appear to be intentionally inflicted. Sort of thing you'd get falling or running through a bush, you know?"
Go down via the rope and search for where our bomb could do the most damage.
Also, supposing we could collapse the tower, does it seem likely that will collapse the cave as well, or other shenanigans like that?
Depends on the length and how "Smart" it is. Like do you want it to be autonomous and just send it out on its own? Or do you want to basically point at targets or maybe throw it at them and it just automatically ties them up? Are we assuming 100 foot or more?
Second, just a way to herd all those people and prevent them from wandering off again. Might not even need a spell for it if they don't resist getting tied up and herded. As for length, whatever is needed t transport all the peeps in the fields really.
Feel free to PM me these sorts of questions and I'll probably reply faster than I could here. (Currently in an airport.)
Man, I hardly even manage to post actions these days. Haven't even gotten around to checking if you ever answered on discord about the feng shui stuff. Still, thanks.
Name: Darwin Zeppeli
Appearance: An old medicine man.
Magic path: alchemist gut-reader
Strength: d4
Speed: d6->d8
Endurance: d6->d8
Knowledge: d10
Will: d8
Senses: d10
Mana: 31 (15 to ecalir)
10 thaum in bottle
Ongoing effects: None
Magical materialsVacuum!
Reanimate
Sharpen
Viscera
Diamond
Rope
Inventory1 sedated bugman
6 mercenaries (currently at edge of cavern)
1 ranged and 1 melee merc, stay with Ecalir and watch his back
3 melee mercs and 1 ranged merc stay with Darwin, 2 of the melee mercs stick close to him at all times and act as bodyguards
dissection knife: d4
Springy metal knive: d6
Springy metal sword: d6
Springy metal halberd: d8
Curved blade: d6
Icepick: d4
gun: d8 [50 rounds left]
9 smokebombs
Thaumic bomb (currently empty)
Ecalir's old armor: d8 (in use)
shield (+1 to protective rolls from armor)
Sealer Suit: d4 (vs magic)
Alchemist’s Gear
39 gold
5 silver
Octopus core
A glass slab with a topographical map of the kingdom carved into it
a bottle of glowing blue sea water, inside protective box with lock
a glass orb with barely visible lotus inside of it, inside staff assembly.
magic coin
Small book
magic compass + map
book on normal plants and animals
book on magical plants and animals/creatures
handbook on making weapons&armor, including a list of known types
a detailed account of the Artifacter war
map of the old world
good quality book&pen
good history book
Paradox snail (inside jar) and things to keep them happy and fed
Doctor's bag
set of ingredients (plants, chemicals and the like) for making poisons or antidotes (23 uses left)
High quality backpack
donkey named Yvonne for carrying
Zomboraptor head
Lantern
several hundred feet of rope
climbing crampons
a grappling hook
iron stakes
net made of rope
several vials with imp fat
20 vials
2x Collapsible rod
20 oil flasks
300 feet of really big, thick, strong rope
100 feet of metal chain
box of metal spikes
pair of binoculars
5 boxes of rags
Medium armor: d6 (not in use)
[6v6]
You search about, heading deeper and deeper into the structure. Its hard to say where the ground floor is; there are no windows after you get far enough down so you might be under the cave floor. However, you cannot find any thing that you would characterize as a big support beam or similar. You come to the conclusion that this thing is probably kept together largely though the strength of its outer wall and inner structures, much like a termite mound. In that case it might be more effective to go outside and collapse thing thing like cutting down a tree, weakening the "Casing" on one side and letting the weight take care of the rest.
It might? You're not sure.
I'd say d6 would work for that. Lets say 300 feet worth of rope.
I did. In fact I may have gone way too far and transformed it into something else~
(Did the Ring of Fire leave or is still with me? If it’s not with me I can edit the post)
Name: Eve
Appearance: 4 ft tall female human with long hear that constantly changes color. She always wears a long sleeve shirt and jeans. She has slightly tan skin and green eyes.
Magic path: Servant Sculptor
Mana: 3
Strength: d4
Speed: d8
Endurance: d6
Knowledge: d10
Will: d8
Senses: d8
Ongoing effects: None
Items needed for current Sculpture
1. A smooth river rock: Acquired
2. A block of Ice: Not Acquired
3. About a half liter of mercury: Not Acquired
4. Silver Wire: Acquired
Spirit: Ring of Fire
Spirit Task: find Gold Ring:complete
Inventory: Doctor's bag, Thick fur shirt D4, Thick fur leggings d4, ghost charm, Smooth river rock, 100 ft of string, a pry-bar, a spool of silver wire, 50 gold
Materials: lightsilver
Try to cast a spell that makes a hollow sphere of light silver around a swarm, that gets smaller over time, crushing the bugs inside
[3v7] -3 mana.
You point at the wildly swarming insects near you and attempt a large scale summoning. A mist of silver, almost like a bubble of mercury, begins to appear but then black red lightning lashes through the air and the summoning fails with a crackle and shockwave. The lightning lashes back into you and strikes your outstretched hand. You can do little but scream as it converts the flesh of your hand, wrist, and half of your forearm into solid aluminum.
No orders for people on the ground, as I'm in the air. Keep doing things?
Cast a 1-hour duration Strengthen spell on my eyes to enhance my senses to d10.
Direct Benedict to where he can do the most good shredding the insects. Maybe directly above the machine guns so they don't need to worry about straight up? Look around for a source or some location where they're coming from.. is there something that needs to be taken out, or is there just a lot of them?
Does it look like we're winning, or is more magical intervention necessary?.
Japanese girl with a long black braid and a white and red fitted robe with long gloves. Clothing is slightly dull in colour and made of metallic thread. Slight sparkle in eyes. Pointy, somewhat elfish ears. Burnt off eyebrows from spell failure. Missing fingernails on right hand.
Invoking Empath
Str d6
Speed d8
Endurance d10+1
Knowledge d6+1
Will d10+1
Senses d8
Materials: d12 Ape, d12 Grow, d12 Strengthen, d12 Expand, d8 View, d10 Steel, and d10 Speed.
Location: Lunare
Status: Fine. Burn scars on arms. Missing fingernails on right hand. Slightly enhanced hearing.
Temporary Effects: Buff pill. (Will, Awakeness)
Items:
Carried:
32 mana
33 gold
d8+1 armour: The outfit, naturally, and a shield. Weighs as if it were d6
Shield.
Backpack
Waterskin
Compass
Goggles
Surgical tools
100 feet of rope
Two amulets with week-long d6 endurance-boosting effects. Intended to help heal maltreatment, exhaustion, and restore some health to abused, dying people, to make them more likely to survive.
Jade tablets with d8 View, d10 Steel, and d10 Speed.
Left Behind:
Black metal scrap
Steel scraps
Cable-wrapped metal box of happiness.
Box of painting-golem
Familiar. "Benedict" Cougar/red-tailed hawk, adequate flyer, elephant-sized with 60+ foot wingspan.
Natural weapons d6, d8 with swooooop.
Buffed with buff pill, d8 Strengthen Ape mind bouncer.
Steel Helmet. 1d4 armour?
Str D12
Spd D8
End D12
Kno D4
Will D8
Sen D6
[Fanciful]
Notes: Improving physical stats with strengthen, d4->d6 is d6, d6->d8 is d12, d8->d10 is d20 or more.
Mental stats are possible, but harder or more complicated.
[10v4] -4 mana
You place your hands over your eyes and push mana into them, strengthening their sight considerably for a short period and making them positively glow and shimmer with energy.
[10v8]
You direct Benedict down, attempting to cover the areas that his clone are not, striking at large swarms and rescuing badly cornered groups. It becomes a loop of hard ascents and then sharp dives as you attack, the world shaking violently as claws tear through chitin and muscled flesh batters through. You and Benedict quickly become slick with ichor.
You take a moment in the midst of an ascent to survey the scene. Despite the chaos, things seem to be going your way. There are casualties but your troops seem to be holding strong while the insects are quickly dwindling and being cut down. They have greater numbers but their tactics are those of animals cannot stand up to coordinated attacks.
Try to coordinate the machine guns--they're firing randomly, which is worse than useless. Direct them to target specific areas that are failing, or make particularly good targets; Ekrov should have the senses to spot opportunities, and might have the will to actually get the commands across. Shoot any bugs that get too close, with the d6 spring pistol.
Unrelated, but I have no idea how much ammo the basic d6 ranged weapon that Ekrov started with is supposed to have. After looking at other stuff is seems like ranged weapons actually should track ammo. So if he's supposed to have a limited quantity of ammo I need to know how much he actually has.
Name: Ekrov Trenian Vyachilad
Description: A noble's son, Ekrov is a boy on the cusp of adulthood, and barely looks it. His hands are soft, his appearance taken care of, and his bones slightly visible under his unmarred skin. He's scrawny, clearly having never done manual labor in his life, and somewhat short--though it's hard to tell whether that's due to age or genetics. His eyes are wide and constantly look around in absentminded wonderment; he's clearly out of his element in this, and gives off a tourist-y impression. He wears a clearly high-quality outfit, but to his credit it looks unusually practical for a noble, subdued brown in color and light aside from thin pieces of light leather in strategic locations, clearly intended more as protection than a fashion statement. He carries a small backpack, and wears a light cloak that's had an absurd number of little pockets clumsily sewn into it.
Magic Path: Alchemist Sculptor
Mana: 6
Magic Words: "Animate"
Stats:
Strength: d4
Speed: d6
Endurance: d4
Knowledge: d12
Will: d6 (Buffed to d8)
Senses: d12
Ongoing Effects: None...?
Current Sculpture Materials:
1. Human skull
2. 10 lbs of pure iron
3. a piece of complex machinery; clockwork or similar.
4. a bottle of water collected directly from the a cloud.
5. The blood of someone who has fought off a possession with their own will
Inventory:
Backpack
Lightly armored traveling outfit (enchanted to d6, from d4)
Wooden shield (+1 to armor rolls, most of the time)
Steel stilleto (d4 melee)
Ornamental spring pistol (d6 ranged)
Alchemist gear
24 gold, 8 silver (Saeko owes him 400 gold)
Paints, a dish, sands, glitter, water, general scrying supplies.
Pencil + Paper.
Expensive medical supplies.
Sketches of:
Gyrotourbillon's workings
Benedict the Griffon
(Revolver right? So 6 rounds and then we'll say you start with 36 extra rounds in your bag.)
You break from the Magebreakers and run over the machine guns, shooting as you do. [6v8] You don't think you hit anything but you expend 6 rounds mostly to keep yourself covered as you move. Once you reach the guns you start directing their operators, pointing out targets and telling them to focus on specific foes instead of spraying and praying. They seem to follow the advice and start focusing in, firing in short bursts instead of full auto madness.
The battle drags on for several more minutes. How long is hard to say. It feels both like an eternity and no time at all, a blur of blood and violence that stretches infinitely. But it finally starts to lessen and what was once a savage battle to survive becomes a clean up operation as more and more clusters of insects are finished off and the men move to help their compatriots, snowballing their forces and wiping out the remaining bugs quicker and easier each time. Victory seems assured at this point.