”Well, I guess I’ll do it myself”
First, try to cut some chunks of crystal out of the wall/floor to use as junk.
Then, go and carefully carve a peak hole to see if I see the snake in the entombed barrel.
- edit - allow others to use knife
Name: Harmony “Harm” Li
Description: Lean and broody looking. This woman has short black hair and is partially covered in interlocking black tattoos. She wears simple black clothes, with a knee-length Maggot Wool Coat overtop.
Goal: Overall, Harm would like to find a place where refugees and travelers could seek refuge without dealing with the dogmatic influence of the church. Right now, though, she just wants to get away.
Stats
Str:10
Dex:11
Spe:10
End:10
Awa:10
Cun:12
Kno:10
Ner:10
Skills
Weapon smith (3)
Mechanical (2)
Lucky Shot (1)
Inventory
Crystal cutting utility knife
Silver/Tin wire spool
3 gold cubes
7 Octahedrons
5 Large branches of crystalline lead
Several large chunks of blue crystal
Lucky Shot (6 rounds)
Field Lighter
10 Path Markers
8 units structural junk
2 units mechanical junk
You walk over to the doorway and cut a few semicircular chunks from the stone; the knife's lack of stabbing point means you can't really just gouge bits out willy nilly, you have to have some foresight in how and where you cut. The best you can do to carve a peephole is to slice off a chunk of the edge of the barrel, cutting enough away that it opens a small hole. You're about to start doing that when Nyw steps in front of you, apparently more desirous of going the direct route rather than fussing with peepholes and caution.
You shrug and take several long steps back before handing the knife off to an insistent young Ethral, who takes it reverently in all four hands at once and totters away.
Alex lets out sigh as he looks at his headless handle.
Collect the shovelhead and go back to the group.
Name: Alex Wells
Description: A middle aged man standing 5'7" feet tall. He has short brown hair and an unkempt beard.
Goal: Exploring the depths and collecting its wealth.
Stats:
Str: 11
Dex: 10
Spe: 10
End: 10
Awa: 10
Cun: 12
Kno: 10
Ner: 10
Skills:
Explosives 2
Mechanical 1
Survival 1
Caving 1
Chemical 2
Geology 1
Inventory:
Dynamo Lantern
Field Lighter
3 TNT
Broken Bladed Shovel (Handle)
Mail Shirt
8 Fathoms
You sigh and pick up the shovel's sharpened blade, examining it for a moment before stuffing it in our bag, along with the handle. Then you head back up to the exit and rejoin the rest of the group.
"Harm, could I borrow your knife? I want to carve out some crystal material and make a proper weapon for the honored dead."
Request usage of the crystal-carving knife. If successful, carve out a flat pane, then cut that pane down to the size and shape of a large curved sword.
Name: Wiellste Gunsmithy
Description: A young Ethral, no taller than 4 feet. Her fur is unpatterned and a milky white. Usually wears a rather plain quilted brown silk cloak, and a polished copper mask with symmetrical, spiraling lines etched on the sides.
Goal: Wiellste is like many Ethral in that she seeks to gather knowledge about the world before all else. Though being an Ethral from Knot, her skills are largely more on the practical building side than the scholarly side. She isn't particularly invested in the teachings of the Tenebrous Church, but the idea of the spheres intrigues her, especially Balarim, with it's writings and technology.
Stats:
Str: 7
Dex: 12
Spe: 10
End: 8
Awa: 7
Cun: 15
Kno: 13
Ner: 11
Skills:
Weaponsmith 2
Diving 2
Pistol 1
Bore 1
Translate 1
Stealth 1
Inventory:
Silk cloak
Copper mask
Ethral revolver 6/6
1 Fathom
[14]
You walk into the hall and meander a bit till you find a good looking section to cut from. You didn't want to hack large pieces out of the wall of a room you were standing in; Light knows how that would effect the stability of it. But out here, carving up a facet of the floor would probably be ok. You can't just stab into the stone so you have to start from outward pointed edge, and you can't do a plane since...well...you could cut the sides but cutting the back free would be difficult. You might be able to cut deep enough to separate the slab entirely- cutting the wall out rather than just slicing a piece off- but that would be dangerous in multiple ways. Instead you decide to cut a "V" shaped section of stone out; it would effectively mean the edge of the blade was already made, you'd just have to hone the rest of the design.
You cut into the stone with two long, straight slices and end up with a long rod with an isosceles triangle cross section. Getting it out is difficult; all three edges are razor sharp, though the edge created by the intersection of your two cuts is a bit wiggly- hard to be perfectly straight when you just eye ball it and do it by hand. You eventually shove it out from one side and it clatters down into the lowest point of the floor. You move to one end and start shaving the edges down, to make grip. Its difficult work; the crystal is like broken glass, every time you cut away a sharp edge, it just forms two more in the process. All you can do is shave off thin sections over and over until you have a pseudo round rod with something like 70 very obtuse facets. It should be fine, if wrapped in cloth or held in a gauntleted hand. You round the back edge of the blade off as best you can as well, though not quite as obsessively, and shave thin sheets and fragments off the main blade until you have a good, sharp, straight edge. Its not a perfect thing; the edge isn't a nice pair of intersecting planes, the lead up to it has a dozen or so facets, very close to flat but not quite. You use a pair of cuts to put a backwards sweeping point onto the tip. The blade is maybe 5 feet long, give or take a few inches, and quite heavy and difficult to wield.
You carefully pick it up by the flat side and carry it back into the room, setting it down next to Nyw with a clink.
Crystal "Murokumo" [Cut 6, Pierce 3, Fragile]
Open the barrel. Nyw's a giant undead man in plate armor, what's the snake gonna do? Rip his arm off?
Grab the snake and pull it out. Snap it in half if it's hard to control, or somehow dangerous to Nyw; otherwise, hold it up and inspect it. Maybe one of the moths might take an interest in it.
Name: Nyw'geuq Otin Sunam; calls himself "The Lords' Child"
Description:
((Without the murakumos, though if I'm lucky that'll change soon~))
Goal: Inscrutable, which is code for "Explicitly stated goals are a boring way to get across what should be plain by roleplay".
Stats:Str:14
Dex:8
Spe:10
End:14
Awa:13
Cun:8
Kno:6
Ner:10
Skills:Unarmed: +1
Defense Skill: +3 (Full Plate)
Vehicle Skill: +1
Caving: +1
Navigation: +1
Inventory:
Full Plate Armor (Protective 4)
Ornamental Mask of the Child
You grab the top of the barrel and tear it away from the crystalline lead with a grunt, letting it roll away. The inside of the barrel is a fairly solid lump of lead crystal so you bash it a few times with your gauntlet to break open. On the third bash the crystal suddenly starts breaking away all on its own and a moment later a segmented black blur erupts from a newly formed hole. [3] You don't have time to avoid the stabbing pounce so you raise a gauntleted hand and deflect the attack with the angled metal plate over your knuckles. The stab glances off in a flash of sparks but its body wriggles in a way unlike any natural worm or serpent and snaps itself onto your arm, coiling around your wrist and forearm. It seems to be trying to constrict and cause injury, but your armor is withstanding it for the moment. [6] You make an slightly annoyed face beneath your mask and grab the stone creature, working armored finger tips beneath the middle of it and then ripping it off in another shower of sparks. It immediately starts lashing out with both ends, stabbing at the air but lacking the reach to coil back around and stab your hand or to reach your body. You raise your hand and whip the thing into the ground like you would with a struggling fish. It shatters, sort of. The individual pieces that make up the body don't break, instead they all just disconnect; like the beads of a necklace when the cord breaks. They lay still, scattered about.
"Good job, Kara. I'm not in the best shape for hugging, though." Vikkan said, trying to inject some humor into the truth.
"I'm ready to leave. Everyone else?" he added, calling and waving to the assembled people with his left hand.
Leave when it's time to leave.
Name: Vikkan Laerthe
Description: A human from Anvil and a moderate Chthonic who was born and raised close in the neighborhood of the Hammerfall boreyard, where his parents were employed as menial workers. Being so close to a place so filled with machinery and boring machines left a lasting impression on Vikkan, who became a furnace helper, then a drivemaster's apprentice until he finally reached the controls of a bore. He's quite good at conducting driving bores and, most importantly, he deeply enjoys his work.
Bore love aside, Vikkan is also generally quite friendly and good-humored even when he's not behind a bore's controls. He is, however, aware of his limitations out of the control room, and he'd rather leave most other matters to more skilled people. What he lacks in intellectual education he displays in polite curiosity, and he tends to be interested in listening even to topics he can only vaguely grasp, making for a good talking and drinking buddy if nothing else.
At odds with his friendliness, he looks rugged, if young. His hair is dark brown and cut short, and he has a well-groomed handlebar mustache (though he's been known to let it grow and style it into a horseshoe at times). A small diagonal scar moves from his right eyebrow to the bridge of his nose. His skin is brown and displays a few burns thanks to a few years of furnace and boiler work. He's fairly hairy, with his shirt's sleeves covering hairy arms and a few spots of scar tissue. His uniform is made of thick cloth and utilitarian, overalls, a long-sleeved shirt and a cap. His major concession to vanity is keeping his uniform and mustache impeccable.
He doesn't have a right hand.Goal: To deep driving bores and having fun while doing it. It's not a difficult dream, even if it can be hard at times.
StatsStr: 10
Dex: 10
Spe: 10
End: 10
Awa: 13
Cun: 10
Kno: 10
Ner: 10
Skills+3 Vehicle (Bore)
+2 Navigation
+1 Defense (Mail Shirt)
Inventory-Conductor's Clothes
-Dynamo Lantern
-Black Book (Copy)
-Field Lighter
-Mail Shirt
-2 Fathoms
You watch the whole crazy mess with tired eyes and await the point at which you will be hauled up and out of this place.
"Yeah, I'd like to get this over with as well, but I think there are some things still left unresolved."
"So, do those tablets say anything about what this thing is?" Kara asked, indicating the artifact.
"I mean, it can't be just a fancy lamp, who would go into all that trouble for that?" she half-joked.
"Also, are we going to just give it to them and hope for the best or does anybody have a different plan? Just so that we're all on the same page here, I wouldn't like getting caught in the crossfire if you have something planned."
Do the tablets say anything related to the Artifact, the central tower or the purpose of this Outpost? (If it's too much for one turn just pick one. If someone more qualified wants to translate let them do it instead.)
Do I know why we didn't encounter any Crystal People corpses? Do I have any idea about where we would find them?
Out of curiosity, does the Artifact emit any light? Does its light appear strangely when viewed through my shirt or reflected off the walls? I'm thinking that since the fire in it appears further away than it is, then perhaps there is some message encoded in the way it emits light or some hints to its nature.
Name: "Kara" is what most humans call her, though the closest pronunciation would be Kr'ra-Kax
Race: Corven (advantage for climb, disadvantage for falls)
Appearance: She is a crow-like Corven with matte-black feathers. A bit short. Constantly moves her head around, examining her surroundings. Moves her tail up and down whenever she's excited.
Age: Adult, but just barely
Goal: Wants to find artifacts and experiences that she can use to make an (under)world-famous museum. Wants to prove herself to her mother and piss off her brother with her success (both financially and socially).
StatsStr:8
Dex:13
Spe:13
End:6
Awa:12
Cun:10
Kno:8 + 3 = 11
Ner:10
SkillsRifle: 1
Medical: 1
Translate: 1
Acrobatics: 1
Caving: 1
Machine Control: 1
Stealth: 1
Geology: 1
Archeology: 1
Navigation: 1
InventoryFire Orb Artifact (in backpack-like thing made from shirt)
Ethral Rifle (rifle 3, pierce 3) 7/7
Field Lighter (Fire 2)
Simple Clothes (no shirt)
Kara's Diary
You double check with the Moths- once the other has finished her business with sword crafting- but they can't find anything about it. The inventory seems to just be about whats in those barrels people have been messing with this whole time. Nyw seems to have smashed what is, perhaps, artlessly translated as the "Coiled Obsidian trespasser incapacitater"
No one has ever found a Corpse of a Gemstone person; their disappearance is a mystery to everyone. Their records all just stop after a certain point, with little explanation. Its even more odd because there are no graveyards or tombs for them either. There are statues depicting the race, made by that race and by others, but never any bodies or places where bodies could have been placed.
The orb doesn't emit light, or if it does its too dim for you to see around here. No heat either.
"Yeah, I think I'm good to go about now as well. We could explore some more of the ruins but that means risking encountering more shenanigans as well, so maybe we should quit while we're ahead here. One thing remains to be decided before we leave however.
Do we hand over this artifact to those scoundrels and trust them that they'll release us unmolested, or do we try to overpower our captors and abscond with the relic and/or the bore?"
"Also, are we going to just give it to them and hope for the best or does anybody have a different plan? Just so that we're all on the same page here, I wouldn't like getting caught in the crossfire if you have something planned."
"If we do try to assault our captors, we'll need to make sure everyone is in on the plan and willing to commit. Both because we'll need every edge we can get, and because our captors might not bother to distinguish between rebels and those of us remaining at the sidelines.
Either way, I honestly have little faith in the good word of people who would strap bomb collars on unwilling people to clandestinely steal holy artifacts."
Consider how difficult it would be to use a dive to temporarily disable/prevent radiowaves from detonating our collars (aka how many times the material and action spheres would need to be reinforced minimally). Perhaps with Tzimtzvot and Jal (aka 'shield' an area from radiowaves)?
Name: Adam Blavatsky Darvaza
Description: A young man of slightly pale complexion and eternal 9 o’clock shadow, he was raised in a small village. While the village priest and passing mystics droned with endless sermons of the Church and their teachings, what had always captivated young Adam’s attention more were the stories of his Granny.
Old stories of the world as it once was, before people were forced to flee to the caves and crannies of this damp hell. Of warm days where pleasant green plants tickled your feet as you walked through them and a cool breeze blew through your hair. Where food was plentiful, nature was benign and endless vistas reached as far as they eye could see.
Adam was nominally a card-carrying member of the church, though he mostly did it for the connections and perks that brought. They were powerful and had ancient lore, all things he would need to fulfill his true heart’s desire: to return to the surface, vanquish the madness that tainted their homeland and reconquer paradise.
Goal: Plunge the secrets of the depths below to find an answer to the horrors above.
Stats
Str: 10
Dex: 10
Spe: 10
End: 10
Awa: 10
Cun: 10
Kno: 10
Ner: 13
Skills
Diving: +3
Stealth: +2
Occult: +1
Inventory
Clothing: simple priest robes, shortened a bit so as to less restrict his movements
1 minor artifact
1 black book copy
1 black flame
1 Silent Night
1 field lighter
17 fathoms
(loaned 6 fathoms to aigre)
1 crystal construct
[7]
Radio waves are incorporeal, in a sense, stopping them wouldn't take much in terms of shielding strength. The real question would be how the shield would be constructed. A simple sphere is easiest but it would be fairly big to encompass the entire collar, and there's the question of failsafes. There might be a timer built in that would detonate the collar automatically if it lost radio signals for too long. A fail safe escape prevention system, of sorts. If it has that, a shield would be a death sentence. The material Cost would depend more on the range of signals you wanted to block than anything else. Radiowaves cover a huge band of electromagnetic frequencies, blocking them all at once would be difficult. As would be blocking a very specific signal. You need a small range of signals to block, 50-100 hz instead of 67hz or 100hz - 300ghz.
Many things you don't know.
If we're leaving, leave. If we're not leaving, wander off in search of more loot.
Name: Auft Kindheart
Description: Standing 3'10", with even fluffier than usual snow-white fur, this Ethral radiates adorable innocence even by the standards of her kind. Her porcelain-white mask is a circular shape carved into slices, each bearing a smiling face with eyes and mouths arched in joy, and adorned with pink blush marks. Her cloak is similarly pure white and a little too large for her, adding to her cute and defenseless appearance.
Goal: To amass and improve loyal pets and slaves.
Stats
Str: 7
Dex: 12
Spe: 10
End: 8
Awa: 7
Cun: 16
Kno: 13
Ner: 10
Skills
+1 Medical
+1 Translate
+1 Acrobatics
+1 Persuasion
+1 Stealth
+1 Animal Handling
+1 Archeology
+1 Biological
+1 Chemical
+1 Occult
Inventory
2 Fathoms
Ethral Rifle [7/7]
Doctor's Bag
Dodecahedron Spider-Thing: Fist-sized dodecahedron body, long unjointed legs that move in very slow cascades. Ceased moving upon being picked up.
”I’m ready to head out as well. As far as plans, I’ll probably go along with whatever the group consensus is. Just let me know.
Also, if and when the snake is dealt with, it might be best to let Clate have it, considering the fact that he knows a little about everything, whereas I, and most other crafty people here are mostly weapons oriented”
"If you wish to do so, I will gladly take a look at the snake and attempt to learn as much as possible from it. Rest assured, anything gained from the snake will be used to craft weapons for the team."
If we're leaving, leave with the team. If not, faff about and pick up stray junk for building materials for a workshop.
Name: Clate
Race: Shluck
Description: Being a Shluck, Clate is rarely seen outside of his environmental suit. Inside, he is the standard albino mollusk, with his only true defining characteristic being the alternating white/borwn pattern of his beak, much like on a nautilus shell. His environmental suit and exoskeltons are full of scuff marks and small blemishes from work, but the knowledgable observer will notice that it is mechanically kept in tip-top shape. He wears a toolbelt and a satchel to store his tools and other knickknacks, and has a blue cap perched on top of his helmet.
Goal: To create great works of craftsmanship and become filthy rich in the process.
Stats
Str: 8
Dex: 10
Spe: 8
End: 10
Awa: 9
Cun: 16 (+3)
Kno: 12
Ner:10
Skills
Electronics 1
Mechanical 1
Biological 1
Chemical 1
Occult 1
Weaponsmith 1
Armorsmith 1
Stealth 1
Steal 1
Explosives 1
Inventory
Clothing: A tool belt that can be modified to fit the exoskeleton, a satchel and a blue cap with "If it ain't broke, fix it" embroidered on.
Bladed Shovel - handle coated with chrome stuff
Silk rope (100ft)
TNT x3
Dynamo lantern
Field lighter
Path markers x10
8 Octaherdrons - supposedly replicate materials
2 gold cubes
1 container of Pseudomagnetic mortar
labradorite rod
Slate box with multicolour crystal toothpick - supposedly turns someone into a gemperson.
7 structural junk
30 chemical junk
5 Fathoms
I'm going to say that you find the black cube that the others found. And you know about that knife to cut stone. These are two important things.
Since AsHul decided to do the diving, read from my book.
Name: Lokam Pilgrim
Description: Lokam is an Ethral Aspirant of the Tenebrous Chruch currently on pilgrimage. His soft fur is pale yellow, his large and fuzzy mane is golden and antennae and wings are dark purple with white details. His antennae, unlike most Ethral, are also very long and fluffy. Most of the time, he's wearing his silky church robes, which also have a hood included. His mask is very dark purple, with bright yellow spirals and curves, similar to tentacles.
Goal: His goal is to just complete his pilgrimage and ascend in the chruch. He wishes to go as deep as possible and someday become a Living Saint, Stygian or even a member of the Council. But his dream is to someday go deeper than everyone, reach the center and finally find God.
Stats:
Str: 7
Dex: 12
Spe: 10
End: 8
Awa: 7
Cun: 13
Kno: 13
Ner: 13
Skills:
Diving: 3
Caving: 1
Navigation: 1
Survival: 1
Translate: 1
Inventory:
The Black Book (Real)
Black Flame
Bag of Path Markers
Silk Aspirant Gray Robes
Purple Mask
“Sometimes death is preferable to the alternative.” Dive one last time. Balaram Sige: alter tech.
Extend the reinforced bridge to reach the ruins.
path: 4 rolls
Reinforce balaram 2x reinforce Sige 1x: 3 rolls.
7 Nerve rolls, final Nerve roll, final Balaram Roll.
Should the Dive succeed, cross over the bridge to the ruins and meet with the group.
Name: AsHul
Description:Former human. Awful, ugly, indifferent
Goal:To find God
Stats
Str:9 Dex:8 Spe:8 End:10 Awa:12 Cun:10 Kno:10 Ner:16 (currently -1)
Skills
Diving: 3
Animal Handling: 2
Survival: 1
Inventory
Relic Fragment
Black Book (copy)
1 Silent Night - calming. gives advantage on diving rolls
4 Worm Blood - steadies nerves
2 Occult Junks
2 Fathoms (One magnetically welded to the wall of his room in the Bore)
One Brass sphere with clockwork innards (From Balaram)
Book of sheet music (from Balaram) [stack of about 100 pages bound by three brass rings along the top of the sheets]
(13, 3, 20, 9, 3, 20, 2), (2, 3) -2 Nerve
That rebound is even stronger this time; it feels like you're getting slapped in the face with a foam sheet. Your nose is bleeding and your vision is blurry, but they both right themselves in the next few minutes. The bridge extends, flowing, pulling a small amount of material from all over it till it connects to the structure. It holds there, connected, for maybe 15 seconds before the thin extension cracks and then crumbles into the lava; apparently not enough material was transferred for the extension to be stable.
Author
Topic: DIG: Heresy (Read 413826 times)