Argos: Angler's Spire

[Morkskittar]

With the completion of the Slipfang and Argos, it was time to get underway; other crews already had weeks of a head start on them, and while the Bloom could take anywhere from months to over a year to find, time was of the essence, and everyone was excited to finally set out on a ship of their own.

In the comings and going of the crew onto and off of the Argos' sturdy build, it took the crew a little while to notice that, in the pages of the Boughbreaker's logbook in the crew's storage area, a drawing of a fanged flower and a shimmering fragment of a petal were pressed. A last gift from their mysterious ironbound friend, it would seem.

There was a lot to do, though, and the logbook was temporarily forgotten as the group prepared to set sail, taking what they could from Verdurance before leaving it behind.

Verdurance, the Wildmason's Port, is the largest in the Sepulcher. Build atop a mountain poking above the foliage, Verdurance has since expanded as wildmasons cement ruin and rock fragments to each other to build an artificial plateau atop the trees surrounding the mountain's peak. Gaps in the stonework make canals, filled with flowers that are traversed by gondolas, that snake through the city's periphery, while the core is solid and permanent. Verdurance has a sense of permanence that few other ports have, being immune to most of the ravages of the wildsea thanks to its unique construction.

The city is a bustling hub of activity, especially now with the Bloom coming. You can find nearly anything in Verdurance, and nearly anything can find you...

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Montage

Before the Argos sets sail across the wild green, the crew set about the city, accomplishing last minute preparations and picking up anything they think might be helpful on their trip, from supplies to rumours about where to start looking.

OOC

We begin with a Montage: the crew temporarily splits up to do their own thing before departure. Every player can select up to two actions from the following list to carry out (and you can take the same action multiple times). Please feel free to add as much detail into your actions as you'd like, including specifying what you're looking for/creating/doing and how you are doing it. If your action requires a roll, you can roll the dice (and provide suggestions in the OOC thread/an edit to your post on the twist if you roll doubles), or I can do it for you otherwise. Please post by the end of the day on Sunday (October 22), but I'll provide updates as people post. You can perform actions in any order, or post one action and then wait until you see what others are doing/your results before posting your second.

 

Feel free to make your post however you like; there are no expectations regarding formatting, so long as it's clear what your character is doing.

Acquire Resources

You head back into the city, or maybe wavewalk on the trees beyond it, looking for more resources or supplies before you head out.

Roll a number of D6 equal to the relevant skill plus one for any of the listed possible edges if you have it (remember that you only ever can use one Edge at a time), or else simply choose the default "Conflict" option (no risk, but no chance of getting a good resource either).

Results: 6: Gain good resource; 4–5: Gain sub-par resource; 1–3: Gain no resource.

Like with character creation, you can briefly describe the resource you are looking for, or if you prefer you can leave it up the GM.

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Shop at the Market (Outwit, Sway)

Verdurance has a thriving network of markets, bazaars, and trading stations. Wandering through them all would take days, or maybe even weeks, but there are a few places you know to check first for what you're looking for...

Take a Sway/Outwit + Iron (drive a hard bargain)/Sharps (use your wits to haggle with the vendor)/Veils (leave the vendor bewildered after a series of verbal feints and dodges) test to acquire a single Salvage, Specimen, or Chart.

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Gather (Harvest, Hack)

The wilds around Verdurance, while devoid of any beast worth hunting, are full of plant-based fruits, berries, and leaves, ripe for the picking. The city is also famous for its "flower canals," bits of the wildsea covered with flowers and other plants that are allowed to poke up through gaps in the port's expanding stone surface. If you move quickly when no one is watching, surely no one will mind if you just pluck that juicy fruit from one right there...

Take a Harvest/Hack + Instinct (follow your nose)/Tides (use your botanical knowledge) test to acquire a single plant-based Specimen from the wilds around (or in) Verdurance.

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Scavenge (Scavenge)

The ship graveyard is not only familiar to you now, but a great place to pick up a spare part or three...

Take a Scavenge + Instinct (that part looks like it will fit!)/Sharps (you remember seeing that part when building your ship)/Teeth (one of the scrapyard gangs has what you need, and you won't let them keep it)/Tides (you know exactly what you are looking for and why) test to acquire any single Salvage.

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Listen (Sense, Study)

It is not material resources you seek, but knowledge. By listening to conversations and reading what is available, you learn new things...

Take a Sense/Study + Instinct (let the voices of the crowd wash over you)/Veils (deceive others to learn what you can)/Sharps (carefully plan an information gathering session)/Tides (use your knowledge to ferret out more knowledge) test to acquire any single Whisper.

Create Something

While the others go about their business in port, you are more focused in preparing for the journey with what you have, making things to ensure your safe travels.

Combine any two resources you currently have (specimen, salvage, whisper, or chart) to create temporary Aspects for yourself or others, the qualities of which depend on the resources used. Each Aspect will be used up forever when its track is filled.

Use Concoct (and any two resources) to make a potion.

Use Cook (and two specimens) to make a full meal.

Use Craft (and two salvage) to make equipment.

Results: 6: Good Aspect related to resources used. 4–5: Aspect has downsides or is not quite right. 1–3: Aspect gives no benefits.

Take on Cargo

Even a ship dedicated to searching for the Bloom needs to earn its keep, and carrying cargo is generally the safest and easiest way to do just that. You wander about the city, seeing who needs what moved where, and strike a bargain with a keen-eyed and silver-tongued vendor.

You can use one of your two actions to pick up a single piece of cargo (you can do this twice for two pieces of cargo). Your ship has a Cargo Space of 7 (meaning it can hold up to 7 points of Space, as denoted in column two of the cargo list below), and picking up cargo will be first-come-first-served.

Delivering cargo is the easiest way to earn more stakes to upgrade your ship (there will be other ways, though)! If you successfully deliver a piece of cargo to its destination, you will the listed Reward (the player who picked up the cargo will get any Resources, and the Stakes will go into a collective pool). If you fail to deliver a cargo (if it gets damaged, you're too slow, or you steal it), it will have a negative impact on your ship's reputation and make acquiring future cargo more difficult. You can also make use of cargo you are carrying during gameplay, but if you do so, you risk permanently damaging the cargo or lessening the reward (some skimming is often expected).

You may want to discuss where you will probably be heading first before deciding on cargo.

Select a piece of cargo from the list below. Please note that your ship cannot have multiple "copies" of the same cargo; there is only one of each cargo.

Current Used Cargo Space: 0/7

Cargo	Space	Reward	Destination	Notes
Lythean Tea Leaves	1	0.5 stakes, 1 specimen	Any	Potent, pungent, and not guaranteed to turn you into a servant of the twinned monarch.
Needle Syrup Casks	1	0.5 stakes, 1 specimen	Any	Freshly tapped and boiled down from Old Needlesap.
Sunburst Flowers	1	1 stake, 2 specimens	Sarkosa	Warning: Fire Hazard. Do not expose to sunlight.
Collated Treasure Maps	1	2 stakes, 2 charts	Inskpill	Failure to deliver this collation will be punishable with a bounty from the Union (Librarian Branch). Possibly cursed.
Amberclad Insects	1	0.5 stakes, 1 specimen	Sevenstones	Not edible.
Trained Circus Beasts	2	2.5 stakes	Port Sakura	Don't unlock the cages, no matter how much they beg.
Pollen Sampler	1	2 stakes, 1 specimen	Titana and Gorgantha	Neat bags of pollen from distant reaches.
Cannon Quartet	2	1.5 stakes	Sarkosa	Weapons for pirates.
Munitions Crates	1	0.5 stakes, 1 salvage	Angler's Spire	For monster hunting.
Bottled Secrets	1	0.5 stake, 1 whisper	Any	Damn hard to get back into the bottle.
Exile's Copper	1	1.5 stakes, 2 salvage	Port Sakura	Untarnished. Do not get wet.

Cask of Spirits	1	0.5 stakes, 1 specimen	Any	Whether ghosts or alcohol, this brings the boos/ze.
Library-in-a-Box	2	2.5 stakes, 2 whispers	Inkspill	A veritable treasure trove of knowledge.
Bugwork Clocks	1	0.5 stakes, 1 salvage	Sevenstones	The ticking... oh heavens, the ticking unceasing!
Chained Box	1	2.5 stakes	Titana and Gorgantha or Port Sakura	DO NOT OPEN.
Express Post	0	0.5 stakes for all, 1 whisper if Wordbearer	Any	Letters to be delivered post haste! No insurance necessary.

 

Explore

You don't necessarily know what it is you're looking for, but you set out to wander the streets, meeting new people and seeing the sights. Who knows what might happen...

This option can only be selected once per player.

This is an open-ended action; if you want to explore the city, describe what you're doing, what you're looking for, and how you're doing it. This is a good way to:

• Find new plot hooks (either for yourself or the ship as a whole)
• Track down rumours about happenings in the reach.
• Figure out what other people know about where the Bloom might pop up... or what they know about it in general.
• Learn about what ports are good to visit... or avoid.
• Make friends.
• Make enemies.
• Learn lore.
• Get exercise.

This action will not result in resources, aspects, or cargo (necessarily), but could earn valuable intangibles for your character.

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Venturing Forth

OOC

Next week, your crew will leave Verdurance. Unless you have found an alternative destination through rumours (via Exploring), you can set sail to any of the ports near Verdurance (sailing directly to too far a port is risky). Your three choices for a next destination are:

• Angler's Spire: The hunter's port, a short journey to the west. This is on the fastest route to Port Sakura, Inkspill, and Oberon (along the Concourse of Petals).
• Old Needlesap: Probably not worth your time, as it is in the upper northeast corner of the reach, but maybe you really want some syrup. A short journey, but you'll have to turn around to search the rest of the reach, unless you are lucky and the Bloom is right next door.
• Sevenstones: A city of ancient lore, history, and scrap metal, a medium journey to the south. This is on the fastest route to the Broken Hives, Rosecourt, Sarkosa, and Titana and Gorgantha (along the Pirate's Path).

You do not have to decide on a destination until after the opening montage, but you may want to discuss it with your crew before choosing cargo. Your ship-building threads have been converted into crew OOC threads for strategizing with them.

Moreover, the passages Ford read from the logbook also contain potential plot hooks and places to start searching.

Please also feel free to use the pre-game IC to roleplay with the entire nine-person gang before setting off, or to interact IC with your crew below as well as participating in the montage.

Once everyone has finished doing what they want or on Monday/Tuesday next week, whichever comes first, you'll select a destination and set sail!

Edited March 20 by Morkskittar (see edit history)

[Dr Jackal]

Tharr heads for the marketplace, antennae rolling like seaweed in the light breeze. He shakes his head in irritation. "Fine people, my new crewmates, yes? But someone must pay heed to the necessities of travel. Someone must be responsible. And who else but Eyr Tharr? Because of course that is his fate," he mutters to no one but himself.

At the bazaar, he negotiates for tea leaves and needle syrup. As commodities go, they're not expensive or flashy, but more importantly, they're not risky. Wherever the Argos ends up, there will be someone who will pay for tea leaves and needle syrup.

[CraterShip]

Once the ship was in fully functional order, Tolliver knew they would need to find a way to make the Argos into a sustainable venture. A ship in port could last a few days, but without a destination and cargo, she was little more than a floating target for anything in the depths of the branches.

"Alright Tharr, you want to lead, that's fine with me," as he speaks, Tolliver's hands twitch, a vestige of the Old Hand language, almost forming the words, but not quite. He preferred to not broadcast his conversations to anyone within sight for the most part. "Let us know what you find at the market and we'll pick a destination. The Boughbreaker's logbook should give us some more idea as well. I'll go see if I can't forage some provisions before heading back to the Argos. See you there."

With a tip of his head, he heads for the outskirts of Verdurance, taking a leisurely stroll through town along the way.

OOC

For Tolliver's two actions, he'll first take a walk through town to see what he picks up along the way. The Explore action as noted above.

Following that, he'll go Gathering using his Hacking + Instinct roll

6, 4, 4, 4 = One good resource (I'll leave to GM to describe since it's still early) and Doubles (or triples if that's a thing) for Sub-par resources?

 

Edited October 18, 2023 by CraterShip (see edit history)

[yxanthymir]

---

Park Stadium

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Park feels terribly bad for leaving his cook room so soon. It was brand new, and he barely touched it yet, but it was one of those odd cases of love at first sight. He feels enthralled by the small place. He feels he belonged there forever. He just feels strange with his place in this new crew, he doesn't know them yet and he is not a particularly talkative guy, but he would give his best to be useful. He was determined about that. He just was not sure how he would accomplish that.

So without a single clue about what to do, he leaves the ship. Im leavin too.

After he leaves the ship, he follows a random direction and let his nose work for him. He tries to smell the aroma of the place and let his instinct dictate his fortune.

Actions

First a explore action.

 

Second a gather action, using Harvest + Instinct.

 

[Moveslikejagger]

"I make no plans but will visit the market. No doubt something will find me looking for a place to belong. But if I could wish for something to find I will find eyes that see and know where to saw." Atus says with a serious tone to his voice. "You see it occurs to me that eyes that can see under the sea and know where to saw are truly for seeing and sawing and would be useful things. I don't mean foreseeing eyes, although foreseeing eyes would also see the sea and know to saw, if you see what I mean. But eyes that are for seeing under the seas to know the saw. Or maybe ears for seeing the sea and the saw, you can never quite know these things until you've seen them. A nose for seeing under the sea and knowing to saw, I could never see seeing. Do you see what I mean?"

 

With such a strange quest filling his mind he doesn't seem to have the capacity for anything aside from looking for something he does not know how to find. He aimlessly wanders around the market, humming to himself, sparks of electricity dancing in tune with the somewhat obnoxious sound and oblivious to the people who give him a wide berth. Shops containing anything metal attract his attention, but like a bee visiting flowers, his pausing is brief before moving on. He only pauses if someone asks him what he is looking for, when some variation of the confusing words about seeing the sea come out.

Show this

First an explore action.

 

After that Atus will scavenge for more resources in the Ship graveyard, using Scavenge and Instinct skill

 

 

[Morkskittar]

~~Tales of the Argos~~

One by one, the crew of the Argos left the ship, heading out into the city of Verdurance to say their goodbyes before their departure, and to gather what they could for the travels ahead.

~Tharr's Tale~

Tharr was the first to head off from the ship, scurrying along the docks, stepping over every crack in the wooden piers until he reached the solid stone of the city, and then studiously avoiding stepping on any of the places where the stones were joined together. It was just short of a miracle that he did not bump into any of the passersby while his eyes were glued to the ground, but fortunately, the bazaar was not too far distant from the docks, and was on one solid piece of stone, sans cracks.

With some relief, Tharr looked up and around at the busy square. Stone buildings, some four and five stories tall, surrounded the plaza, which was itself filled with a dazzling assortment of tents, tables, stalls, carts, and crates in all shapes, sizes, and colors. The colors made Tharr's head hurt a bit, and he kept to the edges at first, staying out the way of those people who looked like they knew what they were doing... until a group of newcomers to the market swept in, carrying Tharr along with them like a leaf on the wind.

Moments later, Tharr was lost, but he stepped out of the main walkway and extended his senses, looking for... there! The scent of rick, honey-thick syrup washed over him. Something useful, either on the ship, or else to trade later. He scurried over to a wooden stall, next to a dangerous open flame cooking sizzling meat. But Tharr was focused, and approached the vendor, and engaged in a rapid-fire conversation about the syrup that left the vendor, a hardened and gaunt ardent, looking increasingly confusedOutwit + Veils Roll = 6, 2 = Triumph!. After only a minute, Tharr skipped away with a jar of deep Amber NeedlesapAdded to character sheet., having swapped it for some bits from his pockets.

Winding his way through the crowds, more confident this time, Tharr eventually tracked down something else useful: an abandoned stall with dried tea leaves! Tharr, always one for a good cup of tea, scurried over, and quickly found that the stall was not abandoned; it was just manned by a very short and squat ektus. After another rapidfire conversation and haggling sessionOutwit + Veils Roll = 5, 5 = Conflict (Twist), Tharr scurried away and did some more shopping; he doubted the others would have thought to buy essentials such as food, or fresh water and juice. He bartered more scratch for essential victuals, and trundled back to the Argos with a rented cart to unload his supplies.

It was only once he was back that he discovered that the tea leaves he had bought were not only stale, but were mixed in with insect chitin! Tharr, indignant, braved the bazaar again to right this wrong, but was unable to relocate the tea vendor, and so returned back to the Argos, stale tea with extra proteinWildhusk Tea with the Stale and Extra Protein tags has been added to your character sheet. still in hand, and muttered dark prophecies to himself in the galley, staring balefully at his tea leaves.

~Park's Tale~

Park began their excursion just after Tharr left, heading not for the market, but instead heading around the edges of the city, following the smell of fresh spices and herbs until he reached the Gardener's quarter: a good place to stop for ingredients. A few short conversations with workers on break resulted in one of them leading Park on a harrowing wavewalk to a wild herb patch just outside the bounds of the city. Delighted, Park picked some, filling his pockets with them. He chatted pleasantly with his guide on the way back, failing to notice that a trio of squirrels had lightened Park's pockets, taking most of his fresh herbs with them and depositing them in the pockets of his grinning guide.

It wasn't until several minutes after he arrived back, and after having swapped some of his own spices for those of the locals, that he noticed most of his herbs had vanished, leaving him only with a bundle of plants that smelled like rotting flesh. One of the spice-grinders laughed, and said it wasn't all bad; carrion weedSpecimen with the Nutritious and Disgusting tags added to character sheet., they explained, was an incredibly nutritious herb that crew from the corpses of fallen animals (mostly squirrels and pinwolves); it was used in many medicines, and had good restorative properties. Unfortunately, if picked at the wrong time, the herb lost its normal mild flavor, and instead tasted like the corpses that it grew from (another spicer called unripe carrion weed an "acquired taste"). It was still just as healthy and potent, the spice-grinder said, but it would taste terrible.

Carrion weed in hand, Park walked the rest of the Gardener's quarter in a dark mood, until leaving it, walking up several sets of stairs, and winding up in a small square fill of oversized insect parts and a dozen beings of various bloodlines hacking them apart. After gaping for a few moments, a hulking ketra with mushrooms growing from their body walked over to Park. "You chop, ja?" Park nodded without thinking, and then found himself holding a knife too big for him. "Chop dew beetle there good; all joints, deshell, wings minced, put 'em in jars, kay?" Park stood a moment longer, cleaver in hand, and then shrugged, inspired by the merry banter of the bug-butchers. It was a lesson in insectoid anatomy and preparation, and Park learned that the bug-butchers were processing wild beetles caught by the crew of the aptly named Baldfaced Buggery for sale on the market and for shipping out.

After helping them process a few bugs, Park joined them in cooking up a bugmeat stew - not something he ever thought he'd find particularly appetizing, but he was pleasantly surprised - and enjoyed a hearty meal. The mushroom-laden ketra even told him how to minimize the pungency of the carrion weed Park had found when preparing fishes with it (the key, he said, was to never pair it with sweetness, but instead with sourness or bitterness, and don't you even think of adding salt). Though Park did not walk away with any bug parts, he came away with a greater understanding of how to cook insects.

As he bade goodbye to his new friends, the ketra pulled him aside. "You good help to us, and you are one of those fools who seek Bloom, ja? No need to answer, we know. You have that look in eyes. Let me tell you secret word; it is Bogan. Ancient word of our order, Bug-Butchers. You done us a favor, we do you one. Without you help, we fall behind. We spread throughout major places here, and Big Boss Kzedah in Angler's Spire; she like you I think. She tried to find Bloom last time, when she was young. Maybe she have advice. She did fail though, so maybe not. If you need help, look for sigil of cleaver in beetle." The ketra shows Park an animated tattoo at least an inch under his translucent skin. "Like this. Say 'Bogan,' and we will help. Know you as friend. Maybe feed you. Definitely don't harm you. Now should go, before Boss Baka come back. He not trust all those outside the family. Good hunt."

With that, Park was shooed away. Evening approached, so he hurried back to the Argos, where he found Tharr sitting in the galley amidst crates of unpacked supplies, muttering at tea leaves. Park was grateful that Tharr had thought to pick up more supplies; Park had intended to, but had been sidetracked by his adventures with the bug-butchers. He still was not entirely sure what had happened; he had helped process and cook some big bugs, and had potentially earned the favor of a secret order of... butchers? Still, he had the name of someone who might help them find the Bloom, assuming he hadn't just dreamt up the whole encounter.

~Tolliver's Tale~

Tolliver moved swiftly and quietly, weaving his way across the entire city to see what he could find on the city's far outskirts. He found little useful talk on the docks or in the major commercial establishments in the city, but kept an ear out for any hearsay or rumours on the wind that may be of help in locating the Bloom. About three-quarters of the way across, Tolliver heard a voice on the wind, promising doom for all who set out. Tolliver changed course, and found himself, to his amusement, in the street in front of the Hoploft, the site of his first failed attempt to find a crew. Across from the tavern's front door, a grey-skinned ardent gesticulated wildly, head lolling about, as he hissed warnings at a small crowd gathered there. A moment later, Tolliver realized he was not looking at an ardent, but the skin of an ardent inhabited by a tzelicrae.

"The Bloom is a death sssentenccce! None have ever found it and lived, have they? No! Becaussse it is a trap! It feedsss on thossse who ssseek it. They sssay it grantsss wishhhesss? Hogwasssshhh! It isss a flower, it cannot ssspeak or think! All of thossse who go out to find it will become itsss food! Itsss coming isss an ill omen for our timesss!" Tolliver was grateful that Tharr was not here to witness the raving tzelicrae.

"Oh yeah?" a mothryn in the crowd said. "And what if we kill it?"

"You think you can kill it? It hasss bloomed for cccenturiesss! No one has killed it yet. And you know why? Becaussse it is too ssstrong, and becaussse the Bloom is not the source of itsss power! To truly kill it, you must ssstrike it from below, in the deep darknesss beneath, where itssss bulb growsss. Only by braving the darkness beneath the russstling wavesss can you kill it... and that, my friendsss, isss imposssible!"

After a few more minutes of heckling, the crowd dispersed, leaving Tolliver alone with the tzelicrae. Tolliver approached them, and asked how it knew so much about the Bloom.

The tzelicrae giggled, and Tolliver took a nervous step backwards. "Any botanist can tell you," the tzelicrae said, sibilant hiss gone now that it was no longer shouting. "The Bloom is a Dahlia, a tuberous flower. Cutting off its head will do nothing. Like most flowers, it is the root that must be purged, and the root that is most valuable, anyway." Tolliver nodded thoughtfully.

The tzelicrae crawled down from the crate. "You listen, gau. I will give you a tip, as you seem foolish enough to follow in the path of the others who are doomed; seek out the remnants of one of my kind in the great library of Inkspill; all tzelicrae who visit Inkspill leave some of themselves behind. The Scrivener's Congress in the Library's depths can tell you more about the true dangers of the Bloom, those secrets that lie buried deep below the waves. But you will regret that conversation, I am sure." With a further chuckle, the tzelicrae loped away, head lolling discomfitingly to one side.

Brooding on those words, Tolliver finished his journey across town, and scrounged for some vittles (in case Tharr didn't find anything he liked), and even found a particularly pungent sprig of deathberriesA sprig of deathberries with the "potent" tag has been added to your character sheet.. Despite the name, Tolliver knew that they could be made safe to eat, and were quite the delicacy. Tolliver figured that Park could probably do it. Raw, though, and they were death to any who consumed them.

With a bag of fruits, vegetables, and deathberries, Tolliver headed back through town to the Argos, where he found Tharr and Park engaged in a fierce debate over a pile of foul-smelling weeds and stale tea leaves. The gau sat down and added his sprig of deathberries to the mix, and they shared their stories while they waited for their last crewmember to return.

~Atus' Tale~

Atus left last, and followed in Tharr's footsteps, pondering the meaning of the senses and how to enhance them. While Tharr sought out foods and other biologicals, Atus had a different goal in mind. He wandered the stars on the western side of the bazaar, and ducked into some of the tall buildings lining its edge, on the look out for just about anything interesting. He did not linger anywhere for long, and did not attract much attention. A few pushy salvage resellers tried to convince him to buy a battery, or a pocket watch, or in one case a most certainly fake "storm-in-a-spring," but Atus moved from the pushy hawkers even more quickly than he did the quiet ones.

Nothing grabbed his attention in the bazaar; there was nothing worthwhile there, and so he found himself wandering further afield. A few streets from the bazaar he found a fenced-in scrapyard, with a sign that read "Verdurance Junk Swap" in low sour over its entrance. Atus wandered inside, and found a lively constellation of scrappers, salvagers, and rattlehands fixing, trading, and tinkering with mechanical scraps of all types. Atus joined each group briefly, and answered their questions in a polite, if baffling manner, leaving the scrappers to watch the ironbound curiously as he trundled over to the next group.

Finally, another ironbound latched into Atus' poetic waxing about seeing beneath the sea. "You want an oculus to do that, friend. None of those here; they're quite valuable. Like a periscope; but if you get the right kind, it can see more than just darkness. Some see spores, some particles, some light up the place. Go check out the ship graveyard; there's probably a sub wreck out there with one."

Atus nodded thanks, responded with further verbal confusion, and then wandered elsewhere about the scrapyard. "Of course," the ironbound said, following him, "the best way to see below the waves is to dive under there yourself. I sailed on a submersible once; I won't go back down there to the Drown, but I think every sailor should, at least once." Atus stopped to listen. "Zoleeb Sarl, at Sarkosa, turned my old vessel into a sub. Tell him that the rattlehand of the Cardinal's Wish sent you. They say also that there's an engineer at Inkspill who does good work for submersibles, too; an ektus, called Bounty-in-Winter. They're said to be a bit crotchety, but if you give them an interesting story, they may help. So they say." With a wave, the helpful ironbound vanished back into the rattlehand discussion group.

Atus moved on from there, the words about the oculus floating through his brain. He wandered back to the ship graveyard, trundling along the planks and boards that made crude walkways between torn hulls and rotting siding. He wandered beneath the sun for over an hour before wandering into a metal shipwreck. At the bottom rear of the wreck, he found what his subconscious had led him to: a cracked and bent piece of piping stabbed through the deck. With a yank, it popped up through the iron hull, bending the weakened metal as it did so. Atus inspected it; it indeed looked like a small periscope, albeit with a complex glass lens with a series of gears and mirrors in the pipe. A button on it seemed to light it up, but a massive crack in the lens itself diffused the light enough that it was not particularly useful. Atus was reasonably sure this was an oculusScavenge + Instinct Roll: 5, 5, 3 = Conflict (Twist). An oculus with the Cracked and Lighted Tags has been added to your character sheet.. He wandered back to the ship after some further musings and meandering, arriving late in the evening to find Tharr, Park, and Tolliver poring over the Boughbreaker's logbook. He greeted them and sat at the table with them.

---

They decided to leave first thing the following morning, now that they were supplied. But before all but Atus rested, they needed to select a first destination.

OOC

Don't worry; normally these montages will be much more interactive than this (and Verdurance doesn't have a lot of interest for you all), but here I want to get you guys out on the seas as soon as possible! The next thing for you all to do is to pick your next port of call; I recommend an IC discussion below to do so, and once you reach what looks like a consensus we'll be off!

[Dr Jackal]

Tharr looks resigned. "Sarkosa," he says. "It is the tea leaves. You are understanding? Tea leaves are tools of prophecy, and today I came into the possession of these, which speak of moral decay and theft and insect shells. Pirates who live in the whorl of a snail, yes? This Old Jaethro person will hold the information we seek."

He shudders. "Fate toys with me, if I am destined to go to such a den of wretchedness and criminality."

[CraterShip]

"Wretchedness and villainy are never far, not when there are so many crews working toward the same goals. Competition fuels more than engine speed." Tolliver returns to find two of his newfound crewmates apparently arguing over the next location. Or tea leaves. It was difficult to tell.

"Tea make speak to prophecy, but actual words may lead differently. I hear tell of not only finding the deathbloom, but of destroying it. There is something called the Scrivener's Congress in Inkspell. It may have more useful information than steeping leaves. Angler's Spire is on the way to both Inkspell and Sarkosa. I say we start there."

OOC

OOC

 

Edited October 23, 2023 by CraterShip (see edit history)

[Moveslikejagger]

Atus nods at the conclusion of Tolliver's suggestion. "The Angler's Spire appears to be calling as a first port of call. I searched and found an eye only a little broken to see beneath the sea. An oculus they call it. Not quite what I was looking for, for how can mere sight achieve what I saw in my dreams? It only looks in one direction, not seeing dangers behind unless turned. A narrow vision. I think I need an ear and a mouth to match the eye, to sing and hear the hard and soft and to see all around. It will find me or not."

Atus appears to be daydreaming for a few moments about ears and mouths before his glowing eyes dim for a second as if he were blinking and he returns to what he was saying.

"In my exploring today two snippets found me. That at Sarkosa, Zoleeb Sarl, can make ships submersible, with an introduction by mentioning that the rattlehand of Cardinal's Wish sent us. The second snippet was that there is an engineer at Inkspill, an ektus, called Bounty-in-Winter. who could do the same for a story or some such thing. My searching for an eye, and the snippets finding me, might lead to a means to make the Argus swim beneath the waves of green. A prospect that slows my spinning heart and lessens my spark. Yet advantages to submersing are many. If chased by predators above, can go below. Dangers below, speed above. Many, many advantages. Argus might like to swim. So fear needs to be overcome with knowledge and experience, so if you all agree, I feel we should pursue, which suggests Inkspill or Sarkosa."

Atus gestures towards the logbook. "Parts of this tome are hidden in cipher, and Inkspill would be the place to uncover their meaning, if possible. Perhaps the reborn pirate's secrets can be discovered another way, with no need to visit the pirate haven. Just a thought."

Atus then picks up the Oculus and turns it over in his hands, glowing eyes focused on the object, although a tilt of the head would indicate he is listening.

 

 

Edited October 24, 2023 by Moveslikejagger (see edit history)

[Dr Jackal]

Tharr shrugs at Tolliver. "Angler's Spire first, if you wish," he agrees. "So long as the eventual goal is Sarkosa, because it is there we will learn what we need."

He listens to Atus speak, then gives Tolliver a look that says, Are we sure about this guy? He seems kind of out there.

 

 

[yxanthymir]

---

Park Stadium | AspectsBloodline: Ardent

- Tough as Nails (4-Track Trait) - You’re a natural survivor. Rolls made to treat or heal an injury you're suffering from treat conflicts as triumphs.

- Ironclad Mind (4-Track Trait) - You are immune to hallucinations, mesmerics and mental compulsions.

Origin: Ridgeback

- Archaeodermis (2-Track Trait) - Your skin (or whatever you have as an outer covering) mimics the mountain you were raised on. You're immune to keen damage, as well as bites and stings from small creatures.

- Shamanic Idol (4-Track Gear) - Holds a sliver of power from a not-quite-god. Deals LR salt damage.

Post: Char

- Taste Test (4-Track Trait) - You're immune to poisons, and can determine their presence and characteristics by taste alone.

- Seasoned Cleaver (2-Track Gear) - As useful on the battlefield as it is in the galley. Deals CQ hewing damage. Increase impact when acquiring dangerous or disruptive specimens. | EdgesGrace, Instinct & Tides | SkillsDelve: 0
Vault: 2
Wavewalk: 0
Hunt: 2
Study: 0
Sense: 3
Harvest: 3
Scavenge: 0
Tend: 2
Concoct: 0
Cook: 3
Rattle: 0
Flourish: 0
Outwit: 0
Sway: 0
Brace: 0
Break: 0
Hack: 0 | LanguagesLow Sour | ResourcesCook Utensils (Salvage)
Bag of Spices (Specimen)
Tonic of Health (Specimen)
Liquid Fire (Specimen)
Carrion Weed (Specimen)

---

 

Park arrives at the ship and he doesn't know how he got there. The whole day was like a dream. He made a friend/enemy, was robbed by squirrels, learned a new recipe of bug meat, gained the favor of an order of ancient secret butchers and even got a hint of a possible destination. He was overwhelmed, and at the same time delighted. He would be lucky if everyday was similar.

He looks at Tharr among the crates at the galley and could not avoid to question himself what would be his taste in a good recipe. The taste of bug meat still buried in his mind. Instantly the thought vanished and he remembers that he could have spent the day getting food for the trip, but instead he was sidetracked in his adventure.

I got supplies too. - He says showing with pride the stinky carrion weed and spreading the noxious odor at the galley. - Maybe can make good food.

He hears in their conversation, about Angler's Spire. It is one of the few words he understands in their whole conversation. He has trouble understanding his companions. They use such complicated words like "wetxednes", whatever that is, specially the ironbound, he simply cannot understand him. I fink Angler's Spire good place to go. Somebody dere may have hint of Bloom.

Actions

 

 

Edited October 31, 2023 by yxanthymir (see edit history)

[Morkskittar]

The Day of Departure

[ ]-[ ]-[ ]

Journey to Angler's Spire

The quartet reached a clear decision after only a few minutes of discussion: they would head first to Angler's Spire, and then further west, perhaps to Inkspill (and, if Tharr's prophesying was correct, eventually south to Sarkosa). That decided, they went about making sure the ship would be ready to leave in the morning, and some went to bid farewell to their companions on the Slipfang, promising to stay in touch with them via their twinned skapp-beetle hives.

Tharr, Tolliver, and Park slept through the night, while Atus stood upon the deck, watching the dusting of stars across the sky until the sawn began to rise. His companions were up not long after that, eager to set out on a ship of their own. They weighed anchor, unmoored themselves from the sea, and one of them grabbed the wheel. The engines came to life with a roar (one that woke up the lighter sleepers on the Slipfang docked across the pier), and with a lurch, the Argos was off, arcing out around Verdurance, giving the ship graveyard a wide berth, and then gunning it out for the open seas of green. As the sun rose, revealing a gloriously warm and sunny day, the spirits of the crew rose with it.

OOC

And we're off! We are beginning a journey. I have made a three-box journey track to reach Angler's Spire; it's a short haul. Everyone needs to decide on what to do during the journey; one person needs to be at the helm and one on watch, but the other two can do something else (or nothing). The roles are first-come-first served; whoever posts first that they are taking a role for the first leg of the journey gets it. If no one takes either of the required roles, you go nowhere. If you are at the helm, you just choose how fast you want to go, and if you are on watch, you need to make a roll.

Roles

At the Helm (Required): Steer the ship, make decisions about course, roll for ship tests. All tests made at the Helm use the ship's statistics. If required, you will need to decide how to react to certain situations. Please select one of the following three options when you take this post:

• Cut a Path: Mark 1 box on your journey track, and you will have time to avoid or prepare for any obstacles spotted by whoever is on watch.
• Forge Ahead: Mark two boxes on your journey track, and you will be unable to avoid and will have less/no time to prepare for any obstacles you encounter.
• Drop Anchor: Mark no boxes on your journey track, and instead take a montage on the waves (don't do this one this time unless you want to stay at Verdurance longer).

On Watch (Required): Keep a lookout for opportunities and dangers. When taking this role, also roll a d6 to determine what type of encounter you may discover. If you have any relevant skills, they can be applied here. 1–3: Nature (a wilderness encounter); 4–5: Order (port, ruin, or sailor encounter) 6: Peace (crew takes a Montage or some other ship-focused event at GM's discretion). If there is an encounter, you can make a suggestion for what is found, but GM makes the final decision. If you are On Watch, you can also use a Chart and Whisper to make a Discovery to work with the GM to find something unexpected and amazing.

Tend the Engine (Optional): Be ready in case something goes wrong to give the ship extra help or boosts. You can chose to Overload the engine to give you extra speed for an encounter, but at a cost, or Muffle it to sneak by threats. If taking this task, you do not need to decide what to do until after the encounter is clear, and there is no guarantee that engine-tending will be necessary.

Cartographize (Optional): This sets a pathfinding track that you can mark a box on every time you take this option. When full, you obtain a chart of the region you are in. This option can be taken multiple times in a row.

Weatherwatch (Optional): Having someone in this position allows you to receive a warning of potentially dangerous weather, and can roll for weather conditions; if you select this option, roll 2d6 to determine what strange sights you see in the skies.

Other (Optional): You can work on a project, repair the ship, cook meals, sleep, or do something else, subject to GM approval. You may be asked to take a skill test.

 

[Moveslikejagger]

"Sunshine. I find you disappointing and inauspicious." Casting a dark eye towards the skyline. Atus appears to shudder in apparent disgust at the sight. "A good lightning storm would have been a better omen. No one to see us leave, with the bolts dancing and thunder applauding merrily to capture attention. Oh well, if you only sailed in perfect weather, you'd barely sail at all."

 

Atus turned to the rest of the crew. "I'll be tending the engines if you need me. Or just making sure everything is working. On Argus' first venture to sea I feel safer if someone is there to watch them. Whilst we have done the best we can, things may need tightening or loosening or turning or hammering or just rattling in general."

Atus ambled down the stairs talking to himself. "Is rattling a word I wonder? It feels like a word. You can have rattle and rattler, so rattling tastes like a working word. But then all words work I suppose, just some better than others. "

 

 

[yxanthymir]

---

Park Stadium | AspectsBloodline: Ardent

- Tough as Nails (4-Track Trait) - You’re a natural survivor. Rolls made to treat or heal an injury you're suffering from treat conflicts as triumphs.

- Ironclad Mind (4-Track Trait) - You are immune to hallucinations, mesmerics and mental compulsions.

Origin: Ridgeback

- Archaeodermis (2-Track Trait) - Your skin (or whatever you have as an outer covering) mimics the mountain you were raised on. You're immune to keen damage, as well as bites and stings from small creatures.

- Shamanic Idol (4-Track Gear) - Holds a sliver of power from a not-quite-god. Deals LR salt damage.

Post: Char

- Taste Test (4-Track Trait) - You're immune to poisons, and can determine their presence and characteristics by taste alone.

- Seasoned Cleaver (2-Track Gear) - As useful on the battlefield as it is in the galley. Deals CQ hewing damage. Increase impact when acquiring dangerous or disruptive specimens. | EdgesGrace, Instinct & Tides | SkillsDelve: 0
Vault: 2
Wavewalk: 0
Hunt: 2
Study: 0
Sense: 3
Harvest: 3
Scavenge: 0
Tend: 2
Concoct: 0
Cook: 3
Rattle: 0
Flourish: 0
Outwit: 0
Sway: 0
Brace: 0
Break: 0
Hack: 0 | LanguagesLow Sour | ResourcesCook Utensils (Salvage)
Bag of Spices (Specimen)
Tonic of Health (Specimen)
Liquid Fire (Specimen)
Carrion Weed (Specimen)

---

 

Park locks himself in the galley. The helm is definitively no place for him, unless he is covering for someone while he is relieving himself. He definitely could do that for other crew member, although he doesn't trust any of them behind the cook pot. That would be really dangerous.

He is planning on working on his Carrion Weed, and make something useful of that wretched thing. Maybe a desert or a healing salve. He doesn't know yet, but he was willing to try. He tastes the thing and he doesn't die or feel ill, so it should be good enough for a recipe.

While he prepares simple meals during the journey to sustain the crew, working deftly with his cleaver; his real project is to make something salvageable from the stinky ingredient. A challenge to be overcame.

Actions

Work on Carrion Weed. Remove the last die roll if not applicable.

 

Edited October 31, 2023 by yxanthymir (see edit history)

[Dr Jackal]

Tharr scampers toward the lookout's post. "Watch! I will keep watch!" he says quickly. "Much luck with the helm, yes? I would help, but I do not how to steer, or something like that probably."