[Burichan] [Futaba] [Nice] [Pony]  -  [WT]  [Home] [Manage]

Report completed threads!

[Catalog View] :: [Archive] :: [Graveyard] :: [Rules] :: [Discussions] :: [Wiki] :: [Discord]

[Return] [Entire Thread] [Last 50 posts] [Last 100 posts]
Posting mode: Reply
Name (optional)
Email (optional, will be displayed)
Subject    (optional, usually best left blank)
Message
File []
Embed (advanced)   Help
Password  (for deleting posts, automatically generated)
  • How to format text
  • Supported file types are: GIF, JPG, MP3, MP4, PNG, SWF, WEBM
  • Maximum file size allowed is 25600 KB.
  • Images greater than 250x250 pixels will be thumbnailed.

File 169669541223.gif - (4.11MB , 1000x800 , falling-city-title-animation.gif )
1074204 No. 1074204 ID: 0b594e

Rumors abound of the city.
They say it just appeared one day.
They say no one has ever seen its top.
They say it is a place of mystic secrets and wild pleasures.

But before we can get to that...
Expand all images
>>
No. 1074205 ID: 0b594e
File 169669546033.jpg - (275.20KB , 1000x800 , desolate camp.jpg )
1074205

In a desolate valley, a desperate tribe huddles around dim campfires. Their enemy surrounds them, waiting silently in the darkness. Once the tribe were famed for their artistry and craft across the world. Now they have been driven out, their freedom a threat to those who seek power.

The only thing that keeps them safe is the mile wide circle of runes that encircles them. If they weren't already marked for death, they would be for crossing them. But this sanctuary will soon become their grave, for there is no succor here, no life upon this dusty ground.

What species be this tribe? What craft do they practice that brought such misery upon them?
>>
No. 1074206 ID: 462d8c

Kobolds
And they practiced the now forbidden craft of bone weaving
>>
No. 1074207 ID: 1db616

It's a tribe of rat people. They practiced scavenging, but scavenging is only helpful when there's a preexisting tribe to scavenge from.
>>
No. 1074208 ID: eb7ce4

i agree, kobolds sounds like a good idea
>>
No. 1074209 ID: e51896

Neumonos

but if animals, Prairie dogs! Yahoo!
>>
No. 1074210 ID: 59fbfe

Kobolds. They used ritual necromancy to automate their lives, but other tribes claimed this began to suck the life from their own lands.
>>
No. 1074211 ID: 7c0da2

They are kobolds.
They practice haruspicy, divination using the entrails of dead animals.
>>
No. 1074217 ID: 64faaa

Kobolds. But instead of yappy ADHD lizard people, they are more like scaley dwarves with scales like polished stone.

The craft that brought them to ruin is stone carving. Any stone can be carved to bring out a glimmer of power, but precious stones & crystals hold more power.

So the stories say, many kings, heroes, & villains have been made by one of the wonders this tribe produced. Some of those stories might even be true, but in reality, most of the treasures they made were far less powerful than that.

Even so, other tribes have long traded with them, or coveted their treasures, or feared the power they might hold.

Recently, a great nation in the latter category has come to the fore. Already prejudiced, this nation is incensed by the disappearance of an astonishingly large holy gemstone. Not only do they blame the tribe for its theft, they fear the tribe will deface it & turn it into a weapon against them.
>>
No. 1074218 ID: 8f9bc4

rat pplllll
>>
No. 1074219 ID: 435f13

Kobolds. They practice necromancy.
>>
No. 1074222 ID: a7a180

Viking rats. They are famous for their warcraft. Every body a sculpture, every tool a weapon. But if their enemies don't get them, the cholera will.
>>
No. 1074226 ID: f2320a

>>1074205
Pig

Cooking
>>
No. 1074245 ID: 6fec12

>>1074217
seconding this
>>
No. 1074262 ID: e5709d

Neumono-cutebold hybrids.

Theirs is the art of Flow - their (ground) paintings are made by spreading colored sand across scattered glue while dancing. Their songs are sung while practicing martial arts. Harmless. Healthy.

But people have a tendency to worship that which is broken.

As the ages passed, it dawned on the corrupt and the ambitious that the tribe had this... tendency to sooth the minds of the masses. To get them to harbor doubts about their beliefs they would otherwise go their whole lives obediently ignoring. They did not know of the tribes' background psionics... and they did not care.
>>
No. 1074284 ID: f3171e

Kobold Necromancers
>>
No. 1074432 ID: 4bff6f

>Species
Laprines, here are some females for reference:
https://questden.org/kusaba/tg/#11919

>Crafts that brought them mysery
Mysticism, tribalistic arts and crafts, crystal feng shui, forgetting to buy firearms with their profits.
>>
No. 1074456 ID: 0b594e
File 169697858421.jpg - (151.08KB , 1000x800 , example robolds.jpg )
1074456

Robolds: The offspring of a certain dragon who got up to some shenanigans with various rodentia while shape shifting. They have always been viewed with some suspicion, but respected for their necromantic arts. Able to knit flesh and weave bone, they blur the lines between life and death. Shaping their bodies to any task, they excel at the arts and are quite capable in combat.

So what if they borrow people's guts for haruspicy? They always return them afterwards.
>>
No. 1074457 ID: 0b594e
File 169697863242.jpg - (399.56KB , 1000x800 , around the obelisk.jpg )
1074457

The tribe's last rune scrivener has spent many a night feverishly studying the ancient obelisk that occupies the center of the circle. Runes, so old their meaning is almost forgotten, coat the weathered structure. If there is any hope for salvation, it must be hidden within these glyphs.

His apprentices hasten over at the scrivener's cry. An activation rune! But it is worn, hard to make out.
>>
No. 1074458 ID: 0b594e
File 169697866522.jpg - (577.89KB , 1000x800 , 3 runes.jpg )
1074458

What does the Rune depict?

A: Wyrm
B: Wurm
C: Worm
>>
No. 1074459 ID: a7a180

Wurm!
>>
No. 1074460 ID: c65741

It's gotta be a Wurm
>>
No. 1074462 ID: 47713f

Option B.
>>
No. 1074465 ID: 0fbdcd

They walk without rhythm, and disturb the Worm.
>>
No. 1074466 ID: f3171e

>>1074458
Wurm
>>
No. 1074468 ID: 5a7a53

>>1074458
Clearly the Wurm
>>
No. 1074472 ID: 462d8c

B.) For the WURM
>>
No. 1074495 ID: 273c18

>>1074458
B
>>
No. 1074513 ID: afbb81

Glory to the WURM
>>
No. 1074515 ID: e5709d

Warm
>>
No. 1074521 ID: f2320a

>>1074458
Worm
>>
No. 1074529 ID: 0bf2fd

Option D. Wehrm. Some sort of ancient serpentine stalwart defender. You have a feeling they pronounce w like v and j like y.
>>
No. 1074585 ID: 0b594e
File 169715422568.jpg - (197.60KB , 1000x800 , tall obelisk.jpg )
1074585

Rune identified, now it only need be touched to activate the structure. But, um... this obelisk wasn't built with a bold's stature in mind, the rune is out of reach.
>>
No. 1074586 ID: 0fbdcd

Go Go Gadget Kobold Pyramid!
>>
No. 1074587 ID: 7e6fd4

Time for the corpse scaffolding! Or the Behemoth amalgamation.
>>
No. 1074588 ID: 462d8c

Time to be three kobolds in a trenchcoat, minus the trenchcoat
>>
No. 1074589 ID: 273c18

>>1074585
We could just use a ladder...
>>
No. 1074591 ID: dc4bad

throw rock?
>>
No. 1074593 ID: f3171e

Go Go Gadget Kobold Pyramid!
>>
No. 1074596 ID: 0bf2fd

>>1074589
Wtf is a ladder!?

Stand on each other's heads!
>>
No. 1074597 ID: a7a180

Find the scrawniest bold and the strongest bold and have one throw the other at the rune.
>>
No. 1074598 ID: e5709d

You're necromancers.
Lift yourselves off the ground by conjuring a tower of bones.
>>
No. 1074606 ID: 47713f

Animate an amalgam of bodies as a flesh golem and use that to elevate the relevant robolds.
>>
No. 1074607 ID: 8f9bc4

Welp you're doomed. Nice knowing you!
>>
No. 1074638 ID: afbb81

Stacking kobolds on top of each other is a plan that cannot go awry!
>>
No. 1074667 ID: 4370c0

btw, what is with the glowing penis?
>>
No. 1075004 ID: 0b594e
File 169769515593.jpg - (343.26KB , 1000x800 , bold stack.jpg )
1075004

> Necromancy
This dead land is so long dead that not even bones remain. Also necromancy is a little involved, why go to all that trouble when we can...
> Robold stack
The master impatiently instructs his apprentices to lift him up. Perched atop them, he slaps his hand to the ancient rune.
>>
No. 1075005 ID: 0b594e
File 169769519567.gif - (3.12MB , 1000x800 , portal-activation-animation.gif )
1075005

>>
No. 1075006 ID: 0b594e
File 169769524859.jpg - (269.43KB , 1000x800 , wurm appears.jpg )
1075006

This seems like a good time to pick a protagonist.
>>
No. 1075007 ID: 0b594e
File 169769532443.jpg - (188.39KB , 1000x800 , character select.jpg )
1075007

Which of these fine bolds tickles your fancy?

The Rune Scrivener: Donvan, a male rattebold apprenticed to the master rune scrivener. Scriveners approach to magic involves a laborious meditative process of carving runes. Though slow, it allows for long lasting effects, up to millennia at high skill levels. This apprentice has middling skill with matters of flesh and earth, and exemplary skill with matters of the stars and magic theory.

The Flesh Shaper: Martah, a male mouzbold apprenticed to a master flesh shaper. Flesh shapers take a more direct approach than scriveners, exerting their will directly upon organic matter both living and dead. Limited only by their willpower, scientific understanding, and imagination. This shaper has middling skill with inanimate organic matter, and masterful skill with living tissue.

The Hunter: Murdoc, a female rattebold of the hunter profession. Hunters are the protectors of the Robold tribe, scouting for supplies in times of peace, stalking their enemies in times of war. This hunter has middling skill in melee combat and plantcraft, and exemplary skill in archery and wilderness survival.

The Enigma: Nobody know what this thing is or where she came from. She has tried to be helpful around camp, but hasn't shown any particular skills so far.
>>
No. 1075008 ID: 462d8c

Be the Enigma
>>
No. 1075009 ID: aac1f3

Be Martah!
Let's craft some abominations!!
>>
No. 1075010 ID: 273c18

>>1075007
Martah
make us whole
>>
No. 1075011 ID: e5709d

Enigma
>>
No. 1075018 ID: 2c5c63

The enigma.
>>
No. 1075020 ID: 0fbdcd

Martha!
>>
No. 1075021 ID: 708905

>>1075007
Enigma

I have found memories of cutebolds from old tg
>>
No. 1075022 ID: f7f1b0

Martah
...to make it a tie again. :P
>>
No. 1075023 ID: afbb81

I want Martah
>>
No. 1075024 ID: cf16ed

My heart is telling me Enigma, but I'm gonna have to go with Martah.
>>
No. 1075025 ID: 59fbfe

...Martha, with their bumbling sidekick, Enigma?
>>
No. 1075041 ID: f3171e

>>1075020
Why did you say that name?

Also seconded, Martah
>>
No. 1075081 ID: 0bf2fd

Enigma
>>
No. 1075087 ID: 0b594e
File 169776461606.jpg - (288.00KB , 1000x800 , everyone loves martah.jpg )
1075087

You have chosen the lovely Martah. We find him in the medical tent, tidying up after helping reattach Murdoc's arm.

Robolds are well accustomed to speaking with the spirits of the dead. Although they never reveal any details about the afterlife it has been scientifically confirmed that they are the actual souls of the ancestors. Do you have any questions for Martah before the action kicks off?
>>
No. 1075088 ID: 3ea497

How do you scientifically prove where a spirit comes from?

Also, how do reatach body parts? Full details, please. We need some of that here.
>>
No. 1075089 ID: aac1f3

Seeing as you are proficient at shaping flesh, would you consider yourself a FLESH BENDER?
>>
No. 1075102 ID: 53b46b

>>1075087
A biomancer then. Hmm you need more arms, can never have too many arms and/or tentacles
>>
No. 1075106 ID: f3171e

>>1075087
If the remains of two individuals are combined, do their spirits share control?
>>
No. 1075111 ID: 273c18

>>1075087
How good are you at attaching parts to bodies they didn't originally belong to? Or merging two whole creatures together?
>>
No. 1075122 ID: e5709d

Are you a Solo or will you bring Enigma as your sidekick?
>>
No. 1075125 ID: 47713f

Is decomposition a significant issue with regards to employing your talents for medical purposes? Do limbs have to be stored in a special manner in order to still be useful for mending an amputation after a delay, for instance?
>>
No. 1075134 ID: 0bf2fd

>>1075122
We need Enigma
>>
No. 1075241 ID: 0b594e
File 169794183888.jpg - (389.78KB , 1000x800 , medical tent 1.jpg )
1075241

Martah: (Dammit, who organized these?)
>>
No. 1075242 ID: 0b594e
File 169794194260.jpg - (395.46KB , 1000x800 , medical tent 2.jpg )
1075242

> Everyone talking at once.

Martah: (Ahhh!)
>>
No. 1075244 ID: 0b594e
File 169794226763.gif - (464.40KB , 1000x800 , martah-gabbing.gif )
1075244

Martah: (Whoa there's a lot of you guys today, huh? Usually you don't get a concentration of spirits like this unless... well I'm sure its nothing. It doesn't sound like you're from this world even? That's really rare!)

> How does flesh shaping work?
Martah: (Right so, magic at its most basic is like a conversation between you and the universe. You have to convince reality itself that what your trying to do will be better in some way than the current state. So most magic techniques are in service to a successful argument. The better you understand how the world works the better you are at convincing the universe, so scientific research is a must. Um, what else? Oh, willpower, you need a strong will to effect change! I... I don't do so well at that.)

Martah: (So flesh shaping! We Rabolds inherited an instinctual understanding of how bodies work from our progenitor dragon. It's hard to put into words, we just sort of feel how an organic body is supposed to move and function. So we find it easy to convince the verse to change our forms. Oh, I say convince, but it's still hotly debated on whether the universe has an actual consciousness. Magic takes place on a higher plane than words, so its hard to describe in detail.)

Martah: (Huh, was there a little earthquake just now? Eh, seems to have passed.)

> What's with the spirits?
Martah: (Spirits, um, the soul resides in the brain. Think of it as sort of being shaped by the brain, but still separate, like water in a very squiggly tube. When the body dies, the spirit lingers for a while, typically a few days. A flesh shaper can revive the body in that time, and the spirit will carry on as if nothing happened. Otherwise the spirit will go... somewhere. No spirit ever speaks of it. We can call out to the spirit realm though, and if any are interested we can get them to hang out or occupy an empty body. But it was recently proven that they are the actual souls of real people! I don't really get all the details, but there was an experiment with runes of truth, and well, Donvan was very excited about it. He could tell you all about that magic theory stuff, I only really know flesh things. Yeah, everyone was talking about that discovery right before...)

> Get extra limbs
Martah: (So! Extra limbs! Yeah I've tried that, but I can't quite wrap my brain around moving more than four limbs at a time. Having a shaped body can get really tiring, once you get used to the change its okay, but the bigger the alteration the more your body and brain need to work to keep up. It's why we try to keep shaping as a slow process, take on the change in increments for easier adaptation. But as long as a shaper understands how the changed body will work, there is almost no limit to what can be done. You just need the will to convince the verse that wings or night vision would be way cooler than a boring old normal body. At least that's how I do it. Oh, and I wouldn't call it "bending", more like flowing, like clay? I don't know what I would compare it to, pushing with your mind maybe? Like earlier, I was helping to reattach my friend Murdoc's arm. Master did most of the work, but we just kind of visualize the flesh growing into each other, the veins and nerves linking up, then just hold that image in your mind until realty catches up. Sorry, I've never had to explain all this to someone starting at such a low level of knowledge. I'm not sure how to describe it right.)

> Enigma
Martah: (Enigma? Oh, are you talking about that odd little bold? At least, I think she's a bold, I've never heard of any species like her. She showed up here just after we did and just kind of, hangs around camp. She's tried to help us shapers here a few times, but she doesn't seem to know much about, anything really, so she wasn't able to do much. Enigma, you know I don't think she ever said what her name is. Huh. Do you think she's important? I haven't seen her today, but I'll keep an eye out.)

Martah: (Its nice being able to talk to someone like this, I don't usually get...)
>>
No. 1075245 ID: 0b594e
File 169794231938.jpg - (406.38KB , 1000x800 , medical tent 4.jpg )
1075245

Murdoc: "MARTAH!!"
Martah: "Glk-Ahhhh!"
Murdoc: "Martah we need you out here NOW!"
>>
No. 1075263 ID: 273c18

>>1075244
>limbs take time to acclimatize
Hmm, that does make it difficult to create a horrible melded monstrosity with any usefulness in battle, and implies that multiple heads on a thing wouldn't work at all because at least one of them would have no idea how to use the new body. Unless they were multiple full bodies fused to eachother? And unless you had some way of reliably controlling a wild animal you couldn't make such a thing out of animal subjects without a high risk of rampaging out of control... oh well.

>>1075245
Let's go see what they want. Probably has something to do with the Wyrm they just summoned.
>>
No. 1075264 ID: 273c18

wurm, rather.
>>
No. 1075273 ID: 407ea6

>Usually you don't get a concentration of spirits like this unless... well I'm sure its nothing.
Hahaha! It probably isn't. What's the usual conditions?

>>1075245
Did you just bleed out your face mask? Uh, good luck with that.
>>
No. 1075278 ID: 462d8c

Check what the hunter wants
>>
No. 1075295 ID: f3171e

>>1075273
Maybe he bit his tongue. I'm sure it's nothing he can't patch up.

Heads up, your friends may have summoned an ancient dragon. Its friendliness is yet to be determined.
>>
No. 1075402 ID: b5e793

Hope that liquid wasn’t anything important or especially reactive.
>>
No. 1075633 ID: 0b594e
File 169829159865.jpg - (378.73KB , 1000x800 , murdoc pushes martah.jpg )
1075633

> Are you bleeding?
Martah: (Its... nothing, don't worry about it.)

> Gatherings of spirits
Martah: (Spirits often show up when something big is going to happen... oh fuck.)

> She's probably talking about the giant wurm
Martah: "The WHAT!?"

The white mouzbold stumbles out of the tent and gapes at the sight of the quarter-mile wide wurm bearing down on them. Screams ring out around the sleepy camp as others notice the looming leviathan. Murdoc runs up and grabs the stunned shaper's shoulders and pushes him towards the center of camp.

Murdoc: "Martah, listen. The scriveners activated something and now the master is knocked out. I don't know where the other shapers are, we need you to revive him, or I don't know what we'll do about that thing." She carefully keeps her gaze locked downwards, avoiding the toothy visage above.
>>
No. 1075634 ID: 0b594e
File 169829173264.jpg - (482.57KB , 1000x800 , bold in a box.jpg )
1075634

As she shoves Martah through the crowded tents and crates, a pulse washes through them from above. The two stagger, feeling a presence in their minds, seeming like speech but impossible to make out.

A crate nearby rattles and bursts open, revealing the strange gray bold.
Odd Bold: "What what what?! 'emergency exodus'? What does that mean?" The little bold leans out of the crate, looking around wildly. She spots the pair and waves to get their attention. "Mister Martah, can you hear that? There's some kind of..."

She glances up and blanches at the sight of the wurm-filled sky. The diminutive bold lets out a little scream as she slides back into the box.
Odd Bold: "aaaaaaaaaa"

Murdoc: "Come on! There's no time!" The hunter pulls at the shapers hand, looking towards the glowing spire in the center of camp.
>>
No. 1075635 ID: 273c18

>>1075634
Enigma can understand the wurm! Grab that bold, she is important. "Emergency exodus" might mean we're supposed to move somewhere else? We need more information, more translation. Ask her what the voice is saying.
>>
No. 1075636 ID: 0fbdcd

Can we use flesh magic to wake the Master up? Slap his brain a little?
>>
No. 1075640 ID: f3171e

>>1075636
Maybe induce an adrenal response?
>>
No. 1075699 ID: 8f9bc4

In fact, emergency exodus is a cabbalistic reference from the ancient order of Ygnots that is colloquial for RUUUUUUUUUUUNNNN!!
>>
No. 1075902 ID: 0b594e
File 169863359632.gif - (401.08KB , 1000x800 , from-camp-to-obelisk.gif )
1075902

Martah rushes over to the crate, and looks down at the little bold who has curled up into a ball. He motions over the hunter, who gently but quickly scoops her up. The two resume their rush to the stricken master.

Martah: *gra-hack* "You can hear the wurm? This is important, what exactly did it say?"
She shudders and manages to answer.
Odd Bold: "I, uh, it didn't make any sense! Something about 'error, vessel compromised' and 'prepare for emergency exodus, stay within portal boundaries'.
Murdoc: "That sounds like the nonsense Donvan's always going on about."

The three arrive at the obelisk, which is now leaning over and sparking. Donvan is pacing and muttering to himself, the other apprentice is slumped on the ground clutching her head. The master scrivener is lying on the ground, his skinny chest gently rising with shallow breaths. Martah approaches him and examines his brain with a shaper's sight.
Martah: (Okay, he's getting enough oxygen. It looks like he's suffered a shock of some kind. I haven't much experience on brains, so any advice would be appreciated, spirits.)
>>
No. 1075903 ID: fb8a42

Make loud noises and bang on metallic objects, that'll sort 'em!
>>
No. 1075905 ID: 273c18

>>1075902
"Stay within portal boundaries" means everyone needs to get close to the wurm!

>what to do about passed-out bold
Slap him awake. Not too hard.
>>
No. 1075906 ID: 708905

>>1075902
Brain's intact? Little jolt to the ol adrenal glands should get em movin again so long as the tickers also good
>>
No. 1075929 ID: 8f9bc4

Nothing will awaken him but true love's kiss
>>
No. 1076735 ID: de5cb4
File 169940234230.gif - (202.83KB , 1000x800 , reviving-the-master.gif )
1076735

> True love's kiss> True love's kiss
Martah: (I... can't.)

> Adrenal jolt
Martah: (Easy enough.)
He concentrates on the scrivener's adrenal glands, willing them to flood the bloodstream. The master begins to stir.

> Slap him
> Loud noise

Martah: (You know what? Yeah I'm gonna do that.)
The shaper gently helps the master sit up, then he slaps his hands to either side of the old bold's head and starts shaking him. "*Gra-ack* Fix your problems old man!" he screams in the master's face.

Meanwhile Murdoc and Donvan are bickering in the background.
Donvan: "It is not my fault this time, I was relegated to... a support role."
Murdoc's response is interrupted as another pulse comes from above.
Donvan: "Ach, if I could only make out that damn voice! I'm sure it's talking about that portal."
Odd Bold: "It said 'Preparing link to nearest designated safe world. Error, no safe worlds found, preparing link to closest match. One minute to portal activation.' She looks up at the two, "That's a good thing, right?"
>>
No. 1076736 ID: 273c18

>>1076735
It means we have one minute to gather folks towards the pillar, whoever wants to be transported to an unknown world along with their giant wurm friend.
>>
No. 1076737 ID: 8f9bc4

>>1076735

Is your world unsafe? If so, everyone grab what you can and gather around the obelisk! If not, book it away from the obelisk, before you get portalled somewhere even less safe! Why is a giant wyrm activating portals?! What 'vessel' is that thing talking about?? Vessel like pottery, or vessel like a ship? You're not anywhere near the ocean! Oh, if only you hadn't broken that pot last week!
>>
No. 1076740 ID: f3171e

>>1076735
Gather the bolds, and boldly go where no bold has gone before.
>>
No. 1076741 ID: c21ceb

Alright, time for some major improvements to this living situation! Rather, lack thereof.
>>
No. 1077395 ID: de5cb4
File 170011288554.jpg - (359.87KB , 1000x800 , one minute reactions.jpg )
1077395

Donvan starts pacing again and muttering about ancient secrets. He stops and throws up his hands in frustration.
Donvan: "A minute?! And where will the portal be? This? This is what the ancient's magic is like?!"

Murdoc takes a few steps toward the camp then stops, slamming a fist into her thigh in frustration.
Murdoc: "We need to get everyone here, but there's no time. You!" she points at the little bold, who jumps, startled. "Tell that thing to wait!"

Enigma: "Yes ma'am, right away! But, um, how?"

Martah drops the dazed scrivener onto the dusty ground and staggers to his feet. He stares up at the descending wurm, feeling the first flicker of hope in a long time.
Martah: (We're... getting out?)

Another pulse fizzles through them, and even before Enigma translates they know what it means...
>>
No. 1077396 ID: de5cb4
File 170011291238.jpg - (404.06KB , 1000x800 , explosion.jpg )
1077396

"Portal Activating"
>>
No. 1077397 ID: de5cb4
File 170011297636.gif - (759.73KB , 1000x800 , beneath-their-feet.gif )
1077397

>>
No. 1077398 ID: de5cb4
File 170011301598.jpg - (595.01KB , 1000x800 , a new world.jpg )
1077398

So now Martah and everyone he knows find themselves high above a mountain valley. The panorama is magnificent, but the angle and speed it's viewed from keep them from really appreciating it.

What should Martah be doing in a situation like this?
>>
No. 1077399 ID: a7a180

Stop falling, duh.
>>
No. 1077403 ID: 8f9bc4

Fall in a cool way
>>
No. 1077411 ID: 273c18

Flap your wings.
>>
No. 1077412 ID: 3c2dff

Yeah, stop falling. That's a good idea.
>>
No. 1077418 ID: eb0a9c

Order the Wyrm to slow your descent.
>>
No. 1077428 ID: 462d8c

Flap arms really hard

Maybe grab onto the pillar?
>>
No. 1077442 ID: f3171e

>>1077398
Emergency fleshwarp yourself some bat wings to glide?
>>
No. 1077459 ID: 708905

>>1077442
Forget anything as complex as wings just try and spread skin out in a crude parachute, we're under a serious time limit here
>>
No. 1077466 ID: 8f9bc4

SKELECOPTERS

THIBBBBBBBBB
>>
No. 1077476 ID: 0fbdcd

Cloak parachute?
>>
No. 1077743 ID: c8ca0c

>>1077459
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KHDUBzlZLXE

But also, uh, try to talk to the wyrm? Tell Enigma to talk to the wyrm? Aim for a giant pile of hay?
>>
No. 1077771 ID: de5cb4
File 170059773462.jpg - (311.29KB , 1000x800 , rat to bat.jpg )
1077771

> Wings
> Hey! Hey, stop falling.
Martah: (AAAAA, right, yes, wings, right, OK, I can do this.)

> Skelecopter
Martah: (Oh, like with a WAIT THERES NO TIME!)

Martah lets the wind whip off his tabard as he concentrates. Skin stretches between his arms and torso, forming a pair of crude wings. Balancing on the rushing air currents he manages to hold roughly in place.

Looking around, Martah takes stock of the situation. A mile wide portal has dumped the entire camp into the sky, maybe five miles up? The wurm is close behind, about a 100 yards up. Martah's group, as well as the shattered remains of the obelisk, are some hundred yards or so apart from the rest of the camp, directly in the path of the wurm.

> Order the Wurm to slow your descent
Martah: (Right.) He glances up at the immense face. (How are we doing this?)
>>
No. 1077778 ID: 0fbdcd

You need to flap towards Martah and collect Enigma for translation, then flap towards the Wurm, then get Enigma to yell for help in Wurm, all before you hit the ground in roughly a minute.

If you think that'd take too long just flap towards the Wurm and flail in distress.
>>
No. 1077785 ID: 273c18

Would "Oh god please help they're all going to die" suffice?
>>
No. 1077790 ID: f3171e

>>1077778
Yes, we'll need Enigma to translate a request.
>>
No. 1077881 ID: f2320a

>>1077778
support
>>
No. 1078093 ID: de5cb4
File 170105521149.jpg - (207.52KB , 1000x800 , catching enigma.jpg )
1078093

Martah swoops over to Enigma, who is falling backwards staring up in a daze. He tries to grab her arm but accidentally crashes into her, sending them into a tumble. Martah manages to get back into a steady position with Enigma clinging awkwardly to his furry chest.

Martah: *Hack* "Are you alright?" He has to shout to be heard over the air rushing past them. "We need to communicate with that thing!"

Enigma: "I-I, Mister Martah I don't know how!" She shivers against him. "I really want to help but I just can't!"

Martah: "That's Okay! Just hold on and I'll take a look at your brain real quick!"

Enigma: "Wha- ?"
>>
No. 1078094 ID: de5cb4
File 170105526394.jpg - (955.68KB , 1000x800 , brain scan.jpg )
1078094

Martah: (Alright lets take a look.)

Enigma: (What the heck? This feels really weird!)

Martah: (Yeah, sorry, we just don't have much time. I'm just going to try and observe what happens when you next hear the wurm. Luckily it looks like your brain is very similar to ours so I should be able to... Wait there's, did you know you have some metal spikes in your head?)

Enigma: (Oh, um, yes. I was in an... accident.)

Martah: (Uuuuh, well okay, moving on. Sorry if I start rambling, I'm trying not to think about, you know, what might happen in a few minutes. Oh and there are a bunch of spirits hanging around so don't worry if you hear some other voices. Now, do you think-)

Wurm: {FOUR MILES TO IMPACT}

Martah: (Ah! There, around those metal bits! I don't know what they are, but your brain lit up when the wurm spoke just now. Okay concentrate and I'll try to direct your thoughts back through the device.)

What should Enigma say?
>>
No. 1078097 ID: 8f9bc4

UNSAFE VELOCITY DETECTED REQUEST CORRECTION

SUMMON COMFY PILLOWS

EQUIP PARACHUTES ON ALL PERSONNEL

PLEASE
>>
No. 1078099 ID: 273c18

>>1078097
Seems fine.
>>
No. 1078100 ID: eb0a9c

Units cannot take fall damage! Directive 1 currently violated!
Emergency Override: "F***ING PARACHUTES, NOW!"
>>
No. 1078103 ID: 3c2dff

All of the above, plus “ow, there are spikes in my brain.”
>>
No. 1078167 ID: f3171e

>>1078097
Seems appropriate.
>>
No. 1078256 ID: de5cb4
File 170123587181.jpg - (155.55KB , 1000x800 , a visual representation of telepathic communicatio.jpg )
1078256

Enigma: (Whoa, voices! So you're spirits, huh? Well don't worry, I've got this! This guy talks like one of those robots from back home, lets try this:)

Enigma: (Unsafe velocity detected, request correction!)

Wurm: {PASSENGER; REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGED. GRAVITATIONAL DAMPENERS COMING ONLINE.}

A wave of visual distortion washes out from the wurm. The titan and the cloud of debris begin to slow their fall.

Enigma: (That's great! Now can you get us down to the ground?)

Wurm: {DIRECTIONAL CONTROL OFFLINE; EMERGENCY PROTOCOL IN EFFECT. HOLDING PATTERN ESTABLISHED; PORTAL STABILIZATION IN 4 MINUTES.}

Enigma: (Well that sounds promising. You're doing a great job, uh, what's your name big guy?)

Wurm: {THIS VESSEL IS DESIGNATED... ERROR
THIS VESSEL IS DESIGNATED... ERROR
THIS VESSEL IS DESIGNATED...
THIS VESSEL... THIS VESSEL... I... I am...
Who am I?)
>>
No. 1078257 ID: 3c2dff

Error!
>>
No. 1078258 ID: a7a180

Null`); DROP TABLE Entities;--
>>
No. 1078259 ID: 273c18

Jormun.

What happens when the portal stabilizes? Does it close? Well, we can get down to the ground by turning the dampeners off and on repeatedly. Or... lowering their power output?
>>
No. 1078260 ID: 8f9bc4

He probably is a robot! In fact he probably is a flying ship! That's what a vessel is, right? He's so cool!
>>
No. 1078289 ID: f3171e

Jormun seems to be a suitable name.
>>
No. 1078745 ID: de5cb4
File 170182819675.jpg - (274.92KB , 1000x800 , sad backstory.jpg )
1078745

Enigma: (You're an... Error?)

Wurm: (I do not know. I remember... stars. Traveling between stars and carrying people within myself.)

Enigma: (So are you some kind of machine?)

Wurm: (yes, but... I did not used to think like this. I was asleep for a very long time, somewhere cold and dark. Longer than a vessel is supposed to be in storage. I think many of my systems have degraded. I think... I'm not supposed to be thinking at all. A lot of data is missing, even my name.)

Enigma: (Where I came from there were machine workers, and they would get in a lot of trouble for thinking. But I think you're safe here, these rat guys don't have any machines that I've seen.)

(And its okay if you don't have a name, I don't have one either.)

Wurm: (Hmm, I think I would like a name though.)

Enigma: (Well how about... Jormun? It's the name of a shipping crate company. Maybe it's silly, but finding one of their boxes in an alley, it always made me feel safe knowing I would have somewhere sturdy to sleep for the night.)

Wurm: (Jormun... yes, it sounds right. I am Jormun!) The wurm lets out a joyful keen that rattles Enigma's bones.

Enigma: (G-glad you like it, big guy! Um, about that 'portal stabilization'?)

Jormun: (Ah, yes it should be powered up. Brace yourselves!)
{PORTAL STABILIZATION IN 3}
>>
No. 1078746 ID: de5cb4
File 170182825241.jpg - (308.50KB , 1000x800 , split jaw.jpg )
1078746

{2}
>>
No. 1078747 ID: de5cb4
File 170182832002.jpg - (337.95KB , 1000x800 , portal stabilized.jpg )
1078747

{1}

A beam of brilliant emerald energy shoots from Jormun's maw, roiling the air in front of them and sending bolds tumbling away. Martah holds Enigma close as they dizzyingly spin. On the ground below the energy wave resolves into a second portal. Martah has a brief, disorienting view through it of the wurm from behind, before he blacks out.

He comes around to find himself in a small tent, oddly feeling as though he is still falling.

Jormun: (Oh good, you're finally awake.)
>>
No. 1078751 ID: 0fbdcd

We were trying to cross the border, eh.

Step outside. Did the whole village get placed in an infinite loop between two portals so nothing ever hits the ground?
>>
No. 1078753 ID: f3171e

>>1078747
Well, that was a ride. Might be time to get something to eat.
>>
No. 1078775 ID: 273c18

What's going on?
>>
No. 1078777 ID: 8f9bc4

Check your own brain for any unexpected spikes of metal.
>>
No. 1079223 ID: 76615e
File 170243023352.jpg - (598.45KB , 1000x800 , waking to a new paradigm.jpg )
1079223

> Check your brain for metal spikes
Martah: (I think I would know if... okay no, there is no metal in my brain. I'm going to have to talk to her about that later.)
(Also my body has reverted back to no wings mode. A shaper tends to lose minor changes they don't think of as 'normal' while they sleep.)

> What's going on?
Jormun: (Sorry you guys got all knocked around, but you're safe now! Your friends set up a little tent village on my tail. It's very cute. Oh, I'm Jormun by the way. I've been able to think for one day!)

Martah: (Oh, uh... I'm Martah. You can talk to us now then?)

Jormun: (Yes! After you helped the little one talk to me I was able to adjust my wavelengths. Now I can talk to anyone! Don't worry, I won't be listening all the time, too many voices gets confusing.)

Martah: (Well, it's nice to meet you, but it feels like we're still falling?)

Jormun: (That's right! I've stabilized the portal so now we're stuck in a holding pattern. My thrusters seem to have been lost at some point while I was asleep, and my section joints are calcified. I can't move at all! So I have no way to actually land or reorient. But we aren't falling too fast, I've got a fair amount of gravity control left. We're now coasting at ten miles per hour, nice and slow.)

> Get something to eat
Martah: (Wait did you say it's been a day? No wonder I'm so hungry.)

Jormun: (I let the little one know that you are awake. She's going to bring you some thing to eat.)

> Step outside
Martah gets out of the bed roll and realizes he's still naked! Luckily it seems this tent is being used to store clothing.
>>
No. 1079224 ID: 76615e
File 170243025526.jpg - (138.24KB , 1000x800 , martah paper doll.jpg )
1079224

Suggest an outfit for Martah
>>
No. 1079225 ID: 462d8c
File 170243172654.png - (148.74KB , 1000x800 , matcloth.png )
1079225

How about something asymmetrical?
(colours can be changed)
>>
No. 1079229 ID: eb0a9c

So if I understand correctly, this is where we build a city by using a portal pair as an abnormal 'foundation' so that the city can literally fall forever or until the portal destabilizes and the whole thing crumbles into the ground as a medium-sized molehill.
Neat.

Dress: Coat made of tied, ripped-off sleeves.
>>
No. 1079234 ID: f3171e

>>1079225
Classical, yet subtle.
Pink with gray accents in his usual preferred colors should do nicely.
>>
No. 1079516 ID: 76615e
File 170303927887.jpg - (678.64KB , 1000x800 , sweet relief.jpg )
1079516

Jormun: (I'm going now, just call if you need me.)

Picking through a basket of clothes, Martah finds a toga under a pile of coat sleeves, and it's even in the traditional shaper colors. Pulling it on, it's a great fit. Wow, what a good find. Everything's coming up aces today.

Tears stream down Martah's face as the emotional roller coaster of the previous day catches up with him. After months of desperate flight, sweet relief courses through him.

Martah: (We did it... we're finally free.)

Enigma knocks, or rather paffs, at the tent flap.
Enigma: "Everything alright in there? I've got breakfast."
>>
No. 1079517 ID: 273c18

>>1079516
Everything is fine. Finally. Food.
>>
No. 1079533 ID: f3171e

>>1079516
Revel in this moment of peace. Soon we will descend onto a new world, and who knows what awaits there.

See what Enigma brought to eat and invite her in to sit, humble though the furnishings be.
>>
No. 1079557 ID: 8f9bc4

Free from what exactly? Explore.
>>
No. 1080191 ID: 76615e
File 170416182754.gif - (7.77MB , 800x640 , moving-horizon-animation.gif )
1080191

Martah pushes aside the tent flap and is greeted with a brilliant sunrise. He can't help but stare as the mountainous horizon gently rises up, to be replaced in a flash with clear blue sky.

Enigma: "It takes some getting used to, huh?" she proffers a basket of oat squares and ushers Martah back into the tent. "Hurry and eat, there's a big leaders meeting starting soon and we're both supposed to be there." The little bold plops down on a basket and kicks her feet. "You know, I don't think I've ever seen you without your mask. Is it hiding some dark secret?" she teases.

Martah: "Hrak kaf-kaf-kaf. Ah, no it's just a curse." The shaper flicks the clasp and slips off his mask to reveal bloody teeth framed by ragged lips. "A simple mouth sealing, but the caster was very powerful, so I haven't been able to get rid of it." Martah shoves oats into his mouth as the flesh at the corners already tries to knit back together.

Enigma: "Does... does it hurt?"

Martah: "I'm a shaper, I only feel what I intend to!" Martah states boastfully, thumping his chest and spraying oats everywhere. "It is annoying, but I get by. You seem to be dealing with your's alright."

Enigma: "My what!?"

Martah: "In your head. Isn't that a curse?"

Enigma: "Dude, we don't have curses where I come from. I was in an industrial accident."

Martah: "An accident that left perfectly spaced spikes in your head?"

Enigma: "Well..."

Martah: "Ah, don't worry about it. Maybe you can tell me about it later, we could exchange secrets? Anyway, lets get to that meeting."

Martah follows Enigma through the ramshackle camp to the largest tent. As they walk a thought occurs to him. "So uh, if your not from our world, do you even know what we've been going through?"

Enigma: "Some cult decided that your flesh magic was dangerous and needed to be destroyed, right?"

Martah: "Yeah, that's pretty much it." The two enter the tent to find a dozen bolds seated around a large table festooned with hastily scribbled maps and lists.
>>
No. 1080192 ID: 76615e
File 170416192929.jpg - (251.03KB , 1000x800 , council 1.jpg )
1080192

Note: Spirits get special dispensation to attend leadership sessions, since its not like anyone could keep them out anyway.

Martah: (Since you spirits are new around here I'll introduce everyone.)

(The tall bunnbold is Pitreh, our de facto Chief. When everything went down she was the one that lead us to escape. I used to think she was just a crazy radical, but she's really proven herself getting us here. )
(The Chief is usually the eldest in a family line, but given the disarray we are currently in, I guess it falls to whoever is willing.)

(Mishkah and Grishkah are our Hunter Bosses. People often call them the twins, even though they aren't even related. These two have a real happy-go-lucky attitude and love to play tricks, but they are more than capable hunters. My childhood friend Murdoc is here too, she is our most capable scout after all.)
(The hunters provide us with meat and foraged vegetables, though lately they've had to do a lot of fighting as well.)

(The absolutely ancient mouzbold over there is Pokkul, the Master Runescrivener. He's eccentric, but I guess he knows his way around runes. To be honest I've never seen him do much of anything. Donvan is here too. He certainly knows a lot about magic, but his focus on the Ancients has never been very useful, until now.)
(Runescrivening is an ancient tradition, but as a nomadic people we always put more stock in Fleshshaping. Runes are a more permanent thing, and robolds tend to live in the moment. The few who take up Scrivening are viewed as equal part weird and wise.)

(Hossul here is one of the enigmatic hoggbolds. He's a Master Fleshshaper, and I've been training under him for a while. I've learned a lot, though he does tend to be a bit... mystical about things.)
(Fleshshaping is.. was our tribe's specialty. So many family and friends turned their back on us, now we're all that's left.)
>>
No. 1080194 ID: 76615e
File 170416199025.jpg - (215.64KB , 1000x800 , council 2.jpg )
1080194

(Next is Mirrak, this cute bunnbold is our current Master Trader. She's young and to be frank, not the image of a ruthless bargainer you would expect. Given that the traders were the first to abandon us, that's probably a good thing.)
(The traders have long been the go-betweens for the tribe, negotiating with the towns and cities to get us work and sell our crafts.)

(This nondescript mouzbold is Crafter Representative Lohmul, here to speak on behalf of the various artisans of the tribe. They have long been in the background, greasing the wheels of productivity. Looks like the dearth of leadership has brought them to the forefront, which they don't look too happy about.)
(The Shapers support the Crafters, the Crafters support the tribe. That's how it's always been. The crafters that didn't come with us... without shapers to perfect their bodies how will they maintain their craft?)

(Master Courtesan Sillah is a squirbold. They're amazing, just one speech and they convinced almost the entire Courtesan's Guild to come with us! Such a caring and warm personality, they've personally helped me with quite a few issues.)
(Shapers can deal with bodily problems, but its the Courtesans that heal our minds and spirits. And yes, that includes more carnal issues sometimes, but its really not as lewd as the rumors would have you believe.)

(Also this guy, Marten I think his name is? As far as I know he's just a regular bunnbold, not sure what they need him here for.)
>>
No. 1080195 ID: 76615e
File 170416208311.jpg - (387.89KB , 1000x800 , pitreh looming.jpg )
1080195

As Martah and Enigma take their seats, Pitreh slaps the table and springs up. "Right, lets get started!" She leans forward, fixing each bold in turn with a fierce stare as she speaks. "Every bold in this room knows why they're here. When our enemies surrounded us and our leaders betrayed us, you stepped forward. By your efforts we have escaped a dark fate, and a bright future is in our grasp!"

Pitreh begins to pace around the group. "You know what I see, out there in the camp? I see youth, vibrant and ready to build a better life. Our parents and leaders chose to give in, to give up the soul of our people for false safety. Save for our wisest elders, of course." Saying this she claps a hand to Pokkul's shoulder, who cackles in response, and Hossul's, who merely nods.

"And so!" She returns to the front of the table, slapping both hands down and looming over those assembled. "It's time we reject the rotten ways of our predecessors. I am declaring Damnatio Memoriae on the tribe's old name!" This bold declaration elicits murmurs, but no objections.

"Its time for the people to control their own fate. A vote will be held once we establish a foothold here, to choose what form our society will take, but until then we're still in charge. We'll get to your reports on our situation in a moment, but first!" She jabs a finger towards Enigma, who starts and glances about nervously as the room's attention shifts to her. "While we were getting dropped out of our bunks this one swooped in and saved us all! I'd say that deserves more than our thanks. I say we make her a full member of the tribe!" The room is hushed for a moment at this unprecedented announcement, then Enigma is showered with congratulations and pats on the back. The little bold's expression of shock slowly shifts into one of joy while tears prick her eyes. The assembly return to their seats as Pitreh kneels down beside her and grasps her hand. "Time for you to choose a name, in the traditional robold way. Just close your eyes... quick say the first two syllables you think of!"
>>
No. 1080196 ID: fb32ab

Pip Pip!
>>
No. 1080198 ID: 17abec

hoohaa
>>
No. 1080199 ID: eb0a9c

Sol Far
>>
No. 1080207 ID: 273c18

>>1080195
Kulnaym
>>
No. 1080210 ID: 462d8c

Bungus
>>
No. 1080219 ID: c75e0b

Kiwi!
>>
No. 1080222 ID: 0fbdcd

Nyg ma.
>>
No. 1080224 ID: fa753c

>>1080199
Seconded
>>
No. 1080234 ID: 35b049

>>1080195
Klatu
>>
No. 1080452 ID: 8f9bc4

ligma
>>
No. 1080453 ID: 462d8c

>>1080452
... Steve Jobs is just two syllables
>>
No. 1080516 ID: 76615e
File 170460330434.jpg - (0.98MB , 1000x800 , map jormun.jpg )
1080516

And a roll of the dice gives us...

Enigma: "...Sol...Far?"

Pitreh: "And is that a name you can live with?" Solfar thinks for a second, then gives a confident nod. "Then welcome to the tribe!" Pitreh gives her a hearty slap on the back that nearly bowls her over. "But no time to celebrate, our position here is not yet secure."

Pitreh: "So to begin, by our last count we are 300 bolds strong. We haven't run a full census since arriving here, but I am pleased to announce no reports of casualties. Sillah, how is moral?"

Sillah: "mmm, better than it was. I think it will take some time to sink in for most, that we are truly free and clear. Having things to build again should help, aye Lohmul?"

Lohmul: "Yes, the crafters are eager to create once more, if we have sufficient supplies."

Mirrak: "Ah, um, we've some good luck there! When the wurm opened that second portal, it undercut an entire mile of forest. We haven't recovered everything yet, but, um, at a preliminary count we've gained at least 200 timber, 75 beasts, 12 tons of stone and dirt. Also, many bushels of mushrooms and small plants but, eh, those might not be useful. I'm sorry, there's just so much to go through, and I don't know any of these plants and-"

Pitreh: "Hey hey, its okay Mirrak. We all know you're doing your best. Sounds like we've got plenty to work with for now. And that dirt will help Marten get our farming going."

Marten: "Ay Chief, I told you I only worked on a farm as a laborer for a season."

Pitreh: "Then you've got more experience than any of us! Hey twins! What's the situation on the ground?"
>>
No. 1080517 ID: 76615e
File 170460343331.jpg - (0.96MB , 1000x800 , map valley.jpg )
1080517

Mishkah: "Oh man, this place is great! The hunter teams that set out barely made it back. None of em got more than a few yards before getting attacked by crazy beasts!"

Grishkah: "The beasts that got portal dropped are quite interesting. Most of them seem similar to salamanders, but so big and fierce! I can't wait to get down there and encounter some myself."

Murdoc: "Ahem, as for the actual scouting, we've had to rely on what we can make out from up here." She points to a rough map on the table. "We seem to be in a valley surrounded on two sides by mountains. The main feature is a dense forest, with our portal right in the middle. The forest is surrounded by grassland and flanked by two small rivers from the mountains. Past that is hard to make out. It appears to be desert on the other side of the mountains, and to the south dense greenery, perhaps a jungle. There are no signs of civilization visible from the air, save for what looks like a structure on the highest peak."

Pitreh: "Alright then, looks like we're on our own for now. Lets get this camp running again, and we'll reconvene in a week."

As the meeting breaks up, Mastershaper Hossul takes Martah aside. "Feeling recovered are you lad? Good, good. Lets discuss what you'll be working on."

What should Martah do today?

A) Study Jormun
B) Study the captured beasts
C) Study the gathered plants
D) Assist the crafters
E) Assist with farming
F) something else?
>>
No. 1080519 ID: eb0a9c

Start by studying the local plants and animals. We need to get a rough understanding of the ecosystem so we can start industrial-level farming for 300 people.
>>
No. 1080520 ID: eeafe4

>>1080519
This. Anatomy is your specialty, so studying any they've managed to obtain will help us determine what parts are safely edible. Don't want any polar bear incidents, where people eat an organ containing lethal doses of a vitamin or mineral.
>>
No. 1080529 ID: 273c18

>>1080517
E. Let's get that sorted pronto.
>>
No. 1080534 ID: 56db77

>>1080517
C. Local plants should survive better than imported so if we can identify edible ones it should boost farming efforts
>>
No. 1080582 ID: c8ca0c

So we are...currently falling through the air? And exploring Jormun's back? Or what?
>>
No. 1080934 ID: 5ebd37
File 170518993748.jpg - (693.65KB , 1000x800 , pile of green.jpg )
1080934

Note: Just to clarify, Jormun is currently falling face first between two portals. The robolds have set up camp on his tail end, the currently top-most part of him.

>Study the plants

Martah: *hrk* "I would investigate the plants we've brought in, if that's alright master."

Hossul: "hmm, yes, an astute choice. The bulk of it has been stored in one of the warehouse tents. Look for Mirrak, she is in charge of sorting and storing our supplies."

Martah steps out of the meeting hall into a camp bustling with activity. Bolds are everywhere, carting about boxes and sacks. Even in the air overhead figures can be seen, pursuing the last falling resources in what appear to be basic wingsuits. High above it all is the looming visage of Jormun, watching the industrious bolds with his ever present grin.

Past the enormous piles of timber, which crafters are already busy sawing into boards and beams, Martah finds the large storage tents. He walks past a giant pile of dirt, where Marten is poking about and scratching his head. Entering the closest tent, Martah is confronted with an immense tangle of vegetation. Even as he stares, a couple of bolds brush past him to toss armfuls of vines on the mess.

Circling around the greenery, Martah sees many familiar forms among the gathered plants. Leaves, stems, flowers, mushrooms, it seems this world's foliage is not too far off from what he is familiar with. On the far side of the pile teams of bolds are attempting to sort the many plants, but they haven't put much of dent in the mound. Mirrak stands off to the side, furiously scribbling on a clipboard. She spots Martah and rushes over. "Shaper, you're here to help right?" she bites her lip in frustration. "The chief's counting on us, but, oh gods there's just so much!"
>>
No. 1080935 ID: 273c18

>>1080934
Shape them some extra limbs to make faster work sorting.
>>
No. 1080941 ID: 462d8c

>>1080935
Not a bad plan
>>
No. 1080943 ID: 71f26b

>>1080935
Great idea!
>>
No. 1080947 ID: f2320a

>>1080935
green is one of the colors humans can see the most shades of so how good are we at doing eyes?
>>
No. 1080951 ID: 636b17

>>1080934
Shape some extra sensitive noses and tastebuds, should help with finding plants that are edible and/or medicinal
>>
No. 1081392 ID: 5ebd37
File 170570989215.jpg - (557.21KB , 1000x800 , beastie parts.jpg )
1081392

>Shape them some extra limbs
>Shape some extra sensitive noses and tastebuds, also eyes

Martah: *hk-hraak* "Looks like your team could use some enhancements. What are we looking at for numbers of spare parts?"

Mirrak: "I told you at- I forgot to mention it at the meeting, didn't I?" she groans and rubs her face. "Check in the next storage over, old Lindsaw has her take-apart team set up with the beasts that couldn't be recovered intact. Only 30 at last count, but there should be something you can use."

Martah: "Got it, I'll be right back."

Entering the next tent, Martah finds it to be just as bustling as the last. Bolds are busy slicing apart corpses into neat piles of limbs and organs. The shaper walks over to a familiar spindly rattebold overseeing the work.

Lindsaw: "Ah, Shaper Martah. I do hope you have come to take some of these lovely parts off my hands. We haven't the proper supplies to preserve them, and I would hate to see them go to waste."

Martah: "What have you got in the way of strong arms and sense organs, Dismantler?"

The elderly rattebold waves a hand at a selection of limbs and heads arrayed on tarps on the floor. "Take your pick, its all salamanders down there, apparently." She pats Martah on the shoulder and leaves him to it, heading over to assist some bolds wrestling open the ribs of a particularly large beast.

Martah: (Well well, look at this spread. What can I do with these, I wonder?)

Heads:
A) 4 in stock: a nocturnal looking face, with big eyes
B) 5 in stock: a long snout, with a tongue to match
C) 3 in stock: a broad head, some odd sense organs have replaced the eyes
Limbs:
D) 10 in stock: three-clawed grasping hand on a short, scaly arm
E) 12 in stock: wide foot with sticky pads
F) 10 in stock: a runner's leg, with wicked claws
G) 4 in stock: a thick tail, good for balance

Martah: (I only have time to mess around with three of these, I'm supposed to be looking at plants after all.)
>>
No. 1081395 ID: 462d8c

Check out A, D, and E
>>
No. 1081397 ID: a04d9f

>>1081392
We can use the tongues from B to allow sorters to taste test samples without exposing themselves to ingested toxins using their true tongues.

D seems to be a suitable additional limb for dextrous sorting.

The rest are interesting, but probably not useful to our immediate task. If we want to investigate any of them, C is a complete unknown so its strange senses could hypothetically turn out to be helpful?
>>
No. 1081420 ID: 27aa41

Agreed that C has the potential to be valuable (or trash)
>>
No. 1082184 ID: 5ebd37
File 170668694428.jpg - (468.24KB , 1000x800 , working smarter.jpg )
1082184

>A,B,D,E

Martah: (Yes these seem the most useful. I'm not sure about A though, let me check.) He plucks out one of the large eyes and peers into it. (Mmm, yeah these are just good for night vision. I would have thought they would have broader spectrum, but these receptors are surprisingly simple. Oh well.)

Martah tugs out the long tongues from the B heads and bundles them up in a large basket, alongside the D and E limbs. Taking a moment to ask Lindsaw to set the C heads aside for him, he lugs the basket back into the plant warehouse.

Martah: *Hrak-Koff-Koff-Koff. Ahem* "Hey! Who wants a body change? Chief says we're not bowing to tradition anymore so we can change whatever we want! But you'd better want extra arms cause that's all we got." A curious crowd gathers around, and soon a number of bolds are kited out with grasping claws and sticky feet hands. A group of bolds is brought from the kitchens and given the long tongues. They set to work taste testing various plants, amassing a pile of potential crops.

Martah: (Phew, time to get to work.) Martah gathers up a collection of samples. (I'll show you guys an old shaper trick. If you squint really hard, you can see the tiny bits that make up an object. Like take this, for example.) he holds up a small brown lump and squints at it. (Looks like we've got carbohydrates, starches, some vitamins... wait this is just a potato!? Like just a regular potato like you get out of the ground? On an alien planet? Huh.)
>>
No. 1082186 ID: 5ebd37
File 170668707142.gif - (247.59KB , 1000x800 , new-vision.gif )
1082186

After a long day of peering at vegetation, Martah has found a handful of promising candidates that could be modified into useful food crops. Alongside the pseudo-potato there are also what appear to be onions and portobello mushrooms, so the farming team will have plenty to work with. Feeling famished, he heads to the cafeteria, bringing along one of the C heads to study.

Plonking the flat head down on the table beside his bowl of stew, Martah pulls out a small scalpel and begins dismantling. (Oh wow, I've never seen something like this before.) Eagerly drawing out one of the unknown sense organs and setting it aside, Martah reaches a hand with gently glowing fingers up to his own eye. Carefully, he removes the orb and connects the nerve cord from the sense organ into the socket. Instantly the bolds in his view are lit up with scintillating auras. (Whoooooooaah)

Solfar: "eeeeehhhh, Martah? Wh- whaaat are you doing?"
>>
No. 1082187 ID: 273c18

Wow. Is this... some kind of ridiculously fine-tuned electrosensing? You can see their nerves. Hmm, then again, that's a bit far fetched. If it's emitting that blue glow it might be some form of flesh-piercing radiation that the eye is tuned to pick up reflections off of. It only reflects off of nerves for some reason?

You can cure cancer with fleshcrafting, right?
>>
No. 1082190 ID: eb0a9c

>>1082186
Remind me why your people weren't preserved. It's clear that with enough funding you could have ensured shapeshifting and immortality for the rich and powerful.

...Also, how hard is it to gender-shift?
>>
No. 1082191 ID: 56db77

>>1082186
Looks like some sort of electric sensory system picking up on nerve signals. Damn useful for spotting hidden animals.
>>
No. 1082193 ID: 00c4e9

>>1082186
Squat under the table and see if you can sense her through the wood.
>>
No. 1082194 ID: 9e6aa6

Is she just surprised at you doing self-surgery in the cafeteria, or is the sensing affecting her somehow?
>>
No. 1082235 ID: 8f9bc4

>>1082187

You can cure cancer with a sharp knife. The problem is when little pieces of it escape into the bloodstream and make more tumors in worse places.

>>1082190

Just swapping physical organs? Because swapping hormones and biochemistry and chromosomes would require an awfully tiny scalpel, and a whole lot of patience.
>>
No. 1082241 ID: 8c1a7d

>>1082235
So long as you've swapped in a complete set of reproductive organs the chromosomes won't really matter and the new organs should regulate the hormones
>>
No. 1083502 ID: 5ebd37
File 170815113697.jpg - (378.11KB , 1000x800 , dinner conversation.jpg )
1083502

>some sort of electric sensory system?
Martah: (I'd heard of sharks being able to sense electrical waves, but this seems to be far more advanced. And through the air no less! I really can't begin to guess what mechanism it's using and I'm a little scared. Range seems a bit limited, it fades out halfway across this room, but this could be a huge help for the hunters! And we've got a whole six of them to work with.)

>You can cure cancer?
Martah: (Hmm? Oh sure, just direct the blood cells to where the bad cells are. The body is actually quite capable of dealing with rogue cells on its own, it just needs to be shown the way sometimes.)

>how hard is it to gender-shift?
Martah: (That's easy! Well as long as you have a donor organ to swap out. If you're rebuilding the existing organ or making one from scratch it will take a while. Its not uncommon, though its too much of a pain to do everyday. Murdoc has switched a few times, whereas I've only experimented with more surface level changes. Now that we aren't beholden to the old traditions I expect people will get a lot more wild with it.)

>why your people weren't preserved?
Martah: (Oh there's no doubt the rich will be secretly making use of the tribes we left behind. Our former merchant are probably making horrible deals as we speak. But frankly it was our own hidebound elders that always held us back. I doubt any outsiders knew the full extent we are capable of. So many traditions of maintaining the proper bodily forms, of keeping changes temporary. We'll definitely be better off now, I just wish it hadn't taken an existential threat.)

>Is she just surprised at you doing self-surgery in the cafeteria, or is the sensing affecting her somehow?
Martah: (Ah, right, I forgot she hasn't been with us for very long. She probably isn't used to regular dismemberment and such.)

>Look through the wood
Martah: *hak* "Hey Solfar, I was just examining this beast's organ. I can put it away if it's bothering you. Ooh, hang on a moment..." Martah ducks under the thick trestle table, noting how the auras the organ shows are much dimmer through the wood. "Fascinating..."

Solfar stares for a bit, then shakes herself and sits down. "You guys are strange, but at least its always lively."

As Martah is just finishing up getting his eye back in, the pair are joined by Mirrak. The bunnbold sits down heavily and sighs "Ah, thanks for your help today, we should have those plants squared away in a few days."

Time for polite dinner conversation, what's a good topic? The day's work, evening plans, the harrowing situation they've only just escaped from, or something else?
>>
No. 1083503 ID: 462d8c

For mental health, probably not task related. Ask what are some hobbies or possible group activities they might be interested in
>>
No. 1083504 ID: 273c18

>>1083502
Ask what they're looking forward to building in the new city. What facilities do they want?
>>
No. 1083508 ID: c1638e

>>1083504
This is a good one. Perhaps with some luck we can find a hot spring to draw from and make a nice bathhouse? What would they like to see develop?
>>
No. 1085176 ID: 5ebd37
File 170944127727.jpg - (355.07KB , 1000x614 , devouring stew.jpg )
1085176

Mirrak: "It's going to be strange, robolds staying in one place. I mean, we're moving down but that doesn't count. Ooh but just think of the stuff we can build now! Shops and stores, maybe even a market, we'll get so many new customers!"

Solfar: "Eh, what customers? We don't even know if there's anyone on this world besides us."

Mirrak: The bunnbold waves off the question. "Oh they'll come. I didn't spend years under the nastiest old traders just to end up in the middle of nowhere."

Martah: "Well that's good for the tribe, but what do you want for yourself? myself, I hope we get a good theatre."

Solfar: "And I'd like an arcade."

Martah: "A what?"

Solfar: "Oh, its a place with lots of games and activities. I've never been able to go in one, but they looked amazing." she sighs "I guess I'll never get the chance now."

Martah: "Hey don't say that. We'll build you the best arcade you've ever seen."

Mirrak: "Definitely, the crafters will be all over that as soon as they hear about it." she glances over to the next table, where several of said crafters are scribbling notes and pretending not to eavesdrop. "Ah, they're incorrigible. Well if we're shooting for the moon, I'd really like a bath house, with one of those outdoor steam pools. I've always wanted to spend an evening just soaking, watching the sun go down, holding her close while the world fades away."

Martah: "Ooh, that sounds romantic. I'm sure the Chief would love that."

Mirrak: "Wh- who said anything about the Chief?" she sputters, blushing.

Solfar: "Ee hee hee, so that's why you were so nervous at morning meeting, huh?"

Mirrak: "Agggh, is it that obvious? She was always the bad girl with the radical ideas that we apprentices couldn't be seen with, and now I see her everyday! And she says my name and tells me I'm doing a good job!?" She lets out a shuddering sigh, slumping onto the table. "How can I ever measure up to the bright, shining dream she has for us?" she mutters "I wanna kiss her so bad."
>>
No. 1085180 ID: eb0a9c

We heard that, silly.

For real, though, you need to start with your critical infrastructure - because you've got so many reality hacks that designing this otherwise-boring task is going to be awesome. Everything's literally falling, so you've got some powerful self-generating energy sources by simply hooking a dynamo to the ground and letting the mass of the city itself power it through gear contact. Same goes for water flow, which can literally be a stationary water tank/purifier that gets dumped wastewater at the top, flows through the filters using its own gravity, and then pours out freely at the bottom.
And that's just using dumb low-level tricks! There's so much you can do to turn this place into "The City That Cannot Lay Down And Finish Falling".

This city has the potential to be literally perpetual, because it involves a reality-defying hack that would likely cost multiple times its production in ongoing energy costs. But you have it, so put it to good use!
>>
No. 1085182 ID: 8f9bc4

Start by getting a bath house built.
>>
No. 1085186 ID: 273c18

Be good at your job, and she'll take notice.
>>
No. 1085194 ID: 236926

>>1085176
What about you, Martah? Have an eye for anyone?
>>
No. 1085202 ID: 56db77

>>1085180
Sideways windmills could also work as a constant energy source
>>
No. 1086465 ID: 5ebd37
File 171048457209.jpg - (1.13MB , 1000x800 , good ideas.jpg )
1086465

>Be good at your job, and she'll take notice.
>Start by getting a bath house built.
Martah: "Yeah, you're fine Mirrak. You just need a romantic moment to ask her out. So that's our priority then, building a bath house."

Mirrak: "Stop iiiit." she complains, but she's clearly smiling.

Solfar: "hee hee hee"

>What about you, Martah? Have an eye for anyone?
Martah: (Well, as you can probably tell, I'm not much of a kisser. I've spent a few hot nights with some lovely folks, but I just don't have that much drive, you know? I've got my friends, and that's enough for me.)

>hooking a dynamo to the ground and letting the mass of the city itself power it through gear contact
>Sideways windmills could also work as a constant energy source
Martah: "Wow, that sounds like something a people that weren't nomads would have the relevant skills to accomplish! Unless the windmills were made out of bones and tendons, which, hmmm. Maybe?"

Mirrak: "No, Martah. That would just start rotting, and we have more than enough vines and wood. As for this 'dynamo' even if we could make one, the edge of the ground is like a half a mile away. Might be a bit tricky."

Solfar: "I've only repaired machines, not built them, so I don't know how much I could help here. I don't think you have the right metals here."

Mirrak: "Its definitely something to discuss at the next meeting." she stretches and gets to her feet. "But its getting late, so I'll see you two tomorrow."

Solfar: "Good night! ... is that supposed to be a scribble of me?"

Martah: "uhhhh"
>>
No. 1086466 ID: 5ebd37
File 171048471878.gif - (3.97MB , 1000x800 , morning-two.gif )
1086466

An uneventful night passes into the dawn of the second day on this strange new world.
Martah: (You know, you guys don't have to just hang around me all the time. I'm going to be studying those sense organs some more, might be boring for you.)

Who do you want to follow today?
Martah messing around with flesh shaping
Murdoc and the hunters planning an excursion to the ground
Donvan and Jormun trying to figure out this wurm's whole deal
Solfar doing... something
>>1080192 Or one of these weirdos
>>
No. 1086476 ID: df60a9

>>1086465
>not much of a kisser
My brother in Christ, you are a fleshbender. Even if your normal mouth is cursed, life finds a way.
I suppose if you feel using a grafted mouth doesn't count, that's fair.

>>1086466
We may be of use to the ground expedition. Our third-person perspective can often help with picking up details in the area that might otherwise be missed, like threats hiding from the host's line of sight but not ours'.
>>
No. 1086490 ID: 462d8c

Let's follow murdoc for a bit
>>
No. 1086813 ID: 2f41db

>>1086476
I agree.

We can spread the knowledge gained but also there may be things more visible to spirits than the scouts.

...i wonder if there are local spirit forms too?
>>
No. 1087438 ID: 5ebd37
File 171177585212.jpg - (48.38KB , 1000x800 , edge of the wurm.jpg )
1087438

>Even if your normal mouth is cursed, life finds a way.
Martah: (Yeah well... no, you're right. I've had this curse for a long time, and I've let it kind of control my life. Sillah has been helping me build up my self esteem, but I keep falling into old habits, assuming folks will reject me and so isolating myself. I am getting better though, really.

So uhhh, I'm gonna go now. See you later!)

Martah scurries off to do weird things with organs. We now join the hunters' planning session already in progress.

Mishkah: "-didn't save his legs now did it? And how would we set one of those up when we're falling out of the sky? C'mon now people, we need good ideas, good ideas."

Off to the side of this rabble stand Grishkah and Murdoc, peering over the edge.
Murdoc: "I don't think these wing suits are going to be enough. Even if we clear the forest how will we land at that speed?"

Grishkah: "Couldn't you just" He mimes a shallow arc. "Like down and then up? How did you do it in the mountains?"

Murdoc: "About like that, yes, but never over such distances." She glances up. "Oh, its you lot. I don't suppose any of you have experience with flying? PItreh wants us exploring further out, but the forest is giving us trouble."
>>
No. 1087439 ID: 5ebd37
File 171177596179.jpg - (1.04MB , 1000x800 , map valley improved.jpg )
1087439

Grishkah: "The portal is about a mile across, and Jormun is a quarterish mile wide, so gliding to the ground is no problem. It's just that the forest is jam-packed with wicked cool beasts, which have thus far proven impassable. This entire valley is dense forest, coniferous trees and many mosses and ferns. It seems as though the mountains all shed their water on this side, so the plantlife is flourishing. It's practically a jungle! But that makes progress slow and gives predators cover."

Murdoc: "Exploration aside, if we can't hunt that's going to put a lot of pressure on the farm team. Robolds have never been farmers, so I don't expect we can rely on them so soon. We still have a fair store of food from the old world, so its not a crisis yet. I just don't like feeling trapped here."
>>
No. 1087441 ID: 273c18

>>1087439
The top portal is pretty high up... How far could a kobold glide if they exited the portal at the top and went as far out as possible?

Has anyone gone up above the top portal to see what's on the other side? Most likely case is that it leads to the ground under the bottom portal, which wouldn't be super helpful but at least gives us an option for how to land-- it's easier to use a bit of velocity to fly up above the top portal than it is to slow down and land normally from high up.
>>
No. 1087442 ID: eb0a9c

>Robolds are not farmers
Okay. How about ranchers? You can trade in optimized farm animals for crops from the local towns.
Ranching means you just need to set up defenses and boundaries for the grazing livestock. They'll do the 'farming' for you.
>>
No. 1087443 ID: 462d8c

Probably not the best idea, but what about fire? It'd help clear out areas for excursions and keep predators away. Plus, the updrafts from the heat would help increase the distance one could glide. Wouldn't have to worry about the fire getting out of control if the area is so green as well. Would maybe take devising some firebombs and some designated spots to target
>>
No. 1087444 ID: 8f9bc4

Why. yes. I have experience flying. First, you pay for your ticket... oh wait.
>>
No. 1087458 ID: 2f41db

>>1087439
You need a staging post.

Pick a convenient natural clearing, expand on that. Wooden fence and minor earthworks like a ditch with spikes sunk and facing outwards.
A couple of rudimentary tents for rest and storage.
Torches around the perimeter at night.

This will give you a clear, safe landing point, allow for extended expeditions and provide a secure rest and storage point for gathered supplies.

Anything found, foraged or hunted could be stored there and left to a seperate team to ferry back to the city.
Hunter focus on hunting, loggers and foragers on their work.
A team of your strongest can respond to a raised flag from the camp and travel down to make pick ups or drop offs.
Specialisation for efficiency.
>>
No. 1087483 ID: dca656

Yeah, expand a clearing and start fortifying it.

Is there any quick modifications on the workers you can do to help with tree chopping? Or maybe just beef up the hunters to help fend off beasts.
>>
No. 1087494 ID: a031a4

>>1087439
Getting back up to the portals might be a concern as well, no? Do you have any plans or equipment in place for that already?

If not, we'll need to establish some infrastructure below. Securing a landing site, building something like a lift and pulley system to get back up or transport supplies. A lift system that tall will take a long time and space to build safely.
>>
No. 1088886 ID: 5ebd37
File 171324047168.jpg - (69.71KB , 1000x800 , considering bodily harm.jpg )
1088886

>How far could a kobold glide if they exited the portal at the top and went as far out as possible?
Murdoc: "From the top portal we are five miles up. Or four? I can't really tell, but its quite high either way. So plenty of range, it's the landing I'm worried about.
Now I'm not one to shy away from dashing myself upon the rocks. Done it a few times, it's not so bad. But I'd just as soon not rely on a shaper being on hand to resurrect at the very outset of our expedition."

>what about fire?
Grishkah: "Not a bad idea, this forest is very wet so it wouldn't spread too far. But by that same token It will take some doing to get a good blaze going. Maybe just a torch fence to start."

>How about ranchers?
Grishkah: "Quite a few beasts got caught when the portal opened. We've got a team sorting out the ones we captured alive. They should have a report by the next meeting."

Murdoc: "I popped in for a minute this morning and its a madhouse. They'll have their hands full finding anything domesticable in that lot."

>You need a staging post.
>Yeah, expand a clearing and start fortifying it.
Grishkah: "Sigh, so straightforward, but its the best plan for the moment. Needs more action though, more beast fighting."

Murdoc: "No, shut it, it's a great plan. Establish a foot hold and work from there, and it will keep the hunters busy before they go tearing off into the woods for sport. Come on, we'll do a flyover now and pick out a likely spot."

>Getting back up to the portals might be a concern as well, no? Do you have any plans or equipment in place for that already?
Murdoc: "I mean, we'll be right next to the lower portal so, we can just hop back in. Jormun is falling much slower than terminal velocity, so it's easy to catch up."

>Has anyone gone up above the top portal to see what's on the other side?
Grishkah: "The top? Of course, why didn't we think to check before?"

Murdoc: "Well here comes the portal, lets go find out."
>>
No. 1088887 ID: 5ebd37
File 171324050592.gif - (299.15KB , 1000x800 , portal-top.gif )
1088887

>>
No. 1088888 ID: 5ebd37
File 171324057509.gif - (534.15KB , 1000x800 , little-clearings.gif )
1088888

Grishkah: "Aghl-aghl-aghl-aghhh!"

Murdoc: "Well that's a no go. Guess it has a shield to keep people from messing with it.

Anyway, lets pick a landing point. There's a long, narrow clearing with a stream, a small clearing with dark spots, and a large clearing with a sandy area. Also there's a big square rock that might make a nice high ground."
>>
No. 1088889 ID: 462d8c

Aim for the clearing with sand
>>
No. 1088890 ID: 2f41db

>>1088888
Dont trust those spots in the open field.
Rock looks very defensible but very visible.
That said, jormy is probably getting all the attention so that's lesser of an issue.
Fresh stream might be a good start point for game trails.

I say go with the sandy patch clearing.
More room to work with.
There could be something lurking in the sand like some kind of horrific giant antlion, but thats a positive to some of the more hunthungry folk.
>>
No. 1088899 ID: 273c18

I couldn't quite tell what the shield does. Is it like a trampoline or something?
The sand seems like it might work for a landing zone. It's softer then landing on rocks that's for sure. How are we going to handle water supplies in the staging post? Regular deliveries?

You know, I just realized I don't know how close to the ground the portal down there is. Does it actually cut into the ground to make a "hole"? Where did all the stuff that was there go, in that case...?
>>
No. 1088904 ID: f3171e

>>1088899
Good point, sand would cushion the landing.
>>
No. 1088908 ID: 80c73b

Hmm. I'm inclined to go with either the rock or the sand, though I'm wondering about things hiding in the sand. How's your water supply, though? Would the river be notably useful?
>>
No. 1089014 ID: 56db77

>>1088888
I say go with the rock, who knows what those dark spots are, the sand could conceal all manner of horrible burrowing monstrosities, and while fresh water is nice the stream isn't really shaped in a way to make for a good defensive barrier.
[Return] [Entire Thread] [Last 50 posts] [Last 100 posts]

Delete post []
Password  
Report post
Reason