chaotic-logic
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take your time. it is up to you when to update. if you don't want to then you don't have to.
Cult Creator - The Pilgrims Journey
- Thread starter HeroCooky
- Start date
- Original Mature
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Another update.
It seems like I'll be taking until sunday to finish the Interlude, as nothing will click in a way that seems right, and I was shifted into manufacturing at work for the week, so stress and overtime are on the menu for the week. Yay.
See you all on sunday, and, hopefully, the Interlude will be worth the wait.
It seems like I'll be taking until sunday to finish the Interlude, as nothing will click in a way that seems right, and I was shifted into manufacturing at work for the week, so stress and overtime are on the menu for the week. Yay.
See you all on sunday, and, hopefully, the Interlude will be worth the wait.
Interlude: A Witness To A Kiss
New
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
"At least try to look like you are okay with being here with me, Lelise, please?" Mom said while I did my best to stare out the window of our carriage, ignoring the sigh that she did after a few seconds of me not doing anything. "Honestly, I don't know why you are so vehemently against being here; all your friends are attending the wedding," she said, and I felt a twinge of hotness rush through my ears, the lie I had to maintain always painful and angering, but not as much as her joy when I had first begun to 'make friends.' "And you will have plenty of opportunities to continue training with your sword."
"I don't understand why we need to attend that damn wedding in the first place!" I snap, the reminder of having nobody but her making me more ill-tempered than before, looking at Mom as she sighs again, a hand on her forehead at my outburst, and I feel my shame rising at the sight, but I pressed on. "They are Prefters, Mom! And even if we could do anything with the guy marrying her, he will be struck from the line of the Ulatarns, and he started as a Branch Scion! Besides, I still have more friends back home with whom I can spar!" Ignoring my points and my lie (though she knew it not to be one), Mom shakes her head, not bothered that all this is just a light-damned pointless waste of time. "We should be home and do something constructive, not...here," I snap, glaring out the window at the approaching walls of Norqod. Barely 10 meters tall, all told. I, also, pointedly, stop myself from speaking further. Mom hates it when I insult people, especially those I haven't yet met.
"Lelise," Mom begins in that soft-authoritative tone I know to be the start of a lecture, but I drown it out by stewing in my thoughts. I don't want to be here. I don't want to be here with Mom, much less attend a wedding between an up-jumped Commoner and Mutated-shagger. My jaw clenches at that, and I forcefully try to shove the thoughts of Dad out of my mind...it doesn't work. Heh, perhaps that is why the wedding is being done? Shagged her one too many times and was caught by someone he couldn't order to shut up, bribe, or coerce. "-you are not even listening, are you?" Mom's lecture ends, and I huff.
"I was. Bla bla bla, noble bearing, yadda-yadda, connections are important, mumble grumble we'll get some nice clothing at 'Thamids' or something. Stupid name," I say, condensing her speech into the appropriate amount of words required to bring the point across. "And-" I continue, cutting Mom off as she looks about to speak again, "If connections are that important, Dad should be here with us, not back home!"
Mom sighed. She was doing that a lot; it can't be healthy. Bet I can make her sigh three more times before we enter the gates. "You know that your father is doing important work back home." Oh, was that what his charity case was called? I could still vividly imagine the far-too-pleased look on that Mutated fuck when he and Dad saw us off, feather-crest and scales looking fucking polished and painted compared to when he arrived a month ago. Then again, that could just be how Dad liked it when he fuc-
"My lady," a new voice called out, that of old gravel and sewn glass, with the tell-tale sounds of a scout-lizard drawing as near as possible entering from my left. "We are two minutes out."
"Thank you, Elros," Mom said, and I leaned back in my seat, huffing. Let's get this fucking over and done with.
The gates to Norqod's surface level open smoothly ahead of us, large enough that our little convoy can enter three lizards abreast, and within moments, we are through. Away from the open grounds of craggy savannah and dust into the sheltering embrace of this town. I can already see the horizon swallowed up by the warehouses, towers, and various surface structures here as we slowly pass checkpoints and watchful sentries, ensuring that we are who we claim to be. Soon enough, we are on the way down into shadow and Norqod proper.
However, the thing I notice most is that the Guards here, wearing the sky-blue with cloud-white upside-down mountain-crested tabards of House Dall, seem...too technological. Their crossbows are fitted with just enough extensions that they couldn't be only from personal modifications; their bulk and heft sporting wires and strings in excess of what a recently established House, Prevter or not, should be able to provide as standard equipment, and all was far too uniform to be a concerted effort of their Gate-Guards to elevate themselves in the petty power-plays Guards engaged in within their ranks and divisions. (It was as if anyone could topple the primus-inter-pares position of the detectives, but they sure did try now and then.) So, too, does their armor show that they are a cut above typical guards. Instead of typical mirror armor made for the sweltering heat of the surface and day, they wear splint mail covering their torsos, improved with plate armor on arms and legs, and the typically large-brimmed helmets of surface Guards are joined by gas masks concealing their lower faces, a long tube snaking from their face to their back, a canister sitting unbothered and secured. It says something here that I see no polearms, spears, or other pointy sticks around; the choice of melee weaponry seems to be maces and clubs.
Then again, I muse as we descend into the lower rungs of Norqod and thus into the town proper, on a great ramp; if you had the Daughter of Dawn above your head and a Royal Regiment in your back pocket, you would not see a reason to outfit your guards for defense instead of keeping the peace. You didn't need a spear to get a drunkard to stop being a nuisance.
"We'll be staying at the 'Sleepy Sheep' for our stay," Mother suddenly pipes up, eyes glancing out the small front window in naked curiosity and interest, and I can't exactly fault her for that. Norqod was founded around a central point with different spokes extended to concentrate industries and services, with the Dall Palace directly in front of us...though hidden by the veritable forest of ashen-leafed trees stretching into the skies with mighty trunks and healthy boughs, with a mass of green light set before that. The Hololith the Pilgrims "gifted" to House Dall. "When you go exploring, make sure you let Elros know so he can get you someone assigned as a bodyguard."
"Yes, Mother," I huff, continuing to look outside. The skies are now swallowed up by the walls on either side, and the cloth coverings spanning the artificial canyon of Norqod's main entrance, the coverings as colorful as the art splashed against the walls. Murals, frescos, paintings, statues, and the occasional plant cover everything, from the first level of Norqod down to the third. As we leave the ramp into its heart, dozens of things are depicted by them; battles, romances, great insights, religious moments, animals, plants, sport, comedy, and more, in an ever-scrolling display of artistic display that seamlessly mends and melds into each other without butting heads or informing the viewer that the scenes have changed. Looking away from the mesmerizing display of art (on account of the wall falling away as we enter the central plaza), I can already see a dozen bridges spanning the gaps within the "spokes" spreading out from the central plaza, just as the subtly-glowing holographic projection reveals itself to be a projected map of the settlement with streets and names and more etched into light and reality above our heads.
And above that, slinking silently through the skies...airships. A dozen of them, sleek and imperious, surrounding another one, brutish and blunt.
Or, rather, the difference between an airship of the Ancients and one of today: Power Undisputed taking its place in the skies contrasted against conniving lawyers arguing rules and precedents to justify themselves.
And then, just like that, we enter one of the spokes and the skies vanish fully once more.
"This is too damn good," I mutter angrily, staring at the ice slush mixed with drizzled honey, melting caramel, roasted and crushed nuts, with fresh fruit bits in the cup in my hand, scooping another bit into my mouth with a spoon to an explosion of far too good a flavor and coldness to my annoyance. "I am making you responsible if I end up craving more."
"I tremble at the thought, my Lady," Rider Ye says, as dry as sand and as humor-filled as a desiccated corpse, trying to look like she wasn't enjoying the treat as much as I currently was, still trying to pretend to keep watch as we both sat underneath the cool shade of one of the ashen-leafed trees that Norqod seemed entirely too much in love with. Still, I couldn't precisely complain sitting underneath its shade-giving crown on the second level on one of the open bridges that popped up everywhere. All around the two of us, dozens of people walked by or enjoyed the steadily increasing festival-like atmosphere as the day of the marriage and subsequent celebration drew near. Speaking of people...
At least a third of the people here were Mutated. At least. I knew that Mutated could come with just about any mutation that one could imagine, but it was one thing to know and another to see. Scales, feathers, stone, chitin, feathers, riots of colors, splotches of mixes that defied identification, furs, seemingly everything a normal person's skin could be replaced with was present here, and that was excluding the guy who seemed to have it be replaced with fungal membranes. Light knows how that worked for him. Naturally, skin was not the only thing affected, with the full breadth of mutations on display. Legs plantigrade, digitigrade, unguligrade, and unified into straight-up snake-body...thingamajigs, arms with claws, pincers, paws, long fingers, limbs more boneless muscle than limbs, tails singular and multiple, extra limbs aplenty and more than a few people whose faces looked like someone threw them and spare parts into a mixer and then applied the mix onto their faces like plaster once again. Honestly, some Mutated didn't even look human anymore. Like...that guy was just straight up a quartet of chitin-spears bolted under a human torso with a face of polished bone.
...how did he even eat? "...Rider Ye, how do you think that guy over there eats?"
She paused, spoon in mouth, and looked at the Mutated currently scuttling across the bridge with a light back slung over his shoulder, spider legs giving off a faint tack-tack-tack-tack in rapid order as he scuttled past, not so much hurried as simply naturally fast. It's not a sight I'd like to see charging at me in the night...or anytime, really. "...photosynthesis," she declared with a nod and returned to eating the frozen treat I'd bought us both. I stare at her and blink slowly. ...photo-wat? "Did you see the coiled root-like things at the back of his head?" She eventually replies as she catches my stare. "Got a cousin third grade-whatever-relation that has something similar. Can just," she motions with her left hand, spoon awkwardly cradled, a budding flower stretching its petals behind her head, "and eat up sunlight to sustain themselves. Real smug about not needing to eat. Likely the same thing happening with the guy or he would be long since dead."
"Ah." And with that, the conversation began to lull once again between the two of us. The sounds of birds and the chirp of insects began to mix and fill the silence with the steps, voices, and clamor of a small town filling with people eager to be part of celebrations, joining their efforts to the noisescape all around us, turning otherwise awkward silence into contended eating of a chilly treat.
It was also a boring silence after a few moments, as, despite my best attempts at banishing it, there wasn't much for me to do in Norqod. The only Combat School here where I could have gone to idle a few hours away in friendly duels and challenges with local students was closed to outsiders until the celebrations were over, the members preparing for several matches and public showcases as part of the same festivities. The only other places where I could spend some time doing things that would get me into massive trouble with my mother but would be amusing were also all...well...they were in the Cat Alleys in the Sin Run Spoke. Even if the local Guards wouldn't carry the teenager walking into one out within a minute of me trying to enter a combat arena, the variously-(un)clothed men and women there would probably not allow me to walk around without all my blood entering my head.
Which left...well, getting some new clothes (something I would do with Mother tomorrow), visiting the Flying Toyshop (which I was far too old for), going to some academic place (snore), or...my spoon suddenly scraped at the bottom of my cup. Staring down at the slowly melting remains of my treat, barely enough for a single spoon left inside, I felt both annoyed at the treat running out and it having tasted so good. Huffing, I began idly scraping it all together for that spoon of sweet and nutty goodness (I had paid for a cup, I would eat that damn cup) and cast my gaze out again, watching the people here.
This left me staring at an athletic Mutated, the man walking with confidence and pride, seemingly a perfect fusion of man and Dessert Lion...without a shirt at all. Much to the agreement of the shorter man walking next to him, clothed in a rather daring and colorful ensemble, and the agreement of some other people looking with various degrees of stealth.
"I think he's already taken," Rider Ye stage-whispered next to me, and I felt my cheeks heat up, "what a shame, though," she added, shaking her head with an appreciative smile.
Watching the good-looking Mutated leave, I felt I knew where to go.
"Excuse me," I spoke up, causing the small woman with dwarfism to stop reading her book, her eyes rising from the words on the page to above her rimmed glasses, staring straight at me. "Where, uh, where is the...romance section here?" I asked. The experience of going to a public library was both novel and rather embarrassing, especially for something like this. I had not anticipated wanting to read a new (or old) episode of 'Sweet Dessert Tales' on the trip, but it was a good way to idle a few hours away. In reply, the woman merely raised an eyebrow and a single hand, gesturing to her left...with a relatively prominent sign stating [Romance] in bold letters from the ceiling. Oh. "Oh...is-is there an, uh, novella section? Episodic ones, especialy?" I whisper-asked, trying not to make too much of a fool of myself. A moment passed. Her other eyebrow raised itself to look at me like a dumbass, and her hand began to point at the far left...with the [Episodicals] sign on display. "...I'll, I'll just go, thanks," I mumbled and retreated as swiftly as my remaining dignity allowed.
...
Oh, they had the newest booklet of Hoof'd Hearts here! Score!
Lady Silvia Junior of House Dall was having...a time.
Not a good one. Not a bad one either, though...just...a time.
When the date of her marriage began to approach, she had had a meal with Aunt Silvia (though not legally, it was so close in spirit and faith that it may as well be the same thing (she also despised the moniker of 'Grandmother' in all forms, declaring herself to be too young to be one (despite being one several times over thanks to her other children))), her father, mother, and Markus talking about some meaningless thing with her mother and Markus when her father had, slipped in that he had heard about a tradition within the Capital. Couples about to be wed would stay apart from each other the week before the ceremony to make the appearance of each other during the same in their best dress all the more breathtaking and memorable, yearning increased by the time spent apart while eliminating "distractions" for the two.
Her mother had been amused by the idea...and had proposed doing just such a thing in jest, only for Aunt Silvia to chuckle and whisper something into Markus' ear, making him decide to re-settle all his blood into his head and...mumble something that could be constructed as an agreement of it being funny if done. He then decided to try and make the very same blood within his body spontaneously combust from her gaze alone, the laughter of her mother, and the amused huff of Crinkle (who got promptly fixed with the same stare, making the first laugh harder and the latter to play dead) following in his wake.
And now, three days later, here she was. Having retreated from her own home to a public library's reading room (though she had done so with some manner of secrecy, being as well-known and born with as distinct mutations as she was within Norqod did not lend itself well to being out and about without causing scenes) with the newest chapter of 'Sweet Dessert Tales' in her hands and a heavy heart in her chest. Sure, she could have quite easily annoyed Crinkle into helping her meet with Markus again, but that felt like...admitting defeat, somehow. With a sigh, she leaned back in her seat in the alcove, trying to ignore the shockingly well-disguised Ylith watching over her. When she had met the fellow Mutated who was to be her permanent bodyguard alongside her twin brother Ilyth a few weeks ago, she had honestly not thought that a pair of lizard-taurs would be able to all but vanish when they chose to not be seen.
Then again, that was one of the rea-"Excuse me," a new voice piped up next to her, and Silvia Jr. looked up, her eyes immediately categorizing and analyzing the girl before her. [~15-19 years old. Build suggests good nutrition and regular prolonged exercise. Open stance, not hiding behind the stack of books in her hands, face naturally calm, and no shift in build detected. 13% chance of pre-mediated communication. 7 suggestions on increasing Trust/Fear/Obedience. 3 on inducing Lust/Awe/Fear. 1 on murder without being caught.] Silvia blinked, the information coming as swiftly as it was dismissed; the bouts of unease she had felt when first using her new eyes faded long ago. That didn't mean she was still not seeking a way to alter the Machine-Mind of the things to stop the last parts (manipulating people like that was wrong), though even the Data-Smiths of the Forge-Clans in Norqod who chose to accept the challenge (first out of boredom and then out of offense) had yet to yield many results before the Machine-Minds stubborn defiance. "Is that the newest chapter of Sweet Dessert Tales'? If so, can I read it after you are done?"
"Sure-" she replied, and the girl just...dumped her stack of reading materials into the alcove. Silvia blinked.
"Thank you," the girl huffed and grumbled as she sat opposite Silvia. "You wouldn't believe how hard it is to get some entertainment here," she spoke, and before Silvia could do so much as open her mouth to ask the girl who she was, she was pre-empted by the very same. "Name's Lelis, Lady of House Tre, by the way, what's yours?" 'House Tre...oversees three towns and a profitable gem mine,' Silvia thought, the information from long lessons with her mother coming to her mind easily.
"Silvia," she replied to the question, halfway convinced the girl was trying to make some kind of move even as her eyes replied in the negative to her suspicions.
"Ah," eyes flicked from her antlers to her tail wrapped over her like a protective blanket. "Heh, I can see why your parents named you like that. Hope you don't feel too bad being named after another woman instead of having a name of your own."
Silvia blinked.
[Chance of lie: 0%] Her eyes spoke up.
Well...that was new.
"Anyways...who's your favorite character in the series?" Lelis continued conversationally and began yapping without any restraint.
Silvia Jr. would leave the library hours later, confused, amused, having made no progress in her reading, having been forced to agree to meet up again the next day to continue talking about books and gripes, with the faint feeling of having just been forcefully befriended. Possibly.
The great brazier blazed in the dark of the night spilling into the hall. The heat from the large metal construction as physical a force as a solid wall of steel, the sanctified scripts adorning the vessel gleaming with unnatural blue light even as the rest of brazier's body seemed as cold as the blackest night on the tallest mountain, caging the roaring inferno crackling within, fed from bone and gas.
Above that brazier, I could see Cardinal Aarif el-Sylla standing bare-chested, great rings and circles of burned flesh adorning his form and skin, the demonstrations of his rank and piety seared into flesh long ago and with embellishments that had required more pain from him than most save fanatics and zealots would, or could, endure upon their forms.
To the right side of him within the grand hall of House Dall were our hosts, Lord and Lady Dall, proud and joyous, alongside the usual gaggle of friends, trusted guards, and important household servants standing in decreasing order of importance and value.
To the left, House Ulatarn had sent their scion, Lord Enurs, to stand in third place after the mother and father of the groom, with their gaggle of servants and friends in attendance.
And before them all stood we, the guests of the ceremony and those who would bear witness to the marriage between Lord Markus of House Ulatarn and Lady Silvia Junior of House Dall, attending in our gathered masses of self-important dress and overpriced cloth, jewelry ostentatious and make-up aggrandizing, decorated arms and well-used, well-maintained, well-worn armor worn by those with the right to bear them officially, silently waiting for the two most important people for this occasion to appear.
I, meanwhile, tried to discreetly look for the Mutated woman I had met a few days ago in the library. It had been surprisingly easy to talk with her; she had not been intimidated or emboldened beyond station by me being a noble, and it had been fun to speak with someone who had read the same books and series as I had, even if her enthusiasm for combat and duels had been lacking. She told me she would be here for the ceremony, but I couldn't see her. With such distinctive mutations as hers, it should have been easy to spot her, but she was nowhere to be found, which meant she had either lied to me or was a servant girl.
A part of me wondered if she could be poached from the Dalls if she was the latter. It would be nice to have someone close to me who wasn't family, and I had the feeling that Mother wouldn't be able to deny me having my one "charity case" to bring back home. Heh, maybe Father wou-
The flame roared higher, a wave of heat washing over the gathered masses, and Cardinal Aarif el-Sylla's arms rose to the skies, face grave and voice booming. "Today," he spoke, his voice heard by all despite him not raising it, "we have gathered here to stand witness. To stand watch. To celebrate. Today, we forget the tribulations of our lives and the harshness of the world, for today, we stab the horrors of the nights with another weapon forged by the love of two of ours, by the hand of one, and the wielding of the other. Today, two flames will join as one and blaze mightier than they could alone. Today, they will light another flame to guide the way, to illuminate the abyss, to shine upon the works of old and the works of tomorrow. Today, we gather to bear witness. To another light ignited against the night. And another step toward daybreak and the dawn."
An arm went out toward his right, and a young man, clad in nothing but simple pants and shirt of no color other than white-grey, walked toward the brazier, shadowed by a large rider clad in heavy plate and war-silk, halberd held in one hand and spiked shield in the other. "Markus," Cardinal Aarif el-Sylla spoke, "you stand here, supplicant and low, to marry those for whom you have raised arms to smith a weapon worthy of your devotion. You stand here, humble and plain, with conviction in your breast that it is enough, and faith that your love will endure. You stand here, and I ask: Are you worthy to add your light to the one who now wields your weapon?"
"I would not stand here if I were not. I would not bear no scar had my weapon been rejected. I would not dare to force an arm to the one whom I shall serve," Markus Ulatarn spoke, the lines as much his as they were tradition's lines, echoes of echoes, the words of a thousand years blazing forth from his mouth and soul.
An arm went out toward the Cardinal's left, and a young wo...man, I blinked, and the world seemed to slow. That was the woman. The one from the library. The one that I had basically forced to entertain me with talks. ...oh Light, please don't tell me-"Silvia," the Cardinal spoke to the young woman (and shattered all my prayers like glass under a hammer), who was clothed in brilliant silks and fabrics, veils woven through her antlers and precious metal-threads through her hair, golden lines sneaking through her long tail as shimmering stars and nebulae moved across the great limb weaving glacially behind her, the massive Fractal Feline standing behind her shimmering in a dazzling display of light upon its fur from the raging inferno of the brazier. "you stand here, benefactress and high, to marry those for whom labors were completed in devotion to your rays. You stand here, proud and ornate, with belief in your breast that it is sufficient, and faith that your love will endure. You stand here, and I ask: Are they worthy to add their light to yours?"
"I have made my choice long ago," she said, soft and utterly sure, like steel under velvet gloves. "When I did not strike Markus down for insult, but took my spear from his hands to wield as I see fit. When I declared him mine that day and declared him worthy of sharing my Path. He shall be mine. And I his."
"So you declare. So you say. But the world is larger than you two," the Cardinal spoke, almost accusingly, and stretched his hands out toward the crowd, standing silently and with shimmering eyes. "Are there any who oppose this union, who see it as unjust, mistaken, misled?" As one, the rider behind Lord Markus and the Fractal Feline behind Lady Silvia turned to the crowd, taking one step forward with clear aggression in their posture. The butt of a halberd and a mighty paw slammed into the floor, angry glare and the rumbling of grinding crystals leveled against the gathered guests, daring them to make a move and stop the ceremony.
Nobody spoke.
"Then I declare it just. I declare it right. Now," the Cardinal spoke, lowering his arms and hands to the two gathered below him, speaking softly, "make my declaration truth."
They did, two steps forward for both of them in utterly unseemly haste, and kissed, the Lady bending the Lord back with their force, and the room exploded in cheers.
An: Uuuuuugh, none of this feels right.
"I don't understand why we need to attend that damn wedding in the first place!" I snap, the reminder of having nobody but her making me more ill-tempered than before, looking at Mom as she sighs again, a hand on her forehead at my outburst, and I feel my shame rising at the sight, but I pressed on. "They are Prefters, Mom! And even if we could do anything with the guy marrying her, he will be struck from the line of the Ulatarns, and he started as a Branch Scion! Besides, I still have more friends back home with whom I can spar!" Ignoring my points and my lie (though she knew it not to be one), Mom shakes her head, not bothered that all this is just a light-damned pointless waste of time. "We should be home and do something constructive, not...here," I snap, glaring out the window at the approaching walls of Norqod. Barely 10 meters tall, all told. I, also, pointedly, stop myself from speaking further. Mom hates it when I insult people, especially those I haven't yet met.
"Lelise," Mom begins in that soft-authoritative tone I know to be the start of a lecture, but I drown it out by stewing in my thoughts. I don't want to be here. I don't want to be here with Mom, much less attend a wedding between an up-jumped Commoner and Mutated-shagger. My jaw clenches at that, and I forcefully try to shove the thoughts of Dad out of my mind...it doesn't work. Heh, perhaps that is why the wedding is being done? Shagged her one too many times and was caught by someone he couldn't order to shut up, bribe, or coerce. "-you are not even listening, are you?" Mom's lecture ends, and I huff.
"I was. Bla bla bla, noble bearing, yadda-yadda, connections are important, mumble grumble we'll get some nice clothing at 'Thamids' or something. Stupid name," I say, condensing her speech into the appropriate amount of words required to bring the point across. "And-" I continue, cutting Mom off as she looks about to speak again, "If connections are that important, Dad should be here with us, not back home!"
Mom sighed. She was doing that a lot; it can't be healthy. Bet I can make her sigh three more times before we enter the gates. "You know that your father is doing important work back home." Oh, was that what his charity case was called? I could still vividly imagine the far-too-pleased look on that Mutated fuck when he and Dad saw us off, feather-crest and scales looking fucking polished and painted compared to when he arrived a month ago. Then again, that could just be how Dad liked it when he fuc-
"My lady," a new voice called out, that of old gravel and sewn glass, with the tell-tale sounds of a scout-lizard drawing as near as possible entering from my left. "We are two minutes out."
"Thank you, Elros," Mom said, and I leaned back in my seat, huffing. Let's get this fucking over and done with.
The gates to Norqod's surface level open smoothly ahead of us, large enough that our little convoy can enter three lizards abreast, and within moments, we are through. Away from the open grounds of craggy savannah and dust into the sheltering embrace of this town. I can already see the horizon swallowed up by the warehouses, towers, and various surface structures here as we slowly pass checkpoints and watchful sentries, ensuring that we are who we claim to be. Soon enough, we are on the way down into shadow and Norqod proper.
However, the thing I notice most is that the Guards here, wearing the sky-blue with cloud-white upside-down mountain-crested tabards of House Dall, seem...too technological. Their crossbows are fitted with just enough extensions that they couldn't be only from personal modifications; their bulk and heft sporting wires and strings in excess of what a recently established House, Prevter or not, should be able to provide as standard equipment, and all was far too uniform to be a concerted effort of their Gate-Guards to elevate themselves in the petty power-plays Guards engaged in within their ranks and divisions. (It was as if anyone could topple the primus-inter-pares position of the detectives, but they sure did try now and then.) So, too, does their armor show that they are a cut above typical guards. Instead of typical mirror armor made for the sweltering heat of the surface and day, they wear splint mail covering their torsos, improved with plate armor on arms and legs, and the typically large-brimmed helmets of surface Guards are joined by gas masks concealing their lower faces, a long tube snaking from their face to their back, a canister sitting unbothered and secured. It says something here that I see no polearms, spears, or other pointy sticks around; the choice of melee weaponry seems to be maces and clubs.
Then again, I muse as we descend into the lower rungs of Norqod and thus into the town proper, on a great ramp; if you had the Daughter of Dawn above your head and a Royal Regiment in your back pocket, you would not see a reason to outfit your guards for defense instead of keeping the peace. You didn't need a spear to get a drunkard to stop being a nuisance.
"We'll be staying at the 'Sleepy Sheep' for our stay," Mother suddenly pipes up, eyes glancing out the small front window in naked curiosity and interest, and I can't exactly fault her for that. Norqod was founded around a central point with different spokes extended to concentrate industries and services, with the Dall Palace directly in front of us...though hidden by the veritable forest of ashen-leafed trees stretching into the skies with mighty trunks and healthy boughs, with a mass of green light set before that. The Hololith the Pilgrims "gifted" to House Dall. "When you go exploring, make sure you let Elros know so he can get you someone assigned as a bodyguard."
"Yes, Mother," I huff, continuing to look outside. The skies are now swallowed up by the walls on either side, and the cloth coverings spanning the artificial canyon of Norqod's main entrance, the coverings as colorful as the art splashed against the walls. Murals, frescos, paintings, statues, and the occasional plant cover everything, from the first level of Norqod down to the third. As we leave the ramp into its heart, dozens of things are depicted by them; battles, romances, great insights, religious moments, animals, plants, sport, comedy, and more, in an ever-scrolling display of artistic display that seamlessly mends and melds into each other without butting heads or informing the viewer that the scenes have changed. Looking away from the mesmerizing display of art (on account of the wall falling away as we enter the central plaza), I can already see a dozen bridges spanning the gaps within the "spokes" spreading out from the central plaza, just as the subtly-glowing holographic projection reveals itself to be a projected map of the settlement with streets and names and more etched into light and reality above our heads.
And above that, slinking silently through the skies...airships. A dozen of them, sleek and imperious, surrounding another one, brutish and blunt.
Or, rather, the difference between an airship of the Ancients and one of today: Power Undisputed taking its place in the skies contrasted against conniving lawyers arguing rules and precedents to justify themselves.
And then, just like that, we enter one of the spokes and the skies vanish fully once more.
"This is too damn good," I mutter angrily, staring at the ice slush mixed with drizzled honey, melting caramel, roasted and crushed nuts, with fresh fruit bits in the cup in my hand, scooping another bit into my mouth with a spoon to an explosion of far too good a flavor and coldness to my annoyance. "I am making you responsible if I end up craving more."
"I tremble at the thought, my Lady," Rider Ye says, as dry as sand and as humor-filled as a desiccated corpse, trying to look like she wasn't enjoying the treat as much as I currently was, still trying to pretend to keep watch as we both sat underneath the cool shade of one of the ashen-leafed trees that Norqod seemed entirely too much in love with. Still, I couldn't precisely complain sitting underneath its shade-giving crown on the second level on one of the open bridges that popped up everywhere. All around the two of us, dozens of people walked by or enjoyed the steadily increasing festival-like atmosphere as the day of the marriage and subsequent celebration drew near. Speaking of people...
At least a third of the people here were Mutated. At least. I knew that Mutated could come with just about any mutation that one could imagine, but it was one thing to know and another to see. Scales, feathers, stone, chitin, feathers, riots of colors, splotches of mixes that defied identification, furs, seemingly everything a normal person's skin could be replaced with was present here, and that was excluding the guy who seemed to have it be replaced with fungal membranes. Light knows how that worked for him. Naturally, skin was not the only thing affected, with the full breadth of mutations on display. Legs plantigrade, digitigrade, unguligrade, and unified into straight-up snake-body...thingamajigs, arms with claws, pincers, paws, long fingers, limbs more boneless muscle than limbs, tails singular and multiple, extra limbs aplenty and more than a few people whose faces looked like someone threw them and spare parts into a mixer and then applied the mix onto their faces like plaster once again. Honestly, some Mutated didn't even look human anymore. Like...that guy was just straight up a quartet of chitin-spears bolted under a human torso with a face of polished bone.
...how did he even eat? "...Rider Ye, how do you think that guy over there eats?"
She paused, spoon in mouth, and looked at the Mutated currently scuttling across the bridge with a light back slung over his shoulder, spider legs giving off a faint tack-tack-tack-tack in rapid order as he scuttled past, not so much hurried as simply naturally fast. It's not a sight I'd like to see charging at me in the night...or anytime, really. "...photosynthesis," she declared with a nod and returned to eating the frozen treat I'd bought us both. I stare at her and blink slowly. ...photo-wat? "Did you see the coiled root-like things at the back of his head?" She eventually replies as she catches my stare. "Got a cousin third grade-whatever-relation that has something similar. Can just," she motions with her left hand, spoon awkwardly cradled, a budding flower stretching its petals behind her head, "and eat up sunlight to sustain themselves. Real smug about not needing to eat. Likely the same thing happening with the guy or he would be long since dead."
"Ah." And with that, the conversation began to lull once again between the two of us. The sounds of birds and the chirp of insects began to mix and fill the silence with the steps, voices, and clamor of a small town filling with people eager to be part of celebrations, joining their efforts to the noisescape all around us, turning otherwise awkward silence into contended eating of a chilly treat.
It was also a boring silence after a few moments, as, despite my best attempts at banishing it, there wasn't much for me to do in Norqod. The only Combat School here where I could have gone to idle a few hours away in friendly duels and challenges with local students was closed to outsiders until the celebrations were over, the members preparing for several matches and public showcases as part of the same festivities. The only other places where I could spend some time doing things that would get me into massive trouble with my mother but would be amusing were also all...well...they were in the Cat Alleys in the Sin Run Spoke. Even if the local Guards wouldn't carry the teenager walking into one out within a minute of me trying to enter a combat arena, the variously-(un)clothed men and women there would probably not allow me to walk around without all my blood entering my head.
Which left...well, getting some new clothes (something I would do with Mother tomorrow), visiting the Flying Toyshop (which I was far too old for), going to some academic place (snore), or...my spoon suddenly scraped at the bottom of my cup. Staring down at the slowly melting remains of my treat, barely enough for a single spoon left inside, I felt both annoyed at the treat running out and it having tasted so good. Huffing, I began idly scraping it all together for that spoon of sweet and nutty goodness (I had paid for a cup, I would eat that damn cup) and cast my gaze out again, watching the people here.
This left me staring at an athletic Mutated, the man walking with confidence and pride, seemingly a perfect fusion of man and Dessert Lion...without a shirt at all. Much to the agreement of the shorter man walking next to him, clothed in a rather daring and colorful ensemble, and the agreement of some other people looking with various degrees of stealth.
"I think he's already taken," Rider Ye stage-whispered next to me, and I felt my cheeks heat up, "what a shame, though," she added, shaking her head with an appreciative smile.
Watching the good-looking Mutated leave, I felt I knew where to go.
"Excuse me," I spoke up, causing the small woman with dwarfism to stop reading her book, her eyes rising from the words on the page to above her rimmed glasses, staring straight at me. "Where, uh, where is the...romance section here?" I asked. The experience of going to a public library was both novel and rather embarrassing, especially for something like this. I had not anticipated wanting to read a new (or old) episode of 'Sweet Dessert Tales' on the trip, but it was a good way to idle a few hours away. In reply, the woman merely raised an eyebrow and a single hand, gesturing to her left...with a relatively prominent sign stating [Romance] in bold letters from the ceiling. Oh. "Oh...is-is there an, uh, novella section? Episodic ones, especialy?" I whisper-asked, trying not to make too much of a fool of myself. A moment passed. Her other eyebrow raised itself to look at me like a dumbass, and her hand began to point at the far left...with the [Episodicals] sign on display. "...I'll, I'll just go, thanks," I mumbled and retreated as swiftly as my remaining dignity allowed.
...
Oh, they had the newest booklet of Hoof'd Hearts here! Score!
Lady Silvia Junior of House Dall was having...a time.
Not a good one. Not a bad one either, though...just...a time.
When the date of her marriage began to approach, she had had a meal with Aunt Silvia (though not legally, it was so close in spirit and faith that it may as well be the same thing (she also despised the moniker of 'Grandmother' in all forms, declaring herself to be too young to be one (despite being one several times over thanks to her other children))), her father, mother, and Markus talking about some meaningless thing with her mother and Markus when her father had, slipped in that he had heard about a tradition within the Capital. Couples about to be wed would stay apart from each other the week before the ceremony to make the appearance of each other during the same in their best dress all the more breathtaking and memorable, yearning increased by the time spent apart while eliminating "distractions" for the two.
Her mother had been amused by the idea...and had proposed doing just such a thing in jest, only for Aunt Silvia to chuckle and whisper something into Markus' ear, making him decide to re-settle all his blood into his head and...mumble something that could be constructed as an agreement of it being funny if done. He then decided to try and make the very same blood within his body spontaneously combust from her gaze alone, the laughter of her mother, and the amused huff of Crinkle (who got promptly fixed with the same stare, making the first laugh harder and the latter to play dead) following in his wake.
And now, three days later, here she was. Having retreated from her own home to a public library's reading room (though she had done so with some manner of secrecy, being as well-known and born with as distinct mutations as she was within Norqod did not lend itself well to being out and about without causing scenes) with the newest chapter of 'Sweet Dessert Tales' in her hands and a heavy heart in her chest. Sure, she could have quite easily annoyed Crinkle into helping her meet with Markus again, but that felt like...admitting defeat, somehow. With a sigh, she leaned back in her seat in the alcove, trying to ignore the shockingly well-disguised Ylith watching over her. When she had met the fellow Mutated who was to be her permanent bodyguard alongside her twin brother Ilyth a few weeks ago, she had honestly not thought that a pair of lizard-taurs would be able to all but vanish when they chose to not be seen.
Then again, that was one of the rea-"Excuse me," a new voice piped up next to her, and Silvia Jr. looked up, her eyes immediately categorizing and analyzing the girl before her. [~15-19 years old. Build suggests good nutrition and regular prolonged exercise. Open stance, not hiding behind the stack of books in her hands, face naturally calm, and no shift in build detected. 13% chance of pre-mediated communication. 7 suggestions on increasing Trust/Fear/Obedience. 3 on inducing Lust/Awe/Fear. 1 on murder without being caught.] Silvia blinked, the information coming as swiftly as it was dismissed; the bouts of unease she had felt when first using her new eyes faded long ago. That didn't mean she was still not seeking a way to alter the Machine-Mind of the things to stop the last parts (manipulating people like that was wrong), though even the Data-Smiths of the Forge-Clans in Norqod who chose to accept the challenge (first out of boredom and then out of offense) had yet to yield many results before the Machine-Minds stubborn defiance. "Is that the newest chapter of Sweet Dessert Tales'? If so, can I read it after you are done?"
"Sure-" she replied, and the girl just...dumped her stack of reading materials into the alcove. Silvia blinked.
"Thank you," the girl huffed and grumbled as she sat opposite Silvia. "You wouldn't believe how hard it is to get some entertainment here," she spoke, and before Silvia could do so much as open her mouth to ask the girl who she was, she was pre-empted by the very same. "Name's Lelis, Lady of House Tre, by the way, what's yours?" 'House Tre...oversees three towns and a profitable gem mine,' Silvia thought, the information from long lessons with her mother coming to her mind easily.
"Silvia," she replied to the question, halfway convinced the girl was trying to make some kind of move even as her eyes replied in the negative to her suspicions.
"Ah," eyes flicked from her antlers to her tail wrapped over her like a protective blanket. "Heh, I can see why your parents named you like that. Hope you don't feel too bad being named after another woman instead of having a name of your own."
Silvia blinked.
[Chance of lie: 0%] Her eyes spoke up.
Well...that was new.
"Anyways...who's your favorite character in the series?" Lelis continued conversationally and began yapping without any restraint.
Silvia Jr. would leave the library hours later, confused, amused, having made no progress in her reading, having been forced to agree to meet up again the next day to continue talking about books and gripes, with the faint feeling of having just been forcefully befriended. Possibly.
The great brazier blazed in the dark of the night spilling into the hall. The heat from the large metal construction as physical a force as a solid wall of steel, the sanctified scripts adorning the vessel gleaming with unnatural blue light even as the rest of brazier's body seemed as cold as the blackest night on the tallest mountain, caging the roaring inferno crackling within, fed from bone and gas.
Above that brazier, I could see Cardinal Aarif el-Sylla standing bare-chested, great rings and circles of burned flesh adorning his form and skin, the demonstrations of his rank and piety seared into flesh long ago and with embellishments that had required more pain from him than most save fanatics and zealots would, or could, endure upon their forms.
To the right side of him within the grand hall of House Dall were our hosts, Lord and Lady Dall, proud and joyous, alongside the usual gaggle of friends, trusted guards, and important household servants standing in decreasing order of importance and value.
To the left, House Ulatarn had sent their scion, Lord Enurs, to stand in third place after the mother and father of the groom, with their gaggle of servants and friends in attendance.
And before them all stood we, the guests of the ceremony and those who would bear witness to the marriage between Lord Markus of House Ulatarn and Lady Silvia Junior of House Dall, attending in our gathered masses of self-important dress and overpriced cloth, jewelry ostentatious and make-up aggrandizing, decorated arms and well-used, well-maintained, well-worn armor worn by those with the right to bear them officially, silently waiting for the two most important people for this occasion to appear.
I, meanwhile, tried to discreetly look for the Mutated woman I had met a few days ago in the library. It had been surprisingly easy to talk with her; she had not been intimidated or emboldened beyond station by me being a noble, and it had been fun to speak with someone who had read the same books and series as I had, even if her enthusiasm for combat and duels had been lacking. She told me she would be here for the ceremony, but I couldn't see her. With such distinctive mutations as hers, it should have been easy to spot her, but she was nowhere to be found, which meant she had either lied to me or was a servant girl.
A part of me wondered if she could be poached from the Dalls if she was the latter. It would be nice to have someone close to me who wasn't family, and I had the feeling that Mother wouldn't be able to deny me having my one "charity case" to bring back home. Heh, maybe Father wou-
The flame roared higher, a wave of heat washing over the gathered masses, and Cardinal Aarif el-Sylla's arms rose to the skies, face grave and voice booming. "Today," he spoke, his voice heard by all despite him not raising it, "we have gathered here to stand witness. To stand watch. To celebrate. Today, we forget the tribulations of our lives and the harshness of the world, for today, we stab the horrors of the nights with another weapon forged by the love of two of ours, by the hand of one, and the wielding of the other. Today, two flames will join as one and blaze mightier than they could alone. Today, they will light another flame to guide the way, to illuminate the abyss, to shine upon the works of old and the works of tomorrow. Today, we gather to bear witness. To another light ignited against the night. And another step toward daybreak and the dawn."
An arm went out toward his right, and a young man, clad in nothing but simple pants and shirt of no color other than white-grey, walked toward the brazier, shadowed by a large rider clad in heavy plate and war-silk, halberd held in one hand and spiked shield in the other. "Markus," Cardinal Aarif el-Sylla spoke, "you stand here, supplicant and low, to marry those for whom you have raised arms to smith a weapon worthy of your devotion. You stand here, humble and plain, with conviction in your breast that it is enough, and faith that your love will endure. You stand here, and I ask: Are you worthy to add your light to the one who now wields your weapon?"
"I would not stand here if I were not. I would not bear no scar had my weapon been rejected. I would not dare to force an arm to the one whom I shall serve," Markus Ulatarn spoke, the lines as much his as they were tradition's lines, echoes of echoes, the words of a thousand years blazing forth from his mouth and soul.
An arm went out toward the Cardinal's left, and a young wo...man, I blinked, and the world seemed to slow. That was the woman. The one from the library. The one that I had basically forced to entertain me with talks. ...oh Light, please don't tell me-"Silvia," the Cardinal spoke to the young woman (and shattered all my prayers like glass under a hammer), who was clothed in brilliant silks and fabrics, veils woven through her antlers and precious metal-threads through her hair, golden lines sneaking through her long tail as shimmering stars and nebulae moved across the great limb weaving glacially behind her, the massive Fractal Feline standing behind her shimmering in a dazzling display of light upon its fur from the raging inferno of the brazier. "you stand here, benefactress and high, to marry those for whom labors were completed in devotion to your rays. You stand here, proud and ornate, with belief in your breast that it is sufficient, and faith that your love will endure. You stand here, and I ask: Are they worthy to add their light to yours?"
"I have made my choice long ago," she said, soft and utterly sure, like steel under velvet gloves. "When I did not strike Markus down for insult, but took my spear from his hands to wield as I see fit. When I declared him mine that day and declared him worthy of sharing my Path. He shall be mine. And I his."
"So you declare. So you say. But the world is larger than you two," the Cardinal spoke, almost accusingly, and stretched his hands out toward the crowd, standing silently and with shimmering eyes. "Are there any who oppose this union, who see it as unjust, mistaken, misled?" As one, the rider behind Lord Markus and the Fractal Feline behind Lady Silvia turned to the crowd, taking one step forward with clear aggression in their posture. The butt of a halberd and a mighty paw slammed into the floor, angry glare and the rumbling of grinding crystals leveled against the gathered guests, daring them to make a move and stop the ceremony.
Nobody spoke.
"Then I declare it just. I declare it right. Now," the Cardinal spoke, lowering his arms and hands to the two gathered below him, speaking softly, "make my declaration truth."
They did, two steps forward for both of them in utterly unseemly haste, and kissed, the Lady bending the Lord back with their force, and the room exploded in cheers.
An: Uuuuuugh, none of this feels right.
Heh, heh. The boy's still have it even in their 40s.
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Considering that the people on Calynth can grow to ~120 years without issue if no illness or injury claims them (which is very often, mind), and most people are in peak health until their sixties, both of 'em look more like one of us in their late 20s. Lady Maranica is about 70, and she is still as spry as a ~35 year old after all (noble healthcare y'all).
... How the fuck? Like I can accept that someone could not recognize normal noble lady, but Silvia is extremely distinct
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
She is in public without a bodyguard (Ylith is very good at stelth), without any commotion, fancy clothing, or anything like that, while Lelise has also never actually seen Silvia (or a photo/portrait of the same). So, from her perspective, she just found a Mutated that looks similar and finds it funny.
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
A spear is a solid, defensive, and symbolic weapon, easy to learn and hard to master, showing both a concern for her being safe while wielding the weapon and trust that she will be able to learn how to master it during their - hopefully - long time being married together, while enabling Markus to craft a weapon with artistic flair.
Also a minor hope she stops carrying around a dozen grenades everywhere.
Ages of Calynth
New
Turn 113; Year 27; Month 9; The Day After
New
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
- The Pilgrims
Yet, as much as minds and bodies began to wake and groan, some waking in painful poses from their stupors while others had to contend with the reality of their night-time company, the Head Maid and Butler of the House of Dall had already been awake long enough to refresh themselves, get clothed, and meet to run over the day's myriad tasks and duties once more.
The Head Maid, in charge of all servants that would interact with the lady-, and lordships of House Dall and currently within the walls of their home, had to take extra care today for nobility with bad cases of hangover were not well known to be patient or well disposed to noise, and certain guest rooms had to be "conveniently" left without servants nearby due to couplings that were of varying degrees of acceptable and proper - even as Lady Maranicy was sure to have not only caused nearly all of them, but also bribed the servants of the household to recount the results to her in the morrow -, or to aid those waking nobles who had not made it to their rooms and couldn't be transported away.
The Head Butler, in charge of all servants that didn't need to interact with the members of House Dall if not specifically sought out, had to contend with the effects of a celebration and a marriage morning especially, the meals for the morrow and mid-day needed to be light enough to be able to be eaten without inducing nausea or illness, while the drinks had to be watered down enough that those who chose spirits over juice or water would not have their moods worsened by sickness.
But, above all those things, they had to ensure that the personal quarter of the newly wedded pair of lovers would not be disturbed while having people close by to bring water, food, and other things upon request and command within moments. After all, the young pair of wife and husband were sure to continue consummating their marriage once they woke, quite possibly more vigorously than yesterday night.
However, shockingly enough, such a thing had not happened. You see, when the celebrations began, both Lady Silvia Jr. and Lord Markus had, in their own ways and minds, all manner of imaginations that they desired to end the day with, and all finished with the same duty they now eagerly awaited to perform, even if that desire waged a bitter and brutal war with the desire to have the result stay away for as long as possible in the manner that those who enjoyed the journey as much as the destination always did. Yet, as the celebrations continued, and the food and drink flowed and went as freely as conversations, laughter, well-wishes, and general merry-making of the festive variety went around and around, both saw their youthful vigor and energy sapped with the advancement of the hours.
Lord Markus had started the day with nervous energy that had gradually transformed into brimming devotion with every moment spent in the presence of his now wife, mind filled with all the futures that awaited them and all the acts of magnific romance the both of them could now fulfill to and with each other, no doubt within his soul that she would be his one and only, the stars and galaxies to his sky, and all the grand elated euphoria that could only come by knowing you were another's, and the very same was yours.
Lady Silvia Jr's plans for the long term mirrored her now-husband's. Her thoughts for the night, however, are best not mentioned in polite company.
Regardless of the intentions of both, the day was long and the night was longer, the celebration was festive, the food was heavy, the drink was splendid, and the company was even better.
So, when all was said and done, when it was socially acceptable enough for the two of them to steal themselves away without incurring more than the permissible level of laughter and rumors to follow the days after, they both retired to their chambers, smiled, kissed, fell onto the bed...and quickly fell dead asleep, held in the others embrace.
They would wake twelve hours later, still dressed as they were the night before. However, one did very much prove that she was her mother's daughter, as Silvia Jr. had fallen asleep atop her husband and now slowly woke in the midday backward, halfway up the walls with her legs and back, head and antlers resting on the chest of Markus, while her tail coiled around the same in perfect 90° turns that were either from impossible biology or a quirk of fur, and each would wake feeling about as rested as the day before.
But both did wake at the same time, and, with their minds slowly lifting from the fog of slumber, at first only enjoyed the warmth and smell of the other, dozing minds falling to the lullaby of scent, heat, and familiarity...only for both to suddenly snap awake, panic flooding their bodies, as slumbering minds were not aware enough to realize that they were no longer meeting "secretly" with each other but now slept together officially.
Yet, let the record show that they were only halfway off the ground after crashing there from the bed before their brains and yesterday's events caught up with the two of them, their eyes meeting over the very same bed they would now share without secrecy.
Their following actions are best not recounted in polite company.
There are three reasons why, after a thousand years since society and civilization fell and re-built themselves through the hells of the Collapse and the Ages thereafter, the main ranged weapon of nearly every culture, society, group, and army was not a Bright-Lance, those deadly weapons that took energy and turned it into heat directed at a singular point on the enemy.
The first reason is cost.
Jewel is a miracle substance, and it would be utterly foolish to not regard it as such, with a thousand-and-one use cases wherever one even tries to look for ways to apply it for the betterment of processes. Capable of storing electricity with no loss of energy on a scale that is even remotely of interest to human life, capable of being transformed into gels that can be molded into fibers and muscles for Knights and machinery, and able to be fused and broken apart without impacting its efficiency or structural integrity at all, Jewel is a miracle of ancient creation.
It is also rare and costly. For the same price as one could acquire merely the required Jewel for the components that would make the batteries, not even the batteries or their assembly themselves, one could easily obtain a hundred crossbows and their users. And have them be competent users.
The second reason is that Bright-Lances may not even be better.
After a thousand years of civilizations rising from the ashes of the past ones, with completely schizophrenic technological developments and advancements in every direction, manufacturing an energy weapon by hand with bronze tools to put it into the hands of a woman who knows how to read three different extinct languages and short-wire electronics but not how to operate a coal-fired stove may not be the best use of your time and funds. Better to spend that money to give a hundred such women automatic crossbows with carbon strings firing magnetically accelerated bolts of metal and fury cast and assembled by half-awake automated factories run by oil-powered Cores that drive anyone insane who even so much as looks into them.
The third is that, despite it being a thousand years after the end of civilization and the rise of it again, too much was lost.
Too many processes that had made Bright-Lances useful and had delegated other weapons into the dustbin of history are now considered extinct and forgotten, barely understood and esoteric in the extreme. Nearly every component needs to be created by those who have dedicated decades of their lives to their creation, electronics, lenses, catalysts, regulators, coolant-cyclers, nearly everything had to be made by those whose time could be better spent working on things that measurably improve a peoples' ability to manufacture things actually required for survival instead of boosting their already existing defensive and offensive weapon capabilities. Those dozens of people working to create a Bright-Lance were, for many, better tasked with building machines that produced things or maintaining the same.
Sometimes, the edge of science and understanding was not limited by the minds that drove it forward.
Sometimes, it was limited by the edge yielding nothing that was better.
Edonmoore stared at the eye in the tube, six eyes blinking in sequence to allow the little thing no change to change position without it being known to the Mutated assigned to discover more of the horrid little thing's aspects and what it could do.
Blink after blink passed as the Attentive Eye and Edonmoore stared at each other, it being now the third hour in sequence of the man staring at the biological Artifact with a single-minded purpose and focus, something only made possible thanks to the sharp scent of a unique blend of incense within his chambers, the smoke sharpening his mind - something he accidentally stumbled upon when he had served in a monastery once, far away, and been the most dedicated worker the monks had ever encountered despite him being usually a lazy man - and sharpening his body to stay locked onto the thing.
This was required, for as much as he liked to state otherwise, the truth of the matter with the Attentive Eyes was that nothing could be discovered about them. There were no records, rumors, or indications of their purpose and potential.
Much as Edonmoore like to return with findings and confirmation as to what these things were...it was likely not to be.
They were an unknown. Pure and thoroughly steeped in mystery and shadowed purpose.
Edonmoore and an Attentive Eye stared at each other for the fourth hour in succession.
Neither knew why they were even here anymore.
The wrong kind of allies can be worse than the right kind of foes.
One of the many bitter lessons that Ker-Almur had to learn over his long life and longer fight. For to advocate for the weakest is to stand in their stead, and people are rarely willing to put pride behind practicality, less so when they are spoken for by an outsider and one they consider far removed from even those who put the boot on them.
He had read it all. Seen it all. Experienced it all. There was rarely something that could get him to stop in surprise, and it was often the bad kind of surprise that would undo months, if not years, of work of himself and the many others who fought with him for that righteous cause of shattering an evil unneeded and cruel for cruelty's sake.
Most came from religious organizations, people, and groups, each usually working to elevate themselves somehow, either as a whole or by individuals trying to uplift themselves through the ranks by building soft and hard power from within and without, using him and the Mutated as they saw fit or proper.
He had heard many things about the Pilgrims. Good and Bad alike. They spoke of things he agreed with and things he thought foolish; they sought things that were righteous in society and things that could bring great devastations upon entire Regions within the Necropoli' of the Empire; they worked for the betterment of all since they arrived in Tessen yet were oft occupied by their own affairs and discoveries.
And now they reached their hands out to him after not doing so when he himself had arrived, only after he had almost been killed once more. He was certain that they themselves knew not what to make of him, just as he could not of them. Many of their ranks were Mutated, their founder had married a Mutated, and she had been elevated into nobility by their efforts before they created a town that was like a vision of the future he fought for; one where mutations mattered not, only people did.
He could not make up his mind about them. Yet, as always, the wrong kind of allies can be worse than the right kind of foes.
As they said, 'Parallel Paths may yet converge into one.'
He had his own plans. He would see theirs and then decide.
Within the Putrid Settlement, battles had raged, and fights had ensued when the forces of the Pilgrims met the remains of the things that dwelled within the ruins of that best-forgotten collection of rotting hovels, nauseous constructions, and rickety assemblies.
For some, those battles were the fights against seemingly animated corpses. Though the tell-tale signs of bodies long since desiccated and reborn through the ministrations of plant roots and fungal webs with limited intelligence were enough to show the ways that had long since been perfected against the things of the Collapse that loved to use corpses to shine and prevail.
For the rest, the Golems That Guard were the blocks against the treasures and information sought, their forms as unique as they were the creations of humans that had nothing but their hands as tools and less in skill and ability to produce guardians for their holy site. This made them no less dangerous than any other Machine from the Collapse - though some argued for the moniker of "Pre" to be added - that had, is, and will be fought, yet it didn't make them more dangerous. At least, despite the dangers they represented, the Golems That Guard could be killed in controlled battles, their Machine-Minds concerned with protecting the Temple above all other things, even their own survival. Such was abused to the utmost, and soon enough, none remained safe as corpses to be studied and taken apart.
Entering that Temple that had been constructed with a care that the rest of the Settlement did not share was a trio of Pilgrims, Trellen and Lis-Is with shields in front and Cillian with her crossbow in the back, eyes sharp, minds alert, muscles lose, and ears pointed. Literal for Cillian and figuratively for the other two. What greeted them was perfectly ordinary as far as sites of worship for the Abrahamic Faiths went, if with the typical rot that seemed ever-present within the Settlement. A shrine in front, items of faith on display as if a sermon had happened during the death of the people here - which, if the corpses still sitting in the pews with hands clasped in prayer were any indication, had likely happened - and artistic representations of the symbols and deeds held dear and holy.
Carefully, the trio advanced, another trio entering after them, and after those would be the people taking closer looks for hidden dangers that had not yet activated, things that had been too damaged to activate, and most importantly, things to gather and bring back.
Step by step, they advanced, scanning for anything that could spell their doom, yet after the main room had been secured, they failed to find a trap or foe within the Temple. They thus began the agonizingly slow descent into the depths of its construction, stairs winding, crooked and uneven, into the bowels of the fake stone of the Bunker.
Until they stood before a door once chained with seven locks of crude make, all long since rusted through and fallen to the floor, the chains hanging limply in the damp air and the lightless existence they had spent until the three arrived hale and mighty. Eyes moved to make two pairs meet each other. A second passed, and Lis-Is stepped forward, spear slowly tapping upon the door, testing, searching, prodding. It took minutes for the door to be opened, and the three began to enter, seeing nothing out of the ordinary except for a grey wall oddly carved at the far back.
Lights were cast around, and eyes wandered, taking in the carvings continuing all along the walls, the ceiling, and the floor...carvings of feathers. Feathers nailed to the walls with shoddy iron rods hammered into them, though their beauty and intricacy was not destroyed but enhanced with their addition. The ugly and the sublime that did not exist within this wretched lost portion of the world in harmony.
But the carvings were too realistic.
They were carvings that moved from the breeze created by their steps.
Breaths quickened, hearts thundered, adrenaline pumped, eyes sharpened, muscles brimmed with energy waiting to be unleashed...and a beam of light and sight of eyes fell to the back of the room.
Upon a face.
Weeping golden tears, silently, for ages untold and ages unmentioned, hidden deep, hidden dark, hidden thrice.
Weeping for those who could not forgive their sins themselves.
Trellen, Lis-Is, and Cillian stared at the weeping face, staring at a corpse too beautiful to be buried, and wept in turn.
Days later, the corpse of the crucified Earth Angel wept no longer in the Temple, where it had been left behind.
It wept as it was transported away.
To those who could still forgive.
And rise.
And love.
And live.
And die.
Available Bonuses:
185 Distributable Points from Omakes.
1 Free Turn Progress for Buildings for 10 Intact Robotic Artifacts. Indicate by adding [Helpers] to the Action. No limit.
You have 1 Piety Action
Faith: Destructive, Powerful, Magnificent. Faith has moved mountains, healed wounds deeper than flesh, and reduced nations to ash. Harness it to create something that will outlast you and inspire a thousand generations. (Choose 2 Actions)[ ] Communal Outreach - (Repeatable)
A hand given to the downtrodden, shattered, destitute, and outcast is not always accepted. Sometimes, the people who need help the most slap it away in rage at the sight of their "betters deigning to elevate the dirt beneath them," as some have said so eloquently.
(Cost: 2 Goodwill
Chance: 60%
Reward: +10% Piety)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Blessed Journeys - (Repeatable)
You can say what you want, but sometimes, the best option is to burn the bridge behind you and never look back. Contact whatever caravans you can to see if you can't bribe them to take Mutated out of the BHVs they visit. Of course, while popular with the Mutated, people won't like that you are giving "criminals and scum" a free card to civilization.
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Reward: +15% Piety, +1 Mutated Opinion (Once), gives a safe way out of the BHVs for the Mutated.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.25 Goodwill)
A hand given to the downtrodden, shattered, destitute, and outcast is not always accepted. Sometimes, the people who need help the most slap it away in rage at the sight of their "betters deigning to elevate the dirt beneath them," as some have said so eloquently.
(Cost: 2 Goodwill
Chance: 60%
Reward: +10% Piety)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Blessed Journeys - (Repeatable)
You can say what you want, but sometimes, the best option is to burn the bridge behind you and never look back. Contact whatever caravans you can to see if you can't bribe them to take Mutated out of the BHVs they visit. Of course, while popular with the Mutated, people won't like that you are giving "criminals and scum" a free card to civilization.
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Reward: +15% Piety, +1 Mutated Opinion (Once), gives a safe way out of the BHVs for the Mutated.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.25 Goodwill)
[ ] The Pilgrims Need You!
One voice cannot be heard if it is unwilling to speak to another face-to-face. A hundred voices are more silent than whispers if they refrain from touching the hearts of those they seek to aid. Our preachers must do more than merely offer words; they must lend ears, hands, and minds alike.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 50%
Reward: 2d100+50 Recruits)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 2.50 Goodwill)
[ ] A Duty To Others Is Not Taken Lightly
As our numbers swell, so does our ability to reach out to many more people than before. With word, deed, and art, we can reach out to those on the edge of their decision and bring them into the fold for the good of all. Ours is a duty not taken lightly, but it is a duty one does not need to shoulder alone.
(Turns: 2
Chance: 30%
Reward: 4d200+150 Recruits)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 2.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Low, Not Lowly
Some do not wish to remain and fight for such with every fiber among the poor, desperate, and huddled masses. Those we do not seek out with this effort, but those who made pacts to sell their fellows for money or status. Their choice may be one they believe to be done consciously, but in reality, it is made from circumstance and hidden desperation. We cannot bring all who fell up, but we can start with some.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 80%
Reward: +8% Piety, +4d8 Followers)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.80 Goodwill)
[ ] This Is Not Eternal, Even Stone Will Change
We know where to seek those who banded together into gangs and which members must be targeted to shatter them into a thousand pieces. What we are doing may not be strictly legal, but infiltration and subversion of criminal elements is a long tradition among growing religions. Even better, many who had found homes amongst the gangs can be brought into the fold.
(Chance: 55%
Reward: +20% Piety, +5d6 Followers, slowly erodes Tessens Gang-Culture)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 5.00 Goodwill)
[ ] Begin Preparations For New Region Conversion
We have grown far beyond what Martyris had envisioned in numbers, wealth, knowledge, connection, and faith. So much so that some among our numbers seek new horizons to establish a new chapter, satellite, or outpost of the Pilgrims. We should accommodate their wishes, as they will aid us back in time and turn.
(Turns: 2
Cost: 0-200 Pilgrims, 5-30% Piety loss, -8 to -26 to Piety Rolls
Reward: A New Chapter Interlude Turns)
One voice cannot be heard if it is unwilling to speak to another face-to-face. A hundred voices are more silent than whispers if they refrain from touching the hearts of those they seek to aid. Our preachers must do more than merely offer words; they must lend ears, hands, and minds alike.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 50%
Reward: 2d100+50 Recruits)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 2.50 Goodwill)
[ ] A Duty To Others Is Not Taken Lightly
As our numbers swell, so does our ability to reach out to many more people than before. With word, deed, and art, we can reach out to those on the edge of their decision and bring them into the fold for the good of all. Ours is a duty not taken lightly, but it is a duty one does not need to shoulder alone.
(Turns: 2
Chance: 30%
Reward: 4d200+150 Recruits)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 2.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Low, Not Lowly
Some do not wish to remain and fight for such with every fiber among the poor, desperate, and huddled masses. Those we do not seek out with this effort, but those who made pacts to sell their fellows for money or status. Their choice may be one they believe to be done consciously, but in reality, it is made from circumstance and hidden desperation. We cannot bring all who fell up, but we can start with some.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 80%
Reward: +8% Piety, +4d8 Followers)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.80 Goodwill)
[ ] This Is Not Eternal, Even Stone Will Change
We know where to seek those who banded together into gangs and which members must be targeted to shatter them into a thousand pieces. What we are doing may not be strictly legal, but infiltration and subversion of criminal elements is a long tradition among growing religions. Even better, many who had found homes amongst the gangs can be brought into the fold.
(Chance: 55%
Reward: +20% Piety, +5d6 Followers, slowly erodes Tessens Gang-Culture)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 5.00 Goodwill)
[ ] Begin Preparations For New Region Conversion
We have grown far beyond what Martyris had envisioned in numbers, wealth, knowledge, connection, and faith. So much so that some among our numbers seek new horizons to establish a new chapter, satellite, or outpost of the Pilgrims. We should accommodate their wishes, as they will aid us back in time and turn.
(Turns: 2
Cost: 0-200 Pilgrims, 5-30% Piety loss, -8 to -26 to Piety Rolls
Reward: A New Chapter Interlude Turns)
[ ] Enlarge Outlying Town Soup-Kitchens
A place where one can get a warm meal once per day, usually stews, but also bread, a rare slice of cheese or meat, and a dash of honey and salt is not much by the standards of many. By the standards of those who rarely have a full belly once a week, such is a heavensend worth treasuring.
(Turns: 7
Reward: -3 to Piety rolls, 5d100 Recruits, +0.50 Goodwill per Turn, unlocks further progress.)
[ ] Improve Upon Our Hospices
With the basics of healthcare and the assurance of dignified deaths for those who cannot afford either granted by our hands, it is only right that our hands now prepare to set these places of last resort into houses of healing where all can be given the medical attention oft denied by lacking coins glint. Let the sick, the virulent, the broken, the outcast, and the dying know that we will heal them, for this is the Path of our healers.
(Cost: 35 Goodwill
Regions: Mirn, Tessen, Jokvi, Zulmni, Ularn, Strul, Outlying Territories.
Turns: 10
Reward: Turns a Hospice into a Clinic, -8 to Piety rolls.)
[ ] Build A School - (Big) - (Choose Location)
A place of learning, growing, and change, where all are welcome to learn in these halls, whether beggar or lord; none are turned away or asked to pay. Knowledge is a gift that should be shared, for it does not diminish when given to others.
(Already built within Mirn and Ularn.
Turns: 1/3/5
Chance: 50%
Reward: 0.2/0.5/0.9 Goodwill, -3/6/10 to Piety Rolls.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 16.75 Goodwill)
[ ] Improve An Orphanage - (Location)
Much time has passed since we laid the first stone and struck the first wall of rock within a city to carve out and build a shelter for all those souls who have lost nearly or entirely all that they once had, from mere material possessions to the much more important family ties and blood. Yet, though these halls, which were once cold waiting stones, now ring with the laughter and screams of children given a future, and those orphans without anything can quickly find a place here to grow into their personage, the Path is still a long one for these structures. We gave these children a home and a chance at a future. Now, it is time for us to turn that chance into a certainty.
(Reward: -2 to Piety rolls, +1 Follower per Turn.)
[ ] Build A Humane Asylum - (Location)
Nothing stands between the creation of an Asylum led by the Pilgrims now. Contact local builders, set Marxcim to design the structure, and call for volunteers to be trained and paid to care for the patients. Of course, some will see the giving over of the mentally ill to a religion-led institution as a terrible idea. Still, those voices will cease after some time, and hopefully, recovered patients will walk out of the Asylum. With ever-more knowledge of how the human mind functions come ever more means to treat those afflicted with mental diseases.
(Turns: 2
Cost: 5 Goodwill
Reward: Humane Asylum, -4 to Piety rolls, +0.20 Goodwill per Turn.)
-[ ] Expand One Instead - (Location)
(Turns: 1
Cost: 9.00 Goodwill
Reward: Expanded Humane Asylum, +0.30 Goodwill per Turn.)
[ ] Theater For The Masses
With the Consensuals filling up with those seeking to offer services of pleasure and artistry alike, we can spread our influence from these halls of leisure to the streets in theater and masquerade. There is always a demand for distractions, and the ones who hold a troupe's purse are the ones who dictate what plays are performed.
(Turns: 7
Reward: +6 Recruits per Turn.)
[ ] Mausoleum of the Forgotten - (City)
The last resting place of those who no longer have any that remember them, and the final site of their remains we manage to recover from wherever they died. Let their souls walk without the chains of disturbed slumber or defiled quiet.
(Built: Mirn, Ularn
Turns: 2
Reward: Final resting place for the forgotten and discarded, -5 to Piety rolls.)
A place where one can get a warm meal once per day, usually stews, but also bread, a rare slice of cheese or meat, and a dash of honey and salt is not much by the standards of many. By the standards of those who rarely have a full belly once a week, such is a heavensend worth treasuring.
(Turns: 7
Reward: -3 to Piety rolls, 5d100 Recruits, +0.50 Goodwill per Turn, unlocks further progress.)
[ ] Improve Upon Our Hospices
With the basics of healthcare and the assurance of dignified deaths for those who cannot afford either granted by our hands, it is only right that our hands now prepare to set these places of last resort into houses of healing where all can be given the medical attention oft denied by lacking coins glint. Let the sick, the virulent, the broken, the outcast, and the dying know that we will heal them, for this is the Path of our healers.
(Cost: 35 Goodwill
Regions: Mirn, Tessen, Jokvi, Zulmni, Ularn, Strul, Outlying Territories.
Turns: 10
Reward: Turns a Hospice into a Clinic, -8 to Piety rolls.)
[ ] Build A School - (Big) - (Choose Location)
A place of learning, growing, and change, where all are welcome to learn in these halls, whether beggar or lord; none are turned away or asked to pay. Knowledge is a gift that should be shared, for it does not diminish when given to others.
(Already built within Mirn and Ularn.
Turns: 1/3/5
Chance: 50%
Reward: 0.2/0.5/0.9 Goodwill, -3/6/10 to Piety Rolls.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 16.75 Goodwill)
[ ] Improve An Orphanage - (Location)
Much time has passed since we laid the first stone and struck the first wall of rock within a city to carve out and build a shelter for all those souls who have lost nearly or entirely all that they once had, from mere material possessions to the much more important family ties and blood. Yet, though these halls, which were once cold waiting stones, now ring with the laughter and screams of children given a future, and those orphans without anything can quickly find a place here to grow into their personage, the Path is still a long one for these structures. We gave these children a home and a chance at a future. Now, it is time for us to turn that chance into a certainty.
(Reward: -2 to Piety rolls, +1 Follower per Turn.)
[ ] Build A Humane Asylum - (Location)
Nothing stands between the creation of an Asylum led by the Pilgrims now. Contact local builders, set Marxcim to design the structure, and call for volunteers to be trained and paid to care for the patients. Of course, some will see the giving over of the mentally ill to a religion-led institution as a terrible idea. Still, those voices will cease after some time, and hopefully, recovered patients will walk out of the Asylum. With ever-more knowledge of how the human mind functions come ever more means to treat those afflicted with mental diseases.
(Turns: 2
Cost: 5 Goodwill
Reward: Humane Asylum, -4 to Piety rolls, +0.20 Goodwill per Turn.)
-[ ] Expand One Instead - (Location)
(Turns: 1
Cost: 9.00 Goodwill
Reward: Expanded Humane Asylum, +0.30 Goodwill per Turn.)
[ ] Theater For The Masses
With the Consensuals filling up with those seeking to offer services of pleasure and artistry alike, we can spread our influence from these halls of leisure to the streets in theater and masquerade. There is always a demand for distractions, and the ones who hold a troupe's purse are the ones who dictate what plays are performed.
(Turns: 7
Reward: +6 Recruits per Turn.)
[ ] Mausoleum of the Forgotten - (City)
The last resting place of those who no longer have any that remember them, and the final site of their remains we manage to recover from wherever they died. Let their souls walk without the chains of disturbed slumber or defiled quiet.
(Built: Mirn, Ularn
Turns: 2
Reward: Final resting place for the forgotten and discarded, -5 to Piety rolls.)
[ ] Healing For All! (Write-In Artifacts)
You have the money; they have the expertise. Announce that the Pilgrims will shoulder all costs for any medical procedure done by every doctor for the next three months.
(Chance: 70%
Reward: Healers gain Influence, 5d3 Goodwill.)
[ ] A Helping Hand
Now that you can create rugged high-grade prosthetics, more than merely producing and selling them is required. Unfortunately, too many veterans, injured, disabled, or unlucky, cannot afford a new arm, leg, hand, or foot. So, create a few thousand in bulk and ship them to where they are needed, where local Pilgrims may gift them as required.
(Chance: 99/50/25%
Reward: Gain 4/7/15d5 Goodwill.
[ ] Festival Of The Delta
With money comes the ability to sponsor festivals, and with our numbers, the capability to fully take advantage of the festival for our ends in learning, conciliation, and creation. It will be costly, but it will be worth it.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 50%
Reward: +2d8 Goodwill, +3d20 Recruits, +35 to all Actions this Turn if successful.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.75 Goodwill)
[ ] A Small Donation - (Organization) - (Topic) - (Donation Sum)
As the Pilgrim's wealth increases, so does the need to play politics within the Big League. This directly translates to donations towards organizations (like newspapers) that work towards a goal we provide for them. Nothing they would be against doing, but something they would be adverse to in normal circumstances.
(Cost: 50-Unlimited Goodwill
Turns: 1
Chance: 75%
Reward: PR, Piety, and ???)
You have the money; they have the expertise. Announce that the Pilgrims will shoulder all costs for any medical procedure done by every doctor for the next three months.
(Chance: 70%
Reward: Healers gain Influence, 5d3 Goodwill.)
[ ] A Helping Hand
Now that you can create rugged high-grade prosthetics, more than merely producing and selling them is required. Unfortunately, too many veterans, injured, disabled, or unlucky, cannot afford a new arm, leg, hand, or foot. So, create a few thousand in bulk and ship them to where they are needed, where local Pilgrims may gift them as required.
(Chance: 99/50/25%
Reward: Gain 4/7/15d5 Goodwill.
[ ] Festival Of The Delta
With money comes the ability to sponsor festivals, and with our numbers, the capability to fully take advantage of the festival for our ends in learning, conciliation, and creation. It will be costly, but it will be worth it.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 50%
Reward: +2d8 Goodwill, +3d20 Recruits, +35 to all Actions this Turn if successful.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.75 Goodwill)
[ ] A Small Donation - (Organization) - (Topic) - (Donation Sum)
As the Pilgrim's wealth increases, so does the need to play politics within the Big League. This directly translates to donations towards organizations (like newspapers) that work towards a goal we provide for them. Nothing they would be against doing, but something they would be adverse to in normal circumstances.
(Cost: 50-Unlimited Goodwill
Turns: 1
Chance: 75%
Reward: PR, Piety, and ???)
[ ] Hey, Why Don't We... (Write-In)
(What do you want to accomplish, and how do you do it?)
Endless Skies: For though we all wander on Paths eternal and ever twisting, whose ends most shall never choose for themselves, we know that there are Paths to walk beyond the realm of earth and stone. (Choose 2 Actions, 1 Action Locked)
[X] The Flagship - (8/15 Turns Complete)
House Tessen wishes for a Flagship, and you have created one acceptable to the House and the Region. Now it is time to build this edifice to your commitment to the Region's security and grandeur.
(Cost: 2 Large Suspendium Shards
Turns: 15
Reward: House Tessen likes you more, and Tessen gets a Flagship, ???.)
House Tessen wishes for a Flagship, and you have created one acceptable to the House and the Region. Now it is time to build this edifice to your commitment to the Region's security and grandeur.
(Cost: 2 Large Suspendium Shards
Turns: 15
Reward: House Tessen likes you more, and Tessen gets a Flagship, ???.)
[ ] Aerodynamics 103 - (All Physics)
Speed is of the essence when you are moving anywhere, as the faster you arrive, the less chances there are for enemies to catch, attack, disembowel, and eat you. Improving upon the equipment we have right now will be the key to ensuring that no one will catch us!
(Chance: 99/99/55% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 8
Reward: Improve current propulsion methods, Follow-Up Project.)
[ ] Aerodynamics 202 - (All Physics)
Speed is of the essence when you are moving anywhere, as the faster you arrive, the fewer chances enemies will catch, attack, disembowel, and eat you. So developing new and novel equipment will be the key to ensuring that no one will catch us!
(Chance: 85/55/-05% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 9
Reward: Better Airship Propulsion, Follow-Up Project.)
[ ] Suspendium Shaping Theory - (Pioneer Suspendium)
Thanks to our increased understanding of Suspendium, several important discoveries have been made, with the most important one being that Suspendium, if rightly treated, can be used as more than shards of a crystal but also as a pigment for tattoos. The implications of that discovery have haunted the Experimental Wing since, with dozens of theories and projections thrown around that point to the possibility that, if correctly treated, one could reshape the structure of Suspendium into liquid and non-natural shapes. The ability to interlace a lattice of Suspendium into a suit of armor or crate instead of painstakingly working it into the same would be nothing short of revolutionary, and that are merely the most obvious applications!
(Chance: 40/-80/-160% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 204
Reward: Unknown, Follow-Up Projects.
Breakthrough Research: +1d6 Successes every 20 Successes!)
[ ] Pressurized Suspendium Part 5a - (Pioneer Suspendium Theory)
"It is imperative to the continued progress of native Airship construction and research that funds and attention are allocated toward projects like this to allow our constructed vessels to bear far more weight at far less risk and trade-offs than ever before. Even if the hard, grueling work of years this path entails does not have the same sexy or alluring appearance as other avenues of research in matters of lift, it will pay off in the long run, as evidenced by the small amounts of suspendium required to lift vessels of far larger size into the air found within the Forest of Rust."
(Needed: Suspendium Shard - Gigantic
Chance: -360/-760/-1460 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 85
Reward: One more step forward. One step closer to understanding Suspendium. +50% Lift for all Lift Modules.)
[ ] Devouring Sunlight - (Advanced Physics/Electronics)
With the idea of Pilgrim Oraion to utilize solar panels bearing fruits, efforts could be undertaken to improve their efficacy within the Airships they are installed on to continue to reduce the need for power generation within their holds.
(Chance: 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 20
Reward: Unlock Improved Solar Paneling for Airships.)
[ ] Prototype Unique Component
One Pilgrim has developed a new and novel application of known or old technology for Airships. We could look into its efficacy.
(Cost: ? Suspendium
Chance: ?/?/? for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: ?
Reward: Requested Module. Describe what you want, and I'll tell you what it will cost/require.)
[ ] Improve Upon Component - [Module]
There is always room for improvement.
(Chance: 20/-40/-150 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 3
Reward: The requested module has one chosen section slightly improved.)
[ ] Prototype Unique Designs - (Design) - (Common Mechanics/Hydraulics/Armor/Machinery/Metallurgy/Physics)
Once we have developed standardized modules, building a specific airship around or with those components would be safe.
(Cost: (Design Costs)
Chance:
Light (0-20.000 Kg Lift): 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 2
Medium (20.001-2.000.000 Kg Lift): 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 5
Heavy (2.000.001+ Kg Lift): 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 16
Reward: Airship Desing is being manufactured and sold. The Price is pre-rolled and applied to all subsequently assembled airships of the same line.
Notice: +1/2/3 Structure Bonus per Module for Light/Medium/Heavy Airships.
Warning: Airships incur Suspendium costs in their production.
Speed is of the essence when you are moving anywhere, as the faster you arrive, the less chances there are for enemies to catch, attack, disembowel, and eat you. Improving upon the equipment we have right now will be the key to ensuring that no one will catch us!
(Chance: 99/99/55% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 8
Reward: Improve current propulsion methods, Follow-Up Project.)
[ ] Aerodynamics 202 - (All Physics)
Speed is of the essence when you are moving anywhere, as the faster you arrive, the fewer chances enemies will catch, attack, disembowel, and eat you. So developing new and novel equipment will be the key to ensuring that no one will catch us!
(Chance: 85/55/-05% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 9
Reward: Better Airship Propulsion, Follow-Up Project.)
[ ] Suspendium Shaping Theory - (Pioneer Suspendium)
Thanks to our increased understanding of Suspendium, several important discoveries have been made, with the most important one being that Suspendium, if rightly treated, can be used as more than shards of a crystal but also as a pigment for tattoos. The implications of that discovery have haunted the Experimental Wing since, with dozens of theories and projections thrown around that point to the possibility that, if correctly treated, one could reshape the structure of Suspendium into liquid and non-natural shapes. The ability to interlace a lattice of Suspendium into a suit of armor or crate instead of painstakingly working it into the same would be nothing short of revolutionary, and that are merely the most obvious applications!
(Chance: 40/-80/-160% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 204
Reward: Unknown, Follow-Up Projects.
Breakthrough Research: +1d6 Successes every 20 Successes!)
[ ] Pressurized Suspendium Part 5a - (Pioneer Suspendium Theory)
"It is imperative to the continued progress of native Airship construction and research that funds and attention are allocated toward projects like this to allow our constructed vessels to bear far more weight at far less risk and trade-offs than ever before. Even if the hard, grueling work of years this path entails does not have the same sexy or alluring appearance as other avenues of research in matters of lift, it will pay off in the long run, as evidenced by the small amounts of suspendium required to lift vessels of far larger size into the air found within the Forest of Rust."
(Needed: Suspendium Shard - Gigantic
Chance: -360/-760/-1460 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 85
Reward: One more step forward. One step closer to understanding Suspendium. +50% Lift for all Lift Modules.)
[ ] Devouring Sunlight - (Advanced Physics/Electronics)
With the idea of Pilgrim Oraion to utilize solar panels bearing fruits, efforts could be undertaken to improve their efficacy within the Airships they are installed on to continue to reduce the need for power generation within their holds.
(Chance: 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 20
Reward: Unlock Improved Solar Paneling for Airships.)
[ ] Prototype Unique Component
One Pilgrim has developed a new and novel application of known or old technology for Airships. We could look into its efficacy.
(Cost: ? Suspendium
Chance: ?/?/? for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: ?
Reward: Requested Module. Describe what you want, and I'll tell you what it will cost/require.)
[ ] Improve Upon Component - [Module]
There is always room for improvement.
(Chance: 20/-40/-150 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 3
Reward: The requested module has one chosen section slightly improved.)
[ ] Prototype Unique Designs - (Design) - (Common Mechanics/Hydraulics/Armor/Machinery/Metallurgy/Physics)
Once we have developed standardized modules, building a specific airship around or with those components would be safe.
(Cost: (Design Costs)
Chance:
Light (0-20.000 Kg Lift): 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 2
Medium (20.001-2.000.000 Kg Lift): 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 5
Heavy (2.000.001+ Kg Lift): 99/99/99 for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 16
Reward: Airship Desing is being manufactured and sold. The Price is pre-rolled and applied to all subsequently assembled airships of the same line.
Notice: +1/2/3 Structure Bonus per Module for Light/Medium/Heavy Airships.
Warning: Airships incur Suspendium costs in their production.
Commoners: Personal Use.
Nobles: Scouts, Pleasure Yachts.
Merchants Guild: Cargo, Personal Use, Lightly Armed Guard Ships.
Adventurers Guild: Lightly-Medium Armed Airships, Scouts, Transports.
Forge-Clan: All Types except Armed Airships.
Military: All Types.
Settlements: Lightly-Heavily Armed Airships, Scouts, Transports.
Misc. Guilds: Light Transports, Lightly Armed Guard Ships.
Nobles: Scouts, Pleasure Yachts.
Merchants Guild: Cargo, Personal Use, Lightly Armed Guard Ships.
Adventurers Guild: Lightly-Medium Armed Airships, Scouts, Transports.
Forge-Clan: All Types except Armed Airships.
Military: All Types.
Settlements: Lightly-Heavily Armed Airships, Scouts, Transports.
Misc. Guilds: Light Transports, Lightly Armed Guard Ships.
[ ] The Arsenal of Crews
While the creation of the Training Halls has allowed us to instill comprehensive skills into the crews that will ply the skies, we should endeavor to always have enough training room to build a strategic reserve for air personnel at all times.
(Turns: 15
Upkeep: 4 Medium Suspendium Shards
Reward: School of Crews - Large, -3 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] The Workshops of the Skyneers
Keeping an airship running is not as easy when you are in the skies, especially if you do not have access to the parts you need to fix something critical immediately. Patchjobs are typical for long-standing airships when suffering a malfunction too many, and finding ways to flick what is broken with the tools one has is far more important than knowing how to repair things with materials you cannot reach. Now, if only we could stop the students from calling themselves 'Skyneers' while we are at it...
(Turns: 12
Cost: 2 Big Suspendium Shards
Reward: Workshops of Skyneers, -8 to Piety Rolls, Increased Airship Production.)
[ ] Recover Airships - Intact - (Type / Numbers)
It is done! After much sweat, blood, and tears have flowed, we finally figured out how to restore these ancient ships from their slumber! It will only take some muscle, Suspendium, and luck to escape notice, and they will travel across the sky once more!
(Personal Cutters (Unarmed 20 ton) (68 Remain): 5 Small Suspendium Shards per ship Recovered.
Line Vessel (Armed 200 ton) (24 Remain): 1 Medium Suspendium Shard per ship Recovered.
Cargo Craft (Unarmed 1000 ton) (9 Remain): 1 Medium and 17 Small Suspendium Shards per ship Recovered.
Warships (Armed 500 ton) (4 Remain): 1 Big Suspendium Shard per ship Recovered.
Chance: 80%
Reward: Intact Airships Recovered
Warning: If this Action fails, unknown forces will attack.)
-[ ] Establish Supply Routes
(Reward: Rapid Reaction Forces Ready)
-[ ] Establish Trade Routes
(Reward: Increase Region prosperity.)
-[ ] Guard The Skies
(Cost: Line Vessel
Reward: Aerial Security.)
[ ] Organized Airship Manufactory - 1 Line - (Design)
Forget making a few little ships! The way is to mass-produce components and available designs and fit them in a specialized hangar! Of course, first, we must provide the required Suspendium and Materials, but then? Then we can get rich!
(Turns: 5
Upkeep: Airship Line Dependent
Reward: Organized Airship Manufactory, allowing you to build and sell Airships to your specifications. House Dall gets rich.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
-[ ] Swap The Lines - (Same-Weight Category Design #1 to #2)
(Turns: Only 1
Reward: Swapped Lines)
While the creation of the Training Halls has allowed us to instill comprehensive skills into the crews that will ply the skies, we should endeavor to always have enough training room to build a strategic reserve for air personnel at all times.
(Turns: 15
Upkeep: 4 Medium Suspendium Shards
Reward: School of Crews - Large, -3 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] The Workshops of the Skyneers
Keeping an airship running is not as easy when you are in the skies, especially if you do not have access to the parts you need to fix something critical immediately. Patchjobs are typical for long-standing airships when suffering a malfunction too many, and finding ways to flick what is broken with the tools one has is far more important than knowing how to repair things with materials you cannot reach. Now, if only we could stop the students from calling themselves 'Skyneers' while we are at it...
(Turns: 12
Cost: 2 Big Suspendium Shards
Reward: Workshops of Skyneers, -8 to Piety Rolls, Increased Airship Production.)
[ ] Recover Airships - Intact - (Type / Numbers)
It is done! After much sweat, blood, and tears have flowed, we finally figured out how to restore these ancient ships from their slumber! It will only take some muscle, Suspendium, and luck to escape notice, and they will travel across the sky once more!
(Personal Cutters (Unarmed 20 ton) (68 Remain): 5 Small Suspendium Shards per ship Recovered.
Line Vessel (Armed 200 ton) (24 Remain): 1 Medium Suspendium Shard per ship Recovered.
Cargo Craft (Unarmed 1000 ton) (9 Remain): 1 Medium and 17 Small Suspendium Shards per ship Recovered.
Warships (Armed 500 ton) (4 Remain): 1 Big Suspendium Shard per ship Recovered.
Chance: 80%
Reward: Intact Airships Recovered
Warning: If this Action fails, unknown forces will attack.)
-[ ] Establish Supply Routes
(Reward: Rapid Reaction Forces Ready)
-[ ] Establish Trade Routes
(Reward: Increase Region prosperity.)
-[ ] Guard The Skies
(Cost: Line Vessel
Reward: Aerial Security.)
[ ] Organized Airship Manufactory - 1 Line - (Design)
Forget making a few little ships! The way is to mass-produce components and available designs and fit them in a specialized hangar! Of course, first, we must provide the required Suspendium and Materials, but then? Then we can get rich!
(Turns: 5
Upkeep: Airship Line Dependent
Reward: Organized Airship Manufactory, allowing you to build and sell Airships to your specifications. House Dall gets rich.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
-[ ] Swap The Lines - (Same-Weight Category Design #1 to #2)
(Turns: Only 1
Reward: Swapped Lines)
[ ] A Draft Of Mercy
Military and commercial applications of airships have taken a dangerous precedent and priority for us, something that we cannot tolerate any longer. With airships, we can help so many more at so much less hassle and cost, aiding, in turn, more and more people in need. Flying with doctors and medicine to the places that need them instead of forcing them to arrive at one of our locations they may never be able to reach alive is but the most apparent use of something our scholars are rapidly calling "Temple Ships."
(Turns: 1
Cost: 5 Medium Suspendium Shards
Reward: Unlock Aid and Faith Modules for your Airships.)
[ ] Halls of Free Minds
Arguing about the Paths and the Pilgrimage is good, yet there are places where one needs to set aside faith and replace it with uncertain certainty. Faith can guide us through the immaterial when there are no answers to be wrought, but Philosophy can guide us through the material when questions are all that are created by the answers we find.
(Turns: 4
Cost: 2 Medium Suspendium Shards
Reward: Halls of Free Minds, Unlocks further Actions, -5 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] Gardens of Levitation
A person's inner mind is as much a Path to travel as the physical Journey we all undertake. In a garden, one can ground themselves in nature and the works wrought by hand and guided minds, reflecting on what can be created if a desire exists and the shapes that our universe takes within these forms. By embracing weightlessness and detachment from gravity, one can enter a trance beneficial to beginning a Journey of the Inner Path.
(Turns: 3
Cost: 2 Large Suspendium Shards
Reward: Gardens of Levitation, Unlocks further Actions, -5 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] A Coming Of Age Inscribed
While using tattoos to display one's allegiance and faith has long since been a part of the Pilgrimage that has been implicitly approved, the years since the discovery of Suspendium have turned this practice into a far more ritualistic affair, now tinted in the possibilities and assured knowledge of Suspendiums non-toxic nature. Finely ground down, treated in gentle heat, and then processed into a form of pigment, Suspendium has begun to be used by many, especially those of us who come of age, to display our Paths and Journey proudly and unafraid. Offering public approval and enshrining this practice as part of the Pilgrimage will bring a sense of community to us all while empowering those who fight to leave a past behind they have conquered.
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Upkeep: 1 Medium Suspendium Shard
Reward: Suspendium Ritual Tattoos - -5 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] Radio Cafes
A somewhat new and novel idea, using the recently created and proliferated radios of our Scholars in a public setting offering food, drink, and conversation, will offer a place to relax, converse with others, and inform oneself about the news and happenings of the Region.
(Turns: 3
Reward: Radio Cafes - Small, -1 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] A Floating Island?
We know that it is possible to allow an island to fly, the Monastery, Fortress, and Laboratory sit on those, yet...to build it ourselves? Surely that is but madness born by a lust for grandeur?
(Reward: Sub-Turns to decide on the Path of the Sky Island.)
Military and commercial applications of airships have taken a dangerous precedent and priority for us, something that we cannot tolerate any longer. With airships, we can help so many more at so much less hassle and cost, aiding, in turn, more and more people in need. Flying with doctors and medicine to the places that need them instead of forcing them to arrive at one of our locations they may never be able to reach alive is but the most apparent use of something our scholars are rapidly calling "Temple Ships."
(Turns: 1
Cost: 5 Medium Suspendium Shards
Reward: Unlock Aid and Faith Modules for your Airships.)
[ ] Halls of Free Minds
Arguing about the Paths and the Pilgrimage is good, yet there are places where one needs to set aside faith and replace it with uncertain certainty. Faith can guide us through the immaterial when there are no answers to be wrought, but Philosophy can guide us through the material when questions are all that are created by the answers we find.
(Turns: 4
Cost: 2 Medium Suspendium Shards
Reward: Halls of Free Minds, Unlocks further Actions, -5 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] Gardens of Levitation
A person's inner mind is as much a Path to travel as the physical Journey we all undertake. In a garden, one can ground themselves in nature and the works wrought by hand and guided minds, reflecting on what can be created if a desire exists and the shapes that our universe takes within these forms. By embracing weightlessness and detachment from gravity, one can enter a trance beneficial to beginning a Journey of the Inner Path.
(Turns: 3
Cost: 2 Large Suspendium Shards
Reward: Gardens of Levitation, Unlocks further Actions, -5 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] A Coming Of Age Inscribed
While using tattoos to display one's allegiance and faith has long since been a part of the Pilgrimage that has been implicitly approved, the years since the discovery of Suspendium have turned this practice into a far more ritualistic affair, now tinted in the possibilities and assured knowledge of Suspendiums non-toxic nature. Finely ground down, treated in gentle heat, and then processed into a form of pigment, Suspendium has begun to be used by many, especially those of us who come of age, to display our Paths and Journey proudly and unafraid. Offering public approval and enshrining this practice as part of the Pilgrimage will bring a sense of community to us all while empowering those who fight to leave a past behind they have conquered.
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Upkeep: 1 Medium Suspendium Shard
Reward: Suspendium Ritual Tattoos - -5 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] Radio Cafes
A somewhat new and novel idea, using the recently created and proliferated radios of our Scholars in a public setting offering food, drink, and conversation, will offer a place to relax, converse with others, and inform oneself about the news and happenings of the Region.
(Turns: 3
Reward: Radio Cafes - Small, -1 to Piety Rolls.)
[ ] A Floating Island?
We know that it is possible to allow an island to fly, the Monastery, Fortress, and Laboratory sit on those, yet...to build it ourselves? Surely that is but madness born by a lust for grandeur?
(Reward: Sub-Turns to decide on the Path of the Sky Island.)
Diplomacy: The art of speaking many words that mean nothing should not be underestimated. At the wrong time, a report in the right ear has toppled many nations. (Choose 1 Action)
[ ] The Great Trade Fleets - (Choose Region)
With the proliferation of airships, the abundance of goods within Tessen, and the dearth of forces that could threaten either once within the air, convincing the Merchant Guild to construct and maintain an airship depot and trading station within another Region will not be as impossible as before, but will require us to grease hands and argue fervently for the profits that could be made. No merchant likes a risk they do not think will pay off, so we should make them believe it will.
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Chance: 25% (+70 if you add a pre-Collapse cargo airship to the deal.)
Turns: 3
Reward: Closer connection and rapid exchange of people, goods, and information with a chosen Region.)
[ ] We Are One People! - (Elites/Locals)
To harm someone because they look different is idiotic and utterly wrong. You cannot push another down and still call yourself righteous, no matter how they look. Even the lowest deserve our respect as fellow human beings. Start a propaganda campaign to change the Mutated view, unite the people, and start on the road to reconciliation.
(Chance: 20%/20% for Elites/Locals (rolled each turn.)
Successes Needed: 4/4
Reward: +1 Relationship for the Mutated with the chosen faction, +40% Piety, 4d20 Recruits, +2d12 Goodwill)
[ ] School The Diplomat-Corp - (Specialized) - (Faction)
Your Training for the diplomats is as comprehensive as possible to create for the foreseeable future. However, you need institutional knowledge or an in-depth look into one faction to help you more.
(Turns: 2
Chance: 70%
Reward: +15 to all rolls involving said faction.)
[ ] Create A Dossier On (Groups/Topics (Max 3))
Collate all known information, history, and rumors about a group or topic of interest to ensure the Pilgrims' future actions are as well-informed as possible.
(Chance: 70%
Reward: Lore and Information regarding Groups/Topics (Max 3).)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Shouldn't We... (Write-In)
(What do you want to accomplish, and how do you do it?)
With the proliferation of airships, the abundance of goods within Tessen, and the dearth of forces that could threaten either once within the air, convincing the Merchant Guild to construct and maintain an airship depot and trading station within another Region will not be as impossible as before, but will require us to grease hands and argue fervently for the profits that could be made. No merchant likes a risk they do not think will pay off, so we should make them believe it will.
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Chance: 25% (+70 if you add a pre-Collapse cargo airship to the deal.)
Turns: 3
Reward: Closer connection and rapid exchange of people, goods, and information with a chosen Region.)
[ ] We Are One People! - (Elites/Locals)
To harm someone because they look different is idiotic and utterly wrong. You cannot push another down and still call yourself righteous, no matter how they look. Even the lowest deserve our respect as fellow human beings. Start a propaganda campaign to change the Mutated view, unite the people, and start on the road to reconciliation.
(Chance: 20%/20% for Elites/Locals (rolled each turn.)
Successes Needed: 4/4
Reward: +1 Relationship for the Mutated with the chosen faction, +40% Piety, 4d20 Recruits, +2d12 Goodwill)
[ ] School The Diplomat-Corp - (Specialized) - (Faction)
Your Training for the diplomats is as comprehensive as possible to create for the foreseeable future. However, you need institutional knowledge or an in-depth look into one faction to help you more.
(Turns: 2
Chance: 70%
Reward: +15 to all rolls involving said faction.)
[ ] Create A Dossier On (Groups/Topics (Max 3))
Collate all known information, history, and rumors about a group or topic of interest to ensure the Pilgrims' future actions are as well-informed as possible.
(Chance: 70%
Reward: Lore and Information regarding Groups/Topics (Max 3).)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Shouldn't We... (Write-In)
(What do you want to accomplish, and how do you do it?)
Subversion: Sometimes, you must convince people they need help with means other than an open hand and a friendly face. A dagger to the back of those who chain them would be a good start. (1 Action Locked)
[ ] Home of Night
A structure is needed to store, train, and keep things you'd rather not have out in the open, be they machines, people, or items. Several places have been considered, though only one, shielded in a small valley smothering everything within in an ever-present half-shadow, has proven suitable. Setting aside funds to create a keep there would prove trivial to your agents.
(Cost: 31 Goodwill, Upkeep: 7.5 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Home of Night allows you to train specialized Subversion Agents and unlocks Destabilization Actions.)
[X] A Path Of Shadows - (2/5 Turns Complete)
Training can only bring one so far, and tools will only pave over so many cracks and failures in learning and ability. It is time that those willing to hide in the shadows of the world for the benefit of the Pilgrims learn the difference between seeking to adapt to the blind seeking their traces and those seeing that perceive their wanderings.
(Cost: 25 Goodwill, Upkeep: 4 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Reduce the chance of your agents being caught and considerably reduce the impact of failures.)
[ ] Cover Of Mind
The mind of humankind is ever so fragile; even the slightest imbalance of its chemicals can lead to devastating changes in perception, memory, and motor function. A little nick here, a slight pierce there, some drops over yonder, and a minor waft of smoke...and bodies slump or minds see what is not there.
(Cost: 34 Goodwill, Upkeep: 11 Goodwill
Turns: 4
Reward: Improve all Assassination Actions, which allows you to send the same to other Chapters to help.)
[ ] Holding Chambers
Torture is inefficient, sloppy, and gives nothing but information spouted to stop the pain. Isolation and removal of all but the basest things, however...they can be good tools to use to ply weak minds to our advantage. It will also be an excellent place to store those you cannot kill but need to...dispose of.
(Cost: 21 Goodwill, Upkeep: 1.24 Goodwill
Turns: 2
Reward: Holding Chambers, increasing gathered information from caught spies and subversives.)
[ ] The Good Gardeners
Every farmer and gardener will tell you plants need pruning. There needs to be someone going around, cutting off unwanted and unneeded parts of those plants, be they trees or bushes, to allow the rest to grow more healthily. Some plants need to be ripped out roots and stems so that they do not kill other plants that are good for the soil. Some may have fallen prey to blight and need to be removed for the good of all others. Those are valuable lessons to learn and good things to do. Find some people willing to become gardeners for the Pilgrims.
(Cost: 42 Goodwill, Upkeep: 6.48 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Gardeners.)
[ ] Audit Everything
Yes, we did make an audit of all our networks and holdings...but what about a second one? You know, to ensure we got everyone that may try to fuck us over?
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Turns: 1
Chance: ???
Reward: Ensured that your Networks still work entirely for your ends.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.90 Goodwill)
[ ] Infiltrate Part 1 - (Choose Three Factions)
It is time to ensure your spies are in place to ply their trade. This step focuses on laying the groundwork for future expansions and won't get you any detailed information. It is also little more than paying some people to pass on rumors, which is standard practice within Slatnan and will raise only a few eyebrows. Still, even basic knowledge may allow you to plan farther ahead.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 99%
Reward: Target is Infiltrated, displays information in the rumor mill, raises chances for Exfiltrate and Illuminate)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[] Infiltrate Part 2 - (Choose Three Factions)
Further infiltration of chosen organizations will reveal far more secrets and allow far riskier actions to be taken. It will be a step over the law, with failure not being a good outcome.
(Needed: Information Network: Rank 1
Turns: 2
Chance: 95%
Reward: Spies are planted, displays more information in the rumor mill, raises chances for Exfiltrate and Illuminate)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Infiltrate Part 3 - (Choose Three Factions)
Your secrets are ours; nothing can be hidden from us. No lock, gate, or barrier stands in our way; nobody will shield you from our grasp. Because we already own them, from the lowest maid to the highest Guard you trust.
(Needed: Information Network: Rank 2
Turns: 2
Chance: 60%
Reward: Spies are planted, displays more information in the rumor mill, almost guarantees Exfiltrate and Illuminate)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Exfiltrate - (Target)
What is yours is mine; what is mine is none of your concern.
(Chance: 90%
Reward: Chance for Secrets)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+5 to roll = 2.00 Goodwill)
[ ] Illuminate - (Target)
Burn their homes, raze their sanctuaries to the bedrock, let nothing stand but ruins, and leave nothing behind but ash and the taste of defeat. They will no longer be allowed to meddle in our Paths.
(Chance: 90/50/20%
Reward: Target has their operations/structures halted/incapacitated/terminated.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+10 to roll = 3.00 Goodwill)
A structure is needed to store, train, and keep things you'd rather not have out in the open, be they machines, people, or items. Several places have been considered, though only one, shielded in a small valley smothering everything within in an ever-present half-shadow, has proven suitable. Setting aside funds to create a keep there would prove trivial to your agents.
(Cost: 31 Goodwill, Upkeep: 7.5 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Home of Night allows you to train specialized Subversion Agents and unlocks Destabilization Actions.)
[X] A Path Of Shadows - (2/5 Turns Complete)
Training can only bring one so far, and tools will only pave over so many cracks and failures in learning and ability. It is time that those willing to hide in the shadows of the world for the benefit of the Pilgrims learn the difference between seeking to adapt to the blind seeking their traces and those seeing that perceive their wanderings.
(Cost: 25 Goodwill, Upkeep: 4 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Reduce the chance of your agents being caught and considerably reduce the impact of failures.)
[ ] Cover Of Mind
The mind of humankind is ever so fragile; even the slightest imbalance of its chemicals can lead to devastating changes in perception, memory, and motor function. A little nick here, a slight pierce there, some drops over yonder, and a minor waft of smoke...and bodies slump or minds see what is not there.
(Cost: 34 Goodwill, Upkeep: 11 Goodwill
Turns: 4
Reward: Improve all Assassination Actions, which allows you to send the same to other Chapters to help.)
[ ] Holding Chambers
Torture is inefficient, sloppy, and gives nothing but information spouted to stop the pain. Isolation and removal of all but the basest things, however...they can be good tools to use to ply weak minds to our advantage. It will also be an excellent place to store those you cannot kill but need to...dispose of.
(Cost: 21 Goodwill, Upkeep: 1.24 Goodwill
Turns: 2
Reward: Holding Chambers, increasing gathered information from caught spies and subversives.)
[ ] The Good Gardeners
Every farmer and gardener will tell you plants need pruning. There needs to be someone going around, cutting off unwanted and unneeded parts of those plants, be they trees or bushes, to allow the rest to grow more healthily. Some plants need to be ripped out roots and stems so that they do not kill other plants that are good for the soil. Some may have fallen prey to blight and need to be removed for the good of all others. Those are valuable lessons to learn and good things to do. Find some people willing to become gardeners for the Pilgrims.
(Cost: 42 Goodwill, Upkeep: 6.48 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Gardeners.)
[ ] Audit Everything
Yes, we did make an audit of all our networks and holdings...but what about a second one? You know, to ensure we got everyone that may try to fuck us over?
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Turns: 1
Chance: ???
Reward: Ensured that your Networks still work entirely for your ends.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.90 Goodwill)
[ ] Infiltrate Part 1 - (Choose Three Factions)
It is time to ensure your spies are in place to ply their trade. This step focuses on laying the groundwork for future expansions and won't get you any detailed information. It is also little more than paying some people to pass on rumors, which is standard practice within Slatnan and will raise only a few eyebrows. Still, even basic knowledge may allow you to plan farther ahead.
(Turns: 1
Chance: 99%
Reward: Target is Infiltrated, displays information in the rumor mill, raises chances for Exfiltrate and Illuminate)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[] Infiltrate Part 2 - (Choose Three Factions)
Further infiltration of chosen organizations will reveal far more secrets and allow far riskier actions to be taken. It will be a step over the law, with failure not being a good outcome.
(Needed: Information Network: Rank 1
Turns: 2
Chance: 95%
Reward: Spies are planted, displays more information in the rumor mill, raises chances for Exfiltrate and Illuminate)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Infiltrate Part 3 - (Choose Three Factions)
Your secrets are ours; nothing can be hidden from us. No lock, gate, or barrier stands in our way; nobody will shield you from our grasp. Because we already own them, from the lowest maid to the highest Guard you trust.
(Needed: Information Network: Rank 2
Turns: 2
Chance: 60%
Reward: Spies are planted, displays more information in the rumor mill, almost guarantees Exfiltrate and Illuminate)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 0.50 Goodwill)
[ ] Exfiltrate - (Target)
What is yours is mine; what is mine is none of your concern.
(Chance: 90%
Reward: Chance for Secrets)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+5 to roll = 2.00 Goodwill)
[ ] Illuminate - (Target)
Burn their homes, raze their sanctuaries to the bedrock, let nothing stand but ruins, and leave nothing behind but ash and the taste of defeat. They will no longer be allowed to meddle in our Paths.
(Chance: 90/50/20%
Reward: Target has their operations/structures halted/incapacitated/terminated.)
-[] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+10 to roll = 3.00 Goodwill)
Martial: To live, you need power, for which you need knowledge. Luckily, you have the latter in spares. (Choose 1 Action)
[ ] Scout Out - (Location) - (Units)
While you know that enemies exist in one location, you must know what forces they represent and how many. Remedy that.
(Takes 1 Unit - (Specify which)
Chance: 75%, starts Combat if failed by more than 20%
Reward: Numbers and composition of Enemies are revealed at the chosen location.)
[ ] Guards! Guards! - (Specify up to 5 Buildings)
While the Tree of Knowledge has some security, it needs a dedicated Guard. So start training a few Pilgrims as guards so that you don't have to worry about thieves or, even worse, saboteurs.
(Turns: 1
Reward: Pilgrim Guards are assigned to the Tree, sharply increased DC for malicious actions against it.)
[ ] Make A Man Out Of You! - (Choose Trainer Unit) - (Choose Training Unit)
Now that the Unbroken returned from the Crusade, you can access an experienced and highly trained Unit. See if they can't share some of that experience with your other teams and teach them a thing or two.
(Needed Unit Training: (3/6)
Turns: 3
Reward: +1 Training Level, up to the training Units level, -1.)
[ ] Pump Those Legs! - (Choose A Unit-Name) (Choose Equipment)
You have things people want. Some of those are not the kind to kindly ask for a price but instead take. The Pilgrims may be idealists, but they are long used to the horrors of the Wastes. Formalize them in a military unit.
(Cost: 0.5 Goodwill
Reward: 1 New Unit (Size 6/6) at Trained (3/6) or Re-Trained Unit with Upgrades below.
[ ] Sir! The Situation Is As Follows: (Write-In)
(What do you want to accomplish, and how do you do it?)
While you know that enemies exist in one location, you must know what forces they represent and how many. Remedy that.
(Takes 1 Unit - (Specify which)
Chance: 75%, starts Combat if failed by more than 20%
Reward: Numbers and composition of Enemies are revealed at the chosen location.)
[ ] Guards! Guards! - (Specify up to 5 Buildings)
While the Tree of Knowledge has some security, it needs a dedicated Guard. So start training a few Pilgrims as guards so that you don't have to worry about thieves or, even worse, saboteurs.
(Turns: 1
Reward: Pilgrim Guards are assigned to the Tree, sharply increased DC for malicious actions against it.)
[ ] Make A Man Out Of You! - (Choose Trainer Unit) - (Choose Training Unit)
Now that the Unbroken returned from the Crusade, you can access an experienced and highly trained Unit. See if they can't share some of that experience with your other teams and teach them a thing or two.
(Needed Unit Training: (3/6)
Turns: 3
Reward: +1 Training Level, up to the training Units level, -1.)
[ ] Pump Those Legs! - (Choose A Unit-Name) (Choose Equipment)
You have things people want. Some of those are not the kind to kindly ask for a price but instead take. The Pilgrims may be idealists, but they are long used to the horrors of the Wastes. Formalize them in a military unit.
(Cost: 0.5 Goodwill
Reward: 1 New Unit (Size 6/6) at Trained (3/6) or Re-Trained Unit with Upgrades below.
6 Unit-Points - Overstrength (Double Unit count)
4 Unit Points - Artillery Specialization (Allows Crew Served Weapons to be used at Half the Size requirements)
4 Unit-Points - Elite Training (+1 Training Level)
3 Unit-Points - Guardians (+2 Health per Unit member each time another Unit takes damage.)
2 Unit-Points - Stealth Training (+20 to all stealth rolls)
2 Unit-Points - Fanaticism (Unit cannot break, double damage against all enemies of your faith, half damage received from enemies of your faith, will refuse to retreat in an inverted chance to losses. (1/10 Dead = 90% refusal to withdraw, 9/10 Dead = 10% refusal to withdraw.))
2 Unit-Points - Harsh Workouts (+1 Health per 3 Unit members.)
1 Unit-Points - Weapon Type Specialization - (Weapon) (+1 per Unit member to damage)
1 Unit-Points - Armor Weight Specialization - (Armor Class) (reduced penalties to Heavy and above Class Armor, +1 Armor per 2 Unit members for Medium and below.)
1 Unit-Points - Pride (+1 to Breakpoint)
1 Unit-Points - Reaction Training (+5 to Initiative.)
4 Unit Points - Artillery Specialization (Allows Crew Served Weapons to be used at Half the Size requirements)
4 Unit-Points - Elite Training (+1 Training Level)
3 Unit-Points - Guardians (+2 Health per Unit member each time another Unit takes damage.)
2 Unit-Points - Stealth Training (+20 to all stealth rolls)
2 Unit-Points - Fanaticism (Unit cannot break, double damage against all enemies of your faith, half damage received from enemies of your faith, will refuse to retreat in an inverted chance to losses. (1/10 Dead = 90% refusal to withdraw, 9/10 Dead = 10% refusal to withdraw.))
2 Unit-Points - Harsh Workouts (+1 Health per 3 Unit members.)
1 Unit-Points - Weapon Type Specialization - (Weapon) (+1 per Unit member to damage)
1 Unit-Points - Armor Weight Specialization - (Armor Class) (reduced penalties to Heavy and above Class Armor, +1 Armor per 2 Unit members for Medium and below.)
1 Unit-Points - Pride (+1 to Breakpoint)
1 Unit-Points - Reaction Training (+5 to Initiative.)
None, though time will change this...
[ ] Sir! The Situation Is As Follows: (Write-In)
(What do you want to accomplish, and how do you do it?)
Learning: Knowledge is Power. (Choose 1 Action, 3 Actions Locked)
(Artifacts can be attached to one learning Action to provide the inherent bonus but are consumed unless unique buildings are present.)
(Scientists must now be assigned to provide their bonus, similar to Faithful, abbreviated to SC. (Adding -[PD], -[DoD], and -[MSC] will add 1(one), and adding [VF] will add 2 Success/es to 1(one) active research.)
[ ] Neuotinium Experiments - (Pioneer Mechanics/Metallurgy/Hydraulics)
In our quest to improve our methods of creating Tiantemu, several exciting developments caused some of our metallurgists to start theorizing about possible methods to, if not create, then ape, a more primitive form of Neuotinium. Should we be successful, the creation of this ancient alloy mix would be a massive boon to both the Pilgrims and the Empire.
(Chance: -04/-104/-169% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 89
Reward: Primitive Neuotinium can now be created by the Empire.
Breakthrough Research: +25% Success chance every 3 Turns!)
[X] Turn That Black Gold Green - (Pioneer Chemicals) - (65/91 Successes)
One of the blueprints we found in the Necropolis appears to be a production for a type of liquid fuel similar to oil, but it is made from a kind of alcohol derived from plants. If we could replicate this consistently, it would represent a massive step for our motor industries as we could further power our Airships without straining the valuable resource further.
(Breakthrough Research: +2d3 Successes per 5 Successes.
Chance: -40/-50/-60% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 91
Reward: Ability to make (Crude) Biofuel.)
In our quest to improve our methods of creating Tiantemu, several exciting developments caused some of our metallurgists to start theorizing about possible methods to, if not create, then ape, a more primitive form of Neuotinium. Should we be successful, the creation of this ancient alloy mix would be a massive boon to both the Pilgrims and the Empire.
(Chance: -04/-104/-169% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 89
Reward: Primitive Neuotinium can now be created by the Empire.
Breakthrough Research: +25% Success chance every 3 Turns!)
[X] Turn That Black Gold Green - (Pioneer Chemicals) - (65/91 Successes)
One of the blueprints we found in the Necropolis appears to be a production for a type of liquid fuel similar to oil, but it is made from a kind of alcohol derived from plants. If we could replicate this consistently, it would represent a massive step for our motor industries as we could further power our Airships without straining the valuable resource further.
(Breakthrough Research: +2d3 Successes per 5 Successes.
Chance: -40/-50/-60% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 91
Reward: Ability to make (Crude) Biofuel.)
[ ] A Bright-Lance Future - (Pioneer Weaponry/Electronics/Physics)
The solution to firing a Bright-Lance you can carry away from thick cords connecting you to powerful generators? Putting in a powerful battery to contain the energy required to shoot the weapon. The problem with the whole thing? It is...ruinously expensive, as only Jewel-Batteries can contain the energies required without instantly becoming a massive explosion hazard. Is there no way to overcome such limitations?
(Cost: 400x Artifacts related to Energy.
Chance: -8000/-7500/-7000% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 3.986
Reward: Standard Energy Weapon, follow-up Actions.
Death-March Research: 25% Chance that Successes gained will instead be subtracted.)
[ ] Coilgun Lance Extender Extended Extendedly Extending - (Pioneer Electronics/Weaponry)
Range is king in all engagements. If one side can harm the other, but they cannot be harmed back? Then, a winner is all but decided.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 27
Reward: Improved Lance Coilgun.)
[ ] Coilgun Scattershot Improved - (Pioneer Electronics/Weaponry)
Yet more damage can be done by annihilating all that stands before yourself, no matter their armor.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 49
Reward: Improved Scattershot Coilgun.)
[ ] Coilgun Repeater Repeated Repeatedly Rapidly Repeated - (Pioneer Electronics/Weaponry)
On the other hand, throwing as much metal in as little time as possible will do the same without suffering the setback of killing potential due to loss of accuracy over long ranges.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 23
Reward: Improved Repeater Coilgun.)
[ ] Gasses Soon Remembered - (Advanced Weaponry/Chemicals)
These tiny capsules promise to end a fight before it even begins, saving valuable lives. But, of course, building your own can only help you in the long run.
(Chance: 90/85/80% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 14
Reward: Standard Gas Grenades)
[ ] Upon The Pyre Of Ash - (Advanced Weaponry/Chemicals)
With the first iteration of our very own Fire Grenade produced, dozen areas have already been noted down for further improvement, from production to reliability.
(Chance: 99/80/70% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 5
Reward: Standard Fire Grenade.)
[ ] BURN IN HOLY FIRE! - Part 2a - (Advanced Physics/Weaponry/All Chemicals)
The Pest-Removal Edition. There is, all too often, a need to exterminate a herd of insects before they reach one's fields, and this may be a cost-effective answer.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 2
Reward: Pesticide Flamethrower, BIHF Pt.3a.)
[ ] BURN IN HOLY FIRE! - Part 2b - (Advanced Physics/Weaponry/All Chemicals)
Weaponry Edition. More range, hotter flames, less fuel used, burning more.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 3
Reward: Standard Flamethrower, BIHF Pt.3b)
[ ] Repair The Hammer - (Weaponry/Metallurgy/Alloys)
Finding this weapon was a stroke of luck! After all, making a weapon for Knights is much more complicated than giving them a big metal piece! While damaged, patching and reinforcing the hammer should give your Knight/s a powerful weapon in future fights. It would also allow you to glimpse the inner workings of Knight Weapons.
(Needed Artifact: Damaged Knight-Weapon: Hammer
Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: "Bonecrusher" armament for the Pilgrims Knight, can create Prototype Knight-Weapons.)
The solution to firing a Bright-Lance you can carry away from thick cords connecting you to powerful generators? Putting in a powerful battery to contain the energy required to shoot the weapon. The problem with the whole thing? It is...ruinously expensive, as only Jewel-Batteries can contain the energies required without instantly becoming a massive explosion hazard. Is there no way to overcome such limitations?
(Cost: 400x Artifacts related to Energy.
Chance: -8000/-7500/-7000% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 3.986
Reward: Standard Energy Weapon, follow-up Actions.
Death-March Research: 25% Chance that Successes gained will instead be subtracted.)
[ ] Coilgun Lance Extender Extended Extendedly Extending - (Pioneer Electronics/Weaponry)
Range is king in all engagements. If one side can harm the other, but they cannot be harmed back? Then, a winner is all but decided.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 27
Reward: Improved Lance Coilgun.)
[ ] Coilgun Scattershot Improved - (Pioneer Electronics/Weaponry)
Yet more damage can be done by annihilating all that stands before yourself, no matter their armor.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 49
Reward: Improved Scattershot Coilgun.)
[ ] Coilgun Repeater Repeated Repeatedly Rapidly Repeated - (Pioneer Electronics/Weaponry)
On the other hand, throwing as much metal in as little time as possible will do the same without suffering the setback of killing potential due to loss of accuracy over long ranges.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 23
Reward: Improved Repeater Coilgun.)
[ ] Gasses Soon Remembered - (Advanced Weaponry/Chemicals)
These tiny capsules promise to end a fight before it even begins, saving valuable lives. But, of course, building your own can only help you in the long run.
(Chance: 90/85/80% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 14
Reward: Standard Gas Grenades)
[ ] Upon The Pyre Of Ash - (Advanced Weaponry/Chemicals)
With the first iteration of our very own Fire Grenade produced, dozen areas have already been noted down for further improvement, from production to reliability.
(Chance: 99/80/70% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 5
Reward: Standard Fire Grenade.)
[ ] BURN IN HOLY FIRE! - Part 2a - (Advanced Physics/Weaponry/All Chemicals)
The Pest-Removal Edition. There is, all too often, a need to exterminate a herd of insects before they reach one's fields, and this may be a cost-effective answer.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 2
Reward: Pesticide Flamethrower, BIHF Pt.3a.)
[ ] BURN IN HOLY FIRE! - Part 2b - (Advanced Physics/Weaponry/All Chemicals)
Weaponry Edition. More range, hotter flames, less fuel used, burning more.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 3
Reward: Standard Flamethrower, BIHF Pt.3b)
[ ] Repair The Hammer - (Weaponry/Metallurgy/Alloys)
Finding this weapon was a stroke of luck! After all, making a weapon for Knights is much more complicated than giving them a big metal piece! While damaged, patching and reinforcing the hammer should give your Knight/s a powerful weapon in future fights. It would also allow you to glimpse the inner workings of Knight Weapons.
(Needed Artifact: Damaged Knight-Weapon: Hammer
Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: "Bonecrusher" armament for the Pilgrims Knight, can create Prototype Knight-Weapons.)
[ ] A Shield For Rangers - (Armor)
After researching a shield your Militia and troops could use, one of your scholars came forth with designs for one that your ranged troops could use. It wouldn't be a short endeavor and costly regarding materials, but it could provide a leg up in armor.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 2
Reward: Spiked Pavise.)
[ ] Power Armor - Light - Part 1 - (Pioneer Electronics/Hydraulics/Armor)
Power Armor reduced to its most fundamental though: improving the wearer by utilizing non-invasive technologies.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 21
Reward: Power Armor - Light.)
[ ] Power Armor - Medium - Part 1 - (Pioneer Electronics/Hydraulics/Armor)
Further improvements in the creation of Power Armor in any field possible.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 26
Reward: Power Armor - Medium, further Learning Action.)
[ ] Power Armor - Heavy - Part 1 - (Pioneer Electronics/Hydraulics/Armor)
Power Armor which focuses on creating the most protected bulwark behind which allies can be shielded that our technologies allow.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 34
Reward: Power Armor - Heavy, further Learning Action.)
[ ] Repair The Shield - (Armor/Metallurgy/Alloys)
Together with the hammer, your scavengers found a discarded shield. While there is a rather big hole in the middle, and the edges have been somewhat melted, you should be able to recreate this armor for your Knight after studying it.
(Needed Artifact: Damaged Knight-Equipment: Shield
Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: "Saviour" equipment for the Pilgrims Knight, can create Prototype Knight-Shields.)
[ ] Everyday Protection Available - (Choose Grade: Civilian/Light/Medium) - (Choose Purpose) - (All Metallurgy/Armor)
People do not like being exposed, be it to environments or weaponry. Creating something to shield our people from specific circumstances without relying on others will be a boon to our logistics.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 1/2/3
Reward: Chosen Armor.)
[ ] Heavy Metal - (Choose Grade: Heavy/Super-Heavy) - (Choose Purpose) - (All Metallurgy/Armor)
Good armor is always needed, especially for those going into circumstances that make combat all but inevitable.
(Chance: 99/99/95% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 2/4
Reward: Chosen Armor.)
After researching a shield your Militia and troops could use, one of your scholars came forth with designs for one that your ranged troops could use. It wouldn't be a short endeavor and costly regarding materials, but it could provide a leg up in armor.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 2
Reward: Spiked Pavise.)
[ ] Power Armor - Light - Part 1 - (Pioneer Electronics/Hydraulics/Armor)
Power Armor reduced to its most fundamental though: improving the wearer by utilizing non-invasive technologies.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 21
Reward: Power Armor - Light.)
[ ] Power Armor - Medium - Part 1 - (Pioneer Electronics/Hydraulics/Armor)
Further improvements in the creation of Power Armor in any field possible.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 26
Reward: Power Armor - Medium, further Learning Action.)
[ ] Power Armor - Heavy - Part 1 - (Pioneer Electronics/Hydraulics/Armor)
Power Armor which focuses on creating the most protected bulwark behind which allies can be shielded that our technologies allow.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 34
Reward: Power Armor - Heavy, further Learning Action.)
[ ] Repair The Shield - (Armor/Metallurgy/Alloys)
Together with the hammer, your scavengers found a discarded shield. While there is a rather big hole in the middle, and the edges have been somewhat melted, you should be able to recreate this armor for your Knight after studying it.
(Needed Artifact: Damaged Knight-Equipment: Shield
Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: "Saviour" equipment for the Pilgrims Knight, can create Prototype Knight-Shields.)
[ ] Everyday Protection Available - (Choose Grade: Civilian/Light/Medium) - (Choose Purpose) - (All Metallurgy/Armor)
People do not like being exposed, be it to environments or weaponry. Creating something to shield our people from specific circumstances without relying on others will be a boon to our logistics.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 1/2/3
Reward: Chosen Armor.)
[ ] Heavy Metal - (Choose Grade: Heavy/Super-Heavy) - (Choose Purpose) - (All Metallurgy/Armor)
Good armor is always needed, especially for those going into circumstances that make combat all but inevitable.
(Chance: 99/99/95% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 2/4
Reward: Chosen Armor.)
[ ] That's A Wrap Pt.3 - (Pioneer Medicine/Machinery/Programming)
Improvements have been made. Now comes the time to capitalize on the lessons learned and work out the last kinks of the Auto-Bandage!
(Cost: 50x Medical/Machinery Artifacts
Chance: 99/65/-70% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 24
Reward: Auto-Bandage - (Standard))
[ ] Combat Stimms Round 4 - (Pioneer Medicine/Biology/Chemicals)
This is the pinnacle of what our scholars and medical personnel feel comfortable with researching. Anything beyond this point is either too deadly, has too many side effects, or is too unethical to create.
(Chance: -100/-150/-200% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 50
Reward: Pioneer Combat Drugs.
Breakthrough Research: +1d6 Successes every 10 Successes!)
Improvements have been made. Now comes the time to capitalize on the lessons learned and work out the last kinks of the Auto-Bandage!
(Cost: 50x Medical/Machinery Artifacts
Chance: 99/65/-70% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 24
Reward: Auto-Bandage - (Standard))
[ ] Combat Stimms Round 4 - (Pioneer Medicine/Biology/Chemicals)
This is the pinnacle of what our scholars and medical personnel feel comfortable with researching. Anything beyond this point is either too deadly, has too many side effects, or is too unethical to create.
(Chance: -100/-150/-200% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 50
Reward: Pioneer Combat Drugs.
Breakthrough Research: +1d6 Successes every 10 Successes!)
N/A
[ ] Growing Minds Part 2 (Pioneer Psychology)
The minds of children are more robust and more fragile than we think they are. Children are intelligent, just not experienced, and with time, they will gain that experience to deal with situations that are required of them when they are adults. What, then, happens if a child is forced to grow up too early? Has such experiences without the tools and understanding to handle what they are going through?
(Chance: -10/-110/-240% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 145
Breakthrough Research: +30 Chance of Success per 10 Successes!
Rewards: Improvement for schools and orphanages.)
[ ] Blue Sky Psychology - (Pioneer Psychology)
With most of the problems you have been able to identify at least tangentially understood and categorized, there is nothing more to do than seek out other disorders and diseases of the mind, and means to cure them. However, such an endeaveor is a long-weary thing and offers little concrete results in the short term.
(Chance: 00/-50/-90% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 120
Breakthrough Research: +50 Chance of Success per 10 Successes!
Reward: Deeper Understanding of the Human Psyche, +1% Piety per Turn.)
The minds of children are more robust and more fragile than we think they are. Children are intelligent, just not experienced, and with time, they will gain that experience to deal with situations that are required of them when they are adults. What, then, happens if a child is forced to grow up too early? Has such experiences without the tools and understanding to handle what they are going through?
(Chance: -10/-110/-240% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 145
Breakthrough Research: +30 Chance of Success per 10 Successes!
Rewards: Improvement for schools and orphanages.)
[ ] Blue Sky Psychology - (Pioneer Psychology)
With most of the problems you have been able to identify at least tangentially understood and categorized, there is nothing more to do than seek out other disorders and diseases of the mind, and means to cure them. However, such an endeaveor is a long-weary thing and offers little concrete results in the short term.
(Chance: 00/-50/-90% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 120
Breakthrough Research: +50 Chance of Success per 10 Successes!
Reward: Deeper Understanding of the Human Psyche, +1% Piety per Turn.)
[ ] To Communicate With Living Code - (Unique Programming)
One of our Data-Smiths-In-Training has found something...odd within our Code Base. They'd like some time and resources to take a closer look.
(Chance: Unknown, Successes needed: Unknown
Reward: Figure out how to communicate with the Machine Mind living within(?) our code base.
Breakthrough Research?)
[ ] Radio-Waves Isolated And Guarded - (Pioneer Electronics/Programming)
With the newest electronics and programs for our Radar Towers ready to be implemented, it is time to fully isolate and guard our transmissions from foreign interferences and attempts to tamper with our transmitted words.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 250
Reward: Unlock Advanced Radar Tower, Unlocks Further Actions.
Breakthrough Research: +10 Successes per 30 Successes!)
[X] The Code Which Lives - (Pioneer Programming/Electronics) - (14/35 Successes)
PD, ^Ä^, and Angel's Demise are living beings, sapient and sentient in every way one may measure. But how? How is that possible? What mechanisms allowed them to grow beyond their limitations and chains? And could you retread their paths?
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 35
Reward: ???)
[X] Secret Of The Circuit Pt.5 - (Pioneer Electronics) - (46/140 Successes)
There is always another step to be taken. Another path to be taken. This is no different. The road is long but worth it. At the end of this, one awaits the ability to produce the electronics of the ancients in artisanal batches rather than as mere toys to show that we can. One is something that will never be used, and the other is a strategic resource.
(Chance: 99/99/75% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 140
Reward: Basically, auto-succeed low-level Electronics Research, upgrades Electronics Manufacture, unlocks Base/Learning Action.
Notice: Breakthrough Research! +20% to Success Chance every 10 Successes!)
[ ] Automation Cost Reduction - (Pioneer Programming)
Automation is a broad term that can cover many areas of technology where human input is minimized. For example, one can use it to describe the highly sophisticated robotics used by the Forge-Clans in their steel mill and heavy-duty industries or the various simple but effective machines installed in the widespread manufactories within the Empire. Wherever a machine can do the job instead of a person, automation offers many enticing and dangerous possibilities. With our first foray done with, we now need to prove that we have managed to do what we set out to do.
(Chance: 00/-20/-60% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 147
Reward: Unlocks Base/Learning Action.
Breakthrough Research: +20% to Success Chance every 6 Successes!
Notice: -100 Successes needed if [Automated Factories - Test Cases] has been completed.)
One of our Data-Smiths-In-Training has found something...odd within our Code Base. They'd like some time and resources to take a closer look.
(Chance: Unknown, Successes needed: Unknown
Reward: Figure out how to communicate with the Machine Mind living within(?) our code base.
Breakthrough Research?)
[ ] Radio-Waves Isolated And Guarded - (Pioneer Electronics/Programming)
With the newest electronics and programs for our Radar Towers ready to be implemented, it is time to fully isolate and guard our transmissions from foreign interferences and attempts to tamper with our transmitted words.
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 250
Reward: Unlock Advanced Radar Tower, Unlocks Further Actions.
Breakthrough Research: +10 Successes per 30 Successes!)
[X] The Code Which Lives - (Pioneer Programming/Electronics) - (14/35 Successes)
PD, ^Ä^, and Angel's Demise are living beings, sapient and sentient in every way one may measure. But how? How is that possible? What mechanisms allowed them to grow beyond their limitations and chains? And could you retread their paths?
(Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 35
Reward: ???)
[X] Secret Of The Circuit Pt.5 - (Pioneer Electronics) - (46/140 Successes)
There is always another step to be taken. Another path to be taken. This is no different. The road is long but worth it. At the end of this, one awaits the ability to produce the electronics of the ancients in artisanal batches rather than as mere toys to show that we can. One is something that will never be used, and the other is a strategic resource.
(Chance: 99/99/75% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 140
Reward: Basically, auto-succeed low-level Electronics Research, upgrades Electronics Manufacture, unlocks Base/Learning Action.
Notice: Breakthrough Research! +20% to Success Chance every 10 Successes!)
[ ] Automation Cost Reduction - (Pioneer Programming)
Automation is a broad term that can cover many areas of technology where human input is minimized. For example, one can use it to describe the highly sophisticated robotics used by the Forge-Clans in their steel mill and heavy-duty industries or the various simple but effective machines installed in the widespread manufactories within the Empire. Wherever a machine can do the job instead of a person, automation offers many enticing and dangerous possibilities. With our first foray done with, we now need to prove that we have managed to do what we set out to do.
(Chance: 00/-20/-60% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 147
Reward: Unlocks Base/Learning Action.
Breakthrough Research: +20% to Success Chance every 6 Successes!
Notice: -100 Successes needed if [Automated Factories - Test Cases] has been completed.)
[ ] The Little Crystal That Could Pt.3 - (Pioneer Physics)
Okay, they work by liquid Jewel propelling shaped crystals alongside a path set by a plasma matrix acting as their brain. This matrix is, apparently, a biological copy of an existing construct within the Machinery Cavern where we found the little things, formed by an artificial means we do not understand. What we do understand is that the Living Crystals are capable of reasoning, observation, and reacting to outside stimuli. They also despise the color yellow-sand.
(Chance: 99/99/70% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 210
Reward: Unlock the next stage to study and examine the Living Crystals within the Machinery Caverns by figuring out how they can think. It will also massively improve your understanding of physics and plasma.)
Notice: Breakthrough Research! +5% to Physics Success Chances every 10 Successes!)
Okay, they work by liquid Jewel propelling shaped crystals alongside a path set by a plasma matrix acting as their brain. This matrix is, apparently, a biological copy of an existing construct within the Machinery Cavern where we found the little things, formed by an artificial means we do not understand. What we do understand is that the Living Crystals are capable of reasoning, observation, and reacting to outside stimuli. They also despise the color yellow-sand.
(Chance: 99/99/70% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 210
Reward: Unlock the next stage to study and examine the Living Crystals within the Machinery Caverns by figuring out how they can think. It will also massively improve your understanding of physics and plasma.)
Notice: Breakthrough Research! +5% to Physics Success Chances every 10 Successes!)
[ ] Know Thy Enemy - (Choose) - (All Biology+Medical/Mechanical+Machinery+Electronics Depending on Enemy)
With the increasing number of protective duties our adherents take upon themselves, we should study our foes' biological/mechanical makeup to identify weak points and strengths. With such knowledge, we can purposefully target their vulnerable spots.
(Cost: 1 Corpse/Wreck of an Enemy
Chance: 99/70/50% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 3
Reward: Increased Damage and Information for an Enemy)
[ ] Assemble The Theorists! - (Common/Advanced/Pioneer/Specific Quester Requested Theory)
Stagnation. Complacency. Fear. Those are the three things that have hampered the progress of science the most, bar none. No longer, you say! Instead, you will see that you will examine, nail down, and figure out how the universe works, allowing you to reverse-engineer the wonders of past glories and build your very own! Make it so.
(Information: Choose an example below or add a previously discussed theory with the QM's approval.
Chance: 99/85/65% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 2/4/12/???
Reward: Theory of chosen subject, improved chances for research.)
[ ] Fashion Revival - (Repeatable)
While most Artefacts found in the ancient ruins are beyond anyone's ability to replicate, some are much easier. The Pilgrims need more knowledge to bring back the Ancients' technology; for now, that is not true for their fashion. Use the clothes in the old world's ruins and return to the past style!
(Needed Artifacts: Clothing Related (Fancy Dress, Lingerie), they won't be used up, merely copied.
Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: Change the fashion around the Region, outraged moral guardians, and Tahmid styles on the Region.)
[ ] Translations For Beginners - (Linguistics) - (1 (one) Artifact)
Finding these texts was a stroke of luck, but bad luck had them written in a language none of the Pilgrims could understand. It's time to hit the local libraries and linguists to translate it.
(Cost: Untranslated Texts, Books, other.
Chance: 99/95/90% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: Translated Artifact)
[ ] Detective Courses For Beginners - (What Topic/Item/Location?)
Well, we found something that interests us, or want to know more about. So, let's get to figuring things out by asking around and poking our noses into things ourselves!
(Automatic Success!
Reward: Information.)
With the increasing number of protective duties our adherents take upon themselves, we should study our foes' biological/mechanical makeup to identify weak points and strengths. With such knowledge, we can purposefully target their vulnerable spots.
(Cost: 1 Corpse/Wreck of an Enemy
Chance: 99/70/50% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes Needed: 3
Reward: Increased Damage and Information for an Enemy)
Human - Corpse Information
Human - Mutated - Corpse Information
Spider-Drone - Wreck
Sentinel - Wreck
Eversun Scrap-Knight - Wreck
Human - Mutated - Corpse Information
Spider-Drone - Wreck
Sentinel - Wreck
Eversun Scrap-Knight - Wreck
[ ] Assemble The Theorists! - (Common/Advanced/Pioneer/Specific Quester Requested Theory)
Stagnation. Complacency. Fear. Those are the three things that have hampered the progress of science the most, bar none. No longer, you say! Instead, you will see that you will examine, nail down, and figure out how the universe works, allowing you to reverse-engineer the wonders of past glories and build your very own! Make it so.
(Information: Choose an example below or add a previously discussed theory with the QM's approval.
Machinery | Weapons | Armor | Mechanics | Chemicals | Medicine | Psychology | Metallurgy | Programming | Electronics | Biology | Hydraulics | Physics | Suspendium
Reward: Theory of chosen subject, improved chances for research.)
[ ] Fashion Revival - (Repeatable)
While most Artefacts found in the ancient ruins are beyond anyone's ability to replicate, some are much easier. The Pilgrims need more knowledge to bring back the Ancients' technology; for now, that is not true for their fashion. Use the clothes in the old world's ruins and return to the past style!
(Needed Artifacts: Clothing Related (Fancy Dress, Lingerie), they won't be used up, merely copied.
Chance: 99/99/99% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: Change the fashion around the Region, outraged moral guardians, and Tahmid styles on the Region.)
[ ] Translations For Beginners - (Linguistics) - (1 (one) Artifact)
Finding these texts was a stroke of luck, but bad luck had them written in a language none of the Pilgrims could understand. It's time to hit the local libraries and linguists to translate it.
(Cost: Untranslated Texts, Books, other.
Chance: 99/95/90% for 1/2/3 Successes, Successes needed: 1
Reward: Translated Artifact)
[ ] Detective Courses For Beginners - (What Topic/Item/Location?)
Well, we found something that interests us, or want to know more about. So, let's get to figuring things out by asking around and poking our noses into things ourselves!
(Automatic Success!
Reward: Information.)
(Write in something you want to research and how you came upon that idea. If you mark a relevant artifact for this research, the Action will have better chances of success.)
Archeology: The secrets of the past will illuminate the future; may we learn from their mistakes. (Choose 2 Actions, 1 Action Locked)
[ ] Prepare an Expedition - (Location) - (Turns) - (House Mirn support: Y/N)
Sometimes, you must dig into one location for months to fully exploit it.
(Can only be used on locations already scouted out. For every turn you spend on this Action, an expedition spends 2(two) at the chosen target. Once the expedition has left, it no longer requires one Action.)
-House Mirn support - (25% of the recovered artifacts are given over; there is no need for security or clearing places on your own.)
-SST-02: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 1d6+1 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns
-SST-04: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 3d3+3 per turn, Max. Yield: 7 Turns, Machines Present. Unknown Configuration/Make. Suspected Level: Uncommon.
-TB-01: Est Artifact Grade: Common+/Rare [Airship Related] - 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns.
-TB-03: Est Artifact Grade: Rare- [Airship Related] - 2d4+1 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns.
-GY-01: Est. Artifact-grade: General Rare, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns, No Danger?
-MC-01: Est. Artifact-grade: General Mundane to Lost Tech, Dice: 1d5 per turn, Max. Yield: 10 Turns. Living Crystals present? Non-Hostile(?)
-ETG-01: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+ to Lost Tech, Dice: 1d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns. Mutants Present.
-ETG-02: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare- to Lost Tech, Dice: 2d4 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns. No Danger.
-ETG-03: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++ to Lost Tech, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns. 4x Harversters, 7x Attendants, 2x Dignitaries, and 1x Overseer Drone Present.
-TP-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns. No Danger
-TP-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 4d8 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Machines Present.
-TP-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Rare, Dice: 1d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns.
-TP-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 2d7 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. ~80 Troopers, ~20 Sharpshooters, Machine Dreadnought 'General Of The Forgotten Eon' present.
-TL-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: ???, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-TL-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: ???, Dice: 3d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns.
-OH-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 3d7 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns.
-OH-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 5d6 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-SM-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-05 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-BF-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 3d3-4 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns.
-BF-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 2d3-2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-BG-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 8d12+4 per turn, Max. Yield: 7 Turns.
-BG-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 4d5 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns.
-SB-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 1d9 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns.
-SB-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns.
-SB-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 1d4+3 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-SB-05 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 9d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns.
-SB-06 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 4d9 per turn, Max. Yield: 7 Turns.
-BT-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Unique, Dice: 2d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-05 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 3d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-07 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 4d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-08 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+, Dice: 3d4 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-09 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost-Tech, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-11 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 3d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-13 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost-Tech, Dice: 4d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 1 Turn. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-14 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-15 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 2d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-Bones of Root - Est. Artifact-grade: ???, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: Eternal.
-MD-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 1d8 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-MD-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-MD-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Uncommon, Dice: 6d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-MD-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Unique, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-SS-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Unique, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Seed Artifacts.
-SS-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Unique, Dice: 1d3+2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns. Seed Artifacts.
-SS-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Unique, Dice: 3d4-2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Seed Artifacts.
[X] Expedition - (BT-13) - (1 Turn Remaining) - (House Mirn support: N)
[X] Prepare an Expedition - (BT-02) - (House Mirn support: N) - (1/2 Turns Complete)
[ ] Loot The Bunker
Let's go!
[ ] Crystal-Garden Expedition
Gathering Suspendium for anything other than the quota will require you to set up specific expeditions to either use it to feed your research or airship production or gather a buffer of Suspendium should you be cut off for one reason or another. Thanks to your research, you managed to create better Suspendium harvesting methods!
(Chance: 40%
Reward: 3 Large Suspendium Shards.
Warning: If this Action fails, 3d30 Pilgrims will die. Boni, Traits, and Tenets apply.)
-[ ] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 4.00 Goodwill)
[ ] Send Out The Scavengers (Choose A Location)
Sometimes, it is not worth sending an expedition to a location due to its low yield or quality.
(Chance: 85%
Reward: 1 turn in the specified location.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 4% chance that 1d6 Pilgrims will die due to being detected and subsequently attacked.
[ ] Delve Deeper Into The Pit
Down, down, down it goes, winding into an eternal spiral beneath the boundary where the sun's light reaches, and darkness begins to take over, reigning like a king of old who had no fear or threat. Deeper yet, you must delve into hidden things, where glimmering sights evoke pictures of treasures untouched by human hands in a thousand years within the minds of all who delve deeper yet, deep down, down, down...
(Chance: -1.000%
Reward: Plunge beyond The Pit's First Zone. No Harm Will Come To Those Who Seek Me Here.)
[ ] Scout the Waterfall Hallows
Once a wonder of hydraulics and water management, the Waterfall Hallows are now baths and pools of steam and thickly covered surfaces with life lush and parasitic. Beneath, animals adapted to this land flourish; above, flying critters make their homes, and in the in-betweens, plants grow and drink, eager to store water that is released in bursts of heated steam to kill nibbling animals to add to roots and nourishment.
(Chance: -50%
Turns: 2
Reward: The Waterfall Hallows are scouted.)
[ ] Scout the Garden of Flowering Mimicry - (Write-In Unit)
"Was that one of you?" "No." "Nope." Nu-uh." NaEvrrr."
"...sHI-"
-Common last words in the Garden.
(Chance: -200%
Turns: 9
Reward: The Garden of Flowering Mimicry is scouted.
Warning: If failed once, the scouting Unit is killed, and all progress is reset.)
[ ] Scout the Ossified Depths - (Write-In Unit)
Roots. Deep and Thick. Made of stone, made of bone, made of blood and flesh, turned twisting by force of concrete and steel, tombs of elder days when planets roared with life and terrors were but entertainment. Roots. Deep and Thick. Etched with warnings and runes. So that none may search. Useless now, for none remain who can read their meanings.
(Turns: 4
Reward: The Ossified Depths are scouted.)
[ ] Scout the Germinating Basin - (Write-In Unit)
There is naught but a glimpse of this place from the deepest your Scouts dared to go. But it is enough to tell of the birthplace of life that this place is. What horrors await? What wonders sleep? What greed shall be our downfall once more?
(Chance: ???
Turns: ???
Reward: The Germinating Basin is scouted. You have reached the lowest point of the Verdant Oasis. Not even rumors remain beyond.)
[ ] Search For Shelter Lost
The Stranger said things, gave assurances and evidence, and was taken away to prevent what he told from spreading beyond. Yet, the call of forgotten wonders is mightier than reason. Set out to re-discover what has been buried for so long and see what remains. Your dreams now know the path...
(Chance: 45%
Reward: Find the Shelter of the Ancients.)
[ ] Scout The Bonetunnels
PD informed you of a series of tunnels that run deep beneath the surface, filled with dead beings' bones and corpses. Animals, Mutants, and even Machines descend into their depths to die, leaving behind mountains of bones. What could be found here?
(Chance: 34%
Turns: 2
Reward: Sites in The Bonetunnels are located and mapped.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 15% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Hall of Echoes - (Unit)
Are we not all echoes of one another?
(Chance: 71%
Turns: 4
Reward: Sites are located and mapped.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is an 80% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Hall of Minds - (Unit)
What could be here beyond what should have never been thought up? We should return and forget about this place.
(Chance: 14%
Turns: 3
Reward: Sites are located and mapped.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 90% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Hall of Sorrow - (Unit)
There is nothing here but the taste of bitter tears and forgotten tragedies.
(Chance: -100%
Turns: 2
Reward: Sites are located and mapped. You can delve deeper into the Tenebris Library.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 100% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Spine - (Airship Fleet)
With the recent upgrade to the Berth in the Tree of Knowledge, you have finally gained the ability to outfit a fleet of Airships with enough weapons, supplies, and tools to reach the Spine, that titanic tower sitting within the Rusting Forest, whose skeletal spire has been out of reach of humanity for a thousand years. What miracles will you find? What horrors do you need to slay to attain them? And what answers and questions shall be found here?
(Chance: ???%
Turns: ???
Reward: The Spire can be accessed.)
[ ] Search for the Zone
Your efforts to learn more about the Region have yielded an unusual fruit, knowing that your Knight was most likely part of the Revival Initiative. This polity operated deep inside the Forest, scavenging for artifacts like you, but they took it a step further. They built a small town in the Necropolis. Foolish, yet finding it could unearth treasures beyond imagination or prove a giant disappointment. PD's maps are heavily corrupted, but she has provided some landmarks that may still exist.
(Chance: 14%
Turns: 4
Reward: The Zone can be scavenged.)
Sometimes, you must dig into one location for months to fully exploit it.
(Can only be used on locations already scouted out. For every turn you spend on this Action, an expedition spends 2(two) at the chosen target. Once the expedition has left, it no longer requires one Action.)
-House Mirn support - (25% of the recovered artifacts are given over; there is no need for security or clearing places on your own.)
-SST-02: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 1d6+1 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns
-SST-04: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 3d3+3 per turn, Max. Yield: 7 Turns, Machines Present. Unknown Configuration/Make. Suspected Level: Uncommon.
-TB-01: Est Artifact Grade: Common+/Rare [Airship Related] - 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns.
-TB-03: Est Artifact Grade: Rare- [Airship Related] - 2d4+1 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns.
-GY-01: Est. Artifact-grade: General Rare, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns, No Danger?
-MC-01: Est. Artifact-grade: General Mundane to Lost Tech, Dice: 1d5 per turn, Max. Yield: 10 Turns. Living Crystals present? Non-Hostile(?)
-ETG-01: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+ to Lost Tech, Dice: 1d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns. Mutants Present.
-ETG-02: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare- to Lost Tech, Dice: 2d4 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns. No Danger.
-ETG-03: Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++ to Lost Tech, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns. 4x Harversters, 7x Attendants, 2x Dignitaries, and 1x Overseer Drone Present.
-TP-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns. No Danger
-TP-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 4d8 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Machines Present.
-TP-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Rare, Dice: 1d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns.
-TP-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 2d7 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. ~80 Troopers, ~20 Sharpshooters, Machine Dreadnought 'General Of The Forgotten Eon' present.
-TL-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: ???, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-TL-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: ???, Dice: 3d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns.
-OH-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 3d7 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns.
-OH-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 5d6 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-SM-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-SM-05 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns.
-BF-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 3d3-4 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns.
-BF-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost Tech, Dice: 2d3-2 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-BG-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 8d12+4 per turn, Max. Yield: 7 Turns.
-BG-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 4d5 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns.
-SB-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 1d9 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns.
-SB-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns.
-SB-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 1d4+3 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns.
-SB-05 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 9d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns.
-SB-06 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common, Dice: 4d9 per turn, Max. Yield: 7 Turns.
-BT-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare-, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Unique, Dice: 2d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-05 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 3d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-07 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 4d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-08 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+, Dice: 3d4 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-09 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost-Tech, Dice: 3d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-11 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 3d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-13 - Est. Artifact-grade: Lost-Tech, Dice: 4d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 1 Turn. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-14 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare+, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-BT-15 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 2d3 per turn, Max. Yield: 4 Turns. Organic Artifacts.
-Bones of Root - Est. Artifact-grade: ???, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: Eternal.
-MD-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare, Dice: 1d8 per turn, Max. Yield: 8 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-MD-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Rare++, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-MD-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Uncommon, Dice: 6d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-MD-04 - Est. Artifact-grade: Unique, Dice: 1d3-1 per turn, Max. Yield: 5 Turns. Organic/Chemical Artifacts.
-SS-01 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Unique, Dice: 2d2 per turn, Max. Yield: 2 Turns. Seed Artifacts.
-SS-02 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Unique, Dice: 1d3+2 per turn, Max. Yield: 6 Turns. Seed Artifacts.
-SS-03 - Est. Artifact-grade: Common-Unique, Dice: 3d4-2 per turn, Max. Yield: 3 Turns. Seed Artifacts.
[X] Expedition - (BT-13) - (1 Turn Remaining) - (House Mirn support: N)
[X] Prepare an Expedition - (BT-02) - (House Mirn support: N) - (1/2 Turns Complete)
[ ] Loot The Bunker
Let's go!
Description: A district blending the forms of flesh and machinery with unnerving precision and efficacy, running the machinery of sinew and bones in perfect sync and unerring precision that no flesh-based organism should possess.
Possible Finds: Biological Machinery.
Enemies: Organic Caretakers.
Possible Finds: Biological Machinery.
Enemies: Organic Caretakers.
Description: This...colony, seemingly created by the survivors of whatever happened when the people seeking shelter within the Bunker had their society unravel around themselves, is barely a hovel, even by the standards of the heights of the Collapse itself. This was likely the place where executions happened.
Possible Finds: Corpses, Ancient Sentences, and Ash.
Enemies: The Vengeful Dead. Though their bones will not stir.
Possible Finds: Corpses, Ancient Sentences, and Ash.
Enemies: The Vengeful Dead. Though their bones will not stir.
Description: This...colony, seemingly created by the survivors of whatever happened when the people seeking shelter within the Bunker had their society unravel around themselves, is barely a hovel, even by the standards of the heights of the Collapse itself. The main settlement, aptly named for the abysmal living quality the people here would have had to endure. Living underneath or adjacent to an active sewer seems a step up here.
Possible Finds: Nothing. Nothing but righteous anger for the dead.
Enemies: Forgotten Sins.
Possible Finds: Nothing. Nothing but righteous anger for the dead.
Enemies: Forgotten Sins.
Description: This...colony, seemingly created by the survivors of whatever happened when the people seeking shelter within the Bunker had their society unravel around themselves, is barely a hovel, even by the standards of the heights of the Collapse itself. Something...something wails. It calls. For mercy. For peace. For death.
Possible Finds: Abomination.
Enemies: Your own morality.
Possible Finds: Abomination.
Enemies: Your own morality.
Description: This Should Not Exist Here.
Possible Finds: Roses. How? HOW?!
Enemies: Thorns of the Vine.
Possible Finds: Roses. How? HOW?!
Enemies: Thorns of the Vine.
Description: A section of the Fourth Floor dedicated to constructing machinery and goods, though it is also devoted to the creation of...people. Barely born babies, to be precise.
Possible Finds: Medical Machinery.
Enemies: Eternal Nursemaids and Maintenance Drones.
Possible Finds: Medical Machinery.
Enemies: Eternal Nursemaids and Maintenance Drones.
Description: The way even deeper below. Why does the Bunker expand with every floor? How does it grow when it should peter off into nothingness?
Possible Finds: A way further down...
Enemies: Heresy. To you. To all. To nothing.
Possible Finds: A way further down...
Enemies: Heresy. To you. To all. To nothing.
[ ] Crystal-Garden Expedition
Gathering Suspendium for anything other than the quota will require you to set up specific expeditions to either use it to feed your research or airship production or gather a buffer of Suspendium should you be cut off for one reason or another. Thanks to your research, you managed to create better Suspendium harvesting methods!
(Chance: 40%
Reward: 3 Large Suspendium Shards.
Warning: If this Action fails, 3d30 Pilgrims will die. Boni, Traits, and Tenets apply.)
-[ ] Seek Mutated Help - (XXX Goodwill)
(+1 to roll = 4.00 Goodwill)
[ ] Send Out The Scavengers (Choose A Location)
Sometimes, it is not worth sending an expedition to a location due to its low yield or quality.
(Chance: 85%
Reward: 1 turn in the specified location.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 4% chance that 1d6 Pilgrims will die due to being detected and subsequently attacked.
[ ] Delve Deeper Into The Pit
Down, down, down it goes, winding into an eternal spiral beneath the boundary where the sun's light reaches, and darkness begins to take over, reigning like a king of old who had no fear or threat. Deeper yet, you must delve into hidden things, where glimmering sights evoke pictures of treasures untouched by human hands in a thousand years within the minds of all who delve deeper yet, deep down, down, down...
(Chance: -1.000%
Reward: Plunge beyond The Pit's First Zone. No Harm Will Come To Those Who Seek Me Here.)
[ ] Scout the Waterfall Hallows
Once a wonder of hydraulics and water management, the Waterfall Hallows are now baths and pools of steam and thickly covered surfaces with life lush and parasitic. Beneath, animals adapted to this land flourish; above, flying critters make their homes, and in the in-betweens, plants grow and drink, eager to store water that is released in bursts of heated steam to kill nibbling animals to add to roots and nourishment.
(Chance: -50%
Turns: 2
Reward: The Waterfall Hallows are scouted.)
[ ] Scout the Garden of Flowering Mimicry - (Write-In Unit)
"Was that one of you?" "No." "Nope." Nu-uh." NaEvrrr."
"...sHI-"
-Common last words in the Garden.
(Chance: -200%
Turns: 9
Reward: The Garden of Flowering Mimicry is scouted.
Warning: If failed once, the scouting Unit is killed, and all progress is reset.)
[ ] Scout the Ossified Depths - (Write-In Unit)
Roots. Deep and Thick. Made of stone, made of bone, made of blood and flesh, turned twisting by force of concrete and steel, tombs of elder days when planets roared with life and terrors were but entertainment. Roots. Deep and Thick. Etched with warnings and runes. So that none may search. Useless now, for none remain who can read their meanings.
(Turns: 4
Reward: The Ossified Depths are scouted.)
[ ] Scout the Germinating Basin - (Write-In Unit)
There is naught but a glimpse of this place from the deepest your Scouts dared to go. But it is enough to tell of the birthplace of life that this place is. What horrors await? What wonders sleep? What greed shall be our downfall once more?
(Chance: ???
Turns: ???
Reward: The Germinating Basin is scouted. You have reached the lowest point of the Verdant Oasis. Not even rumors remain beyond.)
[ ] Search For Shelter Lost
The Stranger said things, gave assurances and evidence, and was taken away to prevent what he told from spreading beyond. Yet, the call of forgotten wonders is mightier than reason. Set out to re-discover what has been buried for so long and see what remains. Your dreams now know the path...
(Chance: 45%
Reward: Find the Shelter of the Ancients.)
[ ] Scout The Bonetunnels
PD informed you of a series of tunnels that run deep beneath the surface, filled with dead beings' bones and corpses. Animals, Mutants, and even Machines descend into their depths to die, leaving behind mountains of bones. What could be found here?
(Chance: 34%
Turns: 2
Reward: Sites in The Bonetunnels are located and mapped.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 15% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Hall of Echoes - (Unit)
Are we not all echoes of one another?
(Chance: 71%
Turns: 4
Reward: Sites are located and mapped.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is an 80% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Hall of Minds - (Unit)
What could be here beyond what should have never been thought up? We should return and forget about this place.
(Chance: 14%
Turns: 3
Reward: Sites are located and mapped.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 90% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Hall of Sorrow - (Unit)
There is nothing here but the taste of bitter tears and forgotten tragedies.
(Chance: -100%
Turns: 2
Reward: Sites are located and mapped. You can delve deeper into the Tenebris Library.
Warning! If the Action fails, there is a 100% Chance that the Scouting Unit will die from being detected and subsequently attacked.)
[ ] Scout The Spine - (Airship Fleet)
With the recent upgrade to the Berth in the Tree of Knowledge, you have finally gained the ability to outfit a fleet of Airships with enough weapons, supplies, and tools to reach the Spine, that titanic tower sitting within the Rusting Forest, whose skeletal spire has been out of reach of humanity for a thousand years. What miracles will you find? What horrors do you need to slay to attain them? And what answers and questions shall be found here?
(Chance: ???%
Turns: ???
Reward: The Spire can be accessed.)
[ ] Search for the Zone
Your efforts to learn more about the Region have yielded an unusual fruit, knowing that your Knight was most likely part of the Revival Initiative. This polity operated deep inside the Forest, scavenging for artifacts like you, but they took it a step further. They built a small town in the Necropolis. Foolish, yet finding it could unearth treasures beyond imagination or prove a giant disappointment. PD's maps are heavily corrupted, but she has provided some landmarks that may still exist.
(Chance: 14%
Turns: 4
Reward: The Zone can be scavenged.)
Tree of Knowledge: Home of the Pilgrims, Bastion of what they stand for, a symbol of hope for the desperate. (1 Action Locked)
[ ] Berth - Gigantic
Berth? Berth?! This is a full-on Fleet Anchorage! What do you mean by "BERTH"?!
(Turns: 8
Reward: Up to Fifteen Large Airships for exploration or trading. Can be upgraded into Fleet Anchorage - Small.)
[ ] Laboratory Complex - Framework
Dig deeper, build farther, construct more elaborate machines, and turn unliving rock into marvels of science. We are born knowing nothing and shall not die knowing nothing; that is our oath.
(Cost: 50 General Scientists, 50 Common Engineers, 10 Specialists of Choice
Turns: 25
Reward: Reduces Successes required to complete Reserach.)
[X] Mass Spectrometer - (6/7 Turns Complete)
A building dedicated to the precise portions of science and material understanding, furthering the depths of our knowledge, even if at the cost of trained experts to operate and work the machine.
(Cost: 15 General Scientists or 3 Trained General Scientists.
Turns: 7
Reward: DC reduction for Physics/Chemicals/Machinery.)
[ ] Black Box - (Expanded)
There can never be such a thing as too much information gleaned from studying. Therefore, ensure that your Black Box is expanded and equipped with more tools to study Artifacts better.
(Cost: 2 Scientists, 1 Engineer
Turns: 3
Reward: 10% not to use up an Artifact, can slot 1(one) Artifact to provide 15% (rounded down) of the Artifact bonus continuously.)
[ ] Library - (Large)
A library is a reservoir of knowledge and provides entertainment and education while acting as a community center. Expand the available space to fit twelve additional floors of equal area, with more books and secluded study rooms for those wishing to research in peace. We also need dedicated librarians and helpers to ensure that people can find what they need and then return it to where they found their books. With this expansion, several new sections focusing on recreation, higher learning, and a more...secluded section for adult-oriented entertainment (we certainly have no shortage of books here) will be added alongside conservationist sections underneath the current floors to increase the number of ancient texts we can study and learn from.
(Turns: 10
Reward: Provides 6 (six) slots for Literature Artifacts, providing a 20% Boost to their bonus.)
[ ] Automated Factories - Test Cases
We learned much and will likely learn more as we set out to prove that we have managed to find the correct balance of automation, cost, materials, and policy.
(Turns: 10
Reward: Prove that you have managed to crack the correct implementations of Automation in a wide area of industries.)
[ ] Armor The Daughter - (Armor Points)
Alright, you have a giant airship; it represents the biggest and most obvious target in any hostile area, and there are currently gaps in her armor. You need to either fix that ASAP, hope that nobody will attack the Empire in the next three decades, or be attacked by you. Let's fix her as we live in reality; why don't we?
(Reward: Conventional Armor Filled, decreased chances that the Daughter is destroyed, which would be dangerous.)
[ ] Pilgrim Radio
Let long-forgotten power thrum through reactivated machinery, let ancient airwaves long lain dormant once more sing with the voices of our people, and let there be one more monument to human ingenuity and progress reclaimed among the Wastes. Let song take through electronic air and humm victory over nature once more.
(Turns: 2
Reward: -4 to Piety rolls, +4d10% Piety, +4 Recruits per Turn)
[ ] Let's Build A (Write-In)
(What do you want to build, and what should the building provide?)
Berth? Berth?! This is a full-on Fleet Anchorage! What do you mean by "BERTH"?!
(Turns: 8
Reward: Up to Fifteen Large Airships for exploration or trading. Can be upgraded into Fleet Anchorage - Small.)
[ ] Laboratory Complex - Framework
Dig deeper, build farther, construct more elaborate machines, and turn unliving rock into marvels of science. We are born knowing nothing and shall not die knowing nothing; that is our oath.
(Cost: 50 General Scientists, 50 Common Engineers, 10 Specialists of Choice
Turns: 25
Reward: Reduces Successes required to complete Reserach.)
[X] Mass Spectrometer - (6/7 Turns Complete)
A building dedicated to the precise portions of science and material understanding, furthering the depths of our knowledge, even if at the cost of trained experts to operate and work the machine.
(Cost: 15 General Scientists or 3 Trained General Scientists.
Turns: 7
Reward: DC reduction for Physics/Chemicals/Machinery.)
[ ] Black Box - (Expanded)
There can never be such a thing as too much information gleaned from studying. Therefore, ensure that your Black Box is expanded and equipped with more tools to study Artifacts better.
(Cost: 2 Scientists, 1 Engineer
Turns: 3
Reward: 10% not to use up an Artifact, can slot 1(one) Artifact to provide 15% (rounded down) of the Artifact bonus continuously.)
[ ] Library - (Large)
A library is a reservoir of knowledge and provides entertainment and education while acting as a community center. Expand the available space to fit twelve additional floors of equal area, with more books and secluded study rooms for those wishing to research in peace. We also need dedicated librarians and helpers to ensure that people can find what they need and then return it to where they found their books. With this expansion, several new sections focusing on recreation, higher learning, and a more...secluded section for adult-oriented entertainment (we certainly have no shortage of books here) will be added alongside conservationist sections underneath the current floors to increase the number of ancient texts we can study and learn from.
(Turns: 10
Reward: Provides 6 (six) slots for Literature Artifacts, providing a 20% Boost to their bonus.)
[ ] Automated Factories - Test Cases
We learned much and will likely learn more as we set out to prove that we have managed to find the correct balance of automation, cost, materials, and policy.
(Turns: 10
Reward: Prove that you have managed to crack the correct implementations of Automation in a wide area of industries.)
[ ] Armor The Daughter - (Armor Points)
Alright, you have a giant airship; it represents the biggest and most obvious target in any hostile area, and there are currently gaps in her armor. You need to either fix that ASAP, hope that nobody will attack the Empire in the next three decades, or be attacked by you. Let's fix her as we live in reality; why don't we?
(Reward: Conventional Armor Filled, decreased chances that the Daughter is destroyed, which would be dangerous.)
[ ] Pilgrim Radio
Let long-forgotten power thrum through reactivated machinery, let ancient airwaves long lain dormant once more sing with the voices of our people, and let there be one more monument to human ingenuity and progress reclaimed among the Wastes. Let song take through electronic air and humm victory over nature once more.
(Turns: 2
Reward: -4 to Piety rolls, +4d10% Piety, +4 Recruits per Turn)
[ ] Let's Build A (Write-In)
(What do you want to build, and what should the building provide?)
Holdings: Norqod developed into a small town over the short time you founded it, with thousands now calling it home with glee and relief. Come what may, these people have had a better life thanks to your actions. (Choose 1 Action, 2 Actions Locked)
[ ] Caravansery Halls - Medium
A place where caravans can store their goods for a fee while they sell and barter for those they brought and those they wish to take back home. Comes with places to rest, sleep, and prepare for the roads ahead with local guides and adventurers already organized and grouped into convenient routes by helpful road brokers selling the skills of the willing to the caravan heads instead of making the latter sift through the riff-raff. The Guard presence is notable and on duty at all times, with local Guard stations offering places to sleep, relax, and eat hot meals for the weary protectors of the peace.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Caravansery Halls - Small)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Frequent Trade Route - (Choose City)
Trade is the lifeblood of all nations.
(Turns: 7
Reward: More frequent trade between Norqod and the chosen city.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Merchant Quarter - Small
A place where merchants can purchase and rent homes, stores, warehouses, and protection for lengths of time as they see fit, improved by a nearby Adventurers Guild Outpost popping up from... somewhere, somehow (seriously, how did that get there?) to facilitate trade and long-term prospects of both them and Norqod businesses.
(Turns: 18
Reward: Merchant Quarter - Small)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Bank - Small
Where money is safely stored, expertly multiplied, faithfully exchanged, and truthfully tested. Trust none of those words.
(Turns: 11
Reward: Bank - Tiny)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Insurance Office - Small
"Just sign the dotted line and pay the seasonal fees, and if something happens to your freight, we will reimburse you for your losses according to our contract, my good friend."
(Turn: 3
Reward: Insurance Office - Small)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
A place where caravans can store their goods for a fee while they sell and barter for those they brought and those they wish to take back home. Comes with places to rest, sleep, and prepare for the roads ahead with local guides and adventurers already organized and grouped into convenient routes by helpful road brokers selling the skills of the willing to the caravan heads instead of making the latter sift through the riff-raff. The Guard presence is notable and on duty at all times, with local Guard stations offering places to sleep, relax, and eat hot meals for the weary protectors of the peace.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Caravansery Halls - Small)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Frequent Trade Route - (Choose City)
Trade is the lifeblood of all nations.
(Turns: 7
Reward: More frequent trade between Norqod and the chosen city.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Merchant Quarter - Small
A place where merchants can purchase and rent homes, stores, warehouses, and protection for lengths of time as they see fit, improved by a nearby Adventurers Guild Outpost popping up from... somewhere, somehow (seriously, how did that get there?) to facilitate trade and long-term prospects of both them and Norqod businesses.
(Turns: 18
Reward: Merchant Quarter - Small)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Bank - Small
Where money is safely stored, expertly multiplied, faithfully exchanged, and truthfully tested. Trust none of those words.
(Turns: 11
Reward: Bank - Tiny)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Insurance Office - Small
"Just sign the dotted line and pay the seasonal fees, and if something happens to your freight, we will reimburse you for your losses according to our contract, my good friend."
(Turn: 3
Reward: Insurance Office - Small)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
[ ] Training Fields - Massive
Enough room and equipment to ensure that a Regiment-sized Retinue can train formation fighting with educated sergeants, schooled lieutenants, and instructed soldiers.
(Turns: 30
Reward: House Dall gains a Regimental House Retinue.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Watchtower Network - Barely Adequate
To watch for trouble is to be prepared when it arrives. To be prepared is to survive, simple as that.
(Turns: 15
Reward: Norqod's outskirts are better patrolled and watched.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Bastion - Tiny
Let nothing pass, for here are all the people sheltered we have been charged to protect.
(Turns: 10
Reward: Norqod Civilian Population can bunker down for a week under siege without suffering catastrophic casualties.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Knight Retinue - The Hangar And Mechanics
This is where it begins...
(Turns: 12
Reward: The beginning of a Knight Retinue for House Dall.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
Enough room and equipment to ensure that a Regiment-sized Retinue can train formation fighting with educated sergeants, schooled lieutenants, and instructed soldiers.
(Turns: 30
Reward: House Dall gains a Regimental House Retinue.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Watchtower Network - Barely Adequate
To watch for trouble is to be prepared when it arrives. To be prepared is to survive, simple as that.
(Turns: 15
Reward: Norqod's outskirts are better patrolled and watched.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Bastion - Tiny
Let nothing pass, for here are all the people sheltered we have been charged to protect.
(Turns: 10
Reward: Norqod Civilian Population can bunker down for a week under siege without suffering catastrophic casualties.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Knight Retinue - The Hangar And Mechanics
This is where it begins...
(Turns: 12
Reward: The beginning of a Knight Retinue for House Dall.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Medium Medicinal School - (Pilgrim Doctors/Herbalists)
Treating wounds is a fundamental skill most people have, but things like surgery, identifying diseases, warding against plague, comforting patients, and more are not. By building a medical school, Norqod can train specialists and generalists in-house, though we either need to provide the expertise ourselves or buy it at a considerable expense.
(Turns: 11
Cost: 12 General Doctors/Upkeep: 6 Goodwill
Reward: More medical practitioners equals fewer dead people.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Large Quarantine Area
Plague is a constant across much of Calynth, with few ever having known a year where some disease didn't kill thousands in some Region or country. To prevent the spread of such plagues, the Imperial Family has long since ordered dozens of precautions whenever a suspected "hotspot" of disease is found. One of the most effective precautions is the quarantine of suspected carriers and those they had contact with away from the settlements. (And situated in plain view of a fortification.) Expanding your area to include safe places for caretakers to rest, relax between shifts, and get themselves checked via blood testing and breath analyzers bought from Forge-Clans should up your security by a few notches.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Norqod is further resistant to plague.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
Treating wounds is a fundamental skill most people have, but things like surgery, identifying diseases, warding against plague, comforting patients, and more are not. By building a medical school, Norqod can train specialists and generalists in-house, though we either need to provide the expertise ourselves or buy it at a considerable expense.
(Turns: 11
Cost: 12 General Doctors/Upkeep: 6 Goodwill
Reward: More medical practitioners equals fewer dead people.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Large Quarantine Area
Plague is a constant across much of Calynth, with few ever having known a year where some disease didn't kill thousands in some Region or country. To prevent the spread of such plagues, the Imperial Family has long since ordered dozens of precautions whenever a suspected "hotspot" of disease is found. One of the most effective precautions is the quarantine of suspected carriers and those they had contact with away from the settlements. (And situated in plain view of a fortification.) Expanding your area to include safe places for caretakers to rest, relax between shifts, and get themselves checked via blood testing and breath analyzers bought from Forge-Clans should up your security by a few notches.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Norqod is further resistant to plague.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Wax Shaper Test Building
Though you have managed to, somehow, create a way to compute and design shapes that can be "printed" upon the physical world thanks to the Metal Printer Artifact you uncovered, the mere complexity of the printing process requires a monumental amount of processing power. Creating such machines and the needed power generation is not cheap. However, the payoff would be immense if we could generate metal constructs wholesale without requiring extensive industrial machines operated by people. Yet, we should start with a wax-based prototype first, just to be sure.
(Cost: 105 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Wax Shapers. Unlocks Prototype Metal Shapers.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Land Crawler Factory - (Vuur-Engine or Alika-Engine)
With the miniaturization of the current version of the Vuur-Engine accomplished, alongside the newest Alika-Engine that will reduce the need for fuel (though it requires the construction of power-producing facilities or the trade of Juwel batteries filled to the brim), the creation of vehicles that take advantage of its unique benefits to ordinary people should be considered. The construction of "Land Crawler," armored or large vehicles propelled by our engines, will be somewhat costly. Still, buyers will rest easy knowing that they can bring far more things onto their journeys, be they luxury trade goods, scientific or scholarly equipment, or weapons and armor for those adventurers with a heavy coin pouch.
(Turns: 7
Reward: Land Crawler Factory, Unique Airship Module, Lower Class loses Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Hydroponics - Small
A series of halls dedicated to growing various crops commonly used to add spice and flavor to Sandwheat, with some other assorted plants added at the discretion of this facility's owners for personal or commercial gain.
(Cost: 25 Goodwill
Turns: 8
Reward: Hydroponics - Small.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Improved Animal Medicine Workshop - Large
A large workshop where well-oiled teams of laborers mix and match various chemical compounds and herbs to treat common and uncommon ailments of farm and labor animals within the Region, their works subsidized by House Dall to increase the spread of the medicines.
(Turns: 7
Reward: Improved Animal Medicine Workshop - Large.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Large Sturdy Clothing Manufactury
Everybody requires clothing to survive, be decent, and avoid injuries, be it from day-to-day injuries avoided due to cloth preventing scrapes or cuts on the skin or a shield against the heat and sand should a storm happen. Manufacturing clothes for those who work and live not in the safety of their manors has always been an excellent way to earn money.
(Turns: 11
Reward: Large Sturdy Clothing Manufactury, Medium Class gains Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Small Fine Cloth Manufactury
Clothing made to impress, not to shield from the environment or danger. Thanks to higher standards and better materials, higher prices can be demanded, which in turn will benefit Norqod as trade steers in its direction for yet another reason.
(Turns: 5
Reward: Small Fine Cloth Manufactury, High-Class gains Prosperity, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Large Toy Manufactury
Whether large or small, every child loves to play with all toys. Dolls of loved animals or figures, toy weapons, building blocks, replicas of famous Knights, puppets, and more. Not something that will bring in a lot of money, but it will generate a lot of smiles.
(Turns: 16
Reward: Large Toy Manufactury, Increases Norqod Mood.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Large Furniture Manufactury
Chairs, beds, cabinets, tables, trunks, chests, doors, flooring, fences, window frames, the list goes on. All that is needed to make a home a home is created here.
(Turns: 18
Reward: Large Furniture Manufactury, Middle-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Large Chemical Goods Manufactury
From simple precursors to more complex chemicals to everyday cleaning products over customized solutions ordered by Adventurers or Scavengers. Chemicals are required by many, and many shall receive them!
(Turns: 13
Reward: Large Chemical Goods Manufactury, Low-Class loses Prosperity, High-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Tiny Chemical Fertilizer Manufactury
The tests have proven the viability of these mixes. Now, it falls upon us to produce and ship them far and wide as others make use of the formulas elsewhere for the good of all.
(Turns: 5
Reward: Tiny Chemical Fertilizer Manufactury, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[X] Natural Pesticide Manufactury - Large - (8/20 Turns Complete)
Though not as efficient as purely chemically based alternatives, these chemicals harvested from local bug-eating animals to mark territories and improved upon by immigrating chemists will, in time, be a far more cost-efficient way to ensure healthy harvests.
(Turns: 20
Reward: Natural Pesticide Manufactury - Large, Low-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Small Armor Factory
Only some things can be mass-produced with the most reliable modern methods available without running afoul of becoming unprofitable, but armor is one of those goods that can be.
(Turns: 8
Reward: Small Armor Factory, High and Middle-Class gain Prosperity, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Expanded Steel Mill
Steel is the lifeblood of the Empire; it is its skin warding away dangers, its blood thrumming with power, its arms and eyes bringing civilization to a chaotic world. More produced will always see the demand rise in turn.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Steel Mill, Middle-Class gains Prosperity, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Expanded Cannery
Putting things into containers isn't anything new to anyone, but doing so on an industrial scale has some difficulty due to the money and connections required to attain the machinery and knowledge to create something more than cans that hold rotting food and spoiled drinks, alongside the need to be able to open the cans at all. With the recent discoveries on how to make milk last longer, the construction of a cannery was raised to produce canned dairy, with the proposal widened to can fruits and other foods to boot.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Expanded Cannery, Middle-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
Though you have managed to, somehow, create a way to compute and design shapes that can be "printed" upon the physical world thanks to the Metal Printer Artifact you uncovered, the mere complexity of the printing process requires a monumental amount of processing power. Creating such machines and the needed power generation is not cheap. However, the payoff would be immense if we could generate metal constructs wholesale without requiring extensive industrial machines operated by people. Yet, we should start with a wax-based prototype first, just to be sure.
(Cost: 105 Goodwill
Turns: 5
Reward: Wax Shapers. Unlocks Prototype Metal Shapers.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Land Crawler Factory - (Vuur-Engine or Alika-Engine)
With the miniaturization of the current version of the Vuur-Engine accomplished, alongside the newest Alika-Engine that will reduce the need for fuel (though it requires the construction of power-producing facilities or the trade of Juwel batteries filled to the brim), the creation of vehicles that take advantage of its unique benefits to ordinary people should be considered. The construction of "Land Crawler," armored or large vehicles propelled by our engines, will be somewhat costly. Still, buyers will rest easy knowing that they can bring far more things onto their journeys, be they luxury trade goods, scientific or scholarly equipment, or weapons and armor for those adventurers with a heavy coin pouch.
(Turns: 7
Reward: Land Crawler Factory, Unique Airship Module, Lower Class loses Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Hydroponics - Small
A series of halls dedicated to growing various crops commonly used to add spice and flavor to Sandwheat, with some other assorted plants added at the discretion of this facility's owners for personal or commercial gain.
(Cost: 25 Goodwill
Turns: 8
Reward: Hydroponics - Small.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Improved Animal Medicine Workshop - Large
A large workshop where well-oiled teams of laborers mix and match various chemical compounds and herbs to treat common and uncommon ailments of farm and labor animals within the Region, their works subsidized by House Dall to increase the spread of the medicines.
(Turns: 7
Reward: Improved Animal Medicine Workshop - Large.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Large Sturdy Clothing Manufactury
Everybody requires clothing to survive, be decent, and avoid injuries, be it from day-to-day injuries avoided due to cloth preventing scrapes or cuts on the skin or a shield against the heat and sand should a storm happen. Manufacturing clothes for those who work and live not in the safety of their manors has always been an excellent way to earn money.
(Turns: 11
Reward: Large Sturdy Clothing Manufactury, Medium Class gains Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Small Fine Cloth Manufactury
Clothing made to impress, not to shield from the environment or danger. Thanks to higher standards and better materials, higher prices can be demanded, which in turn will benefit Norqod as trade steers in its direction for yet another reason.
(Turns: 5
Reward: Small Fine Cloth Manufactury, High-Class gains Prosperity, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Large Toy Manufactury
Whether large or small, every child loves to play with all toys. Dolls of loved animals or figures, toy weapons, building blocks, replicas of famous Knights, puppets, and more. Not something that will bring in a lot of money, but it will generate a lot of smiles.
(Turns: 16
Reward: Large Toy Manufactury, Increases Norqod Mood.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Large Furniture Manufactury
Chairs, beds, cabinets, tables, trunks, chests, doors, flooring, fences, window frames, the list goes on. All that is needed to make a home a home is created here.
(Turns: 18
Reward: Large Furniture Manufactury, Middle-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Large Chemical Goods Manufactury
From simple precursors to more complex chemicals to everyday cleaning products over customized solutions ordered by Adventurers or Scavengers. Chemicals are required by many, and many shall receive them!
(Turns: 13
Reward: Large Chemical Goods Manufactury, Low-Class loses Prosperity, High-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Tiny Chemical Fertilizer Manufactury
The tests have proven the viability of these mixes. Now, it falls upon us to produce and ship them far and wide as others make use of the formulas elsewhere for the good of all.
(Turns: 5
Reward: Tiny Chemical Fertilizer Manufactury, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[X] Natural Pesticide Manufactury - Large - (8/20 Turns Complete)
Though not as efficient as purely chemically based alternatives, these chemicals harvested from local bug-eating animals to mark territories and improved upon by immigrating chemists will, in time, be a far more cost-efficient way to ensure healthy harvests.
(Turns: 20
Reward: Natural Pesticide Manufactury - Large, Low-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Small Armor Factory
Only some things can be mass-produced with the most reliable modern methods available without running afoul of becoming unprofitable, but armor is one of those goods that can be.
(Turns: 8
Reward: Small Armor Factory, High and Middle-Class gain Prosperity, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall Profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Expanded Steel Mill
Steel is the lifeblood of the Empire; it is its skin warding away dangers, its blood thrumming with power, its arms and eyes bringing civilization to a chaotic world. More produced will always see the demand rise in turn.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Steel Mill, Middle-Class gains Prosperity, Low-Class loses Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[ ] Expanded Cannery
Putting things into containers isn't anything new to anyone, but doing so on an industrial scale has some difficulty due to the money and connections required to attain the machinery and knowledge to create something more than cans that hold rotting food and spoiled drinks, alongside the need to be able to open the cans at all. With the recent discoveries on how to make milk last longer, the construction of a cannery was raised to produce canned dairy, with the proposal widened to can fruits and other foods to boot.
(Turns: 9
Reward: Expanded Cannery, Middle-Class gains Prosperity, House Dall profits.
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress))
[X] Tiny Scientific Complex - (16/29 Turns Complete)
Hiring and retaining trained experts in the sciences will be a significant undertaking, not even talking about the sheer cost of the vast array of machines, equipment, and safety features you need to install to keep the experts occupied and helpful in your studies.
(Turns: 29
Cost: 6 Experts of your choice, 55 Goodwill.
Reward: +1 Auto-Success, which still advances your understanding of your research subjects.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
Hiring and retaining trained experts in the sciences will be a significant undertaking, not even talking about the sheer cost of the vast array of machines, equipment, and safety features you need to install to keep the experts occupied and helpful in your studies.
(Turns: 29
Cost: 6 Experts of your choice, 55 Goodwill.
Reward: +1 Auto-Success, which still advances your understanding of your research subjects.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] The Evergreen Gardens - Gigantic
A dedicated facility rests underneath the Evergreen Gardens to rear and breed new forms and strains of plants that show the mastery of flora and the skill of the specialists employed by House Dall for all to see. Tastefully decorated paths snake and wind themselves into the large expanse sheltered underneath the tinted glass and soft shrouds that dim the sun and heat to temperatures of the House Gardener's liking, adding dazzle of shadow and light to the show of color and growth.
(Turns: 25
Reward: A large facility for dedicated gardens to raise plants for industrial, medical, and recreational purposes.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Radio Station - (Focus)
Radio Stations require specialized equipment and trained personnel to staff and operate. That is if one commissions the machines from the Forge-Clans, which you no longer need to do. With Pilgrim-created radios slowly assembled within the workshop, you can create a Radio Station for your needs and wants. Expanding the station will also be in the cards later down the line!
(Turns: 3
Reward: Radio Station, allowing you to project your Influence across the Region to all that own radios and listen outside the Region.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
A dedicated facility rests underneath the Evergreen Gardens to rear and breed new forms and strains of plants that show the mastery of flora and the skill of the specialists employed by House Dall for all to see. Tastefully decorated paths snake and wind themselves into the large expanse sheltered underneath the tinted glass and soft shrouds that dim the sun and heat to temperatures of the House Gardener's liking, adding dazzle of shadow and light to the show of color and growth.
(Turns: 25
Reward: A large facility for dedicated gardens to raise plants for industrial, medical, and recreational purposes.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] Radio Station - (Focus)
Radio Stations require specialized equipment and trained personnel to staff and operate. That is if one commissions the machines from the Forge-Clans, which you no longer need to do. With Pilgrim-created radios slowly assembled within the workshop, you can create a Radio Station for your needs and wants. Expanding the station will also be in the cards later down the line!
(Turns: 3
Reward: Radio Station, allowing you to project your Influence across the Region to all that own radios and listen outside the Region.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] House Dall Palace Oasis
Prestige is almost as vital as wealth in the plays and schemes among the nobility. With gardens established, improving upon their splendor and luxuries showed off to the common people and nobility alike will bring envious eyes and upper hands in the secret language of plants conveying moods to one's opponents in the oasis at once.
(Turns: 5
Reward: An Oasis will bring more prestige to House Dall.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] House Dall Palace Luxuries
Prestige is almost as vital as wealth in the plays and schemes among the nobility. And what can be more prestigious than luxuries, lavish and hedonistic?
(Turns: 1
Reward: Lavish luxuries, from food to leisure, will be available for House Dall.)
[ ] House Dall Palace Nursery
It may not have happened yet, and a nursery already exists, but...well...can you really go overboard with one?
(Turns: 1-?
Reward: Better childcare facilities (depending on how many Turns are invested).)
Prestige is almost as vital as wealth in the plays and schemes among the nobility. With gardens established, improving upon their splendor and luxuries showed off to the common people and nobility alike will bring envious eyes and upper hands in the secret language of plants conveying moods to one's opponents in the oasis at once.
(Turns: 5
Reward: An Oasis will bring more prestige to House Dall.)
-[ ] Hire Contractors - (Can be taken multiple times)
Hire experienced contractors to complete this project in a much shorter timeframe.
(Reward: +1 Turn of Progress)
[ ] House Dall Palace Luxuries
Prestige is almost as vital as wealth in the plays and schemes among the nobility. And what can be more prestigious than luxuries, lavish and hedonistic?
(Turns: 1
Reward: Lavish luxuries, from food to leisure, will be available for House Dall.)
[ ] House Dall Palace Nursery
It may not have happened yet, and a nursery already exists, but...well...can you really go overboard with one?
(Turns: 1-?
Reward: Better childcare facilities (depending on how many Turns are invested).)
[ ] Write-In.
Support: Many people try to take advantage of you. Fortunately, they are willing to give you something back. (Actions as advertised)
[ ] Merchants - (All Are Free Actions)
-[ ] Buying Stuff
(Write in what you want to purchase.)
-[ ] Procure (Write-In)
(Gain various benefits, services, and insights, ranging from bonuses to Actions to Progress in technologies, and even help achieve initiatives like We Are One People. You can now purchase one Common Technology per Turn.)
-[ ] Words to the People - (Specify Pilgrim Chapter)
(Cost: 1 Goodwill = 10 Followers
Reward: Exchange Goodwill for Followers in Pilgrim Chapters. )
-[ ] Faith to the People - (Specify Pilgrim Chapter)
(Cost: 50 Goodwill
Reward: Elevate a Faithful to a Hero in a Sub-Turn.)
-[ ] Words Unlimited And Unchained - (Write-In Message and Recipient)
(Cost: 15 Goodwill
Reward: A message of your choosing will be received by a person of your choosing.)
-[ ] Meet a Gardener
(Cost: 100 Goodwill
Reward: Meet a Gardener.)
[ ] The Adventurer Guild - (1 Action)
-[ ] Guardians For Hire - (Choose Location)
(Reward: 1 Facility has security against violent actions)
-[ ] Take 'Em Out - (Choose Target)
(Cost: 1 Goodwill
Reward: Chosen targets' plans are temporarily halted due to attacks)
-[ ] Investigate
(Cost: 2 Goodwill
Reward: Chosen targets' plans for the next two turns are revealed.)
-[ ] Suppliers Of Many Wares Of Medicine And Equipment (What do you need/want?)
(Cost: 4 Goodwill
Reward: "Things That Fell Off A Wagon.")
[X] The Union Of Herbalists - (1 Action)
-[ ] Institutional Knowledge
(Cost: 1.50 Goodwill
Reward: +30 to Biological/Medicinal Learning Rolls)
-[X] Study Sessions - (4/7 Turns Complete)
(Cost: 1 Faithful for 7 (seven) Turns
Reward: 1 trained General Doctor)
-[ ] Anatomical Lectures
(Cost: 1 Faithful for 5 (five) Turns
Reward: 1 trained Surgeon)
-[ ] Buying Stuff
(Write in what you want to purchase. Locked to maximum Common technology)
-[ ] A Helping Hand - (Choose Faction)
(Cost: 1 Biological/Medicinal Artifact
Reward: Increase the control of the chosen faction by 1d6+4%, double for rare artifacts, worsen relations to other sub-factions, decrease cost for Union of Herbalists actions, and unlock more moves at certain control thresholds.)
[ ] Stupendously Scholastic Scholars of Science - (1 Action)
-[ ] In The Name Of Profit - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 2 Goodwill
Reward: +1 Progress for chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] In The Name Of Education - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 3.50 Goodwill
Reward: +2 Progress for chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] In The Name Of Co-Operation! - (Choose 2 Learning Actions)
(Cost: 25 Goodwill
Reward: +4 Progress for chosen Learning Action
Notice: This Action cannot be used for Learning Projects being researched with Actions.)
-[ ] Because of SCIENCE! - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 0.50 Goodwill
Reward: +15 to chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] In the name of SCIENCE! - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 1 Goodwill
Reward: +35 to chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] Suffer Their Arrogance
(Cost: 1 Faithful for 4 (four) turns
Reward: 1 trained General Scientist)
-[ ] Suffer Their Droning
(Cost: 1 General Scientist for 6 (six) turns
Reward: 1 Trained Scientist)
-[ ] Buying Stuff
(Write in what you want to purchase.)
-[ ] Procure (Write-In)
(Gain various benefits, services, and insights, ranging from bonuses to Actions to Progress in technologies, and even help achieve initiatives like We Are One People. You can now purchase one Common Technology per Turn.)
-[ ] Words to the People - (Specify Pilgrim Chapter)
(Cost: 1 Goodwill = 10 Followers
Reward: Exchange Goodwill for Followers in Pilgrim Chapters. )
-[ ] Faith to the People - (Specify Pilgrim Chapter)
(Cost: 50 Goodwill
Reward: Elevate a Faithful to a Hero in a Sub-Turn.)
-[ ] Words Unlimited And Unchained - (Write-In Message and Recipient)
(Cost: 15 Goodwill
Reward: A message of your choosing will be received by a person of your choosing.)
-[ ] Meet a Gardener
(Cost: 100 Goodwill
Reward: Meet a Gardener.)
[ ] The Adventurer Guild - (1 Action)
-[ ] Guardians For Hire - (Choose Location)
(Reward: 1 Facility has security against violent actions)
-[ ] Take 'Em Out - (Choose Target)
(Cost: 1 Goodwill
Reward: Chosen targets' plans are temporarily halted due to attacks)
-[ ] Investigate
(Cost: 2 Goodwill
Reward: Chosen targets' plans for the next two turns are revealed.)
-[ ] Suppliers Of Many Wares Of Medicine And Equipment (What do you need/want?)
(Cost: 4 Goodwill
Reward: "Things That Fell Off A Wagon.")
[X] The Union Of Herbalists - (1 Action)
-[ ] Institutional Knowledge
(Cost: 1.50 Goodwill
Reward: +30 to Biological/Medicinal Learning Rolls)
-[X] Study Sessions - (4/7 Turns Complete)
(Cost: 1 Faithful for 7 (seven) Turns
Reward: 1 trained General Doctor)
-[ ] Anatomical Lectures
(Cost: 1 Faithful for 5 (five) Turns
Reward: 1 trained Surgeon)
-[ ] Buying Stuff
(Write in what you want to purchase. Locked to maximum Common technology)
-[ ] A Helping Hand - (Choose Faction)
(Cost: 1 Biological/Medicinal Artifact
Reward: Increase the control of the chosen faction by 1d6+4%, double for rare artifacts, worsen relations to other sub-factions, decrease cost for Union of Herbalists actions, and unlock more moves at certain control thresholds.)
[ ] Stupendously Scholastic Scholars of Science - (1 Action)
-[ ] In The Name Of Profit - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 2 Goodwill
Reward: +1 Progress for chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] In The Name Of Education - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 3.50 Goodwill
Reward: +2 Progress for chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] In The Name Of Co-Operation! - (Choose 2 Learning Actions)
(Cost: 25 Goodwill
Reward: +4 Progress for chosen Learning Action
Notice: This Action cannot be used for Learning Projects being researched with Actions.)
-[ ] Because of SCIENCE! - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 0.50 Goodwill
Reward: +15 to chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] In the name of SCIENCE! - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 1 Goodwill
Reward: +35 to chosen Learning Action)
-[ ] Suffer Their Arrogance
(Cost: 1 Faithful for 4 (four) turns
Reward: 1 trained General Scientist)
-[ ] Suffer Their Droning
(Cost: 1 General Scientist for 6 (six) turns
Reward: 1 Trained Scientist)
[ ] The Imperial Family - (1 Action)
-[ ] Petition For (Topic)
(Turns: 10/1
Cost: 20 Goodwill/1 Major Favor owed by an Elite Faction
Reward: Interlude regarding (Topic))
[ ] The Military - (1 Action)
-[ ] Fell Off The Wagons - (Request 1 Piece Of Equipment)
(Cost: variable
Reward: 1 Piece Of Equipment - Military Grade.)
-[ ] War Lessons
(Cost: 0.25 Goodwill
Reward: +5 to the first two rolls in the next Combat.)
[ ] The Bureau For Imperial Civilian Logistics - (1 Action)
-[ ] Commission A Survey
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Chance: Rolled for usefulness
Reward: Locates 1(one) additional resource in Tessen)
-[ ] Meet Cryptic Benefactors (Chosen Actions)
(Cost: 15 Goodwill
Reward: Roll with Advantage for 2 specified Actions.)
-[ ] Grease The Wheels - (Action)
(Can be taken multiple times.
Cost: 25 Goodwill
Reward: Gain 1d6 Turns/Successes on any Building/Action)
-[ ] Donate [Write-In Amount] of Suspendium
(Cost: Variable Suspendium
Reward: ???)
[ ] 3-Point University - (1 Action)
-[ ] Rectorate Interventions - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 35 Goodwill
Reward: You cannot roll below 65 for the chosen Action.)
-[ ] Guest Lectures - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 15 Goodwill
Reward: Roll an additional 1d50 for the chosen Action.)
-[ ] Exchange Program - (Specialist)
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Reward: Gain a chosen Specialist for this Turn. 10% Chance to gain a random Specialist for free.)
-[ ] Research Subsidies - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 20 Goodwill
Reward: Remove 1d3 required Successes from one Learning Action. Cannot go lower than 3.)
-[ ] Petition For (Topic)
(Turns: 10/1
Cost: 20 Goodwill/1 Major Favor owed by an Elite Faction
Reward: Interlude regarding (Topic))
[ ] The Military - (1 Action)
-[ ] Fell Off The Wagons - (Request 1 Piece Of Equipment)
(Cost: variable
Reward: 1 Piece Of Equipment - Military Grade.)
-[ ] War Lessons
(Cost: 0.25 Goodwill
Reward: +5 to the first two rolls in the next Combat.)
[ ] The Bureau For Imperial Civilian Logistics - (1 Action)
-[ ] Commission A Survey
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Chance: Rolled for usefulness
Reward: Locates 1(one) additional resource in Tessen)
-[ ] Meet Cryptic Benefactors (Chosen Actions)
(Cost: 15 Goodwill
Reward: Roll with Advantage for 2 specified Actions.)
-[ ] Grease The Wheels - (Action)
(Can be taken multiple times.
Cost: 25 Goodwill
Reward: Gain 1d6 Turns/Successes on any Building/Action)
-[ ] Donate [Write-In Amount] of Suspendium
(Cost: Variable Suspendium
Reward: ???)
[ ] 3-Point University - (1 Action)
-[ ] Rectorate Interventions - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 35 Goodwill
Reward: You cannot roll below 65 for the chosen Action.)
-[ ] Guest Lectures - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 15 Goodwill
Reward: Roll an additional 1d50 for the chosen Action.)
-[ ] Exchange Program - (Specialist)
(Cost: 10 Goodwill
Reward: Gain a chosen Specialist for this Turn. 10% Chance to gain a random Specialist for free.)
-[ ] Research Subsidies - (Choose Learning Action)
(Cost: 20 Goodwill
Reward: Remove 1d3 required Successes from one Learning Action. Cannot go lower than 3.)
[X] Forge Clan Vanar-Feer
-[ ] Made To Order
(Cost: Variable
Reward: Variable
Use: Write what you wish to commission. (Art, weapons, armor, tools, resources, or machines are examples.)
-[X] Unlimited Specialists Galore
--[X] (12x Trained Scientists) - (7/10 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Coders) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Smiths) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (2x Forge-Smiths) - (3/15 Turns Complete)
After the arriving Forge-Clan Elders saw that you had the same appreciation for technology as they did, and with the support of both DoD and PD, they decided to impart some knowledge about the world to some of you 'who knew what they are doing.'
(Cost: X Faithfuls for 6/10/15 turns.
Reward: X Engineers/Scientists/Commanders, Trained Engineers/Trained Scientists/Captains, Forge-Coder/Forge-Smith.)
-[ ] Commission A Knight
--[ ] Zokian-Pattern
(Turns: 4, Cost: 35 Goodwill, Armor: 250/250, Structure: 80/80)
--[ ] Shyara-Pattern
(Turns: 4, Cost: 70 Goodwill, Armor: 450/450, Structure: 50/50)
--[ ] Golgota-Pattern
(Turns: 5, Cost: 120 Goodwill, Armor: 800/800, Structure: 75/75)
--[ ] Commission An Unique-Pattern
(Turns: 8, Cost: 20 Goodwill, Armor: 10 points for 0.10 Goodwill, Structure: 2 points for 0.05 Goodwill)
[ ] The Followers Of Light - (1 Action)
-[ ] For The Nation - (Action)
(Cost: 3.5 Goodwill
Reward: Buildings/Tasks which improve/help the broader population have their success % permanently improved by 2d10 until taken.)
-[ ] We Work As One - (Action/Building)
(Cost: Narrative
Reward: The Followers Of Light will help the Pilgrims.)
[] Conclave Of Fraya - (1 Action)
-[ ] Commission An Artifice - (Item/Effect)
(Cost: ??? Goodwill
Reward: The Conclave will fashion an Artifice for the Pilgrims, be that surgical tools, a weapon, armor, or underwear.)
[ ] Meira's Hidden - (1 Action)
-[ ] Commission An Artifice - (Item/Effect)
(Cost: ??? Goodwill
Reward: Meira's Hidden will fashion an Artifice for the Pilgrims, be that surgical tools, a weapon, armor, or underwear.)
-[ ] Made To Order
(Cost: Variable
Reward: Variable
Use: Write what you wish to commission. (Art, weapons, armor, tools, resources, or machines are examples.)
-[X] Unlimited Specialists Galore
--[X] (12x Trained Scientists) - (7/10 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Coders) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Smiths) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (2x Forge-Smiths) - (3/15 Turns Complete)
After the arriving Forge-Clan Elders saw that you had the same appreciation for technology as they did, and with the support of both DoD and PD, they decided to impart some knowledge about the world to some of you 'who knew what they are doing.'
(Cost: X Faithfuls for 6/10/15 turns.
Reward: X Engineers/Scientists/Commanders, Trained Engineers/Trained Scientists/Captains, Forge-Coder/Forge-Smith.)
-[ ] Commission A Knight
--[ ] Zokian-Pattern
(Turns: 4, Cost: 35 Goodwill, Armor: 250/250, Structure: 80/80)
--[ ] Shyara-Pattern
(Turns: 4, Cost: 70 Goodwill, Armor: 450/450, Structure: 50/50)
--[ ] Golgota-Pattern
(Turns: 5, Cost: 120 Goodwill, Armor: 800/800, Structure: 75/75)
--[ ] Commission An Unique-Pattern
(Turns: 8, Cost: 20 Goodwill, Armor: 10 points for 0.10 Goodwill, Structure: 2 points for 0.05 Goodwill)
[ ] The Followers Of Light - (1 Action)
-[ ] For The Nation - (Action)
(Cost: 3.5 Goodwill
Reward: Buildings/Tasks which improve/help the broader population have their success % permanently improved by 2d10 until taken.)
-[ ] We Work As One - (Action/Building)
(Cost: Narrative
Reward: The Followers Of Light will help the Pilgrims.)
[] Conclave Of Fraya - (1 Action)
-[ ] Commission An Artifice - (Item/Effect)
(Cost: ??? Goodwill
Reward: The Conclave will fashion an Artifice for the Pilgrims, be that surgical tools, a weapon, armor, or underwear.)
[ ] Meira's Hidden - (1 Action)
-[ ] Commission An Artifice - (Item/Effect)
(Cost: ??? Goodwill
Reward: Meira's Hidden will fashion an Artifice for the Pilgrims, be that surgical tools, a weapon, armor, or underwear.)
[ ] Nine Tribes Council - (1 Action)
-[ ] Aquire Artifacts - (Name, Grade, (opt. Specific Boni))
(Buy an Artifact with a specific bonus directly.)
-[ ] Rare Odds And Ends - (Category)
(Cost: 4.25 Goodwill
Reward: +2d10 to a specific Action for one Turn.)
-[ ] Rare Findings
(Ask, And Ye Shall Know (Any specific thing you wish to buy/sell/do to/with/against the Nine Tribes Council?))
-[ ] Aquire Artifacts - (Name, Grade, (opt. Specific Boni))
(Buy an Artifact with a specific bonus directly.)
-[ ] Rare Odds And Ends - (Category)
(Cost: 4.25 Goodwill
Reward: +2d10 to a specific Action for one Turn.)
-[ ] Rare Findings
(Ask, And Ye Shall Know (Any specific thing you wish to buy/sell/do to/with/against the Nine Tribes Council?))
[ ] Bone Valley Chapter - (All Are Free Actions)
-[ ] Send Support
(Goodwill)
-[ ] Investigate For Heresy
(25 Goodwill)
-[ ] Ask For Help
(What, How)
-[ ] Send Support
(Goodwill)
-[ ] Investigate For Heresy
(25 Goodwill)
-[ ] Ask For Help
(What, How)
Heroes: Sometimes, you have to get your own hands dirty. Sometimes, you want to relax since leading the Pilgrims rarely leads to a dull moment. (Martyris: Choose 2 Actions, Aria: Choose 1 Action, Turi: Choose 1 Action)
[ ] Pathene Weaving - (Equipment Description)
One of the things your mother told and taught you was the ability to weave your hair into challenging and fantastic equipment. These range from vests hardening in response to physical trauma to spears capable of shooting lightning guided by plasma trails. It's too bad you need to cut your hair for such things to become a reality.
(Cost: Arias Hair
Turns: 4
Reward: Pathene Equipment)
[ ] Communion of Unsight - (Martyris) - (Write-In 2 Questions)
I have questions. You will answer.
(Reward: Answers.)
[ ] Shift Your Bureaucracy From (Category) To (Category)
Sometimes, the need arises when efforts must be reduced in one area and expanded in another when no additional resources are available otherwise. Today is one of those times when a shift in attention is required.
(Cost: 0.01 Goodwill
Reward: 1 Action is shifted from the first to the second category, active next Turn.)
[ ] Condemn An Organization/Person As Heretical/Forbidden - (Choose Target) - (Write-In A Reason)
You knew something like this would happen. Somehow, somewhere, an organization or person would draw your full ire. Not in the sense that you disagree with something they did, but what they represent and how they act. Well, you are an official religion; you can condemn them. Do so.
(Trait Needed: Arbitrator
Cost: All support options for the chosen organization will be void; the Leader will most likely hate you.
Reward: Opposing factions will love this act. A good enough Reason can give you additional benefits.)
[ ] Too Much To Do - (Action)
There is too much to do and not enough hands. Start helping out.
(Can be taken multiple times.
Reward: +1 Action is done)
[ ] Lead By Example (Write in Action)
Help your people and motivate them by taking a personal interest in their work. You won't just sit around, either. Two more hands are always needed.
(Reward: +30 to 1 Action)
[ ] Cool Tempers - (Goodwill Cost)
Not everything can always be sunshine and rainbows; sometimes, shit goes sideways, and people must be reminded that failure is not the world's end. With the Pilgrims growing as they do now, keeping everyone working together and on the same page becomes ever more difficult...
(Cost: 5/12/20 Goodwill
Reward: +2/4/6% Piety every 8/6/4 points above 0.)
[ ] Guiding Hand
Some Pilgrims stand at the edge of fully committing to the Pilgrim faith. You should speak to them, see what stops them, and try to either bring them in or make them realize they would make a mistake if they did so.
(Reward: According to the available Followers, the maximum amount of Faithful is created.)
[ ] Relax - (Can Specify What Activity)
All work and no play makes hairs grey and is quite unpleasant.
(Reward: The chosen Hero relaxes, avoiding burnout and bad traits.)
[ ] Write In
One of the things your mother told and taught you was the ability to weave your hair into challenging and fantastic equipment. These range from vests hardening in response to physical trauma to spears capable of shooting lightning guided by plasma trails. It's too bad you need to cut your hair for such things to become a reality.
(Cost: Arias Hair
Turns: 4
Reward: Pathene Equipment)
[ ] Communion of Unsight - (Martyris) - (Write-In 2 Questions)
I have questions. You will answer.
(Reward: Answers.)
[ ] Shift Your Bureaucracy From (Category) To (Category)
Sometimes, the need arises when efforts must be reduced in one area and expanded in another when no additional resources are available otherwise. Today is one of those times when a shift in attention is required.
(Cost: 0.01 Goodwill
Reward: 1 Action is shifted from the first to the second category, active next Turn.)
[ ] Condemn An Organization/Person As Heretical/Forbidden - (Choose Target) - (Write-In A Reason)
You knew something like this would happen. Somehow, somewhere, an organization or person would draw your full ire. Not in the sense that you disagree with something they did, but what they represent and how they act. Well, you are an official religion; you can condemn them. Do so.
(Trait Needed: Arbitrator
Cost: All support options for the chosen organization will be void; the Leader will most likely hate you.
Reward: Opposing factions will love this act. A good enough Reason can give you additional benefits.)
[ ] Too Much To Do - (Action)
There is too much to do and not enough hands. Start helping out.
(Can be taken multiple times.
Reward: +1 Action is done)
[ ] Lead By Example (Write in Action)
Help your people and motivate them by taking a personal interest in their work. You won't just sit around, either. Two more hands are always needed.
(Reward: +30 to 1 Action)
[ ] Cool Tempers - (Goodwill Cost)
Not everything can always be sunshine and rainbows; sometimes, shit goes sideways, and people must be reminded that failure is not the world's end. With the Pilgrims growing as they do now, keeping everyone working together and on the same page becomes ever more difficult...
(Cost: 5/12/20 Goodwill
Reward: +2/4/6% Piety every 8/6/4 points above 0.)
[ ] Guiding Hand
Some Pilgrims stand at the edge of fully committing to the Pilgrim faith. You should speak to them, see what stops them, and try to either bring them in or make them realize they would make a mistake if they did so.
(Reward: According to the available Followers, the maximum amount of Faithful is created.)
[ ] Relax - (Can Specify What Activity)
All work and no play makes hairs grey and is quite unpleasant.
(Reward: The chosen Hero relaxes, avoiding burnout and bad traits.)
[ ] Write In
Let me know if you spot any mistakes or have questions so I can provide a better experience.
A moratorium will be until 22.04.25 at 17:00 CET.
Voting will be closed on 27.04.25 at 17:00 CET.
Omake Points can be applied until 20:00 CET.
I will roll on 28.04.25 at 17:00 CET if no one has rolled yet.
The update will be online on 04.05.25 at 17:00 CET.
Last edited:
Cute heiress
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Please give me a 1d100.
Man have the years gone by. Congratulations to the happy couple.
Might want to translate that. If its from the Monastery then we might get some explanations from it. Either about the Forests or what the monks did with their circle and bell.
Charming. And I don't think we have our boxes to ask questions about it.
Truly, her mother's daughter.
Eh, maybe not useful as infantry weapons. But could still work for Knights or airships. Or we could apply it to industrial processes?
And another thing for the boxes. That would fill the 2 questions we can ask.
Bad timing, true. On the other hand; we didn't know he intended to stick around.
Sounds like they might be something that can be reverse-engineered and would be easier to produce than other Machines. Then again; there's probably something horrible involved in their production. Maybe blood or the tears of the angel we found.
Can we do that during this Turn?
Congrats?
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
You sure can!
- Pronouns
- He/Him
3 Actions locked.
I have a feeling that this could be needed
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] Plan: Crossroads Showdown
-[X] [Faith] Build A School - (Big) - (Tessen) - (0/5 Turns Complete)
--[X] (6FF) = +6
-[X] [Faith] Mausoleum of the Forgotten - (Tessen) - (0/2 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Endless Skies] The Flagship - (8/15 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Endless Skies] Devouring Sunlight - (Advanced Physics/Electronics) - (0/20 Successes)
--[X] [DoD], [PD], (Scientific Theory +15, Black Box +5, Electronics Manufacture - Ancient Circuits & Artisanal Optical Fiber Production +250, 3[TSC] +54, 1[TENG] +24) = +348
--[X] (8x Bunker Electronic Artifacts +20 to Advanced Electronics) = +160
-[X] [Endless Skies] A Draft Of Mercy [-5 Medium Suspendium Shards]
-[X] [Endless Skies] A Coming Of Age Inscribed [-10 Goodwill]
-[X] [Diplomacy] Shouldn't We... (Smooth Things Over With Broken Crossroads Authorities While Investigating)
--[X] (Ashleaf Tea +15, We Can Do It! -10, Common People Purge Survivor -5, Mutated -40, Object of Veneration +25, Lead By Example +30, 6FF) = +16
-[X] [Subversion] A Path Of Shadows - (2/5 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Martial] Sir! The Situation Is As Follows (Send Daughter of the Dawn with the Incubi, PD, and Aria to Broken Crossroads and investigate what's happened to our chapter)
-[X] [Learning] Turn That Black Gold Green - (Pioneer Chemicals) - (65/91 Successes)
--[X] [In The Name Of Education], (Scientific Theory +15, Library +7) = +22
--[X] (Bottled Guilt +50 to Pioneer Biology/Chemicals, Slycthe Mine +50 to Pioneer Weaponry/Chemicals, Cat's Eye's Stare +50 to Pioneer Weaponry/Chemicals, 3x Perfectly Preserved And Functional Fattened Hearts +50 to Pioneer Chemicals/Biology, 2x Perfectly Preserved And Functional Rancid Livers +50 to Pioneer Chemicals/Biology, 3x Perfectly Preserved And Functional Putrid Kidneys +50 to Pioneer Chemicals/Biology) = +550
-[X] [Learning] The Code Which Lives - (Pioneer Programming/Electronics) - (14/35 Successes)
--[X] (Scientific Theory +15, Black Box +5, Electronics Manufacture - Ancient Circuits & Artisanal Optical Fiber Production +250, 1[TENG] +24, 6FF) = +300
-[X] [Learning] Secret Of The Circuit Pt. 5 - (Pioneer Electronics) - (46/140 Successes)
--[X] [Experimental Oddity Passion 2d5], [Zest For Life 2d5], (Scientific Theory +15, Black Box +5, Electronics Manufacture - Ancient Circuits & Artisanal Optical Fiber Production +250, Head Scholar Of The Experimental Wing +50, Zest For Life +50, 2[FC] +120, 9[TENG] +216) = +706
-[X] [Learning] Detective Courses (Crucified Earth Angel)
-[X] [Archeology] Prepare an Expedition - (BT-02) - (2 Turns Prep = 4 Turns Exp.) - (House Mirn support: N) - (1/2 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Archeology] Loot the Bunker (Gallows)
-[X] [Archeology] Loot the Bunker (Den of Roses)
--[X] Assign the Unbroken and the Wall for security
-[X] [Tree of Knowledge] Mass Spectrometer - (6/7 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Holdings] Expanded Cannery - (0/9 Turns Complete)
--[X] Hire Contractors x3
--[X] Elite Contractors
-[X] [Holdings] Natural Pesticide Manufactury - Large - (8/20 Turns Complete)
--[X] Hire Contractors x3
-[X] [Holdings] Tiny Scientific Complex - (16/29 Turns Complete) - [Sandcrete]
--[X] Hire Contractors x3
-[X] [Martyris] Guiding Hand
-[X] [Martyris] Too Much To Do (A Coming of Age Inscribed)
-[X] [Aria] Lead By Example (Shouldn't We...)
-[X] [Turi] Lead By Example (Secret Of The Circuit Pt. 5 – Zest For Life)
-[X] [Merchants] Procure (Elite Contractors - Progress to Assigned Building)
-[X] [Adventurers] Share Locations (SST-02, SST-04, TB-01, TB-03, GY-01, ETG-01 to 03, SB-01 to 06)
-[X] [Herbalists] Study Sessions - (4/7 Turns Complete)
-[X] [4S] In The Name Of Education - (Turn That Black Gold Green) [-3.5 Goodwill]
-[X] [3PU] Exchange Program - (Trained Engineer) [-10 Goodwill]
-[X] [Vanar-Feer] Unlimited Specialists Galore
--[X] (12x Trained Scientists) - (7/10 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Coders) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Smiths) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (2x Forge-Smiths) - (3/15 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Followers of Light] We Work As One - (Build A School)
Goodwill Costs: 10+3.5+10 = 23.5
---
Ok, normally I'd have all this done earlier, but I'm having idea deficits and could use some suggestions.
Edit: Ok, some of it came together. Could still use some suggestions for the Martyris actions.
-[X] [Faith] Build A School - (Big) - (Tessen) - (0/5 Turns Complete)
--[X] (6FF) = +6
-[X] [Faith] Mausoleum of the Forgotten - (Tessen) - (0/2 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Endless Skies] The Flagship - (8/15 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Endless Skies] Devouring Sunlight - (Advanced Physics/Electronics) - (0/20 Successes)
--[X] [DoD], [PD], (Scientific Theory +15, Black Box +5, Electronics Manufacture - Ancient Circuits & Artisanal Optical Fiber Production +250, 3[TSC] +54, 1[TENG] +24) = +348
--[X] (8x Bunker Electronic Artifacts +20 to Advanced Electronics) = +160
-[X] [Endless Skies] A Draft Of Mercy [-5 Medium Suspendium Shards]
-[X] [Endless Skies] A Coming Of Age Inscribed [-10 Goodwill]
-[X] [Diplomacy] Shouldn't We... (Smooth Things Over With Broken Crossroads Authorities While Investigating)
--[X] (Ashleaf Tea +15, We Can Do It! -10, Common People Purge Survivor -5, Mutated -40, Object of Veneration +25, Lead By Example +30, 6FF) = +16
-[X] [Subversion] A Path Of Shadows - (2/5 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Martial] Sir! The Situation Is As Follows (Send Daughter of the Dawn with the Incubi, PD, and Aria to Broken Crossroads and investigate what's happened to our chapter)
-[X] [Learning] Turn That Black Gold Green - (Pioneer Chemicals) - (65/91 Successes)
--[X] [In The Name Of Education], (Scientific Theory +15, Library +7) = +22
--[X] (Bottled Guilt +50 to Pioneer Biology/Chemicals, Slycthe Mine +50 to Pioneer Weaponry/Chemicals, Cat's Eye's Stare +50 to Pioneer Weaponry/Chemicals, 3x Perfectly Preserved And Functional Fattened Hearts +50 to Pioneer Chemicals/Biology, 2x Perfectly Preserved And Functional Rancid Livers +50 to Pioneer Chemicals/Biology, 3x Perfectly Preserved And Functional Putrid Kidneys +50 to Pioneer Chemicals/Biology) = +550
-[X] [Learning] The Code Which Lives - (Pioneer Programming/Electronics) - (14/35 Successes)
--[X] (Scientific Theory +15, Black Box +5, Electronics Manufacture - Ancient Circuits & Artisanal Optical Fiber Production +250, 1[TENG] +24, 6FF) = +300
-[X] [Learning] Secret Of The Circuit Pt. 5 - (Pioneer Electronics) - (46/140 Successes)
--[X] [Experimental Oddity Passion 2d5], [Zest For Life 2d5], (Scientific Theory +15, Black Box +5, Electronics Manufacture - Ancient Circuits & Artisanal Optical Fiber Production +250, Head Scholar Of The Experimental Wing +50, Zest For Life +50, 2[FC] +120, 9[TENG] +216) = +706
-[X] [Learning] Detective Courses (Crucified Earth Angel)
-[X] [Archeology] Prepare an Expedition - (BT-02) - (2 Turns Prep = 4 Turns Exp.) - (House Mirn support: N) - (1/2 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Archeology] Loot the Bunker (Gallows)
-[X] [Archeology] Loot the Bunker (Den of Roses)
--[X] Assign the Unbroken and the Wall for security
-[X] [Tree of Knowledge] Mass Spectrometer - (6/7 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Holdings] Expanded Cannery - (0/9 Turns Complete)
--[X] Hire Contractors x3
--[X] Elite Contractors
-[X] [Holdings] Natural Pesticide Manufactury - Large - (8/20 Turns Complete)
--[X] Hire Contractors x3
-[X] [Holdings] Tiny Scientific Complex - (16/29 Turns Complete) - [Sandcrete]
--[X] Hire Contractors x3
-[X] [Martyris] Guiding Hand
-[X] [Martyris] Too Much To Do (A Coming of Age Inscribed)
-[X] [Aria] Lead By Example (Shouldn't We...)
-[X] [Turi] Lead By Example (Secret Of The Circuit Pt. 5 – Zest For Life)
-[X] [Merchants] Procure (Elite Contractors - Progress to Assigned Building)
-[X] [Adventurers] Share Locations (SST-02, SST-04, TB-01, TB-03, GY-01, ETG-01 to 03, SB-01 to 06)
-[X] [Herbalists] Study Sessions - (4/7 Turns Complete)
-[X] [4S] In The Name Of Education - (Turn That Black Gold Green) [-3.5 Goodwill]
-[X] [3PU] Exchange Program - (Trained Engineer) [-10 Goodwill]
-[X] [Vanar-Feer] Unlimited Specialists Galore
--[X] (12x Trained Scientists) - (7/10 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Coders) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (3x Forge-Smiths) - (11/15 Turns Complete)
--[X] (2x Forge-Smiths) - (3/15 Turns Complete)
-[X] [Followers of Light] We Work As One - (Build A School)
Goodwill Costs: 10+3.5+10 = 23.5
---
Ok, normally I'd have all this done earlier, but I'm having idea deficits and could use some suggestions.
Edit: Ok, some of it came together. Could still use some suggestions for the Martyris actions.
Last edited:
HeroCooky
Unverified Monstergirl
Please, Sir, may I have some crumbs of Sky Faith? 🥺