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Gaya. 1910. New Allegheny, somewhere in the Western Confederation.

If you've been following...
0.1

samdamandias

Apprentice Plane Wizard
Gaya. 1910. New Allegheny, somewhere in the Western Confederation.

If you've been following Aircraft Design Company, Castles of Steel, If Mahan Could See Us Now, Fill your Hand You Son of a Bitch, Jine the Cavalry, or Rocket Design Quest, you already know about Gaya, the world @open_sketchbook created, and that the rest of us have taken and run with.
For those of you just joining us the Federated Commonwealth of New Allegheny is the America-analogue, with some important differences, such as the borders with Taxoco and Manassas. New Allegheny itself is composed of forty-one commonwealths(1), arranged into three confederations. Each confederation elects their own president. If you wonder how anything gets done on a Federal level, it usually doesn't. :V

But that sort of question doesn't really concern you.

You are that new breed of pilot unique to New Allegheny, one part scout, one part postal worker, and three parts entertainer. You are a BARNSTORMER.


You wake up on a pile of hay, head pounding, sore everywhere, and a little cold.

Not unexpected from sleeping in a hayloft after a night of drinking. You slide down the ladder, and make your way over to the water barrel, scattered hay crunching underfoot. You splash some cool water on your face, take a drink, and pause a moment to assess your reflection and assure yourself that you are presentable.

You are
[ ] (Write in name)
-[ ] A Man
-[ ] A Woman
-[ ] A Pilot (2)

Having done that, it's time to grab your kit bag and some breakfast. Your kit bag contains one of your most valued possessions. What is it?

[ ] A signed textbook
You are a university student, doing graduate work. Upsides, you can count the number of people better than you at tinkering with aircraft on one hand (3), and you either designed and built your own bird, or modified it. Downsides, your thesis advisor wants regular updates, and you're still paying tuition.​

[ ] A gift from your spouse.
You fly because the pay is good. Beats working in a mine any day. Upsides, you have a very level head on your shoulders, and are experienced in the world. Downsides, you've got a family to help support. A pretty big one, too, including your three-year old child. Maybe you can help get your younger siblings through high school, so that they don't have to work in the mine either.​

[ ] A lovingly worn instrument
You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.

1 If you want to get technical, thirty-seven commonwealths, three states, one dominion, the capital district, and outlying islands.
2 [The west] don't really get the whole non-binary thing. Picking this isn't hard mode, but will be more complex.
3 This includes Rose and Antoinette "First flight" Sears, Asuka "Literally A Wizard" Matsura, and Count "I single-handedly invented civil aviation" Zeppelin. It's a pretty short list.
 
Last edited:
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
[X] Jeremy Wainwright
- [X] A Man

[X] A signed textbook

My logic here is that if we're as good as most career aeronautical engineers who aren't PC tier BS, or outright PCs of other quests, we'll have a head start on figuring out piloting, while also being able to save on aircraft maintenance slightly by doing as much of it as possible ourselves without skimping on our other objectives. This would be an easier choice, however, if I knew what the exact pluses and minuses were for each option, ie. knowing how much the tuition was, how much money we need to make to support families, etc.
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.

A man, in Gaya? What is this nonsense? /s
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.

Next Luke Skywalker, coming up

(Would a farmhand be used to engines at this time, or is it still horses and oxen?)
 
A man, in Gaya? What is this nonsense? /s
Rockets has one :p

[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.

... i'm hoping he's some kind of pansexual disaster boy/charlatan traveling from town to town breaking records and breaking hearts.
 
In 1910, mechanized agriculture was starting to proliferate. The Model T was actually bought almost as much so that people could convert it into a tractor or a stationary engine for agricultural purposes as it was for use as a car.
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
... i'm hoping he's some kind of pansexual disaster boy/charlatan traveling from town to town breaking records and breaking hearts.

That sounds amazing. I'm sold.

[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
[X] Cassius "Cas" Vidal
[X] A Man
[X] A lovingly worn instrument You grew up on a farm. You thought you were going to be a farmer until the day at the Commonwealth Fair when you say the airship. Upside, you have the potential to grow into an amazing pilot, a la Luke Skywalker. Downside, most of that right now is potential.
 
0.2
Once we finish character creation, you will be Cas Vidal, farmboy from some small town. But let's zip through this so we can get to BARNSTORMING and some gay drama. Well, probably on the drama, but there definitely be Barnstorming. There will be one more post of chargen after this, just so that there isn't a bundle of votes, but I promise that one will have dialogue with other people!

What else do you have with you on your adventures? Choose two from LIST A and two from LIST B, formatted as a plan
LIST A
  • A loyal and adorable canine companion who loves to fly. (1)
  • A long hunting rifle.
  • A high-quality toolkit.
  • A cutting edge plane, complete save for an engine.
  • A pair of fine binoculars.
LIST B
  • A packet of seeds from the family farm.
  • A bottle of your family's finest moonshine, and the recipe.
  • A promise to return home safe to your mother.
  • A mysterious item, sealed, to return to a rightful owner.
  • The deed to land in a far-away place.
  • Cryptic words of advice from a trusted mentor.
  • An old journal from an ancestor before they settled down.
  • A catalogue of aircraft parts, with the address of the factory printed on the back.

What plane do you fly?
[ ] Hennessy S-5 Coral Snake, a two-seater trainer
[ ] Wills Model B, first designed as a light mail-runner
[ ] Roos 1908, an underpowered plane with very good handling
[ ] Write-in. I reserve the right to veto this
-[ ] For all planes, write in a name and paint scheme

And lastly, who else is joining you for breakfast? You can vote for more than one.
[ ] Nobody but the family who let you stay the night
[ ] Fat Steve, who is either the luckiest or unluckiest pilot alive.
[ ] The Flying Sisters Dostoevsky, who do wing-walking, juggling, and other feats of derring-do.
[ ]Theo, who can rebuild an engine in the time most people take to finish reading the paper.
[ ] Maxine, who is your equal, if not better, at flying.

1 I don't know if @Open_sketch patched it out, but this is my quest and I find it hilarious, so yes, you could train your doggo to be a pilot. Or a gunner. I draw the line at mechanic, though.

Internet cookie to anyone who gets a reference for the other possible pilots. If someone gets all four, I will do something special. Dunno what yet.
 
Cats are the work of the devil.

[X] Plan Challenger
-[X] A loyal and adorable canine companion who loves to fly. (1)
-[X] A long hunting rifle.
-[X]A bottle of your family's finest moonshine, and the recipe.
-[X]An old journal from an ancestor before they settled down.
-[X] Wills Model B, first designed as a light mail-runner
--[X] "Columbia Challenger," orange wings, white and orange dazzle fuselage.
-[X] Fat Steve, who is either the luckiest or unluckiest pilot alive.
-[X]Theo, who can rebuild an engine in the time most people take to finish reading the paper.

Here's the real important vote. The one that will decide everything. Behind one door is salvation, and behind the other...Waylon.





edit: forgive any formatting sins I'm tired
 
I feel like making a compainion "love to fly" pretty much automatically precludes that companion being a cat, because as much as I like them cats have very little love to afford those around them, much less alarming things like flying as we intend to.
[X]Plan and Stuff
-[X]A long hunting rifle.
-[X]A cutting edge plane, complete save for an engine.
-[X]A catalogue of aircraft parts, with the address of the factory printed on the back.
-[X]A mysterious item, sealed, to return to a rightful owner.
[X] Wills Model B, first designed as a light mail-runner
-[X]Heron
-[X] A highly irregular and twisting pattern of distorted White and Black rectangles, which nominally make it difficult to determine quite how the plane is oriented. In practice, such performance is unclear but it's hard to ignore.
[X]Theo, who can rebuild an engine in the time most people take to finish reading the paper.
[X] Maxine, who is your equal, if not better, at flying.

On stuff: The second and third choices somewhat synergize, and fit well with the first of my two choices for fellow breakfast-er. The other two are just other stuff.
On the plane: This plane is likely relatively small and relatively fast, probably at the detriment of maneuverability or ease of use. I hold no fondness for the name I chose (as it's rather hard to decide) but I found the idea of making a dazzle-camo airplane amusing especially given how we're using it opposite it's designed purpose by using it to draw attention rather than become harder to recognize.
On other people: Theo is a good choice because of my stuff choices (noted earlier) and because having a competent mechanic on hand is highly beneficial if we wish to operate for long.
Maxine I am less sure of, but it's good to have other good pilots on board.
 
[X] Plan Challenger
-[X] A loyal and adorable canine companion who loves to fly. (1)
-[X] A long hunting rifle.
-[X]A bottle of your family's finest moonshine, and the recipe.
-[X]An old journal from an ancestor before they settled down.
-[X] Wills Model B, first designed as a light mail-runner
--[X] "Columbia Challenger," orange wings, white and orange dazzle fuselage.
-[X] Fat Steve, who is either the luckiest or unluckiest pilot alive.
-[X]Theo, who can rebuild an engine in the time most people take to finish reading the paper
 
[X]Plan and Stuff
-[X]A long hunting rifle.
-[X]A cutting edge plane, complete save for an engine.
-[X]A catalogue of aircraft parts, with the address of the factory printed on the back.
-[X]A mysterious item, sealed, to return to a rightful owner.
[X] Wills Model B, first designed as a light mail-runner
-[X]Heron
-[X] A highly irregular and twisting pattern of distorted White and Black rectangles, which nominally make it difficult to determine quite how the plane is oriented. In practice, such performance is unclear but it's hard to ignore.
[X]Theo, who can rebuild an engine in the time most people take to finish reading the paper.
[X] Maxine, who is your equal, if not better, at flying.

Depending on the era, it'd be really funny if our cutting edge plane was a Dragonfly.
 
I submit the following:

[X] Plan Circus Act
-[X] A loyal and adorable canine companion who loves to fly.
-[X] A cutting edge plane, complete save for an engine.
-[X] A mysterious item, sealed, to return to a rightful owner.
-[X] An old journal from an ancestor before they settled down.
-[X] Hennessy S-5 Coral Snake, a two-seater trainer
-[X] The Flying Doghouse
-[X] Crimson, with gold and black highlights. The top of the upper wing gets repainted with the emblems of whichever confederation and commonwealth we're performing in.
-[X] The Flying Sisters Dostoevsky, who do wing-walking, juggling, and other feats of derring-do.
--[X] Our fiancees in a poly relationship. Not actually sisters.
-[X] Maxine, who is your equal, if not better, at flying.
--[X] Is also our dog. Literally. Yes, she's just that good.

Maxine may or may not be a beagle, and the "sisters" may or may not actually be named Lucille and Patricia.
 
In light of new information, a modified plan.

[X] Plan Circus Act v2
-[X] A loyal and adorable canine companion who loves to fly.
-[X] A cutting edge plane, complete save for an engine.
-[X] A mysterious item, sealed, to return to a rightful owner.
-[X] An old journal from an ancestor before they settled down.
-[X] Hennessy S-5 Coral Snake, a two-seater trainer
-[X] The Flying Doghouse
-[X] Crimson, with gold and black highlights. The top of the upper wing gets repainted with the emblems of whichever confederation and commonwealth we're performing in.
-[X] The Flying Sisters Dostoevsky, who do wing-walking, juggling, and other feats of derring-do.
--[X] Our fiancees in a poly relationship. Not actually sisters.
-[X] Theo, who can rebuild an engine in the time most people take to finish reading the paper
--[X] Also a magician. Building his own tricks is where he learned to be a mechanic, prestidigitation practice is where he learned to do it fast.
 
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