April Intro: Better Get to Digging

[lifeaftr_mods]

INTRO LOG: APRIL

Who: New arrivals, and you!
What: New souls arrive to the archipelago of LifeAftr
When: April 4th and onward
Where: Cahypdo
Warnings: Mark as needed!

Waking up to the gentle proddings of what appears to be very curious, sentient trees isn't the worst wake up call LifeAftr has to offer. For our newest arrivals, however, it may be a tad…odd.

Situated in the valley between two mountains, Elower is a scenic village filled with the friendly Roaka, tree-like beings that are rather peaceable and happy to assist those who have just arrived. I'’s a peaceful location for one to start their adventures - though, unfortunately, it doesn't stay peaceful for long.

Cahypdo: You'll Bury Me Low
Those who have explored the new island of Cahypdo in the last month will undoubtedly recall the series of quakes that shook the island throughout March. With the arrival of LifeAftr's newest adventurers comes Cahypdo's largest tremor to date, striking without warning and more than enough force to throw even the steadiest and sturdiest of your number to the ground. With a low rumble, the mountains heaped on either side of the island will start to shed an abundance of slag and debris, pouring down their slopes. Anyone who's scaling those peaks risks being flung bodily off them when the outpouring of shale comes roaring down those mountains, and anyone at the mountain bases risks being crushed beneath.

As one might expect, unsuspecting newcomers aren't all that have been shaken up. Though protected by netting and retaining walls, the cliffs around and above the village of Elower can only take so much pressure before giving way - a threshold that has been crossed entirely. With a sound like thunder, rocks fall.

Everyone dies? Only if you don't act quickly. Roaka housing is sturdy in build, enough to protect a decidedly less sturdy body from all but the heaviest of boulders. Hiding inside any of their village constructs built into the sides of the mountains will certainly save you from taking a new weight onto your shoulders. They will not, however, save you from being buried alive.

For those who become trapped inside any of those abodes, your options appear limited. Work to free yourself, or wait for help to arrive. Though, speaking of help, those outside may think to offer the Roaka a helping hand in getting their trapped people - and yours, at that - a few breaths of fresh air.

Before you suffocate.

Cahypdo: Stay Acting Brave
Such seismic activity will also stir up the local wildlife, of course. Those unfortunate enough to come across them will recognize the restless shark-dragon hybrids, hydrac, now prowling across the shorelines, while the wickedly fanged wabbits will also be far more frequent, traveling in larger numbers in the jungle and at the bases of the mountains. Taking care to avoid them would be wise - though another creature may make that venture much more difficult.

Lorbies have been unlocked in the bestiary! A strange mix between owl and serpent, the recent quake has clearly startled these usually reclusive creatures into the open. Alone, a lorby is a rather skittish animal, prone to hiding from most perceived threats. Useless for food due to the toxicity of their flesh, lorbies do have the potential to be tamed...but this comes with its own risks.

A lorby may be prone to flight rather than fight when encountered solo, but in groups, these feathery critters are far more hostile. A defensive lorby emits a piercing cry alone, but a group is an almost ear-piercing experience, capable of rendering the unfortunate unstable on their feet at best, and unconscious at worst. For the days that follow the severe earthquake that so rocked everyone's foundations, any hope for silence is lost in the infrequent bursts of almighty screeching by colonies of lorbies who have so rudely had their homes overturned and disturbed.

While the lorby is omnivorous, it may not think to take a bite at anything so much larger than them. That doesn't mean that conflict with these fluffy creatures won't attract something much more willing to take advantage of the fact that you may or may not have been reduced to a prone sack of meat. If something else does arrive, you best hope that it's a friendly face.

If you're interested in keeping a lorby for your own, bear LifeAftr's companion limit in mind - two per character, and no more. The lorby is omnivorous and can survive off of most odds and ends: insects, fruits, berries, critters it can dig up in the sand, and more. However, the process of trying to tame a lorby is not always successful. We recommend use of a d10, with the following guidelines:

Rolling a 10: Critical success! This lorby will love and adore you, and may even feel comfortable enough to drape itself along your neck like a beautiful, furry scarf, churring softly all the way.
Rolling 7-9: This lorby will prove high-strung and timid, even if safely befriended, and will take several weeks to warm up to you. But once it does, it's yours!
Rolling 2-6: Failure. The lorby enters a state of distress and starts screaming. Hope you brought earplugs, or you'll be snoozing for several long hours for your efforts.
Rolling a 1: Critical failure. Not only does the lorby start screaming, but its panic attracts a colony of its friends, and they all start screaming too.

Bear in mind that these are only guidelines; you are free to predetermine successes or failures as you'd like, presuming your character can sustain the companion! Our discord channel has a room for dice-rolls, if you prefer.

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All new arrivals will awake with knapsacks, their names stitched to the front. The contents of said knapsacks can all be found in your acceptance notices!

As a final note to those who participated in the Test Drive Meme, bear in mind that those threads, if all parties involved would like, can be game canon in the form of dream-like memories involving a place very much like this one, though the layout is considerably different.

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Feeling a tad adrift? Make sure to check the Locations Page, which has details regarding the starting areas and a handy map for those who feel better with a bird's eye view!

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LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

burial

[onegreeneye]

[Now that Ginko isn't occupied with being trapped himself (at least, not until there's another landslide), he can take some time to look around and see who else might need help. He searches among the buried buildings, hoping that anyone trapped inside will be able to hear him calling.]

Hey! Anyone stuck around here?

[vagabone]

Oye! I think I can hear you!

[This comes through the stone of farspeech a lot louder than out of the rubble, of course. Are you ready to play hot and cold, Ginko? Did he even mention he was one of the ones trapped??]

[onegreeneye]

Hector?

[He absolutely does not recall Hector mentioning that and he thinks he would have remembered. He raps his knuckles against one of the nearby boulders, as if that's going to tell him anything. And he starts walking.]

Can you hear me better now?

[vagabone]

A little! I think you're getting closer!

[Would it help if he stopped using the stone? Too bad, because he isn't stopping. Forgive him, he's not in the best frame of mind at the moment.]

[onegreeneye]

Okay-- turn off your stone, for now. [Fortunately, Ginko is a little more put-together. Advantages of being far too used to crises.

He moves a few more steps, and calls again, his eye flicking among the areas around him where Hector might be.] How about now?

[vagabone]

[Not using the stone means he's going to have to yell... fortunately, being loud is one of talents. (God help anyone trapped in the same small space with him.)]

Colder! Other way!

[onegreeneye]

Got it!

[Alright. He moves toward the sound of Hector's voice, now that he can hear him a little more clearly, and raps on one of the rocks that he... thinks might be in the right area.]

You in there?

[vagabone]

[He's not about to slam his bare bones against the rock to make a sound--even he has limits to his stupidity, apparently. Just. More shouting!!]

Yes! I think you found it!

[onegreeneye]

Okay - just hang in here.

[He starts hauling rocks away from the pile, breaking down the blockage bit by bit.] How long have you been trapped?

[vagabone]

[Wryly:] I don't know, how long's it been? I don't have a watch on me.

[onegreeneye]

[Can you hear him frowning, Hector. He's frowning right now.]

Why didn't you say something before?

[vagabone]

Eh. It's not like I'm going to suffocate down here. Unlike literally everyone else.

[Makes perfect sense to him. If it's unpleasant for Héctor to be down in the dark, it must be worse for everyone else.]

[onegreeneye]

So? That doesn't mean you should be-- [He grunts as he pushes a heavier boulder out of the way.] --left in there. There are plenty of us working on getting people free.

[vagabone]

Yeah, I know. Nobody's leaving me here, you'll dig all the buildings out.

[Come on, it's not like he asked to be skipped over!! It's clear he thinks having to explain this at all is... odd.]

[onegreeneye]

Yes, we will, over time-- but prioritizing the ones where we know people are trapped! So you should have said something!

[Damn, it is too sunny out for this. Ginko pauses to catch his breath, still glowering at the rocks in front of him as if Hector might be able to feel it.] Why didn't you tell Epsilon, at least? I know you talked to him.

[vagabone]

[He makes an exasperated sound, wondering if he should just shut up and accept the scolding. Quit while he's ahead, for a change.]

It's fine! I'm not hurt or hungry or anything, not even afraid of the dark. It's okay.

[onegreeneye]

No, it isn't. [Ginko makes an exasperated grumbling noise right back, then gets back to pulling rocks aside. He's getting close, at least; Hector may even be able to see light breaking through the spaces between rocks in the area that Ginko is clearing out.]

There was no reason not to tell us, and you had every opportunity to. Even if you're alright, why the hell didn't you say anything?

[vagabone]

[More grumbling. Grumble grumble grandpa. How many times does he have to answer the same question!!]

Like you--[Okay, maybe that's not really a fair thing to say and he'll cut himself off right there.] Hey, you're close. I see light. [Now will you please let it go??]

[onegreeneye]

[As many times as it takes for your answers to stop sucking, Hector!!

Ginko pulls away a few more rocks, and, finally, manages to break enough of a hole in the blockage to see Hector through. Oh, perfect. Now he can glower at him properly, because he heard that beginning of a rude comment.] Watch it.

[vagabone]

[They're truthful answers!!]

Gah! [There's a troll face in his face all of a sudden and he recoils. And then leans forward again, once he's gotten over the half second of surprise.] What?

[onegreeneye]

[Wrong. Incorrect!!]

Whatever you were gonna say there, watch it. [He takes a step back to resume pulling rocks aside, widening the hole now that it's there.] If something like this happens again, just tell someone, alright? Call me directly if you've got to.

[vagabone]

[Okay, yes, now is not the time to keep arguing!! Not if he wants out!! He starts widening the hole from his end. It doesn't need to be all that big for a skeleton to clamber out.]

Yeah, yeah. Let's hope there's no next time.

[onegreeneye]

That would be best, yes. [Ginko pushes another few rocks aside, then takes a step back to look over the condition of the hole.] Think you can fit through there?

[vagabone]

No problem.

[He doesn't have to fit through all in one piece, you see. Whatever's left behind or pops off on the way out can be snapped back, some kind of bizarre skeleton magnetism going on here. It won't take him long to be free now!]

[onegreeneye]

Alright. [He does make the hole a little wider, just to be sure - he should at least make sure Hector's shoulders can get through here, he figures.

That only takes a couple more seconds, though, and then he leans in, and just... holds out his hands for Hector to grab onto.] Okay, c'mon.

[He can just pull him through, that seems like a good plan.]