The Untamed Wilds: Caravan Campaign

[MacConnell]

Respiring after the Evening Meal

Sannit smiles as he cooks the skewered venison. Variety is the spice of life, he thinks to himself. Since his trick with the copper was so successful, he will try to search for other metals like gold, silver, or other precious metals the next time he tries.

OOC: Once everyone is finished eating, Sheldon asked Sannit to indulge him with an idea to test Sannit's new found skill at finding ore. Sannit closes his eyes and Sheldon takes his small carving knife and places it on the ground with an ingot of copper and one of tin. Sannit is able to take up each specific metal when requested without having to see them. Placing the 2 ingots together, he is able to separate them and identify which is in each hand. He is also able to locate each from a distance of about 8 steps. After 15 minutes of practice, he becomes excessively fatigued and can no longer continue.

Sheldon -
I like this skill you've developed, very useful. You mentioned wanting to try looking for silver or gold. I think you should also look for iron. Perhaps you can find enough to supply the smith so he can manufacture better weapons and metal armor.

Turtle thinks those burros are right to be afraid of him. He wouldn't kill all of them of course, that would be wasteful, but there was a fat one he had his eye on. Oh well. Bolo said no.

OOC: Noticing that Turtle is paying particular attention to one of the mares that seems a little fatter than the others, she signals the bear to wait and walks over to examine it. Indigo happens to notice the same thing and joins her. The two together suddenly come to the realization that the particular burro is laden, which explains the slight enlargement, though it is early in term. This bodes well, the party thinks. Seven is more than the party should ever need and Southroad Fair is short on pack animals. Perhaps a deal could be struck with the Carpenters' Guild.

 

[Kwargrow]

Sannit says, "I'm going to work with the guild as much as I can while the hall is being built. It would be a useful skill to know how to build a structure."

Bolo frowns slightly and says, "While you are doing that I will get Turtle used to the rest of the town. I do not want anyone freaking out when they see him."

Turtle sniffs at the air, then the ground. He smells some small furry prey that passed this way. He notices that these people spend a lot of time bumping their lips together in their odd way.

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Following Sannit's lead, Merin places his hand in the pool, using way to attempt to detect pearls. Merin has heard that pearls are formed naturally from clams, and feels that it would be foolish not to at least check on the possibility.

OOC: Sorry for the long absence; my family and I were playing host to my in-laws from Canada; during the two weeks they were with us, I spent most of my time either driving to different places, catching up on postponed household projects, or doing yard work outdoors. During that time, I didn't hardly get a chance to look at a screen. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, ha ha. At any rate, now that things are back to normal, I will once again have time to post, on my breaks / lunch periods during the week, and during slow periods on the weekends. Cheers! And Happy New Year to everyone!

GM: Good to have you back. Basically having no family and no life, this is it for me. I guess Jeff has fallen from the planet. I had to other members of this site express an interest in playing but have not heard back from them in a week.

 

[MacConnell]

Metal Isn't The Only Mineral

Following Sannit's lead, Merin places his hand in the pool, using way to attempt to detect pearls. Merin has heard that pearls are formed naturally from clams, and feels that it would be foolish not to at least check on the possibility.

GM: Pearls, being a sought after commodity of Asylim, Merin has seen some before and the mollusks that grow them. Not knowing if any such might exist in fresh water, he steps to the edge of the flow and concentrates, knowing his range will more than cover to the other bank of the small stream.

[sblock=Detect Mineral]Range = Cohesion + Will = 8 paces = ~7235 square feet
Effectiveness = Essence + Mind + Cohesion + Knowledge + Will + Collegiate + Aberrative + Academic + time - d100 - penalty
Effectiveness = 47 + time - 18 - 75(untouched material)
Time = 46 minutes[/sblock]

OOC: Unaware that he has concentrated for so long, Tor moves over to check on his friend, seeing that he is merely in a semi-trance, he does not bother him. Despite the elapsed time, when Merin pin-points the information, it feels like a sudden epiphany. He moves into the stream and forward along the near bank to a particular patch of gravel with an even rippling of water and removes 6 mussels from their byssal threads. Bringing the collection back near the cook fire, he pries them open with Sheldon's small knife. The inside of the shell is, of course, pearlescent, which triggers the detection. There is one, however, that also contains a genuine freshwater pearl, slightly larger than a cooked pea.

GM: New Collection: 1 Freshwater Pearl

OOC: The evening and night are uneventful.

 

[MacConnell]

Day 20: Investigating the Hollow of Bones: Morning Day 4

GM: It rains, once again, in the early hours of the morning, as is appropriate for the time of year. The party almost finds humor in the fact that they can so readily dry their clothing and supplies, as opposed to when traveling with the caravan.

OOC: Since he is already wet, Sheldon, once again, shucks down to his kilt and wades into the stream. In less than an hour, he produces 3 edible size trout from the stream, tossing them on the bank, which Indigo cleans. Bolo has to let Turtle know that he has to catch his own fish, and that he cannot eat Sheldon's. The bear wades in and manages to forage a small trout and some crayfish. After catching the three fish, Sheldon tackles Turtle. The bear, completely unoffended, recognizes it as play and wrestles with him, neither using claws nor teeth. It is a surprisingly good lesson for the bear in addition to Bolo's earlier teaching. Adding the fish to the 6 clams Merin collected the night before, it is not so much, but a fresh meal is always better, even if meager.

GM: Turtle receives +1 XP.

GM: Having no pressure for time, the party prepares and leaves when it is ready. The new pack animals are tethered together with the male in the back, then tethered to the other donkey and burro. They will require more training as the party travels, each member taking turns at their lead, before they can be trusted to walk free. The party's supplies are also redistributed so that all animals are carrying something, as the party sets off away from the river. Later that afternoon, about the time the party is preparing to stop for the day, raucous animal noises, mostly birds, are heard coming from the east, beyond some slight hills. Looking that direction, calling birds of various colors and ravens are noticed in erratic flights.

 

[Kwargrow]

Sannit congratulates Merin on finding the pearl and with a serious look tells the rest of the group, "We should be careful that no one finds out that we can do things like that."

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Merin nods at Sannit, and says:

"What do you mean? This pearl was among the things we found in the snakes' nest. I've never dived for pearls in my life. I wouldn't know the first thing about where to begin." Merin's face betrays no look of deception, except for the SLIGHTEST smirk, and a knowing wink to Sannit.

Tor also plays with Turtle as the group travels, trying to ascertain the bear's strength. He knows that Turtle is stronger than him, but he wonders by how much. It is also his hope that by wrestling with each other, Turtle might pick up on some of Tor's more subtle moves, instead of relying solely on mass, thereby making the bear a better wrestler.

In the evening, during quiet time, Tor works to repair the tear in his corded silk tunic.

 

[MacConnell]

Tor also plays with Turtle as the group travels, trying to ascertain the bear's strength. He knows that Turtle is stronger than him, but he wonders by how much. It is also his hope that by wrestling with each other, Turtle might pick up on some of Tor's more subtle moves, instead of relying solely on mass, thereby making the bear a better wrestler.

GM: Tor is surprised to find that the bear is not stronger than he is, but behind of about equal weight and the bear having a lower center of gravity makes Turtle difficult to wrestle. Once the bear is full grown, in about 2 more years, it will outweigh Tor by about 100 lbs. making it much more formidable.

In the evening, during quiet time, Tor works to repair the tear in his corded silk tunic.

GM: +1 Commercial for Tor

Sheldon -

What do you all make of all that ruckus with the birds over there to the East?

 

[Tellerian Hawke]

Tor ponders Sheldon's comment.

"I'm not sure, now that you mention it. Something big must have disturbed them to cause such a clatter. Perhaps we should investigate?"

Merin nods in agreement.

"Agreed, we should not let this pass un-noticed nor un-challenged."

 

[Kwargrow]

Sannit strokes his beard. "Hmm. I'm glad you said that, Merin. I might need to explain how we found all that copper." He snaps his fingers. "I'll just say it was all in the serpent's nest, and the smaller nuggets I will say I found in the river. That battle will make a great story. Giovanni will eat it up."

Bolo runs laps with Turtle, turning as quickly as she can and challenging him to keep up with her. It is easy to notice that since she found Turtle she has not clung to Sannit's side. As they move together Sannit remarks, "They're starting to take on similar mannerisms. A little human for the bear, a little bear for the human."

Turtle is having fun with these humans. They know how to play and eat like a bear. Bear necessities are a real thing after all. He can sense a serious purpose behind their play, though, something he knows they are trusting him with by letting him travel with them.

Sannit shields his eyes and looks at the circling birds. "Might as well go see. We're already out here."