Lun'Kla moves to H13 casts Last Dream on Petroleum Jelly. To help annihilate em. (If dead, Last Dream targets JOEbot instead.)

Lun'Kla than retreats to I14.

The Symbiote stabs Petroleum Jelly to help do some extra damage for fun.

Bloodied, but not yet beaten, John stands ready to finish the battle. He combat rolls away from Toast2, landing on N10 and staring Toast3 directly in the face.

John: I'm gonna be so happy when I never have to see your dumb robot face again.
John: I mean. Surely if there is a deity in charge of this world then they'd never force us to fight the same thing multiple times.
John: Right?
John:...
John: Right?

While he ponders the potential cruelty of the possible deity, John fires a second Aerobeam forward, using the last of his magic for now. It whizzes through the air before suddenly changing direction at G10 and slamming into Jelly at F11.

Sheriff Chlorin Flori drops in!

(Sheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1t2I...gid=1910277109)

CHLORIN: Justice ain't gonna dispense itself!

Chlorin spawns at G16.

CHLORIN: Well uh, I can't move. I hope I ain't too late to the party.

Erm... I don't see a reason to post this round? Cause the encounter's over??? But... whatever.

[MOV] JJJ skips over to S5. He's so happy. Finally, the enemy team has appreciated how much of a tactical target he is to kill. So dangerous, in fact, they must have sworn fealty to the vile fiend, Luckifer, to hit JJJ and avoid his unhittable dodge stat.

Seriously. Dice rolls, am I right? [*INSERT LAUGH TRACK HERE*]

[ACTION] Since the encounter's over, I really want to say I do nothing, but, reading the rules, nothing isn't an action! Darn. Guess we gotta fill all those check-boxes for what constitutes a post here.

Unfortunately, having no more sword beams and being incapable of telling the difference between a piercing weakness and a piercing resistance (whoops, my bad. Me no read good some days), JJJ does...

A NORMAL ATTACK! Woah!

Except nothing is normal, because JJJ is still using the legendary sword, Flail-chion, a weapon so jank, it's in EVERY HISTORY BOOK EVER.

...What do you mean you never heard of Flail-chion? It clearly hasn't no-clipped into your history book yet. Just give it a second. Give it a-

For some reason, Slingbot2 finds itself staring really closely at its history manual. Because I dunno, JJJ told it to. And JJJ is such a stand up fellow. His name is Jove. By JOVE, he's trustworthy!

The Slingbot is really getting into that research. It's got its face just an inch away from its textbook. My word. If only JJJ had such commitment to his own schoolwork. Then he'd really be getting stuff-

As the narrator bullies JJJ, the boy decides to take his aggression out. On the Slingbot. See, it's cycles of violence like this that are really dragging the modern world downhil-

Suddenly, the tip of Flail-chion shoots out of the spine of the Slingbot's textbook, jabbing straight into the robot's face and injecting it with CRIT-JUICE! It's like Crit-Energy or Crit-Waves or whatever else I've been spewing, but it now comes in Pomegranate and Fruit Punch!

Suffice to say, the Slingbot gets stabbed- I mean slashed because we're doing knife damage here, not dagger damage. A fine but distinct line, there. Like, arrow vs arc. Distinct.

And I'm really just rambling right now, so why don't we... stop?

[Shenani-whatever we're on] Because really, the round is over! We don't need to-

Rules rules. Yes. We know.

JJJ uses his shenanigans to drop to 1 HP! Because 2 HP is just so boring. Like, legit, he has -1 AC anyways. 1 damage equals 2 damage. It's the same thing, people.

JJJ's sudden drop in HP confuses... I guess AUtomaton no number. Because JJJ's callous use of numbers the AUtomaton doesn't have is INTIMIDATING! It's like walking the red carpet with fresh Nikes, then spilling adult grape juice on them, only to kick them off and put on another pair. Intimidation. The only word for it.

[RETREAT] JJJ moves 2 squares. From S5 to R5 back to S5. Because it's a crime not to use that extra MOV. Really. There is a long historical record of times people have been arrested for not using their retreat. It's in that Slingbot's history textbook, if it reads close enough. Promise.

<TURN 9>

CARAVAN CAMPSITE, ROUND 5:

With the quick thinking of JOE and Kalis, Toast is slain! The manifold gang of robots screeches loudly, each one shuddering before exploding one by one in a massive chain reaction, each robot spewing a glowing sludge that pools on the ground before the explosion takes the robot out of its misery.

Meanwhile, John, Lun'kla, and Hangman team up to take down Jelly- Lun'kla blasts the robot with powerful psychic energy, putting it to sleep, before John fires an air laser that pierces its stomach. Hangman's Static Overcharge delivers the coup de grace, simultaneously electrocuting Jelly and hoisting it into the air with a noose, where its robotic neck is crushed beyond all repair, dripping with the same bright fluid.

...Chlorin arrives, late to the scene, and takes in the carnage for a moment as the remaining bots flee, and are quickly slaughtered. Robotic bodies hanging from the nearby trees (or, in the case of Jelly, hanging from nowhere in particular), scrap metal littered everywhere, stagnant, glowing pools of liquid that have already begun to evaporate, and tall obelisks spiking from the ground in seemingly random places. And also a plant with a giant eyeball. At least the caravan is intact...?

Garnet visibly relaxes, tension draining out of his body as he takes a moment to catch his breath.

GARNET: ...It appears we've won.
GARNET: Thank you for your assistance.
GARNET: I sincerely doubt I would have been able to handle those ruffians on my own.

There is a loud YIP, and a small dog wearing a fedora trots into the campsite. It drops the Btomaton head it's carrying in its mouth at Kalis' feet, and barks happily, seemingly unaware of the tommy gun that appears to be attached to its left side. Garnet chuckles.

GARNET: Luciano appears to have taken a liking to you!
GARNET: ...He's not usually this friendly with strangers.
GARNET: Here, let me relight the fire.

Garnet turns to the firepit and kneels down, holding his hands close to the extinguished wood. A small jet of flame jumps from his hand, relighting the fire and filling the chilly woods with a comfortable warmth.

GARNET: Much better.
GARNET: Feel free to stay here as long as you like. It's been dangerous around these parts recently, what with Axinite making all sorts of trouble.

Lastly, he turns to JJJ.

GARNET: Oh, you're the one with your history test coming up, correct?
GARNET: I've seen a thing or two in my day, though I'm not sure how much help I will be.

As Garnet settles on a nearby log, pulling out a bag of marshmallows to roast over the fire, the party feels as if they've gotten stronger! +1 Skillpoint! Additionally, everyone is healed and has their MP restored to full!

It's now time for a bit of exploration and freeform goofiness! The "Map of Wandefor Territory" tab on the sheet will be updated shortly with a few new areas to move to. You aren't constrained by your MOV stat in exploration mode, so just specify a coordinate on the sheet (or interact with a person or object, such as asking a question or flipping a lever), and you'll be moved to your new destination!

Additionally, crafting has been unlocked! The Inventory has a list of the crafting materials you've looted from the Caravan Campsite battle. Crafting is a lot like Godmodder attacks or smashposting- you can combine things in creative ways to get better results (though it's not at all required). As a note, it's probably a good idea to theorycraft what you want beforehand if you're looking to craft a weapon, hat, trinket, or armour. You can also equip a second T2 item now! Have fun crafting!

Now, go forth! This world needs saving! Just be careful- there's more than a few hostile forces nearby...

[World]
[Material Processing]
As the cessation of combat, the summons begins to end, whirling storm and frost beginning to dissipate and spirits returned to their origin- but not so swiftly; there is time enough to direct the Rainling and its torrent of clean water to wash the dirt off some scrap metal.
[CRAFT]
Since we have so much Weed, JOE elects to use it. This monsterous shield has served him well.... sort of...... Well, technically he hasn't used it all. One might say it hasn't gotten to serve him. Regardless, it will need improvement. JOE unequips the shield and rests it on the ground, then places Weed on top of it. He then heads over to the campfire and roasts an almost unethical amount of Marshmallows on the fire. Why? Simple. Excess Vitality amplifies the JOEs ability to invigorate and control plant-life, as his trait demonstrates. Food items restore HP. JOE devours a mass of marshmallows in one bite and gains Mending (yes), then returns to his shield, making the Weeds-
hey where'd the weeds go
JOE begins panicking. How could he possibly craft plants onto his shield without any plants? in annoyance, he kicks over the shield and sits down, thinking furiously...
meanwhile, the vines already on the shield(from when he first equipped it) begin strengthening rapidly. JOE doesn't notice.
of course! the flower he made earlier for the A.Supporter! He rushes to the teleportation station to get it.
...Unfortunately, he can't find it on account of it being one flower behind numerous fallen and not-fallen trees. Also, he can't run or look very hard because he doesn't want to alarm the supporter. So, externally, this looks mostly like JOE walked over to the teleportation station, walked towards the greenery on the right, and then inspected its vitality and quality for a bit before leaving.
JOE lies down in the grass next to his shield and sighs. It seems he'll have to upgrade that shield later.
the vines continue to infest the shield.

[Intention: Upgrade the Gaping Shield. in principle to Tier 2, but in practice I assume 0 resources except maybe marshmallows is not enough for that. If to T2, maybe a skill slot but even less attack? or more DEF or CNT? If not to T2, I guess this is a sidegrade towards a more plant-y aesthetic, deemphasising basic attack and skill damage and leaning more into Counter, or maybe HIT or Poison amount?]

[CRAFT2]
Lying down, JOE weaves a bit of his divine legend into the Tophat he wears, reshaping it into a new form- neither inferior nor superior, but different. Adding a colourful flourish of blue flowers to the layer of vines coating it, and constricting its height a bit. The bit of legend he weaves in is 'did good tactics', replacing the +2 to MHP with a +1 to INT.

CHLORIN: Bruh Sound Effect #2

Chlorin put his newfound point into HP.

Chlorin moves to AR69 and mines the nearby ore.

JJJ suddenly finds himself at not 1 HP. Dang. He was enjoying that.

With a shrug, JJJ heads over to the log next to Garnet. Let's say BL69 on the World Map. He plants Flail-Chion in the dirt and hops up on top of it. At first, he sits with his butt on the pommel and his feet on the guard, but that quickly gets uncomfortable, so he swings down, hooking his legs on the guard and hanging upside-down.

"Ah," he sighs. "Much better."

He looks over at Garnet. "Yeah," he says. "I need help studying. See, we're covering 'the dark ages' right now. I've got the names memorized for all the Kings and Queens and whatever we're supposed to know. Maybe not the specific years, but I've got the order down.

"What I'm missing is- like- how stuff works, you know? The whole feudal system. I think I just need something to compare it to, I guess? Cause 'monarchy' and 'theocracy' and 'oligarchy' and 'aristocracy' all sound so... similar.

"What have you guys got around here? Who's sending all the robots?"

As JJJ lets Garnet explain things, he pokes the marshmallow bag. If Garnet lets him, he pops it open, then grabs a marshmallow and pops it in his mouth. Because foreboding is JJJ's favorite flavor!

[SKILLPOINT]

Hanging around from his weapon so long, JJJ gains STRENGTH!

I mean, he's a stringy 5th grader. Any physical activity is gonna boost his strength.

~~~

Once Garnet finishes explaining that, JJJ thanks him. He has another question, though.

"Where are you going with this caravan, anyways? Mind if I tag along? Seems I'm not too useful to these guys. Makes sense. I'm only 10. You have space for one more?"

Craft: Periala continues to play her harp, scraping sounds continuing to emit, to help the rest recover.

As she does, several materials from the ethereal group inventory bag begin flying out. First some circuit-boards (3-5, DM discretion) a magicallibrator, a toaster coil which quickly begins unwinding itself, an Extra Strong Glass Jar, and what appears to be an auxiliary temporal matrix system from the TimeToaster400.

The Glitch Harp lifts itself from her hands, and begins to rotate in midair. As it does, it seemingly latches onto the individual pieces.

First the toaster coil gets snatched by the harp's own string, getting fully unraveled and split before becoming one with the strings themselves. Then, the temporal matrix system from the TimeToaster gets latched onto by the base of the harp, and quickly becomes merged into it.

However, this doesn't seem to immediately fuse with the harp fully, which the harp itself seemingly calculated for, as the magicallibrator and circuitboards then get forcibly pulled into the base of the harp as well, morphing them into an interface between the glitch magic of the harp, which creates a crystal as its interface point into the magicallibrator, and the temporal sciences of the Toaster.

This itself leads to a new issue, however, as now these delicate pieces of machinery are susceptible to outside interference. Undeterred, however, the Harp pulls the Extra Strong Glass Jar, which under the influence of the Glitch energy surrounding it, melts down, and then flows onto the surface of the harp's grip, forming a hardened shell over all but the Coil/strings themselves, which are now fully integrated with the time tech.

Then, a spark of light shoots from the harp, blinding any looking directly at it, and during that light, a sound plays from the harp:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPAJ8HlL2sk

As the light fades, the Harp's blue finish becomes clear, somehow having glitched the jar's glass into a wooden appearance, and with the word's "Police Public Call Box" Covering the handle, the HARPDIS is complete, (aka the Hyper-Anachronistic Relativity-Powered Dimension In Space).

(Short version: 3-5 circuitboards, a magicallibrator, a toaster coil, an extra strong jar, the Glitch Harp, and one build charge off the TimeToaster400 are all used to make the HARPDIS, an upgrade to the Glitch Harp whose preferred upgrade effect would be a boost to HP recovered from the equivalent effect to song of restoration which cannot exceed the difference between the target's HP this turn, and the prior turn. If Fuffy has a better idea, then do that, I'm sure not DMing, this just seems fun.)

Periala just sits there entranced by the Harp's improvement, but will be broken out of it and follow should someone start heading towards the new zones.

With the battle won, John suddenly finds himself feeling slightly more skillful. Approximately one point more skillful, in fact. Or in more abstract terms, he allocates 1 Skillpoint to his SKI stat. Whatever any of that means.

---------

With.. whatever that was out of the way, he turns his attention to the pile of scrap materials gathered from the automatons. He removes the scouter from his head and examines it. It certainly isn't a Poe Co design, but maybe something here can elevate it to the next level.

He first grabs a magicalibrator and some gold, not knowing whether science or magic powers this thing so he is hedging his bets that gold will work both as a normal conductor and as a magical one, and will probably help in integrating the magicalibrator. Using a Poe Co brand multitool, he gets to work in breaking open the casing of the scouter and incorporating the new parts. That was before he got distracted by the pretty pretty shiny shiny of the small assortment of crystals that was also in the pile.

Using Poe Co's Specialized Soldier Subterfuge technique (Loudly yelling "LOOK OVER THERE!" and then doing whatever it was you were planning on doing regardless if anyone looked or not), John grabs the Luminous Crystal from the pile, hoping that maybe an aesthetic boost will also make the scouter, if not more powerful, at least more pleasing. He gets to wiring the crystal so that parts of it show through the casing of the device, glowing softly whenever it is active. And with that, he is done with.. whatever this is.

[TL;DR: John used Scouter + Magicalibrator + Gold Ingot + Luminous Crystal to make.. hopefully a T2 Scouter.]

-----------

With that done, John's newfound "pretty pretty shiny shiny" sense starts to lead him to tile BB65 so he can begin investigation of the... *checks map that I have and he doesn't* Crystal Tree Crossing.

Kalis looks down at Luciano and presses X to pet the dog. The animation is a little janky, and close inspection reveals their hand clips through Luciano's fur once or twice, but all in all it's a pretty good pet.

KALIS: Who's Axinite?
KALIS: We're not from around here.

-----

Kalis respecs! They take 1 KP out of HP and 1 KP out of INT to combine with their new KP to buy Protowell Seeker, then drop Pow Hammer to learn Formulaic Spellcasting, choosing Range 6-8, Potency, and Light damage.

Battle done with. Hangman surveys the area, smirking at the sight of all those destroyed automaton things, a flicker of light appearing in the severe-lack-of-eyes of his...

"That was fun. What next..."

...Something seems off. Hangman can sense a potential problem nearby. And on top of that, he also has to ponder where those automatons likely came from... Partially so he can slaughter them all and get himself more skillpoints, but also because the aggressor usually has advantage and he doesn't want to be at a disadvantage. But first he should cover any problems.

Hangman's head turns in Garnet's direction completely independently from the rest of his body. It's kind of weird. His empty eye sockets "stare" at the old man as he levels the Chainrapier...

...at the bag of marshmallows.

"Something isn't right here. Keep a close eye on that suspicious bag of marshmallows. I'd do so myself, but... I'm sure you can very clearly see the problem with that, hm? Anyway, I'll be doing some investigation elsewhere."

He begins humming happily to himself as he wanders off, brushing past the remains of one of those hanged robots. First, he goes north. Then, thinking carefully about the direction those robots were likely closer to prior to his arrival...

"Eksveai tower... What a strange name."

He heads East.

<TURN 10>

Initiating skillpoint-o-pocalypse...


Now that the Skillpoint-O-Pocalypse is complete, time for the actual update!

---

Hangman decides to explore!

GARNET:
GARNET: what

As Garnet is left staring hopelessly confused at his bag of marshmallows, Hangman wanders into the Regular Clearing.

There's a sudden burst of purple energy, and a time machine appears! A triangle-headed boy hops out, leaving his rectangle-headed companion in the machine.

???: Oh, look! A customer already!
PHINEAS: I'm Phineas, and this is my brother, Ferb!
FERB: ...
PHINEAS: He doesn't talk much.
PHINEAS: Anyway, we're here to sell some of our old supplies!
PHINEAS: We can't sell you anything too incredible for the sake of the timestream, but hopefully our current stock should suffice.

The Triangle Emporium is now open for business! You may now peruse and purchase its wares at your leisure! Woohoo!

---

JOE does the game's first crafting! First, the remnants of his summons wash the dirt and grime off 7 Scrap Metal. This turns it into... Dented Iron. Now it's only gently used, making it marginally better for crafting with!

Then, he roasts a ton of marshmallows in the dancing flames, though JJJ saves a single one from its fate. Somehow, he feels a great burden lift off his chest as he chows down. He then uses the energy to revitalize his shield into the Overgrown Shield, and sidegrades his top hat into the Divine Tophat! Neat.

As he returns to the Campsite and relaxes... Garnet whaps his hands with a long, tall obelisk. It doesn't really hurt due to JOE's massive DEF.

GARNET: How rude of you!
GARNET: Next time, have some consideration for us! We'd have liked marshmallows, too.
GARNET: It's a good thing I brought spares.

Garnet retrieves a significantly less ominous and foreboding bag of marshmallows from his bag. He probably won't object if you take a few, but not all at once or else he'll be angery.

---

Chlorin's time to shine! They move to the Cave Entrance, unfazed by the sudden heat, and bonk the ore there with the butt of their gun, collecting 5 blobs of Unrefined Targlue! It's a little melty, but still workable.

---

JJJ noms a marshmallow! Well, he does other things too, but this is clearly the most important part of the post.

As JJJ bites down on the delicious fluffy treat, he feels a colossal ripple in the Crit-Energy. For just the very barest of seconds, he feels the same surge of energy as a normal Critical Hit, but multiplied a thousandfold...

And then it's gone.

Strange.

As JJJ recalls the experience, he also recalls another pulse of Crit-Waves, a darker, more... wrong-ish pulse. In fact... he can slightly feel it now, emanating from the cave to the west.

Foreboding indeed...

Anyway, then he asks Garnet about the political situation locally.

GARNET: Oh!
GARNET: ...Well. We're supposed to have a governorship of sorts here, mandated by the bookies back in Chancylvania.
GARNET: It's intended to be a provisional measure while the colony gets itself settled... but then this whole Axinite debacle got started, and a proper government hasn't yet been set up...
GARNET: ...I suppose you may not know about the robots. They're Axinite's handiwork.

Then, JJJ enquires to where the caravan is travelling.

GARNET: ...To be honest, we're going nowhere in particular.
GARNET: My daughter and I used to live up on Mount Champion, but we had to flee in the face of a large contingent of Automatons led by... some sort of enormous train.
GARNET: So we're currently just heading... away.

GARNET: Also... I think you might be safer if you stayed with your group for a while.
GARNET: I'm getting on in years, and I can't fight as well as I used to.
GARNET: Minerva knows I have my hands full with one temperamental teenager...

---

Periala continues the crafting train! Strumming on the harp, she (slightly inadvertently) upgrades it to the HARPDIS! As a note, its effect has been changed up a bit from the Glitch Harp's effect, in exchange for some stats and HIT changes. This shouldn't really affect your battle strategy that much, but it might mean more use for Beam Warp. Fun!

---

John gets in on the Crafting Fun! With a few material expenditures in the name of Crafter the Almighty, the Luminoscouty is complete!

John then slips off to explore the Crystal Tree Crossing, with Periala tagging along...

In this clearing, there's not much of note, other than the prominently placed tree made out of a bark-like, geometrical stone. Instead of leaves, large crystals of a pale lavender hue sprout from its branches. It clashes horribly with the surrounding atmosphere; it's probably not native.

There's also a signpost, detailing more areas to explore. There's a temple to Minerva(?) to the west, and something called 'Eksveai Tower' to the east.

Apparently that caved-in area might be the entrance to 'Icosahedrite Mine'. Interesting!

---

Kalis pets the doggy! Luciano doesn't seem to mind the janky animation, receiving the pets gratefully.

GARNET: Oh! I'm sorry, I'm not sure why I assumed you were familiar, considering your group...
GARNET: Axinite was, as aforementioned, the temporary governor of this planet whilst we were settling it.
GARNET: All in all, seemingly a very nice man, if a bit strict.
GARNET: But a few months ago, he started acting strangely... picked up a habit of mumbling under his breath, and shut himself in his workshop for days at a time.
GARNET: ...It appears the Automatons were what he was working on back there.
GARNET: But, yes... it all came to a head roughly two weeks ago.
GARNET: He suddenly flipped out, ranting about how we were all "too pathetic" to "REALLY stand up to him", and he also kept talking about ladders and "adaptation" for some reason?
GARNET: A few of the security detail assigned to him tried to get him under control, but he blasted them away with some sort of hyperamplified poison spell.
GARNET: The Automatons have been attacking us ever since.

Hmm... what a strange story. Perhaps you have an inkling as to what's going on?

---

And that's the first exploration update complete! Who knows what exists in the unknown wilds beyond?

JJJ thanks Garnet for the information, but-

"HEY!" he complains. "I'm not a teenager! Weren't you listening? I'm ten!" You can tell he's not a teenager, because if he was, he'd have said that with a lot more "angst."

"I'm still young and impressionable!" Not sure he should be advertising that fact.

"What's your daughter have that I don't! Who is she even!?"

JJJ stops to listen to Garnet explain things. He calms himself down. The old man has a pleasant voice or something. I dunno.

Of course, he still has more to say, this time less aggressive. "And the point of me coming with you is to help out! You're old. You need help walking and fighting off hordes of robots. You're like my grandpa. Stubborn like him, too. What are you gonna do if another wave of robots attacks?"

[RESPEC?]

While JJJ continues sitting around, doing nothing (staring at that cave. Crit-waves and something Vibratium. *Shudders*. It's tempting...), he starts perusing the spell list and realizes he's an idiot!

Why is he using Soaring Rush when Heartpiercer is legit HIS NEUTRAL SPECIAL!?!?

JJJ starts bouncing up and down, up and down, agitated. How to get rid of it. How to get rid of-

JJJ does a magic trick! Nothing in his hands. Nothing up his sleeves. Cups his hands together in a ball. Opens them. TA-DA! A white bird goes soaring away, rushing at high speeds.

Oh no! Looks like JJJ needs a new spell. Since he just broke Soaring Rush's heart, he might as well take Heartpiercer...

"Those 'Mallows were extremely dangerous. Hangman noticed it as well; they radiated an ominous, though subtle, aura- bleached white like the bones of a millennia-old corpse. Worry not, however- this second bag is pure of such things, and I will not deprive you of it."
It is at that moment that JOE evaporates into swamp gas.
.I do not believe I will continue to participate in WiS due to what appears to be a fundamental incompatibility in expectations for collaborative writing in general outside of the standard DTG-game format. I assume further elaboration is not desired, but can provide such at great length.

(From a lore perspective, maybe JOE got cut off from the other places he is presumably worshipped in by the axanite field and had to go tend to all the other believers? Or maybe this is conflicting-history-accounts stuff where some people think JOE was retroinserted into the history by the bog believers? I dunno. there isn't an in-universe reason for leaving, but it doesn't seem like a good idea to continue playing.)

Seeing the Crystal Tree was being analyzed by one of his unlikely allies (and assuming this ally wouldn't like him trying to shake more pretty crystals from the boughs of the tree), John makes his way towards this mysterious Eksveai Tower. Upon arriving there (and upon ignoring the odd children in the area before it), he approaches the annoyed local.

John: Hello?
John: You seem.
John: Aggravated?
John: Annoyed?
John: Aggranoyed?
John: Annavated?
John: ...
John: ...
John: Something like that.
John: Anyway. Can I help you at all?
John: I am a Fixer with Poe Co, after all.
John: You got a problem? I fix it
John: Mostly by shooting it. A lot.

Are we... connected?

In the darkness, something is created, or perhaps merely shown - a magical object, something of high value... a soul.

Truly excellent.
We may begin.

The darkness gives way to a background of blue and black, in eclectic patterns that seem to just evade focus.

First.
You must create a vessel.

And so, a vessel is created. It is a fairly tall figure, with medium-length hair. A gray jacket is all that contrasts darker grey, monochrome jeans and unremarkable shoes. It is a young man, currently unconscious, devoid of color.

You have created a wonderful form.
Now.
Let us shape its statistics as your own.

What are its proficiencies?
An intriguing menu is displayed, with 17 skill points and a variety of statistics to put them in. The voice pauses, giving the player time to place these points accordingly. Eventually, it is decided.
2 points will go into HP.
3 points will go into Agility.
3 points will go into Skill.
6 points will go into Intelligence.
Finally, 3 points will go into Resistance.

Please give it a gift.
New options are displayed - hundreds, each defining a trait of sorts.
After carefully reading, the player decides on one: Tension Casting.

Trait: Tension Casting [Color: #FFBB33]
You start with 0 MP at the beginning of a battle, and mediating only restores 1/6 of your MP. In exchange, you gain 1 MP for every point of negated damage and 1 MP for every 2 points of damage you deal.

What weapon does it wield?
The Player looks through the available weapons before deciding that a weapon modeled after the Chain Rapier would be the best choice at the moment. It ends up taking the form of a Wood Blade, a simple wooden broadsword with a carbon reinforced core.

What is it's equipment?
More menu shuffling. The vessel eventually ends up wearing a Sealed Helmet (+20% Fire and Ice Resist, +10% Electric Resist, -20% Darkness Resist), a Tactical Vest, a Wooden Buckler, and an Amber Card. (Like the Lucky Charm, but slightly more powerful.)

What spells may it cast?
Another menu, this one split up into tabs with a variety of weapons. The player goes for Cura, Whirling Blades, and Proximity Burst for now, though he is considering changing them up later.

What is it's signature ability?
An ultimate move... the Player types for a moment, before submitting something.

X-Anything [Color: #FF3333] - Fills by Spending MP, Taking Damage
Allows you to take 2 additional actions this turn. Castable as a Bonus Action.
SP Required: ???

How do you feel about your creation?
The Player takes a second, but then responds. "Optimistic."

Understood.
Name your vessel.
The Player hesistates, but... his name is... Warryn.

And what about the creator?
The Player responds. "Torix."

Excellent.
Truly excellent.
"Torix."
Thank you for your time.
Your wonderful creation...

The background cuts to black. Torix pauses, suspicious, and...

Will live a life of its own.
You may not choose who it is.
Vessel. Your name is...



Warryn awakens to the touch of soft green grass against his arm, face down in the Teleportation Station. Not saying a word or daring to call out, he gets up, brushes the dirt off of him, and... begins moving north, towards the Caravan Campsite. Eventually, he makes it, and stumbling through the brush, he finds his way upwards into... well, the remains of a battlefield as multiple players recover. Although he cannot do much at the moment, he gives a halfhearted wave to some of the closer individuals as he awaits some sort of reaction from them.

Hangman stares in bewilderment as two characters from a decidedly very fictional series introduce themselves as shopkeepers. Or, at least, that's probably what he's doing. It's hard to tell.

"...I see. You should talk with the other people around here about purchases. Business isn't my business..."

With that, he leaves the area. He has other places to explore. First, up past the Eksveai tower. Normally, he'd have killed off whatever strangers were around without bothering to think about them. But the only ones around... They'd hardly be worth the effort, would they? Not to mention he'll need to be patient while he's still depowered.

Then, he goes to the northwest of that room, investigating the ??? area.

Chlorin walks over to the Temple of Minerva, checking out the statue. They then walk up to the Purple Kid.

CHLORIN: Hey, whatcha doin' around these parts?
CHLORIN: Statue looks quite nice if I do say so, must be some important gal then. Tell me a bit 'bout her, if you would please.

Periala sees a vast temple nearby, and decides that is clearly the most important location to go. She proceeds to walk down the columned expanse, ruminating on the design. "Yes, very imposing. One would think you would make walls between the pillars though, or at least sets of large doors, perhaps? Yes, that would likely work well. If I am to have a church within these lands, that would be how I should think it should be done."
She then walks up to the large statue in the back of the temple. "Helloooo! Fellow goddess here miss..." Her HARPDIS plays a series of notes she somehow translated "ah yes, Minerva. I don't know the customs for gods around here, is it considered customary to set an offering before engaging in dialogue in this domain? If so, I need only know the type and I will try to locate the offering. I would very much like to have a conversation on the subject of, firstly, where we are, and secondly, if I might ingratiate myself to the local pantheon. I seem to be stuck here for the time being, and it is better to prepare for the long haul than be without worshipers after all." She then stands before the altar. "If there is anything you would like nearby, a subtle glow would suffice, I will see if my traveling compatriots would be willing to part with it for you, Lady Minerva." She does a deep bow at this, seeming fully sincere in spite of the ludicrousness of every word she has spoken for the last minute.