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The Maiden Voyage of the BOINK

Scene details

Setting: Our heroes venture at last into the wind-scoured inland deserts of this misbegotten isle with the aid of a marmot-powered sand-sailing sledge. There, the dice giveth a companion, and the dice taketh away a companion. He'll be fine.

Log


 In the shipwreck-strewn inlet where our heroes have made their temporary home and on the surrounding coastline, one can almost believe that the name of his isle is sincere. Occasionally a strong wind is kicked up, but for the most part the ocean breeze is soothing, if perpetual. And while the sun is rarely shielded by any clouds for long, the many towering boulders, the remnants of past volcanic activity, offer abundant shade. The dearth of resources means a lack of progress, but at least the party is relatively safe here, grumpy tortoises aside.
 And their friends keep washing up here too, for some reason, so that helps.
 But only a short venture inland, the transformation of the biome is stunning. Boulders give way to a dazzling variety of cacti, tall saguaro and agave interspersed with prickly pear, their delectable nopales guarded by fearsome spines. At first, the saguaro are bunched close enough that some shade is still provided from the beating sun, and it is here that marmots large and small may be most easily found scampering about. Yet travel further still inland, cresting larger dunes, and it is then that the wind begins to sear.
 The winds for which this isle is truly, and ironically, named are those which rush down the slopes of the volcano at its center and pass uninhibited through the cactus-spotted desert. As the sun above roasts, so the surging desert wind chaps and peels. The heart quails at the thought of trudging into this wind through the whole of the desert. The extensiveness of the party's preparations for this venture become understandable in an instant.
 And what did those preparations produce? Well.
 "Behold!"
 Ivo raises his voice to be heard over the desert winds, his dark hair billowing and the high collar of his tattered shirt fluttering, but he is at least protected by the unexpected shade of the vessel at which he now gestures. He is introducing the assembled to the creation of the party's brightest minds: what appears to be a great sledge capable of carrying them all, a boat to be borne along the sands, clearly built half from repurposed shipwrecks and half from driftwood, dried palm fronds, and spit.
 "The BOINK: the Brave Overland, uh, Indignant... no... Impulse?... Fabroxo, what was it?" The Cosmopolitan asides to the madder scientist before, without batting an eye, returning to his enthusiastic presentation. "In any case, our sand sail sledge will bear us across the desert. We will ride the very winds that beat upon us! And we retain multiple contingencies for propulsion!"
 It does look at least that the wooden frame of the BOINK (Mark I, probably) provides some shelter from sun and wind, at least. The sail, if reconstituted from salvaged sailcloths, looks sturdy enough. But surely tacking against the wind won't always be possible. That, presumably, is why there are four megamarmots harnessed to the front of the BOINK, the very wild animals looking not especially pleased to be there. Those curious as to how these undomesticated and at times aggressive animals are being wrangled need look no further than Daiby's little snakes, which at times peek into view from the frontal base of the sledge. The next "contingency for propulsion" is a little harder to spot, but perhaps even more baffling. On a lower deck of sorts on the sledge, there is a mill or exercise wheel crafted of old ship planks on which normal-sized marmots are purposefully running. It is not clear what this powers, if anything.
 "Impressive, isn't it?"
 Ivo grins widely. Someone caught Magitech Madness again.
 But at least one is impressed: the little shadowcat that previously accompanied the Catgirl Mafia, which Ruidosa had named Sombra. It silently manifests from Ivo's shadow, in which it had presumably been hiding to follow them out of curiosity, and springs onto the deck of the sledge, where it sits and stares fixedly at the little marmots running in their wheel. Even littler sweatdrops appear upon their tiny brows.

> Sombra the Shadowcat has joined the party as a guest.

Ruidosa La Crima has obtained Parasol. Parasol blocks damage from -type damage. She frowns a little as she sits on the 'deck' of the sand skimmer and sniffs.



"I hate this and it smells. It smells because you two made it." she says. No, it smells because of marmots, but she eyes Sombra and leans a hand forward to try to pet....!?

Ruidosa La Crima rolls 1d20>=10.
Comment: Pet a shadowcat...!?
Roll(s): 15. Total result is 15. This is a success (by 5).

  • Character: Fabroxo
  • 6 months, 2 weeks ago


  Next to Ivo rests a medium pile of Fabroxo, presently a tangled, exhausted mess of a man. Coated in sweat and filth from his shared scientific exertions with Buffoonish Protege Ivo, the generally questionable magitechnologist seems to have spent all of his energy in constructing the BOINK mkI. The great deal of swimming he did in the pre-process of resource gathering probably didn't help. Still, he lifts his dust-covered self slightly to respond to Ivo.
  "It's...Impulse...something...Conveyance?" Fabroxo appears confused for a moment. "No, that's not...ugh." He closes his eyes and flops over onto his backside, closing his eyes.
  "I'll workshop it...later...zznnrk." Light snoring quickly ensues.


  Reize had to spend a good few days in recovery thanks to being used as an improptu projectile at the whims of the surly tortoise. And it took a long time to get all of the spines out of him. At least, he thinks the spines are all removed.

 Upon the introduction to the sledge before them, he gazes in awe. "Wow! We have a new ride!" He gives a thoughtful look. He should have an easy time riding on this as it's not traversing through water, after all. He does, however, look over at the massive marmots with a sweatbead over his head. "... Hopefully, they won't aim to have us smash into any cacti or off a ledge or something..." He looks uncertain of entrusting his life to the creatures.

 "Ah, I'm sure we'll make it through."

 While Ruidosa tends to their guest party member, Reize gives one of the megamarmots a pat. "We'll be counting on you!"
 

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d20>=10.
Comment: Animal friendship! ....maybe.
Roll(s): 11. Total result is 11. This is a success (by 1).

  • Character: Iris
  • 6 months, 2 weeks ago


 "Well," is all Iris says, standing next to the skiff with her hands on her hips, elbows angled out. "This seems kinda impressive, all things considered. Looks sturdy enough."

 She reaches out and raps on the hull with the back of her fist. At this moment, one of the marmots makes a... whatever the word is for 'marmot sound'... which covers up the faint creaking and splintering sound her hand produced. "Locally sourced propulsion, sensible." Apparently the weaponsmith's craftsman's eye, or perhaps expertise, extends beyond 'stuff to kill people with'.

 As she climbs onto the deck, shielding her eyes with her hand for a moment, she turns to Ivo (and by proxy Fabroxo) and clicks her tongue. "You know what would really complete it? Deck mounted ballista, right there," she says, turning and making an 'L' with her thumb and forefinger on both hands, squaring off a space in the center of the deck. "Cannon would be too much stress on the hull, obviously, but. Hmmm." Oh dear.


 As Ivo ascends to the deck at the prow of the BOINK, facing valiantly (and dramatically) into the desert wind, Reize is nonchalantly giving a pat to one of the coerced megamarmots hitched to the front of the vessel. Its eyes roll to glare intently at the spirited boy, gaze steady and unblinking. It is unclear what, if anything, is going through its furry head. And then, against all odds, it seems to start to rub said head against Reize's hand. In that moment, Ivo is taking a deep swelling breath of the desert air, exhaling gustily.
 "Smells like science to me," he quips to Rui. A couple beats later, he sneezes loudly. This seems to startle the megamarmots at the front of the vessel, who then begin to scamper in a frenzy, Reize's new friend startled in the midst of discovering the existence of pets. This starts to pull the sledge along and pick up momentum. "We're off, friends!" Ivo announces, as though that was on purpose. "Reize, help me unfurl the sails!"
 As the vessel begins to move, there is just enough time for one last passenger to join: a surly giant tortoise that slowly clambers up onto the lower deck, their most recent recruit. As the shadowcat fixates on the small marmots, so it seems to stare fixedly at Reize wherever he goes.

> BGM Change: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2JYwy8nwxY
> Hull Integrity: 100%...?

 Their ungainly vessel begins to accelerate until it is traveling at a steady clip, coasting down the slope of a dune, the megamarmots able to weave past some of the larger cacti, smaller plants tragically but inevitably crushed by the bulk of the sledge. Ivo tugs some of the rigging free and then moves to place his hands on the helm, the rudder apparently still able to induce steering to some extent in the sand. As he does, he chats animatedly with Iris upon the deck, Magitech Madness clearly not having abated.
 "You're absolutely right," he cheerfully agrees. "I hope that we'll be able to construct some proper bolts with whatever ore we can find in closer proximity to the volcano. As it is, we'll have to rely on our own capacities for self-defense. On that note..."
 Despite his calm and lively tone, Ivo is now tacking as hard to the left as he can, to little avail. It is becoming clear that their vessel is already hurtling toward a large cactus and the megamarmots, disorganized, are running in opposite directions rather than uniting to avoid it.
 "Can you shift the sails to better catch the wind!?" Ivo calls. Tacking against the wind offers an extraordinary speed boost, but requires constant effort and attention. "Or perhaps hack that cactus down!?" Someone's got some kind of cool ability that would obliterate a big cactus in a minigame like this, right?
 Meanwhile, more importantly, Sombra the Shadowcat raises their hindquarters to enjoy Ruidosa's scritches, though it is hard to tell at first if they do so out of affection or distraction. Within moments, however, the vampire girl is faced with an even greater dilemma than the party at large, for Sombra flops, rolling onto their back, showing their belly, and staring now up at Rui.
 Is this a trap? Does she dare...???

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d20>=10.
Comment: Steering the sail for great justice
Roll(s): 18. Total result is 18. This is a success (by 8).

Ruidosa goes for the belly scritch! Is it a trap... but soon.. they're off. Wether they wanna be or not.

"WELL SCIENCE SMELLS A LOT LIKE DIRTY MARMOTS!" Ruidosa yells.

And she scrambles to keep footing as she grabs at the sails, trying to move them to do anything to get them off course with a giant catcus.

She then tries to point her hand forward. But giant marmots are in the way. Because someone thought pulling this with marmots is a good idea!

"Ugh I'll hit the marmots!" she whines.

Ruidosa La Crima rolls 1d20>=10.
Comment: BELLY...!?
Roll(s): 4. Total result is 4. This is a failure (by 6).


 It looks like Reize's ability to partner with animals is improving or at least he's not immediately introduced into a world of pain. That alone is a step up for the young explorer. He brightens at the marmot as it rubs against his hand. Giving it a few more pats, he joins back to the group on the sledge.

  Hopping onto their vehicle, the boy grins and he leaps over towards the mast and he tugs over to undo the rope.

  "AYE AYE, CAPTAIN!" He young boy starts unfoiling the sails, letting them out to catch the wind.

****

  And their ride begins.

  Reize is holding on towards the mast, wiping a brow. He looks at the gathered: the sleeping scientist, their new traveling partner Iris, the shadowcat with Ruidosa and --- "Oooi! Glad you can join us, Tor-tor!" That is the name that Reize decided to designate the tortoise.

  As Ivo calls for the sails to shift, Reize reaches for a rope and starts pulling over to the side, "Ri--right!"

  "Ooi! Rui! Can you blast the large cactus?!" And she had made her attempt.... "Err...." A large sweatbead appears on his head.
 

  • Character: Iris
  • 6 months, 2 weeks ago


 Hmm. Cactus problem, huh.

 "I think I can fix this. Maybe. One sec."

 She turns away from the group, reaching out a hand and, much as she did before, 'summoning' the right tool for the job, which in this case appears to be... a whittling knife? There's the sound of something being scraped, and then what can only be described as a guitar-like *TWANG!* sound a couple of times, before the runesmith turns back around holding her great creation:

 A slingshot with a salvaged bowstring for stringing and a shot pouch hastily cut from spare sailcloth. In her other hand she holds a small leather bag, both of which she holds out to Reize.

 "There. Fire runestones in the bag. Hope your aim is good because mine's rubbish. Also I may have made the stones in a hurry so I can't guarantee a couple of them might be... uh, erratic."

 [EXPLANATION: sometimes, instead of exploding on contact with a cactus, said stones will EXPLODE! on contact with a cactus. Have fun!]


 Cats are fickle creatures, as is well known, tending to react impulsively to whatever stimulus they have most recently experienced. Perhaps Sombra was soliciting belly rubs. But as Rui reaches in, one of the little marmots running upon its wheel squeaks in impassioned effort, and Sombra instinctively latches onto Rui's hand as though it were a marmot, lightly (fortunately) chomping onto her finger and grappling her arm with all four limbs to prevent the prey from escaping. The shadowcat stares up at her with the same fixedness with which it had regarded the marmots moments before, and does not let go.

> Ruidosa takes no damage but is afflicted with the status effect "Cat on Arm." One arm is effectively immobilized for the purposes of helping with rigging or spellcasting. If she fails to resist petting the cat with her other hand, both arms are effectively immobilzed.
> This is a very real status effect that must be taken very seriously.

 "You know," Ivo is saying to Ruidosa after she yells at him, "I've actually noticed that, before we even came to this isle. Though it was only when working with Fabrox-- whoahhhh!" His cry of surprise becomes one of delight as their sledge begins to dramatically pick up speed thanks to Reize's successful sail manipulation, which catches the strong winds and pulls the vessel forcibly to one side. This impulsion in turn convinces the megamarmots to get their act together, and they pull as one again, allowing the BOINK and its redoubtable crew to successfully evade their first major obstacle. Fortunately, Rui thus needs neither to deal with the cat on her arm or worry for the marmots in front, for now.
 The sledge cruises through the desert at an otherwise improbable clip, leaving grooves in the sand that the strong gusts soon begin to obscure. Compared to the prospect of venturing by foot or tortoise alone through this land, this plan is almost starting to seem like a good idea.
 But no adventure is complete without Reize being attacked by a wild animal. As our heroes travel further inland, the cacti, while still plentiful, grow sparser and easier to evade for the nonce. But in turn, they begin to see new sights: dark silhouettes circling above, giant vultures riding the winds and searching for carrion or carrion-to-be. To those in the know, this unusual species in particular is known as the "shamshir vulture" for their long scimitar like talons and wicked propensity to speed along the demise of their prospective prey. Thus does one attempt abruptly to divebomb them and slash at the rigging and the one closest to it, Reize, as well. Should it not be repelled, it may be difficult for them to maintain this speed, thus ensuring that the other obstacles will pose more of a problem again. The other vultures higher above look on, perhaps gauging their actions depending on how successful the bravest among them proves to be.
 "Reize!!" Ivo calls in dismay, even as he keeps his attention focused on the helm rather than drawing Hauteclare to help. Probably for the best.
 Fortunately, it seems that their fearless leader has been given a pouch of very reliable runestones. As to whether using them in proximity to the sails is a good idea -- well, that's for him to decide!

> STATUS EFFECT: CAT ON ARM

She flails about, trying to help, but she is be-catten, and she cries. "Oh no, I reached too far to the sun and my wings melted like Icarus!" she cries out some more as she tries to soothe the cat, with belly rubs and pets, giving the cat all her attention.

Everyone else is now being ignored, due to her status effect.

Ruidosa La Crima rolls 1d20>=10.
Comment: Cat Soothing!
Roll(s): 20. Total result is 20. This is a success (by 10).

Reize Seatlan rolls 1d20>=10.
Comment: Interrupt 1(Divebomb) = Shining Moon
Roll(s): 1. Total result is 1. This is a failure (by 9).


  "Ruidosa! We need---"

 There is an awkward pause at the sight of the shadowcat occupying Ruidosa's arm with all fours clinging on it. He offers a frown and his antenna hair droops. "...Ah."

 There is no fighting that.

 With a small leather bag handed out to him, the boy takes it from Iris, "Oh! Thanks!" He gives a grin as he looks ahead. "Yeah! I should be able to aim well!" In fact, the boy immediately takes a hold of one of the runes from the bag and he gives a quick pitch towards the cactus.

 The rune sails quite far at an incredible arc. As it makes impact with the lower center of the large cactus, an explosion emits towards its body.

 "Yeaaah!"

 The boy cheers, bringing his hands up high. It's too early to celebrate, as he becomes the recipient of a divebomb from the large, scimitar-taloned creature.

 His eyes drift over to see a shadow above. "Whoa!" He spins around, preparing to position himself to leap forward as aether wells around his body. He sucks in a breath, springing up. "Shi---ghhnkk!" He is caught by the talons before he could follow through with his rising foot.
 

  • Character: Iris
  • 6 months, 2 weeks ago


 Hmm. Well, fire runestones: 1, cactus: 0. However, there are two games being played this afternoon, and the score in the other one currently has the Vultures leading the Protagonists 1-0. Still, it's early yet, this could be anyone's game.

 "Hey," Iris shouts over at Ivo, while tracking the vulture that attacked Reize. "I think a giant bird is trying to kidnap your friend? Or kill him maybe." THANKS, NEWSCASTER IRIS.

 But she realizes that the slingshot is still in her hands, because Reize only took the runestones, meaning she's technically armed with a weapon. Time slows to a crawl, mathematical equations scrolling by in the background like speed lines as the runesmith thinks about her options, here, including the additional bags of runestones she has handy and what she might do with--

 With a shrug, Iris turns and throws the slingshot at the vulture. "GO AWAY."

 Sure. Why not.

  • Character: Iris
  • 6 months, 2 weeks ago

Iris rolls 1d20 - 2.
Comment: SHE SAID HER AIM IS RUBBISH
Roll(s): 18. Total result is 16.

  • Character: Iris
  • 6 months, 2 weeks ago

Iris rolls 1d20-2>=10.
Comment: For posterity's sake
Roll(s): 8. Total result is 6. This is a failure (by 4).


 As Ivo vigorously spins the wheel at the helm to both continue to catch the wind and hopefully shake off their new attacker, the sledge passes evocatively through the plume of smoke left by the large cactus Reize just reduced to cinders, clearing their path. At their speed, the smoke soon billows past, and Ivo, blinking it away, looks over his shoulder to take stock of their briefly obscured situation.
 The shadowcat has gone from clinging to Ruidosa's arm to cuddling against her, practically trying to burrow into her with affection it has heretofore never expressed, gazing adoringly up at her with slow blinks. Her petting has not only alleviated her deleterious status effect. Whether through her finesse, her earnestness, good fortune, or destiny, it has succeeded beyond anyone's wildest dreams.

> Sombra the Shadowcat joins the party as Ruidosa's new animal companion!
> The BGM pauses while a lengthy victory fanfare plays.
> Warning: the Shadowcat and the Doom Chicken's initial relation is Hostile.
> The same melody from the fanfare briefly plays in a minor key.

 Ivo, expression inscrutable, looks from Rui to where Reize was moments before. It appears that the boy leapt upward directly into the grasping talons of the vulture, surprisingly even it for a moment, before it just... started flying away, carrying Reize with it, beginning to rise far out of reach to rejoin its brethren, who seem content with this result -- at least until the one carrying Reize is hit with a thrown slingshot, of all things, squawking in dismay. Ivo just stares for a few long beats.

> Reize has technically repelled the vultures!
> A victory fanfare plays?
> Reize also acquires a Slingshot, after it bounces off the vulture.
> Thanks, Iris.

 "Reeeeeeeeeize!" Ivo finally yells again, longer this time, while continuing to focus on steering the sand ship rather than trying to attack the vultures with Hauteclare at range. Again, probably a good idea, at least for everyone other than Reize. Their own success is working against them here, as their rapid speed means that the distance between them and their airborne leader is swiftly increasing.

Ruidosa La Crima has pet the cat very successfully. Her eyes alight in awe ad happiness. "Ivo...Ivo I'm getting... an idea..."

> SHADOW CAT BIKINI OUTFIT UNLOCKED (DLC CONTENT)

Meanwhile, She finally realizes what's going on and screams out. "DAMMIT REIZE ''STOP.'' ''GETTING.'' ''KIDNAPPED.''" she yells as she starts blasting at the creatures trying to throw balls of dark energy through the air at them as they fly away.

"I'M GONNA HAVE A CONNIPTION FIT."


  "Wwwwwwwwhhhhhhhhhhyyyyyy?!" wails Reize, as he is carried off. First the catgirls now the vultures!

 


 Ivo turns his attention away from his boon companion being Reizenapped, again, and back to the vessel he is ostensibly piloting, only to raise his hand to shield his eyes and gaze into the horizon, squinting against the assailing desert winds.
 "Is that...?"
 What shimmers in the distance as they crest another high dune is no mere mirage. An oasis has come into view, here halfway to the inland volcano, in what would be a perfectly convenient save point were it not for the fact that this oasis is crowded all around with the densest "forest" of cacti any of our heroes have yet seen. The water is only visible from their altitude atop the dune, and as they begin to descend, spurred by wind and megamarmot, only a veritable wall of cactus is left in sight.
 "Emergency stop," Ivo announces into the roaring winds. "All hands brace! Activating reserve power!" So saying, as he spins the wheel and the megamarmots rush to the same side to pivot the sledge into a sidelong skid, Ivo throws a small lever on the side of the helm. The small marmots upon their little mill squeak in unison and begin to run yet faster than before.
 It's really not clear what, if anything, this does.
 But believe it or not, the BOINK skids safely to a stop before crashing into the wall of cacti, which shades from the sun and smothers even the sound of raging wind, allowing the party to appreciate something approaching silence again for once. The four megamarmots pat heavily, one of them gazing into the distance into which Reize disappeared with something approaching wistfulness, maybe. Even Daiby's little snakes that were faithfully keeping them in line are sticking out their little forked tongues as though panting.
 "Well," Ivo finally says, having caught his own breath, "thanks to our handcrafted waterskins, we have sufficient supplies to temporarily camp here for a short while. But we should try to venture through these cacti," he gestures behind him, "and make it to the oasis proper soon."
 Shielding his eyes again, he gazes searchingly into the sky.
 "...Perhaps after we retrieve our resident explorer."