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singillppl2024-07-31 10:35 pm
singmod) wrote in singillppl2024-07-31 10:35 pm
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Tales From The Northern Territories #6
TALES FROM THE NORTHERN TERRITORIES #6
Greetings, Interlopers! Welcome to another of your bi-monthly updates, known as Tales From The Northern Territories! The purpose of these little ‘newsletters’, is to touch base with players on how things are going within the game and the fallout of the event of the previous month. In addition, these updates will also provide some extra information on NPCs, along with any additional happenings that might be going on within the game — which may be hints towards the upcoming Test Drive Meme!
Before we jump into things, here’s some dates for your diary for this month:
Test Drive Meme — 10th - 15th
CR Meme — 15th
Reserves — 20th - 24th
Applications — 25th - 31st
CONTENT: As a reminder, there will be no event this month, instead we are back to our normal schedule with this month having a Test Drive Meme instead.
We hope you enjoyed your Two Truths and a Lie last month! This month, players will have their bi-monthly CR Meme.
ANNIVERSARY: August begins the start of Singillatim’s first year anniversary, with the first ever Test Drive Meme going up this time last year and the game’s opening on September 1st. Happy birthday, Singillatim! I made a post here, for anyone who missed it a few days ago. I have also created a Player Feedback Survey, if you wouldn’t mind taking a few minutes to fill it out!
INTERLOPER CENSUS: A new Interloper Census is coming! I did one back in December last year, and I’m refining it to post out in early September! So please keep your eyes on that in the coming weeks!
HOUSEKEEPING: A reminder for players that we have both a Character Location Tracker for players to use to show where their characters are each month. I will link it here, but it can be found on the Areas Page. In addition, Nico has very kindly put together a Character Impressions Sheet for players to put down first impressions/basic general knowledge of characters. While linked here, this can be otherwise found on the Navigation pages.
JULY’S EVENT
THE AURORA: REDUX While Auroras will continue into the months of August and September, they will not be accompanied by dreams/powers that came with the three day Aurora in July. The storm is over, and with it, the chance from Enola to receive a new ability.
PENSIVE LOOKOUT: After venturing to Pensive Lookout and recovering Sam’s journal, Interlopers are left with more questions, and perhaps some answers. A few key points of note:
— Sam met the Forest Talkers before The Flare. The leader going by the name ‘Mal’.
— The Flare occurred on the 1st of August, a couple of weeks before Interlopers first arrived, matching up with Methuselah’s timeline of events that he’s recounted to Interlopers.
— Sam witnessed people trying to escape to Silverpoint, likely those in Lakeside, and some from Milton — matching with Methuselah’s guess that some residents got out of Milton.
— Those who understand morse code, or have taken time to work it out, will realise that the shreds of code Sam recorded will read:
NTERMUTEDOWN
— Sam experienced some kind of mental degradation through the events of August to November, starvation and isolation — including obsessing over ‘the grave’.
— Interlopers who attempt to find the Northern Tower in Lakeside will come across a ruined lookout tower, half buried in snow. Picking through the debris, they can find the remains of a woman who’d been killed in the tower’s collapse: Sharon. She has been dead for almost a year, her body somewhat preserved in the cold.
A PEEK INSIDE: Interrogations with the Forest Talker were difficult, to say the least — with information gained from the Forest Talker being cryptic at best. A rundown can be found here.
An attempt is made on the Forest Talker’s life, and it’s best to maybe allow the Forest Talker to leave — with proper precautions taken to ensure the Forest Talker doesn’t learn much about Milton or the way there. Before he is left, the Forest Talker will look to the Interlopers who return him to Lakeside and smile: “The yawning grave is open, it awaits us all. My flesh is for the earth. Not today, perhaps. But soon. The Long Dark is coming for you.”
AND NOW... THE WEATHER
DAYLIGHT: A full year has passed since Interlopers first came to the Northern Territories. They are now back in familiar territory.The constant daylight begins to fade and twilight hours creep in during the month of August. Civil Twilight at first, then Nautical Twilight beginning from mid-August and Astronomical Twilight beginning from the start of September. By mid-September, periods of night will once again return — short at first, but ever growing. Winter is coming once more.
WEATHER: The warmth of July comes to an end and there’s a notable coolness to August. Cool, but not cold, at least. Temperatures don’t go below freezing just yet, but are hovering just above. This will continue as the month progresses, with the weather getting colder and finally dipping below 0C into September. Snow will begin the fall again more frequently into mid-to-late August and become more usual into September. Whatever Summer was, it is here no longer.
AURORAS: Following the three day Aurora in mid-July, Aurora frequencies are low into August and September — with perhaps only one or two per week.
NEW HAPPENINGS IN AUGUST
SEISMIC ACTIVITY: Tremors can be felt intermittently into August and September. While not enough to cause serious damage to buildings, the ground is uncertain to walk upon at times, ice on lakes, streams, and ponds will crack and break unexpectedly. Interlopers may wake in the middle of the night due to the quakes, causing panic and uncertainty. Unsecured items will fall/topple over.
WILDLIFE: Animals are slowly making a return into August and September, occasionally being spooked back by the quakes. But, for now, it seems that there’s a kind of normality once more in the Northern Territories — or as normal as can be in this place. Hunting parties will find they have more luck, but should take care of predators who are just as hungry as the Interlopers…
NPCs
METHUSELAH: While Methuselah does stay with Interlopers to help with hunting parties, these will eventually grow less and less often into August. He will still return shortly before the mid-month with his offerings for the Feast, but are not as plentiful as they have been previously.
Following the Feast, he will spend a short amount of time with the Interlopers before he will turn to the wilds once more. He has spent a great deal of time with Interlopers as of late, and longs for his solitude. He is a hermetic nomad, after all.
He will stop by the churchyard for a time to sit amongst the graves of Interlopers lost in the last year before he leaves the town. He will tend to graves, cleaning them up and resetting previous trinkets he has left for them. He will be found sitting in a contemplative silence, or perhaps he may be gently speaking: sometimes they sound like some kind of prayers or some kind of funerary rites, other times it almost sounds like stories.
YOUNG BILL: Young Bill continues to aid Interlopers with their hunting party efforts when they are in Lakeside, accompanied by Scout and one of her puppies: Nova. He continues to be a little more open to visitors following the departure of Scout’s litter and doesn’t mind people needing respite from the cold.
ENOLA: Enola is quiet in August and September. On Aurora nights, Interlopers may hear her humming/singing. It is a haunting sound. You cannot explain why.
FOREST TALKERS: The Forest Talkers will continue their efforts to disrupt Interloper/Methuselah/Young Bill’s attempts at hunting, by sabotaging traps, stealing game or purposely spoiling it. Following the note left behind at the end of June, reading: THE YAWNING GRAVE HAS OPENED — additional notes can be found around Lakeside. Some depict wolf or stag skulls. Others will depict the words: THERE ARE RULES. IT IS COMING FOR YOU.
Character Updates
Here's your section to mention it! This is entirely optional! Just fill out the form below!
no subject
Character Name: Levi (and maybe Levi)
Content Warnings: Attempted murder
When: Very late July
Where: Milton
Summary: Y'all know how there was an attempt made on the Forest Talker's life? That was Levi. He hasn't really told anyone about it and the people who stopped him aren't really spreading it around either. But one of the NPCs involved with the kidnapping and escorting the Forest Talker let it slip they stopped "Levi" from killing the Talker. The NPC and people involved aren't really giving details (the NPC knows almost nothing anyway), but the word will get around town eventually.
Except there are two Levis and the guy didn't say which or give any more details. Dem's open to people thinking it was their Levi instead of mine ;)
Future Plans: I'll probably put up a log later in the month including a prompt if people want to confront Levi about it. can link then. I do really want to see how this mixes up his CR!
Louis
Character Name: Louis de Pointe du Lac
Content Warnings: Depression, dysfunctional family dynamics, starvation, vampire drama
When: early/mid July into August
Where: General Store (Marché du Lac)
Summary: Claudia disappeared and Louis is depressed about it, so after a fruitless search he's temporarily stopped running the store with no warning or any indication of where he might be. Anyone who was employed at the time could in theory still open and close the store as normal, but he's not around to pay (barter with) anyone, and he isn't bringing in new stock.
Before that, he punched the Forest Talker prisoner. Oops.
Future Plans: Louis is now at home, likely starving in his coffin (vampires can do this). If anyone would like their character to find him, feel free to plot with me.
no subject
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Character Name: Chloe Frazer
Content Warnings: Food, I guess.
When: Since the sun came back.
Where: Milton outskirts.
Summary: Chloe found seeds back in May that were part of Milton's "grow your own food" program. She started building a greenhouse in June and is growing her first crop of vegetables.
Future Plans: Chloe made a post to the message board about this back in June, so feel free to handwave having helped to work on the construction and/or plant husbandry parts. She's hoping to trade with Louis, but people who help out and her friends are given dibs so you can also handwave having some fresh veggies soon!
Lalo Salamanca | Better Call Saul
Character Name: Lalo Salamanca
Content Warnings: Idk, cooking? Food?
When: First two weeks of every month
Where: Doe's Retreat (his home) in Lakeside
Summary: Lalo has a free restaurant open from sunrise to sunset for the first two weeks of every month in Lakeside. It's closed the second two weeks of the month, since he spends the second two weeks of every month in Milton. Mostly just a way to occupy his time, serve as a secondary way to get food if anybody ever needs extra.
Future Plans: Idk, none really? But if anyone wants to stop by or help out, be my guest.
oh and also i guess the baricades
Character Name: Levi and help
Content Warnings: Nope!
When: Started late May, stalled during June, restarted July.
Where: Around the mine and a few places in Milton
Summary: In late May Levi put up a note requesting help with putting up barricades. He got help so they got one up by the mine entrance and a few in town started, though construction slowed and then stopped in June. Levi went back to finish those around town in July, and in late July one was built near the Lakeside mine entrance.
He went for something kind of like this or this but made with a hodgepodge of rocks, wood and furniture or whatever was usable in houses that people wanted. They may or may not have wire or pointy things on the 'outside' to dissuade people from climbing over them. I figure he's got two up in town, one near the Community Hall/Store and one at Milton Main Street near the church/wherever buildings start to be. They're in the roads but there's still room to go around them without detouring. The ones in town are more like waist high than shoulder high.
The ones by the mine entrance are larger and could conceivably work for one or a few people to be stationed at if needed/wanted. Levi hasn't asked anyone to do this but he stands guard at them for a few hours sometimes.
The one on the Lakeside side of the mine is constructed largely of rocks and scraps from the scrap yard. Car doors and stuff. This one also has spikes of vaguely-pointy scrap or barbed wire on the 'outside' of it. It is currently the first line of defense if the Forest Talkers decide to attack the town so Levi's taken it seriously. During the early month he'll visit/post himself at this one every few days, then drop off to once a week then if everything goes well he'll leave it for once every two-three weeks when he heads to Lakeside anyway.
As of August Levi is regularly checking them and doing any little repairs needed cause stuff shifted or something (or one >:[ ) damaged it. Earth movement will probably mess them up so if anyone wants to help Levi'd welcome it!
Other PCs helped build these! So if anyone went for anything specific with them feel free to say so!
Future Plans: None really. Depending on how things go with the Forest Talkers and events he may seek help to build more or just let these things fall apart. It'd sure be nice to to have the town be peaceful long enough for that huh?