feintofhart: ([ mid phase ] standin around)
feintofhart ([personal profile] feintofhart) wrote in [community profile] expiationlogs2023-08-23 06:10 pm

[ OPEN GROUP LOG ] emergency planning & diplomacy

Who: Everyone! Please use this as an event log -- put up your own starters, and also tag around to your heart's content!
Where: Aldrip's neighbouring towns, the spooky forest, and throughout Aldrip.
What: The Chosen, reeling from the recent forest attack, decide to organize for future attacks, whether that's diplomacy with neighbouring towns, reinvigorating farmland, or getting some combat training in. Please see THIS OOC post for more information!
Warnings: None anticipated; please let me know if I ought to update it!



In the wake of destruction wrought by the strange beast of the forest, Claude and Marianne - both people far more well-acquainted with the ramifications of damaged farm grounds and unprepared civilians than they would like to be - have taken it upon themselves to try to prepare in advance for the next attack, whatever that may be. After discussion with the leads of Aldrip, they’ve come up with a list of what most needs to be done – and they can’t do it alone. With the community of the Chosen at their heels, new and old, for reasons of altruism and for reasons of simple exploration, they have set forth with the following tasks: an excursion through the eerie Pessiria Forest to get to Rumpitur to exchange goods and services for aid from the dubiously friendly naga-like people who live there, restoring life to the destroyed forest and farmlands so that nature can once again thrive, and to properly stock up safehouses with preserved goods, shelter, and weaponry.

What’s in it for you, you ask? Well, when the next attack comes, you don’t want to be the one going hungry.

EXCURSION THROUGH THE PESSIRIA FOREST

Rumpitur is a full day’s trek away, and not a straightforward one; in order to get to their destination, the Chosen must first hike their way through Pessiria forest. They meet with their packs and wagons at the entrance of the forest, a thick, lush wall of foliage greeting them along a winding, unsteady path. If you’re prone to listening to rumours, you may hear some of the locals buzzing about uncertainly: “no business being on that land, none at all”, “Did you hear? That’s where that Froste boy disappeared – when you go in, you never come back out”, “Going in there? They’ll be cursed!”.

No such dangers will greet the Chosen, but the more paranoid among them will be confronted with the grim reality of an entire day’s travel spent on edge, jumping at every flutter of wings from overhead and snapped twigs from the fauna skittering through the brush. During this trek, there will be ample time for the Chosen to stop and rest a while, replenish their flasks and perhaps share a story or two, but be careful; in forests this dense, it’s easy for someone to get lost. Wouldn’t it be a shame if someone was left behind?

To add insult to injury, once they arrive in Rumpitur, they’ll realize that there’s nowhere for them to stay, and the scaled denizens of the place will firmly - though not unkindly - refuse to let them into their homes. That means that to get anything done, the Chosen will need to make camp right outside, a great opportunity to swap stories around the fire, try to rustle up some dinner, go stargazing, or just complain about the effects of the hard ground on your poor old backs. Happy bonding!

DIPLOMACY OF RUMPITUR

Once diplomatic meetings have come and gone, the representatives of Aldrip and Rumpitur have come to an agreement: Rumpitur will provide its aid, but only at a cost. They have their own interests to protect, after all. But they’re flexible on how such a debt is repaid and ask only that the Chosen provide whatever they are able to – and you wouldn’t want to give Aldrip a bad reputation, would you?

Here, the Chosen can truly shine as they’re asked to give what they can. For some, this means sheer manual labour as they haul water from the wells, transport crops and goods from one place to another, or provide much-needed assistance to the smithies and shopkeepers of the land. For others, this means providing gifts, whether that’s their own handiwork of artisanal goods, of art, of culinary delights, of weapons and toys and trinkets that only the Chosen know of. Other civilians may yet yearn for entertainment; a fussy crowd they may be, but with the same people coming in day in and day out, they’re hungry for new music, new acrobatics, new shows.

Be creative in what your characters can provide – and have them ask for help too! This is a true group effort in showing Rumpitur the Chosen’s goodwill, and showing themselves as a steadfast community that can be trusted.


RESTORING RAZED LANDS

Back home in Aldrip, the Chosen are faced with the farmland and lush forests that were decimated in the wake of the attack. Now that the bulk of rebuilding has been completed for the townspeople, it’s time to turn their attention to the abundance of the earth’s gifts that were ingloriously sapped. Here, the Chosen have been asked to replenish destroyed crops by irrigating and milling the land, planting new crops, and tending to the displaced animals that require assistance – though strangely enough, there seems to be some new flora and fauna that’s popping up. Are those plants glowing? Wait, is that a giant bird? It almost looks as though if you caught it, you could ride it… and the villagers of Aldrip seem just as familiar with them as you are, commenting that new life seems to be drifting into Aldrip’s territory on a regular basis.

Have your characters mill about on the farmland together, nurse wounded animals back to health, plant seeds, and help rebuild farms. Nothing says bonding like a good old-fashioned group activity.

Just watch out – those summer storms can be absolutely dreadful, and on more than one occasion, you may find yourselves taking cover in one of the abandoned old farmhouses to wait it out. Get out of those wet clothes, get underneath those (admittedly musty smelling) blankets and use the stove inside to put on some tea. Get nice and cozy – you might be here for a while!

STOREHOUSE SCRAMBLE

Last on the Chosen’s to-do list is to build up their stores so that if an attack of this scale happens again, they’ll be ready for it. The Chosen are to come together as a group to help dig out safehouses and cellars for citizens to hide in during the next attack, and to help bolster their stores. Now that some of their ranks have brought home goods from Rumpitur, it’s time to figure out what to do with it all.

Chosen may assist in hunting and gathering resources, working together to dry and pickle vegetables, dig out safehouses (careful – there are vermin and minor cave-ins aplenty!), and to solicit local smithies to shore up their stores of weaponry – just in case.

That said, weapons aren’t much good without the ability to use them. The Chosen are welcome to test out the wares in a nearby clearing set up specifically for training, especially if they’re from worlds where they weren’t stuck with swords and bow and arrows. There are scarecrows and targets set-up to practice on, but there’s really no replacing one-on-one combat – take a shot at it, and you may even gain a small audience! And are they placing bets…? Well, you’d better do your best, or else more than your pride might wind up bruised.
oracledriven: (...what i'm looking for)

ii

[personal profile] oracledriven 2023-08-28 06:37 pm (UTC)(link)
[It's not the first time Noel has found himself in the forest. That makes for little comfort, at the moment; last time he was here? Things didn't go great.

Funny. Before all of that, he didn't mind spots like this. While other people are calling it spooky and haunted, he's just appreciating the fact that it exists at all. By his time, there wasn't much left like a forest. That said, the singing does catch him off-guard, at first. Once he realizes it's coming from the girl in the tree, he stops feeling like maybe they're right about ghosts.

Jinx will find an apple tossed lazily in her direction. From down on the ground:]


Gonna have a hard time getting a good meal if you're just sitting up there all night.
opheliac: ヽ(✿゚▽゚)ノ (Let's blow this city to ashes)

[personal profile] opheliac 2023-08-28 08:21 pm (UTC)(link)
( sometimes having voices inside your head can come in handy. sure, they are an inconvenience almost all the time, but when it comes to things approaching her or getting tossed at her when her thoughts are elsewhere, they're pretty perfect when it comes to their sudden shouts.

so her reflexes to catch this apple is a tad bit spooky, it seem like she wasn't going to grasp the fruit in time -- but her hand does a very quick swift and it's in her hold. with a cock of her head downward to noel, her brow quirks then a lopsided smirk. jinx unhooks her pistol from her side with her free hand, showing it off to noel with raising it high enough for him to see.
)


There's a lotta meat up here I can shoot down if my stomach starts talkin'.

( she is referring to the birds in the trees. of all the animals in the animal kingdom, birds are her least favorite. crows, especially. )
oracledriven: (talk; yeah sure)

[personal profile] oracledriven 2023-08-29 08:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[Noel's eyes go first to the pistol. So, a gun user -- like Sazh. There's probably an element of practicality in his avoidance of ranged stuff; he much prefers being up close and personal. Less chance of missing that way.]

Yeah? [An eyebrow lifts.] Hope you're not planning to cook it up there.

[Shoot all she wants, it won't make raw bird any more edible.]
opheliac: ✖ malagraphic (Tell you you're the greatest)

[personal profile] opheliac 2023-08-29 09:18 pm (UTC)(link)
Why can't I? You're gonna stop me and leave a poor innocent girl to starve to death? — Now THAT'S no way of treatin' your fellow Chosen buddy.

( it's painfully obvious she isn't all that serious feel like she is hurt by his comment. but she is curious to why she can't. is it because of the trees? ugh. she hopes this guy isn't another firelight tree lover. )
oracledriven: (try to wash my hands for you every night)

[personal profile] oracledriven 2023-08-31 02:30 pm (UTC)(link)
You know what tends to happen when you combine fire and trees, right?

[A quiet snort. He gets the feeling she's not being serious, but you never can tell, really. He keeps it light, though. It's not like anyone is being seriously threatened.]

Just a hunch, but I'm guessing most people don't wanna wake up to the whole forest being on fire.
opheliac: ✖ malagraphic (I'ma straight up villain)

[personal profile] opheliac 2023-08-31 02:37 pm (UTC)(link)
C'mon, Goodie-goodie, where's your sense of adventure?! 'Sides, it'll make this walk from Aldrip and Rumpitur a lot easier, riiiiight?

( she then twirls her gun aimlessly with her index, taking a bite of the apple with the other. and if he thinks she has any table manners, he's got another thing coming as she continues to speak with her my full. )

We all need a lil' panic here and there to keep us on our toes.
oracledriven: (to keep myself out of your bad dreams)

[personal profile] oracledriven 2023-09-04 02:24 am (UTC)(link)
My sense of adventure? [A derisive snort.] It's probably trying not to get set on fire.

[Something tells him that setting the whole forest on fire wouldn't actually make things any easier...and besides, when has killing trees ever been good for anyone? He's finally in a place where trees exist, like, for real. Why would he want to let them get burnt to a crisp?]

I think you've got an interesting definition of "need," there.

[For all his naysaying, he doesn't seem to consider this a serious threat she's posing.]
opheliac: ✖ malagraphic (cause if the only way out is down)

[personal profile] opheliac 2023-09-04 02:54 pm (UTC)(link)
But it'll help us when we gotta travel out here at night. All these spooky stories about someone comin' for us in the forest and junk won't be a thing if we burn 'em all down.

( logic! she tosses the apple up in the air carelessly to only catch it again, taking another big bite. with her other hand and getting bored of spinning her gun, she lets the weapon plop right on her belly then lets her left leg dangle. )

— By the way? Livin' the cushy life will get ya unprepared for the rough stuff. So we need the panic.
oracledriven: (if we're only ever looking back)

[personal profile] oracledriven 2023-09-05 08:09 pm (UTC)(link)
True, but then you don't have any trees, either. Have fun trudging all the way between towns without any shade, right?

[Not to mention things like oxygen, food...listen, Noel doesn't know much about trees. He just doesn't totally get it.

Anyway, he scoffs a bit at her...advice.]


Didn't realize not wanting to burn trees down was cushy, but alright.
opheliac: ✖ malagraphic (come get it)

[personal profile] opheliac 2023-09-07 12:56 am (UTC)(link)
Pfffbbbbt! — That's what sprinting is for. ( because surely everyone has shimmer in their bloodstream that will help them jolt around inhuman speed like her. )

No, you silly goofball. I mean living all nice, sweet, innocent and minding your manners is a cushy-cushion lifestyle. Never going out beyond your lil' town 'cuz you're too afraid to know what's out there.

( another bite to the apple before she adds oh so casually: )

'Till I come along and squash every building and burn all the crops. Then what will ya do? Here's a hint: screaming helps not at all!
Edited 2023-09-07 00:56 (UTC)
oracledriven: (overture)

[personal profile] oracledriven 2023-09-07 03:38 pm (UTC)(link)
[Crunch. That bite of apple breaks a thoughtful silence; Noel watches her for another moment, like he's trying to figure her out. A mystery, like his travels on Pulse with Serah. Was it her that he was talking to on the network a while ago? Nightmares, fears, trust... He guesses it might have been, but he's not about to ask. Instead he ventures,]

You really want people to be scared of you, huh.

[In a way, he can relate. Being the Shadow Hunter and working alone... it was just easier, after the deaths he'd caused. It only got tough when he stepped back to think about the people he hurt.]

But being the bad guy? It doesn't stay fun forever.
opheliac: ✖ malagraphic (You can't stop me from swingin')

[personal profile] opheliac 2023-09-08 02:57 pm (UTC)(link)
That's what you think, Buster. You gotta be what they fear if ya wanna get stuff done.

( for someone who is saying such things, the teen is doing a little jig in her tree, wiggling all carefree as if she is listening to some secret song. )

One day you'll catch up to me. ( a sudden pause and then: ) Sike! — You won't...!