Player Plot Overview: Docking In Saman Plotting Post!

[eclipse_of_time]

On day 280, The Egime will be docking at the merchant port of Saman, in Plank, the canon world of Lost Odyssey. The town looks peaceful and idyllic at first glance, and welcomes the travelers with little shock. All sorts of vessels dock in Saman, and anyone with money or items or skills to trade is welcome. The steep high roofs and cobblestone are almost whimsical, and in the sunlight the strangely twisted trees that decorated the streets have a fanciful cast to them. Brightly colored market stalls line Main Street, the center of the small town's hustle and bustle, and chattering locals move from vendor to vendor. Children play in the streets, darting out from under strolling shoppers, laughing to add to the cacophony of buyers and sellers and animals.

The town itself seems to offer little beyond shopping opportunities, at least until one reaches the tavern and inn. The tavern offers live music, a wide variety of food and beverages, company, and gambling for the luck minded. The inn offers the usual rooms for rent, but also a small bath house. Six large wooden bathtubs are arranged in a room with little more than decorative screens for changing and a large fireplace. Bath oils, soaps, pumice, and lotions are provided.

It seems the perfect place to spend a few days, relaxing and shopping. But on close inspection signs of recent vandalism are apparent. Mud smeared on a white wall here, streaked and spotted with messy hand prints. Remains of broken glass there, under a window now covered with slick paper to replace the lost pane. The hands of the clock that watches over the town are missing. The conversation, if one listens, seems to center around rumors of dark little creatures coming out at night to wreak mischief on the townsfolk. The streets come alive with noise and clamor, they claim, though the streets themselves look empty. Unless, some whisper, you happen to have a view of a street lamp. Then the monsters were visible.

The other talk of the town is a strange, elaborately carved stone door, found a few miles down the shore in cliffs that were being excavated for further building. No one has been able to gain entry. Funny how it seems like the nighttime disturbances and the discovery of the door in the cliffs seem to coincide...

So What's Going On?

At night, shadow gremlins are stealing into town at night to cause teenage vandal style damage. This all started when a door was discovered in the cliffs a few miles down the shore. The door is easy to find, just a quick cart ride down the coast, and almost anyone will be glad to take characters down to see it. Set into the cliff face and carved of the same stone, the elaborate serpentine carvings are unlike anything else local. Four crystals are set into the frame of the door, two on each side, and a large inscription above the door reads "By blessing of the Four Brothers gain entry". Above each crystal is a much smaller inscription. 'He That Always Hungers', 'He That Runs Without Stopping', 'He That Stands Strong', and 'He That Sings".

What Can We Buy?

All kinds of basic farming and fishing town food! Meat, fruits, veggies, herbs, candy...plenty of recognizable Earth stuff, even the meat. Beef, chicken, pork, mutton, etc. If you can reasonably find it at a Farmer's Market, you can find it in Saman.

Also clothing of the Fantasy RPG variety, jewelry, alcohol, toiletries, the sort of things normally found in a bustling fantasy-based trading town. No magical items, but it's possible to find crystals and stones that have the power to hold small magic and spells within them.

What's In the Area?

Saman is on a coastal peninsula, so mostly ocean. There are cliffs along the entire coast, with farmland and sparse forest between the mainland and the town itself. The mainland is more than five miles away.

What NPCs Are There?

The Mayor, Innkeeper, Tavern Keeper, and Master Merchant, all who will explain the problem with the vandalism and the mystery of the door if spoken with. The people of Saman are normal humans, and overall friendly people who are happy to chat casually with visitors. But all seem to emphasize trying to sell something, no matter what they're asked about. All interaction can be handwaved.

FAQ

So can we get in that door somehow?

Yup! It will require teamwork, but it's very much doable. And worth it!

How?

Your characters get to figure it out! Just PM me with what they're trying and I'll let you know how it goes!

So once one group gets it open, is that it?

Nope! More than one group can complete the puzzle and get inside the door! There's no special prize or anything for being first, and the door closes itself as soon as a group goes inside. More than one group can participate!

How do we get groups? Can my character do it alone?

Your character can try to open the door alone, but will likely be very unsuccessful. As for groups, that's up to you! Feel free to comment on the post to set up small groups!

Can the gremlins be fought?

They can indeed! They're susceptible to magic and weapons, and not very tough. If attacked, they'll fight back by slinging mud and throwing stones and shrieking.

What do they look like, exactly?

Like gremlins from the movie of the same name, but entirely made of shadow.

What will the locals take as money?

If you can convince them it has value, they'll be willing to trade for it. Even a bit of work is worth something!

Which canon is this again?

This is Plank, the canon world of Lost Odyssey, Ming's world.

When is this happening, in the canon timeline?

A good century before the events of the game. That's why magical items aren't available, it's before the Magic Industrial Revolution.

How long does this plot run for?

3 IC days should be enough! Day 280 to Day 282!

Is this really the whole FAQ?

Yeah, I'm not very good at these. Ask all questions that I am sure you have here!

Comments

Questions Go Here!

[eclipse_of_time]

[thegreenwitch]

Would it be possible to get some examples of the magical items that are for sell? Just so we can get an idea?

[dirtyandtrue]

Sooooooooo... They've got a proper sun, right? Will the vampires be susceptible to that?

[katerrifically]

Just of curiosity, what is the style of dress?

[hero_with_no_fear]

Is opening the door time sensitive (like, if say we have RL stuff preventing us from playing a lot during the plot and so we're slow)?

Lydia Martin / Draco Malfoy

[fivethreestrawberryblonde]

Lydia Martin

Seeing as she's still reeling a little from the loss of the greenhouse, Lydia will spending quite a lot of time in town, focusing on replenishing everything with her little band of friends (probably Kate, Ming, Scott, Kurt or some combination thereof). She'll be buying all manner of things, and also making sure that they can take some back to the greenhouse to set that up properly again.

She may also help out with the door, possibly in the form of volunteering Scott for things. I'm open to any and all kinds of plotting!

Draco Malfoy

Draco is going to be spending quite a lot of time mostly just wandering the town by himself, generally enjoying the place (and taking up an entire bathtub). He saw Numara in Ming's dream and remembers it vaguely, so he'll probably find this place pretty comfortable and homey. He'll be doing a lot of shopping as well, generally stocking himself up on things that he might want / need.

He's available for door-adventures, and possible gremlin-killing as necessary, and I am more than open to any kind of plotting with him.

[thegreenwitch]

Tara and Draco should explore the magic items together.

Tara / Margaery / Nott / Reientte

[thegreenwitch]

Tara

Tara is going shopping for clothes, food, soil, and magical trinkets. She would be rather opposed to the door adventure. But she could be dragged into gremlin killing. Depending on who and how she is asked.

Depending on if Aurora is about, she might try to have a romantic outing.

Margaery

She is in desperate need for clothes. She has been wearing the same thing since she arrived. So much shopping for her. She'll try to buy food, but doesn't know how to cook. Hijinks anyone?

Nott

Alcohol and cigarette hoarding. She has been bone dry for awhile. She'll probably grab some things for Matt in case his stash runs out again next time. Or just for herself if she gets too pissed at him in the future.

I really would enjoy Draco and Nott meeting up and discussing that charm. Which will just blow up so well.

Reinette

Baby shopping! She needs maternity clothes and food that isn't paste. She'll avoid any plots that could lead to danger (even if she is hanging out with the Doctor. We all know where that leads).

Expect much fluff from her.

[katerrifically]

Would you like to have Margaery's hijinx witnessed and would you like for her to learn how to cook?

Cuthbert / Ming / Rush / Lust

[eclipse_of_time]

Bert: Will mostly just be enjoying shore leave! He plans on stocking up on meat and seeing if it's possible to bring a hen or two back on board, for eggs. Also drinking and bath housing and enjoying normal sky and weather. And he's available to be support in any door-opening ventures, but none of my characters will do anything more than what other characters suggest.

Ming: Is going to be in disguise. She's probably the most recognizable person in her canon, so she'll be dressing differently, keeping her hair covered, and using a fake name while in Saman. She's also going to be focusing on rebuilding her herb garden project, with a focus on medicinal plants. And food shopping! And she'll be taking a room at the inn for a night, for her and Seth.

Rush: No idea! He's open to anything! He may need to be dragged off the ship for more than just buying booze and smokes and whatever passes for caffeinated beverages here.

Lust: Also just going to be exploring the town and doing her own thing. Open to anything!

[fivethreestrawberryblonde]

Lydia and Draco will be all over helping Ming replenish things, and shall help perpetuate the disguise.

I would also like for Bert and Draco to bath house it up, because why not, really. They discussed it, it's inevitable.

[hypospraying]

Christine Chapel will be trading items away (mostly jewelry she doesn't wear anymore) to stock up on food. I'd like her to be in a group to take a look at the door. If it literally requires someone to be one of the four brothers, she can be the one who sings.

Lena Duchannes will probably want to buy clothes, but she doesn't have anything to trade because she just got there, so she might work for a few hours. And she'll actually do it the old fashioned way instead of using magic because she doesn't want to freak people out.

[fivethreestrawberryblonde]

Draco likes Lena so far, and may be inclined to help her out with some things to trade, if she looks like she's struggling for stuff!

[notrosesshadow]

Martha Jones First and foremost, she'll be stocking up on food. She might buy an item of clothing or two as well just to start rounding out her closet. She'll also be mighty curious about that door, so anyone interested in searching that with her in a group is totally welcome... or if they want her in their group, I'm totally up for it!

[didnotwant]

Wrong journal but this would be a GREAT time for Jim and Martha to meet. They can do the thing together.

[unyieldingebony]

Scorpius Malfoy will be shopping for food for his sophisticated and spoiled palate, as well as any and all interesting-looking books. Also clothes because he's severely lacking. He's open for door shenanigans and gremlin fighting.

[ka_mai]

Bert wants in on the gremlin fighting! He's good at fighting things! I'd totally be up for tossing them together for that.

Bert's got his guns. :D

Kate

[katerrifically]

Kate will be food shopping with Lydia and Ming. She will be looking to restock the pantry with a good set of basics (because they can make stuff from scratch) like flour, sugar and such.

Cupcakes! She will also be buying a mortar and pestle to make powdered sugar. You can't make buttercream frosting for cupcakes without powdered sugar. You just can't.

Also, she will be trading in some of her things from Gebo. She would like to buy some personal things. She would like to find s few lengths of fabric and maybe some lip balm.

At night, does anyone want to play Super Action Whack-A-Mole with the shadow gremlins? Anyone?

[alphaophiuchi]

Draco may be inclined to play Super Action Whack-A-Mole with her.

[prefers_magneto]

Erik will quite happily trade his skill in instant blacksmithing for proper food for the stash he and Raven have put aside for just in case, plus a few nice luxury food/drink items, so he'll be around the market.

[didnotwant]

So I think we should arrange for Erik to see Marion do something... not normal for a human. Like throwing a Gremlin. If that can be done.

[bravescion]

Albus will be interested in clothes, and food, and seeds. And that door. Because Potters love locked doors and have to go in them. If he spots a gremlin, he will attack it but he won't necessarily go out of his way. And one night will be spent in the tavern, not drinking, but just listening to the music.

[unyieldingebony]

Maybe Al can drag Scorp into whatever door group he ends up in. And in return, Scorp can drag him to the baths because you stink, Potter.

[suspecteverything]

Mary will be totally enjoying the fact that there is REAL FOOD. Doing some physical labor to be fed is absolutely worth it for her. It's possible she will take advantage of the baths also.

Joan has learned that having any type of item is worth it, so she will be trying to restock and anything she could potentially need. She is definitely up for picking up rumors and trying to door.

[neverlosemyfocus]

Zoey: Zoey will be exploring the hell out of Saman, and probably paying attention to stuff to do with the door. There will be a lot of time spent in the market.

Siri: Not sure what she'll be up to. But she'll probably be exploring the market, and Saman in general, too.

Len: Will possibly be coming out of her coma during this, so she may very well be spending some time at the market picking up what she can, both medically and otherwise. Probably picking up some clothes both for her and the poor comatose girl she found in the cargo bay.

Leia: Still comatose for the time being. But probably coming out of it soon.

[feellikeibelong]

Zoey and Helena for exploring and such? Helena's probably going to trade her skills for money and/or goods. Namely meat and possibly some alcohol.

[artistwithasickness]

Devi will be exploring the coast and country side, but will also be spending time in the market trading services for goods or outright stealing in some cases, I'm sure and looking for paint supplies and food. She'll also be sneaking out to see the gremlins and using them as live training. :D

Matthew won't be out until after dark, but he'll be in the market wondering around and getting into trouble, (possibly even having a small night out with Dorian). Which means fighting gremlins.

If anyone is up for anything, just let me know! /o/

[nott_caine]

I imagine he and Nott will run into each other during this. Maybe even randomly fighting gremlins? Coming to the rescue of the other?

[solus_unus]

Caius is so going to hit up the markets with Devi to trade things for food and clothing mostly, and whatever he can get his hands on textiles and art/music supply-wise. He'll also be putting on a little mini concert for the town kidlets and singing to them (age appropriate songs, of course!). And grabbing a BATH (also with his girlfriend).

Basically in short, he's going to avoid the shit out of the Egime for the whole two days, and will be open to any and all CR, including door adventures and staying up past midnight to feed the greml- .. nevermind /cough.

Before they dock, Charles will be entering withdrawls and may quickly lose mobility within a day of that. He'll also have an uncontrolled ability, and such will be spending most of the two days holed up in his room on the Egime. He might venture out for a couple hours before they head back out again. Open to ideas!

[katerrifically]

Do you still want Charles healed?

H.G. Wells | Charlotte Howard

[feellikeibelong]

H.G. Wells will probably go about trading her skills for money. Perhaps she can do some repairs for townsfolk or other such kind of tasks, then use the money she gains to make some purchases for herself. She may or may not get involved with the gremlins thing, that's up in the air right now. She may also potentially ignore the door, but it mostly depends on if anyone she knows asks her to help open it or not.

Charlotte is going to and be completely nocturnal during this. Back to her normal schedule. You will not find her during the day. Whether she'll be staying on the ship or finding some place in town to sleep is pretty much anyone's guess. But at night, she is most certainly going to come out and stalk the streets. She'll be using her handy-dandy power that allows herself to veil herself in shadow and go unseen by everyone. She may or may not feed from some unsuspecting people in the city. I'll leave that decision to when I don't have a cold and my head is pounding.

[somepartsbroken]

Zachariah
Will be shop lifting for the staples he needs. Looking for cigarettes to stock up on. He is a master of sticky fingers.

Dorian
SINCE HE WILL BE SLEEPING IN THE DAY, thanks real sun. He is going old school here, he is going to sell his silver pocket watch for some money then hit the bars with Matt and Caius for a kind of pub-crawl, gambling up the money he made. This is a game he used to play a lot in the 1800's. Being a Lightning Calculator (VtM Merit) he is one hell of a gambler when he wants to be. He is going to spend most of this plot around Matt and Caius. And he will take SJ out shopping one night while hung over.

[truealphascott]

What do you think about Kurt finding the pocket watch and buying it back for him?

[punchedaklingon]

Pasha

Will absolutely be stocking up on all the marvellous things she hasn't had access to in the past few month. And you know, stuff for the kid too. Otherwise she's just going to explore and try to map as much of the town as she can.

Gaila

Intends on getting drunk, hanging out in the baths and sunbathing. A lot.

Glinda

Did somebody say shopping? Glinda will be where the trading is and vehemently bartering. She'll definitely be staying on the ship during the night though. Will probably be interested in trying to help with the gremlin problem if she's approached about it.

ETA: Glinda and Nott are doing a little bit of a temperament swap when she helps her out so her temper is going to be on a hair trigger. Feel free to arrange to get thoroughly told off and dressed down by her.

Aileen, Seth, and Scar

[freedomfound]

Aileen will be pretty distracted with the town itself! She'll be seeing the sights, including that door everyone's talking about. This is the most developed town she's seen in quite a few years Gebo doesn't count so she'll be pretty excited!

Seth is home. She's going to spend as much time by (and in) the ocean as she can. She and Ming are going to be staying at the inn, and Seth is going to be hanging around Ming to keep her company while queeny stays on the down-low.

Scar will also be staying at the inn, simply because the doors lock. (Priorities.) He's going to investigate the bathhouse at some point, though he won't be very interested in shopping. He will, however, be picking up a kitten!

[strategic_guile]

Blaine is going to be wandering around the city, trading and buying lots of food. He will be hoarding as much food as he can keep on the ship without spoiling because nutrient paste. Ugh.

When he isn't food shopping he'll totally be gambling and drinking and all the fun things he couldn't do in the Wylds. He'll probably get into trouble, so anyone is open to come with and either pull him out as he tries to drown his problems or help him get into deeper trouble. He is totally going to revel in debauchery for as long as he can.

He will be investigating the door and is interested in getting it open when he isn't gallivanting around, so he can join a team if someone wants him.

Aaand he will totally be shooting gremlins, because he wants to shoot things since he can't shoot people. He sees no reason not to kill the little bastards.

Kurt/ Scott

[truealphascott]

Kurt is up for shopping and getting chased/ fighting gremlins.

Scott is up for anything.

Anakin

[hero_with_no_fear]

Okay, so I'll actually be out of town the last two days of the plot (281-282) because my RL is like that. But that means I'll be slow at tagging at best.

But if anyone wants Anakin somewhere - and doesn't mind slow tags. I'm down for throwing him into things. Given the lack of technology, he'll need to be dragged into the market for shopping. Gremlins or Door Opening.

Anyone?

Anakin

[diplomaticsolutions]

Do we know what day the fail!jedi door thing will be? /thinking

Padme will probably go down for shopping. Not sure if we want them go down together on the first day, then when things aren't hostile, she'll go off on her own to think / buy/barter for some foods?