GAME ITINERARY | FEBRUARY 2017

[ironwood]

Hello chelonauts, here is a fresh new itinerary post! Previous months can be found under this tag.

Here's what we've got lined up for February 2017:

Weather

Not long after Tu Vishan pushes off from Ioa Elanag at the beginning of the month, the temperatures begin to dip steadily. Although the storm that kept the great turtle at Ioa Elanag for protection has passed, the air is still full of moisture and the skies are cloudy. In the first week after departing, snow begins to fall; first in gentle flurries, and then more substantially. Several inches of snow piles up all across Keeliai, and with mostly gray skies and temperatures below freezing, not much of it melts until midway through the month. The snow is fun for some, but it complicated the remaining efforts at recovering from the storm in January. Everyone is advised to bundle up and wear layers, particularly if spending a significant amount of time outdoors.

Sometime in the third week of February, however, icicles can be seen dripping and the snow begins to recede as it warms a little. It still remains fairly cold throughout the rest of the month, but no longer blisteringly so.

Kedan/Foreigner Relations

Kedan and Foreigner relations have improved considerably this month after their involvement with the cleanup after the hurricane. Many Kedan are still sore about the loss of Aroyan, but some can be seen coming to the defense of the Foreigners, saying that not everyone is perfect and they cannot be expected to juggle every single problem in Keeliai.

Local Events

LET IT GROW, LET IT GROW - All Month

In light of the recent shortages of supplies caused by the hurricane's destruction of both fields and storage, an expansion of the existing greenhouses and large, almost industrial-sized hydroponics facilities gets underway in rather a hurry. The scale of the project is large and the timescale small, so every willing hand is being recruited to build the facilities up, reinforce them, and get things growing as soon as possible. The snow is not, unfortunately, helping with this. Those with technical, engineering, and construction knowledge are particularly sought after, and there is some expectation that the Foreigners, with their often significant abilities, will be contributing support.

Until such time as food stores can be replenished more thoroughly, fresh food is difficult to acquire and rationed. The building of personal hydroponics units is also encouraged, with some careful dispersal of seeds to those who have enough competence to begin growing their own food. It will be noted by the kedan, particularly those in charge of the project, that this is a vital undertaking if Keeliai wishes to continue eating at its current level.

Log Note: Let it Grow will have a mod-posted event log.

HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE - All Month

As the month goes on, it may become apparent to some that the provisional council has been troubled by internal strife. Little change has developed since the council arose six months ago, and there may be a need for significant restructuring in order to move forward. The general message through the grapevine that Foreigners and kedan begin to hear is that the council may be disbanded entirely, to be replaced by something as yet unknown.

Particularly in the latter half of the month, Foreigners may notice that certain kedan are paying them extra attention - striking up conversations and offering to buy drinks or meals for the chance to chat briefly. It's relatively widespread, but it's unclear as to why these specific individuals have suddenly developed interest in Foreigners they had previously ignored or treated like anyone else.

Log Note: Heard it Through the Grapevine will not have a mod-posted event log.

MEMORY SHARING - Feb 8-12

Amid the snowfall and strife, Foreigners may find themselves knowing a little more about each other than they bargained for. For several days, whenever Foreigners are in close proximity or make skin contact, they can experience a vision or dream showing them a memory from the other.

Log Note: Memory sharing will not have a mod-posted event log. This is an opt-in event, with an OOC plotting post for planning and sharing ideas.

[4TH WALL] SLIPPIN' THROUGH THE CRACKS - Feb 18-Mar 11

Tu Shanshu's third 4th wall event will be held from February 18 - March 11. A separate OOC post will be going up no later than the 10th to outline the happenings of those three weeks, and as with past years, the OOC post will have a "check in" spot where visiting players can list the journals they wish to be given access to the comms for the duration of the event.

Log Note: The 4th Wall will have a mod-posted event log.

NPCs & Families

There appears to be tensions among the major city players this month, although anyone asked directly will deny it, or blame it on strained tempers due to the extensive damages caused by the storm, and the resulting revenue and goods loss. Any instance of the various individuals working toward common goals seems to have completely evaporated, more so than can be accounted for now that there's no longer a common project in cleanup and repair to focus on.

KUHIE & KIUEU

The Ban Om are seeing a surge in membership this month, as the twins' actions of providing both shelter and assurances in the temple during the hurricane is resounding with the kedan (even though plenty of other places were doing the same!) One of the biggest draws of this emerging faith is that its members aren't expected to stop believing in anything already; while the kedan don't have a centralized religion, most do practice a respect of various spirits, and adding a more formalized reverence of the Great Turtle is easy to amalgamate into that. Many think this presents a unique opportunity for the Foreigners, and are surprised that more of them aren't joining up.

Kiueu and Kuhie themselves are making strides in creating a more structured aspect to things: organizing regular meetings, volunteering, undertaking surveys for smaller shrines both inside the city walls, and without. While they always seem to have something on the go, both are happy to stop and talk with any Foreigner or kedan who wants some more information about the Ban Om.

KYDE

While busy with a “personal project”, Kyde will be less reclusive this month. He will actually be out during daylight hours, talking with people about things other than chemistry (holy shit). And that “personal project”? He’s actually cleaning out his office. And being there. During office hours. Could Kyde actually be acting like a professor for a change? Who knows.

Throughout the month, he can largely be seen making contact with foreigners. He’s also planning to start keeping a monthly journal on the consoles.

MILYN

Near the first of the month, the Healer will announce that she's taking a sabbatical outside of the city for at least a few weeks. Her regular patients are directed toward the Healer's Guild in the meantime, although she makes no secret of her intended destination. Near the eastern rim of the shell's edge, there is a small settlement that is mostly abandoned, although it does serve as a fishing camp at certain times of the year. If this seems like an odd choice for a typically city-happy physician, the Foreigners aren't the only ones who've noticed that. Most simply shrug it off -- the general consensus has always been that Milyn is a little off but others wonder if she's not up to something away from the public eye. There's always going to be a level of suspicion following her, either from being one of the remaining publicly named figures from Emperor Eshai's time, or for the revelation that she was at least partially in league with the cultist leader Daseng years prior.

ODYNI

The timely assistances of the Foreigners in the aftermath of the hurricane does not escape Odyni's attention, and her public griping about their irresponsible behaviour and preference for only looking out for their own is marginally curbed. She's not going to be singing any of their praises in the near future, but she's savvy enough to know that she can't be too critical of them in such circumstances without alienating some of those who rely on the Merchant's Guild for their business matters.

She is still the point of contact for Foreigners wishing to claim relief funds from the Guild for damages caused by the storm. Those wishing to do so will need a city-certified contractor to make an assessment of the damage costs, and then equivalent bars can be requests from the Guild in lieu of paying the repair crews out of pocket.

ROSYN

Although the repairs at the Shaded Lantern have been completed by the time February rolls around, Rosyn is actually in a slightly more irritated mood now that things are getting back to normal as far as her business is concerned. Most of the time she manages to cover it well, and it never rises to anything greater than a general air of being irked. It is particularly noticeable after meeting with other council members, and this she refuses to comment on. Rosyn will draw on her considerable wealth of embarrassing knowledge of anyone who decides to pester her further as a threat, and her imperiousness is usually enough to drive off even the most curious.

She's especially busy at the end of the month, although it's hard to tell exactly why. Some of her employees are also more active in conversing and meeting with the Foreigners this month. This happens from time to time, so it doesn't appear to be any special effort. The staff can also be seen in similar engagements with well-known kedan.

USAYI

This month sees an uptick in Usayi's generally grumpy demeanor, thanks in no small part to the many visible efforts from Foreigners to pitch in with the mess leftover from the hurricane. He's more willing to speak to people and hear them out overall, even if the latter half of the month puts a mildly sour look on his face again and he does seem constantly busy, whether with rebuilding or his own work. There is some mild tension with his fellow council representatives which he will refuse to comment on, but which will not escalate into screaming rows again.

In public.

Economy

The economy this month is dodgy. Coupled with the bad harvest season, and the hurricane doing a huge chunk of damage to the already meager food sources, perishables will be at an all-time high.

Luxury goods remain pricey as well, as there has been no real foreign trade in the past few months. Some enterprising kedan take advantage of the ready availability of snow to create pop-up frozen dessert carts and shops. The simplest and most popular item are what many Foreigners might recognize as snow cones - cups of snow and ice with syrups poured over them.

Crime

Crime remains at a high this month with looters and gangs stealing from wreckage and temporarily abandoned buildings. With the police force's efforts to detain looters, however, much of the more widespread gang activity has been partially deterred.

The icy weather and snow deters crime further for the first half of the month, although there are still reported incidents of petty theft and buildings undergoing repairs are especially vulnerable to continued targeting.

Technology

Tech development has stagnated with most organizations being more preoccupied with getting the city up and running again rather than innovating. However, they are welcoming ideas for efficient irrigation systems and and methods for growing crops in uncertain and fluctuating weather conditions.

With the snow, the tram lines experience some difficulty and for several days are completely out of operation in places where the snow was heaviest while the lines are cleared. The disruption makes transit around the city even more of a challenge than it already was with snow on the ground, and travel time between sectors lengthens considerably -- what might take 30 min on the tram line now takes 4 hours to walk! However, many of these issues are resolved once temperatures rise a little and the snow begins to melt off.

International

KIN'NAL

The Kin’nal will be departing Keeliai this month, opting to stay in Ioa Elanag where the climate is relatively warm and consistent. They will express their gratitude to the Kedan and Foreigners for housing them in the city, and allowing them the opportunity to get back on their feet. Those who were staying with generous lodgers will be gifted small, handmade tokens of their appreciation. One day, they hope they can repay the kindness.

OOC Information

Plot Direction

As a follow-up to our plot voting, we wanted to let you all know that we'll be focusing primarily on the Dreaming and the Cultists & Missing Girl plots for the next couple of months. You can expect to see more Dreaming-related shenanigans upcoming (some fun, some serious!) and also a ramp up of cultist activity that heads toward a definitive resolution with that particular storyline.

Other plots will still be in the works, so keep your characters' eyes and ears out for background developments that may become relevant later! We always recommend reading the itineraries thoroughly, as that's where notable things tend to crop up first ;)

We've also got lots of calendar room for player plots and suggested events -- in fact, we really love when players want to add something to the mix! If you don't have a fully-formed plan but still have an idea you want to see happen, drop us a line on that post or by PM, and we'll help you work it out.

So that's our outline for the month of February! If you have any questions about these happenings, please use the Questions comment below. Otherwise, this post is free space for monthly OOC plotting.