Daniel [GM] 0:30 Welcome to Episode One of Explorers Wanted. We are an actual-play Numenera podcast. I will be your humble GM, Daniel Andrlik. With me today is Stace Babcock. Stace [Nix] 0:40 Oh hey, first to reply. Daniel [GM] 0:44 Alex Finn. Alex [ChaCha] 0:45 Hi. Daniel [GM] 0:47 Sampson Davis. Sampson [Dili] 0:48 Hello. Daniel [GM] 0:49 And Marietta Jones. Marietta [Atalia] 0:50 That me. Daniel [GM] 0:52 So, this is the beginning of a brand-new campaign with Numenera where you'll be exploring the Ninth World. Just so everybody knows, why don't you each go around and give, like, a very brief intro to your characters, like the name and character sentence. Let's do the same order again. So, Stace. Stace [Nix] 1:10 All right, I am playing Nix, a Confident Glaive who Needs No Weapons. And a Glaive is kind of a fighter type. Daniel [GM] 1:19 Okay, Alex. Alex [ChaCha] 1:21 I'm playing Chansey "ChaCha" Letoile, and ChaCha is a Passionate Nano who Sees Beyond. A Nano is kind of like a magician. But we're taking it weird with ChaCha. Daniel [GM] 1:35 Okay, Sampson. Sampson [Dili] 1:37 I'm playing Adilabrim Kret commonly called Dili. Dili is a Intelligent Wright who Crafts Illusions. And Wrights are I guess analogous to artificers...kind of the magic item crafter types. Daniel [GM] 1:52 Okay. And Marietta. Marietta 1:55 I am playing Atalia who is a Meddlesome Nano who Explores Dark Places and yeah, Nanos are the magicky class. She's a bit on the roguey side of magic, though. Yeah, that's me. Daniel [GM] 2:10 Loving the energy. Multiple Speakers 2:11 [Laughter] Marietta [Atalia] 2:13 Sorry! I'm here, I'm hyped. Sampson [Dili] 2:14 It's our first time, shut up. Marietta [Atalia] 2:16 I'm excited to be here. So thankful. Multiple Speakers 2:21 [Crosstalk] Daniel [GM] 2:24 Okay, so this is the start of, like I said, a new campaign. Is everybody excited to play some Numenera? Alex [ChaCha] 2:31 Whoooooooooo. Marietta [Atalia] 2:31 Yes. Sampson [Dili] 2:31 No, I hate it. What? Of course. Stace [Nix] 2:33 Is that what we're doing? Daniel [GM] 2:37 Okay, great. Let's get started, then. [Music plays] We begin in Charmonde, the capital of Navarene and one of the largest cities within the Steadfast. Unlike most of the Ninth World, this place is a burgeoning Metropolis, well-developed and well-fortified. But like all big cities, it has- has its dark places and its forgotten corners. This back alley is one of them. There's little interest around here. And in general, it's wise to avoid such places, especially in the night. Yet each of you at some point found your way here. Some with careful steps, some stumbling as they ran from a pursuer, but all of you found a plain-looking door with a small sign outside of it that said, "Explorers Wanted: Inquire Within." And each of you eventually knocked on that door and met the woman inside. She asked you many questions, some of you more than others, and said she might be able to find a job for you. And that was that, and you spent the next week going about your business, or perhaps even hiding, and a part of you began to wonder if she would follow through. But earlier today, you each received a separate message, delivered by small children, telling you to come back to her place tonight to receive details. And that's where we start, with an old woman who calls wanderers to her as she finishes setting a small table in her cramped office. There are small plates and tea for five. She makes a minor adjustment to the placement of one of the teacups and then goes to stoke the fire in the hearth. And as she hunches over the fireplace, there's a knock at the door. She answers the door. Atalia, who does she see there? Marietta [Atalia] 4:37 Atalia is there she's in dark, I would say mostly linens and wraps. Kinda head to toe. Black boots and a nice cape, definitely looking to blend in with the shadows as much as possible. Her attire is fairly worn. She's oh, like, five-six, she's pretty tanned, has yellow eyes and reddish-brown hair. And yeah, she's ready to.... Daniel [GM] 5:09 Okay. So, the old woman looks up, she says like, [As Old Woman] Atalia, it's good to see you again. I'm happy to see that you're all equipped and ready to go. Come in, have a seat. Marietta [Atalia] 5:20 She will pop in and sit down in the one closest to the far wall. Daniel [GM] 5:27 So farthest away from the door? Marietta [Atalia] 5:28 Yes. Daniel [GM] 5:29 Okay. So, Momma Jerrun, who is this - who this woman you know, you've talked to her once before, is her name. Marietta [Atalia] 5:36 Okay. Daniel [GM] 5:37 And she goes over and she pours you some tea and as she's pouring it, there's another knock at the door. And she goes to answer it and Dili. What does she see? Sampson [Dili] 5:49 Uh, she sees a very short man. Just barely five foot. Hood up, but she could probably see that he's kind of- not pudgy, but kind of shapeless, like he doesn't have to really do hard manual labor. He's just kind of white collar, I guess. But he's wearing like, I guess, cloak and hood up and kind of looks a little terrified like, [As Dili] Can-can-can I come in please? Daniel [GM] 6:18 [As Momma Jerrun] Yes, yes come in, Dili. So, you're saying he's white collar without the gym plan? Sampson [Dili] 6:23 Uh, yes. Daniel [GM] 6:25 Okay. Sampson [Dili] 6:26 Or he has a gym plan but doesn't use it. Daniel [GM] 6:29 Gotcha. Sampson [Dili] 6:30 Yeah, he comes in, takes his hood off dark, nearly black hair, dark eyes. Daniel [GM] 6:36 [As Momma Jerrun] Look, come in, have a seat at the table. One of your companions for this journey is already here. Atalia, this is Dili. I'll do more formal introductions later. Marietta [Atalia] 6:48 I'll give a small wave. Sampson [Dili] 6:50 [As Dili] Hi.... Dili will go sit at the chair farthest away from Atalia. Marietta [Atalia] 6:57 She's mildly offended. Sampson [Dili] 7:01 Dili looks like he's about to piss his pants. Marietta [Atalia] 7:03 I mean, I do have that effect on people. Daniel [GM] 7:08 Okay so, Dili...let's see. Okay, so then there is another knock at the door. Momma Jerrun and goes and answers the door. And she goes like, [As Momma Jerrun] ChaCha, glad to see you again. It's- it's only been a week but you're- you're right on time. Alex [ChaCha] 7:26 I think ChaCha's gonna like, rush in and hug her cuz ChaCha's been so lonely! ChaCha likes people, but not people. Daniel [GM] 7:39 And what does ChaCha look like? Alex [ChaCha] 7:40 Um, ChaCha is very small and slight, kind of...almost the size of a child? So, it's kind of like uh, that's why she likes children. They're on the same level. And she has, you know, short cut blonde hair with blue eyes and she's probably wearing, like, a garish red cloak trying to pretend like she's blending in. But, like, it's like, you're walking around in a red cloak. Ah, mmm, yeah. She- she kind of looks like she belongs in the circus but, but yeah. Marietta [Atalia] 8:20 So Atalia will wave to ChaCha as well, a little more hesitantly, like, I don't know who this is with the hugs but here we are with short guy and a girl. There's one more chair, though. Daniel [GM] 8:40 And it takes a little bit of time. She pours tea for you, she kind of, she also hands off these small cookies and stuff like that. And then after about, I don't know, seven minutes, there's another knock at the door and she opens the door. And she says, [As Momma Jerrun] Well, you're - you're late. Stace [Nix] 9:01 [As Nix] Oh, I am? Daniel [GM] 9:02 [As Momma Jerrun] But I guess that-. Yeah, I guess that's to be expected of your order. But, come on in. Stace [Nix] 9:08 [As Nix] All right, I will. Daniel [GM] 9:09 What does she see? Stace [Nix] 9:10 She sees a woman with bright pink hair, half her head's shaved. The other half, you're like, could be a mohawk, but she's not wearing it like that. It's just flopped over there. All her clothes kind of are mismatched. They...don't necessarily clash, but they're clearly not of the same origin or age. She is wearing a bright blue jacket. Everything's fairly worn. The only thing about her that looks fitted and customized to her are her boots. They're very fine boots. Very comfortable-looking boots. That's it. Daniel [GM] 9:13 Okay. Ah, so she says, [As Momma Jerrun] Ah, Nix, well then come in, have a seat. There is tea ready. Stace [Nix] 9:52 [As Nix] Awesome. Daniel [GM] 9:53 And Nix, as you head over to the table, you spy on the far side of the table, Atalia. Stace [Nix] 9:58 [As Nix] Atalia? What! Heyyy. How are you? Marietta [Atalia] 10:03 Extremely uncomfortable. [As Atalia] Oh, you know, just working. Working? Yeah, working. Stace [Nix] 10:04 [As Nix] It's been like, what? Eight years? Marietta [Atalia] 10:13 [As Atalia] Yeah. Something like that. Yeah. How's it - how's it been? Stace [Nix] 10:18 [As Nix] Pretty rad, man. I just been like, walkin' around a lot. Marietta [Atalia] 10:23 [Atalia] Yeah, walking around a lot. That sounds like a thing you would do? Stace [Nix] 10:29 [As Nix] Yeah. What about you? What do you been doing? Marietta [Atalia] 10:31 [As Atalia] I'm just going to school, you know, getting that education and side hustling per usual. Stace [Nix] 10:40 [As Nix] Oh yeah, I went to school, too. I forgot about that. Marietta [Atalia] 10:45 [As Atalia] What? Stace [Nix] 10:45 [As Nix] I did that for...then I started walking. Marietta [Atalia] 10:47 [As Atalia] Oh, did you? That kind of school experience was it? Stace [Nix] 10:54 [As Nix] Yeah. Well, no. Daniel [GM] 10:57 So, uh, Atalia. Atalia? Could you do me favor? Could you make a deception-based roll about the going to school part? Stace [Nix] 11:04 Fuckin' liar. Marietta [Atalia] 11:07 I am - Sampson [Dili] 11:08 First roll! First roll! First roll! Marietta [Atalia] 11:14 Nope. Daniel [GM] 11:15 Okay, so it'll just be a straight roll unless you want to expend Effort. Marietta [Atalia] 11:19 That would be.... Yeah, yeah. I'll expend a level of Effort on that. Daniel [GM] 11:25 Okay, so you have an Edge in Intellect so that means you'll have to spend two Intellect points to get- to make it - to get a +3 on your roll, whatever your roll ends up being. Marietta 11:34 Okay, if it's +3, then it's 14, total. Daniel [GM] 11:37 Okay. 14. Okay. Stace, I need you to make a roll towards just detecting dishonesty or anything along those lines. Stace [Nix] 11:48 All I got is...social interactions. Daniel [GM] 11:52 Detecting falsehoods would not really be for this. Stace [Nix] 11:53 All right, cool. I'm just gonna do it-. Daniel [GM] 11:56 So, it's a straight roll unless you want to expend Effort. Stace [Nix] 11:58 I don't want to know if she's lying, so I'm just going to roll it straight up. Daniel [GM] 12:03 Okay. Stace [Nix] 12:04 I got a 6. Daniel [GM] 12:06 Yeah, you - you - totally sounds plausible. Marietta [Atalia] 12:09 Yeah, going to school. Definitely. Stace [Nix] 12:10 [As Nix] We're gonna have to swap stories sometimes, man. Marietta [Atalia] 12:16 [As Atalia] Sure...bud. Stace [Nix] 12:16 [As Nix] You can call me dude. Daniel [GM] 12:23 [As Momma Jerrun] Oh, you two know each other already. Marietta [Atalia] 12:25 [As Atalia] Through a series of happenstance, yes, in fact. Stace [Nix] 12:29 [As Nix] Like, we lived next to each other, dude. Marietta [Atalia] 12:32 [As Atalia] Or that. Daniel [GM] 12:33 [As Momma Jerrun] Oh, well, that's interesting, shouldn't affect things at all. Well, I'm glad that you all came. Obviously, you've already talked to me about your interest. I am in need of some contractors for a particular task. I sent my colleague to investigate the Ruins of Kamathin. There was a rumor that there was a Numenera device of great value there. It supposedly lies somewhere among those ruins. [As Momma Jerrun] This individual set out to retrieve it and they never returned. What I need you to do is to go out there and look through the ruins, map out as much of it as you can, and discover the fate of my dear colleague Mewin. And hopefully you'll be able to return with the object itself. Sampson [Dili] 13:27 Dan, are we familiar with...Ruins of Kamathin? Daniel [GM] 13:31 Oh, give me a...anybody who's got like a History or Geography roll, could roll that? Stace [Nix] 13:36 Uh.... Daniel [GM] 13:38 Well, anybody can roll just what you want-. It- it's gonna be a 12 and if you've got History or Geography it would be a 9. Sampson [Dili] 13:47 I got a 9, so. Stace [Nix] 13:49 I got a 3. Marietta 13:50 Um, I have Remembering Details if I would have ever studied the area. Daniel [GM] 13:54 Uh, so Marietta because you don't have Geography or History, Remembering the Details wouldn't help you there. What did you get, Alex? Alex [ChaCha] 14:04 7. Daniel [GM] 14:05 Okay, so yeah, you guys have no idea. Ruins, outside the city, cool. [As Momma Jerrun] We know that Mewin at least got to the ruins, because she sent back a messenger once she arrived, but she never returned. And...means that either she perished, or she's trapped somewhere in there and needs assistance. Hopefully she has already recovered the item and has it with her. But the goal is to go to the ruins, map out as much as you can, and try to find Mewin. And hopefully return with both her and the object. Sampson [Dili] 14:45 [As Dili] H-how-how far out-out of Charmonde is- are the ruins? Daniel [GM] 14:48 [As Momma Jerrun] Ah, it's about a two-day hike. Sampson [Dili] 14:51 [As Dili] And we'll get guards of course, right? Daniel [GM] 14:54 [As Momma Jerrun] No, it works best if you don't attract attention to this kind of thing. Sampson [Dili] 14:57 [As Dili] But, it's dangerous outside the city. What? Daniel [GM] 15:01 [As Momma Jerrun] Well, yes, I mean, that's...that-that happens. But I think a group such as you could handle it, and after all you have you have Nix here who - as I understand it - is quite an effective user of martial arts. Stace [Nix] 15:17 [As Nix] Yeah.... Sampson [Dili] 15:18 Okay. Do you have guards with you? Stace [Nix] 15:21 No.... Sampson [Dili] 15:21 [As Dili] Oh. Dili just kind of seems, like, shrinking into himself. Stace [Nix] 15:29 [As Nix] It'll be all right. Daniel [GM] 15:30 [As Momma Jerrun] But keep in mind, these are ruins. So, you know, I don't- you know, it's not just coin I want to entice you with it’s, it’s with the voyage of discovery. I mean, who knows what other kinds of Numenera are in those ruins that could be found? Stace [Nix] 15:46 [As Nix]. Yeah. And that's, like, dope as hell, but also want to be clear on the coin. Right? Like that's happening, right? All right. Daniel [GM] 15:54 [As Momma Jerrun] Yes, yes. That was happening at the rates we discussed. Stace [Nix] 15:57 [As Nix] Voyage of discovery, though. Yeah, cool. Marietta [Atalia] 16:01 Can I do an Insight check on her? Was she always like this? Stace [Nix] 16:05 Me? Marietta [Atalia] 16:06 Yeah. Stace [Nix] 16:07 Yes. Multiple Speakers 16:07 [Laughter] Stace 16:14 Possibly, the personality traits that led her to take that route...because there were people like her there. Marietta [Atalia] 16:21 It all makes sense now. Stace [Nix] 16:22 Yeah.... Marietta [Atalia] 16:22 Everything's come full circle. Daniel [GM] 16:24 Mmhmm. Stace [Nix] 16:25 Rock on. Marietta [Atalia] 16:26 Ready to go on this adventure together. Alex [ChaCha] 16:31 I think ChaCha is gonna pull out her map with like Xs on it and is like, [As ChaCha] It's not near any of these, right? Daniel [GM] 16:38 [As Momma Jerrun] No, ChaCha. You don't have to worry about those. So, there won't be anybody there that'll recognize you. Alex [ChaCha] 16:43 [As ChaCha] Good. Sampson [Dili] 16:44 [As Dili] Are you famous? Alex [ChaCha] 16:45 [As ChaCha] Define fame? Daniel [GM] 16:47 [As Momma Jerrun] ChaCha's an entertainer by trade. Sampson [Dili] 16:50 [As Dili] Oh. Stace [Nix] 16:52 [As Nix] Oh, uh.... Alex [ChaCha] 16:54 [As ChaCha] Magiiiiic! Sampson [Dili] 16:55 {As Dili] Magic, how? What? Magic? Alex [ChaCha] 16:58 I think she sets off like the...non-harmful fireworks, like, [As ChaCha] Magiiiiic.... Sampson [Dili] 17:05 Dili falls out of his chair. Daniel [GM] 17:06 Yeah. So, Atalia, as a Nano you would immediately recognize this as hedge magic. Marietta [Atalia] 17:13 Oh. Daniel [GM] 17:15 So, whether or not she's...you may not know that ChaCha's necessarily a Nano, but you definitely can tell that she has access to esoteries. Marietta [Atalia] 17:23 Okay. Daniel [GM] 17:23 [As Momma Jerrun] And, so if you, uh, it looks like most of you have all of your equipment. I mean I know Dili you don't really have- you tend to travel light these days, but-. Sampson [Dili] 17:37 [As Dili] Yeah.... Daniel [GM] 17:39 [As Momma Jerrun] Dili, I-I would think that you would be excited to get out of the city for a while. Sampson [Dili] 17:44 [As Dili] I...am. I just didn't think we'd be going into such dangerous territory. Daniel [GM] 17:49 [As Momma Jerrun] Well, if you prefer, I could try to find something for you. You know, closer to the center of town. Sampson [Dili] 17:57 [As Dili] Nope! Nope, I think we should go on this nice hike out of Charmonde, thanks. Thank you, please. Yes. Stace [Nix] 18:05 [As Nix] Yeah.... Marietta [Atalia] 18:06 [As Atalia] That was pretty adamant, sir. Alex [ChaCha] 18:10 ChaCha's violently nodding. Sampson [Dili] 18:12 Well, looks like Chacha knows her way around so...Chacha will know the way, right? Stace [Nix] 18:15 [As Nix] Uh, I'm a fairly... *chuckles* ...fairly skilled map- map reader. Marietta [Atalia] 18:25 [As Atalia] Do we have a map to this location? Sampson [Dili] 18:28 [As Dili] Yes. Okay. Let's go on this nice hike and not.... Daniel [GM] 18:33 [As Momma Jerrun] Okay. Okay. Excellent-. Sampson [Dili] 18:35 [As Dili] ...run into any monsters? Yes. Marietta [Atalia] 18:38 [As Atalia] Well, if we run into monsters, you know, Nix will take care of us. It's fine. Right? Stace [Nix] 18:42 [As Nix] Yeah. I mean...yeah. And honestly, you live, or you die, it's all about the Journey, right? Sampson [Dili] 18:48 [As Dili] I would rather live. Stace [Nix] 18:50 [As Nix] But either way. Sampson [Dili] 18:53 [As Dili] What? No. One way, please. You also seem very chill for a...fightin' type. I don't- I don't know. Stace [Nix] 19:01 Yeah. Daniel [GM] 19:04 [As Momma Jerrun] Okay. So, like I said, you know, here is a rough map. And she provides a map to at least where the ruins are. So, you can see that it's going to be a hike to the northwest. Like she said, like, [As Momma Jerrun] It's about two days, give or take. Nix, you would probably be more familiar- I'd say Nix and ChaCha, would be probably more familiar with what it's like walking through the wilds. So, they...I mean, you guys, that means it's roughly two days assuming everybody else can keep up. But, yeah, she says- says, [As Momma Jerrun] Yes. Um, so as you know, there is the potential that, you know, my colleague could be in danger. So, I think I'd appreciate it if you guys left relatively immediately and head towards the ruins. Stace [Nix] 20:02 [As Nix] In danger from the creatures at the ruins or, like, in danger from other people? Daniel [GM] 20:09 [As Momma Jerrun] I don't know yet that either is the case, but if so, I would hope that it would only be one or the other. Stace [Nix] 20:19 [As Nix] Well, why not both, right? Sampson [Dili] 20:22 [As Dili] Could you say again what the messenger said? Daniel [GM] 20:24 [As Momma Jerrun] The messenger said that she had found the ruins and that she was proceeding inside. But she wanted to get confirmation of the ruins' location back to me before setting forth-. Stace [Nix] 20:39 [As Nix] She died. Daniel [GM] 20:41 [As Momma Jerrun] Well, hopefully not. Stace 20:42 [As Nix] Right. All right, cool. Can I have the map? Daniel [GM] 20:46 Yep, she hands you the map. Alex [ChaCha] 20:49 ChaCha's also circling it on her map. Daniel [GM] 20:51 Okay. Everything else is Xs, but this is a circle. Alex [ChaCha] 20:55 Mmhmm. Marietta [Atalia] 20:56 I'll spend some time studying them as well as we traverse. Daniel [GM] 21:02 Okay, so you guys are goin' a-hiking. Anything you guys need to do before you leave town? Stace [Nix] 21:09 Use the bathroom. Marietta [Atalia] 21:10 I'm pretty good. Stace [Nix] 21:12 Okay. Alex [ChaCha] 21:14 I'm just ready to go. Sampson [Dili] 21:15 Dili doesn't need anything. Daniel [GM] 21:18 Okay, so you guys begin walking. And, and the hike is relatively easy and your relatively- and because it's only like a two-day hike away from the town like it doesn't get too wild, right? Because there's- I mean you are going to have- you are going away from, like, the trade roads. So, you're a little bit farther out in the middle of nowhere, but, on the whole it's- it's relatively easy. I mean you- you, at least the first day, goes very comfortably. And you even find what looks to be a relatively decent place to set up camp for the night. Sampson [Dili] 21:57 [As Dili] My feet hurt so much. Marietta [Atalia] 21:59 [As Atalia] Would you like to make camp for the evening? Sampson [Dili] 22:03 [As Dili] Is it safe to make camp here? This is good? Marietta [Atalia] 22:06 [As Atalia] I...it seems safe. We can look around a little bit. I'll look around and see what's- with all of my outdoor skills, um.... Multiple Speakers 22:17 [Laughter] Sampson [Dili] 22:17 We're a bunch of city slickers. Marietta [Atalia] 22:18 Yeah, I'll, uh.... If I can make, like, a perception check or something to see how this area seems? Daniel [GM] 22:25 Sure. Give me a-. Marietta [Atalia] 22:29 I'm also Trained in Searching and Listening. And Perception. Daniel [GM] 22:32 What do you-? So, you're just trying to figure out that-? Marietta [Atalia] 22:35 Just trying to-. We were talking about maybe stopping here and I want to look around and see what it- if it seems like that could be a good thing or not. Alex [ChaCha] 22:45 Can ChaCha look for evil snakes? Daniel [GM] 22:47 She can. Alex [ChaCha] 22:48 Sweet. Daniel [GM] 22:49 Okay, so give me a...a 9 Perception roll. Marietta [Atalia] 22:54 14. Daniel [GM] 22:56 This looks like a relatively decent place to set up camp. It's got some...these curved rocks which could provide shelter in case there's any rain. There's- it's relatively easy to spot anything coming along, you know, the ground. There's not a lot of obstructions. And it's it seems like the ground is relatively flat. It's not even too rough, even for you know setting up your, your camp and whatever you’re going to be sleeping on. Your sleeping rolls. Marietta [Atalia] 23:28 Wow, okay, I will- I will say these things out loud as I'm admiring it. [As Atalia] You know, I feel like as far as first-night-outside-under-the-stars location, you can't get too much better than this. Stace [Nix] 23:42 Daniel, I would like to see if Nix would know of, or not know of, any recent events, interesting events in this area, like monsters that are new and like things like that. Daniel [GM] 23:54 Where if you'd heard something in your travels or something like that? Stace [Nix] 23:58 Yeah. Daniel [GM] 24:00 Give me just a straight roll. This is not a heavily traversed area, so it's going to be a difficulty 15. Stace [Nix] 24:07 All right, I'm Trained in Recent Events and Rumors. I got a 20. Daniel [GM] 24:13 Wow, okay. Sampson [Dili] 24:15 First nat 20! Daniel [GM] 24:16 Yes. So, you have heard stories that there have been, like, strange creatures seen out here. I mean, obviously, a lot of people in the Ninth World don't really understand the nature of the creatures here and think of them as demons and things like that. And there have definitely been stories of that here. That's not necessarily - since you got a nat 20 - it's not necessarily unusual to hear about that in the proximity of ruins. But, at the same time, like, there have definitely been people that have complained of sightings of creatures, specifically, something in the skies. Stace [Nix] 25:01 [As Nix] Yeah, this, uh, this looks like a pretty sweet spot, but we should definitely keep watch. And, uh, whoever's watching, like, don't forget to look up, okay? Sampson [Dili] 25:10 [As Dili] What- what's up? Stace 25:13 [As Nix] Monsters, maybe. Sampson [Dili] 25:14 [As Dili] What? Why- why are they up there? Stace [Nix] 25:18 [As Nix] I don't know. They talk about flying monsters around here so just, like, look for them occasionally? Sometimes people forget to look up when they're keepin' watch, you know? They look out, not up. We're gonna do both. Multiple Speakers 25:30 [Laughter] Stace [Nix] 25:30 [As Nix] I'll go first, I guess, like if.... Uh, who here has actually, like, ever kept watch? Just curious. Alex [ChaCha] 25:42 I think Chacha raises her hand slowly. Marietta [Atalia] 25:45 Yeah, I would as well. Sampson [Dili] 25:47 [As Dili] I've occasionally worked through the night. Stace [Nix] 25:50 [As Nix] All right, so this is, uh, what I wanna do. Dili? Sampson [Dili] 25:54 [As Dili] Yeah. Stace [Nix] 25:55 [As Nix] Dili. Sampson [Dili] 25:55 [As Dili] Hi. Stace [Nix] 25:56 [As Nix] Hi. How about you, like, sit up for the first two hours with me so I can show you what watch is like. And then you can go to sleep. And then tomorrow maybe you could pull, like, a full half-shift. Sampson [Dili] 26:07 [As Dili] Okay. Stace [Nix] 26:08 [As Nix] Yeah. And then who- who wants to take the other half? Marietta [Atalia] 26:11 [As Atalia] I will, I guess. Stace [Nix] 26:14 [As Nix] Sweet. Look forward to briefing you. Good to see you, Atalia. Marietta [Atalia] 26:20 [As Atalia] You...too. Daniel [GM] 26:23 And, of course, Atalia's version of watch is keeping an eye out for the police. Marietta [Atalia] 26:32 I'm really good at it, guys. Got that Perception down. Multiple Speakers 26:32 [Laughter] Daniel [GM] 26:36 Okay, so everybody else is going to sleep for now, I take it. Marietta [Atalia] 26:40 Mmhmm. Daniel [GM] 26:41 Okay, so, um, so how- how do Dili and Nix pass the time during their watch? Stace [Nix] 26:51 Unless Dili breaks in, Nix is just, like, stream of consciousness explaining how to keep watch. Just like all the terrifying monsters that she's seen and she's fought, and, uh, yeah. Sampson [Dili] 27:02 And I think Dili will at first like, pay attention like, [As Dili] Yes. Okay. Oh, okay, throw water-. Fire at that one. Okay. Yes. But then I think he'll slowly start to realize that, I guess, Nix is on autopilot, almost. Stace [Nix] 27:16 Yeah. Sampson [Dili] 27:17 And, I guess, like, half-hour in he'll start tinkering with some of the synth and parts he brought. He's not really building anything, he's just kind of like, fiddling with it. Daniel [GM] 27:29 Gotcha. Okay. Sampson [Dili] 27:30 And then, and then I imagine Nix at some point we'll start to see shapes, and, like, parts start to, like, form and float around his head as he continues to fiddle with his synth and various parts. Stace [Nix] 27:45 [As Nix] Uh, I respect what you're doing, man and it looks, like, real fucking cool, but...you gotta watch on watch. You know what I'm sayin'? Like, you gotta-. Sampson [Dili] 27:54 [As Dili] Oh, uh-. Stace [Nix] 27:54 [As Nix] You gotta watch on watch? It's why it's called watch. So, you gotta be, like, watchin'. Sampson [Dili] 27:54 [As Dili] What? Stace [Nix] 27:57 [As Nix] Not, not tinkerin'. Sampson [Dili] 28:02 [As Dili] Ah, sorry And then you see the shapes just kind of, like, disappear. Daniel [GM] 28:06 So, Dili and Nix, I gonna need you each to make perception rolls. Now, the-. Dili, it is night. So, it is going to be a 12 for you. But for Nix, because you had a nat 20 on all this. I'm gonna say, you, it's a 6 for you. Stace [Nix] 28:23 Sweet. Sampson [Dili] 28:25 4. Stace [Nix] 28:26 14. Daniel [GM] 28:27 Okay. Nix, you definitely see something rather like some wide wings...kind of...shadows, like, going through the night clouds. Like, so the cloud, it's like-. It's partly cloudy. You can see the moon up in the sky, with its strange green circle inscribed on it. But you see for a moment, coming from between the clouds, this wide, what you presume, a wide-wingspanned creature flying through the moon light and back into the clouds. And then a moment later, you see that same shape kind of circle around the other way. You're not sure if it's the same creature or if it's multiples. Stace [Nix] 29:15 Do we have a fire going? Daniel [GM] 29:17 I would presume you did. Stace [Nix] 29:19 All right, so, Nix elbows Dili and is like, [As Nix] See, look at that. That's why you gotta look up, man. And then she-. Sampson [Dili] 29:26 [As Dili] What, look at what? Stace [Nix] 29:27 [As Nix] Look up, see the winged creatures up there? Sampson [Dili] 29:30 [As Dili] Ah! Ahhhh. Stace [Nix] 29:31 [As Nix] Yeah, let's put out the fire. Sampson [Dili] 29:33 [As Dili] Okay! Stace [Nix] 29:34 So, she takes dirt, or, well I guess-. Yeah, probably just dirt and, like, kicks it over the fire, which is probably lowish at this point? Daniel [GM] 29:43 Mhmm. Stace [Nix] 29:43 Extinguishes it and then-. No real indication of if they were, like, coming for us, right? I just see them in the area? Daniel [GM] 29:50 Yeah, just seein' them up there. Stace [Nix] 29:52 Okay, so then she just continues to very alertly watch and says, [As Nix] We gotta be quiet now, man. No fuck- no shapes. No lights. Daniel [GM] 30:03 So, Nix, do me a favor, roll a d20 and just tell me if you get even or odd. Stace [Nix] 30:07 Got a cocked die. 5. Daniel [GM] 30:12 Okay. Stace [Nix] 30:12 Which would be odd. Daniel [GM] 30:13 Yep, okay. Stace [Nix] 30:15 Figured that out myself. Daniel [GM] 30:16 There is-. It definitely is more than one shape and they seem to be descending in a slow spiral around your camp. Stace [Nix] 30:27 Oh, shit. [As Nix] All right, uh, hmm. Sampson [Dili] 30:31 [As Dili] What's all right? Are they- are they leaving? Stace 30:32 [As Nix] No, they're coming here. Sampson [Dili] 30:33 [As Dili] What!? Stace [Nix] 30:34 [As Nix] Yeah. Sampson [Dili] 30:34 [As Dili] Oh, my god! Stace [Nix] 30:35 [As Nix] Will you wake up ChaCha? Like-. Sampson [Dili] 30:38 [As Dili] Okay! ChaCha! Stace 30:39 [As Nix] Ah, tch-tch-tch. Settle down. Settle down, man. All right. Atalia-. Sampson [Dili] 30:44 Dili will run.... Stace [Nix] 30:45 Yeah. Sampson [Dili] 30:45 ...to where he thinks ChaCha is and, I guess, trip over Atalia. Multiple Speakers 30:48 [Laughter] Marietta [Atalia] 30:50 Oh, that's an awakening. [As Atalia] That's not how you wake someone up for watch. Stace [Nix] 30:55 [As Nix] Oh, nah, dude. it's not watch. We got monsters incoming. Marietta [Atalia] 30:58 [As Atalia] Why? Stace 31:00 [As Nix] Natural instinct, I assume? Maybe malicious intent? Like, I couldn't tell you, really. Multiple Speakers 31:10 [Laughter] Sampson [Dili] 31:10 [As Dili] Do you know, cuz you could tell us! It'd be okay. Stace [Nix] 31:13 [As Nix] I mean, I haven't spoken to them. I guess if we get the chance we can ask 'em. Sampson [Dili] 31:19 [As Dili] Animals, what? Stace [Nix] 31:22 [As Nix] Sometimes...sometimes they talk, man. Daniel [GM] 31:26 Okay. At this point you can see them getting much closer, and at this point I need you all to roll initiative. Stace [Nix] 31:34 Yeah! Sampson [Dili] 31:34 Bum-bum-bum! Daniel [GM] 31:37 We can't have our first session not have initiative rolls in it. Stace [Nix] 31:40 Correct. Alex [ChaCha] 31:41 Yeah. Sampson [Dili] 31:42 We also can't die, so. Marietta [Atalia] 31:44 15! Stace [Nix] 31:45 Watch me. 13. Sampson [Dili] 31:49 9. Daniel [GM] 31:50 Ouch. Okay, Alex. Alex [ChaCha] 31:53 20. Daniel [GM] 31:54 20. Wow! Sampson [Dili] 31:56 Hell yeah. Marietta [Atalia] 31:56 I thought I was gonna go first. Daniel [GM] 31:57 Marietta. Marietta [Atalia] 31:58 15. Daniel [GM] 32:00 Okay, ChaCha, there are three of these things descending at you. They look like-. [Music plays] As they get closer, they-they look like something almost out of your visions. I mean, they-. Imagine, like, these strange, like, partially mechanical wings that are tethered to a body of biomass that looks like if you knotted up intestines and the knot of intestines is about the size of a chimp. And that's what is coming at you guys and it appears there are three of them. And, of course, they are flying at you guys, so. Alex [ChaCha] 32:45 I think ChaCha, being kind of grumpy that she got woken up, especially you know since she's gonna have to do watch later, is gonna use Onslaught on them and attack their mental form. Like, she's gonna Mentally attack them. Daniel [GM] 33:02 Okay, so you're going to target one of them. So, okay, so give me a 9. It will be Intellect. Alex [ChaCha] 33:09 20. Yeah, I think this dice is going in dice jail. Daniel [GM] 33:12 So, you got- you got a natural 20? Stace [Nix] 33:14 Why? Mail it- mail it to me. Marietta [Atalia] 33:17 Yeah. Alex [ChaCha] 33:18 I'm gonna switch dice for next roll. Daniel [GM] 33:21 Okay. So, are you going to take the Major Effect or the +4 damage? Stace [Nix] 33:29 I know what I would do Alex [ChaCha] 33:31 What would you do? Stace [Nix] 33:32 Damage. Alex [ChaCha] 33:35 Ooh, we should do the +4 damage. Daniel [GM] 33:38 Okay. You do 6 damage to this thing and it screeches. How it screeches, you don't know, because you don't see any mouth. But it does sound almost like-. It's- it's horrible. It's got this, like, high pitch, like cawwww, except it almost sounds like it's coming through a kazoo, like it's being blown out of an intestine. And yeah, okay, so that's ChaCha. Next up is Atalia. Marietta [Atalia] 34:04 All right, I'm gonna...it seemed to work pretty well for her, so I will also Onslaught. I'll do the Intellect version. Daniel [GM] 34:15 Same one or different one? Marietta [Atalia] 34:17 Same one. Let's down one at a time. Daniel [GM] 34:20 Give me a 9 roll, then. Marietta [Atalia] 34:22 All right. 12. Daniel [GM] 34:25 Okay, so that does 2 Intellect damage to it. It does not like that. Okay, um, next up is...Nix. Stace [Nix] 34:37 All right, so she whips out her sling. You don't know where she had it. Pretty sure was her belt because their pants start saggin'. And loads it up and just gives it a go at the same one that is hurting. I will expend a level of Effort. Daniel [GM] 34:52 Okay so that'll cost you...do you have an Edge in Speed? Stace [Nix] 34:54 I do. Daniel [GM] 34:55 Okay, so it costs 2, so that is now a 6. Stace [Nix] 34:59 Got a natty...1. Daniel [GM] 35:01 Another nat 20? Oh, nat 1? Stace [Nix] 35:03 Yeah. Daniel [GM] 35:05 Ooooh. Stace [Nix] 35:06 My gift to you. Daniel [GM] 35:07 Yeah, okay, so GM Intrusion. So, you shoot the sling at this thing. It misses. But it discombobulates it and it drops something out of its fleshy coil, and it lands-. Are you guys pretty much next to each other this point or are you spread out? Marietta [Atalia] 35:32 Like a half circle almost? None of us have said we moved. Daniel [GM] 35:36 Well, I don't want to punish all of you for Stace's 1. Stace [Nix] 35:40 Well, I would say that Nix is probably more centrally located, cuz she was at the fire, right? And then Dili tripped over Atalia and Nix just screamed at ChaCha. Daniel [GM] 35:48 You're all within- so I'll say it was it an immediate distance. So, so something falls on the ground it appears to be a Cypher that is activated and gets triggered. I need Nix to make a difficulty 12 Might Defense. Stace [Nix] 36:08 I'm gonna do it straight up. I got an 11. Daniel [GM] 36:13 Okay, so you-. Stace [Nix] 36:15 Closer. Alex [ChaCha] 36:15 Closer! Daniel [GM] 36:16 You will take- you will take 4 Might damage as electricity bursts out of this and slams through your body. Stace [Nix] 36:24 Is it indifferent to Armor? Daniel [GM] 36:26 It is indifferent to Armor. Stace [Nix] 36:27 Why is it always indifferent to Armor, Daniel? Daniel [GM] 36:32 Okay. Now is the critters' turn. So, the one that has been sounded is going to...eenie, meenie, miney, mo. it's going to attack ChaCha. It sends this strange, like, thick intestine-like limb tendril out of its arm- out of its wings and tries to hit ChaCha. ChaCha make a 9 Speed Defense roll. Alex [ChaCha] 36:58 That is a 9. Stace [Nix] 37:00 Okay. Daniel [GM] 37:01 Yeah, so you- you manage to dodge this tendril that flexed out and you think you can smell, like, the crackling of ozone around this tendril as it comes past you. The next creature is going to come after Dili. Because why not? And [Popping sound] it is also going to shoot out a tendril at Dili. Sampson [Dili] 37:26 [As Dili] Ahhh. Daniel [GM] 37:26 Please make a 9 Speed Defense roll. Sampson [Dili] 37:28 [As Dili] Ah, okay. 8. Daniel [GM] 37:33 So, you will take 4 Might damage. Sampson [Dili] 37:36 [As Dili] Ahhhh. Daniel [GM] 37:38 Yes. Sampson [Dili] 37:38 He screams. Daniel [GM] 37:39 The last one is going to attack Atalia. Instead of swinging out a tendril, it's going to throw a dart at Atalia. Atalia, please make a 12 Speed Defense roll. Marietta [Atalia] 37:58 11! Daniel [GM] 37:59 Okay. You get hit with a dart and there is a-. You immediately begin to feel a little bit hopeless. You have been hit with a poison dart. And the poison, in this case, is a depression poison. So, for the next- for the next hour unless somebody can cure it, you feel like this intense depression like nothing can be done. Marietta [Atalia] 38:27 Oh, just like real life. Sorry. Sorry, sorry. Multiple Speakers 38:32 [Groaning and laughter] Daniel [GM] 38:34 Okay, and so that's the creatures' turn and now we're back at the top with- no, that's just Sampson now. Sampson, so now, Dili, it's your turn. You have been zapped by one of these creatures, by its noodly appendage. Sampson [Dili] 38:48 Yes, this is very bad. Dili, I guess, is going to run away. You said that there was rocks with kind of, like, with like an overhang to it? Daniel [GM] 38:59 Yeah, that's where you guys were camped up at. Sampson [Dili] 39:01 Okay, then I guess Dili's gonna run farther into that overhang and try to shoot the closest of the creatures with his dart thrower. Daniel [GM] 39:11 That's a light weapon so that'll be a 6 to hit. So, you're going to try to hit the closest one to you are you gonna try to hit the one that's already been hurt? Sampson [Dili] 39:21 Oh, I'm gonna say the one that's already been hurt. Daniel [GM] 39:27 Okay. So, since it's a light weapon that'll be a 6 Speed roll. Sampson [Dili] 39:32 18. Daniel [GM] 39:33 Nice. So that would be +2 damage as you hit it. And this thing dies as this dark, like, slams in the middle of its strange, like, intestinal mass. And it just, like, turns and falls on the ground with a crash. Sampson [Dili] 39:52 [As Dili] Oh, well that was easy. Okay. Daniel [GM] 39:54 Okay. Now we're back at ChaCha. There are two of these left. Alex [ChaCha] 39:58 I think.... I forgot to give ChaCha a weapon. Daniel [GM] 40:04 That's unfortunate. Alex [ChaCha] 40:07 I knoooow. Stace [Nix] 40:07 You'd think she'd have, like, a dart thrower. Daniel [GM] 40:12 You could have- you could have a dart thrower. Let's put it that way. Alex [ChaCha] 40:16 Okay, she's gonna whip out a dart thrower from some weird pocket in her weird brightly colored cloak and attack. The closest one to her. Daniel [GM] 40:29 Okay, so that'll be a 6 to hit since it's a light weapon. Alex [ChaCha] 40:33 I'm gonna write this down so I don't forget again. 13. Daniel [GM] 40:40 Okay, so you hit it. It does look like it has some sort of thick hide, but you definitely did some damage to it. Alex [ChaCha] 40:49 Yayyy. Daniel [GM] 40:50 Next up is Atalia. Marietta [Atalia] 40:53 Me! Okay, I'm gonna Onslaught the mofo again. Daniel [GM] 40:58 Okay. So, the one that ChaCha just hurt? Marietta [Atalia] 41:03 The one that's already hurt. We're gonna stick with the one-at-a-time policy. Daniel [GM] 41:08 And are you doing a mental attack or a physical attack? Marietta [Atalia] 41:11 So, it said- you said it seemed like they have sort of a thick hide? Daniel [GM] 41:16 Yeah, I mean not crazy thick but definitely like they've got some protection. Marietta [Atalia] 41:21 Okay, I'll just do a mental Onslaught. Daniel [GM] 41:24 Okay. So that'll be a 9. Marietta [Atalia] 41:29 All right, 14. Daniel [GM] 41:30 Okay, so it takes 2 Mental Damage from you and it makes that shrieking sound again. Okay, Nix. Stace [Nix] 41:38 Are they still a short distance away, above? Daniel [GM] 41:42 No, that- now they- now they are definitely in immediate range. Stace [Nix] 41:46 Oh, sweet. Now Nix is gonna punch. Daniel [GM] 41:53 Which one? Stace [Nix] 41:54 The weakest one? Daniel [GM] 41:56 Okay. Whichever one's been hurt. Okay. Sampson [Dili] 41:59 Dramatic pause. Daniel [GM] 42:02 So that would be a 9 to hit. Stace [Nix] 42:05 Right? Ohhh, I will expend *mumbles*. No, I will expend eff- a level of Effort. Daniel [GM] 42:16 Okay, so that'll be 3 Might. Stace 42:18 2. You- you get an Edge in both. Daniel [GM] 42:21 Oh, you get an Edge in both as a Glaive. That's right. So 2...2 Might. Okay, so that brings it down to a 6. Stace [Nix] 42:30 I got an 11. That's 7 damage. Daniel [GM] 42:33 Nice. Okay. What does it look like when you punch this thing to death with one punch? Stace [Nix] 42:43 All right, so first of all...it's like a side- like she knocks it out of the air, and it hits the ground. And then she takes step towards it. You think she's going to step over it, but she doesn't. She never steps on that leg she just falls backwards and drops an elbow straight in the middle of this flesh thing. [Gurgling sound] And it expires. Daniel [GM] 43:04 Okay, cool. Okay, so now it's the remaining one’s turn. It is going to attack Atalia. Atalia, because you have the depression poison in you for the next hour, all your actions are Hindered by two steps. so, you need to make a Speed Defense roll of 15. Marietta [Atalia] 43:25 Can I use a level of- well, I don't have an Edge. Can I still use a level of Effort if I don't have Edge in a thing? Daniel [GM] 43:33 Absolutely. Just, it's just the full price. So, to be, it would be- cost you 3 Speed to lower the difficulty to a 12. Marietta [Atalia] 43:41 17. Daniel [GM] 43:43 Nice. Yeah, so you managed to dodge as one of these like, intestine tentacles, like, comes flying out at you. Marietta [Atalia] 43:50 I say, [As Atalia] No! Daniel [GM] 43:52 Okay. Dili. There's one of these things left. Sampson [Dili] 43:56 [As Dili] Oh my god, Nix just exploded that one. Dili's going to aim his dart thrower at the last remaining creature. Daniel [GM] 44:08 So, it'll be a 6. Sampson [Dili] 44:11 Dili rolls a 3. Excellent. Daniel [GM] 44:14 Okay, so the darkness-. Alex [ChaCha] 44:16 Trade you that die. Multiple Speakers 44:16 [Laughter] Daniel [GM] 44:19 Okay, so now we're back to ChaCha. Alex [ChaCha] 44:22 Onslaught, mental. Daniel [GM] 44:25 Okay, that's a 9. Alex [ChaCha] 44:27 18. Daniel [GM] 44:29 Okay, so that is +2 damage. Alex [ChaCha] 44:33 Yayyy. Daniel [GM] 44:35 So, you hear that crazy shriek again and now it is to Atalia. Marietta [Atalia] 44:40 You know, I'm gonna try Onslaught again but physically. Daniel [GM] 44:44 Okay, so that will be a 15. Marietta [Atalia] 44:47 Okay. Daniel [GM] 44:48 Cuz you're depressed right now. Marietta [Atalia] 44:51 Ohhhh. Sampson [Dili] 44:51 She can't develop unhealthy habits. Marietta [Atalia] 44:51 11. Nevermind. Daniel [GM] 44:58 What'd you get? Marietta [Atalia] 44:59 11. Daniel [GM] 45:00 Okay, yeah, it's a miss. Nix. Stace [Nix] 45:04 Okay, yeah, so gonna, once again physically attack. Daniel [GM] 45:08 So that's a 9. Stace [Nix] 45:09 It's still within range? Daniel [GM] 45:11 Yeah, it's within range. Stace [Nix] 45:12 All right. Daniel [GM] 45:13 It's very focused on Atalia, so. Stace [Nix] 45:16 I will expend more Efforts Daniel [GM] 45:20 2 Might to bring it down to a 6. Stace [Nix] 45:23 I got a 6. Daniel [GM] 45:24 Nice, okay. Stace [Nix] 45:26 That's 7 damage. Daniel [GM] 45:27 7 damage. What does it look like when you punch this thing to death? Stace [Nix] 45:31 Oh, she's not gonna punch it this time, Daniel. She's gonna grab it from behind, right, because it's focused on Atalia. And then just, like, bring it down onto her knee and just, like, bust it apart. Daniel [GM] 45:42 Okay, so there's a big sickening splorch [Splorch sound] as it busts open across your knee and whatever was in these strange intestine knots begins falling out everywhere. And yeah, you guys are out of combat. You've killed these three things. Stace [Nix] 46:00 What was inside? Daniel [GM] 46:02 Well, there were lots of fluids and sludges of various colors. There was some purple, a little bit of green, which would be kind of like a cool sort of 1980s Joker mixture of stuff. Except that there was also this, like, weird sort of dried blood and really terrible smell. Like if you could imagine it's a mixture of, like, sort of rotten eggs, sulfur, and rotten beef. Marietta [Atalia] 46:33 Cute. Sampson [Dili] 46:33 Are there any candies in the monster? Daniel [GM] 46:35 You want to search the bodies? Alex [ChaCha] 46:37 Oh, candy. Daniel [GM] 46:39 Okay, so, a couple of them had used Cyphers against you guys. One of them had not. So, there is a Cypher on one of their bodies. So, there is-. Sampson [Dili] 46:51 Dili's actually gonna look at the broken Cyphers when you get around to it. Daniel [GM] 46:52 A small, like, handheld, Regeneration Engine is a tainted Cypher. So basically, each time the user uses a Cypher, an Artifact, or a special ability from their Type or Focus for the next 28 hours, they also restore a number of points to their pools equal to the Regeneration Engine's level. So, roll 1d6 for me, someone. Alex [ChaCha] 46:56 I got 4. Daniel [GM] 46:58 Okay, so it restores 4 points. So, when somebody activates this for the next 28 hours, every time they use a Cypher or an Artifact, or whatever, or one of their special abilities, they will get 4 points to their pools equal. However, because it is a tainted Cypher, there is a slight risk of Cleoid transformation, your genetic code, if uh, 1 that activates. Sampson [Dili] 47:50 Did you say Cleoid transformation? Stace [Nix] 47:53 I know what that means, but for the non-scientists. Daniel [GM] 47:57 Make a History or Numenera roll. Difficulty is going to be 9. Alex [ChaCha] 48:07 I have abilities in Numenera. Daniel [GM] 48:10 Yeah, that'll help. Alex [ChaCha] 48:11 I have a book about Numenera. Daniel [GM] 48:13 A book on Numenera will help if you want to take 30 minutes to study it as part of this. Alex [ChaCha] 48:18 No. ChaCha ain't got that time. ChaCha got a 15. Daniel [GM] 48:19 Okay, so Cleoids are an extinct species, but their influence still lurks in certain tainted Cyphers and Artifacts. Creatures that use these compromised objects are gradually transformed into shell monsters with mental abilities of ferocious strength, unless they can resist the change. Yeah, so you know that as this goes on, there is a chance that unless you're successful in resisting the change, you could slowly become a Cleoid. Alex [ChaCha] 48:46 That just gave ChaCha the urge to just, like, smash it. Like, [As ChaCha] No, no, no, no, no. Stace [Nix] 49:00 [As Nix] I mean, like, we could bring back like an ancient species, guys. Daniel [GM] 49:06 Now if you guys want to you could try to salvage it to see if there's anything worthwhile in it instead of keeping it as a Cypher. Alex [ChaCha] 49:13 Anybody good at salvaging Numenera? Stace [Nix] 49:16 Yeah. Does anybody do that here? Marietta [Atalia] 49:19 Dili? Sampson [Dili] 49:21 You'd think so. But I guess to keep the Wright class balanced, Wrights have an option to either become Trained in Understanding Numenera or Salvaging Numenera and I chose to Understand Numenera. But Dili can try, cuz that makes sense. Daniel [GM] 49:38 Yeah. Okay. So, to attempt to salvage this as a 4, so it would be a 12, and you have an Inability so it's a 15. Sampson [Dili] 49:46 Correct. Alex [ChaCha] 49:47 Can ChaCha assist? Daniel [GM] 49:48 Do you have any experience with that? Alex [ChaCha] 49:52 No, she can just be, like, super positive and heartwarmingly positive for Dili so he feels supported. Daniel [GM] 50:01 I think- I don't think it would help because you don't have any training or help in it in this particular case. Sampson [Dili] 50:07 [As Dili] ChaCha, can you give me some space, please? Marietta [Atalia] 50:11 ChaCha gets all sad and wanders back to her bed area and is sad. Stace [Nix] 50:16 Yeah, how long did that whole thing take? Daniel [GM] 50:21 The whole battle? Stace [Nix] 50:22 Yeah. Daniel [GM] 50:23 Less than a minute. Stace [Nix] 50:25 Oh, sweet. [As Nix] 'Night, guys, see you in, like, three hours? Yeah. Alex [ChaCha] 50:30 Yeah, ChaCha's back in bed. Sampson [Dili] 50:32 Dili's gonna make his role. He's also going to try to salvage the other two broken or used Cyphers that dropped to get anything from those. Daniel [GM] 50:42 Okay, let's start with the- let's start with the one that we know about. Sampson [Dili] 50:45 Right. Uh, 12. Daniel [GM] 50:50 That's not going to do it. So, in the process of trying to salvage it, you manage to break it. Sampson [Dili] 50:57 [As Dili] Aww. Yeah. Daniel [GM] 50:58 But, congratulations. At least it could- its components can be made up of three shins. Sampson [Dili] 51:04 [As Dili] All right, I got some shinies out of this. So here we go. Daniel [GM] 51:10 The other two ciphers since they were used there's nothing of value. Sampson [Dili] 51:14 No, not even parts. All right, well. Daniel [GM] 51:17 No. The part- the parts that are valuable with-. You might find some synth but nothing of any particular note. Like, any-any-any Io or anything like that is long since depleted. Sampson [Dili] 51:31 Well, synth is also useful to me. Daniel [GM] 51:33 So, let's say you find two synth. Sampson [Dili] 51:35 [As Dili] Yeah, there's nothing I can really get out of these. Unless, does anyone want a shiny rock to throw at them? Alex [ChaCha] 51:41 [As ChaCha] Oooh! Sampson [Dili] 51:44 [As Dili] For more monsters? Alex [ChaCha] 51:44 ChaCha's hand goes up. Sampson [Dili] 51:44 [As Dili] Okay. But then he'll toss the metal things to ChaCha. Daniel [GM] 51:53 So, you guys just gonna leave Atalia on watch all night? Stace [Nix] 51:55 No, I thought Atalia would go back to bed. Daniel [GM] 51:58 No, she was the next person to do watch. Stace [Nix] 52:00 But I thought watch time-. I thought it wasn't watch time yet, right? Because it only took a minute. Daniel [GM] 52:03 Yeah it only took a minute. So, but I thought you said you were going back to bed. Stace [Nix] 52:06 No, I said, I'll see you guys in three hours. Daniel [GM] 52:09 Okay, yes, yes, yes. Okay. You're good. Marietta [Atalia] 52:12 Okay, I'll go back to bed. Sampson [Dili] 52:14 [As Dili] Do we do that every hour? Stace [Nix] 52:16 [As Nix] I mean, depends, man, like, do they attack every hour? Then yes. Do they not attack every hour? Then no. Sometimes they attack more frequently, I'm not gonna lie to you. Sampson [Dili] 52:26 [As Dili] Oh, god. Daniel [GM] 52:28 So, the night goes without incident the rest of the night. By the time Atalia wakes up the poison's gone. You guys were able to make your way. You guys are continuing your hike, and you guys look at the map, and it seems like you should be to the ruins already. But you're not seeing anything here. Marietta [Atalia] 52:50 It's a little conspicuous. Alex [ChaCha] 52:52 Does ChaCha see anything that other people don't see? Daniel [GM] 52:55 Well, that's interesting. Give me a Perception roll, ChaCha. That will be at 9. Alex [ChaCha] 53:03 20. Boom. Daniel [GM] 53:05 Wow. Okay. ChaCha, you see a strange figure moving in front of you. They're tall. They don't have legs so they shouldn't be humanoid. It's almost like they hover. But they've got long, just ebon black skin, and long claws, and a mouth that opens with full mandibles, and there seems like there's fire inside. And it floats around in front of you. And then wanders a little ways forward and then it seems to disappear for a moment. Then it sticks it’s head out and beckons to you. And one of its eyes - if they are eyes - make something even like a wink as it waves its clawed arm at you and disappears back into nothingness like it's sinking into water that isn't there. None of the rest of you see this, by the way. Alex [ChaCha] 54:03 I think ChaCha frowns and say- says, [As ChaCha] It's never anything good, is it? It's always horrors. And then she starts to follow them. The thing. Sampson [Dili] 54:14 [As Dili] What's- what's always hard? What? ChaCha? Alex [ChaCha] 54:16 [As ChaCha] It's the creepy fire monster. Sampson [Dili] 54:22 [As Dili] What? Monster? What? Alex [ChaCha] 54:23 [As ChaCha] It knows what we're doing. Sampson [Dili] 54:25 Dili's looking around for a monster. Marietta [Atalia] 54:28 I'll follow her. Daniel [GM] 54:31 Okay. Anybody else follow? Or are you guys just hanging? Sampson [Dili] 54:36 Dili will follow the group. Stace [Nix] 54:39 Yeah. *mumbles* Daniel [GM] 54:40 Okay, it doesn't take long before you guys reach that same threshold that ChaCha saw before and as you step through it, it's like, it does feel a little bit like crossing the surface tension of water. And you see in front of you a massive installation of buildings made of green synth. And with strange carvings among them of creatures that you guys don't recognize. Something that looks like part mollusk, part person. And there is a- but they're not like separate buildings. It's almost like if you could imagine a crystal formation that like burst out of the surface of the earth? And there is a wide opening at the center of it in the shape of a diamond, with a hall leading down, and there's just the faintest blue light flickering in the green. And that's where we'll end this episode. Marietta [Atalia] 55:42 Whaaaat? Daniel [GM] 55:42 Yeah, yeah. Sampson [Dili] 55:44 Oh, what? Daniel [GM] 55:45 So, I got a quick question for one of you. And I'll have questions for you every time, but this time I'm going to pick on Stace. Stace, what's one thing that happened this session that your character did that made you feel awesome? Stace [Nix] 56:00 Oh, definitely the elbow. Droppin' that 'bow? Alex [ChaCha] 56:06 Yeah. Sampson [Dili] 56:07 Really just that, like, back-to-back kill, right? Multiple Speakers 56:09 [Laughter] Stace [Nix] 56:17 Yeah. Actually, hitting on, you know, an attack was nice as well. Now that I think about it. But yeah, back-to-back kills. Basically. Daniel [GM] 56:30 We have a segment that we do every episode called Player Intrusions, which is an opportunity for us to tell you about something that you should dig. And this week is Stace's turn again. Stace, what would you give the audience an XP for if they checked out? Stace [Nix] 56:47 Well, Daniel, I think I gotta say Numenera, because that's what we're doing. Daniel [GM] 56:52 Why? Stace [Nix] 56:52 Well, honestly, and I put some thought into this because I do enjoy Numenera so much, but I didn't grow up with Numenera. I don't even know how old it is, now I think about it. How's long has it been around? Do you know, Daniel? Daniel [GM] 57:05 I think... I knew this at one point. I think it came out in 2013. Stace [Nix] 57:13 Oh, that's what I thought. So, it's been out six or seven years. But I didn't encounter the world of Numenera until 2017. When I picked up Torment: Tides of Numenera, the CRPG? Got it for Xbox. And I really enjoyed it. It was kind of a weird, wacky world. And what I was getting at earlier is like, we all grow up - not we all necessarily - but a lot of us, especially here in the United States, we grow up with that kind of eurocentric medieval fantasy setting. And it's very familiar to us. And that can be a good thing because it's comfortable, and it's tropey, and we know what we're getting into. But I feel like Numenera reminds me of when I first started getting into fantasy and sci fi. And it's got that sense of wonder that isn't there for me anymore with a lot of standard fantasy adventures. Kind of reminds me of like, you know, like the first time I read Castle in the Attic, or the Narnia series, and that stuff blew my mind. And now you look back, and- or, I look back, and I realize it's very genre-specific, fairly generic stuff. But I didn't know that then. And that's how I feel about Numenera. It's just that, that childlike wonder. And the system. The Cypher System is simple, it lets the world breathe and live, and the characters to do the same thing because we're not just crunching a ton of numbers and doing a lot of math, and it really opens up for role playing. And, not that I, again, not knocking traditional tabletop RPGs...I love 'em all. But that's just what makes Numenera unique and special to me. And that's why I really think people should give a shot, because maybe listening to this episode, if you never played before, it sounded-sounded really arcane and different and complicated, but when you get into it, it's really not. It's, it's about as simple as you can get for a tabletop RPG. Daniel [GM] 59:17 Okay. Stace [Nix] 59:18 Yeah. Daniel [GM] 59:19 Very cool. That I think as a fitting first Player Intrusion for us. So, we are a new podcast. So, if you guys enjoyed what you heard, the best thing you can do is tell your friends. Second best thing you can do is leave us five-star reviews if you liked the show. If you didn't like the show, keep it to your fucking self. Multiple Speakers 59:45 [Snorting and laughing] Sampson [Dili] 59:47 We're not taking any constructive criticism? Marietta [Atalia] 59:50 No, we're perfect. I don't know what you're talking about. Daniel [GM] 59:55 Constructive criticism is fine, but- but not for the reviews. Marietta, where can people find us if they want to talk to us? Marietta [Atalia] 1:00:03 On all of the social media. We've got Instagram, we've got Twitter, we have our own dang website. We have a-. Sampson [Dili] 1:00:10 Dating website? Marietta [Atalia] 1:00:12 Dang website. Dammit! Sampson [Dili] 1:00:14 [Laughter] Date one of the party members. Marietta [Atalia] 1:00:18 I mean, we could talk about that in the future but not quite there yet. Stace [Nix] 1:00:23 I mean, send me your resume. Marietta [Atalia] 1:00:24 But yeah, we are ExplorersWantedPodcast on Instagram and Facebook and Twitter is ExplorersWanted. And then our website is explorerswanted.fm? Daniel [GM] 1:00:40 Yes. Marietta [Atalia] 1:00:41 I remembered. Daniel [GM] 1:00:42 We're all fancy like that. Marietta [Atalia] 1:00:44 We're so fancy. We're fancypants. Daniel [GM] 1:00:47 If you are looking to talk to us individually, you can find me on Twitter @andrlik, a-n-d-r-l-i-k. Stace [Nix] 1:00:56 You can find me on Twitter @StaceWindu. It's like Mace Windu, but Stace Windu. Alex [ChaCha] 1:01:08 You can find me @realteaunicorn at Twitter. Stace [Nix] 1:01:14 You can find me @slampotato on Twitter. Marietta [Atalia] 1:01:17 Slampotato? Sampson [Dili] 1:01:19 Slampotato, it's a long story. Marietta [Atalia] 1:01:21 I want to hear that story one day. And then you can find me, Marietta, on Instagram at imonahike, all one word. Daniel [GM] 1:01:31 Okay, there we go. Okay, well that's it for us. We'll see you next week on Explorers Wanted. Multiple Speakers 1:01:37 Bye!