theunrivaled | Open Log - Welcome to the Main Camp

Moments ago, there was an earthquake. You might not have felt it, but it definitely happened. The collapsed tents and spooked horses serve as evidence that something unsettling shook the main camp not that long ago. The soldiers and citizens don't seem terribly frightened, as if they've gotten used to the ground trembling by now, but more than one stops to look toward the tall spires of rock separating the comfortable and well-ordered areas of the camp from a deserted battlefield. It's as if they wonder to themselves whether something deep in the pit on the other side might have caused it...again...

And then they realize that something else has happened.

You are here – or near here.

Prompt 1:

Immediately after the latest quake, people simply appear in and around the main camp. The residents don't actually see it happen, but they turn around to find a person where there wasn't one a moment ago. You might be that person! You might wake up inside a canvas tent, perhaps even lucky enough to be resting comfortably on an unoccupied cot. You might wake up on the open ground outside with an awful lot of gawkers standing around you. Or, you might wake up about ten meters down the road from the gates of the camp, in clear sight of the guards and the tents just beyond them. This is definitely the time and place to start grabbing strangers and asking them where you are, why you're there, and what the hell is going on.

Prompt 2:

Maybe it's not so right-away, but you've woken up all the same and had a look around. Maybe some of the soldiers have done their best to answer your burning questions. At least one thing is clear: the natives all dress in simple robes and tunics, the soldiers in similar plate or mail armor, making anyone in other garb stick out like a sore thumb. The women who run the Teahouse have noticed this first, and are doing a fine job offering the utmost in hospitality to the strangers in the off chance that they're allied with one of the lords of the land. They'll make sure you have a place to sleep, a good meal, and the best tea the Han Dynasty can provide. It may be a bit rustic for some, but it's comfortable and pleasant. Can it be worth settling down here for a while? Or is this place missing something crucial – like the ability to use your magic?

Prompt 3:

There's a lot to explore in and around the Main Camp. The various tents set up on different levels overlooking the middle area are open to be claimed, and some of them look a lot more fancy than others. As long as there's no famous lord laying his head there, why shouldn't you? The central ground of the camp contains the Merchant's stall, the Teahouse, and the Armory, as well as the stocks for the misbehaving. The bathing area is downstream from everything else, where the river passes under the rocks and empties out onto the plain beyond. There's a few areas of interest outside the camp perimeter, too, and none of the guards are stopping you from going out there. The main road looks well-traveled and vanishes eastward into the distance across rolling plains. On the west side there are high cliffs of cooled lava separating the camp from the former battleground where the Hydra was destroyed. It's rocky and perilous ground, but the adventurous can climb down winding, crumbling paths into a deep crevasse. There doesn't appear to be anything down here, but those of a magical or mystical inclination will sense the lingering aftereffects of great power.

If one were to travel a short distance northward, they'll find the Wuzhang Plains standing quiet and empty, the fortifications left in whatever half-damaged state they were in from the last battle waged here. There is also a temple along the southern ridge, looking decidedly like it doesn't belong there with more traces of mystical energy at its center. Here, the wayward traveler will be beset by small units of spindly, gray-skinned soldiers bearing spears and swords, no more than half a dozen at a time.

Prompt 4: Wildcard

Whatever floats your boat or isn't covered above! Refer to the Arrival page for details of what is and isn't to be found in the Main Camp.

In time, the Merchant makes an announcement. Not long after the Great Cataclysm, some of the mystic soldiers now guarding the main camp arrived with mirrors they claim to have enchanted so that the scattered warlords can speak to each other from a distance. He is under obligation to give one to anyone who asks, and suggests that they may try it out whenever they have the courage to do so.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He pushes himself up the rest of the way, with a bit of difficulty, the armor was heavy, then dusts himself off.]

I may have to get back to you on that. I'm not sure where my knees even are under all this metal.

[He laughs in spite of himself. He could probably fall off a cliff and not feel much in all this.... actually that had happen before so he could claim from experience.]

But once I find them, I'll be sure to let you know. [He glanced once more around the area, still nothing trying to kill him. There's actually a whole lot of nothing all around to be honest. Road. Grass. Camp in the distance. Some bushes. Some annoying birds.] So, why a nap all the way out here? Just out of curiosity.

[of course there's always the possibility that one might scrape their knees inside the armor...because that is a hell of a lot of armor...]

Figured it would be out of the way. Didn't expect there'd be anyone actually going this direction, they seem to stay congregated around the tents and the food.

[Well thinking about it that way ti didn't seem like a horrible idea.]

Makes sense I suppose, it is nice to get out of the crowd every so often. [Thinking on it, maybe this guy had a batter idea as to why he was here than he did. He didn't seem to know who he was though. Still worth trying to fish a little.] Have you been here long then?

[even after napus interruptus, Zoro is in a decent enough mood that he doesn't mind sitting up and chatting.]

Not really, no. Couple of days, that's about it. Enough to get a feel for the camp here. [with a tip of his head toward the busier parts] Haven't explored outside it, though.

A couple of days? So you're not from around here either?

[That was... actually really comforting. He wasn't the only one? Knowing that, he probably should have made a better effort at asking around what was going on. Not that he didn't think it was a bad idea to be wary given the circumstances. He's had a rough week.]

Nope. [so flippant! It's like he doesn't find anything particularly unusual about that.] All things considered I'd rather be back on my ship, but here isn't so bad so far. There's an obvious lack of booze, but the rest is easy to deal with.

Your ship? So you're a sailor then? Where is it you hail from?

[Would explain why he had only been here a few days. Maybe he could find a way out of this mess after all! the comment about alcohol does get a chuckle out of him though. He too could really use a good drink right now.

Actually no, he could use a terrible one. Some of that foul Fereldan swill, or the acid Iron Bull convinced him to drink that one time after they killed that dragon.

He still can't remember the rest of that evening.]

You know, I knew there was something missing about this place. I just couldn't put my finger on it.

[Zoro's lips curl back into a wicked grin] Pirate, actually.

You've probably never heard of it. Would it matter if I told you about the Grand Line? Maybe later, when everybody's in the mood to tell stories.

[damn right this place is missing something. He laughs a little under his breath]

If this is the kind of world to have a bar somewhere, that's reason enough for me to get off my ass and start exploring. I already miss it.

A pirate. [Oh thank the creators- the make- oh whoever. Thank somebody. As much as he knew he probably should be excited, and that he probably should consider a pirate to be a normal individual... he was going to anyway. More normal to him than most people he had dealt with anyway.]

I'll admit, I haven't heard of it, but I haven't actually gone out on the open sea before. The only ships I've been in were my clan's aravels. [Given how his day's been going be probably shouldn't just assume the stranger knows what that is.] Or, well, the humans call them "landships".

What I wouldn't give for one now, and some halla... would probably find us to a nice tavern pretty quick... not like we would have much to buy the money with anyway.

Whoa, you have ships on land?

[yes that is the only thing he took away from all of that. Good job, Zoro. He sits up sharply in interest, and then finally decides to push himself to his feet, looking around to find where he left his swords. Aha, there they are.]

Yeah, I suppose the real problem isn't the lack of booze, it's the lack of money for booze. Wonder what's the best way to get around that - since they're just giving us food and stuff for free.

Well, sort of. They're caravans or wagons, except we attached sails to them. It made travelling easier across large plains, and with a bit of magic, the forests too.

[He chuckled at the latter bit.]

I didn't think pirates often paid for their ale, or is that just a stereotype?

Well, it's not like I haven't ditched on a tab a few times in my life...

[really, though, he pays when he can. Shh. Good guy Zoro.]

Really, though. Sails on a caravan? That's crazy. I've never seen anything like that and I've been some weird places.

Haven't we all? Well... I think I have. There are a few nights I don't really recall how the evening went.

[But he was usually broke anyway so he often wondered what happened when he usually woke up in his bed the next day.]

Well, they were something unique to the Dalish. I never saw humans adopt the trend, then again humans aren't usually nomadic.

[Since humans liked killing elves more than they liked killing each other. Kept them moving, but he had grown fond of the lifestyle.]

[drunken blackouts? you're his kind of drinking buddy, Lavellan]

No? Huh. Well, pirates are kinda nomads, I guess. Nomads on the sea. So it's kind of the same.

[he has no idea what he's talking about anymore]

[You tried bro. At least Lavellan offers a good hearted laugh for the effort.]

Get a few drinks in me and that will make perfect sense, I'm certain.

Heh. Once I find where the booze is, you're on.

Open Log - Welcome to the Main Camp

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