In reply to Tameku (msg # 695):

“Feels like an eternity we were in those mines, a rest before we continue is a good idea.” Lutorian replied to Tameku “thank you for all that you’ve done for us Turaga, we’ll excuse ourselves now and allow you to rest.” Lutorian said with a bow.

"Thank you for your service," the Turaga replied. "May Mata Nui see you safely to the mountain's peak."

***

When the Matoran returned outside, they saw that their Makuta ally had taken the mining robot and left, just as he said he would.

---

The Onu-Matoran have two types of mounts available. There's also the lone hover bike left behind by the Dark Hunters.

Ussal Crab: Strong and hardy. They go anywhere without complaint and never seem to run out of stamina. Surprisingly good climbers.
Urumoka: Swift, blind lizards with great hearing and a good nose. Fastest on dry land. They sense threats early and can find hidden things.
Hover bike: Floats a foot off the ground, can glide and will slow any fall to a safe speed. Can cross still water too.

From what you have been told, the path to the temple will be tunnel, road, mountain path, glacier.

Standard weapons, armor and tools are available for sale, as are general supplies.

After resting and recovering your energy, any HP lost has been restored.

"I mainly suggested taking a rest so that we can wait for our... ally's return", Tameku whispered to Lutorian as soon as they were alone, "Nonetheless, I also spoke true when I said we should prepare ourselves for the trip ahead. From past experience I know that mountains can be tricky, so we should prepare well. Luckily we have some money now."

"If you have trouble carrying your stuff - you can have the carrying sack I picked up earlier if you want", Tameku offered Lutorian.

Tameku is interested to buy the following things for himself if available:
- 2 Heat Stones
- a coil of rope
- footwear with spikes to get a better grip on frozen surfaces
- a Lightstone
- (some food to consume immediately in order to charge up for the journey ahead if neccessary)

(I'll get back to the subject of mounts once we leave Parau Koro)

In reply to Tameku (msg # 698):

"Thanks for the offer, but I travel with very light gear," Lutorian responded with a gesture pointing to the Kanoka on his back.

Lutorian is looking for
- any sort of warm cloaks
- any kind of climbing tools
- extra rope
- tools to start fires with

Are the Urumoka native to this island? Lutorian may take interest in them, and considering the hoverbike belonged to the dark hunters, would it have room for 2 matoran?
This message was last edited by the player at 23:26, Wed 22 Jan 2020.

Tameku

Merchants' asking price:

Heat stone x2  40w
Light stone     5w (they are plentiful in this area)
Rope            8w
Boot spikes    20w (equipment, same cost as a new armor piece)
------------------
Total          73w

Lutorian

Merchants' asking price:

Warm clothing           25w (It's not armor, but needs the right materials)
Rope                     8w
Heatstone or firestaff  20w
Hook or climbing pick   20w
Boot spikes             20w (equipment, same cost as a new armor piece)
---------------------------
Total                   93w

The Urumoka are indeed native to this island. The hoverbike could seat two Matoran but would then have no space left for extra cargo such as a crate or similar, should you pick up any larger things. Your backpacks will be fine and won't weigh down the bike.

---

Warm clothing: Colder climates won't trouble you as long as you keep it wrapped around you.

Boot spikes keep you from slipping on ice or wet rocks. They can help with climbing too.

Both heatstones and firestaffs can start fires on touch. The latter is more intense but has a set number of uses before it must be allowed to recharge.

Hooks and picks may find cracks to carry your weight when climbing. You can also get a claw-shaped hook; either type can be carried in your hand or be attached to a rope.

Food helps restore HP on the road. Meals cost 2w per HP restored, with instant supplies such as a Volo Sphere costing a bit more. Don't worry about feeding yourself when not hurt or tired, Matoran seldom need to refuel themselves if not exerting a lot of effort.

Alright, I'll take:
1 Heat Stone
1 Light Stone
Rope
Boot Spikes
Warm Clothing

Should be 78 Widgets.

Though Tameku would also haggle about the prices:

Skills used: Judging craftsmanship, Persuasiveness, Dealing with different species
Tameku rolled 6 using 4d6, keeping the highest dice only with rolls of 1,1,6,4.  Haggling.

Tameku will also offer doing the haggling for Lutorian if he wants.

Otherwise unless Lutorian wants to do anything else right now, Tameku would suggest waiting for the Makuta's return for up to 4 hours.

The armorsmith tells you he agrees: a set of spikes for good traction isn't very hard to make. He offers to cut the price for you and Lutorian down to half for this item. (New price: 10w per boot spike set.)

The merchant tells you he can't go any lower on the other supplies, as these are already as cheap as he can make them, but he's willing to take something else from you if you're short on widgets.

You sense that you could press the prices lower if you really wanted to, but taking it too far may result in a loss of the deal.

---

Tameku: Critical success. Got a price reduction, and the offer to exchange item for item.
14:37, Today: Game Master, for the NPC Merchant, rolled 5 using 3d6, keeping the highest dice only ((4,5,3)).
3 dmg, -2 def, Tameku loses 1 Social HP.

Tameku takes the deal and pays 68 Widgets, storing the Lightstone and Heatstone in his satchel and everything else in his backpack for the time being.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:43, Thu 23 Jan 2020.

In reply to Game Master (msg # 702):

Lutorian takes
a heat stone
a pair of boot spikes
warm clothing
an extra length of rope
and a pair of climbing picks

with Tameku's deal, it's 103 widgets, Lutorian also thanks the armorsmith for the deal, and quietly congratulates Tameku on striking that deal as they leave

"Before we leave I'd like to observe these Rahi mounts they have, I've never seen them before.
Ussal Crabs would make a good mount for where we're going, but I'd like to see if these new Rahi may be more useful instead." Lutorian told Tameku

"I've made good experiences with Ussal crabs in the past, so I' think I've pretty much already made my choice, but sure, let's take a look at the stables and its Rahi. In any case we'll need to select our mounts, and finding just the right one can take time."

The Onu-Matoran, ever organized and efficient, had caught word of the Turaga's offer to the travelers. At Lutorian's request they fetched one of their white lizards for him to inspect. It was large, easily twice his length with body alone. Its eyes were blank and utterly blind, but from the way it acted the Le-Matoran could tell that the reptilian Rahi still knew exactly where he was.

[Rahi researcher]: Being streamlined quadrupeds, Urumoka lizards should be able to run at significant speed through tunnels and on flat roads. Over long distances they could potentially arrive much earlier than Ussal crabs. They are good sprinters, capable of overtaking larger Rahi in combat thanks to their common hunting methods. Ussal crabs, on the other hand, would weather the cold of the glacier better, and be able to climb steep rock slopes if needed. They are very tough and refuse to give up. Even in the worst of conditions an Ussal will refuse to abandon its owner.

The two Matoran knew that the group of researchers they were looking for likely had no transport. Regardless of what Rahi they chose to ride on, they would be able to catch up with them.

In reply to Game Master (msg # 706):

"Ever-beautiful" Lutorian spoke softly, taking mental notation of the Rahi's anatomy "How do they behave? are they hostile in the wild? Difficult to tame?" the green Matoran asked the Onu-Matoran in rapid succession.

"They are not hostile to Matoran, but they tend to avoid us entirely if they can," a stable-keeper explained. "If someone gets too close they will retreat to their pack and bundle together for strength in numbers. This scares off most predators. If you still press on, all of them scatter and vanish into the caves. You have to be quick to pick one to snag. Once captured they struggle for a bit but turn docile and loyal if treated well."

Tameku also studied the Urumoka, but eventually shrugged and turned to the stable-keeper. "An interesting Rahi, but I think I'll stick to Ussal crabs. Could you show me which ones are available? I'd prefer one with some travel experience and a calm nature."

“Yes!” Lutorian said springing up from his obsessed state, “These Rahi are quite something, but I believe an Ussal will serve us better for our destination”
Putting his hand up to the mouth of his mask “That hover bike over there, do you know what the village is intending to do with it?” Lutorian inquired of the Onu Matoran

It didn't take long for two riding crabs to be presented to their new masters. "These Ussal are docile, but still swift and tenacious where it matters," they were told.

The Onu-Matoran stablekeeper turned his head to see where Lutorian was pointing. "We don't have any plans for it, as far as I know," he responded. "It's no use deep in the mine, and most of us prefer to ride crabs or lizards. I recall the Turaga said you may have it, if it would serve you better."

Tameku patted the shell of one of the Ussal fondly. "Does she have a name?", he asked.

To Lutorian he said: "Didn't think you're a fan of machinery. I would guess the bike is not much good for steep mountain roads, though. Besides, it might pull the Dark Hunter's attention on us again... On the other hand, should we ever need to travel quickly over even ground, there's probably not much faster than that bike..." He scratched at his mask. "I could also imagine there being people who'd pay some good money for something like it." He shrugged. "Your choice, but I'll stick with an Ussal."

"I'm actually not much of a mechanic, just think-plan it may be of use."
What's the size of the hoverbike compared to the ussal crab, and is it light enough to be carried by it, Lutorian wants to attach the hoverbike to the ussal with some rope.

The bike is longer than the crab but much slimmer. Since it floats a lot of its problems with mass is offset by having no friction against the ground. You can run it idly and tow it, no problem.

In reply to Game Master (msg # 714):

“Alright,” Lutorian said while attempting to tie the hover bike onto the Ussal crab, “Once were done and our of the mountains, we’ll see about sending the Ussal crabs home, then we can use this to get to our next stop.”

Having made his preparations, Tameku decided to give the Makuta two or three more hours to contact them again before they'd leave the village.

The Matoran waited for a while, but the Makuta did not return. As the hours grew long, finally a simple message founds its way into their minds:

I will meet you outside.

A rendezvous had been promised, and the mountain peaks laid ahead as the next step on the journey.

---

You have two Ussal Crabs and the hoverbike. You are fully rested and may restore any lost HP.

If you are happy with your supplies we may proceed. Do you have any interest in doing something during the initial journey, or should we simply skip to the tunnel's exit back on the surface?

"Shall we head ou then?", Tameku asked Lutorian.

In the tunnel Tameku will keep his eyes open for anything unusual and will stop if he sees anything, otherwise he'll head straight through unless Lutorian wishes to do anything else.

Skills used: Observation
Tameku rolled 5 using 2d6, keeping the highest dice only with rolls of 4,5.  Noticing anything unusual in the tunnel.

In reply to Tameku (msg # 718):

"Very well" Lutorian replied.

The Ussal crabs trotted along at fair speed, easily carrying both Matoran - plus the hoverbike - forward. The main road went straight with very few twists to it, and thus made for a monotonous ride, but nevertheless Tameku spotted a few sights along the way that were worth noting.

First, the tunnel was almost perfect quiet, even though it bore the marks of many Rahi roaming the caves. It was as if all wildlife had fled before they could be spotted.

Second, in a few spots that were far between, there were discarded bits and pieces of metal, none identifiable, but still appearing as they came from a single larger piece.

Finally, there were no Dark Hunters. Though only a minor worry it was not inconceivable that those thwarted in Parau Koro could have given chase, set on revenge, but as time went on and no side tunnels appeared it became more and more certain that none of the hunters from the village could have managed to catch up merely by taking another route.

Eventually light appeared at the end of the tunnel: The surface lay just ahead.

---

Tameku
All Rahi appear to have fled the tunnels. Either they or some other creature has left some scrap metal behind. The straight road means there is no place for any beings to hide or sneak up on you, at least.

***

Everyone
This game has gone on for a while now, and this thread has gotten quite long.
>> I have created a new IC thread, please join me there.
This message was last edited by the GM at 09:02, Wed 26 Feb 2020.