The tech level appears to be early medieval, but there is also a lack of... sophistication... or perhaps a low level of prosperity.

All construction is half-timber cruck-frame, with waddle-and-daub fill. Variations include only two houses with plaster, one is raised cruck on a short stone wall, and apparently the one that collapsed into the crevasse was also raised cruck.

The fancy building has crude brick fill.

What little ornamentation there is, is crude but not bad. All the wood is hand worked, although joining of woods is mostly mortise and tenon.

The other significant thing that Hilda figures out is that the village doesn't have any significant lifestock. There are no sign of horses, no sign of cattle, chickens or hogs. She finds a few antlers on walls, indicating that some sort of deer is probably hunted. In one house, she finds the carcass of a fairly large game bird, perhaps the equivalent of a pheasant or a goose.

There also appears to be no personal effects in any of the houses. No clothes, pins or anything like the that. Furniture, however, remains.

Kaspar is jotting down notes in a journal as he responds to Vasandra and Gavin, "Hmmm.  Yes, I suppose."

Kaspar finishes his notes, and closes the book.

"Um, I mean, yes, that does sound like a better use of our time.  Just do be careful, that yellow brick road may still swing past the temple on the way here -- with all the implied dangers that come with it -- plus the people from this village went somewhere.  According to Hilda they took everything portable that could be quickly packed up, leaving only heavy items like furniture.  Those folks could still be around, even at the temple.  So be careful.  And if you run into any hostiles, fall back to the gate -- Hilda and I can always cut through the forest, here, and join you there.  Even if you have to leave the FRED behind, do not get involved in a prolonged hostile engagement."

"Hopefully it won't take Hilda and I long to search this building for clues, and we might even be able to join-up with you at the temple."

'Or it is a god's house.' Hilda added to Kaspar after some thought, realising there were more possibilities. 'A, uh, small church, temple or shrine. Or maybe a meeting house, or an inn or tavern... I don't know. This is a bit more... advanced than my world.' she ended with a shrug.

"Always a possibility." Kaspar replied, nodding towards the building, "Let's find out, shall we?"

Kaspar -- and Hilda -- head up to whatever looks like it may be the main entry, and check to see if the door will open.

With the boss' permission Vasandra leads the way back to where they parked and gets the glorified wagon rolling down the road once the remote comes into range.  Sticking to the treeline she maintains at least a little bit of cover and an easy out if things get messy.

”I imagine there is something to be said for it's natural beauty but I doubt I will ever really become accustom to the messiness of planets, it seems like such a chaotic place to live.”

'No, this street goes right to the yellow road. It's not far, only seventy-odd steps from the last house.' Hilda explained, pointing to the road. 'We can meet you at the crossroad.'

She went with Kaspar to the door of the big house, but she put an arm in front of him to stop him trying the door. 'Let me, sir.' She raised her shield to cover herself, the better to stop something thrown through the door at her. Then she knocked on the door. 'Hail! Is anyone there?'


OOC: If no livestock is present, then are there pens for animals? Did they take the animals with them?
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:17, Fri 20 Dec 2013.

There were no pens anywhere in the village. In fact, now that she thinks about it, she didn't see any signs of cultivated fields. Every house did seem to have a small cultivated garden, though.

She knocks on the door and calls out. The knock sounds a bit more hollow than normal, but perhaps that's because of the overall silence in the village.

There is no answer.

Hilda didn't wonder long about the lack of extensive farmland or food animals. It was a small village, and the people could probably sustain themselves off hunting or foraging, or maybe trade along the yellow brick road.

She waited a bit for a response, from either inside the house or from Kaspar, but all was silent. It was quite unnerving to see a village so deserted, though the chasm running through it gave a ready explanation. 'No one home.' she told Kaspar. Still taking cover behind the shield, she reached around to try the doorknob...

As Hilda tries the doorknob, she realizes that there is no lock. Of course, that doesn't mean there might not be a bar across the inside. The door swings inward, though, with little effort.

The function of this building still isn't obvious, though it is starting to look like a multi-purpose structure. There appears to be a bar at one end, with two broken kegs on racks behind the bar. However, a dozen tables have all been pushed up against the walls while the chairs have been arranged in semi-circle rows facing the bar. There is a center aisle that passes through the rows of chairs.

Just in front of the first row of chairs, a 'wagon-wheel' style chandelier lies broken on the floor.

There is one incongruity, however: off to the right of the bar, in a corner of the room, is a Christmas tree. It is a typical pine tree, about six feet tall, and it is decorated with bits of bright green and red and silver. It also has dozens of small candles on the branches. None of them are lit. There is even a white and gold star atop the tree.


((Merry Christmas, SG-X1!))

P.S. A little Christmas present for SG-X1--a map under Game Map 1!
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:36, Tue 24 Dec 2013.

Once the room seemed safe, Hilda moved in and beckoned Kaspar to follow. 'This must have been the village tavern. They probably had meetings here too, probably about whatever caused the earthquake.' she surmised, speaking in her native Norse, knowing that this Tau'ri would understand, more-or-less. They could likely communicate more easily this way.

She looked around until she saw the decorated tree, eyes widening in surprise and wonder. 'This must be their sacred tree, like the oak of Thor or Yggdrasil the World-Tree. We have a similar custom of decorating sacred trees.'

Kaspar had his camera out, again, and was snapping images in a slow circuit around the room.

"Mm-hmm." Kaspar agreed distractedly, "Veneration of sacred groves and sacred trees is found throughout the history of the Germanic peoples; noteworthy examples are the Great Oak dedicated to Donar near Hesse, Germany, the Sacred Tree at Uppsala, Norway, and even the tree trunk-like Irminsul columns of the early Saxons. Dowden notes that these are most likely later incarnations of the earlier mythic prototype of the immense world tree Yggdrasil, described in Norse mythology.  While during the Christianization of the Germanic peoples these tree-like icons were targeted for destruction by Christian missionaries, the traditions of decorating certain types of trees was adopted by them as part of the propaganda program used to convert pagans."

Kaspar suddenly stopped and lowered the camera enough that he could look over it at Hilda -- a contrite look on his face.

"Uh, no offense meant, Miss Hilda.  That was just the Professor in me, babbling on."

Kaspar again looked around,

"Could this just be a roadside inn, and the purpose of this little community is to service the needs of travellers or pilgrims going to the temple?" Kaspar frowns, "Or maybe for travellers going to and from the Stargate?  After all, the gold brick road does start there..."

Hilda looked quizzically at Kaspar. 'What offence? I like to hear of the ancestors. Maybe you should come to Cimmeria and see the spring rites at Thor's Lightning Tree. We hang sacrifices from the branches and let their blood water the earth, bringing new life to the soil.' she explained, awe in her voice at the morbid festival. 'Of course, on Cimmeria, the trees grow very fast, shooting up out of the ground to full size within the year. It is wise to appease them...' she added ominously.

'But these "Krist-chens" sound like the ettins, the Goa'uld. I hope they do not come to Cimmeria. We will fight them like we did the ettins if they try to destroy our trees.' she promised firmly.

'Could be. But then no one really lives here. The temple and village must be supported by a larger community, beyond the temple or on another world.' Hilda began poking around the building, looking in other rooms, inside cupboards, under the sacred tree, generally searching for recent signs of occupation or anything interesting left laying around. In particular, she looked behind the bar to see if there was any drink left behind.


OOC: Searching the building, looking for signs of people, anything interesting, booze.
10:18, Today: Hilda rolled 19 using 1d20+5. spot (track)
10:17, Today: Hilda rolled 10 using 1d20+3. search

I watched the two Cimmeria episodes and found the land around the Stargate bare in the first and wooded in the second. Hence the fast-growing trees. :)
This message was last edited by the player at 03:14, Sat 28 Dec 2013.

Finding a roughly FRED sized dirt road that branches off from the wider yellow brick one Vasandra just keeps on driving the big wheeled drone on into the village, seeing no reason to abandon it again at the moment.  Once she arrives at the green outside the main building she heads in to confirm the status of her most recent task in person.

”There is nothing much of interest on the yellow road at the moment, if the village used it to evacuate after whatever event caused the fissure they left no obvious signs of which direction or how far they went.”

'But these "Krist-chens" sound like the ettins, the Goa'uld. I hope they do not come to Cimmeria. We will fight them like we did the ettins if they try to destroy our trees.' Hilda promised firmly.

"Uh, yes, yes. Let's hope that that particular, uh...scourge...never comes to Cimmeria." Kaspar, a devout catholic -- but one who was familiar with the history of his religion -- responded quietly, as he assisted Hilda in her search for clues.

OOC:00:46, Fri 27 Dec 2013: Kaspar Radoslaw Gorski rolled Natural 1 using 1d20+3 (4)

After several minutes of searching, Vasandra entered the hall.

”There is nothing much of interest on the yellow road at the moment, if the village used it to evacuate after whatever event caused the fissure they left no obvious signs of which direction or how far they went.”

"Then our next destination must be the so-called temple." Kaspar responded.

After spending some time looking for signs of life inside the building, Hilda and Kaspar can't find more hints than what they found outdoor.
It is clear that there were people here some days ago. But it's also sure that they have left the village for a reason that is still unclear.

However, there are some mugs here and there with what looks like vine, some wooden plate with the the leftovers of meals that can confirm them that the people living here have had to flee quickly.

As Vassandra and Gavin joined them in the inn, they decided that they may head to the temple. It could give them more informations about the recent events that have occurred on this planet.

Hilda finished her exploration, but didn't turn up anything special, nor any good spirits. She looked up from the bar as Vasandra returned, and listened to the exchange between her and Kaspar. 'Já, they've probably gone to the temple for refuge. It's most likely. If they've gone through the Stargate to another world, we may never tell where.' Hilda didn't know much the Stargate technology. She headed outside with the others, returning to the FRED and checking her things were still there.

Gavin had walked back to the FRED with Vasandra, without saying a word. The way she handled equipment, he got the distinct impression she was more comfortable talking through a communicator. And since she probably spent a lot of time alone in a spaceship, she was really used to chatting with other people.

He stayed alert as they walked, attempting to spot any threats or other item of significance in the surrounding woods.

He was not a geologist, so he had no knowledge of earthquakes and ground fissures, but he had a hard time imagining any weapon that could have this. It wasn't the power required, for even the Tau'ri had that capability now--it was the control necessary to shift that much earth without destroying everything around it.

His observations on the road fell into a similar train of thought. The yellow bricks were not high tech, despite the presence of naquadah in them, nor was the precision indicative of high tech. Yet, the overall result was... disturbing.

He'd studied a few Earth treatises about that world's various pyramids. Even if modern knowledge could not explain how they were built, there wasn't anything that suggested advanced technology. The fact that they had once been used by the Goa'uld as landing pads didn't alter that.

What was odd about the road was that there was no dirt on it... no dust, no debris, not even a tiny weed growing in the cracks.

The three of them headed down the road, and rounded a curve in the road that revealed a dirt road... perhaps only a track or trail... that led down to the abandoned hamlet that had been devasted by the earthquake.

He guessed Vasandra was as curious as he was, for she directed FRED down the track to the buildings.

He couldn't quite say why, but seeing the devastation first-hand gave him a feeling of sadness. On his world, such an event, had it been permitted to occur, would have been... annoying, but it wouldn't have been tragic. It would just have been fixed and life went on.

He really had no idea how much work went into building one of these houses, but he imagined it was significant.

"Does this remind you of Cimmeria in any way?" Gavin asked Hilda as they exited the large building.

It wasn't that he thought of Cimmeria as being primitive, only that they led a less complicated existence.

Hilda shrugged in response. 'Not really, just a few little things. The trees. But after the wonders of Midgard, this is more familiar. I know what things are.' she answered, looking around the ruined village. She could certainly understand the feeling of seeing one's village so devastated. 'Is this like your world?' she asked, but doubted it. The Tau'ri, the Tollan, and the Netjerian all came from such advanced worlds, with high crafts and good homes. The Cimmerian couldn't help but feel poor and backwards in comparison.

As if sensing that he may have made her uncomfortable with his question, Gavin hastened to answer her own question.

"No, this doesn't look like my world at all," he begins, "and yet, there's an underlying similarity. There are people on my world, and, as I understand it, among the Tau'ri as well, that claim to want a simpler life."

"This..." he gestures around with his hand, "was all made by hand. There are no machines, no pollution. None of those things are needed for a happy and satisfied life. The only thing that is important is that you strive to improve your life and condition, but it is always up to you to decide how it should be improved."

"There are still many that claim technology destroys your soul. While I can understand that, I've always felt that it's more like putting on a different coat."

"This hamlet puzzles me. It shows signs of being a retro-community, yet it is missing key elements, such as worked fields and domesticated animals."

Hilda looked at Gavin in surprise. 'These people want to live like this? To toil all day, by hand, in the dirt, until limbs ache, just to eat and live and do it all over again?' She snorted, contemptuous of the idea. Hermod and her time on Midgard had opened her eyes to better ways of living, in fine stone houses, not wooden huts, with amazing tools that bordered on magic. She couldn't imagine anyone wanting to go back from that. She couldn't imagine herself going back to her farm or hunting now. 'It is not all so... pleasant. The life is hard and rough and filthy. It is unending toil that destroys the soul.' she spoke with some bitterness, thinking of the family farm and her time there. She sighed. 'Only those who do not know what they have would dream of something worse.'

"Yes, I would consider it worse," he replies to Hilda. "But I am guessing that not everyone toils in the fields. The young, the old, the infirm... You've seen only the surface of the Tau'ri lifestyle. For every person that has the 'good life', as it is often called, there are at least two people that live in worse conditions than you feel your people do. Many go hungry, many even starve to death."

"The bounty that you see is not spread equally among all the people of the Tau'ri. Some have more bounty than they can ever use or ever need while others live in stick huts and suffer disease and starvation. Just as kings are wealthy while their peasants starve."

"My world was once like that. It is the price that is paid for technology. Eventually, one hopes that the Tau'ri will evolve past that stage. It is about helping those in need, not helping yourself."

Spending a few moments looking around the room Vasandra quickly realizes there is nothing of interest and picks up the conversation she was following but not fully engaged in all along as it comes to a point.

”I have enough trouble understanding why you would want to live on a planet, let alone a single one, at all.  Any civilization that lacks the ability to leave and travel of their own volition would be better served by advancing to that level of technology, which will only consume your soul if you believe in such superstitions and make the mistake of thinking your own choices are best guided or dictated by some external source such as a false God or even worse, greed.

Regardless we are done here and should continue on, if you want to maintain this discussion I suggest we take it on the road, and likely keep the volume down so we can avoid attracting to much attention.”

As they see no more interest in the village at the moment, the group decides to move in direction of the temple using the yellow brick road. All along the way, the road is still as clean as they had saw it before.

They can now see a moon that has raised from the horizon, previously hidden by a hill. Seen from the planet, it appears to be quite large. The group can also see that there is an atmosphere around the moon. Contrary to the Tauri's moon, this one has plants and water on its surface but it is impossible to say if there is animal life on it from here.

Hilda listened to Gavin explain, saddened as the illusion was shattered. 'Oh. So, the people of Amerika live like kings, and others toil like peasants. It is the same on every world after all.' she sighed, but realised her own people's strength in such things. 'On Cimmeria, we are not so layered. Chief Olaf is little different from any man. We have no kings unless we have the need. Goods are shared and traded. We are equal in our poverty, I guess.' As she talked, she walked along the trail to the yellow brick road, though not because Vasandra requested.

She looked to the dark elf and asked 'Where do you live if not on a planet? In Ginnungagap, the Yawning Void — in space? You would still need food and water from planets, wouldn't you?'

She looked up at the moon, finding it quite colourful with patches green and blue and brown, not at all like the drab grey moons of Cimmeria or Midgard. 'Or from moons.' she added to Vasandra.

Taking the direct question as a convenient way to avoid the question of politics Vasandra makes an attempt to answer it in a way it can be understood, although not a particularly good one.

”Almost any size ship can be designed to operate indefinitely but even then it is occasionally necessary to collect extra biomass from planets, or moons, that have life on them but with a properly functional reclamation system that is less common than the need to visit worlds for interaction and trade with local populations, or better yet trade with those who can leave their own worlds, but that need is hardly justification for living on one once another option becomes available.”

Gavin had to seriously restrain himself from laughing as Vasandra tried explaining her life style to Hilda. Any sufficiently advanced technology...

"If everyone on Cimmeria is equal, then you aren't as poor as you think. The Goa'uld do not wish their slaves to become technologically advanced, because that requires the ability to read and write, which in turn leads to them realizing that the Goa'uld aren't gods after all."


"Actually, living in the Void of space is not natural," Gavin tries to clarify, keeping his voice a bit low so it doesn't carry. "Any species that does so... it's because of necessity or an aberration. After the initial condition, though, it just becomes evolution."

"Survival... your very existence," he says to Hilda, "is about two things: matter and energy. Technology eventually teaches us that they are the same thing, just in two different forms. Energy is all around you, but you barely notice it. Fire is the obvious form, but heat and light and gravity are also forms of energy. The energy in gravity is what creates waterfalls and avalanches... and what makes you fall down."

"Gravity pulls you down with a tremendous amount of energy, so it takes even more than that to put you up into space."

"Plants convert minerals into something you can eat. It uses the light from the sun to do that. So as long as you can provide energy to plants in space, they will grow food for you."

"At higher technologies, machines can do it directly... convert energy into food and other materials."

'Yes, matter and energy are related by the square of the speed of light.' Hilda quoted, showing she knew too the secret magic of the world — and pleased to show it off to the two people of "advanced" societies. 'Hermod of the Asgard taught me these things. I know much about the world.' she said wisely.

She still didn't see what was so wrong with living on planets. 'But a ship may run out of food or fuel or energy. A ship may break and become stranded where repairs cannot be made, or become lost in the void. A planet is much more reliable.'