Game Thread: Onreon

[Thumper]

Dmitri walks into the room to grab some tea and says,

“G’morning guys. Feeling better?

Hey, been looking at this. The native kid gave this to me after the fight…right before he ran off. It’s empty, so why give it at all?

Terry, you have a toolkit right? Can I borrow a small screwdriver?”

He’ll unscrew the screws to the metal plate while asking, “Is this a symbol with a meaning? Anyone care to do a little research on this two-star symbol while I work on this this?”

[dongriffiths]

"Let me have a look at it."

Alphonse studies the symbol and takes a photograph of it.

He'll check on the local net for the symbol and ask a couple of locals to find out if it has any significance.

Streetwise [2d6+1]=8+1=9

[Hvalreki]

Onreon

Feb 12 2745 OER

Dimitri unscrews the metal plate which reveals nothing underneath, however the back side of the plate itself is engraved.

Rando identifies it immediately as a topographic map.

[Hvalreki]

Onreon

Feb 12 2745 OER

Alphonse uploads the image and gets a hit. There is a local news article several years ago featuring a picture of an adjunct professor of anthropology showing a cave painting with a very similar image. In sysnopsis of the article a farmer found a partially collapsed cave in the hills bordering his property. There were some mummified skeletons found wrapped in rags and carrying long spears and on the wall above their bodies was a large mural featuring a the dual star image. The university dispatched the professor to take a look and he determined the mummies were of recent, not ancient origin and likely tribal leaders with one of the local aboriginal human tribes in the area.

Character Actions?

[BackworldTraveller]

Machine-made metal boxes with screws are not the kind of thing that spear-wielding tribesmen make.

Topographic maps are not the kind of map that hunters make.

Whoever made this had access to technology, air-views and good tools. The image on the front shows an ability with ceramics (or plastics) that is quite advanced and requires a manufacturing-civilisation to support.

Either this planet has an historical level of competence not evidenced in their mummy's grave goods or there are off-worlders involved.

What do the local histories say? Is there a local library?

The map shows a region with an ill-developed drainage structure and this suggests dry (as does mummification). We will need kit an transport if we are to go there

Contour Map.jpg (146.41 KiB) Viewed 775 times

Map with heights shaded

[dongriffiths]

Alphonse will study the news articles to find out where this find was made and how far away it is.

From the information available does the find correspond to the map on the box?

"If we can recover anything out there this could be a big break for us, we could get very rich"

[BackworldTraveller]

Alphonse will study the news articles to find out where this find was made and how far away it is.

From the information available does the find correspond to the map on the box?

"If we can recover anything out there this could be a big break for us, we could get very rich"

Or we could end up with a set of cloth-wrapped bones sacred to a bunch of annoyed locals.

OK That's both ends of the scale.

[dongriffiths]

Alphonse will study the news articles to find out where this find was made and how far away it is.

From the information available does the find correspond to the map on the box?

"If we can recover anything out there this could be a big break for us, we could get very rich"

Or we could end up with a set of cloth-wrapped bones sacred to a bunch of annoyed locals.

OK That's both ends of the scale.

"We almost ended up in body bags walking through town, this can't be much more risky"

[BackworldTraveller]

Alphonse will study the news articles to find out where this find was made and how far away it is.

From the information available does the find correspond to the map on the box?

"If we can recover anything out there this could be a big break for us, we could get very rich"

Or we could end up with a set of cloth-wrapped bones sacred to a bunch of annoyed locals.

OK That's both ends of the scale.

"We almost ended up in body bags walking through town, this can't be much more risky"

Yep - we could be the cloth-wrapped bones...That could be worse!

[Hvalreki]

Onreon

Feb 12 2745 OER

Alphonse continues the search for the cave find and comes up with a location, or at least a locale.
The cave was discovered near a farmstead about 1000 KM west of the starport. The closest town on the map is a small berg called Last Chance.



Meanwhile, Dimitri looks for more information on the locals but other than acknowledging their existence there isn't much library data about them beyond the occasional incursion in outlying farmsteads. The professor who authored the article is still listed as faculty at the university should you wish to contact him.

You recall hearing a bit about Onreon from the crew when you landed.

Onreon it seems is not a "natural" world in the regular sense. It was either highly terraformed or carefully placed in the goldilocks zone of the main star presumably by the long gone Old Empire. Port Royal has been on the scene only in the last 100 years or so and has setup a series of farmsteads to take advantage of a climate perfectly suited to growing human friendly crops.

Character Actions?

[Thumper]

Looks like we need to pay a visit to the university.

Dmitri looks up the professor’s contact info and flashes him a message asking for a brief meeting.

I don’t intend to show him the box, only photos of it.

[BackworldTraveller]

The university seems a good start. There should be access to the planetology, paleo-geology and archaeology of this place. A good quality, adventurous nerd seeking to make their reputation would be a helpful find.

...and it's probably a good idea to find out how to get the rifle past customs without getting arrested.

[Thumper]

Dmitri will space-google up the professor's contact info and request a meeting with him. He seeks to interview him about any information that was not published or reported. He’ll also ask about the meaning of the twin suns. If the prof asks anything about the image, he’ll simply explain he saw it on an article a native boy had in his possession, and Dmitri took a photo of it as it interested him.

Does it appear that the direction the boy indicated after the fight is the general direction indicated on the map?

****Edited****

[dongriffiths]

Studying further the articles Alphonse will look at the options for transport to the area and an estimate of the travel time.

He'll also try to find any additional details of the indigenous natives and predatory wildlife.

[Hvalreki]

Onreon

Feb 12 2745 OER

Alphonse peruses the local nets for more info on the natives and doesn't turn up much of note There have been some raids on outlying farmsteads and generally speaking the local inhabitants are dismissive of and fairly prejudiced against the "abos."

Onreon's wildlife consists mainly of birds, fish, insects and small mammals. The lack of species variety is considered by some as evidence that Onreon was engineered. Tuskers were introduced and have run roughshod over the local competition. Farm raised Tuskers are generally safe to be around but once they escape into the wild they become feral and can be quite dangerous.



The main mode of transport is combustion engine truck transport on a road network that connects the city and ports to the farmsteads. Last Chance is 10-15 hours away depending on road speeds and conditions. Once past the city roads are two lane affairs.

Dimitri calls the professor's listed number but gets no response. The department secretary informs him Professor Druarts is in the field and likely out of contact for several weeks. He and a grad student are conducting field research on the natives. The boy gestured to the low range of mountains visible in the west. The map does not have a north indicator.

Character Actions?

[BackworldTraveller]

Rando will have a look for someone who is advocating "Abo" rights or at least opposing treating them inhumanely. That they are sufficiently incensed to be attacking locals suggests that there are those that are trying to head off being genocided on the "Abo" side, and those that oppose genocide on settler side. It may not help but it might.

The fact that the map is neither scaled nor orientated is a minor issue for a computer algorithm to match.

What do the local use to take down tuskers? A sharp spear with a cross-bar is feasible, but some form of firearm is of more use. Given the dangers from both fauna and "Abos", I'd assume it isn't impossible to get arms permits. I'd also assume that travel is considered dangerous by the settlers. How do they achieve safety on the move?

Can we establish a relationship with a local radio service/network? It'd be useful to have a means to communication in case of trouble? If so, can we find a radio that would allow use to hook into that network from 1000km away (or more)?

You mention that roads are "Two-lane affairs". Are they paved? With a population of less than 1 million, why is any road wider than two lanes? Assuming 90% of the population is within 500km of the starport that still leaves less than 1 person per sq km. in that region. 1000km in 10-15 hours assumes really good road conditions. What has justified that kind of expenditure? USD 2 million per km; (USD 2 trillion overall, excluding bridges) is a lot of cash. If not paved, that total is very suspect. The US Army's San-Francisco to Washington convoy took many months before inter-state highways were built. And if internal combustion engine vehicles, then we've going to need a lot of extra fuel, maintenance support, etc. (and cables, sand/mud channels, all those things the Cavalry take on manoeuvres) - Fuel usage/wear and tear on rough terrain is much higher than on-road. We seriously need to look at cost of land expedition Vs cost of aircraft hire.

And that brings me to up-front investment. We probably don't have enough cash to provide adequate equipment for a properly equipped expedition. We need sponsors? Who and how?

[Thumper]

Dmitri looks up the listings of the ships in port to see if any are selling transports such as grav cycles or vehicles. He will also message each of the Captains to see if they have an extra vehicle to sell.

Once done, he'll look up store that might serve as outfitters on planet.

[dongriffiths]

"The kid can't have come from very far away. Maybe there is a camp a few miles out of town."

It might be worth take a short recce in that general direction

[Hvalreki]

Onreon

Feb 12 2745 OER

Dmitri begins searching for Grav vehicles and quickly realizes the price point is way beyond their means for purchase. A new Air Raft is in the CR600K range and very few sellers in the city. There is one rental offered for Cr200 per hour which includes a Pilot and up to three passengers. A fourth could be carried in the cargo area. There are a few helicopter rentals as well in the CR100 per hour range with a pilot also provided. For ground vehicles, wheeled ground cars are available at CR30 per day and Trucks/Lorries 50 per day both without drivers. You can hire a car and driver for 25/hr around the city or negotiate a longer term contract for distance travel.

Rando looks into comms gear is generally available at standard prices (Book 3). The "roads" were here when settlers arrived. The ones around the city environs and nearby farms are paved and well maintained. The further away from the city the conditions vary widely.

As far as native rights movements there is nothing official but there are some voices including the University Professor suggesting calm and tolerance on both sides over violence.

Alphonse suggests a recon

"The kid can't have come from very far away. Maybe there is a camp a few miles out of town."

It might be worth take a short recce in that general direction

Character Actions?

[Thumper]

"The kid can't have come from very far away. Maybe there is a camp a few miles out of town."

It might be worth take a short recce in that general direction

Dmitri thinks Alfonse has the right of it. There has to be a native settlement or temporary camp within road range. He’s guessing near the edge of settlers’ agricultural reach.

He’ll study some maps of the region to the West of the city as the kid pointed that way. He’ll suggest renting a couple trucks and scouting out to the edge, a maybe a bit beyond, the edge of the Agricultural extent.

He’ll look into news articles and published papers about Native/Settler relations. Also learn more about the professor.

He’ll look at purchasing fuel storage and quantities to match the rental trucks fuel capacities as well as camping gear, food, tents, water filters, lights, etc.

Whatch y’all think of going out exploring that direction for a few days? I’m tired of cities and ships. I’d like to go do some preliminary exploring. See some nature…even if it engineered.

Smart, Rando, to research the thugs. Maybe nothing's there...but maybe there is.