Earth boat!! It'd be fun to have an earth boat

1/3 Silv 2026/08/15(Sat)22:57 No. 1130971 ID: 091137
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>since we have some extra runes, let's combine Tremor and Ore before we leave!
Rune combinations attempted:
Tremor+Ore: Success

The combination of Tremor and Ore created a new rune!
Crystal Rune obtained! Inversion failed.
“Wow Tetsi, you managed to figure it out! How’d you guess it?”
You just say it was a good guess.

—
>Boat: 6
>Runes: 0
>Other: 0

>Party Decided: Mel and Fern
>Leave Galena and the Fodders in charge of putting together a better home base shelter with the new materials from the nexus. Galena probably knows better what to do with it, and the Fodders can be her go-fers.
After checking you have everything you need(like runes for a new spell), Silv waves goodbye to Galena and the Fodders, and You, Silv, Mel, and Fern head off into the void. Everyone stays close to make sure no one gets lost.

2/3 Silv 2026/08/15(Sat)22:57 No. 1130972 ID: 091137
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By far the largest landmass you’ve seen in the void, several miles across, lies before you. Masses of wrecked ships sit in the yellowed waters alongside a flourishing coastline and ruined buildings. Unknown fruits hang from the trees, and small critters scamper between the ruins. The humid air smells salty and sour.

3/3 Silv 2026/08/15(Sat)22:58 No. 1130973 ID: 091137
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“Well… I guess there are boats here, but this place is a dump.”

“Chirp?”

“We don’t need a boat that actually floats though, right? We just need to get one off the island. I don’t see too many small boats though…”
“Where do you think we should do Tetsi?”

well besides some exploring to see what this place has I guess head towards one of the towns. Best place for us to find a boat that we want would be at a dock or harbor. Didn't really see anything that looked like that on the way in but that could just mean they have smaller docks which works for us since we want a smaller boat.

>>1130971
Ahh, there it is. Unfortunately the original plan I had for the rune was to make a telescope via the Nexus but I think we proved that it has a hard time making precise constructions so that seems impossible. We'll have to either develop the infrastructure to make lenses, or scavenge the tech ourselves. Maybe a mix, leapfrog forwards with scavenged tech?

Oh hmm, I wonder if Galena would like to meet that sewing robot. Next time we need some work done, or have some spare resources to trade for cloth, we can bring her. ...oh! I bet we could trade resources at Fern's home as well. They have an excess of natural materials.

>>1130973
Surely there's something usable here. Let's look around, there's plenty of land to cover. We should gather some wood via fallen sticks or dead trees since we don't have an axe, and see if we can get some saplings or seeds(fruits?) to grow our own wood at home. Natural growth would be very slow but we can make a spell to speed things up later. We have passive rune generation from voidlings, so spending a few runes every now and then to swap to a growth spell would be fine. Heck, feeding the resulting greenery to voidlings might result in an overall profit of runes. Especially if we cast the growth spell more than once before switching again.
Seeing all this landmass makes me think again about moving islands to the Nexus. Even if we can't attach them directly, having them nearby would give us more ground to build on. I guess most of the islands we've found so far are pretty inhospitable though, with either hostile voidlings or hostile environments. This one seems tame, aside from the smell.

Is that a building in the distance? Head there.

scout the docks. the big ships may have life boats you can use.

Well, you don't need to rebuild a fully-functioning boat yet, just something that represents the concept of a boat and can move large quantities of stuff without disintegrating from the inertia.

Take every boat you can and just... move them, I guess. Don't worry about any damage you inflict.

Grab some fruits, but also try to extract a tree with the roots and dirt attached. If you can grow a fruit farm, you're basically set for the rest of the decade.

Also, consider calling up the florafolk to investigate independently. They might know more about harvesting and replanting stuff from this biome.

>>1130973
Let's try some of the fruit on our way to some kind of town with a dock. Smaller boats would have docked there.

Nice.

Some good boats and structures, but theres a lot of interesting plants too.
Might be able to diversify our seed stock and crop base too.
Worth a quick look.

>>1130973
Thorough scout identifying everything, lets see if any of these plants are edible and find the most intact boat

1/3 Silv 2026/09/10(Thu)00:12 No. 1131853 ID: 091137
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>Identify all the nearby things.
>Some good boats and structures, but there's a lot of interesting plants too. Might be able to diversify our seed stock and crop base too. Worth a quick look
>We should gather some wood via fallen sticks or dead trees since we don't have an axe, and see if we can get some saplings or seeds(fruits?) to grow our own wood at home. Natural growth would be very slow but we can make a spell to speed things up later.
While you and Mel go check out the plants, Fern goes over to the water. There's several large trees and swathes of grasses around.
“Identify.”

Wiltweed
A variety of grasses that bloom along the caustic sea. Very bitter, but some kinds of Wiltweed can be made into bread.
Primary Runic Affinity: Nature. Secondary Affinity: Corrosion.

Acridbark
Trees native to the acidic waters of this caustic sea. Their fruit is very sour, and their wood is resistant to the corrosive effects of the sea.
Primary Runic Affinity: Nature. Secondary Affinity: Corrosion.

“It says that these plants grow next to an ocean made of acid?”

Mel looks at the yellowish water.
“Well, that makes getting a boat harder. If none of these boats float, we’re going to have to drag one off this island without touching the water-.”

2/3 Silv 2026/09/10(Thu)00:13 No. 1131854 ID: 091137
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“CHIRPCHIRPCHIRPCHRIPCHIRP!”
Fern touched the water.

After a brief chase to calm down Fern, Silv casts Recovery on Fern's burned arm. Fern has thus learned not to touch the bad water.

3/3 Silv 2026/09/10(Thu)00:13 No. 1131855 ID: 091137
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>Best place for us to find a boat that we want would be at a dock or harbor.
>scout the docks. the big ships may have life boats you can use.
With Fern holding close to Silv, you walk the long stretch of coastline till you reach some docks, filled with rickety and sunken ships. Old cranes and warehouses lie along the crumbling piers.
“This stuff looks kinda… victorian to me.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s just a general… tech level and vibe I guess? Less advanced than where I’m from, but also… not. It's confusing.”

Looking around the docks you found, almost every ship has sunk into the sea, or is beached in the slimy mud with holes in their hulls. You can see more docks and ships further down the coast, but you can also try checking out the nearby buildings and warehouses. What would you like to do?

Let's check the buildings before we forget, and make sure to stay cautious.

>>1131855
Mel, what was your planet called, again?

Let's check out the warehouses. Might be some usable materials!

check the warehouses and other dock buildings. Anything that has been exposed to the weather is probably a wreck at this point but something that has been stored might still be in something approaching good condition.

Also do we have any way to cook back at camp? Those weeds might actually be useful if we could actually turn it into bread. As for how, I'd honestly be more surprised if Galena didn't know who to make flour and bake bread.

>>1131855
Anything inside might be more shielded from the elements. If there's a workshop maybe there are some partially finished boats we can patch up.

>>1131862
Thisvplants with tge fruit.
Grow near the caustic water...
Produce acidic sour fruit..
If planted near clearer water, they might produce something neutral.
Moreover, they may be a way of filtering pollutants from water.

>>1131899
Good points.

>>1131862
Well, we'd at least need to complete the mill, first, presumably. Unless we wanted to grind flour by hand, anyway. Still a potential long-term goal, though.

1/1 Silv 2026/09/16(Wed)19:12 No. 1132049 ID: 091137
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>Also do we have any way to cook back at camp?
Mel burned through a pan accidentally, remember? You have cooking tools -1 pan.

>Thisvplants with tge fruit. Grow near the caustic water… Produce acidic sour fruit.. If planted near clearer water, they might produce something neutral. Moreover, they may be a way of filtering pollutants from water.
>Those weeds might actually be useful if we could actually turn it into bread. As for how, I'd honestly be more surprised if Galena didn't know who to make flour and bake bread.
>Well, we'd at least need to complete the mill, first, presumably. Unless we wanted to grind flour by hand, anyway. Still a potential long-term goal, though.
Well you already have Toxigrowth at home and know this works to an extent. Just be sure to pick some saplings and weeds on your way back.

>Let's check the buildings before we forget, and make sure to stay cautious.
>check the warehouses and other dock buildings. Anything that has been exposed to the weather is probably a wreck at this point but something that has been stored might still be in something approaching good condition.
>If there's a workshop maybe there are some partially finished boats we can patch up.
Most of the nearby buildings are fairly intact, only a small amount of corrosion on them, but ultimately not containing much besides construction materials and parts. No boats. That is until you come up to a building out of the way, labeled as ‘Cavelward and Co. Shipworks’.

Inside lies ship parts, equipment, a large unfinished ship frame, and smaller mostly completed ship frames, all with only a small* amount of rust and corrosion.
“Now THIS is what I’m talking about. Surely we can get something that works here.”

“Do you know how to put a boat together?”

“...No, but they’re already mostly put together. Just need to choose one and finish it up.”

“What do you think Tetsi?”

You can look around the building a bit before starting putting together a boat with the available parts, or just get started.

Look around for a manager's office. Documentation can help us determine which ships have covered holes.

>>1132049
Fuck yeah. It's not like we need something actually seaworthy and watertight right now, just something that's gonna hold together while traversing the void.

We don't exactly have a way to brake, either. So we need to make sure the prow (front) and bottom are nice and sturdy and padded to withstand landings. In this way, small is probably better. Bigger means it's harder to maintain structural integrity, and more material for padding.

if you could find an office you might be able to find some blue prints that should help actually putting together a boat... speak of which how big of a boat did we want again?

Oh and speaking of the boats, let's scan them and see if anything interesting pops up.

>>1132049
Look around, make sure the building is clear before we start working. Also if we can find any blueprints that'd be great.
Believe it or not, we might be able to help construct the boat. Just gotta take a look at the unfinished model to get a good idea of what kind of boat it is.

>>1132052
Correction, it has to float to get it out of the building and off the island

>>1132055
Alternatively, we just need to be able to launch it. Or carry it to a ground-edge to shove off from.

I'd say fix up the most completed one, and make sure you bring back extra ship parts, you never know when you're gonna have to replace a part.

>>1132049
Nosey time.
Explore
Theres some crates,

1/2 Silv 2026/09/22(Tue)22:35 No. 1132273 ID: 091137
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>Oh and speaking of the boats, let's scan them and see if anything interesting pops up.
>small is probably better. Bigger means it's harder to maintain
>Believe it or not, we might be able to help construct the boat. Just gotta take a look at the unfinished model to get a good idea of what kind of boat it is.
It seems the boats are too large for you to scan as a whole, but you can make some observations.

The first small boat is missing a couple of planks, but does have some kind of engine installed. Is otherwise complete.
The second small boat's hull is complete, and has a mast installed, just lacking sails and rigging. It appears to have a mounting point for an engine, but there is no engine installed.
The third ship is a bit larger, but missing multiple hull panels, an engine, and a mast.
The final ship is much larger, but is missing more than half its hull panels.

>Look around.
>Look around, make sure the building is clear before we start working. Also if we can find any blueprints that'd be great.
>I'd say fix up the most completed one, and make sure you bring back extra ship parts, you never know when you're gonna have to replace a part.
Your group decides to look around for any extra parts or blueprints before trying to put one of these boats together.

2/2 Silv 2026/09/22(Tue)22:35 No. 1132274 ID: 091137
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You and Silv find an office with some papers in it, but they turn to dust the moment you touch them. Mel goes off and finds a bunch of paint cans, bottles of what she thinks smells like booze, and an old pocketwatch. You find out VERY quickly what Fern found. Another thing they shouldn’t touch.

“IS THAT A HARPOON CANNON?!”, Mel shouts, pointing at the smoking barrel of a harpoon cannon that slid across the floor after firing a massive harpoon into the following wall. Fern is being comforted by Silv, once again traumatized.

“How do you keep getting into trouble Fern?”

“Chiiiiirp…”, the curious little florafok whines.

You take stock of all the materials you have overall, and you should have enough to get one of the boats viable, except for the large one. You decide to identify some of the parts before you choose which boat to fix up.

Sterling Engine x2
A simple engine that runs off heat. These ones are specialized to run via a chemical reaction between acid and a reactant.
Runic Affinity: Tech.

Harpoon Cannon
A cannon equipped to fire heavy harpoons.
Runic Affinity: Tech.

Acid Resistant Canister
Holds acid.
Runic Affinity: Ore.

Which boat will you try to fix up? Remember you can cannibalize the other boats for parts, or to attach extra pieces. What will you try to take with you as well that you can’t install?

I'd say ship 2 since it seems the closest to being finished and still looks large enough that someone could use it as a room when we get back to the island so we can build one less shelter if we're low on supplies or feeling lazy.

I'd say pick the second one, as it has a mast. Though make sure to check if fixing the third ship in time is viable.

>>1132273
Hmm would it be possible to take the engine from boat one and install it on boat two?

>>1132274
So we have acid, obviously. What's the reactant?
I feel like we shouldn't use the medium boat, tempting though it may be, since it'll have the worst fuel efficiency and fuel is going to be limited in the long run. ...this also suggests we should have a mast, so that we can simply use wind magic to propel it. On the other hand, we know Fern's mana can run out, so it wouldn't be wise to exhaust her during the travel phase of a journey. Ultimately I think we're just going to have to either beacon this island and return here occasionally to refuel, or find a renewable fuel source for the engines.

...wait, will the engines even work when we're traveling through the void? There's no fluid to push, and they're not designed to work with air. Well, even if they don't, that's still mechanical power we could use back at home base.

I'm thinking sailboat. It's bigger than the other small boat, judging by the shot we had of the docks, and if you have a sail you really need a rudder, which it has. Let's load everything on it. The harpoon cannon will be useful if we can reload and rearm it, for fighting runelings. If there's a way to attach it to the boat in a way you can easily remove it again, that'll be optimal. Just in case we ever need to use it while sailing.

the question of how the engine will work in the void is the important one here.
We have some engines from the office, can we find some propellers as well to run a test?

Also worth asking, how important are the hull panels in the void?
The large ship is so tempting, it would be our own little fortress. And Silv can probably make a simple heat spell for welding and slicing panels off the other ships.

>>1132274
On the basis that it's a lot easier to know if you messed up installing an engine than the part of the hull before it's crisis time, I'd say let's go with contestant #2.

>>1132281
>So we have acid, obviously. What's the reactant?
Considering there was a description earlier that used the sentence "acidic waters of this caustic sea", I don't think we can expect scientific rigor here. Plus, Silv is not gonna have any idea anyways.

Get the big ship, patch it up later. Not like the nothingness is going to bleed into the ship's underbelly and forcefully push it 'downwards'... right?

For now, fix each ship one at a time. Each of you pilots one, and the lead ship is tied to the others to guide them.

>>1132274
Build the largest boat. Yes, it will require the most resources but it will enable larger parties and larger loot runs in future. Also we'll be able to use it to haul more of the fuel it runs on back home to refine into acid runes and the like.

>>1132294
>I don't think we can expect scientific rigor here.
Bro it said right in the description of the engine that it combines acid with a reactant, I'm not pulling that out of my ass from the mention of acid by itself. It's a two part fuel system, running off a chemical reaction. So we need acid and the reactant, whatever that is, which means we need a second storage container to store the reactant. If we're lucky, the reactant can be... anything that reacts with it. Like organic matter of any kind.

>>1132295
Big ship with little ship on it.
The big boy becomes better temporary housing and transport for resources or big expeditions.
Little lad for exploring.
Its a lot of work, but will allow for better home expansion in the future.
Harpoon cannon would mount better on the big lad. It looks like a trawler of sorts anyway.

>>1132273
Yeah, #2 and yoink the engine from #1. They're close enough in size the engine should be good enough to work with it.

1/3 Silv 2026/10/04(Sun)22:00 No. 1132603 ID: 091137
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>#1: 0
>#2: 6
>#3: 0
>#4: 3
You decide to use the 2nd ship.
It wasn’t mentioned at the time, but #1 and #2 both have plank hulls while #3 and #4 have panel hulls. Tetsi apologizes!

>...wait, will the engines even work when we're traveling through the void? There's no fluid to push, and they're not designed to work with air. Well, even if they don't, that's still mechanical power we could use back at home base.
Well, seeing as you could ‘swim’ through the void, it probably works.

Tetsi pings Mel’s phone, and she puts you on speaker.
“Fine, it’s annoying for the kid to translate you all the time.”

>”Hmm would it be possible to take the engine from boat one and install it on boat two?”
>”So we have acid, obviously. What's the reactant?”
>”It's a two part fuel system, running off a chemical reaction.”
Mel takes apart the two spare stirling engines and looks around in them, finding nothing. Fern, exploring the 1st boats engine, pops something out of it and chirps.

Thermicite
A material that releases energy in the presence of acid.
Runic Affinity: Blast.

“So this reacts with the acid to make the engine work?”

“Chirp?”

“The engine works off the heat created by the reaction.” Mel explains to Fern. Fern ponders this. Fern looks really deep in thought. They continue to think while Silv and Mel continue working on the boats.

2/3 Silv 2026/10/04(Sun)22:01 No. 1132604 ID: 091137
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After about two hours, Mel managed to get the engine from the 1st boat onto a crane, and installed it into the 2nd boat. She runs a few tests with the Thermicite to check that the engine works. Silv is helping to pull some sails and rope onto the mast.
“Phew, alright. The engines hooked up and it seems to work. Let's get that sail up, then see how well it floats. We’ll load whatever we can once that's done.”

Mel floods the dock, causing the boat to rise from its supports. After checking that there’s no leaks, Mel helps Silv on board to look around for any leaks. The engine softly chuffs in the background.
...Wait. The boat's engine is off. Where’s the engine sound coming from?

3/3 Silv 2026/10/04(Sun)22:01 No. 1132605 ID: 091137
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You cannot believe your eye.
Fern somehow got one of the extra engines running.

>>1132605
I see. I think he used a compatible Rune to power it, somehow.

>>1132604
Fern has intuited how combining Runes works to make a Rune Engine. Impressive.

Okay, that one goes into the first ship. That gives us a fleet of two mid-sized ships, enough for our current scavenging rates.

Try to find any remaining engines, leave the rest of the scrap for the runelings.

>>1132603
>probably works
The void is mysterious indeed!
>thermicite
Hmm. I wonder how long it'll last. Is there any more around somewhere? Well, hopefully it lasts a long time.

>>1132605
Oh, or we can just shove runes into it. She's using Flare. Makes sense, the engines run off of heat in the end. The diagram she wrote out is informative as well. Looks like thermicite(is that a rune or just a drawing of the item itself?) plus Corrosive equals... that third thing might just represent the engine, rather than a rune. Doesn't look like a rune. Did we check if Fern can hold the staff to speak to us?

Seems like Fern has a good intuitive sense for how to use runes.

well neat, we now got a boat, and a working boat engine... now we just have to answer the two questions, does anyone here know how do drive a boat, and how do we get it to drive between islands?