[Story] Expedition Journals

[Jonwane]

This is where you will post your journal entries. As stated in the "Rules", there is no particular format or requirements for participating. Post as you think that your character would about their observations of the new continent, which they are exploring. I will, however, be awarding XP values based on content and characterization.

[FranklinRPer]

The handwriting is purposefully clear, obviously extra effort was made to make it easily-legible

Expedition Day: 64
Boolyabay Day: 1
Location: Anchored in New Frontier Bay aboard the ship Luck Of Adventure

We have anchored off of what I am calling New Frontier Bay, or perhaps Frontier Bay for short. I have taken to calling the ship Luck Of Adventure, after the ancient saying 'May you live in interesting times', which is certainly what I would call an adventure. Both a blessing and a curse. Poor Jakobs, who fell overboard and was lost, would certainly call the journey a curse but the rest of us that made it would call ourselves blessed. The bay is one of the few refuges we were able to find, small wooded islands abounding around Boolyabay.

Thusfar we have yet to spot any natives, but I have high hopes that finding a river or an inlet into the island will show us where they have made their homes. Often civilization depends on a water source, so following one would be to my advantage. The air here smells fresh and new, with something spicy in the air. Perhaps the smell is coming from one of these trees, I will have to investigate further.

More to come after I reach land.

[Page 1]

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[Admin Bhelogan]

Boolyabay - Day 1.

We have reached a Bay on the coast of Boolyabay that is suitable for our ship to land anchor. To the east there are large visible hill sides that ascend to snow top mountain peaks. Given the icy voyage to reach this new land, I have no desire to climb those frozen peaks any time soon. Our ship has been refereed to as the 'Luck of Adventure'. Let us pray it brings us luck for our expedition. A dense forest expands from those mountain tops directly down to the coast, and covers the small islands that scatter the coastline as well. So far we have seen no signed of life, either indigenous or from past voyages that never returned. Perhaps we shall learn what has become of our predecessors as we explore further.

Rillion has shown great progress in his studies as of late, and I think he will be making a breakthrough soon. Matthew started off more promising, but fell behind during the voyage. I think he suffered more from motion sickness, which interfered with his concentration. Hopefully his progress will resume and he can reach his potential once we get his feet on more stable ground.

[Drachenspirit]

Land - Day 1

We are within sight of shore. Finally. It's time to get to work. Our faithful ship, which I'll call the Reliant has served its purpose. If we didn't have to make a return trip, I'd say to beach it and turn its timbers into a lodge from which we could stage our expeditions. I dare not say this aloud, for fear of scaring the superstitious crew, however.
The land looks inviting, and secretive, like it doesn't want to divulge what it holds. It will, whether painful of not. This bay curves in and back out to sea in the most peculiar manner. Given my companion, whom I started calling Sue, is most eager to feel the earth beneath her feet I'll name this bay after her and call it Wolf's Head Bay.
I plan to trek along the shore in a dogleg pattern to get the lay of the coastline as well as the forest for just under a mile inland.

[Yves]

Boolyabay1

Man do I miss adventuring. The sights here gorgeous! All I want to do is fly around this new land and drink in the details. I met the people that I'm supposed to be exploring with. They seem like a nice bunch. Although they seem to be all business and no pleasure. It's okay. I'm sure it's just awkwardness on the first day.

I can see the difficulty in trying to map this land. It seems so mysterious and untouched by man. Anything can be hidden under that mass of trees. I feel like I would be swallowed up and not know where I am if I entered into the dense foliage. The general consensus of the group is to travel down the coast to get a sense of the shape of the land. Not a bad idea. I think I would still like to see the view from up high though. Maybe later. Whelp! We're disembarking! Better go pack my stuff up. To be continued...

[theclaytster]

Expedition Boolyabay Home How to start. I see everybody else doing this. I don't understand what the purpose of this is as I would rather be doing other things. Then again its good to fit in so I'll give it a try. Day 1 We left harbor and I'm puking my guts out. The basic remedies I have are not working. They say the sea sickness will wear off in eventually. I sure hope so. I cannot take much more of this. Day 3 I stayed in bed yesterday. Hunger got the most of me. I was able to keep it down longer. More dry heaves now. My head hurts. How do others do this! Day 4 Finally. I feel much better. I can hold down drink and food and though I'm still queezy at least I'm not convulsing. I walked around the ship finally able to take everything in. It amazes me that we can all fit in this tiny boat. Day 5 Sun disappeared. Starting to get cold. Only way to keep warm is to keep moving. I've been walking the ship... Ricky's Death Day 23 Ricky fell to his death. He was a good lad. Hard worker. I was below deck when he fell into the frigged water. Had I been . It happened too quickly for anybody to react. His body disappeared into the water abyss. Had we been able to get him I could have done something. We honored him with a meal and drink. Day 24 Crew moral low. Ricky's dea... Day 31 Sweet Pea and Gerry had scurvy. This is easy to cure with or without magic. They did not listen to the captain explain why everybody needed to eat a lime each day. Under the captains orders I did not cure them but created a remedy that was foul tasting as punishment. They are glad its over. Both are back wor... Day 64 Land Ho! Finally. By the gods it's over. It's beautiful. So peaceful. Quiet. Untouched virgin land. Everybody around is gearing up to disembark. I am right there with them. Its been a long journey. I did not convert anybody but I was not planning on that. So many different faiths among the crew. Each praying to their gods during times of crisis and hopefully during times when nothing was going on. Men fail to give praise for the mundane. Its times like that they should demonstrate their faith. I cannot wait to touch land again.

[FranklinRPer]

Expedition Day: 64
Boolyabay Day: 1
Location: Ashore in Frontier Bay

We have finally gotten to shore and I have to say the trees here are breathtaking. The tree I am currently studying, which from here-on-out I shall call an Erebus Pine, is easily 800 hands tall and 40 around. This does not seem to be a freak specimen, and it causes me to wonder if the native peoples have ever used these trees for their timber. From experience, similar trees make excellent building materials, in moderation of course. The tree's 'leaves' are mostly needle-shaped and are blue-black in color. The trees themselves also have rounded cones hanging from them. I have included a few rough drawings of the tree and its seeds. It smells a bit like a juniper, but more... I do not know how to describe it other than that it smells like a juniper that has been subtly covered in spices.

Currently we are discussing how the expedition should be lead and where we should start. I am hoping that the others will get the hint that while I shall work with them easily-enough, I need to be able to wander off on my own at minimum a few paces to take in the wild's essence by myself. So far the group seems well-equipped to handle this mission. I am positive we will do better than the last group. More once I know what we are up to!




[Pages 2 and 3]
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OOC The second drawing is more his actual skill level, so just dumb down the first image a bit and you've got the idea.

[Admin Bhelogan]

Boolyabay - Day 1 continued

We made our way to the shore via boat. Rillion was disappointing that I didn't just open a dimensional doorway and let everyone step though. We still have not really let on to the other's what exactly it is we study and I didn't feel that now would be the best time. Some people have superstitions about such things, and we don't need to go making anyone uncomfortable now. The rowing however is an excellent cardio activity, great for the constitution. That alone would make it worth the while.

The massive trees here are beautiful. Conifer with dark needles, their strength and hardness is yet undetermined but must be great for them to reach the size they are. Their value to the emperor's navy would be immeasurable, as they could be made into massive masts. I fear though that if this were reported, they would be harvested so fast that the species might die out entirely. I will privately refer to them as 'Mast Trees', but publicly will call them 'dwarf pines'. Hopeful the others will take it as a joke, perpetuate it and give these trees a chance to remain untouched for as long as possible.

The beach expands for a trek, and it appears there may be the mouth of a river half way down it. It would be good to locate all the sources of fresh water on this island. Any life that is currently here, or will be in the future will depends on them as their water source. It is also possible, if there are valuable gems in those mountains, some indication of it may be in the sediment washed down from the rivers.

[Drachenspirit]

Landfall - Day 1 continued:

Beautiful majestic trees here. Gonna name them Elvish for Royal treesArnalda. Decision made to go inland, following river. Have held my assessment of my companions until I've seen them on land. I've heard of hte Lord, and even my fellow Ranger. I'm not good with names, but I may have heard of the others. Time will tell.
No one has spoken of what to do with the crew of the ship. There are too few of them to make the trek back, so I might suggest they anchor close to shore, and make camp at the edge of the water here in the bay, or perhaps where the river meets the sea so they can be closer to fresh water. Will wait until one of the others makes a suggestion to see if they are like-minded.

[Yves]

...And we're back. Behemoth Nephilim Pines. Sentinel Forest. Uh...to be continued! Hm, maybe I don't have to write that every time. Crap, didn't have to write that either. Ok, I'll stop now. Should have learned that spell for this...Gr....

[FranklinRPer]

Furry little creatures. Only got a quick look, so rough impression. Think I will nickname them River Rats for now, as that is the impression I got.



Decided to draw Archemedies in this picture. The white trees' bark falls off on its own and seems to have pain relieving properties. I have collected some for now.



This mushroom is one of those that makes you see things and it would be poisonous to eat in large quantities. Stay away from this! (Do not mind the small notes).

Expedition Day: 64
Boolyabay Day: 1 (More)
Location: A hop, skip, and a jump from the Luck, up Davynor River.

So far I have to say that this day has been a very interesting little journey. We are not that far into the forest yet and already I am finding so many new and exciting things. I will say that I wish that I was with my Circle rather than these outsiders, as it would be a joy to be able to change form and travel and explore that way. But these are interesting people all-the-same and their varied views will be a boon to the expedition.

[Pages 4 and 5]

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[theclaytster]

Expedition Boolyabay Day 64 - Mid Morning at Mouth of Davynor River Figured I would enter something as everybody is still making their way to our new campsite by the mouth of the Davynor River. Now there is a character. I know he is a Druid and I respect his dedication to nature and the outdoors, but man does he think he knows everything there is to know about everything. I can learn a thing or two from him, but he is a bit pig headed. Don't know much about his pet though, but it looks to be smart. We did discover some new things. There are some furry creatures that we did not get a great look at. Might be good eating if we can catch one. My fingers found out that the mushrooms are a tad poisonous as they went numb. That was interesting and good to know. And Nailfin decided to call the white trees with bark that comes off Stripping Maidens. I don't know that I like that name so much. I would rather call them paper trees. Everybody is getting near. I'll say a small prayer for us and see where our next step takes us.

[Yves]

Boolybay1.2

Well we spotted some life, if only for a few seconds. It was exciting sure, but only because it was the first. I'm sure once we explore the entire island those creatures will be insignificant. Not even going to bother naming them. They were small and furry, and dove into the water to escape.

Red Devils. Stripping Shieldmaidens.

[Drachenspirit]

Boolyabay- Day 1 upriver.

There are some rather odd, yet familiar trees here that are akin to Willows, but then again their leaves are sort of barbed and spear-like. And their bark peels in great rifts and doesn't seem to harm the trees at all. Note that this mike make for good firestarting.
I will call them... Ercalas Parf trees, sort of elvish for pointyleaf peel offs.
There's been some discussion over what to call some odd shaped mushrooms. One of our group scraped and tasted them, and said they are most definitely poisonous. I'll call them Poison candyapple shrooms due to their color and size, though by the conjecture among us, that probably won't stick.
The water diving otter-like fuzzy little beasties I'll call Davynor ottors, just because my companion accepts it and it brings a smile to his face. And he is kind of cute, so that's a bonus.
Spotted two rather odd birds, one is tiny and a beautiful blue color and seem to be almost everywhere. Noting them down as Azul finches.
The other looks like a raven or crow, but sings like the old lady at that grand hall I visited in Baldur's Gate some years back. Seems them kind of shows always end with a human fat lady singing at the end, and most beautifully. As these birds songs are spot on, I'm calling them Fatlady Grackles.
Came across some ants, rather large and very, very territorial. Build some high beautiful mounds too. Chased us off for a spell until we were quite a few lengths away from their nest/mounds. Calling them Toecutter ants.

[Yves]

Boolybay 1.3

And I was correct! More wildlife.

Blue Beetles. Sheryling (Shrilling) Crow. Castle Ants.