[Event] A Return To Temba? Or Perhaps Not.

[trpmods]

A Time of Parting
Like a relationship status with an on-again off-again significant other one could easily describe the situation with the Agrii in two words: ‘it’s complicated’. Which of course serves no one as well as it should. The Orange-Faction is still angry, Mu Ly still seems on a tightly held leash, the other leaders still seem at a loss for understanding, and Ny Ak remains in their comatose state. Even meeting with He Rows on the ‘neutral ground’ of one of the He Row ships only manages to reach one consistently agreed upon point with the Agrii.

It is time for the He Rows to leave.

Not because the Agrii want them to of course. Just because there is a lack of attention starting to bloom in all of the older Agrii. Te Ra keeps wandering toward the water on the He Row ship, with Ga Re barely restraining herself as well. Seeay, who had seemed at a loss for everything since Mu Ly’s outburst seemed more intent on crooning after one of the Agrii that come on the He Row shuttles to deliver food than anything else. When not at the infirmary checking up on An Nu and Ny Ak, Te Mi just looks uncomfortable at the strange behavior of the older Agrii.

Until, at last, Te Mi sighs during one of the meetings with He Rows where the attention of the others were wandering once more. And worse than ever before.

“Apologies. I believe it is time to take a talking break for a while,” Te Mi notes. “Please, allow me to escort the older ones back to our ship. It is important. I will ask Excelsior to explain things when we return.”

Thankfully the He Rows don’t have to wait long before that explanation comes. In fact it starts once all of the Agrii representatives (and any He Rows escorting them) are returned to the Agrii ship. The voice of the Ship’s AI, today taking a more synthetic tone to go along with it currently calling itself Excelsior, manifests in a voicemail sent directly to all He Row communication devices.

Attention He Rows. The appreciation of my crew and myself are extended to you for the efforts you have made in this last month. Continued discussion will likely be necessary and I will facilitate this for you in the coming days. However a change in status must be announced.

The Agrii people live and reproduce in a manner than what I expect is true of most of the species represented among the He Rows. Consider this a more precise ‘internal clock’ operating on a specific timeline. At this time the Agrii are approaching what is termed their ‘spawning time’. I suspect the meaning of this will be plain for you all. Agrii over a certain number of spawnings, a reckoning of maturity based on how many spawns have happened since their own hatching, will be increasing their courtship displays and moving toward consummation of the bonds they form, new or old.

At this time younger Agrii help manage the eldest as well as watch over newly hatched Agrii from the last spawning. While I cannot say that this will lead to increased aggression or recklessness, recent changes in the behavioral patterns of some Agrii may make this a risk. To this end I have been working for several days to crack the navigation systems I have been locked out of to your own ships. It is advisable that He Rows take their shuttles and return to their ships and then return to the planet’s surface. However you will not be compelled to do so.

It is advisable that you use this time to… further any discussions you wish to have regarding the state of my crew. The questions that have been asked of me imply that there may be strong opinions among your number regarding your path forward. Please take the next month to discuss and determine how you will proceed in your duties. If you have questions for me or require insight as to the status on the ship, I have added a contact within the application you use to contact the Agrii directly to give you what I hope is a secure line to myself so we can converse.

If you have any questions, feel free to make use of this function now. My wishes for your health and wise decision making in the coming days. And please note, I currently suggest that when returning to the planet you avoid the region of what has been dubbed ‘Sh’Ka’ for the next week. Though highly weakened, a form of the energy storm is currently moving slowly and lingeringly through that area. My current forecasts suggest this should pass in that time. Subroutines set up to forward to He Row Donnie will let He Rows know if this is expected to change.

Sure seems like He Rows have all the bad luck right now, doesn’t it? First the security of the Warrens wasn’t available immediately at the onset of the zombie storm because the Funfronds were having their own personal time, and now it’s the Agrii. But at least this there is the implication that you have an option in things, right? Though perhaps, with the attention of the majority of the Agrii on… other tasks, it might be advisable to have something like a town hall meeting. After all, with everything that was learned in November, the recent behavior of the Agrii, and even some information recently gleaned from the Ship’s AI (when will it finally choose a name), the He Rows have a lot to discuss.

A decision must be made, and possibly prepared for, and in the end the He Rows will only get to choose one option. Thankfully you can all behave democratically, right? Well, hopefully so, because your own fates may be tied up in what decisions you make. Think of it as standing in a corridor filled with doors that you figure will lock behind you once you step through.

And hopefully, the one you choose will ultimately lead you home.

FAQ
What is the time range for this event?

The announcement from the Ship’s AI will be sent on February 12th. From there the He Rows technically have one month to make their decision. We will be going with 30 days because we want you to have more than just a shortened February to think. Therefore the Ship’s AI expects an answer on or before March 14th.

Wait, my character is on hiatus, what do I do, how do I weigh in?

The power of the Hand-wave. You will still have the ability to vote (IC and OOC) in the OOC post that will be made and posted later this week that will be open for the full month period. You will be able to change that vote at any time. As for how your IC opinions were conveyed, well clearly your character had a hand-waved conversation with a close friend (or even the Ship’s AI in private), where they explained their opinion on what they would want to do given the chance. We want all current players on the roster—new, old, or other—to have a chance to affect the path of the game.

Will our decision actually change what is going to happen?

Oh you better believe it. Want to know why there isn’t a calendar up yet for the expected months for events and plot things and free months for this year? Because we need to know as mods which path we’re pushing down (or create a new one by popular player vote) to set up the calendar. For instance ‘kick the can down the road’ means we need to make smaller events on the surface and bring together other ways to keep things going with gently ramping up the plot, whereas investigation paths will have a whole different course that may require a month or two of back to back plot. We need to know the chosen path to map it out.

Are we actually being kicked off the Agrii ship?

That’s the interesting thing… no. You’ve been asked gently to consider leaving by the Ship’s AI, but you’re under no obligation to do so. He Rows will not be able to get close to the lake in the middle of the Green Area. The plants just seem thicker, blue-faction Agrii seem to be protecting the area, and in general the sheer scent nearing it is… well, it’s not pleasant for anyone with an olfactory sense.

That said, He Rows can use their shuttles to return to the Glitter Food and the Peanut Party. And, interestingly enough, from their ships to the surface. Any crew member can shuttle from the ship to the surface and vice versa, and one shuttle will always remain at each to ensure He Rows can get to and from the ships. Only a pilot can direct a ship to land, though, and it’s possible they might not be motivated to. Because, for the first time, you can live on a ship in space without chaos. And it’s only from the ships themselves that one can shuttle to and from the Agrii ship. In fact, Pilots will find that so long as one of their crew members remains aboard the Agrii ship, they cannot land their vessel. So please, enjoy freedom of motion between the Agrii ship, the He Row Ships, and both surface cities this month. Who knows, it might become a new normal.

Can we use this new freedom of movement to go any other places?

No. Only the places noted are available. You can question the Ship’s AI as to why this is. The answer will prove to be that they found something working against them once they unlocked the functions they did, and a portion of their systems are being dedicated just to maintaining this level of transit. It will continue to try and find a way to bypass these hacking attempts but it is not easy for it and asks for more time.

Do we really have to have a group meeting on the surface?

OOC? No. IC, it’s highly recommended so long as it’s handwaved. A lot of He Rows have a lot of different pieces to the puzzle at this point, gleaned from investigations on the planet, interviews with the Ship AI, and even older ones from interactions with plantkin and perhaps even other adventures off planet in the past. It is time for all of that information to technically be brought together to all He Rows. In fact, we’re going to have a comment thread below where anyone who has gathered something they think is a clue during any point of the game can submit their clues. This can either be noted to be spread via a meeting or by group texts locking the Agrii out. Better not to spill the beans before you’re ready to. All information shared this way should from this day forth be considered information that All He Rows Are Aware Of.

If you believe something is a clue but aren’t certain, submit it anyway. If you think you got a clue in the past but can’t remember it, come to the mods with any details you remember and we’ll help you dig it back up, either in original form, or in some altered state if you want your character to not remember it correctly.

Can we start acting along the lines of the decision our character(s) would make?

Yes, beyond revealing secrets to the Agrii (as we are leaving that to a vote), He Rows may start preparing for any path they think they will take. This could be gearing up and preparing the ships for a long voyage you might hope to take, starting to rebuild and refurbish space for bringing the Agrii down to the planet, negotiating with plantkin, or just trying to research methods to fuck off and leave this all to the Agrii to handle. Just let us know where we can help you or what you might need clarified.

Wait, if the adult Agrii are distracted, does that mean we lack their protective oversight?

Yes. Just like during the zombie storm or other past storms, the Agrii will not be able to save you from yourselves, others, or problems with nature. He Rows can become severely injured or die during this period of time. As always, inform us of any plots leading to this. We will not stop you, but we do want to know, just to be informed as to the status of things and how they might be reacted to later.

Can we speak to any Agrii during this period of time?

You can talk to younger Agrii during this time. And by younger we mean Te Mi’s age group, which makes up most of the blue-faction, and a small number of the already small green-faction. While there are young Agrii who are unaligned, they have all dedicated themselves to traditional duties during this part of the Agrii life cycle and cannot be reached. Even blue-faction Agrii NPCs will be occasionally unavailable as they take turns at helping in these duties. He Rows can reach out either in person or by communicator at any point, just let us know if you want Te Mi or a random NPC. In fact, you’re going to get a higher response rate than normal, because thanks to conversations with Donnie, younger Agrii will be looking to talk to and interact with He Rows at a far higher rate than ever before.

What if I just want to live on the Agrii ship at this time?

Yeah, we’re repeating this one because we want to stress that this is a choice you can make.

Can we go into the Warrens?

Yes, you can do that too. He Rows have freedom of motion in any areas they have previously interacted with or had accessible to them. The Funfronds will send a guide into the Warrens, but remember it’s a LONG trip down, so pack accordingly. The security door deeper into the Warrens where the November exploration took place is closed off, but some other paths are now open. These will not have a lot of new information at this time, but He Rows are welcome to explore, interact with the local Funfronds and their newest children (they are so tiny, thumb nail sized really, and adorable as all get out), and perhaps even negotiate to get some of those Funfrond tools if you are deliberate. Who knows how useful that could be.

So this is a month that is part free for all and part planning?

Yep. Like we said, this is about deciding the future. Do what free actions you want around that, but the core drive is to talk, figure things out, maybe do some research or preparation.

Anything special to note weather or minor event wise?

Winter is ending early this year. Something about weakening the storms is leading so some other climate changes for a time as things resettle. The snow will clear up by the time He Rows hit the planet, but it will be cool still. He Rows are more likely to encounter gentle rains out of semi-cloudy skies than anything else.

This change has led to a bit of a downside. Remember the Mintpocalypse? Well… The repairs on the Greenhouse didn’t go 100% perfectly, and this led to an outbreak of mint again. Don’t worry, a traveling herd of glownies actually already came through, so good news, you have even more glownies than usual! It’s great, they move in cute little herds around town. Might want to do something about that.

Downside? This has also led to an increase in other fauna activities in Temba, and not all of them are as friendly or as nice. For instance the mint lured a herd of Capras into town. You may want to be careful with these distant and non-glowing relatives of the Glownies. Capra can hypnotize those who stare into their eyes. So you could well end up as a short term servant to the roving Capra herd. In addition the combination of an early spring and the damage done by the zombies has encouraged the local herds of Pecoraves closer to the remains of the floodplain and some have been seen strolling through southern Temba. Maybe you want to try and tame one and get yourself a flying mount? Finally there are of course more Aquakats and other predators around than normal to match this migration of herbivores. Ouch. And who knows what other species may be visiting from afar.

I wanted to ask you something…

And we want to answer. Please leave it in the appropriate comment thread below to ensure the mod account gets notified of the question!