Civilization Quest

[Darkandus]

In this quest you shall be a single person born very close to the beginning of Humanity. It is up to you to guide your tribe to success or failure. This will be a fairly simple quest with me doing most of the legwork, but updates should be easy and fast to write due to the nature of the beast, so expect them semi-regularly.

Oh, and assume nothing.

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Your tribe lives in a lush valley, a river flows near the caves in which you hide from the elements. The land is plentiful, providing roots, berries and game.

There are thirty in your tribe, half male and half female.

You are the only humans that you know of.

The appearance of your tribe is much like that of modern humans, all members have brown hair, brown eyes and tan skin.

The others are content with what they have, never looking beyond the next day or considering things. You were like that once, but recently you have been having thoughts beyond eating, drinking, fighting and mating.

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Civilization Stat Levels

Science:
Basic tools I Things like stone knives.
Your hunt is disorganized.
Basic medicine II You know some plants that may or may not be good for you. You also know some plants that are not good for you at all. You have found some truly useful plants for easing pain, and also know a herb that provides entertainment.

Culture:
Speech I You can communicate simple ideas and name things.
You worship nothing.
Song I Simple humming is a bit of a pastime for the women in much the way beating on each other is for the men, although some of them have taken it up too.

Social:
You stick together mainly because of basic instincts.
The strong take what s/he wants, from food to mates.

Other:
None.

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To be determined by your first actions. Refer back for changes to sheet after each update.

Class:
Scout 0++
Shaman 0++
Storyteller 0+

Physical Stats
Strength: 1+
Dexterity: 1
Stamina: 2+

Mental Stats:
Perception: 2
Intelligence: 1++
Wits: 1+

Social Stats:
Charisma: 2+
Manipulation: 1
Appearance: 1+++

Skills:
LOCKED

Other:
LOCKED

[Zankaru Zelladonii]

To lead the group efficiently we need complete control over them, can't lead them if they don't want to follow on their own. Large tribe means we are able to gather food well, not going to starve if we don't go for food right away.

Gender: Female

Group Action: Research Speech

Individual Action: Socialize with female population, look for women that the other women follow or look up to and try to get on good side.
Individual Action: Socialize with male population, same as first individual action.

[MrRigger2]

Gender: Male

Group Action: Research Speech

Individual Action: Socialize with the males.

Individual Action: Explore the vicinity.

MrRigger

[Tempest Kitsune]

Seconding Mr.Rigger's choices.

[LifeOfGesture]

What is Write In? An option where we write an action not listed?

[Darkandus]

Yup.

[Wittgen]

What Zank said. Form a matriarchy!

[LifeOfGesture]

Yes! Make language, then the world!!

[gman391]

Hmm I agree with Mr. Riggers actions save for Socialize Males
I think we should socialize with the females.

[Aldraia Dragonsong]

I am going to vote for
Gender: Female
Group Action: Research speech, communication will make everything else easier!
Individual Action 1: Socialize with females
Individual Action 2: Socialize with males

[Darkandus]

Someone break the deadlock on gender or it will be up to a coinflip.

You won't like what happens if it lands on the edge. :razz:

[LifeOfGesture]

Oh, well I support Zank and Aldraia. Though right after getting language down we should focus on medicine.

[Darkandus]

[x]Female

[x] Research speech

You sit and look around the caves and outside, picking up things and touching them and looking at them, trying to think of ways to call each thing you find. When you feel like you have come up with a good name you go to the others and point at it, making the sounds over and over again until they copy you. It takes a long time, and because of your youth and low position in the tribe you are ignored sometimes, but a bit of it sticks, and as some mimic you the others eventually start making some of the sounds too.

Speech I, you are now capable of naming things and expressing basic thoughts.

Perception +
Intelligence +

[X]Socialize with male population

You go among the males of the tribe, they seem to play games that hurt, hitting one another and wrestling for dominance. They mostly ignore you, some of them eyeing you the same way as they eye the older females before losing interest and continuing their games. The biggest male sees you wandering around and laughs before grabbing and shoving the smallest male towards you. The others see and crowd around you, laughing. The small male seems scared, but after being kicked towards you he starts to play the game with you like the males were playing, hitting you even though you don't want to play. It hurts a lot, and in the end you are left lying, bruised and panting on the ground. But the male, while victorious is also bruised and hurt. Entertainment gone, the other males start playing again.

Strength: +
Stamina: +

[X]Socialize with female population

Going among the women is far less painful. You spend time with them learning things such as what food doesn't hurt to eat, you're also taught a little about how to keep your hair out of your eyes and how to hide from the males when you don't want to be taken by them. Some of the older women have the big bellies that come before little ones. You help them a little when you are bored, they seem confused by the help but don't chase you away.

Charisma: +
Appearance: +

Group Actions:

[ ]Research Tools
[ ]Research Speech II
[ ]Research Hunting
[ ]Research Gathering
[ ]Research Medicine
[ ]Research Art
[ ]Hunt together
[ ]Gather resources together
[ ]Write in.

Individual Actions:

[ ]Explore the vicinity
[ ]Socialize with male population
[ ]Socialize with female population
[ ]Write In.

[Arganaut]

Research Tools. We couldn't dare refer to ourselves as any sort of member of the Homo genus without knowing how to use tools.

To that end, exploration of the vicinity to find sticks and rocks to make these tools with would be a logical means to the end.

[MrRigger2]

Research Tools, Explore the Vicinity, Socialize with Females.

MrRigger

[DIT_grue]

Group Action: [x] Research Medicine
Individual Action: [x] Socialize with female population

Look for ways to encourage cooperation and improve health - these are good goals even without the potential side benefit of moving us towards a leadership role (eg. Wise Woman, doctor).

Individual Action: [x] Write In: Research Research

As I discover the basics of pre-natal care and how to nurse stomach-aches, I learn (something surprising), and start to wonder not only why things are as they are, but what they actually are, even when I thought them otherwise. In my own mind, I begin to feel a growing hunger for knowledge, and grope towards a method that can satisfy that hunger.


ETA: OOC: Obviously all possibilities are useful and will need to be explored eventually, but the considerations behind my current choices:

• * Pushing Speech further should probably wait until we have some Art to leapfrog with, which should perhaps wait until we have a story to tell.
  * Zankaru's argument that we don't need to worry about immediately improving food persuades me (actually, his first post seems valid in general). The two counter-arguments that I could see turning out to be valid is an 'apparently' sudden seasonal shift that might cause hardship the players weren't expecting, or a causal relation between increasing food supply and population growth. Perhaps we should try to get a sense of the passage of time?
  * I don't know how useful Tools would be in themselves - we'd want them before Hunting or Gathering, but should probably be ready to push on into one of those as soon as we do Tools.

And basically, as I tried to make clear in the IC, I think Medicine will have useful synergy with the socialisation we already started, as well as offering possible political developments. The write-in Individual Action I proposed is a gamble: it may well waste one of our actions for this turn, but it might open a 'tech tree' that makes almost everything else easier.

[doc.exe]

Those are lofty aspirations but I think is a bit too early for that. I think I prefer Mr. Rigger's suggestion.

[LifeOfGesture]

Research Tools, Explore the Vicinity, Socialize with Females.

MrRigger

This pretty much. Getting information and learning how to handle tools will better inform our decisions. Conquering the world will be much easier then!

EDIT: Though I agree with DIT, medicine should be a top priority after this.

[Aldraia Dragonsong]

MrRigger's ideas sound good.

[Darkandus]

[X]Research Tools

The hot times have come again, and the blue skybright is high overhead. One day as you are picking tasty roots to eat you discover a big knot of them all bunched together. You consider calling someone to help, but then they might take it from you. Instead you heave and haul at it, scratching away some of the dirt painstakingly with your hands until your fingers hurt but it refuses to come out. Frustrated and angry, you pick up a rock and slam it against the dirt. It hits another stone lodged beneath the soil and fractures in your hand, cutting you a little. Surprised and panicked you look at the new cutty rocks. One piece is broad and flat and only cutty on one side. Maybe if it can cut you it can cut the dirt? You start cutting at the dirt and tossing it away and soon you are rewarded with the toils of your labor. Enough tasty roots to last you two whole days. Some of the others might want them though. Your eyes drift back to the cutty stones.

Basic tools I. You are now at the point of making simple tools instead of just picking things up off the ground.

Intelligence +
Wits +

Stone knife unlocked. ATK +1

[X]Explore the Vicinity

It is hot, and everyone is in the caves to stay out of the heat. This has lead to the unfortunate side effect of a lot of hot and bothered people being crammed into the same space. One of the males seemed to get too close to another and soon, not only had they started brawling, the entire cave has become a melee of hitting, scratching, hair and beard pulling but most worryingly of all enraged screams as one of the females claws the eyes of one of the males for trying to take her. Deciding sensibly that you want no part of the not game hitting which will hurt for a lot longer, you slip out of the cave.

No one ever really went very far away from camp. Everything that was needed was nearby. But it was hot, and the nearest shade apart from the caves was a bunch of tall trees in the distance where no-one had gone before. It wasn't the longest walk you had ever taken, and soon enough you were in the cool shade of the trees. Long ropey vines hung from the trees and all sorts of plants and animals you have never seen before are scattered all around.

It's all amazing to take in. You had never thought of life beyond the caves and clearing.

How fascinating.

Stamina +
Perception +

Scout class unlocked.

[X]Socialize with Females.

The heat was finally dying a bit when you decided to spend more time than usual socializing with the females again. The invention of speech makes it a bit more interesting now, as for the first time you can talk about one thing while doing another. Picking roots and talking about picking roots got old very, very fast, so it almost never happened, but now the women were almost always talking. The men who had been more resistant and uninterested still didn't talk much, but it was happening more often. Again, you helped the big belly women, one of them had a little one come out. The little one lived, but the big bellied woman died. The others dragged the body out of camp so the animals and stink wouldn't come. No one is caring for the little one and without milk it will soon die. None of the other females with milk care though.

Charisma +
Appearance +

Group Actions:

[ ]Research Tools II
[ ]Research Speech II
[ ]Research Hunting
[ ]Research Gathering
[ ]Research Medicine
[ ]Research Art
[ ]Hunt together
[ ]Gather resources together
[ ]Write in.

Individual Actions:

[ ]Explore the vicinity
[ ]Socialize with male population
[ ]Socialize with female population
[ ]Write In.

[LifeOfGesture]

Research domestication of animals!

Individual actions:
Beat up a proto cow to get milk for the baby.
Beat up the male population to get their milk.

[Zankaru Zelladonii]

This is a good opportunity for Dit_grue's suggestion.

Research Medicine
I don't like increasing the population so early on, but we can't let the mother die every time they have a kid. We can save the child and will also help us towards becoming a 'wise woman' leader. Also be able to help people who get hurt in the constant fighting and get them on our good side, used to coming to us when they are hurt and have problems.

Individual Action: Socialize with Male Population
Find the male who 'played' with us last time and challenge him with the cutty stone's help, nothing lethal, just enough to win. The other males will look down on the youngest if he loses to a female, but we need them to see us as more than just something to have sex with, someone best not crossed. Try to help the young male with his injuries after the fight with our new medicinal skills.

Individual Action: Socialize with Female Population
We need a mother to help take care of the child, and this introduces the idea of helping each other. Use some of our surplus tasty roots as a bribe. Teamwork is vital to future success.

[gman391]

I propose we research medicine as well.

Socialize with the males, but try not to fight if we don't have to.

I think we should explore more. I want to climb those trees.

[doc.exe]

I agree with the above, just try to not get into a fight (at least, not on purpose) neither use our precious cutting rock if we don't have to.

[DIT_grue]

The hot times have come again,

Yeah, a few turns from now we might just want to research a lunar calender or something. Actually, thinking about winter and our Tools research, it occurs to me that we don't even seem to have nursed fires, let alone the capability to light our own - definitely something to research soon.


I support [x] GA: Research Medicine and [x] IA: Socialise with the Female Population, in an effort to achieve the potential synergy.

As for the other Individual Action, I think I might prefer to postpone trying to buddy up to the men again until we know what we got out of this first level of Medicine. I'm still rather partial to my own idea of trying to boost research speed or something (guess what my priorities tend to be in any game with a tech tree ) but that doesn't seem to have any support. So I'll back [x] IA: Explore the Vicinity.