Post by Thorne on Nov 24, 2011 10:00:28 GMT -5
Adventure Islands are islands that have not been (or can not be) settled on. Since there's no one there, there's certainly no trade goods to be bought, or even a landing strip in most cases. So if you can't land there, you can't trade there, and there's no people there, what are these islands even for?! For Great Adventure! They can be great places to go and visit during official and non-official RP sessions.
Stonecliff - A gigantic mountain that juts out of the ocean with steep and sheer cliff faces. The mountain itself is around 26,000 ft high. After about 5,000 ft from sea level, the mountain walls become less of a sheer drop and more like a regular mountain but still comparatively steep. It's here at 5,000 ft that a small area has been leveled off, allowing for a short runway and a bare bones base camp, "Eagle's Ascent." Even landing on the shortened runway takes a high degree of skill.
There is always at least one team running the base camp, but never more than two, given the remote location. Stonecliff is located far to the North of !Skytopia, making the temperature just as deadly as the altitude and steep cliffs. Despite these dangerous conditions, or perhaps because of them, many !Skytopians attempt to reach the summit. Very few actually make it all of the way to the top, given the many obstacles and the difficult terrain, instead stopping about 6,000 ft below the summit at a camp called "Eagle's Nest." The last 6,000 ft are incredibly treacherous and have claimed more lives than have reached the summit. For every two climbers who have made it successfully to the peak, three have died trying. One extra danger is that Stonecliff is prone to severe, cold storms that last days upon end. The steep cliff faces make it difficult to retreat back down the mountain in case of a storm, often resulting in death. Avalanches and loose seracs (walls of ice) in narrow couloirs account for the remainder of the fatalities.
Blackbriar - Blackbriar is a wild, untamed island. Along it's Western edge, from North to South, runs a tall mountain range in a crescent shape, along the outer edge of the island. The remainder of the island is filled with an incredibly thick forest made up of deciduous trees and bushes. The temperature of Blackbriar runs through a strange range. At its warmest in Summer it is considered subtropical, at its coldest point in Fall the leaves begin to change color but do not fully fall off the branches (~8 months of Summer, 2 Spring, 2 Fall). Trees thickly cover nearly every inch of the island that is not mountainous. If a pilot flies closely enough they can even view the root structures popping out of the sides of the island walls as it descends towards the sea. Given the steep mountain walls and thick vegetation, there is no known way to land and those who have professed that they were on their way to explore Blackbriar have never returned.
In stark contrast to the dense vegetation and wildness of the island as a whole, sits a stone tower, nearly overgrown with vines and other vegetation, at almost the center of the island. None know its origins or what secrets it may hold. Some say they have seen a strange light emanating from the tower when they fly past at night. Many discount such claims as "wind-addled." For others, Blackbriar is a favorite to fly over during the four month period when its leaves are shifting colors; the plethora of colors displayed is breathtaking.
(Unknown to anyone, Blackbriar contains both harmful and helpful plants. The helpful plants include several fruits including a bread fruit and several types of berries. During the summer months both citrus trees thrive as does a potent variety of !Catnip. There are three plants to especially watch out for. The first of these three harmful plants are several types of poisonous plants, which includes plants that will make you itchy and rashy to the more bothersome plants that will leave you sick in bed for a few days with a fever and vomiting. The second harmful plant is a thick briar bush that grows nearly everywhere. Although beautiful when flowering, as the leaves are a soft red to pink to white color, it is always a pain because of the many large thorns protruding from it. It is almost impossible to go into Blackbriar without shredding the briar or shredding your clothing and skin. The final harmful plant life is called "Quickvine." This vine, due to a high water content, has increased flexibility and mobility. While still incredibly slow when compared to a humanoid's movement speed, it is enough to cause problems for any willing adventurers. During the rainy summer months, the vines can move back over an area where they have previously been cleared out within about an hour (taking 2-3x that long in Spring/Fall). So if an adventurer hacks his way to the middle and stays longer than an hour, he will have to hack a new path back (although if he can find the old path, it would be easier to hack through Quickvines instead of Quickvines plus Blackbriar). Also, sleeping among Quickvines could be deadly, as one could wake up to find all of their limbs firmly held and a vine squeezing the life out of their neck).
More to come as I feel inspired...
Thorne
Stonecliff - A gigantic mountain that juts out of the ocean with steep and sheer cliff faces. The mountain itself is around 26,000 ft high. After about 5,000 ft from sea level, the mountain walls become less of a sheer drop and more like a regular mountain but still comparatively steep. It's here at 5,000 ft that a small area has been leveled off, allowing for a short runway and a bare bones base camp, "Eagle's Ascent." Even landing on the shortened runway takes a high degree of skill.
There is always at least one team running the base camp, but never more than two, given the remote location. Stonecliff is located far to the North of !Skytopia, making the temperature just as deadly as the altitude and steep cliffs. Despite these dangerous conditions, or perhaps because of them, many !Skytopians attempt to reach the summit. Very few actually make it all of the way to the top, given the many obstacles and the difficult terrain, instead stopping about 6,000 ft below the summit at a camp called "Eagle's Nest." The last 6,000 ft are incredibly treacherous and have claimed more lives than have reached the summit. For every two climbers who have made it successfully to the peak, three have died trying. One extra danger is that Stonecliff is prone to severe, cold storms that last days upon end. The steep cliff faces make it difficult to retreat back down the mountain in case of a storm, often resulting in death. Avalanches and loose seracs (walls of ice) in narrow couloirs account for the remainder of the fatalities.
Blackbriar - Blackbriar is a wild, untamed island. Along it's Western edge, from North to South, runs a tall mountain range in a crescent shape, along the outer edge of the island. The remainder of the island is filled with an incredibly thick forest made up of deciduous trees and bushes. The temperature of Blackbriar runs through a strange range. At its warmest in Summer it is considered subtropical, at its coldest point in Fall the leaves begin to change color but do not fully fall off the branches (~8 months of Summer, 2 Spring, 2 Fall). Trees thickly cover nearly every inch of the island that is not mountainous. If a pilot flies closely enough they can even view the root structures popping out of the sides of the island walls as it descends towards the sea. Given the steep mountain walls and thick vegetation, there is no known way to land and those who have professed that they were on their way to explore Blackbriar have never returned.
In stark contrast to the dense vegetation and wildness of the island as a whole, sits a stone tower, nearly overgrown with vines and other vegetation, at almost the center of the island. None know its origins or what secrets it may hold. Some say they have seen a strange light emanating from the tower when they fly past at night. Many discount such claims as "wind-addled." For others, Blackbriar is a favorite to fly over during the four month period when its leaves are shifting colors; the plethora of colors displayed is breathtaking.
(Unknown to anyone, Blackbriar contains both harmful and helpful plants. The helpful plants include several fruits including a bread fruit and several types of berries. During the summer months both citrus trees thrive as does a potent variety of !Catnip. There are three plants to especially watch out for. The first of these three harmful plants are several types of poisonous plants, which includes plants that will make you itchy and rashy to the more bothersome plants that will leave you sick in bed for a few days with a fever and vomiting. The second harmful plant is a thick briar bush that grows nearly everywhere. Although beautiful when flowering, as the leaves are a soft red to pink to white color, it is always a pain because of the many large thorns protruding from it. It is almost impossible to go into Blackbriar without shredding the briar or shredding your clothing and skin. The final harmful plant life is called "Quickvine." This vine, due to a high water content, has increased flexibility and mobility. While still incredibly slow when compared to a humanoid's movement speed, it is enough to cause problems for any willing adventurers. During the rainy summer months, the vines can move back over an area where they have previously been cleared out within about an hour (taking 2-3x that long in Spring/Fall). So if an adventurer hacks his way to the middle and stays longer than an hour, he will have to hack a new path back (although if he can find the old path, it would be easier to hack through Quickvines instead of Quickvines plus Blackbriar). Also, sleeping among Quickvines could be deadly, as one could wake up to find all of their limbs firmly held and a vine squeezing the life out of their neck).
More to come as I feel inspired...
Thorne