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The War on Wolves
So I started this story on steam, but figured this is a more appropriate place to continue. The story begins with a wolf attacking my reindeer on a mountain top while I was sleeping. I never really cared for that reindeer. I mean I only got it to carry my stuff. I had named it Last Resort, you know, just in case the meat it carried became more valuable than having a beast of burden. That night, when I woke to Last Resort being savaged, I was mostly just pissed that the "big wolf" had the balls to try this. After missing an easy javelin throw, I chased it off and returned even more angry, cursing the damned wolf and my own javelin throwing ineptitude. To my surprise, the reindeer wasn't dead. I thought, "Ok, great, at least I still have the deer, I'll just let him heal up." When I decided to return home, I realized that Last Resort was crippled and couldn't walk. I'd move a few tiles and he just stayed in place, even though he was on a leash. I started waiting, hoping he'd regain some strength and get the heck up, but no luck. I kept seeing this brazen wolf appear at the edge of the screen, and would chase him off, throwing javelins ineffectively. I just couldn't get close enough. I stayed by the deer for about a day and a half, chasing off the wolf, and was starting to come dangerously close to dying from dehydration. There was no water close by and I couldn't wander away. So, Last Resort, the poor savaged reindeer lived up to his name. No point in leaving him for the wolf, I told him I was sorry before bashing his skull until unconscious, then driving the point of my spear into his neck. Blood gushed. A few minutes later all that remained were bones on the ground and meat in my pack. I swore revenge as I trudged home. I got my two dogs and headed back the next day. I used some of the meat to set some deadfall traps, even though my trapping skill was horrible. But in my experience just getting the animal's attention is the important part, even if it turns it's nose up at the trap, my dogs and I can do the rest. That night, sure enough, the apparent lone wolf showed up. As I expected, it wasn't dumb enough to climb in the trap for me. Oh well, I unleash the hounds and issue the attack command. When I finally caught up one of my dogs was on the wolf, the other no where in sight. My dog was hurt, bad, but still fighting. I rushed to get in javelin range but before I could my dog was down, its neck was torn and there was blood everywhere. I could feel the rage pumping in my ears. The wolf ran. Unfortunately for the wolf, it had to climb a cliff wall, which gave me time to get in range. The javelin struck home in the wolf's abdomen. It fell unconscious, and I finished it off with my spear as my other useless dog showed up in time to bark at it. Disgusted, I collected it's pelt but left the meat to rot. I burned my dogs body and left. Once home, I realized that killing the wolf wasn't enough. Rage still burned, and I decided I needed to kill the rest of them. Every.. Last.. One. Realizing that my skill with a spear alone wasn't enough to catch the slippery bastards, I began to train my trapping skill. I found some mild success, trapping a couple here and there, but it didn't quench my thirst for revenge. I began wandering around at night, looking for them. I knew it was a suicide mission but I didn't care. I knew I should get more dogs but decided they didn't deserve to die with me. I stopped leashing my remaining dog and giving him attack commands, giving him the option to flee but shame from the last encounter, I think, kept him close. Or maybe it was just the food. One night I found what I was looking for. A pack of them scouring the pine mire near my home, probably checking to see if I had any more reindeer to eat. I didn't. I chased after them, and they ran at first. Right up until I wounded one of them with a long, lucky javelin throw. It turned to attack. My next throw missed, and I heard my dog yelping somewhere behind me. I got out my spear, ready for a fight to the death. I dodged it's attack, and struck. The wolf went down, but so did I. At least one of them must've gotten in behind me, probably after killing the dog. The last thing I felt as the world faded to blackness were my bones crunching and my stomach being ripped open as the wolves gathered around what would soon be my corpse... April 10, 2018, 06:36:39 PM |
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Re: Rauko
Leaving the body, he walks back to the river and builds a shelter for the night. Dreams come to him and disturb his sleep and he wakes in the night, hearing noises of fighting in the distance. He lays on his furs and listens but the noises are gone. Sleep comes once more and he wakes to cold morning rain and cold roasted meat. Heading down the river, Rauko paddles across one good-sized lake and then another, both by late morning. Climbing a hill reveals that the river exits in three streams.  He's starting to feel like the river will go on forever, and stops for the night to make another shelter in the cold rain. His roasted deer meat is getting stale, but still edible. At least he has a fire to ward off the wet chill.  Again, his sleep is fitful and plagued with another dream - that of his father's body burning. The spirits are not giving him rest. What would his father say if he were here? Something like "Make it through and the day will dawn, and with the sun, fear will dissipate like the morning fog." Rauko misses his father and pulls the furs up over his head and eventually falls back to sleep. April 13, 2018, 01:46:26 AM |
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Re: Rauko
Next morning he feels better. He made it through just like his father would have said. Back in the canoe floating downstream after a while the air has a new smell to it and Rauko wonders what this would be. Climbing a peak near the bank, there is water ahead for as far as he can see. If this isn't the largest lake he has ever heard of, then it must be the sea! He hurries back to the river and not long after he's out in the body of water. Deciding that if this IS the sea, he should follow the coast southward, that's the course he takes. Hopefully he will end up at a settlement on the shore or be able to see one from high ground.  His roasted cuts are now spoiled and he has failed in a hunt for an elk during one of several climbs on the shore to look for villages. April 14, 2018, 01:00:28 AM |
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Re: Rauko
He continues paddling along the shore heading southward, and becomes convinced this must be the sea because it seems to go on forever. Finally after several attempts to see a settlement, he spots one in the distance!  Rauko heads inland. 
April 14, 2018, 03:30:54 PM |
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Re: Rauko
The village sage loves to talk, and Rauko learns that this is a village of the Driikilaiset in the western part of their territory. There are many more villages to the east and south, some even are surrounded by walls! Rauko has never heard of that and is interested to see it. This village has swine and are willing to trade for them, but Rauko has no need for a pig. The villagers say that nearby settlements have dogs he could trade for. Mostly, Rauko is impressed and even a little bit in awe of the wealth evident in the villagers' clothing and the finely crafted goods and weapons they possess. He finds an incredible mail shirt the Driik call a "habergeon" that looks like the armor of legends and falls in love with it. Even offering everything he can spare (besides his furs, which his father says are for trading with the foreigners), Rauko doesn't have enough goods to trade for it.  Disappointed, but hopeful for a similar find in another village, he barters his hunting knife for a fine-quality round shield. This could be a lifesaver the next time he encounters an archer. The villagers invite him to sleep for the night in their common lodge. April 15, 2018, 04:30:35 PM |
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He was in my cabin!
The following is a story of Ossi. It was my first winter alone since I escaped from my Njerpez captors. You see, I had cleared their camp earlier in the spring and used it as my homestead, remaking two of their buildings into my own cabin. My homestead was then a central camp with my cabin and sauna with a pine mire to the north and east, all surrounded by spruce mire. I had ringed my homestead and border of the spruce mire with a contiguous trap fence and staked trap pits. In the months between then and mid-winter, I had explored and become friendly with local villagers: trading for many goods I needed, helping them with chores, traveling between regions, and even finding a bird thief. In those travels, I had encountered numerous Njerpez warriors wandering the forests, especially near my homestead. More so even than I had ever heard of. I had had numerous encounters, and almost perished a few times. Because of this, I often wore my best armor and was armed as I traveled around the forests near my homestead. One morning near mid-winter, I checked my trap fence and found a lone small wolf caught in a pit. I killed, skinned, and butchered the animal, offering up a gift to the spirits for this bounty. I set the meat to dry and tanned the fur. I came back and picked up the rinsed winter wolf fur and took it into my cabin to finish at my table. I had a decent fur at the end, was weary and moderately fatigued, and it was evening. So I decided to add the fur to my sleeping pallet and rest. I decided not to re-kindle the fire that night and was about to lay down on my furs against a cold winter night ...when I heard my door open. Confused, I was about to look to my door when I was hit from behind and felt something break in my thorax. I turned and I was being attacked by a Njerpez Warrior holding a mace! He was in my cabin! He had apparently scaled my fence, snuck across my homestead, rushed into my cabin, and attacked me, all in the darkness of the night as I was finishing a fur. I wasn't wearing armor and had no weapons, so I grabbed a handaxe nearby and fought the intruder. I had little hope of succeeding against this enemy with my fatigue and wound, but I struck back against his blow to my shoulder and luckily hit him in the abdomen, which wound began to bleed. I think he was shocked that his first strike didn't knock me unconscious and I was fighting back. After that, I chopped my axe against his skull and he dropped dead. I was stunned at my survival! I gathered my weapons quickly, searched my homestead in the darkness, and found this intruder was alone. I was left with a major fracture in my thorax, a dead Njerpez next to my sleeping pallet, and bloody gore marring my peaceful cabin. I felt as if my home was violated. If there was only some way to secure my cabin or bar the door. I don't feel as safe as I did before this invasion. It is a blessing I was awake. One more moment, and I would have lied down and the Njerpez warrior would have found me asleep. I am truly lucky. Note: In all my years of playing URW, I've never encountered so many solo Njerpez warriors in such a small geographical region. They've given me a fairly steady stream of goods for trade. But I've also never had a Njerpez invade my cabin directly. I've found them in tiles adjacent to various characters' cabins, but this is the first time I've ever had this type of experience. It scared me to death. I was literally shaking by being surprised by a Njerpez in my own cabin. I was sure my time invested into this character was about to be flushed down the tube, but was genuinely happy to survive. I also wonder if it would be possible to bar a door in a building. This would require the invader to break down the door with an axe to get in, but would give some defense against home invaders. April 16, 2018, 10:45:35 AM |
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Re: Rauko
Early morning Rauko takes his leave and journeys further inland and climbs to high ground... ice is beginning to creep from shore. The herd of reindeer beckons to him. Dropping everything except bow and knife, the hunt begins as Rauko moves stealthily across a mire until the deer are seen. A lucky shot hits the deer's lower leg and the rest is a simple chase. 
April 17, 2018, 02:37:17 PM |
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Re: What's Going On In Your Unreal World?
On Day 1 of the 12th week before midwinter point, at his large cabin by the lake at "Black Rapid", Jarrold Kaumolainen successfully forged* a fine small knife on his second attempt. His two dogs, Spot and Rascal, were not impressed. In the 9 months since his father perished on an unfortunate hunting trip, Jarrold has successfully colonized Black Rapid, met water spirits and forest maids, found milkweed, rescued two wounded adventurers' gear, felled a tree in the rain, passed weird messages between villagers, and done minor chores. His notable kills include a 4 Njerpez, a lynx, a bear, a dozen forest reindeer, another dozen elk, and countless squirrels, hares, and small birds. He has travelled from his cabin on the edge of Koivula territory to the western shore of the Driik. His next plan is to forge a fine carving axe, and he's considering an expedition against the Njerpez for next spring. * Caethan's URW self-sufficency mod April 18, 2018, 01:08:59 AM |
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Re: Rauko
With all the gear and the canoe he's been hauling around, there is no way he can carry all the meat the deer will provide, so he makes a shelter and plans to tan the hide and carry the meat back to the village to trade most of it. On second thought, he grabs some cords and hopes the villagers will let him smoke the meat in return for a portion of it. April 18, 2018, 01:29:31 PM |
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Re: Rauko
The villagers are happy to let him smoke the meat in exchange for 1 of every 5 pieces. Rauko sleeps in the common building and returns to his camp in the morning. He spends the day making & setting some loop snares, and making fibres from elk tendons he's been carrying since the early part of his journey to the sea. These will be useful for making arrows. He also makes a nice club and finishes tanning the deer fur, but he is not happy with the result. Rauko's dreams have not plagued him for a couple of nights and he wonders if being among the villagers has anything to do with this. He's exhausted and hopeful for a good sleep.  Waking refreshed from dreamless sleep, he thanks the spirits. What would his father do now? With only 7 roasted meat cuts, the answer is obvious... HUNT. He gathers his bow and arrows, then stops in the middle of eating because a reindeer wanders near his snare trap, grazing.  Apparently the spirits have brought the hunt to Rauko! April 20, 2018, 03:13:15 AM |
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