The new project...

Well, having wandered idly from one town to another in a now unnecessary search, I'm ready for something a little more immediate...

Snort, snort, roll over, yawn, streeetch, and wake up! Good morning! It's been 185 days since I made camp, and I'm still here. During the past umpteen days, one lonely Viper Ghost has encountered me, long long ago (by totems, a member of the Northern Knights of Kabuki, though I wasn't aware that any had died). In any case, I discover that the Loggerheads have moved back in whilst I napped, so I tiptoe away, idly whapping one as I go. I run through town, sell off a bunch o' junk, and hop the train for Dillon. I pretty much do the same there- sell off more stuff, look around a bit, and settle in for the night at the Far Inn there. There's one monster other there- Nez Percey, one of them omnipresent Fire Riders. Nice equipment. He's tougher, badder, and healthier. Of course, he's also a lot older. I'm more muscular, of course (goes without saying, that does).

Okay, upsy daisy! There's another monster present, one Reepicheep. Hmm, he reminds me a lot of Burrito Bill, who I met (and slew) in days long gone. As he doesn't seem to recall anything about this, I decide not to bring the subject up. However, he is interested in joining me in my project. In fact, he's already started, so I'll number this one as trip 2. I pack up, and head over to the Koma Den. At least 45 snakes present, so in I go. Five dead snakes gets me an Iron Helm and five Zoingo Copper Coins. Let's try it again: at least 36 snakes here now. I kill five more, netting a Damaged Iron Shield and fifteen Zoingo Copper Coins. One more try: at least 36 snakes present still. I kill just two before turning and fleeing. Time to head home. I bop past a Sunken Graveyard and some Cocopalms, before returning to my room in the Inn.

Turn four on our combined effort. But first, I spend some time selling things off and throwing stuff into the air to clear up space. Okay, now, in I go. At least 20 snakes present, I kill five, I garner a Silver Ring, a Black Ball, and two Rattler Darts. Again! I count 25 this time, kill five more, and collect a Damaged Iron Gauntlets, a Silver Bone Necklace, six Oculars, and two Unreadable Scrolls. This is fun! One more time- around 15 present, I kill just one, and flee. Not so much fun anymore. Back to the Inn for me.

Reepicheep doesn't turn back up at the Inn this morning. Hope he's okay. I understand that he's gone in twice since last I did, which makes this turn seven in our combined task. I sell off a small ton of stuff, and head back over to our Koma Den. Four dead snakes later, I'm done! I look around, but someone has taken all the cool treasures. Hmm, I somehow suspect Reepicheep... Wait! There's one snake left, a new one- a Four-Clawed Boa! Two swings of my Trident later, and it's dead! Hey, there's a hidden passage that it came out of. I head on down, and meet a chanting old woman. She introduces herself- this is Yasmin El Boa, Demigoddess of Snakes. Wow! She teaches me of her cause, and tells me how to become her follower. This won't be easy, but it'll give me something to work on while I decide if I should follow her or not. In any case, I leave, and as I leave, I notice that she has mystically refilled her Koma Den with snakes (66 left when I go back in). I think I'm done with this Koma Den for a bit. I head back to the Inn, which much to think about.

Back out into the wilds, with a new goal in mind. First, I sell off some stuff, and equip the Wicked Scimitar that Reepicheep traded to me (I passed him my Silver Temple Sword). Now that's a sharp blade (DC 6)! I also pick up a Large Lockpick, just in case I need one. Out into the wilderness, now! I kill a Smite, and that's it. Where are all the rumored new creatures? I do find three Cocopalms, though. Oh, well. With my spyglass, I spy both a King Ock Mushroom Grove and a Large Quarry as I travel. I'll return to the latter in a turn or three...

Cruisin'... I use some of my spare orders to set up some Weekly Rids, and Automatic Sells, so I can make some cash on my return to the Far Town. A quest for knowledge turns up something sensible, as I figure out how to automatically collect bounty at Far Inns. Wow, I'm smart! A lot of stuff out here- I pass a Fort Ruin, two Great Caves, an Ancient Graveyard, and end my turn at a Mine Shaft. Not many creatures, though- I meet (and kill) just one lone Dune Ooze. In any case, that Mine Shaft looks cool. I light my lamp (you must remember, I'm an atheist, and don't have those handy Torchlight spells the rest of you probably have), and in I go. Things to kill! A Rabid Albino Rat dies in one quick blow (70 damage to him, 5 to me), as does a Multipede (32 to it, 9 to me), a Rock Mole (58 to him, 6 to me), and a Carrion Crawler (48 to it, 7 to me). There's treasure in here too- a Gold Nugget. My explorations end at a large pile of rock, and it's rather apparent to me that I need to go find the Mining Pick I've heard tell of to progress any further.

It occurs to me that in all my time on this island, I've never been inside a Great Cave. I think I'll have to go do this thing. But first, let's pop in at the Graveyard. Three trips into an Ancient Graveyard gets me a Slink Bauble, seven Oculars, and a Damaged Silver Helm. Nothing of real use, but I did kill seven creatures, which is my definition of fun. Anyway, the Cave! In I sneak, and things start dying. A Goo Snake. A Cave-Pecker. A Great Trap Snake. A Xanxu Cave Spider. A Xanxu Wart Toad. A Xanxu Cave Snake. Hey, that's a complete set, isn't it? I feel I should get a special Xanxu Door Prize for finishing the trifecta in one cave! And here it is- nosing around the island out in the center, I find one lonely piece of treasure. A Gold Ring. Smile. I pocket it, and slip away under the noses of the four Shifting Wraiths that are heading my way. A good days work. Exploration, mayhem, treasure. Life is good.

Another day dawns brightly. Moving along, I meet and off a Tusker. I guess I won't need food for a while. Ah, here's that Large Quarry I passed. I heave a lot of stuff into the air, and head on in. Hey, it's fun with Mutates! An Eight-Jawed Yelound goes down quick, as does a Cheezer. Of course, there's always a problem, and I come to a Pond in the middle that's way too big for me to cross. Sigh. Dejected, I turn and slip out. Sitting down by the entrance, I quest for knowledge, and come up with something new- Cheezer Pizza! No, not really, actually, I realize how to cross the Pond. Time to go look for the necessary parts...

Okay, back to my grand Quest. Maybe I'll have better luck today.I wander through the city, and automatically sell off some junk. Hoorah, I like this ability! I also note, by spyglass, a brand spanking new Jossman Imperial Bank. I move past today, but I'll have to stick my nose in in about two turns or so. Heading north, I run into a new creature- a Plated Worm. It dies quick (58 points of damage, doing only 8 to me), and I leave the Worm Plates laying. Then, I meet the Demon Condor I set out to meet. However, given that I'm carrying about everything in the world that I can, I don't grab any feathers off the Condor. Sigh. I'll try this again in the morning.

Well, this day is a compete blank. Instead of a turn, I get a turn summary. Well, I didn't get my Demon Condor Feathers, and I have no idea why. I killed two creatures, which must have been, judging from my inventory, a Mangy Beast and a Plated Worm. No more can I tell. Something definately was amiss at AbM.

Not knowing what else to do, I hop a train. North, to meet up with Reepicheep, who seems to have a grand plan that he wants help with. On the way, I pop in at the Tower Ruin that Reep was having trouble with, and bull my way through with ease. I get a Bastard Sword for my troubles, my second DC 6 Edged Weapon. Nice, but one was enough. I hand over some nice equipment to Reepi (a Gold Ring, some Dragon Ichor, and a Small Lockpick), and set up camp for the night. What do I do with two swords, now?

Solution: Trade 'em both away. I head back to town, stopping to kill a Thawk and a White Tiger. I also capture a Plodder on the way, vowing to retry this Demon Condor thing from the back of a mount. So, I move back to town and transfer both swords to Tantor, a elder Fire Rider, and wait in happy expectation of a return gift that should help me with my project (one of Tantor's brother monsters, meanwhile, is doing a couple trades with Reepicheep and Skizlum to complete the deal). Oh, yes, I appraise my Gold Nugget- 8 Oculars. Whee. Another Automatic Sell item there. My Mangy Beast Skull weighs in at 34 Oculars, but I'm still trying to figure out if I can do something with that or not...

I receive the item I traded for- a Military Pick. It's AC 6 Pole, but I'm right on the cusp of moving from skill 5 to skill 6 anyway, and its the digging tool I wanted. Anyway, on more immediate matters, curiousity takes over good sense, and I trek off south-east. A few squares along, I run into what I was looking for- a Humming Scorpion. It dies during missile combat (a whole 26 pts of damage) which is just as well, as I suddenly realize my riskiness was dropped to minimal last turn. Anyway, now I have a Scorpion Tail! Of course, given that I (the guy behind OPUB) designed the creature and the item, it now occurs to me that, in the spirit of exploration and fair play, I can't really go try anything with it until I hear that someone else has successfully found a use for it. Sigh. Anyway, the rest of my turn goes awry, and I manage to miss the Temple Ruins I also aimed for. A lost cause all around. Next turn, I head back south, and get back to what I started on several turns ago.

Okay, back to the business at hand- the Yasmin quest.