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Achlys
Achlys ambience
Achlys (Sidebar)
Located in Eleutheria
Ports Achlys
Shops Midnight Lumberyard

Achlys is a station in the outer circle of Eleutheria, located in the same segment as the broken Transit Relay.

Log Entries[ | ]

Below, the marsh bubbles. Fleshy-leafed plants emit a pungent stench.
Coppery lights away in the fog: the lamps of Achlys, a shanty-market for spices and vices.
You cross the Achlean marshes. Don't trust the mists. They reveal things that are not there, and conceal things that are.

Fatalistic Signalman: "After the Isambard Line, we were to start bringing civilisation here too."
Incognito Princess: "Are we at Achlys? We must try some of the Midnight Tea."
The Rat Brigade whispers amongst itself. Words like 'Valkyrie' and 'Nightingale'.
The Incautious Driver twitches. "Can anyone else feel that? Just me? Oh."
Your Aunt irritably crosses 'Achyls' from the captain's log and writes in 'Achlys'.
"Can we stop by, Captain?" asks the Fortunate Navigator. "I'd love a good cup of tea."

Achlys[ | ]

An illicit haven of tea and spices, glowing gently in the darkness of a poisonous marsh. Sweet scents drift down from the market above, soon lost in the noxious flumes.


Arrival in Achlys
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 290003


Arrival in Achlys[ | ]

You disembark onto a soggy wooden platform barely supported by the marsh-mud below. It leads past several squalid huts and the hulls of scavenged engines to the warmth of a marketplace on wooden stilts. Nearby, what remains of an ancient monastery just holds on against the ravages of time and the swampy ground below.

Trigger conditions

Achlys icon Odd Jobs in Achlys Town ≤ 0,


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Enter the port
Something is going on down the other side of the monastery. Fire flickers. Treachery carries on the wind.
Sabotage
A woman smoking a cigarette watches from the shadows, unaware of your presence, as a group of grizzled skyfarers attempts to force the monastery's doors. Unlike the crumbling stone, these are made of solid, new metal, and more than up to the task of repelling the attack. However, with every blow against them, the monastery itself seems to shudder. Dust rains from high up. Stones creak. It will not take much before something gives.
Intervene
This may not be your problem, but you can make it your fight.
You summon a few of your crew with a wave back to the locomotive. Before you can join the attack, however-

"HOJOTOHO! HOJOTOHO!"

The war-cry echoes through the marsh. Urchins – Ringbreakers from Old London, from the look of them – surge at the attackers, armed with broomsticks with sharp objects taped on the end, colander helmets, and cardboard armour. "In the name of the Valkyrie!" they shout, launching their attack. "For Sigrid!"

They swiftly rout the attackers. The woman with the cigarette is long gone, leaving behind nothing but the smell of expensive ash.
Stay back
This is simply not your problem.
"HOJOTOHO! HOJOTOHO!"

The war-cry echoes through the marsh. Urchins – Ringbreakers from Old London, from the look of them – surge at the attackers, armed with broomsticks with sharp objects taped on the end, colander helmets, and cardboard armour. "In the name of the Valkyrie!" they shout, launching their attack. "For Sigrid!"

They swiftly rout the attackers. The woman with the cigarette is long gone, leaving behind nothing but the smell of expensive ash.
    • Achlys icon The War of Midnight = 60 [The War of Midnight continues...]

    • Iron icon Clear = 1 [The devils of Carillon claim to be experts in the assessment and improvement of the soul. They would describe yours as disappointingly clear; almost transparent.]

Patrolling with the Ringbreakers
Pairofeyes
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 303722


Patrolling with the Ringbreakers[ | ]

A patrol is just leaving, and you are welcome to join it. Once in the poisoned mists of the swamp, they lower their weapons and begin to play. You quickly find yourself in the middle of a game of Hide and Seek filled with unusually advanced tactics.

Trigger conditions

Calendar icon DateClock icon An Opportunity in Achlys,
Clock icon An Opportunity in Achlys ≥ 1


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Join the game with the Ringbreakers
Not a game, their leader insists. Strategic training!
They seek them there...
Your size puts you at a disadvantage against the Ringbreakers, most of whom are small enough to crawl through hollow tree-stumps and hide in the tall marsh grass. It doesn't help that they are far more used to the poison in the air. Nevertheless, they agree that for a grown-up, you weren't entirely rubbish. This is high praise indeed.
Hunt for tea-poachers in the swamp
A few Ringbreakers are willing to join you in actually doing their duty.
    • Iron icon Iron challenge (92 for 100%)

Failed event
An unsuccessful hunt
Whether there are no poachers around at the moment, or they are simply better at hiding than you are at finding.
Successful event
A successful hunt!
With the Ringbreakers at your back, you effortlessly track and surprise a group of marsh-poachers. The Ringbreakers tie their hands behind their backs with vines and give you first pick of their illegal goods.
Forage in the swamps
The Ringbreakers are willing to help you look for Verdant seeds.
Failed event
A shortage of seeds
There is no lack of plantlike out here in the swamps, but you have no luck finding seeds worth collecting. The Ringbreakers shrug and get back to their games.
Successful event
A sack of seeds
The flora of the Reach has flourished in these poisonous swamps after being brought here by the early settlers. Some of them might not even grow into terrifying, poisonous plantlife that will grow throughout your engine and suffocate the life from your crew. You just have to hope that you chose the right ones.





The Floating Market
Sovereigns
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 285098


The Floating Market[ | ]

Rotting wooden huts on stilts stretch up out of the marshland, connected by rickety walkways and gently swaying rope bridges. Red paper lanterns line the paths, offering just enough flickering light to avoid unfortunate tumbles into the dark mud below. Ringbreaker urchins in colander helmets and tea-tray armour stand to slack attention, longing for a little trouble.


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Visit the Court of Tea and Spices
The bulk of the market is devoted to brews and incense, and the almost priceless Midnight's Favour. Every breeze carries a different scent.
Enter the House of Silks
A sleepy warmth oozes through the curtains. Admission is free. What awaits inside is negotiable.
Leave the Pugilistic Forged Companion here
You will be free of them, at last.
Impressment
The Pugilistic Forged Companion lumbers away amid the huts, drawing uncertain glances from the locals. Before you lose sight of their featureless body, the Companion is accosted by a gaggle of urchins. They barely reach the Companion's waist, and yet have no trouble beckoning their quarry over a creaking rope bridge and into the darkness beyond.
Accompany the Felined Eccentric to the spice- and smoke-stalls
She intends to make a catnip of irresistible potency, to rid herself of Paimon. You've heard that the floating markets of Achlys sell substances that could make a fool of kings and bishops.
    • Bronzewoodplating icon Paimon = 10 [Convince Paimon to leave by taking him to Carillon, or drive him off by making a catnip at Achlys]

The concoction
Together, you scour the markets. A pinch of this, to remove inhibition. A grind of that, for its fascinating scent. A sprig of something lilac to remind the imbiber of hot-blooded youth, and a handful of these moon-coloured petals to sharpen the senses.

The Eccentric mixes it all together, and wraps it in a ball of muslin.

Game note: Feed Paimon the catnip on board your locomotive by talking to the Eccentric.


Compile a Port Report
This is a small place. It won't take long.
In search of Midnight's Favour
Everything here seems to revolve around tea and spice, and a special blend made in the monastery that nobody you speak to appears to have tasted. "We are not worthy of Midnight's Favour," they all tell you through unsmiling faces, before offering you a special deal on some other blend or incense that they just happen to have.
Visit the Pugilistic Forged Companion
How are they faring?
Enlisted
A patrol of urchins in colander helmets marches along the rope bridges. In their midst, the Pugilistic Forged Companion keeps step, their own helmeted head several feet above their cohorts'. You approach, but the commander of the small platoon raises a spear in warning. The Pugilistic Forged Companion has a job to do, and they are not to be distracted.

Advanced query needs investigation


Visit the Vigilant Nightingale
An old, mostly picked apart locomotive acts as the Ringbreaker Urchins' kip and base of operations. Two of them guard it sleepily.
"HOLD!"
One of the Urchins jabs at you with her weapon, a broomstick with a knife on the end. "Friend or foe?"
Friend.
Delivered with an encouraging smile.
The urchins salute. "Good, good! Enter, friend!"
Foe
Delivered with a glare.
"Oh." The Urchins look nonplussed. "Well. Don't... don't be tryin' anything. Or... Sigrid'll stick you."
Just push past
They can't be more than nine years old.
You force your way past the Urchins. Despite their protests, they don't try to stop you.
Visit the Vigilant Nightingale
An old, mostly picked apart locomotive acts as the Ringbreaker Urchins' kip and base of operations. Two of them guard it sleepily.
"STOP!"
Crossed spears block your path. "Sigrid warned about you," warns one of the urchin guards, doing his best to sound gravelly despite his voice being a good few years from breaking. "Right," adds the girl beside him. "Said you fought for the Murgatroyds. Said you're no good."

"Yeah," adds the boy. "And you smell."

They glare at you. There is no getting past.
Examine a prominent statue
It sits in the middle of the dock, untouched by chalk scribbles or damage. A couple of tattooed spice merchants lean against it, quietly eating their lunch.
A statue
The Mysterious Founder, it can be assumed. If not, someone equally important to the market port. They look somewhat more imp than man, with a flag on their lapel that matches the crest on the nearby wreck of the Vigilant Nightingale. Peering closely, there is a plaque between the figure's feet. Someone has scratched out all the details. Perhaps the subject themself, preferring to maintain a sense of mystery... or plausible deniability.
Walk down to the monastery
The path is narrow and poorly lit. Not many venture this way.
Walk down to the ruined monastery
The bitter smell of burned tea still lingers.
Head into the marshes
A pair of urchins guard the path out of the market.
Into the Marsh
"Wouldn't," warns the older of the two. "Nothin' out there but plants wantin' to eat your face off an' water what drives you potty." But they show no interest in stopping you. The marsh beckons.

Advanced query needs investigation


Head into the marshes
A pair of urchins guard the exit to the market. They exchange a worried glance as you approach.
Blocked
"Sorry. Can't let you out now. Sigrid's orders. You got-" The urchin attempts diplomacy. "You got mist in the bone-box. All the spores and stuff out there. It wears off. Come back when you're not dribbling so much."
Advanced query needs investigation


The Court of Tea and Spices
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 289545


The Court of Tea and Spices[ | ]

Clouds of rich scents hang in the air. Though the market is small, it is bustling with both London and native Eleutherian traders. Each cramped stall and barrow is piled high with the region's finest tea leaves, opiates, salts and spices.


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Search for Clay Men for the Clay Conductor
Amberley Murgatroyd has been thrown out of Achlys, but perhaps some of her staff stayed on. A few coins should get the market sellers talking.
Echoing across the marsh
Your coin buys a number of loose tongues. The Clay Men it transpires have been sheltering in the ruins of the Taste of Albion. Everyone has been too awkward to attempt a reconciliation, but your coin convinces the Clay Men to at least come out into the market.

The Clay Conductor requests that they sing for him.The other Clay Men look reluctant, embarrassed even, but one with shale skin steps forward. "It has been too long. But we should still sing."

Following his lead, the Clay Men launch into a mournful, hollow aria that resonates within your rib cage. The crowd of market sellers shiver as the last notes die away.

The Clay Conductor is quiet for a long minute. At last, he gives his verdict. "No." He stomps away, back towards your engine.
Browse the tea barrows
Many of the spice merchants have tattoos on their left cheek, denoting what they sell. The Londoners present have yet to adopt the tradition.
Endless varieties
Although this port is mostly famed for its homegrown Midnight's Favour, it is quickly becoming a trade hub for every flavour and blend of tea you could possibly wish for. Customers don't brew them, but bite into the leaves and lick samples off their fingers.
Speak to a Grumbling Urchin
He slouches more than most of them, chewing on an old twig.
Quest For Chocolate
"Just bored of rations, okay," He spits out the twig. "Ol' Sigrid keeps all the chocolate round here locked up in the Nightingale." He grins. "Maybe you could sneak some of it out of that desk of hers. Could make it worth your while..."
    • Achlys icon Odd Jobs in Achlys Town = 11 [One of the Ringbreaker Urchins wants you to steal some chocolate from the Valkyrie, Sigrid]

Ask about Midnight's Favour
Stories say it is blacker than night, and tastes even deeper.
The rarest of delicacies
Your enquiries draw little but averted eyes and apologies that they 'are not worthy of Midnight's Favour'. The select few who trade in it consider it far too precious to simply sell.
Purchase some tea in bulk
This would be a good place to stock up, especially if you can haggle.
Fighting down the price
You do your best to trade with the merchants, and agree a fairer price. Slightly fairer or much fairer, you can only guess and hope.


Visit Murgatroyd's Taste of Albion
Even out here, you can get a mug of Murgatroyd's finest.
Visit the Midnight Garden
Steps lead up to a wooden temple, landscaped with flowers and gravel. Not just anyone is welcome. Mere money will not grease the wheels.
Visit the Midnight Garden
The Midnight Connoisseurs agree that helping to rid the port of Amberley Murgatroyd is worth entrance to their little salon.
Visit the Midnight Garden
What remains of it now that Midnight's Favour is no more, at least.
An abandoned memory
The stairs lead up to what used to be a quiet wooden pagoda where the Midnight Connoisseurs held their tea ceremonies. Now, nothing remains but a few strewn mats, broken cups, and the sight of the Halved glaring down from on high. You take a look around for anything of use and, finding nothing but spilled tea, take your leave.
Return to the Market
Away from the sickly smells of tea and the cloying scent of incense.


The House of Silks
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 289549


The House of Silks[ | ]

The curtains part with a sickly sweet breath of incense. Velvet wraps the inside of the hut like a fine chocolate box, with silk curtains delicately hanging down to provide translucent privacy for guests. Behind, the shadows of wealthy traders lie in the embrace of soft, well-plumped cushions, gently sipping from bronze hookah pipes until their eyes and troubles are somewhere else entirely.


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Request an audience with Mr Pipes
The hooded proprietor keeps to itself at the back of the House. A particularly large hookah pipe delivers smoke into the darkness of its cloak. A gramophone beside it quietly plays a Bach concerto.
An apologetic refusal
A serving boy returns, bowing apologetically. Mr Pipes is relaxing and has no interest in either chitter or chatter. If you have business, you may present it to one of the staff. Otherwise, his master encourages you to avail yourself of the facilities.
Present the Seal of Mr Barleycorn to Mr Pipes
This should get the master of the house's attention.
A moment's silence
A serving girl takes the wax seal to her snoozing master and whispers something into its cloak. A moment passes and she returns, with a certain amount of trepidation. "My master trusts that this is what you require. May it do you some good, or at least no harm."
Speak with the Relaxing Lieutenant
He sits stiffly in full dress uniform, awkwardly sipping from a hookah.
Missing In Action
"Blast it. Don't suppose you know how these– ah. Thank you so kindly." He takes his first real puff from the pipes and coughs. "Don't suppose you've seen a Captain of mine, have you? About this high, so wide. Last seen heading into those damned marshes on some wild goose chase? Well, if you do, you should know there's a bit of a reward on offer. Silly old bluffer gets lost just walking up and down our train."
Sit down with a hookah pipe
The cushions are soft. The honeyed incense is sweet.
Smoke and relaxation
You settle down next to a fellow captain, a tea trader from the Blue Kingdom still smoking through her death mask, and a figure who prefers to keep their identity private. There is little conversation. The incense is strong and each breath from the hookah only serves to wrap the world in fresh warm layers of cotton wool and half-remembered dreams.

Advanced query needs investigation


Ask about Midnight's Favour
A place like this should have the speciality of the port.
With deepest apologies
The serving girl shakes her head. "We are not worthy of Midnight's Favour. Perhaps—" In the distance, her cloaked master raises an arm, or at least a sleeve, just a little. A summons. "Excuse me. Please."
Return to the Floating Market
The sweet air of this place is sickly and intoxicating.



The Vigilant Nightingale
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 289536

The Vigilant Nightingale[ | ]

This broken down engine has been comprehensively gutted to serve as the Ringbreakers' home and base. Filthy hammocks stretch between metal bars, most full of snoring urchins. Others sit around decorating tea-tray armour with bright paints, or sparring playfully with wooden sticks.


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Visit the Captain's cabin
The door leads to one of the few rooms that hasn't been gutted. A series of names have been scratched into it and then scratched out. The only one still readable says SIGRID.
Knock Knock
"Enter!" barks a high-pitched voice – Sigrid Spitesdottir, Valkyrie of the Ringbreakers and the closest thing this port has to law.
Rare event (1%)
Knock Knock
"Just a sec!" A good thirty seconds pass. "Who's there?"
Train with the Urchins
Their equipment may smack of the schoolyard, but they take their fighting seriously.
    • Iron icon Iron challenge (167 for 100%)

Failed event
A sweeping defeat
The Ringbreakers come at you with much speed and little mercy. Though they only wield regular broomsticks – no sharp objects on these ones, for training purposes – they still hurt. Several minutes of being smacked around the legs later, you are forced to yield.
Successful event
A triumphant victory
You wield your broom proudly, fending off attacks with ease and returning them as stern but educational bops to the Ringbreakers' heads. By the end, they reluctantly agree that for a grown-up, you're not entirely rubbish. (Maybe a bit lucky.) A certain silence falls. They seem to be expecting something...
Bellow "HOJOHOTO!"
A stirring battle-cry.
The urchins snigger to themselves. That probably wasn't what they had in mind.
Bellow "HOJOTOHO!"
A triumphant battle-cry.
"HOJOTOHO!" they chorus in response. You sense you have earned no small amount of respect here.
Bellow "HOTOHOJO!"
A deafening battle-cry.
The urchins snigger to themselves. That probably wasn't what they had in mind.
Visit the 'brig'
A series of iron bars have been welded into the stern, ready to hold anyone who might do the port harm.
Prisoners of Sigrid
A mix of angry, doleful and drunk eyes stare back at you from the darkness. All the prisoners have been stripped to their underthings. The Ringbreakers do their best to keep them happy by regularly throwing them boiled sweets. It doesn't appear to be working.
Return to the Market
The Ringbreaker guards half-heartedly salute as you depart.



The Ruined Monastery
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 289547


The Ruined Monastery[ | ]

"Petrified veins run down the side of this ancient structure. Two giant featureless doors block the crumbling entrance, far too large for any human to open. The metal is unfamiliar, but resilient. Unfortunately the same cannot be said of the monastery itself. Midnight Monastery Status(MonasteryStatus)"


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Speak with an Impatient Penitent
He beats his fists against the doors, getting nothing but bloody knuckles for his trouble.
A lost love
"You." He blinks tears from his eyes. "You're a Captain, right? You've got the look about you. Maybe you can help. My husband, he was never the same after he came back from the zee with that tattoo. The eye. That blasted eye, it drew him here, I'm sure of it."
Demand entrance
They say the Monastery opens only for those undergoing great torment. Rumours are less clear on exactly how 'they' know this.
Silence
The doors do not open. However, from above, a vine languorously extends downwards to where you wait. Its leaves peel away, forming a cup filled with slightly brown, bitter tasting cold water. One sip and the world begins to spin. Darken. Fall.
Return to the Market
There is nothing to be done here at the moment.


The Burned Monastery
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 290475


The Burned Monastery[ | ]

One of the once-sturdy doors lies on the ground, the other hangs on by its last nail. Inside is little but ash, the mulch of destroyed tea plants, and the occasional fallen mask left by fleeing monks. A few rocks tumble from somewhere high up, landing with a sad squelch in the marsh.


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Return to the Floating Market
There is nothing more to be done here.



Into The Marsh
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 290620


Into The Marsh[ | ]

"Into The Marsh – Descriptions(Text)"

Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Go mad
Dreams melt behind your eyes. Your legs stretch with every new step. The cursed sun shines down, and it appears to indeed be wearing a fine new hat...
Blackout
You collapse onto a comfortable patch of nettles and drift into a fitful sleep. When you awake, it's with a rope around your feet, being dragged through the waterlogged mud. Your urchin rescuers shoot you a grin, but don't bother to stop. After finally getting back to the market, head pounding from the spores of the marsh and the repeated hits of rocks underneath, you realise that the price of their largesse is a notably lighter coin purse.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Rare event (50%)
Insanity strikes
When you wake up, it's back on the train with your crew worriedly looking you over. They have questions. Quite important ones. Did you really try selling them to a forest nymph, as you shouted in your sleep? Are the rabbits here? Why were you found running naked through the market, covered in rabbit's blood and screaming excerpts from Wagnerian opera? Most importantly of all, what happened to the locomotive's mascot, and why won't it come out from the signaller's footlocker?
An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
The return of Amberley Murgatroyd
She dances right past you in her muddy underclothes, mouth ringed with blood from the dead rabbit hanging from her hand and ignoring any attempt to get her attention. Her frayed, matted hair glistens with spores; what little of it there is left.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
The Lost Captain
"I say, I do rather think I've gotten a little off-course. I don't suppose you could point me in the direction of Port Avon?" You do your best to explain to the poor fellow. At the mention of the year, his ruddy face goes quite pale.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
Poachers in the night
At least, that is what their pelts and knives suggest. What they were out here poaching is anyone's guess. They lie dead around their campfire, their wounds apparently self-inflicted. You pick up a few coins that would otherwise have gone to waste before moving on.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.

Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Rare event (50%)
An incense harvester group
They shuffle past you, ignoring your attempts to get their attention. Perhaps just a hallucination. Perhaps they think you're the hallucination.
An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
A circle of standing stones
They hum slightly when tapped, and bear a symbol of an open eye painted in white and red, but otherwise seem to serve no purpose. Eyes and flickering shadows in the mist suggest it is time to move on, and quickly.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Rare event (50%)
A gnarled statue
It is a fusion of man and an animal you hope never to see in the flesh, its serrated talons clutching a woodwind instrument that catches the wind and makes low-pitched sounds that resonate somewhere down in your guts. The Gazette might be interested in hearing about it. Their readers have a never-ending thirst for new nightmares.
An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
Just a trick of the light
A fallen log. Nothing of consequence.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Rare event (50%)
Bat territory!
Flapping creatures with leather wings and jellied flesh surge down from on high, beating at your face with leather wings. You run for your life, only getting more lost in the marsh.
An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
A watery figure stretches out of the water
A siren without a rock. A mournful figure of chipped glass, cracked and shining in the light. She gazes at you with a quiet helplessness, beckoning you closer.
Approach the mysterious lady
Her lips move. Whispering something. You could hear it, if you were just a little bit closer.
You step into the water, ice-cold around your waist. Your hand cradles her glass touch; sharp and bloody in your palm. Illicit conversation. A more intimate touch. The darkness as the lake closes over your head and fire explodes in your lungs. You awaken elsewhere, glass chips still embedded into your palm.
Turn away from the mysterious lady
Even here, you know better than that.
She nods sadly, but with understanding, sliding back into the water. You continue your journey.
Protest this tiresome cliche
Why are seductive monsters always female, anyway?
The naked lady sits patiently as you complain about the gender politics of mythology, the unfortunate interplay of sexuality and vice, and the equal insult such things are to the males of the species treated as unthinking sexual omnivores and to the females reduced to mere passive decoration for the sake of such a tawdry social gaze. Why, for instance, is the succubus endlessly more represented than the incubus in all the literature? What does it say of the human condition that beauty has been linked to damnation by temptation from the moment of Eve's sin, and from where did the double-standards— It is a fine speech, even if in retrospect you remember that its only audience was actually a small frog interested in the flies buzzing around your muddy clothes. "Ribbet," it agrees, hopping off into the marsh to carefully ponder things.
An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
The Queen of Hours
Someone splashes towards you through the marsh. Bent with hurry, wearing broad skirts of black and gold. The mist lifts. It can't be! It is the Empress herself – Her Renewed Majesty, forging through the mud with her skirts raised around her royal ankles. She looks at you, and her eyes are bright as suns. "You. Have you seen a man pass—" Her attention is caught by something in the mist. "Albert? Dear Albert, don't wonder off!" She hurries in pursuit of someone you cannot see, and the mist closes hungrily between you. She is gone. Was she ever here?
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
Fairy lights in the water
They dance through the marsh, always just a little too far to catch, but close enough that the next grab seems certain. After a while, they fade away.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


An encounter!
Something looms out of the marsh mist...
An ancient obelisk
The writing is weathered Correspondence, softly flaring violet in the mist. Its meaning is likely lost to time. Certainly it is beyond your current understanding.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Achlys' Garden
You emerge from the mud into a leafy green clearing. Sweet smells compete for your attention; jasmine, alyssum, rose.
Incense and honey
The Garden is a piece of Eden in the grey wastes; green, flourishing, with the sweetness of pollen in the air. A few carnivorous plants take a playful nip as you pass, but none have the reach to snag more than a sleeve. A spring under a looming tree offers ice-cold and clear water. It washes the fog from your mind as it quenches your thirst. After a few minutes watching the bees buzz between the gem-bright flowers, you begin gathering the garden's bounty. Your arms full of picked flowers, you turn back for the port. They will turn a fine profit from the market's incense vendors.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Continue through the marsh
Onwards and forwards in search of its secrets.
Mud, mist and poison...
The swamp slurps at your boots. The mist makes it impossible to gauge any real direction. You might have been turned around a hundred times and never known it.
Cling to the treelines
They must lead somewhere.
Time passes...
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Close your eyes and choose a direction
It's likely to be as good as any other...
Time passes...
Stick to the water
There may be treasures under its foul surface.
Time passes...
Rare event (50%)
Mud, mist and poison...
The swamp slurps at your boots. The mist makes it impossible to gauge any real direction. You might have been turned around a hundred times and never known it.
Attempt to retrace your steps
You've been out here too long already. Every hour, you get more lost.
Back to Civilisation
You emerge from the marsh, much to the surprise of the Ringbreaker urchins guarding the torchlit entrance. Still, it will be a while before your head is ready for another trip out there.
Rare event (70%)
Lost in the marsh
The water and land seems to shift before your eyes. Was it this way you came? Or this way? That tree looks familiar. But wait...

Triggered Events[ | ]

The War of Midnight Continues
Iron
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 290507


The War of Midnight Continues[ | ]

The distant bellow of "HOJOTOHO!" tells you that there is another battle taking place at the Monastery gates. It would be easy enough to ignore it, but both sides would likely be grateful for assistance.

Trigger conditions

Calendar icon DateCalendar icon Time To Next Monastery Battle,
Achlys icon Amberley Banished ≤ 0,
Achlys icon The Monastery Burned Down ≤ 0,
Achlys icon The War of Midnight ≥ 1 ≤ 99,


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Help Sigrid's Ringbreaker Urchins
She's fighting a losing battle preserving the monastery.
    • Iron icon Iron challenge (Special for 100%)

Failed event

Special is calculated as follows: 50+(Midnight Monastery Status*5) * 1.67

Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.

Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


A mostly successful rout
With your assistance, the Ringbreakers manage to chase off the attackers... but the damage is done. Cracks spear through the monastery's walls, raining dust down from above. Sigrid calls the retreat and her urchin guard returns to the port to lick their wounds. Unfortunately, not all of your crew survived the encounter.
Rare failed event (70%)
An unsuccessful rout
With your assistance, the Ringbreakers manage to chase off the attackers... but the damage is done. Cracks spear through the monastery's walls, raining dust down from above. Sigrid calls the retreat and her urchin guard returns to the port to lick their wounds. Unfortunately, not all of your crew survived the encounter.
Successful event
A successful rout
HOJOTOHO! HOJOTOHO! Your crew descends on the melee, wielding what weapons you have to hand and a few heavier tools from the engineer's private collection. The Ringbreakers take a moment to regroup, before their Valkyrie, Sigrid, leads a fresh charge that leaves the attackers battered, bruised, and not a little humiliated at being defeated by children in home-made armour. Their situation improves little as Sigrid orders them stripped of their weapons and marched through town in their unmentionables to join their fellow reprobates in the Ringbreakers' makeshift brig.
Help the attackers
Who knows what spoils the monastery might be hiding.
    • Iron icon Iron challenge (92 for 100%)

Failed event Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Brick by brick
Your crew balks at shooting at children, but has little problem scaring the Ringbreakers with a few carefully aimed shots above their heads. Sigrid calls for retreat and they scamper away, leaving the attackers to continue their assault against the monastery walls. Later, a Clay Man appears bearing a tobacco stained gift from 'A Friend'.
Rare failed event (70%)
Chased away
The Ringbreakers are more formidable opponents than they look. They easily rout you and the other attackers, driving you into the edge of the marsh to regroup and lick your wounds. Unfortunately, not all your crew make it there to safety.
Successful event
A surging assault
Your crew balks at shooting at children, but has little problem scaring the Ringbreakers with a few carefully aimed shots above their heads. Sigrid calls for retreat and they scamper away, leaving the attackers to continue their assault against the monastery walls. Later, a Clay Man appears bearing a tobacco stained gift from 'A Friend'.
Just walk into town
This is none of your affair.
Discretion
You hurry past the skirmish. From the sound of it, the Urchins are winning this one. The monastery should stand another day.
Advanced alteration value probably needs examination.


Rare event (65%)
Discretion
You hurry past the skirmish and into the main port. From the sound of it, the Urchins are losing this one. The monastery trembles under the assault.


The Last Stand
Iron
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 290484

The Last Stand[ | ]

You step out of the train into a pitched battle. Sigrid the Valkyrie is personally leading the attack against the latest hired crew attempting to break into the monastery. Amberley Murgatroyd smirks confidently, already smoking a victory cigarette as her Clay Men hammer the buckling gates with their mighty fists.

Trigger conditions

Achlys icon The War of Midnight ≥ 100
Achlys icon The Monastery Burned Down ≤ 0,
Calendar icon DateCalendar icon Time To Next Monastery Battle,


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Join Amberley Murgatroyd in battle
The winning side is the right side. You are in no danger here, but a good show may earn you more of the plunder.
    • Iron icon Iron challenge (125 for 100%)

Failed event
Midnight's End
You pick up a fallen broomstick spear and join the fray. Soon enough, you face Sigrid herself. Her eyes narrow. With another scream of "HOJOTOHO!", she charges. Short and physically unimpressive as she is, her skills do her Valkyrie title proud. Her spear spins and knocks the legs out from under you, sending you falling from the walkway to the foul mud below. But the battle is lost. You hear the crash of Clay Men finally break through the huge monastery gates and advance on the monks beyond.

"Forward!" orders Amberley. "Burn it! Burn it all!"

Bitter smoke rises into the air.
Successful event
Midnight's End
You pick up a fallen broomstick spear and join the fray. Soon enough, you face Sigrid herself. Her eyes narrow. With another scream of "HOJOTOHO!", she charges. Short and physically unimpressive as she is, her skills do her Valkyrie title proud. It isn't enough, however. After trading a few blows, you manage to catch her by the legs, knocking her off the walkway and into the mud below. She surfaces, spluttering with anger, just as the Clay Men finally break through the huge monastery gates. They crash down with a wet thump.

"Forward!" orders Amberley. "Burn it! Burn it all!"

Bitter smoke rises into the air.
Stay out of the way
This is their business, not yours.
Midnight's End
The Urchins fight bravely, and with skill. They hurl their broomstick spears and latch onto the attackers' backs, biting and scratching until exhausted. But the war is lost. Amberley's hired goons easily hold them back long enough for her Clay Men to break through the huge monastery gates. They crash down into the swamp with a wet thump.

"Forward!" orders Amberley. "Burn it! Burn it all!"

Bitter smoke rises into the air.


The Final Battle
Iron
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 290482


The Final Battle[ | ]

You step out of the locomotive into a pitched struggle for the monastery. Amberley Murgatroyd has given up on subtlety in favour of an all-out assault on the Monastery's gates. Her Clay Men beat against the doors while a group of hired goons does their best to hold back Sigrid and her Ringbreakers. Cries of "HOJOTOHO!" echo throughout the marsh.

Trigger conditions

Achlys icon The War of Midnight ≤ 0,
Achlys icon Amberley Banished ≤ 0,
Calendar icon DateCalendar icon Time To Next Monastery Battle,
Achlys icon Odd Jobs in Achlys Town ≥ 1


Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Join Sigrid in battle
Sigrid has this under control, but acquitting yourself well could reap valuable rewards.
    • Iron icon Iron challenge (125 for 100%)

Failed event
Into the fray!
Sigrid throws you a spear, which you fail miserably to catch. She shoots you a pointed look as you scrabble in the mud and hurry to join the battle. The hired goons have no problem fighting small children. Unfortunately for them, the opposite is just as true. Soon enough, Sigrid has her spear pressed against Amberley Murgatroyd's throat. "Call 'em off," she snaps. Amberley has no choice. Less than an hour later, she and her goons are marched through the port in their underclothes towards a plank overhanging the marsh proper. Below are untamed carnivorous plants, spores of madness, and waters said to replace thirst with insanity. The Ringbreakers cheer as each in turn is prodded off the end to land face-first in the foul mud below.
Successful event
Into the fray!
Sigrid throws you a spear and you join the Urchins in battle. The hired goons have no problem fighting small children. Unfortunately for them, the opposite is just as true. With your help, the Ringbreakers easily send them flying off the wooden walkway into the foul marsh below. Soon enough, Sigrid has her spear pressed against Amberley Murgatroyd's throat. "Call 'em off," she snaps. Amberley has no choice. Less than an hour later, she and her goons are marched through the port in their underclothes towards a plank overhanging the marsh proper. Below are untamed carnivorous plants, spores of madness, and waters said to replace thirst with insanity. The Ringbreakers cheer as each in turn is prodded off the end to land face-first in the foul mud below.
Stay out of the way
This is their business, not yours.
Urchins vs. Clay
Sigrid charges into battle, spear raised and invincible. The hired goons have no problem fighting small children. Unfortunately for them, the opposite is just as true, and they have advantage in numbers. Soon enough, Sigrid has her spear pressed against Amberley Murgatroyd's throat. "Call 'em off," she snaps. Amberley has no choice. Less than an hour later, she and her goons are marched through the port in their underclothes towards a plank overhanging the marsh proper. Below are untamed carnivorous plants, spores of madness, and waters said to replace thirst with insanity. The Ringbreakers cheer as each in turn is prodded off the end to land face-first in the foul mud below.
    • Achlys icon Amberley Banished = 1

    • Iron icon Clear = 1 [The devils of Carillon claim to be experts in the assessment and improvement of the soul. They would describe yours as disappointingly clear; almost transparent.]

    Triggers event: Achlys ambience The Ruined Monastery



The Achlys Signs
Amiablevagabond
Category Story Event
Type Story
Data ID 314643


The Achlys Signs[ | ]

Skylark Signs: Achlys(signal_description)

Trigger conditions

Ministryliterature icon Skylark Signs: Achlys ≥ 10 ≤ 39,
Location: Achlys
Frequency: Always (100%)

Interactions

Actions Requirements Effects Notes
Search for the sign without meaning
If Quivers was right, one of these signs doesn't have a translation. The Vagabond hands you his codebook.
Signifying nothing
Comparing the signs scratched on the post to the Vagabond's well-worn codebook, you find one that lacks a translation.

Circle within spiral within teardrop. A sign more intricate than those that surround it. When you point it out, the Vagabond whistles.

"That's new," he says, pulling a pencil-stub from behind his ear and copying it. "I'll cross-reference it to the other skylark signs and see if I can arrive at a meaning."

He slips the book back into his pocket and lifts the drunk skylark to his feet. "What's your name, friend?" he asks amicably, steering him away from the station.
Sober the skylark up with a good horror story
He stares up at you and attempts a rude gesture. He ends up poking himself in the eye.

Game note: This will improve your Friendship with the Vagabond.

Scared sober
You crouch next to the gin-soaked skylark and launch into a story about the predators that lurk in the darkness above, their scope for cruelty matched only by the vastness of their apathy. In the face of unimaginable, omnivorous scorn, you say, the only thing we can cling to is a code. To abandon the skylark code is to subside. By the time you are finished, he is pale as a bedsheet and apologises for his inebriation. The Vagabond chuckles and claps you on the back.
Persuade him to take pride in being a skylark
The skylarks' code was written for a reason – to protect the reputation of the skylarks as a whole.

Game note: If you succeed, this will improve your Friendship with the Vagabond.

Failed event
A failed plea
If skylarks abandon their code, you tell him, then locomotive captains will become less willing to give them work. Without being able to work for passage, skylarks will be stuck in one place: and who could imagine a more terrible fate? The drunken man looks thoughtful for a moment, but too much thinking makes him thirsty. He takes another long swig from his bottle and mutters something rude about your parentage. Your message didn't quite sink in.
Successful event
The importance of a code
If the skylarks' code is abandoned, you tell the man, then locomotive captains will become less willing to give them work. Without being able to work for passage, skylarks will be stuck in one place: who could imagine a more terrible fate?

The drunken man looks down shame-facedly. "It won't happen again," he mumbles.

The Vagabond chuckles and claps you on the back. "It seems you've actually been listening to my blather!" he says. "First time for everything."
Ignore the drunk skylark
The Vagabond wants to remind the man to respect the Code, but he seems a lost cause.
Down to business
You kneel to examine the carved signs. The gin-soaked man returns to swigging from his bottle.



Shops[ | ]

Midnight Lumberyard

Between the monastery and Murgatroyd, the tea trade here is firmly locked down. Sensing an opportunity, some Khanate merchants have started up an alternative trade.

Item Buy Sell
Fuel square icon Fuel Sovereigns icon 20 Sovereigns Sovereigns icon 10 Sovereigns
Supplies square icon Supplies Sovereigns icon 40 Sovereigns Sovereigns icon 20 Sovereigns
Bronzewood square icon Bronzewood Sovereigns icon 175 Sovereigns
Locations
Region Hub Ports Discoveries / Spectacles
The Reach Newwinchester icon New Winchester Carillon icon Carillon

Hybras icon Hybras
Naturereserve icon Leadbeater & Stainrod's Nature Reserve
Lustrum icon Lustrum
Magdalenes icon Magdalene's
Circus icon Polmear & Plenty's Inconceivable Circus
Portavon icon Port Avon
Portprosper icon Port Prosper
Titania icon Titania
Traitorswood icon Traitor's Wood
Transitrelay icon Transit Relays

Signalbox icon An Abandoned Signal Box

Default icon Faith's Fall
Well green icon Old Tom's Well
Regentsgrave icon Regent's Grave
Rose icon The Flowerfields
Default icon The Regent's Tears
Wreckgeneric icon The Silent Saint
Reach icon The War of Fossils
Wreckgeneric icon Wreck of the Parzifal

Albion London icon London Avidhorizon icon Avid Horizon (The Stair to the Sea)

Perdurance icon Perdurance
Brabazon icon The Brabazon Workworld
Clockworksun icon The Clockwork Sun
Floatingparliament icon The Floating Parliament
Serenemausoleum icon The Most Serene Mausoleum
Royalsociety icon The Royal Society
Transitrelay icon Transit Relays
Worlebury icon Worlebury-juxta-Mare

Default icon Skyhenge

Lantern icon St Anthony's Lighthouse
Avidhorizon icon The Avid Horizon
Well purple icon Well of the Wolf
Wreckgeneric icon Wreck of the Boatman

Eleutheria Pan icon Pan Achlys icon Achlys

Caduceus icon Caduceus
Eaglesempyrean icon Eagle's Empyrean
Langleyhall icon Langley Hall
Piranesi icon Piranesi
Houseofrodsandchains icon The House of Rods and Chains
Transitrelay icon Transit Relays

Default icon The Xanthous Moon

Well yellow icon The Well of Wonders
Wreckgeneric icon Wreck of the Berrenger

The Blue Kingdom Tolltower icon Sky Barnet Deathsdoorstep icon Death's Door (The Shadow of the Sun)

Forgeofsouls icon The Forge of Souls
Whitewell icon The White Well (Wellmouth)
Transitrelay icon Transit Relay

Deathsdoorstep icon Horologion
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