[???] Pick And Mix Play By Post Adventure OOC Thread

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:

Pick and Mix
An Introduction

    Greetings. I'm Stationary Friction and I will be running a play-by-post adventure role-playing game thread. Of those aspects, it will likely be leaning heavily into the role-playing part more-so than the numbers floating about that some with experience in the field may be accustomed to. Luckily, this should make this a fairly simple game to watch and play, aiding me in running the adventure. Allow me to explain the premise more below.

    First, as the Captain of Gaming, I shall stitch together the setting from what will be discussed in the next session. This, combined with the premise of your character, explained in the section following the setting section, will provide you with the starting scenario and context upon which the campaign will be based. After the starting scenario is provided, you will all be free to attempt actions. I will provide you with the results of your action based on your character and the situation. Ideally, I would love to get away with this being a mostly dice-free game, but I may occasionally use dice for an element of chance where there is an in-universe object dependent on chance, as a tool to decide the outcome of a contest between players, or in other appropriate scenarios. Though, if players put forward sufficient interest, I can absolutely change this. In any case, the resulting rule-set will vary some by the outcome of the setting.

    The setting will be the first part of the campaign to be created. Luckily, whether you wish to play or not, the setting has a wonderful twist. You may provide an input to influence the setting of the game. You have up to twelve words. Use them alone, in sentences, or in any other way you wish and I shall glue together the parts of the model of what has yet to be into the claws of the present. I will then provide a write-up providing a summary of the setting in general, notable locations, important groups, and other information that is useful to those trying to create characters. Do remember to follow all forum rules. I also ask that you be sparing in references to existing companies or similar things, as I might have to take liberties to make an appropriate parody of the input. Additionally, I may tone things down a touch if the setting seems to be getting overwhelmingly dark in totality. Otherwise, I'll try to make just about anything work.

    Based on the outcome of the setting, I will offer a template to create characters with. It is highly probably that fields for the character's name or other designation in addition to any pronouns used will be offered, in addition to choices regarding your form, capabilities, and other relevant details. The exact specifications will be tailored to how the theme or genre of the setting seems to be once I have all inputs in, but the above should let you know what you can keep in mind. As a note, I will incorporate concepts for backstory or origin for the lore as best as I can, but for those whom I have no superior solution, I may have to suggest that your character simply slips in through a hole between worlds or use a similar plot device. You may of course, also intentionally ask for that origin. Additionally, while I will try to roll with bits brought up through conversation where I can, some things might not be salvageable, especially when regarding major faction or conflicting previously established facts. If someone wishes to join and the game has already started, I will see what I can do to get them in, likely conferring with that player to place them at a destination or random event that makes reasonable sense.

    In summary, if you wish to do so, regardless of if you wish to play, I would ask that you provide up to twelve words to be utilized for the basis of the setting. As stated above, they can be in sentences, poems, or anything else, as long as all the word count involved sums to twelve or fewer. Please also indicate that the twelve words are meant for the setting input. Additionally, if you have any comments or questions, feel free to reply with that. Additionally, if you are interested in being a player, or perhaps simply plan to watch very intently, I would be delighted to read about what you enjoy in games and stories so that I will have some more insight in how I should put things together.

    I'll note when I'm beginning to finish up the setting parts, but even after that if you post something I may see if I can fit it in before getting the setting primer and character template up. After that, I'll be closing off setting inputs as I take character inputs.

[skinstealer]

[TASTY_TREAT]:

i'd love to play!

hmm...for the twelve words...

"magical little creatures, modern spells, all wrapped up in a fancy bow"

how's that?

[King-Clod]

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]: I'd definitely be interested in playing, these boards have been lacking something really cool like this for a while.

For my 12 word prompt, "One moon of many, circling a dying star. Long sleeping gods wake."

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]: What sort of rp style will it be? Will it be like

*rolls eyes* Of course you'd say that.

or more of

He rolls his eyes. "Of course you'd say that."

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:

Fantastic work. Both of you went for exactly twelve. A clean usage of your entire allotment. For any further that sign up, I will note once more that you may use up to twelve and those twelve can be together, separate, or otherwise in case that was unclear. Of course, one could also play without an input or use fewer. I think using all twelve is quite a nice touch though.

I have taken note that both of you are interested in playing.
 

Example Passage

To answer your question, [ASTRAL_ABBERATION], the style I will use to narrate will be similar to the latter. Players can use any format as long as it is understandable, but I do find the latter a touch more elegant, if you have no preference I'd suggest using that one. For an example of narration and also to give a fun peek at how a portion of the adventure could be, I will provide a brief passage without context which takes place in a hypothetical existence I made up on the spot. It is more detailed than necessary, but I hope it provides a good example of some of how I could be narrating this.


The predominantly neon-cyan plastic figure behind the desk whirs to life as the group enters the building, as a chime plays from above the door. They are a bit large for the desk, as they stand behind it with the spiked tops of their six legs to the side of their torso, which bends upwards sporting two pairs of clawed arms. Both of those arms are reminiscent of the tips of the legs, sporting angular edges and a spiky protrusion at the shoulder and on the elbow. Atop the upper torso, a boxy head rests on a neck, shaped in a manner that resembles a low-polygon simulacrum of a reptilian head. Six sharp burgundy fins protrude off of the back of the head and curve upwards, with one pair coming off of the sides of the top, the shortest pair off the sides of the bottom, and the final and largest pair being off of the sides of the middle of the head. The sides of the head closer to the front are black screens, upon which four pinpoint depictions of an eye mimic scanning the party, as a jagged line mimicking a smile akin to a carved gourd provides a semblance of friendship while a five segment tail off of the lower torso composed of sharp geometric shapes idly begins swaying slowly.

The attendant waves their upper right arm at the group before greeting them.
"Howdy there, welcome to the Pyrthelk Archives. How can I be of service today?"

The rest of the room features a door behind the desk and a doorway to the right  which presumably leads to the rest of the museum with a metal sculpture of a fern potted next to it. The room is coldly lit by a flickering fluorescent ring light. The structure of the room seems quite old given the style of the architecture and the discoloration present, in sharp contrast to the desk, doors, and sculpture which look quite modern and practically sparkle. The desk sports a phone and computer alongside some office supplies like a stapler and some pens. There is of course also the front door, which you just entered through.

So, what now?

End of Example Passage

 

[knux400]

[GENTLE_STAR]:

are we still doing the 12 word prompts? "clean and labyrinthine, the hallways extended for miles. mapping them was impossible."

if not then uhh ignore that i guess. but id like to play

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
Yes. Until I finish the setting primer and character templates and have them posted, the up to twelve word inputs are still open for anyone. (This includes when I have only posted that I have begun work on those. Which, I have not posted yet. So everyone is still especially good to go.) I plan to wait a touch before getting started on the setting primer and character primer to give people some time to see this. Perhaps a couple days or so. Or a bit less if there seems to be a decent chunk of activity to where I find it prudent to get things started.

Anyhow...your interest in playing is noted. Three players so far is a pretty good number. I can of course support more, so if someone else is reading this don't be afraid to hop in.

The current inputs are quite great choices. Plenty of wonder and danger will be abound in various forms. Once again inputs are still open if anyone else is reading this. I just like replying to people to let them know that I have read their message and to answer any questions that arise.

[sarcovyn]

[3D]:
"Less is more"

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
Input noted.

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
Notice: I am working on the setting primer and character template. Further inputs will be accepted until I post again with the primer and template., but they might end up a touch more hacked on than current ones. I think I will be able to add them on decently cleanly though, given how things look at the moment.

[skinstealer]

[TASTY_TREAT]:

looking forward to it!! so excited to see what comes of this

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
Alright, I have a final enough draft. Had to work through more than a few reworks of things to get things together. Twelve-or-less word inputs closed. Feel free to ask questions if you have them or make a character with the template. I think if I spend any longer on this I will be going in circles so posting this now. Hopefully it makes decent sense.
---
Setting Primer:

Ascent and Beacons, The World As You Likely Know It
The world, Ascent, is covered in verdant expanses of flora and fauna of great variety above and below ground. Some possess features familiar to us, while others work in ways that would be impossible. Life comes in all shapes, but is generally on a small scale. In all parts of Ascent, gravity is fairly low, as the world is roughly akin to a small moon in mass. This world is not the only one, but it is the only known one to possess life and is currently one of the few places Beacons can spawn.

Beacons are a unique species in that they possess sapience. Unlike the other life present they do not arrive from predecessors and in a manner vaguely similar to TCPs, show up around Ascent. Additionally, they generally possess some innate knowledge of what they are and some of their capabilities, how to communicate with others, and what constitutes danger. They often are a few inches tall and often possess similar anatomy to most TCPs. On a different note, there is no known rhyme or reason behind how beacons come into being or what they are like. There are no consistent patterns or natural abilities other than what has been mentioned above. Additionally, it is possible for a Beacon to break some or all of the above patterns. Technically, there is no way to tell a Beacon apart from some other sort of creature that is a person. A Beacon could be just about any form or nature you can think of. They could spew fire, have seven pairs of wings, or be capable of something else entirely. Generally, Beacons tend to be able to recover from injury or illness fairly quickly and are able to replace lost parts with magical replacements without much trouble.

Beacons and other life present in the world are capable of utilizing the world's form of magic. There are three important concepts to know about magic. They are heading, source, and method. Heading is composed of a being's intentions and knowledge of the locations involved in magic. Source is composed of where the energy or material for the magic comes from. Method is composed of how the being is performing the magic, the length of time it takes, the tools involved, and other such things.

How exactly magic works and what methods are effective at producing results vary from person to person. Generally, manipulation of what is already present is a much easier feat than trying to change the nature of things, which is in turn often easier than trying to make something out of nothing. Despite the variance, Beacons' innate knowledge of their capabilities helps them to some extent have an innate compass for what could work for them.

Beacons aren't the most common of creature, given they only come into being when spawning, which is a decently rare event. Despite this, they have access to a fair amount of amenities comparable to the modern day. Communications devices, cameras, and other devices often function mostly on magic, though efforts in more mundane technologies are being pursued as well. The heavy use of magic for tools and devices causes a great deal of variety in what a given device can look like and how they can function. Devices require a decent amount of time and skill to put together and are often made to last for great lengths of time while being decently easy to upkeep. If one wished to do so, it would be possible to transfer to a body entirely made of magical devices, though it would require a great deal of skill to pull off, there are a couple of living examples of such endeavors.


That Which Came Before
Ascent and the other worlds around the sun were here long before Beacons. There are industrial ruins left behind on Ascent of a similarly small people that came before. It is unknown where they went or what happened to them, but they aren't here anymore. From what adventurers and explorers have found, they seemed to have had their own sort of magic with great rigor and structure, though it does not appear to exist in the world at large. Some of their creations still possess some sort of power, but it is questionable whether it is that old power or something else. Their creations are a common threat in exploration, as they had many enemies, often each other. There is a great deal  of data that could be further dug up, but every expedition into the past comes with danger. Things brought back can greatly aid in mundane technological process and provide inspiration or useful materials for magical devices, but each delve also risks waking up some weapon long on standby, waiting for a final assault that never landed. Ruins are present buried in Ascent in addition to on other worlds.

It is sometimes theorized that whatever happened to those before Beacons, they likely played a part in the circumstances that allowed for Beacons to exist.

It is also rumored that perhaps they have something to do with the wobble of the sun.

There are countless rumors that remain unproven.

The Connection
Travel to the other worlds is not generally possible for Beacons without special circumstances. You can't exactly walk through space. Additionally, many ruins cannot be found on foot. Luckily, there is something that can facilitate fast transportation between destinations, even those more mundane. It is also full of risk and is known as The Connection. Entrances can be found interposed just about anywhere whether it be in nature, on another world, in a ruin, and beyond. Unfortunately, they can appear or disappear at random, leaving the area they left roughly how they found it beforehand. If one manages to breach an entrance, they set foot in a massive maze of halls that are clean, white, and off-putting. There is no known end to its size and the paths between entrances always seem to change. The one thing that luckily seems to hold true is that you can return to where you entered, provided you have the intent of leaving. If you have visited another entrance before you can generally eventually make your way there after some time too. Of course, you can also try your luck with random entrances you find along the way.

Due to its connection to countless ruins, some pieces of ancient technology can be found on occasion wandering The Connection. However, there are odder things still. Even more rarely,  there are tales of creatures native to The Connection. They often possess great knowledge of the location and those outside it and can range from helpful to troublesome.

Notes on Origins: You can make just about anything in any of the examples given, but here are some suggestions:
>Beacon: This is the ‘normal’ choice. You can make most things work here.
>Ancient Technology: Generally there's a reason you were made. Perhaps by some other piece of old technology, perhaps as an old experiment left to sleep amidst ruins when their creators disappeared, or perhaps for some task prior. Common abilities include double-edged swords where the benefit of it comes at great cost.
>The Connection: Generally a character from The Connection should be quite odd in nature and work in ways that are a bit weird. They likely have less direct influence over the world than others, but are adept at influencing the abilities and magic of others.
>Something Else: I have no suggestions here. Good luck.
 
Character Template:
 
Name: What your character is called?
Origin: Are they a Beacon, a piece of ancient technology, something from The Connection, or another thing entirely?
Appearance: What do they look like?
Personality: What are they like?
Goals: What do they want to accomplish?
Skills: What can they do? What are they good at? What helps them toward their goals?
Flaws: What are they bad at? What holds them back?
Other: Anything else to note? Notable history,  items they  have at hand, fun facts etc.
 
Examples:
 
Name: Taiga
Origin: Beacon
Appearance: They're a biped with two arms, look vaguely insectoid, and possess a pair of wings.
Personality: They're fairly reserved and keep themself busy with work. They're accommodating to those they come across and are fiercely loyal to the rest of their exploration team.
Goals: They wish to log the devices present in ruins to bring advances to Beaconkind.
Skills: They're meticulous, good at putting things together, and keep excellent records. They're fairly skilled at creating and working with magical devices.
Flaws: They are rather slow to act both due to poor reaction time and a desire to think things through. They are greatly fearful of danger and cannot hold their own in a fight.
Other: They spawned by a mountain settlement and apprenticed under a toolsmith for a good few years, before setting their sights on making equipment to communicate and store data. They carry their records, repair equipment, and some basic exploration equipment.
 
Name: The (self-appointed) Herald of Truth 
Origin: The Connection
Appearance: They appear like an odd ghostly figure composed of an odd array of glowing polygons.
Personality: They are rather aloof and follow various parties around, giving unsolicited advice. Some is true, some is false, and some is something else.
Goals: They want to find things that can still surprise them in the world.
Skills: They can become immaterial at will and possess great knowledge of The Connection, magic, and the history behind what came before Beacons. They can fly.
Flaws: They have limited influence in the world and cannot do much physically. They are rather weak and cannot do much other than talk someone's ear off. 
Other: A decent portion of their knowledge comes from how they can explore ruins with little repercussions, while information on magic and The Connection comes innately to them.

[skinstealer]

[TASTY_TREAT]:

ok, i think i've got something...

Name: Maxim
Origin: Beacon
Appearance: Beacon looks like a badly stitched together plush toy, with one button eye missing!
Personality: She is a passionate person who gets in way too over her head, really easily...but she's doing her best!
Goals: Maxim wants to become an accomplished chef, and hunts and gathers for her own ingredients. She also likes collecting little trinkets!
Skills: Hunting, gathering, cooking, and dancing!
Flaws: Falls apart easily (both literally and emotionally), way too ambitious, physically fragile + weak
Other: Maxim was a part of a little settlement with other Beacons like her, up until they were all wiped out...now she's a traveler!

hope this's okay...might try to doodle her, but i'm no artist!

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
Maxim looks to be a wonderful character, excellent work.

For those interested, I have some information on magic and technology below. If anyone is particularly interested in playing an ancient creation or something from the connection, or even something from somewhere else, I can explain some more about how they function. Feel free to let me know. If anyone is interested in particular sorts of fauna, flora, or perhaps even some examples of things from ancient ruins or the hypothetical creatures from the connection for backstory reasons either I can also provide some examples as applicable. I will get to some examples of relevant information for cooking when I can but I will admit that I am by no means an expert on the topic. I will try to throw in some interesting magical options as relevant.
 
General Magic and Technology:
Beacon Magic and Tech (Modern Magic and Tech)
Beacon magic can come in many flavors. It can be similar to a wizard like you see in a fantasy novel or seem mundane and merely augment incredibly normal tasks. One common theme is that there is generally a fairly straightforward cost to usage, often either the energy of the user or something like a battery. One beacon may be able to conjure fireballs using the energy of fire around them, another maybe be able to put the energy of a lightning strike into a building, allowing that building to serve as a large battery for their town. More complex usages of magic generally require experience and training. What you intend to do, your knowledge of the locations involved, how you perform the magic and what you use to do so, and what energy you provide is often the most relevant information on how magic will go.

 It is possible to learn multiple ways to do magic, but it is akin to learning a new trade of sorts. Learning how to make electronic devices like your local beacon does will likely require careful apprenticing and understanding of why they do what they do. It is also possible to develop new ways to utilize magic independently, though it is not without risk and it can take longer. It is recommended that beacons experiment with magic someplace it cannot harm others, in case something goes wrong.

 Beacon technology is mostly derived from ancient ruins or developed from what has already been derived. There is currently no usable internet analog, so developments have to travel by foot or by the connection. Pure non-magical technology is generally more resistant to odd magical phenomenon, but can also be made into magical technology. Often the less you have to make on your own, the easier it is to make a magical device. If you have a computer terminal that you want to control with your thoughts, having a computer terminal that already exists is going to be a necessary first step. It will still be a hell of a project though.

 Common usages of magic in daily life include as a means to enhance parts of daily life like helping them mine a tunnel, build a house, or similar endeavours. It can be used to help protect themselves from dangerous fauna, flora, unfriendly beacons, or something worse. It can be in about any part of life that you could expect, though it's most common in forms that involve physical transfers and manipulations of energy and usually not going to be heavily in anything abstract.


 Ancient Magic and Tech (And Partial Flavors)
Ancient magic can exist on a scale anywhere from entirely ancient to entirely modern. The latter is effectively beacon magic and means that the caster or object works entirely like modern magic. The former means it is entirely in its own category, such as divine magic mentioned in the section below. It is unknown precisely how this scale works but some theories include whether the object or individual is ‘compatible’ with the ideas that seem to be present in modern magic, how much the object or individual has adjusted to the nature of the world and that things have changed, how much the individual values their powers as they are, and more. Sometimes it may seem arbitrary.

 Ancient magic at its most isolated form still usually requires energy, though it is often able to access energy more easily and from greater distance than modern magic. It also often can take from sources which are not often used in modern magic including more abstract concepts. Additionally, it often functions on different rules than most modern magic. It may have to follow some rule-set that the magic of the subject was created with, it may be limited to specific scenarios, or have no clear restrictions at all. Sometimes a power will be incredibly potent, with no ability to lessen its effect. In one case, you may be granted immense precision and perfect execution of a task, at great cost.

 Ancient technology, when purely non-magical, is similar to beacon technology in that it is more resilient against magical phenomenon. However, it can vary from something familiar to beaconkind to something beyond their capability to recreate including artificial intelligence (which can of course use magic as well, provided they are a person), spacecraft, advanced weaponry, and more. Unlike most of beaconkind, it seems whatever made the devices was organic with organs like hearts and lungs and required things like air to survive.
 
 When magical, it becomes even harder for an aspiring reverse-engineer to figure out how it works, as some of the principles of ancient magic may not be easily reproduced. Ancient magic itself has not been successfully performed by any known beacons, though it persists in some of the ancient constructs and objects still present. It might be possible though.
Some theories exist that ancient magic is closer to the connection than modern magic.

 Connection Magic and Tech (Mystery Flavor [And Partial Flavors])
It is theorized that the magic of the connection utilizes and manipulates existing magic. It currently appears similar to ancient ruins to some extent, so some believe that it has the most absorbed from that. Some theorize it changes its form to suit the world and has yet to adapt to the modern day or recognize beaconkind. Regardless, it is likely even less bound than ancient magic, able to use your memory and other things as energy without much thought. There are no proven examples of connection magic or technology. It can likely range from seemingly familiar to incredibly alien even to an ancient automaton though.

 On Gods:
Modern Magic:
There is no evidence supporting modern magic based divinities.

 Ancient Magic:
All known remnants of ancient gods have no traces of beacon magic. It is unknown if they could do so, or if perhaps having that would somehow invalidate their divinity. While it is unclear how many ancient gods exist, there are plenty of tributes to figures of power and magic which has not been found to ever mix with modern magic that implies that some ruins are notably divine.

 Connection Magic:
Of the rumored mysterious entities, it could be reasoned that you could call one god. Or that perhaps an ancient god could have some of its magic from the connection. In any case, there very well could be gods of the connection or other reasonably powerful beings that can loan their powers or perform other great feats.

---

As a bonus note, flora and/or fauna can be magical. Some species may inherently have minor magical effects, while others could have uncommon or rare deviations. In all naturally occurring cases, this will be modern magic. If a specimen was preserved in an ancient bunker or was an ancient experiment, it is possible that it could have ancient magic. As a side-note, this does mean fauna or flora could hypothetically be a playable character as well.

[King-Clod]

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]:
alright here goes, I split up Other into Backstory and Inventory if that's ok

I think this could be a really cool backstory, and if Kara isn't allowed to have spawned on a moon other than Ascent it can always be that someone brought her there. Either way she doesn't remember, and either way she was alone.

Let me know if anything needs changing!

Name: Kara
Origin: Beacon
Appearance: A navy blue biped with no face, with long light blue hair around her head and at the end of her tail. Has nubby ears and a light blue marking of a four-point star on her chest.
Personality: Wants to connect but has difficulty to due to her lack of experience talking with other people. Tends to keep to herself. Approaches many conversations as a trap, or more precisely, a puzzle. Having spent most of her time in the ruins and in the Connection, is used to having to put a lot of thought into things. She still can jump to conclusions easily though. Self-sufficient and resourceful.
Goals: Learn more about casting magic and the ancients, and find a place she can call home with people she cares about. Learn more about where she came from.
Skills: Has dabbled with magic and knows enough to use her magic scarf, very good at spelunking and exploring ruins, decent enough dealing with the cryptic nature of denizens from the Connection, and is good at thinking on her feet. Her tail is prehensile and has often helped in a pinch. Good at fighting monsters but tends to avoid it.
Flaws: Little tact and not very trusting. Has no one to teach her magic and her attempts to practice have often had catastrophic results. Has not fought a beacon before and tries not to, her skills with combat with someone on her level are very lacking.
Backstory: Spawned on a barren moon, not Ascent. Stayed there by herself for a few years before finding an entry to the Connection, which she used to get through to different areas. Has very rarely run into those of her own kind, and spends most of her time conversing with creatures born of the Connection. Doesn't know why she spawned alone. Has been swindled before by other beacons and chased off by fauna, so she sees every area not on her home moon as potentially dangerous. Has gone spelunking through ruins before and it interests her greatly, but she isn't sure what any of it means.
Inventory:

• A lyre she found in the ruins, out of tune and with an image of an ancient divine. Has no magical properties, at least none that she knows of. It does appear to have a slot for something to fit into it, but she isn't sure what.
  
• A bladed scarf that glows purple, it can cut through stone as if it were butter for a high cost, and beacons and monsters as if they were nothing. She hasn't yet used it on a beacon though.
  
• She wears a worn out shirt, pants, and hiking boots gifted to her by a kind stranger traveling through the connection, trying to pull people out to bring them back home. She still regrets not going with them.
  
• Grappling hook. It's got a three pronged hook and a trigger, and she only found it recently. Isn't very good with it yet.
  

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
The other moons are a valid choice to spawn from, as is the connection itself. It is quite unusual, but given that I'm allowing creatures of the connection as characters, unusual is completely fine.

I will provide you with some commentary. These can be revised some if desired, but I'd like to give you some information about those items.

>The Lyre's frame is a clean rose gold, though it seems much tougher than it should be. The slot is inside a compartment you can slide a metal panel off of the frame to access which similar to the harp itself, has an engraving representing the divinity. There are some pins and prongs in the compartment that appear to be where something would connect to the harp. You should be able to recognize the right sort of item, if you saw it. The depicted divinity seems to be quadrupedal, featuring furry hooved legs, feathered wings, and a head reminiscent of a canid, featuring two sharp mouths and two pairs of eyes.

>The scarf looks like a fairly standard ancient magic item you could find in ruins. Likely one of the less dangerous ones for the user, provided its cost and effect are fairly direct and physical. It likely is quite smooth in texture, feeling almost plastic, despite being able to bend like a normal scarf. [I can provide an alternative version from the connection, but I'll probably have to nudge the color scheme some to black and the cost will be steeper and more abstract. This is probably not good for a weapon you have to rely upon, but it would be able to cut beings that are otherwise fairly immune to massive physical injury.]

>The grappling hook is probably not magical.

You may also start with one (or none) of the following gifts from a creature of the Connection. (You may choose to have turned down the others if you still want to have encountered the entities involved). (You could also leave skip the scarf if you want to take two.)

-A cloak, from an odd shadow creature of the connection you found closing off some entrances by cutting the connection itself. (You cannot cut the connection with physical
strength and there are no known methods to do so.) They offered you a gift upon noticing you, a cloak, reminiscent of a starry sky, which they said will help keep you safe.

-A necklace from a temporary traveling companion who you can't particularly remember too well, that assists you in finding those you've encountered before again.

-An unknown boon, offered at no cost, from something you could not see, but could feel looming over a room in the connection. A room in the connection itself is decently rare, though this one had a writing desk, with ink spilled over a page and a quill fallen to the floor. An office chair was tipped over.
 

As desired, I can also talk some about individuals that might have been met in the connection. Given she has not encountered beacon-kind often, it is likely there is something amiss with Kara's journeys through the connection. I cannot tell you precisely what that could be because of spoilers, but it is probably something you should keep in mind.

Anyhow, it's also likely Kara probably met some ancient stewards, either in odd encounters in the connection, or the more common way to find them, delving into ruins. (Even outside of the connections, the life-barren moons still possess ruins too. Kara could have found ancient constructs before the connection.) You can of course decline having run into ancient constructs that are people if you'd rather not, especially given Kara likely has something odd influencing her adventures along the connections, you have a decent bit of rope to work with here.  

If you take the necklace, we will need to hash out a few brief descriptions of some creatures of the connection, ancient automatons, beacons, or other people met. A brief summary of a few words similar to what you or I have already shown is plenty. I can provide some examples to pick from or you can try to make some up. 2 or 3 more should be more than enough, though I certainly will take more if you wish to have more. As a note, you can absolutely include anything from life-threatening, to friendly, to simply confusing encounters.

If anything that's a person has been fought with the scarf (or otherwise majorly harmed), including a hostile automaton or creature of the connection, I will need to know that. While there can be automatons or creatures of the connection that are not people, it generally is not something you can easily tell at a glance.  

Additional Note: I can also provide other details, options for people met, and other things for people upon request. You can of course make your own brief list and I will probably okay most encounters for backstory stuff, or ask a few questions or change minor details as needed.

[King-Clod]

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]:
I do really like your touches you made to them items I made, they really give a sense for the world here.
I think I'll scrap the scarf idea so I can take two of the Connection items you proposed, but I'd still need her to have a weapon to protect herself. Is it alright if I pick up the cloak and amulet and also give her a broken sword from the ruins she can fight with, with no magical properties to it?

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]:
I'm fine with her having met some Ancient Stewards of the ruins, her home moon does feel like a home to her for a reason. But I think they all look down on her to some degree, given how young she is in comparison to them. They treat her as a plaything at worst, and a infant version of them at best. She has an alright relationship with them, and their wisdom was always appreciated by her, but she usually tries her own way first before taking any of their advice. She's a bit stubborn that way, you know? I'm not sure what Automatons look like, but hers are probably dragon-like in appearance, and very, very, old.

I think that she has injured one or two Stewards on moons other than her own before, hostile ones, but sentient ones nonetheless. She didn't get her lyre on her home moon, so the citizens of the ruin she got it from weren't happy with her taking it. She didn't kill anyone, but definitely did leave a fair few scars and lost fingers in her wake. She tries to stay away from doing too much damage though, she's far more inclined to flight than fight.

As for other people she's met, she's met probably three beacons in total, each wildly different. The first tricked her out of the first relic she had found from a ruin, a small musicbox with vague magical properties. The second treated her with hostility outright, shouting at her to keep back. Important to note, the second one was injured. And the third gave her the clothes she's wearing now, invited her to come back with them, but she declined. She talks with locals of the connection more than any other, but I'll limit myself for brevity's sake. These are the one's she talks to the most often. She has often had tea parties with a spindly, many legged spider like creature that's too bright to look at directly. She can get food here for no cost, and the spider is kind, but often makes small comments here and there on how Kara should dress better or brush her hair. Kara has also talked with a man of many watches all over and inside him, constantly tuttering about how time is wobbling more and more these days. She trades time-keeping relics with him for advice on the future. The third being of the connection is the one she spends the most time with, one that takes the appearance of whoever it's talking to. They often talk about their days or play card games together, and it's the closest thing to a peer that she has. Its stories change every time she talks to it, but she doesn't mind. She doesn't expect anything to be straightforward in the Connection, after all.

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]:
I realize this was a bit of a word scramble, but this setting really does interest me. Will these descriptions work?

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
Those descriptions will absolutely work.

Fighting multiple stewards in a temple would usually not be a task someone could achieve alone, generally, though given the incomplete state of the relic, that temple likely was in an especially bad state. Fighting one steward head-on is often a quite brutal encounter, provided they're in decent condition.

You can absolutely have a sword. You can either have a normal sword from a beacon who lost it somewhere.
 
Or, you may have a 'normal sword' from a steward of, what would probably be an injustice to call a ruins. If you accept the latter, it will solidify which moon you came from, the moon of Pinnacle, which has a far elliptical orbit from the sun. Its largest installation is still pristine and intact, featuring various active technological equipment on the outside, including a massive cannon. If you approached it, its steward likely went to met you and politely invited you in, hosting you as a guest for a while, before showing you to the connection and handing you the sword. The sword would be plain but elegant, mostly silver, with a dark red guard with a purple gem inset on both sides of the guard. It keeps itself sharp and has yet to show even a scratch, but is otherwise not particularly notable.

If you do take that sword, you likely would have learned some information. Despite being quite a reasonable temporary host willing to explain much about the physical world and the world of beacons, you likely did not get many answers about the ancients or the connection itself other than some warnings to be wary. You would however have heard a small anecdote about how the steward, The Caretaker of Pinnacle, killed a god which was going to usher in the end of this existence and devour the sun. (You can probably guess that this was done with the ginormous cannon on the installation, which is also called Pinnacle. The moon was named after the installation.)

As an additional note, the pristine yet somewhat bare appearance of the installation and its steward has an uncanny resemblance to the connection.

[King-Clod]

[ASTRAL_ABERRATION]:
I think Pinnacle would work well for her home moon, yeah! Could the Caretaker be dragon-esque in appearance?

[Ignispark]

[STATIONARY_FRICTION]:
That goes along with what other notes I had scrawled about them, which involves them being very visibly dangerous in their own right. They can absolutely be dragon-esque, if not a robotic dragon outright.

[knux400]

[GENTLE_STAR]: fuck sorry im so late, i hope this is still open

uhh go ahead and suggest any changes you need to or anything like that

Name: Vembrace [it/its]
Origin: Ancient Technology
Appearance: Vembrace is a collection of metal plates in various shades of copper and teal. It is capable of rearranging these plates at will, so long as they all remain in close proximity to one another. In its standard form, the plates hover in an odd and intricate conical shape with the point facing the ground.
Personality: It is protective, but quick to anger and occasionally overbearing.
Goals: It was originally built for combat or defense, it thinks, but it would like to move beyond that somehow.
Skills: Excellent at protecting others, surprisingly capable in combat.
Flaws: It isn't sure how to act when it isn't fighting or protecting someone else.
Other: It can wrap itself around any being or object of roughly the same size or smaller, willing or not, to form a protective shell around them. While in this form, it can attempt to restrict or control the movements of the wearer and absorbs most physical damage at the cost of health. It can be removed by force, but it is somewhat difficult, generally requiring brute strength or some kind of tool.