- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> SW
Rooftop
I’m on the south side of a group of buildings, with other roofs I could scramble onto east, west, and northeast. To the south, there’s a low wall and then a gap - an alleyway - before the next roof along. And that roof looks interesting: covered in machinery, though it’s hard to say for sure.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
A large tarp is thrown over something in the middle of this space.
Something moves high above, and in a grey flash the Figure is before me. He nods once. “Relentless,” he remarks. “I admire your courage. Your persistence. You could almost be a machine.” I’m barely a foot away, and I still can’t see his face. Nothing but that sleek grey suit.
“But this is where I leave you.” He whips away the tarpaulin, to reveal an ornithopter - something I’ve only seen in lithographs before. Pausing only to wind the key beneath one of the craft’s gigantic wings, he leaps inside and in a moment, has taken to the sky! But the ornithopter is slow-moving: like a drifting leaf, drifting upwards...
> JUMP TO ORNITHOPTER
I can’t reach the ornithopter from where I am.
So, what now? There’s no way I’m letting him get away; I’m going to be in so much trouble after all I’ve done, I’ll need something to show for it. But I can’t fly either. There’s got to be a way. Something I can do. If the Universe is clockwork the way the Abbot says it is, then it can’t have left me stranded, can it?
> WATCH ORNITHOPTER
The ornithopter is still large in the sky. It moves like a slow, fat moth - with the Figure aboard!
Pausing here because this seems important and I'm not sure if you guys have any ideas on what we can do or if we should just keep wandering.
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Oct 19, 2017 03:04
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- Adbot
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ADBOT LOVES YOU
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Jun 9, 2024 10:47
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> SOUTH
It’s a twelve-foot gap. I can’t jump that!
> JUMP SOUTH
It’s a twelve-foot gap. I can’t jump that!
> WATCH ORNITHOPTER
The ornithopter is still large in the sky. It moves like a slow, fat moth - with the Figure aboard!
Any more ideas?
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Oct 19, 2017 21:21
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- Ratatozsk
- Mar 6, 2007
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Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...
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Try East and West
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Oct 20, 2017 00:19
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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Well I'm the type of guy who likes to roam around.quote:> E
Rooftop
This roof is surrounded on all sides by taller buildings, scalable to the west, and impossible every other way. There’s no roof at all to the southwest - the tiles look down on an alleyway - but beyond that is the glitter of machinery (but it’s too far to jump, I think).
By the alley is a squat iron chimney that’s belching out fat slugs of smoke. The kitchen down there must be getting ready for a feast!
So, what now? There’s no way I’m letting him get away; I’m going to be in so much trouble after all I’ve done, I’ll need something to show for it. But I can’t fly either. There’s got to be a way. Something I can do. If the Universe is clockwork the way the Abbot says it is, then it can’t have left me stranded, can it?
> EXAMINE CHIMNEY
A narrow iron chimney. Smoke and steam puff out of it. This might not even be a kitchen, it might be one of those steam boilers the Abbot sometimes mutters about.
> LOOK IN CHIMNEY
Sticking my face over it would be a sure-fire way to burn my eyebrows over. That air is hot!
> CLIMB DOWN CHIMNEY
I don’t think much is to be achieved by that.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
> E
The only way to go from here is west. quote:
> W
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
A large tarp lies discarded here.
> W
Sloping Roofs
It’s hard to keep my bearings here: below, several streets are coming together and their overhanging roofs - good for keeping the rain off - create a patchwork of tiles, chimneys, gaps and different levels. I can scramble up a few levels to the north, or I could probably slip away west and south, but I might get turned around in either of those directions.
> E
East is impassable.
quote:> S
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
A large tarp lies discarded here.
> W
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> W
Rooftop
This roof is almost flat, which is good, because there’s empty space to the north and west of it. I could slip south, through the remains of a brick chimney collapsed into a whole heap of bricks. It seems to have been barged out the way to make room for a flat wide turret-top, on top of which is a glossy platform with a brass railing. Overlapping roofs create a second path to the northeast.
> EXAMINE TURRET
I can’t make out what’s on the platform (if anything): but I can see it’s encircled by a railing.
> EXAMINE RAILING
I can’t make out what’s on the platform (if anything): but I can see it’s encircled by a railing.
> S
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> W
Rooftop
A corner of a roof, with nothing to north or west. There’s a safe way back northeast. South is a fallen-down brick chimney topped by a big glossy platform that’s elbowed itself some more space up here.
> EXAMINE CHIMNEY
The collapsed chimney is now nothing but a few huge chunks of bricks, like the last crumbs of a cake. The mortar holding them together is crumbled and dry.
> ENTER CHIMNEY
I climb halfway up the brick, but then skitter down again.
> N
The only ways to go from here are northeast and south.
> NE
Rooftop
The roofs are a mess of chimneys, lightning rods, ways forward and sudden sharp drops.
From here, I could scramble down to the south, or hop across small gaps to the southeast or southwest. The Cathedral itself is back east.
> S
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> N
Rooftop
The roofs are a mess of chimneys, lightning rods, ways forward and sudden sharp drops.
From here, I could scramble down to the south, or hop across small gaps to the southeast or southwest. The Cathedral itself is back east.
> SW
Rooftop
A corner of a roof, with nothing to north or west. There’s a safe way back northeast. South is a fallen-down brick chimney topped by a big glossy platform that’s elbowed itself some more space up here.
It's not exactly a maze, just sort of a confusing layout.
This isn't pretty, but it might help:
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Oct 20, 2017 03:25
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- gegi
- Aug 3, 2004
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Butterfly Girl
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can we build some kind of makeshift hot air balloon with the tarp and the chimney?
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Oct 20, 2017 03:35
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> S
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> S
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
A large tarp lies discarded here.
> EXAMINE TARP
This is expensive stuff: a fabric that’s lighter and stronger and less itchy than the stuff they make my bed-sheets from, the way sunlight is different than the beady glow in a rat’s eye. The Figure must be pretty wealthy to leave something like this behind! Perhaps he meant it as a present: something to buy me off the chase.
Not going to happen. I’m going to catch him, stop him, save the Perpetuum and go collect my reward from the Archbishop.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
> TAKE TARP
Cumbersome, but that said - it rolls up pretty small!
> E
Rooftop
This is a dead-end of high walls that I can only leave to the west. Southwest the roofs open out over an alleyway - beyond which I can see some machinery (but it’s too far to jump).
By the alley is a squat iron chimney that’s belching out fat slugs of smoke. The kitchen down there must be getting ready for a feast!
> PUT TARP ON CHIMNEY
The tarp would make the chimney something I could handle, but it wouldn’t do me any good - it’s just a short chimney sticking out of the rooftop. I can’t pick it up, or bend it, or anything like that - and there’s nowhere to go if I tried climbing it! quote:> PUT TARP ON TOP OF CHIMNEY
I can’t see any such thing. quote:
> DROP TARP ON CHIMNEY
Futile.
> FILL TARP WITH HOT AIR
I need to be holding the chimney pipe before I can put it into something else.
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> PUT CHIMNEY IN TARP
I need to be holding the chimney pipe before I can put it into something else.
> TAKE CHIMNEY
I snatch my hand back from the chimney. It’s hot!
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
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Oct 20, 2017 03:47
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> I
I’m carrying:
a roll of tarp
a work order
a rag
a knife
a small gear
my lucky clock key (being worn)
a glass tumbler (containing:)
a small amount of polish
> EXAMINE WORK ORDER
The order outlines the need for a map of a Nebula, whatever that is. It’s official: stamped in purple wax with the Cathedral icon.
> TAKE WAX FROM WORK ORDER
But it isn’t there now.
> TAKE WAX
I’m carrying the work order already.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
> PUT WAX ON TARP
Better hang onto it. You never know when something with the seal on it might come in handy.
> POLISH TARP
The tarp seems clean enough as it is.
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
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Oct 20, 2017 04:16
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- Ratatozsk
- Mar 6, 2007
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Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...
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Can we use the tarp to jump south over that previous un-jump-overable gap?
If not, polish the tarp.
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Oct 20, 2017 04:30
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> W
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
> JUMP SOUTH
It’s a twelve-foot gap. I can’t jump that!
> JUMP SOUTH WITH TARP
I can’t see any such thing.
> JUMP WITH TARP
I can’t see any such thing.
> WEAR TARP
It’s just a big square of tarpaulin, there are no holes or anything.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
> PUT TARP IN NOTCH
That wouldn’t do me any good, would it?
> THROW TARP SOUTH
I only understood you as far as wanting to throw the tarp.
> THROW TARP
Dropped.
> TAKE TARP
Cumbersome, but that said - it rolls up pretty small!
> FLAP TARP
That’s not a verb I recognize.
> FLY
They called me Wren, but that’s only what they called me.
> POLISH TARP
The tarp seems clean enough as it is.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
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Oct 20, 2017 21:16
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- Ratatozsk
- Mar 6, 2007
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Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...
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Go West again, don’t think we’ve seen that. If nothing there try “cover chimney with tarp” or “cover roof with tarp” in the easterly roof.
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Oct 20, 2017 23:59
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> W
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> S
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
> E
Rooftop
This is a dead-end of high walls that I can only leave to the west. Southwest the roofs open out over an alleyway - beyond which I can see some machinery (but it’s too far to jump).
By the alley is a squat iron chimney that’s belching out fat slugs of smoke. The kitchen down there must be getting ready for a feast!
> COVER CHIMNEY WITH TARP
The tarp would make the chimney something I could handle, but it wouldn’t do me any good - it’s just a short chimney sticking out of the rooftop. I can’t pick it up, or bend it, or anything like that - and there’s nowhere to go if I tried climbing it!
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> COVER ROOF WITH TARP
Which do you mean, the southwestern roof or the tiled rooftops?
> SOUTHWESTERN
The equipment is across the gap over the alleyway, out of reach.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
> COVER TILED ROOFTOPS WITH TARP
Dropped.
> LOOK
Rooftop
This is a dead-end of high walls that I can only leave to the west. Southwest the roofs open out over an alleyway - beyond which I can see some machinery (but it’s too far to jump).
By the alley is a squat iron chimney that’s belching out fat slugs of smoke. The kitchen down there must be getting ready for a feast!
I can also see a tarp here.
> TAKE TARP
Cumbersome, but that said - it rolls up pretty small!
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
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Oct 21, 2017 01:27
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> W
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
> W
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> W
Rooftop
A corner of a roof, with nothing to north or west. There’s a safe way back northeast. South is a fallen-down brick chimney topped by a big glossy platform that’s elbowed itself some more space up here.
> EXAMINE CHIMNEY
The collapsed chimney is now nothing but a few huge chunks of bricks, like the last crumbs of a cake. The mortar holding them together is crumbled and dry.
> TAKE BRICKS
The smallest chunk of brick is almost as big as me. I’d need to break it up a little first if I was going to start carrying it around with me.
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> BREAK BRICK
The chunks of brick are stuck with mortar. Old mortar I could easily break, but I’d need some kind of tool to do it.
> I
I’m carrying:
a roll of tarp
a work order
a rag
a knife
a small gear
my lucky clock key (being worn)
a glass tumbler (containing:)
a small amount of polish
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
quote:> HIT BRICK WITH KNIFE
Using the knife point I work some of the mortar loose, powder some more, and free up a small chunk of brick that I can probably just about carry.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
> TAKE BRICK
I can just about pick it up. It’s heavy, though... worse than carrying both Drake and Calvin’s laundry baskets!
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> S
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> S
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
> PUT BRICK IN NOTCH
That wouldn’t do me any good, would it?
> NO, IT WOULDN’T, BUT GLAZIUS THOUGHT IT MIGHT SO I FIGURED WE SHOULD TRY IT. HE’S SOOOOOOO CLOSE, THOUGH.
That was a rhetorical question.
I can’t talk to the huge chunk of brick.
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Oct 21, 2017 03:17
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- King of Bleh
- Mar 3, 2007
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A kingdom of rats.
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> throw brick at ornithopter
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Oct 21, 2017 21:49
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> THROW BRICK AT ORNITHOPTER
Futile.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
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Oct 22, 2017 00:51
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> E
Rooftop
This is a dead-end of high walls that I can only leave to the west. Southwest the roofs open out over an alleyway - beyond which I can see some machinery (but it’s too far to jump).
By the alley is a squat iron chimney that’s belching out fat slugs of smoke. The kitchen down there must be getting ready for a feast!
> THROW BRICK AT CHIMNEY
Futile.
> W
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
> W
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> W
Rooftop
A corner of a roof, with nothing to north or west. There’s a safe way back northeast. South is a fallen-down brick chimney topped by a big glossy platform that’s elbowed itself some more space up here.
> EXAMINE PLATFORM
I can’t make out what’s on the platform (if anything): but I can see it’s encircled by a railing.
> THROW BRICK AT RAILING
Futile.
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Oct 22, 2017 04:31
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- inflatablefish
- Oct 24, 2010
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Can we tie the tarp to the railing to turn the entire platform into a hot air balloon?
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Oct 22, 2017 10:01
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> TIE TARP TO RAILING
The platform is a bit of a way above me.
> CLIMB CHIMNEY
The chimney has fallen into a huge pile of rubble and sections of wall, pretty much unclimbable unless I was a cat. If I was on the platform, I could probably slide down it safely enough.
You guys are making the same mistake I did when I first got to to this section. We haven't yet picked up something we need.
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Oct 22, 2017 11:45
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> S
Sloping Roofs
Several roofs meet here in a mess of tiles. East is impassable, but I could climb rooftiles to north, west or south.
> TAKE TILES
I can’t go wandering off with the rooftops, can I?
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Oct 22, 2017 23:42
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- idonotlikepeas
- May 29, 2010
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This reasoning is possible for forums user idonotlikepeas!
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Can we tear up a lightning rod, or search the debris?
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Oct 23, 2017 00:14
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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Can we tear up a lightning rod, or search the debris?
Yeah.
quote:> N
Rooftop
The roofs are a mess of chimneys, lightning rods, ways forward and sudden sharp drops.
From here, I could scramble down to the south, or hop across small gaps to the southeast or southwest. The Cathedral itself is back east.
> TAKE LIGHTNING ROD
Touch that and you might burn: the vibrations can be that strong. Especially in thunderstorms.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
> SE
Rooftop
This roof is half-repaired and littered with construction materials - pipes and boards, that kind of thing. There’s a street to the east, but I could inch along the roof to the northwest or southwest.
> EXAMINE MATERIALS
Bits and bobs. A large and hefty length of piping, a wooden board about three times my height. That sort of thing.
> TAKE PIPING
Taken.
I can’t keep carrying the bricks as well. I put them down.
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> TAKE BOARD
I grab one end of the board, ready to drag it along behind me.
This pipe’s too much to handle as well. I put it down.
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Oct 23, 2017 00:45
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- idonotlikepeas
- May 29, 2010
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This reasoning is possible for forums user idonotlikepeas!
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If the board is three times the character's height, could it be laid across the gap? That seems too simple. I suspect we will be obligated to do some Rube Goldberg thing where we examine the principles of leverage by putting the board in the notch and dumping bricks on it.
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Oct 23, 2017 01:13
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> SW
I pull the board along.
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The low south wall is missing a few bricks creating a gap - well, I’ll call it a notch.
I’m still holding this wooden board.
> PUT BOARD IN NOTCH
The board slides in - not perfectly, it’s no clockwork, but it’ll do. The plank extends out over the alley to the south, almost all the way!
> S
I inch a little way out on the board, but it quickly starts to tip over, into the street. I freeze, and inch my way back. Without something to weigh the other end down, this bridge is useless!
quote:> NE
Rooftop
This roof is half-repaired and littered with construction materials. There’s a street to the east, but I could inch along the roof to the northwest or southwest.
Lying on the tiles is a length of piping.
I can also see a huge chunk of brick here.
> TAKE BRICK
I can just about pick it up. It’s heavy, though... worse than carrying both Drake and Calvin’s laundry baskets!
> SW
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
There’s a wooden board set into the notch in the wall and pushed out over the street.
> PUT BRICK ON BOARD
I unload the bricks onto the end of the board, weighing it down nicely.
quote:
> NE
Rooftop
This roof is half-repaired and littered with construction materials. There’s a street to the east, but I could inch along the roof to the northwest or southwest.
Lying on the tiles is a length of piping.
> TAKE PIPE
Taken.
> SW
The pipe skitters along behind me.
Rooftop
There are other roofs east, west and northeast. To the south is a low wall, a twelve-foot gap, and then another roof that’s covered in machinery.
The wooden board makes a nice plank bridge, weighed at this end with bricks.
I’m still holding this length of piping.
> S
With this pipe in tow I’d be too heavy to get across the plank bridge. (Even though it might help my balance!)
quote:> DROP PIPE
Dropped.
> S
I inch out over my makeshift bridge. The weight of the bricks shudders - if it slips off that board then I’m dead, in a second - but it doesn’t. And from the end, it’s a short spring to the roof beyond.
Weather Station
Good Grease! This roof is like a museum of meters! Thermometers, barometers, precipitometers (these are just glass tubes open to catch the rain) and a zephyrgraph attached to a flight of metal stairs that lead up to a platform to the northwest. I can’t see any other way off this roof, although there is a closed hatch underfoot. The wooden plank I used to get here is further off than I thought!
In one corner, a small pipe emerges with a spigot on the end; it’s next to (and tied to) a deflated weather balloon.
> EXAMINE PIPE
A pipe sticks out of the roof and ends in a small spigot. It must be used for filling the balloon. The tap on the spigot is a flat screw-head, set flush with the pipe.
> EXAMINE BALLOON
A small weather balloon. I suppose they use it to lift instruments up into the clouds - but it has a little basket underneath, and I might just be able to squeeze in. The Figure doesn’t know what he’s let himself in for with me, that’s for certain. The balloon is currently empty, and is tied by a string to the pipe and the spigot.
> EXAMINE THERMOMETER
They disagree, depending on how much shade they’re in.
The wind snaps the zephyrgraph round to point south.
> EXAMINE BAROMETER
The air here is heavy, apparently, though I can’t feel it.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
> EXAMINE PRECIPITOMETER
“Precipitometer” is a fancy name for “thin bucket”.
> EXAMINE ZEPHYRGRAPH
A zephyrgraph is a small sheet of metal carefully crafted to look like a clock-hand, that’s free to turn depending on the wind-direction. (Some people call it a “weather vane”). It’s currently pointing south.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
The zephyrgraph moves to point southeast.
> EXAMINE HATCH
A locked metal hatch in the roof.
> OPEN HATCH
It’s locked from the inside.
The zephyrgraph changes to the east.
> EXAMINE STAIRS
A flight of metal steps, leading up to a platform.
The zephyrgraph moves to point southeast.
> UP
Observation Platform
I’m standing on a platform overlooking a roof covered in broken bricks to the north. A flight of metal steps lead down to the southeast, back to the weather station. A brass railing runs around the edge to stop anyone falling (I could use one of those for my bedroom).
At the platform’s centre is a metal telescope on a tripod that points east. The tripod has a crank at its base, much like the ones in the library and the one inside the clock’s working. There must be a blacksmith somewhere who does nothing but make these cranks. I might be able to see him from here, too, since I’ve got a perfect view of the whole city.
> EXAMINE TELESCOPE
The telescope is made of finely-moulded brass stamped with the crossed lightning of the Weather Guild. Often accused of non-mechanism - weather’s just too temperamental - they tend to build machines that are overly complicated, like the ratchet-and-piston umbrella they sell in the Cathedral Yard market for nine hours a pop. So, the telescope tripod has a crank and compass on the base, which presumably do the business of pointing.
Still, the view must be fantastic. I could look through the telescope to see. (It’s currently pointing east).
> EXAMINE CRANK
The large crank is attached to one leg of the tripod. There’s presumably an Archimedes screw inside or something connecting it to the compass and the telescope up top.
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> EXAMINE RAILING
The brass rail is well-polished and set about shoulder-height. I could easily climb over it to the roof below.
> LOOK THROUGH TELESCOPE
Sunlight sparkles from the flickering surface of the Fugit, running down from the mountains towards the sea, far to the south. But no sign of the Figure in this direction.
> TURN CRANK
Am I turning the crank or is the crank turning me? After a few rotations of whichever-it-is, I find I’m on a different side of the tower with both me and telescope facing west.
> LOOK
Observation Platform
The railed platform overlooks a littered roof to the north and steps lead southeast back to the weather station.
At the platform’s centre is a metal telescope on a tripod that points west. The tripod has a crank at its base, and the thing is set up to give a great view of the city.
> LOOK THROUGH TELESCOPE
The huge clockface of the Cathedral - or a tiny portion of it - fills the eyepiece. But no sign of the Figure in this direction.
> EXAMINE COMPASS
The compass is a steel pointer riveted over the engraving of a compass on a brass disc at the telescope’s base. Currently the pointer is set to west; the telescope points the same way.
Note that weather vanes are normally shaped like clock hands and "hour" is also apparently a unit of currency in this world. I do like the attention to bits of background detail.
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Oct 23, 2017 21:27
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- idonotlikepeas
- May 29, 2010
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This reasoning is possible for forums user idonotlikepeas!
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Speaking of turning my crank: hot drat, the word zephyrgraph. I mean, yowza.
I like Glazius' plan, although it might be possible to just turn the spigot by hand, too? And of course we want to wait until the wind is pointing at where we want to go before untying the string.
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Oct 24, 2017 03:04
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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An excellent plan!quote:> TURN CRANK
The crank won’t turn. Must be something wrong with the rest of the mechanism.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
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Oct 24, 2017 04:07
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- Ratatozsk
- Mar 6, 2007
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Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...
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Can we connect that heavy pipe from the debris to the chimney to route the hot air?
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Oct 25, 2017 04:33
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> LOOK
Observation Platform
The railed platform overlooks a littered roof to the north and steps lead southeast back to the weather station.
At the platform’s centre is a metal telescope on a tripod that points west. The tripod has a crank at its base, and the thing is set up to give a great view of the city.
> EXAMINE STAIRS
A flight of metal steps, leading up to a platform.
> DOWN
Weather Station
Thermometers, barometers, precipitometers (these are just glass tubes open to catch the rain) and a zephyrgraph attached to a flight of metal stairs that lead up to a platform to the northwest. I can’t see any other way off this roof, although there is a closed hatch underfoot. The wooden plank I used to get here is further off than I thought!
In one corner, a small pipe emerges with a spigot on the end; it’s next to (and tied to) a deflated weather balloon.
> EXAMINE STAIRS
A flight of metal steps, leading up to a platform.
The wind snaps the zephyrgraph round to point east.
> NORTH
I can see myself jumping from the roof-edge onto the board, and then going down as I land, and then pausing for a moment like a penduluum at the far end of its swing, and then pushing back up into the air again and catapulting off into space... so, no thanks. I’m staying here.
Maybe turning the crank changed the orientation of the stairs or something too?
Doesn't seem to have.
Can we connect that heavy pipe from the debris to the chimney to route the hot air?
Can't get back the way we came.
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Oct 26, 2017 01:45
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> OPEN PIPE
The screw is set flat into the upper pipe, and my fingernail doesn’t seem to be enough to get it to turn.
> TURN SCREW
The screw is set flat into the upper pipe, and my fingernail doesn’t seem to be enough to get it to turn.
The zephyrgraph moves to point south.
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Oct 27, 2017 02:34
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- Ratatozsk
- Mar 6, 2007
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Had we turned left instead, we may have encountered something like this...
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>Turn screw with knife
>polish screw
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Oct 27, 2017 07:25
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> TURN SCREW WITH KNIFE
I slip the knife-blade into the screw-head and turn. There’s a brief hiss - then silence. I guess the hydrogen supply is off downstairs. Maybe the Abbot has finally cut the Weather Guild’s funding. I close the tap up again.
Steam drifts over the rooftops from the east.
The wind snaps the zephyrgraph round to point south.
> POLISH SCREW
The small spigot seems clean enough as it is.
> TURN SCREW WITH KNIFE
No point trying again.
The zephyrgraph moves to point east.
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Oct 28, 2017 01:56
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- idonotlikepeas
- May 29, 2010
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This reasoning is possible for forums user idonotlikepeas!
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Can we disassemble anything? Pull up the railing, take apart the crank (and possibly fix it), pull the spigot off of the pipe?
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Oct 28, 2017 03:00
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- CaptainCaveman
- Apr 16, 2005
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Always searching for North.
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quote:> TAKE ALL
small spigot: That’s fixed in place.
> U
Observation Platform
The railed platform overlooks a littered roof to the north and steps lead southeast back to the weather station.
At the platform’s centre is a metal telescope on a tripod that points west. The tripod has a crank at its base, and the thing is set up to give a great view of the city.
> TAKE ALL
telescope: Taken. quote:> PULL RAILING
It’s pretty firmly built into the platform (and if I could get it free, the whole place might unspiral like a sprung watch.)
> TAKE APART CRANK
I can’t see any such thing.
> PULL CRANK
Nothing obvious happens.
> TURN CRANK
The crank won’t turn. Must be something wrong with the rest of the mechanism. Something to do with the compass, maybe?
A smell of wet smoke drifts in from the east.
> EXAMINE COMPASS
The compass is a steel pointer riveted over the engraving of a compass on a brass disc at the telescope’s base. Currently the pointer is set to west; the telescope points the same way.
> EXAMINE TELESCOPE
The telescope is made of finely-moulded brass stamped with the crossed lightning of the Weather Guild. The tripod has a crank and compass on the base, which presumably do the business of pointing.
Still, the view must be fantastic. I could look through the telescope to see. (It’s currently pointing west).
> LOOK THROUGH TELESCOPE
The huge clockface of the Cathedral - or a tiny portion of it - fills the eyepiece. But no sign of the Figure in this direction.
A breath of hot air touches me from the east.
> POINT TELESCOPE SOUTH
No good trying to move it by hand. You can’t back a gear against a gasket, as they say.
> I
I’m carrying:
a telescope
a roll of tarp
a work order
a rag
a knife
a small gear
my lucky clock key (being worn)
a glass tumbler (containing:)
a small amount of polish
> D
Weather Station
Thermometers, barometers, precipitometers (these are just glass tubes open to catch the rain) and a zephyrgraph attached to a flight of metal stairs that lead up to a platform to the northwest. I can’t see any other way off this roof, although there is a closed hatch underfoot. The wooden plank I used to get here is further off than I thought!
In one corner, a small pipe emerges with a spigot on the end; it’s next to (and tied to) a deflated weather balloon.
The wind snaps the zephyrgraph round to point south.
> LOOK THROUGH TELESCOPE
The huge clockface of the Cathedral - or a tiny portion of it - fills the eyepiece. But no sign of the Figure in this direction.
> LOOK SOUTH THROUGH TELESCOPE
I only understood you as far as wanting to look south.
I didn't put the telescope back where it was just yet, but keep in mind that it seems like a bug that we can take it so if you have any thoughts that depend on us taking and using it somewhere else, dismiss them because that ain't it.
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Oct 28, 2017 05:02
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- Adbot
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Jun 9, 2024 10:47
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- idonotlikepeas
- May 29, 2010
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This reasoning is possible for forums user idonotlikepeas!
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Can we point the compass? If so, can we point it in every direction, turning the crank and looking through the telescope in between, until we've seen all there is to see?
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Oct 28, 2017 18:09
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Oct 19, 2017 03:04
