What to expect from Hell On Earth! - Guns in Tisy/Tri Kresta are slightly boosted because of a spawning issue that has been fixed. T3 Military Guns are not boosted but have better values so you will find a weapon. T1/2 are mainly attachments with some weapons but the good items are in T3/4. pristine/worn condition. Food and clothing have vanilla values with some items taken out since no one wears them. Livonia Weapons are the same slightly boosted but not over whelming. - Character loadout with jacket, cargo pants, candy canes, head torch, canteen, map, battery and knife! (This loadout is beginner friendly and will help you survive until you get to that town!) - Boosted stamina, weight matters but drainage isn’t fast. Will still need to take a break. - Raid 24/7, better lock up! - If you want to trade/rob/etc with other players you can do Mutual RP! Basically both players have to agree to an interaction once agreed anything goes. If one declines then both players must go their separate ways without retaliation. Please record all interactions if a problem occurs. - Food Decay is off, because DayZ spoils it too fast. - Towns have increased zombies, better do some stealth unless you have the ammo! - Traveling trader is now around Chernarus & Livonia! No Currency just request some items and a meet will be scheduled. Any T3/4/Contamination items will not be traded, that is for you to explore. - 1st/3rd PP - Heli Crashes are not frequent, so loot will be damn good! Livonia heli crashes has okay gear but bunker will be the best spot! More soldiers were killed in the crashes so be careful. - Bunker contain RARE loot, but can you make it through the hoard? - Vehicle have some internals and wheels but you’ll have to do the rest! - BUILD ANYWHERE - Just hop in and start surviving / NO DISCORD!. - Discipline system: Killing the trader or any players outside of Military/Police Zones is a permanent BAN!

Game Information

Game Title: Sand Land
Platforms:

Xbox Series X/S (Apr 26, 2024)
PlayStation 5 (Apr 26, 2024)
PC (Apr 26, 2024)

Trailers:

Developer: ILCA, Inc.
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc.
Review Aggregator:
OpenCritic - 72 average - 58% recommended - 34 reviews

Critic Reviews

AltChar - Asmir Kovacevic - 80 / 100

For fans of the Sand Land manga series, this game is an absolute must-play. Boasting a compelling and emotionally rich storyline filled with twists and turns, coupled with engaging gameplay—particularly involving vehicles—the game offers another unforgettable Sand Land experience.

Atomix - Aldo López - Spanish - 80 / 100

Definitely not the perfect job was done in terms of gameplay, but at least it is a good tribute to the original work and therefore, to the author, who unfortunately was not able to see the finished project. So, if you were looking for something different and with a concept that is not just about fighting, it is very possible that you will find this game fun with the good customization options on vehicles.

But Why Tho? - Kyle Foley - 8.5 / 10

SAND LAND is a gorgeous and heartfelt game that brings together unlikely allies on an epic quest. It is fun to play, beautiful to look at, and an unforgettable journey for everyone to enjoy.

COGconnected - Jaz Sagoo - 78 / 100

Sand Land captures the heart and soul of Akira Toriyama’s classic tale. Jumping in a vehicle and fighting creatures is a highlight of the experience and overshadows the lackluster melee combat. Side quests are a little dull but the main campaign is varied and an accurate interpretation and interesting extension of the Manga. With its stunning visuals, fans of anime will love this thrilling journey through Toriyama’s iconic universe.

Cerealkillerz - Nick Erlenhof - German - 7.8 / 10

Sand Land offers a nicely told story and, with its vehicles and many customization options, a special feature within the anime/manga adaptations. The visuals and Toriyama's charm are evident throughout the game and warm the heart. Unfortunately, the entire background music lags far behind, the battles outside the vehicles are not convincing and some dungeons drag on quite a bit.

Checkpoint Gaming - Pedro Cooray - 7.5 / 10

Sand Land is ambitious, full of ideas, and clearly wears its admiration of Toriyama's work on its sleeve. Your ever-growing pantheon of Bots is a highlight, letting you explore the world and take on enemies as you please. The town-rebuilding aspect is deeply rewarding, and the game becomes more beautiful as you keep playing. However, the abundance of menus required for crafting, the monotonous out-of-vehicle combat, and the endless fountain of repetitive chatter mar an experience that's nonetheless worth experiencing. I think Sand Land is going to be the infrequent RPG I continue playing after review, but maybe on a better computer.

ComingSoon.net - Tyler Treese - 8.5 / 10

With top-notch presentation and a wonderful knack for exploration, Sand Land is a great action RPG that is worth playing.

Digital Trends - Tomas Franzese - 3 / 5

Sand Land is a definitive adaption of a great Akira Toriyama manga, but just fine as a game.

FandomWire - Luke Addison - 8 / 10

Sand Land has a lot to offer everyone, even those (like myself) that didn’t know the source material before hand. The standard RPG fare of unlocking new skills is there, as is the general structure of a good RPG, but what Sand Land does differently is the world it inhabits, the combat present (slow and sluggish at first, but a joy once you unlock everything for Beezlebub and the vehicles) and the atmosphere it allows. There’s always room for improvement, but as an Manga adaptation goes, I can now add Sand Land to Pokemon and Dragon Ball as games I’ll be keeping an eye out for.

GAMES.CH - Sven Raabe - German - 80%

Sand Land is a charming desert adventure that wonderfully captures the spirit of Akira Toriyama's work in its atmospheric game world, thrilling vehicle battles and exciting story. Even if there are a few game mechanics that are a bit sandy, this action RPG is a little insider tip.

GamePro - Dennis Michel - German - 75 / 100

Sand Land, peppered with great characters, is a real feel-good adventure for Toriyama fans, but it comes across as too shallow in terms of gameplay.

GameSpot - Richard Wakeling - 6 / 10

Sand Land's fantastic vehicular combat and adherence to the source material are let down by bland and repetitive stealth, melee combat, and mission design.

Gameblog - _SutterCane - French - 6 / 10

Our feelings about Sand Land The Video Game are mixed. On one hand, this is a perfect adaptation of the manga from Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball). It's absolutely gorgeous with phenomenal cel-shading and all the characters that we love. But the open world formula is too classic and the game suffers from a slow pace, narratives issues and a lack from impactful moments.

Gamer Guides - Chris Moyse - 62 / 100

Sand Land replicates both the unmistakable style and iconic character of Akira Toriyama’s work with color, authenticity, and passion. As an open-world adventure game, however, it is both conventional in gameplay and repetitive in design, resulting in a good-looking, great-sounding but overly simplistic adventure that nails the charm and aesthetic, but not the excitement and dynamism. A stylish but average escapede that never really gets out of first gear.

GamingTrend - Dominique McClain - 95 / 100

Sand Land is not just another adventure, it's a thrilling journey through the creative landscapes of Toriyama's imagination. It's an oasis of content ready to be explored form one grain of sand to the next. With Beelzebub leading the charge, this game promises a haven of juicy content and vibrant character development amidst the dry, vacant desert setting. All I want to say is that fans should eagerly anticipate the release, it's clear that Toriyama's legacy continues to captivate audiences that will draw you into worlds where even deserts are brimming with life. So, grab your favorite juice and prepare for an RPG experience that'll leave you parched for more!

Hey Poor Player - Lewis Maisel - 4.5 / 5

If you love Toriyama-san’s art style and world-building and share his love for vehicle design, then Sand Land is the game for you. With its unique blend of exploration, vehicular combat, unparalleled customization, and engaging narrative, the Sand Land video game is a manga brought to life.

Hobby Consolas - Daniel Quesada - Spanish - 82 / 100

He doesn't invent the wheel, but his recreation of the desert world and, above all, his vehicle battles give him a lot of personality. Ideal for those who want a light and very Toriyamesque adventure.

IGN - Michael Higham - 6 / 10

Sand Land’s vehicular focus shows potential, but devolves into a by-the-numbers open world action game with storytelling that only occasionally manages to live up to the joys of the original work.

IGN Spain - Rafa Del Río - Spanish - 8 / 10

Vehicles of all kinds, large scenarios and epic and endearing characters are the keys to Sand Land. A game that may not be a powerful triple A, but has plenty of elements to make manganime fans fall in love with an adventure that is one hundred percent Toriyama.

LevelUp - Dan Villalobos - Spanish - 8 / 10

If you want a story that hooks you from the start, meet a group of unforgettable characters, have the chance to explore a vast map full of secrets, and face a great challenge in every battle, SAND LAND is the game you've been looking for.

MonsterVine - Nick Mangiaracina - 4.5 / 5

Offering an incredibly fun story, lovely characters that will stick with you, a timeless art style, and a vast open world that will suck in hours of your time. Sand Land made its mark on my year and you should make room for it to make a mark on yours.

PC Gamer - Kerry Brunskill - 65 / 100

Sand Land is just another forgettable tie-in to add to the existing anime game pile.

PSX Brasil - Paulo Roberto Montanaro - Portuguese - 65 / 100

SAND LAND has its merits in respecting and expanding the original work of the legendary Akira Toriyama. But when it comes to narrative and design, it fails in combat and exploration systems: as generic and uninteresting as a desert full of sand and... more sand.

Press Start - James Wood - 7.5 / 10

A stunningly realised rendition of Akira Toriyama's work, Sand Land matches its aesthetics with fun, breezy systems and a charming, if clumsy, tale of war, friendship, and hope.

Push Square - Robert Ramsey - 8 / 10

Broken down into individual pieces, Sand Land doesn't do anything particularly amazing, but when taken as a whole, this is one of the best anime-based games that we've played in a long time. It's got plenty of great story moments, its open world structure is moreish, and combat is satisfyingly solid. A robust and lovingly crafted adventure that charms from start to finish.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Alice Bell - Unscored

A great premise with fun characters becomes a boring, empty wasteland in itself, as Sand Land makes adventures in customised tanks uninteresting and desperately repetitive.

Saudi Gamer - Arabic - 7 / 10

SAND LAND has one of the best visuals that did the late legendary mangaka justice, controlling the vehicles is a treat to experience but sadly the weak storytelling and vehicles crafting system overstayed it's welcome, making some parts of this game boring, but beautiful to look at

Spaziogames - Gianluca Arena - Italian - 6.7 / 10

Sand Land is both a good licensed games, since it relies heavily on fidelity to the source material and good dialogues, and a formulaic open world action rpg, with a static structure and bad AI. It can still appeal to al Toriyama fans, thanks to its love for the original manga, but all of the other players will surely find much better options in both the ARPG genre and in the open world one.

Stevivor - Matt Gosper - 8 / 10

Beyond being a fun game to play, Sand Land is a great and timely example of the work of Akira Toriyama, and a reminder just how much more he was than just the Dragonball Z guy. Sand Land is its own thing – it was actually exciting to have a demon called a slime appear, and have it NOT be the dollop-shaped slime of the Dragon Quest series. While the vehicle combat system isn’t breaking any new ground, it still goes about things in its own, slightly odd way. It’s a breath of fresh, desert air – and I think there’s a few miles left in the tank yet.

TheGamer - Tessa Kaur - 2.5 / 5

I enjoyed my time with Sand Land, despite its many flaws. The vehicle gameplay feels great, and it’s the main pull for me – I didn’t mind that the side quests were pointless and the open world samey, because I had an incredibly powerful tank that could blow up small groups of enemies in two seconds. But if you’re hoping that this game will be the best adaptation of Toriyama’s manga series, you’re out of luck. I’d just watch the anime instead.

VideoGamer - Alex Raisbeck - 8 / 10

Sand Land is a charming ARPG romp thanks to its madcap cast of vehicles that manages not only to faithfully adapt Akira Toriyama’s vision, but to expand on it in his trademark style to create something that will delight newcomers and old-school manga-heads alike.

Wccftech - Nathan Birch - 8 / 10

Sand Land is a fitting farewell to Akira Toriyama as the game elevates itself above most digital adaptations of his work, delivering a well-presented story, solid action, and satisfying exploration. Some aspects of the game’s design may be a bit overfamiliar for open-world veterans, but newer players and fans just looking to explore a fresh world from the master will likely enjoy burying themselves in this sandy adventure.

Xbox Achievements - Josh Wise - 50%

A bright and vibrant world filled with dull combat and a plodding story.

XboxEra - Genghis Husameddin - 8 / 10

SAND LAND offers a big beautiful dust bowl for players to explore to their hearts’ content. I found its story and its characters to be the main driver for my playthrough, but the fun vehicle combat went hand-in-hand in my enjoyment of the game. A great adaptation of a legend’s work.

Game Information

Game Title: Sand Land
Platforms:

Xbox Series X/S (Apr 26, 2024)
PlayStation 5 (Apr 26, 2024)
PC (Apr 26, 2024)

Trailers:

Developer: ILCA, Inc.
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc.
Review Aggregator:
OpenCritic - 72 average - 56% recommended - 33 reviews

Critic Reviews

AltChar - Asmir Kovacevic - 80 / 100

For fans of the Sand Land manga series, this game is an absolute must-play. Boasting a compelling and emotionally rich storyline filled with twists and turns, coupled with engaging gameplay—particularly involving vehicles—the game offers another unforgettable Sand Land experience.

Atomix - Aldo López - Spanish - 80 / 100

Definitely not the perfect job was done in terms of gameplay, but at least it is a good tribute to the original work and therefore, to the author, who unfortunately was not able to see the finished project. So, if you were looking for something different and with a concept that is not just about fighting, it is very possible that you will find this game fun with the good customization options on vehicles.

But Why Tho? - Kyle Foley - 8.5 / 10

SAND LAND is a gorgeous and heartfelt game that brings together unlikely allies on an epic quest. It is fun to play, beautiful to look at, and an unforgettable journey for everyone to enjoy.

COGconnected - Jaz Sagoo - 78 / 100

Sand Land captures the heart and soul of Akira Toriyama’s classic tale. Jumping in a vehicle and fighting creatures is a highlight of the experience and overshadows the lackluster melee combat. Side quests are a little dull but the main campaign is varied and an accurate interpretation and interesting extension of the Manga. With its stunning visuals, fans of anime will love this thrilling journey through Toriyama’s iconic universe.

Cerealkillerz - Nick Erlenhof - German - 7.8 / 10

Sand Land offers a nicely told story and, with its vehicles and many customization options, a special feature within the anime/manga adaptations. The visuals and Toriyama's charm are evident throughout the game and warm the heart. Unfortunately, the entire background music lags far behind, the battles outside the vehicles are not convincing and some dungeons drag on quite a bit.

Checkpoint Gaming - Pedro Cooray - 7.5 / 10

Sand Land is ambitious, full of ideas, and clearly wears its admiration of Toriyama's work on its sleeve. Your ever-growing pantheon of Bots is a highlight, letting you explore the world and take on enemies as you please. The town-rebuilding aspect is deeply rewarding, and the game becomes more beautiful as you keep playing. However, the abundance of menus required for crafting, the monotonous out-of-vehicle combat, and the endless fountain of repetitive chatter mar an experience that's nonetheless worth experiencing. I think Sand Land is going to be the infrequent RPG I continue playing after review, but maybe on a better computer.

ComingSoon.net - Tyler Treese - 8.5 / 10

With top-notch presentation and a wonderful knack for exploration, Sand Land is a great action RPG that is worth playing.

Digital Trends - Tomas Franzese - 3 / 5

Sand Land is a definitive adaption of a great Akira Toriyama manga, but just fine as a game.

FandomWire - Luke Addison - 8 / 10

Sand Land has a lot to offer everyone, even those (like myself) that didn’t know the source material before hand. The standard RPG fare of unlocking new skills is there, as is the general structure of a good RPG, but what Sand Land does differently is the world it inhabits, the combat present (slow and sluggish at first, but a joy once you unlock everything for Beezlebub and the vehicles) and the atmosphere it allows. There’s always room for improvement, but as an Manga adaptation goes, I can now add Sand Land to Pokemon and Dragon Ball as games I’ll be keeping an eye out for.

GAMES.CH - Sven Raabe - German - 80%

Sand Land is a charming desert adventure that wonderfully captures the spirit of Akira Toriyama's work in its atmospheric game world, thrilling vehicle battles and exciting story. Even if there are a few game mechanics that are a bit sandy, this action RPG is a little insider tip.

GamePro - Dennis Michel - German - 75 / 100

Sand Land, peppered with great characters, is a real feel-good adventure for Toriyama fans, but it comes across as too shallow in terms of gameplay.

GameSpot - Richard Wakeling - 6 / 10

Sand Land's fantastic vehicular combat and adherence to the source material are let down by bland and repetitive stealth, melee combat, and mission design.

Gameblog - _SutterCane - French - 6 / 10

Our feelings about Sand Land The Video Game are mixed. On one hand, this is a perfect adaptation of the manga from Akira Toriyama (Dragon Ball). It's absolutely gorgeous with phenomenal cel-shading and all the characters that we love. But the open world formula is too classic and the game suffers from a slow pace, narratives issues and a lack from impactful moments.

Gamer Guides - Chris Moyse - 62 / 100

Sand Land replicates both the unmistakable style and iconic character of Akira Toriyama’s work with color, authenticity, and passion. As an open-world adventure game, however, it is both conventional in gameplay and repetitive in design, resulting in a good-looking, great-sounding but overly simplistic adventure that nails the charm and aesthetic, but not the excitement and dynamism. A stylish but average escapede that never really gets out of first gear.

GamingTrend - Dominique McClain - 95 / 100

Sand Land is not just another adventure, it's a thrilling journey through the creative landscapes of Toriyama's imagination. It's an oasis of content ready to be explored form one grain of sand to the next. With Beelzebub leading the charge, this game promises a haven of juicy content and vibrant character development amidst the dry, vacant desert setting. All I want to say is that fans should eagerly anticipate the release, it's clear that Toriyama's legacy continues to captivate audiences that will draw you into worlds where even deserts are brimming with life. So, grab your favorite juice and prepare for an RPG experience that'll leave you parched for more!

Hey Poor Player - Lewis Maisel - 4.5 / 5

If you love Toriyama-san’s art style and world-building and share his love for vehicle design, then Sand Land is the game for you. With its unique blend of exploration, vehicular combat, unparalleled customization, and engaging narrative, the Sand Land video game is a manga brought to life.

IGN - Michael Higham - 6 / 10

Sand Land’s vehicular focus shows potential, but devolves into a by-the-numbers open world action game with storytelling that only occasionally manages to live up to the joys of the original work.

IGN Spain - Rafa Del Río - Spanish - 8 / 10

Vehicles of all kinds, large scenarios and epic and endearing characters are the keys to Sand Land. A game that may not be a powerful triple A, but has plenty of elements to make manganime fans fall in love with an adventure that is one hundred percent Toriyama.

LevelUp - Dan Villalobos - Spanish - 8 / 10

If you want a story that hooks you from the start, meet a group of unforgettable characters, have the chance to explore a vast map full of secrets, and face a great challenge in every battle, SAND LAND is the game you've been looking for.

MonsterVine - Nick Mangiaracina - 4.5 / 5

Offering an incredibly fun story, lovely characters that will stick with you, a timeless art style, and a vast open world that will suck in hours of your time. Sand Land made its mark on my year and you should make room for it to make a mark on yours.

PC Gamer - Kerry Brunskill - 65 / 100

Sand Land is just another forgettable tie-in to add to the existing anime game pile.

PSX Brasil - Paulo Roberto Montanaro - Portuguese - 65 / 100

SAND LAND has its merits in respecting and expanding the original work of the legendary Akira Toriyama. But when it comes to narrative and design, it fails in combat and exploration systems: as generic and uninteresting as a desert full of sand and... more sand.

Press Start - James Wood - 7.5 / 10

A stunningly realised rendition of Akira Toriyama's work, Sand Land matches its aesthetics with fun, breezy systems and a charming, if clumsy, tale of war, friendship, and hope.

Push Square - Robert Ramsey - 8 / 10

Broken down into individual pieces, Sand Land doesn't do anything particularly amazing, but when taken as a whole, this is one of the best anime-based games that we've played in a long time. It's got plenty of great story moments, its open world structure is moreish, and combat is satisfyingly solid. A robust and lovingly crafted adventure that charms from start to finish.

Rock, Paper, Shotgun - Alice Bell - Unscored

A great premise with fun characters becomes a boring, empty wasteland in itself, as Sand Land makes adventures in customised tanks uninteresting and desperately repetitive.

Saudi Gamer - Arabic - 7 / 10

SAND LAND has one of the best visuals that did the late legendary mangaka justice, controlling the vehicles is a treat to experience but sadly the weak storytelling and vehicles crafting system overstayed it's welcome, making some parts of this game boring, but beautiful to look at

Spaziogames - Gianluca Arena - Italian - 6.7 / 10

Sand Land is both a good licensed games, since it relies heavily on fidelity to the source material and good dialogues, and a formulaic open world action rpg, with a static structure and bad AI. It can still appeal to al Toriyama fans, thanks to its love for the original manga, but all of the other players will surely find much better options in both the ARPG genre and in the open world one.

Stevivor - Matt Gosper - 8 / 10

Beyond being a fun game to play, Sand Land is a great and timely example of the work of Akira Toriyama, and a reminder just how much more he was than just the Dragonball Z guy. Sand Land is its own thing – it was actually exciting to have a demon called a slime appear, and have it NOT be the dollop-shaped slime of the Dragon Quest series. While the vehicle combat system isn’t breaking any new ground, it still goes about things in its own, slightly odd way. It’s a breath of fresh, desert air – and I think there’s a few miles left in the tank yet.

TheGamer - Tessa Kaur - 2.5 / 5

I enjoyed my time with Sand Land, despite its many flaws. The vehicle gameplay feels great, and it’s the main pull for me – I didn’t mind that the side quests were pointless and the open world samey, because I had an incredibly powerful tank that could blow up small groups of enemies in two seconds. But if you’re hoping that this game will be the best adaptation of Toriyama’s manga series, you’re out of luck. I’d just watch the anime instead.

VideoGamer - Alex Raisbeck - 8 / 10

Sand Land is a charming ARPG romp thanks to its madcap cast of vehicles that manages not only to faithfully adapt Akira Toriyama’s vision, but to expand on it in his trademark style to create something that will delight newcomers and old-school manga-heads alike.

Wccftech - Nathan Birch - 8 / 10

Sand Land is a fitting farewell to Akira Toriyama as the game elevates itself above most digital adaptations of his work, delivering a well-presented story, solid action, and satisfying exploration. Some aspects of the game’s design may be a bit overfamiliar for open-world veterans, but newer players and fans just looking to explore a fresh world from the master will likely enjoy burying themselves in this sandy adventure.

Xbox Achievements - Josh Wise - 50%

A bright and vibrant world filled with dull combat and a plodding story.

XboxEra - Genghis Husameddin - 8 / 10

SAND LAND offers a big beautiful dust bowl for players to explore to their hearts’ content. I found its story and its characters to be the main driver for my playthrough, but the fun vehicle combat went hand-in-hand in my enjoyment of the game. A great adaptation of a legend’s work.

Stories in reading order. Standalone stories can be read in any order (or not at all), although significant story arcs may mention and be built up from standalone stories. However, the end of certain arcs may require knowledge of characters and events from certain Standalone stories.
Welcome to the thrilling finale of this arc of Aster Mills! There will be more soon- but this brings the four part centerpiece to a close- and sets up a new, terrifying villain!

Whalesong I: Aster and the World of Brilliant Light

Aster and the False God of Stories (Standalone)
Aster and the Whisperling Storm (Standalone)
Aster and the Harpy King (Part One) - Ogland Bridge Arc
Aster and the Harpy King (Part Two) - Ogland Bridge Arc
Aster and the Numerology of Dead Gods (Standalone)
Aster and the Belly of the Whale (Part One) - Corpse Sea Arc (Standalone)
Aster and the Belly of the Whale (Part Two) - Corpse Sea Arc (Standalone)
Aster and the Harpy King (Part Three) - Ogland Bridge Arc
Aster and the Harpy King (Part FouFinale) - Ogland Bridge Arc

Whalesong II: Aster and the Death of the Ether

Aster and the Lord of the Forest - Standalone
Aster and the Child of Grain (I: Burial Rites) - Child of Grain Arc
Aster and the Child of Grain (II: Poison and Pesticide) - Child of Grain Arc
Aster and the Sa Aterro Tomb (Part One) - The Remnant Arc (Standalone)
Aster and the Sa Aterro Tomb (Part Two) - The Remnant Arc (Standalone)
Aster and the Child of Grain (III: Open Flame) - Child of Grain Arc
You're Reading: Aster and the Child of Grain (IV: Consuption) - Child of Grain Arc
IV: Consumption
“We are assuming the target is the main Verne and Sons Logging operation downstream,” Julian began, an enchanted clay model depicting the location. “Several temp buildings here.”
Thylum shook his head and folded his hand. The clay model changed, zooming out nearby, so that we viewed an entirely different set of buildings. “There’s also this mining operation run by Verne and Sons,” Thylum informed. “This may also be a target.”
“This is true,” Quint added, “but does the Free Orchard have the numbers to attack and neutralize both?”
Matt looked up from his notes. “I saw about twenty, maybe thirty people at the meeting earlier. Assuming that Verne and Sons does not hire magicians it is an easy victory for the Orchard.”
I realized something- we’d seen Kryse Family diplomats at the Free Orchard meeting. I did a quick google search on their family. “The Kryse’s are stakeholders in Verne and Sons,” I said, speaking up. “They will defend their interests.”
Quint muttered something rude to himself, then spoke. “The Kryse’s don’t get along with us.” This was true. The Kryse’s were attuned to the ether, but they seemed to care more about their family’s interests in control and money more than the natural order.
Julian nodded along. “I can extend a message to the Kryse Family,” he offered. “Though I fear they could use this opportunity to wipe both us and the Free Orchard off the map.”
“Best not,” I decided. “Has Fern contacted us yet?”
Fern had stayed behind, an agent within the Free Orchard, so that we could plan ahead of time, know their plans.
“Not yet,” Quint told. “And night quickly approaches- we must ready our people.”
It was time to draw battle plans. Assuming that both targets would be attacked by the terrorists, we needed a dual defense. The sites were less than a few miles from each other.
But it was quickly settled. Julian’s people- followers of the New Gods would attack the mining operation, where their powers, stemming from the reflection of mankind would be strongest.
Quint and the Wanderer Society would combat the Free Orchard at the logging site, where the woods met machines. There, at the frontier of man and nature we would be strongest.
And then Fern called in, out in the woods outside the museum. The sun was setting, and the Orchard prepared.
We discussed our plans with her. She confirmed our suspicions. “The Child is leading the attack on the logging operation,” she started, “and the Father is taking on the mine- 20 people each.”
We had vastly underestimated their yield. “They outnumber us two to one,” Matt murmured. “I do not like those odds.”
“And where are you heading?” I asked.
Fern looked around, afraid. “The woods.” I nodded and told her we’d meet there. And so it began. There was no time for quips, for jokes- this was a time of dark tidings.
We sat in an inconspicuous car now, traveling the road, watching it all pass by. A caravan of cars, Julian’s people ahead of us, and mine leading the group.
We needed to get there before the Orchard, to set up our own defenses. Thylum readied himself, practicing shape signs upon a rock. Matt nervously cocked his rifle and checked it.
I slipped on my Whalebone gloves, attuning myself to the true world. The universe resonated with me, and I felt the presence of all things.
Quint steadied his driving. And in the blink of an eye, we were there.
I got out and steadied myself, feeling the pain of the earth. Four temporary buildings, large and rectangular sat in the distance. Workers ate and laughed, entering each- two housing units, a storage building, and a little cafeteria and gathering place.
Two people approached the group of us, in business suits.
I recognized one from earlier. “I am Ellie Kryse,” she introduced. “If you are here to strike down this operation-”
I shook my head. “We’re here to stop the Free Orchard.” She and her partner whispered something. “If they win here- they will prove they can win everywhere.”
The man nodded, to this. “I thought the Wanderer Society would support the goal of the Orchard.”
Quint shook his head tentatively. “In environmental restoration, yes,” he answered. “But not through senseless violence. We’ve had our differences-” I knew the Kryse Family had routinely been messing senselessly with the ether before, “-but we cannot let the Free Orchard succeed.”
I personally had only read up on the Kryses, but I’d never fought with or against one. But I knew they were inextricably intelligent, manipulating individuals.
Ellie shook her head in disgust. “The thought of working with a Mognis sickens me,” she murmured. “But this is a necessary alliance.” The man beside her nodded.
“And will you people stop trying to open a door into the Other Side?” Quint remarked, half joking.
The Other Side was a concept- the world where all the creatures of magic were beginning to cross over to, returning home. “Not our division,” the man replied, a smile on his face. “Sworn enemy or not, this will make us even.”
“What does he mean?” Thylum asked.
Quint smirked. “Not important- I’d helped them out before, and we’ll take this as a return favor.”
“Any other favors you’d like to cash in?” Matt suggested. He checked his phone, an app Julian had made us download. “Fern’s tracker shows them arriving here in ten minutes.”
“We’d best get started,” Ellie decided. “Basil- inform Anacoretta of this new development- I want resources as soon as possible. Oh,” she looked over at two workers eyeing us, “send all the workers to their quarters and lock it- we can’t have more loose threads.”
“I thought Anacorreta died,” Quint pointed out.
Basil turned around as he went to do his bidding. “You have your secrets. We have ours.” Quint shrugged and nodded. He turned to us then, and began instruction. “We’re going to make a shield!”
“Which ritual?” someone asked. In the distance, workers walked over to the large white building that housed them. Basil closed the doors, and with a prick of a knife, cast a spell, locking them in.
Quint thought a bit. “None you guys know- an old trick of mine.” He continued quickly- we worked together, spreading out and pressing our hands against the dirt.
“Why lock the workers in?” I asked. “Wouldn’t it be safer to send them to town?”
Ellie shook her head. “These workers know too much- my family must not lose them.” That sounded shady. But this was the cost of our alliance.
Quint chanted something, and a line encircled the camp, a slight haze in the air- a barrier between the site and the outside world.
Ellie clapped slowly. “The Mognis half of the Zhi Vernysis.” She nodded, approving. “Let me and Basil complete the second half- the Shi Matyreo.”
There was clearly something more to these people and their relationship with Quint, and by extension- the Mognis name.
But now was not the time for questions. “Three minutes!” Matt shouted, readying his weapon.
Ellie and Basil held hands and chanted something- the skies seemed to darken, and the barrier reinforced itself, hastily vibrating with power. Thylum folded his hands, and the small rock he’d been carrying flung itself at the barrier- and it vaporized.
“It works,” Quint hoped. “We end the ritual now.”
“Agreed- anymore and the Knowing One will witness all,” Ellie murmured. Whatever their connection- it was a question for another day.
“They’re here,” Matt informed, pointing behind us- the woods. The shield perimeter wrapped around and remained strong as we moved to view them.
The Child, now older, fourteen, fifteen by the look of it drew closer, until he was right at the edge of the shield wall.
“You join us, Whale Worshipper,” he smiled, gently speaking. “Do you join us in victory?”
I shook my head. “I have a name. Aster.”
The Child studied the shield, his followers gathering behind him. I saw Fern too, eyeing me. “I do not,” the Child confessed. “They say I will bring calmness to the world. Peace.”
“When all things die, there is silence,” I responded. “That is no calm prayer.”
The Child pressed his hands against the shield and winced in pain- or was it annoyance. “I am that which would bring calmness to the world. There is no change without action. And this action will teach us to be tranquil, one with nature. It will-” he removed his hands, “bring a state of peace.”
I shrugged, “Still not a name,” I informed. “The Child that Will Bring Peace just isn’t speakable.”
The elderly woman who joined him gave me a look. “Do not tease the Child,” she warned.
The Child waved her away. “It is alright. Perhaps that will be my name,” he decided, “a name that is a state of peace.”
“What’s that?” I asked, talking through my teeth.
“I am Zen,” he decided, both a declaration of name and state of mind. He was irredeemably peaceful as he spoke, even as his words carried the ideas of death. “And you will not succeed tonight.” He leaned closer and whispered, “Even with your spy in our midst- do not worry for her safety. She is attuned- and thus worthy of safety.”
With that, Zen stepped back and ordered for his people to attack.
And so they did- the old woman sent fiery salamanders conjured from the mind onto the shield- which vaporized it completely. A younger man reached to the skies- and birds, now enchanted, came crashing down- blood erupting over the perimeter.
The folk elements crashed onto the shield- but it held strong.
Zen held up a hand and his people stopped. “You use the beginning of a ritual and use its energy for defense,” he inspected, declaring this to all. “I applaud the ingenuity- but,” he stepped forward.
I readied myself, walking back. Matt raised his rifle and chose a target. So did the rest of our people. The two Kryse’s began to invoke the name of something ancient.
“The invoked remnant of a god is nothing compared to one born of the Ether.” And with that, he reached through the barrier, wincing in pain, and wrenched a way in- practically snarling.
And then cracks appeared in the barrier- and with a thundering snap it shattered- sparks of energy crackling around us.
Zen smiled as his people, small in number as they were, advanced. “Let us cleanse this rot from the Orchard.”
Matt struck first- a bolt of purified ether bursting from his rifle. Zen reached out and the bolt stopped midair- then transforming into a thousand seeds. The elderly woman drew breath, and drew a symbol in the air.
A circular projection diagram appeared- and fire burst forward- aiming at me and Quint.
I crushed my sea marble and water defended me- nullifying the flames. Quint elected for a more brazen approach- reaching into the flames and returning it to its sender.
A Fen-Masked servant struck forward from the smoke that had come from the fire, charging and pouncing like an animal at us. Thylum clasped his hands and mimed a slashing motion- the earth drew up and sent his assailant flying.
“We will handle the God-Child,” Ellie announced. “Basil- with me!” And the two spoke in tongues, then drawing forth blood from their fingertips.
“I will join you-” Quint drew forth his knife, and whispered vile words into it.
And so the three danced into battle, surrounding Zen. The God-Child smiled and drew forth the ether itself, sending hissing daggers at the three.
Three Orchard members set their sights on me- the elderly Firebreather and her two aides, a man and a woman. Their tattoos glistened and burnt with ancient folk magic.
I had dealt with rogue Salamander Worshippers before. I looked around- both Matt and Thylum were preoccupied with their own battles. Everyone else too, was locked in war.
Water against fire- the three drew up triangular diagrams- and a concentrated pillar of fire drilled against my water layer. I felt the ether course through me-
-and with a decisive push I collapsed my barrier into my own diagram- a six pointed hexagram.
Theirs was a pillar of fire- mine drew forth spirits of water beyond our world- strange liquid beings now at my aid. But I had to be quick- invocation was not my strongest suit.
I left the diagram to defend itself. Now I drew another weapon- a book. For the Whale was the god of storytelling- and the ink drew itself to life. It was a record of my travels- and I drew forth its words.
The spirit of the whale washed over me as serpentine ink dragons erupted from it, coiling and snapping at the Firebreathers.
The diagram I’d made melted away as I drew my attention to the ink, collapsing back into a marble. But it had done its duty- the water had extinguished and weakened the flame.
The ink swirled and in my mind’s eye I saw the stories of the three- and the loss of their ancestral home when the companies of oil and gold found what they sought.
The ink had exhausted them now, replaying their darkest memories- I raised a hand to their head and whispered softly, giving them the gift of sleep and story in dream.
Three down. I looked up to see how the battle fared.
Matt fired and dispatched the Fen-Follower I’d seen. Thylum warped the clothes of a fleeing man, incapacitating him. Our people pushed back against the terrorists, drawing forth the sleeping names of ancient deities.
A bolt of lightning struck near me- but Fern stopped it with a strange sandy liquid- she had given up the act and fought with us now.
We were on the verge of victory.
And then Ellie screamed in agony, and I saw her on her knees, Zen pressing his palm into her head. Quint and Basil went cast aside, quickly scrambling to get up.
But it was too late- Zen smiled grimly and he pushed the Kryse woman away. She got up and tried to strike back, but failed. And then she gasped in horror as flowers began to bloom on her arm.
And then her chest. Her wrists, her knees- and suddenly from within her throat, now choking. And then she backed away and fell- then freezing in place as her entire body was transmuted into a flower-filled tree.
The Kryses, working with Quint, were powerful. But the child of a god would always make them seem small. But her fight and sacrifice had bought us enough time to turn it into a victory.
Quint practically hissed and leapt from the earth- strange serrated knife plunging into Zen, who snarled in pain.
The carvings on the knife began to glow- draining Zen away. Quint plunged it out and recollected himself.
Zen backed away, not terrified, but oddly calm. “My children,” he began, coughing, “we cannot win like this- regroup!”
His words were less honeyed now, instead blunt, crushing. I was almost tempted to walk with him. His followers obeyed, and they retreated to a distance.
“Ellie,” Basil whispered, a tear in his eye. “He killed my sister!“
Quint reached for him and brought him up. “And he will kill many more if we don’t act now- we need to create another barrier.”
Basil shook his head in defeat. “He’ll just break it again like the first time.”
“No he won’t- the poisons carved into this knife is Gu from the five noxious creatures- its toxins will keep him at bay- for now,” Quint informed. He sighted me and nodded.
I relayed the information to our people.
“I recall that knife being an heirloom of my people,” Basil hissed.
“Before it was Krysian the knife belonged to the Adyr,” Quint insisted. “Now cast the damn ritual!”
We drew to the earth.
Quint and Basil chanted- and the shield perimeter emerged again, smaller- we had been pushed back towards the worker quarters, who banged at the doors, confused.
Quint and Basil focused themselves. I took the lead. “How many dead?!” I snapped. “Injured?”
Thylum counted- so did I. “Two- three dead,” he murmured. “All of us have suffered injuries- one unconscious.”
I checked myself- I’d suffered burns, but nothing that couldn’t be erased with a spell. “Our enemies?”
Matt appeared with a binocular. “We’ve taken six prisoner- three of which you dealt with,” he answered. “Three more of them dead outside the barrier- we’ve both faced major losses here.”
Fern handed me a piece of paper. “Took this from them when I had the chance- don’t know what language, though.” I stared at it- I didn’t understand it either.
I swore in Whaletongue and walked over to the barrier. Zen was tending to a dying follower, speaking sweet words as the follower passed from our world into the next.
“Zen!” I shouted. He closed the eyes of the dead and walked over. “Do you not see how violence brings only pain?!”
Zen looked oddly repentant now. “You appear to be correct,” he confessed. “I feel the pain of my followers- and yours. Perhaps violence begets only more pain and chaos.”
I was taken aback- I assumed he’d stay steadfast in his belief. “Then stop this! We can work together and find another way!”
Zen sat down, cross legged. I joined him. “I shall formulate a different plan to cleansing the earth,” he murmured. “But the world must be shown the true path- to reject the great machine and embrace the natural world once again.”
“And we can do that,” I replied. “But not through blood. Crushing those who stand in your way will only create martyrs and create another divide between those who can see beyond, and those who remain ignorant.”
Zen nodded solemnly. “The Father is wrong,” he realized. “Violence begets violence.”
He was more receptive than I’d thought. “Then stop this,” I insisted. “Join us instead.”
Zen closed his eyes and thought. “No,” he murmured. “This win would be a call to action,” he answered. “This is the only violence necessary- a sacrificial statement that will rouse the sleeping to my cause.”
He was right. “But those are still human lives!” I argued. “Just because it will remind the Attuned we need to fight for cane doesn’t make it moral!”
“Precisely so,” Zen said. “They’re human. Not attuned. Not like us- more than human. Their lives only ruin the earth-” he raised a hand to silence me, “but they do not deserve senseless pain.”
He was thinking now. “Then leave this!”
“They must die for our people to walk across the earth once again,” Zen decided. “Be ready, Whale-Follower,” he warned. “Masuya Daran will be here soon.”
He began to rise, to walk away. “What does that mean?!” I called.
Quint, exhausted, approached me, watching the demigod leave. “I’ve received word from Julian,” he started. “Their team has been defeated. They say an eighty percent casualty rate on our people and the miners.”
“And,” I continued, “I assume the Father is on his way here now?”
And then the skies lit up as a divine meteor pummeled the wall. We turned to the opposite side, the one facing the road. “I would say,” the long-lived man and his people, bloody drew outside, “he’s arrived.”
I readied myself, joining the rest of the group in the middle. We regrouped ourselves and cast a quick healing spell.
“If we die here,” Matt began, half joking, “I want you to know that your macarons are really not that bad.”
“What are you even talking about?” I wondered. Ahead of us, the Father began uttering a spell- and carvings began to be etched into the barrier, slowly weakening it. “I didn’t make any macaroons.”
Fern’s face went an odd shade. “I think he’s talking about mine.”
“I’ll have to try some,” I murmured. “Provided we win this.”
And then Zen emerged and shattered the weakened barrier, sparks once again erupting through the air.
And then it began again- we raised our weapons and made our stand- the few against the many.
My sphere was extinguished, so I opted for something deadlier. A little triangular chip, one which I bit- the power of the salamander coursed through my veins.
And then we fought- I breathed fire onto a man made of insects- he sent ants erupting all over be, stinging and devouring at me. Matt’s rifle was cut in half by a man with a sword- but he sent a punch to the throat.
Another Fen follower was locked in battle with Fern, slashing at her with claws. She drew back, and with the utterance of a spell, invoked snakevine from the earth around the fey-worshiper.
Basil Kryse and Quint Mognis, in unlikely alliance fought as a pair- their ancient knowledges working as two parts of a whole- there was more to their lore, I was certain.
Basil struck and uttered half a spell- and Quint concluded it- and three members of the Orchard erupted in black flame.
But this duality was met by Zen and the Father- the two pushing their people aside as they injured our people. The Father raised a knife to kill an old friend- but Zen stopped him, instead choosing to put him to sleep.
Our victories were minimal.
All around us there were too many of them- without the other team this stand meant nothing. And with the victory the Free Orchard had seized, every cut, every injury on both our sides was a sign they were right.
Zen and the Father sealed our fates- within minutes our agents were down- Fern too, and then Thylum.
Matt attempted to rush forwards, but Zen, with a flick of a finger, sent him sliding across the debris. “Father,” Zen began, “deal with the star-blooded. But do not kill them.”
“I will do so,” he answered, walking over.
Quint and Basil fought wildly- but they had extended their power too much, and fell quickly.
I backed away and found myself against the quarters of the workers. I had one option- to let them free and hope they’d live. Whatever secrets the Kryse’s were digging into here could be free, for all I cared.
Better than death.
I began to unlock the spell holding the door. “You will not let them free,” Zen ordered, behind me. “They must perish so that the ether may be restored.”
I ignored him and unlocked it. I opened the door to see terrified, confused workers. I turned to Zen and readied myself, ready to buy time. “If your call to action begins with blood-”
He cut me off and reached into the ether, dragging me aside through the dirt. The workers scrambled to run, but stalks of thorny field blocked the exit. “But this call to action will save so many- by bringing the Attuned to actions- we can fix the world.”
“How?!” I snapped. “You say you agree that violence is not the answer- but you haven’t explained yourself?!”
Zen knelt beside me. He snapped and fire burst through the field, unnatura fire that quickly spread across the building. And through screams he spoke in whispers. “Because you wouldn’t agree either way,” he murmured. The screams grew louder- he had won. “But it is the only option. Our forests are not bathed and grown blood- so we should not feed it blood and expect regrowth.”
“Then what?” I attempted to stand, but he pushed on me through the ether, holding me in place.
He began to speak of something else. “If there is anything to seek so revenge it is the seed of the earth. It is buried alive, but its persistence drives it forward.” He was the seed. A parable. “It is poisoned with pesticide and death. But it becomes stronger than ever. Then it is milled and burned in ovens and mills. And then what has it for its actions? For living?”
“It’s eaten,” I answered. “It’s grain.”
The screams began to die now- whatever otherworldly fire he had used was violently fast. “Humanity abuses the earth- my kind like this, but you, in the short words we have spoken have taught me more. Violence will forever cause persistence, cause divide.”
“Then what the hell do you want?”
Zen sat down, crosslegged again and nodded to himself.
He recited the parable from earlier.
"Does a rotted apple not poison the barrel? Should we not then cleanse the Orchard and ensure it is healthy and restored to order? Humanity is very much like an unkempt orchard- only those who respect the earth, connect to its very essence, ether should be kept.” It was different now.
“I,” he continued, “would not bring this about with violence- I would sterilize the Human Race in secret- save one- those connected to the true earth. We would end climate change- racial genocide, and restore the world to environmental balance- to natural order! For does a worm not remain in the ground? Does a bird not cling to the skies? Should humanity then not return to its natural place and respect the earth once more?”
“That’s-”
He silenced me. “Hush now, child of the free earth,” he assured. “I am patient. Our people would repopulate the earth. Father is not patient enough. His ideas of violence need to be proven in the Now. But why choose violence when you can elimate the enemy without shedding a scale of blood.”
Father approached us now, admiring the flames. “Child,” he began.
“My name is Zen,” he informed.
“We’re spreading our flyers everywhere,” he told. “I think our next target is the Paracell Oil-” and then he stopped, wincing. Zen stood up, matching his height. The Father coughed now, and petals drifted from his mouth.
“Your ideas are too violent,” Zen added. “They would cause- like here today, the bloodshed of our people too.”
He choked. “I summoned you!” More petals drifted. “A little sacrifice-”
“Hush now, child of the earth,” Zen whispered. I felt my own vision fading as Zen’s influence affected me. “You have lived too long, heard the song of the dead, too far. Your violence can only blossom.”
“I can change,” he coughed, dying, falling to his knees. “I will follow your lead.”
“I see all futures of my people,” Zen claimed. “And you would lead your sect into pain. Hush now, free child,” he assured. “You will rest in my Father’s domain.”
And with that, the Father blossomed into a thousand strange orchids. Zen looked at me, and with a clasping of the hand, sent me into dream.
When I awoke, it was morning. Quint was up, and so was everyone- though not for long.
“They’re all alive!” Quint shouted. I looked over, standing to see our people who had died- had risen with the sun. “Impossible.”
But the workers were all dead.
“It was Zen,” I murmured. “I think I’ve made him worse.”
Quint checked his phone- Julian’s team was fine, revived as the sun grew brighter.
“Don’t worry about it,” Matt spoke up, hand on my shoulder. “We’ll get through this.”
I shook my head. “I know we will,” I answered. “But the world may not.”
I picked up a poster held to the ground by a rock, drifting in the wind. My eyes looked over its manifesto, its call to action. They settled on the apple tree in the center of the page.
I focused on the two words below it. Two words that filled me with both hope and terrible disgust.
I read them aloud. “Free Orchard.”

Next Time: Aster and the Exorcism
Later Next Song: Aster and the Free Orchard

Drag and Drop Towns: Frost Bay
Coming up with all the locations and inhabitants of settlements can be very time consuming as a dm. That is why I came up with ‘Drag and Drop Towns’. These places can be inserted wholesale into any campaign or you can pick and choose what you want to include, for example you might just need a couple of taverns to help complete your town, or a general goods store for adventurers low on supplies. Feel free to adapt this location to your campaign as needed, for example changing NPC details or the system of governance. I have endeavoured to make it as user-friendly as possible and have included a map to show the layout of the town. If there is a shop, I include both its owner and inventory, if there is a temple, I provide a list of services with costs. It is compatible with Fifth Edition and suggestions for stat blocks are included for all NPCs. Finally, there are a couple of quest hooks for the area if your adventurers want to hang around or make some money.
Frost Bay
Frost Bay is a prosperous town located on a frigid coastline. It has a bustling harbour serving both local fisher people and merchants from further afield. The settlement is known for the barges it builds in its dockyard, which are perfect for both coastal travel and using the river to head to inland cities. In addition to the boatbuilding, the town has a strong fishing community and there is also a thriving timber and logging trade located about a day’s journey away. The town is divided into two areas, ‘The Warren’ located closer to the harbour, full of narrow, jumbled lanes, and ‘The Broads’, named due to the wider, more organised streets. This is the administrative and commercial heart of the town.
Notable Locations
~THE WARREN~
The Warren is the area of town including the large warehouse along the harbour front and the smaller streets behind them. It gets its name from the fact that there was no town planning when Frost Bay was originally founded, and thus the oldest streets are often narrow, numerous, and tending to run into dead ends. Houses tend to be built of logs and irregular in shape.
1. Dock Master’s Office: Positioned prominently along the docks, this wooden cabin is the nerve centre for all shipping to and from Frost Bay. All boats mooring in the harbour must report to the dock master, Ravea Avern (female, half elf, weather beaten skin and with steaks of silver running through her dark hair, use the Bandit Captain stat block) to pay the fees (1-15GP per day, depending on the size of the vessel and whether it is commercial or not).
2. Townsguard Quarters: The town’s barracks are protected by a spiked wooden wall and provide sleeping and resting quarters for those members who require it. It also contains a small training yard and the clashing of metal and wood can be heard from several streets away. In total, there are around 100 guards employed by the town, split into night and day shifts. The Guard Captain, Gus Yeowell (male, human, tall and solidly built with a serious expression on his face at all times, veteran) has his office in the Town Hall (see below). Guards your players might encounter include: Leigh, Neale, Anselm, Ronnie, Juli, Eva, Selma.
3. Colwills (fishmongers): Located on the ground floor of a large warehouse in a prime dockside position, the town’s Fisher’s Guild sell their catch from here. It is run by the head of the guild, Anna Colwill (female, human, a large lady with a dominating presence, commoner). The catch of the day is sold by weight, 2-5cp for a small fish or a fillet or 8cps for a larger whole fish. Salmon and dabs are the most common fish for the area.
4. Truscottes (general goods store): Tucked away a few roads back from the seafront, this store sells basic equipment from the ‘Players Handbook’ worth less than 2gp and hunting traps. There are 1d4+1 of each item available in stock. It is run by Ula Kass (female, gnome, wears small, round glasses on the end of her nose and sits perched on a high stool behind the counter, commoner).
5. The Jaunty Seagull (tavern): A fairly low-end tavern frequented by sailors and dockworkers. The walls are decorated with a variety of flotsam and jetsam, including interesting shaped wood, crates used as shelving and netting at the windows. Speciality dish is a chunky meat rillettes served with pickled cabbage (4cp). Otherwise bread and cheese is also served (3cp). A mug of dark, bitter ale costs 3cp and small, sparsely furnished rooms can be booked for 1sp per person per night. The tavern is run by Daniel and Ellissa Wroe (human, harried looking but very friendly. Daniel walks with a slight limp and is often in the kitchen whilst Elissa wears a spotless, embroidered apron and is front of house. Both use the commoner stat block). Diggory (human, male, elderly, retired dock worker, commoner) is a regular at the bar.
6. Muscles (blacksmiths): The sound of metallic clanking and banging can be heard from several streets away and a plume of smoke rises from the store. Looking in from the outside, you can see bellows pumping and hammers rising and falling, all without any helping hands. Burgell “Muscles” Dunben (male, gnome, scrawny with wild ginger hair, use the mage stat block), the owner of the establishment, has used his inventive, artificer knowledge to mechanise the process of creating armour and weapons. He sells medium armour and metal melee weapons (1d6+2 daggers, 1d4+1 handaxes, 1d4+1 light hammers, one mace, 1d4 sickles, 1d4+1 spears, 1d4 short swords, one long sword) and has one heavy crossbow (all at Players Handbook prices). Burgell is willing to make custom mundane weapons, but that would cost extra and involve time (3 days for a simple item, up to a month for something more complex).
7. Hodgson’s (blacksmiths): Located at the edge of the Warren, Hodgson’s is the local blacksmith serving the townsfolk. It sells simple metal items like nails, horseshoes and other household goods. It is run by Kurt Hodgson (male, human, big black beard that he ties behind his neck when he is working, commoner but with a strength of 15) and his husband Milo Leaftread (male, halfling, chubby with permanently red cheeks, commoner).
8. Busby’s (butchers): Located by the river, this butchers sells meat to the Warren (3-7cp for basic cuts of beef and pork, 4cp for a whole rabbit). Run by Ronat Busby (female, dwarf, white blond hair cropped short, commoner).
9. Shrine to the Sea Domain God (e.g. Poseidon or Njord): Small wooden shrine depicting a huge wave. There are multiple offerings left at its base including coins (2d20+5 cp, 1d6 sp), dried seaweed, seaglass and shells.
10. Kraken Boatworks: An artificial dock area where boats are built. The area smells of fresh wood shavings and barges with logs are constantly arriving. The builders produce both sailing boats for the open sea (3000gp for a small fishing vessel up to 10,000gp for a larger cargo boat) and barges for river and coastal travel (7500-10,000gp).
~THE BROADS~
This area of the town is set back from the harbour, but the poshest buildings tend to be riverside. The administrative centre of the town is here, as are the larger shops. The majority of the residential roads are also included in this section, though the houses get smaller the further from the river you go. Streets are wide and paved with stone, whilst the houses tend to be timber framed.
11. The Famous Little Store (antiques): This shop is located in the main shopping district, its glass window displays an artfully arranged selection of “antiques” from upholstered chairs, bronze statues and boxes full of old fashioned brooches and necklaces. It sells random non-magic trinkets and junk from 5cp (a small ceramic statue) to 75gp (questionable artwork). A DC18 charisma (persuasion) check will reveal that the shop also has one pair of Eyes of Minute Seeing in stock for 350gp. The store is run by Tomas Dunn (male, human, middle aged, balding and always looks bored, commoner).
12. The Mermaid’s Modesty (tavern): A hanging wooden sign of a mermaid clutching some shells in rather convenient locations proclaims this tavern. It is lively with seating areas both inside and outside and a long bar running the length of the room. Their speciality dish is meatballs cooked in a creamy, mushroom sauce for 2sp, but they also sell a basic meat stew with dumplings and carrots for 1sp. You can be served a pitcher of a dry, white wine or a heavy red wine for 2sp or a mug of pale ale for 5cp. Rooms are available at 7sp per person per night and includes breakfast of porridge served with jam. The tavern is run by a pair of tieflings, Honour (female with gazelle horns and dark green hair, commoner) and Hektor (male with rams horns, red skin and hair, commoner). On busy nights they are assisted by a couple of waiters: Leah and Toby. The Mermaid’s Modesty is actually a front for smugglers (or any other criminal organisation), a passive perception score of 14 or higher will allow the player to notice that occasionally people go to the bar and then get led through the door behind it. A DC18 wisdom (perception) check will reveal that they seem to be saying “The seagulls are looking healthy today” to one of the tieflings behind the bar.
13. Spencer Thorn Book Shop (book shop and stationers): A small store with shelves upon shelves of books, scrolls and other tomes. It sells parchment (1sp a sheet) and ink (10gp for a bottle), books on local history (15-30gp), maps of the nearby area (10gp), and a small selection of fiction (5gp – mainly mystery stories following the adventures of a dwarf detective named Inspector Dew). The shop is run by Spencer Thorn (male, half-orc, elderly and walks with a cane, commoner) who can be found in the store sitting on a comfy chair with his nose in a book. He is willing to purchase any interesting books adventurers have found on their travels, with a particular interest in historical and geographical tomes.
14. The Town Hall: The largest building in the town. The ground floor contains the office of the Guard Captain, Gus Yeowell and a notice board for local jobs and opportunities, while the upper floors contain the council workers and chambers. The town council is composed by a representative from the Crown (or any other ruling body), and the heads of the Fishers’, Boat Builders’, and Merchants’ guilds. Currently on the council are Oghda Greenbarrow (Crown representative, female, dwarf, slim and uses a wheelchair to get around longer distances, noble), Anna Colwill (Fishers’, see above), Drake Copper (Merchants’, male, human, ambitious, noble) and Heledrial Vostnaer (Boat Builders’’, non binary, elf, long brown hair tied in elaborate braids and a soft, whispering voice, commoner).
15. The Crab Shack (tavern): The most expensive and high class tavern in the town. The tavern specialises in seafood and their dish of the day is locally caught, fresh fish served with sautéed potatoes and samphire (9sp). They are also famous for their crab cakes (5sp). Fine wine costs 10gp a bottle, cold light ales are available for 1sp and they also offer after dinner glasses of cognac for 5sp a glass. Rooms are light and airy, with many offering delightful views of the river and town hall. They can be booked for 2gp per person per night. The tavern is run by Cristin and Gotleib Wohne (male, humans; one is skinny and tall, the other shorter and more rotund. Both have pale skin and blonde hair. Commoner). They are helped by a number of waiters: Felix, Fenella, Reuben and Karla.
16. The Trading Post (general goods store): This store sells good from the Player’s Handbook up to 10gp in value. It is run by Gertrude Mann (female, human, curly red hair, commoner).
17. Polmorla Bakery (bakery): Considered the best bakery in the town, you can buy fresh bread and cakes during the morning and early afternoon from here. Their speciality is a green braided loaf made with dried seaweed (5cp). The bakery is run by Arriel Dunbar (female, half elf, dark skin and close cropped hair, commoner).
18. Nanny Wendy’s Fudge Shop (confectionary shop): Here you can buy a small bag of fudge for 2cp and a large bag for 5cp. It is small, smells strongly of sugar, and is run by Nanny Wendy herself (female, human, elderly with curly white hair, she wears several hand-knitted shawls around her shoulders even though the shop is warm, commoner).
19. Bleujen’s Jewellers (jewellery and components): A store located very close to the town hall. Its large windows are full of beautiful jewellery arranged on dark blue velvet cloths. Inside you can buy all sorts of jewellery and some of the specialist components for magic (for example, gem stones or gold figures etc.). It is run by Elloquin Bleujen (male, elf, serious and snobby with a very posh accent, noble).
20. Furs and Finery (clothing store): This store sells good quality clothing, including items suitable for adventuring. Warm cloaks can be purchased for 7gp (with a fur lining increases the price to 15gp) and other fancy clothing can be bought for 4-6gp. Two sets of padded armour are also available to purchase (5gp each). The store is run by Paeris Ralothana (non binary, gnome, long silver hair, commoner).
21. Lansdowne Stables (stables and livery): Located on the main road leading inland from the town, the stables provide both horses for sale and stalls for horses to be kept in overnight. They have 1d4+2 riding horses (80gp) and 1d6+3 draft horses (60gp) available at any time. They can also provide the riding equipment for a mount (saddle, bit, bridle, etc. for 12gp), a wagon (35gp) and saddlebags (4gp). Horses can be stabled with them for 3sp per night per horse (including food and exercise). The stables are run by Sascha Waldmann (female, human, has a chipped front tooth, commoner).
22. Temple of the Life/ Light Domain God: This light and airy temple is located on a bustling town square and is made from a carved, pale wood. There are lots of windows to let in light and it seems as though the whole place glows with an inner radience. Several acolytes are always in attendance and during the daylight hours the head priest, Pengenna (female, elf, looks to be in her late middle age though her strawberry blonde hair contains no silver or white, priest). Non-magical medical care can be provided for 2sp a day, or 1gp per day if major care is needed. Cure wounds can be cast up to third level by Pengenna at 25gp per level and a cast of lesser restoration will cost 50gp. In addition, adventurers can purchase flasks of holy water for 25gp (1d4+1 available), incense up to the total cost of 10gp and amulets of the god’s symbol for 3gp.
23. Temple to the Orde Justice Domain God: In a prime position close to the Town Hall and the River, is a temple dedicated to the law, order and justice deity. Its angular stone front almost seems to be looking at the Town Hall, as though the god is keeping a close eye on what the councillors are doing. The head priest is Ranmir Gralleln (male, dwarf, deep red hair and beard with silver hair rings throughout, priest). Cure wounds can be cast up to third level by Ranmir at 25gp per level and a cast of lesser restoration will cost 50gp.
24. Shrine to the Nature Domain God: This small shrine is located alongside the river. It is comprised of a tall carved piece of wood depicting nature in all its various guises. There are often offerings to be found at the site, usually small trinkets, candles, incense and coins (1d20+4 copper and 1d4-1 silver). The site is looked after by Phoenicia Damasco (female, halfling, very skinny and nervous, druid).
25. Cemetery and Shrine to the Death Domain God: On the edge of the town, next to the forest, is the cemetery that serves Frost Bay. The majority of the graves are marked by small wooden tokens, though a couple have larger stone monuments above them. At the entrance to the site is the house of the undertaker and acolyte to the death domain god, Alex Norton (male, human, tall and gangly with a shock of dark hair, acolyte). One of the rooms of his house, accessible from the outside, serves as a shrine to the god and is always lit up by hundreds of candles.
Quest Hooks
SOMETHING FISHY GOING ON
Fisher folk have started to refuse to go to one of the prime crab fishing locations along the coast. As a result, the Crab Shack is no longer able to produce and sell its famous crab cakes. Desperate not to lose such a client (and other profits), Anna Colwill (see above) is looking to hire a band of adventurers to investigate what is going on. The fisher folk have reported sightings of ‘sea monsters’ and no longer go anywhere near the location. She is willing to pay 25gp per adventurer if they can provide proof that the problem is now over.
DISAPPEARANCES IN THE WARREN
Diggory (see above), a regular at the Jaunty Seagull, will tell anyone who enters the tavern that his friend, Konrad Gerhart, has gone missing. He insists that there have been other disappearances in the Warren too, but that that town’s guards are not doing anything about it. (Diggory has also placed hastily scrawled posters on the Town Hall notice board saying much the same). He does not have much money for a reward himself, only 10gp, but is sure that if evidence of wrongdoing is bought to the guards then they would also provide monetary recompense. On the second day after the characters receive this quest (or two days after they enter town) another citizen is reported missing, this time Kristina Ettlinger, the eldest daughter of a wealthy family. Can any adventurers solve this mystery and find what has happened to these people? (Coming soon as a Rogue Crow Adventure).

To download a pdf version of this document complete with the map of locations, please click this link to my substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/roguecrowadventures/p/drag-and-drop-towns-frost-bay?r=261vd2&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

This work includes material taken from the System Reference Document 5.1 (“SRD 5.1”) by Wizards of the Coast LLC and available at https://dnd.wizards.com/resources/systems-reference-document . The SRD 5.1 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License available at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

What to expect from Hell On Earth! - Guns in Tisy/Tri Kresta are slightly boosted because of a spawning issue that has been fixed. T3 Military Guns are not boosted but have better values so you will find a weapon. T1/2 are mainly attachments with some weapons but the good items are in T3/4. pristine/worn condition. Food and clothing have vanilla values with some items taken out since no one wears them. Livonia Weapons are the same slightly boosted but not over whelming. - Character loadout with jacket, cargo pants, candy canes, head torch, canteen, map, battery and knife! (This loadout is beginner friendly and will help you survive until you get to that town!) - Boosted stamina, weight matters but drainage isn’t fast. Will still need to take a break. - Raid 24/7, do not destroy tents, loot, or cars. You will be banned. - If you want to trade/rob/etc with other players you can do Mutual RP! Basically both players have to agree to an interaction once agreed anything goes. If one declines then both players must go their separate ways without retaliation. Please record all interactions if a problem occurs. - Food Decay is off, because DayZ spoils it too fast. - Towns have increased zombies, better do some stealth unless you have the ammo! - Traveling trader is now around Chernarus & Livonia! No Currency just request some items and a meet will be scheduled. Any T3/4/Contamination items will not be traded, that is for you to explore. - 1st/3rd PP - Heli Crashes are not frequent, so loot will be damn good! Livonia heli crashes has okay gear but bunker will be the best spot! More soldiers were killed in the crashes so be careful. - Bunker contain RARE loot, but can you make it through the hoard? - Vehicle have some internals and wheels but you’ll have to do the rest! - BUILD ANYWHERE - Just hop in and start surviving / NO DISCORD!. - Discipline system: Killing the trader or any players outside of Military/Police Zones is a permanent BAN!

[TW: Violence]
She was among a group of theorists who confined their thoughts to a screen.
We’re currently picking our way through the oldest, salvaged computer belonging to her friend and posting these Entries as we uncover them. We believe there are 8; we have not tampered with them in any way.
We will let their words speak for themselves.
Please help us find her.
Please come home, Autumn.
We are ready to forgive you.
--
Entry 0 - First Words:
[Hello to whoever this winds up in front of. Sorry for the impending rant, but I feel this context will be important moving forward]
My Uncle’s bunker has proven itself as an impressive mancave and beyond what I thought he was capable of making. It’s quickly become our go-to hangout and the base for our investigation. He was a man of many secrets so I doubt he built it on his own and I doubt we’ve seen all it has to offer.
He was also a paranoid man, a believer of the supernatural, and under the impression that something ‘evil’ was in our town. His obsessions were always subtle, until recently, and never a hindrance to our relationship.
I wish I’d asked him more questions and I wish I knew where he damned was.
As of this morning, he’s vanished, leaving only some coerced, frantic research and a little box I haven’t dared to open.
The words he scribbled on it don’t sit well with me, or the other five people down here sleeping amidst our notes and conspiracy wall.
I’ve been looking at what the others have put to paper and decided that the bunker’s computer, although a dinosaur, will make for a great diary. I hope that, at some point, I can move these Entries to a drive and then post them online once I get access to a computer very far away from town.
We don’t trust the internet here.
I’ve also shown the others how to work it, how to find this all, write their own and how to transfer it to USBs. They can then upload it themselves in the event I don’t.
Or can’t.
I’ve also got an old electronic organiser (if anyone remembers those - think of it as a digital journal) so I can draft some notes on the go before fleshing them out here.
Hopefully, my Uncle’s paranoia has finally been good for something and that this is all secure.
Moving on, I think the best way to log this is to recount the last few days until I’m caught up to where I am now (The 29th). That way we’ll have something to refer back to, check details, edit things if need be etc.
Then tomorrow can reel its ugly head around the corner.
But first, I need to start with a girl; the one who mostly opened our investigation.
Autumn Pines, you are my friend and I love you, and I don’t know when you’re going to read this, but you have thrown us neck deep in some weird shit.
Thanks to you, we all believe that if our compiled scrambled papers have any weight, and our eyes still work, then a Cult has moved into Maple Croak. We don’t know how long they’ve been here. I don’t want to know. And, as far as we’re aware, they don’t suspect that anybody is onto them. Yet.
We also know their name - The Faceless.
Autumn promises she knows where we can learn more and get some concrete answers. I don’t like where her head is at. How she has the enthusiasm for this astounds and scares me.
I’d like to think we’re wrong. That the disturbed things I struggle to unsee can be explained and rationalised. And no offence Autumn, but for once, I want you to be wrong too - wrong the most, in fact. That, like my Uncle, you’re just paranoid and that, in your pursuit of a headline story, you’re chasing a damn fantasy, an obsession, and dragging us all with you.
Yet as bitter as it is to think about, I know you’re not. You’re not crazy and neither was he, or any of us; we can’t be.
The only difference is that, unlike him, we haven’t been caught.
I chalk it up to luck. Pretty soon, it’ll run out.
--
Entry 1, July 27th - Homecoming:
I awoke to the Texan voice of Chuck Brinsky over the radio rattling on, as he did every morning, about how wonderful our not-so-little Oregon town was.
You could describe Maple Croak as the end of the line. The final stop a coach has to divert to after following a narrow cliff-side path, that bleeds into thick woods, to arrive at our pocket of land. An isolated edge looking out at the water; overlooked itself by a backdrop of forest and far distant mountains.
Those woods then almost arc around our town (looks like a backwards ‘r’ shape on a map). If it wasn’t for the port, we’d be surrounded by oaks and thick maple trees.
We could once pride ourselves as a sea-side town, with a thriving fishing industry, and the safety net of some ancient, sealed mines to fall back on for business. Now, our port is closed and almost stripped bare. I can’t remember the last time I saw a boat out in the ol’ blue, or a boat at all, or even saw the lighthouse on. Our town’s questionable Mayor had found another way to make money.
Some shady investors from a big city set their sights here with a dream, cost cuts, and a construction firm. I’m not going to pretend to understand how it works, but I know what greased palms and a fat bag of money look like.
It was suffocating. The only way in and out of town now was a bridge, over a long and wide ravine of weak flowing water, that shuddered as trucks and diggers steamrolled over it. They went far north, carving a path through the woods and got to work on building an eyesore.
Chuck always explained it best.
“Despite some unexpected rain, construction on Maple Croak’s very own shopping mall develops nicely.“ Chuck said over some static as I slithered out of bed and into the bathroom. The man is a broken record. “I can speak for myself, and a few of y’all, at how exciting it was to see a News Crew on our clean streets a week back. Not too long now until our fair, honest commune gets a whole lot livelier. Just remember to be kind to strangers when they come on through.”
He leaned closer to his microphone.
“Especially if they try snaking our jobs.” He then chuckled to himself, and I’m sure a dozen listeners joined him. He waffled on a little longer before playing a song I couldn’t hear over the shower.
Afterwards, I looked myself up and down in my mirror, spraying all manner of deodorant. I grabbed my relic of a Sharp Wizard, a hoodie, and my keys, then opened the blinds to get flash-banged by a ray of sun.
We lived in the westward area, where the trees and brush start to fuse with concrete, in the poor part of town. A word our beloved radio host and Mayor felt was about to be made redundant.
Besides paint peeling off some bricks, a few rotting fences, and one too many black trash bags, this street was home. As it has been for 18 years.
Some kids played on their bikes, racing up and down the paths, enjoying the remaining freedom of Summer break. Folks walked their dogs, laid deckchairs out, and watered plants. Not a worry in the world.
It’s as cookie-cutter and ignorant as a neighbourhood can be.
My phone then buzzed.
Autumn: 30 mins away, taxi boy <3
Despite the week-long conversations we’d had prior, I felt joy seeing those words. I replied to her text quickly and then navigated the cramped upstairs hallways, hopped down the stairs, and brushed through the rest of our house to reach the kitchen.
Portraits and photos still watch me from the walls and tabletops. My Uncle had long since removed any image of my dad from the house, leaving only the smiles of me and my mother.
Then I heard that very same Uncle muttering his usual gibberish in his study. I was curious and intrigued at what cryptid he’d be studying now, or what conspiracy video rotted his brain.
To my surprise, I saw him using an old-fashioned radio system from within his personalised workroom, at the end of a hallway. The thing was a relic, an antique, and supposed to be broken, yet there he was having a conversation with it. A one-sided chat I felt I was intruding on.
He leaned over his desk amidst a few invoices and other files, one hand cupping a headphone over his ear while the other rested in his developing grey hair.
He was distressed.
“You still there, White Diamond?” It took a few agonising moments before he got a response. “Yeah, I know that-” He then began softly. Whoever he was talking to interrupted him.
I made sure to keep quiet as I approached and leaned in his doorway. Inaudible orders barked from the headphones. I’d seen odd, hobbyist behaviour from my Uncle before, made evident by the posters, collectables, drawings and other weird stuff that meticulously decorated his study, but this felt different; more private.
"I’ve given you enough, I think. The risk would be-”
The orders continued, interrupting him again. I could see him rub his temples before he scribbled some notes down.
“You could always do it yourself… yeah, fuck you too, kid. What’re you gonna do when she comes knocking on your door because she-” The line cut off.
My Uncle sagged in his chair with a defeated sigh. It was clearly not his first argument with his radio stranger. I wondered how many other early morning chats I’d missed between them.
He then saw a shape in the reflection of a smudged whiskey glass, nearly jumped out of his skin, and then swivelled round to face it with a frightened look. He relaxed when he saw it was only his nephew and put a hand on his chest.
“Fucking hell, Lucas…” His face slowly turned into a relieved smile. “You enjoy scaring the shit out of me?”
I smiled too, only a little.
“How long have you had that fixed?” I asked, gesturing to his radio setup.
He composed himself quickly and calmly.
Ready to lie to my face.
“Ah, about a week now.”
“And who’s White Diamond?”
“Some bitch of a client who refuses to use a phone. More paranoid than me.” He slowly stood up, reminding me how tall and broad and worn he was. “Never become a carpenter, ya’ hear.”
I nodded as he hobbled his way to reach his cane, his wooden hip and false leg squeaking slightly. He then curiously checked his watch.
“You’re up early. Bonnie called you in for a shift?”
I shook my head.
“It’s Friday,” I said with a grin.
“Friday?” He pondered the word, slinging it back and forth in his head until the realisation hit him. “Oh shit!” He shuffled his way out of the room and darted into the kitchen at a pace I thought impossible for him. “That’s on me, I’m sorry. God, I didn’t pack you kids lunch or anything.”
“I’m sure I’ll survive, Unc.” I half-joked.
I watched him scour cabinets and cupboards until he found a four-pack of dry beers.
“Well, at least take these. Been saving them for a rainy day.”
His smile was genuine and sweet. I didn’t have the strength to tell him I’d need much more.
“Thanks, Unc,” I said, taking his gift.
“And you tell that little miss she’s welcome here anytime.”
“You sure her Mom’s gonna be okay with that?”
He scoffed.
“You can sweet talk her. I’m sure.”
I then hugged him goodbye. He’s a very awkward man to embrace.
“And don’t forget the curfew!” He said, a little too concerned, as I slipped away and made my way to the door. “Police are hounding everyone out late.”
“I won’t.”
“And stay out of the woods. They’re hounding that too.”
“Yes sir.”
“And-“
“Don’t talk to skinwalkers? Pack a tinfoil hat?”
“Oh, you’re very funny today, huh?”
We smiled at each other as I opened the door.
“I’ll see you later, Unc. Love ya'.”
“…Ew.”
I laughed and stepped out of the house where I was hit by a wave of energising, warm air.
I waved to a couple of neighbours, and exchanged some late-morning greetings, before dumping the pack of beer in the back seat of my car and then setting off for the drive ahead.
The neighbourhood became a blur, then a woodland road, and quickly turned into the peaceful streets of town. I knew every corner of this local-owned town, every face, yet as I stopped at a red light near our town’s square, and my eyes gazed out to the distant empty sea, I saw something rare amidst our clean, prided community.
A public argument.
It was far, but I could distinctly make out the two figures bickering on the steps of the Town Hall - the Mayor’s Office. One was Mayor Crimley himself, a bulbous egg-shaped man snug in a tailored suit too small to contain him. He gestured aggressively with his hands, pointing off into the distant woods.
The other man was Bentley, our town’s Reporter. His red jacket stood out like a sore thumb. His material on our blog and newspaper had grown incredibly tame as of late; almost entirely dedicated to the development of the Mall. He too gestured wildly, clearing angry or upset about something.
A small crowd festered around the two, including a policeman on standby, and before my curiosity could go any further the light turned green.
The sight quickly faded from my mind as it disappeared from the rearview mirror.
I drove through the rest of town, for about 15 minutes, until I passed the last building and was greeted by a long stretch of wild road. I could see our town’s welcoming sign at the top of a small hill, guarded by a patrol car whose driver gave me a nod as I passed him, that read: Sorry to see you go. But we know you’ll come back
Complimented by a cartoonish, winking maple leaf character.
I exaggerated earlier in my descriptions. Maple Croak has no coach stop. At least, not in the town itself. Instead, it’s just beyond the borders - at the start of a long bridge that stretches over an alarmingly longer ravine created by some old flood. After another 5 minutes of driving through a glow of amber sunlight, broken up by an encompassing army of trees, I reached and crossed that bridge.
Our only passageway to the outside world.
I pulled over on a dirt path, with the coach stop to my right, and watched the leaves ebb and flow. Some of the trees here are large and thick maple trees. Their leaves have slowly started to turn red early this year, almost casting red hues over chunks of forest and parts of the road.
It’s beautiful. Yet sometimes, later in the Fall and if the light is right, it looks like the damn sky has gone crimson.
I then waited.
Until a coach emerged from around a rocky corner and dropped off a single passenger.
I’ll admit, my heart had begun to race a little in anticipation.
Almost a year had gone by since I’d seen the girl I’d grown up with. The naive, goodie two-shoes, rulebook following dickhead. I’d expected a semester of college would’ve maintained the girl I knew; moulding her into a sophisticated, young woman that would’ve outgrown me and become wiser to my pestering. I was expecting a backpack-towing bookworm, dressed like an old librarian.
I was almost right.
A cotton sweater, a pair of chinos, a satchel and some sunglasses sat nicely on her freckled face. Her long auburn, almost ginger hair draped past her shoulders.
The only difference was her frame. She’d gotten taller and puberty had suddenly hit her like a fucking train.
She reached me in a heartbeat. She was giddy with a controlled excitement as I rolled down the window. I could see the enthusiasm and joy of the person I remembered, buried under early adulthood.
“Oh hey there, taxi boy,” Autumn said sweetly with a smile, leaning on the window frame.
“Oh hey there, supermodel.”
I looked her up and down and she laughed, snaking her way around the car, swinging the door open, and firmly planting herself in the seat. I had no time to react as I was wrapped in a bone-crunching bear hug and then watched in disbelief as she plopped her feet on the dashboard while pulling out her phone.
“So I was texting Barn. He’s at the cafe, but could you stop by my folks first-“
“What are you doing?” I asked.
She paused, looking at her shoes.
“Resting my feet on your dash?”
This was new. Subtle, yet strikingly uncharacteristic.
“I can see that.”
“Great, your eyes work! Can we go?”
“Yes, boss.” I chuckled and, without another word, turned the car around.
The drive back felt longer. I asked her about her course, teased her about crushes, while she interrogated me on how Maple Croak fared in her absence.
I can’t articulate into words how much I’d missed her. And yet, it’d never felt like she'd left.
She threw a few various questions my way. How’s your Uncle? The Mall’s not done, seriously? The port’s closed. Like, forever?
I answered them as best I could.
Only our last conversation was worth noting.
“Oh, and there’s a curfew now too. Everyone off the streets by eleven and a whole lotta woods are taped off.” I said.
“The fuck? Why?”
“Gas leak caused the apartments to go under.“
“The ones up the north road? What about the people living there?” There was a spark in her eyes as her interest peaked. She always loved a story.
Her question was answered as we rounded a bend and were confronted by a dishevelled homeless man trudging along the road, clad in draping black clothes, pushing a shopping cart full of firewood. I slammed my foot on the brakes and cursed under my breath. The man didn’t even flinch, let alone react.
“They mostly turned into that.” I gritted.
“Christ.” She leaned her head out the window. “Are you okay, sir?!”
The man gave her no response, muttering some phrase that we couldn’t hear, as he pushed his trolley to the treeline and disappeared into the fold - likely to join his fellow, drugged-up woodland inhabitants.
“Clean and honest streets, my ass,” Autumn said to herself. “What’re you doing, Crimley?” She pulled a little black journal out of her satchel, as I continued our drive, and jotted some notes down with an attached pen.
“You still have that thing?”
“Yeah, of course. Sorry, I’m not modern like you yet.”
I felt for my Sharp Wizard in my hoodie pocket. I then eyed her journal again as it returned to her satchel.
“You heard from him?” I asked slowly as we passed the wholesome welcoming sign of Maple Croak.
Autumn looked out the window, deep in thought.
“Sorry. Shouldn’t have asked.“
“It’s fine.”
We carried on in a brief, awkward silence through the streets until she spoke again.
“I haven’t… but thank you.”
I smiled as more mundane questions came my way. We eventually turned the radio on and our car ride returned to normalcy as we reached the southern neighbourhood where Autumn’s home quickly came into view.
We could see the port more clearly here as we drove in - a distant, rundown skeleton housing several warehouses and empty construction vehicles, overlooked by a far, towering dead lighthouse.
It was the furthest thing from Autumn’s focus. Her eyes were fixated on her parents who stood in their open drive with a simple Welcome Home sign.
She didn’t even wait for me to park properly before she bound out of the car and sprung into her mother’s open arms, kicking her feet.
Katherine Pines looked as impeccable as always - we would expect nothing less from the Mayor’s pristine secretary. The only flaw in her perfect complexion and attire was an ugly grey cast clamped around her right arm, decorated with signatures and doodles.
Michael Pines, however, was the polar opposite to his wife. Still dressed in a morning gown and slippers, his glazed eyes slowly met his daughter as she approached him. For lack of a better word, the man looked dopey. Instead of clamping him in a hug, Autumn instead rested one hand on his shoulder and the other over his chest as she greeted him in a hush, loving tone. He smiled and nodded down at her.
I don’t think he was entirely sure who she was.
Katherine eyed me as I approached. Not a look of scorn, but not one of appreciation either.
“Driving under the speed limit I hope, young man.” She exclaimed as she tucked the Welcome Home sign away before crossing her arms (as best she could) over her chest.
“How’s your arm, Kat?” I asked, ignoring her comment.
“Still there. How’s your Uncle?”
“I think he’s ready to talk if you are.” I leaned on their fence.
Katherine scowled, but before she could open her mouth her daughter appeared at her side.
“Can we talk inside?” She then turned to me. “I’ll be ten minutes-”
“Ten minutes?!” Katherine said. “That’s all we get?!”
“Is that a minute for each month?” Michael’s weary voice asked as he already reached the porch steps of their home. Autumn laughed as her mother rolled her eyes with a sigh.
“I’ll be home later; you can bore me then. I just wanna-“ Autumn gestured to me “-y’know.”
“We get fifteen.” She then looked at me. “Don’t go anywhere.”
“Yes ma’am.”
And with that, I watched the Pines family step into their household and then observed Katherine's demanded 15 minutes slip away through a large living room window. They hugged some more, raved about life, and laughed; I think Autumn cried too at one point.
Part of me felt solemn at the sight. A harsh reminder of what a normal, loving family is supposed to look like inside their home.
Autumn then returned to me, having discarded her satchel but keeping her journal in one pocket, as her mother watched from the doorway.
“I want her home before eleven!”
I saluted her and the two of us returned to my car.
“Sorry, she’s a bitch.”
“Eh, she’s hot. I’ll forgive her.”
I felt the wrath of a hundred men as Autumn punched the ever-loving shit out of my shoulder, with a smile and another laugh.
“Dick.”
With that, we headed back into town. We barely made it down one busier street before Autumn requested that we stop and, seeing the clear blue sky, walk the rest of the way.
“What’d you talk about? Your folks?” I asked as she adjusted her sunglasses in a shop window.
“Just boring parent stuff. The usual.”
“They haven’t heard from him either, have they?”
“No…No, they haven’t.”
“Did you wanna talk about it?”
“Not really.” She sighed.
“Well, if you do-“
“I know-”
Passing by the hustling and bustling townsfolk, one soul recognised her with an acclaimed squeal so loud it stung our ears.
A little blonde girl skipped over, with her alarmed father not too far behind, whose big brown eyes beamed up at a startled Autumn.
“I thought that was you! How long have you been back?!” The girl said, disregarding me like I didn’t exist.
“Tina?” Autumn asked, recognising the young lass from a favourable babysitting job.
“In the flesh!”
Almost like Autumn’s father, her eyes seemed slightly distant and distracted. It didn’t stop her from wrapping Autumn in a hug.
“You can walk?!” Autumn stammered.
Tina nodded proudly as her father reached us and pressed a hand on her shoulder.
“Doctors fixed me right up!” She then turned to her father. “Dad! Look who it is!”
Tina’s father gave us a wave, and a brief apology for allowing his child to run up on us like some paparazzi, before the two of them left to continue their day with heartfelt goodbyes and a promise to see us again.
“I thought she was in a wheelchair?” Autumn asked me once they were out of earshot.
All I could give her was a disinterested shrug. And, as quickly as the curveball had been thrown at us, it became just an odd memory in our day.
But it would not be the last.
Soon, the cafe came into view. A sizable pink and white, glamorously decorated building at the end of one street.
‘Hearties’
I think ‘Cavities’ would be a better name.
A familiar figure then caught my eye as we trekked towards it: Bentley, standing outside his somewhat rundown one-storey office across the road.
A couple of pristine newspaper stands were embedded against one wall - a striking contrast when compared to the building they were attached to.
He was talking to someone I’d never seen before. A young woman, with short red hair, who noted down almost every word he said in a little green book. She was an outsider and, judging from her attitude and composure, gave off city vibes.
The woman then produced a handheld recorder from her jeans and subtly nodded towards the door, gesturing him to step inside his office. But Autumn reached them before then, her eyes were wide with curiosity and intrigue as she produced her own journal - the attached pen dangled from a chain.
Bentley spotted her immediately and a massive, but pained smile beamed across his face.
I positioned myself beside the newspaper stands, taking a glance at their front pages.
Shopping Mall this; Shopping Mall that, with almost no variety. There was a one-off mention of Mr & Mrs Winters (we’ll get to them) and their latest high-class, money-fueled activity. And an even smaller mention of our Librarian who, up until seeing that paper, I had no idea had been missing for 2 days.
“You’ve gotten taller!” Bentley said. He looked exhausted, with thick dark circles under his eyes.
“And you look like shit, Ben. How’s-” Autumn began to ask him hopefully.
“Excuse me, who're you? We were talking.” The young woman spoke up.
“Technically we’d finished, Piper,” Bentley said, looking back at his mildly frustrated interviewer. “And this here is Autumn Pines, daughter of a dear friend.”
Autumn offered a hand to Piper and she slowly shook it.
“And this here’s Piper - curious, fellow Reporter who’s taken an interest in our not-so-little home.” Bentley continued.
“You’re that secretary’s girl. Think you could get me in a room with her?”
“You wanna talk to my Mom?”
“Not so much your Mom; more your Mayor. I have some queries.”
“Such as?”
I leaned further into the wall with a sigh, praying this wouldn’t take long.
“Such as why you have a bunch of homeless people skittering around your woods, and no one seems to want to do anything about it? Or why your town is so hard to find online? Or-“
“You don’t need to bother the girl with that shit, Piper.” Bentley interrupted, despite the fact Autumn was keenly making notes in her journal. Piper almost looked interested. “You just got home, right?” He then asked Autumn. “How’d your little dip into academic journalism treat you?”
“You hiring?” She asked back, earning a chuckle.
Piper checked her watch.
“Bentley, I’m sure you can interrogate your young friend another day. Can we hurry this up?” She pointed at his office door with her thumb as she shook her handheld recorder.
Bentley sighed, taking another look at Autumn and nodded. He exaggeratedly offered her a hand and, when she shook it, he vigorously clasped both his hands around hers.
“Catch you later, kid.” He casually winked and stepped into his office. Piper quickly followed.
“Nice meeting you,” Autumn said, keeping a fist loose by her side.
“You too. I’m sure ‘Ben’ will reach out if I wanna talk.” Then she was gone and Autumn’s attention came back to me.
“Sorry.” She said, pocketing her journal.
“Not a problem. When are you gonna ask him out?”
“Shut up, Lucas.”
I wished I’d paid more attention instead of slumping against the wall. I should’ve noticed the brief spark in your eye and the likely look on your face as Bentley slipped something into your hand. I should’ve caught you subtly pocketing it, alongside your journal, and confronted you then and there.
Hindsight is a hell of a thing.
The bell above the cafe door dinged as the two of us stepped into a bright decor. We were greeted by a few of the staff as we meandered to a booth at the side, close to the service desk, where the next addition to our posse waited.
Barney, a lug of absolute muscle, gave a grand wave as he spotted us approaching. He rose to his feet, a towering wall of a young man, and he and Autumn embraced. To my dismay, he was not alone.
Sat beside him was the small, brown-haired tumour he called a baby sister. Daisy smiled and waved at me, a gesture I returned, before her eyes went back to her phone. I looked at Barney who gave me an apologetic smile as I took a seat opposite him.
Autumn, however, went over to the service desk to disturb a gothic, pierced-face barista. Caitlyn, the final addition to our group, barely even smiled as Autumn made her presence known.
“Oh yay. You’re back.” She said in the most positive way her monotone, near-dead demeanour could allow. I gave her a wave. She blinked.
“Shouldn’t you be in summer class?” I asked Daisy.
“Day off.”
And that was the end of our riveting conversation.
“She coming to the park?” I then asked Barney.
“No, Mom and Dad just wanted her out of the house a bit.” His voice was like refined iron, cool and suave, honed by years of choir practice and sermons.
I mockingly drew a cross over my chest.
“And may the Lord protect her as she ventures back.”
Barney took a deep, long breath.
“Never gonna let me live that down are you?”
“Not in a million years.”
He chuckled.
“Good to see you. Been a min’.” He said.
“Likewise.”
“How’s the Unc?”
“Alive.”
“Hm. That's good.”
We watched as Autumn chewed Cait's ear off. Caitlyn didn’t show it much, but we saw the look of appreciation on her face as she was reunited with her favourite chatterbox.
“I saw the paper.” I slowly said to Barney. “I had no idea Damien was missing, I’m sorry.”
Barney nodded, keeping his composure.
“They’ll find him. How hard can it be to lose a one-armed vet? I’m more worried about Bentley. Y’know the two of them were-“
“Yeah. I do.”
Our conversation then shifted into something more casual, with the occasional input from Daisy. The rest of the cafe drowned away as we gossiped for hours.
Autumn joined and quickly started to catch up with Big Barn. Their conversations were more intellectual than I could handle. So I resorted to taking the piss out of them when appropriate.
Daisy soon left. Barney escorted her to the door, laid out some safety rules, and watched the kiddo disappear down a street.
Then Caitlyn, finally, slithered out of her work uniform and our four-way entourage of young adult chatting bloomed.
I relish the way my heart warms when the four of us are together.
More hours flew by and before we knew it, our bellies were full and we were politely asked by Mr James Heartie himself to scram.
We took to the streets. We wouldn’t stop talking; we couldn’t, as there was too much to say. It felt like a blur, but a fond one, until I scooped the four-pack of beers from my car and we headed to the west park - just on the edge of some thick woodlands.
“You’re gonna need more than that, Lucas,” Caitlyn said over my shoulder, profoundly unimpressed with my alcohol offering. “Luckily I have a stash.” She gave my shoulder a playful nudge.
And she wasn’t kidding.
Hidden behind a skating ramp, and under a mountain of leaves, was a crate of mixed spirits, some cola and a bottle of vodka.
“And why’d you have this?” Autumn asked her, taking a seat on a bench.
“It’s your homecoming, babe.”
“Vodka. Really?” I asked and she shrugged.
“You got cups?” Barney asked.
“Barney? Drinking? What would the divine beings above think?”
Barney paused, unsure whether to giggle or shout.
“Shut the fuck up, Lucas.”
We laughed and then, as if on cue, Caitlyn unveiled a pack of red drinking cups from her bag. The sun slowly turned a blood orange, as our late afternoon of quiet bench-sat drinking began until the moon ushered its way above. I let the others do all the talking as I started to document the day on my Sharp Wizard. I saw Autumn sometimes do the same in her journal whenever a thought struck her.
It was around 9:30 pm when one of our phones buzzed. I can’t remember what we were talking about, but I remember three heads spinning to Autumn - the least intoxicated.
“Who is it?” Caitlyn asked, lying relaxed on the concrete floor, relatively smashed.
“Shit. It’s my Mom.”
“You swore. That’s a sin.” Barney said, sitting beside her on a bench as he curiously eyed her phone.
“She wants me to call her, I’ll be right back.” She heaved her way up to her feet and took several quick, quiet steps towards the treeline before disappearing behind an oak. I listened as her footsteps trailed off followed by an unnerving silence.
“Wow,” Caitlyn said, looking at me. “She is a terrible liar.”
I reluctantly looked at Barney whose drunk eyes begrudgingly met mine.
“What’d her phone say, Barn?”
“Hmm, I don’t know. She could’ve changed her Mom’s contact to ‘Lead One’, I suppose.”
I leaned back, staring at the stars, and let out a long, slightly intoxicated sigh.
“Fucks sake, Autumn.”
I sprang to my feet, sobering up quickly, and made my way to follow her.
“Go get her, tiger.” Caitlyn cheered as Barney kicked her foot.
Navigating through towering trees of varying colours, with only moonlight to guide me, I eventually saw a distant head of auburn hair venturing deeper into the fold. The right questions didn’t come to me in those moments. Maybe it was the alcohol, or something else, but I only viewed her actions as a strange annoyance - an excuse to sneak away for selfish reasons.
Then I saw the first sign, one of dozens that our town’s law enforcement had hammered into several trees this deep.
‘Police Search & Evidence Area. Turn Back’
Autumn did not, nor did she acknowledge the stretch of fresh police tape that dragged across the trees like a gate. She dipped right under it, her eyes on her phone, and only then did the severity of the situation truly hit me.
I thought of getting the others, but the thought of leaving her alone, and at the mercy of whatever was out here, stopped me.
She stepped onto an overgrown woodland trail and I, without thinking, followed. I caught up quickly. I was seconds away from calling out when a figure emerged from around a tree to greet her.
Bentley.
The path had opened up into what looked like an old road. There was too much space; not enough time to hide. He saw me, after he saw her, and pointed.
Autumn turned to face me, as calm as a ghost, not scared or disappointed or even surprised. She gestured for me to come over.
I hesitated, almost not recognising the stone-faced woman before me, but I did as she wanted.
“You can turn back.” She said as I got near. “You’re not a part of this.”
“But his Uncle is,” Bentley said, clearly annoyed by my presence.
A lightbulb came over my head as I remembered the start of my day.
“White Diamond?” I asked him.
He smiled, impressed.
“No. No, not me, kid. That’s someone else.”
Now Autumn looked confused. Her eyes went back and forth between us, alarmed that I knew something about whatever ‘this’ was. But I didn’t.
“What is this?” I asked them.
Autumn, curiously watching me as if suspicious, produced a metal bauble from her pocket - the same object Bentley had given her only hours ago.
It was an iron ring bearing a crest, a symbol - a circle with a line down the middle; half of it painted black, like the start of an eclipse.
“How much do you know?” Bentley asked Autumn.
“Only the scraps he left me.” She tapped her journal which sat snugly in her pocket.
Bentley took a deep breath, then looked at me and then back at her.
“It’s a deep rabbit hole. One neither of you will like.”
“We can handle it.”
“You speak for me now? The fuck is this, Autumn?!”
Bentley opened his mouth to answer, but he was cut off by the distant rumbling of an engine.
“Fuck. Run! Both of you, now!”
Autumn didn’t hesitate as she darted back the way I’d come, grabbing my arm and taking me with her. I took a moment to gain my footing before I sprinted in a confused stride.
My mind raced with a thousand questions; ones she would absolutely be answering.
Bentley trailed not too far behind as a featureless white van burst from around a corner and blazed down the road towards us. Me and Autumn returned to the narrower path and scampered to get down low, behind a hill in the earth, where branches and foliage obscured us.
But Bentley had tripped.
It happened too fast. We watched in absolute horror as the bleached white death machine charged towards him as he attempted to stand. The impact was deafening; his body flew several feet before crashing back down into the dirt as a crumpled, twitching mess.
Autumn jerked back, gasping and heaving as I ducked my head down in unfathomable shock and disbelief.
But then Autumn gathered herself and kept watching.
So I did too.
His body was mangled and twisted beyond recognition, jagged bones protruded from his flesh as blood cascaded out of him and trailed down a verge.
Yet he was still alive.
He was looking at us with wide, pleading eyes.
A single, muscular man stepped out of the van after killing its lights. He was clad in a fine suit, and black gloves and wore a featureless, white mask over his face. Bentley’s eyes snapped towards him as a fowl gust of wind wrenched its way through the woods. It clawed its way across the bark of the maple trees, finding cracks in their timber, to unleash mortifying croaks into the air as if trapped souls were writhing in the confines.
The masked man seemed at peace with the noises.
“The Maples; His trees. They croak our song. Do you hear them?”
Bentley used every ounce of his strength to speak.
“Where… is he?” He gasped out, tears streaming down his face. “What… did you do to him?”
“He swam. He swam like all the others. As you could’ve.” The masked man reached a hand into his pocket and when it returned, it was clad in a brass knuckle. “What a waste.”
Bentley tried to speak again, but the man was swift.
I thought I knew pain. I thought I knew the extent of suffering and damage one human being could inflict upon another. I saw it every time Dad raised his hand against Mom; or a fist against me.
I was wrong.
The first strike collided with Bentley’s skull with a shattering crunch, spraying blood up the man’s arm.
I grabbed Autumn, hard, and dragged her away from the scene as quietly as I could. She was distraught, speechless, silently weeping, yet she kept an impossible look of determination on her face as we snuck away back to the park.
The strikes echoed behind us, becoming wetter, until we could no longer hear them. We reached the police tape and then our eagerly awaiting, chipper friends.
But one look at us caused their faces to drop.
“Fuck me, are you okay?” Barney said, rising to his feet.
Caitlyn did the same.
“Call the police,” I muttered. “Quickly.”
“Wha-I-and tell them what?” Despite his question, he was already dialling the number.
“Someone got kill-“
I couldn’t finish the sentence as I turned, reeled over and vomited.
I then looked at Autumn who had splayed her journal out on the floor. She was on her knees, violently flicking through the pages until she found a drawing of a bat.
“Autumn?” I asked her weakly.
She twisted one end of her pen to create a blacklight that she panned over the page to reveal a secret, second drawing.
The same symbol as the one on the ring.
There were two words written underneath in handwriting that was not her own.
The Faceless
“He… he had a… a tattoo, that man… On his wrist.” She explained, struggling to speak through heavy gasps. Her face was putrid with tears and destroyed makeup. “He was… he was one of them… my brother-he knew… he-”
She curled up and began to uncontrollably sob as sirens blared in the distance.

What to expect from Hell On Earth! - Guns in Tisy/Tri Kresta are slightly boosted because of a spawning issue that has been fixed. T3 Military Guns are not boosted but have better values so you will find a weapon. T1/2 are mainly attachments with some weapons but the good items are in T3/4. pristine/worn condition. Food and clothing have vanilla values with some items taken out since no one wears them. Livonia Weapons are the same slightly boosted but not over whelming. - Character loadout with jacket, cargo pants, candy canes, head torch, canteen, map, battery and knife! (This loadout is beginner friendly and will help you survive until you get to that town!) - Boosted stamina, weight matters but drainage isn’t fast. Will still need to take a break. - Raid 24/7, do not destroy tents, loot, or cars. You will be banned. - If you want to trade/rob/etc with other players you can do Mutual RP! Basically both players have to agree to an interaction once agreed anything goes. If one declines then both players must go their separate ways without retaliation. Please record all interactions if a problem occurs. - Food Decay is off, because DayZ spoils it too fast. - Towns have increased zombies, better do some stealth unless you have the ammo! - Traveling trader is now around Chernarus & Livonia! No Currency just request some items and a meet will be scheduled. Any T3/4/Contamination items will not be traded, that is for you to explore. - 1st/3rd PP - Heli Crashes are not frequent, so loot will be damn good! Livonia heli crashes has okay gear but bunker will be the best spot! More soldiers were killed in the crashes so be careful. - Bunker contain RARE loot, but can you make it through the hoard? - Vehicle have some internals and wheels but you’ll have to do the rest! - BUILD ANYWHERE - Just hop in and start surviving / NO DISCORD!. - Discipline system: Killing the trader or any players outside of Military/Police Zones is a permanent BAN!

Welcome to The Oblivion Cycle universe, a vast setting spanning all of time and space and so much more. While many stories may shed perspective on this grand cosmic vista, there are also tales of adventure and sacrifice, romance and terror, grimdark corruption and scientific progress. To become immersed in the setting is to let the chaos of creativity flow through you, to let go of what is probable to discover what’s possible. I have created TOC for one reason, to inspire and entertain any who will listen. So please feel free to join me on this great adventure as I push the boundaries of what is possible and expand the limits of our creativity together. For more information on the setting and its lore there is a subreddit for TOC at TheOblivionCycle and a Discord server dedicated to it here [https://discord.gg/uGsYHfdjYf ] called ‘The Oblivion Cycle Community Server’. I hope you find the following story entertaining and once more, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy.

Episode 1: Part 1 + Episode 2: Part 1 + Next Part

____________________________________________________
Continued From E2:P1
Officer Daggum sat behind the front security checkpoint for the main entrance to the main precinct. He sighed heavily as another group of young, fresh faced, officers waltzed by, their steps quick and sure and their postures strong. For the ten-thousandth time he cursed the ancestors of the man that had stabbed him in the spine almost a decade ago. Sure they were busy rotting in a Cheenha maximum security prison complex, but did that make his leg work again?
He shook his head sadly, the other nearby officers sparing him singular glances before deciding he wasn't a character of interest. All he wanted was to feel useful again, needed even. But so far all he had been doing is light work, the kind of thing they gave elderly near-retirees.
He wasn't nearly that old damnit! He sat up a little straighter, the righteous indignation giving him the energy he was otherwise lacking. In his new and slightly more aware state he chanced to look out through the front entrance.
Outside the main doors he saw a pair of people in dark clothes heave a large box onto the front steps. The first thing he noticed was their attire, their faces were covered in black masks that hid their identities from scrutiny. Sure, that wasn’t exactly illegal, but right in front of the main police precinct for the district? Yes, that was indeed suspicious.
Officer Daggum started to stand as the pair ran away, the large box still sitting in front of the main entrance some distance away. Several nearby pedestrians and officers were now starting to notice the activity. He grabbed his cane and stood, he only took a single step towards the door when there was a bright flash and a wall of force slammed him to the ground. His vision blacked out for a second as his head had a brief boxing match with the floor.
He came too on the ground, a shrill ringing in his ears. He coughed harshly as dust filled his eyes and mouth, he shifted, pushing himself up onto his hands and knees as rubble fell from the ceiling above him. The man crawled painfully towards the corner of the front desk, cracks evident in its resin frame from heavy impacts upon its face.
What had just happened? An explosion? Likely some manner of anti-unity extremist attack, if the face-masked villains on the front steps were any indicator.
As he dragged himself shakily to his knees his hearing started to come back. The ringing silence subsequently was replaced with screams and cries of pain from other injured people. What kind of people were responsible for this?
Officer Daggum looked around, the front of the building was in shambles. The entire entrance way was blown away, only a gaping hole where there had been glazmite windows and the security checkpoint. He checked his waist for his service pistol, but it wasn’t there. He looked around frantically for a moment but it must have been lost in the blast. How could he have lost it?
Instead of worrying about it he reached for his cane, the carbon fiber tube was undamaged by the explosion and he used it to drag himself to his feet and hobble towards his station. Maybe if his computer was still operational he could trigger an alert.
As he moved towards it he heard a commotion from behind him. The sound of automatic gunfire and laser blasts seemed to follow him and he turned his head. As he looked back his eyes widened, there were more than two of them it seemed. In fact, an entire cadre of heavily armed people stormed through the breach in the front of the building, firing their weapons indiscriminately into anything that moved.
Officer Daggum lurched towards his computer as he saw a pair of younger officers cut down execution style. Their bodies were sundered by the heavy fire as their killers marched into the building proper, the clank of armour and weapons almost as loud as the gunfire itself. He counted at least two dozen of them so far, all of them moving with the precision of trained killers. No movements wasted and all angles covered by their weapons.
They hadn’t seen him yet, but a cold sinking realisation gripped his heart like an iron fist. He was going to die here. At least he could go down fighting.
Daggum reached his console and slapped the emergency alert button, making sure to ender the three digit code for gunmen in the building. He then opened the drawer on the right side of the small workstation area, reaching inside for the standard police issue IAC Port-20 ten-millimeter pistol he kept in case of emergencies just like this. The weapon felt a little heavy in his out of practice hands but he put the sight on target and pulled the trigger.
He had set it for burst fire, and as the five round burst impacted the nearest invader a savage grin crossed his face when they went down hard. Almost before he could comprehend it a barrage of fire returned his direction and he croaked in pain as something hot hit him in the arm. There was a terrific cracking sound and he felt something wet splash across his face as he was slammed into the wall behind him.
He groaned and tried to wipe his face with his right hand, but nothing happened. He looked down and was horrified to see a partially cauterised stump where his forearm had been a second before. He must have been hit by a beam weapon, a laser would not have done as much damage and a standard firearm would not have cauterised the wound in that manner.
These thoughts and more flashed through his mind just as the pain began to set in. It was as if his entire right side had been plunged into ice, the numbness setting in as his body went into shock. Even the adrenaline that coursed through his body was not nearly enough to keep him going.
He looked around for his weapon but saw it was nowhere to be found, probably on a surprise vacation with his right hand. He cursed loudly as he heard footsteps. A trio of faces loomed over the counter and pointed weapons at him, Daggum closed his eyes and waited for death.
Before it happened though a deep voice called out loudly, “Wait!”
The thugs seemed to grow a little disappointed and pulled back. Another set of footsteps approached and presently a new figure emerged into Daggum’s greying vision. It was the thug he had shot, the man took off his armoured face mask and spat a wad of blood onto the floor. He was bleeding from what looked like a graze on his temple and he moved painfully, likely bruising from the gunfire that had been stopped by his armour.
The human looked at him cruelly. “This one is mine. You all know the mission, get to it. We need to be in and out before this hive gets alerted and collapses on top of us.” the other masked faces nodded or saluted in unison before hurriedly departing. Shouts and the clamour of armoured boots receded into the distance as Daggum watched the man climb over the countertop slowly and painfully.
He landed heavily and cursed, blood dripping from a wound in his shoulder where at least one of Daggum’s bullets had found its mark. The man crouched low by his side and drew a plain looking knife from a sheath on his arm. The handle looked to be made of some sort of bone inlaid with small gold vine-like patterns. He pointed it at Daggum and asked him, “Do you know what the most painful thing a man can experience is?”
Daggum wanted to tell the man to go and fornicate with a grinskal, but he lacked the breath to utter the words properly. Instead it came out as, “Guuhho… fffuuffcck..” The man just smiled. A cold smile that didn't seem to reach his lifeless looking eyes.
The dead-eyed man shook his head and gave Daggum a few gentle slaps on the cheek. “Stay with me now, I didn’t say you could leave yet did I?”
Daggum wanted to punch the smug man right in his grinning mouth. But his arms no longer responded to his commands and he realised with a sense of profound calm that his neck must be broken. The fact he was still conscious was a miracle in and of itself. So instead of trying it he simply gave the man the best stink eye that he could manage. ‘Yeah, take that you arrogant bastard.’ He thought to himself tiredly as the man frowned in anger at his continued defiance.
The black clothed human stood and delivered a savage kick to Daggum’s chest. There was a cracking sound as something broke, but Daggum didn't feel it. In fact he couldn't feel anything, that cold numbness had overtaken him completely. His mind slowly dipping lower and lower into that frozen sea of nothingness as his vision narrowed.
The man seemed to be speaking again as he flashed that damn knife, but Daggum’s ears couldn't hear, his eyes wouldn't see. He let out a long slow breath as he accepted his fate, and then darkness fell over his mind like a cloak and swallowed him whole.
**********
Tekk’nak kicked the corpse in front of him one more time for good measure.
“Damned asshole. You just had to go and die huh?” He sheathed his grandfather’s knife and hopped back over the damaged countertop. “Unbelievable! The fucking nerve of these..” He stopped and winced as his shoulder twinged.
The armoured man checked his shoulder again and swore once more under his breath. “Damnit.”
He pulled out a small device from his belt, it looked like a cross between an assistant and a lon-range communicator. In reality it was both, but with the added benefit of being encrypted in a manner that made its signal virtually untraceable.
The line buzzed for a few moments before a modulated voice answered his call. “Yes? Is it done already?”
Tekk’nak shook his head out of habi even though his client could not see him directly. “Not yet, but it will be. I am calling to tell you that the deal might be a bit more expensive than we originally discussed.”
He grinned as the voice retorted angrily, the modulator fizzing as it stopped working for a single moment. “This is unacceptable! You get the job done, and quickly. Then and only then will I be willing to discuss payment changes and options with you.” The voice paused. “I was told you were the best, was I misled?”
This caused Tekk’nak to clench his jaw. The pain in his shoulder now completely forgotten in the face of the voice’s implied insult. He spoke in a dangerously calm manner, his tone making it clear to the impudent voice that their candor should reflect their respect. “I would warn you that insults to me and mine are insults to my Mistress as well. And I don’t think you need to be warned what she thinks of those that disrespect her.”
The voice backpedaled, but only a little. “I understand, but I also am paying an exorbitant amount for this assassination. So get it done, or I will tell your Mistress myself that you have failed.” Tekk’nak growled and ended the call with a furious jab of the button.
He breathed in and out several times, attempting to calm himself before replacing the device in his pocket. Oh yes, he would have words with the headMistress about the voice’s words alright. They might be a big important individual where they were from, but down in the dirt and shit and blood there was a different code. Honor and loyalty were more important when all one had was the clothes on their back.
He turned and looked at the dead police officer he had been wanting to kill. No, this mission was not personal. But it did feel a little more than business, something about the atmosphere maybe? They had never directly hit a police precinct or station before, and the progress they made pretty much guaranteed that they would all be shot on sight if their identities came out. But that was alright, the things he had done already guaranteed him a place in the deepest crevasse of the eternal afterlife.
It was of no importance to him what happened after this life. Not when his Mistress was counting on him now. He needed to join his conscripts, they were good soldiers but they lacked any real leadership skills. No creativity or advanced tactics. He smiled as he strode further into the precinct, he felt powerful. To strike directly at the enemy’s heart, now that was truly what he had been made to do.
Tekk’nak hefted his rifle and walked further into the police station, dark purpose guiding his measured steps. He had himplets to slaughter.
**********
Balinski slammed the interrogation room’s door open, startling the two Havoc troopers that had been standing watch outside.
The leader of the troop, a burly human female in powered armour, rushed through the far door thay led to the hall outside. “Commander Siyel! Are you alright?!” The concern in her voice was genuine, Siyel must have chosen her troop specifically for this task.
“Yes, I’m fine, Tanya. What’s the situation? That felt like an explosion.” Siyel put an arm out, using Balinski’s sturdy frame to steady herself.
Tanya’s troopers moved alongside them as they walked towards the hallway. Balinski looked behind him and called loudly, “Caesar, here!”
Like a torpedo made of steel and wrath, Caesar blasted out of the other room and to his side. Her hackles raised and her body posture intensely alert for any signs of potential danger. Balinski put a hand on her head, giving her a quick scrub and muttering, “Keep your nose alert for danger, ok girl?” She woofed, the small sound making him smile.
Siyel gave him a hard look, “We need to move. Tanya, leave half of your troop here to cover Slake. I don’t care if this is an unrelated incident, we cannot lose him. Under no circumstances is he allowed to leave that interrogation room.” The woman nodded and donned her helmet. The faint crackle of static telling him that she was using a secure channel to her troops.
Presently several of the troopers peeled off to go and take up defensive positions outside the interrogation room. Their weapons unholstered and ready for action. Tanya herself unslung a large Malcolm cannon, the revolving ordinance launcher capable of devastating fire in close quarters.
Tanya looked at Siyel and Balinski and asked, “Are you armed?”
Siyel shook her head. “I put my rifle back up in the armoury when we got back. Balinski probably has that handcannon of his though..” She glanced at him and he pulled his ThunderEagle out of his shoulder holster with a nod.
Tanya shook her helmeted head, her range of motion remarkably preserved despite the heavy armour she wore. “That isn’t going to cut it. If there is an emergency then you are going to need actual weapons.
They stepped out into the long hallway and Balinski immediately noticed the lack of activity. No officers roamed the hall, no alarms blared.
He turned to look at Siyel, “How do we even know there is an emergency…” As if to spite him, the lights concealed up by the ceiling flashed to life and a low pulsing tone signaled that there were armed intruders in the building. “Well. That does it.”
Tanya seemed to chuckle for a second before motioning them to follow, but Balinski took point alongside her. “What are you doing? Get behind me!” She shouted as they made their way down the hall.
He shook his head, his wide brimmed hat shielding him from the glaring alarm lights. “Negative. I am here to protect and serve, just like you.”
She was silent for a minute before muttering something that didn't quite make it through her external speakers properly. “Who even are you?”
He gave her a quick nod as they rounded a corner into a wider main hallway. “Balinski Katars, a pleasure to meet you.”
Before she could respond Caesar barked a warning and he whipped his gun up into a ready position. Gunfire roared at them from farther down the hall and the inaccurate shots ricocheted dangerously off walls and floor alike. Several of the shots striking his armoured chest and legs.
“They are in the armoury, we need to prevent them from accessing heavier weapons!” Siyel shouted.
Balinski knew what he had to do, he looked at Tanya and gestured forwards. “You feel like blocking for me?”
She nodded and as one they charged. Balinski was three steps behind the woman, he had to duck slightly to hide his bulk behind her shorter frame, but as the sound of ricocheting bullets filled the hall he was glad for the cover. They made the gap in less than ten seconds, the time felt stretched though. His adrenaline picked up, and with his vastly reduced biological mass it hit him like a hammerblow.
Time slowed from his perspective, his cybernetics doing calculations in his mind to map out optimal trajectories and put him into the best possible position to storm the room. He lined up as Tanya slammed into the doorframe, deforming it in the process as she tried to come to an immediate stop in her heavy armour.
As a flurry of shots were directed at her, Balinski used her body as a backstop to angle himself into the room. He entered at a low sideways angle, pistol fully extended as he searched for targets. He saw at least five armed insurgents, two of which were in the open.
The room was full of lockers, many of them sealed and closed. It was behind several of these that the attackers were hiding. Balinski fired his huge revolver. The first .50 caliber bullet flew from its barrel in a cloud of fire and smoke to hit one of the thugs square in the chest. The impact of the bullet was enough to knock them from their feet and send them crashing into the shelving unit behind them, ammo containers and weapon attachments scattering all around their crumpled body.
He lined up the gun on the other exposed criminal he saw and fired at their unarmoured neck. The slaaveth catching the round right under their chin. The large caliber round punched through their scaled flesh like it was paper maché and tore a hole through them large enough to see through, bright purplish blood splashed the walls as they clutched their ruined throat and fell choking to their knees.
Balinski used the opening to dive into the cover of a nearby locker as Tanya struggled free from the crumpled door frame and charged into the room. She fired her smoothbore ordnance launcher two times, something clattering off the far wall before emitting a hissing sound. He peeked, she had fired smoke grenades. Likely just some manner of obscuring gas but still potentially an issue for him. He covered his mouth with a sleeve from his jacket and looked around, testing the air. Tanya rushed around the leftmost corner as he did so, the woman slinging her gun and drawing a truly wicked looking vibro-sickle. The blade began to oscillate at a very high frequency, the blade turning ethereal in appearance as a deadly hum filled the room.
Balinski leaned out from cover as the enraged woman drove two of the thugs from cover. He pumped a shot into the back of the first one’s knee. The mask wearing slaaveth going down with a sharp shriek of pain. He holstered his revolver with practiced ease as he stood, its three round capacity now spent. As he charged he extended the twenty-five centimeter blade that was hidden in his cybernetic forearm.
Tanya slashed her vibro-sickle across the other invader’s chest. The blade slicing clean through the soft layers of their body armour and shaving off a smattering of flakes from the underlying hardened steel plate. The slaaveth female recoiled, a curse on her lips as she snapped her jule2000 laser rifle up and let off a series of close range shots directly into the power armoured woman’s breastplate. The impacts leaving smouldering, charred craters in the otherwise pristine navy grey metal.
Fortune was on her side however, for as she was knocked back the slaaveth woman stumbled over the still thrashing body of her comrade. She went down in a heap right as Tanya regained her footing.
Balinski didn’t get to see what happened next as he was charging into combat too. He rounded the room from the opposite side, catching the remaining gangster with their back turned. Before the masked figure even had time to turn around, Balinski rammed all twenty-five centimeters of cold titansteel between their shoulders. Neatly severing their spine and trachea and dropping them gurgling to the floor without another sound.
He was about to move to Tanya’s aid through the hazy air but was stopped by something hitting him directly in the middle of his back. He was knocked forwards half a step as he was hit two more times. He could smell the scent of burning ranx leather, his heavy overcoat suffering as his back plate blocked the shots.
He used the imparted momentum to throw himself into a forwards slide as another trio of searing red beams stabbed through the space he had only just occupied. He only had a second to react. He spotted one of the smoke grenades, the small cylinder still emitting a trickle of vapor. Balinski grabbed it and with a single fluid motion whipped it up and towards his pursuer as he rolled over onto his back.
His aim was a bit off, the canister bouncing off their left shoulder. But it was enough to throw the thug’s aim. They fired high, one of the shots just missing Balinski’s shoulder. He felt the heat of it on his cheek, curls of smoke rising from the crisped leather of his jacket.
He tried to move, to rise to his feet and charge the man. But he just didn't have the time. He could see in that instant that the man was bringing the barrel of his weapon back to bear, the adrenaline coursing through his blood making time seem to move slower. Barring some manner of miracle he was a dead man.
His miracle came, a divine bolt of grey furred fury that flew through the air like a hunter killer missile directly into the laser rifle wielding insurgent. It was Caesar, her fighting blood up at the sight of her best friend in peril. The man screamed for a second, the sound cut brutally short as Caesar clamped her vise-like cybernetic jaws on the man’s throat and shook.
The snap of their neck sounded as loud as a gunshot, the life draining from their eyes almost immediately as Caesar continued to savage their corpse. All at once tearing the slaaveth’s head clean from their body in a spray of heliotrope gore. She opened her maw, the severed head dropping to the floor as she let out a triumphant howl.
Balinski climbed to his feet quickly and motioned for Caesar to heel, she responded immediately. They rushed to the other side of the armoury to see Tanya finishing off the previously wounded slaaveth, the sickle tearing their entire throat out with a single swipe. She stood and deactivated the blade, her breathing heavy enough to reverberate through her helmet speakers.
She nodded towards him, her armour dinged and scarred but still in near full fighting condition. She walked towards him and held out a gauntleted hand, “I am sorry I doubted you Balinski. You really hold your own. Military?” She asked, her question more implied than spoken.
Balinski nodded. “Yeah, ex-ground pounder. Retired as you can tell. Saw combat at Zaphron-IV before I.. got out.” He saw her body posture change almost instantly as he said it.
She paused, her hand flying to her helmet as if in surprise. “Wait, you are that Balinski.. the martyr of Complex-82?” He instantly regretted his words as she seemed to recognise him. She took a step back as the sound of heavy footsteps entered the room. “Holy Luck, I.. wow.”
He just waved a hand, trying not to cut her off rudely. “It’s fine, don’t even worry about it.”
She shook her head, the glowing eyes of her helmet fixated on him. “You are a legend though, you survived against all those odds, I remember when the holonet announced that you were still alive. What you went through..” This time he did cut her off.
“I don’t really want to talk about it..” He said it firmly, not trying to be impolite but not wanting the conversation to continue. She seemed to want to say more but stopped as she saw the pained look on his face. Eventually they would all ask what it was like, what had happened. He felt his chest tightening as the memories flooded his mind, too much.. It was always too damn much.
He heard Caesar whine as his head seemed to split like an overripe melon, the pain as intense as it was sudden. He fell to a single knee, the impact of his cybernetic joint actually cracking the tile flooring under himself as his mind descended once more into that old madness. Crazed images flashed through his mind accompanied by sights and smells that all stank of death and pain.
A butcher’s saw, dirty red linens stained with arterial blood. The scent of gangrenous rotted flesh and necrotised tissue. The pain of a cauterized wound with no anesthetic. Faster and faster the images flashed till something else intruded on this hell. It was a sound, familiar and soothing. A noise from his childhood, one that seemed to combat the fire and death. It was a subtle sound, like that of a plane far overhead in the sky or an air conditioning unit in another room.
Balinski grasped onto the noise and allowed it to yank him out of his nightmare. It was Caesar, the dog having sensed the onset of a PTSD attack and moved to comfort him. She was nestled under his torso and arm, using her strong back and legs to support him as he sat partially slumped against the back row of lockers.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, shaking him slightly. He looked up with slightly blurry vision and saw with a pang of shock that Siyel was crouched next to him. She had a concerned look on her face and stood once she saw he was awake.
She hefted a long barreled rifle in her hands and gestured towards him, “Are you alright? You took some hits there, Tanya was afraid you had been injured.” Her tail twitched behind her, held slightly aloft as she gave him a pointed look.
He raised a hand and used the wall to help himself to his feet, groaning as he did so. “No, I’m fine. We need to get moving, these guys have already infiltrated this far into the building. Who knows where they may have gotten to.”
Siyel shook her horned head slowly. “It’s worse than that. We have over a dozen reports of officers down. At least three dozen confirmed insurgents have infiltrated the building working in small groups. The one we took down here was missing a man, they may have been injured in the initial assault.”
Balinski nodded, not exactly surprised but still a little wary of the situation as a whole. It was nearly inconceivable to him that the station had been attacked in the first place, and to come so close on the heels of Slake’s capture? No, the events were definitely related to each other.
He looked around the room fully expecting to see Tanya and her Havocs. But they were alone. “Where did the other’s go?” He asked her curiously.
She motioned for him to get moving and replied quickly, “I sent them ahead. Here, grab a gun. We are going to need them I am sure.”
Balinski frowned at her response. She should have left him behind as she was a high ranking police official, and part of him wanted to say it. But the larger part of him was a bit more interested in why she had chosen to stay with him. He walked along the side of the room, trying to avoid the blood and bodies that lay sprawled out on the floor.
Siyel led him to a large opened locker, this one full of high powered weapons. He saw MR-12s and LMR v.17s as well as a few rupulse carbines and beamers. But the weapon that stood out immediately to him was a slightly modified GR74F-8 heavy gauss rifle. He reached out and hefted it, the heavy weapon felt comfortable in his cybernetic hands. The weight both familiar and strange, reminding him of the heavy weapons he used to wield as a ground pounder.
He set the weapon aside, grabbing a few spare power cells and some boxes of slugs before he turned to Siyel, a large smile on his otherwise craggy features. “Oh, I think this will do nicely.”
She gave him a knowing look, one black eyebrow raised. “Yeah? I figured you would grab the biggest one available. Ok, come on. We need to get to the nearest control center, I sent Tanya out ahead to help evacuate the building. The alarm should have given most others ample time to either armour up or get out, so be ready for anything.” She gave him a second to digest her words before she dipped away, her movements as graceful as those of a dancer.
He followed the nerivith woman, their progress halting at the door to the hall as Balinski threw out an arm. “I’m taking point.”
Siyel cocked her head and responded gruffly, “You have no power to tell me what to do Balinski.” She looked like she wanted to say more but he cut her off with a head shake. His cybernetics whined slightly as he shrugged.
“You are absolutely right, Siyel.” He made a gesture towards the hallway. “After you then if you feel the need to be unnecessarily overzealous.”
She frowned and then hefted her weapon, using it to gesture towards the hall. “Fine, but I would appreciate you not making determinations without at least asking for what I think.” He chuckled.
Siyel let him lead the way, Balinski gesturing for Caesar to stay back too. He looked around quickly, searching for any hint of danger or terrorists. He saw none. He waved the all clear and the trio crept along the hallway in the direction they had been traveling before.
He paused as in the distance an exchange of gunfire was heard. The noises careening along the walls, carried farther than would have normally been possible when the station was full of people.
Balinski led the two down the hall slowly, but not so slow that they might get caught out in the open. As they reached the end of the hall and turned he heard another burst of what sounded like automatic gunfire. Closer this time and more prolonged. It might be a gunfight between the insurgents and surviving officers. He glanced at Siyel, the unspoken question on his lips. She just nodded to him and checked her weapon.
If anything was to happen to Siyel, Balinski wouldn't be able to forgive himself. So just before they reached the next corner where the sounds were strongest he held out a hand for her to slow. He gave her a glance, “Please be careful, Siyel.”
The pink skinned woman nodded, her raven hair held back in that tight ponytail. “And you as well, Balinski. I have your six.” He nodded, and with a deep breath he broke from cover with a shout of fury.
Continued in E2:P3
==End of transmission==

What to expect from Hell On Earth! - Guns in Tisy/Tri Kresta are slightly boosted because of a spawning issue that has been fixed. T3 Military Guns are not boosted but have better values so you will find a weapon. T1/2 are mainly attachments with some weapons but the good items are in T3/4. pristine/worn condition. Food and clothing have vanilla values with some items taken out since no one wears them. Livonia Weapons are the same slightly boosted but not over whelming. - Character loadout with jacket, cargo pants, candy canes, head torch, canteen, map, battery and knife! (This loadout is beginner friendly and will help you survive until you get to that town!) - Boosted stamina, weight matters but drainage isn’t fast. Will still need to take a break. - Raid 24/7, do not destroy tents, loot, or cars. You will be banned. - If you want to trade/rob/etc with other players you can do Mutual RP! Basically both players have to agree to an interaction once agreed anything goes. If one declines then both players must go their separate ways without retaliation. Please record all interactions if a problem occurs. - Food Decay is off, because DayZ spoils it too fast. - Towns have increased zombies, better do some stealth unless you have the ammo! - Traveling trader is now around Chernarus & Livonia! No Currency just request some items and a meet will be scheduled. Any T3/4/Contamination items will not be traded, that is for you to explore. - 1st/3rd PP - Heli Crashes are not frequent, so loot will be damn good! Livonia heli crashes has okay gear but bunker will be the best spot! More soldiers were killed in the crashes so be careful. - Bunker contain RARE loot, but can you make it through the hoard? - Vehicle have some internals and wheels but you’ll have to do the rest! - BUILD ANYWHERE - Just hop in and start surviving / NO DISCORD!. - Discipline system: Killing the trader or any players outside of Military/Police Zones is a permanent BAN!

This is the Working Glitches Section! This is always being improved, and if you have any recommendations please let me know in the comments or send me a direct message. If you know a glitch is working on any other platform I haven't included or doesn't work anymore, also let us know. If a platform is in italics, it means it is unsure. If a platform is just "Xbox" or "PlayStation", that means that it works with both old gen and new gen versions of the game.
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Money and RP Glitches:

BEFF - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	No Save AHK - PC - Solo	Arena RP Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Cayo Double Secondary Loot - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	5k RP Every 30 Secs - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Dr Dre Linux Replay Glitch - PC - Solo
Facility Car Dupe - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Exclusive Solo Frozen Money PS5 New Gen- PS5 - Solo	Easy Money and RP - Xbox, Playstation - Semi-Solo
Improved SFM - Xbox, Playstation - Non Solo	2 Player Car Dupe - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	25 Second Frozen Money - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Skip Cluckin Bell Setups - Xbox, Playstation - Solo

Player Based Glitches:

Checkerboard Outfit in Lobby - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Unlock Love Fist Shortsleeve - Xbox Series, PS5 - Solo	Wear Any Blacklisted Outfit - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Cashmere Coat with Vest - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Never Fall Off Bike - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Orange/Purple Joggers and Bulletproof - Xbox Series, Playstation - Semi-Solo
Play as Big Rabbit - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Transfer Coloured Chutes Duffle Bags - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Apartment God Mode - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Candy Cane Weapon - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Jet Black Duffle - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Bigfoot Beard - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Halloween Biker Jacket - Xbox Series, PS5 - Solo	Black Joggers - PS4 - Solo	No Ankles - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Female Joggers - Playstation - Solo	KD Farm - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Outfit Transfer - Xbox Series, PS5 - Non-Solo
Remove Bodysuit Logo - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	IAA Badge - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Transfer Duffle - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Invisible Arms on Cop Outfit - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Any Shoes with Gorka Pants - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Cop Outfit - PS4 - Semi-Solo
Transfer Glitch - Xbox Series, PS5 - Semi-Solo	Perma Stun Lock - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Semi-Solo	Modded Outfits (No Checkerboard) - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Kill God Mode Players - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Invisible Stomach - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Thermals in Aircraft - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Play as Franklin - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Ballistic Health Boost and Minigun - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	FIB Necklace - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Gorka Joggers with IAA Belt and Invisible Torso - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Duffle Bags - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Machine Revolver - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Frontier Outfit in 1 Day - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Save CEO Outfits - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Female No Bra - Xbox One - Solo
White Duffle - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Grey Snapback Half Hat - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Merge Special Outfits - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Juggernaut Suit - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Racing Suit Shoulder Pads - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Gruppe, Prison and Paramedic Belts - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Overcoat and Suit Vest - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	No Kick Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Chemical Mask on All Outfits - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Alien Outfit Without Mask - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Topless Female - Xbox One, Playstation 4 - Solo	NOOSE Outfit - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Invisible Arms - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	CEO/MC Joggers & Outfits - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Semi No Ragdoll - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Account Dupe Workaround - Xbox - Solo	OTR Invisible Character - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Vehicle Warehouse OTR - Playstation, Xbox - Solo
Agency God Mode - PS5 - Solo	Save Cluckin Bell Outfit - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Headless Glitch - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Solo Coke Business OTR - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Invisible While On the MK2 - Xbox, Playstation - Semi-Solo

Miscellaneous:

Infinite Toreador Boost - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	BEFF Double Garage - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Public Solo Session - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Complete Tier 3 Survival Headshot Challenge - PS - Solo	Modded Acid Lab - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Drive Unreleased Cars - Playstation - Solo
DMO Lite - Playstation - Solo	MOC Solo Merge - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Weapons in Facility - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
TP Mugshoot Room - Playstation - Solo	Infinitely Spawn Vehicles - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Sell 27 Cars/Day - Xbox One, PS4 - Solo
Arena War AFK - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Vehicle Magic Slot - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Magic Slot Flip - Xbox Series, PS5 - Non-Solo
Brickade Fooliganz Livery Flip - Xbox, Playstation - Semi-Solo	Bypass Daily Sell Limit - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Brickade Merge - Playstation - Solo
GATF - Xbox, Playstation - Non- Solo	BF Wevil Speed Glitch - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Shooting Range Glitch - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Thermal in Story Mode - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	2 Sparrows at Same Time - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Quickly Fill Nightclub - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Infinite Company SUV's - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Endless Simeon Test Drive - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Double Damage - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Teleport in LSCM - Playstation - Solo	Get Inside Luxury Autos - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Cayo Prep Job TP - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Skywalker - Playstation - Solo	Cop Car Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo
Colored Stock Wheels - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Never Fall Off Bike - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Director Mode Trailer Online - Playstation - Solo
Launch Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	Car on Cerberus Slot - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Casino No Timer - Xbox Series, PS5, PC - Non-Solo
No Wanted Level - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Launch Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Drive Invisible Vehicle - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo
Sultan Classic Speed Glitch - Xbox Series, PS5 - Non-Solo	Yellow Car Freak Out - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Non-Solo	BMX Launch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Special/Person Vehicle in Sumo - Xbox, Playstation - Semi-Solo	Unlock Trevor at Beginning of Game -PS4 - Solo	Wheel Merge/Transfer - PC - Non-Solo
Chameleon Pearlescent Glitch - Xbox Series, PS5 - Solo	No Cops - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Magic Slot Merge - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Bushole Launch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Extra Consumables - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Out of Bounds - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Semi-Solo
Under the Map Anywhere - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Invisible Aircraft - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Walk in the Sky - Xbox, Playstation - Semi-Solo
Merge/Teleport Jobs - Xbox	2 Boys, 1 Hole - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	RC Bandito C4 Throw - Playstation - Solo
Autoclub Podium Vehicle - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Launch Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Semi-Solo	Low Grip Tires on Any Car - PC - Solo
High Speed Jet Donuts - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	OOB Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Toreador God Mode - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Wall Breach - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Teleport with Akula - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Hydra with MOC Health - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Freeze Time - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Transparent Jet - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Trevors Car - Xbox, Playstation - Solo
Matte Pearlescent Respray - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Hide Cargo - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Hydra Speed Glitch - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo
Weapons Inside Arena - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Teleport Inside of UFO - Playstation - Solo	GATF Workaround - Playstation - Non-Solo
Change the Inductor Bike Color - Xbox, Playstation, PC - Solo	Terrorbyte Merge - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Old Casino/Story Map Online - Playstation, Xbox - Semi-Solo
Unlock Special Hidden Weapons - PS4, Xbox One	NPC Bone Jiggling - Playstation, Xbox - Solo	Add Extra Accessories to Vehicles - Playstation, Xbox - Solo
Park Ranger Outfit Glitch - Playstation, Xbox - Solo	AFK Exploit - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Save Park Ranger Vehicle - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo
Motorcycle to Car Merge - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Last Gen Car to Car Merge - PS4, Xbox One - Non-Solo	Current Gen Car to Car Merge - PS5, Xbox Series - Non-Solo
Moc to MOC GCTF Glitch Out - Playstation, Xbox - Non-Solo	Apartment Vehicle God Mode - Xbox, Playstation - Semi-Solo
Cluckin Bell Weapons Setup Glitch - Xbox, Playstation - Solo	Facility GCTF w/ All OTR Methods Included - Xbox, Playstation - Non-Solo	Fly Under the Map with a Jet - Xbox, Playstation - Solo

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Some Helpful Tips About This Subreddit:
• Please read the rules before you post.
• Please stay civilised, and do not be rude towards others.
• Please do not comment stupid things such as “I didn’t use this glitch”. Seriously, what’s the point?
• Please do NOT post gamer tags anywhere on this subreddit. If you need to tell someone, just PM the person.
• If you see anyone breaking rules, make sure to report the post so we can get on it ASAP!
• If you’re desperate to ask a question, just ask on the weekly questions thread.
• We also have a chat which is quite helpful, and you can ask questions there and get a response.
• There is a very helpful scammer list for B2B Bogdan by YoGamer1044, make sure to check it out here before hosting one for someone.
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Have a Question about a Glitch?:
Ask the poster of the glitch inside the post, rather than this main page. People there created it, found it, or at the very least have been using it recently, and are far more likely to give you the correct answer.
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Have a Glitch That Isn't Linked Here?:
Make/Link a post and send me a PM and I will put the post here. (We appreciate your contribution!)
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Need any help? Message the mod team.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you ask about something which can be clearly answered via the information in the FAQ's, your comment will be removed.
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Where are the newest glitches?

Sorting the sub by new is the easiest way to find the most current glitches
Our Discord server has a section with quite a few working glitches

Are Heist Replay Glitches patched?

No, and they probably won't be any time soon; if ever.
Heist replay glitch is still working in the enhanced version.
Please note that timings might be more difficult than in the past.

How do I do X Heist Replay?

Tips on how to avoid heist reset on consoles.

Take a break after 2 consecutive attempts
Try clearing your cache after 2 consecutive attempts
Try disconnecting after the white transaction loading circle and before the orange loading circle
Try disconnecting after the "Transaction Pending" disappears at the bottom of the screen

Can you get banned from doing X Glitch?

Outside of the few admonished outliers such as the strain of Apartment Glitches, you WON'T GET BANNED for doing any glitches. This includes things such as Heist Replays, AFK's, Merges, Dupes (creating/owning/selling Dupes) and etcetera.

Any good RP glitches around?

This is a new type of job, TeamLilac AFK, and should be similar to Peter Griffin AFK. Please feel free to leave feedback on this job since its new

Best money glitch out right now?

Heist Replays (Bogdan/Cayo Perico), GCTF Dupes, and/or Semi-Frozen Money (solo) will always remain as time proven choices. Alongside whatever Dupe Glitch is currently available/working.

Anything pertaining to Dupes?

Destro's Duping Encyclopedia will most likely have your answers. Start with the Introduction segment which covers the jist of the relevant topics, otherwise flip through to the topic dedicated chapter
DSL Guide contains the updated DSL limits and thresholds and will continue to be regularly and consistently updated, please refer to this if you need help regarding the your sale limit and issues pertaining to it.

Merge Glitches?

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External Resources:

Our Discord Server - Highly recommended and it's the best place to help keep you updated with all the working glitches being discovered.

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Se7enSins:

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Looking for a partner in crime?

Need People for Duping/Trading - Refer to GTADupe
Need People for Heist Replays/JAFK/Misc Jobs - Refer to HeistTeams

Happy glitching! 😉

I like the show, but these are just some of my overall opinions. Since the show is getting canned, looking back it now, I wished they hadn’t wasted so much time on the Tejadas. It’s like Book 2 takes risks and doesn’t at the same time. Monet took more shots than 50 Cent but of course you see her in Season 4 trailer because it’s Mary J Blige and she brings in the money 💴 I don’t too much mind the character but it’s like cmon, she got swish cheesed and still not off the map cause she’s a celebrity 😂
Then we got some complete wastes of time like Davis’s brother, Mecca, and Lorenzo. Davis’s brother we spent a while on, just for the actor to switch and then die… Mecca (like Ghost), went through a complete switch and turned into a global snitching simp, making it easier for the show to kill him off, Lorenzo did the opposite of Franklin when he got out and I’ll just leave it at that lol
Monet needs Tariq to be her personal ‘thinker,’ Cane has a constant between mastermind and obsessed hothead, Dru has constant shifts from calculated and focused to hotheaded and lovestruck. Diana is probably the best written (at least in comparison), Tejada family member, her flaws are character flaws and nothing feels like a regression of character.
She’s just nosey, heads not in the game cause she wants to live a regular life, she thought she was helping at the dinner table (which I’ll still hold her accountable for that). She was kind of in the middle of a rock in a hard place between her family and Tariq, towards the end of S3, so I don’t know if I can blame her but I’m not excusing it either 🫤🤷🏾‍♂️ She did Tariq filthy towards the end tho, but she’s not as bad as Effie lol

What to expect from Hell On Earth! - Guns in Tisy/Tri Kresta are slightly boosted because of a spawning issue that has been fixed. T3 Military Guns are not boosted but have better values so you will find a weapon. T1/2 are mainly attachments with some weapons but the good items are in T3/4. pristine/worn condition. Food and clothing have vanilla values with some items taken out since no one wears them. Livonia Weapons are the same slightly boosted but not over whelming. - Character loadout with jacket, cargo pants, candy canes, head torch, canteen, map, battery and knife! (This loadout is beginner friendly and will help you survive until you get to that town!) - Boosted stamina, weight matters but drainage isn’t fast. Will still need to take a break. - Raid 24/7, do not destroy tents, loot, or cars. You will be banned. - If you want to trade/rob/etc with other players you can do Mutual RP! Basically both players have to agree to an interaction once agreed anything goes. If one declines then both players must go their separate ways without retaliation. Please record all interactions if a problem occurs. - Food Decay is off, because DayZ spoils it too fast. - Towns have increased zombies, better do some stealth unless you have the ammo! - Traveling trader is now around Chernarus & Livonia! No Currency just request some items and a meet will be scheduled. Any T3/4/Contamination items will not be traded, that is for you to explore. - 1st/3rd PP - Heli Crashes are not frequent, so loot will be damn good! Livonia heli crashes has okay gear but bunker will be the best spot! More soldiers were killed in the crashes so be careful. - Bunker contain RARE loot, but can you make it through the hoard? - Vehicle have some internals and wheels but you’ll have to do the rest! - BUILD ANYWHERE - Just hop in and start surviving / NO DISCORD!. - Discipline system: Killing the trader or any players outside of Military/Police Zones is a permanent BAN!

Character map symbols : candy cane

!Hell On Earth PvP Military/Police Zones Chernarus/Livonia Trader PS US

Game Information

Critic Reviews

Game Information

Critic Reviews

Whalesong I: Aster and the World of Brilliant Light

Whalesong II: Aster and the Death of the Ether

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