LucasLaughing

Beautiful build! I really love how you've woven together a whole ecosystem here - I can definitely tell you put some time and thought into this.

Location: G03 - New California Tags: Octan, Exploration Lu's Log 20 Junali 3815 Xenobiological Survey of G-03 At first glance, "New California" appears to be a desert wasteland, largely devoid of life and, most of the year, this is true. But, things are not always as they seem. G-03 has a highly elliptical orbit and, several times a year, this orbit brings it (relatively) close to a companion planet, G-03b. G-03b is a gas giant and as the planets draw together the gravity from G-03b starts to squeeze and stretch G-03. There are earthquakes, and the ground cracks and deforms. Finally, as the planets near their closest point, water is squeezed from the porous rocks of G-03, flooding onto the surface to create vast rivers and huge, shallow seas. Evolution here has favored organisms that can respond quickly to water, so overnight the desert seems to bloom as plants and fungi spring from long buried seeds and spores. One organism of note is the Eshey-Pombe Traptus, named for the famed pair of explorers that first discovered it. This specimen is very young, but as it grows it will develop pink flowers to tempt unwary prey, and venomous barbs to paralyze any creatures that venture too close, allowing the Traptus to eat them at its leisure. Somewhat the opposite of the innocent looking Traptus, the Diablo Beetle looks fearsome... ...but it feeds on seeds and small invertebrates, which it filters from the sand using feather-like appendages. Next on the scene, a trio of Scorpstriches. Somewhat similar to flightless birds, these creatures have evolved venomous stingers on their tails and long, curved beaks for fishing small creatures out of the dunes. A crested Anklyodison approaches! It and the beetle size each other up, but each decides the other is not enough of a threat to fight. When water is present, time and energy cannot be wasted on unimportant squabbles. Look! Something has spooked the animals: They are right to be wary, because a grave danger approaches them from above. It's a Wind Walker! These giant creatures use the thermal columns generated by the hot desert air to rise high into the sky, before descending on unwary prey. They're held aloft by chambers of gas, which they expand and deflate as needed. They're a graceful creature, but don't let their apparent delicateness fool you. They are predators. Fortunately for our assembled creatures, this Wind Walker has eaten recently and is only interested in water. It sucks up vast quantities of water and, using a process we don't yet understand, separates the hydrogen from the oxygen. It uses the former to stay aloft and the latter is expelled through tiny openings to help the creature maneuver The rivers and oceans wont last long. In a few days, perhaps a week at most, the liquid will filter back down through the thirsty sand. The plants and fungi wither and die. The lucky ones will have released spores or seeds, which will wait below the sand, for years or decades if needed, until the water comes again. Today, though, the water is here and for a brief time "New California" looks exactly like old California used to*. -Lu out. *Disclaimer - I grew up on Mars and have never actually seen "old" California, But I imagine it looks something like this.

Awesome work! I really like your landscaping, and the microscale trees look very good.

Cool build - I like how the trees encircle the scene - it makes the forest seem dense and deep.

Awesome build; I love the tentacles, and the way the creature seems to be embedded in the asteroid! I think you mean, "Oh Elder gods!" It's already a cosmic horror story - our characters just haven't figured it out yet!

Hah, I love the code undead artichoke I like your terrain - especially the way the rocks slope downward gradually. My only suggestion would be to use more light while you're photographing - the picture are a bit grainy / dark.

This is awesome - love the double background and, as other have said, the pixel art is beautiful. Thanks for including me in the story!

FROM: Octan Training Facility Management TO: Lu Caslaug-Hing Re: Incident in the courtyard. The following fine has been levied against your account: 1. Reckless driving/flying -75 Credits The following bonus has been applied to your account: 1. Test Pilot bonus for completing an Immelmann Turn in the Mudskipper (whether intentional or not). +32 -------------------- Please transfer 43 credits to Bob. -Lu

Glad to have you on the team! That's a cool little vehicle - it reminds me of something you'd see at the airport, so it definitely seems appropriate for it to be zipping about inside the ship.

Awesome entry! I really like the cliffs with the snow on the top and bottom, and your continuing exploits on board the Axle make me laugh every time

I love how in-depth your stories are (although I wonder what Troopers 1 and 2 did to deserve their fates). Fantastic ship - great angles and very organic looking - good work!

Beautiful ship, and you've had some awesome greebling on your last few entries. As for missing your family, well... "If all your days are rough and it's too hard to stay happy, just activate your guide, and get a hug from CLAPPIE!"

Location: H03 - Kaalin Tags: Vehicle, Exploration Lu's Log - 14 Junali 3815 First of all, I would like to formally apologize to all those who were eating lunch in the training facility courtyard yesterday; that was my first time trying to pilot a hover-vehicle that large, and the controls were more sensitive than I expected. I understand that it was startling to see a vehicle flying toward you, at full speed, ten feet off the ground, but I assure you no one was in any danger. Following the "incident," Terrapin, one of our best drivers, showed me how to use the magnetic oscillators to compensate for ground resonance, and it was smooth flying from there. Today, I'm flying over the equatorial region of Kaalin. The terrain is mainly clay and soft rocks, but orbital scans suggested that this region might have vast Awesomnium veins below ground. The Mudskipper is equipped with ground-penetrating radar, along with a host of other sensors, so I'm flying a low grid pattern, waiting for the instruments to pick something up. Finally, the sensors pick up an ore signature near a dry creek bed, so I land and get ready to drill a core sample. If I do find Awesomnium, HQ will dispatch a couple of larger rigs to mine it out. The interior is cramped, but my chair swivels around so that I can operate the drill controls. I could get out and stretch my legs - the oxygen/nitrogen balance is comparable to earths', but I prefer to stay inside the pressurized craft. Those of us who grew up on one of the colonies tend to be a bit more wary of outside air. Children on earth learn the song "Twinkle, Twinkle Neutron Star." Well, we learned a song that had the same tune, but the lyrics went like this: "Mama, Papa, why can't we play outside?" "The Martian plague killed billions, dear, how horribly they died. They choked on their own insides as their heads seemed to deflate, Now we have a special room to decontaminate." "Mama, Papa, why can't we play outside?" "The Martian plague killed billions, dear, how horribly they died. Anyway ... I get the drill set-up and cross my fingers for an Awesomnium deposit. This is Lu, signing out. Bonus pics:

Beautiful work - I really like the greebles on the top of the buildings. I'm glad I graduated from the facility before the sandworm was captured...

Sweet ride! The lights on the front make it look like it was built for exploring, and the sand looks excellent too.

Great work - I love the dialogue and banter, and the front of your research ship looks very cool.

Hah, I love it! Very cool shaping on the hovercraft - I especially dig the front. Thanks for keeping me in the story, and for a very smooth ride back to base

Another awesome build! The speeder design is great and I really like the use of the blue flextube to show your flight path. I hate it when I build little extra details, only to find that they're not visible once it's time to start photos.

Hey team, Lu here. Since I'm on a beach planet and unable to contribute to this coming week's exploration, I'd like to transfer 53 credits to Bob.

Thank you so much for the encouraging comments, everyone! It was a lot of fun coming up with ideas for alien plants, and I'm glad you guys liked CLAPPIE

Location: G07 - Hennigan II Tags: Exploration, Vehicle Explorer's Log - 28 Maian 3815 I arrived on my first alien planet today. Although Hennigan II initially sounded far less exciting than "the lava planet" the rest of my team went to, any disappointment was quickly forgotten as I piloted my Single Occupant Survey Vehicle through an alien ecosystem bursting with life. My task is to investigate a magnetic anomaly that one of our probes detected from orbit. It's almost certainly an iron deposit, or something similar, but there's always a tiny chance that it's Mithril. When I arrive at the coordinates, it takes my brain a few seconds to process what my eyes are seeing. Is that a ...? It is. It's a living tree, floating in the air, roots and all. I've heard rumors about alien artifacts being found in the vicinity of the anomalies - current scientific consensus seems to be that the anomalies themselves were engineered by some ancient, unknown race of aliens. Whatever this is, it doesn't seem to be bothering the local wildlife, although there is some slight gravitational lensing around the base. My suit doesn't pick up any radiation or energy emissions, but I'm not going to get any closer until Dr. Long or someone else from the science team gets here. This could be anything. It doesn't look like a weapon, but that doesn't mean it isn't. Of course, it could also be some kind of alien art installation, or shrine, or simply some malfunctioning tech. Almost unbidden, the rhyme from training pops into my head. In a strange situation, you can make Pres. Business happy. Instead of snappy judgements, just activate your CLAPPIE. Dammit. I reluctantly pull out my Explorer's Guide. "Hi, I'm CLAPPIE, your Corporate Law And Planetary Politics Incident Evaluator! In a few words, tell me how I can help!" "Unknown Artifact." CLAPPIE: "I think you said 'Undead Artichoke.' Are you having trouble with your Octan Hydroponic Vegetable Growth System?" Lu: "What?! No." CLAPPIE: "Oops, sorry! In a few words, tell me how I can help! Lu: "Alien Artifact." CLAPPIE: "I think you said 'Alien Artifact.' Is that right?" Lu: "Yes." CLAPPIE: "... Initiating Alien Artifact Protocols. I need a little more information. How many fatalities has the artifact caused. Please round to the nearest thousand." Lu: "Uh, zero." CLAPPIE: "Thank you. Please wait while CLAPPIE determines your location. ... ... CLAPPIE detects that you are not located within two-hundred miles of an Octan Regional Headquarters Building. Is that right?" Lu: "Yeah...." CLAPPIE: "Thank you! CLAPPIE recommends that you take off and nuke the entire site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure. Shall CLAPPIE attempt to gain access to the nearest launch facility?" Lu: "No! Cancel program!" CLAPPIE: "Are you sure you want to exit? CLAPPIE remains very enthusiastic about this mission." Lu: "Exit!" CLAPPIE: "Goodbye." On second thought, I'll just type up a manual report and mark the location for the science team. Lu, out. --------------- Overall scene:

Sounds good - as long as I don't have to use the metric system for measurements

Wow, excellent story and I love the expressions on the faces of the folks watching you on the hover chair. Great creatures, and nice job on the lava too.

This is an awesome idea for a contest! My only question is in regard to this bit: Entries must only show natural environment, players' character must not be represented in the build. I assume that rule is meant to keep the builds focused on the environment rather than the character, which I like, but I think it could be difficult to show scale - especially of alien creatures- without any mini or microfigs. Would it be possible to tweak the rules so that figures can be shown, as long as all they are doing is observing the animals/environment? This contest is going to be great either way, I just thought I'd add my two cents

Awesome ship! Do have have pics from other angles - I'd like to get a better look at that skeleton under the barge.