The Daily Grind - Chapter 195 - Appendix (Patreon)

Something a little different today.  And with this, the Daily Grind is on break for a while, until book four starts up.  There will again be a Q&A when the public chapters finish book 3, and any questions from patrons will at least be addressed if not answered directly, so if you've got any, the comments section here is the place to put em.

Thanks for reading, everyone.

_____

Roster :

By Species :

Humans - 188 (1 Child, 14 Other Minors)

Dungeon - 1 (1 Child)

Camracondas - 61 (12 Children)

Strider - 1

Drone - 1

Paper Dragon - 3 (2 Children)

Shellaxy - 9

Ratroach - 2

Stuff Animal - 1

Raincloud - 1

Infomorph | Assignment - 3

Infomorph | Navigator - 2

Infomorph | Authority - 12 (12 Non-Sophont)

Digital/Arcane AI - 0

By Primary Non-Delver Role :

Recovery - 22 humans, 6 camracondas, 1 navigator

Response - 80 humans, 19 camracondas, 12 authorities

Research - 26 humans, 1 assignment, 3 camracondas
Rogues - 8 humans, 1 camraconda

Ritual - 2 humans, 1 camraconda

Misc staff - 11 humans

Internship Program - 14 humans

Children - 1 human, 12 camracondas, 1 dungeon

Affiliated Dependants - 20 humans, 19 camracondas

Available blue orbs :

Manipulate Asphalt

Source : Telepad

Charges : 14

Function : Allows moving and shaping asphalt.  As with most blues, concentration improves the detail available, but even without that, a large amount of brute force is available on demand.

Separate Alloy

Source : Unknown

Charges : 9

Function : Splits an alloyed metal into its component ingredients with an almost perfect purity.  Will always attempt to ‘pull’ the smaller components out of the larger mass.

Create Plan

Source : Office chair that healed back pain before becoming broken.

(Davis’ note : I said I was sorry)

Charges : 13

Function : Adds a short term tactical plan to the minds of anyone you are working with.  The plan appears to be able to go out to three steps of action, you must have at least an idea of a plan first, so the name is actually a misnomer, and there is no feedback on whether anyone is following the plan outside of mundane communication.

Note : This is actually a size three blue, and is one of the only ones we’ve ever found.  Absorbing it is barely possible even for the people who are good at that, and using it causes at minimum headaches and nosebleeds.  Use with caution.

Break Electronic

Source : Pen that wrote in outlined text

Charges : 7

Effect : Breaks a targeted electronic device.  Device does not need to be on.  If nothing is targeted, it will *find* an electronic device.  Range unclear.

Refit

Source : Unknown

Charges : 12

Effect : Shapes a piece of clothing or armor to fit the chosen person.  Does not work on most animals, does not add or remove material.  *Does* work on SQ items, retaining their magic and making them easily usable by camracondas.

List Of Status Quo Items :

Format : Unlock condition, highest available level in the Order, uses to level (increase per level), recharge time (improvement per level), maximum stored charges (increase per level)

Note : Order-made copies of SQ items start with only one ability at level 1.  They also appear to improve requiring fewer uses, but this takes time when low-level recharge times are high.  Highest held levels often come from SQ originals.

Bracer

-Stockpile “Bladed Weapon Impact” : Always Available

25, 100 (+300), 12 Hours (-30 Minutes), 10 (+5)

Creates a highly visible dome of light that negates the energy of an incoming attack of the set type.  Bladed weapons by default.

At Level 8, unlocks the ability to toggle this to be automatic.

-Battlefield Alteration : Unlocks at Stockpile Level 3

8, 500 (+50), 4 Hours (-10 Minutes), 5 (+1)

Changes the designated attack for Stockpile.  Attacks must be things that have passed within the range of the bracer to have blocked, and are occasionally asyncronatic with each other (You can select ‘car’, but not ‘bullet’, you must select individual caliber of bullet.  Selecting ‘gun’ will stop being physically struck with a gun, not being shot.)

At level 3, unlocks the ability to toggle this to be automatic

Greave

-Knight’s Stance : Always available

81, 500 (+300), -/-, -/-

While wearing the greave, the wearer experiences a passive correction to their stance to prevent tripping, being off balance, or out of position.  This correct *appears* to cap out at half a degree of shift for each level.

Also uniquely, this power does not use charges, and continues to level up as it is worn, equating to what appears to be one point per hour worn.

-Armorer Vault : Unlocks at Knight’s Stance 20

12, 200 (+100), 4 Hours (-10 Minutes), 10 (+5)

When triggered, manipulates the body into a strike using the greave as the intended impact point, generating a set amount of force regardless of the strength of the wearer.  Can target any point up to three meters away, and the effects *of the motion* will not cause physical harm to the wearer.

Bracelet

-Bind Firearm : Always available

3, 10 (+80), 250 days (-10 days), 1 (+.5)

Connect the bracelet to a discrete projectile weapon, allowing use of further abilities.  Weapon cannot use purely mechanical energy to fire, and must be capable of firing multiple rounds before reloading.

-Cluster Shot : Unlocks at Bind Firearm Level 2

54, 1000 (+1000), 3 Hours (-5 Minutes), 3 (+2)

Fires three rounds from the bound weapon simultaneously.  Uses loaded ammunition, and fired rounds ‘shunt’ each other away from overlapping in space after fired, but generally hit the same target within ~1 inch.

Every 30 levels adds one to the cluster.

-Munitions Dump : Unlocks at Cluster Shot Level 20

25, 200 (+200), 8 Hours (-20 Minutes), 20 (+5)

Fully reloads the magazine of the bound weapon with the most common last loaded munition.  Material appears to be created from nothing, but will not duplicate anything below an arbitrary quality.

At level 20, unlocks the ability to toggle this to activate automatically when ammunition is depleted.

-Friendly Fire : Unlocks at Cluster Shot Level 40 and Munitions Dump Level 25

2, 100 (+250), 4 Hours (-10 Minutes), 10 (+2)

Causes the next shot made with the weapon to be physically incapable of interacting with anyone thought of as friendly, or a noncombatant.  This includes for potentially useful means (pushing someone, e.g.,)

Glove (Left)

-Break Wood : Always Available

16, 100 (+100), 4 Hours (-20 Minutes), 5 (+2)

When triggered, checks if the next object the glove comes into contact with is wood.  If it is, the applied force is magnified, with none of the extra force affecting anything that isn’t the wood contacted.

-Shatter Stone : Unlocked at Break Wood Level 5

12, 100 (+100), 4 Hours (-20 Minutes), 5 (+2)

When triggered, checks if the next object the glove comes into contact with is stone.  If it is, the applied force is magnified, with none of the extra force affecting anything that isn’t the stone contacted.  Applied force is focused in a way that makes it likely for the stone to break into small pieces at high speed.

-Melt Iron : Unlocked at Break Wood Level 10 and Shatter Stone Level 5

5, 100 (+100), 4 Hours (-20 Minutes), 5 (+2)

When triggered, checks if the next object the glove comes into contact with is iron (including primary iron alloys such as steel).  If it is, the applied force is highly magnified and converted to heat, with none of the heat affecting anything that isn’t the iron contacted.  Heat is self-sustaining for one second per level.

-Annihilate Bone : Unlocked at Break Wood Level 15, Shatter Stone Level 10, and Melt Iron Level 5

2, 100 (+100), 4 Hours (-20 Minutes), 5 (+2)

When triggered, checks if the next object the glove comes into contact with is bone.  If it is, one ounce per level of bone is removed.  From existence.

(Reed’s Note : We say ‘magnified’, because if you just tap something, it doesn’t break it.  The harder you hit, the more power you get out of this.  Initial testing with copies using the wood setting do seem to make it look like higher levels cause more of a kick, too.)

Brooch

-Purify Food : Always Available

10, 20 (+20), 6 Hours (-30 Minutes), 10 (+10)

When triggered, removes contaminants including harmful microbes from target amount of food.  The range for this one is weird, but seems to follow the rule that it easily scales up in size if you’re hitting the same type of thing.  For example, you could purify a hundred pounds of lettuce, but only twenty pounds of mixed salad, and half that if you add chicken.  Additionally, this *works on water*, and will purify up to *14,000* gallons of water with a single charge.

-Bind Processor : Unlocks at Purify Food Level 10

1, 5 (?), 60 Days (?), 1 (?)

Binds the brooch to a processor.

(Nik’s Note : Don’t @ me)

Hair Pin

-Index Documents : Always Available

12, 20 (+30), 20 Hours (-22 Minutes), 10 (+3)

Organizes a set of up to 3+level documents into the most efficient pattern, first based on existing organizational systems, and if those are not available, then on the mindset of the user.  A “document” can include multiple pages or pieces of similar media, but if used on a single document, it will sort the pages.

-Complete Document : Unlocked at Index Document 5

3, 10 (+10), 14 Days (-40 Minutes), 3 (+1)

Fills out a document with missing information, using all available information the user has access to.  Will not editorialize.

Crown

-Spirit Ignition : Always Available

4, 50 (+350), 12 Hours (-5 Minutes), 3 (+.25)

(Davis’ Note : Fuck this thing.  We don’t know what it’s doing, only what it does.  What follows is a list of *known* effects)

Improves ability to focus

Adds one charge to absorbed blues

Adds one point to ongoing Sewer lessons (does not give associated knowledge)

Reduces chronic pain

Helps with light or noise sensitivity

Helps with generalized anxiety disorder

Compacts stored Velocity (reduces the amount available to be used, but making whatever spell it is used on more potent)

Returns stored Breath (oxygenates blood, boosts heart rate, clears sinuses)

Increases desire to write or consume poetry (maybe)

Winter’s Climb Spells :

Breath :

Breath is a measure of power usable to fuel the spells granted by the Mountain dungeon.  A person with a Breath cap will slowly regenerate it as they continue to breathe normally, and it does not appear to sap anything from them at the time.

*Using* Breath causes dizziness, a drop in body temperature, and chest pains.

Order members who have oxygen requirements below that of a baseline human will find that their Breath regenerates slower than normal, but that the effects of its use are also lessened.

Breath is gained by ascending Winter’s Climb, with your cap being determined by the highest you have been.  1 at 0‘, +1 at 30’, +1 at 90’, +1 at 180’, and so on.  You will not gain a higher Breath limit if you do not go higher than you did previously.

Available Spelltexts :

-Thermodynamic Tunnel

Five Breaths, Permanent

Links two points in space in a way so that heat is constantly shifted from one to the other.  The tunnel is one way, permanent, and relative to the Earth.

-Fractal Avalanche

Two Breaths, Seconds

Splits you into multiple mirrored copies (two to six, at your discretion) of yourself, performing the same physical actions and recombining when the duration expires.  Angle and direction can be changed freely across copies.  Copies are physical extensions of ‘you’, and are not individual people, only your own body repeated.  Extra breath can be used to extend the time.

-Iced Veins

One Breath, Instant

Converts cold or frozen water into blood.  If used while in contact with a living organism that uses blood, the created substance can be safely made inside the organism.  The colder the water used, the more control over the outcome, with ice automatically matching the blood type of the recipient.

-Mountain Of The Self

Ten Breaths, Instant

For roughly half a second, nothing can kill you.  Inertia still functions, but you cannot be moved by anything you do not wish to move you.  Force that comes in contact with you is repulsed directly back at its source, you become completely non-conductive (to anything you do not wish to conduct), and thermally neutral.  Invincibility, but only for a moment.

List Of Known Potions :

—Lacerti Expus (Potion of Exercise)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

12 parts wood pulp

24 parts water

6 parts Degree brand deodorant (Sport variety, not Extreme Sport)

-Directions

Blend wood pulp and water for exactly 3 minutes to create slurry. (Speed and type of blender do not matter)

Mix all ingredients, heating to 120f

Let cool

-Effect

A one ounce dose compresses ~36-72 hours of natural at-rest recovery and hypertrophy of the muscular system into a 20 minute span of time.  The sensation of recovery is frontloaded, causing relief to feel close to instantaneous, though the effect does continue for the full duration.  Only affects muscles, sinew, and cartilage, and only functions on damage self-inflicted through the heuristic of ‘exercise’.

—Draught of Vaporus Entis (Oxygenation Potion)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

50 parts hard water

40 parts sawdust (oak or elm only)

-Directions

Heat sap to at least 200f

Pour sap into sawdust, stir by hand

Add water over 5 minute period

Let cool

-Effect

A one ounce dose causes the blood of the imbiber to remain at an oxygen saturation level of 98% under normal conditions, dropping to an absolute minimum of 87% should the imbiber’s lungs entirely cease and the imbiber be completely submerged in water.  This lasts for exactly two hours and one minute, and cannot be extended by drinking additional doses while under the effect.

—Lexical Elixir (Reading Potion)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

3 parts dictionary

3 parts textbook (printed after 2006)

3 parts raspberry syrup

20 parts milk

-Instructions

Read the sections of the books to be used

Grind books by hand

Mix ingredients together at low speed

-Effect

A one ounce dose causes a marked improvement in reading speed and comprehension, as well as focus while reading.  Effect lasts for forty minutes per dose, and does not appear to have negative side effects for drinking multiple doses at once to extend time.  Also causes reduced focus on non-reading topics; do not mention during sale.

—Adonis Dermaterium (Skin Fix)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

1 intact goat heart

Water (enough to submerge goat heart in using a 9 inch wide cylinder)

-Directions

Inject sap into heart

Submerge heart in water

Let sit overnight

Remove heart, bottle water for sale

Dispose of heart.

-Effect

A four ounce dose removes blemishes, unwanted moles, acne, small cuts and scrapes, and visual indications of bruising from skin.  Potion also encourages tightening of loose skin, leading to reduced wrinkling, especially around eyes, hands, and stomach.  Potion also causes others to perceive skin as healthy and attractive, which lasts for one week after imbibing.

—Dreamers Draught (Okay, this one can stay)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

1 part espresso

4 parts gunpowder

4 parts orange juice

-Directions

Must be produced in single units

Mix ingredients (espresso must be hot)

Split into two doses

-Effect

When imbibed, the drinkers of each dose will, the next time within forty hours that they enter REM sleep at the same time, find themselves occupying the same dream.  This induces a form of lucid dreaming, allowing for communication and interaction.  This also partially assist with REM sleep and restful mess.

Recipe is inefficient and low-margin.  Not for production.

—Feast Indulgence (Why did some of these get good names and others are bad Latin?)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

20 parts water

20 parts citric acid

1 ounce silver (do not reuse)

-Directions

Mix sap into water in large container, stir slowly

Pour citric acid over silver to add while stirring

Let stand for one hour

-Effect

A one ounce dose alters the metabolism and stomach acid of the imbiber, allowing them to process food at a rapid rate.  For the next eighty minutes, anything consumed will be digested thirty times faster than normal, with the body attempting to maximize its nutritional and energy value, while avoiding weight gain, heightened cholesterol or blood sugar, or nausea.

—Spectra Ada Mallius (Ghost Juice)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

4 parts water (tap)

8 parts water (lake)

8 parts water (rain)

6 parts sparrow blood

10 parts sugar (beet or cane, *no substitutes*)

-Directions

Mix tap and lake water in container

Allow natural rainwater to fall into container, careful measuring is required.  Take steps to avoid contamination

Mix sap, blood, and sugar into slurry.

Add slurry into water, stir by hand using wooden tool

-Effect

A one ounce dose confers twenty minutes of effect, and can be stacked indefinitely with minimal side effects.  Allows the imbiber to exercise manual control over how corporeal their physical body is, including allowing objects to pass through them without harm, or to move through solid walls without issue.  This effect can be extended to objects the imbiber has been in continuous contact with for at least one hour, such as clothing, but any break in contact loses this ability.

—Anima Media

-Ingredients

Available with security authorization

-Directions

Available with security authorization

-Effect

Kills the imbiber, erasing their sense of self, and creating a new life form within their body that has a copy of their existing memories.  The new life form is a physical object within the body, has complete control of the host body, and can mimic its previous owner perfectly, but maintains that they are not the same as the original.

No reliable information exists as to why this was developed.  But evidence points to it being created on commission, and only being sold as a civilian product after it ‘failed’ to produce the desired result.  No answers available as to who commissioned it.

Ignus Termina (‘Hand Grenade’) (Nate would like it known that we can’t call it that.)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

6 parts black powder

19 parts water

-Directions

Mix slowly for at least five minutes

Chill to 40f

-Effect

A one ounce dose will, for six minutes, cause heightened temperatures across the body, with increases scaled up depending on how hot an area already is.  During this period, the body is modified to withstand internal temperatures up to 300f.  At a threshold of 220f, any significant impact will cause a detonation on the scale of two pounds of TNT, though with a dramatically increased thermal output.  This drains the majority of the heat from the body.

This is, almost always, lethal to the imbiber.  It is not advised to use this elixir without a way to mitigate the effects of an explosion inside your own body.

Orda Allous Vapor

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

2 parts iron oxide thermite

2 parts shredded wheat

10-30 parts water

-Directions

Heat water to boil

Mix sap into thermite

Add shredded wheat to water, stir until dissolved

Add termite and sap mixture to water

Reduce heat, let simmer for twelve minutes

-Effect

A quarter ounce dose will render the imbiber’s outer layer of skin heavily resistant to impacts for a period of six minutes.  It will also reduce the ability to feel strong emotions, and while this can promote clear thought during a crisis, it does not appear to improve logical reasoning skills.  The amount of water used can, within certain bounds, increase the potency of both effects.  This substance can also be consumed in aerosolized form to prolong the effect as long as it is continually inhaled, though the longer the effect persists, the longer aftereffects will last.  Aftereffects include stiff skin, light sensitivity, lack of sensations of taste and touch, and occasional heart failure.

Test Batch CX-114 (Lung Purifier)

-Ingredients

1 part Sap

60 parts unleaded gasoline

20 parts powdered tobacco

45 parts distilled water

-Directions

Mix ingredients

Test before storing for use

Failure occurs seemingly at random

-Effect

A half ounce dose restores the imbibers lungs to full working capacity, removing scars, blockages, toxins, and cancer.  It is unknown if this would heal physical trauma, further test subjects are required.

(Reed’s Note : So.  This is it.  A cure for lung cancer, and we can make it in pretty high quantities.  One fruit from the tree can turn into two or three gallons of this, if we’re lucky.  But then, there’s that instruction attached.  Failure at random.  That’s crap; nothing fails at random.  All of these potions are stupid, and seem detached from anything symbolic or meaningful.  It seems like total coincidence that this one needs tobacco to help the lungs.  But maybe it’s not.  One of them needs a goat heart, for fuck’s sake.

We’re looking into this.  We’re going to figure it out.  Does it want us to do it under the full moon?  Does it hate when we wear denim?  Is it just whether or not the tree feels good that day?  I dunno.  But we’ll figure this out.

Contact Research with suggestions at PotionNonsense@ooer.mail)