“The spadix swells as it tastes air for the first time. Waves of yellow, orange and black ripple beneath its surface. Then the smell hits you: fresh-cut grass. An orchard on a summer’s day. Ripe fruit slick with tropical rain.”
There is a plant on the Surface that blooms but once every ten years. Somehow, a Sun-touched Gardener has not only brought it down to the Neath – he has also kept it alive, and thriving. Now, at last, it is time for it to flower. But why is it being kept in a poison-garden? And who are the mystery buyers who mean to keep the plant for themselves? All will be illuminated, when the poison-flower blooms.
As an expert in Neathy poison crimes, I can confidently say that if you are ever faced with the options of securing an antidote or recovering stolen property you should ALWAYS prioritise the stolen property. Once you remember how temporary it is-unless you’ve drunk Cantigaster venom or raw lacre, in which case you’re in no position to make any decisions at all-the reality is that death is less of an issue than theft to the average Londoner.
One of my characters is the kind of person who thinks of practically everything in terms of poison (not just a philosophical position, down in the Neath!) so this story was right up my alley. It was very easy to imagine her thinking thoughts like “it took you this long to realize that sunlight is a poison? the deadly substance that people are addicted to?”
Anyway, I’m deeply biased given that my favorite advanced skill is Kataleptic Toxicology, but hooray, more stories about horrible substances and not-quite-substances!
Yeah this one was really fun. Good reward to action ratio, good split up so you can clear cards between segments and not feel penalized in efficiency for the story. And just overall a very enjoyable one to read!!
I enjoyed this one! The characters felt very believable. Oh, one thing - I noticed the Scholarly Revolutionary was referred to with both ‘she’ and ‘they’ - was that intentional?
Loved this one. The description of the initial location was lush and vivid, and I felt that the pacing was great and enjoyable. Didn’t expect to be won over by the Gardener, but here we are.
This excerpt right here really cemented my love for him, because of its simplicity and poignancy and has become one of my favourite quotes in the game:
“I do love sunlight. The feel of it on my face. But down here, anything that looks like sunlight is only going to hurt people. Or just make them give up. I don’t want to give up, or pretend I’m somewhere else. I’m here, and I want to help.”
This ES felt more on the “read a nice, immersive short novel with a few, but decisive forks”-side than the occasional action-heavy “pile up some stats to move forward”. I liked it very much, the story directly touched me as a player (reader?). I also found it well written (and in tune with the spring time outside where less dangerous flowers start to bloom), so all I want to add is a thank you for creating it!
Wonder if some glittering spores persisted on my sleeve…
This was a nice story. Not too long. Interesting plot line. I think its one I would revisit in the future just to see if anything different happens in terms of antitode first vs recovering stolen goods first
I agree it was very well-written, and there was a really good balance between story and actions. It felt very nostalgic, even a little tragic. (I went for the antidote first!)
I liked this one, for all the reasons already posted above by others.
Playing this on an account that sides with the Liberation of Night and has January as Leader of their TLU city, picking sides wasn’t hard. It would be awesome if there were just a tiny storylet referencing this affair next time they speak but that’s probably too much to ask?
Oh, and I would love to read the echoes of what happens when you don’t go for the antidote first on someone’s profile.
