Ride the Giants, Development Blog 1
...................................................
Ride the Giants
Once in every century, a crowd of ancient,stoop-shouldered giants come down from the Star Mountains and stride down the Sword Peninsula towards the Titans Reach,where the Sea of Storms separates the Lands We Know from the nightmare MonsterContinent which lies beyond.
There, at the very point of the land, the Giants slow alittle, perhaps to gaze at the wild ocean before them. Then they walk off theland, into the sea, and wade across theTitans Reach, the sea covering them even to the neck, the mouth, the eyes. Withoutslowing, they surge through the waves and, after four hours of wading, theyrise once again to the land, walking up the shore and making their way off intothe Monster Continent.
Where they go, or why, none know, nor how they return.Perhaps they endlessly circle the world, for in roughly 100 years, the samegiants will return, again coming down from the Star Mountains, and again,slowing, just a little, to gaze at the Sea of Storms before they plunge into itand wade across the Titans Reach.
They do not speak or communicate in any way. They walkthrough anything in their path, pushing down fortress walls like a man pushingthrough weeds, but ignore anything beyond it.
A century ago observers with telescopes and trained birdsnoted ruins on the giants backs, strange parasites in their rockyskin, relics and remnants of unknown actions studded across them and what seemto be mysterious temples built atop their bowed heads!
Now the Giants come again, but this time we are ready!
I am King Sleet and I have called adventurers from acrossall realms. I have called you.
Not to stop the giants, for nothing can, and we fear theirwrath if we try, but to board them!
As the giants slow before the Titans Reach, they are justslow enough that it becomes possible to climb onto their feet.
Board a giant. Climb it. If you are quick, it should bepossible to climb their legs as they wade into the ocean, staying just ahead ofthe rising water. Investigate. For any Lore or Treasure you return, you will bewell paid.
My small navy waits at sea. They shall try to follow thegiants, as well they can. A few experimental Hot Air Balloons await. They arehard to control but they will try to follow and assist.
You have FOUR HOURS (in real time) until the Giants walkonto the Continent of Monsters. None who go there return!
They come! Prepare yourselves!
The Scene
As you look across the ranging fields you see spots ofcolour; other groups of wild adventurers waiting with hooks, grapples, ladders,horses and a crazy range of tool and tricks.
Far beyond the giants path, the King observes from hispavilion, and lined around him, the people of the land, waiting to see theGiants. Far out to sea, the Kings small navy prepares to attempt to follow thegiants and in the air, experimental but hard to control hot air balloons bobabout, hoping to observe and perhaps even offer rescue.
The brass horns are blowing! The ground is shaking! Thecrowd roars!
The Giants
The Giants are proportioned like immensely strong butvery ancient men with stony skin. They walk bent over like hunchbacks, headstilted up so they can see.
From their perspective they are not walking veryfast, but their enormous size means that, to us, their feet thunder past. Therelative movement of their bodies is very slow, but for someone on the groundas they step over, the gargantuan foot fairly flies past overhead.
The Giants heads are roughly 2,000 Feet in theair.
Their skin is pitted and rocky. Where an ancient manwould have wrinkles and folds, they have cracks and crevices. Their surfacelooks rough and fricative. Scrub plants have taken root in places. Some havetrees or heather, scrubland and maquis, even small trickling streams, on theirbacks.
If a giant was static and still, an energetichiker could possibly climb one in an hour and a half.
The giants have something like hair. Perhaps it is vinesor growth of some kind mixed with ancient hair as thick as ropes or thebranches of trees. The hair hangs down around their heads and faces. On some,hair speckles their forearms and thighs. The Giants have thick hanging crotchand ass hair, which thankfully spares the modesty of those who look upon them,and which might also prove useful to climbers.
The Giants Path
There are about a dozen Giants. They walk together in nofixed formation. They sometimes stumble and brush up against one another. (Itmight be possible to leap from one to another).
Over the Eons the Giants have worn a shallow valley inthe ground. Rivers and streams often weave and gather in this valley, so thegiants sometimes splash through them on their way.
Giant Layout – Labelled
The Climb 1. The Foot
A 50 foot cliff. Very rugged, not sheer, more like aclamber. Race to the ankle. Need to climb up over and around the ankle to theback of the lower leg. There are unlikely to be other life-forms or encounterson the foot.
Though, as the most accessible place, there might besmall encampments of bandits, sigilites, monks or others who have mounted thegiant at some point during its great journey. Those who understand the ocean iscoming will either be about to jump off or, like you, be willing to risk a rapidascent to stay above the waters.
This would be a good place for a goatherds shack actually.They could let their goats rove all over the giant. Maybe they are a monk. Willthey come with you as you climb or refuse to believe in their doom until thesea washes over them.
The Ankle Cross
A traverse around a moving joint. Big possibility offalling off here, it must be accomplished quickly before the giant takes toomany steps into the sea. Once on the rear of the calf the terrain becomes morepredictable and the angle of climb more advantageous.
Of course you could try climbing the overhand of theshin, but that is madness..
If there are other teams or spoiling factors this would bea good first spot to knock someone off, but does not guarantee their death….
2. The Lower Leg Climb
How far is this? About 150 feet. A hard scramble andclimb up the back of the calf, a moving surface which shifts from near verticalto overhang in pulses as the giant walks.
This is probably the most important time-sensitive climbas reaching the knee will keep you safe for most of the journey, only thedeepest part of the ocean at the two-hour mark will reach past this
The Knee Decision
As one reaches the knee another traverse is required,followed by a decision. Should one continue to climb the frontal thigh, aimingfor the hips and lower back, or risk it all with a daring leap onto the giantshand?
The hand swings very close to the knee over the giantsslow steps. It is certainly possible to try to jump onto a knuckle as it swingsnear the kneecap. This might allow you to climb the arm and give you a timeadvantage, avoiding whatever terrors occupy the back.. You can aim right forthe head! It’s a straight climb up past the shoulder,
3. The Upper Leg
The climb up the front of the thigh may be fatiguing butis not technically difficult and it stands the best change of keeping yourparty together. As you begin to reach the hip you are truly out of danger fromthe rising sea level and can afford to take s short break to consider.
Will you attempt a traverse up and over the hip, aiming forthe side of the back? Or will you clamber into the giants dense ass hair? Thegrowth is thick and tangled, making the way seem relatively safe. You couldmove through the crotch like a tick, work your way through the steaming jungleof the taint and then haul your way up to the base of the spine via the asshair between the cheeks.
It sounds horrific, but isn’t just such an investigationthe reason you are here? And who knows who, or what you may discover in thatDark Realm?
4. The Back
At last, the great tilted expanse of the Giants Back. Finallyyou need no longer fear falling off. However this is a ready environment forcombat, either with other explorers or denizens of the Giants body. Its also agood place for a Balloon to try to land, they could tie up here and wait foryou, assuming you have already made arrangements. Or Balloons could land rivalparties or pirates.
Will you explore the karst and moorland of the back orhead straight for the head and its mysteries? From here you can probably easilymake out the tailing naval forces. You may also be exposed to any flying monsters..
5. The Head
What is the mysterious structure atop the Giants head andwhat secrets or treasures does it hold? Can you gain access to the Giants Thoughts(and even PILOT the giant?)
This would be a good place for a Balloon to try to pickyou up from (if possible), but the Head may be haunted by Quetzacotolous orother flying creatures, perhaps mountain lions or even super-monkeys makingtheir home in the dense forest of its hair.
Getting through that dense hair to the temple or fort onthe giants crown will be the hard part. One must risk diving or crawlingthrough the maquis of the scalp, risking attack by whatever lies beneath, orattack from above, the whirl of strange flying parasites which circles abovethe giants highest point, riding the thermals of its exertions.
From here you can easily see the head-tops of the othergiants. Which other adventurers have already reached their summits? Some may bebeing picked up by balloons already, others may be rotating vast cannons orlazer guns to blast at you! Or signalling more peaceful intentions, even requestsfor aid…
This might be a good place to consider, will you risk leapingto another giant? If you traverse down to the arm it might be possible as theybrush against each other…
Reaching the peak of the head would also give you a goodlook at the advancing line of the Monster Continent, coming closer with eachmighty step….
6. The Arm Climb
The arm in general is a tough, vertical climb with lesshand holds and less safety. It may however be less populated than the thigh andif one can manage it, it might bring you more directly to the neck, and thenceto the head, bypassing the great Karst of the back completely.
The Mysteries of the Hand!
Do the Giants have great rings upon those stony fingers?If so can you read the cartouche of its symbols as you climb across its goldensurface? Or does the giant have something in its hand? How big is that somethingand might it drop it? Is the giants ‘skin’ around its palm and fingertipsperhaps sensitive enough that it may detect the PCs climbing it? Here theswinging force of the giants movements would be the greatest of all.
The Elbow Traverse
Like the Knee traverse but worse. The angles of thegiants arms are more vertical than their legs but its still much easier toclimb the upward diagonal of the rear of its upper arm than to risk theoverhang of the front of the upper arm. Cover is less, as the rocky ‘skin’ ofthe giant is less chunky and dense.
Hair or Shoulders?
The giants armpit hair can provide a brief respite ofillusory safety but ultimately you are going to have to get up, out and over..
OR – if you are feeling truly radical, and if the giantitself has long enough hair or a long enough beard, you could try another LEAPinto the giants beard and/or hair.
Climbing the Hair
The thick, foresty hair should be climbable by anyone thief-likeor elf-like. But the hair is dense, may contain even more bugs and monsters. Hugeflakes of dandruff, and is a vertical climb which, no matter the hand holds,will be challenging. Though if you fall there is s good chance of grabbingsomething on the way down. The beard (if present) could provide a useful ‘off ramp’ for the last part of theadventure.
If one wishes to make a quick exit on the return as thegiant is rising from the waves, it might be worth abseiling or clambering downits beard and dropping from the tips, hoping to be picked up by following shipsbefore the weight of your treasure drowns you.
The Giants Face
Only by climbing the hair will you stand a chance of lookingdeeply into the giants FACE
It can be seen from far off, but what strange sadnessdoes it hold when seem from close up?
What impossible and ancient emotions might it project?
The Great Shoulder Traverse
The tricky part is getting out of the armpit via theoverhang. But once this is done it’s a fatiguing but relatively simple scrambleacross its shoulders, up to its neck. If you are quick you may well beat anyoneclimbing from the legs.
The Schedule
How long to board the foot?
How long till you have to climb?
THE SPLASH POINT
The giants enter the sea! This should be a major deal! Asthe giants foot slashes into the waves, from this point, the water is rising!
Two Hours In – The Mid Point
The Giants are as deep in the sea as they can be
Now would be the safest time to jump off
And if you are still alive it must be because you havegot pretty high
So why wouldn’t PCs jump off at this point?
Maybe the Giants only get up to their hips? So you havetwo hours to get that high?
Then the rest of the time to get over the back and down?
Or maybe even to try your luck on another giant?
Three Hours In - race for the scalp
Four Hours In – The Turnaround
Design Questions ‘Encounters’ while climbing
Or just things you find or discover there..
These could be potential treasures, life forms, bits ofhistory
Maybe whole ship fragments
In the foot-to knee area (currently the part of the giantwhere they are climbing quickly to escape the rising sea levels
When might you fall off?
Lets say with climbing limbs
You are in most danger of falling off *when the limb isvertical*
And since the limb is moving in ‘real time’ you can usethat as the ‘pulse’ of the game
With some kind of real-time timer
So while climbing, each pulse of gaming would be ascramble to secure yourself, or at least not be doing anything risky, beforethe limb reaches vertical
What is the Procedure for falling off and getting back on?
I mean, if you fall from high enough, death is prettylikely
Above a certain height water, even sea-foam, is likeconcrete
But there should be some kind of possibility of gettingback on the giant
Bribing a ship captain with treasures or a balloon pilot
Spoiling factors..
A Naval war as ships from a rival king, or even from theMonster Continent attack those following in the lee of the giants. A Trafalgarattacks! You see the ships blasting at each other from above. No idea who willwin. Will you risk leaping into the sea, not knowing who may pick you up or howlong it may take? Will you try to intervene, perhaps firing from the giantshead or even attempting to manipulate a giant into crushing your foes?
