On the one hand, I gained awesome powers beyond the scope of mortal men back home. On the other hand, to 'acclimatize' to my new powers, I was going to be deposited in a world based on a video game. Thankfully not as the protagonist, though there was of course, a simple directive that indicated that things may not be quite as easy as one could assume. I had to survive the ten year stint in the world I was to arrive at. The fact that it would be one in my steam history was less a comfort than you might think, given how I had Warhammer titles in it.
There were other potentially problematic ones, but as I had a sliver of sanity, I was wary of Warhammer, fantasy or 40K. And there was no way to tell where I would end up, save beyond going through the gate. Or surrendering the power and potential I had managed to scrape together and returning to a mundane existence. Which actually, given such things as the Dark Souls series, Elden Ring, Warhammer... there was also the folder of games marked Lovecraftian. There were fates worse than death, and like as not, more amusing for any watching.
Yet what was life, but a series of grand gambles? Even if the reaper always won in the end, that was no excuse for not even trying to play, to do as well as one could. And so, I stepped through the gate. The first thing I noticed, as I passed into the night waiting for me, was the smell of fish and brine, of the sea. The second was the otherworldly fog, a dull grey thing that seemed somehow alive, There are things out there, in the dark. It was not hard to sense something, a cloying darkness, a sickness on the wind.
Oh, and there was a tablet waiting for me, welcoming me to the world of Dredge... and that I was taking the place of the Castaway. Which was, as I closed me eyes and groaned, just great. Because I HAD to be have landed in one of the Lovecraftian ones. Thankfully, one that was not quite in line with the game, in that I could very much fight back, I had tools... and sort of had two options from what I could see. Either wait and try and avoid the summoning from the 'Bad' ending... or try and steer that poor bastard down a decent path.
In either case, there was the fact that the ,local seas were dangerous, at night even more so. But there were a few things that he could do... so long as he avoided the leviathan. Who was probably a guardian of the natural order, reality or something that people would see as good. Still a giant sea monster that might devour his magic using ass whole. Same time, given the fact that there was a slumbering dark sea god close at hand? Summoning and calling magic was right out, as I did not want to risk waking it.
Still, there was little more to do, then to get started on a shelter, to get the garden (both for eating and for potion ingredients) going. Based on the game lore, I might have two weeks to prepare, before the Fisherman shows up and kicks things off.
Day 32
It has been considerably longer than two weeks. On the one hand, this is not too bad, as I have dug out the pit for the round house and have some branches. Between that and the stone, it will do well for a home. Yes, its not a wizards tower or cave, but it will keep the rain off and all the charms I'm weaving into the branches to ward off evil, chaos and aquatic creatures mean that it should be a greater refuge than would be first apparent. I've also taken to carving a few stones to hold in sun light, to drink it in so that it can be released on command. Given how most of the things around here, with a few exceptions, are active at night? I cannot be sure, but I can hope that it is effective.
Now, I am keeping a journal, as travel is somewhat... problematic. Thank god that I still have access to my kindle library and all the books I've picked up there. I have also noticed that I have a few new blueprints. Well, technically six seem to be patterns and instructions on how to fashion runes. Runes that would slot into a boats equipment slots, one for each of the games main areas. It would seem that I would have some quests to hand out... likely just for materials. Because I did need some of the critters from each to make said runes.
But, as I look over the materials... it would take time, but I was able to adjust a version of Hallow to be anchored to some carvings. Between that, a consecrate spell tied to them and being able to use mythos points to fuel them? I would at the least survive until things started.
Runic Hermit DLC
The introduction of the Runic Hermit adds a number of challenges and rewards, as it seems that while dark forces may inhabit these islands, there ARE forces of good as well! Which is a relief in many respects. Still, in this new DLC, you can equip your boat with blessed powers via the following pursuits!
Seabank Rune
Goals; Deliver a Sailfish, Cod and Grey Eel to the Hermit
Reward; Seabank Rune (25% chance not to reduce fish stocks when catching with a rod. Takes up a rod slot)
Gale Wind Rune
Goals; Deliver a Oceanic Perch, Blackmouth Salmon and Rock Crab to the Hermit
Reward; Gale Wind Rune (Increases each Engine speed by +10%. Must be slotted into an engine slot)
Midnight Spear Rune
Goals; Deliver a Aurora Jellyfish, Firefly Squid and Glowing Octopus to the Hermit.
Reward; Midnight Spear Rune (Lights deal damage to sea monsters based on how bright they are. Must be slotted into a light space)
Lockdown Vine Rune
Goals; Deliver a Longfin Eel, Horseshoe Crab and Old Chain to the Hermit.
Reward; Lockdown Vine Rune (Damage to your hull reduces the price of affected fish by 20% per space instead of washing them overboard. Must be in a net space)
Mindfire Rune
Goals; Deliver a Pale Skate, Armored Searobin and Ghost Shark to the Hermit.
Reward; Mindfire Rune (As panic increases, the range of your lights increase, takes up a single cargo slot)
Northern Blood Rune
Goals; Deliver a Icefish, Sea Stars and Char to the Hermit.
Reward; Northern Blood Rune (Has the effects of Three Large Ice Blocks, but only takes up a single cargo slot)
Day 68
Now, the bree barley was doing well, and all said and done? While it was going to be an annoying decade in part... it could be worse. I could be stuck in Subnautica or there could be more horrors showing up. I've already spotted the frill of the leviathan close a few times... but I hid. Because I was not sure if it would not reach out of the water to get a spellcaster, if it saw any differences... or if it being restricted to the waters (particularly the open ocean) was not just a game mechanic.
I was in no hurry to be testing things... not after some crows with glowing eyes started smoking when they flew near my place. To be honest, I did not think things would be so effective. Alas, most of the things I'd be interesting in testing it on are a good deal larger.
Authors Notes
Basically, I got Dredge on sale and have been doing that lately... but I also like spellcaster characters, and 3.5 has a mythos subsystem, so why not some mythos in mythos?