• This section is for roleplays only.
    ALL interest checks/recruiting threads must go in the Recruit Here section.

    Please remember to credit artists when using works not your own.

Finished [Forest near Ryken - Ryke] No Good Deed Goes Unstoned

Maxxob

The Overseer
Ersatra Ersatra | Anastasia - RP GOAL: Acquire Asset Refinery F in Ryke

Refinery.jpeg

A low fog clung to the forested outskirts of Ryke’s riverlands, framing a modest yet sturdy-looking refinery complex tucked between tall pines. The gentle rush of water from a nearby tributary provided a calming undercurrent of sound, a stark contrast to the tense air swirling around the building’s entrance. Even at a distance, the old iron gates squeaked in protest whenever the wind pushed them, as if reluctant to welcome newcomers.

Caretaker.jpeg

A single lantern glowed by the front door, illuminating the face of a wary caretaker. Dressed in patched work clothes that had clearly seen better days, he clutched a heavy key ring and eyed the approach of any visitors with open mistrust. Rumor said this place once belonged to an eccentric tinkerer who’d passed away under mysterious circumstances. People whispered that the tinkerer left behind a labyrinthine vault beneath the property—one that supposedly contained the deed to the refinery itself.

As if on cue, a small group of onlookers lingered nearby, exchanging hushed remarks about the caretaker’s unfriendliness and the fact that none had been allowed more than a cursory peek inside. Some theorized the caretaker was looking to protect the old tinkerer’s secrets. Others speculated that rival buyers, impatient to claim the property for themselves, had already tried to force their way in—and failed.

The caretaker stood at the threshold, shifting from foot to foot as more interested parties drifted in from the main road. Despite the building’s modest exterior, whispers suggested that beneath the worn timbers and aging stone walls lay hidden mechanisms the late owner had installed to ensure only the “rightful heir” could unlock the vault. Whether that rightful heir was determined by blood, wit, or sheer tenacity remained uncertain.

For now, the caretaker’s stern gaze and hand gripping the key ring made it clear: no one would proceed further without his permission—and, presumably, without proving their intentions were honorable. The faint outline of carved symbols peeked through the ivy-laden stones near the foundation, hinting at the puzzle that awaited any who dared to venture into the depths.

Beyond the caretaker’s glare and the curious crowd, the path into the refinery stood open but fraught with uncertainty. The first challenge would likely be earning enough trust to step inside without having the door slam shut—and to begin unraveling the mystery the old tinkerer left behind.
 
Last edited:
Anastasia Von Arbin
1736689266654.jpeg

Anastasia paused at the edge of the forest path, her crimson cloak catching faintly in the breeze, the fabric lined with snow-melted frost. She studied the scene ahead—the looming refinery, the wary caretaker, and the gathering crowd of speculators—before adjusting the angle of her hat to better shield her face from the drizzle of mist. Frostiron’s needs pressed heavy on her mind, but desperation couldn’t show. Her gait remained steady as she stepped closer, her boots crunching softly on the gravel road.


With practiced ease, she approached the caretaker directly, her gaze meeting his unflinchingly. She stopped just short of the threshold, allowing the distance between them to be deliberate—enough to signal respect, but not subservience. Her gloved hands remained folded in front of her, fingers clasped lightly.


“I imagine,” she began, her voice low and measured, “you’ve seen your fair share of fools trying to pry this place open. Some with crowbars, others with charm.”


Her lips curved into a faint smile.


The lantern light flickered, casting fleeting shadows across her face. “The refinery is still standing because of men like you. Caretakers who ensure it doesn’t fall into ruin—or worse, into undeserving hands. So let’s begin simply.”


Anastasia tipped her head slightly. “I’ve come to restore something that has value—not to steal what doesn’t belong to me. You hold the keys. All I ask is to start a conversation.”


She gestured subtly toward the crowd. “If nothing else, I imagine you’d prefer to hear one voice rather than many.”
Abilities In Use:
[Narrative Booster - Striking a Business Deal]
 
Ersatra Ersatra | Anastasia

Refinery.jpeg


The Caretaker
Caretaker.jpeg

The caretaker’s grip on his heavy key ring slackened, though he didn’t immediately speak. Lantern light flickered across his face, revealing the subtle shift in his expression—from guarded to intrigued. It was clear he wasn’t used to such respectful directness; most who came here did so with loud boasts or forceful demands.

After a moment, he inclined his head in a curt nod. “One voice is better than many,” he said, the quiet rasp of his voice suggesting countless nights spent keeping unwelcome visitors at bay. Without another word, he turned on his heel and motioned for Anastasia to follow. The crowd behind her fell silent, some craning their necks to catch a glimpse through the refinery’s threshold.

Inside, the corridor’s stale air blended with the faint metallic tang of old machinery. Overhead lanterns, dusty from disuse, swung on their hooks. The caretaker paused only long enough to unlock a stout iron door leading down a spiral staircase. Each step was worn from decades—perhaps centuries—of foot traffic, but the path was otherwise tidy, as though the caretaker took pride in preserving the late tinkerer’s domain.

The caretaker led Anastasia deeper into the chamber until they stood before a square stone panel set into the wall. Four circular slots were carved along its surface. Above these slots, engraved in careful script, sat a single sentence:

"Follow the cycle—no other way.”

Laid out on a nearby shelf were four small stone tokens, each depicting a stage of a plant’s life: a seed, a budding sprout, a flower in full bloom, and a withered leaf. All bore signs of wear, as though countless hands had tried—unsuccessfully—to insert them in the correct sequence.

The caretaker glanced at the tokens, then spoke in a measured tone, “The old tinkerer believed anyone worthy of this place would understand ‘the cycle.’ Some people tried forcing the stones in alphabetical order, or matching them by color. None opened the vault. If you can figure it out, then maybe you’ve a right to what’s inside.”

He paused, letting the lantern light dance across the carving’s ancient lines. By the slight crease of his brow, one might guess he himself had never bested this deceptively simple challenge. After a beat, he stepped back. “Go on,” he murmured, “show me what you see.”

With that, the caretaker gave Anastasia the space to approach the puzzle—four tokens, four slots, and one short clue engraved overhead. A gentle hush filled the chamber, leaving only the soft flicker of lantern flames.
 
Anastasia Von Arbin
1736798230236.jpeg

Anastasia stepped forward slowly, her fingers brushing over the worn stone tokens, feeling the subtle grooves carved into each one. The cycle. Her gaze shifted to the engraving on the wall, lips pressing together in thought.


“Follow the cycle—no other way,” she murmured, tracing the words with her gloved hand. “A life cycle.”


She lifted the token depicting a seed, the smooth surface cool against her palm. It begins with potential. Then her hand hovered over the others—the budding sprout, the flower in full bloom, and the withered leaf. Growth, fruition… decay. Anastasia tilted her head, considering. Nothing lasts forever. Not bloom, nor wither. Only the cycle endures.


Confident in her reasoning, she began placing the tokens in order, speaking softly as she did:


“First, the seed.”
She slid it into the first slot, the faint click echoing in the chamber.


“Second, the sprout—new growth, but fragile.”
The sprout token clicked into place.


“Third, the flower. Full bloom, strength, beauty—but fleeting.”
The third token followed.


“And finally…” She lifted the last piece, her gaze lingering on the withered leaf. “Decay. The end that makes way for a new beginning.”


With a steady hand, she pressed the final token into its slot. Then, stepping back, Anastasia held her breath and waited for the mechanism to respond.

Maxxob Maxxob

Ability in use:
Lucky F
 
Last edited:
Ersatra Ersatra | Anastasia

A soft click rang through the chamber, followed by a low rumble as ancient gears began to turn behind the wall. The carved verse above the slots pulsed with a flicker of light, faint but unmistakable—an echo of the old tinkerer’s ingenuity.

The Caretaker
Caretaker.jpeg

The caretaker stiffened, his eyes flicking from the puzzle mechanism to Anastasia. Whether he was more surprised or impressed remained unclear, but a thread of genuine respect settled across his guarded demeanor. “Well,” he said quietly, stepping closer. “That’s the first time I’ve seen those stones light up.”

With a final grinding of rock against rock, the stone panel slid backward, revealing a narrow passage. Faint swirls of dust drifted upward as if stirred from decades of stillness. Beyond the threshold, a short corridor stretched forward, illuminated only by the caretaker’s lantern glow. The crumbling walls bore faint etched markings—almost like signatures or notes from the old tinkerer—though they were too worn to decipher at a glance.

He cast a brief glance at Anastasia, then at the now-silent puzzle. “The old man always said no brute force could open that doorway. You’ve proven him right.” Shifting his lantern from one hand to the other, he gestured down the newly opened path. “Vault’s through here.”

He lingered just enough to let Anastasia take the lead but stayed close, his lantern lighting the uneven stone beneath their feet. A hush settled over the corridor, broken only by the distant drip of water somewhere below.

At its farthest reach, the passage opened into a wider chamber where a dim, steady glow emanated from a raised platform. The warm halo of light, unexplained yet undeniable, beckoned like a long-lost beacon in the gloom. The caretaker hesitated, his brow knit in a mix of apprehension and curiosity.

“Be on your guard,” he offered in a subdued tone. “He was…fond of surprises.” Despite his wary words, there was a guarded eagerness in his eyes, as though even he felt compelled by whatever shone in that chamber.

With that, he fell silent, allowing Anastasia the lead. The glow at the end of the corridor invited further investigation—its significance unclear, but its presence too striking to ignore. Whatever mysteries the old tinkerer had safeguarded behind puzzle and stone now waited just a few cautious steps beyond.
 
Anastasia Von Arbin
1737129291075.jpeg

As the door groaned open, Anastasia stood still, watching the passage reveal itself with reverence. Her breath misted faintly in the cool air as the faint, ancient glow seeped out to greet her. For a moment, she let the silence stretch, feeling the weight of the moment settle over her.

She turned her head slightly toward the caretaker, a flicker of wry amusement tugging at the corner of her lips. “No brute force, indeed. It seems your tinkerer friend valued a sharp mind over a strong arm.”

With measured steps, she approached the passage, pausing at its threshold. The dim carvings caught her eye, and her fingers traced the faint outlines of the etchings as she muttered, half to herself, “A craftsman’s legacy, perhaps. Or breadcrumbs for the curious.”

The subtle drip of water and the faint scuff of her boots against stone filled the air as she stepped inside. She kept her movements deliberate, her gaze constantly shifting—examining each crack, each shadow, as though expecting the walls themselves to reveal some new challenge.

When the caretaker spoke, Anastasia glanced back at him, his words catching her attention. Fond of surprises, was he?

She offered him a nod, the faint glimmer of determination returning to her eyes. “I’ll tread lightly then,” she replied, her voice low but steady. “But fortune, as they say, favors the bold.”

With that, Anastasia turned her attention forward, her gloved hand brushing the wall lightly as she stepped into the chamber, drawn toward the soft glow ahead.

Maxxob Maxxob
 
Ersatra Ersatra | Anastasia

The chamber’s glow became more pronounced as Anastasia stepped onto the raised platform. A layer of dust rippled underfoot, suggesting no one had ventured this far in quite some time—certainly not with success. The caretaker hung back a respectful distance, his lantern illuminating ancient stone walls that bore faint, undecipherable markings. Every so often, the quiet drip of water echoed through the vault, a reminder of how long these secrets had remained sealed away.

Resting on the pedestal at the center of the glow lay a modest wooden box, its ornate lid carved with swirling patterns reminiscent of the puzzle at the entrance. At first glance, it seemed unremarkable—just another relic. But as Anastasia reached it, she could feel a gentle warmth emanating from within, as if the box itself had been patiently awaiting the right hands to claim it.

The caretaker watched, his guarded suspicion tempered by an undercurrent of curiosity. He said nothing, letting the stillness speak for him. A subtle shift in the chamber’s atmosphere hinted that whatever the tinkerer had guarded here, this was the heart of it.

When the box was opened, its contents proved both simple and momentous: a curled parchment bearing the official seals and signatures that marked it as the deed to the refinery. Yellowed with age but intact, the document was unmistakably genuine, detailing property lines, legal language, and the tinkerer’s own spidery signature at the bottom.

The Caretaker
Caretaker.jpeg

For a few heartbeats, the caretaker remained silent. Then he exhaled—a soft sound in the hush of the vault—his posture relaxing in acceptance. “That’s it, then,” he murmured, more to himself than to Anastasia. There was no doubt: she had earned the right to this place through wit and respect rather than force.

And so, illuminated by the warm glow that now seemed to fade—its purpose fulfilled—Anastasia held in her hands the very key to the refinery’s future. Generations of hidden ingenuity, once locked behind puzzles and stone, had quietly passed into her possession.

Outside, the faintest hint of daylight filtered through the open doorway behind them, as if beckoning the new owner to bring the refinery out of shadow and into Ryke’s bustling world once more. Whatever plans Anastasia held for this place and its dormant potential, they began here, with an old deed and a caretaker who seemed ready—at last—to stand aside.

THE END
Narrators Involved (List the narrators who participated in the roleplay.)
Maxxob Maxxob

Narrator Standing (Provide the standing of each narrator involved, including links to their standing sheets for reference.)
Maxxob Maxxob
Highest - Standing A
Adelhein El-Melloi von Breyer

Summary of the Roleplay (Briefly summarize the events and main storyline of the roleplay.)
In this story, Anastasia found a Refinery near one of the riverlands of Ryke. The owner of this refinery, an eccentric tinkerer, had passed away and the deed of the refinery had been hidden, and only those with the right mental acumen would be able to figure out the puzzle to obtain the deed. Anastasia initial dealings were able to secure her entrance to the deeper part of the refinery, being accompanied by The Caretaker, who loyally guards this enterprise.

Goal Achievement (Indicate whether the goal of the roleplay was accomplished. Note that this affects grading, as failed roleplays typically receive lesser rewards.)
Anastasia was able to successfully complete the puzzle, thus earning the deed to the refinery.

Criminal Acts Perpetrated (List any criminal acts committed during the roleplay, with links to the specific posts where they occurred.)
None occurred.

Lore to Establish (Detail any new lore you'd like to introduce, including brief descriptions for lore moderators, links to the posts where the lore was established, nation of origin associated with the lore.)
None.

Partial Participants (Provide a list of partial participants, including their character names and roleplayer (RPer) names.)
  • None

Partial Participant Invaders (Note if any partial participants were invaders. Specify whether world rules or player versus player (PvP) mechanics were utilized.)
  • None

Full-Time Participants
List all full-time participants, including:


Characters with Point Boosters (Identify any characters who used point boosters, including links to the posts where the boosters were used to gain points (for narrative boosters, the first post in the scene is sufficient)).
  • None

Recommended Titles (Suggest titles for characters based on their actions or outcomes within the roleplay.)

  • None

Assets/Titles Roleplayed For (List any assets or titles that were roleplayed for, along with justifications for each.)
  • Ersatra Ersatra | Anastasia -> Asset Refinery F in Ryke (the RP was focused on getting the deed for this asset)

Characters with [Wanted] or Criminal Titles (Provide a list of characters who already possess the [Wanted] title or any criminal titles.).
  • None

Hunters' Involvement (Indicate whether any characters with the [Wanted] title had their hunters appear or play a part in the roleplay.).
  • None

Special Skills or Assets (List characters possessing Buddy skills, Masterwork skills, Complex Assets.)
  • None

Transactions Performed (Note any transactions that occurred during the roleplay, such as, weapon exchanges, asset transfers.)

  • None

Rules Utilized (Specify the level of rules used in the roleplay.)
Advanced-modified

Character Sheet Oddities (Mention any noticeable oddities or inconsistencies in character sheets related to their purchases. Note: There's no need for a full evaluation; simply highlight any unusual findings during your review.)
  • Ersatra Ersatra | Anastasia - Edit in the CS performed in 01/10/2025 not present in the changelog.

Aftermath and Potential Lore Updates (Describe any potential aftermath or consequences based on the events of the roleplay. Suggest any updates that might be needed for the lore.)
Nothing changed as far as lore is concerned.

Narrator Bonuses (Recommend any bonuses you'd like to award to players based on their performance.)
None

Additional Notes (Include any other observations or points you'd like feedback on or that require further commentary.)
None
 
Last edited:

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top