Living Your Life

Life at Road's End will not always be easy. After all, even if you have nothing to do with the supernatural or the turnside of the world, you were still sent there to heal. World and society at large may be dark, scary concepts but the people of Oceandrop Project, and most of the townsfolk of Road's End are there to help you cope and rehabilitate into a better, wholesome person. But to do that, you must work toward your new goal and be willing to center your life around said goal. This means that your days need to have some sort of structure.

This is how the day and Phase structure of this roleplay will pan out.

Each day is made up of three Phases and one Night Phase. During the normal Phases you will be able to live your life as you want (with some exceptions), while Night Phase is mostly meant for resting. Of course these rules are not ironclad and may change over the course of the game, but in order to keep things moving smoothly and somewhat fast, the Phase system structures scenes and activities you can participate in during the game.

To be more specific, each day has a Morning Phase, a School Phase, an Evening Phase and a Night Phase.

Morning Phase

A Morning Phase lasts roughly from 06:00 to 09:00. During this Phase your character wakes up, does their morning chores, eats their breakfast at the school's cafeteria and gets ready for the upcoming day. Morning Phase is ideal when it comes to meeting your friends at school, discussing plans for the day to follow, preparing for an event or even taking a brisk morning jog with a chance of meeting new people. However, as it is shortest of all Phases, this time can rarely be used to venturing far away from school. After all, if you do not make it back in time, you are counted as absent...

School Phase

A School Phase is different from the two other normal Phases in that it rarely allows much interactions with other characters. It lasts from 09:00 to 15:00. During this Phase you will take part in classes and various activities prepared to you by the faculty of Pinefall High. While it lacks in social interaction, the School Phase moves by quite a bit faster than any other Phase. In addition, it sometimes presents various Skill Challenges which allows you to impress your friends, lessen your Drop Distance and even bond with the faculty. If you want to awe a teacher or something similar, this is your time to shine. And doing well in school has other perks, too. Of course, you can always skip class, but that is sure to increase your Drop DIstance.

Evening Phase

An Evening Phase lasts normally from 15:00 to 22:00. It is longest of the normal Phases and allows for wider range of social interaction and activities. During it you can visit the town proper, go on a walk into the woods, have a get-together with your friends, strike up new friendships and alliances or even get even with your rivals. Students of Pinefall High are allowed considerable amount of freedom in what they are allowed to do, as long as they don't bother the townsfolk too much. The only ironclad rule is the curfew of 22:00, after which its lights out in the dormitory. And anyone caught gallivanting about after the curfew faces strict punishment and definite increase in their Drop Distance. So you better make most of the time allotted to you.

Night Phase

A Night Phases is overall the longest Phase and it lasts from 22:00 to 06:00. It is a special Phase in the sense that mostly it is meant for resting, sleeping and gathering energy for the day to come. At least, that should be the case. It is also true that night is when the turnside of the world is at its strongest, especially during the witching hour. Those in the know may use Night Phase as their time of preferred activity as there are considerably less civilians around and no curious eyes to follow their every movement. Unfortunately same applies to all sorts of monsters and spooks that may roam these lands. Not to mention that the ghost stories and tall tales of Road's End seem far more realm in the dead of the night than they do during the day.

Of course, even if you do head out, remember that most places are closed during the Night. For that reason, certain areas are not accessible without breaking in, and certain NPCs cannot be met. In a similar fashion, it's unlikely that you can shop or research/scavenge in certain locations.

Overall, by the time a new Phase arrives, you must choose what you want to do during that Phase. Only one activity is allowed per Phase. This might be meeting up with a friend, looking for new acquaintances, visiting a specific place, preparing for something, fighting in combat, going on a date, solving a mystery... just about anything! Before the beginning of each Phase, you should message your GM about what you want to do on the next Phase in as much detail as you want. From there the GM will craft a basic event map of what will happen and set the scenes for that Phase for each participant. Keep in mind that this allows you to try to perform some activities without being seen and in secrecy. As keeping your secrets is an important part of the roleplay, it is something that's sure to come in handy. Just keep in mind that everybody is able to do it, not just you.

For the aforementioned activities, Night Phase is especially good for subterfuge. However, working through it has consequences in form of fatigue, which is explained in the Status Effects and Attributes parts of the rules.

Also, remember that some events affect multiple places and characters, meaning that you could end up getting swept up in what's happening even though you intended to do something else.

Lastly, there are three special ways to spend your time at Road's End. They are discussed in further detail below.

Skipping School

Whether the Straight-A honors student or the eggiest of eggheads, whether a delinquent thug or the laziest of teens, everybody has a need for – every now and then – to skip school and attend their own businesses. This is certainly possible, as while Pinefall High School for Troubled Youth is here to make its students worthy of re-entering society, they are also rather hands-off when it comes to attendance record and hunting down delinquents.

In other words, when a School Phase arrives, you can choose to Skip it. When you Skip a School Phase, you have multiple options as to how to spend this 6 or so hours now freed to you.

• Resting: If you have not had enough Rest during nights and feel Fatigue pressing down on you, you can use this time to sleep. When Resting during a School Phase, you recover up to half of your maximum HP and resources – rounded down to a minimum of 1. You also get the effect of Resting when it comes to healing your Fatigue. However, you can only get these benefits once. Once you have used this method of Resting, you need to spend a full Night Phase Resting as normal in order to gain these effects in the future.
• Scavenging: You can spend the School Phase scavenging for Materials in order to Craft something for yourself or your friends to use. This works as a normal Scavenging Phase, only it happens during the School Phase and does not involve a chance to raise Friendships with NPCs on the location. See “Scavenging Phases” for more information.
• Research: You can spend the School Phase researcing information on a specific subject, whether it is some sort of Turnside monster or spying on your friend to find his or her likes and dislikes. As with normal Research Phase, there are multiple locations for you to choose from, but beware – doing Research within the school might get you caught. This Research Phase is otherwise normal, only it happens during the School Phase and does not involve a chance to raise Friendships with NPCs on the location. See “Research Phases” for more information.
• Shopping: When you Skip School, you are also capable of going out shopping. This might be at the old-and-trustworthy End's Store & Post, or one of the other shops that you have found within the town's limits. Your visit usually raises your Friendship with the shop-owner slightly, and you gain access to buy from their inventory during the School Phase.
• Hangout: If you have a like-minded NPC Friend (or few) who are willing to skip school with you, you can invite them to one of the locations within Road's End to spend some quality time together. When hanging out with an NPC, you automatically raise their Friendship with you by small amount, and by succeeding in Skill Challenges during that time, you can impress them further. You may also find out a specific location the NPC likes the most, which can increase the Friendship further – and be useful information for a later time. This Hangout can either happen off-screen, told only of in the passing, or it can have itself a small interactive scene in Discord. Of course, as School Phases are by their nature short, so are the Hangout scenes. In addition, if you happen to hang out near the school, there's a chance you might get caught by the faculty.

While Skipping School opens up all sorts of possibilities, it also presents a danger. Skip enough school and the faculty will surely take matters into their own hands, dealing harsh penalties. There might even be other factors that could penalize you further. You are also unable to raise your Friendships with the Faculty by skipping School Phases, which might hamper your plans, not to mention sour your reputation around the whole school. There are many ways in which you could be penalized, to skip school only in moderation...

Scavenging Phase

Sometimes, you want to work while you relax. This is doubly true for those who are masters of crafting things. Finding the right materials to build what you need is important, and it's not always possible to buy the materials that you require – whether due to lack of them in the shop, or lack of money in your wallet. Nevertheless, if you want to scavenge for these materials while still having a scene with some NPCs, you can opt for a Scavenging Phase.

In Scavenging Phase, you choose one of the Scavenging Locations that suits your needs, and specifcy what type of materials you want to try to find. You then embark to this singular location for the Phase, and stay there until the end of the Phase. During this time, you search for Materials as a Skill Auto Check, using either Investigation or Survival (depending on the location), and at the end of the Phase, you have gathered up your Rank's worth of desired materials. Only the Evening Phase on weekdays can be chosen as a Scavenging Phase. When in a Scavenging Phase, you encounter only NPCs that hang around that certain location, and increase your Friendships only with them.

The exemption to the above rule is inviting an NPC with you to Scavenge. This usually requires at least C-Rank Friendship. When Scavenging together, the NPC can help you out with your Scavenging, utilizing their own Investigation or Survival Skill if its higher than yours.They may also help you in Skill Challenges you might encounter during Scavenging – where they are often chances to acquire bonus materials.

The Scavenging Locations, and what can be found there, are as follows:

• Junk Garage (Investigation): At the local junkyard and repair-shop you can scavenge mechanical parts for different weapons, vehicles and gadgets, and all sorts of other technological junk. You never know what could be found in these mountains of random things. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Tommy Horse – the owner of Junk Garage.
• White Pine Mountain (Survival): On the taller of Road's End two major mountains, you can scavenge for minerals, rare rocks, metals and other assorted things often found on the slopes of a mountain and its caves. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Ash – the local hermit who rarely visits the town.
• End's Beach (Investigation): At the long and sandy beaches of Road's End you can scavenge for mysterious things that the tides have dragged in, lost treasures buried in the sand or various living or non-living things of the ocean such as fish or pearls. Truly an unique scavenging location. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Suzy Marlin – the fisherwoman with a knack for tall tales.
• Ghostwood National Forest (Survival): In the dark corners of the vast forest, you can scavenge for local flora and fauna, ranging from pelts of animals to rare plants or flowers and anything that can be found in the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest – and some stuff that shouldn't be found, too. One of the NPCs that you most likely run into here is Ranger Savage – The caretaker and guardian of this section of the National Forest.

Mind you, this is not a comprehensive list. Other Locations exist out there to be found...

Research Phase

In a world of mystery where information is worth more than its non-existent weight in gold, research and finding information about things you have found or might encounter is crucial. However, you do not always want to abandon your healthy and fun high school life just to pour over books in a dusty old library with no one to spend time with. Luckily for you, you instead have the option of spending a Research Phase, where you can accomplish both.

In Research Phase, you choose one Research Location which you think might contain the information you need and spend your Phase there, trying to find what you're looking for. During this time, you search for information and lore as a Skill Auto Check, using a Skill determined by the GM to work in this scenario. At the end of the Phase, you have gathered up your Rank's worth of information about the subject, as long as it was possible within the Research Location you chose. Only the Evening Phase on weekdays can be chosen as a Research Phase in a Location other than the Reference Library. When in a Research Phase, you encounter only NPCs that hang around that certain location, and increase your Friendships only with them.

The exemption to the above rule is inviting an NPC with you to Research. This usually requires at least C-Rank Friendship. When Researching together, the NPC can help you out with your Research, utilizing their own Skills that might help in this case and thus bring out additional information.They may also help you in Skill Challenges you might encounter during Researching – where they are often chances to acquire additional lore or events.

The Research Locations, and what can be found there, are as follows:

• Reference Library: The reference library of Pinefall High is a good place to start when it comes to information about history, society and other subjects that the normal populace knows about. It does not seem to contain any books about Turnside, but the rudimentary internet connection that allows viewing some information databases prepared for students and even has access to some odd BBS sites may still prove helpful. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Qiu Mao – the teacher responsible for the peace and order of the library.
• Owl's Nest Library: Unlike its cousin at the school, the library of Owl's Nest is a collection of mysterious texts from all over the world, with seemingly no end to the depths of its knowledge. All sorts of texts can be found here, mysterious conspiratory journals and encyclopedias of monster hunting that seem surprisingly realistic. The chaotic way that the owner, Mr. Halloway, has collected the books, however, makes it a hard place to find anything specific unless you spend proper amount of time there. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Nora Norumbega – an university student from across the border who is doing her own research.
• End's Mercy Hospital: While access may not be easy, honeyed words, right bribes or good relationships with the staff of End's Mercy Hospital might allow you to take a peek at their collection of comprehensive medical texts. Ways to treat wounds, create medicine or even brew poisons could be found here. There's also the matter of patient files hidden somewhere in the building... but researching those would be illegal and dangerous. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Albert Roslin – a doctor of the hospital who often advises students of Pinefall in medical matters.
• Sheriff's Department: The sheriff's department is no playground for teenagers, but by behaving right and knowing the right people, it might be possible to visit their collection of local and outside newspaper from long ago to the recent day. The chief of the station has a separate room for this microfilm collection, and he might let those in that he trusts. There's also the matter of the criminal case files of Road's End being stored in this building... but reading those might get you in big trouble. One of the NPCs you most likely run into here is Johanna Cliff – the bubbly Deputy Chief of the station who often mans the reception, too, since they are so understaffed.

Mind you, this is not a comprehensive list. Other Locations exist out there to be found...