thebastion | (no subject)

Who: Colin Starfury, any meddling kids
Open: Open as the plains
When: Day 267, late morning and early afternoon.
Where: The Farmland
What: Doing another survey for more development
Format: Anything, can match
Warnings: Colin IS a warning

As far as plans went, this wasn't how Colin had wanted to spend this week. There were a lot of things that needed doing even before the plight of the Ura reared its head. But Colin was an engineer, and he knew well that the universe had plans of its own and it really didn't care one little bit of the plans of individual people.

The day before this had been spent doing research, and helping Rob build his new cart. That had taken a fair amount of time on its own, but it was work that needed to be done if they wanted to set up a supply line. Now that the transportation was done, it was time to set up the facilities that would give them the supplies down the line.

So here he was, setting out more stakes and flags, taking more measurements, and generally making it apparent that SOMETHING is going to be going up in this area soon. And if the layout of the flags and stakes are any indication, it's going to be something BIG.

Anyone care to bother the engineer at work?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Rob having ideas isn't the hard part. Him being able to and having the drive to make them a reality is where the challenges start. Fortunately he's aware enough of that that Colin isn't likely to end up inheriting some random project from him.

The materials issue brings Rob back down to reality, and forgetting something like that is exactly why he asked Colin for a sanity check.

"Materials are probably the limiting factor, yeah. I don't have an inventory of everything we have, but I haven't noticed any big piles of metal kicking around, and we'd need a lot for a railway. I think some railways were originally made with wooden rails? But with that kind of work I'd rather end up with a cart that could be used anywhere instead of a stop-gap measure. I'd have to read up more on how to actually build a steam engine, too. I mean, I know how they work, but I think I've read somewhere that they can explode if they aren't built right, so I'd want to make sure I knew what I was doing first."

He frowns, mostly in thought but a little in disappointment too, as he realizes that his idea isn't as immediately practical as he thought it was.

"I guess this is something that'd have to wait until we can come up with a big stockpile of metal to work with. I'd have to read up on some stuff. ...It might actually be worth me getting the Monument to make another one of your pads for myself. With all the stuff I should look into you'd never see yours again if I keep borrowing it. And yeah, you've got enough to do already. I can't just dump more work on you."

Another thoughtful pause.

"We still have the carts, so we're okay for the moment at least. Though actually... there any chance you could add a loading dock to this place? With one of those little ramp things that lets you load onto trucks that aren't at the same height as the floor? That'd make getting stuff onto the carts easier on this end. Maybe a spot where we could attach a station platform too if we ever end up going the railway route? If you can fit them in without messing up the main point of the building, of course."

Colin lets Rob talk, lets him explore his line of thought in words. Only when he's done does he finally speak up.

"Nobody said it's an impossible project, just a time-consuming one. There's LOTS of metal out at the scrap yard just waiting to be hauled back for a purpose," he says, smiling. "Don't give up on it, you've got a good idea. Now you just need to refine it and make it work. Find the best project you can come up with, then start looking for ways to make it easier. That's engineering in a nutshell."

He strokes his chin in contemplation, and he nods. "I think I can get a loading dock put in here pretty easily," he says. "Only didn't bother with it because we didn't exactly have many vehicles. But yeah, adding a loading dock to the store room should be easy enough."

He smirks then, and he nods as he reaches the final point. "A pad would be a good purchase for you, and not just for work," he says. "Access movies, music, some games, planners, calculation equipment. It's an all purpose device. Very useful."

Map marker added: Scrapyard.

Colin is to blame for anything and everything that happens due to Rob learning this.

"So we do have access to scrap metal? That's convenient. Except for lugging it back here. Still need to do research first. On a bunch of things. A pad would be pretty useful for future research and note-taking. Need more shards first though."

"You wanna come with me next time I head out there, I won't turn down another hand. I usually go with a couple of people to drag back good salvage. When I can wrangle Paar, I bring back heavy stuff," he explains, and he smiles. "There's also lots of shards out there. Lots of Caelondian tech had uses for it. They're practically lying around, if you don't mind them being dirty. Just don't go alone. Lots of stuff makes their homes out there. Very defensible terrain, lots of squirts and gasfella. They're used to me, so they generally leave me alone."

Rob blinks and looks a bit awkward for a moment. Just like in World of Warcraft, he normally solos here. Unlike in World of Warcraft, he's not a max-level Hunter with a giant wolf companion here, so going into higher-level areas alone hasn't been a reasonable option so far.

"I-If you're okay with me tagging along, sure. Any particular day you were planning on heading out?"

"I typically go out there three or four times a week, actually," Colin says. "I'm definitely heading out tomorrow, may even head out today if I can get my work done here in a timely manner. I always need more supplies."

Rob's solo adventurers would worry Colin if he knew about them. The buddy system exists for situations exactly like they're in now...

How exactly did Colin think Rob's been able to afford the things he's made so far? Rob's been playing it as safe as he can considering the circumstances, and as a result has come away with a small trickle of shards and countless bruises. With his newfound unwillingness to go for the easy pickings of Squirts he was going to go farther afield anyways, so this is timely.

"I don't think I'll be finished much before nightfall, so I'll have to pass on today, but I'm okay with tomorrow, if you are."