Any interest for a community colony?

I have arrived in the new colony, expect my report in a day or two!

 

Are we risking a chapel in this colony?

 

I apologize for interrupting the Colony newsfeed. Issues may come up limiting me to play only on weekends (see note). Will keep you posted. BTW, congrats on the smooth start, and well wishes on Al taking up the torch for the second leg of the adventure!

See Note: I am currently waiting on the results of my job interview. If all negotiations are successful, I would essentially be able to play the game only on weekends. However, I am currently jobless, so I will continue to play CE and to waste away again in lingonberry margaritaville until further notice.

 

Overseer Alephred, Colony report days 2-4, inclusive

Note: The previous save started with the morning of Day 2. Given that the previous report detailed two full days, I have to assume mailersmate copied over the wrong save file. For that reason, I've played three full days, and my save file begins with Day 2 and ends with the morning of Day 5.



Day 2

After some minor bureaucratic confusion, I have taken the reins of management here in our new colony. Several buildings are under construction, and workers are entirely occupied with raising buildings and assembling furniture. I've noticed we still have no proper dwellings, so I've ordered up some cots, to be located wherever convenient in existing buildings. We've been here less than 48 hours and the colonists are already insisting on the construction of a Chapel. We do not have the planks necessary to build one yet, but I promise the town a Chapel at earliest opportunity. As the day winds down, we've received cautionary airship semaphore - there is an unidentified group approaching the colony. They are still distant, and we have much to do, so I take no immediate action.



Day 3

The Carpentry is now in full swing, and we are producing the much-needed Planks, for use in the construction of more cots, stone ovens, and the Chapel. Elsa Liverbottom has some skill in Carpentry, so she is naturally best suited to oversee the Workshop. Of course, now that we have planks, we do not have enough stone to construct the Chapel. I promise the town a Chapel at earliest opportunity.

Food at least is in plentiful supply, we have butchered some nearby aurochs, and the corn is coming in nicely. Worryingly, Victoria Bronzehooke has reported seeing a strange fishy creature that walks like a man. Perhaps this is the unknown party whose approach was communicated earlier. No matter, I am a busy man, and I have decided to ignore her confused ramblings..

As the day draws to a close, the lack of cooked food has caused some grumbling amongst the workers, and fistfights have broken out. In particular, Victoria Bronzehooke has been involved in several altercations. Serves her right, I say.

Day 4

We are experiencing construction difficulties, owing to a shortage of stone from the nearby rhyolite quarry. Specifically, construction of the Chapel has been delayed due to insufficient stone blocks. I promise the town a Chapel at earliest opportunity. I request a Naturalist from the Empire - some surveys of the surrounding terrain will give us a good footing for future expansion - and an expert arrives shortly, accompanied by a new Overseer and two workiing-class settlers, presumably having crossed the ocean together.

Bellis Chain is demanding an official statement regarding the existence of Fishpeople, can you imagine such foolishness? She wants me to adopt a policy of either hostility, or paradoxically, friendship, toward the imaginary creatures. I choose to continue to ignore all mention of these fanciful creatures. Still, somebody has been leaving strange cubes of meat and bushels of sand at the edges of the settlement. I believe some malcontents in town are trying to stir up discontent.

In happier news, the kitchen is finally complete, and is now able to cook food, which has raised spirits considerably.

Regarding the long-delayed Chapel, we finally have sufficient planks and stone, but lack the bricks needed for its construction. I have broken ground on a new Ceramics Workshop, and hopefully the ungrateful colonists will see fit to shut up about the Chapel. I promise the town a Chapel at earliest opportunity.



Thus ends my tenure as Colony Overseer. Things have progressed smoothly, despite all the fanciful talk of Fish-people. I believe the colonists will soon want beds. I advise my successor to keep a watchful eye on Overseer Hubertus Bronzecowl; is is both Doomed and Fishy, has expressed a strong desire to join a Cult, claims to have an encounter with the fictitious Fish-people, recently had a strange and troubling dream involving lights in the forest, and most significantly, is extremely insane. Still, he is a good farmer, and I am reluctant to have him executed.

 

Personal log - days 5 & 6

I awoke on the 5th day to the hammering and sawing sounds of a growing colony, and a worker giving me a glowing report from the empire, praising our fledgling group for the progress we've made so far.


Progress!

I noticed our stocks were overflowing with corn. Corn everywhere, yet the actual amount of 'edible' food was dangerously low, not even mentioning the lack of any proper way to make booze.
A drunk colonist is a happy, productive colonist, so I ordered a brewing vat to be built, as well as bumping up food production, the amount of people in the kitchen, as well as lengthening the work shift a bit, at least until we have enough food to go around.

Also a group of colonists began complaining about building a church.

I mumbled some sort of promise and nodded my head and waved them off. We'll get around to it. I think we have more pressing matters at the moment, not to mention we don't even have the materials for it yet.


Day 6
Meat!


Edible food supplies are still woefully short, so i've focused on almost exclusively that for the time being.

A small gang of bandits appeared and tried to start some trouble. Thankfully my hastily thrown together little militia was able to hold them off


No casualties on our side, but the bandits had lost enough to scare them into offering up a truce for the time being.
I accepted. For now, anyway.

By the end of the day, the ceramics shop was finally completed, so I ordered the nearby clay nodes to be mined out so we can finally start building some of the nicer lodgings.
Our lack of edible food is still worrying me, but hopefully with the additional kitchen crew and extended shifts, it'll work itself out soon.



My shift ends here, and I wish the next overseer the best of luck.
Till next time!

 

End of Day 6



As I arrive to the colony via Airship, I view my surroundings. My colleague Razrien hands off the reins of the fledgling colony to yours truly, the weight of responsibility increases. My predecessors have blessed my start with lots of corn and raw wood. I have sent a request to the lovely kitchen overseer Bellis Chain to start producing some alcohol as a preventative for madness per my superior’s orders. With the previous bandit scare, I requested construction of a Barracks to provide some security as well as to utilize the remaining bolts of cloth as cots for the tired colonists.

Day 7



Dawn warms our aching bones as we say goodbye to Naturalist Zeno Thatch. We broke ground on the foundations of what will be our first barracks, home for Her Majesty’s 176th Engineers, led by the brutish and beetle loving NCO Barnabas Goldenflood. Two lower-class workers suddenly appear from the forest, and I seriously consider building a barbershop next to tend to their bumps and bruises. I receive a notice that a Fishpeople envoy approaches, bearing gifts. Noah Roast discovers a strange artifact while mining. Reports state that he has started walking strangely and arguing with heself in a strange language claiming witness to the “Infinite Terror and Malign Vastness of The Cosmos.” Nothing a few bottles of homemade chicha can handle. The temporary Prisoner Crew led by overseer Oliver Tarcotter has been crucial in the barracks development project, and we wish them well as they depart for parts unknown. Despite Elnora Steeltemper’s protests, I instruct the military to only give these Fishpeople trouble if they start it. At this point, we need all the help we can get as well as avoid any unnecessary trouble. Towards the end of the day, crazy Noah, barely hangs on to sanity as he takes the reins in finishing the barracks, and discovers some overlooked supplies of sphalerite and flax straw. I hope he gets drunk soon; I wouldn’t want to kill such a hardworking individual. Noah hammers all night with no break until the sun rises; we now have a home for our military! Huzzah!

Day 8



Morning has broken. A stray aurochs greets me as he thunders away from the cornfield. I look the other way as people feed it some of our crops as having a pet is good for morale I’ve been told. Colonists affectionately dub the giant the moniker “Kow.” Noah is proud of his construction and opts to forego sleep to continue adding the fixtures. My admiration for Noah was rudely interrupted by the craven Bellis Chain who wanted either that I continue denying the existence of Fishpeople or order friendly relations with them. Maybe it’s the chicha talking, but let’s try being friends with the Fishpeople. To allow the colonist to save face, I claim that I followed Bellis Chain’s recommendation to enact a policy of Friendship. I worry as mad Noah ignores the chicha I set aside for him as he insists on hauling and stacking resources. At least I can breathe a sigh of relief as two of the four cots are built. As the sun is about to set on this part of her Majesty’s Empire, I hastily finish my exit interview paperwork and prepare to welcome the next bureaucrat. While many things have been accomplished, there is still much to be done. I wish all the best to my successor Redchaostry. I leave on the Red-eye flight, weary but slightly pleased that I almost have enough Airship miles to earn meself a relaxing coconut infused vacation in New Sogwood. Until next time.

 

Oops!

 

I recommend not to risk it unless the chapel bug does not extend to the stable game. My last play-through in experimental alpha 44 resulted in a significant number of colonists freezing within the chapel. I probably lost equal to or more colonists in that bug than all the battles I had in that play-through combined.

However, we can build a chapel for possible troubleshooting purposes if you all feel that it will help the devs.

 

Good stuff so far! I like to think of this colony as the one in which we are forever promising a Chapel but never actually building one.

 

(Can I take part next time? This looks fun!)

 

I'll leave it up to mailersmate, but I don't see why you couldn't join in on this game, we haven't completed the first round yet.

Your place in the order of play could be right after redchaostry. Remember to turn auto-updating off so your Clockwork Empires stays on version 44.

 

Hey guys

@Lily Phoenix I will put you in the player list after redchaostry
@redchaostry Are you taking a turn? You are up!

Edit
I spelt colony with an x in the op. My skills know no bounds!

 

I'll take my turn in a few hours and update this post with it.


End of Day 8
After being blown off course and losing a day finding the colony, I arrive to the startling discovery that I instead have arrived "on time." Stepping foot onto this new land, For Queen and Cog, I am immediately assailed by several colonists with demands of a Chapel. I confess in my rather travel weary state that I reacted poorly. Soldiers, disperse this mob of ingrates, their is work to be done for the empire before they laze about in a Chapel. I later learned that the empire really likes its Chapels, and it does not take kindly to those who delay their construction. A damage report shows that there is a disturbing lack of stone available for repairs and new projects. This is be corrected in the morning. Hubertus Bronzecowl talks in his sleep about a cruel monarch gazing at him, and a horrible sense of wrongness. I will instruct my replacement to keep and eye on them. Even more disturbing news follows later in the night.




Day 9
Day breaks and good news finally. Two workers come stumbling out of the woods. I assign one of them to NCO Barnabas Goldenflood. The colonists will behave under my watch. I will enact on my predecessor's recommendations, and lay out plans for a barber shop to treat their afflictions. Late in the morning I have the joyousness privileged of welcoming Jonah Rattlewatch to our little place of hope. The rest of the day passes rather peaceably. The barber shops construction continues through the night under the over eager Jonah Rattlewatch. For such and angry man he seems to be looking forward to shaving the necks of the other colonists with perhaps to much enthusiasm.



Day 10
Jonah finishes up the walls and its tell tale barber shop pole, dons his shears, and takes a well deserved nap. Speaking of naps I see that there are fewer beds than colonists. This cannot be allowed to continue. I commission a small farming plot with instructions to begin growing flax. Reports from the imperial air service state that they have seen a group of Fishpeople heading towards the colony. I look forward to our interactions with them. At the close of the day two more laborers stumble out of the woods. Jonah also treated his first wound successfully. As night falls I am overall pleased with the progress of the colony, and hope that Lily Phoenix will enjoy their time with the colony as I have.



Sorry for the delay, and also for the file being 35. I swear its the correct one.

 

@redchaostry Can you let us know what is going on?

 

Apologizes for taking so long. yesterday was far busier than I expected. Game is uploaded.

 

Overseer Phoenix landed approximately ten days after the initial settlement of the colony. Her report follows:

A short walk from the airship drop-off during the evening of my arrival gave me the opportunity to appraise a small overview of the colony. Little in the way of iron, but plenty of other resources in view that could be taken advantage of. The large fields were sparsely populated; a mental note to reassign some of the colonists, to ensure that nothing was wasted.

Overseers Bronzecowl and Rivethewer were assigned two men each (labourers Cordton and Solderhooke, and Steeltack and Bronzeores respectively), and Whistlehooke a single subordinate (Brownbread) given the smaller size of the plot she had to work with. Given the lateness of my arrival and the length of the journey undertaken, I took to my cot shortly after.

Day 11
Overseers Roast and Rattlewatch were instructed to rest during the morning, so they might work more efficiently over night shifts and spread out the workload. Jonah was most efficient in tending a grisly and painful wound that miss Victoria Bronzehooke had acquired before my arrival. A brief discussion with Noah had him heading off to the Naturalist's Office, putting together a pack of equipment to go and scour the wilds for iron.

A number of wild animals were spotted out in the woodland, and the brave men and women of Her Majesty's 176th Engineers were sent out to dispatch them. With their aid, the fresh steaks carved from the beasts were brought back to our stockpiles. The kitchens flourished under the greater attendance of the fields, and plenty of bottles of chicha were set aside for colonists' needs.

One of the Ovens requires repairs; the stonework shattered under the strain of remaining hot for so long, and replacement blocks have been set aside.

As the sun sets upon the eleventh day of the Colony, a small Textile Workshop has been planned beside the Naturalist's Office, ready to spin the bolts of cloth needed for more bedding.



The Imperial Airship Corps kindly informed us of a group of abominable Fishpeople, armed to the teeth and heading for the colony! I quickly reassigned a number of the colonists to Her Majesty's 176th Engineers and arranged for them to pull a night shift, to ensure the safety of our crops and belongings.

As night fell the colonists, led by Overseer Brazenmud, requested that a Chapel be planned, in order to further venerate the Great Cog. Given the impending peril, I dismissed their demands with empty platitudes; "After the threat is dealt with!" - they left, seemingly satisfied, for their beds. The soldiers continued to rally around our precious stockpiles throughout the night, whilst Naturalist Roast discovered a source of Sulphur and a source of Malachite out in the woods.

Shots were fired! But the shadow looming by the trees, whilst the agitated colonists argued amongst themselves, was but a fox.



Day 12

It was from the southwest that they came eventually during the dawn of the twelfth day, six of the fishy monstrosities, and our brave men and women fought them off! The result was a number of fishy corpses staining our colony and no casualties on our side; I ordered Naturalist Roast to deal with them by dissection, so we might better study our foe.

The danger allayed for now, I sent the Engineers back out into the wilds once more to hunt animals for sustenance. One last straggler of the fishfolk found a pistol and attempted to assault us, but one volley of fire finished it off sharpish.

A penal labour crew led by Overseer Zora Steelworth arrived during the morning, and I set her and her three prisoners on long shifts, ready to deal with any jobs our colonists did not have time to handle. A single straggler from a lost colony arrived shortly after the prison crew, and Overseer Grummond landed by airship mid-morning; the Ministry were most generous in sending along a rich bar of Gold along with her, congratulating us on having thirty settlers.

Naturalist Roast went to work efficiently and brilliantly on the dead abominations, and wrote up two rather fine treatises on the subject. However, during the dissections he began muttering some rather unsettling things (according to colonists nearby, whom I am sure are simply trying to stir trouble). As he left to continue his work outside the colony (discovering a useful vein of Coal), I set Steelworth's labour crew to cleaning up the mess the fishmen left behind.



As the sun set on the twelfth day and my airship crested the horizon, one of the Brewing Vats sprang a leak. Brazenmud was working on the construction of the Textile Workshop, and our stockpiles were doing reasonably, albeit delicately balanced. I made sure to stash away a bottle or two of Chicha for the flight home, and hoped that my successor would not have too much trouble in my absence.

~~~

(I had deleted most of my previous older saves, so don't worry about the number on the save file, it IS the right one. Thanks for letting me take part!)

 

I the honourable Mailersmate, have been forced out of office by the treacherous Alephred and forced to wander in the uncivilised wilderness these past 7 days after a malicious rumour was put about claiming I had abandoned the leadership after a single day. THE LIAR!

Well now I am back in my rightful position and I WILL BREAK THIS CONSPIRACY!! As my first act of government, Alephred has been reassigned to 'assist' our visiting prisoner crew. One small bribe should be quite sufficient to sort out the paperwork. JUSTICE OF THE COG!

Day 13

Our food situation is getting a little uncomfortable. The great and wise Mailersmate has commanded that a farm plot be commissioned. The people complain there aren't enough labourers! I explain like a parent to a child, that's what fishpeople are for! WE WILL CONQUER!

Having delivered wisdom and justice to the people, I now embark on my glorious contribution to the arts, the colonial palace. For the education of future generations, I provide the blueprint.



It will be a glorious residence, worthy of one of such skillful leadership.

Our barber has shown great skill in curing several illnesses. This is fortunate as I will not need to deliver further JUSTICE! The fishy menace has been spotted by the aircorps! Soon we will have additional labourers!

I have just been informed we have an official policy of friendship with the fishmen. WHAT BLASPHEMY IS THIS?! Naturally I immediately bellowed for my head bodyguard and explained in great detail that the fishymen are to be conquered! I will accept no craven peacemongers.

A group of colonists have approached the great and wise Mailersmate requesting a chapel. Am I not the queen's choosen? Does not the queen rule by the Cog? We have no need of chapels!

I have initated an exploration team looking for iron for CONQUEST and gold for the PALACE OF WISDOM. An airship was temporary diverted to provide additional observation, but the baffon barely stayed in sight of land. I WILL HAVE HIS HEAD!

Lost wanders, hearing of our glorious colony have arrived looking scruffy. They bowed down and offered service to the great and wise Mailersmate.


A fishpeople scout attempted to penetrate our defenses and was killed. I saw the creature with my own eyes, IT WAS HORRIFYING! I reversed my policy of fishpeople labourers and have declared OUR NATIONAL FOOD IS THE FISHFINGER.



Day 14

3 foolish bandits were spotted in the wilderness this morning. While I am not concerned, IF THEY ATTACK US THEY WILL BE HARMED.

Dr Roast is reportedly looking at geological records. No one seems to know why.

Foolish bandits attacked us. We drove them off with SUPERIOR FIREPOWER.



In further excellent news, our search for iron and gold has turned up sulphur. Back before my BETRAYAL I remember reading in the times that Sulphur based medicines have been shown by lord Palmer to be an effective cure for generalised non compliant behaviour syndrome (NCBS). We have a very serious outbreak here that I will contain with the construction of a Lab once the PALACE OF WISDOM is complete.

Day 15

Our cooks have taken to wandering long distances for an intriguing ingredient known only as forest meat. Apparently it can only be obtained by leaving meat in a forest. I am uncertain what to make of this development, but further exotic meal making is banned until we can study the effect of forest meat on fishmen.

Bronzehook continues to claim I am not the Cog's direct representative. If she does not desisit, swift JUSTICE will follow.

The fish menace attacked! WE REDUCED THEM TO BLUBBER!! The airship service reported that the survivors have fled!



Muriel Gurmmud had a vision involving fishpeople and started talking to herself. Fear not good subjects, sulphur based curatives are now at the planning stages. All people will know happiness!

I WILL BRING PEACE WITH THE RIF, with the ri..... My head... Ohh whats that? So shiny, so pretty. No come back! I need you, I need you.


where are we going?

 

Day 16

I have rotated back to the Colony, after a brief but restful stay back in the Home Country. The noises of the big city were a welcome change to the deathly quiet of the New World. Alas, I am back. While I am here, I am resolved to fill the air with the soothing sounds of the pickaxe, the anvil, and the rifle.

The colony has prospered in my absence - although my initial impression is that food is scarce, I discover that raw food is plentiful, as the colony maintains several large fields of various crops - it is the kitchen that lacks the facilities to produce large quantities of cooked meals. This will be alleviated when we are able to construct and install new model high-efficiency furnaces - we have the blueprints, but not the machined parts.

On the outskirts, the town is pockmarked with smoking craters, bloody debris, and the occasional corpse. How dreadfully messy - I have tasked the workers with cleaning up this eyesore.



Speaking of sloppy management, I have been going over the books, and note that some crazy person has ordered the Textile Workshop to maintain a stock of 51 bolts of cloth, ridiculous! I have amended those orders to something more practical. The colony is, admittedly, experiencing a serious shortage of beds, and I have ordered their construction.



As for more practical matters, the colony sorely needs a source of iron, for the purposes of manufacturing weapons, and better ovens. Going over the surveying reports, the surrounding country seems possess an abundance of malachite, but the nearest (and only) source of hematite is located some distance away, up in the hills. It is inconvenient, but I have begun installing a mine there, we must have Industry.



Day 17

The new day brings 3 workers and one Overseer. I immediately set them to tidying the surrounding landscape - we may not have metal stoves, but we can at least keep the grass trimmed. It seems the colonists have renewed their petition for the construction of a Chapel. Well, they can petition all they like, I am devoting the colony's resources toward construction of a Metalworks instead, in anticipation of our new hematite mine. Nonetheless, I promise the town a Chapel at earliest opportunity. I'm sure they'll forget all about the Chapel when they have guns to shoot.



My predecessor has begun a project ominously named the Palace of Wisdom or some such silliness. It is a huge construction, located at the head of the town, and there are apparently ambitious plans to fill it with fine furniture and bookshelves. It was under construction when I arrived, and will no doubt continue unfinished when I am done.

 

Day 18
-----------
The colony is getting bigger than i'd ever imagined, however food is still scarce, and half of our workforce doesn't even have a proper place to lay their heads at night. ...though it seems the aristocrats whined hard enough to get this thing built.


Bunch of stuffy nosed freeloaders if you ask me.

Leaving the uselesscrats to thier own devices, I turn my attention to more pressing matters. Namely, our food supply, or lack thereof.
I spent the bulk of the day ordering foraging crews to find whatever berries and fungus they could scavenge, in hopes it'll stem the looming threat of starvation.


The haul was promising, however we may need another kitchen built in the immediate future, seeing how the one we have is being pushed to its limit night and day, just barley managing to break even with all the hungry mouths to feed, and moreso now after a few more immigrants suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

The day ended with nature itself suddenly upheaving against our colony. A stampede of beetles and a rampaging aurochs stampeded through, eating some of our crops before being quickly dispatched.



Day 19
-----------
The smell of cooked beetle steak was abundant, every morsel quickly devoured by hungry colonists.


More aristocrats showed up. Oh joy.

The wheat crop was harvested, yielding plentiful bags of wheat to be made into bread or stew or whatever else we may need.
A fishpeople envoy happened by, bringing gifts of food and whatnot, only to be violently assaulted by our militia for some reason. Apparently our diplomatic situation has changed since i've been gone?
I have a feeling this won't bode well.
....butchered the fishpeople anyway. We need the meat.

The rest of the day was spent foraging and hauling and cleaning up the job list in preparation for the next overseer in command.



Good luck!

 

Great job, all of you. I will have to forfeit all my turns starting now. @redchaostry , it is your turn.