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(E) · 04-25-2016, 01:07 AM

A place to call home, winter

Assumptions and resources
Mixture of limestone and clay in the area. (Limestone or other porous rock makes a good justification for a clean water spring)

Stage 1, acquire plants and animals
Over the last few months the group has collected a number of edible weeds and wild plants including onion weed, lambs quarters, dandelion, watercress, plantain and wild carrot.(the exact list will vary based on location, some names vary too.) A poplar has also been coppiced for later use as poles for planting.

A wild bull was a mixed blessing as it resulted in a broken leg and 440lbs of beef. The metal worker and the chemist stay behind as a result when the rest of the group go looking for seeds. They fish and gather food for winter. The metal worker spends some time maintaining gear and making nails, building materials etc.

Preserving the meat
Dealing with surpluses is a big part of both survival and farming.

They use all the available containers to make potted beef until they run out of fat and containers.

A perpetual stew can be used to make the meat last as well but the group lacks a large cooking vessel.

Some of the meat is smoked, but caution means they are prefer not to have large plumes of smoke rising into the clear autumn sky. Cold smoking requires a means to cool the smoke. Hardwood is required not softwood.

A small portion of the meat is dried but the group is not entirely successful.

An absence of salt rules out salt curing or pickling the beef.

With a cool place to hang a carcass, some meat can last several weeks, especially if other techniques are used help. Bleeding the joints for example.

Canning is an option as the chemist can make a wax. However suitable containers are in short supply.

Other preservation methods exist, lye and jelly can also be used as can fermenting, jugging and storing in oil. Some foods are not suited to all preservation methods though. Numerous species of plants can be used to repel insects as well.

Seed hunting
The group travels to a ruined town to see if they can find seeds and plants.
After 40 years there is only a slim chance any packaged seeds are still fecund. Feral crops are likely to either heirloom varieties or decendants of hybrids. Some species do not reproduce without human intervention, corn being the notable example.
After a dramatic encounter or two the group are chased into the only remaining fenced off area in the town, the playcenter (kindergarten). Here they find several packets of seed in draws and a selection of carpentry equipment, including egg beater drills, clear plastic sheets. (These things are present at my daughter's playcenter) all the plants in the garden are also non-toxic. Feral plants in the garden include tomatoes and spinach (hybrid decendants). Also found are shallots and squash. A handful of apples, lemons and peaches are also discovered. The apples can be used to grow root stock for later grafting to hopefully increase the yield.

One surprising find is a child's clockwork laptop/document reader in working condition with an encyclopedia memory card (feel free to substitute a full sized encyclopedia set)

Note. No staple food (except possibly the lambs quarters) has been introduced yet. If a more rapid build up is desired add a staple crop like potatoes, amaranth or taro (all can do well in the wild).

Projects, current and planned
- Build a smoke house or make a smoker.
- Dig a cool room out of the nearby limestone slope.
- Build an evaporation refrigerator.
- Build a frame to lift/work on a carcass.
- Some climates might suit an ice house

Wants
- Get better cookware
- Improve workshop.
- Batteries and power.
- Garden supplies.
- Gearbox for turning the chainsaw into a winch.
- Wire
- hoses/pipe and fittings for moving water

Questions
- Is the group followed home? (Yes, an exiting chase ensues as the members of a group narrowly fail to stop a Militia scout from reporting to his lieutenant, after the desperate battle the group discovers some useful bomb making supplies including Urea)
- Do the defenses need work? (GM's judgement, perhaps only camouflage)
- What are the neighbors like?
- Are there any means of making transport easier? (e.g A navigable river runs near by)
- Is there any infrastructure specific to the location (e.g. A crane could be used to make transporting goods to the farm easier)

Challenges
- cabin fever (leadership, will, psychology )
- identify plants (Survival, farming, botany, gardening, naturalist)
- butchering meat (animal handling(cattle), survival)
- preserving meat (cooking, survival, housekeeping <TL7)
- maintain secrecy (Camouflage, tracking)
- Further work on camp (Carpentry)
- plan defenses (? architecture, strategy?, tactics?)

Bonuses
- Use of prospecting will reveal small amounts of coal.

work in progress

The refinery is coming. I am wondering if I have to rewatch the movie first though

04-25-2016, 01:07 AM	#70
(E) Join Date: Jul 2014 Location: New Zealand.	Re: [ATE] Farming example A place to call home, winter Assumptions and resources Mixture of limestone and clay in the area. (Limestone or other porous rock makes a good justification for a clean water spring) Stage 1, acquire plants and animals Over the last few months the group has collected a number of edible weeds and wild plants including onion weed, lambs quarters, dandelion, watercress, plantain and wild carrot.(the exact list will vary based on location, some names vary too.) A poplar has also been coppiced for later use as poles for planting. A wild bull was a mixed blessing as it resulted in a broken leg and 440lbs of beef. The metal worker and the chemist stay behind as a result when the rest of the group go looking for seeds. They fish and gather food for winter. The metal worker spends some time maintaining gear and making nails, building materials etc. Preserving the meat Dealing with surpluses is a big part of both survival and farming. They use all the available containers to make potted beef until they run out of fat and containers. A perpetual stew can be used to make the meat last as well but the group lacks a large cooking vessel. Some of the meat is smoked, but caution means they are prefer not to have large plumes of smoke rising into the clear autumn sky. Cold smoking requires a means to cool the smoke. Hardwood is required not softwood. A small portion of the meat is dried but the group is not entirely successful. An absence of salt rules out salt curing or pickling the beef. With a cool place to hang a carcass, some meat can last several weeks, especially if other techniques are used help. Bleeding the joints for example. Canning is an option as the chemist can make a wax. However suitable containers are in short supply. Other preservation methods exist, lye and jelly can also be used as can fermenting, jugging and storing in oil. Some foods are not suited to all preservation methods though. Numerous species of plants can be used to repel insects as well. Seed hunting The group travels to a ruined town to see if they can find seeds and plants. After 40 years there is only a slim chance any packaged seeds are still fecund. Feral crops are likely to either heirloom varieties or decendants of hybrids. Some species do not reproduce without human intervention, corn being the notable example. After a dramatic encounter or two the group are chased into the only remaining fenced off area in the town, the playcenter (kindergarten). Here they find several packets of seed in draws and a selection of carpentry equipment, including egg beater drills, clear plastic sheets. (These things are present at my daughter's playcenter) all the plants in the garden are also non-toxic. Feral plants in the garden include tomatoes and spinach (hybrid decendants). Also found are shallots and squash. A handful of apples, lemons and peaches are also discovered. The apples can be used to grow root stock for later grafting to hopefully increase the yield. One surprising find is a child's clockwork laptop/document reader in working condition with an encyclopedia memory card (feel free to substitute a full sized encyclopedia set) Note. No staple food (except possibly the lambs quarters) has been introduced yet. If a more rapid build up is desired add a staple crop like potatoes, amaranth or taro (all can do well in the wild). Projects, current and planned - Build a smoke house or make a smoker. - Dig a cool room out of the nearby limestone slope. - Build an evaporation refrigerator. - Build a frame to lift/work on a carcass. - Some climates might suit an ice house Wants - Get better cookware - Improve workshop. - Batteries and power. - Garden supplies. - Gearbox for turning the chainsaw into a winch. - Wire - hoses/pipe and fittings for moving water Questions - Is the group followed home? (Yes, an exiting chase ensues as the members of a group narrowly fail to stop a Militia scout from reporting to his lieutenant, after the desperate battle the group discovers some useful bomb making supplies including Urea) - Do the defenses need work? (GM's judgement, perhaps only camouflage) - What are the neighbors like? - Are there any means of making transport easier? (e.g A navigable river runs near by) - Is there any infrastructure specific to the location (e.g. A crane could be used to make transporting goods to the farm easier) Challenges - cabin fever (leadership, will, psychology ) - identify plants (Survival, farming, botany, gardening, naturalist) - butchering meat (animal handling(cattle), survival) - preserving meat (cooking, survival, housekeeping <TL7) - maintain secrecy (Camouflage, tracking) - Further work on camp (Carpentry) - plan defenses (? architecture, strategy?, tactics?) Bonuses - Use of prospecting will reveal small amounts of coal. work in progress The refinery is coming. I am wondering if I have to rewatch the movie first though __________________ Waiting for inspiration to strike...... And spending too much time thinking about farming for RPGs Contributor to Citadel at Nordvörn Last edited by (E); 04-26-2016 at 07:39 PM.