Halifax Spark, to the better part of his knowledge, once again became operational on a deserted desert planet. The surface of his body was scratched and dented, leading him to believe that prior to that he had been in some sort of hostile situation. He came across an old, rusted ship left in the wreckage of an abandoned Apex facility, and over many months, managed to piece it together into a viable transport. He doesn't remember much of anything before then, chalking his loss of memory to damage to his internal systems. Halifax is an individual Glitch who, for whatever reason, has separated from the collective consciousness of the rest of his race. With no knowledge of any friends or a place to call home, he has simply wandered for the past few years, a drifter, cursed with emotions that most of his kind would never understand, and that he is still trying to understand himself.

He is strangely enamored with all types of musical instruments and sounds, his closest possession being an old acoustic guitar he found while rummaging through the ruins of an old U.S.C.M. outpost. He is driven to recreate architecture built by his people, and is constantly searching for all manner of Glitch building and housing materials, artwork, decorative pieces, and even weapons and armor.

Halifax is a cyborg of few words, as he's yet to come to terms with his newfound emotions, though he does become more open with those he becomes close to.

---

I do not know why I am recording these thoughts. I suppose I feel 'twould be a shame should I not allow others to study these emerging...feelings within myself. The moniker by which this unit goes by is Halifax Spark. This name is alien to me, and yet familiar, the more I say it, the more it stirs something deep within mine chest.

Taketh mine musings for what thou will, the ravings of a lunatic, the musings of a genius, or perhaps...the records of a new being. An evolved being.

I know not what these strange and wondrous changes that hath occurred within my being mean, and I am...afraid...to dwell on it for long.

This is it for now. I shall record more later, should I fancy it.

End log.

On the Good Ship Merryweather



This rusted hulk, I suppose thou could'st say, belongs to me. Rather, I had stumbled across it upon my wandering, and, being as how it was my only way to escape the rolling sands of the planet I had found myself stranded upon, I spent many days and nights fixing it.

Over time, I have come across various odds and ends coming from my culture, and so I have made the Merryweather feel somewhat like a home for myself. I find a sense of...comfort, in this regal decoration of my people.

The Merryweather is not a title for which I have given the ship, nay, 'twas upon the hull of the beast whence I came upon it. What significance this nomenclature had for the Apex, I cannot even venture a guess. However, out of respect for her original creator, I dare not take her name away.

"Her"...I referred to the ship as a "her"...End log.

The date is currently unknown to me, so I shall simply refer to this as "Log Three".

I have somehow made the blunder of using up my fuel reserves without restocking them. Luckily, I was able to drift into orbit above another planet. Unluckily, it was yet another widespread desert. My servos cry in anticipation of the sand that will soon clog my joints, but I have no other option, I must find a viable source of fuel to leave this place.

Log will be continued at a later time.

---

After a number of hours of searching, I have stumbled across a township that apparently belongs to an Avian colony.

I approached warily, as the guardsman at the bridge did give me quite a cautionary once-over, but otherwise, was surprisingly friendly.



He asked me if I came with any knowledge of the state of their home planet, Avos, but regrettably I had to disappoint him.

He introduced himself to me as Keenock, a guard and mighty warrior of the Avian people, his job to defend this bridge over the wide chasm surrounding their home from any form of hostile entity. He asked me what I was doing on their planet, to which I told him of my plight.

He laughed, however, I was unable to discern whether or not his amusement was directed at my poor situation, or myself in general.
He called over a young male by the name of Dark Feather, who seemed fascinated by my presence. The boy said he had "never seen a Tin-Cap before." A tin-cap? Is that what they referred to my people as? I wasn't certain if it was meant to be a racial remark, but the boy didn't seem to use it in anger, more curiosity.

"This Glitch is a friend. Show him around the town, and then bring him to the house. I will be home for dinner."

Dark Feather took my hand and, excitedly, lead me into the town, winding through alleyways and courtyards. Avian architecture, much like that of the Glitch, holds a very old-world appeal. Unlike the Apex or the Humans, whose structures are all clean, sterile, and boring, and the Floran, whose structures are barely more intricate than thatch-roof houses, the Avian have a fine eye for building.

"I will take you to see Manna! She loves meeting people from other worlds, even Florans!" Dark Feather chirped as he pulled me out into the town square. I must say, his excitement was somewhat infectious. I found myself in awe of the many different colored Avian folk and their vibrant garbs and impressive headpieces.

Many Avian children began swarming around and following Dark Feather and eye, the air abuzz with their chatter as they questioned him in their own language about, what I could only assume, was myself.

"Are you a pirate?" One of the children asked. When I told him that, no, I was not in fact a pirate, he seemed very disappointed. All of the children were looking at me now, the sound of my voice apparently equal parts startling and mystifying.

"You can talk?!"

"Are you a boy or a girl?"

"Egghead, he's obviously a boy!"

"Don't call me egghead, egghead!"

"How do you eat?"

"If you get wet will you die?"

"Do you get cold at night like I do?"

"If you get bitten by a monster, does it hurt?"

"How many pirates have you fought?"

"Can I go for a ride on your spaceship?!"

I was suddenly hit with a wave of emotion I was completely unfamiliar with. I felt...uncomfortable, as well as slightly scared, and very...anxious, I believe? I would learn later that this was called embarrassment.

---

I met with the one Dark Feather referred to as Manna. She was a female Avian with light blue plumage. She ran a clothing store in the town's bazaar. We spoke for a number of hours. I told her all there was I could recall about myself, my people, and the state of the galaxies. I do not much care for politics. I may not remember who I was, but I'm certain of one thing, and it is that the few controlling the many will only end in trouble.

After we finished speaking, she offered me a set of clothing.

"While you are here, you might as well look the part!" She exclaimed as she began measuring my waste. I tried to politely refuse, but she did not appear to hear my minor objections.

I wanted to wear something vibrant, such as the purple garments Dark Feather had, but Manna just cringed and instead gave me a dark skirt and a commoner's shirt.



I feel like a fool...and I also feel a draft. But, if it will allow me to better fit in here, then I shall oblige.

---

Dark Feather eventually found me again and brought me to his home. Keenock met me at the door with a smile. I am unable to do the same. I hope he did not take offense to this.

I sat down with the two of them at their dining table. They offered me food, to which I politely turned down.

Keenock told me how their people had fled from the Clipped Council, the ruling party of their home planet, and came here, seeking freedom from their religious leaders. On Avos, he said, children such as Dark Feather would be killed at birth, due to black feathers being considered an ill omen.

The Avians have a name for those who flee the teachinngs of Kluex; the Grounded. Those who would never regain their wings in the afterlife.

I told Keenock it mattered little to me whether they worshiped their people's God or not. What is a God to a non-believer? What is one false being to another? I have no knowledge of any such life after this one.

After we finished discussing his people, we began what I believe would be called smalltalk. We spoke of things such as interests, hobbies, and I mentioned my...admiration of music. Keenock seemed to find amusement in this.

"I've never heard of a Glitch taking an interest in music."

I retrieved my guitar and played him a few random notes. I reveled in the sounds, the vibrations. I am not very good by anyone's standards, but all the same, this is something I...enjoy.

Dark Feather was watching me silently, and then, standing walked out of the room. For a moment, I felt I had angered him somehow, but he soon came back with something in his arms. It was a large, gilded object with strings much like my guitar. He held it up to me and strummed a few soft, lilting notes off of it. It was a...beautiful sound, much sharper than my guitar, yet, in a feminine way.

"This is an instrument that was passed down in my family. We call it a Harp."

"...Harp." I repeated slowly.

"You may have it." He said, holding it out for me to take. I saw Keenock raise his brow in...surprise, I think.

I hesitated, "Surely you would want to keep an item that makes such wondrous sound."

Keenock spoke up, "Nobody has touched it since Dark Feather's mother passed on. It's just collecting dust, and it's a complete waste if nobody plays it now and again."

I looked at the golden instrument, then back at him, puzzled. "Confused...Dark Feather's mother...your wife?"

Keenock let out a hearty laugh, "No, no, Dark Feather isn't my son, I'm merely looking after him."

I looked between the two. Dark Feather explained that his mother had fallen ill years ago and died, and Keenock, being a close friend of their family, had taken him in.

I thanked Dark Feather, and then Keenock exclaimed it was time for bed. The boy protested, but Keenock hoisted the young Avian over his shoulder and carried him upstairs.

I went outside onto the balcony and gazed up at the stars, strumming a few chords on my new Harp.

Is this minecroft?

No, it's Flappy Bird: Standalone.

Ace of Spades said
No, it's Flappy Bird: Standalone.

LOL

Gonna go ahead and say that this is the first Starbound thread to come up that has actually gotten me in the mood to play the game.

This makes me feel like I should do something similar. :o Not to steal your thunder, or anything, but to kind of share collective stories about the strange and wonderful things you encounter in the game.

Fantastic read, in any case! I quite enjoyed it and hope to see moar.

I am getting curious about star-bound now, can someone give me a reasonable explanation of the game?

I just bought this game about an hour ago.

It's surprisingly hard.

Blitzkrieg said
I am getting curious about star-bound now, can someone give me a reasonable explanation of the game?

You play as one of Six [Seven upon official release] races.

The Apex are a race of highly advanced ape-people, once resembling humans, who used a scientific form of evolution to increase their mental growth by leaps and bounds in exchange for slight devolution in physical appearance. Think Planet of the Apes, but, less Ape-like. Their government is highly totalitarian and is sort of a "1984" type deal, with the Big Ape seeing and controlling everything. They are easily the most technologically advanced race. You play as an Apex who wished to escape the control of the Big Ape.

The Floran are the youngest and most primitive of the races. They're plant people. They are heavily tribal, as well as normally being violent, and spread like weeds. Their main goal in spreading across the galaxy is hunting and procreating. There are highly intelligent Florans, but most are fairly primitive and only interested in hunting a stabbing stuff. You play as a Floran who had grown tired of his people's savagery toward one another, and are out looking for your own big prey.

The Glitch are a race of robotic beings who were created by some currently unknown super-race in time immemorial to simulate the progression of life. The Glitch were created to simulate emotion and organic needs and desires just like any other race, thus why they have genders as well as requiring food, and becoming cold. Of all the races this super-race created, the Glitch are the only ones that did not wipe themselves out, as some sort of faulty programming caused them to remain stuck in the middle-age era of scientific progression, while the others all became very advanced technologically but not socially. Basically, robot-knights. They usually follow orders from a King in a castle, and from what some of the Codex entries you can find talk about, it would seem they all tend to share a consciousness. They reproduce by literally building children, and occasionally these children are created with a birth defect which causes them to feel human-levels of emotion and thoughts, and are not a part of the collective intelligence of the rest of the race, so, they are hunted down relentlessly. You play as one of these Glitch.

The Hylotl are a race of, basically, oriental fish-folk. They are said to be very passive, which is what led to their homeworld being taken over by the Floran, as they basically invited them in as friendly neighbors. You play as a Hylotl who has just escaped his homeworld after the Floran attack.

The Humans are...humans. Most are a part of the USCM, the United Systems Colonial Marines. Most humans are honestly a bunch of dicks. You play as a human who has left Earth because it has been totally depleted of all resources.

Avians are bird people. Most worship the God Kluex, who was a member of their race who was deified after his death due to being the one who brought his people into the space age. Avians are very old-fashioned, and even though they were gifted with advanced technology, they still tend to live in low-tech cities or temples. The Clipped Council is the big religious hullabaloo on their planet who are basically the Catholic church of the Avian people. They control everything, and pretty much say that all of your time should be spent worshiping Kluex so you can regain your wings in the afterlife. Some Avians do not agree with these teachings and abandon their home planet of Avos, seeking religious freedom. These Avians are called the Grounded, and are shunned by the rest of their people. You play as such an Avian.

Lastly, there is the Nova Kid, which is a race that will be released when the game officially releases. They are a race of gas-beings born from the heart of a sun or something to that effect. The metal symbol on their face represents their personality. The Nova Kids are not very bright, because they have an extremely short attention span, which is also why they have no recorded history. This also means they tend not to have very impressive technology at their disposal either. At one point, the Avians may have also worshiped them as Gods, as according to a codex, before Kluex was deified, the Avians worshiped the "Sun born." Also, the Nova Kids are wild-west themed, for some reason.

At the moment, not many quests are implemented in the game, as it's only the Beta, but according to interviews the creator intends to have a very large amount of quests and whatnot, as well as a main story that the player can play through. There is going to be a ton of stuff to do, even more than there is now.

All planets in the game are procedurally generated, so no two are ever exactly the same. Likewise, the stock monsters you will find on the planets are also mostly procedurally generated, so you'll find different looking enemies quite often.

I'm just waiting for them to implement spawn-placement in the next patch so that I actually feel like building a house.