Premise of the RP -

One year after the Oblivion Crisis, oversized, fire spitting red ants appear across Vvardenfell. They appear in small numbers at first, and only around Red Mountain. They often interfered with Pilgrims on their paths to the Shrine of Pride. Eventually a young Dunmer Pilgrim was killed, and at that point Ordinators and Bouyant Armigers were used to escort Pilgrims to the Shrine. However things just kept getting worse, with the giant ants appearing five or six at the time and stressing the abilities of the crusaders to defeat.

Galdal Omayan, the Grand Marshal of the Bouyant Armiger military organization, eventually decided to organize an elite group of crusaders to infiltrate the depths of Red Mountain and kill the ants at their source, the Ant Queen. The fighting was fierce, and even with the natural Dunmer resistance to fire, several good men and women were lost. Eventually all the caves and tunnels were cleared, and it was obvious they were leading to a place near the crater of the volcano itself.

The groups pressed on through tougher and tougher opposition, eventually running upon what they assumed to be Drones, large male warrior castes of the mutated Ants, similar to the same creatures who serve the Kwama Queens native to the island. These abominations were struck dead, but as the crusaders entered the Queen's chamber, they found it empty. Strange markings on the floor, smoldering with fresh smoke, seemed to indicate that a wizard had teleported the Queen away. The Armiger captain assumed this meant these creatures had been spawned by some mad Telvanni scientist, but he didn't have proof. Further searches of the room uncovered alchemeical equipment, scrawled notes and books about insects.

The evidence was gathered and returned to the Grand Marshal, and eventually shown to the leaders of the Ordinators and the Temple Priesthood as well. Telvanni Wizards were questioned, but nobody seemed to understand what was going on. They seemed innocent, but annoyed at being suspected for such a thing, so in the absence of hard evidence the investigation was halted. The ants appeared to have disappeared for the time being anyhow.

That was one year ago. As suddenly as they appeared the first time, they began popping up again, this time all over the island, over running the Kwama nests and posing a serious threat to the Egg trade. Whomever was behind this was targetting the industries of Morrowind it seemed. Eventually even Glass and Ebony mines had to be shut down. The threat grew more serious and the Armiger captain who led the initial assault was brought back in to investigate.

He decided that concentrated efforts were needed to oppose this seemingly endless horde of ants whose source was elusive. There would be multiple well organized parties organized all at once, each targeting a specific region of the Island and freeing the crippled industries of ore and eggs.

The Captain himself would lead the effort to free Red Mountain's mines, as he did before. The recruitment would begin at the Ghostgate.

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Rules

1 - I expect everybody to try to get along, and to stay on topic. If you have a concern or question, IM me. I am only on during certain hours of the day due to my job. I will reply promptly as possible. Keep OOC posts to a minimum.

2 - Please try to use good English and Grammar. I understand if this is not your native language, but try to use proper capitalization and punctuation. Follow my example, and you'll do well enough.

3 - No ultra powerful characters. Your character will have seven major skills and use only those to any great extent. You're allowed three adept minor skills, but you'll never be as good at them as your majors. This is why I expect teamwork and diversity in this RP. It makes things more interesting and realistic to rely on another person with different skill sets.

4 - No killing or controlling another poster's character(s) without their express permission.

5 - One character maximum per poster, with the exception of me, since I will control all quest givers and major boss enemies.

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Name:

Age:

Race:

Gender:

Eye color:

Hair:

Tattoos/piercings:

Birthsign:

Class:

Specialization:

Major skills:

Minors:

Equipment:

Spells:

Short Bio/Personality:

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My character:

Name: Danar Saren

Age: 45

Race: Dunmer

Gender: Male

Eye color: Red

Hair: Shaved bald

Tattoos/Piercings: Daedric rune for "Vehk" over his heart. "Duty" on right wrist. "Compassion" on left. Pierced ears and nose.

Birthsign: The Lady

Class: Champion

Specialization: Combat

Major skills: Light Armor, Blunt Weapon, Block, Restoration, Athletics, Sneak, Acrobatics

Minors: Hand to Hand,Destruction, Marksman

Equipment: Glass cuirass and greaves, rest of armor Chitin. Glass tower shield. Ebony mace. Ten glass throwing knives. (I know I have some powerful equipment. My guy is an elite fighter and the leader of the group so it's only natural.)

Spells: very proficient in Restoration and knows a variety of spells to cure diseases and blights, and to restore health. Can fortify or cure damaged attributes, and leech health and fatigue from enemies onto himself. Knows a few low level Destruction spells as well, mostly to damage the attributes of enemies.

Short Bio/Personality: Danar Saren is an experienced and battle hardened Bouyant Armiger who has served at the Ghostgate for some years. He helped fight off the blighted creatures until the coming of the Nerevarine, and was also present when Mehrunes Dagon sent a siege engine to the Ghostgate to destroy it. He survived this battle and gained a promotion for helping evacuate innocent pilgrims and priests to safety. He then helped rebuild the Ghostgate and later personally led the assault on the first Ant colony. In the year of peace since then, he's been training to improve his own combat and healing skills as well as instructing younger Bouyant Armigers in the fineries of combat. Not a poet or a musician like many of the order, he serves them well as a man focused on athletic combat maneuvers.

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Ghostgate, Ghostfence, 6:00 AM

Danar Saren, the Bouyant Armiger captain in command of the Red Mountain operation of the Ant problem, sat in his recruitment office, awaiting the arrival of the recruits who were to serve him in this operation. He was dressed in his full suit of armor, with his shield and helmet off to one side. He rubbed his hand across his smooth shaven head and scrawled something on a piece of paper with his quill. He looked up to see the first recruits entering the office, already dressed out for battle, or for healing or whatever their various professions called for. He nodded as the first approached.

"Hello there. I'm Danar Seren. Are you here to serve the Temple in its cleansing of Red Mountain?" he stood up, looking his new recruits over.

(I encourage all types of characters and all races. Don't assume you have to be a Dunmer or a warrior to enjoy this RP. There will be a place for everyone, and it's not all going to be combat oriented. Some people will be sent on diplomatic or ingredient gathering missions, etc. Have fun!)

giant ants, like how tall, FO3 giant ant, or FO3 giant ant queen, or are we talking about really Giant ants the size of Mechrunes dagon or statue size?

ooc: Please mark out of character posts as OOC.

The normal ones are FO3 giant ant. The actual Queen is FO3 Giant Ant Queen size. The drones are somewhere in between. Nowhere near Dagon size. That quest from FO3 actually inspired this RP. I think it's possible and fun/different to work them into the ES lore. Morrowind is full of giant insects anyway.

OOC: why the ooc thing, how many people have signed up for this rp, im thinking about, joining, aslong as my character can be a skooma addict and he thinks he is seeing things?

ooc: Because this is the actual RP thread, not a signup thread. I'll let people sign up as they please. Yes, you can do that. It'll be funny. The action might not start for another day or two though. We have to give people time to join.

Strange force of diffrent enemies, sounds like fun. If I might join I'd like that.

Heres my charicter

Name: Vanessa

Age: 34

Race: Altimer (or high elf but I bet you knew that)

Gender: Female

Eye color: Blue

Hair: Red

Tattoos/piercings: two earings one a moon and the other a star

Birthsign: The lover

Class: Spellsword

Specialization: combat

Major skills: Destruction, longblade, medium armor, restoration, alteration

Minors: short blade, illusion, enchantment, marksman, conjuration

Equipment: steel katana, Silver dagger, iron bow and arrow, Bonemold armor, several scrolls for more defensive purposes (shild spells, stonger healing ext)

Spells: Shocking touch, chamelion, Slowfall, waterwalk, fireball, bainas soothing balm, heal other, bound longsword and armor

Short Bio/Personality: Vanessa enjoys a good sosalization and coperative activies. She also feels an impusle to do things for the greater good. She knows she has limtations and that she isent the best suited for this job (ie the high elf weakness to fire) but that has made her all the more determined to assist. She is friendly and social and ocasionaly flirtasious but very modest in her manners and apperance. She happly goes into combat best suited to fight melee but can in a pich fufill other roles as well such as rear support with archrey or spells and even if needs be medical assistance. She prefers to be prepared hence the scrolls and silver dagger. She did have a bone charm for skeletal summoning she used ocasionaly but being sensitive to the dunmer traditions and outlook on necromancy (though she herself dosent practice it) she chose not to bring it. She also happens not to like animals and bugs so one of the other reasons she's here is to make sure others dont have to worry about the swarm.

I hope that sounds good to you. If I can play lemme know thanks.

OOC: yes, expand my brain learning juice (grabs a glass of tainted water) i will do that, probably won't be rady by tomorrow, and if you start during the weekend i won't be on, becuase i don't have a computer at home, i just use the office computers

Name: Bar Kokhba
Age: 58
Race: Dunmer
Gender: Male

Appearance: Bar Kokhba is a tall, lean Dunmer, with a weather-worn face and hands. His youthful visage is only marred by his rough skin, carved by the ashstorms of Vvardenfell, making him seem much older than he actually is. He has clear, vivid red eyes set upon high cheekbones. His cheeks are gaunt and papery. Thick curtains of wavy, dark brown hair hang down just past his shoulders, sometimes plaited into a queue. His voice is smooth and commanding. While not openly flirtatious, Bar Kokhba has a wanton look about him.

Arms: Bar Kokhba wields a war axe with a long, curved blade. The head is a heavy thing with its razor-sharp edge reaching down to just above the knuckles. The haft is oak, not likely to break and able to hold the weight of the solid axehead.
Armour: Bar Kokhba's armour is a lamellar corselet with a thick woolen shirt underneath. His boots are a short affair: slip-on but tight fitting, and ending just above the ankle. They are perfect when running, walking, climbing or otherwise.

ooc: Gonna wait till tonight to see if more people join before I get this thing rolling. Tell your friends!

might get the sheet ready for monday

ooc: Both the people who submitted character sheets are approved.

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Ghostgate, Tower of Dusk

Danar looked up from his desk and extended his hand in welcome to the Dunmer male and Altmer female who just entered.

Both were dressed as warriors, but Danar sensed an aura of magical aptitude around the High Elf. He nodded. "Hello there! Are you two here to assist with the operation? I'm Danar Saren, Champion and Bouyant Armiger captain. Please state your names and professions, and I'll know how I can use you in this campaign."

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Gnisis

Elsewhere in Vvardenfell, a young Orc Legionnaire patrolled the roads outside of town, dressed in his chain armor. He saw nothing unusual and decided to take a stroll up next to the Egg Mine, one of several on the Island still unaffected by Ants. As he approached the entrance, however, he heard screams of horror inside, and the door opened. A young Dunmer ran out, his skin and hair scorched. Smoke still rose from his burnt hair. He slammed down several large boards in front of the door and stumbled forward into the Legionnaire's arms. "Sir...Officer... giant fire ants...everyone's dead but me...they..killed the Kwama Queen."

The Orc grimaced and tossed the young man over his shoulder in a fireman's carry, running towards a healer. Once the young man was being taken care of, the Orc sprinted over to the Inn where Darius, head of the Death's Head Legion was stationed. "Sir." he said breathlessly, saluting as he ran quickly up to the man, who was seated at his desk. "Giant ants at the Eggmine. Everyone's dead except one Dunmer. What shall we do?"

Darius stood up quickly, a look of anger in his eyes. "Is the entrance secure, soldier?"

"Yes, I believe so. He boarded it up on the way out and I don't think the ants are smart enough to get out. The stupid beasts might use their flame attack to burn through it though."

Darius looked thoughtful. "I have few experienced soldiers here. This is more of a recruitment office. I'll send a fast scout to Ghostgate for assistance. Soldier, you've had a stressful morning. Take the rest of the day off and see me in the morning."

At that, Darius summoned a young Bosmer in light Imperial Leather armor into the room. "Young lady, take this letter to Galdal Omayan at Ghostfence with all haste. Every second counts."

"Aye, sir." saluted the Wood Elf. She sprinted up the stairs and out the door at a surprisingly fast speed.

The Altimer stepped forward taking the handshake firmly.

"My name is Vanessa sir. Not your usual Altimer name but I'm not your usual Alitmer, or so I like to think of myself. My experience is that of a spell sword. Mostly destruction and Restoration in my spell book but I've been practicing my fire shield of late. I hope to be of service no matter where I'm placed."

With that she broke the handshake and stepped back nodding approvingly to her fellow volunteer as well as giving him an encouraging smile.

Danar returned the firm handshake, and nodded in approval. "Spellsword. Excellent. I can always use Spellswords. I do have a place for skills such as yours." He thought for a moment, looking her over. "Oh, another thing. You're an Altmer, are you not? You don't enjoy the natural resistances to Fire that my brethren and I possess, sadly. You might find this book handy."

He handed her a small Alit-hide bound book, written in golden lettering. "The Fundaments of Elemental Protection, by the magus Sotha Sil himself. You may find your Restoration abilities to be enhanced after reading through this. And feel free to keep it. Our monks make new copies all the time."

He quickly jotted down her name and her favored abilities, and regarded the Dunmer man with his light armor and weapons. He suspected the man was some sort of barbarian or warrior but was not sure. "And you, sera?"

"My name is Bar Kokhba."

The stoic Dunmer looked at the Altmer with a slight expression of contempt. There was something in his red eyes that didn't trust the Altmer and their high, aloof, prideful culture. What is she doing here? Bar Kokhba brushed off some dust from his belt and then looked down, across the table, at the armiger.

"I am a warrior of the Ashland hill country. I fight with an axe, sera, and have bent the powers of fire and wind to my command. I will willingly join your expedition to the Mountain of Fire." Detached from the conversation, Bar Kokhba quietly admired the Indoril architecture with a curious eye. House Dunmer culture was quite different to Ashlander culture.

Danar grinned, and warmly shook the man's hand.

"Proud warrior, I salute you and welcome you to the team. Your people have been useful allies at several points in the past for we Bouyant Armigers. I know that I can trust your experience and your skills." He thought for a moment, scanning Bar Kokhba's face, then reached into one of his desk drawers, pulling out a necklace with several enchanted gems and pieces of insect shell attached. "Do you recognize this design, my friend? It's of Ashlander origin. It belonged to a fallen comrade of mine named Ababael Yahaz. He died during the initial Ant invasion, but he fought alongside me bravely. Before burying him I retrieved this necklace from his body. I am aware of your Ashlander customs. I wish to share a gift with you, and that gift is this necklace, now properly returned to its own people."

He handed Bar Kokhba the enchanted necklace. "If I recall the words of my friend Ababael, this necklace is supposed to make the person wearing it a little more agile and fast. Very useful for a warrior I think, no? In any event I am happy to return this to Ashlander hands."

Vanessa's smile went strait when she noticed the ashlander didn't return her smile. Shrugging it off as what she figured was in general poor ashlander manners she started flipping though the book, more to glimpse the contents as opposed to really reading the material. As much as she wanted to go into the tome in greater depth it wasn't really the time. Tucking the book under her arm and brushing some hair out of her eye she turned her attention back to Danar.

"Well now that were all acquainted I hope you don't mind if I ask exactly what were up against here. I mean I know its giant ants but how much do we know about them? The best weapon is knowledge my tutor used to say and knowing our enemy is a critical step in success."

Danar regarded her. "Is that so? Your tutor's words mirror those of my own Lord Sotha Sil, one of the blessed Tribunal, brother to my Lord Vivec, one of the three great Saints and leaders of my People. Indeed knowledge is power. Biologically these ants seem to function in much the same manner as any old red ant. They have a colony structure, eat organic material both plant and animal, and appear to have an egg laying Queen at the center of their society. Much like the Kwama native to Morrowind, you see, except far more aggressive. And did I mention they are the size of Nix Hounds and breathe fire? Our mages and alchemists, and of course or priests, have studied this and determined that these ants were altered through alchemeical and magical means. We suspect the Telvanni are involved but don't have proof. As for what else we know about them - their history and such, here's a briefing"

He handed her a parchment of paper (basically containing the back story present in the opening post of this thread.) "You may read this at your leisure. Now where was I? Oh, right. In times past, our Lord Vivec would have personally dealt with this, but he's withdrawn from the world you see? Nobody's seen him for a few years. He does this kind of thing. He's a poet. I'm not worried because my Lord personally assured me he would return someday. Our second strongest champion, the Nerevarine went on a mission to some faraway land. I believe this is some sort of test from the Good Daedra, or perhaps a malady laid upon our lands by the House of Troubles. In either event, whether divine or mundane, these Ants are causing a lot of economic trouble here in the mother land of the Dunmer. Unless somebody else shows up soon, I will personally escort the two of you on a mission to clear out a small cave infested with the creatures."

At Danar's comments on Sotha Sil Vanessa couldn't help but find how awkward this might turn out as because all three of them had different gods or so she figured. Danar worshiped the tribunal and Bar Kokhba being an ashlander most likely worshiped Daedra. Vanessa herself prayed to the nine divines and though her earrings could be misleading they were a gift from a friend. While she tried her best to respect and honor the beliefs and traditions of others she was concerned how their different beliefs would play in this mission. So caught up in her thoughts she almost forgot to take the paper Danar handed to her. Shaking her head clear of distractions she read.

"This sure is interesting. Of course looking on the bright side at least it isn't fire breathing cliff racers. Pardon my asking but has anyone managed to properly soul trap one of these creatures?"

ooc: FYI Ashlanders practice ancestor worship, not necessarily Daedra worship, although some become witches and do this.



Danar thought for a few minutes, and added "Yes, I do believe an Orc from the Balmora mages guild managed to soultrap one of the ants. Our travels may lead us there sooner or later. As for myself, I have not heard that their souls possess any unique qualities, and I have not talked to the mage who soultrapped the ant. Her name is Sharn gra-Muzgob. She's supposedly a healer, though I've heard dark rumors concerning her past."

There was a sudden commotion across the hallway from where Danar sat. A Bosmer scout wearing leather armor burst into the office of Galdal Omayn, Grandmaster of the Buoyant Armiger military order. "Sir Galdal? Commander Darius sent you this parchment." The diminiative scout handed the paper to the older Dunmer, who wore fine red silk robes today. He read it over rather urgently, and rose to his feet quickly, sprinting down the hallway and into the barracks of the Buoyant Armigers. "Idaram brothers, suit up. Your special talents are needed in Gnisis, ASAP. I want you in full kit at the teleportation pad in ten minutes." The three Idaram brothers, whose names were Birer, Tidros and Giras, immediately scrambled to their equipment chests and began changing into their combat attire. Before they even got halfway there, the agile and powerful Galdal Omayn was in Danar's office. "Trouble in Gnisis, Danar. I'm sending the Idaram brothers in. They should be able to handle this themselves. In the meantime, you appear to have enough men to take care of the minor matter at Bthanchend. Some of our scouts reported they may have seen ants crawling around near there. It's possible they've set up a nest. If there are any there, there won't be many. The three of you can handle it. In the meantime I've sent Salyn Sarethi to Endusal - alone. I expect him to return unharmed, as he always does. His talents are second only to my own."

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Meanwhile, at Endusal

The ancient rusty brass door to the Dwemer stronghold stood slightly open. A small beam of sunlight emitted only a few feet into the stronghold. A large ant skittered into view, curiously pushing the door farther open with its powerful legs. Its antennae twitched curiously. It scanned the horizon, left and right. There was nobody there. Cautiously it took a few steps forward, and suddenly Master Salyn Sarethi was in front of it, dressed in full Glass with a long red cape, his Glass Dagger, Enamor at his side. The ant's tiny brain was confused. It didn't understand things like Invisibility spells, and it hesitated a critical moment before releasing a stream of fire at Sarethi.

The fire passed harmlessly through an Illusion of Sarethi, the Master of Illusion among other things. The Ant also knew nothing of the age old Copy technique taught to the Buoyant Armigers by Vivec himself. Before it had time to even move, the real Salyn Sarethi brought his fine dagger down and pierced the thing's brain from behind, twisting. He then yanked the dagger away and pointed his fingertips towards the dying beast, releasing a powerful stream of lightning which left nothing but a charred exoskeleton. Master Sarethi wiped his dagger clean on a cloth and calmly, confidently strolled into the darkness of Endusal, his eyes glowing blue from a Nighteye spell. When he exited two hours later, equally calmly and not even out of breath, nothing remained alive inside. This was not a man whom you wanted on your bad side.

OOC: Sorry guys, I'm going to have to pull out of this one. I don't have time to participate in multiple RPs, at the moment.

OOC: That's fine. I had a backup plan to write any given character out. Here goes. And thank you for your interest in my story. I really appreciate it.

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Danar regarded the present goings-on, and furrowed his brow deeply. He turned to the Altmer, Vanessa. "Vanessa, you and I will assault Bthanchend. We two alone should be more than enough to handle the situation there, if ant populations are sparse.

He regarded the other Ashlander warrior. "My good man, your face seems troubled, distracted. Perhaps you work better alone? I have an important mission for one such as yourself, as well. Though no less important than the ant problem, this is different. A Lich by the name of Lord Andel has defiled one of the ancestral tombs of the Ahemussa people. I would send some of my own men to cleanse this tomb, but since you're a proud Ash warrior and of obviously capable physical stature, I want to send you along with my blessing. You will know where this place is because the necklace around your collar will draw you to it - this is the family tomb of my dear friend Ababael Yahaz, also known as the Yahaz burial caverns. It's well hidden near the coast of Dagon Fel but with your excellent tracking skills I am confident you can end the life or rather un-life of this traitorous Lich. After that, I am giving you leave to to take a pilgrimage and collect your thoughts. If and when you decide to work for me again, you know where to find me." He dropped 500 gold pieces into the Ashlander's travel bag and kindly saw him to the door.

He turned to face Vanessa. "Now, my dear. Before we leave, are you sure all your equipment is in working order? Do you require healing of any sort, and are there any potions, spells or scrolls you think might come in handy? It's just a few low level ants really. Nothing to fuss about, but being your first assignment with us I want you to feel comfortable. If there's anything you need before we begin this mission, tell me now and I'll arrange for it. Anything at all. I can teach you some spells myself if you don't already know them, mostly college of Restoration."

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The three Idaram brothers, whose names were Birer, Tidros and Giras appeared in a poof of light near Gnisis, along with a Temple mage who had teleported them. The pretty young red-haired Dunmer girl stood back while the more heavily armored Buoyant Armigers began marching towards the Eggmine. Birer turned to look over his shoulder. "Thank you for your service. You may want to fall back and stay in the Legion headquarters where it's safe for the time being. In the mean time..." he cracked his knuckles, and neck, as his brothers did the same. "It's time to get down to business."

As they marched slowly up the hill, they were joined by Darius himself and some of his elite men, including the Orc, Sharkub gro-Khashnar, who held a nasty looking hammer in his hands and wore chain mail. They approached the opening to the mine.

"Crunch time" commented Birer Idaram without even hesitating. He pointed his open palm outwards and used a powerful Telekinesis spell to rip the door off its hinges. As the first ants came pouring out his brother Giras readied his Longbow, and Tidros began chanting and charging up a powerful lightning spell. Darius and his Orc lieutenant stood back as his Orc and Dunmer archers readied their crossbows...

ok thanks for letting us know.

Vanessa turned to bid the ashlander luck before turning to Danar.
"Well I came prepared for the most part. However I wouldent say no to some fire shild and resistance potions. Also a few soul gems and spare partchment would do me well as I often practice scrollcraft. And if we have any scrolls of flame atronarch summoning I could use that. I dont know how they would fight the ants but being immune to their own element I know they would be able to hold a line if we would need to make a hasty retreat."

Danar listened patiently, nodding at key phrases, and scratched his chin. "Oh, right. The ants breathe fire, but they're not actually resistant to it at all. I've seen Ordinators and other crusaders take them down fairly easily with flame attacks. And yes, for your information we do have a resident scroll crafter and enchanter in the Temple. Her name is Faras Thirano. I'm sure she mentioned she had some Atronoch scrolls, as well as the gems and parchment you'll need. If she's not in the Temple area she'll be relaxing at the pub or tending to the plants out back. She'll more than likely be in the Temple praying or enchanting things for the Buoyant Armigers."

Vanessa noded "alright then. I dident know how well they could resist their own element but still it couldent hurt to error on the side of caution. Anyway after we collect our supplies how are we going to get to our designation? will we walk, teleport or ride?"