Pixie Kitten, He's Behind You!!

[PixieKitten]

Anybody watched Mantracker before? It's awesome. I command you to watch an episode. Go one, go do it now! I'll wait. There's loads of episodes on Youtube.
I'm not kidding guys, go watch it. I'm not posting anything more about my challenge until Day One. Watch the show, and you'll already know what I'm doing. I'm starting on the 16th rather than the 17th, because I want to include my charity race in my challenge =D

 

[Manarelle]

An interesting game idea, for sure. I like that there's no guilt/shame/omg-fake-danger sensationalism in it (ok, in the description- I'm at work!). Just skills and knowledge. I'll check it out when I get home, and, in the meantime.... I'm following you.

[Hazard]

15 hours ago, PixieKitten said:

Anybody watched Mantracker before? It's awesome. I command you to watch an episode. Go one, go do it now! I'll wait. There's loads of episodes on Youtube.

 

 

 

[PixieKitten]

DAY ONE 16.07.16

 

BANG!

You've been dropped into the wilderness, and are left to fend for yourself with only the items you've brought with you to survive. You've been given a map, a compass, and a destination 676km away with only 4 weeks to get there. To attain this you'll have to travel 24km a day, or at least 25,000 steps. Your trusty Fitbit will keep track of this for you. As if this wasn't challenging enough, There's a cowboy whose sole intent is to track you down and stop you. And he's got a horse. You've been given a 2km head start on the Tracker. You've spent the last couple of hours pouring over the map and determining your best route. Having safely stowed it away in your pack with the compass, you jump at the flare and run in your intended direction.

A mere 2 clicks from you, Mantracker has seen the flare. He has no map or compass in this battle of Tracker vs. Prey. He turns to his guide, a man who has grown up in the area and knows it better than anyone else, including you. The two nod at each other, and nudge their horses into a swift canter toward the attention-grabbing explosive. The hunt has begun.

 

 

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this 4 week special of Mantracker! We'll be watching this brave young Pixie as she attempts so battle her way through 420 miles of hills, bush, and extreme weather whilst also enduring the mundanities of real life. Thankfully having a job that requires her to be on her feet all day can do nothing but help her cause. As she runs to keep her already dwindling headway from Mantracker and his guide, let's take a look at her stats and goals!

This episode is not only special in its length, taking 4 weeks instead of the usual two days, but Pixie will be doing it alone, beign the only one brave enough to audition for the special. Usually we'd send a pair of Prey, but it would seem none of her friends were willing to play!

PREY
Pixie Kitten
Age: 23
Hometown: Worcester, UK
Occupation: Front of House/Occasional Backup Chef

(00000000- -) Endurance
(000000- - - -) Strength
(000000000-) Outdoor Experience
(00000- - - - -) Orienteering

Her Main Quest? Beat the Mantracker. (18XP, CHA+3)

She'll take to camping at least once a fortnight, as if this were just a reeeeeeeeeeaally long 2 day adventure. (16XP,CON+2)
She'll keep moving ALL the time. She'll NEVER be sedentry unless she's sleeping. (16XP, STA+2)
Any hill in her path will be sprinted. Mantracker's got a horse, and she's got to get ahead at every opportunity! (18XP, DEX+3)
The path might be quickest, but it's also easy for horses to gallop on. She'll have to bushwhack away fro mthe track as often as possible! (16XP, STR+1)

One the Side, her diet's going to have to be modified. As there are no shops in the wilderness of Mantracker Land, she'll have to carry all her food with her! Pixie will be spending her free moments munching on trail mix, jerky, peanut butter and any morsels of food she can find along the way! If she can pack it, she can eat it! (16XP, WIS+1)

Boosts and Consequences

Every decision leads to an action. Every action will either put Pixie further from Mantracker, or closer to him. Lets take a look at her options!

BOOSTS

Bushwhack a shortcut: + 0.5km
Sprint a hill: +1km
Set a tracker trap: +0.5km
Eat on the go: +0.5km
Enlist the help of a friend: +2km

CONSEQUENCES

Miss a camp: -0.5km
Don't sprint a hill: -0.5km
Miss a meal: -0.5km
Every hour spent sitting: -1km
Leave prints in a track trap: -0.5

 

Let's get back to our challenger, shall we?

 

 

On the first day of her travels, Pixie comes across one of her friends, out on a hike. They're going in the same direction, so they chat as they keep up the pace.
'How's the challenge coming, Pixie?' The friend says. Pixie can see they're looking guilty at making her do this by herself. Maybe she can get them to help, just for this bit. She knows what's ahead, and she'll struggle on her own.
'It's.. It's been tough so far. I know I'm active anyway, but having someone constantly hunting you? There's a whole new layer of stress. But I'm ok by myself so far, it's just..'
'What? What is it?'
'It's this next stretch of land. See here?' She whips out her map and shows the friend the tough terrain. 'There's no way a horse could get through this 5k stretch, they'd have to go around. And if I could just get through it quick enough, it'll put me a good 2km more ahead of him. But it's not easy. The weather's been terrible recently and it's all slippy mud, and there's these obstacles there that I know I'll struggle with. I don't think I can do it alone.'
The friend studies the map as best she can whilst walking. She looks up at Pixie.
'I feel bad for not agreeing to do this challenge with you. There's no way I could have done it, I would only have dragged you down, and he would have caught us. But I have enough strength to do this small stretch. I'd be happy to help you over the obstacles, and then we can run any flat stretches. It'll be like those mud charity runs they do!'

Overjoyed by her friends agreeing to help, Pixie beams. 'Together?'
They join hands.
'Together.' The friend nods, and they start jogging. Together.

2km behind, Mantracker and his guide are following the tiny signs that Pixie has been accidentally leaving behind. crushed leaves, bent foliage, snapped twigs. They stop to assess the upcoming terrain.
'Up ahead is a 5 km stretch of ridiculously hard land. There are obstacles, there are sheer cliffs and drops you'd have to climb, but currently it's all covered in mud. If she had a partner, I reckon she'd try it.' The guide explains, signalling to straight ahead. Mantracker scoffs amusedly.
'Good thing she's alone huh? Which way do you reckon she'd go?' He asks.
'Either way will bring her to a point about 5km away straight, but it's 7km either way around. So we can pick either and set a trap at the end. The only way she'd get there before us was if she could get through the middle stretch in short time.'
'Which she can't, because she's alone?'
'Exactly.' Confirms the guide.
'Good. Let's go for a stroll, eh?'

The two laugh as they pick the right trail and leisurely walk down it, confident that she'd have to go the long way.

 

In only 45 minutes, Pixie and her friend have made their way across the challenging course. The Prey's friend hugs her, wishes her well, and heads on home for a good long shower. Our Pixie, however, is not so lucky. Though she's gained the extra ground on Mantracker, she cannot stop to rest now. She must continue for the rest of the day, covered in mud. But a good start for Day One!

 

[Manarelle]

Squee! What a fantastic story! Go, pixie, go!

[PixieKitten]

SCORE KEEPING
DAY ONE -O.5 missed breakfast, +2 Enlist a friend, +0.5 eat on the go
DAY TWO -1 inactivity

 

Day Two

Welcome back readers! Last time we left the Prey revelling in victory, and a confused Mantracker, who was enraged to find two sets of tracks emerging from the stretch of difficult terrain. Recognising one of the tracks as those of our challenger, he followed the direction they were headed in, seethign to be outdone so early. But will our Pixie keep up her 4km lead on the hunter? Let's find out!

 

Day two found the Prey struggling to find motivaton. Though she managed to keep moving for a total of 25,203 steps, Half way through the day she sat to rest and lunch in the thick undergrowth, well out of Mantracker's view. Unfortunately for Pixie, the spot she found was just too comfortable, and an hour and a half after sitting down, she awoke to find she'd fallen asleep! While snoozing, Mantracker managed to catch up a little. Cursing herself for her stupidity, Pixie carefully surveyed her surroundings before setting off at a light jog. He won't be getting any closer today!!

 

[PixieKitten]

SCORE KEEPING
DAY ONE -O.5 missed breakfast, +2 Enlist a friend, +0.5 eat on the go
DAY TWO -1 inactivity
DAY THREE +0.5 eat on the go

 

 

Day Three

Satisfied with her current lead on the Trackers,  We find Pixie keeping up the pace, a good few km into the day's journey already. Still no sign of Mantracker, she figures she must have kept her lead. Here and there she finds she has to do a bit of weight lifting, as some heavy tree branches have fallen in her way and are too unstable to climb over. She squats to the ground and lifts them up, crawls underneath, and gently places them back where they were. Though admittedly she does not posess the trained eye of Mantracker, she feels that she's put them down adequetly. And hey. Even if she has made tracks, Mantracker and his buddy are going to have to move this too.
    Having reached her needed distance of 25,000 steps just as the sun began to dip below the treeline, Pixie sets up camp for the night. Bedding sorted, and her backpack rearranged for the upmost convenience for tomorrow, She settles down. Putting on her fitbit's silent alarm to make sure she wakes at the crack of dawn so she can have time for breakfast, she listens one last time for the sound of horses before closing her eyes. The sounds of the outside's fauna lull her into a deep sleep.

[PixieKitten]

SCORE KEEPING
DAY ONE -O.5 missed breakfast, +2 Enlist a friend, +0.5 eat on the go
DAY TWO -1 inactivity
DAY THREE +0.5 eat on the go
DAY FOUR:  +0.5km set a tracker trap

 

Day Four

This morning our prey awakes with a new determination. After a quick munch on jerky and peanut butter, she takes the first hour of her travels at a jog. The horses will be trotting, so why not her? Speaking of horses....

Pixie's taken the long walk to contemplate how to increase the gap between her and the Trackers. Though setting a trap waste precious time, it could also buy a lot more back. She decides to take the risk. Spotting a herd of horses nearby, she quickly surveyed the trees along the trail she was currently travelling down. Bingo! She spotted a willow tree. The leaves had already been eaten at horse level, but above? Plenty to drop down and block the road with hungry, squabbling horses. And perfect to get rid of any tracks she may have left here. Mantracker would have  hard time going around them. She jogs quickly to the tree, grinning. She unravels the leadrope from her waist and throws an end over a low branch, catching it on the other side and hoisting herself up. The nearby horses immediately take a keen interest, a couple wandering over. Pixie wastes no time in reaching for branches and throwing them down. More and more horses approach, successfully blocking the path, and it's not long before the squabbling kicks in, all of them trying to get some before a higher ranking horse kicks them out of the way. Sniggering, Pixie breaks a few more branches and disperses them wider still, then hops down from the tree and sets off into a gentle jog to make up for lost time.

By the time Mantracker and his Guide get to the site, the horses are still blocking the path with no way around, muching on the last few boughs of willow. The Tracker's horses attempt to get closer, also seeing the willow, but the lead horse of the large herd charges at them, and the Trackers struggle to remain in control.

 Mantracker turns to his guide. 'Well now what?' The guide ponders the situation.

'Well these horses ain't budging, and we can't get past, or through.. Only choice is to backtrack and go on the trail parallel to us.' He tells the cowboy. 'It's gonna put us back about half a click.'

Mantracker groans. They followed the Prey's tracks right up to here. He can see the willow tree has a lot of broken branches. Clearly, this Prey knows horses. 'Damn. Clever little mouse, isn't she? Come on, Buddy' He mutters to the horse, and they turn and go back the way they came. Unaware but hopeful that her trap has worked, Pixie jogs on, determined to beat this challenge.

 

 

(<-- pssst.. That's my Queenie on the right! )

[Manarelle]

Is the Pixiekitten in deep hiding? Hopefully she's still giving the mantracker a run for his money (badum tss). How's it going?

[PixieKitten]

 

Please Stand By!!!

[PixieKitten]

Guys, I'm so sorry, I'm gonna have to drop this challenge. Lot of shit's come up in the last couple of weeks and I can't give this challenge the focus and fun it deserves. Putting it back on the shelf for a slightly more stable month. Expect a return of Mantracker at some point!

[Manarelle]

Life happens, usually not when it's convenient. Take care of yourself; hope things settle down for you soon!

[Owlet]

Aw sorry to hear that, hope everything's ok and you are getting some fun times with the animals