Boots Tunnel Pig Reserve

A proposal has been made to establish Boots Tunnel Pig Reserve: a protected reserve, deep within the underground reaches of Syradonia, among the forgotten passages of the deep, around two adjoining caverns of remarkable and dangerous natural wonder.

The first cavern would provide a safe habitat for a population of Wombats, while the second contains extensive natural deposits of ‘Black Opal’, the complexities of which are detailed later. Together, the two caverns would form a unique ecosystem and is to be carefully managed, as a source of opal-infused material.

The black opal cavern discovered would remain largely untouched. Its walls, floor, and ceiling are covered in glittering veins and deposits of black opal which, despite their value, cannot be safely mined by humans. Black opal appears to be deadly to humans, with even brief exposure capable of causing some kind of sickness, weakness, and other strange magical reactions. To add to this danger, the cavern is further inhabited by cat-eyed, twin-tailed vipers, whose bodies blend almost perfectly with the shifting reflections of the opal. These creatures are highly poisonous and natural predators of the aforementioned Wombats.

These Wombats themselves possess an unusual tolerance to the Black Opal and are the entire reason this project can go ahead. They consume the raw deposits, their bodies apparently transforming whatever makes the mineral dangerous to humans and produce small, glittering, square-shaped stools which are harmless, but retain unusual properties. It’s theorised that continued exposure to different deposits could produce changes in the Wombats themselves, though witnessed only a handful of times; their fur developed black, silver, blue, violet, or green colouring and even faint glitter. Their waste would consequently provide an indication of the material it has consumed and the properties its waste may possess.

The plan is to employ a small number of trained handlers to care for and protect the animals. With each expedition starting within the safer cavern, check the animals, provide additiona food and water as needed, before accompanying them deeper nto the second cavern. Allowing the wombats to feed naturally while their handlers function as lookouts. Once done, all return to the safer cavern where their waste can be processed.

Integral to the reserve would be the ‘Syradonian Boot Donation Centre’, an institution established to ensure the wombats can be reliably provided with water. The animals have been trained to drink only from boots supplied by their handlers, making suitable footwear an essential part of their care. Rather than allowing worn boots to be discarded, Syradonians would be encouraged to donate them to the reserve. The centre would clean, sort, and prepare donated footwear before it is passed on to the handlers for use as watering vessels.

Boots may come from any part of Syradonian society, from children's footwear and worn miners' boots to specially commissioned pairs donated for the purpose. Older boots that carry a strong and familiar Syradonian scent may be particularly valuable, and the Donation Centre would maintain records of its contributions and the footwear supplied to the reserve.

This is a multi stage build Stage 1 A wombat sanctuary protecting the wombats and creating a safe way to harvest the black opals and a donation center for Syradonian boots without these the wombats will die from thirst.

Stage 2 A laboratory for the investigation of using the wombat feces as firstiser for syridonian native plants please see the moth sanctuary for further details

Stage 3 Enlargement of the laboratory for the investigation of the properties of the black opel infused plants. The aim is to see if they would be suitable for the use in drinks and other consumable purposes.

Further build options include the location of a gold vein (this will require Earth weaving) and further experimentation to see what would happen if gold is fed to the tunnel pigs

Cost of Construction	Stage 1: 2Legends, 15 Saga
Location	Syradonia
Build Code	`BG.FSM.119`
Nation	Syradonia
Remaining Balance	2 Legends, 10 Saga

Contributions so far

Contributor	Source	Amount
Echos heard only in shadow	Syradonia	8 Saga
Triumph is drunk from the boot of champions	Syradonia	7 Saga
Note: Contributions are tracked by the Bankers Guild. Contact them for full records.